The early morning mist had just begun to lift when Iruka and Naruto stepped onto the training field. Dew clung to the grass, sparkling beneath the warm rays of sunlight filtering through the trees. A few birds chirped softly in the distance — the only soundtrack to the start of what promised to be another intense training day.
Naruto was already buzzing with energy.
"Alright!" he shouted, forming a familiar seal. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
With a puff of smoke, a hundred Narutos exploded across the field. As usual, twenty-five clones split off to work on chakra control exercises, forming perfect stances by the river, while the remaining seventy-five turned toward Iruka, waiting for the next lesson in swordsmanship.
Iruka smiled, drawing his practice blade. "Today, I'll begin teaching you a proper style. It's time we moved beyond just slashing."
But before he could take another step, a voice interrupted from his mind — clear and warm.
"How about I teach him instead?"
Naruto spun around. "Huh?"
Kushina's voice echoed in Naruto's mind, playful and proud. "I always wanted to pass down my style to our son personally."
In the outside world, Naruto's face lit up like the sun itself.
Iruka, hearing the voice through their connection, blinked in stunned silence. "…Sure."
Kushina added sweetly, "You know, Iruka… you could say 'Sure, Mom.'"
Iruka froze mid-step, eyes wide.
"W-what?"
Naruto practically bounced in place. "YES! I want to learn a super cool sword technique!"
All the clones echoed his enthusiasm with loud cheers and synchronized jumps, their voices blending together like a chorus of determined children. "Cool sword style! Cool sword style!"
Kurenai chuckled quietly from her spot under the shade, amused by Naruto's pure excitement.
From the nearby bench, Tsunade and Jiraiya sat in silence, their jaws slightly slack at the sheer number of functioning clones. Tsunade rubbed her temples. "A hundred…? Already?"
Jiraiya muttered, "I'm starting to think we raised this kid way too conservatively…"
Naruto, meanwhile, tilted his head and shouted to Iruka, "Hey Sensei! If I learn this style, can I cut the sky like you do?"
Iruka smiled modestly, scratching his head. "If your form is good enough, you can cut anything. The style matters less than the precision."
Inside Naruto's mind, Kushina beamed with pride.
"You hear that, Naruto?" she whispered gently. "You're going to surpass me one day. But make sure you're careful with the technique. It's not about destruction."
Back in the real world, Team 8 finally arrived, coming around the path. Kiba whistled as he spotted Naruto leading dozens of clones in sword drills. "Whoa! What the hell's going on here?"
Akamaru barked, tail wagging.
Shino adjusted his glasses. "They seem… disciplined."
Hinata watched Naruto closely, cheeks warming at his focused expression. She tried to look away but couldn't help the small smile tugging at her lips.
Kiba folded his arms. "Sword style training, huh? I want in! I wanna learn how to cut the sky too!"
Jiraiya raised a brow. "Cut the sky? Alright, Iruka… now I'm curious."
He stood and called over, "Hey, Iruka. Can you show me this 'sky slash' they keep going on about?"
Iruka raised an eyebrow, then sheathed his blade.
"If you really want to see it."
He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and reached behind him. His hand rested on the hilt of Enma — the blade resting on his back. For a moment, everything stilled. Even the birds went silent.
Then—
Schwing!
In one smooth motion, Iruka unsheathed Enma. The blade turned obsidian-black in an instant, coated in Haki, pulsating with raw, tempered resolve. He slashed forward with a quiet whoosh — and then everything in the slash's path was severed. Trees, wind, and sky itself seemed to part like a curtain. Leaves fell in stunned silence, bisected cleanly midair.
Naruto's eyes sparkled. Literally. Big, bright, shimmering stars replaced his pupils like he'd just seen the coolest, most dramatic scene of his life unfold right before him.
"THAT—" he shouted, bouncing in place, "THAT WAS SO COOL!!"
Inside Naruto's mind, Kushina let out a startled cry.
Inside Naruto's mind, Kushina screamed: "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?! THAT'S NOT A SLASH, THAT'S A JUTSU-DISGUISED NATURAL DISASTER!!"
Minato's eyes widened. "Incredible. And he didn't even use chakra in it."
Kurama murmured, "Will… forged through battle and clarity. That man… he's not ordinary."
Back on the field, Jiraiya and Tsunade sat completely frozen.
Jiraiya whispered, "That… that wasn't just ninjutsu."
She stepped forward, her crimson eyes holding a flicker of determination.
"Iruka…" Kurenai said, her voice soft but steady, "I know you've improved a lot over these last two months. I've been watching quietly… But I—I want to grow stronger too. I don't want to be left behind. I took one of the pills two days ago, and I can feel something changing inside me… but I can't quite figure it out."
Iruka blinked, genuinely taken aback. He hadn't expected that vulnerability from her—not so openly.
He looked at her for a beat longer than necessary. The sunlight caught in her hair, highlighting the soft curve of her cheek, and something unspoken stirred in his chest.
He smiled.
"Well," he said gently, his voice warmer than usual, "for starters… you've become even more beautiful."
There was a heartbeat of stunned silence.
Then—
SLAP!
A sharp, resounding smack echoed across the training ground.
Iruka stumbled half a step back, more surprised than hurt.
Kurenai's hand was still suspended in the air, her eyes wide in disbelief. A deep blush began to crawl across her face, rising all the way to the tips of her ears.
"I—! I didn't mean to hit you!" she blurted out, blushing and horrified. "It just—! That wasn't what I expected you to say!"
Naruto and Kiba burst into laughter so hard they fell onto the grass, clutching their sides. A few of the clones lost their balance from laughing too hard and collapsed into puffs of smoke.
Kurenai turned toward them, cheeks burning. "S-Stop laughing!"
"Y-You smacked him!" Naruto howled.
"You totally blushed!" Kiba snorted, pointing. "Oh man, you've got it bad!"
"I do not!" Kurenai snapped, flustered beyond belief, covering her face with one sleeve while glaring through her fingers. "He deserved that—!"
Then, quieter, she muttered under her breath, "…But also maybe… a little thank you."
Iruka rubbed his cheek, grinning now.
"It's fine," he chuckled. "Honestly, that reflex? You could probably dodge a lightning bolt with timing like that."
Kurenai's eyes darted to him again—and now she was smiling too, even as she tried to compose herself.
"You just caught me off guard," she mumbled, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "Compliments from you usually come with a serious lecture about squad formations."
Iruka laughed, brushing a bit of dust off his shoulder. "What can I say? Maybe I'm just naturally bold when I'm around someone like you."
Kurenai's eyes widened slightly, a blush creeping onto her cheeks. "Hold it, sword boy," she said, trying to suppress a smile. "You're pushing your luck."
He tilted his head with a smirk. "Am I?"
She bit her lip, half-turning away in mock fluster. "You are," she muttered, but didn't move farther. "But… maybe I don't mind."
Naruto and Kiba, who had been listening with interest, immediately erupted into exaggerated "Oooooooh!"s and laughter, while even some clones facepalmed dramatically.
Kurenai groaned and waved them off. "Stop it, all of you!" she said, cheeks flaming. "Grow up!"
Iruka just grinned, clearly enjoying himself. "You walked right into that one."
Meanwhile, off to the side, Jiraiya was scribbling furiously in his notebook, his shoulders trembling with glee.
Tsunade leaned over and raised an eyebrow. "Are you finally taking notes on that slash technique?"
"Pfft, no," Jiraiya grinned. "This is way more interesting. This stuff's priceless."
"You mean the drama?" she asked dryly.
"I mean the romantic comedy," he said with a wink. "He got slapped, then smiled about it. That's practically the start of every great love story."
Kiba nodded, nudging Shino with his elbow. "Man, I want that kind of training. Cool slashes and flirty drama!"
Kurenai turned to the laughing genin, eyes narrowing in mock warning. "If you brats don't stop teasing, I'will put you in genjutsu and relive your nightmare again and again!"
All of Naruto's clones saluted in fear. "YES MA'AM!"
Kiba yelped. "No fair! Why am I involved?!"
Iruka just laughed out loud, still watching Kurenai with soft amusement. Despite her protests, she looked genuinely flattered. Her usual composed demeanor was cracked, revealing something gentler underneath.
As Kurenai turned away to hide her blush, Iruka spoke up just loud enough for her to hear.
"You know… I didn't mind the slap."
She whipped her head back around, eyes wide. "What?!"
He shrugged, teasingly. "Kind of nice to be touched by a beautiful woman."
Her mouth opened in stunned silence. "You—!"
Her hands flew to her face again. "Okay, okay, I'm done here!"
She turned and practically marched back toward the tree, but the red on her cheeks betrayed the smile tugging at her lips.
Naruto whispered to Kiba, "This is way better than any movie I've seen."
Kiba smirked. "Dibs on narrating it in class later."
Iruka, shaking his head in amusement, turned back to the field.
"All right, enough fun for now. Back to training, everyone."
But as he resumed position, his gaze flicked once more to Kurenai, who glanced at him through her lashes—still flustered, but… happy.
Something unspoken passed between them in that brief moment.
And for once, amidst blades and slashes, training and trials—
There was a hint of something softer blooming on the battlefield.
Something like affection.
Maybe even the start of something more.
[End of Chapter]
this chapter is a bit long but I didn't post for few days so I thought why not do share what you like and not about this chapter