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Post by Sarutobi Sio on Aug 25, 2013 0:31:56 GMT -5
Open to one other only, please.
Sio could not explain the change within herself. Somehow, over these last couple of days, she just felt lighter. Naruto's funeral had been only three days prior, and though she was still grieving, she also felt as if there was something she was supposed to be doing. Something that only she could do. The support of her family and friends during this time had been paramount to this mood, and she felt like there was something that she should have been doing in order to pay them back. But still, there was something she needed to address. Sitting down on the bench with her shaved ice, she let her subconscious slip in that moment to a place that dwelled deep within her.
Kurama... she called out, walking up to the giant gate where the fox appeared to be sleeping on the other side. One eye opened, then closed again, as if not wanting to be bothered. I wanted to thank you for the other day...at the funeral. What you did with the flower...if meant a lot to me. And I'm sure it would have meant a lot to Naruto, as well. Kurama would seemingly ignore Sio for a moment before opening that eye again, and then eventually both. Raising his head, he looked at her for a moment, as if debating something within his own head. Finally, he spoke.
You asked me the other day if I had ever been happy before. I can think of one time.
[/color] Sio raised her eyebrows in interest and then seated herself in front of the gate, gaze locked on the biju. When Naruto and I worked together to defeat Obito. I was happy then.Really? Sio asked. She was quite taken aback by the statement. First of all, she had forgotten that she had even asked the question. But she had honestly not expected one of his happy moments, and to moment: his only one, to have been spent within a jinchuuriki. Why? I would have thought that your happy moment would have been while you were still free.Now it was Kurama's turn to be surprised. No other host had ever spoken with him like this. They locked him away, sealed his power, allowed his chakra to leak for their own personal use. They had not addressed him by name, and definitely did not speak colloquially with him. Naruto would be the one to start the trend, but even then, it was infrequent, and slow to start. Sio, on the other hand was constantly trying to strike up a conversation. Constantly asking hm about his hopes and dreams. Asking him what he thought. Telling him stories. Upon first being sealed in Sio, Kurama had staunchly decided that he would hate her and her incessant teenage girly angst. But even that much was beginning to melt away. One could dare say he was even starting to like her. She didn't bite away at his chakra. She didn't demand things of him. She wasn't ashamed to be his jinchuriki. Sio knew what it was like to be hated and treated like dirt even before becoming a host. There was nothing that having a tailed beast could do to her that hadn't already been done. It's because it was a decision that I had made on my own. It wasn't made out of obligation or survival. I helped the Alliance because...I didn't want to see what kind of world that freak Uchiha would have created with the Tsukiyomi. I made that decision of my own free will. My first decision since being sealed into a host.Now Sio understood. She understood what Kurama was unable or unwilling to say. And she didn't need to repeat it and risk damaging his pride. She only nodded in affirmation before standing. I understand. And I hear you. I promise I'm going to find a way to help you. If you were happy before, you can be happy again. And I'm going to figure out how to get you there.The fox was dumbfounded, and his facial features twisted into a display of such, brow furrowing. ...Why?Sio smiled, placing a hand on the bar of the gate. Why not? Everyone deserves to be happy. People, dogs, bugs, and chakra foxes, too.Kurama just stared at her for a moment, almost in disbelief at what he'd just heard. Sio patted the gigantic gate bar and turned to leave. Talk to you later, Kurama!Sitting on the bench, Sio smiled as she took a bite of her shaved ice, looking around at the people milling about. She had purposely left room on the opposite end of the bench, in case someone decided they'd like to rest their feet for a moment. Sio had some work to do, and she couldn't do it alone.[/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]
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Post by Uzumaki Minato on Aug 29, 2013 11:16:47 GMT -5
"Everything okay? You seem distracted." the auburn haired man asked as he lobbed a series of punches at his son's face. They had been sparing for a little less than an hour, and within that hour, Sato was unable to find that spark in his son's eyes that he could usually spot with little to no effort. It was openly noticeable, yet his question inquiry went unanswered.
"Minato...Minato..." his voice called in a muffled whisper. "What is wrong?"
"Nothing," he replied. With his jab being parried, he braced himself. Following up with a back-handspring, the tip of his sandal whizzed passed his dad's face.
"You can talk to me, you know." Grabbing Minato by the ankle, he yolked his leg downward. Thrusting both of his arms forth, two kunai were thrown from his hands.
!!
"RASENDAMA--!!" roared Minato, hand raised to the sky as a green orb of destruction buzzed, spiraling in the palm of his hand.
'Is that a Rasengan? Without a Shadow Clone?' ducking low, Sato shifted his body back in a spinning motion as he chortled. 'No, it's not.'
With a fierce glare he pushed his hand that held twirling sphere diagonally, unbinding the wind that formed its' composition. A powerful gale sent the older Uzumaki toppling backwards--
'He's made a copy of oji-san's jutsu', barring his arms over his face he watched of the torrent of wind sent him flying. 'And it's a wind release jutsu?!'
Cupped hands rested in his pocket as he walked through the village. A lot was on his mind, yet his face was semi-expressionless. He hadn't been quite sure how to feel about things since the funeral.
"I can't believe anyone would try to hurt Sio," he mused aloud, thoughts of the strange man who interrupted his grandfather's funeral came to mind.
"Who was that guy?" he asked, looking up to the Heavens. "Why does he want to catch those tailed beast things?"
Multiple other questions appeared in his mind as he wandered, his green peepers glancing upon all those who trekked upon the roads as he did. He was wondered how they felt about the situation, he wondered if they would turn on Sio.
He hoped that they wouldn't. Regardless if they did or not, he refused to do so. Sio was a friend, and Minato always protected his nakama. No matter what.
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Post by Sarutobi Sio on Aug 29, 2013 11:31:34 GMT -5
Sio finished her shaved ice, licking her fingers and tossing the paper cup into the trash next to the bench. Perhaps she should get up off of this bench and do something. Her training, without direction from Naruto, had become sporradic and without guidance. The last thing they had been working on was applying her element to the Rasengan. But with she and Naruto's chakra natures being different, it was hard to pinpoint exactly where the errors were coming in.
Starting to push off the bench, she decided she would put in an hour or two at the Training Field. She just wasn't really feeling it, but that was no way to be. Especially if she was to do Naruto's memory proud. No sooner than she would leave the bench would she see Minato headed in her general direction. "Minato!" she called out, jogging over to him. "Minato! What's up?"
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Post by Uzumaki Minato on Aug 29, 2013 12:03:03 GMT -5
"Speak of the devil," he laughed, stopping in his place as he saw Sio heading towards him. Lifting his right hand to the back of his yellow mop, he itched that spot behind his ear.
"Not much," he replied with a friendly smile. The warm of the wind whisked by gently, knocking his unkempt hair into the breeze. "I've just been walking, I couldn't find much to do today."
Looking into the Genin girl's dark eyes, he was surprised to find no trace of worry there. This pleased him, because it'd help settle his mind a little. He took a step before looking around, he peered to his right and to his left.
"Where are you headed?" he asked, lacing his together, he allowed his hands to rest behind the crown of his noggin.
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Post by Sarutobi Sio on Aug 29, 2013 12:19:34 GMT -5
The truth was, Sio was worried. She should have been petrified out of her mind. But for some reason, she couldn't be. She and Kurama were going to survive this. She had met the other Biju and jinchuriki, and their resolve was strong within her, as well as her own. She would not stop her life because of Ojin.
"I was just on my way to the training field." she admitted, jerking her thumb in that general direction. "I wanted to work on my Rasengan...Naruto-sensei and I had been working on applying an element to it, but it hadn't been going well." She smiled at her friend, smoothing out the scarf around her neck. "If you're bored, you can come with, if you want. Maybe we can work out why it's not working. Have you managed to apply an element to yours, yet?"
This, of course, was Sio assuming that Naruto had taught Minato the Rasengan.
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Post by Uzumaki Minato on Aug 29, 2013 13:42:55 GMT -5
His brow narrowed at the sound of the jutsu she said. "The Rasengan," he repeated back, his voice trailing off accordingly. "I haven't learned the Rasengan yet," he told her in a lax monotone.
Smiling, Minato nodded his head and accepted her invitation. He had only seen his Grandpa perform the Rasengan, and to be quite honest he was curious to see how other people performed it.
Truth be told, he was waiting for the day that he'd learn it; though, with Naruto's passing, that day seemed less likely to happen any time soon since his dad refused to teach him the Rasengan. He did manage to develop a variation of the Rasengan though, a jutsu that his grandfather told him would help him 'complete' the Rasengan once he acquired its' power.
"I did learn a pretty cool Jutsu or two though," he admitted as he head off toward the training field. "Wanna practice a little? It's been a long time since we last trained with each other."
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Post by Sarutobi Sio on Aug 30, 2013 8:26:33 GMT -5
Sio felt a pulse of embarrassment when Minato mentioned that he hadn't learned the Rasengan. "Oh, I'm sorry...I just assumed..." She had just assumed that Naruto would pass down the jutsu of his father and mentor to his grandson. It only made sense. The first jutsu that Sarutobi learned were some of the familial jutsu: fire techniques, and the summoning was optional. She had dual help with the Rasengan, being that both her grandfather and mentor knew it. Suddenly, Sio's eyes brightened. "I have an idea! What if I...what if I teach it to you? I can show you the same way Naruto-sensei showed me. The way Jiraiya-sensei taught him!"
It would be perfect! Her normal Rasengan was as good as it was going to be, and the way she learned it was easily structured enough. She knew Minato would have no problem latching onto it. It only seemed right that he would have it, too. "That would be great!" Sio said, beaming. She would be giving a very important jutsu to a friend, and training was always better when you had a partner. Perhaps they could swap some techniques or pointers. It had, indeed been a long time...they undoubtedly had a lot to potentially learn from one another.
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Post by Uzumaki Minato on Aug 30, 2013 10:28:23 GMT -5
He tilted his head to the side while his eye brow ascended upward upon hearing Sio apologize. He grinned, there was no need to feel sorry for him. Yeah, he hadn't learned the Rasengan yet but that was only because Naruto had bigger goals for Minato. He was conditioning Minato, training him so that he could effectively use their trademark technique without the aide of a shadow clone. A sacrifice that seemed worth it once he heard the Genin girl's suggestion.
"Yeah!" he agreed passionately, throwing his hands up toward the heavens before reeling his balled fist down by his sides in excitement. "That's a great idea!!" he retorted with his bright whites shining in the sunlight.
Learning new jutsu always lead to him getting overly amped up. It was his favorite part of training; well, besides successfully using whatever he learned for the first time. Looking up towards the sky he remembered the first time he used the Summoning jutsu. That was one of the first jutsu he was taught by his grandpa, he'd never forget that day.
"Okay then..." he stopped walking and turned around to face Sio. Cracking his knuckles, he began to stretch. "Where do we start?"
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Post by Sarutobi Sio on Aug 30, 2013 11:18:31 GMT -5
Sio would start by producing from her pouch a single rubber balloon. Pausing to go inside a washroom situated just outside the training field, she then returned with a balloon filled with water. Holding that balloon, she remembered four years ago, when Naruto first handed one to her. It was one of those little moments that meant so much more to you than they appeared. Holding the balloon out to Minato, she would begin the lesson. Perhaps, one day Sio might decide to become a teacher. She was only recently beginning to realize how much she loved to help people. She found joy in explaining techniques, simplifying them and adapting them for herself and others.
"Naruto-sensei said that there are three steps to learning the basic Rassengan. Rotation, concentration and containment. We start with the rotation because it's easier." Sio produced her own water balloon, holding it in the palm of her left hand. "What you want to do here is to use your chakra in the hand holding the balloon to mimic the rotation of chakra in the body. Sync them up, and transfer that rotation into the water within the balloon at the same rate, expanding it in order to burst it." Sio demonstrated, clenching the balloon and concentrating. At first, it would seem as if nothing was happening. but slowly, the balloon would begin to wiggle as the rotation began to pick up speed. It would seem to pulse, expanding until it simply burst, spraying the pair with water.
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Post by Uzumaki Minato on Aug 30, 2013 12:55:50 GMT -5
Itching the back of his head he found something relatively familiar about the props that he was shown. He looked round for a moment, his mind raced for a brief moment as he tried to recollect a few thoughts.
"That's it!" he exclaimed after witnessing Sio's demonstration, wiping water from his face. "I can do that already. It's just spinning your chakra, right? Grandpa taught me how to do that when I created the Fūton: Rasendama." he began explaining as he extended his right arm outward and green chakra began spinning in the palm of his hand. There was no form to his chakra though, it just spun rapid and wildly, with no definite shape.
"I haven't completed that jutsu yet though, because Grandpa said I wouldn't be able to until I learned the Rasengan." Closing his hand into a fist the chakra evaporated, oozing out through the creases of his closed hand, with a chiming sound. "But I can still use it. It's pretty badass too, ha!"
Gripping the water-filled balloon in his left hand; despite his slight advantage, he still had to practice. Yeah, he could use the rotation method already, but executing it with elemental affinity and executing it with his raw chakra were two completely different ball games. "I have to do it without my wind chakra though, so..." his voice trailed off. Hopefully, he'd pick it up quickly. He had to, after all. He didn't want to embarrass himself in front of Sio.
"Here I go!" he announced, widening his stance as he began to concentrate on the balloon. His eyes were locked on the elastic blue ball.
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Post by Sarutobi Sio on Aug 30, 2013 16:48:41 GMT -5
Sio watched as Minato formed his Rasendama, the mass of green chakra rotating wildly in his hand.
!!
"You already infused your element into a mass of chakra! That's awesome!" This was big for Sio, being that this was essentially what she was trying to do with the Rasengan. He had pretty much already constructed one half of an elemental Rasengan. Of course, it would make sense to do that part first. Once you've mastered the art of tying the element to the chakra, it would be that much easier to just concentrate and control it. He had just worked the jutsu backward.
As the jutsu was extinguished, Sio made a mental note to ask for some pointers on how to do that, later. By doing the same with her own katon chakra, she could be that much closer to achieving her goal. For now, though, she would concentrate on Minato and his achievement of the Rasengan. "Yeah...your jutsu looks pretty much like the first two steps of the Rasengan. You have the rotation, and likely will gain the power aspect once the third step is done: the containment." She watched Minato tackle the balloon, keeping eyes locked on the mass of rubber for the telltale movements that all was going right.
"That's it...just think about it like tree-walking, how you compose your chakra for that, and rotate, rotate...this shouldn't give you any problems. "
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Post by Uzumaki Minato on Aug 30, 2013 17:20:29 GMT -5
TRAINING FIELD AREA 36, THIRTY MINUTES LATER It seemed much easier than it was. Minato was talented with Ninjutsu, much more so than his grandfather was at his age; be that as it may, he was getting a bit frustrated. He'd been standing there for almost thirty minutes, and he had nothing to show for himself. "I don't get it!" he yelled, tossing the water-filled balloon back over to Sio. Anger filled his green eyes, they seemed almost murky now. With both of his fist balled he placed the bottom palm of his hands over his eyes, causing his eye lids to shut as he began to contemplate everything. What am I doing wrong?
I'm doing what she said to do, but all this stupid balloon is doing is shaking to the side.
How am I suppose to make this stupid thing pop?!
Think THINK!!
Huh?
"Back when Ero-sensei taught me the Rasengan I had trouble figuring out how to do everything he asked be to do, but the hardest thing was the first things he taught me - chakra rotation and containment." Naruto said extending his hand out to demonstrate an example of what he was talking about.
In his hand, his blue chakra began to spin, but it was all going in the same direction. "This is what I'm going to teach you to do with your wind release chakra." Streams of chakra were being pulled from the space above his palm, but never forming into anything.
After the chakra from his first example evaporated, he demonstrated his second example. Forming his chakra into the blue sphere, the trademark of their lineage, the Rasengan.
"My chakra control was no where near as good as it is now back then, but I learned that the key to using chakra rotation is to make your chakra spin in multiple directions so you can shape it easier, and with a high velocity. That helps you contain your chakra with less effort. I needed at least one shadow clone to do it back then since I couldn't rotate my chakra with just one hand, I needed both!
Your chakra control is much better than mine was at your age, though. Heh. It's even better than your father's was, too." laughed Naruto, patting on the shoulder with a smile.
"Don't give up, Minato-kun. Always try until you succeed--!!"
That's it!!"I KNOW WHAT TO DO!" he grinned, after ten minutes of sitting there thinking to himself. He had an image of what he needed to do in his head, he'd seen it numerous times before. He'd even done it before. "Sorry about that, Sio-chan!" reaching for her to hand him the balloon back, he was ready to try again. "I just got a little frustrated, but I know what to do now."
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Post by Sarutobi Sio on Aug 30, 2013 19:27:46 GMT -5
Sio still watched and waited patiently as Minato worked at the balloon. She remembered how long it took her to get the first part. She was confident that with Minato's "jump" on her with his Rasendama, he would not fare nearly as badly, but at the same time, it was a process.
A process that apparently involved at some point having the balloon lobbed at her. It almost came too quickly, and she fumbled to catch it, cradling it with her forearms against her belly. She had to smile at Minato's frustration just a little bit. Just like when they were kids. Toss the rubber shuriken...toss the practice kunai. Toss the scroll. He just needed a minute to cool down, and she would give it to him.
And it seemed to be working. Her friend was silent for a moment, eyes covered. She knew it was coming...eventually...but his exclamation still caught her off guard, and she nearly dropped the balloon in surprise. "No..no problem." she said with a smile, still recovering from her scare and holding the balloon out to Minato. He always came up with the answers he needed. Just like Naruto-sensei. It must be genetic.
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Post by Uzumaki Minato on Sept 1, 2013 14:48:32 GMT -5
His hand firmly gripped the water-filled balloon, a newly assimilated look of determination settling upon his face. He knew what to do, he knew what he had to do to get over his stump. Taking a deep breath he clenched the balloon between his fingers, with his eyes closed he envisioned the result he desired: he saw his seeping from his palm, spinning like a twister.
If I increase the speed of my chakras rotation while concentrating on the form I want it to take, then... he intoned, he could feel the vibrations of his chakra spinning in his hand. Opening his eyes, with a loud POP, water exploded outward, drenching Minato's long sleeved shirt as he smiled.
"I did it...!!" he laughed, closing his hand into a fist. The small fragment remainder of the balloon still clenched in his hand. A sense of joy filled his insides. Stepping over to Sio's side, he showed her the broken balloon. "So what's next?" he looked at her with a grin.
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Post by Sarutobi Sio on Sept 2, 2013 22:13:49 GMT -5
Sio shut her eyes halfway as the spray of water came. Cool, refreshing success, and she had to smile. It had taken Minato far less time than it took her to even get past the first step. At this rate, he was going to learn the Rasengan within the week, if not sooner. There was a hint of jealousy looking up within her, still. The rivalry between them was igniting a little bit more...Sio had to complete her elemental version before he did, she decided right then.
Sio grinned back at her friend, pulling from her pouch a simple rubber ball about the size of a racquetball. It was blue in color. "The next step comes the power." she explained. "Same thing as within the balloon, only it's a bit harder because the ball has thicker walls. You have to circulate your chakra in enough different directions and with enough power to pop the ball." She next produced a black marker from her pocket. "I'm gonna show you something with this one, though. Let me see your hand."
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Post by Uzumaki Minato on Sept 2, 2013 22:58:22 GMT -5
Success is always bittersweet. After completing one thing, there's always something else that's more difficult that needs to be conquered. Surprisingly this sat well with Minato, he was actually eager to see the next step in using the Rasengan.
"Seriously?" he replied, eying the rubber ball skeptically. He didn't see this coming. Scratching at the crown of his head, his fingers dug into his scalp, parting his yellow mane. "I thought I'd be doing something cooler during this step." He said with a bit of disappointment, resting his hands within his pockets as he looked over at Sio.
"My hand? Okay." Lifting his left hand from his pants pocket he extended it outwards. Eye brows arching, he watched closely. He was rather curious about what was coming next.
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Post by Sarutobi Sio on Sept 3, 2013 18:23:49 GMT -5
Sio giggled a bit at Minato's disappointment. Such a boy. Sio actually found this part of learning the Rasengan quite interesting. Just the sheer power needed to break the wall of the ball, combined with balancing the aspect of keeping the chakra rotating....it was by far the most frustrating part, but you would never be able to deny that you didn't feel different...stronger after mastering that part.
Taking Minato's hand and uncapping her marker, she scribbled a quick symbol on the very center of his palm.
>:E
"This helped me when I was learning. It's like a marker, almost, for concentrating your chakra. Concentrate it all to that mark when you're transferring it into the ball." She nodded, capping her marker and putting it away. "Now...pop the ball!" She said it with a flourish, throwing her arms out and grinning.
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Post by Uzumaki Minato on Sept 5, 2013 12:13:14 GMT -5
Scratching the back of his head agin with his other hand while Sio drew the emoticon on his hand he looked at her with a puzzled expression. Admittedly, he wasn't quite sure hat to think or ho to feel. The most he could do was follow the instructions given, and he did. "Right." Squeezing each of his hands within his palms, cracking his knuckle, he smirked as he grasped the rubber ball. "I will," he continued, smiling. Taking a breath, his breathing patterns expanded, his focus was drawn to his hand with an intense glare. RAMEN ICHIRAKU, THREE HOURS LATER "Gahhh~" moaned Minato, stepping into Ichiraku's with his arms and head drooped low. He was exhausted. He'd trained with his grandpa for years and learned a variety of cool jutsu; but, never in his life was he as exhausted physically and mentally as he was now. The crazy thing was that he felt like he was learning a lot, too. It was surprising how savvy Sio was with her Ninjutsu mechanics. He owed her for today, so as an attempt to repay her he offered to take her to his favorite spot and treat her to a meal. He knew this wouldn't cover the hours of coaching and teaching that just transpired, but it'd be a good start...or, at least he thought so. "Oi," his voice rung, alerting Chōroshi of his arrival. "Beef...ramen.." he managed to mutter before his voice trailed off and he passed out mid-stride.
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Post by Sarutobi Sio on Sept 7, 2013 22:12:09 GMT -5
There was a particular reason that Sio had chosen to draw that particular emoticon on the center of Minato's hand. It was undoubtedly what he would be looking like after a couple of hours of this particular exercise. It had given Sio a fair amount of stress in her time, and prodigy or not, she was sure it would give Minato a run for his money as well.
She settled down under a tree as he dedicated himself to the task, drawing her legs up and watching interestedly. His Rasendama was still in the back of her head as she did so...she couldn't let the day end with him without asking about its mechanics. She was sure that jutsu was the missing link between the Rasengan and an elemental version that she had been working at for about a year now.
But three hours would whittle by with no success. Progress, probably. But no success. And the evening would have to be called before it became too dark to even see what one was going. Ichiraku would be the destination after tonight's lesson, and Sio was in no position to complain. After all, Minato had offered to foot the bill. Helping him in through the door, she spied two empty stools as Minato began to call out his order. But no sooner had he started his sentence, the boy began to filter off, finally going limp. Stooping to catch him as he fell forward, Sio wrapped his arm over her shoulders and held him up, his weight easy against her. Amid the startled glances of the patrons, Sio grinned, continuing to walk with Minato toward the two stools.
"It's okay, everyone. He's fine. Nothing to see." Propping Minato up onto one of the stools, she then leaned his head on the counter before taking a seat next to him. "I'll have the pork cutlet ramen. Go ahead and bring out his beef ramen at the same time. If the smell doesn't wake him up, I'll just pour it in his mouth and rub his throat until he swallows."
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Post by Uzumaki Minato on Sept 7, 2013 23:36:57 GMT -5
It was like a mental haze filtered through his mind causing him to blackout. He couldn't say or hear anything, he just saw visions of him doing the Rasengan. It seemed so easy, so realistic. He knew better though. Nothing was ever as easy as this was looking.
Oblivious of the time, the smell of beef flowed through the air around him and into his nostrils. In time, the image in his mind that showed him performing the Rasengan showed Sio sitting in front of him eating ramen.
"No...don't eat all the ramen...no..." he mumbled in his unconscious state. A frown settled across his mug. The smell of beef began to intensify in the next moment.
"Huh!" he woke up abruptly, "It's trying to eat me!"
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