Naruto: The Birth Of Fenrir and his Keeper

The competition continued on, with more and more persons coming forward and taking a crack at the event. Both boys and girls took turns to toss out shuriken and Kunai and the results were quite various.

There were those who performed quite well managing to score over one hundred points without much difficulty by targeting the easier targets. Of course while their points were good, the response of the crowd was lukewarm at best. 

It was obvious to anyone that it was very much possible to gain a lot of points if you focused entirely on hitting the red targets. As long as you managed to hit all twenty red targets dead center, then it was a guaranteed two hundred points. 

Yet the spirit of the event was to show off one's skill and technique. It was an unspoken rule that while you could aim for all red targets, if you chose to do so while you would be deemed the winner if you had the highest amount of points, you would be looked down on for lacking in skill.

Just another one of the many layers that were entwined in the event itself

“Everyone’s doing pretty good. There have been a few misses but over all everyone's been hitting the targets pretty consistently.” Keitaro said, pretty invested in the proceedings. 

While he hadn’t expected it to be fun, it would be a lie if he said he wasn’t enjoying himself just a little.

“That's only because none of the heavy hitters have stepped up just yet.” Neji said, apparently unimpressed with the display so far.

“Heavy hitters? What do you mean?”

“Do you really not see it?” Neji looked at Keitaro with visible shock, having thought that Keitaro had been joining before. 

“What am I even supposed to be seeing? I mean sure they aren’t amazing or anything ,but they've been performing pretty well as far as I can tell.”

Keitaro was a little embarrassed to admit his ignorance, but if there was an opportunity to learn and improve then he’d be a fool to ignore it just to save a little face. 

“Well if you remember all the previous throws, none of the people that have gone so far have been particularly good.”

Neji paused as if to gather his thoughts before he explained further. 

“Most of them have been throwing their weapons with their arms and wrist, and while their aim is good, they really aren’t throwing their weapons properly. That's part of the reason why some of them are missing the mark when they aim for targets that are farther away.”

“If you can’t even throw the weapon properly, it’s only obvious that they won't be able to perform all that well.”

Keitaro was genuinely surprised by Neji’s words as he looked at the most recent competitor who stepped forward. He made sure to keep his eyes peeled, hoping to see what it was that they were doing wrong, but no matter how much he tried, he wasn't’ able to notice anything ‘wrong’ that they were doing. 

Part of him wondered if Neji was just pulling his leg, but from the serious look on his face as he had explained Keitaro was certain that he wasn’t. 

So without much choice he had to ask for an even more in depth explanation. 

“Can you explain it a bit clearer why you say that they aren't throwing properly? From what I can see they don’t seem to be doing anything wrong.”

“Sure I guess,” Neji said as he pointed to a girl who was getting ready to begin throwing. “Just watch what she's doing and you’ll see.” 

The two watched as the girl grabbed her shuriken and just as before, Keitaro didn’t notice anything particularly glaring that could be considered reprehensible. As if he could feel the confusion in Keitaro’s mind, Neji quickly explained what she was doing wrong.

“I already told you that they are throwing with their hands and wrist and while you can get a decent throw like that, it's not the best way to do it. Especially in an event like this. When you're throwing something you should always use your entire body to throw the object.”

“Your feet need to be planted in the ground so you have a firm foundation, then you build up power from your legs into your waist, depending on which hand you’re using you can twist your waist to ensure that as much power as possible is channeled into your respective arm.”

“None of the previous people have used their full body in any of their throws. Of course if you're on the move it's expected that you won't be able to use your full body for the throw, in which case it's fine to just use your arm strength, but they have a solid foundation  to use, they aren't using it.”

“He’s right, you know, they also aren’t taking advantage of the rotation that they can place on the shuriken to allow it to curve and cut through the air at different angles.”

Both Neji and Keitaro look back in surprise to see Hizashi Hyuga sitting behind them. Neither of them had noticed when he had arrived but he had clearly been there long enough to have heard what they were talking about.

“In the heat of battle it might be hard to think about all of these little details, and for most shinobi these things become an ingrained habit for them that they don’t put much conscious thought into. But as aspiring shinobi, these are the things that you have to think about as you train and grow.”

Both Neji and Keitaro nodded in understanding, though Keitaro was a little surprised to see that Hizashi was offering him advice at all. 

Afterall, he had clearly been the one most incensed by the fact that Neji had been stung up like a dead chicken in front of everyone. Even if things had been resolved, Keitaro still wouldn’t want to be left in a room alone with the man anytime soon that's for sure. 

“I’ll make sure to remember that when I start training with throwing weapons.” Keitaro said as he continued to watch as more people stepped forward. 

Now that he was aware of what to look for, he could easily notice that most people really didn’t seem to only throw using their upper body strength. From time to time there would be someone who would incorporate their waist and shoulders into the throw as well, but none of them used their lower body in any capacity. 

“Oh, you haven't begun training in weapon handling as of yet? You're lagging behind a bit aren't you? You should be old enough to head to the academy by now right?” Hizashi asked, a hint of surprise tinged in his voice. 

“No I haven't begun weapon training as of yet and you're right, I am supposed to attend the academy in about a year's time.” 

Instead of taking offense to Hizashi blatantly calling him slow, Keitaro instead thought of a way to take advantage of the situation. 

Without missing a beat he sighed and grumbled to himself, just soft enough to be mistaken as a child's rambling, but just loud enough for Hizashi to hear. 

“To be honest my family wasn’t on good terms with the clan until recently, which caused both me and my brother training to be delayed for a while.”

While it might be considered bad manners to air out his issues with the clan in such an open manner, Keitaro was in actual fact hopeful of forming a connection with the Hyuga. In particular with Hizashi.

While the Byagugan wasn’t as spectacular as the Sharingan, it still had its uses and the only way for him to gain access to it was to befriend a Hyuga and he had a feeling that if he wanted to gain Neji’s friendship without much hassle then he just needed to make a positive impression on Hizashi. 

And what better way to do so than to show Hizashi that he was just like him. Someone being stifled and controlled by his clan without the power to do anything about it. 

If there was anyone whose sentiments should resonate with, it would most definitely have to be Hizashi.

Afterall Hizashi had had to watch as his son was branded with the Hyuga clan's seal. Unable to do anything as his son became beholden to the main family as a glorified slave, all while knowing that his son's talent and potential would most likely be wasted and stifled by those deemed his betters. 

All the while he had to watch as Hinata floundered around like a hopeless cause. Of course while Keitaro wasn’t a fan of Hizashi having blood lust towards Hinata, in the grand scheme of things it was understandable 

“I've only really started training this year and even then I haven't begun training in any of the clans techniques as of yet. My dad and my mentor have mainly focused on my general fitness training and some foundation tai-jutsu at the most.” 

Hizashi's eyes flickered slightly but he didn’t let his emotions show in the slightest, instead he simply hummed to himself as he digested that tidy bit of information. 

Every clan had their problems, but to bring the child of someone who had been in conflict with the clan itself to such an important event as the Hyuga celebration, could only mean that the child in question had some quality about them that the clan deemed valuable enough bury the hatchet, or the clan had plans for the child in question. 

Either way, both scenarios had their advantages. 

“It's good that they're focusing so much on your foundation. As long as you have a solid foundation you’ll get far.” Hizashi said as he brought both of the boys' attention to a young lady who had stepped up to throw next.

She was wearing the clan symbol of the Fūma Clan, a clan known for their use in ninja tools, throwing weapons in particular. 

“Watch the way that she moves, as a member of the Fūma Clan, I’m sure that she will be able to give an ample demonstration of proper throwing technique.”

No sooner had  Hizashi said that, did the Fūma clan girl begin to move. Just like Neji had mentioned earlier, the girl made sure that her feet were spread just a bit wider than shoulder with a part, then leaned back slightly before whipping her arms forward. 

Keitaro could immediately tell that there was a difference in the weapons that she had thrown. The very sound that the shuriken made as they flew through the air had quieted great and instead of it sounding as if the shuriken was cutting through the air, now it sounded like the shuriken was gliding through the air instead. 

There wasn’t a harsh whistle anymore, instead it was a soft hum before the shuriken thunked into the targets. Even the way that she moved had a certain grace to it, her every movement seemingly able to melt into the next without a hint of dissonance.

Of course she was the first person who managed to get a score that broke past the two hundred mark netting a comfortable two hundred and thirty after managing to hit three purple targets dead center. It was also noted that she hadn’t targeted a single red target, only hitting orange and above. 

“I trust that you noticed the difference?” Hizashi asked, to which both Neji and Keitaro nodded. 

“Her form was immaculate, her movements well practiced and there was no hesitation as she moved. She was confident in what she was doing and it shows in the results that she achieved.” Neji said as he took a breath to center himself. 

Keitaro only then noticed that the blood vessels around Neji's eyes had become quite prominent. A physical sign of the Byukugan being activated. 

Keitaro didn’t know whether to applaud him for taking such a minor issue seriously enough that he'd go so far as to use his Byakugan, or chastise him for trying too hard to impress his father. Either way he still responded to Hizashi’s question enthusiastically. 

“From the moment that the shuriken left her hand, I could tell that there was a difference from the sound of it. All the other contestants' shuriken sounded as if they were fighting to cut through the air. They always had a loud whistle to them whenever they were tossed, but hers was different. I didn’t seem to fight the air like the others, instead it was more like it used the air to support itself as it flew.”  

“Oh really? You could make out all that from listening to the shuriken from here?” Hizashi raised his eyebrow in Kietaro’s direction as another contestant stepped forward 

“Yeah, I’ve been listening and waiting for the thunk when they hit the target. To be honest I’ve been making a game of it. Trying to see if I can tell whether a shuriken or Kunai has hit a target or not. Once the targets are brought forward I just have to see if the number I count in my head matches what they bring forward.” 

Keitaro replied without much thought, but had he been paying attention, he would have noticed the intrigue that Hizashi was looking at him with. 

While Keitaro hadn’t felt anything odd, to most people it wasn’t possible for them to have such sensitive hearing. Of course there were some shinobi who trained their hearing to superhuman levels but even then, while they could hear things from large distances away, they tended to have difficulties distinguishing different sounds from each other. 

The fact that Keitaro was able to hear the shuriken over the noise of the crowd was interesting in and of itself, but the fact that he could hear them clearly enough that he could distinguish between whether it hit a target or had instead hit something else was astounding.

‘And this is a kid that hasn’t undergone any focused training as yet? The Inuzuka are known for their enhanced senses, but that usually tends to be focused on their noses. He’s an oddity and it doesn't seem like he even realizes it…’  

Hizashi simply smiled to himself as he glanced at Neji who hadn’t reacted much to Keitaro’s words. An idea began to form in his head and once his thoughts calmed he nudged Neji slightly.

“Well since you're making a game out of it, why don’t we make it interesting.”

Keitaro’s attention was pulled back to Hizashi who was tapping his finger against his chin.

“You’ll keep listening in on the action and once you're certain you tell me how many targets have been hit,” Hizashi then turned and waved to Neji who was listening attentively, “And Neji will use his Byakugan to determine how many have been hit as well. Once you’ve given your answers we’ll see who detection methods are better. What do you say?”

Keitaro’s eyes lit up as he listened to Hizashi.

His excitement was partly because he was genuinely interested in seeing whether his hearing was better than Neji’s current ability to see with his Byakugan. While Neji was a genius, he would have only recently started training with his Byakugan. With that being the case, it was very likely that he wasn’t proficient with it as of yet. 

The second reason was much simpler, if he managed to outperform Neji, then didn’t that mean that he’d have to win something for his troubles?

“Do I get something if I win?” He asked tentatively. 

“Of course! Regardless of who wins, whoever gets the most right answers will get a prize. Of course I won’t tell you what the prize is before you win.” Hizashi winked at both boys as they excitedly turned to pay attention to the next contestant. 

With Keitaro straining his ears to their limit and Neji’s Byakugan activated at full strength, the competition between the two got underway.