The Forest of Death, Sakura had quickly found, lived up to its name. In her first 24 hours within its walls the pink haired kunoichi had experienced plants and animals she didn’t even know existed, a Rain ninja in disguise, and a shinobi that she was pretty sure had no business being in the chūnin exams.

  ‘Orochimaru’ was what he had called himself, and, while Sakura didn’t know much about the monster pretending to be a man, she did know enough. He could take whatever Sasuke and Naruto could throw at him. He could move his body like it didn’t have any bones inside of it. He could bite someone and leave a seal on their neck. A seal that was radiating an awful energy from the moment it appeared.

  He said Sasuke would come for him, seeking power and warned Sakura that there were three Sound ninja in the forest that worked for him.

  Sakura had taken off mere seconds after Orochimaru disappeared and found a comfortable hiding spot underneath a bizarre web of tree trunks that formed a makeshift alcove in front of a clearing. She hoped that the cool of the shade would help offset Sasuke’s growing fever and looked down at her teammates.

  Sasuke looked almost as bad as he had after the fight with Haku, when his body had been riddled with senbon. He was covered in small wounds from his fight with Orochimaru but the main cause of his condition was the seal. An evil chakra seemed to course out of it and into his body.

  Sakura had no experience with fuinjutsu, outside of the operation of basic storage seals and paper bombs taught at the academy. Whatever the strange three tomoe seal was, it was well beyond the basics.

  Naruto, on the other hand, was seemingly fine. He had some injuries, mostly from somehow stopping a giant snake with his own body. Sakura had seen Naruto in battle multiple times by now, and, regardless of whatever skills he may have lacked, Naruto could get back up over and over again. Orochimaru had done something to Naruto while they were out of view but a quick check of his neck revealed that whatever it was it wasn’t the same as what he had done to Sasuke.

  Naruto was not emanating an aura of evil chakra. Not even the kind Sakura had felt off him a few times before, including during their recent battle. Sakura still hadn’t gathered the courage to ask what the power that seemed to lie dormant within Naruto was, but she was sure it had something to do with why he was shunned by the village.

  As darkness fell over the hiding spot Sakura prepared a trap that could help against the other genin if they came for her team. A large log tied up in some trees that had a trigger set up within the clearing, if someone stepped into the clearing the log would come swinging down and knock them away, hopefully giving her precious seconds to get away or prepare an offensive.

  After the trap was set, Sakura knelt down in front of the two boys, kunai in hand, facing the clearing. She didn’t dare to light a fire.

  “This time, I'm gonna be the one to protect you guys” Sakura assured the sleeping boys and herself.

  She meant it too. It bothered Sakura that, so far, during their time as a squad, she had spent so much time staring at Sasuke and Naruto’s backs as they placed themselves between her and their enemies. They constantly felt the need to protect her and didn’t trust Sakura to protect herself. But she couldn’t blame them.

  Sasuke was amazingly strong. He had his clan’s special eye jutsu, the Sharingan, and had a mastery over fire ninjutsu that no other genin in Konoha could match. He was top of their class, and everyone she grew up with used him as a measuring stick.

  Naruto, meanwhile, had been at the bottom of their class and Sakura honestly wasn’t even sure how he got a headband when she saw him fail their final exam. In the time since, however, Naruto had quickly proven that he deserved to be there with the rest of them. Time and time again Naruto made it out of situations that should have killed him through sheer grit and that had already saved Sakura’s life multiple times over.

  Sakura noticed the trust that was building between the boys. They may pretend to still hate each other, and maybe on some level they do, but underneath all of that was a mutual respect. One that she knew wasn’t being extended to her.

  Sakura didn’t have Sasuke’s power or Naruto’s determination. She was top kunoichi of her class, but only academically. In a one on one she wasn't sure she could take either of the other girls that had ended up in a three-man squad. They both had clan jutsu behind them, techniques passed down through blood or study that she had no hope of learning.

  Sakura was from a civilian family. No Haruno that she could find record of, prior to her, had ever even molded their chakra before. She had no particular talents outside of genjutsu, but the only genjutsu master in Konoha had been assigned to a different team, so learning anything beyond the basics was going to be difficult. That was, if she ever got around to getting started, missions and training with Kakashi-sensei took up a lot of her time. Kakashi-sensei was still driving fundamentals into them and building their strength and endurance, the squad hadn’t yet moved into more specialized training.

  Sakura’s taijutsu was passable but not noteworthy, and her low chakra reserves, another curse of civilian heritage, left all but basic ninjutsu out of reach. Her lack of any particular prowess was what separated her from everyone else, and here, in the Forest of Death, that reality was being driven home.

  She banished the feelings of inadequacy from her thoughts, knowing she had to keep her attention on their surroundings. The time ticked by slowly as the night wore on, darkness had completely consumed the area, the canopy so thick that it blocked out the light of the moon and stars. Sakura could feel her eyelids getting heavier as the hours ticked by but she busied herself by watching the boys breathing and flipping her kunai around in her hand as a game of sorts.

  Her attempts worked for a while but eventually, without even realizing it, sleep claimed her.

  She dreamed of Naruto and Sasuke waking up, beaming at her for keeping them safe and celebrating surviving their first night in the forest. That positivity wouldn't last however, as soon Orochimaru showed up, eyes gleaming dangerously at Sasuke once again. Just as his body stretched across the clearing, kunai in hand, Sakura awoke with a start, fear gripping her breath within her lungs as she held up her weapon.

  It was morning, the forest echoed with a hundred sounds, but none were encroaching. Somehow they lucked out, and she didn't get them all killed by falling asleep. Sakura estimated that she had only been out for an hour or so based on how low the sun still was in the sky. The boys were still unconscious but their breathing was steadier than last night, and Sasuke’s fever had reduced slightly.

  Just as she was verifying the boys’ status there was a rustle in some bushes outside the clearing. Sakura tightened her grip on her kunai and braced herself for incoming enemy shinobi. She schooled her expression to try not to show the fear that was surely obvious, but didn’t feel very confident that it worked.

  The rustling continued and out from the bushes popped a small squirrel, headed straight towards her. The creature didn’t seem to have a care in the world as it casually darted across the clearing, not realizing that it was nearing the patch of grass where Sakura had set her trap the night before. In order to prevent wasting the massive log, Sakura tossed her kunai in such a way that it landed a few feet in front of the animal.

  The squirrel’s eyes went wide as it immediately took off towards the left, terrified of her, plump cheeks screwing up into an angry expression as it did. Sakura felt bad for scaring the little guy but she couldn't be too careful. As it disappeared, Sakura returned to her vigil.

  Suddenly Sakura heard a dark chuckle nearby.

  “Heh, looks like you’ve been standing guard all night girl” Sakura turned to see three Sound shinobi standing in the clearing, stopped just in front of her trap. The man who spoke had a face mostly covered by bandages which were placed in a way that reminded her of Kakashi-sensei. He wore gray baggy clothing, and a strange gauntlet over his right forearm.

  “You’ve been relieved of duty” he declared tauntingly, his one visible eye crinkled in anticipation. “Wake Sasuke for us, the three of us want to take him on.”

  The two others with him, a man and a woman, all at least a few years older than Saurka were wearing similarly muted colors. All three wore a headband bearing the Sound’s iconic music note symbol. The man had spiked hair and strange holes in his hand, while the woman had absurdly long black hair that was pulled together at the very bottom, past her knees.

  “Sasuke isn’t in fighting condition!” Sakura yelled out, trying to hide her now shaking hand. “I know Orochimaru sent you, what do you really want? That mark on his neck is already killing him!” she was exasperated, and she knew that she was coming across pathetically but at the moment she didn’t have it in her to care. There was no way she had a shot in a three on one fight against people who worked directly under the man who had trounced her squad on his own.

  At her words all three of the Sound ninja straightened, a mixture of surprise and something darker ‘Jealousy?’ marking their faces. The bandaged man wondered aloud “Hmm, just what is that Orochimaru up to?”

  “It doesn’t matter, we can’t just leave, especially after hearing that.” The spike haired man spoke this time, a dangerous smile rose as he warned her “Last chance girl, back away from the Uchiha kid or I’ll destroy you.” A small blast of condensed air from each palm punctuated his words as he glared at her. As he was about to step forward the bandaged man held up his arm.

  “Stop Zaku, the girl has been setting booby traps” and he motioned to the ground in front of them with a light wave of his hand. “The soil is slightly darker here, and that spot is suspiciously lacking in stones. You were busy last night, hmmm?” Sakura could tell he was grinning under his bandages, but the trap hadn’t truly failed yet.

  “Well then, something as amateurish as that is easy to dodge!” Zaku declared as all three ninja jumped over the trapped patch and towards Sakura. She was ready however, as every good trap has a failsafe. She tossed her kunai at an obscured rope and triggered the log trap anyway.

  As the massive log hurtled towards the trio Saukra braced herself to grab the boys and run in the chaos but the bandaged man was unfazed, as he held up his gauntleted arm and released a strange blast that caused the log to crumble instantly, leaving all three undamaged and landing directly in front of her.

  “Very funny, that was a hopeless attack. Everyone here knows that you are outclassed, you talentless child. Honestly, it pisses me off that a slacker kunoichi like you thought that she could get the jump on us.” the bandaged man growled as he reached towards her.

  Sakura felt helpless, she didn’t have any other moves, not with three deadly opponents within arms reach. Just as fight or flight instincts were hitting her, a flash of green dropped between Sakura and the Sound shinobi.

  “Leaf Hurricane!” Rock Lee shouted as he performed a spinning kick that knocked away all three of them and landed with an energetic grace. He glanced back at her with a smile “Konoha’s Youthful Beast is here to protect you, Sakura!”

  “Lee! Where did you come from?” Sakura was surprised but thankful, without the strike her whole team could be out for the count by now.

  Rock Lee was a strange boy, he couldn't use ninjutsu or genjutsu, and called himself talentless. His appearance was also odd, decked out in a bright green jumpsuit with orange warmers, and a dorky bowl cut. However, he had handily defeated Sasuke before the exams began. He had also declared his undying love for Sakura, much to her chagrin at the time, but now she couldn’t be more grateful for her apparent ability to attract strange boys.

  “You needed me, so I came, that is all there is to it Sakura” Lee declared with a fist over his heart. “I will protect you with my life, I promised that when we met, and today I will show you that my words are as true as my overflowing heart!” He entered a stance with one hand held out in front of him, beckoning the now standing trio with a challenge.

  “Zaku, take care of Sasuke, I’ll deal with loud green brat” the bandaged man decided as he rushed forward towards Lee.

  Lee was ready, he immediately launched towards the ground. Sakura saw his knuckles turn white as his fingers buried into the dirt and he pulled up a massive chunk of root to block the man’s strike. The attack tore through the root but was unable to connect with the quick boy. When Lee noticed Bandages hesitate for a moment he saw his chance and released the bandages that wrapped his arms as he knocked the man into the air with a kick.

  “Primary Lotus” Lee screamed as he followed his target into the air to unleash his technique.

  “What the hell!?” Zaku yelled and ran forward towards the combatants as Lee wrapped the bandages around the man in midair and began to bring him down headfirst to the ground while spinning like a top. Zaku pushed his palms into the ground and released a blast of air into the dirt in front of him, softening the blow as the man’s head collided with the earth. “Heh, you owe me one, Dosu!”

  Dosu was partially submerged in the dirt but quickly pulled himself out as Lee jumped away, putting distance between them once again. “What a terrifying technique boy, even with the ground softened that almost took me out” he brushed himself off and his one visible eye tightened into a glare.

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  “But now it’s my turn.” Dosu launched forward, and Lee’s earlier speed seemed to fail him as he barely managed to block the right handed strike with one arm, his breathing growing ragged. However, a burst of energy followed the blow and Lee fell to his knees.

  “You can block the hit, but you can’t block sound, kid. This gauntlet fires supersonic waves with my attacks, right now the damage to your inner ear is causing your sense of balance to fail” Dosu explained calmly, confident in his apparent victory, as he tapped the metal on his arm with two fingers.

  Sakura, meanwhile, was going through a whirlwind of emotions. She had felt elated that Lee had come to her rescue but now, seeing him on the ground and all but one of the shinobi undamaged, the feelings of fear and inadequacy came rushing back.

  Again an ally put himself between her and the enemy and paid for it. Again she couldn’t protect herself or her squad. Again she was here, hopelessly clutching a kunai, hoping her circumstances would improve but unable to do anything about it.

  Dosu was beating Rock Lee now, his blows punctuated by bursts of sound that left Lee moving slower and slower, blood leaking from his lips.

  Sakura had to do something, anything. She needed to protect Lee, her squadmates, and herself. She pulled on her chakra from deep within and felt something else there with her. She didn’t know what it was but she latched onto this force within her, ripping it to the surface, it didn’t matter what it was, she just needed all the power she could muster and she needed it now.

  Suddenly time froze and darkness overtook her, then she found herself in an endless sea of swirling pink energy, the clearing and the others completely left behind. Before Sakura could even voice her confusion a voice echoed through the void.

  “What do you seek?” The voice was calm but commanding, a deep feminine tone that echoed through Saukra’s mind.

  Sakura cut through the fear and confusion that gripped her for a moment and shouted back “I need power! The power to stand next to them instead of behind!” She shouted, declaring her desire to the void.

  “But you are weak. Not just in power but in spirit. You have watched these boys throw themselves in front of the enemy for you but you did nothing. Not now, not in the Wave, and not even during Kakashi’s test. You flounder in fear.” The voice calmly tore into her. Sakura was shaking, tears threatening to start flowing from her eyes.

  “I know.” She uttered while trying to restrain herself from allowing it to come out as a whine.

  There was quiet for a moment, as Sakura gathered herself before continuing.

  “Every time it has come down to it, I’ve frozen. This world, and the shinobi that occupy it are so much scarier than I ever could have imagined back in the academy. I’ve been behind from the moment we started and I’m not catching up. Sasuke and Naruto are getting further and further ahead of me. Kakashi-sensei had to throw himself into dangerous positions with Zabuza because he knew too. Lee barely knows me but even he knows that I don't have the strength to tackle the problems that ninja face.”

  Sakura felt the void begin to rush, a maelstrom of energy swirling around her as the voice echoed forth once again.

  “The strength you seek lies within you. You need only swear to yourself, that you will be who you desire to be, rather than what you are. This is an oath, a bond with oneself and from that oath you will bring forth your true self.”

  Sakura didn’t understand what was happening, but she didn’t care. This was her chance, she could feel it, the power just out of reach, waiting to be seized by her hands.

  “I will swear!” Sakura defiantly reached out with her hand and grabbed hold of the swirling pink vortex and then she could feel it. This energy, massive and uncontrolled, waiting to be released, was chakra.

  Her chakra.

  “Who are you?”

  “I am Saukra Haruno, a kunoichi of the Hidden Leaf Village” The energy was swirling towards her outstretched hand, convalescing into a ball as she was surrounded again by the darkness of a now empty void.

  “What will you become?” The voice asked, a small trace of excitement leaking into its neutral tone.

  “Somone who doesn’t need protecting but protects others instead! I will become Team 7’s shield, I will defend my squad, my village, and anyone precious to me from those who would hurt them!” Sakura gritted her teeth as the energy flowed into her body and disappeared.

  Suddenly she was back in the clearing, Dosu kicking into Lee’s chest as he hugged the dirt. A pink chakra erupted from Sakura’s body upon her return, all eyes locked onto her in an instant. The kunoichi acted first and lunged towards Sakura, fading into a blur as she appeared behind her, grabbing Sakura by the hair and bringing down a kunai towards her throat.

  “Now, understand child, Thou art I and I am Thou. Call my name and become a shield.”

  Sakura, as if guided by an unseen force, brought her hands together in a tiger seal and shouted the words that entered her mind, her throat scratching from the emotional stress. “Bond Release: Fool- Athena!”

  The pink chakra rushed back into her body and a burst of cherry blossoms erupted behind her. Sakura felt something pass through her hair, slicing it down to a bob, and out of the corner of her eye witnessed the Sound kunoichi be thrown back as a shadow was suddenly cast over her. Sakura looked up and gaped at the sight.

  A stoic woman floated in the air above her, she wore long flowing white robes and a golden helmet that covered the top half of her face. The helmet was adorned with a large red mohawk-like dressing and she wielded a long golden spear. Her body was encircled by a ring of blue metal accented with swirling gold, that caused a round shield affixed to it to orbit her body. The shield was also blue with the golden swirls accenting the outer ring of its face, and a burst of red at its center.

  “I am Athena, the wargoddess born armed, together we shall defend our allies and destroy our enemies.” she declared with a measured voice but the end was punctuated but a twist of her spear.

  All three of the Sound ninja were staring up at the woman, eyes wide, unsure of what this jutsu was. It seemed like a summon but when the girl called out the jutsu it was some kind of chakra nature release none of them recognized.

  “It must be some Kekkei Genkai!” Dosu declared while pointing up at the floating centurion. “Kill her now before she figures out how to use it!” Suddenly the shinobi remembered their training and lunged towards her at the same time.

  When she thought about it later, Sakura would realize that the moment her oath was made, her mind was flooded with information. This was Athena, a representation of her resolve, her bond with herself. Athena was her, and she was Athena. So, of course, she knew what Athena could do.

  “Arrow Rain” Sakura spoke the words that danced at the edge of her mind and Athena gripped her spear before lunging it up towards the sky, a moment later, a dozen arrows of pure chakra came raining down on the trio that were coming for her, seemingly erupting from the sky itself.

  The arrows sliced into all three of the shinobi, nailing them back down into the ground and Dosu looked at her with fear in his eyes. “That jutsu, it’s not normal, she didn't even use handsigns this time! We have to report to Orochimaru, he didn't say anything about this girl, so he must not know.” As he braced himself to flee he heard a crack come from behind Sakura.

  Dosu looked back and witnessed Sasuke standing upright, his body still heavily damaged but a sickly purple aura was flooding the area around him.

  “Sakura, were these guys trying to kill us?” Sasuke asked darkly without even looking up.

  “They were, but I think it's gonna be okay now Sasuke, don’t worry.” Sakura assured him, looking up to see rage building in his eyes before suddenly, something clicked and the aura disappeared before the seal on his neck began to spread a pattern of black flames across his face and body.

  A wicked smile danced upon his lips as the spread stopped, the evil chakra, now being channeled directly, returned with a vengeance. “You’re right, it’s okay now,” Sasuke straightened his posture and entered a takeoff stance, “because I'm going to kill them all.”

  Sasuke vanished and reappeared behind Zaku who had held in palms up in an effort to defend himself. Sasuke quickly pushed his foot into Zaku’s back and grabbed both arms pulling them back and pointing the palms away from his body.

  “Stop Sasuke, you’re hurt! Don't worry about them, I can take care of it!”

  “Actually, I feel fine,” he stated with a cold chuckle. As he looked down at the man in his grip, Zaku struggled but Sasuke's fingers were like a vice and the foot on his back kept him grounded. “He gave me this power and now I understand, I must do anything, even offer my flesh to the devil if it means I’ll get stronger. It’s the only way.”

  Sasuke began to pull, and Zaku screamed, while the other two sound ninja were frozen, unsure of what to do now that both of these children were up and stronger than ever. This was beginning to look bad for them from Dosu’s point of view.

  “Hey kid, here” Dosu pleaded as he pulled out an Earth Scroll, one of the two scrolls needed to pass the Forest of Death stage of the chūnin exams. They had a Heaven scroll at the beginning but it was destroyed by Orochimaru during their clash. “I’ll give you this if you let us go, we can fight this out but I don't think anybody here really wants that now.”

  “It doesn’t matter. We’ll have that scroll once you’re all dead.” Sasuke spat viciously and then ripped back both of Zaku’s arms. Everyone in the clearing heard a loud crack and then Zaku collapsed to the ground, the shock of two broken arms making him lose consciousness.

  Sasuke stepped on the man as he strolled forward, calmly but menacingly. “Now, which one of you wants to go next?” His eyes were filled with hatred and he still wore a terrifying grin.

  Sakura believed, in her heart, that while Sasuke was an angry boy that the world had hurt so much, this wasn’t Sasuke. Sasuke wouldn’t cold-bloodedly murder someone if his goals could be achieved without it. Sasuke wasn’t one to revel in the pain he caused like he just had with Zaku. This was that Mark. This was Orochimaru.

  Before she could think she moved, wrapping her arms around his chest from behind, tears in her eyes. “Sasuke, stop. This isn’t you. He’s in your head, and I know you, Sasuke. I know that you won’t let yourself be someone else's pawn.” Sakura pleaded with the boy, feeling like if she didn’t pull him back now then the Sasuke she knew may disappear into a sea of blood.

  He stilled for a moment and then collapsed, the flame pattern receding back into the seal on his neck as he fell. Sakura caught him and looked up at the trio, glaring at them through bleary eyes. “Leave the scroll and go. I won’t stop him again.” Athena floated above her, spear at the ready.

  Dosu, however, did not need to be told twice. He dropped the scroll, grabbed his fallen ally, and with the kunoichi, dashed off. Just as the adrenaline began to fade Athena disappeared in a swirl of pink and Sakura lost consciousness. Happy that, this time, she stood her ground and fought side by side with her squadmate.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  The sun was still up when Sakura opened her eyes. She noticed Sasuke resting against a trunk on the edge of the alcove, and three Narutos parked on the edge of the clearing, all facing different directions. She immediately felt a wave of relief, they were both up and, though clearly still healing, back in action to some degree.

  Then realization hit.

  That jutsu, the Bond Release, was unlike anything Sakura had ever heard of. She summoned a chakra construct, one that had it’s own techniques and personality but ultimately was an extension of her and followed her will. It was amazing!

  With this power Sakura was confident that she could continue to finally pull her weight with the team. No more getting saved, now it was her turn to do the saving.

  “Oh good, you’re up. Thought you’d be out all day after me and Lee dragged you back in here” Sasuke chided as he approached. His eyes had lost their Sharingan hue but still glided over her as if looking for something. “You stopped me from becoming someone…something else back there” Sasuke motioned towards the clearing. “Thanks.”

  He had locked eyes with her and his gaze carried a respect and a gratitude she had never felt from him before. It was a great first step.

  “Squad 7 protects each other.” Sakura pointed a thumb at her chest with a smile. “I intend to keep up my part of that bargain from now on.” Sasuke gave her a nod before she noticed one person missing from the group. “Where’s Lee?”

  “He’s fine, said he had to return to his team’s meeting spot but would only leave once me and Naruto promised to keep you safe.”

  Sakura exhaled a sigh of relief at the news, “I’m glad he’s okay too, that Dosu guy really messed him up, but I might be dead by now if Lee hadn’t shown up.”

  “Sakura!” Naruto shouted, just now noticing their conversation.

  “We’re hiding dumbass, shut up.” Sasuke grumbled.

  Naruto quickly made a third shadow clone to leave in his watch spot and jogged over. “I’m just glad Sakura is okay, you said she and Lee fended off those creepy Sound dudes all by themselves, and that she had some crazy new jutsu, and then she passed ou-”

  “Yes, Naruto, I’m okay.” Sakura interrupted with a giggle.

  “Don’t blast her with everything at once, she just woke up.” Sasuke warned.

  “But you said she summoned a lady with a spear! How can I just keep calm about that?” Naruto retorted with exasperation.

  “I also said that I was under the influence of evil chakra that was affecting my mind. I could have been delirious.”

  Sakura interrupted what she was sure would quickly devolve into an unending back and forth. “She was real. Athena, I mean. She spoke to me in my mind, told me to call her, and boom, there she was. When I made the handsign, it was like my body knew what to do before my mind did.”

  “Awesome!” Naruto shouted while throwing a fist up into the air.

  “Weird, more like.” Sasuke said with narrowed eyes, before noticing the confused looks both of his companions were giving him. He rolled his eyes and continued with a huff, “It sounds like it’s something that you just knew, innately. There’s only one kind of jutsu that is innate: a Kekke Genkai.”

  “Like the Sharingan?” Naruto gasped, stars in his eyes.

  “Hn, the Sharingan is the greatest dojutsu of all time, it’s not ‘like the Sharingan’” he corrected Naruto with air quotes before turning back to Sakura, “but it’ll clearly give you an edge. Let us help you. How does it work?”

  “Woah, wait a second, you think this is a Kekke Genkai? Aren’t those super rare and passed down from ancient ninja? My family line is all civilians for as far back as I can find, how could that be possible?”

  “Our history is loose at best before the era of the founders of the village and that was only around 100 years ago. You must be related to some ancient ninja whose Kekke Genkai was never documented. Who knows how many civilians have blood that carry lost techniques? There could be just a handful, or there could be dozens lying dormant, there just isn’t a way to know. But it’s definitely possible.” Sasuke informed the duo.

  “Hell yeah Sakura! You might be the only person in the whole world with that jutsu, that’s so cool!” Naruto cheered. “What do you call it?”

  “Well,” Sakura began, “Athena called it Bond Release and said that she represented my oath to myself about what kind of ninja I want to become.”

  “The chakra construct named its own summoning technique?” Sasuke raised an eyebrow at that.

  “Yes, she did,”

  Sasuke held up his hands “Okay, what else can she,” he hissed, “do? I saw those chakra arrows that she made rain down on the Sound trio, is that her only technique?”

  “No there’s definitely at least a couple others, they are just there in my head…and I feel like she can do more, I’m just not ready for it yet.” Sakura pulled on the connection to Athena and could feel a wellspring of power that she was currently just scratching the surface of.

  “Well then you gotta test them out Sakura, the only way you’ll really understand her weird jutsu is if you take them for a spin, right?” Naruto propositioned, but Sakura felt like he really just wanted to see Athena and what she could do for himself. Still, the temptation to do as he asked was palpable.

  Sasuke facepalmed for a moment before looking dumbfoundedly at Naruto, “Do I really need to remind you that we are surrounded by enemies? Now is not the time for testing out new jutsu.”

  Naruto just grinned back, “Better to test it now then when someone is trying to kill us and steal our scroll again, right?”

  “I agree with Naruto. Now that I have her, Athena is going to be a go to for me if fighting breaks out. I should at least make sure I really understand how to use her before it’s do or die.”

  Sasuke seemed to think about it for a moment, before exhaling deeply and declaring “Fine, we spent the rest of the day training Sakura, making sure we understand the limits of her summon, and familiarizing ourselves with its techniques. Tomorrow, we beeline towards the tower and steal a scroll from whatever teams we run into on the way, got it?”

  “RIGHT!” Sakura and Naruto declared at the same time before excitedly jumping up and running into the clearing, ready to test her new power.