CH_4.28 (128)

CH_4.28 (128)

The fact that he was excited about his suspension ending tomorrow worried Takuma. Even though it didn't start that way, the week turned out to be a much-needed break. His head felt much lighter than it was before, and in conjunction, his physical condition, too, had improved. And despite getting burned two days back, he would describe himself as refreshed.

And to top it all off, he was going to meet his new genjutsu teacher today.

"So, who is it?" he asked.CHeCk for new stories on no/v/el/bin(.)c0m

"Her name is Uchiha Mikoto. She's currently inactive but maintains the rank of jonin," answered Uchiha Setsuna.

Takuma's jaw dropped. He came to a stop in the middle of the street and stared at his recruiting officer. He felt he recognized the name but couldn't recall where he had heard it. But that wasn't important; he was more concerned with the fact that he was a few minutes away from meeting a jonin.

"You could've told me that earlier, sir," he said. "I would've done some reading about the topics before coming here. I do not want to seem completely dumb before a jonin!" He should've done some reading anyway, but knowing his teacher was a jonin would've done wonders for his motivation.

"Is this your first time in the Uchiha Compound?" asked Setsuna.

Takuma nodded as he looked around. "I must say it's lovely," he said. The Uchiha Compound was one of the newest constructions in the Hidden Leaf village, built after the Nine-Tails attack on the village. The entire Uchiha population was moved to a single area. The clan had turned their allotted area into a gated community with shinobi guards at every entrance. No one could enter if they weren't a resident or had permission from a resident to do so. Due to the fact that the entire community was built at the same time, the architecture in the Uchiha Compound was uniform, and every building fit together like pieces of a puzzle. The buildings weren't copy-pasted from a single template, and every individual one had its own unique design and charm.

He was aware that the Uchiha weren't happy with the decision to move them, especially with the state prison right next door, but they had definitely made the most of it.

"I'm glad you liked it," said Setsuna. "All your lessons will be conducted in her home. You'll be given an entry pass which will renew every month until Jonin Mikoto deems it worth her time to teach you. Be clear that she's volunteering to teach you and can end these lessons any time she desires to do so. I pulled some strings to get her to teach you, but from here on out, it's up to you to maintain these lessons. You lose her; you lose your genjutsu teacher— there will not be another."

Takuma nodded. He understood he needed to be on his best behavior from here on out. Few could order a jonin around, and there was no one who would force a jonin to teach him.

"How did you get Jonin Mikoto to volunteer?" Takuma asked. "And why did she agree?"

"She found free time on her hand. As for why her? Let's just say it'll motivate others when they see that one of their own getting the opportunity to be under the tutelage of a jonin."

'So, I'm a publicity piece?' Takuma narrowed his eyes. His batch of outside recruits wasn't the only one. They were only the first batch. The Police Force was planning another influx next year.

He now understood how Setsuna got a jonin to teach him. Higher the reward, the higher the desire. Setsuna wasn't only motivating the people in his current batch; he was also attracting potential recruits with higher talent grades in the second recruitment. Setsuna was using him as a dangling bait for all people.

If he could do it, they could do it.

Takuma had no problem with getting a jonin out of this, but he didn't have to like the attached strings that came with it. As far as he knew, he was the first one to get this sort of reward. If he angered Jonin Mikoto somehow, causing her to drop him as a student, many eyes would see that, and getting another opportunity like this would become difficult. He wasn't well-liked by many in the Department of Organized Crime after his stunt— and he knew people like Yoshiaki would use any chance to make his life in the office harder than it needed to be.

Their destination was in the center of the Uchiha Compound. From the look of the size of the houses, the general spaciousness, the width of the roads, and the cleanliness, it was clear that it was a posh area within the compound.

Takuma followed Setsuna into a walled-off house. There was no name near the outer entrance, only a house number. The building was a traditional two-story Minka architecture with a meticulous garden with trimmed lush green grass and trees which looked too old for them to be planted in the past ten years. He bet there was a koi pond somewhere on the property.

Setsuna knocked on the door. "On your best behavior, Genin Takuma," he said.

"Yes, sir."

The door soon opened to reveal a woman who very much looked like a housewife. 'A gorgeous housewife,' thought Takuma. The Uchiha woman was a fair-skinned beauty with long, straight black hair with bangs hanging on either side of her face to roughly frame her cheeks and black eyes. She wore a simple dark purple blouse with a red-plum skirt and a light-yellow apron worn over it.

Her beauty only stayed in his mind for a moment as Takuma could immediately tell that the housewife was a shinobi. The signs were clear, and she wasn't trying to hide it.

It was due to his Police Force training. Before the training, Takuma interacted with shinobi so much that the traits became a norm for him. He couldn't see past those norms. In training, he was taught to look for the signs, so they always stood out to him. In turn, Takuma began to study civilian posture and gait to see how they held themselves— what were the difference between a desk worker and a construction laborer, how did age factor in, weight and height— as there was no guide on the subject, Takuma took note of every trait he could feasibly observe.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Every Friday will be a test to gauge your improvement. By no means am I expecting you to be perfect, but I need to see the needle move in a meaningful manner... Even if that week's yield is failure— failure is meaningful in my eyes— I require you to learn something from it. No progress for a few consecutive weeks will end our arrangement because it's a sign that you're not being diligent, or I'm not a suitable teacher, or you have no natural aptitude for genjutsu, or it might be that I have no longer anything I can -want- to teach you— any reason it might be, I believe it'd be a waste of time for both of us to continue."

Takuma could feel the pressure bearing down his spine. His experience with progress hadn't been completely positive. On top of that, he had no idea what were the standards of 'meaningful' in a jonin's eyes. He might be thinking that he was doing good, but come Friday, he was given a negative report card along with a strike.

"I'll try my level best to teach you. Now, what are your expectations from our lessons?" asked Mikoto.

Takuma took a moment to compose his thoughts. "I hope these lessons help me learn, understand, and apply. I have no special expectations regarding the curriculum; I will learn whatever you wish to teach me, but I need to develop a proper understanding of every concept taught, so I hope repeated questions will not irritate you. Finally, by the end of our time together, I want my learnings to translate into practical application on the field."

"All of that depends on you, Takuma, but I will facilitate and enable you to gain whatever you need. If everything goes well, genjutsu will be part of your combat style," Mikoto smiled.

"You misunderstood me, ma'am. When I say field, I expect applications outside of combat. I have seen my senior officer, Uchiha Kano, use her Sharingan on crime scenes and in investigations. I wish to achieve similar usage." Takuma had some plans concerning genjutsu use out of combat, but he didn't know how to go about achieving that. Though now, with a jonin as his teacher, the chances of eventual success seemed to have increased.

"...Interesting, very much so. I will take that into account for my teaching plans," said Mikoto. "And one last thing; you may sit cross-legged from tomorrow onward if you wish, Takuma."

Takuma felt an embarrassed blush come up his face. Of course, she had noticed. "Yes, ma'am."

There was a sudden sound. By no means hidden, but faint due to the distance. Takuma's sensitive hearing picked up the opening of the door, it sounded like the heavy front door; the rushed footsteps which sounded a lot like running. He titled his head. He had measured the distance from the front door to the hall— even if he presumed an average stride, the number of steps he heard would've gotten the person here by now.

"Mom!" The voice was shrill. Male. 'A child,' he concluded.

Takuma looked at Mikoto. It was her son. Then he recalled how she had said her free time ended around three in the afternoon. The academy a little after two in the afternoon. It seemed her free time ended when her son came back home.

"In here, dear!" Mikoto called for her son.

"I will take my leave then, ma'am," Takuma said as he stood up.

The sliding door opened, and a child entered the room with enthusiasm, only to come to a halt when he spotted Takuma.

"I'm sorry, mom. I didn't know you had guests," said the son apologetically.

"It's okay, dear," Mikoto stood up as well. "This is Genin Takuma from the Police Force. He will be coming here every day to work with me. Please, introduce yourself to him."

The son turned to Takuma and introduced himself formally. "Good afternoon, sir. My name is Uchiha Sasuke. It's a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for your service."

Takuma felt the smile stretch across his face as he returned the greeting. "It's nice to meet you as well, Sasuke. You're in the academy, aren't you? How's it treating ya."

He was going to find Setsuna and kill the man even if it meant turning rogue.

Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to Patreón []. Link here and in signature.

Note: All the chapters will eventually be posted on public forums.