6: Divergent Fist

A few months ago.

"Arg!?" With a dry sound, a body flew through the air, easily rising at least 3 meters off the ground, before plummeting into a not-so-distant pile of snow.

"W-What?!"

White eyes, as pale as the moon in the dark sky, watched in astonishment as the figure of a girl calmly lowered her leg.

Her loose blonde hair seemed to glow especially bright, like strands of gold gently swaying in the winter wind.

"Wow, and here I thought you had something to show, but you're nothing more than a bunch of Shit" her voice carried a clear mockery that made the other two boys still standing clench their fists in anger.

"Damn you! You'll see!" They both rushed forward, ready to fight. The blonde-haired girl snorted and waited until they were close enough before launching herself at both of them in a swift motion. They couldn't even blink before a pair of fists hit them directly in the face. Their noses crunched, and they fell to the ground, unconscious the next moment.

"Tch, what garbage!" the girl scolded, then as if thinking of something, she kicked the ground, causing a heap of snow and dirt to splash over them, a small laugh escaping her lips.

"And now it's a pile of garbage," she said in a somewhat strange tone, as if recalling something amusing, before shrugging and suddenly turning around.

"Hey!" Blue eyes met white eyes.

Hinata Hyuga almost let out a squeal, her body trembling slightly, and it wasn't exactly because of the cold snowy morning.

Seeing her shrink under her simple gaze, Naruko raised an eyebrow, somewhat amused.

She walked towards the dark-haired girl with her hands in the pockets of her sweater to get a closer look at her features—white eyes, pale skin, and dark hair—a Hyuga, no doubt.

"Tell me, why didn't you kick their asses?" she asked, puzzled. The Hyuga clan was a ninja clan; even if this girl wasn't a big deal within it, she should at least know how to throw a punch, right?

"I-i..." she stammered, a blush flooding her cheeks and her large eyes trembling slightly.

"Forget it I can see why," she sighed. So much for thinking she'd found something interesting.

"Don't go wandering around alone if you can't even defend yourself. Not everyone is kind enough to lend a hand," she said, turning around and waving goodbye.

Hinata, who hadn't even been able to thank her, could do nothing but reach out helplessly as she watched her leave.

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In the present.

Sukuna spun backward, easily dodging a kick. He landed on the ground and stepped forward, propelling his body.

Anko raised her guard, taking his charge head-on—something she shouldn't have done, as she felt the kid slip through her defense and strike her in the stomach, causing her guts to twist and the air to threaten to escape her lungs.

This wasn't going how she expected—not at all!

"Damn it, what did your parents feed you?" Anko skillfully retreated, creating some distance between them and massaging her stomach with a grimace.

"Everything a strong kid needs to grow," Sukuna said, giving her space to recover, something the girl noticed with annoyance.

A fight she thought would be resolved in less than five minutes was now almost half an hour in.

Was she really that weak? She couldn't help but think with doubt, but she quickly banished those thoughts. After all, she hadn't used all her cards yet. She had mainly engaged in a taijutsu battle with the brat—that was a mistake, and it took her longer than she'd like to realize it.

The boy was skilled and knew how to move, and while she could recognize certain patterns from the Academy's taijutsu style, she could also see distinct movements in his fighting form—more unpredictable moves that had been giving her some trouble.

Was it something original? She hadn't seen taijutsu like that, even in ninjas from other villages.

'Shit, am I really going to have to use it?' she couldn't help but bite her lip. Up until now, she had been holding herself back, moderating her chakra output to that of an average genin and using a taijutsu style different from the one she was truly skilled in.

After all, that taijutsu style had been taught by her old Sensei—the man who betrayed the village, who betrayed her.

Anko had wanted to completely change her ninja style since that happened, learning other techniques, other jutsus. But no matter how hard she tried, it seemed that whenever she found herself in trouble, she would revert to the same old habits, using old teachings—the teachings that had allowed her to become a chunin, even if she despised them.

Sukuna noticed her frustration, raising an eyebrow as her negative emotions seemed to triple in an instant.

"For someone who calls themselves a chunin, you're certainly a bit disappointing, don't you think? If this is the average level of ninjas, then maybe I should just skip the Academy and go straight to the Hokage for one of those green vests," he said with a mocking smile.

And there it was—he could feel in real-time as something "exploded" within the girl in front of him. Something metaphorical, of course. Her negative emotions burst forth, and a killing intent flooded the surroundings like an invisible pressure that seemed to have a physical effect on the environment.

Something undoubtedly caused by chakra.

Sukuna ignited his own spark of chakra within himself, causing the pressure on his body to vanish effortlessly—Something that did not go unnoticed by anko. Despite being extremely angry, the girl still managed to maintain a certain level of control over herself, resisting the urge to rush in carelessly.

"You're really an unpleasant brat," she smiled, though inside she was truly mortified.

"Really? My parents say I'm a delight," Sukuna said "innocently."

"Your parents are blind," she couldn't help but retort, then her expression turned deadly serious.

"Kid, do you really want to do this?" At her question, Sukuna also dropped his jovial attitude.

He could see that she was about to get serious. Maybe Anko wasn't the strongest ninja in the village, but she was still a chunin—one trained by Orochimaru, the Sannin. Even if she wasn't the strongest, fastest, or smartest, she was still a deadly force within her generation.

If she went all out, Sukuna couldn't be sure if he could defeat her without using any of his real abilities. After all, he was currently fighting like a ninja, not like a sorcerer—relying only on his body, his small amount of chakra, and basic jutsus. He was far from being able to unleash his true combat power.

In fact, in this state, most of his strength came from his superhuman physical power and his hand-to-hand combat skills. This was why he had the advantage so far, as Anko had been holding back, not using her chakra to its full extent.

One had to understand that in this world, even though the body was important, it wasn't everything. The true star behind great feats was chakra.

When ninjas used chakra to enhance themselves, they could boost all their basic stats in incredible and absurd ways.

For example, even if Sukuna's body was currently stronger than Anko's, that didn't mean she couldn't hit harder than he could.

That's where chakra came into play—how much you had, how you used it, and how much control you had over it.

Using his spiritual perception, Sukuna was able to gauge the amount of chakra in the purple-haired girl—a significant amount that far surpassed his own current chakra reserves by a wide margin, which wasn't very difficult since his current body didn't have much chakra to begin with.

He knew she was only using less than a quarter of her true reserves, an amount that reminded him of freshly graduated genin he had seen over time—those who weren't from clans, of course.

She must have thought that would be enough to deal with him, a mistake she should have realized by now.

"I've been craving a good fight for a while," he said sincerely. These past few years had been somewhat boring, after all.

"Fine, in that case, I'll tell you the same thing you told me earlier," Anko got into position, her sharp gaze fixed on him.

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"Don't blink," all her chakra exploded like a blazing flame.

Sukuna twisted his body, but he could still feel the flesh on his cheek being torn. Blood splattered in slow motion through the air, and the pink-haired boy smiled excitedly, seeing the fist that had nearly struck him in the face.

'That's what I'm talking about!'

In a hurry, he raised both arms, barely managing to block a powerful kick. Even so, he felt the air explode around him as his body was sent flying uncontrollably.

His back slammed into an enormous tree that shattered into splinters on impact. Then he continued crashing through four more in quick succession. If his body weren't extremely durable, it would have at least broken a rib.

Sukuna maneuvered in the air, regaining control, but a blurred shadow approached him like a slippery serpent. He tried to block the next strike, but it unnaturally slipped through his defenses, hitting him square in the face.

He flipped backward, his feet digging into the ground, and quickly looked up with a broad grin on his face. His eyes could barely follow the shadow that seemed to surround him from all directions like a predator hunting its prey.

'Left? No, right? Neither, then—!' His eyes widened, and he quickly leaped into the air. The ground where he had been standing exploded outward with force as the purple-haired girl shot through it.

In an instant, they crossed paths in the air. The shockwave stirred the wind, their figures becoming blurred as they exchanged dozens of high-speed blows, leaving visible marks wherever they passed.

Sukuna almost coughed when a fist buried itself in his stomach with enough force to nearly make him vomit his dinner. Even so, he continued to smile with childlike glee and countered with an elbow strike that made Anko's head snap to the side, blood spraying from her lips.

The punches and kicks kept flying, and Sukuna reveled in the sensation as the adrenaline began to surge through his veins after so long.

'Yes, I almost missed this,' he thought, narrowly dodging a knee aimed at his side before delivering a kick that sent Anko's body flying into the air.

His eyes widened as he saw how, almost blurrily, the girl skillfully formed several hand seals.

"Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu!"

She took a deep breath, filling her lungs completely, and in the next instant, with one hand near her mouth, she exhaled forcefully.

The forest was flooded with the color of flames as several small fireballs shot out at high speed toward Sukuna.

'This is just a distraction,' he thought as he skillfully dodged the attacks, which struck around him, shaking the area.

He sharpened his senses and spiritual perception, then smiled as he felt the girl's presence trying to approach him from a "blind spot."

He let her get close, and when she was about to strike, he suddenly turned, facing her head-on. He saw her pupils contract in surprise, and without hesitation, unleashed a dozen blows in an instant.

The girl tried to block as best as she could, but many of the blows still got through her defense, making her grunt in pain.

Sukuna finished with a powerful punch to the liver that made her body double over and sent her flying until she crashed into a big rock, which shattered upon impact.

Dust filled the area, and Sukuna took a deep breath, feeling a bit of sweat trickle down his forehead.

"I have to admit, I didn't expect this to be so much fun. I should thank you," he couldn't help but say, as he cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders to relax them.

The debris went flying when Anko staggered out of it, blood dripping from her forehead, and her hair, which had been in a ponytail, now hung loose and disheveled in the air.

"Thank me? When I'm done with you, you'll wish you never met me," she said defiantly.

Sukuna sighed; she was truly a fighter. Despite being so injured, she still wanted to continue. It was a shame—noon was approaching, and he had somewhere else to be.

"Although I admire your stubbornness, this fight is already over." At those words, Anko frowned.

"I don't think so, I still—" Her words were cut off.

something is off...

Anko's eyes widened in disbelief as she felt the air explode out of nowhere, and there, where Sukuna had struck her before, the sensation of being hit returned with full force as if she were experiencing it a second time.

Her body convulsed as dozens of invisible blows struck her simultaneously, finishing with a powerful punch to the liver that sent her flying backward for dozens of meters.

"The good ol' divergent fist, never fails." Sukuna grinned mischievously and prepared to leave, as he had already obtained what he wanted.

Although… maybe he should make sure she was alright?

Wiping some of the blood from his nose, he looked towards where Anko had crashed a second time. He really didn't care about the girl, but for some reason, he couldn't help but imagine a pair of blue eyes looking at him with disappointment if he left without helping her.

"Damn it, spending so much time with that brat is making me soft," he complained, but still walked over to Anko.

"Hey! You still alive?" he asked, looking at her fallen form, though he knew she was alive thanks to his spiritual perception.

The only response he got was an unintelligible murmur.

Sighing, he prepared to use his reverse cursed technique on her before leaving. He wouldn't heal her completely, just enough so she could make her way out of the forest and find help elsewhere.

But before he could, he sensed something shift in the air.

"Argh!" Anko groaned, a mix of anger and pain. She stood up despite being severely injured, and Sukuna raised an eyebrow as he felt her chakra bubbling, increasing beyond what he knew she possessed, while her negative emotions intensified.

"Oh?" Something stirred in the air, an energy he vaguely recognized. He watched as from the girl's neck marks in patterns that burned like fire began to spread.

Anko, on her part, felt as though her entire body was burning, as if boiling lava coursed through her veins, a sensation she had only felt once before.

'No, no, NO!' She tried to contain it, she needed to contain it!

"Looks like that hurts quite a bit. Let me give you a hand," she heard the brat's voice and remembered he was still nearby. She wanted to yell at him, tell him to run, but she couldn't open her mouth to form the words.

It was over. She felt the influence of the seal ignoring her attempts to restrain it. She had failed.

It was at that moment that a hand, which seemed even smaller than hers, rested on her head. Anko's eyes widened in disbelief as she felt all the negative emotions that had been consuming her, threatening to swallow her existence in an endless void, begin to fade into the air, leaving only a calm and serenity she had never felt before.

Maybe it was an illusion, but she felt as though that hand, which had seemed small before, transformed into something entirely different—a much larger, firm, and warm palm that pierced through all the darkness as if it didn't exist.

Anko looked up, and her eyes met a pair of deep crimson pupils.

Then she fainted.

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A sigh echoed through the now silent forest as the pink-haired boy looked down at the teenage girl lying on the ground, annoyed.

"I guess I can't just leave you here alone, can I?" The situation had changed. Leaving her awake and with enough strength to take care of herself was one thing, but leaving her powerless and unconscious? That would be like telling all the beasts in the area that there was an open bar.

Or was it open buffet?

He shook his head; he needed to stop getting distracted. Carefully, he lifted the girl from the ground, carrying her on his back.

"Uh, where should I take you?" A hospital wasn't necessary—he could treat her himself. Besides, if he took her to one, there would be questions, questions he didn't want to answer.

"Looks like I'll have to figure out where you live." Great, more work.

With a hint of irritation, he started walking. For some reason, he felt he was forgetting something, but if he didn't remember it meant it wasn't important, so he would deal with it later.

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Meanwhile, in a more normal part of Konoha, at a usual meeting spot, a girl with shoulder-length yellow hair frowned up at the midday sun. Her foot tapped the ground impatiently, and her stomach growled with hunger.

Where the hell was Sukuna?

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Note:

Here's a brief explanation that I thought would be useful for readers regarding how I believe chakra enhances the physical abilities of its users.

As mentioned and demonstrated in the chapter, chakra can boost all physical aspects depending on three factors: quantity, control, and the way it's used (techniques).

For example, let's take two "average" people who can each deadlift 250 kilograms.

Now let's give these two people chakra: one with a theoretical amount of 100 and the other with a theoretical amount of 500.

If both train it for a while and achieve the same level of control, when they use it to enhance their bodies, the one with 100 in quantity might get a boost in all their physical attributes by (theoretically) 5x.

Meanwhile, the one with 500 would get a 25x boost.

Of course this is assuming that they both have the same degree of chakra control, a chakra control that allows them to distribute chakra fairly well throughout their body.

Now let's imagine that the person with 100 trains their chakra control to an excellent level. Because of this, they can manage their chakra better and use it more efficiently, increasing their multiplier to 15 or 20, even though their reserves are still 100.

Now let's say that person acquires a technique (a way to use their chakra to enhance their physical abilities beyond what their quantity or control of chakra can provide). Using this technique, they can further increase their multiplier, reaching even a 40x boost!

Quite impressive, right? But what about the person with 500? Have they fallen behind?

Well, since they have more chakra than the first person, it's harder for them to improve their control, which is frustrating. However, unlike the first person who continued to train their chakra, they decided to focus on something else: their body!

By training their body intensely, they manage to increase the amount of weight they can deadlift to 500 kilograms!

So even without a special technique or great chakra control, they can still keep up with and even surpass the other person a bit.

The first person, with 250 kilograms, expert chakra control, and a special technique, achieves a 40x boost, allowing them to lift 10,000 kilograms!

The second person, with 500 kilograms, only trained their body intensely to its limits and maintains their initial multiplier of 25x.

Still, this is enough for them to achieve an impressive lifting capacity of 12,500 kilograms!

That's right friends, the world is unfair—cry about it, haha. Well, to be clearer, if the first person also trained their body, they would surpass the second person in no time. Similarly, if the second person also acquired a special technique and improved their chakra control, they could continue to surpass the first.

Ultimately, it all depends on what the chakra user does and how much effort they put in. However, it is undeniable that some people are born with more talent or, in this case, chakra. Thus, there will always be those who have it easier and can reach greater heights if they put in the effort and train properly in the right aspects.

Of course, many other factors can come into play. For example, what happens if you're born with a lot of chakra but no talent for controlling it? Or what if you're born with a weak body? There are many factors and variables that can make the numbers lose their significance. (That's why they are theoretical numbers.)

To conclude, this explanation was made because Naruto doesn't have a clear explanation for this (at least not one I've found), so I decided to create one, however basic, to make it clear. This will be the system I use, at least for the physical aspects of chakra.

The aspects of ninjutsu and "magical" powers will likely remain as they are in the original work, as I believe they are somewhat understandable, at least more so than the physical enhancement aspect.

Of course, this could change depending on various factors. After all, there is still much that is unclear about the power system in Naruto, so as an author, I need to theorize and provide an explanation if I think it's necessary for it to make sense in what I write. That's why this is an AU! (Alternate Universe)

I hope the explanation was clear.

With that aside, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know there wasn't much story progression, but that was because I wanted to see how it felt to write a fight scene in this setting. There are still details to improve, but I feel like I tackled it as well as I could, and I'm happy with the result.

This will probably be the last chapter of the month, at least for this series. I'll likely also update Still Defiant and, if there's time, Supersoldier.

I don't know; I plan to do nothing on the 30th since it's my birthday, and if possible, go out for a bit on the 31st. But if I get inspired, maybe I'll write something more. I guess we'll see.

Remember that if you want you can support me on p)atreon ( p)atreon.com/EmmaCruzader )

Given all the support this fic is receiving, I've considered starting an update schedule soon. I don't know exactly how it will be yet, but I hope to start it in September with at least two chapters a week on P)atreon, and once I accumulate enough, have two chapters a week also publicly like with my other two main fics.