A few more weeks passed by in a blur, and the girls had steadily progressed further along in their training; everyone had gone up a bit in weights, some more than others.
For instance, the little demon known as Ami was now doing her routine with 12 pounds on each limb, while Fuki, Ika, and Aki were at 10.
As for the rest, they were at a spattering of 5 to 8 pounds, each one preferring to let their bodies gradually grow stronger instead of brute forcing it like the purple haired bundle of energy.
Their improvements had them level with some of the boys, but Naruto had started training with weights as well, making Sasuke angry after he lost one of their competitions, prompting the dark haired Uchiha to get his own.
When everyone else saw that, they followed behind him quickly, rebuilding the gap between them and the girls, but...
Looking down at the pairs, I grinned, wondering how much effort everyone has put into their technique.
Strenght is useful in a fight, but swinging your fists at a weaker opponent who knew what they were doing would get you knocked out, or worse, killed.
So, my eyes flickered between pairs, casting my own vote on the winners.
Aki and Ika, the twins, stood across from each other, and I knew that the while Ika looked more threatening, Aki was much more ruthless, and her close combat skills were incredible.
The next pairing was Sakura and Ino, which was an easy bid to cast.
Ino would absolutely destroy Sakura; the girls had similar skill, but Ino was stronger since Sakura never picked up any weights, resulting in the tiebreaker between them tipping to Ino.
I hoped this fight might stimulate her desire to match her close friend, but...
Sighing, I didn't get my hopes up for now.
Next was Hinata and Fuki, the Hyuga Heiress staring at the wine haired girl with a shy smile.
Hinata was still a quiet, reserved girl in public, and Fuki only gave her a nod; Fuki was stronger, but Hinata had her style down almost perfectly, so that would be an interesting match.
Midori was standing opposite Kasumi, the orange haired girl smiling warmly at the shy green haired girl; they had become friends over the last week, when Midori applied a herb paste onto Kasumi's bruised knee and helped her ease the pain.
They would likely go slow and steady, with Kasumi focusing more on teaching her new friend.
Lastly, Ami...
The purple haired Anbu wannabe had a crush, and I smirked as she stood opposite of her.
Tenten was wringing her hands nervously, staring at her opponent, who was stretching.
Ami wasn't that open with her feelings, but she had been trying to get closer to Tenten, often helping her during our classes while also overseeing her training personally, making me grin whenever she stared at the cream dressed girl with obvious desire in her brown eyes.
It was an innocent thing now, but should it survive the next few years, I wouldn't be surprised if Tenten had Ami like how I had Kurenai; someone who was a close friend but blind to their feelings.
My smile turned wry as I thought that, but I shook my head, casting these unneeded thoughts from my mind.
"Alright, listen up. This is a basic spar. Got that? A SPAR. I want to see you all practicing what we've gone over in our time together; jabs, kicks, and blocks. You are NOT fighting, and should I find you doing so-"
Glaring at Naruto, who was standing opposite Sasuke, I watched as the two boys flinched.
They had been... 'bad' a few times, resulting in me giving them extra exercises with heavy weights, community service, and one time, I forced them to run from Yuga's dog, which had made the two boys wary of Kiba, much to his confusion.
"You will be punished. So, rein in your punches, and if you get hurt, suck it up. I've healed you all before. Begin!"
They all let out a shout and bowed.
"""Yes Kokoro-Sensei!"""
Then, they bowed to their sparring partner before lowering themselves into their stances.
Giving Iruka-Sensei a nod, I turned towards my half of the field, barking "Kiba, not that high! Shikamaru, stop slouching or your standing in class for a week!"
The boys nodded, before I turned towards the girls.
"Sakura, feet further apart! Ino, bring in your arms a little more! Aki, don't claw your hands; ball them up!"
When everyone was good, they started punching and kicking, while their partner blocked.
Shikamaru sent a kick towards Choji's side, the round Akimichi easily blocking it.
Sakura punched towards Ino, before grunting as her fist slammed into the blonde's forearms.
Aki grinned at her twin before sending a kick towards her head, which Ika decided to duck under.
Nodding at that, I then glanced at Kasumi, who was speaking softly to Midori.
"No, higher. There! Good! Alright, now step forwards..."
Midori threw a clumsy punch, but...
She was behind the others, but I knew that her mind wasn't geared for physical fights; hell, maybe not fights at all.
However, should she continue to hone it the way she had been, I would recommend her purely on that front, as a Recon or Scout.
Next, I glanced at Hinata, the dark blue haired girl sending a straight jab towards Fuki, who redirected her blow at the last moment.
Giving the serious girl a smile and a nod, I watched as she blocked a kick before turning towards Ami, who was staring at a grimacing Tenten with wide eyes.
Swiftly making my way over, I sighed as I saw the girl nursing a large bruise on her arm, her eyes watery.
Healing her up, I glanced at Ami and said "We'll start focusing on control during our classes."
She gave me an absentminded nod, her eyes still glued to Tenten's now healed arm.
Stepping forwards, Tenten gave Ami a shaky smile, saying "I-It's fine, it's healed now..."
Ami pursed her lips, nodding again.
Sighing, I stepped away, deciding to let them sort it out themselves; adult logic rarely worked with kids after all.
Tenten eventually managed to coax Ami back into the spar, and the little demon started pulling her punches, barely any power in her blows as she 'attacked' the black haired girl, who was able to easily practice her defensive techniques that way.
When the roles were reversed, Ami never let out a grunt, even as Tenten landed solid blows to her partner; Ami kept it all in, almost as if she was atoning for earlier.
It was an odd thing for a child, but...
Well, I was training them to kill, so it could be worse.
The rest of the spars went by without a hitch; Naruto and Sasuke almost got into a tussle, but Iruka-Sensei just mentioned my name and they froze when I glanced over.
The more surprising 'altercation' came from Ino and Sakura, the pink haired girl snapping at her friend as Ino stared at her in confusion.
I hadn't managed to catch what caused it, as Shikamaru was being difficult again, but I did get to watch Sakura storm away, leaving Ino alone on the field.
Sighing, I hoped it wasn't something stupid, but knowing young girls - having been one myself - I didn't put high hopes on that...
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Wanted to develop characters using something practical, let me know what you thought; also, are the time skips happening to frequently? I don't want so much time to just... pass in a few chapters, y'know?
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