The defeat weighed heavily on them. As the night stretched on, the three genin lay in their makeshift resting spots, their bodies exhausted but their minds unwilling to quiet down.
They had decided to leave at sunrise—just three hours away. No one spoke. The silence wasn't comfortable, nor was it something anyone tried to break. It was a silence born from the bitter taste of failure.
Tsukirai closed his eyes, resting his head against the rough bark of a tree. Across from him, Kaito was staring up at the canopy, his expression unreadable. Aya had turned her back to them, her breathing even, but Tsukirai could tell she was still awake.
Slowly, he opened one eye and glanced at Kaito.
'He looks… troubled.'
Kaito's usual energetic and talkative nature had been completely buried under the weight of his own thoughts. Tsukirai wasn't the only one who noticed. Aya, though silent, had her ears subtly perked up, listening.
Kaito exhaled deeply, his fists clenched.
---
Kaito's Perspective
'What was I thinking? Graduating early like I was some kind of prodigy?'
Kaito gritted his teeth, feeling frustration burn in his chest.
'The truth is… I'm not talented. I don't come from a prestigious clan. I don't have a bloodline limit, and I've barely even scratched the surface of ninjutsu beyond the basic three we learned in the academy.'
His hands clenched harder.
'Aya has the Byakugan. Tsukirai—he has the Hatake name and that weird sword style he keeps improving on. But me? What do I have?'
He felt a wave of shame wash over him.
'I charged in recklessly. I thought I could do something. But I was the first one to fall. If this had been a real battle, I would have died before I even realized what was happening.'
He forced his eyes shut, his mind whispering a truth he didn't want to accept.
'I'm weak.'
His breath came out shaky.
'Maybe I shouldn't have graduated early. Maybe… I'm not cut out for this.'
For the first time since becoming a shinobi, Kaito felt fear. Not of death, not of enemies—but of being useless.
---
Tsukirai's Perspective
Tsukirai cracked his neck, still staring up at the sky. The stars above twinkled dimly, barely visible through the thick forest canopy. He wasn't as disturbed by their failure as the others, but that didn't mean he was satisfied either.
'My Moonlit Perception is around 80% mastery now.'
He exhaled slowly.
'That's not enough.'
He needed to push past the barrier that was holding him back. He had already experienced firsthand how limiting it was to only rely on a single ability.
At first, when he had watched the Naruto series in his past life, he had thought one only needed to master a single technique to become the strongest.
'Oh, how wrong I was.'
Naruto wasn't just Rasengan.
Kakashi wasn't just Chidori.
The strongest shinobi weren't one-trick ponies. They were versatile.
And if he wanted to survive the upcoming war, he needed to be the same.
'I'll start training in wind-based ninjutsu. That will complement my style well. And at the same time, I need to master the next level of the Hatake Moon Style.'
He closed his eyes for a brief moment before opening them again, glancing at Kaito.
His teammate was still staring up at the sky, a deep frown on his face.
'Tch. He looks like he's drowning in his thoughts.'
Tsukirai sighed internally before making his decision.
He sat up.
"Kaito," he called out quietly.
Kaito flinched slightly but didn't respond.
"What's wrong?" Tsukirai pressed.
Kaito turned his head slightly, his face conflicted. "...Nothing."
Tsukirai raised an eyebrow. "Doesn't look like nothing."
Kaito exhaled sharply, finally sitting up. "I just…" He hesitated. "I feel like a joke."
Tsukirai remained silent, letting him continue.
"I thought I was ready," Kaito muttered, voice bitter. "But I was the first one to go down. I barely lasted more than a few seconds. I couldn't even use a proper jutsu to defend myself."
Tsukirai leaned back against the tree. "So?"
Kaito blinked. "What do you mean, 'so'?"
"So you lost," Tsukirai said simply. "That's part of being a shinobi."
Kaito clenched his fists. "But it wasn't even a close fight! I was completely overwhelmed! If it weren't for you and Aya, I would've—"
Tsukirai cut him off. "That's why we have a team."
Kaito froze.
"Look," Tsukirai continued, his tone steady. "No one starts off strong. We're genin. Not jonin. Of course we're weak."
Kaito didn't respond immediately. His hands trembled slightly, but his grip loosened.
"I guess…" Kaito sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "I just— I don't know. I thought I'd be better by now."
Tsukirai nodded. "Then get better."
Kaito stared at him. "That's easy for you to say."
Tsukirai shrugged. "Not really. I'm still training too. I still need to improve. We all do."
Kaito looked down.
For a long moment, there was silence. Aya, who had been listening the entire time, remained still.
Then, Tsukirai spoke again. "You want help with ninjutsu?"
Kaito looked up. "Huh?"
"I have a bunch of scrolls at home," Tsukirai said. "If you need help learning jutsu, come by my place."
Aya's eyes widened slightly.
'He's offering ninjutsu scrolls just like that? Without anything in return?'
In the ninja world, knowledge—especially jutsu—was valuable. Offering to share it without asking for anything in return was… unexpected.
Aya's perception of Tsukirai shifted.
Kaito, on the other hand, was overjoyed.
"Wait, really?!" He suddenly sat up straighter. "You're seriously letting me use your scrolls?!"
Tsukirai nodded.
Kaito grinned widely. "Man, that's awesome! I was actually thinking about trying out some fire jutsu, but then I realized—wait, I suck at chakra control—oh wait, but you're good at it, right? Maybe you can teach me!"
Tsukirai sighed. "We'll see."
"Oh! And I also wanna learn something flashy! Like—like a huge explosion or—oh! Maybe a technique where I shoot out a giant flaming wolf or something!"
Aya stifled a laugh.
Tsukirai just shook his head. "That's… a bit much for now."
Kaito waved him off. "C'mon, a guy can dream! Oh, wait, do you have any wind-based jutsu? If you do, can you show me? Oh! Oh! What about—"
Tsukirai shot him a look. "Kaito."
Kaito stopped.
Tsukirai exhaled. "One thing at a time."
Kaito grinned sheepishly. "Heh. Right. One thing at a time."
The mood had completely shifted.
The weight of failure still lingered, but for now, it wasn't suffocating.
Aya, listening from the side, finally closed her eyes.
'Maybe Tsukirai… isn't as cold as I thought.'
With that, the three genin settled down again, resting until dawn.
Their journey back to Konoha would begin soon. But for now, under the cover of the quiet night, a new resolve was starting to form.