72: Discernment of a Dance

The melodic twinkling of a wind chime filled Sumika's ears, a pleasant backdrop to scenery dyed in the grey colors of a winter morning. It was a sound both subtle and stark among the chaotic noise of the training field.

While the ground rumbled and stone shattered in the scene before her eyes, the gaps of silence in between were filled with the quiet of flowing air and this fluttering music of the chime.

Sumika stood several meters back from the edge of the field, in an area flanked by a line of tall old trees that lay barren of leaves, likely due to the wintry season. Long spokes of these tree's branches loomed above, also jostling in a musical dance of their own, reacting to the capricious flows of air.

Dan had led her here, the two merely seeking Tsunade to assist with a... er, matter of wardrobe.

Yet now the girl stood as she was, off to the side; her grey kimono had most certainly been untied for her. It hung open on her shoulders to flutter in the wild breezes, the matching waistband discarded on a bench nearby. Underneath she wore an opaque mesh-armor top and loose linen slacks, which hung slightly too far past her knees.

Tsunade had only been readily able to provide these, after all, but...

But that matter had near been forgotten altogether, swept up in the flow of events to which Sumika now dazedly bore witness:

Sparring... a form of mock combat for the purposes of training. That was how it had been explained to her, the whole practice being explicitly emphasized as a normal part of a shinobi's routine. To be honest, Sumika wasn't sure she understood properly even so. But...

"I knew something like this might happen." Dan huffed with heavy breaths. Still, his face bore a genuinely joyful smile as he darted up close to Tsunade. "But I didn't expect such an eager welcome so early on a workday." He barely managed to brush a hand against her shoulder before being forced to sidle around and retreat — a punch from Tsunade whistling by and causing another mild shockwave to sound out where Dan's face had been moments prior.

As Dan's feet scuffed in the dirt a few meters away, kicking up a cloud of dust which stuck to his otherwise pristine Konoha uniform, the Sannin punched a fist to the palm of her hand and sported a wide grin of her own,

"You were wounded Dan, we need to spar if I'm to be sure you're back in peak physical condition!" her yell replied, brown eyes sparkling and energized. She wore the same type of mesh-armor as Sumika, but underneath a loose, sleeveless tank-top and form-fitting shorts.

"Oh," Dan's pleased smirk also grew, and he flickered into Tsunade's close-quarters once again, the two exchanging dodges and light taijutsu, "So, this~ is how you wanted to test that out? I was sure you'd choose certain other, more enjoyable ways..."

This second part he had whispered during a lull in their strikes — a deep, soft baritone that even Sumika's ears struggled to catch — at a precise moment when his face just happened to be close to Tsunade's ear during the follow-through of a defensive counter. At least, so it looked to the observing Sumika.

But it seemed to be different for Tsunade, whose face grew a bit more flushed. The red-haired girl wondered for the briefest moment if that had somehow made the Sannin feel more exhausted.

Only for the next moments to banish that thought to the realm of absurdity.

"Oh-ho~? You're not having fun, Dan?" Tsunade's tone boomed out across the field, her teeth bared in a tense grin that almost hid her reddened cheeks. "You're right, for a proper examination, I should make it more-" she stomped with intense force, shattering the ground all around, "-enjoyable for you~!"

"Hah hah, one way or another, it's always thrilling when you get so wound up." came the nervously laughing reply.

Dust plumed up all over as chunks of rock uplifted from the ground and flung all around. Sumika could feel Tsunade's controlled bursts of chakra explode into the ground, concentrating on the sensation and peering intensely through the smoke to track the two Konoha shinobi's movements.

Watching them spar was in its own way a most interesting opportunity. At least Sumika thought so. She felt a swath of simple but uplifting and energizing emotions — Thrill, Excitement? Perhaps, if this feeling matched the word Dan had used.

These two were powerful shinobi, and Sumika had not forgotten the first time they'd met. Fear and confusion filled her memories of that day, but so too did a sense of appreciation and power. Were these feelings similar enough to be called one in the same? The tingle in Sumika's spine suggested as much.

Tsunade was strong, and Dan was sparring on a matching level. A fascinating experience.

The more Sumika observed, the better she felt her eyes track their movements. Her imagination grew vivid as she replayed within her mind their strikes and dodges, blocks and counters, parries and ripostes.

Sumika felt she could almost see it — understand the crucial moments, the flows and balance of their stances.

Her mind had relaxed substantially from those days spent near battle, but her old anxious habit reappeared after becoming immersed in these scenes of combat. Observation, Analysis, Anticipation...

And the more she did so, the stronger the feeling of familiarity grew — along with a sense of incongruity.

For the familiarity, she felt her instincts flair in real-time with the spar she was witnessing. Instincts which told her when Dan would dodge or block, or at which exact moments Tsunade would attempt a strike.

Even more nagging intuitions appeared, suggesting which movements would work with a weapon in hand, or the perfect arcs and nadirs at which to perform a follow-through.

The two shinobi before her sparred in tandem with exquisite synchronization, clearly comfortable with each other despite employing attacks that looked as if they'd shatter bones. Sumika had never sparred before, but her intuition told her that being so comfortably in sync was not an easy thing to achieve. One wrong move looked as if it might be devastating, so it felt that much more impressive.

Yet... therein lied this instinctual sensation of incongruity.

Incongruity... her imagination mismatched with what actually occurred in the spar. Every so often, when a moment came where it was possible to deliver a decisive strike, instead the two would choose a less effective alternative. For Dan, this usually involved a light touch to Tsunade's body wherever an opening appeared — to her waist, her shoulders, ... or elsewhere...

On Tsunade's side, whenever Dan presented a decisive opening, she would instead attack such that an area of his prim and clean uniform was sullied with the maximum amount of dirt and dust she could hit him with.

These moments held Sumika's rapt attention, caught in her memory with intense clarity. Why, though? She could only speculate that it was because it went against what she was expecting. Why miss intentionally..? Wasn't it better to defeat you opponent immediately, with no chance for them to hurt you? In Sumika's mind, combat could only end when your opponent was dead, er- defeated in the spar?

So, surely it was only natural to focus on the parts like this that didn't make sense?

Like the exact way Dan managed to slip a hand past Tsunade's thigh as he countered a wide roundhouse kick from the Sannin. Or the way Tsunade's center of balance shifted forward as she leaned, leaving an opening around her lower back which Dan had seized upon. Or the way her tank-top rode up around her midriff when she was about to launch a seriously dangerous punch. Or the way sweat dampened her clothes and made it more difficult for Dan to pivot around with grabs or holds.1It's just sparring, why are you giving me that look..? Or...-

Sumika shook her head, feeling a bit dizzy from so many rapid analyses.2Yeah, "Analysis", that's why you're feeling dizzy. These movements captured her attention so much... because they gave her such a feeling of incongruity. Movements that were, as far as she could tell, legitimate and purposeful sparring. Yet then... why did their atmosphere feel a bit... off?

This thought was accompanied by burst of sound as the two sparring partners separated, both breathing heavily as they faced each other with a few meters between them. Sumika felt her eyes drifting to Tsunade... assessing her condition. Or trying to, for her overtaxed mind merely blanked, watching the Sannin's shoulders rise and fall in rapid succession, the woman wiping her forehead as a full-on grin filled her face. She really did seem to glow...

"Now, now Dan, you're looking much dirtier than you usually do during our spars. What could this mean~?" she taunted with a meaningful tone that Sumika could not quite grasp.

"Worry not, dear Tsunade, for I am certainly having an enjoyable time." A glance to his face revealed an almost serene look of appreciation. Or... or would have been serene, if his breaths weren't so clearly labored.

"Hahh-..." Tsunade's cheeks, already pink from exertion, grew taut and one of her eyebrows started twitching.

"Tsk," The Sannin clicked her tongue, loud enough that Sumika's ears twitched, "On second thought Dan, you're looking much too clean~!"

In the next moment, Tsunade smirked and twisted her foot viciously into a crack on the ground, which extended in the blink of an eye across the field to Dan.

The blue-haired man's expression fell for a moment as the churned-up ground beneath him collapsed and dumped almost his entire body into a hole under the dirt.

Placing both hands to her hips, Tsunade leaned back to look down her nose at Dan, a wry and smug twist to her lips.... which immediately reversed as Dan's form popped into a cloud of smoke.

"Ah, you-!" was all that could escape Tsunade's mouth before Dan's arms wrapped around her from behind, weaving between the Sannin's own to clasp around her waist in a tight hug. Yet at the instant she whirled her head around to look behind, Dan planted a kiss on her forehead.

"Grr," The Sannin grumbled, accepting the embrace and leaning back to rest her head on his shoulder, "You cheater~!"

"Me? Never~" Came the mischievous reply.

"Hmph, well... thanks anyway, Dan. I... I really needed to let off some steam today..."

For a few moments of silence after, Sumika subconsciously squinted her eyes. The aura around the pair as they embraced each other grew even more powerful and... bright? It was a stronger version of that same, strangely off atmosphere that had been present during the whole sparring session.3They really be flirting to the MAX.You two... I know Sumika's presence is pretty faint, but you... you aren't alone here.

Said atmosphere, however, was interrupted by Tsunade's next words, "But... since you've cheated... you'll have to forgive me for cheating, too~!"

Following that, Sumika witnessed what she could only call an avalanche of boulders fly up from the ground towards Dan, who squawked in surprise and darted away. But with quick reflexes, Dan's hands flew through a series of handsigns that Sumika failed to catch entirely.

What resulted, though, was a gust of air that blasted the stones apart.

Amidst the destruction and chaos... Tsunade's booming, euphoric cackle sounded out with pure mirth. While of course being startled out of her observation by the abrupt chaos, that laugh tickled Sumika's ears in such a captivating way, providing just enough distraction to make the girl hesitate.

Yet coincidentally, in that moment of hesitation, a hefty chunk of the rocky rubble soared out of the dust cloud in Sumika's direction.

For a brief period, unclear how short, Sumika thought of nothing. She simply reacted.

A few blinks later, and the two Konoha shinobi had gasped, calling out her name.

"Sumika-chan, heavens! Are you okay!?" "Can you show me you arm, is it hurt?" concern filled those voices. Huh?

"H-Hurt?" her mind blanked as she coughed out that one question, waving away some dust particles. Looking down, fragments of rocks lay in a pile to her left, her left hand covered with a matching layer of dirt and dust.

Peeling back her sleeves, there was a slight bruise on her left arm. She barely felt it. Honestly, the dirt staining her skin and sleeve was more annoying.

"It doesn't really hurt, no." She gave a single, small shake of her head, "I've had worse..."

That forearm had been torn up by shuriken once, which was definitely a more annoying pain.

Glancing up revealed the two Konoha shinobi sharing another profound look, one in which Sumika felt as if she was definitely missing something.

This time though, she felt bold enough to inquire, "What...What is it?"

Hearing her genuinely puzzled voice, their shoulders gradually relaxed. Sumika watched their expressions closely, trying to understand the problem. As she watched though, Dan's head tilted to the side as he murmured,

"Tsunade... that's the second time you've hit the poor girl with a rock." his tone was both serious and... not.

"Wha-" the Sannin sputtered in response, easing herself shoulder-to-shoulder up against Sumika, wrapping an arm around the girl,

"Th-this time it was totally your fault!"