A Spirit of Elements Chapter 7 (Training and Bonding) (Patreon)

Before

Naruto looked at the giant strange red eyes, his little face filled with confusion; despite the feeling of weight around him, the blonde wondered what the spirit meant by being the jailer.

The blonde had personally read, and even Uncle Tenzin had talked to him about Spirits from the Spirit World, and just like people of this world, there were bad spirits like Koh, The Face Stealer, Yûyîn, the Silent Voice and many others.

Naruto had heard from Uncle that the Avatar had the Avatar Spirit, a spirit that reincarnates every time the previous holder dies.

Now, the blonde wondered if this Red Spirit was similar, Uncle Tenzin never said anything of me having one! And neither did mom?!

"Who are you?" Naruto asked, tilting his head at the side, he expected to see more, but all he could see was the dark red eyes but not the actual body behind them.

"I'm Kyuubi. What do you want?" Kyuubi asked, slightly confused, because of the damn seal holding him, he could hardly feel if nothing at all outside, he had no idea what was happening outside, one thing he knew was that everything felt different, even the brat felt different, his Chakra was activated, but there was something new. Still, he just couldn't quite put the finger on...

"Kyuubi?! Never heard of you, are you a Spirit?" Naruto simply stated, feeling the weight around him slowly easing; the blonde didn't know if this spirit wasn't trying to dominate him or if he was getting used to it.

Kyuubi narrowed his eyes, he had expected the brat to look different, he didn't look like someone who people hated, he didn't see the loneliness behind his eyes that Kyuubi had expected, not mentioning he still remembered the strange bald man years ago, the man had felt as if he was some sort of Jinchuuriki, but not storing a Bijuu inside.

"Never Heard of Me," Kyuubi almost growled at the end showing his teeth, trying to intimidate him, but Naruto just looked amazed by his size.

"Why are you here, though? Are you like the Avatar?" Naruto asked, not knowing how else to think of him.

This got Kyuubi even more confused; Avatar?! What is that?? Despite hating to ask, he wanted to know what was going outside and where he even was. Therefore Kyuubi ignored his pride and bluntly asked.

"What do you mean with 'Avatar'? Where are you? What kind of place do you live?"

Naruto just kept silent at the spirit or creature, he wondered whenever to tell him, but he had his own questions that needed answers.

"I will answer them, but I first need to know how are you here? Where are we, and are you a Spirit?" Naruto asked.

Kyuubi growled in annoyance as he spread his killing intent; Naruto suddenly felt extremely weak, his knees hardly holding him, standing, shaking, feeling as if his bones were cracking from the sheer weight.

Kyuubi stopped his KI, deciding just to answer them.

"I was sealed inside you brat when you were a baby brat, we are in your mindscape, and I'm no Spirit but a Bijuu," Kyuubi answered, growling more.

Naruto listened to him, his breathing heavy, but now he had even more questions than before.

"Sealed inside me? What do you mean, are you like Korra with the Ava..." "Answer my Questions first," Kyuubi interrupted, spreading his KI.

Naruto stopped talking before answering to Kyuubi; by the end, the giant red eyes looked strange to Naruto.

I see

His thoughts were interrupted by the little brat. "We will talk later," Kyuubi said.

Naruto suddenly felt as if an invisible force was pushing him away, even the calm water started rising and causing waves. Putting his arms in front of his face, everything went white.

Air Temple in the morning - Now

As the sun rose up over the Air Temple, Naruto fought the everyday struggle. The brawl he was cursed to engage in for the rest of his life.

His greatest opponent a threat bigger than anything someone had ever faced.

Getting out of bed?!

As Naruto relentlessly tried to stand up, he could feel it. He was winning. When his feet touched the wooden floor, he used all of his strength to move. If he failed to get up, he knew he would be doomed, and the dark forces of laziness would stand tall at the very end.

It was now or never.

Using all of his might, he jumped out of bed and took a minute to regain his balance. It took a while, but it was done. He looked back and glanced at the corpse that was his bed, sheets completely out of place. A reminder of the grand battle he fought every day.

'Once more, I stand victorious against you. We will face again tomorrow, but be certain that I shall be your downfall like every time we have fought,' the fearsome warrior thought dramatically as he exited his room.

It was finally over.

Walking towards the dining room, Naruto was thinking about what he would do this morning. It had been a while since he continued his workout sessions, so he decided that he should make up for it by extending them temporally with longer and more exhausting exercises. Occasionally, Naruto would pack a few things and go to a secluded area in the island forest where he could try out new techniques in peace, not afraid of having Tenzin on his back complaining about how misdirected his airbending was.

Seriously, couldn't he give him a break once in a while? As different as his airbending was from the traditional ways, it was still airbending. Besides, if he had adjusted to the traditional ways, Naruto was certain he wouldn't be as good as he was right now.

Talking about Naruto's airbending, he never showed his true abilities to Tenzin. Why would he? As much as he cared for his uncle and respected him in most of his decisions, Naruto had a goal. And his goal was to show his mom how much of an amazing Airbender he had become.

As he pondered about his mother, he couldn't help but think back on what his mother wanted to say to him before grandma interrupted them. It doesn't matter, my family loves me, and that's what matters, he thought before remembering about the talk with the Spirit inside him; despite how many times Kyuubi denied he was a Spirit, the blonde still called him that, since the first time they meet, Naruto had never seen him since he would probably talk every once in a while but mostly when he was angry at something. His mind was clouded, mostly what happened seven years ago, for Asami's birthday.

Naruto felt a shiver down his spine, despite remembering almost nothing, one thing he remembered clearly was Asami's bloody face and a voice telling him that he was a Monster.

Naruto didn't remember much after that, and Uncle Tenzin didn't elaborate on what happened, and neither did Asami, much to his surprise.

The blonde couldn't help but smile; tomorrow Asami would return to The City, he could spend time with her again, the bed had been very cold...

Naruto escaped his thoughts, Now it was time for breakfast, and when it was time for breakfast, it was time for breakfast and nothing more. When he reached the dining table, he heard Korra and Tenzin discussing something.

"So I have to go to a press conference today?" Korra asked her teacher.

"Yes. The Council and I believe that you should introduce yourself to the city. They must know you are here with them now. But don't worry, it shouldn't take too long," Tenzin replied.

Korra sighed. "Great. A country girl is giving a speech in the big city. I wonder how's that gonna turn out." She already had one heck of a first day in Republic City yesterday, and she would much rather try to outrun the metal benders again than to go and face all of those journalists and reporters asking questions. Actions were her thing, not words.

"Morning, everyone," Naruto said while taking a seat next to the Avatar.

"Morning Naru-" Korra started to say before she realized something.

Naruto was sitting next to her...

... wearing a white tank top...

... and in boxers!

Now, let's analyse the situation here. Going around wearing boxers was a normal thing for Naruto. He stopped caring for whatever Tenzin had to say about his clothes a long time ago. He was eighteen, and he had the right to wear whatever he liked, as long as it wasn't something too ridiculous or over the top. His uncle may not be very fond of his clothing choices, but he would put up with it, or at least try to.

However, the one who was CERTAINLY not used to seeing guys in their underwear was Korra. The poor girl was so shocked to see a guy wearing so little clothing she couldn't even talk. She just sat there in silence, staring at him with her mouth slightly open. 'Why am I seeing this?'

Apparently, Naruto wasn't aware of the sudden silence and casually started eating his usual breakfast. He wondered why his uncle had yet to greet him back, but hey, it was the morning, and nobody was very attentive when they just got out of bed. So he just shrugged it off and reached for the jug of milk.

Tenzin glared at his nephew and coughed forcibly in order to catch his attention. The boy was not aware that his current attire was... distracting Korra.

"Huh, you alright, uncle?" Naruto asked, concerned. His only answer was another cough from Tenzin. It was possible that he wasn't seeing things very well due to being fresh out of bed, but Naruto could have sworn he saw Tenzin's right eye twitching. 'What's his deal?' he thought.

And then there was Korra, who still looked flustered for some reason. 'And what's her deal? Do I have something on my face?'

Then he realized what was going on.

"Oh right, we have a guest now. Sorry, hehehe." Naruto awkwardly excused himself before leaving the room.

Tenzin sighed. "Anyways, we should leave for Republic City in about two hours. When the conference starts, you have to remain calm and answer every question like..." the councilman explained. But at this point, Korra simply could not focus on whatever Tenzin had to say. The only thing that was wandering in her mind was the image of Naruto in boxers and tank tops sitting near her. It was unexpected, and she didn't quite know what to make of it. 'I just hope that I get to see him more like that every once in a while,' she thought carelessly.

'Wait a second. What did I just think? Bad Korra!' she mentally shouted at herself as a small blush of embarrassment appeared on her face. After a while, she calmed down and kept telling herself that she was not some kind of pervert just because she liked a guy's body, face, and blue eyes like ocean, his abs...Damn it, Naruto. She was no pervert. It was a stupid thing to believe, right?

...

Right?

"Korra, are you listening?" Tenzin's voice shot her back to the real world.

"Me? Y-Yeah, I got it. Don't worry," she said in a very unconvincing manner. 'I'm screwed.'

'She is screwed,' the Airbender thought in unison.

Republic City press conference

'Okay, I take it back. I'm not just screwed, I'm completely, one hundred percent, totally and utterly screwed,' was the thought of the teenage Avatar as she walked towards her seat in front of hundreds and hundreds of photographers that kept blinding her with multiple flashes of light. She really could care less about how she looked in the pictures; she just wanted to get over with this as soon as possible. Really, what was it with putting her in front of so many people and answering questions?

'Can't I just... I don't know; write my answers on a sheet of paper? Wait, scratch that. I am so NOT writing that much.'

Fortunately, Tenzin and Naruto came with her in an attempt to keep her calm and suggest what questions she should answer and what not. She really appreciated the gesture. Otherwise, she would make a fool of herself in an unimaginable way.

And so she started. "Hello, I'm Korra. Your new Avatar," she started to say. 'Well, that went perfect.'

Naruto facepalm while Tenzin was rubbing his temples, feeling a headache coming.

What was her reward, you might ask? Why a barrage of questions, of course!

"Does this mean you're moving into Republic City?"

"Were you trying to send a message to the Triads yesterday?"

"Will you be fighting crime or the anti-bending revolution or both?"

"Will you be working with Chief Beifong and the police?"

Trying to compose herself from the sudden outburst of questions, Korra spoke up. "Uhm, yes. I am definitely here to stay, but... I honestly, I don't exactly have a plan... yet? See, I'm still in training but look. All I know is Avatar Aang meant for this city to be the centre of peace and balance in the world. And I believe we can make his dream a reality. I look forward to serving you. I'm so happy to be here! Thank you, Republic City!"

Hearing Korra's statement, the crowd cheered loudly. Korra herself was relieved she somewhat pulled it off, not wanting to have her first official day as Republic City's Avatar ruined. That was when Tenzin interrupted the second barrage of questions the journalists were preparing.

"Alright, those were all the questions the Avatar can answer for today. Korra, Naruto, let's go."

The moment they saw Naruto, they tried to ask him questions since he was also a public figure.

As they rushed off stage, Korra couldn't help but ask Tenzin. "Soooooo, how did I do back there?"

"Well enough," was his response. "With some luck, we should be able to avoid any other conferences that may present themselves soon. That way, we should be able to work on your airbending peacefully."

"You did well, Korra, trust me. The first time I was in front of them, I was far worse," Naruto said.

"Good. Because honestly, I don't feel like doing this kind of stuff ever again."

"However, you must realise that you will be expected to attend to these sorts of events. That includes important meetings and maybe social galas," Naruto reminded her.

Korra sighed. "I know." Before she remembered what Naruto said.

"Wait? What do you mean the first time? What happened in your first time in front of a crowd?" Korra asked curiously, but her curiosity turned to confusion when both Naruto and Tenzin's faces turned pale like snow.

"Ahhh... N-Nothing, you need to worry A-about," Naruto stuttered out with Tenzin immediately agreeing with his nephew with a nod, but that had the opposite effect with Korra.

"Why, Please tell me," Korra pleaded. That went on forever...

Air Temple - One Hour Later

Back at the Air Temple, Naruto was finishing doing push-ups and was getting ready to do some jogging around the island. He was currently wearing his training uniform, which consisted of a white t-shirt and beige shorts that went from his hips to the end of his knees. Bandages that went from his ankles to his toes were wrapped around his feet.

He really missed the feeling of actually being physically tired but at the same time wanting to work out more. Pushing his limits was one of the things he did best, from having an excellent and healthy body that could be just as dangerous as any weapon out there to expanding the typical mindset of airbending by showing his own.

Talking about Naruto's airbending, the best way to describe it was by saying he was basically an airbending powerhouse. Instead of finding and following the path of least resistance, his airbending was based on overpowering the objective with the use of brute force. That didn't mean he would just jump in at the enemy's sight and smash him with air, as tempting as the idea might be. But if an attack was heading his way, he wouldn't always try to evade it. Instead, he would charge and make use of his strength and speed in combat.

Finishing his stretches, Naruto spotted Korra walking over the docks along with Tenzin.

Naruto smirked. Maybe the laps around the island could wait a little longer.

"Hey Korra," Naruto greeted his childhood friend.

"Hey, Naruto. What are you doing here?" Korra greeted back. The change of clothes called her attention.

"I was just in the middle of my daily workout. What about you?"

"Still thinking about the conference, actually!."

"Why? As I said, you did good; how did you feel" Naruto asked with interest.

She took a seat on a bench nearby. "I was actually kinda nervous. I'd never seen so many people in one place before; it was crazy." Naruto nodded in understanding before taking a seat next to her. "So, do you work out a lot?" she asked in order to keep the conversation going.

"Yeah, almost every day," Naruto responded.

"Really?" Korra asked in disbelief. "Why?"

"Well, Living here can get pretty boring, especially with Uncle Tenzin mumbling about the correct way an Airbender should act. After a while, you can get pretty bored if you're not practising airbending or meditating. So exercising can be great to pass the time. You get some fresh air physical conditioning, and you get to sleep like a baby at the end of the day," he said while laughing a little at the end.

"I know, right? When I was in the South Pole, I used to practice my bending almost every day, so I know what it means to work your butt off in order to get good at something."

"Yeah. Hey, I wanted to apologise for my little scene this morning," Naruto said in a more serious tone of voice. The sudden change took the Avatar off guard.

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about having breakfast with you in my underwear. You have to understand, we rarely have any guests coming over here, and honestly, I'm not really awake until I have my breakfast. Seriously, I could have gone into the room naked, and I still wouldn't have noticed," he apologised with some humour, making Korra giggle a bit.

"It's fine, really. I didn't even remember it until you brought it up now," Korra said mockingly.

"Really? Well, now I feel a little stupid," Naruto said back. The two of them looked at one another for a second before they started to laugh.

When the laughter died down, Naruto's eyes lightened up in anticipation. "Hey, how about we have a spar? It has been a long time. See if you have what it takes to keep up with me?" he cockily asked.

"Oh, come on, I'm the Avatar, Naruto. You should be the one wondering if you can keep up with me," she cockily retorted while closing her deep cerulean eyes. In all honesty, Korra wanted to spar with him just as much as Naruto wanted too. Back in the 'old days' with the White Lotus, she was highly praised by Katara and her masters because of her skill. It prided her to know that she was good at fighting, being the brash and 'all-out' girl of always. However, the White Lotus sparring partners quickly bored her. She would simply beat them in about five minutes, ten at the most. It was boring. Naruto was always a challenge, sadly after leaving to train his airbending, he rarely visited, and even when he did, almost half of the time would be spent catching up with each other, telling tales about themselves, mostly Naruto, since Korra had almost nothing new to tell since she was stuck there with no new people around.

But now, she had the opportunity to spar with Naruto. And for some reason, she had a feeling Naruto was going to be much more fun.

"Don't worry, Korra. I promise I'll go easy on you. Does that sounds good, little Avatar?" Naruto taunted her.

And by the Spirits did it work.

"Hey, who are you calling little?" Korra snapped.

"That would be you, Korra. Do you forget that I'm eighteen and you're seventeen?"

"Are you kidding me? You are just a year older than me!"

"I stand correct," Naruto said smugly. It was officially on.

One hour later

Breathing heavily, sweat rolling down his face, "... That has to be... the best spar... I've ever had in my life," Naruto said while breathing heavy. They had been sparring a little over an hour now, and they both ended up to tired to keep going without blowing up the island.

"Tell me about it... I don't think I've ever had... This much fun practicing before...," Korra replied, a little bit more exhausted than Naruto.

The spar consisted of going all-out against each other without the use of brute force. Hand to hand combat was allowed. At first, when Naruto told Korra she should use all three of her elements against him, she believed he was being cocky like always. However, she quickly found out he wasn't messing with her when he easily dodged the water whips she used against him and airbended a fist to her gut, which in turn sent her flying a few meters back, making her lower back meet the ground 'face to face. It was only then that she started taking him seriously and attacked him with water, earth and fire. Using her three elements increased her chances of winning, but Naruto was simply too fast for her to catch him off guard.

She didn't have much more luck in the hand to hand department. She expected to have the advantage here, but Naruto was just as good at punching and kicking as he was in his airbending. Both of them would exchange and block each other's blows for a couple of minutes before Naruto landed a decisive hit, strong enough to break her defenses and submitted her. The way he moved impressed Korra. It was like she was fighting a firebender, an Airbender and an earthbender all the same. She recognised some moves of each style because of her previous Avatar training in the South Pole, but he changed his fighting style so quickly she couldn't react in time.

Of course, Naruto didn't really go all out, he knew he didn't use his more offensive Airbending moves, but he would use them only against an enemy.

"How did you... learn to fight like that?" she asked while trying to regain her breath.

"I learned it... by myself. Almost everything I know... Is self-taught," Naruto responded.

His answer made the Avatar gawk out of surprise. "Are you for real? You learned all of that on your own?" she asked, looking at him in awe. She was too shocked by his answer that she forgot how tired she actually was.

"Yeah. Like I said before, aside from my airbending lessons, I had a lot of free time, which I used in learning how to fight. It definitely comes in handy when I have to punch my way out of a situation without revealing my bender nature."

"Man, if that's what I'm going to learn from your uncle, then I can't wait to get started," Korra said excitedly. She just couldn't wait to airbend like Naruto!

"About that... Uncle Tenzin doesn't really approve of the way I airbend that much. He says that I'm 'misdirecting my airbending teachings'. Not that I really care about that anyway. Traditional airbending was never my thing," Naruto replied calmly. "Besides..," he trailed off.

Korra noticed how his usually cool and confident attitude suddenly changed. This worried her a bit. "Besides what?" she asked, concerned.

Naruto took a big breath and let out a sigh. "Besides, nevermind."

"What do you mean 'Nevermind' tell me?" Korra asked, slightly hurt, she saw him as a childhood friend, and maybe, something more, she didn't like to think that Naruto would not share something with her...

"Alright, but don't mention this to Anyone else," Naruto said, but more like a warning. Korra nodded her head as Naruto went on and explained...

"Ohh," was the only response from Korra, who wanted to hug her friend, but Naruto's sad face turned into a full-blown smile in a second.

"Don't worry, Korra. Right now, I have an amazing family I can call my own, a good place to live, a giant Raven-Eagle I can ride for a pet, and you as my best friend. I don't think there are many people in this world as lucky as me," he finished as he gave Korra a small yet genuine smile full of determination and sincerity.

Hearing those words, Korra was amazed by his determination and the way he looked at life. If she had any doubts before, they were absolutely gone by now. Naruto was certainly far more fascinating than she thought before. Besides, hearing him say that he felt lucky because she was his friend was more than enough for Korra to feel joyful, even if she tried to hide it. She just smiled at him back.

"Don't worry. I'm sure Kya is proud of you,"

"You're right. After all, what kind of parent who have the most awesome Airbender for a son wouldn't be proud?"

"Mmmhh, I think the parents of the Avatar are prouder," Korra retorted. She was glad that Naruto was back at being himself, but she simply had to tease him after hearing him.

"Huh-huh. The last time I checked, the Avatar was supposed to bend the four elements, not just three of them. Right now, you're as much as the Avatar as I am," he fired back.

"Oh yeah? Well... Uhmm... Shut up," was the only response she could think of, her face turning a little red. He got her good on that one.

"Shut up? Wow, nice comeback," Naruto said sarcastically. Said response earned him a punch in his left arm with an annoyed glare from Korra. "Ouch! What was that for?"

"That was for being such a smartass," she said, still looking sour for her verbal defeat.

Anyone else would have stopped teasing her at that point.

However, this is Naruto we're talking about.

"Is that right?" he asked while glaring at her back with a serious look on his face... just before spreading his legs and point at her with his right index finger making a dramatic pose. "Well, I'm Naruto, and you gotta deal with it!"

At first, she glanced at him with a 'what the heck?' kind of look. But after a few seconds, she realised he was teasing her with her childhood catchphrase!

No one teased her with that and got away with it. ABSOLUTELY NO ONE.

As her face turned redder than red itself, Korra started pursuing Naruto, who was running for his life.

"I Told You NOT To Remind Me," Korra shouted, marching towards Naruto.

"Oh, COME ON, Korra. You Know I always Loved That moment," Naruto shouted before A game of cat and mouse started.

Korra chased Naruto around the temple, soon joined by Meelo, who ran along with Naruto for no reason whatsoever, soon joined by Jinora and Ikko. They supported Korra despite not knowing what was happening.

"Stop Running, and Take Your Punishment Like A Man," Korra shouted.

Somewhere?!

The door closed, the sound of metal hitting metal was heard, as the mask looked at his guest, his face unreadable behind the mask, but one could see the grin.

"Are you sure about this?"

"Don't Worry Amon, once I'm done. Everyone around the world will hate the Benders!" The masked man spoke before laughing...