Draft pic of Kaeru from Fia's Doomed to Repeat. More for coloring practice really, since this is the first draft. Looks awkward. "Good" versions aren't usually 'til the third or fourth draft and I'll probably go back to my usual coloring method. XP

Personally I like the chibis in the corner more, and that took me, like, five minutes as opposed to five hours. O_o

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Fic Clip:

“You're pushing it too hard,” Kaeru’s voice came from behind him.

Sasuke jerked away from the touch and spun around to glare at the older genin.

“I don't need your help,” he bit back. This was his struggle, his quest, his burden to bear. No one else could understand his ambition.

Kaeru just frowned at the dark-haired boy.

“Do you want to get this or not?” demanded the redhead hotly. He calmed quickly and folded his arms across his chest. “You're thinking about it too much. When you walk and talk at the same time, you don't need to think about the walking, ne? You just put one foot in front of the other.”

Kaeru took Sasuke by the shoulder and turned him around to face the scratched up tree.

“Don't think about this,” he ordered, more quietly. “Just concentrate on how much chakra you're expelling. Always an equal amount from the soles of your feet.”

Sasuke’s anger slid away slowly as he stared at the tree. He knew he needed to be calm to attempt this kind of chakra control, but Itachi was always at the forefront of his mind. He needed to be strong, strong enough to avenge his family by killing the madman responsible for their deaths. But, a small part of Sasuke responded to Kaeru’s calm instructions. Breathing deeply, the young Uchiha tightened his grip on the kunai in his hand and felt the familiar, tingling warmth that signaled his chakra traveling through his body. Suddenly, he ran.

For a moment, Sasuke forgot about his movements, only concentrating on the warm feeling spreading through his feet. He ignored the sense of gravity pulling at him as he flew up the tree parallel to the ground. He barely registered his previous mark as he passed it and kept running, focused only on the tree and his own chakra. When he could feel his control slipping, Sasuke scratched a line in the trunk and flipped backwards. He sailed to the ground and landed easily, if not heavily, on his feet, caught unnecessarily by a pair of hands on his shoulders.

“See, that was better.”

Sasuke glanced behind him to see Kaeru beaming proudly at the tree before he turned his blue eyes to Sasuke.

“Hn,” Sasuke grunted uncomfortably.

“You're welcome, bastard.” Kaeru’s smile remained on his face as if glued on, and he backed away from the boy. Sasuke turned away from his onetime instructor, ignoring a feeling that he hadn’t felt in nearly six years growing in the pit of his stomach.

“Aniki, will you teach me to throw shuriken today?”