Kakashi looked down at his team assignment list again and sighed.
"Team 7…" he muttered while walking. "Me? A teacher? This has to be some sort of sick joke…"
But he knew all too well it wasn't. He recalled the third hokage's words. Lord Hokage had chosen this team specifically with him in mind. An attempt to recreate Team Minato…
"Minato's son, the last of the Uchiha, and a brilliant young kunoichi. Am I really qualified to teach them?" he sighed again.
At last Kakashi arrived at the Academy. He made his way in and stood in front of the classroom door, immediately noticing the eraser crudely placed on top. Most likely this was intended for him. Guess the kids got bored waiting for him.
Should I play along? Eh… why not? Kakashi opened the door and stepped through.
With a soft "plop" the eraser hit his head and fell to the floor. Before him stood a blond-haired child in an orange jumpsuit.
"Hahaha, he fell for it!" the kid laughed.
"Naruto!" the pink-haired girl yelled. "Sensei, I'm so sorry! I tried to stop him!"
Kakashi looked around at his students, "Hmm, let's see… my first impression of this group? You're all idiots."
"Huh?!" they all cried.
Not long later, the newly formed team was sitting on some cement stairs on top of one of the higher buildings in Konoha. Kakashi himself leaned against the railing.
"Right. Why don't you tell me about yourselves?"
"Tell you about ourselves?" Naruto asked.
"You know… likes, dislikes, plans for the future, hobbies, dreams… that sort of thing."
"Why don't you tell us about yourself first, so we can get an idea of how this is going to work?"
Kakashi really didn't feel like sharing too much with a bunch of kids.
"Hmm, let's see… likes and dislikes… I don't feel like telling you. Hobbies? I also don't feel like telling you. Plans for the future…? Haven't given it much thought."
"Wha?! You didn't tell us anything?!" Naruto complained.
"It's the truth."
"Gah, fine! I'll go! My name is Naruto Uzumaki! I like instant ramen but I really like the Ichiraku ramen that Iruka-sensei buys me! And my dream is to become the future hokage!"
The blond-haired boy flashed Kakashi a painfully bright grin. It felt like someone had pricked him with a needle. Kakashi knew that grin. He knew it only all too well. It was the same smile his sensei would occasionally give him; the same goofy smile Obito would have plastered all over his face. It didn't help that Naruto's dream was to become hokage too, much like Obito.
"Interesting... " Kakashi murmured. "Alright, you next!"
The silver-haired shinobi looked at Sakura.
"My name is Sakura Haruno! What I like- er, I mean, who I like is…"
The young girl looked over at the black-haired boy, making googoo eyes. Her face flushed as she brought her arms closer to her chest.
Oh, great… Kakashi thought. We've got a lovesick kunoichi on the squad.
Kakashi let out an exasperated sigh. At the same time, something about this girl and the face she was making reminded him of Rin.
"My dream is… eep!" Sakura squeaked.
"Right… Well then, looks like you're up," Kakashi looked at the Uchiha child.
"My name is Sasuke Uchiha… I dislike a lot of things, and don't particularly like anything. I prefer not to call my ambitions 'dreams'. My goal… is to kill a certain someone and restore my clan."
I knew it.
Kakashi was afraid of this. There was no doubt in his mind whom Sasuke was talking about. It had to be Itachi, the killer of the entire Uchiha clan and his former Anbu teammate.
Naruto gulped, he's not talking about me, is he?
Wow, Sasuke is so cool! Sakura gushed.
Kakashi wondered if he could really do this.
Just as he had with all the ones who'd come before them, Kakashi administered his sensei's bell test to the three wannabe genin. So far, Naruto had done nothing but disappoint by falling into traps. Sakura fainted twice, once when Kakashi conjured an illusion of Sasuke badly wounded and a second time by accident, when she saw Sasuke's head popping out of the ground after Kakashi buried him. And Sasuke, while he'd come fairly close to grabbing one of the bells and did impress Kakashi with his fireball jutsu, was far from perfect.
All three's teamwork was sorely lacking. Disappointed, Kakashi administered the final part of the exam and called for a lunch break. He tied Naruto to one of the posts and then laid in wait, watching. This was their last chance, if they couldn't pass this… Then again, nobody had ever passed the exam before. There chances were extremely low. Kakashi mentally apologized to Minato for failing his son.
But then, something unexpected happened. For the first time since he'd begun administering the bell exam, Sasuke offered his meal to Naruto. Kakashi couldn't believe it. Were they… actually working together?! Yes, they were!
"Here, take it," Sasuke shoved his lunch towards Naruto, refusing to make eye contact with him.
"Sasuke, no!" Sakura scolded. "Kakashi-sensei said we weren't allowed to share our food! You'll get yourself sent back to the academy!"
"Naruto needs his strength if he's gonna help us get the bells. He's not looking. Come on, hurry up and eat it!"
"I… can't… my arms are tied!" Naruto flailed his feet.
Sakura sighed, "Here, take mine…"
"S- Sakura…" Naruto got teary-eyed. "Thank you."
Kakashi grinned. He couldn't believe it! Maybe Lord Hokage was right in putting the three of them together… Kakashi calmed himself down and used his genjutsu to conjure some ominous-looking clouds. Time for the final touch.
"Youuu!" He yelled, putting on his best angry face and appearing out of nowhere. "You broke the rules, you know what that means!"
"But, but, but… but you said we were a team!" Naruto argued.
"That's right, you said we had to work as one," Sasuke added.
"That's right!" Sakura suddenly chimed in.
"Is that what you all think?" Kakashi walked menacingly towards them, bending over to stare directly into their eyes.
Then, smiling, "You passed!"
"H- huh?!" Naruto yelled.
The storm clouds cleared up, revealing a bright blue sky.
"You passed. A ninja must see through deception and work as a team, and you all did. Congratulations!"
"Wh- wh- really?!" Naruto stuttered. "We passed?"
"That's what I said, isn't it?"
The three (or rather two) burst into cheers and laughter.
"Alright!" Sakura triumphantly punched the air.
Naruto teared up, "H- he's… he's kinda cool…!"
Sasuke merely smiled, closing his eyes.
"In this world… a shinobi who doesn't follow the rules is trash. But a shinobi who abandons his comrades… is worse than trash."
Kakashi looked wistfully up at the sky, remembering Obito's words.
Minato-sensei, Obito, Rin… are you looking down on me right now? Can you see this? And… have I made you all proud? Please, watch over these genin as they begin their journey. Keep them safe…
Kakashi looked back at the still celebrating children and couldn't help but smile. It almost felt like he was getting a second chance. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura… they were all now his students, and he would defend them with his life. His adorable little genin.