Okay, I'm guilty. Akemi is a SI. I did it. I have crossed the line, and do you know what? I regret nothing! *runs off cackling into the distance*
Please read and review - that's the only way I can know if I'm getting better!
The last thing I remembered before my death was being hit by a car.
When I came to, it was warm and quiet. Everything was soothing and relaxing, so I drifted back to sleep. I was so tired...
The next time I woke up, I was shocked that I had forgotten what had happened so quickly. I was hit by a car, that's not the kind of thing you can shrug off! I tried to open my eyes, but ended up twitching my fingers - my motor control was shot to hell and back. It was panic-inducing, not being able to control even your own body, but I couldn't seem to work up the energy to be nervous about it, not in this lovely place. It felt like I was surrounded with... Love? Affection? I just had the feeling that everything was right in the world.
Perhaps I really had died, and this was Heaven? It seemed pretty far off my mother's descriptions, lacking clouds and angels, but the sense of tranquility was absolute. Here, I could rest. I'm not sure why, but I had been feeling so tired lately...
I was startled out of my lovely sleep by the cold, harsh air, and daylight stinging my eyes. It was a complete shock to my system, not what I was expecting at all, like being awoken from slumber by someone ripping the blankets off.
I cried, because there was stuff in my nose and mouth, and get it out, getitoutgetitout! I screamed, hoping someone would assist me, and finally, a person with exceptionally large hands came to my rescue, holding me upside-down, allowing that nasty fluid to drain out - and then they smacked me! How was that fair?
I hollered at my cruel treatment, feeling completely slighted. But once I had started to cry, the stranger, about whom I retract all of the nice things I said, by the way, handed me over to someone else, who held me to their breast.
And let me tell you, breast-feeding might be the natural way to go about it, but by god, it's freaking gross!
I suddenly became aware that the sharp, disinfectant smell around me could only mean I was in a hospital. And with that, the mystery was solved. Why I was in that comforting place. What had just happened. Why some lady was holding her boob to my mouth.
I had just been reborn, somehow.
Wait. Weren't you supposed to forget everything once you were reincarnated? Maybe I had somehow gotten a second chance, to be able to relive my life again, like in those time-travel movies, where the hero runs a minute late and misses his soulmate, or where he doesn't follow his dream of becoming a football player and settles for a life of mediocrity?
Heaven knows that mediocre was the best way to describe my life before I had died. My family loved me, sure, but I always had the feeling like I was just waiting for the TARDIS to appear and spirit me off to some grand adventure. Like I could do more with my life than just reading other people's adventures, but mine still hadn't happened yet.
Well, being reborn sure counted as an adventure! Hell, after that, I think I needed a cigarette Not that I smoke, mind, I hate the smell, and it's not good for you. And I was now a baby, so no smoking for the infant. A metaphorical cigarette - that was what I needed. I could blow smoke circles with it, like a boss, and...
Gosh, I was going off on a tangent, wasn't I? Well, I suppose birth could be considered a highly traumatic experience, and most likely, my brain still hadn't developed fully yet, so small wonder I had the attention span of a puppy.
I opened my eyes, after much trial and effort. It felt like everything in my body had been rewired - nerves missing and new ones in their place, everything misfiring all at once - it was enough to give me a headache, but I persevered.
The woman above me was not my mother. For one, she had black hair, long and straight, unlike my mother's, and my, curly blonde. Her eyes were almost the colour of cinnamon, and her skin had obviously seen the sun. There was a small scar under her right eye which I found myself facinated by - my mother was too much of an indoor person to have ever gotten scars, and the small flaw was... Comforting. This woman might not be my mother, but the words she was cooing to me were filled with love, and her face was alight with adoration. She kept whispering something as she sobbed with joy, but to my ears, it was garbled noise.
It didn't take me long to discover my new parents' names. My father was Masahiro, and my mother was Akiko. Their surname, and mine too, I would assume, was Fujiwara. My new name was Akemi, which was quite different to my old name, but hearing it said with such affection, I couldn't mind it. I soon became used to my new life, frustrating as it was to be unable to do anything. I had to rely on Masahiro and Akiko for everything, but they were excellent parents - I soon came to love them as my own. They clearly adored me, as I was their only child, and Akiko would always sing to me if I was upset by my own inability to do anything. Masahiro was out most days, but I clearly recall waking up one night to see him looking down on me, in my crib, with a look that was so tender it hurt.
I learnt some of the language from Akiko repeating words to me, but I could never repeat them, because it takes a lot of muscle control to form words. I decided that I would practice when I was alone, and that 'Mama' and 'Papa', respectively, should be the first words they heard me say.
My muscle control slowly inproved as well, my mind becoming used to the new pathways by what appeared to be flailing. The human body was really an amazing thing - with only a few months, my hand eye coordination had come on in leaps and bounds, and all of the random movements and gurgling that infants usually did was actually the best way to progress, testing out muscles and feeling them respond.
Asides from my being the reincarnation of an eighteen-year-old student, ours appeared to be the perfect family - warm, loving parents, and a well behaved baby, because even if I was in the body of an infant, I had standards!
Four months in, That Day happened.
Masahiro awoke me in the middle of the night, my mother already up and dressed. They were wearing different clothes to normal, almost like shinobi from Naruto, a manga and anime I had loved before my untimely demise and rebirth. Heck, my father was even wearing a forehead protector! Were they off to a convention?
...No, the looks on their faces were far too serious for that. I gleaned from their conversation that something was attacking the town we lived in, and they were needed. Akiko pressed a desperate kiss to my forehead, and Masahiro swathed me in my blanket and dropped me in to our neighbours, who had a daughter who sometimes babysat me.
As we exited the apartment, I shuddered. There was a malevolent feel to the air, as though something was coming...
And something was, although I couldn't see it.
My parents never returned. Fujuwara Masahiro and Fujiwara Akiko were added to the Memorial Stone, as shinobi who had fallen in defense of the village.
I was somehow in the world of Naruto, and the Kyuubi had just killed my family.
I was placed in an orphanage after that, as were many other children. The eldest was seven, a sweet girl named Tsukiko who helped take care of the younger children, myself included. The youngest was a newborn, with his father's spiky blond hair, and whisker-like scars on his face.
Uzumaki Naruto.
I didn't blame him for the death of my parents - how could I? Aside from knowing that he was a good kid, who grew up to be a good man, due to my handy foreknowledge, he was younger than I was when the attack had happened. He was no more to blame for the attack than I was, and he had as much chance at stopping it. He was going to be shunned by the entire village because his father had used him to protect them...
Maybe this was my mission, the reason I had been sent back. If I could stop this boy from having a miserable childhood, and stop Sasuke from defecting, everything would be so much better!
Of course, that still left Madara to deal with.
And I knew exactly how I was going to do it. That bastard had killed my family, after all, and even though they weren't the first family I had ever had, I had loved them.
Growing up was a slow process – I can still remember, with perfect clarity, the first time I had managed to crawl. I was so proud of myself, because even that small achievement had been a huge milestone. Coordinating my hand and feet movements was really a big deal to me, and I remember falling flat on my face many times in the process of working up to this stage. I immediately made my way, slowly, over to Naruto's crib. He wasn't a baby any more. He looked to be older than I was when I first came to the orphanage – five months old, I'd say.
I suddenly realized that I had lost track of how many days had passed, in my single-minded stubbornness to get my body obeying my commands again. It must have been five months since that day, since I was now at the right age to be crawling!
Time hadn't healed the ache, not for my original parents or my parents here. I still missed them with every second, but I knew that they'd want me to be strong, and only look back on them when it made me happy.
I clambered into Naruto's cot, seeing a squalling baby, who the rest of the staff were ignoring. I pulled him into a cuddle, and he quieted, looking over at me with a surprised look on his face. That shocked, at receiving a little affection? Poor thing...
I resolved not to let Naruto grow up friendless this time. I might not have been able to do much, trapped as I was in the body of a baby, but providing friendship and support, I could definitely do!
Once he was finally being paid some attention, Naruto was mostly a happy baby. A little attention-seeking, yes, but that worked for me, finally giving me some task which I could do, stopping me from feeling so useless and trapped.
I played with him every day, ignoring the scowls of the orphanage staff. They didn't dare to interfere, not with the man I recognized as the Sandaime Hokage keeping an eye on them, and their neglect did not stretch as far as abuse. They would feed him and change him, but nothing else, and I wondered at their idiocy.
What did they think would happen to the Kyuubi if Naruto died, as babies could from lack of love? Best case scenario, they end up with a mentally-unstable Jinchuuriki, and nobody wanted that. Thoughts of Gaara of the Sand flashed through my mind, and I shuddered. He was one of my favourite characters, yes, but nobody could deny that he was mad as a hatter during the Chuunin exams.
That Naruto hadn't turned out to be a psychopath was completely stunning, to be honest. But, in this time-line, he wouldn't have the opportunity. The Rookie 9 all befriended him once they got to know him a little, and I was sure that the same thing would happen this time. Heck, Hinata would be more than willing to be his friend, and I reckoned that they would be good for each other.
By the time I was three years old, I could communicate in small sentences, hampered by both my lack of understanding of Japanese, and my difficulty making my tongue obey me. Still, this new-found communication was a blessing, as it finally stopped me from being alone in my own head with my thoughts all day. Naruto had picked it up quickly, and once he learned, he rarely stopped chattering away, which was irritating at first, but soon grew to be comforting – like a constant reminder that he was there, that I wasn't alone.
"Akemi-chan, lookit!" He demanded one day, playing with a wooden shuriken. His hand-eye coordination was much better then mine, and I smiled – he was a born ninja, this one.
"Yup. Shu-ri-ken." I enunciated. I still knew more words than he did, but he was much better at using the ones he knew than I was.
"Shuriken!" He repeated cheerfully, going back to playing with his toys.
I sighed, happily, and returned to my book. I had already known hiragana, from my failed anime-fan attempt to learn Japanese, but my kanji were horribly lacking, and I really had nothing better to do. The orphanage staff tended to ignore me, most of the time, since I was always with Naruto, a fact which really should have bothered me more. But, in my mind, I was a grown-ass adult, and we didn't need them anyway! I was more than capable of taking care of the two of us, keeping Naruto out of trouble most of the time, and providing him with an alibi when the staff particularly deserved pranking.
I suspect that it should have surprised them that I could read by the age of three, but like I said, they tended to ignore me. I never read aloud, so they might have thought I was only in it for the pictures, but between Naruto and my books, my vocabulary grew.
We grew up too quickly, it seemed. Soon Naruto was talking in full sentences, and was able to express himself. The Sandaime came to visit sometimes, and while it was obvious that he was mainly there for Naruto, he always said hello to me whenever he visited. I wanted to tell him not to feel bad about my parents' deaths, but somehow, the words never came. Better not to say that much, and have to explain myself, though.
"Akemi-chan, how are you today?" He asked cordially, and I smiled up at him, pleased that he was making an effort.
"I'm fine, Hokage-sama, and you?" I used the most polite Japanese I could muster up, and drew a smile from the old man.
"Fine, also, thank you. Where is Naruto, do you know?"
"Give me a moment, please." I said politely, then turned and hollered. "Naruto, you've got a visitor!"
He skidded into view, already wearing his customary orange, even at this young age. "Gramps!" He cried happily, throwing himself at the leader of the village like one would a favourite grandfather. The Sandaime caught him with strength that belied his age, and I realized again that he was the leader of a Hidden Village, a ruler over shinobi. He was someone to be respected.
"Naruto, be polite." I stage-whispered, and the Hokage laughed. "No, no, Akemi-chan, it's fine."
"Yeah, see?" Naruto stuck his tongue out at me teasingly.
Of course, being the mature and sensible adult I was, I did the only option left to me.
Retaliation. I pulled the most horrific face I could manage, and we both fell over laughing at how silly we were. When we had finished, and I had caught my breath, I saw Sarutobi looking down at us with a fond expression.
"You know, I had worried about Naruto being placed here, but now I think I see my fears were unfounded. Thank you, Akemi-chan." He murmured, almost as though he was speaking to himself.
I had heard him, though, and my eyes teared up a little. The gratitude in his voice was almost overwhelming.
He cleared his throat, breaking the silence that had fallen. "I'm afraid this is a running visit, you two – I need to speak to the lady in charge – some more orphans are due to be starting the Academy soon, and I have paperwork that we have to go over.
Naruto and I smiled, and waved him off.
When you started the Academy depended on if you were from a shinobi family or not – those who weren't started a year early, kind of like a foundation year, so that they could be taught the things that shinobi children would usually learn from their parents.
Naruto and I started the Academy together, at age six. There were a lot of children there that I didn't recognize, and I assumed that they were the ones who had failed the Genin test, or who had failed whatever equivalent to the bell test their senseis' had administered. Still, Sakura Haruno was there, since she was the first ninja in her family, and Tenten and Rock Lee were in the year above us, along with Neji Hyuuga. The rest of the Rookie Nine were from shinobi families, so would be starting next year.
Just you watch, mother, father. I'll make you proud. I thought to myself as I took my first step inside the Academy.
Our first day was pretty hectic – we were all assigned Iruka-sensei as our year tutor, which meant that he'd be teaching us most of our lessons. Judging by his age, I think that we were the first year group he had ever taught, and he was almost as nervous as we were.
Like the character in the manga, which seemed almost like a dream, now, he was kind to Naruto. That earned him major points in my book, seeing as all of the other children followed their parents' examples and ignored him, if not picked on him. I didn't stand for it, though, quickly going to Iruka-sensei if anyone tried anything. I earned a bit of a reputation as a tattle-tale, and most of the brats wouldn't talk to me, but I reckon they were just jealous because none of them were ever going to be main characters. Oh, yeah. I went there.
Naruto thoroughly enjoyed all of his classes, except, and I quote, 'The boring ones where we have to sit there and do nothing'. He was lucky that the ninja institution existed, because otherwise, he'd be in trouble – my mind boggled, imagining him in the schooling system where I had lived my first life. He'd probably have been that one problem child who sat in the back, throwing things at people. Still, we sat together in the middle of the classroom, and whenever he started to daydream, I'd remind him softly that this would be a part of the Genin exam. With that near-constant reminder, he started to really pay attention in class, although it probably helped that Iruka-sensei was a really good teacher, and he excelled in making stories out of history, and games out of tactics.
I found myself paying attention in class also – the lectures were usually really interesting, like stories out of a manga series, with ninja who could level buildings in one move. The Yondaime was probably my favourite – I could hear how much he treasured the village in all of the stories I heard, as well as from my knowledge of the manga. Naruto looked so much like him, I wondered how the villagers could possibly fail to see it.
Our first year passed pretty quickly – there was an exam at the end, the same as the entrance exam for candidates from shinobi families, but very few failed it – in a world where your skill meant your life or death, nobody slacked with their training. Naruto and I were ready, of course – I think I bullied him into more revision than he could stand, but he bore it with only a few complaints.
"Woohoo, we passed, Akemi-chan!" He hollered with joy as we left, after picking up our results. We were both seven now, Naruto a few months younger than I was. He didn't seem to have his silly little crush on Sakura this time around, a fact which I was grateful for – I liked Sakura post Chuunin Exams, but before then, I had found her to be a bit of an immature fangirl. Still, when she was placed on Naruto's team, she'd eventually become one of his special people, so I'd have to make nice with her. And I'd get the chance to talk to Kakashi-sensei, who was one of my favourites!
"So we did, which means that we can leave the orphanage!" Those who passed the test were now officially ninja-in-training, which meant that we were considered mature enough to live on our own. I was looking forward to getting out of that dreary place, and I knew Naruto felt the same. We had chatted about our plans, late one night under the covers, and decided to get apartments next door to each other – that way, we'd still have our own space, but I'd be close by, in case Naruto set his apartment on fire, somehow!
But, for now, we had the entire break ahead of us, ready to do up our new homes, and get some extra training in – you could never be too well prepared!
Of course, the break passed before we knew it, and soon, we started in our first proper year in the shinobi Academy. Naruto was chuffed, and I was looking forward to seeing some more familiar faces – all of my favourite characters would be there, and hopefully, I could make a positive difference in their lives.
Shikamaru was the first recognizable person I saw, and he was hanging out with a boy who looked an awful lot like a younger Chouji, cloud-watching as his friend snacked. With a chuckle, I left them to it.
I spotted Hinata, in a corner looking out-of-place, and encouraged Naruto to go and speak to her. She blushed as he approached – I do believe I see the beginning of a crush~!
Sasuke was the next person to arrive, ten minutes early. He must have been eager for his first day, I thought. He looked around, trying to decide where to sit, and I figured, better bite the bullet! I waved, and indicated the chair next to mine. He took it gratefully.
"Thanks, I wasn't sure where to sit!" He smiled at me, a proper smile. I was so surprised to see it that it took me a few seconds to respond. "No problem! I'm Fujiwara Akemi, nice to meet you!"
He nodded his head, the closest to a bow he could manage sat down. His manners were lovely, especially compared to Naruto...
"Uchiha Sasuke, a pleasure!" And he was so polite! I internally squeed, just a little.
"So, Sasuke-kun, you were trained by your family? Can you do any jutsu yet?" I figured that was the best way to feel out how long I had before the Uchiha Clan Massacre. I knew it happened one day as he was returning home from the Academy, at about this age, so that would probably be my best indicator.
"I can already do one of the Fire Release justu that my family is known for." He smiled proudly. "How about you, Akemi-chan?"
I was a little surprised by the familiarity with which he referred to me, but then I remembered : I was only a seven year old to him, no wonder he used the "-chan" suffix, especially if I was the first person he got to know in this class. He was probably just trying to be friendly, and the thought brought a smile to my face.
"No, I don't know any – my parents were shinobi, but they were killed in the Kyuubi attack when I was still a baby, so they weren't able to teach me any. I went to the Academy last year." I murmured.
His eyes widened with shock. "Oh, I'm sorry to have brought them up..." He looked as though someone had kicked him in the stomach, poor thing, so I moved to reassure him.
"It's okay – long enough has passed that I can remember them fondly, and I know you weren't trying to bring up bad memories. It hurts, yes, but eventually it becomes something that's just there, you know? Life has to go on."
He looked at me with a hint of... respect? "That's very strong of you. Do you remember them, then?"
"Yes, my mother's name was Akiko, and she had eyes like cinnamon, and black hair, like mine, although hers was much longer..." I twiddled a bit of my mid-length hair. Mother's hair had been down to her waist, and I was growing mine out in her memory – preserving what little bit of her I could.
"Okay, class, settle down!" In walked Iruka-sensei again, for the first time this year. He looked a lot more confident this time around, though, as though he knew what he was doing, and wasn't afraid to let us know who was boss.
Naruto hurriedly jumped into the seat next to me, on the other side. "Hey, Akemi-chan, who's this?" He whispered as Iruka-sensei went through roll-call.
"His name's Sasuke. Sasuke-kun, this is Naruto – we were in the orphanage together, his parents were killed by the Kyuubi attack too."
Sasuke nodded over a greeting which Naruto returned. Then they paid attention.
Class was in session.
I was quick to develop a friendship with Sasuke – I knew what was coming, and had the suspicion that he could use all of the friends he could get for the trials ahead. He was a sweet kid, enthusiastic and curious, but every time he mentioned his brother, my stomach knotted. Itachi really did love him, that was why he left him alive, and gave him the motivation to become stronger, but... I was unsure of what to do. I knew that I couldn't stop the Uchiha Massacre. It was simply impossible – I could either go to the Hokage with my information, but that probably wouldn't have had any effect. The Uchiha clan were traitors to the village, and no castle can stand divided. If I let Itachi know that I knew, I'd probably be killed to ensure my silence.
The best I could do was be there for Sasuke in the aftermath, and try to put the pieces together.
The Massacre happened four months later.
It was being talked about everywhere, and I stopped on my way to the Academy as soon as I heard, and went straight for the hospital.
"Is Uchiha Sasuke here?" I asked the receptionist politely. I felt a sudden stab of relief that Naruto was running late this morning, so I had gone on ahead. I probably wouldn't have gotten much information if he was there with me.
"Yes, he's in here, but I'm afraid he isn't allowed visitors until visiting hours, from five to six." She pointed a perfectly-manicured nail at a sigh behind her, saying the exact same thing.
"It's okay, I just wanted to make sure that he was alright." I smiled sweetly. "Is there no way I could even nip in, just to say hello?"
"Well..." She sighed, heavily, her aura of 'had too much coffee this morning' dissipating. "After what happened, who am I to begrudge him a friend. You can go up, but don't tell anyone that I was the one who let you in, okay?" She winked. "My name's Choko, and if you come down before you go to let me know you're leaving, it'll be fine."
"Thank you, Chouko-nee-chan!" I figured that she deserved the honorific, after the huge service she was doing me.
"Come on, I'll show you to his room. But remember, our little secret!" She tapped the side of her nose playfully.
I opened the door a crack, and tiptoed in. "Sasuke-kun..?" I whispered hesitantly.
"Akemi..?" His voice was hoarse, like he had been screaming all night.
"Sasuke, I heard about what happened, and I came to..." What? See if he was okay? His family had just been killed, of course he wouldn't be okay!
"To see you." I finished. "If you want to talk, I'll listen, or I can talk, or we could both just sit here together, if you'd rather."
He turned his head towards me. He looked like death warmed up, dark circles under his eyes, and he was pale as a ghost.
"Could you talk? I hate the silence in here..."
I obeyed, nattering on about the Academy, Naruto's latest prank, what I thought of some of our classmates, anything I could think of, really. I didn't know if I was helping, but Sasuke's shoulders seemed to relax a little.
"Hey, do you mind if..?" I indicated to the water bottle on his bedside table, throat parched from talking for... Three hours? Man, I could blab on about nothing. He nodded, and I opened it gratefully, chugging down about a third of the bottle before I continued.
I kept going from about eight thirty to seven o'clock, which was when they finally found me and kicked me out. Sasuke had fallen asleep shortly before, so I didn't mind too much, but I worried about what would happen if he woke up alone in there...
Naruto and I visited him every day until he was released from hospital about a week later. I made sure to ask Iruka-sensei for a copy of the work for him, which he gave me with a sympathetic smile. "Tell him we miss him, okay?" Naruto was being held behind for detention.
"I will!" I promised, already on my way out the door. Chouko stopped me as I arrived at the hospital, though, and told me that Sasuke had just been released, and was probably at the Hokage's tower, having his new paperwork filled out.
I ran to the tower as quickly as I could, hoping that I didn't miss him. Luck was with me this time, as I caught his just as he was about to leave. He looked a lot better than he had in hospital, but the spark of life I had become used to seeing in his eyes was gone.
"Sasuke!" I called. After the way I had seen him, honorifics seemed superfluous. I had seen him after the death of everyone he loved – if that didn't give me the right to drop the '-kun', I don't want to know what it would take.
He was with a chuunin, who was probably assigned to ensure he found somewhere to sleep until he was assigned housing.
"If you were planning on heading to a hotel, why don't you just stay in my apartment instead?" I offered impulsively. "My sofa's pretty comfy. It'll be like a sleepover."
"Thanks, Akemi." He murmured, a little bit of life returning to his eyes. I was glad to see it.
Sasuke rejoined the Academy after he left hospital, not wanting to waste time. Of course, he was still living on my sofa, so we walked to the Academy together, the three of us. Naruto and Sasuke squabbled, as they usually did, and I saw a little more of the Sasuke I knew returning to us.
That all vanished as we stepped foot inside the classroom. All of the girls wanted to be the first to offer their condolences, practically stampeding over each other do to do. I squeezed his hand gently, letting him know that I was there if he needed me, and he gave me a quick, grateful look.
We went to go and find our seats, Sasuke practically wading through the girls. Still, Iruka-sensei entered a minute later, and called the worst of them off, telling them to go to their places because class was starting.
We were ambushed again during lunch, and I seriously thought about throwing a kunai at them to scare them off. Sasuke retreated back into his shell with other people around, and to be frank, it worried me. I was afraid that, if he went too far in, he wouldn't come out again.
"Right." I whispered to the boys as we hid in a tree. Shinobi mad skills FTW, peeps! "We need to do something to get them off our backs. Sasuke, could you say that you had a girlfriend in another village, perhaps?"
"Nobody would believe that." He shot me a sceptical look. "I've never been out of the village, and we don't have that many visitors our age."
"Well, Akemi-chan, why don't you pretend to be Sasuke's girlfriend?" Naruto smirked foxily. Sasuke and I looked at each other and recoiled in disgust. Sasuke whapped him across the back of the head for good measure.
"I'm not going out with Akemi!" He muttered under his breath. "That'd just be wrong!"
"Usually, I'd be insulted, but I agree with Uchiha. Wrong, on so many different levels." He was younger than I was mentally, as well as being way too young to have a girlfriend, pretend or not!
"Well," I sighed. "Looks like we'll just have to put up with it."
The fangirls were very persistent, but Sasuke wasn't a genius for nothing, nor was Naruto Konoha's Number One Unpredictable Ninja title undeserved. And me? Well, I was decent enough with henge to play decoy. I'd never be as good a shinobi as the other two, I understood that. And, really, they deserved it, the struggles they had gone through and had yet to face. I just wished that I could be stronger, to be able to help them when the time came.
I knew that being stronger had a price. After all, look at Rock Lee. His chakra coils were so deformed, he couldn't do any ninjutsu or genjutsu, but still, he persevered. I was determined to follow his example. I would be a genius of hard work, and keep up with my friends!
In keeping with my new-found resolution, I started to practice extra, doing chakra control exercises under the table during lectures. Sasuke noticed me doing it, once, and asked what I was up to. The explanation fascinated him.
"So, by doing these exercises, you increase how much chakra you have, as well as how well you can use it?" He looked intrigued, so I quickly demonstrated the principles behind tree-walking, which had taken me about two weeks to master. I was on to water-walking, now, but it was difficult to train, as it required a large body of water, which could only really be had in a training ground, which was only for Genin level upwards, or the hot springs, which were full of naked people. The leaf-sticking technique, as I had come to call it, was easy enough to do in class, but hard enough that it stretched my still-growing chakra supply.
Of course, Naruto wanted in on the big secret, too, so I ended up teaching both of them at the same time. I think they made something of a competition out of it, and a little more of Sasuke stuck its' head out from the shell.
It was our final year in the Academy, hopefully – we were all ready to pass, and we knew the techniques inside and out. Well, except for Naruto and the Clone Jutsu, which he couldn't seem to get down, no matter what he tried. Call it destiny – maybe he was never supposed to learn that justu. Fate had bigger things in store for him.
Of our small group, I went first. I pulled off all the techniques without a hitch, and was awarded my forehead protector. I was a real shinobi of the Leaf! I hoped that my parents could see me, wherever they were. I had made them proud, today. I just knew it.
Sasuke was next up, and as I suspected he would, he passed with flying colours, being complimented for how lifelike his clones appeared. He came out wearing a forehead protector and a smirk. I figured I'd let the latter slide – he deserved it, today of all days.
Naruto exited later, looking as though he were about to cry. I ran up to him and hugged him, as I used to when we were smaller, murmuring comforting nonsense into his ear. Sasuke approached behind him, and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"It'll be okay, Naruto – next time, for sure." I whispered, as he broke down in tears in my arms, Sasuke behind us, watching our backs.
"Come on, let's get out of here, before someone else comes through." Sasuke indicated the door with a jerk of his chin, and I agreed with him. Better not to let anyone else see Naruto like this. Now, how could we leave him to be found by Mizuki-sensei, so that he could pass? Well, if he didn't find him outside, Ichiraku's was Naruto's favourite place, so probably the first place he'd go look. I decided to make certain, however, and when Hinata came through, forehead protector around her neck and a shy smile in place, I darted in through the door, hoping that I was fast enough. Lucky for me, they hadn't called anyone else in yet – it was just Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-sensei discussing how people had done, whether it was worth it for them to try again next year, or if they should just quit now and save their losses.
"Iruka-sensei, Naruto's pretty cut up about not passing this time around, so we're going to go to Ichiraku's, and stuff him full of ramen until he can't be unhappy anymore." I stage-whispered. I could practically see the gleam in Mizuki-sensei's eyes, and I did not like it one bit!
We went to Ichiraku's together, the three of us, and we bought Naruto pork ramen until he couldn't bear to eat anymore. Sasuke and I both had miso, which is absolutely lovely.
"I appreciate the thought, guys, but can I be alone for a bit?" He no longer seemed so down, so I suppose my job here was done. Now, to wait for Mizuku-sensei to do his part.
I grabbed Sasuke's hand. "Okay, then, we'll be at my apartment. Knock in when you're ready to have company, okay?"
And so we left him to make Genin, and learn the Shadow Clone Justu.
He came in the next morning, to Sasuke and I asleep on the couch. We had nodded off while waiting for him, and I suspect the sight touched him more than he ever said.
"I'm back!" He yelled, rudely waking the two of us up. We startled upright, and then I looked at him, hoping, praying...
There was a Leaf forehead protector holding his hair back, instead of those silly goggles!
I cheered, and rushed him into a hug. "What happened? How did you make Genin?" I demanded, playing my part to perfection.
"Mizuki-sensei told me that there was another way to make Genin, you just had to get a scroll from the Hokage's tower, but then he was a traitor, and Iruka-sensei came, and it was all a bit confusing, really." He scratched the back of his head, sheepishly."But I made Genin, because I learned the Shadow Clone Justu, and it's really awesome!"
"Well done!" I praised. "I know of that justu, and it's meant to be Jounin-level, because of the amount of chakra at takes to perform!" He preened under the praise, and Sasuke looked on, a hint of admiration in his dark eyes.
"You know what this means?" He asked, grinning wider than I think I've ever seen him.
"No, oh great and mighty lord Uchiha. Inform the peasants what it means." I countered, drolly.
"We may be on a Genin team together!" Naruto cheered, while Sasuke scowled at me. I stuck my tongue out, like the mature adult I clearly am.
We wouldn't be on a Genin team together – that spot belonged to Sakura, after all. But, maybe, I could somehow get my team to pass this year, and make it the Rookie Twelve instead of the Rookie Nine? The more shinobi we had, the better, and I was determined not to fail!
