I, I was standing
You were there
Two worlds collided
And they could never tear us apart

-Never Tear Us Apart; by Paloma Faith

Who are you? A question that filled Jiaying's mind far too often. A question that would reside in her head for weeks at a time, filling her with uncertainty and even more questions. In terms of answers, Jiaying didn't have one. Or she didn't possess the comprehension to answer it. She's only twelve, after all. Who could possibly have an answer to a question like that? Maybe her father, or her mother.* Jiaying couldn't say for sure, though, they had different interpretations. Her parents lived long enough to realize who are you? could mean a bunch of things to a lot of people.

It's still frustrating though.

Jiaying felt like she should have an idea on who she was. She may be twelve, but she should at least have a clue, right?

I guess not, she thought solemnly. But I've got my whole life to figure it out, I guess.

"Are you still with us, Jiaying?"

The voice snapped the twelve-year-old out of her thoughts, causing her dark grey eyes to meet her sensei's. It was rare for her to get called out during class, with it happening only every once in a while, depending on the situation. For Jiaying, she found it to be a tad embarrassing, but it still happened from time to time. She may be second in her class, but that didn't mean she was entirely perfect. She'd have moments where she'd daydream, or she'd get distracted by something going on in the class. Jiaying's mind could easily jump from one thing to the next without her realizing it. She couldn't stand it and her instructors felt the same way.

"Yes," she responded; her tone soft but clear. "Sorry, sensei."

Her homeroom instructor, Iruka, looked at the young girl for a moment longer before continuing his lesson. Jiaying was familiar with Iruka-sensei. She knew that he was a chunin and well-respected by his peers and students. A majority of the students in the Academy favored him over the other instructors, finding his lessons a bit more useful than the other subjects. Jiaying's personal opinion had her fall near indifference. She'd acknowledge that Iruka-sensei could teach and hold the attention of a class of preteens well. But she could also acknowledge that she couldn't help getting distracted every once in a while. She couldn't help that her mind would wander and thoughts would rattle around in her head. It was out of her control, and the more she tried to focus, the more unfocused she'd become.

But Jiaying could pretend. She was fairly good at that. By pretending to pay attention, by faking it at least until the end of the day, then at least she'd be safe in the meantime. No other call-outs by instructors and no unnecessary explanations by Jiaying. That was how she viewed it, at least.

-0 0 0 0-

Who are you? The question stayed in Jiaying's head for the remainder of her school day. No matter what she did, she just couldn't stop thinking about it. It annoyed her; made her frustrated. How was she supposed to answer? She could think up some basic responses, ones she'd expect to hear or think of when it came to a question like that. She's Jiaying Uzumaki, kunoichi-in-training.* She's an only child. Her father is a world renown shinobi and her mother came from a now destroyed country. Jiaying was a daughter and a friend. She had potential as a kunoichi, she had potential when it came to taijutsu and ninjutsu. She was the observant redhead. There could be a whole list of things Jiaying could use to describe herself, but none of them felt right.

Would becoming a kunoichi helped Jiaying find an answer to the question? Maybe. But there was also a possibility it wouldn't. A shinobi's life is full of ups and downs, and sometimes they could become disillusioned in what they do. But Jiaying's father was a world renown shinobi, and he was in no way disillusioned by any of what happened to him. At least, that's how she saw it. She didn't have a full understanding of what he'd been like before her birth. Sure, Jiaying's father told brief stories of his younger days, of hiss time in the Academy and his rise through the ranks after graduation. Even her godfather told her a few stories every now and again, but what she'd been told never went into extensive detail. Jiaying only knew what she had been told, and it wasn't a lot. The past of her father may be a mystery in her eyes, but he made sure to at least teach her lessons from what he had learned.

Jiaying appreciated her father's teaching style. She appreciated his laid-back, learn-through-experience way of parenting; she learned a lot from that. But those parental methods he used only made the question stand out more in Jiaying's mind. Who was she? What kind of kunoichi would she become after graduation? Would she live up to her father's teachings? Would she protect her comrades at all cost or would she end up choosing the mission?

It was frustrating.

Gently shaking her head, Jiaying tried to force herself to stop. She couldn't afford to overthink, not when she was in class. She should've stopped when Iruka-sensei called her out the first time, but she couldn't keep her attention on his lecture for very long.

Looking at the chalkboard behind Iruka, Jiaying's brows furrowed a little. The final exam was in a couple weeks. All students would be required to do the clone technique.

Shouldn't be too difficult, she thought. The clone technique is a simple one.

Resting her elbow on her desk, and her chin on the palm of her hand, Jiaying tried to keep her attention on the remainder of what Iruka was saying. She could only pretend to look focused for so long; and with the final exam coming up, she really had to focus. The clone technique may be simple enough, but she had to know if there were any additional requirements. So the least she could do was attempt to listen to what Iruka was saying.

(A/N):

Sorry for the wait on this chapter. Hopefully you guys found it interesting or entertaining in some way; if not, let me know how I can improve it. Constructive criticism is always welcome.

Do I own anything in the Naruto fandom? No. No I don't. All I own are my OCs, my subplots, and the socks on my feet. If you've got ideas for OCs or subplots, be sure to PM me or leave a review. I'll add them in as soon as possible.

If you guys have any questions on anything, I'll get back to you at quickly as possible.

Leave a random fact in the reviews if you want. It could be on something old or new, something random, whatever.

See ya later,

Toni van Dyne