When I was young
1- The Third Genin
Oh great, here they were the new Genins that had been entrusted to him. Kamaki who was so engrossed in his clipboard hadn't noticed that the third and final Genin was not present. He lazily flicked his ponytail over his shoulder as he re-read the three names before his eyes before he made any kind of introduction speech, he didn't want to make a fool of himself. The girl and the boy in his wake were completely silent and he could almost feel the tension, the eagerness to begin the first test and the many questions that would have to be put forward and answered.
Kamaki lowered the clipboard and took a good look at the two of them. The girl on the left was sprawled out over the steps in the sun, her face was expressionless and her short brown curls were splayed out around her. The Sensei let out a frustrated snort, the girl was acting like she was sunbathing on a sunny beach and the training ahead of her was nothing but mere child's play. Her fingers rested around the chain of a gold K about her neck.
Kamaki's eyes flickered back to the list "So this girl is either Kaede Feinma or Katsumi Kokoro then?" He asked himself "I had better keep my eye on her; I can sense that she might be something of a troublemaker."
The other Genin, the boy, sat beside the girl his eyes fixed on a crow in a nearby tree. He too had a gormless face but on closer inspection Kamaki could detect some impatience behind the dark bangs.
"Secret Adonis," Kamaki thought as he studied the last name, funny…the child was small, much smaller than the girl and looked like an easy target in battle but that determined look in his eyes was unmissable.
The Sensei peered over the wall that he was slouched on, looking for the final student, he could feel the eyes of the others upon him. The girl was no where to be seen, at least he thought it was a girl…Kaede or Katsumi didn't sound like a boy's name though the spelling could've been wrong.
The mystery girl sat up suddenly her face posed as if she was about to announce some speech "Are we gonna start or what?" She whined giving the K a small flick.
Kamaki rolled his eyes, she was idle and impatient, he really was going have his work cut out here.
"We're gonna start when the third and final Genin arrives," He explained, talking like he was addressing a small child and the girl in answer roller her eyes back at him "Well she's certainly taking her sweet time," She complained "Iruka-Sensei pulled us away at the end of class yesterday when he was putting the teams together and told us some girl was gonna be teamed up with us, apparently he said that she was one too many in her class…" She trailed off as her eyes scanned the horizon for any sight of the final Genin "Let's just hope her ninja's skills are better than her turning up on time..."
Secret's ears suddenly pricked up as he turned to the door, he heard footsteps pounding up the steps to the roof garden. Glancing around at the others he wondered if they had heard them to.
Kamaki grimaced as he stared down at his watch, it was getting later and later with every second passing "We'll give her five more minutes, if she's not here by then, then we'll just have to…" He was suddenly cut off by a small soft voice coming from behind him and they all turned. They were faced with a tall girl, the mass of sandy blonde that hair fell halfway down her back was scraped back into a ponytail and her eyes of piercing blue flickered slightly as she spoke "Uh, Excuse me, are you Kamaki-Sensei?" She asked shyly and dug her hands deeper into the pockets of her cut-offs. Kamaki smiled and nodded "Yes I am, and which one of the Genins are you?"
She winced slightly and the brunette sat a few feet away snorted "I'm Katsumi Kokoro," Katsumi replied, scuffing her sandals on the paving stones not meeting the eyes of the Sensi.
Kamaki smiled and ticked off the last name on the checklist, "So you must be Kaede Feinma," He questioned his eyes on the solemn brunette.
"Well, duh!" She laughed "Did you really think that Kaede was a boy's name?"
She prodded Secret in the back with the toe of her sandal and Secret frowned and shook his head. "Just checking," Kamaki replied a hint of frustration in his voice.
Katsumi stepped down from the wall and Secret shuffled along slightly so that she could sit down next to him "Sorry about her," He muttered under his breath "She does it to everyone. Katsumi shrugged off his apology with a small smile "S'ok, I don't really mind,"
Secret grinned "Well you take it better than a lot of people; I've known her nearly all my life and I still can't stand her!" He sighed softly "I'm Secret Adonis by the way," Secret held out his hand to her and Katsumi shook it gently. "So, you're new here? Don't you come from the Village hidden in the Night or somewhere? I think Iruka-Sensei said something about it when he was teaming us up…" The blonde Genin nodded and was about to reply when Kamaki stood up and announced "Ok, come on Genins, lets go and begin the first test!"
Kaede jumped up from her place from the paving stones and began prancing off ahead to the steps muttering "Finally!" To herself, Secret fell back slightly and Kamaki approached Katsumi "Could I have a quick word Katsumi-san?" He mumbled in her ear. The Genin nodded and walked with him down the metal steps to the road which was almost completely empty. "Your former Sensei was Isamu Hatake right?" Kamaki inquired retying his headband and pulling up the first two pages on the clipboard. He gave a slight tug and Katsumi's file came loose, he ran his finger down the information "Yeah, here we go, Hatake Isamu."
He chuckled "I used to train with Isamu quite a lot but anyway, have you ever been to Konoha before? Know your way around?"
Katsumi thought back "No, I don't ever think I have…" She trailed off "I've seen it from a distance but never actually been here before."
The Sensei nodded "Well it's quite easy to find your way around after a while but that's if you're staying. This final test with determine if you stay and train in team sixteen or go back to your academy for another year, I guess if you went back there would be a place for you in another team but I don't think any of us want that."
Katsumi shook her head "What is the final test Sensei?" She asked, playing with a small bracelet around her wrist and praying that she wouldn't have to go back to the academy, anywhere was better than there. "Oh just a simple task of retrieving," Kamaki smiled "Think your up to it?" The blonde Genin looked up at him and smiled "Oh yes," She answered enthusiastically "I'm ready for anything!"
Secret hurried forward slightly so that we was in pace with Kaede "So?" He asked her slowly "What do you think of the new girl?" Kaede turned to look at him and she narrowed her eyes "Pfft, what's there to say about her?" She replied in a flat uninterested tone "Dress Sense is pretty bad but personally I don't really want anything to do with her," She turned her head upwards slightly and eyed Katsumi's cut-offs and baggy t-shirt disdainfully. Her team mate sighed "Just because you dress like your going to a flipping prom every night Kaede-chan, it doesn't mean everyone is below you if they don't dress the way you like," He kicked a stone and it bounced off down the pavement. "I bet she's a right troublemaker," Kaede continued "She certainly looks it."
"Y'know what, I bet you there will be an even more annoying and selfish little troublemaker where were going," He frowned.
"Really?" Kaede asked not getting at what Secret was saying,
"Yeah really, and I'm looking at her," He finished sourly and jogged forward to join his new teamate and Sensei a few meters ahead. "It's Katsumi-san right?" He panted as he came to a halt beside her; she nodded and gave him a small glance "Or Kat, either one I don't mind."
"Why Kat?" Secret inquired "That seems like a rather strange diminutive of Katsumi…" Kat shrugged and went back to fiddling with her bracelet. Her teamate looked in closer at her wrist then up at her "That's a pretty bracelet, where did you get it?"
The kunoichi gave the bracelet a small twist and held it up in front of her "My cousin made it for me when I was seven, it was about five years ago now but I have never taken it off, it kinda makes me feel like I have a part of her with me wherever I go…" She trailed off thinking about how to finish the story but Secret had already begun speaking again "Are you quite close to them then?"
Kat nodded "Yeah we are, it's quite a strong bond too but it's kinda hard to explain…"
The Sensei's eyes widened at the Genin's speech. Quite a strong bond he repeated to himself. No, she couldn't be…or at least he didn't think there were any more of those kind alive. Was this girl and whoever her cousin was one of them like he was?
Kat held the bracelet closer to Secret, six beads of different colours met his eyes and six miniature words had gently been inked onto the wood on each bead by a delicate hand: Faith, Hope, Friendship, Love, Joy, Devotion they read.
"Wow!" Secret exclaimed "Did you do the writing?" The Genin nodded again "Six good things, six things that keep us going. They're positioned together on the bracelet in order. Faith and Hope in Friendship and Love, "She pointed to the four beads "But in Friendship and in Love, there is also Joy and Devotion and it's an endless cycle of good in this world."
Kamaki sighed quietly to himself, if only there was an endless cycle of good. He hadn't been the same since his sister had passed away. It had been absolute agony to receive that telegram and even more agony after the aftershock of disbelief worn off. He had tried to distract himself with the prospect of a new team of Genins to train but it had still been hard to drag himself into work every morning and even harder to return home at night.
Secret's eyes flashed in the sunlight as he ran his fingers over the coloured beads "Endless cycle of good, huh? So I guess it can kind of be described like a wedding ring, Y'know endless love and all that stuff?"
"I guess it could be described like that," Kat contemplated, gently twirling the bracelet with her index finger "But love is only one of the six."
All four of them continued on in silence for a while, Secret kept throwing the blonde kunoichi small glances but she never once looked at him. He felt his cheeks going slightly red and his heart began to race and he wished he hadn't mentioned all that stuff about love, what if this girl thought he was hinting. He coughed slightly and opened his mouth to say something to break the silence but before the words had reached his lips he felt sharp nails digging into his shoulder and warm breath on his neck "Don't try and get her to like you Secret-kun, it's not worth it. People like her will just break your heart and it will save you a lot of pain for the future," Kaede's voice muttered in his ear, she ran her fingers up his arm and grinned to herself.
Katsumi didn't notice the other two Genins next to her, she turned her head to the sky and her eyes closed slightly in the blare of the warm sunlight as she thought back and remembered.