Author's Note: (Mayuyu) Take it easy guys. This is an OC-based fic, so any flames about the fic centering around original characters will be laughed at for blatant retardation. Also for future reference, this fic is written alternately by two authors, myself (Mayuyu), and Jagdish. So if you notice a change in writing style between this chapter and the next one, that's why.
Also, be gentle: This is Jagdish's first time writing a fanfic, so he's new to the game. But, constructive criticism is always welcomed and encouraged. :)
Disclaimer: We do not own Naruto. If we did, Asuma would be alive and Sakura wouldn't fail so hard. (No bashing intended. I actually adore her, but seriously, Kishi?) We only own the plot and of course, our own original characters.
(P.S.: No, Jagdish is not a porn star.)
Chapter I: Graduation
by: Jagdish_XXXO
Youji.
No surname – owned an identity with no ties to any other human being.
His skin made him the natural focal point of the group he was standing among for the onlooking audience; dermis in a pigment dark and rich. It told a story about his true heritage. Youji was a child of The Land of Lightning, who had somehow found a home in The Land of Fire and more specifically Konoha. His skin had made him an outsider within the walls but it was truly the boy's heart that had separated him from the other citizens.
His appearance gave the impression that he was a young, sweet and simple boy. The possessors of the eyes that were now upon him would come away with a perception of him much the same, but they'd need only to speak with him briefly to know differently. Though only twelve, Youji had developed a sort of voice that was cold and soulless; many believed it to be the voice of a broken elderly man.
Youji made very little time for conversation. Unlike his peers, having dialogues with others was not an event that he enjoyed.
Dull green eyes searched the adjacent crowd for a familiar face. There was only one person that Youji truly wanted to see sitting up in the stands and that person was Nara Shikamaru. Mister Nara had been something like a guardian to Youji and also somehow his only confidante. Nara's approval and praise meant everything to the child and his graduation from the academy on this day would be a great way to earn both.
Youji continued to search but couldn't find that special face in the crowd. A nervous twitching in his hand developed as he felt an anxiousness creep in. The prepubescent shut his eyes tightly to whisper his idol's name under his breath and hope that he would appear. And somehow Youji's hope produced the man; or much more likely, his taking a breather and calming himself had allowed him to gain the better focus that he needed to locate the man.
Youji spotted Nara sitting in the crowd; his arms folded and his signature scowl on his face. Beside him sat an old woman, an old woman by the name of Kurenai. Yuuhi Kurenai. Though far along in years, the woman retained a youthful air. Her beauty was undeniable and Youji knew Mr. Nara noticed; though he always managed to refute the accusations of it. The two sat closely together. So close, but without physical contact.
The dark-skinned boy strained his eyes to look off into the distance more to see Mr. Nara more closely. He desperately wanted to see the look in Nara's eyes; he was unsure of the reason but wanted to none the less. Youji quickly noticed that Nara's sights weren't on Kurenai at all; his eyes were directed straight forward. His gaze was set on the graduates and Youji couldn't have been any happier.
Youji's happiness was short lived. The child soon realized that he wasn't the one drawing Mr. Nara's attention. It was another who had his been the man's focus. It was Sarutobi Kireme. Son of Sarutobi Asuma. Youji knew Kireme well. The two of them competed quite frequently for Nara Shikamaru's attention and praise; it was the only thing Youji would bother to fight for.
Youji could feel an emotion welling up inside him. He knew the feeling well but refused to identify it and give it a name in his mind since it was so ugly. The boy noted in that moment that all his feelings of insecurity and inferiority were creeping in on him. A hard lump formed in his throat.
He was no match for Nara's own godson.
Kireme's now deceased father Asuma had been Nara's sensei when he was young and the two had formed a bond because of it. Youji had heard many times the story of how the great shinobi Sarutobi Asuma had been struck down in battle when dealing with the Akatsuki and he was avenged by a young Nara Shikamaru. The brilliant Nara then pledged to watch over and forever care for the unborn child Kurenai was carrying, fathered by his own idol and sensei.
Nara had kept true to his pledge. He oversaw Kireme's study and training and never missed a chance to impart the art and wisedom of a shinobi to his god son. He had done the same for Youji, but it wasn't quite the same. Nara's hours spent with Kireme seemed somehow more meaningful than those he would spend with Youji.
Previously the youngster had all but deafened himself to keep from hearing the names of his also graduating classmates being called out and the subsequent shouts of congratulations and joy from their families that would follow. But when the name "Sarutobi Kireme" was called, Youji's ears couldn't help but perk up and listen.
An immense applause erupted. Kireme's relatives and close friends clapped loudly, but their praise meant nothing to Youji. He was only concerned with Nara's reaction. Youji's eyes strained to watch the man far off in the distance for his expression and mannerisms.
Nara had no physical reaction – he didn't stand like the rest of Kireme's fans there in crowd, nor did he clap like the others. But he did do something. He reacted. A small gesture that Youji had almost missed.
There. Just at the corner of Nara's mouth a smile began to appear. The edge's of his lips had started to turn up and the expression on his face was one of happiness.
That Nara had even bothered to show up for the event meant so much already; he wasn't a man to trouble himself with things being less than of the utmost importance. But now he was emoting! Kireme had earned a smile!
Youji hadn't. When his name was called they boy watched his idol's face very carefully. No smile appeared like he had hoped it would. Youji had earned praise all the same though. A round of applause. His mentor hadn't bothered to stand this time either, but he certainly managed to display his approval.
Clapping was good, but it wasn't a smile.
Later that day after the festivities and event had died down, Youji found himself thinking about the future. More specifically he dreamt of the day he would finally show up Kireme when competing for Nara's praise.
He envisioned it so very clearly. After years of hard training and studying, Youji stood before Nara as a powerful Jounin with hundreds of powerful jutsus in his large arsenal of abilities. Kireme would stand before Nara just the same, but somehow lesser. In what way Kireme would be lesser than himself was the only part of the fantasy was lacking. But the idea remained.
Youji smiled to himself as he looked up at the sky. He lay in an open field continuing to dream. Nara wasn't the only person he wanted to impress. There were only two others the boy could think of whom he was interested in making proud – his own parents.
Somewhere in The Land of Lightening were a man and a woman with Youji's face and his eyes. They knew his heritage and they knew his heart. Or at least that's how the boy liked to think of them.
The sharp blades of grass tickled his body as he thought of his mother.
She would have long hair, white in color like his own. That woman would wear the warmest smile and have a caring voice – the kind that would help to sooth any ailment or wound.
And his father. Youji could see his father so clearly.
He was a proud shinobi of Kumogakure. Powerful and strong.
His appearance was no mystery. Youji's father would look just like him. They shared the same eyes and the same skin.
There in Youji's head the three of them were reunited. He was himself in all of his predicted glory, returning home as a powerful ninja and entering into open arms. His parents would be so proud, but so ashamed. Ashamed at the way they had left their infant child in the wilderness of The Land of Fire to be found by shinobi of an opposing force.
They would realize their wrong and get to see how amazing their son had become.
Youji's smile grew wider as he continued to dream about where his future years would take him as he journeyed from genin to jounin.
The silence in the room was deafening. Youji tapped his foot nervously as he waited for the others to arrive. The 'others' being the other members of Team 4.
Following the graduation ceremony all the academy graduates attended the fair to help them prepare for their new lives to become ninja. Pictures were taken for the Ninja Registration Book of the village and informational packets were handed out. Among the documents in the packet was a small piece of paper with the most important information of all written on it: Team assignment and the room number to meet in the next day at the academy.
Youji had been assigned to Team 4 and was to report to room number 202 and so he did.
There he sat waiting wondering who he would be working with in his three man cell. Youji didn't care all that much about who was in his team but he did have some preferences. The young boy began to think. There had been thirty-four graduates from the academy in total. Firstly, the boy had decided years ago that he wouldn't want to work in a team with Sarutobi Kireme. If they were grouped together Kireme would surely out perform himself. He didn't wish to really compete with Kireme at all – he'd much prefer to just not be compared to him at all.
Now he was down to thirty-three graduates that he wouldn't mind working with.
He thought again. Secondly, Youji didn't want to work with any girls. They made him feel awkard. Growing up, Youji hadn't very often been in contact with persons of the opposite sex. Whenever he was in a social situation with one, he found he would become very...strange. He'd become clumsy and foolish and tongue-tied during the small periods of time he was willing to speak. He always felt as if there was something special to be done when a girl was around; something to be said or done, but could never figure out what it was. No...working with a girl would be the worst.
That left twenty-one other genin that Youji had absolutely no problem working with.
Now there was nothing left for the boy to do but sit and wait for his team mates to enter and hope that fate would grant him a team he wouldn't mind being in.
The entrance door to the classroom slid open slowly. So slowly in fact that Youji had to wait a full fifteen seconds to see who it actually was standing outside in the hallway; almost as if the person attempting to enter was playing some kind of game.
A pulled back fusuma would reveal a young girl standing in the doorway. Youji instantly lowered his head; his chin now meeting with the top of the desk he was seated at. The young boy stared forward at the girl in a manner that some would consider rude. Youji could feel that his face was twisted up and contorted; displaying his displeasure, he took a moment to take in her appearance.
The girl was just as young as Youji was, if not younger. She stood with a lazy posture; a curve in her back and a hand on her hip – seemingly leaning on thin air. She wore a strange expression. A smirk that practically covered her face and ran from one ear to the other. Her clothes were odd – an outfit consisting of a powered blue jacket lined with tan fur, a black mess shirt and a red shirt. A forehead protector dangled loosely at her waist and off to the slide; worn more like a cheap belt than a symbol of pride.
Youji couldn't help but notice the girl's physical attractiveness. Her body was petite like most girls her age and her stature small – standing somewhere between 139 and 144 centimeters tall; taller than Youji unfortunately. Her skin was a strange yellow-ish tan color. A color the dark-skinned boy could only associate with a sun-kissed lemon. Her eyes blue and her hair a bright red; Youji couldn't help but think of how everything about the girl clashed in terms of color. None of that matter though since her features where almost angelic.
Youji still didn't like her. Girls were usually trouble.
She pursed her lips before speaking. "Hello," the girl spoke, her voice cool and feminine and full of excitement, "my name is Rie!" Youji's eyes opened wide as he noticed the volume of this girl's voice. She seemed to be shouting every word at him for no reason at all.
"Oh great... not only is she a girl...she's a loud girl," Youji thought to himself with his face now almost implanted in the desk.
"I guess you're one-fourth of Team 4 then huh?" Rie continued her greeting, her normal speaking voice sounding like shouting all the while. Youji refused to speak. Anything that came out of his mouth at this point would either be insulting since he was annoyed or a muddled mess since he was nervous.
"I don't like to be ignored," the red-haired girl admitted as she first shimmied through the doorway and then skipped across the room to where Youji was seated. Rie leaned over her newly acquainted team mate and stared hard at the back of his head.
So hard in fact that Youji could feel her presence.
"You couldn't possibly be asleep could you?"
Suddenly a series of pokes and prods began to be delivered to the back of the boy's head; one after another each one helping his annoyance to grow to anger.
"Fine! I deem you the lazy member of Team 4 since you can't even be bothered to lift your head when spoken to."
"Rie equals persistent and annoying," Youji thought.
Then just as quickly as the poking had begun the poking stopped.
"Hi there! I'm Rie," the young girl announced to yet another person, the mannerism accompanying her introduction just as lively as she was – a large and spastic wave.
"Hello," a male voice so familiar to Youji replied, "I'm Kireme. Sarutobi Kireme."
The young girl giggled and Youji felt as if something had snapped inside him. Heart pounding and stomach churning, the young boy pulled his head up from it's place on the desk to confirm with his eyes what his ears knew already.
In the doorway stood Sarutobi Kireme; the most popular of all his class mates. Youji rolled his eyes instantly. He couldn't believe his luck. The very two components he hadn't wanted to be paired with he was now stuck with.
"Why not two other guys who I didn't have to compete with?" Youji shouted to himself as he stared dumbfounded at the other boy.
Kireme was Youji's direct opposite in looks.
Kireme sported a close buzz cut in dark hair while Youji had long, white hair. One pale-skinned and the other dark. The son of Sarutobi was much taller than Youji; he stood at a mere 134 centimeters while he rival towered over everyone in their age bracket at 165 centimeters.
Kireme was adored by the girls and Youji wasn't – not that he wanted it any other way.
"Sarutobi?" Rie asked with some excitement. "Sarutobi as in...the Sarutobi clan? As in Sarutobi Hiruzen, the great third Hokage?" Rie began to squeal with enthusiasm.
"Yes, yes, he is in fact a part of the legendary Sarutobi clan," said a pink haired woman as she gentle pushed Kireme aside to enter the room, "but let's try to keep the fan-girling to a minimum. It gives guys a big head and a sense of importance they really don't deserve. I know first-hand."
Youji stared in awe at the tall slender woman who had entered the room; not because of her beauty but because he couldn't believe any one could have bad enough luck to be born with naturally pink hair.
"And you are?" Kireme questioned the woman, his tone wavering as he tried hard not to sound disrespectful even though he truly wanted to.
"I am your Team leader and sensei. Haruno Sakura."
Author's Note: (Mayuyu) Jagdish says that he's sorry the chapter is so short, but he wanted to make sure people were interested in reading more. Also, I am apparently the official scribe now, so most of the author's notes will probably be written by yours truly.
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