Author's disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do not own any of the characters, locations, or techniques created in either the official manga or official anime, or any created outside of this story. I do, however, make full claim to the characters, locations, and techniques created within this story. I spent a lot of my time and talent to get this story to be what I wanted it to be, and if you would like to use it, simply ask me, and give credit where it is due.

Chapter 1, A New Generation

Standing at attention in the Uzushiogakure academy, Uzumaki Minato felt a little awkward. The entire village had turned out for this important occasion, the first graduating class since the re-founding of the village five years ago. Granted, the village was not so populous that the crowd was overwhelming, but the fact remained that everyone was there. It was an important event, to be sure, but with only six graduates, the spotlight was a little unnerving. His new clothes were a little stuffy, but he figured they would loosen up with time. Black cargo pants and a gray and green shirt, with his shinobi sandals. The dark clothes made his blond hair stand out, which he kept pulled back in a short ponytail, in the Nara style of his mother. He got his looks from his father, although his father grew his own hair longer, much like the Hyuuga side of the family.

His father was there, Uzumaki Namikaze, giving the congratulatory speech. Not because Namikaze was his father, but because he was the Uzukage, and it was his job. Standing there in his white robe and hat, blond hair bound neatly behind his back, he was speaking fervently about the importance of building the new generation of shinobi, not just to pass on the legacy of ninja, but because shinobi were still the protectors of the peace. The Uzukage, his lavender eyes big and full, showed little emotion, but his words conveyed more than enough meaning.

Minato's mother was in the front row, seated with the parents of the other students. Uzumaki Chiyo, formerly Nara Chiyo, had been his instructor here at the academy, and would continue her role with the next group of students. She diverted her attention from his father to himself, a proud smile crossing her face. That was all the re-assurance Minato needed. It had been a little bit daunting, having to live up to the legends that were his ancestors, as well as his father being the Uzukage. With his grandparents, Uzumaki Naruto, Hyuuga Hinata, Nara Shikamaru, and Temari of the Sand, all being heroes, history class had made him want to hide his head in his book. But after reading more and more about all of their accomplishments, and remembering the love they had for him before their deaths, he was more proud than ever to bear their blood!

Not that he was the only one. On stage with him, were representatives of some of the most powerful bloodlines to have walked the streets of Konoha. Immediately to his left was Hatake Sora, followed by her twin brother, Shisui. Their grandfather had been the Copy Ninja, Hatake Kakashi, and it was said that he had trained the Konoha 12 himself (although, everyone said he was good at lying too.). Next to him, Rock Min, who was descended from Rock Lee on her father's side, and Tenten on her mother's side(She had been known to pray daily in thanks that she received her looks from her mother's side of the family). To her left stood Haruno Ryuu, granddaughter of the legendary kunoichi, Haruno Sakura. Apparently, they had the odd custom of keeping their mother's name in that family. On the end stood Yamanaka Toru, whose father had been a cousin of Yamanaka Ino. These five newly graduated Genin, along with himself, represented the strength of the past, and the hope of the future, and he was proud to call them his friends.

His father, the Uzukage, was finishing his speech.

"We come, at last, to the closing of this ceremony. May each of you feel the pride and congratulations of our entire village. May you also not forget the reason why you are the first graduating class of the Uzushiogakure Academy, and the importance of protecting your charges, so that the disaster may never happen again!"

Together, the graduates responded loudly, "Hai!"

"You will now be assigned to your Genin Teams, according to your tests, abilities, and purpose. Your senseis have been selected based on the function each team will perform. Team Ryoji, led by Hyuuga Ryoji, will consist of Hatake Sora, Hatake Shisui, and Yamanaka Toru. Your sensei will explain to you your team function and individual roles within it."

Applause met the announcement. The three mentioned immediately moved to line up next to their sensei along the right wall.

"That of course leaves the three of you still present on the stage. You will form under the name of your new sensei as Team Asuma, led by Yuhi Asuma."

More applause, albeit a little confused, due to Asuma's lack of presence within the room, rang off the walls.

"Your sensei is on a mission and will meet you tomorrow morning at the outcropping over the beach. There he will explain to you your team function, as well as your individual roles within it. Dismissed!"

Minato's father took off his hat, indicating he was not acting in his official capacity at the moment. He turned and smiled, then let a big whoop! "Baka," Minato thought to himself, but he couldn't help but smile. He loved his dad, even if he was a big goof. The crowd applauded once more then began to disperse. The village wasn't going to run itself, after all. Those with ties to the graduates stuck around, offering their personal congratulations and well wishes. Minato's mother came up to the stage and gave him a big hug, then offered a smile to the rest of the Genin. As their teacher, she had been instrumental in their learning the techniques necessary to graduate. The Uzukage was immediately called away to deal with some urgent matters, but not before mussing up Minato's hair.

"Well, Minato, I guess we're going to be teammates from now on."

Rock Min was dressed in a light blue gi, with the sleeves torn off. She wore the shinobi sandals, too, but hers had an extra strap across the toes. While she was lean and muscular, she was not overly muscled, as her taijutsu required flexibility over mass. She wasn't carrying her twin short swords today, which was unusual. He was sure she would have them in the morning.

"Yeah, Min. You, me, and Ryuu. I wonder how Asuma-sensei will treat us, and what exactly we will be doing. I guess we'll have to wait until tomorrow to find out."

"Well, I'm not too curious. I mean, look at us. Min is a weapons and taijutsu specialist, you are a byakugan user with super-genes and unlimited potential, and I'm a medical specialist with some genjutsu training mixed in. Seems pretty clear, we're going to be a hit squad."

Haruno Ryuu had wondered over to chat with them. She wore a black leather jacket, with a yellow shirt and black cargo pants that mirrored Minato's. Her grandmother's pink hair had found its way to her.

"Well Ryuu, while I have to agree with your evaluation, I'm still anxious to meet Asuma-sensei tomorrow."

Minato looked over at his cousin's team. Ryoji was a master with his byakugan, even more so than the Uzukage. He was also very strict, and a surgical precisionist with his taijutsu, the Gentle Fist. He had learned from his father, Hyuuga Neji. His team had the Hatake twins, the village pranksters. They could get into and out of trouble better than any he had ever heard of, including his grandfather, the Last Hokage. Finally, there was Yamanaka Toru. His family's secret jutsu was the scariest. Mind manipulation. With that team, it appeared that Team Ryoji was going to be an information gathering unit. They would most likely be the ones to provide intel on targets, and Team Asuma would be the ones to take them out. This was going to get interesting.

Walking over to Team Ryoji, Minato wanted to congratulate the rest of the Genin. He got along pretty well with the twins, but Toru wasn't exactly the friendliest of people. Not that he was mean, he just didn't talk much.

"Hey guys, congratulations!"

"Oh, Minato. You too, man. Looks like you've got yourself a pretty strong attack force."

Hatake Shisui had the white hair that stood out in a crowd of children, almost as much as Minato's blond. His face lit up whenever anyone paid attention to him. It was easier to tell with him, because he didn't wear a face mask, unlike his sister.

"Yeah, Shisui, we figured that, too. You guys look like you're going to be the intel gathering team. Do your work well!"

"Miii-na-to! You look so handsome, just like your father! You be careful not to get hurt, and don't let those girls get in your way! If you want, I can straighten them out any time you need me to, okay!"

Sora's eyes blinked rapidly whenever she talked to him, and Minato wasn't sure if it was just a facial tic or what. Of course, with her mask on, he couldn't tell if she was smiling, or making fun of him. She kind of creeped him out a little. The twins were dressed in matching, green shirts and pants. Shisui had his hair cut short, while Sora grew hers out, with it being longer in front than in the back.

"No, Sora. I'm quite happy with my teammates. They're good shinobi, and our skills will complement each other, just like yours and Toru's will."

"Mm. Good luck, Minato."

That was more than Toru usually said, actually. With blond hair like Minato's, he had to wonder if the Yamanaka clan wasn't somehow distantly related to the Namikaze clan from whom his own hair color came. His family had run the flower shop in Konoha, before the disaster, and now they were in charge of growing the herbs used in making soldier pills and medicines. Dressed in a red shirt and black cargo pants, he also wore gloves at all times. Minato suspected this had something to do with why Toru didn't like shaking hands, but he wasn't sure.

"Well guys, I'll let you get back to your families. We'll see you around."

Minato turned to head out the door and head home, which just happened to be outside the Uzukage's office. He would get a good night's rest, and be ready for his first training session with his new sensei.

"Bye Miii-na-to!"

Hmm, he wasn't going to miss Sora's humiliations, that was for sure!

In the morning, the sun was bright and the sky was clear as Minato ran to the appointed meeting place. The outcropping over the beach was a well known location in Uzushiogakure, as it looked out over the channel to the mainland. There was a watch tower there, which was always manned to warn of incoming ships, not that there were many who would try to come to the island without permission. The only people who knew how to navigate the dangerous channel were Uzushio's own ferry captains. They would make daily trips to the mainland in order to bring refugees and supplies to the shelter of their island. The refugees' numbers had dwindled, but the supplies still needed to be gotten. These supply runs were guarded by individual Chunin shinobi. One day, Minato would also guard supply runs, but until then, he had to work on improving his skills by going on missions.

As he neared the watch tower, he saw his teammates, decked out in their full uniform. Rock Min, still wearing her gi, now had her twin short swords strapped to her back, as well as an equipment pouch secured to her leg. Haruno Ryuu had ditched the jacket, but had replaced it with a medic bag strapped to her bag, as well as the standard issue equipment pouch on her leg. Minato wore an equipment bag on each leg, due to his need to be properly balanced in order to perform his gentle fist taijutsu. Admittedly, he wasn't very good at it yet, but with his dad and cousin, he was learning a lot. Now that Ryoji had his own team, Minato was going to have to work harder on his own.

"Good morning team, any sign of our sensei?"

"Good morning Minato. We were just saying that he should be here any moment now. Ryuu thinks he'll be late because he had a mission yesterday. But I bet he'll be here right on time."

"You would be correct, Rock Min."

Yuhi Asuma stepped out from behind a rock at the edge of the outcropping. He had red eyes and a Fu Man Chu. He was also bald. He wore the full Jonin gear, complete with equipment vest, and a long, thin chain swung down from the side of his hip and back up to his pocket. He looked like he'd had very little sleep, and maybe could use an afternoon nap.

"Ah! Asuma-sensei! Good morning!"

"Good morning to you three, as well. It is a fine day to begin your training. We shall begin with introductions. I will go first. My name is Yuhi Asuma. I am a mid-range fighter, preferring not to let my opponents get too close, without letting them get far enough away to use powerful jutsu against me."

Asuma leaned against the side of the watch tower, and focused his attention on Min.

"Now, tell me your name, your skills, and what you want to accomplish as a shinobi."

"Well, my name is Rock Min. I have been trained in the fine arts of hand-to-hand combat and weapons, with a focus on the short sword. My blades have been forged with chakra steel, and I have been practicing putting my element, earth, into them, in an effort to make them stronger. I enjoy close range combat, and would like to one day teach taijutsu to future generations of shinobi."

Ryuu stepped forward, angling to not be the last to speak.

"I'm Haruno Ryuu. I am a medic-nin in training. I am able to focus my chakra into fine strong points which allow me to perform surgery in the field, if necessary. I am also able to cause huge amounts of destruction within a small area with this same skill. I have received some training in genjutsu, with an emphasis on stealth. I want to be able to support my friends, and help them to be the best they can. I eventually want to run a hospital in Uzushiogakure."

Now it was Minato's turn.

"I am Uzumaki Minato. I, too, am a close range fighter. As you can tell by my eyes, I have the byakugan, and I am training in the art of the Gentle Fist. I don't have a grand plan to accomplish anything. I simply want to use my skills to protect my family, friends, and village. I never want to see a repeat of the disaster that happened five years ago."

Asuma stepped forward then, and with an interesting look on his face, leaned in close to Minato and asked him, "How much do you remember about what happened five years ago?"