Uni: I am back^^
Matt: And see how delighted we all are.
Uni: Why thank you.
Matt: Don't thank me, that was not a compliment.
Uni: It was too!
Matt: Was not! I was being sarcastic.
Uni: Yes and doing a lousy job of it! Shall we move on?
Matt: Who took a piss in your tea?? So anyways, Uni owns nothing. Well that's not quite true, she does own the kids, but ONLY the kids. If anyone of you should find adults in here you don't recognise then you should try reading the manga again, they are all in there!
Uni: I would like to dedicate this fics to my dog who passed away this week. I am still in chock. Secondly to my mother who is recovering from an accident, and third to my friend, whom I love dearly, and who is having a rather difficult time at the moment.
And thanks to Cheryl-chan for being my Beta, and for liking the story so much^^ To tell you the truth if you had reacted any different I don' think I would have posted it^^
What is to come!
Late spring; one of the most beautiful times of the year. A long cold winter was over and the warmth had just recently returned with full force making it one of the hottest days for more then six months.
Inside of the building that was home to the leaf village's ninja academy, all the villages newly graduated children was assembled. All of them excitedly waited for the arrival of their new Sensei's.
All of the newly graduates had been teamed up in groups of three and three, making 9 teams in all. The class was a small year. It wasn't something anyone really talked about. The reasons for this was first of al the fact that there was about three years where there had been born less children then normally because of the war that had been between the hidden villages that had nearly cut the ninja population in half. The second reason was that in those three years nearly no one had had any children at all out of fear of what would become of the kids if they were brought into a world at war.
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In the back of the room a boy sat. His hair was black though in a weird sort of way, shining blondly, almost white, at the top. He had large blue eyes and strange markings on his cheeks, though they were different on each side of the cheeks. He wore a blue kimono like shirt with no sleeves and his right arm was bandaged from shoulder to fingertips in a silk like gaze.
Aside from this, the kid was looking bored. He was, like all the others were, waiting for his new teacher, but what distinguished him from the mass was the fact that he really didn't care.
"Isn't this exiting?!" A black haired girl sitting beside him asked, seemingly to no one in particular.
The boy turned towards her letting his rather studying gaze travel all over her, taking joy in the fact that she seemed to find it eerie.
The girl had long bangs, even longer then his own and her hair was cut short in the back much like his, only the girl's hair was neatly kept where as his own was sticking out in all possible directions.
The girl was wearing a dark green long sleeved top that clung to her body like a second skin. Her legs were covered by a large light pink sash, which was tightly wrapped around her waist stopping at her knees, none of this leaving much to the imagination, though she was only 12 so it really didn't matter that much yet.
The boy sighed annoyed and looked away again. He had known this girl his whole life and she was the picture of perfection. A little miss goodie goodie two shoes that took every opportunity she could get to nag at him. She was the bad conscious he had never had, personified.
Their parents had always spend a lot of time together so they had been around each other practically since they were born. Their parents had been very close ever since they were 12 themselves. There had been some years in between where they had had some problems of some sort, but it had all changed when he and Sake, as the girl beside him was called, came along and none of them ever spoke of whatever it was they had been arguing about. And so he and Sake knew nothing other then that there had been some years where they hadn't spoken to each other.
He sighed again, he felt like leaving, but he knew that if he did Sake would kill him. Not because he would ruin his chances of becoming a ninja, no she coulden't care less, but rather because it would ruing HER chances if becoming one, because of course they had been put on the same team. He already hated this whole team arrangement though it was always something that he wasn't alone in that.
To his right sat the last part of their trio, hating this team thing just as much as he did. That though, was probably also the only thing they were ever going to agree on. The boy sitting to his right was.Dedicated. That, the boy guessed, was the best way to describe the blond.Well almost blond. He had a few thin black stripes here and there and calling his hair light coloured would really be an understatement seeing as his hair was completely white. What was remarkable about this boy, aside from his hair that is, was his eyes. They were dark blue and cat like giving off the effect that his eyes were on you, studying you, even if you could see that he wasn't looking. Like the boy felt the other was doing right now, he shrugged it off. It was an annoying quality in the other that he didn't think he would ever learn to live with.
Another thing the boy didn't think he would be able to ever live with was the fact that his male teem-mate was popular. And not just your average 'oh isn't he cool' kind of popular. No it was the kind where every girl in school and even some outside of it looked at him like they wanted nothing more then to jump his bones. The boy leaned back in his seat and started looking around the class room and coulden't help but roll his eyes. As he suspected practically every girl was trying discreetly (and failing at it) to looking in their direction and he was willing to bet large on what they were looking at.
The youth sighed. This was getting boring. He was just about ready to get up from his seat and straight out leave when finally the door in the other and of the room opened, and a rather spooky looking man with wild hair and little round sunglasses stepped into the class room. Followed up by their class teacher Hanabi-sensei who in turn was followed by seven more adults in literally all different shapes and colours. These had to be the Jounins, and even though the boy still insisted to himself that he didn't care, he couldn't help the small pang of excitement that went through his body. He was quickly able to suppress it though when something else caught his attention; seven? The boy frowned. They were nine teams and their academy Sensei Hanabi, was not taking on teaching Ninjas so all in all they seemed to be a Jounin short.
"Team 6!" The weird guy that was the first to enter yelled out, momentarily ripping the half blond from his thoughts. "Team 4!" the next guy, who was really a woman, yelled out, and so they went on. Next up was a big fat guy yelling for team 3, then came a black- haired man, who seemed to be missing pupil's, who wanted team 7, and so it continued until there were only one team left. Team 8. His team, and the small problem with their being a Jounin less returned, as the three remaining ninja students in the room was missing a teacher.
Their Sensei, Hanabi, looked up at the three with an apologetic face.
"I am sorry kids." She stated sincerely. Then sighed "I would have liked to stay here and wait with you till your teacher shows up, but I have a meeting with Hokage-sama and I really have to get going." She said all this while hurrying around the room cleaning the blackboard and collecting her things in a huge stack which she tried to balance in her arms while she was attempting to get through the door. After a few failed attempts she threw the stack up into the air quickly pushed the door open in the mean time and caught the stack as it fell down into her fawn again.
The boy raised an eyebrow. What she had done just then had been done in slow motion compared to what she was capable of and even so he had barely been able to follow her fast movements. Why she had chosen to become a teacher was a mystery to him. Apparently she was a fully educated Jounin from what he had heard, but for some reason she had chosen to become a teacher after the war.
"Don't worry, I am sure he is on his way." They heard her call from the other side of the door, just as it slit shut behind her and they could hear her footsteps gradually retreating down the empty halls of the Ninja academy.
Sighing the black-haired boy rose from his seat and proceeded to walk towards the door that their teacher had just disappeared out though.
"Where do you think you are going?!" A voice demanded behind him. He sighed, of cause it was not going to be easy to get out of there.
"Home." He stated flatly, not turning to look at her, knowing that his life long bad counties' blazing eyes was currently boring holes in the back of his head.
"What do you mean 'home'??" her voice screeched as he could hear her take three long jumps over the tables to land right in between the door and him, thus keeping him from leaving.
"If you walk out that door there is going to be a lot of 'telling' from my side, and then I know a few people who will be royally pissed at you!" She hissed. The fact that she was about 10 cm. Taller then him didn't make her appear less scary. Not that he really cared, though it would give him a lot of trouble if his parents found out. After all, he of all people couldn't drop out of school, now could he. -.-
"I am not going to let you ruin this for me Nasushi, it takes three to form a team and you are not going anywhere, you got that?!" It wasn't really a question. The boy, Nasushi, glared intently at the girl, before he sighed and turned away from her to walk to the nearest desk which he jumped up and sat down on top of, and started banging his heals against the site of the desk, watching out of the corner of his right eye as Sake made her way back to her seat. Well Nasushi's seat really, he noted, because now that he wasn't sitting in it anymore she could use the as an excuse to sit next to Akita. Not that she ever used excuses to get closer to the stoic looking boy. She, along with the rest of Akita's fanclub was never very subtle in showing their interest in him. Nasushi rolled his eyes. What was so great about him anyways?
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Sighing, the 6th Hokage glared at the ball that was currently showing a classroom inhabited by three newly graduated Ninjas. Where was that teacher of theirs anyway? The 6th knew that if he didn't show up soon one of the three was going to leave. Damn Shikamaru, where was he?
"So how is it going?"
The 6th looked up from the ball in the direction the question had come from, only to discover that the owner of the voice was no longer in the line of his vision.
"Oh it is going well." He answered sarcastically, looking back down into the ball. "Apparently Shikamaru is as always a lazy bum and is pulling a Kakashi, and it seems that all of them are getting impatient."
The 6th could almost hear the frown he knew was on the other's face. "He wouldn't leave." The voice of his love stated from somewhere behind him, sounding convinced. "First off he knows we are watching him, and secondly both Sake and her Mother, not to mention Akita's mother, and probably Akita himself, would kill him if he did."
"He already tried to leave." The latest in the line of Hokages said, smirking. "Sake came close to throwing a fit."
"See. Nothing to worry about. Besides, he has too much of your annoying stubbornness to ever be able to live down being a disappointment to the village, no matter what he says."
"I guess. Hey, were you insulting me?"
"No. If I was insulting you, you wouldn't doubt it, baka."
"Shaddup!!" The young Hokage growled, as he felt a pair of arms encircling him from behind and strands of raven hair fell onto his face as the one behind him started nibbling on his ear.
"I told you, you wouldn't doubt it. You should know that by now."
The 6th only managed a sneer in the others direction. His voice seemed to have disappeared. That is, until the other pushed at his hat.
"Hey, would you watch the hat?!" he complained as he reached out to catcher it before it hit the floor.
"You know I really don't care about your hat." The dark haired one stated flatly into his ear.
The Hokage only humpfed at that, before he turned his head, catching the others lips fiercely with his own, hard enough to bruise as his lover kissed him back just as fiercely.
"Ahem!" a small but rather stern voice made the two jump apart.
"Uh. Hokage-Sama, the Jounins have picked up their respective teams, with the exemption of team 8." Hyuga Hanabi, class teacher, reported, looking awkwardly down at her sandals.
"But I expect you already know this." She continued, seemingly to try and cover an otherwise oncoming awkward silence.
The 6th nodded. "Well, I just wanted to ask if I can continue on as teacher next year." The 6th nodded again. However incredible a fighter the young teacher was, he knew very well that nearly all of Hanabi's clan had died in the battle, including her mother and father making her older sister the head of the family. All of this had given her a new approach at life, a life where wars and battle was the last thing she wanted on her mind. She had changed a lot from the little girl who graduated top of her class, and he wouldn't take that away from her by sending her out as the shinobi she had been trained to become, for the world.
"If that's what you want." He stated, sending his lover, who had moved to stand by the far wall, a glance. Even though the face he was looking at was emotionless, he knew that the person that was behind the mask shown to the world, was somewhat relating to what the younger girl in front of them was going through.
"Thank you." She whispered gratitude in her voice, before she turned and was out the door. The 6th sighed. Hanabi's sister hadn't been that lucky to be given a choice. To fit the role of clan leader she had been pushed further then anyone else, even Hanabi who had been trained by her father practically since she was able to walk. Especially after the death of her parents. He didn't wish for his worse enemy to go through what the young Hyuga clan leader had endured on top of her parents' deaths.
Hinata had become a great leader, but the price for this had been heavy, and she was still paying with the pain of never having been able to cope with the death of her family, before now, and it had nearly broken her completely when the war had ended.
It had nearly broken them all.
The war between the villages had been both long and hard to endure. Almost everyone had lost someone close to them, the only exemptions being the few that didn't have anyone they were close too at all. Everyone had been on guard almost 24/7, never resting, never daring too. The last couple of months before the ending, the air had been nearly sizzling with Chakra, and the last battle had pushed everyone to their absolute limits, causing many irreparable damages to the various ninjas, weather physical or emotional.
Hinata had gotten the veins by her eyes that marked the use of her clan's power, permanently added to her face. Tsunade had said that it was doe to stress, that her body had been pout through too much and now it was no longer capable of withdrawing her powers. Hanabi had had it the same way, though she had been able to soothe her otherwise constantly flaming chakra, by meditation.
The Hyuga's was not the only ones who had suffered though. The last Uchiha, as he had so fondly been named, was now permanently wearing the markings from his cursed seal.
The reason for this was basically the same as with Hinata. Sasuke's body had been pushed far beyond its boundaries, and the body was enable to draw back the immense power it was dealing with. So even though Sasuke had been able to draw back his chakra after a few month, thus bringing him back to his own self too, the markings and thereby reminder of what had happened still hadn't disappeared and Tsunade had told him that there was not much chance of it ever going away.
Naruto himself had in the final battle allowed the Kyubis chakra to mix with his own and for a few brief moments the nine tails had been it control. This resulting in its host body, as so many others, had received irreparable damage in the form of his eyes never changing back from the cat like state they were in whenever he used that chakra. If people hadn't known who he was then, they knew now. Years of concentrated meditation had made it possible for him to suppress the chakra so much that he was now able to control it better then ever. So even though it was now flowing freely through his body the side effects that used to come with using the evil power within him would no longer appear if he focused.
The young leaf leader sighed, before he turned his attention back to the ball.
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After wasting ten minutes pounding his heals into the site of the desk he was seated on, to the great annoyance of his two team mates, Nasushi stood up and walked over to the blackboard where he picked up the duster. Whereas he proceeded to walk towards the door, sponge in hand.
Nasushi had heard a long time ago, about the only other Jounin who was ever late on his fist day with his new students, and Nasushi was determined to see if this idiot was just as annoyingly lazy as Kakashi had been, and for that matter still was. He hadn't even bothered to catch the damn thing when it fell on his head!
"I know what you are thinking Nasushi, and no one besides Kakashi-san would ever fall for that!" Sake said in a rather superior sounding voice. Nasushi just glared at her before turning his attention towards Akita to see if he had any snide remarks about this as well. Not that Nasushi really cared if he did.
Akita however just looked back neutrally and snorted, before he turned his head, and attention, to the window. Feeling rather annoyed with his two teammates spoiling his funny, Nasushi stalked the last four meters to the door, where he jumped up and placed the duster in between the sliding door and the wall. At least he could still have some fun testing their new teacher by himself then.
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It would be another ten minutes before something finally happened. It was far from what any of the three had expected thought, as a hand reached in through the crack opening in the door and grabbed a hold of the duster before the rest of the person owning the aforementioned had, stepped through the sliding door.
He was tall, thin but also lean. He was wearing a pair of green cargo style pants along with hooded jacket, same colour as the pants, which stood open, revealing a black net tank top underneath it. Aside from this, his hair was tightly pulled back in a bushy ponytail on the back of his head, bound with a thin brown leather strap.
"Who do you think I am? Kakashi?" He snorted as he proceeded to walk further into the classroom, heading for the teachers desk, which he sat down on top of the moment he reached it.
"You are late!" Nasushi accused annoyed that all of the other teams were probably home by now.
"Yeah well." The Jounin shrugged slightly. 'I can't believe he is not even going to give us an excuse!' Nasushi thought as he sweatdropped along with the rest of his team, at their new Sensei's reply to the accusation against him.
"Anyways, my name is Nara Shikamaru." He stated looking at the three. Nasushi was sure he remembered hearing that name somewhere before, in connection to the war, to be more specific, but to his great annoyance he couldn't remember what that connection was, exactly.
"And yours are.?" Shikamaru-Sensei continued, raising an eyebrow at the three of them, when none of them replied.
Nasushi crocked his head "My name is Uchiha Nasushi." He stated crossing his arms over his chest.
"I am Rock Sake." Sake continued, smiling at nothing and everything.
"Inuzuka Akita" Akita stated, coolly as ever.
"Good." Shikamaru-sensei said, smirking at them. "Now I know what names to report to Hanabi-Sensei when you fail the next test and have to go back to the academy."
"What?!" Nasushi and Sake yelled with one mouth and even Akita's eyes grew wide at that.
"The test that determines weather or not you are capable of becoming real Ninjas." Their sensei shrugged.
"What?" Nasushi jumped up. "Then what the hell was the test we just took supposed to determine?" He asked, placing his hands on the table in front of him. "And why haven't we been told anything about this?"
Their new teacher crocked his head and narrowed his eyes a bit, studying the boy. Then he smiled. "What would the fun be in telling you beforehand when I could have the pleasure of seeing your reaction?" It wasn't the real reason, and everyone present knew it, but since it was obvious that they were not going to get a real reason, Nasushi sighed in defeat and leaned up against the table behind him.
"Well, that will be it for today. I will see you bright and early tomorrow at 5.30."
Nasushi squinted. Man! This really topped a day that had sucked since that same morning when he, going out of bed, had banged his toe on the bedside table, whereas he had limped into the kitchen, only to discover that for the first time in his life, and however impossible and ridiculous the mar thought of it was, they were out of ramen!
Nasushi sighed again. Well at least he had a few Jen so he could go out and buy something now. He didn't feel like going home. He knew that today was the first time both of his parents would be home at the same time for approximately two months, but he wasn't in the mood. And with that in mind, he went out the door setting curse for the ramen shop.
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"What are you doing here Nasushi?"
Nasushi nearly choked on his ramen at hearing the familiar voice behind him. That mans sneakiness was down right unnerving at times.
"Kakashi-san!" He coughed, beating himself on the chest to try and get his regular breathing back.
"I'm sorry." Kakashi said cheerfully, not really sounding sorry at all as he lightly beat the young boy on the back to help him clear his airway.
"So what brings you here?" Kakashi asked, giving the still kind of breathless boy a peculiar look, as he moved around the table to sit down across from min. "Shouldn't you be home?"
The boy sighed and looked down into his ramen to avoid eye contact with the Jounin in front of him. "I just didn't feel like going home that's all." He mumbled quietly. Kakashi frowned at that. He wasn't exactly the best person to talk to when it came to emotions, and to be frank he didn't exactly enjoy it either, but the rather miserable look the boy in front of him had on his face, hurt. The boy had been special to him from the moment he first lay eyes on him, and seeing him sad made the former teachers heart ache. But whatever Kakashi had been prepared for, what came next wasn't it.
The boy took a deep breath and quickly muttered, "Kakashi-san do they love each other?. Do they love me?" Taken slightly back by the normally, emotionally cool and collected boy, suddenly opening up and on top of it pouring out something like that, Kakashi could do nothing but blink.
"Of cause they do." He said after a short pause, crocking his head, and Nasushi could see the hint of a frown on the only partly visible face before him.
"Why do you doubt that?" Nasushi blushed and looked down at his currently half full bowl.
"I don't know." He shrugged at last. "I just don't ever get the feeling they do. They are always bickering . And they are rarely actually together. Like now, today, it has been months. And of they can prevent it, they are never really there when I need them to be either. People talk too . I just don't know anymore ."
Kakashi sighed, where was Iruka when he was needed? -.- Kakashi knew very well that people talked. Claiming that the only thing between Nasushi's parents was lust, and other things of that sort that Nasushi definitely didn't need to hear. For instance that in the end their relationship would never hold. That they had always had a love/hate relationship and that nothing was ever going to change that.
The truth was that it was probably correct. At least the part about the love/hate relationship, but Kakashi had seen first hand what the two was willing to do or sacrifice for the other and according to him that was worth more then any words or affectionate touches in public could ever be.
"You have never seen them in a battle situation, have you?" Kakashi asked, though it wasn't really a question.
"No." Nasushi answered the obvious.
Kakashi beamed through the cloth. "They are amazing." He stated. "Ever since they were little, they have been able to form strategies together while in extreme circumstances. In battle, is where what they are to each other is most visible."
"And what would that be?" Nasushi asked, sceptically raising an eyebrow.
"One." Kakashi stated, looking at the still sceptically looking boy in front of him who's eyes were clearly showing that he was somewhere between, 'are you kidding me' and 'Gross!'
Kakashi grinned, "Believe me it is true. They are two people, one mind, one soul, where one lacks, the other has, and vice versa. Simple and clean."
"Simple and clean?" Nasushi repeated, still looking like he didn't know what to think.
"Yeah, simple and clean. What people tend to forget in their hurry to gossip, is how they work together. How everything they do seems to become so simple to them, as long as they are together in it. People don't know what you parents' friends, does, just by looking at them. You never heard anyone close to them say that they didn't really love each other did you?"
Nasushi choke his head. "Well then that's that. They are each other's other half, Nasushi. Kind of like day and night, Ying and Yang. Completely opposites, which is the reason for their bickering, but they couldn't live without each other. They sacrificed a lot to be together, nearly everything, don't doubt that."
Kakashi grinned at seeing the young boys facial expression, which was a painting of 'Gross!' at all the mushy stuff the older Ninja had just told him, but still there was a glimpse of relief in there too.
Then his facial expression turned into one of confusion and sceptisme again. "So if they love each other so much, then why don't I feel any of it?" Kakashi face vaulted. Damn he had only just managed to cheer up the kid.
"They love you, Nasushi, believe me, they do! They went through hell to get you. Tsunade-Sama worked overtime too. Both of your parents are very stubborn people. They wanted you to be part of them, half and half." Kakashi explained, sounding a little tired.
"You were not borne Nasushi, you know that. You were 'created', and then borne by a surrogate mother. Amongst other things, the markings on your cheeks and arm are a side result of this. Had you been borne, nature would have most likely seen to it that they wouldn't have been there." Kakashi smiled a little.
"Tsunade however is, despite all, still only human, and not all powerful. DNA manipulation is hard and Tsunade wasn't able to see the markings coming."
"Kakashi-san, not to be rude or anything, but I know all of this, what is your point? That maybe creating me was wrong?" The boy asked. Kakashi sighed in exasperation. He had forgotten that arguing, or just plain talking for that matter, with Nasushi, was like talking to a teenager.
"NO!" He stated. "What I am trying to say, is that your parents loved you even before you were borne. We all did Nasushi-chan, and none of us ever stopped, least of all your parents. I know they aren't around a lot, but what they do requires a lot of their time. At the time when you were created, none of them knew what was to come. They didn't know that they were going to save the village. Being the strongest requires a lot. I for one would never trade -.-"
Nasushi crocked his head. He knew that none of his parents could have said no to the positions they were in, even if they had wanted to. People needed them. "Yeah, I guess you are right." He finally said, smiling slightly.
Kakashi smiled back, mentally whipping the sweat off his brows. He had won this round. "Now go home to them."
Nasushi nodded, before he grabbed onto Kakashi and hugged him, and as he did so, whispered into the Jounin's ear. "You are paying for the ramen right?" He didn't wait for an answer, as he loosened his grip on Kakashi, and ran out the door, away from the ramen shop, and a bewildered Kakashi.
"Thank you Kakashi-san!" Was the last thing he heard before the boy was out of sight. The masked man sighed. When was the last time that kid had actually paid for his own ramen? Thinking back as he placed the money for the food on the table, Kakashi couldn't remember that ever happening really.
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Sooo, what did you all think??? There is one more part to go. Should I post it or not?? If anyone want a picture of the kids, then you can e-mail me on: kinu_uni@yahoo.dk or you can just write it in a review *hint, hint, nudge, nudge*
Matt: And see how delighted we all are.
Uni: Why thank you.
Matt: Don't thank me, that was not a compliment.
Uni: It was too!
Matt: Was not! I was being sarcastic.
Uni: Yes and doing a lousy job of it! Shall we move on?
Matt: Who took a piss in your tea?? So anyways, Uni owns nothing. Well that's not quite true, she does own the kids, but ONLY the kids. If anyone of you should find adults in here you don't recognise then you should try reading the manga again, they are all in there!
Uni: I would like to dedicate this fics to my dog who passed away this week. I am still in chock. Secondly to my mother who is recovering from an accident, and third to my friend, whom I love dearly, and who is having a rather difficult time at the moment.
And thanks to Cheryl-chan for being my Beta, and for liking the story so much^^ To tell you the truth if you had reacted any different I don' think I would have posted it^^
What is to come!
Late spring; one of the most beautiful times of the year. A long cold winter was over and the warmth had just recently returned with full force making it one of the hottest days for more then six months.
Inside of the building that was home to the leaf village's ninja academy, all the villages newly graduated children was assembled. All of them excitedly waited for the arrival of their new Sensei's.
All of the newly graduates had been teamed up in groups of three and three, making 9 teams in all. The class was a small year. It wasn't something anyone really talked about. The reasons for this was first of al the fact that there was about three years where there had been born less children then normally because of the war that had been between the hidden villages that had nearly cut the ninja population in half. The second reason was that in those three years nearly no one had had any children at all out of fear of what would become of the kids if they were brought into a world at war.
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In the back of the room a boy sat. His hair was black though in a weird sort of way, shining blondly, almost white, at the top. He had large blue eyes and strange markings on his cheeks, though they were different on each side of the cheeks. He wore a blue kimono like shirt with no sleeves and his right arm was bandaged from shoulder to fingertips in a silk like gaze.
Aside from this, the kid was looking bored. He was, like all the others were, waiting for his new teacher, but what distinguished him from the mass was the fact that he really didn't care.
"Isn't this exiting?!" A black haired girl sitting beside him asked, seemingly to no one in particular.
The boy turned towards her letting his rather studying gaze travel all over her, taking joy in the fact that she seemed to find it eerie.
The girl had long bangs, even longer then his own and her hair was cut short in the back much like his, only the girl's hair was neatly kept where as his own was sticking out in all possible directions.
The girl was wearing a dark green long sleeved top that clung to her body like a second skin. Her legs were covered by a large light pink sash, which was tightly wrapped around her waist stopping at her knees, none of this leaving much to the imagination, though she was only 12 so it really didn't matter that much yet.
The boy sighed annoyed and looked away again. He had known this girl his whole life and she was the picture of perfection. A little miss goodie goodie two shoes that took every opportunity she could get to nag at him. She was the bad conscious he had never had, personified.
Their parents had always spend a lot of time together so they had been around each other practically since they were born. Their parents had been very close ever since they were 12 themselves. There had been some years in between where they had had some problems of some sort, but it had all changed when he and Sake, as the girl beside him was called, came along and none of them ever spoke of whatever it was they had been arguing about. And so he and Sake knew nothing other then that there had been some years where they hadn't spoken to each other.
He sighed again, he felt like leaving, but he knew that if he did Sake would kill him. Not because he would ruin his chances of becoming a ninja, no she coulden't care less, but rather because it would ruing HER chances if becoming one, because of course they had been put on the same team. He already hated this whole team arrangement though it was always something that he wasn't alone in that.
To his right sat the last part of their trio, hating this team thing just as much as he did. That though, was probably also the only thing they were ever going to agree on. The boy sitting to his right was.Dedicated. That, the boy guessed, was the best way to describe the blond.Well almost blond. He had a few thin black stripes here and there and calling his hair light coloured would really be an understatement seeing as his hair was completely white. What was remarkable about this boy, aside from his hair that is, was his eyes. They were dark blue and cat like giving off the effect that his eyes were on you, studying you, even if you could see that he wasn't looking. Like the boy felt the other was doing right now, he shrugged it off. It was an annoying quality in the other that he didn't think he would ever learn to live with.
Another thing the boy didn't think he would be able to ever live with was the fact that his male teem-mate was popular. And not just your average 'oh isn't he cool' kind of popular. No it was the kind where every girl in school and even some outside of it looked at him like they wanted nothing more then to jump his bones. The boy leaned back in his seat and started looking around the class room and coulden't help but roll his eyes. As he suspected practically every girl was trying discreetly (and failing at it) to looking in their direction and he was willing to bet large on what they were looking at.
The youth sighed. This was getting boring. He was just about ready to get up from his seat and straight out leave when finally the door in the other and of the room opened, and a rather spooky looking man with wild hair and little round sunglasses stepped into the class room. Followed up by their class teacher Hanabi-sensei who in turn was followed by seven more adults in literally all different shapes and colours. These had to be the Jounins, and even though the boy still insisted to himself that he didn't care, he couldn't help the small pang of excitement that went through his body. He was quickly able to suppress it though when something else caught his attention; seven? The boy frowned. They were nine teams and their academy Sensei Hanabi, was not taking on teaching Ninjas so all in all they seemed to be a Jounin short.
"Team 6!" The weird guy that was the first to enter yelled out, momentarily ripping the half blond from his thoughts. "Team 4!" the next guy, who was really a woman, yelled out, and so they went on. Next up was a big fat guy yelling for team 3, then came a black- haired man, who seemed to be missing pupil's, who wanted team 7, and so it continued until there were only one team left. Team 8. His team, and the small problem with their being a Jounin less returned, as the three remaining ninja students in the room was missing a teacher.
Their Sensei, Hanabi, looked up at the three with an apologetic face.
"I am sorry kids." She stated sincerely. Then sighed "I would have liked to stay here and wait with you till your teacher shows up, but I have a meeting with Hokage-sama and I really have to get going." She said all this while hurrying around the room cleaning the blackboard and collecting her things in a huge stack which she tried to balance in her arms while she was attempting to get through the door. After a few failed attempts she threw the stack up into the air quickly pushed the door open in the mean time and caught the stack as it fell down into her fawn again.
The boy raised an eyebrow. What she had done just then had been done in slow motion compared to what she was capable of and even so he had barely been able to follow her fast movements. Why she had chosen to become a teacher was a mystery to him. Apparently she was a fully educated Jounin from what he had heard, but for some reason she had chosen to become a teacher after the war.
"Don't worry, I am sure he is on his way." They heard her call from the other side of the door, just as it slit shut behind her and they could hear her footsteps gradually retreating down the empty halls of the Ninja academy.
Sighing the black-haired boy rose from his seat and proceeded to walk towards the door that their teacher had just disappeared out though.
"Where do you think you are going?!" A voice demanded behind him. He sighed, of cause it was not going to be easy to get out of there.
"Home." He stated flatly, not turning to look at her, knowing that his life long bad counties' blazing eyes was currently boring holes in the back of his head.
"What do you mean 'home'??" her voice screeched as he could hear her take three long jumps over the tables to land right in between the door and him, thus keeping him from leaving.
"If you walk out that door there is going to be a lot of 'telling' from my side, and then I know a few people who will be royally pissed at you!" She hissed. The fact that she was about 10 cm. Taller then him didn't make her appear less scary. Not that he really cared, though it would give him a lot of trouble if his parents found out. After all, he of all people couldn't drop out of school, now could he. -.-
"I am not going to let you ruin this for me Nasushi, it takes three to form a team and you are not going anywhere, you got that?!" It wasn't really a question. The boy, Nasushi, glared intently at the girl, before he sighed and turned away from her to walk to the nearest desk which he jumped up and sat down on top of, and started banging his heals against the site of the desk, watching out of the corner of his right eye as Sake made her way back to her seat. Well Nasushi's seat really, he noted, because now that he wasn't sitting in it anymore she could use the as an excuse to sit next to Akita. Not that she ever used excuses to get closer to the stoic looking boy. She, along with the rest of Akita's fanclub was never very subtle in showing their interest in him. Nasushi rolled his eyes. What was so great about him anyways?
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Sighing, the 6th Hokage glared at the ball that was currently showing a classroom inhabited by three newly graduated Ninjas. Where was that teacher of theirs anyway? The 6th knew that if he didn't show up soon one of the three was going to leave. Damn Shikamaru, where was he?
"So how is it going?"
The 6th looked up from the ball in the direction the question had come from, only to discover that the owner of the voice was no longer in the line of his vision.
"Oh it is going well." He answered sarcastically, looking back down into the ball. "Apparently Shikamaru is as always a lazy bum and is pulling a Kakashi, and it seems that all of them are getting impatient."
The 6th could almost hear the frown he knew was on the other's face. "He wouldn't leave." The voice of his love stated from somewhere behind him, sounding convinced. "First off he knows we are watching him, and secondly both Sake and her Mother, not to mention Akita's mother, and probably Akita himself, would kill him if he did."
"He already tried to leave." The latest in the line of Hokages said, smirking. "Sake came close to throwing a fit."
"See. Nothing to worry about. Besides, he has too much of your annoying stubbornness to ever be able to live down being a disappointment to the village, no matter what he says."
"I guess. Hey, were you insulting me?"
"No. If I was insulting you, you wouldn't doubt it, baka."
"Shaddup!!" The young Hokage growled, as he felt a pair of arms encircling him from behind and strands of raven hair fell onto his face as the one behind him started nibbling on his ear.
"I told you, you wouldn't doubt it. You should know that by now."
The 6th only managed a sneer in the others direction. His voice seemed to have disappeared. That is, until the other pushed at his hat.
"Hey, would you watch the hat?!" he complained as he reached out to catcher it before it hit the floor.
"You know I really don't care about your hat." The dark haired one stated flatly into his ear.
The Hokage only humpfed at that, before he turned his head, catching the others lips fiercely with his own, hard enough to bruise as his lover kissed him back just as fiercely.
"Ahem!" a small but rather stern voice made the two jump apart.
"Uh. Hokage-Sama, the Jounins have picked up their respective teams, with the exemption of team 8." Hyuga Hanabi, class teacher, reported, looking awkwardly down at her sandals.
"But I expect you already know this." She continued, seemingly to try and cover an otherwise oncoming awkward silence.
The 6th nodded. "Well, I just wanted to ask if I can continue on as teacher next year." The 6th nodded again. However incredible a fighter the young teacher was, he knew very well that nearly all of Hanabi's clan had died in the battle, including her mother and father making her older sister the head of the family. All of this had given her a new approach at life, a life where wars and battle was the last thing she wanted on her mind. She had changed a lot from the little girl who graduated top of her class, and he wouldn't take that away from her by sending her out as the shinobi she had been trained to become, for the world.
"If that's what you want." He stated, sending his lover, who had moved to stand by the far wall, a glance. Even though the face he was looking at was emotionless, he knew that the person that was behind the mask shown to the world, was somewhat relating to what the younger girl in front of them was going through.
"Thank you." She whispered gratitude in her voice, before she turned and was out the door. The 6th sighed. Hanabi's sister hadn't been that lucky to be given a choice. To fit the role of clan leader she had been pushed further then anyone else, even Hanabi who had been trained by her father practically since she was able to walk. Especially after the death of her parents. He didn't wish for his worse enemy to go through what the young Hyuga clan leader had endured on top of her parents' deaths.
Hinata had become a great leader, but the price for this had been heavy, and she was still paying with the pain of never having been able to cope with the death of her family, before now, and it had nearly broken her completely when the war had ended.
It had nearly broken them all.
The war between the villages had been both long and hard to endure. Almost everyone had lost someone close to them, the only exemptions being the few that didn't have anyone they were close too at all. Everyone had been on guard almost 24/7, never resting, never daring too. The last couple of months before the ending, the air had been nearly sizzling with Chakra, and the last battle had pushed everyone to their absolute limits, causing many irreparable damages to the various ninjas, weather physical or emotional.
Hinata had gotten the veins by her eyes that marked the use of her clan's power, permanently added to her face. Tsunade had said that it was doe to stress, that her body had been pout through too much and now it was no longer capable of withdrawing her powers. Hanabi had had it the same way, though she had been able to soothe her otherwise constantly flaming chakra, by meditation.
The Hyuga's was not the only ones who had suffered though. The last Uchiha, as he had so fondly been named, was now permanently wearing the markings from his cursed seal.
The reason for this was basically the same as with Hinata. Sasuke's body had been pushed far beyond its boundaries, and the body was enable to draw back the immense power it was dealing with. So even though Sasuke had been able to draw back his chakra after a few month, thus bringing him back to his own self too, the markings and thereby reminder of what had happened still hadn't disappeared and Tsunade had told him that there was not much chance of it ever going away.
Naruto himself had in the final battle allowed the Kyubis chakra to mix with his own and for a few brief moments the nine tails had been it control. This resulting in its host body, as so many others, had received irreparable damage in the form of his eyes never changing back from the cat like state they were in whenever he used that chakra. If people hadn't known who he was then, they knew now. Years of concentrated meditation had made it possible for him to suppress the chakra so much that he was now able to control it better then ever. So even though it was now flowing freely through his body the side effects that used to come with using the evil power within him would no longer appear if he focused.
The young leaf leader sighed, before he turned his attention back to the ball.
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After wasting ten minutes pounding his heals into the site of the desk he was seated on, to the great annoyance of his two team mates, Nasushi stood up and walked over to the blackboard where he picked up the duster. Whereas he proceeded to walk towards the door, sponge in hand.
Nasushi had heard a long time ago, about the only other Jounin who was ever late on his fist day with his new students, and Nasushi was determined to see if this idiot was just as annoyingly lazy as Kakashi had been, and for that matter still was. He hadn't even bothered to catch the damn thing when it fell on his head!
"I know what you are thinking Nasushi, and no one besides Kakashi-san would ever fall for that!" Sake said in a rather superior sounding voice. Nasushi just glared at her before turning his attention towards Akita to see if he had any snide remarks about this as well. Not that Nasushi really cared if he did.
Akita however just looked back neutrally and snorted, before he turned his head, and attention, to the window. Feeling rather annoyed with his two teammates spoiling his funny, Nasushi stalked the last four meters to the door, where he jumped up and placed the duster in between the sliding door and the wall. At least he could still have some fun testing their new teacher by himself then.
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It would be another ten minutes before something finally happened. It was far from what any of the three had expected thought, as a hand reached in through the crack opening in the door and grabbed a hold of the duster before the rest of the person owning the aforementioned had, stepped through the sliding door.
He was tall, thin but also lean. He was wearing a pair of green cargo style pants along with hooded jacket, same colour as the pants, which stood open, revealing a black net tank top underneath it. Aside from this, his hair was tightly pulled back in a bushy ponytail on the back of his head, bound with a thin brown leather strap.
"Who do you think I am? Kakashi?" He snorted as he proceeded to walk further into the classroom, heading for the teachers desk, which he sat down on top of the moment he reached it.
"You are late!" Nasushi accused annoyed that all of the other teams were probably home by now.
"Yeah well." The Jounin shrugged slightly. 'I can't believe he is not even going to give us an excuse!' Nasushi thought as he sweatdropped along with the rest of his team, at their new Sensei's reply to the accusation against him.
"Anyways, my name is Nara Shikamaru." He stated looking at the three. Nasushi was sure he remembered hearing that name somewhere before, in connection to the war, to be more specific, but to his great annoyance he couldn't remember what that connection was, exactly.
"And yours are.?" Shikamaru-Sensei continued, raising an eyebrow at the three of them, when none of them replied.
Nasushi crocked his head "My name is Uchiha Nasushi." He stated crossing his arms over his chest.
"I am Rock Sake." Sake continued, smiling at nothing and everything.
"Inuzuka Akita" Akita stated, coolly as ever.
"Good." Shikamaru-sensei said, smirking at them. "Now I know what names to report to Hanabi-Sensei when you fail the next test and have to go back to the academy."
"What?!" Nasushi and Sake yelled with one mouth and even Akita's eyes grew wide at that.
"The test that determines weather or not you are capable of becoming real Ninjas." Their sensei shrugged.
"What?" Nasushi jumped up. "Then what the hell was the test we just took supposed to determine?" He asked, placing his hands on the table in front of him. "And why haven't we been told anything about this?"
Their new teacher crocked his head and narrowed his eyes a bit, studying the boy. Then he smiled. "What would the fun be in telling you beforehand when I could have the pleasure of seeing your reaction?" It wasn't the real reason, and everyone present knew it, but since it was obvious that they were not going to get a real reason, Nasushi sighed in defeat and leaned up against the table behind him.
"Well, that will be it for today. I will see you bright and early tomorrow at 5.30."
Nasushi squinted. Man! This really topped a day that had sucked since that same morning when he, going out of bed, had banged his toe on the bedside table, whereas he had limped into the kitchen, only to discover that for the first time in his life, and however impossible and ridiculous the mar thought of it was, they were out of ramen!
Nasushi sighed again. Well at least he had a few Jen so he could go out and buy something now. He didn't feel like going home. He knew that today was the first time both of his parents would be home at the same time for approximately two months, but he wasn't in the mood. And with that in mind, he went out the door setting curse for the ramen shop.
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"What are you doing here Nasushi?"
Nasushi nearly choked on his ramen at hearing the familiar voice behind him. That mans sneakiness was down right unnerving at times.
"Kakashi-san!" He coughed, beating himself on the chest to try and get his regular breathing back.
"I'm sorry." Kakashi said cheerfully, not really sounding sorry at all as he lightly beat the young boy on the back to help him clear his airway.
"So what brings you here?" Kakashi asked, giving the still kind of breathless boy a peculiar look, as he moved around the table to sit down across from min. "Shouldn't you be home?"
The boy sighed and looked down into his ramen to avoid eye contact with the Jounin in front of him. "I just didn't feel like going home that's all." He mumbled quietly. Kakashi frowned at that. He wasn't exactly the best person to talk to when it came to emotions, and to be frank he didn't exactly enjoy it either, but the rather miserable look the boy in front of him had on his face, hurt. The boy had been special to him from the moment he first lay eyes on him, and seeing him sad made the former teachers heart ache. But whatever Kakashi had been prepared for, what came next wasn't it.
The boy took a deep breath and quickly muttered, "Kakashi-san do they love each other?. Do they love me?" Taken slightly back by the normally, emotionally cool and collected boy, suddenly opening up and on top of it pouring out something like that, Kakashi could do nothing but blink.
"Of cause they do." He said after a short pause, crocking his head, and Nasushi could see the hint of a frown on the only partly visible face before him.
"Why do you doubt that?" Nasushi blushed and looked down at his currently half full bowl.
"I don't know." He shrugged at last. "I just don't ever get the feeling they do. They are always bickering . And they are rarely actually together. Like now, today, it has been months. And of they can prevent it, they are never really there when I need them to be either. People talk too . I just don't know anymore ."
Kakashi sighed, where was Iruka when he was needed? -.- Kakashi knew very well that people talked. Claiming that the only thing between Nasushi's parents was lust, and other things of that sort that Nasushi definitely didn't need to hear. For instance that in the end their relationship would never hold. That they had always had a love/hate relationship and that nothing was ever going to change that.
The truth was that it was probably correct. At least the part about the love/hate relationship, but Kakashi had seen first hand what the two was willing to do or sacrifice for the other and according to him that was worth more then any words or affectionate touches in public could ever be.
"You have never seen them in a battle situation, have you?" Kakashi asked, though it wasn't really a question.
"No." Nasushi answered the obvious.
Kakashi beamed through the cloth. "They are amazing." He stated. "Ever since they were little, they have been able to form strategies together while in extreme circumstances. In battle, is where what they are to each other is most visible."
"And what would that be?" Nasushi asked, sceptically raising an eyebrow.
"One." Kakashi stated, looking at the still sceptically looking boy in front of him who's eyes were clearly showing that he was somewhere between, 'are you kidding me' and 'Gross!'
Kakashi grinned, "Believe me it is true. They are two people, one mind, one soul, where one lacks, the other has, and vice versa. Simple and clean."
"Simple and clean?" Nasushi repeated, still looking like he didn't know what to think.
"Yeah, simple and clean. What people tend to forget in their hurry to gossip, is how they work together. How everything they do seems to become so simple to them, as long as they are together in it. People don't know what you parents' friends, does, just by looking at them. You never heard anyone close to them say that they didn't really love each other did you?"
Nasushi choke his head. "Well then that's that. They are each other's other half, Nasushi. Kind of like day and night, Ying and Yang. Completely opposites, which is the reason for their bickering, but they couldn't live without each other. They sacrificed a lot to be together, nearly everything, don't doubt that."
Kakashi grinned at seeing the young boys facial expression, which was a painting of 'Gross!' at all the mushy stuff the older Ninja had just told him, but still there was a glimpse of relief in there too.
Then his facial expression turned into one of confusion and sceptisme again. "So if they love each other so much, then why don't I feel any of it?" Kakashi face vaulted. Damn he had only just managed to cheer up the kid.
"They love you, Nasushi, believe me, they do! They went through hell to get you. Tsunade-Sama worked overtime too. Both of your parents are very stubborn people. They wanted you to be part of them, half and half." Kakashi explained, sounding a little tired.
"You were not borne Nasushi, you know that. You were 'created', and then borne by a surrogate mother. Amongst other things, the markings on your cheeks and arm are a side result of this. Had you been borne, nature would have most likely seen to it that they wouldn't have been there." Kakashi smiled a little.
"Tsunade however is, despite all, still only human, and not all powerful. DNA manipulation is hard and Tsunade wasn't able to see the markings coming."
"Kakashi-san, not to be rude or anything, but I know all of this, what is your point? That maybe creating me was wrong?" The boy asked. Kakashi sighed in exasperation. He had forgotten that arguing, or just plain talking for that matter, with Nasushi, was like talking to a teenager.
"NO!" He stated. "What I am trying to say, is that your parents loved you even before you were borne. We all did Nasushi-chan, and none of us ever stopped, least of all your parents. I know they aren't around a lot, but what they do requires a lot of their time. At the time when you were created, none of them knew what was to come. They didn't know that they were going to save the village. Being the strongest requires a lot. I for one would never trade -.-"
Nasushi crocked his head. He knew that none of his parents could have said no to the positions they were in, even if they had wanted to. People needed them. "Yeah, I guess you are right." He finally said, smiling slightly.
Kakashi smiled back, mentally whipping the sweat off his brows. He had won this round. "Now go home to them."
Nasushi nodded, before he grabbed onto Kakashi and hugged him, and as he did so, whispered into the Jounin's ear. "You are paying for the ramen right?" He didn't wait for an answer, as he loosened his grip on Kakashi, and ran out the door, away from the ramen shop, and a bewildered Kakashi.
"Thank you Kakashi-san!" Was the last thing he heard before the boy was out of sight. The masked man sighed. When was the last time that kid had actually paid for his own ramen? Thinking back as he placed the money for the food on the table, Kakashi couldn't remember that ever happening really.
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Sooo, what did you all think??? There is one more part to go. Should I post it or not?? If anyone want a picture of the kids, then you can e-mail me on: kinu_uni@yahoo.dk or you can just write it in a review *hint, hint, nudge, nudge*