Authors Note:
TangentOne: Warning for all sorts of nasty shit, including language. Err, I guess the main one is gore, but there will be 'mental' problems and other sexual themes later.
TangentTwo: That's just in the prologue too! Oh goodie I can't wait!
TangentOne: Not sure I'm surprised about that.
Prologue: The Falcon's Rise
The familiar light of the sun shone barely above the horizon, it plead to be recognized. A cold morning to be sure, though it would warm before long. From my spot on the balcony that belonged to a house tucked away in the far corners of the Sarutobi clans property, I recognized a familiar dot that raced towards me. Sarutobi Makoto, the only person in Konoha proper that noted me as a person and not a passerby. Even the man who took care of me, Sarutobi Reizo, acted distant when I tried to get to close. I wasn't a Sarutobi, and they made sure I knew it. People around the village did not seek out my friendship either, whether it was because I lived with the Sarutobi, or because I was an orphan I did not know.
As the dot formed into a humanoid figure I decided to meet with him. I flowed chakra into my muscles, enhancing their strength and durability and shot forward. Wind surged through my hair as I leapt from one stride to the next. Two steps and I had closed the distance. Speed had always been my strong suit. Stopping abruptly, g-forces stressed with a mild annoyance, I smiled triumphantly when he nearly crashed into me.
"I hate it when you do that." Makoto snorted, regaining his composure.
He had a small build, muscular but thin. He looked like a girl, he was pretty, not handsome. His hair was long only in the bangs, and colored the standard Sarutobi black. Lightly skinned, along with a black ninja suit, just a standard Konoha uniform without the flak jacket. I had a large build, broad shouldered and tall for my age of eleven, five foot five. It only served me better as I enjoyed bukijutsu, specifically the spear, and the larger you were the sooner you could start. I wore close toed ninja boots which were a rarity, but less rare these days. A sleeveless bamboo cloth vest, black with dark purple trim and plain black bamboo cloth pants which were tucked into my half-shin high combat boots. I had short hair that was a little longer on the top than on the sides and back, and it was pure white.
"If I don't do it, you won't learn." I replied calmly.
Makoto just brushed his bangs out of his face. He nodded his head in the direction of the academy. We were going straight there, not the long way. I nodded and fell in step behind him as he enhanced his speed and leapt through the field to the treeline. When we reached the beginnings of the forest we immediately jumped onto the lowest branch and started hopping through the trees to Konoha. I expected when we reached the end of the forest and the beginning of the village we would run across the rooftops as well.
We did just that. I trusted him, and not only that I knew him. We knew each other. We've been inseparable since birth, which is why I lived with the Sarutobi. I'd heard the stories of the hospital when we were babies. If we weren't together, we were crying. It took them a while to realize it was each other, together, that calmed us. We were opposites, yet drawn to each other.
Yin and Yang. I thought philosophically.
It took us seven minutes at ninja speed to cross the distance from my cabin to the Academy. When we reached the front door, the principal Iruka Umino, was waiting patiently for us.
"Did we keep you waiting Iruka-Sensei?" Makoto asked as he bowed slightly. I echoed the motion simultaneously.
I let him take the lead in any conversations we were both involved in. It made people less uncomfortable. I'm sure it was just that no one knew how to deal with a person who essentially leeches off the Sarutobi. I had long since stopped caring about other people though, I only needed Makoto to keep me company.
"No, not at all. I had expected to wait here for a while longer anyway. I'm glad you're early." Iruka-Sensei replied easily nodding in my direction with a smile.
Iruka had never had a problem talking with me, which made me even more uncomfortable. I had no idea how to deal with someone who wasn't Makoto.
"As you two already passed the tests to become ninja, all we need to do is take your picture and have you fill out and sign a few forms."
Iruka-Sensei had twirled on his feet and made his way through the open Academy door and easily directing us through the winding halls of the academy. We came to a door that read "Graduation Room" in hiragana and kanji on the slide fitted on the front of the door. He opened the door and strode through, purpose in his step now. We filed in behind him and he strode firmly to the seat next to the Hokage.
Wait what. I noticed him immediately, but it had sunk in a few seconds later that The Hokage was sitting at the table in front of us. Naruto Uzumaki, the Seventh Hokage was sitting right in front of us, his smile bright.
"Congratulations graduates!" Naruto passionately exclaimed.
I could tell this was his first graduation ceremony, probably one of his first acts as Hokage since he had just become Hokage. It didn't matter though. The Hokage was here for it. I didn't know what to say and thankfully Makoto took the lead.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama." Makoto replied stiffly as he bowed essentially parallel to the ground. I mimicked the motion again, though this time also repeating the line.
Naruto laughed, a good hearty laugh. He was enjoying it, I noticed.
"Now, now," Naruto began. "Don't stand on formalities on my account. I'll hand you your bands after you take your picture and fill out these forms." Pointing at the respective camera and documents as he talked about them.
It was slow, the picture, the documents, the procedure. It was slow not because of the actions but because the Hokage seemed intent on taking the pictures and directing our involvement of the documents personally. Iruka-Sensei seemed annoyed, and at one point sighed, but generally left Naruto to his own devices.
When it was all said and done, Naruto reached into a pocket of his, which was larger on the inside it seemed because two headbands came out of the small pocket. He smiled gently this time, as he handed a headband to me firstly, then Makoto. We were essentially dumbfounded, but it didn't last long.
"I hope you guys strive to be the best Ninja you can be, I started out far behind you, and look where I am now." He said diligently, as if he had practiced it.
We bowed again and chakra smoke puffed as he disappeared. Sure it was a clone, but damn if it still wasn't impressionable. Iruka-Sensei beamed with pride and nodded at us.
"Well, there you have it. You're officially Ninja now. You have today and tomorrow off, so go celebrate." He body flickered in front of us each handing us a wallet.
When I looked inside the wallet, a see-through plastic was covering a pocket which held my Ninja-id and the slit in the top of the wallet held enough money for a week of high class living.
"This is a little excessive for a signing bonus." Makoto sighed. He didn't like hand-outs.
"It's a gift from the Hokage. You were the first students he graduated." Iruka-Sensei was delighted, that much was obvious.
We bowed again, headbands still in our hands. After a brief exchange of pleasantries with Iruka-Sensei, we left quickly. There was a couple things we had to do. We pocketed our bands and started roof hopping to the largest training field in Konoha Proper. We reached it within a minute. We weren't counting, but we knew the time it took because of how often we came here. We took our stances facing each other twenty paces apart. His stance was just a general fighting pose. Makoto made up for his small frame by being unpredictable in combat. Essentially a street fighter, he made moves in reaction to his opponent. Never taking the initial step.
My stance was simple, I was going to go all out from the beginning so I had my spear in hand. It usually was laid on my back, in a sheath with it's handle retracted. Now, it was full length and surging with power from the chakra I imbued into it. The air currents swirled silently around the head of the spear. I stood, feet spread with my back left foot taking a ninety degree angle from my front right foot which pointed at Makoto. The spear balancing neatly in my right hand. My left hand took a position in the air just above and far behind my head, barely bent at the elbow. I crouched down and as soon as we were both ready the fight began.
To any civilian it would've looked brutal, palms flying defensively, pushing with impeccable timing the deadly black spear that threatened to pierce his body at any given moment. The thrusts that came immediately after being deflected and pulled back. After a lunge that was aimed at Makoto's throat which he deflected, and noticed a little more resistance than he was expecting in the deflection. I had started using the wind that the spear naturally formed around it to balance out the force of the deflection. Regardless the spear harmlessly grazed his neck giving him a cat-scratch.
Makoto was surprised, and because of that there was an opening. A small one, but I took it, lunging quickly again at his stomach. He jumped back instead of deflecting, I had expected that movement, switching from a lunge to a small upwards cut. The air the tip touched formed a deadly fast, razor sharp air current that bolted forward. By the time the current reached Makoto he had regained his sense and gracefully jumped into the air, spinning three times and a somersault before he landed just outside my spears reach. He took a quick step forward which I responded to with a lunge. He body flickered the final few steps to close the gap quickly and jabbed repeatedly at my torso. I saw the action too late and was hit by the first jab making me lose my breath for a few seconds, the rest of the jabs landed on the spear's handle which I had brought in close to me for protection.
He darted back with the last of his flurry of attacks blocked and we resumed our original stances. Instead of closing the gap I made a few quick cuts through the air with the tip of my spear and flipped it around, blunt end in front. When the first cut reached Makoto I bolted forward, chakra enhanced and determined. I raced past the cuts that were moving at an incredulous speed and jumped in the air to intercept the already aloft Makoto. As he started to fall down from the apex of his arch, I jammed the blunt end of my spear into his back. He flew away from me at the speed I had launched into him with, and I glided down to the ground on the air currents my spear created.
Makoto was imbedded in a tree and had to pry himself out of the perfectly Makoto-sized hole he made when he slammed into it. When he dropped I was standing over him, blade at the back of his neck.
"Seventy eight wins, seventy four losses." I counted, reciting our past battle record. I had taken the last four in a streak. Either he had slowed down on training, or I sped up. Makoto chuckled.
"Fair enough, help me up." He replied, panting.
I knew he wasn't in any real pain or danger. I had gained an almost insurmountable advantage over him when he lost all is momentum in the fight thanks to the lovely tree behind him. We knew when to stop, it wasn't impossible for him to come back, but it would've been difficult. I withdrew my chakra from the spear and retracted the handle down to a dagger like length. I lifted Makoto up from the underarm, his body seemed to creak.
"Getting old already?" I asked, amused.
Makoto ignored my comment.
"Our final bout as civilians." He said flatly.
"And our first as Ninja." I replied.
Makoto nodded and took his headband out from his pocket and I mirrored the motion. Grabbing the fabric from each side, I placed the headband over my forehead, cold metal feeling pleasant after a fight, and tied it around my skull. We finished simultaneously, and nodded at each other. No words needed to be said, we knew what each other wanted to say.
We made it.
