Chapter 1 It's here: the academy graduation!

"Run. I, have to get out of here. I must run as far as I can, for as long as I can..."

I stared out the classroom window, hoping for the tedious genjutsu lesson to end. My vibrant blue eyes danced in the light of the sun. The academy was preparing us for our up-coming graduation, and most of the class was thrilled about it. I on the other hand, was not. Graduation. The coming of age for the children who aspire to become great shinobi. Even though it'd mean I'd be out of this nightmare, it still wasn't all that appealing. You see, the closer we got to our graduation exam, the more genjutsu, ninjutsu and taijutsu lessons were crammed into our 6 hour school day. It was hard. I had never been the star pupil of the academy, but I wasn't a failure. That's for sure. I blinked slowly as a yawn grew inside my chest.
"Okay class, who can demonstrate a basic genjutsu? Anyone?"

I laughed as a response to this. Kagura-Sensei wasn't that old. Nor was she that young. She was tall, and slim, and had long-flowing auburn hair. Her brown eyes looked like melted chocolate. But her attitude was another story. She wasn't the greatest sensei; that's what I believed. She was overly strict, and was the kind of teach-by-the-book sensei. Although, when she was in the right mood, she taught us loads of cool stuff. An eager hand suddenly shot up from the 2nd row. It was the teacher's pet, Saranayo Taugi. He was an average kid. Average height, average looks, average everything. Except for his smarts. All his academic scores have been the highest in the academy. He had plain grey eyes, and light skin. His long sandy hair was gelled back, making him look like a dork. Whenever I said this to my mother, she would scold me saying, "Ramoto Yuurie, how would you like it if your fellow students started antagonizing you about the way you look?! You wouldn't like it one bit!" She always over-reacted. It was humorous.

As I stared out the window, the class went on in the background. I couldn't help notice the few last stragglers; the slower Jounin that were headed towards the Turokage's Office. Or in other words, the large, grey building with the character meaning 'Wind' on it.

"Turokage-sama!" a jounin called as a large group of them bowed to him as he stepped outside onto the large roof, "Why is it that we've all been called?"

"Now, now. Be calm Mioro," the Turokage said in calm words, "I have.. News. You see, there have been reports from some of the ANBU about hidden sand shinobi appearing around the border of the Hidden Mountain Village. Now, don't be alarmed. Nothing has been confirmed yet, and nothing has to be done yet. But, I will warn you. Take precautions when you are out with your teams. And to all the new Jounin that will be receiving their teams soon: be warned. You will not be assigned missions for the time being. Your mission will be to train your squad until I give further notice. That is all." And with that, the Turokage went back into the building.

"Ugh," I scoffed as I squinted to see, "there's no view from here." I continued squinting, later becoming apparent that they had broken up, and went about carrying on their business. Becoming quickly bored again, I solemnly turned to face the front of the room, and listened to the lesson.

The day dragged on, but eventually ended. The academy let out, and we were sent home. I had exited the academy, and begun to walk into town. I reached into my pocket, and pulled out a hair tie. I pulled back my thin, straight black hair, and wrapped the hair tie around it. I pulled out the left and right bangs, and smiled, satisfied with my hair. I lived near the market area of town, due to the fact that my parents owned a large bakery in there. I had helped out sometimes, due to the fact that I was in need of money. I had one older sibling, a brother named Ramoto Tasuko. He was a genin, but was away in Fire Country, due to the fact that his squad was in the Chuunin Exams. As I walked home, I smiled. I was happy that I would be a genin soon, Able to follow in my brother's footsteps. I would be a great shinobi, just like him. Although I aspired to do so, the road towards greatness was a long one for me, mainly because my family possessed no special bloodline jutsu.

I had passed the bars and pubs on my way, and had even stopped at the sweets shop to buy myself a little treat. I walked into down a busy street that lead to Market Square, a large open area that is basically one big market. I knew my way around here very well, and knew many of the store owners as well. I had just spotted my families bakery when someone ran into me. In fact, it was two someones.

"Oof!" I grunted as I was pushed back. I stared up into the faces of the people that ran into me. It was the Uduhora twins. They were the cutest boys in the entire academy!

"Excuse us, Yuurie-chan," they both smiled as they reached their hands out to me, "we've seemed to have knocked you down."
I went completely red in the face. I truly hope that I am paired with both of them for the genin squads!! This was my secret fantasy. Well, it was every girl's secret fantasy. They helped me to my feet, apologized again, and went about their business, leaving me to just about faint. I felt as though I was floating on clouds all the way home.

"Mom, Dad! I'm home!!" I called out as I entered the empty, barren home. I slid the door shut, and slipped off my shoes. I walked through the main hallway, until I reached the kitchen. I entered the dark room, expecting a ghoul to pop out and scare me. I walked towards the fridge, and opened it, taking the orange juice from the door. I placed the carton of juice on the counter, shut the fridge, and opened the cabinet that held the cups. As I grabbed a glass, and prepared to pour my juice, a slip of paper caught my eye. Beside the sink lay a small slip of lined paper, a note from my parents. Honey, your father and I had business to attend to down at the bakery. A last minute order was put in, and it's huge. We aren't sure how long we will be, so I prepared dinner. It's sitting in the oven, just reheat it! We really are sorry, but we'll try to be home as soon as possible. We love you, Mom. I crumpled up the piece of paper, and threw it into the trash. "I bet they'll be there all night," I sighed as I drank my juice, "maybe I should call someone over." I smiled slightly, and walked towards the telephone. I dialed the number of my best friend, Utode Amane. She sat one seat in front of me at the academy, and we trained hard together when our studies were over. She was a bit taller than me, and she had medium length, light brown hair. She was fairly tanned, and had vibrant green eyes. The phone started ringing, and someone on the other line immediately picked up.
"Hello?" the voice said through the phone. It wasn't Amane, it was her mother.
"Hello Mrs.Utode, is Amane-san home?" I asked politely, knowing full-well that she was.
"Why, yes. Yes she is. Just hold on for a minute please." She said politely, her conversation with Amane was completely vivid in the background. Mrs.Utode walked back to the phone, and picked it up, "Here you go, Yuurie-san."

"Thank you." I said back as she handed the phone to Amane.
"Yuurie-chan!!!" she squealed as she picked up the phone, "How are you?!"
"Heh, heh, good," I giggles at my friend's bubbly nature, "You will never guess who I ran into today!"
"Huh? Who?" she asked, only half interested in our conversation.

"Okay, I was walking back home," I started, speaking slowly to raise tension, "when I bumped into the Udohora twins!!! They even called me cute!!"
"What?!" she screamed along with me, "I am so jealous!!! If only I was there with you."

"Ha, ha! Just wait 'till those stupid girls in our class find out!" I giggled, as I remembered why I called her, "Oh yeah! Amane? Are you busy this evening?"
"Huh? No, I don't think so," she responded, sounding a little out of it, "Why?"
"Well, my parents are out at the bakery, and I was wondering if you wanted to hang out." I waited for what seemed like hours for an answer, but she giggled and said she'd be delighted to. After I hung up the phone, I immediately prepared munchies for us, and collected as many of our favorite movies that I could find. She came half an hour later, and she slept over. It was a Friday, so there was no schooling the next two days. We chatted, and gossiped, and watched scary movies. It was a slumber party for 2. My parents came home not long after midnight, greeted us, and then went straight to bed. Amane was my best friend, and she was the one person who I wanted on my squad more than the Udohora twins.