The Leaf Chronicles: The Path to Ninja

by Crystal Prime

Gaps in your memory are annoying, but with everything else happening, it's hard to focus on that. Between trying to believe there's a purpose to my life in this new world, trying to figure out if I'm meant to go home and trying to keep those I've met here safe, I don't have time to worry about why I seem to have gaps in my memory of my previous life. This is my life now, after all.

Chapter 1: It Begins

Where am I? I thought to myself as I seemed to be floating in darkness. Did I die?

The last thing I could remember was hiding under my bed as intruders invaded my dorm room. I had texted my roommate, who was luckily not here, to call for help and tell her why, phone on mute so it wouldn't cause attention to be brought to my location. There was only one intruder that I knew of and judging from the heaviness of their steps, they were male and not very adept at sneaking. A smell of alcohol and drugs told me they were also intoxicated. Not something to be expected on a campus such as this one.

There were only a few possibilities why such a person would break into an apartment. The most likely was to steal, which was alright as long as they didn't take my chromebook or Bible, which I had both with me underneath the bed so no worries there unless I gave him a reason to look under here. I did not dare let myself think of the other possible reasons. Everything I owned could be replaced, but my life's work was on my computer, my Bible was my connection to my faith and my work on my novel had been left at my class by mistake.

I waited for a moment before hearing barking. There was my German Shepherd pup, putting his training to use. I heard a curse and then a splat and a moment later the body of my baby fell at the foot of my bed.

I heard another curse and what sounded like a fire starting.

That was the last of what I remembered from before floating in this darkness. I was seriously considering the possibility that I was dead. My eyes were open and I was breathing, but I saw nothing but darkness. It was so silent and empty that I felt more suffocated than I did in a crowded room.

Did I fail? I wondered to myself. Is this my own personal hell?

No. An answer floated through my head in a voice I knew well enough to know who it was.

Why is it so dark? I asked, looking up as I always did when speaking with God.

Because it is not your time to join us yet, God's voice explained in calm waves. The type of calm that probably comes with knowing how everything is going to turn out countless years prior.

What about my puppy? He was barely starting his life, I asked, remembering how the brave pup had defended our home.

You will see Gunny again, and you will see your friends again, God replied. Hold onto that promise and keep my commandments and you will do well.

I felt my eyelids grow heavy. Where am I going? I asked.

Somewhere where you will be helpful, He answered. I am giving you a companion to help you along your way.

A companion? I asked.

A protector, God told me. She will keep you alive and protect those you wish.

I get a guardian angel? I asked. Am I worth that?

You are worth more than you imagine, my child, God replied. Fear not, for I will be with you.

—

I woke up to feel sunshine beating down on my face. Opening my eyes turned out to be a bad idea so I shielded my eyes until I sat up.

The first thing I noticed was that I was noticeably shorter than I was when I apparently had died. The second thing I noticed was the white tail curled around me and noticed it was attached to myself. Curious, I tried to twitch it and noticed it moved exactly as I wanted it to. I also discovered that instead of normal ears, I had white wolf ears, which I found had black tips using some water as a mirror.

I gazed into my reflection, noting my white hair and deep brown eyes. Well at least one thing remained the same about my appearance. Other than that, I looked just as I had when I was about five from pictures I had seen.

Am I...five again? I wondered to myself at the fact. I wasn't sure what to think of being deaged like that...

I looked around to see if I could find where I was, but found no obvious indications. I also saw no sign that any other human was around. At least, not until a couple of large men walked out of the bushes. They had headbands around their heads with a metal plate on them. Upon the metal plates was etched four straight vertical lines. For some reason the headband seemed familiar, but for the life of me, I couldn't figure out why.

"Oi! Gyousou nani wareware ga koko ni arimasu," one of the men said when he spotted me.

I grimaced, not liking the look on the man's face, and took a step back, stopping just short of the lake behind me. I had no idea what the man had said, but I didn't like that their attention was on me. Perhaps it was time to utilise my old abilities to disappear into the background?

"Ha! Mimi de nani, shojo?" the second asked, an equally disturbing look on his face. His tone reminded me of the jesting thrown at me in spite during my first go through of being five.

They were too close, if they ran faster than I could run there was no escape. I started to back more and turned to run anyway. It was worth a shot. They continued speaking to each other in what sounded like Japanese even as one of them reached out and caught me by my shirt.

"No!" I protested as I was lifted by the back of my shirt. "Let me go!"

The one who had picked me up said something that was likely a negative to my request, it wouldn't have been hard to figure out my words there. I recognized a few words, but not enough to construct the entire sentence while focused on other things, like getting away.

"On'nanoko o okimasu," a new voice said and a man stepped out from the same bushes these two had arrived out of.

"Shut up brat!" the one holding me said while the other answered the new voice.

I growled again at being called a brat. I had a brief moment of triumph that I understood that sentence perfectly, but it wasn't one I liked. I was going to have to get used to the idea that I was a kid again. Well, maybe it wasn't all bad, perhaps I could just be a kid this time around. If I got out of this situation. Dang idiots who take kids hostages. Just down right dirty.

The three men spoke back in forth in their language and I listened closely to the conversation, hoping to get an idea of how to get out of this situation. I was too small and slow to get away as it was, but maybe I could use the fact that these guys were after something other than me to my advantage. I recognize a few words and when I heard the word for "scroll" my ears twitched. I glanced around and noticed a scroll peeking out at the waist of the guy holding me.

"I'm not a bargaining chip!" I yelled and bit down on the man's hand as he brought it too close.

"Argh!" the man shouted and tried to shake me off.

I passed by the scroll many times as he shook me and I managed to grab it just before my mouth lost grip and I went flying through the air. I yelped when I felt myself hit a firm chest and I heard footsteps fleeing.

"Hey, you alright?" a gentle voice asked, making me realize I had my eyes closed. I was thankful I recognized the words, but how did I say I was ok? I couldn't remember. I only knew parts of this language from watching anime in Japanese all the time.

I looked up at him to see it wasn't either of the men attempting to kidnap me. He had spiky white hair, a headband with a Japanese-looking kanji on it and red stripes going from the bottom of his eyes to his chin. I blinked a moment, feeling like I had seen him before, but shrugging it off and nodding.

"Good, at least there's that," he said, smiling before turning to look seriously after the other two men. I could tell what he was thinking.

"I got this off of them," I said, holding up the scroll as he turned blinking eyes to me. I didn't say anymore since I knew he couldn't understand me.

The man smiled as he took the scroll. He spoke, but I wasn't sure what he was saying. I could make out his questioning what my name was though.

I took a moment to consider this. Here I had an opportunity to make a new name for myself. Not have to carry the one I was born with. I had used a different name before. One not known by my current friends. No, I didn't want that one. I wanted something my friends would recognize if we met in the future...

"Kesshami," I answered, looking up at him. It was the name I had used for my youtube and twitch channels and a name my friends would recognize that didn't sound entirely foreign to this world.

"Kesshami, huh?" he replied. "I'm Jiraiya." I think he knew I only understood a little bit of the language, cause he didn't say anymore than that for a moment until I nodded. He spoke again as he set me on my own feet, but I didn't understand him.

My ears folded back and I pulled my tail forward to start petting it nervously. "I don't really know what you are saying," I muttered.

Jiraiya reached out and I flinched before feeling a gentle hand on my head between my ears. "It's ok, kid," he said.

I looked up at him, unsure if it really was, but hopeful that it would be. I couldn't let myself lose hope that everything would be fine. He gazed back at me, a thoughtful look taking over his features.

"Hey, you got somewhere to go, kid?" he asked.

I shook my head and looked down a bit, unsure how to voice what I wanted to say.

He smiled sadly at my answer. He spoke and motioned me to follow him.

I looked at him, feeling the hope shining in my eyes bring my ears forward and out of their flattened state. "Really?" I asked.

Jiraiya nodded, smiling. "Yeah," he answered.

I followed him closely, glad that at least I was with someone nice if I had to be in a world where I would have to learn a new language. At least I already knew bits and pieces of it.

~Seven Years Later, Age 12~

I woke up and immediately stretched, yawning loudly as I did. I glanced around my apartment, a studio style room in one of many complexes in the Leaf, and saw my cat laying on the kitchen counter, her food bowl empty. After losing my first dog after setting off on my own, I couldn't bring myself to get a puppy. Because of my failure to protect him, I felt unworthy to own a dog. I couldn't go without a pet though so I had allowed Jiraiya to buy me a kitten shortly after he brought me to Konoha.

I smiled to myself, remembering.

~Flashback, Six and a Half Years Ago, Age 5~

I was walking down the street with Jiraiya, he was still showing me around the city, it was so big. A lot of the people around us were looking at me funny and I moved a little closer to Jiraiya, ears flattened. It had been a few weeks and I knew a bit more Japanese thanks to diligent studies and struggles with Jiraiya.

"Why do they all look at me like that?" I asked him quietly.

He glanced down at me. "Like what?" he asked before looking around us. He stopped and kneeled next to me, placing a hand on my shoulder. "They are just not used to seeing a person walking around with ears and a tail like yours."

"So they don't like me cause I'm different," I said, looking down. Even here. My hope for making friends was dwindling. How was I going to survive being so separated from the only ones who ever truly accepted me?

Jiraiya was silent for a few minutes before tilting his head to look me in the eye. "Hey, don't worry," he said. "Work hard and never give up and someday they will accept you."

I looked at him, unbelieving. That hadn't worked that great back home when I was growing up…

I blinked, stopping that train of thought and directing it differently. Eventually I had been acknowledged. Especially at the jobs where it could get busy, my bosses always told me how well I had done to step up. One who hadn't been sure about me came to appreciate me and want me to stay after I had proved myself during the holiday season. I had been accepted by my coworkers because they saw how hard I worked to help out.

I looked up at Jiraiya as he stood straight again, an expectant look on his face. I smiled and brought a fist up. "I'll show them that different isn't a bad thing," I promised. "Even if the world says I'm wrong, I'll work hard to become a Shinobi that shows the world good."

Jiraiya grinned. "That's my girl!" he said, patting my head.

I felt happiness well up inside. I almost felt like I could consider the man a father-figure.

We walked on for a while, passing a pet shop along the way. Just outside it we were stopped by someone who wanted to speak to Jiraiya. The man was ANBU and a familiar one as he had been in the room with the Hokage when Jiraiya had first brought me to the village. I had felt he could see straight through me, though it hadn't bothered me since I didn't really have anything to hide. Other than being from another reality that is. His spiky silver hair seemed familiar to me, but like everything else that seemed familiar, I couldn't place why.

While the two adults talked, I turned to look in the pet store windows. At first I was drawn toward the puppies, but when I saw one that looked remarkably like a girl Gunny, I quickly turned away, remembering the sight of him falling lifeless to the floor, a knife sticking out of his heart. Instead, I turned to the cats, seeing a mama cat watching over her kittens. I couldn't take my eyes off the lone calico, whose pattern was vastly different from my old calico cat I had while growing up, but no less beautiful. She was mostly black, with a few large patches of white and orange fur. Her eyes were a pretty blue, much clearer than Breeze's had been.

I was still watching her play with her siblings when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see Jiraiya looking at the kittens as well.

"Say kid, when's your birthday?" he asked.

I thought about it for a moment before answering with my own question. "What's today's date?" I asked.

"January, twelfth," he answered.

"Eighteen days," I said, not having to think about it. For years I had had to remind people when my birthday was, it was second nature to recite how far in the future it would be.

"Hm," he hummed thoughtfully before steering me away.

Eighteen days later, my only birthday present was a calico kitten with a ribbon on it. I was very happy to have a little furball in my life again. I had been sorely lacking a cuddler.

~Back to Present~

I smiled to myself. I had named her Ziva, keeping with my new trend of naming animals after NCIS characters. She wasn't a ninja cat, so she didn't go through training with me like one of my classmate's dog did with him. Akamaru was a special breed of dog. I always felt rude around them as I couldn't bring myself to hang around when dogs were around.

I continued to look around, frowning again. It really wasn't much space to live in, but I couldn't bring myself to stay in the apartment I had shared with Jiraiya my first couple years in Konoha. When he had left to track down his friend who had gone rogue, after he was sure I would be ok and looked after by his friends in ANBU and the Hokage, he had told me I could stay in the apartment. For me though, it was too much space to be alone in. It had felt lonely without another's presence. So I downsized, though I still visited the old apartment to keep it clean for when he returned.

A knock at the door had me yawning again as I stood, stretching my legs. I walked over to the door, opening it to find an excited blonde haired boy on the other side. Naruto Uzumaki. The blonde was the only friend I had been able to make so far and I wondered a bit if by associating with him I had only further pushed the rest of the village away from me. After all, it seemed almost all of them hated him aside from the Hokage and Iruka-sensei. But that didn't matter much to me.

My ears twitched. "Naruto-san?" I asked, rubbing at my eyes with the back of my hand as my tail tiredly swayed behind me.

"Kessh-chan!" Naruto said, grinning like the loony he is. "Why aren't you dressed?! Don't you know what day it is?!"

I looked at him sleepily for a moment before yawning as my mind's gears worked. After a moment, I looked at him. "Graduation day," I said.

"Yeah! So get ready! Class starts in half an hour!" he said.

My eyes widened. I must've slept in later than usual. "Why didn't you wake me sooner you idiot?!" I said in what was almost a yell before darting back inside, closing the door on my only friend in this reality.

I heard his protest as I dashed for my closet to pull out my clothes. I pulled out one of my pairs of black pants, a black t-shirt and a lightweight, royal purple jacket. I also had a pair of fingerless gloves with a protector on the back that I wore. Once I was dressed, I tied my hair back with a hair tie to keep it out of the way. I kept it just long enough to do so, preferring it short enough that it isn't a hassle to take care of, but long enough to pull back so it isn't falling in my face. I then applied my facepaint that I had taken to wearing years ago when I began my studies into puppetry, which proved difficult since there were no Puppet Masters in Konohagakure. Jiraiya had brought me back as much information about the techniques as he could, though.

"Meow," Ziva meowed at me as I walked into the kitchen to grab a quick bite to eat.

I smiled and pet her. "I haven't forgotten you baby," I told her. "Mommy will get your breakfast for you."

As I spoke, I was already reaching into the cupboard for her cat food. After giving her food and making sure her water bowl was full, I grabbed a couple poptarts out of the cupboard, knowing Naruto had likely skipped breakfast in his excitement.

When I opened the door again, Naruto was still standing there with an impatient look on his face.

"You take too long," he said.

"What? Cause I actually brush my hair?" I joked, grinning as I reached up and ruffled his blonde, spiky hair as I simultaneously grabbed the scroll holding my puppet from beside the door.

"Ok, ok, can we go now?" he grumbled.

I grinned. "Sure, but eat this on the way," I said, giving him one of the poptarts before starting to walk off in the direction of the academy.

This is it, I thought to myself as Naruto jogged to catch up. This is the first step to proving to everyone that I can do some good in the world. And the first step to being able to go out and search for answers to why I am here.

When we reached the academy, everyone else was already in class and seated and no one seemed particularly inclined to allow us to sit by them. I ended up sitting next to Choji, who—along with the boy, Shikamaru, next to him—was one of few of our classmates that didn't outright hate Naruto and myself. Naruto sat on my other side.

"Alright class, it's the day of the graduation test," Iruka said as he walked into the room. He paused to look over who all was present and looked pleasantly surprised to see Naruto and I actually on time for once. I blamed Naruto for always being late. "Good, I see everyone's here."

"Who would be late for this?" Naruto said, looking excited.

I silently grinned to myself even as I yawned, stretching my arms out. Why did I have to sleep in? Now I feel like I need a nap, because I haven't been awake long enough.

"Alright, in order to graduate you will be required to use the Bunshin no Jutsu," Iruka said.

Naruto groaned beside me and I frowned over at him. The Bunshin no Jutsu, or Clone Jutsu, was Naruto's worst jutsu by far. I looked down, closing my eyes in thought. I knew he was going to fail, this test was the worst luck for Naruto. I thought for a moment about failing purposefully in order to stay in the academy with Naruto, so he wouldn't be alone or felt completely left out. I had done so the last three times. Well, ok, the first two times I failed for real, but the last time I did so on purpose.

"Naruto-san?" I whispered as Iruka started calling our classmates to the other rooms.

"Yeah, Kesshami?" Naruto asked, looking over from his stressed thoughts.

"Are you alright?" I asked, looking over at him.

Naruto looked at me for a moment before plastering on a smile so fake it made me hurt for him. "Yeah," he said, voice nervous. "I will pass it this time! You pass it, Kesshami! You watch me! I won't be stuck in the academy any longer!"

I blinked, slightly surprised. After a moment, I smiled to myself. "Ok," I said. "Let's both pass and become splendid ninja then." I held up a thumbs up, smiling.

Naruto grinned and held up his own thumbs up.

I looked at him, thinking about how he essentially was a goof-off cause no one really acknowledged him.

"Icilius, Kesshami," Iruka called.

"Looks like I'm up next," I said, standing. "Meet you as a ninja, Naruto."

"Right!" Naruto said cheerfully as I walked down the aisle.

I glanced back at the doorway and he grinned at me. I wasn't convinced he'd be alright, but if I didn't believe in him, then who would? I would chose to believe in him, because I knew he needed it and I would give my friends what they needed.

"Iruka-sensei?" I asked as we walked toward the other room.

"Hm?" Iruka asked, looking down at me.

"Why did you chose the Bunshin no Jutsu?" I asked, looking up at him, still feeling concerned about Naruto.

Iruka stopped and kneeled next to me. "You're worried about Naruto, aren't you?" he asked.

I nodded. "I don't want to see him fail," I said. "He is my friend and I know he can become a great ninja."

"That's what I think too," Iruka said, smiling reassuringly. "I want him to master this jutsu, that's why I keep choosing it. You failed the last one on purpose for him, but I think if you allow yourself to pass, it will motivate him more to work on his jutsu. It's basic chakra control, he needs to learn it in order to become the splendid ninja we both know he can be. You needed it to figure out your puppet jutsu, remember?"

I looked down, thinking about Iruka's words. He made perfect sense, really. "That is one way it could go," I mused. I felt Iruka's hand on my shoulder a moment later and looked up.

"You know, Naruto asked me last time why you kept failing as well," he said. "He was concerned I was picking on you because of your differences like the other villagers. When I told him you were failing to create a clone, he told me you could create perfect clones easily, at least on the last one. He asked me not to let you fail yourself for him anymore."

"Oh.." I said, blinking. I hadn't realized Naruto had known I failed that last one on purpose. "I suppose by failing myself, assuming he was going to fail wasn't really good of me. It didn't show that I believe in him. Ok. I will pass this time. For Naruto." I looked up at Iruka and smiled.

Iruka smiled back and then stood back up.

We entered the other room and Iruka took a seat next to one of the other teachers in the academy, a man by the name of Mizuki. For some reason every time I was near Mizuki, I felt uneasy, like Mizuki had some sort of evil agenda I couldn't quite grasp. It was beyond the look in his eyes when he looked at me; it wasn't as bad as other villagers, but I could tell he didn't like me. It wasn't just that though. I felt like I needed to protect anyone around when he was near, not just myself and Naruto.

What is it? Kasamari? I thought to myself, directing the question at the companion I had been given when I arrived in this universe. I hadn't been able to speak to her much, most of the time my mind was too busy to calm down enough to do so, but I had managed to learn her name and that she was a white wolf with bright blue eyes and purple markings. She was also a great deal larger than you would imagine a wolf being, especially one residing inside a person.

Of course, I got no answer. I never did when it pertained to Mizuki. I had a feeling that whatever he intended had to happen, or else Kasamari would give me the information needed to stop him.

"Ok," Iruka said. "You may begin when you are ready."

I nodded and then made the Hitsuji, or Ram, seal with my hands. It was one most commonly used for simple concentration and it helped a lot, I found. Focusing my chakra as we had been taught, and then performed the jutsu.

Two puffs of smoke signaled the success of triggering the jutsu and when it cleared, two perfect clones stood on either side of me. Of course, these were only illusions, they wouldn't really be of much use in a battle except to distract the opponent from the real person. Then it would only work if the opponent wouldn't be able to see through the jutsu.

I looked up to see Iruka smiling and Mizuki with an even more fake smile than Naruto's had been.

"Pass," Iruka announced, standing to his feet.

I released the jutsu as I walked up to the desk, watching as Iruka indicated the selection of headbands on the table in front of him. A few were already missing, enough to tell me that everyone before me had passed as well. They were all mostly the same, the only differences being the color of the cloth. Most of them were a dark blue, the most common color seen on the forehead protectors, but some were red and a couple were even purple. I chose one of the two with purple cloth, it was my favorite color and would go well with my face paint.

"As of today, you are a ninja," Iruka said. "Wear your headband with pride and make me proud of you."

"Yes sir!" I said, saluting him with a grin. "I won't let you down, Sensei."

Iruka smiled and I walked out of the classroom, looking down at my headband. I smiled to myself. All that was left now was to ensure Naruto's graduation. To do that, I had to motivate him.

I nodded to myself, tying my forehead protector to my forehead. Yes, it was the typical place to put it, but it was where I wanted it. I wanted to wear it proudly.

I stopped back into the classroom and walked back to where Naruto still sat next to Shikamaru and Choji had returned to speak. The three seemed deep in conversation about something and I smiled to myself. When the adults weren't around to force everyone to shun Naruto, though Shikamaru and Choji's parents weren't like that, Shikamaru and Choji were both willing to be his friends. There just wasn't much any of us could do when the older ones pried us apart.

"Hey guys," I said, walking up.

"Eh? You graduated too Kesshami-chan?" Shikamaru asked, blinking.

"Yeah, so don't fall behind," I said, grinning. "And Naruto…" I turned to my best friend.

"Yeah?" he asked, looking up at me, eyes focusing on my new headband.

"I graduated, so you better too," I said. I reached out and ruffled his hair the way Jiraiya had done to me when he was still in the village. "I believe in you. Don't let me down."

Naruto looked at me, surprised for a moment. He then smiled. "Alright! I'll graduate too and become a great ninja, ya know!"

I chuckled. "Great! Then all of us will become great ninja! Right? Shikamaru-kun? Choji-kun?"

"Right!" Choji said, making a fist in determination.

"Man, it's such a bother," Shikamaru said, sighing.

My tail swayed behind me, as it always did when I was happy or when I was determined.

We looked up as the door opened again right after Iruka had left with a student. Standing in the doorway was an ANBU, though it was impossible to know who it was since all the ANBU wore those masks and the exact same uniform. I recognized the pattern on the mask as one of the ones who would check up on me every now and then as a favor to Jiraiya. Even from wherever he went off to, he still made sure I was well taken care of.

We watched silently as he walked over to our small group and stopped in front of me.

"Kesshami-san," he said. "Hokage-sama has requested you be brought to his office."

"Huh? How come?" I asked as the three boys behind me looked confused as well.

"It is a surprise," he said. "Please come with me." With that he headed back for the door.

I looked back at the others. "Anybody have theories you can give me before I go?" I asked.

Shikamaru shrugged. "How are we supposed to know?" he asked. "Maybe he just wants to congratulate you. You are close to him after all."

"What? You're not going to wait until I graduate to leave?" Naruto whined.

I smiled to him. "Don't worry Naruto," I said. "I'll make sure to stop by to congratulate you and have celebratory ramen as soon as I am free again. Before we go to bed, promise." I said, holding up a thumbs up, a habit I had gotten into to show Naruto I was serious when I spoke to him.

"Alright," Naruto said, looking slightly down that I wouldn't be there immediately.

I patted his head. "Hey, it'll all turn out ok," I said, smiling. "We might even get to be on the same team."

Naruto grinned at that. "Ok!" he said.

I smiled and then caught up with the ANBU at the door before following him out of the classroom.

~The Next Morning~

I laid in my bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking about what had happened the previous night. I had been called, because Jiraiya had been in the village, but didn't have a lot of time, but still wanted to congratulate me. He had even taken me out for a celebratory meal and gave me a gift of some kind of special kunai. It was heavier than normal kunai and I knew I wouldn't be using it as a throwing kunai, I couldn't toss it right at this point, plus it was special to me now.

"This is a special kunai created by the Fourth Hokage," Jiraiya had said, kneeling next to me as we stood on the roof of the Hokage's building.

"Really?" I asked, then looked up at the face of the Fourth carved in the cliff.

"Yeah," he said. "He used it in a special technique he used, one created by the Second. Someday, perhaps you could learn to use it as well. It would come in handy to deal with that weakness we discussed of the puppet jutsu."

I looked up in awe at the Fourth's monument, then the Second's and then at Jiraiya. "I'll do my best to make you proud," I said, smiling before tackling him in a hug.

I smiled to myself, but frowned remembering later that night. I had learned from Naruto when I met him at Ichiraku's Ramen Shop that he had failed and Mizuki had misled him to steal the Scroll of Sealing. It must've happened while I was pouring over some new information about the puppet jutsu Jiraiya had brought back for me. But in the end, Mizuki had been stopped, he learned about how Iruka acknowledged him as his own person and had even managed to graduate by doing the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, or Shadow Clone Jutsu.

"Man, that kid is impressive when he wants to be," I said, smiling again to myself. "The Kage Bunshin, huh? That's a Jounin level technique. I am so proud of him."

I looked over at a picture of Jiraiya and myself that sat on my nightstand next to the one of Naruto and myself. I smiled.

I'll make you proud, Jiraiya-sama, I thought to myself.

"Kesshami!" Naruto's voice came from the other side of my apartment's door. "Come on! It's time to go to the academy to get put on teams!"

"Hold your horses, Naruto!" I called back, grinning to myself. I pet Ziva and said more quietly. "Can you let me up, Ziva?" I asked my cat.

As usual when she was sleeping on me, Ziva gave no answer. Smiling, I gently lifted her from my belly, chuckling as she looked at me with that look that said "how dare you disturb my nap". I sat up and gently laid her down on my pillow before standing. I was already dressed and everything, so that was all I needed to do before going out to meet Naruto.

"Come on! Come on!" Naruto said, pulling me along toward the academy.

"Geez, you're so impatient," I said, chuckling.

"We're finally ninja!" Naruto said cheerfully.

I smiled and glanced to the side to see Jiraiya watching from a rooftop. I smiled over at him and he smiled back, clearly happy that I had a friend and even from here I saw the pride in his face at seeing me make this step into the world and toward my dreams I had developed when I arrived into this universe. I waved, knowing it would be the last time I'd see him until he returned from his next trip, which was hard to know when that would be.

Naruto and I arrived at the academy a few minutes early and ended up sitting with Naruto next to Sasuke and me on his other side. Shortly after that, Sakura and Ino arrived, with Sakura soon trying to make Naruto move.

"Sakura," I said as she finished yelling at my friend to move. "If you wanted to be that picky about your seat, you should've arrived sooner. Don't bully Naruto for a seat you lost out on. If you really want to gain Sasuke's attention, don't be such a fangirl. Guys hate that."

Sakura looked at me for a moment before glaring. "And what would you know? You don't even show interest in guys!" she demanded.

I looked at her seriously. "No, I haven't got an interest in any of the guys here that way, but that doesn't mean I don't know what I'm talking about," I said. "Just relax for once, ok? If you continue to bully Naruto for his seat, I will not hesitate to push back for him. There is an empty seat on Sasuke's other side if you insist on throwing yourself at him."

Sakura sighed and moved on, sitting in the empty seat on the other side of Sasuke. Sasuke himself just glared at me for giving her a way to sit next to him while Naruto looked thankful that I had stopped her from bullying him. I just smiled at both of them. I couldn't say I was ever in Sasuke's shoes, being the most popular boy in our class, but I knew how Naruto felt being bullied by the others. I would stand up for him regardless of what it brought me.

I turned my attention to the front of the class when Iruka walked in.

"Alright, everyone's here," Iruka said, looking happy about that. "Now, starting today and on you will all be Genin. This is still the lowest rank of ninja and you will be placed into teams of three and placed in a squad with a Jounin instructor."

I nodded to myself. I didn't mind who I ended up on a team with as long as it wasn't with any of the ones I couldn't stand. I would like to be on Naruto's team, but I had a feeling it was not meant to be that way.

Iruka called out the teams and I sighed when I heard what team I was on. My team consisted of another girl and a boy. The girl was Itsuchi, Akari. She was about a year older than me and typically wore a green tank top that didn't quite reach where her long blue pants hugged her hips, but now that patch of her belly was covered by her headband she had tied around her waist. She also had a couple gold bracelets around her left wrist. She was left handed, so her kunai pouch was on her left leg. Her long hair was a pretty light blue that matched her eyes. She and I didn't really talk much, but at least she didn't hate me and she was less inclined to hate Naruto like many of the others.

My other teammate was a boy named Korono, Shigeru. He had short, spiky hair that was a normal black color. He typically wore a black t-shirt with a white vest and long, blue pants. He was right handed, so his kunai pouch was on his right leg. His eyes were green and he had his headband tied around his neck. I had only spoken to him a couple times, which was enough to know he hated both Naruto and myself, though I couldn't figure out if he hated one of us simply for hanging out with the other or if he hated both of us just cause. From the glare on his face, he wasn't very happy with this turn of events.

Naruto was put on a team with Sasuke and Sakura, which he seemed conflicted about. For reasons I will never understand, Naruto seemed to have a crush on Sakura, but at the same time he didn't like Sasuke at all. I hoped the Hokage knew what he was doing putting those three together and separating Naruto and I like this. Perhaps anyone targeting us for the beasts sealed in us would be forced to split up and thus easier to handle.

The other teams were Shikamaru, Choji and Ino—I felt bad for the guys as Ino was a bossy Sasuke fangirl and I knew she didn't have a high opinion of either, but at least they were together. Another team consisted of Hinata, Kiba and Shino, a team that I thought would make a good balance. That was all of the ones that I really knew anything about. The other teams consisted of people I mostly avoided since they either hated me or hated Naruto, sometimes both.

"Alright, now that that's done, you all will have the rest of the day until lunch off," Iruka announced. "We will congregate back here after lunch to assign each of your groups your Sensei. Any questions?"

Shigeru raised his hand. "Is there anyway I can switch teams? I'd rather not be on the same team as Wolf-girl," he grumbled, sending me a glare out of the corner of his eyes.

"Hey! There's nothing wrong with Kesshami!" Naruto yelled, standing up to defend me as he pointed an angry finger at Shigeru.

I sighed as Sakura also started yelling at Naruto to not stir up trouble, despite it not being him who started it. The classroom exploded in noise as many in the classroom jumped to Shigeru's defense or just yelling to be included. Iruka attempted to regain control of the class, but it seemed like his calling to the was going ignored. It seemed to me that they needed something shocking to happen.

"ENOUGH!" I shouted eventually, seeing that they weren't even listening to Iruka.

The room went dead silent as everyone stared at me. I never raised my voice, or at least most of them had never heard me do so, even while defending Naruto against many of them. Even Sasuke looked startled by my volume.

"We just freakin' graduated and you are all acting like little kids!" I said, standing up. "Shigeru, I know you don't like me, but the solution is not to act like I'm the plague. You got a problem with me, take it up with me, don't give Iruka-sensei problems over the team formations. Naruto, I appreciate your defense of me, I really do, but this is one time I'm going to ask you to settle and be patient while I handle my own problems. Sakura, I'd suggest you stop rebuking Naruto when he didn't even do anything wrong to start anything. You two are teammates now, act like it."

"Hmph!" Shigeru huffed, crossing his arms. "And who made you the boss?"

"Well none of you were paying attention to Iruka-sensei," I said. "Someone had to do something. We are shinobi. We are all on the same team. Let's try not to ruin our chances by fighting each other."

With that, I sat back down. There was a silence in the room afterward, which was only filled with the sounds of everyone eventually sitting back down in their seats. In the front of the class, Iruka sighed before smiling a little bit, looking relieved the fight died down without him having to call in anyone else.

"Well, now that that's over," Iruka said, rubbing the back of his head. He looked thoughtful a moment. "Teams will be assigned their senseis this afternoon. Until then, you all are dismissed."

I walked out with Naruto, a few others tailing behind us, including Sasuke.

"Hey, Naruto," I said. "What do you say we go for some ramen to celebrate becoming?"

Naruto grinned. "Sounds great! You're treat!" he said and started running ahead, laughing.

"Hey! Wait! I never said that!" I called after him, but didn't follow until I looked at Sakura. I may not necessarily like her, but Naruto did. "You are welcome to join us, to get to know your teammate." I turned to Sasuke. "You as well, Sasuke."

"Tch, as if I need to get to know that loser," Sasuke scoffed and walked away.

I sighed, rolling my eyes. "Uchiha brat," I grumbled before looking to Sakura to hear her answer.

"No, thank you," Sakura said, sticking her nose up. "Naruto's just an annoying brat! What good will it do? I already know all I need to know!"

"Whatever you say, Sakura," I shrugged. "But if you give him a chance, you will find you are surprised by him." I turned to my new teammates.

"Tch, as if," Shigeru said, already halfway out the door.

Akari bowed, looking apologetic. "I really would, but my mom is super strict, I have to get home," she told me. "But I will talk to her about maybe tomorrow?"

"That's fine," I said, giving her a two-finger salute.

I then followed after Naruto to go get some Ichiraku's ramen.