"Three hundred forty two! Three hundred forty three!" Dull thunks resounded throughout the small, secluded place of nature. The noises were from a pair of small fists pounding into a tree that showed signs of previous abuse. If one looked close enough, they could see that most of the trees surround the small, grassy area showed signs of trauma. Blood trickled down his fists when he threw another punch into the hard wood. His chocolate colored hair bounced on his scalp when he did so. Tyron paused in his attack on the creation of nature. He sighed and pressed his back to the tree and slid to the ground. Looking at his hands, they were scarred from the constant abuse he put them through. The blood that ran down them came from where his knuckles were torn apart by the wood. They were going to hurt tomorrow. In fact, they hurt now.
He reached into the pouch attached to his left right thigh and produced a roll of bandages. Tyron proceeded to wrap his hands, wincing at the pressure the bandages applied. They really needed to make these things softer. In the middle of his wrapping, Tyron had to squint his eyes to block the sunlight that was attacking them. The sun was just beginning to flee over the horizon, sending annoyingly bright rays of light right into his face. 'Wait,' he thought to himself, realizing something, 'Sunset!' Dropping the roll of wrappings to the ground and tying off the ones around his hands, Tyron started to run towards the village. Konoha was only a kilometer or so away. He decided to pick up the pace and jumped up into the branches of the trees where he proceeded to jump from one to another as a means of travel. It was one of the most common ways of travel for ninja other than running and letting their arms hang behind them like weirdos.
Since tree jumping was second nature to him, Tyron let his mind wander to tomorrow. The graduation exam. It was going to be interesting to say the least. Naruto had to be freaking out about it. Naruto was another one of his classmates and friends. He was a short, blond bundle of energy that always seemed to get into trouble. Tyron was one of the few students that didn't shun him. He had still yet to fully create a simple bunshin, a requirement to pass. He had offered on multiple occasions to aid him but all he got were refusals. Tyron understood where he was coming from. He wasn't a fan of being pitied and needing help.
Tyron saw the wall of Konoha in the distance and sped up. He shot by the gate's guards waving as he did so. They waved back happily. Tyron was something of a friend to everyone in the village. In most of his free time, he helped others. Whether it was carrying groceries, finding a lost item, or painting a fence, he was always there to lend a hand. However, Tyron knew not to be taken advantage of. There had been a few that had tried to practically work him into the ground. Back to the matter at hand, Tyron made his way to his apartment. It was right next to Naruto's in fact.
Turning the lock on the door, Tyron entered his home. It was modest in size and held no luxuries worth mentioning. There was a fridge, a table, and a bed. Those were all he needed. Tyron walked over to the kitchen and opened the fridge. He pulled out an apple and turned to go to the table. He passed a mirror and couldn't help but look at himself in passing. He was average height for a twelve year old and nothing special in terms of body. His hair was brown and curly, falling over his eyes at some times. His eyes were nothing special like the Uchiha or Hyuga. They were a simple grey color. Tyron shrugged and walked over to the table, munching on the apple.
After finishing the apple, he went to the bathroom and took a shower. Drying himself off, he could hear Naruto beating up his Sasuke look-alike punching bag. It was funny on most nights. Sighing, he ran a hand through his wet hair. "He'll never learn, it would seem." Naruto was always trying to beat Sasuke to prove himself, but he missed the big picture. He had already beaten Sasuke in terms of character. Naruto stood up for people and tried to be friendly. Sasuke, on the other hand, was indifferent to those around him and didn't interfere unless it aided himself in some way.
Tyron walked over to his single bed after putting on his pj's. Tucking himself in, he looked up at the ceiling to his apartment. He had plastered it with glow in the dark star stickers to remind him of the night sky. He had found the stars in a simple grocery store one day and bought them impulsively. They turned out to be a good investment, because they always helped him fall asleep if he couldn't. He slowly drifted off to sleep as he stared up at the artificial night sky. Tomorrow was going to be a good day.
Tyron woke up to his alarm ringing loudly. He could hear Naruto banging on the wall in a futile attempt to stop it. Smiling, he brought his hand down on top of it, silencing it. He yawned and stretched his arms and back in bed. He walked over to the kitchen and made a simple breakfast of fruit and rice. Most found it odd to eat rice in the morning but Tyron couldn't really afford better. He smiled and put a bite of mango and rice in his mouth. It was sweet, something he enjoyed greatly. Finishing his meal, Tyron made one for lunch and tied it into a pack. He cleaned his dishes and went to get dressed. It wouldn't do for him to show up in pajamas. He wore a silver t-shirt, olive cargo shorts, and sandals. He retied the wrapping on his hands and added some to his shins. He tied on his kunai and shuriken pouches and made to leave.
He arrived at the Academy relatively early. The classroom's only inhabitants were Shino and Sasuke. He knew that neither were the talking type, but that didn't stop him from attempting conversation. "Hey Shino! Hey Sasuke!" He was waving even though he stood in the same room. Tyron thought it worked to make him more personable. Shino nodded and returned the hello albeit quietly. Sasuke, on the other hand, just grunted and folded his hands in front of his face. Knowing conversation was not wanted, Tyron went over to a seat away from the two and fell asleep on the desk.
He was awoken by Ino and Sakura barging through the door, fighting for a seat next to Sasuke. Poor Naruto was caught in the crossfire. He sported a lump on his head. 'How dishonorable,' Tyron thought, 'He's a human being like the rest of us, and yet Sakura beats him like a drum.' Everyone quieted down when the instructors entered the room. Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-sensei. Tyron liked Iruka well enough but Mizuki gave him the creeps. A thought he hadn't shared with anyone as of yet.
First came the written exam. Sakura was the first finished. Naruto was the last. Tyron turned his own in halfway between the two. Next was the taijutsu test. They were released for lunch after the written exam. Probably so they could have enough energy for the taijutsu. Tyron left to eat the lunch he had packed for himself. He sat under a tree near the playground and opened up his pack, rubbing his hands together excitably. The food's sweetness was a treat to him. He savored every bite and the joy it brought him. Tyron's interest was drawn by a kid sitting on the swings by himself. That wouldn't do. He wiped his mouth with a napkin, cleaned up his trash, and walked over to the kid. "Hey, bud, where's your friends?" The kid, his head down, sniffled. "I don't have any friends. Not now anyways. They all hate me." Concern spread across Tyron's face. Certainly there was something he could do. "Hey, it's alright. If you want, I can be your friend." The kid perked up and lifted his head to look at Tyron. "Really?" He sniffled again. Tyron got behind the swing and gave it a push. "Really. Now tell me why your friends hate you." The boy enjoyed the swing so much that he didn't sadden at being asked to tell the story. "I got them caught. They were stealing some candy and I was too slow so I got caught." He wiped his nose on his sleeve and looked up pleadingly. "I had to tell on them, or the candy guy would tell my mom." Tyron contemplated that as he continued to push the swing. He spoke to the kid. "If they were stealing, they probably aren't kids you want to be friends with. I mean, what if they stole your candy?" The boy's eyes widened at the implications. Tyron spotted another kid across the playground. He waved to her. "Hey! Over here!" The girl walked over to the pair. Tyron stopped pushing the swing and knelt in front of her. "Hey, my name's Tyron. What's yours?" The girl twirled her little dress. "I'm Tiko." Tyron smiled. "Well hello, Tiko. I have a favor to ask. You see that guy over there?" She nodded. "Well, I was wondering if you could be friends with him. You see, he only has me and I won't always be around. Can you do that for me, Tiko?" She nodded eagerly and walked over to the boy. He offered her the swing and started to push it for her. Tyron turned to leave but he heard the boy call after him. "Thanks, Tyron-nii!"
"First up, Tyron and Kiba." Iruka-sensei was reading their names from a list, calling them to the middle of the ring. Kiba was a brash, defiant kid that worked with a dog most of the time. He wouldn't be able to use him here, but it had something to do with his family. They must like dogs. Kiba bounded into the center of the ring, leaving his dog at the sidelines. Tyron also walked to the center, just lacking Kiba's tenacity. Iruka-sensei held up his hands and brought them down, signaling the start of the match.
"I'm gonna wipe the floor with you." Kiba had taken to taunting to try to get him to make a move. It wasn't that hard to spot so he didn't give in to them like Naruto would. Kiba's brash nature got the better of him and charged forward with a punch. Tyron was knocked across the ring, his cheek stinging. He stood up again and Kiba charged. This time it was with a kick. It connected with his side, sending him sprawling. Tyron rose to his feet, holding his side. The kick had hurt a little bit. "Come on, fight back!" Kiba was growing angry at his lack of fighting. He charged again, this time starting to spin. "Fang!" He was now spinning quickly, creating a drill with his body. He flew towards Tyron at full speed. No one would have expected what happened next. Tyron stepped to the side and Kiba flew by. He crashed into the wall and slumped to the ground, unconscious. Tyron walked over to him and bent down, picking up the kid. He walked him over to Iruka-sensei and set him down gently. There were no words spoken at all. Just complete silence.
"Um, Tyron wins. Next fighters please." Whispers and murmurs erupted among the students when Tyron walked over to the sidelines and started to cheer the others on. He didn't care though. It was part of a code he had made. Sometimes, it's better not to fight. The rest of the fights continued on. Their outcomes were what he had expected, but that didn't stop him from cheering all combatants on. It was unbecoming to only cheer on the winner. Tyron wouldn't have any part of it. He watched as Sasuke decimated his opponent, sending his fan club into a frenzy. Sasuke didn't offer him a hand. He just walked away without a second thought. 'That's rude.'
Finally was the jutsu test. Iruka-sensei had decided to pick the Bunshin. This would not bode well for Naruto. Not at all. Tyron performed the jutsu easy enough. He walked over to the table and picked up his forehead protector. He chose the navy blue color, as was custom. He left the academy, but stayed just outside its doors. He leaned against the wall nearby. It didn't take long for Naruto to walk out with a dejected look on his face. He trudged over to a swing and sat on it. Tyron could practically see the sadness weighing him down. He heard the disdainful whispers and saw the hateful glances that some people threw Naruto. He pushed himself off the wall and walked over to his friend. "Hey, Naruto. How's it going?" Probably not the best greeting. Instead of bursting with excitement like usual, Naruto just sighed. "It's alright, Tyron. I didn't pass this time either. I really thought I had it." Tyron just sat himself down on the grass next to Naruto. "Don't worry 'bout it, bud. You want to know a secret?" Naruto looked up but didn't say anything. "Everything struggles at first. Take this acorn for example. Right now, it's small, weak, and struggling to survive." He paused and lifted the acorn to Naruto's face. "You're the acorn, Naruto." Naruto shot his head up angrily. "I'm small? Is that what you're trying to say!?" Tyron just sighed. Naruto's impatience got the better of him. "Look above you, Naruto." Naruto looked up to see tree branches. "What gives? All I see is tree branches." He wasn't getting it. "You see a big, strong oak tree, you knucklehead! Get my meaning? You start here-" Tyron gestured to the acorn "-and get there." He finished by pointing to the tree. A look of realization dawned on his face. "Oh thanks, Tyron. I get it now." Tyron smiled and walked away, knowing he had done a good thing.
"Naruto, this class is only for the people who passed the test." Shikamaru had been telling Naruto that ever since he came in, Tyron noticed. What Shikamaru was missing was that Naruto sported a forehead protector like the rest of them. Naruto stuck out his tongue childishly. "See, I have on too." After noticing this, the remarks quieted down a little. Tyron walked over to where Naruto was sitting. "I see you passed the exam. Good job, I knew you could do it." Naruto beamed at the praise, especially from Tyron. "Thanks, I guess you were right." Tyron nodded and left the kid to his thoughts.
It didn't take long before Iruka-sensei announced that they would be meeting there new senseis. Tyron watched as he called off the names from the least. Eventually, his ears perked at the sound of his name. "Team 7. Uzuamaki, Naruto. Haruno Sakura. Uchiha, Sasuke. Tyron. Your sensei is Kakashi Hatake." Naruto had screamed with joy when he and Sakura were put on the same team and she had withered. However, when Sasuke's name was called, they switched attitudes. Sasuke stayed indifferent the entire time. Sadly, there was no reaction to Tyron's name. None at all. The other kids soon vacated the room with their senseis, leaving Team 7 alone.
They waited for what seemed like hours with no sign of their sensei. Eventually, Naruto got bored, and that usually led to trouble. He set up a trap at the door to the classroom. He cracked the door open and set an eraser on top of it. Sakura scoffed. "Naruto-baka, he's a jounin. He won't fall for that." Naruto ignored her and continued to set it up. It didn't take long before the door opened and a silver-haired head poked through. He was bopped on the head by the eraser and Naruto started laughing hysterically. Sakura had a skeptical look on her face. She was probably wondering who would fall for that. The man, presumably their sensei, had a masked face and his headband covered his left eye. "My first impression of you is," he paused for dramatic effect, "I hate you. Be at the rooftop in 5 minutes." He left without another word.
"Alright, to start, let's tell each other about ourselves." The group was sitting on the roof of the academy. Sakura raised her hand. "Um, sensei, why don't you go first." He sighed and told them practically nothing. Then, Naruto talked about his dream to be Hokage and ramen. Sakura just giggled and looked at Sasuke, and Sasuke said some pretty gloomy things about killing a man. Kakashi-sensei pointed to Tyron next. "You next." Tyron smiled and spoke up. "Um, name's Tyron. No last name. I like helping people and making friends. Oh, I also like sweet foods. I don't like a lot of generic dislikes, and my dream is to live a happy life." The others just deadpanned at him. His answer was just so BLAND. Kakashi-sensei just clapped his hands together and talked about a test for tomorrow and how not to eat breakfast. Like he wasn't going to eat breakfast. It was the most important meal of the day. The group dispersed quickly following the end of the meeting.
Tyron sighed when he plopped down onto his bed. The springs squeaked under his sudden weight. He put his hands over his face. "Oh man, I thought that being a ninja would be a little more, I don't know, fast paced. Oh well, guess I'll just have to wait until it picks up speed. He slowly drifted off to sleep thinking about the times to come.
"You're goal is to get these bells from me. Now remember, come at me with the intent to kill or you'll never succeed." Sakura raised spoke up again. She seemed to do that a lot. "Sensei, there's only three bells there and there's four of us." The man smiled through his mask. "That's right. One of you will not get a bell, and that person will be sent back to the academy. Oh and the person who loses will be tied to a pole and watch as their teammates eat these lunches." Naruto, out of the blue, charged at their sensei intent on beating him. The man quickly destroyed any thoughts of that when he demolished Naruto's defense, sending him flying. He wagged his finger condescendingly. "I didn't say go yet. GO!" The genin quickly separated into the surrounding shrubbery.
Tyron watched as Naruto launched a failed attack using Shadow Clones. Those were pretty interesting. 'I wonder how he learned that,' Tyron thought to himself from his position in the tree. It would probably be better to camouflage himself, but any jounin worth his marbles would spot him. Maybe he could catch a lucky break with Kakashi but it would be best not to risk it. Sasuke launched a pretty impressive assault that included a big fire jutsu. "I've got to learn me some of those." He was just whispering to himself so it didn't matter. "Hello." He heard the greeting and froze. Slowly looking over his shoulder, he saw Kakashi crouching on the tree branch next to him, his hand lifted in a friendly wave. Tyron shifted his gaze back to the field and saw Sasuke was buried neck deep. He slowly turned back to his sensei. "Gotcha." He cut the ninja wire with a kunai already in his hand. Kakashi's eye widened when multiple shuriken and kunai flew from the trees, aimed at his spot. He dodged with a simple Kawarimi, leaving a log riddled with metal weapons. He landed in a small clearing and sighed. None of them got it yet. He made to step forward but a glint caught his eye. "Nice try." He stepped over the thin tripwire only to hear a click. Another one was hidden in the shadow of the first. The ground all around him glowed. Paper bombs. Damn.
Tyron smirked when he heard the explosion go off. It made the ground shake briefly. He was currently digging Sasuke out of the ground with his hands. He only received a glare in return. "I don't need your help." Those were Sasuke's words. Tyron just smiled. "Tasks are easier with friends. You need to know that." Tyron left him where he was and went to Naruto who was dangling by his ankle from a rope. He had fallen for a badly laid trap. "Tyron, heh-heh, mind giving me a hand?" In response, he threw a shuriken that cut straight through the rope and sent Naruto on a downward spiral. He crashed into the ground and rubbed his head, nursing a bump. "We have to get Sakura and Sasuke for help. We have to beat him as a team." Naruto just scoffed at his response. "Like they'll work with us." Tyron nodded, understanding his point of view. "We need to earn their trust." Naruto left to find Sakura and Tyron went to look for Sasuke.
"Well, what do we have here?" Kakashi-sensei had blocked his path as soon as Naruto left. He held up that orange book of his. "Look what you did." The edges of the book were a little singed from the explosion. Seeing no way out of the situation, Tyron pulled out a kunai. There really wasn't much point in fighting a trained jounin, but he had to buy Naruto some time. "Oh so you're finally going to fight me. Done playing chicken?" Tyron smirked. "You can't bait me like the others, Kakashi-sensei." The taunts stopped soon after.
They were in a small field. In fact, it was the same one Naruto and Sasuke had fought the man in. He could still see the hole where Sasuke had been buried. He threw his kunai at the man. It was blocked easily. "Come on, Tyron, can't you do better?" Tyron grit his teeth. Those taunts were beginning to grow annoying. 'Don't let him get to you,' he thought, ' they're just mind games.' He just stood there, doing nothing. Tyron made a little distance between him and the trained killer. "Come on, Kakashi-sensei, gonna do anything?" The man didn't move at all. Maybe a different approach was in order. Tyron reached into his pouch and pulled out a kunai. That little orange book that Kakashi had his nose buried in was soon impaled on a tree. The man turned to Tyron with an eye of fire. "What did you do?" Tyron involuntarily gulped at the look he was given. He had poked the bear.
Tyron dodged another of Kakashi's kicks. He was going easy on Tyron, but that didn't help him one bit. Kakashi's lax offense was equivalent of a chunin. And that was something Tyron couldn't handle that well. Another kick, another dodge. Tyron went to jump back, but the dirt beneath his foot sunk in a little. He fell off balance when another kick connected with his side. Tyron winced when he flew across the field and hit a tree. That kick was powerful no matter how easy Kakashi-sensei was going. He looked over to see him making his way over at a slow pace. He was taking his time. That was a mistake.
"You will pay for what you've done to my book, Tyron." Kakashi was staring down at him from his lax stance above Tyron. Tyron smirked, a thing Kakashi noticed. 'NOW!' he thought to himself. The Tyron on the ground faded away, showing he had been a Bunshin. Kakashi looked around frantically. "Hmm, it seems he escaped again." He was interrupted this time. "Think again, sensei." He had to bring up his arm to block a powerful kick. Well, powerful for a genin. Tyron launched a series of attacks on Kakashi involving punches, kicks, elbows, and head butts. All were of course blocked by the jounin. What was this kid thinking to fight him head-on? It didn't work for his teammates so why would it work for him? He was brought from his musings by a jingle. Tyron had managed to get a hand around one of the bells. Kakashi pushed off the ground and launched himself away, similar to how he had done when Sasuke had touched a bell. These kids weren't average for genin.
Tyron was panting hysterically. "Y-you know s-sensei, I-I'm not so bad." The Tyron in front of him panted before puffing away into smoke. Kakashi's single eye widened. A Bunshin! He made to jump away from the area but found that his feet were obstructed by something. He looked down and saw the familiar glint of ninja wire. His feet were tangled. Tyron stood in front of him by about twenty paces. "Come out guys." Nobody came. Tyron began to panic visibly. Kakashi noticed this and spoke. "Your plan was good, but you didn't count on one thing." He paused. "The fact that you're teammates wouldn't help you." The timer buzzed in the distance. "Well time's up." Kakashi disappeared only to reappear a few feet away, devoid of any wire.
Naruto was groaning when he was tied to the pole while the others sat and watched. Kakashi turned to the other three and handed them lunches. Naruto spoke up. "Well, now none of you will be sent back to the academy." Sakura and Naruto cheered. "Because, you will all be dropped from the program, indefinitely." The four genin's eyes widened. Kakashi continued angrily. "Did you ever think what this test was about? You know the reason you were put into teams of three?" No one said anything. "Teamwork. None of you thought of that except for Tyron over there." He turned to the four. "Naruto. You attacked head-on with heedless abandon for your teammates. Sakura. You fawned over Sasuke, but didn't lift a finger for Naruto who was in front of you in need of help. Sasuke. You thought that your teammates were so beneath you that you disregarded them completely. Maybe if you had asked them, you could have gotten the bells with their help. And Tyron. You got the point of the exercise, but failed to act on it. You sent Naruto to do a job you should have done yourself. And finally to all of you except Tyron. You all watched as he set up a trap on his own that caught me, but didn't help when he called for it. If you had gotten over your fear, you could have gotten the bells with him." The four sat in stunned silence. "You can have one more chance, but you can't feed Naruto beforehand. I'll be back in 15 minutes."
He left without looking back. The three genins with lunches opened them and proceeded to eat. All except for Tyron. He turned to Naruto, who was tied to the pole, and spoke. "Here." He held up a chopstick holding some rice. Sakura spoke. "Tyron, you can't. Kakashi-sensei said we couldn't." Tyron just prodded the food at Naruto. "He isn't here and even if he was, I would still feed him. Naruto is just as important to this team as the rest of us and he needs to be in top shape. Ya see?" The other two nodded and Sakura offered her own food to Naruto. "Sakura-chan, I can't move my arms, you'll have to feed me." She made a disgusted face but complied and put a little amount of rice into Naruto's mouth. As soon as the food touched his tongue, a large cloud appeared in front of them. Kakashi appeared from it with a scary look about him. "What have you done?!" The genin cowered under his gaze. "You pass."