Haru

It's one of those mornings where everything goes right. Ha, you were expecting me to say wrong, yeah? But no. My day actually started off pretty awesome. Instead of being yelled at to get up by my annoying-as-Hell sister, I woke up naturally, which felt amazing, I gotta say. I throw the covers back and sit up, stretching my arms high above my head. I glance at the clock and blink at it in surprise. I have a lot of time to kill. Why did I wake up so early? Not that it matters, anyway. I have to shower.

I towel-dry my long wet hair and quickly yank a hairbrush through the tangled mess, eventually giving up half-way through and dressing myself. Today is a special day, so I think I'll wear clean pants instead of the wadded up pair on the floor from yesterday. As I discard my robe on the floor, I shiver at the cold air and start to get dressed.

"Get up, Haru!" Momoko bellows, throwing open my door.

I shriek and quickly cover myself. "Oh, my God! Get out!"

Momoko quickly backtracks and slams the door shut. There is an awkward moment of silence on the other side of the door. "Why are you up so early?" she finally snaps through the closed door.

"Why don't you knock?" I screech back. I quickly get fully dressed and fling open the door. Momoko is standing with her skinny arms crossed over her chest and glares down at me. I hate that she's so much taller than me. Even though I'm tall for my age (even taller than most of the boys in my class,) Momoko still towers above me. Mom used to say that height runs in our family. One day I'll probably be taller than Momoko and then she'll have to look up to me.

We glare at each other silently. I scowl and push past her. She retaliates by shoving me into the wall. But today is a special day, so I won't punch her (even though she sorely deserves it.) A moment later I'm in the bathroom. I have brushed my teeth and managed to temporarily tame my wild mane of hair and now have the wrappings in my hand. I pause for a moment and stare thoughtfully at the mottled skin of my left forearm. As I trail one finger along the scarred flesh, Momoko knocks on the bathroom door and whines, "Hurry up, Haru." I roll my eyes and open the door, wrappings clenched in one fist as I push past her. I see her glance at my forearm, and a strange expression crosses her face. It is gone in the next instant and she says, "Breakfast is on the table. Go eat."

I sit at the table and struggle to wind the wrappings around my forearm. I wish Momoko would just let me leave them on until I need new ones. They're such a pain to get on and off; but Momoko says that if I leave them on for too long that they'll cut off the circulation in my arm and I'll have to get my arm amputated. A lovely thought before eating breakfast, yeah? I make a face and look at the eggs and bacon on my plate. They look delicious, as always. Momoko is the better cook in the house. But for some reason I don't feel like eating bacon and eggs. I want something else, because I always have bacon and eggs.

I rummage through the fridge and, unable to find anything, finally sigh and sit back down to eat. I finish my meal quickly and start to clear my dishes off the table when Momoko comes in the kitchen. "You already done? Give me that." She takes my plate and sits it in the sink. "So, Haru... today is the big day, right?"

"...Yeah?" Already I don't like where this is headed.

"The thing is, I remember on my special day, Mom was there to support me... so, I was just wondering. Do you want me to come?" Momoko seems a little stunned that the words are coming out of her mouth.

Frankly, I am, too. "Uh... no, no, that's okay. Unless you want to come?"

Momoko shrugs nonchalantly. "Nah, I was just wondering. You'll be fine, then?"

I nod uncertainly. What's wrong with Momoko? "Yeah, it's cool."

"Okay, then."

•••

I pull at my gloves nervously, straightening them out, sometimes wiping the gleaming metal plate on my shirt to make sure that the surface is spotless. The other kids are waiting in line, feeling just as restless. We are all getting our pictures taken to be put in the official record book of the Hidden Leaf's ninja force. It's exciting and overwhelming all at the same time. We're being called up in alphabetical order, so I'll be one of the last to go. Sometimes I hate that my last name is Shirokawa. Someone taps me on the shoulder and I jump, turning around quickly.

Keita laughs and puts his hands up. "Whoa, chill out, Haru. It's just me."

I sigh in relief. "Oh, good. Hey, Keita." Keita's last name is Takishida, so he'll be going after me. I won't have to wait by myself. I tilt my head slightly and frown. "Hey... are those bags under your eyes?"

"Aw, man, you can tell?" He covers his face with his hands and groans. "I couldn't sleep at all last night. I was too excited." His words are muffled by his hands.

I laugh. "What about me? Do I have bags under my eyes?" I ask this knowing the answer: yes. No matter how much sleep I get, there always seems to be a pale purple crescent underneath my eyes.

Keita peers at my face and looks surprised. "Actually, there's not."

"What? Seriously?" I hold up my hand and peer in the metal surface of the silver plate. To my utter shock and satisfaction, Keita is right. I actually seem to have a healthy glow about myself. "Cool." I look up again and notice that Keita is staring at me. "...What?"

"Huh? Nothing."

After a few more minutes of waiting, I begin to get really restless. I start swinging my torso side to side, my arms flying around me. It's a nervous habit that I can't seem to break; I have a lot of energy. Too much, really. "God. I just want to get this over with."

"Me too," says Keita solemnly.

"Morning, Haru!" a girl chirps. Tenten walks up beside me, sporting her new headband. She reaches up and straightens it. "I already got my picture taken and everything. Now I'm just kind of waiting around." The three of us start chatting until it is time for my picture to be taken.

I walk into the room and the photographer tells me to pose however I want. I pause and think for a moment. What should I go for? Sweet? Shy? Mean? Tough? Funny? Or... natural, maybe? I can't think of anything good that won't look stupid, so I defualt to my natural pose: head held high, arms crossed, and a wide grin. He snaps the photo and then quickly rushes me out of the room. I wish he would at least let me see it so I could decide if I want a retake or not-those photos are used in our portfolio, and affect how other ninja view me! I hope I look competent.

"Hi, Haru!" Ritsuko bounces up to me with a coy smile on her face. "How'd your picture go?"

I shrug. "Okay, I guess."

"How'd you pose?"

I position myself the way I did when the photo was taken. Ritsuko nods as she contemplates it.

"Natural. I approve. What do you think of this?" She tilts her head ever so slightly and clasps her hands in front of her. Her smile is small and she keeps her lips closed. She is the picture of innocence. But anyone who really knows Ritsuko knows that she's anything but innocent.

"Cute," I say.

Ritsuko glances around then leans in and whispers, "I have to look cute and innocent. With my looks, they won't take me seriously if I try and be tough."

This confuses me. "But wait... if you don't look tough, then why would you get recruited?"

Ritsuko shakes her head like she cannot believe that I don't understand her logic. "If I look cute, then I can get recruited on the more fluffy missions first when the guys just want eye candy around. But then I can prove my worth and slowly work my way up!"

For a moment I just stare at her. Then I smile and shake my head. "You overthink everything, Ritsuko. You probably would've been fine either way."

Ritsuko shrugs. "I like being prepared."

Sometimes I worry about Ritsuko.

"Aw, dude, I think I blinked during my photo."

I laugh and turn to face Keita. "Seriously? Did you ask for a retake?"

Keita shook his head. "Nah. I don't think the guy will let me." He covers his face and says, "Closed eyes and bags under them? Man. That will not look good."

"Okay, everyone, it's time to head outside!" Mizuki announces. "Single-file. Come on, hurry up! We don't want to keep anyone waiting." Mizuki looks a little anxious. I guess he's as nervous as we are. All of us march outside and line up in alphabetical order. We all put our hands behind our backs and stand tall with our chins up, just like Mizuki told us to.

Once outside, Hokage Sarutobi comes to the podium and gives a speech. I hardly pay attention to it. Instead, I'm scanning the crowd, looking for familiar faces. I spot Keita's dad and Ritsuko's mom and dad. Tenten's parents are right in the dead center of the crowd. I tune back in just as Hokage Sarutobi starts handing out the certificates.

"...for the top graduate in the class." As he says this, Neji Hyuga walks forward and accepts the certificate. He bows to Hokage Sarutobi and steps back in line.

Then Hokage Sarutobi says something that shocks everyone.

"Well, I say top graduate, but Neji is actually tied with someone else." We all stare at him in disbelief. Who could possibly combat Neji Hyuga's skills? I look over at Neji and see that his eyes have narrowed ever so slightly. "For the other top graduate in the class-Harukichi Shirokawa."

I'm immediately so overcome that I feel as if I'm going to pass out. Keita, standing right beside me, nudges me with his elbow. I shoot him a grateful look as I step forward to receive my reward. Hokage Sarutobi hands me the certificate, and he unfortunately notices my shaking hand as I take it. He smiles assuringly at me. I bow and step back into line, certificate clutched tightly in my hand along with the special medal that comes with being the top graduate. "Let's give these two a round of applause." The crowd claps gently, and I see a few people in the crowd exchanging heated words.

The rest of the ceremony I resist the urge to look over at Neji and see how he is reacting, even though I'm dying to see his calm aura disturbed.

At the end, I'm cornered by Tenten, Keita, and Ritsuko.

"How come you didn't tell us you were the top graduate?" Tenten demands.

"I-I didn't know," I stammer. "No one told me, either." I look at my friends' and notice they look as confused as me-all except for Ritsuko. A sly, knowing smile is settled on her face. "Ritsuko?"

Finally she bursts into giggles. "Hee hee hee! You got me! I knew all along!"

"What?" the three of us exclaim.

"Hee hee! There was a roster outside the classroom, and it had a list of all the graduates, plus the top three ranking!"

"You-I-you," I sputter. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Ritsuko grinned. "Why didn't you ask?"

Before I can blow up on her, I hear someone say, "Congratulations, Haru." I turn and see the last person I expect-Shintaro Kamachi.

"Oh, hi, Shintaro," I say evenly, even though inside my nerves are beginning to scream at each other. "Thank you."

Shintaro smiles, nods, then leaves.

Immediately I turn around to look at Ritsuko. "What was his ranking?"

"Your obsession with Shintaro is creepy," Keita says. I sock him in the arm and he laughs. "Just saying."

Ritsuko taps her chin. "Mm... second, I believe."

"Second," I breathe. Shintaro Kamachi is amazing. He's handsome, strong, funny-everything I want in a guy. But he's never glanced my way twice. I'm surprised he even knows that my nickname is Haru.

"I don't like him," says Keita, suddenly looking irritable.

"Shintaro? Why not?" I ask in surprise. "He's strong and really funny. Plus he's nice."

Keita frowns. "Have you ever talked to the guy?"

"Well... no."

"Then how do you know he's nice?"

"I-I don't know. From what I've seen, he looks nice!"

"Well, he's not," Keita snaps. "He's a douche bag."

We all stare at Keita. He never acts like this. "Are you okay, Keita?" Tenten asks, one eyebrow raised.

"Peachy," he says sarcastically. "Just peachy."

I open my mouth to speak, but then Mizuki announces that the ceremony is over and it's time to go home. Keita slithers away before I can catch him.

"What's up with Keita?" Ritsuko asks.

I shake my head. "No clue. I think he's just having a bad day."

"Well, I gotta go," says Tenten. "Family wants to go out and celebrate." She rolls her eyes. "See you guys tomorrow!" Ritsuko and I wave goodbye as Tenten leaves with her mom and dad.

"Ugh. Wanna walk home together?" I ask Ritsuko.

Ritsuko shakes her head. "Can't. Mom wants to take me out, too." She smiles sheepishly. "Clothes shopping, you know? I want to get something that matches my headband."

I sigh. "Oh. Bye, then."

"See you tomorrow?"

I nod and she runs off, leaving me to walk home alone.

•••

"How'd the ceremony go?" Momoko asks when I walk through the door. She is sitting at the table eating dinner. I sit across from her, hiding my certificate and gold medal behind my back. I don't want to show her just yet.

"Fine," I reply.

"Just fine?"

"Yeah."

Momoko looks at me curiously. "Is there something wrong?"

"Well... nothing's wrong, it's just..." Okay, I was going to play this cool, I swear, but considering everything that happened I don't think I can. A wide grin cracks my cool facade and I show her the certificate and the gold medal.

"Oh, my God! Haru! Congratulations! Top of the class, huh?" She grins at me and I smile back. "What about that little snot, Neji? Was he mad that you beat him?"

"Actually, we were both the top graduates." Momoko raises her eyebrows in surprise. "Yeah, I thought it was weird, too. But I guess we're equally matched."

Momoko nods, looking at the medal contemplatively. "Wanna see something cool?"

"Uh, sure?"

Momoko stands and motions for me stay. I wait for a moment and she comes back with something in her hand. "Look at this." She is holding a gold medal, a little different from my own. "This is Mom's. She graduated at the top of her class, too."

` "Whoa! No way! She never told me that!" I exclaim, examining the medal with scrutiny. The only key difference between her medal and mine is that hers is a tad bit tarnished and it has Hokage Namikaze's name on the back instead of Hokage Sarutobi. I carefully hand it back and Momoko scurries off to put it back again.

"I'll hang those on the wall after we finish eating," she says. I nod and we both start eating our meals.

"You know what doesn't make sense to me?" I finally say, breaking the silence. At her questioning look, I continue. "Mom kept saying that we didn't belong to any clan. But, if that's true, then how come we're so good? Stuff like this runs in the family, yeah? Like, we're both insanely fast, and you're-"

"A medical genius? I know." I may have forgotten to mention before, but Momoko really is an amazing medic-nin. She made some astonishing break-throughs and actually got promoted to a Special Jonin because of her skill. "But people don't have to belong to a clan to be ultra-talented. Hokage Namikaze didn't belong to a clan, yet he was one of the strongest Hokages we've ever had."

"I know, but it would make more sense, right?"

Momoko nods. "I know what you mean. If we had any family records I would trace it back, but we're the only Shirokawas in all of the Hidden Leaf." She shrugs. "Maybe we'll never know."

We eat in silence for the rest of dinner, and afterwards I head straight up to my room. I suddenly feel exhausted.

Hi! This is Beth! I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of my new Naruto fan fiction Kunoichi Tales. To look at artwork of the characters, just go to my DeviantArt account BK-Bases.