Still don't own it.
Chapter 2
To be teamed up with both, top and bottom of the class, was a bit unexpected for the only female on the official "Team Guy", probably dubbed after their upcoming tutor. Currently, the three trainees were seated in their old classroom, along with the rest of their classmates, and waited for their teacher.
The long haired pretty-boy, for whom she still needed a proper nickname, stared vacantly out of the window, lost in some thought, her other teammate couldn't stop shifting and shuffling, just couldn't find a rest.
Neji turned his head and projected a downbearing stare at his companion. "Stop that."
Lee just seemed a little confused
"Just sit still, you annoy me."
"Oh, I'm sorry! I will make sure to not repeat my mistakes!"
With a drawn-out sigh, Neji shifted his gaze to his other teammate. "Something isn't right." A dramatical pause. "Mizuki seemed almost giddy when he announced our team. I'm very sure we will receive some kind of special treatment."
"Oh? What do you mean?" A dramatical pause.
Which warped itself into an awkward pause.
"Err..."
"I meant what I said – something will happen."
"Something? Very informative..."
"I will take on everything which is thrown my way and come out for the better!"
"THAT IS THE RIGHT ATTITUDE!" A very dynamic entry, accompanied by a loud, booming voice broke the flow of their conversation, or the flow of – everything in this room.
"I'M MAITO GUY! YOU WILL THREE WILL COME WITH ME TO THE ROOF!" After a clearly overdone pose in the three's general direction, he disappeared as abruptly as he came.
"Aright! Up to the roof!"
"Lee! Wait!"
"I- I don't know what to say. Was that our teacher?"
"That was Maito Guy, Neji! Our teacher! Let's go!"
Lee took of to the stairs and was on his way to his mentor.
The other two were, comparably, a lot more reluctant, but made their way to the roof anyway.
"His reaction was almost too transparent, don't you think?"
"That's Maito Guy, burning with determination, and making sure everybody he knows knows it. That's why he is perfect for this job, he won't back down."
"How long is this supposed to go on, anyway?"
"As long as it has to."
"Could you be a little less cryptic, for once? Not everyone can follow your crazy thoughts."
"Are you in such a bad mood again, Homura? For whatever reason? Does this whole topic simply irk you?"
"Just tell us what you mean, Sarutobi..."
"Alright, alright. We will keep in contact with them and call on them whenever we need them. It might be in three months, or it might be in 3 years. They will simply remain dormant."
"Yes, yes, you explained that with the very first time you told us of your idea. But don't you have any particular date in mind?"
"No."
"No?"
"Exactly, no."
"You're going senile, old man. But I'll still trust your judgement."
The short march upwards felt longer than it should have felt, but uncomfortable silences tempt to do that to a lot of things.
No words were exchanged between the two, both unsure what lay ahead of them. Lee was already on top of the building; no wonder when he was running the whole way.
When they arrived they found their teammate as giddy as always, portraying his unrest on a bench in front of their teacher. Both sat down next to him, as far away as there was space.
"ALRIGHT! INTRODUCTION TIME! WHO WANTS TO START?"
"Here! I want to! My name is Rock Lee, I--"
"This is ridiculous." The irritated, still quiet, no-nonsense statement managed to draw all the attention and stilled the hyper boy. "You know who we are, we know each other. The only stranger in here is you, teacher."
Neji appeared to be quite a generator for uncomfortable silences.
"Okay then. I will introduce myself, if you insist." His voice lost volume, Neji took his momentum.
"My name is Maito Guy, I am a jounin-ranked ninja and you are my third genin-team. I am sure you already know there is no guarantee for you to become actual ninja, so I will need to test you. But first I would like to hear your motivations to become a ninja. Neji starts."
The bright-eyed boy kept his teacher fixated. "My clan forces me to undertake an extended combat training." He was not going to reveal anymore.
"Good, you next." He looked to his other male pupil.
"I want to become a ninja to be strong! I will prove everyone that you don't need to use ninjutsu and genjutsu to be great! I will prove everyone I am not a failure!"
"Good, the last one." His eyes went to TenTen.
"Err, I want to be a great female ninja, just like the legendary sannin, Tsunade! Also, my dad wants me to become a ninja, I guess."
Guy knew all that, of course. "Then, on to the test you. Meet me tomorrow morning at eight in front of the north gates, pack up for a field trip!" And he was gone.
"A field trip?"
"He didn't tell us how long it will last." One of the boys facepalmed.
"Yay! A fieldtrip! I will pack and go to bed immediately!" He almost wanted to leave when a strong hand shoved him back down.
"We will first need to discuss who will pack what."
"Oh, right. 'Information is vital'; they taught us that in the academy!"
"Well, I think we will need a tent, a pan and some food."
"Yes. But don't overdo it, we mustn't overpack ourselves. I will take one triangle tarpaulins, Lee will take the other-"
"But I don't even have one!"
Neji again proved his prowess as a silence-generator.
"Then come with me before you go home, I will give you one of mine."
"Okay, then."
"What am I supposed to pack?" TenTen submitted to the impromptu leader.
"Like you said, you pack rice, a pan and a pot. All will pack only one set of spare clothing and a sleeping bag. I am certain we won't lose too much mobility that way. See you tomorrow, TenTen. Lee, come with me."
TenTen went off alone, Lee strolled alongside Neji in the direction of the Hyuuga-compound.
"Just as planned."
"Yes, those guys are rather predictable, aren't they?"
"I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing. Regardless, the choices are fitting, the harmony is coming along nicely. Well, at least at first glance."
"Where exactly do you want to take them?"
"Just outside, into the woods."
"And what are you planning to do to them?"
"Oh, a bit of sabotage, I want to stress them. In the end they will fight me, to see if they're able to adapt and work together."
"But why do you even take them on a field trip?"
"Oh, I want to stress those three out. Especially that bratty Neji..."
"Yeah, I don't really like him, either."
Guy just gave Mizuki a strange look.
"You don't like your pupil?"
"Err, of course I do!"
The look persisted. "I don't like YOU Mizuki. When those three lack any essentials, I will hold you recountable."
"But-" - Mizuki was silenced by the sudden departure of his conversation partner.
"Woah, your house is really big, Neji!"
"That's not only a house. It's a clan estate. You should know as much."
"Yeah, but I had no idea it was so huge!"
"Doesn't matter. Let's go inside. I will have to report to my superiors and explain the situation. You will wait outside the room until I come back."
They both went inside and made a beeline across the yard, Neji greeting a few clan member with a small nod. Lee was stared after with curiosity; it wasn't usual for outsiders to come with branch members into the estate.
The boys stopped at a plain door and Neji knocked.
"Who is it?" A almost annoyed voice came from inside.
"Branch member Neji; I want to report in."
"Ah, Neji, I expected you, come in."
Before he opened the door he hissed to his teammate "Wait here, don't do anything stupid."
When he was inside the room, Lee sat down stiffly, clearly uncomfortable.
A bit of time passed, when a small girl approached the boy sitting before the clan head's door. "You! Who are you, what are you doing here?"
"I- I am sorry! I am Rock Lee, I came here with Neji!"
"And why?" Despite being small, the girl managed to put quite a bit of authority into her diminutive voice.
"I want to take a tarpau- a tarpaule... Something for a tent!"
"So you want to steal?" The girl dropped into a combat stance.
"N- NO! Of course not! I just don't have one, and we need one, so Neji wanted to give me one!"
"I don't believe you. Prepare yourself!"
She almost launched herself at the unsuspecting, unprepared, unable boy when the same voice from before stopped her.
"Hanabi."
Now Lee wasn't the only one nervous anymore. "Y- Yes, father?"
"Stop making trouble, you give our clan a bad name. Apologize and come inside."
"Yes, father! I'm sorry, Rock Lee." She hurried past him, not honouring him with another look, went inside the room and closed the door behind her.
Lee was more than a bit bewildered.
"Ah, TenTen, you're home! Already done your first mission?"
"I've been here for two hours, dad, and no, I'm not even an official genin."
"You are not? Oh, okay. I just thought when you passed you exams you became one."
"No, and I told you that, dad."
"Okay..."
TenTen continued sharpening her throwing knives, her father was still waiting in the treshold.
"So, what did you do instead?"
TenTen sighed. "I got my team, my teacher and will go on a fieldtrip tomorrow."
"A field trip? I didn't know about that!"
"Neither did I, dad." TenTen was not very informative, she found her knives to be more interesting.
"Hey, I am talking to you!"
"What is it?"
"I demand some respect, I am your father, after all! When will you leave?"
"Tomorrow morning, I will meet my team at eight. You will still be asleep by then."
"And when will you be back?"
"I have no idea yet, my teacher didn't tell me."
"Oh."
"Yes, 'Oh'."
"So you won't be here tomorrow.."
"Right."
"Okay, then get up and give you daddy a hug for goodbye, girl!"
TenTen got up and gave him a hug. "Goodbye, dad. See you later."
Her father smiled, left the room and left her to her ninja-stuff.
"So, what was this all about, Hanabi?"
Hanabi sat herself next to her cousin, in front of a simple table, opposite to her father.
"That boy outside wanted to steal something – for a tent, he said."
"He didn't want to steal anything. I wanted to lend him a tarpaulin; he doesn't seem to have one."
"I will allow that. You will take the other, then, I figure."
"Yes, Uncle."
"Well, then. Back to our previous topic. Where was I again?"
"You told me about the extended trainings trip, as some kind of prototype to test the method."
"Ah, yes. I think your team, if you pass your test, will be the one to go on this trainings regime."
Neji raised his eyebrow. "If I may ask; why? Why us and why is this necessary in the first place?"
"The senile old kook is certain the benefits of such a team a greater than the deficits. We will see about that. You were chose because you were simply available."
"What am I supposed to do?"
"You will, of course, do your best to prove him right, Neji. If his proposals hold some truth the village and our clan will come out stronger, especially when one of our member is part of it."
'Yeah, right, as long as it's a branch member risking his life.'
"You seem upset. What's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing, uncle. I was just... just thinking that this is a... an interesting idea." This cover-up was futile, and Neji knew it. He was sure Hiashi was able to read his intention, even if he barely twitched a muscle in his face.
"Do you have any more questions?"
The young Hyuuga scolded himself into solemnity and passivity again. "Yes, how exactly is this different from a regular team?"
"Oh, a regular team still has privacy and doesn't spend all it's time training, like you will do. Most of the time they will do D-Rank missions, to 'improve teamwork', or rather fortifying the regular peasants trust in the ninja-government. A regular team usually also has a sane teacher, a quality Maito Guy lacks. He will push you to your limits and beyond, some of his students already succumbed to the stress and either quit or overworked themselves. You will do neither; you will take everything and overcome every obstacle, for the sake of our glorious clan."
Neji's eye twitched again, the same traitorous thoughts from before coming through again.
"Anything else, Neji?"
"No, uncle."
"Then you are dismissed. Pack up and get your teammate whatever he wanted."
Neji stood up and left.
"You seem eager to fight, Hanabi. Maybe we should -"
Neji left the room and closed the door behind him.
Lee sprung up as he saw his teammate, visibly stressed.
"Come with me." the resident grunted out.
Lee followed without a word.
At least for the first few metres. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, be quiet. I'll get you your tarpaulin and then you will leave."
"You can tell me! I'm sure I can somehow help!"
"Just shut up. This doesn't concern you."
"But-"
"We are here." Neji opened a door and walked into the storage room. He turned left, then right, then straightforward.
"Woah, all this stuff in here!"
"It's sufficient to serve the entire clan. Here, take this."
He loaded a tightly packed tarpaulin on the other boy's outstretched arms. "Make sure you don't fold it open. I doubt you will be able to pack it any more efficiently as it is now."
"Alright! Is that all?"
"Yes, I will take another one, this will be enough for us three. I will see you outside."
The little walk seemed to have calmed Neji down again, he looked just like he always did again. Neji wished him goodbye, went back inside and headed to his room to pack.
Lee did the same once he reached his home.
The night passed uneventfully, but for some teens, sleep wouldn't come properly.
They were just so nervous, they didn't know what to expect from their jounin-teacher.
Two of three members of the respective 'Team Guy' slept like a rock. Lee was too determined to miss his much needed sleep, Neji wasn't as affected by the nervousness.
TenTen was, however. Instead of resting in sleeping bliss, she tossed around in her bed all night, thinking. She was sure that she would pass the test, but was that really what she wanted?
Did she really want to become a ninja, a killing machine for people she didn't even know properly?
It wasn't her decision to become a ninja, her father pressured her to enroll into the academy, and as a eight year old girl, she was swayed by the supposed action she was bound to receive. But was she really ready to kill someone? To end someone else's life, not even knowing if they really deserved to die?
All these questions came up in the academy once. They were simply answered with "Your opponents are a threat to you and our village." and "They would do the same to you." alongside with "Mercy will be exploited by your enemy."
She didn't feel comfortable with these explanations then and didn't feel so now.
Why couldn't she just become an artist? That would be cooler.
But of course, she had obligations, to her father, her village and her team. She couldn't just leave them hanging! Maybe it wouldn't be too bad, after all. It could even be fun!
'Fun' and 'ninja' didn't mix.
All of the night was filled with her inner turmoil.
Neji ate, showered and wished his goodbyes, then went off to to north gates a little early to be there on time. Always better to be a little early than too late.
He bought an apple at an local grocery store, he still had enough time to get there comfortably.
'Why do we meet so late in the day, anyway? I would have imagined a ninja to leave earlier.'
When he arrived, Lee and TenTen were already there, the girl clearly agitated by her other teammates antics.
Lee performed various exercises, ranging from crunches to push-ups, from squats to chin-ups at a nearby tree.
"Lee, don't waste your energy. It's not going to help."
"Oh, good morning Neji!"
"Hey..." TenTen was not only agitated, but not nearly as motivated as Lee.
"You don't look good, TenTen, almost like you didn't sleep. What's the matter?"
"Oh, nothing." She looked away, Neji let it pass by.
"I can't wait for Guy to get here! What time is it?"
Nobody cared enough to answer, Neji sat down by the tree and ate the remnants of his apple.
With a loud yell and a ridiculous pose, their teacher arrived. "ALRIGHT! YOU'RE ALL HERE! FOLLOW ME!" and he ran off outside the gate.
"Yeah!" Lee collected his bearings and was the first to follow.
Neji and TenTen only got up reluctantly and had to hurry to catch up.
AN: Chapter two done, still would like to hear what you think. The action will start soon, don't fret, I think establishing this whole thing is more important.
Please review, tell me what you like and dislike; especially about the dialogues. I am not sure if they're any good, but I did put some effort into writing these.
Thanks to GoldenDragonClouds for being my first reviewer.
This website keeps on eating my cool scene-change lines :/ Is there another way instead of inserting them in the online document editor? I'm using OpenOffice 2.4