Chapter 3

The soft golden rays of the early morning greeted Kiikame in quite the unpleasant manner as Miri threw back the curtains of their small two-bedroom apartment.

"Good morning, my beautiful nii-san (sister)! Get up, get up, GET UP!" Miri shouted in an excited, lilting tone.

Kiikame groaned and flipped onto her back, closing her eyes and letting the gentle beginnings of sunshine warm her face.

"You know it's 4 in the morning, right?" Kiikame stated plainly, grabbing her alarm clock and showing it to Miri.

"Oh, I—erhm…I, uh….I didn't know.." Miri scratched the back of her head and gave an unsure smile, blushing out of embarrassment.

"Whatever, it's alright. I guess we just have extra time to get prepared for our first day at the Academy. HOWEVER, we are setting your clock to the proper time so you don't wake us up again at the crack of dawn." Kiikame said slightly annoyed, as she arched her brow and gave Miri an unimpressed scowl.

Even though Miri wasn't Kiikame's biological sister, both lived with each other after escaping from the war, and as a result, the two were very close.

Kiikame swiftly threw off her covers and walked to the bathroom where her outfit was already laid out. Fifteen minutes later, her long blonde hair was in a neat French braid down her back and her outfit looked clean and crisp, accentuating her figure and blue eyes. Kiikame's makeup was natural, but complimented her features nicely.

Heaving a contented sigh, Kiikame walked out of the bathroom, only to find Miri on the floor, violently struggling with her ninja sandals.

"GAAHHHHHH! I CAN'T GET THESE STUPID THINGS ON FOR THE LIFE OF ME!"

Miri shouted in irritation.

Kiikame giggled in amusement, staring down at her best friend, "What the hell are you doing?"

"SHUT UP, KIIKAME! I DON'T NEED YOUR SASS RIGHT NOW!" Miri shrieked, clearly frustrated by the stubborn ninja sandals. She was attempting to force the sandals on her feet, tugging at the cloth wildly and forcing her foot in at the wrong angle.

Man, it really was early. A little TOO early for Miri, evidently.

"Here let me help you, it's not genjustu, Miri!" Kiikame teased, flashing Miri a good-natured smile.

Heaving a defeated sigh, Miri positioned herself in front of Kiikame, pouting. Kiikame couldn't help but chuckle at Miri's disheveled appearance.

"My god, it looks like you got in a fight with a couple of shinobi! Or a bear…" Kiikame joked, "I wonder what you'd look like if you get into a REAL fight. Now THAT is a scary thought!"

"Hah-hah-hah, very funny," Miri responded with dark sarcasm, "Now you going to help me or not?"

"Of course, of course," Kiikame reassured, kneeling down and fixing Miri's sandals.

A few minutes later, Kiikame stepped back and admired her quick handiwork.

In the process of straightening out Miri's sandals and repairing a small rip in the fabric, Kiikame had also smoothed Miri's crazy hair out and pulled it into a neat ponytail.

"Ahh there we go, now you don't look like a total hobo… well, almost," Kiikame smirked, winking at Miri.

"You're just on fire today, aren't you, smart-ass!" retorted Miri, laughing and staring down at her pajamas, "You are right though, I admit I do look kinda ratchet."

"Alright, go finish getting ready, I'll start preparing breakfast," Kiikame chuckled, making her way to their small kitchen.

"Okay, I'll be back in about ten minutes!" Miri exclaimed, skipping to her bedroom.

15 Minutes Later

"You got everything, Miri?" Kiikame shouted, leaning on the door of their apartment, waiting for her friend.

"Yup! Let's go!" Miri said sauntering out of her room, her small shoulder bag swinging back and forth.

"Wow, you look nice," Kiikame complimented Miri as the two walked out of their apartment, locking the door behind them.

"I try," Miri said smirking, "I could say the same about you, Ice Princess."

Kiikame rolled her eyes, making her way down the stairs of the apartment complex with Miri close behind.

Miri had always teased Kiikame about her Kekkei Genkai, mostly because Miri did not possess this trademark ability of the Yuki Clan. Although Miri grew up in the clan, she inherited her mothers' incredible healing skills instead of her fathers' Kekkei Genkai, otherwise known as "Ice Release".

Once the two were on the streets of Konoha, the two studied the map they had received the previous week, attempting to locate the Academy. They had met with the Hokage and various sensei's the week before, answering questions and taking a slew of examinations to determine their placement at the Academy.

Not surprisingly, Miri did amazing on the medical exams, earning her a one-way ticket to the most advanced medical-nin classes for her age group.

Kiikame, on the other hand, had flourished in ninjitsu, taijitsu, and genjutsu. The Hokage decided to put her on a team with newly graduated students who would be taking the Chūnin exams the following week.

The new teams had already been through Phase 1 of the Chūnin exams, but after undergoing a similar examination, both the Hokage and the sensei's agreed that Kiikame was eligible to move on to Phase 2 with one of the teams.

Kiikame was assigned to a team and told to meet them Monday morning 7:00am sharp near the entrance of the Academy. Because of Miri's little alarm clock mishap, Kiikame had arrived 30 minutes early.

While Kiikame waited, she climbed up a nearby tree, resting her back on the truck and closing her eyes. She inhaled deeply, enjoying the fresh air of the early morning. A bird flew by, singing a beautiful melody. Kiikame was deep in thought, listening to the sounds of nature.

Kiikame's meditation was suddenly interrupted when she sensed another presence approaching the Academy. Her eyes flashed open, peering through the leaves, looking for the intruder.

Kiikame's breath hitched in her throat.

It was him, the Uchiha she had come across in the forest the day before.

Butterflies began to dance in Kiikame's stomach as she watched the Uchiha come closer and closer to the Academy.

He had a few books in one hand and the other in his pocket. He appeared to be thinking deeply about something and didn't seem to notice Kiikame's presence.

Kiikame's nerves and abrupt increase in heart rate caused her Kekkei Genkai to activate, causing her to inadvertently freeze half of the tree trunk and the entire branch she was on.

'Perfect, just perfect!' Kiikame raged inside her mind, 'Now he'll definitely notice if he looks this way. I even don't think I can get down without slipping…GAHHHH!'

Kiikame felt herself slip from the icy branch. She let out a small yelp of surprise and tried to grab onto the branch before tumbling to the ground, landing on her side.

The Uchiha's head immediately turned towards Kiikame, and before Kiikame could react, he was directly in front of her.

"Hey, are you okay?" The Uchiha inquired smoothly, offering his hand.

Kiikame turned a few shades darker, avoiding eye contact as she accepted his hand.

"Y-Yes, I am alright. Thank you." Kiikame said as he pulled her back onto her feet with ease, observing Kiikame with curiosity and slight recognition.

"You look familiar. I believe I saw you in the forest yesterday evening." The Uchiha stated, trying to catch Kiikame's eyes. "My name is Itachi Uchiha. Pleased to meet you." Itachi continued, a small but warm smile gracing his features.

Kiikame slowly met his gaze, her icy blue orbs meeting his deep ebony ones.

"My name is Kiikame, Kiikame Yukimori. It is nice to me you as well, Uchiha Itachi." Kiikame bowed politely, returning the smile in a shy manner.

"You must be our new team member. Welcome, Kiikame." Itachi said in a friendly tone, "And please, call me Itachi."

"It is an honor. I look forward to training with you and your team, Itachi." Kiikame said, her smile widening.

A brief awkward silence ensued, but it was cut short by an enthusiastic male voice.

"Ah, you must be our newest addition to the team!" said a man with short brown hair, clad in an Jōnin uniform, "Welcome! What is your name?"

"My name is Kiikame Yukimori." Kiikame said, looking over at the rest of her team.

"Nice to meet you, Kiikame! My name is Yamato. I will be your temporary team leader!" Yamato said in a friendly, yet reserved tone, shaking Kiikame's hand.

"And I am Shisui Uchiha!" A wavy haired brunette male around Kiikame's age piped up, coming from behind Yamato, "Good to meet you, Kiikame!"

Shisui quickly walked over to Kiikame and shook her hand.

'He's an Uchiha as well.' Kiikame observed, smiling at Shisui, 'He seems very amicable.'

"Well, now that we've all been acquainted, let's start our training. We only have 4 more days until the Chūnin Exams begin, so I expect all three of you to work as hard as you can." Said Yamato, making eye contact with all three of his students, a serious expression on his face.

"Hai!" the three said in unison, their stances and expressions emanating unwavering confidence.

Hello there everyone! Now that I have posted the third chapter, I am pleased to inform you all that I will update this story every Friday/Saturday. Depending on how much time I have, I may post two chapters a week, but for now, just expect an update on the day(s) aforementioned. Also, I would like to reiterate that reviews/follows/favs are very much appreciated and encouraged. Happy reading! :)

-VampireKnightgrlKiwi