Chapter Three: Game Plan
Three puzzled faces gawked forward unblinkingly. They took in every detail about the adult currently entering the room – drank it in and allowed it to seep into the silence that had previously been plaguing the space around them.
He was tall, clothed with the customary Jounin attire – green vest, dark pants and shirt. It was complete right down to the gloves. A headband rested on his forehead, arrogantly displaying Konoha´s symbol. His hair was dark like a moonless midnight, yet his skin stood out like the stars on a clear, blue sky. The color of his eyes remained a mystery for he had yet to reveal their depths.
Team Three´s hypothetical sensei had penetrated the room soundlessly, not bothering to spare a sole glance. He made a blind path towards the middle of the space, dropping his body elegantly onto the floor. His legs were crossed as he placed the palms of his hands over his knees. Thin lips parted slightly and allowed a single, steady breath to roll off. This silent man was the personification of serenity.
Ikasu arched an eyebrow at this shinobi´s odd behavior. "Excuse me, but are you-."
"Shh," the dark haired man interrupted peacefully, never once allowing the noise to disturb his unruffled mask. As if a stone was dropped in the water but created no ripples.
The blonde boy narrowed his eyes but shut his mouth. Ikasu made his way towards a desk and plopped down, taking a kunai from his pouch and weighing it in his hand.
Hitomi was next in line to throw a stone into the calm sea. She walked cautiously around him, examining his façade. The girl settled for tapping his shoulder lightly. "Oi, are you-?"
"Shh," the man repeated.
The Fujigawa huffed at this – crossing her arms over her chest childishly and retreating to another desk; stretching both arms into the air before sitting down and resting her head in a makeshift pillow of limbs.
Reikon didn´t bother interrupting the Jounin. She simply unbuckled the large pack that wrapped around her waist and emptied its contents onto the wooden table facing her. Patiently, the Mattaki began arranging her supplies, keeping count of every amount she was presented with. A Mattaki – a medic, at that – could never be too careful, too prepared. A large pack and a variety of supplies was crucial; she´d learnt this long ago.
Minutes passed slowly.
A fly fluttered from one end of the room to another trying desperately to go outside – it crashed into the window a few times -, taking short stops along the way on each soul in the classroom. The Jounin paid no attention to it – not breaking his meditation – even when it attempted to crawl into his ear, while Ikasu tried to slice it in half. The fly feared for it´s life and retreated towards Hitomi; she lifted her head when she felt its multiple legs tickle her arm, but quickly discarded its intrusion and resumed her slumber. When it reached the last member of Team Three, it was met with chocolate irises. Both beings gazed at each other for a few seconds, almost as if they understood each other. Reikon finally lifted her body from her seat and walked towards the windows; she ignored the hateful glare Ikasu treated her with as she passed by. As soon as she cracked the window open the small insect flew outside. The Mattaki took in a gulp of fresh air before turning back, chin lifted high, and sitting in her original place.
The silence in the room grew, spreading everywhere. It was heavy, boring. It seemed that the enigmatic man would remain this way forever. Ikasu chuckled lightly when a small snore cut the air behind him. He spun the kunai on its tip on the wooden surface in front of him.
Finally, the adult rolled his head; popping the joints in his neck. A breeze swam into the room and the Jounin took this opportunity to take one final gulp of air. The eyelids that had so securely been guarding his eyes opened in a measured manner, disclosing a pair of grey orbs. He took a look at the preteens and their current state and made a show of arising quickly. The man walked past the Mattaki and Tategami, heading straight for the caramel headed girl.
"You´ll never wake her up now," Ikasu told him as he turned around to watch the man.
It appeared that the man accepted the challenge, made a fist and harshly knocked it on Hitomi´s head. The kunoichi awoke with a start, gripping her head and slurring out a string of curses. Crocodile tears fell from the corners of her eyes. Ikasu burst out with a fit of laughter and Reikon stifled her own.
Hitomi growled, still unable to release her head. "What the hell was that for?"
"Sleeping on a mission." The Jounin answered dryly.
"You´re one to talk!" She countered, flinching at the way her own voice seemed to echo inside her. "You were doing it, too!"
"If you became a Genin you should know the difference between sleeping and meditation."
"I´ll show you meditation…" she grumbled while slumping in her chair in an effort to calm the ache in her head.
The man went back the way he came and stopped before Ikasu. The boy smirked up at the man but continued playing with the kunai. "With all due respect," he began, "this isn´t a mission."
"Wrong," the older man informed then raised his voice so that all three of the Genin could hear him. "From now on, every minute you spend with your team will be considered a mission. If you are training, escorting or just bonding it will all be for Konoha´s sake. The three of you serve this village so it´s time to start acting like true shinobi of the Leaf." He snatched the kunai from Ikasu´s hands, ignoring completely the protest he received. "This is a tool," he through the kunai at Reikon´s direction, missing her face by only centimeters and instigating the girl to jump, "not a toy." The Mattaki´s chocolate eyes remained wide, matching the expressions on her teammates faces. The man paced in front of Team Three before stopping and taking in every single one of their faces. "My name is Riakusu Ikkyou, and I will be your sensei."
Ikkyou took the Genin outside and urged them to sit under the shade of a large tree. A single swing hung from the thickest branch – the same swing Naruto had been seen spending many afternoons on. He instructed them to sit the way he had in the classroom and to begin with their own meditation. This would be a part of their daily training, that is, if they made it past their final exam; which was yet to be revealed.
In reality, Ikkyou knew very well how hard it was to achieve meditation for a beginner – he had been doing it for years. His own family – so small it couldn´t even be considered a clan – concentrated mainly on this aspect of preparation. They believed knowing one´s inner self was the key to figuring out other´s intentions. So Ikkyou observed. Not a single twitch escaped the Jounin´s senses.
The first thing he made a note of was their seating arrangements. The darker toned kunoichi sat the farthest from her teammates: as far as the tree´s shade would allow her. The other two were sitting next to each other in an almost huddled way. There was obvious tension, the same kind he noticed when he first entered the room. Every passing moment the hostility grew darker.
Ikkyou took another moment to take in their stances and expressions.
The blonde boy struggled to find a comfortable position and his never seizing movements caused a series of rustling noises. Every time he moved the olive toned kunoichi lost her concentration and her features contorted until forming an annoyed manifestation. The last girl, the pale one, continuously snapped her head up – making it obvious that her focus was more on avoiding sleep rather than meditating.
Ikkyou sighed heavily. "Alright, that´s enough." The Genin opened their eyes groggily. "Now, everyone get in a circle."
Ikasu laughed, causing his sensei to arch a dark eyebrow and Reikon to glare at him.
"Is something wrong?" The adult questioned.
The boy tried to calm his fit of laughter before formulating his answer. "I don´t think you´ve noticed just who we are."
"My students," was his blunt answer.
"No, no," Ikasu repeated his statement as he shook his head, "who we are."
The man thought for a second. He hadn´t asked their names yet, that´s for sure, but he also hadn´t bothered to take in the clan symbols that delicately adorned their clothing. It was clear where the olive toned girl came from – her skin tone was rare in the Hidden Leaf. Ikkyou decided to allow them the pleasure of introducing themselves. "I suppose I don´t know that. Go ahead, then, tell me who you are."
The blonde was the first to stand. He placed a fist over his chest and accompanied it with a proud smirk. "Tategami Ikasu, future leader of the Tategami clan."
Their sensei nodded slightly and turned his attention to the girl beside Ikasu. She stood and scratched the back of her head nervously. "Fujigawa Hitomi."
Ikkyou´s head signaled for the final member to speak. The girl stood as well – straight, formally and respectfully – then bowed vaguely. "Mattaki Reikon."
Interesting, Ikkyou thought before Ikasu´s rugged voice broke any hope he had for thinking.
"You see now? There´s a huge problem here," it was hard to miss the way his hands moved back and forth between himself and Reikon.
Being the serene shinobi he was, Ikkyou ignored the unmistakable hatred that plagued both of his student´s aura. If they made it through their final exam, he would make them change that. They were a team, after all. "All I heard were your names."
The boy´s voice grew. "Are you kidding me or are you just plain stupid?" Hitomi placed a hand on Ikasu´s shoulder to quiet him down but he merely shook her off. "No, this moron has to fix the problem! There is no way in hell I´m going to-!"
"I´m well aware of the rivalry between Mattaki´s and Tategami´s that you are trying to make me see." Ikkyou began, a small glare piercing the boy. "But I won´t allow a silly hatred to stain this team or to interrupt our training. You are all part of this cell now, like it or not, and you were all placed together for a reason. The three of you complete each other, so you´ll just have to learn to deal with it."
Reikon smirked. "Typical Tategami, losing control and screwing things up."
"No one said you could talk!" Ikasu shot back.
"I can talk whenever I want, you don´t own me." The girl´s voice remained calm and controlled. She was testing him.
"Enough, you two." Ikkyou instructed, getting between their lines of vision. "I´ll let you go so you can sort out your issues. Tomorrow we will meet here at first light for your final exam."
"Exam?" Hitomi questioned, tilting her head to the side.
The Jounin nodded. "If you fail this, you will all be sent back to the Academy."
"It´s a load of bullshit! We already passed every exam! We already have our headbands! You can´t just take it away!" Ikasu complained, fists clenched tightly.
"These are the rules. I warn you, this won´t be like any other test you´ve had. So be prepared to use any means necessary to succeed." He gave the three of them a meaningful glance before taking off.
"Try not to get in my way, Tategami." Reikon warned.
Ikasu – already bubbling to the core with rage – stomped over to her and got in her face, his green eyes shaking with the anger that coursed through his system. "I haven´t hit you because you´re a girl," he seethed, then brought his index finger and thumb to their faces for emphasis, leaving a small space between the two tan fingers, "but you´re this close to being beat to a pulp."
"Ikasu, stop it," Hitomi grumbled from behind him, trying to pull him off.
Reikon gave him a superior look and allowed sarcasm to taint her serene voice. "I´m shaking, really."
"You will be," he threatened, nails digging into the skin on his hands.
"I´m not surprised to see you threaten a girl. After all, your kind has never had any problem getting their hands dirty, now have they?" Reikon gave him a final glare before walking away.
Hitomi gave Ikasu an annoyed look. "That went real smooth."
"How do you expect me to act?" He shot angrily, still strung up from his tiny confrontation. "She´s a Mattaki, my sworn rival. She-."
"Is part of our team," the Fujigawa finished for him, index finger sticking out in front of her face. A small smile played on her lips. "Just give her a chance. She couldn´t be that bad." Hitomi stretched and yawned. "Well, I´m going to sleep. See you tomorrow, neh?"
He nodded, missing the fact that the sun was still up and shinning and walked off in the direction of his home.
As he walked, he thought of ways to fix his current situation. He knew what would happen if he were to befriend or even accept Reikon as his teammate. All the trust and honor he had gained after his first kill would be lost. He would be weak, vulnerable. His father would doubt him once more. Ikasu would be nothing. All he knew was that he had to get rid of Reikon before it any damage was done.
His walk morphed into a sprint.
A loud knock on the door made the kunoichi grumble profanities as she walked to answer it. When she opened the door, Naruto´s grinning face appeared. The smile disappeared when he caught sight of her glare.
"Don´t tell me you were sleeping." He teased.
"I was, actually." Hitomi said grudgingly.
"Are you kidding me? The sun hasn´t even set yet!" The Uzumaki discarded the subject, losing interest as her sour look intensified. "Anyways, can I come in?"
The girl stepped aside with a sleepy sigh, allowing him to enter her small home. In reality, Naruto wasn´t too surprised when the stench of rotting leftovers invaded his nose or when his eyes adjusted to the mess sprawled around the small home. The blonde embraced it – even welcomed it – and decided this was most likely what his own apartment looked like. It didn´t take him long to accommodate himself on one of the two chairs sitting in the middle of the room. He leaned on the back of the chair, arms crossing behind his head as Hitomi sat on the edge of her bed; still rubbing the grogginess from her irises.
"So why did you come here?"
A wide, toothy grin spread across his features. "We´ve got a final exam tomorrow."
"Yeah, I know." Hitomi took a moment to absorb his expression fully. Something screamed trouble at her, she just couldn´t pinpoint what it was. The lack of information he provided irked her. "Spit it out, Naruto."
The boy chuckled. "You´re impatient, you know that?" He looked at the scrolls still lying on her table for a second. "But so am I, so I´ll just get to the point."
"Thank you," the way she said it made him realize the profundity of her irritation.
"Sasuke wants to pass this test. He has to prove he´s better than all of us. We can´t let him think that way," he left the speech hanging for her to deduce her own conclusion.
"You want to sabotage him?"
"Of course!" Naruto smirked. "Kakashi-sensei told us we couldn´t eat a thing until tomorrow, so we can´t do it that way. I was thinking more along the lines of disturbing his sleep."
"And how exactly do you suppose we do that?" Hitomi arched a caramel eyebrow.
"Doing what we do best," the blonde left the answer hanging in the air.
Slowly, a smile spread across her features as it sunk in. "Being loud."
"And obnoxious." He added joyously.
"Okay, but we need our rest, too, so we have to come up with a game plan." The kunoichi scratched her head. "How´s a walk sound? I need to do some groceries."
Naruto shrugged. "Sure."
Author´s note: This chapter was literally hell to pump out. I was so weighed down by life that my creativity and inspiration went below zero. So please review and let me know how it feels to you guys! :D