Chapter 3 – Kakashi Sensei and the Bell Test
Dana leaped over the park bench, and ran down the path in a state of ecstasy. She was covered with dirt, her clothes ripped in several places, and a few bruises on her arms and legs, but she didn't seem to care, the beaming smile on her face causing people to stare in surprise or frown in disapproval.
She ran through the streets before stopping abruptly in front of a large gate. Before entering, she looked around, as though expecting someone to be outside waiting for her, then quietly let herself in.
On the otherside was a large, beautiful garden in front of a magnificent house. Dana looked at it in awe; she had figured Itachi was rich, but she didn't think he was this rich. She suddenly felt very humbled, and completely out of place – and why the hell had she not thought to clean up before coming here!
A thought came to her. Was she in the wrong house?
Dana gulped. She really hoped not, an image of really snobby rich people beating her off the property springing to her mind. She looked round the complex, hoping to find Itachi lurking in a shadow somewhere.
'This is stupid!' she thought to herself, 'I'll just go up to the house and ask for him. If it's the wrong house, I'll just ask for directions – no need panic about it.'
"Who are you?"
Dana felt like she had just leapt out of her skin; all thought of acting naturally leaving her. She turned round.
Standing behind her was an Uchiha ninja, arms folded, and a glare on his face that Dana was sure even an ANBU ninja would fear.
"Well?!"
Dana jumped again at the angry rise in his voice.
"I – um… Was looking for – um Uchiha Itachi?"
'Geez! Was that my voice!' she thought, 'what the hell – I don't wanna sound weakass like that!'
The ninja's eyes narrowed. "What do you want with my son?"
Dana was threw off by that remark. Father! For some reason Dana had never considered Itachi having family of any kind; his peculiar inability to be emotional had made her think he was an orphan or something.
"What's wrong with you!" Itachi's father said sharply, "you come wandering into my house, claiming to see my son, and now you don't answer my questions!"
Dana was getting alarmed. What was this guy's problem? She was about to mutter some apologies and run out when Itachi appeared strolling through the gate, hands in his pockets, and head bowed deep in thought.
'Too serious for a boy our age! Although," thought, glancing at his father, 'I think I'm beginning to understand why.'
"Dana?" Itachi said, blinking in surprise.
"Hi!" said Dana shrilly, waves of relief washing over her.
Itachi's father gazed at him. "You know her?"
Itachi bowed respectfully to his father before answering, "yes."
"For how long?"
"A few weeks, father."
His father looked at Dana again, scrutinising her appearance and making her feel like a dirty little rat. Itachi seemed to have observed this, because he motioned to Dana to follow him and said, "Excuse me father, I'll be back by sunset."
"Before sunset, Itachi," his father replied, "I have a few things I'd like to discuss with you."
Itachi nodded and walked out the gate again. Dana bowed to his father before following him. After they were some distance away, walking through the park, Itachi asked: "What were you doing there?"
"Looking for you, you moron!" Dana replied, "what the hell did you think I was there for?"
"Sorry," Itachi answered quickly, "it's just – I wasn't expecting to see you there."
Dana nodded.
"No offense," she said, a cheeky grin on her face, "but your dad ain't half scary!"
Itachi laughed. "I think there are some who would agree with you," he replied, "but seriously, next time, don't come over to my house."
"Why?" Dana asked in surprise.
"Because, I doubt my father will approve of our friendship," Itachi said, a little too quietly for Dana's liking. "I'll be lucky if he doesn't forbid me from seeing you when I get back tonight. I don't want to go against my father, but I also don't want to stop seeing you – you always make me laugh."
Dana smiled at the compliment. "Fine, I won't go to your house – not that I want to, after that kind of reception."
They walked in silence for a while until they reached the top of a small hill, looking out over the village. Dana remembered this hill well; it was the one she had fallen down two years ago, when she had first arrived. It seemed like such a long time ago…
"So, why were you at my house, anyway?" Itachi asked.
Dana smiled. "I wanted to tell you," she said, barely containing her rising excitement, "I graduated from the academy – I'm now a ninja!"
She shouted the last part while jumping in the air. Itachi grinned, showing for the first time, perfect, pearly white teeth.
"Knew that you would," he said, "never doubted you for a second."
"But that's not all," Dana continued,"before we left, they put us into our squads – guess who's my sensei!"
Itachi's smile vanished. 'No way – It couldn't be! Of all the jounin to put her with…'
"Kakashi!" Dana cried, unable to contain it any longer, "it's Kakashi! – They put me in Kakashi's squad, isn't that brilliant! – I mean, what were the chances?!"
"Next to impossible," Itachi mumbled, his head bowed so Dana couldn't see his face.
"Of course, there is a downside," Dana went on, not noticing Itachi's sudden change, " Mori's in my group, and that little cow Taka who follows him about. But I won't let that bother me; I'll train my hardest - I'll be the best ninja ever to walk in this village…I'll make him proud…"
"Have you met him, yet?"
"No, we'll see him tomorrow morning. We were told to meet him beside the monument."
"Best of luck to you," said Itachi.
He turned and walked quickly back down the hill, leaving Dana stunned and confused as to what just happened.
The next morning, Dana woke up really early, and was up, dressed and at the monument three hours before the meeting.
They had been ordered not to eat any breakfast, and dutifully, Dana had complied; she was too excited to eat anyway.
She spent the time warming up and looking at her reflection in a pond; every so often re-tieing her hair up in a ponytail.
As a gift for becoming a ninja, Suki had made her a new ninja outfit: a dress that went down pass her knees, with slits reaching up pass her thighs. It was a beautiful sky blue colour with grey trimmings that shone silver in the sunlight. Underneath, she wore black shorts, strapped to which was her kunai and the traditional ninja sandals on her feet. Dana had never owned anything so beautiful before; up until now, she had only worn hand-me-down clothes owned by orphans Suki had taken in before her – they couldn't afford anything else.
Dana loved how she looked in it. Most of all, the honorary ninja bandanna she had received, and was now wearing around her head. It made her feel she finally belonged to the village, more importantly, it was a symbol of the work she had put in to get to this point…to be with him…
Fifteen minutes before time, Mori and Taka turned up; the former looking at Dana with a glare she fiercely returned, the latter taking turns to glare at Dana and look adoringly at Mori. None of them spoke, but with many a meaningful glare, they stood waiting.
The appointed time came and went, and two hours later… they were still waiting.
Dana was sitting a little away from the other two, pulling the grass absently. Taka had taken out a mirror and was fussing over her hair, and Mori stood with his arms folded, eyes closed, and the vein in his head pulsating with frustration.
"What the hell!" he cried finally, "he was suppose to be here three hours ago! What's keeping him!"
"Maybe he got the time mixed up," Dana mumbled, more to herself than to the others; but Mori overheard and rounded on her, "What are you doin'? Talkin' to yourself? You really are a fruit cake, Dan-Dan – a big, stupid, fat, fruit cake!"
Dana closed her eyes, forcing herself to remain calm.
"How the hell did you manage to graduate anyway?" Mori continued, "did Itachi give you some cheats? Is that it – Did he tell you how to pass?"
Dana's anger flared, and she looked up at Mori dangerously. "I didn't cheat," she said calmly, but her tone implied her rising anger.
"Oh no?" Mori sneered, knowing he had pushed her buttons, "you were one of the dumbest in our class – they were considering not letting you graduate, and then somehow you miraculously manage to be top of the class at the same time you start hanging out with Uchiha? Yeah right!"
Dana sprang to her feet.
"I didn't cheat!!"
"Come on, just admit it – everyone knows you did!"
"I DIDN'T CHEAT!"
"CHEATER! CHEATER! CHEAT-"
BANG.
Stunned, Dana watched as Mori fell to the ground. She couldn't even remember moving; it had happened so fast.
Taka screeched and ran to his side, already a large bruise was developing on his left cheek were Dana had punched him. He shrugged Taka off violently and got to his feet.
"You'll pay for that you little – "
"Ahem. Excuse me!"
The three of them spun round. There, perched on one of the trees, was Kakashi, looking rather amused.
"Hope I'm not interupting anything," he continued as he jumped lightly to the ground.
Dana looked down at her clenched fist and then to the battered Mori.
'Bugger!' she thought, 'this isn't the best of first impressions I'm giving here.'
Kakashi walked between them and took turns to gaze at them with his one visible eye.
"sensei," Mori spluttered. His cheek and jaw were now completely swollen and causing acute pain, "Dana just –"
"I hate to interupt what, I'm sure, would have been a very fascinating story, but to be perfectly honest – I really don't care."
Mori stood a moment with his mouth gaping; Dana would've laughed if she hadn't felt disappointed; Kakashi had gazed at her without a hint of having recognised her. It had only been two years, could he have forgotten her? Did he really not know who she was?
"If any of you have any intelligence spanning beyond that of a teaspoon – " kakashi quickly eyed Mori, "then you will know that you haven't made done well in regards to first impressions. I've only met you for two minutes and already I think of you as spoiled little morons."
Dana felt like she had just become three inches tall. For the last two years she had been waiting for this moment – the moment when she would meet Kakashi again face to face.
'What an anticlimax,' she thought. This wasn't what she was hoping for.
"Anyway," Kakashi continued, leaning lazily against a tree, "I suppose we should just ignore it and move on so we can begin the test."
The three kids froze. Kakashi couldn't help but smile at their shocked and axious faces.
"A TEST!?"
"But we just did a test," Taka wailed, "that's how we graduated!"
"You're suppose to train us to become ninja – not give us more tests! – What the bloody hell is this about?!"
"You know, I'm going to be pretty fast at explaining this," Kakashi said, once the commotion died down, "of course, I'd be a lot faster if I wasn't interupted."
Silence instantly reigned.
Kakashi glanced at Dana. She had been the only one not to speak out at the announcement of another test. She stood in the background as quiet as a shadow, waiting patiently for an explanation.
'Atleast she hasn't turned into a loudmouth idiot,' Kakashi thought with relief.
"Now then,"he said, "in answer to your first remark, the graduation test was only to sieve out those with the potential to become ninja. Therefore, this test is to sieve out those, who will be trained and eventually become ninja.
"Oh yeah," he added, in a tone that showed his utter lack of interest, "I should probably also inform you that at the end of this test, atleast one of you will definetly fail the test."
"WHAT!!!!"
Dana hung her head. This is NOT good.
"Is something wrong?" Kakashi asked innocently.
"What kinda dumb-ass question is that!" Mori yelled, "you're telling us that one of us will end up failing and you ask is something wrong?"
Kakashi didn't answer. At this point, Dana came forward and shyly put up her hand. Mori glared at her.
"What do you think your doing? We're not in the academy anymore, you just ask the question – not put your hand up, you idiot."
"Although, it isn't the worst idea in the world," Kakashi mumbled, his head splitting, but he looked at Dana, indicating he was listening.
"I was just wondering," she said, completely undeterred by Mori's outburst, "what does the test consist of? And what do we have to do to pass?"
A genuine smile grew on Kakashi's face. Good thing it was hidden.
"The test is simple," he replied, his voice masking the change in his facial expression, "you need to obtain one of these bells."
He held up two single bells hanging on bits of string, "As you can see, there are only two which explains why only two of you will pass the test. they will be in my posession. You must acquire a bell by noon in order to pass. If you don't –"
He turned and pointed to three wooden pillars. "you will be tied to one of these pillars and forced to watch me eat my lunch – this added to the fact that you'll have failed and have to return to the academy."
Dana groaned, along with the other two. The prospect of losing their lunch just made the whole thing much more depressing.
Dana cleared her throat. "Erm…"
Kakashi raised his eyebrows, "Another question? Alright, go ahead."
"You're a jounin: an elite ninja," she said, "I'm sorry, but, how are three genin supposed to successfully get a bell from you?"
Kakashi chuckled evilly. "You'll have to rely on your own unique abilities and ideas to do that."
Mori rolled his eyes. "Oh come on!"
"Now then."
There was a puff of smoke, and an alarm clock appeared on top of a rock.
"We will begin on three," said Kakashi, "you're free to use whatever weapons you wish."
Mori instantly drew out his kunai, glaring at Kakashi. Taka looked hopelessly at a loss, and very anxious when told she could use weapons.
Dana stood in a ready stance, but didn't draw any weapons; a resolute expression on her face. She was going to give this her best shot.
"Ready?" Kakashi asked, his hand on the alarm button, "one…two…THREE!"
Well? What do you all think? No one's given any reviews since I started up again. Does my writing suck that much? I need feedback peeps!!