Earlier that morning

"So... who gets who on their teams?" Asuma asked the rest of the Senseis around him, sitting in the office of the Third Hokage himself.

Kakashi knew he was going to get Sasuke. Sharingan and Sharingan? A foregone conclusion. Not to mention he was practically the pet of the Civilian Council, and they'd just LOVE for him to have a Sensei that could teach him all 1000 of his Jutsus.

Kakashi had hoped he'd get the other Sharingan wielder, even if she probably would be a pain.

On the other hand, Kurenai liked her. She sought out knowledge and power... not for grudges or vendettas, but simply for the sake of knowledge. Her lack of decorum and inability to care for people she didn't see as worthy of being cared about was slightly worrying, but they'd work on that. "I'd like either Hinata or Hideaki." She said.

Kakashi eye-smiled. "Good! I'm bound to get Sasuke, you've got the other Sharingan-wielder, our students will be rivals, and the jokes about us will begin shortly."

Asuma glared at him. "Oh." Kakashi said. "Sorry, did I touch a nerve?"

"We're getting off-track. But regarding Hideaki... Because of her abilities and relationships..." Asuma said. "We can't put her on any team with Shikamaru, Kiba, or Sasuke. There'd be no point. Especially not Sasuke, the kid sees her as a living middle finger to his Clan. And considering the effect she had on Naruto... I'm wondering what'll happen if we put her with some of our less skilled Ninja. That seal of hers could be dangerous, but useful."

"There is already an uneven number of Ninja in our group." Kurenai pointed out. "And I don't suppose we'd be allowed to break tradition and have one squad with five members, as opposed to four?"

"No." Hiruzen sighed. "The Civilian Council would never let me hear the end of it, and I doubt the Ninja council would be happy, either. But there is... another option."

"What is it?" Kurenai asked.

"The Final Shot Protocol." He sighed.

And then, there was silence.

"No... Lord Third, you can't be serious!" Kurenai protested.

"I thought that was made up to make the Civilian Council happy!" Asuma said, surprised that it was real. "You're seriously about to do THAT?"

"Sorry, was I late to a meeting?" Kakashi asked. "What is the Last Shot Protocol?"

"It is the only way." The Third Hokage said sadly. "Unless, of course, you are willing to risk this village's future or risk a diplomatic incident by sending one of our Ninja back to the Academy simply due to too many people passing the bar."

"Sakura Haruno is the weakest Genin in the group." Kakashi said. "And due to Naruto's sudden and unexpected improvement, the worst student grades-wise is now Kiba, who literally doesn't even try to be clever, but doesn't have the intelligence of Shikamaru to save him. If either of those two are going back, I know who I'd choose."

"We are not doing that. We can not." The Hokage said sadly. "Sakura's mother is practically the leader of the Civilian Council, why do you think she was so insistent on having her daughter carried through Ninja life by Sasuke Uchiha?"

"...Fine. Now, that brings the question... who gets hit by Last Shot Protocol?" Kakashi asked.

The Hokage sighed. "There can only be one."