A/N: a new chapter! I'm surprised I was able to type up a chapter so quickly! Anyway, it's 23rd of May, which means... it's been officially 3 years since I posted the story! Thank you guys so much for all the support!
Guest1: I'm glad you liked the story!
Guest2: here's another chapter!
Guest3: of course! Izumi Uchiha will appear, though much later
Sam: Thank youuuuu
Act 14
The Academy
So, it's a big moment here.
Here I am, attending the entrance ceremony for the Academy—not the Academy Awards, but the Academy.
You know, the ninja school where all of our favorite ninja characters go to?
Yeah, that Academy.
The Hokage gave a long speech about being a shinobi, helping the village and all that. I can quote the main part of the speech, "Whether or not you choose the career of a shinobi, I hope that all of you do your best."
I get the feeling that it was directed at me lol
From what I see, there's a lot of clan kids and of course, civilian kids too. Many were from the Orphanage as well—Oho! Is that Kabuto I see standing at the front?
The Academy is like college in a way. You learn all the basics in the first year and from there, either pursue a shinobi career or graduate normally. Fyi, to 'graduate normally' in this world is the same as graduating elementary school.
The system's a bit different from the canon timeline.
It's war now. We're going through the Third Shinobi War.
They needed soldiers. So, they decided to make everyone do basics and all that ninja stuff to make kids think being a ninja is cool and an honorable job. It's bad influence if you ask me.
So, why do they want to be ninjas?
Why do they want to be ninjas if they know they would have a high risk of dying in the field?
Peer pressure? To keep the ninja family blood thing going? Honor? Money?
I guess I'll never know.
If I choose the shinobi path, the pros: I get to be with Shisui, learn chakra and all that fancy jutsus, and if I graduate on time, I might have a chance to save Team Minato.
Seems pretty good.
The cons: Danzō, war, enemies, possibly dying in the hands of Danzō, fighting, people thinking magic tricks are just some fancy schmancy jutsus, and of course Danzō and Root...
Obito and Rin became chuunin last year. They're turning 12 this year and by the time they hit 13, Kannabi Bridge happens.
They're much more important, but I'm not sure I'll live long enough to help if they send me straight to the field.
Because wellllll... I suck badly at all this stuff.
Taijutsu? Pffftttt, it's even a miracle I can go up and down the stairs without getting tired.
Ninjutsu? They're cool, but my tricks are cooler and way more awesome than doing hand-seals to activate jutsus.
Genjutsu? Hah! Who needs genjutsu when you have skills that people think are genjut—well, okay, maybe I need to fix that.
I don't want to be called some sort of Genjutsu specialist. That specific title belongs to the Uchihas.
I'm a magician—a professional entertainer, not a killer or soldier.
"Haru-chan!"
Oh, that's right! We're taking pictures!
I guess I kinda got a little side-tracked.
"You seem a bit off today." Shisui said from my right before raising his fingers to form a peace sign.
I shook his concerns off. "Nah! I'm just thinking of a perfect pose to remember this moment." I decided to add more pizzazz into the picture. I bend my knees as I drop my head into my arm and raised my other arm out straight in the other direction. "Take the picture!" I shouted, with my voice slightly muffled.
"Okay?" poor Kazuo, he was so confused. Obito was laughing behind him because of my silly pose. Of course, they've never seen a person dab before.
My parents were here too. We took a lot of pictures that I'm sure dad have to at least change the film once. The camera ehh it was old fashioned—way different from my previous life, but I like the old fashion vibe. It makes everything more memorable.
"Obito-niisan! Come take a picture with us!" I called out to him and he quickly jogged right to us. We both exchanged looks and smiled.
Great minds think alike.
Obito tried to contain his laughter. "Shisui! Do something! You're in the middle!" he said between laughs, his shoulders were shaking as he tried to stop himself.
I peeked at Shisui and he was giving me this 'Are you serious? People are staring' kind of look, but he decided to raise both of his hands anyway to form a heart.
So adorable!
Click click click click
"I think that's enough. You might want to check how many films are left." Mom smiled behind her hand when Dad kept on taking pictures of us.
Dad took one last picture before lowering the camera. "I just have to capture every moment! My baby girl is growing up and entering school! The next thing you know, she's getting married!" my pops can be a serious shinobi and a goofball the next second. The duality is amazing!
"Oh, come now, Tadashi, she's still four." Kazuo laughed.
"A year closer to dating. Don't ever date, Haru-chan!"
I'm content with being single for life!
So, don't worry, Dad!
"Obito-nii, don't you have a mission today?" Shisui suddenly said out of the blue, reminding the chuunin of his duties.
Obito began to panic when the realization hit him. He grabbed a fist full of his hair, comically shouting about how he forgot about it. "That's right! Thanks for reminding me, lil cuz!" he thanked before preparing to make a dash for wherever place they decided to meet. He skidded to a sudden stop and ran back to us. "I almost forgot! Here, a little something from me." he fished something out from his pouch and gave it to us.
I took the small gift.
A pencil with a note tied around it that says, good luck :)
"Congrats on entering the Academy!"
"Thanks, Obito-nii!" "Thank you, Obito-niisan!"
Obito grinned and gave a two-finger salute. "Good luck, guys!"
"Obito-niisan!"
"Yeah?"
Was that me? Was I the one who shouted his name?
Obito stared at me, waiting for my answer.
Would this be the last time I see him?
No.
No. I still have a year.
A year.
I closed my eyes, giving a close-eye grin.
I raised my hand. "Good luck on your mission!"
"Yeah!"
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"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine! Nothing to be worried about!" I chirped happily.
It was the twentieth time Shisui asked me that question today. Yesterday, he asked 30 times and yes, I do count. Apparently to him, I was acting really different yesterday. No one seem to notice it, but him. I'm ashamed to say that I lost focus and dropped my poker face.
Focus, Haruka. Focus.
I can figure it out. I always do.
"Do you think there's going to be assigned seats? Cuz that would suck." I deliberately changed the topic. I didn't want the previous topic to continue because what's the point? It's time for me to focus on school and math!
Shisui blinked. "I don't think so. Let's hurry up to the classroom so we can pick the best seat!" he said excitedly. He decided to drop the topic—to which I'm grateful for.
We both ran towards our classroom.
It was on the first floor. Just down the hall and to the left.
When we got inside, it was almost empty.
Yassss, we can pick the protagonist seat by the window!
"How about that one?" Shisui asked, pointing to the desk in front.
He doesn't seem to know which seat is the best seat.
"That's a horrible choice! Let go for the one at the back!" I rejected his terrible choice and went to sit at the last row, right beside the window. "Now this is the best seat in the house!" I crossed my hands behind my neck and just lean back.
Shisui followed and sat on the middle. "I don't understand why the backseat is the best. You're so far from the teacher."
I clicked my tongue, moving my finger left and right. "Tsk, tsk! The back seat is always the best seat to observe everything." I explained and look down to the second row and then the first. You can literally see everything in the classroom from here. There's a Nara sleeping on the second row, a Hyuuga on the first and etc.
Shisui glanced to the table below us. "You're not planning to cheat on exams, now are you?" he gave me a deadpan look, his eyes narrowed at me.
I blew a raspberry. "Moi? Cheating? Seriously, Shisui? I don't cheat." I placed a hand over my chest and gave him a smug look. I graduated elementary school before and I can say that my grades were pretty good. I'm pretty confident I can ace this Academy with flying colors and beat Minato's scores—eh wait, that would mean graduating as a shinobi. "They cheat from, moi."
I still haven't decided.
Shisui snorted. "Not me. I learned all from tou-chan and besides, you're sitting at the top corner, no one can cheat from you." it was his turn to give me a smug look.
"Touche."
More students began to fill the room.
Until I saw him.
"Oh! Kabuto! Over here!" I stood up and waved my hand to get Kabuto's attention. Well, I got everyone's attention when they all heard me calling for his name. I wasn't that loud; these kids are just curious. He shrunk a little at the attention before making his way to our spot. "Good morning!" I greeted, leaning forward to look at him.
Honestly, Shisui's head was just too big.
"Morning, Kabuto." Shisui smiled.
"...good morning." Kabuto replied in a small voice that I almost missed because of how loud the kids are.
It seems like every time I try to talk with Kabuto, he just shy away and answer as needed. I wouldn't even call our relationship as friends, but more like a friends' friend because of Urushi. Sad, I know.
Is he that scared of girls?
Or am I just the first girl he has ever spoken to?
"It's such a coincidence that we're in the same class, huh?" Shisui said.
Kabuto nodded, "It is... I'm glad to be in a class with someone I know."
Hmmm, his words don't seem sincere though.
"Hey, I know you!" the girl who sat in front of us exclaimed, her eyes glowing like a million stars. The markings on her face and those cute round cheeks, an Akimichi. "You're Magic Girl from the fundraiser!"
Not even an hour and I already have a nickname!
"Why, yes! Yes, I am! Have you met my lovely assistant and magician in training, Shisui?" I sat closer to Shisui and placed my arm around his shoulders, pointing at his face. "He's Shisui the Great! And please give a warm welcome to Kabuto too!" I introduced, glancing over to look at him.
"My name's Akimichi Ayu! This sleepy head is Nara Eiji."
Even decades before the main timeline, the Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi bonds are strong! The bonds of clans!
Or just plain traditions lol
Though, I haven't seen a Yamanaka in class yet.
"Just call me Haru." I leaned over the desk and shook her hand.
The door at the front of the class slides open and our teacher came just in time for the bell. He's a fairly large man with a goatee. We met him a year ago and wow, the coincidence is real. Is he in charge of all the first years?
The kids quieted down as we all stood up to greet our teacher.
"Good morning, everyone!"
"Good morning, teacher!" we chorus in unison as we bow.
Daikoku waited until everyone was seated before he begins the class. "My name is Funeno Daikoku and you may call me Daikoku-sensei. I'll look forward to teaching all of you!" he said jovially, a smile across his features. I glanced around and everyone seem to enjoy their first day of class—even Shisui who was easily bored. "How about we start by introducing ourselves? I'll start!"
I learned Daikoku's hobby is cooking and he likes reading a book. I also learned 90% of my classmates want to continue their career as a shinobi.
Kabuto stood up from his seat and he looked down when all eyes fell on him. "My name is Yakushi Kabuto... I like reading and my future dream is to become an iryo-nin. It's nice to meet all of you." his voice was so small and quiet, that I almost didn't even hear him! Lastly, he gave a bow before sitting down.
Everyone clapped.
Next is Shisui.
Shisui was confident. He is a confident little kid. With the famous Uchiha charm, he said, "I'm Uchiha Shisui! I like to learn new things and Haruka's magic." when he mentioned my name, I gave him a grin and a peace sign. He smiled in return before turning to look at the class. "My dream, I want to bring peace and stop the fighting. I want to be a great shinobi. That's all and I look forward to work with all of you!" he sat back down and I gave him a thumbs up.
Our classmates clapped—louder this time, especially the girls.
Oho! Fangirls! Shisui, I'm so proud of you!
They saved the best for last!
Next is me!
I stood up and cleared my throat. "Ladies and gentlemen! I'm Magician Extraordinaire, Fujino Haruka! But you can call me Haru for short." I winked and pointed finger guns at Ayu and Eiji—to which the former replied with a giggle while the latter gave an eyeroll. "I like a lot of things and I have a lot of hobbies! But my dream, I want to be a magician and tour around the nations to perform magic!" I pulled a flower from thin air.
Most kids looked impressed—the rest? They look somewhat annoyed.
Oh well, haters will be haters!
"It's a pleasure to meet you all!" I gave a bow and they clapped. I leaned over the table and gave the flower to Ayu since she's the only one besides Shisui who appreciates the presence of a great magician.
"Very good everyone! You all have wonderful dreams and I'm certain with hard-work and dedication, you can achieve all your dreams." Daikoku said and he raised a green book with the village's symbol on the cover. "Let's start today's lesson. Does everyone have their ninja handbook?"
The lesson began.
It was normal.
I expected Daikoku teaching us how to do chakra control on our first day, but nope!
We learned math and geography instead.
It was fun.
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It fell into a routine.
I wake up at seven in the morning. Get ready. Shisui comes around seven thirty; he sometimes joined us for breakfast too. Then, we walk to the Academy together. We start classes at 8 AM and it ends at 3 PM. We do homework and train. Eat dinner, take a bath and went to bed by 10 PM.
Repeat.
It's been like this for the past month.
One thing I noticed is how Daikoku always start the class with a short lecture of the Will of Fire. The ninja rules and loyalty to the village. The beliefs were drilled into their minds and eventually... that 90% turned to 98%.
The power of influencers and peer pressure, fellas!
"I wonder when we will start doing ninja stuff..." Shisui sighed, shoving his hands inside his pockets. "We've been doing very basic stuff. We haven't even touched the topic of chakra!" he complained.
I moved my finger. "Tsk, tsk! Patience is the key, Shisui! All good things come to those who waits!" I keep on reminding Shisui to be patient, but kids being kids, they just want to do something exciting other than studying math.
I don't mind the boring studies. I was acing every subject! Well, only because I'm mentally older. I'm currently number one in class with Shisui in second and Hyuuga Jiro in third. I learned, Jiro doesn't like me or Shisui. He saw me as a joke and someone he has to beat.
It's all friendly competition before taijutsu classes start.
I need to buff up so I don't embarrass myself in front of the whole class!
I gotta keep that reputation, ya know?
"We just might study chakra next class!" I exclaimed, giving a wink. I glanced around and motioned my hand for him to come closer. He lend me his ear. "I got a scoop that we're having special guests today!" I grinned, telling him the little secret.
Shisui gave me a suspicious look. "What special guests?"
"I guess you would just have to find out later~"
Basically, I got it from someone who couldn't keep their excitement to themselves.
He gave me a pout and we continued on our way to the Academy.
Daikoku was already inside the classroom, standing behind the podium when we entered the classroom.
"Morning, Kabuto!" I greeted with a big smile.
Kabuto... Kabuto is well... Kabuto.
Even though we sat at the same table, he rarely talks. He never talks. If he talks, he talks to Shisui. We don't eat together and we don't walk home together. He always went home first, but he did bid us farewell every time class ended. So, I guess that's not rude? We don't have that many group assignments either.
Did something happen at the orphanage? Did Danzo put his nose into something he isn't supposed to?
I thought I stopped him from using the orphanage as his ticket. Stubborn old man.
One thing's for sure: Kabuto is hiding something.
His eyes, his gesture, his words
His smile.
I can see it all.
He needs to improve his acting skills.
"Good morning class!"
We gave a chorus of good morning as well.
"We'll be covering something different today." there was a lot of murmurs and the Nara couldn't care less. Shisui exchanged looks with me and I just motioned my head for him to look forward and pay attention to the teacher. "We'll be learning about chakra."
Cue the class going wild. You can feel the excitement through the air.
I'm excited to learn as well.
Not because I wanted to use fancy jutsus, but for disguise purposes.
I love using disguises. I love acting.
The transformation jutsu has nothing on my disguise skills. Though there are many cons to disguising from scratch. Like, I have to buy the materials to make the masks, contact lenses, wigs and all that, but that's the fun of it! What fun would it be if it's just instant?
There's one problem though. Chakra.
Yes, chakra.
Everyone has a different chakra signature that makes them distinguishable and unique. If I learn to use chakra, would I be able to disguise my chakra perfectly without any of the cheaters—aka the shinobi, cough Uchihas and Hyuugas cough—noticing? Would suppressing it be enough? Can I mimic someone else's chakra signature?
Questions, questions~
"Can anyone tell me what chakra is?"
"Chakra is a combination of two energies: physical energy and spiritual energy. It's produced within the chakra coils and the energy circulates through the body in a network called the chakra pathway system."
Oh, Hyuuga, you're such a show-off! Even more than Shisui and me combined!
"Thank you, Jiro-kun. Splendid job on explaining it!" Daikoku praised. He turned to look at the whole class. "Chakra was originated from Otsutsuki Hagoromo, also known as the Sage of Six Paths—"
Looks like not all history books are accurate.
"We'll be having classes outside today. So, let's all head on over to the training field!"
In ten minutes, all three classes were gathered in the field.
We were told to sit on the ground.
"For today, we have special guests who will help us train." Daikoku and two other teachers stood at the front. I could hear the murmurs and gasps from the kids when our special guests arrived. "Everyone, this is Namikaze Minato, Akimichi Chouza, and Nara Shikaku. They're here with their team to give a special lecture and later instruct all of you in your chakra training."
I wanted to clap my hands at their tactic.
They're using famous shinobi to get the kids' interest.
To be honest, I'm listening.
Minato was the one who gave the special lecture; it was about how chakra works. He gave tips and use simple words for us to understand. He really is a good teacher. Those tips were useful, but we won't know until we try it.
After the lecture, we were told to form a group of six to seven and one of the chuunin would join us and help us with the leaf concentration practice before moving onto the next practice.
Shisui, Kabuto, Ayu, Eiji, Tama (another classmate of ours), and I formed a squad. Our instructor for the practice...
Dun dun dunnnnn!
It's Rin!
I honestly thought it would be Kakashi since he seems to always want to mess with me, but looks like lady luck is on my side! I feel sorry for the group who got Kakashi as their instructor. Good luck, fellas!
"My name is Nohara Rin and I'll be your instructor!" Rin introduced happily and we greeted her with equal enthusiasm—in Kabuto's case, as enthusiastic as a shy boy can be lol. "Before we start, how about you introduce yourselves?" she asked.
I just realized. Was this practice for them also? They're chuunin and someday, they might lead a team of their own. I can tell Rin's going to be a great instructor in the future. I just have to stop the Kiri-nins from kidnapping her.
"Let's all find some leaves and we can begin."
Off we go to hunt leaves!
Most of the kids went under the tree to look for fallen leaves.
I suggested cards instead, but a card is heavier than a leaf so my idea was rejected.
"I got a lot!" Shisui exclaimed as he gave me a few of the leaves he has.
"Thanks!"
Rin couldn't stop smiling. You can feel the joy radiating from her smile. "Now, before we get into the training, I want all of you to relax and focus on your chakra." she instructed and we all sat down crossed legged. Unlike Shisui, I never tried using chakra. So, this was all pretty new for me. "Form the ram seal and concentrate."
I'm not sure how to summon it or activate it or concentrate it to some part of my body.
I don't know how they feel like either. So, I'm not sure if the ticklish feeling on my stomach is chakra or not.
I think it is.
It feels weird. It feels like you have a hot-pack placed on your stomach.
"That's great, guys!" Rin clapped her hands, praising us. "Now place the leaf on your forehead and concentrate your chakra to that one point. Try to keep the leaf stick to your forehead as long as you can!"
"You're a natural at this, Kabuto-kun!" Rin said and Kabuto's cheeks flushed bright red at the compliment. Kabuto and Shisui has an amazing chakra control from what I know and observe. They're geniuses, so of course they're going to ace this.
I blew the leaf that fell from my forehead.
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It was strange.
Everyone, including Shikaku thought she was a prodigy with the way she thinks and her flawless performance, but her chakra control was a mess. Tadashi did mention that he never taught her about chakra since she wasn't interested.
At first, he thought she wasn't a sensor type since she seemed fine when they brought her to talk with the Hokage. There were more than just seven people in the room that day. They purposefully left their chakra unmasked to see if they could get a reaction out of her.
They didn't get the reaction they wanted until Jiraiya and Orochimaru confirmed she knew about the others' presences. What's more amazing that she could tell Jiraiya and Orochimaru's chakra signature apart.
The mask she put on was the best he has ever seen.
Perfect for an infiltration mission. A future master spy.
And Shikaku agrees.
But never would he force the girl to do something she doesn't want to do.
Hiruzen is a smart man. He didn't realize it right away, but as he think more and more, he finally noticed the metaphor Haruka used. No one besides the Hokage and Shikaku noticed the hidden meaning behind the harmless trick. It honestly made the Hokage think twice about making his decisions because she was right. How did she know? Was it that obvious? How did a three year old notice it?
Shikaku raised an eyebrow when one of Rin's teammates came to their group.
"Pssst! Rin, can you help me explain to this one brat that it's not how it works? I've been telling him for the past ten minutes and he won't listen!" Obito whispered, though Shikaku can perfectly hear him. "Minato-sensei is busy with Kakashi's group since Kakashi's being a total ass to the kids." he added the extra info.
'Ah kids...'
"Let's take a break." Rin announced and Haruka immediately threw herself backwards to lay on the ground. "I'll be right back. I apologize, Shikaku-sensei!"
Shikaku waved his hand, saying that it's fine.
"Ughhhhhh, chakra control is hard!" Haruka sighed, picking the leaf off from her forehead. "Should I just chant forehead, forehead, forehead?"
Shisui snorted. "That's—"
"Foreheadforeheadforeheadforeheadforeheadforehead—"
Shikaku crouched down beside her.
"You're channeling too much and with your current control you're spreading it unevenly." He had been observing Rin's group for quite a while and the redhead's chakra was getting to him. Unlike her classmates, her chakra was weird. Maybe it was the way she was channeling it, but overall something didn't seem right. It just felt weird. "Try focusing on your forehead rather than your whole face."
"I've been focusing on my face the whole time?!" Haruka shouted in disbelief and Shikaku gave a nod. "Shisui! Throw the leaves at my face!"
Shisui laughed, "I don't think that's how it works."
"Just do it!"
And the boy did.
He dumped all of the leaves he collected on Haruka's face. Her group laughed when she sat up and the leaves were sticking all over her face.
'The jokester, hmm?'
Shikaku couldn't help but smile at the girl's attempt to make her friend laugh. Tama who has a civilian background was having a hard time controlling her chakra as well. Haruka specifically did it to make the girl laugh and try to lessen the pressure she was under.
The Nara blinked.
Haruka managed to make all of those leaves stick on her face and not a single leaf fell when she moved around. The practice's goal was to keep one leaf stick as long as possible, but she had a face-full of leaves.
To be honest, he doesn't really know if she did it on purpose or not.
It was hard to tell.
"Alright, alright, back to practice." Shikaku placed his hand on top of Haruka's head, stopping her from making a complete fool out of herself. He noticed everyone was staring at her group.
Haruka shook all of the leaves off from her face and flipped her hair dramatically, looking at Shikaku with a big grin and a flower between her teeth. "Thank you, kind sir, for helping me escape from the swamp monster." she was being goofy again.
Shikaku gave a deadpan look as he took the offered flower. "Would the magician kindly go back to training?"
"She would!"
Shikaku left the group when Rin returned.
The leaf concentration training resumed.
How troublesome.
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Class ended and honestly, I'm exhausted.
The leaf practice, shuriken practice, and the exercises tired me out. Team Minato, Team Chouza, and Team Shikaku stuck around for the whole day. We literally did everything outside today. It was like those sport festivals I always seen on tv. Academically, I might be the number one in class, but for P.E. stuff? Psshhh! Maybe around... 15?
Shisui placed top on everything we did today and Daikoku was pleased with the results.
To my dismay, we'll start doing taijutsu classes tomorrow. Oh, the joy.
I slumped into my seat.
"What's gotten into you?" Shisui asked as he packed all of his stuff into his bag.
"Oh, just something-something-something." I mumbled, puckering my lips out to a pout.
Most of our classmates have already left, including Kabuto. Lately, there's been a lot that going inside my mind and Kabuto is one of them. It's May now—we're just a year and a few months away from the Kannabi bridge mission. I was thinking of telling them the truth, but would they believe me? 70% I guarantee they won't believe me. Mostly because of Kakashi.
"Something-something-something?" Shisui parroted with an eyebrow raised at my choice of words. "What's the something about?" he air quoted before taking a seat beside me.
I hummed. "Oh, a lot of things, but don't worry about it. After some thought and practice, I can do it."
Shisui blinked. "Are you talking about today's chakra control? I thought you were doing great!" he grinned, giving words of encouragement.
Oh shucks!
"A-hyuck!"
"But seriously, I know you don't practice chakra control at all and I bet this was your first-time using chakra. Trust me, you did great." Shisui repeated the same words twice. Four years old and he already knows how to flatter someone. No wonder the number of fangirls seem to increase these past few days. I taught you too well. "I can teach you if you want! You always teach me your tricks. Lemme teach you too!"
Oh, Shisui! You're too sweet!
"Thanks! While you're at it, teach me taijutsu too?" I clapped my hands together and hoped that he will at least teach me the basics.
He grinned. "Yeah! But remember, I won't be going easy on you!"
"Eh?! At least go easy on me for the first few lessons!"
We both laughed.
The door slides open. "Oh, why are you two still doing here?" we both turn to look at the person who just entered the classroom. It was Daikoku himself. He smiled at us as he walked closer, closing the distance between us.
"Haruka and I were just talking about today's training!" Shisui admitted truthfully.
"Oh! What did the two of you think of it? Were the teams helpful?" Daikoku asked as he stood beside our table.
"Definitely! Rin-neesan is really good at explaining things!" I answered as I made the ram seal. "I really like these kinds of lessons and I really hope we can do it again sometime!"
Daikoku laughed. "I'm glad you liked it, Haruka-kun."
Shisui agreed with my opinion. "Yeah, I enjoyed the outdoor lessons too! It's kinda a change of pace from the normal classroom." he gave a sheepish smile as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"What about you, sensei?" I asked, propping my chin up with my hand. Daikoku turned to look at me with a slightly confused look. "How does it feel like to be the class favorite, eh, Minato-sensei?" I grinned widely when I caught him by surprise.
"Minato... sensei?" Shisui raised an eyebrow. Of course, he's confused. To him, Daikoku is standing right in front of us. But to me, it's Minato—no matter how perfect his transformation is.
Daikoku smiled. "That quick?" he released the jutsu and in a puff of smoke, the Minato we all know and love appeared in Daikoku's place. He stood there with a smile on his face and I could hear Shisui's jaw dropped to the floor. "I knew you were a sensory type, but I never expected you to figure me out so quickly." he took a seat beside Shisui, Kabuto's regular seat.
"EHHHH?! You're a sensor type?" Shisui turned to look at me with a surprised look.
I shrugged. "I dunno." I admitted. I don't know how chakra sensory works, but it wasn't because of chakra that I knew it was Minato.
Minato seem to be confused when I said that I didn't know. "How did you know I wasn't the real Daikoku-sensei then? I was sure I imitated his speech and appearance perfectly." he hummed in thought, placing a hand on his chin.
I raised my fingers and poked my cheeks a few times. "When Daikoku-sensei smiles, he has dimples! Minato-san's transformation was perfect, but it was the dimples that gave it away." I explained and he seemed surprised that I knew such small details of our homeroom teacher.
"Oh, really? I never realized since Daikoku-sensei smiles a lot..." Shisui crossed his arms as he began to think, probably trying to remember Daikoku's smile.
"But anyway, what are you doing here, Minato-san?" I asked curiously. Did he seriously come here to find our if I can see through his transformation or not?
"I honestly was just taking a walk down memory lane and I happen to hear the two of you." Minato admitted. Awwww—he's reminiscing his time as an Academy student! I always think his love for Kushina is one of the cutest things in the anime. Like the way Minato look at Kushina is goals. "So, I decided to test you two out a little."
Hmmm
Oh! Since we're in the topic of transformation jutsu...
"Minato-san? There's something I want to ask." I sat sideways to look at Minato, cuz this time, Shisui's big head isn't blocking the view. Both of them turned to look at me at the same time, waiting for me to ask the question.
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"It's about chakra."
Minato blinked, staring at the redhead with a confused look.
Haruka was an odd one.
The young girl is smarter than many and is very perceptive of the people and surroundings around her. She loves performing in front of large audiences and is very level-headed in many situations. She continue to encourage and support Shisui even though she doesn't want to pursue the shinobi career, but never, never he has ever seen or heard her interested in shinobi related things.
"Yes?"
"Chakra is something that everyone has, right?" Haruka began, her cute four-year old face scrunched up in thought. "And everyone has a different chakra signature, right?"
Minato hummed.
"If we have different chakra signatures, then what's the point of using the transformation jutsu? No matter how perfect it is, won't we just be found out once they notice the chakra signature is different?"
…that was a good question.
"That's true... but most shinobi suppressed their chakras for them not to get noticed. So, they probably won't notice the difference, right?" Shisui added, turning to look at Minato for confirmation.
Haruka stroked her chin, "That's a bit dangerous, right? Very suspicious when they can't sense your chakra at all."
Minato chuckled at the small debate. "It's a good question. Outside of the village, shinobi suppressed their chakras and in times like this, it's definitely a skill required in order to survive." the two kids were smart to even think about it. Most people just go along with it without question, but now that it was brought up, it was a good chance for him to explain. "The transformation justsu is used to copy other's physical traits, but it doesn't necessarily mean you copy the person's chakra signature."
Both Shisui and Haruka listened to him carefully.
"It's just like you said, everyone has a different and specific chakra signature. The standard, a shinobi usually mask 2/3 of their chakra reserve during missions. One can completely suppress their chakra, but they can't perform other jutsus while doing this."
Minato turned to look at the girl. "Haruka, you seemed to be a sensor type with the way you're able to sense Jiraiya-sensei and Orochimaru-sama during the meeting with the Hokage. At that time, we didn't know you were able to sense chakras because you didn't act differently."
The little redhead grinned widely. "I'm just really good at hiding it!"
"So, with all of this, is it possible to mimic another's chakra signature?" Haruka asked again.
Mimic?
Minato has never heard of it.
"I never heard of such thing... I suppose it's impossible to mimic another's chakra signature since there's too many, but as close as a mimic can be, family members or people from the same clan tend to have a similar chakra signature."
Why asked such a question?
"That's actually interesting! I think tou-chan and I have similar chakra signatures!"
Haruka grinned. "I was just curious! I'm trying to prove something."
Prove what?
"I want to try a technique that's much more perfect than the transformation jutsu!"
He smiled, standing up to guide the children out of the school and escort them back home. "Well, good luck, Haru-chan!"
The Yellow Flash looks forward to it.
A/N: I'm just typing things up that comes into my head during the debate between Minato, Shisui, and Haruka. It's something that I'm curious too and decided to explore more about Chakra signatures. If anyone has someone to add or correct, feel free to do so! I would love to hear all of your theories!