—

Chapter Ten

Genin Arc

—

What is strength?

I held my Leaf headband in my hands, the metal plate, although light, felt heavy with a certain significance of wearing it. I was now officially a Leaf kunoichi. My allegiance was tied to the Leaf, whether I liked it or not.

The silver gleamed at me, new and polished.

"Congratulations on becoming a Genin." Koyama-sensei droned, behind his desk.

"Thank you very much." I bowed my head.

Three years had flown by without me noticing.

The aftermath of the Uchiha Incident had flitted away in the breeze, unnoticed. The oppressive atmosphere around the Clan had dwindled, placated, when Fugaku Uchiha suddenly started singing a different tune and the dissenters quietly herded into jail when they protested against the new regime. Those that never wanted conflict had been visibly relieved, they went about their days with a new perspective, mingling outside of the clan more often than not.

Tamed, wasn't the word I would use to describe what happened to the bubbling tension that they previously held. It had been completely erased, their priorities shifting and their personalities becoming more accepting, discarding the pride that ruled their actions.

They were still the same, of course, but no longer did their eyes hold that begrudging dissonance and dissatisfaction. The Uchiha seemed… happier. In a way. More content about their situation.

Would that last?

I had only wished, during my recovery, that I could have done more. I felt like a scapegoat for their guilt; that they held my actions in such high regard because there was no other explanation.

For that, they were still the same, in a way; they refused to admit their pride was their downfall and used my family's interference as a solution rather than have changed their ways.

Only now, it felt as if they realised that there was nothing they could do about their situation and embraced it.

It was strange.

Maybe I was being paranoid, or obsessive, about my role and their intentions. But, after discovering what Danzō had been planning to do and my subsequent torture, I had a hard time trusting people or just believing things are how as they looked.

So, I trained to take my mind off it.

I woke up before the sun. I ran laps around the entire village and practiced taijutsu and kenjutsu forms until my palms bled and my muscles shook. I short-circuited my brain learning new sealing arrays, and practiced my ninjutsu and chakra control until I collapsed, waking up either at home or in the hospital the next day. Then, I would repeat.

My life revolved around getting stronger.

But, really, what is strength?

I wondered.

There was a small celebration for my promotion from Academy Student to Genin. Even Itachi, Shisui and Sasuke stopped by, congratulating me cordially.

I sparred with Itachi whenever he was available in the village, honouring our earlier agreement to spar after the spectacle that was our first fight. He still beat me, but I was satisfied with my progress regardless. He was a good measuring stick.

Shisui was harder to pin down, he was like a leaf in the breeze, unable to be caught unless he wanted to be. He liked to watch our spars, giving me tips, but never joined in, and he would sometimes disappear the moment we finished.

Sasuke and Naruto got along like oil and water. I had honestly never seen so much dislike and yet grudging respect. I wouldn't say they hated each other (I wouldn't be surprised if they did, to be honest), more like they tolerated the other's existence as a necessary evil.

I cracked my finger joints, lost in thought.

My hands have been feeling achingly numb, recently. It didn't hinder me in my training, but it was something I worried about in the back of my mind.

I loved my hands. I wouldn't be able to do anything without them. So, I stood up and dug out an ice pack from the freezer, shoving my fingers into the small hole, cubes of ice scratching my skin red. It was nice.

"Hand pains?" Mum asked, looking concerned.

"A little. I got it." I replied with a shrug.

"Don't forget your team assignments tomorrow."

"My sister is cooler than your brother!" Naruto exclaimed, beginning a continuing argument they've had for years.

"My brother is cooler!" Sasuke stated.

"Should we stop them?" I motioned towards the bickering pair, wearily amused. It was cute the first couple of times, but now…

Mum smirked. "No, let them. They'll just miss out on the food."

"Nice." I smiled slyly.

Their little, horrified faces made me throw my head back and laugh when they realised half the food was almost gone.

The next day was the team assignments.

It felt awkwardly weird sitting amongst the graduating class that I had long ago 'abandoned' for training with Yamato-sensei, under the Hokage's orders. Though, after the Uchiha Incident, I had been given the option to either go back to the Academy or stay with Yamato-sensei. Since I wasn't keen on interacting with any of my peers, I obviously picked the latter.

I felt eyes lingering on me as I sat as far away as I could from everyone else.

"Listen up, maggots." Koyama-sensei barked. "I'm going to be calling out your names and which team you belong to, so pay attention because I'm not repeating myself."

Yeesh, since when did Koyama-sensei become a hard-ass?

"Team One…"

I zoned out, waiting for my name to be called.

"Team Five: Niko Hibari…"

I looked up.

"... Yuji Uchiha…"

A black-haired, ebony-eyed boy snorted awake from his nap after being smacked in the back by his deskmate.

"... and Neji Hyūga. Your Jónin sensei is Shisui Uchiha. Team Six…"

My lips lifted into a grin. It seemed to be my lucky day, getting Shisui as a sensei, one of the few people I put an effort to making a rapport with, since he seemed to be so close to Itachi.

When Koyama-sensei finished, he promptly strolled out of the room with his clipboard, not even saying goodbye.

I stretched and languidly made my way towards my two new teammates. Yuji was eyeing me warily, flickering towards the uchiwa fan on my shirt before he looked away. Neji Hyūga was only slightly shorter than Yuji, expression closed off and hands folded delicately in his lap. He was a good-looking kid, which wasn't surprising since most Hyūga were.

(I got a massive growth spurt that put me a head above most of my classmates and Mum warned me I'd still keep shooting up like a weed.)

"Yo." I greeted, somewhat awkwardly, saluting.

"The prodigal student has returned." Yuji muttered sourly. "Finally have the time to grace everyone else with your presence?"

I kept my mouth shut, not knowing what to say.

"It is the first time I have seen you, Hibari-san." Neji observed, his voice crisp and smooth. "Were you previously a part of this class?"

"Yeah, but I was ahead and ready for an early graduation. Hokage-sama didn't want that so he gave me private tutoring until the graduating year." I said off-handedly, omitting most of the details.

"Impressive." Neji sent me a glance, sounding and acting far older than his actual age.

"Even after disappearing for four years you still end up with top scores, how is that even fair?" Yuji grumbled.

"I trained and studied a lot. I literally had no social life." I replied dryly.

Yuji snorted, before catching himself.

"That explains a lot." Shisui said, appearing literally out of nowhere.

My heart flew to my throat as I jumped. Yuji shrieked quietly and Neji quickly stepped back, going into an attacking stance.

"By Hashirama's left tit." Yuji sighed in relief when he realised it was our sensei.

"Shisui!" I growled.

"Meet me on the roof." He said with a small grin, before flitting away in a barely perceptible blur.

"He abuses the body flicker technique too much." I muttered, making my way there. Yuji and Neji flanked me.

"You are acquainted?" Neji asked, cautiously.

"Yeah. I spar with Itachi sometimes and Shisui gives me tips whenever he's around to watch us." I paused, then elaborated. "To make sure we don't kill ourselves."

"You spar with the Uchiha heir?"

I blinked at his tone, lifting a shoulder. "Sure."

"Impressive." Neji repeated. "Is that why you have the Uchiha's symbol…"

"Ah, that's because of something else. The Clan owed me so…" I trailed off, scratching my burning cheek.

"She's practically a celebrity." Yuji interjected, disgruntled. "I almost want to know why, but it's too much of a hassle. She's considered family of the clan. Right, cousin?" He taunted.

I looked away.

Thankfully, we made it to the rooftop before I could've been pressured to provide more details. Shisui was waiting for us, standing with arms crossed. We formed a semi-circle in front of him, with me in the middle.

"As you all know, my name is Shisui Uchiha." He began warmly. "I'm a kenjutsu and ninjutsu specialist. I like takoyaki and I don't like peanuts. You start, Yuji."

Yuji shuffled his feet. "My name is Yuji Uchiha. I want to be a genjutsu specialist. I like sushi and I don't have anything in particular I dislike."

"My name is Niko Hibari, a pleasure. I'm a kenjutsu specialist, but I also aim to be a Seals Master. I also have the Ice Release bloodline. I like mangoes and fruits; I don't really like meat that much."

"Neji Hyūga, it is good to meet you. I am a taijutsu specialist and I have unlocked my byakugan. I have been pushed to graduate early due to my mastery of the Gentle Fist techniques from the main branch. Please don't underestimate me just because I am a year younger. I don't particularly like or dislike anything."

Very polite. I thought, seeing him bowing at a stiff ninety-degree angle from the waist.

"Am I just surrounded by geniuses?" Yuji bemoaned.

"Says the one who got overall second place in the rankings." I pointed out and he quickly scowled at me.

"And Neji got third place. You're all pretty stacked for a Genin team. I was surprised Hokage-sama let me have you guys, until he told me your specialisation." Shisui mentioned, cupping his chin with a playful grin.

"Our specialisation, sensei?" I asked, when no one else seemed to want to.

Shisui's grin changed into a conniving smirk, tilting his head. "A Gen-Nin-Tai team with the top three rookies? We're an infiltration, assault and capture team. A general, all-around team that can do multiple specialisations: infiltration, tracking, assault, name it and by the time you're Chūnin you'll know how to do it as a team."

"Seduction?" I piped up drolly, blank-faced. Yuji gagged and Neji flushed, huffing.

Shisui pinked and coughed. "Well, okay, anything that's not as convoluted as seduction. Anything else that you won't need to know until you're a lot older."

"Long-term espionage?" Yuji smirked.

"No. Those are only for ninja with a lot more experience and who wouldn't mind cutting all their ties to the village for a couple of years." Shisui sighed tiredly. "Anything else?"

We shared a look between us, before shaking our heads.

"But our team disbands by the time we're Chūnin." Yuji observed, frowning thoughtfully.

"Excellent observation! According to Hokage-sama, the plan is that you three will stay together even after Chūnin, all the way to Jōnin. Leadership roles would alternate between the three of you. Obviously, you'll have the chance to work with others, but the majority of your missions would be taken with only you three, plus support if needed."

"So, basically I'm stuck with these two until I die?" Yuji jerked a thumb to Neji and I.

"Hey." I protested softly.

"Indeed. This is very troublesome. I am unsure how my clan—" Neji started but was cut off.

"Hiashi Hyūga was very accomodating." Shisui said. "He said it would be good for the clan's reputation, that is, if you guys succeed." At that, his smile turned dangerously wicked.

"What brought this on?" I asked, curious. "Having a team like ours?"

Shisui paused, lips pulling down into a considering frown as he looked at each of us one at a time, his eyes lingering on me for much longer than he did the others.

"I'm not really supposed to say…" He replied, somewhat hesitantly. "But well… Niko, you're thought of as a flight risk in your evals."

I… blinked.

What?

I cracked my fingers, heart jerking. "What do you mean?" My voice wobbled subtly and I internally winced.

He looked at me warily, before his gaze slid towards Yuji. "Your report says you have mild to severe anger issues and one count of having had a psychotic break, Yuji."

That kind of explains why he's so confrontational. But, psychotic break? I looked at my new teammate with suspicious eyes.

Yuji snarled, loudly. "Anger issues? And I told the doctor I didn't break down! I just had a lot on my plate, okay?" He shouted, before whirling to me. "Don't look at me like that!"

"Neji, your report says you have a worrying defeatist mentality that would be crippling to your ninja career. Something about fate and being too accepting of loss, which goes with your superiority complex at the same time, being too arrogant and certain of a win against someone 'below your station' as a Hyūga."

Neji flinched, bowing his head while avoiding our eyes.

Shisui clapped his hands. "You all have issues—"

"Wait a damn second!" Yuji interrupted, rudely pointing at me. "Why is she a flight risk?"

I raised my eyebrows, agreeing. "Why am I?"

"After ignoring the doctor's recommendation for therapy after the incident and then proceeding to lie to your former sensei about going to said therapy?" Shisui tilted his head at me challengingly while heat crawled up my cheeks.

"Well, you're severely antisocial for your age and apathetic about most things, suggesting mild depression. You have psychological trauma, signified by cracking your fingers. You also have no enthusiasm about being a kunoichi of the Leaf, despite your excellence — you're a wild card and even the psychiatrist said in your report that they have no idea how you'll end up."

"I'm not telling you this to air up your dirty secrets or humiliate you." Shisui said after a moment of heavy silence.

"Really?" Yuji snarked sullenly.

"You asked me why Hokage-sama put the three of you together." Shisui reminded us. "He believes that the three of you can help each other out, based on your personalities and issues. If you were all functioning without such serious risks, you all would've been placed in different teams to advance your current specialisations. As it is, you're put under the general, jack-of-all-trades team to support your strengths and improve on all ninja skills so you can all work together."

Placing broken children together, hoping they'd heal each other? I doubted it completely. Hokage-sama probably went senile in his age while making up the teams. I casted wavering glances at Neji and Yuji, frowning.

It wasn't like I didn't want to get better (I didn't think anything was wrong at all), but I couldn't just believe that this was the best solution for all of us.

I crossed my arms a little defiantly.

"You didn't have to tell us our reports." I muttered.

"Would you ever tell them yourself? Would any of you?"

We were silent, our lips glued shut by volition of our own problems and the shared belief that our problems were our own. That we didn't need to worry about it, as long as it didn't affect our careers.

Well, as Shisui pointed out, we let that spiral so much it probably would, at this point.

Still, as a collective, we refused to answer his question. Shisui smiled sadly, nodding as if confirming something with himself.

"We'll work on it." He promised solemnly.

Then, he told us to meet him at Training Ground Six tomorrow morning at the crack of dawn, before flickering away.

—

"That was surprisingly crude of Shisui-kun." Mum commented, after I told her how my team meeting went. I nodded with a shrug, playing with my food, and pushing it around my plate absently.

"I guess he thought we needed to hear it." I said quietly.

"Still, a little subtlety would be nice. No one likes knowing about their flaws and to have it revealed in front of others."

"Yeah…"

—

I met with my team the next morning, the sky casting a vibrant, orange, and red glow as the sun started to rise in the horizon. Yuji was glowering in the corner and Neji was meditating peacefully. There was at least a few feet of space in between them.

Scratching my cheek, I wondered how in the Hell we were supposed to get along, when we had such staggeringly different personalities and problems of our own. I pursed my lips and looked away, pulling out a blank scroll, brush and ink.

Well, it's not like I can do anything about it.

We sat in silence for what felt like an eternity.

Mum wanted me to hurry up and pick a project in seals to focus and master, but I wasn't sure what to choose. The Space-Time teleportation seal made by the Second Hokage and improved upon by the Fourth Hokage was a tempting challenge to recreate, but that would mean trying to figure out Space-Time theory.

Not to mention, I don't think it would suit my Ice Release… not when it already gave me a technique to travel instantaneously.

Hmmm…

"What's that?" Yuji asked over my shoulder.

My entire body immediately tensed in surprise, not having expected him to be so close.

"So, you weren't lying about your goal to become a Seal Master, huh?"

"Why would I lie about that?" I snorted, forcing myself to relax. "I'm trying to think of a seal project to do. Something that would help my fighting style."

"You got any ideas?"

"Are you interested in seals?"

"Not really." Yuji drawled.

"Then, why ask?"

He reared back, looking slightly offended. "Jeez, if you didn't want to share you could've just said so." He spat, turning away with his shoulders hunched to his ears, vibrating.

I winced, feeling a little lost. I didn't know what I said that was wrong… I just wanted to know if he liked seals enough to want to listen to me talk about it. I didn't expect that negative reaction at all.

I pursed my lips and called out, a little apologetically. "I'm sorry."

Yuji halted, freezing up.

"I just wanted to know why you were asking when you're not even interested in seals." I explained.

He spun back around and walked back to me, hands in his pockets and refusing to meet my eyes. Yuji mumbled something.

"What?"

He breathed in sharply. "I said…" Yuji grimaced. "I was just curious."

"I see." I fell silent, long enough that Yuji started fidgeting in front of me with an awkward look on his face. I smirked and turned back to my work. "I thought about trying to recreate the Flying Thunder God technique by the Fourth Hokage, but it seemed like too much work."

"That's pretty advanced stuff."

"Yeah, but I don't know what else…"

"Would you mind giving me some pointers about seals, Hibari-san?" Neji said abruptly, startling us when he was suddenly standing next to Yuji.

"Just Niko, please. You like seals, Hyūga?" I turned interested eyes towards the youngest member of our team. Neji was as expressionless as ever, but there was a certain, determined fire in his eyes.

"I am interested." He concurred firmly. "Please refer to me as Neji."

"Well, sure." I shrugged, uncomfortable at their staring as I nodded affirmative to both statements.

"Good morning my cute students!" Shisui appeared.

We jumped in fright.

"We're going to be training today, so you all can get used to fighting together." He continued as if he didn't fucking scare us again.

"Do you body flicker in your sleep, too?" I said snidely.

"He probably does in his dreams!" Yuji added with an impish smile.

"When he wakes up to go to the toilet." Neji finished with a grave nod.

"So uncute…" Shisui lamented. "Why did I get the mean ones, Hokage-sama?" He looked to the sky.

We snickered.

"Maa, this will make our training even better… for me, at least." Shisui declared ominously, wearing an evil expression as he bent over and slapped his hands over Yuji and Neji's heads, ruffling their hair since I was in the middle.

"I want you three to come at me with the intent to kill… and capture Shisui of the Body Flicker."

—

I barrel-rolled in the air, skidding in a crouch on the ground, my shoes creating a long skid mark as it sank into the soil.

The air was still and quiet.

I looked around, seeing nothing but trees and shadows. My chakra sense flared around me, but I couldn't sense him anywhere. The soil was cool and chilly under my fingers.

The temperature warmed around me, the air becoming damp and humid. There was a blazing, roar growing louder and louder, coming towards me.

I channelled chakra through my legs and flickered away as a gigantic ball of fire sailed past where I used to be, erupting into a marvelous explosion. The heat seared my face, even though I was far enough not to get hit, as a wave of blistering hot air whooshed past.

"All we've done is run." Yuji informed, sounding a little angry, flickering next to me on the branch of a tree.

"I cannot hit him with my Gentle Fist. He is very slippery." Neji agreed, disgruntled, as he appeared on my other side.

"We're gonna have to work together, then." I concluded, straightening my back. "Can you see him, Neji?"

Neji held up a hand sign and turned his byakugan on. "He is thirty metres away, north-east from us."

I smiled menacingly. "Yuji, would your genjutsu work against someone with a sharingan?"

"Ah, probably?" He replied uncertainly. "I haven't used genjutsu on someone from my clan before. It's worth a shot. If it doesn't work, I'm pretty good with ninja wire."

"When we see him, use your genjutsu. If it doesn't work, I'll trap him with my Ice Release. We'll distract him and Yuji, you'll have to work around us to place a trap with your ninja wires to capture him at your discretion. Agreed?" I looked at the two of them questioningly.

They nodded.

"Alright. Neji, you lead us."

"Roger." He took point and we started running.

Shisui appeared in front of us, wielding a short blade. His red eyes surveyed us surrounding him, cracking a grin. "Oh ho?" He chuckled. "Well, this is interesting."

"Yuji!" I called out.

"Demonic Illusion."

Shisui stumbled, clutching his head. I tensed, ready to pounce, but before we could move, he shook his head and shot us a playful grin.

"Nice try."

I clicked my tongue. "Ice Style: Frozen Hell Hands." I flung my chakra out towards him, aiming for his legs.

Ice in the shape of hands burst out from the ground in a rain of dirt and rocks, gripping Shisui's ankles. Neji took the cue and leaped, hands glowing blue as he aimed for Shisui's temple for a quick knock-out.

Shisui grinned wider, his cheeks puffed as he leaned back and breathed a tail of flaming hot fire from his lips, melting through my chakra ice and using his newfound freedom to leap backwards.

Before he could flicker away, I blurred in front of him, sending a kick to his side and flinging him back down towards my team. Landing next to Neji, we engaged.

Shisui leaped, blocked and twirled over our fists and legs, looking completely at ease with the situation as he redirected Neji's palms and blocked my kicks.

Yuji appeared above him, his leg out in a downwards crescent kick aimed at his head.

Neji leaped for his chest, palms out.

I crouched down and performed a leg sweep.

"Brilliant plan!" Shisui yelled, side-stepping Yuji, grabbing Neji's wrist and jumping over my legs in one swift movement. He flung Neji away and bent his knees close to his chest. Before I knew it, the soles of his shoes were in my face, followed by blinding pain.

I shot back, rolling away. I opened my eyes and covered my nose, which flared painfully, while blood trickled past my fingers.

"That's all you got?" Shisui taunted, a hand on his hip.

Yuji groaned. "The Hell?"

"Yuji?" I prompted, quickly standing.

"Yeah, I got it." He smirked at me with bloodied teeth, his hands clutching something tightly. Yuji reared back and pulled.

The sound of zipping wires filled the air and Shisui yelped in surprise. Ninja wires tied his limbs close to his body, digging deeply into his skin as he shot us a wide-eyed stare.

"Nice." I complimented.

"Why, thank you." Yuji laughed evilly. "Now, we finally have you, sensei. Doesn't that mean we win?"

Shisui fell silent.

"... Sensei?" Yuji questioned.

With a burst of chakra, Shisui flickered out of the wires.

In a blink, he appeared behind us, the sharp edge of his sword pressing heavily against our necks as well as the kunai he held in his other hand. I gulped, feeling my neck contract and the blade press tighter against my skin.

The air was tense.

For a brief, scary moment, I wondered if he'd take this chance to slit our throats.

Then, he backed off, and there was suddenly enough room to breathe and we collectively collapsed on our asses, looking back and up at Shisui's proud smile.

"There is no certain victory until you or your opponent is dead, or if they've verbally surrendered and are unarmed or incapacitated. And even then, there are no guarantees." He said with a lightly scolding tone of voice.

We wilted like puppies being told off.

Shisui's face brightened after a moment, looking down on us.

"That being said, you guys actually managed to capture me for a little bit. Well done! You pass my little test; you've shown me you're all capable of working together."

I slumped over in relief, internally thankful that we're finally done.

"So, this is what happens when you put the top three students together." Shisui mused, light-heartedly. "You're all little monsters, aren't ya? Ah, I'm so happy Hokage-sama sent me such reasonable little students who know how to work together. Ah, you're all so smart…"

He started to weirdly wriggle about, wearing a stupid look on his face as he stared off into the distance with a lazy grin.

I blinked and scooted away, my teammates following me quickly.

"Weird." I stated.

"Disturbing." Yuji agreed.

Neji hummed, looking away.

Shisui's face dropped, crocodile tears dripping down his face. "So uncute…"

I leaned back on my hands, looking at my new team with a satisfied smile. Yuji was scowling as usual; his hair being ruffled affectionately by Shisui. Neji was looking away, mildly mortified at being seen with them.

This… This might be strength.

Not having to be alone felt… nice.

—

"So, since my cute little Genin team did so well, we're going to grab some dinner!" Shisui declared, looking pleased with himself for giving such a good idea.

"I'm ill." I lied with a straight face. "I can't make it, Shisui-sensei."

"Same." Yuji said blankly.

Shisui smacked the back of our heads simultaneously. Tears pricked the corners of my eyes as I held my head dearly, looking accusingly at his unrepentant expression.

"Little liars don't get free meals." He threatened.

"Fine…" We chorused, a little grudgingly.

We made our way out of the messed-up training grounds and through the village, following Shisui like little ducklings. A couple of civilians eyed us speculatively, some even cooing. I hid my face deeper into my shirt's high collar, Yuji doing the same while Neji started trailing behind us reluctantly, looking ready to bolt if presented a chance.

Unsurprisingly, I had taken to dressing similarly to most members of the Uchiha Clan, mainly because my taste in clothing was similar to theirs, a smaller part wanting to honour their declaration in making us honorary clan members. I had taken to wearing sleeveless, dark-coloured shirts with a high collar that reached the bottom of my chin and cream-coloured trousers, tied at the bottom with bandages to stop it from getting in the way. With the uchiwa fan on my breast and my dark hair, I had often been mistaken for an actual Uchiha, until people saw my green eyes.

Shisui took us to Yakiniku Q and we sat in a booth in the corner, Neji sitting beside me while Shisui and Yuji sat across from us. The waiter presented us with a menu, smiling welcomingly.

"Welcome, we hope you enjoy your stay." He said warmly.

"So, tell me what you guys like doing in your spare time." Shisui said, after the waiter took our orders. "We're here to get to know each other better."

I clamped my mouth shut, eyeing my teammates.

They wore similar, closed-off expressions.

Really, Shisui couldn't have picked a better team of misfits.

I sighed and said, extremely reluctantly. "I don't have any hobbies, Shisui-sensei. I've spent most of my time training or studying seals. What do people even do for fun?"

"Well, stuff like gardening or sewing…" Shisui trailed off, awkwardly.

"I make seals…"

"Yuji? Neji?" Shisui looked at them desperately.

"Training." Neji said bluntly.

Yuji shrugged, lips pursed.

"Right… Well, I like to read comics in my free time." Shisui rubbed his neck, cheeks pink, then said extremely quietly. "Romantic ones…"

Troubled, I averted my eyes to the ceiling in thought. Truly, I hadn't thought about trying to find 'fun' stuff to do in my free time. Usually, I'd be busy hanging around with Naruto, Mum and the only three members of the Uchiha Clan I could stand, one of them sitting right in front of me. It seemed my teammates were the same, as they looked a little lost on how to reply. The flaws of child geniuses; our entire lives were dedicated to training our asses off.

Thankfully, our food came before we could form a response. The relief was palpable in the air as we dug into the frying meat with fervor.

"Well, your first unofficial assignment by your amazing sensei." Shisui exclaimed, leaning back in his seat. "After team training, I want you three to find a hobby you can enjoy relaxing. Okay?"

"Yes, sensei."

"Good. Now, who wants desserts afterwards?"

AN: this came earlier than I thought. Literally procrastinated to write this instead of studying lmfao i'm so screwed, who needs a career?

Ha ha.