Four months later and it was the day after graduation. Amaya had been juggling her time between Minato, Kushina, med-nin training, and clan training. For some reason, Kushina was against meeting Minato (something about all boys teasing her, even after Minato proved that he wouldn't when a Genin beat her up) and the brunette didn't want to push. So, Kushina and Amaya only hung out outside of school. She knew that she would have to address the issue eventually, though.
Right now, the kids that passed the graduation exam from all the classes were waiting for a Chunin instructor to announce the teams.
"QUIET!" a female voice boomed.
And the chatter ceased.
"Hello everyone, my name is Sachiko Watanabe. Congratulations on passing your graduation exam. From here on out, you all are no longer children learning the way of shinobi, but Genin. As such, you will find yourself with responsibility that you are not used to, and may even find yourself in the middle of the war. You have accomplished great things, and I hope you continue to do so. Once you leave the Academy, please do not forget its lessons. It may just save your life. Now, you will be assigned to squads of three Genin and one Jonin. All of your senseis, including myself, have worked together to make them approximately equal in power. Team One will be..."
Amaya zoned out, playing with her long brown hair, until she heard a name she recognized.
"Team Seven: Namikaze Minato, Hashimoto Hajime, Nara Amaya."
Amaya shot a grin to the blond beside her. When she was taking her test, she had realized that if she wanted to be on Minato's team, she would either have to be top kunoichi or dead last. So, she chose the option with less work.
'Hajime Hashimoto, huh? I think he's that civilian kid with pitch-black hair and those really bright green eyes? He's like, only fifteen points behind Minato as far as class rankings go. I think he transferred to this class two years ago?'
"... Team Nine: Uzumaki Kushina, Uchiha Mikoto, Hayashida Ichiro. Team Ten: Akimichi Chouza, Yamanaka Inoichi, Nara Shikaku. Please wait here until your Jonins come to pick you up. I wish you all the best." Sachiko-sensei smiled and walked out of the room.
"We're on the same team!" Amaya grinned.
"I bet you knew that would happen if you barely passed the exam," Minato sighed, shaking his head.
Amaya rolled her eyes. "Just let me have this. Anyway, wake me up when our sensei gets here?"
"Sure."
The Nara promptly conked out.
"Amaya, get up." she heard Minato whisper as her side was being poked.
"M'up," she sighed, blinking her eyes blearily.
"That's our sensei," Minato said, pointing to a man with long, shaggy, white hair.
She nodded and slouched over to her new sensei, following him to the roof of the Academy.
"So, brats, introduce yourselves." he sighed.
"What do you want us to say?" Hajime asked.
"Age, likes, dislikes, dreams, hobbies, that kind of thing."
"Why don't you go first?" Amaya asked.
"Sure, sure!" he grinned. "I am the Great Toad Sage, Jiraiya of the Sanni–"
"Oh, I know you!" Hajime exclaimed. "You, Lady Tsunade, and Lord Orochimaru were students of Lord Hokage! You took on Hanzo of the Salamander by yourselves a few months ago!"
"Ah, I see you know greatness when you see it! Why don't you go?"
'Tricky old bastard I see...'
Of course, Amaya didn't stop Hajime's introduction, and neither did Minato.
'Well, you revealed a lot anyway. You're the type that fakes being stupid n enthusiastic to hide that intelligence. You like being underestimated, like me. Only, I fake a different way.'
"My name is Hajime Hashimoto! I'm ten-years-old and my birthday is March 28th! I like barbecue, and people that don't judge on appearances– or at least don't act on assumptions. I dislike prejudiced people and spicy foods. My hobbies are training, playing with my younger sister, and helping my dad out at our weapons shop. My dream is to become a respectable shinobi and show people that just because someone doesn't have a clan to back them up doesn't mean that they can't be a strong shinobi!"
"Alright. You, kunoichi, next."
"Name's Amaya Nara. Nine-years-old and turning ten on September 4th. I like people that accept their flaws and work on improving them, people that don't force me to do things when I'm tired, hanging out with Minato over there, and well... the rest you can figure out yourself. I dislike people that view women lesser than men and expect them to always be the medic or support-type, people that act based on their preconceptions, sexist and misogynistic folk, perverts," she looked pointedly at Jiraiya there, "and some other things I can't be bothered to think of. My hobbies are cloud-watching, learning medical ninjutsu, sleeping, and playing with my friends. My dream is to live past the age of sixteen and protect my precious people."
Jiraiya ignored her comment about perverts and turned to Minato. "Blondie, next."
"Hi, I'm Minato Namikaze! I'm ten-years-old, and my birthday was on January the 25th. I like kind, compassionate people that work their hardest to achieve their goals, and I dislike hypocrites. My hobbies include training and hanging out with Amaya. My dream is to become a Hokage respected by all the villagers!"
"Well," Jiraiya grinned, clapping his hands together, "That was helpful to know! But, we're not done yet. If you want me as your sensei, you'll have to work for it! I am the great Ji–"
"Please just get to the point," Amaya groaned.
Her sensei had the nerve to pout.
"Meet me at Training Ground 3." he said before poofing away.
Minato and Hajime stared at the leaves Jiraiya left behind in shock.
Amaya stared at the sky and groaned, already annoyed with her sensei.
"Minato, Hajime-san, hold my hand." she sighed.
"Shouldn't we–" Hajime started.
"I'll get you there faster, don't worry."
They grabbed her hands and she poofed away in a Body-Flicker, appearing in front of Jiraiya with a slouch.
"You know the Body-Flicker?" Minato asked her curiously.
She nodded.
"You really are no fun, you know that?" Jiraiya sighed.
"I want to go home already... Just tell us what this test is."
Jiraiya smiled and pulled out two bells. "Right, the test. All each of you have to do is get one bell. Anyone without a bell will be sent back to the Academy."
Amaya's brows furrowed, her mind going a mile a minute.
'He expects Genins to get something away from him? That's impossi– Oh! I see! He's pitting us against each other. United we stand, divided we fall, and all that jazz. Like the visions! They're all coming true! That means I really did have a life before this one... Then what about Diane and Athena and Justine an– No, focus. Now's not the time Amaya. Teamwork is what he wants. In the rare case he actually sends someone back, I'll volunteer. Unlike those two, I have a clan to fall back on and the hospital to work at.'
Amaya nodded to herself. "Got it. So, are we starting or not?"
"Eager, are we? On the count of three, then. Three... two... one!"
Amaya grabbed the sleeves of the two boys and jumped into the trees.
"What are you doing?!" Hajime whispered furiously. "We have to get them ourselves!"
"You're an idiot if you think any of us are capable of getting the bells by ourselves. Don't you see? We have to work as a team! That's what he wants from us."
"And if he doesn't?" Minato asked softly.
"That won't happen." Amaya said firmly.
'At least, I hope not.'