AN: Apologies for the delay - worked to revise some sections of this chapter before reposting.
Hope you enjoy.
Ch. 2 Graduation
(Day of Graduation)
The remaining years at the ninja academy had pretty much gone by without a hitch, and graduation approached quicker than the blink of an eye. All my skills were improving at a decent pace considering I didn't have any broken powers.
In terms of physical prowess, I was still chasing behind Sasuke and Naruto, having yet to beat either of them in a fight. Naruto was a far tougher opponent than the original story made him out to be, and he more than lived up to his nickname — the Number 1 Most Unpredictable Ninja. In my spars with him, I've only been able to outsmart him for a few seconds at best, before he would turn the tide of the battle. His sheer toughness combined with an utterly unorthodox fighting style was tough to deal with for anyone but the Uchiha, it seems.
Speaking of the Uchiha, my slowly developing relationship with him was… strange, to say the least. The few spars we had at the academy following that incident was pretty one-sided, I had to admit. Having learned his lesson from the first spar, Sasuke was not going to make the same mistake of underestimating me again. And without my surprise tactics or being able to bring him out of his element, I promptly got my ass handed to me repeatedly.
Outside of school, we trained mostly in silence, hardly saying more than 10 words to each other any time we met. Though considering how stoic the Uchiha typically was, getting a greeting from him was a win in my books.
Not that I was surprised or anything, but even for my adult-minded standards, the Uchiha had a hellishly regimented training schedule.
Strength and conditioning in the morning hours followed by a meal… which I was embarrassed to admit – the Uchiha's cooking tasted far better than anything I'd made myself. Weapons training in the afternoon, mainly consisting of kunai and shuriken throwing. And that was followed by chakra training, which on Sasuke's part just meant spitting Fireball Jutsus until he tired out.
I was glad to show him some of the chakra control exercises that I've been practicing on, but of course, being the fucking prodigy that he was, he mastered it in no time. Even the water-walking exercise which had taken me months to get a hold of, he'd gotten it done in a few weeks.
The good thing that came out of the ninjutsu training was that I learned the hand signs for the basic fireball jutsu. And I was pleasantly surprised to learn that my chakra reserves were, in fact, not measly like Sakura… or a typical civilian. While they certainly weren't at Sasuke's level, and definitely not at Naruto's, I was still capable of throwing around 10 fireball jutsus before I felt completely depleted.
Which from what I estimate, is around half, or two-thirds of what Sasuke could do. Even he was mildly shocked when I matched him jutsu for jutsu for the first handful of turns.
Now that I had an elemental jutsu under my belt, I was fully ready to go about increasing my reserves. From the scrolls I managed to get my hands on, chakra training is in some aspects very similar to physical training. The more I work on it, the better I get – similar to muscle strength. Using chakra consistently and forcing the coils to replenish itself was bound to improve my regeneration and stores.
So long as I avoid completely depleting myself, I should begin to see progress in no time. Who knows how long Sasuke had been training his ninjutsu. Since he was 5? I wasn't trying to get into a chakra competition with the Uchiha or anything, I knew that wasn't gonna be a contest I was going to win. And yet, if I stuck to this routine long enough, slowly but surely, I could begin to close the gap.
One thing that I did keep from Sasuke, however, was my sealing abilities, which were progressing at an alarming rate.
After I'd gotten a hang of the basics of fuinjutsu, I'd gone back to the library in hopes of landing some intermediate stuff and was pleasantly surprised to find that the library had everything that I needed. It was almost as if the gods were granting me this one wish in the otherwise cruel reality.
With the newfound information on fuinjutsu, I was able to delve deeper into the theory side and begin learning the most basic storage seals.
It seems there was no time-stopping element to this seal… at least in its basic form. It simply uses a data storage system that reads the atomic structure of the object and stores it as data. The first input of chakra converts the item you wish to seal into a chakra signature, which is then stored within the seal. To unseal the item, a second input of chakra is required to reconstruct the items from the data in the seal.
From what I can understand, that mechanism essentially creates a restriction on both size and complexity of sealable objects with a chakra cost. While I'm still not sure whether there was an upper-bound for the storage seal, for any practical application, I would venture to guess that it limits the items to simple inanimate objects.
I guess that made sense considering I'd only ever seen the storage seal being used for weapons and projectiles… Or dead bodies.
To deconstruct an entity down into chakra data at an atomic level, and then reconstructing it using chakra… it would probably be far too complicated for anything beyond that.
The basic tradeoff of chakra for physical energy dictates the maximum utility of the storage seal. It allows shinobi to carry less weight and have more mobility, but it comes at the cost of chakra should you need to unseal the items.
With how naturally I was picking up Fuinjutsu, I would've almost suspected some Uzumaki genes in my heritage, if not for my dull blond hair. Maybe it was just because of my previous life, but the more complex theory was almost like a stimulant for my academic brain.
As it stands now, I was one of the rising students in the class, just in time for graduation and team placements.
As I said, my fighting skills really only lagged behind Sasuke and Naruto, which means that I'd already surpassed the other clan heirs. Shino was perhaps the only one that could consistently put up a fight against me and can sometimes force a stalemate, but the remaining heirs like Kiba and Choji didn't stand a chance. And don't even get me started on Shikamaru. The kid's laziness really knew no bounds.
And in terms of my chakra levels, I had no doubt they were at the very least on par with the rest of the clan heirs, if not better. None of them were known for exceedingly large reserves, maybe with the exception of the Akimichi. But Choji has yet to really take his training seriously anyway…
All of that probably equated to me landing somewhere in the top 5 in my class. Which was going to make team placements extremely interesting.
I was also positive that Naruto was far from the Dead-last in our class. Whatever deviations this world had from canon — whether it was the absence of antagonistic villagers or what not — Naruto was definitely far stronger than he was at this point in the original story. He certainly passed the graduation test yesterday without a problem. I'm not sure if he'd learned the shadow clone yet, but the academy techniques didn't seem to be a problem for him.
Unless he managed to flunk all the written portions of the test, there was no way in hell of him earning dead last in the class. Not when there were civilian students that were barely gonna scrape by the graduation standards.
Also, was Mizuki's story even a thing that happened in this timeline?
I'd tried to follow Naruto discreetly following the graduation exams, but he was never approached by Mizuki after school. And from Naruto and Iruka's demeanor, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. There wasn't any commotion in the village yesterday from what I could tell, though Mizuki was suspiciously missing from class today.
He never seemed to have interacted with Naruto much. Similar to the villagers, I wasn't sure if he even knew about what Naruto contained within him. I was still willing to bet that Naruto did indeed house the Kyuubi, seeing as any deviation from that plot line should reveal itself clear as day. But overall without the sabotage from the assistant instructor, Naruto had progressed relatively well and was likely right behind Sasuke for Rookie of the Year.
This was actually a rather significant conundrum. If Naruto wasn't deadlast, would he still be placed on the same team as Sasuke? Surely, the Hokage wouldn't put another civilian student on Sasuke's team, would he?
Straddling Sasuke with a useless team might be the only thing to piss him off enough to undo all the good that I've managed to accomplish.
He was far less brooding these days, and had even started to respond to my greetings with a nod. And it wasn't just around me either, but some of the other students as well. Namely Naruto. There was a hint of acknowledgement in his eyes whenever they were paired up, and Naruto, for all his loud brashness, seemed to notice as well.
That's not to say the Uchiha was outgoing or friendly or anything, but compared to his canon self, it was a huge change.
Naruto, you owe me one if Team 7 follows the same placements.
Though, that still leaves me without a team.
Unless I was some once in a generation prodigy like Minato Namikaze, they weren't going to take me seriously with a proper team or jonin instructor. Well… no point in worrying about that now. Everything's been decided already, and we were just waiting for Iruka to announce the teams.
"Alright settle down everyone!" Iruka tried to quiet the class, namely the bickering duo: Ino and Sakura, before motioning everyone back to their seats.
"I want to first off congratulate everyone here for passing the graduation exams." Iruka started as his eyes scanned the length of the room with a small hint of pride. "I hope each and everyone here the best from here on out, and I'll look forward to seeing you progress in your shinobi career."
"Now, with that being said, I'll begin the team announcements." The class leaned forward collectively in anticipation as they waited for their names to be called. I looked around the room — there were exactly 15 graduates this year, accounting for the three original teams of the Rookie 9, that left 2 other teams to be filled, which made me begin to feel a growing sense of dread that that was to be my fate.
"As you may know, genin squads will be paired in groups of three that aim to create not only a well-balanced team, but also synergies that allow them to specialize in certain areas. Each team will also be assigned to a jounin instructor whose task is to teach you the leading principles of our village, and to guide you along your growth as a shinobi. And without further ado…
"Seeing as Teams 1-6 are still in circulation… Team 7, consisting of Naruto Uzumaki… Sakura Haruno… and Sasuke Uchiha, will be under the guidance of Jounin Kakashi Hatake."
Naruto and Sasuke traded a small nod of acknowledgement, while Sakura let out a triumphant cry, much to Ino's dismay.
Well, it seems the politics were still at play here. Though I should've expected that Kakashi would pretty much demand to have Naruto and Sasuke on his squad. I just hope the changes in their attitude will mean this version of Team 7 doesn't end in complete disaster.
Continuing on with the announcements, "Next, Team 8, which consists of Kiba Inuzuka, Hinata Hyuga, and Shino Aburame, will have Jounin Kurenai Yuhi as their instructor."
Well no change there… which really narrows down the options remaining for me.
"Team 9 is still in circulation as well, so Team 10 will consist of Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, and Choji Akimichi. And your jounin instructor will be Asuma Sarutobi."
Welp… There goes that. InoShikaCho was definitely not being split up, not with the clan heads probably pushing for this team anyways…
"Team 11 will consist of Iwazuki Fuhei, Hiroyomi Akaro, and Narika Haruzu. You'll be under the guidance of Genma Shiranui."
No idea who those three were. Don't think I even knew their names before today.
Though wasn't Genma part of the Hokage Guard Platoon? Does he even have time to lead a genin team?... Well I guess he doesn't have to worry about leading that squad… They have about as much chance of passing the genin test as a team of fan-girls. Not to say that they were all useless, but the only thing that stands out from that group was their utter mediocrity.
"And finally for Team 12…" Iruka called out as I accepted my fate. "Todoki Hiro, Noemi Hirataka, and Yuji Mori…"
There was nothing too remarkable with my new teammates. Todoki was maybe slightly above average in the class, but his attitude alone made him impossible to be around. The kid thought that he was some prodigy or something. His parents being successful merchants definitely put a silver spoon up his ass that he demanded all the other civilian students to kiss up to.
And Noemi was… well to be honest, I hardly knew anything about her. Like most girls, she seemed to fangirl a bit over Sasuke, but at least she was on the quieter side compared to Ino or Sakura.
"... Your jounin instructor will be Ibiki Morino."
Now that got my attention.
Of all the jounin in the village, I somehow end up with the most intimidating man possible. The infamous Head of the Intelligence Department, specializing in torture and interrogation.
If he was able to make chunin-hopefuls damn near piss themselves in the exams, who knows what kind of twisted mind games he's going to play on us.
Before I could ponder any further, the door slammed open, and a tall imposing figure entered the room. The man was dressed in a large black trench coat, his face marred by wounds and old scars.
"Team 12!" Even his voice boomed like a drill sergeant. "Training ground 2 in five minute." With one last look at the rest of my team, the bald jounin disappeared in a shunshin, much to the shock of my new teammates.
"E-eh? How are we supposed to—"
I didn't bother to listen to the rest of that as I raced out of the classroom towards the training grounds. 5 minutes gave us just enough time to make it, and I wasn't about to find out what happens when you piss off a man like that.
(Training Ground 2)
"You're late." Ibiki growled menacingly as my two teammates finally jogged into the training ground, far past the 5 minute mark.
With each second of my teammates' tardiness, a new vein seemed to bulge in Ibiki's bald head; his stare boring into my soul as if I was somehow the cause of this. I did my best to stop from fidgeting, but try as I may, I couldn't hide my nervousness in front of this intimidating man.
"I was sure I'd given you plenty of time." The bald jounin threatened. "It seems I underestimated your incompetence."
Noemi, the lone kunoichi on the team gulped as she met the eyes of the imposing figure. "I–I'm sorry sensei. It won't happen again."
Ibiki's eyes scanned over the two late arrivals, unimpressed. Well, this is off to a great start.
"I had planned to conduct the test tomorrow, but seeing as this team can't even follow simple directions, we'll be doing it right now."
"T–test?" Todoki stuttered out with a nervous laugh. "What do you mean sensei? We passed the graduation test already."
"That was just to see if you're ready to graduate from the academy, brat. They said nothing about whether you deserve to be on a genin team — That's for me to decide."
Nothing here was unexpected for me. But really? Not even an introduction or anything? I was hoping to at least have some time to figure out what the test was about.
Studying the jounin as discreetly as I could, my mind came up blank on any ideas.
No bells on his waist… though I doubt anyone but Kakashi was doing the bell test. And Ibiki doesn't seem to be the type to do a simple tracking exercise or some espionage test. No… the man was far more devious than that.
Would it be some kind of mind game like that first stage in the chunin exams?
"Your tests will be conducted individually." Ibiki announced, cutting off any further thought as he summoned three shadow clones to his side.
Individually?... What about testing our teamwork? I was pretty sure that's what all the other teams were doing… Was it simply up to the jounin how he wanted to test the team?
"Each of you will follow a shadow clone into the forest, and I'll test you through a simulated fight. Any weapons, techniques, and fighting styles are allowed with the exception of maiming or killing… Though you are more than welcome to try." Ibiki explained. "However, you will also be competing against each other — the contestant with the best performance will pass the test."
"What?!" Todoki cried in outrage. "But that means only one person on the team can pass… What the hell kind of test is that?"
"It's the one I'm choosing to administer." The bald jounin's answer was stone-faced. "You academy graduates have grown softer every year, mistaking this time of peace for negligence. You know what academy students have to do in order to graduate in the Bloody Mist?... They fight to the death, and each year, only one graduate makes it to become genin. So just be thankful that we do things much nicer around here."
There was definitely some type of trick behind this test. Perhaps it was similar to the bell test? Maybe we only pass if we stick together as a team…
"But all genin squads are four-man cells — one jounin and three genin." I countered back, "It's been that way for years; cutting two members will completely throw off the balance of the team."
"Aye, you're right. But I'm not looking for a genin team." Ibiki revealed. "I'm a busy man. If you're not aware, I lead the Interrogation Division, and I don't have the time to babysit an entire genin team. The Hokage has already approved my proposal, and I will be taking a sole apprentice instead. Only one person may pass this test, simple as that. Everybody clear?"
Was this a bluff? I wouldn't put it past Ibiki to be lying through his teeth, but can I really call him on it? It was equally possible that he would just take an apprentice. Anko was a similar case after all…
No. I have to operate on the assumption that he's trying to pit us against one another. Which means I have to try to find a way to get Todoki and Noemi to listen to what I have to say… If I can't get them to cooperate, it's all meaningless anyways… But how was I supposed to do that if the tests are individual?...
With each shadow clone of Ibiki leading the way, we separated in different directions as our genin tests began.
(In the Forest)
We stopped in a small dirt clearing after about ten minutes into the forest, leaving me alone with the Ibiki clone.
"I'm sure you're fully aware of what's at stake." Ibiki stated as he faced off against me, his stance relaxed and his trench coat off to the side. "It'd be in your interest to come at me with the intent to kill. Any less, and you won't–"
Without even a blink of an eye, I sped through a series of hand signs before gathering a pool of chakra in my lungs.
'Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu.'
Feeling the heat travel up my throat and into my mouth, I shot the ball of flame towards the shadow clone.
If Ibiki was surprised, it certainly didn't show on his face. The stone cold jounin simply substituted with a wooden log as he danced out of danger. Doing my best to keep on the offense, I launched a volley of kunai, each tagged with a paper bomb as they entrapped him within a circle.
'Earth Style: Mud Wall'
Slamming his hands on the ground, a wall of earth began to rise around him before fully covering the clone in a mud dome and protecting him from the explosions.
Taking this chance to hide myself from view, I leaped into the treetops as I tried to blend into the shadows.
Nothing's working so far. If ranged attacks are useless, I'm going to have to get in close…
Sensing the explosions die down around him, Ibiki slowly allowed the mud wall to crumble around him as he rose from his shell. He glanced around warily, his eyes darting to the treetops — searching for any movement.
Before I could give away my location, I performed a quick substitution with one of my thrown kunai and appeared right behind the jounin's clone.
I slashed as fast as I could, only to be met with a loud clang as he parried with a kunai of his own, deflecting my blow to the side.
Using my momentum, I rounded on my feet and sent a back kick towards his midsection, but it felt as if I kicked a brick wall as he caught my leg and flung me backwards into the dirt. I rolled hurriedly back to my feet as I felt his kunai narrowly graze my face, the metal tip stabbed into the dirt just inches from my head.
With a small breath to gather myself, I jumped back into action against Ibiki. This time, I tried to stay tactical. Not overextending and doing my best to observe any openings or weaknesses.
He was clearly holding back against me. Even if this is a clone, he's nowhere close to moving at jounin speeds. But still, I'm having trouble keeping up.
An open palm strike caught me right in the chest as I was sent flying backwards again, wheezing to get air back in my lungs. I was forced to quickly scramble to my feet as Ibiki pushed the pace, straining my already lacking defense further as he began hunting me down.
With a quick slash, he knocked the kunai right out of my hands, but before I could even react, Ibiki followed it with a sweeping kick, face-planting me into the dirt.
Quickly flipping onto my back, I raced through a series of familiar hand signs once again and fired a ball of flame from point blank range. But Ibiki's eyes were quicker, and he danced well out of the path of the flaming orb; though it did give me time to rise again.
Picking up the dropped kunai, I prepared for the onslaught once again, as Ibiki closed the distance calmly.
Well, close range is definitely not the answer either…
Our kunais met in a clash of steel, but I was clearly losing the exchange. A tear in my shirt… a small gash in my skin… it almost felt as if I was being toyed with.
I don't have to beat him, I just have to get one hit…
With that realization, I reengaged with the jounin, looking for any small advantage to jump on. His defense was solid as concrete, none of my strikes even coming close to drawing blood. The man was a jounin for a reason — he physically outmatched me in every manner.
I didn't even see as I felt a side kick bury into my ribs; it felt as if I was blindsided by a bus, the blow hard enough to make me see white.
But I did everything in my power to wrap my arms around his striking leg, hanging on to dear life as I felt the kick rattle my soul.
Even the jounin seemed a bit surprised that I was able to catch the kick, the position momentarily throwing him off balance. Before the man could get a chance to recover, I stabbed my kunai right into the meat of his calf, feeling a slight pop as the clone burst into smoke.
I did it… I actually did it.
Cough… Cough. I choked as I felt a searing pain shooting up the left side of my torso. Must've broken a rib or two…
"Not bad, kid." Ibiki gave a slow clap as he flashed into the clearing. "Come. The other two have finished their tests already."
With a small grimace, I followed the real Ibiki back to the main training grounds.
By the time I made it back to the training grounds, Todoki and Noemi were already seated by one of the logs, not looking too worse for wear. Todoki sported a cut lip and a bruised eye, while Noemi had a few dirt patches on her clothes; overall they seemed to be in much better condition than I was in.
"Ha… Got your ass kicked?" Todoki mocked with a crooked smirk, his head tilting up condescendingly.
I didn't bother to grace him with a response as I took a seat by the end of the log, turning my attention to Ibiki as he began.
"Well, the results were quite clear, as we can see evidently." Ibiki said, bringing a smug arrogance to Todoki's face as he puffed his chest out.
"Yuji was the only one to show any level of competence throughout the test." The bald jounin explained, "And as such, he'll be the only one passing the test and be allowed to continue as my apprentice."
"W-what?" Todoki stuttered out with surprise. "But how? He looks like he took the most punishment, why is he the one that gets to pass?"
"Because he's the only one who put forth any effort, that's why." Ibiki sneered at the sniveling boy before continuing. "You two forfeited the fight once you took the first hit. This test wasn't just about ability or talent; its purpose is also to test your heart and perseverance despite fighting an obviously stronger opponent. Yuji was the only one to show that, not to mention he actually defeated my clone."
That seemed to stun the brat into silence.
The bald jounin turned his attention towards me before continuing, "Yuji Mori. Congratulations on passing the genin test. As I've mentioned, you'll now be instated as my apprentice, officially forming a two-man cell as a genin team."
Really?... Was this all there was to it? And yet, I couldn't escape that sinking feeling of doubt within my stomach.
"Furthermore, you'll also be—"
"No." The word escaped my mouth before I even knew what I was saying.
"No?" Ibiki asked with a raised brow as my two teammates seemed equally surprised. "You do know that if you choose to refuse, that means you'll also fail this test."
"I…" A nagging hesitation remained within my mind.
Was this the right choice?... Is there a right choice?...
But with a resigned sigh, I steeled my nerves and made my choice.
"I won't abandon my teammates for my own self gain." I stated as resolutely as I could. "We either pass as a team, or we fail as a team. I'm not leaving them behind."
Please be right. Pleeease be right.
Ibiki's face gave nothing away as his face remained stoic as ever.
"Well, suit yourself." Ibiki shrugged as he turned to the remaining two genin. "The Hokage still needs me to pass one of you and take on as an apprentice. Seeing as Noemi came in second place, the honor falls to her. What do you say?"
"What?!" Todoki cried indignantly. "How could she have done better than I did?!"
The jounin only ignored him as he continued to stare at Noemi, awaiting her response.
I glanced at her through the side of my eye, begging her to see the purpose of this test. My face remained stoic on the outside even as my thoughts stirred in turmoil.
Choose wisely. Please. It should be fucking obvious by now.
Her eyes darted nervously between Todoki and I as her legs shook with indecision. "Uh… I…" Taking one last glance in my direction, Noemi decided. "I… also refuse. Yuji is right. I would rather fail than leave my comrades behind."
I let out a small sigh of relief as Noemi followed my example.
Now just one more hurdle to cross.
"I guess that just leaves you, brat." Ibiki said, finally turning towards Todoki. "Seeing as those two refused, it seems I have no choice but to…"
"I accept." Todoki answered eagerly, not even waiting for the jounin to finish.
That fucking bastard.
"Hmmm… That's a shame." Ibiki said, as I felt the first hint of disappointment roll off his tongue. "I almost had a glimmer of hope that this team might be it. But it seems only two of you understood the test."
"Huh? W-what do you mean?" Todoki asked, stupefied.
"The only way you would have passed, is if all of you were willing to fail." Ibiki explained. "If you all gave up the opportunity to become my apprentice, I would have actually considered passing you as a team — a proper genin squad."
"But how were we supposed to know that?" Todoki asked in bewilderment. "You said you were only taking one apprentice, but now you're taking a team?"
"I only added that detail as a secondary test — an additional opportunity for you to pass this test should my assessment of your ability be subpar." Ibiki explained without a hint of remorse. "Which you certainly didn't fail to disappoint. The academy standards must've plunged all the way into the gutter since I was a kid if brats like you are allowed to graduate. But even so, if you guys could've shown that there was even a sliver of teamwork within you, even the tiniest slip, I would have considered passing all of you. But, you've made that decision plenty clear. You all failed the test, if that wasn't evident enough."
Dammit. Even after all that… for this to come down to that idiot's decision…
"I've seen as much as I need to." Ibiki waved dismissively. "You'll receive a letter in a few days notifying you of your admission into the Konoha Reserve Force. Should you choose to accept, there'll be an orientation where you will learn your responsibilities as a reserve genin. If not, then I congratulate you for your journey so far, but your shinobi career ends here."
"B-but I deserve another chance to–-"
"You want to try me, kid?" Ibiki cut him off with a menacing sneer. "You don't deserve anything until you've earned the right to say so. I was holding back during that test, you want a taste of what it's like in a real fight?"
Quickly realizing his mistake, Todoki tried to backtrack, "I–I'm sorry, sir. T-that's not what I meant… I just wanted to—"
"Get lost!" Ibiki growled, making the boy jump in fright. "Don't make me repeat myself again."
Eeeep. With a terrified nod, Todoki raced off without another word, Noemi following soon after, leaving me alone with the bald jounin.
"Was there any way this team could have ever passed?" I asked, feeling a sense of dejection inside. In the end, there was nothing I could do…
"Perhaps…" Ibiki started with a small shrug. "It would be difficult to imagine with that kid on this team, but if he showed enough promise, I might have been willing to overlook some personality issues. Worse characters than him have passed to become shinobi, and teamwork was something you could teach… with time. But him lacking on both fronts severely hurt your chances as a team."
"But how is that fair? Given any other teammate, we'd have probably passed easily…"
"Life isn't fair." Ibiki rebuked. "I'd have thought someone like you would've learned that by now. Teams would be easy to pass, if it was solely based on the merit of a single member. But that's why it's called a team for a reason."
Seeing as I was unconvinced, Ibiki continued, "Trust me kid. Not being saddled with a teammate that would abandon you at any notice is the greatest blessing you might receive. I would die for each and every one of my comrades — that's how shinobi squads work. But once that's not the case for even one of you, the whole team falls apart."
"You see these across my body?" Ibiki asked, pointing to the map of old scars and burn marks tattooing his skin. "This is what happens when you have a liability on your team. Three nights… I had to spend in that dark cell, enduring whatever the fuck my captor could come up with. My team was ill-prepared and uncoordinated. But I was fortunate I had a selfless sensei, who valued the life of his student over his own. If it wasn't for him, I would have never made it back alive. He sacrificed his life, to save whatever shell of a person my tormentor left within me."
I closed my eyes with a sigh, accepting his lesson, albeit begrudgingly.
"Cheer up, kid. Career isn't over for you yet." Ibiki consoled with a bit of sympathy. "More ninja make it out of the Reserve Force than you think, and some even become jounin. If you work hard enough, and learn from your mistakes, the future's still bright for you."
"Thanks…" I watched as he gave me a pat on my shoulders and walked off, swinging his trench coat back on his shoulders.
Life just simply wasn't fair.
(Later in the Hokage's Office)
"So… conclusions from today's assessments?" The Third Hokage asked as his eyes scanned the room, waiting for the jounins to report their results. No doubt, he'd already seen the outcomes of the genin tests, but he wanted to hear the remarks of the jounin themselves.
Tsunade had also chosen to attend the meeting, seeing as this year's batch of genin were more significant than any other year's. Not only did this class of graduates consist of the heirs from each major clan in Konoha, but it also held the last Uchiha and the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. Handling the development of this group of shinobi was paramount for Konoha's future.
Seeing as Tsunade had basically taken over the role of advisor to her former sensei, she certainly had her attention on the results. And that's not to mention that she perhaps had a personal interest in a specific genin.
The five jounin instructors summoned to the Hokage's office glanced quickly amongst themselves, before Kakashi stepped forward, being prompt for once.
"Team 7…" The silver-haired jounin dragged on, as his eyes squinted for dramatic effect. "... passed with flying colors."
Nobody in the know really batted an eyelash at that. Not only was Kakashi's team an expected powerhouse on paper, the political significance of that squad was apparent just from the calibre of the sensei assigned to them. Unless they were completely and utterly dysfunctional to the point of trying to kill each other, no one was going to fail that team. Not even Kakashi.
Hiruzen simply moved on, not giving Kakashi a second glance.
"Team 8 passed as well, Hokage-sama." Kurenai reported respectfully with a bow. "Although their teamwork has room to improve, they have the potential to be an excellent tracking team, and may become unrivaled in the near future."
"Thank you Kurenai-san." Hiruzen gave the new jounin a small nod. "I shall expect great things from you and Team 8."
"Team 10 also passed, pops." Asuma added, puffing a small cloud of smoke much to Kurenai's displeasure. "The InoShikaCho combination is formidable, as to be expected; though, they may have some work ethic issues — something to be ironed out for sure, but their potential is undeniable."
The Hokage gave a grunt in agreement; anticipating the same result having seen the prior generations of InoShikaCho. It was a fascinating dynamic to observe over the years — each clan member had the qualifying traits to be a great shinobi, but together, and only together, can they reach their full potential befitting the great clans of Konoha. It was one of the reasons the clan heads and the Hokage himself always insisted on pairing these graduates together, regardless of their seemingly inability to cooperate.
Hiruzen was counting on this generation to mature past their problems and into something great, just as the previous teams had.
"And Team 11?" The Hokage asked as he turned his attention to the two remaining jounin.
"Team 11 unfortunately did not meet the requirements for the genin test, Hokage-sama." Genma announced with a hint of disappointment. "They possess the very minimum skills to pass the academy test, but overall, they lack the ability to adapt, think outside the box, or just the basic skills expected of a proper genin."
"Hmmmm… could be time to revisit the academy issue." Hiruzen considered with a huff of his pipe. "The standards have undoubtedly dropped in recent years, as a byproduct of the peace times to be sure, but perhaps also some negligence on our part?"
"A thing we could bring up at the next council meeting, it seems." Tsunade cut in. "It's time we find some new leadership in the education department, those geezers have been around just as long as you, sensei. Maybe a talk with some of the instructors will help."
"Not a bad idea, Tsunade-hime." Hiruzen agreed before he turned to the final jounin in the room.
Ibiki tapped the wooden arm of his chair as he pondered his response.
"Team 12 … has promise… but they fail to meet expectations." The normally stoic jounin hesitated as he tried to find the right words.
"Ohhhh? How so?"
"Two of them, quite frankly, should not have made it out of the academy." Ibiki judged harshly. "They lack both the ability and tenacity to overcome any hardship. Hiro's kid especially; I see him as a detriment to any team he's placed with, and due to these circumstances, I find Team 12 unable to meet the standards of a genin team."
"You mentioned only two of them." Tsunade brought up, looking through the list of team placements. "What about the merits of the last member?"
"Yuji Mori is an exemplary genin, and carries all the skills and character necessary to succeed as a shinobi." Ibiki reported as he turned towards the Sannin. "It is unfortunate that his teammates were not up to par."
"Not often we find promising shinobi out of the civilian populace." Hiruzen pondered thoughtfully. "We'll have to see how young Yuji progresses."
That garnered a few nods of intrigue from the remaining jounin in the room.
"Nevertheless, it seems we have a strong crop of shinobi this year." The Third Hokage concluded as he stood from his seat. "I look forward to seeing what they have in store for them in the future."
As Ibiki was exiting the Hokage's office, he felt a tug on his arm as he turned to find Tsunade looking at him expectantly.
"Can I speak to you for a moment?"
"Of course, Tsunade-sama." Ibiki replied with a respectful nod. "How can I be of assistance?"
"Was it really necessary to go that hard on the kid?" The Slug Princess questioned. "I mean broken ribs and internal bruising?...What were you thinking?
"Is the kid alright?" Ibiki asked, showing a hint of concern.
"Alright?... You nearly caved his chest in!" Tsunade reprimanded the jounin. "You're lucky it wasn't anything beyond a few fractured ribs; he should be fine within a few days. One of the nurses at the hospital told me the kid looked like he got run over by a horse. I understand making the genin test difficult to test their mettle, but that's a bit harsh even for my era."
"Injuring him wasn't my intention, Tsunade-sama. He just… took me by surprise." Ibiki admitted.
"What do you mean?"
"The records show how promising of a shinobi he could be, I'm sure you and the Hokage are well aware of that." Ibiki explained, "He saw through the point of the spar right away, and the hidden test too. Sure I was pushing him harder than the other two, but he understood that he had no chance to outmatch me in a clear fight. I didn't expect him to willingly take such a huge hit, in order to create an opening. He managed to catch my clone off guard and dispelled it."
"He beat one of your shadow clones?" Tsunade asked with a raised brow.
"Like I said, the kid's got promise." Ibiki nodded in seriousness. "Yuji's not going to have the luxury of being coddled by a team and a jounin sensei. That's why I wanted to go tougher on him. If he doesn't adjust to the harsh realities of this world, even a promising bud like him can be snuffed out in the wild."
The Slug Princess gave a sigh as she relented to the hardened jounin.
"If that's all you needed, Tsunade-sama?"
With a nod, she waved Ibiki off, leaving her to her own thoughts.
It was a day after my genin exams when I had received a letter notifying me of my incorporation into the Konoha Reserve Force as an official genin. The orientation came the following day with the six graduates from the academy that had all failed their genin tests. It was a quick, uneventful affair for the most part, outside of the glares Todoki sent my way.
Our responsibilities as part of the Reserve Force were quite straightforward. For all intents and purposes, we were true genin with all the rights and duties, just lacking the jounin supervision. We were responsible for our own training and progression, but the Reserve headquarters were, more often than not, filled with other shinobi looking to spar or learn from each other.
On the missions front, we were free to take on any D-rank missions in our free time. And in some cases, more advanced shinobi were allowed C-rank missions with the approval of the Hokage.
The main obligation of the Reserve Force, as the name implies, is to serve as support units to undermanned squadrons. Most often, this comes in the form of chunin patrol missions, should they be down a member or need the extra manpower. And as a general rule, we were also on standby in emergency cases for rescue or support missions.
I imagine these missions are where most reserve shinobi made their connections with the higher-ups.
Each shinobi in the Reserve Force were required to be assigned to a squadron mission as part of a rotation. However, the squadron leaders can also choose to handpick candidates they see fit to be part of a mission detail.
If you impress the higher brass through your mission record, you may garner enough attention for a mentorship, or even a promotion.
If there was any time to display your competency, this was it. After all, the village was based on a system of nepotism and politics. Without some outside help, I would be hard-pressed to ever escape this hole that was leading towards being a future cannon-fodder.
For now though, I just had to accept my situation and eagerly wait for my chance.
Authors Note:
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