Heading to the academy early for the meeting Hikari adjusted her headband again and pouted at her brother when he snickered. "It's not going to fall off." After a moment of silence he chimed in with; "you could always wear it on your forehead." She stuck her tongue out at him and said nothing. It wasn't that she thought it wouldn't stay where she'd put it so much as she wasn't used to something sitting atop her head. No matter where else she thought of putting it, though, it just didn't make sense to her. Across her forehead would make her look like her brother. On a limb meant it could be lost if someone nicked it, or if she lost the limb. That wasn't something she wanted to think about. Around her neck would be too distracting and she'd heard Ino telling anyone who'd listen that wearing it around the waist was what "fashionable" kunoichi did. Yeah, she wasn't going to be copying anything that Ino did. Wearing it on top of her head was a good compromise. If she lost her head it wouldn't matter where she had been wearing her headband, it would be useless to her anyway. This way it wasn't a distraction either.
"You think too much." Her brother had told her when she mentioned all this to him. But there had been a mildly surprised look in his eyes, as if he was just now realizing how dangerous their lives could become. He was always so focused on his far off goal that he sometimes lost sight of things right in front of him. It was a far cry from Hikari, who had a hard time planning anything beyond a month in advance. She usually let her brother handle the long term stuff while she prepared the day to day things that kept them going. Sometimes she wondered about how perfectly split down the middle they seemed to be. Then they would say or do the same thing at the same time, or express the same opinion on something, and those thoughts would be shattered.
Sitting at the end of the row, since Hinata hadn't appeared yet and Hikari wanted to be able to look out the window, she put her chin on her hand and tried to relax. Other students began to trickle in, including Hinata, and soon the classroom was filled with excited speculation. Everyone was curious about who they would be paired with. Hinata looked nervous and she tried to reassure her fried as best she could. Then a certain blonde sauntered into the room and took a seat behind them. Hinata, flustered, shifted seats to the back of the room, sitting next to another Hyuuga. Hikari couldn't help but to hide a smile at how obvious her friend's crush was, and how oblivious the boy in question could be.
Right after her friend had settled herself into the new seat Ino and Sakura entered the room at a run. They fought over who would be first through the door, eventually popping inside at the same time. Both screamed something about a 'goal,' panting and glaring at each other. Hikari shook her head, rolling her eyes as they immediately started to argue about who entered first. Those two fought like cats and dogs.
Suddenly the pink haired girl's eyes lit up and Hikari frowned in confusion. One glance at her brother and she sighed as she realized what was about to happen. Naruto got up and stood in the aisle as Sakura bolted down the stairs. "Good morning Saku-" He wasn't able to finish the sentence as the girl elbowed him harshly out of the way. Sasuke made a low groan as the girl stood just outside the aisle and smiled at him sweetly. It made Hikari's stomach roll. If there was one thing she hated most it was people who were insincere. A silly thing to hate, when one was a ninja, but she couldn't help it. Hiding one's true self when on a mission was all well and good. But blatantly acting different so others would like you more made her feel ill. It reminded her of all those civilians who had tried to ingratiate themselves with her and her brother so they could manipulate them for status. Sure they probably thought they were helping. But it still made her wary.
"G-good morning, Sasuke-kun!" Sasuke looked over at the pink haired girl, glanced up at where she was wearing her headband, then glanced back at Hikari. She scowled at him. Just because someone else wore their headband the same way she was did not mean that she was going to change it. She wasn't petty like that. "C-can I sit next to you?" She could practically feel the 'nope' rolling off her brother in waves. Luckily he didn't need to answer as Ino stormed down the steps and confronted Sakura. "Hey! I'm going to sit next to him!"
Hikari found it fascinating how the girls could always tell them apart. Normally Hikari sat in the middle, to prevent situations like this from happening. If she'd known those two would be showing up so early she would have traded places with her brother already. Honestly, though? She'd have thought that getting their hitai-ate would make the two act more professional, more like ninja. She was sadly mistaken.
"First come first serve!" Here we go. Reaching over she tapped her brother's hand and made a motion while the girls were arguing with each other. He smirked and they discreetly swapped places. "I came into the classroom before you!" Ino shrieked, making her and a few others with sensitive ears in the classroom flinch. Immediately a group of girls converged on the two with cries of 'I came in before either of you!' Hikari put her face in her hands for a moment and Sasuke looked like he was desperately trying to ignore the whole thing.
Suddenly she sensed someone in front of her and blinked as big blue eyes stared right into her black ones. She wanted to flinch back but froze. The boy growled at her in frustration and she opened her mouth to ask him what he wanted. The girls started yelling, telling their 'Sasuke-kun' to beat up the blonde. Hikari groaned internally. In all the fuss they weren't paying too much attention and hadn't realized that she wasn't her brother. Apparently Naruto wasn't very observant either, what with him being only a few inches from her face.
She wasn't clear on what happened next. All she new was that suddenly Naruto's lips were on hers and they were staring at each other in surprise. Every sound in the room stopped as all eyes turned to look at them. A moment passed before Naruto violently threw himself back, coughing and hacking as if he had been poisoned. She sat there in complete shock, too stunned too move. Next to her Sasuke rose to his feet, anger clear in every line of his body. "Naruto!" His voice was low and dangerous, prompting the girls to look over at him in shock. The girls in the class didn't even have time to register what was going on before Sasuke's punch landed squarely in Naruto's face.
Hikari snapped out of it just as Sasuke raised his fist to strike the blonde again, the poor kid looking highly confused. "Suke, stop it!" She grabbed his arm, one hand curling over his fist so he couldn't throw another punch without hurting her too. He looked at her, still upset, and she shook her head. "It was an accident." Her tone was firm as her eyes trailed to the boy one row below them. "Ah, yeah. My bad." The preteen said, bowing his head slightly in embarrassment. With a grumble her brother finally sat back down, still glaring at the blonde. "Touch my sister again and I'll kick your ass all across Konoha." Settling down he crossed his arms. It was clear he thought the blonde deserved much more than just one punch.
Thankfully Iruka-sensei came into the room and everyone was told to get to their seats. Sakura ended up sitting next to her, finally realizing that it was Hikari sitting there and not her brother.
"Starting today you are all officially ninja." The class perked up at this, excitement running through them at their accomplishment. "However, you are all still new to ninja are only Genin right now. It's only going to get harder from here on out." Some groaned, others chuckled nervously. "You will be split into teams of three to accomplish missions under a Jounin-sensei." There were a few gasps as the students looked around at each other, wondering who they would be teamed up with. Beside her she could hear Sakura whispering to Ino who was behind them. The blonde girl hadn't wanted to move too far away from Sasuke, after all. Of course both girls wanted to be on a team with her brother. Hikari hoped it was anyone but either of them. Though… she could deal with Sakura. Maybe. She was quite smart and could be kind to others, when she wasn't selfishly throwing herself at Sasuke.
She heard her brother click his tongue in annoyance. What had he thought was going to happen? That they'd be paired up because they were the 'inseparable Uchiha twins,' while everyone else got one on one attention from a jounin leader? Was she the only one who did her research? You could see teams of three doing odd jobs in the village all the time. Only the genin corps members did solo jobs and that was mostly inside Konoha.
"For Team One-" Iruka began calling out names and everyone perked up again. Teams of three were called out, to sounds of joy or dread from her classmates.
"Team Six- Yamaguchi Akiro, Adachi Fuyuuki, and Haruno Sakura under Natsuhiko-sensei." After a moment of thinking it over Hikari started to snicker, which prompted both Sakura and Sasuke to look at her, one angrily and one curiously. "Aki, Fuyu, Haru, Natsu. All four seasons." Sakura caught on faster than her brother and groaned. A moment later Sasuke was smirking with her.
"Team Seven-" Iruka called out from the front of the classroom, ignoring the whispering of the students. "Uchiha Hikari, Uchiha Sasuke," Hikari turned to her brother and beamed. Sasuke smiled back. Not one of his little smirks, but a full blown smile. It lit up his entire face. Both were glad they wouldn't be separated. "And Uzumaki Naruto under Kakashi-sensei." The twins froze and looked down a row to the blonde who was sitting just below them. The boy groaned, grabbing at his hair in misery. Sasuke glowered at the back of his head and Hikari just knew she was going to have to be the team mediator. Unless their sensei got involved.
Iruka called out the next group and Hikari looked over at her friend as her name was called. It seemed like she'd be in a tough group. The Aburame weren't the most talkative or emotional of ninja and Inuzuka were wild, untamed even. She worried about her timid friend and tried to give her a reassuring smile.
"That's it for the teams." As soon as Iruka was finished talking Naruto jumped out of his seat and loudly asked; "Iruka-sensei! Why is a top student like me in a group with someone like him!" Hikari glared at Naruto from her spot behind him. How dare he say something like that, after all the hard work they put in! Iruka waved the papers in his hand, looking annoyed. "Sasuke graduated with the highest scores." Putting his hands on his hips he leaned forward slightly. "And you, Naruto, graduated with the worst scores!" Snickers and laughter filled the room at Naruto's stricken look.
"This happened because we wanted to evenly divide abilities between the groups." Naruto clenched his fists, practically vibrating with frustration and embarrassment.
"Do try to keep up, blockhead." Sasuke said in a loud yet lazy drawl that was meant to provoke the blonde. The reaction was instantaneous. "What did you say!?" Naruto snapped.
Sasuke glanced at the blonde, his expression dark. "You want to fight me, blockhead?" The class burst into laughter again as Naruto spluttered, at a loss for words. Hikari had had enough. "Naruto, just stop." The blonde looked at her, mildly surprised, before he looked away; pouting very obviously. Iruka had to be the one to put a stop to it. "In any case, I will be introducing your Jounin-sensei in the afternoon. This meeting is adjourned until then."
As they left the classroom Hikari noticed Naruto running off after Sakura, yelling something about eating together since they weren't in the same group and wouldn't be seeing one another for a while. Shaking her head she quickly found Hinata and asked if she wouldn't mind if they all ate together. The poor girl looked so worried as she shyly turned toward her new team mates and politely asked them if it was okay. Shino just stood there stiffly, as if trying to come to some conclusion only he understood, while Kiba shrugged loosely and without care. "Sure, why not? The more the merrier!" As everyone's eyes turned toward him Shino adjusted his glasses. "There is no logical reason to refuse such a request." Taking that as a 'yes' they found a place to sit under some trees and began to eat their lunch.
"Um, wh-where is your t-team mate?" Hinata finally asked her, playing with her chopsticks absently. Hikari gave her an apologetic smile as she finished chewing and swallowed the morsel. "Sorry, he went off after Sakura. I'm sure he'll find us eventually." Once he gets rejected again and starts sulking. Why the blonde chased after the abusive fangirl she'd never understand.
Hinata watched her quietly for a moment and Hikari wondered if she was upset by that stupid kiss. She frowned at her friend in confusion. "Are you…?" The girl seemed to understand what she was asking and quickly shook her head, blushing faintly. "Th-these things happen." She gave her friend a grateful smile. Hinata knew that Hikari wasn't interested in anyone yet. She just didn't feel like any of the boys were mature enough for her. And Naruto was definitely the bottom of her list if ever she made one.
Eating with that group was a little strange. Shino was so precise and quiet while Kiba was a bit of a slob and very loud. Hinata politely tried to engage them in conversation but her team mates were so different it was hard to bridge the gap between them. When her friend started to look defeated she nudged the girl's shoulder with her own, smiling playfully. "Hey, Hina-chan. Want to spar a little?" The girl looked at her gratefully and put her bento away.
The two of them left the boys and walked a few feet away. "Don't hold back on me." Hikari's voice was stern. Hinata frowned slightly but a motivated look entered her eyes as she got into the first stance of her clan's famed taijutsu. Hikari only really knew a small bit of what she had been taught at home, since it was mostly speed exercises, and the academy style. But she had sparred with Hinata many times, both in and outside of class.
The fight was swift and fierce. Both kunoichi were flexible, fast, and precise. While Hikari had a bit more weight to throw around, and a bit more height, Hinata was far more graceful and it showed.
Once they'd worked up a sweat and began breathing heavily they stopped, smiling at each other. "You win again, Hina-chan. You're just more flexible than I am. I can't counter everything." Though the Hyuuga heiress hadn't put any chakra into her strikes Hikari knew she would be a mess on the ground right now if the girl had. A strike to her upper thigh, her lower abdomen, her left shoulder, and a graze to her left side would have left her a groaning puddle. Hinata flushed, pleased with the praise and knowing after years of being her friend that Hikari held no ill will against her for winning.
Holding out her hand for a moment, as if she meant to touch Hikari's shoulder, the girl looked a little concerned as she spoke. "Um, you still have a bit of a delay on your left side." She nodded, mulling it over as they walked back to the boys. She knew she had a harder time on her left, though she didn't really know why.
Looking back at her friend she nodded before giving some advice of her own. "You need to be more decisive in your strikes, Hina-chan. Even against allies. You won't know how good you are unless you go all out." Hinata ducked her head slightly in acknowledgment as they both sat back down with the boys.
"What did I miss?" She asked, looking between her scowling brother, a grinning Kiba, and the furrowed brow and almost tense looking Shino. "Uh, do I want to know?" Sasuke made a low noise that sounded an awful lot like 'no' so she decided to leave it for the time being.
As she'd surmised Naruto eventually found them. With a bruised, swollen, cheek and a downcast look on his face he plonked himself down on the ground a little ways from their group. It looked like he didn't want to speak to anyone. Poking Hinata in the side gently she flicked her eyes at the blonde and saw her friend blush. Nudging her she raised her brow before letting it drop and smiling at her. Encouraging her to go and speak to the blonde. Finally she seemed to steel herself and picked up part of her bento before getting up and walking over to the blonde. "Um N-Naruto-kun? W-would you like some as well?"
Blinking he looked from the timid girl standing in front of him, down to the food she held in her hand, and back. The smile he gave Hinata was almost blinding, filled with gratefulness. "Thanks Hinata-chan!" Taking the bento and the offered chopsticks from her, surprisingly gently, he dug into the meal with gusto, making noises of delight. Hinata looked frozen and her face burned red. "Y-you're w-w-welcome."
Sasuke looked at the small scene playing before his eyes then at her. Hikari gave him a playful and knowing smirk and he rolled his eyes at her. Her brother had never understood Hinata's crush on the blonde. Naruto was an annoyance to him, a distraction and a pest. But both of them shared a very stubborn streak. She was sure Naruto found Sasuke just as aggravating. Another feeling of dread fell over her and she just knew she'd be playing peacemaker. Even if Sasuke was her brother he'd have to learn to work with Naruto. While Naruto would have to realize that his words didn't just affect Sasuke.
Falling back onto the grass she looked up at the sky and sighed. Although their journey had only started she just knew it would be a long and harrowing one. Glancing at the people around her she smiled. At least I'm not alone. Taking comfort in that thought she closed her eyes and relaxed as the wind ruffled her hair, bringing with it the sound of her companions laughing with one another.