"How do you feel?"

"...okay."
Echiko stared at his knees. He was sitting on an exam table in the middle of a small room. The walls were white and bare, making him a little uncomfortable. In front of him was a rather stout man in a lab coat, holding a clipboard as he took notes.
"You appear to be in good health," the man said. "No injuries save for some minor scrapes. However you should be aware you were dangerously close to depleting all of your chakra. I understand there were circumstances, but chakra exhaustion is no joke. You could seriously hurt yourself." The man looked up from his notes with a sympathetic expression, but he quickly smiled. "In any event, it looks as though your leg has healed up quite nicely. Does it still cause you pain?"
"...sometimes," Echiko responded. He looked passed his knee, where all that was left of his leg was a stump wrapped in clean bandages. Attached to it was a somewhat new but still basic metal contraption that served as his 'fake' left foot. He sighed, recalling a conversation he had about it with his brother-in-law, Daisuke. "'Chakra-conducting metal?' his eyes smiled. 'Of course, when you've become a full-fledged shinobi I'll have one made as a graduation present!'" That meant two years! If he graduated from the Academy with everyone from his class in two years, he'd become a genin and therefore a full-fledged shinobi. But that is such a long time to wait!
As he was feeling sorry for himself, another man ducked into the room. This one was intimidatingly tall and wore a long, black overcoat over a black jonin uniform. His face was rather young save for the heavy bags underneath his eyes.
"Ah, Echiko-kun, this here is Yamanaka-san. He will take over the exam from here," the stout doctor introduced with another smile. "Don't worry, he's only going to ask you some questions. Please answer as honestly as you can." He waved to a chair on the left and slipped out, leaving Echiko alone with the stranger who took the seat without complaint. His blue-green eyes studied Echiko for a moment.
"Did you sleep well?" He asked calmly.
"Um... I guess..." Echiko felt a bead of sweat trace his cheek. He didn't have a reason to be nervous, but this man had a naturally strong aura that only made the room feel that much more claustrophobic.
"No bad dreams, or waking at odd hours?"
"I don't... I don't think so."
The Yamanaka nodded, long blond hair draping the back of his coat. "You're not a stranger to such traumatic experiences, am I right? Your mental strength far exceeds that of your peers." He leaned forward. "My name is Inoichi. You don't have to be afraid of me, I'm here to help you understand and overcome the events that transpired yesterday." There was a gentle look in his eyes. "Firstly, can you tell me what happened from your point of view?"
There was a pause before Echiko could reply. "We...were playing a game. Shigeru and I... we were supposed to be the bad guys. We had captured Kenji after sundown. Around-midnight?- Shioku found our hideout with her team to rescue him. But-but we got her, and then captured her team, so they joined us. We-we then headed back to camp, but-" Echiko swallowed his words. It hurt to remember. "We thought they were part of the game, at first... chunnin disguised as enemies, like we were." He pointed to his clothes, belatedly realizing he was no longer wearing the disguise. "Um. We fought. Because they had a hostage, and-and were talking with a spy..." His voice trailed off, and he couldn't finish his train of thought.
"You fought them, and you won," Inoichi concluded.
"We...won..." It didn't feel like they won.
"Your teamwork and quick thinking was exemplary," the jonin commended. "All of you should be proud - you saved a classmate from a horrible fate. You even caught two infiltrators and uncovered a spy. But you look as though you're unhappy about it."
Echiko shivered. "I'm not...unhappy... it's just-"
Inoichi waited for him to continue.
"If... if they weren't genin, we would've-we would've..."
"You would have died."
Hearing the words in person solidified Echiko's fear in his heart. "We would have!" He looked to the jonin, hands trembling.
Yamanaka Inoichi sat back in his chair, a solemn expression on his face. "It's true. If you had run away, no one would blame you. As it was, we caught several unknown shinobi who skirmished with the few chunnin already there at the time. Our primary goal was finding and collecting all the students and getting them to safety as quickly as possible, but we underestimated how many of them there were and took too long in getting to you. I am truly sorry. The lightning storm you created did help greatly in locating you, though, so you should know your efforts weren't in vain."
"No one... got seriously hurt, did they?"
He hesitated, as if he didn't want to answer that question. "Your companions received mostly minor fractures and bruising," Inoichi confirmed slowly. "The two boys, Kenji and Shigeru, had the worst of it - broken arm and fractured fingers for Shigeru, and some internal bleeding for Kenji. The girl called Nya's right shoulder was dislocated, but that's easily mended. Her team," he added, "had been gassed, so they're getting tested for any poisoning or after-effects. It was most likely a simple sleeping grenade that knocked them out. The rest of the students miraculously avoided any contact with the enemy, so it seemed they had just the one agenda."
Echiko let out a sigh of relief. At least... there were no other casualties... "They mentioned a... a Hyuga?"
Inoichi tilted his head. "Yes, well, other countries have always envied the Kekkei Genkai of Konohagakure. This kind of kidnapping happens more often than you think. However, if they were to get their hands on the dojutsu of the Hyuga, the Byakugan - it could increase their power exponentially. That is why they don't usually leave the walls of Konoha until they are full-fledged shinobi. It is the same with the Uchiha's dojutsu, although it's much more of a late-blooming Kekkei Genkai, so many Uchiha do not even have it."
He remembered someone had explained this to him before. Echiko nodded in response.
"Well, I think you'll do just fine," Inoichi said as he stood up. "Just remember that we value your lives as the future of Konoha, so don't go getting into trouble if you can help it. Let me walk you to the waiting room."
Echiko reluctantly hopped off the table, a clear chink! sounding from the impact of his brace on the floor. He followed the tall jonin outside into a hallway and down a corridor that branched out into several rooms, until they eventually reached a large room lined with chairs. There was a reception desk on one side, and a few people who looked like parents pacing back and forth or sitting uneasily staring at the wall.
Daisuke was one of them, his leg bouncing up and down in anticipation as he chewed on the end of a pencil. When he caught sight of Echiko he jumped up in a hurry. "Echiko-kun!" he whined, drawing the boy into a one-sided embrace, much to Echiko's discomfort. It was understandable, they hadn't seen each other since before the field trip. Echiko supposed they quarantined the students overnight to prevent the knowledge of a spy being in their midst getting out to the public - it would make a hot topic for the next day's newspaper, for sure.
Echiko squirmed in his brother-in-law's arms. He didn't mind Daisuke's over-protectiveness, but, it was a little much. Eventually the grown man let go, a tear in his eye. It looked almost comical. "I'm just so glad you're alright. Thank you, Inoichi," he said, reaching up to grasp the tall gentleman's hand. "It's been a minute since we've seen each other, hasn't it?"
"You haven't changed," the Yamanaka agreed, returning the handshake. "My wife has been asking about when Kimi was due. Quite soon, yes?"
Daisuke's smile grew wide. "Another month, perhaps less! My boy Echiko-kun will have himself a younger sibling! What do you think of that?" He happily ruffled Echiko's blue hair and then grew serious again. "I understand you've been through a lot just now, Echiko-kun, but I need to go over some things with Inoichi-san here. Would you be alright walking home on your own?" He appeared to be pretty worried.
Echiko shook his head vigorously. "I'd prefer it, actually..." Echiko was very much a introspective person, and hanging around the socialite Daisuke for too long almost felt as draining as chakra exhaustion. But he couldn't say that to him. Suddenly feeling very grateful, he bowed towards the two jonin before slipping out the front door.

The sun was shining and the sky a hazy blue. It would almost feel like summer if not for the nipping breeze. But it was nice. Echiko took a deep breath, trying to consolidate his thoughts. A lot happened in the span of a day. Or night. Daisuke will probably tell him he won't have to go to school for a while, considering the students mental health and physical injuries. Echiko frowned. He didn't like that. Take a break? He still felt weak and inadequate. His chakra had run out way too quickly. He was almost no help at all when they needed it the most.
And Shigeru kept throwing himself at the enemy... Echiko realized he admired him. Even Kenji, too. Certainly the boys had their faults, but their strength and willpower... they were commendable.
What can I do to become stronger?

His feet carried him on a path he didn't know. He didn't want to go home just yet... he couldn't face Kimi and her tears. He knew she'd be angry for putting himself in danger like that. But... what kind of person would I be if I just idly sat by?
A voice drew him out of his reverie.
"Excuse me!"
In front of him stood a girl a little taller than himself, with lavender hair and warm brown eyes that stared at him earnestly.
Before Echiko could say anything, she threw herself into a deep bow and cried, "I'm sorry!"
"Eh? Uh, why are you- what for...?" Echiko could barely say. No one has ever approached him in this manner before.
"I sat next to Noboru in class." She straightened back up again, her gaze not wavering. "The past few days he was acting strangely, but I didn't do anything about it! I should've mentioned it to Sensei. If I noticed sooner, maybe nobody would have gotten hurt. I'm sorry... I know you were with the group that apprehended him! So please, forgive me!" She bent her head again, purple hair a mess now.
"Ahh... why are- why are you apologizing to me? I- I didn't get hurt, and I didn't do much either," Echiko stammered, belatedly recognizing the girl from the Academy. He was beginning to question the integrity of his memory cells.
"Well, I tried to reach Inuzuka Kenji, but they wouldn't let me in the compound," she mourned. "I don't know where Shigeru lives, and Nya already left to stay with her grandparents for a while. I was headed to the Nara compound and I ran into you."
So, she was going around apologizing to everyone who was involved? Echiko felt a prick to his conscious. This girl... she feels responsible for the actions of someone she only ever sat next to for a couple months. Why did it matter so much to her? No one would blame her.
"Also," she added apprehensively. "Well, the others teased you for being a spy. I didn't agree with them, but I didn't say anything against it either. A real spy was in our midst this whole time and yet you were the only one tormented. So, I'm sorry about that too..."
Echiko didn't know what to say. He understood the guilt she felt very well, though. She was there when they threw a stone at me, and she didn't do anything to stop it. Would I be doing the same if I just sat back and watched or run away when my teammate was captured? Wouldn't it be like throwing the stone myself?
"You-you shouldn't blame yourself," He finally said. He felt a bit hypocritical saying so. She was just like him, carrying a weight of responsibility even though they both had no control over the events that took place. Even now, he still couldn't forgive himself for being unable to protect his twin so many months ago. "If you keep working hard, someday... you'll be able to protect everyone you want."
She smiled softly. "Thank you... uh, you know, I don't think we've officially met." She tapped a fist to her chest. "I'm Uzuki Yugao! I look forward to learning with you!"
"Uh, likewise..." Echiko responded.
"Would you... want to come with me to the Nara compound? I'd feel more courageous if I had someone to back me up," she offered.
Well, why not? But Echiko shook his head. "I'm sorry. I... I need to start training. If I don't, I'll get left behind."
"I understand," Yugao replied energetically. "I've been doing the same. I was recently introduced to Gekko Hayate - he's a few years older, but an expert in kenjutsu. So I'm going to do some special training under him when he's not on missions. What about you? Have you found a trainer?"
Echiko hadn't thought about that. He didn't even know where to start looking.
"You have summons, right?" Yugao tapped her chin in thought. "That's rather unique. I don't know anyone else who could use summons at our age. Perhaps there's someone with excellent chakra control though that could help you out. The better you control it, the more you can summon, right?"
"Something like that..." This got Echiko thinking. He could ask Daisuke, but he'd probably ban him from any training for at least until this incident blew over. Echiko didn't want that. Who else? A boy with massive goggles popped into his head. Obito... he did mention wanting to train together, and Echiko had learned a lot just from playing with him and Kakashi once. Didn't Kakashi have excellent chakra control?
But... Kakashi was a very serious shinobi. Echiko didn't think he'd agree to take any extra time out of his own training to teach him. Obito, however, would jump in excitement. He wasn't sure exactly what he could learn from that boy... but at least he'd be willing to help him.
With a decision made, Echiko took his leave of Yugao. He would definitely try to remember her in class next time. He swore he wasn't going to be so tunnel-visioned in the future. If he didn't know his classmates, what good would he be when the enemy attacked again?

His legs took him to a familiar training ground a ways out from all the hustle and bustle of the Village.
Training ground #32...
Even if Team Minato wasn't around, Echiko felt he would do fine practicing on his own for a while. There are things he was taught by his father that he still hasn't been able to use... how long will it take him to learn them? A few years? He needed to make it in a few months.
Determined, he approached the gate to the training area and stepped inside. The first thing he needed to focus on was stamina. Although he felt a lot healthier than when he originally arrived in Konohagakure, he was still frail and small and it irritated him. Taking in his scenic surroundings, he noticed another beaten path that seemed to curve along the inside of the fence and around the field. Of course a genin team would be forced to do laps!
After a few stretches, he picked up his feet and started down the well-trodden path. It was pretty straightforward for a while, and Echiko tried to keep his breathing steady and his legs to follow. But then the path began to change.
It was small at first. A skip through a stream. A rope dangling over a ravine too big to jump across. Barbed wire to crawl under. Are those footprints upside down above him?
It was all Echiko could do to keep up with the ever changing obstacle course he found himself in. Some things were out of the question. He couldn't even attempt to run in the branches with his fake foot unable to conduct his chakra. So he had to work around it. Eventually, he found himself above a bubbling sludge spanning several yards that seemed to call out to him in incomprehensible gurgles, sending shivers down his spine. He was up in the thick branches of a tree. He could climb easily enough with chakra in his hands and right foot. But how was he going to get to the next branch? If he jumped with the one foot, his replacement foot would just slip on the landing. He had to think of another way.
He rummaged through his pouch, pulling out wire and a kunai and tying the two together. He attempted to swing the kunai across the pit around another overhanging bough, but he didn't put enough force into it, and it dropped into the sludge.
He tried a few more times, using new kunai as the sludge seemed to swallow anything that dropped into it. He was actually getting a little nervous about it.
Finally, on his fourth try, the kunai wrapped around the branch and he tugged it for tightness. Yes! He wrapped his end around the branch he was standing on, as the trunk itself was too massive to fully reach around, and grabbed a short metal baton he had attached to his belt. It wasn't chakra conducting either, but it would slide better on the wire than anything else he had on him.
"Here we go!" He gulped. There was no turning back!
It was like a zipline. He gained speed rather quickly, zooming over the pit of unknown substance. In no time at all the other branch was approaching. Wait... how he was going to slow himself down?! Wait! I'm not ready!
Smack!
To say Echiko face planted into the tree branch was an understatement. As it was, he got the wind knocked out of him, and he lost his grip on the baton. "Shit!" He shut his eyes and felt himself fall feet first into the sludge below. To go out in such a way... A tear slipped down his cheek as he prepared himself for death.
When nothing happened, he fearfully opened them and glanced around. There he was, sitting only waist-deep in goop, but it had splattered up and covered him entirely. "Ahahh..." Well... at least he wasn't going to die. This is embarrassing... Thank goodness no one was here to see this-
"That's a tricky one, I tell ya," someone spoke from behind him, trying not to laugh.
Ah, geez... Echiko looked over his shoulder, face red as a tomato. "How...how long have you been watching me?"
The young man swept a hand through his bright yellow hair with a guilty smile. It was Obito's instructor, Namikaze Minato. "Only for a moment, I swear." He offered a hand and helped drag Echiko out of the sludge as it tried desperately to cling to him. "You have no idea how many times my students have failed this course," Minato assured. "I believe Obito still gets drenched just about every day!"
Echiko tried to shake off some of the mud. "Th-thank you, Minato-sensei..." He glanced up at the dazzling figure who started to make a string of signs with his hands. "Your team... isn't with you?"
"Ah, they're on mission as usual," the man replied, completing the set and calling a Water Release technique that seemed to completely erase the sludge from Echiko's body. "When Kakashi-kun became a chunnin, I made him the team leader so they could do more tasks on their own." He laughed awkwardly. "I thought I'd finally find some time to spend with my wife, but the Hokage has me running around like a chicken with its head cut off. I can barely catch a break!" With a knowing look, he added, "So, that's why I'm hiding out here. But what brings you here, Echiko-kun?"
Echiko twiddled his thumbs. "Well... I wanted to train with Obito, but he wasn't here..."
Minato was nodding. "I see, I see. That boy loves his friends. I think he'd learn a lot training with you."
"Eh? Ah, well... I don't think I can teach him anything..."
"Hm? Kakashi told me you fared quite well in his little bell test," the yellow-haired man scratched his chin as he bent to Echiko's level. "Even so far as to work as a team with the hot-tempered Obito, and outsmart Kakashi with your summons. Truly extraordinary... I'd love to see your skills for myself!" His blue eyes began to shine with unbridled curiosity, causing Echiko to fall back a bit.
"Umm... it's just... I'm not very good... I can't summon more than a few small creatures, and for a very short time... I feel kind of useless, I guess..." Echiko stammered. He felt very small next to this bright person. How talented is Minato-sensei, to be so young and yet have such a strong aura?
Minato placed a hand on Echiko's head. "Certainly, that is a problem. But you're still a child, so you shouldn't worry too much about it. You should enjoy this time in your life as much as you can." He smiled pleasantly. "If you're that determined to improve yourself, however, I might be able to help you... in return for a small favor."
Eh? Echiko gulped. "Help me?"
"Yes," he stood up, "didn't Obito-kun tell you? I have a summoning contract as well."
He... has a contract like mine? This is exactly what he needs! Echiko thought back to Yugao's energetic bows earlier that afternoon and earnestly bent his head towards a surprised Minato. "Please! Teach me, Senseil!"
"Alright, alright! But," he said, "you know I need to talk to your guardian about it first, right?"
Echiko's enthusiasm died a little.
"So why don't you call it a night for now, hm? I know it's been a rough couple of days for you." Minato rubbed his head with a sigh. "I'll let you come here to practice in the meantime, okay? And don't forget you owe me a small favor!"
"Yes sir!" Echiko was happy. He finally found someone who could help him with the most important part. He did wonder what kind of summons Minato had a contract with, though. What did his history books say again? There were several worlds that interconnected with this one that all held powerful and intelligent beasts, including giant snakes, toads, and even slugs. Many lesser creatures that one could contract with shared worlds with these named monsters, such as hawks, dogs, spiders, monkeys, and fish. Echiko smiled for the first time in a while. It would be so cool to see what Minato-sensei could summon. Truthfully, Echiko didn't know anything about the man other than the fact he was a jonin and was obviously the instructor of Obito and Kakashi's genin team. Would or did he teach summoning to them as well? He'd have to ask them next time.
Echiko shyly waved goodbye to the jonin and slowly made his way back into the Village and to the house his sister lived in. Now that he had a goal to work on and someone amazing to help him, he felt he might finally get stronger. As he got to the door, a thought paused him.
Father would be proud... right?

...

"It went well enough, I think."
A short figure stepped into the firelight. Two masked men bearing the characteristics of a boar and panda stood behind him, calm and stoic as they faced a murderous aura radiating from the center of the small room.
"What do you mean, well enough?! Several children could have died!" Anger flared in his brown eyes, and he pulled at his orange-colored hair in frustration. "Who authorized this?"
"I did, Daisuke-kun."
Daisuke held in his breath as he turned to face the elderly man. "...Hiruzen-sama."
"I understand your frustration, Daisuke-kun," the Hokage continued from his seat, "but you must know the situation we're in right now. This choice had to be made."
"You could have consulted us," another voiced from the shadows. Yamanaka Inoichi leaned forward from against the wall. "Although I doubt any of the major Clans would have agreed to something as crazy as this."
"This was Danzo's idea," Daisuke prodded, "wasn't it?"
"Danzo-sama has only Konoha's future in mind," the short figure interjected with a bow. Using a hand sign, he released his disguise as the child Noboru in a puff of smoke. "We were instructed not to fatally harm any child in the hopes they would continue to grow to become Konohagakure's strongest generation." A tall shinobi stood in his place, revealing an odd seal on his tongue as he spoke.
"It is true," the Hokage spoke. "And with the Third Shinobi War almost upon us, would you ask me to send my soldiers to battle unprepared? We cannot - I will not - have any shinobi of this Village die due to our negligence in their training. The peace we have known for years has dulled our youth, and I cannot think of a better way to quickly raise them up before it's too late. You understand me, don't you Inoichi? Daisuke? We do not have the privilege of waiting for the enemy to strike first this time."
There was silence for a while. "So what is your plan?" Daisuke rubbed his eyes.
"I have consulted with my closest aids and advisors, and now confide in the both of you. We will graduate all current Academy students as soon as possible and create specialized genin teams with specific jonin trainers in mind. This is to take effect immediately, and I expect full cooperation from the Intelligence and Investigation Divisions, alright?" The Hokage's stern expression gave way a little. "I believe in our youth. They have the will of the First, and the fire of the Second. They will certainly overcome all hardships and carry us to victory. Please believe in them also."
Daisuke bent his head. "Hokage-sama. Let it be as you say."
"I hope these youths are ready," Inoichi mumbled under his breath.
"We will make them ready," Daisuke responded solemnly. A certain blue-haired youth crossed his mind.

Perhaps it is time to tell him...