Hello everyone.
Not much to say this time other than the fact that updates will be rather sporadic. I work on the fic in my free time. But, as I'm sure all of you know, life gets in the way sometimes.
Please continue to give me feedback, tell me your thoughts on each chapter.
Let's get going, eh?
Chapter 4: Lazy Bells
Clone, transformation, substitution.
Naruto pondered these three rudimentary ninja techniques as he took a seat in class. They were the ones that all genin needed to be able to perform in order to graduate.
Substitution was easy enough, one simply had to think about the object they wanted to 'swap' with and create a tether of chakra between themselves and said object. He was able to master this one a few hours after Iruka sensei showed it to the class.
Transformation was also rather easy. A low level ninjutsu to mask one's appearance with whatever you wanted. He actively used this technique whenever he went into the commercial district so as to not lose all his money to bigoted merchants.
Then there was the clone jutsu, another low level ninjutsu that involves creating an apparition of oneself with pure chakra.
Iruka said that only three clones were needed to pass the test. But no matter how hard he tried, Naruto just could not summon less than fifteen clones at a time. Even with the absolute smallest amount of chakra he put into the jutsu, they still appeared in the dozens. He hoped that he wouldn't get points deducted for creating too many.
As he waited for Iruka to arrive, he took a moment to observe the class. He knew that many of them wouldn't even become ninja.
The glasses boy, who he'd come to find out was Shino Aburame, simply sat next to him without a care in the world. The boy had not shown so much as a twitch in his brow for the entire duration of the academy. But, he'd grown to prefer the silence offered by the boy over the other kids who had no problem being as loud as possible. The boy's appearance hadn't changed much over the years, he simply got a bigger jacket and glasses.
To his left sat Sasuki. Besides the initial change in personality after the massacre, she largely remained the same throughout the years. She had her hands clasped in front of her and she seemed to be staring off into space. That's all she ever seemed to do.. except for the sparring sessions. When it was time for Taijutsu practice, she became a completely different person. The matches always ended in less than thirty seconds.
Her appearance did change however. Her spiky raven hair had grown a bit longer, now reaching just below the middle of her back. She now donned a blue shirt with the infamous Uchiha symbol emblazoned on the back and short white shorts. She had a kunai pouch strapped to her leg and arm warmers on her arms.
Naruto's attention was diverted towards the door of the classroom as it slid open, revealing Iruka who held a handful of regulation Konoha headbands.
"Good morning everyone. As you all know, today is the practical portion of your graduation exams. All of your written tests have already been graded. Mizuki and I will go over your scores with you privately when it is your turn to take the test." He closed his eyes and smiled. "Good luck, all of you!"
Mizuki walked out of his testing room with a clipboard in his hands.
"Okay, the first one will be Asukai Kurahado. Please, come into my office."
Naruto watched a nervous boy get up and stiffly walk to the exam room. 'So this is it huh? All I need to do is pass this test and I will be a ninja of Konoha.' He looked around the room at the variety of expressions on all of the genin hopefuls. 'I wonder who will be on my team..'
After several students entered and exited the testing rooms with faces of dejection and elation, Naruto heard his name.
"Naruto Uzumaki, please come to the testing room." Iruka yelled with his head out the door.
He silently got up and walked down the stairs. As he headed to Iruka, he passed Mizuki's office which had the door slightly cracked. He paused and looked inside out of the corner of his eye.
"Sakura, your written test was very good. In fact, it was almost perfect. You also did very well on the three jutsu." Mizuki paused, looking Sakura in the eye. "However, your performance in taijutsu practice was.. Well to put it nicely it was severely lacking. Your scores in taijutsu were the bare minimum required to graduate."
Sakura shuffled slightly on her feet and her posture stiffened. "O-Oh.. I see.."
"Had you scored higher on Taijutsu, you might have even made Kunoichi of the year. Unfortunately, so far you're the dead last in overall score." Sakura looked down at the ground. "I'm not telling you this to make you feel bad, Sakura. I'm telling you this so that you know what to improve on. Regardless, you still pass. Here is your headband, congratulations."
Naruto shook his head and continued towards Iruka's office. That was none of his business anyways.
After entering the testing room, Iruka closed the door behind him and took a seat behind his desk. Naruto watched patiently as he scanned the contents of a clipboard and made a few notes.
Iruka looked up at him. "Alright Naruto, please perform a substitution." He said, gesturing to the chair in the corner of the room.
Nodding, Naruto willed his chakra to envelop the chair, then tugged it towards him. In an instant he found himself leaning against the wall where the chair just was.
"Good! Now the transformation." Iruka said after marking something down.
Naruto held up a single hand sign and molded his chakra within himself to the required consistency and frequency for the transformation. After a puff of smoke, he changed into Iruka.
Iruka chuckled and waved his hand, prompting him to dispel the jutsu.
"Alright now finally, create three clones."
Naruto closed his eyes, picturing the ocean that was his chakra. 'Just a drop..'
Bringing his fingers together once more, he molded the crisp energy through them at a different frequency than before and expelled it into the air around him.
The invisible energy coalesced into several vague shapes that slowly filled with color, mirroring Naruto. Twelve clones shimmered into existence, nearly filling the room with copies of the redheaded boy.
Iruka looked at each of the expressionless Naruto clones for any defects. "..You only needed to make three, but good job Naruto. You pass!"
The clones vanished and Iruka turned to the real Naruto with a small smile. "As far as your written scores go, you passed those with flying colors as well. Keep training and you will definitely be an excellent shinobi."
For a long time Iruka's attitude towards him had always been nothing more than neutral. But in the last year or so Iruka had been more friendly towards him. He didn't understand the change in behavior, nor did he question it. But it no longer mattered anyways, he passed the graduation exam.
Looking down at the headband in his hand, he couldn't decide how he felt. Most people would feel ecstatic at having just graduated from a place that you had just spent the last six years of your life learning in.
He gazed into his own ice blue eyes in the reflection of the spotless metal and waited for the feelings to come.
They didn't.
Shrugging, he tied the headband around his head and returned to his seat.
Shino had apparently passed too judging by the headband on his head, and Sasuki wasn't in her seat.
'She's probably still testing.' Naruto thought.
After a few minutes of waiting, said Uchiha sat next to him with a shiny new headband on her head.
"So you passed."
Naruto blinked and turned to look at Sasuki. She was still looking forward with her hands clasped in front of her.
The girl seldom spoke, only when absolutely necessary. Small talk or useless words were completely out of the question. In fact, Naruto probably only heard her say a few dozen words in six whole years.
He returned his gaze forward once again and nodded slightly, watching the last few students get called to finish their exam.
"Yes, as did you."
A few seconds of silence went by and he looked back at Sasuki. Naruto narrowed his eyes in confusion. 'Did she even say anything? Am I going crazy?'
"Alright everyone, good job to those of you who passed the academy exam! I'd like to take a moment to congratulate two students in particular for having outstanding scores." The classroom broke out into whispers. "Ahem, the first is Naruto Uzumaki, the rookie of the year!"
The class was mostly silent as no one really knew much about Naruto. Then there was Kiba, who shouted in denial.
"No, that can't be right sensei! Really, Naruto was rookie of the year? How is that possible?"
Iruka looked at Kiba with a disappointed frown.
"It's possible because he had near perfect scores on every portion of the exam. Don't forget that he beat you in our last taijutsu session, Kiba."
The class burst out laughing much to Kiba's dismay.
Hinata decided to voice her opinion as well and rose from her seat.
"Sensei, you said there were two students. So who is the second?"
Nodding, Iruka continued. "Right, I was getting to that. The Kunoichi of the year is Sasuki Uchiha, congratulations, both of you!"
Hinata sat down slowly, hateful white eyes glaring at nothing in particular as she held her wrist.
Neither Naruto or Sasuki looked particularly happy about their titles. In fact, they didn't look like they cared at all.
Iruka sweatdropped at their lack of reaction. 'Overjoyed aren't they.. What fun they must be.'
"R-Right.. Now I will tell you your team compositions. Each of you will be formed into a three person squad led by a Jounin." Iruka said as he reached for his clipboard.
"Squad one will be…"
A young pink haired girl with green eyes rubbed her clammy hands together and tried her hardest to quell the nausea that threatened to empty her stomach.
This was it; the culmination of the last four years of her dread in one single moment. She dreaded this day because she didn't know if she actually wanted to be a ninja at all.
Sakura looked down to her clenched fists in her lap when Iruka finished listing off another team.
'What am I doing? Please, please let me be on her team. I'm only here at all because of-' A warm hand found its way onto her shoulder, like it always did when she felt doubt.
"Hey Sakura! Don't worry, alright? There is a good chance that we'll be on the same team. Think about it, Iruka sensei already listed off most of the class and neither of us have been chosen yet."
Sakura looked up from her lap and was greeted with a grinning face framed by platinum blond hair and the familiar light blue eyes of her best friend.
'Your scores in taijutsu were the bare minimum required to graduate.'
'Unfortunately, so far you're the dead last in overall score.'
Sakura lowered her gaze once again, the words of Mizuki still fresh in her mind. "Y-Yeah but.. Ino I don't think I-"
"Team 7 will consist of Sakura Haruno.."
Sakura's head snapped forwards to Iruka at the call of her name.
'Please..'
"Sasuki Uchiha.." Iruka continued.
She clenched her fist around the hem of her red dress and the warm hand on her shoulder grew tighter.
'Please!'
"..and Naruto Uzumaki. Your Jounin Sensei will be Kakashi Hatake." He finished, pausing for a moment before proceeding with the next set of Genin.
Sakura slumped in her chair.
This was exactly what she didn't want to happen. She only joined the academy in the first place because of Ino. On top of that, her teammates are the two best students in class, rookie and kunoichi of the year, while she was the dead last.
'Maybe it's still early enough to drop out. There should be someone available to fill my spot on the team, surely. Yeah.. I think that's what I'll do.'
She really should have listened to her parents. Take business classes, learn to manage money, then take over their shop when they get too old to run it anymore. It was a clear cut path through life but she just had to go and do something different in order to stay with her friend.
A hand waving in front of her face brought her back to the present.
"..kura. Earth to Sakura! Hey, are you alright?"
"..Ino?" She asked dejectedly, disappointment evident in her tone.
"It'll be ok, Sakura. Trust me." Ino looked over to a sleeping boy with a dark spiky ponytail and a plump boy who gorged himself on potato chips.
"I don't know how I didn't see this coming, but I'm on a team with Shikamaru and Choji. Our dads were also on a team together. It's kinda obvious that that's how it was gonna be now that I think about it." She looked back to Sakura apologetically. "I really shouldn't have gotten your hopes up, Sakura. I'm sorry."
She shook her head quickly at the apology. "N-No, it's fine, really. I think I'll just quit-" Ino grabbed both of her shoulders and shook her around, making her dizzy.
"What?! No way! Sakura, you can be a great ninja, really! You don't need me to be on your team for you to succeed, you know. Please, at least see what your teammates are like before you give up."
Sakura looked up towards the back of the room at Naruto and Sasuki. 'They are so much better than I am. I hope.. I hope I can be a good teammate.' Naruto noticed her staring and met her eyes.
Sakura quickly looked away.
"..I'll try, Ino." She said meekly. Doubt still filled her mind.
The platinum blond girl grinned and flipped her hair over her shoulder.
"That's what I wanted to hear! I'm gonna go talk to Shikamaru and Choji now, maybe you should go talk to your teammates too. See ya!"
"I'll try.." She whispered to herself.
Sasuki tapped her fingers against the grain of the desk in front of her impatiently.
The last team already went with their Jounin sensei over an hour ago. Even Iruka and Mizuki left the classroom, leaving the three of them.
Her fingers still tapped the desk rhythmically as she tried to focus on small, irrelevant things to keep her mind busy. Whenever her mind wasn't busy she couldn't keep those thoughts out..
'Fifty-six. There are fifty-six books on that bookshelf. Seventeen are paperbacks and thirty-nine are hard covers.' She thought, observing the shelves full of books with her Sharingan active again to make sure she didn't make a mistake.
After concluding that she was correct, her eyes scanned desperately around the room for something else to uselessly analyze. But there was nothing. She'd already counted the ceiling tiles, the chairs, the desks, the buttons on Naruto's jacket, and now the books.
Her eyes landed on the smudged and poorly erased chalkboard.
Three random chalk marks that were left behind slowly morphed into something else in front of her eyes. A fully matured Sharingan with three tomoe took shape. Then a face formed around the eyes.
The silence in the room became deafening. Her own heartbeat pounded in her ears, causing new highs of anxiety as the face gained more features.
'No.. Not again, no!' She tried to close her eyes but couldn't. Her body was no longer responding. It was always like this if she didn't keep busy.
The noise of a chair sliding on the tile floor came from her right causing her to involuntarily look over.
She saw Naruto walking down the stairs towards the door with his hands shoved in his pockets. Her mouth moved before she could stop it.
"Where are you going?"
Naruto looked over his shoulder. "I'm leaving. If this Jounin wants to waste my time, then what's the point of even being here?"
Sasuki looked back at the chalkboard. The face and Sharingan were gone, leaving three random chalk marks. They were just random lines with no meaning. She stood and followed Naruto down the stairs.
Sakura looked at the backs of her teammates hesitantly.
"Uhh.. g-guys. Maybe we should just wait a little longer.." Sakura said quietly.
She debated on whether or not she should follow them. On one hand she wanted to stay and wait for their Sensei, but on the other she wanted to follow her teammates.
Neither Naruto or Sasuki responded, they simply kept walking towards the door.
Sighing, Sakura stood and gathered her things before trailing behind Sasuki.
Naruto saw that they decided to follow and nodded before grabbing the handle to the door. Sliding the door open in one motion, he stepped out into- a green vest.
He looked up from the pocket full of kunai that he ran into. A man with spiky silver hair and a headband over his left eye gazed down at him dispassionately.
"Aww leaving already, huh?" Kakashi said with a drawl.
The three Genin didn't respond and stared at Kakashi with blank faces.
"My first impressions of you guys.. You're all boring." Kakashi turned and started walking towards the stairs. "Meet me on the roof."
Shrugging, Naruto followed the Jounin causing Sasuki and Sakura to do the same.
Naruto found himself sitting in the middle of the two Kunoichi, opposite their Sensei who leaned against the railing with a slouched posture.
After a few long minutes of awkward silence, Kakashi sighed. "Alright.. I guess we should all introduce ourselves." He gestured to the Genin.
Sasuki was staring off into space, Naruto simply kept looking at Kakashi, and Sakura looked from Naruto to Sasuki waiting for one of them to say something.
Kakashi sighed again, something he would likely do a lot with this team. Reaching into his pouch, he pulled out a small orange book.
"Do any of you ever talk? Fine, I'll go first. My name is Kakashi Hatake. My likes.." He turned a page of his book, giggling a few times before continuing. "..Well it should be obvious. My dislikes.. Hmm. As for my dreams for the future.. Well.." He turned another page of his book.
Looking up from the lecherous pages, Kakashi glanced at Sakura. "Now you go."
Sakura fidgeted in place, quickly trying to think of what to say. After a few seconds, she began. "I-I'm Sakura Haruno. Umm, I like my friend Ino and helping people in need. Um, I don't like people who are mean for no reason or seeing people get hurt. M-My dream.. Uhh.." She looked down at the ground.
Kakashi nodded before pointing to Naruto. "Now you. You've been staring at me the whole time, do you want to have a staring contest or something?" Kakashi jested.
Naruto ignored the question and began. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I like ramen, and I don't like ignorance. I don't have a dream or a goal. I live simply for the curiosity of life."
Sasuki looked over to Naruto when he said that, as if remembering a distant memory.
Kakashi's gaze lingered on Naruto for a few seconds too long before turning to the last member of the team. "And finally, you. The spacey one."
Sasuki closed her eyes and furrowed her brow.
"My name is Sasuki Uchiha.. I hate fake people who have ulterior motives. My goal.." She opened her eyes and looked to the sky. "..My goal is to become strong." She finished lamely.
Kakashi nodded, eyeing the three of them making Sakura squirm. He jumped atop the railing and started tilting backwards. "Training ground three, five minutes." He said before falling off the building.
Sakura gasped and ran to the railing, fearing the worst. Looking over the edge, she found that he was gone. Turning around to find her teammates, she found that they had already left too.
Sighing, she began walking towards the training grounds.
Naruto, Sasuki, and Kakashi stood in an uncomfortable silence in the training ground. It was a relatively large clearing surrounded on all sides by dense forest. In the center of the field were three wooden posts next to the memorial stone.
Sasuki was tapping her foot on the grass impatiently. This lack of stimulation was causing her to think again.
Hearing gasps for breath, they all turned their heads to see a haggard Sakura dragging her feet through the field.
Stopping before them, she put her hands on her knees and spoke between breaths. "..Am I… Late?"
Kahashi pulled out two bells from his pouch. "No later than I usually am."
When Sakura caught her breath, Kakashi continued. "Now I will explain the unfortunate predicament you all find yourselves in; you're not Genin."
Naruto and Sasuki narrowed their eyes and Sakura looked a little relieved.
Sasuki decided to speak up. "What are you talking about, we all passed the graduation exam."
Kakashi chuckled and held up the bells, the ringing tickled their eardrums, sending shivers down their spines.
"Oh but you see, there is one final test that all Genin must take in order to see if they're ready. I decide if you pass or fail. Also, this test has a guaranteed thirty-three percent failure rate, meaning that no matter what, one of you will fail. Or you could all fail, who knows?" He smiled and jingled the bells again. "The objective is simply to get one of these bells from me."
Sakura looked down at the ground. 'There's no way I'll be able to get a bell before Naruto and Sasuki. At least I gave it a shot, like Ino said.'
Kakashi tied the bells to his waist and pulled out an alarm clock. He twisted the knob on the back of it, setting a timer. "You have an hour. If nobody gets a bell in that time, you all fail. Good luck! Now begin."
The three kids jumped into the foliage that surrounded the clearing.
Kakashi's lazy gaze slowly scanned each branch that moved, to each twig that snapped. Nothing seemed unnatural. "Well at least they know how to hide."
Naruto hopped from branch to branch, never taking his eyes off Kakashi. 'Something about this Jounin seems familiar, but I can't quite place it.' He stopped on a branch now that he was behind the silver haired Jounin. 'I don't have much time, three hours to defeat a Jounin is not a lot. I need to make a move now, to see if this is even possible.'
He grabbed three kunai from his pouch and threw one of them at the tree several feet to his left. It severed the string he set up and launched several kunai at Kakashi.
The Jounin expertly dodged all but the last one which he plucked out of the air and threw back the way it came. It embedded itself into the same tree that Naruto's kunai did.
Naruto created a dozen clones and sent them towards Kakashi. Naruto threw the last two kunai at Kakashi as they closed the gap. 'With all those clones as a distraction, at least one of those should get him.'
Kakashi simply ignored the clones as they approached him and sidestepped the kunai as he turned a page of his book.
Naruto watched Kakashi as he hopped from tree to tree. 'What is with this guy.. He is barely even paying attention but still blocking all my attacks.'
He stopped on another branch, this time watching Kakashi from a different angle. 'Well, long range attacks don't seem to work. I have no choice but to engage him in Taijutsu.. I need to catch him off guard and end it quickly if I want any chance of getting a bell.'
Naruto brought his fingers together, forming a hand sign. "Transform." He whispered, his form shifting into that of Sakura's. He adapted his posture and mannerisms to match hers and walked towards Kakashi slowly.
"S-Sensei.. Um.. I don't think this test is fair." 'Sakura' said as she got close to Kakashi.
Kakashi giggled and turned a page. "Oh? How so Sakura?"
'Sakura' took small hesitant steps forward. 'Just a few more feet..'
"W-Well.. You're a Jounin and we're only Genin. There's no way Naruto or even Sasuki could beat you, let alone me.." She said weakly.
Kakashi sighed and brought his hand up to turn another page.
'This is it!' Naruto thought, quickly palming a kunai. He thrust his arm forward intent on cutting off the strings of the bells and taking them.
A gloved hand grabbed his wrist in a crushing grip, causing the kunai to fall to the dirt. The transformation fell.
"Clever, disguising yourself as your weaker teammate to lower my guard. Since you're the first to attack, I'll give you an easy one. Shinobi battle tactics part one; Genjutsu." Kakashi said, forming a hand sign.
Naruto felt a foreign chakra invade body, taking control of his senses. The grassy plain of the training ground morphed into the busy, merchant-filled streets of the village center.
"Hey, it's that kid." A woman whispered.
"Yeah the Kyuubi, right?" A gruff voice replied.
"I hate him for what he did." The woman said.
Naruto took a seat on the ground and closed his eyes.
"This is just an illusion." He said aloud to himself, making a hand sign in an attempt to dispel the Genjutsu.
Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain erupt from his side and he turned to look for the source.
A man with a feral grin rammed a wheelbarrow full of dirt into him and was preparing to do it again.
"This place will never be your home, fox!" The man snarled.
"It sure feels real. But why can't I dispel it? I'm doing exactly what Iruka said to do.." Naruto muttered.
Sasuki watched from between leaves as Naruto fell to the ground. 'Did he really get beaten that easily? Now is my chance.'
She leapt from the trees and threw several kunai at Kakashi.
Kakashi twisted and ducked away from the kunai lazily, one of which hit the prone Naruto in the side.
"It's wise to be careful of your own attacks, Sasuki. You may end up doing more harm than good." Kakashi said, turning another page.
Sasuki grunted and threw several kunai at his feet, causing him to step back several feet away from Naruto. Going through several hand signs, she inhaled sharply and compressed her chakra in her lungs.
Kakashi's eye widened. 'Ninjutsu of that caliber? At such a young age.. What are they feeding these kids?'
Sasuki brought her hand up to her mouth and shouted, "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
A massive ball of flames emerged from her lips, enveloping Kakashi.
Sasuki cut off the Jutsu and peered through the smoke as she caught her breath. When it cleared, Kakashi was nowhere to be seen.
'Damn, he got away.' Sasuki cursed and looked down at Naruto who was bleeding slightly from the Kunai she threw.
She channeled chakra to her fingertips to dispel the Genjutsu, only to feel the ground beneath her feet rumble.
Two hands shot up from the ground and grasped her ankles before pulling her into the dirt to the neck.
Kakashi appeared in front of her, still holding his book. "Shinobi battle tactics part two; Ninjutsu. Though you seem to know about that one already don't you?"
"Get me out of this stupid hole!" Sasuki said with venom as she struggled against the compacted dirt.
"No. Maybe your last teammate will come to your rescue. It's funny really, the rookie and the kunoichi of the year both remain helpless while the deadlast roams free."
Sasuki bristled with anger and embarrassment at her situation.
Sakura watched the whole interaction from the trees. She shook with uncertainty. 'I really want to help them, but.. If they couldn't beat him then what could I do?' She clenched her fists. 'No.. I need to do something! What would Ino say if I told her that I did nothing?'
She shakily drew a kunai and walked out of the bushes.
"K-Kakashi Sensei! Release both of them.. Plea-" She shook her head, emerald eyes looked up with unusual ferocity. "No.. release them now!"
Kakashi actually put his book away and looked at Sakura with intrigue.
"You want me to release them? Why? Why do you care about them? You know.. This could be your chance to take a bell Sakura." Kakashi suggested, looking her keenly in the eye.
Sakura shook her head and clutched the kunai tighter in her hands.
"No. I don't care about the bells. In fact, if you release them I'll.." She looked at the bleeding Naruto and stuck Sasuki. "I'll let them both have the bells. I know they can get them."
Sakura didn't know if it was a play of the lighting, or her own adrenaline causing her to see things, but she swore that the area where his mouth was beneath his mask began to turn upwards into a smile. Then the bell rang.
Kakashi sighed and pulled a glaring Sasuki out of the ground and picked Naruto up. He walked over to the wooden posts and tied Naruto to the middle one before tapping him on the forehead.
Naruto's eyes shot open and he looked around wildly, as if preparing for an attack.
"Calm down, Naruto. The test is over. None of you got the bells." Kakashi said, looking at the three of them with disappointment. "Naruto, you actually did the worst here. Sasuki and Sakura displayed some kind of care for their teammates, while you did everything completely solo."
He walked over to the memorial stone where two lunchboxes sat. "It's only because of them that I'm willing to give this team one last chance. Sasuki and Sakura eat lunch, but Naruto gets none. When you are finished you will try again." He disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
Naruto stared ahead blankly. 'I did the worst? Unbelievable..'
His stomach growled loudly, earning looks from his teammates. He closed his eyes and ignored the feeling. 'Why couldn't I dispel that Genjutsu? All Iruka said to do was channel your chakra and cause an irregularity in the flow of it.. I need to ask him about it.'
Sakura looked at Naruto, then looked down to her food. 'He's hungry.. and I have more than enough for me. Did Kakashi sensei give us these big lunches on purpose?' She picked up a rice ball with her chopsticks. 'Maybe if I just give him a little without Kakashi noticing..'
"N-Naruto.. Here, eat. Quickly!" Sakura said, raising the chopsticks in front of his face.
Naruto and Sasuki stared at Sakura incredulously.
"You heard Kakashi, Sakura. I'm not supposed to eat lunch. Don't worry about me, really, I'll be fine." Naruto said, closing his eyes once more.
Sakura shakily pressed the ball of rice into his lips.
"No! You need to eat to regain your energy. Think about it, Kakashi Sensei is a Jounin. Neither of you could beat him and you were the best in class." Her confidence fizzled out slightly. "M-Maybe if we all work together you two can get the bells."
Sasuki huffed and picked up a piece of shrimp.
"She has a point. Eat quickly, I don't see Kakashi anywhere."
Naruto looked at the rice and shrimp offered to him in confusion. 'Why are they helping me at all? Oh well, who am I to turn down a free meal.'
Naruto ate the food in one quick sweep, earning weird gazes from his teammates.
"What?" He asked after he swallowed his food.
Before they could respond, a plume of smoke exploded in front of them, revealing a very angry Kakashi.
"You!" He yelled, quickly going through several hand signs. His hand illuminated with visible chakra in the form of electricity. The noise of thousands of chirping birds resounded throughout the clearing.
Sakura closed her eyes and brought her hands in front of her face. Naruto looked at Kakashi blankly. Sasuki glared at Kakashi defiantly, her Sharingan spinning to life.
Kakashi's single visible eye crinkled upwards into a smile. "Pass."
Sakura peaked one green eye from between her fingers. "W-What? We pass?"
Kakashi dispelled the strange jutsu and walked over to the memorial stone with his hands in his pockets.
"Yes, you all pass. The entire point of the test was to see if you had the ability to work together. Every single squad I've tested before you always fought amongst each other." He reached out a gloved hand and traced the names inscribed onto the stone. "The names of my closest friends are carved into this stone. Friends that would still be here had I cherished them."
He turned around and looked at his students with a firm eye. "I will only say this once, so listen closely."
The three Genin leaned forwards and listened with rapt attention.
"Those who break the rules are trash, yes." Sakura looked down at that. "..However, those who abandon even one of their friends are even worse than trash."
He reached into his pocket, pulling out his infamous book once again. "Well, team seven officially starts missions tomorrow. I'll see you then!" He disappeared in smoke.
Sakura smiled and turned to her teammates. "We passed!" She took notice of the blood on Naruto's jacket. "O-Oh that's right, you're hurt! Here.." She rummaged through her pouches, trying to find something. "Here it is, my mom got me some healing salve for situations like this. Sasuki, could you cut him free."
Sasuki drew a kunai and cut the rope tied around Naruto.
Sakura spread some salve on her fingers. "First, Sasuki. Let me see your arm. I saw that bruise there." She said in a tone that left no room for argument.
Sasuki begrudgingly brought her hand forwards and watched in veiled interest as the bruises that Sakura applied the salve to vanished in seconds.
"Now Naruto. Lift your jacket." Sakura said, getting more of the medicine.
Naruto lifted his jacket where the hole was, revealing perfectly unharmed skin.
Sakura gasped when she saw that there was no wound and dropped the medicine. She looked distant, as if remembering something.
'Sakura, you have that boy in your class don't you?'
'What boy?'
'Naruto Uzumaki. Listen to me Sakura, I want you to stay away from him. He's trouble, do you understand?'
'H-He doesn't seem all that bad, I mean he just keeps to himself..'
'That.. boy.. Isn't human. I won't tell you again; do not interact with him.'
'..Yes father.'
Naruto slowly lowered his shirt and turned to walk out of the clearing with his hands in his pockets.
Sasuki looked at the salve that was now spilling on the floor, then to Sakura.
"What was that all about?" She asked.
Sakura jumped at her voice, breaking her out of her trance.
"O-Oh it's.. Nothing. I'll be going now, see ya tomorrow." Sakura said, quickly walking out of the clearing.
"Well Kakashi, how did they do?" The Hokage questioned the man that stood before him.
"They would have passed even if you didn't order me to pass them." Kakashi said lazily. He shifted on his feet before continuing. "Lord Hokage, Naruto actually is the worst out of the three of them. Not in talent or skill, but teamwork. The others at least showed that they were capable of it to some extent."
The Hokage exhaled the smoke that was in his lungs. "I see.. Well, that is not unexpected given his upbringing. Would you be ready to rely on others when your whole life you've been self sufficient? Give him time, Kakashi. Let them form a bond."
Kakashi nodded and pulled out his little orange book. "That's all, Lord Hokage."
Hiruzen smiled at the Jounin. "Still reading that stuff Kakashi?"
Kakashi eye smiled. "Yes. You are too, you hide it in the bottom left drawer underneath the stack of files on active ANBU agents, right? Tell me, have you gotten to the part yet where Ikesai and Sasumi walk in on Kyouze making out with Hiruka? Or what about the part-"
"Enough!" Hiruzen whispered sharply, his cheeks tinted red. "You are going to spoil it for me if you keep talking. You are dismissed, Kakashi."
Kakashi tilted his head to the side. "Really? You sure you don't want to talk about chapter thirteen where Sasumi licks Ikesai's-"
"I said you are dismissed!"
