"Kyu," Sei whispered to the girl sitting next to him. "You need to pay attention. If the instructor catches you he'll—"

"I'll do what young man?" a heavy set chuunin asked the blond boy. Sei quickly shook his head hoping the instructor would not press the matter. He didn't know why he bothered trying to warn Kyu. After all, Sei was the one always getting in trouble because of it.

The two had been attending the academy for two weeks already and Sei was wondering if the material was ever going to be worthwhile. He had mastered all the basic techniques already, like henge, bunshin, and even kawarimi, though that was for extra credit and not a real assignment. Kyu had a little more trouble with the techniques but caught on quickly when Sei helped her outside of the academy.

Even the physical exercises were inadequate. Sei could run rings around half the kids in the class, and frankly, Kyu could do the same to him. During the shuriken practice, Sei discovered he was more adept at hitting the targets then all three instructors and had to throw his aim off slightly to keep from drawing attention. Kyu, on the other hand, was not as modest. If the instructors got on her bad side, and they did frequently, she would rub her superiority in their faces.

The written assignments were also a breeze for Sei, though Kyu's head began to hurt if she spent too much time on them. This was when the instructors would single her out. "What do you mean you can't tell me the history of the first and second Hokages! We just went over it ten minutes ago!"

"But you were so boring I fell asleep," she would reply innocently, much to the displeasure of the instructor. The fact of the matter was that Kyu hated history. She did not see the importance of remembering stuff like what the Hokages' favorite techniques were when she was trying so hard to remember stuff about herself. It took hours of studying at home just to give her enough information to barely pass.

Sei had to admit that no one could match her when it came to survival training. On the second day of class, they were taken to a dense forest and instructed to stay hidden for three hours. If the instructors found someone, that person failed the lesson. Kyu not only avoided detection throughout the entire two hours, but she also hid several students who could not hide themselves. Of course, that was also what sparked the instructor's animosity towards her.

Besides the people Kyu helped out, only five people in a class of fifty managed to beat the instructors. Sei, Kyu, and Nawaki managed to pull through, but so did the two child prodigies of the Uchiha and Hyuga clans. Sei found out that he was ranked third behind these two, but Nawaki and Kyu believed he was letting them stay ahead to avoid unwanted attention.

"You know you could beat both of them with your eyes closed," Nawaki told him.

"They're not my opponents," Sei responded flatly.

"You know those two treat the rest of the class like garbage because they think they're better than everyone," Kyu interjected.

"I heard that the rest of the class was just upset because they screw up the curve. In fact, some people say that the Uchiha is actually decent for a spoiled clan heir."

"Are you kidding me?" came Nawaki. "Kyu saw the Hyuga shove a kid in the hall just for blocking the door by mistake. And how great can that Uchiha kid be if he makes it a point to cream everyone in every subject! We should do something!"

Sei merely sighed. "I don't want any trouble, especially with those clans." Sei had every right to avoid those families. When people began to discover his great potential, the two clans were the first to label him a wolf in sheep's clothing. Neither the Hyuga clan nor the Uchiha clan wanted anything to do with Sei, and when they learned that he and Kyu were to attend Academy, the clans used every ounce of their influence to remove him, though it was to no avail. The Hokage had his own plans.

Nawaki and Kyu did not press the matter further. Class was over anyways and kunai training was about to begin. The three made their way from the building to the training fields outside and since there were more students than target poles, Sei, Kyu, and Nawaki were assigned to one. Surprisingly enough, Hyuga Hiashi and Uchiha Keisuke (AN/ what is that bastard's name!) shared a pole next to them.

"Listen up everyone," an instructor began. "I need one member from each group to stand behind the throwing lane. The rest of you, wait patiently against the wall."

Sei was first up, and his two friends wished him good luck before departing. Nearby, Keisuke took his place behind the line. The instructor waited until the ten students were ready, kunai in hand. He then cleared his throat and began giving directions for the exercise.

"First I want everyone to try and hit the pole in the center of the red circle!"

Sei concentrated on the red dot. It was probably ten centimeters in diameter, but from his spot twenty meters away, the circle seemed very small. He took a deep breath, aimed carefully, and threw the Kunai towards its target at the same time everyone else did. When all the students had finished throwing, only half had hit the pole. Keisuke and Sei were the only ones who managed to hit the target. However, Keisuke was a centimeter off while Sei had hit the target dead center.

"Excellent work Sei. Not bad either Keisuke," the instructor said to the two boys. "I didn't expect anyone to hit the target this soon, so what do you say we make things interesting with a little competition." Those were not words Sei wanted to hear. The instructor wheeled a cart full of kunai between the two boys.

"I want each of you to take turns throwing these kunai at the target. You each get ten throws. Hitting the pole will count as one point, the circle will get you five points, and hitting the original kunai in the pole will land you a whopping ten points. The winner gets to stay home tomorrow with passing marks for the day. Keisuke, you're up first."

Keisuke took careful aim and threw. The kunai soared towards its target making a whistling sound as it went by. Clang! The kunai had struck steal, giving the Uchiha an early lead with ten points. Sei was very uncomfortable competing with the pride of the Uchiha clan. He decided that the only thing to do was let the Keisuke win. Wanting to make it seem as realistic as possible, Sei took careful aim right below his first kunai. He was just about to send his weapon flying when his opponent stopped him.

"What do you think you're doing?" Keisuke asked as he glared at Sei. This did not sit well with the instructor.

"Keisuke, just let him throw his kunai without any distractions. There's no honor in –" the instructor never got to finish.

"Shut up you moron! These pasts two weeks have been a waste of time! You're lucky I bother coming to class everyday and stay awake for your boring lectures!" This had the class gasping in shock. Kyu and Nawaki, however, were both simultaneously nodding their agreement. "Just when I think I can't take anymore of your lame-ass drills, you finally give me something interesting to do, but this retard is trying to miss on purpose!" He turned his attention back to Sei.

"As I was saying. What do you think you're doing? You're supposed to be this super genius that has every shinobi in every corner of the village afraid for their lives about whether you're a spy or a demon in disguise. You have the Uchiha clan worried that you may one day surpass even the most elite of our family. I had all these pictures in my head of what you'd be like when we met, but all I see is a wimpy coward!"

Sei had been through a lot in his life. He had put up with a much and had been called many names and had dismissed all of it. However, being called a coward struck a nerve. His body already turned towards the Uchiha and a deadly glare plastered on his face, Sei threw the kunai without even looking at the target. Clang!

"If you want my best, then my best is what you'll get. Just don't come crying to me when I whoop your sorry ass!"

Keisuke donned a characteristic Uchiha smile and said, "Bring it on."

Clang!...Clang!...Clang!...Clang!...Thunk!...Clang!...Clang!...Clang!...Thunk!...Clang!...Clang!...Clang!...Clang!
...Clang!...Clang!...Clang!...Clang!...Clang!

The game was over. Keisuke managed to earn ninety points, but Sei, who did not miss hitting the kunai once, had a perfect score of one-hundred. The class was silent to see an Uchiha lose to a kid without any prestigious background. Keisuke, on the other hand, seemed thrilled after losing. "I have a feeling the Academy is going to be very interesting from now on. I'm looking forward to our next match. There's no way I'm letting you win twice." He then coolly walked to the wall and leaned against it.

The instructor, who was still in shock from one of his students telling him to shut up, decided to move on to the next activity. Kyu and Nawaki waited patiently for the rules of the next game. "Alright, we're going to move on to the next activity. This is going to involve everyone, including those that just participated in the target practice, except for Sei and Keisuke. When we're done, everyone who hasn't done the target practice will take their turn."

"Why the hell are we doing it like that!" a brave student shouted from the crowd.

"Because I said so damnit!" He cleared his throat and continued. "You will each be practicing hand-to-hand combat using kunai. First, I want each of you to pick an opponent."

Nawaki was just about to pair up with Kyu when the girl walked over to the Hyuga and tapped him on the shoulder. "I challenge you. If I win, you have to apologize to that boy you pushed in the hall." The white-eyed Hiashi glared at her with his all-seeing eyes. "Fine, I accept. But if I win, you have to drink toilet water from the men's restroom."

"Once you have a partner, I want each of you to grab one of these special kunai." He pointed at another cart that had many differently colored kunai. Hiashi grabbed a blue one and Kyu chose pink, smiling evilly as she did so. "These kunai are the same weight and shape of a normal kunai. However, as you can plainly see, the tip is not sharp and will only mark your opponent's clothing. You will have five minutes to mark your opponent as many times as possible."

"READ!"

Hiashi turned to his opponent, as did everyone else. "Don't think I'll go easy on you just because you're a girl," he said.

"SET!"

There was a hint of malice in Kyu's eyes. "Don't think I'll go easy on you because you're ugly."

"BEGIN!"

Hiashi took the offensive, striking with lightning fast speed, but Kyu merely smiled, evading each and every attack. Hiashi was amazed at her speed, but if she didn't attack soon she would lose as well. After four minutes the Hyuga heir began sweating profusely though he never let up on his advances, increasing the speed of his strike with each attempt. Still, not a single attack landed and time was almost up.

"Five…Four…Three…Two…One! Times up boys and girls! Lower your weapons!"

Much to Hiashi's surprise, Kyu was beaming with pride. "What are you smiling about? You didn't even try to hit me." Kyu merely pointed and said one word in a very cutesy manner.

"Kitty."

Hiashi looked down at the front of his shirt, and to his horror he saw a pink cat drawn in the center. But this was no ordinary doodle. The cat was large and very detailed. The cat was sitting down and it had paws, and pointy ears, and whiskers, and even a tail that seamed to have in the air. It seemed that each time he lashed at her she would add a little detail of her drawing, and since her strikes were so fast, she only seemed to be dodging.

"The boy you shoved is over there." Kyu pointed at another student. "Try to be sincere when you apologize."

"And if I ever see you do something that cruel again…" Hiashi stared at the girl without blinking. Still, she seemed to disappear and reappear uncomfortably close to him with a kunai held to his throat. For the first time in the boy's life, Hyuga Hiashi was afraid. The girl whispered into his ear, only this time, instead of the sweet-sounding voice she used before, her voice was harsh and laced with hostility. "…I'll carve that cat into your cold, dead carcass."