"Sorry to keep you waiting, Neji-niisan," I said, rushing out the gate where he was waiting.

He shrugged, and we started walking.

We reached the campus in five minutes. "I'll meet you at lunch," Neji-niisan said, then went off to find his classroom.

I was alone in the crush of students in the hallways. I fought my way against the crowd and eventually located my room. There were already a few people inside.

"Hinata-chan! Over here!" a loud voice called out. I looked near the middle, and saw my friends, Inuzuka Kiba and Aburame Shino. Kiba-kun had shaggy brown hair and a wolfish smile. I hung around with them whenever Neji-niisan wasn't around.

I made my way to them and sat next to Kiba-kun. "Ohayou gozaimasu, Kiba-kun, Shino-kun," I greeted them. I placed my bag under the desk.

"Ohayou, Hinata-chan," they both greeted me. Between the two of them, Shino-kun was the quiet one. He always had dark glasses on. Our teachers have since stopped scolding him because he steadfastly maintained that the glasses were a "family thing."

"Hey, Hinata-chan, do you know what's our first class?" Kiba-kun asked me.

As if on cue, the door burst open, but a teacher didn't enter. A student I've never seen before came in. He had flaming red hair and icy blue-green eyes. As he passed, our eyes met, and I felt a shiver run down my spine. He took the seat behind me, I could feel his eyes boring into my back, making me feel queasy.

The door burst open again, and a woman with wavy purple hair strode in. "Hello, class!" she greeted cheerfully. "My name is Mitarashi Anko. That's Anko-sensei to you kids!"

"Hey, who're you calling kids?" Uzumaki Naruto stood up, pointing at Anko-sensei. I smiled to myself. Naruto-kun was always a little enthusiastic. "We're all seventeen here, for your information!"

"Sit down!" Anko-sensei turned to him. I cringed in my seat. She was scary, with the way she scowled at Naruto-kun. "Listen up! I'm your adviser and your Math teacher!"

The whole class gasped, including me. "The passing score was originally seventy percent, but thanks to your classmate here—" she glared at Naruto-kun "—I will raise it to seventy-five!"

The class groaned. A few glared at Naruto-kun. Anko-sensei saw the glares and laughed— or more like cackled. I truly was scared of her right now.

"Anyone who fails, Anko-sensei continued, "will stay to talk to me after class!"

I breathed a sigh of relief. If ever I failed, Anko-sensei will only talk to me. Or so I thought…

"We will talk about your punishment!"

I whimpered, fiddling with my hands under the desk. This was bad. Math was my worst subject.

"Don't worry, Hina-chan," Shino-kun whispered, leaning to me. "She won't kill us anyway."

I smiled faintly. That was little comfort, but it felt nice when Shino-kun reassured me. I glanced over at him. He was leaning far back in his seat with his arms folded. With those glasses on, I couldn't see whether or not he was looking at Anko-sensei or at something else.

"Hey, that's not fair!" Naruto-kun protested, standing up again. "Seventy-five percent passing grade! No one could pass those standards! That's totally unfair!"

Go, naruto-kun! Ask her to lower the passing grade!

"That's not true!" Yamanaka Ino spoke loudly. "My Sasuke-kun could perfect any subject, any test, any time!"

"That Sasuke baka can't stand up to me when it comes to academics!" Naruto-kun faced Ino-san, his eyes blazing. Naruto-kun's always been rivals with Sasuke when he learned that Sakura-san liked Uchiha-san.

I cringed lower in my seat. I sure hope Anko-sensei would just calmly stop them…

But I was wrong.

"STOP IT YOU TWO!" Anko-sensei exploded. Was it me, or did flames just shoot out from her nostrils just then? "DETENTION UNTIL SIX! HOW SHAMEFUL! SUCH BEHAVIOR WILL NOT BE TOLERATED! YOU OUGHT TO KNOW BETTER! SIT DOWN, UZUMAKI, OR I'LL MAKE YOU WASH THE SECOND-FLOOR BATHROOMS!"

Naruto-kun practically shrank down in his seat, away from Anko-sensei's wrath.

Anko-sensei took deep breaths and spoke in a calmer tone. "There is, however, one student in my class last year. Their passing grade was also seventy-five percent, but he managed to exceed."

I think it's Neji-niisan she's talking about. Father had been exceedingly happy over the grades he brought home last year and adopted him on the spot. Father always favored Neji-niisan because his grades were outstanding and he was an excellent student. No teacher in Konoha High has not heard of him, and he also has his own fan club, like Uchiha-san. In a way, he was larger than life. But to me, he was the same sweet, stern, and protective person I know.

"His name is Hyuuga Neji," Anko-sensei continued. "And as I understand, Hyuuga Hinata, he is your cousin… er... brother, correct?"

I squirmed in my seat as most of the girls turned to me. And Anko-sensei was also looking at me. "Y-yes," I choked out.

Anko-sensei nodded with a grunt. "Anyway, I will call out your names and you will answer present when your name is mentioned. Aburame Shino."

"Present."

"Akimichi Chouji."

I saw Chouji-kun hastily stuff a potato chip in his mouth before answering.

"You better put away those bags of chips, Akimichi, or else share them with the class," Anko-sensei said without looking up.

"Y-yes, Ma'am," Chouji-kun said, hastily replacing his food inside his backpack.

It went on that way, until the bell rang, and Anko-sensei left.

-o0o-

A/N: Next chapter! Yay! XD This chapter took up almost five pages in yellow pad. Just a trivia, I always write chapters in longhand before I type them. It makes the fic more… personal, I guess.

Anyway, what do you think? Aren't scary senseis one of the best parts of your life? I mean, for me, they are. They make high school life more interesting. I sincerely believe that no high school is complete without a terror teacher. XD Especially in Math. Read and review, guys! Thanks to those who reviewed the previous chapter!