Let this chapter unfold…

The next day…

Taya woke up, but she felt like a zombie. Her body ached for some reason. She had to do what had to be done, so she quickly got dressed, did her hair, and tied her forehead protector around her neck. She always knew that it belonged across her head, but she just couldn't find a reason to put it there. She took a quick look in the mirror and headed out to the backyard.

"So, before you head off to your mission today, I'm going to teach you Chidori," Kakashi smiled. "Remember to use your Sharingan."

"I would never forget," she smirked.

"Now, watch closely," Kakashi did his custom six hand seal combination (You can view it in episode 17 and 18).

Taya closed her eyes. The next time they opened, the Sharingan would take over, and it did. After she was done watching, and did the exact hand seals. A circle of blue chakra formed around her feet as she held a sphere of chakra in her hand. The lightning streamed out of her hand while it shook. She stopped the jutsu before it went out of control.

"Taya, you have to remember that is a jutsu for assassination. Don't use it unless it's for something serious," Kakashi lectured.

"I understand. I… want to test something. Please use your Sharingan," Taya stood in front of him, waiting. After he lifted his protector, Taya began a jutsu. "I have to get this right! O-ushi, Ryu, Usagi, Tori, Uma, Inu, O-hitsuji, Nezumi!"

"Elemental Leaf Clone Jutsu!" Leaves encircled around the area making three clones. They each moved individually.

"So she made a new jutsu…" Kakashi had seen though her trick already, but he did nothing to see what would happen next. "Her normal Leaf Clone Jutsu is normally Tori, O-ushi, Inu, O-hitsuji. This is going to be interesting…"

"Now… I don't want to risk anything, so please throw a shuriken at which ever clone you like," all the Taya clones said at once. She knew that his Sharingan was working, so she trusted him not to hit her. He did as she suggested. Kakashi's shuriken went straight through the heart of the second clone, which burst into lightning that destroyed the shuriken instantly.

Kakashi's eyes widened. "So, each clone represents a different element, I just happened to hit the lightning one. This jutsu must take up plenty of chakra." He pulled down his protector over his left eye.

"It does…" Taya couldn't say anymore. After using the Lightning Edge Jutsu and the Elemental Leaf Clone Jutsu, she didn't have enough energy to stand up. Kakashi had seen her beginning to fall backwards, so he poofed quickly behind her and caught her. "Taya does have more chakra and control over it than normal Ginins, but those jutsus were already way past her level. If she didn't faint, I would be surprised," Kakashi thought as he gently moved his daughter to her room.

Hours later…

When Taya woke up in her bed, it was already late afternoon. Once again, she couldn't stand up. "Damn it. I promised Rinji I would be at practice today. I hate letting him down," That was all Taya could think about as she stared at the ceiling. Before she could hate herself, her sliding door opened, revealing Rinji and Kado. She wanted to sit up properly to greet them, but all she could manage was a smile. For some odd reason Rinji had brought a vse of purple flowers, which he placed on top of Taya's desk. They sat down on either side of her bed.

"So, you over did yourself again," Kado sighed and shook his head.

"I'm sorry," Taya knew that she had to stop the habit, but there was no way to do so.

"Did you use all your chakra making new jutsus again?" Rinji stared at her with worried eyes.

"I did. I'm sorry," that's all she could say. In fact, there was nothing else to say.

"Don't over do it next time! We can't have you out when the Chuunin exam starts! Promise me!" This time Rinji's eyes changed to a stern glare.

Taya smiled at him and nodded. The two guys headed for the door. Rinji didn't even say goodbye since he lost his manners since he couldn't think straight. All Kado did was wink at her as he closed the door. After she heard the sliding door shut, she gazed over at the flowers Rinji had brought.

She chuckled at the thought. "That Rinji. He never ceases to amuse me."

The next morning…

Taya woke up feeling reborn and feeling a sense of change. She could finally go train today. She tied back her hair in a high ponytail with her long, purple ribbon, but let her long bangs brush against her shoulders. As usual, she got into her outfit and tied her protector around her neck. Before leaving her room, she checked the calendar. The Chuunin exam was marked for a week away and her birthday a day before that.

Six days flew by quickly…

Taya trained for countless hours with her team for the past few days. That morning was different though. As Taya sat and drank her tea on birthday morning, she felt her father presence sneak up behind her. She didn't move, she didn't' have to. Before she could do anything, she felt an inch wide metal choker quickly latch around her neck. Taya's eyes widened as she whirled around to see that there was a smile upon Kakashi's face.

Kakashi held out a small mirror in front of her. "Happy 13th birthday, Taya." The metal choker was engraved with a purple Konoha mark in the center. She lightly touched it and smiled.

"You're a year older now, and you have gained another year of knowledge from last year. You've changed so much. I'm proud," Kakashi said. Taya just sat there listening. Then she smiled and gave a small nod.

"You can celebrate today, but don't over-do it. Tomorrow will be the start of the Chuunin exam, and I can't guarantee that you'll pas if you don't conserve your energy." Kakashi warned as he patted her on the shoulder.

"I understand," Taya gave her father a small hug. She summoned her leaves and poofed away, leaving a smile on Kakashi's face.

"She's growing up right before my eyes. So fast that I can't keep up…" Kakashi sighed. He had to go on a mission with his team on her birthday. "Her birthday just had to fall before the Chuunin exam…Oh well. There's no point in sulking here," Suddenly he remembered something that he forgot to do. "Aw shit. How could I forget?" So he poofed away to the village market.

At the market…

Kakashi cool had returned to him as he calmly walking into the bakery. There, the clerk welcomed him.

"Welcome! How may I help you?" The clerk said with a grin.

"I want to buy a… unique cake. What would you suggest?" Kakashi asked as he browsed through the gallery of sweet delights.

"Well, our triple chocolate cake is a favorite here. It's a white chocolate flavored cake with milk chocolate frosting and a layer of dark chocolate in the middle. It's not too sweet either! It's sure to please anyone!" The clerk pointed to the cake.

"That'll do. Thanks a lot," Kakashi pulled out his wallet and paid up as the clerk packed the cake into a carrying box. One he got hold of it, he poofed back home.

At home…

"Let's just hope that Taya won't enjoy the cake without me," Kakashi thought as he placed the cake in the refrigerator. He looked at the clock, "I'm already late to meet up with the team. Oh well, I bet they're not there anyway." He poofed away.

At the Academy….

Taya met up with the rest of her team at the edge of where the Academy property ended and the forest began. They were all sitting on the stumps that were there. She was surprised to see that everyone had a gift in their hands. She gave an uneasy smile.

"You guys didn't have to go through the trouble…" she said as she sat down.

"Too late. We already did. Besides, you're also a teenager starting today!" Kado smiled from ear to ear when he noticed her new choker. He held out his present. Taya gently grasped it and opened it. Inside was a pair of four-inch metal wrist bands.

"Somehow I just knew that they would match your choker," Kado nudged her.

"Thanks Kado," Taya set the box aside and put them on.

"I'm sorry that I didn't wrap my gift, but here," Sakura handed a scroll to Taya. "You might want to open and read it now. It'll help with tomorrow's exams." Taya did as she was told.

A bunch of jutsus were in scripted inside. Rinji and Kado gathered around to read it. "This jutsu," Sakura pointed at the first one, "Will allow you to send telepathic messages to each other for a limit of three hours. The thing is, you all have to touch in some way for it to work. After you do, you can separate."

"I'm sure we'll use this jutsu well Sakura-Sensei," Taya rolled up the scroll. Rinji's gift was large and looked fairly heavy. He placed it in front of Taya and stepped off to the side.

As she opened it, her eyes widened. It was a whole new set of shurikens and kunai knives including their holders. There was also a large shuriken as well.

"Well, I'm guessing that you know that the huge one has to be placed on your back. Anyway, I just thought you would need a new set of weapons for your technique. You're becoming ambidextrous anyway," Rinji explained. He had to fight the urge to hug her.

Taya had her eyes closed for a moment. "It would be nice if you all would come over for some birthday cake after we finish training today…"

"Alight! We'll be there!" Kado gave a thumbs up. The whole group was smiling as they began their hardcore training for the exam that was coming the next day.

This chapter… it ends here…