Title: A Little Pain
Summary: At the age of 7, there were a few things Hinata Hyuga was sure of. One, her father, Hiashi Hyuga, was the strongest shinobi she knew. Second, just the thought of her having to one day make decisions for her entire clan terrified her beyond belief. Third, her younger sister Hanabi, at the age of 2, was very easy to impress.

Hinata Hyuga never wanted to lead her Clan and when she is stripped of her title and essentially an outcast in her home, she finds solace in the brief comforts of a pink-haired girl named Sakura. Though little did Hinata know that losing her heiress title would send her life spiraling down a path of self discovery, bravery, and the realization that changing yourself is a possibility is the most powerful jutsu of all. But... perhaps stopping yourself from fainting whenever you happen to be around your crush is a start. And convincing the entirety of Konoha that it's first all-kunoichi team won't be a complete and total failure should be prioritized before any of that.

[;';]

From now on, Author's Notes and Comment Responses will take place at the end of the chapter!

Chapter 9: A Preliminary Test

"Well that mission has me beat." Ino yawned as she and her team walked down an empty street of Konoha. Yet another tracking mission successfully finished neatly with Kurenai leaving the three girls to their own devices as she made her report. It was a rhythmic schedule. A few days of consecutive training interrupted by a mission day and two more training days and then one day of rest.

Ino couldn't wait for Break Day. If she had to find one more lost pet, Ino would lose it. "I wish Kurenai-sensei would give us something spicier already, there's only so much tracking we can do." The blonde announced with another yawn.

"I hate agreeing with you, but yeah." Sakura sighed. "It would be nice to do something different for once. But she is probably getting us prepared for something bigger when she thinks all of our skills are good enough. Something to really test our formations."

Ino hoped so at least. They'd been training non-stop to boost their individual skills, formations primarily functioning on team evaluation days that Kurenai set at random. Sakura's illusions, Hinata's chakra blocking, then Ino holds them off with her mind transfer technique. It was something simple enough and with all the repetition, Ino was sure that was enough for some sort of mission that didn't involve pets.

"Sasuke-kun's team is probably doing all sorts of cool missions that take him out the village." Ino sighed dreamily. "I wonder if he's back from whatever mission he went on." Kurenai's rigid schedule certainly prevented any extra time to seek Sasuke out for a date, most of Ino's free time was sadly spent with Billboard Brow.

"As if Sasuke-kun would be happy to hang out with you, Porker."

An eyebrow twitched in irritation. "Well Sasuke wouldn't be happy to hang out with you more, Billboard Brow!" Ino snapped.

"S-Sakura-san, Ino-san, you shouldn't argue." Hinata intervened nervously, holding her hands up in a placating manner. "Kurenai-sensei would be upset."

Ino huffed and crossed her arms as Sakura stuck out her tongue briefly before setting her hands on her hips.

Hinata had the nerve to say Ino had bad taste for liking Sasuke. How Hinata liked Sakura , of all people, Ino had no idea. Hinata was the one with bad taste, if anything. Sasuke-kun is ten times better than Sakura! Ino thought, blue eyes noting how Hinata shyly walked a few centimeters behind Sakura with a look of yearning over her face.

Just relax, Ino. Ino sighed. Get Sakura and Hinata together and that's one less rival to deal with for Sasuke-kun's heart. That was the plan Ino had conjured up when Hinata's crush had been revealed. It might have been the absolutely worst crush imaginable and the thought of helping Sakura get together with anyone sounded like a pain, but better Sakura swooning over Hinata instead of Sasuke. Sakura had liked girls before she even thought of Sasuke so it was possible for the pink-haired genin to notice Hinata in time.

Sakura was just so dense that all of Ino's attempts to get her to notice Hinata went right over her head.

" Anyway , you and Hinata have been spending more time together." Ino cooed strategically. "Going on dates, you two?"

"Hinata likes Naruto, Dumb-dumb." Sakura rolled her eyes, not even noticing that Hinata's face had turned scarlet at the accusation. "Hinata's just been helping me with my taijutsu. She's been a lot more helpful with it than you have." She smiled appreciatively at the girl. "Thanks again for all the help, you're an amazing teacher."

Hinata could barely mumble out a 'you're welcome'. By the gods, this would take Ino forever. Especially with Sakura thinking that Hinata liked Naruto. The blonde had her work cut out for her.

"Well of course Hinata is. She's a Hyuga, after all. Their taijutsu is pretty impressive." Ino drawled on. If it was physical ability that Sakura liked about Sasuke, Hinata had that too. More or less. "Graceful and simple but dangerous."

Sakura nodded in agreement, "I'd hate to be on the wrong end of a Hyuga with their techniques."

"It's a good thing Hinata's on our team then."

"Yeah it is." Sakura grinned at the blue-haired girl. "I'm happy we're teammates. Even if Ino is here."

Why you little- Ino stopped herself from snapping. The two of them were having a moment that had Hinata clearly happy if the blush and smile were anything to go off of. Ino would be the mature one this time. All for the sake of Operation: Get Sakura out of the Picture.

Everyone would win this way.

Hinata would be happy Sakura and her were dating.

Sakura would have someone to dote on.

Ino would have Sasuke all to herself.

It was a foolproof plan.

"Hey, Sakura-chan!" Came a loud, familiar, and 100% annoying voice. Ino wasn't surprised at all to see Naruto barreling down the street towards them, goofily grinning as he smiled. "I haven't seen you in ages, how are ya!?"

Looks like Naruto was back in the village, after all. Which meant… Ino peered behind the blonde and caught Asahi trailing behind. Even further behind than that was Sasuke's back as he walked off in the opposite direction. Ino smiled and clapped her hands to herself, this was just perfect. "Hey, Sasuke-kun!" Ino skipped away all irritation with Sakura dissippitating.

Sasuke returned her greeting by suddenly disappearing.

Great.

Ino crossed her arms in disappointment. Sasuke always got shy in times like these. She looked over at Naruto who was happily chatting away with Sakura and Hinata, Sakura gloating about Hinata's recent accomplishments. Sakura may have been a total dummy when it came to Hinata's feelings but at least she was recently too occupied to really even think about flirting with Sasuke. She didn't even try beating Ino to the punch of greeting him and asking him out on a date.

"Hey there, Ino." Asahi waved, smiling. "It's been ages since we've seen anyone from the Academy. You guys wrapping up a mission too?"

Ino tucked her disappointment away. "Yep, Kurenai-sensei went to go and report it in so we're just doing nothing for now. When did you get back?"

"It's been a few weeks. We've just been doing a lot of missions to really do anything else."

Ino hummed in acknowledgement. She'd love to hear Sasuke's retelling of their first trip out of the village. "Well, welcome back home." Ino said instead. "We've been busy with our missions too."

"Bah! Asahi, like we can even call what Kakashi-sensei's been havin' us do 'missions'!" Naruto protested. "This is just community service! We need another mission outside the village again! You won't believe the escort mission we had to the Land of Waves!" Naruto's chest puffed smugly, hands behind his head. "It was crazy, right Asahi?"

Asahi's own smile was more nervous, "that's definitely the word for it." He replied, eyes distant. "I'm just glad it's over and we're back in the village and doing some easier missions now."

"Easy for you to say, man. I can't wait for the next escort mission we have!" Naruto beamed. "Sakura-chan, you should have seen me! I was so cool!"

"Why don't you tell Hinata all about it." Sakura deadpanned, giving Hinata a small push forward. "She'll probably be way more impressed than I would."

Why does she have to be the most oblivious girl in all of the Land of Fire?

"I-it's alright, Sakura-san." Hinata protested feebly. "I should probably-" Hinata cut herself off, looking behind Naruto.

Ino looked herself. Is that…. a square rock?

Naruto even looked put off and he was the most simple-minded person in their year. Naruto ran to the right and the box pursued. He ran back to where he had been originally and the box followed again. The chase kept up for a few more seconds before the blond finally had enough, pointing at the box accusingly. "Oh come on, even I know that this is a disguise! Rocks aren't square!"

"... So you've seen through my disguise, huh?" The box said tersely. "As expected from my greatest rival."

Suddenly, there was a flash of smoke and Ino immediately got to her guard as the smoke cleared and revealed three coughing children. Ino recognized the first boy immediately as Konohamaru Senju with his unkempt hair, yellow shirt, and blue cape. His friends, a girl with orange hair and a boy with a running nose, were unfamiliar.

"I think we used a little too much gunpowder." Konohamaru coughed out.

Ino blinked.

At least the Third's grandson was eager to be a ninja, that's for sure.

The three children suddenly noticed the group of genin staring at them blankly and got themselves together.

"I'm Moegi, the sassiest kunoichi in the Academy!" The redhead announced.

"I love math!" Runny Nose Boy yelled in his own pose. "Udon!"

"And I'm the most brilliant ninja in all of Konoha, Konohamaru!"

"All together, we are the Konohamaru Ninja Squad!"

….

"Yeah, I figured it was you." Naruto broke the silence, clearly less than impressed. "What's with the goggles?"

Konohamaru smiled with glee, gesturing to his own pair of goggles. "Well you used to wear goggles all the time so we're copying you!"

…..

"Oh come on!" Konohamaru yelped when Naruto looked less than impressed. "You should be more excited, Big Bro!"

To think Naruto had his own little group that followed him around like ducks did their mother. It was almost cute. "So did you want something?" Naruto sighed.

"Well are you busy right now?" Moegi asked.

Naruto nodded, finally looking more excited to talk. "Yep, I have to go train, squirts!"

Konohamaru looked aghast, "that's no fair! You promised to play Ninja with us today!"

Ino couldn't contain the laughter that bubbled to the surface. A ninja playing ninja with some kids? Now that was hilarious, hilariously something only Naruto could manage even after miraculously graduating with the rest of the class.

Even Sakura was thinking it. "A ninja playing ninja, Naruto?" She looked and sounded like a stern mother with her hands on her hips as she stared at the boy expectantly for some sort of answer.

Naruto only blushed with a nervous chuckle and scratched at the back of his head.

"That's Naruto for you." Asahi chuckled.

"Big Bro, who's the chick with the pink hair?" Konohamaru asked as Naruto chuckled on. The wheels seemed to be spinning in his head when he finally opened his mouth with an 'ah ha'. "Is this your girlfriend?"

Hinata's freezing stature could be seen easily from where Ino was standing.

"Y-you young ones sure catch on fast." Naruto replied, more than pleased. "Sakura-chan is pretty crazy about me, believe it."

Sakura's fist came faster than the speed of light, Naruto flying back. "AS IF, YOU MORON."

"Big Bro!" Konohamaru and his friends ran quickly to the heap of orange and blue that remained.

"You insensitive, bonehead!" Sakura spat all but gesturing to Hinata. "Don't just go around saying things that kids will just believe like that!"

Hinata held her hands up defensively, "S-Sakura-san, c-calm down."

Green eyes looked sharply at lavender, Sakura grounding her teeth. After a few moments, Sakura's huffs turned to sighs. "You're lucky Hinata is here or I'd punch you a few more times and lecture your ears off." She grumbled as Naruto staggered onto his feet. Her look became one of concern when the girl turned her gaze back onto Hinata's, "sorry about him, Hinata. He's denser than we thought."

No, you're denser than I thought! Ino grimaced in reply.

Why couldn't Hinata like someone easier to woo over? Even Naruto would somehow be easier since it wasn't like he thought Hinata had a crush on anyone in particular. How is Hinata even friends with this guy? They like the same person. That would personally drive Ino insane. She made a mental note to ask Hinata that when she got the chance.

"Let's go." Sakura stuck her nose in the air. "We can go and eat something and just leave them to play ninja." Sakura grabbed Hinata's wrist and stomped off. "Come on, Ino. You too."

"That's right!" Konohamaru spat. "Keep going, Forehead Girl! You're not even human!"

Sakura immediately stopped in her tracks.

Uh oh. Ino stepped to the side immediately. "Asahi, you might wanna step back. Sakura's gonna snap."

Asahi was already backing away to the nearest fence. "No need to tell me twice."

Sakura let go of Hinata, eerily turning back to where Konohamaru stood beside his 'rival'. Naruto and his ducklings winced immediately when Sakura's jade green gaze landed on them like daggers.

Sakura dashed forward, full sprint.

Four screams released into the air as Naruto and his brood ran.

"Sakura, come on he's just a kid!" Ino called out but the cry landed on deaf ears as Sakura roared on. "I guess we should go after them." Ino rolled her eyes. "You really want to date her ?" Ino eyed Hinata as they jogged after them, Sakura just barely in their line of sight.

Hinata huffed out a small chuckle. "Sakura-san is just a little energetic."

That's not the word I would choose. "And you say my taste is bad." Sasuke was definitely way cooler and level-headed than Sakura. Hinata was crazy if she thought otherwise. "You have your work cut out for you if you're trying to get her attention. You should just tell it to her straight like Naruto does!"

Hinata's only reply to that statement was silence.

"Ow!"

The chase suddenly came to a halt when Konohamaru fell to the ground after bumping into a figure. He bumped into a boy clad in black, face covered in purple face paint. Beside him, a girl with a giant fan and sandy hair pulled into four pigtails. "S-sorry." Konohamaru mumbled to the odd pair.

Ino sighed again. At least it was over and they could all finally go their separate ways with a simple apolo-

The black-clad teen only sneered, lifting Konohamaru by the cape. "That hurt, you little punk."

"Knock it off, Kankuro." The girl remarked looking more disinterested than worried. "You'll just get yelled at later."

Sakura stepped forward, "Sorry, that was my fault. I was fooling around and got carried away."

Ino's blue eyes narrowed. What's with this guy? She could understand it if maybe Naruto or Asahi had rammed into him full force. But to take it out on someone who was just a little kid? This Kankuro guy had some serious issues.

"Let go of Konohamaru right now, jerk!" Naruto barked.

Kankuro only smirked and Ino felt a chill down her back. "Why don't we just mess with these punks for a while before he shows u-" Konohamaru's feet kicking into his torso cut him off, the boy grinding out a 'let me go'. "Well someone here is a lively punk, huh?"

"Why you!" Naruto bellowed, dashing forward with a fist bared.

Kankuro's free hand wriggled his fingers peculiarly with a smirk that only widened when Naruto suddenly fell onto his back, surprise stark on his face. "Wh-what was that?"

The heck? Ino whipped her gaze to Hinata. "What was that just now?"

"I didn't have my Byakugan out to see…." The girl mumbled, looking nervously at the sight before them.

"Look, I'm sorry about my teammate." Asahi cut in, holding his arms in a placating manner. "But I'm sure that we can resolve this without fighting anyone. It was just a simple accident. So if you could let Konohamaru go we can just be on our way."

Asahi got snuffed in return, "you're all so annoying" Kankuro sneered. "I don't like runts or any other scrawny weaklings. So when a wimp like this starts shooting off his mouth, I just wanna break him in half."

What the hell is wrong with this guy?! Ino glared between Kankuro and the sandy-haired blonde beside him. Maybe if Naruto attacked him again that could be the distraction she needed to to use her jutsu and just force him to put Konohamaru down. Just as Ino came to that decision, the jerk lifted a fist to punch Konohamaru and Naruto dashed forward and Ino readied her fingers.

Then a gray pebble pelted across the air and Konohamaru came crashing down to earth.

Ino looked to her right from where the pebble came and saw black and blue.

"You're a long way from home to cause trouble in another village." Sasuke said as he broke a stone into dust. "Not to mention way out of your league."

Gods, he's so cool!

"I have summoned you for a very important purpose." Hiruzen spoke clearly to the jonin gathered in the room. "Seeing your fellow jonin here, I'm sure you realize what this is about." Kurenai certainly suspected it when she walked in the room and saw the small mass that had already began clumping together.

The most damning evidence, however, was Ibiki Morino's presence. The proctor of the first part of the Exam.

Kakashi said dully, "So soon? I thought we'd have a little more time."

"I take it that the other lands have been notified about the coming event." It wasn't a question, Asuma looked at his father expectantly. "I noticed that some of their genin have already arrived here in the village."

Crimson eyes darted to the man beside her. That was an interesting fact to say the least. To think we, the hosting village's jonin we would be notified so last minute about our Chunin Exam. "When do we start?" Kurenai asked, not wanting to waste anymore time. The girls really were on limited time. I need to amp up their training immediately, or else... Inoichi's face flashed in the female jonin's mind. This team could be disbanded before they truly had the time to progress.

"We will begin in one week." The Hokage answered, Kurenai's surprise didn't show on her face. That was even less time to prepare.

"That's pretty short notice." Kakashi voiced Kurenai's thoughts aloud. It made her wonder how his own team was going.

The Hokage only took a drag from his pipe before continuing. "Take heed." He gravely voice spoke. "In exactly seven days from today. On the first day of July. The genin will be gathered and tested. Only the very best will be selected as chunin."

And only my team has the threat of disbanding completely should the girls completely wash out. Kurenai grimaced internally, not allowing even the slightest bit of bitterness show on her face. There was always the chance, however, the girls wouldn't want to participate. That could buy them an extra year of training. Kurenai wasn't so sure if the previous generation of InoShikaChou would be so pleased if that ended up being the case. Kurenai wasn't sure which option she preferred. Training even more this final week and hoping for the best or telling the Third the girls weren't ready for this examination waiting for next year. Now it sounds like I don't believe in them...

"It's time we chose our candidates for the Chunin Examinations." Hiruzen's voice dragged Kurenai out of her thoughts. "Will those in charge of the rookie genin step forward."

With a silent breath, Kurenai stepped forward in timed unison to Asuma and Kakashi. Her girls could do this.

"Kakashi, Kurenai, and Asuma. What do you say?" The Hokage prompted. "Are there any in your squads who are ready for the Exam despite their inexperience? As you know, any genin who has carried out eight or more missions is technically eligible for the examinations. Beside that, only you can determine if they are ready." It was brief but Kurenai was sure she saw the man's brown eyes dart to her. "Of course, there are many genin that require a longer training period. At least twice that many missions."

Kurenai felt a surge of irritation.

"So Kakashi." Hiruzen continued seamlessly. "You begin."

The gray-haired man saluted with half a ram sign. "I lead Squad 7. Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki, Asahi Wataru." He began. "I, Kakashi Hatake, recommend all three of these genin for the Chunin Selection Exams."

A familiar gasp rang out in the room.

"And my squad," Kurenai saluted with half a ram sign of her own. All her previous worries vanished. "is number 8. Hinata Hyuga, Sakura Haruno, Ino Yamanaka. And now I, Kurenai Yuhi." Crimson eyes stared at the dulling brown eyes of her leader. "recommend all three."

"And my squad is number 10." Asuma saluted, looking amused. "Shikamaru Nara, Chouji Akimichi, Yuna Hamada. And now I, Asuma Sarutobi, recommend all three."

Whispers rang around the room.

"Rookies?"

"This doesn't make any sense."

"What sort of training have they been enduring to be ready for the Exam already?"

Kurenai ignored it. Her squad would do just fine. They were smart, their skills were improving, and the entire village could take a kunai to the throat otherwise.

"Hold on!" Kurenai looked over her shoulder, seeing a distraught Iruka stepping forward among the crowd.

"Yes, Iruka?" Hiruzen welcomed the man to the floor.

"Lord Hokage, with all respect… the nine names that were given were all my students at the Academy." Iruka placed a hand on his chest. "I know their skills and abilities. Every one of them has great promise. But it's too soon! They need more experience before they are tested. If they try now, they're going to fail the Exam!"

To her right, Kurenai felt Kakashi shifting as he turned to face Iruka completely. "When I became a chunin I was six years younger than Naruto is now." The man said seriously.

"Naruto is nothing like you!" Iruka snapped furiously and Kurenai felt a sense of realization. That was what this was about. Naruto Uzumaki. Kurenai knew that Iruka always had a soft spot for the jinchuuriki. "Are you trying to destroy him!?"

"Well, they're always complaining about not being challenged enough. Maybe wiping out in the Exams will teach them a lesson." Kakashi replied, sounding indifferent. That was Sadistic Kakashi for you. "A little pain is good."

"Wh-what did you say?!" Iruka exclaimed, brow furrowing further.

"Oh." Kakashi dully corrected himself. "Nothing fatal, of course. But seriously Iruka, relax." Kakashi continued on before Iruka could continue his protests. "I understand how you feel. It's very personal for you and it upsets you but-"

"Alright, Kakashi. Back off you've said enough." Kurnai interrupted, giving the taller man a sharp look.

Kakashi spared no glance. "On the contrary, Kurenai, I haven't said enough." He said. "Iruka needs to hear this. He needs to realize that they're not his students anymore. They're mine."

Iruka's glare sharpened but he said nothing.

Kurenai sighed at the competitive feeling in the room.

"But these Exams could destroy them, you know that!" Iruka protested once more.

"Iruka." Hiruzen's voice entered the fray, drawing all eyes onto him. "You have made your point. I understand your worries, but this is something out of your control now. The moment your students became genin, they became soldiers of the village and under the commands of their sensei. This includes the Chunin Exams and decisions made by those sensei to determine whether or not they are truly ready for it. Stand down so we can continue."

Iruka's glare didn't subside but the man held his tongue. There was no room left for differences in opinion.

Nine of the newest rookies would be participating in the Chunin Exam whether their former teacher liked it or not, Naruto included. Even if Kakashi was right in that Iruka couldn't coddle Naruto from the harsh realities of being a shinobi, Kurenai felt a pang of sympathy for him. Still, she held her own tongue as she fell back for the next row of jonin to give their assessments of their students.

"This was another great training session, girls." Kurenai told her heavily panting students on the floor. "Sakura, you're taijutsu has really improved lately, much lighter on the feet but you still close your eyes when an opponent attacks you. Ino, you still get too assured in your victory and that's what leads to you being surprised in sparring sessions. Hinata, I know that striking first is a bit difficult for you but we will cover it more in our next bout of training." The woman assessed quickly.

"You've been such a slave driver." Ino grounded out between pants but Kurenai ignored the comment. They'd been training harshly for the past two days since the announcement from the Third about the Exams, Kurenai anxiously awaiting for her team's copies of the application form. There was still so much to work on.

"Now, now, I've told you about sitting after vigorous exercise." Kurenai countered, sharp eyes giving them all a firm look. "We walk it off instead."

Sakura and Ino groaned in unison, but the two of them still clambered up with Hinata following shakily after them. "You alright, Hinata?" Ino asked.

"I'm alright." The Hyuga replied tiredly.

Once a rhythm had been set walking a loop around two nearby trees, Kurenai cleared her throat. "I have an announcement for you three."

"Is it more training?" Ino asked sourly.

The corner of Kurenai's lips twitched, "we can discuss that after." She said smoothly. "I've recommended the three of you for the Chunin Exams."

The walking paused, all three students looking at their sensei with wide eyes. "What?" Sakura and Ino gaped in unison.

Kurenai nodded, "I believe the three of you are ready for it."

"B-but that means… the disbanding…"

Kurenai gave Hinata a look of empathy remembering how visibly distraught the former heiress had been when Kurenai announced their predicament as a team on trial. "That's right." Hinata flinched at the firm tone of Kurenai's voice. There was no point in sugar coating it. "This is where the fruits of our labor as Team 8 will be tested and will determine whether or not we will remain a team. Should we fail, we will be disbanded and organized into the original teams conceptualized.

"But I recommended you three because I believe in your skills as genin and as a team to overcome the trials that will be set before you. Admittedly, the Chunin Exams are difficult and will be no walk in the park, but regardless of the results, I want you girls to know I'll be proud of you for putting forth your best efforts."

Those words didn't seem to soothe Hinata in the slightest. "But let's not get too ahead of ourselves, signing up for the Exams is completely voluntary." Kurenai placed a hand on Hinata's shoulder. "If you don't feel you're ready to participate, you can wait until next year. It's an individual choice." Though that choice will prevent the team as a whole from participating.

"Wouldn't that just make my dad feel like we're not a sturdy enough team in the first place?" Ino piped up, hands on her hips. "I mean, if not all of us decide to participate."

"That's a bridge to cross when we get there." Came Kurenai's reply. "This is still very short notice and angry as Inoichi may be, he is level-headed all in all. Things will happen as they're meant to happen."

Ino didn't seem too convinced. "At least I know what team I'll be going the moment we get disbanded." The blonde drawled. "I'll be going right to Asuma-sensei and be stuck with Pineapple Head and Mr. Big Boned. Two idiots who have no skill with girls at all."

Hinata's face even further, if that was even possible. "Ino, don't write our team off just yet. We have no idea how this will play out." Kurenai scolded gently.

"Sorry." Ino mumbled, finally seeing Hinata's expression. "I was just joking, Hinata, we've been kicking butt since we started training with Kurenai so imagine how much but we'll kick when we knock out those exams!"

Hinata only gave a weak 'yeah' in response.

"Hinata, cheer up. This could totally be a breeze!" Sakura smiled forcefully. "We should do something after this! Team bonding activities!"

"Good idea, Sakura." Kurenai could appreciate Sakura's efforts, at the very least. She reached into her kunai pouch to grab the application forms. "Now then, if you wish to participate in the Exams, go to room 301 at the Academy, 3pm sharp, five days from now."

Each girl gingerly took a paper before Kurenai announced they should clean their training space before going to eat anything. "Kurenai-sensei." Sakura said once she had her backpack properly packed and on her back firmly. "If we do end up being disbanded, what teams would Hinata and I go to?"

Blue eyes looked over in curiosity.

Lavender eyes looked over in anxiety.

Kurenai debated telling the pink-haired girl the answer.

On one hand, it was an innocent question. One that easily deserved an answer on the chance they did disband. The girls surely deserved to know who would be their newly assigned sensei and teammates, especially in Hinata's case. But Sakura…. Kurenai's mind drifted to the Uchiha boy and his being the new generation's shinobi heartthrob. It almost seemed like playing with fire to give the girl any incentive to leave the team intentionally.

Then again, there was a chance she wouldn't.

"I'll be trusting you with this information, Sakura." Kurenai peered into jade green eyes. "Hinata would remain on Team 8 with me. You would then be reassigned to being placed on Team 7 with Kakashi Hatake."

The forest air seemed to grow tense.

"I'm trusting you all to make decisions based on your current team and abilities. Not based on where you will be put if things come to an unfortunate end." Kurenai reaffirmed. "I'm trusting you all to make the right decisions."

But I won't stop you, whatever route you choose.

Hinata found herself unable to sleep that night.

I wish Kurenai-sensei didn't say anything at all. Hinata's eyes were hot, tears threatening to spill over. She buried her head deeper into the cherry blossom-and-red scarf she was holding. It was honestly too cruel, this sort of pattern always seeming to happen to her.

Right when something is in her grasp, it slips away without a trace.

Her right to being heiress first and now Sakura being on her team.

With that in mind, it was easy to remember Sakura's words from that winter day when they were in the Academy. Things could change which meant destiny could change too, it was something you could take control of with your will. And if that were the case, it meant Sakura could do the same too. Sometimes the destinies you wanted to be intertwined weren't possible.

Maybe if I were aloof like Sasuke-san or bold like Naruto-kun… Hinata sniffled. Maybe then I could be someone Sakura-san would want to look out for. As far from Sakura's preferred love interest as Naruto may have been, she still noticed him. It was impossible not to miss the boy regardless of your opinion of him. I want to be bolder. I'll be bolder. The former heiress promised herself.

"Thanks again for the extra training, Hinata." Sakura smiled a day later as she set down her pack. She and Hinata had been meeting up once a week since the Hyuga offered to help Sakura's taijutsu improve.

"It's fine, I like training together." Hinata smiled softly, hoping her eyes weren't red and puffy. She splashed her face with cool water multiple times this morning to make sure they would look absolutely normal. Even if Hinata felt like her heart would rip in two if their team were to disband, she at least hoped that she and Sakura could spar together when they could. "Maybe we could invite Ino-san to train with us too."

"We'll probably have to with the Chunin Exams coming up right around the corner." Sakura grumbled. "Have you decided if you were going to sign up yet?"

Hinata looked down at her own pack. "I-I think I might sign up."

"Really?" Sakura sounded surprised. "That's great!"

Hinata's heart skipped at the praise, peeking over at her pink-haired companion. "Really?"

Sakura nodded, "it just means you're growing more confident in yourself and your abilities." Sakura smiled. "You've always had decent marks in taijutsu when we were in the Academy, I was pretty envious back then since you were always so quiet. My mom always says it's the quiet ones you have to look out for. I guess she was right."

"I-I'm not that-"

"You're good enough to be recommended for the Chunin Exams." Sakura interrupted sharply. "Self-confidence, self-confidence, self-confidence." Sakura repeated like a mantra. "If you can help me with taijutsu, I'm gonna give you the biggest confidence boost."

Hinata's face felt warm and she instead focused on doing her stretches. Sakura really did have some sort of warmth that made people feel more assured in themselves. How such a warm-hearted girl ever came to love someone like Sasuke, Hinata had no clue. It was something she had wondered ever since she had noticed Sakura's frequent glances to Sasuke during class.

Sakura sighed as she began her own stretches. "Kurenai-sensei's training always makes me feel like I'm dying afterwards, so this is really nice."

"Y-yeah." Hinata agreed. Their sensei was never one for pulling punches. "But… but I think we're getting stronger, even a little bit." Hinata wanted to believe that with all her heart. Getting the experience with new styles outside of the Gentle Fist really was helping her and would prepare her for her first real mission outside the village, whenever that would be. Part of Hinata looked forward to it, the other part was hesitant. Maybe after the Chunin Exam, she would finally be able to partake in said missions. Potentially with her current team.

Expectantly with whoever her new teammates would be.

"I think I might have Kurenai-sensei's mirage technique down, mind if I try it today?" Sakura asked when their stretching was done.

"Not at all, Sakura-san." Hinata replied, happy to let her companion perfect her technique.

Sakura beamed, readying a fighting stance. It was well-placed, no openings and close to Sakura's center. Sakura really had improved since their days in the Academy, the subject she had struggled with the most. "I'm ready when you and your Byakugan are!" Sakura called.

Despite Hinata's hesitance to use it on her teammates, it had become habitual for her Byakugan to be utilized in training.

With a deep breath and hand signs, Hinata set into her family's preferred stance and Sakura charged forward.

Here it comes. Hinata dodged a well-timed punch. Sakura always led with her right fist when she was attacking. Hinata prepared a parry, eyes trained on Sakura's chark network for any flares that would signify Sakura was preparing to use a genjutsu.

Hinata landed a palm on Sakura's shoulder and leaped back.

"Strike a little harder!" Sakura called.

"R-right!" Hinata called back. "Make sure not to lead with the same hand often!" She added quickly, not wanting Sakura to be the only one giving helpful advice.

Sakura charged forward again, this time with a leg swinging Hinata's way.

Much better.

Hinata shuffled out the way in the nick of time. Leg work was definitely more of Ino's terrain but Sakura was getting there, slowly but surely. Hinata darted two palms forward to Sakura's stomach, hoping it wasn't too hard. Still, Sakura fell onto her butt with an 'oof'.

"Looks like you win this round." Sakura grumbled.

Hinata relaxed her eyes and gave Sakura a worried glance, "I didn't hurt you did I?"

"You definitely hurt my balance." Sakura's tone was light-hearted in contrast to her word choice. "I thought I would get out of the way in time. But the next round is mine, yknow."

Hinata gave Sakura a reassuring smile. "We can try your genjutsu this time." That round ended a bit too quickly for Sakura to do much of anything with her newly acquired jutsu.

"This time for sure." Sakura stood up and dusted her skirt. "Brace yourself, alright?" Sakura's hands formed the tiger sign, hands moving swiftly between the sequences. Boar, tiger, horse, ox and Sakura's body quickly dissolved into hot pink petals that scattered off in the wind.

Hinata readied her Byakugan with a quick snake sign and after a moment, she saw movement coming from her left.

"Those really are some powerful eyes." Sakura sighed loudly as she paced. "You see everything ."

Hinata shook her head, trailing after her in their cooldown. "Not everything… but almost everything" She admitted. "We can't see at one point at the back of our neck." The one blindspot a Hyuga couldn't see in. Something the Revolving Heaven technique was developed to cover, though Hinata herself hadn't mastered or attempted it yet.

Yet Neji had mastered merely by watching Main Branch members practice.

It was admirable and intimidating all at once.

Sakura's eyes were owlish in her surprise. "You're alright with telling me that?"

"W-well we're teammates so…" Hinata twiddled her fingers. "I trust you to protect that spot in missions." Almost immediately after saying that, Hinata's stomach filled with anxiety. "I mean... maybe if we're still teammates after the Exams. B-but maybe if we ever work on missions afterwards together, we could still fight enemies together."

Sakura's expression was thoughtful, "yeah… I wasn't expecting all this Chunin Exam stuff yet, it seems like we were in the Academy just a few days ago."

"... It'll be difficult training with Sasuke-san with his Sharingan." Hinata realized. She didn't know much about Uchiha aside from their similar origins but she knew about their eyes' mimicking abilities. Not even the Byakugan could do that. "B-but I know you'll do great with your genjutsu, Sakura-san." Regardless of what happened to their team, that wouldn't change.

"And you'll keep being a great taijutsu teacher." Sakura replied pleasantly. "I'm probably gonna have to keep running back to our sparring sessions even if I do get put on a team with Sasuke-kun."

Hinata hoped her smile didn't look strained. "Can I ask you something?"

Sakura gave her a light nod.

….

"Why… do you like Sasuke-san so much?" Hinata finally asked. Her curiosity needed to be sated on this topic.

Sakura blinked and halted to a stop, Hinata stopping her pacing as well. Her face felt hot but she still wanted to know the answer. "Wha-" Sakura finally seemed to come to with a flustered face. "W-what's that supposed to mean?"

Hinata glanced at her feet. "I was just curious…" She muttered. "Y-you and Ino-san seem to like him so much so…" She trailed off, letting Sakura fill in any blanks. Why anyone had a crush on Sasuke despite his continuously rude behavior was beyond Hinata's comprehension.

"W-well why do you like Naruto?" Sakura stammered.

"I d-don't like him like that!" Hinata exclaimed, lavender staring at jade. "N-Naruto-kun is just my first real friend so it's easier talking with him. B-but I don't like him, not like that." He was just a good friend. And a rival. Nothing more, nothing less.

"... seriously?" Sakura sounded doubtful.

Hinata nodded. She was sure her face was scarlet but she was determined to clarify Sakura's misconception once and for all. "I don't like Naruto-kun like that." I like someone else. She wanted to add. Those words couldn't seem to push themselves out her throat, however.

On Exam day, Sakura's head was throbbing as she waited for her teammates to arrive at their meeting point to turn in their applications.

"Why… do you like Sasuke-san so much?" Hinata had asked.

Sakura grimaced and bit her lip. That question from Hinata of all people was more than surprising. Even more surprising was the girl's adamant rejection of Sakura's beliefs that she had a crush on Naruto. Maybe Sakura had been wrong about dismissing Hinata as a rival before?

Wake up.

Sakura had to stop herself from biting her lip to bleeding. She knew already. The idea of Hinata crushing on Sasuke was just a distraction. Hinata never seemed drawn to Sasuke at all.

Yet she still asked that question.

Sakura hadn't been able to answer her, much to her own frustration because she couldn't think of anything explicitly.

Did she really need a deep reasoning for her crush?

Sasuke was handsome.

He was an amazingly skilled shinobi, with a very impressively display of shuriken throwing techniques.

What was there not to like? Sakura really respected and admired that about him. Naruto should feel happy, having such a strong member on his team. Someone reliable and attentive to detail, it was easy to feel reassured with that kind of person on your team. Someone who can keep you safe.

Wake up, Sakura.

Sakura's thoughts drifted to the kissing fiasco on their last real day at the Academy and felt a surge of irritation. No one deserved a first kiss like that, those were supposed to be sacred and with someone you loved. As far as Sakura was concerned, Sasuke didn't love anyone yet.

But were those feelings alone enough for Sakura to say she liked him undoubtedly?

Sakura barely noticed when Ino arrived, giving her a half-hearted greeting. Now Hinata had Sakura questioning her entire belief system surrounding her crush. She recalled the day that started it all, that feeling of her heart thumping when she stumbled upon Sasuke and his training.

Sasuke was skilled in techniques Sakura could never master.

He was from a respectable clan.

Was confident in his abilities

It was almost like her old, admittable, crush on Ino. Sakura spared the blonde a glance vaguely remembering how she used to feel when she looked at her. None of that remained, only the desire to be a better kunoichi. Maybe I just have a thing for people in big clans. Sakura didn't want to admit that too much to herself. She often tried forgetting about her days pining for Ino.

That probably wasn't it anyway.

Ino just seemed like she was an entirely different galaxy than Sakura was orbiting. And she was pretty. And she was bright like the sun.

Sasuke-kun's her polar opposite in terms of personality. Sakura blinked. He was quiet and kept to himself and he was mysterious, something about that very fact being quite drawing. Sasuke might not be her true love or anything-

Sakura paused.

"UGH!" Sakura tugged at her pink locks in frustration.

"What the heck, Billboard Brow you've been acting so weird!"

"A-are you okay?"

When did Hinata get here was the real question. Sakura cleared her throat, "s-sorry, about that, was just thinking about my dad's bad jokes." She coughed, hoping that was convincing under blue and lavender eyes. "We should all just head to the Academy!"

Without waiting for a response, Sakura tugged her teammates forward to the Academy grounds pushing away her thoughts completely. She had an Exam to pass right now.

Author's Note: And finally Chapter 9 is done! Technically this was done for a while but I forgot to post it here on FFN JFNDNFDSKNFSDF I'M SORRY.

This chapter was a big boi though I cut some things out. I had originally planned to smoosh in the first part of the exam in its entirety in this chapter, but I thought that would be too much so expect that in chapter 10. A lot has gone on for Neo Team Eight. (Not to mention the title drop during the Iruka vs Kakashi bit muwahahaha…)

Ino's intentions have been revealed, her motives for being Hinata's wingman not-so-selfless.

Sakura's feelings for Sasuke are put into question.

Hinata's worried about the potential disbanding and it seems like lowkey everyone is expecting that. What will happen next though? Find out in the upcoming chapters.

Comment Response:

Dobbyhasnomastr: I'm glad you are still enjoying it! And yes, Hinata is adorable I love her. She's no Sakura, but she is probably my second fav female character after her!

Al: I'm glad you like it so far!

DarkInu418 : *evil laughter* Let me just say... a lot of things will be happening in the Dark Forest as the girls have their own personal conflicts in regards to the Chunin Exams. And Ino and Sakura will have their time soon, promise! Sakura is already doing some deep thinking in terms of her own internalized fears of rejection and liking Ino specifically and what Sasuke actually means to her and I am looking to make good on this internal conflict now that Hinata has pushed her forward to think about it. I'm glad you think this fic's version of their disbanding of friendship makes more sense than the canon one. Kishi doesn't know how to write women smdh.

chloe41101: TAT I hope a lengthy chapter made up for the long ass wait and that you continue finding enjoyment out of my OTP.

Soumar: This comment was so sweet to read! Spanish is my second language (self-taught) so I know the benefits of reading things in your target language to help you learn more vocab and I'm happy that my fic has been able to do that for you! I'm definitely continuing and I'm coming out slowly of my much needed hiatus to work on Ch10 and I hope you continue to find enjoyment in this story.