Looking at herself in the mirror, she could guess why others thought she was a freak. Her ears. Usagiyama couldn't really do anything about those, since trying to hide those long "white-blades" would have been impossible, and any attempts could have looked nothing short of ridiculous. They began where any normal ears would, but the fluffiness of white shot up above her head, like a rabbit's, with a gentle crook to their ends.
Those recurring thoughts were the reason for Uzumaki Usagiyama always arriving late to any and every event she was needed. Surprisingly, not today. Usagiyama woke up quite early, or, rather, had a hard time sleeping. She would never openly mention it, but finally receiving her Leaf headband was a relief in its own right. Now was the time for her to show everyone who looked down upon her, that she was worthy of respect, which made her excited. And it would begin with...being sent off with a team.
"Ugh, why does that need to happen with me?!" She thought out loud. Maybe too loud.
Usagiyama hated the idea of being on a team. People would be close enough to make fun of her unusual features, and she would most likely have to take that quietly. After all, teamwork was always a thing. Iruka-sensei loved enforcing the thought, which never sat right with her ideals.
But she wasn't about to complain. Usagiyama never understood why, but her chakra control was terrible, for no apparent reason. No matter how similar her tries were, compared to the other students, she could never get even a transformation technique right. And, of course, that made her a target for more bullying. So, she couldn't thank Iruka-sensei enough for always believing in, and helping her with her troubles.
His good heart had been proven genuine, back when he gave her the headband. That damn Mizuki...he played on her insecurities and made Usagiyama steal an important scroll. Sure, she felt dumb for playing right into his hand, but part of her didn't regret being able to learn the Shadow Clone Jutsu. Even so, it was luck that Iruka-sensei found out about her situation. Usagiyama was almost used. Again. The first time, was when the monster, Ten-Tails, was sealed inside of her body.
Usagiyama had no details about what happened, when it was sealed inside of her, but that didn't change the fact she never wanted this. And it was most likely the reason she looked like...that.
With all of these thoughts running through her head, Usagiyama saw herself trapped inside of her own mind, once more, and, once the fact was realized, that prompted her scarlet colored eyes to wander to the only window of her small home. The sun was bright, but that shouldn't be a problem for her skin or eyes. That wasn't the problem, though. The sound of people walking by, was the signal Usagiyama needed, to know she would be late, again, if she didn't get ready.
After her usual routine, of washing her face, cleaning her teeth, and brushing her white, waist long hair (which she was glad she had time for, today), Usagiyama readied her gear for the day. Or, basically, what she always wore, for her ninja work.
Usagiyama traded her pajamas, which were nothing but an all white T-shirt and black short-shorts, for a white, sleeveless qipao dress, with black spiral designs at the ends, and a golden zipper at the front, that ran vertically down, taking a turn to the right of her waist. The dress was specifically chosen to hide her round white tail, which also used to be a reason for the other kids to pick on her. However, even for her own comfort, she picked purple skin tight shorts, that had a single small hole on its back section, to at least let her tail breathe. Along with those, came the standard blue sandals, and her Leaf headband, which Usagiyama decided to wear on her left arm, instead.
Usagiyama made sure her gear was ready, and had instant noodles for breakfast, since she was too lazy to properly cook herself something, during the morning, and left her home with a sigh, thinking back on the fact that she would have to deal with being part of a team, from now on.
Pushing the thoughts aside, she used the distance between her house and the Academy, to practice her breathing, by full-on sprinting all the way there.
"Didn't even break a sweat!" Usagiyama said aloud, with a proud grin on her face.
True, she was getting physically stronger and more durable, by the day, but even she thought it was strange. No matter, though, as long as it gave her an advantage.
Usagiyama's presence has always been strong. Evidently, the moment she stepped inside of the classroom, all eyes were on her, even with the door already open. She hated that. All of the eyes on her sent shivers down her spine, brought back bad memories, and Usagiyama averted her eyes, to keep herself from meeting anyone's gaze, even if her classmates were already back to their own business.
As she walked down to find herself a seat, tense as she was, Usagiyama almost jumped when she heard someone call her name.
"What are you doing here? You know this class is just for those that have graduated, right?" The boy kept going, while she turned around to see who it was.
Nara Shikamaru. It would have been annoying, were she not even more surprised, inside, that he was also there. If anything, his lazy ass shouldn't be able to handle becoming a ninja. But, Usagiyama was not about to voice those concerns out loud. Shikamaru was one of those rare people that didn't care for what she was, and never once did mention anything to make her feel bad, like the others. And there was Akimichi Chōji, his friend, that also followed along those lines.
Without trying to come off as agressive, but also not letting out even a comforting smile, she only made sure to turn her left arm towards Shikamaru's field of view and pointed to the metal with the Hidden Leaf's symbol. That simply earned an "oh" from Shikamaru, who quickly rest his head down. As he always did.
Usagiyama set her eyes elsewhere and quickly found herself a free seat, which she gladly took, not paying much attention to the person sitting on the other end of that shared spot. However, she did look off to the side to see who it was. Their eyes met, and they both stared at each other for a few moments. It was the little genius, Uchiha Sasuke, who all girls seemed to be head over heels for.
Not Usagiyama, though, and the feeling was mutual, from Sasuke's side, noted when they both shot each other an annoyed glare, before looking forward, again. Oh, how she hated his guts. He never spoke clearly, and was clearly a show off, who always tried to be better than her. Their rivalry was quite known throughout the class. They never really sparred together, before, but Usagiyama really wished she could fight him, at least once. Or any of the boys. Because the girls were clearly behind her in the battle department.
A ruckus, though, broke her out of her angry thoughts. Only for Usagiyama to realize she was about to be even more annoyed. Yamanaka Ino and Haruno Sakura. They were really annoying. And the reason for them to be like that, was sitting right to her left. It came down upon her that, simply choosing a place to sit, because it had no one on it, was a rookie shinobi mistake.
"Hey, Usagiyama, please move, so I can sit in the middle." Sakura basically demanded of Usagiyama, whose forehead popped a vein, upon hearing such disrespect, from someone who wasn't even on her level.
"Can you run that by me again," Usagiyama began, and slowly turned her head to Sakura, with pure hatred and disdain in her eyes, "I think my 'creepy' ears didn't quite catch that."
The statement, followed by the look in her eyes, quickly made Sakura recoil, much like the gathering of Sasuke fangirls behind her, who quickly dispersed to find their own seats.
Sasuke was internally thanking Usagiyama's temperament, even if he didn't show it. Dealing with girls was annoying, for him.
For whatever reason, arriving a bit late, Hyūga Hinata couldn't really find a good spot quickly, and that made her nervous, because it meant having to take stares, while she looked for a seat. She found the most accessible one to be with the one person she was not at all afraid of talking to.
"Excuse me...U-Usagiyama-kun…" Hinata's soft voice called for the rabbit-eared girl, who quickly took notice.
"Oh, hello there, Hinata." Perhaps the only girl Usagiyama did not dislike, and the only one who, despite nervousness, always tried to at least talk to her.
"I can't...can't seem to find another seat. Could you…" before Hinata even finished, Usagiyama moved more to the left, allowing herself to stay by the middle, while she allowed a spot to open on that shared seat, where Hinata could sit down. "Thank you." Hinata smiled in Usagiyama's direction, who simply answered with a nod, before she faced back forward, while doing her best to stay away from Sasuke.
Right after arriving, Iruka asked the class to settle down, so he could explain the process behind the team selection. From what Usagiyama gathered, the teams would be composed of three Genin, and one Jōnin, who would lead the teams, while also being a mentor, plus the 'balance' of each team meant affinity was probably out of the window. At least that is what Usagiyama understood, and it still did not feel right, for her.
"Oi, Iruka-sensei, can't you let me be a one-woman-trio?" Usagiyama lazily moaned out, like a spoiled child, "I mean, I don't really need anyone here to hold me back from what I can do."
Iruka placed his hands on his hips, and frowned in Usagiyama's direction, with indignation, "Usagiyama, I have talked about this throughout all of your Academy days. Perhaps now is the best time for you to start getting along with a team."
After the scolding was done, Iruka began naming the teams. Due to her displeasure, Usagiyama ignored most of the other formations, since her name was not on any of them. Until Team 7. It began with Hyūga Hinata. Then, Uzumaki Usagiyama was called. Well, that was a bit of a surprise. Usagiyama didn't really know about Hinata's abilities, but if it was a balanced team, then she was probably not much of a fighter. And the last member…
"What?!" Usagiyama shot up from her seat, her temper getting the better of her, "did you just say...his name?!" She pointed, quite bluntly, at Uchiha Sasuke, who was also annoyed, mainly at Usagiyama's loud behavior.
"Hold it right there, Usagiyama." Iruka-sensei interjected, for he knew her concerns and was ready to have them addressed, "Sasuke was the first of the class up until now. Your grades barely had you pass, as it is, so you're with him to learn some discipline."
Added to Usagiyama's obvious lack of acceptance of the situation, Sasuke scoffed "just don't get in my way..undisciplined girl."
That comment fed Usagiyama's anger, and in a moment, her frown of distaste turned into one of bloodlust, which made her turn towards Sasuke with the clear intention to attack. Or, rather, she would have done so, if the thunderous voice of an even angrier Iruka-sensei hadn't called out to her, and scolded her right there. Iruka was glad he always managed to make his words go through that stubborn personality of Usagiyama's, and it worried him to know that she would be out of his reach, in the near future.
After finally getting through the list of teams, Iruka managed to end the last class he would have with those children, and gave the warning that the teams would meet with their new senseis in the afternoon.