Ayyyy guys I'm back. No Orihime in this chapter, but we meet a new character!

Black Camellia

By Sparrow-chan

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PART 1: Heaven

Chapter 3: Seiyuri Nara

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If there was a single word to describe the teacher library of the Academy, it would be 'dark'. Konoha is usually a bright place, especially now as summer has begun, with everything awash in sunshine and the streets dry from the lack of rain. But the teacher library has always been a dark, shut up room to house materials for Academy professors.

(The term 'Professor' used loosely.)

The windows are dressed in old, dark green drapes dating back to the very construction of the building, which no one ever cared to hang properly. The scratched up windows are glued shut for safety sake, and covered with a film of muck and smudges. The overhead lights are conspicuously dimmed. Perhaps somebody forgot to screw in the lightbulbs tight enough, but the Chunin teachers believe they were installed that way to give the room a moldy, haunted feeling.

Iruka Umino is not afraid of the teacher's library. Not that any of the ninja-teachers are actually afraid of a small book room, but it's a popular game amongst them to make up ghost stories about the area to thrill one another. During the off-hours they go in and light candles, trying to summon spirits with goofy smiles plastered to their faces. Iruka doesn't play those games. Sure he's been to a few of the "seances", but it was usually in pursuit of a cute girl that he was lured there in the first place. Aside from those times, he treats the teacher library like a teacher library- though admits it is in dire need of a makeover.

He signs his name onto the sign-out sheet below Madoka Suzuki and Nagahito Kito, reflecting on this with a triumphant smile. Iruka knows "not being scared of a room" is a silly reason to boast, but he takes pride in his hard earned maturity. After inserting his teacher's key into the lock, the old wooden door swings open with a chilling creak, allowing him entry. What brought him to the library was an old textbook entitled Classic Fighting Techniques, which outlines how to instruct children on beginner's taijutsu. After years of teaching he should have the lecture down pat, but it never hurts to brush up, especially on physical lessons. He wanders past the circular table in the entryway, eyeing the melted candles placed around a cardboard ouija board. His fingers skim along the bookbines of the first bookcase, frowning at the dust collected by doing so. It feels like no matter how often it's cleaned, the grime never falls away.

Classic Fighting Techniques is on the second level of the shelf, a green book with plain black writing. He turns it over to check for damage, scrutinizing a round coffee-cup stain on the back. One of his colleagues must've gotten sloppy and was too embarrassed to admit his mistake. He begins to turn away when a imbalance catches his notice. The layer of dust on the shelf below Classing Fighting Techniques was disturbed in two places, where books had been taken out. He eyes it, and steps back, scanning the rest of the shelves. Sure enough, there are several empty slots and places of disturbed dust spanning the whole bookcase.

...Weren't there only two other names listed on the sign out sheet?

There was no way Madoka (an Academy nurse), or Nagahito (who teaches basic kenjutsu), would need (he counts quietly) twelve books. At that moment, a streak of light flashes across the far wall. He turns his head towards it, shocked by the brightness. The windows couldn't possibly let such brightness into this dim room.

The book thief is still here.

Iruka stills his breathing and feels out the room. The thief clearly heard Iruka come in, since the door creaked sharply and he didn't bother masking his footsteps, but didn't hide their presence. Now focused, Iruka can hear the soft rustling of pages turning and see casual streaks of light dancing on the far wall. Iruka centers himself and makes his footsteps invisible, moving like air. He passes rows of bookcases, concentrating on the actions of the intruder. When he makes it past the fifth bookcase and peers around it carefully, he is confronted with the culprit.

His shoulders drop from their tense position to an irritated slump.

The teacher library technically has two ends: the front with a circular table where the teachers goof off, and the back, which one reaches after passing by the bookcases. It matches the front, but people don't hang out back here unless they really want to freak out their comrades. Like in the front, a circular table sits in the center of the small space. Rather than an ouija board, several stacks of books are placed neatly around a few pens and papers. And instead of a smirking Chunin telling a ghost story, a young girl sits in one of the empty chairs. In one hand, she holds a flashlight, and in the other, a book. Her dark brown eyes flicker up to meet his.

"Iruka." She greets, sounding vaguely bored and not at all surprised. "I didn't think Chunin came back here. The other ones who heard me squealed about a...Ghost?"

A flame of anger catches inside of Iruka's stomach. There is only one student who has the nerve to call him by his first name without adding '-sensei' to the end.

"Seiyuri, students are not allowed in here. It's restricted to staff only!"

"How do you know I wasn't given permission?"

Iruka no longer stands by the bookcase but moves before her makeshift desk, scanning the texts she picked out for herself. Several textbooks about genjutsu, scrolls on taijutsu, A History of Warfare During the Third Shinobi War…

"These are advanced, Seiyuri," Iruka glares at his student pointedly. He demands, "Who gave you permission?"

Seiyuri stares for a moment at her teacher. Iruka has always found a quality or trait about a trainee that made them unique or likable. With Seiyuri Nara, it's been more complicated than that. From day one, he knew she was different. Her sharp eyes, intense personality, hungry expression...She was sickeningly charming and intensely curious, traits he always believed were a bad combination for anyone to possess. And while he believes all his students are precious to him, it would make him a hypocrite not to admit some are dearer than others.

Seiyuri smiles, showing off her straight teeth. She reaches into a bag sitting at her feet on the floor and pulls out a key chain. Sorting through the metal keys, she lifts one up to show him. Iruka eyes it. It's a teacher's key, with a little 'M' engraved on it-

Iruka feels his throat choke up.

"Mitsuki," He manages, blinking away his shock. "What, you're saying he-"

"Before he left to pull that 'scroll' stunt," Seiyuri shrugs. "I asked. My argument for it was quite persuasive, by the way. But he didn't bother listening to half of it before giving me his copy."

"And that didn't surprise you?"

"Not really. He was acting weird. Vaguely malicious. Not that I ever thought he was a good person." Seiyuri sets down the keys and flips open Placing Advanced Genjutsu During Combat. "So, what exactly did he do?"

Knowing his student won't budge through yelling or scolding, Iruka sits back in the chair across from her.

"Should I even try to convince you to leave?"

"Please do. I like a good debate."

Iruka crosses his arms over his chest and takes a deep breath.

"Mitsuki attempted to abandon the village with a precious artifact."

"He almost got away with it." Seiyuri peers up from her reading. "We should have a tighter security net. What's currently in place is hardly agreeable."

Iruka waves his hand in the air.

"No offense, Seiyuri, but you just made Genin. We don't tell rookies about the extent of our security systems until they've gotten more experience."

Seiyuri bristles, but makes no move to correct him.

"I intend to participate in the next Chunin exam," She reveals. A flicker of horror flies through Iruka as he gazes at his student. Chunin is no joke. When he gets stressed, he has nightmares about the events of his Chunin exam: the darkness of the Forbidden forest, the blood of monsters streaming down his arms, friends from other squads screaming in the distance...

"Your sensei will never allow it." Iruka dismisses her once again. A grin slides onto her face. The distinct feeling of having fallen into a trap passes over Iruka.

"So, the Genin squads have already been sorted out?"

I should've known.

"You'll find out with the other kids."

"You're the one who brought it up." Seiyuri points out. The topic interests her so much she sets down her book and spreads her hands. An amiable smile crosses her lips. He can practically feel her dialling up the charm, bringing forth all her influential powers.

There's nothing worse than a forceful Nara.

Seiyuri's piercing eyes slice through his thoughts.

"What's a day?" She murmurs, leaning over the table, her elbows perched now on the wood. "It's not exactly classified information."

Iruka purses his lips. It hurts his pride to admit he is almost swayed. Her purring voice and steady gaze is hypnotic. She wants knowledge, and having seen the keys jangling in her bag, she knows how to obtain it.

"The other Genin are probably at home praying to be placed with their crushes," She goes on, her voice dipping lower. "But I'm more invested than that. Especially since I know that there is a problem with the graduating group."

"Oh?"

"Well, 28 graduates...Teams of 3…" Seiyuri raises an eyebrow coyly. "It's not divisible."

"Observant."

"Not particularly." Seiyuri shrugs, using her hand to check if her ponytail has become frizzy. She lodges her fingers in her curly hair and plays with the wild strands. "So, what'll it be? Had Naruto not been passed, things would've been neater. How do we deal with this little problem?"

"It's already been sorted out," Iruka rolls his eyes. Seiyuri's grin makes him wince.

"Oh, so you do know the teams, then? Good. Because if no one is getting dropped- and there's no way you'd drop Naruto now- that means someone is getting promoted." Seiyuri bats her eyelashes.

Iruka presses his lips together tightly before relenting. He's lost to a twelve year old.

"So you know about Orihime, then?"

Seiyuri's expression freezes.

"Orihime?"

All of a sudden, Iruka's throat tightens up.

He hadn't lost to a twelve year old, he hadn't lost to a twelve year old!

Seiyuri narrows her eyes at him with suspicion.

"I was under the impression that a high-achieving Genin was going to be placed with an older Genin team…You know, a squad in need of an extra member, a cell of two?" She straightens with realization. "Don't tell me you're letting younger students graduate early?"

"So you thought you were gonna be the "high achiever" placed with an older team, huh?"

"You're not getting out of this conversation, Iruka," She deadpans. "Orihime. Stats."

"She's-" He wonders why he's even trying to justify himself. "She's capable. She has impressive intelligence and natural talent. The clone jutsu was easy for her."

"The clone jutsu is easy for anyone. And it's impractical." He's heard this argument before, during her graduation test. She squinted her eyes at them and bared her teeth, listing all the reasons why the Academy is inefficient. According to her, the exam was the perfect place for her to list complaints since Mitsuki and him couldn't leave until she performed the jutsu, which she executed smoothly after fifteen minutes of ranting. "Why should I put faith in her?"

"Because she has skill. And your 'faith' is irrelevant."

"Not if she's on my team." The Nara stands suddenly, as if to highlight her point. "If she's on my team, and we get failed by our jonin-sensei's test because she's not ready, then I'm the one going back to the Academy."

Iruka doesn't exactly know what to say to that complaint.

"And your silence tells me that she is, in fact, on my team." Seiyuri plummets back down onto her chair, crossing her arms.

"Listen, Seiyuri," Iruka leans forward. He doesn't want to comfort her, because she's a brat. But, when all is said and done, she's been his brat for years now. And looking at her frustrated and nervous face, he can't deny the pity he feels. "I don't want you to fail. I don't want any of the teams to fail. That's why I conducted Orihime's advancement test myself. Trust me when I say that she's not going to drag you down."

The angsty girl's expression doesn't lighten, staying stormy and heavy. However, he can see her mind working quickly behind her dark, shiny eyes, putting together plots and strategies around this perceived handicap. Iruka supposes, if there is one trait that would endear Seiyuri to him, it would be her perseverance. She never dismays for too long before working towards a solution.

"Fine." She relents, lifting her chin. "I won't make a fuss."

Iruka smiles at her, grateful. God only knows the trouble he'd get into if Seiyuri decided to raise her voice in objection, being as she isn't even supposed to know her three-man squad until tomorrow.

Seiyuri sneers at him.

"...As long as you tell me who my other teammate is. Seeing as they're apparently not another early graduate."

Iruka's jaw drops.

...No, I really don't like her.

Don't get used to short chapters XD.

Seiyuri: Meet our deuteragonist! She's a handful to be sure. Similar to Orihime, Seiyuri is intelligent, hardworking, and talented. However, contrary to Orihime, she's far more independent, persuasive, and at times, judgmental. Her positive and negative traits fit each other so well that often times it's difficult to pin down exact the type of person she is. Hopefully her strong presence will help balance out Orihime's quiet, wall-flower nature. Tell me what you think of her so far!

Thanks for reading!