Okay everyone, here's chapter 3! As always, I hope that you enjoy it. It's a lot longer than the last two, so get comfortable. Reviews are appreciated!
Early the next morning, Robin awoke from the sensation of the sunlight on her face, slowly opening her eyes and sitting up. After Luffy had led her to his house, he had directed her to a guest room that he and his brothers had set up. It was quite well furnished, and from what she could tell it had recently been used. Robin stretched her arms comfortably and stood up out of bed after tossing the covers aside. She glanced at a clock, checking the time. "About an hour and a half before squad division." She said to herself, opening the door to step into the hall.
The home Luffy and his brothers shared was surprisingly comfortable, and not as messy as she had expected. Robin remembered that Luffy asked her to wake him up, and so walked down the hallway to where he'd said his room was. She knocked on the door gently. "Luffy, it's time to get ready." She said, waiting a moment for a response. When none came, she opened the door to look inside. The sight within caused her to laugh quietly, as the boy was sleeping with one arm and half of his head hanging out of the hammock pitched in his room. "What a strange choice of bed." She mused, walking over.
"Luffy." She said, lightly shaking the boy by his shoulder. He turned over, pulling the covers further over himself. "Not now Makino… I just started eating." He muttered quietly, eliciting another giggle from the girl. "I wonder who Makino is." She wondered. Robin tapped her chin as she thought, and then smiled. "Sorry about this, Luffy." She said, gripping the ends of the hammock. With a single pull, Luffy fell out of the hammock and onto the ground below with a loud thud, luckily shielded by his blanket. He sat up slowly, head poking out of the covers drearily.
He looked at Robin, eyes blank. "Breakfast time?" He asked, struggling to stay awake. She laughed and crouched down so that she was eye-level with him. "Yes, after you get ready for Squad Division. Remember, you asked me to wake you up so you'd be on time?" Luffy blinked in response, and said nothing for a few seconds. Then, however, something seemed to click, and his eyes instantly became more alert. "Eh? That's right!" He leapt up off of the ground, amazingly already awake. Robin stood up as well, crossing her arms. "Would you mind showing me where the restroom is? I take it you don't mind me getting ready first?" She asked.
Luffy shook his head and beckoned her to follow him. "Yeah, it's just over here." He told her, stopping outside one of the other hall doors. Robin nodded and went back to the guest room, grabbing her bag that she brought. Luckily she always made sure to keep an extra set of clothes in her bag in case of emergencies. When she came back out, Luffy was scratching his head absentmindedly. "Once you're done you can just… huaaa… just let me know. I'm gonna go heat up some ramen. You want some?" Robin smiled and nodded. "That would be nice, thank you. I'll see you in a few minutes."
Luffy headed to the kitchen as Robin went into the bathroom, preparing their breakfast. He yawned, always having been slow to wake up. Still, today even that was evaporating quickly. To say he was excited would be quite the understatement. Who would be his teammates? Who would be their Jonin? What would their first mission be? As each of these thoughts crossed his mind, his usual demeanor returned more and more. By the time Robin was done in the bathroom, she emerged to see the boy running up and down the hall, grabbing all of his supplies for the day to come.
She giggled. "Luffy, I'm done. You can use the restroom now." She told him. He glanced back at her and grinned. "Ah, thanks! I already ate, and your ramen's in the kitchen! Once I'm done we can head out!" He told her, grabbing some clothes from his room and running into the bathroom. Robin shook her head in amusement as the door shut, amazed how much energy he could regain over just a few minutes. She went into the kitchen and found a bowl of ramen and a cup of tea waiting for her at the table, which she gladly sat down to enjoy them as she waited for her friend.
Robin was now wearing a mesh body suit, with a black long-sleeved hooded jacket with wispy purple patterns down the sleeves, the collar reaching about halfway up her neck. She wore a similarly colored skirt with splits down each side, mesh connecting the two halves for the uppermost inches and a belt diagonally wrapped around her waist with a purple feather charm hanging off the lower side, on the right. Her feet were protected by a pair of black tabi sandals, and she once again was wearing her hitai-ate around her neck. A pouch for shuriken was hung on her belt's left side.
After about another ten minutes, during which Robin was able to finish her ramen and tea, Luffy came walking down the hall, cleaned up and ready to go. "Alright, you ready to get to the Academy?" He asked her. Robin turned to look at him and nodded, standing up.
Luffy was now wearing a dark red sleeveless vest with a high collar, opened and showing that he was also wearing a mesh shirt beneath it. He was also wearing a pair of black shorts with fur lining, and black tabi on his feet. A shuriken pouch rested on his waist to the back right, and there were white bandages wrapped around his hands and forearms. On top of his head rested his conical straw hat, partially shadowing his eyes, and his hitai-ate was tied around his waist as it was the day before. He smiled widely, hands tucked into the pockets of his vest.
After making sure that they had all of their equipment that they might need on hand, Luffy and Robin headed out to the Academy. The sun was only just now starting to rise, and the town was slowly coming to life. "Hey Makino, good morning!" Luffy greeted a young woman with dark green hair sweeping off the deck of her bar, waving. The woman smiled and returned the wave. "Good morning, Luffy! Off to the Academy?" She asked. He nodded excitedly.
"Yeah! We're going to be separated into our squads today!" He explained. "This is Robin!" The dark-haired girl nodded politely to the bartender. "I see." Makino said, pausing in her sweeping. "Well, why don't you and your team come by the bar tomorrow night? I can close up early and cook you all up a meal to celebrate! In fact… why don't you invite all of the graduates? It'll be fun!"
Luffy's eyes widened, and he practically danced in place. "Oh, that sounds awesome! I haven't had any of your food for weeks!" He remembered. "Alright! Make plenty of food; it's gonna be one heckuva party!" The woman nodded and laughed, waving her hand slightly. "Sounds good. Now you two get going before you're late. I'll see you then!" Luffy grinned. "Right! Later, Makino!"
Robin looked over at her friend as they left the young woman, thinking about the party he and the girl had spontaneously decided to throw. "Who was that, Luffy?" She asked him, curious as to how he knew her. Luffy laughed. "That was Makino! She's an old friend of mine; she helped me and my brothers when we were growing up. Makino's like my older sister." Robin smiled as he spoke, able to tell how much he cared for the woman. She looked up, and saw that they were now standing at the gates to the academy. She turned to her friend, whose grin had been replaced by a surprisingly small smile; like that of a person who had just remembered an amusing story.
"Well, here we are." She stated simply, the boy nodding in agreement. "Yeah… Come on, let's get to class!"
Umino Iruka's Classroom
Inside Iruka's classroom, there were already a few students present. Shino Aburame was already sitting in his perch at the back of the classroom, and Ino was already talking to Nami at their seats. Shikamaru was at his seat, face planted firmly to the table; if one didn't know any better, they might think he'd never moved from that spot after class the day before.
Luffy grinned as he walked up the steps to his seat, waving to Ino and Nami as he passed them. "Morning Ino, morning Nami!" He greeted the two as he sat down, Robin walking past him. Nami looked at him in surprise. "Wow, I didn't expect you to be here this early, Luffy." She observed, Ino turning to look at the boy. "Couldn't sleep? I remembered you saying something about not being able to last night." She asked.
Luffy laughed and shook his head. "Nah, I slept fine! But Robin spent the night over; she woke me up this morning." He explained, Robin nodding in confirmation when the two looked up at her. Nami blinked, and then turned to Ino. "Wait, what was that about last night?" She asked the blue-eyed girl, who shrugged nonchalantly. "Nothing, really. Me, Choji, and Shikamaru were waiting on our dads outside a bar, and them and Usopp came by and invited us to Ichiraku."
Nami smirked devilishly, a look that Ino knew meant trouble. "So how is it you can give me a hard time about Luffy, when you go and accept a date from him that same night?" She asked, voice dripping with delight at her chance to turn the girl's teasing the day before around.
Ino rolled her eyes. "Oh puh-lease." She huffed, running her fingers through her ponytail. "We just grabbed a bite to eat. Besides, how could it be a date with six people?" Nami snickered and said nothing else, though it was obvious that this wouldn't be the last time she brought it up. Luffy laughed at the girls' antics from his seat, either oblivious to the subject of their talking or finding the idea just as ridiculous as the two of them.
Probably the former.
Before too long, Rebecca entered the room, Choji not far behind her. "Ah, hey Rebecca!" Luffy said to the girl, waving as she made her way up the steps. The girl smiled at her friend. "Good morning Luffy. How did you sleep last night?" She asked, sitting beside him. Luffy grinned. "I slept great, how about you? Are you excited for squad division? Oh, what'd you guys have for dinner last night?!"
Rebecca giggled in amusement at the black-haired boy's typically rapid-fire questions, answering them each patiently. "I slept fine, as well. And yes, very excited! As for dinner, we had quite a variety. You know how my father gets when it comes time to celebrate something for me. Oh, and I saved some of my aunt's takoyaki for you! I know how much you love takoyaki."
Luffy's eyes widened, and he seemed to be on the verge of drooling. "Oh man, thanks! Viola's takoyaki is the best!" He thanked her gratefully, already able to practically taste the snack. Choji looked at the two as he sat down beside Shikamaru, overhearing their conversation. "How long have you two known each other, anyways?" He asked curiously, having noticed before how well the two seemed to get along. Luffy smiled at him. "Who, me and Rebecca? We've known each other for forever!" He revealed, the girl nodding. "Yeah, ever since we were little. Probably since we were babies. Our families were quite close."
Choji blinked in surprise. "Your families? You mean like our clans?" He asked, gesturing to himself, Shikamaru, and Ino. Rebecca thought for a moment. "Well, maybe not quite like that. Our families weren't bound together like yours are. Ours are more like… well, just close allies." She attempted to explain. "To be honest, I don't really know how our families first began to associate."
Rebecca turned to Luffy. "Do you know, Luffy?" The boy shrugged, not having a clue. "Nope! I don't know much about my own family's history, actually. It's a mystery!" Nami rolled her eyes at his declaration. "You think everything's a mystery." She reminded him, to which he only laughed.
Just then, a joyous cheer resounded from out in the hall, and within seconds Sanji practically danced into the room, presenting a flower to the orange-haired girl. "Ah, Nami-swan! I thought that I heard your angelic voice!" Nami took the flower with an amused expression. "Thank you, Sanji-kun." She told him methodically, placing the flower in a small, tube-like container attached to her belt.
Sanji looked around the room, and made his way around to great the other girls already present. "Robin-chwan, you're as beautiful as ever! Ino and Rebecca, I see you're both looking radiant as well!" Rebecca and Robin smiled politely, while Ino rolled her eyes as the love-struck fool passed her, used to the daily routine.
Once Sanji had sat down, it was only a matter of minutes before Bartolomeo and Cavendish entered, already shouting at each other. Something about a cat they had seen while walking to the academy. The green-haired boy looked up and saw Luffy, who was gently dusting his beloved hat off with his hand. "Ah, good morning, Luffy-sempai!" He greeted the boy, who looked up at the sound of his name. "Ah, hey Rooster Guy! Cabbage!" He responded, the blond-haired boy glaring at him.
"What'd you call me, Straw Hat?!" He shouted, Bartolomeo growling angrily. "Hey, back off, pretty-boy!"
Losing interest in the two's argument, Luffy looked to the door again in time to see Usopp entering, and eagerly waved his friend over. The long-nosed boy was now wearing a pair of dark brown shorts, wearing a similarly colored jacket and a dark green shirt beneath. His head was now covered with his hitai-ate, a pair of goggles resting on top of them.
"Oi, morning Usopp!" He greeted his friend, who waved as he made his way past the bickering pair and to his seat. "Hey guys." He said to Luffy and Rebecca as he sat down, glancing back at Robin with a friendly nod, which she returned.
Noticing this, Rebecca smiled. "So I take it you two and Robin enjoyed dinner last night?" She asked curiously, remembering how intimidated Usopp had been by Robin the day before. The long-nosed boy nodded. "Yeah, it was pretty fun. Ino, Choji, and Shikamaru joined us."
As the three spoke, the rest of the students continued to arrive. Hinata and Kiba, then Sakura. Sasuke entered next, wiping sweat from his forehead with a small towel. Evidently, he'd been training outside before coming in. Sakura and Ino quickly took the seats on either side of him, asking him about his night and congratulating him on graduating. Cavendish, having eventually stopped arguing with Bartolomeo, glared at the Uchiha boy, grinding his teeth comically.
At that point Zoro came in, much to the surprise of everyone present. Usually he was at least ten minutes late to class, and here he was today coming in early. "Is the world ending or something, Moss Head?" Sanji asked the tan-skinned boy, who shot him an annoyed look. "You say something, Dartboard?" He asked. A voice spoke up from the hallway. "Seriously Zoro, how did you get lost on the way to the Academy? You live like six buildings away!" The voice said. Everyone sat up in surprise, recognizing the voice.
"Was that… Naruto?" Asked Kiba, sniffing the air in tandem with Akamaru. Sakura laughed. "He probably found him wandering around an alleyway somewhere!" She deduced jokingly. The blush on the green-haired boy's face, however, implied that she may not have been too far off.
Sure enough, the orange-clad boy walked in, rubbing the back of his neck in exasperation. Still, he had a massive grin on his face; one that was almost as distinct as the blue hitai-ate tied and displayed proudly on his forehead. He looked at everyone and laughed loudly. "Hey guys, has Division started yet?" He asked, dumbfounding many of those present.
Kiba stood up, yelling across the room. "Hey, what's the big idea Uzumaki?!" He demanded, as though this was some sort of joke. Naruto only smirked. "What are you talking about?" He asked, pointing at his headband with his thumb. "Today's the day all of the Genin get assigned to their squads! Or did you think we were just having a normal class today?"
The Inuzuka boy growled irritably and was about to shout out an insult, only to be interrupted by the laughter of Luffy at Naruto's remark. "Hey Naruto, glad to see you passed!" The straw-hat boy said, earning a nod of appreciation from him. Sakura frowned deeply. "Yeah, that is what today is!" She said to Naruto. "So again, why are you here?"
The sound of a throat being cleared prevented any sort of response or agreement, and the students all turned to face Iruka-sensei, who was now wearing a black hitai-ate. Naruto looked up at him with concern. The teacher smiled. "Don't worry Naruto, I'm fine." He assured the boy. "Now then, will everybody please take your usual seats?"
All of the students who weren't already did as they were told, with Naruto taking his usual spot next to Sakura. Iruka checked to make sure that everybody was present, and pulled out a small clipboard with a sheet of paper attached to the front. "Now then, everyone, I'd like to begin by saying this; yes, Naruto has graduated, just the same as all of you. The rest of the instructors and myself, as well as Hokage and several of the Jonin, have agreed that he's sufficiently skilled to pass. And that is all I'm going to say of the matter."
Murmurs broke out among the students, wondering what had happened that made the adults think Naruto was ready, but this was quickly silenced by Iruka. "Enough!" He said. "Now that that's out of the way, what do you all say we split you all up into your squads?"
The question was met with resounding shouts of approval, which took several minutes to calm down again. Umino laughed, glad that everyone was so eager to begin the next step of their careers as Shinobi. "Alright everyone, so let's get started!"
Iruka looked at the clipboard in his hand, and then up to his class. "First up, is Team Ten: Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, and Choji Akimichi!" He read off, watching for the three's reactions.
Choji smiled widely, looking forward to working with the two, and Shikamaru raised his head to show that he was awake. He had a slight smirk, but rolled his eyes when he heard Ino mumble something about being put on the wrong team.
Iruka chuckled, and then resumed reading off names. "Team 8 will consist of… Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, and Hinata Hyuga!" He told the three. Shino's reaction was undetectable besides a slight nod, while Kiba seemed pretty satisfied, as he smiled while Akamaru barked excitedly. Hinata looked at the two of her teammates, a bit nervous but also eager to get to know her new partners.
The instructor crossed the second team off of the clipboard list, moving down to the next group. "Next is Team 4. Team 4 will be… Sanji, Nami, and Zoro!" Sanji cheered as he learned he'd be on Nami's team… only for his mood to immediately sour at the mention of the moss-headed irritant. "Why must every silver lining be attached to a damned green cloud?!" He lamented dramatically, pounding the table he sat at. Zoro sneered, not thrilled about the team setup either. Nami rubbed her temples; she could already feel the headaches piling up in her head.
Iruka shook his head and went to the next trio of names. "Now then, for Team 5! The members for this squad will be… Bartolomeo, Rebecca, and Cavendish!" He declared. Cavendish stood up. "Hey, why do I have to be paired up with this slob?!" He demanded to know, pointing at the wild-haired boy, who was digging in his ear with a pinky, glaring back at him. Iruka sighed. "I didn't decide the teams, Cavendish. Don't shoot the messenger."
Rebecca lowered her head slightly, a bit saddened that she wouldn't be on a team with either of her friends. Luffy smiled and gave her a gentle prod with his elbow. "Hey, you got a good team! Bart-guy and Cabbage are really strong!" He told her, remembering how the two performed during sparring. She smiled slightly, and he gave her another nudge. "Ah, come on. It'll be fun! You're nice and funny, you'll be friends before you know it!"
Bartolomeo, seeing the two talking, began to chuckle to himself as he formed an idea in his head. Cavendish continued to complain about being put on the same team as one of his least favorite classmates, but was eventually silenced by the shouting of his instructor.
Once that interruption was dealt with, Iruka looked at the last two squads on the list. "Two teams left, and the first of them is Team 6! For Team 6, we have… Luffy, Robin, and Usopp!" He announced. Luffy and Usopp exchanged grins of excitement, with Luffy laughing happily and waving to Robin, who giggled at the two's antics. At least they were people she was more comfortable with. Iruka smiled, glad that at least one of the teams seemed to be happy with their arrangement.
Iruka then looked at the last trio of names, and then to the remaining three students. "And that makes the final team, Team 7… Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and Sasuke Uchiha!" He finished, crossing the final names off of the list. The three students stared at their instructor, as if silently asking if he was joking.
When no response came from the man, looks were exchanged between the team. Naruto staring at Sakura admiringly, while she did the same to Sasuke. The two boys glared at each other, while Sakura started to shout something at Naruto about not bother "her Sasuke-kun".
Iruka shouted once again, silencing the classroom as it erupted into a combination of yelling and laughing. The students all looked at their instructor, who cleared his throat. "Anyway… Now that your teams have been decided, you're all to report to your Jonin squad leaders. Before I tell you where to go, I'd like to explain something; due to a mission currently being performed by some of the Konoha shinobi, we're currently short on Jonin. As such, until they return we will be pairing up teams under one Jonin."
Iruka then turned to the chalkboard on the wall and began to write down the teams' numbers and those of three classrooms. "Teams 10 and 4, you'll both be reporting to Room 16 to meet your captain. 8 and 5, your leader will be in Room 12. And Teams 6 and 7 will be meeting their captain in Room 8." He instructed the six teams.
Iruka turned back to the children as he put the chalk down, and smiled warmly at them. "And everyone… I just want you all to know how proud I am to have been your teacher! I have no doubt that each and every one of you will go on to do great things for our village!" He told them, which earned a number of smiles and acknowledgements from the students. And with that final word, Iruka turned to leave the classroom, waving to the students as he stepped out. "I'll see you all again later." He assured them.
Once the instructor had been gone for a minute, the young shinobi all stood up and made their way to the rest of their squad, wanting to meet their Jonin quickly. Luffy, Robin, and Usopp smiled at each other as they approached the door out of the classroom, only for Luffy to stop when he looked over at Team 5. Bartolomeo and Cavendish were already arguing again, each wanting to get past the other to get to the door. Rebecca shook her head in amusement, but sighed tiredly.
Luffy looked at his team. "You guys go on ahead, I'm going to go see if Rebecca can give me that takoyaki she said she saved me!" He told them. Usopp and Robin looked at each other and nodded, making their way down the hall to the assigned room. Team 7 wasn't far behind, Naruto and Sasuke making a point of not talking to each other while Sakura tried to think of something to say to the Uchiha boy.
Once they left, Luffy hopped over to where Rebecca was sitting, still waiting for her teammates to stop bickering so that they could go. She looked away from the two to see the boy resting his hands on the table she sat at. "Hey, is something wrong?" He asked her, concerned. Rebecca thought on the question, trying to think of a way to word her problem. "No, not really." She said, clasping her hands together. "I'm sure we'll all get along eventually, but it would have been nice to be put on a team with at least one person I knew decently. I'm pretty sure everyone else was put on a team with someone they like."
Luffy thought, understanding what she meant. He looked at Bartolomeo and Cavendish, who were standing with their backs to each other and scowls on their faces. He turned back to Rebecca. "It won't take long for you guys to be friends!" He assured her confidently. "Like I said before, you're smart and funny and nice!"
He paused, and then smiled as he got an idea. "Hey, why don't we hang out tonight? After we're done meeting our Jonins? It's been a while since we had a good sparring match at the training yard!" Rebecca looked at him, and after a moment she smiled. "I'd like that." She said, nodding in agreement to the proposal. Newly energized by her friend's offer, she took out a bento box wrapped in a deep blue cloth and handed it to him. "Here's my aunt's takoyaki, like I said!" Rebecca told him as she put it in his hands. She stood up and walked over to the two boys that were her teammates, pushing them out of the room, much to their surprise.
"H-hey, what do you think you're doing?!" Cavendish demanded. Bartolomeo flailed around slightly in protest. "Wait, I-I needed to ask Luffy-sempai something!" He insisted, the girl shaking her head. "You can talk to Luffy later, we have to go meet our Jonin instructor! Come on, I don't want to keep the other team waiting." She retorted, eagerness to begin renewed. "I'll see you later, Luffy!" She called back to the boy, who laughed. "Alright, later!" He returned.
Luffy smiled and looked down at the bento Rebecca had given him, and made his way into the hallway and to Room 8. Once there, he saw Usopp and Naruto chatting about something, with Sakura sitting on the instructor's desk at the front of the classroom nearby. Robin was looking out the window peacefully, and Sasuke was simply sitting with his eyes closed and his hands over his mouth. Usopp looked over at his friend. "There you are!" He said. "The Jonin isn't here yet. Did you see anybody in the hallway?"
Luffy shook his head, and made his way over to sit on top of one of the student tables, placing his snack for later beside him as he looked around the classroom. "Wonder how much longer it's gonna be?" He questioned no one in particular, eager to get things started already. Naruto nodded in agreement. "Seriously, how can our sensei be late on our first day together?!" He asked, Usopp also wondering the same thing.
Sakura looked over at Robin, and decided that she might as well get to know her since they'd be working together for a while. She glanced back at Naruto and Usopp, who were digging around the instructor's desk at the front of the room. For what, she didn't want to know. She approached the black-haired girl. "Hey." She greeted Robin, who turned away from the window to look at her. "Hello, Sakura." Robin said, smiling. "Is there something that you need?"
Sakura shook her head. "No, I was just wanting to see if you'd like to talk until our sensei gets here. Do you mind?" She asked, Robin shrugging. "Not at all. What would you like to talk about?"
The kunoichi thought for a moment, wondering what she could ask the other girl. They had never really spoken before. An idea occurred to her, and she smiled. "Well, what do you like to do in your spare time?" She asked. Robin hummed quietly as she considered the question. "I like to read," She decided to say, pulling out a small book she kept on hand for down time. "Mostly I read about different regions' histories, though I also have a few less scholastic books in my collection. I also have a small garden I keep."
Sakura's expression brightened, glad to have been able to break the ice. "Oh, that's nice! I like reading, too. I also like to go shopping sometimes." Robin smiled. "I see." She said. "I haven't been shopping in a while." The pink-haired girl had an idea. "Oh, well why don't you come along on my next shopping day? It'd be a fun way to get to know each other!"
Robin smiled at the offer and nodded. "I would like that." She agreed. "Just let me know one day, and we'll go."
Sasuke glanced at the girls and at Luffy, before his attention turned to Usopp and Naruto after the latter jumped up from behind the desk. The blond boy was holding an eraser, and snickering excitedly. "What are you doing, dobe?" Sasuke asked as the two walked over to the still open door. Usopp got down on his hands and knees, letting Naruto use him as a stool so he could place the eraser in between the door and frame as he closed it. He looked back at the Uchiha boy as he hopped off of Usopp, dusting of his hands and grinning widely. "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm gonna show our 'sensei' that it isn't nice to keep people waiting for their first meeting!"
Sakura rolled her eyes. "Oh come on, Naruto. There's no way that's gonna work; our instructor's a Jonin. Such a simple trick won't fool him." She told him, though the idea of it potentially succeeding had her excited. "Yeah, that'll show him not to be late!" She thought to herself.
Sasuke nodded in agreement with Sakura. Or at least, with what she actually said. Luffy looked at the eraser, curious but not really sure either way. He turned to Sasuke. "I saw that you'd been training outside. How'd it go?" He asked. The Uchiha boy looked at him in surprise, though it only showed by a slight raising of his eyebrows. He shrugged. "Fine." He responded simply, not really having anything else to say about it. While Naruto tended to annoy him with his obnoxious behavior, for some reason Luffy didn't bother him as much. He assumed that it was because he had a bit more respect for the straw hat-wearing boy, seeing as he was actually quite capable in taijutsu, if their previous sparring matches during the Academy were any indication.
"Whoa, are your eyes red?" Luffy suddenly asked. Sasuke's eyes widened, and he quickly removed his headband. The boy stared into the reflection of his eyes, only to find that they weren't any different than normal. Luffy blinked. "Have you been sleeping recently?" He continued, making Sasuke realize what he had meant by his first question. "On the other hand…" He thought to himself in annoyance, taking a deep breath to calm down as he put his headband back in its proper position.
"I was up all night training." He told Luffy bluntly, not wanting to continue the conversation after what he had just done. He felt like an idiot for reacting so quickly. Sakura, overhearing this, smiled at him. "Wow, Sasuke. You're so dedicated!" She praised Sasuke, earning the Uchiha boy a glare from Naruto. Before he could say anything, however, he heard footsteps out in the hall. The attention of the students redirected to the door, and then to the eraser above.
The door slid open, and a head full of grey hair entered the room, only to be lightly bonked on the head by the eraser as it fell, releasing a thin cloud of chalk dust.
A brief pause followed, after which Naruto, Usopp, and Luffy all began to laugh heartily. Robin giggled slightly, while Sasuke stared at their sensei. "This guy is our superior?" He thought to himself. Sakura bit her lower lip nervously. "S-sensei, I'm so sorry! We told them not to do it!" She apologized, gesturing to two pranksters who had played the joke. "POW, NAILED 'EM!" Her inner voice shouted excitedly, finding the event hilarious.
The Jonin stepped inside, lightly patting at his hair to knock the dust out of it. H wore a mask over his mouth and nose, while his hitai-ate seemed to be serving as a sort of makeshift eye patch. The man picked up the eraser, and calmly placed it inside the instructor's desk before turning to the Genin. Naruto, who was still laughing, pointed at the man in amusement. "Oh man, sensei that was priceless! I sure got you, didn't I?"
The man cleared his throat as he raised a hand to his mouth, silencing Naruto and earning the attention of the others. "Let's see…" He spoke, voice quiet but distinct. "My first impression is… you're all a bunch of idiots."
Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Usopp all sweatdropped, while Robin simply smiled in amusement at the jab. Luffy laughed. "This guy's funny!" He said approvingly, earning him an odd look from the Jonin. "Well, I'm glad to see you all have such a good sense of humor." He said, eye shut in what the students all assumed was an expression of humor. "My name is Kakashi Hatake. And if you're all done having your laughs, meet me up on the roof. We'll start things off there."
With that, he left in a blur of movement, leaping out of the open window. The kids all looked at each other. "That… could have gone better." Sakura muttered, scratching at her hair thoughtfully. She glared at Naruto and Usopp and clocked them both on the back of the head. "You idiots, why did you have to go and prank our team captain like that?!" She demanded fiercely as the two squealed in pain, rubbing the large bumps on their heads. "Ow! Sakura-chan, we were just having some fun!" Naruto told her, standing up with a wince as he poked at the lump.
Usopp nodded in agreement with the blond, and looked over to see Sasuke, Robin, and Luffy hopping out of the window. "You guys coming?" Luffy asked as he jumped out after pocketing his bento box. The three nodded after a moment, and followed the others as they made their way up to the roof. There, they found the Jonin waiting, sitting on the railing of the balcony with his arms crossed. "There you are." He greeted them, lifting one hand in a lazy wave. "Go on, take a seat."
Luffy, Robin, and Usopp all sat on the steps leading to the balcony, while Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke sat behind them. They all looked at Kakashi. "So, um, Kakashi-sensei, what are we doing here?" Asked Usopp, looking around to see if there was anything worth noting. The Jonin shrugged. "Oh, nothing important. I just thought that we could use this as a chance to get to know each other better. So, why don't you tell me a little about yourselves?"
Sakura tilted her head, tapping her chin curiously. "Well, what exactly do you want to know?" She asked, not knowing where to start. Kakashi thought for a moment. "I don't need your life story, just some basic things. Like your dreams, likes, and dislikes. Why don't we start with those?"
Naruto nodded, but then pointed at the man. "Isn't it polite to introduce yourself before asking others to? Why don't you start us off and show us how it's done?" He suggested, wanting to know more about the mysterious man who would be their leader.
Kakashi blinked and tilted his head back. "I suppose that's fair. Let's see…" He trailed, closing his visible eye. "Well, I like a lot of things. I don't think I particularly dislike much, either. And as for my dreams… you know, I never really thought about it. Now uh, who wants to go next?"
Naruto, Sakura, and Usopp looked at each other. "Well that was a waste of time." Sakura noted, annoyed. Usopp nodded in agreement. "Yeah, all we know about him is his name." He added. Naruto turned back to their captain and was about to volunteer to be next, but Luffy beat him to it.
"Oh oh, I'll go!" He said excitedly, pulling his hat off of his head. "My name's Monkey D. Luffy. I like to eat, especially meat! Oh, and I like to train with my friend and go fishing! I hate bandits and bullies, and one day I want to join the ANBU Black Ops and get even stronger than my brothers!"
Kakashi listened to the boy. "Interesting. So, I take it that would make you Ace and Sabo's younger brother, right?" He asked. Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto all looked at him in surprise, having heard their names before. Luffy only smiled and laughed. "Yep, that's me!" He confirmed.
Naruto threw his hand up before anyone else could speak. "Oh, me next, Sensei!" He called, wanting to share his own dream with the others. "My name's Naruto Uzumaki! I like to taste and compare different kinds of ramen, and I hate instant ramen. I wanna be the next Hokage; then people will finally start to respect me, like I'm someone important!"
Kakashi looked at him with surprise, intrigued by his reasoning. He had heard that the boy wanted to be Hokage, but he hadn't known why. He nodded, and then turned to Robin. "Why don't you go next?" He asked her, to which she nodded. "Very well, then. My name is Nico Robin. I enjoy reading about history and tending to my garden at home. I dislike people who disrespect the past, and those who judge others based on theirs. My dream… I suppose I would like to learn more about clans that have long since died out across the land."
Kakshi nodded again, and looked at Sakura. She brought her hands to her mouth in embarrassment. "Right. Well, my name Is Sakura Haruno. I like…" She trailed off, casting several glances toward the Uchiha boy. "A-and my dream is… oh wow." Kakashi and Usopp both sweatdropped. "Aaand your dislikes?" Kakashi reminded her. Her expression turned more certain, and she frowned.
"Naruto!" She declared firmly, much to the despair of the boy in question. Usopp winced in response to her tone. "Damn, that was harsh…" He thought to himself, gulping and hoping that he could stay on her good side.
Kakashi shook his head. "Alright, then… you there. With the long nose." He called out the boy, who flinched in surprise. "O-oh!" He said. "Right! Well, my name is Usopp! I like to make up stories and practice my aim. I don't like people who can't take a joke. And for my dream… I want to be a great ninja like my dad; then one day I can tell people stories about myself, and they'll be true!"
Kakashi smiled slightly underneath his mask, and then faced the last of the gathered Genin. "And finally, we come to you." He informed the dark-eyed boy. The student remained quiet for a few moments, as if gathering his thoughts.
"My name…" He finally began. "Is Sasuke Uchiha. I don't particularly like anything. And I hate a lot of things. And what I have isn't a dream, because I will make it a reality… and kill a certain man." Usopp and Naruto both stared at him nervously, while Luffy blinked in confusion. Robin seemed curious but said nothing, while Sakura was staring at him devotedly. Kakashi thought to himself. "So, the rumors about him are true."
The Jonin suddenly stood up from his position against the railing, and clapped his hands together once to get the attention of his students. "Well, I think that this has been an enlightening first meeting." He observed pleasantly. "Now then, seeing as we've only just formed, that will be all for today. But tomorrow morning, I want you all to meet me at the Third Training Ground for our first mission."
Luffy hopped to his feet excitedly. "Ooh, what kind of mission?!" He asked, eager to begin already. Kakashi chuckled. "Just a simple training mission; I want to see what you all can do first-hand. There's only so much papers and reports can tell me, after all." The others all stood up and prepared to leave, only to stop when they heard their sensei speak up again.
"Oh, and one more thing. You'll probably want to skip breakfast tomorrow morning." He added, earning curious glances from the Genin. "Otherwise… you'll probably throw up." With that unsettling bit of information, the Jonin disappeared once again, leaving the six standing there in stunned silence.
Naruto and the others all looked at each other uncertainly, not knowing how to process this last bit of instruction. The blond boy held his stomach unsurely. "Wh-what do you think he meant by that?" He asked nervously. Sasuke merely shrugged, while Sakura shook her head. "No clue." She admitted, turning to the other three. "What do you guys think?"
"GAAAAH!" Luffy suddenly shouted, surprising the other five. "Wh-what's the matter Luffy?!" Usopp asked frantically, taking a step back out of fear. The boy was gripping his hair tightly. "Skip breakfast?! How am I gonna skip breakfast?!" He lamented in what sounded like genuine fear. Usopp and the others all sweat dropped, besides Robin, who giggled in amusement. "I'm sure you'll be fine, Luffy." She assured the boy, patting his arm.
Luffy blinked, and then something clicked in his head. "Oh yeah!" He said, lightly tapping his open palm with his fist. "I gotta go! Me and Rebecca are going to train today!" He ran off, waving back to the others. "See you tomorrow, guys! Can't wait!" He called back, the others looking at each other. Not really having much else to say, they each bid farewell to the others in their own way before heading off on their own way.
Several minutes later, Luffy found himself in he and Rebecca's usual training spot: the Second Training Ground. Sure enough, he looked over to see his pink-haired friend already there, and speaking to who he recognized as Bartolomeo, and the shy Hyuga girl from class. "Oi, Rebecca!" He shouted, waving to her. The three turned to face his voice. Rebecca smiled and returned the wave, beckoning him over. "Hey Luffy!" She yelled. Bartolomeo seemed to be fidgeting in place as Luffy approached, struggling to greet him. "G-good… No, h-hey! Luffy-sempai!" He managed, nearly biting his tongue off in his nerves.
Luffy smiled as he came to a stop. "Hey guys, how's it going? Good to see you, Bart-guy!" He said, the boy nodding quickly in agreement. "Y-yeah. Good! What are you doing here?" Bartolomeo asked. Luffy nodded toward Rebecca. "Ah, me and Rebecca were going to do some training after we finished meeting our Jonin!" He explained. Hinata smiled. "Oh, I see." She said. "We can leave, if you want."
Luffy looked at Rebecca, who smiled back at him. He grinned. "Nah, you guys can stay!" He told them both. "It'll be fun!"
Hinata smiled, glad to be given a pass to stay and train, while Bartolomeo looked about ready to pass out from happiness. "A-ah! Thank you, Luffy-sempai!" He said, bowing gratefully. Hinata nodded in agreement. "Yes, it's always better to train with other people." She said.
Luffy grinned again and punched his fist into his palm. "Alright!" He said, shifting into a fighting stance, fists raised in front of his body. Rebecca, also eager to begin, drew the wooden training sword that she used to spar. Hinata and Bartolomeo, seeing the other two falling into their own respective stances, also prepared themselves to begin. "Who wants to start us off?" Luffy asked as the four of them stepped into a sort of diamond formation, each an equal distance from each other.
When no one spoke up, he laughed. "Shishishi. Alright then. One the count of three! One… two… three! Go!" He shouted excitedly, suddenly dashing at Bartolomeo.
Shaking off his admiration for the straw hat boy, the green-haired Genin raised his hands in defense to block Luffy's first strike, weaving to the left and swinging his left leg at his opponent. Luffy blocked the strike and pushed off, momentarily throwing off Bartolomeo's balance and going for a leg sweep. The green-haired Genin took a step back, barely avoiding the attack. When he attempted to go in for a punch while Luffy was crouched, the boy surprised him by pushing off of the ground, tackling Bartolomeo to the ground and rolling to his feet. "Done already?" He taunted as Bartolomeo hopped back up, shaking the impact off. "Not even close!" He barked back with a chuckle, having an easier time talking to him while distracted by the fighting and trash talk.
Rebecca charged toward Hinata, swinging her wooden sword at the shorter girl from the right. Hinata gasped in surprise, not having expected the other girl's speed, and narrowly ducked beneath the slash. She pushed Rebecca's sword back to the left, the momentum of which the swordswoman used to spin and deliver a strike from the upper left. Hinata pushed her opponent's sword to the ground, and swung jabbed with her fingertips at Rebecca's sword arm. However, she dropped down to avoid the strike, swiping her sword at Hinata's legs. The Hyuga girl managed to get one leg out of the way, but was hit at the second leg and tumbled over. She caught herself barely, and pushed herself up. "You're fast, Rebecca-san!" She complimented the pink-haired kunoichi, who laughed happily. "You're quite skilled yourself, Hinata!"
Hinata smiled slightly, but shook her head. "N-no, I'm nothing special. But thank you for the compliment." Rebecca took her sparring stance once again, and took a deep breath. "Still able to fight?" She asked, locking eyes with the pale girl. Hinata nodded, returning to her own stance. "Yes, I'm ready!"
Three Hours Later
"Whoo! You guys are strong!" Luffy declared approvingly with a laugh, sitting down beside Rebecca. She and the other three were already on the ground, Bartolomeo flat on his back and the girls beneath a tree. Hinata panted tiredly. "I just can't believe your stamina, Luffy. You hardly look tired at all!" She observed, Bartolomeo nodding in agreement. The black-haired boy laughed again. "Shishishi! I just train a lot with my brothers. It tends to go on for a while." He explained. Hinata smiled slightly, then looked up at the sky. "Oh, I should be going." She announced, standing up slowly. "I promised my little sister that I would help her train today."
The others all nodded in understanding and bid her farewell as she headed off to the Hyuga estate, with Bartolomeo standing up a few minutes later. "I gotta go, too. Need to pick up some food for dinner. I'll see you tomorrow, Rebecca. Glad to train with you, Luffy-sempai!" He said, waving slightly as he left, leaving Rebecca and Luffy sitting beneath the tree.
The two remained there for a while, just sitting in a comfortably tired silence. Suddenly, Luffy remembered something. "Oh, hey!" He said, turning to look at the girl. "I still have your aunt's takoyaki. You want some?" Rebecca considered the offer, and nodded with a smile. "Sure. I haven't eaten since breakfast." She accepted. Luffy grinned and took out the bento box, glad that it was still well sealed. He unwrapped the cloth around it and opened it, revealing the tasty snack. He handed one of the skewers to her, and tapped his own against it as if in toast. She laughed and repeated the action, and the two began eating. Though they didn't have any condiments or anything to put on the treats, they didn't mind.
"Phew, that was good!" Luffy sighed contently, dropping his skewer into the box and patting his stomach happily. "Your aunt's great at cooking!" He seemed about to say something else, when he realized that he had forgotten about something. "Oh, hey!" He exclaimed, sitting up quickly. Rebecca gave him an odd look. "What is it?" She asked, wondering if there was something wrong. Luffy turned to her with a massive grin. "I just remembered something! Me and Robin were on our way to class this morning, and we spoke to Makino. She said that she'd cook up a huge celebration dinner tomorrow night to celebrate everyone's graduation! Do you think you'll be able to come?"
Rebecca blinked, and paused to think. A big party for all of the graduates did sound fun, after all. The question was whether her father would allow her to attend. Luffy stood up, and offered her a hand, which she took to help stand up. "It definitely sounds like it could be fun." She admitted, dusting off her clothes. She smiled. "I'll ask my father about it. I can give you my answer tomorrow; is that okay?"
Luffy nodded, pulling his hat so that it sat further back on his head. "Yeah, that'll be good!" He said. "Thanks again for the takoyaki! And tell your aunt I said hi!" Rebecca nodded, smiling. "Right. I'll see you tomorrow, Luffy!" She told him, waving as she began to walk away. Luffy returned the gesture, heading home his own way as he spoke. "Yeah! See you tomorrow, Rebecca!"
And with that, Luffy made his way home. It was a bit earlier than usual, but he wanted to make sure that he was prepared for the next day. For him, that meant making sure that he ate enough so that skipping breakfast wouldn't be as much of an issue. An idea occurred to him as he walked, and his typical grin grew even larger. "Shishishi! He never said we couldn't do that!" He thought out loud, rubbing his hands together eagerly. Tomorrow was the day.
The first day of many with his new team.
There's chapter three! Next chapter is Luffy and Naruto's teams' first exercise together, so expect some action the next time I update. It might be a while, so I appreciate the patience you all have had so far. So until next time, have a good one!