The First Drop of Rain

A/N: I want to start by saying thanks so much to everyone who submitted a character to this story. Not all were accepted right away but everyone that I responded to can tell you that we worked on the characters until they were usable for this story so if you're reading this, don't be afraid to submit if the SYOC is still open! There was one person who did not put the correct subject in the message and yes, that is the reason I did not respond. This goes for everyone: I make the rules for a reason so please follow them or I will not look at your characters. That's enough about the SYOC so let's move onto the story!

Disclaimer: The Naruto manga belongs to Masashi Kishimoto, the anime belongs to Viz Media, and the characters that appear in each media belong to their respective owners. The OCs featured in this story are mine except for those submitted by readers and credit will be provided to the creators in each chapter that their respective character premiers in.


Chapter 1: On the Horizon

Lift. Place. Stamp. Lift. Place. Stamp. Lift. Place. Stamp. As he placed the next document before him, the silver-haired Hokage exhaled slowly onto the navy blue mask attached to his face. He wiped the sweat from his brow as he baked in the summer heat that plagued the village. His cloak was laying on a nearby chair because he was suffocating in it though his long-sleeved shirt wasn't helping either. No one would see him without the ceremonial garb so there was no harm in going without it. The only person who regularly walked in and out of the office was the young Nara head and currently he went down to pick up more mission requests for the Hokage to assign shinobi to.

Kakashi decided to take a break and walked over to the window to look out at the village. His predecessor, the First, had the Hokage mansion built in the perfect spot with a panorama view of the large village that even reached the wall that protected it from attackers. With Yamato's help, the villagers were able to not only rebuild their home to its former glory but ambitious construction workers decided to build even taller structures. He could only imagine what these current skeletons would look like in five years after they've been fleshed out with plaster, steel, and glass. A couple knocks on the door behind him tore the Hokage away from the window and his thoughts as well.

"Come in," he called.

The door opened to reveal a young man with black hair pulled into a spiked ponytail. His dull, narrow eyes gave him a lazed appearance but running around as the Hokage's assistant has that effect on a person.

"Ah, Shikamaru," the silver-haired man said. "You're back sooner than I thought."

Shikamaru placed a stack of papers on his boss's desk and replied, "There weren't as many requests for missions today. I'll check again for more later but I think that that should be it for now."

"Understood. Thank you, Shikamaru."

"Of course." Shikamaru looked as though he wanted to say something but did not know how to word it. "Lord Sixth," he started.

"Hm?"

"I looked into that resistance we got wind of from Sunagakure."

"And the rumors are true?"

"Yes, there seems to be a group forming in opposition to the Shinobi Union."

"Any word of where this group is based?"

"No, but given their history with the larger nations, I think it's safe to say that Amegakure is involved in this."

Shikamaru waited for his superior's response, watching the masked man gaze off into the distance in contemplation. Hardened, steely eyes lifted from the ground to look at the young assistant and Kakashi finally replied, "It's too soon to take any action but inform the Jonin and Chuunin to stay alert of any suspicious activity around the borders. Send a notice to the Fire Daimyo so that he is aware of all of this."

With a nod, the youth said, "I'll get right on it."

Kakashi watched as Shikamaru exited the room and closed the door behind him but he continued to stare into nothingness, allowing his thoughts to stir in his head. Is this group willing to take violent actions against the five great nations? If so, were they a threat?

[][][][][][][][][][]

He stood in front of the large iron door for five minutes, which soon turned into ten minutes, and later into twenty minutes. Deep ocean eyes remained glued to the silver sheet before him and it appeared as though they would stay there for a bit longer. Did he really want to go through with this? Was this the answer that he was looking for? This couldn't possibly work, could it? More and more questions raced through his mind as he tried to come to grips with this decision. There hadn't been any other opportunities to show such prospect for justice as this one but what were the consequences of going through with it?

Finally, the boy felt a hand squeeze his shoulder so he looked down to his left to find his teammate there standing beside him. He could see his reflection in her dark, determined eyes. His drifted up slightly to her forehead protector where he saw four vertical lines side-by-side engraved into the small piece of metal. Attached to violet cloth, it was wrapped ever so neatly around her head, just below the small bangs of midnight blue hair that fell down her back in two pig-tails.

"K-Kimiko…" he started.

She quickly brought her index finger up and interrupted him, "You're not backing out now, are you?" Her stern gaze was locked on the boy's face which was plagued with uncertainty.

He reached past his own forehead protector and pushed through his shaggy, brown hair. He didn't want to change his mind but was this "Shinobi Resistance" the way to go about revolution? The odds were stacked against this group but then again, likelihood of success would always be low for him regardless of what actions he takes.

"No," he stated confidently.

She smiled, "Good. Remember, I'm only doing this because it was your idea and anywhere you go, I'll follow along. I won't let you give up on your word, though. Remember, you promised on her grave." Her expression grew solemn as her eyes shrank to the damp ground beneath them.

"You're right. You and me, Kimiko!" The brunet put his hand forward for the girl to clasp.

"Takimaru, Kimiko, don't forget about me now," said a third voice.

The pair looked over to find their teammate, approaching them with his hands in his pocket. Unlike Takimaru and Kimiko who carried the standard kunai holster and shuriken pouches, this boy also had a wakizashi sheathed behind his back.

"I didn't think you'd show up, Kenji," Takimaru said.

"I thought about it and by joining the Shinobi Resistance, I'm helping you and I decided a long time ago that helping you will also help Amegakure."

Kimiko wrapped an arm around each teammate and cheered, "Alright, let's get on inside then!"

Takimaru smiled at her and then at Kenji, grateful for such supportive teammates. They would not do the next step for him, however. This was something Takimaru had to do so they patiently waited and watched as his shaky hand reached for the door handle. His warm flesh connected with the cold metal and stayed there for a few moments. There was no rush but Takimaru had kept them waiting long enough. With one firm push, the door cracked open. Soon, it was wide open so the three teammates stepped in together, ready for their next challenge.


A/N: That's the first chapter! Let me know what you guys thought about it in the review section. What do you think of the characters so far, my writing style, the premise, etc. Also any time that a submitted character appears in a chapter, I'll credit the creator at the end of the chapter below my author's notes. Well, that's all I have for now so I'll see you all next chapter. Remember to submit characters!

Credits to:

Bluehulk for Kenji