Blah= whatever

"Blah"= talking

'Blah'= thinking or emphasis

(Blah)= Extra

(A/N: Blah)= Me

Blah = Flashbacks

Blah= Change of place, time, and POVs

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The academy/Kaori's POV:

Today would mark a new beginning. It was finally the day we get our new genin teams. Everything was prepared and present except for our absent examiners.

'They're chuunins for heaven's sake. Can't they be a bit faster?' I thought crossly. I was bored and impatient as I fiddled with the sleeves of my new clothes. I gave my outfit another look over.

My mom decided that it was time for a new ninja-appropriate wardrobe instead of the casual tees and shorts that I was usually found wearing. It was a lot better than a lot of her other presents. Like the several first aid kits, or annoying alarm clocks I would frequently receive. Everyone in the village knows how terrible my mother is with giving presents. It was a long-time running gag.

Moving on, my new attire consisted of loose dark capris, and a pale mid-belly sleeveless jacket that had my clan symbol sewn on the shoulder-area. Underneath the coat, I had on a light blue tank top with an oversized pocket sewn on the abdomen, and thank god that I had my jacket to cover my bare shoulders. I get cold more easily than others because my body spends more energy converting nutrients (I don't eat, remember?) and healing nonexistent injuries than making body heat. (curse this useless ability!)

Oh, and because I technically belong in the Amakusu clan, I have been made (by my mother) to wear our mark from point on. It was nothing special, really. Just a pale green teardrop with a half-swirl connected to the inner side of it. I also had on specially made black Amakusu arm-guards that had a thumbhole so that it would stay put, since there's always the possibility of making a mistake in the chakra replenishing and causing more damage onto ourselves rather than the opponent. An arm guard could easily reduce both pain and casualty. Plus they're warm.

I continued to scrutinize the room, trying to predict the two students who I'd be paired up with, but along with talks of graduation, I've been hearing a lot of gossip. I was only sitting here for about fifteen minutes and I've already heard five days worth of nonstop scandals.

"Kami-sama! Naruto passed!?"

"Oh my god, but did you hear about Mizuki-sensei?"

"Of course! I can't believe he was a traitor this whole time! He was so nice!"

Most of these chitchats were from fangirly people who, in my opinion truly lack self-respect. (Except Sakura-san and Ino-san, I guess they're good) They should just realize that guys who treat them so terribly have a reason for treating them like that and shouldn't bother them more.

Ohh, but maybe that was a bit harsh. I'm sorry, I take that back.

I was surprised myself at the news. I could never imagine Mizuki-sensei would try to steal Konoha's sacred scroll (though I'm still not really sure what it is). I also heard that Naruto was the one who had defeated him- most likely false information but it was interesting all the same considering the fact that Mizuki-sensei's a qualified chuunin.

There was no way that Naruto, who didn't even pass the genin test, was sitting right next to Sasuke with the Konoha headband gleaming proudly on his head by such impossible means…

… Or so I tried telling myself. I was told I was a gullible person, and I found myself leaning onto the belief of Naruto being able to do such a thing. I frowned, maybe I should ask the dobe himself but he might actually take that credit…

-- But, if he really did cheat, like half of the student population believed, then so help me Naruto I will-!

Ow!!

I jumped as something sharp suddenly made contact with my forehead. I rubbed my brow. "Oi! Kaori! Hello? Are you still alive?"

I let out a tiny hiss and looked up to see Kiba-san standing there with Akamaru on his head, he must've been trying to get my attention for a while because he had this cute glare on his face. I froze and looked away, blushing lightly. 'Since when is a glare cute?'

"Eh? Kaori, what's up?" He asked, looking a bit confused.

Oh my god. This sucks. This sucks so bad. Up until now I was repeatedly telling myself that nothing changed, but if I'm going to react like this every time he says hello then what the hell am I supposed to do?

I bit my lip. "I-It's nothing! I'm just nervous!"

Kiba nodded knowingly, "You should be. After all, you might just be a leftover student without a team." He teased, poking my forehead.

Again.

I rubbed my brow, past bashfulness gone, as I pushed the loose hairs from my face. "Mou! You meanie!" I huffed, but let it go; knowing that his lies would make me more paranoid. It would be wiser not to provoke him.

"So how's your torso?" I asked, changing the subject after a bout of awkward silence on my part. "It should've healed by now, right?"

Kiba was about to reply when doubled over, gasping and unable to breathe it seemed, and was coughing violently instead. He fought a groan, and his head fell forward again. I could hear him hiss as he gritted his teeth forcefully.

My eyes widened through all of this as I crouched next to him. Had I messed up on the healing process? How could I have made it worse?

"Oh my god! Are you okay? I'm sorry! Kiba-san!" I cried, shaking him. I was checking his pulse, blood pressure, temperature, everything, as I wracked through my mind in an effort to remember what I had done to cause this emergency situation.

I turned back to him just as he looked up to me with this… incredibly cheeky grin on his face. "Just kidding!" He grinned wolfishly and gave a peace sign. "You totally fell for it, Kaori!"

I was not in a peaceful mood.

I glared, embarrassed. And punched him on the back of his head with a "Baka!"

"Itai! Jeez! Can't even take a joke!"

I sat back down. After Kiba recovered, he paused and gave a sniff. "Hey, are you wearing new clothes?"

I fought the urge to roll my eyes, as it was against my nature to be so openly rude. "I was sure it would be obvious, Kiba-san." I murmured politely, flapping the hood of my jacket over my head.

He nodded approvingly. "They smell good." And sat down on the empty seat next to me.

I just sat there, blinking. 'That's it? That's all he has to say? It smells nice? Of course that's something Kiba-san would say! But… that's so random!' I frowned, but soon dismissed it. At least it was positive. 'Of all the places to sit, why does he decide to sit here--?'

"NARUTO!!!"

Kiba and I turned around as screams of anguish and disgust filled the room. I instantly regretted my rash and nosy decision. For there was Naruto, locking lips with Uchiha Sasuke. I screamed.

"AIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!" I shrieked, covering my eyes. "MY EYES!!! THEY BUUUUUUUUUUUURN!!!" I hadn't noticed that I was beating my head against the desk this whole time. My innocence! My purity! All tainted!! "EWWWWW!!!!"

The whole class was now in uproar. Kiba-san was trying to keep a grip on me, using a lot of effort to keep me from hurting myself even further and was yelling at me to calm down, which was nice of him because I knew he would've been laughing if I weren't being such a distraction. Akamaru was barking; most of the female population were still screaming and now beating Naruto (with Sakura making the most damage) while the dobe tried to stutter out his side of the story; Sasuke was still gagging and choking; the rest of the boys were laughing their heads off and making gay jokes (the bastards they are); the quiet people were yelling at everyone to shut up or ignoring the raucous; and the few teachers who had come in were scolding us to be quiet. In other words, it was absolute chaos. (A/N: See how much one new character could change so much!)

Iruka-sensei finally stepped in and gawked. I will never forget his next words, as they had done their deed to bring peace the situation. Truly motivated me to work hard and do greater things.

"IF YOU IDIOTS DON'T SHUT UP, I'LL MAKE SURE YOU GUYS DON'T GRADUATE TILL YOU'RE OLDER THAN THE THIRD HOKAGE HIMSELF!!!"

---After a While---

"Starting today you are all official ninjas." Iruka-sensei started. Most of us listened intently. "But, you are still genins. It's going to get harder from here as you will have to overcome a countless number of tough challenges and situations. You will all be in groups of three… blah blah blah."

Well, I did say most.

"So I will now announce them." Iruka proceeded. I jolted out of my thoughts, listening for real. 'Important.' My brain said. 'Must stay awake.' But after a while, I started getting lazy again.

Must it take so long to hear my own name?

"Next, seventh group: Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke."

'ARGH!!! Taking forever!' I resisted the urge to scream, as I stared at disappointed little Naruto scowling at Sasuke.

'You might just be a leftover student without a team.' Kiba's jokes were staring to get to me. And I'm pretty sure he was sensing it as he patted my shoulder almost apologetically.

"Next eighth group: Hyuuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba, and Aburame Shino."

'Even Kiba-san's gone.' I blinked. Kiba smirked, but even I could tell he was trying to hide a wry frown. "Guess we're not in the same group, Kaori." Akamaru-kun gave a small whine.

I smiled, giving him an 'oh well' shrug. 'Maybe it's a good thing. This way, I know I won't have to go through nerve killings.' I would just die if Kiba found out I had a cru--… I liked him more than a friend.

"Next, ninth group: Amakusu Kaori, Majikan Makoto, and Toriwa Tsubasa." (A/N: He didn't actually say group nine, so it's still up for grabs!)

I heard a few gasps as I sat up. Yes, Toriwa-san was also a pretty popular guy, mainly because he was good looking and because he was really strong ninja-wise. A born successor of the Toriwa clan, he can summon a bird and fight from a far range. He, like Kiba-san, has his own animal familiar and clan markings as well. His marking was this slender black feather under his left eye. Despite being a bit of a flirt, he was still one of the strongest male students this year in the academy, only second to Uchiha Sasuke.

Majikan Makoto-san was a proclaimed prodigy from the Majikan clan. I heard she had already activated her kekkei genkai, bloodline limit. Anyone with the Majikan blood flowing through their veins could see any occasion that had happened to a certain place or area for more or less than three years prime, maybe even on people too! She was able to manipulate time to some extent, which was effective in the shinobi wars. She was a strong, serious, and devoted kunoichi who would surely make her mark on the world.

I gulped. They were both extremely powerful, would I really be able to keep up with them?

I looked around for my new teammates. I never really talked to them, but I finally found them, they were conveniently sitting side by side. I saw Toriwa scowling at Majikan, who was giving him a glare in return. Toriwa-san noticed me and winked. I returned the smile with a wave, and turned around to face Iruka-sensei again.

"Team ten: Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, and Akimichi Chouji. That's it for the groups."

I stopped listening after that. I even tuned out Naruto's voice! But I was too jittery to fully function what was happening around me.

After School/Kiba's POV:

I wandered around town after school with Akamaru, as he was my most trusted companion. Of course we were also excited that tomorrow was going to be our first day as a team. I thought about my group and scowled. 'Too bad Kaori or anyone else isn't in my group… grr! People are already saying that group nine is the best! How annoying!'

It was true. Team nine was considered the strongest group, and even I could see why. After all:

-Teams One through Three were all annoying, no-nothing twits.

-Four to Six had people who couldn't do anything.

-Team Seven, who despite having Sasuke, had Naruto and Sakura. (Sakura: Just wait till Shippuden!)

-Team Eight was believed to be neutral. I was paired with Hyuuga-with-no-backbone, and the quiet bug freak.

-Team Ten had Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji. No need to say any more.

(A/N: Well, this was before they realized Shika was a genius, and they were called 'the idiot squad' in the beginning.)

So naturally, team nine would be deemed as the strongest group by default.

I blinked when I heard something shuffling at my feet.

'If Akamaru's the one on my head, then…' I could only roll my eyes as the smell hit my nose.

"Boo!" Cried the voice to my right. I looked down and saw Kaori on all fours, grinning up at me playfully. "Haha! I scared you, didn't I? Kiba-san? I did, right?" She giggled, looking heartbreakingly hopeful.

She's not intimidating at all.

I grinned. Kaori. Of course… "Are you serious? I can smell and hear you from more than three miles away." I deadpanned.

She pursed her lips, dejected. "Really?"

"Yepp."

"Oh…"

Then her lips twitched upwards and she glared in mock anger. "Wait before! Were you implying that I'm loud and I smell bad?"

I laughed, "Well yeah! When was the last time you took a bath? This morning? Unsanitary!" She smiled, giggling at the joke.

I chuckled, shaking my head in good humor. "Well, are you going to get up or not?"

Kaori looked up at me with surprise as she realized that she was still squatting down on the ground. "Oh." She got up in an embarrassed manner and grinned, "Don't worry! Once I'm a chuunin, I'll be a lot more alert!"

I smirked. "Well, you seem to be in a hurry! Slow down! You just got fitted into a genin squad!" Akamaru cocked his head in confusion as I added. "Besides, no matter how hard you work, I will always beat you anyway."

She (wisely) ignored the last comment and went on. "But I've got to get stronger!" She pouted. "I have to: prove my clan that I'm strong, help people of the village, and I guess become one of the world's best medic-"

"Hmm… I guess those might be achievable." I nodded in acknowledgement, thinking deeply. "It's great that you're okay with therapeutic stuff now."

She nodded. She told me she used to hate it, but I guess she's fine with it now. "Oh, and I have to become a jounin! Or maybe even an ANBU! A Hokage! I will make a legacy!" She finished, smiling brightly as she reflected over her dreams.

Me: "… O-Okay."

Her smile disappeared and her eyes narrowed. Damn it, she's giving me that pout again. "I sense lack of faith."

"…"

"I hate you!"

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Yo yo yo! Haha, what'd ya think? I don't really know why I put in that last bit. I guess it was for fun. So seriously, how was that chapter? Did you guys like it? Please review your thoughts!

Kami means God, paper, and hair; but in this case it's the first one…

Mou means "Jeez!"

Tori means Bird

Wa means Harmony

Tsubasa means Wing

Ma is interval, space, time.

Jikan means time, hour, etc. (Although it could mean class period, which is not relevant to the story -.-;;)

Makoto means Truthful, Sincerity. It's normally a boys' name, but it'll work out.