Warnings: Torture- not overly graphic but there, and a single swear word *Le gasp*
Chapter 4 - Of Genin Days
"Right Genins, the first thing you get to enjoy in your new lives as kunoichi is D-ranks. Prepare yourselves for the most mind-numbingly boring missions you will ever undertake. However, the more you do quickly, the sooner you can move on to better things, therefore you start immediately." Ibiki-sensei grinned sadistically at the half-asleep girls, two thirds of which looked half ready to kill themselves already, while Miku just clutched a large mug of green tea, gradually becoming more alert as the caffeine kicked in. Though one thing they all had in common was the desire to murder their sensei for dragging them out of bed to meet up at five in the morning on their first day.
Ibiki's grin only widened as a glare developed on Miku's face as she dragged together the energy to do so. He quickly herded the trio towards the Hokage tower, to visit the mission desk, the Chūnin on duty flinching away from the youngest girl's dark glare when she caught the pitying look he sent them.
"Give us a D-rank, don't care which, just the first you grab, we'll be back for more later." The Chūnin shuddered at Ibiki's grin as the man dodged his youngest student's attempt to bite him when his arm indicating the three came too close. The Chūnin hurriedly passed over a scroll and sighed in relief as the quartet finally left, infinitely glad that his shift was nearly over, so hopefully he would be gone before they returned.
"Okay, kiddies, I hope you like getting your hands dirty because Tamura-san needs help with harvesting his vegetables and you're the hired help, have fun." Ibiki vanished into the trees laughing to himself as the three girls yelled curses after him, 'Kuko's were particularly creative until she was silenced by ''Ku, who preferred not to insult their employer with such a rude introduction. In moments the three were set to work, 'Ku, as the fastest, had the duty of running full baskets to the house and bringing empty ones back, while the other two did the actual harvesting, 'Kuko tackling the larger veg that needed more strength and 'Nai got the more delicate crops.
Three hours later they trudged back to the mission desk, covered in mud and silent, having run out of curses to throw at their sensei, for another D-rank.
By the end of the day, they'd completed five D-ranks and were about ready to collapse into bed, though just about managed to force some food down and grab a quick shower first.
*o*o*o*
The rest of the week followed in much the same manner, spending their days fixing fences, painting fences, building sheds, retrieving lost pets - it was decided missions of this variety were to be avoided after a particularly vicious pet ferret got on the wrong side of 'Ku in a bad mood and ended up with a broken leg - harvesting and planting various crops, running errands for various businesses and a number of other mind-numbing tasks. By silently acknowledged unanimous agreement, the trio decided that if next week was going to be the same then Ibiki-sensei would die, no matter what it took.
Fortunately, for all involved, Ibiki-sensei didn't force anymore D-ranks on them and they were even allowed to sleep in 'til six from then on.
"Ohayo, little Genins. You'll be glad to know that no more D-ranks are necessary, if you're fortunate you'll never have to do another in your life. Or at least not until you're senseis yourselves. Instead we begin proper training. Every morning we'll meet at Training Ground 27 at seven o'clock. Before you get there you will have run two laps of the village, as your training progresses, the number of laps will increase and if you slack off I will know and you will not like the consequences. We'll start with combat, let's see what you know. It's a free-for-all between you three, anything goes, the victor doesn't have to stay here training until midnight, so the quicker you win the more time off you get or the more drawn out the less your friends suffer. Begin." The girls vanished into the trees around them, 'Ku taking a quick pot shot at 'Kuko's head with a kunai, which may have accidentally missed and almost hit Ibiki-sensei instead, on the way. The sensei smirked as he leant out of the way of the kunai, with them showing such potential already, he could expect great things from his students.
'Ku almost instantly vanished among the leaves, leaving no trace her fellow students could track and made a small nest for herself, to plot out her strategy. She and 'Kuko had sparred many times before but 'Nai was a relative unknown bar the few things she'd noticed in the Academy, - lesser strength and stamina, decent speed and Taijutsu - and what the other had mentioned in their initial meet and greet - a talent at Genjutsu, could be problematic but I should be able to notice it well enough. She settled in to wait, listening for the movements of her teammates and watching from her lofty perch for any unnatural branch waving to give away their positions.
'Kuko skittered across the lower canopy, she knew 'Ku would never be found once hidden, - there was a reason they never played hide and seek after all - so would be better off hunting down their eldest team member and waiting to see if the youngest revealed herself. An unnatural smear of black flashed through her peripheral vision and the girl slowed, circling back to find the cause. When she found nothing, 'Kuko became instantly more cautious, eyes darting around for any signs of a trap, years of setting them herself letting her know what to look for, but it was too late, her weakness at Genjutsu was her downfall. Fortunately the pain from being stabbed with a kunai was enough to shatter the fragile illusion and if there was anything 'Kuko had more than her strength and Taijutsu skills, it was pure stubbornness to keep going. Her own kunai slashed at 'Nai, who recognised the breaking of her illusion and danced out of the way, her slightly superior speed saving her but she knew she couldn't last in a drawn out fight with the brunette. A few kunai appeared suddenly from the surrounding trees, pinpoint precision opening slices across the pair's right forearms and just above the eyes. 'Kuko's attention darted to the origin, finding no sign of 'Ku, acknowledging that she was likely already long gone. Thus gave 'Nai the opening needed to escape, a subtle Genjutsu masking her exit, so she could patch her wounds and set up a new trap for whichever of the other two she could catch , most likely 'Kuko again.
'Ku chose to have a little more fun than simply playing cat and mouse, she ambushed 'Kuko as soon as the girl started moving again, after binding her forearm and smearing a little yarrow salve over her head wound to stop the bleeding. The youngest swung from the side, kicking at 'Kuko's legs and knocking the brunette from her branch, taking it for herself. The elder girl grabbed onto a different branch, stopping her descent and grinned. What followed was an elaborate dance, blades flashing and fists flying, 'Ku leaving painful precise jabs and many shallow slices, while 'Kuko gave less precise, stronger punches and fewer, deeper wounds. They parted after half an hour or so, with silent agreement to separate and lick their wounds, then give 'Nai another chance to play.
As predicted it was 'Kuko who wandered, again, into 'Nai's trap but it wasn't so effective a second time 'Kuko reacting faster to the expected pain and escaping with only a small nick just below her ribs. This time, determined to end things between them, 'Kuko grabbed the older girl, pulling her closer and attacking in quick succession, but her subtle tiredness from the spar with 'Ku and 'Nai's greater speed let the elder dodge the attack, twisting 'Kuko's hold against her and trying to land her own hit instead. The brunette knocked 'Nai's kunai from her grasp with her free hand and kicked back at the other, giving a glancing blow that was just destabilising enough to loosen her hold. 'Kuko broke free but lost her kunai as 'Nai aimed a sharp jap at the pressure point on her wrist, so they faced each other bare handed, Nai too unused to fighting 'Kuko to know which hits were safe to take, thus limiting the damage she could deal herself as she kept dodging, however 'Kuko gained no advantage as 'Nai's style was too different to the fast, fluid style that 'Ku used for her too effectively counter the greater speed. A lucky kick to 'Nai's leg unbalanced her and she fell back against the trunk of their tree, knocking her head and dazing her long enough for 'Kuko to grab a new kunai to hold to her throat, taking the eldest out of the fight.
The rustle of leaves above them and flash of black hair disappearing let 'Kuko know that 'Ku would leave her some time to recover and hunt down some food before they finished this contest, which she did as soon as she checked 'Nai over to make sure she was alright enough to make it back to where they started.
The younger pair's second fight went much the same as the first both slowly but surely wearing each other down. 'Kuko's greater stamina proved to be the winning factor this time, as she swung at 'Ku's head, the younger's exhaustion slowing her too much to fully dodge, knocking her from the branch to lie winded on the ground, quite content to let 'Kuko have this win, after all she was still two up on their sparring tally back home. The brunette helped her friend stagger back to the start where they both collapsed next to 'Nai, 'Kuko on her back with arms spread and 'Ku curled up on her side, using the brunette as a pillow.
The three barely moved bar the tilting of heads when Ibiki-sensei shunshin'ed to stand in front of them.
"Congratulations Fukuko,-"
"Please just call me 'Kuko, the only time anyone uses my full name is when I'm in trouble." 'Kuko whined, getting a giggle from her teammates for it. Ibiki-sensei stared at the girl with a raised eyebrow for a few moments until she squirmed before nodding and continuing.
"For winning. Now, it may be a bit late but I brought lunch." Ibiki-sensei held up a stack of bentō boxes and 'Kuko was on her feet in seconds, 'Ku meeting the ground with a quiet 'Oof', sending a glare to the older girl before rising, stretching out er protesting muscles before accepting her own box, and climbing one of the nearby training posts to perch on while she ate, 'Kuko having already claimed her own. 'Nai just shook her head at their antics, quite happy to sit on the ground between their posts to eat, while Ibiki-sensei leant against a third post, watching the three with a smile while he had his own lunch.
*o*o*o*
"Before 'Kuko is free to go, you three need to learn the Ki Nobori no Shugyō." 'Kuko opened her mouth to argue that they could already climb trees but closed it without a word when Ibiki started to walk straight up the trunk of the nearest tree, a raised eyebrow from his horizontal position asking what they were waiting for.
"You need to channel chakra through your feet to hold on, right?" 'Nai asked receiving a nod in return. A smirk bloomed over Ibiki-sensei's face as 'Kuko tried first, channelling too much chakra and launching herself away from the tree, reflexively managing to grab onto one of the training posts to halt her flight.
'Ku rolled her eyes at her friend's over-exuberance - "I think you gave it a bit much, 'Kuko-chan!" - and placed one foot against her own tree, gradually increasing the chakra flow until her foot no longer slid when she applied pressure. She cautiously began her ascent, quickly increasing the chakra when she began to slide once both feet where off the ground. Making a mental note of the needed output, she cast aside the cautious pace and walked normally, climbing up to a wide branch and walking circles around it. She hopped to the next tree to high-five 'Nai who succeeded seconds later. 'Kuko growled at the grins they sent her way as she took the opposite approach, lowering her chakra output until she found the perfect level.
It was early evening when Ibiki-sensei let 'Kuko go, having made all three run up and down tree trunks and along the underside of branches, throwing rocks at them as distractions until satisfied they didn't need to focus too much conscious thought on staying attached. He had the other two running laps of the village walls to build their stamina 'til midnight, allowing short breaks after each lap, he didn't want them collapsing before time after all.
*o*o*o*
The next morning was dedicated to stamina training as well but after lunch was the introduction to Torture and Interrogation. As Ibiki-sensei was a firm believer in learning by doing, the girls were given one of a few bandits that had been caught that morning, tied to a chair and told to find out the location of their hideout and size of the force there, while the sensei himself watched through the interrogation room's cameras.
"So does this mean we can beat him up to our hearts' content without repercussions?" 'Kuko was practically vibrating in place with excitement at the prospect. Their victim smirked at the thought of three little girls trying to beat him for information.
"Sorry 'Kuko-chan, but a tough guy like this won't surrender from a beating. Precision is key for this one." 'Kuko slumped in disappointment as 'Ku pulled out a kunai with a vicious grin. A quick Genjutsu from 'Nai gave the smallest girl a living bestial shadow, that echoed the grin, growling menacingly. The bandit's grin faded to worry. And a hint of dread as the demon-child approached. The shadow-beast vanished with the pain of 'Ku's slice but she was a master of precision, and knew the best places to give the most pain with the least chance of death or unconsciousness. It took barely half an hour before he was singing like a canary, the three exiting the room to meet Ibiki-sensei, the elder two keeping a slight distance behind 'Ku, 'Kuko having forgotten the truly vicious side to her friend when necessary and 'Nai feeling slightly ill from watching her display. Ibiki-sensei was ecstatic at the potential shown, worrying a fair few of his colleagues with his grin as he passed them.
*o*o*o*
With the end of the week came the team's first C-rank, no Chūnin at the mission desk dared comment when Ibiki-sensei took it. Unfortunately, while being a rather simple escort mission, which was quite appropriate for a first C-rank, their client was the daughter of a noble. Who just would. Not. Shut. Up. Their formation was pretty easy to decide, easily-annoyed-and-prone-to-violence 'Kuko out in front, keeping watch for bandits. Easily-annoyed-and-master-of-torture Sensei covering the rear. Far-more-patient-and-less-prone-to-violence 'Ku and 'Nai watching the sides in much closer proximity to the annoyance herself. But even their patience was pushed to the limits by the complaining of this girl. Especially the complaints about being protected by a group of girls younger than her. The kunoichi were actually glad when a trio of bandits attacked, so they could take out their frustrations on someone they were allowed to harm. The whiney bitch was quiet for a few blessed minutes when the burly men were taken out in seconds without Ibii-sensei lifting a finger, and the group basked in the silence while it lasted.
When they finally reached their destination and off-loaded their client to her father, the picture of the girl from the mission file was pinned to a tree and used for senbon target practice until all four were calm enough to return home without accidentally taking out their frustrations on the first poor soul they happened to run into.
*o*o*o*
Kunoichi - Female Ninja
Ohayo - Good Morning
Bentō - single person boxed meal, typically contains rice, meat or fish with cooked or pickled vegetables.
Ki Nobori no Shugyō - Tree Climbing Practice
Senbon - long thin needle-like weapons
Again, really sorry for missing last month but exams are kind of more important than fanfiction *hides behind overturned table to avoid projectiles*
In exchange there will be another update, either later tonight if I can get it done in time, or tomorrow 'cause I've got nearly 2000 words already and I'm not even half-way through, but it's writing itself so I may be done by ridiculous-o'clock in the morning, which would technically be tomorrow but without sleeping I kinda still think of it as today.
So, please review and see you later.
Your cursing-university-for-large-workload-and-blessing-Costa-for-kicking-the-muse-into-gear-but-still-sleep-deprived Author
Kouseki
(P.S. Seriously, if I have writer's block I go to Costa and somehow can write again, it's really weird.)