1SSD: Hey, everyone, I'm back with the second chapter. I feel sorry for Kakashi in this one.
Sakura: Sorry for him! You're the one making us out to be lunatics!
Renji: Pipe down, gaki. If anyone should be pitied, it should be me! You damn brats use me as a fuckin' punchin' bag!
SSD: Yeah, sorry about that Renji. You look so cute in this pin I bought at Atsui-con!
Renji: What?
Sasori: Why am I here? I'm DEAD.
SSD: You're here because I want you to be.
Gaara: Then explain what I am doing here as well, or I'll kill you.
SSD: Gaara! (Glomp) Kawaiiiiiiiiii! And the plushie I bought is just so cute too!
Gaara: Get off me before I kill you!
Sakura: I'm surrounded by redheads! Sasuke-kun! Shiro-chan!
Sasuke&Hitsugaya: (glare at other guys and wrap arms around Sakura) Stay away from her.
Sakura: (pokes Sasuke's chest) Why is-
SSD: uh uhuh, don't go giving away a major plot factor. And Sasori, quit trying to turn Gaara into a puppet.
Sasori: (sulk) But to have the Sandaime Kazekage and the Godaime Kazekage in my collection would be-
SSD: Don't care, Pinocchio, Gaara is not puppet material. Now, apologize.
Sasori: Gomen, Gaara-kun.
SSD: Good, and Sasuke, I thought I told you to get lost.
Sasuke: (smirk) My cherry blossom called for me.
SSD: (gag) I think Naruto's calling for you, Sasuke-teme.
Sasuke: (blankly stares) So?
SSD: Nevermind. Anyway, on with the show!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Bleach. Otherwise Renji and Itachi would be mine.
Renji: What the hell?! (gets gagged)
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Chapter 2: Back in Konoha and...Chuunin Exams?
A week later and Sasuke was still reeling from the news. He knew that he could see things others couldn't, but he always thought that it had been a part of the Uchiha kekkei genkai. To find out that not only Sakura could see ghosts, but Naruto as well was quite a shock. Add in the annoyingly loud "shinigami", Renji, and Sasuke wasn't quite sure what to do. He did have to admit that it was amusing using the tattooed man to carry out pranks on their constantly late jounin instructor. Kakashi was now showing up on time or early on most occasions. Right now, the Uchiha survivor was watching Renji teach Sakura a form of kenjutsu called kendo.
"No, no, no! It's like this." Using a bamboo sword, the red haired man demonstrated the kata again.
"Alright already! I told you that I'm not good in taijutsu." the newest shinigami had dropped the henge just for these lessons when it was the four of them.
Unsurprisingly, she had mastered all the basic spells of kido and binding. Renji had been quite irate every time she mastered a spell, muttering something about a Kira-onna. The orange/pink haired girl performed the kata with her bokken, this time with less flaws than before.
"Getting better, but you still got a lot of work to do."
"ARG! I try my best every time and you still say I'm no good!" Sakura flung the bokken away in her frustration. Sasuke, misfortune following him since the incident four years ago, leaned to the side to avoid the projectile.
"Che, you're just a fledgling, of course you won't know how to hold a sword properly."
"Shannaro! You just tell me how to get into my shinigami form and I'll show you how I use a katana, Hanookami's been eager to snap her jaws around you!
"Bah, you're little twig ain't no match for Zabimaru!"
"Yeah right, Saru!"
"What'd you say pipsqueak!"
Sasuke and Naruto sighed as the two shinigami got into yet another argument. The two boys faced each other and played Jankenpo with kunai to improve their reflexes and prediction of each others moves. After the fifth loss, Naruto jumped up and called Sasuke a cheater for using the Sharingan. The Uchiha survivor smirked and uncharacteristically stuck out his tongue at the younger boy. This degraded into a fist fight until Kakashi arrived on the scene in a puff of smoke. He knew at that moment that his students had lost their minds, though he idly wondered when Sakura got contacts and dyed her hair.
"Ahem." All fighting stopped, though Naruto took one last cheap shot to punch Sasuke in the face. "I think that's enough 'training' for today. Dismissed. And remember to meet here tomorrow at nine, I don't care what you...prefer to do until that time." I really need a vacation or something. I'll tell them about the Chuunin Exams tomorrow. The jounin then disappeared the way he came.
The rookie genin glanced at each other. More specifically, Sakura stared at Naruto and Sasuke while the boys stared at each other in horror when they realized just what kind of position Kakashi had found them in. They immediately disentangled themselves and moved as far away as possible.
Naruto stood, his cheeks stained red. "I'm gonna go get some ramen. Wanna join me Sakura-chan? Sasuke-teme?"
"Sure."
"Hn."
"Hey! What about me? I need to eat too ya know!" Renji shouted in realization that he was being ignored.
"Urusai, Renji-baka! You ate an hour ago!" Sakura yelled at her "baby-sitter."
"So did you!"
"Not as much as you, pig!"
"I'm a lieutenant, I have a lot of reiatsu and need to eat regularly!"
"Yeah, right! You're gonna get fat if you keep eating like that!"
"Both of you just shut up!" Sasuke yelled over the bickering duo. "Kami-sama, is that all you two do? Every single day it's been argue, argue, ARGUE! Just cut it out 'cause I am getting a migraine from listening to you day in and day out!" His breath came in ragged gasps after his rant and he glared at the now silent shinigami. Sasuke then stormed away, a looming aura overhanging him.
The three collectively shuddered. "Kowai."
Naruto nervously scratched the back of his head. "Ano, about my offer..."
"Food! Iku ze!"Renji grabbed the two genins' arms and dragged them towards Ichiraku Ramen. "Three beef ramen!"
Sakura and Naruto sweatdropped. "He can't hear you, baka."
"Four beef ramen, if you please?" a familiar voice ordered from behind the trio.
"Byakuya-taichou!" Sakura exclaimed in surprise as the taichou of the sixth division, dressed in civilian clothing, sat beside them.
"Sakura, Renji, Naruto." he nodded to each of them.
"What are you doing here, taichou?" Renji asked the elder shinigami.
"I'm here to supervise her training. I read your report on her progress in kido and I will be teaching her the more advanced arts. Thank you," Byakuya directed this last statement to the ramen chef who placed four bowls in front of him. The raven haired man snapped his chopsticks apart, but paused before digging in. He reached into the front pocket of his vest and tossed an envelope at Renji. "If you follow the instructions on the paper inside, you'll find my hotel. I left a gigai for you in the room. As for you two, take a seat and eat." The young ninja eagerly did so.
"Uh, arigatou, Kuchiki-taichou."
"Might wanna hurry before the food gets cold, Renji no baka!" Sakura jabbed lightly. "Itadakimasu!"
Naruto slurped happily at his bowl of ramen. After a few minutes, he decided to ask a question that had been bugging him for a while now. "Ano sa, ano sa, jii-san, can you teach me, too?"
Byakuya's right eye twitched slightly at being called "old man". "No. These techniques are only for shinigami such as Renji, Sakura, and myself. You are not a shinigami and are, therefore, not capable of learning kido, nor the art of binding." He was mildly amused when he saw the Kyuubi jailor eyeing Renji's untouched ramen.
A newly corporeal Renji stumbled into the ramen bar and took a seat. He grabbed the bowl quickly, glaring at Naruto (who's hand had been inching toward it) for even daring to think of touching his ramen. The vice-captain took great pleasure in tormenting the boy by eating the ramen in front of him. Byakuya and Sakura's expressions were similar, neutral except for a small sweat drop on the side of their heads. Renji stabbed Naruto's hand with his chopsticks when he saw the blond's own set creeping towards his bowl.
"Back off, shrimp! This is my ramen." Renji quickly drained the bowl and a smug smirk graced his lips.
WHACK!
"Naruto! What have I said about stealing other peoples' food?" Sakura asked angrily, her hand still clenched in a fist.
"Ano...Don't get caught?"
Whack! This time it was just a slap. Doesn't mean that it didn't hurt, though.
"Itai!"
"Kurosaki, that behavior is not acceptable for members of the sixth division." Byakuya coldly interjected.
Sakura scratched the back of her head nervously. "Gomen nasai, Byakuya-taichou." Renji snorted and received a glare from Byakuya.
"Don't think you are in the clear either. Once you return to active duty, you will get a full reprimand."
Renji cringed, reprimands from Kuchiki Byakuya were not fun. They were on par with punishment from Soifon-taichou of the second division and Hitsugaya-taichou of the tenth. The first was purely physical; the latter usually made his subordinates do his paperwork from anywhere between a week and two months. Though Renji did hear rumors that his fellow vice-captain, Matsumoto Rangiku, sent the ice captain over the deep end and had to do paperwork for three months. Just the redhead's luck that Byakuya took the best from them and combined the punishment.
"Ahem. If you are done, Sakura, I can begin teaching you one of my personal favorites in kido." Byakuya suggested.
At the mention of a new spell, Sakura perked up and all thoughts of asking Byakuya information from his trip to Soul Society flew from her mind. "Really? Which one is it?"
The captain's lips twitched slightly in response to her enthusiasm. "Destructive art 4: Byakurai."
Sakura smiled gleefully. Just the way he said it sent shivers up her spine just imagining the power suggested in that tone. Renji, on the other hand, paled and stared wide-eyed at his captain.
"Y-you can't be serious!"
"Lead the way to the training field, Sakura," Byakuya promptly ignored his vice-captain and left the amount of Ryou to pay for the ramen on the counter as he stood.
"Right this way, Byakuya-taichou!" The sunset haired girl chirped and practically skipped down the road.
"Oi! Taichou! Please not that spell! Are you even listening to me?!" Again, Renji received no response from his esteemed leader. The red haired man whimpered and sagged onto the counter. "Oh Kami-sama, please spare me! Please don't let Kuchiki-taichou actually teach her Byakurai!"
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A couple hours later and Sakura was pleased with her handiwork. All the training dummies were obliterated with a few here and there with holes burnt through their chests. The sunset haired girl was definitely proud that she had mastered this spell, though it had taken longer to figure out how to properly channel reiatsu than with the basic kido spells. Byakuya quirked his eyebrow as he surveyed the destruction.
Apparently, I underestimated her learning curve. I was positive that it would at least take four hours, not two. "Well, done, Sakura. We shall continue your training tomorrow."
The young shinigami pouted, "Demo, Byakuya-taichou, I can still cram in another spell, please?"
The Kuchiki heir remained firm in his decision. "We shall continue tomorrow, you need to rest."
Sakura sulked, but acquiesced to her future captain's orders. She looked at the sky and noticed that it was streaked with amber and orange tones while the clouds were stained purple and pink. "I should get home, I didn't realize it was that late."
You were too caught up in the prospect of wreaking mass destruction to notice that Naruto already left.
I know, Hanookami. I hope Sasuke-kun isn't too mad at me. He can stay mad at Renji-baka for all I care, but I don't think I could take him hating me, let alone be angry with me.
I still don't see what you like in that boy. As far as I'm concerned, he has a stick shoved so far up his ass it'll take a miracle for him to pull it out. The zanpakutou grumbled. She wasn't very fond of the boy for how he belittled her ward so much. He had no right to call her weak like he did a couple days ago. Hanookami wanted to rip her claws into him so bad...
How many times do I have to tell you not to talk about Sasuke-kun that way! Sakura quickly bid her goodbyes to Byakuya and headed home.
The ookami woman snorted. That would be the fifteenth since you first managed to speak to me in this realm. Besides, I think he's gay.
HANOOKAMI!! Don't you dare slander my Sasuke-kun!
Your Sasuke-kun? What about the long time crush you told me about? The one on your savior?
Sakura blushed at that. To be honest, she had forgotten about him, even after being reminded by her first meeting with Byakuya on the bridge. Being around Sasuke-kun just made her feel so giddy that everything else flew out the window.
That's dangerous, Sakura. You need to get rid of that habit. You have me now, and your spells. You don't have to rely on Sasuke or Naruto. You have your own strength. Until you realize that, you will be unable to access my power. Hanookami sealed herself into her ward's soul, fully intent on fulfilling that vow.
Sakura stopped dead in the street as her Zanpakutou's words registered. Hanookami, you can't be serious. Hanookami? She was met with silence and the sunset haired girl knew she wouldn't be hearing from her zanpakutou again. At least, not until she got rid of her habit of dependency on her teammates. She continued on home, pondering on how she could accomplish what Hanookami asked of her. But, like all dependencies, habits are very hard to break.
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Sakura awoke with the sun, as per usual. She sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed, a large yawn escaping her. Her long locks were mussed as she stood and walked to her closet, combing her finger through her hair. She swung the door open and sighed in resignation. Again, her adoptive parents had hid the clothes she bought for herself and replaced them with the clan uniform for Haruno women. Idly, she wondered that if she took up her former name if they would stop stealing her clothes. She grabbed a set and went through her morning ritual. By the time she finished, it was quarter til nine. Cursing softly, Sakura ran down stairs, grabbed an onigiri to munch on and tore off towards the training grounds.
Sakura arrived at the meeting place just two minutes before she could be called late. Bending over and bracing herself on her knees, she finished the salmon rice ball off.
"Ohayo!" She cheerfully greeted her teammates after she had regained her breath.
"Ohayo, Sakura-chan!" "Hn."
"Glad to see you're all here on time." Kakashi greeted as he poofed in, nose buried in another volume of Icha Icha Paradise.
"Ohayo, Kaka-sensei!" Sakura and Naruto chimed on schedule.
"Now then," Kakashi stated as he put away his book and straightened up, "our training session will not be very long today as I have some information to give you."
Naruto immediately perked up. "Ooh! Are we going to a far away country to save a princess? Alright!"
"No," the jounin promptly dead panned. "We won't be going on any missions for a while now. Despite my better judgement, I've nominated you all to participate in the coming Chuunin Exams."
"Eh? Chuunin Exams? What're those?" Naruto asked cluelessly.
"Allow me to explain." Sakura took up her usual role as the book-smart girl. "Shinobi are divided into rankings once they graduate from the academy. The lowest on the scale is us Genin, the level above us is Chuunin like Iruka-sensei, then Jounin like Kaka-sensei. To reach these higher ranks, you have pass an exam approved by all five Kage and Daimyo. The Chuunin Exam is our opportunity to be promoted to Chuunin. After becoming Chuunin, a shinobi is given more difficult missions, similar to what we did in Wave."
"Very good, Sakura." Kakashi praised. "I want you all to meet in room 301 of the Academy Saturday afternoon at 1500 hours. Understood?"
"Hai!"
"Well then, you're dismissed." Kakashi poofed out before his students could protest.
Naruto growled in irritation. "Great! No what are we supposed to do? Stupid Kaka-sensei!"
"Calm down, Naruto," Sakura soothed. "We can train on our own."
"Che. I don't need weaklings like you holding me back." Sasuke snorted before walking off.
"Sasuke-kun! We need to be a team if we even hope to pass the Chuunin Exams! We're only rookies, after all."
The Uchiha glared coldly at her and Sakura stiffened as she thought on Hanookami's words. "You wouldn't last five minutes you're so weak, Sakura. Naruto might be able to make it through because of his huge chakra supply, but you? You're pathetic and you cling to me and get in my way. Just leave me the hell alone, weakling." He then continued on his way home.
The words cut into Sakura's heart like kunai. She felt her lungs still as they refused to take in air and her throat constricted, further suffocating her. A fury built within her. Just a spark, but something within fanned it to a raging flame of outrage. She ran after him, fist clenching. Sasuke heard her approach and stopped, turning so he could further cut into her. He was taken aback when a punch slammed into his cheek and threw him fifteen feet back. Sakura glared at him, brown eyes darkening to near coffee black.
"Why? Why do you hate me so much that you have to put me down every chance you get, yet you accept Naruto without a second glance?! We're teamates! We should be able to work together without this kind of tension between us!"
Sasuke sat up, one hand bracing himself as he rubbed a trickle of blood from his chin. "You want to know why, Sakura? Naruto is just like me, he has no family. Like me, his was stipped away by a cold-hearted killer. You? You're pampered and live a life full of coddling with your precious parents."
Sakura was taken aback. This was the entire root of the problem? Jealousy that she supposedly had a family? The shinigami lowered her head, bangs shadowing her eyes. She fought off her tears as she remembered her lovely mother's pain stricken face when that damned hollow killed her as she shielded Ichigo. She didn't know if Ichigo lived or died, she passed out from the shock of witnessing her mother's death. "You're wrong...Sasuke." Her teammates sharply looked at her at the absence of the suffix. "I know what it's like to lose a parent to a killer. When I find the one who killed my real mother and Ichigo, I will get revenge. But I know that I can't just abandon Konoha, I have a duty to this village as well as being a shinigami. I will wait for my revenge."
Her shoulders shook slightly as she got lost in that horrible memory of four years ago. She remembered the terror she felt looking in those soulless yellow eyes of her captor. The tears rolled down her cheeks and dribbled off her chin as she hugged herself, willing away the nightmarish memories. Sasuke sat there, shocked. He was so sure in his conviction that Sakura was weaker than him because she didn't have the slightest clue what it was like to lose someone. And now she was crying because he reminded her of her losses. A slight twinge of guilt pained his chest. Naruto hung his head. He didn't know who his family was, only that they were probably killed by the demon residing inside him.
"We just have to keep moving." Naruto said, breaking the silence. "We've all had our loses, but we're shinobi. One day, we may even lose one of us. We just have to keep moving on and remember what good times there are instead of lingering on grief and guilt." The Kyuubi container beamed a toothy grin. Sasuke and Sakura stared at him, for a moment, they could have sworn he resembled the Yondaime Hokage.
Sakura smiled watery. "Naruto's right. We can't focus on the bad stuff because that's what limits our potential. We have to be optimistic and find the light in everything. Let's drop this depressing talk and start training to beat the Chuunin Exams!" Sakura held her hand out, Naruto immediately covering it with his own. The two turned expectantly to Sasuke. The Uchiha sighed beforing placing his hand over Naruto's.
Sasuke smirked. "Let's show these guys just what Team 7 can do."
Naruto grinned. "We'll stand together and won't let 'em beat us down!"
Sakura smiled. "We'll watch each others' backs."
"Hey, maybe instead of just 'Team 7', we should come up with a squad name? Or even codenames?" Naruto suggested as the three broke their connection.
"That's a pretty smart idea, Naruto," Sasuke complimented while Sakura nodded in agreement.
"Alright! So what should our team be?"
"How about WraithSlayers?" Sakura suggested after some pondering. Her teammates looked at her weird. "Well, Hollows are a kind of wraith in my opinion, and it's a shinigami's duty to slay them."
"Catchy, but it doesn't reflect the whole team. What do you think, Sasuke?"
"Blazing Leaves. We're from Konoha and we live in Fire Country."
"Nah, too general, that could go for any Konoha team. I got it!"
"What?"
"How about...Trinity Blades?"
"Trinity..." Sakura started. "...Blades?" Sasuke finished.
"Yeah, I mainly use kunai, Sakura-chan has her katana, and you prefer shuriken. Three different weapons that are all razor sharp, Trinity Blades."
"I like it, it has a nice ring to it." Sakura mused.
"So, what of our codenames?" Sasuke inquired.
"That's easy. Sakura can be Tsuchi, you're Hi, and I'll be Kaze!" Naruto proudly stated.
"Tsuchi?"
"Hi?"
"Yeah, Tsuchi meaning earth, Hi meaning fire, and Kaze meaning wind. We can even look at this as our goal, to surpass even the Kages!"
Sakura and Sasuke were taken aback by this statement. But then again, if they could be better and stronger than the Hokage, Tsuchikage, and Kazekage, it would make Trinity Blades a very formidable squad. Sakura grinned at the prospect while Sasuke smirked. This would prove interesting. Watch out Chuunin Exams, the team Trinity Blades is here!
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SSD: Whee! Finally done with this chapter!
Gaara: And just when am I going to be in this?
Renji: What the hell? I was completely forgotten in this chapter!
SSD: No worries, Renji, you get to train them next chapter. That's also when you appear, Gaara.
Hitsugaya: And me?
SSD: Sorry, you won't be in it until after the second exam which is still three or four chapters away. Don't worry, you'll get screen time with Sakura soon.
Hitsugaya: (blush)
Sakura: Hey, Shiro-chan, why is your face pink?
Hitsugaya: (blushes more) I-It's nothing, Sakura-chan.
Sasuke: (glare) What'd I say about hitting on my girl?
Hitsugaya: (glares back) She's not "your girl"!
Sakura: (sweatdrop) Ano…
Deidara: Hota-chan! (glomps Sakura)
Sakura: WTF?! Let go of me!
Sasuke&Hitsugaya: LET HER GO!
Deidara: Eh? What are you two doing here, yeah? And I thought you were dead, Sasori-danna, yeah? And why are you wearing black, yeah?
Sasori: Damn baka. I'm here because SSD forced me to be here. I'm not even in the story yet. Why were you calling Sakura "Hota-chan"?
Deidara: Sakura? Isn't her name Hotaru, un?
SSD: Alright, out with you, Dei-kun. You're in the wrong story. I haven't even started the one you're in because of my limited Bleach knowledge. So, shoo!
Deidara: Aww. Oh well, guess I'll go wait for my Hota-chan, yeah.
SSD: And that's it for this chapter. Honestly, I've been meaning to put it up for a while but I kinda got caught up in other things. So see ya in Chapter 3: Trinity Blades Saga: Redhead Weirdos! No offence meant to you, Gaara.
Gaara: None taken. Just leave me alone.