Oh my gosh, thank you guys so much for the reviews! I really appreciate them all! I'm so sorry I haven't gotten around to responding to them, life definitely gets in the way. But that doesn't mean I don't appreciate your feedback! Thank you guys for the support! I hope you enjoy this next chapter!
Apologize by OneRepublic
"How was she last night?" Kakashi's solemn voice asked quietly.
His one visible onyx eye glanced over at the bird perched on the island in the middle of the kitchen. The jounin stood by the sink, arms crossed over his chest, leaning against the counter. He was donning his normal shinobi outfit, his green vest zipped over his black shirt. His dark mask covered over his face, yet the worry for his daughter was written clearly across his hidden expressions. Even Kinmaru could see just how concerned the father was.
*There were no dreams…* the hawk replied, though the mental voice sounded more than slightly nervous. The ninja easily picked up on the hesitant tone, and he gave the animal guide an expectant look. Kinmaru appeared to shrug, as much a bird can, as he spoke again. *She didn't sleep at all. She was tossing and turning all night, and I didn't have to read her mind to know that she was thinking of Naruto.*
Kakashi sighed as he nodded his head one time. "I should've figured…"
The sound of approaching footsteps could be heard coming down the staircase, and any words that were to be spoken were immediately diminished when the twelve-year-old girl walked into the room. Needless to say, Suki looked heartbroken.
Her already messy raven-colored hair was tied up into an untidy bun. Tear stains could be seen on her white kimono top and even a few recent droplets were scattered across her black pants. Dark bags ran beneath her eyelashes, signifying that Kinmaru was right when he said that she received no sleep the previous night. Her fair-skinned cheeks were red and blotchy with salty stains of liquid sadness creating a path down her face. Her silver eyes were significantly dulled, their normal brightness replaced with red puffiness. A large white bandage was taped to the back of her head, where she had received the gash from her encounter with Mizuki just the night before, when everything in her life seemed to go wrong.
Kakashi instantly frowned as he took in her appearance, though she seemed to be completely ignoring her father and animal partner. She dazedly grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl and took an unenthusiastically small bite. The silver-haired man slowly walked up behind his daughter, eying her warily. He placed a cautious hand upon her shoulder, for fear of frightening her and sending her into instability or a mental breakdown.
Suki slowly turned her head to look at her dad, her eyes seeming to look passed him instead of actually looking at him. The man stared at her worriedly, his silver eyebrows furrowing slightly. "Suki? Are you alright?"
She slowly shook her head in response. "No… But what does it really matter?"
If possible, Kakashi's frown deepened. "It matters a lot, Suki. Why would you say that?"
"Because nobody really cares about me," she instantly said, her voice cracking towards the end of her statement.
Kakashi crossed his arms over his chest, staring at her in concern. "So does that make Kinmaru and me nobody?" he asked quietly.
The girl opened her mouth to reply, but she instantly closed it when no words came out. Fresh tears peeked at the edges of her eyes, and she lunged into her father's chest, letting the sadness spill over her cheeks. The ninja let his arms wrap around the younger person's smaller frame; he even crouched down to his knees to make it easier for her to hug him.
He held her tightly as she cried into his shoulder. Oddly enough, Kakashi began losing himself in his memories of when he had first held Suki this close, letting her cry into his shirt.
It was the day he had adopted her.
Yet, those had been tears of happiness, of joy, of gratitude. Now, they were tears of heartbreak and depression. How he could even compare these two instances was beyond him, but he knew that at that moment, he wanted nothing more than to make her happy like she had been just those six years ago.
At long last, Suki pulled away, wiping away the remaining salty liquid droplets with the back of her hand. Kakashi placed both of his hands on her shoulders, and he met his black eye with her silver orbs.
"Suki, I know what it's like to lose a friend," he said softly, his voice barely above a hoarse whisper. "Different circumstances, yes, but the pain is still there in both situations."
The girl sniffled a few times before she asked, "Does the pain ever go away?"
Beneath his mask, Kakashi bit his lower lip in contemplation before he finally shook his head. "It doesn't." A look of instant depression swept over Suki's facial features, and she looked about ready to cry again. But her father interrupted her before she could let the tears fall. "But when you have people who care for you, and you find care to give to other people, the pain dims down just enough that you can live again."
Suki's eyebrows rose slightly in surprise, allowing the watery sorrow to halt before they spilled. "Really?"
"Yeah," the jounin replied, giving a warm smile. "That's what happened to me when I met you." The twelve-year-old perked up at this, and she felt a small grin tug at the corners of her mouth. "You have people who care about you, Suki. Kinmaru and I will always be here to comfort you. You're not alone."
The little girl gave a watery smile as she wrapped her arms around her dad's neck in loving gratitude. "Thank you, Daddy."
"You're welcome," Kakashi smiled as he hugged his daughter back.
When the pair finally released their hold on one another, a slight cough could be heard from the almost forgotten member of the family. *Ahem,* Kinmaru thought out to the pair.
Suki let loose a small giggle at her hawk's obvious annoyance at being left out while Kakashi rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Hehe… sorry about that, Kinmaru," the older ninja said anxiously.
The bird rolled his gold eyes in mild exasperation, but then he turned his gaze to his partner to give her a concerned look. *Do you feel better, Suki?*
She nodded once as she beamed a bit at her hawk. "Yeah, I guess so."
*Well… It is time now,* the hawk said as he nodded his head toward the door.
"That's right, you're getting your team today," the jounin said. "Good luck with that, Suki."
"Okay," she responded. She held her arm out for her bird, who majestically jumped and landed on her upper arm. "Bye, Daddy."
"Goodbye, I'll see you later," Kakashi said as he bid farewell to his adopted child.
And with that, Suki walked out the door with Kinmaru on her shoulder. After waiting a few moments, Kakashi left the house as well to receive his list of new genin students from the Hokage's office. He silently hummed to himself, wondering who his students this year would be and if they were any good… probably not. They never were.
Suki, with Kinmaru seated on her shoulder, walked into the designated classroom to see that nearly everyone had already arrived. The newly registered genin were all about the room, showing off their identical shinobi headbands to one another. Some people were sitting in their chairs while others were running around, trying to show their forehead protectors to each and every person. Comments and goals were whispered through the cliques and groups, expectations already held high for each person.
The raven-haired girl bit her lip nervously. There were about thirty other people gathered for this genin orientation, and sadly, she wasn't friends with any of them. During her entire life at the Konoha Ninja Academy, she was ever only able to rely on one person and one person only. And now, he didn't even want to know her anymore. Then again, she probably wouldn't get the chance to see him anyway. He hadn't even passed the-
Suki's thoughts were cut short when she bumped into someone. Someone that she had just been thinking about. "Naruto?" The girl stared in shock at the blue headband fastened around his forehead.
The blond looked up at her in surprise before his blue eyes instantly darkened. He turned away instantly to head off in a different direction, as far away from his former best friend as possible.
The silver-eyed genin frowned as she watched the orange-clad boy walk away. "I just wanted to ask how he became a genin…" Suki thought to herself sadly.
Kinmaru's voice suddenly echoed in her head, signifying that he was spying in on her inner thoughts. *Iruka passed him after you left the clearing last night.* The Guardian sent her bird a look of indifference, as she was still preoccupied with the fact that her friend hated her. The hawk shrugged as he said, *You were wondering about it…*
Suki sighed as she went to sit down at one of the desks. She was about to rest her head in her arms, but the bandage wrapped firmly on the cut in her cranium made it uncomfortable to lower her head, so she was forced to stare at the empty floor where Iruka should have been.
Just as that thought flittered in her mind, the chuunin instructor walked into the room. He looked at the excited students who were scattered about the room, and a faint smile appeared on his face. His eyes eventually landed on two particular students. There was one blonde boy who had his chin resting in the crook of his arms on his desk, his blue eyes staring at absolutely nothing. Then there was one black-haired girl who was occasionally stealing glances at the blond, wishing he would meet her gaze and give her his signature foxy grin so that everything would be alright again.
Iruka's small smile faded slowly as remembrances of the events of the previous night came flooding back into his mind. He sighed to himself as he grabbed the papers that listed the genin teams. "Alright everyone! Please grab a seat! We are about to begin your genin orientation!"
Once his words had registered, all the children quickly filed into chairs as they waited patiently for their previous instructor's introduction.
"Now, before I begin," Iruka started as he cleared his throat. "I would first like to say that it has been an honor to teach you all. I have watched you all grow as students, and I hope that you all continue to grow as shinobi for our village. I am very proud of everyone in this room, and I hope that each and every one of you continues to be outstanding. Congratulations, everyone."
Cheers of excitement and gratitude erupted around the room, fists of triumph and claps of happiness exploding throughout the crowd of students. Suki gave a tiny smile in joy as she thought of the fact of how she was a ninja now. However, Naruto barely moved at all from his desolate position of leaning on his arms.
Iruka sighed again as he held the official papers in his hand. "Anyway, now that you all have graduated to the genin level, each of you will be assigned into a team consisting of three genin and one jounin instructor."
Immediately, shouts of protest replaced the calls of glee from only moments before. Some children stood up from the seats in anger while others threw accusing fingers at their old teacher.
"What is this garbage?"
"Yeah? Why can't we go on real missions?"
"Why do we need an instructor?"
"We're real ninja now! We don't need a teacher!"
The chuunin's mouth twitched in annoyance as he yelled out to the class, "Would you all hush up for one minute?" He had his hands on his hips, and he was leaning forward to glare at the entire room. Slowly, the genin eased back into the seats, frightened by their sensei's outburst. Iruka nodded firmly as he relaxed out of his opposing stance. "As I was saying, you all will be placed into teams. You guys are only genin, which means you're all rookies, so placing you into teams will help to balance out each other's strengths and weaknesses. A jounin is required for each team so that you all will be in line when you're on missions or to help with training."
Nods of understanding went around the classroom. Any frustration that had suddenly appeared was slowly dying out as the genin relaxed back into their chairs, waiting for the sensei to continue.
"Now, I'm going to read off the names of the teams. There are exactly thirty of you, so each team will have three genin," Iruka stated as he held the papers in front of his face. "Team 1…"
Suki exhaled as she leaned her weight onto her arms. Her left hand subconsciously began to fidget with the bandage around her head. *Stop that,* Kinmaru scolded. The girl was startled from the absentminded action, but she obeyed her animal guide. After a few more moments, she began to play with the wrappings that covered her Guardian mark. *Stop it,* the hawk hissed in her head.
The black-haired girl shot her bird a slightly annoyed look. She was about to yell at him using their mind connection, but Iruka's voice interrupted her.
"Team 7 will consist of… Naruto Uzumaki…" Iruka began.
Suki instantly sat up in her seat. The blond may not want to be around her, but that didn't mean she didn't care about him any less. She wanted more than anything to be on the same team as her friend. Maybe they could even patch things up if they spent enough time together.
"Sakura Haruno…"
"Please…" Suki silently pleaded. She knew Naruto had a crush on the pink-haired girl, which could cause some issues if she wanted to win back her best friend. But she could make it work, if only Iruka said her name next…
"And Sasuke Uchiha."
The Guardian felt her heart fall into the pit of her stomach. This was twice in less than twenty-four hours that she felt like she was being trampled over and stepped on. First her best friend finding out she was the sacred protector, and now she couldn't even be on the same team with him. Her life seemed to be going steadily downhill…
"Psst," a sudden whisper startled Suki from her depressed reflections.
She nearly jumped out of her seat, but she glanced to her right to see a boy she knew as Shikamaru Nara. He was wearing brown shorts and a fish net shirt underneath a small grayish jacket. His dark brown hair was tied into a high ponytail so that the ends of his hair spiked upwards. His lazy deep chocolate eyes stared at her with a mixture of laziness and calculation; only he could pull off an expression like that.
"Isn't Naruto your best friend?" he asked.
Suki blinked in surprise as she stared at him. "Um… I guess?" "Or he was…" "Why do you want to know?"
"Why aren't you sitting with him?" he inquired, countering her question with another question.
"Uh…" she stammered helplessly as she glanced between the depressed blond to the boy sitting next to her. "There… There just weren't enough seats for us to sit together…" Shikamaru gave her a disbelieving look before he huffed to himself and then looked back down to Iruka.
"Team 8… Shino Aburame…" Iruka continued, completely oblivious to the conversation going on in the back of the room. "Kiba Inuzuka… and Hinata Hyuuga."
The girl sighed in defeat. Even though Kiba and Hinata hadn't really talked to her in nearly five years, it would have been nice to be on a team with them. At least she actually knew them, if only a couple days' worth. She didn't even really know anyone else in the class except for some of their names.
"Team 9… Suki Kurohoshi…" Said girl's silver eyes widened as she instinctively moved to the edge of her seat, waiting for the names of her new teammates. "Haruki Senshi… and Michiko Bokusouchi."
The Guardian bit her lip as she looked around the room. Those two names were not as familiar to her. She had heard of them, but at this moment, she couldn't exactly place the names with the faces. A frown etched itself across her face as she gave up on trying to find her new teammates. She would meet them eventually anyway…
"And the last team, Team 10, is Shikamaru Nara… Ino Yamanaka… and Chouji Akimichi," Iruka said, placing the papers away as he finished with the names.
"Gah? I'm stuck with lazy butt over here and chubby cheeks while Sakura gets the hot Sasuke? Where is the justice in this world?" Ino's loud voice shrieked across the room.
Suki couldn't help but smile as she looked at the blonde girl beside Shikamaru. The lazy boy seemed to be attempting to block the female out by covering his head with his arms… or maybe he was just trying to take a nap.
*My goodness… That girl's got quite a voice on her…* Kinmaru mumbled as he shook his feathers out in irritation at the volume of the loud yelling coming from the Yamanaka.
"Alright, most of the jounin instructors are here," the chuunin said from the front of the room. "They'll be coming in one by one to collect you guys. If your jounin isn't here yet, just remain seated."
One by one, high-leveled shinobi walked through the sliding door to collect their new genin squads. The black-haired female watched as students filed out of the room with their new teachers. She quietly wondered when her father would show up. She doubted he was her instructor, since she didn't think they would allow a father and daughter to be apart of the same squad. But she was curious as to who was on his team.
The next ninja who walked in made Suki's eyes widen slightly. This jounin had short dark brown hair that hung loosely to frame his face, and his skin tone was very fair. He was wearing navy blue pants, a light blue T-shirt, and an unzipped jacket that was a darker shade of blue than the shirt but lighter than the pants.
But what really intrigued Suki was the fact that his ninja forehead protector was tied around his eyes. "Is he…?"
*Yes, he is blind,* Kinmaru replied to her unfinished question. *Wearing the headband around the eyes generally means that the shinobi is blind.*
"Whoa…" she whispered in awe.
The ninja at the front of the room lifted his head in the direction of the desks. "Team 9?"
Suki subconsciously gulped as she stood up from her seat with her faithful hawk on her shoulder. As she walked down the stairs towards her new sensei, a light stutter interrupted her. She turned around to see Hinata looking up at her with nervous pale eyes.
"S-Suki?" the Hyuuga stuttered anxiously.
The other girl blinked in shock. "Uh… yes?" she replied cautiously.
"U-Um… Are y-you and N-Naruto a-alright?" the indigo-haired girl inquired as she averted her eyes, afraid to hold their gaze.
"Oh…" Suki responded blankly as she rubbed her arm apprehensively. "I don't know…"
Hinata frowned, feeling a wave of sadness for her two old friends. "I-I hope you t-two work it o-out."
"Yeah… me too," the Guardian sighed. She plastered a nice smile on her face as she looked back to her previous friend. "Congratulations on passing and being on a team with Kiba. You're lucky to be with someone you already know."
"Y-Yes," the shy girl nodded. The two females simultaneously looked over to see the dog ninja and his pup chatting with one of the other Academy graduates.
"Oi, girl with the bird," the blind man called out. Suki instantly turned to see him waiting by the door with her two other teammates. "Keep up. I don't want to have to come back looking for you."
The raven-haired female slowly approached her teacher, cautiously walking up to him and the other genin. She was nervous that she was already on bad terms with him, which would be horribly counterproductive on her part.
However, he astonished her when he grinned at her and clamped a hand on her shoulder. "Lighten up, kid. I'm only joking. No need to be so scared."
Suki instantly felt a flood of relief flow through her, and she let a smile grace her lips as she followed her team out the door toward their sensei's selected meeting place.
The wind blew softly through the trees, and the leaves rustled with the gentle breeze. The grass was lush and soft as one man stood upon it in his usual place. With the sun shining brightly to give him sufficient light, names on the carved block of stone reflected into his vision. One specific name stood out to him, a name that was all too familiar to him.
"How are you, Obito?" Kakashi asked as he shoved his hands into his pockets.
The whispering wind was his reply.
"Suki is fine… technically, I suppose," the man sighed. "Her best friend, Naruto, discovered that she is the Guardian. He didn't take it too well." A moment of silence passed as the jounin collected his thoughts. "I wish more than anything that I could help her with this. It hurts me to see her so sad and upset."
Kakashi turned his head to the sky, letting his eye close as he welcomed the cool air on the exposed skin of his face. After feeling his already messy hair move with the gust, he turned back to stare at the name.
"Sometimes I wonder if I was right to adopt her. Sometimes being a father makes me wonder if I made the right decision that day…" he mumbled almost inaudibly.
A harsher breeze picked up around him, throwing his silver hair all over the place.
He let out a dry chuckle at the response he received. "I know you think I was right. But at times like this, I don't know how else to help her. I never thought I would ever be a family man. Now here I am, an adopted daughter living at home with me. And a girl with an awful past life to deal with along with it."
A much softer wind licked at the jounin's clothes, and Kakashi could almost hear his old friend lowering his loud voice to be a bit more considerate with responding.
"She is becoming quite a phenomenal girl though," the ninja said. "You would be amazed with her… and I'm sure you would crack a few jokes about me being a decent father. And you would name yourself Uncle Obito…" The silver-haired man took this chance to look up at the sun, and he frowned beneath his mask. "Hmm, I'm already late. Well… I guess I shouldn't make those kids wait too long…" He turned to look one last time at the memorial stone, and he gave a firm nod in goodbye. "I will talk to you later, Obito." And with that, he turned away to lazily walk back to the Academy building.
"Alright everyone, take a seat," the teacher said as he gestured to the grassy ground. Team 9 was currently located by the edge of the forest, where the busy parts of the town ended and the scenic area began.
The man leaned against a tree with his arms casually crossed over his chest. His head was pointed towards the three students, which meant that even though he couldn't see them, he still knew they were all there. The trio of genin sat down on the grass as they looked up to their sensei expectantly.
"Well then, to begin, I'm supposed to ask you guys to introduce yourselves," the jounin said. "So, how about it then? Anyone want to start?"
"This is stupid…" the boy of the group, Haruki Senshi, muttered. His hair was black with deep purple highlights, and his eyes were purple with an onyx pupil. He had fairly tan skin. He was donning a black tank top and black pants. He had black sleeves that reached up just passed his elbows. A white belt was fastened around his waist. His ninja headband was tied on his left sleeve.
The sensei leaned down to stare into the boy's face. "You say stupid, I say genius. So, how about it, eh? Who wants to start?"
"Sensei, shouldn't you start? I don't trust giving my name without knowing yours," the second girl, Michiko Bokusouchi, countered. She had shoulder-length brown hair and brown eyes. She wore a dark purple sleeveless shirt and a fish net shirt underneath. She had a light purple sash around her waist and matching sleeves that reached up to her elbows. She also had metal guards tied to her sleeves and black pants. Her ninja headband was tied loosely around her neck.
"Well, I mean, if you really want," the jounin grinned. "Alright guys. My name is Deno Hyuuga. I enjoy training and teaching younger shinobi. I dislike it when people use the word stupid…" He took this chance to give a smirk in Haruki's direction, who looked away in irritation. "As for dreams… well, I guess I'd have to say just watching my students succeed as shinobi. And… yeah, that pretty much sums it up about me. Any other questions?"
Michiko instantly raised her hand, and Deno nodded to her, telling her to continue. "Were you born blind?"
Suki gawked at the audacity of the other girl while Haruki shot her an annoyed glance. "Idiot, you don't ask a blind man questions about being blind."
"Haha!" the higher-ranked ninja laughed. "You've got spunk, I like it." Michiko took this chance to stick her tongue out at Haruki, who merely rolled his eyes. "Well anyway, to answer your question, no, I was not born blind. I experienced an accident when I was five." He held his hands up welcomingly as he looked between the three genin. "So? Who's next?"
"I'll go," Michiko volunteered. She coughed a bit to clear her voice, and she glanced about the group to make sure she had everyone's attention. "My name is Michiko Bokusouchi. I like spending my time in forests, since they're the only place where I can find peace. I dislike annoying people and ego maniacs. My dream is to surpass my older brother and sister in using our clan's kekkei genkai."
"Nice," Deno commented. He looked over in the boy's direction as he said, "So how about you, Mr. Grumpy?"
Haruki sighed in annoyance as he crossed his arms. "My name is Haruki Senshi. I like peace and quiet. I dislike it when people bother me, since I enjoy being left alone. I also dislike it when people get in my way. My dream is to master my kekkei genkai and make my father proud."
"Alright," the jounin nodded. "And we have our last member," he announced as he gestured to the final teammate.
The raven-haired girl gulped as she began her introduction. "I am Suki Kurohoshi, and this is my hawk, Kinmaru. I like training with him, since he helps me a lot. I dislike people who are mean to others for no valid reason. My dream is to be able to protect those who I care about."
Deno nodded his head. "Quite a batch this year. One excited yet feisty kunoichi, a brooding yet ambitious boy, and… the future Guardian… Well, this could get interesting." He stepped forward as he removed the official documents from his inside jacket pocket. He handed one form to each student, and he received three simultaneously confused stares.
"Um… Deno-sensei? What is this?" Suki asked in confusion as she read through the piece of paper.
"The checklist for your preparation for tomorrow," the brown-haired man replied.
"What's tomorrow?" the purple-eyed boy asked suspiciously.
Deno stared at his students blankly before a look of bewilderment crossed over his facial features. "What do you mean what's tomorrow?"
"Is there something special that we should know about for tomorrow?" Michiko inquired skeptically.
"You mean they didn't tell you?" the jounin asked.
"Who didn't tell us what?" Haruki asked, his voice rising as intense mistrust coursed through him.
Deno face-palmed. "My goodness. Those lazy bums at the Academy really don't do anything anymore, do they?" he mumbled. "Who was your teacher?"
"Iruka-sensei," Suki replied.
"Why? What is going on?" the brown-haired girl shouted in confused outrage.
The blind male sighed nervously as he rubbed the back of his brown head timidly. "Well… hehe…" he chuckled sheepishly, "the thing is… oh man, I didn't want to be the one to tell this to you guys…"
"What are you talking about, sensei?" the silver-eyed girl inquired, frightened of the response. Kinmaru fidgeted nervously upon her shoulder, though for what exact reason, the sacred protector wasn't exactly sure.
Deno groaned in defeat as he ruffled his flat hair. "Alright, here's the deal. You guys aren't technically genin yet."
The trio of graduates stared at their new instructor blankly. Michiko was the first to react to this new and random bit of information. "What are you talking about? Do you not see these spanking new forehead protectors?"
"Unfortunately, the shinobi headband doesn't mean anything until you pass a certain… test," Deno answered, a sad smile on his face.
"Test? I thought we were done with tests," the purple-haired boy said, casting a harsh glower at his sensei, doubt written clearly on his face.
The older man shook his head. "It's not just any test. It's more like… training, I guess you could say."
"Is it a fun training?" the brown-eyed girl asked hopefully.
"Not really," Deno chuckled.
"Then why are you laughing?" Michiko asked accusingly as she pointed a menacing finger in his direction.
"Eh… hehe… because the funny part is…" the jounin started, "is that it's actually called survival training. And there's a reason for that."
"Which is?" Haruki asked.
Deno smiled a devious smirk that sent nervous shivers down the children's spines. "It's called survival training because the results of this test will determine whether you guys remain as genin or go back to the Academy."
Several gapes appeared amongst the group as the genin stared at the jounin incredulously. Haruki's normally impassive face was replaced with a near sobbing expression. Michiko looked about ready to scream in despair.
Suki could only gawk in astonishment. Thoughts of her own father, as a jounin instructor, and how he had never had a genin squad before finally started making sense. He must have failed them all. She whimpered in despair about how he hadn't warned her that she might be sent back to the Academy; she knew it would be against the rules he if he clued her in on the survival training, but it still would have been nice if he at least notified her at least a little.
The brown and gold-feathered hawk twitched on her shoulder, and the girl glanced at him to see if he was just as nervous as she was. But she was surprised to see that he appeared relatively calm. She wasn't able to read his thoughts at that moment, for he seemed to be closing off his mind for now. But she silently wondered if he also knew of this survival training and didn't bother to tell her. She would have to ask him about that later.
"So, based on how well we do will determine if we remain as genin?" the Senshi asked, narrowing his purple eyes in skepticism.
"Correct," Deno nodded. "There were thirty graduates this year, and we want only four teams, which means that sixty percent of the teams will be sent back to the Ninja Academy."
"What kind of odds are those?" Michiko asked in shock.
The older male shrugged. "That's just how it is. So if you want to keep those 'spanking new forehead protectors', you all will have to pass this training."
Suki subconsciously fingered the blue cloth that was wrapped around her head, and her fingers brushed against the carved symbol of the Konohagakure insignia on the metal plate. She gulped at the odds faced against her and her team.
"The form I passed out to you guys is a list of jutsu, weapons, and other stuff that you guys should have in your arsenal to be prepared for tomorrow," Deno added.
"Do we at least get to know what kind of training we'll be going through?" Suki asked, her voice hopeful.
The elite ninja fingered his chin in thought before he grinned mischievously. "Nah, it'll be a surprise for you guys. That kind of information is for me to know and for you all to find out.
"I bet that means you haven't figured out what kind of test it'll be yet," Michiko remarked smartly as she sent an annoyed glance at her sensei.
"Haha," the man chuckled. "Either way, it'll be more fun for me than you guys. Remember that. I expect to see you all bright and early at six in the morning, right at sunrise." He made a hand sign just before giving one last smile at his new team. "Until then, Team 9. And uh… don't eat breakfast tomorrow. You guys might puke if you do, and I don't clean that stuff." And in a poof of smoke, he was gone.
The three graduated students glanced around each other, waiting for someone to break the tense silence that had arisen when their teacher had abandoned them. "So…" Michiko broke the quietness, "anyone want to grab a bite to eat?"
"You're really thinking of food at a time like this?" Haruki asked as he raised an eyebrow.
"Hey, survival training sounds scary. And if we can't have breakfast tomorrow, I'd like to stock up on my meals today," the purple-clad girl replied smartly.
"It does sound like a good idea," Suki said before she frowned sadly. "But I have to go meet my dad at home."
"And I'm just not interested," the boy of the group said as he stood up to leave.
Michiko's eyebrow twitched as she watched the male walk away. "Fine, I wouldn't want to have lunch with a party pooper like you anyway." She turned to look back at the other girl, a smile replacing the previously offending look she had been sending towards Haruki's retreating back. "But how about we all get together tomorrow after the training? It'll be a nice celebration for when we pass."
Suki looked at the confident girl before her in bewilderment. "Don't you mean if we pass?"
"No, I know we'll pass," the brown-haired girl smirked. "Our team will be awesome tomorrow, so long as Mr. Grumpy Pants fixes his attitude by sunrise."
The Kurohoshi girl giggled. "Well, it was nice meeting you. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Yup! See you!" Michiko waved as she walked in the opposite direction of her fellow kunoichi.
Suki smiled to herself as she walked away with Kinmaru in tow. She hoped that she would pass the survival training so she could remain a ninja. Then maybe she would get to make friends with her teammates.
Kakashi walked into the Hokage's Tower toward the shinobi office, where the assignments, important documents, and schedules were held. There were a couple chuunin in charge of keeping all the office work in check behind the desks while other shinobi filed in and out to check their agendas and see if there were any updates that were necessary to check. It was already well into the afternoon, which meant that it was a rather busy time of the day. Ninja were walking in and out of this office, either dropping off mission completion forms or picking up information for their assignments.
The silver-haired ninja walked up to one desk and dropped off the attendance sheet of his genin squad. As the jounin instructor, he had been asked to keep an attendance sheet of his genin just to make sure they showed up. He had to sign off and agree to be their instructor and then sign some other forms that centered on the survival training. He mentally sighed in relief once he was finally able to hand in the documents to the office.
His team this year consisted of Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, and… Naruto Uzumaki. One of the last surviving members of the legendary Uchiha clan, an intelligent yet crazed fan girl of said Uchiha, and the boy who crushed his daughter's heart by destroying their friendship. Kakashi wondered if this team would be just like his other squads from previous years: stupid, airheaded, and dumb. He would just have to wait and find out.
As he handed the piece of paper into the chuunin in charge of the office, a familiar yet unexpected voice called out to him. "Kakashi Hatake. It sure has been a while, hasn't it?"
The jounin turned around slowly, his onyx eye searching for the keeper of the voice. He smiled when he recognized his old friend. "Deno Hyuuga. It definitely has been a few years since I saw you last."
"Five, to be exact," the blind jounin grinned. The two men eagerly shook hands, welcoming the other with equal friendship. "Dropping off your jounin instructor paperwork?"
"Actually, yes," Kakashi replied. "Which means I am done for the day. I was just going to head home and see how Suki's first day as a genin went."
"Heh, you never told her of the survival training, right?" the Hyuuga asked.
"As much as I wanted to, I knew it wouldn't be exactly fair to her teammates or instructor," the twenty-seven-year-old responded.
"Hmm," the twenty-two-year-old hummed to himself as he walked passed his old ANBU captain to hand in his forms. "We really do need to get together sometime, Kakashi. We have loads to talk about."
"Of course," the silver-haired male commented. "So, I heard none of your genin squads have ever passed."
"That's right," Deno smirked as he turned to look back at his senior. "I'm hardcore, though not nearly as legendary as the Copy Ninja of the Leaf and his tricky methods."
Kakashi shrugged. "Whatever those kids need to get the right idea of being a shinobi into their heads, it should be worth it in the end. Though I can't say I've ever met a team that was worthy enough."
"Same," the blind man nodded in agreement. "But I have a feeling this year will be different, or at least I hope so in my case."
The masked man raised a silver brow in question. "Really?"
"Yup," Deno replied with a small smile. "Because I happen to have the daughter of an old friend of mine. I have a bit of faith that she has learned something from her father, since he was a renowned ANBU captain of the Leaf."
Kakashi's eye widened. "Suki's on your team?"
The man with the headband around his eyes nodded in confirmation. "Yes." He didn't need his eyesight to know that his friend was trying to come up with what to say next or to see the pained and conflicting expression on his masked face. "Kakashi, I foresee great things for your daughter. She'll be fine," he said. "But if you're debating whether or not to ask me to go easy on her, then please don't. You and I both know from experience that hardships aren't learned the easy way."
Deno heard his comrade sigh in defeat. "You're right. It would be unbeneficial for her if I asked you to pass her."
The Hyuuga gave a genuine smile. "Don't worry about her so much. She'll be a great kunoichi, whether she passes as a member of my squad or the next."
Kakashi let a smile spread upon his own face, though the mask prevented anyone from seeing it anyway. He placed his hand on the other man's shoulder as a manly sign of friendship. "It was nice seeing you, Deno."
"And you too, friend," the brown-haired male replied as he clamped his hand on Kakashi's shoulder in return.
With those last words of farewell, the two men went their separate ways toward their homes, already anticipating the results of the survival test for the next day. Though both men had their hopes and expectations, they knew that whatever happened was for the best.
"It is what it is," both men seemed to think simultaneously.