Still Waters Are Deep 2
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Summary: Follow the life of Senju Rurimi, daughter of the late Second Hokage. Read as the shy, reserved girl transforms into a quiet, self-assured leader on the battlefields of the Second Shinobi World War. However, behind the pretty facade, the Senju princess hides an incredible secret. Reincarnation!MOD
Warnings: major character death, language, mentions of character death, canon-typical violence, fem!Harry, gore, dark themes, major plot holes
~ Chapter Two ~
(Four years later)
Aged ten, Rurimi silently woke two days after her last birthday. She had been dreaming one of those strange dreams again, about flying cars and indignant owls and trees that could lash out independently. Something, the Other, told her that the dream was not just a dream, but a little more.
Absentmindedly, still contemplating the strange thought, Rurimi bathed and dressed herself for the last time she would see the Academy as a student. Hopefully. (Tsunade-nee had secretly informed her sister about the second graduation exam. Now, if she had just explained how to avoid failing!)
The young girl slipped into a larger version of her beloved emerald kimono-top, fastening the cloth over her newest mesh armor with a white cord. Then, the white-haired child checked the position of her mesh leggings, shin-length pants and apron skirt.
Her utility belt - a truly thoughtful present from her older sister - held up the larger-than-average pouch on her hip. It contained a first-aid kit. Just in case of an emergency.
Strapping several concealed and open weapons onto her person, finishing with the brandnew tantō Mito-oba-sama had gifted her with, the young kunoichi regarded her mirror image.
She saw a young girl with wild, spiky, shoulder-length, white hair (some of which fell into her face), deep, emerald eyes, unevenly proportioned lips and an oval-shaped face. Her ears had been pierced, now sporting small, matted silver studs in the form of miniature dragons. They had been a graduation gift from Miné-chan, her best friend.
Deciding she looked like a serious, professional kunoichi, the ten-year-old fastened a new, green headband depicting the Leaf-symbol around her forehead, keeping stray strands of hair from falling into her eyes and thus obstructing her view.
Finished, Rurimi left her bedroom in search of some breakfast. She would need her strength today.
"You look good," Tsunade-nee commented, tiredly shuffling out of her own bedroom.
Team Hiruzen had just returned from their mission last night, after three exhausting weeks outside of the village.
Rurimi thanked her cousin for the nice compliment, the two females entering the designated breakfast room at the same time.
A hyper two-year-old crashed into their legs only seconds later, cheerfully greeting them both at the same time. Nawaki-chan hugged his two sisters before allowing them to proceed with their breakfast.
Everyone talked quietly about whatever plans they had for the day and some promised to meet up later on, at the hot springs. Tsunade-nee warned the women of Jiraiya's return, emphasizing his irredeemable peeping tom-habits.
Innocently, Nawaki-kun inquired what such a thing was.
In response, his blonde sister only stopped short of radiating Killing Intent and growled: "If you know what's good for you, you'll never become one."
After breakfast, the young kunoichi left the clan compound, heading to the Academy. Kin-oba-chan and Nawaki-kun accompanied her for a stretch, until they reached the park where the toddler would exhaust his energy levels for nap-time.
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Miné-chan pounced on her best friend as soon as she came into range. Rurimi giggled slightly, amused by the purplette's quirk.
The two girls chattered quietly, speculating who they would join as teammates.
Miné-chan hoped to get on a team with an Uchiha and Aburame, mainly because neither clan was renowned for producing big talkers. Although some of the arrogance seemed inheritable, in the Uchiha's case at least.
Rurimi just prayed for a functional team and a competent sensei. She had heard the horror stories of her sister's dysfunctional team - albeit the three seemed to mellow out slowly, in regards to each other.
The two girls seated themselves in their usual spots, discreetly taking note of all those that had also passed the Academy exam.
Then, Furokawa-sensei slammed the doors open, a sadistic grin fixed on his scarred face. Inwardly he probably had already begun to celebrate the fact that he would be rid of them in a short few moments.
"Conduct yourselves as proper shinobi or suffer the consequences," he barked out before rattling off names and team placements.
Miné-chan was paired up with a civilian-born, Taki Ginro, and a Hyuuga by the name Noburo. Their Jōnin-sensei turned out to be a stern kunoichi, a former student of Rurimi's father.
Finally, Furokawa-sensei reached the last team: "Team Nine, under Jōnin Nara Shikata, Uchiha Jiro, Senju Rurimi and Takano Hayato."
Immediately, the shy girl felt two distinct glares directed at her. Great, she thought miserably, why did it have to be them?
Neither boy particularly liked her. One, for her late father's decision to entrust the Military Police to the Uchiha clan (Jiro-san thought it a horrible slight against his ancestors in general and his father in particular).
The other, for the mistaken interpretation of Rurimi's shyness. Takano-san had always considered the white-haired girl's behavior as the physical manifestation of a clan's arrogance and aloofness towards civilian-born shinobi.
When, in fact, the girl in question simply did not know how to convey that she felt uncomfortable discussing her absent parents and other inquires of a - what she considered - private nature.
Miné-chan patted her shoulder consolingly, before leaving with her teammates to eat lunch together. (Their senseis would come to collect them later on.)
With a sigh, the white-haired kunoichi approached her two teammates with a heavy heart. Rurimi already feared the rejection she knew was most likely in her near future, but soldiered on regardless. "My name is Senju Rurimi. Please do me the honor of joining my humble self for lunch today, so that we may acquaint ourselves a little with each other until Sensei arrives," the genin managed to get out with only a faint hint of a stutter ringing through.
Both boys nearly ignored her formal, polite bow, but then their manners forcefully kicked in and they returned her somewhat stilted introduction.
Quickly the trio settled on the first affordable restaurant they could find - a new barbecue place ran by one of the more adventurous civilian Akimichi - and ordered their food.
As they waited, no one spoke, allowing the uncomfortable silence to spread.
Swallowing the frog in her scratchy throat, Rurimi opened her mouth once more: "What is your favorite food? I like Red Bean Soup the best."
The Uchiha regarded her stoically, before deciding he didn't like to lose face in a casual conversation, to the manifestations of all the dislike he felt. "Yakitori," he grunted out, teeth clenched.
Takano-san shrugged a little helplessly. "I prefer my mom's homemade meals, especially her Udon."
With a small smile, the sole girl in their midst shyly acknowledged his reply. "My aunt always prepares the best Red Bean Soup. She insists on cooking our favorite meals for birthdays, regardless of age. It's her duty as the Lady."
Finally Takano-san relaxed slightly. "So, are you someone important to your clan?"
Both the Uchiha and Rurimi reacted surprised to his question. One scoffed, the other sighed softly.
"No. She's the only daughter of the second son, aunt to the clan heir and heiress presumptive. Although Tsunade-hime is older than her. She's the blonde chick that collected Senju-hime here from the Academy at times," Uchiha-san explained seemingly bored, derision underlining his voice.
Rurimi restrained herself from rolling her eyes at his belligerent attitude.
"So why do people treat you like you're some princess?" Takano-san questioned, confused.
"She's the daughter of Senju Tobirama," the Uchiha pressed out, intense dislike dripping from his words.
Takano-san turned wide eyes onto the poor girl. "You're the Nidaime's daughter?" he whispered, quite visibly astonished.
However, Rurimi only modestly blushed, attempting to hide her embarrassment. She did not want to be known as the daughter of the second Hokage, but as her own person. The white-haired kunoichi fidgeted uncomfortably in her seat, twisting her fingers awkwardly. "Yes. Do you have siblings?"
Takano-san nodded, explaining that he had three younger brothers and two elder ones (whom had chosen civilian careers in the family business), accepting the change of topic.
The Uchiha had a younger sister, as it turned out. Her name was Mikoto and she was only a year old at the moment.
Then, the three newly-minted genin spoke about other inconsequential topics, although the boys took up most of the conversation.
Rurimi kept quiet, her mind wandering. She was partially too shy to contribute much, but the kunoichi also liked to listen to others talk more than necessarily taking part in a conversation of any kind.
Her aunt always smiled and said she had inherited her mother's private, soft-spoken nature and her father's tendency to overanalyze everything.
Still, the young child listened to each word; spoken and implied.
Soon enough, their lunch break had reached its end, seeing all three returning to their old classroom to await the arrival of their potential sensei.
Before they retook their seats, this time next to each other, Rurimi quietly whispered about the secret second test, to share this particular piece of information with her new teammates. Both appeared disbelieving and outraged, yet held their tongues in front of the rest of the class.
Sensei after sensei entered to retrieve their respective students. Suddenly, they were the only ones left.
Rurimi quietly suggested a game they had learned in order to refine their chakra control, to pass the time. Both boys agreed to her idea, beginning to play until their sensei arrived. (Whenever that would be...)
Around thirty minutes later, a tall, brunette male entered the classroom. He appeared to be quite harrassed, brown hair in disarray and clothes covered in strange smudges.
"Troublesome. Follow me," he ordered them, leading the small group outside.
Eventually, the four reached a small, secluded, peaceful clearing.
The Jōnin motioned for the genin to sit comfortably. He himself slouched further, emphasizing the lazy aura around his person.
"Nara Shikata, current clan head of the Nara clan. Say three things you like, dislike, your dream for the future, name and age, and why you chose this career," he ordered the three children. A nod signaled that the sole girl was supposed to begin.
"Senju Rurimi, ten. I like Red Bean Soup, spending time with my family and learning about medicine. I dislike the special treatment I receive for being my father's daughter, strife between teammates and weak, fangirlish kunoichi. My dream is to become someone my parents can be proud of. I chose to become a kunoichi to better protect my family and to honor my parents' memories," the young kunoichi stated quietly, clamming up right after. Her unique eyes were fixed on the gras held between her fingers, avoiding direct contact with the others' gazes.
The Nara nodded thoughtfully. Then, he motioned to Takano-san who sat next to the Senju.
"Takano Hayato, twelve. I like my mom's udon, ninjutsu and my family. I dislike discrimination against civilian-born shinobi, arrogance and rats. My dream is to become a Jōnin and prove that civilian-born shinobi are just as good as clan-born ones. I chose to become a shinobi because I wanted to do something different."
Again, Nara-sama simply nodded.
"Uchiha Jiro, eleven. I like my little sister, Katon-jutsu, and my clan. I dislike that the Uchiha are usually confined to being the Military Police, Senju Tobirama, and traitors. My dream is to awaken my Sharingan. I chose to become a shinobi because it was expected of me."
The Jōnin sighed, mumbling another 'troublesome' under his breath, but nodded. "Alright then. If you manage to survive my test, I'll introduce myself fully to you. If not, you'll be sent back to the Academy if you're still interested and alive."
None of the three seemed particularly shocked, already having known about the second exam before they were officially acknowledged as new genin.
"You have an hour to show me what you're capable of, to prove to me that you're worth my time and attention. But first, I suggest you find me," the man told the trio, then vanished into a cloud of smoke.
Immediately, the two boys began cursing, hastily jumping up from their comfortable positions on the grass.
"Senju! What are you doing? We need to find Sensei!" Uchiha-san barked out, clearly annoyed.
Rurimi blinked at him with confusion. "So you know where he is? I suggest we pool what information we have on Nara-sama once we find a spot that's less exposed."
Stunned by her calm words, the two boys followed the usually incredibly meek, timid kunoichi into the trees. They hid in the crown of one of the oldest trees, so they would notice if shadows crept up on them.
"What do you know about Nara-sama?" Takano-san demanded anxiously.
Rurimi sighed. "Nara Shikata-sama is the current leader of the Nara clan. Jōnin-level, mastered the secret jutsu of his clan. He can manipulate shadows with his will and chakra, so watch out for anything like that. Those shadows are said to capture enemies easily. The Nara-clan has been allied with the Akimichi- and Yamanaka-clans for generations, so Nara-sama will probably know techniques that complement theirs. The Nara clan is also known for their laziness, high-quality medicine, deer and high intelligence. An uncle of mine always complains about losing shogi against an old Nara comrade from the First War," the white-haired kunoichi rattled off absentmindedly, already calculating how many moves they were behind. "Nara-sama is married to Nara Hanako, retired Chūnin-level kunoichi; they have just had a son, I think. He's known as an above-average strategist and accomplished veteran of the First World War."
Both boys stared disbelievingly at the tiny girl for a moment. They had never heard her speak so much in one day, much less one setting.
"Right," Takano-san muttered lowly. "Anything else?"
"Don't underestimate him. Ever. We don't have a chance in hell to win against him individually, but as a team our chances would rise about five percent," Rurimi added thoughtfully.
Uchiha-san snorted but nodded in grudging agreement. Takano-san nervously ran a hand through his hair. "So our chances to win are about where exactly?"
"Five percent, in the absolute best scenario I could think of. Worst case is zero percent chance of survival. For any of us," the white-haired ten-year-old continued drily.
"Father has deep respect for Nara-sama, but abhors his laziness," Uchiha-san added slowly. "I don't know anything else."
Both boys turned back to the youngest in their group.
A thoughtful expression crossed Rurimi's face for a long moment. "Well, we could try the compound, but I'm not sure. Either he sent a clone in his stead earlier or is potentially hiding somewhere in the trees around us..."
Before anyone else could say something, the young kunoichi had grabbed their necks and dragged them away from the tree. Surprisingly, the dainty, petite child managed to carry the two older boys without any noticeable effort.
A moment later, she deflected a kunai from them, redirecting it to its original owner. An exploding tag set off a second or so afterward.
Immediately, the two shinobi snapped out of their daze, drawing their own weapons.
They arranged themselves so each of their backs was covered.
Suddenly, their breath seemed impossibly loud in the quiet forest. Eyes flickered searchingly along the tree line, wondering where the next attack would come from.
All of a sudden, a flurry of shuriken flew at them.
Everyone ducked behind trees for cover, sticking together, despite everything.
The sun's rays never quite managed to reach the forest floor.
"Keep moving!" Rurimi whispered, uncertain how much they would understand Konoha's sign language. The boys nodded, jumping between the trees to avoid the attacking shadows.
Suddenly, the speed of the attack increased. Rurimi snagged Takano-san's collar and enhanced her next jump with more chakra, followed by Uchiha-san. They finally landed in the well-lit clearing, but didn't stay there.
Rurimi led them to the most light-flooded, unobstructed training ground she knew. It was unused at the moment, to her quiet relief.
The team quickly readied a trap, still guarding each other's backs. Rurimi somehow knew to remain calm in this situation, how to word her commands and ask them to follow her. To trust her judgement.
Of course she listened to their suggestions, but ultimately they looked to her.
And the kunoichi flourished with the responsibility.
Uncertainly, all three stared at the most likely directions their potential sensei would appear from. They didn't disregard the ground or air, but concentrated on all of their surroundings.
He apparently decided to humor them, even tripping the trap. However, the man evaded all weapons thrown at him.
Then, Nara-sama attacked fully.
His first target was Rurimi who managed to deflect the initial strike, kicking him in return. Somehow it even connected.
The two boys used the openings she cleared for them to the best of their abilities. Often their sensei simply evaded.
Then, he changed targets.
After throwing a smoke bomb, they were suddenly separated. Rurimi continued her spar with what she assumed was a clone, hoping to divert his attention somehow and regroup.
Before that could happen though, the Nara smiled and told her to stop. Their time limit had been reached.
Soon, all three genin sat back in front of their potential sensei.
Brown eyes scrutinized each of them. "You surprised me. According to your files, none of you should have worked as well together as you did today. Rurimi-chan was described as a hopelessly introverted loner, Hayato-kun as an easily riled boy and Jiro-kun was supposed to be an immature, narrow-minded clan-child. Nevertheless, you worked as a team to reach a common goal. Good job. It surprised me that you chose the sole kunoichi as unofficial leader," their teacher explained nonchalantly.
"Although my own genin-team was more aligned with the work of the Torture and Interrogation Department, I have fought in other formations as well. Your team will specialize similarly to Team Sarutobi. I want you to become a well-rounded first response-team with an added touch of capture and field interrogation. Whatever differences there are between each of you will be left at home the second you step out your front door. Unless you want to be kicked out of the Corps, of course. Jiro-kun, you shall be the ninjutsu expert of Team Nine. Hayato-kun, you are going to be the Taijutsu and general weaponry expert. Rurimi-chan, I'm planning on you being the team medic and tactician. Have you been instructed in the arts of Fuuinjutsu by Mito-sama?"
In response, the young kunoichi blushed faintly, but confirmed his suspicions. "Yes, sir. Tsunade-nee and I have been instructed in the basics. Mito-oba-sama has told me that despite being talented, I regretfully won't be able to use anything above Level Two though."
Nara-sama nodded once. "We will concentrate on team training for now. How far have you progressed in your chakra control training?"
Takano-san shrugged. "Only know what the Academy taught us and a little tree climbing."
Uchiha-san admitted to having mastered tree climbing and being prepared for trying water-walking.
All eyes turned once more to the timid girl.
Then, Nara-sama sighed. "You are being groomed to follow in your parents' shoes, then?"
A noticeable blush dusted her cheeks. "Yes, sir."
"Show me what you can do," the curious man demanded.
To the boys' surprise, Rurimi seated herself on the floor, legs resting in a relaxed meditative pose. After unsealing a slightly scratched canteen, the white-haired kunoichi rested her hands on her knees, palms turned upside. Then, she closed her emerald orbs, concentrating hard.
Before their scrutinizing, curious eyes, a small bubble of water formed over the canteen, floating steadily upwards. Slowly, the ball of water was guided to one hand, then the other.
However, on its way there, the bubble dispersed unexpectedly, water falling into the grass.
"Very good," Nara-sama complimented in his usual rough voice. "Is this one of your honorable father's or mother's techniques?"
Rurimi blushed once again. "A combination of both," she admitted softly. "Tsunade-nee is much better at controlling the orb than I am. My chakra reserves are smaller than hers as well."
"Whatever else have you been trained in?" Uchiha-san wondered, grudgingly admiring her. (And deciding to step up his own training regime.)
The self-conscious girl twisted her fingers again. "I am proficient in genin-ranked kenjutsu, low-level water jutsu and basic sealing. Kin-oba-chan has instructed both Tsunade-nee and I in first aid techniques. We also were taught to prepare simple antidotes and medicinal pastes."
Both boys stared at her for a long moment.
"Damn. And here I thought the Uchiha and Hyuuga were hard on their kids," Takano-san whistled appreciatively.