Three days later- hokage's office-
"Well I'm glad to see that the mission was a success." Hiruzen Sarutobi said as he looked at team seven all of whom stood in the office. "Team seven you're dismissed, you'll be paid the price of a b rank mission, which it has now been reclassified as. You have three days off until your next mission." He added waiting for the genin to file out of the office before calling Kakashi and Mari back,
"There's something you've missed out of your report isn't there?" he said knowing them both to well. "Take a seat."
Mari looked down before taking a seat in front of his desk Kakashi sitting in the seat beside her.
"We had a run in with the person who attacked Mira before she came here." Kakashi said, seeing Mari tense he put his hand on her shoulder. "He was killed after trying to attack her again."
The third nodded before his eyes rested on Mari "you still have no idea how you arrived here?" he asked her, when she shook her head he sighed slightly. "If one day you were allowed the chance to go back would you take it." he added still watching her intently.
"No I wouldn't, I know i wasn't born in this village but I've been accepted here more than i ever would have been where i come from. I would give my life to protect this village and the people here." She said making Kakashi jump slightly.
Sarutobi smiled slightly behind his pipe "That's good to hear, I was asking you this because i wouldn't want to make you a jonin if you were going to leave at the first opportunity you had." He said softly making both of them look at him in shock.
"In two days time i want you to take a special test, if you pass this test then you will become a jonin of this village." He said looking at Mari before smiling.
"What is this test?" she asked sounding slightly apprehensive.
"You will go up against four jonin level ninja in a match. The aim is to make three kunai slashes on their vests." He said softly "I will decide the jonin you will have to face."
Mari nodded before turning to Kakashi her eyes widening slightly "come on let's go home and get you prepared." He said taking her arm and leading her out of the room.
Half an hour later kakashi's apartment.-
Mari sat on kakashi's couch with her legs up her arms wrapped around her knees. Her long hair was loose and falling over her face as she sat and thought.
"You'll be fine." Kakashi said from behind her making her jump, he came forwards and rested a plate of food on the table in front of her before sitting beside her with a plate for himself. He turned away from her slightly as he ate his food not wanting her to see his face beneath the mask.
"Thanks." Mari said as she picked at her food. "A lot has happened hasn't it? I've only been here a short time and already I've nearly died, been on a b rank mission with you and now I'm doing a test to see if I can become a jonin level ninja. It's just a lot to take in." She added before sitting back her plate nearly untouched.
"You shouldn't dwell on it too much." Kakashi said as he put his plate down and moved closer to her putting his arm around her shoulder again. He smiled when he felt her relax,
"What will happen if I do become a jonin?" she said softly not looking at him. "You'll be sent out on A rank mission some on your own others with either chuunin or other jonin." He said "however I doubt the third will send you out on solo missions just yet. For now it's likely you'll be kept as the joint leader to team seven."
Mari nodded before finally looking at him "I'm worried about naruto and Sasuke. Sasuke is letting his anger control his actions to much; I saw it when I was in the ice prison with them both." She said softly "I could talk to him if you want, we have a lot in common. My whole family was murdered because of my powers when I was eleven years old."
"All of them were murdered because of your powers." Kakashi said looking at her closely as he spoke, "that doesn't make sense."
"People used to call me a demon because I was different from them, I knew things about people. When my family tried to protect me from them they were killed in a fire, my mother told my older brother to run with me." She said looking down again trying to stop the tears that were forming in her eyes.
Kakashi sighed slightly before pulling her closer to him, her head rested on his chest as she sobbed. He stroked her long hair gently, absentmindedly playing with it slightly as he stroked it.
They both jumped when they heard someone knocking on the door. Kakashi let go of Mari reluctantly before walking over to the door and opening it. He smiled behind his mask when he saw Asuma, kurenai and maito gai standing there.
Kakashi sighed and rolled his eyes when might guy immediately challenged him. "Not now gai. Now why are you all here?" he said looking at them suspiciously before smiling when Mari looked over at them all.
"Are you forgetting what time of month it is?" Asuma said smiling at him as he blew out another cloud of smoke from his cigarette. "Its poker night and your turn to host it as well." He added holding up the cards.
"Hello Mari isn't it?" kurenai said finally noticing the other kunoichi that was sat on the sofa.
"Yeah." She said softly before looking away still not used to being around so many people.
"Hello Mari I didn't know you were here. How are you settling in?" Asuma said as he dropped to the floor on the other side of the table. Not caring where he sat.
"Fine I love Konoha. It's the only place I've ever felt Accepted for who I am. Where I came from any sign of being different and people hunt us. "She said softly finally looking around at the jonin in the room.
"I've heard you have an unusual power, care to enlighten us?" kurenai said genuinely curious.
"Well I have the ability to feel people's emotions, i can also read minds." She said seeing the look on their faces she looked down "I only read people's minds if I feel they have harmful intentions towards me or anyone else I'm with. I can also move things with my mind." At this she concentrated on the deck of cards lying on the table. The cards rose into the air then the deck shuffled itself before the cards were dished out to each of the players, the rest falling gently in a pile in the middle of the table.
The other jonin's eyes widened as they watched it, their eyes resting on Mari. "That is an amazing power. It must be hard on you though." Kurenai said sitting back on the sofa beside Mari, Kakashi sat on the other side of Mari while guy was doing push ups on the floor with one hand.
"It's hard to use it to much. If I use it to much it weakens me a lot. Once when I was younger I was put in a coma for three weeks after using it to protect myself." She said softly smiling at kurenai when the other kunoichi rested a hand on her arm.
"So what are you doing here at this time of night anyway?" gai said from the floor having finally stopped doing push ups.
"I live here." She said softly, noticing the looks she was getting she blushed and looked down.
"Oh my eternal rival you are so lucky to be living with such a flower." Gai said loudly before clasping both Mari's hands in his. She jumped and moved slightly closer to Kakashi, the surprise showing on her face.
"Gai leave the poor girl alone, can't you tell your scaring her," Asuma said as he reached over and gently prying Mari's hands away from gai's.
Mari sank back when her hands were released and sighed "sorry I've been a bit jumpy since we got back from team sevens last mission. Then I'm told that I have a test in a few days time." She said softly before putting her head back and closing her eyes for a moment.
"Ah the test we've heard about that. It's to see if you're at jonin level isn't it?" Asuma said breathing out smoke again as he spoke.
Mari nodded sighing slightly "I didn't even know I could do half of the techniques I can do before I came here. It was a shock." She said softly, flicking her long hair over her shoulder as she sighed. She sensed Kakashi looking at her and smiled at him. "So are you starting the poker game or not?" she said watching as Asuma brought out a bottle of sake.
Half an hour later-
Mari laughed as she won her fourth game before putting her head back. The sake was getting to her head; she could feel the tiredness overcome her. Suddenly her head fell onto Kakashi's shoulder as she fell asleep.
Asuma smiled slightly when he saw the look on Kakashi's face. It seems Kakashi's got a soft spot after all. He thought before exhaling another cloud of smoke and looking at kurenai. "I'm, going to call it a night, I think we better get gai home." He said pointing to the drunken jonin who was lying on the floor. He grabbed gai's arm and pulled him to his feet before heading to the door kurenai behind him. "We'll see you tomorrow, remember the meeting in the morning, you and Mari have to be there."
Kakashi nodded before gently putting Mari's head on the sofa and letting them all out.
Kurenai waited until they were away from the apartment before smiling at Asuma "did you see how he was with her. It seems he has a soft spot." She said softly smiling again when he smiled.
Kakashi walked back over to Mari and lifted her head slightly before sitting down and putting it back on his lap again. "She's worn out." He said quietly before gently stroking her hair, he loved the feel of it in his hand.
The next morning-
Mari groaned before opening her eyes she almost fell off the sofa when she realised that she had fallen asleep on kakashi's lap, she smiled slightly when she felt kakashi's hand in her hair.
"Kakashi." She said softly trying to wake him up, She almost fell out of his lap when he jumped only to be caught when he wrapped her arm around his waist. "Sorry Mari." He muttered as he rubbed his visible eye.
Mari blushed slightly before closing her eyes again for a moment. "We're going to be late at this rate." She said suddenly remembering the meeting she'd been told about the night before, Kakashi just shrugged "I'm always late anyway." He said softly before helping her to sit up. "I would have put you on the bed last night but you looked comfortable." He said softly smiling when he saw her blush.
"I'm going to go and get ready." She said, he nodded and kissed her on top of the head before watching her leave the room.
15 minutes later she came out of the bathroom dressed in a short black skirt with black shorts underneath, She was wearing a dark blue jacket over a white fishnet style top, she wore blue shoes and had bandages around part of her left thigh. "Hey you ready yet. We're already late." She said smiling when she saw the way Kakashi looked at her. "Yeah let's go." He muttered before taking her arm and vanishing reappearing in the hokage's office.
"Mari, Kakashi I hope you have a good reason for being late." Hiruzen Sarutobi said from his seat behind his desk.
"Well you see a black cat crossed our path and we had to go the long way round." Kakashi said smiling when he saw the third roll his eyes. "Never mind you're here now. Today we will be choosing the four jonin that Mari will be fighting tomorrow." He said his eyes resting on Mari for a moment before he looked at the others.
"Are there any here that wish to put themselves forward?" He asked watching as might guy stepped forwards as well as Genma Shiranui, shikaku nara and kurenai yuhi.
"Does anyone have any problems with the jonin chosen for this test?"The third asked them all smiling when no one said anything. "Well you are all dismissed, remember to spread the word, the test will be in the arena tomorrow at 9' o'clock."
Mari looked at the people she was going to face tomorrow and sighed slightly before leaving the room with Kakashi. "Like I said last night you'll be fine just fight like you did when we were on the mission. Tell you what let's go and get some ramen, naruto and the others are probably there already."
When they arrived at ichiraku ramen they saw that the three genin were there and smiled slightly "yo" Kakashi said before sitting on one of the stools Mari taking the remaining stool at the bar. "Someone order for me." She said before putting her head on the bar.
Sakura ordered some ramen for Mari before looking at her "What is it Mari- san?" she said softly.
"I've just found out who I'll be facing in the test tomorrow. You better be at the arena tomorrow at nine if you want to watch." She said as she picked at her ramen. I hope i don't make a fool of myself tomorrow. She thought.