V 2 ch 9
The Academy Finals – or Bust!
Eiyu came at Onari with the fierceness of a lion, his hands up, feet moving quickly as he tried to come in contact with her body. She was avoiding him and Kandai as much as possible, twisting her body and turning, seeming to miss every one of their hits. He attempted to hit her with his left hand, bringing it towards her shoulder, only for her to twist her body to her left, avoiding it. Kandai was on the rebound from having been hit in the side by one of Onari's hits.
Kandai decided to come around Onari in a circle while she was preoccupied with avoiding Eiyu. He came around her blind spot, his left hand out, read to hit her. She saw him coming out of the corner of her eye at the same time Eiyu was attempting to side kick her. Onari jumped into the air, turning upside-down, spinning, her legs out in an arch to maintain her position in the air as she avoided the two twins. She came down behind Eiyu and Kandai sliding on the ground, her body crouched, watching them, anticipating every move that they were throwing at her.
The two twins looked behind them at her. She was watching them like a hawk. They were both panting hard, but Onari was coolly in tact. What they were doing didn't even seem to faze her. Eiyu wondered how much longer they could keep this up. They had already chased her most of the day. The sun was starting to set in the west. Onari tilted her head at them, wondering what was taking them so long. Were they going to come at her, or not? As they stood there facing each other off, Neji walked outside. He seemed rather pleased with Onari's progress.
"You three can quit for the day. Eiyu, you and Kandai can go inside now. Onari should be leaving soon. Your mom has a nice treat for you two since you helped out today. Thanks for your hard work," Neji said. The two twins waved bye to Onari before heading in. Onari looked up at Neji. Her eyes told him she had a made the decision to not back down from the training routine he had enforced on her. "I'm rather pleased with you, Onari. You've avoided Kandai and Eiyu very well this afternoon. I even saw you complete the first exercise. Sasuke will be proud of you. I would be."
Onari stood up fully, her long dark hair blowing in the breeze. "Onari go home now?" She watched Neji nod. "Onari not know way."
"I think he's coming back to get you shortly," Neji said. "You don't have to stand outside like a statue. You can come sit on the porch." Neji watched Onari approach the building cautiously. She sat down, leaning forward. "How did you like your first day of training?"
Onari pondered the question. "Onari fine. Neji teach Onari jutsu now?" She watched him look at her.
"In due time, I'll teach you a few basic techniques, but first, we need to strengthen you up a bit. This week we'll work on arm and leg strength since you seem to be pretty nimble. Let's see how high you can jump in the next week. It's important to learn how to evade opponents, as much as, fight them. You're still new at this, Onari, and I don't want you to push it. I know how eager you are to learn to fight like Eiyu, Kandai, and Takeru. Do you understand?"
"Onari not go past what Neji say for Onari to do," Onari said in her broken speech.
"Good. I don't think it will hurt for you to practice with Takeru, but I don't want you trying jutsus out on your own. Some of them are hard to master, and some of them are dangerous and can drain chakra."
Onari tilted her head. "Jutsu drain Onari chakra?" She didn't understand. Chakra was a constant flow.
"Yes, some jutsus are so advanced that they are used as a last resort to finish an opponent off. They can drain your chakra if over used. If your chakra ever reaches zero, you die," Neji said quite seriously.
"Onari fight to protect," Onari said, her voice carrying a bit of roughness to it. She was bent on proving herself to Neji and Sasuke that she was capable of fighting. She did not want to be seen as an inferior ninja. Onari was not aware of how she was able to avoid Eiyu and Kandai so well. All she knew was that when they were coming at her, to not let them touch her. That meant turning and twisting her body like she did. As long as she could remember, she had used the same techniques on the snow ninja to avoid being captured by Captain Anamaraki.
"Yes, I understand," Neji said looking at the gate in front of the Hyuga compound. "Being able to protect the ones you love is something I, too, take very seriously. If you cannot protect something, then there is no reason to fight. Fighting is not always about proving yourself, or how strong you are."
"Onari not weak," she told Neji.
Neji glanced at her. "No, you're not weak at all. You're very strong. More so, than I can understand. You've survived a harsh environment on your own for a long time. I've even witnessed your fighting skills and hidden talents. You're not only physically strong, but mentally strong as well," Neji said tapping his head so she would understand.
"Onari like Shikamaru?"
"Somewhat, but not exactly. Shikamaru tends to plan his moves against someone several moves ahead in case a few don't work. I see you don't understand. It's alright. If you ever see Shikamaru in action, you will understand. He's quite cunning when it comes to tricking an opponent into thinking they have the upper hand," Neji said.
"Shikamaru play with bad people," Onari asked. Neji petted her head. It was difficult to understand all of the words she was hearing.
"Not exactly play with them as in games, Onari. More like, play with them in the sense of getting the advantage," Neji informed her. "There are types of opponents who only want to fight to gain something from another. What they gain is power over another person. Ninja fight to protect the village they live in and the ones in it. The Hokage is responsible for issuing battle plans during a war with a neighboring village. He, or She oversees all progress that the village makes. The Hokage is much like a mother or father watching over his or her children. Is that any simpler?"
"Uzumaki is Neji's Dad," Onari said with a faint smile. She was starting to understand why everyone did what they could for The Hidden Leaf Village. It was much like a big family where everyone contributed to the village as a whole. Everyone saw that the children were well educated and learned to fight to protect their home.
"I suppose you could put it that way," Neji said. "Naruto is one of the strongest people I know. He has been through so much in his life and yet, he still maintains a positive outlook on life and does what he can for someone. He doesn't believe a single person is lost. He stands by what he says and does."
"Neji, Onari be like Uzumaki," she asked. She looked straight ahead as she saw someone she recognized approaching the gate to the Hyuga compound. It was Sasuke. He wasn't alone. Takeru was walking with him.
"No, Onari needs to find out who Onari is. In time you'll learn who you are. Hopefully, when you venture out farther, you'll make friends who will help you, too. Not everyone is cruel, Onari. Some actually want the best for you. I'll see you for another training session in due time. Take it easy," Neji said as he stood up to greet Sasuke and Takeru.
Onari looked off into the sunset. The colors were shaded together like paint on canvas. Her eyes sparkled with the orange, yellow, and pinks that were mixing with the blue. She glanced at Takeru as he sat next to her. Neji told her to find out who she was. He also said that not everyone was cruel. The cruelty she had been exposed to resurfaced itself each time she was forced to encounter someone she was unfamiliar with. She had to be strong – just like Uzumaki and Sasuke.
Takeru watched her looking at the sky. He wondered what kind of training Neji had made her do. Whatever it was seemed to have made her more confident; stronger. He noticed when he sat down next to her that she didn't jump, or flinch like she used to. Takeru was able to sit this closely to her and not have to worry about moving too fast.
Takeru moved his hand up, tugging her sleeve a little. She turned around to look at him. "Hey, I got you a present for your first day of training," he said kind of nervously. She tilted her head at him. Onari was looking around for it, but didn't see it. Takeru opened his arms and said, "Me. I'm your present." Man, I sound so cheesy.
"Takeru Onari present," she asked. Onari didn't quite understand. His arms were open. What was she supposed to do? Takeru seemed to be embarrassed. Onari mischievously smirked. She threw herself at him. He doubled over and yelped. "Takeru better than futon. Squishy," she said as she poked his stomach.
"Ow," Takeru said. He wasn't expecting her to do that. His cheeks were flushed bright red. She was on top of him and he could feel her. Takeru swallowed. "Onari, why did you jump me," he asked nervously.
"Takeru Onari present. Onari take Takeru home with Onari," she said to the best of her ability. "Hmm?" She tilted her head as his cheeks seemed to glow bright red now.
"Thanks for the trouble of training her, Neji," Sasuke said. He glanced over to see Onari on top of Takeru. "Tell Eiyu and Kandai I said 'thanks', too. I think I better rescue Takeru before he explodes."
Neji glanced behind himself. Takeru's face was red. "I think that would be best."
Izumi sat down at the low table, smiling at Onari. "So what kind of training did Neji do with you?" She dumped out rice for Sasuke and passed him the bowl.
"Onari chase Eiyu Kandai all day," Onari said with the chopsticks in her mouth. She wasn't sure if she liked rice, or not. Did Takeru have something better? She checked. Nope. Onari would have snatched it.
"You chased Eiyu and Kandai all day? What sort of training is that," Izumi asked. She watched Onari scout out her and Sasuke's food. The girl was looking for something familiar.
"Neji say Onari touch Eiyu Kandai first. Onari run from Eiyu Kandai all day. Eiyu talk to Onari. Eiyu say not run. Onari no understand. Kandai say Onari not friend -," she paused. The words were flowing in her head, but she didn't know a word for what she was trying to express. Onari put her forehead on the table, patting the top of her head with both of her hands. She wanted the words to come out like they were supposed to.
Izumi blinked. "Onari, it's okay. We know you don't know the proper words sometimes. It's hard to express yourself like you want."
Onari was getting frustrated. She hated being limited on the words she was able to pick from her head. Most of the time, she understood what was being asked of her, but it was harder to tell someone exactly what she wanted. The poor girl was easily frustrated in public with Izumi. She was so unfamiliar with most of the things she saw. Izumi had a lot of patience with her, but Sasuke, on the other hand, did get annoyed eventually. As a measure, she had to point a lot like a little kid to get him to understand her.
Takeru was watching her sadly. Onari hated to be cut off due to lack of intelligence at the language they spoke. Absentmindedly, he reached his hand up, petting her head softly, his other hands holding a pair of chopsticks. He heard his father clear his throat. Takeru snatched his hand back as if he'd been bitten by a viper. His face flushed red.
Sasuke looked up to see Takeru acting oddly. Why was his face red? He couldn't think of anything to say to even question mildly what was going on. Takeru took things hard whenever Sasuke spoke to him. "Takeru, eat your dinner," was all Sasuke could think of.
Izumi was very aware of what was going on. She smiled a little, but didn't say anything. It was her job as a mother to know her child better emotionally than his father. That's so cute, Takeru. You like Onari. Izumi saw past the hesitation and awkwardness her son displayed on various occasions.
"Ah! Onari not friend with Eiyu Kandai because Onari not do what Neji say," Onari said remembering. They seemed to have forgotten in that short span of time that she was trying to arrive at a point. She tilted her head at them.
"I'm glad you completed your training exercise," Izumi said putting her hands together. Whatever it was that you had to do... She smiled at the girl. "Neji is a good teacher isn't he?" Onari nodded.
"What happened to my tomatoes," Sasuke said looking at his bowl. He knew he had some. He hadn't even touched them yet. They were his favorite and he wanted them last. Sasuke looked up to see Onari watching him. "Onari, did you steal my food..?" She tilted her head at him. "Don't act coy. I know you took them. You're attracted to vegetables worse than Takeru is to ramen." Onari smiled at him.
"Hey, beautiful, I haven't seen you in months. How have you been," Shikamaru said as he kneeled down. Onari was watching him curiously. "Don't tell me you've forgotten who I am." He pointed to himself. "Shikamaru, remember?"
"Shikamaru," she repeated. Onari attached herself to him instantly, her hands clutching at his sides. Of course she remembered him. He was one of the guys that had spent time with her and protected her.
Shikamaru petted her head softly. "You do remember me. I'm glad Sasuke and Izumi are taking good care of you. Are you and Takeru getting along?" Onari nodded. She froze. There was a girl standing behind Shikamaru that had blond hair in two ponytails. She was wearing a lavender outfit. Shikamaru watched Onari take in Saori's appearance. "Onari, this is Saori. She's my daughter. Can you say 'hello'?" Onari cowered. The girl peeked over Shikamaru's shoulder. "Come on, beautiful, I know as long as you've been here you can't still be afraid. I already heard how you got along with Neji's sons. Saori isn't going to hurt you."
Saori wondered what was up with Onari's eyes. They were strange. Her father had drilled her earlier about visiting the Uchihas. She was supposed to be on her best behavior. Saori looked away for a moment, only to return to the girl staring at her. Maybe if she said something, it would ease the girl's tension? "Hello," Saori said softly. Onari lifted her head. She stopped hiding behind Saori's dad.
"Oh, I see you met Onari already," Izumi Uchiha said as she walked into the small area where shoes were taken off. "Is she behaving?"
"Yeah, she's wary of Saori, but she hasn't ran off," Shikamaru said. "Onari, Saori is here to study with Takeru. Is that okay with you?" Onari nodded slowly. "They're studying for the academy exams that are coming up. We're hoping, one day; you can take them, too."
"Onari do training like Takeru," she asked.
"Well, in order, to do training like Takeru and Saori, you have to pass tests to show everyone what you know. If you don't pass, you can't train. They hold you back until you can. Do you understand so far," Shikamaru asked.
"Onari no understand," Onari said truthfully.
"Maybe Takeru and Saori will show you," Izumi said placing her hands on her legs. "But first, let's go into the other room. This isn't a proper welcome area." Izumi blinked. "Onari, Shikamaru can't get up unless you get off of him."
"So how are we supposed to understand this if we don't know what the final is over," Takeru asked looking at the scrolls Saori had written down. "I understand that they'll ask us the basic techniques and stuff, but the jutsu part is going to kill me." He sighed.
Saori smiled. "It's not that bad. I think the reason they are emphasizing how hard it is, is to weed some of us out. If some of us let the strain get to is, we end up forgetting everything we have learned, right? Mental stress affects everyone differently. Some people freak out and can't handle it. If that's the case, those people are pushed aside because it means they can't handle situations where the mental effort is greater. Missions aren't just about physical ability. They require mental ability, as well. Do you see what I'm saying? You have to be smart and physically capable of doing your job."
Takeru quirked a brow. "I think so. So the Academy finals are not as hard as they tell us?" Saori shook her head. "And all of the studying I've been doing has been wasted." He fell over. "That's just great."
"No, it hasn't been wasted. You still don't know what the finals cover exactly. My dad said the finals are hard, but not that hard. If they make the tests too difficult, no one passes. Only the students who keep pushing themselves are capable of passing, or given a chance. You have to think like a ninja, Takeru. They are trapping us, in a way," Saori said.
"Wait. Did you say they are trapping us? Oh, that figures," Takeru said. He sat up crossing his arms.
"What figures?"
"My dad has been training me on different types of traps. He even trapped me in a verbal trap to get a point across," Takeru said. "All of this has been happening because I fell for Ryu's genjutsu trap a few months ago."
Saori looked at him oddly. "Ryu used his genjutsu abilities on you? He did the same to me, but he wasn't using them against me. I kind of walked into it. It's not the same thing as being trapped and sought after."
"Oh, he wasn't using it against me, no. I walked into it, too, but I didn't realize it until he started to mess with me a little. I swear he gets a kick out of that sort of thing," Takeru said.
Saori didn't know exactly. She had only been around Ryu twice. The first time he seemed kind of nice, but the second time... They had gotten into a fight with each other. She supposed Ryu was a nice guy underneath it all. Saori looked away at the scrolls. They had studied the scrolls for a few hours now.
Onari peeked around the frame of the door. She was watching Saori and Takeru. Her eyes darted back and forth through the scrolls that were littered on the floor. What was all of that strange writing? She looked down at her arms. It wasn't the same as the writing on them – at least, she didn't think so. Takeru and Saori seemed to be working hard at trying to figure out what the scrolls said. Onari gasped. She felt someone behind her.
"Now, what do you think you're doing, Fire Bird," Sasuke asked. He watched her try to play it off. Oh, that's cute. "If you're curious about what they're doing, why don't you go and find out what they're up to?" Onari shook her head slowly. "Why not? Saori isn't going to hurt you. Neither is Takeru."
Onari looked back through the entranceway. She didn't want to bother Takeru. He was serious about passing something. If she went in there, he might get mad at her. Onari couldn't read what was written on the scrolls. The writing was strange to her. "Onari not make Takeru mad," she said softly.
Sasuke crouched. "Onari, you won't make Takeru angry at you for being curious. You need to learn what they are doing. I want you to take the Academy finals, too, once your training is over with Neji. I'm not exactly sure how you will pass the written portion of the exam. We might get Naruto to let you take it orally." He watched Onari get she still only knows him by the name she gave him. "Uzumaki," Sasuke corrected.
"Uzumaki give Onari Takeru test," she asked.
"Well, sort of," Sasuke said. "You will get your own test. Takeru will take his test next week. Then maybe, if you work hard and pass, you can join a team and work with others," he told her.
"Onari on Takeru team?"
Sasuke kind of figured she'd ask that. Onari was practically glued to Takeru, Izumi, or himself if she left the house. He was anticipating what he was going to tell her. I can't lie to her. I don't know whose team she will be on. "Uzumaki decides the teams. I have no way of knowing what team Takeru, you, or Saori will be on."
"Onari go with Sasuke," she said tilting her head. Sasuke trained others when he wasn't on his missions. Couldn't she just stay with him?
"I don't think that's going to work, Fire Bird. You and Takeru aren't allowed to be with me because, well, I'm seen as a parent. It wouldn't be fair to the other students. The other trainers are Shikamaru, Kiba, and Lee. You'll probably go to one of them."
"Onari go with Kiba!" Onari knew everyone else, but this Lee. Who was Lee? She wanted to be put on Kiba's team. She liked Kiba. He was playful and funny.
"We'll see, in due time," Sasuke said. "Now, go make friends with Saori," Sasuke said picking her up. Onari started kicking. "Hey, you guys don't mind it if Onari comes in, do you?"
"No, why," Takeru asked. He saw his dad put Onari in the room and walk out backwards, shutting the door. Onari tugged on the door, but to no avail. His father was forcing her to get acquainted. "Onari, you can come over here. We're finished studying."
Onari turned her head around. She tensed. That girl was watching her. "Onari stay here," she said quietly.
"Is she always like that," Saori said. She watched Onari curiously. The girl was watching her, too, warily. "Does she think I'm going to attack her, or something?"
"Probably," Takeru said. "You're the first person to come over here. The only other kids she knows is Kandai and Eiyu Hyuga. It took them all day to get her to give them a chance," he said forcing a smile at Saori.
Saori waved her hand at Onari, issuing her to come over. She smiled at the girl sweetly. "Come over here. I'm not going to hurt you," Saori said trying to sound sincere to the girl. Onari tilted her head. Saori didn't think she was buying it. She watched as Onari moved away from the door, but back towards Takeru.
Takeru turned his head to look over his shoulder. Onari was right behind him watching Saori. Saori leaned towards them and Onari clutched at Takeru's sides, her head right next to his. She was so close to him he could feel her pressing into his back. He blushed. "Onari, she's not going to hurt you. Saori is a friend."
"Onari no understand," Onari said as she watched Saori move closer to them. The girl was a foot from her face. She remembered what Neji had made her due for her first training exercise. Onari couldn't back down from this girl. Eiyu had told her that if she didn't get emotionally stronger, then there was no point in her training to be physically stronger. Onari didn't move as Saori put her hand in front of her face. She wondered if Saori was teasing her; trying to see if she would bail the closer Saori became.
"You can't be that afraid of me, you're not moving back," Saori said grinning.
"Saori, you shouldn't tease her," Takeru said.
"Onari not afraid of Saori," she said lowly.
"If you're not afraid, prove it. Otherwise, you're coming off as a scaredy cat. It's not a very good impression. If you want others to respect you, you have to make them," Saori said rather dignified.
"Where in the world did you come up with that sort of reasoning," Takeru said. He didn't want Saori to scare Onari. It wouldn't be good. Onari might take offense to Saori and not want to get acquainted with her.
"My Uncle Gaara," Saori said matter-of-factly. "People fear what they do not understand. Just like Onari," she said rather cunning.
"Onari no understand," Onari said with aggression. Saori was using too many words she didn't know. She only understood her name. Her grip tightened on Takeru's sides. He grimaced. The angrier Onari got, the more strength she conjured up.
Takeru reached his hand up, placing it on Onari's head. He could tell Saori was making her angry; heck, he felt it. It wasn't very pleasing. "Calm down, Onari. She doesn't know that you don't understand all of what we're saying." Onari's eyes told him she didn't really care. She was getting upset.
"Hold on, she can't understand what I'm saying," Saori asked. She watched Takeru shake his head. "What does she not understand?"
"Her vocabulary is not as advanced as ours. You haven't noticed how she uses the incorrect pronouns and her sentence structure is backwards? Onari can't really help what she says, or doesn't understand. I don't think her speech is going to ever be at a hundred percent," Takeru said as he petted the girl's head. "We just have to be patient with her. I know it's hard and does get somewhat agonizing. There's nothing we can do about it."
"Well, you seem to have adjusted to her pretty well," Saori said. Takeru appeared to be awfully close to the little foreign girl. Takeru lowered his head when Saori said what was highly noticeable to her. He was close to Onari. She figured it was bound to happen since they lived under the same roof.
"Hey, are you two through studying, yet," Shikamaru asked from behind the door. He clicked it open. "Saori, we need to leave. Say 'goodbye' to Takeru and Onari."
Saori got up. She waved 'bye' to them. "See you later, Takeru." She eyed Onari then put her fingers up to her mouth, forcing herself to smile. "See you later, scardey cat."
Shikamaru shook his head. "Saori, be nice to her. If you make others angry, nothing good will come of it. Bye, Beautiful. See you next time," Shikamaru said as he waved at her.
"That wasn't so bad, huh," Takeru said. Onari looked back at him. She put her head on his back. "What's wrong?"
"Onari want take Takeru test with Takeru," she said muffled.
"Why do you want to take it with me? It's a test, Onari. Tests aren't fun. They're mentally and physically grueling," he said, sighing.
"Onari want be on Takeru team," Onari said. "Onari no leave Takeru." She clutched at him again, then wrapped her arms around his waist. He was the main one she interacted with now. If he left her, then what would happen? She wouldn't have anyone to play with; no one to teach her things, or correct her. He was easier to be around than Sasuke, or Izumi because Takeru was patient with her.
Takeru blushed so badly he had to lower his head and keep her from seeing. She was grabbing onto him rather tightly. "I know you don't want to, but at some point, we have to part, Onari. I have to train harder with others, or I won't succeed in my goal. I promised to protect you, 'Ri. I meant it. I won't go back on my word."
"Onari no leave Takeru," she said again rubbing her cheek on his back slightly. "Onari fight hard to take test Takeru take. Onari protect Takeru, Sasuke, Izumi," she said with a hint of aggression. Her eyes narrowed as if she was seeing someone across the room; someone she was anticipating. "Onari no let hurt on Takeru."