03. Kakashi's Test

I yawned widely, stretching my arms up in the air as I did so. My black shirt rose up slightly as I did so, revealing my flat abdomen for just a second. A second was all it took to send a shiver through me. I hugged myself as I made my way to the designated meeting spot; deciding the whole way that I might not really like my sensei. One peek at the sky to see that the sun had barely risen reinforced this belief.

Quarter to five in the morning and the sun had just woken up, barely creeping over the horizon, teasing the Earth and casting a purple hue into the lightening sky. I yawned again and wondered, yet again, why in the world he needed us up at the crack of dawn.

When I finally reached our designated spot, I found my teammates just arriving themselves. We were completely surrounded by woods. I trudged over to a tree, dropping to the ground. My feet were already soaked from the morning dew, might as well sacrifice the pants.

Sasuke seemed wide awake and completely alert as he chose a tree to lean against. Sakura and Naruto were zombies, still squinting into the lightening sky.

I pulled off my backpack and slumped against it for support. Naruto moved over to me and slumped down beside me, taking my lead…kind of…and completely slumping against his backpack. He immediately started to snore and I too, decided to close my eyes and hope I could catch a cat nap.

-Two Hours Later-

I jerked awake, my heart racing as I shot up, looking about myself. When I saw Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke in their same positions, I let my heartbeat slow. Then I looked up at the sky. Judging by the sun's position, it'd been two hours.

I frowned in irritation. Had Kakashi seriously made us get up this early to come here and wait!? That dislike kept growing stronger and stronger. Were senseis even allowed to be late?

At least it was warmer out now.

I glanced again at Naruto but my sudden panic had gone completely unnoticed. He was still snoozing against his backpack, a bit of drool collecting on his chin. Sakura had taken our lead at some point and was also slumped against her backpack on the ground. She'd been at alert earlier but she must have decided she was wasting her time and was now dozing gently against her pink pack.

I glanced to see how Sasuke was fairing. He hadn't even moved a muscle. He still leaned against his tree, arms crossed over his chest with the faintest hint of boredom on his face. My back hurt just looking at him.

I must have been watching him a moment too long because suddenly, Sasuke turned his head to look at me. He must have noticed. Whoops. Now I looked like a creeper. I took a glance into his eyes to see if I'd annoyed him and our eyes locked.

"Nakao! Come on, hurry up!"

I panted, slowing to a jog. "Sasuke-kuuun, I can't keep up with you!"

The seven-year-old boy rushed back to me, showing no give in his energy. Grabbing me by the hand, he smiled. "Come on, let's go!"

"Where are we going?" All fatigue had melted and my eyes were glowing.

Sasuke turned his face to me; he seemed so excited. "I want to show you something!"

Sasuke tore his gaze away and I jerked. Two memories in two days? I uneasily leaned back against my pack. I sure hope this doesn't become a regular thing.

-Three Hours Later-

"Good morning, everyone!"

I slowly slid one eye open, peeking at the world. Kakashi-sensei was walking leisurely up to our group. I yawned, rubbing at one eye with a closed fist as I frowned, annoyed. Naruto and Sakura, on the other hand, were immediately on their feet, pointing index fingers at Kakashi. "You're late!"

I wasn't watching Kakashi-sensei as I clambored to my feet, but I could hear the humor in his voice.

"Well you see, a black cat crossed my path so I had to take a new one."

"Liar!" Sakura and Naruto yelled.

Those two had drawn closer to Kakashi-sensei, standing only a couple of feet away from him. Sasuke and I moved closer as well, me at a much slower rate. Well, he made us wait. I found myself standing beside Sasuke, just to the left of Naruto and Sakura.

Kakashi-sensei coughed into his hand and seemed completely unbothered that he'd made us wait for him for…I checked the position of the sun…five hours after the designated meeting time. "Well, let's get started, shall we?"

We watched as Kakashi walked away from our team, and over to a tree stump several feet away. From his backpack he retrieved a large timer, which he placed on the stump. I watched, confused, as Kakashi-sensei pressed a button twice. He looked over to our group.

"This timer is now set for noon," he reached into his pants pocket and withdrew three, small, silver bells, attached to one another by a red string. Kakashi continued. "Your mission is simple: all you need to do is take these bells from me."

Kakashi clanked the bells together, causing my ears to ring sharply. "If you fail to get a bell by noon, you will get no lunch. In fact, I will tie you to a post and eat my lunch in front of you."

We all looked in the direction Kakashi's gloved hand was pointing at. Three, large, wooden posts were sticking out of the ground side by side. They had to be about seven feet tall and just about the width of what a body would be.

A chorus of hungry stomachs erupted around us, including mine. I placed a hand over my stomach. So this is why he told us not to eat breakfast, I realized, annoyed.

I wasn't always a big breakfast eater anyway, much to Keitaro's chargin, but it was ten now and it was nearly lunch time. Two hours of intense work on no food? Well this was going to be just fabulous.

"Hey, wait a second," Sakura piped up, pointing to the bells still in Kakashi-sensei's hand. "There are four of us, how come there are only three bells?"

"Ah," Kakashi smiled, his voice smug with achievement. He'd clearly been waiting for someone to notice. "This way at least one of you will be tied to a post and, well, ultimately fail. That one will be sent back to the Academy. Which will work out well because a three-man team is more traditional than a four-man team. Then again…" Kakashi stalled. "All four of you could flunk out."

Tension radiated from me and my three teammates. Kakashi continued. "You can use any weapon, including shuriken and kunai. If you're not prepared to kill me, you won't be able to take the bells." He jingled the bells once more for effect before throwing them into the air and catching them.

"But weapons are too dangerous, Sensei," Sakura said, her voice high-pitched with worry.

"Yeah, especially since you couldn't dodge that eraser!" Naruto laughed.

"I said lead pipe," I muttered so quietly I didn't think any of my teammates actually heard it.

"Class clowns are often the weakest links. You know, the ones with the lowest scores? The losers," Kakashi said matter-of-factly.

I sucked in air sharply at the insult, glancing over at Naruto with wide eyes. Naruto gritted his teeth together in anger. Irrationally, he pulled out a kunai, twirling it around on his index finger before making to rush Kakashi-sensei. Sakura and I cried after him, to no avail. However, Naruto never got anywhere. Before he could even lift a foot off the ground, Kakashi-sensei was behind him, grabbing the hand holding the kunai and holding it behind Naruto's head, threatening to dip his own kunai into his skull.

I gasped, taking a step back. Sakura and Sasuke had also jumped back, surprised, for they hadn't even seen a blur. I should be used to this, my brother was a jounin after all. Then again, my brother had never tried to shove my own kunai through my head either.

"Don't be so hasty," Kakashi said calmly, as though he wasn't two seconds away from murder. "I didn't say 'start' yet."

Kakashi-sensei released Naruto, who immediately retreated to my side. Kakashi-sensei took a step back, facing our team. A wrinkle appeared in his mask, indicating that he was smiling. "However, you did come at me with the full intent to kill. I might be starting to like you guys."

My teammates smirked, but I rolled my eyes.

"Ready…" Kakashi-sensei prompted. I bent my knees, readying myself to run. "Go!"

We all took off in different directions. I dashed into the surrounding forestry, immediately scaling up a tree. First tactic: survey the area. Kneeling on a high tree branch, I peered through the green leaves of the clearing below. Kakashi-sensei stood in the same spot, casually glancing around himself. He was probably analyzing our skills.

Okay, think Nakao. You need to think of a way to catch a jounin off guard.

As I thought, activity came alive in the clearing below. It completely caught my attention, distracting me from previous thoughts and plans.

Naruto had approached Kakashi-sensei, standing only ten feet away from him. "Come here and fight me!"

"You're a little…off, aren't you?" Kakashi-sensei responded, seemingly confused.

"The only thing off is your haircut!" Naruto retorted before rushing Kakashi-sensei.

I could only watch with surprise and then frustration. Is he really that much of an idiot!? He can't take on a jounin all by hims-

My thoughts trailed off as an idea hit me. I sucked in a breathe of air in excitement.

That's it! There are four of us and one of him! Maybe we can't defeat him, but three of us should be able to keep him occupied while one of us grabs the bells! Maybe we can tackle him or something…

But my elation fell as another thought forced through my head. There were only three bells. Even if we did manage to secure the bells, a squabble would ensue over who wouldn't get a bell. And ultimately, who would fail. Certainly none of us were going to volunteer, myself included.

I sighed. We'd have to deal with that situation when it came. Because I was completely sure that our only chance to succeed would be to come at him full force. So no time to think about the consequences. We'd have to get the bells first, otherwise we all fail.

Mind made up, I needed to formulate a plan. First step: find my idiot teammates.

At least I knew where Naruto was. I glanced down to the clearing in time to witness Kakashi poke Naruto in the butt, sending him flying into a nearby lake, all while managing to keep a book in his hands. The book he'd been reading, completely uninterrupted while Naruto had feverishly tried to land a hit on him.

Sighing, I decided to come back for Naruto later. My best chance was to find Sasuke and Sakura while they were still in hiding.

Making sure Kakashi was still in the clearing, I moved from my tree in search of my teammates. Naruto would have to wait until I could be sure Kakashi wouldn't catch me. I leapt from tree to tree, carefully scanning my surroundings.

To my surprise, it only took me a couple of minutes to find Sasuke. He was kneeling on a tree branch, watching the clearing below intensely. I stopped on the tree behind him.

"Pssst, Sasuke!" I whispered as loud as I dared.

Sasuke ignored me.

"Pssst, Sasuke!" I whispered louder.

Same outcome. My eye twitched; I knew full well he could hear me.

Glancing about myself, I noticed acorns hanging from the tree branches above me. Plucking a few, I turned back to Sasuke. I chucked one at the back of his head. He still didn't turn around. Holding two in my hand, I coarsed chakra into my arm and sailed them into the back of his head.

Sasuke whirled around, grabbing at the back of his head. Angrily, he mouthed, "What?"

Glancing about myself cautiously, I leapt over to Sasuke's branch. I kneeled down beside him and noted the irritability on his face. Which I ignored.

"Hey, I've got a plan," I whispered.

"Tch," Sasuke replied, rolling his eyes.

An anger vein pulsed in my forehead. "Hey, I'm brilliant!"

"Go away."

I let out a big breath through my nose in anger. Closing my eyes, I took several deep, calming breaths before returning my attention to the aggravating boy. I made an attempt to keep my voice even. "Look, you and I both know we can't beat him individually— don't give me that look; you'll waddle on out there and get the shit kicked out of you. But if the four of us take him on together, I think we can take the bells."

"I don't need you," Sasuke said, turning his attention back to the clearing.

I really wanted to hit the boy upside his inflated head, but a movement below caught my eye. Naruto was bending over, ready to grab something off the ground. It glinted in the sunlight and I realized it was a bell.

I wanted to shout to the boy that this was an obvious trick, but I certainly wasn't about to. Why should I give up my position if he's going to be an idiot?

Sure enough, just as Naruto's fingers brushed the bell, Naruto's ankle was grabbed by a rope, pulling him off his feet. He now dangled upside-down from a tree branch; flailing around and calling Kakashi every name under the sun. But at least I knew where to find him.

Kakashi-sensei came into view. He grabbed the bell from the grass and looked to Naruto. "Shinobi lesson: if the bait is obvious, don't take it. Get it?"

"Yes. I . Get .It!" Naruto yelled angrily, bouncing around as he flailed his arms.

"I'm telling you this because you don't get it. You think you get it, which is not the same as actually getting it. Get it?"

At that moment, something glinted in the corner of my eye. I glanced over to Sasuke just in time to see him fling several shuriken at Kakashi-sensei. I gasped as they plowed into his head, sending him flying to the right. Naruto yelled out while I gasped, glancing at Sasuke in surprise and horror.

But Sasuke paid me no mind. He cursed and dashed out of the tree and into another, fleeing like a scared rabbit. I glanced back to the clearing, only to find a log sitting on the grass with Sasuke's shuriken embedded into its bark. It was my turn to curse. A replacement jutsu. And now Kakashi knew my position.

Fucking Sasuke I internally growled as I high-tailed it out of the area.

I fled as fast as I possibly could, as Sasuke had done just before me. I dashed from tree to tree and when I finally felt like I was a good distance away, I leaned against a tree trunk to catch my breath. And re-evaluate my plan.

Well thanks to that stuck up prick, my plan has failed. I honestly didn't know if just three of us would be enough to take on Kakashi. Especially with…well…I mean Sakura was basically useless. She really was. I highly doubt she's even using that big brain of hers to work out a plan right now. And Naruto…well he's in the tree, isn't he?

I was starting to feel a bit dejected. My original plan was to use Naruto to actually grab the bells. He would have helped us more in the fight than Sakura would, but I didn't really want her in possession of the bells. Looking at what I had to work with, I was running out of ideas. There was no way the three of us were a strong enough force without Sasuke. Could we keep him occupied just long enough to get the bells? Maybe we could set some sort of trap? Sakura might be able to handle that at least.

The idea that I was going to have to get Sakura and Naruto to help me renewed my frustration with Sasuke. What was it with him and thinking he's so freaking great.

I was just pushing away from the tree, ready to begin my search for Sakura and Naruto when a high-pitched scream echoed through the forest. My head perked up and I gazed in the direction it had come from.

Welp, at least I found Sakura. Was it shitty for me to hope she was dead? Yeah, probably. Man, I really gotta work on that.

But really, I knew Sakura wasn't dead and I decided I should go investigate. At least I should find Sakura there.

I found the kunoichi five minutes later, in the middle of a clearing, spread-eagle on her back. I gingerly stepped into the clearing, glancing about myself nervously. When no immediate attack presented itself, I ventured forward. I moved over to Sakura and looked down on her. A quick assessment showed no injury. Even her hair was in place.

I nudged the girl with my foot. "Sakura. Sakura, get up." No response. I nudged harder. "Come on, Pinkie, rise and shine. We have work to do."

Still nothing. I sighed. I got to my knees beside the girl and shook her on the shoulder. Still nothing. Sighing again, I leaned in real close to her ear and yelled. "Sasuke's naked!"

She bolted up, breathing heavily, while I rolled my eyes with great exaggeration. She feverishly glanced about herself, still sitting down. "Sasuke!?"

"No, I'm Nakao but thanks for playing."

At the sound of my voice, Sakura seemed to calm down. She glanced to me and frowned. "Oh. It's you."

"Don't make me hit you," I threatened, getting to my feet. "I could have let you lay here and become food for the hungry chipmunks."

"You're so stupid, Nakao," Sakura glared, also rising to her feet. She began walking, brushing past me. "I'm going to go find Sasuke."

"Sounds like your typical Saturday night," I rolled my eyes.

"Hmph!" was all Sakura said as she continued to walk away.

"Seriously, where are you going?" I huffed in exasperation. "We need to come up with a plan."

"I already have one!" She replied, annoyed, before melting into the surrounding trees.

I huffed, frustrated, putting my hands to my hips. Just great. Two teammates who absolutely suck. Now what? I guess I could try to find Naruto. Two against one was still better than one against one. And if I couldn't find him?

"Well then I guess I'll just have to find Kakashi-sensei by myself after all," I muttered aloud.

"No need."

I glanced up to a high tree branch. There squatted Kakashi-sensei, casually resting each wrist on a bent knee.

"Oh…hi, Kakashi-sensei."

"You don't seem so excited, Nakao."

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest, letting the frustration wash over me. "Yeah well, I wasn't exactly planning on confronting you by myself but my teammates are a bunch of douches."

"That's not a very polite thing to say," Kakashi said, jumping down and standing across from me.

"Well they are!" I hmphed. "I've spent probably most of my time trying to get them to work together but they're too damn full of themselves!"

"Ah indeed."

I rolled my eyes with a huff. Sighing, I waved a hand dismissively. "Let's just get this over with."

"By all means," Kakashi-sensei gestured widely with his hand.

I blinked and then scoffed, rolling my eyes yet again. Seriously? He's going to make me attack first?

Carefully, watching for any twitch of movement, I reached for the daggers placed on either side of my hips, attached to the loose-hanging belt I wore. I slid them out and held them in front of me horizontally, defensively. Kakashi-sensei watched me expectantly and did not move. Still holding my daggers, I brought the tips of my index and middle finger on each hand together.

I felt my chakra surge through me. Its energy rushed through my veins, weaving around bones.

Arashi Kamekaze

The strange sensation of my kekki genki came to life over my body. I ffelt as light as a feather and as though my skin was as thin as paper. Gently, wind began to rise out of my skin, looking much like steam does after a very hot bath.

Kakashi watched me with interest as my long hair began to gently swirl around me in the breeze. I did several more handsigns, ending with tiger. I took in a great gulp of air, held it for a split moment, then lightly blew out. A spark flew from my lips and suddenly, fire erupted around me. It began to swirl around in currents, feeding off of the air emanating from my body.

Still, Kakashi only watched me with interest. I realized that he was waiting for me to show him what I could do. And break apart my jutsu while he was at it.

I pushed out more chakra into my wind. It latched onto my blades and the flames followed. Fire now ran the length of my daggers and flowed fluidly around my body. It was now or never. I rushed Kakashi-sensei, blade held out in front of me.

When I reached the jounin, I sliced at him, but he simply slid out of the way. I pushed out more chakra and the fire flared out, jumping out at Kakashi who hadn't been smart enough to completely jump out of my range. Just as the flames were about to latch onto his body, Kakashi jumped away. I whirled around to find Kakashi-sensei standing a safe distance away, watching me. Another realization hit me and I pointed a dagger at him accusingly. "Hey, that's not fair! You know my brother, don't you! You know all my attacks!?"

"You figured me out," Kakashi smiled, hands held up in defence.

My teeth gritted together at the injustice of it all. Not only was he a jounin, faster, smarter, he also knew all my moves! They were very similar to my brother's. He used a sword, I used daggers, but the technique was the same. Keitaro also didn't use fire jutsus as much as a I did, but the fact that Kakashi knew my kekki genki left me at an even more severe disadvantage.

I glanced to Kakashi's waist. I could see the three bells yet attached to his belt loop. Three of them. So none of my other teammates had managed either.

Shocker.

Kakashi was still waiting for me to make a move so I wasn't left with much of a choice. I rushed him again. He took out a kunai, blocking the dagger in my left hand that I had aimed at his face. My other dagger I used to slice at his waist, attempting to slice through the red string. My blade didn't even need to touch the strings. As long as the flames caught onto the strings, they'd burn through in seconds.

My eyes flashed as the bells began to fall towards the ground. Pushing off of Kakashi, I dove, trying to grab the bells, but Kakashi was still faster. Since I'd had to withdraw, he ducked down and grabbed the bells.

I hit the ground and immediately rolled several feet away before hopping to my feet. I was breathing heavily from the adrenaline coursing through my body.

I almost had them! I thought angrily.

"That was actually pretty good, Nakao," Kakashi-sensei said, watching me in amusement. If he was actually trying to give me a compliment, I wasn't getting it. It sounded more to me like he was mocking me.

"I have to say, you were even closer to getting the bells than Uchiha."

"Tch, well of course," I replied immediately, more out of habit than anything.

Humor lit up in Kakashi's beady eye. But just then, the Kakashi I was looking at became clouded by smoke and a log appeared, falling harmlessly to the ground. I cursed and whirled around but I wasn't fast enough.

I didn't even have the chance to scream.