Pre-word: Hello everyone and welcome to my newest idea!

I'm trying a different thing narratively with this one than anything I've done before. This one is gonna be from both Uchiha Izumi and Hyuga Hinata's perspective in the form of a kind of shared diary- hence the title.

This one starts pretty AU, with the divergence point being what happens following Hinata's failed kidnapping from Canon. I'll do my best to make it obvious what has happened in the story itself, but there might be some things that don't get revealed until later. So please look forward to those differences!

That said, on with the show!

Kunoichi Log

Izumi: First Entry

Uchiha Izumi
Seventeen years old
Rank: Special Jonin
Likes: Cats, Hot springs, Boiled eggs
Dislikes: Bullies
Dream: To be a fearless Kunoichi

That… about sums up my introduction, I think?

To be honest; I'm not really sure what I'm hoping to accomplish by writing this. I guess, I'm hoping this way we can open up to each other? I'm a little young to be a master, so I don't really know what I'm doing. All the same, I really do want to get along with you… so let's give it our best shot.

In order to start, I'll just go right to the beginning. From here on out, it's just my general thoughts, so I'm not writing to you in particular. In fact, it's better to pretend that you don't know who's going to be reading this. Just to give you an idea of what to do when it's your turn.

Anyway, as you already know, this recounting begins where we first met. In other words: it begins at The Ninja Academy.

How many years had it been since I had last come here? I couldn't help but wonder this as I stood outside the entrance, gazing at the familiar tree with a lonely swing just nearby. It was exactly as I remembered it, which perhaps wasn't that odd. After all, it only felt like it had been a long time.

In reality, not even a decade had passed since I was a student here. And now, I was going to be taking on a student of my own. The thought was odd. I would be lying if I said I wasn't anxious, yet I also felt strangely excited. Looking at the academy reminded me of my old dreams and ambitions.

Of the kinda kunoichi I want to be.

"Oh, imagine finding you here." A disinterested voice greeted me from behind. I turned to see the masked face of the Copy Ninja, Hatake Kakashi, approaching the academy. He didn't seem to be in any particular hurry to get anywhere, yet at the same time he seemed sure of his destination. His entire character was full of contradictions just like this one, and it always made me unsure of how exactly to deal with him.

"You're taking on another Genin team?" I don't know why I even asked, not expecting something like a direct answer. It was well known throughout the village that every year for the past several years, Kakashi took on a Genin team. And every year, he failed them.

"Looks that way." Kakashi admitted with a nonchalant shrug, stopping next to me just outside the academy premises. "And you? A team is a big responsibility, you know." He was possibly the last person I wanted to hear that from. If he thought teams were such a hassle, why did he keep doing this? No, never mind.

"I'm just taking on an apprentice." I answered to push the conversation along. This seemed to peak the Copy Ninja's interest, as he turned to regard me silently with his one visible eye.

"Let's walk together to collect our students." He offered- no, it wasn't an offer. He didn't even wait for an answer before walking across the yard. I had to skip ahead to catch up with him. "An apprenticeship, huh? That's not done very often for newly graduated Genin." He noted cryptically, his point still unclear.

"It's not unheard of, either." I didn't point out that the Copy Ninja was one such example, having graduated from the academy early and spending time as an apprentice before eventually joining a Genin team with his peers.

"No, it's not." Kakashi agreed. "However, what about their ability to work on a team? Have you given any thought to what you're going to do about that?" Finally, I could see the angle he was approaching this from.

"Of course, missions that require teamwork will be done with a squad." I deadpanned. He was always a bit of a nut, drumming on about the importance of teamwork, but I hadn't realized he was this odd.

"I'm just saying. If you ever need a team, mine will be available." Kakashi said so casually that I almost missed the gravity of what he was implying.

"You're actually intending to pass this group?" I uttered in disbelief. Or maybe, he was saying he would pass this one if I looked after his students from time to time? Not that I would fall for such a trick so easily. One student was enough for me, thank you very much.

"We'll see." Kakashi once again failed to answer me directly. Any further discussion on the topic would have to come later, for we had arrived. The door to the classroom was already partially ajar- prevented from closing completely by a chalkboard eraser wedged into the gap at the top.

A trick only an absolute amateur would fall for.

Kakashi opened the door without delay, not even appearing to notice the eraser was there. It fell. In the span of a single second it would hit his head. From there, it would bounce off harmlessly and fall to the floor. Kakashi would have a little chalk in his hair and maybe his pride slightly bruised, but he wouldn't be physically harmed.

Yet the moment the eraser fell and my body automatically reacted. Why it happened, I have no idea. A post-traumatic reaction to my time on the war front, perhaps? As a kid, I would have laughed at such a prank. Now, my arm turned into a blur as it hurled a kunai at the falling eraser.

With a loud thunk, it pinned the eraser to the top of the door frame. And Kakashi stepped through the door, none the wiser to what had transpired. At least, he didn't seem to be as far as I could tell. Had he perhaps… meant to be hit by the eraser? Not that there was any point in thinking about it now. It was stuck to the ceiling.

I followed Kakashi inside, eyes scanning the remaining occupants of the room. There were only four students left now. Everyone else had already been collected by their Jonin Sensei. In truth, I had been hoping to collect my student last as I hadn't wanted to make a scene by picking up a single person, instead of a team. I just hadn't counted on the chronical tardiness of the Copy Ninja.

Of course, I recognized all four of the students, but really by name only. I had memorized the roster in order to understand the peers my apprentice had spent her time at the academy with. Nara Shikamaru appeared to be sleeping, head on a desk. Haruno Sakura was frantically glancing between the eraser and their teacher, the beginnings of an apology (or excuses) caught on the tip of her tongue.

And the apparent perpetrator, Uzumaki Naruto, looked like it was none of his business. Instead, he sat cozily next to my student-to-be, Hyuga Hinata. The heiress to the clan and effectively princess of the village itself. He was chatting at her like nothing had happened, but his disappointment at the failed prank was plain to see on his face. Hinata, for her part, simply sat silently, index fingers pressing together as she humored him.

In truth, Naruto was probably the only one that could sit so nonchalantly by the Hyuga princess. The two of them were engaged, after all. This was because he was the Kyubi Jinchuriki, and keeping a Jinchuriki close to the family of the Hokage was standard practice for all the ninja villages. Not that it made the two of them less of an odd pairing.

"First impressions, oh Copy Ninja?" I asked mirthfully, glancing at Kakashi as he slowly took in the sight of his so-called 'team'. It didn't seem likely that I was going to have to worry about him trying to pass them off to me, after all.

"Yeah… not good." Kakashi deadpanned. After that, he escorted his team out, leaving me alone with Hinata. Sakura followed after him in a hurry, leaving the other two behind. Naruto reluctantly said his goodbyes to Hinata, before quite literally dragging Shikamaru out after them.

Several moments of silence passed as Hinata and I stared at one another. It didn't seem like she was going to say anything anytime soon, and I had never been the stoic, silent type. Even if most of my clan was. Then again, I was only half anyway.

"Nice to meet you, Hyuga Hinata. Do you know who I am?" I decided to start with simple introductions. In truth, I had no idea how to talk to this girl. We were only about five years apart in age, yet it somehow felt like way more than that.

"You're Izumi of the Underworld." Hinata mumbled, eyes downcast and refusing to look directly into my eyes. Which was all well and good, as I felt my eye twitch at having my war epithet repeated.

"Just call me Izumi." I said as calmly as possible. "You don't need to address me as master or sensei, or anything like that. We're not that far apart age wise, anyway. So let's try to be friends, alright?"

"…I understand." Hinata answered easily enough. Not that I would call that a good thing. It seemed like the girl was walking on eggshells, but I couldn't be sure if that was just her normal personality or if it was something else entirely.

"So if we're going to be friends. Let's try to learn something about each other." I walked around the desk and took a seat next to Hinata, in the same place Naruto had been sitting earlier. "How about we do this? Let's just take turns asking questions. Anything goes." I just hoped Hinata didn't ask anything about my nickname.

"…Okay." Hinata agreed, but then continued to sit there in silence. It seemed like she had no intention of being the one to ask something first. And again, I wasn't the type of person that could take long periods of awkward quiet.

"Why do you want to be a ninja?" I asked. Knowing a little about Hinata's dreams and what made her tick might be the quickest route to understanding her. Or so I hoped.

"I don't want to be a burden to anyone. Not again." The answer that came was far heavier than I had expected. Maybe it wasn't a surprise that Hinata blamed the last war on herself. It had all begun when a ninja from the cloud tried to kidnap her, after all. For a moment, I debated about whether or not to address it. In the end, I decided to just tip-toe around her answer.

"…Your turn." I whispered gently. For a while, I thought Hinata might not ask anything at all as another several moments of silence passed. Despite myself, I forced my own mouth to stay shut and give Hinata the time she needed to work up the courage to ask something. And my patience was eventually rewarded.

"Why did you take me on as an apprentice?" Hinata asked. A fair question, one I couldn't fault her for. Ordinarily, apprenticeships were done by someone that had taken an interest in a young ninja's talent. This was the first time that we had ever met, however.

"Truthfully?" I didn't see any point in beating around the bush. "The Lord Fifth Hokage asked me to look after you." I didn't know if that answer would hurt or help in getting Hinata to open up to me, but I didn't want to start this apprenticeship off by lying to her.

"My uncle did?" Hinata showed faint surprise, the first real emotion that I had seen on her since I had entered the classroom. "Why would he do that?" It was technically my turn for a question, but I would let this slide, since Hinata was finally talking.

"Lord Hizashi seems to think I would be a good fit to be your teacher." I answered, despite having wondered to myself why he would trust an Uchiha of all people with his niece and the heiress to his clan. "Maybe we have more in common than the both of us think?" I couldn't be sure of that, but somehow it felt like Hizashi must have seen something there that we ourselves couldn't see yet.

"Doesn't that just make you my bodyguard?" Hinata averted her eyes again, looking down at the floor. It seemed she was the type to quickly lose her confidence. In that way, we were very much different.

"Your uncle is worried about your safety." I readily admitted. "You're more important to the village than ever now that he's Fifth Hokage." I couldn't help but stare at Hinata's unmarked forehead as I said this. "However, I'm not just your bodyguard. My job is to make you strong enough to defend yourself. So that one day you won't need me." Or anyone else, for that matter. However, I didn't add that part out loud.

"You can make me strong?" Hinata once again returned her gaze, looking me straight in the eyes. And this time, I saw the resolve buried deep in her Byakugan. All the strength she needed was already in there. It just needed to be drawn out.

"I can." I answered confidently, leaving no possible room for Hinata to doubt my words. "It won't be easy, but if being a kunoichi is what you really want, then I can teach you. Provided you're ready." Of course, being a kunoichi was about more than raw strength. There were many things Hinata had to learn, and not all of it would be pretty.

"I'm ready." Hinata said without hesitation and I didn't even try to hold back my smirk. So there was some confidence to be found in this girl after all, that was good to know.

"Alright. Then follow me to the training ground." I stood up, turning to leave the classroom. "You and I are going to spar. And we'll find out just what exactly it is that you're made of."

That was our first meeting.

Looking back on it now, I had no idea the type of person you were and completely misjudged you. That's not to say I dislike who you are. I just realized I have a long way to go myself. By writing this; maybe we can both get to where we want to be?

That's why I'm going to turn the next part of this logbook over to you. I'm looking forward to what you'll write, Hinata.

End Entry

AN: So we're starting off this story with Izumi's perspective. Really, this one is just more of a prologue. To try and establish some of the things that have changed and offer a comparison with Canon. Obviously the Uchiha massacre never happened in this version, and we'll get more into that later. Along with my choice of the new Hokage.

To be honest, I never had a lot of interest in Izumi as a character, since she is quite minor. I didn't even really know much about her until I started prepping for that Obito fanfic I wrote awhile back. And now I'm developing a story where she's one of the main leads. just goes to show, you never really know where you're going to go with something.

This idea started from Hinata, actually, and kinda developed into wanting to compare/contrast her with an Uchiha Kunoichi character, but I didn't want to make an OC, and gender-bending has never been something that appeals to me. So Izumi kinda got put in by necessity, but as I continued to develop that idea, I got more excited about it and Izumi's role blew up until she was sharing the lead.

Anyway, I'm looking into digging into her character more in the future, but that will have to be for later.

Next up is Hinata's first entry. Please look forward to that!