Stepping outside into the warm, summer air, Orochimaru could feel the energy coming off not only the genin behind him, but from the crowd that had formed around the makeshift arena. Tenzo had quickly created the stands for the spectators from where he was hiding with the rest of the Anbu, and Orochimaru let his eyes settle on each of the masked figures. Oh, how amusing it was to see them startle at the sudden attention. You would think the young Uchiha would be used to his antics by now, but he still tensed each time Orochimaru met his gaze. Kabuto had mentioned that the young man had trouble accepting compliments and Orochimaru had laid them on a bit thick. Which he thought was ridiculous—if he hadn't been traveling at the time, there was no doubt Uchiha Itachi would have been his apprentice instead of the genin behind him. He boy needed to understand his own genius and take the compliments.
He let Minato guide the genin as he saw Anko, Kabuto, and Kimimaro coming towards him. Smiling at them, he tried to picture some of the genin dealing with his other children.
While the Nara had some very promising abilities, Orochimaru knew that he would be essentially swallowing a beehive whole by separating the Ino-Shika-Cho team. The clans wouldn't object, per se, however, he knew they would be unsettled to have their traditions thrown off track. However, it was the boy's attitude that would no doubt cause conflict. Having dealt with the clan head before Nara Shikaku, Orochimaru knew that the Nara needed peace and quiet to truly flourish their skills outside of battle.
Without saying, Orochimaru's household would not be a good fit.
As for the Aburame and Uchiha, he could see just how deeply their clan roots ran in them. The Aburame would have the same issue as the Nara and would not be able to truly open up to his children unless under duress, which Anko would no doubt love to cause to the boy. As for the Uchiha, he had too much anger boiling under his skin for Orochimaru to deal with. He was not looking for a student who thought their clan was more important than the village and his own teammates. No, while that boy was intelligent and stubborn, he was clearly on track to follow his cousins' footsteps and join the Uchiha Police Force. He would be more suited to leading his own clansmen and acting like a savior.
Which left the last candidate.
Haruno Sakura.
The girl had already passed his little test of dealing with his summons—Yua had refused to be dismissed and was now hiding in his hair to watch the matches—and now she was showing to be quite the puzzle.
How had someone with better chakra control than Tsunade go under the radar for so long?
The Academy was not focusing on their students' abilities if no one had noticed the girl's control. There was nothing in her file, other than being a genjustu type, that would indicate this. Perhaps she was like his own children and didn't realize that not everyone had the kind of control she had. When he had her use the device he and Tsunade had made to test this ability with ease, he could see her confusion at doing something her classmates couldn't.
Surely, Kakashi would have noticed the girl's talents. However, as he had learned the hard way, a genius teaching students wasn't always the best. The young Hatake had an odd upbringing with almost all his peers a decade or even older than him, while leading an Anbu team when so young. He probably didn't know how normal children acted, especially in a time of peace.
What had Minato been thinking when giving Hatake Kakashi a genin team?
The hopeful idiot probably thought some youthful minds could help bring Hatake out of his shell, Orochimaru thought to himself. Then he should have shoved Hatake into the Academy's kindergarten program if that was the case, and not possibly damage his students' futures.
"Oi! Oro-sensei!" Anko called out to him, a truly frightening smile on her face as she nearly threw herself around him. After a year into her apprenticeship, Anko had decided that he was her personal plush to hug whenever she wanted to. He could remember one particular meeting with the clan heads that he had spent with her curled up in his lap, still covered in an enemy shinobi's blood. Sarutobi-sensei had smiled knowingly at them. "Have you picked a new brat yet? We really need new blood around here. Kimi-chan is getting so boring now!"
"Not all of can spend our days torturing unfortunate souls," the younger boy drawled. Ever since he had decided to start an internship as a teacher at the Academy, Anko had been teasing him unmercifully. Orochimaru had tried to curb her while leaving hints of wanting grandchildren eventually, either by blood or adoption.
"If I had already chosen, then we wouldn't be holding these matches."
"Then why is Yua whispering about the pink genin?" Kabuto raised an eyebrow.
"She got into my tea this morning," Orochimaru said smoothly. While true, the strong caffeine didn't have as much affect on her as his other summons.
"Uh huh," Anko giggled. "Come on, let's watch these brats tear each other apart!"
"Sadist," Kabuto deadpanned.
"Virgin."
"You—!"
"Behave, Anko." Orochimaru shook his head. Maybe she was right, and they did need someone to get Anko's attention off Kabuto. Although, he was easily riled by her. Confident his children wouldn't cause a scene in front of so many important people, Orochimaru let his eyes wander over the crowd.
Kushina was sitting next to the Uchiha matriarch and clan head. The red head looked excited, and even held a sign cheering her son on. Meanwhile, the Uchiha couple looked as refined as usual, but Orochimaru could see Fugaku occasionally glancing towards the Academy roof where a certain weasel-masked Anbu sat.
The rest of the clans were quietly chatting with each other, or in the case of the Inuzuka, was trying to get a rise out of the Hyuuga clan head. However, even though the families of the genin looked excited at their own showing off, the sensei were the ones who looked the most nervous. Kurenai and Asuma hadn't stopped sending him small glances since they trotted the genin out, while he swore Hatake looked like a man waiting for the gallows. Out of all them, Gai seemed the one to try and relieve the tension in the air.
"Ready, Orochimaru-sensei?"
Nodding, Orochimaru told Minato the first match.
The first few matches were what Orochimaru would have expected from the children of such prominent clans. They all used their clan justu or gekkai genkai with natural skill, but it was obvious their skills outside of their clan trainings were still being honed. The Yamanaka heiress would need to not rely on the mind transfer if she was ever left alone on a mission, while the Hyuuga heiress needed to work on her long-distance attacks. The Gentle Fist would only serve so well until she faced an opponent that refused to get remotely close to her.
The same could be said about the Uchiha and Inuzuka's match as well. The Inuzuka had impressive teamwork with his ninken, while the Uchiha had been overly confidence and had dismissed his opponent's upper hand. If the ninken had been older and larger, Orochimaru knew the match would have tipped enough for the Uchiha to realize his mistake, but since the Inuzuka was still training his pup, he had the disadvantage.
However, it was the third match that had everyone on the edge of their seats. The Hokage's son and a civilian fighting would mean new things, not clan justu versus clan justu. On top of that, it was teammate versus teammate.
Haruno had walked into the arena with her head held high and a determination that was refreshing to see. Young Naruto seemed hesitant to fight his teammate, but after a nasty look from the girl, he had nodded in understanding.
The match, however, wasn't as interesting as the clan justu.
While it was impressive to witness Naruto's natural chakra reserves from his Uzumaki blood and the Kyuubi, he had only really used one justu. Orochimaru could see Minato rub the back of his head in embarrassment at Naruto getting outsmarted so easily. If the boy had simply felt the chakra in his clones, he would have found the imposter immediately. But, it also showed Haruno had used her prior knowledge of her teammate to get the upper hand. Only if she had kept it.
While it was amusing to see the young girl being buried under the mass of clones, he was pleasantly surprised to see no ill will between them once the match was called. If his teammates had been in the same situation, someone would have gone home with a black eye. Most likely Jiriaya.
The next match was just as entertaining as a green clad youth stepped into the arena with the Aburame. For a second, Orochimaru swore he saw two other generations of garish green jumpsuits standing in Rock Lee's place. He couldn't help the devious smirk he sent Gai.
"Dai-san would be proud of his grandchildren being so youthful."
"He would! They are the most youthful bunch—" Suddenly, Gai froze, Orochimaru's words finally setting in. He was so still in fact, Orochimaru gently reached out with his chakra to check if he was breathing. He was fine, just a small panic attack at the realization that Rock Lee was basically his son. Smirking at him, Orochimaru wondered if he could brainwash Gai's students to start calling their sensei 'otou-san'.
Chuckling to himself, he watched the next few matches passively as he purposely had Gai's students showcase their skills. It was simply too much fun to tease the younger man—bashfulness wasn't a typical look on Maito Gai, but it was highly amusing. However, even with his attention on the matches and Gai's reddened face, Orochimaru glanced over at Haruno.
Orochimaru had clocked the very second the girl had stopped paying attention to the matches and was watching the crowd instead. Yet another thing with geniuses, they assumed too much. If she thought they would only have one round, then she was sorely wrong. Orochimaru hadn't come up with the matches before hand, simply picking them at a whim, but he had decided to turn it into a game. He allowed her to assume the test would be tournament style, and smirked at the shocked look on her face when her second match was called.
She had already showcased her trickery against Naruto, but how would she deal with a taijustu master in training? Her body looked frail, almost as if she hadn't eaten well in some time, while her muscles looked undefined. Even the other girls had more muscle than she did. Even though he could see similar thoughts running through her mind, he felt a small tendril of pride at the way she walked steadily into the arena. She clearly knew the odds were against her, but she refused to give up.
Unlike her match with Naruto, she had down right snarled at the way her opponent dismissed her. Instead of accepting her willingness to continue, Rock Lee had gone far too easily on her. Orochimaru could feel Gai's frown radiating at the way his student was hesitating. He hadn't shown any of the same attitude towards his other opponent, so what was so different about Haruno? Narrowing his eyes, Orochimaru rolled his eyes at the love-sick expression on the boy's face. If Haruno wasn't trying to beat him in physical combat, she could easily have played up the charm and asked him to forfeit instead.
As it stood, she was sick of his attitude as she kicked at him and tackled him to the ground. Her attacks were wholly uncoordinated as they rolled on the ground.
"Dear kami, she's another Anko," Kabuto hissed next to him. Smirking, Orochimaru had to nod along. Haruno might only know the Academy's basic fighting form, but she was an expert in fighting the civilian way: hit them where it hurts. If she had been quicker, she might have actually stabbed him and ended the fight.
It wasn't a surprise when Lee finally ended the fight after breaking the girl's nose. When she stood by herself, face in a wicked snarl with blood dripping down her face, Orochimaru knew in that instant. He could feel it in his bones as everything clicked into place.
This was the one he wanted as his new apprentice.
Maybe he really had a preference of students since he had seen the exact same kind of feralness on all of children's faces at one point in time. Anko most of all.
Even though she had been beaten down, was in pain, and lost both her matches, she stormed back to her place in line. The pure irritation at the situation was pouring off her in waves, and she refused to accept any type of pity from those who only saw her as weak. He watched her small interaction with the Hyuuga heiress, and flinch in pain as she silently put her nose back into place. He could feel Kabuto jerk next to him, no doubt wanting to yell at her for doing something without a medical-nin's supervision.
Orochimaru could have easily called the matches to a close, but there was more than one reason for this whole affair. He knew clan politics and how easily egos could be bruised—this kind of exercise allowed clans to hash things out without causing an incident. They needed to allow their youngest to show off the clan's strength and keep their position solid amongst the others. And, on top of that, Orochimaru was having too much fun seeing how increasingly vexed Haruno was becoming as she tried to predict the pattern of the matches.
He made sure to choose as randomly as possible from then on.
With the Nara using the shadows from the setting sun, Orochimaru had one more curveball for the girl. He had made his decision, but now came the moment of truth: how would she fair against an impossible fight?
"This will be the final fight, Minato-san," Orochimaru murmured. "Uchiha and Haruno."
Minato blinked at him and narrowed his eyes for but a second. Both of them knew how that match would end and the younger man was suspicious about what it would accomplish. Yet, he didn't question it and announced the match.
For a millisecond, Orochimaru felt bad for making the girl fight so many times, but once he saw the pure fury flaring to life in her eyes, he could only watch with pride as she spat at the smug boy across from her.
The match started predictably with Uchiha toying with his opponent and Haruno desperately trying to get him to take her seriously. Through the whole thing, he let his mouth wander and Orochimaru feared Fugaku would break his back with how stiff he was becoming as each word left his younger son's mouth. Glancing up at the Academy roof, Orochimaru could see the line of tension running through Weasel's body. Worst of all, Mikoto looked murderous and ready to storm the arena herself if Kushina hadn't been holding her back.
When the girl screamed profanity and threw dirt into Uchiha's eyes, the small tendril of pride exploded in his chest.
Ah, yes. There was no doubt she would be great someday.
"You go, little kunoichi!" Anko cheered next to him. "Stick it to 'em!"
However, that little stint had angered Uchiha irreparably. He must have the normal Uchiha belief that the Sharingan should be revered by the offense that thrummed through his body. In a blink, the boy had stopped playing with his teammate-turned-opponent as he released a bombardment of attacks on her. Kimimaro twitched at the sound of breaking bone as she tried to protect her head from his onslaught. She was then thrown around the arena like a ragdoll, barely weighing anything to the enraged boy.
However, a collective gasp left the crowd as lightning began to form around his fist.
"Chidori!"
Next to him, Orochimaru felt the panic coming from Hatake before he flash stepped between his students and dispelled the electricity forming around the boy. Tension and horror ran through the crowd at the serene expression of acceptance on Haruno's face as she had faced down her teammate.
A Konaha ninja should never be under the impression that a comrade will kill them intentionally.
"Friend-killer Kakashi…" was murmured in the crowd. "His students really followed in his footsteps."
Minato seemed the worst affected by the imagery as he called the match to an end. It wasn't shocking that Naruto came rushing out to his injured teammate, but the earlier comradery they had shared was gone as Haruno struggled to stand by herself and limped back to her position. Orochimaru sent Kabuto a stern look before he stepped forward himself.
It was amusing to feel everyone holding their breaths simply to hear him speak. Why hadn't he wanted to become Hokage again? Oh, right paperwork.
"After today's events, I have decided who my apprentice shall be."
Locking eyes with Haruno and seeing her pupils different sizes, he let some of the pride he was feeling show itself on his face.
"Haruno Sakura."
The words didn't seem to register for the girl as she stared dumbly at him. Surely her concussion wasn't that bad.
"What the hell?!" Lazily, Orochimaru let his eyes slide over to the ball of rage that was Uchiha Sasuke. "She didn't win a single fight!"
"Are you questioning me, boy?" Orochimaru hissed lowly, letting out the smallest amount of killing intent he could manage without causing an incident. As expected, the boy shrunk back with fear in his eyes. Sneering down at him, Orochimaru sent a withering look towards Fugaku. "Rein your youngest in before he gets himself banned from being a shinobi, Uchiha-san."
"I sincerely apologize for his words and actions, Orochimaru-sama," Fugaku came forward, bowing low. "He will be disciplined accordingly."
"I think he'll need more than that," he snipped. "If he can't control his anger, then he has no right to be on a battle field with his comrades."
"I understand, Orochimaru-sama."
Not giving the Uchiha any more time of day, he focused on the crowd and saw several clan heads already coming towards him.
"I thank all of you for allowing your children to participate today," he began, making them freeze in their tracks. "They have all shown great potential and I trust under their own sensei and clan teachings, they will all become great shinobi some day. If you would like, I will meet with you individual to discuss the matches. In the meantime, I will be getting acquainted with my new apprentice."
"Orochimaru-sama," Hyuuga Hiashi wouldn't be deterred by his dismal and instead came closer. "I would like a word."
"Both your daughter and nephew fought admirably, Hyuuga-san," Orochimaru spoke pleasantly.
"Thank you," the other man bowed slightly in thanks, as was what was required of him. It was all too amusing to play him like a puppet with the strings of formality and tradition. "But, you can't possibly take a civilian born genin as your student."
"I can't?" Orochimaru raised his eyebrows in challenge and gleefully enjoyed the man's moment of panic.
"I simply mean, with someone with your knowledge and talents, you should take on a more advanced student."
"I think a genin with better chakra control than my own teammate would be the smart choice, don't you agree?"
He relished in the shocked faces all around him as his words began to sink in. The older Nara cursed under his breath while Akimichi chuckled and nodded understandingly. The surprise coloring Hyuuga's face was priceless and an image Orochimaru would cherish at every clan meeting from then on.
"I will not fight your decision," Hyuuga finally mumbled.
"As if you could."
Turning away, Orochimaru sent Minato a look as he gently took the still dazed Haruno by her shoulder. He didn't have the patience to play politics and would let the young Hokage deal with the fallout. Thank kami he gave up on the silly idea of taking up the position himself.
Guiding the girl away from her gob smacked peers, Orochimaru frowned at the awful road burn that covered her exposed shoulders from where she had been thrown against the ground. Her left arm was swelling swiftly with a break while her footing was uncertain and threatened to bring her toppling over if he hadn't had a firm grip on her.
"Orochimaru-sama."
Raising an eyebrow, he met the hard expression of Hatake Kakashi.
"Ah, Kakashi-kun," he spoke pleasantly. "We will need to have a chat about Haruno-san's training, but first, I assume she has been under your guardianship?"
"What do you mean?" Even with most of his face covered, Orochimaru could see the confusion clear as day on his face.
"Her parents have been gone for three months, so I assume as her sensei, you have been the one looking after her. She might be legally allowed to do certain things as an adult, but as a genin under a jonin sensei, she still needs supervision." It was painfully obvious the younger man had no idea what he was talking about. "Thus, I will leave her in your care. I will send Kabuto to escort you both to the hospital since her concussion seems severe."
Gently, he pushed the girl into her sensei's arms. He looked uncomfortable as she leaned into him, face sweaty and looking ready to vomit. Smiling cheerfully at the sight, Orochimaru nodded his head graciously.
"Haruno-san, I look forward to your apprenticeship. I will give you some time with your team before we start you training. I will come check on you tomorrow and have a discussion with your sensei."
Hatake had to shake her a bit to respond and not stare at him like he was a hallucination.
"Thank you, Orochimaru-sama."
"Sensei," he correctly softly. "Recover swiftly."
Turning away, he signaled Kabuto to follow them while his other two children flanked him, sending menacing glares at any other clan heads trying to catch his attention. Anko had slung her arm around his shoulders again and smiled evilly at him.
"I knew you'd give me a little sister," she crooned. "I'm going to have so much fun with her."
"Please don't corrupt her, Anko-nee-chan," Kimimaro sighed.
"Me? Who do you think raised me to be like this?" She quipped. Smirking, Orochimaru hummed in acknowledgement. She was right; it'd be nice having another little, slightly insane girl running around.