Konoha
Hanabi wiped the sweat from her brow, taking a brief break from her intense training. Her father's voice echoed in her mind, insisting she maintain her regimen to impress her new Jounin sensei. With a dismissive wave, she shook off the thought and glanced around to ensure no one was watching. Quietly, she slipped away, heading towards the woods where she knew she'd find her cousin.
Spotting Neji meditating beneath a tree, Hanabi let her mask of regal Hyuga demeanor fall away. "Ni-saan!" she called cheerfully, rushing forward to hug him.
Neji opened his eyes, a rare smile spreading across his face as he hugged her back. "Hanabi, congratulations on passing the academy."
Hanabi pulled back slightly, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Thank you, Ni-saan! Now, where's my gift? You promised me something special!"
Feigning ignorance, Neji raised an eyebrow. "Gift? What gift?"
"Neji!" she pouted, crossing her arms.
Laughing softly, Neji relented and reached into his pouch, pulling out a set of glistening kunai. "Alright, alright. Here you go."
Hanabi's eyes widened as she took the kunai, marveling at the craftsmanship. "They're beautiful!"
All twelve of them were fresh from the smith. "Thank you, Ni-saan!" She hugged him again, even tighter this time.
Neji patted her back gently before pulling away. "So, tell me about your team. How are things going?"
Hanabi's face grew serious as she straightened up. "Everything is going well. I'm learning a lot."
Neji nodded approvingly. "Good. And do you remember your mission?"
Instantly, Hanabi's expression became disciplined and focused. "Yes. Get as close as possible to the Uchiha Heiress and Naruto."
"Perfect," Neji said, his eyes filled with pride. "Stay vigilant, Hanabi. You're doing great."
"I will, Ni-saan," Hanabi promised, her determination shining through. "I won't let you or Uncle Hizashi down."
Apartment Complex
The boy was weird. Satsuki decided. There were no two ways about it.
One aspect of the boy was the quiet nerd who stayed with his books and gave her brief answers. Then the other was the even quieter boy who seemed half in present and with the other half absent. Satsuki had witnessed this behavior during their training or whenever villagers were present. Back when he was a boy whom she saved, Naruto was more fearful and hid in the shadows. Now that he was training under Iruka now Anko, he was powerful. The boy had gotten bigger, more confident, and more assertive. He still deferred to Satsuki on things but that didn't mean a real creature wasn't curled up deep inside him.
Technically, Naruto was a shinobi, the villagers had to respond with a degree of reverence and protocol. Failure to do so could land one in significant legal trouble. However, that didn't mean that some fools didn't try and get deep into his head.
A near miss had almost happened on her last D-rank mission.
As soon as they stepped onto the property, the man, short and scruffy with a perpetual scowl, zeroed in on Naruto.
"You," the man snarled, "just don't mess things up like you usually do." His voice dripped with contempt.
Naruto laughed it off, scratching the back of his head. "Don't worry, we'll handle it!"
The man continued, his remarks becoming increasingly snide. "I'm surprised they even let you handle anything important. Must be desperate for help if they're sending someone like you."
Naruto's smile never wavered, but Satsuki noticed the subtle changes in him. His fists clenched and unclenched, and a flicker of rage darkened his eyes. She stayed alert, sensing the growing tension. The man huffed at seeing his stuff not bother the blonde so he upped the ante.
"Never seen a shinobi wore orange. Did your mom buy it for you?" He said and Naruto paused in his work. The man turned his back to them, browsing through his fridge when he spoke again.
"She has made poor choices. Just because it suited her fat ass doesn't mean it suits you. Whores look better in skimpy outfits. You? Not so much…." He said.
Satsuki saw Naruto's palm a shuriken, his posture stiffening as he moved to sneak behind the man.
"Naruto!" Satsuki called out, her voice sharp. "I need help with these electrical wirings."
Naruto paused, glancing at her, and then approached. When he was close enough, Satsuki leaned in, her voice low but firm. "Surrender it. Now."
Naruto glared at her. Was his eyes really turning black? Satsuki felt an impending sense of danger but didn't relent. She was the captain of this team damn it. She won't surrender! Satsuki held out an expectant hand towards him and Naruto snorted at her before dropping it in her hand.
Satsuki saw as their smirking patron smugly drank his beer. Never knowing how close he was to death. When they left the house, they heard the man yelp as he turned on his switches. An annoyed Hanabi stared at Naruto, "You rigged his wiring to prank him, didn't you?"
Naruto didn't reply but merely smiled.
Regardless the tension had been mounting and she could see it was taking a toll on even Hanabi who was taking strays by being in mere proximity to them. She didn't sympathize with the girl. To Satsuki, Hanabi was merely a work colleague. Despite Anko-sensei's insistence, Satsuki had yet to invite the girl to their shared compound.
Hanabi was a palace of privilege and arrogance. While Naruto and she were from a world of blood and guts. Where every day was war. Thankfully, Hanabi was mostly a competent shinobi who neatly met Satsuki's exacting standards. Also, Anko vouched for her, that counted for now.
Regardless, the anticipation in the time was rising. Their D-rank missions were lengthier than others with Anko sensei including weird demands. If a fruit shipment needed packing, she insisted that Genin secretly place packages in the boxes. Similar packages were placed in other items such as statues, electronics, and furniture. Anko had strictly ordered them not to open or poke around the packages. When asked what they were, she would always say that a good shinobi obeyed orders.
As Team 9 walked towards the training ground to meet Anko-sensei, Hanabi tried to make polite conversation with Satsuki Uchiha. "So, Satsuki, have you been working on any new jutsu lately?"
"I bet we can learn a lot more jutsus from each other if we trained after hours? You can join our grounds!" Hanabi said.
"Girl," Satsuki said, "If that were to happen, the knowledge would only be 1 way."
She smirked at seeing Hanabi bitterly scowl at her and took the lead by walking ahead of the duo.
Hanabi huffed in annoyance and turned her attention to Naruto. "Naruto, what are those gauntlets you're fiddling with? They look so cool!"
Naruto's expression remained neutral. "These gauntlets utilize spring mechanics and can launch senbon. They have a better accuracy than my arms."
"Wow, that's so cool!" Hanabi exclaimed, her eyes wide with interest. "How do the springs work?"
Naruto's tone was curt. "The springs store kinetic energy when compressed. When released, they launch the senbon with force. It's a delicate balance."
Their conversation continued animatedly until they arrived at the training ground. There, they found a smirking Anko waiting for them. "Welcome gakis," she greeted. "I've got a surprise for you—an exercise slash test."
Satsuki frowned. "Shouldn't we be on a C-ranked mission by now?" she protested.
Hanabi nodded in agreement. "Yes, we're ready for more challenging missions!"
Naruto remained silent; his eyes focused on Anko.
Anko chuckled. "You brats aren't ready for that heat," she said. "Trust me I would rather drill your bones right here and now than see you lose limbs out in the field."
Hanabi bristled. "I am ready!"
"Losing limbs can't be worse than the times you had us running up trees for an entire day," Satsuki muttered.
"Yeah! And you didn't even let us have food and water till all of us did it!" Hanabi said.
Anko's eye twitched in annoyance before smirking again. "Alright then, if you pass this exercise, your next mission will be a C-ranked one."
Naruto's voice was monotone. "What's the objective, Anko-sensei?"
Anko's eyes gleamed with mischief. "It's a hunt the missing-nin scenario. Y'all will be missing missing-nin that I, future ANBU chief, will be hunting down with extreme prejudice. Also, to make things fair, you will get an hour's worth of head start."
Satsuki crossed her arms, clearly unimpressed. "We'll win." She glanced at the terrain behind him. Through the use of earth jutsus it resembled canyons with steep falls and narrow creeks.
Hanabi nodded enthusiastically. "We won't let you down."
"Well then quit staring at me and get to work!" Anko said and the three bolted inside the training arena.
Enter the Canyon
With Anko's clock running, the team dashed into the canyon hoping to go in deep and settle. When they were inside, Satsuki held up a hand and the team stopped. They had been running through deep terrain for a while and were somewhat out of breath.
"What now?" Hanabi asked and Satuski glared at her and made a zipping motion, gesturing to the young girl to shut up. Hanabi looked to Naruto for support, but he was already lying down on his stomach with his mouth on the ground. Satsuki too made the same move, and she followed the bizarre ritual. Satsuki brought her hands to her mouth and spoke directly to the ground. In better days, her father had taught her the technique. If you speak to the ground, your voice is muffled and it is harder to pick up tech or jutsu. Satsuki smirked as she saw Hanabi's shock at Naruto's explanation.
You are way out of the league, little one. Satsuki thought.
"We have covered ground but didn't check the surroundings. We probably missed out on a lot of traps and people recording our movement." Naruto said.
"I would bet the bank that Anko-sensei knows exactly where we are right now," Hanabi said.
"Use your eyes. See if you can spot her." Naruto recommended it.
"Hai," Hanabi replied and started surveying their surroundings. "I can't see her."
"Problematic," Naruto replied. Satsuki mulled over their options.
"Not if we distract her." Satsuki declared. "Naruto, use your ninjutsu. If we use my Sharingan I can help direct your Chakra flow. We set up multiple fake rest spots to confuse her. It's the only way we can flush her out." Satsuki declared.
"She will right through it. The chakra signature will simply not be enough." Hanabi said.
"You got a better plan, Hyuga?!" Satsuki demanded.
"Ladies please," Naruto murmured.
"Each of us goes with a separate illusion. That way even if she senses a fake, she will have to investigate it." Hanabi whispered.
"That will divide our strength. We will never win against her 1v1." Satsuki said.
"Not if we all rush to aid the spot which she has attacked," Hanabi said.
"And how will we know? She could sneak up on us. Any echo in the canyons and she will use genjutsu to muffle it." Satsuki fired back.
Naruto didn't reply but simply pulled out headpieces and distributed them.
"She can easily tap into this and mute it, Naruto." She said.
"Listen, if we don't say anything and merely leave it out. It will still produce a sound. That sound is your indication that someone is in trouble. Also, each set has an individual digital code, check it on your receivers to see who it was." Naruto said.
"Whew. Nice one, Naruto." Hanabi smiled and Naruto nodded.
"Thank you for your acknowledgment." Satsuki drily commented before the trio each divided the region they wanted to entrap. None of the three noticed a pale snake slithering away from the trio.
Meanwhile, Anko observed from atop a cliff. Her night vision binoculars locked onto the trio with their mouth locked to the ground. She couldn't decide if she wanted to strange or complement the gakis. Complement them for coming up with a brilliant plan that was frankly beyond what she had expected of the Genin. Strangle because none of them had noticed her observing them without a cover, genjutsu, or a ghillie suit.
The Hyuga constantly glanced at her but failed to pick up her disguise. Clearly didn't work hard enough on identifying people.
Satsuki was too dismissive of others and too sure of himself. Also, she only brought out her Sharingan on occasion instead of hitting it right off the bat.
Naruto didn't bother to offer enough insights and judging by physique, was ignoring his conditioning again.
Worst off, neither spotted her summons. How do you not notice that pale snakes were not a common occurrence in the area?! It was a canyon. All the animals were brown! Clearly the gakis were not reading the reports that she had assigned them. The training had been hinted at for months and Anko had sufficiently debriefed them about the area. Oh well. If they didn't learn through words, a few broken bones will more than suffice. Anko cackled to herself as she got off from the cliff and decided to chose violence that day.
Hanabi
Hanabi raced through the woods in a bid to be the first one to reach her spot. A trip wire glinted in the sunlight, and she jumped over it only to hear a whistling sound.
Shuriken! She panicked.
She spun in the air and a chakra field materialized around her as if a tornado. The Shuriken deflected and cut the wire neatly in half. She smirked, "I am too good for that, sensei!"
As if Anko had telepathically answered her with a "As you wish."
Shuriken: Kage Bunshin no Jutus! And Hanabi panicked as a swarm of shuriken bloated out the sky. Hanabi immediately activated whirlwind.
Eight Trigrams: Palm Rotation
Several shuriken bounced off her, but the waves were relentless and Hanabi had no choice but to maintain it. Suddenly she felt her feet being pulled at and the Earth below turned into sinking mud that disrupted her concentration. A few shuriken scratched her but thankfully they were blunted. Not knowing what to do Hanabi immediately activated her radio and let static burst. Hopefully, her teammates would know what it was and rush to her defense. With chakra near depletion, Hanabi groggily put her hands up in a desperate bid for a final defense.
She vaguely heard Anko yell Suiton before multiple water bullets struck her, knocking her out.
Anko hadn't even bothered to engage her in Taijutsu.
Satsuki
Satsuki had just about finished laying tripwires and digging holes before her headset erupted in static. It took her a moment to register what was happening before she dropped everything and rushed towards where Hanabi was. Despite everything, Satsuki still wanted the girl to pull along just so she could achieve that C-rank mission.
She spotted Hanabi a few steps hiding beneath a crevice as she wrapped bandage around herself.
"Hyuga." She said.
"Uchiha" Hanabi replied.
"What happened?" Satsuki asked.
"Sensei attacked me. I managed to fend her off just a few miles back." Hanabi said and pointed towards a ditch left of her. "Naruto is over there fiddling with something."
Satsuki nodded at her then proceeded to go to Naruto. She heard a cracking sound and paused. The rock beneath her was weak. She slowly tuned to see "Hanabi" behind her morph into Anko.
"Always mind your surroundings, gaki." Anko said and tossed a rock at her position causing the floor to give way. Satsuki grunted as her legs gave way beneath her and she seemed to float in and our of consciousness. She turned to see Naruto too lying in a pretty beat up state.
"Lovely." She muttered as the world went dark.
No More Kid Gloves
Hanabi gasped as a splash of cold water jolted her awake. She tried to move but couldn't. She was tied together with her teammates. Thankfully, Satsuki and Naruto too seem to come to and gained consciousness. Anko sat cross-legged ahead of them occasionally flashed a flashlight on their faces in order to wake them.
"Well look at your sorry lot now. So much for wanting to do a C-ranked mission. You failed in your first survival training. If I had been a real adversary, it would taken me less than 23 minutes to kill you all. All those grand hopes and dreams would have been lost in an instant." Anko mocked them.
Satsuki groaned at that, and anger flashed in Anko eyes. She grabbed her by the hair and placed a kunai to her throat. "Give me one damned good reason to not slit your throat right here, right now, Uchiha. Its not like somebody is waiting for you back home, now, is it? Nobody would even bother investigating. Training accidents happen all the time."
That seemed to spark some defiance in the girl, and she did her utmost to glare at Anko. Anko laughed for a bit before backhanding the girl. "If only you had saved such whim and vigor for when it actually mattered. You couldn't even maintain your Sharingan for even an hour. If you had used those peepers properly instead of glaring daggers into Iruka, you would known how to spot a white fucking snake in a brown environment!"
"You Hyuga." She pointed at Hanabi. "How long are you going to ride their coattails? Are you a shinobi or a fucking escort? If I were Iruka I wouldn't have even passed you."
"Sensei we did our-" Anko kicked her in stomach and Hanabi fell face first into the dirt below. "Your best wasn't enough, kid. It wasn't enough here. It wasn't enough then. It wasn't enough when Hizashi died protecting your sorry lot. It won't be enough to accomplish an iota of whatever grand delusions you have."
She kicked sand and dirt in her face. "Perhaps it would have been better if Lord Hyuga had spared his budget by not paying for your academy fee. You would have been better of as a broodmare to some limp-wristed inbred princeling in the Daimyos' court."
"You failed to use your Byukagun. Clearly, you haven't been using it in the exercises I assigned you. Had you done those, you would have easily spotted the changes in Chakra temperature and frequencies between a henge, a summon, and a decoy." Anko muttered.
She stopped in front of Naruto, her gaze like daggers. "You," she sneered, "demon kid. You're supposed to be the team's intelligence. Why did you turn off your brains for the mission?" She slapped him hard across the face. "Why haven't you been focusing on the strength training schedule I assigned you?" Another slap. "You couldn't even lift a small boulder from your leg! Do you think my time is so cheap that I have to waste it on a student who doesn't follow instructions?" Slap. "And what about thinking tactically? Interteam passwords are Shinobi Tactics 101 for identification!"
"Aren't you demons supposed to be smart? How long did all your fancy toys last you, boy?" Another slap across his face. "Did you even bother field testing your shit? Or is my time for testing purposes? Aren't you demons supposed to be smart?"
Naruto remained silent. His face was beaten and bruised by Anko's relentless assault. The team all sat with their heads bowed. This was a completely different Anko they had known from their time past. This was a superior officer who was furious at her orders not being followed.
"Look at you, all sitting there worthlessly. Not even worth your Hitai-ate." Anko said. "In fact, I am revoking your shinobi privileges, civilians."
She then proceeds to roughly yank all their protectors off. Hanabi tried to hold it back but let out a treacherous sob. Even Satsuki looked horror-stricken at that.
"Oh, so now you are all blubbery and wet. Wait let me give you something to cry about." Anko said and took their water canteens and poured their water on them.
"There you are all nice and wet. You are lucky you got me. If I was an Iwa nin, your eyes would have been plucked out with a kunai. They would flay one of you. Break the bones of another. Tear the eyelids of another so they would witness all. While modern agreements ban rape, trust me, there are a lot worse fates than that." Anko said.
A brief pause followed. Anko took off her trench coat lit a cigarette and sat in front of them. Anko pulled her legs to her chest and occasionally rocked back and forth. Satsuki could've sworn she saw a tear escape her eyes but didn't think it wise to bring it up. A long silence passed as Anko smoked her cigarette and the others focused on their colossal failure. This was their first real taste of shinobi life. Nothing in the academy came even close to what they faced and learned here. Surprisingly, it was Naruto who dared to break the silence first.
"We await your orders, Sensei. What happens now." He asked.
Anko snorted at that and took one long stroke of her cigarette before putting it out. "Unlike some, I am not a clan shinobi. I have worked too hard and for too long to get here. I have sacrificed damn near everything. I won't be denied my rightful place in the village just because a bunch of brats are too damned lazy to work."
"I am going to cut you lose now," Anko said and tossed their headbands. "You have two options here on out. Either you march right up to the Hokage tower and submit your resignations. Or you can go home pack your things and meet at gate no 4 tomorrow."
The trio eagerly rubbed their writs to prevent the numbing effect. Anko twirled the kunai in her finger before speaking again.
"We will be heading to the training fields near FOB Thunder. Y'all better come prepared to come in 101% ready because hell on Earth awaits you." Anko said. "I would rather you break your bones in training than be tortured to death in the field."
Anko pulled out a PDA and held it to the trio. They saw Sakura and Shinji in intensive care as multiple medics went to work on them.
"Kakshi Hakate led an undertrained and ill-equipped team to Wave Country on their first C-ranked mission. This is what happens when you don't take this lifestyle seriously." Anko said. "They were lied to by their client and set upon by Zabuza Momochi. An infamous motherfucker with a penchant for carving up people. He is ex-Seven Swordsman of the Mist."
All three gasped at seeing the pitiful state of their once proud colleagues.
"It was due to luck that Zabuza stumbled upon Kakashi that they were able to safely abort. Also, I hear there was quick thinking on Shinji's part as well." Anko said and put the device away.
"I will not allow this to happen," Anko said. "When we are out there, it's do or die. I don't mind dying for the cause. It's what we all signed up for. But I will be damned if I die due to incompetency by you lot." Anko said and pulled her fishnet down. A series of brutal marks wracked much of the left side of her back.
Hanabi audibly at those and even Satsuki looked sick.
"Electric Torture…." Naruto muttered and Anko grimly nodded at that as she placed her clothes back on.
"It's time to grow up gakis. You are shinobi. Not children anymore." Anko said and then leaped away into the evening darkness. The trio sat there stunned for a few seconds before Satsuki leaped up and repeatedly snapped her fingers at Naruto.
"Up. Up. Team 9." She spoke. "We need to get home and stock up on shit. Also, I have intel files on training areas near FOB Thunder. Iruka gave us those on graduation day. We will thoroughly review those and at Dawn buy what we want from the traders."
Naruto nodded at that and got up to join her. The two started walking before Satsuki paused and turned back to see Hanabi still sitting down.
"Hyuga, get a move on?" Satsuki said.
"Wait, you want me to join you?" Hanabi asked.
"Duh, I did say team 9? Come on we have plenty of space back home and it's better if we spend the night reviewing together." Satsuki said. Hanabi smiled broadly at that.
"Hai." She said and leaped up to join them on the long walk back home. A new Team 9 would rise from the ashes of this defeat, stronger than before. You better believe it!
Author Notes; Read and Review.