Chapter 14: Unwanted decisions.
Yuuhi Kurenai looked at the number of people entering the Hokage Tower. If there was any doubt in anybody's mind that something important was about to happen, it would've been enough to glance at the sheer amount of jounin converging in a single room to vanish those thoughts. It seemed Kakashi had been right in his estimates about when the next exams were to be held.
The young woman wondered about her decision one more time.
She knew for a fact that the renowned copy ninja was determined to push his team to take the exam. The whispers about his C turned B-rank made it clear the man wasn't just stroking his own ego.
No.
It wasn't just that, after all, this was the first team that lasted more than a day under him, since the man had stepped down from ANBU. If such a strict teacher had relented and was actually intending to put those kid's names forward, it had to be because he genuinely thought them worth his time. In fact, if their earlier conversation was anything to go by, then the man was not only confident that all his students would make it to the end in one piece, but he felt sure that at least one of his genins would actually be promoted.
Where Asuma was concerned, she was quite sure his decision had less to do with actually believing his students could pass, and more with the certainty they would all survive the ordeal and gain valuable experience. And if in the process, the Nara heir (who was apparently every bit the genius his father was) managed to earn enough leadership skills to be promoted...well, it was all the better.
Regardless of the results, just having their teams participate and reach the last stage in one piece would do wonders for everyone's reputation.
Something Kurenai couldn't really bring herself to care about.
The fact that she'd been assigned a genin team so shortly after making jounin was a testament to it. After all, there was little chance of fighting a well known opponent when watching over a bunch of D-ranks. The opportunities to gain fame were ridiculously diminished as a jounin sensei, so most elites had to be forced to take on such a hassle. Especially before a year had passed from their promotion to the so desired rank. Kurenai hadn't cared one bit.
She hadn't been lying to Kakashi when she said she was happy about not being born in one of the more famous clans. Sure, kekkei genkais could make their job safer (**easier**), but she was more than content with her own clan's natural proficiency in genjutsu. Underestimated as they were, Kurenai had learned that illusions could provide cover and even save the lives of her teammates with a lot more ease than just rushing into battle and hope the enemy would fall by brute force. Naturally, the benefits of mastering genjutsu usually meant the specialist was locked into a support position most of the time. Yet another reason many didn't bother to master the art despite its advantages (well, that and the rigorous chakra control needed for it).
Regardless, the young woman supposed her preference in which ninja art to focus on reflected her own attitude perfectly.
That was why she hadn't minded taking the position before she could shine on her own as a jounin solo op or team leader. If she could help inspire and prepare the children like her own teacher had taught her, that was all she really needed to feel successful.
Which was why she was pondering on her decision regarding adding her students' names to the exam or not.
For her, it wasn't a matter of survival. All of her three kids were more than good enough to make it through the first two stages (whatever they may be), and the rules of the fixed last test made their odds of making it out still breathing more than high enough for her to feel confident in her choice. The real question wasn't if they would still be alive by the end of it...but if they would gain anything that was worth the risk they'd be taking.
Kurenai's own teacher had waited two years to put her old teammate's names, and even then, they'd failed the first time. What they'd learned about themselves both as individuals and as a team had been invaluable, though.
As it was, the jounin had no doubts that both Shino and Kiba could indeed gain something from being pushed so early in their careers. The one she found herself thinking about, over and over again, was Hinata. In just grades and physical qualifications, the girl was not bad. Being capable of keeping up with her male teammates during morning drills and showing a good head for planning (when given a chance for her to calm down), she was far from a problematic student. The girl was good at following instructions and never threatened to disobey orders...and that was precisely the problem.
Hinata's voice in her own team was way too quiet.
Even before she took the team, Kurenai had been well aware that while the Hyuuga heiress was above average in her performance at the academy, she was still far from being considered prodigious. Her scores were good, but they didn't come close to her genius cousin, nor the best in her class like the Uchiha boy. Not even in her gender could she take first place, falling behind the Higurashi survivor (who, to be fair, was also lauded as a prodigy considering she managed to get a really close second place). And all of that only placed the poor girl in a terrible position in front of her father. If she'd had issues with the man before, it only got worse after those results came out. In fact, Kurenai was quite sure she'd only just begun to scratch the surface of his student's self-confidence issues.
Which was why she'd been so surprised when the shy girl had approached her about fixing a relationship with an old almost-friend., and proceeded to give a not so vague description of Higurashi Kagome. Especially when said maybe reconciliation happened over dinner and considering who the people in the group were, Kurenai had a good idea where said meal had happened. Never would the jounin had thought the girl had enough courage to disobey her father's orders. After all, there was no universe in which Hyuuga Hiashi would ever be agreeable to have his daughter or any other Hyuuga visit the almost abandoned Uchiha Compound.
That day the girl had actually spoken up during their daily mission, a bit braver than usual as she shyly but determinedly made a suggestion.
Personally, Kurenai still wasn't sure if it was because of bridging the gap Hinata blamed herself for creating, or if it was because of the praises the village prankster showered her in.
That had been another reason for her to look for Kakashi. Her only female student was very much interested in Konoha's least liked genin, the Kyuubi's jailor. Jumping to conclusions would only ever lead to mistakes; this was a lesson she'd been taught ever since she was a child, and it was the jounin made sure to follow. Unlike most of her peers, the woman had decided earlier on not to pass judgment on the boy.
It wasn't as if she fought to try and protect the boy's reputation, but she never went out of her way to tarnish it either; she simply didn't care. Her clan had been lucky enough not to lose anyone during the attack (illusion specialist rarely made good opponents to extremely powerful and uncontrollable chakra monsters), and none of the boy's pranks ever affected her. Truth to be told, she'd pretty much ignored his existence. Until the one incident that had his name and that of the Uchiha's being whispered in every single household that is. The attempted kidnapping of the lone survivor of the old Higurashi clan shortly after Cloud failed to do the same to her own student.
Rumors about the inadequacy of the Uchiha's in protecting such an endangered bloodline flooded the village. That the would-be-kidnapper had managed to get the girl out of their compound while their prodigy was out. Had it not been for the small child who recognized her and proceeded to literally bite the hell out of the unknown ninja, even Uchiha Itachi would have had problems tracking his family's ward.
After that little incident, seeing the boy as the demonic fox that almost killed them all was not something she was able to do. Especially considering that if the rumors were right, then the five-year0old ended up in the hospital for a week.
So no, the red-eyed woman had not been horrified to find out that her student liked to...watch from afar (and she would probably have to have a talk with the girl later on about how that may not be the best approach to the situation) the village's pariah. In fact, by following Hinata around a bit, Kurenai had actually been surprised that for all the criticism, the boy was not half bad when working together with his team.
And honestly, she'd never seen someone with a sunnier disposition.
So she'd gone ahead and decided to try and corral Hatake Kakashi. The man was well known for pushing everyone away and keeping them that way. Only Maito Guy continued to persist in having a friendship/one-sided rivalry with the aloof elite. Of course, there would be no point to it if he regarded his team the same way he regarded his coworkers.
Learning to play the political game was something required for infiltration missions, and if there was one thing genjutsu specialists were used for in solo missions was precisely that. Subtles probes here and there showed the man cared enough for his team to tolerate her presence, but not close enough for him to be informed of what they did in their day to day. Then again, at the very least two out of the three probably had some degree of trust issues.
If possible she'd have preferred to try and have their teams work together before the exams, as it were however, she felt confident the man would probably advise his team against going against fellow Konoha genins during the first phases.
And that brought her back to her own dilemma, the moment Kurenai left the paper in her students' hands the decision would be made. Hinata would never not agree to something if it could drag her teammates down with her. On the other hand, having those two also take the exam could serve as motivation for her to become the strong kunoichi Kurenai knew the Hyuuga heiress could become.
"Now then." The familiar voice of their leader pulled her out of her thoughts. The room she'd been waiting in was now filled with every single team leader wanting to promote their underlings. "We'd like to hear first those who have overseen the training of our newest genin."
The group parted to give way for them to move. Kurenai blinked at the sight of the redhead standing with them before she remembered, this year's graduates were ten instead of nine. The outlier, civilian raised if she remembered correctly, had been placed in an existing team, the young woman suppressed a huff. Like there was any chance the poor girl had any chance of not being pushed forward regardless of how ready she was with that woman as her teacher.
"Masters Kakashi, Kurenai, Asuma, and Shunran." The Hokage looked at all of them. "Tell us, do any of you have among your charges any genin you'd recommend for this year's chuunin exam?
"Please keep in mind that before we can even begin to consider them, they must have completed a minimum of 8 missions, a C-rank between them. Beyond that, employ your own judgment as to whether they are ready to aspire to the next level."
The Hokage remained silent, probably so they could fully grasp the implications their next words would have. Kurenai wondered if there had ever been someone who faltered just because of those sentences.
"You may begin, Kakashi."
"Team number 7, lead by Hatake Kakashi consists of Uchiha Sasuke, Higurashi Kagome, and Uzumaki Naruto. I vow upon the honor of my clan - the Hatake - that all three of them are ready for the chuunin selection exam."
No surprise there, taking a deep breath she stepped forward, purposefully ignoring the surprised looks on the other shinobis' faces.
"Team number 8, lead by Yuuhi Kurenai consists of Hyuuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba, and Aburame Shino. I vow upon my own clan - the Yuuhi - that I am as certain as my esteemed colleague," This was it, no turning back. "that all three of them are ready for the Chuunin Selection Exam."
Unsurprisingly the number of shocked faces only increased even more after Asuma and Shunran repeated their same words. Idly, she wondered when was the last time every single graduate was entered into the exam in their first go.
"J-just a moment!" A new voice broke out.
"Yes, Iruka?"
"Hokage-sama, please allow me to speak!" Iruka was not so much talking as he was screaming, panic invading his words. "Forgive if I overstep, but all of those ten genins were my students while they were at the academy." That was...surprising, most would keep quiet and take the credit for teaching genins that could qualify for the exam so quickly. It seemed, however, that the young chuunin was about to object. "Certainly, they are all gifted, and show both commitment and talent but...it's too soon for kids that young to be stepping up to chuunin level.
"They need time to acquire the kind of experience and maturity those tests need. I don't understand why their supervisors can't see that."
Kurenai didn't bother to hide her sigh, it was one thing to care for his former students (the red-eyed woman commended him for it, even), but he was overstepping his boundaries now. For far too much.
"I was six years younger than Naruto when I attained the rank of chuunin, Iruka-sensei."
Which was unheard of even for geniuses at the time, and in their current peaceful times all but impossible. Still, the young woman refrained from commenting.
"Naruto's not like you!" She failed to keep the shock out of her face, that was not the name she expected to hear from the overprotective chuunin. "Do you want to destroy those children?!
"You all know what they call the Chuunin Selection Exams don't you?!"
And now he'd turned back to screaming to all of them equally.
"They're never happy with any lower mission they have, and they keep going on and on about getting stronger. It would do them well to see just what someone strong really looks like," Kakashi said, tone mocking, and Kurenai couldn't help but wonder what sort of amusement he was getting from this confrontation. The man may not show it, but being willing to play politics for the sake of his students made obvious that this whole thing was just for the sake of riling Iruka up. "Let's admit it, breaking them would be fun."
"Are you out of your mind!"
"It was only a joke, Iruka-sensei" Again, his tone failed to match the words being said. "I understand you, and I'm sorry if my recommendation upsets you, but I still stand by it.
"But..."
"Kakashi, can we finish this?" she interrupted, this was becoming too tiresome. It was one thing to recognize his care for his former students, but having her own judgment be questioned like Kurenai herself was fresh out of the academy was something she wasn't willing to endure for this long."
"It's none of your business anyway, they're not your students anymore." For once she believed him to be serious. "They're soldiers under my command."
A bit harsh, true...but also not a lie.
Getting used to seeing things before they actually happened was harder than Sasuke would've thought. Letting out a sigh, the Uchiha deactivated his sharingan, crimson changing to onyx just in time to let him see Kagome's wires trip Naruto and let the girl's kick connect twice. Not too strong. She was clearly distracted, but then again, she was probably still mulling about the encounter with the foreigners from the day before...
And trying to keep track of whoever else had been watching them all the way to the compound and once again earlier today.
Once in the safety of the Uchiha main house, the girl had confessed there may be more to worry about since they seemed to be persistent. And no, it wasn't the redhead, Gaara was it, because there was (apparently) something really distinctive about the boy.
I couldn't feel him, she'd said, I don't know how far he was before he got there, or how he was even aware of what was going on, but I couldn't feel him until suddenly, he was just there. And then, there was no way not to feel him until he left...look, just promise we'll be careful...
Sasuke hadn't argued.
Whether it was because her intuition was related to her bloodline, if she was simply chakra sensitive, or just gifted with extraordinary instincts, the girl had yet to be proven wrong when it came to stuff like this.
At least, when asked about the ones who stalked them to the Uchiha compound, Kagome had been certain there was nothing out of the ordinary. Probably watching from afar, meaning they weren't complete idiots, and they weren't a familiar presence, but that was about it. Considering a lot of foreigners were in the village right now, they'd ended up with nothing as their result. They couldn't even be sure who in specific (of anyone) they were watching. Collecting information in possible competitors had to be a common tactic after all. Of course, knowing that did absolutely nothing to take the edge off.
Sasuke would be happy once this all died over and they could get back to silently investigating the secrets Konoha had gone so far to bury.
Sure, in a way, the presence of the foreigners meant that most of Konoha's forces had their eyes trained on the aliens instead of them, but it wasn't worth it if that meant potentially dangerous strangers would be looking their way.
Kagome stopped her match, dancing away from the blond as he overestimated his punch (and how many times were they going to have to repeat the same lesson to the hyperactive prankster before it sunk?), stumbling slightly to his left.
Unsurprisingly, their perpetually late teacher landed on the tree in front of them.
They'd wondered about Kagome's unusually keen intuition, but so far the best conclusion all four of them managed to arrive was that the girl was just chakra sensitive. Something that failed to account for a fair number of things, like having 'bad feelings' hours before whatever mess they'd inevitably ended up tangled in, happened. Thinking about it calmly, it was probably for the best, Hatake Kakashi had obviously been chosen for this team for his borrowed sharingan, but there was no way to make sure the man didn't know more than he appeared to. Keeping as many of their clans' secrets as possible, even from their own teacher was for the best.
"Ah, sorry, sorry," the albino smiled infuriatingly. "I got lost on the path of lies and..."
"Yeah right, those are just lies." It was a testament to how often this happened that the blond wasn't even bothering to shout.
"Maah, maah, this time I do have a legitimate reason for being late you know?" Kakashi-sensei seemed to smile beneath his mask. "I hope you have noticed the appearance of some non-Hi country people arriving in Konoha?"
"You could say that..." Kagome's hand shot to pinch the blond before he could open his mouth again. Technically, they didn't do anything wrong. Technicalities were too flimsy to rely on.
"Then I could expect you know what the Chuunin Selection Exams are?"
"Oh yeah," Naruto jumped again, the pinch quickly forgotten. "I was thinking that entering those might be a good idea!"
"Naruto-kun, the Chuunin Exams are not something we can decide to enter, it's our jounin teachers who make the call on whether or not their teams are ready." The girl was smiling with fond exasperation, they'd explained that to him already.
"But why?"
"So that idiots who think too highly of themselves don't get themselves killed before they even have a sliver of a chance at surviving." The Uchiha explained again, why was it the blond could memorize and learn something as complex as the kage bunshin but remembering something they said the day before seemed impossible?
"Sasuke is right, this exam is not a light or easy task to complete. Many die during it, and even if they don't, permanent injuries are a very real possibility." The man's face had darkened as he spoke, his one eye, piercing them all by turns "Deciding which genins are ready to apply is a very serious matter...which is why I chose to put forward all of your names.
"Of course, that doesn't mean you have..." The man's next words were cut short by the suddenly enthusiastic ball of energy that was his childhood friend, as Naruto tackled the man to the ground. Countless "thank you's!" and "you're the best!" cheerfully screamed.
His brow twitched, the man who, even with their combined effort, had never been made to kneel...had been tackled to the ground like a common civilian. At least the man looked supremely uncomfortable while trying to pry the blond menace away.
"Anyway, as I was saying," Kakashi-sensei coughed, and Sasuke could almost swear there was a faint shade of pink rising from under his mask. "I've recommended you three to enter, but you're not forced to enter. This can be just as dangerous or even worse as your B-rank mission, this is a decision you'll need to make on your own. If any of you feels like it will be better to wait for the next one, there will be no repercussions.
"If you wish to enter, then there are the applications you'll need to fill. Then report to room 301 at the school by 4:00 pm tomorrow afternoon, if you decide not to, then there's no need to go. You should think well about it on your own so there will be no training today. That's all."
With that, the man vanished in a poof of smoke. Idly he wondered if Kakashi-sensei actually thought for a second any of them would hesitate to enter, or if he was just following protocol. Probably the latter.
"Well, since we have the rest of the day, why not go for an early lunch?" Kagome grabbed his hand before he had the chance to turn to the Uchiha district's direction. "We'll pay."
Sasuke groaned at the joyful cheer from the blond. He knew what the girl was doing, she wanted to take advantage of the unexpected break to keep looking through the family's archives but felt guilty about leaving their childhood friend on their own. Taking Naruto out for lunch was a way to compensate for letting the blond alone for the rest of the afternoon. Which meant there was no way they would not end up at Ichiraku's.
It wasn't like he had a problem with the man, in fact, Ichiraku had been one of the few people Sasuke didn't actively dislike, ever since finding out the things the village tried to hide though, being around most villages became...difficult.
Affection and pride was not something the Uchiha had ever really felt for Konoha (for his clan, once upon a time, before he realized they turned out to be disloyal traitors), nor its people shinobi or otherwise. People had never seen him, only ever another Uchiha, the younger brother of their prodigy. They hadn't cared for Sasuke, so he didn't care for them. And that indifference had quickly turned into dislike after learning about Naruto's unwanted prisoner. These people had turned on the one who saved them...it only made the chances that his father's claims weren't just excuses rise more and more...and now dislike didn't feel like the right word anymore.
He'd been lucky to have always refrained from interacting with their clients because he was sure he wouldn't be able to keep the polite charade Kagome constantly used.
Spending any amount of time out of the district and surrounded by people who selfishly enjoyed the safety bought by the suffering of the few people he cared about was unbearably irritating.
"Yeah! We're having Ichiraku's today!" A strong grip grabbed their intertwined hands and then they were being pulled by the hyperactive blond. "What are you waiting for?"
"Coming, coming."
"The food isn't going to disappear, moron."
He sighed as he allowed the blond to manhandle them. It wasn't like they could completely avoid getting out anyway, at least the blond made for good entertainment.
Dark eyes glanced at the piece of paper in his hand. The application form for the Chuunin Selection Exams was a simple thing, asking only for basic information and a signature. They would enter, of course, they needed to access information that would be hard to get as a genin without attracting unwanted attention.
For all the warnings Kakashi-sense gave, Sasuke was sure the man wanted them to enter. The wave mission was technically a chuunin level assignment after all. And honestly, he had no doubt they could make it out, Naruto may like to act like a fool, but he came through when they needed him, and Kagome's mastery over her kekkei genkai had jumped quite a bit in the last few weeks.
He wasn't second-guessing his own abilities, or his teammates' and yet...he looked at the girl walking next to him, lantern on hand as they made their way back home after another infuriating session of trying to unearth whatever they could from the sanitized Uchiha archives. He couldn't help but frown as he remembered their earlier encounter with the Suna nin, his fists tightening as he thought the way both males had shown interest in her.
Intellectually, Sasuke had always known Kagome was pretty. Unblemished pale skin, dark midnight hair, and bright azure eyes were all characteristics he recognized as beautiful. It was just that somehow he'd always seen them as just another fact of life. Sure, some of the others had eyed her (some were impertinent enough to actually try and get close to her), but the girl had always shown absolutely no interest in anyone other than himself (and Naruto, of course, but the blond menace was more of a brother to her than anything else by her own admission) so Sasuke himself had never paid any real attention to them either. None of those idiots would be able to take her eyes away from him so why waste his time caring about them?
Not that he thought she was interested in any of the two freaks they met before, but even then, the look in the face paint weirdo had caused his blood to boil in an instant. A look he recognized from others in the village directed at her. It was only the reminder that they were from an allied nation that had kept him on the tree instead of jumping down and punching the stranger on the face until his makeup was painted red.
It was a similar but somewhat different experience with the redhead. There had been a strange kind of hunger in the Suna nin's eyes as he looked at her. Just the same, rage had flown to the surface. Those two strangers had been watching his...his what exactly?
Though they'd been together for all their lives, or perhaps precisely because of that, Sasuke had never bothered to put a label to their relationship.
They weren't family (no, never family his father had seen to it they'd never mistake their bond for one, every accidental familial address immediately and strictly corrected), but she wasn't just a friend either.
Kagome was just Kagome.
She was the one who was always there, no matter what, who would always be there. When thinking about his past, the girl was always there, and while he hadn't dedicated much time to wonder about what would happen after his hunt for revenge was finished he'd just taken her continued presence in his life for granted. What about her though...
She didn't care for any of the idiots in the village, obviously, but they weren't going to stay in Konoha forever.
He couldn't picture it, someone else by her side as she walked away, the urge to hunt down whoever had the idea of taking her away burned high just from the thought. It was something he'd never given any thought until he saw the draft of the marriage contract in the archives.
A new image flickered to his mind. A made-up image of Itachi taking his place at her side. Just a couple of weeks ago that would've been enough to send him to a fit of rage. Now though, now he could only feel confusion, after all, Itachi (unlike the insolent idiots of the village) was someone Sasuke himself had loved. And he wasn't even thinking about Kagome's feelings about all this.
What had she felt when she saw the draft? The link between her name and his?
She had loved her brother, no, she still did. It was that love that stopped her from accepting the village's lies. So what had she felt when she saw a glimpse of what could have been? And if she'd longed for it then...what was Sasuke supposed to do about it?
"Kagome." Her name slipped from his lips with ease as they entered the house.
Long fingers grasped her slender wrist, surprise shone in her eyes, it was usually her who started contact. With how well she could read him, there was hardly a need for him to do so.
Just as easily he could see the worry behind her eyes, one that hadn't been there before they took those pieces of paper. She'd hoped to avoid the Suna team, but the forms in their hands made it completely impossible. And yet she wouldn't speak a word of complaint, of refusal. The idea of not being there for him probably never crossed her mind. A frown made it's way back to his expression at the memory of the redhead's gaze on her.
Right.
It hadn't matter before, what she was to him.
It didn't matter now, it was all pretty simple, honestly.
She was his.
"You'll be by my side, won't you?" He could see her confusion slowly turn into realization, ice taking over the usually warm blue of her eyes in a way he'd once longed to see when he sought revenge against his brother. The hatred inside her growing a little more with each passing day, tying her to him in a way only he could see. "When I finally burn them down one by one? No matter who stands in our way?"
He raised his hand, his fingertips lightly touching her cheek lingering on her warmth for a second. She wouldn't reject him, that he knew for sure, still, he held back. The exams had her beyond anxious, fully concentrating on them would probably be for the best. Later, he'd push their boundaries when her mind wasn't as distracted.
"No matter when, no matter how, I'll always be right here, remember?" Some ice melted under her affection as she repeated once familiar words at him, her fingers coming to find his before adding more to their childhood vow. "Even if the world turns against us."
He smiled at her words, at the promise underneath them that had remained true so far and always would.
Deep breaths and ignore the overwhelming amount of strangers looking at you.
Kagome forced herself to take a calming breath as she attempted to ignore the buzzing in the back of her mind warning her of being watched. Of course, they were being watched, only an idiot wouldn't watch their potential opponents and even if the rest of the genins making their way into their school were cocky enough not to care then whoever was in charge of the exam had to be.
Being able to tell when others were keeping tabs on her was a useful skill on missions, it had been essential back in Wave. It gave her time to prepare and think of possible counterattacks. Intuition, that person called it, was something she would do well to trust and follow if she wanted to continue on this career, it could easily give her an edge...when in a place where everyone was observing everyone though, it quickly became little more than loud, headache-inducing background noise.
Slender fingers moved to intertwine with the hand on her side, uncaring of the eyes looking for advantages, in search of familiar warmth. Something had changed last night, Kagome was not an idiot, but Sasuke kept had quiet. Reveling in the feeling of safety that came with the reassuring squeeze of his hand around hers the girl could feel some of her tension melting away. Whatever had changed, the fact that they would protect each other remained the same, and that was more than enough for her to find comfort in his touch. Worrying about it now and getting distracted could have a high price. for them to pay.
"Ah, Sasuke-kun!" What little tension had receded rose up again at the sound of an annoyingly familiar voice.
"Oh, gods, how had she forgotten about this, just because it wasn't usual, it didn't mean other former classmates weren't recommended. Bright pink hair was soon filling her vision as Haruno all but sprinted right in front of them, or more likely, in front of Sasuke.
"Good morning," the pinkette smiled as she cheerfully ignored her.
"Right, morning." If the girl thought she could just pretend she was having a private conversation with the Uchiha she was in for a rough awakening.
"Ah, Higurashi-san."
The azure-eyed girl grinned at the irritation on the other kunoichi's voice. No matter how much Haruno disliked, or even hated her, she would never dare to insult her in front of her oh so dear Sasuke. That was a little lesson all of the members of that annoying fan club had learned quite a while ago.
"Ah, I see you were also invited to the exam." The girl did an impressive attempt to ignore both Kagome's interjection and the Uchiha's glare as she continued to fail at starting a conversation. "I mean, of course you would be, not to recommend the best in our year would be stupid, ahahahaha."
Silence followed the pitiful attempts at flattery, just like every other time she'd tried before. Kagome pushed down her annoyance, no need to add another name to their list of enemies in this exam.
"Of course, I was also recommended." She tried to fling a strand of pink hair back in a stylish manner, and the Higurashi had to hold back a snort. Just what the hell did this girl think they were about to do? They'd received no instructions or hints on what the tasks could be, Kagome's own long tresses were carefully braided to stay out of her way. Did she think this was some sort of beauty pageant? Heck, she was sure the other girl look thinner than she did at the academy. "I mean, it was just such an obvious decision, after all, if they put me in a team with more experience it means they know I can keep up."
Right, because Kagome could clearly remember throwing the slightly taller girl to the ground in less than two minutes during taijutsu practice at the academy. The Higurashi survivor held back a sigh, she better put a stop to this before Sasuke got pissed enough to act himself. This was not the right place not the time to make a spectacle out of themselves.
"Oi, you guys!...ah...Sakura-chan." Naruto arrived in his usual loud way, waving the form above his head as a greeting.
Oh, that's unusual, Kagome thought as she observed the blond's unusually subdued reactions to the pink-haired kunoichi until recently he'd have jumped for joy for the chance to talk to her.
Had something happened in the last few weeks she'd missed?
Not that she minded, from the group of girls that liked to follow Sasuke around, Haruno was one of the loudest. For years the Higurashi heiress wondered how was it that Naruto-kun could honestly have a crush on her. Sure, it was respectable that even coming from a civilian background the girl could manage to rank so high in the theoretical exams (something Kagome may feel the slightest bit of resentment for), but her attitude left so much to be desired. More concerned with her looks than training, the pinkette had taken to loudly berate the prankster after she realized that criticizing Naruto didn't earn her the same kind of icy furious response badmouthing Kagome did.
How she failed to realize that while the barely restrained violence wasn't there, a lot of anger still remained in the Uchiha's form, the heiress would never know.
"They recommended you?" Disbelief was painfully clear in her tone.
"Ehehe, yep. All of team 7 since we're so awesome."
"How...they're supposed to only pick those who are the best of the best..." Haruno's voice trailed off.
"I thought so at first as well, but I've begun to wonder if maybe they aren't quite prone to mistakes." Kagome smiled, a nice cold and honeyed smile she'd practiced under the careful eye of a would-be-traitor.
A violent shade of red made it's way to the pink-haired girl as her words took effect. Satisfaction slowly gaining over her anger. This was the kind of person her childhood friend was sacrificed for, the kind of person Itachi had tried to protect. Two caring and loving people had suffered, and would surely keep on doing so, for the sake of someone like her.
They didn't deserve it.
Haruno Sakura most certainly didn't
No point in making enemies of other Konoha genins, Kagome reminded herself.
"Ah, Sakura-san!" A vaguely familiar voice gave her the time to tone down her vitriol. "Have you seen Enju-chan around..."
A grinning, slightly older boy was walking down towards them, his smile brightening when he could see the full group. Her previous urge to hit something was replaced with the urge to bash her head against a wall.
It wasn't usual for people in different years at the academy to mingle. The difference in the skill level each year required increased substantially (unless the student was from an old-fashioned clan that insisted in tutoring their children from the moment they could walk), plus the fact that your classmates were likely to become you teammates was a pretty big discouragement for older students to hang out with the younger ones. There always seemed to be an exception though.
Akitoki Hojo, thirteen and member of a clan that specialized in medical jutsus was just such an exception.
One Kagome couldn't help but wish didn't exist. Not that Hojo was a bad person, not at all. The boy was nice and apparently kind to everyone and their mothers. He took the time to help his kohai with some of the more difficult exercises and showed genuine concern for those around him.
He was just so...insistent...in his infatuation with her. Constantly trying to offer odd gifts and not so subtle questions of whether she was sure about continuing on with the life of a shinobi.
His adamant attempts to see her as a fragile and delicate girl only tried her patience.
And that was without adding the fact that she had to be on her guard to stop Sasuke from knocking the other boy out every time Hojo tried to make a conversation.
"Oh, Higurashi, good morning." Kagome tried not to twitch at the lack of honorific, sure it was just her last name but still.
"Morning, Hojo-kun, Haruno-san, I fear my team, and I should probably get going." Her practiced smile came out with more difficulty than she expected, her hands grabbing her boys' arms as she made an attempt to just enter the building.
"Eh, Higurashi, don't tell me your team got recommended?" There was some honest to god horror in his voice.
"What if we did?" Sasuke snapped back.
Great, she was going to get a headache before the exam even started. The village had hurt so much the few people she loved, surely wishing for retribution wasn't an uncalled response for her to have angered whatever gods there were out there.
"Oh, it's just...this is really dangerous you know, not that I distrust your abilities Uchiha-san." This time, she winced, Sasuke hated being called that. "But, Higurashi could be exposed to great risks."
"Huh, but Kagome-chan is probably stronger than you, so why are you here?"
Right, she'd forgotten Naruto-kun wasn't all that fond of the older boy either. Hojo had never spurned the blond, his constant pleas for her to quit the shinobi life, however, had grated on the prankster's nerves from the beginning of their acquaintance with their upperclassman.
"Akitoki-kun may have a point Higurashi-san, it's not too late to reconsider if you're having second thoughts."
No point in making a scandal outside of the school building.
It would be pointless.
Worse than that, actually.
It could show potential enemies her hand and it wasn't worth the risk of letting the village's observers see the lengths of her temper just to hit the pinkette and gain some silence.
"What does that..."
"Please, don't worry about me, Haruno-san, Hojo-kun." The girl cut Sasuke off, no point in making a scene. "Thank you for your concern, but I think others might need it more. Oh, I think I see Enju-san over there, we better get going."
Willing a smile to her face, the girl made a shallow both as she wished them luck, her hands quickly moving to grab and pull her teammates with her. They really needed to get away from these people and get to room 301 before one of them lost it. Kagome ignored the golden eyes of the older silver-haired foreigner mostly hidden by tree branches as they crossed the entrance.
A/N: I'm really sorry if there were more grammar errors in this than usual, honestly classes were more tiring than I thought they would be. I had no energy to go over the text as carefully as I usually try to do and I don't trust Grammarly.
Still, I hope you guys liked it and as always thank you so much for reading, any review, comment or criticism is greattly appreciated.