[Standardized Human Date: August 19, 2517
On the way to the embassy, Nero remembered the first time he saw his students.
Flashback.
Nero lit a cigarette, watching the end turn red. He took a long drag and released the cigarette smoke carefully, so as not to disturb his partner who was sleeping next to him; the smell sent three perfect swirling smoke rings to dissipate into the cold night air above the rooftop of his apartment building.
Maybe this week, I'll give up smoking, he thought idly. He had begun smoking when he started his Jounin training, fighting every day to improve his skills by combining the techniques of the Hyuga with his partner, Cilo, an Inuzuka wolf. It was extremely difficult, as few ninjas from the two clans had ever married in history. At first, he sought to emulate older ninjas, looking for ways to alleviate his stress; he discovered that many of them smoked to calm their minds and calm their nerves. Now, a cigarette felt as perfect in his hand as essential as the kunai and shuriken. And each superficial attempt to stop ended faster than the last.
But now he had more responsibilities. He thought about the team he would be given to train, bringing him back to his original task that night. He looked at the three reports spread out on the table in front of him, considering the three young faces curiously. This was Nero's first genin team, and it represented a challenge he had never encountered before.
Not much time has passed since Nero returned to Konoha, exhausted from long missions and battles along the border. The Nukenin had fled and attempted to hide within the Elemental Countries. When the chaos subsided, Nero realized that he had lost many friends and endured great pain. He knew that the best way to recover was to return to his village and his family.
When Nero returned, he often felt out of place, adapting to a position of responsibility he wasn't sure he deserved. Still, he was determined to repay the Hokage's faith in him.
The Hokage had welcomed him back with the other Konoha ninjas, saying that they had done a good job and that he would personally take care of the tributes to his fallen friends; they would be recognized as the heroes they were.
Two years later, the true strength of the Hokage's faith was demonstrated when he entrusted Nero with the responsibility of training a Genin team. Not just any team; he would be responsible for leading the next Ino-Shika-Cho trio. The only position that would have more responsibility would be to train the team with the direct heirs of the two Gods.
He had to be the authority figure and teach teamwork; now, after losing his friends, he felt more comfortable fighting alongside Cilo. Still, the Hokage placed his trust in him, and Nero would be damned if he let his leader down.
He studied the reports again, trying to read beyond the words to get to his genin's true personality and potential. How should he test them the next day? On the first day of training, I had to make a statement. The most important thing for Team 10 would be synergy – they had to come together as a team, just like their parents and their parents before them. So an exercise in teamwork, but he knew that teamwork wasn't the only thing he would teach… but it had to be real. Nero knew he needed to shake his genin out of their classroom complacency. He realized from the reports that they had potential, but they were young. But they wouldn't be children forever and they would need someone to help them mature. The village needed its shinobi to be soldiers, and no one knew the difference between the battlefield and the classroom as well as Nero.
Thinking of his past battles gave Nero the inspiration he had been seeking. His lips spontaneously curled upward in a smile that promised to be bad news for his opponents.
……
Konoha Village - Training Area
Inokou walked out of the academy's main gate toward the road to the training areas; her mind full of new and disturbing thoughts. At first, she was proud of her new hitai-ite and what it represented: she was finally about to start training to become a ninja! Her parents were proud and her teammates were her first and best friends from the Academy.
There was just one problem. Inokou wasn't sure if he wanted to live and fight by killing.
During her first few years at the Academy, Inokou had no doubts. She never questioned her fitness to be the future head of the Yamanaka clan. Born after her mother suffered an accident and their ship ran aground in the desert of Muru, a new and unexplored colony, Inokou's life had been filled with struggle.
She found new confidence in her own strength and fighting ability, despite the slight blindness that would only worsen over time and eventually leave her completely blind.
Inokou's thoughts distracted her until she arrived at Training Area 2 without realizing it. She was surprised to see Hanashika already there, and by the look on her face, the genin seemed just as deep in thought as she had been a moment before.
"Hey, Hana!" Inokou called out to his best friend, knowing that she preferred to be addressed by her nickname.
Hana looked up, her eyes wide in surprise, but as soon as she recognized Inokou, she smiled.
"Hi, Ino," Hana greeted her. "ChoKuma is late; he must have decided that his time would be better spent eating breakfast instead of arriving early."
"Hey! That's how you guys talk about me behind my back," said a loud voice from the road.
Hana laughed as Inoko grimaced, and the two turned to the third team member. ChoKuma joined them, still looking at them.
While they were joking about their friend's tardiness, they heard a deep, slow voice.
"It's about time," said one voice. Another more stern voice joined. "If we were on a mission, the enemy would have already escaped with your nose."
Inokou and his companions turned around, looking for the source of the voices. "Up here, you idiots!" the second voice sneered. Everyone turned to see a black-haired Shinobi and a large brown wolf perched on a branch of a nearby tree.
Hana made a disgusted expression. "How could we have missed him?" she asked. Their Jonin was even smoking! And there was a huge wolf on top of a tree like a cat! There was no way they could have missed such an unusual sight, yet the three of them seemed very surprised.
"I am Nero Hyuga, and this is my partner Cilo; we will be the leaders of this team." Nero's voice was the same as the first one they had heard. So that meant the second one was...
"Introduce yourselves, you brats," he said in his deep voice, "introduce yourselves and tell me what you bring to this team." The second voice was Wolf's, which now could only be described as sarcastic.
He smiled as the genin looked at him in uncertainty.
"I am ChoKuma Akimichi," said ChoKuma, speaking quickly and nervously as he tried to get his words out. "I don't know all of our clan's techniques yet, but my father says he will teach me soon."
"I am Hanashika Uzu Nara, and I can use my clan's shadow-based jutsu. I am also learning the basic skills of the Hyuga clan."
Inokou looked down at her feet, feeling embarrassed as it was her turn to speak. "I... know some of the clan's jutsus, and I'm going to work even harder to overcome my limitations."
Nero looked at each of them, stubbing out his cigarette. "I see. Well, we're about to find out what you all can do. The most important thing on a shinobi mission is..." He paused for effect.
Hana, however, always paid attention to the Academy and responded promptly.
"Stealth. To observe the enemy, gather intelligence, eliminate a target, or even protect someone important."
Nero nodded. "That's right. People often forget what truly makes a shinobi terrifying: stealth. Many beginners focus entirely on brute force."
ChoKuma felt something on his leg and turned around, noticing that Cilo was behind him. How had he gotten so close? He hadn't been in the tree.
"Each Hidden Village dedicates a large portion of its manpower to protecting vital information, and a truly great shinobi is not necessarily the best fighter, but rather the one who manages to remain unnoticed and gathers the best information for his village," Cilo informed them as he went to Nero's side beneath the tree where they had been observing the Gennin.
"So for your first test, you will have to obtain six objects, two for each. But be careful; you will find that it won't be that easy."
With that, Nero turned his back on the genin and walked with Cilo to the test site.
The Genins took a deep breath and reluctantly followed.
…….
Nero stopped walking after arriving at an empty field; it appeared to have nothing much and no place where traps could be hidden to catch them by surprise.
Nero pointed to the empty field, waving to the three genin behind him. "There you have it: in this field, there are six hidden objectives, two for each of you. This test will be divided into two parts; the first you will achieve together, and the second you will do it alone. Good luck." Nero informed them. "And try not to die!" Cilo shouted, disappearing next to Nero.
Just that! ChoKuma thought. You're a sensei, shouldn't have more information, and Cilo's sarcastic statements didn't help! But that wasn't important now. ChoKuma narrowed his eyes, looking once more for the dangers he knew would be waiting in the field. He even spotted a half-buried box a few meters away.
"Guys! I found a hidden chest that appears to contain the items we've been searching for."
"It seems too easy; there has to be something behind it," Hana wondered what the trap might be. "I'll check, I'm the fastest and I think I can do it."
Hana darted forward, running towards the box. As she approached, the earth beneath her feet trembled and sharp, spike-like spears shot up and almost struck her.
But Hana was quick and acted, managing to return to her team uninjured. "What was that?" she wondered.
ChoKuma just pointed at the box, where a faint glow had dissipated after the attack, and thought he knew what they were. "I think they're seals with a proximity-activated Earth Jutsu," he said to the other two. "They are very simple, but they allow for more dexterity and control than simple traps with just wires to activate them. The sensei must be controlling them with chakra. We could get separated, but with such an open space I'm sure they will concentrate." It's all around the space because of so much movement, and the three of us won't be able to dodge because one person can't observe so many attacks at the same time."
Inoko groaned in frustration. "So what should we do?"
Hana said calmly, "I have an idea." She looked at Emily and asked, "Do you trust me?"
They both said, "Of course we trust you." They confirmed it without hesitation.
"Good. So here's what we should do…"
After Hana finished explaining her plan, the three genin took their positions. Hana activated her Byakugan to expand her vision, while ChoKuma ran to the box, activating the trap, drawing attention to himself, and dodging each spear that formed. As Inokuchi calmly approached
Using her Byakugan, she watched their every movement and warned them of each attack outside the trap's activation field.
By accelerating, ChoKuma avoided the spears on the side and managed to cover a good distance to the box, while the remaining spears were thrown at him, leaving the path clear for Inokou who was approaching the box.
With Hana watching closely and completing the seal, sending her shadow at full speed towards her blonde companion, the shadows quickly caught up to Inokou when she was just a few meters away. Hana also threw herself towards the box, forcing Inokou to mirror the movement, giving her a boost that finally allowed her to reach the box.
"We did it!" Inokou exclaimed in joy, opening the box which revealed the white chess pieces inside.
The other two Genin also managed to approach the box after the traps had been deactivated.
That's great, Inokou. But we still have the second phase, which is now individual. Chokuma said.
Yes, you are right, Chokuma. The white pieces are here, but the black ones should be nearby; can you use your Byakugan to find them? Inokou asked her friend who nodded and jumped into a tree that was close to where the box was buried. After a few minutes of using her Byakugan, she returned to inform her companions.
I managed to locate three boxes, each buried some distance away. I think the next step should be to separate now. Hana informed them by drawing a small map on the floor, indicating the locations of the boxes.
The Genin gathered around the map had decided which box they would stay in, and each one went to the destination they chose for the next phase of the test.
……
ChoKuma was in another open field, but he knew where the box was located; he threw some branches at the traps and discovered that they were slower in their reaction time compared to the first box.
He started running at full speed, screaming, "Baika no Jutsu!" As his body transformed into something different from his relatives, he did not gain weight, but muscle. He leaped in front of the projectiles that ricocheted off his body, shattering and falling to the ground, as if they were made of glass.
At the end of the race, ChoKuma threw himself towards the box and managed to catch it as it rolled across the floor, turning off the traps.
"I did it; I hope others will too," ChoKuma said with rapid breathing.
….
Hana stopped walking when she arrived at a clearing with a small lake in the center, where a box sat on a small mound of dirt.
She activated her Byakugan and threw rocks into the lake, managing to see that there were fish in the lake and also attacking seals that had previously created whips of water.
Having observed this, Hana realized that the fish were not activating the traps; she used her Shadow Possession Jutsu and forced the fish to carry the box to the bank, where she was able to retrieve it.
Did everyone else do well?
…..
Inokou looked at the trees where her box was. She knew her clan's jutsus wouldn't be useful now, but she also knew other tricks.
Earth Style Jutsu: Stone Pillar. These stone pillars project from the ground and pierce through the trees towards the target. They pass through most of the obstacles created by the traps in the boxes, allowing Ino to continue using her chakra throughout the day without exhaustion.
I always get tired; I need to improve my jutsu; I hope the others have managed it.
['In addition, people should
Returning to the location of the first test, the three Gennins were greeted by their sensei with a smile on their face.
"Good job!" Nero shouted next to Cilo, who was wagging his tail happily. The Gennin smiled slightly to themselves as their sensei congratulated them on their success. "It was excellent teamwork; exactly what I expected from all of you! The three of you worked well together, but you also managed to work very well alone. Remember that sometimes you won't always be together and you need to know how to manage without help."
ChoKuma looked at his sensei curiously. "Did we do it?" he asked.
Cilo laughed, a deep sound coming from the wolf who, for the first time, seemed not to be so severe but rather happy with them. "You recovered all the pieces; you did very well, but we will make sure that you receive the best training as shinobi so that you can be perfect in the future."
Nero opened the boxes and took out the chess pieces. "These pieces are proof that you are a team; keep them carefully." He handed them back to his students.
"I'm done with this sentimentality," said Cilo as she left. Nero wanted to groan, even though he knew that Cilo was happy about the children's success; he still decided not to show it by acting grumpy.
Flashback
This memory was one of the most precious he had. It was the day he got his Little Ones.
As soon as Nero came out of his reverie he realized that they had already arrived at the Chamber of Embassies where two human guards were waiting for them.