A/N: Hey hey hey I'm still alive.
Inspiration struck again so we got another chapter coming up piping hot.
Don't worry about me not finishing the fic, I'll finish it even if it's in the retirement home haha
Before they knew it, it was time to enrol in the academy.
The academy, although it took all their free time away, was a welcome change of pace. Sakura was eager to learn from others far more experienced, opposed to fumbling around themselves. The Academy was sure to also offer more efficient training methods compared to their homemade challenges.
"Let's hope we can sit next to each other in class!" Ino whispered excitedly to Hinata and Sakura while the Hokage was giving his speech. Sakura shushed her and kept focusing on last part of the speech.
Soon after, roll calls were made for each first-year class. Ino got called up first along with Hinata, but Sakura didn't. The girls both pouted at that. Hopefully they would be together the next couple of years.
When Sakura got called up, she flinched when she realised she was together with Ami. The girl smirked at her, making her stomach drop.
As they all went into the building Ino quickly ran past Ami, bumping into her shoulder to reach Sakura. "Aww man, why'd they have to saddle me with those two idiots when I wanted you in my class?" Ino lamented. The two idiots in question being Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Chouji. Sakura had seen them once before and didn't really understand why Ino disliked them so much. They seemed like perfectly nice people to her.
Smiling softly, Hinata patted Ino's shoulder "Let's hope for next year then!". Ino perked up at that, nodding furiously with a fire in her eyes "Let's become the best kunoichi so they have no choice to put us together, cause we're just that amazing ya know." Ino declared sagely. Sakura giggled, already feeling lighter.
All laughter left the group of kids when they filtered off towards their respective classes, meeting their teachers for the first time. As Sakura settled in the front row, she jumped as the woman at the front of her class slammed her hand on the desk.
"Alright twerps, no lollygagging around anymore!" She borderline screamed "I'm Nakano sensei, but you will all refer to me as sensei, got that?" as the kids kept looking at her, still processing, she slammed her hand down again "IS. THAT. CLEAR?" all kids jumped quickly yelling "Yes sensei!"
Nakano sensei was a brawly woman in her 40's with short, buzzed hair. Sakura wouldn't be surprised if she was normally part of the interrogation unit, with how... strong of an impression she made.
Nakano sensei was a nightmare to keep it simple. She demanded the utmost attention or you would immediately be punished. Sakura, being the good student that she was, never got in trouble luckily. Her spongelike brain took up every bit of theory easily, and kept her attention span strong.
Once outside for their physical training she didn't even have time to worry about Ami, as Nakano sensei worked them like dogs. Sakura was starting to have trouble keeping up on the laps they were currently assigned when sensei blew the whistle signalling they could stop. Most kids collapsed on the spot but a few including Sakura kept standing, although barely. Sakura got a sick sense of satisfaction to see Ami panting loudly on the ground, utterly defeated.
Before any proper resting could be done Nakano sensei lead them to the obstacle course, expecting perfection. Luckily Sakura was somewhere in the middle of the line, giving her a few minutes to catch her breath. While on one hand she absolutely hated their sensei already, she could appreciate the thorough workout. This would help her get into shape to defeat the pesky new orange slimes.
As the whistle for her turn echoed through the clearing, she took off with a leap. Dodging and weaving through the obstacles, she narrowly managed to clear them all. Sakura was lamenting her low agility status when she saw a faint glimmer in the corner of her eye. She turned her head to see another interface, most like signalling another dungeon. Sakura mentally cheered before she roughly connected with the wall they were meant to climb.
"Haruno! Get your ass up and continue!"
Sakura was absolutely drained when class finally ended, trudging out of the room like a zombie would. Ino, who was looking much better, bounded over to her "Sakura!" she called over happily before stopping in her tracks "What happened to you?". Sakura was sure she looked like an absolute muddy mess, but all she cared about was getting some food and some rest.
As Ino started chattering on about her decidedly better day, Sakura suddenly remembered the possible discovery. She slapped a hand onto Ino's shoulder, stopping her in her tracks. Sakura shakily pointed a finger towards the obstacle course "I may have found a dungeon." she said between pants. Hinata and Ino turned excited quickly, Ino all but dragging Sakura over to the obstacle course.
Upon examination, a dungeon was indeed hidden in the mud pit under the rope swing. The girls leaned closer to examine the interface.
【❀】DUNGEON: MUCK'S MUD PIT \\ RECOMMENDED FOR LV.6 - 13【❀】
It was a slightly higher levelled dungeon, giving them a new opportunity to train. Ino whooped excitedly while Hinata and Sakura shared a more subdued smile.
Before they could even think of entering the dungeon however, they were interrupted by a yell.
"Hey! What are you three doing there?"
The girls, shocked, turned around. There stood a girl with twin buns, most likely just a bit older than themselves. Before they could reply the girl continued "I haven't seen you three around before, are you new this year?" she asked politely. Hinata nodded furiously, small blush visible on her face again. Sakura was about to reply before Ino shoved the three girls into a small huddle.
"Listen, I know it seems silly, really really silly, but my gut is telling me we should recruit her right now." Ino said severely. Hinata and Sakura looked at her dumbly. Sakura looked at the expression on Ino's face before sneakily turning around to examine the girl's stats.
【❀】TENTEN \\ LV. 8【❀】
【RANK: ACADEMY STUDENT】
【OCCUPATION: NONE】
【AGE: 9】
【TRAITS: THE SUNFLOWER \\ SMITH'S DAUGHTER 】
【❀】STATS【❀】
【STRENGTH: 8】
【PRECISION: 10】
【ENDURANCE: 8】
【CHARISMA: 5】
【INTELLIGENCE: 6】
【AGILITY: 7】
【LUCK: 1】
Sure enough, another unique flower trait showed up.
【❀】TRAIT: THE SUNFLOWER❀】
【 THE SUNFLOWER IS ONE OF THE BLESSED FLOWERS. STRONG AND SUNNY, THE SUNFLOWER IS A TRUSTED COMPANION, THEIR LOYALTY STEADFAST. THEY WILL ENDURE ANYTHING FOR THEIR OWN AND THEIR FRIEND'S HAPPINESS. +2 ENDURANCE \\ APTITUDE FOR WEAPON SPECIALIST 】
Sakura nodded to herself, gears starting to turn.
The girl before them, Tenten, was obviously meant to meet them. She didn't seem like just any regular slip of a girl either if her stats were to show for it. The muscles along her tiny limbs were apparent too. That with the sunny bright smile and hopeful optimism shining in her eyes, she knew they would become fast friends as well.
As Ino saw Sakura nod and get lost in thought, she dragged over Hinata to the oblivious Tenten and started whispering the secret information to her, inviting her to the party.
Sakura quickly turned around when she heard the girl exclaim about how cool it was, rather than the confusion she expected. Tenten was taking it all in stride, happily gobbling up all the confusing information thrown at her.
Soon the four girls were sitting in the shade of the treeline bordering the academy training grounds, both getting to know each other and catching up on any new details.
"I was just happy to see more girls taking an interest in the ninja arts, I never would've expected all these cool extras!" Tenten exclaimed happily.
Ino nodded sagely "I get you girl. Some of the other girls in my class were not paying attention at all! They just kept looking at this one snotty looking boy from the Uchiha clan." she said, ending with a disgusting frown.
Tenten clapped happily "I know exactly what you mean! The same is for my class and a Hyuuga boy!" she said, feeling understood.
"I-It isn't bad to have a crush is it?" Hinata asked nervously, twiddling her fingers. Ino shook her head furiously "Of course not! But it shouldn't take over your life entirely!" she said, twirling her finger around knowingly.
Sakura nodded along. If she hadn't met the girls and bonded with them, she might've been someone seeking the validation of someone else to that level. She was glad to have met the girls before her, even if she knew one better than the other.
"Oh!" Ino suddenly exclaimed, "I just remembered!" she stood up a smug look on her face. "We're higher level than our peers." Ino announced smugly. Sakura let out a snort. Of course Ino was just that little bit vain enough to care. Not that she blamed her, Sakura had noticed it too, without the obvious snooping Ino did.
It must've been even worse in her class though, Sakura pondered. It was obvious they were supposed to be the dropout class. All the kids were around level 3, some barely scratching level 2, while the other potential candidates seemed to be stuck around level 5. They themselves were all level 8, placing them far beyond their peers. To stay it didn't boost her ego a little bit would be a straight up lie.
However, their advantages could be caught up to quickly if they weren't careful. People with enough willpower and motivation could catch up to them with the less efficient regular training, so they would need to make use of their advantageous levelling system as much as they could.
And so, Sakura started planning once more.
Tenten was the newest addition she had to worry about, although worry would be the wrong word. Tenten was spirited and motivated to the highest degree, having strong ambitions and highly set goals. She admitted to her dream of becoming like Senju Tsunade was already bust, because her chakra control wasn't fine enough to become a healer. However that didn't bring her down; she now had a new goal of mastering as many weapons as she could, which conveniently lined up with her flower trait.
It was obvious that Tenten would become another menace to their enemies, brawling up front yet also annoying from afar. The girl was determined to not leave any weak spots.
The girls were also glad to learn Tenten's adopted father was a blacksmith, and she herself was interested in picking up the skill as well, giving them new opportunities for weapon crafting.
"Don't get your hopes up too high though," Tenten chuckled "I can barely smith a straight kunai for now."
It was more than they ever could have hoped for.
The academy took up more time than expected, thus leaving the new dungeon on the backburner in favour of resting and getting to know each other better.
Tenten's addition to the group was immediately noticed though, not just because of her shining presence and amazing skills, but because of the secret stash of weapons she brought along one Saturday morning.
"Promise not to tell pops we are using these already; he will absolutely murder me if he knows." Tenten whispered severely, plopping down the heavy bag on the ground. The girls all nodded in understanding, what they were up to wasn't exactly approved for little kids to do.
Tenten had brought a set of basic academy grade kunai with her, along with academy grade shuriken, giving them a head start on their peers who would only start learning next year at the academy. She also brought a shiny new basic tanto for Hinata, along with a basic crossbow for Ino. Tenten herself had an array of weapons, from throwing knives to a bo she preferred to use up close.
Sakura had passed on any new weapons, already owning Tsuba's Horn, but gratefully took the kunai and shuriken set Tenten insisted on.
"These weapons are all of the reject pile, so they have some flaws. It's better than nothing though, and I have no doubt we'll be able to adjust!" Tenten cheerily exclaimed, clapping her hands together.
Ino was ecstatic, admiring her new crossbow with rapt attention. Hinata thanked Tenten profusely, bowing many a time. Sakura gave her a hug of gratitude, easily being returned by the girl in question.
When they entered Shika Glade, it was unlike anything they had ever experienced before.
As promised, the weapons did indeed have some flaws here and there, but it was obvious Tenten had picked out the better ones, as the flaws were mostly cosmetic.
Safe to say, it was a massacre.
The slimes stood no chance, even to the rookie Tenten, who was having the time of her life zipping all over the place. Sakura and Hinata now formed the frontline, with Tenten staying in the middle to support where necessary, while Ino stayed in the back, pelting from afar.
Their new team build was frighteningly effective, causing them to quickly make time in all their schedules to enter Muck's Mud Pit.
Sakura took a deep breath, steeling herself. While she was confident they would be able to face what was on the other side, it was still nerve-wracking to enter the unknown.
With another deep breath, the girls entered the dungeon.
Just to immediately be faced with darkness. Lots of darkness.
Sakura immediately dragged them all outside again.
"We need a light source." She said simply, the other girls nodding in agreement.
Sakura was lamenting the lack of jutsu they knew, wishing one of them was able to cast some fire jutsu. Alas, their chakra would only be worked on next year, making them having to rely on traditional methods of lighting up the way.
Tenten, bless the girl, provided once more by bringing some standard issue glowsticks. The girls just couldn't thank her enough.
Each of the girls now had a few glowsticks in their inventory, making them ready to face the unknown dark.
As the girls entered the dungeon, Sakura broke one of the glowsticks, lighting up the scenery in front of them.
It was a damp and gross cave, mud coating all surfaces visible. No greenery was in sight, along with no water source, just mud and stone everywhere.
Sakura looked around, examining the multiple branching paths they could take. Suddenly, she noticed a dripping sound coming from behind her. She turned around, searching for the dripping noise. It came from a stalagmite, and as she looked at it, the dripping intensified. Soon a heap of mud was forming under said stalagmite.
"Look out!" Sakura shouted, as the heap of mud formed into a semi-human being, its sunken eyes glowing strangely. It was their first enemy.
The mud creature charged not a moment later, heading for Ino who was closest by. Hinata immediately jumped in to block the blow, skidding back along the muddy floor with the force of the hit.
Sakura quickly examined the creature before it launched another attack.
【❀】MUCK'S ESSENCE \\ LVL. 6【❀】
Sakura frowned, the creature was only level 6 but hit like a truck. Before she could vocalise her theory, Tenten was already on it. She struck the creature harshly with her bo, launching it to the other side of the cave where it dissolved into nothingness.
【❀】ENCOUNTER FINISHED \\ EXP GAINED: 12 (EXP SHARE ON)【❀】
【❀】LOOT: 1X MUCK'S MUD【❀】
The creature had weak defence then. It was fast though, so they would have to utilise their agility skill to their utmost ability. The mud creatures could also seemingly form out of nothing as long as there was mud around.
"Maybe we have to wash away the mud?" Sakura proclaimed, pondering over the possibilities. Tenten slid up beside her, nodding "It seems the most logical. Get rid of the mud, get rid of the spawning opportunities."
"Nobody knows any water jutsu though, and carrying around canteens of water will do nothing." Ino piped up, brushing a bit of mud of her sleeve, scrunching up her nose at the sticky substance. Hinata twiddled with her fingers out of habit "We could just grind until one of us learns a jutsu, maybe next year already?" she added hopefully.
Sakura nodded. While they already had gotten a grasp on basic chakra manipulation, the elemental jutsu's were locked behind genin status as they had to be learned through either a scroll or a teacher. It was frustrating, but there was nothing they could do against it.
Sakura clapped her hands together, drawing the attention of the girls "Alright then, let's get used to these enemies and grind them into a pulp!" she exclaimed. The girls each shouted in varying degrees of loudness, agreeing.