RING! RING! RING!

"Ugh," Thalia groaned, slapping her hand down on the alarm. Her eyes blinked open, adjusting to the light. It was weird for her, waking up in a bed in her own apartment. After so many years living on the streets and in the wild, having her own place felt like a dream as well as not getting attacked by monsters every day. She still flinched at sudden movements or shifting shadows, just waiting for some horrific mythical monster to attack. She couldn't remember a moment of her life when she wasn't on edge about sudden attacks.

Iruka had noticed this and when she'd told him he actually told her it was a good thing. "When out on missions, an attack can come at any moment from anywhere. So to be alert at all times is a necessary part of being a ninja."

Being a ninja. That was right, today was the day. The day she officially became what they called a genin and joined a ninja squad to help serve the village. She knew Naruto and Hinata had been looking forward to it but she didn't really care either way. To her, this was just part of the deal she'd made with the Hokage and a step forward in making her stronger.

She got up, grabbed some cereal and milk (which she was actually surprised to find in this world), chewing quickly. As she got dressed, she sighed at her clothes. She would have preferred her own unique brand of clothing but she'd yet to find anything like that here so she settled on just complete black. Fortunately, she had gotten a cool black jacket that was similar to the one Iruka wore. It wasn't true leather so it didn't have the same sleek look but it was close enough and felt right to her. Plus it had a bunch of pockets on it for all her apparent ninja tools which was cool. Her pants were pretty normal, she have any complaints there. And she was so thankful her combat boots hadn't been damaged. Those were her favorite type of shoes and she didn't know what she'd wear without them.

To finish it off, she tied the Village Headband around her head. She looked at herself in the mirror. "Not bad," she said, nodding in approval.

She walked out of the apartment building and down the street, heading right towards the academy. As she walked, she noticed all the people up and about. It was still pretty early but there were still plenty of people heading to their jobs or setting up their stalls, all preparing for the day. She'd never stayed long enough in any place after leaving her mom to really get used to anywhere. Now she'd been in this village almost a week and was already starting to know a few of the places around. It was a strange feeling, not one she was used to, but it wasn't bad.

Guess this is what it feels like to have a home, she mused.

Thalia found Hinata waiting by the academy entrance, eyeing the building nervously. "Hey Hinata!" she called out, startling the girl.

"Oh, h-hey Thalia," the girl replied, smiling. Hinata had actually been waiting for her to arrive, wanting to walk in together. It was nice to finally have a friend. She wished Thalia would have arrived sooner so they could have spent more time learning together.

"So, ready to go in?" Thalia asked, interrupting her thoughts.

"Oh, uh, yes, thank you."

The two walked into the building like they'd done before except for Thalia this was new as she'd always been alone in the classroom. Now as she entered it, there were more than two dozen other kids, all chatting with one another.

"I can't believe it," one said.

"I know right," another replied.

"We're finally getting assigned to our teams!"

"Yeah, I can't wait!"

"I hope I'm on Sasuke's team."

"What was up with that delay though?"

"Yeah, why'd they do that?"

"Whatever, at least it's over now and we can finally become real ninja!"

Thalia felt a little embarrassed since she was the one who had caused that delay. But, it hadn't really been her fault given the whole situation, so she moved past it. "Where do you want to sit?" she asked Hinata.

"Oh, I usually sit up here," Hinata gestured to an open seat on the top left side.

"So, do you know all these kids?" Thalia asked, looking around.

Hinata nodded. "Over there is Kiba and his dog Akamaru," she gestured to a boy in a hood with a small puppy resting on his head. "They go everywhere together. It's part of his clan's traditions. And that's Shino. He's an insect specialist."

Thalia frowned, remembering the apparent insect specialist she'd run into in the forest.

"That's Chōji," Hinata continued, gesturing to a pudgy kid currently eating a bag of chips. "He's always hungry."

"I can see that."

"And that's Sasuke," Hinata said and Thalia followed her gaze to one boy the next row over and a few rows down who looked like he was trying to master the art of brooding. Thalia noticed a few other girls staring at him with idiotic expressions on their faces. "He's the strongest in our class," Hinata added

"And evidently the most popular," Thalia added dryly, shaking her head at the girls. "I can kind of see the appeal, I guess, but that whole brooding thing is kind of a turn off for me."

Hinata was a little surprised but glad. Looking at the two of them, Hinata could see some similarities. Honestly, it even looked like Thalia could be Sasuke's sister. But the two were different. Sasuke was always cold and hard, like a rock, and he never smiled. Thalia, while also having a dark aura around her, was also energetic and cheerful just as much if not more. While Sasuke was constantly closed off, Thalia was more open and Hinata respected her more for not falling under whatever spell the other girls had over them.

She went on to talk about a few other members of the class when Naruto suddenly appeared in the doorway. "Hey Thalia!" he greeted enthusiastically. "Hey Hinata! How are you?"

"O-oh, I-I'm okay," Hinata stuttered. She still wasn't used to talking to him so often. Before she'd never even really held a conversation and now they were practically talking every day. She was honestly surprised she hadn't fainted yet.

"Hinata's just introducing me to everybody," Thalia said. It was a little strange for her. Before, she'd only met one other kid like her which was Luke. Then she met Annabeth and then the satyr Grover. Just a handful of individuals in her life. She'd been told that at Camp there were plenty more people like her, children of the gods, but she never got the chance to meet them.

Now, here she was, seeing a whole bunch of kids her age who all had some sort of power and ability. They may not be children of the gods like her or nature spirits like Grover, but they did have chakra which granted each one some sort of mystical skill or something like that, she wasn't really sure. She was curious to see what everyone was capable of. But right now, the vibe of these kids wasn't what was in her head, honestly because she'd been picturing them like Luke or Annabeth. Kids who'd experienced the harsh reality of the world and were hardened by it.

These kids genuinely felt like regular schoolkids. Not one of them had even experienced anything near what Thalia and she felt a stab of jealousy at that thought.

Except one. Thalia found herself looking back at Sasuke Uchiha. He wasn't like the others. While they were all chatting or napping or wasting time, he was hyper focused with that dark brooding look on his face, like he was ready to take on the world. That kind of attitude…well, it was very likely he had experienced something like what Thalia had.

"What are you doing here Naruto?" someone asked, snapping Thalia from her musings. She looked up to see a tall kid with a spiky ponytail looking at Naruto in confusion. "This isn't for dropouts. You can't be here unless you graduated."

"Oh yeah, do you see this, do you see this?" Naruto asked, pointing up at his headband. "Open your eyes Shikamaru, it's a regulation headband. We're gonna be training together. How do you like that?"

The other kid, Shikamaru, huffed as he took that in. Then his attention swung to Thalia and his eyes narrowed slightly in confusion, especially when he saw the headband on her as well. "Who are you?" he asked. "I've never seen you around before."

"I-"

"This is my new friend Thalia!" Naruto proclaimed, slapping her on the back and making her jump in her seat. "She's going to be training with us too from now on, believe it! She's awesome too! In fact, YOW!" he suddenly cried as Thalia grabbed his ear.

"I can answer for myself, you know," she growled.

"Right, sorry. Go right ahead Thalia."

She released him before turning back to Shikamaru. "I'm Thalia and, uh, yeah. Like he said, I'll be joining from now on."

He raised an eyebrow at that. "But it's the last day," he pointed out. "This is our graduation. So how can you be joining us?"

Thalia shrugged. "I didn't make the rules."

Something shifted in the boy's expression. "Hey wait, are you the reason-"

Before he could finish, there was a scuffling sound from the doorway and suddenly two girls fought each other to squeeze through the door, one a blonde with a ponytail and the other having bright pink hair that took Thalia by surprise.

Reminds me of a flamingo, she thought.

"I'm first!" both girls declared before panting heavily.

"Who are those two?" Thalia wondered while Shikamaru muttered 'troublesome' under his breath.

"That's Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka," Hinata informed her.

"Yamanaka?" Thalia questioned, looking back at the girl. "She's the mind dude's daughter?"

Shikamaru shot her a look. She's met Inoichi? he thought. Just who was this girl?

Naruto looked over at Sakura, his cheeks turning red. Sakura, he thought to himself, trying to take in as much of her beauty as possible. Unfortunately, Hinata noticed this and felt like her insides were shriveling up.

Suddenly, Sakura's expression lit up and she raced over. Naruto felt a leap in his chest as she came his way and stood up to greet her. "Hey Sakur-" was all he managed before she shoved him out of the way.

"Move it!" she said, racing past him to where Sasuke was.

"Rejected," Thalia smirked at him, making him grumble in annoyance. She then turned to watch all the girls suddenly argue over who got to sit next to Sasuke and rolled her eyes. Were all these girls seriously like that? She knew Annabeth was like that over Luke but she had the excuse of being seven.

Suddenly the girl she'd met out in the woods, Tenten, sprung to mind. She'd seemed mature enough for her age. Thalia wondered if she were here, would she be the same as all these girls? Hopefully not. At least Hinata wasn't like that, even if she was still hopelessly in love with a boy. She turned to the girl now who was sighing softly to herself.

Oh Naruto, Hinata thought to herself, looking down. She knew it was her own fault he didn't look at her the same way as he did for Sakura. She barely talked or did anything in his presence so of course he would barely notice her. She wished she had the courage to do so but right now her feelings were just too out of control and more often than not she found herself losing consciousness.

She suddenly felt a hand pat her shoulder and she looked up to see Thalia giving her a smile. "Don't worry, you'll get your shot," the girl said. "You just got to have more confidence."

"R-right!" Hinata nodded.

"And he's…what is he doing?" Thalia asked, looking over to where Naruto was currently squatting up on the desk in front of Sasuke, his face literally only inches away from the other boy and glaring hard at him.

"Naruto!" Sakura cried. "Hey, stop glaring at Sasuke!"

At her words, all the other girls chimed in, shouting at Naruto to leave Sasuke alone. Thalia just sighed, feeling less like she was at a ninja school and more like she was just at a regular school now. "Does this happen often?" she asked.

She'd thought Hinata would answer but surprisingly, the boy Shikamaru, who was still there, was the one to respond. "Annoyingly often," he told her. "Though when we all started here it was actually Kiba who got in Sasuke's face. But those girls always fawn over him and always fight with one another and always make things such a drag."

"Ugh," Thalia groaned. "Well, boy am I grateful that I only get to spend one day here."

Suddenly, a collective shock went up among the girls and Thalia looked back, gasping herself at the sight before a small chuckle escaped. "Oh my," she muttered, grinning.

"Well that one's new," Shikamaru commented, a smile crossing his face as well.

Back on the table, Naruto and Sasuke had inexplicably locked lips though judging from their wide eyes and how they immediately separated, spluttering and gagging, it had been an accident. Still, the sight burned its way into Thalia's mind and she happily accepted.

"Naruto!" Sasuke growled, her and all the other girls glaring at Naruto much to his terror. "You are so-"

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Thalia laughed, unable to hold it in any longer. "Oh my gods! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Naruto, you…hahahahahahahaha. Oh that was priceless. That shit you cannot pay for! Hahahahahahaha!"

All the girls stared at her in shock while Naruto shrunk in on himself. "Thalia!" he whined.

"I'm sorry, but oh my gods! How can I not laugh at something like that? Hahahahaha!" Her belly hurt and she had to clutch her stomach but she couldn't help it. She really was not expecting to see that today but she was so grateful she had. "I didn't know you liked Sasuke that way, huh?"

"Thalia!" Naruto cried, face burning red. Next to him, Sasuke's was the same as he stared at the girl, trying to place her. He knew he'd never seen her before.

Everyone else was noticing her to now, staring in confusion and muttering amongst themselves.

"Hey, who are you?" Ino demanded.

Thalia finally stopped laughing, wiping her eyes from the tears. "Thalia," she said, still sporting a grin. "Name's Thalia."

"What are you doing here?" Sakura asked, stepping up as well. "You're not a student here. I've never seen you here before."

"I'm a new addition," Thalia replied.

"On the last day?" Ino questioned dubiously.

"Special exception," Thalia shrugged. "The Hokage cleared it."

That caused a fresh wave of mutterings to occur as the students processed that information. The Hokage had cleared her? But why? Who was she? Sasuke in particular regarded her with curiosity and suspicion.

"You're the reason the graduation got delayed, aren't you?" Shikamaru asked, grabbing everyone's attention.

Thalia shrugged again. "Wasn't my idea so don't blame that on me. They just wanted to make sure I was eligible to pass and it turns out I am, so here we are."

That got even more curious stares and mutterings as they all wondered just who this girl was to receive such treatment. A few others looked at her with animosity now, especially Sasuke, for delaying the graduation at all.

"What clan are you with?" Ino demanded. "What's your last name?"

"None of your business, blondie!" Thalia shot back. "As for my clan, I don't have one."

Even more mutterings while a few stared at her incredulously. "All alone huh?" Ino smirked. "Guess you and Naruto fit well together, huh?"

"Hey!" Naruto cried out as several classmates snickered. "Tha-"

"Yeah, I guess you could say that."

Thalia's words silenced the class, everyone looking at her in surprise. Naruto blinked, not sure what was happening.

"Huh?" Ino said.

"Naruto and I are alike in that sense. I guess that means we kind of form our own clan, huh?" Thalia said. "What do you think, Naruto? You want to be in a clan with me?"

"Th-tha-thalia," he murmured, trying hard to keep back his tears. For almost his entire time at the academy, people had given him the cold shoulder. Sure, he got along pretty well with Shikamaru and Chōji and Kiba but they weren't really close friends. All the girls thought he was weird and everyone considered him a loser. Plus, he was starting to realize their parents all told them not to hang out with him seeing as many isolated him as best they could.

And yet here came Thalia, completely obliterating everything he'd ever known. She'd accepted him right off the bat without even knowing him and now even wanted to form a clan with him. All his life, he'd watched other kids leave with their parents or siblings, returning to their families, while he was all alone. He'd never known what it meant to have a family.

Right now, he was starting to.

But before he could say anything else, Sasuke chimed in. "That's perfect. The dropout and the last minute shoe-in. You losers are perfect for one another."

Instantly, most of the room laughed. "Good one Sasuke!" at least five girls said simultaneously before shooting glares at one another.

"Argh! Sasuke!" Naruto growled. "Did you even see this headband right here? I'm not a dropout, I graduated, same as all of you!"

"Whatever."

"And don't say that about Thalia! She's not a…a…whatever a shoe-in is. She's one of the best ninja in the whole village! Heck, she's an even better ninja than you Sasuke!"

Thalia sighed as she heard multiple gasps and snorts go out across the room. This wasn't really how she wanted the day to go.

"As if!"

"Take that back Naruto!"

"Yeah, there's no way someone like her could beat Sasuke!"

Sasuke himself looked over at Thalia before snorting and rolling his eyes. "Whatever, loser."

A second later, he leapt from his seat as small bolt of electricity struck right next to his hand, startling him and everyone around him.

"What's wrong?" Thalia asked. "Looking a little twitchy there."

Sasuke looked over at her, shock and rage clouding his face. That had been her? She had sent that lightning bolt his way? Who the hell was she? She couldn't possibly be from no clan, not with a jutsu like that.

"Haha!" Naruto laughed. "Told you she was strong."

"Shut up loser!" Sasuka growled.

"Hey, what did you do to Sasuke!" Ino demanded.

"This," Thalia said as she grabbed Ino's hand, sick of this girl. Ino let out a loud yelp as a current of electricity shot through her, making her jump back and causing her hair to stand up.

Next to her Sakura looked in shock at the two of them before snickering at her former friend. "Wow, nice hair Ino."

"What? What's wrong with my hair? What did you do? How did you do that?" Ino demanded of Thalia who just rolled her eyes.

"You're really annoying, you know that?"

Before Ino could reply though, Sasuke stomped over, glaring fiercely at Thalia. Everyone else backed up at his expression and even Hinata shrank in her seat a little. But Thalia just rose from her seat, crossing her arms over her chest as Sasuke approached.

"How did you do that?" Sasuke demanded. "There's no way a nobody like you could perform such a powerful jutsu. Did you steal it?"

Thalia snorted and rolled her eyes. "Who said I was a nobody?" she asked. "No, I didn't steal it. It's my own power. And that's just a fraction of it, pretty boy. So unless you want to feel what it's like to get struck by lightning, I'd suggest backing off."

"Bring it on!" Sasuke said, preparing to fight.

"You asked for this!"

"Get him Thalia!" Naruto cheered.

"Take her down Sasuke!" Ino shrieked.

"No, Thalia!" Hinata tried.

"What a drag," Shikamaru sighed.

Munch, munch, munch, went Chōji.

However, right as Thalia and Sasuke pulled out their kunai, the door opened and Iruka walked in. It took him a second to take in the sight and understand what he was seeing. "What's the meaning of this?" he cried out, stopping everyone. "Get back to your seats now!"

His voice brooked no argument, everyone immediately heading back to their seats. As Thalia sat down again, she gave Sasuke a look as well as the finger.

"We'll finish this later," he promised her.

"Anytime pretty boy," she replied.

"I expected more from all of you," Iruka said angrily to the class. "This is your graduation day after all, the day you become full-fledged shinobi and true protectors of the village. If the Hokage was here, he would be just as ashamed as I am right now."

"But sensei!" Ino complained, pointing an accusing finger at Thalia. "Who is this girl? Why is she here?"

"Thalia is a new addition approved by the Hokage himself due to her attributes," Iruka explained. "She has more than proven herself worthy of graduating alongside the rest of you despite the fact she hasn't attended any classes. This is not unheard of, exceptions have been made in the past due to extraordinary circumstances which this falls under. That is all you need to know. Now, I expect for the rest of the day for you all to be on your best behavior or else I'll begin conducting selective secondary graduation exams for certain students. Is that clear?"

The class went silent after that, none of them willing to push their teacher any farther. Still, Thalia noticed some dirty looks being shot her way and just rolled her eyes. It really did feel like normal school again. At least she only had to do this for one day.

"Now, as I said, today you are all ninjas. To get here, you faced difficult trials and hardships. But that's nothing," Iruka warned. "What comes next will be far more difficult. Now you're only genin, first level ninjas. All the genin will be grouped into thr- ahem," he corrected, remembering that one squad was a special case. "Will be grouped into squads led by a jōnin, an elite ninja."

At that, everyone started muttering amongst themselves as to who their partners would be. Sakura and Ino argued about joining Sasuke's group, Sasuke bemoaned how he would be slowed down by other people, and Naruto just hoped he'd be with Sakura and Thalia and definitely not Sasuke.

Thalia glanced towards Naruto, wondering if she would be with him. It would be preferable seeing as he was one of the few people she knew. Him and Hinata, yeah that world work for her.

Still, she felt an ache inside as she imagined two other people there with her. Of course, Annabeth wouldn't be able to join the squad but Thalia could easily imagine her joining this school given her studious nature. It would be a good place for her to learn and grow. Better than any normal classroom anyway given this school prioritized weapons training, a must for demigods.

And Luke. Thalia really wished Luke were here. The two of them made one unstoppable team. It would be…weird, to not do this with him.

"Thalia?" Hinata asked next to her, concerned. "Are you alright?"

"Hmm?" Thalia blinked, realizing the kind of expression she must be making. "Yeah, sorry. Just…thinking about someone. I'm alright."

"Oh, ok," Hinata said, though still stared at the girl other girl with some worry.

"We want each squad to have a balance of strengths and abilities, so that's how we set them up," Iruka continued. "I will now announce the squads."

He began calling names, the recipients either nodding along, cheering, sighing sadly, or just not caring. More than one girl huffed out at not joining Sasuke's squad and even a couple boys as well.

"Squad Seven," Iruka said, sighing internally. He knew this one was going to cause the most trouble. "Naruto Uzumaki…" he began, instantly grabbing the blonde's attention.

"…Sakura Haruno…"

"Yeah!" Naruto cheered while Sakura sank in her seat, thinking of how doomed she was.

"…Sasuke Uchiha…"

"Ah!" Sakura cheered while Naruto sank in his seat, thinking of how doomed he was.

"…and Thalia Grace," Iruka finished.

"What?" Sakura and Sasuke said simultaneously.

"YEAH!" Naruto cheered louder. "You hear that Thalia, we're on the same team!"

"Yeah I heard it," Thalia replied, blinking in surprise. She turned towards Hinata. "Is this normal? More than three people I mean?"

"I…I don't know," Hinata said honestly, just as confused.

"Well, at least I'm with Naruto. The other two…ugh," Thalia groaned. Sakura came off as one of those ditzy fangirls who only obsessed over guys and didn't seem to have anything else going on in their lives. And Sasuke…well, he just seemed like a prick.

"Wahoo! This is awesome!" Naruto continued to cheer. "Except for stupid Sasuke being on it too!" He then turned and stuck his tongue out at the other boy who just rolled his eyes.

"Whatever loser. Sensei, why is that girl on the team too? Aren't they three-man squads?" he questioned.

"In most cases, yes," Iruka nodded. "But, as I said, given Thalia's special circumstances, the decision was made to put her on Squad 7, especially considering your jōnin."

Thalia frowned, wondering what that meant.

"Fine, but why do great ninja like me and Thalia," Naruto interrupted, making Thalia as well as some of the class look at him in surprise at his choice of words, "have to be in the same group with a slug like Sasuke?"

Iruka groaned. "Sasuke had the best scores of all the graduating students. Naruto, you had the worst scores," he explained, making most of the class laugh. "To create a balanced group, we put the best student with the worst student."

"Egh!" Naruto grunted in annoyance.

"Just make sure you don't get in my way, loser," Sasuke said. "You or that nobody."

Naruto felt a wave of anger wash over him and he clenched his fist at Sasuke. "Hey, what did you say? Don't talk to Thalia like that! She's better than you could hope to be!"

"Sure," Sasuke snorted. That lightning trick had been surprising but there was no way a nobody like her could be anywhere close to his level.

"You-"

"Naruto," Thalia interjected, stopping the boy. "I don't need you fighting my battles."

"Uh, right," Naruto said sheepishly. "Sorry Thalia."

"And as for you Sassy," she said, giving some extra emphasis to the name and smirking at how he tensed up, "just try and keep up. You know, if you can."

"Why yo-"

"Alright, enough!" Iruka said firmly, quieting them all. "This has gone on too long now. The decision on Squad 7 is final. Now, for Squad 8…"

He continued with the final two squads though Thalia wondered why he skipped over number nine and went straight to ten.

"After lunch, you'll meet your new jōnin teachers. Until then, class dismissed."

Once he was finished, some people started talking amongst each other again, especially the ones in the same squad. Shikamaru and Chōji wandered off together while Kiba and Shino took off on their own. Hinata watched them go their separate ways, wondering if she should follow one of them seeing as they were on the same team. But she ultimately decided to stay where she was.

Obviously, Sasuke left immediately, having had enough of the class. Sakura went after him and Naruto went after her.

"So, Hinata," Thalia said, turning to the other girl. "Where do you usually eat lunch?"

They made their way outside towards a small tree tucked away from everyone else. "I usually come here," Hinata said, taking a seat on the grass.

"Nice," Thalia replied, taking it in. As she did, Hinata pulled out her specially made lunch and began to eat though she quickly noticed her friend wasn't. In fact, she couldn't see any lunchbox around.

"Thalia, did you not bring lunch?"

"Yeah," Thalia replied. "I didn't really think of it this morning. Honestly, the last time I was in school they provided lunches so I guess I had that mindset."

"Would you like to share?" Hinata offered. She honestly had made more since she'd always wanted to do friend things with someone else like share lunches.

Thalia blinked at the offer. "You sure?"

"Yeah, it's no problem."

"Ok, thanks." Thalia frowned at the chopsticks, still not used to them. Instead of picking up the food with them, she just speared a piece of meat and placed it in her mouth. She had to admit, the food around here would take some getting used to. Not that it was bad, no, everything she'd had so far had been really good. But most of it was completely new to her. She would kill for a hamburger right now or a hot dog. Living the way she had, those had been her main meals. But this food, some kind of dumpling maybe, she wasn't sure, really was good.

"So, you're on a team with, uh, the dog guy and the bug dude, right?" she asked.

Hinata nodded. "I suppose it makes sense. We're all sensory type ninja after all."

"Sensory type?" Thalia asked as she dug into her food. "What's that mean?"

"My byakugan allows me to see everything around me for meters, even through walls and underground. Kiba's dog sensory skills allow him to track people down with ease and sense when they approach. And Shino's bugs have many useful skills, one of them being information gathering."

"Ah, gotcha," Thalia nodded. "Still, not what I would have done. Your skillset should have been more spread out."

"Spread out?"

"Yeah. They should have put each sensory ninja on a different team. If they're all on the same team and something happens, you lose all your sensory ninja. Not too smart."

"Maybe. But these sort of teams were designed for espionage and infiltration and tracking and things like that, not head-on fights."

Thalia shook her head. "You should always be ready for head-on fights. You never know when or where the next one might come from. That's why we should keep up our sparring sessions."

"R-right," Hinata nodded.

"Divvying up skillsets makes more sense to me anyways," Thalia said, thinking it over. "I get having specialized teams for certain, uh, missions but what if you don't know what you're up against? Makes more sense to have a mixed bag. That's just my opinion anyway," she shrugged.

"No, I think that's very insightful," Hinata said. "There are ninja teams like that, like Team 10."

Thalia thought back, trying to remember what Team 10 was and who was on it, but gave up after a second, not really caring anymore. "Anyway, I hope your team is a good one. Cause it looks like mine is…well, it's clearly going to have some issues."

"D-don't say that," Hinata replied. "At least you have Naruto with you."

"Yeah, sorry for stealing him from you like that."

"Oh," Hinata said, feeling her face heat up. "Th-tha-that's not r-really what I m-meant," she stuttered. "I just meant that it's a good thing you're with someone you know. A friend."

"Huh, yeah that's true." Thalia knew she could work with Naruto at least. Sasuke and Sakura…she wasn't so sure about those two. Sakura was clearly one of those jealous fangirls, obsessed with Sasuke while the tall, dark, and brooding was just an arrogant dick.

That was just first impressions but those impressions did seem pretty telling. She supposed time would tell if there was more there or not.

"Hey, where is Naruto anyway?" she asked. "I would have thought he'd be here."

"Oh." Hinata's expression turned down. "I saw him chase after Sakura."

"Hmm, sorry," Thalia said. Truth be told, she didn't really get it. She understood hot guys well enough and maybe some fantasizing. But love at this age? That she didn't really understand. Then again, her only real exposure to love had been her mom's extremely toxic and one-sided devotion to her dad that had totaled Thalia's life from the get-go. And she hadn't really experienced that kind of love anyway given she'd been too preoccupied with all the monster attacks and whatnot. Her only real relationship with a boy had been with Luke and that hadn't been romantic. Given time, she supposed there was a possibility but she honestly didn't think so. He was her friend, her best friend, and she would do anything for him, but that was it.

"Hinata, can I give you some advice?"

"Oh, uh, sure."

"Don't get hung up on Naruto."

"Huh?" Hinata asked, looking at Thalia with wide eyes. "Wh-what do you mean?"

"I'm not saying give up on him or let him go or whatever. But you know we're only like 12-years-old. A lot can happen in the next few years."

"I-I know that, b-but…"

"Also, while I know you said he was your motivation to get better and it was a decent reason, I don't think you should let that define you. Naruto's the same age and us and also clearly an idiot like most of the other kids here when it comes to the opposite sex." She ignored Hinata's bright blush when she used that word. "Don't become an idiot too. I remember you said the real reason you wanted to get better was to prove to your family that you weren't helpless or a burden. That's a very good reason in my opinion and you should focus on that more.

Hinata just gaped a little, not sure what to say now.

"I'm not saying this to be mean, Hinata. It's just that, the way I've lived, I had to prioritize my survival above everything else. That was my reason to get stronger, just so I could see another day. Thankfully, that's not your life. But I want you to imagine this. If your primary reasoning to be a ninja and get stronger is to impress Naruto and have him like you back, like those girls and Sasuke in there, and it winds up that he doesn't in the end, what will you do? Just give up on being a ninja?"

"I-I…I don't know," Hinata said honestly. "I don't think so. I-I want to be a ninja to prove to my family that I can do it. And to prove it to myself too," she added firmly, feeling her resolve harden inside her. "That's why I'll keep going. That's my primary reason."

Thalia nodded, proud. "Good. Just keep that in mind. You can't control what Naruto or anyone else will do, just yourself. So you better be a ninja for your own reasons or else, well, you won't really make it that far."

"Right!" Hinata nodded firmly.

"But something else to keep in mind. Naruto seems to have a sort of…one-track mind, from what I've seen. So he probably fixates on things that grab his attention. So with Sakura…well, it's kind of obvious it has to do with that pink hair of hers. I mean seriously, did you see that color? Yikes!"

Hinata found herself giggling as Thalia gagged.

"Me as well," Thalia continued. "He noticed me more because I am strong, something he wants to be. So, if you really want him to notice you, then you just have to be more noticeable. Right?"

Hinata stared at this girl who she'd only know a few days and yet was already becoming a cherished friend. She'd given her such good advice in all things and Hinata honestly didn't know what she'd done to deserve this. She was just so very grateful.

"Right!" she nodded, a smile spreading across her face and a sense of confidence filling her up.

After that, they spent the rest of their lunch break talking about nothing in particular. Hinata wasn't very comfortable talking about her family and she herself found Thalia was the same about her own past. So instead they discussed the village itself. Seeing as Thalia was new, she asked Hinata about the place and Hinata was more than happy to share what she knew about her home with her new friend. She talked about the history of the village and how it was founded, the various Hokage through the years. She talked about the different clans of the village and some of the famous shinobi.

Thalia found it much easier to learn from Hinata. Perhaps it came from being outside rather than in a stifling classroom. Or perhaps it was Hinata's genuine excitement compared to Iruka's drone-like voice. Also, Thalia found it easier to stop and ask questions when she was lost on something. Either way, by the time their break was over, she felt like she really did know the village better.


Sakura wasn't sure how to feel about everything right now. The day had definitely not gone the way she'd wanted it to. Yes, she was on a team with Sasuke which was a dream come true. But then he'd called her 'annoying' when she'd started insulting Naruto to him. She'd forgotten that Sasuke was technically alone too during her little speech about the way Naruto acted due to him being all alone.

But, after she'd decided to try and be nice to Naruto, he'd just gotten mad and then farted for some reason and ran off clutching his butt. She wasn't sure what happened there but she knew it had something to do with Naruto being his idiotic self.

Then there was the mysterious fourth member of the team. Thalia Grace. Sakura had never heard of her before but she was evidently a last minute edition to the class recommended by the Hokage himself. It made her wonder who this girl was to receive that kind of treatment. All Sakura knew was she did not like the idea of being on a team with that girl, especially after that attack on Sasuke. The fact that she and Naruto were close didn't help at all.

But she supposed there wasn't much she could do about it. They were all on the same team after all so they would have to find some way to work together. At least Sakura could be sure of one thing. Thalia showed absolutely no interest in Sasuke so Sakura wouldn't have to compete with her for his affection. If she was on a team with Ino…gah! She didn't even want to think about that.

She walked back to the school, the lunch break almost over, and then blinked when she saw Thalia and Hinata together. Now that she thought about it, the two had been sitting together in the classroom as well. Hinata was the only girl in the class who wasn't part of the Sasuke-fan club, something that was a surprise in of itself. Because of that, Sakura didn't really take much notice of her. All she knew was that she was a shy girl, very quiet, and sometimes fainted out of the blue. Although now that she thought about it, a few of those times happened when Naruto was around. Maybe he played a prank on her or something…well, whatever the case, to think someone as bold as Thalia given her actions in the classroom would hang out with someone like Hinata.

Whatever the case, Sakura decided to walk up to them. Given that they were on the same team now, she wanted to make peace. She'd tried to do it to Naruto but he'd acted like an idiot so she was going to wait on that a bit longer. But she should at least try with this girl.

"Oh hey, Pinky," Thalia greeted as Sakura approached, making the girl touch her hair. Not the worst nickname, she had to admit. At least it wasn't 'forehead' or anything like that. If she'd said that then there was no way they would get along.

"Hi," Sakura greeted. "I just wanted to say that since we're going to be teammates, we should probably try to get along. So, what do you say we start over?"

Thalia eyed her for a few seconds, an eyebrow raised, and Sakura felt a twinge of nervousness that she would blow her off or say something rude or just ignore her or something like that. But then the girl just shrugged. "Sure," she said. "I'm Thalia."

"Uh, right. I'm Sakura. Nice to meet you," Sakura said, putting a smile on her face that was actually genuine.

"W-we should probably keep walking back," Hinata interjected. "We don't want to be late when the jōnin come."

"Right, of course."

They all started walking back together. As they did, Sakura took a closer look at Thalia. With that dark outfit and her spiky black hair, Sakura honestly thought she might be looking at Sasuke's long-lost sister or something like that.

"So, why'd the Hokage let you in to the Academy on the last day?" she asked.

Thalia shrugged. "You'll have to ask him that. I didn't really have a say in the matter."

"Huh." Sakura wasn't sure if the girl was being totally truthful there but she didn't seem to be. "How'd you do that lightning thing before?" she asked.

"It's part of my…uh, ninjutsu skills that I've developed." Sakura noticed the slight pause as she said that and briefly wondered what that was about before moving on.

"That's pretty impressive. I don't really know anyone at the Academy who can do something like that."

"Hmmm. Well, you don't learn in school," Thalia said, making Sakura snort.

"What are you talking about? Of course we learn in school. That's the whole point of school."

Thalia shrugged again. "I didn't learn those, uh, ninjutsu skills in school. I learned them out in the wild fighting for my life against monsters."

Sakura blinked. "Monsters?"

Thalia seemed to hesitate there for a second before pressing on. "Yeah, wild beasts, you know?"

"Oh, right," Sakura nodded and then blinked again. "Wait, out in the wild?"

"Yep! Been living outside the, um, villages my whole life. Just on the road constantly. That's how I learned to fight and survive. So yeah, you don't learn the important stuff in school. You learn it out there. That's where you really get tested."

Suddenly, Sakura felt a little nervous. She had one of the highest test scores in the Academy and had been super proud to show off that accomplishment. But…when it came to combat…well, she wasn't a slouch but it wasn't exactly that great. More like just mediocre. If she went up against an actual opponent as she was now, she would die for sure. And they were about to be assigned their jōnin today who would take them out on real missions. Missions where they might have to fight real opponents.

Ok, now she was feeling really nervous.

She glanced back at Thalia. This girl claimed to live on her own for years out in the wild, teaching herself how to fight and survive. Sakura was beginning to understand now why she was being made a genin despite not being in the Academy at all before. If she could do that, she could probably handle any of the assigned missions.

"Oh…" she said softly, feeling a pit grow inside her.

"Huh?" Thalia glanced over, seeing her crestfallen expression. "You ok?"

"Yeah," Sakura said, doing her best to pick herself up again. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure?" Thalia asked again. "Cause you're walking past the school."

Sakura looked up and winced when she realized she was walking right past the school, not even noticing they'd reached it in her state of mind.

Great, can't even do that right, she thought. Then she pinched herself. She couldn't think that way. Plenty of ninja started out small but that didn't mean they stayed that way. This was her chance to prove herself and she would.

As they entered the school again, Thalia looked around, noticing a certain blonde's absence. "Hey, where'd Naruto go?"

"Oh, that idiot?" Sakura rolled her eyes. "Last I saw he was running towards the bathroom clutching his stomach."

"Oh no," Hinata mumbled, eyes growing in concern. "Is he alright?"

Sakura shrugged. "I don't know, he-"

Before she could finish, the door burst open and Naruto came hustling in, panting. "Made it," he said just as the bell rang again. "Stupid belly."

Sasuke shot Naruto a look when he came in but then just ignored him, not all that interested in continuing their spat.

"Alright everyone, please take your seats," Iruka said. Once they had, he continued. "Your jōnin instructors will be by shortly so please wait patiently for them to arrive."

An instructor, huh? Thalia thought. It would be strange to have an instructor in the field. All she knew was acting on her own without any rules or people telling her what to do. Even with Luke, they'd never ordered each other around. She wasn't sure how she really felt about it right now. She wasn't really big on following someone else's rules. She supposed she would decide after she met this person, whoever they were.

Most of the kids were let out quickly by the instructors already there until soon it was just the 10 of them left.

"I-I should probably go sit with my team," Hinata mumbled.

"Yeah, that's probably best. We don't know when our instructors will come in," Thalia nodded.

"G-good luck Thalia. And you too Naruto," she added quickly.

"Huh?" Naruto looked up at his name and then gave Hinata a big thumbs up and a wide grin. "I don't need luck. I'm going to be an awesome ninja, believe it!"

Thalia looked at him weirdly before shaking her head. "Good luck Hinata. We'll see each other later for sparring though, right?"

"Right!" Hinata affirmed with a nod.

Naruto was already looking towards the door again when Thalia elbowed him. "Ow, what?" he complained.

She gave him a look and gestured towards Hinata who was walking away. His eyes swiveled between the two before Thalia murmured under her breath, "wish her luck back you moron."

"Oh, right. Do your best Hinata!" Naruto cheered.

Hinata stopped, her face turning bright red and the blonde's cheer. Don't pass out, don't pass out, don't pass out, she repeated over and over as she walked over to where Kiba and Shino were.

"So dense," Thalia muttered, shaking her head. "Alright Naruto, let's go sit with our team."

"But Thalia! Sasuke's over there! I don't want to sit next to him!"

"Well guess what?" Sasuke replied, overhearing them. "I don't want to sit next to a loser like you either."

"What? I'll sit wherever I want to sit!" Naruto shot back, stalking over to the guy. Thalia sighed dramatically and was surprised to hear Sakura do the same.

"That's one way to accomplish it," she commented.

"He does only have a one-track mind," Thalia added.

Only a few minutes passed in which they made small talk with each other, Naruto making a few jokes as well. Thalia mainly stayed out of it, not sure about all this. These people had all studied and spent time together. She felt like an outsider right now, just randomly thrust into their group. Still, for the most part they seemed alright.

The door suddenly opened up and they all turned to see a large man with tanned skin and a beard that grew down from his sides to his chin.

"Alright!" Naruto cheered. "Are you our sensei? I'm Naruto Uzumaki and one day I'm going to be Hokage!"

"Does he say that to everyone when he meets them?" Thalia asked aloud, recalling his words when they first met.

"Yep!" came at least five responses.

The instructor came to the center of the room and pulled out a pad of paper. "Shikamaru Nara, Chōji Akimichi, Ino Yamanaka."

"Sir," the three said, standing up.

"I'm Asuma Sarutobi and I'm going to be the jōnin leader of your squad," he told them. "We're going to have a meeting now so follow me."

Shikamaru and Chōji waved goodbye as Asuma led them away while Ino shot Sasuke a look and told him she'd see him later.

"Just get lost Ino-pig!" Sakura cried.

"Get a hold of yourself," Thalia sighed.

"Aw man, I can't believe they already got their sensei," Naruto complained before suddenly jumping back up. "Well so what? I bet the next one will be ours. Right Thalia?"

"I really don't care."

"Oh come on Thalia, back me up here."

"Ugh!"

Sasuke actually found himself in agreement with her, closing his eyes in annoyance at the blonde.

"No way, it's going to be our sensei next, for sure," the dog boy, Kiba, declared. "Right Akamaru?" The dog appeared on his shoulder, yapping in agreement.

Naruto growled in response but before he could do anything else, the door opened again and a woman appeared. Thalia blinked as she took her in. The woman looked like she was wearing thick bandages over her clothing. She'd never seen anything like it. The woman also had messy dark hair and deep red eyes

She instantly looked over at Kiba, Hinata, and Shino and without her having to say it, Thalia knew she was their sensei.

"Well looks like the loser squad gets a loser sensei too," Kiba said as he walked out the door while Naruto and Sakura sighed in disappointment and Sasuke just continued to brood.

"Oh quit your yapping, dogbrain," Thalia said, letting out a breath.

"What'd you call me?" Kiba cried, instantly appearing in the doorway again. "Just become you're some hotshot with the Hokage doesn't-"

"Kiba!" his sensei, Kurenai, called out. "We're leaving."

Kiba gave Thalia one last dirty look before he turned and walked away.

"Hey, dogbrain!" she called out to him.

"That's it! I'm going to-"

"You'd better watch out for Hinata! Cause if anything happens to her, I'm going to make you and bugboy pay! You got that?"

Kiba looked back at her and then towards Hinata who was now blushing at her friend's words. Kurenai had even turned, surprised at the words.

Well, well, she thought. She'd been looking after Hinata for a little while now and had even known about her bond with the new girl here but she hadn't realized how deep it had quickly become. I'm happy for you, Hinata, she thought. It's a shame I can't have you both on the same team.

"Uh, yeah, no worries," Kiba said. "But don't call me dogbrain!" He then walked away but as he passed Hinata, he gave her a quick nod. "Good friend you have there," he said, making her blush deeper. While he may not like the new girl's attitude, he could respect her desire to protect her friend. He had that with Akamaru himself and knew he'd say the exact same thing if it were to happen to them.

Next to them, Shino just regarded the situation quietly, not having any real opinions on it.

Thalia, Hinata thought as she followed her team out. She'd never heard anyone speak that way about her before. She hadn't truly realized how amazing it really was to have a true friend.

"Aw man, when's our sensei going to get here?" Naruto complained after Team 8 was gone. "We're the last ones now."

"Don't worry, those two just went off so I'm sure our sensei will be here any minute," Sakura said, hopefully.

"He better be," Sasuke added darkly.

"And I'm officially bored," Thalia said, twirling her kunai with her finger restlessly. She didn't like sitting in the classroom with nothing to do. If their sensei didn't get here quick, she was going to lose her mind.

But their sensei wasn't there quick. Over an hour went by and there was still no sign of him. Naruto began to pace up and down the classroom while Sasuke's face grew ever darker with each passing second. Sakura just kept sighing and Thalia began to toss her kunai up into the air and catching it again.

After some time had passed and Thalia felt like if she didn't do something or else she really would lose her mind, she turned to Sakura. "Want to have a thumb war?"

Sakura blinked in utter confusion. "Huh?"

"A thumb war," Thalia repeated.

"Wha-what's a thumb war?"

"You don't know?" Thalia blinked in surprise. She and Luke had often done it to pass the time while traveling and then later she had done it with Annabeth, letting the girl win in the beginning and then quickly having to up her game after the girl started to outshine her. "It's just a game to pass the time. Here," Thalia said, taking Sakura's hand and interlocking it with her own. "It's really simple. Just hold out your thumb like this," she explained while demonstrating, "and then we try to force our thumb to push the other down and keep it down for like ten seconds."

"Huh?" Sakura asked, still confused.

Thalia used her thumb to take Sakura's and pushed it down. "Like that," she said. "You want to do that."

"Ok…but, why are we doing this?"

Thalia shrugged. "It's fun. Besides, you got something else to do?"

Sakura thought about it for a second before shrugging as well. Thalia was right, they didn't have anything else to do while waiting for their sensei. And besides, this was a chance for her to grow a rapport with the other girl. It also seemed like it could be fun.

"Alright, ready?" Thalia asked.

"Ready."

"And…go."

Sakura was embarrassed at how quickly she lost, Thalia's thumb swiftly snatched hers and holding it down. Sakura was shocked by the girl's thumb strength and struggled but couldn't move her thumb out of the way.

"Sorry, I played it a lot while traveling," Thalia explained.

"Oh, no problem. Let's go again."

"Right."

Sakura lost the next few games as well but that just made her more determined. Now that she had an understanding of the game, she started getting better, moving her thumb around and waiting for the best moment to strike. At one point she even managed to get Thalia's thumb under hers and let out a small squeal of excitement but it died quickly as Thalia was able to slip out of it.

"Close," the other girl said, smiling and Sakura smiled back.

"Whoa!" Naruto said, surprising them as they hadn't realized he'd come over. "That's really cool. Can I try?"

"Sure." Without hesitating, Thalia held out her other hand and grabbed Naruto's with it. Sakura blinked at the move, realizing the other girl was planning on playing them both at the same time. "Ready?" Thalia asked before attacking Naruto when he nodded, quickly subduing his thumb in no time while still holding Sakura's off.

"Aw man!" Naruto complained. "Let's go again! I'll get you next time for sure!"

"Would you mind keeping it down?" Sasuke snapped from his seat, making Sakura blush.

"Sorry Sasuke, we'll-"

"What, are we interrupting your brooding?" Thalia asked, still playing, forcing Sakura to keep moving her thumb to avoid losing.

"You're being annoying."

Annoying. That word hit Sakura like an anvil. She was annoying him. Again. The thought made her heart squeeze and her head droop down, her thumb becoming listless.

"Hey, bastard!" Naruto cried. "Why don't you just shut up? We were minding our own business til you butted in."

Sasuke glared at them. "You're acting like little kids. It's annoying an-"

"Go screw yourself, pretty boy," Thalia sighed. "You really like sucking the joy out of everything don't you?"

Sasuke glared over at her but just went back to staring at the wall, ignoring them. Thalia glanced Sakura's way and saw the other girl was still drooping sadly at Sasuke's words. Asshole, she thought, looking back at Sasuke. She may have thought the girl was annoying as well at first given her fangirlish devotion to Sasuke but she had come to try and make things right with Thalia and in their game just now had actually proven to be nice as she hadn't gotten overly frustrated or annoyed when she lost or blamed Thalia for things but had just kept trying. Maybe she was annoying at times, but that didn't give Sasuke the right to just stomp on her like that with his words, especially when they were just playing a game.

However, it was clear from Sakura's expression that thumb war was done so they all went back to just waiting around.

Pretty soon, Naruto went back to pacing around, sticking his head out the classroom door to see if their sensei was coming or not.

"Naruto, just sit down," Sakura said after he did it for the sixth time.

"I don't want to," he replied. "How come our teacher's the only one that's late? I'm ready to roll. Believe it. The other groups' all met their new teachers and took off on some new adventure or something and Iruka-sensei's gone too."

"Maybe it's some sort of weird test," Thalia suggested, annoyed as well. "Like, they're trying to see how long we'll stay here waiting before we give up and leave?"

Sasuke didn't want to admit it but he'd actually thought about that as well.

A sudden rattling drew their attention to the door again where Naruto was now placing an eraser in the doorway while giggling, clearly aiming to prank their new sensei.

"Naruto!" Sakura chided, walking over.

"That's what he gets for coming late," Naruto said. "'Surprise!"

"You're asking for trouble. You know you shouldn't do that," Sakura told him while inside she was agreeing with him, eager to see the eraser land on the sensei.

"Yeah," Thalia agreed, walking over as well now. "It would be so much better if you could put a bucket of water up there to fall on them when they walk in."

Naruto's eyes lit up. "Or paint!"

Thalia's eyes lit up as well. "Yeah, paint!"

"Not the point I was making, Thalia," Sakura said, though she inwardly agreed that she would love to see their new sensei covered in paint.

"I wish we could but this door doesn't work that way," Naruto said sadly. "If I had more time I could devise something that could make that happen."

"Well, we have no idea how long we're going to be here," Thalia pointed out.

"Oh hey, yeah!"

A snort drew their attention towards Sasuke who was still in his brooding pose. "Our teacher's a jōnin, an elite ninja. You think he'd fall for that?"

"Yeah, Sasuke's right," Sakura immediately agreed. "You're so clueless Naruto."

While they talked, Thalia's ear twitched and she instantly looked to the door right as a hand appeared on the frame. The others followed her gaze, each with their own thoughts and feelings about what might happen next.

Kakashi Hatake knew he was late. He couldn't help it. Pulling the stupid stunt was a way for him to keep the memory of his old friend Obito alive. They hadn't gotten along when he'd been alive, something Kakashi would always regret, and Kakashi had always hated how late Obito was. But now…well, he didn't know. There really wasn't any true purpose to it other than to remember him. Kakashi certainly didn't think he was honoring his friend by acting this way. It just helped him reminisce about those days and about what might have been if he'd acted better towards his teammate.

Eventually, after a chat with Tenzo, a man who didn't actually go by Tenzo and who Kakashi considered to actually be a friend, he finally decided to go meet his new team. He'd already had two genin teams and had been thoroughly disappointed by both of them. One was too eager to turn on one another and the other was too reliant on one team member, something that would cost all of them greatly out in the real world.

Now, Kakashi had to deal with what was perhaps the most volatile team of all. The last Uchiha, a boy practically brimming with anger and rage for his clan's death. The nine-tailed jinchūriki, a boy with an unfathomable amount of power within and who also happened to be the son of Kakashi's mentor, another person he'd failed. And, the latest addition, a girl from another dimension who happened to be the daughter of a god.

I swear that pink-haired girl better not have any hidden secrets or powers, he thought as he walked towards the room where his team was apparently waiting. However, as soon as he opened the door, he sensed something falling from above. A instant glance upwards told him it was nothing threatening, just an eraser. A silly prank, no doubt courtesy of Naruto, the village's grand prankmaster.

Despite how easily he could dodge it, Kakashi decided to let it hit him. He was curious to see how the team would react to the situation. Hopefully, it would be in a way that showed they were a team.

The instant the eraser struck their new sensei and hit the ground, Naruto burst out laughing. "I got him! He totally fell for it!"

Thalia just blinked in surprise before laughing herself. She wasn't sure it would work, especially after what Sasuke said, but evidently even elite ninja could let their guards down.

"I'm sorry sensei. I told him not to do it but he wouldn't listen," Sakura said as quickly as possible. "I'd never do anything like that." Inwardly though, she cheered Naruto on.

"Ugh," Thalia sighed, shaking her head at Sakura. "Suck-up."

"What'd you call me?"

He actually fell for that cheap trick? Sasuke thought in disbelief. Is this guy really a jōnin?

"Hm," their sensei said, regarding them all. Thalia noted the gray hair despite the fact that he looked quite young, the headband that covered up his left eye which made her wonder if he was covering some old injury, and the mask over his mouth and nose that definitely gave him the whole 'ninja vibe.'

Damn, she thought. He's kind of cool.

"How can I put this?" he said thoughtfully, scratching his chin. "My first impression of this group: you're a bunch of idiots."

Instantly, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke sagged under his words like he'd just dropped an anvil on their heads.

"Huh," Thalia replied. "This coming from our apparent teacher whose over an hour late and has no excuse as to why? If we're idiots, I guess that means you're a dick."

The other three all froze at her words before Naruto burst out laughing. "Nice one Thalia!" he cheered.

Is she crazy? Sakura shrieked, looking at their new sensei to see how he'd react and hoping he wouldn't punish all of them for her words.

Sasuke on the other hand just smirked.

Kakashi regarded her and the others' expressions carefully. After the prank, Kakashi had found himself disappointed when he saw how they all handled it. Except for Thalia, that was. Naruto had been the perp, obviously, but Sakura had instantly tried to protect herself and even pinned all the blame on Naruto while Sasuke just stayed out of the whole thing. Not a shred of teamwork between those three. Thalia on the other hand had laughed right alongside Naruto and when Sakura had tried to protect herself, she'd confronted the other girl on it.

And now, when Thalia had insulted him, Naruto had instantly jumped to her side while Sakura was again terrified of how he'd respond. Sasuke on the other hand had shown some response. It wasn't much, but it was something.

Naruto and Thalia. He already knew of the bond they'd forged with one another. When he'd peeked in the classroom earlier to observe them before officially meeting them, he'd noticed it then as well. They may only know each other a few days but everything that had happened in that time had already made them more of a team.

Now that's something I can work with, he thought.

"Come on," he said, turning around and walking out. "We've wasted enough time as it is."

"Easy for him to say," Thalia muttered. "He's the one who was late."

"I know right!" Naruto replied.

"Shush!" Sakura said next to them. "He can probably hear you, you know!"

"Good! He should!"

Kakashi just shook his head, wondering just what might become of this new team of his.

A few minutes later, they found themselves on the roof of a nearby building, Kakashi leaning against the railing while they were all seated in front of him.

"Alright, why don't you introduce yourselves one at a time?" he said.

"Introduce ourselves?" Sakura asked. "Well, what are we supposed to say?"

Kakashi shrugged. "Things you like," he suggested. "Things you hate. Dreams for the future. Hobbies. Things like that."

Thalia shared a glance with the others. She was definitely getting weird vibes from this guy. It wasn't that he didn't want to be here, it was more like he was still deciding on whether or not he cared.

"Why don't you tell us stuff first?" Naruto chimed in. "I mean, before we talk, tell us about you, so we can see how it's supposed to work."

"Me? I'm Kakashi Hatake," he replied. "Things I like and things I hate…I don't feel like telling you that."

"Huh?" Naruto and Sakura said, confused.

"Ugh," Thalia and Sasuke said, annoyed.

"My dreams for the future…never really thought about it," Kakashi continued. "As for my hobbies…I have lots of hobbies."

"That was totally useless," Sakura muttered. "All he really told us was his name."

"Uh huh."

"What he really told us was that he didn't want to tell us anything about himself," Thalia interjected, drawing their attention. "Because he's still unsure whether or not we're going to make it."

She'd done the same thing before. It had been a while until she'd finally opened up to Luke and told him about herself. It was hard to form a bond with someone when you didn't know if they'd be there with you the next day.

"Huh?" Sakura and Naruto asked.

Not bad, Kakashi thought. This girl had picked up on that fast. Maybe it was intuition or something else. Still, with each passing moment he understood more and more why the Hokage had done so much to bring her into the village.

Sasuke glanced between Thalia and Kakashi. He honestly hadn't really cared about this whole thing so hadn't bothered to notice what Thalia had. But now that he was, he saw she was right. All the other sensei had been formal with their students and quick to introduce themselves. The way they acted made it clear they were more than ready to teach. This guy was different. He'd arrived late and seemed bored by them all from the start. Sasuke initially thought it was because he was lazy or something but now he wondered if maybe it was due to another reason.

"What do you mean Thalia?" Naruto asked.

"Don't you remember what Iruka said the other night?" Thalia told him. "About how our senseis designed personal tests to see whether or not we really had what it took to be ninja?"

"Oh yeah," Naruto nodded before his eyes bulged out. "Oh no, I totally forgot! Hey, Kakashi-sensei, you can't do that!"

"Wrong, I can," Kakashi replied. "While I was going to wait to tell you all that, yes, I do have a test for you four that, if you fail, will mean sending you back to the academy."

Sasuke glowered and Sakura gasped at his words.

So Thalia was right. He is just acting this way to see if we're worthy of his attention or not, Sasuke thought. Fine then, I'll play along. For now.

"But that isn't important right now. We're going to start with introductions. Afterwards, we'll talk about the test and what you'll need to do in order to pass, alright?"

Naruto grimaced but nodded along. "Fine."

"Wonderful. Now, you on the right. You first."

"Huh?" Naruto looked at him in confusion.

"Your introduction," Kakashi reminded him while the others sighed. "Tell us about yourself."

"Oh right. Believe it, I'm Naruto Uzumaki. I like instant ramen in a cup and I really like the ramen Iruka-sensei got me at the Ichikaru noodle shop. But I hate the 3 minutes you have to wait after you pour the water in the ramen cup. My hobby is eating different kinds of ramen and comparing them. And my future dream is to be the greatest Hokage!" he cried louder. "Then the whole village will stop disrespecting me and start treating me like I'm somebody, somebody important."

"Wow," Thalia murmured. "It's like his whole personality is wrapped up in those two things…no, no that actually tracks."

Well he's grown up in a very interesting way, Kakakshi thought as he looked at Minato's son. It really was hard to compare the two given their incredible different personalities. Honestly, the only similarity they shared was the hair.

"All right, next," Kakashi said, turning to Sakura.

"I'm Sakura Haruno," she said eagerly. "What I like, uh…I mean the person I like is…" she paused, giggling slightly as she turned to look at Sasuke who had reentered his brooding state, ignoring them. At this point, Thalia thought that actually might be for the best. She'd do the same in his position.

"Uh, my hobby is, uh…my dream for the future is…" Sakura then squealed, lost in her own fantasies that Thalia was very sure she didn't want to know about.

"And?" Kakashi asked, feeling exasperated by the nonsense coming out of her. It was times like this that he really missed Rin. She had never acted like this. "What do you hate?"

"Naruto!" Sakura cried out instantly, making Naruto cry out as well.

Girls her age are more interested in boys than in ninja training, Kakashi thought tiredly before pausing, looking over at Thalia and the way she rolled her eyes at Sakura's antics. Well, most of them anyway.

He was tempted to have her go next but something told him to save her for last. So instead, he just turned to Sasuke. "Next."

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha," he replied slowly, still not looking up at any of them. "I hate a lot of things and I don't particularly like anything."

That last comment made Sakura gasp slightly. Thalia frowned at him, feeling the intensity of his words. It wasn't just random emo, brooding stuff he was saying. Honestly, as he talked, she was reminded of Luke when they first met. And then, towards the end, after their encounter with his father.

What happened to this guy? she wondered.

"What I have is not a dream because I will make it a reality," he continued firmly. "I'm going to restore my clan and destroy a certain someone."

They all stared at him as he finished, each comprehending his words their own way. Kakashi knew exactly what and who he was talking about and couldn't help but feel both sympathy and trepidation towards the last Uchiha.

Naruto and Sakura didn't really understand what he was saying, Naruto wondering if Sasuke meant him while Sakura just thought it made him hotter. But Thalia was concentrating on one of the things he said.

Restore my clan? she thought. Hinata had gone over the different clans of the village but she hadn't mentioned the Uchiha clan. Did that mean they were gone? Certainly seemed that way from what he said. Which probably meant it hadn't happened gradually. Thalia instantly felt a pang of sympathy for the boy, only imagining what he might have gone through.

Still, the intensity of his words frightened her a little.

"Alright then, last one," Kakashi said, turning to Thalia and actually perking up a bit to see what she had to say.

"Hmm?" Thalia blinked before realizing they were all looking at her. "Oh, right. Well, I don't know how to follow up the lover of ramen, lover of Sasuke, and lover of nothing but I'll do my best," she said, gesturing to her companions in turn, making Naruto grin, Sakura blush, and Sasuke frown.

Sasuke hadn't cared about the other two but based on what he'd seen from Thalia so far, he was just a tiny bit interested in her now.

"My name is Thalia," she said, refusing to give her last name which Kakashi noticed. He recalled a conversation he'd had with Guy where she'd instantly gone on the attack after he'd mentioned her last name and it made Kakashi wonder what about it was so triggering.

"I guess what I like, or who I like, are my friends," she continued, thinking of Luke and Annabeth and doing her best not to let any sadness show.

"Aw, thanks Thalia," Naruto said, rubbing the back of his head.

Thalia blinked and then nodded. "Yeah, sure thing. And Hinata too," she added. "I like them. And I don't like mon-people who would hurt my friends," she quickly corrected, though Kakashi caught her slip up and recalled from his discussion with the Hokage the things she'd gone through. "My hobbies…don't have too many though I do like training so I guess I'll just say that. And my dream for the future…"

She paused, collecting her thoughts. Of course, she knew what her dream was, to get back home and reunite with her friends. But there was another, different dream she had that she found herself saying instead.

"I guess you could say my dream is to get stronger," she said. "Strong enough that I'll never be a burden to those around me, strong enough that I can protect everyone I care about. That's my dream."

Kakashi blinked before a small smile appeared behind his mask. He knew what she'd done before she came here, how she'd sacrificed herself to let her friends escape. It was something Obito had done for him and Rin and later what Rin had done when she'd been possessed by the Three-Tails. And then what Minato and Kushina had done for the whole village against the Nine-Tailed fox.

Yes, he thought. Maybe she is the person this team really needs.

"Wow Thalia!" Naruto beamed.

"Wow," Sakura echoed, not expecting that answer.

Strong enough…to protect? Sasuke thought to himself before brushing it aside. No! I only want to get strong enough to destroy! That's it!

Still, the thought stayed with him.

"Good," Kakashi said, drawing their attention again. "You're each unique and you have your own ideas. We'll have our first mission tomorrow."

Naruto chirped happily. "What kind of mission are we going to have?"

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at him. "Have you already forgotten? Tomorrow's mission is actually more of a test, one that will determine whether or not you'll stay genin or go back to the academy."

Instantly Naruto's energy faded as he remembered. "Oh, right. Well…it doesn't matter! I'll pass this stupid test of yours no problem! Believe it!"

"Glad to hear it," Kakashi replied dryly.

"So what is this test?" Sasuke asked.

"It's a task that the four of us will do together, a survival exercise."

"Survival exercise?" Naruto questioned.

"How is this any different from the stuff we did at the academy?" Sakura asked, dubious.

"Well, for one thing, not all of you attended the academy," Kakashi reminded them, eyeing Thalia. Sakura glanced her way as well a little sheepishly, having forgotten that fact. Thalia though continued to look ahead. Honestly, she wasn't paying too much attention right now. She'd prefer to actually be doing something right now, not just sitting around listening.

"For another, this is not like your previous training. You see, of the 28 graduates who just came here, only 9 will actually be accepted as genin. Or, if this team makes it, 10," he added, eyeing Thalia again. "The others will be weeded out and sent back to the academy. In other words, this is a make it or break it, pass-fail test. And the chance that you'll fail is at least 66%."

Even though they'd all been made aware of the test already, hearing the success rate hit them all like anvils.

"That's crazy! We worked hard to get here. Believe it! What was that graduation test for anyway?" Naruto complained.

"That? That was just to select candidates who might become genin…or not."

"What?"

"That's how it is. I decide whether you pass or fail. Be at the designated training spot at 5 am, and bring your ninja gear," Kakashi told them.

Well I'm not going to be weeded out. People are going to look up to me someday. I've got to pass this test. Believe it. Believe it, Naruto thought determinedly.

If I fail, I'll be separated from Sasuke. This is a trial of love, Sakura thought desperately.

Sasuke had no thoughts, just a resolve to pass.

Thalia, meanwhile, really only had one thought. I do not want to go back to that classroom and have to sit in a chair learning shit all day. The small amount of time she'd done that with Iruka these last few days and shown her how hellish that could be.

"That's it, you're dismissed," Kakashi said, turning to walk away before pausing. "Oh, tomorrow you better skip breakfast, or else you'll puke."

Naruto and Sakura gulped at that with Sasuke doing his best to decipher his words. Thalia, however, just frowned before shrugging it off.

After Kakashi left, Sasuke quickly followed despite Sakura's attempt to get him to stay, leaving the three of them alone on the roof.

"Well now," Thalia said, puffing out some air, "that was something."

"Yeah! Who does he think he is, deciding on if we can or can't pass?" Naruto said.

"Um…our sensei," Sakura replied.

"Yeah…well, whatever! It's still not fair!"

"Life's not fair," Thalia said. "So let's just deal with it."

"What kind of exercise do you think it could be?" Sakura mused.

Thalia shrugged. "I don't know. Never been to the academy, remember? What kind of survival exercises did you guys do?"

"Oh, well, we had exercises where we had to travel to a certain destination in a time limit," Sakura said, thinking back. "Those sometimes took days."

"Those weren't too bad," Naruto said, shrugging. "At least we got out of the academy. The only real problem was there was no ramen around."

"Wouldn't really think that would a main problem," Thalia said while Sakura just sighed. "Well, Kakashi said this test would be different from all that, so…I guess just be ready for the unexpected."

That wasn't too hard for her. She'd always had to be on guard for any sort of challenge that came her way. The only difference now was that this one didn't involve death as an outcome, just a failing grade.

Sakura nodded as well. That was something they had been taught, that ninja had to be ready for anything and they couldn't always prepare for it. She guessed this wait was part of Kakashi-sensei's training. Didn't help much though. Like Naruto had said, they'd worked hard to get here and it didn't seem fair to send them back to the academy just like that.

She glanced over at Thalia who looked completely unbothered by the whole situation. Maybe it was because she was new to this so going back to the academy wasn't as big a deal for her? But to Sakura it would be so humiliating, especially if Ino was able to pass. She'd never be able to live that down. And there was no doubt that Sasuke would pass.

Wait. That was right. Sasuke would definitely pass. And they were on the same team. She just had to stick by him and it would work out. With that in mind, she felt a lot better.

"Alright, well, I'm going to meet up with Hinata," Thalia said, walking off. "Maybe get some more training in before tomorrow."

"Cool, I'll come too!" Naruto said, hopping over.

As they moved to walk away, Thalia looked over at Sakura again. "You want to join us?" she asked.

Sakura looked up. "Huh?"

"Yeah, join us Sakura!" Naruto instantly said, his eyes widening as he thought about training alongside the prettiest girl in the whole village. He began jumping up and down in excitement. "It'll be awesome!"

"Uh…" Sakura said hesitantly. Normally, she'd say no just because she didn't want to hang out with Naruto. But she had wanted to try to be nicer earlier today. And she did want to know more about Thalia given they were on the same team now. So, despite her reluctance, she found herself saying, "sure."

"Yeah!" Naruto cried in celebration.

"Calm down!" Sakura snapped.

"Yeah, seriously. Calm down," Thalia added.

Naruto shrunk from their gaze but still felt his heart bursting with excitement. They made their way down from the roof back to the street in front of the school.

"So, what was it like?" Sakura found herself asking. "Living outside the villages?"

Thalia thought about it for a second. "Tough," she said. "I was constantly on the move and most of the time I had no idea when I'd get my next meal or where I'd be able to find shelter to sleep in."

Sakura gasped slightly, not expecting that answer. Even Naruto blinked in surprise despite knowing more about her past. "But, what about your parents?" Sakura asked. "Didn't they-"

She stopped suddenly, seeing Thalia's expression darken. "My parents?" the girl said, snorting. "They couldn't care less."

Sakura's mouth opened and closed, clearly unsure of how to respond to that. Next to her, Naruto looked down sadly, thinking of his own situation. His parents were dead though. Had been since he was a baby, so he'd like to think they would have loved him if they'd lived. Thalia's though…he remembered what she said back in the Hokage's office, about who her dad was and how that had made her a target on the run. But she hadn't mentioned her mom. Naruto hadn't thought about it then but now it was clear something had happened between them. From what she said, Naruto couldn't help but think about how Thalia had compared their lives when they first met. He thought about all the looks the adults gave him because of what was sealed away inside him. Had Thalia's mom been like that, looking at her only in disgust because of what she was. It made his fists clench just thinking about it.

Sakura was lost in her thoughts too. She had her own problems with her parents but they were minor things like doing chores and cleaning up after herself. But from the way Thalia talked made Sakura wonder. Was she a runaway? That actually would make sense given what little information Sakura had.

She was tempted to ask but the situation felt a little too awkward right now. So instead she decided to change the subject. "That, uh, lightning jutsu of yours. Can you do anything else?"

"Yeah, what else can you do?" Naruto asked eagerly. He knew how skilled she was at fighting but he hadn't really seen her other types of jutsu in the training sessions. Was it even jutsu considering who she was? Ah, he didn't want to think about it, all of that just made him confused and hurt his brain.

Thalia raised an eyebrow at Sakura, knowing what she was doing, but she went along with it. "A few more things, yeah. Mostly weather stuff."

"Like what?"

"Uh, let's see. I found out I can make fog which is pretty cool," Thalia said, thinking it over. "I can also create gusts of wind which is useful. But the lightning stuff is obviously my best stuff so I kind of focus on that."

Sakura nodded. "Makes sense."

"That's awesome!" Naruto chimed in. "You can also make storm clouds appear, like back in the woods. Ooh! Do you think you can make one appear all around you?"

Thalia paused, mulling that over. She'd never thought about that. Make a storm cloud around her? Like, she'd be in the center of it? That actually did sound pretty sweet.

"Not at the moment, but thanks for the idea."

"No problem! Oh hey look, it's Hinata!" Naruto suddenly said, pointing to the short-haired girl down the street. "Hey Hinata!"

Sakura blinked as they got closer, seeing Hinata's face turn bright red at Naruto's call. "H-h-hello, N-naruto," she stammered, looking down for a second.

"How was your sensei?" Naruto asked hers. "Ugh, ours was the worst! He didn't show up for several hours and when he did he was so lazy and…"

Thalia and Sakura watched as Naruto rambled on about their session with Kakashi, all the while Hinata was blushing furiously at the fact that her crush was carrying a conversation with her one-on-one.

"So…Hinata has a…"

"Yep," Thalia finished.

"Wow, I can't believe I didn't notice before," Sakura said. Seeing it now, it was so obvious. Though she didn't really get it, after all it was Naruto.

"Yeah, and he's clearly too much of a blockhead to notice," Thalia chuckled, Sakura joining her. Though she stopped a second later as Thalia continued. "It would be even funnier if Sasuke had a crush on Hinata."

Sakura's head whipped over so quickly it almost flew off. "Wh-what? W-w-why, why would you say that?"

"Calm down," Thalia sighed. "I just thought it would be funny if Hinata had a crush on Naruto, Naruto had a crush on you, you had a crush on Sasuke, and Sasuke had a crush on Hinata. Full circle romantic drama. That would be hella entertaining to watch."

Sakura blinked rapidly, her brain short-circuiting for a second. Then she giggled slightly. Honestly, even though she hated the idea of Sasuke having a crush on someone else, that full circle idea did sound pretty funny.

"Hey Hinata," Thalia said, moving in to rescue her friend before her brain exploded. It was already several different shades of red, a few probably just created.

"T-thalia," Hinata said, instantly looking at her, her stammer fading.

"So how was your sensei?"

"Oh, well…I actually already knew Kurenai-sensei. She's been helping me ever since my clan…" Hinata hesitated there but Thalia was able to fill in the gap.

"So where's the rest of your team?" she asked, looking around.

"Oh, Kiba wanted to do some extra training before tomorrow's test and Shino…" Hinata hesitated again, though this time more in confusion. What had happened to Shino? Now that she thought about it, she hadn't really noticed him after Kurenai left. "I think he went home," she finished awkwardly.

"Hmmm. Well, you want to come train with us?" Thalia offered. "Get ready for tomorrow."

Hinata instantly nodded. Any excuse to stay away from the Hyūga compound and those judging looks was a good one, but to hang out not just with her new friend but her crush…that was just amazing.

The rest of the afternoon passed by smoothly enough. Sakura found herself proven correct on the difference in skill between her and Thalia as the other girl completely dominated on the training grounds, throwing kunai right at the targets. And when she went to work with that spear of hers…well, it was truly terrifying. Honestly, Sakura found herself once or twice wondering if Sasuke would be able to beat her, though she quickly shook those thoughts aside.

Still, she enjoyed herself. While she was sparring with Thalia and wound up on her back or was disarmed or just thoroughly beaten, it wasn't like back at the academy. Then, all the students usually made bets on who the winner or loser was and after the match would heckle the loser. Sakura had especially hated when she lost against Ino or any of the other girls who were part of the Sasuke fan club as they always took the opportunity to make fun of her. Granted, she did the exact same thing when she won so she couldn't really complain. But Thalia wasn't like that at all. The first time they sparred and Thalia had gotten in close, flipping Sakura over her shoulder and then holding her to the ground, Sakura had expected the usual taunts and jeers. Instead, Thalia just helped her up, told her how she could improve, and advised they go again.

While she would have preferred that she was able to win, Thalia was just too good. But still, at the end, she really felt like she had made some improvement in her combat skills. Not too much, but there was a difference.

Thalia also sparred with Naruto while Sakura trained with Hinata where she once again found herself outmatched. She would have thought she'd be at least be able to beat the Hyūga girl, but quickly found herself outmatched by Hinata's strong hits and fast reflexes. She couldn't remember actually fighting against Hinata before at the academy and also realized she'd never really paid attention to the ones she did fight. Honestly, at the academy, Sakura had really only focused on getting her own grades up and watching Sasuke. Since Hinata hadn't made any moves on Sasuke, Sakura hadn't paid attention to her.

Clearly that was a mistake, she thought wryly, picking herself up after a painful shot to her stomach.

"Sakura! I'm so sorry!" Hinata said, apologizing profusely. "I-I just reacted. I thought you were ready and-"

"It's alright Hinata, I should have been ready," Sakura said, waving the other girl off. As much as she would like to blame Hinata for that, she couldn't. It was quickly becoming apparent just how outmatched she was here. But at least she wasn't alone as Naruto now landed on his back for the umpteenth time.

"You're too impulsive," Thalia chided. "I saw that coming a mile away."

Naruto blinked. "But…I was only a few feet a-"

"It's a figure of speech! Now come on, let's go again!"

They went on like that for a little while longer before the sun began to set in the sky. At that point, Sakura was exhausted and a little depressed. All that time at the academy, she'd focused on getting the best grades to be the top of the class. And she had kept up with the combat training, but clearly not well enough. She thought back to what Thalia had said, about how you really learned out in the real world. It was beginning to dawn on her that those grades of hers wouldn't really help much against enemy combatants. And judging from how both Thalia and Hinata had soundly beaten her, her combat wouldn't get her very far either.

But that wasn't the worst part. No, the worst part was the fact that in the beginning she would have thought she and Naruto were in the same position. But at the end of their training, that thought faded away. Naruto was still getting beaten by Thalia but as more time went on, the time it took for him to get beaten took longer. She knew he was the lowest in the class and was pretty dumb and his combat skills had been kind of a joke in the academy sparring sessions. But now he was holding up against Thalia. He wasn't able to get a solid hit in but it slowly became apparent that he was putting up a fight, able to block her more easily now and launch more attacks that it seemed were harder for her to dodge.

"That's good," Thalia said, backing away from another of his punches. "Now you're getting it. Remember Naruto, you have a lot of energy so use that. Keep moving and stay light on your feet. That'll make it easier for you to dodge and harder for me to hit you. Now let's go again."

"Right!"

She was right. Sakura could see it as Naruto kept in almost constant motion, dodging around Thalia's attacks more easily and able to launch his own even faster now.

He's improved this much in one afternoon? Sakura thought, her stomach sinking. And what have I done? Nothing.

With that realization, she came at Hinata harder. Not that it made much difference, she still wasn't able to beat the Hyūga girl. But she couldn't give up.

It was clear to her now that Thalia and Sasuke would be able to pass tomorrow's test with flying colors. And while at first she would have thought Naruto would fail and she'd be able to get through with her grades, that was obviously wrong now. More and more, it looked like Naruto would be able to pass and she'd be the one sent back to the academy, something she refused to let happen. Worse, the thought hit her that maybe they wouldn't be failed as individuals but as a team. In which case, if she was the reason they all failed…that was something she couldn't let happen.

So, when they finally stopped, Sakura wasn't feeling as bad about herself, mainly for one reason. She had sparred with Thalia again and after she once again found herself flat on her back after Thalia had tripped her up.

"Not bad," Thalia said, helping her to her feet. "You lasted longer then."

Sakura blinked. "I…got better?"

Thalia nodded. "Yeah, that was better than last time."

It was a small thing, minuscule really, but it lifted the pressure that had been growing on Sakura's shoulders just enough.

"Ah, I'm hungry!" Naruto suddenly said. "Want to go get some ramen?"

"Don't you ever get sick of that?" Thalia asked curiously.

"How could anyone get sick of ramen? It's the best food ever! Believe it!"

How many times are you going to say 'believe it' in one day? Thalia wondered. He'd said four times in their training session alone. Whatever, she actually was kind of hungry too and the ramen at Ichiraku's was really good.. "Alright sure. Hinata, Sakura, you want to come too?"

"Uh…yes," Hinata said instantly.

Sakura paused for a few seconds but found shaking her head. "No thanks, I'm going on a diet and I don't thin-"

"You don't have to if you don't want to," Thalia said, shrugging.

"Oh come on Sakura," Naruto pleaded. "It's for team effort, right? Plus, Ichiraku's makes the best ramen! Believe it! Nothing's better!"

"Ok, you don't need to yell it in my ear!" Thalia complained.

"Oh, sorry."

Sakura was tempted. She would like to hang out with Thalia more, learn what she could about the mysterious girl. But she thought about going to dinner, eating ramen. She thought about what Ino once said back when they'd been friends, about how girls had to constantly watch their figure or else they'd get fat. She thought about Sasuke and what he'd think of her if she let herself go. He already thought she was annoying, she couldn't risk anything else right now.

"No, I think I better go home. But thanks anyway," she said.

"Suit yourself," Thalia said, turning.

"Aw man, are you sure Sakura?" Naruto asked, his face down. "It'll be really fun and-"

"She already said no, now leave her alone," Thalia told him, dragging him off.

This day hadn't really gone the way Sakura had expected. While she was ecstatic about being on the same team as Sasuke she still had reservations about Naruto, though that had slightly shifted these last few hours. Slightly.

Then there was Thalia, the mysterious girl dropped into their class and now into her team without warning who at first looked like she would just cause more problems but actually turned out to be genuinely helpful and friendly.

Of course there was the whole thing with her sensei Kakashi and the upcoming test that Sakura hadn't been ready for. But she felt better about it now, if only a little bit, after Thalia's training session.

As she walked home, she thought about her future on this new team and found herself smiling a little. Definitely not the day she'd expected or even wanted. But most certainly a good one.


Hope you enjoyed the chapter. When I started working on this fic, I didn't realize how much I would go into Thalia and Hinata's friendship but it kind of grew because I felt like she needed a true female friend in the village and most of the girls were too Sasuke-obsessed to work from the start. I did consider Tenten but it just didn't work for me. Still, I'm glad it worked out this way.

Team 7 has officially met and things only get more chaotic from here. The survival test will take all of next chapter so be prepared for that. And I can guarantee it will not go the way you expect. Leave a review if you can and thanks for reading.