Chapter 7

[Yota Hirano]

"Do you have to go already?" one of the kids asked and he just gave him a sad look. There was an equally sad smile on his face, but they couldn't really see that. Somehow though, the children had always been better at reading his expressions than adults and some trained individuals. They could be awesome like that.

Ultimately, he was forced to just nod, because the kids had decided that it was a perfect moment to be stubborn and pretend they didn't understand. This got him plenty of whines and groans, which was sad but also very… nice, in a way. He was alone in life, particularly at that time, so knowing that he had a family within those sterile white walls was very reassuring.

"I finished, Yota!" the girl on his lap announced happily before, as usual, hesitating. "... I think. Does… Does it look good?" she asked, fidgeting with the nail polish in her hands. Idly, Yota checked his nails and saw they were painted better than he himself could have done it. Then again, she'd been doing that for years by then. Blind or not, she'd gotten good with practice and a lot of stubbornness.

"... Looks perfect," he answered, smiling as he felt her perk up even through the sting in his lungs.

"Really?!" she exclaimed, turning and giving him a beaming smile. That was what he was there for, to give these kids some joy. He knew how oppressing and depressing the hospital rooms could be. So, he'd made it his own personal mission to help them feel better, to bring some color to their lives.

Idly, he checked his Dancing Torchlight and made it change shapes into a kitten. The boys had gotten enough of a show. It was time for the girls to have a good time too. Sure enough, there was a chorus of ohs and ahs from the female side of the patients around.

"Yota! Can we start already?" one of the boys asked, likely taking the moment of non-boy-appropriate fire show to do something else. Yota withheld a sigh when everyone turned to look at him, all but jumping up.

Well, it was about time to get going anyway, he supposed, and this would take a while anyway.

So, with that in mind, he nodded.

What followed was him having to try and herd the children so they wouldn't hurt themselves trying to rush him. Once that was done, they started sticking band-aids to his body in whatever free piece of skin they could find. His arms, his neck, his collarbone, and even his upper chest. He'd only really put his foot down about sticking them on his face. His mask was uncomfortable enough already.

"... Yota," came the raspy voice of the girl stuck on a bed with an oxygen mask strapped to her face. For a second, like always, he saw a younger him right there. That is, before he pushed that image away and finished moving to sit beside her. She couldn't move very well towards him like the others, after all. "... A nice… lady… visited," she said then and, despite the pain in her voice and how she started coughing at the end there, she sounded fairly animated.

He wondered for a second who this lady was. Maybe he could do something nice for her? The kids didn't get nearly as many vis-

"... came…" she continued talking, pulling his undivided attention. "... and gave me… this," she finished, pulling something from under her covers. Slowly, Yota blinked as he looked at the object.

That was a pair of canisters, canisters for his mask.

"I'm not gonna be around to make these for you forever, you know?" he heard his sensei's voice in his mind, his shaky hands moving to take the objects before he could scare the kids. "... But, I guess I can look out for you a little longer."

"... She said… you'd like it," the girl said, sounding and looking a little unsure. "Are they… good?"

"I like them," he replied, reaching to grab her hand and giving it a squeeze. "Thanks for… passing them to me," he said, holding back a grimace. "And don't… talk so much," he added, giving her an unimpressed look. She did have the bad habit of speaking too much when she knew it wasn't good for her.

In response, he only got a "what about you?" look which…

Fair enough.

A second later, the girl raised her hand with a band-aid between her fingers and a shy smile on her face. Shaking his head, he pulled closer so that she could stick it to him like the others had. It was a ritual they'd started sometime after he'd started regularly going on missions with his teacher. They'd wanted to give him something in return for the visits and to show that they were cheering for him out there on the field.

And the only thing they'd had around was band-aids so… that was that.

"You won't be alone like this, Yota!" the very first kid had said to him, grinning widely and full of life for once. "We'll all be there with you, just a little bit!"

Maybe he would visit the cemetery to say thank you again.

"Is that everyone?" one of the kids asked, looking around for anyone who might speak up. When nobody else did, he turned to beam at Yota. "We are all with you now, Yota!"

"... So you are," he said, smiling behind his mask and patting the kid's heads.

"Hey, no fair! Me too!" another cried out indignantly and he had to hold back a chuckle. Why did they have to be so absolutely adorable? With a sigh, he resigned himself to his fate of having to pat several heads before being let out.

"... Yota," the girl beside him said when they were finally done with that bout of childishness.

Turning towards her, he took off his mask and leaned down to kiss her cheek.

"Be careful," she told him and he gave her a "what about you?" look that she just grinned at. Ultimately, he rolled his eyes and nodded before putting the mask back on. Then he took a deep breath in and stood up.

It was time to leave already.

[}-o-{]

[Kazuhiro Kiyoshi]

His heart pounded inside his chest like a war drum as he stood, rigidly and at attention in front of the imposing walls of his clan compound. The usual and calm chill breeze that came to the clan with the early golden rays of the rising sun and the faint mist from the evaporating morning dew was nowhere to be found by then. Instead, the placid atmosphere was cut down and shredded by the sharp and looming aura of the man in front of him.

His father stood with both his arms resting on top of his wooden cane. His eyes scanned through the rows and rows of shinobi and civilians that made up almost the entirety of the Kiyoshi Clan, looking for any signs of imperfections in their formation. Kazuhiro hoped there were not. He had practiced and prepared the receiving committee for his father himself. Any mistakes here would reflect on him. So, everything had to be perfect, down to the last blade of grass.

"Failure is not an option. Success is not enough. Perfection is the only acceptable answer."

Those were the words Kazuhiro's father had raised him by. The heir of the Kiyoshi Clan would do anything to meet the expectations he was honored with at birth. As the clan heir and future leader of this village, it was the least he could do. That was the bare minimum needed to become just the slightest bit like the man in front of him, who held his entire respect and admiration.

How could he not? His father was the living legend of their village, their pride, their bastion, their hope.

Asahi Kiyoshi had survived three wars and had led Grass through two of them. He had become the leader of the Kiyoshi at the young age of fourteen and taken the mantle as the Chief of their esteemed village during the second war. He had maintained order and made their great lands prosper time and time again. No matter the challenge, nor the odds, his father had risen to the occasion.

How could he not admire such a person, when he was everything he wished to become one day?

Kazuhiro somehow stood straighter when the man's hawk-like gaze fell upon him scrutinizing him in a way that made him feel their chief could see through his entire being. He felt like his doubts, his nerves were obvious under that look, like his efforts to conceal everything were in vain. The moment lasted for a mere second but felt like an eternity for the heir as he hoped all his training in military etiquette wouldn't fail him then and there. The consequences for such a mistake would be severe, after all. Especially for such an auspicious day such as that one.

He hoped that was enough to win his father's favor or praise.

"Report, Genin Kazuhiro," said his father, tone measured and cold as ice. Not an ounce of approval in it nor his gaze as he continued to analyze him.

Kazuhiro pushed the wave of disappointment down deep inside him. Such feelings were unbecoming of someone of his station, he knew. He should be elated that no mistakes were found, meaning that his weeks' preparations had been good enough for their leader to not criticize.

"Yes, sir!" he said in a clear and candent tone. Addressing him as "father" was unbecoming of a soldier. Familial relations came second to their duty for the village and their clan after all. "Genin Kazuhiro welcomes the Chief of our Village to the compound and wishes to report on the state of the preparation for the mission entrusted to me and my team!"

The heir bowed at the practiced height and presented the hand-written scroll in the manner proper for a soldier to their superior. Just as protocol indicated. It was a moment later that the man took the scroll from his hands and opened it, reading through the contents.

Kazuhiro fought to keep his fraying nerves in check as he waited for the chief verdict. He had spent entire sleepless nights throughout the weeks preparing and planning for any eventuality he could think of. Now, all that hard work was being judged by the person whose opinion mattered the most to him.

"This-" his father said after a few seconds of reading, holding the now resealed scroll in his hand and handing it back to him. Kazuhiro received it and prepared himself to hold onto the elder's every word. "-is what'd expect from a genin of the Grass Village, not from the heir of our clan. You should be ashamed of yourself."

Kazuhiro felt the words cut through him like a blade.

"I thought-" he claimed before he could stop his traitorous mouth.

"You thought wrong," his father's sharp tone cut him off before he could dig a deeper hole.

Silence fell upon the gates. Not even the morning birds dared to sing as the tension rose for a second making Kazuhiro wonder if he would be reprimanded then and there for daring to talk back to his superior. Despite it all, he readied himself to learn from his mistakes. That was all he could do at that point.

"You failed to account for your weaknesses to be covered by your teammates," his father said, thankfully letting the matter slide. The unseen pressure on his body slowly receded. "You overestimate your own abilities and it won't be just you that is affected by this if you are found lacking. Your teammates and the success of this mission depend on you being able to understand what you are capable of and what you aren't."

Kazuhiro fought back the urge to flinch. His insides twisting at the familiar sting of disappointment. Once again, he had failed to meet the expectations placed on him. Once again he had failed to get his father's approval.

"What would you have me do to achieve results that might please you, fa- Sir?" the heir asked.

"You are not here to seek my praise," the village chief said firmly, his cold eyes gazing upon him even harsher than before. "If you aim to be a leader, you must do more than look for compliments. This isn't about you. This is about your comrades, the mission, the clan, and, above all, the village. Do better."

"I'll make sure to meet your expectations of me next time, sir." The heir forced a confident tone to his voice.

The man grumbled a curt "dismissed" to him before walking in the direction of his office.

Kazuhiro could only look at his retreating form, trying and failing not to feel disappointed. He had hoped he could talk with his father in a more informal setting and that he would watch over his departure from the village. Alas, he knew the man had far more important matters to attend to than watching a mere genin leave for their Chunin Exams.

Thus, Kazuhiro gave a final salute to the man's back and turned towards the entrance. The agreed time for his team to encounter was approaching and he would not fail again that day. It was better to start on his way.

"Genin Kazuhiro." The low rumble stopped in his tracks and he turned once again towards his father. A fleeting feeling of hope for something he didn't understand rose within him for a moment, only to die a cruel death when he saw his father's cold eyes on him from the porch of the house.

"If I see you approach this mission with the same attitude, you will fail, and I will not tolerate failure."

"I will do better. I will not fail you again," the heir vowed.

"See that you do. I will be watching," the leader answered before turning once again, prompting Kazuhiro to do the same.

He couldn't lose any more time. He would have to up his training once again and rethink all his strategies from zero. There was some time before the exams started. He'd have to use it well.

Failure is not an option.

A lot of work and expectations were placed on his shoulders. As the heir and future leader of this village, it was his job to carry said weight. It was the least that was expected of him.

Success is not enough.

He would plan for every eventuality. He would train harder than anyone. He would lead without mistakes. He would surpass his every limit. He would gain his father's approval. He would be the leader he was born to be or die as nothing.

With every step, his determination solidified.

Perfection is the only acceptable answer.

[}-o-{]

[Karin]

Unsealing a piece of cloth, she used it to clean the stone surface. Gingerly, she pushed off both leaves – some dried, some not – and dust. She did it slowly as if wanting to make the action last for as long as possible. Eventually, though, she was done. She positioned the flower arrangement she'd prepared and then leaned back, kneeling.

The early morning sun shone down on the knolls. Scattered trees cast some long shadows, just as spread out. Karin's gaze wasn't focused on any of that though. Instead, she looked forward.

She looked at her mother's gravestone.

It was small and unassuming, just one of many. It was kind of why she went out of her way to make flower arrangements when she visited. She hadn't seen anyone else do that. Most people just dropped flowers and called it a day, if they even did that. So… she wanted to make her mother stand out from the rest if only a little bit.

She opened her mouth, but just like every other time she went there, no words came out. She looked down, suddenly feeling like the piece of granite was staring accusingly at her. Why was it that she never knew what to say?

Karin remained silent in front of the grave, knowing she had to say something but still unable to. The voices and noises of the village could be heard even from here across the plains. It reminded her that time didn't stop for her and that she was running out of it.

"...I expect you to prove me wrong," she heard Kazuhiro say in her head. She took a deep breath in and straightened her back, as if she were back in those grueling etiquette lessons. They'd be useful for something, she supposed.

"Long time no see, mom… I wanted to visit earlier… but…"

She didn't have a way to continue what she was saying, falling silent once more. A slight breeze shifted the hair on her back. Idly, she imagined that it was pushing her forward, to go for it, to not give up.

"I got selected for the Chunin Exams," she tried, approaching the conversation from another angle. "Well, more like my teammates were selected, and I was added to their team. I'm not on Zoshi's team anymore. I sort of got transferred. My new team leader is the heir of the Kiyoshi clan…"

The image of her two teammates flashed through her mind. Both boys engaged in one of their unspoken competitions while she watched from the sidelines, receiving instructions from their not-sensei under the big oak tree. Kazuhiro's boastful voice claimed his forgone victory while Yota just silently stared back at him. He never quite engaged, but Kazuhiro didn't need that to continue things on his own.

"It's not as bad as it sounds. They treat me well. Well, most of the time. When I don't get on their nerves, at least." Her mind went to that meeting after their first sparring practice all those days ago and she almost flinched at the reminder of angry golden eyes glaring down at her. "They are a bit… intense-"

She could almost feel Yota's stare on her.

"-And can be a bit full of themselves-"

Kazuhiro's stern voice echoed in her mind.

"-But they mean well. All of them." A red-eyed boy with a mask gave her a thumbs up with an eye smile while a golden-haired boy let out a satisfied hum and their not-sensei clapped languidly from her chair as she showed them her latest fuinjutsu attempt. "We had a rocky start, but I believe we're slowly becoming a team. We're making progress. I am making progress."

Karin thought about all she had achieved in just a scant few weeks. The change still stunned even her. Her body felt lighter, stronger, more capable than it ever had felt. It certainly wasn't what she expected when she was told she would be the third member of the most elite team of genin at Grass' disposal.

She was Karin after all.

She knew her place. She knew what destiny awaited her. She was nothing more than her bloodline. Fated to be bitten until only a mere husk of herself remained and then disposed of. Just like-

The redhead raised her eyes to stare at the granite headstone. A faded name inscribed on the rock stared back at her. It read a name nobody but Karin herself remembered, she was sure. The memory of a simple casket being lowered down into the ground played in her mind.

Karin shook her head to return herself to the present.

She didn't need to remember that, nor the emotions of that day.

"It was hard at first… the training, I mean," she said to fill in the silence. "I didn't like it and didn't see a point. I thought they were just being mean to me because they could."

She didn't have to be a genius to understand what her role in that team was. Two high-profile prodigies of the village together with a girl with her bloodline. She wasn't there to be part of the team itself. She was there to be just a convenient source of healing for the two of them to complete their task more effectively while not worrying about a third member who couldn't stand at their level. A disposable tool was all that she was meant to be.

Just like her mother.

That was fine. She had accepted her place, after all. She got fed and had a roof over her head because of her bloodline. All she had to do was stand still and be bitten while pushing back the bile rising in her throat.

There was no reason to believe this mission, this exam, would be any different. She would just remain at the side, do what was asked of her, and keep quiet unless spoken to. If she was lucky, she wouldn't be reprimanded too often for her lackluster abilities. After that, she would be returned to Zoshi and her rounds at the shinobi hospital and things would go back to normal.

And yet…

"They taught me a lot of stuff. Things I never thought someone like me could accomplish. Like I said, it sucked, and I thought they were being mean, but now I think they were just looking out for me." Her memory went to that day at the hospital when Yota defended her from Zoshi. Until that point, the idea of not doing what the jonin asked of her sounded like a distant dream. And now… "I even managed to learn some fuinjutsu!"

Her words were not answered by the gravestone, but she remembered that her mother used to tell her their clan was known because of it. She thought those nothing but bedtime stories during those rare occasions the woman didn't collapse on top of the bed after her rounds. Now, she thought differently. Karin would like to believe her mom would be happy for her, proud of her.

"I think they care," she whispered, looking down. Now that she said it, it felt both more real and more delusional, somehow. "They are just…"

The sound of a bell made Karin jump, her head turning to look towards the village. A chill ran down her back as she checked the time and realized how late it was. She was going late to their meeting.

'Kazuhiro's going to kill me!' she thought, already dreading the consequences if she were to actually be late. She needed to start moving and she needed to do it quickly.

"I have to go, mom!" Karin said with a bow. "I-I'll tell you about how the exams went when I come back… I'll try to visit more often too," she added, stumbling over her words before ending it with a guilty whisper. She really needed to visit more often. It was just so… so confusing.

She got no answer from the headstone, obviously, but she waited for a second anyway. Then she gave a quick, sad smile, looking at the engraved name, before standing up. She bowed once more and then turned to leave. Somehow, it was both easier and harder than all the other times she'd done so.

'Are you looking over me?' the redhead thought to herself, glancing up at the clear sky as if it'd give her an answer. Just like with the headstone, she got only silence. A slight breeze hit her back once more though and she pretended that was some kind of answer instead of a coincidence.

Her steps carried her outside the cemetery and into the city. The short trip was a blur to her senses as she made her way from the latter to the gates of the village. The cacophony of noise from the civilians gathering to see off the shinobis that would brave the exams provided a much-needed distraction for her spinning thoughts. The crowd thickened as Karin approached her destination, forcing her to jump onto the roofs of the buildings to try to make it in time. A quick look at the sun's position told her that it was still possible, if barely.

"Finally here, I see." A haughty voice received her as soon as she landed under the shadow of the large wooden doors at the entrance of the village. "I'd have thought that after being personally trained by me you would at least develop the basic skill of punctuality. But I guess that's something we will have to practice more once we're back."

Yota just rolled his eyes behind Kazuhiro, giving her a wave that she returned with a slight smile.

"Oh, shut up, Gold Duckling-"

"I am not a duck-"

"-She made it just in time. There's still two hours until we leave," their not-sensei said, resting against the wall to the side of the gates. "On a related matter, why are we here two hours earlier? It's too early and the civies are too loud," she whined like a child.

Yota pointed towards Kazuhiro.

"Ah, fair enough."

"Because it's about sending a message. I and, by extension, all of you are the main representatives of Grass for these exams. It's our duty to show our immaculate discipline and commitment by showing up earlier so the masses may bask in our presence," the heir explained his reasons as if that made all the sense in the world.

Karin didn't get it. Was this one of Kazuhiro's things that they were too poor to understand?

"You know, every time you open your mouth I expect to see the tip of that stick poking out. I mean, it's so far up your-"

"Crass inane insults aside," Kazuhiro said with a glare that was answered by a challenging smirk. "It is time for us to focus on the now. We still have time to prepare for the eventual exams. Our showing must be perfect, so we'll discuss our current plans and I'm open to any suggestions you might have."

Those two hours were going to be very long, Karin could already tell.

'Still,' she thought, turning to look at the gates. 'We are really leaving today.'

Somehow, she was looking forward to it and dreading it.

It was a confusing day all around, it seemed.

[} Chapter End {]

Adrian: Just me again today, so there's no Arc to be annoying. We can still blame him for stuff though (if you know, you know).

Himari: Can we blame him for the stick in the Gold Duckling's-

Kazuhiro: Will you shut up about that?!

Adrian: Yes, we definitely can and should.

Himari: Neat.

Adrian: Back to the chapter though, this is officially the end of the introductory period, the end of the prologue, or first arc, whatever you think is best. From now, only the way to Konoha and then the Exams. Which I'm sure we all hope our team will do well in.

Kazuhiro: Nothing to hope for. We'll naturally do well.

Karin: Hopefully, yeah… Hehe…

Kazuhiro: Sound more sure!

Karin: Yes, sir!

Yota: … *sigh*

Adrian: With that said though, we hope you enjoyed this chapter, the first arc that's finally over and the story as a whole so far.

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