Naruto
Petals in the Wind
Chapter II
It was early morning, not even sunrise and three figures made their way into training ground three. These figures were Naruto, Sasuke, and Neji, the three members of Team Seven. They were there per their Jonin Squad Leaders orders for their real Genin Test.
This test would determine if they got to keep their ranks or go back to the academy or worse wash out completely. While they were all skilled beyond the scopes of normal academy students they still had a lot to learn. As the trio entered the training ground they stopped.
"Morning Neji, morning teme." Naruto said.
"Dobe, Neji." Sasuke greeted.
"Good morning Naruto, and to you well Sasuke." Neji greeted.
"So how late do you think Kakashi will be today?" Naurto asked.
"Three hours at least." Sasuke said with an air of annoyance in the reply.
"Given his stunt yesterday at the academy Sasuke is right he will be at very least three hours late, maybe more." Neji replied to Naruto's question.
What the trio didn't know was that Kakashi was already there watching them seeing what they would do.
"So our Squad Leader has a habit of being late, is supposedly a jonin, and he was supposedly trained by the Yondaime Hokage. Yea we're screwed." Naruto said plainly.
"No matter what he makes us do we can handle it as long as we face it together we're a team right." Neji said he didn't ask if they were a team, he said they were a team.
"You're right, no need to doubt ourselves, we were all among the top students in our class." Naruto said.
'So they won't turn on each other, refreshing to know but can they actually pull what I have planned off.' Kakashi asked himself mentally.
Kakashi looked at his watch to see the time he planned on arriving after sun rise and well into the morning he planned to give his team two hours to pass his test. It was now five thirty in the morning, well no one said he had to stay there and watch them.
Kakashi was walking the streets of Konoha on his way to the Hokage Tower he had an early morning appointment with the Hokage something he was never late to and he knew his team would still be there when he did finally deem it time for him to greet them. Arriving at the Hokage's Office he knocked on the door.
"Enter." came Hiruzen's raspy voice from the other side of the door.
Kakashi opened the door and walked in.
"Ah Kakashi I've been waiting for you, how is your team?" Hiruzen asked.
"They're doing well, they seem to be better than any team i've failed to date, they might actually pass my test." Kakashi replied.
"You're giving them the bell test correct? A sadistic test but effective." Hiruzen questioned Kakashi.
"Yes I'm giving them the bell test who knows they might just get the bells off me." Kakashi replied. "Hokage-sama, why did you give me both Naruto and Sasuke?"
"Sasuke was a given since only you can train him to use his Sharingan effectively. And Naruto was to give you a chance to pass on Minato's teaching to his only child." Hiruzen replied to Kakashi's own question.
"I see." Kakashi said.
"Kakashi I was the one to personally select this team from the start. You can teach all three of them to be exceptional shinobi; you just have to believe in yourself. I gave you this team not just to teach them but to teach you as well." Hiruzen explained.
"So this is your way of teaching me something I don't already know." Kakashi said he didn't miss Hiruzen's meaning but Kakashi was known for being a prodigy just like Saauke and Neji.
"Yes Kakashi. Now, go it's almost time for you to meet your team and knowing you, you'll get lost on the road to life." Hiruzen jabbed at Kakashi's habits.
"Hai." was all Kakshi said as he left the office leaving Hiruzen with the bane of being Hokage, paperwork.
XxXxXxX
Back at training ground three Naruto, Neji, and Sasuke were all waiting for Kakashi to arrive. Sasauke and Neji were sparring with each other, nothing serious, just some light sparring to pass the time. Naruto was also doing something to pass the time he was reading a book, but not just any book, no this was a book on Fuinjutsu.
Not many shinobi could effectively use Fuinjutsu let alone many fresh out of the academy but Naruto had a unique mind, a mind that let him think past the limits of normal shinobi. Not even Sasuke or Neji could understand Fuinjutsu the way Naruto could. There was just something about the blonde that allowed him to see past the conventional. This is what Kakashi arrived to when he finally came to training ground three.
"You're late." Neji said plainly.
"A black cat crossed my path forcing me to take the long way around." Kakashi said. It was a lie but meh Kakashi was always giving lame excuses for his tardiness. "But now that I'm here it's time to begin your test. This clock is set for noon. You have until then to get these two bells from me, the one without a bell gets sent back to the academy."
The three genin looked at each other and nodded they already knew they were a team despite this ploy to pit them against each other they were all also close friends they would fight Kakashi together.
"Your time starts now." Kakashi said as he hit the start button on the clock.
The three genin rushed Kakashi and all three attacked him in unison taking the jonin by surprise he expected them to turn on each other or come at him one at a time not together.
'I was right, they didn't take my words at face value.' Kakashi thought to himself.
Kakashi was put on the defensive from the start though he was holding back to test his team. If he wanted to, he could easily take them down, but that would defeat the purpose of the test. The fight lasted nearly thirty minutes before it happened. Neji saw his opening for his clan jutsu.
"You're within range of my divination." Neji said as he adopted the stance of the jutsu "Hakke Rokujuyon Sho!"
In a matter of seconds Neji delivered sixty-four strikes to Kakashi systematically shutting down Kakashi's nervous system and chakra points. When it was finished Kakashi was on the ground paralyzed with the three genin around him. Reaching down, Naruto grabbed the bells from Kakashi's belt and tossed them to Neji and Sasuke.
"Well I'm surprised I didn't think you three could pull this off but you did. You saw through my ploy to turn you against each other with only two bells and work as a team." Kakashi said. "With that said, congratulations you three pass you're officially genin."
"Kakashi-sensei, we knew from the start you would try and test our resolve. But we also knew that alone none of us can beat a jonin no matter how much he holds back. Our only option was to team up against you." Naruto explained.
"Well done. Now can someone help me up? I always hate the result of being hit by the Hyuga Clan's Jutsu." Kakashi said as he felt the effects of the sixty-four palms wearing off.
A/N: Hey all Azrael here with the next installment of Petals in the Wind. This chapter showcases the bond of team seven while I didn't focus on the fight itself. I feel like I got the point across without beating a dead horse. Anyway I hope you all enjoy this chapter and my future work as always. I love hearing back from my readers so consider leaving a review with no further delay, ja~ne.