A/N: Short piece. Got bored at work and thought I'd do this. Author note about Obito at the bottom.
Danzo looked out over the assembled ranks of the year's graduating class. Those who had decided to move on to a civilian finishing school had already departed, and now the children were lined up in neat military ranks. They had been issued their basic gear after their return from lunch, and now were prepared for their next step into the ninja world.
Each child had the same uniform – black shinobi styled pants, complete with rip-stop tape at the ankles, and black shinobi combat sandals with closed, blackened steel toes. Over this each one wore a form-fitting tight black mesh shirt, under a plain gray happi coat belted at the waist. The belt held one kunai pouch, one shuriken pouch, and a pouch on the back with basic supplies.
Clan members wore clan symbols on the back of the coat, everyone else had the Leaf insignia. The Uzumaki swirl was set into the belt buckle, a remembrance of their former allies. There were no unprofessional outfits, no long hair, and certainly no light or loud colors. Danzo didn't restrict how fully trained ninja of chunin rank or above decided to dress, but he would not let mere children prance around in bright colors.
Standing before him, they looked professional, perhaps slightly nervous but ready. Danzo gave himself a pleased nod, glancing over the ranks of the instructors behind him before speaking. "You have all chosen to devote yourself to the Great Tree. A sacrifice that you pay, so that those who do not do so may live in peace and tranquility. It is no exaggeration to say that those of you who stand before me should be proud of your achievements. Few are allowed to join the ranks of the defenders of Konoha. "
"The time for your training has both ended and begun. No longer are you merely children being assessed for the proper skills. Today you are more. Today you are no longer cadets. You are potential genin. Do not be ashamed if you were not chosen for the ranks of those who will work under a jonin sensei – all of you have the capacity to achieve any height you wish, if you merely put your will and heart into such. All of you can excel and become jonin, or ANBU, or hunter-nin."
"The next three years of your life will be devoted to learning the full depth of the shinobi arts. There was a time where we had the luxury to allow children to indulge and enjoy their childhood. A time where we could afford to let our genin relax, and train at the pace of their abilities. That time has passed. We face an uncertain, cruel and bloody world, one where Konoha alone stands for what should be."
He paused, good eye moving over the ranks. "When I was but a child, no older than you, the First Hokage did the unthinkable. He put aside his pride and joined forces with some of his clan's bitterest enemies, in hope of finding a path to peace. He made a place where small children were not thrown away in bitter revenge killings, but trained to defend their loved ones. He made a testament to the concept that there is more to the ninja world than blood, death, and suffering. This is how Konoha itself arose, from the Will of Fire. That love is the key to peace."
He gave a narrow, grim smile. "It is hard, for those of us who have seen nothing but war, to find such a thing. I have lost my father to war. My mother. Three brothers. My wife. Two of my sons. My arm, and my eye. I have lost friends, lovers, and treasured allies. I have fought and bled for Konoha for over fifty years...and there is not a single day I regret doing so."
His voice sharpened. "The Will of Fire is not something that is mere words. Suna believes that peace is but a time to rest and gather one's self for another attack. Kumo believes peace is weakness, and that only through constant war and strife can one find excellence. Kiri believes peace is a lie, that only blood and violence has meaning or truth. And Iwa … Iwa thinks peace is unnatural, in violation of the very nature that wears all things down to stone and rock over time."
"There are those who feel we can reach peace through understanding, or through economic ties, or through a display of might. They are wrong. Money, power, fear – these are tools. Much like the ninja themselves, tools cannot have a deeper meaning. Only through the understanding that we can only rely upon ourselves can we find victory, or meaning, in the sacrifices you make."
Danzo's expression flickered. "I say all of the above to remind you again what it is you do. You are the weapons of this village. You are its sword and shield. You protect those of our village who cannot. You fight for Fire Country in ways the Daimyo and his samurai cannot. We will murder, lie, steal, cheat, and do anything and everything we must in order to win. Not because we are 'right', not because we are 'good' and other villages are 'evil', not because we follow orders."
"We do it because Konoha is the only village that believes in peace. Real peace, a peace made of both understanding and strength, not of exhaustion between wars, or of the manipulations of power and money. We are the only village that hopes that one day there will be a world where there is no fighting. I cannot imagine it. In that way, perhaps, I am … already sacrificed. I have spent all my life in the darkness of the shinobi world, the world you are about to enter into."
"And yet, for all that darkness, it allows the village to flourish. It allows our merchants to live in peace, our artisans to work and design, our medics to heal and care for others. It allows the younger generation to grow, to become more than the previous generation. That is what you fight for. Not money, glory, power – but for your fellow villagers."
"Those of you selected for the general shinobi ranks will train in everything you need to accomplish the missions you are sent on. Those of you selected for the ranks of the Silent will immerse yourself in the ways of the unseen. And those of you who excelled, will learn from some of our most skilled ninja. But all of you are equal – defenders of your home."
He made a brief gesture with his good hand, and the line of jonin stepped up. "Your classroom instructors will call your name, either for your class or to announce the sensei for your team. You are not shinobi yet. You have one final ordeal to pass – failure means you are unsuited for our ranks."
"Instructors, the students are yours." He stepped back, as the first of the jonin assigned to general classes called out ten names.
O-DANZOSAMA-O
Kakashi wasn't certain what exactly he'd expected from the three trainees assigned to him, but glancing over the file-folder in front of him, he admitted the brats at least had the potential to be talented. He still had a few minutes before the trio of children came into the classroom, and decided to go over the materials Danzo had prepared one more time.
A fake Hyuuga with the Kyuubi, an angry Uchiha with Kami only knows what kind of mental trauma, and a civilian-born girl that had beaten more than one clan member in both intellect and chakra control. The fact that all three of them held lightning affinities was no doubt one reason he was in charge of their training.
But hardly the only reason.
He knew, without even bothering to ask, that Danzo didn't like him very much, but the old man was too savvy to let potential weapons rust on the rack. By having him take a team of genin, especially this particular team, Danzo was sending him a message.
The message, unfortunately, was probably "I'm giving you a chance not to fuck this up, don't disappoint me."
Kakashi idly turned a page.
As an elite jonin, ANBU captain and of course wielder of a Sharingan, he was one of the few in the village to know Naruto's true identity. Enough seal-work had been done, on both the boy's clothes and other seals on his body, that unless you knew exactly what you were looking for realizing the boy held the Kyuubi would be impossible to see or sense.
If the report was right, and Kakashi knew it was, something about the sealing of the Kyuubi had interacted with the mismash of Uzumaki genetics and allowed the boy to utilize mokuton chakra. While unable to do much with it externally except help plants to flourish, the chakra acted like a barrier and a suppressor to the Kyuubi, keeping it dormant and the boy's system free of its vile chakra.
And unless the boy called on said chakra, even the finest examination by his Sharingan couldn't see the signs of youkai. That would be useful, he supposed. The Hyuuga had trained him in an older precursor to the Juuken forms, one that required large chakra reserves. Rather than sealing chakra points on the body, the boy could shove out blades of pure chakra and spikes that would tear through organs and limbs, or shatter most defensive jutsu.
If he channeled the youkai of the Kyuubi through such strikes, it would probably kill even a jonin in a single clean hit. The fact that he had a working Byakugan gave him even more flexibility. Combining his fighting style with lightning – or the Chidori – would be devastatingly lethal. Having a staggering three affinities was just gravy on top of everything else Naruto had – chakra reserves bigger than most jonin, chunin level speed, and of course the health regeneration and toughness all jinchuriki had.
Sasuke was perhaps a more challenging task to sort through. The boy had never quite gotten over the mess of the Uchiha Massacre, although the remainder of his living family had at least stopped him from becoming some kind of cold-blooded revenge fanatic.
Sasuke didn't have the Sharingan activated yet, although both Shisui and Kagami felt it likely that it may have activated in the chaos of the massacre and he'd merely suppressed it. Sasuke's records showed he was very good in every field the Academy put them through – taijutsu, genjutsu, basic ninjutsu, basic medical chakra creation (if it wasn't done when you were young you'd never pick it up), and the very simple sealing tags.
His other skills were equally impressive. Kagami and Mikotu had drilled his kenjutsu and shurikenjutsu to a high degree, and of course Shisui had taught the brat more fire jutsu that was probably sane, not to mention the shinshun and several related tricks.
The civilian, Sakura... meh.
She had talent, true, but with a civilian background and no clan support she'd be the weakest link. Her chakra control and mastery of the admittedly very simple medical techniques taught in the Academy would be perfect for a support role, and her genjutsu were very well done. Her stamina and strength were subpar, however, and she'd probably need support to pass the final test.
He sighed, and glanced to his right. "What do you think?"
The slender man sitting in the wheelchair next to him gave a jerky shrug. The right side of his face was badly scarred, the flesh around his working eye sagging and his nose misshapen. The eyepatch covering his missing eye rose slightly as he waggled his eyebrows. "Kashi, I think this is the stupidest idea Danzo-yaro ever came up with, and he thought it was a good idea to piss off Kumo."
Obito Uchiha tapped one of the report pages from the file. "I can't believe he actually agreed to let me help you."
Kakashi gave a cheerful eye-smile, his voice full of amusement. "I told him I couldn't imagine being on time unless you were with me."
Obito stared at him. Kakashi stared back.
"... and people say I'm the baka in this team?" He glanced up, as the door opened, and Kakashi swept all the papers on the desk into a pile and back into the leather case they came in.
Three black-clad figures entered the room, coming to a halt in front of them. "Genin Naruto Hyuuga, Sasuke Uchiha, and Sakura Haruno, present taichou-sensei."
Kakashi glanced over the three of them and nodded, noting Sasuke's surprised expression at seeing his cousin. "Very good. I am takai-jonin Kakashi Hatake, and this is tokubetsu-jonin Obito Uchiha. I am your sensei, Obito is the sidekick."
Obito gave him The Look. "See if I give up an eye for you again, teme."
Kakashi ignored him, happy his mask concealed his smirk. "You are going to be Team Seven. Danzo-sama wanted Team One, but that sounds so boring. Plus, Team Seven is something of a tradition. The Sandaime was on Team Seven, the Sannin were a Team Seven, the Yondaime was on Team Seven."
He gave a glance directly at Naruto, who swallowed and nodded. Good, that meant Hiashi-sama had done his part. Saved him from a really awkward conversation.
Obito grinned, or at least the undamaged half of his face did. "So, kiddos, I'm the tag-along, and we'll both be training you. As a free-response team, you have to be able to do anything – heavy combat, reconnaissance, diplomacy, capture and interrogation, the works. You'll be training pretty hard from now on, and you're expected to be the best."
Kakashi noted the look of panicked fear on the face of Sakura. "Mah, mah, Obito, don't scare them so much at first." He exhaled and pointed. "So! Let's get to know each other and then we'll talk about what's next! You start, pinky. Name, background, strengths, likes, dislikes, dreams."
Sakura nervously licked her lips and bowed. "Hai, sensei. I am Sakura Haruno. My family is civilian, but my ancestors were ninja and samurai. My strengths, according to Iruka-sensei, are chakra control and genjutsu, along with my memory. I like sakura flowers, trivia games, and studying medical techniques. I dislike... people who assume I'm silly because of my hair color. My dream is to become a competent kunochi and a medical-nin." She bowed again.
Obito waggled his hand. "Good professionalism. Not enough comedy. Favorite food?"
"Um...umeboshi. Or dango. Anko dango, preferably."
Obito snickered. "Anko-sempai will love that."
Kakashi shook his head. "Quite, Obidiot." He ignored Obito's pout and pointed. "Next, Mr. Happy."
Sasuke's frown intensified, and he didn't bow. "I am Sasuke Uchiha, of the Uchiha Clan. My strengths are speed and reflexes and my command of fire ninjutsu." He paused, sneering. "My only weakness is that I haven't achieved my Sharingan yet. I like training, tomatoes, taking walks in nature, and my mother. I dislike traitorous assholes who murder their relatives. My dream is to return the Uchiha to a place of prominence, and to bring my murdering piece of shit brother to justice." He ended with a defiant glare.
Obito chuckled. "Boy, get in line. We're all gonna take turns beating the crap of out Itachi when we find him. I guess we can let you be the one to drag him back in the gates by his hair or something. Oh, he's not kidding when he says he likes tomatoes. You can bribe him – "
"Shut up, Bito-nii!"
Kakashi giggled. "Finally, the guy named after ramen."
Naruto hissed. "It's spelled with the kanji for maelstrom". He huffed, then took on a serene expression, remembering his training. "I am Naruto Hyuuga. I am a … member of the Hyuuga Clan, the top clan in the village." He grinned at the glares from Obito and Sasuke and continued. "My strength is my chakra capacity and density, and my stamina and durability. My weakness is my Byakugan is among the weakest in the clan, with a somewhat short range, and poor chakra control. I like raising plants, Hinata-chan, Ino-chan, Shino-san, my clan, and ramen." He frowned. "I dislike... cruelty. My dream..."
He paused. "My dream was once just to be an outstanding shinobi. I learned some things in the past few days that make me wonder. For now, my dream is to protect my village."
Kakashi nodded solemnly. The kid did that every day just by living. "Good, good. Now, a few things. First, you are all only 'prospective' genin in theory." He held up a hand. "There's a test you have to pass in order to proceed. If you can't bring yourself to complete it, then you cannot be a ninja."
Naruto frowned. "What kind of test, some kind of survival exam? Or like the old days where you tested teamwork and stuff?"
Obito and Kakashi both gave sad smiles. "No, not like those. Pity, the bell test would be great."
Kakashi got up to stand behind Obito's wheelchair. "Meet us at training ground seven at nine in the morning tomorrow for the test. I won't tell you what it is or what it consists of, only that you can't study or prepare for it. It is a test of character and determination."
He let his eye drift over all three of them. "Dismissed. I recommend getting to know each other a bit better, and getting a good night's rest." He placed his hands on the wheel chair and began wheeling Obito out.
The door closed behind them as the three genin stood there, until Naruto spoke. "I'm not sure about the two of you, but I think we should sit down and plan how to deal with this test."
Sakura turned to face him. "We don't know what the test will be about though. How do we prepare, he said we couldn't study for it."
Sasuke shook his head. "Hn. That means it's not testing our skills or knowledge, but our ability to do something or endure something. It doesn't matter. I have to pass and become a ninja. I have to avenge my family."
Naruto gave him a sidelong look then a nod. "...fair enough. Even if we can't prepare, we need to know what each other can do. Let's head over and find this training ground so we won't have to stumble around looking for it tomorrow, and we can discuss what we can do on the way."
Sasuke didn't really want to socialize, but he also knew going home wasn't an option right now. "Fine." He gave a careful look at Sakura, who merely met his gaze curiously, then nodded. "At least neither of you are morons like Kiba or half-asleep like the Nara idiots."
Naruto chuckled. "Thanks..I think?"
A/N: Yes, Obito lives. He was crippled by the cave in and thought he was going to die so he gave his eye to Kakashi via Rin. Then the Fourth showed up and managed to save him, but his face was damaged and he's paralyzed below the waist.
Kakashi and Obito now both operate on Obito time. Rin is still dead.