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At the Hokage’s office, Hiruzen Sarutobi was using shadow clones to deal with paperwork before one of them dispelled, giving the original a problem with one of the papers brought to his attention. It was once again a formal request to have Naruto Uzumaki either banished or imprisoned so that he could not be dangerous for the village. He simply stamped a seal of rejection on the document before filing it away with so many other requests having to do with Naruto. Now that Naruto-kun is a shinobi, he could not wait for the boy to begin his journey. He was, however, shocked to find not only Shindō Shunsoku was tied with Sasuke Uchiha for Rookie of the Year at the Academy; however, unlike the Uchiha, Shindō inherited Konoha’s Will of Fire which also aligns perfectly with the Shunsoku clan’s family values. His mind is akin to a jōnin and once out on the field it will match a Kage. Still, Naruto-kun’s drive is more than enough to convince him that he could succeed with the right push and Shindō is one of those who can do it for Naruto as the Shunsoku clan heir stated he was not interested in becoming Hokage unless Naruto-kun is not around anymore. Speaking of Shindō-kun, there was a knock at the door before he said, “Come in.”
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Ebisu.
The door opened and in walked a well-built, lanky fair-skinned man with black hair, donned in the standard Konoha shinobi outfit (albeit without the olive flak jacket) completed with his trademarked rounded sunglasses over his eyes and his Konoha forehead protector styled into a bandana. The sleeves of his navy-blue bodysuit are folded a quarter up his forearm and with a kunai holster wrapped around his right thigh, white medical bandages around his calves, and the standard blue shinobi sandals. He walked in quietly before Hiruzen smiled. “Ah, Ebisu-san, you’re here on time as usual,” said the Third Hokage, relieved to be going over his new apprentice from this year’s batch of graduates. The gleam on Ebisu’s glasses showed how excited he was to pass on his specialties onto the next generation. “I’m honored, Hokage-dono,” said Ebisu bowing his head respectfully before regaining his original posture. “So, where’s my new apprentice you spoke about? What’s his name again?” He took on a thinking pose.
“I believe you’re referring to Shunsoku Shindō,” Ebisu immediately turned around startled to see the source of the familiar voice.
“Ah, Kakashi-san, I’m gonna have to do something about your tardiness,” said the Third Hokage, tired of Kakashi’s habitual lateness to everything except for C-rank missions or higher and more pressing matters like village security.
Kakashi Hatake.
The jōnin simply waved his right hand dismissively in a lazy manner with his signature eye-smile because of his facemask covering his face from the middle bridge of his nose down to his chest. His left eye was covered the standard Konoha headband, making it tilt while keeping his silver gray, gravity-defying spiky hair off the rest of his face. Kakashi is a fair-skinned, lanky yet well-built man with his visible right eye being dark gray (black in some instances). His attire consists of the same standard Konoha shinobi outfit comprising of a navy-blue one-piece, long-sleeved, long-legged bodysuit with the sleeves folded a quarter up his forearms and the Uzumaki clan emblem on both the upper portions, a kunai holster around his right thigh, a weapons pouch attached behind him, white bandages around his calves, and matching shinobi sandals. The difference between Kakashi and Ebisu is that Kakashi constantly wears the standard olive flak jacket with the Uzumaki symbol on the back and a pair of fingerless, navy-blue gloves with a metal plate on the backhand. In his left hand, he carries an open orange book called Icha Icha Paradise (イチャイチャパラダイス, Icha Icha Paradaisu, English TV: Make-Out Paradise), a series of novels infamous for their erotic material and is restricted for those who are eighteen-plus.
Kakashi’s eye-smile disappeared as he was in full attention as he asked, “So, you’ve called me here for a mission?”
“In a way, yes, Kakashi-san,” said the Hokage, picking out three folders containing files. “After the Konoha Council and I have debated with one another, you’ve been picked out of our roster of jōnin to train this year’s Team Seven. Here are the files on your students. Please read them carefully.” He handed them over to Kakashi who took ten minutes to read over them whilst Ebisu spoke with a fourth folder in hand, “This is pertaining to the last living Shunsoku?”
The Hokage nodded before saying, “I’ve informed Iruka-san to bring him here. Remember, it will be his choice to accept your proposal. You have expressed interest in Shindō-kun. Why?”
“Toshirō-san was an S-rank shinobi worthy of awe and respect, but I also see the Will of Fire burn brightly inside him and I wish to help his son become a powerful shinobi in his own right. As a tokubetsu jōnin, I specialize in teaching the basics of the shinobi arts.” He then looked at Shindō’s profile. “Shindō-san struggles with the basics like everyone with abnormally large chakra reserves and I know of a way to help him with his chakra control so he may get to shinobi standards.”
Hiruzen knew about Ebisu-san’s abilities and believed that it was time for Ebisu to be promoted to jōnin if he could teach Shindō-kun enough that the boy grows into an accomplished shinobi. “Well, they should be arriving right about now―” A knock was heard, making Hiruzen smile to himself and Ebisu frown nervously. He was about to formally meet the son of Konoha’s Tailed Beast Without a Tail. Being a sensor type, a specific chakra signature appeared on his radar and was visibly frozen in place at the familiar feeling of raw power with little control over it. It looked like his job was cut out for him as the Hokage replied, “Enter.”
The door opened and in walked Shindō Shunsoku and Iruka Umino. They were chuckling from a joke the youth said to the Academy instructor before getting serious upon seeing the Hokage and two other shinobi in the room. Shindō saw Kakashi Hatake reading the files on his genin team. Nearby, the second ninja was someone he never met but could sense something irregular about his chakra before turning to the Third Hokage and, like Iruka-sensei, addressed the village leader.
“You called, Hokage-dono,” said the Shunsoku with a respectful bow and tone.
“At ease, Shindō-kun,” said the Third Hokage in his grandfatherly tone and smile. “You were called because of your scores and unique situation.” He then gazed at Ebisu who politely stepped forward, catching Shindō’s and Iruka’s attention.
Ebisu swallowed a small lump in his throat before getting into what some people call ‘sensei mode’ whilst addressing the boy, “Shunsoku Shindō, it is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Ebisu, and you have caught my interest. Hokage-dono has informed me that you rivaled the last Uchiha this year for the Rookie of the Year and due to the number of graduates this year, you weren’t assigned into a three-man cell.” Shindō replied with a nod and asked, “Yeah, but why?”
“Because, you’re a Tokubetsu Genin which is an Academy graduate with an exceptional talent for the shinobi arts born once in a generation.” Shindō’s eyes went wide, but Iruka remained calm but inside his mind he was doing his own victory dance far worse than even Naruto’s. The Shunsoku clan heir has never heard of such a ranking, even his father nor ojii-chan even mentioned it before. He guessed, however, that it was not ordinary and asked, “What does that mean? I’m sure it’s not ordinary, nor normal.”
Ebisu brightened at the boy’s astuteness and was confident that he chose wisely. “Well, Shindō-san,” the tokubetsu jōnin said, habitually pushing his sunglasses further up the bridge of his nose, “there are those like you who are exceptional cases that are categorized in one of two subcategories. You’re familiar with the shinobi organizational system, right?”
“Yes, there’s Genin, Chūnin, Jōnin, and then Kage right?” replied Shindō with a grin on his lips.
“Yes, but there’s more ranks,” said Ebisu without changing expressions before holding his hand up with his index and middle fingers to emphasize his point, “There are two more rankings not taught at the Academy for reasons pertaining to village security. The two rankings are tokubetsu genin, or Tokugin for short, and tokubetsu jōnin, or simply Tokujō. Tokubetsu jōnin are ninjas who, rather than having all-around jōnin skills, they only excel in a specific area. Take myself as an example; I specialize in training jōnin or above rather than being one myself. While I’m familiar jōnin in most aspects, I’m distinguished from other jōnin who may have more combative-oriented skills like Kakashi-san over here.” Ebisu pointed at the said ninja sitting nearby and skimming over his chosen students’ files. He was overhearing everything and had his back turned before turning his head to see Shindō with his trademarked eye-smile before going back to reading the documents. Shindō could sense Kakashi’s chakra and control, the overall power which surprised him at how big it was, but that also there was something peculiar about his covered left eye. He would have to find out later as Ebisu was not done.
“So, Shindō-kun, Hokage-dono believes that you’ll need special training to help at controlling your exceptionally large and constant chakra flow due to your condition. Because of this, and your lineage, I believe I know just the right training regime for you as I did for your father who inspired me to be the ninja I am. I wish to return the favor by helping you out as I can see your full potential of being an exceptional shinobi and live up to the Shunsoku clan’s reputation.”
Shindō could not believe this unique opportunity before him and he saw the look on the Third Hokage was giving him. The grandfatherly smile alone was enough to encourage him to say without hesitation, “Then I accept. But I have one thing I must ask.” He turned towards the Third Hokage. “I wish to inform Naruto-kun about my rank as motivation for him to try harder. It would serve as motivation for him to be the best shinobi ever. Besides, he showed me his latest jutsu in the hope we work together in the future. After all, it’s not a matter of if but when he becomes Hokage, I’ll be right by his side.” Ebisu, Iruka, Kakashi, and even Hiruzen stared at the boy with wide eyes at the black-haired boy whose hope and belief in Konoha’s Will of Fire illuminated the room and burned so brightly. Hiruzen then smiled and said, “Very well, Shindō-kun, and I’ll look forward to that promise.” Smiling brightly, Shindō bowed his head respectfully before Ebisu spoke, pressing his sunglasses. “Well then, Shindō-san, let’s get started, shall we? Meet me at Training Ground One in five minutes to begin our training.” He gave Shindō a map marking the training ground’s location within the village.
“Hai, Ebisu-sensei,” said Shindō, his tone back to serious which everyone except Kakashi found endearing. Kakashi, meanwhile, finished reading the files before asking Shindō, “Shindō-kun, I was wondering what you could tell me more about Uzumaki Naruto.”
Shindō snapped out of his daydream before replying with a familiar line Kakashi uses, “Huh, I’m sorry, did you said something, Kakashi-san?”
Kakashi’s visible eye twitched before saying, “Never mind,” and departed with in a puff of smoke. Shindō, however, was excited to take this opportunity to become a stronger, more skilled, and a complete ninja for Konohagakure. He could not wait to tell Naruto-kun after training with Ebisu-sensei. “And Shindō-kun,” said the Third Hokage, grabbing the genin’s attention. “Don’t worry about Naruto-kun, he’ll be informed by Iruka-san as soon as breaktime is over.”
“Thank you, Hokage-dono!” Shindō saluted him using his index and middle finger of his left hand before running out of the room and heading to the location as Ebisu-sensei instructed.
“Iruka-san, it’s about time to inform each team who their sensei will be.”
“Hai,” Iruka said with a sigh. He was going to miss these batch of graduates, well, most of them at least.
It has been three hours before Naruto Uzumaki has, for the third time, peered into the hallway outside their classroom. A scowling Sasuke was just sitting with his arms crossed, expressing only an inkling of annoyance on his lips on his otherwise quiet, stoic face. Sakura Haruno was only fawning over him like some lovesick puppy, annoyed by Naruto pacing around the room but at least leaving her and her Sasuke-kun alone for the time being. Scratching at his hair in anger, he exclaimed, “ARGH! Why is our team sensei so DAMN LATE!” This sentiment was also shared by his teammates, for once, but were unwilling to admit aloud as they watched their blonde, knuckleheaded teammate continued ranting, “I mean, all the other teams are already gone with their sensei. Even Iruka-sensei left already just an hour ago. Ugh, I wish Shindō-niisan was here. He always tells me to do something worthwhile, whatever that means.” Suddenly, his eyes widened at an idea which popped into his head. With a wide, toothy grin he picked up an eraser from the large blackboard, filled it with chalk dust, and then used a chair to reach for the top doorframe where the doors barely closed, keeping the chalked eraser in place. Sasuke watched from the corner of his eye whilst Sakura looked confused and asked, “Baka, waht’re you doing?”
“I’m punishing our sensei for being late,” Naruto said, stifling a snicker. “It serves him right for being late as that’s one of the things I hate.” as he quickly got back down before placing the chair back to where it was and acting casual. “Pfft, like a jōnin will fall for such a stupid booby trap,” Sasuke chided, his head still resting against his hands in which both fingers and thumbs were intertwined.
“Hmph, well I’m not part of this!” Sakura exclaimed, balling her fists against her hips.
Suddenly, almost right on cue, jōnin sensei slid open the door, causing the eraser above his head to fall onto his head. White chalk dust in made his hair look as white as snow and even getting on his clothes. Kakashi Hatake, the chosen sensei for Team 7, coughed and fanned the chalk dust away with his hands while Naruto laughed so hard he clutched at his stomach which was beginning to hurt a little. “Wha-hahahahahaha! You fell for it!” cried the blonde.
Sakura immediately cowered in fear at the intense aura radiating from Kakashi whilst Sasuke could not believe that an elite was fooled by a stupid prank. Was their teacher really that weak? Sakura attempted to put the blame on Naruto to escape their sensei’s wrath by saying, “I’m so sorry, sensei. It was all that baka’s idea.” Inner Sakura said, “Ok, ok, it worked better than we thought! CHA!”
Kakashi looked at his genin squad and said after dusting off a good amount of chalk off him, “Well, my first impression of you guys is… Hmm, how can I say delicately.” He paused for dramatic effect, narrowing his visible eye. “I hate you all.”
“…” Only silence reigned after Kakashi’s confession before he continued whilst looking at them with his trademarked eye-smile to his students, “Well, let’s head over to the roof, shall we?” He disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving all the chalk he received from Naruto’s prank to land in a small heap on the floor. Without further ado, Naruto ran through the door before heading to the roof, with Sasuke closely behind and Sakura being the last to arrive.
Team Kakashis first team meeting.
Kakashi sat on the top of the nearby guardrails whilst the three genin were sitting on some steps facing him. With his arms crossed, Kakashi stared at them lazily and spoke in a more nonchalant tone. “Well, let’s now begin with introducing ourselves.”
“What do you want to know?” Sakura asked, Naruto nodding along.
“You know,” Kakashi said lazily. “Your name. Your likes, dislikes, hobbies, dreams for the future, and things like that.”
“Why don’t you start, sensei?” Naruto asked.
“Yeah, something tells me you look sort of suspicious,” Sakura said, hugging her knees to her flat chest.
With a sigh, Kakashi began his introduction, “Well, my name is Hatake Kakashi… I don’t have the desire to tell you my likes or dislikes… As for my dreams for the future… Hmm, I can’t think of any. And as for my hobbies, well I don’t feel like telling you that either.”
‘All he did was just tell us his name,’ Sakura thought while huffing to herself at their sensei’s lackluster introduction. Sasuke was not amused but said nothing whilst Naruto pouted at their sensei’s lousy introduction and knew he could do better. BELEIVE IT!
Kakashi was interested in knowing more about the legacy of the late Fourth Hokage. “Well, blondie, why don’t we start with you?”
Ignoring his nickname for him, Naruto introduced himself with enthusiasm as he readjusted his Konoha headband with the forehead protector engraved with the village’s symbol. “Oh right, my name is Uzumaki Naruto! What I like is ramen, regardless of it being cupped or not. What I like even more is my onii-chan, Shunsoku Shindō, as he and Tō-san adopted me shortly after I was born as my real parents died shortly thereafter. I love it when Iruka-sensei or Shindō-kun take me out and even pay for my ramen.” Kakashi’s eye slightly caught a slight change in the blonde’s cheerful demeanor as it seemed like he was calmer and more collected instead of brasher and idiotic as in his profile from both the Academy and the Konohagakure Intelligence Division. “What I dislike is waiting three minutes it takes for the so-called “Instant Ramen” to cook…” Naruto used big air quotes to emphasize this important fact, apparently. “…and all times my onii-chan gets so bossy. And my future dream is to be the greatest Hokage! Then the whole village will stop disrespecting me and start treating me like I’m somebody. Somebody important!” Kakashi was surprised about Naruto’s declaration and the burden he carries to protect Konoha by merely existing and it is only known by every Konoha ninja and the elders and young adults of the village whilst the boy’s generation has no clue as the Third Hokage wanted so that Naruto could develop bonds with the next generation. More time will be needed to see if the Hokage’s decision was the best one or not. He then replied with a sigh, “And hobbies?”
Naruto finished adjusting his ninja headband before making a thinking pose which annoyed his teammates. “Pranking and training, I guess. But more of the latter, really, since now I’m a shinobi and I will not let this village down, BELIEVE IT!”
Kakashi did not show how proud he was at Naruto’s personal growth and could have sworn that the Fourth Hokage was wrapping his arms around Naruto, staring back at the masked jōnin with pride and love before dissipating.
Getting back on track, Kakashi turned to the only kunoichi on their team. “Okay, pinkie, you’re turn.” This remark made Sakura grit her teeth angrily before calming herself slightly before saying with her right hand over her chest, “First off, it’s not pinkie, Kakashi-sensei. My name is Haruno Sakura.” She adjusted herself to sit more ladylike before continuing with her introduction. “My likes are…” She looked at the brooding Sasuke who paid no attention to her in the slightest, instead focusing on their sensei with a critical eye. “My hobbies are studying chakra theory and…” She looks at Sasuke again. “And my dislikes are Ino-pig and Naruto-baka!” Naruto was hurt by this but was determined to change that. “And my dream…” She once again looked at the brooding Sasuke when Kakashi inwardly sighed. ‘Oh no, she’s a fangirl. Just my luck!’ he thought with a big sweat drop on the back of his head. ‘Most girls at this age are more interested in love than being a ninja. In fact, fangirls give kunoichi a bad name and it’s clear here.’ Kakashi only sighed frustratingly before saying, “I see… And you…” He gazed over at Sasuke who has not moved nor flinched this whole time, remaining still as a statue.
“My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I have a long list of things that I hate, and I don’t want to share them.” Sasuke’s expression was still stoic but with eyes filled with darkness. “And I don’t particularly have anything that I like. What I have is not a dream but an ambition, because I will make it a reality. I’m going to restore my clan and kill a certain someone.”
The air became thick with tension, coldness, and silence and Kakashi knew the reason why. Sakura only seemed to think, Oh, Sasuke-kun is so cool! Hopefully, he and I will be together forever! Naruto, however, was startled and seemed to move further away from the Uchiha and wished that the “certain someone” was not him or even Shindō-kun as he was forced to admit that he was currently not strong enough to defend himself at the moment. The atmosphere was depressing until it was all broken by Kakashi by simply saying, “Okay, then I guess that concludes introductions. Tomorrow we’re starting our duties as shinobi.”
Naruto’s mood brightened at the mention of ‘duties as shinobi’ from Kakashi-sensei and responding, “Duties! Duties! Yes!” Naruto raised a fist in the air before asking with his trademark foxy grin, “Kakashi-sensei, what kind of duties we’re talking about specifically?”
Kakashi crossed his arms before telling the hyperactive blonde knuckleheaded genin in a tone denoting his authority as Team 7’s leader. “First, we are doing something that is just the four of us.”
“What is it? What is it?” Naruto bombarded, annoying his teammates who were just as curious as him.
“Survival training,” their sensei answered.
“Survival training?” Naruto asked, confused and frowning.
“Wait, we learned about it at the Academy,” said Sakura. “Why is our first duty training?”
Sasuke only answered with his trademark “Hn,” still not moving from his dark expression from before.
“Well, Haruno-san,” Kakashi said nonchalantly, “this is a survival training they don’t have you do at the Academy. It isn’t normal training because this time, instead of your peers it will be me who is your opponent.” Kakashi chuckled for a bit, making Sakura and Naruto uncomfortable while Sasuke remained immune from the outside, but in the inside, he was freaking out as much as his obnoxious teammates. “What’s so funny, Kakashi-sensei?” Sakura asked.
After quieting his chuckling down, he answered, “Umm, well, it’s just that if I were to tell you, it will freak you all out.”
Naruto demanded with an angry shake of his fist, “C’mon, please tell us, we’re not afraid!”
Kakashi rests his chin on his right hand with an intense expression from his visible eye. “Out of the twenty-seven graduates, or twenty-eight in this case, only nine will be chosen to be genin while the rest return to the Academy for remedial training. This training is an extremely difficult exam with a failure rate of over 66%!!”
Naruto’s eyes widened as he struggled to find words while Sakura’s expression became depressed while Sasuke remained unaffected, but his eyes exhibited some anxiety over this exam.
“WHAT?! No way!! But we all worked so hard to become shinobi!” Naruto shouted in protest. “If this is the case then what’s the point of graduating?”
Kakashi scratched his fair skin not covered by the mask, close to his visible eye, before answering, “The graduation was made to select those with the highest potential to become genin.”
“Uhh, what?” Naruto said, calming down as he was even more clueless.
Kakashi, however, decided to conclude their team meeting for the day. “…Anyway, tomorrow you will be showing your real skills at Training Ground Seven. Bring all your shinobi tools and knowledge you have. Oh, I suggest you skip breakfast because the training will be so intense that you will throw it all back up.”
Sakura blanched at the last part while Naruto gulped, and Sasuke only nodded as everyone stood up on their feet and Kakashi stepped forward with three pieces of paper with instructions and a map of the village’s layout on the surface (excluding all hidden and underground locations and passages). “Don’t forget these, the details are written on this paper as well as Training Ground Seven is marked with an X,” Kakashi said, holding up one of the papers with his left hand. “Be sure to bring them with you tomorrow or else you automatically fail and will be sent back to the Academy. Oh, and don’t be late tomorrow as the exam will begin at six in the morning.”
Naruto took his paper and knew he needed Shindō-kun’s help to decipher some of the vocabulary throughout the paper, but visually he recognized every landmark and could find the correct training ground on his own. He then thought, ‘I can’t fail! I’ve come so far and I won’t stop until I achieve my dream. No matter what, BELIEVE IT!’
Sakura took her own paper before thinking with a frightened expression, ‘I-I’ll be separated from my Sasuke-kun! No, I won’t fail this as this is a test of love! And true love always wins!’
Sasuke only crushed his paper in a fist as he gritted his teeth. This was the one opportunity for him to achieve the power he needed to achieve his ambitions. He hoped his teammates do not slow him down or get in his way in the slightest. With all three genin having the instructions and map to the designated training ground for themselves and their sensei, Kakashi bid them a farewell before disappearing in a puff of smoke, surprising them and both Naruto and Sasuke wanted to learn how to do that. Sasuke went home to prepare as Sakura rejected Naruto’s invitation to go on a date with him before the blonde resolved to go get ramen by himself. He vowed to be ready to defeat Kakashi-sensei and prove he is a great shinobi worthy and be acknowledged as such.
When Naruto returned home to find his Shindō training in their backyard. “Onii-chan!” Naruto shouted as he and the Shunsoku embraced as brothers would before breaking off the hug before Naruto and him began to train one another, using the secret of the Shadow Clone Technique to train smarter and more creatively which could help them boost their chakra control training even more, especially Shindō because of his kekkei genkai. With expressed permission from the Third Hokage after the incident where Mizuki tricked Uzumaki into stealing and (foolishly) learning the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique from the Scroll of Seals, the brothers have doubled their training with Shindō asking, “Naruto-kun, remember that shadow clones are but extensions of you.” Naruto looked puzzled before Shindō rephrased it in a way only Naruto could understand. “Naruto-kun, shadow clones are like your hands and fingers, or your legs and feet,” he said, gripping Naruto’s wrists to emphasize his point or pointing at his own legs and feet, making the blonde understand.
He also clarified and helped expand Naruto’s vocabulary a little to understand the instructions written on the paper Kakashi-sensei provided to him and his comrades. Together, the Shunsoku and Uzumaki came up with some battle strategies and tactics so as to not waste chakra nor movement since overwhelming numbers can be a detriment as much as an advantage because Naruto’s taijutsu and shurikenjutsu still needed work; however, before night rolled around, Naruto could now at least fight on par with Shindō. After his clones dispelled, the memories, information, and experiences were almost overwhelming, but he was going to use this to make his dream come true. He could not wait to surprise Sasuke-teme, Sakura-chan, and Kakashi-sensei with his new bag of tricks and techniques. He will not fail, BELIEVE IT!
