15
First Tries - Sakura: Kakashi Interlude
Kakashi paused before entering the Academy to think about his prospective genin. He had spent much of the day watching them through the crystal ball with the Hokage and reading over their simple Academy profiles.
Hmmm, Sensei's son performed poorly on most skills... but he's determined and looks like he's willing to think the best of everyone.
The boy seemed to have limitless potential, if he survived the harshness of ninja life. Kakashi dismissed the thought. He wouldn't let another of his people die.
Sasuke Uchiha... All of his skills outperformed his class, but he looks like he isn't willing to trust anybody. That could be a problem. If he can't trust them he might be like...
Kakashi cut off that line of thinking with a twinge of guilt. Thinking about his failure to protect Rin and Obito always ended with him in a gloom. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and moved on.
Sakura Haruno. Except for the smarts that carried her into the top kunoichi of the class, she would be an unexceptional ninja. Though... The reports seem to have understated her intelligence and how perceptive she is, after hearing how she discovered Naruto's secret.
Sakura's revelation to Naruto and their subsequent reconciliation as well as Sakura's apparent commitment to change her life and train with her teammate(s) had moved Kakashi. He shook his head and entered the building.
Well, they need to pass my test first.
-----
On the roof, Kakashi leaned against the rail as his prospective genin filed out and sat down. He looked at his targets for a moment and asked them for introductions.
When Naruto demanded he introduce himself first, he refused. He wouldn't be telling them anything unless they passed and were his genin in truth, though that didn't mean he couldn't have a little fun.
The introductions went pretty much as he thought they would. Sasuke was worrying with his fixation on his brother, but hopefully he could curb or help control that obsession. Sakura's was more mature than he would expect from a girl her age, but a person learning that one of their teammates had a giant demon fox sealed into them would probably make anyone think hard about their views on ninja life.
Kakashi screwed with the children for a few minutes, then dismissed them. As he left, he employed his wicked sense of humor and 'advised' them not to eat breakfast or they would risk throwing up during the test.
Half an hour later, he settled in near the training ground to spy on his prospective team. In a smart move, they had decided to go to the field where the exam would take place and train as well as check out the area they would be working in. Sakura took a fair if not exceptional look around the area and began some warm ups.
He continued watching as Naruto showed up and Sakura begged him to teach her the Shadow Clone technique. He shifted, ready to intervene if the girl hurt herself, but she went at it carefully and immediately stopped once the drain caused her to lose her feet.
Sasuke showed up, and the pink-haired girl quickly cut off a conflict before it could gain steam. Her appraisal of the Shadow Clone technique only reinforced Kakashi's rising opinion of the girl, and the threat to steal all of Sasuke's clothing and sell it to his fans if he didn't get along with Naruto was inspired. A minute or so later, and Sasuke seemed to put down some of his pride. If a person were to tilt their head and squint just right, it looked like the beginning of something that might eventually be called... teamwork.
Hmmm, they might be able to pass after all.
As the children settled into a training routine, Kakashi left to enjoy the rest of his day with just a little spring in his step.
-----
Kakashi showed up late to continue his minor test of seeing underneath the underneath, and greeted the youngsters. Naruto and Sakura's reactions brought a smile to his face, and he began to explain his test to them.
Ha! They're cute.
Naruto's muted outrage, Sasuke's small smirk, and Sakura's carefully blank face revealed that they had at least seen through his 'advice'. Naruto's controlled outrage turned into enthusiasm when the girl spoke with her determination to not hold back, and Sasuke also readied himself.
"Heh. I think I'm starting to like you guys. Ready? Begin!"
Sakura's thrown kunai as they leapt towards cover was slow, but fairly accurate. Kakashi lost sight of them for a brief moment as it came towards his face and he approved of the distraction, even though he could easily find them again if he wanted to.
A few minutes later, Naruto showed up, and Kakashi taunted him by pulling out one of his favorite books: Icha Icha Paradise.
[Insert dialogue ripped almost word-for-word from the series]
Enraged, Naruto attacked and Kakashi easily blocked the blows the boy launched at him.
Hm, he's already a grade above where the academy reports place him at.
The silver-haired jonin briefly considered putting away his book, but decided against it. Naruto wasn't quite good enough even with only one hand free. After a short exchange where Naruto got more and more frustrated with each blocked or dodged blow, the boy reared back with a haymaker, and made the mistake of closing his eyes.
Kakashi stepped around him, then crouched and told the boy, "Ninja shouldn't repeatedly let the enemy take them from behind, idiot. Konoha Ultimate Taijutsu Technique! A Thousand Years of Pain!"
Kakashi took a very brief moment to savor the look of raw terror and disbelief on Naruto's face when the boy looked over his shoulder, then launched him into the river. After a moment, the orange-clad wannabe genin clambered out of the water, looking somewhat disheartened. Kakashi taunted him, knowing that the kid, like many younger ninja, would stubbornly react with determination to someone looking down on his dreams. He also noticed a tuft of pink hair just peeking out of one of the bushes to his left and heard a small movement in the trees behind him, which was probably Sasuke preparing to use any openings that Kakashi might leave.
An instant later, a squad of Naruto's shadow clones burst free from the water, and Kakashi turned towards them, preparing for a little more fighting. Just as they got close enough to leap towards him, he heard a footstep and someone jumping towards him from behind.
Oh! Good distraction, Naruto. A point for you.
Kakashi feigned surprise as the clone grappled him from behind, shouting, "Ninja shouldn't let their opponents take them from behind! Right, Kakashi-sensei?" a mere moment before the jonin heard another footstep close behind him that he had missed, masked by Naruto.
What?! My blind spot?
Actually surprised, Kakashi reacted, turning left towards the offending sound and lashing out with more strength and speed than he should have used. He managed to pull the blow as his backhand reached its target, and he was greeted by the sight and feeling of launching the pink-haired and green-eyed girl across the training field. A small spray of blood spattered across Kakashi's uniform from the girl he'd struck.
Damn it! I didn't--
"SAKURA!" the real Naruto roared as he punched towards the jonin, with his clones just reaching and locking down Kakashi's legs. Kakashi burst the clone behind him and braced himself, reflexively blocking the attack. He was greeted by unsettling red slitted eyes. The blow broke through Kakashi's guard and launched him back across the field, leaving small trenches where his feet dug through the ground.
Those eyes. The seal..?
Everything was going horribly, horribly wrong. Kakashi recovered his stance and prepared to use his full strength to put an end to the test as Naruto fought between aggression and protectiveness. Suddenly, a brace of kunai and shuriken whizzed out of the trees, and Kakashi used a replacement to dodge, which moved him further from Naruto as the pattern of weapons prevented Kakashi from moving forwards without harm.
The new development seemed to decide things for the boy, whose eyes had faded back to blue. He quickly ran to Sakura, creating an enormous group of more than thirty clones on the way, then picked the girl up on his back and dashed into the woods.
Sasuke stepped out from where he'd been hiding in the treeline and fired a Fire Style: Great Fireball at Kakashi, then turned and dashed after Naruto.
This time, the jonin easily dodged the incoming attack, retreating underground with Earth Style: Underground Movement. He rose from the ground a short distance from the small crater the exploding fireball had left and began to chase Sasuke, dispatching the few clones that managed to get in his way in an instant with full-power strikes.
A few minutes after his mistake, he caught up with the boy and stopped to check from just out of sight. Sasuke had just paused in a clearing where Naruto had stopped to put the girl back down. Sakura appeared awake, though she was laying on the ground, clearly dazed and nauseous. The copy-ninja breathed a sigh of relief and started to move again towards the genin. He quickly paused before he made any distance, as he realized an important fact he'd missed in the fear that he may have seriously hurt one of his students and the shock of seeing the jinchuriki's red eyes.
The bells?
A moment later Sakura raised her left fist towards the sky, opening them just enough to let the light shine off of the items in her hand.
Kakashi rocked back on his feet and his eyebrow involuntarily raised for a moment, then he had to hold in a laugh.
You pass! I'll wait for a while... If she recovers, I'll have to test their teamwork further. If she doesn't, I'll stay hidden until the alarm rings. It's a good sign that she's awake.
Kakashi settled down to wait, and the boys hauled the girl to her feet slowly. She looked horrible and was swaying, but she said something to the boys he couldn't make out because she had been facing away from the bush Kakashi was hiding in.
The boys gave her a confused look for a second, then understanding. Naruto created a dozen clones who quickly created a perimeter around the clearing and Sasuke threw several smoke pellets around the trio.
The smoke only lasted for a few moments and when it finally dispersed, the genin showed that they had quickly agreed on a defensive plan to protect the bells. In a classic defensive manji formation with a pair of clones, every angle was covered, at least for the moment. Kakashi waited because the clones would not last long, having been created by people who had not known the technique for more than a day.
His patience was rewarded when the outer guard of Naruto clones dispersed. A short wait later, and the last two clones also dispelled. The genin shifted as holes appeared in the formation, and Kakashi used another Earth Style: Underground Movement to crawl under their position. It was slow going, as the technique was mostly used for escape instead of travel.
When he was directly underneath his pink-haired genin's feet, he moved towards the surface, and began reaching towards her. Twitchy, she immediately reacted and jumped away as Kakashi pulled himself free of the ground. She stumbled as she landed, and the boys steadied her though she didn't appear to notice the aid, as she was fighting to keep her focus directly on Kakashi. The boys moved closer to each other to put themselves between Kakashi and Sakura, then waited for Kakashi to attack.
Kakashi studied them for a moment with a, "Hmmm..." before he leaned forward and dashed towards his opponents without any chakra-enhancement.
The girl managed to grab a shuriken even though she looked like she was having some trouble concentrating and threw it at Kakashi as he closed the distance. The throw was weak and angle was wide, but it was close enough that he had to lean to the side to keep it from embedding itself in one of his shoulderpads. Sasuke quickly followed up with a ferocious series of blows before Kakashi grabbed a leg and threw him to the side, then Naruto further stalled his approach with a squad of clones.
Going easy on them, Kakashi slowly cleared the clones and saw that Sakura and Sasuke had managed to put the boy between them again. He knocked Naruto away and continued the assault. Sasuke again fought hard and was repelled once more, then Sakura threw another weapon at Kakashi as the line of fire cleared again. She continued to retreat, Naruto attacked with more clones, and the pattern repeated until the alarm eventually went off.
Kakashi disengaged, elated at the performance of the three genin, and looked forward to talking with them about the test.
These are my genin. There are many like them, but these ones are mine.
-----
A/N: My brother, beta, and editor, @Lumarin, is a cruel and ruthless taskmaster. Also, he's an excellent beta and has easily made for much of the more subtle quality parts of my writing.(Edit: Not awake right now. Deal with it)
P.S. Let me know if you like the interlude - I was trying something different here, and I'd like to know if you guys enjoyed it or not.
Kakashi paused before entering the Academy to think about his prospective genin. He had spent much of the day watching them through the crystal ball with the Hokage and reading over their simple Academy profiles.
Hmmm, Sensei's son performed poorly on most skills... but he's determined and looks like he's willing to think the best of everyone.
The boy seemed to have limitless potential, if he survived the harshness of ninja life. Kakashi dismissed the thought. He wouldn't let another of his people die.
Sasuke Uchiha... All of his skills outperformed his class, but he looks like he isn't willing to trust anybody. That could be a problem. If he can't trust them he might be like...
Kakashi cut off that line of thinking with a twinge of guilt. Thinking about his failure to protect Rin and Obito always ended with him in a gloom. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and moved on.
Sakura Haruno. Except for the smarts that carried her into the top kunoichi of the class, she would be an unexceptional ninja. Though... The reports seem to have understated her intelligence and how perceptive she is, after hearing how she discovered Naruto's secret.
Sakura's revelation to Naruto and their subsequent reconciliation as well as Sakura's apparent commitment to change her life and train with her teammate(s) had moved Kakashi. He shook his head and entered the building.
Well, they need to pass my test first.
-----
On the roof, Kakashi leaned against the rail as his prospective genin filed out and sat down. He looked at his targets for a moment and asked them for introductions.
When Naruto demanded he introduce himself first, he refused. He wouldn't be telling them anything unless they passed and were his genin in truth, though that didn't mean he couldn't have a little fun.
The introductions went pretty much as he thought they would. Sasuke was worrying with his fixation on his brother, but hopefully he could curb or help control that obsession. Sakura's was more mature than he would expect from a girl her age, but a person learning that one of their teammates had a giant demon fox sealed into them would probably make anyone think hard about their views on ninja life.
Kakashi screwed with the children for a few minutes, then dismissed them. As he left, he employed his wicked sense of humor and 'advised' them not to eat breakfast or they would risk throwing up during the test.
Half an hour later, he settled in near the training ground to spy on his prospective team. In a smart move, they had decided to go to the field where the exam would take place and train as well as check out the area they would be working in. Sakura took a fair if not exceptional look around the area and began some warm ups.
He continued watching as Naruto showed up and Sakura begged him to teach her the Shadow Clone technique. He shifted, ready to intervene if the girl hurt herself, but she went at it carefully and immediately stopped once the drain caused her to lose her feet.
Sasuke showed up, and the pink-haired girl quickly cut off a conflict before it could gain steam. Her appraisal of the Shadow Clone technique only reinforced Kakashi's rising opinion of the girl, and the threat to steal all of Sasuke's clothing and sell it to his fans if he didn't get along with Naruto was inspired. A minute or so later, and Sasuke seemed to put down some of his pride. If a person were to tilt their head and squint just right, it looked like the beginning of something that might eventually be called... teamwork.
Hmmm, they might be able to pass after all.
As the children settled into a training routine, Kakashi left to enjoy the rest of his day with just a little spring in his step.
-----
Kakashi showed up late to continue his minor test of seeing underneath the underneath, and greeted the youngsters. Naruto and Sakura's reactions brought a smile to his face, and he began to explain his test to them.
Ha! They're cute.
Naruto's muted outrage, Sasuke's small smirk, and Sakura's carefully blank face revealed that they had at least seen through his 'advice'. Naruto's controlled outrage turned into enthusiasm when the girl spoke with her determination to not hold back, and Sasuke also readied himself.
"Heh. I think I'm starting to like you guys. Ready? Begin!"
Sakura's thrown kunai as they leapt towards cover was slow, but fairly accurate. Kakashi lost sight of them for a brief moment as it came towards his face and he approved of the distraction, even though he could easily find them again if he wanted to.
A few minutes later, Naruto showed up, and Kakashi taunted him by pulling out one of his favorite books: Icha Icha Paradise.
[Insert dialogue ripped almost word-for-word from the series]
Enraged, Naruto attacked and Kakashi easily blocked the blows the boy launched at him.
Hm, he's already a grade above where the academy reports place him at.
The silver-haired jonin briefly considered putting away his book, but decided against it. Naruto wasn't quite good enough even with only one hand free. After a short exchange where Naruto got more and more frustrated with each blocked or dodged blow, the boy reared back with a haymaker, and made the mistake of closing his eyes.
Kakashi stepped around him, then crouched and told the boy, "Ninja shouldn't repeatedly let the enemy take them from behind, idiot. Konoha Ultimate Taijutsu Technique! A Thousand Years of Pain!"
Kakashi took a very brief moment to savor the look of raw terror and disbelief on Naruto's face when the boy looked over his shoulder, then launched him into the river. After a moment, the orange-clad wannabe genin clambered out of the water, looking somewhat disheartened. Kakashi taunted him, knowing that the kid, like many younger ninja, would stubbornly react with determination to someone looking down on his dreams. He also noticed a tuft of pink hair just peeking out of one of the bushes to his left and heard a small movement in the trees behind him, which was probably Sasuke preparing to use any openings that Kakashi might leave.
An instant later, a squad of Naruto's shadow clones burst free from the water, and Kakashi turned towards them, preparing for a little more fighting. Just as they got close enough to leap towards him, he heard a footstep and someone jumping towards him from behind.
Oh! Good distraction, Naruto. A point for you.
Kakashi feigned surprise as the clone grappled him from behind, shouting, "Ninja shouldn't let their opponents take them from behind! Right, Kakashi-sensei?" a mere moment before the jonin heard another footstep close behind him that he had missed, masked by Naruto.
What?! My blind spot?
Actually surprised, Kakashi reacted, turning left towards the offending sound and lashing out with more strength and speed than he should have used. He managed to pull the blow as his backhand reached its target, and he was greeted by the sight and feeling of launching the pink-haired and green-eyed girl across the training field. A small spray of blood spattered across Kakashi's uniform from the girl he'd struck.
Damn it! I didn't--
"SAKURA!" the real Naruto roared as he punched towards the jonin, with his clones just reaching and locking down Kakashi's legs. Kakashi burst the clone behind him and braced himself, reflexively blocking the attack. He was greeted by unsettling red slitted eyes. The blow broke through Kakashi's guard and launched him back across the field, leaving small trenches where his feet dug through the ground.
Those eyes. The seal..?
Everything was going horribly, horribly wrong. Kakashi recovered his stance and prepared to use his full strength to put an end to the test as Naruto fought between aggression and protectiveness. Suddenly, a brace of kunai and shuriken whizzed out of the trees, and Kakashi used a replacement to dodge, which moved him further from Naruto as the pattern of weapons prevented Kakashi from moving forwards without harm.
The new development seemed to decide things for the boy, whose eyes had faded back to blue. He quickly ran to Sakura, creating an enormous group of more than thirty clones on the way, then picked the girl up on his back and dashed into the woods.
Sasuke stepped out from where he'd been hiding in the treeline and fired a Fire Style: Great Fireball at Kakashi, then turned and dashed after Naruto.
This time, the jonin easily dodged the incoming attack, retreating underground with Earth Style: Underground Movement. He rose from the ground a short distance from the small crater the exploding fireball had left and began to chase Sasuke, dispatching the few clones that managed to get in his way in an instant with full-power strikes.
A few minutes after his mistake, he caught up with the boy and stopped to check from just out of sight. Sasuke had just paused in a clearing where Naruto had stopped to put the girl back down. Sakura appeared awake, though she was laying on the ground, clearly dazed and nauseous. The copy-ninja breathed a sigh of relief and started to move again towards the genin. He quickly paused before he made any distance, as he realized an important fact he'd missed in the fear that he may have seriously hurt one of his students and the shock of seeing the jinchuriki's red eyes.
The bells?
A moment later Sakura raised her left fist towards the sky, opening them just enough to let the light shine off of the items in her hand.
Kakashi rocked back on his feet and his eyebrow involuntarily raised for a moment, then he had to hold in a laugh.
You pass! I'll wait for a while... If she recovers, I'll have to test their teamwork further. If she doesn't, I'll stay hidden until the alarm rings. It's a good sign that she's awake.
Kakashi settled down to wait, and the boys hauled the girl to her feet slowly. She looked horrible and was swaying, but she said something to the boys he couldn't make out because she had been facing away from the bush Kakashi was hiding in.
The boys gave her a confused look for a second, then understanding. Naruto created a dozen clones who quickly created a perimeter around the clearing and Sasuke threw several smoke pellets around the trio.
The smoke only lasted for a few moments and when it finally dispersed, the genin showed that they had quickly agreed on a defensive plan to protect the bells. In a classic defensive manji formation with a pair of clones, every angle was covered, at least for the moment. Kakashi waited because the clones would not last long, having been created by people who had not known the technique for more than a day.
His patience was rewarded when the outer guard of Naruto clones dispersed. A short wait later, and the last two clones also dispelled. The genin shifted as holes appeared in the formation, and Kakashi used another Earth Style: Underground Movement to crawl under their position. It was slow going, as the technique was mostly used for escape instead of travel.
When he was directly underneath his pink-haired genin's feet, he moved towards the surface, and began reaching towards her. Twitchy, she immediately reacted and jumped away as Kakashi pulled himself free of the ground. She stumbled as she landed, and the boys steadied her though she didn't appear to notice the aid, as she was fighting to keep her focus directly on Kakashi. The boys moved closer to each other to put themselves between Kakashi and Sakura, then waited for Kakashi to attack.
Kakashi studied them for a moment with a, "Hmmm..." before he leaned forward and dashed towards his opponents without any chakra-enhancement.
The girl managed to grab a shuriken even though she looked like she was having some trouble concentrating and threw it at Kakashi as he closed the distance. The throw was weak and angle was wide, but it was close enough that he had to lean to the side to keep it from embedding itself in one of his shoulderpads. Sasuke quickly followed up with a ferocious series of blows before Kakashi grabbed a leg and threw him to the side, then Naruto further stalled his approach with a squad of clones.
Going easy on them, Kakashi slowly cleared the clones and saw that Sakura and Sasuke had managed to put the boy between them again. He knocked Naruto away and continued the assault. Sasuke again fought hard and was repelled once more, then Sakura threw another weapon at Kakashi as the line of fire cleared again. She continued to retreat, Naruto attacked with more clones, and the pattern repeated until the alarm eventually went off.
Kakashi disengaged, elated at the performance of the three genin, and looked forward to talking with them about the test.
These are my genin. There are many like them, but these ones are mine.
-----
A/N: My brother, beta, and editor, @Lumarin, is a cruel and ruthless taskmaster. Also, he's an excellent beta and has easily made for much of the more subtle quality parts of my writing.(Edit: Not awake right now. Deal with it)
P.S. Let me know if you like the interlude - I was trying something different here, and I'd like to know if you guys enjoyed it or not.
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