The morning was quiet and peaceful. Too quiet and peaceful and that was just the way the current Hokage, Katari Uzumaki, liked it. She had spent the entire week dealing with this year's graduating class and their squad assignments. She was personally excited about this year's batch of candidates due to her connection to some of them as well as the fact that her former squadmates were now leading squads of their own. Ones that'd be sure enough to pass whatever test they threw at them even with their high expectations. So after the work of all that was done she decided to spend her morning napping. At least before her sister came in and bothered her with whatever she would be tasked with today. She really wished Ryuusei had told her just how grueling the job of Hokage was before he was killed, but it was too late for that and for regrets. She had been Hokage for about thirteen years now and although she took her responsibility seriously she missed the days where she would go on missions and vent out her frustrations with her fists. She was worried she'd get rusty sitting in this dusty old chair for too long.
Katari's nap and peace were both interrupted prematurely by the sound of a loud thud under her office's window. She groggily opened her eyes to see a black haired boy sprawled out over a rack of scrolls.
"Hey auntie! Today's the day!" He said with a nervous laugh while tossing one of the scrolls off of him.
She rolled her eyes with a sigh and stood to help him up.
"I know Ayume, just like I'm sure you know I have a door. What're you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you be at the Academy with the rest of your class? And where's your headband?"Ayume grabbed her hand to help pull himself up.
"I came here to make a proclamation, yes, and it's in my pouch. Didn't want to wear it before everything, y'know."Katari raised a brow at his first answer, not necessarily caring about the rest.
"A proclamation? Okay, let me hear it."Ayume smirked and jumped on top of her desk scattering any papers or documents she had on there in the process. She shook her head with a sigh and waited for his grand reveal.
"I AYUME UCHIHA, GRANDSON OF RYUUSEI UCHIHA DECLARE THAT I WILL SURPASS THE BOTH OF YOU AND BECOME NOT ONLY THE HOKAGE BUT THE SAGE OF SIX PATHS! GOT IT?"Katari laughed for a bit and smirked.
"Alright, you little fox. I'll take that bet on. Don't think I slouched in my training just because I have a desk job."Just as they finished the door to the office cracked open and before it opened fully a voice could be heard from the other side.
"What's with all of that noise? I could hear you from all the way out in the hall. It's giving me a headache." Katari's sister Hakari entered the room holding a cup of hot tea. She was currently nursing a hangover and Ayume wasn't making things any easier on her head.
"What the hell are you doing here? Aren't you late?"Ayume turned to the door and began to respond before his eyes wandered over to the clock.
"No, of co--oh shit. I am! Bye Katari, bye Hakari!" Before they could return his goodbyes he jumped off the desk and out of the window from which he came.
Katari yelled out after him,
"Use the door next time!"Hikari groaned at all the noise.
"Please, the yelling. I'm dying over here."
Ayume rushed through the village towards the Academy. He thought he had plenty of time left, but getting to the Hokage's mansion took a lot longer than he expected this morning. The village seemed a little busier than normal so he eventually had to take the roof route which is why he ended up jumping through her window instead of going through the proper entrance channels. If anything he was able to show the sisters just how lax security was around the mansion.
But now he longer had anytime to waste. He couldn't miss hearing who he was going to be partnered with on his team. Secretly he was hoping to be on the same team as Hie. If you asked him why he wouldn't be able to give you an answer. It wasn't like he had a crush on her or anything. Beyond that he didn't really think that he cared about who else he'd be with, but he hoped his sensei would be awesome and would help him accomplish his goals. There was no way he was going to lose this race to Sagehood.
"Hey kid, watch it!" An annoyingly chipper voice said within Ayume's mind. He responded with a simple,
"Huh?" as he turned his head before a rock hit him straight in the forehead. He fell into the street below and grabbed his wounded forehead while simultaneously letting out a yelp of pain startling many of the passersby before they continued on their way.
"Takeo, why'd you do that? You could've really hurt him." A small raven haired girl said to her silver haired friend as they stood over Ayume in his distressed state.
"Pft. An injury like that should be nothing for my rival, Emiko. Ain't that right, Ayume U-Chi-Ha? Then again you should've been able to dodge that." He said with the smuggest look on his face after getting the better of his fated rival.
Ayume removed his hand from his forehead revealing a cartoonish bump. He then looked up at the two younger kids. Emiko Uchiha and,
"Takeo Senju... You little brat. WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR!?""To put you in your place, Ayume. You may think you're better than me now because you're now a genin, but just you wait. I'll beat you to becoming a Sage and bringing the glory of the Senju clan back to Konoha."Ayume jumped up with a sigh and stared down Takeo.
"You're an idiot, but I'll take you on too. I just made that same bet with your cousin. Speaking of which, glory hasn't left your clan. Your cousins are two of the strongest in the village, y'know."Takeo scoffed and turned away.
"Whatever. I'll still be better than all of you."Ayume shook his head and looked at Emiko.
"Take care of him, okay? He's a bit stubborn so he'll find himself in danger a lot. Don't let him get in over his head."Emiko nodded,
"Yes, sir! Good luck!" Takeo didn't say anything, refusing to acknowledge Ayume any longer, including his insults.
"Thanks, Emi." He looked at the two and smiled at the stubborn Takeo and took off towards the Academy. While he was out of earshot Takeo finally repeated Emiko's good luck before walking with her in the opposite direction.
Thankfully Ayume's comical sized injury had healed itself into a minor bump by the time squads were fully announced. His was one of the first to be called and honestly he couldn't exactly complain about who he had been placed with. Rai may not have been the best at ninjutsu, but his clan was phenomenal with taijutsu and Rai seemed like even a prodigy among them. Then there was Natsumi. A Hyuuga with the Fire Carp Bijuu inside of her. She was someone who, at least on some level would understand what he was going through with having a chakra beast within you. She'd also be someone he could train with when it came to fire release techniques. Not to mention they were being trained by Uncle Tala. His life as a shinobi seemed pretty bright already. He just wished he had ended up with Hie. It didn't seem fair that his nintai rival and fellow Kyuubi host got paired with her instead. He didn't know why he cared so much but nevertheless with that thought in mind Ayume gave Hayate a venomous glare to the back of the head.
Hayate felt chills on the back of his neck as he walked through the class to meet up with his squad. He thought about antagonizing Ayume over his forehead bump, but figured getting to know his squad more was more important. He was honestly excited to get started. Today was his first step in proving his worth to the Hyuuga clan and eventually changing their ways back to the way it was becoming when his parents met each other. He had no complaints whatsover about his team. Being on the same team with one of the nine-tailed Jinchuuriki as well as the heiress to the Hatake Clan would force him to push himself even further so he wouldn't be left behind. Though part of him wondered if they were all paired together because their names started with an H. It didn't help to disprove his theory that they were assigned Team 8, but he didn't recall Iruka Sensei ever being that interested in puns. So instead he decided not to look this gift horse in the mouth.
Hayate made his way over to Hie first because as far as he knew she was the only one who could answer the question more pressing on his mind. When he made his way to her he kept a respectable distance and finally spoke.
"Hey, Hie. I'm looking forward to being on a squad with you, but I was also wondering if you knew anything about our sensei. All I know is that it's his first year being an instructor, but besides that and his clan he's a mystery."
Kaeda wasn't surprised that she and Ken ended up on the same squad. Ever since they were kids the Elders in the clan have been trying to pair them together. It wasn't that she
didn't like him. She just hated feeling like she had no control over the fate of her life. It was frustrating. She never told anyone, but she was sorta glad that her she was stripped of her predestined path as a Jinchuuriki even if it came with other consequences. At least then she had a bit more freedom in her role in life. So whether the Elders, fate, Kami, or whomever placed her and Ken on the same team she was not going to let her distract her on her path as a kunoichi. If love came, it came, but that was not a focus or priority for her. Just like her brother she was on her own personal race to Sagehood.
The Uchiha princess' thoughts were interrupted by Ken stepping in front of her desk.
"Lost in your head again, Kaeda?" His words startled her. She hated just how well he knew her adding to the whole personal dilemma she had within herself. Why did he have to be so perfect?
"You'd know all about that, Haruno. But it's nothing. It's just a mix of nervousness and excitement. I'll get over it. You seem pretty fine though."Ken laughed nervously.
"I wish. I'm actually freaking out inside. Today's really the day. We're no longer Academy students. We're full-fledged ninja and honestly being on a squad with you just makes it all better. The two of us can take on anything that comes our way."
