The excitement was palpable within the room of one Tetsuo Senju, the fourteen year old boy not even attempting to restrain the grin that was beginning to grow across his lips. Standing up from where he'd been clasping together his sandals, the Senju heir made his way into the large, attached bathroom, turning the sink's water on with a deft turn of the wrist. As the water slowly became hotter, cool, sky blue eyes stared back at him in the large wall mirror, Tetsuo's eyes wandering over the facial features that he inherited from his father.
Fair skin, neither tan nor pale, was the canvas for a small, sharp nose, and thin, naturally down-curving lips - the lips of a troublemaker, his mom often stated whenever he and Haitani came back with bruises and bloodied noses from 'sparring'. Hair, feathery soft and slightly messy from bed-head, flitted over his forehead, framing a face that girls would consider attractive. Tetsuo had no real interest in such things, however, despite the 'fangirls' that both he and his best friend managed to procure over their time in the Academy.
'No', he thought, sharp blue eyes narrowing at his reflection, and his lips forming a smirk,
'What I care about is growing stronger.' As cold as it might have sounded, girlfriends wouldn't give him the power to protect his family, his friends, and Konoha itself. That was only done by hard-work, training, and challenges. By advancing through the ranks of Shinobi, Tetsuo was quite sure that he'd be getting enough dangerous work to fill a canyon. He was always considered a competitive person, and this undertaking was akin to a humongous challenge, and he had absolutely no intent on dying or giving up. That simply was not his ninja way.
His excitement spiking once more, Tetsuo ducked his head into the steaming hot water, submerging himself for a few seconds before yanking his head back and grabbing a fluffy red towel from the rack above him. He'd get stronger...but first, he had to make it to the Academy on time. Good thing he always woke up a couple of hours early.
Tetsuo sat towards the back right of the class, the seat closest to the window that showcased the training ground parallel to the Academy, and a row above Haitani. Admittedly, he only half-listened to the Hokage, eyes observant as he gazed over the forms of the students he'd called classmates for years. Unfortunately, or fortunately in regards to some, Tetsuo never really...clicked with too many of the of the other Genin. In the beginning, he had approached many random people to befriend. Those 'friendships' were more like acquaintances, however.
Because of his title as Heir of Senju, Tetsuo did not have much free time out of class to hang out and go on play-dates that wasn't beneficial to the clan as a whole. His mother was never happy about it, and neither was his father, to be honest - but that was just the way it went. He spent most of his time training with his father, or learning more about the politics and History of the Elemental Nations. The only person he really 'clicked' with was Haitani, his childhood friend of ten years. Everyone else was simply...distant friends, acquaintances, or strangers, which didn't bother him as much as he might have thought. He still had friends inside of his own Clan, and as long as he had his mother, father, and Ami, his personal life was good as far as he was concerned.
The sound of a gasp behind him caused Tetsuo to immediately take note of his surroundings, eyes pinning onto a female figure wearing a face-mask, with an ANBU mask clasped to her hip. Eyes narrowed, he listened as she apologized for being late, to which the Hokage merely dismissed it and continued the speach. She was a sensei, apparently. His gaze softened.
'A bit on the shorter side,' He observed, his lips twitching in the corner. Then again, size and appearance could be deceiving. His mom was 5 foot nothing, and possessed enough strength and chakra to rip an oak out of the ground. Now, where did he hear that name-
“As if I’d let a demon be anywhere near my back.”His thoughts were cut off by the small whispers right beside him, which were clearly heard over the calm voice of the Hokage. Tetsuo could have smacked himself in the forehead, if the attention hadn't been focused in his general direction. Instead, he simply leaned against his right fist, blue eyes turning cold as he watched the blonde-haired idiot make his way out of the room. Opinions on the Uchiha or not, it was just plain disrespectful and stupid to say such things in the presence of the Village's leader. Once he eventually took the hat, Tetsuo had full plans on stomping out such ignorance. That isn't to say that he liked the boy, Ryu Uchiha. He simply detested ignorance of any kind, and found it revolting - close mindedness being one of his bigger pet peeves.
As the boy shut the door behind him, and the Hokage began his speech once more, Tetsuo's found his gaze moving towards Ryu himself. The guy was friendly and kind, which, he guessed, is why Haitani befriended him in the first place. Tetsuo never really hung out or spoke much with Ryu, which was probably because of the subtle manipulation of his father. Well, not manipulation of course, but Father never really spoke of the Uchiha in a very nice light. The Clan Head, despite his love for peace, seemingly had a rival with the Senju, and although Tetsuo didn't feel the same way, some things was just stapled in his mind. He treated Ryu nicely, if not a bit distantly, the odd times they spoke, but he didn't actively seek the boy's company like his Hyuuga friend. Tetsuo shrugged, eyes moving towards the front of the class as the Hokage finished his speech. It didn't matter that much, realistically. He doubted that they'd be on the same team.
The word 'Demon' hadn't even crossed his mind.
“I will now assign your teams, and then allow your new sensei to say something briefly. After which you will all be dismissed to meet with your team. You will be issued your headband there.”The Hokage began reading off of a list, and Tetsuo decided to pay active attention at that point. He could
feel his father's focused gaze pass over the back of his head, and knew what the man was thinking. He was hoping for his son to bag a team that was both strong and trustworthy, and although Tetsuo fully agreed, he also felt a bit of pressure from the mere gaze alone. His father was just...intimidating when he wanted to be. As Haitani was called out, Tetsuo narrowed his eyes, waiting for his name to be called. After all of the training and hanging out they've done, Tetsuo was confident that they would make a great team. They were both combat-based, although Tetsuo was more mid-ranged Ninjutsu and Taijutsu, and Haitani was more close-ranged with Taijutsu and Kenjutsu. They covered each other's weaknesses well, and had a good understanding of each other's fighting styles...so when their sensei was called, with Tetsuo not being mentioned, the Senju in question felt a light frown form on his face.
Letting out a breath and subconsciously glancing back at his dad, Tetsuo flinched when he realized that the man was already staring at him, eyes stern, yet warm. When his father gave an encouraging nod, the Heir felt his frown dissipate into a small smile of determination. He nodded back, turning around and returning his attention to the front of the classroom. So what if he wasn't on Haitani's team? He'd just have to grow strong and make sure that he wasn't surpassed by the blind Hyuuga.
'We'll meet at the Chuunin Exams, and I'll see your strength then, Hai.' His spirits once more lifted, Tetsuo continued to listen to the Hokage read out the teams.
Tomiko Hanta-Hyuuga, huh? He was sure that he'd heard the name before.
After spending a few minutes talking with his Father, which included a firm handshake and a sincere congratulations, Tetsuo was making his way to the Training Grounds, casually hopping from tree to tree in lieu of the standard dirt path. Sure, he could have walked there, like any other Genin...but the trees was where he truly felt at home. The general scent and sounds of the forest was soothing to the soul, although Tetsuo was sure that it was partly because of the nature of his Bloodline Release. The members of the Senju Clan that possessed the Mokuton genes were few and far between, and the ones that did often spoke of nature as if it was it's own entity. While Tetsuo wouldn't go that far, he did have to admit that a log cabin sounded far better than any noble estate.
As he got within the outskirts of the training ground, Tetsuo recognized the rather high-pitched voice of one of his new teammates, Tamaki Aburame. A quiet kid, like most of his clan. Tetsuo knew next to nothing about him, other than the fact that he was two years younger than the Senju heir himself.
He leaped out of the tree, landing lightly on the tip of his feet. In addition to Tamaki, the sensei was leaning against a tree, in the middle of the courtyard. A large mahogany, he recognized instantly. A couple of decades old, judging by the formations and creases in the branches.
So, he was one of the first students here? That was cool.
"Hey Sensei, Aburame." He spoke as he walked up to the two, raising two fingers in greetings. Sky blue eyes glanced over the much shorter form of his sensei, before doing the same to the much shorter form of Tamaki. Apparently, he was the tallest on the team so far. That was cool, too. And a bit amusing, judging by the slight smirk that was pulling on his lips.
Half Pint
