Hello everyone. This here is my first attempt at a Naruto fanfiction, so bear with me as I tread along this road. If I think that this fic seems fine, I'll keep going on with it, but if I don't really like it that much, then I'll either start over or scrap the fic entirely.

Without further ado, let's get on with the story!

The orientation day was a day that Hinata Hyuga has been dreading and awaiting for quite a while now. She already knew what was going to happen. She was a ninja now. And that meant that she was going to be placed in a team with two other people and a Jonin sensei.

Truth be told, the reason why she was frightened was because she was scared of who she would be paired with. Would they be mean? Would they be nice? Would she be paired with Naruto Uzumaki? The one who she's been crushing on for god knows how long?! Oh wait, getting carried away here.

Hinata didn't know any of the Jonin sensei that much, so she didn't know who she wanted as a sensei. She knew one named Kurenai Yuhi. But she didn't know her that much, she had only seen the woman a couple of times in her life.

The journey from the Hyuga Manor to the Ninja Academy was a blur to Hinata, but that was probably because she had a lot on her mind.

Naruto.

Being a ninja.

Naruto.

The teams.

Naruto.

Making her father proud.

Naru-ok I think you get it now.

What Hinata found intriguing about the Uzumaki is that like her, he was ostracized by others. However, in Naruto's case, basically everyone in the village ostracized, whereas Hinata by a select few people.

Also, although Hinata's mother had died years ago while giving birth to her younger sister Hanabi, she still had her father, even though he didn't really show any sort of attention to her. Naruto, on the other hand, has no family.

Yet he doesn't cry.

Where she cried multiple times and gave up before trying, Naruto never quit. He had a will as strong as the material used to construct the Hokage's faces which tower over the village.

Knowing all of this is why she is sad that he never graduated to Genin with the rest of the class…

"Why are you here? Today's orientation is only for those who graduated, Naruto." The voice of lazy boy extraordinaire Shikamaru Nara asked the blonde boy.

The name rang through Hinata's ears like wildfire.

Naruto was here?

"Do you see this on my head, Shikamaru! It's a headband protector, you see! Starting today, I'm a ninja, ya know!" Naruto responded with a foxlike grin. "Admit it, this thing looks really good on me, am I right?" Naruto adjusted his forehead protector with his hands.

Naruto-kun was able to graduate…Hinata thought with a smile and a slight blush.

Just then, the door to the classroom slid opened, as Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka were trying to get into the door before the other could. They struggle for quite a while, before they were both able to get in. They raised their hands us and declared, "GOAL!"

Immediately right after, they began to breath heavily, tired due to the race they had to the Academy.

"I win again, Sakura." Ino told the pink-haired girl with a smug smile, which Sakura returned with one of her own.

"What are you talking about? My toe entered the class before yours by a centimeter-no, an inch!" Sakura rebutted, refusing to lose to her blonde-haired rival.

As the two continued bickering, Naruto took notice of Sakura's voice and turned his towards her, causing him to blush.

It's Sakura-chan!

Sakura looked in Naruto's direction and smiled, running towards him, causing the boy to blush even more.

Seeing the girl coming his way, Naruto decided to greet her, rising from his seat, Naruto greeted, "Good morning, Sakura-chan!"

"Out of the way!" Sakura yelled violently as she shoved Naruto out of the way and onto the floor. Turns out Naruto wasn't the one she was looking at, it was the rookie of year, Sasuke Uchiha.

Poor Naruto-kun, all he was doing was saying hello…Hinata looked at her crush with a sad look.

"G-Good morning, Sasuke-kun." Sasuke momentarily paused his brooding and tilted his head towards Sakura the slightest bit you couldn't even tell that he was looking at her or acknowledging her.

"Can I sit next to-"

"Hold on!" Sakura was cut off by a very angry Ino grabbing her arm. "I'm going to sit next to Sasuke-kun.

"I was here first, Ino-pig!" Sakura exclaimed.

"No, I came into the classroom before you!" Ino replied, tightening her grip on Sakura's arm.

The next thing that happened was that other girls from the classroom came to the two and said how they were there first and they should next to Sasuke. The only one who didn't go was Hinata, as she didn't have any feelings for the Uchiha.

Annoying. Sasuke thought to himself as he returned to brooding.

Naruto heard the ruckus caused all because of Sasuke and got pissed. He went in front of Sasuke and jumped onto the table.

Sasuke opened his eyes to see Naruto's face mere inches away from his own, glaring daggers into him. Sasuke returned this gesture with a stoic stare.

Naruto growled at Sasuke as he continued staring, the girls saw this and well...they didn't like it.

"Naruto! Stop glaring at Sasuke-kun!" Sakura scolded the blonde-haired boy.

Naruto looked to the girls and performed his usual squint.

Sakura-chan…He turned his attention back to Sasuke. Everyone is so obsessed with Sasuke, what's so good about this bastard anyway?

Sasuke soon countered Naruto's fox glare with a glare of his own, a spark of tension surging in between the two like a lightning bolt.

The girls go on babbling about how Sasuke should beat the crap out of him and stuff when someone who was sitting in the row in front of Naurto and Sauske accidentally nudged Naruto in the back with his elbow.

"Whoops, sorry." The boy apologized. However, his face fell when he saw what pushing Naruto had just resulted in.

All of the Sasuke fangirls along with everyone else in the room for that matter froze to see that Sasuke and Naruto were kissing...on the fricking lips! The boys had their eyes widened out in shock at the sudden contact of their lips.

Hinata, who hadn't been paying attention to anything until now, noticed what was happening and gasped out of shock. Oh dear, I didn't know Naruto-kun and Sasuke-kun had those kind of thoughts...Hinata became depressed at that thought.

"AHHHHHHH!" Sakura screamed as Inner Sakura took over. "Shannaro! I was supposed to be Sasuke-kun's first kiss, Naruto, you ruined it all!"

Naruto and Sasuke immediately forced their lips away from each other as they hacked and coughed like a cat with a hair ball as they tried to sooth the horrible feeling that they had just experienced.

Naruto! I'm going to murder you! Sasuke though menacingly.

Oh...it was an accident. That's good. Hinata let out a sigh of relief. That's means she still had a chance.

Naruto paused as his senses picked up. "Danger…" Out of fear, he creaked his head to where the girls were standing, and saw the faces of girls who wanted to kill him.

"S-Sakura-chan, before you say ANYTHING, it was a complete acci-"

"You're annoying!" Sakura interjected as she cracked her knuckles with a look of hate on her face.

"Oh no…" Naruto mused to himself as he jumped off the table and continued to run around the room with numerous Sasuke fangirls chasing him.

Unfortunately for Naruto, it wasn't enough…

One Gruesome Uchiha Fangirl Beating And Introduction Later

Iruka was currently appointing the teams of three for the Genin class, Naruto had practically fallen asleep for the first couple of teams, as all he cared about was who was on his team.

"Team 7: Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto rose his head at hearing his name. At that moment, he had one thought playing at the speed of light in his head.

PleasegivemeSakura-chanandnotthatbastardSasuke!

"Hinata Hyuga, and Sasuke Uchiha." Iruka finished.

Naruto's face dropped. Not only am I not with Sakura-chan, but I'm with Sasuke-teme and some weird girl who I've barely talked to.

Hinata's face switched into a smile, inside, she was squealing for joy that she was on Naruto's team that she forgot that who her third teammate was. Wait, who's my third teammate?

Great, I'm with the dobe and one of the weakest girls in class. At least she isn't one of those annoying fangirls. Sasuke thought to himself.

The fangirls of Sasuke were all upset on how they couldn't be with their 'Sasuke-kun' and that it should be them on the team and not Hinata. Some even glared at her out of jealousy.

Hinata noticed that all of the attention of the girls were on her, and as a result blushed heavily and sank down deep into her chair, giving into their glares of jealousy.

"Why is she the one who gets to be in his team." Both Sakura and Ino whispered in a low voice, referring to Hinata.

"Team 8, Sakura Haruno, Kiba Inuzuka, and Shino Aburame."

Oh no, I'm with the top competitor of Naruto's place of Most Annoying Idiot and bugboy. Why couldn't I be picked with Sasuke-kun, even if it meant being with Naruto…Sakura put her head down in the table and grabbed her long hair.

Iruka finished listing the teams, with Team 10 consisting of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, and Choji Akimichi.

"Iruka-sensei! Why does a great ninja like me have to be paired with a slouch like Sasuke!" Naruto complained, clearly angry at being was Sasuke the most than not being with Sakura.

Oh, Sasuke-kun's my other teammate. He might be hard to get along with...Hinata glanced at the survivor of the Uchiha massacre.

"Sasuke graduated with the highest scores. Naruto, you had the lowest scores!" Iruka informed Naruto, causing everyone to laugh at him with Naruto dumbfounded. "This happens because we want to evenly divide abilities between the groups."

"Just don't get in my way, dobe." Sasuke spoke at the blonde coldly.

"Grrr! What was that, bastard?!"

"You wanna fight, dobe?" Sasuke taunted with a stoic expression on his face. Yet this earned many laughs around the class due to Sasuke making a complete fool of Naruto, as they all knew how Naruto in the past would get his ass handed to him by Sasuke whenever Iruka would call them up to do taijutsu training.

"Dobe? Why you…"

"Stop it, Naruto!" Sakura scolded Naruto harshly, still mad that she wasn't on the same team as Sasuke.

"I'll announce the Jonin senseis later in the afternoon, until then, meeting adjourned."

Later-Outside the Academy

"Sasuke-kun! Where are you?" Chirped the voice of Sakura. She had figured that since this would be the last time she would see Sasuke before they got separated, she would have to make the best of the time she had now.

"SAKURA-CHAAAAAAAAAAN!"

There it was. The one voice Sakura didn't need to hear right now. Turning around, she saw the dead last in his orange and blonde glory, Naruto.

"Since this is going to be like the last time we see each other, I just wanted to-"

"NO!" Sakura snapped immediately, not letting Naruto finish his sentence.

"But you didn't let me-"

"Uzumaki Naruto! How many times do I have to say NO for it to get through your stupid brain! You. Are. Annoying."

The strings in Naruto's heart began to weaken at that statement.

Why? Why did she treat him like this? Why was she like all the other people in the damn village? Why did everyone hate him so much? He never did anything to them.

He showed Sakura so much affection, he tried to show that he appreciated her and loved her, but every time he gets turned down.

He didn't know why, but this particular rejection hit him harder than all of the others. The others, he would just shrug them off and keep going, but this one…

Naruto was so caught up dead in his thoughts, he didn't even bother to notice that Sakura had began to walk away, calling Sasuke's name repeatedly.

A certain dark haired girl, who was watching the whole thing, gazed at the dead last with a look of sadness. Seeing that Sakura had left, her heart rate sped up drastically.

Oh no, he's right here, and we're ALONE! Come on Hinata, you can do this! Just talk to him! Hinata mentally slapped herself as she took a step out of the tree she was hiding behind.

"N-Naruto-kun…" She croaked with her trademark stutter.

"Huh?" Naruto looked around from where he heard the voice, but found no one. "Is anyone there?"

Great, he didn't even hear her. That was definitely was Hinata needed right now to calm her current anxiety.

Hinata felt her pointer fingers pressing against each other and her legs slightly twitching towards each other.

Oh no, please not now! Hinata thought to hers

This time, a little louder, she spoke again.

"Y-Yes…"

Hinata was actually surprised that her voice could go that loud, as she tends to speak quietly and is very antisocial.

Thankfully, Naruto noticed her this time.

"Oh, Hinata, what's up?" The Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi asked, pasting a smile onto his face.

Hinata frowned internally, she knew that smile of Naruto's. That was his fake smile, when something would be getting him down and he would pretend nothing is wrong.

It didn't surprise her that Sakura's words hurt that much. After all, no one in the village acknowledged Naruto, especially the adults. And he was all alone. So, to Naruto, a positive opinion from someone could mean a lot to him.

"Oi, Hinata, are you there?!" Naruto raised his voice, startling Hinata as she let out a small 'EEEP!'

Wow, she's more weird than I thought…I mean...it is cute, I guess... Naruto sweatdropped at Hinata's reaction.

It took all of Hinata's strength not to faint, she was at such a close proximity with her crush, that if she leaned just a little bit forward, she would be able to give him a peck on the lips.

That is...if she had the courage to do so.

"W-Well...I-I was just wondering if you w-would like to have lunch with me." Hinata spoke with multiple stutters peering into her sentence.

"Huh?" Naruto was confused, no one had ever wanted to have lunch with him before. Very rarely in the past, Shikamaru and Choji would, but again, that was very rare.

"W-Well, I thought that since we're on the same team, w-we could use this time to get to know each other…" Hinata spoke in almost a whisper, but just barely loud enough for Naruto to be able to decipher what she had said.

In her thoughts, Hinata was squealing with joy for the fact that she had made this much conversation with Naruto without fainting.

Makes sense. Naruto gazed at Hinata with a look of interest.

"What about that slouch Sasuke?" Naruto asked Hinata.

"Sasuke-kun?"

Great...she said Sasuke-kun, that means she's a fangirl, albeit more shy, quiet and weird. Naruto dropped his head out of disappointment.

"I-I couldn't find him…" Hinata mumbled.

Frankly, to Hinata, Sasuke was pretty intimidating to her due to his cold and serious demeanor, which reminded her of father and her cousin Neji, along with her sister, who had gone through a major transformation after she beat Hinata in a match which would decide who the heiress to the clan would be.

"B-But it's fine, I would r-rather have lunch with-"

GRRRRRRRRR

Hinata paused as she heard a growl, she looks at Naruto's face, thinking it was his mouth that had made the sound, her heart rate picked up even more.

Did she make him mad? If, so, for what reason?

The next thing she heard was an "Oh Crap" by Naruto, followed by him widening his eyes.

"S-Sorry Hinata, got to go!" And with that, Naruto made a mad dash to the nearest bathroom.

"N-Naruto-kun!" Hinata spoke up, but it was too late, Naruto was already gone. Hinata let out a sigh as her legs gave up, causing her to slouch to the ground on her butt, deciding to eat her lunch and just wait for Naruto to come back.

She waited…

And waited…

And waited some more…

But he never came back.

Great, I must have made him mad at me, Hinata, you're such an idiot! Hinata mentally cursed herself.

Oh well, I guess I'll talk to him later...

Later-Back Inside the Academy

To say that Team 7's current situation was awkward was quite the understatement. After the recently appointed Genin went back inside the Academy, they had to wait for their Jonin instructors to arrive and pick up their team.

For every team, the wait for the Jonin instructors wasn't very long...well…

"HE'S SO LATE!" A very angry Naruto could be heard throughout the Academy.

Team 7 didn't have the luck that the other ones had.

"Why the hell is our teacher the only one who's late?!" Naruto ranted. "All the other groups went somewhere with their new teachers already, and Iruka-sensei went home 10 minutes ago!"

"A-Ano, Naruto-kun…" A soft voice that Naruto already identified as Hinata spoke.

"What do you need Hinata?" Naruto responded in a slightly harsh manner. In a normal situation, it wouldn't be harsh at all, but their sensei has taken so long that it has affected Naruto's current attitude.

"I-I'm sorry to say this...but Iruka-sensei left half an hour ago…" Hinata said.

"THAT'S EVEN WORSE!" Naruto bellowed, causing the Hyuga to retreat into her shell a little.

A light bulb suddenly went off in Naruto's head as he received a grin plastered over his face.

Moments later, the Uzumaki was standing on a stool right next to the door of the room, sliding open the door just to the point where he could slip an eraser at the top.

"N-Naruto-kun, I-I don't think that is a good idea, we could get in big trouble for this…" Hinata spoke in an attempt to persuade Naruto to stop what he was doing.

"That's his fault for being late!" Naruto replied as he jumped off the stool with a foxlike grin.

"Hn. A Jonin isn't going to fall for a plain old booby trap like that." Much to both Naruto and Hinata's surprise, Sasuke actually said something.

However, their attention turned to the door when they heard a hand slide, they saw a man with a mask covering most of his face, with his forehead protector covering his left eye, and spiky gray hair which seemed to defy the laws of gravity.

The eraser Naruto had placed fell on top of his head with a PLOP as it fell off his head and onto the ground. No matter how anyone could look at it.

Naruto's prank had succeeded.

"HAHAHAHA! He fell for it! He fell for it!" Naruto laughed his ass off as he pointed at the late Jonin.

Hinata hid her mouth with right hand, trying to conceal the fact that she was slightly giggling.

Sasuke merely narrowed his eyes at the masked Jonin. He fell for that stupid trick? Is this guy really a Jonin?

The man took a step into the room, his body fully present for the Genin to see.

He wore what most of the Jonin wore, a dark green flak jacket, dark blue pants, and a long sleeved shirt of the same color, with the shirt having the Uzushiogakure having on both upper arm areas and the same symbol on the back of the flak jacket.

The gray-haired Jonin bent down and picked up the eraser that was dropped on top of him and stared at it for an uncomfortable amount of time. The only thing that could be heard was the chirping of the birds.

Finally, the Jonin broke the silence.

"Hmm...how should I say this...my first impressions of this group is...well, I hate you."

The faces of the 3 Genin all dropped when they heard that.

Later

"Let's see…" The Jonin trailed off as he rested upon a rail, "Why don't you introduce yourselves."

"Introduce ourselves? Well, what do we have to say?" Naruto asked.

"Things you like, things you hate, hobbies, or maybe dreams for the future. Things like that." With that, the Jonin crossed his arms and awaited the introductions of the team.

"Umm...sensei. May you please introduce yourself first? So we have an example to go off of." Hinata inquired with a soft voice.

"Me? Well, let's see...my name is Kakashi Hatake." The Jonin now known as Kakashi stated his name. "The things I like and the things I hate...well, I don't feel like telling you that."

"Huh?" Confusion spread over Naruto and Hinata's faces while Sasuke's slightly scrunched up out of irritation.

"My dreams for the future...that is none of your business. As for my hobbies...I have lots of hobbies." Kakashi finished as his eye drifted off, looking up into the sky with a very bored expression evident on his face, as if he didn't even want to be there.

"All we found out was his name." Naruto whispered over to Hinata, who nodded in agreement and blushed slightly with Naruto's face being so close to hers.

"Well, it's your turn now. Blonde, you're up first." Kakashi told Naruto, who smiled and began by adjusting his forehead protector.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki! I like Cup Ramen! But I like the ramen at Ichiraku that Iruka-sensei bought for me even more! I hate the three minutes that I have to wait after I put the hot water! My hobbies is eating different kinds of Ramen and comparing them and…" Naruto paused and thought about it for a bit, "Pulling pranks and watering my garden I guess…"

He likes watering his garden?! Hinata inwardly squealed, as she liked to press flowers. However, she found the fact that Naruto liked to water plants VERY ironic due to the fact that Naruto had just said that he hated waiting a mere three minutes for Ramen, and watering gardens is an activity that takes MUCH longer than three minutes.

"And my dream!" Naruto's voice rose up a couple of decibels as he adjusted his forehead protector even more. "It's to become the greatest Hokage that surpasses all of the previous ones! That way the people of the village will finally acknowledge my existence and see me as somebody, somebody important!"

I see. He has grown up in an interesting way, and he reminds me of you, Obito. Kakashi temporarily drifted off into his thoughts before snapping back to reality.

"Right. Next, the girl."

Hinata gasped out of slight surprise, Kakashi and Naruto's attention were now on her. She could feel the adrenaline pumping through her veins, most of her body telling her to faint and let it all be over, thankfully, her heart and brain were the loyal parts.

"W-Well...my name is Hinata Hyuga. What I like is…" Hinata paused as her began to flush tomato red as she stole a quick glance at Naruto, who was too dense to notice despite his eyes being locked onto her. However, this quick glance at the blonde didn't go unnoticed by Kakashi.

Hinata was in a pickle. She couldn't say that she liked Naruto out loud, not in front of their sensei and ESPECIALLY not in front of Naruto.

"My younger sister. I-I also like zenzai and cinnamon rolls. I...dislike people who treat others poorly, being a burden and the harsh ways of my clan. My hobbies…" She froze. There was no way in hell that she could say stalking Naruto was one of her hobbies, if she did Naruto would think of her as a weirdo forever!

"P-P flowers." She decided. "My dream…"

To become Naruto-kun's wife…

"To one day change the ways of my clan and find a way to abolish the curse seal that has been tainting the branch family for so long." She had truly meant it. After all, she was right there when her cousin Neji had the curse mark inflicted upon him. Although he was acting very cruel towards her that day, she couldn't help but feel sorry for him.

"Finally, I wish to become stronger so I can change, so I can be worthy enough to be acknowledged by my father, so I can be strong yet kind, just like my mother!" For some reason, when talking about her dreams, she found that she didn't stumble or stutter once, and she did in Naruto's presence. Now that's got to be worth some praise considering how socially awkward Hinata usually is.

Ok...at first glance she seems like a fan girl or a girl with a crush. But...there seems to be more to her than just that. Maybe I didn't make a mistake when I suggested that… Kakashi thought to himself.

"Last one." Kakashi referred to Sasuke.

Bored eyes, curious eyes, and eyes of humorous hatred for stealing the first kiss of their life found themselves on Sasuke.

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha." The boy spoke with a cold stoic voice. "There are many things that I hate, and I don't particularly like anything."

Suddenly, the entire atmosphere around them went cold with killing intent erupting off of the only survivor of the Uchiha Massacre.

"What I have is not a dream, but rather an ambition, because I will make it a reality. What I desire is...the revival of my clan, and to kill a certain someone."

Silence.

Hinata shivered in place due to the killing intent leaking off of Sasuke's body.

I really hope that he doesn't want to kill me...Naruto thought to himself, sweat dripping down his face.

He must be talking about the Uchiha Massacre that happened years ago. Hinata realized. She didn't know the details, but all she remembered was a member of the Main House blurting out something about the Uchiha Clan getting massacred all in one night. No one knew that Hinata was around listening at that time.

Just as I thought. So, I'm working with a boy who aims high but is overconfident, a girl who has good intentions but is shy and doesn't seem fit for the cruel work of a Shinobi, and then the other boy sounds like your typical avenger. Kakashi let out a quiet sigh which the Genin didn't hear.

"Alright, the three of you all have unique personalities. I like that. We're going to begin a mission starting tomorrow." Kakashi informed the Genin.

"And what kind of mission is that, sensei?" Naruto questioned with a smile.

"First, we're going to do something that the four of us can do."

"What, what, what, what, what is it?" Naruto questioned Kakashi even further, wanting to know what the mission was badly, since it was his first one.

"Survival training." Kakashi answered.

"Survival training?" Naruto repeated out of confusion.

"Also, another thing, this 'training' is a test." Kakashi added.

"WHAT?!" Naruto rose from the step he was sitting on as he fumed with anger.

"Out of the 27 graduates, only nine are going to actually become Genin. The other 18 will be sent back to the Academy. In other words, the chance you guys have of passing this test is 33%." Looks of shock appeared on the Genin's faces, even Sasuke was surprised.

"No way! I went through so much trouble just to get here!" Naruto complained as he remembered stealing the Scroll of Sealing, finding out about his terrible birthright of being the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi, and how Mizuki wanted to kill Naruto for the scroll. "Then what was the final exam for?"

"Oh, that? It just picks out those who are qualified to become a Genin. Anyways, I'm going to determine whether you are worthy enough to move onto being a true Genin. Bring your ninja equipment and meet at 5 A.M at Training Ground 3!" Kakashi's loud and intimidating voice which he brought out at that moment made the Genin quiver, even Sasuke found his hands shaking.

I can't fail here. I don't care about the other two, but I cannot be sent back to the Academy! That will only hold me back even further in my goal! Sasuke gained an angry expression on his face at the aspect of getting held back in the Academy just because he was paired with a dumbass and a shy girl with confidence issues.

I'm not going to let a thing like this drop me down. I need to make him recognize my skills, for real! Naruto formed a fist with his hand, his determination rising.

If I fail this, not only will I be separated from Naruto-kun, but Father will be even more disappointed in me then he already is! Plus, there is a chance I might hold back Naruto-kun and Sasuke-kun…Hinata realized. Unlike her two teammates, instead of her determination rising, hers only got lower and more vulnerable.

Kakashi stood and turned around, his face facing the Genin.

"Well, that's it for now, see you guys tomorrow." Kakashi was just about to leave but he remembered something. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot, don't eat breakfast. You'll throw up if you do."

And with a proof of smoke, Kakashi teleported away.

Hinata wasn't sure if she wasn't hearing things, but she could have sworn Sasuke mutter, "Shunshin no Jutsu (Teleportation Jutsu)."

The next thing she knew, she saw Sasuke running off without even saying a word to her teammates, leaving just her and Naruto.

Naruto let out a sigh as he said, "Well, I'm going to head over to Ichiraku. Later, Hinata."

Hinata wanted to ask him if she could join him, but that would make for a very awkward situation.

Plus, she really wasn't hungry at the moment…

Later-Hyuga Manor-At Night-Hinata's Room

After taking a shower and other things, Hinata changed into her pajamas and plopped down onto her bed. With the lights off, she merely stared at the ceiling.

Tomorrow will determine whether I become a Ninja or not…Hinata relayed through her mind. I hope I'm strong enough to pass, I don't want Naruto-kun thinking I am weak.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

The sounds of a hand hitting across the door to Hinata's room was heard.

"Yes?"

The door opened, and in walked a man with long black hair, featureless eyes like Hinata, and traditional loose fitting robes with a long sleeved, brown haori.

"F-Father?!" Hinata gasped as she quickly rose from the bed and gave her father a bow.

The current head of the Hyuga clan, Hiashi Hyuga, also the father of Hinata and Hanabi Hyuga, looked at he daughter with rather stoic and emotionless eyes.

Such eyes made Hinata a little uncomfortable when she was in his presence.

Correction: Very uncomfortable.

"Have you been assigned to your team?" Hiashi asked her daughter, not even bother to say 'hello' or 'how are you doing?'

"Yes." Hinata answered politely. "We are having a survival test tomorrow to determine whether we truly become Genin or get sent back to the Academy."

"Very well. Do well, and try not to be a burden to your teammates." Hiashi said, causing Hinata to look at the ground.

There it was, her own father didn't even acknowledge her. Sometimes she wonders whether all of this was worth it. Becoming a Ninja and all.

Hinata had wanted to cry multiple times in front of Hiashi whenever she would bring her confidence and self-esteem down, but Hiashi was the head of the clan and her father, she couldn't afford to cry in front of him.

"Hinata, are you listening to me?" Hiashi's voice rang through Hinata's ears as she was brought out of her thoughts.

"I-I'm sorry." Hinata took a quick bow of apology to her father.

Hiashi let out a small sigh, closing his eyes as he repeated what he said while Hinata was spacing out.

"Who are your teammates and Jonin sensei?" Hiashi questioned.

"Oh um...my teammates are Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki." Hinata answered quietly, with her voice unsteady slightly.

The last Uchina AND the Kyuubi's Jinchuuriki…Although he showed no reaction or emotion on the outside, he was slightly caught off guard from the team, as he had expected Hinata to be placed on a Tracking Team due to the Byakugan.

"My sensei is Kakashi Hatake." Hinata added.

First those two and now the Copy Ninja? Hiash thought to himself.

"Very well, that is all." Hiashi turned around and walked out of the door, however, he stopped right at the doorway. "Show up at the time he specified. Although he makes no effort to make it on time, that doesn give you the right as a Hyuga to show up late failure or not. And remember, don't be a burden to your teammates."

That was the second time he said that to her in the entirety of this conversation.

"Yes, Father." Hinata croaked as if she had lost her voice. When the door was slid shut and Hinata knew that Hiashi was far enough, she began to shed tears.

Why? Why doesn't he show me any appreciation? It's already bad that the entire clan treats me bad, but it's even worse if it's my own father! Hinata sobbed.

Oh, how she wished her mother was alive right now. If only she hadn't died giving birth! She could be here to help and encourage Hinata.

Occasionally, Hinata would mourn and pay her respects to her mother in her own room, because for some odd reason, the members of the clan never buried her mother's body when she died.

To this day, it was still a mystery she never knew the solution too.

The Next Morning-Training Ground–5:00 A.M.

The three Genin had all met up where Kakashi had instructed them to be. Following what they said, all three of them skipped eating breakfast.

Due to waking up so early, each of the three had different looks on their faces.

Naruto: He looked like he was sleepwalking, he was that tired.

Sasuke: He looked like how he normally does, no smile in sight yet no sight of exhaustion as well.

Hinata: A mix of the two, she has one of her eyes closed due to sleepiness, but isn't as sleepy as Naruto as she decided to go to sleep earlier.

The team waited.

And waited,,,

And waited…

But no sign of Kakashi.

During their time waiting, the group was completely silent. No one saying a single word to the other. Sweat started to roll down Hinata's face due to how awkward the situation was.

She wanted to say something, but she was too shy to say something to Naruto and Sasuke would probably just ignore her like he did to basically everybody.

This isn't good, at this rate, the both of them will just think of me as a burden if I don't get along with them…Hinata panicked as she started to push her index fingers towards each other.

The team waited for a couple of hours, to the point where they didn't even know what time it was. The only clue they had was that the sun was already up, where when they arrived, it was nowhere in sight.

Suddenly, much to Team 7's surprise, Kakashi appeared to the scene in a poof of smoke...finally.

"Hello children. Good morning." He greeted nonchalantly.

"You're late!" Naruto accused as he jabbed a finger in Kakashi's direction.

Kakashi performed an eye smile and came up with an responded. What did he say you ask?

"A black cat crossed my path and scratched my mask to shreds, so I had to get another mask and take the long way."

Kakashi began to chuckle awkwardly at the excuse, however, at seeing his the not amused expressions on the Genin, he cleared his throat.

"Anyway." Kakashi walked over to a stump in the ground and placed a clock, clicking a button on it. "Alright, alarm set at 12 P.M."

Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata's attention turned to Kakashi's hand when they heard a jingling noise. They saw two metallic bells drooping from his hand.

"The mission is for you guys to get the bells from me." Kakashi informed the Genin. "The ones who can't will have no lunch. I will tie you to one of those stumps," Kakashi gestured over to where the alarm clock was, where there were actually 3 stumps of wood. "And then, I will eat lunch in front of you."

At that moment, the stomachs of the three Genin began to howl out for hunger, craving for food to enter its inner sanctum.

The faces of the three dropped as they suddenly realized why Kakashi had them skip breakfast.

"Umm...sensei, Why is there only two bells?" Hinata asked the Jonin.

Kakashi gave her an eye smile.

"Since there is only two bells, at least one of you will have to be tied to the log." Kakashi explained. He then added, "That person will fail since he or possibly she in your case, failed to complete the mission. The one who failed will be sent back to the Academy." Kakashi swung the bells in his hand as he said that.

Oh no, that means no matter what happens, only two of us is going to pass. Hinata widened her eyes ever so slightly.

After some thinking, Hinata came to a conclusion. And, thanks to always being looked down on, it wasn't a good one.

Maybe I should just give it to Naruto-kun and Sasuke-kun, after all, they both have dreams that are very important to them. I would...just be a burden…Hinata's face dropped to look down at the ground.

The thing was, no matter how hard she tried, she was just going to fail in the end. So why waste this opportunity on her when she really wouldn't go anywhere in the end.

Naruto and Sasuke were nowhere near as bad as her. Although Naruto fails quite a bit, he at least had the determination to pick himself back up and keep going. Sasuke was a prodigy. But what was she?

That's right, she was just Hinata Hyuga. The failure who will most likely end up getting sealed and thrown into the Branch Family. She already had lost her place as heiress to Hanabi, if she failed here, it would just get her inevitable fate done with.

"It might be one of you. Who knows, maybe all three of you will fail." At this, Hinata snapped out of her thoughts and continued to listen.

"You can use your shuriken. You won't be able to get this unless you have the will to kill me." Kakashi told the Genin as he yanked up the balls and caught them in his fist.

"B-But that's dangerous, sensei." Hinata spoke her mind, clearly not agreeing with the conditions.

"She's right" Naruto laughed as he grinned and threw his arms around his neck. "You couldn't even dodge that chalk eraser!"

"Ah, the typical class clown. Usually the blockhead with the worst scores and least amount of skills. It's usually best to just ignore them." Kakashi countered Naruto's taunt as the blonde glared at him as he growled out of irritation. He turned to Hinata. "Then we have the little flower. In society, the ones who wouldn't dare shed a single drop of blood to others out of fear for their safety. Also usually one of the weak links, the ones who are nowhere near ready to handle the harsh life of a Shinobi."

Hinata widened her eyes as she felt those words hit her bones like sticks and stones.

"We're going to start after I say 'start.'" Kakashi told the group.

Guy with the lowest scores? Blockhead? Naruto's head replayed the jabs thrown at him by Kakashi's words as his reckless temper grew, his bullheadedness taking action.

In an instant, Naruto ripped open the pouch on his leg and snatched a kunai, twirling in his hand with great speed with his middle finger through the hole.

He achieved a tight grip on the kunai as he let out a yell, quickly rushing at Kakashi, kunai raised. The next thing he knew however, Kakashi was no longer in front of him, and he found a hand holding his head down with his own hand being restrained by another hand, the sharp end of the kunai aiming its sights right for the back of Naruto's head.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata gasped out of shock as they didn't even see Kakashi move from his spot, and here he was, behind Naruto, already with the upper hand.

"Don't get so hasty, now. I didn't say, 'start,' yet." Kakashi reminded Naruto. After Hinata and Sasuke took a few steps back, Kakashi released his grip on Naruto, prompting the Genin to take a few steps away, gripping his the wrist Kakashi had grabbed.

No way...I didn't even see him move…Hinata thought to herself.

So this is a Jonin...Sasuke analyzed Kakashi. The guy was playing the act of an idiot the entire time to make himself seem like a weakling. It was so simple yet the deception was hidden so well. Is this how all Jonin were?

"I'll give you one thing, you came at me with the intent to kill." Kakashi chuckled as a small smile creeped up under his mask. "I think I am beginning to like you three. Remember, when I give the word."

"Ready!"

The three Genin already prepared themselves to jump away when Kakashi said the one word that would start it all.

A bit of time passed, and it was a time of silence as the Genin awaited the next word. Hinata twisted her foot more into the ground so she could further maximize her leap.

She was ready, fail or not, she wanted to make sure that her teammates passed. She would not be a burden, especially not in front of Naruto!

"Start!"

And that was it for the first chapter of this fanfiction. Now, this my second fanfiction with an actual storyline kind of thing, but in actuality, this is the third fic I've made on this site.

And this is also my first Naruto fic too, so bear with me.

So, as you can see from the chapter, there will be a few things that I will be doing while writing.

I will mostly be following the subbed, so don't be surprised by the honorifics. However, catchphrases like 'dattebayo', 'usrantonkatchi', and 'shanarro' will not be featured in this fic, so sorry if you are a fan of those phrases. Of course, Shikamaru will still say 'How troublesome' or whatever from time to time.

I might go back at some point and make some edits to the chapter, so be sure to look out for any of those. The edits could sometimes be an added detail, dialogue, or even an added scene altogether.

When stating the Jutsu names, I will have the subbed names, and then the English names next to it. For example…

Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! (Shadow Clone Jutsu)

Also, when writing names, I won't do the traditional reverse name thing in Japanese. You know, like Uzumaki Naruto or Uchiha Sasuke. It will be like how I did in the chapter. Also, don't expect any macrons in the names like Hyuga, cause honestly having to struggle just go get that crap done and make sure I didn't leave any out is just troublesome. Plus, I never really liked how they looked anyway.

Furthermore, when addressing family members, I will say things like 'Mother,' or 'Father'. I won't be using things like kaa-san and stuff. When adressing the Hokage and stuff, I will either say '# Hokage' or 'somethingdaime'.

Of course, I am not the best writer, far from it. So any suggestions or any sort of criticism is allowed.

Now, as for why I'm doing this fic…

I don't have a reason! This is more of like an experiment fic, to say how far I can go.

Just letting you know, I have nothing against the original Team 7 (Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura). I just wanted to see what I could do with the change I implemented. Of course, there might be some other changes along the way.

Now, unless I am forgetting something there should only be one thing left to address.

My update schedule…

I don't have one. When I upload a chapter is always going to be random. I will try to post a couple a month, but I'm not making any promises.

Hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter of this fic, bye.