A/N: I haven't been sleeping much, my insomnia insists on rearing its ugly head. Coffee isn't helping, but I still drink it. So here we are.

This chapter covers the course of a few years.

Warning: a bit of violence, some possible OOC-ness, deviating from canon, taking liberties with Kekkei Genkai, a hint of body shaming (not sure if it's enough to warrant a warning, but just in case)

0000

Chapter Three: Accidental Teamwork Means People Hate Working Together On Purpose and Will Argue About It

Hiruzen makes a proposal to Mei and Rasa to ensure peace and cooperation between their villages. Itachi makes a decision. Kurenai has regrets.

0000

Over the course of the following weeks, Mei was busy dealing with people who had been loyal to Arashi's madness. She was between having to decide to outright execute people; or have trials to determine if they should go to prison for a set amount of time.

But the problem was – they didn't exactly have a prison. Keeping prisoners meant using resources and people they didn't exactly have. Keeping people alive was a major risk – and picking and choosing who she and her advisors thought deserved to live could lead to resentment.

Mei ended up leaving those determinations to Ao and his faction; because after her theory that Arashi wasn't himself throughout the majority of his reign likely meant that the people who served under him had been manipulated into committing their atrocious actions. None of the Kage liked the fact that Arashi had been manipulated, because that meant that there was an unknown enemy moving behind the scenes.

The only thing they could do now was be vigilant, and watch for anyone acting even the slightest bit out of character.

Mei was now meeting with Rasa and Hiruzen to determine where they would stand moving forward.

0000

Hiruzen had met with Jiraiya and Tsunade beforehand, to get their opinions on a certain matter. While Hiruzen certainly respected his advisors, Koharu and Homura would be heavily biased in their judgements.

"What do you think of your students, Tsunade-san?" Hiruzen asked.

Tsunade scoffed, and took a large drink of her alcohol. "They're a handful, that's for sure," she followed up her reply with a smirk, "But they're more than promising – and Haku, damn – the kid has potential. I'm keeping him."

(Somewhere, Haku felt a foreboding shiver and sneezed.)

Hiruzen chuckled. "Jiraiya…what do you think of the Suna and Kiri-Nin who were in your squad?"

"Well, they're pretty persistent, I'll say that…" Jiraiya frowned. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, you know what position we're in, considering if-when Naruto comes back to Konoha." Hiruzen was quite serious. "Because when he does, you know who more than likely will be with him."

"Gaara…" Jiraiya nodded understandingly.

"Exactly…if Rasa realizes that his son has been alive all this time and we possibly knew it, he would more than likely take it as an insult…his reaction could go one of two ways. While most people understood not using Yagura to fight – there were a few Kiri, Suna and even Konoha-Nin wondering why neither Suna or Konoha weren't using our Jinchuuriki to fight…"

There was certainly elements of resentment from a few Shinobi, in some cases, they believed that if they had been able to use Naruto, so many wouldn't have died needlessly.

"We need to get ahead of this…make a bond between our Villages. There are those who won't like it, but this is one way I can think of to ensure peace between us."

"And what do you propose, old man?" Tsunade asked.

Hiruzen smirked; his sly smile was one that certainly said things would be interesting.

0000

"You want to what?" Rasa looked at Hiruzen with disbelief.

Mei chuckled. "Well, now…that's certainly ambitious. I like it."

Rasa sat, considering the proposal. He was limited in his options, and with only some reluctance he agreed.

"Then it's settled. We'll go over our terms and conditions that work out for all of us to see who goes where – and when we get back to our Villages, we can put forward the applications."

00000

Hiruzen sat in his office, looking over several documents. Much of it concerned Kiri, and Mei being officially appointed as Mizukage. She had various proposals for him and Rasa, and Hiruzen knew that Rasa would be busy going through similar files back in Suna.

There was also the fact that the Fire Daimyo was now acknowledging Suna once again, since Rasa and several Suna-Shinobi were considered a war heroes. Hiruzen felt as if the Fire Daimyo was a fool, because cutting off an entire country like he did – Rasa was clearly bitter about the fact.

Now that Suna had contributed its war efforts; and the fact that Mei and Hiruzen were singing Suna's praises, the Fire Daimyo was suddenly invested again. Unfortunately for the Fire Daimyo though; from what the rumors of Jiraiya's Wind Country contacts had reported; the Water Daimyo had been visiting Suna over the last few days. It seemed that the Water Daimyo wanted to pay Suna back for helping free Kiri.

Since the Fire Daimyo had technically dropped Suna, they no longer served under a lord. The Water Daimyo had plenty of influence and influential contacts, and he was working on trade agreements with Wind Country. The source of many of their issues was that Suna was too expensive; and they didn't really have money to spend in order to make money. But now the Water Daimyo was invested in finding ways Suna could support itself and generate a stable income. From what Jiraiya had heard, Rasa, Mei, and the Water Daimyo were involved in heavy political discussions and trade agreements. The Fire Daimyo technically no longer had a say in what Suna did or didn't do.

The Fire Daimyo was annoyed, and Hiruzen couldn't say that he felt sorry for the man. He was the one who decided to suddenly cut off his support. Now he was reaping that decision, because Rasa had no interest in returning to the one who had massively contributed to his problems in the first place.

All of this of course, led to a Council meeting between the Ninja Clans and the Civilian Council.

The Ninja Council saw the benefits in having Suna and Kiri as allies; while only a few of the Civilians saw the opportunities of having the two Countries as trading partners. There were businessmen who didn't want to take such a risk in partnering with "poor" countries. It would certainly take a while for the two country's economies to recover, but they could certainly help each other if they went about it correctly.

"We could outsource a few jobs, and I've wanted to expand my business for a while, now," one of the men said. "It would save us money."

It was obvious that "us" meant "him."

"I don't think the Kiri folks would appreciate being paid less – or being taken advantage of, considering their situation." one of the more shrewd businesswomen pointed out. "And the Kazekage has far too much pride. We'll have to go about dealing with him carefully; the man may be desperate to restore his village to its former glory; but he would view business proposals as an insult if he suspects that he's being lowballed. As would anyone with a lick of common sense."

"They could turn on us," one of the businessmen said. "The Fire Daimyo's not happy that the Kazekage is going to serve under the Water Daimyo…what does that mean for us?"

"Feh, the Fire Daimyo has no right to complain. We wouldn't be here if he hadn't dropped Suna in the first place!" one man stated as he slapped the table with his palm. "We have to do whatever we can to stay in both Suna and Kiri's good graces, now that they serve under one lord. They have more of a kinship than we do."

One of the business owners was a woman who spoke sternly. "I think we should protect our own assets. Let them recover on their own."

"Kiri is in our debt." Hiruzen sighed, letting a trail of smoke flow out into the air. "As is Suna, since we have Tsunade training a few of their Medic-Nin. Both Kiri and Suna have poisons and natural resources that they have agreed to trade – we have natural resources and spices.

"Kagayaki Haku is Tsunade's apprentice, and is close to the Fourth Mizukage's bodyguard – who I might also add – is involved with our own resident T&I specialist, Mitarashi Anko."

Having such a relationship could work to their advantage, Hiruzen would be the first to admit that. But some already saw it as scandalous. Others whispered under their breath that Anko could pry information from Zabuza; or maybe try and use him to influence the Mizukage. On the other side of the argument it was that Zabuza would be using Anko for information he had no business knowing.

Hiruzen disliked unfounded gossip; and at least no-one had said these things to Anko's face, or Zabuza's. Likely because they had some semblance of self-preservation. Hiruzen could easily just imagine someone being foolish enough to spout off that nonsense – and having Anko torture them.

Then his mind thought of Zabuza…wielding his sword. 'My sword looks a little dull…how about you help me sharpen it?'

Hiruzen groaned internally as he now imagined the two standing over some hapless fool, both cackling as they prepared to torture and maim.

At least the fact of the matter was, the two were committed to the relationship. It was good that Mei openly supported them. Mei was also offering a few people as political/Kekkei Genkai marriage candidates – but only after things in Kiri calmed down. That was one can of worms Hiruzen didn't exactly want to deal with just yet – since that would mean having discussions with Konoha's resident Clans. A few civilian families might be willing to propose marriage, but that was still tentative.

"The Mizukage's adviser has one of our eyes." Hiashi's stern voice sounded. Hiruzen sighed, knowing how Hiashi felt about Kiri's partnership with them. There was no way Hiashi would even consider offering up Clan members to Kiri or even Suna.

"Well, I won't be demanding that they give the eye back, Hyuuga-san." Hiruzen said firmly. "The most I can do is request that he doesn't enter Konoha for your Clan's sake. Besides, I'm sure that Kiri is well aware of the political upheaval that would cause if Ao-san so much as crossed the border."

Hiashi seemed to relent, knowing when Hiruzen was done making a point.

Hiruzen had a smile, knowing that what he said next would surly ruffle more than a few feathers.

"I also intend to expand our partnership with Kiri and Suna by having specialized teams; one for each Country."

"What do you mean, Third?" Shikaku asked with his usual drawl.

"Konoha, Kiri, and Suna will each have a team that is comprised of someone from each country. It's an honor to be place on one of these teams, because they will represent the peace and unity between our countries."

The Civilain Council members protested. They didn't like the idea, as all they could see were the risks. There was even some clear hesitation from the Ninja Council. There could be spies among the teams.

"The Mizukage and Kazekage have already agreed – and there are no hard feelings if you do not wish to participate."

Aburame Tonbo nodded, "I think this work for all of us. Why? Because if something happens with Kumo," she looked pointedly at Hiashi over her sunglasses, "or any other Country, we can strike like an enraged tarantula hawk."

A few of her wasps buzzed around her head, and the people sitting closest to her understandably leaned away, nervously.

Of course, the fact that three Countries were allying themselves would get everyone else's attention. The other Countries would be watching warily.

There was plenty of loud grumbling to go around.

Hiruzen raised a hand, and only let it down once the room was quiet. "I will say one thing – the Civilian Council has no say in this matter. The Civilian members present are not the ones who are offering up your children and Clan members here."

The Civilian Council had overstepped their bounds more than once. Back when the Kyuubi had attacked Konoha and was subsequently Sealed away, the Civilian Council demanded that the host to the Kyuubi be made public knowledge for everyone's best interest. Hiruzen had only agreed because he'd hoped that the civilians would see Naruto for the hero he was; instead, the civilians didn't fully understand how Seals worked. The entire thing had gotten blown out of proportion; and the resentment the civilians held bled out into the general populace. Since the Clan members hadn't been able to take in Naruto; if Naruto had been able to be considered just another civilian orphan, he could have gotten a normal enough home life.

But that was in the past, and it wouldn't do to look back on things he couldn't help with regret. Naruto was very likely happy where he was – traveling with Zoro and Gaara. Hiruzen knew he had to put his foot down before the Civilian Council could get any footholds.

Hiruzen turned to the Clan members. "We will have a strict selection for the team members; what are their skills; grades; how many missions have they completed? We will have Genin, Chuunin, and Jonin recruits. The actions of the teams and the individuals on them will reflect their respective countries."

Hiruzen gave a nod. "So, those of you who wish to put forth members of your Clans, you may give me a list on who you wish to submit for this proposition of peace; or simply state as such that you do not wish your Clan participates on the applications." Hiruzen passed out scrolls to the Clan Members. "We will not reveal who is or isn't participating – and you won't know until the teams are formed."

Itachi was there in place of Fugaku, who was currently on bedrest because his eyes had been giving him trouble as of late due to stress at work. Itachi took the scroll and said nothing; his expression gave away nothing. He quickly read over the proposal that Hiruzen had, more than once.

Without consulting the Clan or Fugaku, Itachi filled out the application and submitted it right then and there. No-one except a select few would know whether or not he approved the joint venture unless he revealed it himself.

The ones sitting around the table held mixed expressions; surprise; curiosity; disapproval for one thing or another. Itachi had responded rather quickly. The fact that an Uchiha was either against or in support of this radical plan would certainly make the gossip ear-grating for weeks to come.

Hiashi scowled, not liking how Itachi responded so quickly. He knew Itachi wasn't exactly like Fugaku. Fugaku would have gave a simple protest and left it at that. Itachi gave nothing away – but that didn't mean he didn't support the Third's farce of a proposal.

Hiruzen was curious, of course. Itachi hadn't even had the application for thirty minutes. If he truly disagreed with the team concept, then he would have openly said so – Fugaku very likely would have. But Itachi had read it over, and calmly wrote something down without consulting Fugaku. As Itachi was here as representative, he had every right to make whatever decisions he felt were best.

"Thank you for being the first to submit an application, Itachi-kun." Hiruzen said, trying not to overanalyze Itachi's actions.

"Hn," Itachi nodded.

Itachi had been getting an earful for the past few weeks, ever since the war ended. His father, while he knew the partnership between the three Countries was advantageous, he didn't like it.

Where people saw opportunities for peace and prosperity; Fugaku only saw risks. He was suspicious of spies and corruption; heavily disliked that Tsunade would choose a Kiri-Nin as her apprentice; didn't like the relationship between Zabuza and Anko; he was sure that they'd turn on each other sooner than later.

Kiri was infamous for going decades without having more interims in the Mizukage position and turning on each other for the temporary position. The Mizukage's role was not one to be envied, considering the First and Third Mizukage.

Fugaku's opinion was, "The Third has allied us with savages."

Suna didn't hold as much of Fugaku's ire.

000

Shisui was waiting for Itachi outside, and he easily fell into step beside him as they walked.

"So, how'd it go?"

"The Third had a radical idea on implementing teams that represent Konoha's peace with Kiri and Suna. The Clans and Sensei at the Academies will be able to submit their recommendations for consideration."

Shisui was staring at him, with some mild concern. "Oh. Wow. What are you planning to do?"

"As the Uchiha Clan's stand-in, I submitted Sasuke's application, of course."

Shisui's eyes widened. He spoke in a low-tone, making sure only Itachi heard him. Shisui even put up a minor Genjutsu around them just to make sure that no-one could overhear. "Itachi-shit, Itachi. What are you thinking? Uncle Fugaku isn't going to like that. He's going to be so pissed off."

Shisui warned him quite needlessly.

"I'm well aware." Itachi sighed, quietly. "Controlling his temper is all on him, anyway."

"Are you sure, Itachi? I mean…" Shisui's voice trailed off.

"You know what Father wanted, Shisui – it could lead to the end of everything we hold dear. You know what I'd have to do if it came down to that."

The cousins walked in silence for a bit, until Shisui spoke up. "You're playing a dangerous game, Itachi. I'm not sure what you're trying to do – I have something of an idea – but the less I know, the better, right? Just know that I don't like it."

"You just have to know that I'm doing this is for the sake of our Clan and Konoha, nothing more. I'll do anything to ensure our survival."

Shisui ran his hands down his face, stretching the skin a bit while he sighed heavily. He then dropped his hands down by his side.

"Yeah, me too. No matter what."

00000

Upon hearing the news of what happened at the Council meeting and what Itachi had done, the tension mounted to near-suffocating levels.

"You what?!" Fugaku's eyes flared, the pupils nearly turning black. Fugaku wheezed in pain as his eyes began bleeding. He pressed the palms of his hands into his eyes, in an effort to relieve the pain, even just a little.

Mikoto had a cold cloth on hand for occasions such as this. She pried Fugaku's hands away from his face, then pressed the cloth to his eyes. It offered some relief.

"How could you do this, Itachi?!" Fugaku demanded as he shoved the cloth away. Fugaku was yelling and glaring at Itachi. The pupils of his eyes expanded rapidly, leaving a small, thing ring of red. Fugaku winced in obvious pain, as even the slightest bit of light hitting his corneas made it feel like his eyes were burning from the inside out.

He accepted the cloth this time, pressing it against his eyes.

"You know how the villagers still view us, Father, even after eleven years have passed." Itachi stated. "This is an effort to show our support of the Third, and the peace between our villages. If Sasuke is selected – he will not only represent Konoha, he will represent our Clan."

It didn't feel right, putting that much pressure on Sasuke, but there was no other choice. Besides, Itachi knew that Sasuke was of strong enough character to bear such a burden.

"You shouldn't needlessly stress out your father, Itachi." Mikoto gently scolded, before she turned to her husband. "Maybe you should consider seeing Tsunade-hime?"

"Absolutely not! I don't trust that woman." Fugaku argued. "She left the village; is training both Kiri and Suna – she should be keeping whatever medical Jutsu she has within Konoha! Who knows what that Ice-Jutsu user will do? He could easily take the knowledge of the Sharingan back to Kiri! They could attack us and steal our eyes!"

"I know that there's a history with the Third and Second, but…" Mikoto tried again.

"ENOUGH!" Fugaku practically convulsed in his pain. "I don't want to hear it!"

"Fugaku, you're obviously in pain – and your eyes are killing you!" Mikoto desperately persisted. "There are people here who can help you if you'd let them!"

"The Third may be willing to put our lives at risk, but I'm not!" Fugaku insisted. He then shooed at Itachi. "Leave us."

Itachi bowed and left, gently closing the sliding door behind him.

It wasn't until Itachi was in the privacy of his room that he collapsed at his table and sighed in exhaustion and relief. He massaged his temples, and wished for something to drink.

Like an answer to his wish, Shisui showed up with some sake and two cups.

"So…that bad?" Shisui asked as he poured the sake.

"Father doesn't want Tsunade or her apprentices to touch him. He's far too suspicious."

"…But he'll die without treatment…" Shisui muttered. "That's a risk for us too, right?"

"We should schedule an appointment just in case." Itachi said, as he stared into his cup. "I'd hate to see Sasuke suffer…"

"Hmm." Shisui agreed. He briefly wondered if the Hyuuga suffered any ill-effects with their eyes.

"It was worse this time. Mother doesn't want me stressing him out."

"Uncle Fugaku's had a temper for as long as I've known him." Some would say that was what made Fugaku such an effective leader; it was far better to do what you were told, than to face Fugaku's wrath.

"I know that stressing him out isn't helping him in the slightest, but I don't like the other option. It feels better doing it this way, because controlling his temper is all on him, isn't it? I guess I tell myself that to lessen my guilt."

Itachi nearly emptied his cup with a large gulp. He shivered a little at the sting in his throat.

"But what choice do I have? Father isn't doing us any favors by distancing the Clan from the village… He's still hunting after Naruto…"

There was certainly some relief that came with the fact that there was no hope in finding the boy. Danzo had been fruitlessly sending his ROOT agents out searching for Naruto. Thanks to Itachi and Shisui's various interferences when they went on missions outside of the Village; and Jiraiya's planting of fakes, and continuing to insist that Naruto was hidden away somewhere; there were always false leads that led nowhere. Wasting time and resources – with the cousins and Jiraiya having no idea the other existed, and unwittingly working together.

This left Danzo and Fugaku both completely flummoxed and frustrated.

Shisui frowned thoughtfully. It was a good thing Itachi was drinking at home in a room with noise-canceling Seals, and not in public – he was a talkative drunk. While on missions, Itachi always had to water down his drinks and take special pills that helped absorb alcohol – because he got far too talkative and open while inebriated.

Itachi filled their cups again. Shisui wasn't sure what was worse; assassinating someone quickly with a blade; or killing them slowly through a rapidly spreading disease. Shisui said nothing, because as he had said earlier: the less he knew, the better.

Danzo still had plenty of influence and a hold over them. Danzo was constantly surrounded by his bodyguards, so getting him alone was next to impossible. Even if they could somehow get the man alone, Danzo inexplicably suddenly disappearing or turning up dead would pose far too many questions.

They would have to bide their time.

0000

Itachi didn't bother saying anything to the members of his Clan as he and Shisui took Sasuke to the hospital.

"Why are we here?" Sasuke whispered to Itachi. "I thought father didn't want us coming here."

"You know father's situation, Sasuke," Itachi said quietly as he tapped Sasuke's forehead – which made Sasuke scowl and push away his hand. "It's to make sure the same thing isn't happening to us. It's better to be on top of this before your Sharingan develops."

Sasuke nodded, and he looked around the waiting room as they well, waited.

People were called into various rooms by workers who wore Suna, Kiri, and Konoha symbols. It was interesting. Sasuke had heard his father talk plenty of times on how Suna and Kiri weren't trustworthy. He seemed to think that they were planning something. Tsunade wasn't trustworthy either, in Fugaku's opinion.

But Itachi and Shisui seemed to think differently.

Not long after, they were called into a room. Haku was somewhat nervous as he had recently started treating patients on his own; Tsunade trusted him enough to work alone and not permanently maim or kill anyone.

Haku was friendly enough for a Kiri-Nin, Sasuke thought. Plus, Haku acknowledged him along with his brother and cousin, and didn't talk about Sasuke as if he wasn't there.

Sasuke went first, doing the typical checkup routine.

"Has your Sharingan developed, yet?" Haku asked, and Sasuke shook his head.

Haku wrote something down on the clipboard.

"Kagayaki-san," Itachi spoke up. "There is something…I ask that you keep it between us…"

Haku nodded. "Of course."

"Can you…check my eyes?"

Itachi activated his Sharingan, and Haku placed his cool hands over Itachi's eyes and over his temples and scanned his eyes with glowing, green chakra.

Haku frowned. "Can you deactivate and reactivate your eyes for me, please?"

Haku's frowned deepened when Itachi complied. He turned to Shisui. "Do you have the same problem? Can I look?"

Shisui also went through the same routine, and Haku made a face. This was a case of Kekkei Genkai poisoning – though not as severe as Kimimaro's had been. But it would get worse over time.

"The Sharingan is slowly eating away at the corneas when you activate it, and deteriorating the optic nerve when it's active. It's also dilating your pupils ever so slightly – letting in too much light. The more you use it, the worse it's going to get…you're likely going to go blind – and I can tell you it's going to be painful because of the pressure of your chakra on the optic nerves. Essentially, your chakra is rotting the eye out."

Sasuke looked at his brother and cousin with open concern.

"Can you do anything about it?" Itachi asked. If this happened to Sasuke…

"Maybe? Let me think…" Haku said as he grabbed his clip board and some blank paper. He muttered to himself as he scribbled down an eye and several other details. He thought of the various theories he was working on with Tsunade. The testing while it had shown promising results, they hadn't exactly tested them on people. "I might be able to try something, but it's more experimental than anything…"

Haku showed them his crude drawing. "Using a thin layer of ice chakra, I could make a series of filtering systems for your chakra so that it circles back in on itself…theoretically taking pressure off of the nerves and rapidly slowing down the deterioration…maybe even make a layer for your blood to filter through…"

"Whatever you have to do, Kagayaki-san."

Haku looked nervous, and nodded.

He could use Sasuke's eyes as a foundation of sorts. Getting a sense of how the eyes felt without the Sharingan helped. It was a slow process; Haku began to slowly put a wall of chakra between Itachi's chakra and his eyes. He made a series of pin-hole sized holes so that Itachi's chakra could come through to activate the Sharingan and still create Genjutsu; then he made a complicated filtering system of sorts that lined along the optic nerves that looped in on itself and went back to the eye.

He put a protective layer of netting-like chakra over the cornea and around the optic nerves, ensuring that no pressure would be on them. This way, essential chakra could still get through, but wasn't blocking off anything important.

Finally, he put a thin layer of chakra in Itachi's pupils so that it acted as a sort of internal sunglasses to protect the cornea from too much light.

It took Itachi activating and deactivating his Sharingan a few times before Haku was satisfied with his work. Other than feeling a bit stiff, Itachi's eyes were fine; Haku assured him that his eyes would adjust in a few hours. His case fortunately wasn't as severe as his father's, and they had gotten ahead of it.

Shisui was next, and Sasuke wouldn't need to have anything done until his Sharingan activated.

They thanked Haku and were on their way.

Itachi decided not to mention the hospital visit unless he were asked. It was better for Fugaku to approach with anger and accusations; rather than Itachi shove whatever defiance he had in Fugaku's face.

0000

Sasuke was looking forward to attending the academy, but at the same time, he sort of dreaded it. His parents, Itachi, Shisui, and several other cousins all had esteemed records. Sasuke felt that he was entering the game a little late. He had certainly trained, but wasn't allowed to attend the academy until he was a few years older than Itachi had been.

There was also the fact that some people still resented the Uchiha for their actions during the Kyuubi attack. Things had calmed down considerably since then, but Sasuke still saw the occasional glare and sneer being sent his or his family's way.

At this point, Sasuke didn't really know what to do with himself; coming from a prestigious family. He couldn't help but compare himself to Itachi. Constantly. He knew the ages his family members were when they mastered Fire Jutsu, their Sharingan activated…and Sasuke had barely done any of those things yet.

He had one and-a-half of Fire Jutsu mastered; both Itachi and Shisui worked with him on practical skills; he had decent enough stamina and endurance.

Sasuke hated how the girls stared at him and tittered. So far, it was only Hinata who kept to herself and barely acknowledged him unless he went out of his way to say something to her. Which he didn't, unless he really had to. She would look at him and stutter and blush; and then sink into her jacket. She did that with everyone, so Sasuke wasn't put-off by it.

Since Sasuke didn't want to draw attention to himself, he decided to act serious and aloof in public – but that backfired because people found those traits appealing for some asinine reason. He'd established himself as having this serious persona, and it was too late to drop the act now.

Sasuke managed to seat himself next to a dozing Shikamaru, but he had Sakura sitting on his other side, and she kept trying to talk to him. Meanwhile, Ino was sitting behind Sasuke and hissing insults at Sakura.

"What do you think of that, Sasuke?"

…He hadn't been paying attention to what she was saying. He'd been drowning her out since she sat down.

A neutral response would be best.

"Hn." Sasuke shrugged, and Sakura looked almost disappointed for some reason. Was whatever she was trying to say really that important?

"Alright class," Iruka-sensei spoke up, as he clapped his hands to get their attention. "As you know, the Konoha-Kiri-Suna peace agreement means that a new, unique team formation has been created. Konoha has the Genin team.

"We have two new students who will be joining us." Iruka motioned to the two kids next to him. "Hōzuki Suigetsu from Kiri and Pakura from Suna. There are those of you here who are under consideration for being put on a team that represents the unity and peace between our Villages. It is a great honor to be chosen. There is a strict selection pool that heavily depends on your personal performance in the Academy. No-one will know who is in the running, so all of you do your best to be considered as the third teammate."

Already, the students were talking as the two took a seat next to each other. Suigetsu leaned back and propped his feet up on the desk.

"Can you try to be a bit more polite, Hōzuki?" Pakura's voice said. "You're representing more than just yourself, you know."

Suigetsu snorted and waved her off. "Yeah, yeah…I'm too tired to care 'bout bein' polite."

"Don't you think that Pakura girl has weird hair, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked.

"You would know." Sasuke replied, and Sakura looked hurt, for some reason. Sakura was a girl with long hair, so logically she would know if another girl's hair was "weird". Sure, it was two-toned, but who was he to give an opinion on something that had no effect on him?

00000

Iruka glanced at his students – Pakura and Suigetsu were fitting in well enough, he thought. Suigetsu's grades were just passable enough to not get a failing grade. At first, Iruka thought that Kiri was messing with them. But Suigetsu was Mangetsu's younger brother – and from what Iruka had heard, Mangetsu was incredibly talented as both a Swordsman and a Shinobi. Iruka decided that he would take a closer look before brushing the boy off. He assigned several practical written exams regarding scenarios that Shinobi could find themselves in.

Suigetsu proved to be insanely creative – sneaking in through the pipes and water faucets were the last places people would expect. People often dropped their guards in bathrooms. Suigetsu was lazy, and liked taking shortcuts. Unlike Shikamaru who did the bare minimum (Iruka heavily suspected Shikamaru could do more, but the boy just didn't put in the effort) Suigetsu went about doing things in the laziest, quickest ways possible. It was becoming abundantly clear why Suigetsu had been chosen.

Pakura was…well, quite an overachiever. She did way more than what was required. She expanded on scenarios that took into account all the ways a situation could go wrong – with countermeasures in place. What was a one-page essay often turned into five or even eight pages with her. Iruka finally had to put a note next to her grade that she didn't have to do so much, and limited her to two or three scenarios at most.

0000

When Iruka had a sparring match for the kids, most of them groaned.

"Pakura, you're up…" Iruka glanced down at the class list. "…Against Kyoga."

"Alright!" Pakura pumped her fist.

"I have to fight a girl?" Kyoga complained.

"Afraid you can't win?" Pakura asked as she assumed a fighter's stance.

Kyoga was taller and bulkier, and Pakura was shorter and leaner.

Kyoga clearly thought he could win just by throwing himself at Pakura and punching. Pakura easily dodged at the last minute, ducked down – and delivered a kick to Kyoga's knee just before his foot came down.

Kyoga yelled out in pain and surprise as his dislocated knee caused him to fall face first to the ground.

"Get up, Kyoga!" Pakura demanded, still looking ready to fight. "Surely a simple knee injury isn't that bad! Pop it back into place and keep going!"

Kyoga moaned painfully in response.

Mizuki sighed. "Well, I'll take care of the kid."

Kyoga was carried off, and Pakura looked as if she'd been the one injured.

"Sensei, that wasn't even a fight, can I go again?"

Kiba raised his hand. "Oh! Can I fight her, Sensei?"

"Very well…" Iruka could only sigh.

Kiba was more of a street brawler with claws; while Pakura used her smaller stature to her advantage. She used people's momentum against them; and delivered rapid kicks and punches that would impede a person so she could create her own openings. It was sort of like a dance with her, as Pakura primarily focused with swift, spinning kicks that made getting close somewhat difficult.

Kiba had wrestled plenty of times with the dogs, his cousins, and his sister, so he was much better at counterattacking. Pakura kept up with him; and when she threw dirt at Kiba in an attempt to blind him, that suddenly turned into a free-for-all attack for Kiba.

He started going after Pakura by running on all fours – twisting and dodging as he ran. He sent a series of rapid kicks, and Pakura blocked with her own. Twisting out of the way, she thrusted a kick into Kiba's side, aiming for his kidney.

Kiba thought that this was great, because none of the girls fought like this. Most of them complained about fighting. Hinata didn't complain, and held back. Ino would fight, but she did a lot more dodging than actual fighting. Sakura tried to fight, but being from a civilian family meant that she didn't have all the training that Clans offered. Pakura fought with her all, and fully expected Kiba to do the same.

Kiba's nails raked across Pakura's cheek, and she yelped and collapsed to the ground, holding onto her wound. Pakura sniffled, and Kiba froze. He took a few steps forward, in concern. "I'm sor—"

Kiba was cut off when Pakura leapt up, and tackled him. She wrapped herself rapidly around him, practically clamoring over him and knocking Kiba off balance. A smirk was on her face.

"You're too nice a guy, Inuzuka!"

"Hey! I thought you were crying!"

He was admittedly a bit insulted that he had fallen for such a classic trick.

Kiba managed to twist away from her, and charged after Pakura. He managed to tackle her to the ground; and Pakura rolled with him. This was less like a spar and more like inelegant roughhousing.

Pakura ended up straddling Kiba, and Kiba had a hand around her throat.

Iruka ended up blowing his whistle signaling that their time was over.

In the end, it was considered a draw; because from the position that they ended up in, Pakura could have crushed Kiba's throat' and Kiba could have ripped hers out.

"I had fun, Inuzuka. Let's do it again, sometime."

Kiba grinned. "Next time, Akamaru and I will take you on."

Pakura didn't seem to care that her cheek was bleeding, and she wanted to stay and watch the rest of the spars. A few of the girls of the class stared at her and cringed a bit as she rubbed dirt into her wound "to stop the bleeding."

Iruka sighed again, and hoped that her wound wouldn't be infected. Maybe one of the Medic-Nin could scold her later about rubbing dirt in her wounds.

They had a few more rounds of spars – and he ended up having one boy named Yuta go against Suigetsu. Suigetsu acted as if this was the worst thing in the world and sighed dramatically and very put upon. Yuta clearly didn't think much of Suigetsu.

In Iruka's personal opinion, Yuta was incredibly skilled even for being from a civilian family. But Yuta had a tendency to think a bit too highly of himself. He at least had the common sense to not pick fights he couldn't win.

Yuta practically sauntered over to the center of the sparring ring; while Suigetsu trudged over as if he were being forced into a T&I session.

Yuta hadn't seen Suigetsu do much of anything, other than just laze around. He also had a sword, but he couldn't use it now. It was probably that sword that made him so special. Yuta was of the opinion that if this guy could get a place on those special teams, then how hard could it be?

A loud whistle signaled the start of the bout. Yuta charged forward, his fist drawn back. Suigetsu didn't bother to move, and continued to look bored.

Yuta's fist connected with Suigetsu's face.

"What?!"

Yuta's fist sunk into Suigetsu's face, and was trapped. Yuta struggled to pull away, but to no avail. Suigetsu smirked, his sharp teeth glistened as he went into a twisting motion that pulled Yuta off of his feet; and he held onto the other boy in such way that his arm wouldn't be broken.

Yuta was mercilessly thrown to the ground, and had the wind knocked out of him. Suigetsu was already on his feet and he pointed at Yuta. "I could kill you right now if I wanted."

Yuta glared venomously, but that only amused Suigetsu.

Iruka sighed even more heavily than last time. That wasn't exactly what he'd wanted – but Suigetsu had shown an incredible level of control. Plus, having a Kekkei Genkai that made physical attacks relatively useless…Iruka would probably have to train with the kid to make sure he was prepared to go against someone who could probably kill him if he wasn't careful.

"That wasn't what Iruka-sensei wanted, Hōzuki." Pakura admonished. "It's called a sparring match for a reason – your Taijutsu needs to be perfectly honed."

"Meh…you're a sparring match." Suigetsu replied, not really caring in the slightest.

Iruka made a few notes about Suigetsu in his report. He'd make Suigetsu work hard, no matter what. Suigetsu involuntarily shivered. Something was amiss. He glanced around, looking for the threat. The only threat(s) was the disapproving glare Pakura was sending his way for not taking the sparring match all that seriously; the glare from Yuta, for beating his ass in around fifteen seconds if that; and the calculating gaze from Iruka-sensei, who seemed to be watching him. Maybe he was overthinking…?

The sparring matches were soon over, and Iruka and Mizuki were busy making notes on everything the students needed work on.

0000

In the evenings, when Iruka was alone with his work, he often wondered how Naruto was doing. Was he happy? Was Zoro taking care of him? What would things be like now if Naruto had stayed? Iruka would go to Naruto's old apartment every few days to clean it; just making sure that dust didn't build up and the empty fridge was aired out. Iruka also made sure that nothing was moth eaten. Iruka wanted to make sure that when Naruto returned, he'd have a clean place to return to. He felt as if Naruto returning to a dirty apartment meant that no-one cared that he was gone.

So, Iruka waited. On his days off, he'd sometimes venture down to the gate and talk with Kotetsu and Izumo on the days they had sentry duty. He wanted to be there when Naruto returned, to show that someone was waiting for him.

It was a nice routine.

0000

One day, a few weeks after having attended the academy, Sasuke managed to snag a seat next to Kiba, and he hoped that one of the other guys would find the empty seat next to him before any of the girls. Sasuke's hopes were dashed when Pakura sat next him.

She nodded in greeting, and he waited for her to make awkward attempts at conversation; smile at him; peek at him out of the corner of her eye not-so-subtly; except she didn't do any of those things. Not really.

"Good morning," Pakura greeted very pleasantly, and not at all making those googly faces at Sasuke.

"Morning," Sasuke greeted a bit stiffly.

"Hey, Pakura!" Kiba greeted happily.

Akamaru yipped a greeting.

"It's fascinating that you have an animal partner, Inuzuka. How long have you been working together?"

"A few years, now."

"Impressive. I've always been curious how Human and animal teams can coordinate themselves so well. You two are amazing, I find myself having to get creative in countering your attacks."

Pakura really talked very strange for a girl her age, in Sasuke's opinion.

"Of course we're awesome!" Kiba grinned, and Akamaru barked in agreement. "It's lots of hard work, my ma and my big sis have strict breeding requirements for the dogs. Any dog that we can't use is given to the farmers to help protect their livestock, or just regular pets. Akamaru was given to me as a puppy – I'll probably have a pack of my own once I'm a Jonin. Though – I'm aiming for Chunin, but I don't wanna be too ambitious."

"Ambition is what drives us forward, Inuzuka. You should aim for that goal and higher, and not settle for less."

Kiba grinned at her. Sasuke remained silent, happy to be ignored.

"What are your goals in becoming a Shinobi?" Pakura asked.

"So far, I want to master some awesome moves with my buddy…" Kiba shrugged nonchalantly.

"Truly admirable. What about you, Uchiha?"

Not expecting to be addressed, Sasuke mumbled a bit awkwardly, "Oh-uh, um…" he hadn't really thought about what he wanted to do beyond the academy as of yet since they had only just started. He made it up as he went along. "I want to master all Fire Jutsu, create a few of my own Jutsu, and activate my Sharingan before I'm er…fourteen? What about you?"

Pakura smiled, and her back was straight as she shifted in her seat. "I have a list of Jutsu I intend to master by the time I graduate, and it only goes up from there. I intend to only spend a certain number of years as a Genin and Chunin before moving on to Jonin. Afterwards, I'll work in the Kazekage's or – maybe in this case, the Hokage's office in some capacity where all of my skills are utilized."

"Wow, uh…that's a lot." Kiba replied.

"Okay…" Sasuke wasn't sure what to say to that.

"I have a list. It's my twenty-year plan – with an extra five-year cushion if something gets derailed. Unpredictable events and recovery from debilitating injuries must be taken into consideration."

"HEY!" the shout drew the three's attention.

Sakura, Ino, and several other girls were glaring venomously at Pakura.

Pakura glanced from Sasuke and Kiba to the girls and back. "What's going on?"

"What do you think you're doing, sitting next to Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke sighed, closing his eyes and massaging his temples.

"I'd be jealous of you, but I feel like I dodged a shuriken." Kiba whispered to Sasuke. Sasuke could only glare sulkily at him.

"…Having a conversation." Pakura slowly replied to the girls, as if she were talking to small, simple-minded children.

"Yeah right! I bet you're trying to steal him!"

"Just because you think he's attractive doesn't mean you get to keep him all to yourself!"

"Ugh, so troublesome…" Shikamaru muttered from where he sat. The girls were always too damn loud.

Pakura rolled her eyes, and slammed her palm down on the desk as she stood.

"Don't you have any pride as women? Self-respect? Is this a game to you? Are we here to play house? Do you think we come here to pick out boyfriends?!" Pakura sounded incensed. The girls – the entire class stared at her. "The future of Konoha's Kunoichi look less than promising. How pathetic and shameful! You don't deserve to be in the presence of Shinobi, much less reside in a Ninja village!"

Pakura looked ready and willing to fight a group of enraged girls.

Iruka had walked into the classroom in the middle of Pakura's speech.

"Pakura-chan!" Iruka's voice carried unnaturally loud for a moment, giving Pakura and the other girls pause. Iruka had an expression of exasperation. He had been trying to get her attention in the middle of her speech, but Pakura was really into it. "Erm…please, sit down."

"Forgive me, Sensei!" Pakura bowed and sat down, looking rather intently and very expectantly at him.

Iruka pointedly narrowed his gaze at the other girls. "All of you. Now."

The girls grumbled about not being able to sit next to Sasuke, and went to find their own seats. Sasuke sent Pakura a look of relief that she didn't seem to notice. Being able to sit next to a girl and not have her fawning all over him was all-too welcome. A thought that having her as a shield against the other girls did briefly cross his mind, but Sasuke shoved that aside. Pakura hadn't actively sought him out in the past, and the one time she sat next to him she spoke more to Kiba, and sort of included him in the conversation. Sasuke wondered if he could get away with occasionally sitting next to her – and somehow having someone else on his other side.

Pakura sent the girls a side-eyed glare. It was disappointing that so many of them focused on this Sasuke guy for something so shallow. Sure, he was an Uchiha – that alone was impressive. She wanted to spar with him – to see if his being an Uchiha merited the admiration.

Personally, she'd wanted the girls to start a fight over not being able to sit next to Sasuke. She'd show them a real fight; broken nails and messed up hair included.

Suigetsu snorted from where he sat, reclining in his seat. He eyed the girls, letting them know that he was clearly talking about them; and to see their reactions. "Wow, that's some level of pathetic desperation. No wonder Konoha's Kunoichi are so pathetic."

He laughed at their angry outbursts of denial and accusations.

Iruka found himself sighing a lot more lately.

Mizuki found himself feeling more exhausted and wanting to frequent his favorite bar more than just a few days a week.

The other teachers disliked the mounting drama that had reared its ugly head in their class lately.

0000

A few days later, Pakura's wish came true. Getting to spar against Sasuke – she'd seen what he could do. If she wanted to improve herself, then Sasuke was the one to go up against.

"You better not hurt Sasuke-kun!" one girl's whiny voice called out.

Pakura rolled her eyes and stretched. "Oh, please. If your precious Sasuke-kun," Pakura imitated the whine impressively, "keels over against someone like me, then he should just quit. Are you doubting him?"

That seemed to shut the other girls up. Finally.

Sasuke had seen Pakura fight, and he knew that she was actually really skilled. Pakura could adapt if she needed to, and Sasuke considered finding ways to not be predictable.

There was a whistle, and a call of, "Fight!"

Pakura charged forward, and came in low. Sasuke jumped back, and dodged to the side to strike. But Pakura reached out to both block his punch and pulled him along with her. She bodily threw both of them to the ground; and she'd landed on top of his arm. Pakura then wrapped her legs around his and head-butted him. Blood poured from his nose and his eyes watered.

Sasuke was honestly taken aback. He hadn't anticipated her using such moves – and he'd been focusing on their legs, not thinking that Pakura would use a freaking head-butt. He managed to disentangle himself from her, and delivered swift kicks to her stomach and chest as he went.

Pakura glared at him as she forced herself to move through gasping breaths. She didn't look angry – but…excited? Sasuke had no idea how girls' minds worked.

Sasuke then began using moves that he'd been working on with Shisui. They were more Chunin level, and honestly, Sasuke would have to grow into them. He couldn't use them too much without straining himself.

Sasuke kicked, and Pakura caught his leg. Sasuke rolled with his kick and followed with his other leg. Pakura struck his shin with her palm, and Sasuke winced because that hurt. But he saw that Pakura had winced and shook and flexed her hand.

The two went back and forth, Pakura keeping up and Sasuke constantly having to keep on his toes. Sasuke managed a few strikes, and drew blood. Pakura had managed a few more hits as well. This was elating, and Sasuke found himself having genuine fun. Pakura's competiveness was bringing out his own. Her fighting style was different, and he had to adapt to it.

Sasuke managed to twist himself around Pakura when she came in for a strike; and he tried throwing her to the ground. Pakura instead shoved off of the ground, but used her injured hand. Instead of escaping his hold, Pakura's arm buckled.

She cursed herself for underestimating her mild injury.

Sasuke stood over her victoriously for a few seconds before he helped her up.

"Thanks, Uchiha." Pakura cradled her hand a bit.

"Sure…for what?"

"For taking me seriously." Pakura had a ghost of a smile.

"…Why wouldn't I?" Sasuke asked genuinely.

He didn't know what the expression on Pakura's face was, exactly. But none of her usual hardness was there.

Sasuke walked with her to the nurse's office.

The nurse ran some glowing green chakra over their wounds, and gave them a few vitamin supplements to help them heal. They had to rest a few minutes before moving.

Pakura looked at him determinedly. "I'll last longer against you next time, so you better watch out, Uchiha. I'll make you work to the bone for every victory against me until I win."

Sasuke smiled, if only a little. "Hn."

Pakura seemed satisfied with that response.

0000

Suigetsu could actually use Taijutsu if he bothered to put effort into it. Suigetsu proved to be tricky, because his Kekkei Genkai made it extremely difficult to land a solid hit on him. Either he could absorb his opponent's strikes and trap them; or he was flexible that he could basically turn his joints to liquid and the attacks had no effect at all. Since he wasn't actually using his Kekkei Genkai against his opponent, then he was basically following the rules.

Iruka knew that this sort of thing would make a person cocky, and Suigetsu had that cockiness in droves. But cockiness could prove to be a death sentence if the right opponent came along. He'd start training with Suigetsu later that day. But Suigetsu would also prove useful for showing people how to move – and there was no worry about him getting injured. It was perfect!

Suigetsu shivered once again, and this time – he caught the calculating gaze Iruka was sending him and the boy knew that it didn't bode well at all, in any way whatsoever.

00000

Iruka's training involved forcing Suigetsu to not rely so much on his Kekkei Genkai. Plus, Iruka once – only once – when Suigetsu caught Iruka's hand in his stomach, Iruka released a small burst of chakra that terrified Suigetsu because he had felt the injury – and he even coughed up a small bit of blood.

It was theoretical on Iruka's part. If Suigetsu could learn to manipulate his chakra around that of his opponent's while trapping them – then he could probably crush, twist off, and explode limbs. Someone else could easily think of the same solution that Iruka did – but that would be their downfall. To whoever would be Suigetsu's Sensei – Iruka would pass the message along.

He saw that Suigetsu could actually work hard – if he was frustrated and wanted to achieve something. It was also probably because his life was on the line.

0000

Ino, Sakura, and several of the other girls in the class found themselves in agreement with one thing: Pakura. Who did she think she was, coming in here?! Talking to Sasuke so casually! She talked to the other boys as well. Plus, Sasuke actually sought her out at times. They talked about fighting, books, and well – just about things. What right did Pakura have to have those conversations with Sasuke?!

Iru, one of the girls that just about rivaled Ino in terms of beauty decided that she would play dirty. Pakura would know a thing or two about dirt, after all. She should know her place.

At lunch a few weeks later, Iru stared in disapproval at Pakura's lunch. A few of the other girls sat back and observed the exchange.

"Don't you know that sort of food makes you fat, Pakura-chan?" Iru asked way too nicely to be considered friendly.

Pakura glanced down her meat skewers, cooked veggies, and rice; then back to Iru. "What?"

"I mean, you could stand to lose a few pounds. Bigger girls don't really get the attention of boys, you know." Iru tsk'd. "I mean, I'm just trying to help another girl out."

"I…I'm fat?" Pakura took a noticeably smaller bite of her food.

"Wellll…maybe not fat, but muscular women aren't that attractive to guys either. Boys don't like girls who look so manly. You should learn to be a bit more delicate – pay attention to how you look. Those clothes don't flatter you at all."

Pakura's outfit showed off her bare shoulders – probably because anything too tight would tear at the seams.

"Gomie Iru, wasn't it? Um…what do you eat?"

"Rice, plain noodles, and salad of course." Iru flicked her hair.

"How much do you eat? When…when do you eat?" Pakura seemed to have lost her appetite as she set her meal aside.

"Only once a day, that's all I need. Sometimes I eat two small meals a day. It would work wonders for you."

Pakura made a face. "What about proteins, and calcium…and…vitamins?"

"Oh, I just have to take supplements for that." Iru laughed.

"Oh, okay…"

"Well, I'm just trying to help, you know. That's what friends do."

"Friends?" Pakura arched her eyebrow. Not even that was trimmed, Iru noticed. Pakura clearly didn't care about her appearance.

"Well…maybe I could start…?" Pakura got up and walked away dejectedly.

Perfect.

0000

The next day, when Iru was called for a sparring match – this time with kunai, she didn't expect Pakura to volunteer so quickly.

Iru at first was annoyed when Pakura clearly toyed with her. Not exactly fighting her, but coming in for rapid strikes that Iru blocked fairly easily enough. Iru ended up chasing after Pakura most of the time, with the other girl constantly dodging.

Iru stumbled a bit when a wave of tiredness inexplicably hit her. She blinked a few times, brushing away the sweat. Why wasn't Pakura as tired? She'd been running around just as much as she was, if not more!

Iru didn't stand a chance when Pakura overpowered her in seconds – and to add insult to injury, she broke Iru's arm.

"You're starving yourself of essential nutrients, and pretty much admitted as such." Pakura said coldly. "You have no strength, no endurance, and brittle bones as a result. Guess it's a good thing I'm so fat and manly."

Pakura marched off to the side, leaving the other girls to stare at her.

"T-that was…r-re-re..really cool, Pakura-chan." Hinata had been given a hard time by Iru more than once. Her shyness and clumsiness were often picked at.

Pakura glanced at Hinata and nodded.

Iru was humiliated to say the least, and dropped out of the Academy a few days later. Iruka figured it was probably better for her to quit then, rather than be given the false hope of being placed on a team or outright rejected.

The other girls, minus Hinata, now avoided Pakura. They mostly talked about her in whispers – and expected Pakura to care.

0000

Today was the day! Team announcements! There was a nervous energy in the air as Iruka announced the teams.

"Pakura, Hōzuki Suigetsu, and Uchiha Sasuke, you're Team Seven. Congratulations. We're expecting great things from you."

Everyone stared. At that moment, Kurenai stuck her head into the room. "Team Seven? You're with me."

"We're here, Sensei!" Pakura practically dragged Suigetsu with her, ignoring his protests. "We have to step it up now that it's official, Hōzuki!"

Sasuke paused briefly to grab Suigetsu's sword that had gotten left behind from Pakura's rushing him out the door.

Sasuke didn't look back at the other students even once; as if he were hoping for a different team placement. Sakura wished he would have at least acted a bit disappointed.

Sakura, along with a several others, hadn't been placed on teams. They hadn't been told to leave, but instead to stay put. Sakura felt bitter resentment and hurt.

It wasn't fair.

0000

Kurenai stood before her team, hand on her hip.

"I'm Yuuhi Kurenai. Why don't you tell me a bit about yourselves before we start?"

Pakura stood to her feet with her hands at her sides. She stood stiffly as if she had a board strapped to her back.

"Good morning, Sensei! I'm Pakura. I intend to fully master at least ten different Jutsu by the time I'm fifteen. I'm also honing my fighting skills to be more effective on the battlefield. I'm training several hours a day daily so that I will be the most useful to the advancement of the village and this team."

"…Okay." Kurenai was a bit taken aback by Pakura's intensity. "Thank you. You can sit down…next?"

Suigetsu looked bored. "I'm Hozuki Suigetsu. Swordsman. I wanna be inducted into the Seven Swordsmen someday." He shrugged. His inclusion would involve one of them having to die; and a Sword recognizing his skill. "If I can't, I'll at least rival them in strength and skill."

"Uchiha Sasuke. I want to master all Fire Jutsu, and create my own. I want to activate my Sharingan by the time I'm fifteen." There, easy enough.

"Very well." Kurenai nodded and she pulled out an alarm clock from a scroll. "Alright. I want to see how well you work together as a unit. We're going to spar for…let's say forty minutes. Let's see how well you can work together in that time."

Pakura looked determined.

Suigetsu looked fierce.

Sasuke looked calculating.

Suigetsu was the first to rush forward. He swiped at Kurenai with his sword, and Kurenai faded out like a mirage.

"What the-?!" Suigetsu was shoved facedown into the dirt.

Kurenai dodged flames, and she smirked as she disappeared again.

"You idiot!" Sasuke yelled as he rushed towards Suigetsu. He pulled the other boy up by the back of his shirt. "Kurenai-Sensei is a Genjutsu specialist! We can't just rush her like that!"

"Get off!" Suigetsu pulled away. "How was I supposed to know?"

"It's called talking!" the level of sarcasm in Sasuke's voice was impressive.

"Less talking and more fighting!" Pakura yelled as she got between the boys and Kurenai, who was rushing at them. Pakura swiveled into a kick, and Kurenai grabbed her leg and spun Pakura around. Pakura most humiliatingly, was used as a bat to hit both boys.

Suigetsu was able to liquefy himself, while Sasuke was knocked to the ground. He instinctively held onto Pakura so she wouldn't get hurt when they fell.

"Dammit," Suigetsu grumbled as he pulled himself up. "That does it!"

Suigetsu's arm expanded as he swung his sword at Kurenai, and Sasuke let out another burst of flame, while Pakura released a volley of shuriken.

Kurenai's clothing was only slightly singed, but she got out of it via Shunshin.

She appeared behind Pakura, and the girl flipped backwards to block Kurenai's kick. Pakura then wrapped her legs around Kurenai's – managing to trap her. Seconds counted in this sort of scenario.

Suigetsu pointed his expanded limb at Kurenai.

"Mizudeppo no Jutsu!"

His arm slowly returned to its normal size as all the water in his limb flowed to his finger. A bullet of water shot towards Kurenai. Suigetsu was nearly knocked off of his feet from the force of it. The shot was near the size of a Human head, and Kurenai certainly didn't want to get hit by one of those.

Sasuke took advantage as well, striking at her with a kunai. Kurenai was able to pull herself out at the last moment – and switched herself with Sasuke, who fell the ground in a heap.

"Well, that was graceful." Suigetsu muttered.

"I don't want to hear it." Sasuke groaned as he stood. His ego was certainly bruised.

"Well, you aren't that impressive for an Uchiha! You're barely even doing anything!"

"At least I'm not falling for her tricks unlike you." Sasuke replied, purposely keeping his voice level.

Suigetsu glared at him. "Well at least I can back up the Hōzuki name, unlike you, Uchiha."

There were practically sparks between the two boys as they outright glared at each other.

"We can do this!" Pakura said, forcing them to pay attention to the situation at hand. "We were chosen for a reason, so we have to work together on this! I will not let Suna or Konoha down!"

Pakura formed several marble-sized glowing balls of fire. "Shakuton! Hotaru-dan!"

Kurenai dodged most of the projectiles, but a few did hit her arm, side, and cheek. It was incredibly painful, and that was an understatement. Her wounds weren't exactly burns; but rather dehydration.

Sasuke saw his opening, and lashed out with another Fireball Jutsu. This was something he'd been working on by himself. Cupping his hands around his mouth, and not using the usual small ring; Sasuke was able to channel even more chakra into the technique.

The resulting fireball engulfed the area.

"Hey, watch it!" Suigetsu yelled. He may have been fire-resistant, but that didn't mean he wanted to get burned.

Sasuke gave him a look out of the corner of his eye that annoyed Suigetsu for some reason. It had to be an insult!

Suigetsu ran around the massive fire, watching and waiting.

He saw Kurenai dodging out of the flames. Jumping and spinning through the air, water practically exploded out of Suigetsu's sword.

"Mizu no Chenso!"

The water tore through the trees and ground; whatever came into contact with it. Instead of Kurenai, though – it was Pakura. Her screams filled his ears, and her blood was everywhere…hadn't he…? Suigetsu stood frozen. He was positive that Pakura was on the other side of the flames…now, he wasn't so sure.

A jolt of energy went through him, and Suigetsu found himself looking at Sasuke.

"Stop falling for her tricks, idiot."

Suigetsu looked downright annoyed. "I didn't! I was just surprised, that's all! Just watch and learn!"

Suigetsu took off running towards Kurenai.

Sasuke rolled his eyes at that response. "The only thing I'll learn from you is how to fall for obvious traps."

Suigetsu turned briefly to flip Sasuke off. In annoyance, Sasuke briefly questioned if this was punishment for something.

Kurenai found herself having to block and fight back against Pakura, who was near-relentless with her kunai.

Pakura froze for only a few seconds under one of Kurenai's Genjutsu; and she was out of it in less than two seconds to continue her onslaught. The girl was incredibly perceptive – and getting out of a Genjutsu single-handedly was impressive.

Kurenai had to dodge an attack from Suigetsu, who came at her from behind. Suigetsu was spinning rapidly. "Suisha no Jutsu!"

A massive wheel of water surrounded him and his sword, slicing through the ground and ripping through tree branches.

Sasuke was right behind him, heading towards the only direction Kurenai could realistically go. Pakura suddenly charged at her from the other side.

Kurenai dodged a thrown kunai from Sasuke - and substituted herself with a log.

"What…?" Kurenai questioned when she heard a sound. She had an exploding tag attached to her. Huh…she smirked in approval. It seemed that Sasuke had made a clone, and she'd been focused on dodging. Pakura must have noticed the clone – and Suigetsu, whether he'd intended to or not, had also provided a decent distraction.

Kurenai disarmed the tag, just as the alarm went off.

The kids looked tired, and Kurenai clapped her hands.

"I can tell you right now, that you kids are skilled. Once you were actually working together, that made you a near, unstoppable force. The way Suigetsu and Sasuke teamed up at the last moment – and how Pakura kept my attention, that's how I want you to be at all times."

Suigetsu made a face. "We teamed up?"

"You were the perfect distraction." Sasuke replied. "You're very good at that…Dobe."

"Dobe? Dobe?!" Suigetsu was riled up. "That's rich. At least my hair doesn't look like a duck's butt!"

Sasuke frowned and reached up towards his hair. His flat response was, "My hair doesn't look like a duck's butt."

Suigetsu snorted. "Yeah, it does. The next duck you see just might fall in love and try to screw it."

The two boys glared as their foreheads were pressed together.

Pakura pulled at Suigetsu's shirt to get the boys' attention back on their Sensei.

Pakura scratched her cheek. "Er…Sensei? I um…I just didn't want you to run away, I had no idea that Uchiha had a clone."

Kurenai made a face of her own, now. "All of that was unintentional?"

The combined expressions on the kids' faces along with them not meeting her eyes was a resounding confirmation of her question.

Kurenai closed her eyes and pushed a thumb against her temple, trying to relieve her oncoming headache. Alright, so the kids were skilled and could work together – albeit unintentionally. She'd confirm their team status with the Academy, and have them train together until they could work together as a unit - intentionally. Kurenai could work with this.

Maybe.

She opened her eyes to see Suigetsu making faces at Sasuke; Sasuke was glaring – just as impressively as any Uchiha worth their salt could. Pakura was telling – more like ordering them to get along since they were on a team now.

"Well, let's go celebrate. My treat."

Suigetsu and Sasuke glared at each other as they walked. A few people actually backed away in fear at the sight of them.

"We would have done a better job if you'd listened to me." Sasuke insisted.

"Yeah, whatever duck-butt."

Sasuke's voice raised just a little. "Stop calling me that!"

"Oh, Sasuke-kun~" Suigetsu mocked with a feminine voice. "You and your duck-butt are so manly~"

Sasuke snarked right back. "You have an unhealthy and strange fascination for butts. Maybe because butts remind you of your face."

Kurenai was considering complaining to Hiruzen for promoting (forcing) her into a Sensei position.

Suigetsu was about to respond, but was cut off.

"Stop arguing you two, this is a time for celebration; not conflict." Pakura said as she got between them. She put her arms over their shoulders. She'd gone through a growth spurt over the past year, so the boys didn't have to lean too much while they walked.

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Kurenai had the expression of someone just being entirely done with the situation as Sasuke and Suigetsu argued over how much they could eat; and how much spiciness they could handle.

Suigetsu went into a coughing fit and made himself sick. Sasuke was smirking victoriously, although he was sweating profusely. He was clearly fighting off the desperate need to take several gulps of the complimentary milk the restaurant offered with their spiciest dishes. Pakura was admonishing them for wasting food and Kurenai's money; and exploiting her generosity.

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When Sasuke got home that day, he went straight to the kitchen where he could hear people talking. His parents, Itachi, Shisui, and a few other cousins – and an aunt were there.

"Oh, Sasuke-kun!" his mother greeted happily. "So? Did you get placed on a team?"

"Mom…does my hair look like a duck-butt?"

Mikoto was taken aback. "What?"

Sasuke was about to ask his question again, when Shisui burst out laughing, and even Itachi was smiling in amusement.

"It-it-it really does!" Shisui wheezed out.

"Shisui!" Mikoto scolded. She had always thought Sasuke's hair was cute styled like it was. "Sasuke, your hair—"

"I'm never letting you cut my hair again, mom!" Sasuke yelled and he turned around and stormed out of the kitchen.

"Sasuke-kun!" Mikoto called as Sasuke stomped upstairs to his room and slammed the door. "Aren't you hungry?"

His bedroom door opened briefly. "I already ate with my team!" Sasuke yelled before slamming the door again.

"Oh, he got placed, I'm so happy! I wonder with who, though?"

It would be a good thing that Fugaku was at home when he heard the news of who Sasuke's team members were.

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An Author's Rambles:

I decided to make this a bit of a longer chapter, because you lovelies deserve it.

A tarantula hawk is a two-inch long spider wasp that preys on tarantulas. Has a nasty sting. Usually won't sting unless provoked – its sting is among the most painful of all insects, though the pain only lasts about five minutes.

Iru was coming from a place that she thought Pakura would be insecure about: her appearance, and her attractiveness to men. Iru's own insecurities shine bright.

Sakura will have a focus on her next chapter.

Iruka is actually incredibly skilled, but he doesn't want to move up a rank, so he purposefully holds himself back. He likes keeping an eye on the future Shinobi that comes through and preparing them for the future.

Suigetsu and Sasuke's competitiveness will make Kurenai's hair go gray. Pakura is a glorified babysitter.

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Shakuton! Hotaru-dan – Scorch Release – firefly bullet

Suisha no Jutsu – Waterwheel

Mizu no Chenso – Water Chainsaw

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Y'all stay safe out there, y'hear!

PS: And wash your hands!