A/N: Hello, people!

I don't own Naruto.

I have no beta.

ENJOY!

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TAGS: DRAMA, hints of SASUNARU.

-Sorry this is late. I've been pulled in every direction recently. Cleaning,
assisting mom to the doctor, shopping, and being damn miserable for no
obvious reasons. Also PMS.

-This chapter was finished I guess you could say, but I just did not have
the energy to edit it. I never post without at least combing through once.

Shikamaru swapped his common studs for his elemental ones. Since his life as a shinobi was officially starting now, he knew how important it was to have something up his sleeve. Even in his own village, where he was supposed to be the safest, it wouldn't be smart to leave his guard down.

The order in which they would be worn, would be Fire in the lobes, then Water, Earth, Lightning, and Wind going up the cartilage of the ear.

Yuuki wore hers as Fire, Lightning, Earth, Water, and then Wind. He didn't know why he'd taken note of it, but he had for some reason. She'd never deviated from it either. At least it would be an easy way to tell her apart from an impostor if worst came to worst.

"Shikamaru, you're going to be late!" his mother yelled from the kitchen, making him groan. He knew he was fighting the inevitable, but it was still so annoying having to walk to school.

But he'd get to see his friends, which was a good thing.

"Here's your bento. Try not to chew anyone's head off today," Yoshino said once he was downstairs.

"Chewing people out is too much of a drag, kaa-chan."

She rolled her eyes and patted his shoulder. "Tell Yuuki-chan to visit more often. I need another girl or sense around the house!"

"Mah!"

He didn't know why his parents took to Yuuki so well. Maybe it was her lucrative mind. Or her frank behavior. or the fact that she got their son to not be as lazy as he usually was.

At least they liked her and didn't ever tell him to avoid her. He knew some clans, like the Hyuga, would not be happy if their Heir was in regular contact with someone not of a political station they desired.

It was stupid in his opinion. It sucked that Hinata had to live in such a clan. If Yuuki knew how much trouble Hinata got into for being her friend, she'd probably stomp into the Hyuga Compound and curse Hyuga Hiashi's ears red.

He'd pay to see that actually. That wouldn't be troublesome.

The day had arrived with the students coming in around ten as instructed to. The whole of class 5-A(all twenty-eight of them) would be separated into their shinobi duties. Iruka had been all kinds of emotional that morning, smiling at them and congratulating them on such hard work. He said that he was proud of their success and couldn't wait to see how far they went.

Of course this prompted Naruto into tears and saw him tackling the man in a hug. By then it was public knowledge that Iruka was like an older brother figure to Naruto and all of the students who used to be jealous of the attention the blond received, got over it. It wasn't as if Iruka was unfair with his attention anyway. And he never showed favoritism in class so being jealous of an orphan getting some positive attention was kind of pointless as most of them got it every day at home from someone they were related to.

"Okay, Naruto, I have to get to the teams. Go sit with your friends."

"Sure, sensei!"

And lo and behold! Yuuki had been right all along! The teams she'd guessed at were exactly as she'd said they'd be. She was a genius. Fear her awesome powers of deduction! And common sense. Yuuki was mostly just overflowing with common sense.

Additionally though… "Yuuki-chan, your sensei will be picking you up right before lunch due to scheduling issues. You've earned an Apprenticeship with Kato Shizune, in Iryo Ninjutsu."

Unexpected. She knew it had been the most likely choice for her considering her chakra control, and had already registered for the course at the hospital, but to get an Apprenticeship? Not just standard hospital classes but an actual Jonin medic to coach her along? A living, breathing person who would be there for her personal attention?

It was pretty cool. And she was very fortunate too, she didn't neglect to understand that bit. Not many people got to be apprenticed to someone. And honestly, even if she got it for something she wasn't even interested in, she would have sucked it up and dealt, because it was such a rare thing to happen that being grateful for it was more important.

"You don't seem bothered by the potential hard work this will bring," said Shikamaru, head resting on his folded arms, but tilted enough for him to look at her clearly. He had such nice eyes and eyelashes. I wasn't fair. They were simply dark but fit his face so well. His face was symmetrical and she was dying!

She shrugged, pushing away her raging feelings over a cute boy to focus on more important things. "I already knew it would come to this in a sense. My grades in science were so-so because I hate it and put in only the requisite effort on tests, but I'm great at memorization and medical basics, and made certain to prepare ahead of time for this. Genjutsu is boring and uninteresting and requires self-study and fieldwork since there's one person in this village who specializes in it. Iryo Ninjutsu requires for most medics to stand still and not have to do battle. Also I'll be in the village a lot as the classes evolve in difficulty so that's good enough for me. And the hospital is closer to my apartment than the Academy."

There was only one Genjutsu Master in Konoha. It was one of those branches of the shinobi arts that was self-taught. And with no more Uchiha around to coach people through training, it had practically died off with only one Jonin specializing in it in their village. It was just that boring to people. If you can escape one, then you're fine for the most part. Learn something else that was actually useful.

Shikamaru shook his head, a small smirk on his face. "You are something else."

"Meh. How do you feel about your team's future?"

"Mah! I have Choji and Ino's gotten that wake up call so it's all good. I know she'll be bossy, but it'll be tolerable now. And Choji will be a buffer so it's fine."

Said boy sent his long-time friend a grateful look and Yuuki smiled at their relationship. It was nice to see. She'd heard gossip from jealous civilian kids that Nara were too lazy to care about anyone and in her experience that just wasn't true. Shikamaru cared very much for a lot of people and was mindful of their feelings to the best of his ability. She wouldn't have a crush on him if it was otherwise. And he was loyal as hell. That was a very attractive trait in a person.

The new Genin milled around, Yuuki's row staying in their seats and their friends coming over to take the row in front of them. Hinata nearly fainted from having Naruto so close while Shino remained quiet and observant as always.

"We should still meet up whenever we can!" suggested Naruto. "We can play Yuuki's games and just have a good time."

The others voiced their agreement and she held up a hand. "Just not at my apartment. My neighbors on either side are really into bumpin' uglies at all hours of the day. One's a young couple and the other has her clients over all the time. You'd think she'd move out eventually but I guess it's just better to have nice things in a shitty apartment than have a nice apartment and shitty things." It kind of made sense, while also making no sense to her.

"And you fixed the rent issues so now no one sane would leave now," Naruto pointed out.

"True."

"What?" asked the rest of the group in confusion.

Naruto became even more animated than before, recounting the situation that Yuuki had put their complex manager in. He was a good story-teller, and got some good laughs from their friends about how devious Yuuki was. Shikamaru was staring at her though, like she was something knew he hadn't ever seen before.

"What?" she asked him.

"Nothing."

Weird.

The tale of her cunning ways was interrupted by the loud squealing of the fangirls who had all converged upon Sasuke's position once they'd been left to their own devices. There were six of them surrounding the last loyal Uchiha and until now their words had been reduced to a low din.

Now they were loud, crying about not being on his team, asking him out on dates, asking after his plans for his career, etc… The usual kind of invasive questioning.

He never answered. He remained stoic. Even with Ino and Sakura fighting over who got to sit closest to him in their row every four seconds, he held himself together. She had to admire his self-control because if it was her, she'd start throwing fists of chakra for her personal space to be returned. Yuuki did not have that kind of enviable self-restraint.

A groan came from Naruto, who looked a bit put out, eyes narrowed upon Ino's arms that were wrapped around one of Sasuke's. She was holding on as best as possible while Sakura was trying to bodily yank her off their crush. Nothing was working out for any of them and the other girls crowded closer in an attempt to establish dominance.

One would think they'd learn after the hair loss prank, but nooooo. That was simply too much to ask for.

"Why don't you go and save him?" Yuuki suggested to her blond friend, a smirk in place. He could be the hero his crush desperately needed.

Obviously the option hadn't occurred to him before as his near-mutinous expression brightened with sunlight, and he was out of his seat and across the room in seconds.

The blond hovered on the outside of the group of fangirls, looking back and forth as he decided what to do. His friends watched with interest to see how he'd go about saving Sasuke from his stalkers.

He created a Kage Bunshin and just as Fangirl #3 tackled Sasuke from behind which knocked him forward, the Bunshin used the Kawarimi with the Uchiha, placing him beside Naruto. The problem was that it was unexpected and he was still in a seated position, slightly hunched over and now falling down the stairs. The original Naruto reacted just quick enough to grab his hand and switch their positions, but it was too late as gravity had caught hold of them both and they went tumbling down the steps together.

Dropped jaws all around. Hinata let out a loud squeak and fainted into Shino's lap instantly. He thankfully caught her around the waist so she didn't tumble to the floor in a heap.

Sasuke had landed on top of Naruto and had just taken Naruto's first kiss. And since Yuuki had inside information, she knew that the blond was dying inside and not for the reasons their classmates probably assumed.

"Well then," she murmured to herself, "not what I had expected but good material anyway. I'll never let him live it down." He'd blush so much over it! "His dreams have been realized," she added quietly.

As Sasuke was on top, it was him in control of the... kiss. And he wasn't moving, which she found to be interesting.

Their free entertainment was cut short when the classroom door slid open to reveal a fair-skinned woman. Her hair and eyes were as dark as Yuuki's and judging by height, she wasn't that much taller than Yuuki either. Said hair was cut in a shoulder-length bob with a fringe. The kimono she wore was black with white trimming and an equally white obi. A hint of mesh armor could be seen at the fold of the cloth. She lacked a hitai-ate though but was obviously a shinobi of decent experience judging by how she carried herself.

It was like an older version of Yuuki had just walked in the door.

The woman paused to take in the view they'd all been watching, and then turned to the room and said, "Is Yuuki-san here?"

"Present," the girl in question said with a wave of the hand.

"I am Kato Shizune," the woman said with a small bow. "I am to be your shishou from this point onward. Tsunade-sama has requested our presence before lunch so if you'll follow me, we can begin our new journey together."

Holy shit. There was only one Tsunade. She was a legendary medic who had taken on only one Apprentice in her lifetime. And now Yuuki was an Apprentice to that Apprentice. The Apprentice who got all of Tsunade's teaching, tips, and tricks.

Yuuki had been handed over to them. She didn't get a Genin team but she got a badass and her niece/Apprentice. Tsunade had been re-hauling the hospital for the past couple of months since her return to the village. She would have a say in Yuuki's training for sure since she improved upon the classes the hospital was teaching.

Damn.

Yuuki sent her friends the peace sign and followed her new superior out of the room.

Goodbye to a life of easy work and low effort. She'd send up a prayer in remembrance to the gods she didn't believe in later.

Shizune had seen the profile and knew what Yuuki looked like ahead of time as her photo had been right at the top of the page beside her statistics. Still, seeing her in person was enough to make her pause. She was perfectly aware of the fact that she had never been pregnant and therefore couldn't have birthed a child. Nor did she give up any of her eggs. So despite the likeness being eerie, they could not be related in that way.

Since none of her relatives lived to see their twenties besides Dan, they couldn't be related that way either.

Yuuki's blood tests even came back with unknown parents. Her parents probably hadn't even been Konoha citizens as she and a few others came from the orphanage that had been outside the village a good distance, that suffered in the aftermath of the Kyuubi attack. That building had been wrecked and the children still alive were brought to Konoha and remained there permanently.

Yuuki was quiet and as her notes stated, looked dead bored with everything going on, but if one looked closer, it was easy to tell her eyes were sharp and flicking back and forth in assessment of her surroundings at all times.

Tsunade's office was on the bottom floor of the hospital and her desk was surrounded by medical texts and diagrams. Despite being the greatest medic alive, she still had a lot to learn in their field of study and worked every day to invent new treatments or to improve pre-existing treatments.

When the two entered her office, she placed her paperwork down and folded her hands beneath her chin. "Sit," she ordered them. "Let's talk. I ordered some sushi that will be delivered in a few minutes."

They took the offered chairs in front of her desk and waited.

"Shizune has been my Apprentice for many years. In Konoha standards she has received her Mastery and that is why she is allowed to take you on as an Apprentice. My personal standards disagree so while she legally is no longer my student, she still seeks training and teaching under me. We continue to grow and learn together. You are going to join this little team of ours. When I have time I will teach you something I know personally, however in general, Shizune is your Master in this regard. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Tsunade-hime."

"You will refer to me as sensei. It sounds less pompous than that ridiculous formality shit people insist on around here all because of who I am related to."

"Yes, sensei," the girl instantly amended.

"Good. Now tell us about yourself."

At least Tsunade-sama seemed accepting of the girl. She looked interested instead of annoyed and didn't use the tone she frequently used when addressing the Hokage's council. That meant she at least partially respected the girl.

"What do you want me to say exactly?" Yuuki asked, face still relatively blank.

Shizune stepped in then. "Likes, dislikes, hobbies, dreams for the future, special skills, preferred weapon of choice, favorite food, least favorite food, and favorite color would be a good start." It would help them get to know her personally. Paperwork only went so far.

The girl hummed for a moment, blinking a few times as she put her thoughts in order.

"Okay. I like food and sleep in no particular order. I dislike all the adults in the village who went against the Hokage's orders and broke the law just to sabotage my best friend. My hobbies include inventing new board games and then mass-marketing them with the aid of Nara Shikaku. I don't really have dreams or ambitions beyond never being poor again and never getting into debt. My special skills involve holding my breath underwater for seven minutes and thirteen seconds, very precise chakra control, and apparently the ability to rotate my eyes in different directions at different speeds if I want. I prefer to use hatchets as weapons and already have a set that was custom made for me. My fav food is rice, my least favs are eggplant, hazelnuts, and liver. I like black more than anything because any color goes with it so as long as black is the most of what is used. One colored item will match no matter what. I don't have a sense of fashion but I don't want to mix up clothes that don't match and end up looking stupid either."

She got all of that out in a single breath and her face barely moved the entire time. It was a bit unnerving, but Shizune kept her smile up, not wanting to discourage the girl or anything.

And the new information they'd received - such as inventing board games, using hatchets as shinobi weapons, and being able to hold her breath for so long - helped build a more solid profile on the girl and her character. It wasn't often that newly graduated Genin would already be so sure of themselves.

At least hatchets were a long-range weapon and could keep enemies far away while she improved herself.

"Everyone has left already!" Naruto groaned as he flopped around in the new seat he'd been forced to take beside Sasuke.

After Yuuki had left, he'd been on his own basically, in handling the whole kiss scene, since none of his other friends knew what to do about it. Sasuke hadn't mentioned anything about it either, but he'd taken his damn sweet time moving!

But he was also very soft, which was so weird since he was always training and always working hard. Never did Naruto think he'd lose his first kiss to Sasuke of all people, but he had to admit, at least privately, that it wasn't a bad kiss. For one that wasn't planned or asked for, it still went pretty well!

Also, Sasuke yelled at his fangirls when some of them tried to attack Naruto for ruining their 'chances' or some such crap!

So, him being him, decided to stick his tongue out at the collected fangirls and say, "I know what Sasuke tastes like and none of you will ever find out! So why don't you go suck on a lemon!"

His declaration got him a myriad of glares, but none of them could do anything because Sasuke yanked him into the now-free seat beside him and told him not to move or else. Obviously he didn't mind Naruto's words all that much and none of them wanted to get on his bad side or risk losing their 'chances'.

"Just be patient," Sasuke told him in response to his whining about their late sensei.

"I'm not known for patience."

That got him a small smirk from the Uchiha, who didn't try to argue because it was just the plain truth. Naruto was too energetic and too excitable and had too many things on his mind all the time. How was he supposed to focus when nothing interesting was happening?!

"Mmmuuuuhhhhhhhh!"

Both boys glanced to their right, where Sakura was seated on the other side of Naruto, away from Sasuke. Her forehead was resting on the desk and she had been downtrodden all afternoon while they waited. She didn't want to be on a team with Naruto, and didn't like how Sasuke seemed to prefer Naruto's presence over hers. It made the blond want to wiggle his ass in her face and go 'neh neh ne-neh neh!'.

He didn't know where this spiteful side of him came from, but maybe he was just sick and tired of being overlooked and treated terribly by her. Sakura was pretty and book smart, and that was about it. The only good thing about him being on a team with her was being able to look at her up close now, and that was it.

The door to the room slid open, drawing their attention to the Jonin was walked in. He was tall, with silver hair that defied gravity and a face mostly covered by a mask and his hitai-ate.

It was a shame that Yuuki wasn't there to see what he looked like. Naruto would give anything to hear her opinion!

"Based on first impressions," the Jonin said in a lazy tone, "you're all boring."

And he was a jerk.

Kakashi knew they he would eventually be getting some ducklings of his own, but he hadn't expected to get them all so very soon! Surely he had a few years to go? Had time really passed by him so quickly?

He tried to think of the last time he truly complained about how slow things were going, and realized that it was most likely before the traitor Mizuki was discovered under the Hokage's orders. Barely existing from day to day had abruptly changed as the shinobi system of Konoha began to change.

Things at the Academy began shifting and the education of their future soldiers was suddenly improved. Mizuki's actions lead to the discovery of Danzo's deceit and betrayal. The extent of which was still being carefully pored over to this day. Tsunade-sama had returned to the village with her Apprentice and had taken up her place at the hospital once again, improving the classes taught there as well.

Soon they would have more experienced medics out on the field and their fatality rate, which was the lowest among the Five Great Nations already, would lower even more.

Everything was better than before, and with all of these improvements, it was easy to get lost in it all. It made sense that he hadn't realized how quickly time had gone past him, because for the first time in years, he felt at least mildly content.

And no matter what he did, he couldn't put it off any longer, so Kakashi accepted the files on his new students, and got to learning about them so he wouldn't be surprised when finally meeting them in person.

Name: Uzumaki Naruto
Age: 12
Birthday: October 10th
Father: [Redacted]
Mother: [Redacted]
Blood Type: B
Health Notes: No sign of any health conditions. Accelerated Healing Factor. Unaffected by poison.
Hair: Blond
Eyes: Blue
Skin: Tan(Medium)
Distinguishing Characteristics: Three whisker-like marking on each cheek.

STATISTICS:

Ninjutsu: 3/5
Taijutsu: 2/5
Genjutsu: 0/5
Intelligence: 2/5
Strength: 3/5
Speed: 3/5
Stamina: 4/5
Hand Seals: 2/5
TOTAL: 19

EXTRA:

CHAKRA CONTROL:
Kunai Balancing: 3/5
Tree Walking: 5/5
Water Walking: 5/5
Futon Chakra Manipulation: 5/5
Shape Manipulation: 3/5

Notes from Chunin Umino Iruka:

Naruto-kun has come a long way, proving that under the proper guidance and attention, he can excel at anything he puts his mind to. His attitude it always chipper and he's always willing to help people as much as he can. His loyalty and work ethic are to be commended. Even when faced with undeserved cruelty from the people of the village, Naruto never lost his goodness and it is that fact, along with everything else I know about him, that make me truly believe that will attain his dream of being the Hokage some day.

He'd grown considerably from the time he was being sabotaged by Mizuki. Kakashi was proud of his sensei's son. Without having anyone there for half of his life, he'd ended up doing pretty well.

A 19 as his total in shinobi statistics was very good considering in years past, Genin would have maybe 15 if they were lucky. But 19 was the highest number anyone in the class had received, which was impressive. The lowest was a 15, so the former highest score was now the lowest, and Kakashi was very pleased by those changes.

Name: Uchiha Sasuke
Age: 12
Birthday: July 23rd
Father: Uchiha Fugaku
Mother: Uchiha Mikoto
Blood Type: AB
Health Notes: Has improved eyesight compared to a normal human's. Unidentified reasoning. Has PTSD and Depression. See additional notes on his Medical Page for more details.
Hair: Black
Eyes: Black
Skin: Fair
Distinguishing Characteristics: Slight blue tint to his dark hair, double eyelids, and three fully-functioning kidneys.

STATISTICS:

Ninjutsu: 3/5
Taijutsu: 3/5
Genjutsu: 1/5
Intelligence: 3/5
Strength: 2/5
Speed: 3/5
Stamina: 2/5
Hand Seals: 2/5
TOTAL: 19

EXTRA:

CHAKRA CONTROL:
Kunai Balancing: 5/5
Tree Walking: 5/5
Water Walking: 5/5
Katon Chakra Manipulation: 5/5
Shape Manipulation: 5/5

Notes from Chunin Umino Iruka:

I have personally witnessed Sasuke-san become more open as the school years have passed. Ever since we upgraded the curriculum, he's been presented with more of a challenge and has less time to brood in his misery. This successfully keeps him distracted, and distractions are good for him. He recently attended a birthday party of one of the other Clan Heirs, and his friendship with Naruto-kun has blossomed considering in their free time. They even spar often.

While there are lingering effects of that night, I believe he is getting better. He's much more pleasant these days, and seems less likely to expire at the first sign of stress.

Sasuke had also grown as well. While the shadow of his older brother was something he'd never truly escape, things had improved in his personal life as well. He was less inclined to moping these days.

He and Naruto being tied with 19 points was very good, especially since their strengths were different.

Their Chakra Natures were very interesting and could make for some good combinations later on.

Name: Haruno Sakura
Age: 12
Birthday: March 28th
Father: Haruno Kizashi
Mother: Haruno Mebuki
Blood Type: O
Health Notes: A strange and unexplained weakness in the left dorsal tubercle. An abnormal amount of white blood cells. 50% Hearing Loss in the left ear.
Hair: Pink
Eyes: Green
Skin: Fair(Sensitive)
Distinguishing Characteristics: A wide forehead and a mole on her left shoulder blade.

STATISTICS:

Ninjutsu: 2/5
Taijutsu: 1/5
Genjutsu: 4/5
Intelligence: 4/5
Strength: 1/5
Speed: 1/5
Stamina: 1/5
Hand Seals: 2/5
TOTAL: 16

EXTRA:

CHAKRA CONTROL:
Kunai Balancing: 5/5
Tree Walking: 5/5
Water Walking: 5/5
Suiton Chakra Manipulation: 3/5
Shape Manipulation: 3/5

Notes from Chunin Umino Iruka:

Has an obsession with Sasuke-san that interferes with her work ethic. Has a cruel streak toward people that aren't Sasuke-san, which is concerning. Is on poor terms with both Sasuke-san and Naruto-kun. Refuses to take Sasuke-san's refusals to date him and perpetually harasses him for attention. Is also obsessed with diet culture to a dangerous degree and regularly fasts to 'lose weight'. Needs an intervention of some sort.

On the brighter side, she retains information perfectly. Probably has an eidetic memory. Her chakra control is very good as well. She could benefit from Genjutsu or Iryo Ninjutsu. And if she decides those aren't to her tastes, she could go into Cryptology or the Archives. Any of these fields would benefit from her presence given enough time, I'm certain.

He didn't know much about Sakura but the notes were... not great. She wasn't the worst he'd ever come across, but the obsession with the Uchiha brought up unpleasant memories. However, her skills could be very useful if he found a way to bring them to the surface and make them useful.

Overall, his team was going to have to deal with a lot of team-building exercises to make certain that Sakura's lack of skills didn't bring them all down. He of course wouldn't tell any of them that, as he didn't want to discourage her from working hard, but she was going to have to learn to pick up the slack.

D-Ranks were going to be hell on them all. He couldn't wait for the whining! D-Ranks were like the ninja form of hazing to an extent. Doing basic chores that rich people were simply too lazy to do themselves and loved flaunting that they could pay someone else to do them. Genin were basically glorified gardeners and babysitters if they weren't serving in war times.

Naruto was going to lose his mind when they had to paint someone's fence or six someone's roof. Maybe Kakashi would be especially cruel and find his ducklings the Tora Mission! It'd be nice to defeat the record set by his friend Gai's Genin.

Yes, that was a good plan.

A/N: Another is done!

How was it? let me know!

Ja ne! :D