"Nice one, well done, good job, however you want to say it; congratulations."

The speech began; with not a bang nor a particularly good joke, but with everybody in the room wrapped about the words spoken from the mouth of the man at the front of the room. His voice was calm; reassuring, his eyes twinkled merrily.

This was the very best part of his job.

"You have each successfully completed your training as Academy Students and have successfully passed the exam to become Genin; the first step in your career as a shinobi." He paused to allow the children, with their freshly scrubbed faces and brand new head-bands gleaming to applaud themselves, chattering pointlessly for a moment before quieting, "You each have unique abilities and individual characteristics. These characteristics will bring much to the teams of which you are assigned…Yes?"

A blonde girl sitting near the front had raised her hand earnestly, dark eyes wide and questioning. Beside her a black haired boy was rubbing his temples, as though frustrated.

"Yeah, why can't we pick our own teams?" She asked, and nearly every student groaned; recognizing her questioning tone, "I mean; I know who I work the best with, and who my friends are; why do you get to decide who's on which teams?"

"Actually I do not get to decide." The sensei laughed good-naturedly; having become well-acquainted with the girl over her time at the academy, "The Hokage and her council get to decide, based on the scores given to you by your sensei, and on your application, as well as the personal interview conducted about a week ago; you do remember that, right?"

The blonde looked lost for a moment before nodding. Her interview had not gone well. She'd been freaked out about the whole thing, and had flubbed everything she'd said.

"May I continue?"

"Yes sir."

"As I was saying; each of you will bring much to the team on which you are assigned. You will find that your teammates will be closer to you than family…" The blonde grinned, elbowing the black haired boy beside her, who rolled his eyes, "You will certainly be spending more time together; eating together, training together, and sleeping together."

This sent a wave of giggles through the room of twelve year olds, and the instructor sighed. He always said that, and it always got the same result. The level of maturity…well, it was just about right considering their age.

"Ha-ha, it's hilarious." He grinned as they quieted, and smoothed out the paper he held, "And now! The big announcement! Your teams."

The silence intensified; the Genin leaned forward in their seats, all eager to know who they would be spending so much time with. Many of the girls glanced shyly at the boy with the black hair, who was staring at the sensei. A girl with a hood drawn over her head made a strange, whimpering sound, crouching in her seat in a feral manner.

"Team Eight will consist of Inuzuka Nhamo," The girl with the hood stood straight up…on her seat. Her hood fell back to reveal an angular face and unruly brown hair forced into low-hanging pigtails. Even standing on her seat she was incredibly small. "Along with Uchiha Roku," Nhamo grinned in a wolfish manner at the dark haired boy, who stood in a more dignified manner, smiling back at her and touching the blonde beside him lightly on the shoulder as she slouched forward.

They wouldn't be on the same team.

"And finally; Hyuuga Kenji."

This sparked a new round of chatter throughout the room. An Uchiha and a Hyuuga on the same team? That could possibly be balanced and fair…had there been a mistake? There had to have been.

"Quiet please!" The instructor now raised his voice, clearing his throat, "Team Nine will consist of Nara Shikago." The dark haired boy shrugged, not bothering to stand. Though his glanced hopefully at the chubby boy sitting beside him, who was staring at the proctor with suspiciously pupil-less blue eyes, "Akimichi Choni," The two bashed forearms, grinning cheekily before wondering which female in the room would be the interloper on their friendship. Silently each wished for the busty brunette sitting a row ahead.

They were slightly disappointed when the name, "Uchiha Malvika." Was called and the blonde with the questions perked slightly, turning to smile at them. Choni smiled awkwardly, quirking a wave as Shikago yawned, thoroughly disappointed. They just had to get the completely mental Uchiha, didn't they?

Excitement buzzed throughout the body of students as the rest of the teams (five in all) were called, and they were released for lunch, on the promise that upon their return to the classroom they would meet their Jounin-sensei and proceed to begin their training according to their sensei's instructions. The Genin crowded the outdoor courtyard; some socializing with their new teammates, or avoiding them entirely. Girls were showing off new outfits; headbands incorporated in extravagant and flattering ways. Most of the boys simply wore theirs on their heads.

Uchiha Malvika walked alongside her brother. She was, at the very least, six inches shorter than him. Her blonde hair was vibrant; her skin pink and freckled lightly across the bridge of her nose. The only common trait she had with her brother was their eyes; both nothing but black abyss.

Roku was tall and thin; but strong in his body, as well as in his facial features. His skin was paler; his hair spiked in the back and hanging limply in the front. Like their mutual father's; Sasuke.

Then again…they technically had two fathers.

The other was apparent by the whisker like markings stretching onto Malvika's cheeks from her jaw line.

"I can't believe they separated us!" Malvika ranted, brow furrowed angrily, as though thinking deeply, "We've never been separated!"

"Mal, it's not that big of a deal." Roku was calm and smooth; the opposite of his sister's spastic scatter-brained qualities. They were balanced. Perfectly almost.

"WE SHARED A UTERUS!" She exclaimed, waving her hands in the air wildly. All over their classmates stared, some grinning in amusement at the twins. Roku flushed slightly, only to be rescued.

"Hey Roku-kun!" Nhamo had appeared, grinning wildly, towing Kenji with her, "We've got bonding to do! See you Mal-chan; I gotta steal your brother."

"And now people are stealing you!"

Nhamo laughed, gripping Roku's sleeve and dragging him away as Mala muttered angrily to herself, twisting a lock of blonde around her finger and watching her brother worriedly.

"I guess she's having a bit of trouble." The brunette murmured to her new teammates, glancing back over her shoulder at Malvika, who was glancing around worriedly, but blankly. As though looking for something that she knew did not exist, "Geez, she looks like a lost puppy."

'Fox, actually.' Roku thought to himself, rubbing the back of his neck, slightly embarrassed.

"But that doesn't really matter!" Nhamo certainly seemed enthusiastic, more than he could say for the boy with the luscious head of black hair who walked along the Inuzuka's other side. His pale, pupil-less gaze pointed forward. Kenji hadn't said a word. Roku scowled; he had never gotten along well with the Hyuuga.

He couldn't help but think Tsunade-sama had been spiteful when deciding teams.

"Maybe this isn't so bad." Choni encouraged, biting into one of the three sandwiches he had found tucked within his lunch box. He and Shikago say side by side on the cement ground beneath an awning. Shikago wasn't eating; at least not yet. A brown paper bag with a rapidly spreading grease stain on the bottom lay beside him. "I mean; aren't all Uchiha's geniuses?"

Shikago snorted, his head tilted back, and glanced at Choni, eyebrows raised. His blue-green eyes were oddly blank and disinterested. He raised an eyebrow in question, smirking lightly, "You can't possibly be referring to the only member of our team without a Y chromosome, right? Uchiha Malvika? You know, last year she almost died because she accidentally swallowed the kunai she was holding in her mouth? Yeah. Not exactly a genius."

Choni shrugged, chewing thoughtfully, brushing light brown hair back from his forehead. He was a placid, sweet individual. Though slightly scatterbrained, he was loyal like a Labrador and without a single mean bone in his body.

Shikago, on the other hand, was judgmental and brutally honest. But he was bright; gifted with strategy, and with the kind of memory that made people hold their breath and mind their P's and Q's around him. He remembered things.

"I still don't think it's that bad." He pointed across the courtyard; to a small swing which hung from a tree. It was a simple plank of wood supported by fraying ropes. Malvika was sitting on the swing, her lunchbox held on her lap, swinging slowly, and in only a small arc. She was staring at the ground; eyes half-lidded, looking sad and lost. "Look at her. She doesn't look nearly as stupid as you make her out to be."

As Choni said this, the Uchiha girl lifted her feet from the ground and promptly fell backwards off of the swing, landing with a thump on her rump on the ground.

"Yeah, a real genius." The ponytail-ed boy replied, closing his eyes, before repeating, in a slightly muted tone "A real genius."

He couldn't help but think Tsunade-sama had been spiteful when deciding teams.