Hello all, it's been quite a while hasn't it. Sorry from my part for the long wait, but life, you know. And University, my final year at that. I've got lots of tests and then finals coming up soon, going all the way through to the end of October, so unfortunately you guys are going to have to do some more waiting. Apologies for that, but it can't be helped.

A quick thank you to everybody who has favourited, followed, and reviewed, it was while reading your reviews that gave me the motivation to get out another chapter before I put you guys through another long wait. I hope you stick with me though, I do plan to finish this story. I think I've got too many expectant followers not too lol.

Anyways, sorry for the long AN, please enjoy the chapter! I hope I haven't forgotten how to write lol. Please let me know if I have!

Disclaimer: All characters of Naruto and things Naruto belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

I'm Defying Gravity by ShadowedNara

XxX

Chapter 15

Bells and bokkens

The cacophony of singing birds became clearer and clearer as I slowly came to. Their high-pitched chirps were the only indication necessary to know that it was at the very least already morning.

My body was desperately trying to hang on to the sleep I was slowly waking up from, my eyes still closed as a long yawn escaped my lips. I kept still for a moment, sighing deeply as I took a breath through my nose. Familiarity washed over me.

I knew before I'd even reluctantly cracked open an eye that I was in my room, the scent of the place indistinguishable from anything else. The rising sun filtered in a warm orange light, shining dustily through the slats of the blinds and letting me know that the time was likely closer to around midday than early morning.

Despite how dimly lit my room was, I still frowned against the sudden change in light, immediately closing the eye I'd opened earlier. Taking another breath, I stretched my arms above my head until I heard a satisfying pop, the sound sending goosebumps across my flesh. Man, that feels good.

I balled my fists against my eyes and wiped away any lingering sleep, staring at the ceiling for a couple of seconds as the events of yesterday slowly came to the forefront of my mind. Meeting the Rookie Nine, finding out that Tenzō (or rather according to his codename Yamato) was going to be my sensei, engaging in an all out spar and nearly bleeding to death.

Surprisingly enough, I felt perfectly okay. Better than okay, in fact. Throwing off the comforter, I stared down at my boxer-clad legs, admiring the smooth skin where I'd most definitely had a puncture wound from one of Yamato-sensei's kunai. With all the blood and my makeshift tourniquet, it was kind of difficult to forget.

I vaguely remembered Yamato-sensei saying something about a hospital, but other than that I couldn't recall a thing until I'd woken up a few minutes ago. A hospital was the only explanation for my perfectly healed leg. Unless of course I'd been unconscious for more than a few days. Suddenly a little unsure, I swung my legs over the side of the bed and padded softly out of my room, the smell of bacon sizzling away in the kitchen hitting me as soon as I opened my door.

Kakashi was slouched lazily over the stove with his 'World's Greatest Dad' apron hung proudly around his neck, one hand occupying the frying pan while the other occupied Icha Icha. The normalcy of the scene—everything but the fact that Kakashi was actually cooking—was more than enough to put a massive grin on my face.

Kakashi loved to give everyone the impression that he couldn't cook. The thought process was this: if people believed he couldn't cook, they'd never ask him to, which fit right in with his lazy way of life. If Kakashi was cooking however, there must have been a damn good reason for it.

"Whoa, pulling out the bacon. And an actual frying pan . . . what's the occasion?" I shuffled over to the kettle as I spoke, making sure it was filled with water before placing it onto the gas stove beside the frying pan and hopping up onto the granite counter top, my legs swinging absently.

Kakashi's eye never left his book as he expertly turned the page with his thumb, his other hand easily tossing the bacon a little about the pan before placing it back on the heat. "Oh, nothing special. Just making some breakfast for my favourite son."

I looked at him deadpan, my tone completely flat. "I'm your only son."

"And did I mention that you're my favourite?" he answered sweetly, thumbing over to the next page with a cheery look about him.

I rolled my eyes before hopping off the counter as the kettle began whistling, grabbing a couple of mugs and dropping a teabag in each. "So," I began hesitantly, sneaking a glance up at Kakashi before focusing back on the mugs, grabbing some sugar. "What happened yesterday? I mean, after I—"

"Passed out from blood loss due to haemorrhaging your femoral artery?" he interjected quizzically, his attention still fully on that of Icha Icha. "Nothing."

I paused mid-stir, frowning in confusion as I glanced up at Kakashi. "Nothing?"

"Nothing," he echoed again with a soft nod, sliding the bacon off the pan and onto a separate plate. Placing the pan back over the rolling flames of the gas stove, he grabbed a small jug before pouring in a light yellow mixture, no doubt moving onto the scrambled eggs next. He was doing them just the way I liked it too, frying them in the bacon-greased pan to give it some extra flavour. "You were admitted to the hospital for the afternoon, and I brought you back here in the evening."

Slowly nodding my head to his words, I resumed my stirring, stopping once again as his voice filled the quiet kitchen.

"Do you mind making a third cup? Coffee, no milk, no sugar?"

I inwardly cringed at the thought of what that would taste like, knowing first hand that even with over three sugars coffee was still much too bitter for my taste buds. In addition to that, coffee never failed to give me a mild headache, so I generally tended to stay away from the stuff. I knew there were people who very much liked the bitter taste of a straight up coffee though, but that didn't mean I'd be keeping my opinion to myself.

"Who's the piss in a cup for?" I asked with a disgusted frown, watching as Kakashi pushed around the scrambled eggs in the pan with the spatula.

His eye crinkled in amusement as he thumbed to the next page, his tone only mildly chastising as he spoke. "Now now son, no toilet talk during breakfast."

I rolled my eyes at his words, grabbing the cup of coffee and my own mug and gently setting them down at the kitchen table before walking back to the kettle and grabbing Kakashi's. I carried it over and gently placed it down in front of him, watching in mild curiosity as he suddenly glanced down at his wrist as if checking a watch. "Hm. Seems he's right on time, if not even a little early. Would you mind getting that?"

I frowned softly at his words, my brows knit in confusion. "What—"

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

I glanced in the direction of the front door and then back at Kakashi, my mouth opening and closing a few times before I sighed softly, my shoulders slumping resignedly. "Sure thing."

"That's why you're my favourite~"

I grumbled under my breath as I made my way to the front door, my bare feet padding softly against the wooden floors. My hand went to the mask hanging around my neck and I pulled it up over my face almost reflexively, the material as much a part of my body as my arms or legs. Making sure it was in place, I unlocked the door and swung it open, my eyes widening slightly at the unexpected visitor. "Yamato-sensei?"

"Good morning Shiro. How're you feeling?"

His smile was slightly strained as he looked at me, his entire body slightly tense and his hands fidgeting restlessly in front of him. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he looked nervous. I saw his eyes flick down to my leg, specifically the one that had been injured the day before, and it suddenly dawned on me. He was feeling guilty for what had happened during his jōnin test.

Considering the intensity of our spar yesterday, and the fact that it had been just that—a spar—I'd been under the impression that it was just water under the bridge. Everybody knew that during particularly serious spars there was an abundance of adrenaline and emotions flying around. But at the end of the day, it was still just a spar. You were comrades when it started, and you were comrades when it was over. That was what the seal of reconciliation was for. I honestly held no grudge or bad feelings for what had happened yesterday. There was no reason to.

I nodded my head at Yamato-sensei as his gaze flicked back up to my face, my eyes closing in a smile. "Don't worry sensei, I'm feeling better than ever, no harm done." I did a few jumps on the spot to emphasise my point, wriggling my leg around afterwards for good measure. "See? It's like nothing ever happened."

I noticed his expression ease a little at my words, but he still seemed a little remorseful. I stepped out of the doorway and ushered him inside, the door closing with a soft click. "Come on in sensei, you're just in time for breakfast. Dad's serving up the works."

His steps faltered a little at my words as we passed through the lounge, his eyes widening comically as I turned to look at him. "Kakashi's . . . cooking?"

He sounded so completely baffled by the notion, his facial expression sending me into a fit of chuckles.

"And that's something you'll take with you to your grave if you know what's good for you," Kakashi voiced from the kitchen, his words filtering into the lounge.

Shaking my head at the threat, I continued to the kitchen, Yamato-sensei once again on my heels as my nose focused on the smells wafting out from our destination. To my surprise the food smelt even better now than it did earlier, my stomach grumbling softly in response as I decided to speed ahead. "Come on sensei, the food's gonna get cold if you keep moving this slowly!"

I slid into my seat and thanked Kakashi for the food, immediately pulling down my mask and digging in. My food and tea had been moved to the seat that had its back to the kitchen entryway, so I was free to eat for a few seconds without having to worry about my mask being off.

A few seconds was all I'd need though, and true to the Hatake way, I had my food shoveled down and my mask back in place before Yamato-sensei even stepped foot into the kitchen. I'd learnt a long time ago to actually taste and appreciate my food in the short time it took me to wolf it down, and today was no different. The fact that Kakashi had made it himself made it taste that much better. Hands down the best bacon and eggs I'd ever had.

I watched as Kakashi dished a plate for sensei and then shoveled the rest of the eggs onto his own plate, turning my head to the kitchen door as Yamato-sensei stopped on the threshold. The brown-haired man folded his arms as he leaned against the door frame, an amused smile quirking at his lips. "I never thought I'd see the day captain, but it seems you've finally been . . . domesticated."

Kakashi paused for a beat, his body frozen in place over the table before he carried on dishing food, his eye closing cheerily. "Hmm, you're awfully brave making comments like that Tenzō. Especially about someone who has enough blackmail material to bury you six feet under."

Yamato-sensei's eyes widened in mild horror before he hurried over to the table like a chastised puppy, his head hanging somewhat depressingly. Kakashi's own smile seemed to widen, and he removed his apron and hung it behind the kitchen door before finally joining us at the table, his hands clapping together eagerly. "Well Tenzō, dig in. We've got an interesting day ahead of us."

Yamato-sensei's terrified expression had been replaced with a somewhat disgruntled frown as he glared softly at his eggs. "Please refrain from using my real name captain," he practically whined, his tone pleading. "You defeat the whole purpose of having a codename if you keep calling me that."

Kakashi took a sip of his tea behind his raised Icha Icha, his plate already empty. "As I recall, isn't it usually the captain that gives orders to his subordinates, and not the other way around?"

Yamato-sensei grumbled under his breath before nodding reluctantly, pushing his eggs around with his fork like a sulking teenager. It was quite the sight, and I was fighting down the urge to break into a fit of laughter at the table, biting down on the inside of my cheek.

Kakashi seemed much too pleased with himself, his smugness evident in his tone. "Then eat up Tenzō. We're going to be leaving soon Tenzō, so you better hurry up Tenzō."

I rolled my eyes at the two supposed 'grown men'. Kakashi could be such a child sometimes, and it seemed Yamato wasn't above acting like one either. Although, it could just be my father's innate ability to drag people down to his own level and beat them through sheer experience.

Poor Yamato-sensei. He'd managed to get on the wrong side of Kakashi this morning. My dad had been motivated enough to actually cook; there's no telling what kind of horrors he could cause a person with that same level of motivation. And Yamato-sensei seemed to realise that too.

"Yes captain . . ."

"Why are we doing this again?"

I watched Yamato-sensei nod his head towards the training ground ahead of us, a small smile stretching his lips. "Well, Kakashi wanted you to have the opportunity to get a feel for his team before he makes any decision on passing them or not. You're his son, and he treasures your input."

I turned my gaze back down to Training Ground 3, my eyes falling on Kakashi as he stood with his Icha Icha out in the middle of the field. The fact that my dad pulled out a book instead of a weapon had been a bit of a sore spot for the three pre-teens, Naruto in particular. It didn't take long however for the blonde in question to realise that it wasn't just a misguided show of arrogance.

Kakashi managed to remain completely untouched by Naruto's assault, all the while not taking his eye off Icha Icha even for a second. It infuriated the blonde to the point of completely dropping his guard and allowing Kakashi to get behind him, something that did not bode well for anyone facing the Copy Ninja. Suffice to say, it was a lesson Naruto had definitely learnt the hard way. I couldn't help cringing a little just thinking about it.

We were currently sat on the outskirts of the training field, hidden away within one of the many surrounding trees and playing onlookers to the infamous 'bell test'. Kakashi had told me the stories of how his team had been given the very same test, only for Kakashi to have missed the point completely. He admitted to being a bit of an insufferable know-it-all back then, believing himself to be better than all his peers. I almost couldn't believe the Kakashi he spoke of in his stories from the past was the same Kakashi that had raised me. They were almost complete polar opposites.

I tore my gaze away from the action as I frowned thoughtfully, Yamato-sensei's words echoing softly in my head: You're his son, and he treasures your input.

It made me realise that if I was so inclined, I could have Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura sent back to the Academy with little fuss. Not that that would ever be my intention of course. Kakashi needed those three just as much as they needed him, even if none of them really knew it yet. It was however a stark reminder just how heavily Kakashi valued my opinion.

I grinned softly as I watched him take on Sasuke. The last Uchiha was actually pretty good, definitely worthy of the 'Rookie of the year' title. His taijutsu was nigh flawless, his movements fluid and measured. His shurikenjutsu was as precise as I'd expect from an Uchiha, and his small display of ninjutsu was definitely a step above what the rest of the team was capable of. He was good. Very good.

The only problem was that he knew it too. He classed himself in a league way above his teammates, and he had no qualms letting them know that. His attitude was piss poor, and he had an arrogant streak a mile wide. It almost sounded exactly like what my father might have acted like back when he was that age. The sooner he learned that it wasn't a sign of weakness to rely on your teammates though, the sooner he'd really start to shine. Something I had no doubt would definitely be a lot easier said than done.

I didn't get much chance to see Sakura in action. She'd been squirreled away within the trees from the start, using the foliage to simply watch from afar. I had a feeling it had nothing to do with any sort of plan to get a bell, and everything to do with nursing her crush over Sasuke.

In all honesty, it was a little disappointing simply hearing her piercing scream from the nearby forest. It would've been nice to see her progress. It didn't matter all too much though. I knew what she had the potential to become. She just needed someone to guide her down the right path.

Before I knew it, the bell test seemed to be over, and the three genin were directed back towards the centre of the training field. They stood beside the trio of training posts for a moment before, quicker than a flash, Naruto was tied against the centre post, forced to watch as his teammates ate their lunch in front of him. I could practically hear his growling stomach from here.

By then Kakashi had disappeared from the training ground and landed in a crouch beside me and Yamato-sensei, his eye crinkling as he looked between us expectantly. "So, what'd you think?"

Yamato-sensei scratched the back of his head nervously, the grimace on his face tinged with amusement. "Well, they're definitely . . . unique?"

The Anbu captain shrugged helplessly before Kakashi turned his gaze on me, his eye shining expectantly. I could see how important this was to him in the way he suddenly became serious. He'd no doubt formed opinions of his own, but Yamato-sensei's words from earlier once again echoed through my head, and I knew the weight my opinion would have on his own.

I gulped surreptitiously before turning to stare down at the three pre-teens, their older selves flashing in my mind's eye. It was pretty much all I could solidly remember about the anime just from thinking about it. The rest of the little knowledge I had was written in a book hidden in plain sight in our bookshelf at home.

Steering my thoughts back on track, I cleared my throat softly. "I guess, from what little we saw, you've definitely got the groundwork laid for a solid team."

Turning back to Kakashi, I could see he was waiting to hear what else I had to say, waiting for me to back up that statement with some logic. This felt more like one of those old underneath the underneath training exercises he would give me when I was younger, but I squashed the useless thought and turned back to the trio of genin, my eyes landing on the last Uchiha.

"Sasuke's pretty well-rounded. His taijutsu is impressive; he's definitely got an edge over the rest because he was actually taught before he even entered the Academy. His ability to use ninjutsu was a nice little surprise you don't see very often from fresh Academy students these days, and his shurikenjutsu is just as pinpoint accurate as I'd expect from an Uchiha. No doubt his genjutsu could become his greatest asset because of his Sharingan, but until he becomes familiar with illusions I'd definitely class him as a close to mid-range type of fighter."

I turned my gaze away from the genin to find Kakashi watching me intently. We sat in silence for a moment before he flourished his hand lazily, his lone eye sparkling eagerly. "And . . . what about the other two?"

I stared in surprise for a second before my mind caught up, my throat clearing softly as I turned back to the three pre-teens in the distance. "Um, well I guess Naruto could be something along the lines of the team's heavy hitter . . . ?"

I hated the way my statement came out sounding more like a question, my voice suddenly not sounding as sure of itself as I would've liked. I pushed that feeling aside though and turned back to my previous thoughts on the future team Kakashi, picking apart their strengths and weaknesses.

"If the way he was spamming those shadow clones was any indication, he's got a tonne of chakra. I'm sure with the thousands of jutsu under your belt, you can put all of that chakra of his to good use. His taijutsu also doesn't follow any sort of rhyme or reason. Taking a shot in the dark, he probably wasn't trained properly. Happy accident I say though. Whether it's because of a lack of training or just a part of who he is, he's completely unpredictable, and with the right cultivation, that unpredictability can become a dangerous weapon."

Taking a small breath, I focused my eyes on the last and only female member of the team. "As for Sakura . . . she didn't seem all that impressive. Pretty underwhelming actually for a Kunoichi of the Year. But . . . there's definitely potential there. She seems to have extremely minimal reserves, even for a civilian-born, but what she lacks in chakra she should theoretically make up for in impeccable control. She'll need more than a little help with her physical abilities, but she'd serve well in a support role, possibly a genjutsu specialist. Although seeing as Sasuke has the potential to use the Sharingan, I'd leave genjutsu for him, which gives her the opportunity to rather become a combat medic."

Taking a breath after all the talking, I turned back around to find Kakashi scribbling away furiously on a few pages. He quickly deposited the three pieces of paper into separate manilla folders before stashing them somewhere on his person, his eye curving into a smile.

I blinked once, then twice, before looking at him with a deadpan expression on my face. "That's your test report for the Hokage, isn't it?"

"I can neither confirm nor deny the existence of the information requested but, hypothetically, if such data were to exist, the subject matter would be classified, and cannot be disclosed."

My deadpan deepened, and Kakashi's eye seemed to brighten exponentially. I turned away from him and back to Yamato-sensei, seeing a similarly mirthful expression on his face. "Don't we have things to do? Training? Missions? Something away from here?"

Kakashi held his hand over his heart in mock hurt. "Now, that's not very nice son."

I rolled my eyes, gesturing to three genin who were still down below. "I think you've got a team of pre-teens to go pass, so our work here is done. Right sensei?"

The brown-haired Anbu gave Kakashi a rueful shrug, a small smirk quirking at the corner of his mouth. "You are correct Shiro. Places to be and people to see. You know how it goes Kakashi."

Kakashi looked at Yamato-sensei curiously. "What places? Which people?"

Yamato-sensei opened his mouth to speak, but I quickly held up a hand, stopping him before he could begin and clearing my throat dramatically. "I can neither confirm nor deny the existence of the information requested but, hypothetically, if such data were to exist, the subject matter would be classified, and cannot be disclosed."

There was a beat of silence before I extended my hand towards Yamato-sensei, palm face-up. The sound of skin slapping skin broke the quiet, the high-five prompting Yamato-sensei's smirk to widen further. I hid a satisfying grin of my own beneath my mask, the material no doubt straining as it widened as well.

Kakashi's eye widened before quickly narrowing as he frowned, his gaze flicking between us dubiously. "I'm not sure I like what's going on here."

I offered a careless shrug before glancing back down to the strangely quiet genin below, tapping my wrist questioningly. "Tick tock dad."

He held my gaze for a beat longer before turning to leave, throwing one last unsettling look between myself and Yamato-sensei. "We'll be having words about this later."

I snickered softly once he'd vacated the branch and reappeared before his genin. Ah, nobody liked being on the receiving end of Kakashi's usual antics, so it was always a welcome change when the tables were turned.

I sighed with a small smile on my lips and turned to Yamato-sensei, only to find him watching Kakashi warily. "I don't know if intentionally stirring the pot like that was such a good idea."

I waved a hand dismissively at his words, my eyes crinkling with mirth. "Don't worry sensei, I can handle my dad." Clapping my hands together, I turned towards the brown-haired Anbu expectantly. "So, places to be and people to see?"

Yamato-sensei's wary expression was quickly replaced with a small smile, and he nodded his head in the affirmative as he turned back in the direction of the village. "Places to be and people to see. Come on."

The sun was halfway through its downward arc towards the horizon, the day's heat slowly fading away into a gentle coolness. The sky was streaked with lines of puffy white clouds, as if smudged against the warm orange-red of the setting sky.

I traced the many rows of fluffy clouds above as I laid down in the middle of one of the village's many training grounds, my one hand absently pulling at the blades of grass beneath my fingers while the other was wedged behind my head. I'd been waiting here like this for what had to be close to around twenty minutes now if I had to guesstimate.

After a rather short afternoon of training with Yamato-sensei, he'd stated simply that he had a quick errand to run. He reiterated that I should just make myself comfortable here for the moment, and that training was most definitely not over yet. I would've been a little disappointed if it was though.

After watching my father's bell test, we'd only really been training for a little over two hours, so I was still buzzing with unspent energy. I realised I was actually starting to get a little restless, my right leg bouncing up and down incessantly as I absently pulled out more grass.

I halted my movements midway into pulling out another clump of grass, my nose wrinkling softly as the late afternoon's gentle breeze carried with it an unknown scent. An unknown, distinctly human scent.

Pushing myself to my feet, I dropped my hands into my pockets lazily, seemingly relaxed though keenly aware that I was being watched. My fingers curled around the handles of a couple of hidden kunai as I stared in the direction of the unknown person, sniffing once more for confirmation before deciding to take a direct approach.

"You can come out, whoever you are. I know you're there."

There were a tense few moments of silence, my ears straining against the quiet of the clearing. The rustling of leaves picked up though as another breeze rolled through the clearing. To my credit, I didn't even flinch when a figure landed a few metres away from me, though my hands did tighten around the kunai in my pocket.

The first thing I noticed were the hilts of two swords poking out over each shoulder of the woman (her gender being the second), the plain armour she wore and tattoo on her right bicep denoting her as an Anbu. With Kakashi having been a member himself, I'd been around enough of them to know a member of the elite group when I saw one.

She had flowing purple hair that fell around her shoulders, the hair itself quite long. Given our line of work, hair was usually kept quite short to avoid it getting in the way during a fight. The fact that her hair was kept long meant that she was more than likely able to hold her own despite the offending tresses whipping around her face during a fight.

Taking all this in however and concluding that she wasn't a threat (at least to me), I relaxed my grip on the kunai in my pockets, a small smirk blossoming on her lips at the action. The small show of emotion reminded me that she was a woman, and a startlingly beautiful one at that. My eyes lingered on her lips for a moment before I forcibly drew them back to her eyes. Her smirk only widened.

I was thankful—and not for the first time—of the mask covering the lower half of my face. I can feel the blush on my cheeks, I thought in embarrassment, slightly mortified that she seemed to take notice of that fact.

She took a few steps closer, and I fought the urge to take a few steps back as she advanced. She got close enough that I eventually had to tilt my head a bit to keep eye contact, my eyes squinting at the sun just behind her head. I cleared my throat, praying that my voice didn't betray me. "Can I help you?"

Her smirk from earlier dropped into more of a smile, and she looked me up and down from head to toe before finding my eyes once again. "No. But I am here to help you."

My eyes narrowed in a silent question, and she reached backwards to grab at one of the swords over her shoulder. When she pulled it back to the front, I took note of the fact that it was wooden.

A bokken, my mind supplied lazily. I was surprised I hadn't noticed earlier, but admittedly I'd been a little . . . distracted.

She reached another hand behind her and grabbed the remaining hilt, pulling out another of the wooden swords. Or rather, wooden tantō would be more accurate, because it was the size of the chakra sabre Kakashi and grandpa Sakumo had used back in their youths.

Weighing both bokken in her hands, she reached a hand forward and held out one of the wooden tantō, that same smile from earlier still gracing her lips. "My name is Yugao. Until you are competent enough to wield the White Light Chakra Sabre, this will be your blade. And until such time, you will refer to me as Yugao-sensei."

It wasn't a question, and I quickly nodded my head, removing my hands from my pockets and gently taking the proffered piece of wood as her reason for being here became apparent. "Y-yes, Yugao-sensei."

She nodded her head and then took a few steps back, lowering herself into a fighting stance. "Good. Then let us begin."

How about a bowl of dark chocolate mousse, dusted with a coffee crumble and a dollop of vanilla ice-cream for your thoughts?

Just saw this in My Kitchen Rules last night, looked pretty damned amazing. Also, on a completely unrelated note . . . Game of Thrones season seven guys!

I know no King, but the King in the North!