Arc III Chapter 11
<strong><b>III</b></strong>
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<strong><b>Arc III Chapter </b></strong><strong><b>11</b></strong>
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The room was crowded.The examiners of the chunin examsand the various jonin sensei assembled in his office.Kakashi, Asuma,and Kurenai stood at the forefront. They rmendedtheir teams for the chunin examsdespite them being freshly promoted to the rank of genin. They only servedfor a single year. Iruka didn''t share their enthusiasmand demanded a preliminary test for themto gauge their progress.Hegranted his request.
Hiruzen pulled on his pipe and cleared his throat. “Ahem, attention. I have a little announcement to make. Hatsu, might you please step forwards. I have something to discuss with you.”
Hatsufollowed his order.“How may I help, Hokage-sama?”
“Hatsu, I heard that you intended for your team to participate, but your teacksathird member.Apparently, Katsumi gotheavily wounded on a mission and won’t recuperatein time, is that correct?”
“Correct, Hokage-sama.”
Hiruzen folded his hands.“I think that I have a solution for your problem, Hatsu.I found arecement for Katsumi, a girl eager to participate.”
Hatsu hesitated. “And who is the girl?”
Hiruzen handed Hatsu Asami''s file, the redacted version, obviously. “Her name is Minami Asami. She is a genin who retired after her first mission due to an emotional trauma. Her entire team was killed in action. Only she survived. The girl contacted me a few weeks ago. She would like to return to service.” Her name provoked a variety of reactions from the gathered jonin, ranging from disinterest to pity, from surprise to confusion. It was only Kakashi who met his nomination with suspicion. The former ANBU captain knew what was going on.
Hatsu scanned the file, visibly concerned.“Hokage-sama, butis this really a good idea? Does the girl possessthe necessary skill to participatein the chunin exams? As far as I can see, she hasn''tpleted a single mission above D-rank. The girl wasinactive for the entirest year. I fear she will be nothing more thana dead weight.”Hatsu doubtedAsami''s qualifications, which was only natural. On paper, Asami didn''t appear any special.
Hiruzen offered a warm smile, “Don''t worry, Hatsu, I see no problem with her nomination. In fact, I can personally vouch for her abilities. I assure you, Asami won''t disappoint you.”
“...”Hatsu didn’tlook entirely convinced.“We will see.”
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Hisaaki was a proud Konoha genin. He already served the vige for four years, whichdid wonders for his physical constitution.He was neitherthe weakest ninja the vige ever produced, nor the strongest.He wasn''ta taijutsu specialist. He didn’t possesrge chakra. He didn''te from a powerful n. He didn’t possess any fancy bloodline abilities. He was just a normal geninwithnormal chestnut hair and normal brown eyes.
In short, he was an unremarkable ninja. He would never reach the pinnacle of strength and touch the sky, which wasn''t necessarily a bad thing. Less prominent ninja tended to live longer. Mediocrity had its advantages. History proved, strong ninja died young. High-ranking ninja didn''t grow old. Cases existed, but they were few and far in between. The First, the Second, the Fourth, they all died within years. Except for the Third, none of them made it past three years
“...”Hisaaki grew impatient and so did the rest of his team. Theywere already waiting for quite a while.Where was the girl? Did she get lost, or what? The exams were about to start, and she was nowhere to be seen.
Hisaaki grumbled. “Hatsu-sensei, how long do we still have to wait? She didn''t appear yesterday at the team meeting and now we about to miss the exams because of her. Sensei, why did you even allow her to join? Couldn’t you have rejected her and found someone better?” His opinion of Asami hit rock bottom. The girl didn''t show up neither at their training sessions, nor at their team meetings. And now she even made them wait an eternity. They were grilled under the sun, unable to do anything. He was seriously pissed off.
Hatsu defended her. “Don’t be too harshon her, Hisaaki. The girl recovered only recently from her trauma. Weshouldn’t expect too much from Asami.”
“What happened?” Hissaki looked up.
Hatsu hesitated. “... I don’t know for sure, but ording toher file,her entire team diedon a mission.”
“Died? Does that meanshe is...” Hisaaki stared incredulously.
Hatsu nodded. “Yes, Asamiwas the solesurvivor...”
Silence followed, and Hisaaki lowered his head in shame. “You are right, sensei. It''s not easy to fight your way back into life.”
His senseismiled. “Take it easy, Hisaaki,you had no idea ... But you are right.”
“Right? Right about what?” Hisaaki blinked,confused.
Hatsu forced a strained smile. “Under normal circumstances, I would have rejected her, but the Hokage himself vouched for her...You can''t tell the Hokage offthat easily. But Hokage or not, if the girl doesn’t get her arseheresoon,then I will ....” Their sensei clenched her fist.
“...”Hisaaki gulped. He hoped Asami arrived soon, otherwise...she might faceunpleasant consequences...
“Excuse me,are you Ikoma Hatsu, Ogawa Hisaaki and Sanada Katsusane?” Ameek voice sneaked up on them from behind. An unknowngippeared,materialised out of nowhere.
Hisaaki nced at her and blinked, overwhelmed by her angelic cuteness. The girl was the product of pure huggly cuddliness,d in a lovely ck kimono. Her ck hair, her fluffy cheeks, her short nose, her fidgeting hands.The girl was so adorable, so cute. She immediately imed Hisaaki’s heart.He wanted to hug her and never let go of her again.
“Yes, why do you ask?” Hatsuevaluatedthe girl.
The girl fidgeted, her soft voice gued by insecurity.“I am ... Minami Asami ..., and I am your new ... team member. I am ... pleased to meet you ...”
“So you are Minami Asami, the girl the Hokage promised us?” Hatsu sighed. Her anger evaporated, and her friendliness returned at the sight of Asami''s pitiful state.
“...”Thegirl merely nodded, onlyreinforcingHatsu’s initial impression, the girl was useless,pletely useless. The Hokage bullshitted her! The slybastardwas in for some serious talkthe next time they met!
“Why don’t you introduce yourself, Katsusane, Hisaaki?” Hatsu encouraged her team.
Katsusane took the lead. “As you already know, I am Katsusane, and the idiot next to me is my childhoodfriend, Hisaaki.”
“Hey, I heard that”,Hisaaki protested.
“I know.”
Hisaaki clicked his tongue. “I am Hisaaki and the humourless brick is my best friend Katsusane. We have knowneach other for a long time.And you, Asami? What are your hobbies?”
“My hobbies ...”Asami struggledfor words.“My hobbies are ... poetry ... and enjoying nature. I don’t like ... people. They make me feel ... ufortable. They are loud ... and noisy.” Her words required all her strength.
“Sounds great to me.” Hisaakiughed and bought her performance. He grinned like a fool, which earned him an Asami idiot tag. Hisaaki = idiot. Idiot = Hisaaki.
Hatsu changed the topic. “Listen, Asami, I don’t want to be rude, but I hope that you have good an excuse for not attending our team training sessions. Your presence was sorely missed.” She had already given up, but perhaps not all hope was lost yet.
The girl avoided her gaze, looking down at the ground. “Sowwy, I am ... a little bit shy. The sessions ... scared me. So, I trained ... at home. I didn’t want to bother you ... with the clumsy. Me.”
“...”
“...”
“...”Hatsu forced a smile. “I see.” Everything was lost. Her team was fucked.
The conversation continued, much to Asami''s annoyance. Hatsu and Hisaaki tried her patience with their endless questions. They probed her background, but Asami maintained her cover and deflected their questions with her repertoire of empty phrases. She refused to share private information. The less they knew, the better. Eventually, her team entered the academy. The exams were about to begin.
<strong>Hisaaki and Katsusane</strong>
<strong>Hatsu</strong>
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