Fandom Squad Shithead: A Naruto AU

[Pine]

In between long, slow sips, Matsuda had finished her own sampling of her drink and turned to Mizu, asking about her hair. He looked between the two as they spoke. Mizu seemed almost flustered by the woman's attention, and meanwhile, even as they spoke about him, Matsuda barely seemed to spare him a glance.

Haruki straightened up once again from his glass and, still frowning a little from his soured mood, jumped in to confirm. "I did," he began to explain. "Katsuro had ordered me to help cut her hair because, something about long hair can get in the way and be used against you. It was my first time cutting someone's hair."

To be more accurate, it was the first time he had cut someone's hair to completion. A few times he and his friends have gotten experimental with some scissors, long before he had moved to the Leaf, but each time they had either gotten distracted by something midway, or someone's parents had come in to interrupt their reckless endeavor.

Curiously, he noticed that Matsuda's hair was even longer than Mizu's had been before he cut it. The long, black hair that curtained the adult kunoichi fell far down beyond her shoulders down her back.

- - - - -

It only seemed to be that once Seiba's persistent nudging had become enough to interrupt Katsuro talking that Takashi seemed to take notice.

"Seiba," he called and patted a spot in the cushion by him. The Great Dane pulled back a little from Katsuro, but seemed reluctant to leave altogether. Finally, when Takashi patted the floor cushion more insistently and prompted, "Come on," Seiba padded to the designated spot with his head hung low. At first, the dog just stood tall, towering over his owner's hunched form, but Takashi pinched his fingers in front of Seiba's snout and dropped them to the floor. The dog followed obediently, laying down and taking up nearly half of the cushion's space. He began licking Takashi's hand, but when the man moved on to rubbing the dog behind his ears, Seiba started to lick the floor cushion instead. Finally, Takashi returned his attention to his guest.

"Sorry about that," he said. Then he reassured, "I was listening."

He moved his hand down from Seiba's head to his back, to which the Great Dane rolled over to present his belly, kicking Takashi in the process. The man then gave Katsuro a small, somewhat shy smile. "I'm embarrassed to admit, I feel a little foolish. I recognized Mizu's name, but I hadn't processed that the Nine-Tails jinchuuriki would be on his team until you brought it up just now."

The smile fell, and his face took on a more troubled expression as he slowed the frequency with which he rubbed Seiba's belly. "I guess I shouldn't be too surprised he thinks that," he said, though it was plain by his tone that he was disappointed. He sighed heavily through his nose and turned an eye to the pipe that still sat before him. At this point, he was rubbing long, deep strokes across Seiba's white underbelly. Finally he asked, "How familiar are you with his father, Hiroto, Katsuro?"

 

[Gilzar]

Mizu had hoped that giving Haruki some credit might lighten his mood. However, it didn't seem to really do that. There was still a frown on his face, and he didn't have the enthusiasm he normally had. Haruki was starting to act like he was forced to still be with them. Still frustrated by the situation, she couldn't help but wonder when his food would arrive. Then this awkward encounter could end, and they would go their separate ways.

Matsuda meanwhile didn't seem to pay any attention to Haruki's story. She didn't look over to him once during his explanation, paying more attention to the garden nearby.

"I'm sure he did." Matsuda replied briefly to Haruki with no enthusiasm in her voice. Once again she barely glanced at Haruki, not showing much interest in him. Instead, she continued to look right at Mizu.

"Say Mizu, I have an idea. How about you and I go clothes shopping after this?" Matsuda asked. Her smile widened and her eyes kindled with excitement. She made sure not to give Haruki so much as glance, trying to make him feel left out.

"It'd be really fun! We could go to the Uchiha district where they sell only the best. Since you're with me you'd get a discount, of course. That way you can save some money and get what you need." Matsuda let out a mischievous chuckle, and a devious look shined through her eyes. "Who knows? I might be able to talk some of the vendors into giving us free stuff..."

Mizu smiled, even giggling at Matsuda's last comment. She had been dreading going clothes shopping, yet Matsuda's proposal sounded like fun.

"Alright sure...that actually sounds like a lot of fun!"

--------------

After what felt like far too long to Katsuro, Takashi finally called Seiba off of him. A small feeling of relief overcame him as his fellow jonin seemed to finally exercise his control over the giant of a hound. Katsuro didn't mind dogs, but hounds of that size instinctively made him uneasy since he served in the war. He'd seen what they can do to a man when let loose. Even without jutsu enhancing them, a hound of this size could rip a man up or reveal his hiding place. While he understood that a dog was just an extension of the trainer, his war memories still made it uncomfortable to have one at his back.

With the dog finally leaving him alone, and in a place he could visibly see, Katsuro's thoughts came much easier to him.

"It's alright." Katsuro said in regards to both the dogs, as well as Takashi's admission about Mizu. With the news of the Akatsuki still not out yet, Katsuro couldn't fully explain exactly why Mizu was in his squad. Yet he could tell him at least some of the reasoning, while leaving out the major details.

"Don't be embarrassed, she's not a problem student so most didn't expect her to end up with me." Katsuro admitted. "The only reason she's with me is for her protection. She'd probably be better off with an instructor like yourself, but Soruto insisted."

He then reflected briefly on what he knew of Tetsuo's father before answering Takashi's final question. He knew Hiroto, but the two were estranged acquaintances at best. Throughout the years they had a few interactions, and it was rarely friendly. Hiroto would use his age and rank to freely criticize Katsuro when he was a genin about his temper. Coming from a man who he reviled for his character, Katsuro didn't take too kindly any of his critique. Even as a child, Katsuro would bicker back and forth with the man almost anytime they spoke. Once Katsuro became a jonin he'd return the favor and openly call him out for any bad behavior during the war. Then Hiroto went missing, and he became just an afterthought in Katsuro's head, until now.

"I knew him, but not well. And that was fine by me." Katsuro replied. He held nothing back on how he felt about Hiroto. "He was just a fucking coward who didn't deserve to wear our headband."

 

[Pine]

Haruki's brow pinched together for a second as Matsuda continued on talking as if he had said nothing at all. She didn't look at him at all, even though he had directly answered her, and once again she was still talking about him.

That didn't last long, as in the next moment she was explicitly inviting Mizu, specifically, to go shopping with her. Mizu, who never seemed to have anything to say. Mizu, who didn't have a sense of humor at all, except that Matsuda had even managed to get a giggle out of her, something that he had not even managed to do once.

Haruki's jaw slackened, and his mouth hung open just a little in disbelief. He wanted to shop in the Uchiha district. It was somewhere he'd never been, and with Matsuda as the personal tour guide, he was certain they'd get special insight into the area that he would never have a chance of getting again. And yet he had not been invited. The exclusivity. The cool disregard, as if he weren't even corporeal. None of this escape Haruki's notice.

He closed his mouth and blinked down at his lap. A familiar panic began to crawl up his throat. His cheeks began to feel hot, and a redness began to creep up his neck. Haruki's leg bounced at such a velocity he had to put his hand on his knee just to make sure he didn't bounce the table.

"I have to go to the bathroom," he said, then slid out of the booth. He made sure not to look at either Matsuda or Mizu as he quickly trekked across the hardwood floor of the cafe.

Seconds after he left, the waitress returned. She set the datemaki down on an oblong plate, then two small sides of steamed rice and pickled plum. After checking in with the two kunoichi that everything was as they ordered, and whether they had any more requests, she left to resume her duties at another table, where a man looked about ready to leave.

- - - - -

Takashi rose a brow and tilted his head for a moment in response to Katsuro's assessment of Hiroto's character. It was body language that communicated he thought it was perhaps a little harsh, but he made no actual indication that he disagreed with what his fellow jonin had to say.

"I try not to make a habit of speaking ill of the dead," Takashi said. There seemed to be no judgment in his words. His tone was exactly the same as all his prior philosophical waxing: it was simply meant to be informative.

"That being said," he continued, "I do not think discussions such as these can be fully divorced from his father." Takashi paused, both in what he was saying, as well as in petting Seiba. The dog lifted his head from the floor cushion, seemingly in confusion as Takashi removed his glasses. The Yamanaka man squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed the bridge of his nose, where the nose pads from his glasses had seemed to left a shallow imprint on his skin. A few moment passed before he folded the glasses and tucked them into his shirt. Seiba rolled back over and readjusted his position to he could lay his head in Takashi's lap. His eyes rolled up to stare at his owner until finally, Takashi resumed rubbing the Great Dane, this time seemingly to almost massage along the canine's skull.

Takashi resumed. "I'm someone who tries to see the good in every person. Given the nature of the work I've done, I think it's a necessity, because the techniques my clan has passed onto me gives unabated access to anyone's most private self. I try to see this good in everyone, because I feel a great responsibility to do this, but"—a smile ghosted his lips—"Hiroto was a man who made this very difficult for me."

Takashi leaned forward and tapped the side of the waterpipe's bowl, testing the temperature. Seemingly not hot enough yet, he withdrew his hand to once again rub the Great Dane's cheeks. "There was a brief period during my time as a genin where my sensei had been out of commission. For reasons I don't think I ever quite understood, Hiroto was left to head my squad until she had returned. During that time, I remember he would..." Takashi trailed off for a moment, rubbing the short stubble of his cheek with the back of his hands as he seemed to collect his thoughts.

"I'm thinking of how to describe it. He would go on these rants, I suppose," he said. "To me, there seemed to be no rhyme or reason as to what it would be about. He would just seem to fixate on one thing and, I never actually timed him of course, but at the time I felt like he would go on for hours. An abnormal amount of time. Whatever he had to say, it was always very negative."

Takashi paused, then turned his small, half-smile back on Katsuro. "I'm sure you can guess where I'm going with this."

 

[Gilzar]

There was a small satisfaction Matsuda felt as her plan seemed to work better than she had anticipated. Haruki visibly looked flustered. Matsuda could feel his leg tapping against the floor quicker and quicker, like a time bomb about to explode. She felt little pity toward him when he retreated to the bathroom. Now that he'd been given a taste of his own medicine, maybe he'd think twice about acting so jaded toward his peers.

Mizu was even more put off by Haruki's continual change in behavior. Though she wasn't as aware of it as Matsuda, Mizu could tell that something was off. Haruki was fidgeting his leg so fast the bench was shaking. Apart of her wondered if it was the lack of an invitation to come with. She debated briefly about inquiring with Matsuda if they wanted to bring him along, but that didn't go far. His behavior had frustrated her to the point she didn't want him to come along. Just what was his deal?

Following Haruki's abrupt departure, the waitress arrived with his food. Their interaction with her was brief, as neither Mizu nor Matsuda were in need of anything at the moment. Once the waitress left, it was just Matsuda and Mizu at the table.

"Mizu. Can I give you a bit of advice?" Matsuda said, lifting her head back up and sitting straight once again.

Mizu looked curiously at her superior, "Sure, what is it?"

"Don't let either of those boys push you around."

"What do you mean?"

"You did a good thing standing your ground with Haruki. But you can't let him get to you like that, that's what he wants. It's not your fault he's upset you don't want to waste your money."

"I just..." Mizu carefully thought over what she wanted to say to Matsuda. The woman was so friendly to her, and spoke with such confidence. Even though this was the first time she ever really spoke with her, she felt a strange trust toward her.

"I get frustrated." Mizu confessed. "Sometimes Haruki is friendly, and I think we can be friends. But whenever I disagree with him he acts weird."

"Friends don't do that, Mizu." Matsuda replied in a gentle tone. "Real friends respect each other's differences. I'm sure Haruki will learn that eventually if he wants to be your friend. But until then stop letting him hurt you. Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself, okay?"

"Okay." Mizu replied. She thought over Matsuda's words carefully.


---------

"I think so." Katsuro replied after Takashi's explanation. "So you think Tetsuo gets a lot of his ideas from his father?"

If what Katsuro thought Takashi was hinting at was true, it would explain a lot. He had noticed on a few occasions the similarities between Tetsuo's behavior and Hiroto. Katsuro ran his fingers through the hairs of his goatee as he thought about just how much the two had in common. It was a little surprising just how much the two had in common. If the two weren't completely unbearable to be around, it would almost be comedic. A question then ran through Katsuro's mind that Takashi may have known the answer to.

"Just how much was Hiroto involved in the kid's life? I don't think I've ever heard him talk about him."

 

[Pine]

Takashi hummed as he breathed yet another sigh. There was a tinge of concern as he frowned and commented, "He still isn't talking about his father, then."

The seated man seemed to have enough with waiting for the hookah to heat. Takashi leaned over Seiba to drag the pipe closer to him. The dog's eyes followed as, instead of petting him, the Yamanaka man grabbed the pipe's hose and took a short, experimental puff. Apparently satisfied enough, he took a longer, deeper drag, before slowly letting the minty smoke blow in a thinly spread line. Just as the last of the smoke curled out of his lips, Seiba lifted his snout to start nudging his owner's hands with his nose. Takashi looked back down, almost seeming disoriented by Seiba's demands for attention for a moment, before he began rubbing his thumbs in slow circles right above Seiba's brow. Seemingly satisfied, the dog once again rested his head in Takashi's lap.

"I have no way of knowing the exact extent of his involvement, but I can't imagine it would've been much," he finally replied. "Hiroto, by my understanding, was active from the beginning of the war until his very last days. Tetsuo would've been five or six when the war started. Perhaps he would do the occasional home visit when those were permitted, but I have other reasons to suspect he was largely absent.

"To answer your other question," Takashi continued, "yes and no."

He leaned over Seiba again to reach his pipe. After blowing another drag from the hose, he explained further. "Tetsuo venerates his father, but it's a distorted version of him. Certain things are simply not true. Tetsuo does not know that Hiroto never became a jonin, and I'm not sure if this was conclusion he came to on his own, or if it was a lie implanted by his father." Takashi closed his eyes and shook his head. "I would not put it past him, nor any fearmongering about jinchuuriki. As openly as he would speak on his formal duties among colleagues, I imagine he would've painted a narcissistic picture for his own son when they were together, inventing boogeymen to alienate and breed distrust among outsiders."

He paused, just long enough for what he must have felt was an appropriate time for Katsuro to process everything he said. Then he added, "I think if Tetsuo knew how his father truly was, he would lose all respect for him."

 

[Gilzar]

Katsuro reflected over Takashi's explanations. He truly had no idea Tetsuo idolized such a distorted version of Hiroto. It was hard for him to imagine Tetsuo holding anyone to a high regard, the boy just didn't seem like the type of person. Tetsuo always seemed skeptical of any information he was given, even when it came straight from the Hokage. Before now, Katsuro just assumed the boy was cynical towards everyone. Clearly that was not the case. Hiroto had practically brainwashed his own child, and now Katsuro had to face the challenge of changing those views.

"He would." Katsuro replied to Takashi's last statement. "But that's only if you can get the kid to believe you. I've tried telling him he's wrong, but it didn't go over well."

For a moment he debated about asking Takashi for advice on what to do. The man did have some unique insights on Tetsuo that Katsuro had not been aware of before. However, if Takashi knew how to fix Tetsuo's problems, then the kid would have never ended up with Katsuro to begin with. He let out a small sigh, realizing this would be a problem he'd probably have to figure out on his own. For now he planned on trying to correct some of Tetsuo's views bit by bit, until eventually he'd come to the realization that his father wasn't the man he claimed to be. It wouldn't be easy, but it was the best idea Katsuro had.

 

[Pine]

As soon as he entered the bathroom, Haruki made straight for the first stall. He locked the door behind him. Before he squared himself to sit, pants still up, he spotted the remnants of someone's last visit still on the toilet seat.

He collapsed his back against the stall door and covered his face with his hands, overwhelmed. For a minute, Haruki only focused on his breathing. Each inhale felt like a strain against his racing heart.

Why did that happen? He knew this was not the first time he had felt this way, but he never would have expected this in Mizu's company. She seemed reserved and like she didn't have very many friends. She had said so herself, in a way, when she told him and Tetsuo about the way most people in the village treated her. And yet Matsuda had looked to her to bring with her to the Uchiha district, not him.

Haruki tried to retrace his steps, thinking back to the very first interaction they'd had in the Hokage's office that morning. She seemed warm and receptive through most of it, but maybe she'd been pretending to enjoy his company just to be nice. Maybe he had seemed too excited when she first asked to join them and she'd found that offputting. It embarrassed him to think about how he'd tripped over his words just over something as simple as saying he wanted her there. Then he thought about when he explained to her what happened during their mission. In his excitement, he had spoken too loudly for a cafe setting. His laugh, too.

In his head, Haruki patched together a thousand reasons Matsuda would find him annoying. While he couldn't pinpoint what exactly must've finally crossed the line to put him beneath her notice altogether, he still wanted to go with them.

A shame manifested in Haruki that made his chest physically ache.

After a while, his breathing finally began to slow. While there was still a lingering pain in him, but he had managed to pull himself out of his initial panic. Haruki rubbed his hands over his face, feeling that the heat had left him. As much as he wanted to disappear, Matsuda was treating them, and it would come off as extremely rude if he didn't stick around to show his gratitude. Plus, he was still really hungry anyway. It'd nearly been a day now since he last ate, and even then it'd just been a bunch of mochi. He was in no position to just leave.

Haruki instinctively knew what he needed to make it through this. He would just have to make himself as small and quiet as he could. Maybe then the next time he saw Matsuda, she would have all but forgotten how annoying he must've been, and maybe someday, she may even invite him to some personal trip for just the two of them.

Having a plan of action, Haruki emerged from the stall and exited the bathroom.

When he returned, he noticed his food had arrived, and Mizu's was still sitting there untouched. She hadn't even unwrapped her chopsticks for use.

"You didn't have to wait on me," he said, voice quiet and affect flat. He slid into the booth next to Mizu without looking at her. Without waiting for anyone's permission, he broke his chopsticks apart and grabbed the first slice of his datemaki.

- - - - -

Takashi laughed a little. "Oh, no. That's not something he would respond well to," he said. Once again, he reached over to take a drag from the hookah. He covered his mouth politely as he coughed briefly, the fumes from his pipe seeming to have hit his throat in a bad way this time. Even with his voice still recovering, he continued, "I never tried to directly correct him on anything about his father. I wasn't sure if it was my place, and it usually came up over inconsequential things anyway, like how exactly the village is run, or nitpicking over the precise mechanics of ninjutsu."

He paused to clear his throat. This seemed to be enough to return Takashi's voice to normal. "But if it's effected the way he thinks about or treats an entire group of people, that's a problem."

As he thought over what he would say next, he breathed the hookah's smoke into his chest, and this time blew the smoke out as a set of rings, each getting smaller and smaller as he depleted the last of the fumes he had. "In the beginning, I had some success with reframing or asking him questions. I wouldn't bet on him ever admitting that he's wrong, but if you guide him to enough logical inconsistencies, he's capable of changing his mind."

 

[Gilzar]

An awkward atmosphere brewed over the table once Haruki returned. Matsuda continued to completely unattached from his return, looking down at the red polish on her fingernails rather than at him. Mizu watched Haruki sit back on the bench beside her, but he made no effort to even look her way. Even when he spoke to her, telling her she didn't have to wait, it just sounded like an inconvenience to him. But by this point she wasn't going to let his behavior make her feel guilty anymore. Like Matsuda said earlier, he probably wanted her to feel guilty. She too snapped her chopsticks apart and began to dig into her meal.

It was a shame the mood at the table had become so tense, because the food was definitely worth the wait. Even though it was lukewarm, it lived up to hype that Haruki promised earlier. Now that she was filling the empty void in her stomach, Mizu briefly forgot about all of the drama and just enjoyed the moment.

Matsuda continued to sip away at her tea. With both Haruki and Mizu enjoying their meals she saw no reason to pursue conversation any further. They both seemed to be enjoying their meal far too much to be distracted by conversation. She casually slipped out her money onto the table, enough to cover everyone, then politely flagged the waitress for the bill. The jonin made sure to be generous with her tip considering how delightful the waitress was.

As annoyed with Haruki as Matsuda might have been, she had to hand it to him. This was a nice place. Matsuda would definitely come back here again for more tea.

-------

"Yeah...I'll probably do something like that." Katsuro said, agreeing with Takashi's suggestion. He couldn't help but watch the smoke rings Takashi seemed to effortlessly produce. The chain-smoker hated to admit it, but he'd been trying that trick for years and was never able to do it. At the start of their encounter Katsuro didn't quite know what to think about Tetsuo's old sensei. But after having spoken with him for a while, he found an odd respect for the man. Takashi was honest, open, and clearly wasn't too concerned what others thought about him.

"Well..." Katsuro paused. "Anything else you could tell me? Otherwise I'll get out of your hair."

 

[Pine]

The rest of the meal was shared in silence. Haruki would had hoped Matsuda and Mizu would have at least talked among themselves, but they didn't even do that. It made the atmosphere in the cafe nearly unbearable. He wanted nothing more than to leave, but he felt stuck. He thought about texting his friends, just as something to kill the time in between bites, but he wasn't sure if Matsuda had thought it rude of him when he had texted Katsuro earlier. At any given time, the jonin could come out of her jaded exterior and try to strike up conversation again, and he couldn't be seen on his phone whenever that happened.

But this moment never came. Out of the corner of his eye, he was hyperaware of every movement she made. He searched for something to anticipate her mood or movements, but the Uchiha woman was unreadable, keeping a perfectly neutral look as she timed every sip she took perfectly to parse her tea out over the course of their meal. In the quiet, interrupted only by the thunk of the bamboo, and the occasional, unavoidable lip smack from either himself or Mizu, who was also a polite eater, he filled his head with every imagined conversation. He tried to imagine things he could say to win Matsuda's favor back over, but each scenario felt forced and unnatural, so he instead began to fantasize about what conversations could have been. He could have seen the earnest grin she showed when they first came to the Hokage's office while she told him what her own interests were, or the way she may have listened attentively so they could share theories on movie sequels that may be coming out soon. Regrettably, he became taken by a burning curiosity about what Matsuda's first mission as a genin would've been like, and yet he had no way of asking her.

As he scooped out the last froth of ice cream from his drink, a great anxiety gnawed into his stomach. Matsuda was completely silent as she handled paying for their meal, as promised. It was an assertion he had been grateful for in the beginning, because he had fully intended on beginning his string of purchases today by paying for whoever came with him, and with the meal fully covered he would have nearly twice as much he could spend. Now he wished she hadn't, because a part of him had become paranoid she would exclude him from the bill and leave him to figure that out as they were leaving, but more than that he needed to pay respect to his superior, and it would absolutely crush him if she wouldn't so much as acknowledge him as he was giving his thanks.

But he couldn't just leave without saying anything. Basic manners were hard-coded into the image of him everyone saw, and he could not do anything that would earn the perception that he was ungrateful and rude. So he dipped his head respectfully towards the jonin, trained his eyes on the empty plate set before him and said, "Thank you for the meal, Miss Matsuda."

Once again, his voice was devoid of the energetic inflections that usually characterized his speech. He could only hope to garner enough pity for the Uchiha woman to at least look at him.

- - - - -

"Oh, please," Takashi said, waving his hand. "You've been no trouble at all. I'm much more concerned that I may have been holding you up. I'm not exactly known for my brevity." He laughed a little, and the hand he'd waved came up to fidget with the hoop earring that pierced his lobe. Beneath his friendly smile, some of the anxious tone and movements that had underpinned their first interactions had returned.

"There is something else I can tell you. You wanted to know the reason for the, as you put it, 'stick up his ass.'"

He laid both hands back down on Seiba. One hand rubbed a spot that had the canine rolling his head to the side in pure ecstasy, while the other hand was readied to cup Seiba's cheek as he did so.

Whatever it was that had made Takashi nerves tick again, he seemed able to push past it to share his thoughts. "I know I just talked about Hiroto's influence on him, but more than that, I think nearly every behavioral issue there is with Tetsuo can be traced back to this: he's a child that thinks he's an adult." The man once again paused to take a drag from his pipe before continuing. "He uses foul language because he thinks he sounds more mature for it. He doesn't form connections with his peers because he does not view them as his peers. He seeks out more responsibility than he can handle. He does all of this because mentally he believes he's older than his is, then resents others for not viewing him the same way.

"I don't know how exactly he came to be this way, but it's more than just that he has a chip on his shoulder. I believe this has become a full-blown complex for him. Developmentally, he's pushing for things he should not be, and it's hurting himself every bit as much as it's hurting others."

Takashi blew a flat stream of smoke for a long time.

"I'm not sure if you're aware of this, since you just got him, and I'm sure it's been hectic for you these past few days, but he has a younger sister." Takashi began to rotate the coals on the hookah, replacing hotter ones to sit on top of the foil. "This should be her third year at the academy. She's very young," he told Katsuro. "Sometimes I've seen them together at the market, usually in the evening. The way Tetsuo is around her, you never would've guessed he's the same kid. He's well-mannered and gentle, patient, and he never raises his voice. At first, I found this endearing. It's a side of him you never get to see during his duties and training." Takashi set the tongs down next to him on the cushion and looked at Katsuro. "But over time, it's something I've come to find... unsettling."

 

[Gilzar]

With the bill paid and all conversation dead at the table, Matsuda finished up the last bit of her tea and prepared to leave. She gave Mizu a brief look, subtly implying that she should do the same. After a moment of thinking, Mizu picked up on the que and also began the process of leaving. Mizu slid off of the bench and took off the robe, neatly folding it on the bench she once occupied. The girl then grabbed her staff, and nodded to Matsuda that she was ready to go.

Now all that remained was to say goodbye to Haruki. Matsuda debated whether or not she'd even say anything to him on the way out. He had been pretty much silent since he ate his meal, which surprised Matsuda. Haruki seemed so keen to please her earlier that she figured he'd try inviting himself along, or at least try to get some form of conversation going. But instead, the once chatty, animated kid just sat there like a statue. There was pain behind his eyes, but Matsuda wasn't aware of how deep his inner turmoil went. In her eyes, she had accomplished her goal: Haruki now knew how Mizu felt just a bit ago, whether he was aware of it or not.

Just as she was ready to leave, Haruki thanked Matsuda for paying the meal. She paused, taking the time to face him one last time before they parted ways. His voice sounded completely devoid of life compared to how he was just half an hour ago. It was common decency to respond to him. However, Matsuda didn't want to just walk-back all of her efforts with an enthusiastic response. Instead, she'd take a just a neutral, professional response.

Matsuda looked Haruki in the eyes but maintained the same neutral expression. "You are welcome, Haruki." She said in a stern, unenthusiastic voice. Following this, Matsuda began to walk out of the restaurant. She hoped that he would reflect and learn from this.

Mizu was completely oblivious to just how much Matsuda's actions had bothered Haruki. Had she known how torn up the boy was emotionally, she might have felt bad for him. But Mizu was still hurt herself over his behavior. Haruki made no attempt to talk to her after she told him no. It bothered her how he treated her like a completely different person after such a petty disagreement. To try and put this awkward situation behind her, she consciously focused on her plans with Matsuda. She was excited to spend more time the woman, so much so that she completely forgot to say goodbye to Haruki on the way out of the restaurant.

"Matsuda," Mizu said to her as they left the restaurant. "Could we stop by my house on the way over so I can change?"

The warm smile Mizu had grown so accustomed to returned to Matsuda's face, followed by a playful laugh. "Of course!"

The two then walked off into the streets of Konoha, vanishing into the morning crowd.

------------

As Katsuro watched the hookah smoke dissipate above, he thought over Takashi's words. He had noticed similar things to what Tetsuo's old instructor spoke of. Tetsuo acted like an adult, in spite of being a child like himself. Come to think of it, Tetsuo even spoke to others like he wasn't a child. He constantly talked down to Haruki. The boy always talked back to authority.

Takashi then mentioned Tetsuo's relationship with his sister. This was something Katsuro was completely unaware of. He knew his troubled student had a sister from his file. But he had no idea how his family unit interacted. That was something the files never covered. Based off of how Tetsuo treated others, Katsuro would have suspected he'd treat a little sister no differently than how he treated Haruki. Apparently this wasn't the case, as Takashi explained. Tetsuo was kind and caring with his younger sibling. How strange...

Once Takashi brought up how he found the behavior unsettling, Katsuro immediately thought back to Rei. He remembered just how protective Tetsuo was over the girl. From telling Katsuro not to swear around her, to even trying to criticize Sando for being a bad parent. A small frown grew across Katsuro's face once he had an idea of what Takashi was talking about.

"I think I know what you mean. Does he act like her parent?"

 

[Pine]

That confirmed it for him. From only hearing Matsuda's austere tone, she communicated very plainly that she was displeased with him. It was a cold indifference that she had given to no one else he'd seen - not even Tetsuo, who menaced and shouted profanity at her.

Haruki kept his head down as the two kunoichi rounded the table and exited the restaurant. As they left, he heard Mizu ask a question and Matsuda's cheery, upbeat response. The dagger lodged in his heart sank deeper. In that moment, he couldn't have left if he wanted to. It wasn't until their footfall blended seamlessly with the morning traffic did Haruki feel safe to move again.

He lifted his head, but there were already tears in his eyes. He set his elbows on the table and pushed the heels of his hands into his eyes. Haruki tried to sniffle as quietly as he could to himself as he ruminated.

Matsuda had seemed so kind when they first met. She was warm and nonjudgmental, even after he fumbled so many times with talking in front of her. After their first day with Katsuro, who yelled and bossed them around more than he ever talked normally to them, meeting the Uchiha woman was like breathing air for the first time that day. He had been so excited each time he'd seen her thereafter, and she had seemed to look upon him with a fondness that he doubted he'd ever get from their jonin sensei's hard exterior. Now, whatever image of a kindred spirit he'd projected onto her had shattered. She had effectively excluded him from all of her affections, and Mizu didn't even seem fazed by this.

Haruki tried to will an end to his tears and sniffing. Today was supposed to be a fun. He couldn't just sit in a cafe all day, especially after he was supposed to have already left.

A few moments passed before he heard footsteps nearby. A part of him he knew was irrational hoped it was Matsuda returning to apologize, say it had just been a prank gone too far. Or it could be Mizu, who left Matsuda to comfort him after realizing how the jonin woman had hurt her friend. When he looked up, however, it had just been the green-haired lady from earlier, leaning over to retrieve the robe from the bench.

Haruki turned his head away to try to subtly wipe away the last of his tears. "I'm sorry," he said, "I was just about to leave."

"Don't worry about it, dear," she said.

To his surprise, the young woman slid into the bench next to him. When he looked at her, she was smiling kindly at him. She held the robe in her lap. Conversationally, she asked, "You've come in here a few times with your parents, haven't you?"

Haruki nodded, still not fully ready to verbalize as he normally would.

"I thought you looked familiar. They run the weapons shop just down the street, don't they?"

Another nod.

"That's what I thought. You all always seem like you're up to some fun. You wouldn't believe how boring it can be here." The woman stood back up, then tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "Tell them that they're welcome back here any time. You too, of course, dear. Wait here one moment. I'll be right back."

Haruki gave her a confused look, but sat obediently as she hurried off. When she came back, she had put away the robe elsewhere, and in her hand was a cup with a straw and a lid. "Another one on the house," she told him with a wink. "Cream soda is my favorite too."

He took the cup from her and blushed. The sides were slick with perspiration, and it felt cool in his hand. Haruki smiled back at her. "Thank you."

As he exited, he popped the lid off of his drink. Just as he had hoped, a smooth, round scoop of vanilla ice cream was floating at the top.

Haruki had felt the woman waiting their table was kind, but this was a gesture he had not been expecting. As much as it made him feel better, it also made him feel worse. A smoldering anger began to fester within him. It had taken the kindness of a stranger to make him feel cared about. The people who were supposed to be his comrades had just left him there, after he had been the one to bring them together in the first place.

He shook his head and fished his phone out of his pocket. Haruki stopped on the side of the road just outside the hotel, so as not to get in the way of passersby. He shot a volley of texts to people in his contacts saying, 'hey,' to feel out who was available. Fumi answered first, followed by Mai and Hibiki.

Haruki walked into the street as he texted back and forth to arrange where and when to meet up with each of them, save for Mai, who was out on a mission that morning. Inevitably, he began to pass the weapons shop. He still planned on spending every ryo he had before showing his face to his parents, but to his surprise, when he glanced at the shop, it was empty. They must have been out to have breakfast elsewhere. Haruki was about to pass by without incident, but as he sipped from his cup, he felt how awkwardly the torn fabric of his sleeve felt against his skin, reminding him that he was still in the same clothes from yesterday.

The redhead boy walked up to the store window and lifted himself onto his toes. Haruki stretched his arm up to the lip of a bird feeder that hung from the wall. He grappled a moment, then pulled out the store's spare key. He took it and unlocked the shop.

Haruki walked with purpose as he crossed to where the store's counter was. Instead of lifting the flap to pass by, he swept a low duck under, then rounded the wall to where the kitchen and his bedroom blended seamlessly.

The stairs in the corner led to the second floor, where his parents' room also functioned as a storage space and led into their only bathroom. For the sake of saving space, Haruki's so-called 'room' was much more lacking in decor than he would've liked. He had a twin-sized bed, a dresser, bookshelf, and two posters of his favorite action heroes plastered on the wall. The bed, unlike how it was when he left, was made. On the bookshelf, there were a few manga, but it was mostly dedicated to various knickknacks he had collected over the years and a few toys he kept from when he first moved to the Leaf Village.

He shed his shinobi gear and tucked them away in the bottom drawer of the dresser, so as to not make it too obvious he had been here. Then he changed into a basic t-shirt and shorts.

Just as Haruki hopped over the counter and was about to exit the store, the young genin slowed, then came to a stop at the store's center. All around him were the store's wares set out on display. Basic tools were visible behind the glass of the counter - kunai, scrolls, makibishi, a sign saying paperbombs were stored in the back of the shop. Hung on the walls were the big weapons that users would likely specialize in. Swords took up the north wall, while other miscellaneous weapons like staves, nunchucks, and battle fans took up the southern wall. As he stood there, Haruki reflected on the red-haired woman he and his squad had engaged with the evening before.

To his surprise, she had been a chuunin, and not much older than them, according to the ninja that had worn a gasmask. He wondered how someone like her would've became a rogue ninja. Haruki had always pictured villain-types as much older and much uglier. What possibly could've happened in her life, or his life in a couple of years, that could push someone to leave everything they knew behind to live the life of an outcast?

He recalled what it felt like when he first attacked her - for his kunai to cut into the flesh of another person. It had both been too rough and too smooth at the same time. The thought of it made him feel sick. It was a sensation he never wanted to feel again.

Katsuro had told him, he remembered then, that he would be able to decide whether the shinobi lifestyle was the one for him after they had finished their mission. The mission was complete now. He did not know whether he actually had the choice that the jonin-sensei claimed he did, but for the first time in a long time, he thought to himself in earnest: what did he want to do with his life?

Haruki crossed his legs at the ankles. Slowly, he sank to a seated position on the floor. He stared at the walls. The weapons on each side loomed over him. Each tool carried a different choice, and a different burden.

- - - - -

Takashi nodded. "I believe that's the best way to describe it. The way he interacts with her crosses the boundary of what a normal brother-sister relationship should be."

He looked thoughtful as he paused for a moment. "They weren't completely orphaned by the war. His mother is still alive and living with them, but we don't know much about his mother. She's never been a shinobi. She's a seamstress of some sorts, I don't know the exact term, but it seems like she doesn't do or get very many commissions these days. Periodically, with my squad, I invite the kids and their families out to a picnic. I believe this sort of thing helps comfort parents who worry about their children on duty, and even if they can't all make every one, I like to think it helps build a micro community that can carry on through supporting my students throughout their lives. In the beginning, Tetsuo's mother would respond enthusiastically to these invites. However... in spite of her commitments, she never showed up, not even once. Eventually, she stopped responding altogether."

He took the last drag from his pipe that he would for a long time. As he breathed the last of his smoke, he said, "If you can forgive me, I have one final anecdote for you." Takashi slid the pipe over to the side by the deck box, then set his hands unmoving on Seiba's head and shoulders. The Great Dane first looked up with confusion that his pats had ceased, but seemed placated by the physical contact still being made, and sank his head into Takashi's thigh with a sigh.

"Tetsuo has always had behavioral issues. Academy records have a laundry list of fights with peers, talking back to authority, everything you would expect. As you can imagine, all of this carried over when he became my student. He never seemed to care for me, and made sure to be vocal about how displeased he was that I was the instructor he'd been assigned to every chance he got." Takashi huffed a light chuckle at this. However, his smile did not last long. "But about four months back, I noticed a... change, in Tetsuo. Just when I thought I may have been making some progress with the squad's dynamic, his behavior started to escalate, seemingly out of nowhere."

The Yamanaka man set one elbow on his knee and cupped his cheek in his hand. "Beforehand, it seemed mostly like he just had trouble controlling his temper, but suddenly it seemed like he was looking for a reason to fight. He combated every instruction I tried to give no matter how inane, and he missed no opportunity to antagonize the teammate he bickered with the most. I tried to reason with him, but nothing I said would get through to him. I tried to speaking with him in private, only when I asked whether anything had changed to cause this escalation in behaviors, he didn't know or acted like he didn't know what I was talking about. Not that he ever voluntarily gave up much personal information about himself, of course, but I became concerned. Nothing in our routine had changed. The only thing that out of the ordinary I noticed was that he stopped talking about his father altogether. He was completely mum no matter how I tried to ask if anything was bothering him. So, I started digging where I could."

A small flock of varied tits, presumably the same from earlier, fluttered back down into the yard. Seiba seemed to take notice of this immediately. His floppy ears perked up, and the two men heard the clink of his dogtag as he readjusted his head to watch the birds. He did not, however, make any attempt to remove himself from the comfort of his owner's lap.

"I know I just complained about the utility of student files, but I started there. I looked at both his file and his sister's. Apparently, when she had first enrolled in the academy, she was scrawny and noticeably unkempt. This, after multiple attempts to contact their mother, seemed enough to warrant a house visit. There are records of Tetsuo appearing the same in many of his years at the academy, but unlike his sister, whose only vice is the occasional fibbing, he had flown under the radar. I can only assume this was because his teachers perceived his appearance as just another behavioral issue." It was clear by his tone that Takashi found this upsetting, but he did not stop to linger on the topic any longer.

"Essentially, without going into too much detail, they found the house in disarray. It was flagged for being potentially unsuitable for children, and a list of corrections, along with a deadline, was issued. They would be checked on three times following the initial house visit. In each of these followup visit, conditions were found satisfactory. There were no more notes about either of them showing up to school looking dirty or otherwise alarming in appearance. It had been a couple of years since then when he was assigned to my team. I worried that things had possibly slipped back to how they were before, but since I'd never seen this for myself, I had no real way of knowing if this was the case. So, I made the executive decision to make a home visit, myself. I had picked a day my students were doing a joint mission with another squad. Nothing too hard, just another D-rank.

"I had never personally seen his house before. From the outside, it just looked like any other residential home. I had to wait a long time for someone to answer the door, but his mom did eventually answer, and I finally got to meet her face-to-face. She was"—he gave a small smile—"uncooperative, to say the least. I brought up my concerns with her, and she immediately became defensive. She claimed nothing had changed, either around the home or in Tetsuo's behavior. The more I prompted for answers, the more agitated she became, and she did not seem willing to invite me in. I let her alone not too long after that.

"If I'm being honest, even after all of this time, I don't quite know what to make of the situation. I felt like I had learned nothing useful, and when Tetsuo found out, I lost whatever little trust I had built with him."

It was plain to see in Takashi's smile that there was regret. "He perceived this as a great betrayal. To him, I had gone behind his back, and this was an unforgivable slight. He completely shut me out after this. Maybe I gave up on him too soon, but this was during a time where the other two in my squad had finally gotten closer together, while Tetsuo seemed to only be drifting further away. I don't know if I did the right thing. I don't believe that my actions are ever above criticism, even if by my own student. I just hope that someday, he'll understand why I did what I did."

 

[Gilzar]

For a brief moment or so, Katsuro just watched the birds that had caught the attention of the Great Dane. It seemed like the dog was debating on attacking the colorful collection of avians, but he never did.

Tetsuo had no father in his life and a seemingly negligent mother. Katsuro couldn't help but think about just how similar that was to another student on his team. From reading her file, he knew that Mizu lived with her neglectful mother up until the age of 7. Unlike Tetsuo's case, the village had to intervene and place the girl under the care of her uncle. It was ironic how the two couldn't relate to each other, even though they both had similar upbringings. If what Katsuro was speculating was true, then having a lack of parental figures would also explain why Tetsuo treated his sister the way he did: He was filling the parental role that his mother probably wasn't. Perhaps when the village flagged his home, that's when Tetsuo stepped up to be a parent?

Takashi also explained what seemed to be his final falling out with Tetsuo. Katsuro couldn't help but feel bad for Takashi by the end of the story. He cared about Tetsuo, and went above and beyond his position to try and help the kid. But it backfired on him, and Tetsuo turned his back on his former instructor like so many others in his life. Maybe Tetsuo thought that if Takashi figured out the real family dynamic, then the village would intervene and break them all apart? Once again this was just pure speculation. However, thanks to Takashi's honesty, he knew what line he wouldn't want to cross with Tetsuo. In his head he made a plan to avoid trying to look into the kid's home life. If any situation came around that he needed to look into it, then he would be as discreet about the matter as possible.

"Look, don't beat yourself up too bad about the kid. You gave a shit and tried to help him. Things just didn't work out." Katsuro said, trying to give Takashi some reassurance on his actions. This conversation was exactly what Katsuro was hoping for when he first knocked on the Yamanaka's door. Although his time here was short, he felt like he had a much better understanding of Tetsuo than before. There were plenty of things he wasn't aware of that was now brought to light. For the rest of his time off he'd think over this conversation, and make some sort of plan for dealing with Tetsuo.

"Thanks for everything though. You've been a big help. If I need to know anything else I'll just buy you a beer or something instead of knocking at your door."

With that said, Katsuro excused himself from Takashi's home. He'd needed to take a nap and get some paperwork done. Rather than going back through the cluttered home, Katsuro simply jumped back into the streets. It was quicker that way, and he wouldn't inconvenience Takashi anymore. Once he was walking back through the vibrant streets of the Yamanaka clan, he brought out his cellphone. He opened up the group chat he had with his students, and slowly began to pound a message into the phone.

Next Monday meet at the forest training grounds at 8 AM. Don't be late. Wear your training gear.​

 

[Pine]

In spite of Katsuro's attempt to console him, the sadness in Takashi's smile remained unchanged. "I appreciate the reassurance, Katsuro," he said, nonetheless. Then he added, "I would love a beer next time."

As Katsuro shifted his weight in preparation of leaving, Takashi readjusted himself on the floor cushion. He came to rest on his knees and sat back on his heels. Seiba tried to take advantage of this change and started to get up to pad over to Katsuro, but this time Takashi caught the large mammal by the handle on his harness to hold him in place. After a moment, Seiba sat on the cushion next to his owner.

"I cannot express enough how much it means to me that you stopped by. Please know that you're welcome here anytime," the Yamanaka man told him. Briefly, he seemed to debate on whether to say something or not before he continued. "I'll be transparent with you Katsuro. I was nervous when I learned that he would be placed in your squad, but having met you, I feel like I've made the right choice. The fact that you came by means that you care. Tetsuo needs someone like that. So, thank you. And please, if there's ever anything I can do to help, let me know."

The two exchanged their goodbyes. As Katsuro jumped the fence, Seiba got quickly to his feet to give chase, but was pulled back by Takashi, and once again, reluctantly, sat back on his haunches.

- - - - -

Tetsuo sat at the edge of his mattress holding a framed picture. His hair was still wet from the shower he just took, making clumps of his bangs stick to his forehead. Occasionally, a drop of water rolled down the back of his neck, but it was caught on the towel still wrapped around his shoulders.

Hunger had gnawed at his stomach for so long, the sensation had begun to feel familiar. Sometime between now and him heading home, however, a headache had formed at the front of his lobe and now pounded at his temples. Nevertheless, he had things to do first, and even though it made every small task much more of a chore to do, he continued to put off his first meal.

First thing when he came home was to shed the grime that had accumulated on his body over the past couple of days. This he would do by pushing his bedroom window in and slipping quietly into his home, then the bathroom. He'd had the opportunity to wash up once they'd gotten to the train station last night, but exhaustion had gotten the better of him, and he'd fallen asleep as soon as an empty bench allowed him to be horizontal. Following that, he'd stashed his burned jacket far in the back of one of his dresser drawers. While he feasibly could do a ratty job patching it up, he didn't want to explain to either his mom or sister how this injury to his clothing had come to be. So instead, on trash collection day, he would retrieve it from his drawer and trash it. He had planned to move straight to the kitchen following this, but he had waited so long to eat now, he decided to indulge a nagging question that had settled in his mind since yesterday morning.

In this photograph, his father did have facial hair. A mustache above his lips, and a soul patch that converged with a short, pointed beard on his chin. That was all he had thought to ask of this snapshot of the past, but he ended up lingering on the photo anyway.

It was a picture taken while he was very young. Before the war. Before Soto was born. It was a family portrait, with Tetsuo at the center. His mom was crouched down, holding him by the shoulders, presumably to keep him still long enough to take the picture, and smiled big for the camera. His father stood on the other side behind him, looking dignified with only a grin slight enough to affirm he wanted to be there.

It had taken more years than it should have, due to the difference in gender and perhaps a little bit of false hope, to realize how he resembled his mother far more than he did his father. This photo was back when his mother still bleached highlights into her hair, but he undoubtedly got the black hair from her. His father's hair in the photo was brown and slicked back, with a noticeable widow's peak. His face was much more angular than the square face of himself and his mother. He must have even gotten his pale skin and freckles from his mother who, although they seem to have faded some with age, she was the only one that carried evidence peppering her cheeks. The only thing Tetsuo could think of that he may have inherited from his father was the shape of his eyes, but even when he looked back between the photo and a mirror, he had trouble figuring out how exactly to identify precisely what shaped an eye and made them similar. It was just something he'd heard his mother say once.

Tetsuo shut his eyes and finally acknowledged the throbbing in his head. It made him want to be lethargic, so as not to agitate it, but that wasn't an option. He got up and put the photo back from where he got it: the first drawer of his dresser, face-down. After sliding the drawer shut, he returned the towel to the bathroom to dry and made his way to the kitchen.

In his haste earlier, he had not really gotten a good look at the state of the kitchen. Seeing it now, he let out a long sigh from his nose. Pots, pans and plates cluttered both sides of the sink. He saw the rice cooker on the counter, and without even opening it, he knew there was rice inside leftover from one of the nights he had been gone. Now the rice would have become crunchy and borderline inedible. Uncooked grains of rice, as well as what he suspected might have been flour, littered the counter in patches. He couldn't cook anything while things were like this.

He found a solitary cup ramen tucked in a corner of the pantry, an orange markdown sticker stuck to the lid. Tetsuo had to rotate the faucet and push pot handles aside in order to fill the cup with water. It was there that he saw between the sink and the counter's short wall, water had gotten trapped, and coagulated with some sort of starch or soap into a grime. He shut the faucet off and started his instant meal in the microwave.

Tetsuo leaned against the stovetop beneath and listened to the whirring as he waited.

“Tetsuo?” He heard his mother’s voice before she saw her. She rounded the corner of the hall that led to the master bedroom. She was still in her nightgown with sleep in her eyes. She tugged the collars and folded her arms over her chest self-consciously. “I didn’t hear you come in.”

Tetsuo straightened up from the counter. “Hi, Mom,” he said.

She crossed the kitchen to him and wrapped him in a brief embrace, planting a small kiss just beneath his bangs. “Did you just come back?”

He nodded.

“How was your first mission with your new team?”

“It was alright,” he said, sliding his eyes away to a random point on the counter. “Nothing exciting happened.”

He wanted to feel bad for lying. Children shouldn’t lie to their parents. But instead, there was a small, selfish part of him that hoped she saw past his indifferent exterior. He wanted her to point out how unwell he actually looked, press for answers about what kind of a mission could have pushed him to this extreme when he was usually so much more composed. This was the first time he had traveled outside of the Land of Fire, and for a mission to take more than one day. Maybe he still wouldn’t tell her anything so as not to give her real cause for concern, but he thought maybe it might feel nice to experience that.

It was a useless thought exercise, because evidently she had already moved on. “It’s been exhausting taking care of your sister,” she told him. “Since you weren't here, she kept asking me to play.”

At that moment, the microwave beeped. Tetuo let the cup ramen sit there as he listened.

“Lately, she's gotten fixated on getting a puppy. I don’t have the energy to take care of a dog,” she continued. “Just looking at this mess in here-”

“Don’t worry,” Tetsuo interjected. “I’ll clean it up.”

She shook her head and waved her hand. “No, no. This was your first mission in a while and it’s my mess anyway. I should act like a parent for once. I’ll clean it up.” She turned to the sink. Before she could do more than plug the sink and run the faucet, she looked back at him, and her face suddenly became stern. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

For a moment, without realizing it, Tetsuo slipped up. He had been able to maintain a neutral expression throughout their conversation, but in that moment, he'd let himself look at her back like she'd grown a second head.

He blinked and shook his head. His head pounded in retaliation. “I'm not- it's- nothing.” Tetsuo pivoted the topic. "Maybe Soto doesn't want a dog, just a pet. She could probably take care of a hamster. And if she can't, I'll handle it. You wouldn't have to worry about it."

His mother gave him a look like she knew what he was doing, but she allowed the conversation to drop. After several seconds of silence, broken by cabinet doors opening and shutting, the slurping sound of the soap bottle being squeezed, Tetsuo took the hint. He grabbed the last pair of clean chopsticks, took the cup ramen out of the microwave and quietly made his way back to his room to eat.

Just as he'd settled back on the mattress, his phone that he'd left sitting on his dresser buzzed. Tetsuo furrowed his brow and got up to check the notification.

- - - - -

As Tetsuo had suspected, he would ultimately be the one to clean the kitchen. The first night while his mother was napping, he had made it usable so that he could start dinner by the time Soto returned home from school. The days after were spent polishing it, as well as taking care of mildew-forming hazards in the two bathrooms and trimming the grass around the house.

He had caught up sooner on household chores than he thought, only taking half the week, and the times where Soto was away at school left him feeling restless. Before he had tossed his old jacket, he had experimented with stitching to see if he could replicate his clan's symbol on the new jacket he's bought, but boredom made him impatient, and the results were dissatisfactory. Otherwise, he had spent his downtime looking for places to train on his own, and hoped no one else showed up to watch or talk to him. Part of him wished Katsuro would go ahead with summoning him for whatever punishment he had promised earlier, just to give him something to do, but enough time passed that he started to wonder if the jonin sensei had just forgotten. Over the weekend, he entertained Soto with discussions of pets, but employed the list of conditions he'd planned in order for him to accept she was ready for one. This included actually reading the books on pet care she'd checked out from the library - not just looking at the pictures.

By the time Monday had arrived, it took meticulous effort to stretch his time getting ready in the morning so that he only showed up ten minutes early. He found the tallest boulder near the training ground’s entrance to perch himself on top of. He stared at nothing in particular as he rested his cheek in his one hand and tapped the rock’s chalky surface impatiently with his other.

For Haruki's part, his plan to blow most of his money then hide the rest day one in order to get his parents to cover his losses was a success. They had given him a stern lecture about spending his money, but it was easy to distract them with their excitement over his first completed mission. To his parents and later the friends he would hang out with, he spun exaggerated tales of his exploits during their mission. He wouldn’t milk the stories for too long before returning to gossip. With the money he’d hidden, he distributed its spending better throughout the week. He chose cheaper items at fast food joints, and more of his time at the arcade was spent watching his friends play than playing himself. On Sunday, he’d used the last of his money without realizing to the minor vexation of his friend that had been with him at the time, but covered him nevertheless.

Unlike Tetsuo, Monday filled Haruki with dread. He hadn’t made any attempt to speak to Mizu since the restaurant. He had accidentally texted her a ‘hey’ on Wednesday when he had been mass texting his contact list, but never followed through with anything else. He didn’t know what to think or expect from her when he had to see her again for training. If he tried greeting her, would she just pass over him like Matsuda had at the restaurant? A mixture of jealousy and anxiety burned into his stomach every time he thought about it.

For this reason, Haruki intentionally hugged the deadline for their meetup time. He might have been late, too, had it not been for his father keeping tabs on his attendance that day and not wanting to invoke Katsuro’s ire first thing he saw the jonin in a week. He dragged his feet to the training ground and tried distracting himself with his new Yamagotchi: a cat-eyed amorphous blob he’d decided to name Yum-Yum. He intentionally kept his head down as he walked to the ground’s gates, scooping up pixel litter before coming to a stop at the end of the road.

 

[Gilzar]

"I think I know just the right colors that would complement your skin tone!" Matsuda called out to Mizu as she sorted through various racks of clothing.

Mizu just waited patiently as Matsuda poured through the isles, scouring for just the right color. They had been at this store now for almost 45 minutes, but so far Mizu had nothing to show for it. Normally Mizu would have had her clothing and left by now, but Matsuda was delaying that process. She insisted upon looking through every isle as thoroughly as possible, looking upon each individual garment. Once Matsuda found something she thought would suit Mizu, she'd rush back to her and hold the clothing up in front of her. Matsuda's eyes would then narrow as she imagined the garment on Mizu, and most of the time she would just toss the garment and move onto another. For all the time they had spent, there was just a small pile of clothes that had Matsuda's approval.

"Does that really matter?" Mizu protested politely. "Everything here is really nice..."

Mizu wasn't lying. The store had lived up to Matsuda's words, and it was probably one of the nicest gear shops she had ever been in. Every article of clothing was of the top quality, much better than her usual spots.

Matsuda's head snapped back from between the hanging clothing. "Of course it matters! You should always dress your best, even on duty. You'd be surprised the difference dressing with some style makes."

Mizu raised a brow in skepticism. By now she was finally starting to loosen up around Matsuda, comfortable enough to voice her own concerns. "How so? It's just clothing."

Matsuda paused at one particular item of clothing, and quickly grabbed it. She walked back toward Mizu, an excited look in her eye to show off the next article of clothing to the girl.

"Fashion is art, Mizu" Matsuda explained as she walked over. "When someone sees art they like, it subconsciously pleases them. It may even leave a lasting impression. A proper outfit is no different. Mixing the right colors with your hair and skin tone paints a positive picture for those who see you. You'll make better first impressions and people might even treat you better!"

"Plus, it feel good to look good." She said with a playful wink and smile. "You're a woman Mizu, use that to your advantage."

Now directly in front of Mizu, Matsuda proudly presented her latest find to the girl. She held up a long sleeved, red-brown half turtleneck. It was made of a fine yet breathable fabric. Mizu's eyes opened wide, a small gasp escaping from her smile. Of everything Matsuda had shown her in the store, this was her favorite. All doubt she had immediately left her as she grabbed it out of Matsuda's hands and held it up in the nearest mirror. As she looked at herself in the mirror, she began to understand just what Matsuda was getting at. The color brought out the warm color of her skin tone, much more than what she usually wore. Mizu was pleased with the idea of wearing this. Through the mirror she could see Matsuda confidently grinning at her.

"See?"

"You were right." Mizu begrudgingly admitted. "I see what you mean."

"I knew you'd come around to my wisdom eventually." Matsuda teased. She picked up the rest of the clothing pile she'd picked out her. "Come on, grab a few spares and let's get out of here. Kaito's going to get fussy if I don't come back soon."

The two of them then went over to the register to finish things up.

"She's with me." Matsuda told the cashier. He was an older man, with light colored skin and dark hair like Matsuda's. It was obvious this man was related to the clan in some way. With a smile and a nod, he crunched a few buttons and the total cost on the screen was reduced. It was still pricey, but much better than before. However, this wasn't acceptable to Matsuda.

"Come on..." Matsuda pressured the cashier. "It's the girl's first time here. Surely you can make it special? I did tell her this was the best clothing store in Konoha after all." She leaned in over the counter. "Don't you want to make a lasting impression for her?"

The man closed his eyes, chuckling in disbelief at Matsuda's comments. He ran his hand through his hair and let out a long groan as he debated what to do. Meanwhile Matsuda just continued to look at him, patiently waiting for an answer. "Alright." He finally replied, shaking his head at Matsuda with a slight grin. "I'll give you half off everything girl, but you have to tell all of your friends where you got these. Deal?"

"Deal." Mizu happily replied. She slipped the money on the counter, eyeing Matsuda. It was impressive how she was able to pull that off.

As they left the store, Matsuda turned to the girl one last time. "Well, I suppose it's time for me to go back. Don't want to keep Kaito waiting. I hope you had some fun this morning!"

Mizu smiled at Matsuda one last time. "I did. Thank you for everything today!"

"Don't worry about it. I'll see you around."

The two then went their separate ways out of the district. Nothing eventful would happen for the rest of Mizu's break. As was usual, Hisoka was barely around. There was one night where she had the chance to speak with him about her mission, but it was just a typical conversation with her uncle. She would spend the rest of the week resting her wounds, reading, or training in some manner. Haruki had sent her a text, but it only read 'Hey'. Mizu debated about responding to the text, but out of frustration with him she decided it would be best to not reply. She'd just deal with him on Monday.

On Monday morning Mizu would arrive at the training grounds exactly at 8 AM. Taking Matsuda's advice to heart, she had made sure that her outfit was well put together. She made sure to wear the red-brown shirt Matsuda had picked out for her this morning, as well as the pair of tight dark grey pants that ended halfway at the calf from the same store. The girl had even gone as far to brush he hair so that it wasn't as unkept as usual. Once she arrived, Mizu was met with an unexpected surprise. Tetsuo had actually beaten her to the training grounds. Normally he was late to all of their meetings. Still bitter about the events of their last mission, she made sure not to give him even the slightest of looks as she leaned up against the tree.

--------------

Katsuro's time off was nothing special. During the day he spent most of his time filling out various reports, or random bits of paperwork expected of a jonin. Occasionally he'd get the chance to spend a night at the bar with some old friends, but otherwise it was just business as usual for the grizzled jonin.

He arrived to the training grounds just a little bit after Tetsuo. With summer almost at an end, the fall chill was beginning to set in. This morning was particularly chilly, especially compared to the heat they had experienced in the land of birds. Upon arrival all he gave to Tetsuo was just a small nod. The same nod was given to Haruki and Mizu once they showed up. Katsuro noticeably wasn't paying much attention to them, and for good reason. There were two other people he was expecting for training today. Only issue was that they were late, as he feared they would have been. Neither of them were known for being on time. Katsuro waited in silence for three minutes before he had enough.

"Alright, we've waited long enough. Today we're -"

Before Katsuro could finish, he noticed that something about Mizu had caught his eye enough to halt his thoughts. The girl looked different than usual. Normally he wouldn't care, but there was something he just couldn't put his finger on. He visibly looked over Mizu with a quizzical expression on his face. Mizu was dressed much differently than usual. Especially for something as simple as training. That style of clothing reminded him of someone... Katsuro's eyes suddenly darted open when the realization hit him. Mizu was dressed just like her - Matsuda Uchiha. Even the small amount of makeup she wore that day looked similar to the way that damn woman would wear it.

"Who the fuck have you been with?" Katsuro suddenly called out to Mizu.

Mizu's eyes expanded in alarm, completely caught off guard by her Sensei. "Uh..." Her eyes frantically darted away from Katsuro. She wasn't used to being the one that Sensei started the day off calling out. It was almost always Tetsuo or Haruki, but never her. Why did it matter who she was with? In a panic she wondered just what sort of answer he was expecting. A thousand different responses raced through her head, and she frantically looked for the ones that made sense.

"My uncle...?" She awkwardly responded, shoulders tensed up in anticipation of how Katsuro would react. Yet he just stood there, as if expecting another answer. Once again Mizu found herself mentally grasping at straws under the pressure of her sensei's gaze. There was only one other person of note she had been with that week. "I went clothes shopping with Matsuda the other day?"

Immediately Katsuro let out a frustrated groan. He knew it. She was dressed just like his former rival was at her age. The thought of Matsuda polluting his student's mind with all of her nonsense and antics pinned an aching sensation deep in his skull. Katsuro dragged his hand against his head, trying to ease the frustration. Last week he knew Haruki and Mizu were grabbing breakfast with her, but he didn't think it would lead to anything else.

"Damnit!" His gritted teeth muttered under his breath. The day had barely begun and Matsuda had already found a way to piss him off. He knew she would make him regret the favor he asked her for today, but this was unexpected. Matsuda and I are gonna have words after this, he thought to himself.

He looked up to see Mizu staring at him in horror, waiting to see what would happen next. As frustrated as he was, it wasn't Mizu's fault. Katsuro let out a loud sigh.

"Whatever." He groaned, before looking over at Haruki and Tetsuo.

"Let's just get started. I'm not gonna wait on the other two. Each of you are going to pick something to train these next three weeks. Either Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, or Genjutsu. Pick carefully because that's all you're going to work on. Tell me what you decide."

 

[Pine]

Haruki had gotten stuck in a cycle of having just one more thing to do with his new Yamagotchi. While he had been listening to his sensei speak, he was determined to finish this one task. He held it lower by his waist, as if this did anything to actually hide the small device from his sensei when it was making noises with every button click. Perhaps luckily, Katsuro became distracted by something else before he had a chance to react to what his young pupil had been doing.

Haruki started at the jonin's sudden shift in tone. Even Tetsuo looked alarmed, eyes widening as he searched for what had caused this reaction. Haruki quickly pocketed his Yamagotchi and looked at Katsuro, then followed to where Mizu stood uncomfortably. While he wasn't exactly sure why it had gotten that response from their sensei, he had a pretty good guess about what had caused this.

Mizu looked different. Her straight hair had an orderly sheen to it and something about her face made her look... he wasn't quite sure. More mature? The outfit that she must've gotten with Matsuda was much more form-fitting than anything he had seen her wear before, and it showed the shape of her body much more.

Haruki was overwhelmed with a multitude of complicated emotions all at once. The outfit served as a painful reminder that Mizu had left without him to go shopping with Matsuda, and so he'd completely been unable to give any input into what sort of outfit she should go with. Not only that, but she looked pretty, and he couldn't help but admire the look of her for a moment. He felt his face starting to heat, likely from secondhand embarrassment of all of the sudden attention being put on his teammate, but there may have been influence from something else in his complex of feelings. He looked away, not wanting to be caught staring any longer. He couldn't help but feel a little sorry for the girl that their sensei was the first to react out of them, whatever it was that had caused him to make the outburst about it that he did.

Tetsuo's feelings on the matter were much less complicated. He had noticed the difference in Mizu during the stretch of time Katsuro had just stood there even after they all gathered, but now he was appalled to learn that this change was a direct result of Matsuda's influence. He already had enough problems with Mizu. If Matsuda was going to mold the young girl into a miniature, dolled up version of herself on top of that, he was going to lose his goddamn mind.

Moreover, he was agitated that this was what interrupted Katsuro's instruction of all things. This had absolutely nothing to do with training, and it wasn't something he wanted to spend any amount of time lingering on. Tetsuo nearly asked why the fuck any of this mattered, but Katsuro finally got over whatever had caused him to make a scene and moved on.

With Haruki's virtual pet tucked out of sight, the instructor now had both of the boy's undivided attention.

At the choice presented to them, Haruki did not hesitate for a second. His hand shot into the air. "Ninjutsu!" he said.

Tetsuo's eyes were still narrowed in apprehension at Katsuro from the incident just before. "What other two?"

 

[Gilzar]

Tetsuo had caught on to Katsuro's hint that two other people would be joining them today. While he would have preferred for Tetsuo just give him a straightforward answer, he couldn't fault the kid for his curiosity.

"I can't give all three of you the attention you need for specialized training. So, I pulled some favors and got two of the best jonin I know to help us train these next few weeks. They're the best in the village, so I expect you all to be on your best behavior with them. Now, answer my question: Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, or Genjutsu?"

Having recovered from her unpleasant exchange with Katsuro, Mizu gave the question some thought. Ninjutsu was tempting, but she took pride in her Taijutsu abilities. She couldn't help but recall the fights from the previous weeks. Both Genzo and that rogue chunin Emiko got the better of her with Taijutsu. It burned a fire in the girl's competitive spirit, enough so that her answer became clear.

"Taijutsu." Mizu responded confidently.

 

[Pine]

Katsuro would've been hard-pressed to come up with an answer that would've pleased Tetsuo, but this certainly wasn't one of them. While he understood the logic, and in a way he appreciated the individual attention being promised to them, he didn't exactly have a history of establishing good rapport with teachers. The unknown made him anxious, but the alternative was Katsuro. He'd seen the devastating impact of his designated jonin sensei in combat, but he was still feeling a little sour from their conversation along the perimeter of Sando's estate, and Katsuro would end up just yelling at him the whole time. In fact, the grizzled man was already starting to get on his nerves.

He was going to give Katsuro his answer. He didn't need to be prompted a second time.

Tetsuo huffed, rolled his eyes and turned his scowl away to the gate. It was all he could do to keep from verbalizing his frustrations.

Mizu and Haruki had both picked the only two options he'd consider. Genjustu was something that felt too passive for him - he had no interest in it. For a passing moment he was concerned that picking ninjutsu or taijutsu meant having to choose between working with Haruki or Mizu, but then he remembered the two other instructors promised to be there, so that wouldn't have to be the case.

Normally, the prospect of possibly learning a new ninjutsu might have interested him, but he'd felt almost cooped up after spending so much time off. There was some innate need that had surface in him like an itch. He wanted to grapple and be grappled, get pushed until every fiber of his being burned. Even after just a week, it'd been far too long since he'd last felt depleted.

His answer came out as almost a grumble as he continued glaring at the gate. "Fucking, taijitsu, I guess."

 

[Gilzar]

Of all the answers his students gave him, Tetsuo's surprised him the most. He had figured that the kid would want to advance his ninjutsu further, however he instead opted to focus on Taijutsu over the course of these next few weeks. Not a bad idea, as it would give him a chance to cover up some weak spots. It was just a decision Katsuro didn't see coming. Before he could instruct his students further, two voices could be heard approaching: The gravelly voice of an unknown man, and an enthusiastic woman's voice the three genin were all too familiar with by now.

Matsuda walked into the training grounds carrying a small bag with her, accompanied by an older looking Hyuga man with snow-white hair. Mizu had never seen this man before. He was shorter than Matsuda, at with a lighter frame at 5'9 if she had to estimate. Though he did not look too old, the age marks on his face suggested he was in his early 50's. Yet in spite of his age he looked strong with good posture. Interestingly enough his white hair was slicked back with gel, unusual for someone his age. At closer examination, one would also see two long scars running vertically down the far left side of his face. One ran from his chin to the lower part of his cheek. The other sat near his eye and ran up to his temple. For clothing he wore a black turtleneck and standard shinobi pants and shoes. Draped over his torso was a blue jacket with a thick fur collar, though he wore it more like a cloak and didn't run his arms through the sleeves. Wrapped around his forehead was the standard Konoha headband. In his hands was a fresh cup of coffee.

Katsuro narrowed his eyes as the two laughed their way into the training grounds. "You're late."

The older Hyuga laughed, "Sorry Katsuro!" His gravelly voice replied. "It's my fault. I'm still hungover from our adventure to the bar last night. Matsuda insisted she get me coffee at this neat hotel cafe."

"Why you and Katsuro chose to get drunk on a Sunday I'll never know, Sensei." Matsuda teased to the Hyuga. She then looked at Mizu with a pleased look. "Nice outfit. Where'd you get it?"

Katsuro rolled his eyes behind his glasses at the both of them. "Let's just get started. We've waited long enough. Everyone this is Ginji Hyuga, and you all know Matsuda by now. They will be assisting with your training."

Ginji waved to the three genin as he sipped his coffee. Matsuda simply smiled at the three of them, needing no introduction for any of them by this point.

"Tetsuo, you're with Ginji. He'll help you get your Taijutsu up to speed." Katsuro instructed.

"Mizu, you'll be with me. There's some improvements I want to make to your Taijutsu."

Matsuda cheerfully butted into the conversation before Katsuro could get to Haruki. "Looks like you're with me then, Haruki!" She called out with a wink towards the boy. "What are we training?"

Katsuro let out a small sigh, gritting his teeth together in irritation at Matsuda's antics. She meant to do that. Matsuda knew he hated being interrupted. "Ninjutsu." he said begrudgingly.

"Perfect!" Matsuda called out. Unlike their last encounter, Matsuda was once again looking upon Haruki with her smile. "Come on, let's go to the other end of the training grounds to get some space." She lifted the small bag over he shoulder and went to the far side of the training grounds near the river.

Ginji walked up to the rock Tetsuo was sitting on top of with a confident grin. Despite his apparent age he still carried himself like a man in his 20's. "Name's Ginji Hyuga. You must be Tetsuo?" He asked in a friendly manner. The Hyuga then pointed toward a few wooden dummies nearby. "Care to follow me to those wooden figures? I'd like to see a demonstration of your Taijutsu abilities."

 

[Pine]

Tetsuo snapped his head to the grating sound of that woman's voice. Katsuro had alleged that he picked the best jonin he knew, and he brought her here? He looked at Katsuro in wide-eyed disbelief. Did he not know anyone else in this village? And again he had to wonder, did she have nothing else better to do with her time? Tetsuo was sick of running into the Uchiha woman every time he was in the village. He knew one thing for certain: he was not going to work with her.

As the two jonin approached, Tetsuo listened to the excuses they had to give Katsuro regarding why they were late. Of all people, he had to hear from Matsuda that not only was the stranger of the group hungover, but this was a direct result of spending his evening with the man who was supposed to be his jonin-sensei.

Tetsuo was gobsmacked. Then he became enraged to learn that this was the guy that was going to be assigned to him. Tetsuo couldn't even think to give Matsuda his typical scowl of acknowledgment. He just stared at Katsuro, jaw slackened and nostrils flared in fury.

Matsuda's arrival had also been an unwelcome surprise for Haruki. What moments ago had been great enthusiasm to finally learn some cool jutsu now became an antsy feeling that crawled up from the pit of his stomach. He didn't look at her, because he didn't want to find out if she would skip over him in the lineup of genin. There were a lot of things he didn't want to find out. He thought, looking at the older man that was introduced to them as Ginji Hyuga, that he seemed like someone with an easy demeanor that he might enjoy working with. He perked up just a bit at the prospect. But of course, Ginji got assigned to the worst teammate, and Haruki was stuck with Matsuda.

He looked at her with a sullen expression then. She clearly was not blowing him off like before, and whatever had possessed her to act cold towards him before was something she had gotten over, because she was cheery again looking upon him and inviting him to get going. Just a week ago, he would've been ecstatic to have the chance to work solo with Matsuda who was, for all intents and purposes, the complete opposite of his chain-smoking, alcoholic sensei. He liked the attention she was giving him, even now, but it scared him to think that at any moment, he could do something to trigger her shutting him down again. If Haruki was correct in understanding that they would stick with their assigned jonin during the entirety of these next few weeks of training, then this would quickly become unbearable if she decided he was beneath her notice again.

So when she encouraged him to follow her to the far side of the training grounds, he said with uncharacteristic apathy, "Alright," and followed obediently.

Meanwhile, Tetsuo's brain felt like it had short-circuited. "You-" He was still staring at Katsuro. A rage burned in him so hot and bright that he couldn't even properly form the words needed to express his ire.

He looked away for a moment, distracted, to the lackadaisical man that had just introduced himself to the young genin. Tetsuo paused for a fraction of a second. Then he shook his head, incensed, and held his palm out to the Hyuga man, as if to block him out of his sight while he stared back at Katsuro.

Tetsuo spoke slowly, so as to properly punctuate every phrase and enunciate every syllable he found necessary. "You had. An entire week. To get drunk. Whenever you wanted. And you chose. Last night. To get shitfaced. With the guy. That's supposed to be teaching me." He felt his heart pounding in his chest as his temper flared. He didn't think twice about raising his voice. "You're fucking useless."

 

[Gilzar]

The smile across Ginji's face slowly began to fade as Tetsuo put his palm between them, signaling the kid had no interest in what he had to say. Tetsuo then went on to insult him in passing, like he wasn't standing right next to him. So this was Hiroto's troublemaker son, who he had heard so much about from the other Jonin? Just this little interaction seemed to confirm to Ginji everything he'd been told about him. This kid had a chip on his shoulder, with a sour attitude to top it off. These next few weeks would be interesting. His grey eyes looked patiently over to Katsuro, knowing all to well what was about to happen.

Just as they were about to reach the river, Matsuda stopped. Even from this distance, Matsuda was able to pick up on the tense situation across the training area. They hadn't even been there for five minutes, and already Tetsuo was already making a scene, just like at the interrogation core and the Hokage's office. He even had the audacity to disrespect Ginji just for grabbing a few drinks with Katsuro last night. Such blatant insults to her former sensei ignited a small flame of anger inside of Matsuda. Had Katsuro not been there, she might have stepped in and done something about it herself. But there would be no need for that. She eagerly watched what would happen next, almost excited to see what Katsuro would do.

Katsuro stared down Tetsuo as his blood began to boil, escalating his heart rate. His vision tunneled around his disrespectful student, and his fists tightened. All he wanted to do was march over to Tetsuo and throw him off that stupid rock. The veins in his body bulged as he fought against his instincts. How many times was this kid going to do this? Every time he told the kid to be on his best behavior he always did something. It happened at the interrogation core. It happened at the Hokage office. Now it was happening here. Tetsuo seemed determine to cause problems in front of his peers.

His nostrils flared, and he began to breathe as intensely as when Tetsuo saw him fight Genzo for the first time. Though Tetsuo didn't know it, he had chosen the worst of Katsuro's peers to make a scene in front of. Ginji was a man Katsuro had the utmost respect for. He also respected Matsuda, though he'd never admit it. These were two people who had been through thick and thin with Katsuro. That's why Katsuro asked them to help, because he trusted them more than anyone else in the village.

All of Tetsuo's insults were personal to Katsuro. This kid had no right to criticize what he did in his free time. Katsuro wasn't Takashi. If Tetsuo had somehow come back to the idea that he could walk over Katsuro he was sorely mistaken. His eyes narrowed as he continued to gaze at Tetsuo sitting smug on top of that rock, looking down at everyone else. He needed to be put in his place, and if he thought that rock was going to stop Katsuro then he was sorely mistaken. Katsuro wouldn't do anything to hurt Tetsuo, but he would definitely know his place after the jonin was done.

Katsuro marched over to the rock Tetsuo sat on, muscles tense with rage. Ginji gave Tetsuo an annoyed look, before he backed up to give Katsuro space. It shouldn't have had to come to this. He didn't know what Katsuro planned to do, but he wanted no part of it. It was up to Katsuro to discipline his student, not him. By the time he backed up Katsuro had already reached the boulder. The scarred jonin heaved his right fist back, focused his chakra into his fist, then slammed it into the rock. Upon impact, the entire rock was pulverized into hundreds of tiny pieces right below Tetsuo, forcing the genin to the ground.

As the dust from the now destroyed rock settled, Katsuro loomed over Tetsuo.

"Shut your sorry ass up right now!" Katsuro roared to Tetsuo, raising his voice twice as loud as Tetsuo had at him.

"I'm sick of you treating me like shit right after I fucking tell you not to! If you keep making me look like an idiot in front of my friends, then I'm going to make your life hell!"

"Now you listen here you little shit." Katsuro said in a much quieter, but still angered tone. "Until the day you're giving me orders, what I do on my own time is none of your fucking concern!"

He pointed toward the set of wooden dummies Ginji had previously told him to practice on.

"Get up right now and work with Ginji! Otherwise, I'll train you in Taijutsu and kick your ass every day these next three weeks."

 

[Pine]

With Ginji out of the way, Tetsuo saw plainly the effect his words had on Katsuro. His muscled tensed to brace for the impact of whatever was to come, thinking the hand he'd held out may now need to be used to defend himself from the jonin's fist. It caught him completely off guard for the power the jonin-sensei held to be redirected to the rock instead.

He gasped in surprise as the surface below fell apart in an instant. Tetsuo's stomach couldn't keep up with momentum of his body as it dropped. His head felt fuzzy before the pain of falling several feet down with only the rubble of jagged rocks to cushion his fall. He landed mostly on his back and hissed in discomfort as the pain in his tailbone shot into his throat. He wasn't injured, save for maybe a few small scrapes, but it was still a turbulent experience he'd rather not have.

Haruki had stopped somewhat reluctantly at the same time Matsuda did. Normally, he would've been on the edge of his seat to watch his sensei put Tetsuo in his place, but in that moment, he wasn't in the mood. It felt awkward being there with Matsuda. One small glance her way and he could see how the situation held her rapt attention. He had no choice but to wait by her, keeping his arms close by his sides. Haruki frowned, both shocked and a little horrified to see Katsuro pulverized the enormous rock with one blow. Even after having seen his sensei in combat a couple of times, he was still awed every single time the jonin displayed the force of strength he wielded. "He's scary," Haruki practically whimpered, mostly to himself.

It took longer than Tetsuo would've liked to recover. Katsuro was already yelling at him by the time he became stable enough to prop himself up with his elbows. The shock of the moment had made Tetsuo look deceptively pacified, but as he gathered his bearings, all the rage he'd felt before surged back to him twofold. The boy sneered and kicked out his foot to scatter some of the remnants of the rock that once was before getting to his feet. When he stood, he drilled into Katsuro a glare with unprecedented defiance.

In his eyes, Katsuro was skirting accountability. The man thought that because he was an adult, and if he could intimidate his pupil into silence, then that would put him in the right. This notion only served to incense Tetsuo further, far beyond the scope of his original grievances. There were far too many eyes on him. Katsuro had already humiliated him in front of the Hokage's office once. If he backed down now, then he'd be dismissed as just another kid that was all bark and no bite. He would not be made to look a coward.

Realistically, he knew that Katsuro could decimate him in an instant if he chose. He communicated very clearly that he could shatter his young pupil just as easily as he had that rock, but Katsuro had threatened him so many times now that it'd lost its meaning, and now, Tetsuo felt he was beginning to see his limits. The surly man could or would lay hands on him, but in spite of appearances, he had the restraint to keep from inflicting any serious damage. Every one of his threats fell short of what they were promised to be in some way. Katsuro would rough him up, but it was never anything he couldn't handle. A part of Tetsuo knew he was picking a losing battle. He may not be able to resist submitting to Katsuro forever, but he decided in that moment he was not going to make it easy for him.

"Fucking try it!" he snapped back. Tetsuo tried to match his instructor's volume, but his underdeveloped voice made him fall short, but not by too much. "What are you going to do, punish me? You were already supposed to do that! You don't even need my help to make you look like an idiot because you do that all on your own, jackass!"

 

[Gilzar]

"Alright. You're with me these next three weeks." Katsuro responded to his students challenge without any hesitation. He didn't expect Tetsuo to rise up. Last time they did something like this he backed down. But they had been at each other's throats every day since then. In hindsight this was probably a long time coming. They both needed to do this, too much had been said to ignore. The jonin intended to make Tetsuo eat every word he just said to him. He walked back exactly five yards from Tetsuo, stretching his arms, shoulders, and legs as he walked. After he stopped, he looked to Ginji.

"Ginji, we need to increase Mizu's speed. You don't need to worry about her form or technique. I want you to train her the old-fashioned way, use the Might Guy circuit or whatever you call it."

Ginji nodded to Katsuro, before turning to Mizu. "Come on, Mizu." Ginji instructed to Mizu with a somewhat cocky grin. "Why don't you follow me? We're gonna get you up to killer speed with some old fashion training."

"Okay." Mizu replied, although she hesitated to follow Ginji as he walked away. Tetsuo had really done it this time. Katsuro had always threatened Tetsuo, but this time it seemed like there would actually be some follow through. She hated to admit it, but she understood Tetsuo's concerns. Their instructor drank all the time, it was pretty disheartening to see. Alcohol was ruining his life, just like her mother's. But it wasn't their place as students to bring it up. What confused her though was why this time was different than any other. Was Tetsuo really all that surprised that Katsuro got drunk last night? From what she saw at the mansion, he probably got drunk every night. Their sensei was the textbook definition of a functional alcoholic.

She wanted to stick around and see what happened, especially after Katsuro destroyed that rock, but she was ordered to train with Ginji. Unlike Tetsuo, she wanted to make a good impression on him. Especially since Katsuro had talked this guy up so much. Mizu quickly ran after Ginji, leaving the tense scene behind her.

Katsuro cracked his knuckles. The air was tense between him and his student. This wasn't at all how he had planned to start the day. But Katsuro had no qualms about putting Tetsuo in his place. Maybe the kid would finally learn a lesson from this.

"You wanna learn Taijutsu? Then ready yourself, kid. We're doing some hard sparring so I can look at your technique. Then we'll talk about what you need to do for your punishment."

"No jutsu or any tools. Just hand to hand combat. You have ten seconds to get ready, then I'm coming at you."

Katsuro slowly folded up his glasses and neatly tucked them away into his vest. Last time they sparred the kid managed to break his sunglasses, he'd make sure that wouldn't happen again. He then unzipped his flak jacket, slipped it off his body, and set it on the ground. There was no need to have it on since he wasn't going to use any of his gear. For the remaining four seconds Katsuro stared Tetsuo down, not shifting his gaze off him once.

4...3...2...1!

In an instant Katsuro had closed the distance on Tetsuo. He'd start things off simple, to get a read on the kid's defensive capabilities. Katsuro threw out a quick jab with his left hand at Tetsuo's forehead, followed by a thudding straight punch with his right, aimed for the same spot on Tetsuo's face.

---------

Matsuda glanced down to Haruki, having heard his little comment about Katsuro being scary. She couldn't blame him. That was an intimidating display of power, and she knew all too well what Katsuro's punches felt like. Even without chakra to enhance his strikes, the man hit like a train.

By the time the two were squaring up to each other she had seen enough. Much like Katsuro, she didn't think that Tetsuo would actually escalate the situation further, but the troublemaker was just full of surprises. It reminded her all too much of a young Katsuro getting himself into similar situations with that temper of his. As tempting as it would be to watch the two go at it, she knew Katsuro well enough to know how this would all end.

She nudged Haruki with a friendly elbow, trying to get the boy to loosen up a little. "Come on Haruki, we've got some work to do!"

Matsuda stood just at the edge of the river. This was her favorite place to train. The slow current of the nearby water cleared her thoughts, and the backdrop of the forest helped her focus on her tasks.

"Before I can start to teach you ninjutsu I need to know two things: What is your chakra affiliation, and do you know any elemental techniques?"

--------

Ginji led Mizu down a stone path not too far from the training area. It led deeper into the woods, but the village walls were still visible from their path. As they walked, Ginji turned to Mizu.

"Now, I know we just met, but I want you to at least know some of my credentials. Been teaching genin like yourself for almost 30 years now. All of my students have become chunin, most have become jonin, and two of them went on to become members of the ANBU black ops."

His confident grin opened to a full smile "In other words, I like to think I know what I'm talking about."

"Wait, you had two students join the ANBU?" Mizu asked. If Ginji's words were true then his resume was as impressive as it sounded. Only the best of the best could join the ANBU's ranks. Ginji had captured her attention. "May I ask who they are?"

"You most certainly may." Ginji responded. "Your uncle Hisoka was actually the first one. Matsuda was the second, although she got in their ranks at a younger age than he did."

"You taught Hisoka?!" Mizu asked, eyes locked onto Ginji.

"Yep." Ginji responded proudly. "Trained your mother in medical ninjutsu too, but that was for the medical corps. Seems only fitting that I'm training you now. You Kimura's seem have a knack for this."

"Mother too?" Mizu asked under her breath. She awkwardly gazed off onto the path ahead of them as they walked. In a moment she turned back to Ginji "...What was she like back then?"

Ginji paused, and his smile awkwardly shrank. He had completely forgotten about the current state of Mizu's mother. All he had intended was to break the ice with the girl, but he might have gone too far. Thinking for a short while, he was much more careful about how he answered the girl's question.

"I don't really know what she's like now." He tried to reassure Mizu, "But she was just a bit older than you when I met her. Had a bubbly personality and an infectious smile. She caught onto my medical techniques at an impressive speed. I only worked with her for about a month."

"I see..." Mizu tried to picture her mother in the way that Ginji had painted. It was hard for her to see her mother the way he described. She rarely smiled around Mizu, and the thought of her being 'bubbly' with other people just seemed outlandish. When her mother wasn't drinking, she was just in a depressed haze. Sometimes she'd hear her sob about Soruto. Drunk or sober, the broken woman would cry about being abandoned. One time, before Mizu was taken away, her mother drunkenly told her that she'd never forgive herself for letting Soruto seal the Kyubi in her. The girl couldn't blame her. Afterall, she'd never forgiven her for the Kyubi, or for abandoning her.

 

[Pine]

Tetsuo's face scrunched up more as a reply to Katsuro, then fell into a somewhat surprised frown as the jonin-sensei turned his back and walked away. After the veteran's initial hotheaded response, Tetsuo had expected more yelling, demeaning, anything else but the simple declaration that he would be stuck with him for the next few weeks. He readjusted his scowl as he watched Katsuro's retreating back. "Fine," he said, but then was left standing somewhat awkwardly as the jonin continued to put distance between them. Was he supposed to follow him?

Tetsuo briefly glanced over at Mizu since she was still nearby and he didn't care to know what the Hyuga might've thought about all of this after he'd blown past the older man's formal introduction. From Mizu, he had expected a glare, or some form of resentment on her face looking back at him. After all, when they hadn't been in the emergency of being under attack in their final mission, that was the kind of look she'd started giving him, if she even looked at him. On top of that, though it had not been his intention, his actions had inadvertently led to him taking Katsuro from her and putting her with the stranger Hyuga man. Looking in her eyes though, he did not see derision, or anything that was readable to him in general. Had that fight against the Stone rogue changed anything between them? He couldn't tell just by looking at her now.

He didn't linger on it any longer, because he had a feeling dividing his attention from Katsuro for any more time would be a bad idea.

After giving instruction for Mizu to follow some old-fashioned training regiment, Katsuro told him that they'd spar hand-to-hand and discuss his aforementioned punishment. This sounded far preferable to him than what he would've gotten if he'd stuck with Ginji, and in a way, Tetsuo had gotten exactly what he wanted. He did not want to train against dummies. He wanted the real deal, and Katsuro was just that.

Though anyone would be hard-pressed getting him to admit it out loud, he had developed a deep respect for his designated instructor's taijutsu capabilities. If there was one thing he wanted to learn from Katsuro, it was this. Tetsuo vaguely knew that people from the Hyuga clan were typically taijutsu specialists, but they specialized in a way that he wasn't sure would actually be helpful to him, especially coming from a guy that was still nursing a hangover.

The other thing about it too was Tetsuo would've felt awkward and inorganic squaring up against a dummy. The weakest part of his hand-to-hand was his approach, followed by delivering a pure offensive. It was something he'd hoped to patch up or improve on by picking taijutsu as his focus for these coming weeks. However, there would be time for that. Right now, there was something he needed to prove, and it wasn't going to be by showing his weakness from the get-go. Tetsuo's strength in taijutsu came from his defense and counters, and if he was going to be able to demonstrate that, he needed someone to come at him in just the way that Katsuro had promised to do in the coming seconds.

He counted down in his head as he watched Katsuro remove the stupid glasses he always wore and take off his flak jacket. After a moment, Tetsuo decided to take off his own jacket and toss it to the side. The chill of the morning air might do him some good, and he intended to work himself until he was drenched on sweat. The jacket would stay cleaner if it was on the ground.

In his final seconds, Tetsuo stepped out of the rubble and onto more even surface. The familiar anxiety at the beginning of every fight buzzed in his head, but in equal or more parts, he was excited.

Then Katsuro was right in front of him.

Having seen the him compose himself, Tetsuo wasn't sure what degree of speed the jonin was going to use against him. Being a third party watching a jonin brawl was one thing, but having that energy be directed towards him was an entirely different beast. The closest he'd come to this was Genzo nearly running him with a sword, and it was Katsuro who had stepped in to save him then.

Katsuro had appeared before him in an instant, and the force of him propelling himself forward kicked up its on breeze that whipped Tetsuo's hair. The shock of it made him flinch back, but because Katsuro was so stupid tall, it made his arms stupid long. It was a range that Tetsuo wasn't used to, and he only barely managed to dodge the first jab in time. Tetsuo brought his right hand up quickly and caught the fist that was Katsuro's followup punch. The force of Katsuro's strength pushed him back a little, but Tetsuo had been in his fighting stance that would save him from being knocked over for now.

For a crucial moment, he tried to let his thoughts catch up with the reality of the situation. He tried to lay his left hand on Katsuro's elbow and pull on the fist in his hand so as to guide the man's momentum to pass in front of him harmlessly. However, Tetsuo would've been lucky to succeed with pulling this off against the far more experienced shinobi under normal conditions, but now with that split second of hesitation, the only way this would work out would be if Katsuro was going ridiculously easy on him and let this happen.

- - - - -

Haruki snapped out of his focus when Matsuda nudged him. He looked at her and gave a small, albeit still awkward, smile in response before following her the rest of the way.

The segment of the training grounds the kunoichi woman led him to was a tranquil environment. With the shh of the river and trilling birds and insects around him, it vaguely reminded him of the garden at the cafe he'd sat by with Matsuda just the week before. Come to think of it, when she showed up to the training grounds with Ginji, she'd mentioned stopping by a hotel cafe specifically. Haruki flushed a little, feeling complicated over the possibility that Matsuda had visited the cafe he'd led her to a second time independently.

After they'd already stopped, she asked him a question that, only by the grace of context clues, was he able to guess what she was asking him. Without her specifically saying elemental jutsus, he would've been completely lost, having no idea what the word 'affiliation' means.

Haruki hesitated for a moment. "I... don't actually know mine," he admitted. He had more to say on the topic, but out of fear that he would end up saying too much, he stopped after that.

 

[Gilzar]

So far Tetsuo's defense had managed to hold up, even with Katsuro closing the distance as fast as he could. Tetsuo had managed to dodge his jab, as well as catch Katsuro's follow-up cross. Had the boy not hesitated his attempt to throw Katsuro off balance probably would have worked. But in the split second he hesitated, Katsuro acted. He stopped committing to the punch, and instead brought his right hand back to a defensive position before Tetsuo could exploit it. With Tetsuo's attention his hands, Katsuro was confident he could land a kick to get some space. He threw a front kick with his lead leg right into Tetsuo's torso, pushing him back a few feet from Katsuro.

Once again Katsuro charged in at Tetsuo. In order to get a feel for just how advanced Tetsuo's defense was he needed to keep pressure on him. So far Tetsuo's defensive capabilities were better than he thought they'd be, but how long would that last for? He'd see how Tetsuo responded to more basic kickboxing techniques. Katsuro feinted a jab at Tetsuo as he was moving forward, then suddenly stopped his moving forward and threw a side kick with his right leg toward Tetsuo's ribs.

-------

"Not a big deal, all part of the training!" Matsuda replied enthusiastically. She then set her bag down on the ground, unzipping the top of it. Reaching in, she pulled out two small pieces of paper and held them in front of Haruki between two of her fingers.

"This little piece of paper will tell us all we need to know." Matsuda explained to Haruki. "See, this is special paper tailored specifically to react to the five basic chakra natures. All you have to do is focus just a bit of your chakra into the sheet. How the paper reacts will show what element your chakra naturally affiliates to."

She handed Haruki one of the pieces of paper, while still keeping one for herself. "I'll give you a quick demonstration to show what I mean."

Still holding the paper between her fingers, she held it up just in front of Haruki so he could see the demonstration. Just like she explained, Matsuda focused just a bit of chakra into the mundane looking paper. As she channeled her chakra into the sheet, a small cloud of smoke began to simmer off of its upper edge. A small flame ignited at the top of the paper and slowly began to smolder through the rest of the white sheet. In just seconds the flame engulfed the rest of the sheet, before Matsuda dropped what remained of it to the ground and stomped it out.

"Even though I'm trained in multiple elements, my chakra naturally affiliates to fire. So when I put my chakra into the paper, it lit on fire."

"Now it's your turn. Focus your chakra into the paper and see what happens."

 

[Pine]

When Katsuro untangled his fist from Tetsuo's hand, the young genin had no time to react to what came next. Katsuro shoved his foot squarely into the boy's chest, and the force of that kick alone nearly knocked him off his feet. Tetsuo stumbled back, but the jonin was not going to give him a break.

Katsuro's figure was practically a blur as Tetsuo's eyes struggled to adjust to the more experienced shinobi's speed. He pulled his arms up in defense to brace for impact, but this time it never came. It was a bluff strike, and with his lower half unguarded, Katsuro's kick connected directly with Tetsuo's ribs.

The boy was sent hurtling to the side, and all he could do was breakfall. Tetsuo tucked his chin and rolled once, then a second time to finally plant his feet. He hissed in both pain and frustration as he stood. That was two kicks in a row that passed his guard. He had taken Katsuro to be strictly straightforward and brutish. He never would've seen the faux jab coming, but now he knew that was something else he'd have to look out for.

Tetsuo breathed in through his nose in an effort to recompose himself. He readied himself for the next attack he was certain was imminent.

- - - - -

Haruki pinched the flimsy sheet of paper between his thumb and forefinger. Throughout Matsuda's demonstration, the genin started to vaguely recall a memory from his days at the academy.

When Haruki had volunteered himself to be trained in ninjutsu over the coming weeks, it was in large part due to having seen Tetsuo's own demonstration of nature transformation during their final fight on the Land of Bird's mission. It had looked wicked and insanely powerful, and that was exactly the kind of thing he'd wanted to learn. Mizu, too, had a more advanced jutsu. He'd seen the ease at which she'd produced shadow clones during both of their fights. It was he who was the only one that seemed to be coming onto the team equipped with nothing more than the basic ninjutsu required to graduate from the academy, while also being unable to walk up a tree.

While this may be his chance to level the playing field, there was a new, albeit small, anxiety beginning to fester in him. He remembered now that in his class, they had already tested their elemental natures with this same kind of paper. A sizeable majority of his friends' papers had burned to pieces, just as Matsuda's had. He had hoped fervently for his to do the same. Haruki, now with paper in hand for the second time in his life, knew exactly what to do.

With just the barest focus on stirring the chakra in his body, the paper began to react. The paper darkened starting from where his fingers held it, then sagged as the color altered across the rest of the paper.

"Oh, right," he said, not an iota of enthusiasm to be found in his tone. Haruki slowly tore a corner off the damp sheet of paper, then squeezed until a single droplet fell from his fist. "Water."