Chapter 3
"hello Nara-sama" she bows "I'm sorry for coming without prior notice"
"don't worry about it" he waves his hand lazily "why don't we sit down ?" he sits in front of the table with his legs crossed and invites her to do the same
"of course"
"so, what is it you wanted to talk about ?"
"you told me to tell you if my parents refused to let me attend the Academy"
"I remember. I guess they refused ?"
"that's right. I asked them a few months ago"
"what do you want brat ?" Mebuki asks
"I'd like to attend the Academy next year"
"and ? Why should we spend money on you ? You already eat and live here for free and now you want us to pay for you to go to the Academy ? You ungrateful brat. The answer is no and don't you dare ask again. Now go away, I have other things to do"
"I see... What can you do ? What guarantees me that you are ready ?"
"as a sensor or as a kunoichi ?"
"both"
"I can extend my range up to 2.5 kilometers without being overwhelmed by the multitude of chakra signatures. As for what I'm able to do, it would be easier to show you"
"impressive" he whistles "you'll be 4 in a few months right ?"
"yes"
"2.5 kilometers is really good. How long can you keep it up ?"
"6 hours at 2.5 kilometers, 9 hours at 2 kilometers, 12 hours at 1.5 kilometers and more than 24 hours under 1 kilometer"
"beter than I expected. You will be a force to be reckoned with when you're older, kid. Let's go to the training ground for the rest"
She follows him to the entrance, they put on their shoes then go out but not before Shikaku tells his wife where they are going. She follows him silently.
"we're here" he says a few minutes later "what can you do with shurikens, kunais and senbons ?" he asks
"I've never pick any of them up but I improved my aim with rocks and sewing needles"
"do you have any on you ?"
"I do" she takes the needles out of her sleeves
"you already have the mind of a shinobi, good" he nods approvingly "Now, show me"
She stands in front of a target with her feet parted. With a flick of her wrist, a needle embed itself in the middle of the target. She does it three more times before she stops.
"not bad, your stance needs a bit of work but you have a good aim. You should use senbons instead of kunais for now, you hands are a bit too small for them"
"I was planning to do that"
"mmh. Tell me what else you can do"
"I can run for 4 hours without using chakra, I am flexible and I think I am pretty fast for my age. I can also do a Henge, a Kawarimi and a Shunshin"
"can you keep the same speed until the end ?"
"I slow down a bit after 3 hours and 45 minutes"
"I want to see it for myself, can you run like that ?" he gestures to her clothes
"I can. Let me just take my sweater off" she takes it off so she wears black shorts and a black long sleeved shirt "I'm ready"
"I want you to run at top speed. After that, you'll show me those jutsu"
"alright"
"you did very well kiddo. You're ready to enter the Academy in two months. Let me take you home after dinner, I'll talk with yours parents" she follows him back to his house
"thank you Nara-sama"
"just Shikaku"
"Shikaku-sama then"
"Shikaku, kid" he rolls his eyes
"Shikaku-san"
"troublesome... You are way to polite, brat"
"is it a bad thing ?"
"not really but some people, like me, don't really care about honorifics. If you're talking to the Hokage then you must add them but if you're talking to someone your own age, you don't have to. You understand ?"
"so, always add 'sama' when talking to Hokage-sama, never use it with kids and take them off if an adult asks me to ?"
"exactly" he opens the door "Yoshino ! The kid's eating with us !"
"good thing I expected her to" Yoshino comes to the entrance with a smile with too many teeth to be non-threatening "Go wash, dinner will be ready in 20 minutes"
"no need to smile like that, troublesome woman..." Shikaku mutters but not quietly enough
"I'm sorry, what was that ?"
"nothing... Come on kiddo, I'll show you where the bathroom is" they stop in front of a door "I'll give you one of my son's outfit to change"
"thank you" he turns on his heels and goes to another corridor
"just on time, Saeko-chan ! Come sit next to Shikamru" Yoshino says with a smile
"thank you"
"Shikamaru, this is Haruno Saeko. Kid, this is my son, Shikamaru"
"nice to meet you Shikamaru" Saeko smiles at him
"likewise" he nods