The Genin
"Congratulations on becoming a Genin, Kashi!" Izumi gave him a big smile, her eyes crinkling from the size of it. "I knew you could do it."
Just mere hours ago, the silver-haired boy had walked into the academy to take his exam, only to then walk out later, now a Genin. Around his head was now tied a navy headband, indicating his status as a Shinobi of the Hidden Leaf. The moment he had stepped out of the building, strides confident and laced with determination, Kakashi had been swarmed by classmates, eager to congratulate him. Patiently, Izumi had waited for them to be done before she walked up to her best friend, a bouquet of flowers in hand.
When Kakashi had laid his charcoal eyes on her, the first thing he noticed were the flowers she was clutching tightly, fingers curled around the beige paper. It made him question how exactly she had known that he would be made a Genin today and how she had got her hands on so many flowers, the action going unnoticed by him. At the same time, he couldn't help but wonder if she simply knew he would make it, that he would succeed.
"These are for you!" With the smile he had grown used to seeing on her, Izumi held out the bouquet to him to take.
He reached out, taking the flowers into his hand. "Thank you for the flowers."
Izumi smiled at him excitedly. "Of course, Kakashi! How could I not? You have just graduated, after all."
His charcoal gaze was fixated on the delicately arranged bouquet in between his hands, the heavy weight of it being a constant reminder of its existence. And then there was the fact that through its sheer size, it limited his vision. The first type of flower which caught his eyes was the overwhelming amount of yellow roses in the bouquet. Among them other flowers he couldn't quite name.
Kakashi thought back to what she had told him about a year ago in the Yamanaka flower shop. 'Flowers do have their own language. Every flower has a meaning, they express something.' He briefly remembered her talking about yellow roses, the same flower that he now also found in the bouquet he clutched tightly. It stood for friendship.
The silver-haired boy looked at his friend and then back down at the flowers, only to then meet her gaze again. "Izumi, what do they mean?"
Izumi felt startled by his question, in a good way. Ir was not every day that she was asked about the meaning of the flowers she had gifted someone. When having attended various events within her clan, she had always constructed a matching bouquet, filled with meaning. Yet, no one seemed to appreciate it, seeing the bouquet merely for its outward beauty. But Kakashi asked, he remembered. He was a thoughtful boy, even if he didn't show it much. A great quality of his. Izumi's heart felt warm at the thought of someone listening to her flower rambling enough to remember something.
"The yellow roses stand for friendship and also for happiness, which is why they are the most common flower of this bouquet, I thought that would be fitting." She paused for a moment to keep herself from talking too fast. "The purple orchids stand for respect and admiration, since I both respect and admire your achievements, they're unbelievable!" She grinned at him. "The red chrysanthemums symbolize friendship and devotion. I added the yellow chrysanthemums to, again, stand for happiness and joy. Lastly, I added a morning glory. It is the flower of your birth month, I thought that would be a lovely touch."
His cheeks felt warmer with every word she had spoken about the chosen flowers. "Seems like you did put a lot of thought into it."
"I did." She gave him a warm smile. "The original bouquet had a lot more flowers, but my mom said if I were to give them all to you, you would probably drown in flowers. Had she not stopped me then the doorway would have since I wouldn't have got them out of the doorway anyway."
Kakashi sweatdropped a little at that and at the image his mind was producing of a huge bouquet. He wouldn't put it past her to still somehow attempt to get it through the doorway.
He smiled underneath his mask. "Thank you."
"No need to thank me, I'm glad to be able to do something for you." Her cheeks were tinted in blush pink as she tilted her head to the side. "Say, what did you have to do in the exam anyway?"
"Nothing difficult. I had to show my Clone Technique. I created two clones, it was easy." Kakashi wore a smug glint in his charcoal eyes. "Once you have your exam, I don't think you will have a problem either."
"Really, you think so?"
"You've got better since we started training."
"I have?" asked Izumi excitedly, wearing a huge grin at his admission.
He nodded. "Your form has improved. It's much more stable now. It's not as easy to knock you down anymore."
"Well, that's all thanks to me having a great sensei, you are after all very helpful and observant."
It was no secret that the young Hatake was used to compliments based on his abilities, he was his generation's prodigy after all. He had been called things such as a genius, overly intelligent, a once in a lifetime Shinobi or too talented for his age. Yet, barely anyone ever complimented his personality, the traits he possessed instead of his abilities. It was as though the former did not matter to people as much as the latter did. The only people he could recall doing so were his father and now also Izumi. The thought made his heart feel warmer.
"You are not a bad student either, Izumi. You learn fast." Just like you said you did, he thought.
The brunette rubbed her neck sheepishly, looking away from him a little embarrassed. "I try."
Or did he hold back? Am I only good because he does that? The thoughts sprung to her mind immediately, doubt overtaking her embarrassment. She didn't feel as assured any more, not as confident about her skills. Her features grew more serious as she began to frown, and Izumi looked him in the eyes, a clear change from moments before.
"Did you ever hold back on me?"
Kakashi's charcoal eyes grew wide. "Hold back on you? Why would I do that?" He felt genuinely confused by what she was asking. It was clear to him that she was upset about something, and the thought worried him. Izumi was never upset, or so he thought.
"Ah, well," The brunette shuffled on her feet awkwardly, fingers playing nervously with the hem of the red kimono top she wore the day. She let out a sigh, seeming hesitant. "When you fought Obito, I just noticed how different you fought." You were harder on him than ever on me.
He scoffed. "That's because Obito is a horrible sparring partner. He's weak."
There was no doubt that Izumi appreciated Kakashi, as both a friend and teacher. Her friendship with the silver-haired boy was something she cherished deeply and adored the great qualities he possessed, but his remarks were something she could not entirely stand behind.
Izumi narrowed her eyes a little. "That's not a nice thing to say."
The silver-haired boy was startled by the response, letting out a confused noise. Yet again, she had taken him by surprise. It was foreign to him, but he didn't dislike that.
"You can't just say that about Obito, that's not nice, Kakashi," She crossed her arms over her chest, giving him a pointed look, though in the look sadness also mingled. "He's obviously trying his best, as I am, so even if he isn't as strong as you, it doesn't make him weak." Does he think that of me? The next words flew out of her mouth."If you think he is weak, am I also weak?"
"I never said you were weak."
"But he is?" To him, she sounded dejected.
In his answer, Kakashi hesitated, unsure of what to say. "Yes," The first part of his answer was not as certain as before, but the second came out as strong as it could be. "but you aren't, Izumi."
Izumi smiled at him as she always did: bright, mesmerizing, and so wide that her cerulean eyes crinkled at the corners. She couldn't stay mad at him, not at all. Yet, her smile faltered a little. "Don't hold back on me, okay?"
He couldn't help but also smile a little. "Never, I never did and never will." And he never did, truly. Kakashi felt confused by where she had got the idea from that he indeed did so. Admittedly, when they had begun their weekly training sessions, he found them to be rather annoying more than anything else. He presumed that if he were to scare her off with the training, he could get out of the promise he made. He had better things to do, so he had thought. There was no doubt Izumi made a good sparring partner. What he had told her earlier was all truth and no lie, she had got better. And he had begun to appreciate their spars, to look forward to them. Her wish was his command, he wouldn't hold back, he didn't need to. She could keep up in her own way.
"Good!" She clapped her hands together in delight, stepping closer to the boy, so much so that had she taken a step more, there would barely be any space between them. "This reminds me, my parents told me to invite you and your father to dinner."
He was puzzled. "Why?"
"They are very grateful for you training and helping me. They want to show their gratitude a little. And mom said something about your father being one of her favourite customers. She appreciates that." The brunette looked a little sheepish. "And I may have told them that you might graduate early, and I was right with that. They want to congratulate you on that."
He mulled over her sentences for a moment, thinking about how to proceed further. It was clear as day to him that she was eager for him to agree, and so he did her the favour. "I'll tell my father about the invite."
Izumi gave him a timid smile. "My parents will appreciate it and ... so do I." For a moment, they just looked at each other, saying nothing. "I'm really proud of you."
He smiled back. "Thank you, Izumi."
"Stop smiling, Kashi. I think your fangirls are mad at me." The brunette turned back to take a look at his fangirls (or so she called the girls devoted to him and him only), to indeed find them scowling. "Ah, I was right."
Kakashi shrugged. "Let them."
Izumi snorted. "This reminds me, I have to get to class soon, but before that, I have to tell you something," Her smile fell a little. "I'm sorry, for insinuating that you held back on me, I shouldn't have said that."
"It's okay, Izumi."
She shook her head. "It's not. I shouldn't have. I don't know what came over me. Today is your day, I shouldn't have talked about myself."
"I started talking about training, it's fine."
"Really?"
Kakashi hummed in agreement.
"Sometimes I need to talk less." Izumi rubbed her eyes with the palms of her eyes in distress.
"No," replied Kakashi quickly. "I don't mind your talking. Then I don't have to talk so much."
"If you ever do, just tell me." Her cerulean eyes travelled to the clock hanging on the academy building, then they widened. "I have got to get to class now, I'll see you later, Kashi." The brunette turned on the heels of her feet, almost stumbling in the process, before she hurried towards the building, but not without sending him a wave.
He nodded at her, clutching the flowers a little tighter than he had before. "See you." He hoped that was true.