Of Sand Ninja, The Chunin Exams, and New Rivals pt.1
-Of Sand Ninja, The Chunin Exams, and New Rivals pt.1-
"Amaya."
Hearing her fathers voice, Amaya glances up at him as they walk down the street, giving him an acknowledging hum.
At the sound, he continues, "After you meet and complete your missions with your team today, I need you to stop by the Hokage's office."
"What for Papa?"
"I have a job for you, if you don't mind doing it... Consider it your first task in dealing with outside villages." He answers, sending a wave of excitement washing over the girl.
"Are you serious?!" She asks again, stopping completely in her tracks.
"Mhm. Some of the guests we'll be meeting are slightly more important than others." Her father answers, pursing his lips in thought. "Also, don't say anything about the Chunin Exams to your teammates. It hasn't been decided on what teams are entering yet and I'd hate to get Naruto's hopes up."
"You got it pops!" The brunette replies happily.
Her father looked like he wanted to say more but before he gets the chance, he's cut off by sudden yelling.
"LEE! EMBRACE THE POWER OF YOUTH!"
"GAI-SENSEI! IF I FAIL, I WILL RUN 300 LAPS AROUND THE VILLAGE...! NO! 500!"
Amaya stared at the duo completely baffled as they slowly walked down the street on their hands. Looking up at her father, she was surprised to see that his face was completely neutral, as if he's seen this scene a thousand times already.
Suddenly, the one apparently known as "Gai-sensei", caught sight of and made eye contact with the two Minamoto's. The green clad man quickly righted himself and made his way towards the two in a fast pace, prompting Amaya to slightly shuffle behind her father.
"Minamoto-sama! Lovely day we're having isn't it? So full of youth!" The man exclaims cheerfully, making the elder Minamoto smile.
"Yes, indeed it is, Gai. Training again I see?" Kenji asks politely.
Gai nods as his student rejoins his side, a curious expression on his face.
Before anything else could be said however, her father makes a slight "Ah." noise. Turning to face her he calls, "Amaya, you should get going. You don't want to be late meeting up with your team."
"Saa~... But Tou-san, Sensei is always late..." Amaya murmurs with a sigh of dismay, making the twinning sensei and student jump in surprise. Neither really noticing the brunette standing slightly behind her father until she spoke.
Kenji chuckles. "He's teaching you patience, and besides, I'm sure the others have missed you while we were gone."
"Fine..." Amaya grumbles in response along with a few other curses under her breath. She then turns to Gai and his student and bows respectfully, shooting them a shy smile before walking away.
The trio watched her leave for a moment. "Is that your daughter, Minamoto-sama?" Gai asks curiously, not once missing the light blush covering his students' cheeks.
"Yes. She would've stayed longer, but she has to meet up with her team." Kenji answers, his eye catching sight of a hawk circling overhead. "Ah, sorry to cut this conversation short, Gai, but I'm needed at the Hokage's office before our meeting today."
Gai nods understandingly. "Of course, we mustn't keep you. I will see you at the meeting then!" As he said this, he and his student bow politely.
Kenji returns the sentiment before hurrying away.
***
"Good choice, Lee!" Gai praises, patting the boy on the back. "Women of the Minamoto clan are fierce and full of youth!"
Lee's face tinged with pink once more as he thought of the brunette he just encountered. "I shall prove myself worthy, Gai-sensei!" He replies, completely fired up -his eyes burning with determination.
Gai lets out a bellowing laugh, the commotion earning the two strange looks from both bystanders and passing civilians. "Your youth is growing stronger by the minute, Lee! I'm proud!" He exclaims dramatically, wiping a tear away.
"GAI-SENSEI!" Lee cries, tearing up.
Seeing his students' tears sent Gai into another fit. "LEE!"
The two then embrace once more, only for a moment or two, before continuing their vigorous training - just as hyped and excited as ever before.
As Amaya neared the bridge, she could see Sasuke leaning against the railings as Sakura stood off to the side quietly. 'I'd hate to admit it, but I have missed them.' She thought to herself as the two looked in her direction.
"Amaya! When did you get back?" Sakura asked as the brunette neared.
"Saa~.. We got back the day before yesterday. Sensei said he gave you guys the day off, ne?" Amaya replies, earning silent nods from the two in response.
Suddenly, the sound of nearing footsteps made the three look in the opposite direction. Turning, their eyes lock on Naruto's running from.
"Hey, good morning, Sakura! What's up?" The blond asks before his eyes finally lock on the brunette. "Amaya, you're back!" He cries happily, pulling the Minamoto into a large bear hug.
Amaya hums cheerfully in response, returning the blonds embrace before letting go.
As the two separated, Naruto's once happy eyes locked onto the ever aloof Sasuke. The two boys make eye contact for a brief second before immediately scowling. "Hmph." Both grunt at the same, looking away and into the opposite direction.
'Am I missing something?' Amaya thought to herself with a sweatdrop.
'Good grief, not again... They've been like this ever since we got back from the Land of Waves. Ugh, it's like being stuck with a couple of children!' Sakura thought, glancing towards a thoroughly confused Amaya. 'At least Amaya's back, maybe she can help reign these two in and keep them somewhat cordial.' The pinkettes eyes then narrowed, 'CHA! Hurry up, Kakashi-sensei, or you've had it!'
***
Time passed on, and soon enough they were waiting for hours with still no sign of the silver haired Jounin. Sasuke continued to lean cooly against the railing next to Amaya, where she was perched facing the river, while Sakura and Naruto both slouched tiredly in their spots.
Seeing movement in her peripheral, Amaya looks up as Kakashi appears on top of the bridge in a crouch.
The silver haired Jounin, in return to her gaze, lazily raises a hand and gives a closed eye smile. "Hey guys, good morning! Sorry I'm late, I'm afraid I got lost on the path of life."
Sakura and Naruto both spin around, glaring fiercely. "WHA?!" They exclaim loudly as Kakashi jumps down in front of the four.
Naruto, however, shakes off his initial anger quickly. "I'm ready for the next ninja mission, Sensei! And hey, c'mon no more of this dumb beginner stuff, okay? I want a chance to prove myself! I'm talkin' a real mission where I can show what I'm made of!" He yells excitedly with fire in his eyes, giving Kakashi a fierce stare. "Argh! I gotta break out and burn it up! See?!"
Amaya snickers behind her hand as she takes in Kakashi's blank look. "Uh.. right. I get it, that's great Naruto. Now take it easy will ya?"
Naruto turns to glare at Sasuke once more. 'Ergh, Sasuke. He's always rescuing everyone on missions! Trying to grab all the glory and make me look like a chump! But he'll never get the edge on me!'
'He's such a twerp!' Sakura thought to herself as she scowled at the blond.
'Today's the day!' Naruto thought to himself once more, imagining himself being the rescuer for once instead of the Uchiha. "Believe it!" He adds aloud, clenching his fists out in front of him.
The rest of the group stared at the boy blankly. "Let us know when you're done fantasizing, Naruto, so we can start the mission. Alright?" Kakashi calls dully.
"Right!" Naruto replies, turning back to the group with a nod.
"Could you NOT be so annoying Naruto? Just for once?" An annoyed Sakura asks as they make their way to their first mission.
"Saa~... It's so good to be back." Amaya murmurs sarcastically as the two "loudmouths" of the group begins bickering. Her words making Kakashi sigh and chuckle lowly.
***
As it turns out, for their first mission of the day, they had to remove weeds from a woman's garden. Naruto watched as Sasuke pulled out a few weeds before looking back at the patch in front of him. "Well I'm gonna beat Sasuke anyway!" He exclaims, full of determination as he begins to pull out everything he saw.
Amaya sat back on her haunches, wiping some sweat from her forehead as she glanced over to the laughing blond. 'Oh, Naruto...' She thought with a sigh as she stared at the humongous pile of foliage behind him.
"Hey you!" A voice calls out angrily, making the group turn to find the woman -of whom they were initially helping- with a scowl on her face.
"Oh! Hi, lady! I got rid of all your weeds, pretty cool huh?" Naruto asked, completely oblivious to what he'd done wrong.
By this point the woman was trembling in anger. "Uh, what's wrong?" The blond asked again as the woman's face continued to get more and more red.
"You pulled up the weeds, and you also pulled up my plants!" The woman informed, trying to keep her composure.
"Huh?!"
"Those were special herbs I've been growing, and you destroyed them!" She snaps, beginning to hit the boy out of anger.
Amaya, Sasuke, and Sakura watched on. Each one wincing slightly as the blond yelped out in pain from the blows. Kakashi on the other hand, sat completely at ease as he flipped another page in his book.
***
Their second mission, one would think, would be a piece of cake. All they had to do was pick up litter from the riverbank. Amaya looked up from her task and stared at Kakashi with an annoyed look as he continued to read in the shade of a nearby tree.
Letting out a small "Tch.", she looks back down into the water and stabs a piece of garbage viciously. 'Him and that damned book.' She thought to herself with a small growl.
Everyone glanced up as they heard a loud splash and Naruto's screams as he was swept away in the current.
Looking in the direction the water was taking him, the blond notes the edge of a waterfall he was quickly nearing. He goes over the edge, shrieking loudly as he begins to plummet downwards. However, he doesn't fall far before he's quickly jerked to a stop.
Glancing up, Naruto makes eye contact with Sasuke. The Uchiha, balancing himself on a low hanging branch, had used a rope to catch the blond's foot.
"You are such a loser." Sasuke grumbles as Naruto's wide-eyed expression morphed into a scowl.
Amaya sighs in relief and makes her way over, intent on helping Sakura pull the two up.
***
For their third and final mission of the day, they had to walk dogs. Another pretty simple task, well simple for Amaya, Sakura, and Sasuke who chose small dogs. Naruto on the other hand, chose the biggest and was now being dragged around.
"Hey, hey! Not there! We're supposed to go the other way!" The blond yelled as the dog continued to pull him along. "Hey! I'm talking to you!"
"Saa~... Oh Naruto..." Amaya murmured, unsure of whether or not to actually help the boy or watch things unfold.
"What a loser." Sasuke said aloud in annoyance.
Sakura let out a sigh. "Of course! He just had to choose the biggest dog!"
Kakashi, once again, sat in a nearby tree peacefully. Ignoring all of the commotion below as he flipped a page in his book.
Naruto continued to tug on the leash, but no matter what he did it would not deter the canine. "ARGH! Stop pulling, would you?! We're not supposed to go over there!" He yells in frustration as the dog drags him through a hole in a fenced in area.
Amaya's eyes widened slightly as she took notice of the sign on the fence, warning of land mines. "That's not a place for dogs! It's a mine field!" They heard Naruto screech as multiple explosions were set off.
Amaya walked down the street beside Kakashi as Sasuke and Sakura supported a bruised and battered Naruto. "Look at you. You're hopeless, Naruto!" Sakura sighs, her tone light and scolding.
"That's rich coming from the fangirl." Amaya mumbled to herself sassily as Kakashi hummed in amusement.
"Hmph. You really are just one big problem." Sasuke adds, making Naruto push the two away angrily as he turns on the Uchiha.
"Saa~... Here we go." Amaya mumbles.
"Sasuke!" Naruto growls out.
Sasuke, however, ignores the blond and keeps walking.
Naruto goes to follow but Sakura juts her arm out, effectively stopping him in his tracks. "If you keep this up, I'll finish you off myself!"
"Guess we're not making a lot of progress on the teamwork thing, huh?" Kakashi asks with a sigh.
Amaya turns to him. "Not really, no."
Naruto holds up a fist. "That's right! Our teamwork is all messed up and it's all because of you, Sasuke! You think you're better than anyone else?!"
Sasuke stops walking. "Not everyone. Just you. Face it, I'm better and stronger than you are. It's a fact." He replies before looking over his shoulder smugly. "Unless you have what it takes to prove me wrong?"
'They're actually getting along worse than before! If that's even possible...' Sakura thought to herself as she stared in between the two boys.
As he stared at Naruto, Sasuke thought back to their last mission when they fought Haku. 'Ergh... I don't have time to waste on Naruto and these lame missions! There are still ninja out there who could outfight me! I've got to hone my skills, so I can beat them!' He thought to himself in frustration.
Amaya and Kakashi look up to the sky as a hawk circles in the air. "Alright guys, let's call it a day. You can beat each other to a pulp some other time. Anyway, I have to file my report on this mission." Kakashi interrupts, his voice putting a stop to the oncoming argument.
"Whatever, I'm outta here." Sasuke states as he turns to leave, his actions make Sakura gasp.
"Wait! Sasuke, I'll go with you!" The pinkette calls out as she runs after the Uchiha. As Naruto watches her go, he holds out a hand weakly. "So, why don't we... I mean you know, let's do something more personal! I mean to improve our teamwork and all!" Sakura asks the boy hopefully as she clasps her hands together.
"Smooth. Very smooth." Amaya drawls sarcastically, only to receive a dirty look from Sakura in return.
"I swear you're just as bad as Naruto. Instead of flirting, why don't you practice your jutsu and make the team stronger? Let's face it, you're actually worse than Naruto." Sasuke replies before continuing on his way.
"Damn, that's gotta sting." Amaya voices out dully, earning a chuckle from Kakashi.
Sakura didn't pay any mind to the brunette's remarks, seemingly in shock from the Uchiha's statement. 'He's right... What have I really done so far in any of our missions? Nothing! Zip!'
"Don't worry, Sakura! Just forget about Sasuke, you and I can develop our teamwork all day!" Naruto reassures, waving a hand in the air.
It was at this moment that Kakashi decided to leave, making Naruto turn around as a loud poof sounded in the area. 'Sensei disappeared! Is he giving us alooone time?' The blond thought to himself as he turned to look at a still deflated Sakura.
"Whatever it is your thinking, Naruto, I can assure you, it's not that." Amaya deadpans.
Naruto's flinches at her words, his face flushing a light pink.
While the two were talking, a box made to look like a rock with two holes cut into the front, scoots across the ground towards Naruto - prompting them turn around.
'Fake rocks? What's up with that?' Naruto thought to himself before he decides to test it and begins to walk away.
Amaya watched on blankly from the side as the box follows the blond. Each time Naruto broke into a run, it would quickly follow. 'Saa~ You've got to be kidding me.' She thought to herself as she watched the two run back and forth until Naruto finally comes to a halt, making the box skid to a stop.
Naruto quickly rounds on the box and places a hand on his waist as he points. "That's the worst disguise of all time! There're no such thing as square rocks! It's completely obvious!"
"You saw right through my camouflage once again! You're slick, Boss! Just what I'd expect from my greatest rival!" A voice called from under the "disguise", making Amaya raise an eyebrow.
Suddenly, the box is thrown off and colorful smoke bombs go off. The smoke clears to reveal Konohamaru and two others, a dark-haired boy with glasses and a girl with ginger hair pulled into two large pigtails, hunched over coughing. "I think we used a little too much gunpowder you guys..." Konohamaru coughs.
Once the three get over their coughing fit, they look up to see Naruto and Amaya staring at them with deadpanned expressions. The girl jumps forward and poses while saying, "I'm Moegi! The sassiest Kunoichi in preschool! Check me out!"
The boy with glasses followed shortly after. "I love algebra! Call me Udon!" He said as he also made a pose, but not before pushing up his glasses.
"And I'm the number one ninja in the village! Konohamaru! And when we're together, we're the 'Konohamaru Ninja Squad!'" Konohamaru began with the others joining in at the end, each one trying to make their poses more dramatic.
"Why did he introduce himself? We already knew his name..." Amaya questions trying to fight back her laughter, as Naruto continued to look at the three unimpressed.
"Yeah, I knew it was you, Konohamaru. Hm... Hey, what are those things? Those goggles you're wearing on your head." Naruto asked as he pointed at the group's collective accessory.
"You used to wear goggles, remember? So, we're copying you!" Konohamaru answered with a laugh.
"Oh..."
"Hey! C'mon, Boss! Why are you acting like that? You ought to be more excited!" Konohamaru asked in an almost scolding tone.
"Yeah Naruto, didn't you want the kid to worship you?" Amaya asked the blond teasingly as she nudged him with ear elbow gently.
Naruto ignored her teasing and kept his focus on the child in front of him. "So.. did you want something?"
Konohamaru turned to the two behind him with a hand cupped over his mouth. "He's just trying to be cool." He "whispered" before the girl stepped forward slightly.
"You know what we want! Are you busy now?" She asks.
"I have to train!" Naruto replies confidently as he pointed to himself. "Believe it!"
"What?! But you promised that you'd play ninja with us today! C'mon!" Konohamaru whines somewhat disappointed.
Amaya turned to look at Naruto with amusement glittering in her eyes, making the blond rub the back of his neck nervously. "Oh, did I say that?"
'Gah, if I say yes then these kids will keep bugging me all day! And I won't get any training done.' Naruto thought to himself.
"A ninja playing ninja? That's so twisted." Sakura voiced, slowly coming out of her shock from Sasuke's "harsh" words.
"Hey, Sakura!" Naruto called as the girl walked closer.
'My ninja skills are worse than his?! Unbelievable!' The Haruno thought to herself as she stared intensely at the blond.
'She's staring right at me! I think I'm turning red!' Naruto thought to himself, and indeed he was. His already flushed complexion beginning to turn a darker.
"Hey, Boss... Who's that girl anyway?" Konohamaru asked as he stared at the pinkette. 'The way she's staring at him, it's like her eyes are daggers!' He thought to himself before a smirk slowly crawled up onto his face. "Ah! I get it, you're a smooth operator, Boss!" He compliments aloud as he pats the blond on the back. "C'mon, I know she's you're girlfriend!" Konohamaru added as he rose a pinky.
Amaya began to snicker as Naruto went along with what the boy said. "Well, you can tell she's really crazy about me, huh?"
"That's it!" Sakura yells before suddenly punching Naruto in the face, sending him flying backwards.
"Boss!" Konohamaru shrieks as Naruto tumbles across the ground roughly and smashes into a nearby fence. "What kind of girlfriend are you?!" He yells again, turning to glare at the girl furiously.
Amaya sends a dark glare at the pinkette before jogging over to the blond, shortly followed by Moegi and Udon. "Naruto, are you alright?"
"I think she killed him!" Moegi cried out when the blond didn't answer.
"Oh no! We gotta check his pulse!" Udon yelled in return as he began to gently prod the blond.
"You're a witch! And you're ugly, too!" Konohamaru angrily insults, stomping a foot on the ground as he spoke.
After he says this, Sakura begins to crack her knuckles, walking towards Konohamaru who screams frightfully in return.
Sakura lets out a satisfied "Hmph." as she walks away, leaving Konohamaru and Naruto laying on the ground with lumps on their heads.
"Hey Konohamaru, are you okay?" Udon asks as the two slowly stand up, holding their heads.
"I don't even think she's human! Did you see how wide her forehead is?!" Konohamaru responds loudly, making Amaya snort in amusement.
Sakura hears and stops walking, making the five freeze and look at her. The pinkette slowly turns around, almost mechanically, with a terrifying expression on her face. She then charges towards them, making the five turn and run away.
Konohamaru picks up the pace and passes the others, keeping his eyes closed tight. Suddenly, before he knew it, he crashed into somebody, sending him to the ground.
The rest of the group stop running, looking ahead to see a boy wearing a full body suit along with an ungodly amount of purple face paint and a girl with her blonde hair pulled up into four consecutive ponytails. The boy was carrying something wrapped in bandages while the girl had what appeared to be a giant fan, both items on their backs.
"Do you need something?" The boy asked and when Konohamaru didn't answer he was picked up by his scarf.
"Konohamaru!" Naruto called worriedly.
"So does this hurt, punk?" The boy asked again as he squeezed tighter.
"Put him down, Kankuro. Or you know you'll pay for it later." The girl warned, her voice making Amaya's eyes zero in on her. Well more specifically, the headband around her neck.
'That symbol... These guys are from the Sand Village, are they here for the Chunin Exams?' Amaya asked herself with narrowed eyes, putting her focus back on the boy, now known as Kankuro, and Konohamaru.
"Hey, I'm sorry, the whole thing was my fault!" Sakura cut in in hopes of calming the situation. 'Who are they? What are they?' She thought to herself and she stared between the two strangers.
"You better take your hands off him right now!" Naruto warned angrily, earning stares from the two.
'So these are the Leaf Village's Genin.' Kankuro thought to himself smugly, already feeling superior. "We got a few minutes before he gets here, lets mess with these punks, huh?" He voices aloud to the girl, ignoring the small kicks Konohamaru was making to his stomach.
"Let go of me you jerk!" Konohamaru yells as he continues to squirm in the boy's grip.
"You're feisty. But not for long. ~" Kankuro replies in a singsong voice.
Naruto clenches his fist. "Put him down!" He yells as he runs forward.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, Naruto trips, sending him to the ground with a thud. "What the?! What was that?!"
"You're Leaf Genin, too? Looks like your village is full of wimps." Kankuro calls smugly.
'Too? So they are here for the Chunin Exams.' Amaya thought to herself.
"Hey! Cut it out! It hurts!" Konohamaru yells as the Kankuro's grip on his scarf gets tighter.
"That's it! Drop him now or I'll take you apart! You got that, fool?!" Naruto spats and goes to move forward again but is stopped by Sakura pulling him into a chokehold.
"You're the fool! Making threats isn't going to help, Naruto!" Sakura yells as she digs her knuckles into the blond's head.
"You're annoying. All of you. I don't like runts that or any scrawny weaklings. So, when a wimp like this starts shooting up his mouth, I just wanna break him in half." Kankuro growls as Amaya begins to step forward.
"Fine. I'm not involved in any of this, okay?" The girl concedes with a sigh.
'What's this guys problem? This is getting ugly!' Sakura thought to herself as she stared at Kankuro.
Amaya scoffs, catching everyone's attention. "Listen pinwheel." She begins, making the girl glare in response. "Just because you say your not involved doesn't make you innocent. Your just as guilty by watching it happen." She said before turning to Kankuro. "Let the kid go, before I make you."
'Amaya!' Sakura thought, watching as the brunette walked towards the two. 'You're making it worse!'
Kankuro lets out a laugh at the girl's threat. "Oh? And what if I don't want to do that, sweetheart?" He asks cockily.
"Well it'd be a mistake on your end. You obviously don't have it in you to pick on someone your own size, so I doubt you'd try anything in front of a superior. Face it, you're as intimidating as a wet kitten." Amaya replied sassily, referring to the boy's hood which looked like two cat ears. "I hate guys like you. All talk, but you don't have the gumption to do anything. And honestly, I'd like to knock you down a few pegs... I'm tired of talking, let him go. Now." She added seriously.
By this point the brunette was a few feet or so away from the two. And once she saw that he had no intention of letting Konohamaru go and the cocky smirk reappear on his face, she made her move. Amaya quickly pulled out a kunai and threw it, the sharp blade nicked his arm, causing him to drop Konohamaru onto the ground who quickly gets up and runs to Naruto's side.
Looking up to say something to her, Kankuro was surprised to see the brunette closer than before. Amaya grabbed ahold of his arm, making sure to put pressure on the new wound, she blocked his oncoming punch with her free hand and kicked his feet out from under him. Bringing Kankuro down to the ground, she twisted to where she was perched on his back with a foot on the back of his head.
"You alright, sweetheart?" Amaya asked mockingly as he groaned out in slight pain. She then stood up, giving him a light nudge with the toe of her shoe before she backed away. "You just gonna lay there all day? Get up, you're not even worth the effort."
Kankuro lets out a low growl as he quickly pushed himself up and stalks towards the girl. Grabbing the headband around her neck, he pulled her close with a deep scowl. "First, I'll take care of this little squirt and then I'll waste the other one!" He said as he drew back a fist.
"I suggest you get your hands off of me." Amaya replied dully as a threatening glint came to her eye. Kankuro glowered at her in return.
Suddenly, a pebble flew through the air and hit Kankuro's hand, making him release his grip on Amaya's headband. "Huh?" He asks as everyone looks up to see Sasuke casually sitting on a tree branch, tossing another pebble up into the air before catching it in his hand.
"You're a long way from home and you're way out of your league." Sasuke informs with a slight smirk.
"Sasuke!" Sakura squealed out as her face flushed a bright red.
'Well well, local hottie...' The blonde-haired girl thought to herself as a faint blush came to her cheeks.
"Oh great, another wimp to tick me off." Kankuro sneers as he scowled up at Sasuke.
The Uchiha tossed the pebble up once more before catching and crushing it in his palm, letting the dust fall to the ground. "Get lost." He ordered before glancing at the brunette who was readjusting her headband.
"So cool!" Sakura and Moegi squealed with equal red faces and hearts in their eyes.
"How come you're not cool like that?! Huh?!" Konohamaru asks angrily as he turns to Naruto.
"Ah, what do ya mean? I could've taken that guy out in two seconds flat!" Naruto replies hastily, trying to regain the younger boys respect. Konohamaru only huffed in response, making Naruto turn and glare at the Uchiha. 'Sasuke! You're always trying to make me look bad in front of everyone!'
"Hey punk. Get down here. You're the kind of pesky little snot I hate the most. All attitude and nothing to back it up." Kankuro growls.
Amaya scoffs in response. "Isn't that the pot calling the kettle black." She states, earning a glare from the boy.
Kankuro, having enough, pulls the bandages off the item on his back as he placed it on the ground.
"What?! You're gonna use the Crow?! For this?!" The girl said shocked, making Amaya and Sasuke glance at each other.
Suddenly a new, gravely voice cut in. "Kankuro. Back off."
Everyone looked towards the tree again, only this time to find a boy with blood red hair hanging upside down on a branch parallel to Sasuke. He was carrying a huge gourd on his back and he had a red kanji sign for love tattooed on his forehead, right above his eye.
"Uh, hey Gaara!" Kankuro said nervously, his body tensing up slightly.
'How did he get there? He didn't make a sound. Only Jounin Kakashi's level can be that smooth.' Sasuke thought to himself slightly bewildered.
-Meanwhile-
"I have summoned you for a very important purpose. Seeing your fellow Jounin here, I'm sure you realize what this is about." Lord Third began as he looked around the room.
'So soon? I thought we'd have a little more time.' Kakashi thought to himself, keeping his eyes on the elder.
"I take it all the other villages have been notified about the event. I noticed some of their Genin have already arrived here in the village." One of the Jounin replied, a cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth.
"And? When do we start?" Another asked, this time a woman.
"We will begin in one week." Lord Third replied calmly.
"That's pretty short notice." Kakashi comments, slightly surprised.
Hiruzen puffed on his pipe for a moment as he thought. Exhaling a cloud of smoke as he said, "Take heed. Exactly seven days from today, on the first day of July, the Genin will be gathered and tested. Only the very best will be selected as Chunin!"