Team assignments were one of those things everyone pretended weren't a big deal.
You passed the Academy. You became a genin. End of story.
Except it wasn't.
Because in the ninja world, the team you landed on didn't just decide who you trained with. It decided who you trusted with your life. Who covered your blind spots. And—if things went wrong—who bothered to look for your body.
So yeah. No pressure.
I stared out the window, watching clouds drift lazily across the sky while Iruka-sensei's voice faded into background noise.
I'd already done everything I could.
Top marks on the written exam. Solid scores in the practicals.
I didn't have any fancy clan techniques, but I'd mastered everything the Academy taught.
I was top of the class in theory, better than most in taijutsu—heck, I beat Kiba— was more than adept with shuriken, and even displayed remarkable chakra control.
I'd covered all the fundamentals.
What more could I realistically show as a civilian orphan?
Well.
I had put on a bit of a show for the Hokage.
Being friends with Naruto wasn't an act, but standing up to Mizuki—and even pulling off a Temu version of Talk no Jutsu—was definitely intentional.
Naruto would've been fine even without me.
The Shadow Clone Jutsu, though?That was purely to demonstrate my chakra control and ninjutsu talent to the Peeping Hokage.
Which was why I'd been looking forward to Team Seven.
Why Team Seven?
Even if Hiruzen ignored the fact that I was objectively more useful than Sakura, he couldn't ignore my connection to Naruto. And putting me under Kakashi would also let someone competent keep an eye on me.
Hiruzen had personally warned me about the chakra-draining dangers of the jutsu.
Kakashi of the Thousand Jutsu…I wonder how many of those I can borrow.
I exhaled slowly.
"Team Seven," Iruka called.
"Uzumaki Naruto. Haruno Sakura."
Naruto practically launched off his seat.
"…Uchiha Sasuke."
Naruto deflated instantly.
I almost fell out of my chair.
"Man! Why's that guy on my team?" Naruto complained. "I wish it were you instead of him."
I shrugged weakly.
I wasn't exactly sure how he'd react if I told him I'd been hoping to replace Sakura.
Guess this was my reality check.
A gentle reminder that I wasn't special.
Neji had a point. In this world, just like the last one, birth mattered.
Kakashi was the son of the White Fang and the student of the Fourth Hokage.Sasuke was the son of the Uchiha clan head.And even tho Naruto and I were both orphans, he was the son of the 4th Hokage.
It was naive of me to think that I could be on the same team.
Sakura was a civilian too, sure—but her family wasn't exactly poor, and she fit Kakashi's old team composition perfectly.
'Freaking diversity quotas.'
'All cause Kakashi couldn't get over his dead friends.'
'Okay, calm down.'
'Maybe Team Eight.'
I had beaten Kiba pretty cleanly.
"Team Eight!" Iruka called."Kiba Inuzuka. Hyuga Hinata. Aburame Shino."
'…Never mind.'
I let out a disappointed sigh.
"Um, Takumi-kun…" Hinata muttered, glancing back at me with a strange expression.
She'd definitely misunderstood my disappointment.
'Relax. I'm not into kids, Hinata.'
'I like big girls. Like Tsunade.'
An image of big and beautiful Tsunade came to mind, but suddenly it turned into wrinkly old Granny Tsunade.
'Damn it! Why did I think of that?'
'This day keeps getting worse.'
"Team Nine!"
"Daichi Takumi. Tanabe Kuro. Aoi Misaki."
My brain stopped.
'Team Nine?'
I stared straight ahead, waiting for Iruka to correct himself.
He didn't.
Kuro grinned like an idiot at me. That idiot would have been happy regardless of the team.
But I wasn't very enthusiastic about this team.
Kuro, as you know, talked too much and thought too little.
Misaki, on the other hand, was the clumsiest person in class.
Why she wanted to be a kunoichi was beyond me.
But the worst part wasn't the team itself.
It was the unknown jōnin we were about to be assigned.
Because in the ninja world, your sensei wasn't just your teacher.
In a way, they were an indication of how far you would go in this village.
They were your recommendation letter for life.
Just look at the Hokage lineage.
The Second Hokage was the First Hokage's Brother.
The Third Hokage was the Second Hokage's Student.
The Fourth Hokage was the Third Hokage's student's student.
And even in the future, the pattern would stay the same.
The Will of Fire was very particular about where it burned.
"Guess we're teammates," Kuro whispered loudly. "Friends for life, huh?"
"Yes, it's gonna be quite a thrilling life," I muttered.
The classroom slowly emptied as teams left with their jōnin one by one.
'Please let my sensei at least be a named character,' I thought.'Otherwise, they might not even survive the Konoha Crush.'
The door slid open.
A thin man with drowsy eyes stepped inside, coughing softly into his fist.
He wore a bandana-style forehead protector and had a sword strapped to his back.
"Team Nine," he said in a tired voice. "I'm Gekkō Hayate. You're with me."
'…Fuck.'
He was a Named character, alright. But he won't even make it till Konoha Crush.
'Okay, I can still work with this. He's a Kenjutsu specialist, isn't he? And he knows Transparent Escape.'
Hayate turned toward the door. "Follow me, you three."
I stood with the others and followed.
'Honestly, it could've been worse.'
cough cough
'Oh, who am I kidding? This is the worst.'
With that cough and those baggy eyes, I was sure that he wasn't gonna live long, even if he somehow survived Baki and Kabuto.
Hayate led us to a narrow training yard tucked between two old storehouses. It looked abandoned.
He leaned against a splintered wooden post and coughed quietly into his fist.
Once.Twice.
'…Yeah. Those death flags aren't subtle.'
"We'll keep this simple," he said. "Introductions. Name. Likes. Dislikes. Goals."
He paused, then added flatly, "I'll go first. I'm Gekkō Hayate. I like what I like. I don't like what I don't like. My goals are simple."
That was it.
'How enlightening.'
He gestured with his chin to Kuro. "You're up."
Kuro straightened instantly, like he'd been preparing for this moment his entire life.
"I'm Tanabe Kuro!" he said loudly. Too loudly. "I like training, sparring, barbeque, winning, and talking. I don't like people who look down on others, homework, or losing. My goal is to become an awesome ninja that everyone in the village knows about!"
He inhaled.
Then kept going.
"I mean, not like famous-famous, but—okay, maybe famous-famous? Like when people hear my name, they go 'oh yeah, that guy,' you know? And I wanna go on cool missions and—"
"That's enough," Hayate said, stopping him abruptly.
Kuro grinned, completely unbothered.
I already felt tired.
Hayate turned to Misaki. "You're next."
She flinched like she hadn't expected to be addressed at all.
"I—I'm Aoi Misaki," she said, bowing a little too quickly and nearly losing her balance. "I like… reading. And quiet places. I don't really like loud noises. Or heights. Or bugs."
She hesitated, fingers twisting together.
"My goal is… to become stronger. So I don't trip over myself all the time. Or… get in the way."
Her voice trailed off, eyes fixed firmly on the ground.
Then Hayate's gaze shifted to me.
"Your turn."
'Right.'
I scratched the back of my head. "Daichi Takumi."
"I like paper shurikens," I continued. "And Ichiraku's Ramen"
"I don't like rusty iron," I added quickly. "Or the smell of Hospitals."
Which was… specific. But dying slowly in a hospital will do that to you.
"And my goal—" I paused, then shrugged. "I want to be strong enough to retire and live a long life."
Silence.
They all gave me weird looks.
"…Retire?" Hayate repeated.
"Yeah," I said. "Before forty if possible. Comfortable house of my own. Enough money so I can eat nice food every day."
Kuro burst out laughing. "That's it? Don't we already have that? Why not be a legendary ninja? Like the Hokage?"
'Not everyone has that, you idiot,' I thought. Obviously, he wouldn't know that.
With how expensive becoming a ninja was, you could assume both Kuro and Misaki came from at least financially stable families.
"Hokage? That's too much work, you know," I replied. "I'd rather be stronger than the Hokage and still sleep till 10 in the morning."
Hayate studied me for a moment.
"…Are you sure you're not just lazy?" Kuro asked.
"No," I replied. "I'm very sure I'm lazy."
Hayate pushed himself off the post.
"That's enough for today," he said. "Tomorrow morning, we have our first mission. Be here at dawn."
Kuro's eyes lit up. "What kind of mission, sensei? Are we gonna beat up bandits? Thieves? Rogue ninja? I can't wait to show you my skills!"
"That's exactly what you'll be doing," Hayate said evenly. "Showing me your skills."
He turned toward the exit.
"If I'm not impressed, you're going back to the Academy. So, don't be late."
And then he was gone.
Well, he was probably standing right there with his transparent escape jutsu.
I imagined Hayate tiptoeing away, trying not to make any sound, and almost let out a chuckle.
"Oh man…" Kuro groaned next to me. "Back to the Academy? It's way too boring there."
-To be Continued...