Before the ceremony began, I managed to chat a bit with Kiba, Ino, Saya, and Aya.
Hitomi barely interacted with the adults, unlike everyone else—even the orphanage caretakers had huddled into their own little groups.
Surprisingly, Sakura also came over to say hello, followed by a little ball of walking kawaii who had finally gathered her courage—Hanabi.
Hinata, meanwhile, only managed a couple of words for Kiba and barely paid attention to the rest of us.
Man, canon was waving goodbye, but it wasn’t completely gone yet.
Somehow, during the ceremony, it was as if everyone fell into pre-assigned places.
The clan kids stood closer to the Hokage giving his speech, while the clanless kids mingled behind them.
And then there was Hitomi and I, standing off to the side.
The Third’s strange gaze and Danzo’s satisfied look in our direction were making me tense.
True, you couldn’t really tell if Shimura was “satisfied” just by looking at his face, but I felt it in my gut.
Heh, I suspected that from the outside, we looked exactly like a mother and son.
I was pressed backward against her legs (I couldn’t reach any higher), and she had her arms lowered, hands clasped over my chest, as if she were walling me off and protecting me from everyone else.
What made it three times as funny was that I actually caught myself thinking that standing like this was pretty nice.
Apparently, in this life, I really did miss having a family, or at least having moments like this every once in a while.
I know she’s only with me on orders, but still…
“Thank you,” I finished the thought, tilting my head back and speaking the last part aloud.
Huh?
Well, that was sudden.
The first heart was complete.
The memory image that unlocked was specifically of us in this current pose, just viewed from the outside.
I probably should have guessed.
A kiss on the cheek from girls my own age made sense, but with this particular operative, the first milestones were always going to be maternal.
And honestly, I have absolutely no desire to take it any further than that.
“Thank you as well,” she replied, tilting her head down, her face obscured by her dark mop of hair.
Am I hallucinating, or did this emotionless operative just smile?
The rest of the day was pretty dry.
Iruka was assigned as our homeroom teacher.
He led us to the classroom, told us a bit about himself and the Academy, and that was basically it.
Oh, right, there was also a tour, but Kiba and I talked through the whole thing, managing to blend into the crowd so well that both my female friends and his little admirer completely lost us.
We also claimed a spot at the very back desk in the classroom, clearly calling dibs.
The girls got swept away by a wave of their own friends.
Well, except Hinata.
She didn’t dare sit next to Kiba, so she also took a seat in the back row.
Only, we were by the window, and she was sitting by the wall, three rows over.
After all that, we were sent home.
Though Hitomi intercepted me right at the exit.
Did she even leave the Academy courtyard?
Quite possibly not.
And then the real hell began!
Upset by my morning failure (it seems she hadn’t expected me to be that terrible at calligraphy), Yugao dumped the theoretical portion of my training onto Hitomi.
Instead, she took charge of my practical training later in the afternoon, being the far superior close-combat fighter of the duo.
Stretching, push-ups, and a whole lot of other things.
But mostly stretching.
According to her, a good shinobi needs to bend in every direction to evade attacks and thrown weapons.
And the fundamentals had to be drilled in at my age.
Actually, even earlier; I was already playing catch-up.
Furthermore, based on what she had deduced from watching me, my martial arts style also heavily relied on flexibility.
And in general, for someone who can’t compete with opponents in raw strength and speed—which is true for all young shinobi, and especially me—agility and flexibility are the only things you can rely on.
So I was put through absolute hell.
By early evening, I could only walk bow-legged, even after being healed by Hitomi (who kept shooting disgruntled looks at Yugao, much to the ANBU’s shock).
By the end of the session, I couldn’t walk at all.
Hitomi had to carry me all the way from the training ground to our apartment.
Who else would?
After healing me, she had decided to stick around and watch the rest of the training.
Man, I’m getting the feeling that if I haven’t acquired a mommy—she doesn’t really fit the age bracket for that—I’ve definitely acquired an older sister.
I woke up the next morning fully healed, feeling a surge of genuine gratitude toward the System for wiping all negative status effects after sleep.
After my usual morning forms with my martial art, I felt even more refreshed, though the muscle ache came creeping back.
I hadn’t really gotten enough sleep; maybe that’s why the negative effects hadn’t completely cleared.
Who knows how this System works?
By the way, the night had treated me to new visions.
Nothing particularly noteworthy this time.
Working in a field (though I suspect that skill will come in handy when I’m a Genin, heh-heh), talking to my “parents,” and setting off on a journey to a neighboring province to earn money.
This time, Hitomi woke up earlier, so all three of us ate breakfast together.
Afterward, my new “older sister” escorted me to the Academy.
Once inside the Academy, ignoring absolutely everything and everyone, I shambled over to my seat and practically collapsed face-first into the center of the desk.
A couple of minutes later, Kiba landed next to me…
in the exact same state.
“What happened to you?” I asked sluggishly.
“My mom started training me, now that I’m in the Academy,” he replied just as sluggishly.
Realizing he wasn’t just a friend, but a brother in suffering, I placed a heavy hand on his shoulder.
He peeled his face off the desk in surprise, stared at me, read the shared trauma in my eyes, and returned the gesture.
[The bonds of true friendship have grown stronger!
+200 Reputation with Kiba Inuzuka.] Then, in perfect synchronization, we dropped our heads back onto the desk.
About five minutes later, Shikamaru walked into the classroom.
He scanned the room, locked eyes on our desk, and clearly recognized us as his kindred spirits.
Plus, the window seat was still open.
And a window seat in the very back row is far too juicy a prize for any slacker to pass up.
I’ll migrate over there myself later, but right now, I’m too lazy to even move.
[Squad assembled!
Due to your shared state of exhaustion and deep sense of affinity, you will now passively gain reputation with Shikamaru Nara and Kiba Inuzuka.] I didn’t get it at first, but after all three of us had been lying on the desk for five minutes, I received a passive +10 reputation from Shikamaru, and +1 from Kiba.
Makes sense—Kiba’s affinity is much higher leveled, so it’s harder to raise his reputation just through the solidarity of being incredibly tired.
And so, very sluggishly, my studies at the Academy began.