Hizashi hit the ground on his back with a dull thud, the breath leaving him in a strained groan as frost spread in pale marks across his sleeves, collar, and the exposed skin around his hands. For a moment, neither of them moved. Reiji only exhaled slowly, feeling the cold chakra around his forearms loosen and fade as the ice coating his skin broke apart into faint mist.
"Well," Sakumo's voice came from their right, amused and entirely too relaxed, "it seems Reiji wins again."
Kushina clapped from where she sat beneath a nearby tree, laughing loudly enough that a few birds scattered from the branches above. "Ahaha! That's what now? Ten to zero?" She leaned over Hizashi, who was still staring blankly at the sky, and poked his cheek with one finger. "What happened to the proud Hizashi? Are you going to cry?"
Hizashi's expression tightened. He lifted one hand and swatted her finger away with more irritation than strength. "Shut up. I'll get him."
Kushina only laughed harder, clearly delighted by the crack in his usual composure. "Whoa, you really are upset. It looks like you finally cracked—ouch!" Her complaint cut off when Sakumo flicked her forehead lightly from behind. She jerked back, both hands flying to the spot. "What was that for, sensei?"
"Stop bullying your teammate, Kushina," Sakumo said gravely, though the twitch at the corner of his mouth ruined the effect. "He'll cry if you continue."
Hizashi turned his head just enough to send him a flat, icy stare.
Kushina blinked, then lowered her voice. "…Isn't that also bullying?"
"It's different when I do it," Sakumo said.
"That doesn't sound right."
"It builds character."
Reiji watched the exchange without much expression, though his mouth threatened to move despite himself. He stepped closer and offered Hizashi a hand. The Hyūga looked at it for a second, pride warring with practicality, before accepting. Reiji pulled him up, feeling the stiffness in Hizashi's grip and the faint tremor left in his fingers from the cold. Hizashi steadied himself quickly, brushing frost from his sleeves with sharper movements than necessary.
"Thanks," he muttered.
Reiji gave a small nod. Hizashi turned away and walked toward the shade of the tree without another word, his shoulders controlled but his back too rigid to look unaffected. Reiji watched him go, the faint humor fading from his face.
It was finally beginning to sink in.
They had been a team for two weeks now. Between the daily D-rank missions, Sakumo had them sparring, reviewing Academy fundamentals, practicing movement drills, and correcting the small bad habits that had survived graduation. At first, Kushina and Hizashi had treated the sparring results as something temporary. But each spar made the truth harder to ignore.
He was stronger than them.
Not by a small margin either.
That was the part that bothered them. Reiji could see it even when they tried to hide it. Kushina concealed it better, mostly by turning every frustration into jokes, or anger aimed somewhere else. Hizashi was quieter, but that only made the weight more obvious when it settled on him. They had spent the last six months describing their Academy life without him as if it had been hell itself, mostly because Kushina liked making everything sound like a legend of suffering. Meanwhile, Reiji had been completing ordinary missions inside Konoha. Yet despite that, the gap between them had not shrunk.
If anything, they were only now beginning to understand how large it was.
Reiji looked down at his hands, flexing his fingers once as the last of the cold faded from his skin. What was he supposed to do? He was already not going all out. If he lowered himself further, they would notice. Worse, they would understand why.
That would be insulting.
A thoughtful hum came from Sakumo.
Reiji glanced toward him. Their teacher was looking at him first, then at Kushina, then at Hizashi beneath the tree, as if weighing something he had not expected to bring up yet.
"I didn't think I would suggest this so soon," Sakumo said eventually, slipping one hand into his vest pocket, "but oh well. You two, come here."
Kushina immediately perked up. Hizashi hesitated a moment longer before leaving the tree's shade and returning to the training field. The late morning sun had grown warmer now, bright across the grass, though patches of frost still lingered where Reiji's chakra had touched the ground. Sakumo rummaged around with exaggerated importance, then pulled out several small pieces of thin paper and held them up between two fingers.
"Tada."
Reiji's eyebrows rose slightly.
Kushina tilted her head. "Paper?"
Sakumo ignored the lack of awe and turned toward Hizashi. "Come here and pour your chakra into it."
Hizashi studied the paper for a few seconds, visibly uncertain, but he stepped forward and took it. He held it carefully between both hands, then pushed chakra into it. The reaction was immediate. Moisture spread across the paper from the center outward, darkening the fibers until it looked as if it had been dipped in water.
Kushina leaned closer, curiosity overtaking her annoyance. "What does that mean, sensei?"
"It means Hizashi's chakra affinity is water," Sakumo said.
Hizashi stared at the damp paper in his hand. If the information meant anything to him, he did not show it, but Reiji noticed the slight pause before his fingers closed around it. Kushina, on the other hand, practically bounced on her feet, her eyes bright.
"Oh! Does that mean we're going to learn ninjutsu, sensei?"
Sakumo chuckled. "That is the idea."
"Me too, then!" Kushina said, already reaching for the papers in his hand. "I want to test it."
She snatched one before Sakumo could answer and poured chakra into it with far less restraint than Hizashi had used. The paper reacted violently. One edge browned, then smoked as heat curled through the fibers, while another part dried, cracked, and crumbled into rough fragments between her fingers. Kushina stared at it. Reiji stared too, and even Sakumo blinked once in surprise.
"What?" Kushina demanded, looking between them. "What is it? Fire, right?"
"And earth," Reiji said after a moment. "You have two affinities."
Kushina went still.
Then her fist clenched in triumph. "Yeah!"
She caught herself almost immediately, straightened her posture, and coughed into one hand as if she had not nearly cheered like a child. "I mean… is that rare?"
"It isn't common," Sakumo said.
That was all she needed.
Kushina puffed out her chest and turned toward Reiji and Hizashi with a smug look so unbearable that Reiji could almost feel it pressing against his face. Hizashi looked unimpressed. Reiji looked at her for one long second, then smiled faintly and took one of the remaining papers from Sakumo's hand.
Reiji held the paper between two fingers and let his chakra flow.
The effect came in stages. First, the paper split cleanly down the center, the cut so sharp it looked made by a blade. Then the separated halves dampened, moisture spreading through them before frost gathered along the torn edge. A thin layer of ice formed over the surface, catching the sunlight in pale, glittering lines.
Kushina's face fell.
Reiji held up the frozen paper without a word.
"I have two affinities too." he said.
Kushina pouted.
"Well," Hizashi said from the shade, voice perfectly calm, "he still can't use them anyway."
Reiji turned his head slowly and sent him a withering glare.
Hizashi had already looked away, his pale eyes fixed on the leaves above as if they had suddenly become the most fascinating thing in the world.
Sakumo shook his head, amused despite himself, then clapped his hands once to gather their attention before the argument could deepen. "Having an affinity is useful. It means learning that element should come more naturally to you, and in some cases it may let you progress faster. But don't misunderstand what that means." His expression remained relaxed, but his voice settled into something more instructive. "An affinity does not make ninjutsu easy. It only gives you a direction. You still need control, practice, stamina, and time. And lacking an affinity does not mean you can never learn another element. It just means the road is longer."
Kushina nodded more seriously now, though Reiji could tell she was still pleased with herself.
Sakumo continued, looking between them. "Everyone has chakra. Everyone has an affinity. That doesn't mean everyone becomes good at ninjutsu. Some people have poor control. Some have weak reserves. Some never train young enough for their bodies to adapt properly. Even among shinobi, not everyone is suited for every style of fighting. So don't get arrogant because a piece of paper reacted in an interesting way."
Kushina deflated slightly. "Yes, sensei."
Sakumo's gaze shifted toward Hizashi. "Hizashi?"
The Hyūga was silent for a few seconds. His hands closed at his sides, then loosened again. Reiji watched him from the corner of his eye, noticing the tension in his jaw before Hizashi finally stepped forward and bowed.
"I'm sorry, sensei," Hizashi said. "While I appreciate the offer, I don't need to learn ninjutsu outside my clan. The techniques of the Hyūga will suffice."
Reiji blinked.
Kushina did the same, her brows pulling together in obvious confusion.
Sakumo, however, did not look surprised. If anything, he looked as if he had expected that answer.
"Why?" he asked.
Hizashi straightened. "Like I said, my clan—"
"You don't want to improve?" Sakumo cut in mildly. "You're fine losing to Reiji forever?"
Hizashi froze.
Sakumo sighed softly and continued. "I understand why you think that way. Maybe you're even right in one sense. Hyūga techniques are powerful. Terrifying, even, when used properly." His gaze stayed on Hizashi. "But you need to be realistic. In your current situation, can you truly learn everything you need from your clan?"
Reiji tilted his head slightly.
What are they talking about?
Hizashi's fists tightened again. For a moment, his face remained composed, but Reiji had spent enough time watching him fight to recognize strain when he saw it.
Sakumo's tone softened slightly. "Between us, you won't be the first Hyūga to learn techniques from outside the clan. And if someone has a problem with it, they can come answer to me." He paused, then smiled faintly, as if offering Hizashi a path that did not feel like surrender. "If it bothers you, we can begin with a defensive jutsu. Something that supports your style instead of replacing it."
Hizashi did not answer immediately.
Kushina looked between them, clearly sensing that there was more happening than she understood but not knowing where to step.
"Besides," he added, "Kushina will be learning ninjutsu too. If this continues, she may surpass you as well. That would be a bit much, don't you think?"
Hizashi's mouth tightened.
"Yes," he said quietly. "It would be a bit…"
"Hey!" Kushina snapped, pointing at him. "What does that mean?"
Sakumo chuckled and ruffled her hair before she could launch herself at Hizashi. "Calm down." Then he looked back at the Hyūga. "So? Do we have a deal?"
Hizashi lowered his gaze for a second. When he lifted it again, his expression had settled back into its usual control, though the stiffness had not fully left him.
"Yes, sensei," he said. "We have a deal."
Sakumo smiled. "Good."
Sakumo clapped his hands together, snapping the moment back into motion. "Alright! Morning training is over. Let's go find a mission for today."
All three genin groaned.
Sakumo only smiled wider.
***
Reiji stared down at the metal grate set into the muddy ground.
Rain pattered steadily over the park, turning the dirt around their sandals into soft brown sludge and sending thin ripples across the shallow puddles gathered between the patches of grass. Beneath the grate, dark water rushed through the sewer channel with an ugly, wet gurgle, carrying leaves, mud, and other things Reiji had absolutely no interest in identifying.
He looked back at Hizashi, whose face had gone unusually somber, then at Kushina, whose expression hovered somewhere between horror and denial. Finally, his gaze settled on the old man standing beside them, sheltered beneath a small umbrella and looking far too innocent.
"So," Reiji said slowly, already feeling a headache forming behind his eyes, "you said you lost your wedding ring in the park yesterday. Correct?"
The old man nodded. "Yes, that is correct."
"And you didn't specify anything else. Just the park."
"That is also correct."
Reiji drew in a slow breath through his nose. The smell rising from the grate immediately made him regret it. "Then why," he asked, each word carefully measured, "did you guide us to a sewer grate?"
"Because it fell there yesterday."
A short silence followed. Rain tapped against the old man's umbrella.
Reiji stared at him. "Then why say the park if it was in the sewer?"
"Because the sewer is in the park."
Reiji's eye twitched.
That old fart.
He turned back toward the grate, watching the muddy water continue on its way beneath them, indifferent to their suffering. "Well, too bad for you. With the rain and the current, the ring is probably lost somewhere in Konoha's sewer system by now. There's nothing we can do."
The old man's expression fell. His shoulders lowered slightly beneath the umbrella, and his wrinkled fingers tightened around the handle. "You really can't do anything? It was the only memento I had left of my wife."
"If that's true," Hizashi said, his voice polite but openly dubious, "why didn't you say anything yesterday?"
"I did try to pick it up yesterday."
"You did?" Kushina asked, blinking.
"Yes." The old man nodded gravely. "I poked it with a stick."
Kushina waited. "And?"
"It broke, so I went home."
For a moment, none of them spoke. Even the rain seemed louder.
Kushina stared at him in disbelief. "And you didn't ask for help?"
"I am shy."
"You were not too shy to ask the administration for help," Hizashi said deadpan.
The old man looked between them as if they were the unreasonable ones. "So will you get my ring or not? I am paying for your help, you know. I am too old to do it myself."
Reiji sighed, lifting a hand to rub at his forehead. "Like I said, it's lost. With the current, finding it now would be almost impossible."
"How could you say that, Reiji?"
He did not even need to turn around.
His eyes rolled on instinct.
Here we go again.
Sakumo stood behind them with an umbrella balanced over one shoulder, his face twisted into an expression of grief. He stepped beside the old man and gripped his shoulder with one hand, looking down at him as though they were standing before a grave.
"How could we, as shinobi of the Leaf, abandon a citizen in crisis?" Sakumo asked, voice thick with emotion. "As a loving husband myself, how could I not understand the anguish this man is feeling?" He turned his sorrowful gaze toward the three genin. "Have you no shame? Refusing to help this poor old man recover the final memento of his deceased wife? Would you abandon your poor sensei one day if I were in his situation? Frail, old, helpless?"
Yes.
Kushina, far less willing to suffer silently, crossed her arms. "Why don't you do it yourself, then? You seem pretty passionate about it."
Sakumo looked genuinely wounded. "How could I steal this opportunity from you? This is a bonding moment." He gestured grandly toward the grate. "The three of you, braving the dangers of Konoha's sewer system to help a veteran citizen in need. Years from now, you'll look back on this day with fondness." He nodded, visibly moved by his own words. "No need to thank me."
Reiji looked down again at the muddy water rushing beneath the grate, then slowly turned his head back toward Sakumo. "You realize we may have to search the entire sewer system."
"If that is the price we must pay to complete the mission, so be it," Sakumo said gravely. "A shinobi must sometimes make difficult choices. This is one of them."
"I'm not going," Hizashi said immediately.
"Me neither," Kushina added just as quickly.
Both of them turned toward Reiji.
He stared back. "Why are you looking at me like that? I'm not going either." He pointed toward Hizashi. "If someone must go, it should be you. With your Byakugan, finding it would be easy."
"I cannot use it outside my compound."
"That's a lie. You don't have that restriction anymore you use it everytime when we train."
" I am currently dealing with chakra exhaustion right now."
Reiji's mouth tightened.
Before he could answer, Sakumo clapped his hands together, the sound muffled slightly by the rain. "Calm down, kids. There's no need to make such a big deal out of it. We can decide this simply."
He crouched and picked up a wet stick from the ground. Then, turning his back so none of them could see properly, he broke it into three pieces, when he faced them again, he held the pieces in one fist, only the ends showing.
"The one who picks the shortest stick goes in," Sakumo said brightly. "Fair and simple, so who wants to go first?"
"Me," Hizashi said.
The veins around his eyes bulged.
Reiji's eyes widened as the Byakugan activated.
Look at this bastard.
"Hey!" Kushina snapped. "That's cheating! Didn't you just say you couldn't use it?"
Hizashi calmly reached forward and selected one of the longer sticks. "I don't hear you."
"He's just using his eyes," Sakumo said, as if Kushina was being ridiculous. "If someone were born with four arms, would you tell him not to use them because it isn't fair?"
Kushina turned toward him with a flat stare. "What kind of example is that? That's not even a good comparison."
Hizashi, utterly shameless, stepped back with his long stick in hand. His expression remained perfectly composed, but Reiji was beginning to understand that the Hyūga boy was far more treacherous than his polite manners suggested.
Sakumo smiled and lifted the remaining two pieces slightly. "So. Who's next?"
Kushina and Reiji stared at each other.
The rain continued to fall between them, dripping from their hair, sliding down their collars, and darkening the fabric of their clothes. Reiji studied her face, searching for any sign of weakness. Kushina stared back with the intensity of someone preparing for war.
Then she took a deep breath and stepped toward Sakumo.
A slow, unpleasant sense of dread crawled up Reiji's spine.
I have a bad feeling.
***
Reiji stood in front of the Hokage Tower, waiting for his teammates beneath the grey afternoon sky.
People gave him a wide berth as they passed. Usually, the looks he received were familiar enough to ignore. Children pointed sometimes, only for their parents to grip their hands and hurry them along before curiosity became contact. Normally, Reiji did not care.
This time, unfortunately, he could hardly blame them.
His clothes clung damply to his skin in several places, heavy with rainwater and other substances he refused to identify. Mud streaked his sleeves, dark slime had dried unevenly across one side of his kimono, and the smell rising from him was so foul and persistent that even he had begun breathing through his mouth out of self-preservation. Every slight shift of his shoulders released another wave of sewer stench into the air around him, creating an invisible perimeter that villagers respected far more reliably than they respected his personal space.
If I ever see that old fart again…
His jaw tightened until his teeth nearly ground together.
"Whoa. Is that you, Reiji?"
His eyes snapped toward the voice.
Arata stood a short distance away, half-turned from the Hokage Tower entrance as though he had only just stepped outside with his team. Tsume was beside him, one hand already rising toward her nose, her expression going visibly green the longer she looked at him. Even the small dog at her feet let out a miserable whimper and pressed itself behind her leg as if hoping distance might save it. The third member of their team was there too—the gloomy one whose name Reiji had never bothered to keep properly in his head.
Reiji stared at them flatly before turning is head around. "Nah. I don't know you."
Arata blinked, still visibly stunned by the sight of him. Then his mouth twitched. "Kami, look at you. What happened? Did you lose a fight with a toilet?"
Tsume burst out laughing before she could stop herself, loud enough to draw a few passing glances. Reiji's eyes moved to her. The laugh died in her throat with a small, strangled sound as she took half a step behind Arata, still pinching her nose.
Reiji's eye twitched faintly. "You are confusing me with someone else."
Unfortunately, Arata's other teammate looked far too pleased with himself to accept survival when it was offered. The boy leaned forward slightly, eyes bright with delight of what was in front of him.
"Ah, this is hilarious," he said, grinning wider. "The mighty Reiji, covered in a pile of shit. Did your sensei finally assign you a mission matching your personality? Wait until everyone hears about this."
Reiji went still.
Then he smiled.
"Oh, really?"
Arata immediately raised both hands and began backing away. "Whoa, whoa. I have nothing to do with this."
The other boy glanced at him, confused by the sudden retreat. "What are you afraid of? You think he's going to attack us like he did Enji ? In front of the Hokage Tower no less ?" He turned back toward Reiji, still wearing that stupid grin. "What are you smiling at, psychopath? You want to hit me? Go on, do it."
Reiji tilted his head slightly. The smile remained, but he softened it into something almost sad, lowering his gaze for half a second as though genuinely wounded by the accusation.
"No," he said quietly. "To be honest, I regret what happened before." He let the words sit for a moment, watching the boy's confidence falter under the unexpected response. "And I'm sorry if I made light of you the other day. I shouldn't have."
All three of them blinked.
Tsume's hand lowered a fraction from her nose. Arata, however, only narrowed his eyes. He took another step back, slower this time, and caught Tsume by the back of her jacket to pull her with him.
The other boy did not notice.
He coughed awkwardly, some of the smugness slipping from his face. "Well… it's good that you say it."
Reiji stepped closer, expression hopeful. "I think we started on the wrong foot. What do you say we start fresh? I'm Homura Reiji. Nice to meet you, Marino."
The boy's eye twitched. "It's Morino. Morino Ibiki."
"Ah. Sorry, Ibiki."
Reiji raised one filthy hand for a handshake.
"So. Peace?"
Ibiki stared at the offered hand.
The color slowly drained from his face.
"Ah," Ibiki said carefully, lifting one hand as if to ward him off. "No, no need—"
Reiji widened his eyes in innocent surprise. "You don't want a handshake?"
"No, I—"
"A hug, then."
Ibiki's eyes widened. "What? Are you crazy—"
Reiji moved before he could finish.
One moment there was space between them; the next, Reiji had both arms around him, pulling him into a tight embrace. Ibiki tried to twist away, but Reiji locked him in place, pinning his arms against his sides while pressing the filthiest parts of his clothes against the boy's clean uniform.
"LET GO OF ME!"
The boy pushed against him but Reiji adjusted his grip and pressed closer, making sure the worst of the filth smeared all over Ibiki.
"I know you're embarrassed," Reiji said warmly, tightening the hug just enough to make escape impossible without actually hurting him, "but don't worry. I'm happy we're friends now."
"Stop it!" Ibiki choked, his voice cracking as he fought to breathe without breathing. His face had gone from pale to green, and his knees bent slightly as if his body could not decide whether to flee or collapse. "Get off me!"
Reiji's expression turned deeply concerned. "Are you all right?"
Then he lifted his hand and placed it directly in front of Ibiki's mouth and nose.
Ibiki froze.
The smell hit him fully.
His eyes watered.
"Take a deep breath," Reiji said, still wearing that gentle, worried look. "It's okay."
Ibiki made a strangled noise and began waving his arms uselessly.
"Get off me, you maniac!"
"What's going on here?"
Reiji and Ibiki stopped at the same time.
For one brief, absurd moment, they remained frozen in place: Ibiki trapped in Reiji's arms, uniform smeared with dark stains, face pale and furious; Reiji still wearing the same innocent expression he had been using since the beginning of his act. Slowly, both of them turned toward the voice.
Sakumo stood a few steps away, one hand tucked lazily into his pocket and amusement written plainly across his face. Beside him, Kushina looked seconds away from laughing out loud, one hand pressed over her mouth as her shoulders trembled while Hizashi, naturally, looked completely unbothered.
The one who had spoken, however, was not any of them.
The man standing at Sakumo's side looked far less amused. He was older than Sakumo, with short dark hair, a hard jaw, one of his eyes was missing, covered by a long scar that cut through the socket and dragged down the side of his face. Reiji recognized him after a moment as the grizzled jōnin who had picked up Arata and his teammates after the team assignments.
Team Four's jōnin instructor, then.
Reiji immediately released Ibiki and stepped back.
"Nothing," he said, his expression open and innocent. "Ibiki looked like he was going to collapse, so I went to help him."
Ibiki turned toward him, trembling with humiliation. "That's not true! He—"
"Actually," the man said, raising one hand with a tired sigh, "I don't want to know."
Ibiki's mouth remained open for another second before snapping shut. His face looked like he was somewhere between crying, vomiting, and committing murder.
The jōnin turned his remaining eye toward Sakumo. "Get a grip on your student, Sakumo."
Sakumo rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Sorry, Hagane-senpai."
Hagane shook his head, looking more disappointed than surprised. "You're as unserious as always."
Sakumo smiled. "I try my best."
"That's what worries me." His gaze moved to his own team next. Arata straightened immediately, Tsume stopped laughing, and Ibiki tried very hard to look like he had not just been violated by friendship. "That's all for today. You can rest for the remainder of the day."
With that, he turned and left.
The change in Tsume was immediate.
"Yeah!" she shouted, throwing both arms into the air. "Finally done for the day!" Then she turned toward Arata and Ibiki, still grinning despite the way Ibiki looked like his soul had been dragged through the sewers alongside his uniform. "Let's go eat dango to celebrate our first escort mission!"
Kushina blinked. "Sorry, what?"
Tsume looked at her. "Huh?"
"What escort mission?" Kushina asked, pointing at them. "You guys aren't doing D-rank missions anymore?"
Tsume stared at her as if the question itself was strange. "No? Jinsuke-sensei started giving us C-ranks about a week ago." Her grin widened with pride. "This was our second one. We were away for three days, you know."
For a moment, there was only silence.
Then Tsume's expression shifted into something far too smug.
"Why?" she asked slowly. "Are you still doing D-ranks?"
Reiji, Kushina, and Hizashi turned toward Sakumo at the same time.
Sakumo blinked at them in confusion
"What?"
Kushina pointed at him accusingly. "Why are they doing C-rank missions while we're still stuck doing stupid chores?"
"If they are being assigned C-ranks," Hizashi added calmly, "then we are more than capable of doing the same."
"Hey," Arata said, narrowing his eyes. "What does that mean?"
Hizashi turned his pale gaze toward him without changing expression. "Exactly what you think it means."
Arata's eyebrow twitched. "You… you wanna go?"
"When you want, crow head."
"Creepy eyes."
Reiji's eyebrows lifted slightly at this exchange before returning his attention to the more important matter.
"Sakumo-sensei," he said, voice flat, "you still haven't answered the question. Why are we still doing ridiculous missions? It has been more than a month now. Aside from D-ranks and training on the side, we're more than ready for something else."
Sakumo looked at each of them in turn.
For once, his expression grew somber.
The change was subtle, but enough that even Kushina lowered her hand slightly and Hizashi focused more closely. Reiji narrowed his eyes.
Then Sakumo sighed.
"And go outside the village for several days," he said gravely, "leaving my poor wife alone to raise our son while I suffer in the wilderness with three ungrateful children? What kind of husband would I be?"
Silence fell.
For several seconds, no one said anything.
Then Reiji closed his eyes.
Of course.
Why had he seriously allowed himself even a sliver of hope that Sakumo would answer properly?
"Anyway," Sakumo said, clapping his hands once as if that settled everything, "that's all for today. Same training ground tomorrow morning, like always. Don't be late."
Then he vanished in a swirl of leaves before anyone could complain.
For a moment, silence remained in his place.
Arata stared at the spot where Sakumo had been standing, then slowly turned toward Reiji. "Your sensei is strange. Is he always like that?"
Reiji sighed, too tired and too filthy to even summon proper irritation. "Don't ask."
"Anyway," Tsume said, recovering quickly now that the immediate danger of Reiji spreading sewer filth seemed to have passed, "who wants to go eat dango? We were going to celebrate." She glanced toward Team Sakumo, then added, a little more awkwardly, "You can join us if you want."
"Me!" Kushina said immediately, raising a hand as if someone might steal the offer from her.
"No," Hizashi answered just as simply, already turning to leave.
Reiji watched him go for a second before looking down at himself. The smell still clung to him like a living thing.
"No thanks," he said flatly. "I need a shower."
"You can come after the shower," Tsume offered.
Reiji raised one hand in a loose wave without turning back.
"Maybe."
He had no intention of doing that.
***
"What kind of person is Sakumo-sensei ?"
His father paused.
The kitchen had grown quiet around them, broken only by the faint clink of chopsticks against ceramic and the low rustle of wind outside the house. Night had already settled over Konoha, pressing darkness against the window while the warm light above the table drew a small circle around their meal. Soichiro sat across from him with his usual straight posture, one hand resting near his bowl, the other still holding his chopsticks halfway through a movement that had stopped at Reiji's question.
After a moment, he lowered them.
"Why do you ask?"
Reiji shifted slightly in his seat, trying to gather the thought properly before answering.
"How do I say it…" Reiji frowned down at his bowl, tapping one finger lightly against the wood beside it. "He seems competent. For a jōnin, at least. But he doesn't act serious most of the time. It's like he treats everything as a joke." His mouth tightened faintly as memories of sewers, ridiculous speeches, and that stupidly innocent smile surfaced one after another. "When I met him the first time, I noticed he wasn't some stuck-up shinobi obsessed with his own rank, but still…"
Soichiro resumed eating as if the answer had already become clear to him. "Are you worried he will affect your career as your sensei?"
"Not really," Reiji said after a brief pause. "To be honest, I don't particularly care who my sensei is. It's not as if any of them could help me with my Hyōton anyway." He shrugged, the motion small and dismissive. "It could have been anyone else and I probably wouldn't care much."
His chopsticks shifted between his fingers as he considered the rest. Then he added, more honestly, "He is strong, though."
As far as explanations went, that was usually enough.
Still, that was not the part that bothered him. Reiji looked back at his father, studying his face carefully. "But he was your teammate. That surprised me."
Soichiro's eyes lifted. "What do you mean?"
Reiji blinked, momentarily unsure how to phrase it without sounding insulting. "Well… I don't mean to presume, but I don't think you would have tolerated someone like that as a teammate. Someone who—"
"That is where you are wrong."
The interruption was calm, but immediate.
Reiji stopped.
Soichiro's gaze settled on him fully now.
"There is no one I would have chosen to replace that man as a teammate," Soichiro said. "You are lucky to have him as your sensei."
Reiji stared at him, openly dubious despite himself. "Seriously?"
Soichiro nodded once. "Sakumo may seem unprofessional at times, but I can assure you there are very few shinobi more professional when it matters. Or more serious about the work itself." He paused for a moment, then added almost as an afterthought, quieter and more to himself, "Perhaps Shimura-sensei."
Reiji's attention sharpened at that. It was not often his father spoke about his old team, and even less often that his tone carried something close to respect without immediately burying it beneath criticism.
"I didn't know you held him in such high esteem," Reiji said.
"He was my teammate," Soichiro replied simply, as if that explained more than the words themselves. "If he had not been remarkable, Shimura-sensei would have made him quit a long time ago."
That made Reiji pause.
Then curiosity pushed past the original question.
"So who was stronger?"
Soichiro's eyes narrowed slightly. "What?"
"Between you and Sakumo-sensei," Reiji said, leaning forward just a little. "Who was more powerful?"
For the first time that evening, his father's composure cracked by the smallest amount. One eye twitched.
"What kind of stupid question is that?" Soichiro asked. "Of course it was me."
Reiji looked at him for a moment.
"Right…"
"Be careful, boy."
"I didn't say anything."
"You were thinking loudly."
Reiji arranged his face into something innocent. "That sounds like your imagination."
Soichiro huffed and returned to his meal, though the faint displeasure in his expression lingered. Reiji lowered his gaze to his own bowl, hiding the small smile that tried to form despite himself, and resumed eating.
Still…
Reiji glanced toward the dark window, where his reflection looked faint and distorted against the night outside. Whatever Sakumo was beneath the jokes, his father clearly believed there was more to him than the irritating mask he wore.
Reiji hoped he would see that soon.
***
Reiji watched the spar in silence, his thoughts drifting somewhere between curiosity and irritation.
The training ground still carried the dampness of the morning, patches of grass bending beneath the movement of two fresh genin while loose dirt darkened where feet had torn through the surface again and again. Kushina and Hizashi had been fighting for several minutes already, and despite how different they were, neither had managed to take control for long.
They were surprisingly well matched.
Kushina drove in with a straight punch, her shoulder turning behind the blow, but Hizashi shifted half a step outside the line and swatted her wrist aside with the heel of his palm. The impact was light compared to her strength, but the angle was perfect. Her arm was pushed just far enough off course for his body to slip past it, and he immediately riposted with a sharp kick toward the side of her head. His hip turned cleanly, the motion fast and controlled, but Kushina reacted with instinct more than technique. Her hand shot up, caught his ankle, and her expression twisted into a grin as she planted one foot hard into the mud.
Hizashi's eyes narrowed.
A heartbeat later, she swung him like a club.
His body was ripped off balance and hurled toward the ground with enough force that the grass flattened beneath him before he even struck. Hizashi caught himself on both hands at the last instant, arms bending under the impact as a grunt escaped through his teeth. His palms dug into the wet dirt, shoulders tightening from the strain, but he did not collapse. Instead, he used the force of the fall to twist, his free leg whipping upward in a sharp arc that caught Kushina beneath the chin.
The blow was not heavy enough to truly hurt her, but it snapped her head back and forced her grip open.
Hizashi pulled his leg free and rolled away just as Kushina recovered with a snarl and brought her heel down where his skull had been. Her foot hit the ground with a dull thud, sending mud splattering outward.
A log appeared beneath her instead.
Kushina's eyes widened only for an instant before she pivoted, hair whipping behind her as she turned toward the real Hizashi. He had already reappeared at her flank, Byakugan active now, veins standing out around his pale eyes. His fingers struck before she could fully square her shoulders, driving into her abdomen with a short, precise thrust that looked almost gentle from a distance.
Kushina spat saliva from the force of it.
Reiji's attention sharpened.
She did not fall. Her face twisted, one hand clamping over her stomach, and she kicked herself backward before Hizashi could follow with another strike. Her sandals tore two wet lines through the grass when she landed, knees bent, breath hissing between clenched teeth.
Hizashi pressed immediately.
Kushina's face tightened.
Then her hands flashed through seals.
She inhaled sharply, cheeks puffing slightly as chakra built inside her lungs, and then she spat it out in a violent burst.
"Fire Release: Fire Breath !"
Flame erupted from her mouth in a wide, roaring wave.
The flames surged across the training ground in a broad cone, too wide, too bright, and fed by far too much chakra. The grass blackened beneath its path, moisture in the dirt hissing into steam before the fire even reached Hizashi.
"Whoa," Sakumo said from Reiji's side.
Reiji glanced over.
Their sensei was lounging against a tree with one shoulder pressed to the bark, arms folded loosely and amusement clear on his face. He looked entirely too comfortable for someone supervising a spar that was rapidly becoming a fire hazard.
"It's supposed to be a D-rank," Sakumo said, watching the flames rush forward. "But in her hands, it's closer to C-rank. Borderline higher if she keeps feeding it like that."
Reiji looked back toward the fight.
Hizashi, on the other hand—
"Water Release: Water Veil."
Hizashi's hands completed the seals as the fire closed on him. He did not try to meet the technique with equal force. That would have been stupid. Instead, he exhaled a controlled stream of water that spread outward in front of him, shaping itself into a thin veil no wider than his body. It looked fragile compared to the fire rushing toward it, almost absurdly so, like a sheet of cloth raised against a storm.
But Hizashi had already moved forward without fear or doubt.
Kushina's flame struck a heartbeat later. The water hissed violently and vanished into white steam, but it broke the front of the fire just enough. The clean wave of flame lost its shape, splitting and curling outward as heat and moisture collided. Steam exploded across the training ground, swallowing Hizashi's figure completely.
For an instant, Reiji saw nothing but white.
Kushina vanished inside it too, her outline blurred by the thick cloud rolling around her. The smell of burned grass and wet earth spread through the air. Reiji narrowed his eyes, listening past the hiss of steam, trying to track movement by sound alone.
Then a sudden flare of light burst inside the steam.
Reiji's eyes narrowed further.
The glow was brief, sharp, and blinding, cutting through the white cloud like sunlight flashing off a blade. A moment later, Hizashi came flying out of the steam, body twisting sideways as he hit the ground and skidded across the wet grass. Dirt sprayed beneath his shoulder before he caught himself with one palm, teeth clenched and feet dragging to slow his momentum.
In an instant, Kushina was in front of him.
She burst out of the thinning steam with enough speed to tear wet grass beneath her sandals, one fist already drawn back. Hizashi had barely finished skidding to a stop, but his eyes sharpened the moment she crossed into range. Her punch came for his jaw in a straight, heavy line.
Hizashi did not meet it head-on.
He shifted his weight onto his rear foot and swatted her fist aside with the edge of his palm, turning his shoulder just enough for the punch to pass close to his cheek. The force of it still stirred his hair, but the opening was there. His other hand snapped forward immediately, fingers striking Kushina's wrist first, then her shoulder in two quick, precise taps.
Kushina cried out, her arm jerking as pain shot through it, but she did not retreat. Instead, she stepped in closer.
Hizashi's eyes widened a fraction before her forehead slammed into his face.
The impact made a dull crack of bone against bone. Hizashi's head snapped back, his stance breaking for the first time as he stumbled, one foot sliding through the damp grass while his hands lifted instinctively.
Kushina was already clutching her injured arm, teeth bared from the pain, but she pushed forward anyway.
Hizashi shook himself back into focus and jumped back to dodge the follow up attack, landing with his knees bent and one hand raised. His expression settled again, but Reiji could see the slight delay before his stance fully formed. Kushina saw it too. She dug one foot into the ground and charged, ignoring the way her struck arm hung stiffly at her side.
Hizashi exhaled and waited for her, palms open, Byakugan fixed on her approach.
"Okay, that's enough."
Both of them stopped.
Kushina's foot scraped a line through the wet grass as she forced herself to halt mid-charge, shoulders still tense and breath hot from exertion. Hizashi lowered his hands only after a moment, his posture controlled again despite the faint redness spreading across his nose. They both turned toward Sakumo.
Their sensei smiled at them from beneath the tree, looking far too pleased.
"Well," Sakumo said, pushing himself away from the tree, "that was better than before."
Kushina's shoulders loosened slightly.
"Still horrible, though."
Her face twisted. "You bastard! Why did you stop the fight? I had him!"
Hizashi blinked once, but said nothing.
"Really?" Sakumo asked, sounding genuinely surprised. He turned toward Reiji with an innocent expression. "What do you think? Was she winning?"
Reiji stared at him flatly. "Don't involve me."
"You're no fun."
Sakumo looked back at Kushina, his smile still there. The steam behind her was beginning to fade, leaving the grass scorched in a rough cone where her fire had passed. Hizashi stood several steps away, one hand lowered, nose still faintly red from the headbutt, while Kushina kept her injured arm close to her side and pretended she was not doing it.
"Using a seal to flash him inside the steam was good," Sakumo said. "He thought the cloud favored him because of the Byakugan. You turned that against him. Good instinct."
Kushina lifted her chin, satisfaction flickering across her face.
"You wasted it."
The satisfaction vanished.
"You got the opening, but you didn't capitalize enough to put him down. After that, you should have created distance, forced him to chase, and made him deal with your ninjutsu again." Sakumo nodded toward her stiff arm. "Instead, you went straight back into taijutsu against a Hyūga with his eyes active. He incapcitated your wrist and shoulder almost immediately, and you still chose to keep pushing forward."
Kushina gritted her teeth. "That doesn't mean I lost. I could have beaten him if you hadn't stopped it."
"Trust me," Sakumo said lightly, "I know where that was going."
Her expression darkened, but she did not answer.
Sakumo turned toward Hizashi next.
The Hyūga boy straightened at once, his face composed again despite the mud on his sleeves and the redness around his nose.
"And you," Sakumo said, "were terrible too."
Hizashi's expression did not change, but Reiji noticed the faint tension in his jaw.
"You're too passive," Sakumo continued. "You rely on your Byakugan too much, and because of that, you wait for the perfect opening instead of taking the good one in front of you. You could have ended the fight earlier if you trusted yourself more."
Hizashi lowered his gaze slightly.
"Your Water Release was good," Sakumo added. "Finally using ninjutsu outside your clan techniques is progress. But even then, your rhythm is too predictable. Anyone who knows how to read timing will start seeing your next move before you make it."
For a moment, Hizashi said nothing. Then he gave a small nod, his expression complicated but controlled.
"Yes, sensei."
Kushina grumbled under her breath, still holding her injured arm close to her side. "Still not fair. You never praise us properly even when we improve, and you still keep making us do those stupid missions." Her glare sharpened. "I hate you, sensei."
Sakumo clutched his chest as if she had struck him. "Ah. You wound me."
"She is right," Hizashi said, calm but firmer than usual. "When do we stop those missions? We may not meet your standards yet, but you cannot deny that we are overqualified for D-ranks. We should be allowed to begin C-ranks like the other teams."
Sakumo looked at Kushina, then at Hizashi, then finally at Reiji.
"And you?" he asked. "What do you think?"
Reiji looked at him flatly. "I think I have had enough sewer for one lifetime, sensei."
"Mmm." Sakumo rubbed his chin, his expression turning thoughtful in a way Reiji immediately distrusted. "Well, this is awkward. You really want to know?"
The air shifted slightly. Kushina straightened, Hizashi focused, and Reiji felt a familiar unpleasant instinct crawl up his spine.
Sakumo inhaled deeply.
Then he pointed dramatically at Reiji.
"It's because of him."
Reiji stared.
What?
"What did you say, sensei?" Kushina asked, sounding genuinely confused.
"Well, it is also your fault, to be fair," Sakumo continued, now pointing at Kushina and Hizashi instead. "To make it simple, you two are weak."
Silence settled over the training ground.
The wind moved through the damp grass. Somewhere behind them, a drop of water fell from a leaf and landed in the mud.
Then Kushina's eyes narrowed.
Hizashi's did too, though his expression remained much more controlled.
What is this man playing at?
"What do you mean, weak?" Kushina snapped, puffing her chest out in outrage. "Not to brag, but I was one of the strongest in our class!"
Hizashi said nothing, but the cool glare he fixed on Sakumo made it clear he did not disagree with her.
Sakumo lifted both hands lazily. "And that is true. You are both above average for fresh genin." He tilted his head toward Reiji. "The problem is that your other teammate is this guy."
Reiji's mouth flattened.
"You may be powerful for your age," Sakumo continued, "but you have an anomaly in your team. That creates a serious imbalance. I cannot have you going outside the village on missions with that kind of flaw."
Reiji rubbed at his temple. "So because I am stronger than my teammates, I am also stuck doing D-ranks? What kind of logic is that? It handicaps me."
"You are a team," Sakumo said cheerfully. "You share suffering together."
"That is not an answer."
"It is if I say it with enough confidence." Sakumo smiled. "Besides, I do not hear you complaining when I spar with you every day and let you eat dirt."
Reiji said nothing.
He had learned early that arguing with Sakumo's logic was like punching mist. Even when he was right, somehow he still lost.
"That's unfair!" Kushina snapped, stepping forward. "We are not a burden to Reiji. We're more than capable of doing missions with him as equals."
Hizashi nodded once.
"Really?" Sakumo asked.
The tone changed.
Not much. Just enough.
His smile stayed in place, but something sharper appeared beneath it, the same faint edge Reiji had learned to associate with traps disguised as jokes. Sakumo's gaze moved between Kushina and Hizashi, then settled on Reiji for half a heartbeat before returning to the others.
"Well," he said, sounding far too pleased with himself, "I have an idea."
Reiji's eyes narrowed.
I have a bad feeling about this.
"What do you think of a little spar?" Sakumo asked. "You two against Reiji. If you manage to land one hit on him, we stop these missions and I request a proper C-rank for the team."
Kushina's eyes brightened immediately. "That's too easy!"
Hizashi remained quieter, but his gaze shifted toward Reiji with clear calculation.
Reiji sighed.
In theory, losing would benefit him. He wanted the D-ranks to end as much as anyone. If Kushina or Hizashi landed a hit, they could finally move on to something less insulting than sewer retrieval and lost pets.
But the problem was—
"Of course," he added lightly, "Reiji cannot pretend to lose. If he does, or if I even suspect he did, we continue D-ranks for another month before any of you are allowed to bring this up again."
I knew it.
Reiji looked at Kushina and Hizashi. Both of them were watching him now, more determined than they had looked since the team had formed. Kushina was practically vibrating with the desire to prove herself, while Hizashi's expression had gone still and focused, his earlier irritation folded into something colder.
Reiji, on the other hand, felt only resignation settle over him.
I am going to be stuck with those missions for a while.
***
Hello, people!
We have finally begun the Team Nine shenanigans, and I'm honestly happy to finally reach this part of the story. Though, damn, already 40 chapters and only now getting here? I guess this really is a slow burn after all.
Also, some of you may have noticed already, but I'm going to start using English names for jutsu from now on. The main reason is simple: I'll be introducing quite a few non-canon techniques, and while random Japanese names may sound cooler, they probably won't help much if you have to remember what every invented jutsu means.
So, for clarity, here are Reiji's main jutsu name changes going forward:
Hyōton: Hakuen → Ice Release: White Haze
Hyōton: Hyōkekkai → Ice Release: Ice Dome
Hyōton: Utsuro → Ice Release: Hollow Shell
Hyōton: Hōshō → Ice Release: Freezing Palm
Hyōton: Hyōsoku → Ice Release: Freezing Breath
Hyōton: Tōmin → Ice Release: Cold Body
Anyway, I hope you still enjoyed the chapter. Feel free to share your thoughts—I'm curious to hear what you think.
Thanks for reading ! And if you'd like to read ahead or support the story, I do have a p@aTreOn (TheSoulfrost) go see my profile or summary ;)
Take care !