Chapter Text
Sakura’s blood ran ice cold at the sound of a deep voice. Her neck and shoulder muscles were tense as she shifted to the source of the voice. She was greeted with the image of a tall silver-haired knight, his hand still on the open door as his one visible eye shifted lazily from the two boys tangled on the floor and the pink-haired knight. Sakura all but fainted when her eyes traveled down from the covered face of the tall knight to his chest armor, the left hand top side of the metal engraved with an intricate set of white vines and one solid leaf raised on the metal’s surface. The tell-tale mark of a first rank knight of Konoha; this man was their captain.
Kakashi stood relaxed at the door, looking at the frozen pink-haired girl as her eyes were the size of saucer plates. Finally the pink-haired knight was spurred into action and with sheer adrenaline coursing through her veins she shouted, “N-no! Of course not Captain!” Sakura saluted sharply at the Captain, back bent at a 45 degree angle in a deep knight’s bow. Any lower Kakashi would have seen the crown of the poor girl’s head.
Sasuke shoved Naruto off of him, wiping furiously at his mouth. Naruto scrambled off his squad mate, limbs awkwardly trying to right himself from his position on the floor. Kakashi turned to the boys, both blushing furiously and attempting to look presentable in front of their captain. Kakashi once again spoke,
“You know, the tales of courtly love are very popular nowadays but I had not expected my squad to be so enamored by the genre as to act it out in a meeting chamber.”
Naruto swung both arms in front of himself rapidly back and forth exclaiming, “Absolutely not sir! It was an accident! I swear!” Sasuke maintained a calm demeanor next to the blonde as he stood rigidly straight, though his ears betrayed his true feelings, burning pink at his circumstance. Kakashi’s lazy expression remained unmoved as he slowly shifted his gaze back to Sakura.
“Is that so? Why were you just standing there watching them then? You are a peculiar girl.” Sakura’s face shifted purple to pink as a mixture of embarrassment and offense overcame her. She shouted again at the Captain, unable to control the level of her voice,
“I . . . I was not staring! I would never do such a thing, I have no interest in such affairs! I am a capable knight, not a deviant!”
Kakashi’s face maintained neutrality but nodded his head towards Sakura, who was still steaming slightly. “Relax. I was only joking. I don’t know how those two managed such a position but I actually don’t particularly care. I just ask moving forward you guys keep whatever it is you two do private in the future.” Shame filled the young squad members as they lamented secretly the horrible first impression they had made on their captain. Sakura internally was groaning as she wanted nothing more than to bury her face in her hands and by some miracle fuse with her palms so her face could never be seen by Kakashi again.
Kakashi pressed the issue slightly further, seeming intent on thoroughly humiliating his new squad. “I of course know what it is to be young. I don’t blame you two but I prefer to keep such machinations to fiction.” At this statement, Kakashi took a tiny book from his cloak. It looked completely normal, perhaps too normal as nothing adorned the covers of the book. The leather binding the pages was plain, unmarked and with no embellishments. The squad still was startled by its appearance as Sakura remarked,
“You own a personal book? That must be precious to you.” Books existed in Konoha of course, one of the academy’s proudest accomplishments was its robust library which housed at least hundreds of tomes at any given time. However, those books were painstakingly collected as book binding was a long and expensive process. The books were never allowed to leave the library and contained important information, chosen by Konoha’s council specifically for the preservation of Konoha’s future. For Kakashi to own a personal, binded book was no small fortune. Said knight looked a bit sheepish at the tiny book and simply stated,
“Yes it is quite precious to me, perhaps not unlike a nice gold chain or fancy adornment. I particularly like this series.”
“It is a series of books? What is it about?” Naruto pressed the older knight, astonishment coloring his voice. Kakashi’s eyebrows raised as he answered,
“Something that young knights as yourself should not be concerned with.” The silver-haired man pocketed the book back into his cloak. Naruto huffed and suddenly exclaimed,
“What do you even mean? I have read from the Second’s grimoire! I think I can handle whatever is scribbled in that little book, Captain!” The room turned silent as Sasuke and Sakura now turned to look at the blonde, eyebrows on both teens high on their brows. Naruto looked about the room and shrugged aggressively as he continued,
“Why the stunned looks? I thought it was common knowledge at this point.” Sakura was the one to answer this time,
“No. You pulling a prank on the Third was commonly known. The details of the prank were unknown, no one knew what exactly you did, Naruto. The rumors were obtuse at best.” Sasuke crossed his arms, looking mildly impressed at the blonde but also irate. Sakura again spoke,
“I had no idea the legend was true. So there is actually a grimoire? That would explain why you could suddenly weave magic.” The pink-haired girl became lost in her musing, chin held in her hand. Kakashi however let out a great sigh, shaking his head in clear disappointment.
“Naruto, a word of advice. When knights complete a mission we do not boast about said details of the mission. Revealing too much information about what we accomplish on missions can put not only the Leaf at risk but yourself. The less citizens know the better, you never know who is listening in or what their intentions with such sensitive information could be.”
Naruto clasped two hands to his mouth and Sasuke scoffed next to him. The raven-haired knight shook his head, long hair moving side to side with him. “That is one of the most simple rules about being a knight you fool.” Naruto turned angrily at the raven-haired beauty, fists clenched at his waist.
“What did you say, bastard?” Naruto growled out at Sasuke. Sasuke smirked as he glared at the blonde.
“I am pointing out how you are still a child, Naruto. Having to boast every accomplishment like a youngling looking for approval from an elder. Are you expecting a token for your shadow clone as well? A biscuit or perhaps a small sweet?” Sasuke mocked, still challenging the blonde, a hand now at his hip as he sneered at Naruto. Sakura was exasperated at the scene unfolding but also shocked. This was the most Sasuke had spoken since their brief introduction. Before things escalated to a brawl between the boys, Kakashi moved in between the young knights and started to lazily wave at the air.
“Alright, alright. That is quite enough you two. Play nice.” The boys still glared at each other but relaxed their aggressive stances. Kakashi then leaned against the desk, arms crossing as he gestured around him.
“Now then, how about we get to know each other better? I can see you three have become closer in my brief absence but I have yet to formally introduce myself.” Kakashi purposely emphasised “closer” as a sarcastic jab at the expense of the young knights. All three winced at the memory of the earlier escapade being recalled. Kakashi cleared his throat and put up his palms in a friendly manner before speaking,
“Nice to meet you all. My name is Kakashi Hatake, I am a first-ranked knight and was chosen to be your captain. I hope we can all get along moving forward. Now my question for you all is, who is someone you admire? As in, who inspired you to become a knight more specifically.”
Sakura and Naruto started to relax as the conversation finally took a turn into normalcy, Sasuke being the only one who remained rigid in posture. Naruto began,
“I’ll start! My name is Naruto Uzumaki and the person who inspired me to be a knight was Master Iruka! I want to be a gallant, smart and kind knight like him someday!” Kakashi nodded and then gestured to Sakura.
“And you, young Miss Sakura?”
Sakura jumped slightly, realizing it was her turn and saluted curtly. “Right! As you stated, I am Sakura Haruno! My inspiration is Lady Tsunade, I wish in the future to be a great support knight like her!” Kakashi hummed in acknowledgement, stroking his covered chin.
“Lady Tsunade? I have heard she is quite popular with female knights of late.” Sakura’s eyes shimmered as she recalled details of Lady Tsunade.
“Yes! She is definitely a most noble knight! Tales of her accomplishments during the Second War are those of legend! She is gallant, strong and her knowledge of healing magic is unmatched! Not to mention tales of her beauty are sung throughout the kingdom.”
Kakashi’s eye squinted as he smirked, adding to Sakura’s praise, “Is that why you keep your hair long as well, young miss?” Sakura was pulled from her revelry as she blushed furiously. She could not find the courage to voice her agreement and in her sheepishness just simply nodded in acknowledgement. Kakashi again hummed and nodded.
“Lady Tsunade is a fine choice, Sakura. Please don’t feel ashamed of your choice, after all there are no wrong answers to these inquiries.” Sakura nodded, a bit more resolute now and smiling softly. Kakashi then turned finally to the silent, cold raven-haired beauty.
“And you, Sasuke?” Kakashi asked. Sasuke’s noble brow slightly lowered, his expression colored suddenly with what appeared as pain. The young knight started slowly,
“My name is Sasuke Uchiha from the noble house of Uchiha. As for who inspires me-” Sasuke started but suddenly stopped mid-sentence. His brows were now quite deeply furrowed, ruining the integrity of his noble visage and his eyes were swimming in unspoken pain. Naruto was staring intently at the face of the black-haired boy, saying nothing but recognizing the pain in the lad’s eyes. It was a similar pain he felt when citizens would ask him about his father. Naruto put his hands behind his head, leaning back onto the desk stating loudly,
“It’s obvious the Uchiha House just has way too many marvelous knights to just choose from one. We’ll be here forever if we wait for him to choose, let’s just move on and say Sasuke’s house is just too magnificent.” Sasuke was startled by Naruto’s sudden declaration, about to retort with a counter when his obsidian eyes met Naruto’s cerulean ones. The blonde’s blue eyes were not filled with the usual mischievousness or anger when trying to get a rise out of someone, instead remaining steady and filled with a hint of tenderness. Sasuke’s protests stopped in his throat as he realized the blonde was trying to help change the subject. He was protecting Sasuke from having to recall something clearly painful. Sasuke just hummed and nodded, returning to crossing his arms and not looking directly at anyone in the party to maintain his guarded image of aloofness.
Kakashi noticed the subtle shift between the two but said nothing further. Sakura then asked, “What about you captain? Whom do you admire?”
Kakashi raised one eyebrow at the question before a hand came to his chin, the older knight contemplating for a moment. He then answered, “I also have many inspirations but I suppose if I had to choose a big one this moment it would have to be my teacher, The Fourth Hokage.”
It was Naruto’s turn for his blood to freeze. Naruto’s whole body went rigid as his mind started to race. All the blonde could think to ask was, “He had students?” Naruto asked this of Kakashi, still not daring to look the man in the eyes, body facing forward. Kakashi looked down at the shorter blonde boy, answering flatly,
“Yes, Minato did. I am the only survivor of my original squad though. This was before your father was Hokage.” Why did no one think to tell Naruto? The blonde’s mind raced further as a million questions rushed forward in his mind but the anger kept him from voicing them. Naruto swallowed as he concluded in his mind that it would matter not if his father was a captain or not. It would not change what the man did. Naruto ignored the curiosity clawing at his mind as he forced his body to relax in front of Kakashi.
Kakashi’s keen black eye did not fail to notice this shift as well, in his mind he was also surprised no one informed the blonde once the boy set on becoming a knight. Kakashi was surprised to find on the young knight’s data sheet that he had stated he wished to become Hokage. From what the silver-haired knight heard, the blonde hated his father and to his knowledge held no deep respect for the Third Hokage either. Kakashi knew that people could change though. Clearly Iruka had a deep effect on the boy through his years of caring for the boy. Kakashi stopped pondering about the tanned, handsome academy teacher lest his thoughts get too lost to his imagination.
Kakashi stood from his lazy position on the desk, cracking his neck muscle as he declared, “Alright, enough small talk. It is time for your assessment.”
Sakura looked confused as repeated, “Assessment?”
Naruto added, “What assessment? We already passed the knighthood test.” Kakashi wagged a finger at the two, shaking his head to emphasize his point.
“This is not a test from the academy. This is my assessment of your skills as my squad. I will determine whether you are fit to continue as knights.”
Sasuke squinted at the declaration and replied, “Continue as knights? What do you mean to continue?”
Kakashi turned, lazy black eye never changing as he simply stated to the young knights, “Simple. If you all fail this assessment, you will be disbanded. If you do not prove your worth I will have you all stripped of your titles.” The three young knights jumped out of their skins and Naruto was the first to shout,
“What?”
“Is that even possible? We just passed into our knighthood! Surely you can’t make a determination of our worth with one test?” Sakura rushed to add. Sasuke said nothing but his obsidian eyes were locked onto Kakashi, bearing angrily into the man. Kakashi was unaffected by the tension he created in the room, continuing as if he heard nothing from Naruto or Sakura,
“Meet me at the training grounds when the sun is lower in the sky. The test will only begin if you are all gathered there on time. Do not be late or everyone will be disqualified by default.” Kakashi finished speaking and simply turned to leave the room, the same lazy manner he entered. The three youths were too stunned to speak, Sakura being the first to say anything.
“Well,” Sakura swallowed hard, “I guess we have to head to the training ground. Let’s go together so no one is late or separated from each other.”
“That’s fine with me.” Naruto said, wiping his sweaty palms on his pants. “We should armor up before going, grab our weapons as well.” Sasuke was the first to get to the door as he headed to the armory before the two.
“Tch. Didn’t you just say to go together?” Naruto glared at the raven-haired boy’s retreating figure. Sakura sighed and stated,
“It’s fine, we'll catch up. Let’s get going Naruto.”
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The three knights arrived at the training ground, now geared up with respective weapons sheathed to their sides. They waited, each hoping that their captain would not keep them in the sun past the expected time like last time. The youths let out a sigh of relief as Kakashi elected to arrive right on time for the test. The youths prepared their hearts however as they knew this was a sign of how serious their captain was taking this task.
Kakashi stretched as he walked towards his young squad, finally stopping a foot away from the teens. He began, deep voice authoritative and steady,
“Good. Glad to see everyone is here. You all have at least passed the first test of cowardice so take heart in that.” Naruto’s mind briefly pondered on whether or not Kakashi actually encountered young knights that would not show in fear of the man and if he failed any remaining on the spot. He quickly refocused as Kakashi continued,
“Welcome to your first mission as Squad Seven. If you succeed here, I will continue to be your Captain as we work together on missions given to us from the organization. If you fail, as I stated before, I will disband this squad.” The youths all nodded as they kept their eyes on the silver-haired knight. Kakashi reached into his cloak to pull out a glass globe, in the globe was a preserved green leaf. The globe was only palm-sized and rather light in weight, most likely crafted with the aid of magic to reduce the weight of the condensed sphere of glass. Kakashi showed the globe clearly to his young charges.
“Your mission is to take this globe from me. The globe must also maintain little damage by the end of the test as breaking it will also count as a failure. The knight who takes this globe from me will be announced the winner.” Naruto exclaimed, raising a hand in the air,
“Hold on Captain! You said “knight”. As in a singular person!”
“Correct, well noted Naruto. Yes, only one knight will be crowned the winner of this test. The other two will face their fate at the end of the test.” Kakashi answered. Sakura squinted at the vagueness of the last statement but kept her thoughts to herself.
“You all have until sundown to take this orb from me. Remember, failing is not an option.” Kakashi held the globe in his outstretched open palm as he simply stated, “Begin.”
The three young knights were startled by the sudden start of the test, each scrambling into an offensive stance around the taller captain. Naruto turned his back to the knight as he quickly weaved an already familiar spell, trying to hide the weave from his mentor. After he was done he launched himself at the man, dagger at the ready in front of him. Kakashi’s expression did not falter as with one hand he held Naruto back and with a sudden strong kick behind him he sent Naruto’s clone flying a foot behind him. Naruto was stunned as he screamed, “But how? You did not even see what I weaved!”
Kakashi’s one good black eye lazily regarded Naruto as he was still holding the struggling blonde back, globe still being held in his other hand. He then calmly answered, “You are way too predictable Naruto. While it is impressive you can summon a clone of yourself, it is the only spell you know how to do. I simply was expecting you to summon one. Also you have not learned to hide your aura. I could read it a mile away as you weaved.” Kakashi tossed the globe suddenly into the air, only a couple of inches above his chest as he used his now free hand to ball into a tight fist as with a quick, strong strike to Naruto’s stomach he sent the boy flying into a nearby tree trunk. The young blonde hit the trunk of the tree so hard that he momentarily lost concentration of his clone as the clone suddenly “poofed” out of existence behind Kakashi. Kakashi caught the orb as he came down from its place in the air, holding the same stance as before Naruto attacked.
Sakura gritted her teeth as she maintained her offensive stance. Kakashi looked towards the pink-haired girl, seemingly not noticing the other Sakura leaping behind him to strike with her shortsword. Kakashi turns towards the pink-haired knight who swung the sword wide from its high point in the sky downward strongly. Kakashi steps out of the pink-haired knight’s way and the sword crashes into the ground, the girl’s body bent over the sword from the effort of the swing. Kakashi takes advantage of the girl’s momentary poor positioning and makes a sharp open palm strike to the girl’s exposed back part of her neck. Instead of falling over however, the girl’s form shatters into a hundred iridescent shards.
Kakashi leaps backwards from the shards and opens his free palm, sending a sudden gust of wind at the remaining floating pieces. The pieces melt into nothingness as they are blown away from the man. Sakura curses under her breath, stance changing to one of defense as she crosses her shortsword in front of her, anticipating any sort of counter attack. Kakashi whistles lowly and returns to his neutral standing position, orb ever present in his other hand.
“Very creative Sakura. You weaved a blinding spell with your mirror image. If any of those shards would have gone into my eye, I would have surely been properly incapacitated.’ Kakashi commented, raised eyebrows being the only thing to reveal his astonishment.
“How could you tell there were two spells weaved together? You also did not see me weave, I did it while you were staring at Naruto.” Sakura answered, voice tense and curt behind her blade.
“You are correct, I did not see you weave anything but I could read the strange aura radiating from the image.” Kakashi answered calmly. Sakura was at a loss for words.
“Are first ranks just that much more advanced than us? I know they are skilled but how can he read auras so clearly? Does he have that much more experience or is there something he is not revealing?” Sakura thought bitterly. She was broken out of her thoughts as a sudden gust of wind rushed by her side.
Sasuke had joined the fray as he tried his hand at retrieving the globe. He rushed past his place at Sakura’s side and took a huge, sudden breath as he stopped short a few feet from Kakashi. After taking a huge inhale of air, Sasuke blew the air from his mouth. Instead of a gust of wind coming from the boy’s exhale a sudden streak of flame erupted from his mouth, streaming from the cupped palm Sasuke held steady in front of his mouth. Naruto awoke from his stupor to the sight of the raven-haired beauty, the boy who his peers thought of as delicate and effete, breathing fire as if he was the nine tails himself.
The flame took shape into a blazing ball of heat and embers, blinding in the dimming light of day. Sasuke released the ball at full speed towards Kakashi. Naruto shouts out, adrenaline rushing through his veins as he rushes to become upright from his sitting position,
“Sasuke no! The globe has to be intact!” Sasuke does the unthinkable, momentum not stopping as he leaps into the fireball as it is hurling towards Kakashi. Naruto and Sakura hold their breaths as they witness Sasuke’s form disappear into the raging ball of inferno.
“Sasuke!” Sakura can’t help but cry out hopelessly. The ball of fire collides with Kakashi’s tall form as the man seemingly had no time this time to react to Sasuke’s attack. Unknown to his teammates however, Sasuke was unmarked by the flames as they surrounded his form in the fire. As Kakashi was still engulfed by the impact and distracted, Sasuke made an attempt to grab the globe from the man’s hand. Sasuke made contact with the globe only for the globe to shatter, along with the man’s entire form. Sasuke let out a yell as the mirror image’s shards flew into his eyes. The flames started to fade rapidly as Sasuke fell prone to the ground, clutching his head as his palms rubbed at his now irritated eyes.
“Now that was indeed reckless of you Sasuke. I commend your efforts though.”
Sakura and Naruto turned sharply at the source of the voice, Kakashi sitting upright on a strong tree branch, safe in the canopy of the trees. In his hand sat the glass orb, somehow its mere existence mocking the young knights below. Naruto gritted his teeth as he pointed while exclaiming,
“You cheat! You stole Sakura’s idea to use against Sasuke!” Kakashi merely shrugged and responded,
“What is the old saying? All’s fair in love and war? In the battlefield there is only surviving so that you may serve another day.” Naruto cursed loudly but Sakura heeded no mind as she rushed to Sasuke’s side. Her eyes scanned his form expecting to see horrible burns but was surprised to find that the young dark-haired knight only was suffering from the sudden blindness. She let out of quick exhale of relief before turning to shout at Naruto,
“Never mind that Naruto! Come over here and help me carry Sasuke!” Naruto rushed to Sasuke’s other flank as he answered Sakura’s plea. Sasuke stopped squirming as he endured the pain in his eyes, wanting to help his teammates as much as possible. Sakura thanked Sasuke under her breath as she motioned for Naruto to pick up Sasuke’s legs. Sakura lifted Sasuke’s arms at the same time as they quickly carried the boy over to a secluded area, out of sight from Kakashi.
Kakashi lazily rose his free hand to his mouth, unmoving from his position on the branch as he called to his squad,
“I’ll remain here when you return. Take your time but remember, once the sun sets it will count as a failure!” When Kakashi finally saw the last of his retreating young charges' forms disappearing in the tree line, he relaxed and went to lay back against the trunk of the tree. He placed the globe in his cloak and replaced it with his book. He cracked the tome open to leisurely read, as if he had not a care in the world and was there to enjoy the agreeable Spring afternoon.
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Naruto and Sakura were breathing hard, hands on their knees as they finally placed Sasuke carefully on the ground beneath them. When Sakura finally caught her breath, she kneeled next to Sasuke, placing her hands above the boy’s eyes. Soft green light radiated from her hands as she worked to dispel Kakashi’s magic. Naruto leaned over her hands, watching on in stunned silence.
“Wow, you know healing magic? You really do mean to be the next Lady Tsunade!” Naruto exclaimed. Sakura blushed, balking at the blonde,
“I am no way close to Lady Tsunade. Besides this is not really healing magic, this is dispelling magic. Luckily since the blinding spell is something I know how to weave I can at least attempt to remove it. This is not my spell though as Kakashi casted it so it may be a bit tricker to get rid of.”
“But you can do it right?” Naruto urged, concern for Sasuke clear in his voice. The raven-haired beauty scoffed beneath Sakura addressing Naruto,
“Is that concern I detect, dragon bearer?”
Naruto’s ears grew hot as he quickly responded, “Concern for how foolish you are Uchiha. You could have burnt to ash in those flames! Not to mention destroyed to orb!” A sorry attempt to disguise his earlier apprehension.
Sasuke sighed and answered, “Uchihas are resistant to flames Naruto. It is one of the gifts handed down through my bloodline. My own flames will never harm me.”
Naruto was shocked and bemused as he parroted lamely, “Fire can’t hurt you?”
Though Sasuke’s eyes were being healed and covered by Sakura’s hand, Naruto could feel the glare from the back of Sakura’s hand as the raven-haired boy answered, “That is what I just said.”
Sakura, who was listening intently as she focused on her dispelling sighed and stated flatly, “That information would have been great to know before we began our fight.” Her voice hardened as she addressed the two boys,
“We cannot continue to go on fighting one on one with Kakashi. He has vastly more experience and power than any of us, he will continue to swat us away like flies. We are wasting precious daylight, I urge us to work together now. It is our only chance.”
Naruto scratched his head, puzzled. He asked, “Why would we work together though? You heard Kakashi, only one of us can really succeed. The other two will probably be expelled from the order.” Sakura simply shook her head before answering,
“No. He said the other two will “face their fate”. He never said he would fail the remaining knights. He is testing our cooperation with each other. Think about what the oath of knighthood is for a moment.”
Naruto recalled the oath slowly aloud, “Bravery above all, loyalty amongst fellow man and benevolence in the promise of glory.” Sakura nodded, gesturing her hands at Naruto, Sasuke’s eyes now successfully back to normal.
“Correct. Bravery, loyalty and benevolence. The test is a measurement of how we truly hold these values in our hearts. Co-operation and selflessness especially. Think about it, knights work together on missions and in war, but only one knight can ever be Hokage. As a Konoha knight you are expected to perform your duties even without the promise of assured glory. You work together to uplift your fellow man in battle, even if only one of you will ever be atop the other. It really is the most thankless job in the kingdom if you think about it.” Sakura explained her reasoning to her squad mates.
Naruto had not thought of it that way, always associating the position of knighthood in pursuit of Hokagedom as a wholly selfish act. Knights were glory hounds after fame and power. Naruto was wrong though as he now understood that not all knights were like that, in fact it seemed that you would most likely not make it far in the order if you were a selfish blowhard.
“Okay, I see your point Sakura. I’ll agree to help you, no matter what happens we have to get that orb. We’ll all fail if no one gets the orb by sundown.” Naruto nodded at Sakura, who smiled widely at his acceptance. Both Naruto and Sakura looked at Sasuke who was lifting finally off the ground, resting on his elbows as he opened his obsidian eyes regarding the two.
“Fine, but let's discuss our strengths first. We barely know anything about each other's skills.” Sasuke stated, coming up to sit straight as he looked at the two young knights. Sakura nodded and began to list off what she observed,
“So we now know about your flame magic and resistance, Sasuke. As for me, I have no special bloodline gifts but I am rather proficient at illusion magic. I am also adept at my shortblade.” Sasuke and Sakura now turned to Naruto expectadley. The blonde smiled a toothy fanged grin as he raised his thumb towards himself, stating proudly,
“I can make clones of myself.” Sakura maintained her blank stare as she waited for the blonde to continue. When he did not, Sakura said curtly,
“And?”
Naruto faltered, smile fading as he parroted, “And?” Sakura facepalmed as she dragged her hand down her face, continuing to question the blonde,
“What else Naruto? We know about your clone magic, what else can you do?”
Naruto blushed and stammered, “Oh, um- I am adept at hand to hand combat as well as some swordplay. I mostly favor daggers and I am pretty strong for my age. I could always lift sandbags more than the other boys in my class. Oh and I don’t know if this is helpful at all as I never really had to use it in battle but-” Naruto raised his hands. Slowly the flesh of his hands grew hard scales over where there was soft skin, nails sharpening and hardening into thicker talons. Sakura and Sasuke gasped as Naruto was transforming his hands into those of what appeared as a dragon’s talons.
Naruto looked sheepish as he held his now fully transformed hands in front of his face. “A neat party trick but I could never figure out how to use them effectively in battle. You can’t really grasp a sword or weave magic with these things.” Naruto shook his wrists limply as to emphasize the uselessness of his hands. Sasuke’s brows furrowed as he stared at the hands moving back and forth limply, as if hypnotized by the movement.
Naruto took notice of the stare and blushed while stopping and saying, “Stop staring so hard! I know they are outlandish okay! I never do this in front of others out of fear of freaking someone out.” Sasuke merely shook his head, closing his eyes, deep in thought. He finally responded,
“No, I was merely thinking of something. I am not sure how it would work.” Sakura turned to Sasuke and made a hand movement urging the boy to share his thoughts. Sasuke continued,
“You mentioned you are strong as well Naruto. With how you can manage to summon so many shadow clones at once I can also assume you have more stamina then most of us as well. I was just trying to think of ways to get your talons around a limb of Kakashi. The force of your grapple must be devastating, even for a first rank like him especially if he is caught off guard. Kakashi would be dealing with the power of a dragon bearer after all, surely no easy feat.”
Sakura again was listening to Sasuke intently, the gears in her head turning trying to formulate a plan. A light turned on in her mind as inspiration struck. Sakura snapped her fingers, her mouth falling open at the revelation. The boys broke away from staring at each other to turn to her. Sakura merely smiled as she stated,
“I have an idea.”
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Kakashi was pulled from his peaceful reading as he noticed the sky was darkening further into a semi-purplish hue. Sundown was fast approaching, he was losing his reading light. His squad was also running out of time.
Kakashi jumped down from the tree branch, landing gracefully on his feet despite his somewhat bulky armor. He stood, stretching his sore muscles. He was in that position for far too long, feeling the strain in his back. “I got too caught up in the story. Those last chapters were bordering on salacious!” Kakashi thought, chuckling lowly to himself. Thank gods no one had ever known what Kakashi read in that unmarked book, most citizens probably would demand the knight’s banishment from the order if they knew the obscene scenarios littering the pages of the plain little tome.
Kakashi was pulled from his improper thoughts by a raven-haired boy with fair skin walking towards the man, alone. Sasuke now stood, resolute and angry in front of the man. Kakashi retrieved the globe again from his cloak, holding it out, almost as if taunting the dark-haired boy. “I see the lone wolf has abandoned the pack.”
Sasuke scoffed, placing a hand to his hip as he stated sternly, “Those dimwits would only hold me back. An Uchiha has no use for such rabble as allies.” The boy unsheathed his shortsword, bending his knees as he readied to lunge at the man. “You said only one knight need retrieve the orb to win. The others are just dead weight!”
Sasuke makes flourishing movements with one hand as he conjures orange flames from his palm. He spreads the flame onto his sword, the flame catching the oil that was coating the steel. Flaming sword in hand, Sasuke launches himself at the older knight who is forced to unsheathe his sword in defense. The orb drops from his hand but floats back next to him, the leaf inside responding to Kakashi’s wishes. The flaming sword crashed into Kakashi’s as embers flew from the impact, dropping to the ground in burning little pools of oil. Kakashi grunted, for once having nothing smart to say as he was forced to defend himself from Sasuke’s barrage.
Sakura was hidden behind the nearby treeline as she weaved a spell, staring intently at the battle before her. Kakashi pushed Sasuke back as even though Sasuke was throwing his entire strength behind each blow, he was still considerably weaker than Kakashi. Kakashi moved to hold his blade horizontal to himself as he used his strength and Sasuke’s incoming momentum to throw the young boy off his feet. Sasuke gasped as he lost his footing and fell backwards on his rear. Kakashi did not have a moment to catch his breath as Sakura came barrelling from the treeline, shortsword clashing with Kakashi’s sword. Sakura then tried kicking her captain as he moved backwards to avoid the kick. Sakura spun with surprising agility as when her foot landed she adjusted her position to swing her sword quickly in an arc in front of her, the arc coming as a low blow to Kakashi’s midsection due to her positioning.
Kakashi again moved backwards to avoid the swing. Kakashi adjusted his grip and stance as he raised his sword parallel to his eye level, attempting to strike the girl from a higher ground to also knock her prone. As he shifted his weight, slamming one foot down in front of him, knee bent as he readied to launch himself he felt himself falling as his body was caught off balance. As he attempted to move his back foot into position to move, a red scaled hand had his ankle in a vice grip from the ground beneath him. With his ankle caught, Kakashi fell over to his side as the sudden change in force and direction threw his body off balance.
The rest of Naruto’s body appeared from a shimmering pool as the illusion of solid ground melted around him, his actual form revealed to be in a ditch. He quickly grabbed the other man’s ankle in his other talon, putting his full weight on the man’s legs. Before Kakashi had time to react to Naruto, most likely about to use some sort of spell to remove the boy, Sasuke rushed to the prone knight as well. He grabbed Kakashi’s hands and pinned them roughly to the ground, also applying heavy force to keep them there. Sakura moved to point her sword at Kakashi’s neck.
Kakashi was thoroughly trapped as he had to acknowledge a shocking fact. Kakashi was beaten.
“Grab the globe Sakura, before he can think of retaliating!” Naruto exclaimed. Without moving her sword, with her free hand Sakura quickly snatched the globe which was still floating in the air. The globe felt warm in her hand as she looked down at it, the green leaf pulsing with slight power in an effort to remain airborne. Kakashi grunted and managed to kick Naruto off his legs. Naruto was surprised at the man’s speed and strength as Kakashi’s knee painfully collided with his chest. Sasuke leapt off the man and jumped in front of Sakura in an effort to aid and protect her. Kakashi merely moved to stand, brushing dirt from his cloak. Naruto remained coughing harshly on the ground as he attempted to retake the wind knocked from his lungs.
“Alright, alright. Everyone stand down.” Kakashi said as he patted down his arms. He looked at the sky, the sun alight in an array of colors. The clouds were turning pink and purple as the sun finally met the horizon. Kakashi chuckled,
“You managed to do it. You have retrieved the orb, maybe not before sundown but I’ll accept at sundown as well.”
Sakura and Sasuke were still looking apprehensively at the taller man, not changing their defensive stances, Sakura still clutching the globe close to her chest. Naruto finally stopped coughing as he was the first to straighten himself and ask, “You’re serious? You are not lying?”
Kakashi lifted his gloved hand to his chest in a mocking gesture of offense, ‘Young master, I am a first ranked knight. My word is my bond.” Only at that statement did Sakura and Sasuke slightly relax, Sasuke making to sheathe his sword. Naruto squinted at the silver-haired knight, moving to crowd his space. Kakashi raised an eyebrow bemused and asked, looking down and directly into the scrunched face of the blond boy,
“What are you doing Naruto?”
“Making sure you don’t do anything funny.” Naruto stated, raising his talons and scratching lightly at the older knight’s chestpiece. Kakashi grabbed gently at the blonde’s hands and moved them off him.
“Hey, hey! Easy on the armor, this is expensive Naruto.” Sakura sighed as she finally released the held breath, noting that at Kakashi’s gentle movements and teasing words he no longer meant to battle. He was being true to his word, he meant his squad no more harm. Kakashi still held onto Naruto’s wrists, looking outlandish in the gloved man’s grasp.
“Congratulations champions. You are the winners of this bout.” Kakashi did not express any excitement at the revelation and even though he offered congratulations he made no effort to show any outward displays of adulation. He simply continued to hold onto Naruto’s wrists lazily, the boy now growing more uncomfortable by the passing minutes. Sasuke was the first to speak from the squadron.
“Sakura, give him the orb. Take the glory, you were the one who thought of the plan.”
Naruto nodded eagerly at the pink-haired knight, “Yeah! The plan would have not worked without your quick thinking Sakura!” Sakura blushed at the praise from the boys. Kakashi let out an exclamation of realization and said,
“So it was you who thought of all this. Impressive. You thought of glamouring the nearby ditch into even ground, correct? You and Sasuke then moved to direct me to the ditch where you had Naruto hide to grab my legs when I got too close.” Sakura sheepishly nodded but quickly added,
“Yes but grappling you with Naruto’s strength was initially Sasuke’s idea! I just expanded on the idea and offered my illusion magic as an aid.” Naruto nodded but pointed out,
“Yeah but let’s face it, Sakura. We would have never thought to work together if you did not encourage us to work together.” Sakura blushed harder and said nothing, gripping onto the orb harder. Kakashi finally let go of Naruto’s wrists (Now sure the youth would not mean to deface his chestplate again) and his lazy black eye moved to appraise the young, pink-haired knight.
“So you all are agreeing to let Sakura be the one to turn in the orb to me then?” Kakashi asked the group of young teens. Naruto and Sasuke nodded, Sakura merely standing there clutching the orb to her heart again. This time it was in effort to calm her racing heart, which was overflowing with appreciation at her squadmates at the moment. Sakura moved forward, suddenly standing resolute in front of her captain. While still holding onto the globe tightly she stating, maintaining stern eye contact with her superior,
“I will return this orb to you sir but I implore that you honor Naruto and Sasuke as well. Though I pass this test, I would have not done so without the help of my fellow knights.”
Kakashi simply stared at Sakura, holding her gaze for a moment. She continued her unwavering stare, not breaking her eye contact. Kakashi’s one good eye morphed into a tight crescent as even though the young knights could not tell, he smiled broadly at the young knights. He accepted the orb from Sakura, all the while saying,
“Excellent! Now you all will learn of your fates-”
The young knights took in a sharp breath, preparing themselves for whatever the captain had planned. The captain just leaned in, both hands behind his back now clasping onto the globe as he cheerily stated,
“You all pass.”
The young knights said nothing at first, no one moving. Naruto was the first to speak his mind, per usual for the impulsive knight.
“What?”
“I said, you all pass.” Kakashi repeated, weaving his hands around the floating orb which blinked out of existence in front of the young knights.
“I thought you said only one knight was going to pass?” Naruto repeated dumbly, face awash in confusion. His comrades were not far behind as Sakura shared his expression and though Sasuke’s face was an image of coolness, his furrowed brow once again betrayed his feelings.
“Yes, and I also said the two remaining knights were to experience a fate. What I failed to mention was that fate would be the same as the winning knight’s.” Kakashi replied. Naruto could not help but shout,
“What?”
Kakashi shrugged and said, “Sakura deduced correctly that this test is here to prove you all understand the oaths you take as knights. Those who are selfish, cowardly or disloyal have no place in The Leaf, the great organization of the Konoha knights. The Hokage is not a celebrity but a luminary; they are meant to lead The Leaf and uplift their fellow knights. Every leader in The Leaf is, no knight is guaranteed glory or riches from their conquests. You must be ready to sacrifice everything for each other and for your country. Many young knights romanticise the knighthood, but there are so many hardships that lie ahead with little promise of splendor.” Kakashi tapped his eyepatch to drive his point, the man was a true manifestation of knighthood. He was broad and powerful, yes, but he carried physical scars from his battles as well as those of the heart.
“Why do you think we even have the system of squads? Even a first rank like me is expected to lead third ranks so that you may flourish in your future. The higher you are in rank, the more responsibility you take. You all are the branches of the tree, we are the roots that hold the tree up so that it may grow strong, plentiful and prosperous.” Kakashi gestured between himself and the young knights as he finally finished his lecture.
“Anyway, I trust you all know that now. Or at least I hope you will come to understand it now under my tutelage.” Kakashi sighed, seeming to exhaust himself. He was not used to giving such grand speeches, or speaking for that long uninterrupted in general.
Sasuke broke the heavy silence as he asked, “So you do intend to be our Captain then? We are an actual squad?”
Kakashi nodded, clapping his hands together proudly exclaiming, “Correct! Welcome to The Leaf, Squadron Seven!”
The young knights looked at each other as they collectively broke into a cheer, Kakashi standing proudly among them. The young knights were christened under the setting sun, their baptism only the beginning in their ensuing epic.
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“Next!” A knight called out into a room, several people sitting on benches placed against the walls in the plain space. An old man in a straw hat shuffled through the door the knight held open. The odd attire denoting that the man was not of Konoha, a kingdom in a fertile forest. There would be no need for the straw hat the old man wore, as well as the simple tunic made of foreign fabrics. He shifted the box he carried on his back, grumbling under his breath as he entered the room.
A knight behind a desk covered in different parchments and scrolls addressed the old man. “How may the knights serve you today sir?”
The old man huffed and drank heavily from his leather pouch, as if the question made him suddenly parched. The knight patiently waited as the man took his heavy swig, the liquid smelling faintly of something fermented. With his lips shining, the old man answered sternly as he moved to wipe his mouth,
“I need an escort back to the Land of Waves.”