The assignments ended. The Jōnin instructors arrived one by one and led their disciples away. The classroom gradually emptied until only the three members of Team 7 remained.
Time ticked by. They waited from early morning until the sun was high in the sky; from anticipation to starvation.
"What's the deal?! Why isn't that Jōnin teacher here yet?" Naruto was the first to lose his patience, frustratedly clawing at his yellow hair. "Aaargh! I'm starving to death!"
Sasuke remained silent against the wall, but his brow furrowed slightly under his closed eyelids. Clearly, he was very dissatisfied with this yet-to-be-seen teacher.
Yao remained calm. Expecting Kakashi, the "King of Tardiness," to arrive early? That would only happen if the sun rose from the west!
It wasn't until noon, when the sun began to tilt westward, that Kakashi finally strolled in. He had silver, spiky hair, a black mask covering half his face, and that signature "dead-fish" eye.
"Yo, everyone. Morning!" Kakashi greeted them with a tone that lacked any sincerity.
"Morning?! Are you kidding me? It's already noon!" Naruto exploded instantly. "You're way too late! We've been waiting for hours!"
"Ma, ma..." Kakashi scratched his head, his visible right eye curving into a crescent shape. "Sorry, sorry. I got lost on the path of life."
Yao: "..." Naruto: "￣□￣｜｜"
"No more nonsense!" Kakashi ignored the students' resentment and clapped his hands. "Anyway, follow me!"
A short while later, he brought the three of them to the school rooftop. The midday sun was a bit piercing, and a light breeze blew, offering a view of most of the Leaf Village.
"For our first meeting, let's start with self-introductions!" Kakashi leaned against the railing and said lazily. "Tell me your likes, dislikes, dreams for the future, hobbies, things like that... Let's start with the blonde guy."
Naruto adjusted his headband, full of energy and speaking loudly: "My name is Naruto Uzumaki! I like BBQ! I hate the ten minutes I have to wait for the meat to cook! My dream for the future is to become Hokage! I'll make everyone in the village acknowledge my existence!"
Kakashi gave a non-committal hum and turned his gaze to Sasuke.
"Sasuke Uchiha!" Sasuke looked cold. "I don't particularly like anything, and there's nothing I want to talk about regarding what I like. As for my dream..." A flash of hatred crossed Sasuke's eyes. "It is to kill that certain man!"
Kakashi's visible right eye flickered slightly; he didn't seem surprised by Sasuke's answer. Finally, Kakashi's gaze landed on Yao.
Yao had a gentle smile on his face as he spoke in a relaxed tone: "My name is Yao Uchiha."
"I like delicious food, especially Ichiraku Ramen and the Akimichi family's BBQ. As for dislikes..." Yao paused, his gaze meaningfully fixed on Kakashi. "I dislike people who are frequently late and don't keep their word."
"And people who like to use lame excuses even though they are clearly late!"
"..."
The skin under Kakashi's mask twitched slightly, a flash of subtle embarrassment crossing his face. He cleared his throat and changed the subject: "Ahem, and your dream?"
The smile on Yao's face remained unchanged, perhaps even brightening a bit: "My dream is to marry eight or ten beautiful wives in the future, spread the family seeds, and rebuild the Uchiha clan!"
There was absolute silence.
Naruto's mouth hung wide open. It took a long while before he could mutter: "Ten... ten wives? Yao... you're amazing!"
"Idiot!" Sasuke turned his head away in disgust, refusing to acknowledge that this guy was his twin brother.
Kakashi placed a hand on his forehead, feeling his blood pressure rise slightly. This kid... he looked sunny and cheerful, but who knew his dream was so... so "ambitious"?
Rebuild the Uchiha clan? Is that how the Uchiha clan is rebuilt? But then again, there were only two—no, three—members of the Uchiha clan left now. To rebuild the Uchiha, it seemed he really did need to marry more and have more kids, huh?
Rebuilding the Uchiha? Of course, that was just for show. Yao's true dream was to become the most powerful existence in the ninja world! To stand above all, surpassing the legendary Sage of Six Paths and even those Otsutsuki from beyond the stars!
Yao knew very well that Konoha was dangerous, and the ninja world was even more so! Pain's assault on Konoha, the Fourth Great Ninja War, Six Paths Obito, Six Paths Madara, Otsutsuki Kaguya... To survive, he had to possess enough strength.
Kakashi looked at Yao, then at the hatred-filled Sasuke and the loud Jinchuriki. He suddenly felt that the Third Hokage had handed him a massive headache.
After the introductions, Kakashi led the three of them off the roof to a training ground on the edge of the village. The training ground was quite open, with a few battered wooden posts. Kakashi pulled two bells tied with strings from his ninja tool pouch, jingled them on his fingertips, and said:
"Our lesson for this afternoon is a bell-stealing exercise!"
"Get these two bells from me before noon. Those who don't get a bell will have no lunch."
"Only two bells? Then doesn't that mean one of us is guaranteed to go hungry?" Naruto immediately yelled.
"Exactly!" Kakashi said nonchalantly. "Which means at least one person will be disqualified, fail the mission, and then... be sent back to the Academy."
"What?!" Naruto and Sasuke's expressions changed simultaneously. Sent back to the Academy? After finally graduating, wouldn't they be laughed at if they went back?
"The rules are simple!" Kakashi tied the bells to his waist and said lazily, "Come at me with the intent to kill! Otherwise... you might lose your life."
With that, Kakashi pulled out a copy of Icha Icha Paradise, leisurely flipped it open, and began reading with great interest.
"Watch me!" Naruto created several Shadow Clones and charged forward shouting. "Naruto Uzumaki Barrage!"
Kakashi didn't even lift his eyelids; he simply tilted his body, raised a leg, waved a hand, and blocked.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Naruto's clones and his original self were sent flying back even faster, crashing miserably onto the ground.
"How is this possible?" Naruto lay on the ground in disbelief. Kakashi-sensei was too strong—way stronger than that guy Mizuki!
Sasuke's eyes sharpened. He instantly flung several shuriken at tricky angles to block Kakashi's retreat. Simultaneously, he moved quickly, looking for an opening to attack.
Kakashi continued reading his "little yellow book." His head and body moved with almost precognitive precision, making tiny adjustments so that the shuriken all grazed past him.
"Nice shuriken throwing, but your intent was too obvious!" Before his voice finished, Kakashi's silhouette suddenly blurred: "Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu!"
Poof!
Naruto, who had just scrambled up, didn't have time to react before he felt the ground beneath him vanish. He was pulled underground, leaving only his head exposed.
"Second one..." Kakashi's voice sounded behind Sasuke like a phantom.
Sasuke's pupils shrank. He didn't even have time to turn around and instinctively rolled forward.
"Too slow!" Kakashi's hand-sword lightly chopped the back of his neck. Sasuke felt his vision go dark and collapsed limply.
In an instant, two were dealt with! After finishing this, Kakashi turned his gaze to Yao.
"Now it's just you left!" Kakashi's tone was lazy.