Naruto: Raizen

"Iruka Sensei!! Why does an outstanding Shinobi like me... have to be on the same team as these two pricks!! over here!!" Naruto yells as he gets out of his seat pointing at both Raizen and Sasuke.

"Pricks...?" Raizen mumbles as he looks at naruto, who furrows his eyesbrows at him.

"Raizen's grades were the best out of all twenty-nine graduates, Sasuke's were the second best... and you're dead last... Do you understand we have to do this to balance the teams... Right?" Iruka narrows his eyes at him.

"Ugh!!" Naruto groans.

Raizen smirks still looking at Naruto.

"Well don't hold me back, dead last." 

"Hey, what you call me!!"

"I said dead last, thats what you are." He shrugs.

Naruto glares at Raizen about to make a move before Sakura hits him once again telling him to stop.

"Ok this afternoon we'll introduce your jounin sensei's until then take a break." Iruka smiles.

Raizen gets out his seat as all the rest do, he walks out of class and goes down the hall towards the cafeteria to get some bread.

unwrapping the plastic that was on it, taking a big bite of his food he is filled with joy.

The bread is nice and smooth, with a hint of sweetness to it.

as he's walking down the halls he notices Naruto with a rope in his hands crouched down under a window where Sasuke is.

Raizen tilts his head and decides to walk over.

"What are you doing?" Raizen asks making both Sasuke and Naruto look over at him.

Naruto's mouth opens wide in shock, as Sasuke looks down in surprise to see Naruto behind him.

"Ah! You were trying to capture him. My bad." Raizen laughs.

"You idiot!!" Naruto yells as he charges at Raizen, who takes another bite out of his bread.

Naruto goes in for a punch but Raizen's whole body moves in a blur and ends up behind Naruto.

Raizen trips him, making him fall straight to the ground.

"I see why youre dead last." Raizen laughs.

Naruto and Sasuke's eyes widen, they didn't see any of it coming.

Raizen takes his time finishing his bread, letting the taste linger as he watches Naruto groan on the ground. The blonde rolls over, glaring up at him, clearly irritated.

"You—you…!" Naruto pushes himself up, pointing an accusing finger at Raizen. "You think you're all that just 'cause you're fast?"

Raizen smirks. "No, I think I'm all that 'cause I'm better."

Naruto growls, fists clenching again, but before he can launch another reckless attack, the announcement echoes through the hallway.

"All students, return to the classroom immediately."

The three hear the announcement through the school telling the entire class to come back to the class.

__________________________________

Raizen leans back in his chair, resting his arms behind his head as he waits. The classroom is nearly empty now, with only him, Naruto, and Sasuke remaining. The other teams have already been taken by their Jounin senseis, but theirs is nowhere to be seen yet.

Naruto, growing impatient, suddenly grins mischievously. He gets up, grabs an eraser, and balances it on top of the slightly open door.

Raizen raises an eyebrow. "What exactly are you doing?"

Naruto snickers. "Setting a trap for our sensei. All of the other teams have gone with their sensei's, and Iruka sensei also left... So this is what he gets for being late!"

Sasuke scoffs, crossing his arms. "A Jounin wouldn't fall for something so stupid."

Raizen smirks, glancing between the two. "Guess we'll see, huh?"

They wait. The tension in the room builds, Naruto barely holding in his giggles. Sasuke looks completely unamused, but Raizen? He's just curious.

Then, the door slides open.

Thump!

The eraser falls, smacking their Jounin sensei squarely on the head. A puff of white chalk dust explodes into the air, covering the man's silver hair and mask.

Naruto bursts into laughter, slapping his knee. "Pffft—Ahahaha! He actually fell for it!"

Sasuke shakes his head in disappointment, letting out a quiet tch.

Raizen, however, stares at the man standing in the doorway… and immediately cracks up.

Kakashi Hatake stands there, powder-covered, with a book in one hand and his visible eye staring blankly at them.

Raizen points at him. "Hahaha! you actually got hit!"

Kakashi sighs, slowly closing his book. "My first impression of you guys?" He pauses, brushing the dust off his hair. "I don't like you."

Naruto instantly stops laughing, his face dropping in horror.

Raizen, still chuckling, shrugs. "Well, that makes two of us, then."

Kakashi ignores him and gestures lazily for them to follow. "Alright, come with me. We're heading outside."

—

A few minutes later, they arrive at a quiet, spacious training ground. The open field is surrounded by tall trees, the breeze rustling through the leaves.

Kakashi turns to face them, hands in his pockets. "Before we begin, let's start with introductions."

Naruto tilts his head. "Introductions?"

Kakashi nods. "Yeah. Your name, things you like, things you dislike, and your goals for the future."

Naruto grins. "Oh, that's easy! I'll go first!" He clears his throat dramatically. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki! I love eating ramen—especially the kind at Ichiraku! I hate waiting for it to cook, though. My dream is to become the Hokage so everyone in the village will acknowledge me! Hobbies... pranks, i guess."

Raizen watches Naruto for a moment, his smirk fading slightly. So that's what drives him, huh…?

Kakashi nods. "Alright. Next?"

Sasuke shifts, his expression darkening. "My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I don't particularly like anything, and there are a lot of things I dislike." His voice lowers. "As for my goal… it's not a dream, but a reality I will make happen. I will revive my clan, and kill a certain someone."

Silence follows his words, the air around them feeling heavier.

Kakashi eyes Sasuke but doesn't comment. "Okay. And finally…" He turns to Raizen.

Raizen smirks, crossing his arms. "I'm Raizen Hatake. I like strong opponents, I really love desserts, and pushing my limits. I dislike being underestimated." His golden eyes glint as he leans slightly forward. "As for my goal… I want to become the strongest shinobi alive."

Kakashi lets his words linger for a moment before nodding. "Interesting."

Raizen tilts his head. "What about you, sensei? You didn't introduce yourself."

Kakashi waves a hand. "Me? Oh, well… My name is Kakashi Hatake. I have no interest in telling you what I like or dislike."

Raizen rolls his eyes. Classic.

Kakashi continues, "As for my dreams… I don't feel like sharing those either."

Naruto pouts. "What kinda introduction is that?!"

"W-wait, you guys are related?!" Naruto exclaims as he hears Kakashi's last name and Raizens, looking between the two extremely fast.

"Yea, he's my dad." Raizen smirks proudly.

Kakashi ignores him. "Anyway, that's enough talking. Tomorrow morning, we'll start our duties as shinobi."

"Yeah! What kind of duties?!!" Naruto yells as he puts his hand to his forehead in a salute.

"First we are going to do something with just the four of us." Kakashi says.

"What is it?" Raizen tilts his head.

"Survival Training."

"Survival Training?" Naruto asks.

"Why, we've had enough training at the academy." Raizen says.

"This isn't normal training... this time i'm your opponent."

"What do you mean?" Sasuke finally talks.

"He he he he he..." Kakashi couldn't contain his laugh.

Raizen furrows his brows in confusion.

"What's so funny, dad?"

"Uhm... well... it's just that... when I tell you this, you guys are totally going to freak out..."

"Freak out?" Naruto asks

Kakashi nods. "That's right. Just because you graduated doesn't mean you're actually genin yet." His visible eye curves into an amused look. "Out of all the students, only a few will actually pass. The rest…" He shrugs. "Well, they'll be sent back to the Academy."

Naruto's jaw drops. "W-WHAT?!"

"Hahaha!!! I told you, you'd freak out.."

"What? No way!! But we worked so hard... Then what was the point of graduating!!" Naruto yells.

"Oh... that? That was just to select those who have a chance to become Genin."

"Uhhh... What?!!"

Kakashi claps his hands together. "That's all for today. Meet me at Training Ground Three tomorrow morning. Oh, and…" He pauses, eyeing them. "Don't eat breakfast, or you'll regret it."

Raizen watches as Kakashi disappears in a swirl of leaves, a grin forming on his face.

"Where'd he just go?!" Naruto yells.

Raizen rolls his eyes as he leaves the two who were sitting down, and makes his way to his house, as he knew that's probably where his dad left to.

As the day comes to an end, Raizen steps into his home, the door closing softly behind them. Raizen kicks off his sandals and stretches, his mind still lingering on everything that happened today. He glances at his dad, who casually walks in, flipping open that same little book he always carries.

Raizen narrows his eyes. "You know… you could've at least mentioned that whole 'only a few will pass' thing before today."

Kakashi turns a page without looking up. "Oh?"

Raizen folds his arms. "Don't 'oh' me. You knew about this test, and you didn't say anything."

Kakashi finally looks at him, his visible eye calm as ever. "And?"

Raizen exhales through his nose, already knowing where this is going. "And it would've been nice to know beforehand."

Kakashi shuts his book with one hand. "Raizen, just because you're my son doesn't mean you'll get special privileges."

Raizen furrows his brows. "I never said I wanted special treatment."

Kakashi steps past him and leans against the counter, arms crossed. "Good. Because you're not getting any." His tone is even, but there's something firm underneath it. "You want to be the strongest shinobi, don't you?"

Raizen doesn't hesitate. "Yeah."

Kakashi nods. "Then you need to work just as hard as everyone else. Harder, even. You won't know anything before anybody else. There won't be any shortcuts for you. Especially not from me."

Raizen stays quiet for a moment, processing his words. He knows his dad isn't saying this to be cruel—this is just who Kakashi is. He's never coddled Raizen, never given him an easy way out. Everything Raizen has, he's earned.

After a long pause, Raizen smirks. "Tch. Fine. I wasn't looking for an easy way out anyway."

Kakashi's eye crinkles slightly, like he's smiling beneath his mask. "Good."

Raizen turns to head to his room but stops at the doorway. He glances back at Kakashi. "…Still, you totally fell for that eraser trap today."

Kakashi sighs, reopening his book. "Go to sleep, Raizen."

Raizen laughs as he heads off to bed, already looking forward to whatever tomorrow will bring.