Backslide-Blackkat

Chapter 9

Sakura perches on the railing of the bridge, the first to arrive. She's nervous, can't stop twisting her fingers in the hem of her dress even as the thrill of passing Kakashi-sensei's test and actually becoming a genin makes her feel bubbly and about twenty pounds too light. She's always been smart, has stayed the top kunoichi in her year since almost the very beginning, even coming from a civilian family and being year-mates with the heirs to the biggest clans, but it's only just now really sinking in. She's a genin, an actual shinobi instead of an Academy hopeful, and the next few years are going to change everything.

As far as teams go, maybe she didn't land on the best one—judging by past generations that's probably the Ino-Shika-Cho team for sheer solid dependability and all-around effectiveness—but it could be a lot worse. Sasuke's a genius, and Naruto at least has those insane amounts of shadow clones going for him. And Hatake Kakashi is supposed to be one of the best jounin in the village, even if he's never passed a team before.

Then, of course, is the fact that Hatake Kakashi has never passed a team before, but they passed. They managed it, as weird and mismatched a trio as they are. That's got to count for something, certainly.

The sound of voices draws her out of her thoughts, and she looks up, hoping—but not expecting—that it will be Sasuke. Half a moment later she realizes the problem with that, because Sasuke doesn't exactly talk to people, and deflates just as the speakers round the bend of the road. Then she takes a second look at them and blinks in surprise.

The very first thing to catch her attention is red. Deep, brilliant red hair, like the garnets her mother likes to wear on special occasions, darker than rubies but no less vivid. At first she thinks the approaching adult is a woman, but that frame is too broad to be feminine, built on different lines. It's a man with long hair, wearing a shinobi uniform, a jounin vest, and a Konoha hitai-ate in the same style as hers.

And next to him, clinging to his hand and chattering away, is a familiar blonde.

The jounin doesn't seem to mind, though, because he's smiling gently, and as they approach she can see that his blue eyes are warm. He's not even ignoring Naruto—he's responding and paying attention. Not even Iruka-sensei, who treats Naruto like a little brother, catches every single word the boy says.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto cries, finally noticing her, and he detaches himself from the man to bound over to her. "Sakura-chan, come meet Kurama-nii! He's a jounin and he used to be a bounty hunter and he's really strong!"

Of course strength would be the first thing Naruto focused on. Still, Sakura knows enough to identify the marks on the jounin's arms as seals, and he's carrying a katana slung across his back with an ease that says it's a familiar weight. A little nervously, she tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and smiles up at the stranger. "Hello, I'm Haruno Sakura. I hope Naruto wasn't bothering you."

The man's eyes crinkle as he turns that warm smile on her. "Not at all, Sakura-chan. I'm Uzumaki Kurama. It's nice to finally meet you; Naruto told me quite a bit about you."

Sakura blinks, trying to remember if she's ever heard of or met anyone else with the name Uzumaki, but she hasn't. In fact, up until now, she was dead certain that Naruto was an orphan. But between the way Naruto is clinging to the man, the honorific Naruto used, and the name—

"Kurama-nii is my cousin," Naruto adds, his grin wide enough to split his face. "But he didn't know about me and I didn't know about him, so he never came to get me before. But we're living together now! He's got an apartment in the shinobi area with a balcony and there are seals everywhere and Kurama-nii says he's going to teach me how to make them too!"