夢 - 2021 rewrite

みやこ

miyako

six years ago

first position. second position. third. fourth. again.

number seven you're late if you want to pass the week you need to be on time

again

head up don't look down arms straight feet apart

if you can throw rocks you can throw kunai hit the target in the middle

number seven good number fifteen pick those up

stand up straight what was that face what did you say to me

here are the people that did not pass this week's performance numbers five fifty-one seventeen and twenty-two step forward please

"Did you not hear me?" He leaned down to her height. "I said, get back on the mat. You're up against Nine. Your performance in your last fight was inadequate."

She nodded and stalked down the steps to her second opponent, locking eyes with the boy's green eyes and leaning back into her balanced stance.

"Fight begins...now." The instructor called, clipboard at the ready.

She pressed her lips together in a grim line and stayed put--knees bent head up arms ready--as Nine charged towards her with quick, yet hesitant, steps.

The boy let out a yell as he ran, his fist already pushed forward, and she dipped to the right as his arm veered off to her left. She grabbed his arm, reeled him in, and socked one in his chest. Nine let out a shaky breath and backed away, clenching his fists.

The instructor pulled out his watch and she charged forward, knowing if she wanted to pass this week, she had to end the fight quicker than her last one. Nine let out a shout as she approached quicker than he could back away, and she swung forward with her fight. Another cry ripped out as he blocked with his forearm, and he swung his own right towards her bruised abdomen. She grappled his arm, jerking it down, and, letting him etch another cry into the arena, his chin slammed hard against her knee. And he fell onto the dirty mat, caressing his bruised jaw.

The instructor looked down at her, holding his watch high for her to see, and nodded towards Nine's writhing body. "Finish it off this time, Seven."

And she nodded once more, knowing the consequences of leaving a fight unfinished. With a foot raised high, she knocked Nine out with a swift swing.

"Good. You're fast. If it weren't for your attitude, we would have given you a mask by now," he remarked as she made her way up the steps. "But you have promise." He turned to the other students, whose eyes were pinned on the unconscious Nine. "Everyone, you have one week until your test is over. After that, your month of training will be completed, and those of you that will have passed the test will be rewarded. So work hard. Get back to your rooms, now."

And the remaining students scurried off to their rooms, just as the morning sun was rising. The newcomers were to keep quiet during the day, only ever training at night. And while her roommates considered that the right opportunity to rest, she viewed it as another twelve hours to pinpoint a chance to escape. Only three weeks into her stay at this base, and she had a sense of the layout of the base and the time schedule of the guards.

But today she was crossing into new territory. The West wing of the base; where she actively avoided during her morning escapades due to its immense concentration of high-ranked operatives, all in view of the old man they obeyed. She plastered herself against walls, twisted around corners, ran between halls and walked on her daint heels, adding her three-weeks of training to her thirteen years of sneaking around the neighborhood's poor dumps (sneaking around angry old men, posh mid-age women, and keen-eyed street vendors with dirty fruit).

And, reaching the West Wing, she swallowed her hesitance. Three weeks ago she could have cowered before that sad, old man with the bandages, but the weeks and overwhelming training roughened her up to only focus on some easy escape.

"What brings you to my office? I did not request of you."

She drew closer and spotted the back of her instructor, sat in the office that was down the hall, only a few steps away.

"I apologize, Danzo-sama for imposing. But, I composed my list of this week's failed candidates, as you requested earlier."

Her anticipation grew. She had yet to hear her own number called in the last three weeks, but, with her scene during their training today, the red line was only seven paces away, in a dark office with a man hunched over his desk.

"Let me see," Danzo murmured, taking the clipboard. "Twelve, Thirty-Four, Fifty, Twenty-seven, Thirty-One, and...Seven?" She braved herself against the wall, holding herself tight.

"I recall, sir, that I initially gave a report on her improving status," the instructor stated. "And she continues to display the same progress. She learns quick, responds quick, and shows just as fast promise in her chakra skill."

"Then why her?"

And she willed herself to stay silent. "It is her attitude, sir. She shows no compliance compared to the other candidates. Though she is quick to learn, she questions far too often, disobeys orders, and--"

"That is expected of a child. She can grow out of a personality, and I insist on furthering your reports on her ongoing progress. If she continues to show promise, there may be some lineage in her background we are not aware of. Wasting her potential now can be fatal."

"I understand, sir--"

"The two of us will deliver the mission report." She backed down the hall, taking step after step behind her as the sudden voice neared closer. "You should go back to your dorm. You must recover all that you lost back there. Daito, come with me."

"Yes, ma'am," another responded as the three operates came stalking round the corner. One of them paused. "There's someone close. Small. A child."

She quickened her steps as the second said, "Must be one of the newcomers. Go back to your room."

And as she reached the end of the hall, she turned and ran, tracking her way back to the dorms before the operative behind her could cut her morning escape to an end. The steps not too far behind her echoed loud through the hall, masking the panicked pants escaping her, and in her frantic hurry she forgot to time her steps, tripping on a younger boy's sandals.

"Oh, uh," she stuttered, staring down at his mask. "Sorry, sir, I'll--"

"Hey. What are you two doing here? The sun's almost up," the man hightailing her called.

"I--"

"We're on our way to give a mission report," the young boy she'd fallen over said, brushing himself off.

"Well, run along now," the man responded, brushing past them. "And keep quiet."

"Next time, watch where you're going," the boy said once the door clicked closed. "What's your name?"

"Seven."

"You're new."

"Yeah. Who're you?"

And he paused, staring at her, for a moment where she thought he would try a smile. But he didn't. "I'm Sai."