legacy | hatake kakashi

[ two ] bonding.

TWO WEEKS had passed since their team had graduated the academy. The team had been stuck doing D-rank missions around the village, with Misuo-sensei saying it was to get them all used ot each other and improve their communication. Kiyoko wasn't sure how pulling weeds would help.

"Teme, that's not a weed!" she could already hear Natsumi begin to tear into Kazuki, and they weren't even five minutes into the mission. Kiyoko could understand her frustration, but knew she wasn't any different from the poor boy as she stared down at the mixture of plants and weeds. Despite her clan being so deeply rooted in nature, Kiyoko hadn't quite grasped it fully. Her mother assured her that it just takes some time to learn things and that she would commit it to memory in time.

"We didn't cover this at the academy, so don't get all superior on me damn it!" Kazuki rebutted, shaking his plant-filled fist at the girl. He had been right, their curriculum was mainly about their chakra systems, taijutsu, survival, and the war. Natsumi had been more agitated than usual and Kiyoko guessed she felt like she was wasting her time in the village instead of going out and making a difference.

Kiyoko blew a hair out of her face as she looked to Natsumi, "would you be able to show us which ones are plants so we don't pull them out?" Asking Natsumi for help while she was already agitated was a risk but it was one that Kiyoko needed to take if they were to continue this mission quickly.

Natsumi's eye twitched as she slowly turned to look at Kiyoko, "why should I show you anything?" That wasn't the response Kiyoko wanted. Kiyoko started to sweat under Natsumi's intense gaze and averted her eyes and poked in the dirt, making the decision to just start pulling.

"Would make this go faster if we all knew what to pull and what not to pull?" she said it like a question, feeling unsure of herself as she played with a worm in the soil. Kazuki let out a supportive 'yeah!' behind Natsumi.

Natsumi saw the girls point and let out a long groan, reaching out and grabbing Kazuki by the collar and yanking him down with her into a crouched position. Kiyoko wasn't sure if she was going to take that as a good sign or not, and waited with baited breath as her eyes now watched her teammate unsurely.

"Fine, but I'm only going to say it once," Natsumi relented with a grumble, ignoring how the two idiots on her team let out a cheer and high fived. She felt her chest tighten at their interaction, but let it pass with a sigh, her mouth twitching upwards as she began to explain the basics of gardening.

Despite Natsumi's annoyed exterior, the girl had explained patiently and concisely which helped Kiyoko in finally grasping it all, her mother's teachings finally making sense in her head.

Kiyoko smiled as the pieces finally fell into place, "woah, Natusmi-senpai, you're a really good teacher!" she complimented, the words making Natsumi blush a shade of red. The added "senpai" only added to the girls redness.

"Yeah, we're gonna get this done in no time thanks to you, Natsumi-chan!" Kazuki added, giving the girl a muddy thumbs up. This time, he actually had the weeds in his hand and left the actual plants untouched.

Natsumi turned her head and crossed her arms, "as long as you two don't mess it up again."

Kiyoko smiled as she picked up the pace, wanting to finish as soon as possible. Kazuki seemed to burn in excitement, pulling the weeds with a newfound sense of purpose. Natsumi sweat-dropped at his behaviour, shaking her head with a small smile and getting back to work.

"Let's get a snack when we're done!" the boy spoke up again, his mouth watering at the thought of a sweet treat after a hard days work. Kiyoko agreed with him, licking her lips at the thought of dango and knew Kazuki would be keen.