Just A Kid

Chapter 20

Araile groaned and sat up slowly, blinking away her blurry vision.

"Wow, she looks so different," a voice exclaimed beside her.

"Wha-what happened?" she said groggily.

"Hey, Araile! You're finally awake!" Meiyo cheered as she plopped down beside her.

'Finally? What does she mean by that?' Araile thought.

"Huh?" she said as she rubbed her eye.

Seishin chuckled and handed the confused girl a mirror.

"See for yourself," he said, and she looked into the mirror.

Araile gasped as she look at her reflection. Her hair had turned from white and black to a light blue colour. Bangs framed the sides of her face, and her eyes stayed the same, except that they had turned a darker golden colour. Araile turn to Kazoku and blinked, confused.

Kazoku gave a small laugh and said "it's to protect the real you, where we are going. Believe me, you'll be thankful".

Araile's confusion grew even more, causing the girl to groan. She flopped down on her mat and began to doze as some of the sun's rays seeped through the window.

"You also need a new name," Seishin said as he sat down.

'A new name? What's wrong with my old name?' she thought as she sat up and looked at the man.

"It's for your protection," he said.

Everyone was quiet for a couple of minutes, until Shinrai finally spoke up.

"How about Azami?" he said quietly.

She gazed over at her friend and smiled a little.

"Yeah, Azami," she said.

Seishin smiled and said "then it's settled. Your new name is Azami".

Araile, now 'Azami', smiled slightly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A couple of days after her little 'transformation', Seishin had called everyone to him.

"What does he want to tell us?" Azami asked Meiyo.

"Maybe...maybe he will give us new weapons," she answered hopefully.

Azami nodded and look at her katana, which was starting to get a bit dull. They all needed some new weapons.

"We will be going to a place called 'Konoha' to compete in a test that they have called the Chuunin Exams," Seishin said as he took out a box.

For an odd reason, the name 'Konoha' seemed familiar to Azami, but she couldn't understand why. She squirmed slightly as Seishin opened the box, and gasped slightly when Seishin took out a couple of masks.

"I will let you pick out the mask you like the best," Seishin said as Kazoku handed him some food.

"What are these for, Seishin?" Shinrai asked as he gingerly took out a mask.

Meiyo put on a mask and made an animalistic howling noise, making Azami giggle. She lightly traced her finger along the edges of her mask. Everyone except for Kazoku and Seishin had picked out a mask.

"This is so cool!" Meiyo exclaimed as she put hers on again.

Azami smiled and put hers on as well, surprised that it fit well.

"Everyone, follow me," Seishin called as he went outside towards the forest.

They followed him, getting more and more curious by the second. Finally, Seishin stopped in front of a shimmering, transparent blue wall. Everyone could see a village on the other side.

"Seishin, what are we doing?" Azami asked as Seishin stood right in front of the wall.

Seishin looked back at her and smiled.

"Just hold your breath, close your eyes, and step forward," he said as he walked through the wall.

Everyone, besides Taiyo and Kazoku, had the same look of shock, fear, and confusion on their faces.

"Uhh...Azami...you go first," Meiyo said nervously as she and Shinrai both pushed Azami towards the wall.

She gulped nervously and took a deep breath, closed her eyes and walked through the wall. It felt like she was trying to walk through water: cold and sluggish. Finally, she opened her eyes and saw that she was standing in front of a gate.

After a couple of minutes, everyone stood in front of the gate.

"Everyone ready?" Kazoku asked.

Everyone nodded and began walking into the village.

"Seishin, what's the name of this village again?" Meiyo asked as she walked beside Azami.

"Konoha," Seishin answered as they walked towards a large building.

Azami cocked her head to one side as once again that name sounded familiar. After a couple minutes of walking, they finally entered the tall building. People were standing in rows and listening to someone who was in the middle talking. A row of adults stood behind that person.

"Ah, just in time. The team from the Land of Iron, I presume?" the person in the middle indicated to the group.

Seishin nodded and Azami shifted slightly when she noticed one specific team.

Before she went off in a daze Meiyo nudged her in the ribs, making Azami yelp quietly.

"Do you think there is anyone who is cute?" she whispered.

"I don't know. Probably not," she whispered back.

Both Azami and Meiyo then erupted into a fit of giggles. Seishin cleared his throat, making her and Meiyo immediately stop giggling, muttering apologies. After the person in the middle (Seishin told Azami that it was the Hokage) finished talking, everyone went up some stairs and stood on a balcony, a railing attached to it. She sat down and leaned against the wall, her eyes darting left and right from beneath her mask.

She suddenly jumped in surprise as a large board appeared in front of everyone. They watched as the board scrambled everyone's names on it. 

"Look beside you," she heard Shinrai whisper from beside her.

Azami peeked beside her, and a low growl arose from the back of her throat. The man from before was leaning over the railing, a bored expression on his face. Finally, two names popped up on the board. She blinked as she read the names; the first name catching her eye.

'Sasuke Uchiha? Why does that name sound so familiar?' she thought to herself as she wrapped her arms around her legs, resting her chin on top of her knees.

Soon, two people came out onto the ring. Azami watched intently as the battle began. Her ears twitched throughout the battle, suddenly aware that someone was watching her. She looked around and saw that the man that claimed to be her 'brother' was staring at her intently. Her eyes narrowed and a low snarl erupted from her throat. Before long, the Uchiha boy won the battle. Azami blinked when a second person appeared behind Sasuke, then both of them disappeared.