If Promises Could Be Kept

Nine

Okay, so chapter 8 was pretty long for my usual, so I hoped you enjoyed that. Hopefully they're all that long from here on out. The political maneuverings will be a staple of the story, but I promise there will be plenty of action. The story just needed to be set up first.

By the way, the clothing described will be slightly more modern, as I feel some of the ninja attire from the show would be a hindrance in a fight, something ANBU and high Jounin couldn't afford. Especially the women's clothing. A skirt? No armor? Bare midriff? That is not okay while fighting for your life and definitely an invitation to enemy ninja to get ideas you'd rather they not. Catch my drift?

Anyway, Naruto was first released as an anime in 2002, which is fine for the clothing I'm including. It won't look like American spec ops or anything like that, just, for example, cargo pants, which would be much more helpful than just Jounin pants because of all the pockets. Oh, and boots. Hiking boots. Sandals are cool, but I'd hate to travel to Iwa and get a crap ton of rocks in my sandals.

Ok, clothing rant over. Enjoy this extra long chapter!

"One man with 100 loyal friends is a lot stronger than one man with 1,000 dead enemies, but only the former knows it, and only the latter cares." –Gregory Wallace Campbell

"Okay class, take your seats. We're going over chakra control exercises today and I don't need the lot of you ending up unconscious, understand?" the Chunin instructor, Tsuru-sensei, said exasperatedly to her class of over-enthusiastic Academy students. Originally, Tsuru Mihara hadn't planned on teaching a bunch of snot-nosed brats who didn't know the blunt end of the kunai from the sharp one (she'd like to live, thank you), but eventually the Hokage had effectively persuaded her, claiming she was the least likely to get impatient and snap a brat's neck.

There wasn't much she could say to that.

The teaching in and of itself wasn't what made Tsuru reluctant, however. No, not something as innocent as a room full of brats could deter a soon-to-be Jounin—she would soon be taking the test after all—and she was plenty qualified for the position. The innocent, wide-eyed children that sat in front of her didn't give her the slightest pause in the least.

Thinking about what they would become, however, did.

She wasn't naïve, not after her extensive experience in the espionage department, and that included the illusion that these children that sat in front of her would not eventually become some of the deadliest killers on the planet. Pupils eventually surpass their masters and with war looming and the Academy age lowered, she knew quite well how easily the class in front of her would either mature much too quickly and become a killer for a living, or die because they weren't strong enough to do it. She'd seen it happen to enough of her own previous classmates to know.

Tsuru shook those quickly darkening thoughts from her mind when she realized that she still had a class to teach. Clearing her throat, she gave the students in the room a pointed look. "We will be performing the tree climbing exercise, so everyone file outside. If any of you idiots decide to act up during the demonstration, you're going to be the one to demonstrate, capiche? Now hustle! I won't be waiting all day."

Chuckling to himself, Kakashi watched as the students hauled ass to get outside so as not to incur their sensei's wrath. While he hadn't paid much attention in the Academy, he remembered the instructor because of her no-nonsense, I-don't-care-if-you're-children-I'll-kick-your-ass attitude that reminded him so much of the future Anko. Tsuru-sensei didn't dress as risqué as the snake mistress, but she was about to be promoted to Jounin and would hand anyone's ass to them if they pissed her off. In fact, he clearly remembered this day because of the colossal argument Obito and he had gotten into when Obito couldn't get up the tree even three steps.