Child of the Moon

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Tsukiko met with her team the next day, to which she was immediately bombarded with Aki claiming that absolutely no fighting had broken out between Leaf genin and Sand genin and that she really didn't need to worry about stuff because they did exactly as she said.

Obviously not.

But whatever.

"Right, so I sorta recommended you guys for the Chunin Exams," Tsukiko said, shrugging. "Whether or not you guys decide to do it, is up to you, but there it is."

"Wait, you actually think we've got this?" Aki questioned.

"Your teamwork and ninja skills are superior to those of the other genin, and that's even before I started training you," Tsukiko said. "Why do you think I had you guys split up and work with other teams instead of just get another jonin to cover me?"

"I see," Aiyanna said. "By having us work with other ninja, we learn to adapt to the situation."

"Precisely," Tsukiko answered.

"Really? I thought she was just lazy, ya know?" Aki shrugged.

"Right, well if you wanna take the exams, fill out this form and bring it to Room 301 at the Academy," Tsukiko said, handing each of them a form. "One of you will need to assist Nanami if she decides to do it, but otherwise I think... wait, also it needs to be in at 3 pm five days from now, or it's too late."

"Pish, this is a no brainer," Aki grinned.

"I have to agree with Aki," Nanami said cheerily. "If the three of us work together, this will be simple."

"Hey, being more advanced than the other genin in your own village is all well and good," Tsukiko said. "But there are genin from other villages. Speaking of, I take it you guys bumped into the Sand siblings yesterday?"

"The who now?" Aki demanded.

"They were siblings?" Aiyanna frowned. "I mean... I sorta see a resemblance now, but they all looked really different? Wait, are we talking about that Gaara of the Desert and his buddies?"

"That's the one," Tsukiko said cheerily. "I guess Gaara just takes less after his dad than the other two."

"Wait, you know that creepy guy?" Aki questioned.

"That's a little rude, don't you think?" Tsukiko questioned. "He's a sweety. I met him a few years back on one of my first missions out of the Hidden Leaf. Reminded me of Naruto."

"I don't see the connection," Aiyanna said, agreeing with Aki. "I mean, he was kinda cool, but also super intimidating, and Naruto is... well, he's a nice guy but his cool factor needs work."

"Tsukiko-sensei means that beneath that, there is something similar to Naruto," Nanami said. "I could sense it too. A longing to be noticed, to be liked. Loneliness."

Tsukiko smiled slightly to Nanami.

"Anyway, that's the situation," Tsukiko concluded. "Keep an eye out for other genin, but try to keep the peace where you can. I just know Naruto is going to do something ridiculous."

"Wait, where are you going?" Aki demanded.

"I'm taking a nap."

"Told you she was lazy," Aki sighed.

"In that case," Tsukiko said cheerily. "Maybe I haven't been working you hard enough."

"Aki apologise!" Aiyanna said frantically.

"Huh?"

"Aki, you have doomed us," Nanami sighed.

"Fifty laps around the village, each," Tsukiko smiled sweetly. "If anyone is left behind or lagging by the end of the day, I'll double it for tomorrow."

"Oh, crud..." Aki said.

"AKI!" Nanami and Aiyanna cried as they set off running.

"I'M SORRY!"