Top of the Tree

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Top of the Tree

X

When I returned home with a forehead protector tied around my head, surprise was my family's first reaction, then joy (which I found utterly disgusting). Surprised that I'd resigned myself to wearing the metal plate signaling my status, my parents didn't utter their opinion, in case of setting me off. Asuma was the first to regain his composure and caught me in a tight hug, muttering how he'd be a badass ninja like his big sister. Hiro and Mom flashed me warm smiles, and Hiruzen, for what seemed like the first time, wore a mask of approval.

We ate sushi for dinner, content in listening Asuma babble about something a friend of his had said, and Hiro describing an eccentric old lady he and his team had to escort, often times expressing his feelings through winces—apparently the old hag didn't think it was necessary to have kids looking after her, so she'd often wander off, getting into heaps of trouble. Hiruzen didn't have much to add, seeing as the majority of his work consisted either of paperwork or classified information, and Mom didn't want anyone to lose their appetite by relating the gruesome wounds she had to patch up that afternoon. I mostly kept to myself, every now and then adding a comment.

By the time dinner ended, Hiruzen called me into his office. I was nervous, of course, not sure why he wanted to talk to me in private; Hiro noticed this, and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder and sent me a reassuring smile. Mom left for the kitchen to wash the dishes, and Asuma left the dinner table oblivious to it all, determined to fit in some training before bedtime.

He sat me down on a chair before him and asked one question.

"What are your dreams for the future?"

I sat silently in surprise.

Thinking he'd brought me into his office for some lecture on how I was supposed to act, as the daughter of the Hokage, and how I was supposed to be the best.

I thought about a thousand answers in the five seconds of silence in-between his question and my answer.

"My dreams for the future…"

I paused, dramatically rolling my eyes to the ceiling in thought.

"is to reach the age of thirty,"

He looked at me in puzzlement.

"Why thirty?"

Because that's when it all starts.

I shrugged, "seems like a good age".

Hiruzen shook his head in exasperation. He'd never understand me—no one would.

Sleep didn't come as easily as I had hoped. Though I tried to crush whatever feeling of excitement I had regarding tomorrow's team assignments, I was unsuccessful, spending the time I had of sleep unproductively creating countless scenarios of the event in my head.

I woke up early with a start thinking that I'd overslept. It took a couple of minutes to regain my composure and realize that no, I hadn't overslept; instead I'd woken up three hours too soon. Dragging my body off my bed to get ready for the day took another couple of minutes, where laziness had settled into my muscles.

Slipping a pair of navy-blue pants, a black tank top, and over it a dark olive-green coat, I proceeded to wrap bandages around my ankles, so that the hem of my pants wouldn't be flapping with every move I made. I didn't bother to brush my curly hair, hastily pulling it into a tight ponytail—it's not like I was going to a beauty pageant or anything.

Stepping into the bathroom, I brushed my teeth after rinsing my face from its natural oils. Getting into my room, I checked the time (0730 hours), and left to grab some breakfast in the kitchen.