Eventually, Rin made her way toward the dōjō without any trouble.
She found herself standing before a neglected building. The sight brought a smile to her face. Despite its dilapidated appearance, there was something she admired about whoever took the time to build it.
With a casual push, she opened the door and stepped inside.
"Ah! I have been waiting!" an exuberant voice immediately said. Rin took in the sight of a boy with a bowl cut, bushy eyebrows, and a bright green jumpsuit. "You have accepted my challenge! Good! You may attack me from any direction!"
She couldn't help but feel stunned at first before letting out a small chuckle. Rock Lee had a certain vigour reminiscent of Might Guy—a fellow Genin of hers in the past that she knew quite well.
Memories of her late sensei, Minato, then flashed in her mind, juxtaposed against the figure of Lee, who stood there, ready for combat.
"Are you by any chance Might Guy's son?" she asked, stepping further.
Lee's stance broke at the mention of his sensei. "I am not Guy-sensei's son, but I do honour him with… Wait. How do you know Guy-sensei?"
Rin smiled with her heart warming upon seeing that Might Guy had moved forward in his journey as a shinobi, now serving as a Jōnin. She had always known this from Arthur, but she wasn't aware that Guy had a model student.
"You act just like him," she commented in admiration.
Lee's face lit up with a bright smile as he said, "Thank you! I love Guy-sensei, for he is the best sensei in all of the Leaf Village!" Just as quickly as the pride had shown itself, he snapped back to focus, remembering that this was a challenge. "Because you know my sensei, I will go all out in this match!"
Without further warning, he charged at her with exhilaration. Rin had been taken slightly off guard, still waking from her reminiscence.
As he sped toward her, a kick aimed her way, she managed to step back just in time, and the force of his attack missed her by a hair. Quickly recovering, he unleashed a flurry of jabs, which Rin, now alert to the battle, deflected with ease. Each punch was thrown violently, but she felt herself still somewhat lost in her memories, caught in the past of those familiar faces.
"Try this!" Lee yelled, going for a dropkick.
As she pushed herself from her daze, she focused her chakra and snapped back into the present. Then she pushed Lee back with both hands just before the kick could land.
He stumbled slightly and was genuinely surprised by her unexpected strength. Truly, Rin was formidable.
"I'm sorry," she quickly apologized, having used too much chakra in that attack. "I didn't mean to catch you off guard. I just… I wasn't ready."
Lee, now attentive and recovering from her sudden push, nodded appreciatively. "No need to apologize! I was merely warming up. Let us start again!"
Before they could reset, the door to the dōjō swung open, and a familiar group entered. William, Alice, Naruto, and Sakura all walked in, chattering, which pricked Rin's curiosity even further.
"I told you we were late," William remarked, waving a hand over his face. "Alice's always right when it comes to things like this."
Sakura huffed in irritation. "Not everyone is a good sensor like her!"
"It was inevitable," Alice said, trying to stay humble. "I actually didn't expect anyone to be here."
Rock Lee, whose energy had only heightened upon the entrance of his friends, now beamed with enthusiasm. "You all came to participate? This is so great! Thank you for being here!" Then, as if suddenly understanding something, he paused. "Wait! I am still in the middle of a match with…" His words trailed off as he turned to Rin, hesitating because he hadn't even asked for her name.
Rin was equally caught off guard; in her daze of admiration for the newly arrived guests, she had forgotten to come up with an identity to share. Even more, she was also awestruck by Naruto's uncanny resemblance to Minato.
Before the scene could throw her more off balance, a name popped into her head.
"Rose," she blurted out with red cheeks due to the lie.
"Rose!" Lee repeated, clapping his hands together. "Yes! Rose! You are indeed a worthy opponent, and I cannot wait to go all out!"
Alice was incapable of detecting the lie due to Rin's Chakra Disguise technique. Instead, Alice gestured apologetically and said, "We're sorry for interrupting your match, you two, but we'll be sure to wait for our turn."
"Oh, no," Rin quickly insisted, shaking her head. "The match just started! It would be fair to create a system so we can all fight!"
Naruto considered that for a moment before pumping his fist to say, "Hey, that sounds like a great idea! I'm so ready to get in on this!"
"Yeah," Sakura agreed. "We can just make this like a small tournament between just us."
Arthur, observing the growing scene, noted this interaction. It was clear that William and Alice didn't recognize Rin; they likely had no idea who she was or why she had entered their midst. To them, she was just another kunoichi who appeared out of the blue since Lee had advertised his dōjō everywhere.
As for Naruto, the main character seemed to be acting just like he did after Sasuke departed. Or rather, there was this strange level of power that could be seen in the boy.
'Could the dismissal of Nanfushi have indirectly led to this?' Arthur wondered.
Back at the dōjō, Naruto looked practically ready to be the first fighter. "Let's figure out the order! I wanna get started as soon as possible!"
Sakura shook her head. "Alright, Naruto. Just don't get too ahead of yourself."
While the boy seemed to have grown, he was still the same Naruto everyone remembered. Only a little more on his Shippuden personality—mature and excellent at fighting.
The group formed a loose circle around the fighting space as William pulled out a small notepad and began jotting down names.
"Okay, okay! Here's what we'll do: everyone who wants to fight writes down their names, and we'll figure out the order! Lee, you should definitely be the first fighter since you're the one who started this."
With the others excitedly chatting about their upcoming matches, Rin was filled with an indescribable emotion. And although she had initially come to the dōjō to test herself against Lee, the connectivity and friendship that filled the air reassured her that maybe she was not an outsider.
Being here, surrounded by skilled shinobi of the next generation, felt monumental. It was like a pronounced sense of normalcy, and she wanted to immerse herself in it, even if only temporarily.
"We should set some rules so we don't blow this place up!" she announced.
"Absolutely!" Lee beamed.
"Yeah," Alice commented. "That's a great idea, Rose."
Sakura, arms crossed, smirked at Rin and said, "The fact you were holding your own against Lee tells me that you two really would blow this place up."
Rin couldn't help but smile and laugh at Sakura's response. The whole room engaged in laughter, causing her heart to slightly buzz.
"You might want to watch out for me!" she joked, feeling lighter than she had in weeks.
Naruto and William saw how her personality meshed so well with the group. They had only met for less than ten minutes, and already it was as if she was already friends with everyone.
As the group settled, creating a temporary tournament-style setup, William began to organize the participants while Alice stood nearby, quietly observing Rin. There was something about her demeanour that intrigued Alice, though she couldn't quite place it.
Rin herself had fully accepted Naruto as Minato's one and only son. If only she could have a little more time in the village to interact with him. There's so much that she wants to share due to having foreknowledge of the impending war that might still take place.
Then there was the fact that Kakashi, her former friend and teammate, was also Naruto's sensei. A situation like this felt strange to her, being almost too good to be true. Yet she didn't let this awkwardness get to her head.
"Alright!" William triumphantly announced, "We've got our order set. The first match is Rock Lee versus… Rose!"
Rin pushed aside any nerve-bending emotions, remembering that she was still on a mission. "Umm, guys." They all looked at her. "I actually only have time for one match, if that's okay."
They all accepted, respecting her decision.
As Lee and her prepared for the match, Arthur watched with an acute sense of understanding. The bonds being formed right in front of him mapped out a potential for new connections. That was assuming the revived girl played her role right.
Rin exhaled slowly, mentally steeling herself before stepping into the center.
"Is everyone ready?" Sakura asked, being the referee.
"I am always ready!" Lee answered, placing one hand forward and another behind his back.
"Read," Rin affirmed.
The instant the match began, Lee charged at her. He switched stances multiple times in an instant. To almost everyone's surprise, including her own, Rin found herself matching his agility and speed.
Every punch and kick Lee aimed at her was met with a counter, and soon they were locked in a dance of dodges, blocks, and strikes. She had trained hard, but she couldn't deny that Lee's attacks were formidable for a Genin.
It was exhilarating, pushing her to the edge of her comfort zone.
"Hey, cuz?" Naruto said, looking at William. "Don't you think Bushy Brow should take off his weights?"
"Ugh… cuz," William said, scratching his temple, "he did before they started."
"Wait, what!"
The match escalated quickly with each exchange breaching the limits of friendly sparring until one punishing punch connected. Lee crashed through the wall of the dōjō as debris settled around him like confetti.
The room became silent before it erupted into excited chatter.
"That was crazy!" Sakura exclaimed.
"Someone in the village actually beat Lee in taijutsu?!" William blurted out.
Many of them, including Alice, had been in disbelief. Lee, usually the paragon of physical prowess, had been bested by this newcomer, a character whom no one had either heard, seen, or read about.
After they helped Lee up, the congratulations began pouring in.
Rin felt an unease settle in her gut. Sakura's, Naruto's, and William's questions flooded her ears.
"What's your rank? When did you graduate from the academy? What team are you in? Who's your Jōnin instructor?"
Each one was a reminder of the lies she would have to create, choking her sense of belonging.
Alice, noticing Rin's growing discomfort, stepped in smoothly to diffuse the situation. "Hey, everyone, let's not crowd Rose with questions right now. She's a bit pessimistic and not much of a people person, if you couldn't tell."
Leave it to Alice to save the day.
Sakura's eyes softened with understanding. "I'm sorry, I didn't see that; we just wanted to know more about you after that incredible fight!"
Naruto chimed in. "Yeah, sorry too! I get too carried away sometimes."
Rin graciously accepted their apologies, but her heart felt both gratitude and sadness. She smiled in appreciation. Then her expression slowly faltered, and an unexpected tear slipped from her eyes. Everyone was shocked just as much as she was. She quickly wiped it away and shook her head, softly saying, "I—I don't know where that came from."
Her attempts to mask the vulnerability seemed believable, yet that wasn't enough to fool the more attentive ninjas.
Alice stepped closer with concern. "Are you sure you're okay, Rose?"
"I'm fine! I promise!"
Her forced smile didn't quite match. So Sakura approached her with a warm and gentle voice, saying, "If you're feeling hurt, you can always talk to us about anything. We're friends now."
Hearing Sakura's words caused Rin's heart to swell. "I really value what you all have offered me… As long as you promise to stay friends, I'll be happy too."