Kazuki was sitting in the classroom, studying magnetism and cursing himself for not graduating early.
As the class ended, Hiroshi said, "Kazuki, stay here. Everyone else can leave."
Everyone started to leave while Kazuki wondered why he was being held back.
When everyone left, Hiroshi called him and said, "Kazuki, you are a very talented student, and I am proud to say that I taught you. I wanted to ask if you have a reason not to graduate early."
Kazuki said, "Sensei, my reason for not graduating early is because I wanted to learn as many skills as possible before graduating so that I am ready for anything."
Hiroshi said, "While you are right about learning more skills, you are still missing out on real-life fighting experience. While the other students are out there gathering real experience, you are here studying books. If I give you an option to graduate now, would you consider it?"
Kazuki was surprised by this. He said, "But Sensei, how can I graduate in the middle of a year? How will my team be decided?"
Hiroshi said, "You will be a replacement in an already functional genin team. You see, one of their members met with an unfortunate incident."
Kazuki thought, 'That's the whole reason I wasn't graduating early. It's what happens if you overestimate your skills. I feel sad for them. I've already learned most of the stuff I wanted. Now all I have to do in the remaining year is improve the skills I already have, and I really want to learn some C-rank ninjutsu. But I should see who my teammates are going to be. If they aren't from any ninja clans, then I will decline this offer.'
He said, "Sensei, can you tell me who my teammates will be and when this team graduated?"
Hiroshi replied, "The team just graduated last year. Here's the information about them."
Hiroshi handed him a scroll.
Kazuki unrolled the scroll a bit and saw the name Akari Sarutobi.
He thought, 'A Sarutobi, huh? And she's an elite jonin. That's great. I can learn a lot from her. If I remember correctly, Yuki's jonin sensei was a Sarutobi too. I don't know if they were an elite jonin, though.'
He unrolled the scroll further, and what he saw left him stunned. He started sweating and breathing heavily.
His thoughts raced, 'It can't be. W-Why? I knew it, but I still didn't warn her. Did Danzo do it? I'll kill that bastard if it was him. But she might be alive. Yeah, he didn't say that she died, only that she met with an accident. Or maybe Keiko's the one Hiroshi is talking about.'
Kazuki quickly unrolled the scroll and saw Yuki's name on it.
He exhaled deeply.
Hiroshi asked with a worried expression, "Did something happen, Kazuki? You don't look very well. Are you sick? Oh! Yuki was your close friend in the academy. Sorry, I forgot. I should have told you that it wasn't her who got injured."
Kazuki asked after calming down a bit, "What happened to her teammate? Is she so injured that they need a replacement? And how did this happen?"
Hiroshi replied, "Yeah, from what I've heard, her injuries were very bad. She's currently in the hospital. Doctors and medical ninjas are saying that she's in a coma and might not wake up for years. I don't know much, but people are saying that they fought with an S-rank ninja."
Kazuki thought, 'S-rank ninja, huh? I don't know how they were able to escape. Who could it be? The first names that come to mind are Kakuzu, Sasori, and Hidan. I should ask Yuki. She won't be in good shape after all this.'
Kazuki said, "Yes, Sensei, I would like to be part of this team."
Hiroshi replied, "Alright then. The Hokage himself suggested you, so you don't have to take any exam. Just come to the academy tomorrow at the same time you always do, and you will be introduced to your new sensei. Excited?"
Kazuki said, "Yeah, I am looking forward to that."
He thought, 'Damn, I've brought so much attention to myself that even Hiruzen knows me now. Well, Danzo can't do anything as long as the Uchiha clan is there, and now that I have the protection of the Senju clan, there is no chance for Danzo. But I shouldn't underestimate that old hag. He's definitely planning something.'
Kazuki left the academy and headed to the Senju compound.
He reached the main house and knocked on the door. Aika was the one to open it.
She said, "Kazuki, how have you been? Please come inside."
Kazuki said as he walked inside, "I've been okay, Aunty. What about you?"
She replied, "We've been well too. You must be here to see Yuki. She's in that room with her dad. You can go see her."
Kazuki walked to the door. The door was open. Yuki and Urahara were talking about something serious. He bowed a little and said, "Excuse me, Lord Urahara. Can I talk with the two of you for a minute?"
Urahara said, "Kazuki, it's been a while. Come sit here and tell me what it is you want to talk about. I've told you many times not to be so formal when we aren't talking about clan-related matters."
Kazuki said after sitting, "Yuki, I heard about Keiko. I am sorry I didn't come earlier. Are you okay after that? Can I help you in any way?"
Yuki said in her usual tone and expression, "No, you don't have to apologize, Kazuki. I'm fine. Don't worry about me."
Kazuki said, "Lord Urahara, I know it's classified information, but can you please tell me what happened on their mission? I won't tell this to anyone."
Urahara said, "Alright, I trust you, Kazuki. A week ago, Yuki and her team were on a mission to exterminate a bandit camp. It was their first mission, and they were doing it very well, but an unexpected person appeared there: a former member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, who has recently gone rogue, Kisame Hoshigaki."
Kazuki's eyes widened. He thought, 'Kisame? Has he gone rogue already? From what I remember, he joined the Akatsuki way before Itachi, and Obito recruited him as soon as he became rogue. It must have happened recently. But why would he go to a bandit camp? To get funds for the Akatsuki? Or to find new members to recruit? The former is more logical. There must be bounties on some rogue ninjas there. But why the same camp as Yuki? Is it mere coincidence? But how did they even escape from Kisame?'
Urahara continued, "Yuki sensed him when he arrived, but she was battling someone else. His attack was aimed at Ryuma, but Keiko pushed him out of the way and took the attack herself. She would have died if not for the medical ninja I sent alongside Yuki. After that, their jonin sensei arrived. She's a skilled kunoichi, but even she wouldn't have lasted long in front of that monster. I had sent four jonin and one elite jonin alongside Yuki. They bought time for her team to escape. None of them returned; that monster killed them all."
Urahara exhaled loudly and continued, "That's a huge loss for the Senju clan. We only had four elite jonin, including me, and now we only have one. It looks like luck is not on our side. But more than that, it was a bad experience for Yuki and her team. Their teammate Ryuma has locked himself in his room, and he's saying that he doesn't want to be a ninja anymore."
Kazuki said, "That's bad, but do you have any idea what Kisame Hoshigaki was doing there?"
Urahara shook his head and replied, "We don't have any clue. There shouldn't be a reason for him to come to the Land of Fire."
Kazuki said, "I also wanted to tell you that I've graduated and will be a replacement for Keiko, but I think you already know that."
Urahara nodded. "Yes, I was the one to personally recommend you to Lord Hokage."
Kazuki said, "Thank you for that, Lord Urahara. I was regretting that I didn't graduate last year."
Urahara stood up and said, "There's no need to thank me. Just do your best. Anyway, I'm leaving. I have some work to do in the office. You two can talk for a bit if you want."
Urahara left the room. Yuki looked at Kazuki and said, "Congratulations on graduating, Kazuki."
Kazuki said, "Yuki, you don't have to hide your emotions around me. I know you are feeling very sad. I will keep this a secret. I am your friend, aren't I?"
Yuki's eyes widened slightly. Tears started slowly streaming down her eyes. She said while sobbing, "It's my fault, Kazuki. I wasn't strong enough. If I were stronger, then I could have protected her. Now even Ryuma is so depressed. He blames himself for her injuries. I don't know what to do. Please make everything better, Kazuki."
Kazuki went closer, pressed her head against his chest, and patted her head lightly. "It's okay, Yuki. It wasn't your fault. Keiko will be fine. She'll wake up soon, and I'll talk to Ryuma. Just leave everything to me."
Kazuki thought, 'She's the heir of the Senju clan, so everyone expects her to be perfect like Itachi, but she's just a normal human. She has emotions too. She just knows how to hide them. Children this age have to deal with so much mental trauma. This world is even worse than I thought while watching the anime.'