Kokoro submitted her application for early graduation, and to her surprise, it was approved the very next day.
The exam itself was simple—basic combinations and transformation techniques. She passed without difficulty.
When the headband was finally placed in her hands, Kokoro felt strangely absent-minded. She was officially a ninja now. But as her fingers brushed the cold metal, her thoughts drifted back to her parents and to her teacher, Yozuki—all of them shinobi who had perished on missions.
Did she regret walking down the same path?
Watanabe Yuehai was clearly disappointed when he learned that Kokoro had graduated. He was two years older than her, but still hadn't managed to complete early graduation himself. The idea of becoming Genin together had been quietly important to him.
Iruka, on the other hand, had sent her a small gift, congratulating her on her achievement. As for her cousin Shenyue Chuun, he was away on a mission and couldn't be there to celebrate.
During the team assignments, Kokoro listened carefully as the names of her future teammates were read aloud.
"Uchiha Itachi… and Tenma."
Her heart skipped a beat.
She vividly remembered what her late teacher Yozuki had once told her: Itachi awakened the Sharingan at the age of eight, triggered by the death of his teammates during his Genin years.
Would that teammate… be her?
That night, unease haunted her thoughts. She tossed and turned, unable to sleep, and when morning came, she ended up running late.
When Kokoro finally arrived at the designated meeting place, she saw three figures already waiting.
The first stood with his long black hair tied neatly at the back, eyes dark as obsidian, his face striking but softened by faint nasolabial folds that gave him an oddly mature air despite his youth. There was no mistaking him—Uchiha Itachi.
"Sorry, I'm late," Kokoro said, catching her breath as she walked over.
The tallest man among them, clearly the leader, waved his hand with a calm smile. "Don't worry, we only just arrived."
"You… you're not from my class, are you?" The taller boy beside Itachi squinted at her, curiosity in his tone but hostility in his gaze when it shifted toward the young Uchiha. He was obviously a new graduate—unlike her and Itachi, who had both skipped grades. But everyone knew Itachi was the true prodigy.
"Alright, everyone's here," their instructor said. "We don't know each other yet, so let's start with introductions. I'm your Jonin leader. You can call me Mizunotsuki-sensei." His voice was youthful, yet carried a calm authority.
The taller boy was the first to jump in. "I'm Tenma. My dream is to become the next head of my clan, and to be recognized by everyone! Of course," he added with a confident grin, "I'll be protecting you both in the future."
Kokoro offered him a polite nod and smile. "My name is Usami Kokoro. My dream is simple—to survive, to inherit the will of my mother and teacher, to become a worthy shinobi, and to protect those I care for."
"You graduated early?" Tenma asked in surprise. "That makes you a genius too."
"Not really," Kokoro replied with a soft smile, shaking her head. "I may have graduated early, but I'm still a fool. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been placed in this class."
"Why would you say that?" Tenma frowned. "You don't seem like a fool to me."
She chuckled. "Because to balance each team, they always put together one prodigy and one weakling. Itachi graduated top of the class, so of course he's the genius. That leaves the question… who's the fool? It's not me, so—" her eyes glinted playfully, "—is it you?"
Tenma's face darkened. "What?! No way I'm the fool!" His gaze flicked back toward the quiet boy beside them. "Wait… you're Uchiha Itachi, aren't you?"
"Yes," Itachi answered, his tone calm and unbothered.
"Tch. So you're the one who placed first. Figures—it's always some brat from the Uchiha clan." Tenma's voice dripped with dissatisfaction.
"Oh?" Kokoro tilted her head, watching him curiously. "You don't like people from the Uchiha clan?"
"Of course not. They're all arrogant," Tenma muttered, his eyes sliding pointedly to Itachi.
But Itachi didn't react at all.
Kokoro elbowed him lightly. "He's talking about you."
Those dark eyes blinked slowly, his voice soft but steady. "You're an Uchiha too."
Her lips tightened into a faint grimace. "Not anymore."
Ever since she'd learned the truth—that Itachi would one day slaughter his own clan—she finally understood why her teacher Yozuki had urged her to change her surname. She'd been grateful to leave the Uchiha name behind. And now Itachi's casual reminder stirred only bitterness.
Fate was cruel. She had escaped the fate of extermination… only to become the teammate of the very boy destined to cause it.
To avoid dying in that massacre, would she instead die on some mission to awaken his Sharingan?
"Huh? Kokoro's also from the Uchiha clan?" Mizunotsuki-sensei looked at her curiously. "Then why do you go by Usami?"
"Do you believe that, sensei?" she asked flatly.
He shook his head. No—she didn't carry the usual arrogance of the Uchiha. She spoke warmly with Tenma, showing no distance, and aside from her dark hair and eyes, there was little she shared with Itachi.
"Fair enough," he conceded.
"The spirits of Uchiha Minako and Usami Yayoi are kept at the Uchiha Shrine," Itachi spoke suddenly, his tone matter-of-fact. "Kokoro, you should visit them."
Kokoro's heart twisted at his words. He was right—her mother's tablet would be there, at least. But her father's name… she was less certain. Perhaps it had been erased entirely from the clan registry after her mother's death.
"…I understand," she said softly, nodding.
Itachi's expression didn't change, but for a moment, a faint smile flickered in his eyes. Despite being older than him, he seemed to think Kokoro was still naïve, even childish.
The Genin exam itself was simple. All three of them passed without issue, and when it ended, Kokoro followed Itachi back toward the Uchiha compound to confirm what he'd said.
Sure enough, her mother's spirit tablet rested in the ancestral hall. Her father's, however, was nowhere to be found. Just as she had suspected.
She shot Itachi a cold look but didn't press the matter.
On her way out, Kokoro spotted Uchiha Mikoto ushering young Sasuke forward. When Mikoto saw her elder son, she handed the little boy over eagerly. Sasuke's face lit up as he clung to Itachi's side.
"Itachi," a clear voice called from ahead.
Kokoro and Itachi both looked up.
Uchiha Izumi was approaching, excitement written across her face. She greeted Itachi warmly, then turned her gaze to Kokoro. "And you are…?"
Kokoro inclined her head politely. "Izumi. It's been a long time."
Izumi's eyes widened. "Kokoro?!" She glanced down at the new headband around her forehead. "You became a Genin? When did this happen?"
"Not long ago," Kokoro replied evenly, her tone polite yet distant. "I'll be heading back now. Goodbye."
Before Izumi could ask anything more, Kokoro had already walked past her, leaving the Uchiha compound behind.
The gap between them was clear—Izumi and Kokoro no longer lived in the same world.