A split-second later, Ayato snapped out of it and sprinted after Lee.
His stamina wasn't lacking. Years of self-guided basics had built a solid engine—even compared to current Lee, he had the edge in raw endurance. Combat experience? That was another story. Bloodline gifts don't care about hot-blooded effort, and Ayato had put in the work.
Three green blurs skidded into the team rally point. Guy had obviously held back—just a hair ahead of Lee. Ayato matched Lee's pace the whole way, never pushing past.
Unspoken agreement. Guy stole a glance. Kid's got lungs. Most fresh genin would be wheezing. He'd never paid attention to Ayato's year—his own squad was a grade above. The only names that rang bells were Naruto (demon fox) and Sasuke (Uchiha orphan). A Senju without the surname? Invisible to Guy's generation.
Lee and Guy barely caught their breath before Neji and Tenten dropped from the trees like ninjas do. Called it. They wait here to skip the morning scream-fest.
"Who's the tag-along?" Neji asked, eyeing Ayato. Academy prodigy, zero social life—Neji barely knew his own classmates, let alone underclassmen.
"Starting today, he trains with me and Lee!" Guy flashed the trademark thumbs-up grin. Lee mirrored it. Both stared at Ayato.
Ayato forced an awkward smile, slammed his arms to his sides, and painfully pried a thumbs-up from his clenched fist—pointed at the ground. New guy. Gotta blend.
"Another hot-blooded idiot? We've already got two dead weights. And squads are three people max, right?" Neji grumbled. Four-man cell: two lunatics, one benchwarmer, one brain (him). Adding a fifth—regulation or not—was just more work. Current missions? Neji soloed them. Extra body = extra babysitting.
Guy scooted over, placating. "He's training only. No missions. He just wants to taste youth!"
Neji waved it off. "Fine. Don't drag us down."
Early-series Neji = Sasuke-level prickly, but Ayato gave him points for consistency. Neji's default was blank face; Sasuke looked like everyone owed him rent.
Neji strode up. "Don't. Drag. Us. Down." Cool spin, exit stage left.
Lee, Guy, and Tenten fell in behind like Neji was the jonin.
Tenten slipped between Lee and Guy; Ayato took Guy's other flank.
"Today's C-rank: wild boar hunt…" She rattled off location, client, etc. Konoha's got infinite cats, dogs, and now pigs. Classic.
Briefing done, Tenten elbowed Lee. "He joining the squad? Fresh genin, no jonin?"
"Pretty much. Showed up this morning, asked Guy-sensei for taijutsu lessons. Boom—here we are."
"Idiot." Useless intel. Self-appointed squad intel officer, Tenten shifted closer to Ayato on the road.
"This year's graduate?"
"Yeah. No team assigned. Figured if I'm learning taijutsu, might as well go to the best—Sensei Guy."
"Fair." Pride flickered—she knew Guy was Konoha's taijutsu king.
No team = lifelong genin. Anyone with mid-tier potential gets at least a chunin mentor. Total washouts get nothing.Is he worth Guy's time?
"You officially on the squad?"
"Nah. Just training. I want combat experience, not missions. Not hurting for cash."
Tenten nodded. She did missions for points—scrolls, jutsu, Tsunade-level dreams.
No ninjutsu knack, so taijutsu's the backup plan? Like Lee and Guy. "Don't want missions" = resigned to solo life. He knows what no team means. Pity crept into her gaze. Mini Lee, but maybe even taijutsu's a long shot.
Ayato felt the stare. Shifted.
Tenten hadn't grown into her looks yet—twin buns, Chinese-style fit—but she was normal. In Naruto, finding a sane, famously normal person was rare. Blonde, red, black hair? Fine. Pink hair, red eyes, pure white eyes? Nightmare fuel. Waking up to glowing red or blank white irises? Instant heart attack. 2D cute. 3D? Horror movie.