"Hello, Kakashi-sensei!" Sasuke offered his own greeting, voice measured and polite.
Naruto's response was more complicated. Seeing the white-haired jonin stirred something in his chest—recognition, resentment, old wounds he'd thought buried. But his face remained perfectly neutral, expression blank as fresh paper. "Sensei," he said simply, as though meeting Kakashi for the first time.
Kakashi's visible eye swept across all three faces, lingering perhaps a moment too long on Naruto's features before he spoke. "Right. Meet at Training Ground Three tomorrow morning. Don't eat breakfast." His tone was flat, disinterested. "That's all for today."
Then he vanished in a swirl of leaves.
At that exact moment, Iruka emerged from the Academy building, arms full of teaching materials.
Naruto's entire demeanor transformed. His face lit up like someone had flipped a switch. He jogged over, waving. "Iruka-sensei! We graduated! Shouldn't you treat us to ramen to celebrate?"
Iruka's grip on his lesson plans faltered. The stack of papers nearly tumbled from his arms. "I... I have urgent business to attend to!" he stammered, then executed a Body Flicker so hasty he left scorch marks on the ground.
Naruto stood in the settling dust, scratching his head with genuine confusion. "Wow.. Iruka-sensei's gotten really stingy. It's just ramen. How much could we possibly eat?"
He paused, then smiled to himself. "Well, if Iruka-sensei wants to be cheap, I won't hold it against him. Next time I see him, I'll treat him to roasted whole lamb instead. That'll cheer him up."
With team assignments complete, Naruto and Sasuke prepared to head home. They said their goodbyes to Sakura, who practically glowed with happiness.
"See you tomorrow, Sasuke-kun! And Naruto too!" Her smile could have powered the village for a week. Being placed on the same team as Sasuke was clearly the highlight of her entire year.
The next morning arrived far too early.
Nine-Tails had risen before dawn, as always. By the time Naruto and Sasuke finished washing up, breakfast was ready. The fox wore an elegant white lace dress with pearl accents across the bodice, his culinary masterpiece arranged perfectly on the dining table.
"Sasuke! Naruto! Breakfast is ready!" he called, turning from the stove with obvious pride.
"Coming!" Naruto headed straight for the table.
Sasuke caught his arm. "Wait. Kakashi said no breakfast, remember? We're supposed to show up on empty stomachs."
Naruto snorted, pulling free. "He said that, yeah. But I'm twelve years old and still growing. Skipping meals is irresponsible." He settled into his chair and reached for his plate. "My body, my rules."
Seeing Naruto dig in, Sasuke sighed and joined him. There was no point in being the only one to follow Kakashi's instructions.
After a substantial meal, they headed to the designated meeting point.
Sakura was already there, dressed with obvious care. Her outfit was coordinated, her hair styled, her entire appearance screaming "I woke up three hours early for this." When she spotted them approaching, she waved enthusiastically. "Good morning, Sasuke-kun!"
Then, as an afterthought: "Morning, Naruto!"
"Morning, Sakura," Naruto replied with a casual nod.
Sasuke offered a cool acknowledgment. Girls weren't exactly high on his priority list. Revenge and power—those were what mattered.
While they waited, Kakashi was finishing his own morning routine.
He'd woken at a reasonable hour, gotten dressed without rushing, prepared a proper breakfast, and settled in with his beloved copy of Icha Icha Paradise. Only after he'd eaten and reached a particularly engaging chapter did he finally leave his apartment.
But he didn't head toward Training Ground Three.
Instead, Kakashi made his way to the Memorial Stone. He stood before one particular name carved into the black surface, reaching up to touch his covered left eye.
"Hey, Obito. It's me again."
The stone offered no response. It never did.
"I finally left ANBU. Lord Third asked me to take on a genin team—something I've been wanting for a while now." Kakashi's voice was quiet, meant only for the dead. "Naruto Uzumaki is one of my students. My teacher's son. And honestly... I'm terrified of facing him."
His hand dropped back to his side. "But I want to watch him grow. I need to. The good news is he doesn't know who I am—doesn't know I was his father's student. So I can pretend. Act like we're strangers. Maybe that's cowardly, but..."
He trailed off, then straightened slightly. "Don't worry, Obito. I'll honor your last words. I'll make sure Naruto and the others understand that teammates are the most important thing a shinobi has."
Standing before his dead friend's memorial, Kakashi allowed himself a moment of genuine emotion. Then he buried it again beneath layers of practiced indifference.
Time to meet his students.
Kakashi perched silently on top of a nearby wall, Icha Icha open in his hand. His visible eye tracked the words, but his real attention focused on the three genin below.
"Ughhh." Sakura clutched her stomach. "I'm starving. We've been waiting for hours! Where is Kakashi-sensei?"
Behind his mask, Kakashi smiled.
"Naruto, Sasuke, aren't you guys hungry?" Sakura looked between her teammates with something approaching desperation.
Naruto sat cross-legged in the grass, a piece of straw dangling from his mouth. He looked supremely unconcerned. "Nope. I ate breakfast before coming."
Kakashi's smile froze.
This kid really doesn't listen to instructions at all.
"Same here," Sasuke added when Sakura's gaze swung to him. "Don't look at me like that."
"You both ate?!" Sakura's voice climbed an octave. "But Kakashi-sensei specifically said not to eat breakfast!"
"He said that, yes," Naruto agreed placidly.
Sakura looked ready to cry. "So I'm the only one who followed the rules?!"
"Kakashi-sensei!" she shouted toward the empty training ground. "Where are you?!"
"Right here."
Kakashi's voice came from directly behind her. Sakura spun to find him standing three feet away, orange book still open in his hand, visible eye fixed on the page.
"Come with me," he said without looking up.
Naruto and Sasuke didn't even glance at their new instructor. Neither was particularly impressed by jonin in general. If they wanted to, if they stopped holding back their true abilities, either of them could defeat Kakashi in a straight fight.
Sakura, however, looked at Kakashi like he'd just rescued her from certain death.
"Follow me," Kakashi repeated, then started walking.
He led them to a small clearing in the forest, finally closing his book. His lone visible eye swept across the three faces before him.
"Alright. Let's do introductions. Tell me your name, what you like, what you hate, your dreams for the future. Simple stuff." He gestured vaguely. "Who wants to go first?"
Sakura glanced at Sasuke, then at Naruto. Neither made a move. With a small sigh, she stood. "I'm Haruno Sakura. I like..." Her gaze drifted to Sasuke. "Well, I like Sasuke-kun. And I hate Ino—that pig."
She looked hopefully at Sasuke, searching for any reaction.
His expression remained completely neutral.
Sakura's shoulders slumped slightly.
Kakashi's attention shifted to the Uchiha. "Your turn."
"Uchiha Sasuke." His voice was level, emotionless. "I like training. I hate losing fights."
As he finished, Sasuke shot a quick glance at Naruto. When Naruto didn't react, he relaxed slightly.
Too honest, Sasuke thought. Should've been more vague.
Kakashi barely registered either introduction. What he really cared about was the third student. The one with yellow hair and blue eyes and his sensei's face.
His visible eye locked onto Naruto with poorly concealed intensity.