Shikamaru felt it in his heart, 'He's gonna work us to death.'
It was one of his major fears in life. He just wanted to relax, get a cushy corner office job that paid him just enough to care about keeping the job but not enough where any extra exertion was expected of him and die of old age. How was he supposed to do any of that when he was forced by his mother to leave for training at the ass-crack dawn to come train?
He yawned, covering his mouth as he found the street he was meant to be on.
Despite the fact he's father was the clan head, he's mother was the one who wore the pants in the house. He wasn't sure if he's father had been a masochist or what, but with that slave driver running the program, Shikamaru had no choice but to be on the road before the sun was even up.
Sure he was well aware he had to be on time or face whatever punishment awaited him from his sensei, did that mean sleeping in a few extra minutes was a criminal offense that deserved getting a bucket of ice water poured onto you? While your traitorous baby sister was clanging to pans together?
No, he didn't think so.
He clicked his tongue, thinking of his coward of a father. Jōnin Commander and Clan Head - High Chancellor of the Shinobi Court, and he whistled ignorantly in the face of his son's suffering.
He sat down on the grass outside the given address. It was actually a nice neighborhood, a quiet neighborhood. Seemed like those neighborhoods you'd read about in a small town, slice of life comic - where everybody knew everybody.
Quite rural though, out the way from the market center and just on the border of civilization if you'd ask him... He'd have to look into the housing market in this neighborhood, a house on the outskirts of town with this few people around you sounded like heaven.
He laid down on the lawn, staring at the remnants of the dark clouds as the sky began to turn a purple-ish, orange-ish hue.
'...Maybe waking up early isn't so bad.' He thought absent-mindedly.
Watching the sky like this, despite the time, had its perks. He didn't entirely mind waiting for everybody else to show up, so much if this was his view.
He wasn't sure how much time had passed when Naruto started kicking him.
"Oi, wake up ya' lazy bastard. What if I get into trouble for not waking ya' up, huh? Will ya' take responsibility for me?" Naruto questioned, hands in his pockets.
Shikamaru didn't respond for a moment. Instead, he rolled over to face the other direction.
"Five more minutes." He murmured, closing his eyes once more.
"Huh?" Naruto's top lip curled in disdain, "I'm ya' fuckin' alarm clock, yea?"
'So noisy...' Shikamaru thought in despair, finally dragging his body up into a sitting position. Knees up to his chest with his arms slung over them.
He looked around briefly, not seeing Hinata, before looking at his watch.
"Where is Hyūga-san?" Shikamaru asked, looking up to Naruto, who was trying his best to stay awake. Even his clothing had that distinct, 'I just fell out the bed 5 minutes before I was supposed to be here' look.
"Kami, how'd I know that? I live with her?" Naruto asked rhetorically, tone annoyed as he wiped the morning crust from his eye.
Shikamaru had to admit it was a mistake on his part to ask Naruto where he's sworn enemy was.
Before Shikamaru could respond, a familiar voice exited the house.
"Genin Uzumaki, Nara -" Shoya paused, he's brow knitting as his gaze swept over the area, "Hmm." He hummed thoughtfully, a frown forming on his face. "Report."
"Reporting, sensei." Shikamaru said, putting his hand over his heart briefly before standing upright.
Naruto, not entirely sure, copied the gesture and repeated Shikamaru's words. "Reporting, sensei."
Shoya strode over to Naruto, face hard as he circled the young teenager.
"Up bright and early for a change, Genin Uzumaki? Are you sure you're not too tired like yesterday? Should I lay out a futon and some comforters for you, so the actual shinobi can train?"
Naruto bit the inside of his cheek, trying to remember his Ayame-chan's words.
'Mean sunnuvabitch, but he's fair... So long as I don't give ya' any reason, we'll be good.' Naruto thought, trying to choose he's words carefully.
"Nah, sensei. I'm wide-eyed an' bushy-tailed. Ready ta' go."
Shoya sneered, looking over at Shikamaru.
"What the fuck did he just say? I don't speak farmer and I'm not willing to learn."
'Why am I involved?' The thought briefly crossed his mind, not entirely sure if he should actually translate or if his sensei was being sarcastic.
Naruto, meanwhile, bite the inside of his cheek once more. He's face gaining a slightly red color. It wasn't the first time he'd been insulted over his dialect, but it was the first time a superior had done it.
"You see Genin Uzumaki, after yesterday's meeting - I have some doubts over your commitment to be a shinobi. Likewise, I don't think you take this job seriously. Maybe the academy has gotten soft since my generation, but I'll correct that. And you will either come correct, or you will flunk out and I will personally fill-in your resignation papers, am I understood?" He asked.
Naruto nodded his head, "Hai, sensei." Though internally he was fuming. Four years of his life, five-hundred thousand Ryō in tuition fees and his sensei effectively told him that with one form, it would've all been for nothing.
Shikamaru stood awkwardly to the side. This reminded him of going to Choji's house and watching as his mom scolded him while Shikamaru was there.
Shoya turned, making his way back to the yard's gate, he's ear twitching as he turned his head up the road, to find the site of his missing Genin - Hyūga Hinata - barrelling down the street.
'Teenagers these days, I swear... No work ethic.' He thought, stopping and turning to watch her.
She skidded to a stop, sweat dripping down her face as her chest heaved. Her hands on her knees, as she tried to control her erratic breathing.
"I-I apol-apologize sensei..." She panted, "I-I w-was-"
"I don't give a fuck if you were the private audience of Hokage-sama, you had instructions and failed to follow them." Shoya said, stepping to her.
She looked aghast, "N-no sensei, it was my-"
Shoya cut her off, "I don't care. Seeing as you're in such a running mood, give me fifty laps."
There was a brief silence as everybody - including Naruto - was stunned into shocked silence.
"I'm not your friend, you give excuses to your friends. You apologize and say it'll never happen again to me, you understand that, Genin Hyūga?" He looked at her, before switching his gaze over to Naruto and Shikamaru.
Hinata meanwhile was still in shock, it wasn't her fault. She'd just ran across the entire village to make it here at the time she did and now she was forced to do another fifty laps. She didn't even get the chance to explain what caused her delay, it wasn't like she was willingly or deliberately late.
He gave a soft snort, "Kami, I thought maybe it was just one bad apple in the tree, seems like the whole bunch might be rotten." He said, looking over at Shikamaru.
"You seem to be the odd one out, but the way things are going... I expect you to follow their example soon enough."
Shoya finally made a move, walking back towards the gate. "Go through the side gate and head straight to the back yard." He instructed, causing them to almost stumble over themselves to get there.
Inside his house, as the Genin filtered through the side gate leading to the back yard, Anko was tying up her hair.
"My, my, when did our sweet little Sho-chan get so violent?" She asked teasingly.
"I mean, bullying the newbies is usually my thing. Maybe I'm rubbing off on you." She said, grabbing her leather jacket.
Shoya ran a hand down his face, as he made his way into the store room and grabbing some training materials. "Please, if you were rubbing off on me, these kids would be running drills with Kakashi's team."
She gave a small pout, "You shirk your responsibilities once and suddenly everything is about how you don't do your job."
Shoya whipped his head to face her, almost dropping the box of shuriken and painted boards.
"You've been here all week! I think if T&I sees your face they're gonna think an intruder broke in." He argued. "Once my ass." He muttered.
"Relax man, I've got everything under control-" She said, walking to the man's fridge and taking out the left over beef fried rice from the previous night, carrying the whole container as she made her way to the door. "I mean, I'm still Commander Ibiki's right hand woman." She said smugly.
"Hey-" before he could finish his sentence, she quickly closed the front door, "don't take all the food with you..." He finished to himself.
Meanwhile, outside as the trio made their way to the back of the yard, Naruto quietly spoke.
"Ain't ya' fault. Mean sunnuvabitch was lookin' fer somebody ta chew out anyway. We all wake up on the wrong side o' the bed sometimes, yea?" He whispered to Hinata, while she made his life hell, just yesterday he'd been on the receiving end of Shoya's shit stick - so he could understand what she might've been feeling at this moment.
The only reason Naruto felt so comfortable - if one could call it that - was because Shikamaru was ahead of them just enough that Naruto felt he was out of ear shot.
Hinata slowed, the veins leading to her Byakugan bulging, her hand shot out, aiming for his jaw, Naruto raised his arm to block, but she was satisfied with the grunt of pain that came out of his mouth, satisfied he couldn't pretend it didn't hurt.
"Mind yourself, bumpkin. Do not make the mistake that you and I are in the same boat, you low born tomato." She snarled, bumping his shoulder roughly as she pushed ahead.
Naruto rolled his shoulder, his face wincing. 'That's what I get for tryna be empathetic.'
Fuck, she hit hard, no wonder she was the top kunoichi in the graduating class.
He kept massaging his shoulder as he lined up next to Shikamaru. Who was standing between Naruto and Hinata.
Shoya walked out the back door, into the yard. Carrying several boxes, filled with: shuriken, kunai, several weapons, training dummy's and posts.
He placed the boxes down outside, gesturing at it.
"Alright-" He began, his voice booming in the early morning. "Set up the dummy's and posts, we'll begin with the a fundamental evaluation. You will throw shuriken and kunai, you will run for kilometers within a specified time, you will perform the academy kata, spar amongst one another, and then you will spar against me... That will be your training for the day, understood?" Shoya asked, voice loud.
"Hai, sensei!" The students yelled.