章 29: Chapter 28
Chapter 28
Kaen observed his team as they waited for him in the training field. To say he was displeased would be an understatement. Even though he agreed to it, he felt tricked. Kaen knew the Third Hokage was a trickster, but he didn't expect this. Letting out a sigh, he moved from his position to the team he was assigned to.
"You late, sensei," A boy with spiky black hair and a puppy in his hands said.
"We been waiting for you, sensei," The only girl said shyly.
Kaen narrowed his eyes as he observed them. The team was balanced all right. But just from a glance, Kaen saw through their shortcomings. They all were in the middle of the class in skill and knowledge. None of them had special abilities or skills that would let them stand out among others. If they weren't from clans, Kaen suspected they wouldn't even be a team.
"A Hyuga, a dog, and a bug boy," Kaen described his team. "I don't like any of you."
Kiba Inuzuka growled at Kaen angrily, Hinata Hyuga looked downcasted at the ground, and Shino Aburame didn't react. He could continue to insult them, but he decided to get over it. He held a grudge against Hokage, as he expected to teach Sasuke and Naruto. After all, he was proficient in fuinjutsu and could keep Naruto in check if he couldn't control his chakra. Being the last of two loyal Uchiha, he expected to teach Sasuke.
"I am Kaen Uchiha," Kaen introduced himself to them. "I don't need you to introduce yourself as it has not been decided if you even join the team."
"What do you mean?" Kiba asked.
"Only nine of twenty-seven of your class will truly graduate and become a genin," Kaen said. "It is to me decide if you three are worthy of being part of that nine."
"What?" Kiba shouted. "But we passed the examination and graduated from the academy."
"In normal times, that would be enough," Kaen said. "You would be genin and been given your duties immediately."
"And what kind of time is it now?" Shino asked curiously.
"It is a time of peace," Kaen replied. "To put it simply, you are not needed."
"What?" Again, Kiba shouted in shock.
"It is as you heard," Kaen continued. "There is no conflict with any other village; there wasn't one in over a decade. Konoha still has many shinobi, so why would it need a bunch of kids? That is why only three teams shall truly pass the graduation and continue to be a genin. The village only needs the best."
"How will you test us?" Shino asked.
"It is a simple test," Kaen said and whipped out a bow and three arrows. "You will need to bring me back these arrows. The time limit is until tomorrow noon."
Kaen shot the three arrows into the sky and watched as they disappeared. The three arrows were colored bright red. Kaen knew very well where these arrows would land, and even though they were still in the village, the village was massive, and to look through all of it would take a lot more time than a day.
Recovering from their shock, they quickly leaped to follow the arrows. Kaen looked as they ran in three different directions, and a sinister smile appeared on his lips. He will let them suffer for a bit for his entertainment. Even though Hokage tricked him, it didn't mean he couldn't enjoy his team.
"A bit cruel to lie to them," A voice from behind Kaen said.
"It wasn't entirely a lie. The village has many shinobi. What it needs now is the best," Kaen commented.
"And what if they aren't?"
"Then I will make them the best," Kaen replied. "Shouldn't you go to your team, Kakashi Hatake?"
"They can wait," The man with grey hair and one eye covered with his headband replied. "I wanted to ask you about Sasuke Uchiha."
"Ask away," Kaen said.
"How skilled is he?"
"His chakra control and taijutsu could be compared to a chunin," Kaen replied. "Once he learns more ninjutsu and activates his sharingan, not many chunin-level shinobi will be able to put up a fight against him."
"You trained him well," Kakashi commented. "Too well."
"Itachi will not wait forever for Sasuke," Kaen said. "And even though Sasuke might not think of himself as a genius, he is. Like a sponge, he absorbs everything that is taught to him."
"It would be problematic for a team if he is above the others," Kakashi commented.
"I don't know about Sakura Haruno, but it would do you good not to underestimate Naruto Uzumaki. He was able to fight Sasuke on par in taijutsu practice, and there wasn't anyone to teach him anything. Naruto's stamina and will are above even those of Jonin-level shinobi."
"It seems I have two monsters on my hands," Kakashi said.
"They will be the strongest shinobi in the world in no time, but I wouldn't let your guard down," Kaen looked at Kakashi's only eye. "My genin will beat yours."
"Is it a challenge, I hear?" Kakashi asked.
"Only a statement, for I am the best teacher in this village. So, you can relax," Kaen patted Kakashi's shoulder. "No matter how hard you train them, my genin will be better than them."
"Giving them such an easy task, they will not learn much," Kakashi commented.
"Yes, finding arrows won't even take half a day for them," Kaen replied with a sinister smile. "Do you want to bet with me how long it will take for them to find me?"
…
Kakashi wasn't surprised to see Kaen Uchiha disappear before his eyes once he finished his words. Team Eight was created to specialize in tracking and locating. Hyuga clan's famous Byakugan, the Aburame clan's insects, and the Inuzuka clan's dogs were all great for it. But from the looks of it, Kaen Uchiha will try to make his team specialize in hunting.
Kaen "The Hunter" Uchiha was still an enigma to him. He didn't even know how powerful he was. The reports stated that Jiraiya and Tsunade of Sannin taught him. And even before, he was considered a powerful shinobi. In a normal situation, he wouldn't care much about others, but by now, every shinobi in the village knew of Kaen's goal to become the next Hokage.
Everyone had eyes on him, looking at him with curiosity, and Kakashi wasn't any different. He hadn't seen the man in action but had heard of his successful missions. And even before he started doing missions for the village, he was well known for hunting down bounties of missing nin and other criminals.
He dismissed his thoughts about him and left for his team. He kept them waiting for long enough. He held the words from Kaen about Sasuke and Naruto close, already starting to plan the training he will put them undo. The team could not fail, Sasuke might soon be very important if Kaen became a Hokage, and Naruto was already a very important boy in the village.
…
As night fell, Kaen observed as his three new students found the red arrows. Each of them used their clan techniques to locate them. Hinata Hyuga was from a direct line of the clan, and even though her skills weren't special, her eyes were compelling. She could use Bykugan any time she wanted as long as she wanted and not get tired.
Kaen didn't know how well she could see through her eyes, but it said a lot for her to find the red arrow first in the team. Shino Aburame was proficient in using his bugs, scattering them all over the area he thought the red arrow might be. It wasn't too difficult for him to complete the task.
Even though Kiba Inuzuka had trouble finding his arrow, using his dog Akamaru and his heightened sense of smell, he managed to locate Kaen's scent on the red arrow. Just as the sun started to set, they all returned to the training field where Kaen was supposed to be. Not able to find him, they didn't know what to do.
"Where is he?" Kiba asked his teammates.
"It is part of the task," Shino quickly deducted. Kaen made sure to note that he was pretty intelligent. "To pass the test, we must give him back the arrows. To do so, we need to find him."
"What? That's not fair," Kiba complained. "Fine, let's go, Akamaru. We find that asshole."
"Please wait, Kiba-kun," Hinata stopped Kiba. "It will be too much to do this by yourself."
"What do you mean? Do you think I can't do it," Hinata backed away from Kiba's yelling and looked at the ground."
"What Hinata-san is trying to say is that we will need to work together to find Kaen-sensei," Shino said.
"It can't be that difficult," Kaen noted that Kiba was arrogant and didn't like to listen to others.
"Kaen-sensei will be too much for you alone, Kiba-kun," Hinata tried to warn her teammate.
"It is not like I am going to fight him or anything. I just need to find him."
"What do you know of our sensei, Hinata-san?" Shino asked.
"I heard from my father that he is very skilled," Hinata said quietly. "He supposed to be master at infiltrating and being unseen, as Jiraiya of the Sannin taught him."
"Either way, he is a Jonin. He won't be found easily," Shino added.
"Fine, we will do this together."
From the interaction between the trio, Kaen noted that Shino was intelligent. Hinata was perceptive, even if she was shy and unconfident in herself. Kiba was rash and impatient, he didn't like to listen to others, but he had no problems working with others as a team. Kaen needed to observe more to conclude what kind of team he had in his hands.
…
"Took you long enough," Kaen said to the exhausted trio.
Once they decided to work together, Kaen kept himself hidden. He was always close, but not enough for Byukugan to see him. He avoided bugs, as he always did, and masked his scent. There was no chance for them to find Kaen alone, but together they managed to locate him, even if it took until the dawn of the next day to do so and his will to let them find him.
"Whatever, we found you," Kiba threw the red arrow at Kaen while Shino and Hinata politely handed their arrows to him.
He took the arrows and handed them sandwiches he had made. He could see they were starving. He made them run around the village trying to find him. He was always a few steps ahead, leaving clues that only working together they could find. After having some fun, he let them find him.
"Now that we are a team, we should introduce ourselves, shouldn't we?" Kaen asked. "Start by your names, likes, dislikes, and goals."
"I am Kiba Inuzuka. I like my partner Akamaru, and I dislike a certain sensei," Kiba said while devouring the ham sandwich and staring at Kaen. "And my goal is to surpass my sister, who is considered best in the clan."
"Shino Aburame, I like to watch insects. I dislike those who do not value the life of other beings, and my goal is to discover more species of insects that are unknown to the world."
"Hinata Hyuga, I like those that help others, I dislike that I am weak, and my goal is to become stronger."
"What about you, sensei?" Kiba asked.
"Only fools reveal information about themselves," Kaen replied. "Any piece of information about yourselves could be used against you."
"You," Kiba pointed his finger at Kaen as he tried to say something but, in his anger, couldn't mutter a word.
"Rest for today," Kaen smiled sinisterly. "Tomorrow, we will start taking missions and your training. You rarely will have a full night's worth of rest from tomorrow onwards, team Eight."
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