บท 64: Verdict

Okami, upon seeing Kakashi leave, turned his attention to Taeho and Anita. "So how does it feel to fight alongside pokemon?"

Taeho gave a thumbs-up, his eyes lit up. "Just as I expected. They're the best!"

Anita nodded and rested down the floor. "That was tiring and dangerous. Nevertheless, it was fun. I hope we can do it more in the future, Bro Okami"

Okami grinned, this time unsummoning his pokemon and sat down as well. "Too bad Deira-Sensei stopped the fight. I could have played more using the Transform skill."

Taeho's eyes narrowed into a slit, wondering what the use of copying Kakashi's look was for. "I still can't understand why you did a Henge, Okami. Unless you can acquire his Jutsu while you are on that form, then it would be - hey! Don't tell me..."

"Yup. I can copy his Jutsu but I still have to try its efficiency and power. Since he is the copycat ninja, I'd like to give him a dose of his own medicine."

Anita laughed as she caressed her Zubat. "That's a great idea. Now I'm regretting it, Deira-Sensei should have let us continue so I can see it happening in action."

"What can we do? Kakashi-san abused Deira-Sensei's beloved chair, which he received from his great uncle," Taeho explained, his body still lying on the floor.

Okami looked down and asked, "Who is his great uncle?"

"Hokage-sama."

Okami remembered what happened earlier and everything clicked inside his mind. He knew that only Hiruzen and Konohamaru in his later years were able to execute 'Katon: Karyu Endan' in the Manga and Anime. Kakashi and Jiraiya's names were mentioned in the Wikipedia that they can also do the Jutsu in games.

It was understandable for Deira to learn it as well if he was related to the Sarutobi clan. He wondered what his exact relationship was to the current Hokage. "Do you know how they are related to each other?"

Anita's curiosity was piqued and moved closer. "Yeah, Taeho. Come on, tell us. Don't let us hanging."

Taeho shook his head and stood up. "I don't know the whole story. All I know is that his mom's a Sarutobi."

"Makes sense," Okami replied and rose as well. He wanted to ask further but stopped when he saw Deira approaching them. "Here come's the verdict."

Anita got up and patted her clothes after unsummoning Zubat. "I hope we passed his test."

Okami smiled, his eyes never leaving Deira. "I wonder."

Deira was very pleased with his team. The more he thought of what he witnessed earlier, the more his grin was getting wider. "Very good. Everyone showed exactly what I wanted to see. I am very glad that you stood your ground even against a Jonin. Well done."

Taeho jumped with joy while Anita hugged Okami and shouted as well. "We did it!"

Okami tilted his head and asked, "Is it safe to assume that we passed this 'test' of yours, Deira-Sensei? Or is there something else that we need to do?"

The other two stared at him, dumbfounded. They both understood what Okami meant and realized that Deira never mentioned about them passing the test. They stopped what they were doing and looked at Deira anxiously.

Deira chuckled, his body slowly walking towards them. "Sharp thinking, Okami-kun. The truth is, you still have to do several missions before I can assess whether I will give you a passing mark or not. But for now, this result is enough to let you become a team."

Taeho sighed in relief. "I thought that our team is going to be disbanded."

"Yeah! Thank goodness!" Anita exclaimed.

Deira clapped his hands. "Anyway, this calls for a celebration. How about we a tour inside the Pokemon Safari to commemorate our first successful meeting as a team?"

Taeho bobbed his head. "That's a perfect suggestion, Deira-Sensei!"

"I agree! Please allow it, Bro Okami..." Anita pleaded.

Okami felt suffocated when the trio was looking at him intensely, giving him goosebumps. Without a choice, he lifted his hands, "Fine! But can we do it tomorrow? Kakashi-sensei also wanted to visit the Pokemon Safari to catch his starter pokemon. That way, I can save my time."

"That's more like it! You're worthy to become my student, Okami-kun." Deira patted his shoulders and continued, "Don't forget to show me the rest of the pokemon."

"Sure."

"Very good. Anyway, let's meet tomorrow at my office, at 8 am. We are going to have our first mission as a team."

All of them agreed. Okami was the only one who left the Pokemon Intelligence Division since Taeho and Anita still needed to complete their study work for the day.

Okami decided to train the 'Transform' skill for the entire afternoon. He copied Deira and teleported to the location where Mizuki fought with Iruka. As soon as his feet reached the ground, he summoned his pokemon and let them play to keep as deterrents. He then continued his analysis as he experimented what he could do with the 'Transform' skill.

The time passed by and the night was soon to arrive when Okami was done. He wore back his shirt and massaged his feet. "I think it's wise for me to look for a spa to relax my body."

Okami scanned the surroundings and suddenly shivered when he felt some presence behind the trees. He asked his pokemon if there was anyone beside him inside the forest. After a few seconds, Pidgeotto told him that no one was around. He did not want to take any chances, so he unsummoned his pokemon and left the area immediately via teleportation.

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Someone emerged from the tree after Okami scooted away. "So that was him?"

An ash-haired ninja appeared from the ground. "Okami Okaya, a Genin from the Leaf, Orochimaru-sama."

"Such an interesting Jutsu..."

"Do you want me to kidnap the boy?"

"Not now, Kabuto," Orochimaru said as he slithered his tongue. "We've got something much more important to do. I'm just happy that I can witness something new after randomly visiting this part of the forest."

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Okami appeared inside his room, his heart beating fast. He knew that someone was spying on him but he could not detect who the culprit was. If possible, it was safer to avoid confrontations until he could perfect his skills.

After taking a bath, he changed into comfortable clothes and went downstairs. He saw that there were still customers inside the shop and his employees were busy attending them. With nothing to do, he teleported right inside the Pokemon Safari and communed with the pokemon. An hour had passed before he went back to the shop, knowing that it was closing time.

Baki was already busy preparing the dinner when Okami returned.

"Hey, what's our meal this time?" Okami asked, his nose busy sniffing at the aroma that came from the kitchen. "Is that chicken stew?"

Baki looked behind, saying, "That's right. Nothing beats chicken soup after a day of work."

Tomiro set the plates on the table. "That's right. How's your day, Okami-kun?"

Okami sat on one of the chairs beside the dining table. "I've just met my teammate, today. Tomorrow, we are going to have our first mission after Kakashi-sensei turns into a Pokemon trainer."

"Oh, finally! I thought Kakashi-san will continue to delay it. He told me once that he only become one after he was sure of his starter pokemon," Baki said, his hands busy chopping the rest of the vegetables. "I guessed he found what he was looking for."

"Yeah, he did. And can any of you guess who my teammates are?"

"Heh! Spill the beans. Who are they?" Tomiro proceeded to the sink and carried with him a tray filled with rice platters.

"It's Anita-chan and Taeho Kushiki, a student of Shikaku-san."

Baki stopped what he was doing and turned around. "That's good! That way, you can take care of each other. I'm more at ease now when I know that she is with you."

"Don't worry, old Baki. I'll take good care of her."

"I know," Baki answered and continued cooking.

Several minutes had passed and the food was done. They had their dinner as they conversed with each other, recounting everything that happened that day. After they were done eating, they cleaned the area and went into their rooms.

Okami summoned his Pokemon App and checked if there were any new prompts inside his mailbox, only to get disappointed when there was none. He planned his schedule for tomorrow and slept after he was sure that everything was accounted for.

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Right after the spar, Kakashi headed to the Hokage's office to report what happened inside the Pokemon Intelligence Division. He greeted Hanshi who was guarding the door and entered the room, only to find Hiruzen talking with Inoichi and Shikaku.

Hiruzen gestured him to join them. "Are you done with the assessment?"

Kakashi nodded. "They far exceeded my expectations. Despite facing a Jonin, they were able to work as a team to fight against me.

Taeho Kushiki was able to show his abilities, particularly Pokemon Jutsu and Bukijutsu, carefully using the surroundings to counter my course of actions.

Anita Ryota is promising as well, relying on Pokemon Jutsu and her Zubat to cast illusion-based skills. Some of which have been successfully inflicted on me. Luckily, I already know how to do some countermeasures against it.

Okami Okaya, on the other hand, was the core of the group. Able to assist each of his teammates via Pokemon Jutsu and well-timed Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, he possessed an exemplary skill to become a leader. Even without leaving his position, he was able to help Taeho and Anita in deflecting my attacks. Overall, a very capable Genin. Unfortunately, I was not able to continue with the spar because your nephew stopped it."

Hiruzen tilted his head slightly while frowning, "Why did he do it?"

"I used the chair you've given him as my substitute when I escaped their attacks via Kawarimi."

Inoichi laughed. "I guess he is still treating you as his idol, Hokage-sama."

"I can attest to that. He never allows anyone to touch it every time he's inside the office. And when he's not around, he stores it inside one of the vacant storage to prevent anyone from using it," Shikaku explained while snickering at the absurdity of the situation.

Hiruzen sighed helplessly. "That nephew of mine..."

"You should be proud of him, Hokage-sama. I even saw him executing the 'Katon: Karyu Endan' a while ago. It was perfect," Kakashi added, his mind still thinking about what happened back then inside the Training Room.

Hiruzen's expression changed. "He was able to do it properly? That's great. I thought no one's going to master it from the Sarutobi descendants aside from me."

"Yeah. Too bad, the Nochi clan separated from the Sarutobi clan due to that incident..." Shikaku stopped talking and reminisced about the situation.

"Time will come when the Nochi clan will reconcile with my clan. Anyway, let's stop talking about it."

Kakashi nodded and remembered his second agenda. "The truth is, I still have something to ask of you, Hokage-sama."

"What is it, Kakashi?"

"I want to become a Pokemon Trainer and if you'll agree, Okami-kun said that he can perform the ritual tomorrow after catching my pokemon starter at the Pokemon Safari."

"I've been waiting for you to approach me, Kakashi." Hiruzen took out a piece of paper stamped with his seal and gave it to the silver-haired Jonin. "You may present this certificate to Okami-kun."

Kakashi received the paper and inspected it. When he was done, he gave his thanks and asked to be dismissed. Hiruzen allowed him to leave and he exited the office immediately while reading his perverted Icha Icha book.

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