Small warning: Uhh, there will be mentions of some sexual topics, BUT NOTHING TOO EXPLICIT I SWEAR--

~*~*~

"Alright, break time!" Kakashi announced with a clap of his hands, and the moment he did, both Kaminari and Ashido simultaneously dropped on the ground, evidently tired from the repetitive performance of their katas. The setting sun was telling enough of how long they were at it with their top efforts within the supervision of the jounin in charge. "Okay, the last activity for today is a quirkless spar against me. After that, we compare the results to our spar before your training,"

"You... are an actual... slave-driver," Kaminari panted, his sweaty back long familiar with the forest ground.

"Shinsou-san doesn't know... what's coming to him... tomorrow," Mina agreed, equally exhausted, recalling how Kakashi would throw in sneak attacks with manageable speeds towards them while they're practicing kata formations. It was multitasking on the jounin's part to test their reaction time while pointing out openings in their stances; it did them well on memorizing their katas quickly.

The two teenagers found themselves fortunate that at least they built their endurance and muscle mass before entering the hero course (idiots they maybe are, but at least they have common sense... most of the time). Shinsou doesn't have that advantage. If he were to accept your training offer, he's in a new kind of special hell.

Surprisingly, they got a week's training crammed within a day due to your healing abilities-- they can only imagine how much they can accomplish within two weeks.

Kneeling down next to Mina and Denki, you repaired their sore muscles for the nth time today (Kakashi's surprise attacks intend to bruise, and you don't mean by civilian standards). With your hands glowing healing chakra, your shadow clone body then suddenly poofed out of existence. The next thing you know, you found yourself inhabiting the body of your perplexed pink patient, dumbfoundedly blinking twice.

'Wait, what? What happened?' And, there's her voice inside your head again.

"Looks like my clone body ran out of chakra," You casually stated, answering both Mina's confused inquiry and the questioning gazes of your other company. "I lasted longer than I thought I would,"

"Hm, makes sense. You've been using medical ninjutsu for the whole day with halved chakra reserves, not to mention that we didn't give ourselves time to recover after yesterday," Kakashi surmised. It spoke volumes of how much both your chakra reserves have really grown compared to before to last this long. You guessed that Naruto distributing his Kyuubi chakra played a part in that development. "Ah well, looks like sparring is cancelled for toda--"

"Wait, wait, wait-- we do this today, now that she's technically on our side, we have a better chance on beating you!" Kaminari exclaimed excitedly, resisting the urge to wince from his not-yet-healed sore body. The teen is not wasting a chance that could potentially bring Kakashi down a peg or two. The boy then smiled expectantly at you, waiting for your agreement.

"Bold words from someone who could barely stand. If anything, (Y/n) would just do most of the heavy-lifting," Kakashi stated as a matter-of-fact, which had the electric blond deflate, because well, the jounin is right.

"Though, it does beg the question, who's stronger than who? You or her?" Kaminari asked with genuine curiosity (he's internally rooting for you though). Short silence lasted, before it was eventually broken.

"Kakashi, of course," Surprisingly, it was you who answered the inquiry, albeit in a clipped tone with a forced smile. Without the shades covering Mina's bug-like eyes, Kakashi can easily read your micro expressions even on a foreign face due to years of companionship. The silver-haired jounin was well-aware of your insecurity in regards of strength comparison, but at the very least, you were aware of your limits with your weak constitution.

In the genetic lottery, Obito won all the best physical attributes-- best stamina, chakra reserves, and body constitution, with you inheriting the intelligence department. In your childhood, you've accepted this particular weakness of yours without difficulty, but now...

He wonders what gave this recent development. Admittedly, he had a few guesses.

"Alright, training is over!" Kakashi exclaimed suddenly, trying to lift the awkward atmosphere, although Kaminari remained oblivious to it. Nevertheless, the male jounin continued to ramble. "Once you get home, eat a nutritious dinner, but first take a bath; scrub all areas; make sure to clean behind the ears--"

"I don't remember my mom being as ugly as you," Kaminari retorted, mentally giving himself a pat on the back for using an insult he read from the internet towards the silver-haired man. He takes his small victories against the jounin seriously.

"Funny, because I distinctly remember you being surprised that we were 'hot' when you first saw us," Kakashi made a quote-unquote motion with his fingers at the term 'hot', which made the blond teen stammer.

"I-- well, uh-- wait-- " The boy thought frantically of a response, as you and Kakashi only looked at him with amusement, the tense air now forgotten. "Okay, but I bet with that attitude of yours, you never got a girlfriend!" Was the first comprehensible thing that came out of Kaminari's mouth.

Lies, the blond thought to himself. He knew that with Kakashi's appearance, the guy can get a girlfriend even with his less-than-desirable personality... even with his mask on.

"Again, funny you should say that, because she and I--" Kakashi pointed at you, then himself, "--were engaged," Honestly, that was the very least likely response Denki expected from him.

Still, your flushing cheeks were telling enough for the blond that what Kakashi said was true.

'What?! But you said you weren't marr--'

"Yes, but it was arranged," You immediately added, emphasizing the word 'arranged', hoping to save yourself from the embarrassment. "We were only engaged in papers just to sate the council. After getting a new leader, it was cancelled; absolutely nothing happened between us," You explained, crossing your arms as you glared at your partner for disclosing a repressed memory.

Kami, were you grateful for Tsunade being against such an archaic arrangement. If you're going to get married, you will do it in your own time in your own terms-- not through the organization of meddling old people. They didn't even have the reassurance that you can pass down sharingan genes, as you didn't have the pair yourself.

Granted, it's not really that bad, as Kakashi is your first choice if you were to be in an arranged marriage. After all, you were the one who mentioned his name towards the Sandaime when discussing potential suitors. Still, it was embarrassing because it was so degrading for a shinobi of your caliber to be reduced into a housewife due to orders.

Besides, it's not like Kakashi reacted gracefully to your sudden engagement either.

Thankfully, it's now all in the past.

"Hah! You're an adult virgin~" Kaminari teased at Kakashi with a tune neither of you had heard before.

Obviously, the silver-haired jounin wasn't embarrassed, as it's an unspoken status quo for elite jounins. Paranoia prevents you from having one-night-stands, as you're not too keen on being vulnerable with strangers. You all also avoid one-night-stands with squad members as it could make missions awkward, and could affect professionalism. Not to mention shinobi of your ranks barely have time to settle down and build families. It's normal for elite jounins, including ANBU, to be virgins.

"Maah, you're insulting (Y/n) too, y'know?" Your partner smiled, and you only looked away, not having the courage to voice out that he should speak for himself. While it is normal for jounins and ANBU to be virgins, you didn't say that you were part of the norm.

In that short moment, your hands remember the smooth texture of spun ebony threads, as you blinked away the memory of half-lidded glowing rubies looking down at you with such an affectionate gaze, while his warm calloused hands ghosted your sides lovingly.

"Hn..." Your already pink cheeks were reddening, and without your sunglasses, it was obvious to Kakashi that you were avoiding eye contact with him. It struck him odd, as you're not usually bothered with topics like virginity, because well, a lot of workaholics in Konoha tend to be one, and there's really no shame in being one. Unless...

"Wait, what?" He gawked at you openly, as you turned your back on him. Your face was on fire.

"Uhh-- I have to go and cook dinner for them now," You immediately blurted out. "I'll see you at their apartment!" Without waiting for a response, you swiftly shunshin-ed away, leaving an after-image of a pink blur, eternally grateful that with the seals you painted on Mina, you can now utilize chakra in jutsus.

"Who?! We were engaged!" You heard Kakashi call out loudly from a distance.

"Were! And it was only on papers!" You replied back with equal volume.

Once you were no longer in his range, Kakashi looked back at Kaminari, only to see the blond holding an irritating smug look on his face.

"Because you opened this topic, you're walking home." Kakashi declared, his signature eye smile possessing the familiar look of sadism.

"What?! But you just said so yourself that I can barely stand!" Kaminari whined, but the jounin only walked away. "W-wait! I'm sorry-- I'll even take the princess carry! Come back!"

~*~*~

Like you announced earlier, you cooked dinner, only preparing panda onigiri and octopus-shaped sausages with the teens' limited ingredients. You tend to work a lot with your hands whenever you feel fidgety, hence your child-like meal. Mina remarked that it's cute and even asked why, which you only responded that it was of habit. You didn't mention that you usually do this for the young members of Team 7.

You only made a few, however-- fit for only two people. Shadow clones can't really eat nor sleep.

It took a while, but Kaminari and Kakashi eventually made it to the teens' apartment (Kaminari crawled). Apparently, Kaminari has yet to move back to his old one... that, or he's still saving up money due to how Kakashi carelessly spent his funds. You like to pretend that he's smart enough to think that with him living with Ashido, it would be easier for you and Kakashi to access them whenever necessary.

Despite your earlier interesting discussion, dinner was uneventful as you ate in Mina's body, but you did notice the curious glances Kakashi would send your way, to which you strategically ignored. It was none of his business.

While waiting for your chakra reserves to restore itself, Kakashi also dispelled his clone body to do the same. To pass time, you turned on the television to watch whatever was on. Much to your and Kakashi's interest, Team 7 became the talk of all news stations throughout the day.

"-- multiple CCTV recordings were caught from local hospitals with this masked little girl healing patients left and right with no reported side-effects at all; even curing incurable illnesses--"

"-- this new vigilante had been dubbed by the public as 'Mini-All Might', with his blond hair and out-going and helpful personality; going as far as to help even with the most mundane tasks with his cloning quirk. Although, he has a mischief streak with his pranks--"

"-- gossips of a vigilante working in the shadows, delivering wanted criminals in front of the police station in broad daylight and suddenly disappearing; no one knows of his quirk yet but some suspect it's speed or teleportation, however there were some reports of flashing lights--"

Naturally, they gained a good reputation, as you didn't expect any less from your (and Kakashi's) students.

You skimmed past all of them, and eventually landed on a channel where all three of them were tackled in the same discussion, and much to your surprise, there was even a recorded interview of them.

"--managed to get an exclusive interview from the three new vigilantes who have been the hot topic for today!"

"Indeed, and I have to say, it has made my entire night with how funny and chaotic it's been!"

For some reason, you felt a sense of foreboding towards how the news anchor described the interview; the mentioned words 'funny' and 'chaotic' mainly being responsible for your unease.

... What the hell did they do?

...

"Here, LIVE, near the Musutafu square, is where we found the newly debuted vigilantes who apparently know each other," A woman interviewer announced to the shaky camera, before addressing the trio who didn't move away from the attention.

Despite wearing varying clothes, what tied the group together in terms of similarity were their red and white animal masks. One boy has raven hair, wearing a blue high-collared shirt, paired with white shorts. He was donning a Hawk mask.

Another was a blond boy who was wearing a bright orange jumpsuit with some blue highlights. He was donning a Fox mask.

Lastly, there was a girl with with pink hair, wearing a red quipao dress with dark blue shorts. She was donning a Badger mask.

"You guys are vigilantes despite looking so young, yet you achieved a lot of great things that even some heroes can't hold a candle to. One of you single-handedly reduced crime rates within the city; the other improved all patient health confined within local hospitals; and the last one has gained public love and approval-- all accomplished in one day! The public wants to know; what is each of your vigilante names, and what do you want us to call your small group?" The woman asked, placing her mic in front of Sasuke's hawk mask.

"It's--" Before Sasuke could even answer, Naruto immediately cut in, pushing the noir away from the mic, and consequently, the camera view.

"HEY, WHY ARE YOU ASKING HIM?! I'M THE LEADER!" His loud voice rang to the microphone.

"No, you're not," Sasuke pushed back. "You're too irresponsible to be leader! Besides, you don't even have the proper personality for it,"

"THIS, COMING FROM THE GUY WHO HAS THE PERSONALITY OF A ROCK!" Naruto then forced himself back at the front of the camera. "HIS NAME IS HN-TEME; CALL HIM THAT FROM NOW ON, 'TTEBAYO!" The camera was now focused on the blond, and despite wearing a fox mask, a lot of people could probably tell he has a matching foxy grin underneath.

"What the--" Sasuke shoved Naruto back. "Idiot, we're on live television!"

"Hey! Don't call me an idiot on live television!"

"You started it!" Then, Sasuke seemingly glared at the camera with renewed vengeance. "By the way, his name is Datte-Dobe!"

"OI!"

One thing led to another, and the next thing the public knew, the two boys were throwing fists towards each other, highlighting their immature age range to the viewers. It dawned to everyone that they were actual children.

"Hey, hey! No fighting!" The girl of the group scolded, but it only fueled their punch and shove.

"She said to stop--"

"YOU stop first--"

The camera was now focused on Sakura, while the two boys continued their fistfight at the background. It was rather comical as it's all taking place on a parking lot.

"Uhh... I'm so sorry about them, I umm," The pinkette started fidgeting with her fingers. "I'm Mujina, and their names are actually Kitsune and Taka, since... y'know, our animal masks, uh... and together, we are Team 7..! Yay..?" Sakura jazzed her hands, her enthusiasm obviously forced. The camera refocused back on the two boys behind the pinkette-- the blond trying to pin the noir down.

"Usuratonkachi, dammit get off!"

"Not until you admit I'm the leader!"

"You're not even Hokage--"

"Don't make me pick my nose again--"

"Aren't you embarrassed that this is being filmed?!"

"I don't feel shame putting you in your place, 'ttebayo!"

"DATTE-DOBE!"

"HN-TEME!"

Having enough, Sakura's rage was reinvigorated by her teammates' shouting match. Turning to face her two friends, she charged towards them.

"QUIET ALREADY, SHANNARO!" With her brute strength, Sakura landed a punch on both of the boys' heads, instantly ending their feud, as they clutched their (probably) forming bruises. "What would sensei think once she sees you both acting like brats, huh?! So help me, if this happens again, we're eating vegetables and natto for all three meals in a day, you hear me?!"

"... Hn..."

"Sorry, Sa-- Mujina-chan..."

"Hmph," Sakura huffed, before facing back at the camera. "Again, sorry for them. Sensei, if you're watching, I'll make sure this won't happen aga--"

"FREEZE!" Police officers suddenly arrived at the scene, and Team 7 were reminded that vigilantism was technically illegal, no matter how helpful they've been.

"Oh, gotta go! See ya!" And then, the trio disappeared in a puff of smoke.

...

"Haha, what a fun interview! Those three will have bright futures as heroes, that's for sure!"

"Well, they are starting young after all, as vigilantes. However, not all share the same enthusiasm with vigilantism, which brings us to our next interview with the head director of a new government department! I'm sure people have heard of rumors and some news about T.R.E.E.S. being involved with UA's upcoming Sports Festival security. After all, UA would love to accommodate for their alumni, Shizen--"

"They... They actually act like twelve-year-olds," Kakashi remarked right after turning off the television, as you all lost interest with the other news irrelevant to any of you. "You think their change extends more than just their physical states?"

"Team 7 as kids... Again." You internally groaned at the troubles that could possibly follow if that hypothesis was proven right.

"Well, on the other hand, we have the teenage version of Team 7 too." Before you could even ask what he was talking about, Mina chose to cut in.

'Wait, do you know those kids?' Right. Sasuke brainwashed the two in forgetting the Team 7 trio and any other memories revolving them just to cut off loose ends.

'In a way.' Was your only vague answer.

And then, it dawned to you who Kakashi was pertaining to as the teenage version of Team 7.

Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke.

Kaminari, Ashido, and Shinsou.

Kami help you if this Shinsou guy pulls a Sasuke somehow.

~*~*~

With a bit of meditating (and sketching some seal concepts here and there to pass time), you eventually regained your full reserves at sometime before midnight. Almost immediately, you regained your shadow clone body, along with Kakashi, and headed straight back to your penthouse to check on your students.

Entering the living room window, you found them huddled around a laptop (you have no idea where they got it, and you don't remember giving them an allowance for it).

"I so won that fight! See those comments?! They're cheering for me!"

"They're calling you Datte-Dobe, though..."

"Moron, we were in an interview; not a sparring match!... And you did not win! I kicked you before Sakura hit us!"

"Ugh, I thought the both of you grew out of this. It's like I'm the babysitter of th--"

Kakashi cleared his throat, and the three instantly turned to face your direction.

"Sensei! Uh, we--" Sakura stumbled on her words to explain, but Naruto quickly grasped for your attention.

"Nee-chan, watch this video and tell us who won! You can be mad at us later!" He exclaimed, carrying the laptop and placing the screen in front of your face.

"We already saw the video; it was on tonight's news," You said, before pushing the laptop screen down, closing it.

"Before you say anything, Naruto started it," Sasuke deadpanned, quickly placing blame.

"Bastard!" Yelled Naruto, but he didn't say anything to refute the noir. At the very least, Naruto acknowledged that it was actually his fault.

"Well, other than our wounded pride as your teachers, the only advice I could give you is to limit the use of shunshin and to not get caught using more than one or two quirks," Kakashi lectured, as if he were a sage, but none of the three bought it.

"Why is your pride wounded? It was only (Y/n)-nee who did most of the teaching," Sasuke accused, glaring at the silver-haired jounin. "If you ask me, she should've been our official jounin sensei,"

"Ah, you see, the keyword there is 'most'. I still contributed. And you know why she can't, she's head of the Seal Corps," Kakashi pointed out, his eyes forming the familiar crescent shapes.

"That's your most pathetic defense yet, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto mumbled lowly, but was still heard by everyone in the room.

"And yet you still call me sensei," Your partner quipped. Your lips formed an amused smile at their back-and-forth banter.

"Only for pity courtesy at this point," Sakura blankly said, as if stating the most obvious fact there is.

"Mou, (Y/n), they're being brats again," Kakashi whined to you, but you only shrugged his complaints.

"Only to you. Can't say I blame them for preferring me; you were kind of a neglectful teacher,"

"You're supposed to side with me as my partner,"

"My relationship with you can't refute the truth,"

For some reason, Kakashi's mind went blank for a short moment and temporarily forgot that there's more to a relationship other than romantic. Recovering from his brief mental lapse, he continued on the conversation with his team, doing his best to push out the image of you in a romantic light at the deepest, darkest recesses of his mind.

The earlier discussions regarding your cancelled engagement doomed him to fail this task, however.

Thankfully, this wasn't his first failure, and he knew how to handle it.

Other than possible rejection, his guilt was enough to keep him from succumbing to his feelings. Although, he found out the hard way that jealousy was harder to reign in than his affections.

Whoever you slept with is probably the luckiest bastard there is.

~*~*~

"Hm, so you actually came," You remarked, seeing the purple-haired boy waiting by the UA gates at the agreed time of 8am (it would seem that a certain explosive blond took the hint that he was not wanted). He was wearing training clothes and holding a gym bag, you further observed.

"Who are you two?" Shinsou asked, eyeing you and Kakashi with scrutiny, before looking at Mina and Denki.

"They're our trainers," Ashido answered with a smile, already having rehearsed what to say in case someone were to ask your relationship with them.

"The dude with white hair probably confused his torturer career with a trainer one," Kaminari mumbled, earning a chop on the head from Kakashi, himself.

"You invited me to train with your trainers?" The General Studies student questioned incredulously.

"Eh, why not, y'know? To prove a point and all that," Mina gave out a half-hearted chuckle.

"And what point is that?" Shinsou probed with a bored expression, but his eyes held subtle skepticism and a bit of interest.

"That you can fight even without an offensive quirk," You responded for Mina, entering their conversation. Shinsou looked at you with barely hidden intrigue at your answer. "Whatever your quirk is, we can use it as a complement to your fighting style,"

My quirk... as an advantage for fighting..? Shinsou pondered at the thought of that. He tried thinking ways around using his quirk creatively for hero work, but the thing is: it all led to a dead end. He'll eventually become predictable. After all, in the hero world, quirks tend to be publicized. If people knew how his quirk works, then who the hell would fall for it? But...

You sounded so sure that you can succeed in this task. Then again, you probably don't know his quirk, much less his problem regarding it.

"My quirk is brainwashing," He didn't know what prompted him to tell you his quirk, especially with the way how Kaminari and Ashido reacted to it, but he continued on anyway. "I can put people in a trance-like state if they reply to whatever I say to them, and have them do simple tasks. However, my quirk breaks off once they get physically hit. My problem is that if I were to be a hero, a public figure, criminals would find out how to avoid getting trapped in my quirk. How can you solve that?"

"Hmm..." You thought for a while, before you pulled your lips into an easy-going smile. "Does the public have to know how your quirk works?"

"Not necessarily. They just happen to know because of recorded videos," Shinsou supplied.

"Have you tried feinting?" You asked innocently, your tone coming off as if it was just a passing thought.

"Excuse me?" He looked confused at your suggestion, but you explained further.

"Feinting. Like, make people think that your quirk works differently,"

"... How?" Your smile turned into a subtle smirk, seeing as his intrigue was no longer hidden.

"Put on a show; a deception," You said, waving your hand around. "Like say, doing things while speaking; maybe moving your hands in a hypnotic manner. Maybe hand signs? Or just a hand sign to make things simpler,"

"I... Huh..." He seemed at a loss of words for how you gave such a simple solution. Why didn't he think of that?

"While at it, I suggest hiding your quirk's capabilities as much as possible. Maybe be an underground hero. While at it, maybe make a public name for your quirk that doesn't match the ones in your record," Shinsou pondered it for a while, before internally shrugging, as he might as well ask you for more ideas.

"Any suggestions?"

"Yeah, call it Genjutsu in public."

At the end of this conversation's topic, Shinsou looked at you with newfound respect, his eyes reflecting his awe. But then, his cynical nature took over.

"And what's in it for you? My training, I mean," He asked suspiciously, but you didn't show signs to be bothered by it.

"Not for us, this is for them," You pointed at Ashido and Kaminari. "We need a measurement for their milestones," For what, you did not expound. Contented with your response, Shinsou neared you and bowed in a ninety degree angle.

"My name is Shinsou Hitoshi. Please train me." You could barely hide your smirk at this point, but managed to reign back control on your facial expression after uttering a simple:

"I'm Uchiha and this is Hatake; your trainers."

...

"I... To be honest, my first impression of you two is a lot different than how you guys actually are," Shinsou told Kaminari and Ashido, while walking their way to your training grounds (ironically, the two started calling it the Forest of Death).

"It's the shades and mask; assume we're like different people the moment we wear them," Mina responded with a sheepish smile, sneaking glances at you and Kakashi.

"Like... dual personalities?" The purple-haired teen asked, with a brow raised.

"It's a training regime they put us in. Don't ask." Kaminari deadpanned, not wanting to explain their... situation.

"I see..."

~*~*~

OMAKE: Teaching Before Team 7 (2/3)

OMAKE 2: Sakura with the Leaf Exercise

Your age: 14

Sakura's age: 7

Returning from a week long mission, you can't wait to get back to your apartment and lie on your bed for the whole day. As a newly promoted jounin, you realized that shinobi of your rank tend to be assigned with long term missions, which can get tiring after a while.

Entering the village gates, you thought about informing Shisui and Itachi of your arrival first, but you have to head to the Hokage tower to submit your mission report. You suppose you could submit your report later, but you'd like to avoid procrastinating to not have your responsibilities pile up. However, whilst passing by the local park, you became a bit... distracted.

"Ohoho, Sasu-cakes has a stalker, it would seem," You mused to yourself, before approaching the pink-haired girl who's watching Sasuke from behind a tree. Walking behind the pinkette, you suddenly grabbed her by her shoulders.

"Boo!"

"Eep!"

Now that you have a good look on Sasuke's watcher, she looked about Sasuke's age (her height reaches your chest), and she's about the cutest kid you've ever seen. Candy pink hair matched with those seafoam green eyes? She definitely looks unique in an exotic way. She's like a doll, it's unreal (she reminds you of a certain pretty boy).

"It would seem that Sasuke would be popular in his upcoming Academy term," You remarked casually, before giving the girl a disarming smile. "Who are you?"

"H-Haruno... Sakura..." She uttered out, obviously embarrassed about being caught in the act.

"Cool, I'm (Y/n). Are you going to be Sasuke's classmate in the academy?" You asked, the girl's appearance being enough to catch the rest of your attention.

"I, umm, no. They... Ami said my forehead is an easy target for enemy nins," She mumbled, her volume close to a whisper. You frowned at her answer.

Self-esteem issues, huh? And about her forehead? That's... weird. You don't see any abnormality in size with her head. However, head-size insecurities aren't new to you.

"Hey, want me to tell you a secret?" You asked, before squatting down to her height. Her curious eyes were enough of an affirmative response for you. "I have a friend who's really embarrassed with his head, so he covers it up with a bandanna or his hitai-ate. He always covers it no matter the occasion because he thinks that his head looks big,"

"He has a hitai-ate? He's a ninja?"

"Oh definitely. One of our best," You confidently stated, proud for your best friend's accomplishments. "You may have heard of him as Shunshin no Shisui, and he's one of the smartest people I know. Though, don't let him know I told you that or he might get more bigheaded," You winked, as she only giggled at your joke.

"Does he really have a big head?" She inquired sheepishly, twiddling her fingers.

"Hmm, maybe? I think he thinks that because of his curly hair giving the illusion that he does," Huh, now that you thought about it, you've never seen Shisui without his hitai-ate; even in your academy days, he has his forehead covered with a bandanna. "Though, even if he does have a big head, I guess it's backed up by that big brain of his. Don't worry, he still looks cute, and so do you," You lightly poked at Sakura's forehead with two of your forefingers, as she beamed at your compliment.

"So... I can still be a ninja even with my big forehead?" She inquired, her voice now growing louder; more confident.

"If you want to," You said, your smile never leaving your face. "I bet you'll be one of your generation's best,"

"I don't have a clan technique though," She murmured, embarrassed with her lack of special skills.

"So?" You scoffed light-heartedly. "Clan techniques don't matter as long as you work smart. Tell you what, I'll give you a head start amongst your future classmates if you want to be an academy student,"

"I want to be an academy student and become a shinobi," She declared, confident in her decision.

"Alright, let's start here," You picked up two stray leaves and handed one to the pinkette. "What I'm about to show you is a chakra exercise. You have small chakra reserves, but you can use that to your advantage. Small reserves mean better chakra control. Observe." You placed your leaf on your cheek and it stuck.

"Woah, how did you do that?!" She exclaimed, before realizing she shouted. Her mortified face matched the color of her red ribbon nestled on top of her head. You chuckled at the cute display.

"Basically, you concentrate your chakra on a specific part of your body-- like my cheek, here," You pointed at the leaf still stuck on your face. "Too much chakra would repel the leaf; too little would make it slip. Try it on your forehead; that's where we usually start since it's directly on a tenketsu,"

Following your instructions, Sakura did as told. It took a few tries before she got it right, and you'll give where credit is due. How long-- or rather, how short it took her to get it right was impressive.

"I-I'm doing it!" She cheered, her interest on Sasuke long forgotten.

"That's amazing, Sakura-chan!" You encouraged, cheering with her.

"May I ask what is amazing?" A new voice asked behind you, making you jump.

"Oh! Hey-- Itachi!" You greeted, now realizing that your 'student' is hiding behind you, her shy demeanor taking over her earlier triumph. Not wanting to lose progress, you immediately introduced them to each other. "Itachi, this is Sakura; Sakura, this is Itachi, Sasuke's older brother,"

"He's so pretty," She mindlessly commented, before realizing her slip-up. "A-ah, I mean--"

"Right?! Haha, that's what I told him too!" You salvaged her from her own embarrassment, hugging Itachi with one arm to show her that he's okay with your antics.

"I see you're back. Have you reported to the Hokage yet?" Itachi asked, his lips forming a small smile at how you seemed to have gained another 'chick'.

"Shoot!" Eyes widening, you instantly detached yourself from Itachi and jumped on top of a nearby tree's branch. "Uh-- Sakura-chan, keep practicing to stick as many leaves as you can! I'll find you to check your progress; Itachi, tell Shisui I just came back! See ya!" And then, you disappeared in fluttering leaves.

She'll come back to see me?, Sakura marveled at the thought that someone would see her worthy of their time, her lips forming into an awed smile. She never had someone like that other than Ino. Are you her friend too?

Then, her gaze went back to the boy who's still staring at where you departed from. The look he's giving reminds her of how her daddy looks at mommy whenever she wasn't looking.

"Why do you wear your hair long?" She wondered aloud, and surprisingly, he answered.

"Because she said it suits me," He simply said, his hand tracing the end of his short ponytail. He recalled the times you would play with his ebony locks, forming it into different hairstyles even when it looked ridiculous on him.

"Are you two together?" The pinkette probed, but the boy didn't mind.

"No,"

Sakura observed that his expression didn't change from its still poker-face, but there's something about his aura that seemed so... lonely.

No, not lonely, she corrected her thoughts. Cold.

Miserable indifference. So miserable that he resorted to just be indifferent.

Short silence passed, before she broke it again.

"Do you want to be?" Sakura innocently inquired, and finally, Itachi looked at her direction.

Itachi was enraptured with her naive question-- with it being so similar with Sasuke's many questions for you and him to be together. Like how he answered Sasuke's inquiries, he only replied either with diversion or with silence. In this case, the latter.

However, he didn't expect for the little girl to be able to understand it; to understand that his answer was a silent 'yes'.

"Why not ask her?"

Itachi entertained the thought of that. The thought of a relationship more than comradery; a relationship with you. He'll be clan head by the time he intends to marry; you being an Uchiha outcast (with a very good shinobi reputation, mind you) is the least of his worries. The elders can whine all they want about sharingan genes being tainted with your 'impure bastard' branch's bloodline, but they can never refute that you're a good match that still has valuable assets that fit the requirement of being a clan head's matriarch.

And... it's not just your integrity and skills as a kunoichi that attracted him to the idea of being your intended.

He usually feels so numb-- like a kunai only to be used for the whims of his clan and village. Always pulling him back-and-forth between the two parties he swore his allegiance to, but he can't help but think that it's only in a matter of time when one of them would point him-- a kunai-- to the other. He's a ticking time-bomb with an already pre-determined devastation blast, and he prays to all Kami above that he wouldn't have to go through with it. He already knows who he'd side with, and he can't help but feel guilt weigh down his shoulders whenever he wakes up in his household; his designated target.

But with you, he feels like none of that mattered. You treat him like any boy of his age-- not a prodigy, not a clan heir, and certainly not a tool. You let him feel, you let him be himself; he feels so human. However...

"Because not everyone gets what they want," He finally answered. "Such is the way of shinobi life,"

But to be human is to make mistakes; to have flaws-- neither he can afford as he is the perfect soldier; the golden boy of the shinobi world. To shatter his picture-perfect reputation is out of the question, because then his brother would be involved to fill in the gaps he missed. He can't do that to his precious otouto.

This is a burden he will shoulder on his own. Only in a time of peace can he pursue what he wants.

Unfortunately, he's a realist. In a shinobi world, he's well-aware that peace is a faraway dream that can't be achieved as long as pride and selfishness exist.

But that's human nature, and to defy it would be impossible.

(He thinks he's the most selfish person there is.)

"That sounds sad..."

Once again, Sakura acknowledged that Itachi's silence meant that he wordlessly agrees.

BONUS OMAKE:

If someone told Itachi years ago that he can get even just a half of his littlest desires, he wouldn't have wasted any more of his time to listen to their nonsense. Instead, he would spend his time in the now rather than the could-have-beens, sending secret messages written in codes to the village he swore his ever-lasting loyalty to.

Repent, regret, but never apologize.

He knew it's useless to ask for forgiveness that will never be granted to him by Konoha's populace. Instead, he will work in the shadows like a good shinobi-- shadows casted by his black and red cloak that spoke poetries of destruction in its wake.

The end goals of the Akatsuki still remains unknown to him.

Nevertheless, he's part of the organization that participates in unnecessary killings that made him curb his pacifistic nature altogether; only resurfacing if it's up to him to cast judgement on the unfortunate souls that his group decided to cross. Fortunately, his partner usually gave him that privilege.

He truly is a terrible person, he can't help but think. A martyr; a lamb bred for slaughter-- what use is he as those roles when someone else suffered even with his contribution? People died because of his sacrifice; his brother suffered because of his sacrifice--

Was he truly the sacrifice? Or was he just the executioner for the sacrifice?

It doesn't matter, he supposed. In the end, he served his due and everything went to pass. Then, he'll serve his role as the sacrificial lamb and have his little brother serve as his executioner and be hailed a hero.

His golden boy status was long soaked with the blood of his sins that has yet to dry; his hands stained with the ghosts of red-- he is far from the reach of redemption. And yet...

How could you touch him as if he's the most fragile and precious thing in the world? How do you not reel in disgust even when you know what he did and what he plans to do?

Why don't you hate him?

The way you kissed him hungrily had him startled at the sudden show of passion, as you climbed on top of him-- the flattened Akatsuki cloak used as a blanket wrinkling at the shift of weight. The forest clearing was peacefully quiet for the night.

He wanted to hold you, but was afraid he'd risk tainting you further with the same hands he used to massacre his clan; his family. Maybe, he thought dreamily, high with an emotion foreign to him, it can be the other way around.

Your gentle hands, like medical ninjutsu, can influence some of your purity to him. Perhaps, he can be affected with your heart still filled with welcoming warmth-- to renew the compassion he once had for others, and not have his beating organ closed only for the people he had previous connections to.

(Highly unlikely, as he can't afford to care for more people than he has to. Hope truly is a fickle thing.)

He sucked in a breath, when he felt your teeth grazing his lower lip, before your lips descended down his neck and eventually his collarbone; his upper clothing was haphazardly thrown away a while ago.

He responded to your actions with meaningless mumbles meant not to be listened but to be heard. Simple sounds that remind you that he is here, with you-- present and alive.

Even when his pain receptors were temporarily numbed, he could still feel you tattooing love bites that whisper empty promises of forever, giving the illusion that your escapism with him would last longer than it could. His time is limited, he acknowledges; his confrontation with his brother is nearing.

And so is your next heartbreak.

When you first knew of his plans, he was baffled when you chose to stay.

An escapism, you said to him. Where in this forest clearing, whenever you meet in your rendezvous, there is no missing-nin, no kinslayer, and no Itachi Uchiha. There is no Seal Corps Head, no Kawauso, and no (Y/n) Uchiha.

Just two individuals who have no past, only the present within the mirage of timeless eternity.

He will let you have your way with him, he finalized to himself.

Like how Kakashi-taichou would ruin himself further by killing for you, Itachi will surrender his already tainted spirit to your whims.

To you, he will submit.

~*~*~

Happy new yearyall and thank you for making 2020 bearable with your support! and omg 7k+ words?! A new record?? Ew, yuck, new year and I'm already punishing myself sksksk

But eyy, I posted an extra omake as a treat for yall being patient with my update! ngl, kinda spicy lmao

Also, I plan on having potential side-ships in this book and here are the available ships:

kaminari x todoroki

sakura x shinsou

naruto x shinsou

ashido x tokoyami

sasuke x tokoyami

ALSO i swear, some of yall are the funniest motherfuckers i ever encountered. you guys dont think i notice because i dont say anything about it, but some of yall's reading list titles had me lose my shit. you guys are the true MVPs; such a unique way to comment on one's work, i absolutely applaud yall.

Here are my top 5 reading lists:

5.) "i know author can see this so u p d a t e" this is one way to tell me to update i guess lol 

4.) "im disgusted in the fandom" cheers to that bro

3.) "pls don't hurt me (emotionally)" this is so funny to me because it implies that a.) i have the capability to hurt them physically and b.) im technically allowed to hurt them physically

2.) "dysfunctional orphans" i checked this reading list, and indeed, all the featured characters are orphans adffghjkk this bitch's sense of humor is fuckin insane im losing it

1.) "virginity is cool" everyone go home, this is the best reading list because this roasted themselves, me, and the majority of my readers. unreal.