"Alright," I started, leaning my back and right foot against a tree and folding my arms. The three genin sat on the grass below me. "Who wants to learn how to walk on water?"

Grins lit up their faces.

"Walk on water?"

"Cool!"

"Alright, settle down. You three have been increasing your physical stamina and strengths from day one, but being a ninja also means that you've mastered your chakra networks. That means, being able to walk on water, and furthermore, having precise control of your element(s), once you learn which chakra type you have."

"Awesome! What's my chakra type, Cashile-sensei?" Aisa exclaimed.

"You'll find out soon enough," I said, pushing myself off of the tree. "Follow me."

I walked down to a running stream, genin trailing behind me. Once we reached our destination, I turned around so that I was facing them.

"Okay you three. Start focusing your chakra in your feet. The important thing to remember once you have that down, is that water flows. What does that mean?"

Michiko's hand shot up. I ignored it. Instead, I looked expectantly over at Kento. "Kento?" I asked, singling him out.

Of course, he paled. His weakness was chakra control, id noticed over the past couple missions.

"Why are you picking on me?" He asked defensively. "Why not Aisa?"

I rolled my eyes. "Not that I have to explain this, but both Aisa and Michiko can answer my question correctly. You on the other hand," to prove my point I nodded to Aisa, giving him permission to speak.

"Since water flows, the amount of chakra I have to concentrate in my feet has to flow, too," he said.

"That's an awkward way of explaining it," I said, "but Aisa has the right idea. Michiko?"

"The chakra in our feet has to change with the water. It can't be steady as if we were standing on solid ground. We would fall into the water if we did that." She confidently explained. Chakra was definitely her strength. Which lead to another question in my mind, what to do about her chakra sensitivity. Since chakra wasn't my expertise I'd have to consult Kakashi or Ibiki on that. Or even Sakura, for that matter.

"When you do that, you mean. Expect to fall into the water a couple of times at least before you get it right," I said. It would have been easier for them if I'd taught them how to walk up trees first, but making things easier wasn't my training style.

"So," I said. "Who's ready to get wet?"

***

Three hours had passed. Michiko was the only one who'd succeeded walking on water so far. She shivered next to me, clinging onto her clothes.

"You can go home, you know. They," I shot a look over to the boys who were flailing repetitively in the water, "aren't allowed to leave until they figure it out. But you're done for the day."

She shook her head vigorously, " I want to be here for support!"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Okay..."

I observed her and the two boys in the water curiously. How did I get a team like this? They genuinely cared for each other in ways that team 7 never did. I didn't care about any of my teammates at that point. I tolerated them. Naruto and Sasuke hated each other. Sasuke left him in the dust to prove it. Sakura mindlessly chased after Sasuke, a boy that would never love her. And Naruto pined after Sakura who flat out rejected him.

Damn.

Team 7 was so screwed up.

"Yes!! Go Aisa!" Michiko cheered next to me. I watched her face flush red as a shirtless Aisa grinned at her from where he stood on the water.

"I wouldn't distract him if I were you," I suggested, raising my eyebrows. They had a connection, that was clear to see.

As if on queue, Aisa slipped through the barrier and his head disappeared under water.

I yawned.

Michiko climbed a tree behind me—the civilian way—and flipped upside down on a branch. "You got this, guys! Remember to keep the chakra in your feet shifting!"

I glanced up at her. "You know you're not getting any brownie points from me for staying, right? In fact, I think it's stupid that you're still out here freezing in your wet clothes."

Michiko stuck her tongue out at me. "I'm not staying here for you," she sniped.

I shook my head. "Whatever."

Silence settled between us, only broken by Michiko's cheers and the splashing as the boys failed.

"Hey, Cashile-sensei?" And wasn't it still strange to hear someone call me that? "What chakra nature do you have?"

At Michiko's question, both Aisa and Kento pause, listening in.

"I bet you have some super cool awesome nature that no one else has!" Aisa grinned.

"Like Shadows!" Kento replied.

"Or Spirit!" Aisa wiggled his fingers here, making and "ooooh" noise.

"Those don't even exist, dummies!" Michiko rolled her eyes. "I bet she has Lava, like that one Kage has!"

"Uh," I cut in, "first off, Lava style is a Kekkei Genkai. Secondly, I actually have Lightning."

Michiko slipped off her branch. Both the boys slipped back underwater.

"But that's so boring," Aisa complained.

I raised an eyebrow. "Let's see how boring you think it is while I'm electrocuting you," I responded.

Michiko righted herself thoughtfully. "Do you have a second one, Sensei?" She questioned. "I know some jonin do."

"Not yet," I replied after a long pause. "Shinobi tend to only have an affinity for one nature, but with a lot of time and training, they could, technically, master all five."

The three genin stared at me. "Has anyone ever actually mastered all five?" Michiko asked.

"A few," I replied after a moments hesitation. "But you guys won't even be able to dream about that if you're not able to walk on water. So get back to work!"

***

It was dark out, and Kento still hadn't managed to master walking on water.

"Go home, Aisa, Michiko," I sighed. They made as if to protest, and I added, "That's an order. Go. Now."

They paled, glanced over to Kento, but all the same scampered away. I turned to Kento, who was holding on to the edge of the riverbank; I'd chosen an area with a rather sudden drop off.

"Get out of the water," I said. He complied reluctantly.

"I can get it," Kento insisted sullenly. "Just give me a few more tries."

I studied him closely, not speaking. The only sound for several moments was of water droplets hitting the earth.

"I can do it," Kento insisted once more. This time, he sounded close to tears. "Just... Just don't give up on me, right?"

I could hear the unspoken "please" at the end of the sentence. Blinking once, I tilted my head. Did he even realize how much he was revealing?

"You really suck at controlling chakra," I noted blandly.

He dropped his face, and a single tear leaked out of his eye. I ignored it, pretending that it was simply a drop of water trailing onto his cheek from his hair. What must it be like, to feel so inept?

I sighed. "Don't bother trying to walk on the water again."

His face fell even more, eyes shuttering off all emotions. He gives me a nod, face stiff; not at all like the emotionless mask I had perfected. He started past me, shoulders slumped and face pale, looking utterly defeated.

I raised an eyebrow and rested my hands on my hips. "Where do you think you're going?"

Kento looked at me-- sullen, exhausted, weary.  "I thought I was supposed to go home. It's late; I failed."

I walked over to Kento and flicked his forehead--hard. "Idiot," I glared at him. "What gave you the impression that you should give up?"

His face brightened suddenly, cautious hope entering his eyes. "You did say I should bother to try and walk on water again," he pointed out, tone meek but growing stronger.

I nodded. "Yeah, I did," I admitted. "But that's because you're going to train your chakra differently. I skipped a step in chakra control exercises and threw you right into walking on water."

Kento's hopeful expression collapsed into a scowl. "I want to be able to walk on water," he replied petulantly. "There's no way I'm letting Michiko and Aisa get ahead of me."

I lifted an eyebrow at his childish complaints. "If you want to walk on water, you'll do as I say."

"Fine," he snapped, arms crossed. "What is it?"

I decide to show instead of tell, and walk up the tree beside me. "The tree is solid. You don't have to constantly adjust the flow of chakra to your feet; once you get the right amount, just keep it steady."

"Okay," Kento agreed as I walked back down.

I dropped a hand on Kento's shoulder. "The hardest area to control one's chakra in is the feet," I informed him. "Don't feel badly that you haven't gotten it right away. Once you break through this barrier, everything will come more easily."

"Really?" Kento asked, voice fragile. I realize that this is the first time I have offered any one of my genin comfort of any sort.

Knowing that Kento couldn't see, I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, sure. Really. Just don't give up again. That sort of weakness disgusts me."

For some reason, those harsh words brought a large smile to Kento's face.

***

"Unbelievable! You're listening to Kakashi?" I glared at Lady Tsunade, because Kakashi wasn't here to glare at.

Tsunade' grip tightened on the pen she was holding. So easily angered. Predictable.

"I make my own decisions. I believe your team is best suited to go on this mission," she said.

"To escort a family to a neighboring country. It's practically an C ranked mission, if not D." There was absolutely nothing mysterious about this family. No excitement, thrill or lurking shadows. This was just a security job for an ordinary family. It was an insult to label it C rank.

"We finally get a mission and it's not even a proper mission. Agh!" I exclaimed, frustrated. I was going to seriously injure Kakashi. "Meanwhile team seven got that reconassaince bridge mission! Why couldn't I have gone on that?" I didn't bother to argue that my genin should have been added to that high level mission. "You claimed that me taking this team wouldn't get in the way of my personal growth or missions!"

The mission itself I wasn't actually that upset about. It was the timeline in which it was given. My team in particular had been kept in town for a while, as other teams progressed and went on actual missions. And now that we were finally receiving a mission, it was a bullshit one.

"This will be your mission. This is final," Tsunade said sternly, ending on a biting note.

I suddenly let my face go blank. "Is that all?"

Tsunade peered at me curiously, but not in an obvious way. Only I would be able to tell that my sudden shift in actions bothered her slightly.

"Yes... you're dismissed," she replied.

I disappeared out of sight. Once I was on the street, I sighed, exasperated. I was going to hear a mouthful from the genin tomorrow morning. They were sick of these shit missions, too.

***

"Go home and pack."

That's how I greeted the genin the next morning.

Aisa let out a whoop. "Finally! What rank is this mission?"

"C," I replied. "But don't let that fool you. It's D rank at best."

Michiko smiled slightly. "But at least it's outside of the village, yeah?" She murmured. "You were going stir-crazy, sensei."

"You." I pointed at her. "Shut up."

She smiled.

"What's the mission, anyways?" Aisa asked. "How long should it take?"

"We're just escorting a family back to their home country. Merchants. Apparently, they made enough on this venture they might be targeted by more organized criminal groups. Maybe."

Aisa shrugged. "Cool. Better than the shit they usually give us."

"Aisa," I reprimanded. "Language."

Michiko snickered. "Yeah, Aisa. Language. It's not like sensei says worse, or anything."

I rolled my eyes. "Do as I say and all that crap. Go home and pack, and meet back here," I ordered. "Questions? Kento, you've been quiet. What do you think?"

He dug the toe of his sandal into the ground, making little furrows in the dirt. "How long is this mission gonna take?" He asked.

"What?" I snapped. "Is there something you'd rather be doing?"

He just stared up at me with wide, blue eyes.

"The mission should take four, maybe five days, tops," I answered. "Now, everyone, go pack!"

"Hai!"

__________________________

Sorry

Sorry

Sorry

It's been a super long wait I KNOW but also school has been hard and stuff so it's been hard to write! We'll try to get another update out soon, but I make no promises :/

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So sorry we're so lateee.

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