The next morning, Hana was already up before her alarm. Her stomach twisted in knots—the kind of nerves that came with the weight of knowing today could change everything.

She stood in the bathroom, struggling to tie her hair up. Her curls refused to cooperate, and the hair tie had snagged deep in the strands.

A soft knock, followed by a familiar voice, pulled her from her frustration.

"Everything alright?" Minato asked, poking his head in the doorway.

"Peachy," Hana muttered, yanking at the tie again.

Minato walked in with a small smile and gently helped her untangle it. He didn't say much—he never needed to—but his quiet patience made the knot in her chest ease just a little.

"It's not even fair that I'm the only one in the family with curly hair," she huffed as he freed the tie. "I don't even know where it came from."

Minato gave her a vague, unreadable smile. "It suits you."

That was all he said before he left the bathroom. Hana frowned at the mirror, brushing through her hair again before tying it up in her usual high ponytail.

But the longer she stared at herself, the more her confidence wavered. Her red hair felt too bright, too loud. The same hair Naomi mocked her for. The same color that got her bullied back when she first arrived in the village.

She looked away.

"Hana, you're going to be late!" Kushina's voice called from the other room.

Hana rushed out, grabbed a piece of toast, and glanced around to make sure no one was watching. She opened the fridge, raised the milk carton to her lips—

"I told you not to drink from the carton," Kushina said sharply from behind her.

Hana froze, eyes wide. "Uh... sorry?"

Kushina gave her the mom-stare, then turned away like nothing happened. "Good luck today, by the way."

Hana blinked. The shift in tone was classic Kushina. She pulled on her boots, muttered a quick thanks, and stepped outside.

Kurenai and Anko were waiting for her by the gate.

"You ready?" Kurenai asked.

Hana nodded, but her eyes scanned the road. No sign of Obito.

"Looking for him?" Anko asked.

"Yeah. He was supposed to meet me."

"Bet he ran off with Rin again," Anko shrugged. "He's been doing that a lot."

"I'm tired of it," Hana said under her breath. "Every time he sees her, it's like I disappear."

Kurenai didn't say anything, but her silence said enough.

By the time they arrived at the academy, Obito still hadn't shown up. Hana tried to ignore the gnawing in her chest. She sat at their usual spot, but the seat next to her stayed empty.

As if on cue, Naomi walked past with a smirk.

"Poor Hana. All alone again."

Hana clenched her jaw and said nothing.

Then Rin walked in. She smiled and took the empty seat beside her.

"Hey. Where's Obito?" Rin asked.

"I thought he was with you," Hana said, a little sharper than intended.

Rin blinked but kept her tone friendly. "Nope. I figured he was walking with you. Maybe he overslept."

She kept talking, clearly trying to be nice, but Hana answered with short, clipped replies. Rin didn't push.

Then something soft bounced off the back of Hana's head.

She blinked, pulled a crumpled paper ball from her ponytail, and turned around.

Naomi. Smirking.

Hana rolled her eyes, but then another one hit her. And another.

A tick mark appeared on her forehead.

She stood up slowly, gathering the paper balls in her hands. "Keep throwing them," she said coldly. "See what happens."

When another one hit her again, Hana lost it.

"That's it!"

She stormed toward Naomi, but before she could swing, someone grabbed her arms from both sides. One of them was Rin. The other was some kid she didn't recognize—bushy eyebrows, red scarf, way too much energy for this early in the morning.

"Let me go!" she barked. "She asked for it!"

Naomi looked smug. "Aww, what happened, Red? Hair too tight today?"

"Say that again—"

"Let it go," Rin said gently. "You'll just get in trouble. That's what she wants."

Hana growled under her breath but let herself be pulled away. She slumped into her seat, arms crossed.

The boy who had helped suddenly brightened. "Such passion! Such youth! You should totally train with me!"

"Who are you?" Hana asked, confused.

"Might Guy!" he said proudly, giving a blinding smile and a dramatic thumbs-up. "The Handsome Devil of the Leaf!"

Rin blinked. "Does he always talk like this?"

"I'm starting to think so."

Then another voice joined in—cool, quiet, and far too calm.

"Guy, don't you have anything better to do?"

Hana turned to see Kakashi Hatake leaning against the doorway. His tone was unreadable as usual, but the slight tilt of his head screamed unimpressed.

Guy's face lit up. "Jealous already, Kakashi? Afraid you've got competition for a new rival?"

Kakashi stared at him for a beat. "Did you say something?"

Guy deflated instantly.

Hana bit back a smirk.

Eventually, the instructor entered the classroom, clipboard in hand.

"Alright, class. Today marks your official graduation as genin. You've worked hard, but the journey ahead will only get tougher."

He began calling students to the front for their transformation jutsu.

"Hana Uzumaki."

Hana stood up. Her legs felt shaky, but she walked to the front and formed the hand signs with practiced ease. In a puff of smoke, she transformed into a perfect copy of the instructor.

He smiled. "You pass."

She returned to her seat, beaming as he handed her a brand-new forehead protector. Naomi rolled her eyes as she walked by, but Hana only smirked at her.

After the tests were done, the instructor cleared his throat.

"Now for team assignments. Due to the size of the graduating class, some teams will be made up of four."

Hana silently begged not to be put with Naomi.

"Team Seven: Hana Uzumaki, Kakashi Hatake, Obito Uchiha, and Rin Nohara."

Her stomach sank.

Of course, she was going to be stuck between her best friend and his crush. And Kakashi? She'd heard plenty about his lone wolf attitude. This was going to be fun.

Rin turned toward her as they stood.

"Well, looks like it's us girls together," she said with a soft smile. "I still can't believe Obito missed graduation."

"Me either," Hana muttered.

Their instructor handed Rin an extra headband. "Give this to him when you see him."

They waited outside the academy gate. Hana sat on the steps, twisting the new headband in her hands. Rin leaned against the wall beside her.

Soon, Obito came sprinting toward them, out of breath and nearly falling over.

"You're late," Hana said flatly.

"I know!" he panted.

"I can't believe you, Obito," Rin scolded. "You missed the whole thing."

"There was this old lady—I had to help her," he explained.

Rin raised an eyebrow. "You sure have a lot of those lately."

"They keep ambushing me," Obito insisted.

"So it's premeditated now?" Hana asked.

He didn't answer, still catching his breath. Rin helped him up and led him inside. The instructor was gone, but Rin found the paper Obito had missed and handed it to him.

He looked at it like it was the most important thing in the world.

"Congratulations, Obito," Rin said softly.

Hana stepped forward and handed him the headband.

Obito took it with trembling fingers. His eyes welled with tears, and he wiped them quickly.

"No one else may've seen it," he whispered, "but this means more than getting it from the Hokage."

"Time to shape up," Rin said, patting his shoulder. "We're genin now."

Obito nodded, still emotional.

Hana stayed a step behind as they left to meet their new sensei.

Team Seven had officially begun.

And with it, so had everything she was afraid to feel.