The Overused Bell Test

Konoha, Hokage's Office.

"You told him everything?" Wearing the Hokage hat, Hiruzen Sarutobi lit his pipe and carefully read through Mitarashi Zixiao's mission report. It was filled with information about Duke, including the awakening of his Kekkei Genkai and everything that had happened the previous night.

"Yes, Lord Hokage." Mitarashi Zixiao nodded decisively, offering no defense for himself.

"Weren't you afraid he would hate this village because of it?" Hiruzen Sarutobi puffed on his pipe one breath after another, his face shrouded in smoke. His sharp gaze bore into Mitarashi Zixiao as the authority unique to the Hokage surged to its peak.

"I was more afraid that he would be disappointed in me..." Ignoring Hiruzen Sarutobi's imposing presence, Mitarashi Zixiao spoke from the bottom of his heart. "As a ninja, I'm not qualified... but I don't regret it. I'm willing to bear all the consequences caused by this, whatever they may be."

Another Sakumo? Hiruzen Sarutobi fell silent.

Mission or emotions—this was a choice every ninja would face. Ninjas were regarded as emotionless tools, or rather, emotionless tools were considered the ideal ninja template. But before becoming tools, ninjas were people. And as long as they were people, no one could completely erase their feelings.

"Lord Hokage..."

Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi remain grimly silent, Mitarashi Zixiao could not help speaking, only to be interrupted before he could finish.

"I'm not blaming you. This mission could be considered a failure, but it could also be considered a success. Because you gave that child bonds. You taught that child the Will of Fire! You did well!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi raised his head and smiled. "That is what a true Konoha ninja should be."

"Thank you, Lord Hokage!"

"Don't thank me. But now that the child has awakened Hōzuki's Bloodline, the team leader I had arranged for him is no longer suitable. Minato is excellent, and I trust him deeply, but after last night..."

"What do you mean?"

"The new team leader must be very familiar with that child. There must be bonds between them."

"Is there a Jonin in Konoha who knows Duke that well?" Mitarashi Zixiao had a bad feeling about this.

"Hasn't there always been one?" Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled like a fox. "Though the identity may be unsuitable, that is no problem. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures!"

"Starting today, I will be your Jonin Instructor." Mitarashi Zixiao stood expressionless and utterly dispirited. Just moments ago, he, the Anbu Captain, had been removed from his position. The vice captain would temporarily take over as captain and assume full responsibility for all Anbu affairs. He had been demoted to a special Anbu consultant—and only in name.

I thought you said you weren't blaming me? Where did the most basic trust between people go? The other two on this team are the Hokage's younger son and the daughter of the current acting Anbu Captain. Amazing, truly amazing. Add in the adopted son of the former Anbu Captain, and what a lineup of second-generation bigshots. That kid really is a pitfall. My knees have already suffered compound fractures. I'll probably have to spend the rest of my life crawling on them!

On the rooftop, the purple-haired middle-aged man in a Jonin vest faced Hokage Rock, tears filling the corners of his eyes. Lord Hokage, did you bring me here to be a babysitter? The inherited ninja arts of those two brats are enough to keep them learning for a lifetime. Do they really need me to teach them ninjutsu?

"Nice to meet you. I'm Konoha Jonin, Mitarashi Zixiao!"

Duke stared blankly at the dejected purple-haired man before him. That shouldn't be right. You always seemed so busy. How do you have time to lead a team? Keep neglecting your duties like this, and you'll lose your job.

Just moments earlier, amid Asuma's cheers, Aida-sensei had announced that Duke, Asuma, and Kurenai would form a new team. Then the zombie-faced purple-haired teacher had led them onto the rooftop.

"My team leader and guardian are the same person? Isn't that a huge loss for me? I want an excellent Jonin teacher with good character too!" Duke gazed up at the sky mournfully.

"I know this guy. He often comes to my house to drink tea with my dad... and his surname is Mitarashi too..." Asuma whispered to the other two, then fixed Duke with an intense stare.

"He's my adoptive father. It's a sad story, really!" Duke waved a hand, his face full of disdain.

"I see! But he doesn't look very motivated. Is that really okay?" Kurenai looked worried. Having two strange people on the team was already bad enough. She had not expected their team leader to be even less reliable.

"..." Mitarashi Zixiao. Kids these days really are... Can I hit them? I probably can, right?

"First, let's introduce ourselves! Things like what you like, what you dislike, your dreams, hobbies, and so on. That way, everyone can get to know each other better." Mitarashi Zixiao pulled himself together and clapped his hands, drawing the attention of the three whispering children. "Teacher will go first!"

"I already said this. My name is Mitarashi Zixiao. Yes, I'm Duke's adoptive father. There's nothing I particularly like. What I dislike is... Duke. My dreams and hobbies are classified, so I cannot disclose them."

"..." Duke. Other than hating me, that was the same as saying nothing. Just how much do you hate me?

"..." Asuma and Kurenai. Other than learning that their family situation was complicated, they had learned nothing. What was the point of that introduction?

"Now then, we'll start from the right. Introduce yourselves one by one!"

"My name is Yūhi Kurenai. My favorite food is wasabi octopus. I dislike sweets, such as cake. My dream is to become a powerful female ninja like Lady Tsunade, and my hobby... is probably studying Illusion Techniques!" Kurenai introduced herself first, looking shy in a rather adorable way.

"So Kurenai dislikes sweets. I never knew... No wonder she threw the cake I gave her into the trash last time. I was depressed for days. So it was because I picked the wrong gift." Asuma pulled out a little notebook from his Blade Tool pouch and recorded every word Kurenai had said.

"I don't think Kurenai threw your cake into the trash entirely because she dislikes sweets." Duke leaned over to look at Asuma's little notebook and spoke quietly.

"What do you mean?"

"Kurenai was raised strictly. She's always polite and courteous, so even if she hated cake, she wouldn't throw it into the trash right in front of you. What she hates isn't the cake... it's probably you!"

"..."

Asuma's face fell into despair, but he quickly rallied again. At Zixiao's reminder, he stood up and said, "My name is Sarutobi Asuma. I like..."

Asuma secretly glanced at Kurenai beside him. The moment he noticed her looking back, he immediately stared straight ahead and continued, "My favorite food is sausage. I dislike sweets, especially cake. As for my dream... it's to play shogi... with a girl I like."

Playing shogi with a girl he liked... What an innocent dream! Duke wondered what he himself would do if he were with a girl he liked. Did that even need thinking? What else could I do besides the girl?

"Mm... ah! Shogi is a fine hobby!" Zixiao praised him insincerely. As expected of the Third Hokage's son. It runs in the family. He's already trying to pick up girls at such a young age, though his skills are a little lacking.

"My name is Mitarashi Duke. There's nothing I particularly like or dislike. As for dreams... I don't seem to have any. And as for hobbies... I have a wide variety of them."

"..." Kurenai. Didn't that only tell us your name? As expected of a family—they even have the same style of self-introduction.

"..." Asuma. I don't understand it, but it sounds impressive.

"..." Zixiao. From now on, I'll have to face this troublesome brat even during the day. The time I spend getting dragged into trouble has doubled. Just thinking about it is giving me a headache!

"Cough, cough!" The atmosphere sank into awkward silence, and Zixiao coughed twice to end it.

"Now that everyone has introduced themselves and gotten to know one another, the Shixiao Squad is officially established as of today!" Zixiao stood and led the three toward Konoha's training grounds. "Today, we have a mission that must be completed, a mission only the Shixiao Squad can complete."

"We already have a mission? Great! What is it, assassinating the Third Hokage?" Asuma asked excitedly.

"It's just an exercise, not a dangerous mission. Besides, Konoha's ninjas cannot assassinate Lord Hokage... Don't ever say that again!" Zixiao forced a smile. The brat's words put quite a bit of pressure on him, even though he sometimes wanted to do the same.

"What? That's so boring!" Asuma said unhappily.

The four talked as they walked and soon reached the training grounds. After going deeper inside, they stopped beside a small river.

"I have two bells in my hand. Your mission is to take them from me before nightfall. There are three of you, but only two bells. That means one of you will be judged to have failed the mission. Whoever fails will return to the Academy and repeat the year. In other words, at least one person will be eliminated. Of course, all three of you may be eliminated." Zixiao tied the two bells around his waist, his smile fading as he spoke sternly. "If you don't come at me with the resolve to kill me, you won't get the bells. There is no holding back in a ninja's battle."

"But..." Kurenai hurriedly pointed to the forehead protector on her head and asked, "Haven't we already become officially registered Genin?"

"As your Jonin Instructor, I have the authority to revoke your ninja status."

"How could this be?" Asuma was shocked, gritting his teeth. He had finally passed the graduation exam and been placed in the same team as Kurenai. If he really got eliminated, his old man at home... Even if it cost him his life, he absolutely could not be eliminated.

Duke scratched his head without the slightest trace of panic. The bell-grabbing routine could be said to be a Konoha tradition. Jiraiya and Naruto had both gone through it. The purpose of the mission was not for the Genin to take the bells from their Jonin Instructor, but to display their abilities before their teacher. The difference was that Hiruzen Sarutobi valued a team's basic strength, while Kakashi cared more about the unity of the team members.

"Sensei, is it okay if we use kunai?" Duke suddenly asked. As he drew Zixiao's attention, he threw the kunai in his hand and rapidly formed hand seals.

A breeze swept past him. A large hand landed on Duke's shoulder as Zixiao said, "I knew you'd try that, kid. Don't rush. There's plenty of time. You can only attack after I say start!"

So fast... When did he get behind me?

Duke released his hand seals in disbelief. He had not been this fast last time. Was he holding back? If Jonin were all this fast, just how fast was the Yellow Flash?

"So fast!" Asuma and Kurenai turned to look at Zixiao, swallowing hard. Their eyes could not keep up with him at all. Could they really take the bells?

"Begin!"