"And that's how I fell into Konoha," you finish explaining to Sandaime, who merely listens quietly as he puffs tiny wisps of smoke into the air after removing the pipe from his lips.

"Interesting," he states without saying more, and as another stifling silence looms over the room, you fidget in your seat in front of him, drawing your attention to his pipe as he brings it once again to his mouth to inhale.

"You know, smoking is really bad for you, that it is," you mutter. "Are you smoking weed or something?" He arches a white eyebrow at you and puffs defiantly, blowing even more smoke into the already misty room. "It's a scientific fact that second hand smoke is really bad for those around you, and if it's weed you're smoking, that stuff can really make you high-"

"Are you here for help or to lecture me about how I should live?" he interrupts, more amused than angry.

"Sorry," you mutter, your eyes downcast.

"Your story is interesting," he continues, after sputtering on smoke that had gone down the wrong way. "Kakashi-kun seems to believe you, and as far as I can tell, I feel no ill will coming from you. However, Konoha and its villagers are dear to me, and I will have to take precautions. You will have to stay with someone who can keep an eye on you and at the same time, keep an eye on the Chuunin exam as well. If you do in fact know the future, then we will not allow you to leave our sight."

"You make me sound like I'm some sort of criminal!" you protest hastily, very upset with the idea of having a nanny watching your every move. You've had enough of it living at home, and now that you've gotten older and your parents have eased a little, you're not about to go back to being babied.

"It is also for your safety," he says calmly, and you hang your head in defeat, knowing he is right.

"So, who will it be, then?" you ask. "Can I stay with Kakashi-sensei?"

"HELL YEAH!" Inner-Self screams at the idea. More glomping sessions with your favorite Jounin is just what you need-

"No," Sandaime smiles sardonically. "I think you will be best off with one of our special Jounin, who will also be conducting the 2^nd part of the Chuunin Exam-"

"Oh no, Hokage-sama, you don't mean-"

"Yes. Your temporary guardian will be Anko."

"Oro?!" you exclaim. "But why? She scares me-"

"Which is why you won't defy anything she orders you to do." The old man looks quite pleased with himself, and you want badly to hurl something at him, but you inhale and exhale slowly to calm yourself, only to take in a huge amount of the smoke that's drifting inside the room. You cough and glare daggers at the Hokage while he merely smiles at you. "You will be able to wait with her in the tower in the middle of the Forest of Death where she can keep a close watch on you and on the Chuunin exam at the same time. That way, potential enemies will have to pass through the 2^nd part just to get to you, and that won't be an easy feat." He pauses a moment as if to consider something before he speaks again. "Do you have any ninja skill at all? Do you know any ninjutsu, taijutsu, or genjutsu of any kind? What training have you had?"

You gulp.

"I honestly don't know if I have any skill at all in the art of war," you reply. "I am dressed like a ninja," -you grimace inwardly at your horrible luck with the green bodysuit- "and the body that I acquired when I fell here is actually quite slim and muscular, so it seems as though I'm fit to fight." You frown as your fingers trace over the headband protector covering your waist. "However, I'm not one who would like to hurt anyone. If anything, I would like to avoid any situation in which I would have to kill or be killed. But if I have to train in order to be less of a burden to Anko-san, then I will do so."

"Do you know how to mold chakra?"

"Not particularly. I don't even know how that process begins."

"Then maybe we should have you focus more on taijutsu before the start of the actual exam, and I know just the person to help you." Your stomach sinks lower as a person comes to mind, and when you see the crafty smile on Hokage-sama's face, you know only too well that he's thinking of the exact same shinobi. You stand up from your seat, feeling quite dejected.

"Fine. So where can I find Gai-sensei?"

"I'm happy to see you cooperate-"

"If I didn't have so much respect for you, I surely would like to kick your ass right now," you mutter under your breath in a low voice.

"Too bad we don't have time for that as I would enjoy to see you try," he replies cheerfully, and he calls out to Kakashi who is waiting just outside the room. When he enters, you feel your spirits lift at the sight of him and try to calm Inner-Self's urges to glomp the gray-haired man once more.

"Kakashi-san," Hokage addresses, "take our lovely guest here to Gai-san. It seems she needs a bit of training."

"Gai?" Kakashi is perplexed but he nods in acquiescence and motions for you to follow him, which you do not mind at all as it gives you a lovely view of his well proportioned backside. The two of you take your leave, and you instantly notice Naruto and Sasuke's absence.

"Uhm, Kakashi-san, where is Naruto-kun and Sasuke-kun?" you wonder.

"They are at the hospital right now visiting Sakura," he answers, and although you really having nothing against Sakura, you feel a slight twinge of jealousy.

"Why aren't you at the hospital with them?" you ask curiously.

"I wanted to see what Hokage-sama would decide with what to do with you," he says, shrugging. "Sakura isn't seriously injured, and I thought it best if I stay behind instead of having to inform another person of your�circumstances. I think it's better not having to explain it to more people than we have to. People might get crazy if they knew you knew of the future�"

You two fall into a comfortable silence as you walk through the village, and you gape in wonderment at the shops lining the corners, and you nearly squeal when you pass the flower shop the Yamanaka family owns. As you walk further and further along, it suddenly begins to dawn on you that you are actually IN Konoha, in the very village you've always had an odd fascination with from the moment you had picked up the Naruto manga. Kakashi notes your excitement and smiles at you from behind his mask, and you feel your fingers itch at wanting to glomp the poor man once again.

The mantra continues in your head as Kakashi leads you away from the busy streets and onto a more rugged path leading to a trail through the forest. As the trees clear away to an open training ground, you recognize the group of four standing in the middle next to three large wooden pillars.

"Oi, Kakashi, what an unexpected surprise!" Gai calls out to the two of you as you both make your way over to them. Gai lifts a thick eyebrow as he looks at your curiously, and you feel your cheeks burn at being under the scrutiny of the four new faces.

"I need to speak with you for a minute, Gai," Kakashi says with no further preamble, and without another word, the two Jounins walk off to the side, talking in hushed tones, leaving you to face Gai's team on your own.

"Hi!" Tenten sticks her hand out to you as she smiles, and you are taken aback by her friendly nature. She doesn't receive much time in the anime nor in the manga, so you don't know much about her. However, she looks exactly like she does in the pictures you've seen of her, and you grin back. "I'm Tenten! What's your name?" You tell her, and she nods. "It's nice to meet you!"

"Uhm�"

You look slightly to your left at the small utterance and you see a blushing Rock Lee looking back at you.

"I'm Rock Lee."

"�Hi." You give him a faint, weary smile when his eyes light up, and his cheeks turn into an even brighter red.

"You're very pretty! You have EXCELLENT fashion sense, by the way!"

"�Thanks."

Suddenly, in a wave of exuberance, he shrieks and spins around, before extending out his arm and sticking out his hand, giving you a thumbs-up. You shrink away slightly as he beams his megawatt smile at you.

"Do you want to go out with me?!" He asks urgently, as if his life depends on it. "I'll promise to protect you with my life!!!"

"What?!" you respond immediately, feeling a sweatdrop drip down from your left temple. "You're supposed to like someone else-"

"Huh?"

"�Nothing."

"�Uhm-"

"Woo hoo!!! Alright!!! Yes!!!" Lee jumps up and down, pumping his fist into the air, as if he had suddenly scored in football. He continues his celebration, and more sweatdrops appear on your brow as you stare at him in disbelief.

"Is he always like this?" you whisper to Tenten.

"Unfortunately, yes." She shakes her head at him, though Lee is too preoccupied at the moment with his happiness that he misses out on her gesture.

"�Uhm, Lee-san?" you say hesitantly, and he instantly stops, turning his attention to you, and you recoil at his sudden attention.

"Yes, anata?"

'NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!' Inner-Self's protests are driving you insane, and you inwardly threaten her life with carrots if she doesn't stop. The inner turmoil ends abruptly.

"�Uhm, Lee-san, I didn't say yes."

Lee blinks. "�what?"

"She doesn't like you, baka," a voice cuts in and you look to your right at the silent Hyuuga Neji, who has been standing much further from the group.

"Neji!" you exclaim in surprise, and his almost transparent eyes narrow at you suspiciously.

"How'd you know my name?" he demands coolly. "We've never met before."

"Uhm, well�" You shift uncomfortably on your feet. His heavy gaze is on you, and now that you actually get to experience the weight of the Byakugan, you don�t like it one bit.

"Who doesn't know about you, Neji?" Tenten cuts in, and you flash her a grateful smile. "You�re a genius after all."

"�I guess." With that, Neji closes his eyes and crosses his arms across his chest as if to dismiss you from his presence, and although he is devilishly handsome (Inner Self is urging you to glomp him just once), his arrogance irritates you. However, you have no time to dwell on his rudeness as you hear someone call out your name...er rather, your new nickname.

"Oi, Redhead!"

"Oro?!"

Gai is coming back, and you whip around to see Kakashi wave good-bye before disappearing in a cloud of smoke. Watching your favorite Jounin leave saddens you, though you quickly become distracted as Gai kneels before you, his hands quickly reaching out to your arms.

"Even though your outfit is IMPECCABLE, you're really a puny, little thing, aren't you?" he concludes as his fingers probe your forearms.

"Oro?!"

"What special training have you had?" he questions, letting your arms drop to your sides. You tell him exactly what you had told Hokage-sama before, and Gai nods in quiet contemplation.

"Alright!" he suddenly yelps, and you jump back in surprise. When watching the anime or reading the manga, you always thought that Gai was a really, funny sort of guy, but now, after meeting him in person, his over-excitable personality is a little intimidating�scary even. "First things first! Kick the wooden pillar 2000 times! And if you can't, you have to jump rope 2000 times!"

"Oro?!"

"Don't worry, anata, we can train together!" Rock Lee grabs your arm and drags you to a spot next to him as he begins his kicks. "See! It's not that bad!" He winks at you, and a slight chill flows down your spine, but you shake it off as you study his technique and attempt to copy him. Tenten shakes her head once more before turning back to Neji who nods at her to continue her assault of weapons on him.

By your fourteenth kick, you lose your balance, and suddenly the only things in your line of vision are the bottom of the wooden pillar and Gai-sensei's sandal-clad foot. Your head is spinning out of control at the impact of your face hitting the ground, and you groan in pain.

"Anata!" Lee is on his knees beside you, his huge eyes wide with concern.

"Redhead! You okay?" Gai's face appears next to Lee's, and you want to recoil back, though you can't move your head any further into the ground. The combination of Lee and Gai's faces pressed close to yours is too much, and you find yourself getting dizzy from the overexposure to thick eyebrows. Their faces seem to blend together, and it doesn't help one bit that the breath is knocked out of you. The lack of oxygen is beginning to make you hallucinate.

"Ororororo�"

"Oi, Redhead!!"

"Anata!"

"I want a reverse-blade sword, that I do, Kaoru-dono," you mumble to the obscure image of two faces before the thick-brows clouding your vision becomes too much and your eyes roll back as you faint.

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