And The Underclassmen Are Flashing Hot And Cool

"... sensei, wake up..."

A scant few sunrays glared past the gaps in the blinders, and Momika realized she had overslept for her first day of class.

How much, though? It was enough for Nana, her roommate and pupil, to become worried. But that alone didn't mean much. Nana was a skittish girl, so Momika could have anywhere between ten minutes and one hour on her clock.

"... sensei..."

"... 'm up," she mumbled, and the hand on her shoulder left.

As it turned out, she had thirty minutes. Bathing was the most bothersome affair, as she had waited to wash her hair until today, but no longer had the luxury to let it dry properly. Improvising by heating up her brush with Fire style only ruined the bristles. For clothes, she defaulted to her usual red dress, unsure of how much physical activity awaited her, and avoiding anything that would restrict her movements. Based on hearsay she gathered from academy kids in Kumogakure over the years, initiation day was mostly introductions and softball theory lessons, but Getsugakure had been nonstandard in their methods so far...

"Is this good, sensei?"

The girl behind her was proof of it.

"Mm-hm."

Standing before the bathroom mirror, and with another mirror leaning against a wall, Momika spotted Nana's adjustments on her obi. The girl stepped aside at the sound of approval, and pulled her scarf to hide her flushed cheeks as Momika gently ruffled her hair. Gesturing for her apprentice to wait by the bedroom, the young woman allowed herself a few more moments to put on makeup and be alone with her thoughts.

Not only had the Academy invited a nameless urchin like her, but they didn't even hesitate before accepting her un-announced plus one.

So here they were... stranded in an island secluded from all other nations... and soon, sleeping in a dorm managed by suspiciously accommodating shinobi...

Momika put down her lip gloss and sighed. She accepted the scholarship because she didn't have much of a future without it, so there was no point in delving into nightmare scenarios now. Her only regret was involving such a young girl in her nonsense, but she hadn't been able to say no to those big eyes.

With a few minutes left, she padded back to the bedroom, putting on her tabi and fetching the essentials. Fans, wallet, a kunai, and a scroll containing books.

"Did you have breakfast?" she asked Nana as they left their temporary apartment, leaping from rooftop to rooftop.

The girl shook her head, and Momika changed their route, landing near the farmer's market. At this hour of the morning, it was bustling enough.

"Oji-san~ how much for these?"

Momika bent over to scan the apples, drawing the gazes of seller and buyers alike. At the edge of the stand, Nana swiped two fruits.

"T-Ten for one, forty for five."

What a steal. She grabbed one and moved to the bananas, considering her next move.

Sleight of hand? A bit annoying considering her sleeveless outfit, but doable. Pretend to drop her wallet and draw their eyes again? Nope, there were a few housewives approaching the stand who wouldn't fall for it.

Her eyes flicked to confirm Nana's position, widening slightly. She was behind a blind boy. Well, blindfolded, but the fabric was too dark to see through.

No parents, no bodyguards, no walking stick, no guide animal, but he'd somehow navigated past the crowds, taking off one of his gloves to feel out the ripest fruit.

Momika reached into her sash... and promptly decided she wasn't dealing with that today. Probably some advanced senses at play. No telling how he'd react to her next trick, no time to spring up something more foolproof, and no desire to waste chakra with the first day of Academy looming near.

Closing her wallet, she flicked a coin to the old man behind the stand, giving Nana the signal to retreat. They still stopped by two more stands at a healthy distance. After all, her student was a growing girl, and three apples weren't much of a meal.

The pair reached the Academy's grounds with full stomachs and four minutes to spare. Although she had visited it before and even gotten a tour, Momika still looked around as if it was her first time here. The training grounds still looked oddly bare, but they probably kept it that way to mold it with Earth style depending on the lesson.

Her eyes were drawn by the dorm buildings next to the school, their sleeker architecture and grey tones giving away their age compared to the wooden finishes on the school. Hopefully they would assign rooms today so she could move her belongings. Rent day was approaching in her temporary apartment and she had no intention of being there for it.

Inside the hallways, her eyes occasionally flicked to the side to examine a classroom.

Empty, empty, a few instructors chatting, empty, some kids waiting for their instructors, and empty again. The odds of faculty springing a secret trial on the very first day were getting lower and lower, but...

But nothing. That empty classroom or patch of dirt by the training fields wouldn't reveal any secrets no matter how many times she looked.

Or maybe that's what they wanted her to think...

She caught herself staring again and turned her eyes forward.

Before she could feel embarrassed about first day jitters at her big age, her destination was already upon her. She pulled the wooden door, her other hand settling on Nana's back and pushing her forward.

As they stepped inside, tiered wooden desks greeted them from both sides, each wide enough for three seats. Beyond the bottom-most desk, the teacher's desk stood at the end of the room. On its edge, an apple weighed down a flower as a small, untouched offering. The soon-to-be teacher's pet had turned at the sound of sliding doors, and it was the blindfolded boy again. Momika allowed herself a pat on the back for avoiding him earlier. It wouldn't do for a classmate to see her activities this early.

Beyond him, about half a dozen students turned to look at the new arrivals. They were spread out evenly across the classroom, leaving some seats at the back open for her and Nana.

... It was a moot point, wasn't it? The further away from the teacher, the more elevated they were, so she couldn't use anyone ahead as cover. But even if she could, she was also taller than everyone besides the... mysterious glowing cocoon of chains?

"What's up with that?" she almost asked as one of her new classmates approached, but that simply wouldn't do for a greeting.

"Good morning," greeted a girl with piercing blue eyes, wearing garments of the same color.

High quality silk. Not many accessories, though. Loaded, but trying not to draw attention to it.

"Good morning! I'm Momika, this is Nana-chan," she intoned at a deliberate volume, high enough to avoid repeating it to anyone else in class, but low enough to not bother the other girl's ears.

... It still wouldn't reach some people like the girl sleeping by a tree outside, but you can't win them all.

"Ayane Hasegawa. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

"Same here." Momika leaned closer, raising a hand to whisper the next part between them. "No offense, but I'm happy to see someone my age. Makes it less awkward, y'know?"

The other girl averted her eyes, holding her cheek.

"I've been telling myself I should be happy to be here at all, but I can't deny feeling the same way..."

"Ara? That doesn't sound good, Ayane-chan! Have I stumbled into a repeating student on their last chance?"

Ayane chuckled. "Far from it. I'm probably the least experienced here. But from what they've insisted, the Academy only sends invites to promising prospects, so I'm pleased to be considered amongst them. Isn't it the same for you, Momika-san?"

Momika tilted her head. Her hand pushed Nana's back slightly. The other girl had been trying her best to keep eye contact with Ayane, but it was clear she wasn't mentally prepared to be approached this early.

"They've insisted, huh. In my case..."

Then, Momika flicked her eyes toward a corner of the classroom, where Nana could sit down and introduce herself to someone else at her pace.

To cover her actions and continue her current conversation, her gaze followed its natural trajectory and landed on the Mysterious Glowing Chain Cocoon, alongside the two students surrounding it.

One was a rather agitated boy with feline features, who sat on the desk as he pawed at the cocoon from several angles. The other was a blond girl sitting beside it, targeting the least dense parts.

Every time they nudged the cocoon, it shook from the force, and more chains would wrap around it as if to protect what lay beneath.

"... I'm still not sure why some of us were called here," Momika finished.

Poke. Poke.

Following her gaze, Ayane's smile became strained.

"... potential can show itself in various ways."

"Sensei, I'm going ahead."

Understanding Momika's signal, her pupil stepped from behind her sash.

"Sensei?" Ayane repeated, eyes widening. "But..."

She looked between Momika and the retreating Nana, then focused on the former. Her blue eyes traveled up and down, as if regarding the newcomer for the first time again. A few other students were doing the same, except for the blindfolded boy, who had elected to walk in her direction.

Momika reached into her sash and began fanning herself down. She was used to getting looks, but the reason behind them right now was a tad embarrassing. She'd gotten so used to Nana's honorifics that she forgot how weird it could sound to their classmates.

"Don't mind it. I'm a student like you!" she assured Ayane while stepping forward to stop the blind boy in the middle of his bow. "Nana-chan is someone I took under my wing before I was..."

Yet the boy's motion was already set in place. With the difference in their heights, and the gap between them bridged, he was about to get a faceful of her cleavage when she lightly tapped his shoulder.

He jolted slightly, leaning back without realizing what almost happened. "Ah! I got ahead of myself. My name is Hibiki Otanashi. I apologize for interrupting your conversation, Momika-san, Ayane-san."

And then he bowed to them again. If it weren't for the blindfold and absolute lack of any reaction, she would almost think he was doing it on purpose.

"Don't mind, don't mind!" she repeated, folding her fan and tilting his chin with it. "You're just excited for the first day, right? Or maybe you were about to tell me to eat your apple before it spoils?"

"T-That's not..."

"How did you know the apple was his?" Ayane wondered.

Momika began stepping towards the front of the class, her new acquaintances following her.

"A girl's intuition~" she answered with a wink before laughing at herself. "I say that, but I can't for the life of me figure out where he got the flower. It's been a few weeks since I got to Getsugakure, and I haven't spotted a single iris like that in any shop."

"Perhaps they're found in the wild."

"Oh, they're not native to the island," Hibiki shot that down. "I had a few of them carefully transported from my homeland."

All that for the first day of class?! Rich kids were something else...

"That's some impressive dedication, Hibiki-kun," Ayane praised. "Did you bring any other flowers from your homeland?"

"Yes! But mostly as seeds."

Momika sat at one of the middle desks, with Ayane on her right and Hibiki on her left. The sight of her settling into the position of another student was enough to drain any lingering attention.

How embarrassing, honestly. With the slightest bit of preparation, she could've fetched a pretty penny from the more impressionable kids. And also a free apple.

"Is gardening just a hobby for you?" Ayane questioned before Momika could. "Or is it related to your jutsu?"

The boy shook his head at her second question. "... well, there are some highly toxic species that can be turned into poisons or drugs, but I forgot to bring the recipes with me."

Was she supposed to commiserate with that? He didn't seem too broken up about it.

Beyond wanting to offer a piece of his home to their instructors, there was a component of... homesickness? No, that wasn't quite it, either

The flowers weren't only for the first day of class, but they also weren't related to shinobi work.

Her initial guess for a hobby was probably right, and she was looking too deeply now.

"Well, I'm sure our sensei will be happy with what you didn't forget," Momika answered before a silence could settle. "Are you planning on handing one to every instructor?"

The boy fidgeted. "Maybe. Some of them wilted during the voyage, so I hoped to sow their seeds somewhere in the school grounds first... once I have permission, that is!"

"A garden by our dormitories does sound pleasant—"

"I'm Nana...!"

Ayane's words trailed off as the sound of clacking sandals approached the trip. Not even a second later, Nana came between the two girls, practically burying her face on Momika's hips while keeping a tight grip on her sash.

Momika offered an apologetic smile to her conversation partners while glancing at where the overly loud introduction had come from. Her eyes briefly met those of a pale, white-haired girl, who immediately turned away.

However, she did not bother to hide the wooden doll atop her desk.

Momika inwardly sighed.

"There, there, Nana-chan..." she soothed, caressing her pupil's hair.

She should probably ask to be sure. Later, as to not embarrass Nana further by airing out her failure to others. At least it didn't seem to be any bullying.

"You've mentioned you took her under your wing, but what exactly does that mean to you, Momika-san?

She looked up at Ayane.

"Oh you know, just teaching her some life skills every now and then," she replied airily, tapping her fan against the desk. "How to talk to people, how to manage her money now that she'll be living as a shinobi..."

Wait...

"Actually..."

She could use the sensei thing to her advantage right now.

"Hibiki-kun, would you like some private tutoring too? My rates are very reasonable."

"Me?"

"Mh-hm. I don't mean to pry into anything sensitive, buuut... has the Academy mentioned any plans for your textbook situation?"

"Ah... well..."

"I must admit that was also a concern of mine," Ayane piled on. "You won't be relying on lectures alone, will you?"

"No, but..."

"I've been teaching Nana-chan how to read and write." Momika patted the girl's head, who finally looked up at the prospect of earning more cash.

"Sensei's been a huge help...!" As if not satisfied with her pitch, she added, "She has a really nice voice, too... you can listen to her all day..."

After that glowing review, Momika leaned closer to her potential client with her best smile, and immediately felt a bit silly for it.

"So, how about it? We can go over any material you'd like... although it'll cost you extra if it's not school-related," she whispered at the end, almost adding a wink before catching herself. It was habitual to use her looks in these conversations by this point.

Hibiki put two fingers to his mouth and whistled. Momika turned at the movement in her peripheral, spotting the owl as it silently flew past the window.

"My textbook situation isn't recent," he explained as the bird landed on his shoulder, nuzzling his hood. "I have him trained to read for me."

Drat. She got too ahead of herself. Obviously he would've found a way to deal with it already.

"Why an owl?" Ayane asked. "I understand speech comes easier to parrots or ravens, with the latter as the far more common choice or shinobi."

"The species isn't a problem for me because of my jutsu, and I was always fond of owls for their silent flight... besides, my family would probably kill the parrot before I could finish training it."

"Well, it's good to know you have help!" Momika smoothed over, not wanting to delve into that last sentence. His smile didn't shift in the slightest as he said it, too.

A shinobi's upbringing sure was rough!

"Offer's still open, though. I can't promise I'll sing better than a bird, but I'm definitely better company."

The owl shot her a glare, then turned back to his owner to better receive scritches.

"I'd be glad to study with you, Momika-san! Are you available for poetry readings? How much would that cost alongside the textbooks? Oh, I should fetch one of my scrolls so you can give your best estimate—"

Momika put a hand on his shoulder before he could dart away.

"Don't sweat the specifics now, Hibiki-kun. We can talk about it after class."

"But I still want to pick my favorites beforehand..."

Was he seriously twiddling his fingers? How precious.

"In that case, don't let me stop you."

"It was nice meeting you two—three," he corrected with a cough, flushing slightly. "I hope we have a productive first day!"

The boy left to search his satchel, and Momika leaned back in her seat.

"Despite his best wishes, our sensei is taking their sweet time, huh? Ayane-chan, do you think it's better if it's deliberate or if they got delayed?"

"Deliberate? Like a test of our patience?"

"Mm, sure."

"In that case..." her eyes flickered around the classroom, briefly stopping at the Mysterious Glowing Chain Cocoon. A third inspector was now on the scene, a red-haired boy delivering rapid-fire pokes to test if the chains would start wrapping around the desk too.

"... I would prefer our instructor to be delayed by something beyond their control."

"Even if it's something serious?!" Momika gasped.

"Momika-san... you shouldn't talk lightly about such things," she chided.

"I know, I know. You just don't want to see half our class failing. Very kind."

"What about you?"

"Me?" Momika tapped her chin. "Between a lazy sensei, a sensei who does annoying tests, or a sensei who's suffered an accident, I would pick... the lazy sensei! Do you know why?"

"Because you can learn at your own time, but you can't control how you're tested?"

"Wow!" she clapped lightly. "You know me so well already, Ayane-chan."

"Hm. You've taken two of our classmates under your wing already, so you seem like the self-sufficient type."

"Ugh..." She sagged into her chair. "I'm totally not, though... I'm the type that loves being pampered. But between not being pampered and being treated like crap, isn't the choice pretty obvious?"

"Are we still talking about teachers...?" Nana muttered.

The wooden doors slid open. The three girls turned around at once, but alas, it was not their teacher, ready to introduce them to shinobi-hood, but instead a dopey blue-haired boy who looked on the verge of passing out.

After taking two steps, he did exactly that, collapsing into a chair and planting his face on a desk with a dull thud.

"Should we... check on him?"

"Hmm... sure," Momika agreed. "But I need to talk with Nana-chan about something first, so feel free to go ahead."

Following Hibiki, Ayane ascended the steps.

Momika reached under her student's arms, ignoring the squeak of protest and placing her on the desk.

"So. What happened to get you so down?"

"... I blew it, sensei..." the other girl mumbled, the sound further muffled by her scarf. "I tried following your advice and doing what you would do, but nothing worked. She hates me now."

"Walk me through it. Which advice did you follow?"

"Well, I started by giving her a gift because..."

With every word coming out of her pupil's lips, Momika began to think maybe she wasn't any good at this teaching thing.

"Sensei?"

Yeah, it was probably her fault. She had been showing Nana all her techniques and methods, so the girl was trying all of them one after the other without the confidence to commit to anything. Such confidence would surely come with time, but Momika could make that period shorter by correcting these mistakes.

"Sensei."

"Hm?"

"What did I do wrong?"

"... the gift wasn't a bad idea. But we're dealing with people training to be shinobi, so you can't panic if they stay a bit suspicious. You could have made it work by giving a reason behind it."

"Oh. Something like... this doll reminded me of you?"

"No, no, that's a pick-up line. Something like... it's a good luck charm for your first day of class. And if she doesn't take it, you can try to guilt her about it by mentioning how hard you worked on it."

Master and student whispered back and forth, honing their discipline.

"I think I get it," Nana mumbled after Momika finished explaining why calling someone "really white" wouldn't fly as a compliment. "Thank you, sensei."

"If you get it, then it's time we go back there and fix it."

"W-What?" the girl stuttered, realizing she was caught in a trap. A crossroads. A dilemma. To admit she had been just lying to her teacher, or to face her fears.

"But sensei, isn't it too early?"

"Shinobi don't forget that easily, Nana-chan. Doubly so for shinobi with weird eyes. Everyone knows they carry grudges at the drop of a hat. So we have to clean the slate before you're stuck in her mind as that weird girl who called me really white."

Her pupil let out a small noise, but hopped off the desk and followed Momika on the way to the white girl. Midway through, Momika offered a cheery wave to Ayane, who had confirmed the blue-haired boy was alive, well, and gawking at her outfit as much as his tired eyes would allow. On the next step of the stairs, Momika hopped, and he was unable to keep track of the ensuing bouncing, promptly planting his face on the desk again.

Then, they reached the pale girl. Crossed arms. Lips in a straight line. Not even turning in their direction, instead looking through her periphery.

"Hey, do you think there's a secret trial we have to pass to start the class?"

With a no-nonsense type like her, it was easier to hook them with something related to their current task.

"... No."

"Ah. I'm glad, then. Thanks~!"

Momika walked away, stretching the line and ignoring Nana's utterly confused look, which for her, was a slight raising of her eyebrows.

"Wait."

Sinker.

"Explain your suspicions."

Momika turned around. The pale girl still had her arms crossed, but she was facing them now.

"Well, it's just a hunch. Shinobi love their convoluted tests. And you're clearly related to the Hyuuga clan, so if anyone would see a secret message or clue, I thought it'd be you."

"Hmph. You speak some sense."

Byakugan!

Spooked, Nana stepped behind Momika as the pale girl's eyes became lavender, the blood vessels near her temples bulging to withstand seeing in every conceivable direction.

"There are no such clues."

However, in a blink, that piercing gaze disappeared as quickly as it arrived.

"So fast!" Momika said, dropping on the seat beside her. "Did you check outside the room?"

"Naturally. The neighboring classrooms were also empty."

"Ah, I was actually wondering if there were any instructor-looking people on their way here."

Byakugan!

"Yes. Male. Middle-aged. Carrying our notebooks."

"You don't sound very excited about it. Should I be worried?"

"Why would I be excited to meet someone who doesn't respect my time?"

"Fair, fair. I'll be getting out of your hair now."

"You do that."

"Ah, but before I forget..."

Momika pointed at the wooden doll. At this point, the pale girl had already activated her ocular powers twice, enough to see no hidden components dwelled within the gift.

"Are you going to keep that? See, my good friend Nana-chan..."

She beckoned the other girl. From her sleeves, Nana produced two more wooden carvings. A bird and a doe.

"She spent the better part of a month practicing making these. They're supposed to be lucky charms for our classmates. I know you two didn't start off on the right foot, but it'd mean a lot to her if you accepted it."

"You can swap," Nana blurted out. "If you don't like the doll."

The pale girl stared. She lifted a hand, spreading her fingers above the doll. Then, she dragged it an inch closer to her.

"It's adequate craftsmanship. I suppose I can hold onto it..."

She trailed off, her lips thinning under Momika's expectant smile.

"... thank you," she added, facing Nana, who seemed to be starstruck at how well this was working so far. Or at least that's what Momika gathered from the slight widening of her eyes.

She nudged the smaller girl's back, beckoning her to keep the conversation going. There were still a few angles. She could probe the adequate comment and delve into the other girl's knowledge of craftsmanship, she could ask why the doll instead of the others, and she could—

"Yo!"

The classroom doors slid open, giving way to their teacher, and killing all their progress.