Nagare walked out of his home with a blank expression. His eyes were bloodshot, balancing his red irises with the pulsing veins. His sleep wasn't that pleasant; he was rocked with a series of vivid nightmares that kept him awake for most of the night, and the few hours of sleep he did get weren't enough to satisfy him. He grumbled under his breath unhappily as he stepped off toward the Thunder Temple. It was a long trek, no average feat; the path was a long dirt road that twisted from the border of Kumogakure to the outskirts, into the Thunder Grounds. The lightning bolts striking down constantly made the last half of the journey dangerous, but once he reached the Temple, he was greeted with absolute safety and silence.

Rubbing his eyes casually, Nagare reflected on the last few days. Reika had told him that he would be assigned a squad of Genin. It was exciting, really; he felt that he had just been in that same position, as a Genin on a squad with his sensei Zetsume. He missed Zetsume, as he hadn't seen the man in weeks. He wondered what these pupils of his would be like, maybe he would know them, maybe they would be new faces. The one thing he knew for sure was that by the time he was done training and going on missions with them, they would be a trio of fine young ninja. Usually, the idea of three Genin pestering him wouldn't be pleasant and he would just make them leave; but this was different. They would be his students, and they would count on him to teach them to be Shinobi. It was vital that he at least had the decency to care for them.

So, of course, Naga sent ninja messengers to each of the three Genin's homes; one to Aya Inuzuka, one to Hanako Rinji, and one to Kenji Chikara. The message was simple: "Meet me at the Thunder Temple." and there he was, waiting for them to all show up. He realized that he had met Kenji once before, and thought to himself, This should be fun.

Kenji was strutting through the village as he was to meet his squad today. All he knew was that he would be with three other Genin, and of course a sensei. It was exciting not knowing who his "teacher" and fellow squad mates were. All he had received was a message "Meet me at the Thunder Temple". This added another element of intrigue; he had never been to the Thunder Temple, and was constantly implored not to as it was very dangerous. It wasn't that Kenji was afraid, he just hadn't had the time as of late to make the journey. Kenji, with his sleeveless high collar white shirt, his Kumo headband, loose white pants, and his sword on his hip along with his other ninja tools; was at the beginning of the dangerous path that would take him to his destination.

Destructive flashes of pure electricity pummeled the already rough terrain, Kenji stood upright as he quickly weaved through the Thunder Grounds; he didn't make it through unscathed though. He suffered two minor injuries, one lightning bolt sent a small piece of rock flying towards his face, initially for his eye, but the shinobi was able to adjust his positioning, and instead of losing his eye for good while he had a bleeding bottom lip. Also, as he avoiding one strike barely, he lost his balance scraping his the back of his left arm. Both were superficial and wouldn't affect him, and they would most likely be gone completely within the week.

He was glad to have made it through the dangerous portion of the Thunder Grounds. Kenji took his Glove of Reflection out of his pocket and put them on as he made his way into the Temple where he was to meet his squad. A smile was glued onto Kenji's face as he was not as much as excited about taking orders from someone, but getting to compete against more Kumogakure genin. He usually didn't let others know his passion for competition but secretly he loved challenging himself against his peers. He also loved training, but he liked to do it his way, so it remained to be seen if Kenji could push his ego aside and allow his sensei to bestow upon him his wisdom. It was unlikely because Kenji didn't even listen to the head of his clan, and rarely listened to his own father. He walked into the temple and saw a familiar face, "Nagare, the guy with the twin." Kenji was somewhat relieved that Nagare was his sensei, "At least I have one less formal introduction to do" he approached his sensei, "Hi Sensei" Kenji said with a light smile and a bow. He began to think his casual attitude was a bad idea as he seemed to be in a rather grumpy mood.

Aya as usual was relaxing in her small cottage on the edges of Kumogakure with a warm cup of coffee resting in her hand as she sat on the floor her dog Leo resting in her lap. The two sat by a makeshift fireplace enjoying the warm it provided them when they heard a knock on the door. Letting out a slient sigh the girl got up from her spot on the floor with her husky following right behind her. Must be a message from the Kage since very few knew where she resisted opening the door the girl was greeted by a little boy. In his hand was a white letter that he handed to her with a bow before quickly leaving most likely scared of being this far in the woods. On the white paper was a simple message in red " Meet me at the thunder temple. Well she wondered who could be calling her to meet them there. Hmm this must mean she was finally being put in a squad. She had dreading this day for some time she hated being around people who could talk. Meant she would have to make Leo talk for her and that took a lot of time. Grabbing her back pack and throwing on a small jacket and old sneakers she headed to the Temple with her partner by her side as they quickly traveled. Oh cheer up Aya the dog said to her I bet they're super cool people if we give them a chance. 


Well to her it didn't matter she didn't like having to explain to every person she meet why her dog had to talk for her. It was irritating to say the least she would rather be home sipping coffee again. As the two approached the thunder temple they could clearly see lighting rip across the sky the sounder of thunder following behind. She and leo avoided it only being close to getting hit once. Boy that was a close call as they caught their breath. Walking in to the empty temple she was greeted by a overly happy boy and a really sleepy older ninja. Just great now where was the other guy.

Hanako stood in the street listening the sounds dance around her as she relaxed. The message she had received earlier notified her of a meeting she was to attend. Her mind raced through the possibilities of her new teammates. She had never been on a team before, as her blindness made it difficult to work in unison with others. She pushed that thought aside as she turned in the direction of the the Thunder Temple, heading off to meet her new comrades. The road to the temple was one of most dangerous paths in Kumogakure, making Hanako on edge as she neared the place. The cracking of Lightning and the crash of thunder filled the air as she entered the hostile environment. Suddenly, lightning bolted down towards her, causing her to jump to the side, barely dodging it. She then decided to start moving at full speed as she dashed to the entrance of the Thunder Temple. Another stream of electricity came down, hitting a tree in the center of it's trunk. It started falling towards Hanako's direction, causing her to dive forward to dodge it. Had it not been for her incredible hearing, she would have died already.

She crossed the last few steps to the threshold of the temple, immediately pushing the door to enter the wondrous place. As she entered the room, she only heard the voices of several people. She assumed that they were her teammates as she approached them with a walk of confidence. Her dark skin and braided hair was a bit dirty from the trip, but her confidence was not shaken in the slightest."My name is Hanako Rinji. Nice to meet you." She said to the group of them. It sounded as if there were two boys and a girl, so she took pride in the fact that she wasn't the only female.

Nagare's students arrived, one by one: Kenji got there first, then a girl with long black straight hair, and a darker-toned girl with braided locks that fell to her back. He gave Kenji a brief handshake, and turned to the two girls, first pointing his left index finger at the girl with long black hair. His clan necklace hung from his arm stagnantly as he said, "Inuzuka, Aya." He could tell by her general appearance; most Inuzuka clansmen had fair skin, as she did. He gave her a warm smile, and turned to the other girl. She had a blank look in her eyes, but her face was alive with sense. Her ears perked up as Nagare turned to her; She must be blind. he thought. Certain clans did have a tendency to carry genetic blindness, nowadays; Rinji must have been one of them. He held eye contact with her and said, "Rinji, Hanako." He placed a hand on her shoulder before turning back to Kenji. "and Chikara, Kenji."

Now speaking to them as a group, "Welcome to Squad Samsara. I'm Nagare Sōseiji, your sensei. You'll be staying with me until you all surpass the rank of Chuunin, so be prepared for a long relationship. My goal here is to help you become stronger ninja, but our first training session will not be until tomorrow. I've scheduled a mission that we will complete together, and once we complete that, we will have a training session at the High Battle Plateau. More details of this will be given after our mission. For now, we'll just have introductions. I'll be asking for three things: your battle styles and elemental affinities, your interests, and your goal as a ninja. To start: you all already know my name, Nagare Sōseiji. I specialize in Summoning and Ninjutsu, and I have a natural Katon affinity, a natural Raiton affinity, and I've also learned to use Suiton. I like to spend time meditating, exercising, playing sports, or training. My goal as a ninja is to become a diplomat for Kumogakure to help bring the five great nations together, or even Raikage, one day." the students sat there, looking half-bored. "Now, your turns. You first, uh....Kenji, seeing as you arrived first."

Following Kenji was a fair skinned girl and a girl of darker tone with braids. She seemed to be visually impaired. The sensei, Nagare introduced himself; stating his fighting style, elemental affinities, and hobbies. Kenji listened as Nagare began stating his abilities and interests. After he was finished he turned to Kenji to notify him that it was his turn to introduce himself to his team.

Kenji took a few steps back and positioned himself so that he could see everyone. Kenji took his hands out of his pockets; and lifted his hand to greet the group; "Hello everyone one, my name is Kenji Chikara. I specialize in Genjutsu and Bukitjutsu, preferring Kenjutsu." Kenji gestured to his katana that lied on his hip. "I have a natural affinity for Raiton and Fuuton. My interests include relaxing, reading, and developing new techniques. Finally, I aspire to... become the head of my clan." Kenji couldn't believe what he said. He never considered that to be his goal; but now that he thought about it, his clan had seemingly rejected him. So it wasn't a bad idea to become the leader and make some changes. Kenji put his hands back in his pockets and stepped in a few steps. Since Nagare stated that the group was going in order of arrival; he assumed Aya knew it was her turn to introduce herself.

After kenji went it was Aya's turn and she could feel herself becoming irritated. She didn't want these people being part of her life she was perfectly happy squad less. Yet her partner seemed to ignore the messages she shoot his way. Leo just gave a toothy grin and send her a signal telling her to relax. Don't mind my owner shes very silent as you can see the dog explained. If looks could kill the dog would be on the floor with his throat cut open. He continued to explain telling their private business to strangers. Her vocal cords are damaged so she can't talk but I do that enough for the both of us. We are taijutsu and ninjutsus users and her elements are lighting and water. Don't worry whenever shes with you guys I'll be there to make sure that you guys can talk to one another with no troubles.  Making sure he was a good few feet away from Aya he then told her biggest secret. Aya dreams that one day she'll make friends and since you guys are here I think that you're the best ones for her to start out with so please be nice to my master. Aya was going to end her dogs life.

Hanako listened intently as each person told about themselves. Nagare was also a Kuchiyose user, which she would make sure to inquire on later. Having three elemental affinities was also pretty impressive. It seemed like a good choice was made in their squad leader. Hanako then noted Kenji' speech with detail. Nothing really jumped out at her besides the balance of range and close combat abilities. Aya on the other hand interested her more. She had an obstacle that was similar to her own, making her immediately curious about the pair. Based on the sound of the voice, it seemed her companion was very vocal in the relationship, which would make cooperation much easier.

Finally, it was her turn to speak up. She cleared her throat before beginning to speak confidently. "My name is Rinji, Hanako. I specialize in Summoning and Ninjutsu and my elemental affinities are Raiton and Doton. My interests are mostly meditation and training. My goal as a shinobi is to become stronger with each passing day so that I can protect this village." She stated simply. Her mind was racing as she thought about the future that the squad held for her. Maybe these people would be key in her life.

"Good to meet the three of you. Okay, so today is going to be simple, I'm going to assess your skills so that I can try and figure out how to properly help you grow as Ninja. No training, no assignment or mission. We'll save all of that for another day." He looked each of them in the eyes, reviewing what specialties and elements they had. He had a fellow Kuchiyose user, an Inuzuka, and a swordsman. A good combination that allowed for long and short range combat when paired with his own skills; he only hoped that what they showed him pleased him.

"Alright. Let's begin. Whomever would like to showcase their abilities first may proceed, and you may do so in whichever way you see fit, as long as I can see your potential." he calmly waited for someone to step forward and use some sort of cool trick, hopefully before he got impatient.

Nagare stated that there would be no official training session as of right now; he simply wanted a demonstration of each individual's skill/potential. Kenji decided to volunteer as both of his current teammates seemed rather reserved. Even though Aya was clearly incapable of speech, she was still obviously not comfortable with her companion divulging information about her; and Hanako, spoke tersely and straight to the point; indicating that she wasn't one for idle talk nor games.

Nagare's request went unanswered for a moment before Kenji decided to put on a display. "Alright; i'll show a little something." Kenji faced Nagare and subtly formed three hand seals, then raised his hands in a surrendering gesture; drawing Nagare's eyes to the reflective surface of his gloves. Then, once he looked at the surface; Kenji used his extensive training that had granted him an impressive physique in terms of swift and silent movement. In seconds Kenji reached Nagare and he placed his hand on his shoulder. Due to the effect of the Genjutsu, Nagare would see Kenji darting away from him, and within seconds the real Kenji appeared right in front of Nagare. "Just a little trick, if used properly with quick and precise execution; it can be a very useful technique."

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