Although Sayuri normally woke early, today she woke up just before dawn, much earlier that usual. She was beside herself with excitement, and more than a little bit nervous. She had received a letter a few days before, informing her that she was being assigned a squad of Genin to teach. She of course had not been able to read it entirely, but the fact that she lived on the bottom floor of a University did have its perks. There were more than enough people willing to help her with things such as that. She was not overly familiar with the position she had been asked to fill, seeing as she had never trained at a school before now. But from what she had gathered from the woman at the desk, she was responsible for training three students and getting them prepared for field work. Which she was pretty sure meant doing missions, not actually working in a field.

She wasn’t even sure what she was supposed to teach these kids. Climbing maybe? She thought maybe that she could teach them about surviving outdoors, but it would be slow going as most of her knowledge was of the area surrounding Konoha and Kumo. More than likely the flora and fauna here was similar enough not to cause too many issues, but she would have to be careful. She understood which berries she could eat, and plants she could touch, but she hadn’t explored much of the outdoors here. Not that there were many plants and berries around Iwa. Mostly there was just rocks. Fortunately most of the rocks were quite tall, so she still got to enjoy one of her favourite hobbies. Climbing tall things.

She spent quite a while deciding on what she would wear. She had never been in a position of authority before and she wanted to make sure she got it right. Even down to her clothing. After tearing through her entire chest full of clothes she finally settled on a pair of stretchy dark pants and a pale blue blouse. It was simple enough, and looked similar to the types of clothing she had observed the teachers in the University wearing. She finished her outfit by pulling on a pair of white leather boots and braiding her long white hair so that it hung over the front of her right shoulder. With her personal grooming finished she went over the information she had sent to her students one last time. She hadn’t written the letters of course, she’d asked the woman at the reception desk to help with that. One letter for each of the students, delivered two days prior to today.

“Guest,

I’m happy to inform you that you have been chosen to be a part of my Squad. I look forward to the opportunity to meet you and to help you train and grow as Shinobi in Iwagakure. I have arranged time to meet the three of you, and I request that you arrive at the Diamond Heights University in two days for breakfast. That should give us the chance to get to know one another. Afterwards we will begin with some light training so please come prepared.

Sayuri Kome”

Now all she had to do was wait, she didn’t know much about these students, but that was what the breakfast was for. The only things she did know was that there were two girls; Ria Pen and Sera Suzukaze, and one boy; Tenjin. She found it curious that the boy did not have a last name, she would have to find out about why. It was not a common thing to not have a family name. Heading upstairs she took a seat in the lobby area of the University and waited for them to arrive.

639

After his earth elemental training, Tenjin took a nap and woke up in order to go on his first mission. That mission, to meet his squad and sensai and attempt to create a bond that can withstand the test of time. This is a lot to ask for, but as Tenjin stays a dedicated shinobi to the village of Iwagakure, he can't help but feel a bond to all its citizens. Tenjin is a slim yet well-built shinobi of an average stature. He didn't have to do his hair as his hair is black, spiky and it firmly stands upwards.  He was wearing a traditional and loose gi (black in colo) that is secured together with a black obi tied in a knot at the left of his waist. He was also wearing his silver-metal forearm protectors that cover nearly his entire forearms, and his signature black scarf that shows ‘wear and tear’ due to it being an heirloom, passed down via multiple generations of his shinobi bloodline to go along with his kung fu boots. This gi also featured a kanji on both the upper right and left bicep. The kanji was of the  Diamond Heights University. Underneath the gi, Tenjin put on his netted bodysuit.

Tenjin knew his way around the University being an alumni, but he was interested to meet his sensai. Reading the note provided...

Note:

it is apparent that he doesnt know the name Sayuri Kome. Tenjin began to wonder about her history as a shinobi, and whether she was a chunin or a shinobi of higher rank. Tenjin is the type to find intrigue in just about all, and one of the greatest enigmas are those sent to teach you. While walking through the University halls and toward the cafeteria, Tenjin wondered about the type of sensai he will receive. Whether she will respect the group of genin enough to introduce us to the shinobi world without censorship, or reserve some information for a time when we are of rank? While entering the lobby area before entering the cafeteria, Tenjin saw a women dressed like a teacher in the lobby. She appeared to be no more than twice Tenjins age, well dressed, and unique as she had Heterochromia, a mutation which gives ones pair of eyes two different colors. Tenjin was impressed, but he was not willing to show any emotions yet as he asked, “You must be my sensai, Kome Sayuri. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” As Tenjin greeted his sensai, he awaited for his teammates to arrive and creating conversations with his sensai in order to get some answers for previous inquiries as he would ask about her life.

WC 537

Sera's eyes drifted across the small confines of her room. It was a modest apartment, one that failed to live up to the regality of her previous home back in the Land of Earth's capitol, but few could boast a standard that rivalled the home of one who served in the daimyo's court. The mansion had been as huge as the marketplace, gardens considered, and her room was at least five times the size of her current accommodation, pitiful as it sounded. The sprawling red carpet that felt soft to the touch everywhere she stepped was replaced by cold hard cement that always froze her soles with the dawn of each new morning, her feet protected only by the few mats that led into her kitchen, bathroom, and the village outside. Her bed now was less than half the size of her bed then, an ironic change considering she was now twice the size she'd been when she enjoyed such a life of luxury.

Her eyes drifted to the small rectangular paper folded neatly in half on her table of polished brown oak. It was only partially open, revealing a set of letters handwritten in black ink against hard white, and though she couldn't see exactly what it said, she'd already committed the contents to memory when she'd found the letter in her mail (and by that she really just meant the postman had slipped it under her door) roughly two days ago. She'd had a guess as to what it was about, having recently graduated, but to see the words all but confirm her suspicions had been little less than euphoric to her. Out of sheer nostalgia, she stopped tending to her veil and walked over to her desk, flipping it open and letting her eyes scan past the contents once more, not to study it further but just to stare longingly at it the way one would a family album.

Sera Suzukaze,

I’m happy to inform you that you have been chosen to be a part of my Squad. I look forward to the opportunity to meet you and to help you train and grow as Shinobi in Iwagakure. I have arranged time to meet the three of you, and I request that you arrive at the Diamond Heights University in two days for breakfast. That should give us the chance to get to know one another. Afterwards we will begin with some light training so please come prepared.

Sayuri Kome

The purple veil felt light in her hands as giddy, childish excitement welled up in her chest again, and she shook it off by putting the accessory over her hair. It served no practical purpose, but everyone had their preferences, and Sera's veil was just something she preferred wearing than not. The same could be said about her kimono and the obi that went with it, though with the times they lived in, hiding among people was often more important than hiding amongst the elements. It was one reason ninja who championed wearing all black just because 'cover of the night' had a few screws loose if they thought it let them operate in the day.

Straigtening out some of the creases in her kimono, Sera looked in the mirror once more, before turning around and giving the rest of herself a once over. Everything seemed in place, and she put on her metal wristguards, before slipping into boots of the same material. She idly contemplated leaving the letter behind - what sensei wouldn't know her own students, right? - but ultimately decided to bring it along, just in case (and totally not because it held some form of sentimental value because that would just be eh).

The walk to Diamond Heights University was quiet, as it should have been, at 7 AM in the morning. Sera would normally have cooked her own breakfast before showing up at the Academy, but her sensei had specifically informed them to meet for breakfast, and she would have been lying if she'd said she wasn't the least bit anxious about the meeting.

Hey, she was a child. She deserved a break.

Sera found her way to the lobby easily enough, even if she hadn't stepped foot in the university all that much. There, a woman in her late teens was already seated, while a boy stood somewhat close by. Not bothering to hide her presence but not exactly announcing it either, Sera approached the duo, turning to face the woman after giving the boy a short nod. "Are you Sayuri-sensei?"

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A final quick glance under the watchful eye of her parents, staring like hawks to the birdling that would soon leave the nest. They'd known it was coming for years, the reality ever on the horizon like the setting sun, but unlike the large ball of fire, they would never have to one day stare it straight in the face as their only daughter - not even by blood - rose to fulfil the duties required of her as all Genin. Ria would be lying if she had said she wasn't nervous, but the anticipation and anxiety didn't show itself on her childish exterior. Excitement, perhaps, but none of the fear and worry.

"Do you have everything you need, dear?" her mother asked.

"Yup!" she replied. As a fresh graduate there wasn't too much she had to keep note of in terms of her equipment; indeed most of what filled her ninja pouch constituted the basic set ninja inherited. She'd just given it a once over to make sure nothing had been lost between graduating and getting her team. She would have been more relieved had she been able to bring her sword along, but as luck would have it the double-edged blade that had been on custom order was still pending arrival. It wasn't that she needed it for any exercise they may have been put through - the mythical survival test sprang to mind - but it was always nice to fight in a way she was familiar with. Her Academy skills had been rounded off with a sword, but none of the students had been allowed to bring any Academy weapons out of said Academy, bar what they were bestowed along with their headbands.

"Don't forget your letter," her dad said, passing her a small, folded note, which she received with glee. The letter had come roughly two days ago, a invitation to attend the first meeting of her squad.

Ria Pen,

I’m happy to inform you that you have been chosen to be a part of my Squad. I look forward to the opportunity to meet you and to help you train and grow as Shinobi in Iwagakure. I have arranged time to meet the three of you, and I request that you arrive at the Diamond Heights University in two days for breakfast. That should give us the chance to get to know one another. Afterwards we will begin with some light training so please come prepared.

Sayuri Kome

The letter itself probably wasn't as important. No doubt her sensei would recognise her by sight alone, but her dad had insisted that she bring it along, kind of like a reminder that she'd been invited to the squad. You know, kind of like how civilians sometimes brought their offer letters to work just so there wouldn't be any mistakes or mishaps in the administrative process. Of course, ninja didn't really work like that (not all the time), but her father didn't know that.

"I'll be fine," she said, even as she pocketed the rectangular note.

Yet again another glance at her parents before she dashed out the door, leaving the bewildered and amused faces of two proud parents behind as the girl made her way past street and alley to the prestigious Diamond Heights University. It was an institution that anyone living in Iwagakure, and probably the Land of Earth and, with a stretch, perhaps even the rest of the Elemental Nations would have heard about, at least in passing. Anyone who'd picked up a textbook in Iwagakure likely heard of the university and its many wonders, though Ria herself had never attended it, whether because she lacked the time or resources.

Also she was 11. She didn't have to go to big scary universities.

Unless, of course, one counted this one occasion, in which she found herself walking up the stairs to the main lobby. Three people were already crowded around one of the seats. Hazarding a guess with the lack of other groups in the area, she walked up to them.

"Is this Sayuri Kome's squad?" she asked.

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