"Ouch! That hurts."

Izuna drops down from a tree.

Crack… crack…

He cracks his neck and stretches his muscles.

"Tsunade is getting stronger day by day. This would hurt in the morning."

Whoosh…

He flickers towards the Hokage Office.

Inside the Hokage Office,

Tsunade unseals the scroll and reads its content.

"So… Kirigakure has agreed to the collaborative Chunnin exam. We have to just wait for a reply from the rest of the hidden villages."

Hmm…

Tsunade stamps the scroll and places it on the table. She turns towards Izuna.

Fffwweehh…

Izuna whistles as he avoids her gaze.

"I have a job for you and you don't have the right to refuse."

Tsunade slams her hands on the table.

"Well, there are few things to do now, and I don't want to baby-sit any genin for now. So, I will accept it."

Izuna nods his head.

A smirk appears on Tsunade's face as she stares at Izuna.

Hmm…

A bad feeling wells up within Izuna's heart.

"Why do I feel like I am being set up?"

He turns towards Shizune to question her.

Shizune turns her head away and avoids his gaze.

Tsunade walks up to him and pats his shoulder.

"I believe you will do a fine job handling the upcoming chunnin exam."

"Wait what? chunnin exams! Don't dump your work on me."

Izuna retorts.

"Hey… you agreed to the mission. You can't eat your words."

Tsunade dismisses his retort.

"I fell for it…"

Izuna depressingly drops his head.

Knock… Knock…

Someone knocks on the door.

"Come in."

Tsunade returns to her seat and orders.

Kakashi walks into the room and bows before Tsunade.

"You summoned me Hokage-sama…"

Tsunade nods her head.

"Kakashi… have you decided on a genin team yet?"

"No… Tsunade-sama… none of them satisfies my requirements."

Kakashi shakes his head.

Tsunade takes out a file and passes it to Kakashi.

"What are your thoughts on this team?"

Hmm…

Kakashi opens the file and checks the profile of the new genins.

"Naruto Uzumaki: he had a decent score in the written exam, not the top of the bunch but still a good score. As for his Ninjutsu exam, he fared pretty well…

Sasuke Uchiha: the top genius of the academy. He scored the second-highest in the written exam and is the top scorer in the Ninjutsu and Shurikenjutsu…

Sakura Haruna: a civilian kunoichi. She is the top scorer in the written exam and did pretty well with the Ninjutsu exam…"

Kakashi closes the file and rubs his forehead as he turns to Izuna.

"If I am not wrong, Naruto and Sasuke were taught by you."

Izuna nods his head.

"Yes, both of them are pretty strong for their age. They can easily rival a chunnin and can even fight toe-to-toe with a Jounin while using their trump cards."

Haah…

Kakashi takes a deep breath as he calms his nerves after listening to Izuna's explanation.

"These kids already surpass my skills when I was at their age. How am I supposed to babysit them? Also, why would you even bother to put two of the strongest genin in the same team, Hokage-sama?"

He asks Tsunade.

Tsunade points towards Izuna.

"It was his idea. I was against it, but he convinced me."

Kakashi turns to Izuna and tilts his head in confusion.

"Kakashi! Naruto and Sasuke had known each other since childhood. Both of them trained together and are aware of each other's weaknesses and strengths. Their teamwork is formidable."

Hmm…

"Teamwork… huh…"

Kakashi closes his eyes as he reminisces his past.

'So, the ghosts of past still haunt him.'

Izuna shakes his head.

'Maybe… Naruto would be able to beat some sense in him with his Talk-no-jutsu.'

Ahem…

Izuna clears his throat to get Kakashi's attention.

"How about we make a bet Kakashi?"

"What bet?"

Kakashi snaps out from his thoughts.

"Kakashi, hold a bell test with Naruto and Sasuke. If they can get their hands on bells, then you would destroy those pictures."

Izuna remembers his dark secrets recorded by Kakashi.

Hmm…

"What pictures?"

Tsunade's interest piques up.

"No… no, nothing. It is a matter between two men."

"Hoh… now I am really interested."

Tsunade has a smirk on her face as she turns to Kakashi.

"Kakashi… I want to see those photos."

"Uh! Tsunade-sama… those pictures?"

Kakashi scratches his head.

"Kakashi… if you dared to reveal those pictures to her… I will set your entire collection of culture books on fire. Also, the new Icha Icha Violence is out."

Izuna takes out a book from his pocket.

"This is the first collector's edition of Icha Icha Violence signed by the Jiraiya. He gave it to me at our last meeting. I was about to throw it away, but then I changed my mind and thought of gifting it to you."

Izuna shakes the book in front of Kakashi.

"The new Icha Icha collector's edition."

Kakashi's hands start to shake as he gently holds the book.

Sniff… sniff…

He sniffs the book.

"…"

"This fresh scent of paper. It is definitely the new edition."

"…"

"I can't wait to finish it in one sitting."

Swish…

Izuna grabs the book and stores it.

"Listen… I will give this book to you for free just forget about the bet. But DON'T… DON'T YOU DARE TO REVEAL THOSE PICTURES."

"No… give it back."

Kakashi grabs Izuna's shoulder like a drug addict.

"…"

Tsunade and Shizune watch the drama unfolding from a distance.

"Tsunade-sama, I am also curious to see those pictures of Izuna."

Tsunade nods her head.

"Don't worry, someday I will make Kakashi cough them out."

"…"

"Hey! I can hear you loud and clear."

Izuna turns towards them.

"Anyway, Kakashi, aren't you late? You have a genin team to meet up with."

Izuna reminds him.

"Ah! Yes, I will be on my way."

Kakashi walks out of the Office.

"I will also take my leave. A woman is waiting for me."

Whoosh…

Izuna disappears from the Office.

Sigh…

Tsunade sighs as she stares at the empty space.

Izuna reappears in front of the Yamanaka Flower Shop.

Miss Yamanaka is watering some flowers. She raises her head and notices Izuna.

"Oh… Izuna-kun!"

Izuna bows in gratitude.

"Here for flowers."

Izuna nods his head.

"I still remember the first day you bought these flowers. You had no clue about the color of roses."

She picks up an orange rose and smells it.

"Orange rose represents life, energy, passion, and excitement. These roses are given as a present to express your gratitude and appreciation."

She picks up a yellow rose and gently caresses it.

"Yellow roses symbolize friendship, joy, and gladness. They are gifted as a sign of remembrance."

She picks up a white rose as she explains.

''White rose symbolizes purity, innocence, grace, and humility. A fine gift for a new-wed couple for the new budding love."

She walks even further and picks up a pink rose.

"Pink rose symbolizes femininity, elegance, and refinement. These are often used by nobles to decorate their parties."

Miss Yamanaka chuckles and moves on. She picks up a lavender rose and turns to Izuna.

"These were the first flowers you bought as a present. Lavender rose symbolizes love at first sight."

Uhm…

Izuna scratches his head to hide his expression.

She walks inside the store and brings out a bouquet of red roses.

"Red roses symbolize romance, love, beauty, and perfection. They are the perfect gift for a date."

She passes the bouquet to Izuna.

"Here… Izuna-kun."

"Thank you… Miss Yamanaka." Izuna picks up the bouquet.

"Ara… you can't make a lady wait for so long."

Miss Yamanaka chuckles as he waves her hand.

------------------

Outside Terumi Compounds,

Mei is fidgeting her fingers as she checks her dress now and then.

She is wearing a long-sleeved, dark blue dress that falls just below the knees. The dress is closed at back with a zipper and is open on the front-right side from the waist down. The dress covers up to the upper part of her arms and the underside of her chest.

Her hairs are styled into a herringbone pattern and tied with a dark blue band in a top-knot. Fours bangs hang at the front of her face. She wears cherry red lipstick.

"Will he like it? It is a new dress."

Whoosh…

Izuna teleports in front of Mei.

"Sorry… I am a bit late." He apologizes and presents the bouquet to her.

"No… no… I was a bit too early."

Mei shyly shakes her head.

"Cute…"

Izuna is entranced by her expression.

"Cu… cute…" Mei shyly asks him.

"Yes… Mei, you look beautiful in this dress."

Izuna nods his head as he appreciates her beauty.

"This is how it should be. Dark blue color suits you the most."

"Really?"

"Yes… I love it."

Izuna bends on his left knee and stretches out his right hand in a knightly pose.

"Would you grace me with your humble presence tonight?"

Mei chuckles and holds his hand.

"If you can guess what my favorite restaurant is, then we have a deal?"

"Then it seems like we have a long night ahead."

---

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