Tenten was worn out. Panting heavily and drenched in sweat, she could not keep going. “Enough Inugami, please…” It was humiliating to be brought to this state by someone less experienced than her, but it seemed like Inugami’s stamina was vast.

When Tenten delightfully agreed to train with the handsome boy, she didn’t expect to spar with his weird dog. Turns out it was a newly awakened bloodline limit. Tenten, who was intrigued by the shadow dog, who could generate blades from its body, was first excited to help train it. Therefore, she released a Katana from one of her scrolls, and got into a stance.

The spar started well enough. The clumsy attempts by the puppy were adorable, and despite its surprisingly fast speed, she could easily keep up. She used various sword techniques, which she learned in the past years, to keep the dog at bay. Pride was filling her. All the training was obviously paying off. No matter what that pale-eyed bastard says, she was not weak, and she was happy that she could show that to someone like Inugami. She wished her teammate was like him. Inugami was so much more handsome and polite than Neji. And he actually wanted to train with her! Unlike that stuck up asshole who looked down on her because she was a kunoichi. Because of that, Tenten couldn’t help but show off a bit. Though it irritated her when Inugami was only paying attention to his dog and a weird silver tattoo on his palm.

For a while, the only thing that could be heard was the clanging of their blades and Tenten’s breathing, which got progressively heavier. Soon, Tenten realized two things. First, the puppy’s skills in swordsmanship were growing rapidly. Second, Inugami was apparently not getting tired one bit, while he was using his bloodline limit. How much chakra did the guy have? After an hour, Tenten got tired of keeping up with the now much more skilled puppy. Trying to keep her pride intact, she called an end to the spar.

How pathetic. Was Neji right? Are kunoichi’s so much weaker than their male counterparts? She couldn’t even keep up with a rookie that was testing out his new abilities.

“Hm?” The handsome boy’s attention on his palm broke, and his eyes focused on her. Tenten didn’t know why he was frowning so much at his tattoo. Did he regret getting it? “Are you done Tenten?”

“Yes, I have to go back to my team. I’m sorry to cut this short, Inugami.” Tenten masked her true feelings as she kept her tone apologetic.

“Don’t apologize. You have done more than enough. This spar was immensely useful.” Inugami said with a smile, sounding satisfied. “By the way, your skills were exceptional. Is the Katana the only weapon you can wield?”

Taken aback by the sudden praise, Tenten's cheeks darkened and she stammered out, “N-No, I can use lots of weapons. Actually, I don’t use the Katana that often.”

Inugami let out a whistle, while looking surprised. “That’s impressive. Is that your bloodline limit?”

Tenten giggled, happy at his appreciation. “No, I always loved weapons, and was talented at using them. Of course, I also trained a lot.”

“Oh my, it seems like I lucked out in meeting you. How about repeating this in the future,” Inugami smiled at her enchantingly, making her heart skip a beat, “What do you say Tenten?”

Forcing herself to stay composed, Tenten answered, “I would like that. But you have to take me out to dinner!”

Inugami looked momentarily surprised, but quickly shot her an amiable smile. “Deal.”

She smiled back at him, blushing, though suddenly she startled. She saw something in Inugami’s shadow. Was that a fac —

“I see you are training diligently, Inugami. As expected of you.” Her attention was broken by a beautiful young woman, who looked a lot like her teammate, entering the training ground. Tenten quickly looked back at Inugami’s shadow, but there was no face anymore. Was that her imagination?

“Ms. Hanabi, what’s the reason for the visit? Is it time for team training?” Inugami stopped smiling, though his tone was polite.

Hanabi shook her head. “No, I want you to follow me to the Hokage tower. We received our first mission.”

“Oh, already?” Inugami said, his voice curious, “I’ll be right there. Just let me say goodbye to my new friend.”

With that, he turned his head towards her. He was smiling again. “Thank you again, Tenten. Come visit me in the Inuzuka clan compound, will you?”

“S-Sure thing Inugami. Don’t forget about our dinner!” Hanabi raised her eyebrow at that. Tenten didn’t care, though.

“Of course.” Inugami laughed out lightly and walked out of the training field with Hanabi.

Looking at his retreating back, Tenten wanted to tell him about the face she saw, but she decided against it.

“I should really stop reading ghost stories all the time, its affecting me badly.” She muttered, while shaking her head.

- - -

Inugami, Jin and Hanabi were walking through the streets of Konoha. Reverberating through the air were the excited noises of the civilians, who were enjoying the beautiful, sunny day. While dodging some excited kids, Inugami looked at his silent teacher. He wondered if she was holding a grudge because of yesterday. A spiteful jonin teacher would be troublesome.

Feeling his gaze, Hanabi’s exotic eyes shot towards him. Surprisingly, she opened her mouth and broke the silence between them. “I did not expect you to make a new friend. I’ve read in your files that you like to keep to yourself.”

Inugami shrugged and replied indifferently. “She is useful in training Jin.”

“I see…” Hanabi studied his face. “This is why you stood up for my sister yesterday. It all makes sense now. How cold of you Inugami.”

Inugami scoffed at her. “Don’t get me wrong, I meant the things I’ve said yesterday. You think too highly of yourself if you actually think that you can see someone’s fate.”

Hanabi’s face remained impassive as she shook her head. “You are too inexperienced. Trust me, my sister has no future as a shinobi. She should have dropped out of the academy instead of risking her life for nothing.”

Inugami raised his eyebrow at her last sentence. “Whatever, she is now a genin, if you like it or not. What are you trying to accomplish by talking to her like that? If you keep doing that, she will even get more useless and will never improve. Meaning, you are raising the risk of us failing and dying on a mission. Listen, I don’t care about your weird relationship with your sister, but if you keep acting unprofessionally, I will have a talk with the Hokage. I won’t die because of your family drama.”

Hanabi fell silent for a while. But then she spoke up, her tone for once not as cold. “I have to apologize, Inugami. I’ve let my feelings towards my sister influence my decisions. How embarrassing. As a shinobi and future clan head, I should have never done that. A perfect shinobi should be emotionless, after all. From now on, I will promise to focus on the wellbeing of our team.”

How did she come to that conclusion!? This woman has issues. He sighed. He was getting tired of talking to her, so he simply stayed silent.

After a while, they passed a clothing store. Inugami noted that Hanabi looked at some of the displayed clothes intently. “Are you into fashion, Ms. Hanabi?”

“What?” Hanabi snapped out of it and looked at him, befuddled. “Of course not, as the future clan head, I have no time to waste on such… frivolous things.” With that, she hastened her steps towards the tower that came into their sights.

Inugami furrowed his brows and went after her, with Jin on his heels.

- - -

“Ah, you are finally here.” Hiruzen greeted them with a smile, expertly ignoring Inugami’s glare.

In front of his desk were Hinata, a grumpy Ino and a gray-haired young woman. Inugami did a double take when he saw her. Huge breast and wide hips, that were barely covered by her skimpy clothes, and an alluring face. This woman looked like she came straight out of one of the questionable magazines Inugami possessed.

“Let me introduce you to Mrs. Yumi, your client. Apparently, there is someone that broke several times into her house at night while she slept. To make her feel safe again, you will catch the intruder. This will be your first D-rank mission.”

“Hello there.” She smiled at them, though her gray eyes lit up when she gazed at Inugami. “I will look forward to your help!” She said, sounding like an airhead. Though the look she gave Inugami showed she was the opposite.

Suddenly, Inugami felt really bad about his first mission.