Haruka walked inside behind Iruka, slightly guilty. She had used a dirty trick to defeat Uchiha,making Iruka distract him so she could sneak up on him. .It was necessary to minimize any accidents that could have happened, but still very unsportsmanlike.
As Iruka lead her into the room, he built up chakra to start a genjutsu subtly. He wanted to see how long it took her to recognize and escape a genjutsu. He planned on putting her in a weak one that his students had studied. It was very general and unused as most could easily break it and it served no purpose. It just made the victim see an empty room with no people in it. There were a lot of tells in it, like a strange silence, and other small things. Most of the students could recognize and escape it in twenty minutes.
When they entered, he immediately placed the jutsu and observed. He was very anxious for this. Haruka seemed above level on her other skills, even though he saw little ninjutsu. Additionally, she seemed heavily armed for the past two days, her ninja pouch full of senbon and other things and her two strange knives on each hip. If she passed this like the others, he wold need to inform the Hokage of her suspicious skill level. As it is, he would probably have to caution her Jonin teacher.
Haruka sat in an empty desk, assuming Iruka went to get the next test as he was not in the room. It was very quiet inside, making an awkward atmosphere for her. She had never seen the room so empty and quiet, and it was a bit of break from the usual chaos. Still, Haruka felt tense for some unknown reason that she shoved to the back of her mind. Iruka would be back soon and she could leave.
Fifteen minutes passed when she realized what was going on. Genjutsu. Right away, Haruka's eyes widened and her breathing sped up. She was terrified of any genjutsu, no matter how harmless it seemed.
When she was little, Rioko-sama would punish her for all the mistakes she made from rushing or being too careless. He disliked anything too messy, so his favorite thing to do was put her in a genjutsu. It was probably easy to break out of because of how obvious it was, but she had been young and did not know how to get out. He would put her in nightmare worlds from anywhere from ten minutes to three hours, depending to the severity. Sometimes, he would get one of his men to do it, and they would place her in their own versions, all equally terrifying. Ever since, she avoided them unless necessary. She could place one without freaking out too much, but being in one made her a wreck.
Haruka's heart pounded double time and her mouth was as dry as Suna. She stood shakily, sweating. Gulping in lungfuls of air, she tried to calm herself. "I-Iruka-sensei. I know this is a genjutsu. May I please be r-released?" She couldn't do it with her chakra, so hoped that he would be satisfied with her recognizing it.
Iruka was a bit worried. Fifteen minutes, Haruka seemed to get a bit panicky and almost have a breakdown. He was tempted to let her out, but had to see if she could do it. He wondered what was causing the fear. The genjutsu? Was she afraid of being alone, silence, or genjutsus in general? He had no idea, but observed her very closely.
Haruka stood for a minute until she realized that he would not realese her. She sat on a desk intead of her chair and tried her best to think. How could she get out of here? Would leaving the room work? Probably not, as he would stop her. There was only one thing she could think of, and it was a bit drastic, but she needed to get out of this jutsu. Haruka didn't think she could stand it much longer.
As she slipped a senbon from her pouch she glanced at the clock, seeing she had been trapped for about twenty five minutes now. Glancing around the room, Haruka decided that Iruka was not gonna let her out soon and almost whimpered with her fear. Shaking, she lifted the needle as Iruka watched in horror.
He saw her get a needle out, but didn't think she would actually... He watched, frozen as she looked around one more, almost in tears. She was coated in sweat and shaking, but had not said a word besides her first request. Her fear was obvious, but so was her resolve to face it. She would make a good ninja, that was easy to see. She had the will.
Quickly, Haruka slashed her upper right arm. Her legs were the strongest part of her, so she didn't want to risk her cutting to deep into those from her shaking, and her left arm would expose her brand, so it was unanimous. Right after, she saw Iruka watching her, eyes wide, at his desk. Sighing, she fell back on her desk.
Iruka was a bit suprised that she had done that, but got what he needed. She did not know how to release herself from a genjutsu without injuring herself. He was a bit comforted at this weakness, and would try to help her overcome it.
Awkwardky, Iruka rubbed the back of his, looking away. "Uh... That will be all for today. Will you need to go to the hospital?"
Haruka stood and shook her head. "No, I shall treat it. Good day Iruka-sensei." Distantly, she was pleased at her formal good-bye, but still shooken up. Instead of going home, she went to a deserted part of the woods to use her medical ninjutsu.
~~~~~~~~~
At the dinner table, Shino used the opportunity to question his father.
"Father, are there any Aburames or other bug-affiliated clans outside Konoha?"
There was a pause as his father thought this over. He expected and ate slowly, waiting for his response.
"Not that I know of." Shino nodded, even more curious. So this girl naturally liked bugs? His mother was an Aburame, so she was born being close to them. He had never seen a girl outside the clan who was close to them. Boys yes, but girls? Never.
A minute passed before his father spoke again. "Why?"
Shino thought about his words. "A new girl came to class. She made friends with a redback spider." His father nodded, and that ended the conversation. Still, they were all fairly curious. What kind of girl-what kind of child would go near a deadly spider, much less pick it up? It was a conundrum for a future date.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As always, Choji sat down at the table, smiling. Today, his mother had piled the table with bar-b-que, and his dad was already tearing in. Choji joined in as his mother giggled happily at their enthusiasm, pleased they liked her cooking.
As she also got a plate, mother smiled at Choji. "How was school, dear? Any new friends?" His father also payed attention. They were both curious, knowing their son was a bit of a loner,hanging only around with that Nara boy. He was nice, but they wanted more for their son. Friends would be welcomed, especially if they were of the female variety.
Choji blushed a little at their enthusiasm, but answered anyway in between bites. "We got a new student today..... Her name's Haruka... We talked at the begging of class." His mother did a mental happy dance.
"Was she pretty? Was she nice? Can she cook? Are you friends? Tell me everything!" His mother had always been perky and involved with him, so he expected her questions to come so fast. His father just smiled happily, also waiting.
"Dunno, she has a mask.... Yeah, she was pretty nice... Dunno.... I guess...." He mumbled the last part. He was unsure, but hoped they were friends. He was positive that some of his chips sprayed on her while he spoke, but she didn't even flinch, so that was a good sign, right?
~~~~~
It took an hour, but Haruka was finished with her healing. Her arm was back to being smooth. Now, she had another problem.Once she had calmed down enough, she saw her clothes were ruined. If just a little sweat would make them barely hold on, what would water do? So she needed a new outfit. One that would have to be bought, sadly.
Once she re-wrapped her bandages enough so she was decent, she went in search of a clothes store. It was a failure.
She could tell you where the academy was. Where the weapons store was. Where Nii-san's house was. Where the Ramen shop was. Where an old lady that smelled like chicken feed and cinnamon lived. But a clothes shop? That was a mystery. Nii-san never entered one, and she never had to go to one, so she was lost.
She was about to give up, when she saw a child from her class. It was the blonde girl that sat beside her in the first half the day. She was in flower shop, boredly leaning against the store counter. She would have to do.
Entering the store, Haruka bowed to the girl. "Hello."
"Oh, hey! You're the girl from school! Haruka, right? I'm Ino Yamanaka. How can I help you?" Ino kept a cool face on the outside, but inside, she was a jumble of nerves. Could she be looking to buy flowers for her Sasuke? If that was the case, she would have to think of a way to drive her out. She started planning as the girl smiled.
"May you direct me to a clothes store, Yamanaka?"
Those were the magic words. "Clothes store." No more needed to be said for Ino. She paused, then reacted quickly. She threw her apron off, simultaneously calling out to her mother. "I gotta go mother! be back in an hour!" No waiting for a reply, Ino launched off the counter and grabbed Haruka's wrist, dragging her out at lightning speed.
Haruka was stunned. She had asked for simple directions, but instead got an escort. It was but strange. She just needed to know where, not be shown. Letting herself be dragged, she couldn't help but wonder what other motives this girl had.
Within seconds, they reached the best clothes store Ino knew. Throwing Haruka on a bench, she yelled at her "Stay there!" She launched herself into a bunch of racks, looking for an outfit.
Haruka could now see what she wanted. She wanted a doll to dress up, but didn't mind. Clothes were clothes, and she didn't care what they looked like as long as she could move freely. Yamanaka soon came back with a pink kimono, with trailing sleeves that would go down to her feet. she shoved it into her arms and then tried to push her into a dressing room.
"Yamanaka, wait please." Ino stopped and looked at Haruka, who was staring back serenely. "If you wish to chose my clothes, I am fine with that, but I do have one requirement. I must be able to move very freely to accommodate my fighting style. This will not do so. Thank you." She bowed and handed it back, settling back down on the bench.
Ino was a bit surprised, but even more determined. How to get this girl to look cute but with minimal clothes? She set off, searching for a suitable outfit.
Haruka only had to wait a few minutes before Ino returned, a new outfit in her hands. Once thoroughly shoved into a dressing room, she observed it. It consisted of a fish net shirt with sleeves. Over it, a stiff dark green tank top that was a lot like armor, which would be very helpful. The bottoms were a pait of shorts with slits on the side. She had also thrown in a pair of shoes, which Haruka grudgingly put on. The only reason she wouldkeep them were because they were much longer than normal shoes and would protect her legs. Once she stepped out, Ino squeled happily.
"Perfect! Just add these gloves." She set a pair on a bench for Haruka. "You can put something underneath the shorts, but you look amazing!" Haruka nodded and changed back into her clothes.
"Thank you, Yamanaka. I shall see you in school tomorrow." And with that, Ino bounced home, accomplished, and Haruka payed for the outfit. Shopping was not fun at all, no matter how quick Ino had been, and she did not plan on doing it again.
She ran home, and quickly went inside to avoid her Nii-san. She wanted time to cool down from the test, and he was a bit much to handle. Once in, she set the clothes on the bed by the floor and started some sit-ups. Training always relaxed her, the pain always welcome.
After a few hundred, she went to bed, satisfied. She will get over her fear, her weakness, if it killed her. And with that promise, she drifted off to sleep.
Sorry if this seemed rushed! Hope you liked! And her outfit is basicaly the first one. To the owner of the drawing: I am sorry for using this, but it's such a good drawing and exactly what I imagined! If you ever see this and want it taken down, than I will. It is completely his/her work.
Comments any suggestions or questions!!! Have a good day!
P.S, The reason she keeps changing her clothes is to show her absentminded-ness. She didn't think about the first one and how awkward it was, she didn't think about the second one and it practically fell apart on her. Just to show a bit about her.