The morning mist clung to the training grounds as Kaji Nara Sarutobi, the infamous Shadow Monarch, stood with his arms crossed, watching two tiny figures wobble toward him.
Asuma Sarutobi (4 years old, pouting but determined) and Mido Shimura (4 years old, wide-eyed and clutching a bento like a security blanket) bowed shakily.
Kaji: "You're late." (They weren't.)
Asuma: "Nii-san, the sun wasn't even up yet!"
Mido: "I-I brought snacks…?" (Holds up bento like a peace offering.)
Kaji (deadpan): "Snacks are for winners. Let's see if you earn them."
Kaji's Rule #1: If you can't dodge a shadow, you can't dodge a kunai.
The "warm-up" consisted of:
Tree-sprinting (while Kaji's shadow tendrils lazily tripped them).
Push-ups (while Kaji sat on their backs sipping tea).
"Stealth walking" (which was really just tiptoeing past a sleeping ninken without waking it).
Asuma (whispering, mid-crawl): "Why does your brother hate us?"
Mido (whimpering): "I just wanted to eat my onigiri…"
Kaji (smirking from a tree branch): "I heard that."
Kaji demonstrated a basic kata, moving like liquid shadow. The toddlers copied him with all the grace of drunken kittens.
Mido (swinging wildly): "HA! Take that, evil… air!"
Asuma (tripping over his own feet): "I meant to do that! It's a… tactical roll!"
Kaji (pinching his nose): "I've seen scarecrows with better form."
Still, he corrected their stances with surprising patience—though not without dangling them upside-down to "fix their balance."
Kaji dropped two tiny metal rods in front of them.
Kaji: "These are chakra-resistant. Make one float. If you fail, you'll do it while hanging from a tree."
Asuma (grunting, face red): "Nii-san… I think mine's broken."
Mido (whispering to rod): "Please… I'll give you my dessert…"
Kaji (watching Mido bribe inanimate objects): "…That's not how chakra works."
By hour three:
Asuma's rod twitched like a dying fish.
Mido's rod stayed stubbornly still, but he did accidentally stick it to his forehead with sweat.
Kaji (nodding): "Progress." (They had no idea what he meant.)
Kaji's shadow split into two blobby clones—each one a wobbly, exaggerated version of himself.
Kaji: "Hit me. If you land one strike, you get snacks."
What followed was the most chaotic 30 minutes of their lives:
Asuma tried a "stealth attack" (he screamed the whole way).
Mido tripped, accidentally headbutting Kaji's clone in the knee.
Kaji (fake gasping, clutching his heart): "A critical hit! The mighty Shadow Monarch… falls!" (Dramatically collapses.)
Asuma & Mido (starving, covered in dirt, but triumphant): "SNACKS!!!"
Kaji tossed them their bento boxes.
Kaji: "Not terrible. Tomorrow, we add weights."
Asuma & Mido (with mouths full): "Mmhph?!"
Kaji (walking away, waving): "Rest. I'll know if you didn't." (His shadow winked at them before vanishing.)
The two boys collapsed onto the grass, chewing slowly.
Kaji Nara Sarutobi walked through the streets of Konoha, hands tucked lazily in his pockets, his mind adrift in thoughts of politics, war, and whether he'd left his favorite kunai in the training field again. The afternoon sun cast long shadows, and he absentmindedly stepped on his own, a bad habit he'd never quite shaken.
"Maybe I should just nap in the sun like a normal Nara," he mused.
And then—he walked straight into someone.
Not just someone.
A girl.
A very soft, very surprised girl.
The Collision
There was a muffled "Oof!" as Kaji's chest met something decidedly not tree-like. His reflexes kicked in—he grabbed her shoulders to steady her, only to realize too late that his hands had landed somewhere dangerously close to improper territory.
Worse—he recognized her.
Hyuga Hanabi.
No, wait. That was her cousin.
Hyuga… something.
"Hinata?" he guessed.
The girl in his arms stiffened, then pulled back with a glare that could melt steel.
"Himawari," she corrected, voice drier than Suna's deserts.
"Right," Kaji said, nodding sagely. "The flower one."
She sighed, long-suffering. "It's Himari."
"Close enough."
She had the classic Hyuga elegance—pale eyes, dark hair tied in a neat ponytail, and a posture so straight it made him want to slouch harder just to compensate. But unlike most Hyuga, who carried themselves like porcelain dolls, this one looked like she wanted to strangle him.
Which, admittedly, was fair.
"You're Kaji Nara Sarutobi," she stated, dusting off her sleeves like his mere touch had contaminated her.
"And you're the Hyuga I definitely remember," he lied smoothly.
She narrowed her eyes. "We trained together when we were six. You tripped me with a shadow and called it 'stealth practice.'"
A vague memory resurfaced—a tiny, furious Hyuga girl kicking him in the shins.
"Ohhh," he said, snapping his fingers. "That's why my leg still twitches when I see white eyes."
She didn't laugh.
"I need a sparring partner," she declared. "You're strong, lazy, and annoying enough to keep me sharp."
Kaji blinked. "Was that a compliment or an insult?"
"Yes."
They ended up in a secluded training field, where Kaji promptly laid down in the grass.
"Alright, hit me," he said, arms behind his head.
Himari stared. "You're not even standing up."
"And yet, I'm still winning."
She attacked.
What followed was 30 minutes of pure chaos:
Himari's Gentle Fist strikes were precise, lethal—and entirely useless when Kaji melted into the shadows and reappeared behind her, poking her shoulder.
She tried a rotation, only for Kaji to trip her with a shadow tendril, sending her tumbling right into his arms.
He meant to catch her gracefully. Instead, they both went down in a tangle of limbs, Kaji flat on his back with Himari straddling his waist, her face inches from his.
Silence.
Kaji cleared his throat. "So. This is new."
Himari's cheeks flushed pink, but she didn't move. "You did that on purpose."
"I wish I was that smooth."
She rolled her eyes—but she didn't get up.
Kaji studied her. Up close, she was… distracting. Sharp features, soft lips, and eyes like polished moonstones. And the way she sat on him, all righteous fury and flustered pride—
"You're staring," she accused.
"You're sitting on me," he countered. "I'd say we're even."
A beat. Then, she smirked.
"You're exactly as infuriating as I remembered."
"And you're exactly as terrifying," he admitted. "It's kinda hot."
She flicked his forehead, but there was no real force behind it. "Idiot."
Eventually, they untangled themselves (with far more lingering touches than necessary).
"Same time tomorrow?" Kaji asked, brushing grass off his pants.
Himari adjusted her sleeves, feigning nonchalance. "Only if you actually fight me this time."
"Bold of you to assume I wasn't."
She huffed, but the corner of her mouth twitched. "Meet me at the east training field. Alone."
"Scandalous," he drawled. "Are you asking me on a date, Hyuga?"
"It's a spar, Nara."
"Same difference."
She walked away, but not before tossing over her shoulder: "Don't be late."
Kaji watched her go, a slow grin spreading across his face.
"Oh, this is gonna be fun."
As Kaji strolled home, his shadow stretched unnaturally long, twisting into a smug, wiggling line.
"Shut up," he told it.
His shadow wiggled harder.
Yeah. Tomorrow couldn't come fast enough.