The names of the mentors were called, their teams were leaving the classroom, and the crowd was getting smaller and smaller, but Nara was still standing there, nodding approvingly at the familiar genin. The further the list of teams was read, the more Hoshi's heart grew hopeful for a miracle, and she almost forgot how to breathe, frantically clenching her fists.
- ...team number sixteen - mentor Meno Ashiji," the chunin read.
- Yes!!!
A double shriek from Hoshi jumping up from the bench and Asani sitting nearby made the teacher wince.
- Yes, team number seventeen is mine," Nara nodded, smiling clearly, 'and now that that's taken care of, I suggest we find a place where no one will interrupt us and get acquainted,' he winked at the two happy girls, "although, in our case, it's only necessary for one member of the team.
- And you were worried about your team," Nara grinned at the older man in his thirties, the mentor of the sixteen, picking up his team.
- Uh-huh, look at my team and tell me I don't have to worry anymore," Hoshi's idol sighed, slumping his shoulders a little as he gave the departing jonin a burst of laughter.
For a few moments, the red-haired tokubetsu jonin lost sight of his teammates and immediately paid for it.
- Ryo-nii! - With a friendly shriek, Hoshi and Asani jumped on their idol, stretching smiles to their ears and amazed the teacher and the third teammate, who were unfamiliar with the behavior of orphans in relation to this shinobi.
Hoshi felt over the moon - even without taking into account her mentor's personality, the seventeenth team was incredibly lucky to have a strong clan fighter who could choose his own missions, and who could master such rare disciplines as fuinjutsu and iryojutsu at a high level! The odds of living to see his dream come true were rapidly increasing.
- Okay, little ones," Ryo patted the clinging kunoichi on the heads, then lowered them to the floor and turned to the door, "follow me!
A private place to meet in Nara's mind was Akamichi's restaurant. Jonin quietly rented a booth that would accommodate twice as many people, and ordered a real feast, ignoring the price, which exceeded the orphan's monthly allowance by a factor of twenty.
Hoshi had never even heard the names of some of the dishes, let alone known what they were made of, but they smelled amazing and it took all the will she had not to pounce on the food within reach. The little kunoichi had heard that the fat clan had taken the art of cooking to heights beyond the reach of the average person, but until now she had no idea how true that might be.
- All right, minnows, come on! - Ryo grinned.
- We're not minnows! - Hoshi pouted her lips, but she was still pulling up her food. - We're adults now that we've gotten our hitai te!
I've got more interesting stuff on patreon (+ 200 chapter)
patreon.com/Chill76