Akane's Exam Day

Akane stepped through the halls of the Academy as she was anxious to get her start at becoming a Genin. She had no idea what kind of test she was stepping into as she tried to keep her cool upon reaching the room where the test would be taken. She opened the door to see a room with a table and at the front occupied by no one. She gingerly stepped inside, shutting the door as she did, and stepped over to one of the windows to look outside.

She felt her nerves slowly getting the better of her as she was worried about whether or not she'd be able to accomplish her goal today and become a Genin. She had no idea who her proctor would be but she knew they'd want only the best from her. Thinking this she cracked her knuckles and maintained her focus as she looked out into the village from the window while awaiting her proctor to come.

(Requesting proctor for the Genin Exams)

Bumpity bump!

Proctoring exams was never her favorite activity. Alas, in an effort to lead by example, the Hokage slid open the door to the exam room roughly ten minutes after Akane had entered. Seeing as she wasn't the only one that was early, Risako's silvery eyes caught sight of the girl who seemed to be occupied with something outside of the room. If the door hadn't managed to catch the young Uchiha's attention, the woman would cough to do so. Quickly after that, she went on to say "Good morning, I'm Risako Akara, Hokage and proctor." Unsure of what to say next, her eyebrow arched before she continued walking towards the desk which had been adorned with various headbands for those who would pass today. Sitting down in the chair behind it, her fingers briefly drummed a part of the exposed surface before reaching out for the clipboard on the corner. Glancing through the names, she didn't recognize any of them, save for the usual Uchiha, Senju, or Nara students.

"Well then, let's get started, miss?" Her voice lingered on the last word, indicating that she was asking for her name. Whether or not the girl in the room introduced herself was irrelevant, and the Hokage would continue either way. "Alright, well. Perform both the clone, and transformation jutsu, then tell me what it means to be one with the will of fire."

[You must use 800 words to do the tasks mentioned in the dialogue. Good luck, have fun.]

Akane was caught off guard as she heard the door leading into the room open in order to allow a woman she recognized quite well introduce herself to her. It was none other than the Hokage herself which surprised Akane, as well as excited her, as she didn't expect at all to be proctored by the leader of the whole village! This caused her nerves to start getting to her in immense detail as she could feel the shakes starting to travel through her body and she stepped into the center of the room. As she did she tried her best to keep herself in control as she willed her nerves away and exhaled deeply to prepare herself.

"M-my name is Akane Uchiha of the Hidden Leaf, my lady. Forgive me if I appear nervous. I wasn't expecting the Hokage herself to oversee my exam. I hope I'm able to meet your expectations as well as possibly surpass them." Akane bowed respectively before her as she decided to not waste any more time and she brought her hands up as she began to gather her chakra. She felt that the first jutsu she'd perform would be the clone technique so that she'd get the hardest one she had some trouble with out of the way first. With that she began to form the necessary seals.

She formed the Ram, Snake, and Tiger seals easily enough as she gathered the necessary chakra within her to proceed in summoning forth a clone. "Clone Jutsu!" Her chakra seemingly bulged outwards from within her in the form of smoke as she could feel her chakra extending and branching itself out in two places. Upon seeing the smoke clear there were now three Akane's as her clones stood beside her on both sides and gave soft smiles. She put her hands up to the two to show that they weren't actually clones rather than they were illusions of clones as her hands simply passed through the two. This caused her to smile as well as gain a bit of confidence in herself as she released the technique, allowing the clones to disappear, and exhaled a bit as she felt most of the nervousness that she had inside her before dissipate, leaving her ready for the next technique, as she once more brought her hands back up to form the Dog seal.

She then gathered her chakra as she formed the Boar and Ram seals next and focused in her mind an image to transform into just as her chakra once again burst forth from her in the form of smoke. "Transform!" She could feel her body changing and new clothes taking place in different areas of her body as the smoke cleared to reveal, not Akane, but another form of the Hokage Risako herself. She had chosen such a form, not to flatter them as she knew that would possibly make her look too desperate, simply because she was in the room and the closest thing Akane could focus her thoughts on. She looked to herself to make certain that she hadn't messed up anywhere, seeing that her clothes were in all the right places and her facial features and hair was in perfect order, before she released the jutsu and returned to her original form after another large puff of smoke. She lightly giggled to herself, feeling relieved that she seemingly had succeeded in using her two jutsus, as she softly exhaled in order to allow a little bit of relief to take her and take away some more of the tension she had been feeling since she entered the room.

After relaxing herself for a little bit she thought upon the Hokage's question about her will of fire. She thought giving a life story as to why she became a ninja was not at all what the Hokage was looking for so she decided that she'd offer an answer she felt she held within her for a very long time. "To me the meaning of being one with the will of fire is one who does whatever it takes in order to protect those they love even if the odds are stacked against them to the point where they risk their life to do so. Of course that's what it is to me. It can mean something else to others, mainly in terms of gaining power for the sake of others or fame and glory from those you admire, but it normally will always come back around to the protection and respect of the individuals we cherish on a daily basis. My will of fire is one that I hold strongly within me as there are those important to me to the point where I'd die for their safety and would do whatever it took to protect them. It's mainly why I decided to pursue becoming a ninja in the first place so that I could pursue the strength to not only protect them but this beloved place that I call home. That's my will of fire and I hope I impressed you with this exam, my lady." She gave another kind bow to the Hokage as she couldn't help but feel nervous at what they would say about the results of the exam.

Back in the good old days when life was simple, missions were about catching lost cats, and her friends weren't just decayed flesh and aging bones, Risako had always heard that the clone jutsu was the hardest of the two test techniques. No one ever seemed to fail them, though, and Akane seemed to have trained the technique sufficiently. Nodding to the girl, she simply stated "Good."

Akane smashed the transformation test as well. The student nailed Risako's looks down to her shoulder length raven hair, silver, almost Byakugan like eyes, petite frame, and the armour she was wearing. "Solid," was her judgement on this portion of the test. With the two most important parts completed, the girl had mostly passed.

Finally, Risako thought Akane's response to her question was the average one. That's not to say it was bad however, but it got the Hokage thinking that Akane would pick a fight with someone that could guarantee her end. Cocking an eyebrow at the Uchiha girl, the rest of Risako's face was relatively plain. Her lips parted and lingered that way for a second, as she hesitantly asked the final question. "Dying for others is the noble thing to do when your back is to the wall. If simply surrendering because you're too weak would guarantee less casualties, would you do it?" This determined the fanatics from those who simply followed the ways of the village.

Akane heard Risako's question as a few nerves kicked in once more. She knew there was only one answer but with her nerves as they were she was worried she might word it in a way that made her seem stupid or something. She took a deep breath before speaking from her heart on the matter. "There are never any guarantees when one takes the mantle of a shinobi. If I was in the middle of combat with an enemy ninja and they suddenly grabbed a nearby civilian, putting a knife to their throat, and telling me they'd let them go if I killed myself or laid down my own weapons I have no guarantees they'd keep their word. What I meant behind what I originally said was that those who put others before themselves and would give their life to protect them oftentimes find strength within them they didn't know they originally had. They never have to worry if they're too weak or if the other ninja is too strong because they'll find within them the strength to persevere for their loved ones.

That's what it means to have a strong sense of the will of fire within oneself. A perseverance to never give up no matter how tough the situation. So no. If I was to be asked your same question while in an actual combat situation I would not give up simply due to being weak especially if other's lives were on the line. If anything I'd do whatever it took, if I was too weak for the situation, to create an opening for whoever it may be in danger so that they could escape. If I ended up losing my life for it then so be it. At least I was able to save them without the need of having to rely on 'guarantees' or the promises of an enemy." She had hoped that the Hokage wouldn't just see her talking nonsense at this point as she had spoken directly from her beliefs and had hoped that it would be enough to impress her.

Fanaticism was a trait that everyone in the village needed to some degree. Once Akane finished speaking, Risako stood up from her seat and began to pace towards the student. As she passed the corner of the desk, her hand grasped a headband off the table, bringing it to her chest. Using both hands, the Hokage brandished the metal plate towards Akane in a way to present it to her.

Once the reward was taken, Risako's hands fell to her side and she would say "Once again, that's a solid answer. You're over thinking it just a tad, but it's a good answer." The Hokage held the viewpoint that fanatics of the highest degree were to be made ANBU. She actively tried to push people away from the rank, as the training involved stripped them of virtually any personality. "Congratulations, Akane Uchiha. You're the newest addition to our forces, stop by the administration building to see what your new tasks are. While you're there, if you'd like to join a team then I'll look through the village roster and match you with someone I think would fit." Returning to her seat, Risako would wait for the next student to come along.

[Exit, promoting Akane to Genin.]

Akane looked at the headband offered to her from the hand of the Hokage herself and smiled wide as she took it and bowed again. "Thank you, my lady, for proctoring me and the advice. I hope I can live up to all expectations you have of me and then some. And I'll make for the administration office right away. Also, as far as teams go, I would be delighted to see about joining a team. Thank you for the consideration." She took the headband and wrapped it around her forehead as she couldn't help but feel a bit giddy with excitement as she calmly walked over to the door and exited out of the room. She couldn't help but giggle to herself from her excitement as she made her way to the exit of the academy.

(Exiting thread)

(Claiming Genin rank, free jutsu that come with the rank, Ninjutsu Spec, and 15 stats)

Hello. Post your claims please.

Approved.