Crisis At The Academy: Act one, Scene one

The academy, an establishment housing the future shinobi of the republic. It’s purpose is to hone youthful minds and prepare them for the hardships to come. Each student at the academy in someway will surrender their simple lives and dedicate themselves as weapons to protect the people. In some cases, they’ll be used to eliminate the opposition. Despite all their sacrifices, there are those baring the title of Jinchuriki whose sacrifice came without choice. Before they could even speak; it was decided that they’d live with the curse of baring power along with the hatred of those who have lost loved ones because of it.

Some become envious of the power they possess. Their deep envy breeds obsession and for those various reasons , this generation of students are also the most heavily guarded in the history of the academy. Anything that comes within 100 meters of the academy is instantly detected and dealt with accordingly.  Many have attempted to breach their barriers  and have failed. Infiltrators had been met with extreme prejudice all to ensure the safety of their students .  But what would happen if the threat has been right under their noses this whole time?

If those trusted with developing the children were also plotting their demise.  Would anyone even know? Would the future of the republic even stand a chance?  Evil is at play and in the darkness, a figure stares out through an open window.  It must’ve been 3am but the figure was restless. The weather was calm and the campus was quiet ,the students were fast asleep. Though the silence brought peace to everyone , the figure was deeply troubled. As the moonlight illuminated parts of the room, a letter is seen catching fire on a desk nearby. The letter was black and the fire burned a white color. If a fly could read it’d bare witness to the ominous message.

Burning Letter:

A few hours had gone by and the sun had risen. School bells began to ring to wake the students. A new day had started and much to the discipline of the faculty; sleeping in was not permitted.  The time was about 5am(meditation time) and the students were being instructed through the PA system to report to the cafeteria by 5:30 for breakfast.  The food options were plentiful and  unlike most school periods, this was a good time to meet with friends or even make new ones.

What to do:

Rules:

By the time the early morning announcement had been given, Maximillian was already up. He had already slept through the majority of the yesterday so he had ended up waking earlier than usual. Still, he didn’t mind as this gave him some time to flesh out his plans. After he had jotted down a few notes, he would close the book and placed it back on the shelf before heading to the cafeteria for breakfast.

At first, he would skip breakfast altogether to avoid rubbing shoulders with the rest of the students but his sister had found out about him skipping and had assigned someone she had known to watch him which so happened to be a lunch lady. The old prune wasn’t that bad of a person truth to be told as she always managed to slip him some cookies whenever he wanted so it wasn’t all that bad. Grabbing his breakfast tray he would allow her to fill it with whatever she felt like he should be eating before heading to the corner of the cafeteria to eat.

Demoto was heading over to the school cafateria with his wooden kendo sword in hand. There seemed to be some sort of musical people from the Kangen clan that was following him around and taking care of him since knowing what bijuu he possessed. However, he only brushed it off as some kind of stalking that anyone would experience at least once in their lives. Plus, it wasn't was if they were doing anything nefarious.

"....."


Standing in the line, Demoto was waiting to get some sort of seasoned miso soup, some tea, chicken fritters, tomatoes and lettuce, egg whites, cucumbers, and some rice. It may have seemed like a lot, and that was basically because it is. Perhaps the Kangen clan had something to do with Demoto getting a little more food?



"..."

Looking to Maximillian's table at the corner, Demoto decided to sit over there as well, but decided against it at the last moment. Most people didn't want a cripple around, so maybe solitude was the best course of action. If Max noticed him stopping short, Demoto would just give a respectful bow and move over to another empty table.

Mika had actually been up easily an hour before the normal time, it was habit for her to be up early and she would do some quick stretches and a few quieter exercises simple things like push ups and the like before giving herself a quick wash to get any sweat off and get ready for the day, after that, she would make sure her fluff was well brushed and then by that time it was breakfast and so she would head on down to the cafeteria, breakfast likely one of the only meals she ate down there. She was going to ask if she could use the kitchen again to make herself something of a field lunch to eat while training later that day if it turned out to be a day that they had mostly to themselves or for training.

As she got down she happily grabbed a trey and waited in line, her antenna poking up over the edge of the counter and the first time she was there that was the only indication the workers had that there had actually been anyone there to feed in the first place, by this time though the twitching antenna was rather a common sight, though Mika still noticed the odd look from other students due to her height... or lack there of. Eventually she got her food and she headed for a seat, that's when she noticed Maxi and flew on over, landing next to the table she smiled "Morning this seat taken? If not it is now!" she said with a cheerful tone as she sat next to him.

Eos was ever the one to awaken early just got the sake of being awake. She would always be meditating for a good hour before the morning announcements, and so she has begun to use that as the mark with which to cease such tranquil activity and actually fill her stomach. Not after that first time she forgot to eat breakfast and the whole of her training class were made aware of just how loud the Faunus' stomach could be. Though it still took a little too convince people she didn't need meat. So as she filed in to the cafeteria, still with some twigs in her hair, the deer girl grabbed herself her usual breakfast of whole fruits and berries. Easy enough to carry, though as usual she bumped a table or two slightly with her staff along the way.

She just didn't know where to sit herself.

But then there was one person she saw who she hasn't met yet. A small person, which compared to the tall girl that Eos was would be quite a difference. But a new friend is a new friend. So even as they went to sit with Maxi, she quickly dropped herself in to the seat besides Mika. "Multi class lunch together, yes?" She was a little sweet if still rather naive to how 'insiders', as her clan called people outside her village, interacted. So dropping herself in with others was just... How she was.

As each student came forward in the line the lunch ladies would fill their plates with food. Depending on the student their options may vary. Such as Eostre, who’d have a fruits and berries diet. They’d ensure that there was enough greens that consist of high protein on her plate as well. Eostre would have to get passed the last lunch lady who would register their meals and total caloric intake into her computer. The lunch lady looked up at Eostre with concern then signal her to go on. She wouldn’t say anything to her but the thoughts were almost obvious. She didn’t think that Eostre was eating enough but the math said she’s good, so oh well.

The same procedure was done with everyone else. But everyone had a different response from the lunch lady. Mika would get a look of shock, as the lunch lady has never seen anyone soo short. Of course she would’ve seen Mika almost everyday now, but her shortness catches the lunch lady off guard every time.  When Maxi would come on through, her expression was different from the rest. From the moment, he’d step into the line to the moment she registers his meals her smile was genuine. Once he’s about to walk away she'd signal him, “pssst , here a cookie. Now gon babeh! U gone na”. This two happened without fail. At this point Maximillion probably knows she’s going to do this every time he’s about to walk away.

Now Demoto was an interesting one. It seems as if the lunch lady is fully aware that he’s a jinchuriki. She’s also aware that he probably has a handicap because of it. Unfortunately she thinks that he’s deaf. So every time he get his fancy meals, she’d register them and respond with a smile. “Go on na princess! Don’t get dem pinkies dirty!” She was obviously a routined person because she would also do this every time.

After the students came the faculty. Now they had a whole different spread of food. The kitchen literally transformed by the time the last student walked out and the first faculty member walked in . As they got their fill of food, some familiar faces passed through as well. One being Aka, who everyone had become somewhat acquainted with by now.  Right behind him was Pinku.  She seemed a bit bothered by all the attention Aka would get with the lunch ladies .

He was just this big towering man with soo much charisma. The lunch lady would register them both meanwhile using the chance to shoot her shot. “Phew! The kitchen got hotter Papi! Why you don’t take off the shirt?“  Aka flashed a smile at the question and wave off the compliment, “Come now! Its way too early for me to be costing everyone their appetites”. The lunch lady shocked by the response made sure to make one thing clear to Aka before he left with Pinku , “Uh uh, Baby u ain’t neva gonna make me lose my appetite. No way! For you, I thirst baby, I thirst! As they'd walk away she'd continue on. " Now I see u with just one broccoli on yo plate! U a big boy, you should be eating way more than that! You over here listening to that skinny pink bitch and you ain’t eating. Just let me know when you want dat real meat!”

Meanwhile in the cafeteria, the students have decided to pick their seats.  Unbeknownst to them, this was something that the faculty would make note of well. Faculty on the other hand usually don’t interfere in social stuff and just remain vigilant as they converse amongst their colleagues.  If the students cared they’d notice even the faculty sat in different groups as well. Usually Gin and Kin always sat together, being playful adults . They're twins and sometimes it looked as if the two were inseparable.

Orenji and the other faculty mainly sat together . This excluded Ao and Murasaki who were never actually seen by anyone during gatherings. This also excluded Aka and Pinku who usually just watch the students together. Aka is always very charismatic so even when they’d be in the corner of the room together; students would still wave, snicker , and even come up to them to be playful and tell jokes which always interrupt their moments. Nonetheless he was always in good spirits and never made any student feel unwanted.

With Pinku he was different. He was a lot more calm and down to earth. He was very thoughtful and sweet, “You’re quiet, Pinku. Is your food ok?” Pinku would look at his face for a while before bumping him with her shoulder, “It’s good, how about your one broccoli? You’ve barely touched it, are you thinking about that real meat?” She’d tease. “Heh that’s way way too many calories for me." He’d joke back before looking her in the eyes. "Does it bother you?”

“That I’m a skinny bitch and all these grown women are just throwing themselves at you… nah. My favorite part is how you just let it happen you know.”  Aka would smile it off, ”I don’t want to be rude and I know you can handle yourself. If I can trade all the attention in the world and just have yours; I’d choose you a thousand times.” Pinku would blush and respond, “Eww we’re just friends, Aka. Why you talk like that? You know you shouldn’t say things you don’t mean. You might get….”

“Hey loser!” Pinku is interrupted by a loud kid making his way to Demoto’s table with his three friends. “Why you sitting alone? Oh I know because you ugly!” A girl from the group would chime in as well. “ oh yea you’re very ugly. I would never like a boy like you , gross!” A fat kid from the group would attempt to eat Demoto's rice. “Huhuhu! What’s wrong you dumb or something? Say nothing if you want me to have your rice? Huh? Oh it’s mine then huhuhu!” The last member of the group of hooligans was a very skinny kid. He was taller than the rest and very lanky. “Hit him in the head! Hit him in the head!” He was also very violent.

The staff would just continue about their conversations as if they weren’t paying attention. Aka and Pinku would watch on as well. Pinku slowly putting her hand on top of Aka’s. He’d look at her then let it rest there while observing Demoto.

Happenings:

Barely in her seat and Eos' strange attention span was already flittering about with the little group she was attempting to properly meet she befriend to ever increase the people she knew she could count on. She always tried to give her full attention but it was... Difficult. It did however come in handy for certain situations, her eyes were just constantly darting around and often little noises can get her attention for even a fragment of a second. She has been 'warned' of the Gin Chew Riki but they were just kids too. So... Different if new friends still, yes? More so, scavengers had always been a problem back home, so finding them a problem here too, her actions were almost predetermined. With one move she rose a finger to the group she'd sat with and hadn't even shared much word with, took a big bite from a juicy fruit she had never had before, and collected her staff.

Raised in nature there was just one way to deal with scavengers: make noise and scare them away. So as the large boy was going for the rice, Eos slammed her staff against an empty bit of table. "Lines over there. Am sure was plenty to eat and the ladies very generous." She didn't know Demoto, just that he was a Gin Chew Riki, probably could be a danger if something bad happened. She thinks, anyway. She never really understood the details or how to recognise the type of Gin Chew Riki. Not that it mattered. But she already picked out the lanky one for her attention. Mostly. Her eyes still couldn't hold still without a little dart away every few seconds if a noise got her. "Can move on and enjoy breakfast everybody?" She asked in the same almost sweet tone she usually spoke in, only sharp and stern, punctuated by another smack of staff on table. Scavengers usually hated loud noises.

"YAY new Friend" Mika gave a little cheer as the Deer Faunus had joined her and Maxi at the table, the small moth clearly quite happy to make new friends "Oh Cool your tall too, you and Maxi will both be easy for me to find in a crowd" she said cheerfully as she started to eat "So how have you guys been enjoying the time... here?" she was cut off as she heard the bullies start up picking on someone Mika looked over and the commotion, they were even talking about taking the guys food? that wasn't cool, though the guy was keeping quiet about it, though she doubted that was out of fear, after all she doubted anyone that came here would have been a coward considering the work they would have to do after they graduated. Though it seemed their New Deer friend was getting their attention and trying to drive them off.

Mika though knew how to deal with bullies, she was usually a target of them back in her old home due to her size, or lack there of, and her mother had taught her not to take crap from people, just cause she was small didn't mean she couldn't deal with things after all, so she looked at Maxi "Gimme a second Maxi, and join in if you want just don't think taking a swing would be a good Idea... but you might get a laugh out of this" she said as she got up and walked over.

"Oh yeah that's all very funny..." Mika said giving a very monotonous and sarcastic laugh, "Though I doubt he is sitting alone for that reason, likely he just wants to Avoid the stench coming out of your mouth... tell me did your parents forget which end is your butt when you were a baby? and have they finally figured it out after all these years? and could you please stop doing handstands when people are talking to you? Oh... Oh wait that IS your face... wow..." she said to the first boy.

Then she rounded on the girl "As for you I am sure he is glad to hear that After all the last time I seen something with nearly that much problems with it's face it had run into a rock at high speed... judging by how bad off you are you seem to taken that up as a hobby. I mean.. I would compare you to a Pitbull but some people actually like to look at those..."

She then turned to the large boy "As for you Bubble boy, I think you have had plenty, I mean seriously look at ya, there are like what Five Fat people in this whole Academy and you're Four of them, Look their is a whole field of grass out there why don't ya go graze it? I would compare you to a cow but you make those large beasts look positively starved."  she then looked at the lanky guy.

"As for you string bean, you have to stop giving your buddy here your food, I mean look at you a stiff breeze could blow you over no wonder you have to demand other people hit something for you... if you tried to hit someone I am sure it would be like a dry leaf slapping a rock but twice as pathetic... I think I can actually see the lunch lady through you your so skinny. OH NO look out for this guy... don't get him mad.. or he'll dry up and blow away!" she said rather loudly finished smiling at all of them and having walked a fair bit closer to them.

Demoto had no idea why these people were harassing him. He was minding his business trying to eat and basically draw a little bit for fun on the little chalkboard that he carries around if he really wanted to try to communicate with someone. Taking out his chalkboard wiper, Demoto would quickly wipe it off and start writing a few things. In any case, these kids were pretty mean, and maybe Demoto looked like easy prey to them.

He also was appreciative of the other standing up for him, and he hoped he could show it on his face. However, Demoto was trying to think ahead. These kids had a lot of aggression pent up, but violence was against the rules. The only way around it would be to settle it something that was within school rules and can be watched over by a teacher if it got out of hand.

Spoiler:

He showed it to them in hopes that it bought some time until the middle of the day. If they were that troublesome and got detention beforehand, it was still a win for Demoto.

Maxmillian was halfway done with his cookie when he noticed one of two he had yet to meet. It seemed it was a wise decision to come to have breakfast this morning as it would give him the opportunity to observe his mannerisms and to also figure out what he was all about. He would simply nod when the child greeted him before finishing his cookie and starting his actual breakfast. As he began to force the unwanted food down his throat a familiar face would pop up from out the crowd of students. “No, there isn’t anyone sitting here.” He stated before continuing to force-feed himself. It was obvious that he wasn’t hungry but he needed to eat sustain himself or he’d risk yet another trip to the nurse's office. He didn’t care much for the other person who sat down next to the table so he didn’t greet her or looked in her direction as he was hyper-focused on trying to swallow the food and not bringing it back up until something caught his attention. Unfortunately due to the commotion caused by whatever was happening with Demoto the conversation came to an abrupt end. He didn’t move, however, as he had no real intention of stepping into whatever was going on. Instead, he waited to see if they would continue their conversation after the dust had settled.

As the large boy went for Demoto’s rice, he’d be interrupted by the loud sound of Eostre slamming her staff on the table next to them. His eyes shot open thinking that he might be hit by the staff next. Immediately following the noise came some remarks from Eostre telling them to get their food from the lunch line. They weren’t interested in doing that. In fact they had abandoned their meals at their table just to come over and take Demoto’s.

Though Eostre’s words were sweet the smacking of the table left them feeling threatened. So naturally they’d turn to their leader , who was scared but doing his best not to let it show.  The lanky one would then bang his head against the table in a controlled way as to pretend to be crazy. He'd also stare at Eostre with crazy eyes. “Cmoooooon hit me! I’m going to make you die , die die!”  All this commotion caught the attention of other students who didn’t want to get involved with the mess.

Faculty on the other hand were paying close attention under the guise of continuing their conversations. The lanky kid’s crazy reaction to the table smacks resulted in the leader finding some courage. “Oh look, the ugly kid has an ugly friend. Go figure, what’s with the stick? Your family too poor to afford real ninja tools?” He’d start to laugh looking at his friends to laugh with him. They’d laugh along and before any one else can add anything further, Mika would intervene.

“Oh yea that’s all very funny” , is all they’d hear as their attention gets pulled towards her.  They’d then regret averting their attention because what followed after was an onslaught of insults. The leader apparently had ass breath, the girl’s face was  “not it”, the fat kid was now bubble boy and the lanky kid was soo skinny that he’d be gone with a breeze.

These insults were incredibly witty but they only succeeded in hurting their feelings.  The leader tried to discretely check his breath, the girl turned red with embarrassment. The fat kid looked at his belly from the side and the lanky kid would only lift his shirt to try and reveal his skinny abs.  The leader had a choice to make. He could've accepted defeat and back away. Unfortunately, he didn't want to lose the respect of his crew and so he'd raise his hand and then point at Mika. “Bitch you ugly! You look like a bug!  My breath must actually stink because it’s really attracting flies like you! “ The  girl remained silent, just boiling with anger and embarrassment. The fat kid would chime in. “I’m not fat, I’m buff! But you are soo soo fat like look at you!" He'd quickly point at Mika's thin waist. The quick but not so quick motion of his arms would cause all the fat of his body to giggle for about ten seconds after he stopped. " Is that a muffin top or a second pair of boobs! Huhuhu I like those better because they’re much bigger than the ones up top!” The leader would laugh at the fat kid’s joke as the lanky kid would simply chant. “Stab the fatty, stab the fatty!”

The little girl had enough and would grab one of Demoto’s utensils and attempt to stab Mika in the belly. This attempt would be interrupted by the appearance of Ao. He showed up as if he’d been standing behind the kids the whole time. He isn’t often seen in student gatherings but there he was covered from head to toe in white wraps. He’d use those same wraps to tie up all four of the bullies. He’d then look at Mika and Eostre but not say a word.

Shortly after Murasaki’s voice was heard through the PA system. “Morning students please finish your meal and dispose of your trash. Breakfast is ending in two minutes.  Professor Aka will then instruct you all on where to report to next.  Thank you and have a great rest of your day!”By the time the announcements were done Ao and the group of kids had vanished.  Aka rose to his feet and mentally prepared to address the students. “ I must not fumble this assignment. For I alone, can deliver this speech that will prevent rebels from killing every last civilian man, woman, and child in their sleep. I will not fold!” His thoughts were intense and what he needed to give this speech. “Youth! Listen and Listen well for today is the day of destiny!”  He’d perform  7 back flips in the air and land in a full side split with each leg on a different lunch table. “Today your brains will expand from its puny box and explore a new world of possibilities. Everyone is to report to the auditorium right after breakfast but it is imperative that you become a sponge for knowledge. For you alone stand between us and the outside world using little babies as slippers!  Do you receive this mission?!”

He’d wait for the lunch room to reply. Some students remained quiet speaking to themselves, “what mission?” “Does he mean reporting to the auditorium? “ “ why doesn’t he just say that?” Aka realizing that no one is responding the right way repeats the question. “I said do you receive this mission?!” “Yes Sensei!!! “ the lunch room responses as they begin to throw their leftovers and trash away.  As the commotion started to die down Demoto would notice a stab mark from the utensil on his chalkboard. Guess they didn’t get to respond.

Gin and Kin were completely distracted by all that was going on that they didn’t even notice the quiet kid trying to listen in . “The travel teacher is trouble. He can’t be trusted and that puts everything at risk.” They’d walk away joining the other staff in guiding the students out of the cafeteria. It was time for everyone to move along.

Happenings:

Well, Demoto was overshadowed a bit, but that was alright. Before Mika could get stabbed, the teacher got involved just in time to break it up. There also seemed to be a stab mark on the chalkboard which made Demoto panic. He saved up a whole bunch of limited edition ninja cola bottle caps to get that chalkboard mailed to him. This sucks, and Demoto wanted to pout. However, he would rather do it privately, he didn't want to seem unappreciative. So after scarfing down the rest of his food to finish up because he didn't want to waste it, Demoto reached into his pocket and grabbed two candies, handing one to both Mika and Estore.

Writing on the chalkboard again, it said "thank you" as Demoto showed it to both of them. As for the teacher, the Demoto erased the chalkboard and wrote "YES!" in big letters to show that he shouted. Of course, he couldn't shout in real life, he wouldn't want to endanger anyone else. Besides, Demoto wanted to know more about the world, he didn't want to cut class and run into those knuckleheads again. But if they ever joined the kendo club, the conversation with them would have gone differently.

The start of the day was a-typical for Rikuta, wake up, brush teeth, take a bath before going into the main lobby to see what his parents had in mind for him to do today.

This was different though as when he woke up he wasn’t in the familiar room that he grew to feel relaxed in, the walls were different, and the smell didn’t fit him at all. It was all still very new to him and it made sleeping hard, but he managed it after having some time to actually settle into his new environment. Unfortunately, however, he was still quite nervous to actually be around other students, both in just not knowing them, but in also hoping he didn’t embarrass himself somehow.

It took less than an hour for him to get washed up, cleaned, and finally slowly peek outside the hall to see if anyone was around. He didn’t see many, but he couldn’t help but get anxious. Luckily this sensation would be outweighed by the prospect of being late and being scolded so he’d make his way out of his room, lock the door and start to head towards the cafeteria.

Standing in line was no problem, getting his food was also no problem, finding a place to sit? Problem. He couldn’t readily spot anyone, not that this place was super packed, he just could see a number of kids all talking with one another, many shapes and sizes, as well as adults seemingly sitting off to the side or together in some cases.

Though his search for a friend was pretty quick actually as he could hear the familiar sound of Mika’s voice, just more scolding which was pretty new to him, he would begin heading for the sound a bit. But before he could reach them he heard they had less than two minutes to eat, having spent a good amount of time looking around rather than sitting. So he’d randomly sit and just eat as much as possible, not bothering to act slow about the whole thing, after all, he didn’t want to go hungry.

By the time he was done his attention was pulled to the man who made a bunch of backflips, he was impressed and so gave little claps at the acrobatic feat. Though he was probably the only one and slowly stopped once he realized he might be drawing attention, regardless his directions were clear enough and he’d silently give a soft nod.

That is till he repeated himself, “Y-yes sensei!” He’d chime in with everyone else, getting up from his random table before looking to go and find Mika. Which she was rather easy to find now that he could see his much shorter friend's wings in the distance. Coming over to them, he'd gently call out, "Hey Mika, good morning!" But she was seemingly around a number of other people, causing that nervousness to set in.

Mika smirked at the bullies seemed totally speechless that was until they seemed to gather themselves and then gave the weakest comebacks she had ever heard and Mika only Laughed them off, it was cleared they had no teeth in this, and they were just embarrassing themselves, though the girl didn't even try to say anything and instead came at Mika with a fork... a Fork? really? Wasn't she training to be a ninja? and she grabbed a fork? Mika wasn't shocked or scared she actually just burst out laughing instead, a FORK? "A FORK? We are in a School for Training to be Shinobi and you think I would be scared of a Fork? you ~ Huh? oh Hey Instructor Ao" she was addressing the girl not even moving when suddenly the instructor appeared and restrained the bullies, then they shot her and Eostre a glance before leaving with them.

"Well that was interesting" she said with a calm smile, though as she got back to her seat the announcement came up that they only had a brief time to eat so she sat down and started to eat "We can talk on the way to the Auditorium" she said to Maxi and Eostre as she happily chowed down on her food, taking one of the rice balls with her as Aka Started his announcement and as he called out Mika responded "YES SENSEI!!" she called out... seemingly the only one who did.. then he repeated and everyone responded that time, which was a bit weird that it took everyone a second time to actually respond.

But regardless she got up and waved to Maxi and Eostre to follow as she headed on out to the hall that's when she spotted the kid that was getting bullied and waved him over "Hey over here!" she shouted to them happily as she walked before she heard a voice call her name and she perked up and looked over to the Fuzzy Stoat.

"Ah Rikuta! Morning!" she said cheerfuully as she waved to him then she gestured to Maxi and Eostre "These are my Friends Maxi and deer girl.. I haven't gotten her name yet though but she seems nice enough, but I think she is in my classes.. I think they introduced themselves as Eostre?" she said quite happily and then pointed to Demoto "And that guy over there is.... is.... I don't know who is he but he is welcomed to join us" she called over full of energy as ever before looking to the group and gesturing to Rikuta "Everyone this is the Strawberry choco nose....." she said smiling... then she stopped a moment blinked and then giggled "Sorry I mean this is Rikuta, a friend from before I moved to the Republic.. and no you can't call him Strawberry Choco nose.. only I may call him that" she said giving a fake pout at the end but she was clearly being playful as they walked down the hall to the Auditorium.

When they got their she found a seat and waved the others over, Maxi, Eostre, DEmoto, and Especially Rikuta as she made sure there was enough chairs in a group for all of them.

Unable to force what was left on his plate down his throat, he decided that he would throw what was left in the trash since he had no plans on eating it. Though he wasn’t able to gain as much information as he would’ve liked thanks to the commotion, he was rather intrigued by the teacher’s discussion. He had no idea who or what the travel teacher was but it seemed to be some valuable information so he would keep it in the forefront of his mind.

The moment the announcement came over the PAS system, he would get up with his plate in hand and threw what was left in the garbage then left before the loud mouth teacher started his bellowing and before anyone else could have the chance to try and get in a word with him. Upon entering the auditorium, he would take a seat in the far left of the corner.

Eostre had been ready for any relatiation, but as her grip on her staff tightened, already letting chakra flow in to it, the sensei had appeared and completely halted the situation. She was more than happy to just lift up her staff and cradled it against herself, watching the scavengers ushered away. Her gaze turned up as the announcement came in, the young faunus cocking her head as she began to wonder just why they were being called to the auditorium. And she didn't even get to finish all her breakfast! Then loud and silly Sensei was being... well, loud and silly. She recalled the little training sessions and giggled to herself. It was the second call that Eos actually joined in, raising her staff and joining the cry of "Yes Sensei!"

Before heading back to deal with her leftovers she did a little check for the one who'd been sat there, and took a good moment just to read the board. She was getting better at reading! She smiled as bright as she could, definitely not a usual sight from what she had learned, but not everybody was a morning person like her. She gave a little wave and hurried back to her former seat, picking up as much of her fruit and berries as she had left and stashing them in a little crook of her staff. And once having them, she was more than happy to join the little group forming.

A little laugh came from her as it seemed her name had slipped Mika's mind, "Yes, Eostre, that is correct." She was casting glances between the two though, looking utterly confused about the name choice Mika seemed to have over her friend. "You... call them something else? Does... that not get confusing?" She really didn't grasp why that was. "I do apologise, I am, what the senseis called me, a 'bumpkin'. Having a different name to your name that is known is just very strange." As she walked with them, she would occasionally take a berry from the little nook of her staff and popping it in to her mouth.

Still a little nervous, but resolute in how he felt about meeting new people, he would give a small wave to Mika's friend, Eostre on meeting them. Helped that she seemed to be a faunus like himself and Mika. But the mention of Mika's nickname made him fluster a bit, feeling that embarrassment creep up but he'd just play it off once it seemed like Eostre didn't understand the meaning of nicknames.

"Oh, uh it's not that strange, people have 'nicknames' for others at times. But you can just call me Rikuta, please just call me Rikuta..But it's nice to meet you though." He didn't want everyone calling him that, frowning playfully at Mika for her mentioning this so openly. But otherwise, he would be happy to meet more people at least while walking their way to the auditorium to see what else they had to announce to the somewhat large group of kids.

"Have you been training here a long time, Eostre?" Making small talk he would at least try to learn something about Mika's friend and to see far ahead people are when it came to learning what was taught.

As the students came pouring into the auditorium the first thing they’d notice is that the professor wasn’t there. This was very uncommon for professors at the academy. They were all professionals to the highest definition of the word. Arriving late for a big class such as this one would rarely happen, but alas its happened. With no supervision, the kids spent the time horse playing and  having conversations within their friend groups. One conversation in particular drew in more people than the rest. It was led by a fair skinned pink haired(formerly brown haired) boy who was sitting on the edge of the stage.

The big group gathered around marveling at this kid. He was decked out from head to toe in designer clothing and jewelry. No doubt he was the best dressed kid in the room, and probably from a wealthy household. The students grasped on to every word he spoke. “Oh yea on er’thang I done touched  em now . Dey  used this bad shawty to gleese me fo my Air Bijuus and my hoodie. Me and my big homie took care of dem fo real! “ The students rejoiced in what they heard. They couldn’t believe that they were in the presence of a student so powerful. “Billy, you’re soo powerful but why are you still at the academy and not on some big mission?” A female student questioned the integrity of the story.

“Yuh! You don’t believe in B? I done fought all ova deez skreets ya betta ask bout me. Dey done heard that I been da realest in da citi, Yuh! So Dey knew I done beat Elias, Jinnoki, Jinmochi or whateva dey call’em. I done beat dat Kotone straight too. She was crooked and I done made her straight, deez hands don’t discriminate, Yuh! B just here to become official, ya feel me?” Billy would stare at the ladies as they’d gush over him. “Billy we love your accent it’s soo handsome.”  Billy would stand with his arms crossed swaying back and forth. He was really feeling himself and the compliments. “Why u call me by my government fo? Y’all way too pretty fo that, y’all can call me B. Whatcha’ll think bout the drip? Y’all like da drip? B lookin good?”

“Yes, B!”the ladies say seductively as they continue to drool over this 11 yr old senior. “Aye all y’all gather around me now. B, got some abs for ya!” He’d lift his shirt as more people gather to look at his skinny abs. The professor, was very late.

———————-
Meanwhile in the faculty dormitory a loud banging is heard on the door.  Inside the room was Ted the travel teacher. He was in deep sleep snoring away when the banging sound woke him up. He’d begin to look around the room trying to shake off the groggy feeling. It wasn’t until his eyes locked onto his clock that he realized. “Oh fuck, I’m late!!” He’d hop up out of bed and quickly throw on his brown suit from the day before.  He’d open his door to find Murasaki outside waiting with his arms crossed. “Murasaki! What’re you doing here?” Murasaki remained silently frustrated while  staring Ted in the eyes . Ted would attempt to make light of the situation, “hey I’m up now! Don’t worry showing up late is actually part of my lesson! Things don’t go as expected in the outside world so patience is the key to survival. This is a sharp group of kids, they’ll get it instantly. I bet they're all there sitting quietly and patiently waiting..”

“Enough of your nonsense Theodore. Why do you do this?” Murasaki asks with extreme disappointment.  “I’ve stuck my neck out for you time after time. You repeatedly complicate your stay here. Your expeditions are well funded by the republic, you get paid handsomely and all that’s required of you is to do this seminar once a month. We’re going on two years and you continue to mess it up. “ “Excuse me?! When have I messed anything up?!  I wasn’t late last year.“ Theodore interjects. “Last year, you set the auditorium on fire. The year prior you knocked out all the first years with gas. You wonder why the staff doesn’t trust you.” Theodore would close his room door and turn away from Murasaki. “You talking about the group of uptight rejects you call professors? They’re jealous of my position. Also you weren’t around for what happened so I’d appreciate you minding how you speak on it. Now do you want to keep having this conversation or can I actually go and do the work I came for?” Murasaki would begin to walk away, “ Theodore, you know what I do here; it’s not limited to just the students. Please don’t make me have to do my job." After receiving the warning, Theodore made his way out of the dorms and towards the auditorium.

Happenings:

Billy:

Surprisingly, the professor wasn't there when Demoto headed off to the auditorium. This was rather odd and he wanted to find out why something like this occurred. All he could really do was to wait in response to that, maybe waiting was also a part of the lesson? There was a kid that was getting a lot of attention, showing off, and being loud about how great he was. Did he beat all of those people? They were always known to be very powerful, and if that was the case, why haven't they been captured? This had to be some kind of odd flex, but Demoto only watched it unfold. People have different coping mechanisms.

There was a good chance that everything he mentioned was the opposite. If anything, he has money.

Walking over to the crowd, Demoto basically made a stick drawing with chalk displaying what he saw Billy was doing. He even gave Billy some pink hair with the chalk. Maybe it was more or less "the obvious" but it seemed that he wrote the word, "fans" under the names of the other people.

Mika sat happily with the two that had followed her to the seat, it was nice having Rikuta along, and she hoped Maxi would join them, though Eostre seemed to not mind hanging out with them, though the playful pout on Rikuta's face made her giggle when she had used his nickname, but she wasn't about to let anyone else use that name for him if she could help it. Looking over at the Other Faunus as she snacked on some berries she smiled, yeah their meal being interrupted by bullies wasn't the best thing to happen, but at least they were able to get some food in them, though as they spoke with Rikuta she gently reached over with an antenna and poked his nose gently to get his attention, She then produced some of her breakfast, a single riceball "Wanna split it?" she asked him.

Though soon after she was distracted by the sounds of a kid apparently talking himself up, mostly due to the fact that if they were that good why would they still be in the academy? They said it was to be official but wouldn't one of the villages or the republic as a whole have a means to test a shinobi without them having to go through the academy if they were already that strong "sounds like someone is talking themselves up huh?" she said to Eostre and Rikuta, "Least... I think that's what they are doing I can't really understand him through the accent, then again I probably sound odd to others too" she commented not meaning any offence just she was having a hard time understanding what the kid was talking about, but then she turned back to Rikuta and gently poked his nose with the Riceball "So wanna share?" she asked again with a giggle as a bit of rice was stuck to his nose now.

She then looked over to Eostre "it's just a silly nickname I gave him when we were kids, cause when I was younger I sometimes couldn't remember his name, but the situation that lead to the nickname stuck in my head so I started to call him that more till I learned his name properly" she said with a giggle.

In the auditorium with the little group that had formed on the walk over. It was nice to be included even if half them she had only met over breakfast. But right away the loud boy by the stage had her attention. He was just so loud and shiny. Was shiny the right word? Maybe not. But he was really attention grabbing. And maybe not exactly the right way. "Yeah I'm... I don't know either. I will see" She couldn't help the curiosity though, and without another word just wandered over. The boy's name was... a letter?

Gently stepping through the crowd of fangirls, the tall Faunus simply wanted to see more of whatever was going on. Something about this boy was getting attention from the girls, and it didn't seem to be the way he looked. Or at least it was almost like they liked him for the way he looked? Was that really a thing? Taking another berry from her staff she munched on the last ones she'd brought with her. "Drip? Did you not dry yourself properly after a morning shower? Because that is very bad for your health." She cocked her head and glanced away in thought to herself. "But maybe you are accustomed to water yes? And you don't look wet either. What is dripping?" she suddenly leaned in, just that much more cautious and secretive and concerned. "Is it your trousers? Did you need to excuse yourself to the bathroom?" She whispered then leaned back, smiling innocently, "I can inform sensei that you have stepped out if you would like."

Seeing as she looked distracted, and no sooner would get up to see what was going on, Rikuta would notice that there was a big crowd of people off to surround someone for some odd reason. Of course, pulling Eostre and a number of other kids over to them as he scratched his head a bit. "Guess something's going on, though it sounds like some popular kid is talking about something." He wasn't one to try and engage in conversations with kids who had a lot of sway in a school. He was still very much new here and didn't want to end up drawing the ire of someone he's never met before, so instead of approaching he'd just keep his ears peeled.

Perking up at the rice ball he would try to wiggle the rice that stuck to his nose, after that wouldn't work he'd instead just flick it off with his finger in a random direction. "Sure, I'd love some." The boy would say with a smile, clearly eager to have more food after having to quickly munch down everything he had on his small plate before dumping what he couldn't already finish. Yet he would then ask, "Are you familiar with that kid? Or is he new as well? I don't know if this is a normal thing that happens around here..."

What was the point of calling us in if the teacher couldn’t even be bothered to show up in time? Maximillian thought to himself as he sat with his arms crossed and eyes closed. He always found it funny how the instructors at the academy always preached about being punctual and respectful but based on everything he had experienced thus far they weren’t the best role models the villages had to offer, then again he always had a feeling that the only thing worthwhile they could possibly teach him were ninja techniques. Fighting the urge to just get up and walk out the door, he sat there silently as he tried his best to drown out the idle chatter that was happening a few feet away from him. “Could you imagine being that happy? Friends and admirers.  That could be you if you let me help you.” The voice in his whispered softly trying to convince him to let it free. “No, I don’t think I will” He responded before closing his eyes again as he tried to drown out the incessant chatter around him, hoping that whatever was supposed to happen would happen soon.

The ladies and some male friends all gathered around Billy to observe his abs. To them, they were perfect. Billy continue to show them off when he’d notice a kid drawing in the crowd. Once his eyes locked with Demoto, Billy would exhale and squeeze his abs tightly, making his solid 2 pack appear.

“Yes yes, draw yo boi! Good looks little man”. He took Demoto’s act of drawing as a compliment . The crowd was just about to start cheering his name when Eostre came walking through the crowd asking questions. Billy proceeded to just stare at Eostre as if she was boring him. He’d stay quiet until she implied that Billy may have peed himself. Billy responded by laughing while his crowd looks at Eostre disappointed. “Ugh who is that girl?” “Why is she talking to B that way?” “She don’t know what’s a drip? Where she from the woods?”

Billy then appears to have a realization. “Hol’up! Aye aren’t you one of those kids that bullied those three kids at lunch today?  Gah one thing B hates is a bully! “ The crowd agreed while clinging on to his every word.  “You come to B, he minding his own bihness and you pull up talking that wreck!  Who hurt you fam, out here being a bully!  Boo this lady y’all!” The crowd let out a few boos but before they could really get into it the auditorium door bursts open.

Incomes their professor for this class, looking all disheveled. He walked in with a black briefcase tucked tightly against his chest abs as he made his way to the podium, he’d signal for everyone to take their seats. “ Hey Hey that’s enough everyone. Please , please take your seats!  Young man, please put your shirt down. We don’t need to see that. Take your seats everyone! “

The crowd began to disperse and take seats near Billy.  From the podium the professor could clearly tell that this Billy kid was popular since 10% of the class was scattered and the other 90 was bunched up with Billy. “Hey what’s your name?” The professor asked. “C’mon teach, ya gunna have to catch up for real. Shawties what’s my name?” Billy replied to the professor as the ladies all responded. “Its B, daddy! “ the one response that stuck out to the professor.

So he’d take that name and use it. “We’ll ok, B- Daddy I need you to pass these out to the class for me.” The professor began to weave hand signs and finish with a touch of a tattooed barcode on his wrist. Once completed a bunch of teddy bears appeared on the stage. As instructed, Billy grabbed as many of those teddy bears as he could and passed them around to the class.

The teddy bears came in all different colors and sizes but ultimate they all looked the same. As Billy continued to pass them around , the professor began his lecture. “Welcome class! My name is Theodore Rikigaku. As you can tell, I’m not like your average professor… I’m much stronger!” He’d pause for a bit to see who would believe him. Some of the class seemed intrigued but before they can all really buy into it he’d take back his statement. “Nah, I’m just kidding; I might be ; I don’t really know. We do have Aka who is just ridiculous ,but for sure I’m the coolest.  What makes me the coolest is that I get to travel the world!  Raise your hand if you’d like to see the rest of the world someday?”

Theadore looked around the room to see who’d be interested in the idea. Many kids raised their hands and some kept their hands down nervous at the possibility of being called on.  “We’ll traveling is super cool. Our planet is beautiful. From creatures to different tribes and plants.  There’s even different kind of fruits out there that you’ll never see here in the republic.  So you might be wondering, well why can’t we all just go see it? Well truth is, that as awesome as everything is, it’s truly dangerous outside of these walls . “

He’d remain silent for a while and smirk at his class realizing that he’s got most of their attention. “But don’t you worry. This is why I’m here. In these classes I will teach you the dangers of the outside world and how to identify them. So once again, Welcome to World Studies. “

He’d see the excitement grow on a few faces. “There in-front of you are gifts I brought you all. They’re also for my tardiness. I’ve been staying up later than usual with my studies, but they’re also part of today’s lesson. I want everyone to take hold of your toy and give it a nice big hug. When I call on you, I want you to tell me how the teddy bears feel to you. “

He’d pull out the class roster. “Tonya?”  He’d call out and she’d reply, “yes sensei?”  “How’s your teddy bear feel?” Theodore asks. “It’s super soft sensei. I could use it like a pillow!” She replies with a giggle. “Ah soft! Good answer!”

“Mika?!” He’d wait her response before telling her what he thinks of her answer and calling on the next bunch.

Happenings:

She giggled as she seen the rice stick to his nose, and his attempts to wriggle it off of there, and then when he gave up and flicked it off she giggled as she watched it fly away "Nuu... fair well rice grain" she said waving to it as it flew off and just generally being silly, but then She watched as Eostre was going over to confront the boy she couldn't really understand, while at the same time she broke the Riceball in half and gave half of it to Rikuta.

"Nope I have no clue who he is... never seen him before... might be a late arrival like you.. but it sounds kinda like he is trying to sound better then he is... but again I can't really make out what he is saying overly much..." she said until she clued in fully on what was going on after Eostre spoke to the boy.

Mika listened to the boy spouting his nonsense to the group of clearly easily duped people, calling Eostre a bully for standing up for someone else that was being bullied? Oh she was gonna give this D-ipshit a piece of her mind, and as he got up to go confront the boy she said to Rikuta "Hang on I have a little punk to go show the error of his ways" she said in the sweetest tone she could... which was rather eclipsed by the fact that she had her hand clenched so tight it was shaking and the knuckles had turned white, though after a second she took a deep breath to calm herself down.

"Noo... I mean it I am just gonna talk to him... I don't like bullies but he could just be misinformed.... even though the place had a ton of people seeing that those people started it... and then we all came strait here... and it wasn't even that long ago... yes I will chalk it up to ignorance not malice..." she said as she took a step forward. Now Mika was a kind, gentle, happy, positive girl... but she wasn't exactly fond of bullies....

Then the Door bust open as the Instructor arrived and got everyone to get back to their seats, so she sat down next to Rikuta again and they listened to him talk about travel, Mika didn't want to travel again, Being in a family of Couriers meant moving around a lot, it was lucky they would sometimes would leave her in the care of Rikuta's family if they had to deliver packages to dangerous places, so at least there was that, and the family home in the Land of Echos, but when it was a long distance delivery sometimes they would take the family with them since it was easier then leaving them with someone or having to pay someone to look after them.

After a bit the Instructor had the D-ipwad hand out teddy bears and Mika got an over sized one, that basically hid her from view by the simply fact that small moth, plus, overly large teddy bear, equaled over eclipsed smol moth, as they sat listening though Mika gave it a hug then looked to Rikuta "I mean.. it's soft... but it doesn't fell and soft and warm as you... and it feels like it's missing that safe feeling... also it doesn't smell like popcorn..." she said to him before suddenly she heard the instructor calling names, and to describe the teddies.

Her name was called quickly and she stood up, though due to the size of the bear it would look like the stuffed teddy bear stood up and she replied honestly "I mean it feels okay.. but I have hugged things much softer and warmer.. and they made me feel safer then this... and the other thing I hugged all the time smelt like popcorn too.. so while this Teddy bear is fine and all I think i would rather Hug the thing I used to hug all the time" she answered truthfully before sitting back down, not even blushing at what she said, to her it was the total truth.

~~

Another kid stood up, another girl, when her name Mike Oxlong was called, and she was hugging the small teddy tightly "It... feels very soft but I kinda wish it was bigger so I could use it like a bed" she said shooting a look over at Mika who clearly WAS small enough to use her overly large teddy as a bed if she wanted.[/color]