"Kane, wake up! We are going to be late!"
A groggy-eyed Kushina clad in an all-black uwagi and hakama was shaking her brother.
He groaned and rolled over, unwilling to wake up.
"Wake up!
"10 more minutes," he groaned while still half asleep.
Kushina clicked her tongue in annoyance before squatting down. She took hold of his pillow and yanked it out from under him before hitting him in the head with it.
"I'm not having Hatake-sensei mad at me because you were so excited couldn't get to sleep last night."
She stomped out of the room while Kane flipped his pillow off of his face and attempted to rub the sleep out of his eyes.
His waking mind slowly processed what just happened.
'Why is she dressed like that? Hatake-sensei? Last night? What happened las- OH SHIT!'
As he recalled what was happening today, his groggyness vanished, being replaced with excitement.
'How could I forget! Today is the day I finally get to start my training!'
He jumped out of bed and quickly put on his own set of training clothes his mother had set out for him last night.
Putting on the uwagi was easy, but the hakama was confusing.
His mother showed him how to tie the knot correctly, but now he couldn't remember.
After trying for the 6th time, he gave up, tied it in a granny knot, and ran out of his room to catch up with Kushina.
After a minute of sprinting, he caught up to Kushina, but when she turned and saw him, she laughed.
"What happened to your hair? You could have taken a minute to get rid of your bedhead."
She placed a hand on his head in an attempt to flatten the proud ahoge, which occasionally makes an appearance in the morning.
Kane frowned cutely and swatted her hands until she released his hair from its torment.
"I would have if you didn't make me think I was late."
"Well, Ashita told me to wake you up. It was just more fun to do it that way."
Kane narrowed his eyes in annoyance, making another cute face.
Kushina giggled at the cute face he was making which prompted him to try and kick her.
She danced away easily, making him pout.
"Go fix your hair and meet us in the second training ground. But don't take too long; you don't want to actually be late this time."
Kane turned around and ran off to the closest bathroom.
He opened the door without knocking, momentarily forgetting that more than six of them were living in the compound now.
Inside was a woman sitting on the toilet with a book in his hands.
The two made eye contact, and Kane's mouth fell open in shock and horror.
It took a full second for his brain to reboot, and he quickly bolted out of the room in embarrassment.
'At least it was just a kid. It's not like he did it on purpose,' the woman thought before returning to her book.
In front of the next bathroom, Kane made sure he knocked before pushing open the door.
"Come on in." The voice inside said.
He opened the door and found a familiar little boy standing on a wide stool in the middle of brushing his teeth.
The two little boys looked at each other in surprise.
The boy on the stool was so shocked to see Kane his grip slackened, and his toothbrush fell into the sink.
What were the odds of your idol suddenly walking in on you brushing your teeth?!
Kane watched the brush fall and couldn't help but giggle at his reaction.
"You are that kid from yesterday," Kane said, realizing who he was.
Kane's words seemed to jumpstart his brain.
"Y- Yes. I was with my two siblings and my Aunt."
"Cool. My name is Kane, as you know. What's yours?" he asked, stepping up on the stool beside him.
He reached into the sink and passed the boy's toothbrush to him before turning on the tap to wet his hands.
"My name is Kin. Ah, thank you."
"You're welcome. Nice to meet you, Kin-kun."
He began to run his wet hands through his hair, slowly taming the unruly bits of his hair.
Upon successfully taming the beast, Kane jumped off the stool and made for the door.
"Anyways, I'll see you around Kin-kun."
"See you later, Kane-sama."
The term of address made Kane pause in the doorway and turn around.
"No. Not sama, kun. Don't treat me like some lofty figure. I'm just a kid trying to do his best. So long as you also try your best, call me Kane-kun."
Again, the kid looked at him with that look in his eye.
"Alright, Kane-kun. I'll do my best."
"Good," said Kane. "I'll see you later then."
He closed the bathroom door and began running to training ground number two.
Along the way, he passed a few dozen Uzumaki, who were all starting their day.
Each one gave him an enthusiastic greeting when they encountered him.
It was nice; he had missed the energetic interactions he'd had in Uzushiogakure.
Their greeting slowed his pace, but he didn't find it too difficult to return their greetings.
After a few minutes, he arrived at the training ground.
Only two people were inside: Kushina and a man he had never met but knew all too well.
He had long, spiky white hair loosely tied in a ponytail that stopped at the middle of his back, partially covering the red whirlpool.
He was wearing a slightly modified Konohagakure ninja uniform.
The standard gloves, flak jacket, and bandages wrapped on his right arm. At the same time, he added a distinctive white short sleeve on the left side with red edges at the hem and the standard crest of Uzushiogakure on the shoulder.
The soon-to-be-infamous chakra sabre was strapped diagonally on his right shoulder.
He turned at the sound of Kane's footsteps, revealing his face.
He had dark brown eyes and a kind smile on his face. Roughly cut bangs partially covered his forehead protector.
"Thank you for joining us, Kane-tan."
Kane's face scrunched up in displeasure hearing the way Sakumo addressed him. However, due to his young age, it seemed more cute than angry.
"Kane-chan. I'm not a baby," he rebuked.
The two just looked at each other, the tension building, but Kushina shattered it with her laughter.
Kane looked at her in confusion, so Sakumo filled him in.
"It was Kushina's idea to prank you like that, Kane-chan, I meant no disrespect. Though your angry face was rather cute."
Kushina finally held herself together to mock Kane a little bit more. "I'm not a baby!"
Kane frowned deeply, which just made Kushina laugh harder.
Even Sakumo smiled a bit wider at the siblings' antics.
'I wonder if it's time to settle down and have my own kids.' He thought while watching Kane tackle his sister.
After letting them horse around for a minute, he cleared his throat.
"Ahem. That's enough of that for now. We should get started with some actual training."
The siblings let go of each other and stood up.
"First, you can warm up with a dozen laps around the training ground. After that, I will review the basics, such as proper posture, hand placement, footwork, and simple attacks. Go on, start your run. Oh, and Kane, fix your knot. It's not done properly."