5 Chapter 5 - Interacting With People

It was early morning, and the sun had only recently risen. Even so, most of the people around the Village and Clan were already awake and going about their business— Kotaro was no different.

On such a day, she would usually be training her body in order to try and improve— after all, her goal was to become a Ninja, but having been reincarnated and gaining the new system, her schedule had changed.

Her goal upon leaving the Orphanage today was to go to the Clan's Library— along the way, she would interact with anyone she came across.

Walking briskly through the familiar grounds of the Aburame Clan compound, she made her way inwards as the Library was located towards the inner sections of the Clan grounds— while the Orphanage was located near the outer section.

The sun cast dappled shadows through the trees and buildings, creating a calm atmosphere that felt almost serene— the atmospheric sounds of the insects that lived around the Clan grounds created background music for her to enjoy.

Along the way, she noticed people going up and down the walkways of the Clan ground, but she hadn't interacted with anyone just yet because of a mixture of things.

For one— the people she had come across so far seemed busy or distracted, so she didn't feel right interrupting them. Secondly, she felt nervous.

Kotaro was never a very extroverted person in this life or the one before— she never shied away from a social encounter if she had to, but she was never one to walk up to new people and introduce herself, so this was a new type of challenge.

This system probably knew that which was why it was worth 5 Points to accomplish all ten.

Kotaro took a deep breath, steeling herself for the task ahead. Despite her apprehension about introducing herself to new people outright, she knew that stepping out of her comfort zone was necessary for her growth— both as a person and as a Ninja.

So, as she continued along the path to the library, she kept an eye out for any potential interactions, and to her pleasant surprise, she spotted a group of young Aburame Clan members gathering near a tree— engaged in a lively discussion.

They all seemed to be around her age— the only difference was that they weren't orphans, so they lived within the main area of the Clan grounds.

Deciding that they could be a good choice— she approached the group with slight vigor.

"Um, hello?"

She greeted, but her voice was filled with a mixture of nervousness and uneasiness. 

She wasn't good at interacting with kids, be it this life or her previous one. Kotaro was always alone— she rarely interacted with other kids because she wanted to focus more on training.

Not to mention— she was often teased by other kids her age because of her name, which often led to her preferring to be alone— as such, she didn't have any friends.

"Hi there."

One of the kids replied as the attention of the small group of four people shifted to her— naturally curious, who had suddenly approached them.

"I don't think we've met before; who are you?"

Another member piped up— he was much more outgoing than the previous girl that had spoken, and he was very straightforward with the fact that they didn't know her.

Kotaro wasn't hurt by this, and she didn't take it wrongly. Instead, she simply nodded in agreement with the boy and was pleased they didn't outright deny her attempt to interact with them.

"Yes, we haven't met before. My name is Kotaro Aburame, but you can call me Kao. I don't often go out, so I don't interact with a lot of people."

Kotaro opted to give herself a nickname that was more in line with that of a girl's name— mainly because she didn't want these kids like others have to tease her because of it.

She also opted to not mention the fact that she was an orphan who lived in the outer area of the Clan— choosing to be more vague with it so that it could be overlooked.

The group of young Aburame Clan members listened along to her introduction— some more attentively than others. A brief silence followed her introduction as the group looked amongst themselves.

Turning back to her, the outgoing boy was the first to speak; his attitude was very friendly and lively— especially for a Clan that was known for being reclusive.

"Nice to meet you, Kao! I'm Mutabi, these are my friends Ayumi, Takeshi, and Mika."

Kotaro returned the smiles, and she was relieved that they had accepted her so easily. Despite her initial nervousness, she was now feeling rather calm.

"It's great to meet all of you."

Kotaro replied as she glanced at each of them— the other boy seemed more silent than the one she was speaking to— but they all seemed friendly.

"What's going on?"

Kotaro asked with some curiosity about what they were discussing before and also because she wanted to make small talk— hoping it would qualify for the quest.

"Oh, we were just talking about how Shino got into the Academy ahead of us; it's so unfair!"

Kotaro nodded her head along with them, but she was lost in thought. This roughly confirmed her initial guess that she was anywhere between 1 or 2 years before the Uchiha Clan was wiped out, and this was when the Rookie 9 had first joined the Academy.