Chapter 74: Valentine

The evening passed a lot smoother after their food arrived, with chewing and drinking filling in what would surely have been awkward silences. Kannin found that he liked the tuna quite a lot, the salmon second, and shrimp dead last.

Their conversation had meandered and wandered quite a bit, everything from personal food preferences, stories of the war, and talk of their futures--in between bites of course. At one point, as the waiter was refilling their glasses, Warai asked him,

"So what are you going to do now?"

"Huh?" Kannin said with a raised brow, "What do you mean?"

"I mean," she continued, "the war's basically over now, right? The team's all jonin level, they won't be giving us missions together anymore--well unless something crazy happens. Tetsu told me he was considering Anbu, says the pay's pretty good."

Kannin hadn't really thought about his future like that in a long time, the war had kept him occupied for the last few years. Taking a moment to consider his options, he felt a little strange. He'd never wished to join the Anbu, their modus operandi was simply too dark for him, and Tetsu joining it seemed odd to Kannin. His other options were few and far between, if he wanted anything close to good pay.

"I guess I'll have to lead a team..." He said, trailing off into thought, "though I'm not sure if I'll be any good."

"Wow," Warai said with a sardonic smile snaking across her face, "Uzumaki Kannin, Team Leader."

"I know," Kannin laughed, "it's ridiculous. But what else could I do?"

"I guess you're right." Warai said, "So tell me, who do you want on your team?"

"What?"

"I said 'Who do you want on your team?'" Warai insisted, "you know a few of the kids running around here, which ones do you want?"

"I don't know that many!" Kannin insisted, "Most of the kids I know are the little Uchiha running around the compound, Kakashi, who's already a jonin, and whatever brats are running through the street by my house." He paused for a moment before adding, "I guess Itachi wouldn't be too bad."

"Itachi?" Warai said with somme surprise, "you really want Itachi? I've heard he's a bit of a handful."

"Oh I can handle it," Kannin said, "Remember how we were? He can't be any worse."

"I've heard his Sharingan is almost as good as mine," Warai said, "and he's like 5. He's a genius. Plus, I don't even think he's in the academy yet, you're still a few years out from getting him"

"Well where's the fun without the challenge?"

"It's your funeral." Warai said, shrugging her shoulders, "If you screw up, Fugaku will kill you."

Kannin put on a devilish smile before saying, "I'd like to see him try."

"Would you now?" A gruff voice said from behind Kannin all of a sudden

Kannin's face paled before whipping his head around to see who just talked, only to find the domineering frown of Uchiha Fugaku, with his brown-black hair and grizzled chin.

"Oh..." Kannin said, lowering his head, "nothing. Don't worry about it..."

"Ok then," he said, turning to Warai, "I need to talk to you, Warai."

"Again?" She said with some exasperation, "This is like the fourth meeting this month!"

She quickly gathered her things and apologized to Kannin before heading out with Fugaku, leaving Kannin to foot the bill.

"That woman, really..."

Looking at the check, Kannin thought almost reconsidered going out with Warai, but for the most part he had a good time.

"She's right though," he said, walking out the door, "I need to get a job."

-

Kannin decided to get it over with now since his date was interrupted. He walked over to the Hokage's office, where he encountered something new. When he walked into the main floor, he told the receptionist he wanted to see Minato, to which he responded by handing him a ticket with a number printed on it. Kannin was told to wait until his number was called.

'Minato seems fond of bureaucracy' he grumbled as he took his seat.

About an hour passed as Kannin heard number after number, increasing by increments of one, called out every five minutes or so.

"159!" the receptionist called.

Looking down at the ticket that said '173' on it, Kannin sighed as he realized it was going to be a while. In the meantime, Kannin took to thinking about his date. Overall, he didn't think it went too terribly, which was a win in his books. He did kind of fumble in the beginning, but for his first date ever, it could've been a lot worse. He also really like her dress; she was quite beautiful all things considered.

Kannin didn't know how long it had been but he shot up out of his stupor as he heard the receptionist shout "173!"

Quickly hurrying to the desk, he handed his ticket over and ran up the stairs into Minato's office. When he opened the door, Kannin saw two figures in childish animal masks for a fraction of a second before they flickered out, otherwise he found the Hokage's office to be surprisingly tidy. He expected the transition to inundate him with paperwork and vulturous requests from Danzo and the like. What he actually found was a neat and orderly working space, the floor freshly swept and windows clear and clean. Minato sat as the desk signing a piece of paper.

"Hey Kannin," Minato said, looking up at the lad, "What can I do for you?"

"Well," Kannin began, "I was thinking of leading a team, if that sounds good. What do you think?"

Minato's face brightened a little as he said, "That sounds like a great idea, Kannin! What gave you the idea?"

Kannin got a little sheepish as he muttered, "Well, I need something to do for money, and Anbu doesn't sound fun at all, plus being a teacher at the Academy sounds dull, and..."

As he went on, Minato seemed to catch onto something, and he interjected, "It seems like you were convinced of it, Kannin. Your mom?"

"My g-Warai, you know her" he said, catching himself

"Ah, I see," Minato said with a grin, "that Uchiha girl from that one time. I hope you're getting along well."

"Oh god, not you too." Kannin said with a sigh.

"Anyway," Minato said with a start, "on the topic of a team, I think it's a great idea. There's going to be a new graduating class from the Academy in a few weeks, so if you can hold out until then, I'll be able to set up a team for you with ease. Can you do that?"

Kannin nodded

"By the way, how's progress on your promotion present?" He said with a sly smile

"Progress?" Kannin laughed, "I've had it less than a week! You think I can progress on that jutsu in such little time?"

"Well you better!" Minato said, clapping his hands, "I'm going to test you on it in a month!"

'Give me a break.' Kannin thought, his face sinking