Meeting her Students

The chunin exams were over, and Yuna was currently leisurely walking through one of Suna's hospitals. Apparently, all three of her students were in the same room, so Yuna decided to pay them a visit.

However, instead of concentrating on where she was going, she was deep in thought. This was the first time the seal Karin used at the end of her fight with Lee was pushed to the limit in actual combat instead of on a test field, so Yuna was currently pondering on what to improve and what to add.

Despite being absentminded while walking, Yuna quickly found the correct path due to her good senses. In front of the door stood a Suna shinobi that was probably dispatched here as a guard.

As soon as the guard saw someone approaching, he wanted to stop that person, but he froze up when he saw who it was.

"W-Welcome, Uzumaki-sama. I assume you are here to meet your students?"

Yuna nodded at him while barely noticing his presence and walked through the door he held open for her. When the guard saw that Yuna didn't pay any attention to him, he sighed in relief.

'*Phew* I thought she might be angry that her student didn't win, but that doesn't seem t...'

*Splat*

Meanwhile, Yuna awoke from her contemplation and looked back at the now-closed door. After a few seconds of staring, she shrugged her shoulders and resumed walking towards her students. While Hisoka and Sai were already awake and were looking at her, Karin was still unconscious.

[Did you just cake that guy out of reflex?]

'My Dao is steadily improving.'

[I'm somewhat afraid of what the future holds.]

Yuna inwardly chuckled at Kurama's words but didn't comment further on them. She approached the two people who were already awake and started speaking.

"So, how are you two feeling?"

An awkward expression appeared on Sai's face as he answered Yuna's question.

"Not too great. I was hoping to get further than the quarter-finals."

Yuna pondered Sai's words for a moment before she nodded her head in agreement.

"Honestly, you should have. Your level is already more than enough to become a chunin. Unfortunately, you had to fight against Lee, who is not only very powerful, but his speed has a massive advantage against preparation-heavy jutsu like yours. At least you had one proper fight where you could demonstrate your skills. Personally, I would promote you to chunin, but I can't make any guarantees. Good job anyway."

Sai nodded his head in acknowledgment while a genuine smile appeared on his face.

'*Sigh* As always, breaking someone's mind is the best way to unearth their emotions.'

[Usually, this is where I would call you out on your bullshit, but considering there was already a preceding case with Gaara, I am not even sure what to believe anymore.]

'You just have to believe in the Da...'

[Nope, not doing that.]

Yet again, Yuna chuckled inwardly due to Kurama's words, and moments later, her gaze landed on Hisoka, who could only sigh in annoyance.

"*Sigh* Although the half-finale is not bad, I was hoping I could at least make it to the finale. Well, considering how many strong people participated this time, I guess I can't complain."

"Indeed, there were quite a few heavy-hitters this time. And let's not forget that you got a pretty bad match-up just like Sai did. Karin's chains are pretty much a perfect counter against you. Strictly speaking, Lee's Taijutsu-only style would be considered an optimal enemy target for you, but Lee is a little too fast for that to work. However, if it was against Shira, I think you might have won."

Hisoka thought about Shira's fight against Lee for a moment and nodded her head in acknowledgment.

"I guess I could have won against him, although it would have been a close call."

"Yup, and just like I did with Sai, I think you should be promoted to chunin when we get back to Konoha. Well, even Neji, who you defeated, might be promoted."

Tears almost spilled out of Hisoka's eyes when she heard Yuna's words.

"Finally, I can be free from these two degenerates."

She probably only wanted to whisper these words to herself, but unfortunately, Yuna had excellent ears and heard her. A dangerous smile appeared on her face that made Hisoka flinch.

"Well, I enjoyed being your teacher quite a bit, and I'm sure that, after a little bit of bribery, Tsunade will readily agree not to promote you yet. How about we have a little more fun together until the next chunin exam."

Hisoka's face paled when she heard Yuna's words. Without a second of hesitation, she bowed her head and apologized.

"I'm sorry for what I said. Please don't do that. I can't take this anymore. Anymore of your depravity and my mind might chatter."

While Hisoka was talking, her facial expression was constantly switching through different emotions. Well, her emotions only went from desperation to fear and back, but it was more than she could show at the start. Considering that she showed off her angry facial expression during her fight with Neji as well, Hisoka's emotional arsenal has increased quite a lot.

'You're seeing this, Kurama? When we first met, she was pretty much expressionless, and now she can show such diverse facial expressions. *Sigh* Mindbreak for the win.'

[...]

"Haha, no need to worry, Hisoka, I'm just joking. I'm sure you will become a chunin as soon as you return to Konoha. Good job."

Just like Sai, a happy expression appeared on Hisoka's face when she heard Yuna's words.

'See, Kuram...'

[Yeah, yeah, I get. Mindbreak for the win and all that.]

'Hehe, it's good that you understand.'

A few moments later, Yuna noticed that Hisoka and Sai seemed pretty healthy, so she asked them another question.

"By the way, why are you still lying in here? From what I can tell, both of you are fine."

Hisoka and Sai glanced at each other for a moment before Hisoka shrugged her shoulders.

"Yes, we are pretty much only waiting until someone dismisses us from here."

Yuna rolled her eyes and let her senses wash over Hisoka and Sai, and a moment later, she noticed that both of them were fine.

"Both of you are fully healed while only your chakra isn't fully recovered yet. Just get out of here already."

A pout appeared on Hisoka's face when she heard Yuna's words.

"I bet Yuna-sensei only wants to get rid of us so she can make out with Karin."

Hisoka immediately regretted her words after she spoke them, as a wicked smile appeared on Yuna's face.

"You think I mind it if people are watching me while I make out with someone? Are you looking down on my shamelessness? Hehe, how about I..."

Before Yuna could finish speaking, Hisoka got up from her bed at lightning speed and ran out of the door. Whatever Yuna wanted to say, she didn't want to hear about it. After all, no matter what Yuna would say, it would undoubtedly damage her psyche some more while causing even more unwanted pictures to appear in her head.

Next, Yuna's eyes landed on Sai, who quickly mimicked Hisoka's actions. Although he didn't know what exactly was going on, after spending quite some time as Yuna's student, he at least knew when it was time to leave.

Finally, Yuna's gaze landed on Karin, who was still pretending to be asleep.

"So, could you tell me why you didn't call out the name of my seal when you used it, Karin?"