Snakes are Venomous, Flowers are Poisonous

Chapter 2: Expectations And Preperations

There are certain expectations that everyone must follow in life. Some are expected to not crack under any pressure, others are meant to be caring and willing to give all that they have at a drop of a hat. For many in Konaha, they were expected to give their very lives over for their village, for their comrades, for the Will of Fire.

For Kakashi, everyone expected him to be late.

So, why exceed their expectations by being on time for once?

Even if it was a meeting with Minato-sensei and the other jonnin sensei, they were no doubt happily complaining about him being late and would jokingly scold him for his expectant tardiness. Instead, Kakashi was determined to figure out what this meeting was about before it had even occurred. He had happily been standing in front of the Memorial Stone and keeping his students waiting when he had been summoned to the Hokage's tower. He had waved away the younger Anbu before turning back to the memorial.

Walking leisurely across the rooftops of Konaha, he pondered on this situation.

The chunin exams had only taken place two weeks ago, and no matter how impressive Naruto and Sasuke had been, Kakashi knew without a doubt that none of his team were being promoted. However, he was certain this meeting was connected to the exam. Why else would Minato-sensei also summon Asuma, Kurenai, and Gai? This had to be connected to their students.

Perhaps some of the genin had passed and now the teams had to be rearranged? Normally, if a team was split up, the team would be dissolved, with members either being put on a new team or sent to the Genin Corps. On the other hand, their had never been a generation with so many clan heirs, so it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility that the rules would be bent for certain individuals. And while Minato-sensei might to keep it from happening, Naruto most definitely enjoyed the perks of being the Hokage's son. Most evident was his own tutor sessions with Jiraiya right before the Chunin Exams.

Looking up at the clear skies, Kakashi let his feet drag underneath him. He was already an hour late, a few more minutes wouldn't be noticed. Or at least, that's what he thought when he slipped into Minato-sensei's office window and was greeted by many glaring faces.

"Yo!" He gave them a cheery eye smile and a lazy wave.

"You're late, Kakashi-kun," Minato-sensei sighed almost exasperatedly. He sat rigidly in his chair, a stern and serious look on his face as he waved the younger man inside to stand alongside his fellow jonin sensei. Taking his place next to an equally looking grim Gai, Kakashi finally let his eyes settle on the most unexpected face in the room.

Orochimaru.

Now, while he hadn't expected the other shinobi to be at the meeting, Kakashi didn't hold any ill will towards him. However, that didn't mean his presence was necessarily invited. If one of the Legendary Sannin was summoned to a meeting of Konaha's strongest, then this must be a serious matter. Maybe Kakashi shouldn't have spent those extra few minutes strolling through the village.

As for the Snake Sannin, he looked nonplussed at Kakashi's lateness, instead standing calmly next to Minato-sensei with an emotionless expression. He was wearing a simple purple kimono with his arms hidden in the sleeves, and his hair was twisted up into a bun, showing off his handsome face. Which meant he wasn't battle ready. So, maybe this wasn't about the start of the Fourth Shinobi War.

"Now that we're all here," Minato-sensei began. "I want to start this meeting off with congratulations to your teams. Each one of your students fought valiantly in the exams and all of them tried their hardest. You all have done an exceptional job at training them."