Student Evaluation Time

[thebestuchiha]

Where: Konohagakure
When: About two years ago, after the chunin results were in.
Notes: Closed to Hinata and Sasuke. Who are to be drunk celebrating with their sensei.


Obito had gotten the idea in his head, but it wasn't frivolous. If anything, he had an entirely practical reason for wanting to get the two trashed.

It was because they were his students, and honestly, getting someone drunk was the easiest way to interrogate some people. Being students of the Hokage meant that them being out on mission and unprepared for that? No good. Better he know exactly what they'd deal with in the world so that he could prepare them for it.

Still, he could hardly do it at his house, people would look at him strangely, Hyuuga heir and all, and no way was he doing it at their places. So. Bar.

Which means he was currently on Sasuke's doorstep chatting with Mikoto as he waited for the boy to come out. He hadn't told him why he was coming to get him, just that it was a celebration for Hinata making Chunin. Once he had Sasuke, they'd go get said girl, and then they'd see just what was to be done here.

Comments

[gentledheart]

She shakes her head at the same time as Sasuke speaks. An apologetic look crossing her face for the crap looks her teammate was likely to have to endure afterward. She would rather Obito hadn't gotten it into his head this was a good idea. Dropping her gaze to the pile of stuff in her arms she resolves to avoid saying anything incredibly stupid the rest of the night.

"Sensei can we get cinnamon buns?" She asks noticing he'd started grabbing food too. If he was going to make her drink he was going to have to bribe her with the ooey gooey sweetness of a cinnamon roll several times over. At least she was asking instead of stuffing extra stuff into her already heaping pile.

[thebestuchiha]

"I don't see why not." He waved for her to go ahead, taking part of her armful so she could run off and get it, and starting to set things on the counter. He was rather cheerful about the whole thing, and was pleased the two weren't keen on keeping up the argument. "And from here, home!"

And no way was he escorting them back home until morning. He wasn't suicidal.

[not_thedragon]

At least they'll have something lining their stomachs for this alcohol adventure -- misadventure, really, Sasuke thinks, looking at the ridiculously large pile of products on the counter with apprehension. He pushes his handful of onigiri to the side to make room for whatever Hinata brings back, taking the opportunity to lean in with a deeper frown.

"Do you have a cover story for mom and dad already, sensei?" He'd already asked about Hiashi, but it wasn't as if Fugaku and Mikoto wouldn't discipline him for staying out all night drinking.

[gentledheart]

Hinata looks relieved to hear it and dashes off. She’s only gone a few moments between weaving through other customers and grabbing up a package of cinnamon buns that had enough for herself and Obito if he wanted one or two. Returning she put the package in with the rest of the purchases and watched as each was added to the bill. Listening to the tail end of Sasuke’s question.

“What are you going to tell my father in the morning?” She pipes up back still to both boys for a moment before turning to look at them. Curious to the answer to both her own question and whatever Sasuke has asked about.

[thebestuchiha]

"Overnight evaluation of potential weaknesses in a possibly hostile setting scenario while preempting them actually happening in the field of course. And seeing how well you guys cover each other when Naruto isn't there to help with it."

It was a simple, easy answer, like he hadn't had to think of it at all. He paid the checker and picked up one of the bags. "Come on then you two."

[not_thedragon]

"... that might actually work." Not that that meant Sasuke believed for one second that Obito wasn't going to get a kick out of the whole thing, but at least they might manage to get out of it relatively unscathed at home.

Grabbing the rest of the bags, Sasuke headed out after Obito, ignoring the dubious look the shopkeeper was giving him and Hinata.

[gentledheart]

Sighing Hinata follows, only partially surprised at this point that the story he has prepared sounds incredibly well put together. So well put together that she can almost envision how her father would react to it. It still isn't pretty but it's less volatile than the one she's been picturing since Obito and Sasuke picked her up.

[thebestuchiha]

"I was made Hokage for a reason you know." It was a grumble, and he headed off toward home, trailing his two students with ease. "It wasn't because I don't think."

[not_thedragon]

"Are you trying to say that you've never toyed with us for your amusement before?" Sasuke's tone was dry even as he fell into step with his teammates, expression unamused.

[gentledheart]

"We didn't say you don't think. Just that you've obviously been toying with this idea for a bit." She says over her shoulder with a shrug.

[thebestuchiha]

He looked from one to the other, then gave a rather wry smile. "I'm honestly worried about this, believe it or not. I'd rather be prepared."

[not_thedragon]

There was enough honesty in Obito's tone that Sasuke gave him a look that was less than fifty percent skepticism, shifting the bags in his hands. "You really think people are going to try to pump us for information about you?"

[gentledheart]

"And use alcohol to help things along? Aren't their easier methods if that's all they wanted?" Because they had a number of ninja who were well equipped to extract information without getting the target drunk.

[thebestuchiha]

He looked over at them. "You're young, both of you, and not as politically adept as you seem to believe. Not all methods of interrogation involve being trapped or jutsu." He shook his head slowly. "And yes, Sasuke. People went after my teammates and I for information about Konoha and Sensei, why would that be different now? That's why this is a more likely approach, because of the peace."

[not_thedragon]

Sasuke was fully aware that Hinata was more of the political type, something he was reasonably comfortable with given his own future role among the Uchiha; Itachi could handle bowing and scraping to old people while Sasuke kept him alive to do so, and that was fine by him. He knew already that there were no methods that would result in his giving up information that might harm his brother or his clan, but it hadn't actually occurred to him that people might think the Hokage would drop valuable information to his Chuunin.

It was an irritating thought, given that it would be far too easy to claim that the peace hadn't been broken if information were obtained from alcohol-loosened lips.

"Fine," he acceded, holding in a sigh. "I guess you have a point. I still don't see how this counts as a celebration, though, when it's just more training."

[gentledheart]

And with that lovely revelation, Hinata follows both teacher and teammate to Obito’s apartment. She really had thought that she was already well equipped to deal with people getting her drunk, Obito knew better than share sensitive information with a thirteen year old. But here she was sitting on a couch a cup of something alcoholic in one hand. It’s mostly still untouched, she’d had a sip and hasn’t even brought the cup anywhere near her lips since. She doesn’t like the taste of it, or the way it seems to burn going down.

It’s almost enough to make her begin the process all over again and ask if she really needs to do this. Just because she’s relatively safe for the night from daddy dearests wrath doesn’t mean she finds the idea of binge drinking particularly enticing. Swirling the liquid in the cup she looks up at Obito silently questioning.

“I still don’t think this is a good idea.”

[thebestuchiha]

He'd noticed the way she'd grimaced, and that meant he'd turned to mixing up something with a much less obvious taste, switching out Hinata's drink and then giving Sasuke the Bloody Mary he'd put together for him while he was at it. "It'll be fine. I'll catch Naruto another day when I'm feeling braver. If he's anything like his dad he'll be fine. Unlike you two. I have no idea what your dad is like drunk Hinata, but I know your mom is really... intense when tipsy Sasuke."

[not_thedragon]

Hinata's expression didn't bode well -- it wasn't as if Sasuke had never had alcohol before (he had more clan functions under his belt than he cared to count, and at one point or another there was inevitably some kind of tasting that happened), but he'd never drunk this much, and certainly never with the intent to become drunk. He accepted the blood-red drink with a dubious expression, giving it a suspicious sip.

... it wasn't half-bad. The richness of the flavour mostly obscured the bitterness of the alcohol, and Sasuke was someone who already drank bitter tea as a habit. He made a hm of assessment and took another, less cautious sip before levelling Obito with a look askance.

"Intense? What's that supposed to mean?"

[gentledheart]

"Otou-san doesn't drink to excess." She says it quietly accepting her new drink. She eyes it suspiciously for a moment before taking a cautious sip followed by a slightly larger one.

[thebestuchiha]

"I only saw it the once mind but I stopped in on Kushina-nee when I was a kid and Mikoto-san was there and they were both trashed. I don't think I'd ever been so traumatized up to that point. It was before she had Itachi." He shook his head, giving him a wry smile. "And it was one of my first attempts at visiting Kushina-nee without being bodily dragged there."

He was keeping an eye on Hinata though. "As for you, there might be a good reason for that."

[not_thedragon]

"I don't ... know if I want to know," Sasuke said into his glass, taking a much larger gulp to try and avoid thinking about all the possibilities for what Obito meant. Traumatizing could cover a large array of things with most ninja, but who knew when it came to their teacher?

"Are you going to tell stories about our parents that will traumatize us too?"

[gentledheart]

If the look on Hinata's face is anything to judge by she doesn't want to either. There are just some things about her best friends mother she never wants to know. Her sensei on the other hand, well there are a few things she can think of that she'd be interested in finding out.

"Hyuuga don't drink to excess it'd like an unwritten rule." And she'll just take another and much larger sip here because if Obito is about tell horrifying stories about Mikoto she really wants to fall pray to blacking out and not remembering afterward.

[thebestuchiha]

"I suspect untrue and highly highly optimistic." He flashed her a little smirk and shook his head, then looked to Sasuke, shaking his head slowly. "And I don't think I'm going to share. Some things are best forgotten..."

He just paused a moment, then gave a quick shake of his head. "But, the point is to find out, because honestly, some places demand certain etiquettes of drinking and if you're not prepared... it can get messy."

[not_thedragon]

Sasuke took another sip rather than express relief, because he had had a sudden horrified flash of fear that Obito might have stories about Fugaku that Sasuke never, ever, ever needed or wanted to hear, ever. His father was a stern, disciplined, and skilled ninja, and that was all Sasuke wanted to know, whether Obito thought alcohol was an important part of the shinobi experience or not.

"Etiquette," he repeated, skeptical. "What, are we going to have to be drinking companions on missions or something?"

Though he added after a moment, suddenly frowning: "Wait, we heard something about kunoichi getting stuck with missions like that. Are you going to send Hinata on that sort of thing?"

[gentledheart]

The relief is mutual, she does not want to hear stories about any intoxicated Uchiha elder. She had a hard enough time meeting Fugaku's gaze when she visited Sasuke and she'd been doing so for years now.

"I might," she mumbles giving the glass a slight swirl between her palms. She's gone through the classes, even Hiashi couldn't excuse her from those mandatory kunoichi-only classes.

She gives Obito a pitiful look now that Sasuke's actually addressed the possibility too. She didn't want to, wanted to do that even less than take a third chunin exams.