Soul of the Seal: The Ninja Chronicles

SOTS-1-01-04

Soul of the Seal: The Ninja Adventures by MrDust

 Anime » Naruto Rated: T, English, Adventure & Friendship, Naruto U., Kyuubi/Kurama, Words: 221k+, Favs: 1k+, Follows: 1k+, Published: Feb 23, 2008Updated: Dec 27, 2009 Reveiws: 932

(AN: For disclaimer, see my profile, and also, help me with my goal to have it possible for submissions to display colored text!)

SOTS-1-01-04

Soul of the Seal - Story 1 - Arc 1 - Chapter 4

Chapter 4 - "In the Grinder of War, 'Team' is Just 'Meat' Mislabeled."

The sun hadn't even topped the horizon when Naruto Uzumaki jumped out of bed. A short rinse in the shower, then a hearty breakfast passed quickly before he changed into the cloths he had set out with his equipment the night before.

A kunai and shuriken holster strapped to each leg, double ninkit packs on his back belt, and a backpack stuffed with as much of a variety of tools and equipment that Naruto could arrange. As he tightened his Hitai-ate on his head and slipped his goggles into his backpack, Kyaena sighed as he pulled the straps of the heavy pack up onto his shoulders.

"I said it last night, I'll say it again. I think you're over doing it." She yawned.

'Not a chance. I'm so close to finally being a ninja. I refuse to be unprepared for whatever the genin exam will be.' Naruto replied as he exited his apartment, locking the door behind him. 'But I swear, if I see a single questionnaire paper...'

"Well, the likelihood of a written exam in this case is ridiculous. So don't worry. And will you calm down please? I doubt if even half the village is up yet." Kyaena yawned again, before shaking her head to clear it.

'It's not my fault that most of the people in the village are lazy idiots.' Naruto snorted as he leapt down to street level. Since there wasn't hardly anyone around yet, he liked to walk down the street when the opportunity presented itself. It let him at least pretend to feel normal.

"Some people just don't have a reason to get up in the morning." Kyaena observed as she cleaned her tails.

Naruto made his way through the streets heading for the academy. He passed the occasional person who were poking their heads out windows and such as they were waking up, and tried to ignore their stares.

As he was turning down one street however, he stopped when he noticed a section of fence that was sideways. And dirty. And had two hands and a tuft of hair poking over the top. Naruto couldn't help but smirk as Kyaena giggled.

'Well well. Look who else got up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.' Naruto eyed the 'hidden' boy from a distance.

"As much as I'd like to find out what kind of craziness you two could cook up, your effort of getting up early this morning will be wasted if you get overly distracted." Kyaena noted with a tinge of disappointment.

'Yeah, unfortunately.' Naruto shook his head and started forward again.

As he was about to walk past, just before the 'hidden' opponent could make a move, Naruto whipped out six kunai that imbedded into the sheet, three to a side, pinning the boy to the fence.

"Wak! Hey! Lemme go!" Konohamaru struggled against his cover-turned-restraint.

Naruto walked over and lightly rapped his knuckle on the top of the boy's head, making him go still.

"So. Is there something you wanted to talk to me about, Konohamaru?" Naruto asked in amusement as he leaned against the wall, crossing his arms.

"Ha! So you saw through my disguise again! That was a slick move Naruto! That's why I respect you as a rival!" Konohamaru's muffled words seeped through the cloth still holding him in place.

"Oh, of course, no doubt!" Naruto tried to hold in his chuckling as he watched Konohamaru make another futile attempt to free himself.

"Alright then! I challenge you to a match! We'll make it fair and square!" The enthusiastic boy declared. Naruto stifled a laugh.

"Um, you've seem to forgotten three things. One, as I told you yesterday, today is my orientation where I'm going to be assigned to a genin team, so I'm on my way to the academy. Two, seeing how easily you were worn out after a little run during the lessons yesterday, you have a long way to go to catch up to me to be a real challenge. And three..." Naruto reached up to lightly tap his knuckles on Konohamaru's head once. "... You're still stuck to the fence, and at my mercy."

It was several moments before Konohamaru responded.

"Uh, yeah, I guess so." He said in a subdued tone. "... So, are you going to let me go, or what?" He snapped in annoyance.

Naruto continued to snicker as he pulled his kunai out of the fence and put them back into his holsters. Konohamaru folded up his camouflage while grumbling to himself. Naruto frowned slightly.

"Hey, none of that." He snapped, making Konohamaru look up in surprise. "Have you already forgotten what I said yesterday? You have to work at your skills. It's going to be hard, and it's going to take TIME. You can't let yourself be discouraged so easily. All that will do is make you feel bad about yourself, which won't help anything." Naruto smiled and ruffled his friends hair a bit. "I'll see you later."

Konohamaru smirked a bit at the encouraging words as Naruto walked away, but then gave a start.

"Hey, wait a minute Naruto!" Konohamaru raced back over in front of Naruto, who raised a questioning eyebrow. "You owe me a pair of underwear!" Konohamaru pointed accusingly at the taller boy.

"What?" Naruto blinked in confusion. "Why would you-"

"From the wedgie you gave him yesterday." Kyaena offered, struggling against her giggles. Naruto went wide-eyed.

"Oh, yeah. I forgot about that." He admitted sheepishly with a sweatdrop as he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "Look, I'm sorry, I don't have time to deal with it right now. But we'll get together later, and I promise to take care of that with you."

"Where will we meet?" Konohamaru asked.

"If I'm not out in the training fields, you're best bet is to find me at the Ichiraku Ramen... Hut? ... Stand? Restaurant?" Naruto tilted his head slightly. "Funny, I never really thought about that. It's kind of a bar setup, but it-"

"Naru-kun, you need to get going!" Kyaena interrupted urgently, snapping Naruto's attention.

"Oh! Yeah! Sorry Konohamaru, I've got to go! I'll see you later! Promise!" Naruto called as he ran off to get to the academy.

Konohamaru stood silently for a minute, looking where Naruto had gone, before turning to go find the Ichiraku Ramen Shop that his grandfather often mentioned.

'Naruto is a bit weird. But I like him!' He thought happily. 'Whoever runs the Ichiraku shop must be really nice for grandpa and Naruto to both like it so much!'

At Ichiraku's, that was just opening for the morning, Ayame was in the middle of handing a bowl of soapy water to her father when she sneezed violently, splashing Teuchi with the sudsy liquid.

Ayame could only offer an embarrassed smirk.

Naruto managed to get to the academy only slightly later than he intended, and still early enough that there was hardly anyone around. He made his way to his homeroom, just getting there as the door opened and Iruka walked out.

"Oh, morning Naruto. Eager to get started today?" Iruka asked with a smile.

"Absolutely!" Naruto smiled back with a dramatic salute. "I'm not going to be left behind any more!"

Iruka blinked as he noticed all the gear Naruto was sporting.

"Uh, Naruto... Why are you carrying a weapons store?" He asked slowly. Naruto blinked.

"Hey, you're the one who said the jounin sensei might test us as soon as teams are assigned. I just came prepared, that's all." Naruto shrugged.

"Oh, yeah. Alright." Iruka nodded in understanding. "Well, go ahead in and take a seat. The others graduates should be showing up soon. I just have to go take care of a little paperwork, and I'll be back when class is ready to start. But there isn't going to be much happening. I'm just going to be assigning the team groups, then you meet your senseis after lunch." Iruka walked away, giving a wave to Naruto.

Naruto entered the empty classroom, and randomly chose an aisle seat on the right hand side. He slipped his backpack off and put it under the desk next to his seat as he sat down with a sigh. He sat in silence for a few minutes, glancing up at the black board. It just had 'Genin Orientation' written across it.

'So. Who do you think I'll be teamed with?' Naruto asked.

"I have no idea. It depends on what kinds of teams they're looking to make." Kyaena shrugged. "All I can say is who I hope you'll be teamed with."

'Uh-huh. Then who do you hope I'll be teamed with?' Naruto rolled his eyes. 'I'm thinking... Shikamaru or Choji... Kiba would be a hassle, though not entirely unpleasant... And even after all the times I've seen him in action, I don't know enough about Shino to guess where he's going.'

"It does seem a bit strange that Shino always seems to keep a distance from you. I don't know why though. But as far as who Iwant you teamed with..." Kyaena's nose twitched as she smiled. "Shikamaru and Hinata."

'Oh really?' Naruto's eyebrows rose as he noticed a few other graduate students beginning to enter through the classroom door. 'And just why would you choose those two? Especially considering that Hinata can't have spoken more than a dozen words to me in the last three years?'

"Now now, don't jump to conclusions." Kyaena waved off innocently. "I'm thinking about your skill collection. Shikamaru is a mid-range delay and support unit with those shadow jutsu of his clan. And he's a tactical genius to boot."

Naruto gave an aborted cough-snort.

'Shikamaru? A genius? You're kidding, right?' He asked skeptically as he shifted in his seat. There were now a large number of students filling into the room and taking seats. Naruto's mouth and cheeks twitched slightly as his whiskers began tingling. 'Dang it, why now?' He wondered as he reached up and rubbed his cheeks briefly to try to alleviate the feeling.

"I'm serious. Shikamaru is a strategic genius. No one can be that obsessed with shogi, and not be one. And as for Hinata," Kyaena tried to keep the grin out of her voice, "The byakugan is as perfect a scouting and reconnaissance ability as you could ask for. So she would be the main intel gatherer, probably not going out into direct combat, but she does have her clan's fighting style to use if she is forced to ward off an attacker." She flicked her tails back and forth with anticipation. "Combine the two of them with your quickly growing power force as the primary combat member of the team, especially considering your Shadow Clone Jutsu, and you have a balanced, well-rounded team for almost any situation!" She giggled to herself. 'And it would make the perfect opportunity for Naru-kun and Hinata to finally have a chance together! She's obviously the best choice for him out of the females in this group! If only Naru-kun would listen to my advice about her! And if only that girl would at least try to talk to Naru-kun instead of only watching him all the time!' She thought determinedly.

'A well... rounded... team?' Naruto thought suspiciously. He was about to demand clarification when he noticed something most unpleasant.

The one and only person that Naruto definitely didn't want to be teamed with, had walked in and come over to sit only two seats to Naruto's left, in the seat closest to the window. Kyaena noticed when Naruto did, and all the conversation that they had been having died instantly.

"FILTHY ROTTEN UCHIHA BASTARD!" Kyaena roared with hatred.

'I-don't-GET-this-guy!' Naruto's jaw clenched slightly as he tried to avoid looking at the dark haired boy who had been a real pain during Naruto's third and last year of the academy. 'We don't get along, he doesn't like me, I don't like him. SO WHY DOES HE ALWAYS SIT NEAR ME!?'

"That disgusting, puny, ego-driven POSER!" Kyaena snarled with bared fangs. "If only I could get the chance to crunch my teeth upon his flimsy bones... Of course, then I'd have to spend the next year washing out my mouth..."

The dark haired boy in question, Sasuke Uchiha, sat quietly, just staring ahead. But he was having thoughts of his own.

'That orange dead-last had better prove to be a better deterrent than usual to those crazy fan-girls today. I just need to get through today, then I'll finally be rid of them!' Sasuke thought silently as he just waited for class to start. 'Even if he has absolutely no skill at all as a ninja, at least he occasionally keeps the girls occupied by being angry at him so they don't bother me.'

Naruto spent several minutes trying to keep Kyaena calm, until he noticed a familiar shadow strolling down the aisle next to him from behind. Naruto turned and smiled when he saw one of his friendlier acquaintances that he had been discussing just moments ago.

"Oh, hey Shikamaru!" He waved cheerily.

"Huh? Naruto?" Shikamaru paused to blink at the blonde. After a moment, he smirked and shook his head. "So, they finally decided that you were too much trouble to keep around, and are letting you graduate to get rid of you?" He chuckled.

"Oh, hardy-har-har." Naruto sarcastically smirked at the lame joke. "It's more like I'm too stubborn to wait any longer to start my ninja career." He gave a huge, confident, foxy grin.

"Well, I'll agree to the stubborn part anyway." Shikamaru shrugged casually. Naruto's eye twitched once as Kyaena gave a small snicker.

"Fine. Laugh it up smart-guy. We'll see how you like it when we wind up training and working together." Naruto jutted his chin slightly.

"That would be a real drag. I wouldn't be able to get any sleep with your loud mouth around all the time." Shikamaru gave a slight yawn. He wasn't actually tired... for once. But he enjoyed poking fun at Naruto.

While the two boys exchanged jibes, someone else looked on with intense joy.

In the row just behind Naruto, and two seats to his left, right behind Sasuke, Hinata Hyuga was watching with a tentative smile and slightly pinkish cheeks. She had been sitting there for a couple of minutes, watching Naruto.

'I... I though he had failed again! The way he stormed out on the day of the finals... But he's here!' Hinata thought. 'He did it! Naruto-kun graduated! And now, there's a chance I could be on the same team as him! This is wonderful!' Her fingers fidgeted with the hood drawstrings over her oversized jacket as her cheeks turned a brighter reddish-pink.

Conversations in the whole room paused as everyone heard a strange rumbling that was growing louder. It seemed to be drawing nearer, until everyone looked over to see the door to the room nearly burst open, and a blond girl and a pink haired were shoving at each other until they squeezed through at the same time.

"I'm first!" They both yelled at the same time, causing most of the other people in the room to sweat-drop.

"Oh great. The resident banshees are here." Kyaena groaned with her ears flattened back as the two girls were arguing over who got into the classroom first.

'Oh come on. Ino's a bit of a chatter-box, sure. But Sakura-san's not that bad.' Naruto remarked, clearing his throat slightly.

"Grrrrr! How can you say that!? With how she's always... Argh! I don't like her! And I don't like the interest you have in her! I'm glad this is the last day you'll have to be around her!" Kyaena growled as her tails lashed in agitation.

Naruto watched out of the corner of his eye as the pink haired girl, Sakura Haruno, looked over in his direction. With a smile, she quickly walked over till she came up next to him.

"Morning Sakura-san! Great to see you made it he-" Naruto started to say.

"Move it Naruto! I'm trying to get around you!" Sakura yelled out far louder than necessary as she shoved Naruto over, causing his head to smack on the table. "Hi Sasuke-kun! Is this seat taken?" She asked in a sickeningly sweet voice. Sasuke barely even glanced in her direction.

'So much for him being a distraction. He really is completely worthless for anything.' Sasuke thought to himself.

In the special scrying room of the Hokage tower, Sarutobi sat looking into his crystal ball that was showing the academy classroom. Nine jounin were gathered around the table, also watching the crystal as they observed the students they would be taking on as teams in just a couple of hours.

"So, that's the most promising new student and top rookie of the year, Sasuke Uchiha?" A jounin with silvery, duster-shaped hair, and his Hitai-ate pulled slantways over one eye, asked. His name, Kakashi Hatake.

"The dark haired one in the blue shirt is Sasuke Uchiha." Sarutobi replied carefully. 'Although... Most promising student? Rookie of the year? Not as far as I'm concerned.' He thought to himself.

"He's the sole survivor from the Uchiha clan." A kunoichi with black hair and unusual red eyes commented. Her name, Kurenai Yuuhi.

"Well, the only Uchiha still in the village." Sarutobi corrected, causing Kurenai to flinch.

The group watched as the crystal adjusted it's view, showing more of the class. Naruto's mostly orange cloths was a color contrast to the other students, and as such, drew everyone's eyes at least once.

'And that must be Naruto Uzumaki.' Kurenai thought with slight amusement.

Naruto groaned slightly as he picked himself up, readjusting his Hitai-ate as a scraping sound echoed in his mind.

"And there's another mark for the record of Pinky's cruelty!" Kyaena seethed in outrage.

'Muzzle it.' Naruto retorted automatically. It had become a habit ever since the beginning of the academy year when Sakura had entered the class. Every time she would yell at or hit Naruto, Kyaena would make a sound like scratching marks on metal, as if keeping track. It got on Naruto's nerves from time to time.

"What are you waiting for!? Hit her! Smack her! Don't let her treat you like that! DOSOMETHING!" She roared, nearly rattling Naruto's teeth.

'You know my rules.' Naruto sighed to himself as several other girls began arguing with Sakura over who would be allowed to sit next to Sasuke. 'She doesn't know about you. Which means she dislikes ME for whatever reason. I won't get angry at her for just being a normal, opinionated person. It wouldn't be right to take out my frustrations from the rest of the village on someone who doesn't know anything about it.' He shook his head slightly, but then tensed. 'Although... That doesn't mean I can't act on my own legitimate opinions.'

In a move that only one lavender-eyed girl saw, Naruto was suddenly standing, or rather crouching, on the desk, glaring at Sasuke at a distance of only inches apart. Sasuke looked up to return the glare, both of them silent in their mutual distaste for the other. Unfortunately, the arguing girls had paused in their rants to look over and see the two.

"Hey Naruto, you idiot! Stop glaring at Sasuke-kun! Leave him alone!" Sakura yelled with shocked anger. Naruto spared a single look at her before returning to glaring at his opponent.

'Alone. Yeah, Sakura-san doesn't seem to get that part. The jerk always wants to be alone, and doesn't even have any interest in her! And yet all the girls ever go on about is 'Sasuke this', and 'Sasuke that'. I just don't understand why they think he's so great!' Naruto grumbled as the tense electricity crackled between him and Sasuke.

"He's not great! You could crush him into the ground in five seconds flat if given the chance!" Kyaena scoffed. "Those girls are the idiots, hence why I don't approve of them!" She huffed, having gone over this matter a hundred times before.

All the other girls had their own two cents to add.

"Beat him up, Sasuke-kun!"

"Yeah, knock that baka right out of the village!"

"Make him cry for his mommy!"

Kyaena stiffened at the last girl's comment.

"Make a note, break that bitch's nose later." She hissed menacingly.

'How may times do I have to say it? I can't let their normal childish behavior get to me to-' Naruto was abruptly cut off when something bumped him from behind.

Time slowed down as the two intertwined minds accelerated in an attempt to understand the problem.

"Naru-kun, what are you doing!? You're leaning forward!" Kyaena shrieked as her fur puffed out in alarm.

'Something bumped me! I'm off balance! I can't stop!' Naruto wailed in a panic as his face approached Sasuke's, who also seemed alarmed at what was happening.

"YOU'RE GOING TO KISS THE UCHIHA FILTH!" Kyaena screamed in wide-eyed terror, all nine of her tails spiked out on end.

'THE HELL I AM!' Naruto howled with determination. He forced chakra into his legs as he strained his muscles, making an awkward leap/lunge over Sasuke's head, who desperately ducked to avoid a knee or foot to the face.

Unfortunately, or not, depending who you asked later, Naruto's knees caught on the desk behind Sasuke, causing Naruto to slam down and slide across, crashing face first into the person that was sitting there. The two crashed backward onto the floor, with Naruto landing on top.

All motion and conversation in the room stopped dead.

Naruto blinked as he tried to regain his bearings. He became aware that he was on something that felt quite pleasantly soft. When his eyes focused, they could only see the up-close view of a pair of wide, stun-shocked lavender eyes.

Hinata and her chair had fallen back to the floor, and now Naruto was laying/sitting on top of her, with his lips inexplicably clamped tightly onto hers.

'N-N-Naruto-k-kun... k-kiss... kissing... me...' The poor Hyuga girl's overloaded mind was in meltdown. 'My first kiss...'

'Oh yeah! That's it Naru-kun! Work that magic!' Kyaena was dancing around with glee at the sudden turn of events, shaking her tails like she was twelve thousand again. Not that age mattered at all to a supernatural elemental demon.

All the other cadets in the class could only gape at the spectacle of the two on the floor, though the girls were looking on in increasing shock.

About four or five seconds after the start of the accidental lip-lock, Naruto finally realized why his landing had been so... soft.

"HOLY ARCEUS!" Naruto freaked as he jumped up off his classmate. "I'm so, so, so, so sorry Hinata! Are you alright? Did you hurt your head?" He spouted apologies as he offered a hand up, only to stop when he felt killer intent.

It was pathetically weak, certainly nothing on the level that he was used to getting in his day to day routine, but it was just enough to catch his attention as he turned to look at the group of girls that were standing to the side. Sasuke, who had gone back to just staring off into space like nothing had happened, just had to have his say.

"I knew you were a klutz, but I didn't know you were a pervert." Sasuke remarked in a bored, 'I-don't-care' tone. 'There. That should keep the girls after him for a good while.' He almost smirked to himself. Almost.

"Shut it Duck-butt! You have no idea what you're-Eh?" Naruto paused from yelling at the Uchiha as he looked back at the girls.

"Naruto, stupid pervert!" Sakura snarled as she cracked her knuckles. "You make me sick!"

"Whoa, hold it, it was an accident! You saw so yourself!" Naruto waved the girls off as they approached, then began chasing him around the room.

"Damn it all! Such a perfect moment, ruined!" Kyaena hissed. "And that Uchiha slime! Daring to call you a pervert! His karma will catch up to him someday!"

Everyone seemed to have forgotten Hinata, still laying on the floor, her smiling face glowing red as hearts spun in her eyes.

In the Hokage tower, Sarutobi sighed as he scratched at his head under his hat.

"That Naruto. Always somehow managing to wind up right in the middle of trouble. No matter what his intentions, or even when he isn't even trying!" Sarutobi shook his head in disbelief.

The jounin around him chuckled as they watched Naruto being chased. Kurenai, however, was not laughing, but she was smirking.

'I don't believe it. For that to happen, to the two of them...' She thought in slight anticipation as she watched Naruto jump over a dozen feet straight up, and hung from a ceiling beam to escape the screaming girls. 'Hinata has watched Naruto for so long. I wonder if that kiss will motivate her to work harder, or just distract her more.' Kurenai pulled a piece of paper from her ninkit. It was her orders, and the names of the genin team she would be taking on and testing. Hinata's name was first on the list. 'Either way, it should make working with her from now on very interesting. Not to mention...' Kurenai finally let out a tiny giggle, 'If the team passes, I'll have something to tease her about, girl-to-girl.'

A bearded jounin beside her who was smoking a cigarette gave her a curious look.

When Iruka walked into his classroom, he saw that most of the boys were scattered everywhere, just laughing themselves silly. Most of the girls were in a cluster in the middle of the room, looking upwards and screaming various threats. Iruka looked up to see Naruto hanging from a ceiling beam, looking down at the girls with a slightly worried expression on his face.

'Naruto... What did I miss this time?' Iruka dragged his hand over his face once before addressing the class. "EVERYONE SIT DOWN!" He bellowed. Everyone jumped and scrambled to their seats. With one exception. "I think the 'down' part especially applies to you, Naruto." Iruka said up at the orange ornament.

"Ah, yeah, sorry Iruka-sensei." Naruto said as he checked below to see it was clear before lightly dropping down straight into his original seat, which, unfortunately, was now right next to Sakura, who gave him an icy glare.

"Move somewhere else." She hissed.

"Sorry, no can do. My stuff was already here." Naruto responded, pulling his backpack out slightly for her to see.

"Why do you have all that with you?" Sakura frowned.

"Just being prepared." Naruto shrugged as he pushed his pack back under the table.

"Prepared for what?" Sakura pressed, confused.

"AHEM!" Iruka interrupted, cutting off Naruto's chance to reply. "Alright, now that everyone's seated..." Iruka took a breath to compose himself as he smiled to address them. "As of today, you are no longer mere students, but full-fledged ninja. But in the ranks of the ninja, you're only genin, beginner ninjas in training, the lowest starting rank. Compared to your work in the academy, you're greatest challenges are now ahead of you." Iruka pulled a clipboard from his desk. "For the next stage, you twenty-seven genin will be grouped into three member squads, with each squad being lead by an elite jounin, who will supervise and continue to train you during your missions."

Around the room, a number of the graduates suddenly had surprised looks on their faces at the news of being grouped into squads.

'A squad of three? Sounds like two too many. They'll only slow me down.' Sasuke didn't frown, but his eyes narrowed slightly in disapproval.

Ino and Sakura were exchanging quips about who would be on Sasuke's team as Naruto's eyebrows raised in surprise at everyone's reactions.

'What's with everyone? Surely they were told about this?' Naruto wondered as he glanced around.

"I don't know. Maybe they just forgot or something. It's not like it's really that important." Kyaena shrugged.

'But... I'm the only one with any gear.' Naruto noted as he looked several others over. 'If the jounin senseis test us right away, no one is going to be prepared.'

"You are. And you brought enough along that I'm sure you can supply your teammates if need be." Kyaena reassured, making Naruto concede the point.

"Now then," Iruka continued, "The squads have been arranged to give each team a balance of abilities and skills. I will now read the roster, so pay attention to when your name is called, and who you'll be teamed with." Iruka said as he began reading from the clipboard. "Squad one will be..."

Everyone listened as Iruka worked his way through the list, some of the graduates smiling or frowning at the selections, and even one or two groups that were lucky enough to consist of friends.

'If only I had friends to be teamed with. Shikamaru and Choji are really more like just acquaintances. Kiba is a prank rival, and... well... The others...' Naruto sighed to himself.

"Don't worry Naru-kun. We're still the best team, right?" Kyaena offered playfully, making Naruto smirk.

'You got that right.' Naruto agreed, instantly feeling better. He re-focused on Iruka.

"...Now squad seven. Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha and..." Iruka paused. 'Here comes the pain.' He braced himself, even as he saw Sakura silently cheering to herself and sticking her tongue out at Ino. "... And, Naruto Uzumaki!" Iruka finished.

There was a single second of silence before the eruption.

"SAY WHAT!?" Sakura, Naruto and Kyaena all yelled at the same time, making Iruka wince, even though he had been expecting it.

In the row behind the shocked and fuming new teammates, Hinata, who had been woken when Iruka came in earlier, felt her world sink a few notches.

'I... I won't get to be with Naruto-kun...' She thought sadly.

Iruka decided to rush out the last team assignments before it was too late.

"Squad eight will be Hinata Hyuga, Kiba Inuzuka and Shino Aburame! The official designation of squad nine is already in circulation from last year, so the last squad, squad ten, is Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara and Choji Akimichi!" Iruka breathed out a gasp.

As various people were making comments to each other about the last teams, Ino in particular, Naruto was struggling not to loose his temper. Kyaena was doing that for him.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS!" She roared, thrashing around in the cage, tearing up pillows. "After everything you've been through, after all the pain you've endured, after you stop a traitor and after you were re-evaluated, they have the unmitigated gallto team you with Pinky-la-Shrew and EMO-THE-WONDER-GRUMP!?" Kyaena stomped up and down. "THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE!" She smashed at another pillow as her mind worked furiously for a solution.

'Being with Sakura-san wouldn't have been so bad, but the Uchiha? I'd rather eat a hedgehog.' Naruto grumbled as his eye and mouth twitched.

"So, those are the team assignments and-" Iruka had hoped to dismiss them quickly, but his hopes were dashed when Naruto jumped to his feet.

"Hold it Iruka-sensei! Why in the world did you put me on the same team as that stuck-up Duck-Butt, Sasuke?" Naruto demanded. Before Iruka could respond, and before the girls could throw things at him, the class was stunned by an unexpected event.

"Yeah Iruka-sensei, what's the deal? First you say the teams are supposed to be balanced, then you go an put the two strongest guys in the class on the same squad!" Shikamaru called out.

Yes. Shikamaru. The lazy. The slacker. The cloud watcher. The, Mr. 'I-can't-be-bothered-for-anything-because-it's-all -such-a-troublesome-drag'.

The entirety of the class was silent in shock until Sakura managed to find her voice again. Well, the loud part of it, anyway.

"What!? How dare you say such a thing! How could you possibly even think that Naruto-baka is anywhere near as great as Sasuke-kun!?" Sakura raved in a defensive huff.

Shikamaru gazed at her for a moment before putting his head down as if to go to sleep.

"Ah, forget it. Trying to explain it to you would be too troublesome." He waved her off lazily. Naruto blinked in surprise.

'Wait a second. Why would Shikamaru think I'm strong? He hasn't seen any more of my abilities than the rest of the class, and I don't recall him being at my re-evaluation.' Naruto wondered, but Kyaena was still preoccupied with thinking of a way out of the mess Naruto was in.

"Ah, Naruto," Iruka cleared his throat nervously, drawing attention back to him, "About your squad assignment... Well... You see... Um... Well, you know, considering the hassle of paperwork... I mean... There would have been only twenty six graduates without you, which doesn't divide by three... And due to the special circumstances of your, um,delayed graduation and all..." Iruka continued to fidget, but Naruto had already realized what he was trying to say without actually saying it.

"WAIT A MINUTE! Are you saying that the only reason I'm on squad seven is because all the other teams were already assigned, and there was nowhere else for me to be placed!?" Naruto yelled in furious disbelief.

"Uh, well, yeah. Sorry about that." Iruka offered a weak smile as he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.

Naruto slowly slumped down in his chair.

'This is just too unfair. They're treating me like I'm just dead-weight.' He thought miserably.

"Naruto-kun!" Kyaena finally called to him. "I've gone over the other team compositions! Ask to switch with Kiba on squad eight!" She ordered in a no-nonsense tone.

'What? Switch? Why do you-' Naruto blinked in confusion.

"JUST DO IT!" Kyaena yelled as she was border lining on zero patience. Naruto gulped slightly at her anger.

"Uh, Iruka-sensei?" Naruto waved a raised hand until he had his teacher's attention again.

"Yes Naruto?" Iruka asked, slightly wary.

"Well, look, do you really think just throwing me into this is going to work? If my presence or abilities weren't even considered-" Naruto started to say, but Iruka waved defensively.

"It's not like that! I'm sorry, but these things just happen from time to time. At least give it a chance?" Iruka asked hopefully.

"Well, what about at least switching me with someone with similar skill focus?" Naruto asked, making Iruka tilt his head in confusion.

"Huh? What do you mean?" He asked while tapping a finger on his clipboard in curiosity.

"I mean..." Naruto paused, pretending to look around the room quickly before pointing out his intended swapee. "How about Kiba? If I figure your squad arrangements right, squad eight is a kind of wilderness tracking or survival squad, right? Well, you know how good I am at survival, and Kiba's and mine dispositions are about the same... even if I am a better prankster." Naruto smirked slightly.

"Yeah right! In your dreams, citrus for brains!" Kiba snorted in denial, even though he was fully aware that Naruto's prank history outshined his by a mile.

"Yeah, yeah." Naruto rolled his eyes at Kiba's surprisingly witty retort before continuing with Iruka. "So, if you put me on team eight, and Kiba on team seven, the skills of each squad remain basically the same. All that's different, is that you're not making it seem like my presence here is a mistake that has to be forced on anyone." Naruto finished with a dull, serious tone.

The entirety of the class was surprised at Naruto's suggestion of switching around the squad assignments. Some thought it was appalling to question the orders, some thought it an idea they would try if Naruto's request was accepted. And then, there was one...

'Naruto-kun... wants to... be on my team...?' Hinata blinked slowly a few times, before itreally hit her. 'Naruto-kun wants to be on my team! NarutoKunWantsToBeOnMyTeam! NarutoKunWantsToBeOnMyTeam! NarutoKunWantsToBeOnMyTeam!' Her face was glowing bright red as steam could almost be seen discharging out her ears. If anyone was looking at her, that is.

Iruka stood motionless as he honestly thought about Naruto's proposal.

'Leave it to Naruto to come up with a perfectly plausible suggestion, only at the very last second!' He frowned. 'I'd be all for it, but... there just isn't time to deal with all the things that would need to be done for it, not to mention the hassle Hokage-sama would be put through.' Iruka looked back and forth from Naruto to Kiba once. 'And the worst part, Naruto is right. He's probably the most experienced here when it comes to independent survival.' Iruka sighed.

"Well Iruka-sensei? How about it?" Naruto asked hopefully when he saw Iruka look back and forth between him and Kiba. Kyaena waited intently as her ears and tails twitched in anticipation.

"I'm sorry Naruto. Even if I agreed with it, I don't have the authority to make that kind of change." Iruka shook his head regretfully. "The squad assignments were made by recommendations from the jounin, and decided on by Hokage-sama himself! You're going to have to get used to following orders. Real orders, not just classroom rules." Iruka remarked as he set his clipboard back on his desk.

Naruto's shoulders slumped slightly as everyone murmured opinions around him. Hinata looked completely crushed as she stared at Iruka. Sakura looked confused as she wondered what Iruka was talking about. And Sasuke...

"Just make sure you don't get in my way, dead-last." Sasuke said in that annoyingly calm, 'I'm-above-you-don't-forget-it', tone.

Naruto considered ripping out the table top and bashing Sasuke over the head, but instead, just gave a shrug as he sat down.

"It doesn't matter. I'll just have a talk with Old-Man-Hokage later." Naruto said casually, before turning his attention to the ceiling. "You hear that Old-Man!? You're buying dinner at Ichiraku's for this!" He called, making Kyaena give a half-hearted chuckle.

Everyone else, except Iruka and Hinata, was staring at him like he was crazy.

In the Hokage tower, Sarutobi sweat-dropped when it appeared as if Naruto was talking directly to him through the crystal ball. When he reflexitivly pulled out and checked his wallet, the jounin all burst out laughing.

In the classroom, Sakura was livid.

"Naruto you idiot! You can't just talk about Hokage-sama like that!" Sakura yelled as she gave him a hard pound on the head. "It's not like you're friends with him or anything!"

Naruto frowned as he rubbed his head. A scraping sound echoed in his mind.

"Another mark for the record of Pinky's cruelty!" Kyaena growled.

'Muzzle it.' Naruto snapped.

"Alright, that's enough! You'll mean your jounin senseis after lunch. Until then, class dismissed." Iruka called out, making the assembled genin scramble for the door. He sat down at his desk to write some information on the squad sheet, but looked up quickly at a strange feeling. 'What the...? Did... Did Hinata just give me a death-glare?' Iruka wondered as the mass of bodies exited the room. He shook his head. 'Nah, couldn't be. I'd better get some lunch too, considering I skipped breakfast. My hunger is making me imagine things.' He thought to himself, resuming his writing.

As everyone had gone their own ways, Sakura had wandered out of the academy's main entrance, trying to find her new teammate.

"Sasuke-kuuuunnnn! Oh, now why did he go running off so fast?" She wondered to herself. 'I at least thought, since we're in the same squad, that we could have lunch together and try to get to know each other.' She thought with slight disappointment.

"Hey, Sakura-san!" Naruto came trotting up behind her, making her go rigid as she turned to face him. "Well. I'm sure you weren't expecting this anymore than I was, but I guess we'll just have to make the best of it." Naruto paused, looking around. "Did you see where Duck-Butt got to? Let's find him, then we can have lunch together as we go over-"

"IDIOT! Why in the world would I want to eat lunch with you? How could that thought even cross your mind!?" Sakura spat in disgust.

"Look, I know we don't exactly get along, and that's the point. As a team, we should discuss how were going to handle-" Naruto tried to explain, only to receive a glare.

"Naruto, you're annoying." Sakura stated with contempt. Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Yeah yeah, I get it, I'm annoying. But seriously, we need to go over..." Naruto paused when he realized Sakura was already wandering away, calling for Sasuke. "... the genin exam." Naruto sighed as he watched her leave. 'Does she have any intention in becoming a skilled ninja?' He wondered.

"I sincerely doubt it. Which is going to make this so much harder for you!" Kyaena growled at the retreating pinkette. "You already have enough pressure on you to get though the genin exam without having to carry her skinny hide along as well!" Kyaena's tails bunched together, then the middle one raised up, like a finger.

'She's not going to listen to me at all, is she?' Naruto frowned in thought as he scratched his head slightly. 'The only one she would listen to is Sasuke.' After a moment, he turned and began leaping up and up through the trees, then onto the academy roof.

"What are you doing?" Kyaena frowned in worry.

'That Duck-Butt may be a jack-hole, but if nothing else can be said about him, he does take his training and ninja duties seriously... I think.' Naruto said as he began scanning windows, and looking around the academy grounds. 'If I tell him, then maybe, to preserve his own ninja career, he'll talk to Sakura-san.'

"Doubtful." Kyaena snorted.

'Well, I have to try, at least.' Naruto shrugged as he leapt off to the other side of the academy to continue his search.

Despite her unhappiness with the situation, Ino decided that at the very least, she would make sure that she set things her way with her new team. As such, she had dragged Shikamaru and Choji out onto a balcony of the academy as they sat eating.

"Alright, if we're going to be in the same group, you'll have to follow my instructions! That's the only way this will work!" Ino declared to the lounging other two in a confident voice. Shikamaru was mostly tuning her out.

'It's the only way to work, because she throws a hiss-fit if people even try to argue against her getting her way.' The lord of the lazy thought in annoyance.

"Hey, how about we all go out for BBQ sometime?" Choji offered in a merry attitude.

As Ino smacked herself at her teammate's clueless-ness, Shikamaru blinked as he saw something of (rare) interest.

"Hey, check it out." He pointed across the wide distance between where they were eating, and the opposing side of the building.

The other two turned to see what Shikamaru was talking about, and saw Naruto hopping along the roof tiles. They could also see Sasuke in a board-shutter window that was opened, and Naruto seemed to be heading for it.

"Hey Duck-Butt, we've got to talk!" Naruto shouted as he leapt into the window, accidentally knocking it closed behind him.

When sounds of arguing, and the occasional thumping and scuffling, flitted through the air, Ino stomped her foot angrily.

"Naruto! If you so much as lay a finger on Sasuke-kun, you'll be on my enemy list forever!" She declared angrily. Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

'Yeah right. As if they could hear you from all the way over there.' He thought. He usually had comments to things, but to actually speak them aloud? To troublesome.

The Ino-Shika-Cho trio waited for a good two minutes, before they saw the window board open just long enough for Sasuke to leap out, letting it close after him.

"Ah! Sasuke-kun is alright!" Ino sighed in delight. "Of course, I don't know why I was worried. After all Sasuke-kun is just way too cool to let some orange fool get the better of him!" She squealed as stars danced before her eyes.

Shikamaru frowned to himself as he watched Sasuke wander off.

'What the heck? How did Sasuke beat Naruto? Naruto should've been able to flatten that emo without even breaking a sweat! What happened in there?' Shikamaru wondered for all of ten seconds, before shrugging it off. 'I'd better not get involved. Naruto would probably drag me into some kind of prank to get back at Sasuke... And Ino would yell my ear off.'

He resumed eating his rice ball.

In the park next to the academy, Sakura sat on a stone bench, finishing her meal. When she had failed to find Sasuke, she had decided to go ahead and eat. As she set her empty bento aside, she sighed to herself.

'I really need to relax. I don't need to rush. I'm in the same squad as Sasuke-kun, and will be for a long time.' She leaned back to gaze up at the trees swaying in the breeze. 'But even so... How am I supposed to seduce him with my feminine charms, when I'm so completely deficient in the T&A departments? I'm scrawny and small, and the only thing oversized on me is my horrible forehead. Why did I have to be born with such a wide forehead?' She groaned to herself. 'Ino is only barely better with her hair, and her chest at least has a curve to it, but she often seems even skinnier than I am. It was a miracle that I got put together with Sasuke-kun. If I had to keep competing with some of the other girls, I don't know if Sasuke-kun would have picked me.' Sakura reflected back on the time in the academy. 'Some of those others were obviously more feminine, even now, let alone when we all get older. Especially Hinata. Kami, I'd do almost anything to have a body like hers.' She sighed as she remembered one time when she accidentally walked in on Hinata in the girl's dojo showers. Sakura had felt... inadequate, for nearly two months after that event. 'She's practically a woman already! If she had any interest in Sasuke-kun, I'd never have a chance!' Sakura frowned slightly. 'Which is something I still can't understand. How could she not want to be with Sasuke-kun? She's never shown any interest in him at all! I suppose she could just be hiding it real well... no, that can't be. She's gone as far as to avoid him, like at lunch time and stuff.' Sakura sighed as she decided to stare at her feet. 'I guess I should just consider myself lucky that she doesn't like Sasuke-kun, for whatever unknown reason, and leave it at that. I'm on Sasuke-kun's team, which means I've been chosen to support him through thick and thin! Now if only I could get him to notice me...' Sakura set her head in her hands as she tried to think of how to improve her situation.

"Hey, Sakura." Said an all to familiar voice, making Sakura go stiff. She slowly looked up to see the object of her desires leaning against a tree across from her, a look of concern on his face.

"S-Sasuke-kun!" Sakura gasped in surprise. 'Oh Kami, he's staring right at me! And... oh, wow... I've never seen his eyes like that before! They're so deep and strong, as if he knows all the secrets of the world!' She blushed.

(SAKURA'S FANTASY FLASH)

Sasuke walked over to stand in front of Sakura, his look of concern increasing.

"Sakura, I'm sorry. It was so rude of me to leave you. It's always better to have pleasurable company to enjoy a meal. I hope I can provide that for you in the future." He said in apology.

"S-sure. I could even stomach ramen as long as you're there to comfort me." Sakura whispered in a daze. "Could I offer you a drink... of my lips?" She slowly leaned forward.

"Perhaps... just a sip." Sasuke whispered back as he leaned forward...

(END FANTASY FLASH)

'Yeah right.' Sakura sighed to herself, shaking off the images. 'That's just a fairy tale. And fairy tales don't happen to me.' She thought miserably with her chin back in her hands.

Sasuke walked over to stand in front of Sakura, his look of concern increasing.

"Sakura, I'm sorry. It was so rude of me to leave you. It's always better to have pleasurable company to enjoy a meal. I hope I can provide that for you in the future." He said in apology.

Sakura bolted up-right, wide-eyed with a super blush on her cheeks.

'CHA! She scores! This fairy tale is for real!' Her mind blasted out in triumph. But before she could open her mouth to respond, Sasuke made a face of severe distaste.

"Gah! That sounded so corny! I can't believe Naruto thought I could pull that off with a straight face!" He shook his head, like he had a bad taste in his mouth. Sakura promptly slumped. Sasuke cleared his throat slightly as he sat down next to the disappointed girl. "Incidentally Sakura, about Naruto... I need you to tell me. What do you really think of him?" He asked in a cautious tone. Sakura gave him a surprisingly confused look.

"What? Why in the world would you want to talk about Naruto?" She asked.

"Since we're in a team, I need to know where we all stand." Sasuke replied. At Sakura's continued confused expression, he sighed in slight annoyance. "I mean, I know how I fell about Naruto, and how I feel about you. I know how Naruto feels about me, and how he feels about you. And I know how you feel about me, but I don't know how you feel about Naruto. This is important, if we're going to be on the same team." Sasuke said pointedly as Sakura slowly nodded in understanding. "So, what do you think of him?" Sasuke asked again. It was a moment before Sakura responded.

"If he had his way... I'd never find love or happiness. He knows about my feelings, and purposely tries to get in the way. He enjoys interfering and making me feel bad, especially when I make mistakes." Sakura said in a cold tone as she stared straight ahead. "Naruto doesn't understand anything about me! I can't stand having him anywhere near me! He's so annoying, it makes me sick!" She spat. But then her tone turned soft. "But, the one person whose opinion I value... The only one I really want to be close to... is you, Sasuke-kun" Sakura slowly turned to face him, her cheeks almost as pink as her hair. "All I want... Is for you to accept me. I'd do anything to win your attention... and your respect..." She closed her eyes as she leaned forward, pursing her lips slightly. "I'm... desperate... so..."

Sakura waited for a moment, but didn't feel anything. When she cracked an eye open, Sasuke was just sitting, with his hands interlaced in front of his face as he stared forward. Just like he often did in class.

"Now that is a very interesting statement." Sasuke said, not even looking at her. "Considering, that in the entire year we've had classes with him, I've never seen Naruto treat you that way. Not even once!" He frowned.

"Wh-what?" Sakura blinked in surprise.

"Either you're completely incompetent, or... Argh." Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose as he shook his head in frustration. "Now I know why Naruto asked me to do this."

"What are you talking about? What does Naruto have to do with anything?" Sakura asked, now very worried and confused.

"After Iruka-sensei dismissed us for lunch, Naruto tried to talk to you, right? He tried to tell you something?" Sasuke finally turned to look at her.

"Uh, yeah, I guess. I... I thought he was just trying to ask me out on a date or something." Sakura admitted sheepishly.

"Well he wasn't. He was trying to tell you something important. But because you wouldn't listen to him, he had to come bother me. He told me, and said that you'd only listen if I were the one telling you." Sasuke frowned, clearly unhappy with all the trouble. "Congratulations Sakura. You nearly destroyed our... MY, chances to become a genin."

"What? What are you saying? We're already genin." Sakura was feeling more and more worried. 'Naruto! What kind of lies have you been telling!?' Her internal self fumed.

"No, not quite. Naruto told me about it, and he said that Iruka-sensei told him." Sasuke sat up straight and turned slightly to face her. "Graduating from the academy courses only implies that we have sufficient skills to qualify to become genin. But we still have to pass the genin exam itself."

Sakura's eyes widened at the news.

'Another exam!? But, that means there's still a chance that I might be separated from Sasuke-kun!' She thought is slight panic. "Um, well, what is the genin exam? I mean, what will we have to do?" She asked in a nervous, mousy voice. After all, here she was, actually having a conversation with Sasuke!

"We have to work together." Sasuke said in a dead serious voice.

"Well, of course! I'm sure the two of us will be able to handle anything... as long as... you know... we stick together. Closely together." Sakura's blush began to return.

"No Sakura," Sasuke sighed. "I mean ALL of us. You, me AND Naruto. That's the point. Why do you think the class was arranged into teams?" He shrugged in exasperation. "Even if our skills are acceptable individually, what good are they if the team can't function together? The genin exam is exactly that, a test to be sure that our squad, the three of us, will be able to cooperate and function efficiently on missions."

Sakura sat back, uncertainty clear in her expression.

"Well, I guess that makes sense. But while I'm sure you and I could do fine, Naruto won't be able to handle it! You know him, he doesn't like working with anybody!" Sakura argued. 'Of course, Naruto is going to mess up anything! I'll never forgive him!' Her inner self punched and kicked in fury.

"Naruto may be an idiot, he may be a loud mouth, he may even be cursed with the worst fashion sense ever, but he is serious about being a ninja. Almost as serious as me." Sasuke frowned in thought as he crossed his arms. "I'm willing to believe that he'll at least make the effort to work along with us." Sasuke turned a hard glare on Sakura, who flinched back. "But we have to be willing to do the same. I would be extremely... irritated, if my ninja career was derailed just because you can't get past some childish feud with a love-struck fruit head!" He growled.

"S-Sasuke-k-kun... I... I wouldn't..." Sakura sputtered in shock. She couldn't believe that Sasuke was accusing her of such things.

"SO. We're going to have to agree to keep our heads level, and work as a TEAM." Sasuke turned away from Sakura to look at the trees. "We just need to keep calm until we can get through the exam. Then we'll have time to adjust, afterwards. We'll meet our jounin sensei today, and we'll be tested either this afternoon, or maybe tomorrow." He gave one more side glance at the seriously unsettled girl next to him. "I know it won't be easy. But at least try to hold your temper with Naruto. If you don't... You might ruin all our careers. We'd be an embarrassment. And what's more, you should try to watch your attitude with other people in general as well. You're constantly arguing with Ino, you're constantly yelling at Naruto... It seems to me that you don't exactly get along well with many people... other than me." Sasuke frowned. "You need to fix that. If you don't... Someday, you may get yourself into so much trouble with someone... that you won't be able to get yourself out."

Sakura was sitting, staring at her feet as she struggled to absorb the lecture she was getting. Finally, she took a deep breath as she sat a little straighter.

"Alright. I understand. We can't act like children anymore. We're ninja, and as such, we have a responsibility to act in a professional manor." Sakura said with determination. She offered a smile. "Though, I'd appreciate any help you'd be willing to-"

"Alright then." Sasuke interrupted, standing up. "We should get back. You go ahead, and I'll catch up after I go round up Naruto."

"Oh... Ok." Sakura said as she stood up also. "Um, he's... He's probably at that ramen shop he loves so much."

"Yeah, that's probably it. I'll go run over and check." Sasuke nodded, then looked at Sakura. "By the way, if you can, you should try to grab some equipment before we meet our new sensei. If you don't have time to run home, I'm sure Iruka-sensei won't mind if you grab some out of the supply room in the acad-"

"HEY! LOSER!" A loud shout caused Sasuke and Sakura to jump slightly.

Sakura leaned to the side slightly to look past Sasuke, only to see... Sasuke coming towards them? She could only gape in disbelief as the second, Sasuke2, marched over with an angry glare to stand in front of the one she had been talking to, Sasuke1.

'CHA! Two Sasuke-kuns!? I'm in heaven! Paradise! That Ino-pig can stuff her shirt all she wants, because these two are ALL MINE!' Inner-Sakura screamed as she danced around. "Wh-what? What's going on?" Sakura asked, looking back and forth between the identical boys.

"Even for you, this is a pretty lame attempt at a joke, dead-last." Sasuke1 commented, looking the other him over.

"What the hell do you think you're doing Naruto?" Sasuke2 demanded, his face tense and jaw clenched in severe agitation. Sasuke1 raised an eyebrow.

"Has that jutsu overtaxed what little of your brain that you try to use each day? Now you can't even tell who's you and who's me?" Sasuke1 shook his head in a slow, pitying manner.

"Don't mess with me, jerk." Sasuke2 warned in a low tone "Answer me. What do you intend to get out of trying to pass yourself off as me?"

"Wait, so, one is the real Sasuke-kun, and... the other is Naruto?" Sakura wondered out loud, looking back and forth. 'When I find out which one is Naruto, he's getting a knuckle sandwich added to his lunch!' She vowed to herself, only to blink with realization. 'Wait a minute, the one I've been talking to couldn't possibly be Naruto, could it? I mean, I wanted to kiss... Ugh...' She shuddered at the imagined possibility of loosing her first kiss to the walking talking orange.

"Look, I was just relaying the message to Sakura like you asked me to." Sasuke1 shrugged. "It was a legitimate concern. I don't know what you're doing now, besides being the idiot you usually are." He rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"Talking to..." Sasuke2 narrowed his eyes in suspicion, before turning to the distracted kunoichi. "What has this loser been telling you?"

"Uh..." Sakura hesitated, not sure what exactly to think. 'They're both just like Sasuke-kun... I'm not quite sure who's who!' She thought in a panic. "He... He was telling me that we still have one more exam to take, and that we'll have to work together as a unified group in order to pass."

"That ridiculous nonsense again?" Sasuke2 snorted, turning back to face Sasuke1. "Why are you going around telling these lies Naruto? Trying suck up to Iruka-sensei or something?"

"First of all," Sasuke1 frowned slightly, "I'm not telling lies. Secondly, even if the information was inaccurate, I still think it would be a good idea to make sure we can coordinate our efforts for the most effective results in any mission our team gets assigned." He crossed his arms as he glared at his mirror image.

'That one certainly sounds smart, and he's trying to make sure we're all included when we start working as ninja.' Sakura noted to herself.

"There is no team." Sasuke2 scoffed. "You're just a no-skill dead-last loser. You're so worthless that our senseis didn't care where you ended up. And you," He turned to Sakura, whose eyes widened. "You're just an air-headed fan girl. You'll never be an effective ninja because you have about as much killer instinct as a hamster." He snorted in disgust. "I want both of you to stay out of my way. I'll do things myself, so don't embarrass yourselves by trying to keep up with me."

Sakura's eye was twitching as she listened.

'This one is a mean, tactless, insulting jerk! Well, that certainly answers who's who!' She thought with seething anger at having been so blatantly insulted to her face.

"You try to take on too much yourself, and you'll crumble under the weight. You can't go through life all alone, trust me, I know that better than most. You'll have to trust and rely on someone sometime, and it would probably be best if those someones were your own teammates." Sasuke1 shook his head in disapproval of his counterpart's attitude.

"Being alone...?" Sasuke2's eyes widened slightly before his lips pulled into a thin line. "You have some nerve bringing up that topic you-" He started to reach for Sasuke1's shirt... only to have a fast flying set of knuckles smash into his face, knocking him backwards to the ground.

"Don't you dare touch Sasuke-kun, Naruto!" Sakura yelled furiously as she put herself between the two Sasukes.

Sasuke1's jaw had been hanging open in shock, but then he slowly lowered his head in a grimace as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Sakura, didn't I just get through telling you a minute ago that you needed to watch your temper or it would get you into really big trouble?" He muttered, even as Sasuke2 was staggering to his feet.

"I'm sorry Sasuke-kun. But Naruto can't talk down to us like that! And I won't let him insult you right after you were trying to give him a chance to be part of the team!" Sakura rambled out.

Sasuke2 had gotten back to his feet, and had the most shell-shocked look of disbelief on his face as he glared at Sakura.

"You... hit me...?" His eyes were wide with growing anger. "You actually DARED to hit ME!?"

"Damn right I did! And I'll hit you every time you try to do something stupid!" Sakura shouted back.

"Uh, Sakura... You really don't want to do that." Sasuke1 cleared his throat slightly.

"Yes I do! I'm sick of Naruto being such a heartless, mean jerk! I'll beat the concept of teamwork into Naruto if I have to!" Sakura declared firmly.

"Uh, well, that could be a bit of a problem, considering..." Sasuke1 remarked slowly then, POOF, "... That I'm Naruto." He added with slight embarrassment.

Sakura stood silently, staring at the blond. She blinked a couple times. Then, she started chuckling, of all things.

"Oh stop it Sasuke-kun!" She let out a strange giggle. "You can't be Naruto, silly! After all, if you're Naruto, then that means I just... I just... I-I-I-I JUST HIT SASUKE-KUN!" She shrieked as she turned white as paper.

"Yeah. Not the best way to encourage teamwork." Naruto shrugged with a slight grimace.

"GAH! Finally!" Kyaena gasped out, uncurling from the corner that she had been huddled against. "I didn't think I could stay quiet for another minute! Now just ditch those two and get back to the classroom!" She insisted.

'No, hang on, I need to make sure-' Naruto started to respond, but was interrupted by a very irate Sasuke rushing towards Sakura.

"You stupid pink haired bitch! I'll teach you to dare to assault an Uchiha!" He growled out as he raised a fist, but stopped short when Naruto appeared between him and Sakura.

"Don't." Naruto growled in return. "It wasn't her fault. She thought you were me. She wouldn't ever want to attack you. Hell, she'd probably attack Old-Man-Hokage if you told her to." Naruto paused to turn to Sakura. "But you need to be more careful. In the life of a ninja where deception is an everyday risk and part of-"

KAWHAM

Naruto went flying into a tree and collapsed into the grass after Sakura's vicious hit. Sasuke looked back and forth between his two 'teammates', before giving a snort.

"Just forget it. You two aren't worth my time or effort." He muttered as he walked off.

"No, wait, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura called out, but Sasuke kept going. She snarled as she rounded on a still prone Naruto. "Naruto, you bastard! This is all your fault! You did this on purpose, didn't you!? You were trying to mess things up between me and Sasuke-kun! I'll NEVER forgive you for this!" She kicked a rock over that hit Naruto on the head. "All that nonsense about teamwork and having to take another exam? Those were all lies, weren't they!? You're pathetic! Someone like you doesn't deserve the loyalty of teammates!" Sakura spat, then ran off, calling desperately for Sasuke.

Naruto just lay on his back in the cool grass, looking up at the tree above him. Kyaena just smashed up against the bars of the seal over and over in seething rage.

"I will make her pay... I will maker her SUFFER!" She screamed, lashing her tails against the walls. "SHE HAS NO RIGHT TO SPEAK TO YOU LIKE THAT! She is NOTHING! She has no idea what she's doing!" Kyaena paused, then several scrapping sounds echoed in Naruto's head. "And by the way, three more marks-"

'Muzzle it.' Naruto sighed. 'And how many times have I asked you not to hit the cage like that? You can pound on the walls, but when you hit the bars, I can feel it.' He winced slightly. He watched the swaying tree leaves for a few moments. 'Great. Just great. I try to help get the team together, and instead, I've made things worse than they were originally.' He slowly rolled over, and sat back against the tree.

"No! You only had good intentions! It's their fault for being such selfish, ego driven rats!" Kyaena hissed as she forced herself to settle, pulling pillows around herself. "I know you don't want to have to repeat the academy again, but it's preferable than having to deal with such undisciplined lemmings!"

Naruto considered for a moment, then got to his feet, brushing himself off.

'Maybe. It does seem like our squad assignment couldn't possibly work out, given our radically opposing personalities. But then, Kiba probably wouldn't have made all that great an impression either, had I switched with him.' Naruto commented, starting off to head back to class at a casual pace. Kyaena let out a pleading whine.

"But you would have done wonderfully on squad eeeeeight!" She pouted. "Getting along with Shino would have been a bit tricky, but-" .

'But you'd just love it if I would get to spend so much time with a girl who's never gotten past saying hi to me.' Naruto shook his head. 'You have to be careful, Kya-chan, or you might start to sound a little too selfish yourself. Leaving Kiba to deal with Sasuke while you try to play matchmaker with Hinata and myself.' He admonished playfully.

"Welllllll..." Kyaena cleared her throat awkwardly, "It's not like Kiba would be in any danger. I'm sure he would be able to handle himself against the Uchiha-teme." She said confidently.

'So he would, but I can't?' Naruto asked shortly as his jaw tensed slightly. Kyaena nearly hit the roof.

"NO! I didn't mean it like that! I'm sorry!" Kyaena pleaded. She hated when things like that happened. She would say something, but Naruto would take it the wrong way, severely upsetting him... or insulting his integrity.

'Forget it.' Naruto brushed it off. 'I'm going to see this through. Whether this team passes or fails, I won't let it because of lack of effort on my part.' Naruto's eyes hardened as his steps took on a sharper tone. 'If becoming a ninja means I have to put up with that arrogant teme, so be it. I'll deal with it some how. I just hope he gets down off his pedestal before he's knocked off by the harsh reality of life.' Naruto shook his head in pity of what he considered Sasuke's greatest fault. The belief that he was superior to everyone.

"Personally, I hope he falls, and hits bottom HARD." Kyaena muttered to herself as she cleaned her claws.

'To be honest, I'm a little surprised he showed up so quick. I guess I didn't knock him out as well as I thought.' Naruto frowned slightly.

(NARUTO'S FLASHBACK)

"...Damn it Sasuke! Will you just shut up and listen!?" Naruto fumed. He and Sasuke stood in the room Naruto had just entered a few moments ago, the window shutting behind him.

"Forget it, dead-last. I'm not going to fall for any of your stupid pranks. I have no reason to believe you." Sasuke said in a bored tone as he finished the last bite of his sandwich.

"Your ninja career is at stake. That's not a good enough reason?" Naruto huffed. "Look, I'm just asking you to tell Sakura-san what I've told you. That's all!" He urged.

"No. Deal with that crazy girl yourself." Sasuke glared. Naruto glared back, then shrugged.

"Have it your way." Naruto smirked, as suddenly another Naruto appeared behind Sasuke, catching him up in a bear hug across the chest. "But I'll still need 'you' to talk to her." The original Naruto reached into one of his ninkits.

"N-Naruto... You c-can't..." Sasuke wheezed as the clone squeezed the breath out of him with ease.

"Sorry. Just a matter of priorities." The original Naruto shrugged again as he held up a small vial under Sasuke's nose. "Now be good, and go nighty-night."

Sasuke tried to turn his head away, but when the Naruto clone suddenly loosened it's grip, Sasuke instinctively gasped a deep breath to get air back into his lungs, and inhaled the knock-out fumes. Two seconds later, his eyes rolled up as he collapsed to the floor.

Naruto transformed into Sasuke, and left via the window.

(END NARUTO FLASHBACK)

'Maybe I should have tied him up also. But then I'd have had to go untie him to get him back to class. Argh. Any Uchiha would be so troublesome.' Naruto grumbled, walking into the academy halls.

'More than you know, Naru-kun.' Kyaena frowned to herself. 'More than you know.'
____________________________

Proceeding along a different route into the academy, Sakura had caught up to Sasuke.

"Wait! Please wait, Sasuke-kun! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you like that!" She begged as she nearly fell to her knees in front of the brooder.

"Hurt me?" Sasuke's eye twitched. "HURT ME!? You think that you could actually hurt me!?" He hissed.

"No no!" Sakura shook her head franticly. "I meant I'm sorry for... accidentally hitting you! I didn't mean to!"

"Why, because you thought I was Naruto?" Sasuke asked slowly with narrowed eyes, his demeanor lost on the girl who nodded eagerly.

"Of course! That baka is always messing things up and causing trouble!" Sakura smiled, misinterpreting his words. "He has no regard for anything but himself!" She paused as she considered her next words. "You know why he's always causing trouble? It's because he wasn't raised right. He just whatever pops into his head because he doesn't know what it's like to be punished on a personal level. It's all because he doesn't have parents." She said smugly.

Sasuke's eye widened slightly.

"You think that he is..." He started to say, but honestly was at a slight loss at the implications of what Sakura was saying.

"Think about it! He doesn't have any one to answer to, never has, which is why he's become so selfish! If I tried to do the things he gets away with my parents would ground me for life, so of course I don't do them! Without parents, it's the only possible outcome that one becomes a complete idiot." She finished with confidence.

"...Alone..." Sasuke muttered, only recalling what Naruto had said in disguise a short time ago.

"What?" Sakura blinked, and cringed slightly when Sasuke seemed to stare right through her... or past her.

"Being scolded by parents is nothing. You can't possibly compare it. Even Naruto knows what can't be escaped in this world. Emptiness. Isolation." He was speaking quietly, almost to himself.

"Wh-what are you saying?" Sakura blinked with slight fear at the sudden change in Sasuke's attitude. He blinked as he seemed to refocus on Sakura.

"You think so little of Naruto, consider him to be worthless. And yet he fooled you completely, even making you think that I was him in comparison! That would make you less than worthless! You're so annoying and pathetic... You make me sick!" Sasuke spat as he walked off.

Sakura stood motionless in the hallway, stunned, shocked, wide-eyed and trembling.

'N-no... It can't be... Sasuke-kun thinks... that I'm...' She slowly sank to her knees as the terrible feeling crushed down on her. 'I... I can't believe how much this... hurts...' She clutched her hands to her chest. 'Ino's insults never hurt like this... Why? Why is it so different, hearing it from...' Sakura looked down at her hands. 'Is it because I look up to Sasuke-kun? Because his opinion is important to me?' She would never understand where the next thought came from. 'Is this how Naruto feels, whenever I...?' She shook her head in denial. 'No! This is Naruto's fault! He did this! Telling those lies, trying to trick me into being nicer to him!' Sakura got to her feet, and started off back to class. 'Well I'll show him! I won't let him mess up things any more!' She kept walking, despite a nagging thought. 'But... Naruto did trick me. I fell for it completely. Has he been training on his own...?' She wondered.
_________________________

A slight ways across the village, two men were paying an unannounced visit to the building that served as apartment and home of one Naruto Uzumaki.

Standing in the tidy living space were the white and red robed Hokage, and a jounin with silvery hair.

"So, this is where Naruto lives, hmm?" Kakashi wondered aloud as he casually looked around. "I have a hard time believing that he owns the whole building."

"It's belonged to him for about five years." Sarutobi replied as he nibbled on his pipe. "It had been abandoned before, so no one had any interest when I signed it to Naruto's name. Right afterward, I had it renovated. Naruto's done quite well with the place." He commented with a small hint of pride.

"I was half expecting it to be a mess in here. A young boy with no one to pick up after him... Usually that would translate into a very messy room." Kakashi remarked as he walked over and started to reach for the door of a cabinet...

"Uh, (ahem), Kakashi..." Sarutobi cleared his throat, "I would strongly advise against touching anything in here other than the refrigerator and kitchen cabinets."

Kakashi paused with his hand inches from the cabinet knob to look at his commander.

"Oh? And why is that?" He asked in a semi-interested tone. Sarutobi smirked slightly.

"Because the last thief who tried to take what little Naruto has, came out as slightly less of a man than when he came in." The Hokage watched in amusement as Kakashi's one eye widened almost imperceptivity, and his hand drifted away from the cabinet.

"He has this place trapped?" Kakashi asked in a normal, conversational tone... even as he walked over towards the refrigerator.

"Quite deviously, as a matter of fact." Sarutobi nodded, reflexitively glancing around to places he knew traps were hidden. But he was never entirely sure if he had them all identified. He usually let Naruto offer him a seat whenever he came to visit, so as not to test his luck.

Kakashi opened up the refrigerator, seeing bottles of fresh milk and fruit juice, along with whole fruit of various types, carefully wrapped to preserve them longer. One or two fish that had been cleaned were also wrapped, awaiting to be consumed, along with eggs, a few deli meats and condiments. Kakashi closed the refrigerator and opened the cabinets beside it. Plenty of instant cup ramen, a few canned soups of various types and a few boxes of plain cereals. A quick check of the bread box revealed two seemingly new full loafs of wheat bread.

"Stranger and stranger." Kakashi wondered in a confused tone. "I'd almost swear there was a woman's touch to this place. At least in the kitchen." He remarked as he opened another cabinet to reveal the clean, neatly stacked dishes and cups.

"Not surprising, considering a woman has been taking care of Naruto for longer than I know." Sarutobi replied. Kakashi turned an even more surprised look to the Hokage.

"I thought Naruto was an orphan. I haven't heard anything about anyone adopting him." He said with a slightly annoyed tone in his voice. He hated not having important information, no matter how unimportant. And what's more, when it came to rumors about Naruto, word traveled through the village faster than a lightning jutsu. If any woman had helped Naruto to such an extent, the whole village should have known. 'So how is it I haven't heard a thing?' Kakashi thought in irritation.

"I didn't say she adopted him, I said she's been taking care of him. Her name is Kyaena Unaikaji, and Naruto has never said anything but the utmost praise for her." Sarutobi corrected, with a slightly wistful look on his face for a moment. "But that aside for the moment, do you care to tell me why you wanted to see Naruto's apartment?" He asked with a intense stare.

"Just trying to get an understanding of one of my potential subordinates." Kakashi shrugged.

"Really." Sarutobi took a puff on his pipe. "Well then, that's fine. Also, in addition to Naruto, Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha will be the others in squad seven, that you've been assigned to." He paused to take a breath. "Kakashi... Regarding Sasuke... You do know why you've been assigned to squad seven, right?"

"Hmm? Oh, I just assumed it was a standard assignment, you know, it being my turn since I haven't been in the sensei circle in a few years." Kakashi waved it off nonchalantly. Sarutobi sweat-dropped.

"You volunteered." The Hokage muttered. "You are the only one in the village who could teach Sasuke about the sharingan... ifhe possesses it. However..." Sarutobi's voice became hard, the evidence of his long ninja career, "Don't ever forget that the other two are part of the team as well. I expect the sharingan to be the only thing that is exclusive for Sasuke's training. And I don't expect you to be easy on any of them. Being genin is the most difficult step in a ninja's life. They'll do most of their growing, both physical and mental, at this stage." Sarutobi motioned Kakashi to follow him, as they exited Naruto's apartment.

"Well, that's assuming they pass the test." Kakashi said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Sarutobi locked Naruto's door with his own personal key, then turned to his companion.

"Oh, and there's one more thing." Sarutobi reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a folded piece of paper. "I was... asked, to relay this to you." He handed over the paper.

Kakashi unfolded it and began reading. After a few moments, he paled slightly. He looked back at Sarutobi.

"Um... She does know that such a thing isn't physically possible... right?" Kakashi asked in a rarely nervous voice, usually only used in... special circumstances.

"You know how she is." Sarutobi shrugged. "It wouldn't stop her from trying... over and over again."

"I see." Kakashi cleared his throat as he pocketed the paper. "Well, if that's everything, Hokage-sama, I need to get going. It's time to meet my squad-to-be."

Sarutobi raised an amused eyebrow.

"Don't be too late this time, Kakashi. Naruto hasn't quite gotten out of his pranking habits yet." The aged ninja chuckled. Kakashi gestured in a 'what-about-it' manner.

"What's the worst he could do? Drop a bucket of water on me?" Kakashi gave a salute as he leapt away across the rooftops.

As Sarutobi started off for the Hokage tower, he chuckled to himself.

'You could consider yourself lucky if that's the least he does to you.' He puffed on his pipe contentedly.
__________________________

In the academy, the class had re-assembled. As Iruka looked over the group, he noticed that almost everyone was now sitting in a way that the squads were sitting together. Since three could sit at each of the table desks, it seamed obvious. However, Iruka noticed, with quickly increasing worry and disappointment, that while Sakura was sitting next to Sasuke where they had been before, Naruto was now sitting on the other side of the room at one of the otherwise empty desks, his backpack tucked next to his seat.

'Not even one day has passed, and already he's having problems.' Iruka frowned ever so slightly. Sitting in her seat, Hinata had noticed it too, with a look of worry on her face.

'Oh no... What's happened to Naruto-kun now?' Hinata wondered as she glanced over at the only pink-haired girl in the class.

"Alright everyone, quiet down!" Iruka yelled out above everyone. When they were silent, he continued. "Alright everyone. In a moment, I'll bring in the jounin who will be your senseis. I'd like to remind you all that they are elite experienced ninja, so you'd be wise to listen to what they tell you. Also, it would be in your best interests to make a good first impression, so try to behave yourselves." Iruka gave a glance at Naruto, who stuck out his tongue.

Iruka walked over and opened the door, letting in eight people. Iruka glanced back and forth, giving a questioning tilt of his head. A couple of the jounin simply shrugged and shook their heads, making Iruka sigh. They lined up, and Iruka picked up his clipboard. In order, one by one, the jounin stepped forward, gave their name, and called the squad they were assigned, leading the graduate cadets out of the room. But Naruto's gaze was locked onto one jounin in particular, the only kunoichi of the lot.

'Whoa... She's... Her eyes...' Naruto thought in a slight daze. 'I can't believe it... She has red eyes...' He stared at the dark haired woman who, strangely enough, glanced at him once or twice.

"Well, that's certainly interesting." Kyaena perked up her ears. "As I understand it, naturally occurring red eyes are far less than one in a million among humans." She tilted her head slightly as she looked at the woman through Naruto's eyes. After a moment of silence, Kyaena noted that Naruto was staring. "Now now Naru-kun, it isn't polite to ogle women like that." She giggled, immediately causing Naruto to turn away, blushing slightly. It was an action that both Kurenai and Hinata noticed.

'I-I wasn't ogling!' Naruto sputtered. 'It... It just caught me off guard! I never expected... I mean... What are the odds... err...' Naruto was at a genuine loss, making Kyaena giggle even more. 'It's just... After so many cold hating eyes for so long... Yours are the only ones I've ever trusted unconditionally.' The statement gave Kyaena a serious jolt. 'I'm not sure how I would handle having another woman with such eyes around me.' Naruto seemed quite unnerved. 'Of course, hers are still not as pretty as yours.' He added quickly.

"Mm-Hmm." Kyaena hummed in amusement. "Well, how about you try not to freak out on me, unless she's squad seven's sensei? I swear, at times it almost seems like you try to pull more problems onto yourself." She sighed, laying down in her pillows.

'Ok, ok. Sorry.' Naruto scratched at his neck a little. 'Seriously though, it really caught me off guard.'

"I'll try not to get jealous." Kyaena teased.

Naruto waited, listening, as squad by squad was led out of the room by their senseis. They proceeded up to the last few...

"Ok, I'm sorry, squad seven, but your sensei isn't here yet. You'll have to wait." Iruka said, getting a glare from Sasuke and Naruto. "Now, squad eight..."

The kunoichi Naruto had been observing stepped forward.

"I'm Kurenai Yuuhi. Squad eight, please follow me." She said politely.

As Naruto watched Kiba, Hinata and Shino stand up to walk down, a thought occurred to him.

'Hey, wait, you had wanted me to be on squad eight...' He thought quickly.

"So?" Kyaena asked with a slight tilt of her head.

'I wonder...' Naruto raised his hand. "Excuse me, Kurenai-sensei?"

The squad leader paused near the door to look at the blonde.

"Yes?" She asked, hiding her surprised curiosity.

"Sorry to interrupt, and I know this may sound a bit strange, but if you don't mind my asking, do you happen to have any particular specialty?" Naruto asked with a politeness that surprised most of the room.

"Being a pervert again, dead-last?" Sasuke commented in a seemingly off-handed manner, but was secretly hoping the jounin would severely injure the orange lemon head.

"Why would you ask?" Kurenai ignored the Uchiha's obvious bait as she addressed Naruto.

"He wanted to switch team spots with me earlier." Kiba offered, making Kurenai raise an eyebrow. "He's probably just wondering 'what might have been'." Kiba snickered at his own little joke as Naruto frowned slightly.

"Fine, forget it then." Naruto muttered, crossing his arms in irritation at his classmate's immaturity.

"For whatever reason you wanted to know," Kurenai offered, giving a disapproving glance at Kiba, "I happen to be most proficient in genjutsu."

Naruto's eyes snapped wide.

THUD

Everyone gaped as Naruto began banging his head on his desk.

"A-are you ok?" Kurenai asked with startled concern. Hinata was stunned beyond words, as usual.

"Yeah, (thud) I'm (thud) fine. (thud) Thank you (thud) for answering (thud) my question. (thud)" Naruto mumbled.

"Please stop that, Naruto-kun." Kyaena requested with a mild sense of insistence.

"Um, ok." Kurenai said as she led her squad out of the room. Once out into the hall, she glanced over her shoulder at her team. "What was that all about?"

"Ah... N-Naruto-kun's only real problem area... is g-genjutsu." Hinata nearly whispered. "I think... h-he was hoping... that you could've h-helped him with it." She seemed quite focused on her fidgeting hands.

"Oh. A logical intention." Kurenai nodded as they continued off.

Back in the classroom, Iruka continued as Naruto kept his face down on the desk.

"Uh, ok, now that we can get back to it..." Iruka looked at his clipboard again. "Then, squad ten..."

The last jounin left stepped forward.

"I'm Asuma Sarutobi. Squad ten-" He started to say, only to be interrupted when Naruto's head shot up.

"Sarutobi!? Are you Konohamaru's father!?" Naruto blurted out in surprise, with even Kyaena's eyes wide in interest.

"Naruto! Stop messing around and acting like you know everything!" Sakura yelled, though she couldn't hit him since she was on the opposite side of the room. But she shrank back a bit when Iruka and Asuma glanced at her.

"Ah, no, I'm not." Asuma said to Naruto.

"See!" Sakura smirked.

"Konohamaru is my nephew." Asuma said, giving a smirk at Sakura, who politely turned red with embarrassment.

"Well fancy that." Naruto blinked and nodded.

"It almost seems like you have some weird connection to their family." Kyaena commented, growing more amused by the minute.

"Jeeze! Can we just go already?" Ino groaned as she pulled Shikamaru and Choji along by the backs of their shirts.

"Whoa, hey! Le'go!" Shikamaru protested as Choji tried not to drop his bag of chips.

"Right, right. See you later Iruka." Asuma waved as he followed his squad out of the room.

After a few moments of silence, Iruka turned to the last three people in the room, who were glaring at him with impatience.

"Well... ah..." Iruka fidgeted.

"Iruka-sensei, where's our sensei? Shouldn't they have been here by now?" Sakura asked in confusion.

"Ah, I'm not sure. I mean, of course he was supposed to be here, but I don't know why he isn't." Iruka shrugged helplessly.

"Well, what the heck are we supposed to do now!?" Naruto demanded to know.

"Maybe the jounin heard you were on the squad, and was too afraid to show up." Sasuke intoned boredly.

Sakura just giggled, Iruka shook his head in disapproval. None of them noticed Naruto turn stiff as steel when the thought entered his mind.

'K-...Kya-ch-chan...' Naruto swallowed dryly, 'You... You don't think that's true... do you?' Naruto locked his eyes forward on the black board. 'Kya-chan!?' He clenched his jaw.

"If it is true..." Kyaena let out a long low growl, "Then whoever it was, wasn't deserving of you." Her tails twitched in severe bitterness.

The four sat in the class room, waiting. Strangely, no one said a thing. Sasuke brooded. Sakura daydreamed. Iruka worked on a few papers at his desk. And Naruto sat, desperately trying to keep the fear and disappointment out of his heart at the prospect that his presence, and the bigotry of the village, would ruin not only his ninja career, but now, also, two others who had no connection to his fate.

After nearly two hours, Iruka was forced to say goodbye as he had other duties to attend to, leaving the last three cadets to themselves. The clock kept ticking, regardless. As yet another hour and a half went by, Naruto's anxiety was getting the better of him, causing him to get up and start pacing around. Although Sakura and Sasuke gave him looks of annoyance, they still said nothing. But strangely, Sasuke was slowly mulling over a particular thought that kept nagging at him.

'Naruto said... that Sakura would even attack the Hokage, if I asked her to.' He pondered. He was resisting the urge to glance at Sakura, knowing full well that if he did, she'd notice, and only bother him more. 'She was willing to hit me, thinking it was Naruto. She's willing to take risks for me. She has the strength of anger, but hasn't learned to focus it yet.' Sasuke's jaw twitched slightly. 'Maybe, if I take time to give her a direction... she might be of use. Maybe she's not so worthless after all.' He took a chance and glanced at Sakura, who was watching him, noticed, and blushed hard with a smile and giggle. 'If I can learn to tolerate her annoying presence, that is.' He huffed, quickly turning his gaze back forward.

Naruto kept pacing, a little too much energy building up in him.

'Dang it, I hate this. I hate being nervous like this.' Naruto fumed, walking from the door, over to the window, over to Iruka's desk.

"Well, why don't you do what you usually do to calm yourself?" Kyaena offered. Naruto paused as he glanced at his two supposed teammates.

'I'd rather not do anything in front of them. Besides, Iruka-sensei would be steamed red if I damaged the classroom attempting to do some training.' Naruto sighed.

"No, not training! The other thing!" Kyaena snickered. Naruto blinked for a moment, before slowly smirking.

'Ohhhh... That thing.' Naruto glanced around the room rapidly, until his gaze came to rest on one of the chalkboard erasers. He walked over to pick it up, while also reaching into one of his ninkits on his belt.

Sakura noticed when Naruto started fiddling with the eraser, then pulled a stepstool over to the door.

"Naruto, what are you doing? Sit down!" Sakura hissed.

"I'm sick of sitting. I'm just trying to relax a little by having a little fun. No harm in that. Besides, it's his own fault for being late." Naruto chuckled to himself as he carefully propped the eraser at the top of the door frame, just barely held in place by the slightly ajar door itself.

"You know you're just asking for trouble. You really shouldn't do that." Sakura scolded. However, on the inside, 'Cha! I love it! The look on the guy's face will be priceless!'

Sasuke gave a mild huff.

"Our sensei is a jounin, an elite ninja. Do you really think he'd fall for such a pathetic trap?" He cricked his fingers slightly.

"Sasuke-kun's right! You're such an idioit, Naruto! And...?" Sakura paused as she and the others noticed a hand reaching to open the door.

boik

The eraser bounced off the man's head, dumping a heavy amount of powder into his silvery mop top hair.

"Hahahahaha! You know, sometimes it really is the simple things that are the best! Hahahaha!" Naruto and Kyaena laughed, while Sakura looked aghast.

"I'm so sorry sensei! I tried to tell him not to do it, but he wouldn't listen! I'd never do anything like that!" Sakura apologized franticly, however, on the inside... 'HA! Bulls-eye dead center! Set'im up, and knock'im down! YEAH!'

Sasuke gave a nearly imperceptible snort.

'This is a jounin? He seems as clueless as Naruto.' He frowned to himself.

Kakashi slowly bent over and picked up the eraser. Looking at it like it was some strange foreign object, he looked over at the three.

"Hmm. How can I put this. My first impression of this group..." Kakashi paused to consider before finishing. "You're a bunch of idiots."

The three graduates slumped.

"If he thinks you're a baka, he's in for a real surprise in a few minutes!" Kyaena howled with mirth.

'...Maybe I shouldn't have done that.' Naruto thought, though he was still trying to keep his grin from returning. 'I don't really want to scare him away or anything...' He went over to his seat and picked up his backpack.

"Like you said, it's his own fault for being so late. He obviously doesn't take his duties seriously." Kyaena huffed with a shake of her head.

"Well. I'm sure you've had enough of this stuffy classroom for the day. Why don't we head up to the roof court-yard for some fresh air?" Kakashi motioned for them to follow.

As they made their way through the halls and up the stairs, Kyaena just giggled again.

"Being in sunlight will only speed things up!" She swished her tails in eager anticipation. Oh how she loved Naruto's pranks.

The group made it out onto the open court rooftop, where even a few trees had been brought up and planted to give a pleasant area, the likes of which people could sit outside to have lunch during classes or something. Setting themselves to a balcony, the three younger people sat down on the steps, with Naruto setting his backpack aside while Kakashi leaned on the railing.

"Alright. First off, how about you introduce yourselves, one at a time." Kakashi gestured to them.

"Introduce ourselves?" Sakura asked quizzically. "What are we supposed to say?"

"Merciful Arceus, that bubble-gum brained twitch doesn't even know how to introduce herself!? How could anyone think she was smart!?" Kyaena hissed with disgust, as Naruto tried to keep his mouth shut and unexpressive. Despite his agreement.

"You know, the usual. Things you like, things you dislike, dreams for the future, hobbies... That sort of thing." Kakashi shrugged.

"Well, since we already know each other... or so I thought," Naruto commented, giving a glance at his teammates who gave him slight glares in return, "Why don't you go first, since we don't know you. You're the stranger here."

"Me?" Kakashi blinked, as if it the suggestion was a thought that had never occurred to him. "Well, ok. My name is Kakashi Hatake. My likes and dislikes... ... I don't feel like telling you those." He shrugged, getting raised eyebrows from Sakura and Naruto. "My dream for the future... ... Hmm. I've never really thought about it. And as for my hobbies... ... I have lots of hobbies." He shrugged again. Sakura and Naruto sweat-dropped.

"Well that was useless. All we learned was his name." Sakura whispered to the two boys sitting next to her, who each gave a slight nod.

"Ok then, your turn. Starting on my right." Kakashi scratched slightly at his head as he pointed at Naruto, who straightened up with a smile.

"The name's Naruto Uuuuuuuzamaki! I like ramen and fruit, going fishing, exercising and training in my ninja skills. I really enjoy studying the lessons that Kyaena-chan teaches me-" Naruto was saying, but was interrupted by a totally baffled Sakura.

"Hold it! What the heck are you talking about!?" Sakura glared hard at Naruto. "You never study! And who's this Kyaena? If you already have a girlfriend, why do you always bother me!?" She demanded.

"First of all, you wouldn't know if I study, because you never cared to know." Naruto sighed. "Second, Kyaena-chan isn't my girlfriend. She's the woman who raised me. She's the closest thing to a mother I have." Naruto's face fell slightly. "Although... she's always discouraged me from thinking of her that way..." Naruto mumbled, making Sakura flinch slightly and take on a somewhat embarrassed guilty look.

"It's really for the best, Naru-kun." Kyaena purred softly. "Trust me. Someday, you'll see that it's better this way."

'Maybe.' Naruto thought before shaking himself back to attention. "Anyway, back to my intro. My hobbies aren't really much as I spend most of my time training, but I like to play the occasional prank to relieve a little stress." Naruto grinned at Kakashi who sweat-dropped, then scratched at his head a little. "My dislikes are excessively rainy days on end since it usually interferes with my training, bigots who mistreat others without knowing the real reasons, I dislike perverts, I really dislike liars, and..." Naruto's face slowly became a vicious scowl. "I absolutely HATE... traitors." Naruto's voice was so cold it actually seemed to shiver in the air.

The three other people were wide-eyed at Naruto's last statement, and the unfamiliar look of darkness in his face.

'So. It seems the dead-last has some issues. Maybe that could be useful to know...' Sasuke thought, trying to hide his surprise.

'Cha! Who does Naruto think he's fooling!? Trying to act all cool, when he's just a baka! Sasuke-kun is so much cooler than Naruto could ever hope to be!' Inner Sakura fumed in outrage, but another line of thought in her normal mind was paralleling it. 'I thought Naruto was an orphan. I didn't know someone was involved with him... even if it seems that she didn't do the best job in the world. I can't believe I made fun of him not having parents...' Sakura held her tongue, not knowing what to say. 'That was low... Even I should have known better...'

Kakashi stared as Naruto's scowl disappeared and became all smiles again.

"And my dream is to become the greatest Hokage! Because doing so will be proof that I've finally proven my worth in the world, and will have earned the respect of the village!" Naruto beamed even as Kakashi frowned behind his mask.

'Except for the becoming Hokage thing... his answers weren't anything like what I was expecting them to be.' Kakashi thought as he tried to ignore the itching in his scalp. "Ok, you're next pinky." Kakashi pointed at Sakura, who's eye twitched, but she smiled regardless.

"I'm Sakura Haruno. What I like... I mean, who I like..." She squirmed slightly with a blush on her face as she kept glancing at Sasuke, who didn't even look at her. "And, my hobby is, I mean... ... My dream for the future is..." Sakura let out a small giggling squeal.

"Ah... And what do you dislike?" Kakashi asked with a slightly awkward tone at her behavior.

"NARUTO!" Sakura blared out without hesitation, making Naruto smack his face in exasperated disbelief.

"Hmm. Should I count that as a mark against her? I dunno..." Kyaena commented in a sour tone and with a twitchy eye.

'Hmm. It seems girls her age are more interested in love than in ninja training.' Kakashi pondered. "Ok, last one." Kakashi pointed to Sasuke.

"My name... is Sasuke Uchiha. I hate a lot of things, and don't particularly like anything." His low serious tone made Sakura give a tiny pout of disappointment. "What I have is not a dream, because I will make it a reality. I intend to restore my clan... and to kill a certain man."

The others stared at him in silence, but each had their own thought.

'Ohhh... Sasuke-kun is soooo hot!' Sakura blushed harder than ever as she quivered slightly.

'Hmm. It's just as I thought.' Kakashi thought grimly, though he was getting quite irritated as he scratched at his head with more vigor.

Naruto was looking at Sasuke with a half-neutral, half-ponderous look.

'I'll bet you a hundred gold coins that he's talking about Itachi.' Naruto offered off-handedly.

"Pft. That's so obvious, it's not even a bet." Kyaena snorted.

"Good! You're each unique and have your own ideas and opinions!" Kakashi nodded, even as he was now constantly scratching at his head. "We'll have our first... our first... mission! Yes, the first mission, tomorrow!" His eye was twitching slightly.

"What? A mission?" Naruto frowned with confusion. "What... kind of mission?" He asked slowly. 'I couldn't have been wrong. Iruka-sensei told me there would be one more test. But... if he lied-'

"No, I don't think Iruka lied. This jounin, Hatake, is up to something. And there's something I don't like about his Hitai-ate hanging over his left eye like that." Kyaena growled lightly. 'There's something strange... almost familiar, about this man. A feeling that I don't like at all.' She bared her teeth slightly.

"Our first task will only involve just the four of us. A survival exercise." Kakashi stated, as he forced his hand away from his hair and down to his side, though his hands were shaking slightly. The itching was getting insane. 'What the hell is wrong with me!?' He wondered in annoyance.

"Why are we doing an exercise? I thought we were going to have a real mission!" Sakura asked. "We already did lots of this stuff in the academy! That's why were here!"

"This isn't going to be just a simple exercise. It's nothing like your previous training." Kakashi said, then flinched as he stopped his hands from raising up again.

"What kind of training is it then?" Naruto asked, grinning at Kakashi's behavior. Kyaena was beginning to giggle also.

When Kakashi started chuckling, the three students raised and eyebrow. Well, not Sasuke, he was too 'cool' for something so trivial.

"Hey, that was a normal question. What's so funny sensei?" Sakura asked with slightly suspicious eyes.

"Well, if I told you, you'd chicken out." Kakashi shrugged. At the prompting looks he got, he continued. "Of the twenty-seven graduates that made it this far, only nine will actually be accepted as genin. The other eighteen will be weeded out and sent back to the academy. In other words, this is a make-it or break-it pass-fail test, with the chances of you failing being at least sixty-six percent!" He watched the three for their reaction, and what a reaction it was.

'Naruto was telling the truth!?' Sasuke and Sakura's eyes both widened as they immediately shot glares at Naruto.

"Hey, don't look at me like that." Naruto huffed with a frown. "I tried to warn you two. It's not my fault you wouldn't believe me."

"What are you talking about? What did you try to warn them about? ... grr." Kakashi gave a hard glare at Naruto, his patience a little thin from his relentless discomfort, which actually seemed to be spreading. Now he was starting to itch behind his ears as well.

"N-Naruto... tried to tell us before lunch. He said that we still had one more test to take to become genin." Sakura was significantly subdued, due to the fact she was feeling REALLY bad about what had happened. 'He was telling the truth. He really was just trying to help us. And now, who knows what will happen because we didn't want to listen.' Her stomach flipped on itself with worry and guilt.

"So, that graduation test we already took. It was just...?" Sasuke's eye was twitching now at the extreme irritation that Naruto had known all along, while he hadn't.

"Oh, that?" Kakashi shrugged, trying to pretend to just scratch at his hair in a casual way, but his nails were really digging into his scalp hard. "That was to eliminate the most hopeless cases. The ones that passed are the only ones who have the potential to become genin... or not. I'm the one who will decide if you pass or fail. Be at training field seven at five AM. Bring all your gear and weapons." Kakashi ordered with a moment of complete seriousness as he handed papers to the three. "These are the specific orders. Read them carefully... And don't be late!" He stepped back again, but sent a hard glare at Naruto who didn't see because he was reading the paper. 'This could be problematic. What else has Naruto warned them about?' He tried to refrain from biting his cheek.

'Naruto was right all along! This is going to be a team effort! If I fail, I'll be separated from Sasuke-kun! This is a test of love!' Sakura steeled herself with determination. 'I really need to apologize to Naruto after we're done. After all, he was only trying to preserve our ninja careers.' She added as an afterthought as she looked at her paper.

'Another test won't make any difference to me. It'll be easy.' Sasuke cracked his knuckles once as he crumpled up the paper.

'Well, at least Iruka-sensei was right. But the test is tomorrow.' Naruto thought for a moment as he read over the orders. After a moment he realized something. 'Hey wait, isn't field seven the one with-'

"Yes, it is. I'm sorry, Naru-kun." Kyaena responded sorrowfully. She took a breath. "But at least, with forewarning, this should work out better. And I have an idea that will really test this jounin's intentions towards you." She nodded with satisfaction at the idea. "Sorry Naru-kun, but I don't know if you'll be getting much sleep tonight."

Before Naruto could ask her what she meant, Kakashi jumped to his feet.

"Alright. That's all. Your dismissed." He said with a slightly hurried tone, eager to get out of there and solve his... problem. "Oh, and I almost forgot. I would strongly suggest that you skip breakfast tomorrow. If you eat... you'll throw up!" He cursed himself for nearly forgetting to say that last part. But it was no use, the itching was so bad, he had to bring both hands up to scratch desperately at it.

'Oh please. The whole eat-or-not-to-eat trick? It's getting old.' Naruto grimaced, with Kyaena mirroring his actions in agreement.

'Throw up!? How hard is this test going to be!?' Sakura thought in a slight panic, and thoroughly confused at her sensei's strange behavior.

As Kakashi turned to jump off the balcony, Naruto finally smirked.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei! I would strongly suggest you stop scratching! It only makes the itching powder work more!" He snickered.

Kakashi froze. He slowly turned back to look at Naruto with a crazy eye.

"ITCHING POWDER!?" He screamed as he scratched for all his worth, staggering around. "When did you-!? How did you-!?"

"Naruto?!" Sakura shrieked, "What have you done!? How-!?" She was effectively running in place in panic, but had no idea what to do about it.

"Hey, you were right there when it happened! It was just a few minutes ago, when I dropped that eraser on his head." Naruto was trying to hold in his giggles, but Kyaena laughed long and hard. "Iruka-sensei is a stickler for keeping order in the classroom, as much as he can, anyway. Did you really think he would let the chalkboard erasers get that dusty? Hahahahaha!"

Sakura was mortified as she looked on helplessly, Sasuke, amazingly, still hadn't moved from his spot. But he was having a hard time accepting what he was witnessing.

'Naruto used the eraser as cover, mixing the itching powder with the chalk dust. And this jounin fell for it!' He thought in shock. 'If Naruto had put a poison, or a reactive acidic compound in it instead... He could have killed, or at least seriously incapacitated, a jounin!' Sasuke's eyes narrowed, and twitched. 'Is Naruto that good?... ... Or is this so-called sensei really that much a baka?'

Kakashi on the other hand... was having different thoughts...

'AARRGGHH! I can't believe this! I thought that the eraser alone was a little weak! But if the others find out I fell for one of Naruto's pranks, in the first ten seconds no less, I'll never hear the end of it!' He fumed as he regained his balance, forcing himself to stop scratching. "Naruto! W-why did you-?"

"Hey, I already told you, I pull pranks to relieve stress... for myself anyway." Naruto shrugged. "If you hadn't been so late, I wouldn't have gotten nervous. If I hadn't gotten nervous, I wouldn't have pulled the prank. Most likely." He grinned. "Well, if that's everything, I've got a dinner appointment at Ichiraku's... And as for you sensei, you should go dunk your head in a bucket of water!" Naruto paused as his face turned blank. "No, seriously, if you want the itching to stop, wash it out, quick."

No sooner had the advice left Naruto's mouth, Kakashi was off like a shot, over the railing, racing out of sight. The three ninja potentials blinked, and Sasuke was the first to move.

"I'm out of here. Don't follow me." He muttered as he ran over and jumped over the railing himself, heading off where ever it was he goes.

"Yeah right. Like we'd want to." Kyaena growled slightly.

Naruto got up, brushing himself off and pulling on his backpack. He paused when he noticed Sakura staring at him.

"What?" Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Idiot..." Sakura hissed through clenched teeth, but stopped and took a deep breath. "Look, I should pound you into the ground for what you just did... But I'm not going to." She sighed. Seeing Naruto's totally confused look, she shrugged, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed. "Well... You did try to warn us... about the last test, I mean. I'm... sorry, for not believing you." She muttered. "But you still shouldn't have done that to our sensei!" She added quickly when Naruto tried to open his mouth. "You were trying to tell us that we needed to work together, then you go and do something that could get us all in trouble!"

"Blah, blah, blah. All she does is complain." Kyaena snorted.

"No." Naruto shook his head, ignoring Kyaena for the moment. "Kakashi-sensei can't hold what I did against us. It had nothing to do with the squad or the test. If he was to make trouble over it, he'd get in trouble, and we'd probably just get a different sensei." Naruto shrugged. "A ninja's life is stressful enough. You have to be able to laugh at yourself in this line of work. If he can't, it would make me worry how he would react in a serious situation. This is just normal. As a new team, of course there's going to be a period of adjustment, both for ourselves, and for our sensei. Besides..." Naruto said as he started to walk away, "I don't know why you're so concerned about my pranks. After all, I've never pulled any on you. See you tomorrow!" He gave a cheerful wave as he leapt over the railing.

Sakura stood blinking in surprise for several moments after Naruto had left.

'Hey... Now that he mentioned it... He's right! He's never done a prank on me!' She realized in amazement. She thought as hard as she could about the whole academy year she had spent in the same class as him. 'He's done pranks on nearly everyone in class. I don't understand. Could it be that he just never got around to me? Or a few of the others? But... He's pulled more pranks on Kiba, Shikamaru and Choji than some of the others... and they seemed to be better friends with him.' Sakura frowned to herself as she turned and headed for the stairs back into the academy. 'What does that say about me? Does Naruto like me enough that he won't pull a prank on me out of concern for my feelings, or does he not consider me enough of a friend, someone he wouldn't bother wasting his time on to pull a prank?' Sakura walked on for a few minutes, before she made a face. 'Gah, I can't believe I'm worrying over whether Naruto would pull a prank on me or not. This has been a very stressful day.' She shook her head.
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Having taken most of his gear back to his apartment for the moment, Naruto made a quick turn around to head to Ichiraku's for an early dinner. Actually, after hearing Kyaena's idea, he would have preferred to eat at the apartment so he could get to work on it, but he had a hunch he had people waiting for him.

Sure enough, when Naruto got to Ichiraku's, he had a significant surprise, as Sarutobi, Iruka and Konohamaru were all there.

"Hiya guys!" Naruto smiled cheerfully as he hopped up on the stool next to Konohamaru.

"Ah, Naruto! I was wondering when you'd show up." Iruka nodded.

"Well, to tell the truth, I almost didn't." Naruto shrugged, getting a gasp out of Sarutobi, Iruka, Teuchi and Ayame. Naruto raised an eyebrow. "No no, it's not like that. I just have some more work to do, and almost considered eating at my apartment. But then I remembered that my ramen tonight is compliments of Old-Man-Hokage!" Naruto grinned again with a wink at the eldest man present. "Don't worry, I'm only having four bowls this time around."

"What!? Four bowls!?" Konohamaru balked. "I haven't even finished my first one! Although I've got to admit, this stuff is pretty good!" He slurped up a noodle.

"Only four? Are you feeling alright?" Sarutobi asked with small concern. After all, for Naruto to eat less than ten bowls was a rarity, and if he went under six bowls, that usually meant something was wrong. Not that Sarutobi's wallet was complaining...

"Yeah I'm fine. Like I said, I just have some work to do, so I can't hang around long." Naruto paused, then quickly reached into his pocket, fumbling slightly until he pulled out a ryo bill. "Before I forget again, Konohamaru, this is for that underwear you were pining about." Naruto handed the money to Konohamaru, who's eyes promptly bugged out.

"WHOA!" The smaller boy exclaimed in shock. "Th-th-this..."

Sarutobi leaned forward to get a better look, and his own eyes widened in surprise.

"Naruto, that's-" He started to say, but Naruto waved him off.

"It's the smallest bill I have with me, and besides, it's not that big a deal." Naruto turned to the cooks who were waiting expectedly. "Ok! A beef, a miso, a stew and a special! Hit me!"

Ayame giggled as she handed Naruto a bowl of miso that was already ready as Teuchi got to work on the others. Konohamaru, who had been drooling slightly over the ryou in his hand, abruptly looked up when Naruto started slurping... or rather, inhaling, his meal. Even as Konohamaru opened his mouth to comment, Naruto up-ended his bowl to finish the broth.

"Holy smokes! How did you do that!?" Konohamaru stared with wide eyes at the empty bowl Naruto placed slightly to the side.

"Lots and lots... and lots, of practice!" Naruto chuckled as Ayame set his beef ramen in front of him. Naruto turned to look at Sarutobi. "Speaking of smoke, was there something you needed to tell me, Old-Man?"

Sarutobi paused in sipping his tea to consider for a moment.

"No, not that I can recall. Why do you ask?" Sarutobi picked up a bread stick to dip in his tea. Naruto shrugged.

"I thought I smelled some of your pipe incense lingering in the air when I got back to my apartment." Naruto proceeded to inha-, I mean, slurp, his second bowl until it was empty.

"Oh, I had stopped by, but it was nothing." Sarutobi waved it dismissively. 'Well now, that is impressive. It was almost five hours ago, yet he was able to smell traces of my pipe smoke? I guess I need to be more careful.' He thought.

"Wait, he wouldn't have stopped by for nothing." Kyaena tilted her head slightly in thought. "Double check."

"Are you sure Old-Man? Was it something you wanted from me then?" Naruto asked as Ayame was finishing putting the last ingredients into the stew ramen.

"No, nothing at the moment." Sarutobi shook his head, taking a bite of his tea-soggy bread.

"Did it have anything to do with why Kakashi was so late for the genin orientation?" Iruka asked as he was slurping on his own, second bowl of ramen. Hanging around Naruto was rubbing off on him.

When Sarutobi paused a moment too long, Naruto sent him a hard glare.

"Old-Maaaaaannnnn..." Naruto growled out in a warning tone. Sarutobi cleared his throat awkwardly, as Konohamaru and Iruka looked on in confusion.

"I was only-" Sarutobi started to say, but his guilty tone was all Naruto needed to hear.

"WHAT!? You let someone into my apartment without even asking me!?" Naruto fumed, completely ignoring his stew ramen that Ayame set out for him.

"Naruto, it isn't what you think!" Sarutobi waved off desperately. "He was your assigned sensei and-"

"That's no excuse, even for him." Kyaena frowned, as Naruto stuck out an open hand.

"Key." Naruto said. Sarutobi swallowed slightly.

"W-what do you mean?" He asked slowly.

"Grandpa? What's going on?" Konohamaru asked in a scared voice.

"Naruto, don't-" Iruka started to intervene, with Ayame and Teuchi looking on with worry.

"KEY! NOW!" Naruto demanded, shaking his outstretched hand.

Sarutobi sighed with a downcast face as he reached into his secure pocket on his belt, and pulled out a key that he dropped into Naruto's hand. Without a word, Naruto pocketed it and began scarfing down his third bowl.

The silence was oppressive.

"Grandpa..." Konohamaru whined.

"Hey, don't worry about it Konohamaru!" Naruto turned a big smile to his young friend. "It's just a little matter between the old man and myself, concerning a certain agreement we made some time ago..." His eye twitched once.

"I'm sorry Naruto. I had no right to do such a thing." Sarutobi bowed his head in apology.

"Yep! Absolutely right!" Naruto grinned viciously as he pushed away his third empty bowl. Sarutobi and Iruka sighed slightly in shame.

"All right Naruto," Teuchi interjected as he brought over the last bowl, "And here's the special!" He set down the slightly-larger-than-normal bowl in front of the blonde.

Ah, the special. Before Naruto, Teuchi would rarely have anything on the menu that he would call 'the special'. It would usually just mean a temporary new recipe that Teuchi was trying. But years of serving the living noodle inhaler had made him reassess the quality of a 'special' ramen. Now, the special was something few people outside of Naruto or an Akimichi could stomach. Not that it wasn't delicious, after all, all Ichiraku ramen was delicious. When it's said that few can stomach it, it refers to the fact that there is simply so much food crammed into a larger-than-average bowl. It was special, because it was the only recipe that Naruto actually had to chew.

"So, um, Naruto. What were you saying about having more work to do?" Iruka asked. Naruto paused, then finished crunching the shrimp in his mouth with a gulp.

"I've got some preparing to do for my genin exam tomorrow morning. The extra pressure made me re-think how I want to go through it." Naruto replied, then resumed his eating.

"What do you mean, extra pressure?" Iruka blinked in confusion. Naruto rolled his eyes as he was forced to stop eating again.

"I mean the extra pressure of trying to make sure my squad passes with a high enough rating to be one of the three teams picked to be accepted to active duty." Naruto spouted out quickly, then grabbed a big gulp of orange juice that Ayame had set for him.

"What are you talking about, Naruto?" Sarutobi asked with a frown. He had a bad feeling. Naruto gave a grunt, then held up a 'wait-one-moment' finger, then proceeded to finish his bowl first. It took him a full minute.

"I mean, that because there are only going to be three squads accepted into duty this time around-" Naruto started to say, but Sarutobi held up a halting hand.

"Wait, wait. Who told you that? That's not how it works." Sarutobi said. Everyone was listening intently, even though Teuchi and Ayame were still working as they did so.

"What do you mean, grandpa?" Konohamaru tilted his head curiously.

"Yes, do tell." Naruto chimed in, with hard eyes.

"There's no restriction on the squads. If a squad passes, they'll become active ninja. All nine squads could pass... or fail." Sarutobi explained. "Why would we turn down a squad that passed? It would be foolish for us to cut our own ranks in that way."

"Is that so." Naruto's jaw clenched as his lips drew into a thin line and he seemed to stare off into space.

"So that cyclopean sloth was lying. What a surprise." Kyaena growled as her claws flexed with her desire to rend and tear flesh.

"Naruto, who told you that only three squads would be put into active duty?" Sarutobi pressed. 'If it's who I think, I'm going to have to have a few words with him.' He thought in irritation. But Naruto grinned as he waved it off.

"Nah, it was just something I heard. I'm glad it was wrong." Naruto pulled out some money and set it on the counter for his meal. "Well, I've got to go. Thanks for the meal, sister, pops." Naruto gave a salute to his ninja superiors. "And I guess I'll see you later Iruka-sensei... One way or the other."

"What do you mean?" Iruka asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, if I fail the genin exam, I'll be by to register for the next academy year. If I pass, it means I'll be an active ninja, and as such, I'll finally be allowed into the archives. Either way, it means I'll have a lot more studying to do." Naruto shrugged, then turned and ruffled Konohamaru's hair a bit. "I'll see you around too... Kono-chan!" Naruto and Kyaena laughed as he sped off, leaving a severely red-faced boy behind.

"HEY! I'M NOT-... Grrrr! I'll get you for that, Naruto!" Konohamaru yelled after the dust trail that Naruto had left. Those present chuckled at the antics of the younglings, but Sarutobi and Iruka exchanged glances.

"All the other squads have already finished their exams. Squad seven is the only one left. Do you think Kakashi is trying to put extra pressure on Naruto, by telling him that lie?" Iruka whispered as he pretended to resume his now slightly cooled ramen.

"Even if he was, it's not a issue now that Naruto knows the truth. But I'll most likely have to speak to Kakashi after the test... depending on how things go." Sarutobi muttered back, but then smiled. "But I'm not that worried. I think Kakashi will find out the hard way that Naruto is far more determined, or should I say stubborn, than he gives him credit. Pass or fail, I'm sure this will be one test that Kakashi will never forget." The elder snickered, with Iruka joining in agreement. "Hmm. Naruto was so focused on this matter, he forgot I had owed him this meal." Sarutobi shook his head when he saw Teuchi pick up Naruto's payment.

Konohamaru continued to rant how he'd get his payback against his eternal rival.
_______________________

Naruto trudged into the area of training field seven. After leaving Ichiraku's, Naruto had gone back to his apartment to retrieve his gear. Now, as he walked into the grassy area with the glowing sunset washing over everything, Naruto was not only wearing the same equipment and backpack he had when he had been at the academy earlier, he was also carrying two large, very heavy duffle bags, one in each hand.

Naruto walked up to a trio of large, thick posts that were stuck into the ground, and took a moment to set his backpack down next to one. Then he slowly turned and walked over to an out-of-place object in the field. It was a very special stone memorial. Polished black with a odd, somewhat triangular, stone standing up out of the large circular stone base. All over the stone, and around the base, were inscribed many, many names.

Naruto stood, staring at the stone for a few moments, his throat tightening slightly.

"No... Don't let yourself dwell on that now. You have work to do." Kyaena spoke softly, trying not to upset Naruto, but wanting him to stay focused on his task ahead.

'I know... I... I just... Someday. Someday I'll figure out which ones they are. I owe them that much.' Naruto sniffed slightly, but his eyes remained dry despite it being one of the few times he wished he could cry.

"I'm sure they know you're trying." Kyaena purred reassuringly.

Naruto picked up the two duffle bags, letting them hang on his forearms as he made a handsign.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto announced, and about a hundred duplicates of himself came into being, all of them also holding duffle bags. The original Naruto looked over his group of selves. "Ok, we don't know how things are going to go, so make sure every place in this area is covered!" He directed. The other Narutos nodded and quickly spread out, heading in every direction, with a few lingering as they picked out places, kneeling down and starting to unzip the duffle bags.

"You know, Naru-kun, regardless of the outcome, this ought to be very fun to watch." Kyaena snickered.

'I don't know. I just hope it works.' Naruto sighed, as he walked over to a tree, and knelt down to unzip his own bags.

The mass of Naruto's continued to work long after the sun had set.
______________________
   .   END OF CHAPTER.    

Authors Notes:

First of all, as you undoubtedly noticed, I kind of tacked half of what would have been the next episode (following anime) onto this chapter. Since the meeting with Kakashi takes place in the same day, I wanted to get it all done, especially due to what I planned at the end. So this chapter turned out quite a bit longer, but I'm happy with the smoothness of the scene progression.

Some of the obvious changes I made were more difficult than I expected. I had to re-write several sections over two or three times before I decided they were acceptable. I don't know if they seem to out-of-place, but there were one or two things I just couldn't keep from canon. Like the Naruto-Sasuke kiss. No way, not going to happen in my story.

I realize that it doesn't seem right to have Sakura and Sasuke keep changing their minds in this chapter, but hey, remember, they may be trying to become ninja, but they're still only twelve.

I guess there's not really much else I feel the need to comment on about this chapter, though I hope you readers will have comments. Preferably positive ones, but I'll take what I can get.

To the next batch of reviews:

YamiKyuubi: Well, I didn't break the Uchiha's jaw, but hopefully it's enough to hold you for now.

Vasuki: The 'uber-haters', as you put it, were primarily in the prologue, with events making them quiet down over time. And yes, I'm quite proud of my prologue.

Loatroll: I agree about Kakashi. Which is why, ultimately, he'll get his comeuppance. But his presence is required... for now.

Korisen: Naruto hiding his abilities is just something he's gotten used to over time to keep himself safe, though he'll try to work out of that habit in the future. I think he's off to a good start, pranking Kakashi the way he did. The next two chapters should be interesting to you.

A special note:

I've already received a few opinions about the 'jounin kunoichi' in chapter SOTS-1-01-03. At the moment, I have two votes for it being Rin, and one vote for being Anko. If you think you can guess who it is, feel free to consider this a poll, even though I'm not going to change who it is, despite people's opinions. It will be some time before I reveal the person's identity in a clear and definit manner. 1000 Kudos points to the winners who guess correctly! But the points don't matter. That's right, just like the color of Orochimaru's underwear, the points don't matter.

Kunoichi Identity poll: Please see my profile for the poll

Thank you for your attention and time!

This chapter edited:

5-17-2013