Sōjirō absentmindedly stared at the three genins of Team Kakashi, turning a yellowing leaf in his hand.
It was nearly six months since the end of the Genin Exam that promoted the students of Naruto's class; five months since the other unqualified Teams 1 through 6 returned to civilian life; four and a half months since Team 7 returned from Nami no Kuni and subsequently went to Suna for an exchange programme; and two and a half months since they returned from Sunagakure. He has also been on paid leave for the past four and a half months and was expected to remain so for the next month and a half. The attack by Otogakure was enough of a threat that it did not make sense that he was to be benched for the entire duration. His team was helpless without him and he did not think his deputy could suitably dispatch the members on a large-scale secret mission as was planned.
It was almost time for the Chūnin Exams.
He closed his eyes as he remembered Hiruzen's words.
"Communication. That's the most essential thing in any relationship."
Sōjirō sighed heavily, covering his eyes with one hand as he averted his eyes from them.
He is, and will always be a clone.
He did not deserve to have these emotions.
It was almost sacrilegious of him to think the way he did. He had taken such pains to ensure that he would never be found out. He vaguely knew how Hiruzen might have misunderstood his situation, but it was not as simple as the aged Hokage presumed.
To begin with, the nature of his feelings...
It truly was not the sort of "love" that one human would feel towards another. He did not desire a relationship with the person he had in mind. It was just his greed that made his impulsive actions unforgivable. He may have yet to do anything to break the trust between them, yet he betrayed their bond with his sentiments.
They were in the midst of a C-rank mission to capture wild animals, using specialised scrolls to transport them live. As always, it was with the aid of seals drawn up by their resident fūinjutsu master Sōjirō. If one was to examine their task more closely, it could be observed that the degree of difficulty of this mission was higher than that of normal C-ranks. This was just the first phase of the mission. The second phase was of a related task -- the release of genetically modified beasts to Training Ground #44.
Essentially, they would be bringing animals back from the wild for experiments by the Research and Development Division. These animals were to be used to repopulate the Forest of Death, where wildlife was reduced by the addition of Naruto to the inhabitants of the place. Monsters with edible parts are too scarce there, what with Naruto hunting them down for their meat in recent years.
In the previous timeline, Anko was Training Ground #44's only inhabitant and the only lunatic who willingly chose to reside in any training ground in Konoha. She was still as crazy as ever here, even with Naruto as her housemate and legal ward. Since she rarely cooked, the mutated creatures were spared from the fate of becoming her meals. As the Chūnin Exams drew near, the need to renew the food reserves available within the Forest of Death grew apparent as the local food supply for examinees was finally called into question.
Of course, the task of finding food during the Exam could not be made too simple. Ordinary boars and the like have no place in the forest's ecosystem anyway. The poor things were more likely to be eaten by the ferocious poisonous mutants that live there than live to be slaughtered by those genin scheduled to come in. Already there were foreign genins from hidden villages far and wide arriving outside the village, and the jōnin have finished nominating their prospective chūnin for the exam.
Of course, in the previous timeline, Hiruzen waited seven days before the start of the Chūnin Exams to alert his subordinates to the imminent occasion. Even then, he only did so to avoid paperwork since informing them at that time meant that he could opt to assemble the jōnin for a meeting during which verbal nomination would suffice. For the Sandaime Hokage of this timeline, who has learnt Naruto's shadow clone trick, this was not a problem for him anymore.
He was glad -- his number one foe of all time was finally defeated.
The day of the emergency meeting during the previous timeline has arrived, and all jōnins who submitted recommendations for the Exam have been informed to report to the Hokage's Office then.
Since the mission assigned to Team 7 was only a C-rank on paper -- it offered a sum that can compare to low-difficulty A-ranks for each completed task, they would have to show their faces at the Hokage's Office after this anyway. Sakura and Sasuke were curious about when Kakashi would inform them about it. They have realised long ago that the other teams were told of it by their senseis as soon as the news was released. Sakura remembered the date of the day on which they were provided with application forms by their laid-back sensei of the past -- she knew that it was the same day, and she hedged that Kakashi would give them the document at the end of the day.
The two of them have even made a bet on it.
The trio completed the first segment of the C-rank mission under Kakashi's watch, and Team 7 plus Sōjirō headed to the Konoha's leader's workspace upon submission of the mission materials to the R&D Bureau. They finished ahead of schedule (their deadline was stated to be in another day which was, honestly, hectic, with the Chūnin Exams drawing ever closer). As with all of their previous missions, they completed it early without cutting any corners.
The weird part about this mission was that they were not allowed to produce evidence of the actions they undertook under orders. All four members of Team 7 were to report on the mission individually, and the written order was burned after they read it. Though the members of the team involved knew the reason behind this secrecy, it was still an unusual procedure for a C-rank. If it were an A- or S-rank mission, it would not be surprising, but it was specifically a C-rank -- the highest level a genin team can be assigned under normal conditions.
Naruto suspected that this was Hiruzen's punishment for him and a hidden warning that he was not to empty the natural food sources within the Forest of Death during the time before the Exams.
The biennial Chūnin Exams were being hosted in Konohagakure once again, so it would have been embarrassing for Hiruzen if Konoha was accused of foul play for not preparing enough provisions for an exam segment. Naruto remembered that there were also bamboo pipes each containing three rations pills each scattered around during the test. They were not like military rations pills, which replenished chakra and energy while keeping people satiated for days. These pills only curbed hunger, were about as nutritious as a normal meal and tasted like mud. His team did not happen to chance upon these hidden stashes but there were those who relied on them for their meals, robbing others not just of their scrolls but also their rations.
Those things were provided to prevent the genin from starving to death in the Forest of Death and had a mild neutralising effect on poisons and venoms of species native to the training ground.
Of course, there was a catch -- eating more than three pills would cause poisoning and subsequent death. They were not a present for the genin participating in the Exam. The rations provided by the Exam facilitators were meant only to deter people from dying too quickly due to a lack of resources.
The four stood in line before the Hokage, dutifully reporting the events that transpired during the uneventful mission one by one. Though it was tedious and dull, the three genins did not complain about the uncommon mission completion requirement. They were, after all, familiar with mission reports due to their war experience. To them, who survived despite the brutal war that shook the continent and massacred countless innocents, such a report was plain, easily improvised.
At the end of Kakashi's account of the mission, Hiruzen handed the application documents to the three genins directly and smiled at Sōjirō.
The blood clone, who has been hovering around Team 7 since the start of his break, saluted deftly while ignoring the Sandaime Hokage's suggestive glance between him and Kakashi.
Naruto grinned, signing his name on the sheet quickly before pocketing it. If nothing changed, he would just have to bring it along to the First Exam in seven days. It was easy to remember the dates of the Genin, Chūnin and Jōnin Exams. The Genin and Chūnin Exams are held biennially and start on the same days -- the spring and autumn equinoxes. The Jōnin Exams were different -- they are traditionally non-public and take place every year during the winter solstice.
On a side note, that was why Naruto scheduled his banquets on the summer solstice.
"You shall proctor the Finals of the Exams. I believe no other can showcase my Konohagakure's shinobi forces' strength to our peers better than you, Sōjirō-kun," Hiruzen announced, handing the said person a folder.
The gears in Naruto's mind were almost visible as they turned.
If Sōjirō was going to be the proctor, that meant the Finals were going to be secure. Hayate would not die even if Orochimaru targeted the proctor this time. Thus, the woman who was both his subordinate and a member of the ANBU guards that protect him from the shadows -- Neko (or Yūgao) -- would not be left to grieve his death after being the one to discover Hayate's body. Sōjirō's existence has caused a butterfly effect, the chain reaction reaching as far as changing the fate of Suna and Konoha itself. This was far greater than he initially hoped for by having a blood clone infiltrate Konohagakure's forces.
Naruto knew the village's gates will open to genins from foreign lands in four days, with genin of Sunagakure -- Konoha's ally -- already starting to show up.
As such, it was time for him to don that mask once more.
With that thought, he beamed and childishly clung onto Sōjirō like he once did to Kakashi in the past.
"Hey, Sō-sensei? I'm your favourite cousin, dattebayo! You gotta tell us what the Exam's about!" he exclaimed in a nasal tone, his eyes narrowed in glee.
Sakura and Sasuke were startled by the sudden transition in mannerisms.
They would never get used to how easily their blond teammate and future Hokage slipped in and out of his masks. In a millisecond, he could switch personalities to appear like a completely different person has taken his place. Even without using disguises or genjutsu, he could seem like he had swapped places with someone else with how distinctively he portrayed himself every time.
Hiruzen laughed jovially, "It's good to see you two getting along! However, Naruto-kun, I have a special condition for you. As long as you don't break this rule, I will promote Team 7 to chūnin at the end of this event."
Naruto looked up, a stupid expression of confusion on his face.
It was a classic look that Sakura used to feel annoyed by every time she saw it.
His face did not change and his clothes were not the conspicuous orange and blue getup of the class clown, but he managed to recreate that feeling so exactly that Sakura felt like they might have travelled back in time again before she noticed it.
"What?!" he yelled, his eyes opening wide in false astonishment.
He... could guess what Hiruzen wanted to say.
Sure enough, the Hokage directly nerfed his home advantage.
"Traps are strictly prohibited, and no other fūinjutsu is allowed during the Chūnin Exams. That is all. If I let an Uzumaki run loose, the matches would be far too unbalanced," Hiruzen conveyed in an even tone.
"That just isn't fair, dattebayo!" Naruto whined in protest, slamming his fists on the desk. "You said there's one condition. That's two, dattebayo!"
Hiruzen looked into the impossibly blue eyes of the teenager, pushed down the unsettling sensation that accompanied the move, and stated, "Very well, two. However, I promise that Team 7 will be promoted to chūnin after you get to the Finals once these two requirements are met."
Naruto scowled, crossed his arms and stuck out his tongue.
Blowing a raspberry, he scoffed, "I'll promote through my own ability! I'm the man who's going to be the next Hokage, dattebayo!"
Hiruzen's eye twitched subconsciously. He never realised speaking with Naruto could irritate him so. The blond was always so mature and agreeable that he never realised how stubborn he could be. Naruto was acting so much like a troublemaker that it felt like the situation was getting out of control. Not even Kushina could so skillfully get on his nerves with all of her messy pranks and loud, boisterous personality.
Little did he know, Naruto understood him better than anyone else. How he thought, what traits most frustrate him and even the little precursors to all of his moods. Hiruzen was the only one in all of Konohagakure no Sato to show Naruto kindness throughout his childhood. Hiruzen did not do much but, back then, it meant the world to him.
Therefore, Naruto's closest person had been Hiruzen. At least, the old man had been his most important person before he died sacrificing his soul to seal Orochimaru away. Hiruzen was the reason why he survived his time in the orphanage, and later even had the chance to move into his own apartment. He was unable to protect Naruto from the discrimination by his peers and the blatant hatred of the villagers, but he was the first to face him without negative emotions.
Sasuke realised where Naruto was going and chimed in promptly, "Of course, you would not accept the handicap. You're just a scaredy-cat so stop spouting nonsense. We'll be carrying this team to victory, not you, dobe."
Naruto growled, grabbing Sasuke by the collar, "Teme!"
"Dobe," Sasuke replied arrogantly.
"Fine! I accept! But I'll show everyone. Handicap or whatever, I'll get number one! Dattebayo!" Naruto proclaimed powerfully, glaring at the Uchiha.
Sakura stared blankly at the two as they enacted their skit for who-knows-who and clenched her fists.
Taking a deep breath, she charged in while swinging her fists and shrieking, "Naruto! How dare you! Take your hands off my Sasuke-kun!"
Sasuke got goosebumps from Sakura's cringe-worthy display but Naruto behaved as if this was a normal occurrence, pushing his male teammate aside and covering his head pitifully.
"That hurt, Sakura-chan!" Naruto whined.
His words lacked the feeling of candour that usually imbued his speeches, losing their credibility and charisma. Along with his dumb act, he made himself sound like a brat throwing a tantrum or crying to a teacher about being bullied. It made it hard to accept that this was the same Naruto who was just bossing them around during training the day prior.
Sakura did not let her scepticism show -- her fist would usually be the one hurting when she hit Naruto without coating her knuckles with chakra.
As would any good kunoichi, she held to their performance and mocked, "You deserved it! Who told you to bother Sasuke-kun!"
Sakura jumped in surprise as a familiar voice resounded within her mind.
"Shānnarō!"
It was her other-self.
The one she called Inner.
It never appeared after she went back in time to her body as a child, so she had almost forgotten about her.
Inner. Her other personality was like a mirror of herself, a truer version of Sakura who never had to hide her wants. Inner was always there to have her back, protecting her mind against genjutsu and keeping unwanted influences out of her head. During the war, Inner died. Although she was merely an other-self that Sakura had found to be quite a nuisance at times, she perished during the war like so many others. Inner has never tried to seize control over Sakura's body, only ever taking over when Sakura was truly mentally exhausted. Even then, Sakura did not quite trust her -- she did not trust herself. It was only when the Infinite Tsukuyomi fell that Sakura felt regret for not treating Inner better.
Despite everything, Inner chose to sacrifice herself to break Sakura out of the terrible genjutsu.
If not for Inner, there would have been no more Haruno Sakura. She would have been trapped in the Infinite Tsukuyomi. She might have been assimilated, transformed into a mindless drone -- a white Zetsu, like hundreds of thousands of others.
Inner disappeared just like that, without even leaving a parting message for Sakura.
Inner was originally a sublimation of her repressed characteristics. Later, she evolved to become an existence that was closer to a sibling. To Sakura, Inner was practically a sister that always had her back no matter how bad their relationship seemed on the surface.
Sakura completely forgot that, in the beginning, Inner was born out of an obsession with Sasuke.
They grew together after Sasuke's defection, changing to become more than just the snobby last Uchiha's admirer and pursuer.
After her arrival, she never acted that way. On the first day, she did feign interest in Sasuke. However, listening to Naruto's advice, both Sasuke and herself sent shadow clones to attend Academy lessons in their stead. Her clones did perform as she did in her embarrassing past, but it never extended to her behaviour as an individual. It did not occur to her that Inner was not absent simply because she did not travel back into the past with her, but rather because no trigger would cause her to appear.
Sakura felt slightly lost.
What was she to do, now that Inner has returned?
"Just kidding!" the voice, identical to her own, giggled. "Did that scare you? Of course, it would!"
Sakura blinked several times.
It seemed that... something was a bit off?
"We don't even like Kamosuke that way. Did you think I'd be the Academy Inner of the past when you have memories of the future? As if. Like I could have a crush on a guy with an ego the size of a country and an inferiority complex to match," Inner mock-gagged, brushing away the thoughts that just barraged her.
Sakura floundered for a moment before experimentally muttering under her breath, "Inner?"
Naruto and Sasuke have long noticed something was up with Sakura.
"Anyway... Hokage-jiji, we're heading off! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted, grabbing the pink-haired girl by the arm and dragging her out of the room.
"Yes, that's me. Before that, Sakura, say hi to Naruto and Kamosuke for me!" Inner yelled, her loud voice resounding in Sakura's mind.
Sakura rolled her eyes at the familiar tone of voice of her other self.
"She says hi," Sakura grudgingly spoke.
Sasuke instantly understood what Sakura meant, being the first to learn of Sakura's hidden personality in the previous timeline.
"Uchinaru-san?" Sasuke asked, peering inquisitively into Sakura's eyes.
"Tell Kamosuke that if he keeps that up I'll spread pictures of him kissing Naruto. It's Inner now! English is great, shānnarō!" Inner retorted, imitating the action of punching the raven-haired teen.
Sakura cleared her throat and said awkwardly, "She says to call her 'Inner', or else she'd spread rumours of Sasuke kissing Naruto."
Naruto chuckled, piping up, "If it's the Inner-san I know, she would never call him by name. You auto-filtered her words again. She must have called 'Suke Kamosuke."
"That's right, shānnarō! Kamosuke can only be Kamosuke."
Sasuke's eyelid twitched and he held out a finger sparking with electricity.
"Uchinaru-san, do you dare repeat what you called me just now?" Sasuke gritted out harshly.
"Hey, Sakura, let me take this one!" Inner snarled, cracking her knuckles.
Sakura calmly took the backseat, waiting for the beating to befall her overconfident teammate.
"Kamosuke! Call me Uchinaru one more time and see what I'll do to you!" Inner warned, menacing.
Sasuke gulped and backed down as soon as Inner appeared -- he was not so fearless as to cross Inner so blatantly when she was in control of Sakura's body.
"Hello, Inner-san. It's been a while. Have you been doing alright?" Sasuke docilely uttered proper greetings for the second personality of his female teammate.
Smiling coldly, Inner answered, "I've been great until you ruined my first conscious day with your absurd name for me. We both hope that word will never be repeated, right, Kamosuke?"
Sasuke's eyelid twitched more vigorously than before.
Holding his ground, he bargained, "Only if you stop calling me a duck."
Inner's eyes darkened as she cracked her knuckles.
"You dare come up with conditions? Why don't I just beat you up here and now?" Inner sneered.
Sasuke easily yielded after Inner's intimidation.
He was an obstinate person, but not a masochist.
"Call me whatever you want," he conceded with a weak laugh.
ʕ•ﻌ•ʔ
"You aren't the human -- Sakura," a voice, the origin of which was unseen by Inner, remarked.
The boyish voice was curious and soft, sounding so innocently charming that one could not possibly consider its owner a threat.
However, Inner could sense imminent danger when she heard the disembodied sound.
"I'm her other self, Inner," she admitted frankly, cautiously looking around in search of the owner of the voice.
The voice flagrantly ignored her, calling out, "Sakura, if you can hear me, either come out or I'll eliminate this danger immediately. I may not be able to materialise with the current state of our bond, but I can easily get rid of a lower lifeform pest of a false spirit."
Stunned, Sakura pulled Inner back into her mind and rushed out to scream, "No! Aoi, you can't!"
The translucent form of a child became visible to her when she took control, and a cold sweat began to pour from her brow when she witnessed the masked spirit's delicate hand stop mere centimetres away from her head.
"Master's friend, why do you harbour that false spirit? A pitiful Doppelgänger, not even a ghost, has no place in this world. Even if you protect it, it would either turn on you to take your place or eventually disintegrate into your shadow," Aoi questioned, more doubtful than demanding.
Sakura jerked away as though stung but glared at Aoi nonetheless, defending Inner, "She isn't like that. She's my friend. She sacrificed herself to save me once!"
Aoi frowned, revealing truthfully, "I did not mean to say that it means you harm. That thing... Inner, you called it, is a Doppelgänger. It has neither soul nor substance and can barely even be considered to exist unless it steals the identity of the one it resembles. I might have been saying nonsense before -- even I can't see through master's true nature so that arch human matter was groundless -- but I am telling you this out of goodwill. I know this from our collective memory so I can swear this to be true on my identity as a spirit. Inner is not whatever you think it is. Keeping it around would only harm you."
Inner went still in Sakura's mindscape -- a place that was usually inaccessible to those not of the Yamanaka clan or possessing a bijū.
Aoi snapped his fingers as he had an epiphany.
"Human Sakura, you knew her from your previous life and you said she even sacrificed herself to save you," Aoi reconfirmed, staring up at his bonded human.
Sakura nodded. She was sure that the Inner that she just met was the same Inner that she had known before. It was a little mysterious that Inner reappeared despite having vanished before she reawakened after the casting of the so-called ultimate genjutsu, but Sakura was positive that Inner was not whatever Aoi was describing.
"That means your Inner was once a soul. She was your twin in your past life," Aoi concluded in a perfectly reasonable manner.
Sakura's mood brightened when she heard Aoi acknowledge Inner, yet the one in question paled within Sakura's mindscape.
"Sakura, ask him what he means. Why does he say 'was'?"
Sakura opened her mouth to convey Inner's question but was interrupted by Aoi who seemed to be able to hear Inner's question, "Exactly what it sounds like. You sacrificed yourself to save your sister, and could not possibly have time travelled together with Human Sakura. The real 'Inner' died before the end of the world, and Inner no longer exists."
Sakura snapped, "Stop speaking nonsense, Aoi! She's clearly right here!"
"Or is she? This Doppelgänger possesses your memories of her. She behaves just as you would believe Inner to. In all aspects, she is what you think Inner would be. If she had the soul of Inner from this life, she would not know any of the things that happened in her past life. You are the one who possessed this body, so there is no reason why she would only appear so late -- if she truly was Inner. Human, you can't ignore the truth when it's right in front of you," Aoi declared, toppling the card tower that Sakura had erected in her subconscious.
"No!" Sakura cried, "Inner, please! Tell him that's not true. I came back, so you have to be alive too."
Inner wavered at Sakura's plea but eventually forced out the confession, "I've been listening, Sakura. And everything he says is in line with what I have experienced. It's true, it's all messed up -- we share one body, not one soul. I shouldn't know about your past life."
Sakura collapsed to her knees, lacking the strength to continue standing.
She clutched the brooch that was Aoi's vessel and wailed, "No, no, no. It can't be. Please tell me you were just joking. It's not funny, Aoi. Inner is very important to me. I can't lose her again."
Aoi sighed. "As I was saying, you were born a twin soul. You would have seen documentation on the chimaeras from the Library. Your birth was something similar. Sister souls, similar yet quite different, were squeezed into the body of a single human. This is an event so astronomically rare that you are likely the only one to be born with such a condition in this universe. To begin with, a pair of souls has to be extremely compatible to be able to coexist in a single body. The idea of life and souls is not as immutable as you may think. Disjointed souls will reject each other, and this causes both souls to be ejected. In the worst-case scenario, neither of them would survive. This means that both souls will disintegrate, never to be reincarnated. Of course, yours is not of this category."
"I don't care how we were born. I just want to know that Inner would not die again," Sakura sobbed.
"Your twin... Well, the remnants of her soul that form the Doppelgänger hiding in your head are quite similar in composition to yours. Perhaps it would be better to refer to her as a shadow? In any case, it appears that she did not just do something as simple as freeing you from a genjutsu at the cost of her life. She gave up her soul to become your strength. That's why the signals that I'm getting from her are half the same as yours. You can't find her in any world in any incarnation now or in the future, because she wagered her very being on the continuation of your story. She is a part of you now, and the shadow of Inner is all that remains of her as an individual," Aoi told Sakura.
Sakura rubbed her tears on the sleeve of her kimono and asked hopefully, "That means that she is still here?"
"You are her now. If you consider that to be equivalent to her continued presence, then that's your choice," Aoi explained.
He wondered if he was doing this correctly. Sakura always told him he was too long-winded. Aoi hoped that his attempt to go straight to the point was successful. He knew she did not trust him much, and he did not believe in her either. If Sakura could just accept what Aoi said, it would be a miracle.
"What does that make me?" Inner asked quietly.
"You are a product of Human Sakura's obsession. She never got to say goodbye to 'Inner' before her death. Her subconscious desire to have Inner back in her life has resulted in your creation. I would admit this is an impressive feat for a human. Her willpower is admirable," Aoi recognised reluctantly.
"That means I will soon... disappear?" Inner queried, surprisingly calm.
"Not suddenly. You are being sustained by Human Sakura's willpower. You would only cease to exist when the soul remnants are integrated completely by Human Sakura, and that will take a human lifespan before it comes. Human Sakura's soul is more powerful than it was before and she is no longer susceptible to illusory techniques, so you will be no more than a conversational partner," Aoi assured the two.
"A human lifespan?" Sakura muttered under her breath, "Why don't you just say that Inner will be with me until I die?"
Aoi tilted his head to the side adorably, only missing a question mark on top of his head to emphasise the 'I don't understand' aura coming from him.
Despite the atmosphere, Sakura almost squealed from how terribly cute her spirit companion was.
It could not possibly be legal.
How could Aoi tug on her heartstrings so?
"I don't follow. Aren't you the Saintess?" Aoi responded in bafflement.
"And?" Sakura inquired, also puzzled.
Aoi's eyes flickered as he realised with a start that Sakura probably missed that one line in the contract she signed with the Phoenix Realm.
Moreover, she did not seem to fancy the idea of eternity...
Aoi resolved to keep his lips sealed regarding that matter for as long as possible.
Omake!
"Say, Inner-san. Why don't you like being called 'Uchinaru'?"
Inner regarded Naruto seriously, maintaining their eye contact for a good ten minutes.
She only blinked when her eyes reached the limit of endurable dryness.
With a cough, she answered severely, "Because that sounds like shorthand -- an abbreviation if you will -- for Uchiha Naruto."
Naruto nodded in understanding.
That did make sense. The pronunciations matched, after all. It was not a leap in logic to reach such a conclusion.
It was just...
"Why does that bother you so much?" Naruto inquired the pink-haired girl.
Indeed, that was the only thing that eluded him.
"You don't know?!" Inner exclaimed incredulously.
Naruto honestly responded with a shake of his head. He had no clue what Inner was getting so worked up about. Why did it matter to her whether he was Namikaze Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto or Uchiha Naruto?
"Certainly, it's because that would imply SasuNaru! I'm a firm anti-shipper of SasuNaru," Inner cried in outrage.
Naruto scratched his cheek, only feeling more confused by the explanation.
He knew about Christmas, Jingle Bells and Santa Claus. He also knew about the aeroplanes, electricity and firearms of other worlds. He even knew things that no one else was supposed to know, so what was Inner saying and why did it sound so alien? A shipper? What was that even supposed to be?
"What is SasuNaru supposed to be? A combination of the names of Sasuke and mine?" Naruto queried.
Inner nodded fervently. "That's right! It's the relationship between you and Kamosuke and, can you truly believe it? People expect Kamosuke to top!"
"Wha...?"
"I only support NaruSasu. That's the only real ship!" Inner proclaimed righteously, eyes blazing.
Looking at how determined the pink-haired teenager seemed to be, Naruto did not dare argue.
He just did not understand what the difference was.
From what he gathered, both involved a "ship" between him and Sasuke.
What difference did it make whose name came first? What did it mean to "top"?
Maybe he should take a page from Sai's book and read up on whatever that was...