Hello, all! I have returned yet again with a Naruto fic. This is mostly just to celebrate the ending and give me a chance to play with all the new characters, but I am having a lot of fun writing this so far, for an experimental piece. This should only be two or three chapters long. Nothing dark this time… Just a little, family-friendly piece to quell my urge to write something.

Even in just this first chapter, do be warned that there are a lot of scene jumps. Originally this was just going to be a little fic about the parallel Boruto, Shikadai and Inojin plotlines, but it has spread to include most of the next-generation characters.

Birthright

It was another bright, sunny day in Konoha. The time for mourning had finally passed, and life really had been wonderful since the end of the war.

Naruto stood on the balcony of his bedroom, his grin as wide and bright as the village around him. Honestly, he had felt the move to the Hokage mansion to be a little excessive, especially considering the tiny apartment where he had previously spent his entire life. It was a lot of space, but he found that his family was often able to fill it up. Speaking of…

A shrill scream pierced the stillness of the morning. Suddenly alert, Naruto raced down to his son's room. He met Hinata there. The two shared a look, prepared to break through the door if needed, but they didn't get a chance before Boruto threw it open himself.

Their son raced past them with his head down. "Bye, Mom! Bye, Dad! See ya later!"

Another look passed between his parents as he ran out of the house. Naruto shrugged. Hinata said quietly, "He's not even late yet…"

"He's probably got something planned with his friends before class."

His wife sighed. "I hope he doesn't get caught again."

Naruto snickered. How quickly their outlook on their son had changed from 'I hope he's not misbehaving' to 'I hope he doesn't get in trouble for misbehaving.' The village leader had been called down to the Academy to discuss his first-born's actions more times than he could count, often leaving the instructors he didn't know very well feeling frustrated and embarrassed. They expected better out of the Hokage's son.

"What's going on?" Himawari had made it to the scene at last. She yawned, and her father scooped her up with a grin.

"Oh, nothing. Boruto was just in a rush this morning. Probably to pull another prank on Sarada or something."

"You better hope not," Hinata warned. "Sasuke's home again."

Naruto looked like he would like nothing better than for his old rival and best friend to show up at his door in a rage over something his son had done. Himawari just tucked her head a little deeper into her father's neck. Her family could be so strange sometimes.

…

Boruto ran through the streets of his home, heart still racing. He had to let his subconscious guide him and hope he would end up in the right place.

He tried to keep his eyes down or shut completely, afraid of what he might see. Boruto ran until his chest hurt. He slowed to a stop and looked up to find himself in the schoolyard. He looked at all the familiar sights with uncharacteristically cautious eyes, waiting to see something… deeper.

"What's wrong with you today?"

He jumped and whirled around to see Sarada Uchiha scrutinizing him. She pushed up her glasses and gave him another head-to-toe look. Boruto tried not to shiver and plastered on a grin instead. He hated to admit it, but this girl could be intimidating.

"Sarada!" he exclaimed as if he was pleased to see the most annoying girl in his class. "You're here early!"

"Yes," she answered stiffly, clearly suspicious. "I always am. I come in early to study."

"That's cool," he replied cheekily. "I came in early today, too. To study."

"Yeah, sure," she said, backing away warily. "I don't believe you for a second. Whatever you're up to, just don't bother me."

She walked away haughtily, and Boruto made a face at her back. He hadn't been planning anything… today. But now he might cook up something special just for her.

…

Little did Boruto know, he and Sarada weren't the only two who decided to show up at school early that day. Hiding up in the trees, listening to every word, were Shikadai and Inojin.

The young Nara yawned, leaning back against the tree trunk, eyes towards the sky. He sighed, and his companion glanced up at him from his own perch, disgruntled.

"You should be a little more focused," he scolded. "Remember what Shino sensei said the other day? You're missing opportunities."

"Yeah, yeah, I remember." Shikadai rolled his eyes and crouched down to get a better look. Inojin was his best friend, but he could be a little too… driven sometimes. Shikadai was starting to regret agreeing to come along for some extra training.

"Okay, what are we eavesdropping on today?"

"An interesting exchange," Inojin answered, pointing out Boruto and Sarada below. A little annoyed, he added, "And I've told you before. We're not eavesdropping; it's surveillance."

The two refocused and Inojin continued, "Sarada's here early."

"As always."

"And so is Boruto. He's getting on her nerves."

"Again, what else is new?"

"It's new that he's not rushing into class at the last second. And you should have seen how panicked he looked earlier."

"Really…" A glint of interest had appeared in Shikadai's eyes. A glint that made Inojin grimace. His best friend had a habit of choosing the worst times to get motivated. What was supposed to be a simple undercover exercise would now turn into an ordeal.

Inojin sighed, taking in the smirk on Shikadai's face. "What did you have in mind?"

…

A loud yawn made Shikadai roll his eyes and groan mentally. Usually, their class clown was a little more entertaining. Of course, Boruto would pick the day he'd been coerced into surveillance to sleep through their lessons. He could tell Inojin was getting a little frustrated, too, but they would see this through until they uncovered the reason for his unusual behavior this morning. …Or until they found something better to do, if things didn't pick up soon.

…

Recess was its usual flurry of chaos. Neither Shikadai nor Inojin missed the fact that their 'target' was the first to rush from the room, but that was nothing out of the ordinary. They were the last two to leave, and they made their way to a secluded edge of the schoolyard to discuss their observations.

"Really, Inojin?" Shikadai said, gesturing to the paper in his hands. "You took notes? You're the one who's always lecturing me on the rules. Shinobi never leave a paper trail." He tapped his forehead for emphasis.

His friend flushed. "I know that… I just figured… While I was taking notes in class…"

"Whatever," Shikadai interrupted, not really concerned with his friend's lack of judgment. "What've you got?"

Inojin cleared his throat. "A few things. You saw how he looked when he left for recess? That's how he's looked all day—head down, everywhere he went."

Shikadai nodded. "Right. And I think he's been 'sleeping' through class on purpose. He hasn't looked anyone in the eyes all day either."

"Speaking of, do we have eyes on him now?"

Shikadai nodded to the patch of trees beside the building. "He's just been watching, I guess, since we were let out."

"Focusing, more like," Inojin amended, turning and catching sight of him. He huffed. "It's too bad we haven't gone over chakra sensory yet. If we had, we might be able to tell what he was doing just by getting closer. I'll have to ask Dad about that later…"

A slow grin worked its way across Shikadai's face. "We haven't gone over it, but you know who probably has?"

It took less than a second for his friend to catch on. "No."

Shikadai rolled his eyes. "You know I'm right."

"I don't want her help," Inojin whined, sounding very childish.

The young Nara was quiet. Granted, there were other ways to get answers, but Inojin was right. If they could pull this off, it would definitely speed up the process. Still… No one wanted to owe Sarada Uchiha any favors…

Review please!

I don't own Naruto. Once this is done, I'm thinking I might want to do a piece focusing solely on Sarada… Just a thought, though.