Itadakimasu
Naruto was sure the end of the world was coming; or, at lease, something of its equivalent. He was currently marching down the streets of Konoha, trailing distantly behind his team and Sensei, the last of whom had promised to treat them all to dinner. Blue eyes raked the side streets, scanning for any sign of a bomb or attack of some sort, certain that such an unheard of event could only mean the coming of some seriously bad luck.
However, he quickly turned his eyes back to the vivid uchiha on the back of Sasuke's shirt, willing himself to look away. If he looked into the eyes of the crowd they were passing through, all it left him with was a cold, empty feeling. What he saw there was the same thing he always saw, every time he stepped out of his apartment. Hatred, fear, resentment for his being alive. Naruto shuddered, and pulled as close to Sasuke as he dared, a wide grin set on his face as he pushed his sadness deep inside. There would be plenty of time to deal with that later on that night, when he once more found himself all alone in his apartment.
"Ne ne, Kakashi-sensei!" he chirped, running forward and gripping his teacher's sleeve. "Where are you taking us? Can we go to Ichiraku's? Huh? Can we get ramen, pleeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaase?"
Sakura rolled her eyes and Sasuke snorted loudly.
"Dobe, you're the only one who eats that junk." Sasuke scoffed, sending a heated glare at Naruto. "Don't delude yourself into believing that just because we're going out to dinner with you means that we actually want to be with you."
Naruto stopped short, the smile almost slipping off his face. He had always known that his teammates never really cared for him, but to hear it out loud...his heart felt like Sasuke had reached inside his chest and was slowly squeezing the life out of him.
"Yeah...yeah, well, don't think I want to be with you either, Sasuke bastard!" he shouted, quickly recovering himself. He caught the almost worried look that Kakashi was sending him, and nodded slightly. It was alright if they didn't like him, he supposed, as long as they acknowledged him. That was all he wanted, right?
"You'll see when we get there, Naruto." Kakashi drawled, picking up the original conversation as though nothing had happened. "And Sasuke, would it kill you to try and be pleasant every once in awhile?" he grinned widely down at his three students, turning down a side street none of them were familiar with.
"You know," Naruto heard Sakura whisper lowly to Sasuke, "knowing Kakashi-sensei, I wonder if he's taking us somewhere..." she blushed furiously, "you know, perverted."
A stab of jealousy sliced through Naruto as Sasuke 'hn'd Sakura, a clear sign that he was ignoring her, or simply didn't think that whatever it was she was saying was of much importance. Why couldn't Sakura confide in him for once? He would have listened, would have laughed and agreed; he wouldn't have shrugged her off so coldly. It had happened to him so much, he couldn't even begin to imagine treating someone else in such a dry and unfriendly manner. He grinned at them, and laughed, keeping his voice down, even though he was sure that Kakashi could easily hear every word they were saying.
"I bet you're right, Sakura-chan!" he exclaimed, eyes closed and cheeks stretched in a wide smile. "That's just the sort of thing he would-"
"Excuse me." The kunoichi hissed angrily. "Sasuke and I were having a private conversation Naruto. Haven't you ever heard that it's rude to eavesdrop?"
He faltered, just for a second; fumbled his mask, and quickly turned away, hiding behind low grumbles and tight fists shoved into his pockets. He wasn't eavesdropping. Sakura just couldn't be quiet to save her life. Was it his fault that half of Konoha could hear her at all times?
Naruto's steps quickened to catch up with Kakashi as Sakura fawned over Sasuke, clinging tight to his arm and chattering cheerfully with him, even after he roughly shrugged her off. He couldn't take much more of this. Maybe taking Kakashi up on his offer was a bad idea? It seemed rather obvious now. The glares were still following his every step, and he couldn't even hide himself away in conversation with his teammates. His teammates, dammit! Weren't they bound to always look out for each other, or something like that? They were doing a bang-up job so far. Both Sasuke and Sakura, despite all their rigorous training in analyzing surroundings, had failed to notice the more than obvious cloud of animosity that had hung over them all the way from the training field. Either that, or neither of them cared. Naruto wasn't sure which one bothered him more.
He was on the verge of fabricating some kind of halfway believable excuse that would allow him to retreat into the safety of his apartment, where he could safely drown himself in his usual three cups of ramen, when Kakashi came to a stop suddenly. Naruto rubbed his head sourly, glaring daggers at Kakashi for not warning him so he could have avoided crashing head long into his back. Behind him, Naruto heard Sasuke and Sakura choke down their laughter, and his ears burned red.
"We're here." Kakashi announced, sweeping his arm in an overly dramatic manner towards the sign towering above them.
"'Suki-suki'?" Sasuke murmured, an ugly sneer written across his pale features. "You brought us to a sukiyaki restaurant? Jeez, that's cheap, even for you."
Kakashi sniffed lightly, and continued to leer down at his three students. His good humor would not be damaged so easily.
"Well, as you all should realize by now, being an instructor isn't exactly a well-paid position. If it weren't for all these D and C class missions, I could be making some real money and afford something a little nicer. But I can't, so either take this or leave." He turned on his heel, and marched proudly into the small establishment. Naruto hesitated, his request to leave resting heavily on his tongue as he was reminded of how generous Kakashi was truly being for going out of his way like this for the three of them. But then Sasuke stalked inside, followed by a giddy Sakura, and his ego was heartily stroked.
Kakashi was already ordering when he stepped inside, and he slid into his seat, nearly grimacing at the way Sakura sidled noticeable away from him, and closer to Sasuke. He sighed heavily, and leaned on the table. For possibly the first time in his life, smiling seemed like too much of an effort. He glanced up to see Kakashi looking curiously at him, before turning his attention to the rest of the restaurant. Their table was being carefully ignored by all occupants, and many were whispering to each other behind raised hands, their eyes straying every so often to send him a rather vocal glare. He sighed again, and began to trace circles in the polished wood surface of their table. Was it still too late to head home for the night? To forget that the dinner offer had ever been presented, to forget that his teammates really didn't give a damn about him or his well being? His life had never been exactly happy, but it certainly seemed a lot more after the past twenty minutes. He had prepared himself to stand, offer his apologies to Kakashi, and take off into the night, when their beef pot was unceremoniously dropped on the table, chopsticks thrown carelessly down as their waitress stalked away. Apparently, Naruto supposed, she hadn't noticed he would be joining the party until she had brought their order out.
Sakura squealed angrily about the broth that had been splashed all over her new tunic and she grabbed her chopsticks huffily off the table, but Naruto couldn't seem to bring himself to care. His own utensils already snapped and ready, he reached to grab a green onion, only to have his hand slapped away.
"What the hell!" he snarled at Sasuke, who was glowering at him. "What's your problem now, bastard!"
"You always say 'itadakimasu' before a meal, usuratonkachi."Sasuke growled. Naruto turned to see that Sakura was shooting him a stare with a similar hostility to it. Naruto blinked blankly at him, too stunned to be angry. After so many years of taking meals so long, he had completely forgotten the traditional saying. A small part of his heart ached as he was reminded that, most of the time, he didn't talk at home, for the simple fact that it was a waste of air.
Sakura sniffed lightly and turned away, taking her own chopsticks up. "I always knew he had no manners. Having no family doesn't give you an excuse to be so rude, you know."
And he was done. He slammed his hands down on the table so hard that he broke his chopsticks in half, along with leaved a pair of rather large dents in the table, and stood up.
"I'm sorry for the inconvenience Kakashi-sensei," Naruto growled lowly under his breath as his sensei prepared a reprimand, for him or for Sasuke, he neither knew nor cared. "I'm just not feeling good tonight. I'll see you at the bridge tomorrow." and fled out the door without a glance back.
SnM: I honestly have no idea why I wrote that fic. I just occurred to me to wonder if Naruto remembered the traditional 'tadaima', 'okaeri', 'itadakimasu', etc. sayings that are used in the common Japanese household. Seeing as he lives be himself, he really has no need, and I saw that as being rather sad. I really meant the restaurant episode to be the center of the story, but I don't think it ended up that way. shrugs Oh well. I think the message came through clear enough.
P.S.: Should I continue this? I meant it to be a one shot, but it seems to have some potential. Anyway, please review.