Author's Notes: Welcome, everyone. For those of you wondering why I'm starting another fic, I just wanted to have a fic in another style from Spellbinding Radiance. As much as I love writing first person, I've been having a major writer's block lately. As a result, I'm trying to get my creativity going through another fic, which would be this one.

Don't worry. Spellbinding Radiance will be updated regularly as normal… but I'm going to make sure this fic doesn't die either.

For those of you wondering whether there will be pairings in the fic, I have picked the pairings already. I have decided on a creative, different approach than most fics I've seen. Originally, I planned on NaruHina, but upon further thought, I figured there's enough out there. What are the pairings, you ask? I really don't have it settled yet.

Also, this will be a dual-main character fic. Something I haven't really seen before (although I haven't read too many fics). The story will focus on Konohomaru at first, and as the fic goes on, it will feature both Konohomaru and Naruto. The fic takes place about a week after Naruto leaves the village to train with Jiraiya. The only change that I've made (that I know of) is that I bumped up Konohomaru's age to be roughly a year and a half younger than Naruto. When Naruto leaves the village, he's 13 (roughly a year after his academy graduation), and Konohomaru is 11, turning 12.

Everything after Naruto leaves will be changed. I didn't want a simple re-telling of the story. Rather, I wanted to take more creative license and see what I could do by myself. Without further ado, enjoy!

Chapter 1:

I wanna be just like him.

It has been one week since a certain blonde haired, blue eyed, orange clad ninja left the village hidden in the leaves. It was a rather dull time for the buxom blonde, who was more commonly known to the villagers as Tsunade. Being the Fifth Hokage has gotten rather boring without the hyperactive ninja being around to add some spice to the day. Truth be told, the whole village has been somewhat boring ever since he left.

In the academy, Iruka Umino was giving the final exam to his students in the class. Should they pass, they will get the chance to become a Genin under a Jounin teacher and train until they have the opportunity to take the Chuunin exam.

"Konohomaru, it is your turn," Iruka said as he went down the list. The list of people taking the exam was put in a random order. This was so that people who were at the beginning or end of the alphabet did not get picked on first or last.

A brown-haired boy wearing goggles on his forehead, a blue scarf, a yellow shirt, and tan shorts walked forward. The boy, known as Konohomaru, stood in front of Iruka. The academy students had to do a transformation technique for their final exam. Iruka looked up from his clipboard and said, "Okay."

"Transform!" Konohomaru said after forming the hand-seal. A puff of smoke covered Konohomaru. After the smoke started to clear, another puff of smoke seemed to appear out of nowhere. When the two smoke clouds finally disappeared, an exact copy of Iruka was standing where Konohomaru once was, including the clipboard.

"Very good, Konohomaru. You pass with full marks," Iruka said. The Iruka standing in Konohomaru's spot looked around slightly confused. The confusion did not last long though.

"Konohomaru!" the Iruka standing in Konohomaru's spot said.

"Yes, that is your name," Iruka said.

"No, you are Konohomaru, and I am your teacher. Undo your transformation immediately!" the transformed Iruka said.

"Konohomaru. Keep this up, and I'm afraid, I'm going to have to report your mental condition to Lady Tsunade!" Iruka said.

"Konohomaru, keep this up and I'll fail you," the transformed Iruka said. Iruka looked shocked for a second. A few seconds later, almost the whole class gasped in surprise, as the Iruka everyone thought was real was actually Konohomaru.

"Konohomaru, very clever using the substitution technique and fooling almost all of your classmates," Iruka said with a cough. Apparently, he seemed to be a bit embarrassed at the fact that Konohomaru did such a thing.

"At least he didn't do the Sexy Technique, like Naruto did," Iruka thought to himself with a small sigh.

"Next, Hanabi Hyuuga," Iruka called out.

"It seems everyone in our class passed the exam, Konohomaru," a red-haired female ninja wearing goggles on her forehead said in an excited fashion.

"Of course, Moegi! We trained hard to pass that exam. I would bet that our big bro Naruto would be proud of us," Konohomaru replied to the girl.

"Hey, Udon," Konohomaru said to the other boy. He had brown hair in a bowl cut and he, too, was wearing goggles. His nose seemed to be running, and he pulled out a tissue from his pocket to clear his nose.

"Yes, Konohomaru?" Udon said in a stuffy, yet polite tone.

"Wanna go to… The Stand?" Konohomaru asked in a dramatic tone.

"I guess we could," Udon replied.

"Oh, come on! It will help wake you up!" Konohomaru said.

"Okay…" Udon said in a somewhat tired tone. The three traveled down a path well worn by someone who the three held dear. They soon arrived at their destination.

… Ichiraku's Ramen.

The three walked into the stand, greeted by a brown haired girl in a white apron. Under the apron was a dark blue skirt that went down to her knees, and a dark red t-shirt. She had brown hair that was unbounded and left to flow freely down past her shoulders. Her t-shirt managed to accentuate her body, including her moderately sized bust. Konohomaru smiled and said, "Hey there, Ayame!"

"Oh, it's Konohomaru, Moegi, and Udon!" the girl said in a cheerful tone with a smile.

"We just finished our exam, and we passed!" Konohomaru stated in a proud tone, puffing out his chest slightly.

"That's really good! I assume you're here for the usual?" Ayame asked.

"Yes, ma'am. Where is your father?" Konohomaru asked.

"He's not feeling well today, so I'm running the stand myself," Ayame replied.

"That must be hard work," Moegi said.

"I've had experience," Ayame replied.

"But you're only fourteen!" Konohomaru said in a slightly unbelieving tone.

"I'm older and more responsible than you," Ayame replied to Konohomaru, sticking her tongue out playfully.

"I'll be twelve in a month!" Konohomaru exclaimed in reply.

"That's still about two and a half years older," Ayame said in the same playful tone.

"Naruto is thirteen, and he could not run this stand alone," Konohomaru countered. A hint of something crossed Ayame's face for a few seconds. It seems a bit like she was reminiscing for a few seconds.

"Ah, Naruto. He's a special case, though," Ayame replied.

"… you can say that again," Moegi said.

"So, the usual?" Ayame asked.

"Yes!" the three new ninja said.

As Ayame made herself busy and making the ramen for the three, Udon pulled out a book from his pocket and began reading.

"What are you reading, Udon?" Konohomaru asked.

"Oh, simple equations that I recently learned. I want to memorize them," Udon replied.

"Equations? For… algebra?" Konohomaru asked. It was common knowledge among the academy students that Konohomaru really excelled only at his ninja skills. Everything else, he barely scraped by on.

"No. They're for Calculus," Udon replied.

"Equations… for… calculus?" Ayame asked as she slowly turned around and gave Udon a look of disbelief.

"Yes. See here, I took down some equations for derivatives of graphs. The derivative of the sine of x is cosine of x, and the derivative of secant of x is secant of x times the tangent of x, and—"

"Udon, you're hurting my head!" Moegi said as she held her head in her head.

"Oh… okay," Udon replied.

"Here you three go. Pork ramen for Konohomaru, Pork Ramen for Moegi, and Miso Ramen for Udon," Ayame announced.

"Today has another reason for me to celebrate though, guys!" Konohomaru announced. Before he was able to announce anything, a girl walked into the stand. She had somewhat short dark-blue hair and was wearing a loose, gray jacket. Her dark-blue pants matched the color of her hair.

"C-could I have a bowl of r-ramen?" the girl stuttered out in a soft, high voice.

"Hey, it's Hinata!" Konohomaru said. The girl turned to Konohomaru.

"H-hi, Kono," Hinata said in that same soft, high-pitched voice.

"What's up?" Konohomaru said over the loud eating sounds of his two classmates.

"I'm… here to h-have some ramen," Hinata replied to Konohomaru.

"What'll it be?" Ayame asked.

"Um, um… w-what… w-what…" Hinata stuttered, unable to say it.

"What is it?" Ayame asked.

"Wh-what kind of—" Hinata began.

"Here, Hinata. Have some pork ramen. It's Naruto's favorite," Konohomaru said with a smile.

"N-N-N-Naruto's f-f-favorite?" Hinata said as she turned a little red.

"Yeah, it is," Konohomaru replied with a smile and a thumbs up.

"Th-then, I'll have s-s-some," Hinata replied.

"Coming right up!" Ayame said in a cheerful tone.

"S-so, Kono… what was y-your announcement going t-to be?" Hinata asked.

"Oh! I learned how to do the Shadow Clones," Konohomaru stated.

"What? Already?" Moegi asked Konohomaru.

"Yeah!" Konohomaru answered.

"How many?" Udon asked.

"I can make four," Konohomaru replied.

"That's awesome! Will you teach us?" Moegi asked.

"I w-would like to learn as well," Hinata added.

"Well… okay!" Konohomaru said while rubbing the back of his head.

"When?" Udon asked.

"When we get a few missions under our belt," Konohomaru replied.

"So, who's our teacher?" Udon asked as he finished his bowl of Ramen. Ayame walked over to Hinata and gave her the bowl that she ordered.

"We'll find out later when we go back to the school," Konohomaru replied.

"Well, there's Kakashi!" Udon remarked with a voice that had more energy than usual.

"I don't think he's taking anyone right now. Also, I hope I don't get stuck with Ebisu again. Anyone but him," Konohomaru said aloud.

"I am sure y-you will h-have someone g-good," Hinata said.

"I hope so," Konohomaru said.

The three, after finishing their bowls, left the stand to head back to the school. They would be meeting who would be their Jounin teacher in an hour. Konohomaru reasoned to the others it was better to be early to give a good first impression. With nothing else to do that would take less than an hour, the others agreed and together they slowly traveled to the academy. Arriving fifteen minutes early, they sat in their seats.

Konohomaru looked at Udon, who had just pulled out the notepad from his pocket.

"Still doing that Carcupus stuff?" Konohomaru asked.

"It's Calculus… and yes, I am," Udon replied.

"What exactly is the point of it?" Konohomaru asked again.

"Well, it's fun to learn new things and to constantly be pushing your boundary of knowledge," Udon replied.

"… okay," Konohomaru replied. "You can do that. I'll be working on perfecting my techniques."

"Aren't you guys here a bit early?" Iruka said as he walked in.

"We thought it would better to be early than to be late," Konohomaru said.

"That's because Konohomaru doesn't know the meaning of 'on-time,'" Moegi added jokingly.

"That's not true!" Konohomaru replied quickly.

"Yeah, you're right. Doesn't mean you actually practice it though," Moegi replied.

"We're late because you have to do your makeup!" Konohomaru countered.

"Okay, you three. That's enough!" Iruka said.

"Sorry…" the three replied.

The three sat in the room somewhat silently, with only Udon reading his notebook and both Konohomaru and Moegi giving each other hard looks. Eventually, the other students of the class walked into the room.

"Okay, class. Today is the day we put you all into teams…" Iruka began. Konohomaru started to daydream throughout the sorting process. In his mind, he was hoping he could get Kakashi as his teacher.

It was common knowledge to most of the students that Konohomaru idolized Naruto. Konohomaru even started wearing goggles and started emulating the actions that Naruto took, much to the annoyance of Tsunade. In fact, the only person who idolized someone as much as Konohomaru was his teammate, Udon.

Udon idolized Sasuke constantly, even after Sasuke left the village. When asked why, he would always mention about how Sasuke was always the best in his class, and yet would always try his best to train even harder for the next challenge.

… however, some did see that as a misinterpretation on Udon's part.

Konohomaru snapped out of his reverie at trying to have Kakashi as his teacher again.

"Team 5. Hanabi Hyuuga, Katsu Hiroto, and Kasumi Akiko. You are with Kakashi Hatake."

"Whaaaaat?" Konohomaru and Udon said aloud, both of them snapping out of their lack of attention. Iruka ignored the reaction from the two and he moved on through the list.

"That sucks!" Konohomaru thought.

"Team 6. Konohomaru Sarutobi, Moegi Yumi, and Udon Ryoosamu," Iruka started.

"Yeah! We're together!" Konohomaru exclaimed aloud.

"You are with Anko Mitarashi," Iruka finished. All three of the Genin were silent and spaced out as soon as Iruka announced their teacher. They were in a state of semi-shock. Konohomaru almost regretted saying that he'd have anyone over Ebisu.

"That is everyone. Wait here while your teachers arrive," Iruka instructed.

"What, we got Anko?" Kohonomaru said to his teammates.

"Who's Anko?" Moegi asked.

"I thought we told you to dress with a little more clothing?" Iruka's exasperated voice came from the hallway.

"This is decently clothed for me," a female voice replied. Before any more words were exchanged, the door to the room burst open. Standing there was a lady wearing a trench coat, a skirt, and a rather revealing top that was almost see-through.

"I am Anko Mitarashi! I will be the teacher for Team 6!" she exclaimed cheerfully and loudly, while using a ninja technique to allow colored clouds of smoke to explode behind her.

"Geez, aren't you energetic today," Iruka sighed as he walked into the room.

"No way! She can't be our teacher!" Konohomaru exclaimed.

"You say something, kid?" Anko replied back at Konohomaru.

"She's like Naruto!" Moegi stated in a vexed tone.

"… actually, that isn't that bad," Konohomaru said after a second.

"Make up your mind!" Moegi said in an annoyed tone.

"Those two kvetchs…" Udon sighed.

"Quit your grumbling and nagging!" Iruka exclaimed.

"He's JUST like Naruto," Iruka thought in annoyance.

"I expect to see you three at Ichiraku's Ramen in fifteen minutes," Anko said to the three. "Dismissed."

"Ramen!" Konohomaru exclaimed while running out of the room. Udon and Moegi could only look at each other in a perplexed and mystified manner at the sudden attitude change.

Five minutes later, Moegi and Udon joined Konohomaru at Ichiraku's ramen stand for a "quick" bowl of ramen. They sat there for twenty minutes, constantly checking their watches and waiting for Anko to show up.

"Oh, you're here early!" Anko said as she walked into the ramen stand.

"You're ten minutes late!" Konohomaru stated.

"Well, I had a small incident at the dango stand nearby," Anko commented, causing all three of the genin to look at each other incredulously. A small incident?

"So… I guess we should start by introducing ourselves. Tell me your name, your likes and dislikes, your hobbies, and your goals," Anko said. She looked Konohomaru and said, "Starting with you."

"I'm Konohomaru. I like ramen, milk, training, and constantly pushing my limits. I dislike people who don't try their hardest, people who think things should just be handed to them, and those perverted books Kakashi is always reading. My hobbies are training, learning new techniques, and perfecting the techniques I know. My goal is to be the Seventh Hokage!" Konohomaru said with determination.

"Seventh? Why not sixth?" Anko asked.

"Because that title belongs to Naruto and only Naruto," Konohomaru said in a determined tone with a smile.

"I see. How about you?" Anko said as she looked to Moegi.

"I'm Moegi! I like exercising, riding a bike, going on walks around town, learning medical techniques, and learning hand to hand combat. I dislike lazy people. My hobbies are Pilates, yoga, aerobic exercises, anaerobic exercises, and playing sports. My goal is to become a powerful medic ninja, like Lady Tsunade," Moegi said in a cheerful tone.

"Very good. How about you?" Anko asked as she looked at Udon.

"My name is Udon. I enjoy reading books, doing research, and learning new material. I really do not have any dislikes. My current hobbies include learning calculus and physics and be able to find practical ways of applying them to the ninja lifestyle. My goal is to become a researcher who can discover many varieties of new techniques and to uncover methods of improving the performance and cut chakra-consumption of current techniques," Udon said in a tired tone. He coughed for a second before sniffling.

"Well, you three seem like a dynamic group and have strengths and weaknesses that complement each other. I look forward to working with you three. Meet me tomorrow at the training field at six in the morning… and don't be late," Anko said with a smile.

"A teacher like Naruto… I'm going to learn from her and be just like him," Konohomaru said enthusiastically.

"That's the spirit! Now, which one of you is paying?" Ayame said as she held out the bill.

Author's note: Yeah, I made up Moegi and Udon's last names. I also made up Hanabi's teammates. I picked names that seemed most appropriate for the characters. Katsu means Victory, Hiroto means Esteem or Large, Katsumi means Mist, Akiko means bright or sparkle, Yumi means Archery Bow, and Ryoosamu is a combination of Ryo (which means Cool or Refreshing) and Osamu (which means Discipline or Study).

I didn't really particularly want Anko as their teacher, but I really didn't feel like making up any more OC characters than I had to. Out of the remaining Jounin, Anko seemed to be the best. I also strongly dislike Ebisu as a character and as a teacher. As a character, he did not seem to be that great of a teacher, but that's just how I saw him.

Preview of the next chapter:

"You're kidding me, right?" Konohomaru said to Anko in an incredulous tone.

"On the contrary, I'm quite serious," Anko replied.

"Then you have to be insane!" Konohomaru exclaimed.

"I'm quite sane, or so I'd like to believe," Anko replied.

"You… want us in the next Chuunin exams? What could we possibly do? We're not good enough!" Konohomaru exclaimed.

"Then train, little one. Train hard. Train long. Otherwise… you just may not live long enough to enjoy the… finer points of life," Anko said, ending in an almost suggestive tone.