Massacre

"So what's the story today?" the Sandaime asked as a pair of Chuunin walked in.

"The vessel hasn't come to the academy since the mob," one replied, and all three in the room sighed.

"It's awful seeing this happen," the second one replied. "The fact that a group of villagers just beat him until he was bruised all over... It's lucky that we found them doing this in the training field, or he'd have died..."

"Mizuki, is there something on your mind?" the Third asked the first Chuunin who had spoken.

"Oh... Just thinking about how long I wish that group could go to prison for..." Mizuki replied with a slight smirk that vanished a second later.

Iruka nodded solemnly. "I agree with Mizuki," he murmured.

The Sandaime nodded with Iruka, and said, "I wish you could do something to help the boy recover faster... Iruka, perhaps you could go to his house and check up on him?"

"Yeah... I'll see what we can do for Naruto," the brown-haired Chuunin replied.

"Iruka-sensei," Naruto insisted, "I don't wanna go back to class! What if the villagers beat me up again? Why did they attack me, anyway? Is there something I'm doing wrong? I wouldn't know, I don't have anyone to ask!"

"You aren't doing anything wrong. It's just that some people enjoy hurting the weak," Iruka lied. "The solution is easy. Make yourself stronger. Come back to class."

He hurt inside for such a lie, and it hurt more to see the young blonde believe him.

"You're right, Iruka-sensei! I gotta go to the academy to be a strong ninja, 'tebbeyo!"

Please, please don't let the villagers attack him after the promise, Iruka hoped.

"S-sakura?" Naruto called at the girl staring intently at something across the playground.

"Go away, pest!" Sakura hissed. "I'm trying to get Sasuke-kun's attention!"

"Sakura..." Naruto said without realizing Sasuke could hear. "We all know you only love him because he's an Uchiha... You should try getting to know a person before you make such a decision."

"I do love Sasuke for who he is!" Sakura replied curtly. "He's a powerful ninja!"

"I said who, not what."

"You don't understand, baka!"

"I have to agree with Naruto..." Sasuke interupted. "For all you know, I'm willing to beat you to a pulp... Which, by the way, I am."

Sakura gasped and dashed away, blushing and thinking only, 'HE SPOKE TO ME!'

Naruto looked away, embarassed. "Sorry, did I insult you?"

"Nah, thanks, actually," Sasuke replied with a laugh. "What you said is true."

"Yeah, but your fangirl left..."

"Who cares? I have plenty of those, and it's really annoying."

"...I'd like people to give me that much attention... You take people that care about you for granted, ya'know."

"Maybe so. Anyway, you're Uzumaki Naruto, right? No offence, but you're sort of... Well... A slightly average ninja?"

"None taken, and feel free to say, 'poor.' I just don't have anyone to train with."

"Don't your parents train you at home?"

"Erm... Well, thing is, I don't have any parents or siblings... It's just me."

"You live alone?" Sasuke asked, slightly shocked. "Must be nice, peace and quiet without worrying that you aren't living up to your family's expectations."

"It isn't all it's cracked up to be... I don't even know who my parents are. Also... I can't live up to my own expectations."

"You could always train with me," Sasuke offered.

"R-really?" Naruto gasped. "Nobody has ever offered to train with me before!"

"Well, pleased to be the first!" Sasuke said, smiling. "Naruto-kohai."

"Kohai? Why kohai?" Naruto asked in an agiatated tone.

"I'll be your sempai, that's why!" Sasuke replied with a smirk.

"You're a teme, not a sempai!"

"Dobe."

"TEME!"

"Let's go train already, Naruto-kohai."

"Fine, Sasuke-sempai," Naruto replied in a slightly mocking tone, but he nonetheless accepted Sasuke a 'sempai.'

"Darn! Missed the targets!" Sasuke sighed.

"It's closer than what I hit...' Naruto laughed nervously and revealed his bleeding arm.

"How on Earth did you stab yourself?" Sasuke asked in an, 'Oh my God, what the heck?' tone.

"Does it really matter 'how' as much as it does, 'how to fix it?' Sasuke-sempai?" Naruto asked, laughing normally now and wiping the blood away.

Sasuke gasped when he saw the wound gone.

"What...That was real blood, I could tell, and yet the wound is...Gone?" he asked in awe.

"Yes, gone," Naruto replied, smiling slightly. "For some reason I'm a fast healer."

Unable to believe it, Sasuke lunged forward and pierced the unexpecting Naruto's arm with a small katana.

Naruto wiped the blood away again the reveal flawless skin.

"Sorry about that..." Sasuke said solemnly. "But... It's just so... Abnormal!"

Naruto nodded. "I understand. It isn't every day you see the worst ninja ever have wounds that heal in seconds."

Both of them laughed.

"I have to go home now, though..." Sasuke sighed, checking the time. "You want to come over and stay for dinner?"

"Y-your parents wouldn't mind?"

Sasuke shook his head. "No, why would they?"

Naruto just replied, "Oh, nothing... Just that some people act strangely around me. You'd think they thought me to be a criminal!"

"If only you knew," Iruka whispered to himself behind a tree as he watched the two. "If only you knew..."

"Come on, you keep glancing around like someone is going to attack you at any moment!" Sasuke insisted as they entered the Uchiha complex. Naruto was constantly looking back and forth and shivering with fear. "It isn't as if someone is going to turn on you!"

"Nn..." was Naruto's reply as he held Sasuke's hand tightly.

Sasuke smirked. "We're almost to my house, kohai, so stop worrying."

"Nn..." Naruto replied once more.

Sasuke couldn't see what made Naruto so terrified of everything. He acted like a frightened puppy that had been cruelly abused by the owner and now had to be rehabilitated.

If only the raven-haired academy student realized he had hit the nail on the head.

"Hurry it up, dobe, if I'm home late Itachi is going to flick me on the forehead and call me a gakki again!" Sasuke grumbled, but it was obvious he was only teasing the blonde.

Well, obvious to everyone except the blonde himself. Widened eyes stared at Sasuke in horror. "I'm so sorry, gomenasigh! I didn't realize I was being so slow, I'll be faster, gomenasigh!"

"I was only joking around!" Sasuke insisted. "It's alright if we're a little late!"

Naruto relaxed slightly. Sasuke felt his blood begin to circulate through his wrist and to his hand again as the grip on his arm was relaxed.

They entered the house. "Home at last, gakki?" Itachi asked, and flicked Sasuke on the forehead as usual.

"Hey!" Sasuke growled angrily.

Naruto remained silent.

"So you finally brought a friend over?" Itachi asked with a sigh, not really caring who or what he knew Naruto to be; truthfully, he wouldn't have cared if Sasuke had made friends with the Kyuubi himself, so long as it didn't do anything to ruin his day.

"Yeah. Anyway, where's mom and dad?"

"They're on a mission, why?"

"Just curious... Anyway, where's dinner?"

"Already on the table, mother prepared it before she left. And don't start with the 'I won't eat simple ramen' thing, Sasuke, because I'm busy handling these reports."

"Enjoying your new position as ANBU captain, I see," Sasuke laughed.

"Shut up," Itachi said simply before leaving the room.

"Let's go get dinner, Naruto..." Sasuke forced himself to say through laughter. He turned to see that the boy had quietly been observing the situation.

Was this what having a family was like? He was certain he'd kill to have such a luxury.

They both sat down. "So," Sasuke asked, "if I hadn't asked you over, what would you have normally eaten?"

"I don't normally eat dinner," Naruto replied casually. "I go to Ichiraku's, eat as much ramen as I can, and then nothing else for the rest of the day."

Sasuke couldn't help but realize that he had never seen Naruto bring a bento of any sort to school for lunch...

"You've never had anything but ramen?" Sasuke repeated, staring at him.

"Yeah, why?"

Sasuke was too busy asking questions to noticed Itachi eavesdropping on the conversation.

"Surely it's awful... Don't you want to eat anything else?"

"Can't want something if you don't even have a description of it."

"What do you drink?"

"The water from the ramen, obviously."

"Why don't you go to the store?"

"One, I can't cook. Two, I can't go into the stores or they yell at me and throw things at me."

Sasuke couldn't see why Naruto was so calm discussing how horrible his life had been. He knew at that time he had underestimated his classmate. Not even he would have the grit to have nothing but breakfast every day, always having just ramen, and then doing nothing but laugh at his own failures in class. Nor would he be able to act as if pity was the last thing he wanted in such a situation. He couldn't hide his real feelings under a mask.

But Naruto could. He was probably hurting a lot inside.

Sasuke was determined to reveal his new friend's true personality.

A/N Chapter one, COMPLETE! WOOT! WOOT! Okay, leave all questions, suggestions, flames, etc. in your review.

I'm watching you.

So R&R or else!