Dreams of Utopia
Chapter One: Time on Our Hands
Uzumaki Naruto was tapping his pencil on the table absent-mindedly, while staring out the window. Was it time soon? He had never been good at being patient, and the wait was driving him crazy, getting on his nerves. He would have to hurry after class, he thought, if he wanted to make it on time. But first he had to wait for Shikamaru, who had promised to give him a ride home. Naruto swore he would skin him alive if he wasn't on time. Unconsciously, Naruto increased his tapping, so loudly that the teacher was unable to ignore it anymore.
"Naruto-kun!" Naruto tore his eyes away from the window and blinked. His history teacher, Shisui-sensei, was standing at his desk, giving him a dark look that had without a doubt caused many students to piss themselves out of fear. But Naruto, being oblivious to authority, settled for a smile instead.
"Yes sensei?" Naruto's cheeky smile only seemed to aggravate his teacher even more. A few kids sniggered, but a glare from Shisui-sensei shut them up quickly. He turned to look at the delinquent in front of him again.
"Are you paying attention?"
Naruto's smile widened.
"No?"
Sakura glanced briefly at the lazy boy who was currently receiving the infamous Glare of Death from their teacher, and turned her attention back to the clock on the white wall in front of her. She wasn't usually this unfocused, but today was different from all the other days. Today was the day she would make her mother proud. Or so she hoped. She frowned. While Sakura knew her mum would be happy for her, she still wasn't so sure her other parent would be just as thrilled. Her father would certainly not jump up and down with joy.
She bit her lip. No, there was no point in thinking about her father's issues with her life choices at the moment. She didn't even know if she had made it or not yet.
The bell rang, and there was general disorder as everyone collected their things while trying to get out of the classroom and escape Shisui-sensei as quickly as possible. Sakura threw her bag over her shoulder as she made a conscious effort not to run through the corridors all the way to her locker, as she didn't want to look like an idiot. But she refused to be late today. Haruno Sakura was never late!
Uchiha Sasuke was visibly irritated. While Sasuke wasn't usually described as a big bundle of sunshine, he could usually keep his emotions under tight control; but not today. He had been cornered by two girls already and he hadn't even made it to his locker yet. His patience was wearing thin, and he genuinely thought that he might accidentally strangle the next person who stood in his way. Sasuke had never been late before, and he wasn't about to start now.
As he turned a corner and began to approach his locker, he spotted a blond boy who was leaning against the lockers, drumming his fingers against the metal. Against Sasuke's locker. His eye twitched. That moron had better move, he thought. He'd better move quickly.
Sasuke stopped in front of the boy and glared at him, but it didn't seem to have any effect at all. Everything the boy did was to stare back at him with bright blue eyes and a confused expression on his face. Sasuke sighed in exasperation. 'Great; another brain dead loser.'
"Idiot, move!" He said, while waving his key in the moron's face. The guy smiled sheepishly.
"Oh, sorry about that!" He said, and stepped aside, giving Sasuke access to his locker. "I'm just a little nervous, I'm waiting for my friend, he's supposed to give me a ride today and I have something important to do." Sasuke nearly rolled his eyes. As if he cared!
"Yeah, whatever," he mumbled, while sticking his things into his bag, only stopping to check his mobile. No messages. He frowned.
"So, what's your name?" The guy asked. Sasuke nearly crushed his phone with his hand. He was really not in the mood for this. He took his bag, locked the door to his locker and put the keys in his pocket, without looking at the boy even once. Then he turned to him, and stared him right in the eyes.
"None of your business. Now leave me alone, moron." The boy's eyes widened in surprise, but the emotion quickly turned into anger.
"Hey, what's your problem!" he shouted, but Sasuke was already walking away.
"What an asshole."
Naruto glowered at the boy's back as he walked away from him. The guy was without a doubt a complete dickhead, but still… Naruto couldn't shake the feeling that there was something familiar about him.
He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. No, he had never seen the guy before in his life. 'Maybe he reminded me of someone,' he thought. Something inside him stirred.
"Shh, not now," he whispered, putting a hand on his stomach distractedly. "Not now."
He was almost panting when he reached Alma road. For some reason, Shikamaru had not turned up, which meant that Naruto had had no other choice than to run like hell all the way to the other side of town. He slowed down when he reached the small elementary school that was situated on the other side of the road. Most of the kids would have gone home long ago, but he didn't want to risk drawing attention to himself. He walked briskly past the school to the rather unremarkable church further down the road. He had always thought it was a rather ironic location, considering what they did, but it was also a brilliant idea. Nobody ever went there, and what looked more inconspicuous than a church?
But that didn't really matter anyway, since there was only one kind of people who could enter without help from the inside; the people of Konoha. And fortunately enough, he was one of them. Naruto couldn't help but to smile a little as he located the side entrance, hidden in the leaves of the dark green ivy that adorned the church walls. He took great care to close the door quietly as he stepped inside.
Now, had he been a civilian, the view that greeted him when he turned around would have most likely caused him to shout out in surprise, or maybe even faint (it certainly wasn't unheard of). In front of him was far-reaching land, covered in great oaks, maple trees, birch and yew which were all stretching as high as they could, as if trying to reach the sky. And the sky, the sky was clear blue, the sort of blue that was so rare in the outside world. Birds singing, animals moving around – this place was pure. Naruto took a deep breath. Clean air; if only the civilians knew what they were missing!
Reminding himself that he was still in a hurry; Naruto quickly spotted the right path concealed by the ever-green bushes, and started running. He had been waiting for this moment his whole life, and he sure wasn't going to miss it for anything in the world.
Sakura brushed imaginary dirt from her smart, red outfit and stepped inside the tall, wooden building, shutting the door behind her. Her eyes widened in surprise as she took in just how many people were there. Could all of them really be there for the same reason, she wondered. The grand hall was filled with people; almost everyone looked to be the same age as her, except for a few people who were probably only a few years older. They were all standing; no one had taken a seat in the in the back where chairs had been lined up very neatly in front of a small podium. Nervous, she looked around, hoping to see someone she knew.
"Sakura!" someone called, and Sakura grinned when she realised whom the voice belonged to. That familiar blonde hair and the blue eyes that blinked mischievously at her, paired with that loud voice, could only mean one person.
"Ino! I was just wondering when you would show up." They smiled at each other and quickly exchanged hugs. Sakura felt her friend's raging heart against her chest, and realised that she was not the only one who was feeling nervous.
Actually, the whole room was filled with an air of anxiety. People were chatting quietly, as if they were in church, which was just a little amusing since technically, they actually were.
Sakura didn't pretend to know much about how Konoha, the village hidden in the leaves, was concealed from the civilians. In fact, very few people understood how the protection worked at all. All she had been taught was that hundreds and hundreds of years ago, the ninja villages were somehow separated from the others. With time, the Civilian world had developed and become more and more civilized, which soon led to that the civilians simply didn't feel like they needed ninjas anymore. Still, the ninja villages remained where they were, hidden but never gone. Because even though the civilians had thought differently, the ninjas knew they were needed, and that was why Sakura was here today. The same reason everyone was here today.
"Please take a seat everyone. We will begin shortly. " A woman, short with black hair and an ordinary face, stepped forward. Immediately, everyone nearly threw themselves into their seats, as if fearing there weren't enough chairs. Sakura took the nearest chair herself, and was glad to see that Ino had managed to grab a seat next to her. As she watched her friend from the corner of her eye, she suddenly had a terrible thought: 'What if only one of our names are called?'
She looked away. She and Ino had always been on the same level, because they had always competed against each other and tried to outdo themselves. But now… who knew what would happen? Her thoughts were interrupted as the dark-haired woman stepped forward once again.
"I am now going to announce the new ninja generation of Konoha. Please remain seated as I call out your name and team number. If your name is not called, you are welcome to try again next year." No-one spoke a word; the hall was so silent you'd have been able to hear a pin drop. The woman pulled up a scroll from her traditional, green robe.
Then, from out of nowhere, there was a creaking sound, and nearly everyone turned their heads as the back door opened suddenly. In the doorway stood a boy with messy blonde hair grinning slightly as he walked into the room, seemingly unbothered by the incredulous stares he was receiving.
Sakura half expected the woman who was in charge to throw him out, but all she did was sigh and shake her head. The boy lowered his head a little when seeing the woman's reaction, as if trying to look ashamed. Although his smile betrayed him, Sakura thought.
The boy took a seat not too far from where she was sitting, and that was when she realised that she knew this boy. It was the lazy boy from her history class! Who would've known he was a member of Konoha, she thought. She felt a sudden urge to look around. 'I wonder if I know any other people here.'
The woman on the podium started calling out names as soon as the boy was seated, bringing all of the attention to her again.
"Team 1 will consist of…"
Everyone listened attentively, not wanting to miss one word, one name that was uttered. As the calling went on, Sakura began to feel a sinking feeling in her stomach. Team 1, team 2, team 3, team 4, team 5… Name after name was called, but not hers. She could see how people around her let out small cheers of victory; happiness practically written on their faces, while she struggled not to let her emotions show. Ino almost jumped out of her seat when the woman called her name.
'Focus, Sakura, it's not over yet!' She tried to tell herself, but it sounded like a lie. She wouldn't make it. Bitterly, she wondered if her father would be satisfied.
Then the last team was called.
"Team 7: Uzumaki Naruto," the blonde boy from earlier cheered loudly, "Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura." Sakura let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding, and felt how a tingling sensation of happiness spread in her body. She had made it, she did it! 'I didn't disappoint you, mum!'
Naruto was bursting with energy, he couldn't sit still. He was in, he had done it. He could show them now, show them that-
"If your name wasn't called, you may leave the room. Welcome back next year," the woman said, and soon people started moving, rising from their chairs. When Naruto saw how some faces glistened with tears as they made their way to the exits, he couldn't help but to feel sorry for them. Most of them would not return next year. The ninja exam was difficult, and you needed smarts, strength and speed to succeed. Naruto wasn't famous for being the sharpest knife in the kitchen, but he had one advantage many of these people did not – he had grown up in Konoha, surrounded by ninjas. It was difficult not to pick up a thing or two when he had spent every day watching them, admiring them.
Not many people lived exclusively in the ninja villages anymore. There were still many ninja families that had existed for generations and generations; they just spent most of their time in the Civilian world where most of them had normal homes and normal jobs on the side. Some liked it because it allowed them more freedom and because it was safer, and some did it because everyone knew you could make a lot of money that way. The ninja villages needed money to continue to exist after all, and for that they needed taxes. Ninjas hardly worked for free either, no matter how much pride they took in their work.
But one very important reason from living in the outside world was that it gave them an advantage on missions. Since they were already comfortable in the Civilian world, they knew how it worked, and most importantly, how to seem normal and blend in.
That was what ninja did. They operated in the shadows, without civilians knowing. They were like CIA, MI6, but far, far more dangerous. This was also true for the criminals they hunted.
Once upon a time, ninja villages had almost always been at war with each other, for some reason or another. Now, they lived far away from each other, taking care of their own corner of the world. They rarely worked together, but never against each other either. They were at peace.
Their enemies were the enemies of the civilians, criminals too dangerous for the civilians to handle. Sometimes they were rogue ninja. Sometimes they were civilians themselves. That didn't matter. If they posed a serious enough threat, they were taken care of – either killed or thrown in jail. Ninjas were the super police, the people who succeeded when everyone else failed.
'And now I'm one of them,' Naruto thought. He had finally accomplished something. Naruto hadn't felt this happy in years.
The woman spoke once more. "All teams must be present at the Hokage tower 8.00 a.m. sharp tomorrow morning to meet their team leader and be briefed on the rules and regulations. If any team member is unable to attend they must alert his or her team members and me, Tokugawa Shizune. That is all."
Shizune left the room shortly after that, leaving the new ninjas to their own devices. Some had already started heading for the doors, and others seemed to seek up their team mates. Naruto decided on the latter – he was far too curious to wait until the next day.
He wrinkled his forehead. What were his team mates' names again? He realised he had been too busy cheering to hear what Shizune had been saying.
"Excuse me – are you Uzumaki Naruto?" Surprised, Naruto turned around, only to see a pretty girl with bubblegum pink hair, with a polite smile adorning her face.
"Hey, are you my new team mate?" he said excitedly. The girl's smile grew wider.
"Yes, my name is Haruno Sakura, I think we're in the same class at school," she said, offering her hand.
Naruto shook it, glad to have gotten such a friendly and pretty team mate.
"Really? Well, nice to meet you! Do you know where our other team mate is?" He asked. Sakura shook her head. "No, I only caught the name. Uchiha Sasuke. Maybe we could ask someone?" She suggested, but Naruto had other plans.
"Oi, Uchiha Sasuke!" He yelled over the crowd, and quite a few heads turned his way. He ignored the stares and continued to call out his missing team mate's name. "Uchiha! Uchiha!"
"Stop shouting my name, moron, you're embarrassing the whole team." A dark haired boy stepped out in front of him. Naruto's eyes widened.
"I can't believe it. It's you!" Sasuke rolled his eyes at him. "Your observational skills are truly remarkable," he commented dryly. Sakura, sensing the tension between the two boys, quickly stepped in.
"Hi, I'm Sakura, and this is Naruto. We're your team mates." She said with a friendly smile.
"Yeah, obviously." He said, checking his mobile at the same time. "I'll see you tomorrow – don't be late next time, loser." Sasuke looked at Naruto pointedly, who was pissed off instantly.
"What! Shut up, don't call me–," Naruto faltered when he realised that Sasuke was already leaving. This angered Naruto even more. "Don't you walk away from me again, you twat!" Sasuke showed no inclination of that he had heard a word Naruto said; he didn't even look back. Naruto clenched his fists. He couldn't say why, but every time that bastard turned his back on him, it pissed him off more than anything.
"Are you ready to commence the operation?" The man in front of him nodded shortly. "Yes sir, our information is sufficient. We are ready."
"Good. Start immediately. We have no time to lose."
"Yes sir."
The man left quickly after that, leaving him alone in the dark of the night. He smiled grimly. If everything went according to plan, Konoha wouldn't know what hit them.
A/N: So this is my first fan fiction in years. I don't have a beta, so sorry for any mistakes you might've spotted. For once, I have planned most of the story already, though I will probably update very slowly anyway, as I'm usually pretty busy and don't have a lot of spare time. I decided to give this a shot anyway. Please review and tell me your thoughts on this chapter! Nothing could make me happier.