THE HEARTH
ARC I
Guts Over Fear
Chapter One
Goodbye, No More
Shinachiku Haruno couldn't believe, here he was. It would be the first time he'd step foot in Konoha, and he couldn't have felt more giddy. This was where his mother was born and raised, the place she learned her skills, and developed her mind, body, spirit and abilities. It was where Gran-Gran Mebuki, and Papa Kizashi resided. He'd only seen them when they'd visit him and his mom - which was not nearly as often as he liked. He took a deep breath, enjoying every aspect of being in these lush forests. His pale green-blue eyes moved to his mother, who looked as if she were brooding. That's because she hates it here. He reminded himself, he shoved his hands into the pockets of his long black shorts.
He was eleven, going on twelve in three months (Gosh, he couldn't wait for January!) and he knew that this senior class at the academy took the exams, in eight months. He frowned, would he even be allowed to take the graduation exam? Pursing his lips together, he glanced back at his mom, funny - when did I become almost as tall as her? Soon I'll tower over her! He laughed internally, gently he tugged at her hand. She looked at him, eyes big, green and startled. He must have woke her from a serious internal conversation.
"What is it, Chiku-chan?" she asked kindly, she gave him a smile and he grinned in response. Shinachiku watched her hair twist and turn in the gentle wind, he always loved her hair, and had always wished he had been born with pink hair. Like mom, and Papa Kizashi - how cool would that be? He nearly laughed out loud, but cleared his throat and took on a serious expression. There were important matters to be discussed.
"Do you think they'll let me take the academy graduation exam?" it was a serious question, and she gave him a thoughtful look. His mother ran her hands down the length of her pastel-green, long-sleeved top, and then shoved her own hands into the pockets of her short, black cargo shorts. Her eyes narrowed in thought for a brief second.
"Of course," she smiled, "You've been personally trained by myself, the Kazekage and well, even your Uncle Sasuke has taught you a thing or two." she noted. Shinachiku nodded (he nearly scoffed at the comment about the Uchiha patriarch, that old, one-armed geezer only taught him how to glare harshly enough to make a toddler cry), and crossed his arms, another thought crossed his mind.
"I'll be in the same class as..." he didn't say the name, but a saddened look crossed his face. Sakura observed him quietly, and when she decided he wasn't going to continue his question, she spoke.
"Yes, you will." she took a breath, "But, I've told you everything. If you want to act on that, you can. I want you happy Chiku-chan." he nodded, and part of him wanted to take her advice, and go tell him. But, what would he say? It wasn't like he had made an effort. Maybe, things would be left best as they were, in that miserable lane of one-sided knowledge, and one-sided hurt. He glanced back up at his mom, her full lips trembled, her eyes suddenly glassy. His heart ached, No, never. Because, he did that to her, and I won't let him do it to me, either. The thought burned in his mind, a secret promise to himself. Because, he didn't need him, he had everything he needed.
Konoha was much grander than he had originally thought. The walls were tall, and strong. The buildings beautifully designed, and complimentary to the forest surrounding the Leaf Village. The only large village he had ever spent much time in was Suna, and it was a beautiful place, in it's own desert way, but something about Leaf was so much more... home. His mother layed a hand on his left shoulder as she spoke to the guards, handing them their IDs, and chatting energetically, he glanced between her and the dark haired pair of men. They seemed to be familiar with her mother -friends even -, he smiled.
They waved at them as the treked further into the village, and Shinachiku could barely contain himself. "Mommy, this place is amazing!" she smiled down at him, and mumured quietly back at him.
"Yeah, I guess it is."
"So where to first?" he asked, he hoped she'd say the academy. He wondered what kind of friends he could make. Would they be as energetic as him? Or maybe they'd be socially awkward, like that teammate his mom always talked about in a angry, yet fond, sort of way. What was his name? Oh, it didn't matter. He shook his head, his long hair strained against his ponytail holder, and he jumped up and down, bouncing in a circle around his lithe mother. "Can we please go to the academy, it's early! C'mon, pleeeaaase?" he begged, and when his mom gave him her scowl, that really looked more like a restrained urge to smile, he knew she would take him.
She grabbed his hand and bent down a little to stare him in the eyes, not that she had bend that far, only a few inches separated them in height. "Only if you hold my hand the entire way!" she negotiated, and he gave her a fake look of disgust.
"But maaaaa..." he smiled and squeezed her hand, his flesh so much tanner than hers, and he tugged her off in a random direction. "Is it this way?" he screamed, and she responded by laughing loudly. It just so happened it was the right direction, and the academy was in view within moments of the pair sprinting, and when she led him to the double doors, Shinachiku felt like he was an eternity too late. His first chance to make real friends, his first chance to become a real ninja - this must be a dream! he thought - and his mother pushed him forward.
"I wrote ahead of time, Iruka-sensei already knows your going to be here." he gave her a look of both astonishment, but absolute greatfullness. She is the best. He decided, and it must have been the millionth time he had thought that thought. The classroom was up three flights of stairs, and all along the way he could here happy banter, boring lectures and an occasionally loud student. His mother knocked patiently, and when they were given the okay to enter.
It was exactly as he imagined, rows of students, some bored, some annoyed and some determined. His hearth lurched into his throat, the sensei smiled brightly at him. "You must be my former student's kid - Shinachiku, eh?" he was very tan, and long scar sat over the bridge of his nose and bloomed out in a jagged line over both cheek bones. His smile was earnest, and his eyes were the color of his favorite chocolates.
"Haruno Shinachiku at your service - the next best medical-ninja of our time! Well, after I surprass ma." he introduced, shoving a callused hand towards the Chunin instructor. He let out a howl of laughter, and shook his head.
"Class, this is Shinachiku, he has spent his entire life traveling with our most beloved medical ninja, and the woman who literally pumped -" he stopped speaking when a voice interrupted him.
"She is Haruno Sakura, the legendary student of Princess TSunade, who was the fifth Hokage. Sakura-sama pumped Naruto's heart with her bare hands as she breathed life into him during the war against Madara, and then Kaguya. But, she is not considered one of the heroes of the war against Madara, and then, Kaguya. That is heavily debated by modern historians who are writing the history books now." a stoic voice boomed, and Iruka laughed sheepishly.
"Good job, heh, Ryo." Iruka gave Sakura a long look, and Sakura nodded and bowed to the class before leaving, an unreadable expression etched on her face. Shinachiku waved at his mom and offered a reassuring smile as she left. Finally, this has been what I've dreamt of my entire life! Iruka calmed the class down, and directed him to sit next to a platinum-haired boy, whose hair was styled very girlishly, sleek, long and tied in a braided ponytail. The boy had a silver scarf wrapped loosely around his neck, he eyed Shinachiku critically before whispering.
"Your sense of fashion is fucked up." Shinachiku nearly choked, and thought about what he was wearing - No way is it that bad! - a high collared black sleeveless top, with red hemming at the shoulder, and where the zipper was. Shorts that fell passed his knees, and ankle high black, standard shinobi footwear "Instead of being dominated by such a dark, and brooding color, such as black, you should where an off white, sort of a grey-ish white, keep the red hemming. But, black, bleh. It makes you look, well, too yellow." Shinachiku scoffed at the kid, whose pale green eyes (which lack any hint of a pupil - how weird) were shut in thought, maybe imagining his outfit?
"Well, you look like a girl." Shinachiku fired back, his voice was low, but it trembled in anger. The blonder boy shrugged,
"It is what it is, I haven't it puberty yet. When I do, my jaw will most assuredly get more square. You however, well, puberty won't fix that awful color scheme." Shinachiku couldn't believe it! First day of ninja academy, and he was getting a fashion lesson! What kind of asinine was this! "Besides," the blond whispered hauntingly, "I still look more manly than you." Shinachiku stared open mouthed at the ballsy kid, and thoughts of pummeling him hard enough that he'd break through the wall of classroom were surfacing. He had always been confused as girl when he was much younger, he had been slight of frame, and had very catty eyes, lined with dark, long black lashes. He was less slight now, more wiry which would soon evolve into a solid, thick frame. His shoulders were broadening more and more, and - well, - he felt like his face was less girly.
"Class! Today is a special day, not only do we have a new member to our class, but the Hokage is coming to speak to you all!" Shinachiku forgot about the annoying, effeminate blond next to him, and the image of the seventh blurred its way into his mind. His stomach ached painfully, and he suddenly wanted to be far, far away. All the previous internal strife over his apparent lack of fashion sense melted away, and seemed easier and less frustrating than meeting the seventh already. "But, today is our sparring day, ah - Shinachiku-san, you don't know this, but you came on a fine day." beamed Iruka.
Iruka stretched his back, and Shinachiku eyed the crowd, their were thirty-three students in this class, most from civilian families, but a few prominent clan members stuck out. Two Uchiha twins stood across from him, one a ebony haired girl with wildly curly hair, and eyes that were a smoldering silvery-grey eyes, they reminded him of polished iron. Her brother stood next to her, a stark contrast compared to her subdued expression, he was grinning and rather exuberant. He was much tanner than his sister, his hair a chocolate brown, long and tied low, like his sister. He had the signs of tear-troughs forming on his smooth face, and his eyes were a lighter shade of brown than his hair. The two seemed close, they stood shoulder to shoulder, the girl quiet and the boy socializing as Iruka stretched and flipped through pages.
"Hey!" Chiku glanced to his left, were a golden haired boy grinned at him, whisker marks flecked each cheek. Chiku instinctively glared, the boy ignored it, oblivious to the instant dislike. "I am Uzumaki Boruto, most people call me Bolt." He grinned brightly again before moving to chat with another boy. He frowned, the boy was scrawny, his skin tan from both genetics and the sun, his hair was spiky - not like his, though. "Hey - new kid! Come here!" Chiku grimaced but made his way towards Boruto and thew small gang surrounding him.
"Iruka didn't let everyone introduce themselves, so I figured I'd introduce you to the coolest bunch here." Boruto explained rapidly, and with a casual glance over the three males before him, Chiku nodded stiffly. He's so friendly - how can you hate that? Boruto grinned, and pointed at the skinny, tanned skinned boy. Chiku reconized him as the boy who had recited his mother's history so blandly. "Ryo," Boruto pointed at a smirking brunette whose eyes were a dark, mossy green. "Shikari," Boruto grinned and slung both arms over the boys. "We are the coolest guys here, stick with us and life will never cease to amaze you."
Chiku smiled, it was goofy the way he said. "Inoko hangs with the girls, I assume?" Chiku craned his neck around in search of the blond boy, who had greatly infuriated him. Boruto snorted,
"Mostly with the Uchiha's, actually." and that's when Chiku saw the blond casually standing next to Haruto, whispering away and cackling wildly. The girl looked more or less annoyed. "The girl is Yumi, she is older by a few weeks than Haruto, they have different mom's." Boruto explained with ease. It made sense, his mom had mentioned Uncle Sasuke having three wives, and the two - although similiar - did have vastly different features. Yumi's wildly curly hair kept attracting his gaze, She is pretty. Her iron grey eyes caught his gaze, and he offered a half-smile, to which she glared in return. "I'm not a fan, my dad wishes I was best friends with Haruto, like he is with Sasuke." the boy remarked, it was bitter sounding but Chiku felt that is was equally as saddening.
"OK, OK!" Iruka hollered, he pulled a giant rolling chalkboard out into the opening and waved everyone over, a half-circle formed around the tan, aging teacher. "So, I will re-hash the rules, and the intent of this exercise for Shinachiku-san," Iruka began. "This is sparring day, we do it once a week, and it's a tournament of sorts. I pair everyone up, randomly, and then the winners face off, until only one winner is left. Pretty simple, each week, different techniques and skills will be banned, so that new content is used and everyone is forced to hone in many skills. Once you reach your gennin team, you can focuss on what interests you, but for now we want well trained, and well balanced students moving forward." Chiku nodded, simple enough, "Yumi is number one, with Inoko at second, Ryo at third, Midori at fourth and Haruto at fifth." Boruto made a scoffing noise.
"I should be number one, not that Uchiha." He whispered, Chiku gave him a false-smile and listened to Iruka who was making grunts as he scribbled on a piece of paper, "OK, Shinachiku I am going to have you go first against - hmm, - Haruto-kun, this should be interesting." He glanced up, and Haruto sauntered forward and grin on his narrow face, which had the signs of high-cheeked bones emerging already. The crowd broke away, and Iruka paired others together. Once everyone had paired off, Iruka cleared his throat. "In honor of Shinachiku being new, we will be doing a free-for-all, anything you know may be applied." He waved at them, and they begun.
Chiku pulled his hair free, and began braiding it back so it wouldn't hit his face. Haruto narrowed his milky-brown eyes at Chiku who was casually finishing his hair. Strands framed his face, still round with youth. Haruto, obviously annoyed with the tediousness of the blond, pulled two tantos from the holder on his back, lightning immediately circled with shinning weapons, and glinted dangerously in the peeking sun. He blinked out of sight, and Chiku barely had time to spin himself around and throw up his forearms, which were protected by thick leather arm guards, he flexed his hands, and dropped low to the ground, fishing for his leather gloves that sat somewhere in his left hip-pouch. Haruto wasted no time in swinging his tantos in a long arc, diving directly at the crouched newcomer.
Rolling out of the way and flipping onto his feet like an angry cat, Chiku avoided several more swings, swipes and jabs. Not often a twelve-year-old dual wields tantos, let along ones with lightning streaming around them! He spun in a circle, jutting out a muscular leg and swiped the smaller Uchiha around the knees, the boy tumbled forward, and Chiku utilized his moment to unleash a barrage of punches. Haruto avoided most of them, but took an unfortunate kick to the jaw, that sent him upwards into the air. Slinging the tantos into their sheaths for the moment, the Uchiha threw his hands together into a barrage of signs, and exhaled a plume of hot, red fire. That's absurd! He rolled away, the fire licked his skin briefly, and Chiku exhaled a pain filled breath, and before he could even begin to recover, Haruto was slamming fists into his face.
Chiku took the first dozen hits, grunting and thinking erratically of what to do next. Before the next punch could come close to breaking his delicate nose, Chiku caught his fist, and swung his leg up and over the boy's arm, and kicked out his other leg and with tremendous force, knocked Haruto right in the ankle. A snap echoed throughout the field, and Chiku new he had broken Haruto's arm, and Haruto - who momentarily seemed unaffected by this - went white faced, and took a few heavy, quick breaths before bellowing a screech. Chiku scrambled to his feet, and Haruto sat on his skinny knees, choking on air, and his face contorted in absolute agony.
Iruka sped towards the scene, his face pale and eyes wide with worry. "Haruto-kun are you okay?" He knelt down to the heavy-breathing boy, whose dark brown hair - lighter than Iruka's brown, though - plastered to his sweaty face, his normally tanned skin was pale, and his brown eyes narrowed in extreme focus. He nodded, stiffly. "Okay, we need to take you to the hospital. Oh geez." He gave Chiku a look that was partial shock and admiration. Chiku kept his face stony, not very often a Haruno goes around kicking some Uchiha ass.
He didn't see it coming, but he sure felt it. His entire body hit the ground, and he rolled backwards. He heard some hollering - "Oi! Yumi, you can't just abandon our fight to attack him - ow!" He saw an unnamed face, and then that beauty of an Uchiha stalk towards him like an enchanting panther, her eyes gleaming with unknown intent. Chiku spun to his feet, Yumi spun a kick at him, and he deflected it with ease, and caught her other leg as it came towards him. She sneered, obviously upset that he hadn't fallen for her trick. She kicked off of his hands, and landed a few feet away. Her curly hair surrounding her oval-face like a wild mane. Her brows, thick and shaped with a high arch, were furrowed and her full mouth tugged in a grim line.
"You broke my brother's arm." She stated, it was a blunt statement void of any emotion, and those enchanting iron eyes bore into his soul, and his stomach clenched. He gave her a lopsided grin, and she sneered at him. Her small nose scrunched up as if she had smelled something absolutely disgusting. She came at him again, this time she blinked out of sight, and Chiku felt a hard pressure in the center of his back as he was knocked forward.
Not much had changed within the hospital, the same white walls, scuffed tiles and the lingering scent of bleach remained stagnant from when she had left thirteen years ago. She didn't feel any sense of longing, that had faded long ago. She felt out of place, and jittery. Nurses sprinted around, desk clerks talked amongst themselves, giving Sakura side-long looks of shock, and wonderment.
"Isn't that Haruno Sakura?"
"Why is she back?"
"She's a legend - isn't she?"
Her face felt flushed, and when she came to the room she had been seeking for, she instantly felt the chakra signature of her former renegade teammate, Uchiha Sasuke. He offered her no smile, no warm expression - just his usual stoic, cold expression that left her frustrated and irritated. Long had her feelings for him fled her heart, being replaced by cold, hard resentment and distaste. She hadn't been able to forgive him in the way Naruto had, or the village. She had remained friendly with him, though, his constant traveling, and her nomadic lifestyle had brought them together on unexpected occasions, and Chiku had loved him instantly, and surprisingly Sasuke had taken a liking to Chiku, as well. Not that he'd ever admit it.
"Sasuke," her voice was quiet, and still. He regarded with a nod, and left the room, and made his way to the reason she was here. I wonder how bad this is, Sasuke said it was an epidemic, but no one seems that bothered. She observed the staff, hurridly running about - but that was normal - Sasuke made an abrupt turn, and she came face to face with a familiar redhead. "Karin?" the bespectacled girl gave Sakura an odd look before smiling.
"Sakura." Maybe it is serious if Karin is here, she probably has Orchimaru's files all memorized. "So she did come, I'm surprised, to be honest." Karin stated, she directed towards her former teammate. Funny, in a way they all were teammates through Sasuke. He shrugged, his empty sleeve swinging awkwardly at his side. Karin shrugged, cleared her throat, and spoke. "Twelve people, well, children rather, have been afflicted." Karin pulled out a grey folder, it was stuffed with papers, and flipped it open. "The symptoms are odd, most illness' are consistent with fevers, chills, vomiting, diarrhea." Karin frowned, her crimson eyes were nearly the same shade as her hair, which, with age, had started taking on a coppery hue, but still remained mostly fire red. "This illness is like chakra depletion, so no one seems to take note of it, thinking 'oh maybe a nap'." Karin shook her head, thin lips pursing in frustrated thought. "I have discovered there's a bacteria that latches onto the chakra paths and destroys the chakra - which makes no sense, where would it go? You can't just..." she sighed loudly, shoving a hand through her fiery mane.
"Twelve... twelve people afflicted? How many have died?" Sakura asked, eyebrows furrowed in annoyance. Karin raised a brow,
"Didn't Sasuke tell you? Only one," Sakura's plump mouth became a thin, aggravated line. She turned to face the culprit, whose pale face showed nothing but dull interest. He was still handsome, that effeminate face, that plump lower lip, and his top lip with that extreme cupids bow. His nose was slight, and straight, and those eyes - pools of dark obsidian, except for the rinnegan, which gave her goosebumps. His hair hadn't grayed yet, and she suspected it would be long before it ever did. But his beauty didn't stop the seething anger from bubbling within her chest.
"Sasuke, this isn't an epidemic!" She shook her head, her long braid swinging like an angry whip. He raised a single, shapely dark brow. Sakura cornered him, and her face was burning with anger. She didn't want to be in Konoha, and her only reason to returning was under the impression her former village would be facing some sort of crazy biological threat! She glared at him with hard jade eyes, and he returned her stare easily, a smile was blooming at the corner of her mouth, and Sakura was struck my a memory of him telling her that she was at her perfection when angry. She took a stumbling step backwards, and clenched her fists. "I'm not staying for this bullshit, I have better things to do with my time, Sasuke."
He frowned, seemingly insulted, "My two daughters are being taken by this." His voice was calm, betraying the haunted look on his face. Sakura snorted,
"I fail to see how they, two children, trump the livelihood of the work I was doing - saving thousands of lives, lives that were destroyed in your vengeful path!" her voice wasn't as shaky as she thought it would be, her eyes harder than she thought they'd be - she'd never felt so angry with Sasuke. Her anger previously had been a feeling brought to life by obsessive love, and desperate need of approval, and eternal sorrow from his betrayl and watching Naruto suffer. She, the older Sakura, would never have denied Sasuke. Or any person in need, for that matter. But she had grown. She had seen the world in all it's devastation, and she had decided that she would help those people, suffering from things that other's had thrusted upon her. She also had no desire to see the Uchiha clan, in all it's gory past, be revived. Even if it meant denying a man she had once thought she loved, aid.
She felt like a monster, and maybe she was one, now. She took a step back, preparing to spin on her heels, steal her son from the academy she had promised he could attend and hide away to the deepest places this planet hid. She felt sick being here, realizing nothing had changed, no one had kept their promises for a better world. Karin stared at her, wonderment and understanding gracing her pretty features. Sasuke, however, was quickly becoming angry. Deciding his cold stare could no longer intimidate her, he took a step forward. Sakura was, for once, quicker. She twisted away from his lone hand, and dodged his second attempt at blockading her into the room.
"Sakura, you will help my children."
"You've always been so selfish, Sasuke." She said his name as if it were the most sinister poison that Sasori of the Red Sand had birthed into the world, and although he didn't visibly flinch. She knew that he detested her hostility, her lack of want to help him, her harsh look. She saw it in those eyes, that obsidian eye and that ringed eye. His hair was too long, and it brushed her face uncomfortably when he blinked in front of her, and grabbed her throat. She hissed, barring her teeth like an angry bear, and smashed her fist into his ribcage, he flew backwards, and broke through the thick wall, and landed on his back in the once impeccable hallway. Nurses shrieked and scurried away, staying close enough to be nosy, but far enough to avoid any immediate danger. "Maybe if you cared about the others I would have considered it, but I lack any desire to assist you." She added.
I'm not twelve, or fifteen, anymore. Sakura reminded herself, Karin rushed to Sakura, putting a hand on her slim shoulder. "Sakura, you don't have to help." she whispered, and Sakura turned her gaze onto the redhead, finding comfort in her support. But her moment of soothing peace ended abruptly, Sasuke flung Karin aside, the woman hit the wall with a muffled shriek and cough, and again, clutched Sakura's neck, he made due do with one arm, and deflected Sakura's deadly punch by tossing her up and landing a powerful kick to her midsection, and Sakura hit a wall, a crack grew from the impact and he stomped towards her, and his once black eye was blazing red, tomoes spinning rapidly.
"You. Will. Help. Me." Something unexpected happened, and Sasuke hit the floor, blood flooding his face from his mouth, and an angry Karin stood defensively in front of Sakura. Sakura suddenly remembered the day Sasuke had tempted her with his companionship, and all she had to do was kill Karin. Instead she had tried to kill Sasuke, but failed miserably, and predictably saved by Kakashi and Naruto.
"You can't force her to do anything, Sasuke!" Karin hissed, and she shook - shook in terror - but that beautiful Uzumaki woman stoo her ground, creamy pale legs long and clad in a short skirt, and her feet sat in dangerously tall heels. Her hair that odd mix of impeccable straightness and absurdly, crazy messy, hung around her curved hips like a firey mane of sureness. Sakura felt glad, and stood. She placed her own hand on the trembling woman, who stared at her, ready to defend her. Sakura shook her head, and stared at the Uchiha, who should have been gawking, but being an Uchiha, he meerely stared in anger. "Sa... Sakura, you don't -" but she didn't finish, her red eye clearly understanding.
"I'll do it, Sasuke. But, know this. It isn't for you." he glared, his eyes hurt. Maybe he cared for her, somewhere within his black soul. But, it would never be enough. Sakura frowned, he only cared because it was another person who would forever remember him as that demon who tried to steal everything from her, and from everyone else, for the sins of a few. Karin stood taller than Sakura, but not because she was truly taller, but because of those spiked black heels. Karin nodded again, and turned to leave, her heels clacking angrily away at the cheap flooring. Now all the pink haired woman had to do was face Naruto. A darkness grew colder from within her, the feelings for him had never truly ceased, but she had come to understand that she could never have him. That was okay, she had found others. She had her son, a beacon in her life.
Sasuke disappeared into the crowd, off somewhere that Sakura cared little about. Somehow this seemed easy than dealing with Naruto, and with that in her mind. The woman reluctantly decided to head towards the Hokage tower, wishing for some sake to ease the task. I turned out a lot like you, didn't I, Tsunade? Her heart shuttered at the thought of her deceased mentor, who had never achieved the happiness she had so desperately saught, and deserved. Sakura had promised the blonde woman that she would find that. She had, not the vision that her mentor had envisioned, because no matter how Naruto currently felt about the former Hokage, she would always have a fondness for the blond who had won her over. She had once told Sakura, in a drunken stupor, that Naruto was a lot like Jiraiya, and if Sakura wasn't careful she'd become to much like herself, and lose him forever - forever regretting the mistakes of not being able to move on and see what was in front of her.
Sakura hadn't realized she would be right. With one last glance at the direction Sasuke had disappeared to, and with a heart heavy and shoulders sagging, Sakura made her way towards the man she had run from for the last decade and some.
A/N: I have had an idea like this since the last chapter of Naruto came out, and I know people will read this and call me "salty" and tell me to "get over it". And if you plan on saying those things - please do it, all it will do is up the amount of reviews I have for this story. So, PLEASE DO IT. If you have totally nice, and awesome critique reviews to give me, do that, too! I want feedback. Let me know how I am doing. You should see a consistent update, every week to two weeks with this story. I will be having hip surgery soon, so that will delay it slightly, depending on if I have that chapter pre-written. These stories are not edited, and they will be after it is completed - the entire story, that is - so don't comment too much on that, I'll get to it later. Have a wondrous day!
