Part 1

Innocence

Chapter 1

The First Day

Ino stood in the middle of Hinata's room twirling around in her new Konoha Academy High School uniform. Her plaid, ruffled mini skirt twirled in the air per half spin and her long blonde ponytail whips in sync along with her solid black necktie. Sakura and Hinata stare at Ino with little interest. Sakura lazily lies down on Hinata's bed with her head hanging upside down letting her long pink hair fall to the floor. Her green eyes remain open thanks to gravity. Hinata sits up straight next to Sakura. Her long black hair falls down her back and over her large breasts. Hinata's lavender eyes rest upon Ino as Ino twirls her way towards Hinata's full length mirror stopping in front of it to look at her soon to be high school self.

"Ladies, what do you think?" Ino asks while posing in front of the mirror. "Do I look mature? Classy? Filled out in all the right places?"

"You look pretty, Ino." Squeeks Hinata.

"What Hinata says." Sakura mutters.

"Yeah, but do I look pretty enough for Sasuke?"

"I don't feel comfortable answering that." Says Sakura. Ino crosses to Sakura and looms over her head. Startled, Sakura gets up and sits crisscrossed.

"Am I not your best friend?"

"You are."

"Then why can't you give me a proper answer?"

"You know why." Sakura looks off to the side in embarrassment.

"I'd give you a proper answer. Because you're my friend. My best friend. Remember what we said? Regardless who gets Sasuke –"

"If either of us gets Sasuke. "

"When one of us gets Sasuke, it wouldn't destroy our friendship so long as we both play fairly!" Ino readjusts her stance. "Now am I pretty enough to date Sasuke?!"

"You're always pretty though, Ino!"

"Aw! Sakura!" Ino tackles Sakura landing on Hinata's bed. Hinata giggles at the spectacle. She's lost count of how many times her friends have gone through this back and forth routine.

"What about you Hinata?" asks Ino, facing Hinata but still lying on top of Sakura.

"Wha-what about me?" Ino jumps off Sakura and repositions her twirls.

"Do I look like a sophisticated, mature high school student?"

"You look pretty Ino."

"I need more feedback than that!" pouts Ino. "Ladies, I can't believe you're not taking this seriously! Tomorrow is the first day of our high school lives, the beginning of our lives! Our first impressions will either make or break us, and I for one am not going to let that happen to me or my girls! Starting with Hinata! I'll make you so Naruto would rather die than not go out with you!"

"I-ino!" Hinata blushes bright red. Ino grabs Hinata's hands and yanks her off the bed when a loud knock echoes from the door."

"Will the three of you keep it down!" Neji's voice's muffled by the door.

"You can come in, Neji!" yells Hinata. Hinata's older cousin, Neji, opens the door and leans on the frame.

"You three realize that school starts tomorrow?" Neji leans on the doorframe squishing his elbow-length brown hair. Similar lavender eyes as Hinata pierces out at the three girls.

"Duh!" mocks Ino. Her jaw hangs down and sticks out her tongue while crossing her eyes.

"Then shut up! It's past midnight."

"Oh shit! I need my beauty rest!" yells Ino.

"We'll keep it down, Neji." Hinata responds politely.

"Good." The word slithers out of Neji's mouth with disdain. "I don't understand why you insist on having these annual sleepovers every 'God damn year!" Neji turns around slamming the door behind him.

"How are the two of you related?" asks Sakura. "He's such an asshole!"

"Well they do look alike." Replies Ino. "Same eyes and hair. Hell, they're even more identical than most cousins. Since your dads were identical twins, right Hinata?"

"I-I guess." Mutters Hinata.

"I guess Uncle Hiashi's the good twin since Hinata and Hanabi are so nice. That makes Neji's dad the evil twin that spawned Neji the Douche."

"Ino, that's not how genetics work. Identical twins have an exact genetic makeup, but the expression of those genes are predicted based on their environment. Similarly, a person's environment –"

"La la la la la! I don't have to think until tomorrow! Let's go to sleep now!" Ino jumps into her sleeping bag and pulls it over her face. Sakura also jumps down from bed and snuggles into her sleeping bag as Hinata walks over to switch the lights off. Hinata giggles to herself at her friend's interactions before the room goes completely dark.


It's 7:30am as Sasuke walks around Konoha coming back from school. He was called to school an hour early to prepare the logistics of his speech for the incoming freshman class as the graduating student with the highest GPA from the middle school of Konoha Academy. His preparations mostly entailed when he'll walk on stage, how he'll walk on stage, how he'll walk down stage, and did not require the hour preparation it originally slotted. He and Dean Nara finished their prep around 7:20am leaving Sasuke bored. Whatever Sasuke decides to do, he does not want to spend the rest of his god early morning at school. That is how Sasuke decided to walk to his best friend's apartment, who lives a convenient 15 minutes away from the high school campus.

Sasuke arrives at Naruto's front door around 7:35am. He picks up the spare key hidden in the outside toad decoration and lets himself in. Sasuke hears a pan sizzling from the kitchen area. He walks farther in the apartment and sees Jaraiya, Naruto's guardian, with his back turned facing the stove. Jaraiya's long gray hair hangs down his back in a slacked ponytail. Jaraiya turns his head towards the noise.

"Sasuke! Good morning! What are you doing here so early?" Sasuke moves towards the kitchen table and sets his school bag down.

"Morning, Uncle. I'm here to make sure Dope didn't oversleep on his first day of school."

"School starts today? Isn't it still pretty early?"

"I was around the area."

"I think Naruto's still asleep."

"Figures."

Sasuke walks off to Naruto's room. He opens the door and sees Naruto spread across the bed in a limp, star-like position; his mouth hangs open wide with loud snoring noises and a trail of drool gysering out. The room's littered with dirty laundry. The trash can overflows with empty chip bags and instant ramen bowls. More empty instant ramen bowls pile up on Naruto's supposed desk. The walls are covered with posters of famous international soccer players like Messy and Ronaldo. Resting along the back of his desk chair seems to be Naruto's uniform, meaning that he must have prepped it the night before, surprisingly. Resting on the side of Naruto's bed is Naruto's school bag, which, also seems ready to go?

Without hesitation, Sasuke kicks Naruto straight in the face.

"Ouch!" Naruto jumps into a sitting position, more confused than angry as to what just happened. He rubs his face and looks around the room until he sees Sasuke. "Hey Chicken Butt Hair. Whatcha doin?"

"Do you remember what today is?"

Still half asleep, Naruto wearily responds to Sasuke's question. "Happy birthday?"

"It's not my birthday." Sasuke's voice sounds more and more annoyed.

After about five seconds of activity, Naruto's light blue eyes become refilled with life. A large grin spreads across his face when the realization dawns upon him. "Yahoo!" Naruto jumps out of bed scurrying to get his things and lunges toward the bathroom.

"You have five minutes!"

"Plenty of time!"

"Idiot." Sasuke mutters under his breath.

"Don't worry Sasuke!" Naruto's blonde spiky head pokes into his room. A tooth brush sticking out of his mouth and toothpaste foam dripping down. "I wouldn't want to be late for the first day of high school!"


The girls and Neji left the Hyuga mansion around 7:30am to give them enough time to both get to school and check their classroom assignments. The girls only walked a few steps out the gate when Neji spoke up.

"Hinata, a moment, please." The girls turned around and looked at Neji. "Now that you're attending my school, again, the block and a half radius applies."

"I figured." Hinata side steps allowing Neji to pass.

"Wait, wait, wait." Sakura interrupts. "Why does this ridiculous rule still apply? When are you going to put a stop to this?"

"I'd gladly answer, but the more we talk, the later you'll be on your precious first day of high school." Neji grins smugly.

"OMG, he's right, Sakura. Let's talk about this maybe tomorrow? After you, Sir Neji." Ino shifts Sakura to the side giving Neji his path. Neji walks by carrying his school bag over his shoulder not making eye contact with any one of the girls. After walking far enough to barely seem visible, the girls continue to school.

"Hinata, why won't you stand up for yourself? Your cousin's a prick." Sakura scolds Hinata.

"It's fine. That's just how he is."

"Absolutely irritating! I can't believe he's your cousin."

"Worse than that, I can't believe Tenten has a crush on him." Ino scrunched her at the image of Tenten and Neji dating.

"It's probably just a faze she's going through. A really long one." Sakura reasons.

"Of course!" Ino agrees.

Hinata giggled along with her friends knowing that the situation between Neji and Tenten is more complicated than what Ino and Sakura. Hinata predicts that it can't be too long, especially now that school's restarting, for their relationship to progress.

"But never mind that! I'm so excited!" Ino punches both fists in the air. "It'll be so cool if the two of us got placed in the same class! Plus Sasuke, of course. And I guess Naruto to make Hinata happy."

"God, I'd rather die than be in the same class as Naruto!" Sakura's head arches back releasing a groan.

Hinata tilts her head at Sakura. "What if Sasuke was also there?"

Sakura places her hand on her chin and glances down towards the ground as she thinks. "I guess I'd postpone my suicide, but it'd be even better if you weren't there, Ino."

"Ah! I'm in shock that you'd choose a boy over your best friend! Does our deal mean nothing to you?"

"I'm kidding, Ino. But don't act all high and mighty. We both know if you had the option to be in the same class with Hinata and I or with Sasuke, you'd choose Sasuke. Just as we know that if Hinata had the option, she'd choose Naruto. Right, Hinata?"

"I plead the fifth."

"Well, these classes switch every year, right?" Ino asks worriedly.

"No actually. They don't." The girls hear a voice from behind and turn around to see Shikamaru and Choji walking toward them. The voice most likely came from Shikamaru, since Choji's busy stuffing potato chips down his throat. "Morning." Shikamaru waves.

"Morning. So you're sure that the classes don't change after our first year."

"As sure as the fact that I'm the Dean's son."

"So, as soon as we see our names on the announcement boards, our fate is sealed. Ladies, good luck to all of us." Ino reaches out to Sakura's and Hinata's hand, and they return the gesture.

"I look forward to spending these next three years with you."

"Me too!" Choji quickly shoves more chips in his mouth.

"Wait, we're in the same class?"

"Class 1-10."

"How do you know?"

"My dad told me. He rigged it so you, me, and Choji get placed in the same class. Just like him and our dads were when they went to high school together." Shikamaru says sarcastically. "God, what a drag."

"Do you know if anyone else is in the same class?"

"If you're asking me if Sasuke's in our class, he's not. I have no idea what class he's in."

"No! My high school life! Ended before it even started."

"Shikamaru, do you know what class we're in?" Sakura asks curiously.

"Only that you're not in mine. I didn't bother to ask. My dad just told me."

"Alright. Thanks, Shikamaru."

"Damn, the place looks crowded." Choji stuffed another chip in his mouth as looked at the school with awe.

The students finally arrived to Konoha Academy's high school. The school is crowded with students walking into the gate and huddled around the outside bulletin board marking the classroom assignments.

"Hinata, we should go check what class we're in. Ino, are you coming?"

"You go ahead, Sakura. I still need to sulk for a bit."

Hinata walks up to console her friend. "There's no way you'd let this get you down, right?" Ino grasps Hinata's hand, grateful that Hinata always knows what to say, and grateful for her friend's overwhelming maturity.

"I should still stand back. It's so crowded, how will you figure out anything! I'll wait for the two of you."

"Do you want us to wait with you, Ino?" Shikamaru asks.

"Why would I want that?"

"I don't even know why I asked. Come on, Choji. Are you done with those chips?"

"I just now got to my third bag!"

"Jesus Christ!"

The young students cross the school gate. Ino stands off by the sidelines as Hinata and Sakura inch their way through the crowd. Shikamaru and Choji leave to find their classroom to prepare for the Opening Ceremony.


Naruto has an irritatingly large grin as he walks side-by-side with Sasuke on their way school. He always has a wide toothy grin on his face, but this seems larger than normal and it's freaking Sasuke out.

"The hell are you smiling for, dope?"

"No reason." Naruto continues smiling. It might even be growing larger.

"Seriously. It's freaking me out."

"Sorry. I guess I'm excited about our first day of high school. A chance for me to finally make something of myself instead of being labeled the Loser of Middle School."

"Are you a girl?"

"Everything starts in high school. Slowly, I'll shed my loser reputation, then my reputation as a good-for-nothing, then I'll shock them all when I become the Prime Minister of Japan! After I lead my college soccer team to win the championships of course."

"Idiot."

"Plus, if I can be in a class with Sakura, I'd finally have my chance to get closer to her!"

"You had a class with her last year. And the two years before that."

"Yeah, but you were there. It will be me and Sakura in a class together, and you can have a class with Choji somewhere else."

"Ouch. I 'm hurt, Naruto. You don't want to be in a class with your best friend?"

"Anything for the name of love. And we'll see each other during soccer practice. We just absolutely cannot be in the same class together if I'm in a class with Sakura. You'll steal all my thunder."

"What thunder?"

The boys reach the school grounds with minutes to spare. The front's still packed with first year students looking up their new classrooms. Naruto and Sasuke shove their way through the crowd getting closer to the bulletin boards and find their names.

"I think I see my name." Naruto shouts over the crowd. "Class 1-7. And I'm in the same class as Sakura!

"No!" A loud shriek rises above the crowd. People stop what they're doing wondering where that sound came from. Sakura's cups her face in her hands hiding both her embarrassment and grief. "Hinata, why does God hate me?" Her voice muffles through her closed fingers only letting Hinata and those within a similar radius as her to hear what Sakura has said.

"It's not that bad being in the same group as Naruto." Hinata rubs Sakura's back.

Naruto notices Sakura sulking. "Hey Sasuke, what do you think's her problem?"

"I don't know, but I know what's yours." Sasuke points at the board towards the list of Class 1-7 students.

"No!" Naruto screams louder than Sakura. The attention redirects toward Naruto. Even Sakura and Hinata look up.

"Hinata, what do you think that idiot's yelling about."

Hinata lightly blushes before looking in the direction that Naruto's facing. "Sakura, look! You're in the same class as Sasuke!"

"What?" Sakura scrolls down the list of students in Class 1-7 again. All the way at the bottom below "Uzumaki Naruto" reads the name "Uchiha Sasuke." "Yes!" Sakura screams just as loudly as before redirecting the attention back towards her. "Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!" Whispers start circulating the crowd about the noisy duo. Still riding on her high, Sakura bounces up and down while holding on to poor Hinata. "Hinata! Hinata! Hinata! Did you find your class yet?"

"Class 1-8. The only other classmates I recognize are Kiba and Shino."

"Aw! We're not in the same class? Well, there nice boys, so I'm sure you'll have a swell time!" The wide grin doesn't escape from Sakura's lips. "High school rocks!" A pathway practically opens up as Sakura and Hinata make their way out of the crowd to meet up with Ino.

"Sakura, I thought I claimed the role of Drama Queen among our friend group. What was that?"

"Don't worry about it, Ino." Sakura's grin still brims wide. "Let's just hurry and get to class! The opening ceremony's starting soon."

Sakura drags Ino and Hinata by the arms into their new building. Right as they leave, Sasuke and Naruto squeeze their way out of the crowd.

"Damn it! Why do I always have to be in the same class as you?!" Naruto pouts.

"I look forward to these next three years as well."

The pair walk off nearly making it to the entrance before a group of high school fangirls tackle Sasuke.


After Sasuke's Freshman Address at the Opening Ceremony, Sasuke's number of fan girls increased exponentially. He seemed sure he'd be late to class with the large barricade of girls that formed around him. Despite being five minutes late, he arrived very early.

The group of girls that happen to be in Sasuke's class remain clustered around him even after homeroom supposedly started, but it didn't take long before these girls and the rest of the class started getting irritated. Murmurs and whispers about the absent teacher fill the room getting louder and louder as time passes.

Naruto's the first to publicly call out the teacher. He jumps up slamming his hands down on a random desk. "Where's the teacher?! What kind of teacher's late on the first day! We don't even have our seat assignments yet! I say we should teach the teach a lesson!"

"Dope, what are you talking about? Sit down!" Sasuke yells at Naruto.

"No way! If it was any other day, I wouldn't care. Free nap time. But there's still a lot of prep we've got to do, and the teacher's wasting our time. I say we teach him a lesson. Who's with me?"

Nearly the whole class responds with cheers. Sakura speaks up among them.

"Sasuke's right, Naruto. This is stupid. Besides, how are you going to teach him a lesson?"

"Like this!" Naruto walks over to the blackboard and picks up a dusty eraser. He then walks over to the closest desk by the door and asks the kid sitting in it to give him a hand and move it closer to the door. Once set by the door, Naruto stands on the desk, opens the door slightly, and places the eraser on top. "Now, when he opens the door, the eraser will fall right on his head!"

"That's so stupid!" Sakura yells at Naruto. "There's no way a teacher from Konoha Academy will fall for that! Take that down now and stop being stupid!"

A loud thud is heard by the door, and everyone fell silent. The door starts openning, triggering the eraser to fall on top of gray, gelled spiky hair. The man took notice of the blackboard eraser, and patted the dust off his hair as he bent down to pick it up.

Naruto burst out laughing. "I can't believe you fell for it! What an idiot!"

"Did you do this?" the teacher asks.

"Yup! That was me. What are you going to do about it?"

"I told him to stop, sir, but he wouldn't listen." Sakura blurted out.

"What's your name?" The man with the gray spiky hair continues addressing Naruto.

"Uzumaki Naruto." He proudly says with a wide toothy grin.

"Mr. Uzumaki. Good job. You got me."

"You're not mad?"

"Of course not. I'm impressed. It's been years since someone tried to pull that kind of stunt on me, so it got me good."

"Thanks! I've been told I tend to think outside the box. Great qualities for a natural born leader."

"I can tell. It's too bad I'm going to have to punish that leadership."

"Huh?"

"Usually, we rotate daily on classroom clean up and work as a school to clean up the hallways at the end of the week. Today, you'll clean up all four floors of hallways."

"What?!"

"And you, with the pink hair?" The man points at Sakura. "What's your name?"

"Haruno Sakura, sir?" Sakura's unsure why the teacher's addressing her.

"Ms. Haruno, no one likes a tattle tale. You can join Mr. Uzumaki in clean up. Get acquainted with each other on more friendly terms. You will be spending the next three years together."

"We already know each other."

"Splendid! Then you'll have no problems working together." The man with the gray hair glances down at the table next to the doorway. "Mr. Uzumaki, these classroom desks are unusually large and typically require two people to carry them. Who helped you with your little prank?"

"Ah, um, no one did, sir. I'm really strong!"

"Of course, you are. If no one's willing to admit to helping Mr. Uzumaki, the whole class will have to help Mr. Uzumaki and Ms. Haruno with clean up." The room remain silent. "Very well. If no one's willing to speak up by the time I count to three, everyone will do hallway clean up after school and extra work for the unlucky student who also has to do today's classroom cleanup. 1 … 2 … and –"

"I did it, sir." Sasuke says casually.

The teacher shifts his gaze at Sasuke and glances him over. "Uchiha Sasuke. From the Opening Ceremony. Am I correct?"

The only freshman student with a perfect score on his entrance exam. Seems doubtful a student focused on academic prowess would assist in a worthless childish prank. Additionally, Sasuke seems too snug in his corner of cute first year high school girls to have ever make the journey and help Mr. Uzumaki. Sasuke's covering for someone. Why?

"That's correct. And you're Hatake Kakashi Sensei."

Kakashi Sensei analyzes Sasuke and follows the direction of Sasuke's side glance to find Sakura. Sakura's eyes brighten with awe that look back at Sasuke. If Kakashi Sensei had to guess, Sakura thinks Sasuke's cool that he'd sacrifice himself to save the rest of the class. Could Sasuke have done it for love? It's possible. Even teenage boys get side tracked by love. Still.

"Ah, you remember! As expected from the first-year speaker! You can understand my skepticism."

"I understand. Naruto's a good friend of mine, which is why I helped him. Even if I didn't do it, you have no one else coming forward."

So, he's a friend of Naruto's. Kakashi Sensei continues following Sasuke's glance beyond Sakura and finds Naruto, who seems to be holding back tears. This makes more sense. Had no one spoken up, the whole class would have been punished, and everyone would have blamed Naruto holding a grudge against him for at least a year. Still. They'd have to be very close friends for Sasuke to openly volunteer. Perhaps there's another motive? Whatever. Doesn't change anything.

"Very well! After school, Mr. Uzumaki, Ms. Haruno, and Mr. Uchiha will clean the hallways! Now let's begin homeroom shall we! We have 10 minutes to cover our bases."

All of Sasuke's fangirls scream their disapproval. Among them Naruto complains that Sasuke shouldn't help at all. His reasoning gets lost in the crowd, but Sakura's name is occasionally heard.

"Enough!" Kakashi Sensei scolds. "This is there punishment. If I see others helping them, each person in the class will have to stand outside holding buckets until the three of them finish!"

Everyone fell silent.

"Great! Now, first, let's do seat assignments. Then we'll do introductions, and I think that's all we'll have time for today. We'll finish the rest of it tomorrow. Sounds good, everyone?"

"Yes, sir!" The whole class replies. A hint of fear lingers in their voices.

"Wonderful! The seat assignments were pre-drawn. I'll write them up on the board." Kakashi Sensei draws a diagram of the classroom on the board using squares to represent a desk, then writes names above each square to show the student sitting there.

The first name he writes is Sasuke's, who sits in the far back corner of the room closest to the windows. All of Sasuke's fan girls hold their breath in anticipation for the lucky girl, if at all, who will sit next to Sasuke! That girl will have the easiest access to Sasuke and will be the most likely to become his girlfriend! Until they change seats after the first semester. Still, whoever she is will be one lucky girl.

After Sasuke's name, Kakshi Sensei moves his hand down the column. The person in front of him is a boy, but even if it was a girl, there's no way they could have intimate conversations with him during class or be able to stare at him in all his hotness. The only benefit to sitting in front of the hottest boy at school is you get a comfortable place to sit during that 10-minute period in-between classes when teachers move around to prepare for the next lecture. Actually, since Sasuke's placed in the far back of the class, the only one who can comfortably stare at Sasuke without being caught is that one person sitting next to him. Anyone else who dares is likely to get caught and would be labeled a stalker!

Kakashi Sensei shifts his hand back to the name next to Sasuke's. It's Haruno Sakura. All the girls swing their heads towards a blushing, stunned Sakura. A mixture of joy and fear plasters her face. Stares hover around Sakura emitting a hostile aura around the room. First, she gets alone time with Sasuke after school, and now she gets to sit next to him all day during school!

Kakashi Sensei loops around to the seat next to Sakura's name and writes Uzumaki Naruto. Naruto cheers loudly not trying to hold back his happiness. He rushes to Sakura and grabs her hand.

"Please take good care of me Sakura, since we'll be seated together!"

"Let go you idiot!" Sakura yanks her hand away from Naruto and hits him hard on the head. "You don't have to be so forceful! And your hands are sweaty!"

The stares become replaced with giggles. Whispers bounce back and forth of how Naruto and Sakura make a good couple. Embarrassed, Sakura blushes and punches Naruto one last time before moving to her seat as she hides a shy stare at Sasuke.

Kakashi Sensei finishes writing the names on the board leaving the corner seat next to Naruto blank. "This ends homeroom. Now, if you excuse me, I have to teach some Sophomores Japanese." Kakashi Sensei walks out the door and Asuma Sensei replaces him thirty seconds later.

There's an awkward silence in the room. The student representatives have yet to be assigned, so there's no one to lead the bows. Eyes shift around the room to see who would lead. Naruto finally speaks up.

"Stand."

"Seriously? You?" Sakura mocks.

"Stand." Naruto says louder. The whole class stands on command. "Bow." The whole class bows and sits back down in their seats, signaling class to start.


The new second years sigh with relief when lunch finally arrives. Only Lee will admit his excitement to be back, but whatever excitement there was evaporated in first period. Now they can only be grateful that lunch finally came. Three second years in particular, Hyuga Neji, Kishimoto Tenten, and the previously mentioned Rock Lee, are extra grateful that their lunch spot they acquired during their first year has not been taken.

Neji, Tenten, and Lee sit half way under a tree's shade and the blazing sun. The dry grass cushions them from the dirt underneath. The three friends sit eating their bentos as they catch up on their breaks.

"So, how's Hinata been doing?" Tenten asks as she slips an octopus hotdog in her mouth.

"Annoying as ever. Ino and Sakura spent the night last night and kept me awake for way too long!"

"What? They had a sleepover! How come I wasn't invited?!"

"More importantly," Lee adds, "why didn't Neji have a sleepover along with Hinata so I can spend time with the ever-youthful Sakura."

"You're missing the point! Because of Hinata, I didn't sleep until 3:00am!"

"You're exaggerating. There's no way Ino will stay up any later than one."

"Still. My cousin is the worst."

"You're exaggerating. Hinata's the sweetest person on earth."

"You don't live with her."

"I'm just saying! She's my friend too. And - " Tenten takes a deep breath before she continues. "You know what. Never mind. You were right. I'm just going to head back to class now." Tenten starts packing up her lunch.

"Tenten, you don't have to go." Neji pleads.

"It's fine. I'm just heading back early. I'll see you inside." Tenten gets up dusting off her skirt before she leaves. Her bento's nicely wrapped in a handkerchief; it swings with her arm as Tenten walks back to class. Her signature brown twin buns bounce to her strides. Neji hangs his head back releasing a sigh.

Lee scoops another spoonful of spicy curry and points it at Neji. "You know, if you keep acting like this, she's never going to know how you feel."

"Get that thing away from me. Last time you nearly melted my eyes."

"That being said," Lee shoves the curry in his mouth and swallows it nearly instantly. "What are the chances that Sakura's returning to your house again?"

"You know she likes Sasuke, right?"

"I'm aware, but fear not, my youthful friend! For I have a plan that will make Sakura fall in love with me!"

"And what's this genius plan?"

Lee jumps to a stand pointing his spoon straight in the air. "I will ask Sakura to be my girlfriend!"

"Seriously?"

"It's now or never Neji!"

"So you're going to ask her now?"

Lee jumps back down sitting crisscrossed. "Goodness no! I haven't worked out that detail yet."

"Sure."

"How about you? When are You planning on asking Tenten out?"

"Eventually."

"Bull."

"I will."

"When?"

"I will."

Neji keeps relaxed. Irritated, Lee furrows his bushy eye brows and pouts lips. Lee hates Neji's "let destiny take control" philosophy. This must be the biggest reason why he and Tenten haven't gotten together yet, second to Neji and Tenten's insecurities. Neji and Tenten have liked each other since youthful late elementary school days, both forcing Lee not to say a word to the other. Most likely out of embarrassment. Perhaps more.

"Then how about a proposition?"

"What?"

"Let's have a bet. First person to ask out their crush wins. Loser has to do whatever the winner says."

"No."

"Why not? Where's your youthful excitement for love!"

"Not up for bet."

"Come on, Neji!"

Neji sits up straight and whips his head towards Lee. "My love life isn't to be played around with."

Lee didn't realize how much Neji really likes Tenten. What seems like an innocent childhood crush has developed into something more. More than Tenten's feelings?

"Well think of it like this, you'll eventually ask Tenten out, right."

"Right."

"The later you don't the more likely she'll be snatched up by another guy, right?"

Neji didn't respond.

"So, there's no harm with this bet. Just a consequence if you don't do what you're supposed to do fast enough. Deal?"

Neji considered the bet. What Lee says is true. Even if Neji did lose, what Lee will probably make Neji do is train with him after soccer practice, which would be irritating and make him more likely to get him to ask out Tenten faster, but it's not horrible. And it would be good for Neji to finally put his feelings out there.

"Sure Lee. I accept your bet."

The outside school grounds become emptier the closer it gets to class. Neji and Lee begin to head back in too. Neji's calm demeanor startles Lee more than usual. His maturity defined by his sturdy stance as Neji walks ahead. The two friends walk into their classroom and see Tenten bent over a book. A subtle smile brushes over Neji's face. Is this what a man looks like in love?


Not wanting to fall behind in the competition to steal Sasuke's heart, Ino insists on visiting classroom 1-7 during every break. This reason alone is why Ino drags Hinata to visit Sakura during their lunch break. It is the discovery of Sasuke and Naruto's absence that Ino devises her brilliant plan.

"Um, Ino. Shouldn't we be heading back? Class is almost starting."

"Hold on, Hinata. I wanna hang around a little first." Ino smiles devilishly. "We can head back when the original owner of these desks return."

"You mean when Sasuke returns." Sakura complains.

Ino currently sits in Sasuke's seat. After visiting for the past three breaks, Ino's fully aware where Sasuke sits and how close he sits next to Sakura. What Ino finds more interesting is the other person sitting next to Sakura.

"Whose seat am I sitting in, Sakura?" Hinata asks.

"You wouldn't know him." Sakura runs her words together. As soon as Sakura saw Ino attempting to slide Sasuke's and Naruto's desk next to hers, she understood what simple plan Ino had cranking in her brain.

Sauke and Naruto enter the classroom. Ino is the first to react to Sasuke's presence. She jumps up and runs to his arm.

"Sasuke! Where were you?!"

"Let go." Sasuke furrows his eyebrows in annoyance, though he doesn't try to fidget his way out of Ino's hold. More girls flock to Sasuke fully surrounding him and pushing Naruto out of the way.

Noticing Naruto's presence, Hinata instinctively twiddles her thumbs. She bends her head down hiding a light blush. Lavender eye peak out.

Naruto walks to his desk when he sees Hinata. "Hey Hinata! Long time no see! How was your summer?"

"H-h-hi Naruto!" Naruto keeps walking towards causing her blush to grow redder.

"So, what are you doing in my desk?"

"Thi- this is yo-yo-your seat!" Hinata's face blushes brighter out of embarrassment. "I'm so sorry. Excuse –"

"Don't worry about it. Sit. We've got some time." Naruto sits on the edge of the desk and flashes a wide toothy grin at Hinata. "So what have you been up to?"

Hinata continues twiddling her thumb as her face grows redder. She barely lets out a whisper before one of Sasuke's fangirls runs past Naruto pushing him forward. His arms flail in the air before he catches his balance centimeters away from Hinata's face. Their eyes lock.

"That was close, huh Hinata. Seems I've learned my lesson from last time."

Hinata's face turns its final shade of red before she faints. She falls out of her seat and onto the floor unconscious.

"Hinata!" Naruto jumps from the desk to Hinata's side. "Hinata! Are you okay!" Naruto looks around the room for help, but no one notices. He scoops Hinata's unconscious body and quickly carries her out of the classroom.


Hinata wakes up less than an hour later. She slowly picks herself up and looks around the room. There's a window on one side of the room with light shining in. The walls are white along with everything else except for the daffodil bouquet in the far corner of the room. A clock hangs on the wall in front reading 1:55pm.

"Hey! You're up!" rings a familiar voice. Hinata jumps towards the sound and sees Naruto sitting in a chair near Hinata's bed. "You've been out for a while. The nurse has been out for lunch, so I decided to keep you company in case you woke up and she wasn't here. Which happened. So I guess it was a good thing that I stayed!"

Hinata blushes. "Na-naruto, wha-what happened? What's going on?"

"You fainted, so I carried you to the infirmary. But that damn nurse never showed up! There was an 'Out For Lunch' sign hanging on her door and has yet to come back. How long is her lunch period?!"

"You, you, you – CARRIED me here?!" Hinata's face grows redder.

"Well, yeah. I was worried about you." Naruto places his hand on Hinata's forehead. "And still am. Hinata, you're burning up."

"I-I-I-I have to go!" Hinata jumps out of bed in a rush.

"Hey relax." Naruto grabs Hinata's hand. "Calm down. We don't want you fainting again."

Naruto's touch calms Hinata, and she lies back down in bed. Naruto sits back in his chair to give Hinata space.

"Thank you, Naruto."

"Of course. Anything for a friend."

Hinata inwardly winced at the mention of the word "friend." "You know, you don't have to stay here with me."

"Yeah, but it doesn't feel right leaving you by yourself."

Her face flushes slightly at Naruto's sign of concern.

"Besides, Sakura would kill me if I left you alone. Although, she'd probably kill me anyway."

And now she's reminded of her crush's crush on one of her best friends.

"Naruto, I really feel fine. I think I'll head back to class."

"But Hinata, I – " This time, Naruto doesn't catch Hinata in time before she rushes out. He hears footsteps fade the farther away she gets. "You don't have to run." He whispers. Naruto shifts his focus out the window, whose view is completely blinded by the sunlight filtering in. He stuffs his hands in his pockets and hangs his head in disappointment.


The most exciting time for the first day back at school has finally arrived: School's Dismissal! Sounds of desks squeaking on the tile floors rattle the room. Seats slide out, bags sling onto shoulders, and students leave the classroom – except for the now infamous Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto.

Naruto stands up from his desk. "Man, this punishment is so stupid!"

"It's your fault for pranking him." Yells Sakura. She glances towards Sasuke, who walks towards the cleaning supplies. "But, you don't have to, Sasuke. You didn't take part in any of this. If you tell Sensei the truth, he might let you go."

"It wouldn't make a difference." Reasons Sasuke. "Let's just get this over with."

"Okay, how about we split the work up by floors." Reasons Sakura. "I think that way makes the most sense. Naruto gets the first floor, Sasuke gets the third floor, I get the fourth floor, and we'll all do the second floor when we're done."

"Wait a second," interrupts Naruto. "The fourth floor is smaller. You'd be doing less work then all of us."

"Then I'll pick up my rest of the share on the second floor."

"I agree with Naruto." Says Sasuke. "With that plan, we'd be done at the exact same time with some people putting in more effort than others." Sasuke shifts his direction towards Naruto giving him an accusing look. "We should do it by different wings of the building. I'll get the North wing, Naruto gets the East wing, Sakura gets the West wing, and we'll all do the South wing."

"Why should you get the North wing?" argues Naruto.

"It doesn't matter. They're the same size. You can have the North wing and I can have the East wing." Compromises Sasuke.

"No, it does matter!" interrupts Sakura. Sakura's main concern is how the West wing intersects with the North wing, where Naruto will be, but doesn't with the East wing, where Sasuke will be.A point Sakura will never bring up to Sasuke. "Besides, that method's too inefficient. The two sets of stairs are both in the East wing at opposite ends. Traveling to the different floors to clean the wings will be too much of a hassle."

"What if we all just clean together?" suggests Naruto.

"Don't be an idiot!" scolds Sasuke.

"Who are you calling an idiot, emo!" The two boys inch closer and closer nearly ready to start a fight.

"Will the both of you just stop!" Sakura attempts to mediate.

"What's going on?" Kakashi Sensei walks up towards his three students. "Why haven't the three of you start cleaning yet?"

"We haven't figured out a way to distribute the work." Replies Sakura.

"The three of you work together, obviously!" says Kakashi Sensei. Sasuke and Sakura's jaws drop, while Naruto grins boastfully at them. "Now that that's settled, hurry up and mop, or you three will never leave this building." Kakashi Sensei walks away then turns back around towards his three students. "If you need anything, I'll be in my office. But only until 5:00pm."

"Thank you, Kakashi Sensei!" thanks Sakura as Kakashi Sensei leaves and closes the door behind him.

The three students grab the mops and mop buckets and head to the hallway faucets to fill them up.

"Since we're already here, we might as well start with this side." Suggests Sasuke.

"Hey Sasuke," says Naruto, "Let's race. The first one to clean up our portion of the hallway wins."

"You're on."

"Winner treats the other to ramen!"

"Sweet free meal."

Sakura rolls her eyes at the two boys before she focuses back on her work. The boys get to their starting positions and start the race. Sakura works at her own pace while watching the boys act like fools. Naruto and Sasuke have always competed with each other, Naruto always insisting upon it, but ever since the "Awkward Accident," a genuine friendship's developed.

"Finished." Declares Sasuke.

"Double or nothing!" yells Naruto.

"Deal."

They continue on. Naruto and Sasuke half way finish mopping the second floor when Sakura finally finishes her first side.

"Come on, Sakura!" yells Naruto. "You need to catch up with us!"

"Will you two take this seriously!"

"Lighten up, Sakura!"

Sakura squeezes her mop handle and grits her teeth but continues working. Naruto soaks up more water for his mop when he thinks of a genius idea.

"Hey Sasuke." Naruto shout whispers.

"What, idiot?" Sasuke replies in a normal voice.

"I'm going to dump this bucket on Sakura." Although Sasuke thinks Naruto's plan is retarded, Sasuke's unsurprised.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"It'll get her to loosen up a bit. Get that stick out of her butt and stop acting so bossy."

"I'm totally against it." Sasuke says to the air, because Naruto doesn't listen.

Sakura's diligently mops the floor. Eyes glued deep in concentration. Arm muscles pumping forward and back with each long motion. Her back and shoulders grow tense, but her feet are firmly planted. Sakura mops occasionally for her part time job at Walmart. She finds the task more relaxing then strenuous giving her time to think.

Water pours over Sakura. It thoroughly soaks every inch slowly creeping deep into her uniform and scalp. Short strands of wet hair cover Sakura's face. She flips it back with one hand and turns around towards a laughing Naruto. Blood pumps throughout Sakura's body in rage. Sakura swings the mop and repeatedly hits Naruto with its wet, dirty end.

"You asshole! You asshole! You fucking asshole!"

"Stop it, Sakura! It was only a joke, lighten up!" reasons Naruto.

Sasuke runs over grabbing Sakura's wrist preventing her to continue hitting Naruto.

"Sakura?" Sasuke speaks her name gently. Sakura hides her face from the two boys, but light sniffles come from her direction. Sasuke takes the mop Sakura holds and places it on the ground.

"Sakura?" Naruto calls out. "I'm sorry."

"You're a fucking jerk, Naruto." Sakura turns her head towards Naruto and Sasuke showing the tears swimming down her face. "You're a fucking jerk!" Sakura runs towards the restroom and locks herself inside.

"Jeez, she doesn't have to cry about it!" complains Naruto. "It's just her uniform. Not like she doesn't have another one that looks exactly the same."

"I doubt she does."

"Why?"

"You know Sakura's only here on a soccer scholarship, right Naruto?"

"Of course. Iruka Sensei keeps bringing it up during practice."

"Maybe that scholarship doesn't cover uniforms. That could be her only uniform that's now covered in dirty -"

Naruto starts running to find Sakura.

"Sakura!" Naruto yells.

Sasuke walks behind Naruto. Sakura isn't hard to find, since they both saw her running into the girls bathroom.

"Sakura!" Naruto continues to yell. He stands in front of the girl's bathroom door and pounds on it. "Sakura, please come out. I'm sorry."

Sasuke leans on the side of the door waiting to see what happens.

"My mom is going to kill me!" Sakura yells through the door. Her voice is muffled and neither Sasuke nor Naruto can see her face, but they both know she's only inches away from the door.

"Sakura, I had no idea. I wasn't thi-"

"Of course you had no idea! I'd expect nothing less from someone who doesn't have parents!"

Naruto froze.

"Both your parents died before you can remember, and left you with a substitute. But that's not the same, right!"

"Sakura," Naruto speaks her name calmly.

"You have no clue what it's like for you to have parents! So you could never understand the sacrifices they go for you, or the pain they endure for you, or the love that they suffer for you!"

"Sakura."

"Of course a boy raised without parents would turn into a selfish, immature, impetuous bastard like you!"

"Sakura!"

The door slams open and Sasuke walks in.

"That's enough." Declares Sasuke.

"Sasuke," stammers Sakura. "This is the girl's bathroom."

"Stop acting like you understand what it's like being raised without parents."

"Huh?" She backs away from Sasuke, who stands in the girl's bathroom unmoving.

"Stop acting like you understand the loneliness or the pain."

"Sasuke?"

"You're so annoying."

Sickly shades of white flash through Sakura's face. She's stands stiff but her body feels numb. Sakura stares at Sasuke who doesn't give a glance at her. The door's still wide open and Naruto stands on the other side mirroring Sakura. Sasuke travels to the other side and rests his hand on Naruto's shoulder.

"Apologize." Sasuke says, and walks away.

Naruto glances at Sakura, who's still inside the girl's bathroom, and back towards Sasuke, who's walking away to continue his cleaning.

"I'm not going in there!" Naruto yells to Sasuke.

"Just apologize, idiot!"

Naruto looks back at Sakura.

"Sakura, I'm sorry." Naruto begins. "I acted too rashly. I should have thought the situation through longer."

Sakura looks at Naruto. She takes in his soft, blue eyes, his messy blonde hair, and his hands that seem to be reaching out towards her. She recalls the fights she's witnessed Naruto in with schoolmates, with teachers, with Sasuke. She remembers a moment specifically in the second grade. Sakura had a hall pass to the restroom and saw an old man with long, white hair bending down consoling a crying Naruto. She remembers the man saying, "People will eventually understand you. Just give it time." In front of her, Sakura sees a boy trying hard to act like a boy so he can become a man.

Sakura shifts her damp hair to the side of her face. She walks up to Naruto and pats him on the shoulder. He blushes.

"We should get back to work." She says and walks away. "Oh," She stops and turns towards Naruto. "I have to text Ino something. It's very important." She stutters. "I need to ask her, if I can … borrow … something." She runs away. Naruto stands in awe at the strong woman he just saw. Sunlight crosses through the window falling onto Sakura bouncing off of her giving her the glow of a fallen angel. He smiles. Proud of her and hopeful that there might be some part of her that doesn't hate him.

On the way to the classroom, Sakura runs into Sasuke.

"I need to make a quick call to someone." She tells him avoiding eye contact. "It's very important! I'll be back to work on my part." Sakura runs away faster than how she came. Sasuke leans in on his mops handle and stares as Sakura runs off. Amazed by the rollercoaster of emotions she's gone through and the whirlwind of thoughts running through her head.

Sakura rushes inside the room slamming the door shut only to stand there in silence. She doesn't move or waver. Sakura focuses all her energy into breathing and concentrating about what Sasuke said to her. "Should I treat Naruto better? Am I acting immature? How should I treat Naruto?" She saysthis out loud, thankful to be alone in the room. There is one question that bothers Sakura the most. "Am I doing this just for Sasuke?"

Sakura's head hangs. She feels her eyelashes landing on her skin flicking away the dust trying to come in. "Who cares if I do it just for Sasuke? If that makes me a horrible person, then fine!"Sakura raises her head towards the ceiling, smile tight, her fist by her side. "I'll use this as motivation to make me a better person!"

After sending the text to Ino, Sakura rejoins Sasuke and Naruto mopping the floor.

"Hey, I want in on this race!" Sakura declares.

"Thank god!" says a relieved Naruto. "Then you owe us two bowls of ramen."

"Double or nothing! I bet I can beat both of you!" Sakura says with confidence.

"You're on." Agrees Sasuke. "Starting now."

"Hey, I wasn't ready!" yells Naruto.

The three finish their punishment and put the equipment back into storage.

"So, Naruto owes us 16 bowls of ramen." Says a smug Sasuke.

"You totally cheated!" yells Naruto. "I saw you skipping edges."

"That was you, idiot." Sasuke retorts.

"So, you three are finally done." Kakashi Sensei walks up to them.

"Kakashi Sensei!" yells Sakura. "I thought you said you were going to leave by five?"

"I had more work than I thought I did." Kakashi Sensei sniffs the air. "What's that smell?"

"I'd rather not talk about it." Says Sakura.

"Anyway, since the three of you worked so hard, how about I treat you all to some dinner? On me."

"I'm in!" yells Naruto.

"Sounds fun." Says Sasuke.

"Actually, I promised I'd meet a friend after school. It's for something kinda important." Sakura apologizes.

"It's your loss." Kakashi Sensei smirks through his medical mask.

The four walk towards the front of the school gate before Sakura parts ways. As they wave goodbye, the sunset falls behind Sakura giving her body a specific glow that makes her look radiant, like a fallen angel, both near and far. At least, that's what Sasuke thinks before he catches himself and begins questioning what these thoughts mean.


At the Yamanaka residence, Ino eats dinner with her parents.

"Honey, what did Sakura come for earlier?" asks Mrs. Yamanaka.

"Something happened to her school uniform, so she borrowed a pair from me." Replies Ino.

"Well that's nice of you." Says Mr. Yamanaka. "How was school sweet heart? You're in the same class as Shikamaru and Choji, right?"

"Yes." Ino groans. "I'd rather not talk about it."


Hinata sits at her room studying when she hears a knock at her door.

"Come in." she yells. It's her father.

"Hinata," says Mr. Hyuga. "Neji told me what happened at school today. About you fainting."

"Yes father."

"Hinata, you're too frail and sickly. You need to improve your health."

"Yes father."


Sakura returns home around 7:00pm. She walks in to the smell of rice and chicken.

"Mom?" Sakura cries out. "Are you home?"

"I just got back." Mrs. Haruno yells from the kitchen. "How was school today?"

After the fifteen long years of anticipation, on their very first day of high school, all high schoolers come to the same conclusion that Ino, Hinata, and Sakura came to.

"High school sucks!"


Currently in love: Neji with Tenten; Tenten with Neji; Hinata with Naruto


A/N: Kishimoto is obviously not Tenten's last name. I don't know what her real last name is and looked all over the internet and couldn't figure it out. Apparently, that's a plot point Kishimoto decided not to reveal. If anyone knows what her real last name is, please tell me with evidence, and I'll gladly change it for later chapters.