Okay, so here's the first chapter to my story~ I hope it's okay. It's a bit short though. First time writing such a fanfic. After reading a few time travel fics, seeing pictures of the old team 7 on the Internet, and listening to some nostalgic songs, I suddenly had the inspiration to write one out. And while I was writing this, I read the latest chapter of Naruto. And i was like YES! haha okay, i shall stop my rambling here. Anyway, I wrote this for myself, so it's okay if you think its boring, plain or unoriginal. Suggestions and advice are welcome though.

(Edited version)

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter 1: Team 7

"Do you ever wish you had a second chance to meet someone again for the first time?"

Do you remember? How we used to fight? How we argued over anything and everything? How we nearly killed each other so many times? How, in the end, there was nothing but destruction, nothing but cruel words and harsh silences... How, in the end, there was no one left but you, because everyone else was gone. How, in the end, your lightning found its way into my heart, because I gave up fighting you...

I think I died by my own hand, instead of yours. Because the fire went out in silence, leaving behind nothing but wisps of smoke, seconds before you could extinguish it.

But I will fix it. I will fix everything.

Going back to the beginning. Where it all started.

Let's meet again.

... Someone's POV...

This isn't the afterlife... I'm not dead...? How am I not dead?

... Another POV...

I'm alive again? And this doesn't seem like Edo Tensei...

... Naruto's POV...

It aches. Everything aches. Why does it hurt? Why does my heart feel like it has been ripped into shreds? Where does the sorrow come from? Why do I feel such grief? Why are there... Tears in my eyes?

Because we have lost almost everything. But it does not matter anymore. Wipe those tears.

Who are you?

I'm you, I told my younger self. Reassuring her. And she went quiet as I took over. I looked at her, watching me with wide eyes in a dark room, uncharacteristic of her. Then she grinned a big wide grin. Now that was more like her.

Ganbatte, she said, as our memories merged and she saw what I planned to do. Then the room disappeared.

I opened my eyes.

I was back. I really was back.

Wait, where's the Kyuubi? KURAMA?

I'm here. Now let me get some sleep. I'm still weak from bringing us here and I need to recover my chakra.

So I let the grumpy fox rest. I glanced at the calendar. Hey, isn't today the day we get assigned to teams? I glanced at the clock. Oh crap, I was going to be late!

Five minutes later, I had donned on my bright orange jacket (oh my old jacket! How happy I was to wear it again), blue pants and sandals, hitai-ate proudly tied around my forehead, feeling like I had just received it... Which my younger self did, but I was actually feeling proud for making it back here. I was going to get a chance to change things, make things right, prevent so many people from dying.

I entered the classroom around the time I should (mostly because I ended up running to the Academy. I couldn't help it. My spirits soared so high, my happiness at seeing all the familiar streets and the village as how it was so long ago...) and nearly got a shock when I nearly bumped into a raven-haired boy.

Sasuke. My best friend. How I've missed you.

Even as I scowled at him and yelled at him for being in my way, I smiled on the inside. Here was my old friend and rival. I was definitely making sure that I do not lose him again this time round...

As I looked around for my seat (Sasuke merely snorted at my scolding), other genins were skeptically asking me about my presence, and I had to keep telling them I graduated, with the hitai-ate as proof.

I felt myself being pushed, and even with the reflexes of my future self, I couldn't prevent myself from colliding into the now seated Uchiha. Face-first. Our lips touched. Both our faces were the epitome of shock.

I quickly scrambled backwards and gagged while yelling, "Ugh! My mouth is rotting!"

Not that kissing him was that unpleasant. But I didn't want anyone getting the wrong idea. Besides, I was sure my past self would have been disgusted at kissing Sasuke, who I'm supposed to hate.

"Naruto, dobe! I'm going to kill you!" Sasuke declared while choking. I tried not to think about how this threat was probably empty of real killing intent, though he might really end up killing me in the future.

Iruka-sensei saved me from the attacks of raging fangirls who couldn't stand another girl kissing their precious Sasuke. I took my seat far from Sasuke, heaving a sigh of relief. Truth be told, I had totally forgotten that this had happened before. And now I was surprised I didn't remember it. And when I suddenly recalled the memory, I wished I had recalled it earlier.

We were assigned to our teams, and I sat in my chair, happily soaking it all in. How I missed those days, and now I was reliving it. I remembered in time to act my part when I was assigned to be on the same team as Sakura-chan, whom I thought was cute (but at that time, she didn't want to be my friend), and Sasuke, whom I was supposed to hate. I protested, and received a lecture of sorts from Iruka-sensei. Basically, everything was as it should be.

Except that I don't remember bumping into Sasuke twice the first time. Which meant that my presence here was going to change a lot of things without me even trying. Just arriving slightly earlier or later than I should could cause something different to happen. I was going to have to be careful. If I changed too much, I wouldn't be able to predict what happens next and I wouldn't be able to change future stuff as I liked.

Afterwards, we waited for Kakashi-sensei to arrive. I knew he was going to be late (if only he'd come early. I really couldn't wait to see my old sensei again) so I prepared my prank despite my teammates skepticism and protest. I made sure the prank was exactly the same as the one I did the first time, then wondered if I should make it more elaborate.

I decided against it in the end and settled to watch my teammates. I tried making conversation with Sakura as usual, but she huffed and ignored me. She must be extra angry for me kissing Sasuke earlier. What a pity.

In the end, I didn't talk to Sasuke either, not when the kissing incident was still fresh in my mind. Team bonding would have to wait. Kakashi fell for the trap (and I still wondered if he really fell for it or not). Sakura-chan kept insisting she tried to stop me while Sasuke looked like he couldn't quite believe that Kakashi was a jounin (now that I'm watching this again, it occurred to me how hilarious they were).

Kakashi announced that he didn't like us, and told us to meet him at the roof. Then he introduced himself (which basically told us nothing except his name, but thankfully, I was more informed than the others) and got us to introduce ourselves, starting with me.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto!" I yelled cheerfully. "I like cup ramen. What I like even more is the restaurant ramen that Iruka-sensei buys for me. I dislike waiting 3 minutes for my cup ramen to cook. My dream is to surpass the Hokage! Datebayo! Hobbies... Pranks I guess."

Did I say anything wrongly? I didn't think so. What I didn't add was how I wanted to save everyone from dying in the War, but I couldn't very well say that.

It was Sasuke's turn next. "My name is Uchiha Sasuke. There are tons of things I dislike, but I don't really like anything. And… I don't want to use the word 'dream' but… my ambition is the resurrection of my clan and… to kill a certain man."

Ah. It was all about revenge again, wasn't it? Hopefully that would change later. It had better change.

"I'm Haruno Sakura," began Sakura-chan. "The thing I like is… Um… Should I say my dream for the future…? Well, the person I like is… OH MY!" she blushed like crazy began screaming like the fangirl she was. It was obvious who she had been thinking about. She continued on, "The thing I dislike is… Naruto! My hobby is…*blush even more*"

I cringed at her proclamation. I couldn't quite remember what I did to her to make her dislike me. All I ever did was try and make friends... And accidentally kissed the Uchiha.

"Okaay. Enough of that. We'll be starting our duties tomorrow―" I interrupted Kakashi-sensei with a yell of "YAY! Duties! Duties! What kinds of duties!" I truly was overjoyed at having to do little missions again. Even the boring D-ranked ones. Can you believe it?

Kakashi-sensei was silent for a moment before replying, "First we are going to do something with just the four of us."

"What! What!" I asked eagerly, even though I already knew what.

"Survival training and I'll be your opponent. This isn't normal training though..."

We gave him questioning looks and Kakashi-sensei chose that moment to chuckle.

"This training is a super difficult exam with a failure rate of over 66%! Of the 30 graduates, only 12 will be chosen as Genin," Kakashi-sensei explained. It took me a moment to make myself look shocked.

"What the hell? But we worked so hard… Then what was the point of graduating?" I exclaimed. Well actually, I didn't really exclaim that. I just let my younger self take over for a moment.

"Oh… That? That's just to select those that have the chance to become Genin," replied Kakashi-sensei in his annoyingly calm voice. "Anyways, tomorrow you will be graded on the training field. Bring all your shinobi tools. Oh, and skip breakfast. You'll throw up."

Throw up. Huh. I fell for it last time. But not this time!

...

I ate my breakfast as usual, though I skipped the milk. (All my milk was spoilt. I couldn't understand how I managed it before) After changing into my proper clothes and attempting to neaten my chin-length spiky hair, I took my time to make my way to training field, knowing Kakashi-sensei would be late anyway.

Along the way, I tested out my ninja skills. My reflexes were as sharp as before, though my muscles weren't really accustomed to the speed I used. My aiming was way better than before. And I still retained my chakra suppressing skills. I didn't risk trying out my rasengan though.

I arrived slightly later than Sakura-chan. Sasuke arrived shortly after me. Kakashi-sensei was very late. As per normal. Everything went as it should be, until I avoided getting poked in the butt by A Thousand Years of Pain. Then I decided it was time for teamwork to happen.

I sought out Sakura-chan first. It was more normal for me that way. She didn't want to have anything to do with me, until I told her I'd help her look for Sasuke and force him to join us, on top of my reasoning for team work.

We found Sasuke later, with his head sticking out of the ground, an immensely annoyed expression on his face. I couldn't keep myself from laughing. Now what would the future Sasuke say if I took a whole lot of these moments and showed them to his future Orochimaru team. His reputation would be seriously ruined.

Sakura and I helped Sasuke out and I told him that I had wanted to team up with Sakura but she wanted to team up with him. So teaming up together would be the best idea. Sasuke agreed, but with a skeptical frown.

"I've managed to touch the bells, so I probably have a higher chance of getting them," he said.

"You could get the bells while Naruto distracts him!" exclaimed Sakura-chan. Good that she was thinking and taking the initiative. It would still take awhile for her to grow up into the Sakura I know though. And suddenly, I realized how much I missed her. How much I missed them.

The novelty of being back in the past wore off as I realized that my teammates and the friends I was going to meet and interact with later, they weren't mine. They were younger, inexperienced, and that didn't matter, but they were different. I'd have to befriend everyone he used to know all over again. But my original friends, they were either dead or badly injured. They were completely gone now that I have gone back in time. And I could never get them back. Even if the Sakura now grows up to be just like the Sakura I know, or Hinata matured and lost her shyness, or Shikamaru becoming a greatly valued strategist... They wouldn't be the same. No one could replace my old friends.

It gripped me, and for a moment, I wondered if I had made the right choice. It would be my fault now if things stray too much from how it should be. And there was Sasuke. He wasn't the Sasuke I know. And I couldn't believe I actually missed him. My old Sasuke, even if he did leave the village for power and revenge. Even if he did try to kill me so many times. Even if he did almost succeed the last time. The only reason why he didn't was because the Kyuubi transported me back in time before I could die.

"Naruto! Why are you spacing out? Did you hear anything I said?" Sakura-chan demanded, waving her hand in front of my face. I blinked several times.

And hurriedly tried to appease her. "H-Hai! I was just amazed at your awesomeness!" I didn't want to be on the receiving end of her punch but... What did I say? What a lousy excuse.

"Of course! You're dead last in class after all! Anything would amaze you," Sakura said. Sasuke just did a suspicious grunt. Or snort. Or something in between.

... Third Person POV...

While Kakashi read his book, he wondered about the sudden lack of activity. And then, the brash and loud blonde genin appeared again, still wearing that horrible bright orange jacket. Did she know nothing about subtlety?

"Kakashi! Ready or not, here I come!" she yelled, and suddenly, not one Naruto came charging at him, but countless of them barraged into him.

Then when he was about to flicker away and use a replacement technique, a few of the shadow clones managed to get a tight hold on him. And as one, they transformed into what appeared to be an older, sexier, naked version of Naruto with her hair grown out and tied into two ponytails. And all of the blonde naked female clones started cooing and squealing and giggling as they attacked him, some blowing air kisses along the way.

Kakashi's nose bled really badly.

...

The plan was for Naruto to distract Kakashi with clones. What Sasuke didn't expect was the Sexy no Jutsu, let alone a Harem version. And he had Sakura to thank for preventing him from seeing too much of that, for she had crashed into him in her haste, before joining the fray, dispelling a lot of clones. Hidden behind some thick bushes near Kakashi, his chakra suppressed to a minimum, Sasuke sighed.

... Naruto's POV...

I suppose I should've expected Sakura to join in once I used that jutsu. She killed a good many of my clones with a well-placed punch in the face. When the raging Sakura came within earshot. I protested to her.

"Hey! What are you doing?!"

"WHAT WERE YOU DOING?" raged Sakura.

"You said distract him! You didn't specify how!" I defended myself. In the mean time, a nose-bleeding Kakashi-sensei watched us with... I can't tell what expression was that on his face. Not that we could see much of his face anyway. Now when was the teme going to make his entrance?

Oh right, Kakashi wasn't near enough to Sasuke yet... And he was escaping, I quickly covered Sakura's eyes and got a few clones to help me keep her still.

"Trust me, Sakura-chan. You won't want to see this," I told her, and got a few clones near Kakashi to transform again. This time, there was one Gai (female version) exclaiming about youth in front of Kakashi, one cross-dressing Sasuke, a few even sexier girls, and for the hell of it, one temperamental Kurama (personified female version, or rather, what I thought he'd look like if he was a human female... complete with fox ears and nine bushy tails), all blocking Kakashi's front and sides, making him leap backwards in a combination of shock, disgust and a slight bit of fear. With the enhanced hearing I got from Kurama, I heard the soft ringing of bells suddenly stop... As if someone's hand had enveloped them and muffled the sound.

Sakura and I turned around in time to see Kakashi leap away from Sasuke, the sound of bells, no, the sound of one bell, ringing. Sasuke had only managed to get one bell. Well, one bell was better than none. We didn't really need the bell to pass anyway, since the key was teamwork... Which we still needed to work on, though this was definitely an improvement compared to the first time I took this test.

"Well, it looks like someone finally managed to get the bell," Kakashi commented. "Seems like Sasuke passes this test."

"No." All of us stared at him, surprised at his response. Maybe we didn't work as well as a team as Kakashi wanted, maybe Kakashi would pass Sasuke alone, but even if Kakashi was lying, which he might be, I had fully expected the teme to grab this chance to properly graduate and become a genin. Not only did he have the pride of an Uchiha, he was also an avenger and he would need to become a genin first in order to chase after his brother.

"No," the Uchiha repeated, and stared straight at me. "The bell belongs to Naruto. The dobe was the one who brought us together to get the bell, and distracted you. Without her help, I wouldn't have been able to get the bell. She deserves it. To take the bell that belongs to her would be too shameful."

We blinked and stared. What?

I quickly recovered and protested loudly. "Eh? But it was Sakura-chan who came up with the plan. This wouldn't have worked without her. She should get the bell. I don't care if I have to repeat a year at the Academy before graduating again. It doesn't matter how long it takes, as long as I can be Hokage, I'm happy."

Sakura sputtered. She clearly didn't expect my answer either, but I knew my answer was the right one.

"Actually, the plan was simple. Anyone could have come up with it. I didn't even participate much in the actual action. Since Sasuke-kun was the one who managed to get the bell in the end, the bell belongs to him," Sakura said, blushing slightly at the end.

Kakashi stared at us for a looong time. Then he inclined his head. "Sasuke?"

Sasuke glared and thew the bell onto the ground. "We're supposed to work in a three-man cell team, aren't we?"

I nodded in agreement. "It won't be fun for the one who graduates without his or her teammates."

I was glad Sakura added, "Who are going to be the teammates of the one who graduates if the rest are going to be sent back to the Academy?"

This was all very unexpected. I was in truth, quite thrown by what was happening, and I was sure Kakashi was too. It does not matter, however. All the better if we can actually work as a team... In persuading Kakashi to pass all of us.

"Well," Kakashi said, looking very pleased and amused. "I guess, you all pass then."

"The key to this test is team work, and you guys have worked well together. I've failed every team who took this test before you, because they failed to show team work. Remember, those who fail their mission are trash. But those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash."

Then he did his eye-smile. I automatically leapt into the air, cheering. Then I glomped Kakashi. Who was very surprised.

"Awesome!" Then I proceeded to glomp Sasuke (who automatically stiffened. haha) before glomping Sakura too (who looked resigned). "Now! Let's go Ichiraku Ramen to celebrate!"

"Definitely not," said Sakura. And we ended up eating at some other restaurant instead. Which was fine too. I would readily give up eating ramen to eat with my team once again. So maybe what I told Kakashi yesterday was wrong. I loved my team way more than eating ramen. And I hated our team breaking up way more than waiting a year to eat ramen.

And before I become Hokage, I was going to make sure Sasuke doesn't leave the team first.

Ja ne~ That's all for now~ The next chapter will be up in about... A week's time? Please review~