Welcome to Konoha
Chapter I
By: Morbid Alex (Karasu8)

A/N: Oh yes! I haven't written anything this long, I don't think, in a very long time. I've finally gotten some spare time to write the first chapter out. It hasn't been proof read, sorry, but that's fine. I wanted to get it out to you guys as soon as I could. Hee. Please, please, read and review! Anyone who wants to be my BETA, add it to your review. I need someone good with English, better than me, preferrably, to BETA it. My BETA will get a link/kudos in my profile as thanks. Oh, and yes, I was born and raised in the United States - no worries about me being from some other country - English is my first language, so please stop asking. :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters, but I do own the plot and the fanfiction. I make no money off of this - don't sue me.

"Sasuke-kun!"

A shock of pink and red flew through the long corridor of the high school sector's east wing. Many people stumbled out of the way, glaring, and others watched with curious expressions. A girl, only about five foot something and so many inches tall, wrapped her fingers anxiously around the wrist of a taller student. She giddily tugged on the male's arm, wanting his attention. Her sea green eyes met an obsidian pair - the hands releasing the limb they'd seized. Already, her bubbly air cracked, gaps filling easily with a slight anxiety.

"Sasuke-kun," a more subdued tone fell upon ears that only, partially, listened to the words it formed. "We're - Yamanaka Ino and I - we're having a party in the girls' dormitories. Do...you want to come?"

Many onlookers seemed to stop and lean toward them to hear the answer. Students were always eager, whole-heartedly ready, to take in any word from this conversation that they could. The addressed, Uchiha Sasuke, didn't bother to do much more than raise an eyebrow. A semi-interested gaze swept through the faces in the hallway before landing back on the speaker. His usually stotic face was even more so at the moment. He stood there, remaining silent for quite some time. He exhaled heavily. The tense atmosphere growing just as heavy. It was thick and weighed a ton, and nobody spoke - waiting for Sasuke to talk.

"I'll think about it."

The reply was smooth and straight to the point. It didn't actually answer the girl's question, but she was happy nonetheless. Merely recieving a distracted glance from Sasuke was enough for her - for any girl on the high school level of Konoha Campus. A giggle escaped her and she felt her cheeks brighten.

"What's your name again?" A low-spoken inquiry, dark eyes fixated on the girl. More people began to talk, to whisper. When Sasuke spoke to people outside of his small group of friends, there was a tendency for gossip to appear. The "news" of such things always spread like untamed fire.

"It's S-Sakura," a hasty bow, "Haruno Sakura."

Sakura's cheeks darkened further, growing hotter. She avoided the male's gaze, fingers clasping together, and then unclasping, nervously. She worried her bottom lip with her teeth. Somehow, she'd managed to forget about the sweet glob of gum residing in her mouth that was meant for biting down on. Her lip, instead, was her current choice for chewing. Talking to one of the Uchiha brothers was something she thought she'd never actually be able to do.

"Hn. I'll make sure to get back to you about the party, Sakura. I can't give any guarantees, unfortunately."

The girl nodded quickly before running a trembling hand through her hair. Gods, she was nervous! She smiled, giving him a murmured "thank you". Fingers twisted a piece of pink hair and she waved, turning on heel. The whispering began to dissipate, becoming only a few bits of conversation, as if to keep her from hearing them. She felt the eyes of the other students on her and swallowed. It had taken all of her courage to talk to him. She sped off to her next class, blush gradually fading from her features.

Sasuke simply watched her take off. His expression was blank once again and he seemed frighteningly calm. Inwardly, though, he was mulling things over. Haruno Sakura, sixteen, was a sophomore like him. She was part of the cheerleading team, if he remembered correctly. She was in a few of his classes,but not his career studies. Sakura was training in the medical field. He was into more hands-on things like weaponry. After all, he was part of the Uchiha family - and they had definitely had a long history in the weapon industry. Not only that, but they were known as the best in the teachings of martial arts at their rather extravagant martial arts academy. Truthfully, Fugaku had already summed up the weaponry classes at Konoha Campus for Sasuke when he was much younger - before he had stepped foot inside a public school. The man hadn't let either of his children enter the first level of the Campus, so the family taught them instead.

"Why the hell are you just standing there?" A louder, more cheerful voice than Sakura's interrupted his train of thought. He could have sworn he felt his left eye twitch, despite trying to hold his calm appearance. His gaze shifted to his right. The voice belonged to a certain blonde, yet another sophomore, that everyone knew as Uzumaki Naruto. He contemplated choking the teenager, just so his voice wouldn't penetrate his musings again. Sasuke watched a cheesy grin spread to Naruto's face as they made eye contact. He nearly snarled.

"What's it to you, Dobe?"

A huff was heard, Naruto stuffing his hands roughly in his pockets. The usual, outrageously bright, orange shirt caught his attention, making him grimace. Button-up or not, with black slacks and shoes or not, he found it absolutely ridiculous. Nobody else, except maybe his brother's friend Deidara, would even consider an outfit like this. He felt the blonde's sky-colored eyes on his own clothing. Naruto knew, most likely, that he was studying the obscenely bright colors he wore so often.

"Always the same black button-ups, the white pants, the black shoes! Brighten up, asshole!" A chuckle followed the exclamation, earning him Sasuke's trademark scowl. The idiot had a knack for ignoring his questions - nothing new there, at least. He'd have to kill him, though, if he started dancing around with half-statements. His brother did that - the most popular college student on campus, mind you - and it drove Sasuke crazy. His mind fell back to the girl who had had the guts to approach him. He found her to be kind of weird, like Naruto, but was able to tolerate her even less than he could the blonde. The main problem was her voice - oh, and her hair. Or perhaps...

"It's that fucking gum she never stops chewing," he hissed under his breath. Naruto merely stared, shaking his head. Sometimes, he questioned his friend's sanity. The said teen realized shortly after that he'd been talking to himself out loud. A frown graced his face for what had to be the thousandth time that day. But the fact the hall's were nearly empty now seemed to completely bring him back to reality. He eyed the other and the dwindling number of people in the corridors.

"All right, move your ass, we're going-" a bell rang, effectively cutting him off, leaving him, a minute later, to clench his teeth and finish his sentence. "To be late."

"Oh well!" Naruto grinned cheerfully and fished his hands back out of his pockets. He shifted his bag to his other shouder. Sasuke had a bag too, held loosely in his left hand, not wanting to carry something on his back unless absolutely neccessary. It wouldn't be right for him to put too much stress on his back - he needed it to move around the right way back at home, while he practiced with Itachi and his father. He narrowed his eyes.

"Let's go," a hand ran through spiked black-blue locks," I don't feel like getting bitched at by the pervert today."

"Sure thing." A simply reply. Naruto was finally running off his midday energy, becoming a bit more placid. The "pervert", as they called him outside of class, was their History II professor: Hatake Kakashi. He constantly carried around a little pornographic series of novels, Icha Icha Paradise, reading them whenever - never going anywhere without one. Occasionally, Kakashi would go as far as offering copies to their English teacher too. His name was Umino Iruka. The poor man would flush and vigourously shake his head in refusal. Sasuke, Naruto, and their friends all believed there was some sort of affair happening between the two. Sasuke wouldn't doubt it, anyway, having seen his fair share of relationships. No, not him dating people, but watching his brother and lovers in public. Itachi was such a romantic, seductive man. Every time he thought about it, he could feel a growing rage in the center of his chest, jealously, he assumed, growling and waiting for the right moment to lash out. Sasuke squashed his envy, though, and found himself determined to get to Kakashi's class as soon as he possibly could. He didn't need relationships - the younger of the Uchiha brothers was a bit too anti-social for it all anyway. What was the point, when the only person he wanted, was all ready taken? And, most definitely, straight? He shook the dismal thoughts from his head, uttering profanity under his breath. A glance over his shoulder had him finding that Naruto wasn't far behind him.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

It didn't take them long to arrive at the correct classroom. The pair both knew it'd only taken them around ten minutes or so to get there. They were breathing slightly harder than normal, having hurried to get there. The Uchiha placed a pale hand on the doorknob and turned it, yanking the door to their classroom open. It was a swift, fluid motion. Nobody, but Kakashi, appeared to notice their intial arrival. Everyone else was absorbed in their text books, Kakashi's eyes shifting from his own literature to the late teens. Sasuke could imagine the smirk behind the mask that always hid the lower half of thier sensei's face. Kakashi sighed dramatically, or so it seemed dramatic in the sense that it drew everyone's attention to them. Damn, caught in the act! At least, Kakashi couldn't have arrived more than a few minutes before them. The perverted teacher was always, really, always late and making excuses for it.

"You're late. Did you both get caught up in the flow of life too?"