CHAPTER 2
disclaimer: Naruto is the work Masashi Kishimoto, not me, and I make no profits from this fanfiction.
WARNINGS: shonen ai, yaoi, corniness, angst, possible spoilers, could be boring, first fanfiction, etc.
It was a typical summer day in Konoha. There clouds moved lazily through the sky as the villagers performed their daily rituals. Everyone was out enjoying the fair weather, except for one usually hyperactive ninja who was still fast asleep in his bed. Normally, Naruto would be up at the crack of dawn to attend to any missions he had been assigned, but he had been granted a respite from Tsunade earlier that week.
Several days ago, Naruto had been standing in the Hokage's office upon returning from a mission that had taken him nearly three weeks to complete. Tsunade had barely glanced down at the report that Naruto had handed her when her attention was drawn to the fatigue that was clearly outlined in the blond ninja's face and posture.
"Uzumaki, I'm taking you off missions for two weeks. You've been working nonstop since you became a Jounin 6 months ago. I can't have you dropping dead of exhaustion. Go home, get some sleep, and then spend some time enjoying yourself for the next two weeks. I'll let you know if anything important comes up."
Naruto merely smiled his gratitude before he trudged out the door.
So, four days after Naruto left Tsunade's office he was sleeping late. As he rolled over in his sleep, sunrays filtering through the window hit his closed eyes, drawing him from his dream world. Naruto groaned as he opened his eyes to the onslaught of light. Yawning, he sat up and stretched his arms. Then, pushing the covers away from his body, he swung his legs out of bed and stood up to greet the day. Walking over to the full length, gold framed mirror standing next to his closet, he surveyed his image. He was pleased to see that he looked like his normal self again. All Naruto had done for the past three days was basically sleep and wake up once in a while to eat some ramen before crawling back into bed. The last mission had been grueling, and it had taken more out of him then he had initially realized. But now, Naruto looked rested and ready to re-enter society, albeit a little thin and sleep tousled.
As Naruto stood before the mirror, he compared himself mentally with the ninja he had been six years ago, back when he was still a part of team 7. He was proud of the 19 year old Jounin he had become. Between the ages of 15 and 17, Naruto had undergone a growth spurt that had left him at just under six feet tall. His body had filled out as well, adding muscle and girth to his tall frame. Simultaneously, Naruto's voice had deepened and matured, and he had let his blonde hair grow out slightly. Now, he sported a mane of golden locks which, although still spiky and haphazard, framed his face and offset his huge cerulean eyes perfectly. Even Naruto wasn't blind to the fact that now when he walked down the street, people liked what they saw, and Naruto would take cat calls over hissing hatred any day.
Naruto grinned at his reflection, and then began to dress. Since he had nothing important to do today, he chose to dress casually with a plain white t-shirt and black shorts. Then, changing his mind, Naruto instead decided to don a pair of gray and black swimming trunks. Perhaps he'd go swimming later to cool off. In fact, he thought, I think I'll go see if Shikamaru wants to spar for awhile, I think the old hag gave him some time off too. Then maybe we'll catch up with some of the other guys and go swimming.
His mind made up, Naruto quickly gulped down some breakfast, grabbed his now tattered frog wallet, and left the house. He was eager to do something active and see his friends after so much lying around the last few days.
