A/N: Wow, well... uh, I can't... the response to this story has been HUGELY overwhelming. I don't even know what to say, but thank you so, so much. It's been amazing. 40 follows in just over a day? I almost choked.

I don't really know why either, but it's nice all the same. So thanks for all of your support; it has been absolutely amazing.

And, because I FORGOT last chapter – my beta, Ekusukallybaa, is to thank for everything good you read in this story, ever. He is amazing and his stories shit on mine. Honestly. Check him out.

After this chapter, things will finally start becoming interesting. This might seem boring (and I really am sorry for that) but it's all kinda building up. I hope you'll like this story, and thank you so so SO much for the massive support you've all given me!


Uzumaki


Chapter 2


"These books aren't enough."

"No."

"What?"

"No." Naruto was whining again, and Satsuki resisted the urge to uppercut him. "They're fine. No more books."

Satsuki gave Naruto a cold glare, gaze flicking back to her work. Naruto found himself mesmerised by the way she leafed through the pages. She looked up at him, slamming the book shut and sliding it on top of a badly-balanced book tower. "These aren't specific enough," she said.

"Why does it matter?"

Satsuki didn't respond. She was awkwardly positioned, half kneeling but mostly lying down; one arm held a textbook flat on the floor, and the other wrote fluidly in a notebook, the paper held down by an elbow.

Naruto frowned, standing up and stretching. The day had grown late.

"Ah! The view out of your window is amazing!"

And it was.

Satsuki's room looked onto the main square of Konoha and the Hokage building, and the sky above it. Evening had fallen, and the lanterns from the shop below gave the view a singed orange glow. The sun beamed over angular pipes and tanks of the Konoha rooftops, a half-complete jigsaw silhouette casting over the windowsill. Satsuki didn't say anything.

"Don't you like it?"

She didn't look up from her work. "Get some more sources."

"How?"

Satsuki didn't say anything, and Naruto turned, looking at her. She had a strange grace, and he couldn't figure out where it came from. Even amongst scattered paper and books, elbow pressed on the corner of a book with pen and paper in hand and hair half pulled up into a bun, she retained an eloquence that made every mistake seem intended. He cast his gaze away quickly.

"Do you have any cup ramen?"

She looked up, eyes flat and black. Naruto didn't feel certain she was looking at him.

"No," she said, unwinding herself from the mess of documents and folders like a coiling snake. Satsuki didn't knock a single thing out of place, even amidst the precarious mess.

"I'm going to Ichiraku then-"

"I'm making tea."

Naruto blinked. "What?"

Satsuki stood up, brushing strands of dark hair behind her ear and brushing past Naruto like a stranger. "I'm making tea," she repeated, reaching the cooker and turning on the gas.

"And?"

Satsuki stopped, settling the pan on the hob before stilling her movements. After a few seconds, she turned her head slightly, regarding Naruto on the edge of her peripheral vision.

"Stay."


The food was much nicer than Naruto had expected.

Not that he knew what he'd expected, anyway. But it was nice; it had been a rice bowl, but with eggs and meats and vegetables. He hated vegetables, and carefully picked around them; but on the off occasion he accidentally swallowed one, he didn't gag.

The air was heavy. Naruto hurriedly grabbed his chopsticks from their upright position in the bowl and left them beside it. "Uh-" he began. "...thanks."

Satsuki didn't respond, standing up and taking both bowls to the sink. Naruto watched her walk, her silhouette passing by the window for a second.

"Do you want some tea?" she said.

"Uh- I dunno, I..."

He heard the faint noise of water pouring.

"How do you like it?" she asked. Naruto felt like it was more a demand.

"I dunno. I don't really drink tea..."

She stirred the tea, the quiet noise of tapping porcelain resounding through the kitchen.

Naruto didn't really get why everyone liked Satsuki. She wasn't more popular than she was universally admired; she was pretty in an almost boyish way, with little lips and cold eyes. She had her hair out, not too long but not too short; boys and girls alike loved her. Sakura was a prime example – a girl that loved Satsuki, her refrigerator attitude, wasn't attracted to her more than she wanted to be her.

He didn't know whether Satsuki was being cold now because that was her permanent state, or whether it was because he was here.

She set a rippling cup of tea down, and Naruto drank it hastily. The taste was sweet. "How did you make it?"

She didn't respond.

"'Cause... it's nice. Thanks..."

Naruto stared out the window. The sky was a soft array of colours now, the sun tucked away behind buildings and walls. He found himself counting birds, settling his chin on his folded arms.

Satsuki picked up her tea and bowls, soaping them in the sink with a sponge. She couldn't say for herself why she was being so accommodating, but she supposed that there was a lot at stake.

He was staring out the window, the blonde of his hair indistinguishable in his silhouette. She stopped running the water, drying her hands and approaching the table.

"Don't come tomorrow. I'll be out training-"

Naruto was asleep.

Satsuki blinked, leaning over to inspect his face. He was drooling.

She poked his cheek lightly. He didn't move, and she rolled her eyes.

Later on, Satsuki found herself tucking a blanket around his shoulders, and carefully sliding a pillow beneath his head.

She drew the curtains, dressing into her pyjamas quickly. She read in the light of a book lamp until early hours, but Naruto did not move.

The tea was left to get cold.


"Shit-!"

Satsuki awoke to the noise of a cup smashing and a chair toppling over. Her apartment was a single room, and she looked over with blurry vision to see Naruto rushing about confusedly. She groaned quietly, climbing out of bed.

"Sorry- uh, I didn't realise I slept here the whole night, I'm sorry, I really have to go-"

"Clean that crap up before you go," Satsuki said, rubbing her head and running her fingers through her hair. She stumbled over, careful to avoid the shards of porcelain. She wiped sleep from her eyes, grabbing a flannel from the sink and wiping the floor.

"No need to be such an ass," Naruto grumbled. "I have to go now, why didn't you wake me up?"

"I tried." 'I didn't really.'

"Did you really?"

"Yes." 'No.'

Naruto wiped his hands, checking his pockets for his keys. "I've gotta go- gotta water my plants! Speaking of which, bastard-"

-he was running out the door now-

"-have you named yours, yet?"

"Why would I name a plant, idiot?"

The door closed.

Satsuki found herself placing the plant on the balcony, to bask in the morning sunshine.

'Naruto. I'll call it Naruto.'


Satsuki's training wasn't that productive, that day.

She hated using the training grounds and she'd dare not touch the Uchiha private grounds for fear of the memories – so she preferred to train in the woods.

That day, Satsuki placed the targets just as he did, and flung kunai like her life depended on it. The timing was never right. She could never get that blind spot. There had been one occasion when she had, and it had felt fake; it had felt like a fluke. Sure enough, Satsuki had never hit it again.

After practicing her taijutsu against the hardest target she could find – a tree – Satsuki returned home, allowing herself the reprieve of buying fresh tomatoes on the way home. In her greed, she opened the packet on the way up the stairs to her apartment, sinking her teeth into the plump red skin. Juice leaked down her chin.

"Where have you been all day?"

Satsuki almost dropped her tomato. Naruto was sat on the step to her apartment, looking bored with a folder on his lap. His grin was impish and wide.

"I was training."

He waved the response off as though he'd never asked. "You won't believe what I got!" he grinned, shaking the folder in her face. Satsuki ignored him, turning her key in the door and stepping over him.

Satsuki was not going to ask what he got, but it took more than that to deter Naruto.

"I was rooting around the Hokage's office," he began. "And I grabbed a file on the Fourth Hokage from his library-thing! It's so thick, look, see?" Naruto made a point of showing Satsuki the width of the file. It was undeniably thick with paper.

"That's probably illegal." It definitely was.

Naruto laughed. "Yeah, whatever! The old man probably knows it was me. If it was that bad, I'd already be in trouble. I've been here all day!"

Satsuki sighed.

"Whatever. Remember to put it back after."

They became quickly engrossed in work again, and Satsuki found that Naruto had a strange talent for visual work.

"So, uh- let's make a time-line! Let's do it like that! Like, Minato is born. Minato does this. Blah blah, Minato dies."

Naruto began taking the little dated notes of Minato's life, and placing them on a rough timeline. Oddly, and very, very slowly, Satsuki began to see the time-line take form. Naruto insisted on taking some of the photos in the folder, and putting them on too.

The first time Satsuki had taken out a photo, the realisation hit her, and she'd near jumped.

The Fourth Hokage was the spitting image of Uzumaki Naruto.

But the more she thought about it, the more the resemblance fell apart before her eyes; the eyes were a different shape, Naruto's cheeks fuller, Naruto's jaw rounder, his smile wider. The Fourth Hokage was also of an impressive height.

And aside from the physical aspect, Naruto was Naruto, and he was the Fourth Hokage, equipped with the status as a legendary hero and a flee-on-sight order. They couldn't be more different.

Satsuki found herself laughing at her own stupidity.


The next day, Satsuki woke up peacefully, and alone. Her plant, Naruto, looked happier, almost. She watered it, and the water pooled in the valleys of the leaves, dripping down slowly to ration the water. She decided that the plant was too clever for its name.

Naruto arrived later that day, and he came with a large piece of card. They spent the day writing on it, pinning pictures and writing events. It was detailed, and Satsuki did all of the writing at Naruto's demand. She understood why, when she saw Naruto's atrocious scrawling of his name on the back.

That night, Naruto brought cup ramen, and Satsuki made herself onigiri. She wasn't hungry.

The next three days continued similarly, until, at the end of the third day, it was complete. They asked the Third Hokage if they could give the project to Iruka the next day, and he said yes. Naruto and Sasuke were given Iruka's address, and Naruto wailed about how they would manage to get the large piece of card down the stairs.


"Let's throw it out the window."

Satsuki gave Naruto a glare.

"Come on. This is really long, and we're just going to bend it!"

She twitched. "I'm not throwing it out of the window."

"It's easier!"

"No."

Naruto pouted, clutching the edges of the card. "But we worked so hard! I don't want to bend it!"

"Don't screw up then, usuratonkachi."

He didn't, but it was a close call as they exited the stairwell, the card becoming jammed to the point where it appeared as though bending it was the only way through (but with some wiggling, it was very carefully managed). Once the hardest part was finished, they both awkwardly manoeuvred through the masses of people, trying to reach an unknown address by asking unwilling strangers about street names and districts.

Eventually, they reached Iruka's home. The grass was well groomed, the hedges trimmed and tiny flowers not-quite-wild peering through the metal fences like shy children.

They knocked, and Iruka smiled slightly at seeing their massive board (less so at seeing Naruto). After explanation, he agreed to view the presentation in his front garden.

With a sharp look from Satsuki, Naruto began.

"Namikaze Minato was born in a fishing village at the edge of the Land of Fire; the village of Kufuchi. His father was a fisherman, but since the fishing industry was being taken over by governmental ships, he sent Minato, with plenty of money, to live with a relative in Konoha, and to send money home once he started doing missions.

"At the age of ten, Minato graduated the academy and became a genin. He was said to be a genius, the kind that comes only once a generation."

Satsuki began then, unfolding a photo on the board that depicted Minato on a team, with a white haired man standing over them laughing.

"Minato was assigned into a genin team, taught by their sensei Jiraiya, one of the legendary Sannin. After the unfortunate deaths of his teammates, Jiraiya took Minato under his personal wing. He quickly became jounin, and was assigned a genin team himself.

"During the Third Shinobi World War, Minato lost two of his genin; one of whom was killed at the Kannabi bridge, in Kusagakure. Later on in the mission which brought them there, he killed over one thousand shinobi using his trademark jutsu, the technique that had earned him the title 'Konoha's Yellow Flash'. The jutsu entails quick movement via classified high-level fuuinjutsu. Minato's amazing speed and skill with it meant that many praised him as the fastest man alive. He was a genius."

Naruto quickly unfolded a weathered picture of a three-pronged kunai on the board, and continued.

"At the age of 28, Minato was nominated as Hokage, but his reign was short. The Kyuubi attacked the village, causing uproar. Minato protected the village with his life, sealing the Kyuubi away into the Shinigami using the Shiki Fujin, and he was condemned to have to fight the demon for eternity in the stomach of the Shinigami. For his sacrifice, he is regarded as one of the greatest heroes the village has ever produced.

"At the time of his death, Minato was five foot ten, and was well-known for his laid-back nature. He enjoyed reading, and was said to have dreamt of being Hokage since he was in the academy."

Satsuki unveiled a picture of a young Minato; very young indeed, grinning widely amongst his classmates, under a tree. The picture was badly taken.

Iruka applauded, smiling widely and commending them both on the excellent job. Naruto beamed, but Satsuki expressed little more than indifference (yet, he could see a tiny smirk playing on her lips).

"You've both attained the highest mark for this. The presentation was excellent, the info was accurate and it was read clearly, concisely, and chronologically. You'll be able to progress to next year. Well done, you two. I wasn't sure if you'd get along."

"Me neither," Naruto said.

They left, Iruka kindly offering to put the piece of card away somewhere. Just as Satsuki prepared to turn the corner, Naruto grabbed her arm.

"Hey! Where're ya goin'?"

"Home," she said.

"No, let's go buy some stuff! Let's celebrate, since we got an amazing grade!"

Satsuki blinked, but submitted, allowing herself to be dragged along. They reached a dingy convenience store, the woman at the counter looking bored. The sign read the hours for a Friday as seven until six. She noted the time; it was close to six.

The bell above the door rang as they walked in, Naruto lazily hooking his hands around the back of his head as he walked. "Let's get sweets."

She didn't say anything.

"Okay, okay. So we need... chocolate. Obviously. What type?"

Silence.

"Yeah, all of them. I know. I was just checking."

The one-sided conversation continued for five or so minutes, and Naruto ended up with a bag bulging with chocolate and sweets. He was bouncing on the balls of his feet as they queued, two old ladies in front of them dropping their money at every possible opportunity.

After what seemed like an eternity, they reached the till- but just as they set the stuff down, the woman left the key in the till and went into the back of the shop wordlessly. For a moment, Satsuki waited.

"Excuse me?" she said, after a few moments more. The cashier came back out, now donned in a coat with her bag. She gave Satsuki a smile that made her feel ill.

"We were just closing up now, honey." Her expression was masking a badly-disguised disgust, or something alike to it.

Satsuki checked the time again. Ten to six.

"But you're not closed yet."

Naruto tugged on her arm. "It's fine, okay. Let's just go home."

"I'm afraid we are, sweetheart."

Satsuki found her tone escalating. "No, it's not. It's ten to six."

"We're finished for the day," the cashier reiterated, smile wrinkled and entirely dishonest.

"No, you finish at six. It's ten to."

The cashier shrugged, adjusting her bag. "We leave ten minutes early sometimes," she said, her face twisting into a jargon version of apologetic.

No matter what she said, Satsuki knew well when an act had been done out of spite and little more. Naruto's insisting grip on her arm persisted.

With a final scowl, Satsuki hooked the bag off the desk and headed for the door.

"Oi, you can't just take that-!"

"Oh really?" Satsuki sneered. "But I've paid for it."

The cashier frowned. "No you haven't-"

With a sweeping, strong movement, Satsuki lashed several coins and a note onto the floor. The woman looked at her, mouth agape, and the Uchiha simply shrugged in response.

"Yes, I have."

With that, Satsuki turned out of the shop, a slack-jawed Naruto in tow.


"You know, it wasn't that important-"

"Shut up."

For once, Naruto listened, and they walked in silence, the rustling of the plastic bag the only noise passing between them. Satsuki shifted the bag's weight to her elbow.

"She was being rude," she said.

"You didn't need to cause a scene," Naruto bit back. "We could have just gone somewhere else."

Satsuki didn't respond.

The walk home was silent, and though it hadn't been discussed, her feet led her to her own apartment, and she walked in, looking briefly at the plant and then placing the bag on the table beside the couch.

"Well, since we argued so much for some stupid sweets, they'd better taste nice..."

She sat beside him for a while, and after halting the all-consuming stream of food to his mouth, he gave her a strange look.

"Aren't you going to have some?"

Satsuki looked away for a moment.

"Huh? Why not?"

"I don't like sweets."

Naruto blinked. "How can you not like sweets?! And why'd you yell at that lady if you didn't even want any?!"

'For you.'

Satsuki snorted. She didn't answer.


A/N: Aaw. Well, enjoy it while it lasts... *wink*

Thanks for your support. I'll bring out the next chapter ASAP; this is the last chapter of "academy" time. So, things will finally be moving on next chapter. I hope you'll like it.