Clandestine Assignments
Summary: Naruto has one month undercover at Konoha Private to identify the members of the crime syndicate Akatsuki and stop the next heist they're planning. Unfortunately, missions never go as smoothly as hoped.
Pairings: Sasunaru (main). Possible Gaanaru and Nejinaru. Slight ItaNaru in this chapter, not sure if it'll continue.
Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't sue.
Warnings: Bit of swearing, and some Sakura and Ino bashing.
Comments: Hey! Once again, I'm sorry for not updating earlier but believe it or not, I'm actually not very good at writing so it takes me a while to get things down. Thanks to everyone who reviewed
Just to explain, to help with any confusion, this is an alternate universe fanfic, meaning there are no ninjas or whatnot. Also, Naruto didn't know any of the other students aside from Shikamaru, and that's because he's a Janken Agent Naruto's worked with before.
Unfortunately, I have exams in a few months so this might be the last update for a while (and by that, I mean longer than I usually take to update i.e. a month). Just remember this fic won't be abandoned so keep an eye out for updates:)
"hello" - talking
'hello' - thinking
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Chapter Three: Incipience
Incipience: (noun) Beginning to exist or become apparent.
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Recap:
"Oi oi Naruto, you're eating ramen for dinner?" asked Kiba, raising an eyebrow as he dug into his own meal of steak.
"Frab orf! Mrrmen ku rababa!" replied Naruto.
"…what?" deadpanned Kiba.
"He said 'Of course! Ramen is awesome!'" translated Shikamaru, though not half as enthusiastically as Naruto had originally said it.
The others were stunned. "How…?"
Shikamaru shrugged, to their annoyance.
A smooth voice interrupted the argument that was sure to ensue. "Evening everybody, mind if I sit here?" They turned to see-
End recap
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LOCATION: Konoha Private - Cafeteria
TIME: 1920
"Neji-san!" exclaimed Lee and Tenten
"N-Neji-dono!" blurted Kiba, averting his eyes and sounding remarkably like Hinata.
"…" said Shino.
"Troublesome," sighed Shikamaru.
Hinata and Chouji stared. "Neji-sama?!"
Not to be outdone, Naruto was the loudest of them all, "OI! NEJI!"
"What an enthusiastic greeting," smirked Neji, "I'll take that as a yes?" He seated himself purposefully between Shikamaru and Naruto and started on the contents of his tray.
"Hey Neji, why didn't you tell me you were the president of the student council?" accused Naruto, glaring playfully.
An eyebrow was raised. "I didn't feel you needed to know."
Naruto pouted in reply and muttered something that sounded distinctly like 'girly, long haired meanie.' Shikamaru snorted.
Sighing, Neji removed the bowl of miso ramen from his tray and placed it in front of Naruto, "Here. I can't finish it anyway."
"IloveyouNeji!!" proclaimed Naruto, with a rapid volte-face causing Shikamaru to chuckle. "Itadakimasu!"
Kiba, Chouji and Hinata stared at Neji as if he'd grown another head. Was the ice-cold Neji being nice to somebody?
"Oi, snap out of it," muttered Shikamaru to Neji, who was staring blankly into space with a light blush. In his mind, Naruto's words of 'I love you Neji' echoed around…and around…and arou- A sharp nudge in his side brought him out of his reverie. Shaking his head slightly, he chuckled.
Kiba, Chouji and Hinata's eyes grew wider to the point where they resembled Lee's.
"What?" snapped Neji, turning cold eyes towards them.
"I-I'm gonna head off f-for the night," squeaked Kiba, rising abruptly. Chouji made a small noise of agreement and Hinata rose, blushed, gave a slight bow to Neji and a tiny wave to everyone else and joined them. The three made a rushed exit.
"…Well that was odd," mused Naruto, scratching his head.
The remainder of the table sweatdropped.
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LOCATION: Konoha Private - Room 237
TIME: 0750
The shrill ringing of Naruto's alarm clock was the sound that greeted him the next morning. "Five more minutes…" he groaned, turning in his cocoon of blankets. Glancing at the time displayed on the alarm clock, he bolted upright. "SHIT! I'm gonna be late!" 'The old hag's gonna kill me!' Getting dressed at a breakneck speed, he grabbed his bag and bolted for the door, almost running into Shikamaru, who happened to be leaning next to it.
A sigh, "Troublesome." A bowl of instant ramen was shoved into Naruto's face. "Here. I knew you'd sleep in on the first day."
"I LOVE YOU SHIKA!" exclaimed Naruto, hugging the boy with a death grip. He then took the ramen ("Itadakimasu!") and shovelled it into his mouth while walking towards the classroom block. "Mrrph oom mry mmrph?" 'Thank god Shikamaru can understand me.'
Another sigh, "You have homeroom, then Literature with Iruka, PE with Gai and then morning break."
The ramen being devoured, Naruto thrust the empty bowl towards Shikamaru and began sprinting away, "Thanks Shika!"
Shikamaru rolled his eyes, deposited the ramen bowl and called, "Classroom's that way idiot!"
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LOCATION: Konoha Private - Homeroom
TIME: 0800
"Yes! Just on time!" cheered Naruto, entering the classroom with his hands behind his head.
"Baka," snorted Shikamaru, who led Naruto to Chouji and Kiba.
"Morning Naruto, Shikamaru" greeted Chouji.
"How's it going Blondie?" asked Kiba, slinging an arm around Naruto's neck. "Check out the chicks," he grinned, and gestured towards the other side of the classroom where the female population of the classroom were standing around and gossiping.
Naruto rolled his eyes and escaped Kiba's embrace, moving to an empty seat to the right of Shikamaru. While rummaging in his bag for his books, Naruto failed to hear the classroom door being opened and the squealing of the girls.
He did hear, however, the cold voice behind him. "You're in my seat."
Naruto looked up, 'Hey, it's that pretty boy all the girls were fawning around.' Sure enough, the girls were all crowded behind him, but seemed to be keeping their distance from Naruto. 'What was his name? Oh right, Uchiha Sasuke. Pretty-boy suits him more. Um…why is he glaring at me?'
Sasuke glared daggers at the blonde boy before him. Was he being intentionally thick? The temperature of the classroom seemed to drop a few degrees as Sasuke intensified the glare.
"…Can I help you?" asked Naruto, looking perplexed. Chouji, Kiba and Shikamaru simultaneously sweatdropped.
Sasuke's eyebrow twitched.
"…Your eye just twitched, do you need to see the nurse?"
Sasuke clenched his fists. "My…seat," he growled; Uchiha's hate repeating themselves.
Naruto narrowed his eyes, recognising a challenge. "I don't see your name on it." The classroom gasped. No-one ever talked back to an Uchiha.
Sasuke took a step forward so that they were nose to nose, "Move. Now."
Matching his stare, Naruto glowered, "Make. Me."
What happened next occurred so fast that the onlookers almost missed it. As the door slammed open there were twin shouts of "Sasuke-kun!", and Sakura and Ino pushed past the crowd to the front, jostling people as they went. A chain reaction of pushes was created, the last one hitting Naruto from behind.
One second the two boys were nose to nose in an intense glaring contest, the next second Naruto had fallen forward - onto the lips of Sasuke.
There was silence. Naruto had somewhere closed his eyes, and felt the softness of Sasuke's lips. He was mildly aware of those very lips pressing softly against his, tasting of cinnamon. He felt, subconsciously, two hands gripping his arms and pulling him closer.
There was noise. The screams of devastation from the girls and hoots of laughter from the boys. Naruto and Sasuke pulled apart, eyes wide. Frozen for a while, Naruto was the first to explode.
"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" screamed Naruto. "PERVERT!"
"How dare you call Sasuke-kun a pervert!" screeched Sakura and Ino.
Naruto, ignoring them, continued to glare at Sasuke, who looked unperturbed. 'Oooh. Look at Mr-Pretty-Boy standing there with an: I'm-too-cool-and-sexy-for-you look. Why I oughtta-' wrapped up in his murderous thoughts, Naruto decided to disregard the fact he had just called Sasuke 'sexy'.
"Che. Dobe," snorted Sasuke.
Naruto growled, clenching his fists, "What did you call me teme?"
"An idiot," shrugged Sasuke.
"Say. That. Again," clenched Naruto, grabbing the other's collar and bringing their faces closer together.
Sasuke smirked, "My, my. So desperate for another kiss?"
'This bastard is asking for it,' glared Naruto, raising a fist.
'The Janken Agent's Handbook, Chapter 6: Behaviour. When facing a conflict while undercover, it is essential to keep calm and level headed. Do not lash out…'
Jumping on the other boy, Naruto swung a fist and landed a solid blow on Sasuke's jaw. Sasuke looked stunned for a split second, before he counterattacked by punching Naruto in the gut.
'...retaliate…'
Naruto grimaced from the pain and fell on his knees, but as Sasuke lunged at him, he aimed an uppercut at his chin.
'…or do anything that would cause unnecessary attention…'
Dodging the blow, Sasuke charged at Naruto, who back-flipped away and used a sweeping kick to bring Sasuke on the ground.
'…If such conflict cannot be avoided, exit the scene hastily, minimising the number of witnesses who could identify you accurately.'
Placing a foot on the Sasuke's chest, Naruto struck a pose, "UZUMAKI NARUTO STRIKES AGAIN!"
His victory was short lived however, as Sasuke grabbed his leg and twisted it so that he fell backwards to join Sasuke on the ground.
"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" yelled a voice from the back of the crowd. It parted slowly to reveal a male teacher with brown spiky hair tied back in a ponytail and a scar running across his nose. "Uzumaki-san, I'm disappointed in you, fighting on your first day does not give a favourable first impression. You will attend detention this afternoon. Uchiha san, I expected better, but because of your usual model behaviour, I will let you off with a warning. If this incident is to be repeated however, you will both be sent to the principal's office. Am I clear?"
Ignoring the hands of girls that were offered to him, Sasuke stood up and brushed dust off his pants, "Understood, Iruka-sensei."
Shikamaru and Chouji pulled Naruto up to a standing position. Scowling, Naruto nodded shortly, "Got it."
-BRIIIIIING!-
'Saved by the bell. How cliché.' thought Naruto as he grabbed his bags and began heading out of the classroom.
"Oi Blondie! Where'd you think you're going?" barked Kiba.
Naruto turned to see that Kiba, Shikamaru and Chouji had all returned to their seats and were looking at him, amused. Worse still, he saw Sasuke claim the very seat they were fighting over earlier.
'Grr, I hate that stupid pretty-boy Uchiha, thinking he's so high and mighty. What's so cool about him anyway? Alright, so he's pretty damn hot…and sexy…and smart…' He didn't notice he was staring.
Sasuke raised an eyebrow, "See something you like dobe?"
Naruto blushed, blew a raspberry and walked over to a desk next to Kiba, who promptly began nudging him. "Hey, did you just blush?"
Naruto's face turned a deeper shade of red, 'When in doubt, deny it all.' "No! I…flushed…with anger."
Kiba smirked, "Sure." To Naruto's relief however, he dropped the matter; class had begun.
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LOCATION: Konoha Private - Male Change Room
TIME: 0935
"Yosh! Time for PE!" cheered Naruto, racing towards the change rooms.
Kiba tailed close behind. "Yahoo! Just wait Blondie, PE is awesome, even if Gai-sensei is a little eccentric at times."
"Oh? How so?" asked Naruto, slowing down and pushing the door to the change room open. Kiba just gave him a grin that said 'you'll find out'.
"Naruto-kun! Kiba-kun!" called Lee, jogging up to them, "Isn't it youthful that we have been placed in the same class so we can embrace the wonders of youth together?"
"Uh, sure Lee!" grinned Naruto, "But aren't you a year above us?"
"During PE the years are mixed in order to encourage peer-to-peer bonding," explained a voice behind them. "Naruto, fate has yet again brought us together."
"Hey Neji!" greeted Naruto. "So what locker can I use?"
"There's a free locker near mine," suggested Kiba, pointing to a side of the change room where a black sports bag already sat. It had some kind of symbol emblazoned on the side, 'the Uchiha crest,' noted Naruto. 'This could work to my advantage.'
Neji cleared his throat, "It's not necessary for Naruto to change over there," he commented, clearly recognising whose bag it was.
"It's fine Neji," smiled Naruto, walking to the locker and pulling his sports uniform from his bag. Just as he had removed his jacket and was in the process of taking his shirt off, revealing his tanned stomach, he heard an appreciative whistle. Pulling the shirt completely off, he saw a pair of eyes raking over his exposed skin. 'Red eyes…wait! That's-'
"Well what do we have here?" smirked the senior, eyes meeting Naruto's. They had both an amused and predatory look in them. "I heard a new student was joining us today," he extended his hand, I'm Uchiha Itachi, pleased to meet you-?"
"U-Uzumaki Naruto," stammered Naruto, blushing as Itachi took his hand and brushed his lips against it softly.
The smirk was back, "So I've heard." Itachi's red eyes were dancing; 'He knows who I am,' gulped Naruto
Neji cleared his throat, "Naruto, we really must be getting to class now." He shot a dirty look at Itachi, who merely winked. Naruto was suddenly aware of his state of undress, as he was still holding his shirt in one hand. Flushing, he hurriedly changed into his sports uniform, consisting of a white polo shirt, navy shorts and sneakers. Kiba had averted his eyes to give him some privacy, although Neji and Itachi held no such intentions.
"Okay, I'm ready!" proclaimed Naruto, turning around to see Neji and Itachi mopping up bloody noses. "Oh my god! Are you guys okay?"
"They're fine Blondie, leave them," laughed Kiba, slinging an arm around Naruto and leading him out to the gym.
"Greetings class! I am your sensei! GAI!" was the energetic announcement that greeted them. The man standing before them could only be described as an older and weirder version of Lee. Naruto's eyes widened. 'Now I see where Lee gets his inspiration…and fashion advice…'
At some point, Neji had sidled up to Naruto's other side. "Reminds you of someone huh?"
-WHOOSH!-
A green blur flew past the group as they saw Lee embrace Gai. "LEE! My Youthful student!" Naruto twitched, 'He capitalises the word 'youthful'?'
"GAI-SENSEI!"
"LEE!"
"GAI-SENSEI!"
"LEE!"
"GAI-SENSEI!"
And thus was Naruto's first PE lesson.
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LOCATION: Konoha Private - Drama Department
TIME: 1525
'Phew, first day's almost over,' thought Naruto as he made his way to his last class, Drama. This was the only class in which nobody else he knew was doing, 'aside from that Uchiha-bastard, as it's him I'm supposed to be approaching. Humph. As if I'll be friends with that bastard'
Walking into the drama classroom, he saw that there were large cushions piled near the door. The students entering before him took one and found a place to sit, 'Guess that's why they're no chairs. So…where to sit? Uchiha-bastard hasn't arrived yet, thank god for that. Hey, what's up with him?'
Naruto saw a boy on a black cushion, arms crossed and eyes closed, looking very apathetic. He had crimson hair, pale skin and black rings around his eyes, 'Make-up?' mused Naruto, 'looks awesome though.' Naruto's eyes wandered towards the boy's forehead and it was there he found, what he believed to be, the most interesting feature of the other's appearance. 'This guy…' Naruto's eyes stopped on the blood red tattoo on the other's forehead, '…has NO EYEBROWS! This school certainly has a bunch of weirdo's…'
He didn't realise he had began towards the boy until he dropped his cushion, which happened to be orange, next to the other.
"What are you doing?" Had Naruto not seen the boy's lips move, he wouldn't have known who had asked him; the boy's face remained expressionless.
Naruto raised an eyebrow, "I'm sitting down, what does it look like?"
"Why are you sitting down here?" One eyelid was raised to reveal an eye of the deepest green, 'Why is he looking at me so intensely?' wondered Naruto.
"Why can't I?" grinned Naruto.
"Some would consider receiving questions for answers quite annoying." This time the other eye opened and Naruto was pierced by a green gaze that would have been considered indifferent yet, 'he looks a little surprised….' "People usually keep their distance around me."
Glancing around, Naruto saw that it was indeed true. Already, some were beginning to stare at him and whisper to each other. Shrugging, he turned back to the boy, "I try not to be judgemental." 'Yup, there it is. He's definitely curious now,' thought Naruto triumphantly as the other raised his eyebrow, 'or at least…the place where his eyebrows should be…'
The boy was silent for a few moments, then gave a grunt of acknowledgement, "Sabaku no Gaara."
Naruto, realising that it was the other's name, grinned widely. "Uzumaki Naruto! Nice to meet you Gaara!" Slinging his arm around Gaara's neck, he began chatting away about nothing at all.
"So my favourite colour is orange! What's yours? Wait, don't tell me. Is it black? Red? Ooh! I know! You're a pink sort of guy right? Predictable. Doesn't it clash horribly with your hair though? Well, maybe you could make it look good. Anyway, my favourite food is Ramen! Ramen is the best-est food in the whole wide world! Is best-est even a word? Well it is now! I sometime do that you know, make up words randomly. It's a bad habit really…" rambling away, Naruto didn't notice Sasuke enter the room.
Gaara did. He noticed how Sasuke saw where Naruto was sitting, and positioned himself close to the pair. He noticed how Sasuke saw Naruto speaking to him, and he noticed that daggers were now being shot in his direction. Smirking, he slipped his arm around Naruto's waist. The glaring intensified; Naruto, who still had an arm around Gaara's neck, seemed not to notice.
'Uchiha-teme is glaring at me again…oh wait. He's not glaring at me, he's glaring at Gaara. Wonder why…'
"…and so that was my day so far!" finished Naruto, beaming at Gaara. "Anyway, where's the teacher?"
"The teacher's always late, dobe," drawled Sasuke, before Gaara could reply. He had somehow managed to get a spot on the other side of Naruto.
Detaching himself from Gaara, Naruto blew a raspberry, "Who asked you teme?"
"Now now Naruto-kun, play nice with the other kiddies," chuckled the teacher, entering through the window.
"Kakashi-sensei! You're not as late as usual today!" exclaimed one of the students, surprised.
Kakashi laughed awkwardly, "Well, I only came in here to get my book." He pointed to a small, paper-bound novel with a bright orange cover. Naruto's eyes bulged, 'That's one of the pervert's novels, Icha Icha Paradise!'
"Pervert," muttered Naruto.
Not even bothering to deny it, Kakashi ignored him. "Ah…well anyway. You have a paired assignment due next week. Choose a short scene from a play and re-enact it," walking over to the desk he took the book and started out of the window once more. "You can choose your own partners. Ja ne!"
As soon as he had left, the classroom became a flurry of activity as everybody leapt to their partner. Literally leaping on Gaara, Naruto grabbed the other boy in a death grip, 'Ha! Take that Uchiha-teme! Like I'm gonna pair up with you!'
Sasuke growled. Somehow, Sakura and Ino had jumped towards him and were now in a heated argument. Sighing, he walked over to a boy Naruto had not noticed before. He looked similar to Sasuke, but had shorter hair and a friendlier face. After a brief exchange of words, Sasuke returned looking relieved he did not need to partner up with either of the girls.
The rest of the hour flew by. Walking out of the classroom, Naruto slung an arm around Gaara once more and began chatting away once again. Gaara didn't seem to mind, and even twitched his face once or twice in what Naruto assumed to be a smile of sorts.
"Shit! I needed to go talk to someone!" exclaimed Naruto, stopping abruptly. "I'll catch up with you later Gaara!" He turned and jogged back towards the drama department.
He had only made it past one corner he was roughly shoved into an empty classroom, his captor firmly pinning him to the floor face-down. Naruto sensed another presence enter and lock the door firmly behind him. 'Goddammit, my head's killing me. Who the fuck-?'
Naruto stopped his mental tirade as he recognised the footsteps of the second person. "You!"
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Thanks for reading this! Please leave a review to motivate me to write more! And I apologise in advance for the time it's going to take me to update the next chapter.
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