Double Edged Sword

(The Rewrite)

By: Light And Noise

(the author formerly known as YoroichiIsSailorL)

Warnings: Yaoi (boy/boy), Dark!Naruto, Mild Language, OCs

Note: Happy Mother's Day!

Updates on Sundays

[X x X]

The black jacket provided good cover as Naruto slunk into the classroom, hood up and head down. Naruto's hands were shoved deep in his pockets and his headband was tied securely around his neck. His chin was tucked behind it, his mouth barely peeking over the top of the metal plate. Naruto's gaze flickered around the class, scouting for a spot to sit. There was one by Sasuke, one by Ino, and one by Nodoka. By process of elimination, Naruto quickly slid in next to Sasuke. He enjoyed upsetting his female classmates, all the ones that simply adored the Uchiha. They exchanged brisk nods and Naruto looked away, surprised when Sasuke spoke.

"Is there a reason you put orange stripes on your headband?" he asked tartly. Naruto let out a light chuckle and drew one of his knees to his chest.

"I like orange," he commented lightly. He leaned forward and rested his chin on his knee, his headband falling slightly over the edge of his knee. The blond's eyes slid lightly closed and he gazed through slightly blurry vision at the edge of the desk in front of him. He and Sasuke sat in gentle quiet for a few minutes, comfortable and uninterrupted. Naruto's lips curled upward in a light smile that quickly fell at the shrill voice of one Haruno Sakura.

"You're in my seat, Uzumaki. Again." Naruto slowly lifted his head up and he narrowed his eyes at the young girl. "Hello?" She snapped. "Is anyone home? I want you to move."

With a brow arched, Naruto asked, "Is it your seat? I'm sorry, I didn't know." He smiled at her. "Next time put your name on it." With that, Naruto settled into his seat and stretched his legs out. Naruto didn't flinch when Sakura grabbed his shoulder and spun him around to face her. Naruto looked up at Sakura's livid face and gently removed her fingers from his shoulder. He pushed her back and faced forward again. "Don't touch me. Now sit down, woman." Naruto shook his head in disproval and hunched over the desk, putting his forehead against the desk top. He was pleased that Sakura didn't bother him again and wasn't surprised when he heard the bench beside him creak with her weight. If she couldn't be right beside Sasuke, she would take the closest right?

A light scoff escaped Naruto's lips and he moved his arms up to pillow his head. For the ten minutes before class began, Naruto just laid there with his head down and eyes closed. If he hadn't wanted to get out of the accursed academy, Naruto would have slept late. As it were, he was almost regretting his decision of coming to school. The chatter around him was slowly coming to an end and Naruto could only assume that Iruka had decided to show up.

Heaving a sigh, Naruto sat up and looked around, an amused smile playing about his mouth when Shikamaru trudged in followed by Iruka. Both looked irate, probably because Shikamaru had been stubborn. The brunette glanced up and quickly found a seat. Once he was seated, Iruka cleared his throat. Naruto tipped his head to the side, staring at the teacher. This needed to end. The blond was getting tired and edgy and needed a nap. Something told him, though, that neither of those things was going to happen. It wasn't going to end and he wasn't going to get a nap.

The room fell silent and Iruka took that time to speak. After clearing his throat, he began. "Good morning students," he said cheerfully. The students greeted him back in tones ranging from exhaustion to excitement. Iruka laughed. "Well at least some of you are getting into the spirit of things." He smiled and rested his hands lightly on his desk. "As you all can tell, the entire class has graduated. Last night, Mizuki-Sensei, Hokage-Sama, and I put you all on teams based on skill and test scores." Naruto didn't miss the way a couple girls cursed and he looked around, catching Nodoka's eye as she shook her head. "Now, if there are no questions," Iruka said lightly. Naruto looked back to his teacher, his eyes impatient. "After I call all your names and assign teams, please join your team for lunch and your team Sensei will collect you during lunch. As you might remember, we sort teams by years, so this year will be teams six through eleven." Iruka looked over the whole class and picked a paper up from his desk. He skimmed it, looked at the class again, and began reading. "Team Six: Yashamoto Nodoka, Dosu Kentaro, and Shinji Kai. Your sensei will be Abarai Kino." He glanced up for a moment before continuing. "Team Seven: Uchiha Sasuke, Nara Shikamaru, and," he paused, and Naruto sighed, shaking his head. The entire classroom seemed to be holding its breath, awaiting the fate of Team Seven's female. Naruto looked around the room, wondering who poor Shikamaru and Sasuke would be stuck with. "Uzumaki Naruto."

The room was silent. Naruto blinked and looked to his left, meeting slightly surprised onyx coloured eyes. Naruto was sure his own eyes reflected the emotions he saw in Sasuke's. Wait. Naruto sighed loudly and pinched the bridge of his nose. That meant he was the token female of Team Seven. Well that blew.

"What?!" Screeched the pink haired harpy to Naruto's right. The blond looked over at her, raising his brows. "Why are there three boys on that team?" Man, her voice was shriller than Ino's. "That's not fair! I was supposed to be on Sasuke's team!"

"Shut up, Forehead!" Ino shrieked. "You're not good enough to be on his team! You had to volunteer for extra credit to pass!"

Before Sakura could reply, Iruka interrupted. "Ladies, please. Team Seven, your sensei will be Hatake Kakashi." Was it Naruto's imagination or did a smile just flicker across Iruka's face? The blond arched a brow but said nothing. "Team Eight, Hyuuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba, and Aburame Shino. Your sensei will be Yuuhi Kurenai. Team Nine, Yamanaka Ino, Akimichi Chouji, and Haruno Sakura. Your sensei will be Sarutobi Asuma. Team Ten…" It was there that Naruto really stopped listening. He was on a team, Nodoka was on a team, and it would be interesting to see how Ino and Sakura worked together. What more did he need to hear? Naruto shook his head and drew his knees to his chest, resting his chin on them as he listened vaguely to Iruka's voice telling them they should get with their teams.

To Naruto's right, Sakura was complaining loudly and didn't sound like she was moving any time soon. If she didn't move soon, Naruto would have to politely ask her to get away from him. He smiled against the back of his headband at that thought and stared at the desk top, Sakura's pink hair still in his peripheral vision. He rolled his eyes as she ranted about the unfairness of there not being a female on Sasuke's team. Oh no, Naruto thought sarcastically, how will he ever survive? Was this girl an idiot? He was inclined to think yes but she was the smartest girl in their class, barely besting the Hyuuga heiress.

If she didn't leave right that second, Naruto was going to have something to say to her. He didn't get the chance though. Mid-rant, Sakura was interrupted.

"Move." Shikamaru's voice was monotonous but it got the point across. Naruto's back straightened and he looked over at Shikamaru and Sakura, interest in his eyes. Sakura's jaw snapped shut audibly and, without a word, she stomped off. Naruto shook his head and watched Shikamaru slid in next to him. The brunette looked at the two already at the table and sighed. "Troublesome team," he grumbled.

"Eh?" Naruto asked. "What do you mean?" While light, Naruto's voice was still quiet although it seemed Shikamaru had no trouble hearing his question at all. Naruto leaned back and stretched his legs out under the table and Sasuke leaned forward, his head tipped slightly so he could face Shikamaru and Naruto.

Shikamaru sighed. "You're troublesome because I had to be the one getting up and moving."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Both of us were already here," he said firmly. "Why would we move when you would be able to come to us easily?"

The brunette sighed once again. "That is exactly my point," he murmured. A small smile slipped onto Naruto's face and he shook his head at Shikamaru and Sasuke.

"Well," the blond stated in his quiet tone. "Someone had to move. Anyway. Do you have your lunches?"

Sasuke's voice was condescending when he answered. "Of course. Why would you even have to ask?" Naruto glared darkly at him and looked at Shikamaru who merely nodded. "Do you have your lunch?" Sasuke asked snidely.

The blond cocked his head to the side. "No," he answered finally. "I don't like eating lunch." He stretched his arms above his head and watched as students began filing out of the class at the sound of the lunch bell. He looked to his right. "You're Shikamaru," he stated. He looked over to the Uchiha who had carefully schooled his features blankly. "You're Sasuke."

"And you're Naruto," Sasuke stated.

"You would be correct," the blond stated idly. He glanced around the class, noting how Nodoka was lingering in the doorway. They made eye contact and Naruto shook his head at her and she left.

There was a quiet pause before Sasuke spoke. "Naruto…" The blond tipped his head to the side. "You know Nodoka?"

The blond nodded shortly. "Aa, I know Nodoka-Chan. What of it?" Sasuke shook his head and Shikamaru took the silence as his cue to stand. Naruto followed Shikamaru with his eyes as the brunette went to the side room of the class and came out carrying a bento box. The brunette seemed to take his time, not that Naruto was surprised. Since Naruto enrolled in the academy, Shikamaru had always been sluggish and simply lazy. Sasuke, on the other hand, was cold and standoffish. Brooding, almost. He had good reason, Naruto did admit. He just couldn't condone his behaviour. However, Naruto knew he wasn't any better. Growing up the way he did, Naruto had a hard time liking society. The blond shook those thoughts from his head and drew his knees back up to his chest, resting his chin atop his knees once more. His headband rested on the edge of his knees, hiding his mouth which was contorted into a frown as Sasuke got up to get his lunch as well. Shikamaru rejoined him at the table and Sasuke returned shortly thereafter.

Both of the dark haired boys began digging into their bento while Naruto sat with his eyes closed, listening to them eat. He really didn't like lunch. He loved to eat but Naruto couldn't stomach lunch, ever. When he was younger, Naruto once gorged himself mindlessly on ramen and sushi one holiday lunch. Consequently, he had been rather ill that evening. Ever since, Naruto wasn't able to eat lunch. It was his own stupidity, of course, and it bothered him to this day. That was neither here nor there, though. Naruto pursed his lips and exhaled sharply, trying to clear his mind. He didn't want to think about anything. He just wanted a nap.

The blond drew his arms inside his jacket and he hugged his chest, the tank top he wore doing little to retain heat. He yawned quietly and snuggled into his jacket, his mind easily falling blank for once.

What seemed like seconds later, Naruto was being shaken awake. It took him a few moments to clear his mind and to become coherent but when he did, Naruto could only sigh. Sasuke was none too gentle when waking a person up, that was for sure. Missions with the Uchiha were sure to be unbearable, taking that into consideration. A light chuckle escaped Naruto's lips and he slipped his arms through his jacket sleeves and stretched his legs over the desk top, resting them there when he was done stretching out. He yawned for a moment. When his yawn ended, Naruto took a second to look around the classroom. Nearly everyone was back; only Sakura, Ino, and Chouji seemed to be missing from the class.

"What time is it?" Naruto asked idly.

"Ten till noon," Shikamaru answered in his monotone voice. Naruto nodded slowly and tipped his head back to stare at the ceiling. He managed to keep his focus entirely on the tiles until the room fell quiet. Confused, Naruto looked up, raising his brows at the sight of five people in Jounin outfits. Where was the sixth Jounin? Naruto's brows furrowed in confusion as the people introduced themselves at Genin Sensei and took their teams. In a matter of seconds, Team Seven was alone and lacking a sensei.

"What." Naruto flung himself forward quickly so he was sitting on the desk and he quickly jumped off of that so he was standing on the desk on the level below his desk. He put his hands on his hips and stared firmly at the door to the room as if his stare would summon their sensei. Nothing happened for ten minutes, causing the blond to groan in outrage. He spun around and looked at both Sasuke and Shikamaru, neither who seemed fazed by the absence of their sensei.

Shikamaru was the first to notice Naruto's look. "What?" he asked. "Don't look at me like that."

"Don't 'what' me!" Naruto exclaimed, his voice louder than usual but not yet a yell. "Am I the only one who cares that our sensei isn't here yet?" His voice had returned to its normal level of sound but was still very forceful in tone.

"No," Sasuke answered firmly. "He's wasting our time. Or she is. Whining will get us nowhere though, idiot." Naruto glared at him but accepted the truth in the Uchiha's words. There wasn't much they could do, after all. Time seemed to crawl by and there was no sign of their teacher. It was almost two before he even showed up. Naruto had been dozing off, Shikamaru was already asleep, and Sasuke was staring out the window when the door to the classroom slid open, causing Naruto to jump. He nudged Shikamaru awake and stared at the man in the doorway who was staring at them with one eye.

They waited for him? Naruto tipped his head to the side and stared back at the silver haired man with only his right eye visible on his face. Wow, they waited for him. Naruto closed his eyes and shook his head, pinching himself when, after reopening his eyes, the man was still there. He stayed. The room was silent and Naruto had to wonder what was going through his teammates' minds. Probably saner thoughts than his. That thought caused Naruto to chuckle, successfully breaking the room's quiet.

"My first impression of you," the silver haired man said, "Is that you're all stuck up brats."

"What." Naruto's voice was flat in reply to his Sensei's snarky comment. The man's eye curled upward and he looked to be smiling as he spoke.

"Well, why don't we go up to the roof?"

"Why?" Naruto grumbled as he followed Shikamaru out of their seats and to the door. "So you can throw us off of it?"

The man gave a quick and clearly fake laugh. "Now there's an idea."

Their little banter was cut short by the approach of the stairs. The man took one look at them and disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Naruto grumbled under his breath while Shikamaru muttered about people being troublesome. Sasuke just scoffed and pushed passed his complaining teammates, taking the stairs two at a time. Naruto followed quickly with Shikamaru trailing behind them.

The walk up three flights of stairs went by rather quickly. The sun was bright when Sasuke pushed open the door to the room and Naruto had to shield his eyes to let them adjust. Their sensei was on the roof, leaning against the railing with his nose in a bright orange book. Shikamaru sighed loudly and Naruto quickly followed Sasuke who had walked over and stood in front of their sensei. Naruto stood to Sasuke's left and Shikamaru filled in at the blond's left. Sasuke cleared his throat and their sensei looked up.

"Oh great, you're here," he said cheerfully. "Sit down! Today we're just going to get to know one another." He was met with absolute silence from three annoyed looking twelve year olds. The trio sighed in unison and Naruto sat down first shortly followed by his darker haired teammates. "Well? Tell us your name, likes, dislikes, hobbies and goals."

All three boys stared at him for a long, quiet moment. "Maybe you should start," Naruto stated.

Their sensei laughed that same fake laugh from a few minutes earlier but proceeded to speak. "My name is Hatake Kakashi. I like a lot of things and dislike a lot of things. I have a few hobbies… My goals? Hm, well you could say I have them."

Naruto stared at him and didn't doubt that Shikamaru and Sasuke were too. What the hell? Okay, great, his name was Kakashi which, Naruto reminded himself, Iruka told them earlier. That's what he got for tuning Iruka out after his name was called. Kakashi's eye arched and he looked to be smiling at them. Without speaking, he nodded his head at Sasuke.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I like reading and walking and my favourite food is onigiri with okaka and tomatoes. I dislike sweet things as well as nattō and I dislike loud situations. My hobby is training and my goal…" Sasuke took a slight breath and glanced at Naruto and Shikamaru out of the corners of his eyes. "Is to kill that man and repopulate my clan." Naruto blinked and looked at Sasuke before quickly dropping his head, his mouth slipping easily behind his headband.

Kakashi must have motioned to Shikamaru because said brunette began speaking. "Nara Shikamaru. I like napping and, on the rare occasion, playing shōgi against professionals or at least very difficult opponents. I dislike fighting; honestly I can't stand mindless bloodshed. My favourite foods are mackerel and kelp and I cannot stomach boiled eggs." The brunette yawned. "My hobbies are cloud watching and shōgi and my goal… You know, I haven't really thought about it. Troublesome."

Naruto grinned sideways at Shikamaru who merely rolled his eyes at his teammate. Naruto rolled his eyes back and looked at Kakashi who was looking at him impatiently. "Oh. I'm Uzumaki Naruto!" he stated, his smile slipping into a more subdued version of itself. "I enjoy being by myself, but sometimes I like spending time with my friends, especially Nodoka-Chan and Shikamaru," Naruto playfully nudged the brunette next to him who sighed loudly but smiled nonetheless. "I don't like being yelled at or being degraded. I really can't stand when villagers are rude to me. It makes no sense…" He trailed off for a second before shaking his head. "Anyway, I absolutely love ramen, tamagoyaki and red bean soup but really, I can't stand fresh vegetables." He laughed a bit. "My hobbies are reading, training, cleaning, and eating. My goal?" His eyes dropped to the ground and his smile slid away completely. "I… Am going to protect my loved one with my life." Naruto looked up and smiled brightly although came off a bit forced.

Yes, he thought, no one will harm him. No one will touch my ANBU. Naruto sighed slightly and tipped his head to the side, looking curiously at Kakashi who was surveying the trio of boys.

"Well," the sensei said, "it's odd to have an all-male team, I must say."

Naruto laughed quietly. "That's what Haruno was saying earlier, when I was first put on the team."

Kakashi raised his visible brow. "You're our token female then?" he asked, his tone light and teasing. Naruto pouted.

"I can see it," Shikamaru chimed in, nudging Naruto's knee with his own. The blond childishly stuck his tongue out at Shikamaru and then at Kakashi and looked over to his final teammate who was merely staring at him.

"Hm?" Naruto questioned quietly. Sasuke stared for a second and shook his head.

"Hn." All Sasuke got was an eyebrow raised. "I didn't know you hung out with Nara outside of school."

Naruto shrugged. "Yeah. I hung out with Shikamaru, Nodoka-Chan, Kiba, Chouji, Asahina-Chan, and Kai. Mainly Shikamaru and Nodoka-Chan, though." Naruto gave Sasuke a playful glare. "I would have been with you as well but I could never find you." Underneath the playfulness, Naruto understood. Not completely, of course, but on a level he understood. Sasuke's clan was gone. It was completely devoid of people, except him and the murderer. Uchiha Itachi. A shiver ran down Naruto's spine and he drew his jacket closer to himself, looking away from Sasuke as the boy 'hn'ed at him.

Kakashi cleared his throat. "Now that that's out of the way, aren't you glad we bonded?" Naruto stared at him blankly. Bonding? Is that what they just did? Well, Naruto definitely wouldn't have called it that. Maybe introductions but not bonding. There was no way what just happened was bonding, not with Kakashi's vague answers and his team's decidedly longer answers; if that was bonding, then dancing could be considered training. Naruto rolled his eyes and arched a brow at Kakashi who looked a bit nervous. Naruto glanced at Shikamaru who was staring hard at Kakashi and he looked at Sasuke who had both brows raised and his mouth in a sneer. Naruto would be nervous too. "Anyway," Kakashi said hastily. "I'm glad I got to know you. That's going to be all for today. Tomorrow, we're going to have a team test."

"A test?" Shikamaru asked. "How troublesome."

"A test," Kakashi repeated, his voice chipper once more. "I won't say exactly what kind of test but it will determine whether you will become a Genin team or not." He paused and looked at his students, all of whom stared back at him with varying forms of disinterest on their faces. "Training field eight is reserved for us tomorrow, so be there at six am sharp." Kakashi stood and stepped carefully onto the railing of the roof and looked over his shoulder at his team. "And don't eat breakfast." With that, Kakashi disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Without their sensei, the boys of Team Seven were rather quiet. He seemed to be the most talkative, but very late. Naruto sighed at that thought and stood, stretching his body out. He had a problem with being still; whenever he was still for longer than ten minutes, his muscles started to cramp up so when he moved, he first stretched. With his body stretched, Naruto turned and looked at Sasuke and Shikamaru.

"I'm gonna head off then," he informed them in his quiet voice. "Either of you want to join me? I was going to head out to Maki's." At the name of the small café, Sasuke seemed to perk up.

"Maki's?" he asked. At Naruto's nod, Sasuke said, "I suppose it wouldn't hurt. I enjoy their onigiri." Naruto smiled knowingly and looked to Shikamaru who grumbled and shook his head as Sasuke stood up.

"Can't. Mom asked me to help her after this," he motioned with his head to the roof. "One of our deer is giving birth." Naruto tipped his head to the side and smiled softly.

"Understandable. That sounds fun; name the baby after us!" Naruto jabbed at Sasuke with his elbow. "Just kidding. But really, have fun Shikamaru." Naruto nodded and waited until Sasuke and Shikamaru at least exchanged nods to lead Sasuke off to Maki's for onigiri and ramen.