"Great! We've got a competition after school today!"
"Oh...really? I wouldn't mind coming to watch..." Sasuke thought he was being too obvious, but Naruto was happy to hear that his new friend wanted to watch him compete with the best throwin kunai ninja out there (lol). He was secretly hoping he would.
"That would be great!!" Naruto said, excitedly throwing his arms around the alarmed sophomore.
Sasuke was in heaven, but he didn't want to show everyone that he loved nothing more than little God-boys touching him.
Naruto squeezed him and finally let him go. Naruto was an excitable kid, and everyone already knew he was generally cheery. But he didn't normally squeeze people like that. The blonde got that confused feeling he would sometimes get when he unknowingly looked at a boy's chest in the locker room. He blushed deeply, seeing as Sasuke was doing the same.
Sakura picked this very inappropriate time to arrive at her homeroom.
"Hey, Sasuke! Hi..." She shyly looked at the blonde.
"Naruto." Sasuke said, "Sakura, this is Naruto. Naruto...this is my friend Sakura." He tried to remain calm as he introduced them.
"Hi, Naruto!" Sakura said, no longer shy, now that she knew what to call the stranger.
"Here are your scrolls..." Sasuke said, pulling a stack of papers out of his backpack.
The pink giggled. "Wow, kage bunshin. Ever heard of these?"
"Hardy har har..." Sasuke smiled at her and thrust the papers into her chest.
She grabbed them and ignored the slightly rudeness. "Well, the bell's about to ring. You two had better get to your homerooms. Thanks again, Sasuke! Nice meeting you, Naruto!" She disappeared into the room.
Sasuke sighed, relieved. She hadn't noticed their awkward situation or asked any questions of any kind. She didn't even seem suspicious...But was this really a good thing? The less she was suspicious of to begin with, the more it would come as a shock to her when she finally learned the truth. Sasuke was too busy worrying about Sakura to notice that Naruto was staring at him, an expression not like his usual cheerful one pasted on his face. It was almost longing, and a little scared.
"Sasuke...I'm glad I met you." the blonde said, smiling slightly.
Sasuke looked up at him, now noticing he was a little troubled. "Oh...yeah! I'm glad I ran into you...and you ran into me." The fox smiled genuinely this time. He felt better now that Sasuke didn't think he was weird for hugging him like that. Naruto was glad the Uchiha still liked him. "I'll see you later at the game. Then, I'll call you tonight, ok?" Sasuke's heart jumped in his chest. CONFIRMATION! NAruto flat-out told him he was going to call! So it's guaranteed right?!?! RIGHT?!?!?!?!?!?!? "Ok...talk to you later, then!" Sasuke wore a Naruto-like expression as he ran to his homeroom, the bell now ringing to start the day. Wow. I like to smile. He smiles pretty. I should practice smiling.. Smiling feels good...
It was that time of the day again! Naruto was going to gym. He hoped they'd have kunai practice again today so that he could get some practice in before that afternoon's game. He arrived in the locker room, but the atmosphere was not cheerful like it normally was...He wondered what was wrong...Why were people staring? Why were people whispering? He didn't like this.
A few boys in his locker section hurriedly pulled shirts over their heads and walked into the gym without a word to the blonde. Only a few suspicious glances. Naruto was beginning to get upset. Even the boys that were normally friendly toward him were acting strangely.
"Faggot" One of the other boys said, shoving the blonde into the gym lockers.
"Ow!!" Naruto started to cry.
One of the dials on the locker had jabbed him in the back, but that didn't hurt half as much as being called...what had he called him?
"Stay away from us, you freak!" another boy said, walking with the first boy into the gym.
"But...why..." Naruto tried to get out, but he could barely speak. Naruto was nothing but nice to these people...They were his teammates, his friends... Faggot...freak? For once in his life, the fox didn't want to go into the gym. He didn't want to get into his ninja suit. He didn't want to play. He didn't want to exist. The whole feeling of isolation was coming back again. Not everyone was informed of the fox's existance. It was best for that, but now he was being hated for this? He wished he could disappear for awhile, and maybe come back as someone that no one thought was a faggot or a freak. He just sat on the bench and hoped none of the teachers would notice he was missing from the game.
But it was hard to miss Naruto. He was easily the best player, and everyone was used to his cheerful atmosphere and good sportsmanship. It was easy to notice that none of those things were present. Sure enough, Naruto's assistant gym teacher, Iruka Sensei, walked into the locker room. Seeing that Naruto was in shambles, he decided not to reprimand him. He attempted to talk to the boy.
"Naruto...? Is there something the matter?" Well, duh. Naruto merely shook his head "No.."Yeah right.
"Naruto, did someone say something to you? I heard some commotion before..."
"It's nothing..."
?You can tell me. In fact, you should tell me. This way, I can stop it from happening again. To you or to anyone. Now...what happened?"
"Neji...and Shino...they said...I was a faggot. They told me to stay away from them...They called me a freak..." The sensei just sat silently and let this sink in.
"Well," he began, "that was uncalled for, obviously. All year I've been observing you kids during your gym period, and never once have I seen you do even a small act of spite toward any of these kids. I was under the impression Neji and Shino were your friends."
"So was I..." The blonde cried, pathetically, more tears flowing.
"Can you think of any reason why they might have behaved this way toward you?"
"You just said that I didn't do anything..."
"That's...I mean...What I meant was...did they hear a rumor about you? Or maybe they heard you say something? Or maybe they misinterpreted something you did? Teenaged boys tend to jump to conclusions."
The fox looked up from crying into his knees. He merely stared at the wall for a good seven minutes until finally realizing what was happening to him.
"he called me a faggot..." He said, quietly, more to himself than to Iruka Sensei
"I know, Naruto, I--"
"...because I am one." His teacher gave Naruto a pitiful look.
"Now, Naruto, you shouldn't believe what they say...You are who you are. You can't let yourself think you're gay simply because--"
"But I am...I like guys. I know I look at them sometimes...the boys in the locker room. Sometimes I notice I'm doing it, but other times I must not. They're probably scared...It confused me before, but now I know why. Iruka Sensei...is it wrong to be gay?"
"Well...Naruto...many different people have many different ideas about this subject...but right or wrong, you can't help what you are. And neither can anyone else."
"I don't think it's wrong...If it's something that can't be changed, why don't they just deal with it?"
"Because...they're people. People are different. They think differently. People fear different. Fear of change. Some boys, like you, I'd imagine, are raised to think that homosexuality is simply a lifestyle that some people live. They believe that everyone has their own separate ways of living and that being gay is only a small part of it. Other people...might have been raised with the belief that gay people are something to be afraid of. It all depends on who you're dealing with...Now, as for your buddies Neji and Shino...They may eventually realize that who you are can't be changed and just accept you. But, kid...believe me, it doesn't get any easier. People might turn their backs on you because of the beliefs they were raised with. Just remember, though, that it's no fault of yours. And just like they can't change your mind about liking boys, you can't change their mind about liking you."
The blonde took a minute to let this sink in... "Thanks, Sensei...I think I feel better now..."
"The period's almost over...you don't have to go out there now if you don't want to. I won't take off your participation grade because this wasn't exactly your fault. Just do yourself a favor and don't run away from this, ok? I know it hurts, but you're going to have to face this. And your participation grade...we'll say you made it up at the game this afternoon, ok?" He winked at his student.
NAruto smiled. "Yeah...I'll have fun at the game. Sasuke's coming to watch me..."
Iruka laughed, not really knowing whom "Sasuke" was, but assuming that he was someone who made the blonde very happy. He was just glad to see Naruto returning to his normal, cheerful self. The bell rang, and the boys all came into the locker room, talking about the kickball game that went on. Some of them gave Naruto the same bitter look they had given him before, but some of them looked at him with concerned expressions. Iruka Sensei ushered them in, making sure that none of them had a chance to harass Naruto again. The fox smiled, getting up to leave the locker room.
"Thanks, ... Dad.." Sensei felt his heart warm up, he sort of was a father to him...
"Hey...anytime, kid. Take care of yourself."
"I will." Naruto walked into the hallway and to his next class, receiving occasional strange looks from people whispering to each other around him. He tried like hell not to let it bother him...
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Ok, sorry if you're mad about me using Neji and Shino as meanies. I dont really like them HEEHEE