Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, haha what a shocker. All original characters/places, if I so choose to bring them in, are mine. The end.
A.N: Finally, I had enough time to update! I had a shitload of work to do when I got back from Washington (Bio, Trig, French, etc.). This chapter has a lot of plot in it, so I hope you enjoy.
Dusk approached as Naruto parted from his sensei, and began his trek home. He still remembered where his former flat was located, being in close proximity of the ramen bar. The sky above was skewed with hues of orange and pink, a familiar sight to the blond. Many a time, he had gazed up as he returned from training, feeling near-exhausted.
That wasn't what Naruto remembered most fondly, and a smile formed on his face, recalling those green eyes. The sky had shined orange and pink on that day, too.
"Thank you for treating me to ramen, Naruto."
"No problem, Sakura-chan!" the blond gave the pink haired kunoichi one of his wide grins. I love spending time alone with her. She may not feel the same way about me, but it feels like we're actually together.
"Naruto, I'm going to head back home. I'll see you at training tomorrow!" Sakura gave Naruto a reassuring smile and turned around, walking in the direction of her residence.
Here's my chance! "Wait! Do you want me to walk you home, Saku – " The kunoichi flipped around, seeing the blond laying face down in the dirt. "Naruto, you baka…" Sakura sighed. She strolled over to where the jinchuuriki had fallen. "Are you alright?"
Looking up at Sakura, Naruto noticed his cheeks begin to flush in embarrassment. Damn it, damn it, damn it! There goes the mood! "Haha, of course Sakura-chan! I just noticed something on the ground and I decided to pick it up!" the blond quickly covered for his clumsiness.
"Right, Naruto," the girl grabbed Naruto's hand and helped him up to his feet. "Honestly, you act so immature sometimes…" She noticed the blond's face slightly frown in shame in the wake of her words. "…but, you do have some redeeming qualities," Sakura finished, sincerity in her voice.
Redeeming qualities? He did not have time to ponder this; Sakura's lips grazed against his cheek, replacing confusion with welcomed shock. "Thank you, Naruto. For dinner, and always being there for me, too, despite…" Sakura stopped, deciding not to finish. "Anyway, you don't have to walk me home. Knowing the baka you are, you wouldn't find your own way back." With that, the kunoichi once again turned, leaving the flustered blond in his tracks. Sakura…
chan… Naruto reached under the doormat, grabbing the familiar placed key. Opening the door, he immediately recognized the messy room. It's hard to believe that I haven't seen this in two years. The blond made a beeline towards the bed, plummeting on top of it. This place is so roomy; I wonder why I ever moved out.
Moments after making contact with the bed, fatigues began to sweep in. His chakra levels were still low from the attempt on his life, despite having occured five years in the future. Naruto felt his eyes becoming heavy, and slowly gave in to the inevitable slumber. I'll just rest my eyes…only for a second…
What seemed as minutes later, rays of sunlight met deep pools of blue. The pair of eyes darted over from the window to the coffee table on the right. Familiar red numbers flashed across the clock, but instantly invoked feelings of panic.
"Eight fifteen!" The blond sprang out of his comforting bed and dashed to his closet, ripping out the closest orange jumpsuit he could grab. "Shit, I'm late! Iruka-sensei is going to kill me!" Naruto hurriedly threw on his outfit as quick as he could and sprinted out the door, forgetting everything but his imminent punishment at the Academy.
Jumping from rooftop to rooftop, Naruto soon glimpsed the polished building in sight. Within a couple more minutes, he reached the schoolyard and entered the slightly open doors. It's been so long; I'm not sure if I remember the number!
Seeing a door up ahead, the blond jumped for the handle and pushed forward. Balance, however, was abandoned, and the jinchuuriki found his face meeting the hard wooden floor. Looking up, he saw Iruka's scolding face, clearly irritated. Least I found the right room.
"NARUTO!" bellowed his infuriated sensei. "You're late again! And of all days, the Graduation Exam!"
"Exam?!" Damn! I completely forgot about this!
Iruka shook his head, "Yes, the graduation exam! The one you've already taken two times! How are you ever going to become a ninja if you can't remember anything or even be on time?!" This comment immediately sounded off laughter across the room causing Naruto to slightly blush.
"Sorry Iruka-sensei, I just overslept, I'll try and do better." With that, Naruto headed to his seat in the middle row of the classroom. Behind him, the brunet's face was racked with surprise at the blonde's sudden maturity.
"Er… Alright, Naruto…" Confusion was clearly evident in his voice, but instantaneously he regained his composure. "Back to business! As all of you should now be aware, today is the day of the Graduation Exam. This is a serious matter; you're rising to the rank of Genin or continuation in the Academy depends on your performance. I urge you all to do your best!" Iruka added, finishing his lecture.
Naruto glanced around, taking note of his surrounding classmates. This is so nostalgic. Seeing all of them here again; it's unreal. Reminiscing was soon interrupted, though, as a groan broke past the mutterings and side conversations of the rest of the room.
"Exam! Ah, this is going to be troublesome…" The blond whipped his head to his right catching sight of the boy speaking. The black-haired boy had his feet collapsed on his desk while lazily leaning back in the respective chair. Next to him sat a brunet with an obvious food problem. Bags of chips, candy, and other various assortments were skewed across the table, most of them empty.
"Don't worry Shikamaru! I'm sure this won't be that bad," noted the overweight male, talking in between chews.
"Choji… It's an exam; lifting a pencil alone takes too much effort," replied Shikamaru with a sigh.
Below, Naruto smirked to himself. Haha! Choji with his overeating – Shikamaru with everything being 'troublesome'. It's just like the old days!
"They're so pathetic," a feminine voice above him retorted, showing much disdain. Looking behind him, the jinchuuriki saw a long haired blonde discussing with anyone who would listen. "I mean, c'mon, look at them! A lazy ass and a fat ass; I feel sorry for anyone who'll have to work with them even if they graduate!" the blonde girl laughed, greatly amused with herself.
I forgot how shallow she used to be. I'm surprised she hasn't –
"Naruto, why are you staring at me? I know I'm beautiful," she said with a high pitched giggle, "But honestly, a baka like you have nothing to offer someone from the Yamanaka clan! However, over there…" The girl nodded her direction to the left. "He's perfect for someone as popular as – "
"Yeah right, Ino-pig!!" A hand smashed down on the blonde girl's head, cutting off the rest of her sentence. "He obviously despises you and adores me! Give up!"
Ino slapped the green eyed girl away from her, knocking her against the desk behind. "Why the hell would anyone want that big forehead of yours, Sakura?! I mean honestly, can't you tell…"
Sakura-chan…The two women's argument slowly drowned out of his thoughts, leaving memories once again bare. Last time around, she was just a crush to me…
"Naruto doesn't know anything about me. He's always interfering with my love!"
She thought – or rather, as the situation I'm in – thinks I'm annoying. I bet if I even try to talk to Sakura-chan, she'll just glare. But, it's never stopped me before, so I guess there's no harm in trying.
"Saku – "
"All of you, SETTLE DOWN!" bellowed Iruka, having already waited several minutes. "We will begin the final exam right now!" Everyone clamored back to their seats, fearing the reaction of the enraged sensei. "The exam will not be written," he glanced at Shikamaru. "Instead it'll be an evaluation of the skills you have developed during your time spent here! Normally, the Academy would have you perform a simple jutsu to pass."
Ahahaha! This'll be easy; I'll just use Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!
"However, with the high rate of unsuited ninja graduating, Sandaime-sama himself requested that we hold a type of sparring exam!" Iruka ended with excitement in his voice.
"Now fighting? Damn, I knew becoming a ninja would be troublesome," Shikamaru muttered agonizingly.
Back up front, Iruka pulled a crumpled sheet of paper out of his green vest. "The result of your grade will not be determined if you win or lose the fight. Rather, it'll be based on your usage of jutsu and chakra control. Also, I will end the match if it becomes too heated." The brunet paused briefly. "Any questions?"
"Yes, Iruka-sensei!" Sakura questioned. "How will these match pairings be determined?"
"Oh, it'll start off as a volunteer sort of choosing, then as the numbers dwindle down, we'll match you up ourselves. Of course, if the set appears to be too unbalanced, there'll be intervention," Iruka responded. "Anyone else?" He looked around the room; silence.
"Okay, let's head out to the training field, but don't mess around," he glanced at several people, including Naruto. "This is supposed to be serious."
With that, the group marched outside of the Academy, Naruto tailing towards the end. I'll have to admit, even though this is such a low-key battle, I'm excited! Maybe in this timeline I'll be seen as great, maybe even a genius. The blond grinned with pride. Haha! I might even get my own group of admirers!
"Naruto-kun! You are so amazing!" "Yeah, he's so cool and handsome!"
Naruto laughed out loud, unable to contain his hilarity. He noticed that he had drifted further behind, seemingly the last person. That, however, was not the case, as the blond suddenly felt a slight shove against his right arm. "Hey! Watch who you're-"
The sentence was left unfinished, as numbness slightly overtook his body. Him…
"Hn." The aggressor just continued on his path, unaffected by the boy who had just crossed his path. Naruto stared at him from behind, excitement in his eyes. I'll show him this time!
Soon, the blond reached the rest of the pack, already having arrived at the designation. Two or several long, wooden benches had been prepared, which most of the students had found their way to. Towards the middle of the field, Naruto observed several of the Academy teachers, Iruka included. He trudged over to the front row of the nearest stand, and parked himself on the wood.
"Alright, now that everyone has arrived," began Iruka, "we will begin the Graduation Exam! For the first spar, all of the Academy sensei decided to have the top ranked student face another of you."
The blond jinchuuriki watched as the male he just engaged rose, walking towards the center of the grassy field. His jet black locks swayed with the wind, providing a complement to the disdain and apathy etched on his face. Haha, he's still the same self-absorbed asshole, no matter where OR when. Revenge is probably all that's going through his head right now; I feel kind of sorry for him.
"Now, if any student would like to take on Uchiha Sasuke, please make yourself known." Iruka looked around; none made an effort to take up the challenge. He sighed, "Remember, this exam isn't based on whether you wi – "
"I'll fight him Iruka-sensei!" Naruto suddenly shouted, jumping from his seat. He quickly stretched and rushed out to meet the dark-haired Uchiha. Azure eyes met black pits; intensity coursing between them at such an extraordinary rate that one could have sworn to see sparks.
"Naruto, you know Sasuke is the best in the class. I don't think that –"
"Relax! I have a few tricks up my sleeve! After all, I'm going to be the next Hokage!" Naruto added the slightly immature, yet fond statement he had once always thrown out.
"Naruto as a reminder, you are–"
"A dobe," the Uchiha finally spoke, irritation in his voice. "Iruka, if he wants to lose so much, let him. It'll just be more humiliation."
"Haha, I'll enjoy beating your ass Sasuke-teme! Iruka-sensei, start the fight!" anxiously replied Naruto. Finally, I can prove myself to everyone!
Sasuke's apathetic expression changed to one of slight rage. Offense had obviously been taken from Naruto's remarks. "You'll regret that," Sasuke growled, preparing his fighting stance.
"If you're both sure…" the brunet sensei trailed off, worry in his voice. Increasing his volume, Iruka continued, "Academy faculty, clear the field! As for the rest of the body, the first match will be Uchiha Sasuke versus Uzumaki Naruto!"
There's Chapter 3, hope you liked it! First big action scenes are coming up, finally. I was considering adding it to this chapter, but it would have been REALLY lengthy, and I wanted to put out an update for all of you. So sorry for the cliffhanger-like ending.
On a note with NaruSaku, as I've said before, I'm leaning towards them as a pairing. But, I'm not completely sure if I'll go in that direction, at least for awhile. It'll be onesided for quite some time, I can guarantee that. For the NaruHina fans, I'm not really for the two of them; I think it's unlikely, unless Hinata gets some time in the manga soon, that they'll end up together over the other two. There could be a possible fling between the two as I write further, but I doubt it will last long.
Who knows? Only I will. ; )
Anyway! R&R please! I appreciate all good/bad criticisms, especially constructive ones. Feel free to point out spelling/grammar errors, inconsistencies in the plot, and anything else that could be improved. Until next time!
