The target of their latest mission sauntered through a flowerbed and caught wind of something that didn't belong amidst the scent of flowers and honeybees, and promptly went to investigate. Right on cue Hinata dropped from the tree she'd been hiding in and scooped the animal up into her arms, enduring some frantic flailing from the cat before it recognized the girl's scent and calmed down. That lavender body wash she preferred really helped in soothing the creature, and within a minute the orange tabby was acting docile enough for Sakura to approach and slip the collar back onto its neck, making sure to secure it properly this time.
The other cat in the flower patch wandered off a short distance, rather smugly, and in a puff of smoke transformed back into Naruto. His talent for transforming into beings of the opposite gender was coming in handy in ways he'd never thought of. Retrieving the pet carrier from where he'd left it he wandered over to Hinata and Sakura, holding the door open while they finished fawning over the tabby. "Okay, furball, time to go home. Can you try to behave a little more next time?" He received a dismissive meow from the cat in response, but he hopped out of Hinata's arms into the carrier all the same. There'd been enough adventure for one day.
After returning the pet to his owner and collecting their fee, Team Seven was free to relax before their evening training session. Naruto immediately suggested heading to Ichiraku's for a bite to eat, even offering to pay; the girls on the other hand didn't seem too keen on the idea. Both had excuses and both were true, so Naruto was left to enjoy Ichiraku's all by his lonesome. Their loss, though he did find himself wishing that he had people to spend time with besides his team and teachers. It would make passing the time much easier.
Hell, he'd even accept an interruption from Konohamaru right about now. At least he wasn't getting as many cold stares recently. It seemed that when people saw that Naruto was actually capable of being polite and helpful (to a point) that their misgivings about the orphan boy evaporated partway, and there had always been those—like Teuchi and Ayame—who were willing to ignore his antics and see the lonely child behind them. Making his way through Konoha's streets to the ramen stand, Naruto slipped into his favorite spot at the counter, flashing a grin to the owner and slipping a few bills forward to ask for his usual fare.
A dark shape settled into the seat beside him and for a moment Naruto stiffened, expecting a confrontation. Sasuke ordered a bowl of miso with a bean roll on the side, stating that he didn't normally eat ramen but he'd heard that Ichiraku's was "the best" before glancing aside at Naruto.
"So, clown, tell me about Kakashi-sensei." The insult set Naruto to bristling, the hairs on his neck prickling up in offense against the casual way that Sasuke demeaned him. He'd done his best to ignore it while they were just candidates, but now…
"Why don't you ask him yourself, jerk? Surely the Uchiha genius can figure out how to find combat arena sixteen at seven in the morning." Focusing his attention on the bowl of beef ramen in front of him, Naruto began to eat ravenously, pushing his thoughts to consider what sort of training that Kakashi might have for him since Hinata had to attend a formal dinner with her family and Sakura was helping out in the clinic. Of course he'd forget about that in his desire to grow stronger, but they had lives away from him and he wouldn't begrudge them that.
"I'm not trying to steal your teacher away from you, dumbass. I just want to know what you think about him. Or do you mean to imply that Leaf ninja aren't allowed to associate with each other just because they're put on different teams?" The bristling continued and Naruto fought to keep from choking on his noodles, washing it down with a healthy slurp of the broth in the bowl.
"He's a lazy bum who always shows up late to training sessions and always has his nose stuck in one of those perverted little books. That said he knows his stuff so when he does show up on time, Kakashi-sensei pushes us as hard as he can to make us understand our limits better. You know what he did for our first training? Dumped us on a desert island for a month and let us fend for ourselves; then when he brought us back, borrowed the training we'd set up for ourselves and made it even tougher." Naruto knew that Hinata had connections and maybe Kakashi was afraid of losing face in front of the Hyuugas; that said it didn't change the fact that he had his genin working hard six out of every seven days in the week. "I wouldn't trade him for the world."
Was Kakashi one of the people he cared about? Well maybe. He was very direct and took cheap shots all the time, yet always had the time to answer questions if there was something that they really didn't seem to be getting in a way that made so much sense that they didn't feel stupid for needing it explained. Though he didn't have much experience to go on, Naruto figured that it must be what having a big brother was like. "What about your sensei? What's she like?"
"Very…interesting. Skilled at taijutsu and ninjutsu, but specializes in genjutsu. Always makes us find her before she'll start a lesson. Kurenai-sensei has a fetish for 'team synergy', whatever that means. My teacher keeps insisting that we find a way to make our fighting skills work for each other. She can't seem to get it through her head that those two are just holding me back."
"You ever stop to think maybe you're the one holding you back? Just because you're a so-called genius doesn't mean you don't have things to learn. You're not alone so stop acting like it." Naruto didn't feel like asking for a second bowl of ramen like he normally would, offering his thanks to Ayame for her hospitality before swiveling in his seat to leave.
Sasuke caught his shoulder as he stood up and nearly caught a fist to the jaw.
"Naruto. A weakling like you doesn't deserve Kakashi-sensei."
"I'll let him know you said that. If you'll excuse me, I have a personal instruction session that I don't want to be late for."
It didn't take much time after that to arrive at the training ground where, still seething from the run-in with Sasuke. If he didn't understand him before, the Uchiha was downright incomprehensible now. Who the fuck did he think he was, lording it over everyone like that when he hadn't yet done a damn thing to prove his worth as a ninja? Sure, he was expected to just bow before the mighty clansman and pretend that he was lower than dirt; Naruto's way was far different though. If someone wanted to step on your back it better be for a damn good reason and not just because they thought they were too good to set foot on the ground.
His anger at Sasuke's behavior and words had him throwing kunai in quick succession at one of the many targets that decorated the combat field, firing each one with an intensity and accuracy that the blond normally didn't possess. Right when he was about to throw another he realized he'd tossed his last one, and with a grumble started towards the blade-riddled target. Halfway there, however, a long-handled knife with a red tassel tied to the end shot out and embedded itself to the hilt in the exact middle of the target dummy, nearly creasing Naruto's cheek in the process.
Turning to see who had thrown the weapon, Naruto spied an older genin with blank white eyes and long brown hair advancing on him with another knife in hand. Panicked as he thought he was under attack, he reached into his pouch for a set of shuriken, but then relaxed as he spotted the Leaf insignia on the headband he wore. The tone he used when he addressed Naruto was cool, though respectful.
"I did not mean to startle you, Uzumaki. You are on a team with my cousin, I believe? I am Neji. I wish to hear about your training."
"Great god in heaven, are you here to put me down, too?" Neji tilted his head, puzzled at Naruto's words, and then answered in the negative.
"I have no such intentions. I only want to hear if Hinata is performing as should be expected of a Hyuuga."
"She does okay by my reckoning. But why are you asking me? She said she'd be at a formal dinner tonight. Or do you mean to say you weren't invited?"
"The dinner you speak of was reserved for Lord Hiashi and other main family members. I am not going to discuss the details of clan affairs with an outsider. Please answer only this: in your assessment, is Hinata showing signs of becoming a strong and capable ninja who will bring honor to the Hyuuga house?"
Naruto had to pause and ponder for a minute, his earlier moment of gut-wrenching fear ignored as he thought over the question of Hinata. "Personally? I think she's better than she gives herself credit for. I always feel like she's holding back or something. Like she's afraid that if she shows her teammates up that we'll be insulted and hate her. It's kind of silly if you ask me. If she gets better than us, then we just have to work harder to close the gap, right?" Neji fixed him with the white-eyed gaze that seemed to be looking through him rather than at him, and Naruto barely caught the telltale signs that the Hyuuga bloodline had been triggered.
He'd seen Hinata use it enough to know what to look for, right at the temples and just beneath the eye sockets; the user's blood vessels filled up to supply the extra energy needed to use the trait and the person triggering it tended to adopt an expression that he could only call hateful, even if it was someone gentle like Hinata doing it. He relaxed at the same time as Neji did, pulling the blade out of the dummy and offering it to the Hyuuga handle-first.
"It may be that her fate and yours are changing. Uzumaki. Take care that you do not harm her, or I will be most upset with you." Neji took the blade and sheathed it, before performing a body flicker and disappearing from view.
"What was that about?" At least he wasn't angry at Sasuke anymore.
Author's notes: I'm appreciating the feedback so far, guys. Unfortunately I don't plan to make this story my main focus but it will get worked on frequently, so expect short but numerous chapters and me skipping over some things to get to the meat of it all. As long as people keep reading, I'll keep writing.