A/N: Just some replies to some reviews~

To Killua17: Oh dear that would be super duper cute! I'm (obviously) planning to have Sasuke find out Naruko is, in fact, not a she! But I don't want to put that in until a lot of emotional attachment is involved so I can crush some characters' feelings and stir heaps of shit up. :3

To Theia Pallas: I know right?! Gay males, although gay, can still make the girls scream XDD.

And thank you to everyone else who followed/favourited/reviewed! I really appreciate it. c:

Okay that's all, happy reading. cx


"Are you sure he didn't ask you out? Or ask anything about anyone else?"

"I'm sure, Sakura-chan."

"He didn't say anything about me? What'd he say?"

"No, he just mentioned yours and Ino's little 'get together' this weekend."

"Does he want to come? Oh God, he can come! Of course he can!"

"He was planning on coming whether or not he was invited, anyways," Naruto sighed, an impending headache beginning to hammer at his forehead. "Maybe he likes your company."

"Of course he does, I throw awesome parties," Sakura replied, all giggly and way too happy once more. She was shorter than her blond companion, so as the two walked through the hallways to home room, she leant her head upon the other's shoulder and held his arm. Naruto almost blushed at this.

"Um, isn't it at Ino's?"

Sakura hummed, nodding one time, before the two stopped just in front of the classroom they were supposed to be at.

"Yep, but we're throwing it together, dummy, so credit goes to both of us," the Haruno paused for a moment as she played with a tangent of pink locks that fell down the sides of her face, looking as if she was lost in thought, before she eventually spoke up once more. "You'll be coming, right? It'll be our first party together."

"Well… I promised Kiba I would come, so I guess," Naruto replied, his blue eyes casting off towards the side, before he was forced to shift them back at the other female when Sakura had punched him in the arm.

"Oh, come on! Don't sound so down about it; it'll be fun!"

The two took the liberty to share a laugh, all before a passing teacher who was patrolling the hallways told them to get to class. And, so they did. In the end, they didn't get to meet again after home room until it was lunch time.

They were walking through the cafeteria, with their trays of food in hand, before they sat down at their usual spot with all of their friends.

"Speak of the devil," Kiba said, smiling as he stuck a single French fry into his mouth. "I didn't think you'd show up."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sakura asked, readjusting her skirt as she shot a glare towards Kiba. The brunet simply laughed loudly, nudging Suigetsu in the side.

"I was talking to Naru-chan! Where's Sasuke, hm, Suigetsu?"

"How the fuck am I supposed to know?" Suigetsu replied, the straw of his drink bottle in his mouth, all before he spat water out when a sharp pain went through his shin – Karin, sitting opposite him, having kicked him in the shin, "What the fuck!?"

"Language there's ladies here, Suigetsu," Karin said, pushing her glasses up her nose before she turned her dark eyes towards Kiba. "What are you trying to imply about dearest Sasuke?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Kiba asked, before Suigetsu snorted and continued on for him, "He has the hots for Naru-chan."

"What?!" Sakura, Ino and Karin all said in unison. Naruto, in the meanwhile, scoffed an "ew" before taking it from there.

"Like you would know," the blond said, moving a hand to hold Sakura's gently, all before the pinkette pulled away like she was betrayed. "Sasuke and I barely even talk, why the hell would he have 'the hots' for me?"

"Maybe he likes mysterious girls," Kiba suggested.

"That'll suit him perfectly, I-I think… seeing as he's just as mysterious," Hinata, who had been quiet this whole time alongside Shino and Juugo, said as she twiddled her thumbs. "I-I mean—…"

"I'm not mysterious at all," Naruto rebutted, shaking his head in the meantime, as he took a French fry and swirled it around in his sauce. "Sasuke doesn't have the hots for me."

"Well, you could have fooled me," Suigetsu then said, leaning over the table a little as he got closer to Naruto, that lazy smile upon his lips, "Doesn't mean someone else doesn't have the hots for ya."

"Put a sock in it, creep," Karin said sharply, pushing Suigetsu back into his seat. "Naru-chan wouldn't steep so low."

"No, but she'd steep so low to steal Sasuke," Sakura intervened, looking to the side as she watched her friend with wide eyes. "How could you?"

"Sakura-chan, there's nothing going on, I promise," Naruto replied in his defence, his heart beat picking up as he realised that Kiba probably caused the end of their friendship or just hurt Sakura. "I barely know him! He barely knows me!"

"I honestly thought you two would be making out in the janitor's closet," Kiba said, earning glares from all the girls at the table except Hinata, who was trying her best to gain Naruto's attention in hope of calming him down a little. "What?"

"You're the worst, Kiba, fuck you," Sakura cursed, pushing her tray forward as she discarded her lunch and stood up. "Why do you always try to start fights in between us all?"

"I was just joking!"

"Sure you were, asshole," the rosette shook her head in disappointment before turning around and making her way out of the cafeteria, to God knows where. Naruto was about to up and follow, all before Ino pulled him down by the arm, "Don't."

"What the hell is wrong with you, Kiba?" Karin asked, driving her foot forward to kick the brunet in the shin this time. "Your sense of humour is twisted!"

Kiba yelled out in pain, before holding his shin with his hands as he replied with, "Oh, come on, it was a joke!"

"It wasn't a funny one, Kiba," Naruto said, his tone of voice seeming as if he was actually disappointed in what the brunet had done. Well, he was, simply because now there'd probably be a whole lot of tension between him and Sakura. He didn't want drama, he didn't need it. He just needed to get his job done. Who would have thought high schoolers were this complicated?

"Shit stirrer," Ino said, looking down at her lap as if she was also considering the 'joke' Kiba said. She didn't seem to look at anyone, and Naruto immediately knew that the brunet really did stir up unneeded shit. "You're the worst, Kiba. You know how Sakura feels about Sasuke."

"Oh, it's not like you don't like him."

"Not as much as her, I can tell you that much," Ino replied as she finally lifted her gaze, baby blue eyes looking at Kiba with such hurt. "I don't really know him, to be honest. He's so closed in, it's like the only person who's really gotten inside of his head is Sakura. She knows him, not me. I just think he's cute. So, really, I don't like him for who he is. I like his looks and his way of speech and his way of doing stuff. I don't actually like him for what's up here—" she pointed to her forehead, before pointing to her chest, "—and what's in here. There's a difference, Kiba. That's why Sakura took it so much more personally than me. I don't care who Sasuke dates, although I would be disappointed."

"Rude," Suigetsu said, earning another kick from Karin, before the red-head spoke up, "Same goes here, actually. Sakura knows him. Although you've known Sasuke for just as long as she has, it's not like you actually know him. Sakura does. She fell in love with that. So be gentle, fucking hell, you two."

"Hey! I met Sasuke the same time you did," Suigetsu debated, before his knee was finally grabbed by Juugo. The much bigger male would often do this whenever Suigetsu ran his mouth like a tap. It was to shut him up.

"Doesn't mean you can be an ass about it," Karin finally said, pushing her glasses up her nose like she had just ended the controversy. But, Naruto butted in.

"I'm sorry, it's partly my fault," the blond said, doing that usual laugh of nerves, as he rubbed the back of his head. The girls looked at him gently, all before Ino spoke up, "For what? It was Kiba's and Suigetsu's fault, not yours. They just used you as guinea pig."

"I probably influenced them to do that, though."

"How so?"

"I spoke to Sasuke this morning…"

"Oh, big deal," Ino laughed alongside Karin, before looking at her knowingly, "Who doesn't speak to Sasuke? He's a friend; you're allowed to do that."

"Apparently he doesn't see me as a friend," Naruto said, tilting his head back in a mock snobby way. "Maybe I'm too good for him."

Hinata giggled, her hand reaching up to hook some dark hair behind her ear, before she spoke up gently, "That's true. If you were a boy, Naru-chan, you'd be a real lady killer."

"Oh, I totally agree," Ino said loudly, laughing momentarily. "You're probably the hottest girl I know. And I don't mean just looks. It's your personality that draws people in."

Naruto laughed, definitely blushing at this point as the blood rushed to his cheeks. He was a boy. Maybe he really would be lady killer – more so than Sasuke, at the least. But, even so… that didn't even seem important to him. He had mixed feelings about everything at the moment.

So the friend group, excluding Sakura and Sasuke and Sai, as usual, spent the remainder of their lunch time with mostly the girls coming up with ideas about how 'Naruko' would look if she was a boy. Naruto simply tried to dismiss the idea, but that just caused them to be more persistent about it. In the end, they all forgot about their troubles for a moment and just enjoyed being together. It was nice.


"Ah, so that's why she seemed off."

"Yeah, surprise."

It was drama class at the moment. Usually the school would make the drama classes spend their whole year simply doing either theory, which would end in exams, or the creation of their own script and what-not for their assignments. They studied Shakespeare a lot, and it was mostly in old English too, which only made things harder and more difficult to understand. Thankfully, though, they were spending their time getting ready for the annual school play. This was where the art students and the drama students would work together.

Naruto was an art student. Sasuke was a drama student. Hence why they were currently behind stage retrieving backdrops and stuff like that for the art students to paint on, whilst the drama students went over the script and were still deciding who'd be the actors. There wasn't many drama students – that, or they didn't want to act in this year's play simply because they weren't ready for that yet, so they decided to help out with props and costumes instead.

"Told you, Kiba talks too much," Sasuke then said, moving behind Naruto and helping the blond reach for something that was too high up for him, before handing it to him. The blond scoffed and took it, before replying with, "And you talk too little."

"Sometimes things don't need to be said."

"Oh, so you have something on your mind? And here I thought you were just an airhead."

"Hn… says the airhead."

Naruto glared, smiling the slightest from the simple teasing, before gathering the rest of the wooden cut-outs and taking it out to the front of the stage. Sasuke followed, having gathered his own little collection of the material the art students could use, before practically dumping it on the pile. Someone on the outside was counting these things, so it was just their job to gather whatever they could get their hands on.

As they went back behind stage again, however, Naruto took a seat on one of the chairs that would be used for the audience to sit on, rolling his feet one time.

"Geez, I'm sore," he complained, Sasuke taking a seat beside him. "I wish I could be as lazy as the drama kids and not do manual labour."

"I'm a drama student," Sasuke reminded Naruto, before the blond waved his hand in dismissal and replied with, "Yeah, but you chose to help. I didn't have a choice to do this."

"So thank me."

"What?"

"Thank me."

"You don't deserve it."

"Oh? So I should just leave you here and let you take twice as long carrying all this heavy stuff out? Alright—"

"Okay, okay! No, don't," Naruto shouted, breaking off with loud laugher, before regaining his composition and continuing. "I'm sorry. Thanks, teme."

Sasuke simply nodded his head in acknowledgement, looking as if he was actually smiling a genuine smile. It was… nice. He didn't seem so closed off like that.

That's when Naruto frowned and looked away. Fucking Sasuke. He was actually changing his point of view on the other. He didn't seem as bad as he was first made out to be. Sure, he had his cold glares sometimes, and those times where Naruto swore Sasuke had no emotions… but the raven did. And when he noticed that the Uchiha was like this around him that almost made him go mushy on the inside. At the same time, however, it made him grow super defensive.

Sasuke Uchiha, really?! Naruto didn't know how to felt like to have a crush on someone, but he knew he didn't have one on Sasuke. It just felt like he was really beginning to grow accustomed to him. That scared Naruto. Sasuke was a boy. So was Naruto. They were boys. The only one that didn't realise that was Sasuke. Sasuke thought Naruto was Naruko. Naruko was a girl, not Naruto!

Naruto had to get close, but not too close. He had to remind himself of that. He also had to remind Sasuke.

Plus, he didn't want some boy liking him! Or, well, at least he thought he didn't…

"Look, S-Sasuke!" Naruto burst out suddenly, causing Sasuke to tilt his head to the side before the blond turned to look back at him with cheeks so red, he almost looked like a tomato. "I don't know what this is, but it can't happen, alright?"

"This?"

"Yes, this!" the blond shouted, before placing a hand over his mouth as he realised the other students and their teachers might hear. "You and me—…"

"We can't be friends?" Sasuke inquired, although by his tone of voice, Naruto perceived that as the raven really didn't mean that. "And here I thought we already were."

"Stop quoting me, teme," Naruto pouted, folding his arms over his chest in a defensive manner. "What I mean is that… we can be friends, just… well, Sakura and all…"

"Sakura's a lost cause, Naruko, it doesn't matter."

"She's my friend."

"Is she?"

"Of course she is! She's a really nice girl! Why don't you like her?"

"I don't like a lot of people, she's the same."

"Can't you just give her a chance at least?"

"No, I'd give you a chance though."

"So you like me?"

"I already told you, I don't like you, but that doesn't mean I can't give you a chance."

"But you can't give Sakura a chance?"

Sasuke paused then, his facial expression shifting the slightest as he began to look more… annoyed, rather than his prior look of amusement.

"I can give her it; it's just that I don't want to give her it. Understand that, alright?"

"So no matter what I say, you won't give her a chance?"

"No! Fuck, I don't know," Sasuke cursed, although he soon looked away, his dark eyes gazing off into space like he was in deep thought. Naruto watched curiously, just wondering what the other was thinking about, before the Uchiha eventually turned back to face him with a serious expression and negotiating, "How about a compromise, Naruko?"

"What sort of compromise, teme?" Naruto asked, folding his arms over his chest. For some reason, although he was sort of doing a good deed for Sakura, he felt like this wasn't going to end well.

"You and me, Friday night. It's not a date."

Naruto narrowed his eyes, giving off the same sharp look Sasuke had. It was like these two were staring each other down in a battle. A battle for dominance – like the one who looked away first was the inferior one. The blond didn't want to back down, though. He didn't want to look weak in front of Sasuke. He wanted to do this so Sasuke would actually give the pinkette a chance and make her happy again. Naruto was good like that; he was strong.

"…Fine."


A/N: Sometimes I wish I was as confident as Sasuke. Maybe then I'd be able to ask this certain girl out in the lamest fashion and still make it seem smooth. -3- Anyways, the next chapter will be about Sasuke's and Naruto's 'not date'. :~)

Thanks for reading!