YAY! I updated, right? WRONG…

….

Just kidding; I swear. Lol.

So, here we go…

Story: The New Kid

Chapter 4: Let the Games Begin!

Warnings: Idk… randomness… yaoi… that's not really a warning… um… other stuff!

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The bell sounded and the halls filled with yells and shuffling feet. Naruto stared up at the captivating eyes of the class president, hoping the fear in his own wasn't visible. He thought about going home today… and Kakashi killing him… no… no, he wouldn't let Naruto off that easy. He'd only make Naruto wish he was dead.

Sasuke broke into Naruto's thoughts. "Don't worry. You're not in trouble. I'm just going through regulations, here. It's the school's policy for the class presidents to greet all new students."

Naruto paused and let out a sigh of relief. He hadn't even thought of that. He'd assumed he was in trouble again somehow. Maybe that wasn't a good thing…

"So, my name is Sasuke Uchiha. I'm the Juniors' Class President. It's nice to meet you, Naruto. How do you like the school so far?"

"Uh… it's fine, I guess. This guy, Haku, invited me over after school. I'm kinda glad to make a friend so fast." Naruto heard the relief in his own words as he realized how true they were… He actually had made a friend without getting into trouble… or acting like a complete fool… this was a record for him!

"Oh, yes…. Haku… He's a charming, little boy, isn't he?"

"D-did I say something wrong?"

"Hmm? Why would you think that?"

"Well, you're face scrunched up and one of your eyes twitched." Naruto felt like taking a few steps back for a second.

Sasuke looked away to hide the embarrassment on his face. He couldn't believe he let his emotions get the better of him! He cleared his throat. "Don't worry. You said nothing wrong. In fact, did you see which way Haku went? He and I have a little game going on."

"I saw him head down the hall, but I'm not sure where… new school and all, you know?"

Sasuke laughed and answered, "If you want, I can show you around the rest of the day. How about that?"

"That'd- that'd be awesome... but you don't like… have… to do it… like if you're only asking because of your job as president, then you should know, I'm pretty tough! I can find my way around on my own."

"Ha-ha. Don't worry. I'm asking because I want to."

"Oh, okay then…. Well… where is the lunchroom?"

"Come on. I'll show you." Sasuke grinned back at the door behind him, almost as if he'd known someone was hiding there, listening to their conversation.

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The brown-haired boy came out from his hiding place behind the door.

'Fine, if that's how you want it, Sasuke… Haku… then, let the games begin. That two hundred dollars is mine!'

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"Hey, Sasuke… Naruto, we're over here!"

Naruto walked alongside Sasuke, their trays bearing… who knows what food it's supposed to be. Naruto smiled at Haku as he set his tray. "Uh… hey!"

"Go ahead. Sit down. I'll introduce you to everyone!"

"Ok." Naruto looked up at the people also seated at his small, round table. There were five other guys besides Haku and Sasuke.

"This is Shino… he's kind of a silent guy, but trust me. If you need help with any type of homework, especially biology, he's your guy." Haku said, pointing to a pale figure looking somewhere else through dark sunglasses.

"Oh, this is Gaara. He may seem scary at first, but actually, he's one of the nicest guys here… as long as you don't wake him when he's sleeping."

The boy Haku spoke of had wild locks of blood red hair and sea green eyes, but what intrigued Naruto the most was the Japanese character imprinted on the left side of the boy's forehead in red lettering.

"To my left are Shikamaru and Lee… complete opposites. Lee loves working out and doing anything that gets physical, but Shikamaru hates it all. If anything you hear from him, it'll be him calling something 'troublesome' or 'pointless.'"

The table laughed as Lee waved to over to Naruto, and Shikamaru rolled his eyes. Naruto smiled in return and turned back to Haku just as the boy began to speak again.

"And we can't forget Neji and Kiba. We wouldn't trade them for two hundred dollars. They complete this little game."

Naruto could have sworn he heard someone kick Haku under the table, but if they had, Haku certainly didn't show it. He kept on rambling about other people at different tables, but Naruto turned back to his lunch, again pondering what exactly was on his plastic tray.

"So, what classes do you have next, Naruto?"

Naruto looked up at Sasuke just as the dark-haired boy took a gulp of his red Gatorade.

"I think I have World History and…" Naruto pulled out his schedule from his pocket. "And I have French. That's all."

"Really? I have French last period, too. Shika and Neji have World History, but Shika's in French with me, too."

"Oh, cool. I'll see you guys there."

"Hey, Naruto, what are you doing after school? Wanna hang out?"

"Well, actually… um… Kiba… Haku invited me over today."

"Oh, he did, did he? That was awfully nice of him."

Naruto didn't get a chance to respond to the curious statement before the bell rang. Everyone was already clearing their trays before he'd even realized he hadn't touched his food.

"Naruto! Come on. I'll take you to your next class just like I promised."

Naruto caught up to Sasuke, and they exited the lunchroom, heading up the stairs to the eleventh grade hallway.

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"Good morning, class. Today, we're starting section 5.3, 'The Industrial Revolution in America.' Oh, you must be Naruto. Welcome to World History 11-6. I'm your teacher, Jiraiya. Now, you've come somewhat in the middle of our chapter, but I expect you to catch up with the help of a few friendly peers willing to lend you their notes…?"

One hand flew up before Jiraiya had finished his question.

"Ah, Neji Hyuuga…. Always a good sport. You remind me of myself as a child… handsome… friendly… and cool."

A few people laughed at the last part of Jiraiya's statement.

"Alright, Naruto. You copy those notes from Neji, and the rest of the class will start the 5.3 worksheet that Miss Haruno is passing out."

Naruto smiled as Sakura passed him, handing sheets to the people behind him. She winked back just before Naruto started the work before him.

The class was silent with the exception of the sound of scratching pencils for the rest of the period and the consistent flip of pages from a suspicious magazine Jiraiya at his desk.

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"Bonjour! Je m'appelle Madame Tsunade. Comment t'appelles-tu?"

"Uh… What?" Naruto asked, dumbfounded by the tall blonde woman's question. How the heck was he supposed to know what she was saying?

"Je…" the woman said, pointing to herself. "Je m'appelle Madame Tsunade."

"Oh! Your name! Ok… I get that… Hi, Madame…"

"En français." (In French.)

"Um… Bonjour… Madame Tsunade?"

"Bon, Monsieur… tu t'appelles Naruto, oui?" (Good, Mr.… your name is Naruto, yes?)

"Uh… Oui?

"Salut, Monsieur Naruto. Bienvenue dans ma classe de français!" The woman said. Naruto looked at her in confusion again. He had a feeling French wasn't going to be easy for him. (Hello, Naruto. Welcome to my French class.)

"Ok…" Naruto realized for the first time that the bell had already rang, and every set of eyes stared at him from their desk.

"Monsieur Naruto… aujourd'hui, asseyez-vous à coté de Monsieur Shikamaru. Il pourra vous aider avec votre travail."

Naruto knew the teacher was saying something important… he just couldn't figure out what.

"She said come sit next to me, and if you need anything, I can help you."

"Shika! Parlez toujours en français." (Shika! Always speak French.)

"Je suis désolé, Madame." (I'm sorry, Madam.)

"Ok! Nous passons un examen aujourd'hui, n'est-ce pas? Chapitre quatre?" (Ok. We're taking a test today, yes? Chapter four?)

The class groaned as Tsunade pulled a stack of tests from her under the ominous pile on her desk. She passed them out to everyone other than Naruto and each student began their 'examen.'

"Bonne chance tout le monde. Monsieur Naruto, venez ici, s'il vous plait." (Good luck, everyone. Naruto, come here, please.)

Naruto looked up as the teacher beckoned him out the door. Just as he began to wonder how he was going to understand anything she said, Naruto saw someone wave at him from the corner of his eye. When he looked over, Sasuke nodded his head and smiled. Naruto waved back and headed out the door.

This time, the teacher spoke in English.

"Hello, Naruto. As I was saying, my name is Madame Tsunade. I'll be your French teacher. You came at the end of our fourth chapter. I'm sure Monsieur Shikamaru won't mind helping you catch up with the work. So… Oh! I'm not sure if you know, but Mardi Gras is tomorrow. We're going to have some music and learn about some of the Mardi Gras events in Nice and Québec. We'll be decorating masks, too. Also, two students, Sasuke Uchiha and Hinata Hyuuga, have offered to bring the King cakes. Don't worry; you'll love it!"

"Uh… that sounds cool."

"Alright, you can go back inside, but sit quietly, okay? I like testing areas nice and quiet so people can concentrate."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Non, non, non! En français, Monsieur."

"Oh, okay…. Oui, Madame Tsunade."

"I promise you'll enjoy this class." The woman smiled and Naruto couldn't but smile back.

"I believe you."

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Wahoo! I updated a lot sooner, huh? Yeah, I thought so. So, review… PLEASE? And I just want to thank my French teacher real quick for her help… though I'm not sure she knew what she was helping with…lol. I tried to get this up yesterday… the day before Mardi Gras, but the editing took a while… oh well.

Okay, my thanks go out to Dame Loli for her corrections on my French. Thank you very, very, very, very, very much!

Yours truly,

~Shuichi Sumiyoshi~