It was Monday now. Naruto hadn't done much over the weekend. He'd missed Friday, when the men came over to discuss who he would be living with. So he and Tsunade had the whole weekend to themselves, which he appreciated. They didn't do much else. They got his things from his house and brought them to Tsunade's house with the help of Shizune. On Sunday, the blonde woman had gone out by herself for a long while and was brought back, nearly drunk, by Jiraiya. The old pervert had talked to him for a little while after they sent Tsunade to bed, but he had to leave soon enough. It was nice to talk to the man despite the fact that he threw perverted jokes into the conversation all the time.

He was still dressed as a girl with a bra, a small orange sweatshirt with a blue swirl on the back, and jeans. Why should he change into a boy so suddenly? Everyone knew him as a girl, so what was wrong with continuing to let them think that?

Sighing, he walked into the school from the parking lot where Tsunade had dropped him off. He wanted to act as normal as possible. He didn't want to worry anyone, and if they asked him why, he didn't quite know what to say. His mom was in the hospital because she stabbed herself after his alter ego Kyuubi told her that she was a horrible mother? That didn't sound like it would go over too well. And it was sure to raise even more questions.

Naruto made it to his first period much earlier than usual, and not many people were there. He made his way to his seat, sat down, and laid his head down to his arms with his eyes closed. Sleep sounded so good right about then since he hadn't gotten much over the weekend. He was just about to drift off into oblivion when a quiet voice startled him.

"Naruko-chan!" Hinata said with a surprised voice. She had a pleasant smile on her face, showing she was glad to see her friend actually at school. It seemed like forever ago since he'd seen everyone. Since he and Sasuke made a truce and he introduced everyone to the boy. Naruto smiled at the shy girl.

"Hey Hinata-chan, how are you?" he said in reply. She took her seat beside him.

"I'm f-fine. How are you though? Y-you've been gone from school a lot lately," Hinata asked. Concern shone in her pale eyes and Naruto smiled weakly.

"Just a…relapse," he lied quickly. "I guess I wasn't quite over my sickness. But I'm feeling much better now."

"That's good," she said in relief. Naruto nodded with a smile and then spotted Iruka walking into the classroom. He stood.

"I've got to collect what I missed, be right back," he said with a smile. Hinata nodded in understanding. He walked up to the teacher and stopped before the desk where the brunette was currently organizing his papers and desk.

"Ohayo Iruka-sensei," he said, gaining the other's attention. Iruka gave him a warm smile.

"Good morning to you as well Naruko-san. Are you feeling any better?" he asked.

"Yes much better. I had a small relapse on Friday, so that's why I wasn't here," Naruto replied.

"Right, so you need the work from Friday? I'll get it for you, just wait a minute." The brunette looked through a pile of papers looking for one that he had put Naruto's name on. It didn't take very long, and he handed the blonde the paper he had been looking for.

"We were discussing themes and symbols in the books we've read and took some notes. You'll want to get those since there will be some questions about them on the test. Also we filled in this character and plot sheet. You won't have to turn it in, but it would be a good idea to do it so you'll be prepared," Iruka explained. "Oh, and if you have the homework from last week, please turn it in. It'll be counted as late for you if you don't hand it in today."

"Okay. Thanks Iruka-sensei," Naruto said. He went back to his seat, rummaged through his bag for the homework, went back to his teacher to hand it to him, and then sat back by Hinata.

"So did I miss anything while I was gone?" he asked.

"Not really. N-Neji-san and Gaara-san invited us to sit with them, and Ino-chan and her friends have come to sit with us as well," Hinata told him. "Sakura-chan and Ino-chan seemed to be…getting along better on Friday though."

"That's great," Naruto said happily. "Maybe if they start talking some more, they'll forget that stupid fight over Sasuke-teme."

"I-I don't know about that, but I hope they d-do," Hinata said with a small smile. Her eyes looked beyond the blonde, focusing on the person there. "Oh, o-ohayo Uchiha-san."

Naruto turned quickly to see Sasuke sitting down beside him. He hadn't noticed the other come into the room. He frowned. Normally, from what he'd seen before everything happened, Sasuke was at school earlier than him everyday. He noticed the small bandage on his cheek as well. Did he get in a fight?

"Hey teme, what happened to your face?" he said casually when Sasuke finally looked over at him. Although he was friends with the bastard didn't mean he would be admitting he was concerned about him.

"Hey dobe. Planning to stay for a whole week this time?" Sasuke returned with a smirk. The exchange of insults sounded less harsh and more like friendly banter since their truce, and Hinata had picked up on the fact. She was glad they were making the attempt, and was hoping for the best.

"You make it sound like I skip school all the time," Naruto said accusingly. Arguing, even if wasn't seriously, made him feel a little better. He was feeling a little more like himself as his mind drifted from the thoughts that had been plaguing him before, for which, he was grateful.

"Well it does seem to be a new trend with you," Sasuke replied. The blonde rolled his eyes.

"True, but I actually have legitimate reasons for my absence. Did you really miss me all that much?" he said, batting his eyes at the Uchiha who made a face of disgust at the suggestion.

"You wish, Uzumaki," he said. Naruto simply laughed at that, completely forgetting his worries. It felt like it had been forever since he'd laughed like that. With school and friends as a distraction, he was sure he could make it through the day. He glanced at the clock. They only had a few more minutes until the bell rang.

"So seriously, what happened to your face? I thought it was supposed to stay flawless for all your little rabid fangirls," he asked again. He was just curious. That was it. Sasuke scowled a little.

"I was careless and Itachi hit me," he told them. The other two had wide eyes at the statement, obviously thinking the worst. He saw the expressions and rolled his eyes. Before they could ask him anything, he answered, "Itachi trains me in his spare time so I can defend myself. I want to be in the police force like him, so I need to learn how to fight anyway. I usually get a couple cuts or bruises since I tell him not to go easy on me. I'm just not strong enough yet."

He went quiet after that, receding into his own thoughts. Understanding went through Hinata and Naruto as they processed what he'd said. It made sense that Sasuke would want to be in the police force. His brother was in it, so it also made sense that Itachi was training him. Naruto was certain Itachi wasn't a bad man from all the stories Deidara had told him before, and felt bad for doubting it. He'd even met the man, and he'd seemed completely likeable despite his businesslike manner. Of course Sasuke was telling the truth. He also understood what the boy felt about his parent's murder, and learning how to fight and defend himself wasn't exactly unexpected. After all, the Uchiha seemed like the type to hate being weak and helpless no matter what the situation. Naruto sympathized with him, but refused to show it. The bell rang soon after and class started, marking the beginning of another mundane school day.

Lunch came around and Naruto found himself surrounded by his friends. He normally got around and knew a lot of people, but it'd been a while since he'd sat with a group of them this size. Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji had joined them; Ino was determined not to lose in the battle for Sasuke's affections against Sakura. Hinata and Sakura were there too, as he expected, since they had moved from the roof to the cafeteria. Gaara, Sasuke, and Neji, who had all been there first, were there as well.

Neji had left for a little in the beginning, saying he had to speak with someone in the student council about something or other. None of them knew what about, but he'd said it wasn't a big issue or anything. Kiba had come over after he left and he talked with everyone. He was a social person and normally as loud as Naruto could be. They had done a lot of pranks together when they were younger, and still liked to do stupid things together every once in a while. He had two upside down red triangle tattoos on his cheeks that he'd gotten one summer in one of his rebellious acts against his parents, and he hadn't regretted getting them yet. His family owned a dog shop as well, and he normally took his dog, Akamaru everywhere with him, though it had taken a lot of convincing to make him leave the puppy at home while he was at school. He'd sneak him in occasionally, but not as much as before.

The whole time he was talking with everyone, he'd stayed suspiciously close to Hinata. The shy girl didn't seem to mind too much, and was in fact even enjoying, it if the light blush gracing her cheeks was anything to go by. Naruto, Sakura, and Ino all subtly poked fun at the love struck teens who were too shy to admit their feelings for the other. Hinata blushed on a regular basis and got flustered easily, but Naruto had to admit teasing Kiba and making him embarrassed was fun. His reactions were full of stuttering, red cheeks, and arm gestures moving in spastic motions. It was quite funny to watch, and the others enjoyed the spectacle immensely. Unfortunately Kiba left when he spotted Neji returning. He was scared of the boy since Neji had become protective of his cousin. He didn't seem to like the dog boy all that much in the first place, without him making a move on Hinata.

It all felt normal, and Naruto had fun. It was like he wasn't just gone for a week, like his mother hadn't attempted suicide, like everything was fine and nothing in the world was even remotely wrong. He enjoyed every second of it while his mind was away from the depressing thoughts that now inhabited it. He went on for the next few days without anyone really noticing anything was wrong either, as he had hoped they wouldn't. But his hopes were crushed as Sasuke, of all people, spoke out at lunch on Thursday. Naruto snapped out of his thoughts to look at the brunette with a blank face. "Huh?"

"I asked what was wrong. You've been too quiet all week. Normally you're bouncing off the walls and yelling in everyone's ear," Sasuke said. Everyone around them hushed as they heard Sasuke speak and Naruto rolled his eyes. It's like he's a freaking god the way they all listen to him.

"So what's wrong dobe?"

"Nothing's wrong teme," Naruto replied with a frown. Was he really that transparent? But no one else had noticed. "I'm acting the same as I always do."

"You have been a little quieter lately, Naruko-chan," Sakura said slowly with a thoughtful look on her face. A few faces turned to look at him with concern and he frowned a little more before giving them a reassuring smile.

"I'm fine, really. Just…stressed from catching up on all the work I've missed I guess," he told them. He couldn't tell who bought it and who didn't. He hoped they all did, but the logical part of his mind seriously doubted it. All his friends were very bright. He'd have to be an extremely great actor to fool them, and a good actor he was not. So he opted to change the subject.

"So…anyone want to help me with my math homework? I'm so confused," he asked. Other conversations started up immediately while Sakura and Ino both attempted to help him with the equations he was working on. He could feel Sasuke's eyes on him, but whenever he looked up, the boy was looking the other way.

"Hey dobe," Sasuke said as they walked out of chemistry.

"What?"

The dark haired boy pulled Naruto off to the side of the hall where the moving students wouldn't shove them around. He looked down at the cross-dressing boy and asked, "What's really wrong?"

"Wha-? Sasuke I already told you a lunch, I'm just under a little bit of stress right now from all the work I've got," Naruto told him. He tried to move away to get to his next class, but Sasuke blocked his path. They glared at each other.

"You're lying. I can tell, so tell me the truth," Sasuke said.

"I am telling the truth teme, now let me go to class," Naruto grumbled, trying to get around the other once again. He was stopped again.

"Then look me in the eyes and tell me," Sasuke demanded, putting his hands on Naruto's shoulders to keep him there. The blonde stared at him defiantly and both refused to lose. Eventually Naruto looked away and tried to, unsuccessfully, shove his way around the boy again. Finally, seeing that he wasn't going anywhere unless Sasuke let him, he heaved a defeated sigh.

"Let me go teme, I'm going to be late," he stated tiredly. He didn't want anyone to know anything was actually wrong, and Sasuke was just making everything harder than it needed to be.

"Not unless you tell me what's got you so bothered," the dark haired boy replied. Naruto gave him one last glare and removed Sasuke's hands from his shoulders. He refused to tell him the complete truth, so the teme would have to just settle with what he gave.

"If it will make you let me go, fine. My mom is in the hospital, teme. That's why I wasn't here on Friday. I wasn't sick. She was dying. And she's still there now, and I haven't gotten to visit her since she first got there and I really am just stressed about everything. There's your reason. Happy?" he said. He could feel the telltale sting behind his eyes, but he blinked back the tears.

He was frustrated about everything by now, and it all just seemed so overwhelming. Tsunade hadn't let him go to the hospital again, saying they were going on the weekend. He'd thought about going by himself, but it was a thirty-minute drive there and he couldn't drive. He wasn't even sure if he wanted to see her, but he had decided he should. He was the reason for putting her there.

Sasuke let him go and he ran down the halls to his next class, still holding back his tears. Sasuke just stared after him without a word.

Naruko walked into class the next day and took her seat beside Sasuke and Hinata. Sasuke could tell she was miffed about something, and he could only guess she was mad at him from the way she had been avoiding and ignoring him since yesterday when he'd cornered him. He sighed mentally. Sakura had asked him to confront her about what might be bothering the blonde, although he had no idea why she would think that he would be able to get anything out of Naruko. But Apparently, he was able to, and he'd told Sakura what Naruko had told him. He kept telling himself he was only asking what was wrong because Sakura wanted him to, but then he was confused as to why he was doing anything for the pinkette in the first place. He was concerned too, but he refused to admit it.

"H-hello Naruko-chan. How are you?" Hinata said as her friend kissed her cheek in greeting as usual before settling down. Naruko looked firmly away from Sasuke who rolled his eyes.

"Hey Hinata-chan. I'm good. Ready for this week to be over. How are you?" she asked.

"I-I'm well," Hinata replied with a smile. She looked between Naruko and Sasuke, noticing them each ignoring the other and frowned a little. "Did you t-two get in a fight?"

"Teme annoyed me yesterday so I'm ignoring the prick," Naruko told her.

"All I did was ask you what was wrong dobe. No need to get mad over something like that," Sasuke said flatly. Naruko continued ignoring him, and for some reason, that really annoyed the dark haired boy. Childishly, he decided if the blonde was going to ignore him, he would ignore her as well.

And ignore each other they did throughout the day. By the end of the day Sasuke was good and frustrated with the blonde girl, but refused to acknowledge her before she acknowledged him. He was at his locker grumbling about dobe blondes and how they were such bakas when a pink haired girl appeared next to him. She grinned at him with a slight flush on her face.

"Hey Sasuke-kun. Thanks for talking with Naruko-chan. Everyone else should be waiting with her in the parking lot. We were wondering if you were still coming since you both seemed like you were ignoring each other today," she asked quickly. Sasuke finished getting his things and closed the locker before looking at the pinkette, thinking whether he should or not. Well Itachi wouldn't be home until late and he was always telling him to be more social…

"Yeah, she's mad at me for asking her too many questions or something stupid. But I guess I could still go. I don't really have much else to do and it'd probably annoy her if I'm there," he said thoughtfully. Sakura raised an eyebrow at that.

"Isn't that a bad thing?" she asked. He shrugged in response and she sighed.

"Whatever. You two need to figure that out. I'm sure she'll forget she's mad at you soon enough anyway. Neji and Gaara are driving, so come on," she said. He followed after her as she blabbered on about something or other. He wasn't paying attention. They got there soon enough, and after Naruko's initial cry of indignation at his presence before she went back to ignoring him, they had all gotten into the two cars and headed off to Gaara's house.

Without the blonde girl's knowledge, everyone at the lunch table had all planned to give her a day of fun, now that they knew something was getting her down. They were planning on renting some movies, and all agreed to going to Gaara's house to watch them and possibly just play around. Ino had gone down to Tsunade, having heard that Naruko was staying with her for now after Sasuke told them what the blonde had said, and told the woman of their plan. She had agreed wholeheartedly that Naruko needed a day to relax and enjoy time with friends, and she agreed not to say anything about it as a surprise.

Now they were at Gaara's sitting around the living room while the Subaku siblings put out food and drinks for everyone. The others were deciding on which movie they should watch first. Many suggestions were made until finally they settled on The Grudge for some odd reason. Gaara was a big horror movie fan, although he wasn't scared easily. Most of the girls, with the exception of Temari who was used to movies like that, were rather jumpy by the end of it.

"Why'd we have to watch that, Gaaraaaa?" Naruko said, her voice muffled by the pillow her face was buried in. She looked up at the red head with a pout. "You know I don't like scary movies!"

"Yes, but you're cute when you're scared and otouto likes it when you're cute," Temari told her with a smirk. Gaara glared at his sister, fighting the blush that tried to work its way onto his face. Naruko of course took the comment innocently, missing what it hinted at, and stared at the siblings with a confused look on her face.

Sasuke sat back watching the three, not really sure why he found it so interesting, although he was subtly glaring at a certain red head. He didn't want to really participate in any of the conversations and would answer anything directed at him with short, clipped responses that would end the attempted conversation as quickly as it started. He was still annoyed with the blonde and they had yet to speak to each other. He frowned. Could she really be that mad at him for asking? Yeah, her mom was in the hospital, but lots of people went there. Then again, she'd said her mom was dying. From what she'd told him before, and besides Tsunade, her mother was the last of her close family.

"Okay, you guys got to watch something you wanted to, now us girls are going to pick!" Sakura declared.

"Which means I'm going to pick," Temari said, standing up. She walked over to the movie selections and picked one up with a smirk. "And I pick Saw 3."

The girls groaned, having known what Temari would pick. Kiba whooped at the prospect of watching another scary movie as the blonde popped it into the DVD player. Hinata sat beside him on the large couch and occasionally latched onto him during particularly gory parts, which he took pleasure in, despite the fact that Neji also sat beside the dark haired girl to make sure Kiba didn't do anything to his cousin. Ino and Sakura had huddled together on the love seat during the last movie, despite their continuing argument, in search of comfort from the movie while Temari sat on the floor in front of them. Shikamaru was sprawled out in the armchair and seemed like he was sleeping. Choji sat in front of the brunette on the floor, munching away on a large bowl of popcorn. Naruko sat on the floor clutching a pillow with Sasuke and Gaara on either side of her. Or at least she had been.

They weren't too far into the movie before she had gotten up and walked out into the red head's kitchen, saying she was going to get a drink. Sasuke watched her leave. Temari poked his and motioned for him to come closer to her. He did so hesitantly, and she leaned close to his ear to tell him something only he could hear.

"I've heard you're a bit of a jerk from Naruko-chan, but," she whispered, momentarily pausing to keep him from protesting what she was saying, "but from what I can tell, you're a friend of hers and you two have gotten into a fight as I've heard from Sakura-chan. Now would probably be a good time to make up with her, Uchiha. She probably won't come back for the rest of the movie."

She moved back to her spot and resumed watching the movie ignoring the Sasuke's stare. He sighed and got up, deciding to take the blonde's word. The movie was boring him, and he wouldn't admit it, but he didn't particularly enjoy watching movies like this. It reminded him too much of his parents in some twisted way. Besides, he might have more fun annoying Naruko.

Into the kitchen he went, and there he found the blonde tentatively sipping a glass of water while staring off into space. She looked oddly serene yet serious, obviously in deep thought about something or other. He made his way over to her and she still hadn't noticed him even when he was next to her. He leaned against the counter like she was doing and decided to make himself known. "What are you doing dobe?"

Naruko's face lit up in surprise with wide eyes as she looked at him. "Sasuke…" she said quietly. She recovered quickly enough and glared at him as she registered what he'd asked her. "I'm drinking, teme. What does it look like?"

Sasuke shrugged. She really was still mad at him. For some reason, he really didn't want her to be mad at him. She looked away and he stayed where he was, silence engulfing them for a few minutes until she couldn't take it anymore. She sighed finally, looking at her glass.

"What are you doing here teme?" she asked. There was no annoyance in the question, no tone, good or bad, to her voice. She just asked it, plain and simple. He shrugged again.

"I don't really like those kinds of movies," he told her truthfully.

"Neither do I," she replied. They lapsed into silence again, but this time it was a little more comfortable. Naruko broke it again.

"So…are you just gonna stay out here for the rest of the movie?"

"Probably. But I figured you might want a little company," Sasuke replied. She smiled and laughed a little at that.

"Not something I expected you to say," she explained as she saw his frown, "but thanks for caring."

"That's what friends do, right?" Sasuke said. She looked up at him, but he was looking off in the other direction as if he were embarrassed to have said it. He was trying, and she could tell. She smiled and looked back down at her glass, swirling the water around a little.

"Yeah. That's what friends do," she said. She looked back up at him. "Sorry for getting mad at you. I just frustrated about a lot of things. I'm fine, honestly."

"It's alright. And if you don't mind, I told Sakura-san your mom is in the hospital. She's the one that suggested everyone get together and have a little fun. You seemed like you needed it," Sasuke told her. He held her gaze and smiled a little. She was really starting to grow on him. She grinned back at him.

"That's okay," she said. "Thanks teme."

He continued to smile and said, "You're welcome dobe."

She laughed, and Sasuke was glad to hear it. He knew he'd rather have her happy than anything else, although he'd never admit it aloud.

"We're here Naruto," Tsunade said as she turned off the engine, knocking the male from his thoughts. He got out of the car hurriedly and they walked through the automatic doors to the reception desk. After telling them which room to go to, they left for it quickly. Naruto was anxious and happy at the same time as he saw the door to his mother's room. It was the first time he'd get to see his mother since she'd arrived, and this time she'd be awake. He stopped before going in, his hand on the handle of the door. He looked up at his aunt with wide eyes.

"What am I going to say? I-I don't even know-"

Tsunade cut him off, shaking her head. She put a hand on his shoulder to comfort him, saying, "I'll be right there with you. Don't worry."

Naruto sighed, nodded, and opened the door. He took another deep breath as he stepped in which was stolen away as he saw his mother looking straight at him. He was still dressed as a girl, but they were more boyish clothes than normal. As he met her eyes, he almost wanted to walk right back out, but he knew he had to see her. He looked away from her eyes and moved to his mother's bed.

"Mom, it's great to see you're doing well," he said as he hugged her. He pulled a chair close to her side and sat in it. "I wanted to come sooner, but I had to catch up on so much work this week. You know how school is."

She continued to stare at him, but now she had on a confused smile.

"Mom?"

"I'm sorry, honey. What's your name again? I don't believe we've met before," Yumi said finally.

"Wh-what?" Naruto said with wide eyes. He looked to his aunt who refused to meet his eyes. She'd said his mom was acting differently, but she'd neglected to tell him this.

"I've never seen you before. At least I don't think I have. I have such a bad memory these days that I can't seem to recognize anyone. Quite unfortunate really," Yumi went on. She was smiling at the pair and looked at Naruto with interest, as though she were looking at a complete stranger.

"I-I…you don't recognize me?" he said slowly, not quite comprehending the situation.

"Not at all," she said chirpily. She saw the look on his face and became concerned quickly. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you sad, honey. I just can't remember some things right now. Maybe if you tell me your name, I'll remember you."

"You'll remember me…" he said to himself before looking into the woman's eyes. "My name's Uzumaki Naruto."

She thought hard, but eventually a frown found its place on her lips. "I'm sorry, but I just don't remember. I know Tsunade-chan's last name is Uzumaki. Are you related to her?"

He nodded his head and then looked tiredly up at his aunt, about ready to cry at this point. His own mother had forgotten him. He got up.

"E-excuse me for a minute. I need to ask Tsunade-chan something outside," he said. The blonde woman took the hint and walked out after giving a wave and a smile to the other woman. Naruto followed after her. She sighed and looked at her nephew's distraught expression.

"I didn't know if she'd remember you or not, so I decided not to say anything. You didn't need anything else to worry about. That's why I wouldn't let you see her until now," she explained. He frowned.

"You could have warned me, or something," he said angrily. He sighed and his expression turned into one of concern. "What happened to her? And what's she remember anyway? She knows you apparently."

"I'm not sure what happened, but according to the doctor it has something to do with shock. Her mind isn't letting her remember hurtful memories, which, in turn, prevents her from remembering you apparently. I don't know if she remember Arashi or not, but I'm thinking she doesn't," Tsunade explained. "At the moment, I know she remembers her friendship with me and everything before that."

"But she doesn't remember me…or dad," he stated more than asked. The woman nodded solemnly.

"She knows she doesn't remember everything. The doctors have even told her she has amnesia, so it's not as though she has a new set of memories to fill up the times she's had with you," Tsunade told him. "Maybe you could use this to start over with her. Think about it. I'm going to go talk to her, so come in when you're ready."

Naruto looked at her tiredly as she went back into the room. This whole situation was getting more and more confusing, and it just drained all his energy. He thought about what his aunt said. If he really could start over with his mom, what would he do? What would he even say to her?

But if he could…maybe that would be a good thing. He could start over…yes. That's what he would do. He'd reintroduce himself to his mother and finally be able to be as he wanted in front of her without worrying about what she would do. He smiled softly at the thought and nodded his head, confirming his decision. He walked back into the room, completely collected and calm as he saw his mother again. He approached her, and Tsunade moved from the chair by Yumi's bedside. And so, Naruto began to rebuild his relationship with his mother, starting with telling her that he was her son.

It was Monday yet again and students slowly milled into the building of education. It was finally beginning to get really cold out now that it was mid-December and everyone was bundling up. It'd been only mildly cold until now, but winter decided to come late this year. It was expected to snow soon, and students silently prayed for snow days in which they could finally have an extra day or two off from school. Naruto skipped merrily into the school in bright contrast to the rest of the student body. He'd been talking with his mother as often as he could, meaning almost every weekend, since last month. They'd gotten close since Yumi had been told that he was her son. She greeted the idea enthusiastically and was hell-bent on learning everything about her son that she could. He loved the attention, but he was careful on the subject of his father and the reason for his absence.

He and Tsunade had talked about it and decided it would be better for her to not know the bloody details of what had happened to him, lest they conjure up the memories that had made her unstable all those years. So they'd told her simply that he was a brave and amazing policeman who'd been unfortunately killed in the line of duty. They gave no other details than that. They made it as truthful as possible without giving anything away, and Yumi had accepted it.

She'd also questioned about Naruto's cross-dressing, and he'd told her it was just a phase. He told her she had liked to dress him up sometimes and they had fun with it. It wasn't a complete truth, but it explained the situation to Yumi, and she'd accepted that as well. She'd also mentioned how cute he looked as a girl, but that she loved him as a boy.

He walked into homeroom with Hinata and Sasuke already there waiting for him. He smiled and greeted them both with a kiss on the cheek like he did with all his close friends. He and Sasuke had both gotten close over the past month as well. They'd spent more time together and Naruto would go over occasionally to have dinner with them when Deidara visited as well.

In Naruto's world, everything was going great. He had his amazing friends supporting him and having fun with, he was getting a new start with his mother, and Sakura and Ino seemed to be getting along like they had been before. It was perfect. That is, until lunch came around on this particular Monday.

He'd heard from Hinata that Neji was talking about a new student in their grade. He'd said that it was a guy, but that he seemed…weird, for lack of a better word. He'd also informed Hinata that the guy was supposed to sit with them at lunch since he was new and didn't know anyone. Naruto had asked about the guy's name, and Hinata just told him that Neji hadn't said what it was before he had to leave for another student council meeting. So now it was lunch, and everyone was eating, waiting for Neji to show up with the new guy. Eventually Neji showed up, but he didn't have anyone with him.

"Hey Neji, I thought you said the new kid was gonna sit with us," Naruto said in confusion as the brunette took his place at the table. Kiba was sitting with them again, crowding their table even more. They only had enough space for one more person, and that would have to be the new kid.

"There's a new guy? What's his name?" Sakura asked, voicing everyone else's curiosity.

"His name is Sai, if I remember correctly," Neji replied. "And he told me he would meet us here. I told him where to find the table, so he should be here any minute."

There was a thud as Sasuke's head hit the table, startling everyone. Naruto seemed the only one not surprised anymore by the random bouts of emotion the brunette showed. He encouraged him not to be so up tight about everything and to show what he was feeling, and Sasuke was slowly becoming more and more comfortable with the idea. Even so, Naruto found himself concerned at this certain display.

"What's wrong Sasu-chan?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. Sasuke glared up at the cross-dressing boy.

"I told you not to call me that," he said from his position on the table. Naruto pouted.

"But Dei-chan calls you Sasu-chan all the time! Why can't I?" he demanded.

"Because it's embarrassing and Deidara-niisan doesn't do it in public!" Sasuke replied.

"So?" Naruto huffed. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"Oh, Neji-saaaan, where are you?" a voice called out.

"Oh no," Sasuke said as his eyes widened a little in recognition.

"There you are!" the voice said. It came from a boy who appeared behind Sasuke and Naruto dressed in a tight shirt, a black skirt, neon green knee-highs, and boots. Everyone was stunned at the clothing he wore after hearing that he was indeed a boy. The boy peered around to get a better look at Sasuke's suddenly pale face. His face lit up in a big grin.

"Sasu-chan! I thought I'd see you here," he said happily. Sasuke's head hit the table again.

"Hey Sai," he grumbled as the boy reached down to hug him.

A/N: Um…yeah, don't kill me about Sai. I love him, I really do. And he's probably going to be very out of character in this since I really don't know how to write him well. Yes, Sai will wear skirts throughout the rest of this story when he appears, although, I think I may put him in pants once or twice. So yeah, Sai's here and he's a cross-dresser. Bet none of you saw that coming! Haha!

Anywho, I'm soooooooooo sorry!! It really has been forever since I've even looked at this and sometimes when I did, I couldn't write anything. I'm so horrible. I've neglected my poor story and my poor readers have been kept waiting. I'm so sorry!! I don't know when I'll have the next chapter done either, but I've had so much going on lately. I may finish the next chapter soon, or it may not be for another two weeks. I'm not sure. I have to put most of my focus on my school's musical since we're finally putting everything together and the opening show is in two weeks. Gosh, that's soon. So I'll really try to work on this in between rehearsals, school, homework, and anything else that's bound to come up. I never meant to wait this long, and I really hope you all liked this chapter although I thinks it's a little awkwardly written. I was rushing a bit to finally get it out.

I really like what I did with Yumi as well, but she won't be in this much more, as I've said before. I'm really happy with how I'm writing her now, though. And I must say I love how I'm writing Sai now as well, even if it's completely incorrect. Please forgive me my misgivings and my lateness in getting this out to all of you. Please review and give my story some love to revive it, okay? They make me happy.

Disclaimer: don't own Naruto, and never will. Sad, I know.