Disclaimer: I missed dismissing responsibility for the characters and universe therein.
It is impossible to simulate the deep comfort one contrives from waking up in a place that feels like home. Somehow, the world seems much friendlier when you greet awareness with a familiar set of sensations and people. Even if the air in the area is chilly, somehow the atmosphere is warm. Naruto Uzumaki was indeed soothed by the aforementioned ideal, but his morning wasn't simply to be peaceful.
As he carefully got to his feet, the boy couldn't help but spare a grateful glance to his slumbering host, who looked like he would be asleep for at least a few more hours. That was fine with the Uzumaki. If his observations told him anything, they told him that the chuunin had more than earned the right to some decent sleep, as it had probably eluded him for the past month. While guilt would have accompanied the thought the night before, all seemed right with the risen morning sun.
Several dumplings that Iruka had scrounged up last night remained on the table. They wouldn't be good for much longer, but they served well as the boy's breakfast. Still, just in case, he left one for Iruka. On an unrelated note, the dumpling in question was never eaten, as by the time the schoolteacher would awaken, the spoilage set in.
After a quick and stealthy bath, the young ninja prepared to get back into his tattered clothing until he noticed a set of small vestments that Iruka had probably worn at his age. They had been laid out carefully, as if the quietly sleeping man in the next room had planned this in advanced. Naruto put the plain black garments on with a thankful smile, even if they weren't his normal orange digs. He could remedy that later, but being naked was really not in style. The shoes that he had worn on the infamous escapade he had newly returned from were shot as well, but the boy had no qualms with walking barefooted until the opportunity to gain new sandals would present itself.
Having completed his preparations for the day, Naruto went outside and proceeded to do his daily exercises. After about twenty minutes of being able to go about them unhindered, the sound of a familiar child's pained yelp from a nearby alleyway had him leaving the secure grounds of Iruka's yard to investigate.
Konohamaru had thought the day was going to turn out so much better than it had. When he awoke, he had been told by a little birdie that someone he idolized may have been alright. After an extremely tasty meal, this story was reinforced by several other sightings from a trustworthy source (Moegi). Though he had to ask around, the grandson of the current Fire Shadow had even gotten a decent idea of where he might be. This information, coupled with his childish enthusiasm, had him running down the streets of his village with anticipation. What he hadn't banked on, however, was a disgruntled foreigner to be lurking in his path.
The instigation of the conflict that arose wasn't much of an impact so much as a slight brush. Konohamaru had made an effort to avoid the older boy, and had nearly done so. Unfortunately for him, though, the alien genin seemed to want the confrontation, and leaned into him even as he veered to the right. Affronted, and none too discrete, Konohamaru retaliated as he was picked up by the scruff of his neck.
"Lemme go! I'll have you know I'm a ninja, you stupid clown-face!" the little boy spat, all too aware of the stale breath being pushed into his face.
"The leaf must have really low standards, kid. And I don't take kindly to being called "clown-face". Looks like you could use a lesson in manners." The hourglass on the foreigner's headband glinted malevolently as his face turned slightly to the side.
Konohamaru kicked his foot forward in a feeble attempt to harm his captor, an action that earned him an eerie expression from the Sand Ninja. The purple lines on his face did little more than enhance the effect.
"So the little Leaf Ninja started a fight with a guest? Oh, well it looks like I have to defend myself!"the genin threw his captive aside and reached backwards for the top of a wrapped container he was carrying when he was suddenly plowed over by a chakra-laced foot.
"Naruto!" Konohamaru practically screamed, his face beaming with his idol's entrance. The addressed turned sideways and gave the kid a thumbs-up before turning to the twitching form he knew to be a frustrated Kankuro.
"Hmm. Pretty reckless act to pull right before the exam, doncha' think?" Naruto asked, offering a hand to bring the small-time bully to his feet. It was swatted away, but the Uzumaki was less than perturbed. He was about to get a giant hug, anyway.
"You idiot! IDIOT! I knew you were okay! They said you weren't, but I knew it! I wasn't worried for a second!" the hokage's grandson bawled, having adhered to Naruto's middle. With a smile, the blonde ruffled the child's hair and looked up to see an approaching Temari.
"Oi, keep better tabs on your fellows. I highly doubt your village condones beating up on people in alleys." He called after her as she grew closer, an exasperated but arrogant look on her face. He didn't dwell on that detail for long, though, as he could sense a familiar presence concealed in the shadows of a nearby tree.
"Oh, and you in the tree? I know you're there. You can stop with the hiding now." Naruto spoke loudly, looking authoritative despite the fact there was a child attached to his midriff. "This is hardly preparing for the selection exams, right? What were you trying to do, scout the city?"
Konohamaru blinked at the power that his mentor seemed to be commanding. The self-satisfied air around the incoming kunoichi dissipated with Naruto's confident demeanor. There had to be more than that, though. Within seconds, a pile of sand migrated to the flagstones and flew around to form the shape of a boy.
"Impressive that you could sense me, Leaf Ninja." The predestined Kazekage eyed his fellow jinchuuriiki, though he had no knowledge of what he was. "And I apologize for my siblings rudeness."
"Come on, Gaara! The twerp started it!" Kankuro began to sputter through his bloodied lips before getting glared at by basilisk-emulating eyes.
"Shut up- or I'll kill you." Gaara threatened in a harsh whisper. The cruelty in his voice caused even Konohamaru, who was a third party by this point, to shiver.
"Yes, brother, of course. I'm sorry, I was out of line!" Kankuro stammered, bowing with Temari, who hadn't done anything to merit fearing Gaara at that particular moment. Still, she showed the same signs of resignation. It made Naruto irritated to have seen the family reduced to its destructive starting point, but it was something that he had gone through the meeting alone this time. No Sasuke showed up to outshine him, and he wasn't in any way degraded in front of his little follower. Still, there was danger in this situation.
"Excuse me, boys and girls," Naruto interrupted the apologizing session bluntly, "but the party that should be apologized to is probably Konohamaru here."
There were a few resentful "I'm sorries" passed about, but Konohamaru was happy with them anyway. All the while, Naruto looked at Gaara intensely. He couldn't possibly outlast his opponent, however, and simply sighed in resignation, blinking at last.
"Your name, fearless leader?" Naruto asked wryly.
"Gaara." The read-head replied monotonously, all while retaining his stare.
Sensing the ability to have a little fun with the introduction, Naruto pressed ever so slightly. Unlike their last encounter, he had the leverage granted to him by a decent first encounter. "Any surnames? Nicknames? Official titles?"
The basilisk glare formed and shot at the Uzumaki, but softened when it invoked only a friendly smile. Not willing to let go of the idea of intimidation, though, Gaara resorted to other means.
"Demon of the sands." He replied to Naruto, who now seemed preoccupied with itching his butt.
"That's cool." He responded. "-but has got to come with a certain stigma."
"Hmm…" Gaara hummed, slightly inclining his head. "Well, Leaf Ninja, this has been most… interesting… but I fear I must depart."
"Seems fair enough, but my name is Naruto Uzumaki, datteb-…" he managed to stifle his catchphrase before it belted out. Unfortunately, his introduction fell on empty space, as Gaara had vanished, his siblings running off into the distance.
"Well, darn." Naruto said, stroking his chin. "And I was being so cool."
"Surprising, right?" Konohamaru interjected, elbowing his friend in the gut, only to find it rock hard. "Owww…"
"Ha. Serves you right, you little brat. You should respect your elders!" Naruto snorted, putting on a show.
"You're not that much older than me, big guy!" the younger of the two growled. "-but I'm pumped that you're okay."
"Pumped? Haven't heard you say that before."
"No, I'm serious!" Konohamaru insisted, pounding on Naruto's chest.
"Yeah," Naruto said happily, his face softening. "I missed you too, you little pain."
"So can you play with us?" the child asked, face sparkling.
"Sorry kid. No can do, I have important tasks to complete." The Uzumaki replied while taking a few footsteps away from his younger companion.
"Like what?" Konohamaru asked, flustered.
"Oh, well… secret things, mostly." Naruto answered, not needing to exaggerate at all. For once, he was telling the truth to the kid in a way that was impossible to believe. With that, Naruto used a few handsigns and vanished, leaving the hokage's grandson to speculate as to what the so-called 'secret things' could be.
Sarutobi was less than surprised when Naruto clambered in through the window of the Hokage office, even though such a feat should have been difficult with all the wards placed on the structure.
"So, formulated any plans yet, Grandpa?" the blonde asked, his grubby feet touching down on the wooden floor.
"…Shouldn't you have reported to Kakashi before coming to see me?" the elderly man groaned, his voice tired.
"Sorry, the thought slipped my mind." Naruto admitted.
"Well, this works out for the best, I suppose." Sarutobi deadpanned, getting to his feet solemnly.
"What's the matter, Grandpa?" the genin asked, a little concerned.
"It would seem that the best plan that I could come up with is perhaps the most dangerous one." The old man sighed. His eyes scanned around the room, and he began to pace.
"If we stray too far from your original accounts, the village could be taking a much larger risk than it would be otherwise. It wasn't easy, however, to persuade Kakashi or the ANBU that is was a good idea to go about it the way it was decided."
"What are you talking about, old fart?" Naruto pressed, intrigued.
"Now, now. I never said that you could start calling me names again, but… we have decided to replace one of the genin teams that decided they weren't ready for the exam."
"Get on with it already!" Naruto pressed, growing impatient and excited. Seeing this zest, the hokage cleared his throat and posed to make an announcement, if only out of habit.
"In a controversial decision, it has been decided that you, Sakura, and Sasuke will be taking part in the Chuunin Selection Exams."
Naruto stared at his leader numbly. "What?" he asked, suddenly feeling a little sick .
"I said that you, Sakura, and Sasuke, will be participating in the upcoming exam." The hokage restated his point and waited for it to sink in.
"Are you crazy?!" Naruto gasped, eyes wide with surprise.
"No, Naruto. I simply believed that it would be best to allow you to face your own perils in a familiar set of circumstances. It would be too much to ask any more of you in this plan. You've warned us of the invasion, and that is enough."
Naruto twitched. "I can help you, though! I can… I can…"
Sarutobi chuckled. "You're already helping, you know. By sending you into the forest with the other genin, I can be sure that you can notify me of any changes. And, if by some coincidence you die, you can report the cause to me before entering again." The old man then wrinkled his nose with the odd nature of his orders.
Naruto shut his eyes thoughtfully, which was a rare gesture indeed. "In the meantime, is there anything you require of me?"
"I think you should know what to do, Naruto. You have to follow your normal schedule, but I shall lift the ANBU curfew for your… 'unique' circumstances."
Blue eyes shot up with revelation. "You'll let me go out at night?"
"That is correct." The Sandaime responded, but quickly added the catch. "On the condition that there is no drinking, vandalism, gambling, or sexual harassment involved."
"Do I seem like one of your students to you?" Naruto quipped cleverly while giving a very ominous smile.
"Dismissed!" the old man waved, laughing with exasperation.
Naruto left the way he had entered, leaping out the window exuberantly, ideas swimming through his brain.
Author's Note: Did you miss me?
