Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the original characters.
Author note: I would like to thank everyone who added this story to their favourites and follows as well as everyone who reviewed the last chapter. For anyone who wondered why I deleted the last chapter, it is because I made a lot of changes to the final part of the chapter.
"Naruto, why aren't you wearing a school uniform?"
Itsuka frowned and knitted her eyebrows at the sight of Naruto standing outside of the gates of her house. It was Monday. Not just any Monday but the day where they would find out if they passed all of their exams or if one of them were going to be stuck in summer school. Even though they were only getting their results, it was expected for them to wear their school uniform.
Her friend only wore a pair of jeans and a simple orange shirt and Yuuei wouldn't let her in with that outfit.
But that isn't the only problem, Naruto is nervous. The way her friend rubbed the back of her neck and couldn't look her in the eye was hardly normal. Itsuka had always known the blonde to be confident or stoic at times but never nervous. The fact that the blonde kept swaying side to side made her stomach roll with worry.
"I spent the weekend with my mother's family," Naruto finally answered. A sheepish smile played on her lips as blue eyes focused on her. "So I, uh, kinda forgot to bring my school uniform when I went over to their house."
Itsuka blinked and blinked as her mind processed what the blonde admitted to her. There wasn't much that the girl knew about Naruto except for the fact she had a famous Guardian. There was the possibility of her junior being a member of her family since the whiskered teen and Akane shared the same last name, but it hadn't been confirmed.
Actually, it would be better for her to say that Naruto hadn't talked about it since the confrontation between them.
I really want to ask her about it especially now that Uzumaki apologized to me. The desire to know more about Naruto was always great, not because of the lack of facts that the girl gave but because Naruto saved her. There had been an opportunity for the girl to just leave her be but the whiskered teen rescued her.
But even if Itsuka wanted to learn more about the girl in front of her, the orange-haired girl knew from the way the blonde shuffled her feet that the girl wouldn't tell her anything. I'm not Todoroki-san or Nejire. Those two could get Naruto to open up while she had to work a little bit more harder to get things from her.
It was frustrating at times but Itsuka knew it would be worth it in the end.
"Do you want to borrow my uniform?"
She darted her eyes to the door before looking back at the whiskered teen. There would be enough time for Naruto to get changed and for them to get to class without getting into trouble with their homeroom teachers. Itsuka grimaced. Kan-sensei would be very irritated if he saw that she was late, even more if she told him that she was helping out a friend from class 1A.
Just like the other members of their class, Kan-sensei had a very strange rivalry with Class 1A.
"Yeah," Naruto muttered, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'm sorry about this."
It was not the first time the blonde had ever apologized to her but it still made Itsuka blink whenever the girl did it. Maybe it was just her but whenever Naruto apologized, she could see a little glimpse of the real Naruto. Not the Naruto, who was confident or even the girl who ignored her attempts of friendship.
But a girl who probably went through a lot.
"I should warn you that my shirt might be a little bit snug for you," Itsuka informed the girl as the two of them turned back in the direction of her house. Her teal eyes darted to her friend's chest before looking down at her. It might be a slight difference but it could affect her comfort levels if you asked her.
Even though Nejire did an amazing job with convincing Naruto to wear clothes that were properly her size, the whiskered teen still seemed to prefer wearing outfits slightly larger than her actual size. It can't be help when she has Mineta as a classmate. Itsuka frowned and darted her eyes to the blonde. It must be a challenge for the girl to have the male as a classmate.
The girls of Class 1A always had to be vigilant when it came to the pervert.
"If it is too snug for me then I will ask Yaoyorozu to make me a spare shirt," Naruto reassured her with a rather large smile playing on her lips.
Itsuka nodded and observed the girl carefully as the two of them walked towards her house. Nothing about their conversation really stood out to her but that smile made her stomach churn. Maybe it was because she now saw the girl with a real smile on her face, since that smile didn't feel genuine anymore.
It felt fake but not the kind of fake smile where people would lie to you about what they thought of you. No, Naruto had never made that kind of smile towards her but a fake smile where they didn't want to worry a person.
"Naruto, are you alright?"
The whiskered teen stopped in her steps and looked at her for the longest time. No emotions shone through her blue eyes, almost reminding the orange-haired girl of their second meeting. The memory brought a small frown to her lips as her teal eyes continued to observe her friend. Would Naruto tell her anything? Or was she going to keep quiet like last time?
She hoped not.
It would be hard for her to help Naruto if the girl didn't admit if something was wrong. How do you help someone who didn't want to admit that they need help? That was not something they discussed in class. There was probably some ethics in it but Itsuka wasn't certain. What she was certain was that she could not push someone who was not ready to talk.
"It is a really complicated situation," the whiskered teen finally answered. Itsuka blinked and jerked her head at the blue-eyed girl, who had her eyes fixated on the window. "I…I think I'm going to be fine so you don't need to worry about me, Itsuka-chan."
"How can I not worry about you?" Itsuka asked with a frown. "You're my friend, Naruto."
The whiskered teen smiled but the teal-eyed girl could see the surprise in her eyes at the words coming out of her mouth. It didn't really surprise her to see Naruto being shocked by her reply. Whenever someone acknowledged their friendship to the girl, Naruto would get that look like she didn't expect people to acknowledge their relationship with her.
She did not understand nor could she bring herself to pry the reason out of Naruto. There are just certain things that I can never understand even if I read a book about it. Itsuka sighed. It would be nice if someone could explain things to her but neither Yaoyorozu, Setsuna nor Asui could fully figure out why the blonde behaved in this way.
"And you are also my precious friend," Naruto answered with a small smile.
Itsuka curled her lips into a smile and looked up at the morning sky, breathing in the crisp summer air as the whiskered teen gulped down the lump in her throat. She didn't know why but the blonde would always do that whenever she thought she wasn't watching her. Maybe it was so she could keep her cool factor or maybe because Naruto thought she would think less of her if she knew the girl was a crybaby.
The orange-haired girl liked that side of her friend because it showed just how really emotional she was.
"You know you don't have to bottle up your emotions around me, Naruto-chan," Itsuka declared, looking back at the blonde. A smile played on her lips as she pulled out the keys from her school bag. "You know if you have any problems then you can always talk about it with me, Setsuna and especially Nejire-chan!"
Naruto smiled even wider but Itsuka could see the lingering doubt in her eyes. It did not really bother her. Maybe it would have in the beginning but it was considered a win for her that the blonde would show her this much emotions. The blond-haired girl in the beginning of the school year would never show this much emotions.
The fact that the blonde did show this much emotions meant that they were growing closer as friends.
"Thank you, Itsuka-chan," Naruto replied.
Itsuka cracked a smile and pushed open the door.
"Thank me after you changed into my uniform."
Her friend was really being silly for thanking her for being there for her.
We are friends and friends always help each other out.
"E-Everyone, I-I'm looking forward to hearing all of your stories!"
Naruto curled her lips into a frown as Ashido cries echoed throughout the classroom. It had been only a few days since the practical exams and her classmates still did not get over their results. If anything, it seemed like they had gotten worse if those dark lines on their face alongside the dark circles were of any indication to her.
She could not blame them for reacting this way.
The whiskered teen took in another deep breath and shuffled closer to the group of failed students, stopping just next to Hagakure. The invisible girl stood right next to Ashido, patting her back while Kaminari and the others hung their head up to the sky. To anyone else, they might believe that their reactions were dramatic but Naruto understood how painful it felt to watch everyone passed while they failed.
"Sorry Naruto but you failed."
Those words would be repeated whenever she failed the chance to graduate the early exam. She would always sit in those swings near the Academy and watched as happy students walked out of the door with a shiny new Hitai-ate and a smile on their face. Whenever that happened, her stomach would churn with jealously and sadness.
"D-Don't cry!" Midoriya stuttered, waving his hands in the air to the group of failed students. He glanced at her, looking as if he wanted her to reassure them but Naruto only shook her head. There was nothing for her to say that could cheer them up. "For all we know, Aizawa-sensei could surprise you and tell you that you can't go."
Her frown deepened at those words and the whiskered teen shook her head. The words came from a good intention but from her own experience with failing…those words were not at all helpful. They just build expectations and when that expectation did not happen then people got bitter. People got hurt and blamed it on the person who gave them that false expectation.
"That isn't going to stop their gloomy mood," Naruto informed Midoriya as her hand hovered over Ashido's other shoulder. Her blue eyes darted to Kaminari, who looked at her with longing and the whiskered teen knitted her eyebrows together. Why did he look at her like that? Was there something that she was missing? She glanced at Shouto.
Her boyfriend had a stoic look but his eyes looked irritated as he fixated them on Kaminari.
"You are giving them false hopes by saying those words," Sero explained to Midoriya. He patted the green-haired boy's shoulder and looked almost solemn but Naruto could see the twinkle of amusement in his black eyes. Should he be this confident? The question was just on the tip of her tongue, ready to be whipped out but Naruto swallowed it down.
Even if she suspected Aizawa-sensei would mark him down for getting knocked out so quickly by Midnight's Quirk, it would make her a terrible person to pour out her suspicion. I don't want to be actually known as a bitch or a monster. She grimaced. Those two degradory names were one that she didn't like being called.
The monster name reminded her of the Matron.
"They did their best," Naruto reminded everyone.
Kaminari swirled his head at her and stretched his arm out like he wanted to hug her, only to swirl his head in the opposite direction. With a small frown playing on her lips, the whiskered teen followed his line of sight and blinked when she saw that Kaminari stared at Bakugou. Her fellow blonde looked like he wanted to murder the blond-haired boy standing right beside her.
What the hell is going on with Bakugou? She knitted her eyebrows together and glanced at Midoriya. The green-haired boy only frowned, looking just as befuddled as her. Well now it was good to know she was not the only one who found Bakugou's behavior to be weird. Honestly he looked like the stuff of nightmares with that glare on his face.
"Our best wasn't good enough," Kaminari muttered with a chest-fallen look. "If we failed the exams with our best efforts then we can't go to the training camp with you guys."
Midoriya frowned and shook his head. "But you did do your best and maybe Aizawa-sensei will see that and decide you guys should come along with us to the training camp."
Naruto frowned and knitted her eyebrows together. Aizawa-sensei was a great teacher and a fair man but she would never think for one moment he would be that kind to these students. Simply allowing them to come was not his style. The only reason he would let them come was if there was a loophole in his wording that none of them had realized.
Right now she couldn't recall what Aizawa-sensei informed them in terms of the condition of going to the summer training camp with everyone else.
"Don't you remember what Aizawa-sensei said?" Kaminari grumbled. A dark look passed over his face as he locked eyes with Midoriya, and Naruto scooted even closer to Ashido. "We failed the practical exam and that means we are stuck in hell! I won't ever have my chance of showing my moves to Uzumaki or have fun with you guys!"
What moves? Naruto winced as her fellow blonde shoved his two fingers at Midoriya's eyes. That was going to be painful if you asked her and very much undeserved. The whiskered teen frowned. Then again she would react the same way if she was in their shoes. Actually she would probably react even worse than Kaminari.
Shaking her head, the whiskered teen strolled straight to Midoriya. Her green-haired friend clutched his eyes, whimpering and the blonde had to give him credit for not crying about the pain. A few months ago, he would be weeping about the pain. She exhaled and inspected the boy for any other wounds that Kaminari might not have intentionally caused.
It seemed like only his eyes had been hurt.
"We all know you have no chance with Uzumaki," Sero declared, throwing a glance at her before moving to Shouto and Bakugou. Kaminari only scowled at the boy's words as Naruto locked eyes with her two classmates. Since when did Kaminari like me in that way? The words were on the tip of her tongue but the whiskered teen swallowed it down as her blue eyes continued to observe Midoriya.
She shouldn't focus on the weirdness of her male classmates and their weird words. Instead she should focus on the fact that her green-haired friend was injured.
"Hey Shouto, Midoriya needs your ice," Naruto finally said, twisting her head around to look at her boyfriend. First Aid might not be her specialty but ice seemed like it would help with the pain. She patted Midoriya's back and watched as Shouto walked straight towards them. The whiskered teen sighed when her boyfriend directed one cold look at Kaminari.
The older boy flinched and Naruto raised an eyebrow at Shouto. Her boyfriend couldn't meet her eyes, only choosing instead to focus on making the ice that Midoriya needed. I don't understand why he reacted in that way. She curled her lips into a frown. It was not like him to show hostility to people especially to someone as ridiculous as Kaminari.
Slam.
The door swung opened, forcing Naruto to look away from her irritated boyfriend and onto the person who entered the room. Her eyes widened at the sight of an unimpressed Aizawa-sensei stomping to the podium. He is going to scold us for not being in our seats. The whiskered teen sighed and quickly strolled back to her seat.
The booklets slammed onto the podium as their teacher began to scan the classroom. His black eyes lingered on her before moving to Midoriya, who still held the ice against his eyes like it was his lifeline. A frown played on Aizawa-sensei's lips and he raised an eyebrow at her. What happened to Midoriya? That was what his eyes asked her.
Naruto pressed her lips into a thin line and slowly pointed to Kaminari. What was her teacher going to do if he knew her classmate decided to take his feelings out on Midoriya? It looked like nothing if you asked her. The understanding in his eyes told her that the man knew Kaminari didn't mean to intentionally hurt the green-haired boy.
"The moment the bell rings, you should be in your seats!" Aizawa-sensei locked eyes with Kaminari and the blond-haired boy winced. "You shouldn't be causing a commotion or hurting your fellow classmate."
Everyone winced at the harsh tone coming out of their homeroom teacher's voice before rushing back to their seats. They stole glances at Kaminari, who looked at Midoriya with guilty eyes. A part of Naruto felt guilty for admitting to her teacher on who caused the injury but well he would figure it out eventually.
Aizawa-sensei shook his head and leaned his body forward, black eyes sweeping throughout the class. Naruto couldn't really tell what was going through his mind but the blonde knew from the booklet that they were going to discuss about the camp. Well she hoped he was goings to talk about it and how many of them could go on the trip.
They knew who failed the practical exams but what about the written paper?
"I'm sure all of you are wondering who will be going to the training camp," Aizawa-sensei paused and eyed everyone in the classroom. No emotion flashed through his eyes but Naruto knew from the little twitch on his lips that her teacher was planning something. "Well it seems like all of you will be going to the forest lodge."
Crickets echoed throughout the classroom as the students processed what their teacher just informed them. Naruto opened and closed her mouth, uncertain whether to laugh at the trick that the man put on them or to curse herself for not realizing that this would have been the result. In the end, she simply decided to scoot closer to Shouto.
"Y'know I am starting to think Midoriya can predict the future," Naruto informed Shouto as their other classmates burst out in cheers. Her boyfriend hummed and stole a glance at the green-haired boy, who still rubbed the ice over his eyes. The poor boy had been right to think that maybe Aizawa-sensei would surprise them.
It might teach Kaminari to control his feelings. Naruto snuck a glance at Kaminari, who kept flickering his eyes to Midoriya. Her fellow blonde looked at the green-haired boy with such guilty eyes. It was understandable to a point if you asked her. She cried and punched the walls of her apartment every time she failed the graduation exam but not once did she take it out on a person.
Then again after being on the receiving end of Sakura's punches, the whiskered teen knew how painful it could be to be punch for something that wasn't completely their fault. Naruto grimaced and shook her head. No, there had been some punches that had been very much well-deserved if she thought about it.
"But some of us failed the practical exam," Ojiro pointed out. He frowned and knitted his eyebrows together before focusing his attention on the black-haired man, who picked up the pile of booklets again.
Aizawa-sensei sighed and separated the booklets into piles. He handed the first pile to Hagakure, who immediately began to distribute the booklets to the people behind her, and focused his attention on Ojiro. His black eyes did not show any emotions, which made it hard for Naruto to know what was going through his mind.
Then again, her teacher was not the most easy person for anyone to read.
"The five students who failed the practical exam will be having extra lessons," Aizawa-sensei finally answered. Everyone knitted their eyebrows at the number and the black-haired man focused on the four students, who clearly failed before locking eyes on Sero. The black-haired teen slumped his shoulders. "I had such high expectations for all of you and a few of you disappointed me while others exceeded my expectations."
Aizawa-sensei darted his eyes from Bakugou to Midoriya and then finally landed on her. There might not be a proud smile on his face but that little gleam in his eyes told her of how proud he had been of them. Warmth tickled her stomach and Naruto looked down at her table. It felt weird for a teacher to be proud of her actions.
She didn't know whether she liked it or not but Naruto knew she didn't dislike the acknowledgment coming out from him.
"There are so many things I need to bring!"
Naruto ran her hand through her hair as Shouto looked at her with concern. She knew why he was concern for her since she essentially declared she was not going back to her apartment until her rage cools down. But with the whole list of items on display for her, the whiskered teen knew that she only had two options.
She could either buy or go back to her apartment earlier than she planned and begin to pack her stuff.
"You might have to do some shopping," Shouto observed.
Naruto pulled a face. "That sounds like a nightmare to me especially when I left my damn wallet back at the apartment with Ero-Sennin. Now I actually will have to go back to my apartment earlier than I planned."
Her classmates turned around and focused their eyes on her. Surprise leaked out of their eyes like they didn't imagine that she would leave the house without an apartment. Normally she would never do it especially after the lesson Jiraiya taught her in their first trip. The man might have spent all the hard-earned money in her wallet.
"Uzumaki, did you leave the apartment?" Uraraka asked, curling her lips into a frown. Some of the other girls nodded and all of them looked at her with concern. It is genuine concern. The words acted like a chant, reminding her of the fact that people could be genuinely good. That people could be trusted and could actually care for her.
The whiskered teen inhaled and bobbed her head. "I spent the last two nights with my mother's family."
The chairs shuffled as everyone swirled their heads to look at her. Their eyes widened and eagerness to know about her mother's family or maybe why would she spent the night over there. It could be for either reasons. The blonde hadn't told them about the fact that she had a family, or rather a clan, here and only Shouto knew why she didn't spent the night with Jiraiya.
"You never mentioned about your mother's family," Asui commented. Green eyes flashed with a thoughtful look and the girl tilted her head to the side. "Are you related to the girl who insulted Kendou-chan a few months ago?"
Naruto grimaced. "Yeah, it turns out her father was my mother's cousin."
Asui nodded while the whiskered teen rubbed the back of her neck as everyone continued to watch her. She didn't know whether it was a good idea or not to admit that she had family here. They might question her even more and asked why she didn't live with them. If they asked it then she couldn't answer it.
Not because she didn't want to or didn't even know how to lie but because she didn't know whether she could fully trust them or not.
"Why aren't you staying with the great Jiraiya?" Mineta demanded. His beady eyes looked almost concern but the whiskered teen could see his hands reaching out to her, almost like he wanted to comfort her. If I knew you weren't the groping type, I might have allowed it. The blonde stretched out her hand to twist him but Asui whacked him with her tongue.
She nodded her head at Asui as everyone began to gather around her table. Their eyes flashed with curiosity and worry at the knowledge that she didn't stay with her mentor. But what could she tell them? That her mentor kept her parents a secret from her? Or that there was a chance that she had a grandmother who actually wanted her.
Telling them about those things meant opening up about her life and well Naruto wasn't certain if she could take the next step.
"I don't want to talk about why I'm not staying with Jiraiya," Naruto announced, keeping her tone cold and calm. Uraraka and Midoriya exchanged glances but wisely chose not to question her. Even if Midoriya asked her about the reason then she wouldn't tell him. The whole topic felt too personal for her and not something she was ready to talk about.
The whiskered teen ran her hand through her hair and grimaced before looking down at her booklet as her classmates turned around, probably realizing that she wasn't going to budge on the topic. Now that they were done discussing about her own personal life, she was going to focus on the whole list of items that needed to be brought. Even if she returned back to her apartment, there wouldn't be a sleeping bag that she could use.
That was definitely something she needed to buy.
Maybe I could get a better quality than the one I got in Konoha. Naruto nibbled the end of her pen as her blue eyes focused on the list. A better quality sleeping bag would mean she might not shiver or wake up in the middle of the night because of the cold. In Konoha, her money didn't mean that she could buy the good stuff.
Sometimes she didn't even have enough money to pay for her rent since there had been some missions that they failed to do.
"Why the hell do we need swimwear?" Naruto asked, swirling her head at Shouto. Her boyfriend knitted his eyebrows and darted down to the list before curling his lips into a frown. If she had to guess from that face gesture then Shouto was just as clueless as she was for the reason. A frown played on her lips. "I guess I will have to go shopping."
Kaminari twisted his head around to look at her. "Do you want a second pair of eyes?"
"Well if Uzumaki wants someone to look then you would be one of the last people she want to check her out," Sero snickered. His black eyes darted to Shouto and then landed on her. Naruto hummed and bobbed her head in agreement with her classmate. Kaminari was nice and everything but he was a pervert.
He would probably make her try an outfit that would reveal more than she felt comfortable to reveal her body to the world.
I should be comfortable since I'm a kunoichi but it feels different from stripping down during the Chunin Exams. Naruto rubbed the back of her neck and looked down at the list. At the age of 12, her chest hadn't been this large nor did she have anyone who wanted to look her in that way. But Kaminari and Mineta made it clear that they did look at her.
Then there was also the fact that Shouto might see her and that was even more nerve-wrecking for her. Naruto steadied her trembling arms and inhaled. I like my eyes and my hair! I like the fact that I can throw one hell of a punch. She had to remind herself of the things that she loved about herself or else Ami's words would haunt her again.
"There is a lot of stuff that we need to get," Yaoyorozu commented, twisting her whole body around to look at her before darting her eyes to the other members of the class. A frown played on her lips as her black eyes looked at her with concern. "Uzumaki, if there is anything else that you need that is outside of your budget—"
"Yaoyorozu, thank you but if you do that then I will pay you back."
The black-haired girl frowned and looked almost put off at her words but Naruto shook her head. It was nice of her classmate to offer to make things with her Kekkei Genkei but the blonde knew it went outside of her moral compass. I can afford things now. She exhaled and looked down at her hands before darting her eyes to her seat mate.
Maybe it was her imagination but the girl was acting slightly different to her. Not in a bad way but more like a thoughtful way that hadn't been there before. Maybe I'm imagining things or maybe I'm just being a judgmental bitch again. Yaoyorozu had always been a kind girl, maybe a little bit self-conscious but only because Mineta could make anyone self-conscious.
"Then can you make me a bathing suit?" Kaminari asked Yaoyorozu.
The black-haired girl frowned. "I can but I don't have a good image of what kind of bathing suit you would like."
"Never mind," Kaminari muttered, looking put off by Yaoyorozu's words. Yaoyorozu frowned and knitted her eyebrows together before darting her eyes to Naruto. Confusion flashed through her eyes like she didn't know what she said wrong and Naruto shrugged. It was not like she knew what was going through the boy's mind.
I might live with a pervert but I don't know the mind of one. The whiskered teen sighed and shook her head before looking down at the booklet. Right now it would be a good idea for her to calculate just how much money she would need to spend on the trip. It looked like it could be a lot but maybe there were just a few things that she could save on.
The flashlight was something that she had in her house but the gym clothes would be a problem.
"Are you sure that you don't need Yaoyorozu to make something for you?" Shouto asked quietly. Naruto blinked and jerked her head at the sight of her boyfriend leaning closer to her. He lowered his voice to the point that she had to strain her ears. "I can buy some of the items for you, Naruto."
The blonde felt her throat drying up at the offer made by him. She shouldn't be this touch by an offer from him but it was incredibly sweet of him to allow her the opportunity to use some of his money. If I was anyone else, I would take him up on the offer. But she was Uzumaki Naruto and she had been able to fend for herself since she was five.
Just because she faced some issues with Jiraiya, did not mean that she had no courage to go back to her apartment to get the items that she needed.
"Thank you but I can handle it," Naruto declared. A smile played on her lips, not faltering one bit as Shouto continued to look at her with concern. What would the worse thing that could happen to her? There would either be a screaming match between her and Jiraiya or her simply walking out of the apartment with her stuff without greeting the man.
It wouldn't be a huge deal when she considered it in that way.
"So what are the two of you discussing about?" Ashido asked, twisting her whole body around to look at them. Her yellow eyes gleamed with interest and excitement which made Naruto's stomach twist with worry. Her classmate was not known for being subtle. "Are the two of you talking about how fun the camp is going to be? Or is Todoroki offering to be the one to help you pick your swim suit?"
Naruto blinked as her whole mind turned blank at the question. Shouto helping me pick my swim suit? The question made her cheeks burned a huge shade of red as her boyfriend looked almost considerate at the idea. Did he really want to do that? Not that she wouldn't mind but it was way too soon if she thought about it.
Stream erupted from the ends of her ears as the blonde choked out. "T-That was not what we were talking about, Ashido!"
Her pink-skinned classmate crackled with glee while everyone turned around to look at her. Several of the boys blinked and their eyes widened before looking away from her. Why the hell do they look away from me? I'm human too! I can get embarrassed. She scowled and covered her face as Shouto shot a look of disapproval from the girl.
"You know I never thought Uzumaki can get this embarrassed," Asui commented.
Several of the girls bobbed their heads in agreement while Naruto covered her face even more. My reputation is ruined. Now everyone would see that she couldn't deal with compliments. They were probably going to tease her or think how much of a hypocrite she could be when it came to her confidence.
A warm hand patted her back and the whiskered teen peaked through the gaps of her hand to see Shouto looking at her with confusion. I don't like acting like a girl. The fact she blushed like a stupid little girl meant that people might start to think she was weak. People might see through the fact despite her so-called confidence that she could be very self-conscious.
"Y'know we all have things that we need to buy," Hagakure commented. Naruto took in a deep breath and willed for her blush to die away before looking back at the girl. "And tomorrow all of us have a day off, so why don't we all go shopping together to the mall?"
Several of her classmates nodded while Naruto poked her tongue against her cheeks. It would be a good idea for her to get to know her classmates which would probably help her in convincing Aizawa-sensei that she was getting better. It would also probably be a good step with conquering her fear, wouldn't it? Well she didn't know.
But tomorrow was also the day that she would have to go to therapy. Maybe a few months ago, she would take it as an opportunity to skip the session even if she wouldn't open up to her classmates. But things were different now. As Shouto once pointed out to her, she had a habit of judging people immediately.
There was also the fact that even though Nejire-chan was teaching her how to love herself, she had to learn how to deal with the fact that she didn't fully know how to do it.
"Are you going to come, Uzumaki?" Yaoyorozu asked.
Naruto blinked and jerked her head at the black-haired girl. Black eyes shone with curiosity and desire like she actually wanted her to join in with the fun. No, it did not feel like that. It was more like the girl wanted to partake in the activity because she wanted to prove something to her and that made her pause.
Maybe she was being paranoid but the whiskered teen felt like the girl knew more than she was letting on.
"I have got plans," Naruto finally answered.
"Is it work?" Uraraka asked, curling her lips into a frown as she turned around to face her. "Because you can ask your boss for a break, can't you?"
She will give it to me if I tell her that I want to hang out with my classmates and prepare for my trip. The woman was too good to her if you asked her but it wasn't work. This was something she had to do because people were counting on her to get better. Aizawa-sensei took a risk with her and allowed her to continue on with the program with the condition that she attended her meeting.
She should admit that she had therapy but her stomach churned with worry. Would they think she was weak for not sucking up about her problems? Shouto understood but what about the others? What if they thought less of her? Well she wasn't completely close to them but it felt wrong to admit to them.
"I've got a dentist appointment," Naruto finally answered.
Uraraka and the others bobbed their heads, looking at her with understanding but only two people didn't look convinced by her words. Midoriya frowned and stared at her like he wanted to know what her real plans were but Naruto only scowled. The other person was Bakugou. The boy scowled, looking at her like she was the worst liar in the world.
I'm a pretty good liar. Naruto twisted her lips into a grimace. Until she came to Japan, the only people who could tell when she was lying had been Hinata and Sasuke. They always knew I'm fine did not mean she was actually fine, but only Hinata-chan could see through her smiles. The girl had always been good when it came to reading people.
Naruto frowned and looked down at her booklet. Was Hinata-chan doing alright? Neji was no longer an ass but what about her father? No, it would be okay. Her best friend had Hanabi now alongside Kiba and the other members of her team. Kurenai took good care of her friend when her father disinherited her.
"Oi Whiskers!"
The blonde jerked her head away from the booklet and blue eyes widened at the sight of Bakugou standing before her. His red eyes seized her up and flashed with irritation, no doubt from the fact that she didn't pay much attention to him. What did he expect? She had a life outside of school and it was normal for her to get distracted.
"What do you want, Explosive Head?" Naruto asked. The chatter from the class suddenly died down as everyone turned around to look at them. Even though her eyes focused on the irritated eyes of Bakugou, she could feel the curiosity radiating out from her classmates. But a quick glance at her classmates told her that there were three people who weren't curious.
Shouto frowned while Midoriya knitted his eyebrows like he didn't understand what was going on. Yaoyorozu pressed her lips into a thin line like she didn't like the tone coming out of Bakugou.
"I have something to talk to you about after school."
Everyone grew silent as they processed the fact that Bakugou did not scream those words out loud. No, his tone was calm and quiet. Not something anyone would associate with the blond-haired boy in front of her. Naruto frowned and felt her stomach churned with confusion. What would he want to talk to her about? And why after school? Something didn't seem right.
She curled her lips into a frown as Ashido flickered her eyes between them. Understanding shone through her yellow eyes alongside another emotion that Naruto knew all too well from her time as someone who would ship her friends together. Excitement. That excitement never spelled anything good from her experience.
"Bakugou is going to confess his love to Uzumaki!"
Bakugou growled.
"Don't jump to conclusion, Pinky!"
Naruto nodded and knitted her eyebrows together as red eyes refused to meet her own blue eyes. That kind of love was not something Bakugou wanted to talk to her about. No, it had to be something else. Something told her that the boy had another reason for deciding to talk to her after school.
Something told her that it might be the reason why he couldn't look her in the eyes.
"Something seems to be bothering you, Naru-chan."
Naruto looked away from her bowl of ramen and focused her eyes on Nejire before flickering her eyes at Itsuka and Setsuna. What had they have been talking about? Probably something about the forest lodge. It wouldn't surprise her if both of her friends from Class B questioned Nejire-chan about what was going to happen during their trip.
She probably should have engaged but Ashido's words nagged her. The idea of Explosive Head liking her in that way sat her the wrong way, not because of who he was but it felt wrong to ever develop feelings for him. They were too similar to each other and she liked Shouto. The boy had made it clear he knew about her feelings towards Shouto.
You were probably too busy making those eyes.
That irritated tone echoed in her ears, reminding her of how Bakugou knew her own feelings before she did. But is it enough for people to think he have those kind of feelings for me? She pressed her lips into a very thin line as irritated red eyes flashed before her. It felt impossible if you asked her but she might be wrong.
"Uzumaki, what is bothering you?" Setsuna asked. Naruto blinked and jerked her head at her friend, who tilted her head to the side as her muddy green eyes focused on her. Bakugou is going to confess his love to Uzumaki. Her throat burned at the idea and bile rose up to her throat. She knew that wasn't the case but why did people have to misunderstand her relationships.
Have you heard? Sasuke-kun has a crush ons that ugly fox. She clenched her jaws together as cruel eyes flashed before her. That rumor came out of nowhere. The boy never carried those kind of feelings towards her. They had been the best of friends alongside Hinata. He might have been an ass but he played with her and Hinata.
Not once had he ever hidden their friendship from the others but girls always misunderstood things.
It is in the past and Ashido means well. Naruto took in a deep breath and chanted those words to herself. Ashido was not Ami or the other girls in the Academy. They were different so she should push down her irritation and force herself to smile. This irritation inside of her made no sense when she thought about it.
No one needed to know about her irritation because it would just make her seem petty or even worse self-centered.
"It is nothing," Naruto plastered on a smile and locked eyes with her friends. All three of them glanced at each other, not looking one bit convinced by her words. They know I'm lying. It was hard for her to remember that people were different here. People actually took the time to observe things or maybe it was because they were friends.
Hinata-chan had never been convinced whenever she smiled and tell her that nothing was wrong with her team.
"If it was nothing then you would have gobbled that bowl of ramen in two seconds flat," Setsuna commented. The girl pushed her tray of food away and locked her muddy green eyes on her. "What is on your mind, Uzumaki? I doubt it is Todoroki or else you would have been making goo-goo eyes at him by now."
All of the blood inside her rushed to her cheeks as Setsuna looked at her with curiosity while Nejire and Itsuka shook their heads at the brash girl. I don't make goo-goo eyes. The protest was on the tip of her tongue but she swallowed it down. Maybe it wasn't that obvious or else everyone else in her class would have taunted her for having such feelings.
She inhaled and looked down at her bowl of ramen. Should I tell them of what happened? It would be a good idea but her stomach churned with discomfort. What if they thought she was being self-centered for being uncomfortable with the idea? Sakura would tell her that she should be happy that someone liked her.
But she only liked one person and that was enough for her.
"Ashido seems convinced that Explosive Head has romantic feelings for me," Naruto finally admitted. She curled her lips into a frown and pushed her noodles back and forth as her blue eyes focused on her reflection. "But Explosive Head and me are friends at best and enemies at our worse. I-I don't understand how our interactions could make her think he has feelings for me."
Setsuna and the other girls exchanged glances, looking thoughtful at her confession, and the blonde only pushed her food back and forth. Am I wrong when it comes to Bakugou's feelings to me? He called her an idiot and you don't call the person that you have a crush on an idiot. Except it was Explosive Head and he wasn't like a normal person.
Do you fucking think that I'm like them?
That sounded like he cared but did it mean he liked her in that kind of way?
"I can see why Ashido would think Blasty likes you in that way," Setsuna rubbed the back of her neck and threw a look over her shoulder before looking back at her. A smile played on her lips and Naruto raised a single eyebrow at her friend. What the hell did that mean? The green-haired girl shook her head. "Blasty treats you differently from everyone else but I really don't believe he loves you in that way."
The confidence in her friend's eyes brought a tiny frown to the whiskered teen's face. Thank god that I'm not the only one who thinks like this. Naruto relaxed her shoulders and tilted her head to the side. Right if Explosive Head didn't like her in that way then what did he like her? There were a lot kind of loves when she thought about it.
There are many types of love, Naru-chan.
Warm black eyes flashed before her eyes and Naruto felt her chest tightened at the memory. Not many people had been willing to explain love to her but Mikoto-obaachan had always made time to explain it to her. There is the love between family, friends, siblings and a husband and wife. The woman didn't fully elaborate them but she explained the different types.
Naruto knew the love between friends because she loved Hinata-chan. The love between a husband and wife was not what she knew but she knew her feelings for Shouto was different from her love to Hinata and Sasuke. The love of a family? She thought she had it with Mikoto, Itachi and Sasuke but…
They weren't your family.
Maybe there was a difference but she probably would never know it. I might have a living grandmother but she might not accept me. It wasn't just the fact she was a jinchuuriki but she wasn't perfect. She murdered someone. Her temper was legendary and well being gentle was not something that she was known.
What if her living grandmother took one look at her and decided she was a monster? What if she didn't love her? Aizawa-sensei might like her but he was kind of weird. Kenji-sensei didn't acknowledge her immediately. What if her grandmother was the same? Naruto shook her head and looked down at her hands.
The idea of being rejected by her own biological grandmother made her heart ached.
Don't think about it. Naruto shook her head and blew a strand of her blond-hair before fixating her eyes on Setsuna. It would be a better idea for her to question her friend of what she believed how Explosive Head like her. Focusing on her friend's observation would be healthier for her. The negative thoughts and doubts wouldn't fester.
She couldn't let it fester again.
"What kind of love do you see Explosive Head have for me?"
Setsuna hummed and rubbed her chin as her eyes looked at her with a thoughtfulness that didn't seem to suit her. The girl was a lot of things but her friend wasn't well-known for being thoughtful or considerate. Brash yes but definitely not considerate. "The way I see it? He loves you like a sister. He genuinely wants you to be happy."
Naruto relaxed her shoulders. "So I'm not wrong to think that he doesn't like me in that way?"
"You know Blasty better than anyone," Setsuna commented with a sly smile. The green-haired girl pulled her tray back towards her and took a bite of her food. "Do you honestly believe Blasty is selfless enough to give up on the girl he is in love with and try to help set her up with her own crush? Because I can't picture him doing it. I imagine he will be a little bit like a caveman when it comes to his love interest."
Nejire and Itsuka giggled at those words while Naruto hummed and bobbed her head in agreement. The girl was absolutely right when it came to the explosive teen. He wouldn't be the type to let the girl he liked walked away from him. He doesn't know when to give up. That was something they did have in common.
The blonde exhaled. "But what do you mean he tried to set me up with Shouto?"
Setsuna hummed and offered her a sly smile while Itsuka avoided looking her in the eyes. What the hell aren't they telling me? It wasn't like them to do this to her. Not once during the time that the three of them hang out, did both girls try anything on her and Shouto. Naruto curled her lips into a frown and looked at Nejire.
"I don't know anything about it, Naru-chan," Nejire informed her, holding her hands up in the air as her blue eyes focused on the two guilty girls. Yeah, you would have told me eventually. The whiskered teen pressed her lips into a thin line and kept her eyes locked onto the two girls. When did they try to set her up with Shouto? She would have remembered it.
The green-haired girl sighed. "Well you weren't there when Ashido was starting to think of how to make you realize you like Todoroki."
Nejire nodded and Naruto raised her shoulders. If Ashido knows that I like Shouto then why the hell is she convinced that Bakugou likes me in that way? She wasn't fickle with her feelings. It was not like she was the type of girl who had a new crush everyday or even get crushes. It was what made her weird as Sakura pointed out to her.
You should have a crush by now, Naruto! Every girl in our year had a crush on someone.
It was very hard to force herself to develop feelings for someone when they had no qualities that could make her develop feelings. Looks always faded in her mind or maybe it was because she never freaked over someone who was attractive.
"When did you guys and Ashido try to—"
"—The amusement park," Setsuna admitted. "Ashido wanted to see your love bloom and I just wanted you to stop being afraid of the idea of banging him."
Nejire and Itsuka choked at the girl's words while Naruto gawked at her friend. Bang him? What the hell? Shouto was very much attractive and he did have an amazing body but her feelings weren't purely sexual. If that had been the case then she would have developed feelings of lust from the moment that they met.
Besides she would recognize lust, wouldn't she? It would be a desire where you didn't want to get to know a person. I really want to get to know Shouto and I really like him. The whiskered teen cleared her throat and locked eyes with her green-haired friend, who took another sip of her drink as Nejire and Itsuka continued to gawk at her.
"I don't like Shouto because he has a nice body!" Naruto finally choked out.
Setsuna nodded. "Yeah I know you aren't that kind of girl or else you would be drooling over Explosive Head. Now that is a guy who has a pair of nice arms."
"You know he will threaten to kill you if he hears you, right?" Naruto informed the girl as she glanced over her shoulder. The blond-haired boy seemed to be glaring at Kirishima and Kaminari. It was rather hard for her to tell what they were talking about, but the dropped shoulders of the other two boys told her that it was probably something ridiculous.
She shook her head and looked back at the grinning Setsuna.
"He is kind of cute when he gets embarrassed, don't you think?" Setsuna grinned. "He is a real Tsundere."
It is official…I'm friends with an insane person.
Author Note: So Itsuka lent Naruto's clothes and everyone can go to the forest lodge. Bakugou is going to tell Naruto about the truth of their relationship while almost everyone in class 1A seem to think it is a confession. Setsuna reassures Naruto that she isn't wrong to think that Bakugou doesn't like her in that way.
Here are a couple of questions for you to think over until the next chapter:
Question 1: How do you think Class 1A will react once they find out the real relationship between Naruto and Bakugou?
Question 2: What do you think of the characterization of Setsuna throughout the series?
Question 3: Do you like the relationship between Bakugou and Naruto?
Please do tell me of your thoughts on this chapter and for anyone who reads my KHR and Naruto's crossover, Riddles will be updated in the next few days.