(A/N) And here we have the beginning of the chaos. Meet the reason I did all of this to them. Kind of anyway. Some of the reason.
Naruto wasn't entirely sure when the beginning of the end was. Maybe it was Tenten's addition to the group, which was now made up of 11 kids. It could also be one of the multitude of things they got up to, so really, he didn't know.
Ultimately, it culminated in the matrons handing Tenten, Torune, Neji, and Lee a key each, then a letter, and telling all 11 of them to pack their things. They were moving to an apartment apparently.
"This'll be really cool!" Naruto cheered, having already packed up all of his stuff, and was now bouncing around unhelpfully.
"Yeah, sure, now shush and help someone else pack. We need to do this quickly so we can make sure to set everything up for tonight. We'll need to make dinner, and set up a chore chart," Neji listed off immediately. "Most of which we should do tonight."
Shikamaru yawned. "How many rooms do you think there are?"
"If there's only two I swear," Neji muttered, glaring at whatever he was putting in his bag at the moment. "Tenten went ahead to check though, so we'll know when she gets back."
"Hey boys!" Tenten chirped, poking her head inside. "There's actually three bedrooms! Just like we have here! Plus the kitchen, living room, and what I think is supposed to be some sort of library or study space. We can totally use it for weapons."
The five stared at each other for a long moment.
"So yeah, Imma finish packing and then we can go! I think the others are all ready." Tenten nodded, and disappeared to go to her own room.
Naruto cheered, picking up his bag and rushing out into the main room where Hinata, Sakura, Ino, Torune, Choji, and Lee were waiting.
Lee signed a greeting at him, and Naruto waved enthusiastically.
"Everyone else almost done?" Sakura asked, craning her head like she was trying to look behind him.
Naruto nodded, plopping down. "Yeah! They're almost done! I bet this'll be super cool! An apartment all to ourselves!"
"We'll have to set up a chore rotation," Sakura said, nodding. "But yeah! It'll be super great!"
"Alright, we're all good to go," Tenten said, and Naruto turned to see her with Neji, Shikamaru, and Kiba.
"Let's go see this new place!" Kiba cheered, bouncing slightly, Keruberosu woofed next to him, carrying a bigger back then the one Kiba had. The dog was still larger than Kiba at the moment, although Kiba was in the middle of a growth spurt, so maybe he'd be bigger than Keruberosu for once. (He won't. He will never be taller then Keruberosu.)
The apartment itself was basically empty except for barebones furniture. There was a single couch that would not fit all of them in the slightest, a table that also wouldn't fit all of them in the dining room, two sets of bunk beds per room, and two desks in the study. There were also two dressers in each room, and probably uncomfortable chairs at each desk.
"We'll need to save up to get more things," Tenten mused, running her fingers across the couch. "A bigger table eventually hopefully."
"More desks, especially once we start the academy," Sakura agreed.
Hinata, who'd been checking out the bedrooms, poked her head in. "More blankets and sheets too, there's only one blanket per bed, plus one pillow, and that won't be enough come winter time."
"Yeah, it won't," Neji agreed. "Worst case scenario we sacrifice old clothes to make blankets."
"We'll probably want to do that anyway," Hinata said, sighing quietly.
"We should start a little garden!" Ino decided. "We can grow food, and that'll help with food costs."
"Agreed," Naruto said, beaming. "I love plants!"
She and Naruto fist bumped.
Tenten hummed quietly. "Alright, we need to organize. I guess, Ino, Naruto, you two in charge of finding garden plants, work out a good place for it, and come up with costs and whatever. Choji, Torune, Lee, check the pantry and fridge, then make a list of everything we need. We already got the stipends for this month, so we'll be fine for this."
"Me and Hinata will go through the clothes!" Sakura volunteered quickly, looping her arm through Hinata's.
Tenten nodded to her in agreement. "Shikamaru, you can be with me, you're slightly better at mental math then I am, so Neji and Kiba, you guys do cleaning I guess?"
"Sounds good to me!" Kiba agreed enthusiastically, pumping a fist. "Let's go!"
"I'll make up the list for you," Tenten said, chuckling. "You two help Hinata and Sakura for the moment, alright, listen to them."
Neji inclined his head to her. She smiled back.
"Do we need to?" Shikamaru asked, complaining.
"Yes," Tenten said firmly. "Now go pick a bunk or something, I'll get this all set up! Everyone have your list to me by the end of the day, alright? We'll pick up everything tomorrow, although, actually, Torune, can you go pick up like instant ramen or something?"
Torune nodded, taking the money she offered to him. He left silently, the apartment springing into action behind him.
Tenten grabbed a piece of paper, a pencil, Shikamaru, and the money from the stipend, and settled at one of the two desks. Time to get to work.
By the end of it, she had a plan all worked out. They wouldn't be able to save anything for other stuff for the first few months, but when they could, they'd save quite a bit, especially once some of the plants Ino and Naruto would be growing started producing. They'd be alright, and more importantly, they'd most likely have enough money to ensure they were all warm enough for the winter, which would be the most important bit.
"I'm tired, and I'm taking a nap," Shikamaru said, yawning.
"Have fun," Tenten replied absently, double checking the figures. She didn't need to, but it was habit at this point. It had to be right, couldn't afford a miscalculation. She would have to make sure to wake him for dinner, so she noted that down on a side scrap of paper.
They'd survive. It'd be a bit tight for a while, but they'd live well enough. Everything would be fine.
(A/N) So, er, it is three in the morning where I am. I have nothing to say for myself except I promise I'm going to sleep. Right now. Tenten'll be a good person for this, she'll reign them all in and make sure no one dies. An important role. Happy New Year!