Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the original character.

A/N:I would like to thank everyone who added this story to their favorites and follows as well as everyone who reviewed the last chapter.


(Four years ago)

"Well I failed the genin exams for the third time."

Sasuke stared at Naruto and frowned as his best friend swung back and forth in the swing outside the Academy. A large smile played on her lips and her blue eyes glinted with fake happiness, but that wobble in the corner of her lip spoke of a different story. He flickered his eyes around the grounds and relaxed his shoulders at the sight of Mizuki watching them with dark, curious eyes.

Shaking his head, the black-haired boy reverted his gaze back at Naruto. She is going to cry as soon as she gets back home. His stomach rolled around with anger and upset as the blond-haired girl continued to gaze at him with a smile playing on her lips. Why did she always look at him with that? Why did she always pretend?

He hated that Naruto would do this to herself.

"Let's go and eat ramen," Sasuke said flatly. "I will pay for all your meals for the next few days."

Hope stirred inside of his stomach when Naruto's blue eyes gleamed with slight sincere happiness, only for it to fade into sadness. Sasuke felt his shoulders dropped with resignation but he stiffened his back. I can't show that I'm affected by this. Seeing Mizuki reminded him of the fact they were in public and if word got out about their friendship then those girls were going to hurt Naruto even more.

Naruto shook her head and tightened her grip around the swing. "I don't wanna eat ramen, Sasuke."

The birds chirps sounded muffled against his ear as the smile on his best friend's face faded. It's really, really bad. His stomach churned with worry and nerves as Naruto looked down at her feet. The blonde never turned down an offer to eat ramen before. It was the one thing he knew that could bring a smile on her face.

If ramen was not enough to cheer her up then what could he do? What did he say? His black eyes traced the wobbling lips and his heart continued to fall with worry. How do I cheer her up when she is this sad? He could feel the sweat dribbling down from his hair and his throat began to clog up as his mind went completely blank.

"There is always next year."

The words tasted bitter in his mouth and he looked away when Naruto gazed at him with hurt eyes. What did she want me to say? That I'm sorry that we have two teachers that can't see that you deserve to pass more than anyone? He wanted to say that. It was tempting for him to say that but it wouldn't change anything.

It wouldn't erase the fact that for the third time in three years, their teacher refused to acknowledge Naruto's immense potential over one stupid jutsu that Sasuke knew no shinobi ever really used.

"We always say that but is there really a next year?" Naruto asked, quirking her lips into a wide smile. Sasuke just stared at her with furrowed eyebrows and felt his heart clenched with pain as blue eyes turned slightly hollow. "You always say that to me whenever I fail that stupid exam but you don't really understand, do you? You passed in your first try. People expected you to pass anyway."

If you stopped making your grades so low and stopped pretending to be an idiot then people would expect the same from you! You are my only rival and no one seems to understand it.

The words sounded bitter and cruel, and Sasuke swallowed it down as he looked at the doors of the Academy. She doesn't need you to blame her for what happened. He took in a deep breath and slanted his eyes slightly when Iruka stepped out of the door. Their teacher blinked and then froze at the sight of the two of them, eyebrows furrowed together.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Iruka and clenched his hands into a fist as Iruka quickly looked away from them with a frown playing on his lips. You let all those girls passed but you couldn't let Naruto pass? Her taijutsu and trap-making skills alone should be enough reason for her to pass. His legs pleaded for him to take the step forward and just hurl that fist at Iruka.

Iruka-sensei is better than Hiraoka-sensei, Mikoto-obaachan!

Iruka was no better than that bias man, who took Ami's side when she stole Naruto's homework.

"Naruto, you should try and get an appeal," Sasuke declared. Naruto did not look up and the black-haired boy reached his hand out, only to pause when he felt a pair of irritated eyes watching them. Twisting his head around, he curled his lips into a thin line when Mizuki glared at them. I really have a bad feeling about that teacher. He stretched and flexed his finger. "Go to the Hokage and just tell him about—"

"And what? Get special treatment?" Naruto asked, shaking her head. "It won't be fair to the other students who passed."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Are you really talking about fairness now? Hyuga told you that Iruka passed that disable boy even though he didn't have half of your skill! This isn't about special treatment! This is about fairness."

"Iruka-sensei can argue that I'm not disable," She reminded him. Sasuke tightened his jaws. His blood boiled with rage and hate as blue eyes gazed at their teacher with a bitterness that made his stomach dropped with sadness. Where is justice? And where is the system? He took in a deep breath as Naruto flashed him a smile. "Don't be upset, Sasuke! I can do something else if I don't become a shinobi by the time I'm 18."

Sasuke only looked at her. "Like what?"

What could Naruto be if she didn't become a shinobi? Work in some flower shop? Own some store? If anyone should be climbing for the top then it should be her! If anyone should be a kunoichi then it had to be Naruto. From the moment they entered the Academy, his best friend had the drive to succeed in the shinobi world.

"Father, Naruto isn't a bad person for me to study with! She wants to climb to the top and didn't you say we should admire people with drive?"

His father might have disliked Naruto for some reason but his father had always told him that Naruto should be respected for her drive and ambition.

"The fact that your…friend hasn't lost sight of what she wants to be is admirable and you should respect her for that. She definitely is that man's daughter."

He could remember his father gazing at him with a thoughtful look and almost sounded faintly amused before quickly reverting back to his stoic demeanor. Even now, Sasuke could recall how his father's tone had turned bitter when he called Naruto as that man's daughter. He even remembered how his mother shot a warning look at his father.

Even when he was sixteen, Sasuke would always wonder what was the significance of Naruto being that man's daughter.

"Maybe I can try and open my own restaurant or make my own business," Naruto chirped, bobbing her head. She combed through her long, golden hair and her blue eyes gleamed with a bitter amusement. "Maybe I will work in Yamanaka's flower shop and I could get some free plants to garden. I will find a job that someone as stupid as me could get because I have to be stupid if even that stupid Ami passed."

The words acted like arrows to his heart and Sasuke balled his hands into a fist. Even though her tone sang with happiness and content, the words screamed of bitterness and resentment. This is unfair. The sadness of Naruto's words kept reminding him of this fact. If those girls spent only fifteen minutes practising their taijutsu and ninjutsu then his best friend spent hours.

Until what happened with his family, he used to enjoy staying back and watching his best friend trained and trained until her legs gave out.

You can't help but want to do better when you watch her train, don't you Sasuke-kun?

He might resent Hyuga for taking some of his valuable time with Naruto but she understood how addictive it was to watch Naruto push herself to the limit.

The drive that Naruto had should be enough for her to pass, but those bastards in the Academy were all…

"Idiots."

Naruto jerked her head up and the smile on her face slipped off, replaced with hurt eyes. I'm not talking about you! You act like an idiot but I know you aren't an idiot! Those teachers are idiots for being bias! The words were on the tip of his tongue but they seemed lodged in his throat. Why wouldn't his explanation come out? He had to explain.

His best friend shouldn't take it the wrong way because if she thought that was his new nickname for her then it would be so much more difficult. But what difference would it make? You have already insulted her during your time in the Academy. What difference can this make? He cleared his throat and closed his mouth as Naruto shook her head.

You can't apologize until Itachi is dead.

He would spend a lifetime to make up for all his actions to Naruto but he needed to get rid of his brother before he could explain himself.

"Yeah, I'm an idiot," Naruo said with a wide smile. He opened his mouth but then closed his mouth when the blonde jumped off the swing. She dusted the dirt off from her clothes and turned away from him. "Maybe it is for the best that the idiot didn't pass. I won't be getting anyone killed during a mission."

You are the last person who would get anyone killed because you are probably one of the strongest kids our age.

He wanted to say those words but they were lodged inside of his throat. Sasuke only watched as the blonde flashed him a wide smile that screamed of hurt and walked away from him. Every step that Naruto took reminded him of not just the physical distance between them, but the metaphorical distance between them.

They were once closer than anyone in the village but now it felt like as time passed that they were becoming strangers to each other.

(A selfish part of him wanted to close the distance between them and that was probably the reason he went to Iruka to tell him that if he could pass half of those girls then Naruto should have been no different. But by the time he arrived, Iruka told him that Naruto had been given the second chance).

Years later when Toga declared that she was going to infiltrate the Provisional License Exam to try and convince Naruto to give the League of Villains a chance, Sasuke followed her.

(A part of him wanted to see how much Naruto had grown during their years apart and another part of him just wanted to observe the boy that managed to get his dense best-friend to fall in love).

He was still a greedy bastard and Naruto would always be his greatest weakness.


"Kakashi-sensei, Shizune-neechan! What are you guys doing here?"

Naruto dropped her jaws and almost stumbled in her spot at the sight of Kakashi and Shizune standing right in front of the stadium. Tsunade's assistant flashed her a little smile and flickered her eyes to the other students. From right beside her, Yaoyorozu frowned and furrowed her eyebrows together while Hinata offered a smile to Shizune before giving a curt nod to Kakashi.

Her former teacher remained unfazed as his hand dug through the pocket of his pants. For the love of God, please don't tell me that he is going to be reading Icha-Icha in front of everyone. She clenched her jaws together, only to blink when Aizawa shot a warning look to the gray-haired man. Kakashi only offered a half-smile and held his hands up.

The other students only furrowed their eyebrows together.

"Ah Hokage-sama wanted Shizune, Hinata and me to observe the Provisional License Exam," Kakashi explained. Naruto raised an eyebrow as the man flickered his eyes at the students, who were now beginning to crowd around them. His lone black eye lingered on Shouto before moving onto Midoriya and Bakugou before landing back on her. "It might give us a new creative idea of how to do the Chunin Exams if we hold it again back in the village."

Naruto eyed him. "And where is Hokage-sama?"

"She is currently negotiating with a couple of the ministers," Shizune answered. The blonde bobbed her head and relaxed her shoulders while everyone else exchanged glances between them. The black-eyed woman flashed the other students a warm smile before looking back at her. "She would have been here to observe but Hokage-sama cannot afford to take breaks."

The blonde stared at her. "Are you sure that it is a good idea to leave Hokage-sama by herself?"

Aren't you worried that she is going to get drunk by the end of the day with how much those ministers like alcohol?

"Kenji-sama is keeping an eye on her," Shizune replied. Naruto nodded and rubbed the back of her neck while Eisuke relaxed his shoulders at this piece of information. It seems like he heard of the Old Hag's vice. She took in a deep breath and then blinked when several people cleared their throats. All of them gave her expecting looks and the blonde let out a nervous laugh.

Right, it would be a good idea for her to introduce them to the rest of the class.

"Are you going to introduce them to us, Uzumaki-chan?" Asui asked, tilting her head to the side. Muddy green eyes observed Shizune while the other students bobbed their head in agreement. Naruto rubbed the back of her neck. Katsuki grunted at her and threw a dirty look at Kakashi before making his way to stand beside Kirishima and Kaminari.

Her former teacher flinched before slipping onto the bored expression.

"Everyone, this is Kakashi-sensei. He was my former teacher and the person in charge of my former team," Naruto said, gesturing to Kakashi. The bright smiles on her classmates faces faded and their eyes looked at him with weariness. The whiskered teen cleared her throat and then gestured to Shizune. "This is Shizune-neechan. She is Hokage-sama's assistant as well as her apprentice."

Ochako knitted her eyebrows. "What do you mean by apprentice? Is she going to be the next Hokage?"

"I have no plans to take over Hokage-sama's job," Shizune answered with a smile. Her black eyes flickered to the other girls before looking back at her. "When Naruto-chan says that I'm her apprentice, she means that I'm one of the few medic shinobi who had the honour of being taught by her."

"The current Hokage is well-known throughout their part of the world for her medic skill," Eisuke informed them. Several eyes widened at this piece of information and the red-haired man rubbed his jaws. He looked at Shizune with thoughtfulness before looking at Kakashi with slight irritated eyes. "I remember Tomo-chan saying that she wanted to be better than Tsunade with how much Asa-ojisan praised her skill."

Shizune smiled wearily. "We all wanted to surpass Tsunade-sama but it is a very large bar for anyone to surpass. I doubt that even her newest disciple can surpass Tsunade-sama, not when she had done nothing to learn outside what Tsunade-sama taught her."

"Who is the newest apprentice?" Naruto asked.

Hinata thinned her lips and answered reluctantly. "Sakura."

Oh. Naruto closed her eyes and pressed her lips into a thin line before furrowing her eyebrows together. Sakura. That was Tsunade's newest apprentice? Was it a good thing? A bad thing? She didn't know. Was she happy that her former teammate was now training under the Fifth Hokage? It was rather difficult to tell.

"Why was she taking things seriously now? Where was that seriousness when we were a team?" A dark voice in her head demanded. Naruto thinned her lips and shoved the voice back into her mind. Not the time. It did not matter to her anymore. Team Seven was done. What happened to them could now be buried under the years and years worth of memories. "Is she taking things seriously because there is no Sasuke-kun to save her ass? Did she think she can do better than your useless ass?"

Uzumaki, if you ever hear that negative voice in your head then you need to acknowledge it and allow that negativity to flow before responding to it.

Naruto took a deep breath.

"Okay so what if that was true? What if I'm useless?" Naruto asked as her eyes flickered to the other students climbing out of the car. She felt Hinata's eyes looking at her with concern and the whiskered teen flashed a reassuring smile before sliding her hands into her pocket. If shoving the voice aside was not going to work then this could work for her. "What does that mean if it is true?"

"It means that you are weak and that no one can rely on you," the voice snapped. The blonde paused and looked down at her hands as Shouto gazed at her with troubled eyes. Naruto dropped the smile and gulped down a lump before looking up at the clear, blue skies. The birds sang and danced in the air and the whiskered teen exhaled as her hands grew heavy with tiredness.

She tilted her head. "Okay, so what does it mean if no one can rely on me?"

"You will be abandoned," the voice retorted back with a tone filled with confusion. The anger and resentment faded away and Naruto began to draw shapes and other various images in the air. Abandonment. That was a rather heavy word but it could explain everything. She slid her hands into her pocket and looked up at the white, fluffy clouds loitering around in the sky.

Naruto hummed. "And what happens after that?"

"You will be alone again," the voice replied. The blonde paused and felt her throat clogged up with pain. Alone. That was and would always be the most horrible feeling in the world. I won't be alone. But saying those words back to the voice would just make things worse. It never worked before therapy, so now it was time for a different approach.

An approach that could get the voice to shut up on what could be one of the most important days of her life.

She quirked her lips into a weary smile. "And then what happens after I'm alone?"

The only sound she could hear was the quiet chatter of her classmates. Their eyes kept darting from her to Hinata before landing on Shizune and Kakashi. Both sets of eyes looked at her with concern. Naruto kept her expression neutral as she leaned closer to Shouto. Her boyfriend looked down at her with a frown playing on his lips.

"Sakura got a lot of catching up to do if she even wants to catch up with Hokage-sama's skill," Naruto finally said. Hinata blinked and knitted her eyebrows together while Shizune just stared at her with thoughtful eyes. Kakashi only regarded her with a single eye before looking away from her. The whiskered-teen inhaled. "And if she ever wants to surpass Hokage-sama then she has to prove that she isn't a pale imitation of her."

Hinata gazed at her with troubled eyes while Shizune only looked at her with a frown playing on her lips. The blonde raised her hand up at the sky, hovering it above the sun before squeezing her hands into a fist. I will become the strongest kunoichi in the world, Old Man! The clouds shifted around until it almost resembled a smiling Third Hokage.

Her heart cried for the loss of the man who saved her from the streets.

"Oh, I have no doubt that you will be even stronger than Tsunade, Naru-chan."

Naruto closed her eyes and breathed in the crisp morning air as her heart grew heavy with grief. If the Third Hokage saw me now, would he be proud with the choices that I made? Her throat clogged up and the blonde took in a shaky breath. A rough hand grabbed onto her own and the whiskered teen curled her lips into a slight smile when Shouto squeezed her hand.

"What's on your mind, Princess?" Shouto whispered in her ear. His chilly breath tickled her ears and her stomach roared with nerves as heterochromatic eyes inspected her. Concern coloured his eyes and his left hand began to rub soothing circles on her hand. "You seem to be upset about something."

A tired smile tugged on her lips and Naruto tilted her head up at him. "I was just remembering the Third Hokage and how he believed me when I say that I'm going to be even stronger than the Old Hag."

"You really miss him," Shouto stated. There was no judgment in his tone as his heterochromatic eyebrows knitted together into a single line. His eyes locked onto her with a wonder that made her whole body tingled with an unfamiliar feeling. He paused and then nodded for only a second before flashing her a weary smile. He lowered his voice. "Right…he rescued you from the streets."

That is why you can't ever hate him, right?

The words might have been unspoken but those eyes spoke them to her with understanding and sadness. Naruto nodded and squeezed his hand back with reassurance. Her boyfriend let out a tiny sigh and then flushed a light shade of red when she pecked him on the cheeks. Thank you for not vocalizing your hate. The corner of her lips tugged into a wide smile as steam erupted from the left side of Shouto's body.

"I hate to break the lovefest but you two lovebirds need to join…Mina! Why did you poke me?" Kirishima cried, rubbing the side of his waist with a scowl. Naruto blinked and felt her cheeks heating up as several sets of eyes locked onto them. The blonde snuck a glance at Shouto and shook her head when her boyfriend gazed at them with unfazed eyes.

Ashido puffed her cheeks. "Do you know how long I have been waiting to see those two interact in this way?"

"You shouldn't be living through them," Kirishima grumbled, shaking his head. Bakugou snorted while several of their fellow classmates nodded. Ochako stared at them before sneaking a glance at Izuku. The green-haired boy averted his eyes away from them. Does Uraraka like Midoriya? The flushed cheeks and the vigorously shaking head suggested it.

But when did that happen?

Hinata smiled faintly and looked at their clasped hands before averting her gaze at them. Naruto dropped her hand and stared at her best friend. She might be a few meters away from her but the whiskered teen could see the tightness in her shoulder. I should apologize for flaunting it. Even if her best friend told her that it was okay, it wasn't nice to do it.

It would serve as a reminder that her best friend couldn't really be with the boy that she really wanted to be with.

"What does Kirishima mean by Ashio living through us?" Shouto asked, tilting his head.

Naruto hummed. "He means Ashido is using us to experience what it feels like to date and like someone."

"Then why doesn't Ashido get a boyfriend and get that experience for herself?"

Yellow eyes blew up wide and Ashido gazed at Todoroki for a few seconds before letting out a loud-belly laugh. Naruto knitted her eyebrows and stared at her with classmate with confusion while everyone snorted. I don't get what's so funny? Also how do I answer that question without sounding harsh? She scratched her head and looked to Hinata.

Her best friend shook her head and looked at her with amused eyes. It might surprise you but I really love this side of Shouto. It felt normal. That it was okay for someone to just wonder and not be terrified to just ask things. Naruto chuckled and shook her head before glancing at Shizune, Aizawa and Kakashi. All three of them looked faintly amused.

"Well because Ashido needs to find someone that she likes as much as I like you," Naruto finally answered. Her boyfriend smiled faintly and his eyes gleamed with mischief. The blonde raised an eyebrow and leaned her body slightly forward before gently probing her boyfriend's waist with her finger. He looked down at her. "Did you do that to make me admit out loud that I like you?"

"Yes," Shouto admitted honestly and without any shame. "But I was genuinely curious to know why she wanted to know about our love life."

Happiness bubbled inside of her stomach and Naruto squashed down the intense urge to kiss the younger boy. I really have it bad for him. Her stupid heart could not stop dancing at the knowledge, and her silly stomach continued to act like it was in the circle with how much it kept bouncing with glee. She beamed and reddened when Shouto pressed his lips against her.

"I thought you felt uncomfortable with obvious displays of affection, Homeostasis," Naruto stated.

He hummed. "I wanted to do it…and it is hard not to kiss you when you show that pretty smile, Sunshine."

Aizawa cleared his throat and shot the both of them a warning look. Naruto ducked her head down as her cheeks began to heat up with embarrassment. I always thought I was the one comfortable with public display but it seems like the roles has switched between us. Her boyfriend knitted his eyebrows and then glanced at her before bobbing his head.

Keeping her head down, Naruto grabbed Shouto's hand and dragged him to the cluster of snickering students. Mineta shot them looks of both disbelief and envy while Katsuki just looked at them with disgust. The blonde waited for her cheeks to stop burning before poking her tongue out at her older cousin. He gave her the finger.

"Now that the two love birds stopped being in their own world, let us yell our school motto!" Kirishima declared, flashing a teasing smile at her and Shouto. Both teens glanced down at their feet before looking at the others. Bakugou scowled while Midoriya and the other boys shook their heads. Yaoyorozu sighed. The red-haired male clenched his hand into a fist. "Plus…"

"Ultra!"

Naruto jumped up and gripped Shouto's arm. His thick arm tightened and the blonde twisted her head around to find the source of the roaring voice. Displeasure flooded her stomach at the sight of Inasa standing behind them. A large smile broke out of his face and wild energy leaked out of his eyes as his fist waved in his air.

"You are saying the wrong school motto, kid," Eisuke declared as everyone continued to gaze at Inasa. The boy blinked and clicked his heels together while her distant cousin darted his eyes around the ground. "And you are breaking one of the values that our school has…dignity. You aren't respecting the values of another school."

The male froze, gawked for a single second and then bowed his head. "Sorry but I always wanted to do that! I love Yuuei!"

I forgot about the fact that Eisuke wanted to go to Yuuei High. The blonde rubbed the back of her neck as Eisuke's eyes gleamed with amusement, nostalgia and understanding. Inasa snuck a glance at her and then locked his gaze on her hand. Confusion filled his eyes as if the mere idea of her holding her boyfriend's arm made no sense to him.

"I'm so sorry for Inasa's rude behaviour, Eisuke-niichan!"

Naruto tilted her head and curled her lips into a small frown as four other teens with identical uniform. A smiling black-haired girl with light pink eyes waved her hand at them as three other teens followed behind her. Is she also a member of our clan? She flickered her eyes at Eisuke and frowned when the man stared at her with resignation.

"How many times have I told you not to call me that in public, Kokoro?" Eisuke demanded.

Kokoro raised an eyebrow. "You think I care that you are a famous hero now? I still remember you on the phone, complaining about being sixteen and not going to—"

"—how much do I have to pay you to not finish that sentence?" Eisuke demanded.

The black-haired girl grinned and held her hand up to the red-haired male. "¥150,000."

Everyone only watched with wide eyes as the 23-year-old man pulled out his wallet from his pocket. What the hell was she going to say to Eisuke? Damn it, I wanna know what he was complaining about! Naruto puffed her cheeks when the male slapped the cash onto Kokoro's greedy hands. The pink-eyed girl hummed and slid it into her pocket before looking at her.

Her lips curled into a slight frown and Kokoro bowed her head down. "Ah, I didn't get a chance to introduce myself when Kenji-ojiisan called out that meeting. I'm Uzumaki Kokoro but you can call me Koko-chan! Wow, you really do look more like Kushina-obaachan up close in person."

"You know what my Mom looks like?" Naruto asked, knitting her eyebrows together. Kokoro blinked and smiled slightly while Eisuke rubbed the back of his neck. What the hell is going on? She flickered her eyes to the other teens, who kept gawking at them. Well the purple-haired boy had his jaws dropped to the floor and looked at the girl with horror, while the others just stared at her with confusion.

Kokoro hummed and offered her a wide smile. "My Dad keeps a photo of your Mom in the mantel piece. He tells me all types of stories about your Mom! They grew up together y'know!"

"He did?" Naruto asked, knitting her eyebrows together. Kokoro nodded and clapped her hands together while Hinata and the other girls exchanged glances. Katsuki raised an eyebrow and leaned his body forward. His red eyes flashed with a burning curiosity while Kakashi chuckled. She felt her palms sweating with nerves as the black-haired girl smiled even wider at her.

"Once we're done with the exam, I'm more than willing to tell you what my Dad told me about the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero," Kokoro beamed and leaned her body forward as Inasa kept looking at them with wide eyes. The girl offered her a serene smile. "You will definitely love to hear the story of how your Mom ruined Kenji-ojiisan's dates."

Naruto grinned while Eisuke turned a sickly shade of green.

Now that is a story that I have got to hear.

"Kokoro-chan, you shouldn't grab all of her attention!" A fawn-haired girl grumbled, snaking her arm around the black-haired Uzumaki. Kokoro thinned her lips and furrowed her eyebrows together. Pink eyes gleamed with confusion and it was not long before the grey-haired girl shook her head. "I wanna meet the star of the viral video! You are so much cuter up close!"

The tone might have been chipper but bloodlust radiated out of the girl in front of her. Only bloodlust. Usually if there is bloodlust, there should be some hate that follow it. Naruto dug her nails into the palm of her hand as brown eyes darkened at the sight of her. Something was definitely not right here.

"Can we be friends, Naruto?" The fawn-haired girl asked with a radiant smile playing on her lips.

Every part of her being screamed at her not to be friends with her but then an image of her six-year-old self-flashed before her eyes. Standing right in front of her were all the other children walking away from her. Her heart crying and pleading for one of them to take her back home with them and then someone tapped on her shoulder…

'C'mon Naruto, Mom says I can bring my friends over to my house and you are my only friend.'

She smiled.

"Okay."

The girl squealed and hugged her while Kokoro just stared at them with a blank expression. The girl snuck a glance at the other students from her high school but the other members just stared at the black-haired girl with slacked jaws. I wonder why they are all looking at her like that? Naruto paused and then shook her head.

Well it didn't matter to her why those people found her clan member's behaviour to be odd.

A familiar presence washed over her and Naruto surveyed the stadium again. This is the second time now that I sense his chakra presence. She curled her lips into a small frowned and scrunched her eyebrows together. Where was it? Could it even be possible for Sasuke to be here? But the presence seemed to be gone.

She couldn't sense that chakra signature anymore.

Maybe I'm going crazy from missing that selfish bastard.

That could be the only explanation for that signature appearing and disappearing that quickly.


"Did you have to follow me? You could have followed that insane girl into the exam hall."

Sasuke stared blankly at Dabi before darting his eyes down. Crowds of students gathered around the stadium. Their eyes screamed of excitement and even from where he stood, he could see their body bouncing up and down with uncontrollable excitement and glee. His eyes drifted to the familiar golden-hair of his best friend.

Bright blue eyes shone with curiosity as that loud male from earlier bowed down again. He is even louder than that Bushy Brows. Sasuke scowled and locked his gaze on the heterochromatic-haired boy standing right beside his best friend. Todoroki Shouto. The youngest son of the temporary Number One Hero of Japan.

"Shigaraki wanted me to see what you are up to," Dabi explained dryly. The birds flew across them and Sasuke inhaled before looking back down at the smiling face of his best friend. She looks happier than she has ever been. His heart sang with relief but his chest tightened with agony when Naruto smiled prettily up at her boyfriend.

Love is precious, don't you think?

Naruto's words echoed in his ear and Sasuke shut his eyes. The world around him changed. A smiling 6-year-old Naruto stood right in front of him as her blue eyes softened at the sight of that man blinking and knitting his eyebrows at Izumi's attempts of flirting with him. Shisui snorted and flickered his eyes at him before saying…

You have to let go of your brother, Sasuke! His world can't always revolve around you.

If his brother revolved his life around him then why was Shisui dead?

Why was his family gone?

Why did Itachi have to murder them and let him live?

He didn't know the answer to that.

"And you just agreed to do whatever he ask?" Sasuke asked, shaking his head. He allowed his eyes to wander away from Naruto and then drifted down to the seal in his hands. He didn't see why Dabi had given him that seal until his best friend nearly caught him staring at her. The mark burned into his skin but it was worth it if the blonde didn't know he was here.

She is happier. Those bright blue eyes glowed with so much happiness that his stomach did flips but his blood also boiled with jealously. Those eyes weren't reserved for him. They were reserved for that boy beside her. A boy, who probably never hurt her in the way that he did. A boy who probably didn't have to worry about his big brother taking away his source of happiness.

"If you truly love someone then you let them go, Sasuke-kun."

His mother made it seem easy but how could he let go?

"I got nothing else to do," Dabi replied. Sasuke felt his eyebrows twitched with irritation and he swirled his head around as turquoise eyes gleamed with sadistic amusement. His eyes really does look similar to the Number One Hero's eyes. A frown tugged on his lips and the black-haired male darted his eyes downwards. "I don't mind watching you suffer like this."

"I'm not suffering," Sasuke said curtly. He balled his hands into a fist and shut his eyes before looking back down at the crowds of students. He scanned through the unfamiliar heads and then paused at the sight of a familiar silver-haired man. Kakashi kept darting his eyes around the area before resting his eyes on the smiling blond-haired girl.

We have precious comrades that we don't want to lose, Sasuke.

He picked this path to avenge his family and protect Naruto.

Think of what that revenge will cost you.

"You are watching your first love falling deeper and deeper in love with someone else," Dabi commented. The black-haired male leaned against the wall and flickered his eyes to the red-haired man standing across Naruto. The male curled his lips into a weary smile. "You could always find another girl to fuck but you will always imagine what it would have been like if you had your first love."

Sasuke stared at him. "I have no time for that nonsense."

"Sex is a wonderful stress reliever," Dabi stated with a cocky smile. Sasuke blanched and the male let out a mocking laugh before flickering his eyes to Todoroki. His eyes lingered on the 15-year-old heterochromatic boy. Turquoise eyes gleamed with a mixture of hate and love before reverting into a blank look. "Once you hang around Shigaraki, you need something to take the stress out."

If I'm going to fuck someone then it is going to be someone that I care about. He rolled his eyes and stretched his arms before allowing his eyes to wander around the students. Sasuke paused when his eyes landed on the blond-haired boy, who took second place in the Sports Festival. His red eyes gleamed with irritation and amusement when Naruto called him out.

They really do look similar and they have very similar personalities.

He shook his head and glanced back at Dabi. The black-haired man dropped the maniac smile and seemed to have a contemplative gleam in his eyes. It looks like he didn't come with me because of that crazy Shigaraki. Sasuke schooled his expression into a stoic one before following the male's turquoise eyes stare.

A woman with long, straight grey-hair and violet doe-like eyes was running towards Naruto's group. Her lips curled into a smile and the black-haired boy blinked when the woman clutched the Fifth Hokage's assistant hands. The red-haired man in the group groaned and smiled goofily as the woman waved those hands up and down.

Sasuke looked back at Dabi.

His turquoise eyes resembled very much of the boy that stole his best-friend's heart.

"Who is the one suffering?" Sasuke taunted. The male jerked his head and the 16-year-old boy stuffed his hands into his pockets as his black eyes fixated on the flushed cheeks of his childhood friend. "You seem to be heart-broken that your own love is not here with you. Why the hell are you watching them if you have that belief?"

Dabi let out a bitter laugh.

"Don't you know, Lover Boy? I'm a greedy bastard just like the man who created me, which is why I will tell you that you are no different from me."

The words hovered between them and Sasuke only offered him a wry smirk before looking down at the smiling face of Naruto. We are different. His heart might be sobbing and screaming with the knowledge that Naruto was no longer his, but he was content. He knew what his actions costed him. His road had been chosen when Itachi took away his family.

"If you love someone then you have to let them go."

He could let Naruto go.

My name is Uzumaki Naruto, but you can call me Naruto!

Letting her go was the best thing for him to do… because Naruto deserved some happiness with all those years in the village.


Author Note: So there has been another original character introduced into the story. Sasuke is watching Naruto and Dabi indirectly called Sasuke: greedy. Todoroki is being slightly more comfortable with displaying public display of affection to Naruto. We also see from the flashback of Sasuke's feelings towards Naruto failing for a third time. Now here are a couple of questions for you:

Q1: How did you feel about Sasuke's flashback?

Q2: What did you think of his perspective?

Q3: How did you feel about the two scenes?

Please do tell me of your thoughts on this chapter.