Naruto yawned and stretched, then rubbed his face and blinked. "Huh? I'm on... the floor?"

He opened his eyes fully and jerked to a full sit. Bright sunlight streamed in through the window and he clutched his head with his hands.

"Gah! I slept in!" He rapped himself on the head with his fists and groaned. "And I got left behind!"

The door unlocked and he snapped to attention, standing quickly as he went to the door. Natsumi stepped through, nearly dripping with sweat as she dragged her feet over the threshold.

"Natsumi!"

She cringed and nearly dropped the bag in her hand. "Ah!" She stopped and let out a breath. "Naruto, you scared me!"

He stuck out his bottom lip in an exaggerated pout. "You left without me?"

Natsumi crossed her arms. "I tried to wake you up. I even pushed you off the bed. You wouldn't wake up."

Naruto crossed his arms and groaned. "Aw, man..."

"Don't worry about it. I train in the evenings sometimes, too. You can definitely come with me then."

He narrowed his eyes at her. "Can I?"

She gently shoved his shoulder. "Yes, you can. I did try to wake you up, so stop looking at me like that."

She moved to sit at the table and opened the brown bag and smelled inside. "I'm starving!"

Reaching inside she retrieved a steaming take-out box of dumplings and a pair of chopsticks, popping one into her mouth though it was still hot, chewing with her eyes closed happily. "Hmmm... so good."

She brought a second dumpling to her lips and stopped, the treat hovering just a few centimeters from her mouth. She looked at Naruto from the corner of her eye and caught him drooling as he stared at the food.

"Did you... maybe get some for me?" He brought his hands together and widened his eyes in a pout.

Natsumi sighed and retrieved a second, smaller container and held it out to him. "Here. Normally I have to earn my meals with a tough work out, but I knew you'd be jealous."

He dug in quickly and stuffed the dumplings into his mouth. "Wait," he muttered with his cheeks stuffed with food. "You mean that you buy breakfast regularly and don't share?"

Natsumi popped the dumpling into her mouth and shrugged. "I only treat myself if I train hard enough. Today I ran an extra eight kilometers and didn't take breaks when working on my Jutsu, so I'm beat, but in a good way."

Naruto smiled as the hot food slid down his throat. "So, where do you train anyway? What do you do?"

"It depends." Natsumi bit another dumpling. "Sometimes, I go in the forest and practice tracking wild animals. Other times, I do conditioning to make my body tougher. Sometimes, I even make a clone and fight it." She stuffed the rest of the dumpling into her mouth. "It's really hard to beat yourself in a fight, you know. You know everything that the other is going to do, but I think it's worth it. It really makes me more dynamic and creative in a fight."

He blinked and looked at her. "That sounds... really hard core."

Natsumi laughed and waves her hands. "I-It's really not! Training by myself is very limiting, so I'm always trying to find new places to train. I found this really neat place a few years ago that is perfect for everything I need."

Naruto beamed at her, leaning closer. "And... you're planning on showing your brother, right?"

Natsumi rolled her eyes and smiled. "If I told you, it wouldn't be a secret anymore."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at her. "It's not fair to keep secrets. We're family."

Natsumi froze and her eyes wandered down to the table as she fell silent. Naruto caught her eye and poked her shoulder.

"N-Natsumi?"

She blinked and smiled. "Yeah?" She laughed awkwardly and scratched her head. "Sorry, I'm just really tired from training."

Natsumi finished her food quickly and wiped her mouth on the back of her hand, cleaned up her mess, and then pointed at him as he began to prepare instant ramen for himself.

"I'm going to take a quick shower, but you need to make sure to clean up after yourself, okay? And then we need to make sure we're ready to leave on time."

Naruto set the pot on the burner and turned it on. "Huh? Leave? Where are we going?"

"It's Orientation Day, you goof." She giggled.

His eyes widened and he grinned. "That's right! I can't wait!"

Natsumi giggled to herself and pointed between him and the trash can. "Don't leave a mess, alright? I'll be back out in a minute."

She headed into the bathroom and Naruto made a mouth with his hands, moving it has he muttered in a high-pitched voice. "Don't leave a mess, Naruto."

"I heard that!" Natsumi called over her shoulder and he stuck his hand quickly behind his back and laughed.

"W-What? I didn't do anything."

Naruto heard the water in the shower come on and he poured the hot water into the ramen cup, setting the timer. Before he could sit to wait, a soft knock came on the door. He opened it slightly to see the Hokage's assistant smiling on the other side.

"Oh, hello there. Is Natsumi available?"

Naruto blinked and then shook his head. "Uh... She's busy at the moment."

Kin held out an envelope to him and he turned it over and read Natsumi's name.

"What's this for?"

"It's from the Hokage. It's very important, so have her read it right away." She waved shortly. "I've got to go now, but make sure you pass that to your sister."

Naruto shut the door and looked at the envelope carefully. "'Very important,' huh?" He held it up to the light but couldn't make out what the letter inside said. "What if she's getting in trouble for something? Maybe the Old Man saw what she did to the Closet Pervert's glasses!"

Naruto grinned and balled up the envelope and threw it into the trash. "She can't get in trouble if she doesn't know to meet him."

He eyed the timer and chuckled to himself as the last of the sand fell to the bottom and he sat to eat. "I'm a genius!"

Natsumi peered into the mirror and watched Naruto tug at the collar of his jacket and examine his reflection.

"You're not wearing your headband?"

He looked down at Iruka's headband on the dresser and picked it up, smiling as he turned to look at her. "Of course, I am!" He quickly took off his goggles and tied the headband around his forehead, posing in the mirror. "Oh man, this really looks good on me! I was born to be a Ninja, after all."

He turned to his twin and pointed his thumb at himself. "What do you think? Don't I look good?"

She nodded and lifted her arm to rest it on her shoulder, prodding his cheek. "You look more respectable now."

His eye twitched as he remembered the height difference and swatted her hand away. "What do you mean 'now'?"

She giggled and kissed his cheek, wrapping him in a hug. "I'm just teasing. I just mean that you look grown-up like that."

He wiped his cheek and laughed. "I guess this means you can't call me your 'little' brother anymore, then."

Natsumi crossed her arms. "Uh... no. You'll always be my little brother— even when you've finally hit your growth spurt. It's still our birth order."

He scowled turned back to his reflection, grumbling to himself. Natsumi stepped next to him and examined herself in the mirror and frowned.

Without the jacket... they're really obvious! She blushed and eyed her jacket that lay on her bed and looked sideways at Naruto, who was flexing his muscles and making faces at himself.

"H-Hey, Naruto?"

He stopped mid-flex and turned to her. "Yeah?"

"Could I... maybe borrow one of your extra jackets? Mine is too small."

Naruto chuckled and retrieved it for her, holding it out proudly. "I knew you'd come to love orange someday! Try it on!"

She zipped it up successfully and looked at her reflection and grimaced. "O-On second thought... orange is more your color."

"Huh? But it looks good on you."

Natsumi ran her fingers through her air and frowned. "Not with my hair... the colors clash." She took off the jacket and passed it back. "Sorry, Naruto."

She tried on her jacket again and left it unzipped. "I guess this will have to work." She turned to her brother and put her hands on her hips. "Naruto, it's not that obvious, is it?"

"What's not?" His eyes lowered and he blushed and turned around quickly. "J-Just wear my jacket, already!"

She covered her chest with her arms and blushed. That's not going to happen... She sighed. I'll just try to keep myself covered up, then, and not draw attention to myself.

Naruto hummed as he walked in long, confident strides while Natsumi walked with her arms folded to block her bust.

"You're in a great mood today, Naruto." She smiled and nudged him with her elbow.

"Of course, I am!" He laughed. "Today is the day that I begin my journey as a real Ninja. It's my first step to becoming Hokage."

Natsumi narrowed her eyes and leaned closer. "So, that's it? You're not just excited because you're hoping to be assigned to the same team as a cute girl?"

Naruto's face flushed and he stammered. "W-What? No! I don't know what you're talking about."

Natsumi giggled and stood in front of him, walking backward carefully as she watched his blush deepened.

"You don't have to be embarrassed about having a crush, ya know. I'm your sister. You can talk to me about these things. I'd love to give you girl advice."

Naruto crossed his arms. "Hmph!" Finally, he sighed and lowered his arms. "It just feels a little... awkward talking to you about stuff like this. Especially since you don't tell me about your crushes."

Natsumi blinked and laughed, stopping and moving out of the way so he didn't bump her.

"My crushes?" She stuck out her tongue. "I've never had one."

"Huh? Not ever?"

Natsumi nodded. "Not ever." She started to walk again, placing one foot directly in front of the other with her arms out to balance her. "There have been a few boys that I thought were cute, but none of them attracted my attention. Good looks are one thing, but I'd never like someone who had a bad personality."

Naruto crossed his arms again and closed his eyes. "Heh." He opened his eyes and smirked. "It's not as if I would let boys near my sister, anyway! We're all perverts on the inside and I won't let anyone try to pull any moves on my sister!"

Natsumi giggled and slid her arm around his. "You mean... like how you peek on women in the bathhouse?"

His cheeks warmed and he turned his face away. "T-That's... I mean..." He grunted and avoided her eyes. "It's just different, okay?"

Natsumi laughed out loud and reached over to ruffle his hair. "If you say so." She adjusted her pace to match his evenly. "But, with you, you're just peeping at other people's sisters."

"E-Eh?" He blinked quickly and stared at her.

"Gotcha." She nudged him and turned her head, staring at... a strange, lumpy area on the fencing ahead. She raised a finger to point at it and Naruto followed it with his eyes, chuckling under his breath. The twins shared a look and instantly knew what the other was thinking.

Let's play along for now. Natsumi smiled and stifled a laugh. Naruto nodded.

As they continued forward, Konahamaru threw down the camouflaged sheet and took a ready stance.

"Naruto! Fight me here!" Taking a step forward to run at his rival, Konahamaru tripped on the sheet and fell onto his face.

Naruto sighed and blinked slowly. "What're you doing, Konahamaru?"

"Very good, Naruto. You're the man I expected you to be." He muttered into the dirt without moving.

"...I didn't do anything, you know." Naruto stood in place and watched him.

"Konahamaru!" Natsumi helped him up with a smile, and the boy blushed faintly when she dusted him off.

"H-Hi, Natsumi-neechan."

"Hi back." She ruffled his hair and stood. "Ambushing Naruto, now?"

He turned to Naruto with his cheeks pink, then furrowed his brows.

"Let's fight fair!" He made a hand sign but Naruto interrupted.

"Sorry! I've got an Orientation meeting to go to." He scratched his head.

"Orientation meeting?"

Natsumi nodded and he looked up at her. "That's right!"

"As of today, we're Ninja!" Naruto beamed and pointed to his headband.

Konahamaru's eyes widened. "Oh..." He looked at Natsumi. "Neechan, you too?"

She nodded and took her headband out of her pocket, holding it up. "Yup! Although I still haven't decided how I'm going to wear mine." She looked down at it in her hand, and then looked at the boy. "Say, Konahamaru, you pick for me. How do you think it would look best on me?"

He blushed and then eyed the headband and looked at her. "Hmm... I think the same way as Naruto would look nice." He pointed at his forehead. "Since you're twins."

"I'll do that, then." Natsumi tied it around her head and adjusted it, smiling at the boys. "Well?"

"Looks good." Naruto nodded in approval.

"You look really pretty, Neechan!"

"Awww... you're so sweet." She hugged him tightly. "We've got to go now, but we'll see you later, okay? Keep working on your camouflage!"

He nodded slowly and eyed Naruto, narrowing his eyes. "Next time! I'll get you next time!"

Natsumi grabbed Naruto's arm and pulled him along. "C'mon! We're going to be late at this rate!"

"Alright, alright! I'm coming! Don't pull my arm off!"

Naruto and Natsumi stepped into the classroom and looked around.

"Heh. A lot of people aren't here yet." He found a seat and slumped into the chair and Natsumi sat on the edge of the desk, kicking her legs back and forth in the aisle as he watched. "Don't you have your own Orientation to go to?"

Natsumi leaned back and rested her palms on the desk. "Yeah, but there's still some time before it starts. I'd rather sit with you than wait there by myself."

"Heehee." He leaned back in the chair and crossed his arms above his head. "That's because I'm so awesome."

She giggled. "Definitely a step up from the people in my class, for sure."

"Don't you have anyone that you're hoping to be teamed up with?"

Natsumi blinked and her stomach twisted into knots as she imagined their faces in her mind. "A-Actually, I kind of... hate them all."

Naruto stared as she laughed awkwardly and her legs fell still. "Well, maybe not hate, but none of them are really people I'd say were reliable or trustworthy. I'm really dreading to see who my teammates are, actually."

"Well, maybe you'll get lucky and your teammates won't actually be as bad as you think."

She crossed her arms and pressed her lips together into a tight line. "I hope so..." Because they're all real jerks! Who talk bad about you!

More students began to file into the room and a boy walked by, recognizing Naruto and stopped to look at him with a blank expression.

"What the—? What are you doing here? Today's meeting is for graduates only."

Naruto sat up and pointed his thumb at his headband. "Hey, don't you see this headband? As of today, I'm a Ninja, too."

The boy narrowed his eyes skeptically and put a hand on his hip. "Hm..." He looked at Natsumi and her own headband. "What are you doing here? You're not even in our class."

"I'm allowed to kill some time before Orientation with my own brother." She crossed her legs. "Besides, Hidemi-sensei really doesn't like when people get there too early. They'll interrupt her morning coffee."

"Hmph." He remained quiet and Natsumi could see him thinking intently behind his eyes.

"Hey, hey." Naruto pointed at his headband again and leaned his elbows on the desk. "What do you think? It really suits me, don't you think?"

A pair of girls burst through the door suddenly, panting heavily from running. Naruto turned and spotted Sakura as a small, goofy smile lit his face.

Natsumi leaned close and held a hand up to her mouth, whispering. "Nice view, huh?"

He blushed faintly and kept his eyes on her. "Quiet! She'll hear you!"

The two girls bickered and Natsumi rolled her eyes. I'm almost glad to not be in the same class as them. Hearing them in the courtyard is bad enough as it is.

Sakura ran closer and Naruto's cheeks went pinker as he stood, waving slightly. "M-Morning, Sakura-chan."

Without acknowledging him, she shoved Naruto aside and stared at the boy sitting at the table a seat away, holding her hands as she blushed.

"G-Good morning, Sasuke-kun." The boy looked at her without a word. "Mind if I sit here?"

Did she just—! Natsumi scowled and stared at the pink haired girl, glancing down at Naruto on the floor. She can't do that!"

The blonde girl grabbed Sakura's arm. "Hey! I'm going to sit next to Sasuke!"

"First come, first serve!" Sakura retorted.

Keep it together, Natsumi. You told Iruka-sensei you wouldn't get into any more fights. She exhaled slowly and kept glaring. But, I really want to!

"I got in the classroom sooner!" Ino argued and Natsumi clenched her teeth.

Their voices are so annoying! And they're acting like they haven't done anything wrong!

"No, I did!" Another girl chimed in, and others surrounded the two girls.

"If that's the case, then I did!"

Natsumi balled her fists tighter as they argued until her knuckled cracked. Fighting over a stupid boy... they're so annoying!

Sasuke looked away, disinterested, and Natsumi cleared her throat. The group of girls quieted and stared at her.

"Who's that?" One whispered to another.

"Idiot! That's Naruto's sister!"

"Yikes! The one that beat up Michi that time?"

Natsumi looked over the girls quietly for a moment. "Actually, Naruto was here first." She motioned to where he still sat on the floor with her voice level and cold. "And, it was very unladylike to shove him like that. I think you should apologize."

"What?" The blonde girl pointed at her and frowned. "Who are you to talk like that, huh? You're not even in our class."

"I know!" A brown-haired girl pointed at Natsumi accusingly. "She only came in here to try to steal Sasuke!"

The girls started to step closer to her, growing louder and louder.

"Shut up!" Natsumi shouted. "I could care less about that dumb boy! Why do you even like him so much? All he does is ignore everybody! Go find a different hobby and leave people who want to be left alone, alone!"

The girls blinked and Sakura looked at her. "You mean... you don't think Sasuke is cute?" She peered at Sasuke, who was ignoring the commotion, and then blushed.

Natsumi turned to look at him, her scowl deepening. This is exactly what I mean! They're getting so worked up and it's pointless! She turned back around and crossed her arms. "Nope."

"W-What?!" The girls gasped collectively.

"His looks are average at best and looking apathetic all the time only adds to his unattractiveness."

The girls blushed and blinked.

Ino stammered. "Y-You obviously have horrible taste, then!"

"Maybe it's because I have taste that I don't bother myself with boys like that. If I were going to like someone, it would be because they were nice and not..."

She peered over at Sasuke, who blandly and briefly met her eyes. "...like that."

"T-Take that back!"

"You don't know what you're talking about!"

Natsumi exhaled slowly. I will not hit them. I will not hit them. I will not hit them...

The third Hokage gazed into his crystal ball with a group of Jonin around him. The image displayed was of a quiet, dark-haired boy.

"Is that this year's top rookie, Sasuke Uchiha?" Asuma asked with his arms crossed.

"Yes." The Hokage replied.

"The sole survivor of the Uchiha clan?" Kurenai asked.

"Yes." Hiruzen answered again.

The image shifted to the boisterous cluster of girls nearby, where Naruto still sat on the floor and Natsumi sat on the desk, glaring at the girls in silence as they argued and shouted at her.

"Naruto Uzumaki, eh..." A silver-haired Jonin eyed the blond-haired boy carefully. "And, there's that twin of his I've heard about..."

Natsumi turned and saw Naruto sitting in a kneel on the desk in front of Sasuke, glaring at him. The other girls noticed as well and began to shout at him.

"Naruto! Don't glare at Sasuke!"

Naruto looked at the girls and back to the raven-haired boy. "Everyone's all 'Sasuke, Sasuke.' What's even so great about this guy?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes and shot back a glare.

"Just beat him up, Sasuke!"

"Yeah, yeah!"

Natsumi cracked her knuckles and attracted several pairs of eyes. "I'd stop saying that if I were you." She murmured under her breath.

Several of the girls shuddered and fell quiet, taking a step back.

The group suddenly all went wide-eyed and frozen in place. "W-What?"

Natsumi turned and saw Naruto bumped by the boy in the front row and... kiss Sasuke. She covered her mouth to stifle a laugh.

Naruto! Her body trembled as she kept herself quiet. I'm definitely going to bring this up later!

The boys pulled away quickly and wiped their mouths, coughing and spitting.

"Naruto! I'll kill you!" Sasuke muttered.

"Gaaah! My mouth is rotting!" Naruto spat and gagged.

Natsumi laughed loudly, unable to contain it anymore as she bent over and her eyes crinkled shut. "N-Naruto... your first kiss..." She laughed harder and wiped a tear away as she laughed. "was to a boy."

Naruto shot her a look, his face red. "Hey, cut it out! It was an accident!"

Natsumi leaned against the desk for support and wiped her other eye. "I wish I had a camera... your face... it's hilarious."

"Cut it out, I say!" He narrowed his eyes at her, then blinked. "I...feel rage..."

He spotted the group of girls as their eyes burned.

"Naruto..."

Naruto gulped and helped up his hands. "It was an accident, I swear!"

"You're so annoying!" Sakura's expression darkened and she cracked her knuckles.

Naruto cringed. "Yikes!"

Natsumi's laughing stopped immediately as the girls rushed Naruto and pummeled them with their fists.

They completely forgot about me...

She tightened her hands into fists until her knuckles turned white.

Sorry, Iruka-sensei. I can't keep my promise.

The Hokage sighed as the Jonin blinked at the scene.

"That Naruto is at the center of trouble, as usual." His eyes fell on Natsumi, who was standing off to the side, almost out of his line of sight. "There's that expression of hers again... it makes me uneasy."

Sorry, Iruka-sensei. I can't take it anymore.

Natsumi appeared in front of both Sakura and Ino with her eyes closed, reaching out to grab their fists before they could strike Naruto again. She looked up slowly at them as their eyes widened, with her eyes icy and dark.

"No way! She... stopped us!"

"She's fast!"

They tried to pull their hands away, but she clutched them tighter, holding them in place. "I'm sure you've heard the rumors about what happened to the last kid who tried to hurt my brother, right?" Her stern expression held them rigid in place. "That kid, Michi?" Her lips curved upward in a smirk. "I heard that he was in the hospital for a full month— and he only managed to get in half a punch."

The girls shuddered and tried to pull away again.

"Meanwhile, you both got in at least five that I counted." Natsumi gripped their hands tighter. "Or, was it six?"

Naruto's eyes widened as he looked at his twin. "Natsumi?" He opened his mouth to say something but nothing would come out. "She's never looked like this before..."

Natsumi raised her leg quickly, aiming high at Sakura's head. She flinched and shut her eyes, bracing for impact only for Natsumi to stop only a centimeter away. Sakura opened her eyes and she trembled.

"She's scary!" He shuddered.

Natsumi lowered her leg and looked between Sakura and Ino, who were both shaking.

"From now on... leave my brother alone, got it?" She jerked their fists closer, pulling them in as she leaned her face between them to whisper darkly. "Because I never miss more than once."

She shoved them back and looked around at the other girls, feeling eyes all around the classroom burning into her.

"Sit down." She spoke quietly, but the group of girls quickly separated and took a seat. Natsumi reached down to help Naruto up, smiling broadly now. "You okay?"

Naruto stared dumbfoundedly and only nodded. "Y-Yeah."

"When did she get that strong?"

Iruka stepped into the classroom and Natsumi poked her twin's shoulder.

"Well, that's my cue to leave. See you later!"

She ran to the door, past Iruka with a smile.

"Natsumi?" He turned to look at her and she stopped in the doorway. "What are you doing here? I thought you had a meeting with the Hokage this morning?"

M-Meeting? She blinked at him. "W-What?"

"You were supposed to get a notice." The teacher muttered under his breath, and Natsumi jerked her head in Naruto's direction, who had sunk low into his seat in an attempt to hide.

"So... that's what that was." He chuckled. "I, uh... might have thrown it away."

Natsumi narrowed her eyes. "Naruto!"

"Heh..." He scratched his head. "S-Sorry."

She shot him a look that he recognized instantly. I'll deal with you later. And ran quickly from the classroom.

You better hope I'm not late, Naruto!