Lily: whoa. i don't know where THAT came from. my first chapter for this fic was way different from what I usually do. it was weird I just, y'know, started typing and didn't stop 'til it was all out on the screen...
Phantom: see? I AM a good muse!
Fly-Girl: hehe... so am I. You should see the drawings she's been doing lately.
Lily: Oh, everyone, I'd like you to meet Madame Butterfly, my art muse. You can call her fly-girl.
Fly-Girl: charmed, i'm sure.
Phantom: anyway... on to the story!

Naruto: Pretender
Chapter Two
Sensei

Iruka sighed. It had been a trying day for him. Chou had nearly set Shi on fire with an overwhelming jutsu. Over course, Shi had been trying to flip her skirt...

Iruka's consolation was that he was going to see Naruto, his other classmates and their new sensei. Iruka knew that they were training under Kakashi-sensei, but he had never met him. Kakashi-sensei was rumored to have never let any students pass his shinobi test... until now. Iruka wondered what it was that made Kakashi-sensei let Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke pass. Iruka had taught all three of them and he knew them almost as well as their parents... he practically was a parent in Naruto's case and Sasuke had no parents.

Sakura was stubborn and smart, a fearsome combination. When she put her brilliant mind to work she could accomplish almost anything, but she had a very fragile ego and the slightest insult could make her depressed for days. She absolutely adored Sasuke and would have nothing to do with Naruto.

Sasuke was the best shinobi of his year. He had the capabilities of being the next hokage. He was able to do jutsu far beyond his years. But it appeared that his only reason for being a shinobi was so that he could gain vengeance upon his brother, Itachi. It had become Sasuke's soul purpose in life. Iruka was worried that it would fully consume him, he would never be able to come out from behind his cold mask and that after Itachi's death... he would have no purpose.

Naruto... Naruto was something of an inverse of Sasuke. A yin to his yang. Instead of retreating behind a mask of ice, Naruto's mask was one of pure energy and fire, hiding the lost and sad child beneath it. It was Itachi's wish that Naruto and Sasuke might realize their similarities, one of which being their hidden affections for each other, and be able to break down each other's barriers.

Iruka rolled his shoulders to loosen the tension that had come from sweeping ashes off the classroom floor. He checked the clock on the wall. Time to go. They had said that they would meet at Naruto's favorite ramen place.


Iruka entered the ramen shop and paused to smell the air. Mmm... all sorts of good smelling ramen, beef being his favorite. He glanced around the restaurant, catching sight of Naruto's sun streaked hair. Iruka walked over and slid into the booth next to Naruto. Naruto smiled and did a close range tackle into Iruka's stomach.
Iruka-sensei! You came!
Ow, yes, I did. But if you keep squeezing me like that I'll die.
Eh, sorry.
Nah, it's ok.
He ruffled Naruto's spiky hair happily. Only then did Iruka stop to look around at the others at the table.

Sakura sat as close to Sasuke as possible, smiling into his averted eyes. Sasuke was looking away, but sneaking the occasional glance at Naruto. Naruto was sandwiched between Iruka and... That must be Kakashi-sensei,' thought Iruka.

The shinobi had silvery hair that spiked outward to one side, he had a black mask pulled up over his nose and mouth and his Hitai-Ate band was pulled down, covering his left eye. Said nose was stuck in a book entitled, Make Out Paradise'. There was something oddly familiar about Kakashi-sensei, a sort of Deja Vu feeling pervaded. Iruka wished that he could remove the mask and band and see what Kakashi-sensei really looked like.

said Iruka, leaning across the table to see Kakashi-sensei, you must be Kakashi-sensei. I'm Iruka-sensei.
Oh, I've heard all about you, iruka, said Kakashi-sensei, foregoing the formalities, Naruto won't shut up about his Big Brother'. I even know about the time you were fixing some lady's roof for a mission, stepped through a hole and fell into the shower with her.
Naruto howled with laughter, the other two sniggered and Kakashi-sensei's eye scrunched up in amusement. Iruka blushed furiously.
Naruto... I've told you never... tell... anyone... that... story.
Ahh! Sorry. Sorry. It's just too funny. Plus, it makes you blush and it's funny when you blush.
Oh, shut up.
Luckily, at that moment the waiter came to take their orders, saving Naruto from eminent doom.

The five chatted happily about how their lessons were going. Well, it was really more like the three, seeing as Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei hardly spoke at all. Iruka noted that Kakashi-sensei didn't take off his mask to eat, but when Iruka looked at his bowl maybe five minutes later, he realized that it was empty.
said Naruto knowingly, we never see him take the mask off. Not for a bath, not for food, not for sleep, not for anything. No body's seen him without it.
Kakashi-sensei smiled under the mask.
It's because I'm so ugly. Any one who sees my face dies of shock. So there's no one to tell the tale...
Iruka laughed.
Oh, come on, you can't be that bad. I mean, plenty of people have seen Naruto and-
Naruto smacked Iruka's arm, That's mean!
Joking, joking. But really, Kakashi-sensei, why not?
Well, for one, you can call me Kakashi, and two, I have personal reasons.
Oh, ok. Sorry to pry.
No, no. You're allowed to.
The rest of the meal passed rather uneventfully, except for a moment where Kakashi and Iruka had to hold Naruto back from killing Sasuke.

Iruka walked home happily. It had been a nice day, minus the burning bit with Chou and Shi. Iruka wondered... what did Kakashi look like? Either he really was ugly, but what Iruka had see of his face said that he couldn't be ugly, or he was really handsome or he had some disfiguring scar. Iruka didn't really mind what Kakashi looked like, he just wanted to know what he looked like. Iruka mentally smacked himself. He was behaving like a little girl with a crush! He didn't like Kakashi... did he?

Iruka entered his empty feeling house, got dressed for sleep and lay down in his bed. Just like every night since the one in the forest, there were no warm hands to comfort Iruka in his misery, no warm body to shelter against. Iruka sighed and pulled the covers around him, hoping to stay warm.