Chapter 2

Old chums

Two years after.

Naruto strode along a dirt path with the familiarity of his surroundings captivating him. Konoha village. He had not set foot on those roads since two years prior, before he had gone to train with his perverted sensei. Some places had changed, and a few new buildings had been built that were not there when he left, but the overall peacefulness of his home village was still there. And it was sunny as ever.

Naruto trudged happily past places he had so many memories of. Earlier that day he had met up with his old teacher Kakashi and his former teammate, Sakura. Naruto paused a while as he remembered their reunion. Although he had left her with two enormous bumps on his head, the meeting was more than pleasant. How he'd missed his pink-haired comrade. Naruto chuckled remembering how angry she was when he insulted her by disregarding her physical maturity. Deep down, he knew she had changed.

His Sakura still had her pink locks, emerald eyes and porcelain skin, only this time she was a woman. Not that Naruto had picked up any perverted habits from Jiraiya or anything, but it was difficult to brush off Sakura's great attractiveness and grace, now that she was 16, shed of her childishness and baby fat. It surprised Naruto that she was quite shorter than him, and still with cropped hair. She had told him that she preferred it that way because it didn't come in her eyes while she fought.

That thought led to his memory of their exercise with Kakashi and the two bells. It was amusing because they had finally proven to their sensei that they had matured greatly in strength. Sakura had especially shown that when she slammed her fist and shattered the whole upper hemisphere. Her vast improvement shocked both their sensei and him. Two years prior, Sakura had been regarded not quite as greatly as himself and the Uchiha. But her apprenticeship with the fifth Hokage soon surfaced itself and impressed the two men. Naruto was greatly proud of his teammate.

"EH? Naruto!" a shrill high-pitched voice called. Naruto spun around to see who had been the caller. A blond-haired, blue-eyed girl came walking towards him with her long ponytail swooshing back and forth behind her. She walked beside a large man with swirls on his cheeks. Naruto's face lit up.

"Well, if it isn't Ino and Chouji! How are you guys doing?" he asked with great enthusiasm. Ino grinned.

"We were just about to ask you the same question. Wow. Two years did a lot for your height." She complimented. Naruto flicked his nose in a cocky way.

"Yeah, I know. I'm gorgeous, aren't I?"

Both ninjas snorted in laughter.

"And humble." They retorted.

Naruto chuckled.

"So," he started, "Are you guys on a date?" he teased. Ino immediately shot up her defensive barrier.

"We were just getting something to eat!" she snapped. Chouji rubbed his belly.

"Wanna join us? It's Ino's treat!"

That earned him a smack on his back.

"I said I'd only pay for the first plate of meat. You pay for anything else after that." Ino clarified. Chouji chuckled and waved a dismissive hand.

"Hai hai. I was just joking. So what about it, Naruto? Wanna try some Korean b.b.q? Today's special is half priced!"

Naruto thought for a minute. He had nothing else to do and he had the rest of the afternoon off. He instantly took the offer. It would be great to catch up on where they had left off.

"So, is Ino still paying for me?" he teased. That cost him a bump on the head.

"No way, baka. Pay for yourself." She smiled.

Naruto grinned his boyish fox grin. A meeting with Kakashi-sensai, a teamwork exercise with Sakura-chan, and a meal with old chums. He couldn't think of how this day could get any better.

Author's note: Ok, this was a boring chapter, but I really needed to explain what happened without going into any details of what happened in the manga. Plus I wanted to show Naruto's view on how Sakura grew. Don't worry. The next chapter will be better. And once the story gets rolling it'll be cooler. Please don't ditch. Keep reading. I will try not to disappoint you.