This is the second chapter of my first fic. To all of you out there who actually read this but don't like it enough to review (which I'm very sure that if there is anybody out there reading Inside My Shell, 99 of them are these people) I highly thank you. The last time I checked, this fanfiction had no reviews (I expected that) so don't take this personally. I'm writing this fic and putting it online before I go online, so if any really generous people actually did review, THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!

I walked along the quiet road. There were so little people and so many birds. I wondered why. Suddenly, I heard a piercing scream. It came from up ahead.

I quickened my pace as I heard more screams. Entering a village, I saw dead bodies lying around everywhere with blood splattered all over them. It was near dusk now as I could see the sun setting. For some reason, I ran straight into a certain house, my body moving on it's own. I had a funny feeling that I did not like what was going on around here.

As I came into a room, I saw a little boy crouching at a corner of the room. A man draped in a large black cloak approached him, his hand covered in blood. There were two bodies on the floor. Their condition was the same as all the other bodies I had seen just now. I panicked. 'Run, you moron! Run!' I screamed again and again at him but he didn't seem to hear me. Somehow, this looked way too familiar. The stranger looked at the shaking boy and laughed. As he walked towards the doorway, he passed through me and I shivered. Both at the sudden chilling air and his face. The face of Uchiha Itachi.

As I dropped to the floor, the little boy looks up for the first time. He opened his mouth and let out the loudest scream I have ever heard.

I groaned, bent over and switched the alarm off. That must have been the fourth time I dreamt the same thing in a month. "Just you wait, Itachi. I swear, in the end I'll be the one laughing!" I said that aloud, very loudly. The pigeon of my window fluttered off.

I got up and walked to my drawer. I pulled on a blue t-shirt with long sleeves and a pair of black trousers. It looked rather windy, so it'll most probably be cold. This time, I was not even going to bother going down the stairs. As I lifted my window, a huge gust of wind slapped me in the face. I jumped of the ledge and landed neatly on my feet. Skipping breakfast was a daily routine now, as I never seem to have the appetite in the morning.

I took my time, knowing that Kakashi wouldn't be there until noon. As I turned around the corner, I saw a girl tying up her pink hair as she walked towards me. I quickly jumped onto the nearest roof I could find, fearing I was already too late. She kept walking so I decided she didn't see me. I leaped back down.

As I started walking again, I wondered, "Why does she like to follow me around? Doesn't she have anything better to do?" I sighed. Maybe that was just the way girls act once they reached a certain stage. Personally, I'd preferred it if she didn't tag along me. I like being alone better. That way if someone had a problem, I wouldn't be pushed into helping out.

I really don't see the point in having many friends. For weak people, I would understand if they wanted a lot of friends to protect them but for stronger people, why do they need friends. I know I don't as I can take care of myself. Besides, having friends mean you have to trust them. I don't think that's a very good idea for me right now. As for having someone to talk too, well, that makes even less sense. You could just walk up to a stranger and start a conversation. 'What the hell is the point in friends?'

By this time, I've reached the clearing. Thankfully, Sakura was not there yet. It's not that I hate her. It's just that she was kind of annoying. I was spared her endless tries to make me speak more often. I shook my head, 'Don't I speak enough already?' That moron wasn't here yet. Lady Luck must be on my side.

"Okay, Team Seven. Today you will be looking for a baby bird. This will be the best mission ever!" The silver-haired man appeared, perched on top of a high branch.

"YOU'RE LATE!!!" This came from the usual crowd. Sakura had arrived 10 minutes after me and 15 minutes before Naruto. When he first arrived, I noticed something a little different about him. Even though he had arrived with his usual, "Ohaiyou, Sakura-chan!" and his lack of greeting to me, which I had expected after what Sakura had said to him yesterday, he had been unusually quiet. At first, I had dismissed it as the fact that he was upset over the best ramen store's sudden vacation but now I changed my mind. If he was upset, it should only be for a while. It's not as if he can't find a different ramen store to eat at. Maybe I should watch him for a bit.

"Ah, about that, that's very true. See, I overslept because I was having a very nice dream about Icha Icha Paradise volume 9 coming out. I was going to the store to buy it when suddenly-"

"LIAR!!!"

"I'm telling the truth! Sheesh, whatever excuse I have is automatically considered a lie now, is it?" asked an exasperated teacher. Behind his mask, I could tell he was concealing a smile. Yes, Kakashi-sensei could be a very good actor when he wanted to be.

" Of course. When have you ever told the truth? The excuse you gave us just now was probably made up to hide the fact that you were late on purpose."

"You mean you didn't know? All my life, I've been trying to prove my innocence and you never noticed?" he said all this in an overdramatic despair tone.

"INNOCENCE?!" This came only from Sakura, as Naruto was still working out what Kakashi-sensei meant.

The teacher sighed and looked down at me. "Anyways, this is supposed to be a test. Therefore, you guys have to have to find this baby bird yourself without any help from anybody else. The only clue I can give you is that the bird is yellow in colour. Have a wonderful time and good luck with your search." At this point, even Naruto should be able to tell how big Kakashi's grin was. I swear, the only reason Kakashi-sensei probably accepted the instructing job without making a big fuss was to torture whatever students he got. With that, he disappeared as quickly as he came.

All three pairs of eyes stare at each other. I let out a sigh and leaned against the tree behind me. This was going to take a long time.

"How the hell are we supposed to find the dumb baby bird if all we know is it's yellow?!" Really, sometimes Naruto's screaming makes me want to strangle him.

"Perhaps, we could try looking for Kakashi-sensei and demand the location from him?" That had to be from the Inner Sakura Naruto was talking about.

"Besides, Kakashi-sensei couldn't have expected us to work together?"

They kept arguing on how to solve their problem, so I quietly crept off. I knew I could do better alone.

When I got far enough, I focused, picturing my chakra slowly swirling inside of me. I opened my eyes, savouring the feeling of absolute power. If I kept improving, I would surely be able to kill him. All I have to do is keep training. Eventually, I will become stronger than him. This very thought itself, was pleasant.

'There!" I turned sharply to my left and landed on a tree branch. There was something moving. I looked around. It took me some time to figure out that it might not be an enemy. If another shinobi were there, he would have attacked already. Then I saw it. A furry little creature, struggling to get through a bush.

I jumped down and moved towards it. 'It's yellow.' I turned the Sharingan off. I picked up the little bird and held it gently. As I run back, I covered the little bird with my other hand to make sure it didn't fall. Suddenly, it occurred to me that the thoughts I was having a few minutes ago was very similar to the thoughts I had when I fought Zaku.

My hand automatically went to the seal. Sure, Kakashi-sensei had done something about it, but, it could still happen. I shivered. Suddenly, the forest seemed like a very dark place.

"This is all your fault!"

"My fault?"

"Yes, if you hadn't irritated Sasuke-kun then he wouldn't have run off!"

"He probably got scared being-"

"DON'T YOU DARE SAY THAT! SASUKE-KUN WOULD NEVER HAVE GOTTEN SCARED BEING IN THE FOREST ALL ALONE!" I chuckled softly, both at this and at the sounds of something being squished mercilessly. "DO YOU HEAR ME, NARUTO?"

"That wasn't what I was going to say" he managed to mutter.

"Oh, sorry."

Before things could get worse, as, knowing Naruto he would have probably said something that would only make Sakura angrier, I stepped into the opening and called Kakashi-sensei.

"SASUKE-KUN!" She ran over to me. Before she could reach me, I jumped out of the way and onto another branch. "Kakashi-sensei. I know you're here and I have the bird you wanted. Can I go now?"

He stood up and walked out of his hiding place with leaves in his hair. He didn't seem to mind, though. "Hn, what bird?"

I opened my hands so that he could see.

"Congratulations! That was very fast. You-" his eye moved towards the other two, 'and you alone pass this test. You may all go back now."

I jumped down and walked towards my house. I could feel his eyes staring at me. His determination was clear. That's good. Determination to beat me. It'll make him stronger. I guess if I had waited for them, I would never have passed this test. To me, this test was not an exam. It was not a question. It was an answer.

I'm definitely better off alone.

End of second chapter. What do you think about it? Did it suck less than the first chapter or did it suck more than the first chapter? I'm so proud of myself. I've written up to the third chapter on paper. I've already started the fourth one. If you hated this chapter, please criticize. If you actually liked this chapter, please review. Thank you.