BTW, I'm skipping over the incident with Konohamaru. It would just be a waste of my time and your time. Nothing changed, trust me.
DISCLAIMER: See chapter 1. (I can't even claim all the lines! A lot of them are direct quotes!)
This was the morning Naruto had been waiting for. The date was circled and marked several times on his calander so he couldn't possibly miss it. And there was only one true way to celebrate a big day like this: breakfast!
Uzumaki Naruto wobbled through the kitchen, then over to his little table, still in his pajamas, carrying a bowl of 'breakfast ramen' and a carton of milk. As he ate, his thoughts went to the day ahead. Or his version of it.
/Since everyone else in the class graduated, that means Sakura-chan will be there! And no one else knows that Iruka-sensei let me graduate, so she'll be suprised! 'Wow, congratulations, Naruto! I'm so happy you made it!' Yeah, that's what she ought to say. But that stupid Sasuke kid will also be there. God, ...why'd a guy like that have to be in my class, anyway? GAA! I hate that show-off./ He drank about half of the carton of milk, then stood up and got dressed for the day. It was time for the explanitory meeting.
xxxxXxxxx
Half an hour had passed since then, and the young blonde found himself in his usual seat in the classroom. The one right next to Uchiha Sasuke. He hated that seat. It was, however, at just the right angle for Hyuuga Hinata to watch him without it being too obvious. /So, Naruto-kun made it through graduation. I'm so happy for him./ She smiled a half-smile.
A dull rumbling became known. Soon, it became a dim roar. It quickly became louder, then abruptly ended when Haruno Sakura and Yamanaka Ino squeezed past each other to get into the room first. "GOAL!" Both girls looked worn and tired. Once again, these two were competing their butts off. But that was a moot point.
Naruto grinned, blushing just slightly. /Sakura-chan's here/ At that moment, the pink-haired girl looked in his direction. /And she's looking at me/ She even started a light jog towards him, grinnin' like a fool. Making a sad attempt at being a gentleman, Naruto stood and waved, "Good morning, Sakura-chan!"
...And was quickly thrown to the ground with a gruff "Get outta my way!" followed by a sweet, girly "Good morning, Sasuke-kun!"
/Sasuke again. Why is it always Sasuke/ The young ninja hardly noticed as a large argument broke out between the female students over who would get to sit next to the black-haired boy. I was here first! I was in the room first! I asked him first! Yadda Yadda Yadda. Of course the Uchiha only looked up, slowly, unintrested, then lowered his face once again.
xxxxXxxxx
"That's him? This year's number one rookie, Uchiha Sasuke?"
Eight Jounins were gathered around the Hokage's desk, watching the events in the classroom through a little crystal ball sitting on a pillow. "That's right." The old man replied.
A nearby female ninja spoke up. "He's a survivor of the Uchiha clan."
Silence followed. The view in the ball slowly moved, shifting it's focus from the black-haired boy to the blonde-haired boy still sitting on the floor. A silver-haired jounin spoke next. "Uzumaki Naruto, eh?"
xxxxXxxxx
Sasuke sat still. Very still. In fact, other than raising his head every so often, he hadn't moved all day. But for some reason, all the girls in the class suddenly wanted to sit next to him. /How annoying. Eh, better than that idiot Naruto./
All at once, he opened his eyes to find that very idiot about 2 inches away from his face. Just staring. /God, his breath stinks. What did he have for breakfast/ Naruto's eyes were narrowed to slits, his gaze unmistakably hostile. The Uchiha boy met the stare with one of his own, tension mounting like electricity between the two.
/Everyone's so obsessed with Sasuke. What's so great about him, anyway/ Naruto thought.
/Maybe it's because he's better than you./
Huh?
At that moment, one of the students sitting right in front of them decided to swing his arm backwards, hitting Naruto's legs. This, combined with a voice in his head that was NOT his, caused him to lose balance and... well, fall forward...
...into the waiting lips of his rival.
All life stopped. No one said a word. No one breathed. Both the guys and girls could only stare, utterly stunned. Speechless. At least, physically.
Inner Sakura: /Damn it! I was supposed to get Sasuke-kun's first kiss/
The boys seperated very quickly, choking and gagging. Trying vainly to get that taste out of their mouths. "Naruto, I'm going to kill you..." Sasuke choked out.
"My mouth's going to rot..." the blonde wheezed. He stopped short, though, then looked up, saying "I sense danger."
Well, duh. You see, while the guys sat and laughed, the girls... they all had a murderous look in their eyes. All of them. Naruto suddenly wondered if he'd make it to the actual explanation part of this meeting.
xxxxXxxxx
Iruka-sensei was now busy explaining something-or-other. All about this-and-that. Naruto was paying very little attention, due to the severe pain in his head. At least he knew the cause this time. He glanced over at Sakura-chan, thinking /That's probably MY blood on HER knuckles. Sheesh./
/Beat up by a girl. Tsk, Tsk. How sad.../
Okay, what the hell? This was the second time Naruto had heard someone, and it wasn't out loud, or else the rest of the class would be looking around for it as well. He'd be looking himself if he wasn't so sore.
In any case, Iruka-sensei was finally getting to the good part. "Next, 7th group. Uzumaki Naruto."
The blonde was paying attention now.
"Haruno Sakura."
This brought a cheer from Naruto and a sad sigh from Sakura. "I'm with Naruto...?"
"Uchiha Sasuke."
This brought a cheer from Sakura and a sad sigh from Naruto. "I'm with Sasuke...?"
Hinata looked down at him, disappointed. /So, I'm in a different group than Naruto-kun.../
The rest of the teams were called out from there. The 8th group had Hinata, Kiba, and Shino. The 10th group had Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji. Naruto tuned the rest of them out entirely. /I'm with Sasuke? I'm with ...Sasuke? I'm with Sakura! But I'm with ...Sasuke/ Even when the class was dismissed, he walked out in a daze. /Why ...Sasuke/ He walked around, not even saying anything. He completely ignored his new teammates; one followed the other around, trying to get him to eat with her.
However, he quickly snapped out of it when his stomach made some noises that it really shouldn't have. Worse than the usual gurgle. Then it shrank into a little, tiny ball and started throbbing. Oh, God. This was not good. He started running, heading strait for the men's room. /There better not be a line/
For the next hour and a half, Naruto was stuck in the bathroom ...in severe pain.
xxxxXxxxx
The silver-haired jounin and the Hokage stood together once again, only this time, they were inside Naruto's home. "So, this is Naruto's house, eh?" He said, staring out the window.
"Yes. Uchiha Sasuke will also be in your group." The elder of the two men spoke quietly, yet calmly. "I wish you luck."
The taller shinobi picked up the carton of milk still siting on the table and looked at it. After some examination, he said "This milk expired a while ago. He's going to get a stomachache if he drinks this."
Okay. Wow, this story is much easier than the last one, 'cause I'm only changing little bits of the story. They'll lead up to something different, though. Trust me.
R&R! Do it! I know where you live!