Gomen nasai! forgive the lateness of my new chapter! having been without the internet for weeks kinda makes it hard to post!

Naruto sighed heavily and lent against a tree, pulling on his sleeve and swiping the sweat from his face. Next to him was Sakura, lying down on her back, her arms folded behind her head. She turned her head and smiled at Narutos new friend, who was sleeping softly next to his leg.

"You know," Sakura said, "you should probably try and find his owner."

Naruto looked up as she began talking, "I have." He said defensibly, "Me."

"You can't keep him." Sakura sighed, "Look at his protector, he obviously belongs to someone."

Naruto looked down at the sleeping animal and his eyes flickered to the headband around his neck and then back to Sakura. Something in his heart dropped as he realise she was right.

"I know." He sighed.

"Probably some poor little girl who lost her puppy..." Sakura continued,

"I know"

"Crying every night…"

"I know!" Naruto growled, before turning away and sighing loudly. He placed a hand onto the neck of the dog and gently stroked his soft fur. The dog stirred slightly the settled at the boys touch.

"I just wish I could keep him." Naruto said softly, "I always wanted a nin-dog, you know, a real friend."

Sakura smiled at her team mate. It wasn't often Naruto said something so honest. Something in her stomach lurched; perhaps she should be a little nicer to him.

"What if I help you to look for his owner?"

Naruto smiled, finally a chance to be alone with Sakura!

"That way we can look for Sasuke-kun too!"

His smile dropped and he sighed, perhaps he should just give up. He was no match for Sasuke, not when it came to Sakura. Not with his perfect hair, perfect body, the way he smiles when he thinks no ones looking… Naruto stopped his inner monologue before he said something really weird, but he couldn't stop the slight blush from tainting his cheeks.

"Naruto?"

Naruto turned and saw Sakura looking at him oddly, her head cocked to the side. Naruto dropped back into his trademark persona and gave her a goofy grin,

"Sorry Sakura-chan!" he said, "but I'll be alright on my own."

Sakura looked him over as if she was missing something but nodded and stood up, dusting the grass from her skirt,

"Well, if you don't find his owner, then I'll be happy to keep him!"

Sasuke shuddered in his sleep.

Naruto smiled and waved goodbye as Sakura walk away from him. He turned to the animal by his side and gently called his name, loathing waking him. The dog stirred softly and opened his eyes.

Sasuke jumped back as he felt Narutos hand on his neck, away from the closeness of the other boy's body. Naruto must have missed the reaction because he just smiled and stood up,

"Come on Aoi-chan" he called, "we've got some searching to do."

Sasuke stood and shook himself, stretching out his still sleepy limbs and hesitantly followed Naruto. He wondered where they were going but he wonder more why he was still following him around. He could run if he wanted to, not that he anywhere else to go. His one hope of turning back had laughed in his face. Sasuke sighed to himself and trotted after Naruto, looks like he was stuck with the dobe.

Naruto walked through the village, Sasuke following behind. He looked around wondering who would be the most likely owner, then decided just to ask everyone. He spied a couple of women talking animatedly outside the markets and walked over to them,

"Hey, hey Obasan!" Naruto called, causing Sasuke to cringe at his choice of words, "Do any of you know someone who've lost a dog?"

The women turned, about to answer but when they saw Naruto their faces dropped and they scowled down at the boy,

"What do you want?" a large, piggish woman sneered.

"Don't talk to him" the other women said, not bothering to lower her voice, "He's not worth our time."

With that the women turned theirs backs and walked away. Naruto shrugged off their cruel words and carried on down the street. Sasuke, however, remained where he was, completely shocked. He had known Naruto wasn't very popular in the village and sure, even he'd said some pretty harsh things to him before but nothing he meant seriously. Yet the boy just shrugged it off as if it was nothing.

Confused, Sasuke chased after Naruto. To his surprise it wasn't only the two women who had a problem with them. Several people had shouted names, 'monster' and 'demon' all of which Naruto would ignore or laugh off like some game. One man literally chased Naruto away from his house and another woman physically dragged her small child away, after the girl had ran towards Sasuke, mumbling about 'dangerous demons' and to keep away. But no one ever said more than a few words that left Sasuke wondering what Naruto had done that was so bad? He knew Narutos pranks could be stupid and sometimes down right insulting but he never actually hurt anyone.

The more people they asked, the more they were ignored or insulted and the quieter Naruto became. Eventually the blonde gave up trying and just wandered through the village, Sasuke trailing behind him. They walked out of the central village, passed the memorial stone and into the surrounding forests. Sasuke watched as Naruto slumped to the ground, his eyes never once leaving the floor. Quietly, Sasuke made his way over and sat next to him. He looked up at Naruto, his head was bowed, hiding his eyes, but Sasuke knew he was crying. Droplets of water were hitting his knees as he tucked them up under his chin. For the first moment since it happened, Sasuke was glad he was a dog. He wasn't expected to say anything. Not that he would know what to say, he had never had to cope with peoples spite. His family had been highly respected; he was a child genius and his brother…

No one outside the shinobi elite knew what had happened that night. Of course the village had its own rumours; rival ninja families after the secret of the sharingan, pact suicides, and family arguments. Only a few ever got close to the real truth.

A quiet sob brought Sasuke from his thoughts as Naruto shook beside him. It unnerved him to see the other boy like this. The blonde was usually so loud and cheerful is was painful to watch. But this was a side of Naruto Sasuke had never seen before, one he didn't know how to deal with. Before he realised what he was doing Sasuke placed his front paws onto Narutos legs and brought his face next to his. Naruto startled at the sudden weight and looked up. Sasuke stared at his face, watery trails lined his cheeks and his eyes held unshed tears. Without warning or realisation, Sasuke lent forward and gently licked Narutos cheek, wiping away the salty trail.

Naruto jumped at the sudden display of affection but welcomed it fully. It wasn't something he was used to getting, although it was strange how something so simple could make him feel better. You would think after all these years; the sneers and comments would get easier to ignore and maybe they do but it doesn't mean you have to like it.

The only other person who knew how to make him feel 'human' was Iruka-sensei. The shinobi sensei knew about his secrets but still treasured him despite them. And brought him all the ramen he could eat. Naruto looked down at the dog and smiled, as if to prove he was feeling better. He bent down and placed his arms around the Aoi's neck, pulling the animal close to his chest and to his surprise the dog didn't pull away. Naruto smile and sighed into the dog fur, gaining comfort from its warmth. He gently stroked his soft fur and whispered softly,

"I wish I could keep you."

Sasukes heart thudded loudly in his chest. Naruto clung to his neck, his hand running down his spine causing Sasuke to shiver. But it wasn't just his touch that was making Sasuke shudder, it was his words. But it wasn't him he was saying it to, not really. Sasuke felt a twinge of disappointment as he realised those words weren't meant for him, they were meant for Aoi.

Naruto pulled away and wiped his face with his sleeve. His face soon wore his infamous grin as if he'd never been crying at all. He roughly patted Aoi's head before standing and dusting the dirt from his pants. Smiling, he turned and beckoned the dog to follow him,

"Come on Aoi-chan!" he yelled, suddenly full of new enthusiasm, "We've still got more people to ask. Maybe Iruka-sensei will know someone."

The dog stared at him for a moment before slowing standing and following his temporary owner.

Sasuke shook his head as Naruto ran on ahead, rambling to himself about all the ramen he was going to make Iruka-sensei buy him. He couldn't believe this was the same Naruto who was crying only a few minutes ago. Fortunately they managed to avoid any more angry villagers on their way to Irukas apartment and soon found themselves standing outside the sensei's door. Naruto banged loudly and swung open the door without waiting for an answer,

"IRUKA-SENSEI!" Naruto yelled, announcing his arrival, "ARE YOU…"

He sentence stopped short when he spied Kakashi standing a very close to Iruka,

"Oi, oi what are you doing here Sensei?" Naruto asked pointing at the silver haired Jounin.

"Maa, I was just, err, discussing your training with Iruka-sensei."

Sasuke frowned and looked at Iruka who was blushing furiously. He smirked, wondering if Naruto noticed what he had.

"Hello Naruto." The chuunin greeted, sounding calmer than he felt. "I wasn't expecting to see you today."

"I know." Naruto answered, still eyeing Kakashi, "But I wanted to ask you about Aoi-chan."

"Aoi-chan?" Iruka asked, his eyes widened as he realised, "Oh, the nin-dog you found. Kakashi-san told me all about him"

Iruka smiled down at Sasuke with a knowing smirk. Sasuke let out a low growl.

"Hai. I was wondering if you might know anyone's lost a dog."

Iruka shook his head, "Not that I know of. Sorry Naruto, looks like you're going to have to look after him for a while."

Naruto smiled, if Iruka-sensei said he should keep Aoi-chan then that was good enough for him.

Thirty minutes later and after only five minutes persuasion, the two students and their sensei's were sat outside Ichirakus waiting patiently (well, expect for Naruto) for their meals. Of course, Sasuke was made to sit on the floor, but luckily Naruto insisted that his dog eat ramen as well. The old man carried four bowls over to them and while staring strangely at his customers, placed one on the floor. Naruto dove for his bowl and began shovelling noodles into his mouth.

"Did you ask the villagers about Aoi-chan?" Iruka asked, purposely stressing 'chan' and silently smirking at the low growl emitting from the dog. Naruto, a mouth full of ramen, nodded. As he swallowed, Iruka didn't miss the change in Naruto when he told them about the villagers. He would barely meet his eye.

Sasuke lapped the broth from the bowl and looked up, when he noticed Naruto watching him. There was something about the look on Narutos face, similar to the one he had seen earlier that day.

"I understand why you like them so much" Naruto said quietly to his Jounin-sensei, looking down at Sasuke. "Dogs don't judge you, you know? They just accept you for who or what you are." Kakashi looked at up at Iruka, who returned his gaze, understanding the hidden meaning behind 'what.' The two older men shared smiled. Every now and then Naruto could say something to really surprise you.

Sasuke sat there confused, feeling strangely like he had missed something.

"Don't worry, Naruto." Iruka said, trying to lighten the mood. "I'm sure you'll work something out." Naruto smiled at his sensei, feeling slightly better after being given his third bowl of ramen.

"And if you don't, you'll have a new roommate." Kakashi added, smirking down at Sasuke through his mask.

yay! KakaIru goodness! hehe i couldn't help but put it in somewhere! glomps kakashi plushie

i'll be posting more soon! thanks to everyone who reviewed my story! you guys are great!