Disclaimer: Same as before…I still don't own it. It's a sad world is it not?

Warnings: Swearing, yaoi/shounen ai, and that's all I can think of at the moment…but I'm sure there are other things I should be mentioning…oh well.

If You Ever Did Believe

Part Two: Judgment

Okay. All he had to do was go in there and swim, right? Just get in the pool, do exactly what she tells him to and then if it isn't good enough, so be it.

Naruto kept repeating these silent reassurances to himself as he made his way to the schools indoor pool. It was located near the football field and the sports hall. Although the school may not be private like his last one, it was still pretty well off.

The change rooms were deserted and quiet. The only sound in the air was the low hum of the air ducts. Truth be told, he loved this kind of quiet. Some might find the silence a little freaky or spooky, but he didn't.

He placed his school bag in one of the empty lockers and began to pull out his stuff. Swimming trunks, towel, goggles, all squished at the bottom of his bag. It was time to think about getting a larger bag. At his other school, they'd had lockers, but he didn't mind carrying his stuff. If it meant that he was away from those snobs then that was fine with him.

Naruto had been unhappy at that school. He hadn't fitted in at all, and although that kind of thing didn't unusually matter to him, the differences between him and the other students were just too big to go unnoticed. And things here had been going well. No one had really taken any notice of him, which was fine. All he wanted was to get through this next two years quietly and relatively unscathed.

So far, things had been going as planned. With the exception of this Iruka business. He'd have to do something about that. There was nothing wrong with him, he knew. It was just a matter of convincing everyone else.

By the time he was changed and ready to swim, the pool was noisy with the sounds of training; the yelling of a particularly loud female voice, and the tell tale splash of people diving in, and muttered conversations and laughter.

Naruto approached the tall, busty woman who stood glaring at the group of students waiting for their turn to start.

"So you showed up. Eh?" the woman, Tsunade said before he could even open his mouth.

She was now eyeing him with her arms folded, and Naruto began to wish she'd return her attention to the rest of the squad again.

"You didn't strike me as the type who'd show up." She continued.

Naruto had a hard time suppressing his scowl when this registered.

"I'm not a coward if that's what you're suggesting," he replied carefully.

No point in angering her straight away. That'd only decrease his chances of getting on the squad, and he didn't want to think about that. He was nervous enough as it was. H'd heard about her legendary temper and sharp tongue and he only hoped that he hadn't just stepped into a minefield.

"If I was going to call you a coward I wouldn't hide behind pretty words and polite innuendoes." She told him as she turned her eyes back to the group. "OI!"

Naruto jumped at her sudden yell and rubbed his abused ear. Her voice was indeed as loud as he'd been told.

"Kiba! Shikamaru! Stop yakking and get on with it, unless you want me to add another twenty laps!"

So she a hard taskmaster too. Nothing he wasn't used to. But she certainly was unlike any other teacher he'd met before, and he wasn't sure if it was a good thing or not. Suddenly, he was grateful that she wasn't one of his teachers- he was unsure how much he could take.

"So. You still want to join the team then. Although we've got no official maximum number of swimmers, we can't really take many more."

"Oh. Well…"

"But I might consider it, depending on how you swim today and this weekend."

By now, he was slightly confused –damn, the woman moved fast- and he felt his head was spinning slightly.

"Wait…what? This weekend…?"

"We're having the first official swim meet of the season this weekend. I want you to swim. Is that going to be a problem?" she asked, eyeing him with a calculating glint in her eye.

Naruto shifted his weight uneasily as he thought. This weekend…Genma and the beach…damn it. The one thing he'd been looking forward to, and now he couldn't go. He only hoped that Genma would understand. He sighed mentally.

"No. It's not a problem."

"Good. Now get in that pool. Twenty laps, five of each stroke. Get moving."

Sighing almost inaudibly, Naruto threw his towel on a nearby bench and slipped into the cold water.

"GET MOVING UZAMAKI!"

He sighed again.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

"Hey kiddo. How was your day?" Genma asked as Naruto collapsed on the couch beside him.

"It was okay." He shrugged.

Genma was lounging on the couch in a pair of sweats and nothing else. Swim training lasted for two hours, so it was almost six in the evening by the time he'd reached home. Unless he was working on a particularly hard case, Genma normally finished work at five. Normally when he got home, he'd laze around with a beer for awhile. When his partner Raidou came over with his girlfriend, they lazed around together.

But it was the rare moments he and Genma spent together that meant the most to Naruto. Genma was his anchor, the one person who kept him stable and sane. And although they had their disagreements, Naruto saw him as more of a father than his real one had ever been. Not only that, but he was a friend too, which made it easier to talk to him about some things.

"Just okay?" Genma raised a sleek eyebrow at him as he drank deeply from his can.

"Yeah."

"How was your thing with Iruka?"

Naruto frowned slightly, still not happy with his guardian for forcing it onto him.

"Hey, hey, don't look like that!" Genma laughed. "It wasn't so bad, was it?"

"…No. But that's not the point is it?"

"Sure it is. The whole reason you're going is so that you can sort through any problems that are stuck in that head of yours. It's not a punishment you know."

"I don't have problems." Naruto maintained. "And besides, if I do then that's what you're here for, right?"

"Sometimes it's best to have an impartial ear. Anyway, Iruka gives great advice and he's the best at helping to sort out problems."

Naruto gave him a disbelieving look as he got up to fetch a diet coke from the fridge.

"Hey, I go to the shrink at the station all the time." Genma told him.

"They have a shrink at the station?"

"Of course! It's compulsory, ya know." Genma replied as he pushed his long hair off his face. "Cause of all the traumatic things we deal with."

Naruto remained silent as he began to make himself a sandwich. His muscles ached pleasantly as he moved around the kitchen. He was still on a buzz from the exercise, so he was in a better mood than he usually was when he got home from school. After finishing this mandatory argument/discussion with Genma, he needed a long hot shower to sooth his sore body. Then maybe he'd tell him about this weekend.

"Besides, she's a really good shrink too." Genma continued, looking thoughtfully up at the ceiling of their apartment.

Naruto rolled his eyes as he bit into his sandwich.

"Oh so that's it." He said after swallowing.

Genma was an unashamed flirt and a known womanizer, who made no attachments or promises to any of the woman he dated. Except, perhaps, that they'd have a good time in bed. No that was one thing to be expected from Genma. But he was always nice, and friendly. So Naruto didn't have a problem with it. In fact, he had remained particularly uninterested in the woman he'd often seen Genma with.

"What?" Genma asked, feigning innocence.

"Should've known the shrink was female. That's probably the only reason you go. So you can hit on her."

"Not true."

"Plus the fact that it's compulsory."

"I'd go even if she wasn't of the female persuasion, and even if it wasn't compulsory."

"Uh huh."

"You doubt me? Seriously though, it's healthy to get your problems off your chest occasionally. Makes you feel better, ya know?"

"To a complete stranger?"

"You're too mistrusting, Naruto. That's one of the reasons I want you to go." Genma said, all trace of humor and teasing gone now.

Yeah well, he had good reason to be mistrusting, Naruto thought. He'd put his trust in lots of people and they'd all let him down. Until it turned out that he'd had no one left. He'd been all alone and he hadn't known why. After being hurt too many times, it got hard to trust anyone, let alone yourself.

Some way or another, he'd only manage to get himself into a situation where he would get hurt again, and he couldn't take that risk again. He wouldn't.

It had been hard enough trusting Genma, and rebuilding his life had been a nightmare. Naruto didn't want to return to that chaos, nor did he want to think about this now. He stood up.

"I'm going to have a shower." He said as he headed towards the bathroom.

"Naruto…" Genma began, but he shut the bathroom door, effectively cutting him off.

He didn't need this now.

/\/\/\/\

The apartment was silent. There were no lights turned only, and the only sounds were the quiet hum of the fridge and the gently swishing noise of the white gauze curtains as they billowed in the gentle wind. Naruto stood on the balcony, looking out over the scenery. He often came out here during the nights when he couldn't sleep. Just to think for awhile. Sometimes he even feel asleep out here, and Genma would wake him early the next morning, sore and stiff.

He didn't mind it here. Not really. It was very peaceful; he could hear no noise from the cars below because they were on the twelfth floor- the very top. They didn't live in the city. Just a small suburban area; in fact, they lived in the area with the only apartments in the whole town.

Naruto had been taken away from his family home five years ago. Five long years, and the memories were still as fresh as if they'd been made yesterday. His family….well, it wasn't much of a family anymore. His father dead in an accident- Naruto hadn't really known him anyway, for he was never around much to begin with. The sad thing was, he didn't miss him. Not at all.

And his mother, she had died a year after him. She'd never been quite right in the head to begin with. They'd given him and his brother several reasons, after she'd killed herself, but he hadn't really been listening.

He had been the one to find her. And he'd called the police, a scared eleven year old who hadn't had a clue what was going on. That was when he'd first met Genma.

A gust of wind blew his bangs off his forehead. Definitely atime for another hair cut, he thought as he turned to go back inside.

Tomorrow it would rain.

/\/\/\/\

By the time Naruto got to school the next day, he was soaked. He'd left earlier than usual that morning, partly to avoid speaking to Genma and partly to get to the pools before it rained.

Now, he pulled off his damp jumper and used it to dry his hair the best he could before entering the class room. He was late…again.

Genma would murder him.

The whole class looked up as he opened the door.

"You're late again, Mr Uzamaki," the teacher, Anko glared at him as he closed the door behind him.

"Sorry," he muttered, as he shifted his bag higher on his shoulder.

"And you're dripping all over the floor. Go to the nurse's office and get dry off. See if you can find a spare uniform or something." She muttered with a wave of her hand.

"Uh…sensei? I don't know where the nurses office is." He muttered, shifting as a quiet titter when through the class. He fought down an embarrassed blush as Anko glared at him once more.

"Kiba! Show him where it is. And make sure you come back. I'll be damned if you truant my class again!" she snapped.

A guy Naruto recognized from training last night stood up with a grin.

"Sure thing, miss. I'll be back before you know it."

"Make sure that you are, or your father will here from me. Again." She scowled, before returning to her class.

Kiba made his way over and opened the door.

"You coming or what?" he asked and Naruto followed him out.

"And quietly , Inuzuka! If I hear you've been disturbing other classes again…" Anko's voice drifted out after them.

"Blah blah. Man that woman can yak." Kiba grinned at him. "You're that guy who was at training last night."

"Yeah."

"You're quite a swimmer, to keep up with us. I mean, she practically tortured us to get us as fit as we are, and you kept up perfectly."

"Thanks." Naruto hesitated. "I'm Uzamaki Naruto."

"Inuzuka Kiba."

They shook hands as Kiba led him down the hall.

"You just moved here, did you.?"

"Nah. Just changed schools." Naruto replied, shifting his bag once more. He was getting uncomfortably cold now, and his wet uniform was beginning to rub against his softened skin.

He'd always loved the rain. The way it changed a normally colorful world into something more muted and quiet, and the way it seemed make the world a completely different place. Naruto had always loved to walk in the rain; it helped him think. Maybe he just had a thing with water. Who knew?

"Why? Didn't like the other one?" Kiba asked curiously, as they turned a corner.

Naruto was hopelessly lost. The school was huge, and he still hadn't learned his way around. Half the time he was late because he couldn't find the damn class room.

"Yeah. Complete opposite of this place."

"Where'd you go?"

Now Naruto had grown slightly cautious. He'd noticed that there was an unusual amount of animosity and rivalry between his old school and this one, and anything to do with either coped a large amount of criticism. It wasn't the thing he wanted spread around, in case it caused him unnecessary trouble for himself. So he was rather hesitant about admitting it to Kiba.

Kiba, however seemed to notice his hesitation.

"You went to Taro High didn't you?" he asked slowly.

Biting his lip Naruto nodded and they walked in silence for a few moments.

"Oh well." Kiba said cheerfully, clapping Naruto on the shoulder. "At least you had the taste to change here! Besides, I'm not the type to hold that sort of thing against a guy."

Naruto smiled in relief. Maybe this guy wasn't so bad after all.

"Anyway, Kusa High is way better than that lot of stuck up prats, wouldn't you say?"

"Definitely." Naruto agreed. "Why do you guys hate each other so much?"

"Well, besides from the fact that they're a bunch of pussies, we're the only schools around that have really top class sports teams. And in every competition, its only really us and a few other lucky teams that make it to the finals. We used to beat them all the time, but over the past few years, it's been the other way around."

"What sport teams?"

"Usually just the foot ball and the swimming, but it's gotten so that the rivalry has spread to the whole schools. There's bad blood between us."

"Why?"

Kiba seemed to hesitate now. "There was trouble, awhile back. Lots of fights outside of school. It got so bad at one point that the police were called to settle the matter once and for all. Some people got expelled and all… but anyway, maybe this is the year the swim team will beat them. I hope we can at least give them a good ass kicking. It's about time someone did."

Naruto couldn't help the gnawing pit of anxiety which formed in his gut. The trouble he'd been involved in…couldn't possible spread to here could it? He didn't need another scandal. Not now. Genma would be furious if he found out anything like that happened.

Naruto forced himself to focus when Kiba elbowed him in the side.

"There's the nurses office. Mind if I come in with you?" he grinned.

"Won't Anko…"

"Nah, don't worry about her. I wouldn't want you to get lost on the way back anyway."

Naruto smiled shyly at him.

"Sure. Why not?"

"Thanks. Hey, come sit with us at lunch. I'll introduce you to the guys. Whaddya say?"

It was hard to resist such a tempting offer- never had he wanted to actually meet other people before, but Kiba's charisma proved to be too much to resist,

"Yeah. That'd be great."

Another chapter! Wow. That was hard to start really. I'm afraid it's a load of crap, but I hope you enjoyed it anyways.

Thanks to: SpiritsFlame, Daitai Otonashii Ookami, Hikari no Kurai, lordessofchaos, Momochi Zabuza, DarkvsLight, Charlie9ll for reviewing.

Special thanks to Momochi Zabuza for the suggestions, and to all of you who voted for pairings! They've been decided by the way. I hope you'll enjoy them when they start!

By the way, Taro is actually an island in the Naruto world, and Kusa is village/town next to fire country. If you want to check it out, go to for reading, guys! A remember to review! I greatly appreciate any comments you make!

Ja Ne!