uhh i dont own naruto...masashi kishimoto does...adn i dont own any naruto characters either...or the swing or a giant frog or orochimaru's eyeshadow...(ugly shade anyways) but someday i'll try to make a manga...thatd be awesome to own an anime haha uhh yea plz R&R hope it helps kill some time XD
"Can you push me higher?" (more than just a swing story)
A little boy, with a tuft of messy blonde hair, sat alone on the swing. He watched as kids rushed by, laughing and playing. No one glanced his way.
A girl got on a swing a few feet away from him. "Can someone push me?" she called to her parents.
Her mom pushed, and the girl laughed. "Higher! Higher!"
He kicked his feet off the ground. His feet barely even touched the sand, but he managed to move the swing a little. He kept trying to push off, but his legs were too short. So finally he just sat there, watching the girl and her mom walk off.
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People walked by staring and whispering. People walked by glancing at him every two seconds. People walked by without a glance. No one ever said anything. He was always in the middle of a circle, wherever he was. Always in the middle, and everyone had their backs to him. No one looked him in the eyes.
If they weren't going to give him attention, he would have to earn it himself.
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Class was out. Classmates ran home. He ran out of class with them, but somehow, before he knew it, they were gone. They'd left, in groups of twos and threes and fours. He was alone on the playground. He heard the last two kids calling to each other.
"Hey," one boy called to his friend. "Race ya home!"
"You're on!" the other one called back. Then they were off.
He sat on his swing, pushing off. His legs were long enough now. He swung himself back and forth, back and forth.
Higher, higher.
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A blonde boy, older this time, sat alone on the swing. He watched as his classmates rushed by, laughing and talking. No one glanced his way.
"I'm so proud of you," he heard a mom tell her son. "Special dinner tonight, in celebration of our graduate."
The boy laughed, embarrassed, but he was pleased.
He held tighter to the ropes. He tried to swing, but his legs wouldn't move, like they were numb. He managed to move the swing a little. He kept trying to push off, but he felt numb all over – numb, tired...for no reason. So finally he just sat there, watching the graduates and their families walk off.
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He'd graduated. Missions were assigned, new friends made. He'd come to know a demon. He watched someone die in the snow, but not before he learned something. He met someone with caterpillar eyebrows. He was almost digested by a snake. He fought a guy with a mile-long tongue wearing eye shadow. He rode a giant frog. He turned into a girl now and then. He made a promise on a quiet friend's blood, and became much better friends with her. He and his friends tried to unmask their teacher with ramen.
And they said school taught you almost everything about life.
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He'd thought they were rivals. Then he thought they were friends – best friends. But there had been a fight. Before he knew it, the friend was gone. He'd left with few words.
He sat on his swing, and pushed off. His legs weren't numb anymore. But he still felt tired...so tired, but he couldn't sleep. Not until he could say it. He didn't know what, but he needed to say it. He swung himself back and forth, back and forth.
Higher, higher.
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A blonde teen sat alone on the swing. He watched as people rushed home, laughing and talking. Many looked his way, and waved or called a greeting. He answered in his usual lively manner, but his eyes were searching for someone else.
"Naruto!" he heard someone call behind him.
'Iruka sensei!" he called, grinning.
Smiling, Iruka sensei walked over to his former academy student, (1) now a teen entering his Chunin exams. "You're entering Chunin exams tomorrow. Nervous?"
The teen laughed. "Nah, I know it's a little late. But I know I can kick butt like I did few years back!"
Iruka sensei laughed. Absent-mindedly, he reached out, grabbing one rope of the swing. He pulled back the swing with Naruto in it, and let it go, watching Naruto swing through the air. Since Naruto was older and heavier, and his legs were too long, the swing only moved a few feet, but Naruto's eyes were bright as they turned toward Iruka sensei. He kept trying to say something, but for once, he seemed tongue-tied.
Finally, he was able to find something to say. "Iruka sensei...can you push me?"
Iruka sensei was quite taken aback by a teen asking to be pushed on a swing, but after all, this was Naruto, and surprises were to be expected. He smiled, and grabbed both ropes, letting them go, watching his favorite kid swing through the air. He'd never had this sort of feeling before. It was like the sort of feeling a father could get.
Naruto laughed. "Aw, come on! You can do better than that, sensei! Higher, higher!"
If you happened to look out the window that evening, you would have been able to see a teen being pushed by his former academy teacher on an old worn down swing. But if you hadn't known them well, you'd have thought that it was some drunken happy kid and his dad.3
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He'd passed the Chunin exams. He'd met his old crush, who was now just a friend. He had another girl in mind – quieter, with shy pale eyes and dark hair. She was stronger now, and braver than she'd been before, though still shy. He'd met all his old academy friends and teachers. He'd made a visit to the Hokage's office, and gotten more than three lectures before he was able to escape, but the lectures didn't bother him at all. Nothing much had changed since he'd left. Everyone was still here, except one.
And that person was the reason why he'd returned. He needed to see a friend.
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Nothing needed to be said. The two friends stood quietly in the playground. No one else was there, just him and his friend. His friend was back. That's all that mattered, nothing else. But something needed to fill up the silence before it started digging into them.
He glanced at his friend, and sat down on his swing. His friend looked at him, questioning. Naruto grinned. His friend sat down on a swing next to him. They looked at each other. Without another word, they pushed off. When Naruto's swing went back, his friend's swing pushed forward. When his friend's swing went back, Naruto's swing pushed forward. The swings were in perfect beat with each other. They swung back and forth, back and forth.
Higher, higher.
He smiled at his friend, and the friend smiled back, slowly, as if he was getting used to it. That was all right. His friend would remember how to smile after a while. Konoha, Naruto, and maybe even the swings, was all that he needed to heal.
Naruto jumped off his swing. His friend jumped off at the same time. No words had been said. It'd just happened like that. They looked at each other, smiling. The friend's smile growing slowly and Naruto's smile whole.
"Hey," Naruto spoke. "Race ya home."
"You're on," his friend replied. And they were off.
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(1) if u dont kno why naruto became a chunin so late, then its as-p-o-i-l-e-r warning
naruto left with jiraiya to train adn came back to konoha 2 1/2 years later. everyone already passed chunin exams, but naruto was training, so obviously he never had time to pass it. so when he came back, he took it, adn passed.
haha my first fanfic...adn it came out so random at 4 o' clock in the morning geesh i was reading naruto adn the infamous swing just carved a pic in my mind haha...adn i have a lot of memories with swings at elementary school...at one school b4 i moved they took it down i was so sad haha. yea...it sux i kno haha but a writer has to start with some krap as a newbie, no? haha yea...uhh well please please please review adn tell me suggestions adn other stuff on how to write good fanfics cuz i really need them bad. o adn if it sux, which i kno it does, dont leave review saying "this sux" leave review saying "this sux because..." yea u get the point ahh well i hope the story helped kill some time XD