Wishful Thinking

by: Sakuranime

Disclaimer: The phantasmagorical world of Naruto belongs solely to ME! ...hah! Fooled ya didn't I? No? Well, fine. It belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and will forever.

I'm SO. SO. SORRY! You guys must be extremely tired of hearing me say this, no? (sigh) But truly, I'm sorry. I've been busy with a research paper and piles of homework. GAH. And, I've recently joined spring track but…I really haven't been keeping up with my duties…gah. I'm so bad. AND I've been obsessing with a scan I've just finished called Devil & Devil. It's EXTREMELEY entertaining and I highly recommend it to anyone who would like to read it. Albeit it DOES have some…scenes…but you can just skip those! (laugh) AND-! I really haven't gone on the computer for AWHILE. It's a miracle I haven't shot myself with a harpoon gun yet…

ANYWHOS-! I think I've delayed you guys long enough! I'm sorry for the HUGE wait – aproximately 3 MONTHS! So sorry! - and for producing such a small and bad piece of a chapter out of my ass…I'm sorry! (sob) But I hope you guys like this chapter and without further ado- READ ON!

"Quotations"

Thoughts

(( Flashbacks ))

Chapter 8: I want to enter too!

-

In his usual position when waiting for his sensei to arrive, Sasuke had his eyes closed and back pressed against the rail of the bridge.

Usually, he would cherish this peaceful moment where there was NO Naruto, NO Kakashi, and NO noises. Just him, his conscience, and nature. The spring breeze blowing gently, the trees dancing, the flowers in full bloom, the blue sky, the warmth of the sun…

"SASUKE! YOU MORON HOW DARE YOU LEAVE ME BEHIND LIKE THAT-"

Of course, fate was not kind to dearest Sasuke.

"-AT THE HOUSE! I OUGHT TO STRANGLE YOU-"

There was always something that would ruin his perfect day.

"-RIP YOUR GUTS OUT-"

Some force that detested him for some odd reason, Sasuke himself didn't know.

"-PUT THEM IN A BAG AND PUT THAT BAG IN A BOX-"

Sasuke didn't see himself as a saint, but certainly not a villain! What did he do to deserve this punishment?

"-AND SHIP IT TO YOU!"

Inwardly groaning, Sasuke pushed himself off of the railing and massaged his temples. Truly, TRULY, TRULY, he would just love to get rid of that girl!

"Are you always this violent?" The dark-haired boy asked in a boring tone.

Taking long strides, Sakura walked to the bridge in a hurry. Huffing, she came up to his side and replied, "NO, but you have a tendency to push me!"

"Yay. I feel so special."

His tone dripping with sarcasm caused Sakura's eyebrow to twitch. "Grr...why I oughta-"

"SAKURA-CHAN!"

As if she was a totally different person, Sakura's GAH-I'M-GOING-TO-MURDER-YOU demeanor changed completely. Sasuke rose an eyebrow. This girl changes waaay too fast. Turning around to be engulfed in Naruto's infamous bear-hug, a huge smile traced her lips.

"Naruto! Nice to see ya too!" Sakura greeted, returning the bear-hug.

Grinning like a clown, Naruto let the girl go. "Hi Sakura-chan!" Looking sideways, he glared at the dark-haired boy next to her and muttered, "...and Sasuke-teme..."

"…dobe…" Came Sasuke's curt reply.

DING DING!

IN THIS CORNER, UCHIHA SASUKE! AND IN THAT CORNER, UZUMAKI NARUTO! GLARING CONTEST – BEGIN!

Sakura swore she saw electric sparks fly between the two boy's eyes.

I wonder when that scarecrow-man will show up…

Looking at the sky, Sakura estimated it was around 9-ish in the morning.

…probably not anytime soon…

-

"So…let me get this straight- Sasuke-teme over there's going to lure Kakashi-sensei into a trap," Naruto said slowly, processing every bit of information into his ramen-filled mind.

Said bastard and Sakura nodded, feeling the need to bash the boy's skull with a textbook. The trio of genins was seated on the grass near the bridge, for it was too hot to sit on the ground.

"Then, while I execute my awesome Kage-bunshin-no-jutsu on the startled Kakashi-sensei, Sakura will come out of hiding and give him a taste of her giant-forehead! And finally we'll all bound Kakashi-sensei with rope, toss his over a waterfall, and blame it all on a random hobo!" The fox-boy was grinning from ear to ear, having been finally grasped the not-so-complicated plan.

"…who came up with the plan again?" Sakura asked, disappointed.

"We did, but anything that comes out of the dobe's mouth sounds stupid anyways." Sasuke leaned back on the trunk of a spring tree, it's leafs creating a natural shade.

"What was that, teme?" Naruto growled, jumping to his feet.

"GUYS!" Sakura's voice penetrated and caught their attention. "Back to the plan, please?" When she was sure they were listening, she continued, "Anywhos, after we manage to bound Kakashi-sensei with rope and yada, yada, yada, we'll put him in a coffin, sell his 'corpse' on EBay, and cast a spell that would force him to sing everything he says, opera-style!" She was panting a bit from her rant, her excitement rolling off of her in waves.

"Eh…Sakura-chan?" Naruto said cautiously, discreetly inching away from the crazy-eyed girl, "We're NINJAS. Not witches or warlocks!"

A frown marred the pink-haired girl's features. Crossing her arms over her chest and a pout on her lips, Sakura muttered, "Thanks Naruto…you basically ruined my Kill-the-Scarecrow-Man-plan to bits!"

"Who's killing whom?"

The trio froze, like deers caught in front of a truck. Inching slowly around, they faced their superior in strength, ability, and perverseness.

This would be Sakura's second time upon meeting the man and even she, with her magically-enhanced mind would need a refresher on how he appeared.

The man called Hatake Kakashi was a tall man, with silver gravity-defying hair. He wore an ensemble consisting of a dark blue garment under his forest green jounin vest and the same dark blue shirt covered his legs as well. Gloves covered his hands. His Konoha hitai-ate was positioned in such a way that it covered his left eye and a mask covered his mouth.

"Well? Who's planning to kill whom?" Kakashi questioned again, hands behind his back, looming above them and the expression of the laidback person he was.

"Err…well…eh- hahaha…ah…huh?" Naruto stammered, sweating ever so slightly. Sakura's expression mirrored his and Sasuke was…well, Sasuke.

"Were you planning to assassinate me?" Kakashi asked innocently. The trio muttered indecipherably under their breaths.

"Well, I do declare, Mr. Bouregard!" Kakashi chuckled with a fake British accent, placing a hand over his heart dramatically. "I'm deeply hurt that you three children, two of them my most FAVORITE genins, and one of them I've just recently befriended but feel like I've known you forever, want to kill me?" With a blur of his hand, he whipped out three kunais and in mere seconds, pinned the three startled genins to the grassy ground.

Kakashi stepped toward them, a frightening expression on his normally joking face. "How DARE YOU do this to me, your beloved teacher? For this act of violation, I will strip of you your titles and you will NEVER be able to become Konoha NINJAS!"

Lightening struck, and the clouds thundered like horse hoofs.

Naruto's eyes became as wide as saucers and he sputtered to form words. His mouth opened and closed like a fish gasping for air. "Wha…who…I…NO…my…ninja…hokage…never…I…wait…why…can't…be…WHAT!"

"Pfft. You're lying." Sasuke crossed his arms and said flatly. Kakashi pulled this one over them before when they first got out of the ninja academy. He would be a fool to fall for it again.

…but then again, Kakashi looks…pretty…serious…

Narrowing his eyes, the jounin glared at his genins and one girl. Sakura looked around at her companions nervously, wondering if Kakashi was joking or not.

"You guys…" He said darkly, anger seeping from his voice, "…are so MEAN!" The blatant ending shocked Naruto and Sakura, while Sasuke just let out a 'hmph'.

Kakashi's covered mouth turned upside down and he lowered his head dejectedly like a lost puppy. "I can't believe you guys would try to kill me like that…at least a proper burial afterwards…" He whipped a fake tear from his visible eye and continued to mope dramatically.

"Wha-? Ah-…huh…wh…what…?" The hyperactive fox said, fumbling his words into a non-sensible way.

Sakura stared. Then she broke in fake laughter. "Hahaha! Kakashi-san, you had me going there for a moment! Hahaha!" She held her stomach to emphasize her point, and continued to envelop in nervousness. "Hahaa! HAHAHAHAAAAhahaha…ahaha…aha…ahahaha…aha…ha…uh…ahem." Noticing she was the only one laughing, Sakura coughed. "Uhm…yeah. Good joke."

"Whatever," Sasuke muttered, getting up from the grass. "Can we just get on with the training?"

At the special word, Naruto jumped back into his hyper self. Quite literally. "Yeah yeah! Ano sa ano sa, Kakashi-sensei! For once I agree with the bastard! When are we going to train?" He whined, getting up as well.

Sakura placed her hands on the grass and lifted herself up. Removing any traces of dirt from her clothes, she looked up questioningly at the smiling jounin. "Kakashi-san, what training?"

"The training we basically repeat everyday." Sasuke supplied for her, his tone lethargic.

"My training sessions do well, you know." Kakashi said all-knowingly. "But as for the training…"

"WHAT! WE'RE NOT HAVING ANY? WHY! WHY! KAKASHI-SENSEI DON'T DO THIS TO ME PLEASE! I'M GOING TO DIE IF WE DON'T-" Naruto shouted, making various hand motions and movements spasmodically.

"Relax, Naruto," Kakashi interjected lazily, back to his usual mode. "Can you wait until I finish?" Clearing his throat, he placed a finger on the placed where his lips would be if it wasn't for his mask. "This may surprise you, but I've recommended you two for the Chuunin Selection Exam."

Naruto was speechless. For the second time today, his sensei caught him off guard. If Sasuke was shocked, he sure didn't show it.

Sakura, left in the dark, asked, "Uhh…what's the Chuunin Selection Exam?" As soon as she uttered those words, Kakashi immediately launched into a detailed 'summary' of her question.

"The Chuunin Exam is a test which is held twice every year to determine which genins, from all around the world, are at the required skill level to become a chuunin; as long as they have completed a minimum of eight missions, they may enter the exam."

"However, it is also held as a replacement for war amongst the Hidden Villages. Once, many great shinobi countries were at war with each other, and many ninja were killed as a consequence. So, the chuunin exam was devised as way for civilians, country lords, and peoples from places without ninja villages to see the mightiest of the villages, and therefore, the country whose ninja perform the best would, in theory, gain the most new and continued custom."

"Therefore, it is in a village's best interest for their shinobi to do well, as it will mean an increase in customers; and, it is of course, in the shinobi's best interest to do well, as it will mean a promotion to a higher rank. The country where the exam is held varies every event, however, this year we, Konohagakure, will be holding it. It'll be no surprise if you see foreign ninja in our village pretty soon. Oh, and the exam held in our village is normally split into three parts."

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto asked, his face alit with excitement. "Can you tell us what the three parts are?"

"Hah! Of course…" Naruto's face brightened. "…not! I can't tell you that, sorry!" The fox-boy's face fell.

"But-! I could tell you that it's…" Kakashi lowered his voice. Motioning for the trio to come closer (which they did, with the exception of a reluctant Sasuke), Kakashi whispered, "…a…" They leaned closer.

"…SECRET!" The masked-jounin said, laughing.

The two genins and girl sweat dropped.

Kakashi put his hands into his pockets while chuckling. Fishing out two papers, he held them out to them. "You have to fill out applications."

Jumping on the startled jounin, Naruto hugged him, barely strangling him in the process and shouting, "Kakashi-sensei, I love you!"

"Get off, Naruto…you're embarrassing me!" A muffled Kakashi's voice said from under Naruto's bear-hug.

Leaping off of the embarrassed sensei, Naruto whooped joyfully. "YEAH! I'M GOING TO THE CHUUNIN EXAMS!" He looked at his application in happiness, not really reading the words but happy nonetheless.

Sasuke scanned his paper quietly, darting from detail to detail. He had to make sure nothing was missing to ensure his success.

The pink-haired girl, suddenly feeling left-out, looked over Sasuke's shoulder. Chuunin exam? Hmm…I never heard of this in any of the spirit textbooks… She frowned thoughtfully.

Kakashi continued, again fishing through his seemingly endless pocket. "If any of you don't wish to compete, the exam is entirely voluntary. The choice is yours. You needn't turn in those application forms unless you want to. If you do, report to Room 301 at the Konoha Academy by four tomorrow afternoon." He pulled out an all-too familiar book. "Well, that's all! I hope you guys make your decisions."

Preparing to leave, Kakashi was about to disappear into a plume of clouds when he was interrupted by a female voice.

"Wait, Kakashi-san!" Sakura called out, surprising the scarecrow-like man.

Closing his book, Kakashi asked, "What is it, Sakura-chan?"

Without missing a beat, Sakura blurted, "I want to enter into this Chuunin Exam too!"

- owari -

Alright, I apologize for the shortness but I wanted to have ideas for the next chappy and I wanted to post this ASAP for you guys! Again, I'm sorry for the THREE MONTHS wait- I would seriously be bashing an author if she did the same! So…I'm sorry! (bows)

I didn't have time to get review replies up if I wanted to upload this so…yeah! But don't worry! I will the next one…hopefully! And I ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS read each and every single review! They all fill me up with joy and I hope this chapter wasn't as horrible as I thought it was!

Thank you! You guys are AWESOME! (heart-eyes)

Questions? Comments? Please write them in your reviews, by all means! I love to hear from you guys!