Chapter 1
A young boy ran quickly across the rooftops of Konoha, a wide smile stretched across his face. A spiky mop of blonde hair rustled in the breeze as he leapt from building to building, using chakra to stick to the occasional wall if he missed his target. Bright blue eyes scanned his surroundings, looking for his pursuers. Slowly, a heavy hand landed on the collar of his jumpsuit and lift him into the air by the eye earing, orange garment.
"Naruto, we have been over this repeatedly," said the scarred, older ninja who had captured the boy, "Just because your grandfather is out of the village on a mission for the Hokage, it doesn't mean you can skip coming to the academy. If you ever want to graduate, you need to learn the things I'm teaching."
Slowly, Naruto turned his gaze on his teacher and older brother figure. He wore the standard Konoha chunin uniform, complete with the red Uzumaki spiral on the back of the flack vest. His polished steel headband was tied tightly across his forehead, glinting brightly in the morning sun.
"But Iruka-sensei, Ero-jiji already taught me the stuff you teach during your lectures." The young boy whined, crossing his arms over his chest and pouting, "I always come when it's a practical test or for the Taijutsu spars."
"That's true, Naruto," Iruka said, placing the boy on the rooftop, "But, if you don't attend class, you miss taking the quizzes and tests. You're doing only slightly better than Kiba at this point and that's mainly because he's a freaking moron."
"Should a teacher really be calling his student names?" Naruto asked, turning his head slightly to the side.
"That's beside the point." Iruka said, before moving Naruto along, "Head to class, I'll be following right behind you."
Slowly the student and the teacher leapt from the roof and landed on the street below. Sticking his hands into the pockets of his jumpsuit, Naruto looked down at the ground, despising the fact that he was being forced into class. Out of the corner of his eye, a slight sparkle caught his attention. Rushing over, Naruto picked up the clear, sparkly stone. Roughly the size of his thumb, the rough stone was crystal clear and felt right in his hands. Almost as if he were meant to hold it.
"What did you find there?" Iruka asked, looking over Naruto's shoulder.
"It's this weird shiny rock." The boy replied, turning it over in his hands, "Think I can keep it?"
"Don't see why not," The teacher said, guiding him back down the street, "No more distractions now, we both need to get back to class."
"Yes sensei." Naruto replied, placing the rock in his pocket.
Little did he know the significance a single stone would have in his life.
Bedlam reigned as Iruka and Naruto walked into the classroom. Several girls from civilian families, as well as a few from shinobi clans crowded around a dark and brooding young student. He wore a pair of black pants and a dark blue shirt with the fan like symbol of his clan, the Uchiha, on the back. His black spiky hair was done up in an odd style resembling the back end of a duck.
Another dark haired young man, this one wearing a white jacket with a fur lined hood sat towards the middle of the room, making his small white canine companion do tricks and flips as he tossed him fistfuls of dog treats. A third young man wearing a tan overcoat and thick framed dark glasses was waving his hand through the air, causing several butterflies to spiral through the air.
A rather chubby young man sat near the back of the class, several empty bags of chips surrounding him, a full bag currently clenched tightly in his left hand. A second boy sat next to him, his pineapple shaped hair barely visible as he lay at his desk sleeping. A loudmouthed blonde girl in a purple battle kimono stood arguing with an even louder pink haired girl in a red dress and blue shorts.
The only one not causing trouble was a shy, dark haired girl sitting quietly in the back of the room. An oversized, cream colored jacket was wrapped tightly around her as she silently read a scroll on medical jutsus. Looking up, a small blush graced her cheeks as she saw the blond haired object of her obsession – she meant affection, affection.
Walking up the steps, Naruto wasn't oblivious to the obvious desire aimed at him from the young Hyuga heiress. He knew she had been following him for several years now, even though she was rather good at being stealthy. Ever since his grandfather had told him of his burden as the prison of the Kyuubi, he didn't know who he could trust and who would turn their back on him once they found out. So to protect not just himself, but others around him, he pretended to be oblivious and avoided attachment.
"Everyone shut the hell up and sit down!" Iruka shouted, using his Big-head jutsu to frighten the children, "Now, since everyone decided that if I wasn't here it was time to screw around, we're going to have a class tournament. Everyone out to the practice field."
As the class filed out of the building, a shy and nervous Hinata walked side by side with a now silent and focused Naruto. Little did the two ninja-in-training realize that their thoughts were taking a similar path. Hinata was worrying about looking like a failure in front of the class. Naruto was secretly hoping he would be able to beat Sasuke, the most popular kid in his class and the strongest of their year.
Slowly, in pairs, the class began fighting in their miniature tournament. Most of the civilian students were knocked out early on with the exception of Sakura. When al was said and done, Hinata and Sakura were in the final match for the girls and Sauske and Naruto were representing the boys.
"Now for our final match," Iruka said as he motioned for the two girls, "I want to see a clean fight, feel free to use any jutsu or skills you have."
"Great, once I beat this little weakling, I can prove to Sasuke-kun that I'm the strongest and best in our class then he'll have to marry me." Sakura shouted, causing both Kiba and Naruto to wince.
"Shut up Sakura," Naruto said, "Your no match for Hinata-chan, believe it."
"Oh and what would you know, baka?" Sakura shouted back, "Your both just two losers who can't accept that your too weak to be ninjas."
Hinata suddenly saw red as the pink banshee began insulting the man she loved. Unlike most of the village, Hinata had known the truth about the blond knucklehead for a long time. Her own father had been trained by Naruto's grandfather the toad sage Jiraiya and the older man would come over occasionaly to share a drink. She had overheard the two of them discussing the Kyuubi and had developed a bit of hero worship for the young boy that served as its prison.
Activating her family's bloodline limit, the Byakugan, Hinata settled into the Gentle Fist stance and readied for her match.
"Your match is with me, Sakura." She growled, focusing chakra into the tips of her fingers.
Slowly, Sakura settled into the Academy style taijutsu stance and waited for Iruka's signal. With a wave of his hand, the two young kunoichi rushed at each other.
To call it a match would be an exaggeration. No sooner had the two girls met in the middle of the arena, Hinata launched a vicious barrage of strikes, shutting off Sakura's chakra points with each hit. Before long, the pinkette lay on the ground, completely unable to move and Hinata stood over her, breathing hard from exerting herself. As she turned to walk out of the arena, she saw the young blonde she loved. Walking up to him, she wrapped her arms around his neck and decided to take a chance.
"I already know Naruto-kun," She whispered, leaning in close to him, "And you don't need to worry, I see you for you not your burden."
As she let him go, she pressed her lips gently against his cheek, her own face suddenly on fire from embarrassment. Winning the match had made her brave, but her sudden confession was too much for her. She didn't make it five steps before her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she passed out. Before she could hit the ground, Naruto caught her and laid her gently on the ground, propped up against a tree.
"Thank you, Hinata-chan," He whispered, a single tear rolling down his cheek, "We'll talk about this later. After I beat Sasuke."
"You think you can beat me, dobe, think again." Sasuke said arrogantly, "Your just the dead last of our class and you always will be."
"That's what you think, teme," Naruto replied, as he walked into the arena, "Today, you wont know what hit you."