It was, in Zetsu's opinion, one of the most heart breaking things he had ever seen.

The green haired boy took a long drag from the cigarette he held in his hands before flinging it down on the ground and stomping out it's embers. He couldn't help it, the scene before him was just too depressing ti make even smoking be relaxing.Sitting before him on an ancient, blue plastic swing was none other than one of the freshmen, Haku.

In normal circumstances, as Zetsu recalled, the boy was lamentable enough. The boy was pale and withdrawn, looking either sick or tired or heartbroken-sometimes all in the same moment.

Zetsu could safely say that now would most definently be one of "those" moments. The playground was deserted and lonely, a rainstorm having broken out only minutes ago. Hair fell in clingy, blackend streams upon the boy's black t-shirt and arms, hands clasped on the chains of the swing and Haku gently rocking himself back and forth while his head was held low in a gesture of utter defeat and despair.

Zetsu stepped away from under the over hang of the store that was adjacent to the park. "Hey, kid. Haku, idn't it?" he asked, plopping down on the swing next to the boy.

Haku trembled, raising his head so Zetsu could clearly see his face. Rings lay under his hazel eyes, which themselves were such a mournful shade of black Zetsu had to refrain from recoiling at his aze. "Yes." Haku croaked in a pitiful, barely audible whisper.

"What's the matter with you? You're family disown ya' or somethin'?" the elder boy chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. Haku's eyes widened as he hid his face once again, only now with his hands tucked into his stomach and his forehead resting on his knees, back lifting up and down frantically in labored breaths.

Zetsu shot out in front of him, grabbing Haku's shoulders and raising him back up so Zetsu could meet his eyes again. "Kid? Kid snap out of it!" Haku's breaths had turned into hyperventelation, his eyes now wide and fearful.

A steady trickle of crimson was flowing down his left temple, obviously he had been hit by something."Haku! SNAP OUT OF IT!" he shouted forcefully. Haku stared at him, his eyes returning to normal size.

"Haku?" Zetsu said gently as he could. "Do you...Do you want to come over to my apartment?" he asked.

Haku's gaze became wary before Zetsu added "Maybe you can rest there for now? Think things over?" Haku kept staring, but the wariness gone from his eyes, he nodded his head.

Zetsu smiled reassuringly, picking up Haku and walking back towards his apartment, with only two questions running through his head: Who (or what, for that matter) was he afraid of-

And why?

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Gaara tore madly down the path, ignoring the pouring rain. Well, almost. He couldn't forget that his eyeliner was becoming small black streams down his face that burned like hell.

"AUGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!" he screamed. It was bad enough Hanabai was chasing him through the Hyuuga's humongoid-garden-labryinth-maze-of-doom-thingy-ma-bob, but the chick had a tranquilizer gun! ''Who the fuck gives their kid a tranquilizer gun!" he thought frantically, tearing down yet another path of sinister hedges that were meticulously well maintained and deceptively cheerful.

A pair of strong arms gripped him from inside of a bush. Gaaaara flipped out, flailing like a cat caught in the wringer. "Gaara it's me!" The bush shivered, only to reveal the hypnotic gaze of the Hyuuga to Gaara once more.

Setteling down,Gaara was still tense in his grip. "Dude, you're about as jumpy as my cousin in a hospital after one of the nurses went phsyco on her." he stated, moving his hands up to massage Gaara's shoulders. "I can't help it!" Gaara exclaimed exasperatedly.

"Hanabai is so demonic! And that's ME saying that Neji! She's a terror!"

"Shh..." Neji cooed soothingly, "I know." "And on top of that, by tomorrow she'll have htose posters or pictures or whatever hung up! Everybody will think we're both gay for each other!" the redhead hissed, rubbing eyelinger away from his face angrily.

"You're...Embarassed?" Neji asked casually, his voice betraying no emotion. Still, his eyes narrowed in a possesive glance towards Gaara as he continued massaging his shoulders. "Of course I'm going to be!" he exclaimed, "It would be a totally horrible rumor!"

Neji smiled, taking his hands from Gaara's narrow shoulders. Rain still pounding, Gaara turned to Neji. "What would you do, I wonder...?" he asked quietly, seductivlely-invitingly to Gaara.

"What do you mean 'What would I do'"? he asked, voice shaking a little. Neji laughed airily, wrapping one arm around Gaara's waist and one around his neck. Gaara realized with a pure horror that Neji had pushed him up against-not a bush, oh no- but a wall covered in vines. "What would you do," he asked in a husky voice,

"If that wasn't just a rumor?''

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Itachi seethed silently over his painting.

Everything he did-no matter how intricate-was so...hollow. Then it was all at once enigmatic, dwelling from a place deep within the elder Uchiha that he was utterly terrified of. The painting before him showed a figure covered in a black cloak seated on a wooden stool in a room with hundreds of candles of ever shape and painstaking design in it. A bloody cresent in the backround illuminated the clouds in the blackened sky.

"Dude, obsessive compulsive emo or what?" a smooth baritone quipped from behind Itachi. Red hair tickled Itachi's pale cheek as Sasori rested his head on the boy's shoulder.

"Something i can help you with Sasori?" Itachi twitched, his right eyelid developing an uncontrallable tick. The tanned boy looked up at the Uchiha. "Oh yes, O.C.D emo with a side order of mania." he smirked, green eyes glinting.

"That will be $23.56, no credit accepted." Holding out his hand he continued,"Will that be cash or ch-" "Finish that sentence and I'm going to shove this paintbrush up your ass manequin-boy." the black haired teen hissed. "In my grandma's art class? I think that's a big no." he retorted.

"You lo-" "I swear to whatever deity you deem appropriate that I really will shove this up your ass if you say 'You lose.' one more time." Itachi snapped, glaring.

"Okay, Okay...Fine. Just put the number five down!" he said, raising his hands in front of him in a defensive gesture. "Oi Sasori, Deidara's turning like, a shade of magenta that could be dangerous to his health over here what with all the talk about shoving things up your a-" Orochimaru was promptly shut up as Deidara nailed him square in the jaw with a particularly heavy cinder block.

"Why am I the one who always gets hit with heavy objects?" he asked, getting back up on his stool only to be his down with another cinder block. "Because you're the stupid one, yeah." Deidara huffed moodily.

"Whoa, I'm glad that you're a guy..." Sasori said amazedly, "I'd hated to see what you could do on P.M.S." Itachi rooled his eyes heavenward, "You have NO idea..."

"I think I'm bleedi-" orochimaru tried to say before Deidara knocked him unconscious with another cinder block. "Where do you get all of those cinder blocks from?" Sasori asked quietly. Deidara blushed before his eyes (well, visible eye, anyways) narrowed. "The THING, yeah." "The thing?" Sasori repeated, intrigued.

"Lee." Itachi whispered in abarely audible tone. "Lee?" Sasori said more loudly, wanting to clonfirm the name. Both Itachi and Deidara dropped beneath a table, each grabbing one of Sasori's hands and pulled him down with them. "Guy's what's wron-?" Sasori tried to inquire before a loud "YOSH!" sounded through the room and in jumped a boy with a freaky bowl cut and the most horribly huge eyebrows that he had ever seen in his life.

Sasori withdrew in fear. "What are those things consuming his face!" he thought. Much to Sasori's horror, the boy disappeared from sight before a loud voice sounded behind him.

"WHAT CAN I DO FOR YOU?" he asked Deidara directly. "Dei-Deidara? You know him?" Deidara nodded, blushing before he turned to face Sasori and saying ( in a particularly squeaky voice) "Lee...This is Sasori." The blonde paused, blushing an even more alarming shade. "Sasori..."

"Meet my little brother."

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"Iruka , he looks wasted...or high..." Kakshi said, poking Naruto in the forehead.

The half lidden cerulean eyes remained fixed on the ceiling fan above the blonde's bed. Iruka came into Naruto's room, wiping his hands on the red and white striped apron. "Kakashi, don't go around saying Naruto looks wa-" Iruka stopped in midscentence, his gaze falling upon Naurto as the boy giggled at the ceiling fan in pure ecstasy.

"My god! He's on crack! '' Iruka panicked. "Call the ambulance! Call the poison control! Call the hospital!" his brown eyes wide, his armed flailed up and down. "Kakashi! Help MEEEEEEEEE!" he exclaimed.

Kakashi smiled, picking up Iruka and promptly marching out of Naruto's room. As he was being carried (bridal style, no less) across his own home, Iruka looked up at Kakashi. "What about Naruto? What if he really is on crack or something! Help me damnit!"

Kakashi chuckled,his visible eye (he always wore a surgical mask for some bizarre reason Iruka didn't think he wanted to know) curved up in a smiling gesture. Walking into Iruka's room, he set Iruka down on the bed:Oh, I'm going to help you." "Kakashi!" Iruka squealed, panicking even more as he was placed on his bed

. "What?" the silver haired man asked innocently. "I was just going to tuck you in for a nap."

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Two new characters, a spur of the moment writing style, and an actual PLOTLINE in mind. Wow, I amaze myself. You guys play your cards right and I might even update again this month... But only if you review! MUHAHAHAHAHAHA COUGHCOUGHHACKCOUGH.