The moment Naruto laid eyes on this Sasuke guy, he decided at once that he was a pretentious jerk. No one that gorgeous, especially not one from a clan as prestigious and uppity as the Uchiha, could ever be a nice person. And that he was standing so close to Sakura...! Who did he think he was?!

...Though, hadn't they overheard as one of the councilmen told Tsunade-baa that everyone in the family had been murdered right before the Old Man Hokage's funeral? He shivered, glad he wasn't here in the palace when it'd happened. It was probably a horrible first few days, ones he would've been expected to work without rest. The pandemonium on the day Gramps died was overwhelming, and that was just one person!

But so lost in these thoughts was he that he'd entirely forgotten that he hadn't yet returned Sasuke's greeting, making him look more like the jerk instead.

"Yo," he said with as little interest as he could manage. "I'm Naruto."

When something flashed in the other boy's eyes, that familiar low growl sounded deep within Naruto's mind, his stomach spiking through with pain.

An Uchiha brat, all alone? Serves him right.

"Are you okay?" asked Sakura, coming to his side. "Why are you so closed off all of a sudden?"

He stammered, eager not to displease her so soon. He still couldn't believe he'd managed to befriend her in their time spent in her small healing hut, and he'd be damned if he screwed that up. He swallowed and wiped at the sweat beading at his forehead, trying to force the echoing voice from his brain.

"I'm fine, I just...don't like these stuck-up clansmen!" He crossed his arms defiantly. "You're new here, but there's all these unspoken rules about who they can and can't talk to. I'm surprised he's even interested in rubes like us!"

Sasuke was quiet, contemplatively twisting at his sleeves even as he glared up at the other boy.

"Rubes?!" Sakura sounded deeply offended.

"Well it's true, isn't it?" he said, putting up his hands as if in surrender. "You were living in a little village I'd never even heard of and—"

"And you're just a stablehand," spat Sasuke. There was an edge to his voice that made Naruto shiver, and the pain in his stomach went hot in response. "I wonder if you're as stupid as you look."

Sakura squeaked in surprise, but Naruto just smirked, taking it as a challenge. "And I wonder if you're only good for standing around at ceremonies looking prim and proper."

"We've all only just met," Sakura tried. "Shouldn't we—"

"Tell me what era just ended."

"Tch! Too easy! Kyuuka."

"And which Hokage is about to be inducted?"

Naruto was feeling more smug by the second. "You're tryin' to trick me, but it won't work—the old lady will be the twenty-fifth on paper, but anyone with the dream to be Hokage would know that two were deposed in the past. She's technically the twenty-seventh!"

"That's your dream, huh?"

"You heard me," he said. There was a fire in his heart like there always was when he thought of his ultimate goal. "So you better remember the name—Uzumaki Naruto, because I'll be the twenty-sixth and be the one bossing all you clansmen around for a change!"

Sakura smacked at Naruto's skull. "Quit antagonizing him! What's gotten into you? You weren't so combative at shishou's!"

"Neither were you, Sakura-chan! " He scowled, rubbing at his head. Though he'd by lying if he said he didn't like getting so much attention from her, especially in front of this new guy.

The other boy scoffed, glancing away while Sakura put her hands on her hips. "All the more reason for you two to quit bickering! Who wants a ruler who has a bone to pick with people he just met? Sasuke-kun just lost his entire family, so you should have some tact!"

He hemmed and hawed, not willing to admit that she had a point (and not willing to be brave enough to point out that she wasn't being very tactful, either). The Hokage had to get along with everyone and that was sure to require endless patience, but still!

"He was saying on the way out here," she carried on, "that he knows some fire-style jutsu. I thought the three of us could train together! Wouldn't that be fun?"

Fire-style?! Of course this guy would have an affinity for an element that bested wind-styles...! "Well, that would be fine, but...but I've been training with the Great Sage Jiraiya, and I won't go easy on either of you!"

"Great Sage?" Sakura mused, pursing her lips. "I thought it was the Perverted Sage..."

There was the slightest twitch to Sasuke's brow to hear that name, but he did not laugh at nor address it. "I train daily in jutsu and swordplay with Orochimaru. I'd love to see if a moron like you could keep up."

Sakura looked at him in mild surprise. "Isn't that Lord Orochimaru to you?"

But he just stared at her blankly, apparently not seeing anything wrong. Naruto couldn't just let that go, that rudeness to leave her questioning unanswered!

"Yeah," he said, narrowing his eyes above his pursed lips. "You usually kept to your clan grounds so I'll let it slide for now, but in the palace we respect our elders, you know! Even Sakura-chan knows that already!" He crossed his arms, nodding sagely. "We'll have to tell Tsunade-baa if you keep this up."

"Baa?!" Sakura looked ready to leap out of her skin in shock and disbelief. "She's the Lady of the Woods and the next Hokage! The both of you need to work on your manners!"

At the turn of events, Sasuke had not only cracked his first smile yet, but even gave a small spurt of laughter. Wide-eyed Naruto and Sakura faced him, but the sudden spotlight seemed to unnerve him so greatly that he schooled his expression immediately back to that blank, vacant look.

Well, if he didn't want the attention, then so be it. "Hey, hey, Sakura-chan," Naruto said , always happy to take center stage. When she raised an eyebrow and glanced at him, he took that as a good sign. "I thought it was that big slug who was the Lady of the Woods, not Tsunade-baa."

"A big slug?" Sasuke started, a look of interest crossing his features. "Lady Katsuyu lives?"

"You know of her?" she asked excitedly, clapping her hands together.

"Orochimaru is close to the snake lords of Ryuuchi Cave and the Great Snake Sage herself. I believe they had a falling out some time ago; we thought Katsuyu to be dead."

But Sakura seemed horrified by the notion. "Goodness, no. Just before we left home I made a contract with her!"

Naruto soured the more Sasuke brightened at the conversation. Of course Naruto's attempts to steer the conversation had backfired into them getting closer! The other boy asked with a budding enthusiasm, "You know the Summoning Jutsu?"

"So do I!" Naruto interjected, raising his hand straight in the air as if they'd forgotten about him.

Sakura's pleasant mood hadn't waned as she looked over at him expectantly. She was so pretty that he almost forgot to breathe as she asked him, "Who did you make your contract with, Naruto?"

He beamed at her beauty. "Toads!"

In unison, she and Sasuke muttered, "Ew."

"What the hell do you two mean ew! Like snakes and slugs are any less gross!"

Naruto had later left the interaction feeling miffed, like a third-wheel. It was with a frustrated sigh that he fell asleep that night plotting how best to spend time with Sakura alone even after her insistence that they all be friends. He woke early the next morning as he usually did to tend to the horses, but where Jiraiya would normally come and take him to the little-used training grounds in the closed-in palace woodlands, now he stopped only briefly and said,

"The Lord Orochimaru has agreed to let you and your Sakura train with he and the Uchiha boy in the afternoons. Tsunade's allowed you to flex your schedule in the stables, so you'd do well to thank her next you bump into her."

Naruto gave a whining hum. Was Jiraiya trying to ditch him, pawn him off on someone else? "Why? Did I screw something up and—"

But the old man took hold of his shoulders, looking down at him with a gentle smile. "You've made great progress this last year. But unfortunately I've incurred the wrath of our new Hokage, and she's ensured my days are fuller than they've been since I was your age."

"Does it really have to be with that guy?"

He laughed, the sound of it a comfort to Naruto's ears. "You've worked too hard for me not to make other arrangements for your training. Besides—it's good for you to have friends your own age."

"Sakura-chan is friend enough—"

"You don't want to depend on her alone," he said in a paternal tone. "Especially if you have your sights set to court her! You'll drive her crazy without someone there to balance the two of you out."

"Hey, hey..." Naruto raised a brow over his pout, not exactly liking the implication. "You sayin' I'm annoying, Ero-sennin?"

"You're quite the handful, it's true," he hummed, grinning. Affectionately he ruffled Naruto's hair, but then his mood suddenly shifted much too seriously. "There I things I can't yet tell you, son, but trust me when I say this: as much as you need to rely on your own strengths, you can only truly grow when you can rely on the strengths of others. Try to play nice, won't you?" With that, he turned to leave and called over his shoulder, "Be at the east wing's training grounds two hours past noon, or I'll tell Tsunade you're slacking off!"

Naruto was used to him being somewhat cryptic, but he had to reach up and scratch his head at such a conversation.

Always keeping secrets, purred that voice in his head. Your usefulness to him has run its course, it seems.

"Shut up," he muttered, returning to his morning duties.

At the time Jiraiya had mentioned, he stuffed his hands into his pockets and made his way through the palace with calculated slowness. If he were too early, he would look eager and stupid; to be a little bit late was best, he decided. It seemed a fine enough plan, for when he arrived Sakura and Sasuke were sparring while Orochimaru circled them, calmly giving instruction as he walked.

"My, Sakura-kun," he was saying, "your chakra control is phenomenal indeed. You're healing as you go without expending any excess! Halt for a moment, the both of you." He knelt, weaving a few fast hand signs and slamming his palms into the ground. A wall of earth burst from the dirt, several feet thick but not terribly high. Naruto stared curiously as he approached, remembering when a single one of Sakura's punches splintered an entire tree.

"Show me your strength," he directed. "Oh, and Naruto-kun, do try to be more prompt tomorrow. Warm up, and be quick about it."

With a sigh he squared off against Sasuke, who looked so uninterested it may have been bordering on irritable as Naruto ran at him. Their wrists and ankles clashed, and for how slight his frame was the Uchiha boy possessed a surprising strength.

Not as surprising, though, as Sakura's—with a dramatic yell she'd punched clean through the rock wall, shattering it to pieces. Though Orochimaru clapped his hands together in delight, his words reflected something different.

"You're a marvel, girl, truly, but I've a challenge for you: channel your chakra to such a degree that you break a hole through to the other side, without crumbling the rest of it to pieces. Naruto-kun —your form is solid, but you lack speed. Come; you will face Sasuke-kun and myself both at once."

Things went on in this way, and though he loathed it, he did improve far faster than he had with Jiraiya. The sage was powerful, to be sure, but often seemed to be tiptoeing around certain aspects of training and was more concerned with being sure Naruto did not expend too much chakra at once. Orochimaru, though, encouraged it. He was adamant that they each find the best ways to dodge and counter each of their elemental weaknesses, He'd discovered Sakura's affinity for earth-style jutsu, declaring her a proper threat after only a few short days of training.

"It is a lesson the two of you could benefit from," he'd said after a particularly grueling afternoon session. "Her strength and ninjutsu combined with her healing abilities render her virtually unkillable in real combat. I will see the two of you versed in the basics of medical jutsu in the coming weeks."

The days leading up to Tsunade's coronation were a whirlwind. Orochimaru, as a close friend of hers and a high-ranking member of the royal court, was expected to participate; their practice had been suspended for the time being. Naruto was busy with his work in the stables, and when one morning he grinned wide to see Sakura approach, it quickly became a frown to see her leading Sasuke by the hand.

"Naruto!" she called, waving with a smile despite his opposite expression. "Good morning!"

"Morning," he said, not thrilled that they were seeing him working such a lowly job. "What brings you by? I figured you guys would have more important things to do this week, you know?"

"Shishou's been getting awfully stressed about everything," she explained, letting go of Sasuke and walking up to one of the horses. "She said I was just getting in the way, and apparently Lord Orochimaru said something similar to Sasuke-kun."

He hummed as he thought on that. Though he had little sympathy for those who lounged away in the palace, he supposed he knew all too well the feeling of being cast aside. "You guys wanna practice?"

She'd reached her hand out to the nose of one of the steeds, a tall stallion with a rich brown coat that faded into white spots on his backside. He nuzzled into her palm, sending a visible shiver down her spine as she laughed.

"Their noses are so weird," she murmured as if mesmerized. "Oh, practice? Actually...I was kind of hoping you could show us around, Naruto."

"What do you mean? And which us?"

"Sasuke-kun is only familiar with the places he's gone for his studies with Orochimaru-sama," she clarified. Sasuke pretended not to listen, facing a mare and watching her with manufactured interest. "I'm tired of seeing the same few spots every day, and it'll be good for both of us if you could get us more familiar with the palace. It is our home now after all."

Naruto unlatched a gate to lead one of the steeds to a jounin chatting idly with another of her rank. When he passed off the reins to her, she gave only a curt nod to him before mounting up and taking off. He was accustomed to getting little recognition, and the thought of spending the day with someone who actually liked him instead was enticing, he'd admit.

"I have some work to get done before I can leave," he explained. "With the coronation so soon the notices go out to the whole country and others."

"We can help," Sasuke said immediately, causing both Naruto and Sakura to double-take.

"You think you know more about horses than I do?"

Color rose to his cheeks and he glanced away. "I sit for the imperial exams next year. If someone like you can figure it out..."

"Oi, oi!" he bit back. "Quit callin' me stupid, you jerk!"

"Just tell us what to do, idiot. Sakura already seems to be getting along with them, anyway."

The three of them worked alongside each other, Sakura chatting all the while and even managing to raise Naruto's spirits despite Sasuke's moody presence. The jounin and the messengers watched the two newest additions with curiosity, accustomed to seeing Naruto alone there in the stables.

"Look at you," called Iruka, who was beaming as he came to take his horse. "I'd heard you'd had company lately. Will you introduce me to your new friends?"

"They're..." Naruto tried, looking between them. He was hopeful to one day date Sakura, so he was hesitant to call her a friend, and of course Sasuke's stuck-up self didn't qualify, either. "Sakura-chan, the disciple of the new Hokage, and Sasuke. Uchiha Sasuke."

Iruka seemed surprised as the others gave respectful bows. "My, Sasuke, how you've grown—I hardly recognized you!" The more he spoke, though, the more Naruto realized that it was in a strained, awkward tone. Most people still didn't know how to react to the massacre, he figured. "And Miss Sakura, it's an honor to meet you. Well then, I should really be off."

With the morning assignments completed, they dusted the dried mud and hay from their clothes and followed Naruto as he led them around and up the servant's stairs. They passed into the kitchen, hectic and lively in preparation for the week's festivities, then into the main hall. He wasn't necessarily used to being a tour guide, but found it to be a surprisingly entertaining way to spend an afternoon. He showed them a few shortcuts, small alley-like halls that the servants and maids would use to navigate quickly and unseen in the presence of royal guests.

Next he decided to show them to the forest where he and Jiraiya would train. He'd seen tourists and diplomatic visitors in total wonder about it, but he didn't know what exactly was so cool—it'd simply been a section of the huge Fire Country forests that'd been left standing, the palace built so near that they decided to put a wall around the trees, too. Therein lie a few ornate gardens, polished wooden bridges arcing over little ponds cut through with stepping stones and little gazebos—Sakura particularly liked those spots, and it was as she wandered a few steps from their little group that Sasuke spoke quietly to Naruto.

"So you know Iruka?"

Tch...! He couldn't even use an honorific with one of the nicest men in the Leaf?! "Yup. He's one of the only people who ever bothered to talk to me growin' up. I don't remember you in my Academy class, though..."

"I was privately tutored," he said flatly. "Iruka taught me my second year."

Naruto rolled his eyes at that. "Is there anything you people couldn't afford?"

"Quit it!" Sakura swatted at him as if he were a fly. "Be nice!"

"Hey, Sakura-chan, he can fend for himself—you know that! Why do you keep defending him?"

"Haa? Do you want him to beat you up every time you start saying mean things?"

Sasuke was looking off over the water. Dusk was beginning to settle in far above them, the tree cover so thick that it made things a bit darker than they actually were. Naruto glared at him, and even though he was handsome and well-dressed and had good posture and better skin and laughed at some of his antics...

Well, he just couldn't well admit all that, could he? For all of his good qualities he was also rude, stuck-up, had an upper hand in elemental affinity, and made friends of snakes, of all critters!

Sakura had sighed, propping her elbows on the railing of the bridge. "Sasuke-kun...I don't know what it is." She looked at Naruto intently, her eyes showing nothing but her sincerity. "You and I made fast friends, but something weird happened when I first looked at him. I keep sticking up for him because it was...It was like I'd met him before, but in this way that felt like—"

"Like this," Sasuke finished for her. "Like being here in the forest."

"Huh? What the hell does that mean?" Naruto wondered aloud, leaning over the railing. The wood was cool against his face despite the heat of the day, and he sighed as if in defeat. "You guys mean like love at first sight or something? Gross." Maybe he never had a real chance with Sakura, after all.

The two of them did not answer for some time. He looked at them from the corner of his eye, finding them both staring not at each other, but up into the sky. If they'd had some sort of divine vision when meeting, Naruto wondered what that meant for his reaction upon meeting Sasuke for the first time. That anger inside of him had risen, the voice mocking the other boy for that awful thing that'd happened.

"No." It was Sakura, her gentle tone cutting through Naruto's melancholy thoughts. "It was more like meeting an old friend after many years spent apart."

"Like you would know what that feels like," Sasuke muttered, pushing off the bridge and making his way back towards the palace.

"Oi, oi!" Naruto yelled, taking off after him. "Don't talk to Sakura-chan like that! She's the only line of defense your ass has got!"

Sasuke stopped ahead, and Naruto turned so as not to leave Sakura behind. Though she didn't seem crushed by his sudden shift in mood, she definitely wasn't as wistful as she'd been only a few minutes ago. When she caught up to them, Sasuke muttered some halfhearted apology that she seemed to accept. The three of them emerged from the woods and made it back to the palace courtyard by nightfall. Summer was indeed in full swing, the nocturnal bugs chirping and buzzing loudly even away from the trees and thick brush. Sakura, still a bit deflated from Sasuke's strange comment earlier, took him by the hand as Naruto made for the stables.

"Goodnight, Naruto," she said softly. "We'll...see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah, yeah," he said, not bothering to wave. He crossed his arms behind his head, ready to toss and turn in his makeshift bed until he fell asleep.

"You...sleep in the stables? With the horses?" Of course it was Sasuke who'd asked it.

Naruto could feel his face flush to have attention drawn to that circumstance. It'd been exactly what the children in the Academy had singled him out and teased him for, and no matter how hard he tried not to let it get to him, well, it did. His anger boiled in an instant, but before he could shout out a response, the other boy spoke again.

"I...wish I could invite you to stay in my room, but I don't have one of my own anymore."

"You—" he stammered, incredulous. Were it not for Sakura's equally shocked reaction, he would've been sure he imagined that. Slowly he lowered his arms and crossed them over his chest with a huff, fighting a shy flush of his face. "Well, even if you did, I wouldn't—"

"Come stay with me." Sakura had said it so quickly like she would never have the opportunity to say it again. "Both of you, I mean."

Naruto and Sasuke both flushed at that, glancing once at each other and then down to the worn tile floor. To suggest something like that was not only bold, but it was horribly improper.

"You're the Hokage's disciple," Sasuke protested. "If anyone discovers two guys in your chambers, your eligibility—"

She stuck out her tongue. "Tsunade-sama doesn't even let me think about stuff like that. And if she gets mad, it's nothing I haven't handled before. No one should feel lonely in their own home or have to sleep in a cold pile of hay."

Neither of them had said anything about being lonely, but if Sasuke's face was any indication, she'd hit the nail right on the head—just as she had with Naruto, too. Not that he'd particularly cared one way or another that he slept among the horses, not until he'd spent that month with her and the old lady, at least. It had given him a sense of family and companionship he hadn't ever before felt, one that'd left him frustrated and torn up inside the longer he went without it.

"Besides," she went on as if to try to convince them both, "my futon is so big I don't know how anyone can sleep in one alone. I'm used to a mat I barely fit on, shishou at my side. So just come on!"

When she reached out to grab his hand, he took it without a fight. The three of them walked linked as if a chain up the tall stairs and into the warm palace.