I was able to get this one in earlier in the day! Although it's a shorter chapter so... I don't know how much of an accomplishment that is. Now this is break chapter from all the action, next chapter we'll start back up with some fights, but it probably won't be a lot. The Chunin Exam arc is coming up.
Also SirLink- who's the author for the story you suggested? It'll make it easier to find it.
I don't own Naruto, that right is reserved for Kishimoto and the other creators.
"Now, after hearing about the developments throughout the mission, it has been bumped up to an A-rank mission. And as such you all shall be paid for it. Haku, return here tomorrow so we can test your skill. You are dismissed" said the Third Hokage. "Also, take the next two days off. A little gift to you all" said Kakashi. The teenagers left, excited to finally be home, or make a home. Kakashi watched as they left, once they had closed the door he turned back to the Hokage, "When's the next meeting?". The Hokage smiled and said, "This Thursday, and prepare a short story, you're up this time". Kakashi bowed to the Hokage, and left. The Hokage sighed as he looked back to his desk at the stacks of paperwork he had to do.
'Just for hahas', "shadow clone jutsu". Two clones of the Sandaime Hokage appeared. The Hokage took a minute to catch his breath and smiled, 'I've still got it'. He and his clones then went to tackle the most annoying thing to ever grace the earth, council member complaints.
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Sasuke and Haku were walking the streets of Konoha, the sights and smells of the markets and restaurants filling their senses. Sasuke had offered to give a tour of Konoha to Haku, and Haku readily accepted. By the end of it, the two had ended up at Tenrai Dango, enjoying a little snack. "So what do you think of the village?" asked Sasuke. "It's beautiful, although, I don't have anywhere to sleep tonight. Zabuza always took the money from our missions, what he did with it, I don't know. Although, we just spent two nights on the road, so I guess I can just camp in the park until I can afford a hotel I guess.
Silence fell between the two for a minute, then Sasuke had an idea. "I know of a place you can stay". "Where?", Haku doubted anyone would let a foreign assassin into their house for free. "Let's just say I'm in ownership of a district in the village that has been vacant for the past several years. There's a variety of housing to choose from, and all but one has been emptied of the personal belongings of the previous owners" said Sasuke, pain hidden in his voice. Haku took note of this pain and decided to ask about it later, "Alright, if it's okay with you". "It is. Whenever you're ready to move in, feel free to do so" Sasuke snapped. Haku silently nodded and continued eating his dango, curious about the Uchiha's past.
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The Next Day
It was 10 in the morning and Hinata had been searching for her blonde teammate for the past hour, her bodyguard, Ko, following her. Eventually she remembered something about Naruto's love for a ramen shop, "Ah what was it called? Ichikaka's. Ishijaku's…". Seeing her struggle, Ko tried to help, "Ichiraku's Hinata-sama?". "Yes, please take me to it. I'm looking for a frequent customer to the establishment, '' Hinata said. He nodded and led her off to the ramen stand.
Naruto was struggling making ramen noodles. His tab at Ichiraku's had built up too much, and Teuchi had finally put his foot down. Now he was teaching Naruto the way of the ramen, so then Naruto could work shifts when not on a mission. He had been coming to practice the art of noodle making for the past 3 months, twice a week if possible and had only mastered the making and kneading of the dough. Now he was practicing the throwing and twisting of the dough to make the noodle really elastic. Many times however, the doubt would fall to the floor or break apart when he tried twisting the dough. When he wasn't practicing, he was washing dishes or preparing the other parts of the dish.
While he got frustrated at the noodle process, he'd keep on reminding himself 'Just imagine being able to make my own amazing ramen!'. It was this motivation that kept him in the kitchen.
Hinata walked into the ramen stand and noted how simple it was. 'This is the oh so great ramen stand? This can't be where Naruto got the ramen for the Bell Test from'. Walking up to the counter Hinata said, "Excuse me, but would you happen to know where one Naruto Uzumaki is? I hear he frequents this establishment?". "Oh, yeah. He's in the back. Give me a second" Ayame said before disappearing behind the curtain.
"Yo Naruto, You never told me about your girlfriend!" said Ayame. Perking the ears of her father that was preparing noodles for future bowls of ramen. "Oh? Naruto's managed to land himself a little girlfriend?" said Teuchi, a smile spreading across his face. Naruto was about to refute this, his face tinted pink, but Ayame interrupted. "Yeah! And she's a cute one too. You sly dog Naruto!". "She's my teammate! Not my girlfriend! She's just… ah… she's the last person I'd date!". His ears were bright red as he packed his dough and washed his hands. Taking off his apron Naruto walked out of the kitchen to a pink faced Hinata and an intimidating Hyuga bodyguard giving him a glare of death.
Naruto paled and shuffled forward to greet his teammate/friend. "H-hey Hinata. What's up?". Hinata's face was lightly tinted pink from the conversation she overheard from the kitchen. "I came to inform you it's time to forfull part of your service that you owe the Hyuga". Naruto's face lost the little color it had, "W-wait, you want me to destroy the book now?!". "What? No, the other thing. We're getting you new clothes. Now get your things so we can get this done quickly" Hinata ordered. Naruto sighed and went to grab what remained of his jumpsuit.
Ko lifted an eyebrow at this. 'Hinata-sama is going shopping for clothes with… him?'. The branch family had always been reserved about their thoughts about Naruto. They too knew what it was like to always look down upon and sympathized with the boy. Unfortunately, that sympathy only reached to them being a neutral party.
Returning from the kitchen, Naruto came out with his tattered jumpsuit on, with the top half wrapped around his waist. "Alright Hinata. Let's go buy clothing" Naruto said with little enthusiasm. The trio left the stand and went to a shopping district of Konoha. As they walked down the street, they were given a variety of looks. Most confused or of hatred for Naruto. Naruto shrugged it off and tried to distract Hinata so she would start thinking about why people gave him the looks they did. "So Hinata. How is shopping for new clothing for me a service to the Hyuga?". Hinata turned to and said "Trust me, it's a service to everyone by getting you out of that jumpsuit".
Naruto felt like he was just slapped across the face. "What?! What's wrong with my jumpsuit?!" he demanded, upset that she would criticize his clothing so harsh. Hinata smirked, "it's obnoxious, loud, and does you more harm than good in a battle. You're a walking target out there. Don't you agree Ko?". The branch member was silent for a moment, Naruto looked at them with hope in his eyes. "Yes, it's quite flamboyant. Not fit for the battlefield" Ko said. "And for day to day wearing?" asked Hinata, hoping to crush Naruto's hopes of keeping the jumpsuit. The bodyguard took a second, branch members usually weren't asked for their opinion; it was weird for Ko to be asked for his opinion twice. "It looks awful," Ko said. Naruto dramatically slumped over, depressed. The Hyugas found Naruto's reaction to his lack of support to be amusing but hid it.
Standing back up, Naruto looked around at the stores. "Hey, all of these stores are too expensive". The Hyugas frowned at this, 'these stores are known for their decent products and low prices. How are they too expensive?'. The two Hyugas had that question answered when they went into the first store and the shopkeeper threatened to kick Naruto out if he didn't leave. After explaining to the shopkeeper that Naruto was with her, she did a 180, apologizing to Hinata, but not to Naruto. To refuse a Hyuga was financial death for a shopkeeper. The Hyuga were the most influential clan in konoha and could make life miserable for anyone.
Hinata left the store, angry with the shopkeeper. The next store was the same. At the third store, the owner was able to bite his tongue and said nothing to Naruto. He had seen the trio enter and exit two stores prior together and had assumed for some bizarre reason the demon brat was with the Hyugas.
Hinata browsed through the store looking for something darker, and simple for Naruto. Naruto was looking in the clearance section at more clothing of bright colors and cheap fabrics. Pulling an orange and black tracksuit, Naruto went to show it to Hinata. She turned it done instantly and told him that she'd be deciding what he comes out of this store with. Naruto grumbled something about fashion and girls and walked back to the clearance section. Hinata was confused by this, 'I know he can easily afford these things. Why is he only looking in clearance?'. Shaking her head of her thoughts, she continued her search. She eventually found a nice black jacket and a pair of black shorts to go with it. Trying to be sympathetic to her teammate's love of orange, she picked out an orange shirt with a red swirl on the front of it. Hinata then went to find Naruto so he could try the clothes on. When she found him, he had neon green pants in hand with a v-neck, bright orange shirt to go with it. Hinata shivered at the thought of him wearing that.
Being on the same wavelength as Hinata, Ko quickly removed the clothes from the boy's hands before swiftly returning them to the rack. Naruto frowned, thinking he had done a good job with that outfit. Hinata grabbed him by the shoulder and dragged him to the changing rooms, dumping the clothes in his hands and shoving him into the room before closing the door. "Now change" order Hinata. Naruto grumbled and did as he was told, not risking getting Hinata in a bad mood over clothing.
When he walked out, Hinata let a small smile spread onto her lips, as she approved of her clothing choices. Ko lifted an eyebrow in surprise, they hadn't seen Hinata smile in public since her mother died.
Naruto had to admit, he looked a lot more mature, but he knew this stuff was going to be expensive and couldn't afford it. But he kept his mouth shut, not wanting to disappoint his friend. After changing out of the clothes, the trio went to the counter. The cashier rang up the clothing at the normal prices, not wanting to anger the two Hyugas.
Naruto was amazed at how low the prices were. 'Did he give me a discount because of Hinata?! Damn, I gotta take her shopping with me more often! I'd be able to have a set of clothing for every day of the week!'. Hinata was confused by his amazement, 'It's like he's never bought anything so cheap before'.
After making their purchases, Hinata ordered him to go home and change. Naruto asked to have one last day with his jumpsuit, and was shot down instantly. Naruto let his head fall and turned away to jump off to his house. Hinata went over to a bench and waited for his return. Ko followed, wondering 'what about Naruto was special enough to get Hinata-sama to smile'. The Hyugas waited in silence for a few minutes before Naruto returned, dressed in his new clothes. "Are you happy now princess?" Naruto asked sarcastically, upset he couldn't at least have one more day in his jumpsuit. "Yes, now you'll be much more tolerable to be around," Hinata said, getting up from her spot on the bench. "So now what? You want to get a bite to eat?" asked Naruto, finding himself not wanting his time with his new friend to end just yet.
Ko was furious, 'Is he asking Hinata-sama on a date?! All she did was help you get decent clothes! She'd never go out with an imp like…'. "Okay, but I choose the restaurant," Hinata replied, leaving Ko in shock, 'S-s-she accepted his invitation?!'. "Fine, what did you have in mind?" asked Naruto, sad knowing she probably wouldn't choose ichiraku. Hinata smirked and walked off, leaving Naruto to follow her blindly to the restaurant of her choosing. Hinata led him to her favorite tea shop, The Resting Cricket. It was a diamond in the rough that her mother had found, and showed her. Hinata loved the shop. It was quiet, had good tea, and everyone minded their own business. Naruto had recognized the shop, but he had never been in it. He didn't know what the owners were like and prepared for the worst upon entry.
Instead of being rudely kicked out like usual. Naruto was surprised when all he got was a moment of hesitation from the staff, before a shrug of their shoulders as they went back to work. 'That's a first' thought Naruto as he followed Hinata to a table. Ko sat at another table, giving them some space, but still close enough to jump to Hinata's aid if need be.
After ordering their tea, the two genin sat in silence. Not knowing how to start the conversation. After a few minutes their tea came and Naruto tried making small talk, "soo… how's your family doing?". Hinata was grateful for something to talk about, but she didn't like talking about her family too much. She loved them, but she always felt like a failure whenever she was around them. Neji was leagues ahead of her and her sister was close to beating her in their sparring matches.
"They're doing well. My Father and Uncle have been attending to coan business, my cousin Neji is doing incredible with his genin team; and my sister, Hanabi, is starting her second year at the academy". Naruto processed the information for a second before blurting "Wait, your sister is the same age as Konohamaru?!". Everyone in the shop turned to look at them for a second, a waiter shushed them and everything went back to normal. "Who is this Konohamaru?" Hinata asked, slightly embarrassed from Naruto's outburst. Naruto reigned himself in and explained. "He's a kid I've been training from time to time before team meetings. He wears a weird helmet on his head and has a scarf that's way too long for him". Hinata remembered her sister mentioning this boy once or twice before, but that was it. "I've heard of him, but it doesn't seem he and my sister are friendly". Naruto was curious by this, granted Konohamaru was a brat from time to time, but he was a nice kid nonetheless, "Why do you say that?". "My sister doesn't mention him much and the times she does, it's about the stupid pranks that he pulls on the adults. Aruto thought about this for a second, "Hmm, does she talk about anyone else?". Hinata shook her head. Naruto grinned, "well I'm guessing that means one of two things. She either hates his guts, which is very likely. Or, your little sister has a crush on a certain helmet wearing, prank pulling boy in her class".
Hinata could not believe Naruto would say such a thing. "What?! You think my 8 year old sister has a crush on this Konohamaru?" Hinata said in a whisper, trying not to disturb the other occupants. Naruto's grin widened, "either that or she hates him. But, you know her better. Does she tell the family about people she dislikes?". Hinata took a minute to think about it, and the more she thought about it, the wider her eyes became. "Oh Kami" was all Hinata had to say to get Naruto to burst into laughter. Finishing his short laughing fit, Naruto said "Oh Kami, I can't wait to watch you freak out when Hanabi makes a move on him". Hinata actually pouted at this and said "I don't like it when you're right, teme''. Naruto continued to smile.
"Wait a minute. You're never had a relationship in your life. What do you know about love?" asked Hinata, hoping to get Naruto back. Naruto faltered at this, "well it's not like I haven't tried…". Naruto had tried several times to impress a girl he had a crush on and get a date, but each time left him harshly rejected. Sasuke would always treat him to ramen on those days. Naruto grew sad as the memories resurfaced. His goofy persona fell for a second and the two Hyugas briefly saw his pain in his eyes before Naruto rebuilt his defenses and acted as if everything was fine. "So what about you princess? I'm guessing you've never been in a relationship either?" said Naruto, flipping the question onto her. Hinata frowned, "you think I'd try to get into weak relationships with people? You're my first friend besides my family". Naruto nervously chuckled at this, "ah, sorry to ask. Anyways, I'm assuming Hanabi doesn't have many friends right?". Hinata slowly nodded, suspicious of what Naruto was going to say. "Well, what do you say we try to get them to be friends? Konohamaru has formed a small group of friends, and I'd think they'd love to be friends with her". Hinata shook her head, "they'll be fake. She's the younger sister of the Hyuga Heiress. No one will see her for who she is". Naruto shook his finger at this, "no, no, no my white eyed friend", Hinata narrowed her eyes at Naruto, "You see. Konohamaru's last name is Sarutobi. He's Hokage's grandson. He knows what it's like to deal with fake friends. Trust me, his group won't see your sister as a way to gain popularity". Hinata's narrowed eyes widened at hearing that Konohamaru was the Hokage's grandson, 'how does he know the grandson of the Hokage?!'. Thinking about it more, Hinata found herself warming up to the idea of trying to get her sister and him to be friends. 'If the other two turn out to be fakes, then at least Hanabi will have a friend in the end'. "Fine, but no romance. I can handle her being friends with him, but I won't tolerate you trying to get my eight year old sister into a romantic relationship with this boy". Naruto nodded in understanding, "of course".
Naruto saw a clock on the side of the tea shop and saw that it was already 1 o'clock in the afternoon. He had made plans to meet up with Sasuke and Haku at 1:30, and didn't want to be late. "As much fun as spending time with you was Hinata. I have to go. I made plans with Sasuke to meet up soon. I hope I'm not being rude". Hinata shook her head, "It's fine, I have to get home soon anyways". Naruto stood up and turned back to Hinata, "thank you Hinata. You don't know much today meant to me". Hinata raised an eyebrow at this as she watched him walk out of the shop, leaving her to her thoughts and empty tea cup.
Ko was in shock. He hadn't heard much of the conversation between the two, but he was able to see their expressions. Hinata's expressions to be more precise. Never before had anyone seen so many emotions play across Hinata's face in public before. Usually she kept a neutral expression, only breaking the neutrality to replace it with a face of disgust or annoyance, and every now and then a little anger, but to see her smile and pout was like seeing a whale do a ballet. Unbelievable. Ko was also curious about Naruto Uzumaki. He had been able to get these emotions out of Hinata, and briefly showed a pain that felt like a knife to the heart. 'I know he's the outcast, but how far does the mistreatment of him go?'. The Hyugas generally kept to themselves, and gossip was frowned upon so news didn't travel very fast and within the clan unless underhanded tactics were involved. Being a bodyguard meant he only left the compound when Hinata left or in his little freetime when Hinata was training with her team or on a mission, so that didn't leave many opportunities for learning the village gossip. 'What is that boy hiding?' he thought, curious and suspicious of Naruto.
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Naruto found Sasuke and Haku in front of the Uchiha Compound. Sasuke lifted an eyebrow when seeing him, "When did you start wearing decently looking clothing?". "Why does everyone think the jumpsuit looked awful?!" complained Naruto. Haku chuckled, Naruto's face fell at this "not you too!". Shaking it off, Naruto decided to get down to business, "so what did you have planned Sasuke?". "Well, Haku went to the Hokage's monument earlier and now has a lot of free time in the afternoon. So I was thinking about going around to get some decorations for his new place along with some groceries" said Sasuke. Naruto nodded at this, "okay! I don't know much about home decor, but I do know about groceries!".
The trio then made their way to one of the many shopping districts of Konoha. They didn't buy much, but Haku was able to get a more detailed tour of the nearby shopping district for when he actually has money. Naruto felt weird the entire time. Like it was really just Haku and Sasuke the entire time and he just tagged along. He wasn't angry about it, but it made him uncomfortable. After showing Haku his little grocery store, Naruto used the excuse that he had work at Ichiraku's to do and needed to leave. Sasuke and Haku waved goodbye and watched as Naruto hopped off.
'That was weird. Maybe Hinata will know? I doubt it though. Wait, Ayame-chan might know!'. Naruto altered his course from his apartment to Ichiraku's to ask his big sister figure about that strange situation he was just put in.
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Entering Ichiraku's, Naruto was greeted by Ayame saying "When did you start making good fashion choices? Oh wait! Did you and that cute Hyuga girl go on a shopping date?". Naruto's head fell as a tear escaped, "I loved that jumpsuit… Anyways," Naruto said, ignoring Ayame's girlfriend poke. "Ayame-chan. I have a question". "Hm?" Ayame was curious now, Naruto didn't usually come for help, 'Is it about that Hyuga girl?! Awww. Please let it be about her' thought Ayame. "I was just with my friends Sasuke and Haku, and we went shopping for some home decor for Haku's new house…. Well, after a little while of walking around, I started to feel like I was intruding on something. Like I was a spectator, who was invading their privacy. I don't know how to explain it. Do you know what I'm talking about?".
Ayame giggled hearing this news, knowing full well what Naruto was talking about. "I think the expression you're thinking of is being a third wheel. If what you said is true, then it seems that Sasuke has a little crush on this Haku person, and I think Haku might have one on Sasuke as well". Naruto's jaw dropped, "WHAAAAAAATT?!". He had no problem with gay people, he thought they were just like everyone else, just with different tastes in romance. But he had never even considered the idea that Sasuke would be gay! Suddenly memories of the academy flashed through his head, how Sasuke wouldn't even glance at the girls who were throwing themselves at him. Naruto tried thinking of all the times Sasuke talked about girls, but nothing about liking one romantically came to mind. All the pieces fell into place, 'no wonder he's never been affected by his fan club! He bats for the other team with them!'.
Ayame was starting to become worried about Naruto. He had been silent for a solid minute, processing the information. 'Is it really that big of a deal? So Sasuke has a crush on some girl. It's not like he'll leave you behind'. Ayame started snapping her fingers in front of Naruto's face, "Naruto, are you still in there?". Shaking his head, Naruto broke out of his thoughts and said, "yeah I'm here. I also think I could use a bowl of ramen. That was a lot to process". Ayame looked at him skeptically, "was it that big of a deal? So he likes someone. He's not going to leave you because he has a crush", she then went to prepare his usual.
As he ate his ramen, Ayame asked questions about Haku. While she wasn't as close to him as she was to Naruto, she looked out for him. She asked about Haku's personality, what Haku liked and disliked. How Sasuke and Haku met, and how long it's been. Naruto answered every question for her, but unknowingly avoided the topic of Haku's gender. Finishing his ramen, Naruto paid and started to leave. Lifting a flap with an arm, Naruto turned around, "thanks Ayame-chan. You were a lot of help. Things make a lot more sense now. I'll have to introduce you to Haku sometime. He'd love this place". With that Naruto left, leaving a stunned Ayame behind. '... … … Haku's a guy?!', the thought of yaoi caused her to have a nose bleed. She stood there in shock for a few more seconds until she noticed the nosebleed and went to take care of it before she got in trouble because of it.
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Bonus Chapter: Perv Wars - A New Member
Naruto and Konohamaru were hiding in a tree outside of one of the many buildings that would host the Icha Icha series book club members, both wearing cheap black jumpsuits(like Guy and Lee's jumpsuits) and bandanas worn like masks. Many of their members were high ranking ninjas that made the operation extremely difficult. "Okay Konohamaru, we don't have much time, so we're going to have to act fast. Once the paint bombs are in place, get out of there. Got it?", "You got it Boss!" replied Konohamaru. Naruto divided the paper bombs evenly between Konohamaru and himself.
As part of the anti-perv rebellion, it was tradition to prank a full on meeting as one's first assignment. Of course these traditions were made up by Naruto on the spot to make his pranks sound cooler. Sasuke couldn't join them, which made things a lot harder, but he worked around it and only hoped Konohamaru actually learned during their training sessions.
The two boys jumped out of the tree to the roof of the house. There was an" open window for air flow there that was about to be their entree and escape route. The window led to the laundry room. The two used mirrors to look around the corner to see the members of the icha icha book club. The members dressed in cloaks as if it was a cult, and they were all sitting around a table discussing various parts from the book series. At the head of the table sat two people who wore masks to hide their face. One was a mask of a monkey, the other a dog, with an empty chair in between them. Whispering Naruto explained, " you see the two with the masks, they're the higher ups, second only to the leader. We're assuming the center seat is for said leader, but we've never seen anyone fill that seat so we don't know. Now, you go place your bombs. And remember, if things go south, run". Finishing, Naruto started to sneak his way around the room, staying low and using the henge jutsu to blend in more.
Naruto had adapted the henge jutsu to act more like a cloak that would basically make one invisible, and had taught it to Konohamaru. It had taken a couple weeks, but they both eventually mastered it. The two were now putting all their hard work to use.
As Naruto set the last paint bomb, something went wrong. Konohamaru had forgotten to block out the conversation the book club members were having and became extremely embarrassed when he actually processed what they were talking about. Because of this, he stumbled and hit the leg of a side table. The Icha Icha club members froze and stared at the table, Konohamaru started sweating.
Naruto grit his teeth, 'dammit, we were so close. I could leave him and escale, but then they might turn him to the perv side!'. Naruto did not want to risk Konohamaru turning to the perv side. Sighing Naruto cancelled the henge and stood tall. "Run! "Sexy Harem Jutsu", smoke filled the room in a second and left just as fast, leaving a bombshell of a woman to district each member. Konohamaru made a break for it, Naruto hot on his heels. They reached the window and Naruto hped Konohamaru escape before looking back and seeing some of the members had regained their senses and destroyed the clones. "I'll stall them, run!" said Naruto. "I'm not leaving without you!" shouted Konohamaru, reaching out a hand for Naruto to grab. "No, the rebellion now resides with you and Sasuke. You must not be caught tonight! That's an order!" shouted Naruto, startling Konohamaru.
Reluctantly, Konohamaru nodded and ran off at full sprint. Naruto turned around and set off the paint bombs, covering the members and house, in orange paint. Naruto then charged forward, trying to buy Konohamaru time, and to spare him from the terrible fate of becoming a pervert.
And that is Chapter Nine. I hope you enjoyed my little bonus chapter. I know it doesn't make the greatest reference to Star Wars, but, I'll be a lot clearer in the next two bonus chapters. Also, I've had little vote for who Sakura should be paired with. I've gotten one SakuraxIno(Don't know about this one), one SakuraxLee, and two SakuraxKarin. It'll be a little while before the ship happens, but the next chapter is the last time to vote. If it's going to be SakuraxLee then I'll be starting it during the chunin exams, nothing extreme but enough to get the ball rolling. While I can see SakuraxIno, it'd be a little weird because it's kinda like Naruto and Sasuke's relationship where they care for each other like a sibling and not romantically. Also, I can bring in characters from fillers and movies if you want, just give me some suggestions and I'll see how they can be incorporated. Until next time!