To be honest this chapter has been on my laptop for a while now but I stopped writing because I sort of lost motivation. I still really like the premise of this story and I think I had a pretty good idea for where this story should go so I've decided I might pick it up again but I can't promise when I'll next update. Even in lockdown school keeps me a bit busy as well as other things in general. I'll see the response to this chapter and if people are still interested in the story and then decide.
I don't own Naruto
Chapter 5
Their team had managed to pass the test, if only just barely. Naruko was sitting in her bed thinking about the test that they were given. The girl had massively improved after her time with Madara and Hashirama, her taijutsu on a similar level to Sasuke's. The blonde had only fought Hashirama and Madara for the months she spent with them and as they were who they were, it wasn't a lot to go off for Naruko to assess her own abilities. The bell test had allowed her to see if she had grown or not.
Obviously the girl wasn't expecting to be able to defeat a jonin but the test had given her more confidence in her abilities. What stuck with her more were the words that Kakashi had given her after they had all passed the test.
"Those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their friends and comrades are even worse than trash"
Naruko had taken these words seriously, as though they were the first lesson that Kakashi had given her. She hadn't been able to defeat Kakashi on her own, Sakura hadn't been able to defeat Kakashi on her own and even Sasuke wasn't able to defeat Kakashi alone.
Thankfully Naruko and Sasuke had both been on the same page. She had tried to beat Kakashi and showed him her abilities and Sasuke had done the same, yet the sensei wasn't sure what Sakura could do as she was unable to fight after being caught in the genjutsu. They had both offered Sakura food, for the girl needed it far more than either of them did. The girl had skipped having dinner the night before and so was far more hungry then either of the other two.
When Kakashi had suddenly appeared all of them were startled. Despite this the three of them stood by the decision they had made and this was what determined whether they pass or not. Kakashi's test had been about team work and by not abandoning each other in the end they had passed.
Naruko was so glad she didn't have to go back to the academy and that night she slept with a smile on her face.
The following day had been terrible. They had been introduced to D rank missions and Naruko hated them. They were boring and not filled with the adventure that Naruko imagined missions would have. The training they undertook was basic and felt more like going over what they already knew then learning anything new. It did make sense, there was no point learning more advanced techniques if they hadn't mastered the basics but Naruko didn't have to like it.
Weeks passed by and it all felt the same. In three weeks team 7 had completed 63 D rank missions. Unknown to team 7, this was more than the other genin teams that passed with them that year had done combined. With Naruko's shadow clones missions were finished extremely quickly. Kakashi didn't feel like telling them that they didn't have to do so many missions in a day as all of their money was steadily increasing. It wasn't that he needed it very much as he had earned a lot during his days in Anbu but it didn't hurt to have extra.
All three members of team 7 had managed to refine their taijutsu but despite the major improvement for Naruko, she still was unable to defeat Sasuke. However in the academy Sasuke had always been able to beat her within seconds and now it would often take around five minutes for their fights to end. Sakura had also been better and better, although she was unable to keep up with the progress that Naruko and Sasuke were making.
The team walked out of the Hokages office after collecting pay for the last mission of their day. It had been long and boring but the members of team 7 at least appreciated the pay they got from doing the missions.
"Okay team we're done for today. We'll meet tomorrow at the usual time," Kakashi said before he left via shunshin.
With the teams dismissal Sasuke began walking off to his home when Sakura called out after him.
"Sasuke-kun," Sakura called. He didn't even acknowledge her. Whilst this could be seen as harsh it's not like this is the first time Sakura had done this and therefore Sasuke felt there was no point to dismiss her request again. Sakura asked him to get dinner with her every day and Sasuke had simply grown tired of telling her no.
"Oi Sasuke," Naruko called out.
Sakura's face scrunched up in silent rage. Why did Naruko want to talk with Sasuke, was she going to ask him on a date. The pink haired genin felt herself reach boiling point when Sasuke stopped and turned around to see what the blonde team mate had to say.
Sasuke gave her a questioning look.
"Fight me," Naruko asked. She had felt like she came really close to beating him last time and was convinced that if they had another match then she would win.
Sasuke took a moment before answering. His initial reaction was to deny her, the two had already fought and he had won. It wouldn't do the Uchiha any good to just fight people he was better than, that wouldn't help him to improve. Yet looking into Naruko's eyes, he saw the fierce determination that his team mate possessed and it made him want to fight her.
"Okay come on then," Sasuke said back to her. He then continued his walk to the Uchiha compound. Why am I doing this? I've never let anyone come to the Uchiha compound since that day, not once in all these years. So why don't I mind Naruko being there?
Naruko followed after Sasuke after catching up to him. She would never say this out loud but she enjoyed being around Sasuke, he reminded her of Madara. Not in the way that he acted, for Sasuke and Madara were very different. The two of them fought differently, spoke differently and had had very different interests. However Naruko got a feeling from Sasuke that was similar to the one that she had gotten from Madara. The feeling didn't have a name and Naruko wasn't sure if it was even real but for her it was there. Being around Sasuke put her at ease and also reminded her of one of her best friends.
Arriving at Sasuke's house the boy stopped. He took a deep breath, double checking that he was okay with letting someone in. Sasuke looked towards Naruko and could see a look of confusion drawn across her face. He studied her again and he wasn't sure why. He had never been interested in anyone, his mind often occupied with getting stronger. He had been diligent in his studies at the academy and also trained many hours of the day.
He took in her eyes, hair, smile, everything and found himself feeling a way he never had before. It scared him slightly, that man's words often ringing in his head.
"You have the potential Sasuke. To gain greater power you most kill the one you love most"
Sasuke shook his head; it wouldn't do him any good to think back to that night.
"Come in," Sasuke muttered before entering his house. He walked straight through to the back where there was a training ground that had belonged to his family.
Naruko was intrigued when she entered but felt her excitement fade away to understanding. The house was dull and empty; there wasn't much of anything anywhere. The walls were plain and anything that was there was perfectly put in its place. Naruko followed Sasuke and he didn't stop for anything as they went straight to the back of his house.
Naruko, like Sasuke, lived alone and understood how lonely it could feel. While she personally dealt with it differently, filling her apartment with colours and mess, she could understand Sasuke leaving it mostly alone.
"Okay we're here, now let's fight," Sasuke said with a hint of irritation. It wasn't because he didn't want to fight but he felt a bit off having someone else in his house or garden.
"Uh right," Naruko said as she was dragged away from her thoughts. They began sparring and it started off the same as it usually did. They fought for about a minute, neither all out attacking. Then the pace increased and strikes became harder and faster. Both of them were getting into the fight and began to forget about their thoughts they had had a moment ago. Another minute passed and then they were completely indulged in their fight.
Naruko threw a punch towards Sasuke's head which was blocked before the Uchiha countered. He caught Naruko's cheek with one of his attacks and pressed his advantage. The Uchiha followed with a barrage of kicks which Naruko barely managed to avoid. However she spotted an opening when he landed and Naruko unexpectedly leapt forward. Her fist met his face and Sasuke was sent tumbling backwards before he quickly found his feat. By the time he did this Naruko had already thrown more attacks at him.
Naruko had the advantage as strike after strike slowly wore down Sasuke's defence. She feinted with an attack to his head and then launched a kick at Sasuke's mid-section. Sasuke doubled over in pain and he realised that the fight was about to truly slip away from him. He grit his teeth as he unexpectedly threw a punch at Naruko who had just retracted her foot from the kick.
Naruko went flying into the ground a few paces away from Sasuke. This gave them both a moment to take a breath. Their eyes locked and both found smiles forming on their faces. They wouldn't tell each other but they liked the spars they had with each other and both silently complimented each other on their attacks.
They continued to spar, not having any worry about the time and before they knew it a few hours had passed. Both were panting hard but had accomplished looks on their faces. They had made mistakes in their spar and noticed them and both felt that they could improve upon them.
"Hey Sasuke," Naruko began. "Um… thanks," she said shyly. She was still panting but felt her face blush slightly.
Sasuke wasn't sure how to answer that. He hadn't had any moments like this for so long that he didn't know how to react.
"It's fine," he decided to say. It was only after stopping that he realised how hungry he was. They had done D rank missions as well as some training and Sasuke had hardly had a break the whole day and Naruko was in the same situation. "Did you want something to eat," he offered. Why don't I just send her away like I would with Sakura?
Naruko brushed sweat away from her forehead before answering. "Are you sure it's okay?"
Before she met Madara and Hashirama Naruko wasn't entirely sure of proper etiquette and things like that but she had subconsciously picked some of it up from Madara and Hashirama who spoke a lot better than people did in present day Konoha. Naruko would never be described as polite but that didn't mean she couldn't check with people before outright accepting.
"Hn," Sasuke turned away. "It's fine."
Sasuke let Naruko into his home as he began making some food. He felt slightly awkward, cooking for someone else let alone Naruko but she didn't seem bothered as she just sat in a comfortable silence. Without making it obvious; Sasuke observed his team mate. In the academy he had always just assumed that she was loud and annoying and would do anything for attention. She pulled pranks and always got into trouble. Her scores had often been the lowest in the class and he was fairly sure that she had initially failed the genin exam or the first one at least. And yet here she was, being quiet and not annoying at all. Sasuke supposed he shouldn't judge everyone he didn't know well personally. Maybe his team wouldn't be so bad after all.
Okay the chapter is finished please review and tell me what you thought. I think I might increase the pace of the story and get to Naruko's next adventure in time.
I hope you liked it - J
