Chapter 34: Intruders!?

April popped one of her homemade frozen breakfast burritos in the oven while she mixed herself a smoothie of spinach, blueberries, and green tea for a boost of energy. Her hair was still damp from the shower she took after her morning run, but it should be dry by the time she was done eating.

She and Naruto finished getting ready for the day and emerged from their apartments at about the same time. Once they finished locking up, their eyes met, and they grinned.

"Yaay!!! I'm going to kick ass on today's mission!!!" Naruto shouted as they took off, racing to the meeting spot. "Uwaa!!!! Mach 5!!!!!" He yelled as he tried to catch up to April, who quickly gained the lead.

"Haha! Victory!!" April cheered as she reached the others first, throwing her hands up in the air.

"I see you two are energetic as always…" Sakura remarked wryly. Where did they get the energy to be this excited so early in the morning?

"Good morning!!! Sakura-chan!!!" Naruto greeted her enthusiastically. "!" He said, stopping short and furrowing his brow when his eyes landed on Sasuke.

"!" Sasuke said, narrowing his eyes as they glared at each other.

"Hmph!" Both boys huffed as they abruptly broke eye contact and turned away at the same time, snubbing each other.

"…" The girls said, sweat-dropping as they watched.

'Not again…' April thought, chagrined. 'Aside from that time when we tried to see Kakashi-sensei's face, their relationship with each other has been steadily worsening…'

'These two have been weird since returning from the Land of Waves…' Sakura thought, also chagrined. It was too early for this kind of tension. It was starting to get awkward… 'Cha! Kakashi-sensei!! Hurry!!!' Inner Sakura cried.

"Alrighty, then!" April said suddenly, breaking the silence, as she dropped into position to do some pushups. She was so glad to have that cast off! "Boom! Boom! Boom! Clap!—" She clapped as she pushed up and quickly caught herself, transitioning flawlessly into another pushup. "—You're picture perfect blue—CLAP—Sunbathing on a moon—CLAP—Stars shining as your bones illuminate—"

"Uh… What are you doing?" Sasuke asked, furrowing his brow as all three of her teammates stared at her. What did she think she was doing in the middle of the road? Sakura was glad April had managed to break the tension between the boys, but now things were kind of weird for another reason…

"Singing-clap pushups." April answered, as if it should have been obvious. Instead of counting reps with numbers as she went, she preferred to just workout to the rhythm of her favorite songs and calculate her rate reps per song ahead of time in order to keep track of how many she was doing. That way she could have fun working out instead of having to focus on trying to remember what number she was on. It was easier for her to remember words than numbers, and the words never changed, so she immediately knew where she had left off in her workout if she had to pause for some reason. "They're fun. Want to give it a try?"

"Fun!?" Sakura asked, flinching in surprise. It looked ridiculously hard! April was making it look easy, but doing so many things at once obviously involved a lot of hand-eye coordination and strength in the muscles and lungs… Not to mention the mental fortitude required in order to be able belt out lyrics to what was obviously some sort of love song in public... She wasn't even that good of a singer.

"No." Sasuke refused bluntly. She had a lot of guts to do that when she couldn't even stay in tune. Her breathing was steady, but her voice was all over the place.

"April…" Naruto said, sweat-dropping. This wasn't his first time witnessing her perform this particular exercise, but they were usually secluded in the woods where no one else could hear. Out here in the open, it was kind of embarrassing. "It's fine if you want to do pushups or something while we wait, but your singing is a little…"

"I'll stop when you two stop making it awkward for me and Sakura while we have to wait with you for Sensei to show up." April said with a cunning gleam in her eye, knowing her actions were embarrassing them more than they were her. Her skin was much thicker against stuff like this.

'She's blackmailing us!?' Naruto and Sasuke thought, rearing back in shock.

The boys eventually gave in when they saw the first pedestrian headed their way, and everyone was able to wait in a much less awkward, mutually beneficial silence after that, which was a good thing, because Kakashi didn't end up arriving until three hours later.

"Hey, guys!" Kakashi greeted them casually with a little wave when he finally showed up. "I got lost."

"Stop lying with a straight face!!!" Sakura snapped immediately as she pointed a finger at him. "Give it a rest!!"

"You're a failure as a ninja!!" Naruto added, giving the jōnin a thumbs down. Kakashi sweat-dropped. He didn't want to hear that from Naruto, of all people…

"Those are big words for someone who can't do clap pushups without falling on their face." April deadpanned, causing Naruto to flinch as his cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

"S-Shut up!!!" He snapped indignantly, glancing nervously at the others to see their reactions. Sasuke and Sakura were both staring at him like he was an idiot. Kakashi was unsurprised. "Damn it, April!!" He cursed, shaking his fist at her while she looked away, acting innocent. He told her not to talk about that!!

"Anyway, Sensei, what's our mission for today?" April asked, changing the subject.

"Well…" Kakashi started to say, when a certain someone rudely interrupted him.

"Hey, hey!!! Kakashi-sensei!!!" Naruto said loudly, perking up instantly at the first mention of a mission. "Lately all of our Team 7's missions have been too easy!! I want a more, you know, hot one!! Where I can shine!! That follows my ninja path!! And my heart, like…!!!" He declared, burning fiercely with excitement.

'Any hotter, and you could roast marshmallows on him…' April thought with a wry smile.

"Yeah, Yeah." Kakashi said with a sigh, sweat-dropping. "I pretty much know what you're going to say…" They watched as Naruto suddenly narrowed his eyes and whipped his head around to glare at Sasuke again. April let out a sigh and shook her head. He never learned, did he?

'Damn it… This guy…' Naruto growled internally as his eyebrow twitched with irritation. 'Always making me look bad and stealing the spotlight… I won't lose!!!' He grit his teeth as he began to daydream about Sasuke being the one who needed saving for once. At the last minute, he would jump in like a hero and say 'Pft… Can't you take care of yourself?' in a really cool way. 'Today I want to… Say something like that!" He thought determinedly, clenching his fist.

"Hey, Naruto, what are you doing? Let's go!" Kakashi called as he and the others started to walk away.

"Roger!!!" Naruto shouted enthusiastically as he ran to catch up with them.

"You're seriously annoying today!!!" Sakura snapped at him.

–∞–

After the day's mission was completed…

"Geez, it's because you push yourself too much." Sakura scolded Naruto with a frown, annoyed. He was in such bad shape by the end of their simple D-rank mission, that he had to lean on her and April for support. Just what the heck was he trying to do?

"Yeah, it's good to always try to put in your best effort, but you were too reckless this time." April agreed.

"Haah…" Naruto sighed, too exhausted to argue. All of his extra effort had backfired, leaving him completely beat up.

"Well, I guess I'll have to make you a Chunky Monkey when we get home, huh?" April suggested with a wry smile.

"!!" Naruto gasped, immediately perking up. That was one of his favorite non-ramen snacks!

"Chunky Monkey…?" Sakura asked dubiously.

"It's what I call my post-workout smoothie made with bananas, peanut butter, and chocolate milk." April explained. "FYI, chocolate milk can help the body recover after exercise because of its four to one carb-to-protein ratio."

'Her naming sense is just like Minato-sensei's…' Kakashi thought with a wry smile.

"What? Really?" Sakura asked, surprised. "I had no idea… I don't usually drink milk."

"That's not good, Sakura-chan." April said, concerned. "Unless you're lactose intolerant, you should have at least one glass of milk a day, especially since you're a girl. It not only helps with muscle-building and weight loss, but it also helps make your bones stronger and can help reduce the risk of developing osteoporosis and knee osteoarthritis later on."

"But didn't you break your wrist a while back?" Sakura reminded her skeptically.

"I said 'stronger' not 'indestructible'." April retorted with a straight face. "And it was just a hairline fracture… Ah!!" She gasped suddenly as she remembered something important. "I almost forgot! They're having a big sale on meat today!! Three for the price of one!!!" She exclaimed excitedly, quickly checking the time.

"Eh!!? Is that today!!?" Naruto asked as she checked the time, alarmed. Damn, why did he have to be in such bad shape at a time like this!?

"Crap!! There's only fifteen minutes left on the sale!!! Sorry, Sensei, but can I please be excused early!!?" She pleaded anxiously, staring up at him with big, sad eyes.

"Uh…" Kakashi said, a little taken aback. He looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

"You'd better let her go, Kakashi-sensei!!" Naruto said urgently. "We haven't eaten any real meat in weeks!!!" They were totally out, and he was getting really tired of the other sources of protein April had been using.

"Y-Yeah, sure…" Kakashi agreed, sweat-dropping. April spared a moment to beam up at him in gratitude with the radiance of a thousand suns before taking off like a shot, disappearing with unprecedented speed. "… What just happened?" He asked Naruto, sweat-dropping.

"Meat's usually too expensive for us, so April waits to buy it all on sale. Then she freezes it to make it last longer and thaws it out whenever we need some." Naruto explained. "Since the meat super-sale only happens once a year, and the discount is only good for a certain amount per customer… I usually go with her, and then we each stand in line and pay separately so we can get twice the amount, but… During the times when I can't make it, she'll just use the Transformation Jutsu to get back in line and buy my share for me." With the shape he was in at the moment, there's no way he was going to be able to get there in time.

'Well, that's one way to do it…' Kakashi thought, though he had mixed feelings about her using her jutsus that way. Minor ethical concerns aside, that was pretty resourceful of her.

'Isn't that cheating?' Sakura thought, sweat-dropping. She was annoyed April had just left her there as Naruto's only support. Why were they freaking out so much? It was just meat. It didn't occur to her that Naruto and April didn't have as much income as her parents.

"Pft… Can't you take care of yourself?" Sasuke remarked disdainfully. First he gets himself hurt on a simple mission, and now this. How did Naruto survive before he met April?

"!" Sakura said as Naruto flinched and grit his teeth, scowling as a vein throbbed on his forehead. Uh-oh.

"God dammnit!! Zazuge!!!" Naruto yelled angrily, using the last of his remaining energy to flail his arms while Sakura held him back.

"If you don't calm down, I'll finish you!!!" She snapped at him, making a fist.

"Tch." Sasuke clicked his tongue in annoyance at the fuss they were all making and turned to leave.

"…" Kakashi said as he watched, frowning slightly. Those two had been like this off and on the whole day. "Hmm… Teamwork seems to be suffering lately…" He remarked, wondering what their problem was. They seemed to be getting along fine a few weeks ago.

"Yeah!!! Yeah!!! You're the one ruining our teamwork, Sasuke!!! Always hogging the spotlight, you bastard!!!" Naruto shouted obnoxiously.

"That's you, you moron." Sasuke retorted coolly. "If you want me to stop making you look bad… Then just become stronger than me." He said challengingly, pausing to glance back at him, furrowing his brow in annoyance.

"!!" Naruto said, also furrowing his brow. The two boys glared intensely at each other.

'They're somehow even worse than before…' Sakura thought nervously as she watched them.

'Damn it, this pisses me off.' Sasuke thought, narrowing his eyes as the crease in his brow deepened. 'There are tons of guys out there stronger than me, yet I have to do these stupid missions…' Kakashi watched his students silently. He could more or less guess what Sasuke was thinking.

"!" He said, glancing up at the sky when he heard a hawk's cry. "Ok, that's it for today." He told his students, breaking up the fight that was threatening to start. "I have to go submit this mission report…"

"Then I'm going home…" Sasuke said, turning to leave without hesitation. He didn't want to be there any longer than he had to.

"Oh!" Sakura gasped, realizing this was her chance. "Hey, Sasuke-kun, Wait." She said, running after him.

"!" Naruto gasped, flinching in shock and disappointment as she totally ditched him without a second glance.

"How about right now… We work on our teamwork, just the two of us…?" She suggested when she caught up to Sasuke, blushing.

"You're the same as Naruto." Sasuke said bluntly, delivering a heavy psychological blow. Sakura stared at him, slightly stunned, as Inner Sakura struggled under the weight of an imaginary boulder with the words 'same as Naruto' carved into it. "If you have time to bother me, go practice a jutsu or two. Frankly, your ability is below Naruto's." He added as a parting shot, dropping and even bigger bomb on her.

'He's right…' She realized dejectedly. 'In every mission, I do the least…' Even April, who was prone to collapsing from using too much chakra on simple of jutsus that the rest of them could pull off easily, pulled more weight in the group than her thanks to her skills in taijutsu…

"Sakura-chan!! Forget Sasuke, let's train together!!" Naruto said brightly, sounding way too happy about his rejection of her for her liking. A vein throbbed on her head as tears streamed down her face. It was so galling to think Sasuke considered her lower than that. Kakashi chose that moment to quickly disappear. He hoped Naruto would still be alive later…

–∞–

"Thanks for the reports." Iruka said as Kakashi handed them over. "… So is Naruto… doing well with his teammates?" He asked hopefully.

"Well… to an extent…" Kakashi said a bit hesitantly as he avoided eye contact, putting it kindly.

"I've been busy lately… I haven't seen him since he got back." Iruka admitted a bit bashfully, scratching his cheek. He'd never gone this long without checking up on Naruto before. "I'm a little worried… but I guess he'll be fine as long as he's with April. She must have known I'd been missing them, because she sent me a message via Moegi-chan that you all had returned safely and Naruto was doing his best with training… She's a good kid."

"Yeah…" Kakashi agreed. Having her around was a big help. "As you know, Naruto's also with that Sasuke Uchiha. He sees him as his rival, and they argue a lot, but the results are that they are both improving greatly, almost enough to surpass you." April, too… though it would probably take her a little longer to get there with her handicap.

"…!" Iruka was surprised, but he smiled. "Is that so?" He asked, genuinely pleased for his students.

–∞–

April hummed happily as she walked the streets with bags full of several pounds worth of meat. She had managed to get both hers and Naruto's share in record time.

"Hm?" She said when she spotted Sasuke crossing paths with the road she was on. "Hey, Sasuke!" She called cheerfully, getting his attention. "Where's everyone else?"

"Hmph. How should I know." He answered snippily, obviously in a bad mood. April sweat-dropped, slightly chagrined at the attitude he was giving her. Would it kill him to smile?

"Bastard!!!" They heard a familiar voice shout angrily somewhere further back down the road from where Sasuke had just come.

'Oh, there's Naruto…' April thought. "!" She was surprised when she felt a small, but sudden spike in unfamiliar chakra. 'What the…?'

"Whoa!!" He cried out in surprise and alarm, sounding like he was in a serious pinch.

"That can't be good…!" April said, furrowing her brow, as she quickly headed towards the sound's point of origin.

"Hey, what are you…" Sasuke started say, when he heard the voices of some scared kids crying.

"Konohamaru-chan!!"

"Konohamaru-kun!!"

"Hey!! You fat pig!!! If you don't let him go, I'll make you pay!!" Naruto shouted furiously. "Fat ass!! Idiot!!"

"Ugh!" Sasuke groaned, deciding he'd better go after her and help. She just rushed in without a thought whenever Naruto was in trouble… It was seriously annoying, but there was obviously something worse going on than just Naruto screwing up again. As they drew closer, they could hear more of what was going on.

"Basically… I hate midgets…" An unfamiliar young, male voice said. "Especially younger ones that are rude… makes me want to kill them!"

"!" April and Sasuke furrowed their brows. That was real killing intent they sensed up ahead. They exchanged a brief glance and nodded in understanding, before splitting up to divide and conquer.

"Wha…!!?" Naruto yelled incredulously, scared for Konohamaru.

"!!" Sakura gasped in alarm. Moegi and Udon were trembling with fear, reduced to tears.

"Oh well…" The blonde girl who was with the creep threatening Konohamaru said boredly. "I'm not involved…"

"You bastard!!!" Naruto shouted furiously, breaking out into a nervous sweat. What should he do? How could he get Konohamaru away from this guy!?

'What's with this guy…?' Sakura wondered, also sweating nervously. 'This is bad…' If only Sasuke were there…

"Well, after this one, I'll take care of that other annoying midget!!" The guy holding Konohamaru sneered as he clenched his free hand into a fist and pulled it back, preparing to strike.

"!!" Naruto gasped. He grit his teeth, launching himself forward as Konohamaru's attacker swung his fist forward. "Hey!!!!" Naruto shouted desperately, praying he would make it in time.

WHAP! WOOSH!

"!!" They all gasped as a blur of purple, white, and brown flashed by as something hit the wrist of Konohamaru's attacker. As a small stone hit the ground, April skidded to a stop in front of Naruto and the others, with her bags of meat tucked under arms, holding Konohamaru tight, completely safe and unharmed.

"A… April-neechan…!!" Moegi exclaimed, crying with relief, while the others stared at her, stunned.

'No… No way…' Sakura thought, shocked. She knew April was fast, but that was just…

"Hey…!!!" Konohamaru's attacker growled angrily, glaring fiercely at her for interfering. Did she throw that stone, too!? That damn thing had drawn blood!!!

"What are you bastards doing in our village?" Sasuke asked sternly from his perch up on a tree branch above them, alerting everyone to his presence, as he tossed another stone up and down in his hand, ready to go again at anytime.

"Sasuke-kun!!!!" Sakura squealed excitedly, super relieved that he had come back to save the day.

"Uh…" Naruto groaned. He was glad that April had saved Konohamaru, and his little friend was okay, but… he really wished she had left Sasuke out of it. Konohamaru's attacker narrowed his eyes as he glanced up at Sasuke. So, it was him... A bead of nervous sweat slid down the side of his face. He could tell Sasuke was on a whole different level than the others. He knew April was good, but Sasuke was the one who really made him nervous.

'He's pretty handsome…' The blonde haired girl thought, blushing slightly as she eyed Sasuke appreciatively.

–∞–

"You've been assembled for one reason only." The Third Hokage told the ninjas gathered before him. "It should be obvious by the members here."

"It's already that time…" Kakashi mused.

"It's already been reported to the other countries. I saw them in the village." Genma Shiranui remarked.

"So, when is it?" Kakashi asked.

"In a week." The Hokage replied, taking a puff on his tobacco pipe.

"Wow, that soon?" One of the other jōnin asked, surprised. The Third exhaled the smoke from his lungs.

"Well, I'll announce it properly, seven days from now." The wizened old man said calmly. "On the first day of the seventh moon… the Chūnin Selection Exam will commence!!"