Through The Darkness ch. 7
Naruto's P.O.V.
I called the scouting agent and it was Asuma Sarutobi for the Pirates. He wanted to meet me and show off what I can do. I couldn't hold back my excitement because this is my chance at the big leagues and reach my dreams of playing in the NFL. Hinata was coming with me for moral support and I'm gonna really need it. She was driving me to the practice where the Pirate normally practice at and I couldn't wait.
"You might wanna calm it down a little bit, Naruto-nii" Hinata said smirking a little.
"I can't help it. This is my shot at playing with one of the biggest teams out there" I said excitedly.
"You're gonna be amazing. They have to be crazy not to pick you" Hinata said pulling up into the parking a lot.
"Thanks Hina-chan, I'm gonna blow them away. Believe it!" I said pumping my arm in the arm.
We walked into the practice spot to see a bunch of the players from the team there. There was one guy with shaggy red hair and greenish blue eyes. He looks about a year older than me and I know who he is. It's Gaara Sabaku and he's the team captain. He's led the Pirates to the Superbowl at least twice and the guy is amazing. I never knew that he was this hot either.
The cameras don't do him justice. There was Sai and he reminds me of Sasuke but he's a lot paler. He's the tail back and I've heard that he's kinda of weird. There was Rock Lee and he has the weirdest eyebrows. They look like fuzzy caterpillars on his face and he was going hard on the field. I'm not sure why since practice hasn't started yet. I saw Asuma and he was walked towards us.
"I see that you made it" Asuma said holding out his hand.
"Yea, thanks for calling me. This is my sister, Hinata-chan" I said shaking his hand.
"Nice to meet you" Asuma said shaking her hand.
"You too and I'll get out of your way. Kick ass, Naruto-nii" Hinata said heading towards the belchers.
"Well Naruto, I've been to a coupe of your games recently and I have to say that I'm impressed" Asuma said smiling.
"Thank you sir, I have been working hard" I said trying to stay humble. No one likes a player with a huge ego.
"Modest I see, I like that. Well for today and tomorrow I'm going to have you practice with the team and see how it goes. If I like what I see and the team does as well then you might have a spot on the team"
I nodded but I was jumping for joy in my mind. Some incentive and now I'm really going to work on my ass off. The couch came out on the field and it was Anko Mitarashi. She seem pretty scary considering she's shorter than me. She walked up to me and grabbed me by the collar. Anko looked me over once and gave a sinister look that made me gulped loudly.
"So this is the new meat. Hehehe I'm gonna have fun toying with me" Anko said smiling a little.
She let me go and I looked at Asuma but he just laughs nervously. What the hell did I get myself into? I walked over towards the team and they were giving me looks of pity or shaking their heads. I am so dead and they knew it. Practice started and I found out that Anko is an evil task master. She pounded the drills into me and I was breathing heavily.
Anko had us run up and down the field at least 20 times, 50 push-ups, 50 sit-ups, and 75 bear crawls. I was breaking a sweat but the other guys weren't. How the hell are these guys able to do this and not break a sweat?
"Now that you are warmed up, it's time for real practice" Anko said grinning.
Warm up? This was a warm up? How the hell was this a warm up? I think this woman is trying to break me. There's no way that I'm gonna let her break me. I am Naruto Uzumaki and I will not break to no one. I take in a deep breath and stood up straight. I'll take on anything that Anko can throw at me. She made us run plays after plays and I pushed me harder than I ever had before.
I wanted to prove that I belong on this team and deserved to be here. I wanted to show them what I was made of. I catch 85% of the passes that were thrown my way and I'm proud of myself. Another hour goes by and practice was over for now. My legs felt like jelly and I was surprised that I was still standing.
"Hey new guy"
I turned around to see that it was Gaara and he was talking to me. I was surprised that he was talking to me of all people. Why is he talking to me?
"You're talking to me?" I asked pointing to me.
"Of course, I'm talking to you. Who else is the new guy here?" He asked smirking a little.
I blush a little. I guess that it was a stupid question. I am the only new guy here. What the hell is wrong with me? Gaara laughs a little at me and my cheeks were turning even more pink than before.
"Nice job out there. Most guys on their first day would have collapsed by now after Anko was done with them" Gaara said smiling.
"Well, I'm not like most guys" I said puffing out my chest.
"Okay, I'll give you that but be prepared for tomorrow. Anko isn't gonna let you off the hook just because you survived the first day"
Oh jeebus, I am going to die tomorrow. I barely survive today and now I gonna survive tomorrow.
"I'll be fine. I don't scare that easily, believe it" I said confidently.
"I like the confidence, kid. The name's Gaara by the way" Gaara said holding out his hand.
"I'm Naruto. Naruto Uzumaki" I said shaking his hand.
"Nice meeting you, Naruto and I hope that you make the team" Gaara said walking away.
I walked towards Asuma and he was smoking a cigarette. He was talking with Anko and I wasn't too sure of what they were talking about but they stopped when I reached them. Anko smiled sinisterly and patted me on the shoulder.
"I'll see you tomorrow, Whiskers" Anko said walking away.
"Whiskers?" I asked raising a eyebrow.
"She gives most of the players nicknames and apparently yours is Whiskers… Whiskers" Asuma said laughing at me.
I glared at him. I don't want that kind of nicknames and I haven't the foggiest idea why Anko would call me that. What am I? A cat or something?
"Don't worry about it too much, Naruto. I think you did pretty good today and I'm impressed that you were able to keep with Anko's insanity" Asuma said putting out his cigarette.
"You and me both" I said shaking my head.
"I'll see you tomorrow at practice and bring your A game" Asuma said leaving.
I walked away to Hinata and she patted me on shoulder. I never left so tired before it'll be worth it once I'm on the team. Hinata drove us home and I was ready to collapse on my bed. When we got home, the house was empty. I could assume that Mom was working and Kyuubi was who knows where. He always disappears around 5 and doesn't come back until 12 or 1 in the morning.
I can't imagine what the hell he's going or where he's going but I really don't want to know. I took a quick shower and change into a plain t-shirt and sweatpants. I flopped on my bed and I was ready to take a nap when Hinata knocks on my door. I groaned a little before looking at her.
"What is it, Hina-chan?"
"I just wanted to tell you that I have a date tonight with Akira-kun and I was hoping that you… that y-you and Kyuubi-nii won't e-embarrass me" Hinata said pushing her index fingers together.
What the fuck? What kind of question is that? Embarrass her? Embarrass her in front of her friend? I refuse to say boyfriend because Hinata is too young to have a boyfriend.
"So Kyuubi and me embarrass you?" I asked raising eyebrow.
"No, nothing like that. I-It's just y-you two can be pretty h-h-harsh when I bring someone home" Hinata said stuttering.
I sigh a little bit because what Hinata is saying is true. Kyuubi and me can be pretty harsh when it comes to who Hinata brings home and she hardly brings any guys home. It won't hurt us to be a little bit nicer to the guy… maybe.
"Okay, I'll try but I can't say anything for Kyuubi. You know how he is" I said shrugging.
She smiles and hugs me. I hug her back and Hinata skips merrily out the door. I shake my head and take a quick nap. Oye, I gonna meet Hinata's… "friend". This isn't going to be fun for me.
Hinata's P.O.V.
I'm nervous. I'm really nervous but I have butterflies in my stomach. On hand, I'm going on a date with Akira-kun but on the other hand, I'm introducing him to my brothers. I made Naruto-nii promise to not embarrass but I'm worried what Kyuubi-nii might do to him. Even if I ask him to not embarrass me, I'm sure he'll do it anyways.
I hope Akira-kun still wants to go out with me after tonight. I really like him and Mom likes him too. I have to get dressed quickly because he'll be here any minute. I looked through my closet and decided on a simple lavender blouse and skirt. I put on a little bit of makeup but not too much. I hear a knock on the door and put on my shoes before going to answer it.
I open the door to see Akira-kun with his usual goofy grin on his face and pink tiger lilies in his hands. Akira was wearing a white shirt with a black and red jacket over it and blue jeans. He tries to contain his curly hair with a hat but it looks weird but cute on him. He remembered that I like tiger lilies.
"Hi Hinata-chan, these are for you" Akira said handing them to me.
"Thank you Akira-chan, you remembered" I said letting him in.
"Of course, I remembered but they're not as pretty as you are" Akira said blushing a little.
I feel my cheek heating up. He's always complementing me and I go to the flowers in water. I find a vase in the cabinets and fill it with water. I place the flowers in the vase and hopefully they'll last for awhile. I walk out of the kitchen to find Naruto talking to Akira and he hasn't tried to kill my date… yet.
"Akira-kun, I see that you met my brother Naruto. Naruto-nii, this is Akira-kun" I said introducing them.
"So you're taking out my sister, huh?" He asked raising an eyebrow.
"Um y-yes sir" Akira said nervously.
Naruto looks Akira up and down with a questioning look on his face. Why is he doing this? Akira is obliviously uncomfortable with this.
"What are your plans?" Naruto asked.
"I-I was planning maybe t-to take H-Hinata to a m-m-movie and dinner" Akira said rubbing his shoulder.
"Wow, you two are just alike when you're nervous. You better treat her right and Hinata-chan, have fun" Naruto said kissing me on the top of my head.
Wow… I was expecting a full-on interrogation but I'm glad that he restrain himself. Akira-kun seemed to be surprised as well but relieved that he didn't get chewed out. I told Naruto that I'll see him later and grabbed Akira by the hand. We left before Naruto could say anything else.
Naruto's P.O.V.
Hinata's lucky that I was able to restrain myself but now that I know what I'm working with, all bets are off. I can be as protective as I want to. The door opens to see Kyuubi and he looks exhausted. Why does he look exhausted for? What was he doing before he got here?
"Hey bro" Kyuubi said nodding his greeting.
"You look shit" I said frowning.
"Thanks for the uptake" He said rolling his eyes at me.
"What were you doing?" I asked curious.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" He said smirking.
"That's why I'm asking, baka" I said rolling my eyes.
"That's for me to know and for you to never know"
I can't stand him sometimes. I wish he would give a straight answer instead of speaking in freaking riddles.
"I met Hinata's date" I said sitting on my bed.
"I saw him in the hallway and I think Hinata might be mad with me" Kyuubi said chuckling.
"Why?" I asked confused.
"I kind of started to interrogating him and Hinata pulled him away before I could finish"
I called it and knew that it was going to happen. Kyuubi is more protective then I am but he has reasons for it.
"How was practice?" Kyuubi asked curious.
"Brutal and I have to show up tomorrow for another practice" I said shuttering.
"That's the price you have to pay for NFL" Kyuubi said sitting on his bed.
I nodded. If this is the price that I have to pay then I'll pay it a million times over. I want to be a great player and this is the cost of being one.
Next Day
I caught the bus to practice and most of the guys was here except for Gaara. I was kinda hoping that he'll here already but I'll stretch until he gets here. I set my bag by the bench and walked onto the field. I felt someone smack my ass and I jumped a little. I covered my ass and turned to who did it. It's Sai and he was smiling perversely at him. What the hell? Where the fuck did he come from?
"Nice butt, Whiskers" Sai said winking at me.
"What the hell? My name isn't Whiskers, it's Naruto!" I yelled blushing.
This guy is just like Neji. Is there perverts like Sai and Neji on every team or is it just the teams that I find? Sai was about to say something when Gaara showed up.
"Sai, quit it. Anko isn't able to make it to practice due to some emergency that came up so I'm in charge" Gaara said serious.
I wasn't sure if I had to come to the next practice since Anko isn't going to be here to evaluate me. Gaara seems to sense my conflictions and tells me that he'll report to Anko on my process. I made me feel a little bit better but I'm not sure if practicing with Gaara in charge will be easier or harder. I'll find out soon enough. The red head had drills over and over again and if one of us mess up, we start all over again.
I'm sure Gaara was busting everyone's balls especially mine. He was extra hard on me then everyone else but I'm assuming that was because I'm the new guy. Gaara run plays and he rarely gave out compliments. After 4 hours of practice, I was ready to pass out on the field.
"Hey Naruto, some of the guys are going out for pizza. Do you wanna come?" Gaara asked walking up to me.
"You're not gonna make me run drills if I say no" I asked raising an eyebrow.
"No, you can say no if you don't want to" Gaara said smiling.
"I'll come but you're paying" I said smiling back.
End of ch. 7.