Guess who's back ladies and germs! I made it back to the mid-west Sunday and I'm updating today because this is the first day I've finished all my homework before 10 'o clock. Anyways, please take the time to thank my new favorite Ausi for beta-ing (Is that a word?) this chapter: Kirallie (not real name, of course). I'm serious. You might just leave a review that says "Thank you Kirallie-san for helping my favorite author with his amazing work and aiding in the effort to put more of this great story where I can read it." Or maybe you'd do something more realistic. To each his own. Or her own, just so I don't look like a sexist ass.
I don't own Naruto or anything else I might allude to in this story. If I did own Naruto, I would make sure that none of my characters were genderly confused.
"Just a few more test, Mr. Kyuubi. We need to test the white blood cell count again. Stay still so we can take the sample." A man with large, round glasses stood in a white coat. In one hand he held a flat board with paper attached to it. A clipboard? His other hand was gripping the silver handle attached to a long piece of wood. He was leaning on this stick. A walking stick? Behind him was a wall covered with glowing screens and flashing buttons. It made him sick to look at it.
"No! No more test. No more needles. Leave me alone. Leave me alone…" He was sobbing now. The needles, the tests, the machines, they all had to stop. He was done. He wanted to leave. He had had enough, forever.
"Now that's no way to behave, Mr. Kyuubi. Mrs. Dawson, hit him with the sedatives." A woman with a wardrobe similar to the man's pulled out a large syringe and approached him.
"NO! STAY AWAY! NO MORE! NO MORE!" His vision became blurry, wisps of red flashing in and out of his line of vision. The needle kept coming. He saw the tip tilt towards his chest. He knew what would happen after they put that in him.
"STAY AWAY!" The tip slid its way into his chest cavity. It went right into his skin. He screamed in pain. The needles. The needles were killing him. Soon they would suck out what life remained in his broken body. He was going to die.
"NO!" Ky was sitting up. Sweat was pouring from his face and sides. His clothes were stuck to his body, held on by the salt water. There was no glowing wall, no man with a stick, and no women with a needle. It was a dream. It was just a bad dream. A terrible nightmare.
He turned his head to look at his partner. Naruto appeared to be fast asleep. His scream didn't seem to have affected the exhausted boy. That was good; he needed his sleep. Ky turned his head to the window. It was bright out side. Very bright. It couldn't still be morning. What time was it? Ky grabbed Naruto's alarm clock.
"Shit. Oi, wake up kit!" Ky had kicked the sleeping boy in the ribs. Naruto woke up almost instantly.
"That hurt! What the hell was that for?" Ky tossed the alarm clock to him, not caring if he was ready to catch it.
"We're going to be late, kit. Let's go." Naruto had danced a little jig trying to catch the alarm clock, but he managed to turn it so he could see the numbers.
"Shit! Let's go Ky." Naruto ran to the door only to have Ky grab on to his collar and pull him back. Naruto turned to his partner, expecting an explanation. He wasn't disappointed.
"We need to change our cloths. You're still wearing that ridicules thing, and I'm wearing it too, only with a henge. We bought new clothes and we're going to wear them." Naruto stuck his tongue out and Ky grabbed on to it, pulling slightly before letting go. Naruto put on Ky's physical red shirt and other attire. After creating a new bunshin, the current one disappeared. Grumbling, Naruto got undressed and began to put on his new clothing.
"I still don't like this more than my jumpsuit." Naruto whined. The new Ky bunshin, who was exactly like the old one besides the fact that the damn jumpsuit really wasn't there, laughed at the pathetic display.
"You don't have to like it. I like it more, and I'm sure most of the girls in your class will." Ky grinned at Naruto's faint blush. He knew he had already won but it still felt good to gloat a little. Naruto had just tied his headband on when something occurred to him.
"Oi, you don't have a headband Ky. Does that mean you're not a shinobi?"
"As far as anyone else is concerned, I'm just your alternate personality. You're a schizophrenic and I am the result. You passed, so I passed transitively, got it?" Naruto obviously did not.
"What's a schizophrenic?"
"Don't ask. Let's just go."
"And team seven will consist of Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura, and Uchiha Sasuke." Iruka had to pause as dozens of girls started to yell in protest. He sighed to himself. He didn't see Naruto anywhere and he was pretty sure that he would be complaining, too. As if his thoughts had summoned him, Naruto came running in the open door with someone else close behind.
"Sorry I'm late Iruka-sensei! I had to go buy new milk for breakfast this morning because mine had gone bad and… Why are you staring at me like that?" In fact, Iruka wasn't the only one staring. Most of the class turned to see what the commotion was and what they saw surprised them. There was no way that was Uzumaki. He was always wearing that orange rag, so who the hell was this? Whoever it was had on standard blue shinobi sandals followed by a pair of baggy, black pants, almost covering his feet. Going further up was a thin orange long sleeve shirt. Pulled over this long sleeve was a black T-shirt with an orange spiral embroidered on the front. His face didn't even look like the Naruto that was here for the academy before. It seemed thinner somehow, and more angular. The male populace of the room stared in slightly amused wonder, minus Shikamaru and Sasuke. They just plain didn't care. As for the females, they were staring with something similar to shock. When did this goofball change so much? Naruto began to squirm under their surveillance and started to walk to his usual seat next to Sakura. Iruka shook his head as if to clear it.
"As I was saying, team seven will contain Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura, and Uchiha Sasuke." Naruto's went bug-eyed before he was hit swiftly on the back of the head.
"Shut up, kit. It's not worth arguing about." All eyes now turned to the other boy who walked in behind Naruto and was now standing behind his seat. Even Sasuke turned his head. Anyone who hit Naruto couldn't be that bad. Shikamaru was arguing with Ino about something trivial and missed the second boy entirely. It was probably the first time the genius missed something important when he was awake. A few other students looked at the new boy with more interest. It was rare for someone to just show up at a shinobi academy. Iruka thought about asking the boy to introduce himself, but decided against it. He didn't think Naruto would let someone who could be dangerous follow him to the academy without putting up a fight.
"You're Jounin-sensei will be Hatake Kakashi. Team eight…"
"Hey Naruto, what happened to you?" Sakura seemed genuinely interested. She actually thought the dobe looked kind of cute, but still not to par with Sasuke's complete and total hotness. Naruto rubbed the back of his head and smiled lightly.
"Well, Ky-senpie told me to get rid of my jumpsuit, so I did. This is just what I got to replace it." Sakura nodded slightly as if saying that was good enough.
"And are you Ky-san then?" Sakura was addressing the boy in red this time. Sasuke's ears perked up. It would be nice to know who this guy was.
"Hai." Sakura seemed a little put off buy the unfriendliness in this boy's voice. Who did he think he was, answering her in such a simple manner? She would have to put him in his place.
"Listen here, baka. Sasuke-kun is my boyfriend and if I ask him to he could beat your ass to a pulp so don't try to make me mad." Sasuke frowned at his being brought into the conversation. He looked to the boy to see if he took offense and was glad to see him blow her off completely.
"I doubt you could get him to piss on you to put you out if you were on fire running down the street." All those in hearing distance couldn't help but snicker, causing Sakura to turn red. She wasn't going to take this.
"Listen here you…"
"Shut up. People can't hear their teams." Sakura was turning shades of red only Hinata had reached before, but for an entirely different reason. Why wasn't anyone defending her? She could understand Sasuke; he never helped with anything, but usually Naruto would make a fool of himself trying to get on her good side. Instead, he was sitting there laughing with the rest of them. She could even see Hinata covering up a few giggles. Knowing she could just do something later, she decided to acquiesce for the time being.
"When is he going to get here?" Naruto was pacing the floor, clearly inpatient for their teacher to show up.
"Sit down, kit. Pacing won't fix anything." Ky spoke with a completely even tone. He had yet to show any sign of emotion during his time at the academy and he would be damned if he broke that charade now.
"It makes me feel better." Naruto replied, but sat down anyways. Sakura sighed in relief. Watching him pace was only making her more impatient. Sasuke was still discreetly stealing glances at the new boy dubbed Ky. There was something off about him, but he couldn't put his finger on it.
Sakura had tried several times to make Ky feel guilty about his earlier performance but gave it up as a lost cause. She found him about as stoic as Sasuke. Eventually she gave up on trying to hurt him and tried instead to get information on him.
"So how do you know Naruto?"
"I've know him since he was born."
"Okay, and how is that?"
"Why would I tell you?" Sakura could feel her face flushing again. It was clear that they wouldn't be getting along very well. She turned to the other boy involved.
"Naruto, how do you know him?"
"If he doesn't want to tell you, why should I?" Without hesitation Sakura pounded Naruto fiercely on the head. She would feel a little guilty hitting the new kid but Naruto should know better.
"Baka, I asked you a question!" Naruto was slumped over his desk, nursing his head while the two other boys coughed a small laugh.
"Tell me again, kit, why do you like her?" Ky asked honestly. He was unsure to what level physical appearance made up for personality flaws in Naruto's mind.
"I'm not really sure anymore. Ow!" Naruto had received another blow to the head by a fearsome pink haired kunoichi. Suddenly, the sliding door opened. In stepped a tall man with oddly colored hair. It seemed to be a kind of silvery-white. He also appeared to be covering his face with a mask as well as his left eye with his headband. Other than that, he appeared to be dressed as a fairly standard shinobi. He looked at the four.
"Four? That can't be right." Kakashi was about to count again when one of them raised his hand.
"There are only three of us. I'm just a bunshin."
"Eh?" Sakura exclaimed aloud, turning to the black-eyed boy. Sasuke also appeared slightly shocked. Kakashi was, of course, surprised, but he had heard Naruto's reputation as a prankster. This was probably a setup for his newest gag. Sakura had stood up and started poking Ky. She jabbed his arm, his neck, and between his ribs before he grabbed her hand.
"Please stop doing that." Ky released the hold he had on her fingers and Sakura frowned.
"I can touch you. You can't be a bunshin."
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. I was unaware that was on the learning curriculum." Kakashi looked a Naruto expectantly.
"It isn't." Naruto and Ky both spoke simultaneously. Kakashi smiled. This could prove interesting then.
"Alright, let's meet on the roof." Having said that, he disappeared in a flash. Sasuke stood up and began to follow, only allowing himself to go at a steady walk. Naruto was about to sprint but Ky pulled him back.
"Don't waste energy. He might have a test in order." Naruto only nodded and began to walk shoulder to shoulder with his partner and unofficial teammate. Sakura was walking right behind them still confused.
"So, I lost an argument to a bunshin?"
"I guess we should introduce ourselves." Kakashi was hunkering on the balls of his feat while the newly appointed genin plus the bunshin were seated on the ground. He looked at them all with mild interest. He could tell at a glace this would be hard pressed to work. The girl was boy-crazy, the Uchiha was an ass, and the reformed prankster and his altered bunshin didn't seem to care about the other two.
"Well, introduce yourself then." Ky went straight to the point. Let the old guy set the par. Then he wouldn't look suspicious for not revealing much about himself.
"Well, let's see. My name is Hatake Kakashi. I have many hobbies. My likes and dislikes? I've never really thought about it. As for my dream, it's none of your business, is it?" Ky and Naruto sported small smiles. If all that this 'Hatake' guy was willing to give was his name, they wouldn't have to put forward much at all. Naruto rolled forward into a sitting position where his back was completely straight.
"I guess I'm up. I'm Uzumaki Naruto." He immediately slumped his shoulders and rolled back, resting his elbows on the ground. He lazily waved a hand to Ky, signaling that he should go next. Ky sighed and sat up.
"My name is Ky." Having spoken, he hunched over and rested his chin on his closed fists. It was clear that he had finished even though he had given nothing more than his first name. Not that the Kyuubi had a last name, but they didn't know that. Sakura decided she was up next.
"My name is Haruno Sakura." She stopped it there, not wanting to be the one to break this newly formed chain. The Naruto inside of Ky spoke up.
"Sakura is one of Sasuke's mindless fangirls, which is kind of ironic since she usually got the best grades in our class. No special skills or anything, but I think she's supposed to be a genjutsu user. I don't even know if she can use anything taught outside the Academy." Ky nodded internally at this. He summed up what Naruto was saying in a few words: the girl was fairly useless as anything but a meat shield. The last to speak, Sasuke also opted not to break the chain.
"I'm Uchiha Sasuke." He hadn't moved anything but his jaw, trying to give the impression that those present weren't worth moving over. Sakura was too wrapped up to notice such disrespect and the others simply didn't care. Let him get high off his own farts; the rest of them were ready to work.
"Well, I guess I'll need to tell you about your genin test." Naruto's ears perked up.
"What do you mean? We already passed those."
"Those were preliminary tests to see who could become a genin. It's my job to decide if any of you actually do become genin. In fact, there is less then a 66 success rate, so that means at least one of you will probably fail." Kakashi corrected.
"We'll meet tomorrow at training field seven. Be there at around seven. And don't eat breakfast. You'll puke." The masked nin departed after releasing that little bit of cheer. Naruto and Ky looked at one another. They both knew that the blond boy couldn't skip breakfast without complaining the rest of the day and silently agreed to go ahead and eat.
"Well, I'm going home then." Naruto and Ky leaped to their feet and in two separate blurs disappeared into the horizon. Sakura squealed in joy and wrapped her arms around Sasuke's waist.
"Look at that, Sasuke. They left us all alone." She was giggling to herself, probably imagining things that would have made the Uchiha feel dirty and abused. Sasuke simply pushed the clingy girl away, and internally cursed Uzumaki and his newfound friend. What were they thinking, leaving him alone with her? It was a good thing she was weak or else Sasuke might have feared rape. He still remembered the one time that Ino chick took over his body. The raven-haired boy suppressed a shudder; those were not pleasant memories. How the hell did girls even know how to do that?
"I'm going home." Sasuke leaped off the rooftop and into the nearest tree, knowing he could outrun the girl easily. He needed to take a shower. Remembering past events always left him feeling unclean. Sakura was left pouting, hands on her hips. She had seen the pictures Ino had taken and would be damned if she couldn't take some of her own. The pink-haired girl began to tear after her sex symbol.
"Naruto, I want you to release this bunshin before we go to bed tonight." The grinning nin nodded. He could do that, and if Ky didn't want to tell him why he wouldn't ask. However, he wanted to eat first.
"Come on, Ky! It's still early morning. Let's get some lunch and go train some. Maybe we can find Sasuke and tear him to shreds!" Naruto laughed merrily at the thought and Ky grinned slightly as he pictured dismembered limbs flying through the air. It would be like Christmas come early. But first came lunch.
"Janken to see who eats?" (Janken is just a better name for Rock Paper Scissors.) Naruto offered up as the challenge and Ky was not one to turn it down.
"All right." Both competitors made a fist while facing one another. Both smiled slightly as they began their competition.
"Jan ken pon!" Naruto revealed a closed fist as Ky revealed a flattened hand. The black-eyed boy grinned.
"Paper beats rock. Looks like I'm eating, kit." Naruto was fuming slightly but he accepted defeat. The boy in red disappeared in a puff of smoke, much to the disappointment of several girls nearby in hiding. They were further shocked as the blond boy was replaced by the same black-eyed nin in another puff of smoke. Needless to say they were confused, but they refused to be deterred from their goal. Damn stalkers.
The black-boy smiled to himself. He had recently discovered that he enjoyed the taste of pork ramen and had since competed with Naruto over who should be the one to eat at meals. It was a waste to feed a bunshin and they both enjoyed eating at meals. Eventually they decided that they wouldn't decide. Neither wanted to accept not eating his own meals, so it had grown into silly games or tests to figure out who would eat. Ky was happy to say his first experience with losing was this morning. He happily seated himself at Naruto's favorite ramen stand, just to add insult to injury. He smiled at Ayame and ordered three bowls of pork ramen. That was another understanding between the two of them; they wouldn't spend more than a certain amount on any meal. Living on a limited income when it took a dump truck to fill you up was a bad combination. Ky just waited as the pleasant aroma filled his nose, making sure Naruto caught a whiff. It felt good to be a bastard.
"So we have our body doing push-ups and stuff and a huge bunshin war across the river, so what will we be doing, Ky-senpie?"
"Stop calling me that. It makes me feel old."
"You deserve to feel old. You're a few thousand years older than me, remember?" Ky decided that now was as good as ever to explain his training plan.
"Kit, I've had a stroke of genius. I thought of a way in which I can give up on these stupid hand seals and you can have a major advantage when using ninjutsu. Sound good so far?" Ky smiled as he saw Naruto was listening intently, hanging on to every word.
"Here's what we do…"