Okay, for all you out there actually reading this, here's the second chapter. It's a bit longer than the last one, but you get to learn a bit more about Naruto. Not too much though, have to keep some secrets, right? Anyway, enjoy!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 2

As Naruto had expected, his first day of school dragged on for what seemed like an eternity, the clock coming to an apparent standstill at various moments during the course of the afternoon. Poetry was not as bad as he had expected, since Kakashi had essentially asked them to write something while he sat back and read. Some of his other classes were not as easy, however, like PE with Maito Gai. The man was absolutely insane, urging everyone to give 110 since this was the "springtime of their youth." By the end of the period, even Naruto was exhausted, and he still had five hours to go.

After suffering through chemistry, math, philosophy and history, Naruto was practically aching from the sheer boredom that his education had to offer. Even lunch was but a brief reprieve, with most of it spent alongside Kiba and Shikamaru as they stared up at the clouds.

Thus, when the bell finally rang, signaling the end of class, Naruto bolted for the door, kicking up a flurry of stray papers as he blew past. No one else had even exited the building when Naruto started on his way home, a big grin of relief dominating his features. Even though he had just spent seven hours in a personal hell, he could not help but feel an overwhelming sense of joy as he ran down the street towards his apartment. He was not exactly sure why, but for whatever reason Naruto never could stay depressed for long. Even though he knew that today was only the beginning of what was sure to be a tough school year, the blonde was able to put that fact aside and focus on the joy that was to come in what little free time he had.

It was in this optimistic state of mind that Naruto arrived at his third floor apartment, fumbling anxiously with his keys as he approached the door. After unlocking the door, the vulpine boy threw the door open, only to be knocked back to the floor as he was pounced upon by a small, white puppy.

"Hey, Akamaru!" Naruto said as he scratched the dog's head. "Good to see you, too."

Akamaru gave a small, cheerful yip before leaping off of the blonde and entering the apartment. Naruto followed shortly after and, after lying down lazily on the couch, switched on the television. Soon after he found a suitable program to watch, the vulpine boy was accompanied by the pint-sized Akamaru, who took a seat curled up on Naruto's stomach.

As he lay there, gently stroking the dog's fur, Naruto's mind began to stray from the television, until he no longer was aware that it was even on. He looked down at Akamaru with a gentle smile, reminiscing about a fight he and Kiba had the previous year about the puppy. It had all started about halfway through the year when Naruto found that Akamaru had gotten into his ramen. Kiba had defended his pet, saying that it was Naruto's fault for leaving the ramen out to begin with, but Naruto stubbornly refused to admit this. Instead, Naruto had thrown a fit and left, only to come back a few hours later, asking for forgiveness.

It was a normal little fight. People probably had similar arguments every day and never thought anything of it. To Naruto, though, it was special. Being normal, being accepted; it was all quite new to the blonde. Even though he was angry at the time, Naruto could now look back and smile, knowing that there were people he could have those stupid fights with.

How Naruto had ever survived without those kinds of bonds was beyond him. For half of his life he had been shunned completely by everyone he ever met. No one even gave him a chance, knowing who and what he was; to them, he would have been better off dead. Sometimes, to tell the truth, he wished that he was. Sitting in the orphanage, watching as the other kids played, always envious of their joy. What made them so special? Their parents were dead too, they did not have anyone who loved them, waiting for them to come home. Why was he so different? It was almost too much to bear, and it made him wonder if things would have been better off if he had been killed alongside his mother, if the world never even knew about a boy named Naruto Uzumaki.

Those times were behind him, though; he had people who mattered to him now, people that made life worth living. He had friends like Kiba and Shikamaru to keep him company, to confide in, people he could depend upon. More importantly, though, he had a family, even if it was a small one. Fortunately for him, he had Iruka.

Naruto could still remember that day quite vividly, as he lay there on the couch. He was five when it happened, three years after that fateful night when everything was taken away from him. He had just been rejected by the other kids once again and was sitting in the corner, trying to fight back tears as he cursed the others between sobs.

That's when he walked in, a tall, brown-haired man with a distinct scar going across his nose. Many of the other kids had run up to him, introducing themselves eagerly, hoping that this man might take them home. Naruto had stopped trying to win over the potential parents long ago; no matter how he tried, he could never make them forget just who he was. This man was just like all the others, too; so friendly it was disgusting, introducing himself to all the orphans, asking them all stupid questions about themselves. Naruto had gotten used to this sort of behavior and, as usual, proceeded to block it out as he became absorbed in his thoughts.

Why should he care what this stranger had to say? It was all phony banter anyway; he did not want to hear about them. All he wanted was to take someone home and show off to people like some sort of trophy. Oh yes, this is my son; I adopted him last year. Aren't I such an admirable human being? It made Naruto want to vomit.

Suddenly he saw a shadow cover the floor, though, followed by the man's face as he squatted down to look at the blonde. Naruto looked up in surprise, his cheeks stained with his tears, and found that the man actually seemed concerned.

"Why are over here all by yourself," the man asked as he took a seat on the floor. "Don't you want to play with your friends?"

Naruto wanted to laugh at that. Friends? He had no friends; that much was obvious. For whatever reason, though, he could not say this, not when he saw that gentleness and warmth in the man's eyes.

"They hate me," the vulpine boy responded with a sob.

"Hate you? I'm sure they don't hate you…"

"They do, they hate me! And you'll hate me too! Everyone always ends up hating me, no matter what I do! So just go away and leave me alone!" Naruto shouted before biting his lip in an attempt to stop a flood of tears.

The man had tried to put a hand on the blonde's shoulder, but Naruto slapped it away as he backed up further against the wall. He's going to try and comfort me now. He's going to say one of those stupid things that they always say to orphans. "You're so brave," or something like that.

For whatever reason, though, the man said no such thing. He just sat there for a minute, watching Naruto in a sort of awed silence. Neither of them said a word, and for a moment their world seemed to stop. It was just the two of them, sitting in an orphanage while everything else continued to spin around them. They stayed like that for what seemed like an eternity, and Naruto wanted nothing more than for the man to just speak and get it over with. What's wrong with him? Can't he see I'm in pain? Doesn't he want to help somehow?

"I don't know what could have happened to make you feel that way, and I can't say that I can help," the man finally said with a sigh, "the truth is, I probably can't. I'll never be able to understand the kind of pain you must be going through, but that doesn't mean I'm not willing to try. Will you let me?"

Naruto had not known quite what to say. Was this man serious? No, he can't be. He's just gonna abandon you like everyone else.

As he stared into the man's eyes again, though, he knew that it was not a lie. He was willing to help, and Naruto felt that, somehow, he could trust him. Thus, the blonde gave a tentative nod in response as he inched towards the man once more.

"Okay, let me introduce myself then," the man continued, a smile returning to his face. "My name's Iruka Umino. What yours?"

"Naruto," the blonde responded in a feeble voice, "Naruto Uzumaki."

They had talked for hours after that, Iruka sharing things about his life, asking about Naruto's own interests, without ever prying too deep into the boy's problems. As they continued to meet over the next few weeks, Naruto grew increasingly fond of the man, until he actually felt disappointment when he had to leave. It was a strange feeling, but when Naruto finally went home with the man he felt, for the first time in a while, just what it was like to be loved.

Naruto still was waiting for the right time to tell the man about his past, about what had led to his parents' deaths. Iruka already knew, Naruto was sure of that; you had to be living under a rock not to know what happened to the blonde. But he still had his own personal story to tell, what he went through on that night. Iruka never once asked about it either; he knew that this was something that took time, and Naruto was grateful for that understanding. Someday he would be ready, and when he was he knew that Iruka would be there. It was just the kind of person he was; always willing to help, but wise enough to know when that help was needed.

I probably should give him a call. He's gonna want to hear about school and everything…

As this passed through his mind, Naruto turned his attention back to the television to find that the program was over. Had he really been daydreaming that long? He decided that he still had to give Iruka a call though. Even if the man never pried into Naruto's past, he was still a complete worrywart, and would no doubt call to scold him in the morning if he forgot to call. Thus, the blonde snatched the phone off a nearby desk, dialed the familiar number, and tapped his foot impatiently as waited for the man to pick up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Dad," Naruto said, a smile crossing over his face. "It's Naruto."

"Well it's about time you called!" Iruka exclaimed on the other end. "I told you to call me the minute you got back from school! I was worried sick!"

"About what?" Naruto said with a laugh, "It's only been a half hour."

"I don't know, I thought maybe you were in trouble or something, you know how my mind works," the concerned man replied with an amused sigh. "Forget I ever mentioned it. How was your day, though?"

"Oh, it was okay, I guess," the vulpine boy replied as he reflected upon the past few hours. "I mean, it was boring and everything, but at least I don't have any homework."

"Well, that's good to hear," Iruka responded, "I just like to know how you're doing, you know? I know it's for the best that you get a good education, but, it's just…"

"It's okay, Dad," Naruto interrupted, "I miss you too."

"I'm glad to hear that," the man said sincerely, "Keep up the good work now, okay?"

"Alright, Dad," Naruto said as he rolled his eyes, "I'll talk to you later."

"Bye, son."

No sooner had Naruto hung up the phone than the apartment door swung open and a panting Kiba entered the room. Akamaru was quick to pounce upon his master, who half-heartedly greeted the dog as he took a seat on the couch.

"How was track practice?" Naruto asked as he sat down beside his friend.

"Brutal," the dog-boy muttered, "I'm telling you, Gai is absolutely insane… 'springtime of youth' my ass. I still think you should try out, you'd be great."

"Nah, I may have stamina, but you've got speed," Naruto replied as he playfully punched his friend's shoulder. "I wouldn't stand a chance."

"Whatever you say," Kiba said in defeat as he slouched back in his seat.

Naruto watched the Inuzuka for a moment, an overwhelming feeling of concern consuming all other thoughts. Something was wrong, and he was going to find out what. "Okay, out with it, what's wrong, Kiba?"

"It's nothing, really," the dog-boy replied he as absentmindedly stroked Akamaru's fur.

"Remember that little talk we had earlier?" Naruto said as he sat up, his voice becoming a bit more forceful. "You can't keep things like this from me. We're supposed to share things if they're bothering us, so we can help each other out!"

"And what about you, huh? What about your secrets?" Kiba said defensively, "You think I like being kept in the dark about your parents?"

"That's different," Naruto responded flatly, his voice sounding slightly dangerous.

He knew that it was true; he was being selfish, keeping those things to himself. Kiba and Iruka were so open with their own problems, but for whatever reason Naruto could not let that part of him go. He needed to keep that to himself, he needed to hold on to that last part of him that was his and his alone. Whether it was the fear that it would all be taken away from him again, he was not sure, but one thing was for certain: he could not talk about it. Not yet.

The two of them sat on the couch for a minute, both being a bit too stubborn in their views to concede defeat. It was not long, however, before a small yip from Akamaru started the conversation once more.

"Heh, good boy," Kiba said, patting the dog on the head. "You're right, Naruto. I shouldn't have brought that up. I know how tough it must be for you."

"Yeah, but I know what you mean," the vulpine boy replied, "It's just… I'm not ready, you know? I guess if you don't want to talk about it, I can't exactly make you…"

"No, I want to talk about it," the dog-boy continued, "I just wasn't quite sure how to put it. You see… it's about Hinata."

"Really, what about Hinata?" Naruto asked, his thick-headedness showing once again.

"I… can't find the right thing to say to her, you know?" Kiba said in frustration. "It's like, I'll have it all perfect in mind head, but then when I actually try to say something, it comes out all wrong."

"Have you tried just being yourself?" Naruto suggested. "That's what that bastard Sasuke always does, and he has girls practically flocking to him."

"It's not that simple, though! I try to be myself! I try to talk to her, make jokes, do anything to get her attention, but I can never seem to make any progress. She's always too focused on you!" Kiba exclaimed, becoming more animated as he spoke.

"On me? What are you talking about?" the blonde asked in bewilderment.

"What, you never noticed?" Kiba asked in disbelief. "The way she always turns beet red when you're around? How she has to turn away if you look in her general direction? She's in love with you, Naruto!"

Naruto thought about this for a moment, a bit stunned by the revelation. It made sense why Hinata always seemed so jittery. But what was he supposed to do about it?

"Wait, why are you telling me all this, Kiba?"

"Because you can help me, Naruto!" the Inuzuka replied. "Hinata will listen to you! I just need you to talk to her, try to get her to notice me."

"I don't know…" Naruto said skeptically, "wouldn't that be a little… manipulative?"

"It doesn't need to be anything serious," Kiba clarified, "I just need you to mention me the next time you see her. Maybe if she hears it from you, it'll actually stick."

Naruto still was not quite sure. Sure, it sounded innocent enough, but it did not seem right playing with Hinata's feelings like that.

"Look, Naruto, I'm not asking a lot of you here," the dog-boy said flatly. "I just need for you to talk to her. This is love, we're talking about! I'd do the same for you!"

It was true. Kiba was the kind of guy that would do anything for a friend, and it made Naruto feel a bit guilty to think that he was turning down such a simple request. He still felt uneasy about it, but the blonde felt like it was his duty to help friend in need.

"Alright, I'll play cupid for you," Naruto said with a sigh, "Just don't say that I never do anything for you."

"Thank you, Naruto! You have no idea how much this means to me!" Kiba exclaimed as he leapt off the couch, sending poor Akamaru flying across the room.

Thus, it was in high spirits that Naruto wound down for the night, glad to be helping out a friend, and yet completely unaware of the disaster said aid would bring.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The plot thickens... how will all of this turn out? Tune in next time and, again, all comments are helpful!