OMG! I am so sorry! I know it's been so long since I've written the 7th chapter but the 8th chapter has been a little...off for me so I had to take time to continue it. Once again I am truly sorry. Anyways, HAVE ANY OF YOU SEEN THE LAST HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2? I LOVE ALBUS POTTER! HE IS SO...CUTE! It was...(sigh)...unfortunate that we couldn't see Scorpious' face. I was so looking forward to it and did anybody realize that the only person who changed the most was Ginny? I think it was the hair that made her look older.

Well, for those who have not watch the movie- IAMSORRYFORGIVINGSPOILER,DON'THITME!- Enjoy the movie. TeeHee. Here is your Chapter 8! Enjoy!

Chapter 8: Harry's new friends.


"YOSH! We shall run 50 laps aroud the field! If we cannot do 50 times, then we shall-!"

"Lee," Naruto interjected, silencing Lee in his 'youthful' speech. "Harry isn't like us. Maybe we should try it out slowly? We'll use your...youthful methods when he's up to speed, alright?" He gave his fuzzy brow friend a kind smile.

"Yosh! Alright, good luck in your laps, Potter-san!" The green beast gave his usual toothy grin (that almost blinded Harry) and a thumbs up before running off to find his beloved Gai-sensei.

"Okay, now that Fuzzy Brows' away, let's officially start your training," Naruto cheered and pulled Harry out of the Forbidden Forest, Sasuke and Neji following behind them. "Your first training...is running."

"Running?"

"Ah, right, Dumbledore-sama did mention that wizards in this country ride on brooms and apparate- which I think is quite ridiculous, by the way, but who am I to judge, eh?" Naruto chuckled sheepishly. "We're getting off track. Okay, so we do it differently in our country. In our country, we...run."

"Run?" Harry yelped, all irritation of the blond foreigner dissing about riding on brooms vanished in an instant.

"Yes, run. It's quite normal to us since we've been born with the stamina but you're an entirely different thing. That's why I told Lee that we're going to try out slowly first until you got used to it. So let's start with let's say...10 laps?" Naruto smiled innocently at the black-haired boy.

"10 laps? But-wait, what's the use of running? Shouldn't you be teaching me something else? Like, I don't know, hand-to-hand combat?" Harry exclaimed.

"Hand-to-hand combat will wait. Running is more important. It gives you the adrenaline, the hype you need for hand-to-hand combat," Naruto gently explained. "But seeing your skinny limbs...you don't do much running or fighting for that matter, do you?"

"Naruto, I doubt he fights with his fists at all," Neji commented.

"Yeah, he probably has fought with that stick of his ever since he knew how to use them. To wizards, I don't think they know anything about fighting- with hands at least," Sasuke nodded his head in agreement.

Naruto pouted and shook his head. "I guess I shouldn't have expected too much."

"But I still don't get it," Harry spoke, breaking the three shinobis from their private discussion. "Why do I have to focus on running?"

"Because there will come to a time when you have to run away from a fight!" Sasuke growled. "We know all about how Voldemort killed your parents. We know how much you want to avenge them but you can't win every fight against him! One day, you're going to have to back away and know your ground. Luck isn't always around every time. We want you to learn to run because when it comes to the time that you have to run, you start running, you don't stop, you don't look back. You focus on what's in front and keep running."

"Teme..." Naruto frowned and sighed at his best friend. "It's over, just-"

"No, I made a mistake in the past," The latter snapped. "I'm not about to let another person as innocent as him make the same one."

Harry narrowed his eyebrows and scrunched up his face. There was something he wasn't getting from these people and while they had chosen him to train in their ways, he was going to find out what it was. He cleared his throat and allowed their attention to refocus back on him. "Fine, so...where do I start?"

Grinning from ear to ear, Naruto replied. "You'll start running from here, where you stand, around the field and back here. One lap is a full circle. No cheating, or you'll have to restart again. We will be counting and no stopping to take a breather or anything, just keep your pace up and run," Naruto patted the boy on the shoulder and took a step back. "You can start."

"Well, this will take a while," Neji smriked, folding his arms across his chest.


Harry plopped onto the ground, his chest heaving up and down, breath ragged. 10 laps! Those people were trying to kill him. Keep his pace up and don't stop? Are they bloody hell joking? If Ron could see him now, what would that idiot say?

'But Ron's not here right now,' He mentally scolded himself. 'He's always being a stupid idiot! Did he really think I would put my name into the cup?'

"Oi, are you dead yet?" The Uchiha's face appeared in his view and the bespectacles boy sighed inwardly.

"I am...very much alive, thank you...very much," Harry panted, his voice still sore and hoarse from the endless run.

"Good," Sasuke reached out to help the poor boy stand up. "Here, drink up," He said while passing a bottle of water to him.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome," Sasuke nodded his head. "You could run better. Just keep your breath steady and start out slowly. Don't run ahead at the starting and wear yourself out at the end. And when you've got yourself to a steady state, then you start running."

Harry nodded in understanding and continued to drink his water.

"Well, I think that's it for today," Naruto clapped his hands together. "We'll continue this tomorrow morning the same time as today, alright?" He paused waiting for Harry's response and continued to dismiss him from training.

"We'll see you in the Great Hall, Harry!" Naruto waved him goodbye.

Deep down, Harry Potter was grateful for the company these foreigners provided him. With his best friend avoiding him, he wasn't sure how he was going to deal with this problem anymore.


"Where were you?" Hermione exclaimed once she caught sight of him coming down the boy's dormitory, his hair wet from his recent bath. "I was trying to talk to you since the whole incident with the Goblet but you never were there!"

"Sorry, Hermione, I was...really busy," Harry avoided his female friend's gaze and told her the white lie.

"Well, I heard Ron's avoiding you," She said, trying to talk to him.

"That isn't really the latest news but I can't care about his arrogance right now, I've got other matters to worry, like that," He grumbled as another student pointed the badge saying, 'Read the badge, Potter!'.

"How are you holding up?" She asked, rubbing her right arm awkwardly. "I'm sure you're having some problems without having Ron by your side but-"

"I'm fine, Hermione, I've got...people, friends helping me out. I should be fine for a while," He cut her off. "Thanks, but I think I need to be around people who doesn't blame me for not putting my name into the Goblet unintentionally." He hadn't meant to sound mean to her but, what could he do? He needed some space for himself!

"I'm sorry, if-"

"Oi, Potter, you're so slow, hurry up!" Kiba passed the said boy and ruffled his head. Akamaru barked at his side. "Naruto saved you a seat with us, come on!" He grinned and left Harry standing there like an idiot.

"Are those the friends you're talking about?" Hermione asked in a ridicule voice. "Harry, I don't think you should hang out with them a lot-!"

"Look, Hermione, they're actually the ones helping me out here, alright?" He sighed in frustration. "And I'm rather grateful for their company. You better go join Ron before he starts spouting out rubbish again. See you around."

Hermione stared at Harry's retreating form in shock. She couldn't believe that he just disregarded her advice and had joined those...strangers? She shook her head and took her seat beside Ginny but not before taking another look at her friend in between of all the foreigners.

"Here, try this, Harry," Naruto gave the boy an eye-smile and pushed a bowl of ramen his way. "This will give you lots of energy for the training!"

"Really?" Harry's eyes sparkled with delight and was attempted to give the bowl of noodles a try but the Inuzuka's next remark stopped him from doing so.

"Don't tell me you actually believed that, Potter?" Kiba barked out a laugh and shook his head. "This idiot here eats Ramen practically all his life! Of course, he'd say it gives you energy!"

"Oi, eat your own food, dog-breath!" Naruto growled and continued to convince Harry that ramen was the best thing in the world.

"Leave him alone, dobe," Sasuke tried to help the poor boy but Naruto wouldn't hear any of it. "Sorry, Harry, you're on your own."

Harry sighed and placed a spoonful of noodle into his mouth. His eyes went wide opened as his mouth automatically chewed for him.

"So, what do you think?" Naruto asked.

"This...is good!" Harry exclaimed and continued to eat more. "Wow, this noodle's called ramen, huh?"

"I'm glad you like it, Harry!" Naruto patted the boy in the back. "Eat more, don't worry, I've got more in my bag, don't tell Sakura-chan though."

"I heard that, baka," Sakura glared at him and Naruto immediately felt himself drenched in his own sweat. "I thought I told you to get rid of them? Where are you hiding them?"

"Maa, maa, Sakura-chan, no need to be so angry, I was just joking!" Naruto rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Ah, save me, Harry!" He hid behind him and nearly dodged the pink-haired kunoichi's punch.

"A-ah, Sakura, m-maybe you could take the punching elsewhere?" Harry tried to reason with the older woman.

"That's not really helping me, Harry," Naruto told him before yelping as another fist almost made contact with his face. "Hinata-chan!"

"N-N-Naruto-kun, maybe you should apologize to Sakura-chan?" The timid Hyuuga heiress suggested.

"Cheh, I didn't do anything wrong, why should I-!" He dodged another punch. "Oi, teme, control your girlfriend!" He yelled at his best friend.

"Oh, I'm sorry, what did you say?" Sasuke looked up at him, looking all innocent.

"Harry!" Naruto hid behind said boy and whinned. "Harry, help me, she's going to kill me!"

"U-Um, Sakura, maybe we could...talk about t-this?" Harry tried, giving a nervous grin.

"You better dodge well, Harry...or else YOU'LL GET HIT!" She raised her fist in warning and Harry immediately raised his hands in front of her face.

"H-Heh, how about we go back to our f-food?" He asked and noticed everyone gapping at him. "What?"

"No one's ever stopped Sakura from hitting someone else before," Kiba let out a bark and laughed out loud. "You better watch your steps around her now!" That caused another round of laughters around their group.

"Don't worry, Harry, I'll be here to protect you," Naruto bulked up and pounded on his chest but fell to the floor once Sakura found the chance to hit him on the head.

"Worry about yourself first, baka!" She growled and 'hmph-ed' in her seat. "Try this, Harry, it's better than RAMEN!"

"Noooooo...Sakura-chan, you're so mean..." Naruto cried.

"Are you alright, Naruto?" Harry asked, concern for his friend.

"He'll be alright, don't worry about him. He's always this dramatic. Better eat your breakfast, Potter. Or you'll be late for your classes!" Temari told him in a sing-song voice.

"Right, thanks."

Hermione turned away and silently prayed that things will be alright once more.


Hermione felt like she has been betrayed by the two people she has called them her best friends.

Maybe she should have stayed in her dormitory room after all but she knew she would never be able to live with herself if she had. And that was what made Hermione Granger the most foolish person on earth. Hell to all the knowledge on books! She couldn't even keep her two friends together and what was the consequences? Oh, that's right, 'playing' the owl for Ronald Weasley and Harry Potter, her two idiotic best friends!

"H-Harry," She silently called out for the bespectacles boy once she found him.

He was sitting underneath the tree, at the edge of the lake where the shinobis were currently playing at. The kunoichies were squealling in glee while the shinobies were having fun teasing them with the water.

Though there were two boys not having being in the water. And it was so obvious that those two were Shino and Gaara but it wasn't like they wanted it to happen! Gaara was, unfortunately threatened by Ino and his...crush towards her, leaned her way and so he had no choice but to obey.

Shino, however, had been observing the plants around him when he felt a huge ball of water dropped on him. It was silent at first. Harry had to use all his might to stop the laughters that were about to burst their way through his mouth but it took three words to make all the laughters from them unstoppable.

"I'll kill you."

And Kiba had let himself go. The wolfish-featured boy had clutched onto his stomach and began laughing out loud and it didn't take to break the others. This had even gotten a smirk from Sasuke, Neji and even the 'ever-tamed-by-Ino' Sabaku no Gaara.

"H-Harry," She shakily called out again and she had finally got his attention...and the others too. "Can I speak to you in private?"

Harry looked up at her and noticed that Ron and Ginny were standing a few feet behind her. He shrugged and came over to where she stood.

"What's going on?"

"Erm, Parvati told Dean, who told Seamus then who in turn told Ron...that, um, Hagrid's looking for you."

"Well, you can tell Ron to- wait, what did you say again?" Harry scrunched up his face in confusion.

"Er-uh, wait for a moment," She rushed back to Ron and whispered to him in hushed tones. She mentally rolled her eyes as she felt the slight nudge of the red-head wizard, pushing her to what she hadn't realized was her trap.

"Okay, urm, Parvati told Dean, who told Seamus that...uh...please don't ask to me say it again," She sighed. "Hagrid's looking for you."

"Yeah, well, you can tell Ron-"

"I'M NOT AN OWL!" Her patience was lost and she had vented out her anger on Harry, though he felt a little taken aback, he couldn't help but feel sorry for the bushy-haired girl.

Hermione stomped back up the small slope and pulled Ginny away from them. Ron gave him a last-minute glare before going after them.

"Just give them some time, Harry," Naruto's voice snapped him awake from his reverie. Harry sighed and nodded his head. What could he do anyways? Ron didn't believe him, Hermione was angered by her two best friends' arrogance. Ginny was probably furious with him for letting the enemies push him around the back.

But it wasn't like it WAS his fault, was it?

"Come on, Harry! You gotta join in the fun!" Kiba yelled and sent more water Hinata's way that resulted a shriek in return.

And that was all Harry could do. He was being comfortable around these people and it came to his mind that he wasn't about to loose them too.