It was our last day in Konoha. Iruka didn't send us to school so we had time to pack but Sasuke and I headed up there anyway to say goodbye. Waiting at the gate was our friends. Sakura and Lee were holding a sign that said 'We miss you already' and had a ton of x's and o's drawn all over it. Ino wasn't there. Sasuke had broken up with her a couple of days ago saying long distance relationships didn't work. Needless to say Ino had not been happy, she had stormed off and still hadn't spoken to any of us. No great loss there. But these guys I would miss. Desperately.

Sukura jumps on me as soon as I get close enough. "Oh Naruto! I am going to miss you soo much! I'll come and visit or you need to come and visit. I don't care who but we need to see each other still. Aww why do you have to leave?!" She squeezes me once before pulling back. "Uh I'll umm miss you too Sasuke" She doesn't even look at him when she says it and then she runs off straight away. That was weird. Does Sakura like Sasuke? She probably should have made that obvious before we were leaving. Us guys exchange looks before shrugging and getting on with our goodbyes. Lee tells me he will miss my spirit and youth, gives me a man hug then backs off to say goodbye to Sasuke. Kiba is the only one left and his goodbye will be the hardest. He and I were always the closest.

"Aw man I can't believe your moving away. Akamaru will miss you man. You know he never liked Lee and Sakura doesn't like dogs." He shuffles his feet a little before hugging me hard. It was only a quick hug since he didn't want to compromise his manliness but I could feel all the meaning behind it. Things wouldn't be the same without me it said. Kiba would miss me and wouldn't forget me. And I felt comforted. To know it wasn't only me who felt this bond. I was important to them as well.

When the goodbyes were over Sasuke and I walked back home one last time. It's strange how quickly a house becomes your home and even though I had only been living there two months it was sad to know I wouldn't be sleeping in my room any more, or eating breakfast in that kitchen. But on to new things, new beginnings.

We loaded all our belongings into the moving truck, the last couple into our car and we were off.

The drive felt like it would never end, even with the music playing to distract us. In the end it took three hours which included two pit stops and a quick nap on my part, before we finally arrived at our new house. It was nice, big and brick. It wasn't until I stepped out of the car that I felt the heat. It was like walking into an oven, it hit you like a brick. It was sweltering and I felt like I was cooking from the inside. This would certainly take some getting used to.

We unloaded the car, which I can tell you was a hot, sweaty job that I was not looking forward to repeating when the truck got here. Once the last box was unloaded Iruka went through the house and opened all the windows to cool the house down. "All right boys line up! We aren't going to unpack any boxes yet. It is far too hot for that. So go explore the house, pick your rooms and remember! We have a pool." The smile on his face was ten miles wide. He stripped off his shirt and ran outside laughing. Sasuke and I looked at each other and laughed before following suit. The water was heavenly. There were definitely upsides to this new house.

By the time we had had a good swim the house had cooled down nicely and the truck had just arrived. We got stuck into unpacking, sweating and working our asses off but we still weren't done by dinner time. Iruka ordered pizza and we settled in for the night. "So boys what do you think so far? I know it's hot and you haven't really had a chance to do anything other than unpack but what's your thoughts so far?" He looked so hopeful I couldn't have said I didn't like it even if I wanted to.

"Well we have a pool so it's already awesome!"

Sasuke scoffed. "How trivial of you Naruto. Iruka we really haven't had much to base an opinion on but in saying that it hasn't proven to be bad yet. So far so good right?" He looked to me for confirmation. I nodded enthusiastically. We wouldn't be going to school for another two days cause of the weekend so we had plenty of time to unpack and explore.

I went to my room which so far only had a mattress on the floor and some unpacked boxes but I could see its potential. It was large and airy just like the rest of the house. There were lots of windows in this house so it always caught a breeze which would be a blessing I was sure. It had 4 big bedrooms, a massive lounge/dining room and a nice kitchen. Two bathrooms, Iruka got his own.

I lay down to sleep for the night thinking of all the possibilities and at the same time dreading all the changes. In Konoha life already felt like it was as good as it was going to get so now what should I expect? With this in mind I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

The weekend passed quickly and the unpacking was finished. The house looked like a home now and it was starting to feel like one too. Sasuke and I had had a chance to explore the neighbourhood a little but we hadn't really gotten too far. But tomorrow was our first day at school. I wonder what it would be like. . .