Why? Why do you always kick me when I'm high? Knock me down til…

With a groan you reach for your phone, cursing the light peeking in the window and onto your face.

"Whatyouwant?" You moan into the microphone.

"Good morning Suki!" Haku says brightly. "Ready for your second day of school?"

"…ready to die?" You reply, kicking off the covers.

"Nope. I need to be alive to annoy you." Haku replies.

"Whatever." You mumble, slumping into the bathroom. Hanging up, you toss the phone onto the bed and begin your morning routine of getting ready for another day.

…So Light yourself a big cigar, lease a house and seven cars…

You eye the Home Ec room, unimpressed by the class.

The room itself is huge, a combination of small kitchenettes on one half, and large tables surrounded by chairs scattered on the other.

The plus side is that Deidara is, for once, not in your class. However, Pein, Itachi and Temari are scattered around a table, glaring at the other people in the room.

Next to you, Tenten is chatting non-stop about Saturday. You run a hand through your hair and turn up you Ipod subtly. Juugo, across the table, catches the movement and raises an eyebrow. You smile slightly and he returns it. Next to Juugo, Shikamaru is catching up on his sleep. Again.

The next table over, Kiba is talking animatedly with Ino, while Neji seems to be glaring across the classroom at someone. Following his gaze, you catch sight of Hinata, who has just entered. She looks over at Neji and flinches, before hurrying across the room. To your surprise, she drops down at your table, in the seat on Shikamaru's other side. Before you can ask about it, Choji bounces into the room, obviously ecstatic at the thought of cooking. He dashes over to Neji's table, dropping next to the long haired boy. Neji looks up at him briefly, and then returns his glare to Hinata.

"What's with Neji?" You mutter, dropping your headphones around your neck. Tenten looks at you, before switching her gaze over to the white eyed boy. Following his gaze, she frowns as she sees it fixed on Hinata.

"Oh Neji…" She murmurs. "Neji and Hinata are cousins. Hinata's father is the head of Hyuga Inc, you've probably heard of it."

You nod, looking down at your hands.

"We do the security for them." You mutter. Tenten nods.

"Right. Well, Neji's father was second in command, until…" She trails off, looking sadly over at Neji.

"Until what?" You ask. She doesn't answer.

"U-Until my t-third birthday." Hinata says, meeting your eyes. "F-Father l-left Uncle in c-charge of the business for the day…"

She drops her gaze back to the table, eyes full of sorrow.

"W-What happened?" You ask softly, your curiosity overriding your tact.

"T-There was an employee…" Hinata continues softly. "H-He had been fired a m-month before… h-he came in and s-shot Uncle… he thought he was F-Father…"

You stare at her, horrified.

"Neji blames Hinata." Tenten says softly. "If it weren't for her celebration, Hiashi would have been killed, rather than Hizashi…"

You let your eyes rest on Neji, pity filling their depths.

"B-But its ok." Hinata says, a fake smile plastered on her face. "I understand."

Before you can say anything, the door opens again, and your teacher enters.

Black hair falling to her shoulders frame a pretty face with two oddly crimson eyes. She surveys the room, eyes stopping on you briefly.

"Welcome to another term of Home Ec." She says briskly. "I am your teacher, as always, Yuhi Kurenai."

A couple of the students murmur 'hello's except Choji, who waves cheerfully at her.

"Right." She says, smiling at Choji. "I'll be pairing you up now, and as you know, you'll be paired from someone from either a higher or lower class."

She dumps her books on the desk at the front of the room and fishes out a sheet.

"Kitchen One: Nagato Pein, Tasogare Akasuki." She reads out in a bored voice. You look groan, dropping your head on your table. "Kitchen Two: Uchiha Itachi, Akimichi Choji."

After she is done rambling out names she hands out a sheet and gestures to the kitchens.

"Go set up, I'll be back in a second." She says, striding out of the door.

You drift over to Kitchen One, glancing around the room. Choji is hurrying around Kitchen Two, pulling out random equipment while Itachi leans against the counter, talking to Temari in Kitchen Three, who is ignoring the shivering Hinata. An argument from Kitchen Four draws your gaze and you roll your eyes as you see Tenten hit Kiba over the head with a wooden spoon. In Kitchen Five, Shikamaru and Juugo are chatting quietly, in sharp contrast to the babble of Ino, who doesn't seem to notice that Neji isn't listening to her.

You glance down at the paper and scan the recipe on it.

"Apple muffins…" You mutter. "Looks easy."

"It'd better be." Pein drawls, sauntering over and fixing you with a glare. You look away and begin to gather equipment.

Kurenai returns and begins to pull out ingredients, dumping them on the long counter at the front of the room. You scoop up your measuring cups and a large bowl and dash forward.

'Ok, ok, you're not that bad a cook… just remember what Haku taught you:'

"Fire extinguisher's under the sink."

'Damn it Zabuza! Get out of my head!'

*Naruto takes a bite out of your muffin and chews thoughtfully.

"Well?" You pester. "Well?"

"Not bad…" He says. "But… something's missing…"

Your shoulders slump.

"Butter." You say. "I forgot the butter. I was hoping you wouldn't be able to tell."

"You can't tell that much." He says. He finishes the muffin, smiling.

"Try one of mine!" Tenten says, shoving the muffin towards him. Naruto takes it, his eyes widening.

"Er… what happened to it?" He asks, holding up the small muffin, half the size of yours.

"I might have put a bit too much milk in…" She says, smiling. "But that was Kiba's fault!"

Naruto takes a hesitant bite, chewing slowly. After a couple of minutes of this, Tenten rolls her eyes.

"Damn it Naruto just swallow already!" She snaps. He does so, quickly.

"It tastes nice." He says, smiling at her. "A bit… different, but nice!"

Tenten rolls her eyes again, a small smile on her face.

"I know they're not that great, but thank you for lying anyway." She says.

You let your gaze drift around the library, taking in the other groups scattered about. You were in a 'Free Study' lesson, so basically you were dumped at a table in the library under the watchful eye of the head librarian, a bored looking man named Mizuki, watching Tenten beg for help with her chemistry homework from Shikamaru.

"Anyway." Tenten says, tossing Shikamaru a glare. "If you won't help me, maybe you will, Naruto."

You raise your eyebrows.

"Naruto?" You question. "He doesn't do Chemistry."

Tenten smiles.

"No, but his Uncle is the teacher." She says.

"I thought Jiraiya-san taught Sex Ed." You say, your mouth twisting in distaste.

Naruto pulls a face.

"My other Uncle." He says. "Orochimaru – Jiraiya's brother."

"Yeah, Snakie teaches Chemistry." Tenten says, flapping a hand. "But the point is, you can get me an extension on this report."

"No." Naruto says. "I hate talking to him."

"Why?" You ask, confused.

"Because he's creepy." Naruto says with a shrug. "He freaks me out."

"Silence!" Mizuki snaps, appearing beside your table. "Do your work!"

With a mumbled reply of 'Yes, Mizuki-sensei' you all dig out your various homework.

Shikamaru pulls out his Chemistry book, shuffling closer to Tenten so they can whisper. Juugo, Naruto and you drag out your 'Icha Icha Paradise' books, settling in to read them.

"Hey!" Mizuki snaps, gliding over to you. "Put those disgusting novels away! Where did you get those?"

"Kakashi-sensei." Naruto answers, turning the page. "It's for English. We're to write a bo- Oh! I didn't know people could bend that way!"

Mizuki's face turns an incredible shade of red before he stomps out of the library, obviously intent on finding the odd English teacher.

"Pictures make everything better." Naruto sighs happily, turning another page.

You eye the pizza box Naruto is offering you warily. Seated on the roof of the library, Naruto had ordered in a pizza.

"Come on, would you rather eat in the cafeteria?" He asks. You shake your head quickly, grabbing a slice. "Unless you want to eat in the cafeteria, to see Dei-"

You clamp your hand over his mouth quickly.

"The only reason I'd want to eat in the cafeteria would be to see Sasuke kick your ass again." You say loftily. Naruto turns red.

"He did not kick my ass!" He protests. "And I can kick his ass any day of the week!"

"Whatever." You say around a mouthful of pizza. "Where did you get this!?"

Naruto grins happily.

"The Butterfly Restaurant." He says happily. "The Akimichi family runs it, and Chouza always lets us order pizza out!"

"It's good." You mumble, taking another bite. Naruto nods.

"The Butterfly Restaurant has the best food." Naruto says. "One day Choji will inherit the chain."

You nod, munching on your pizza quietly. You look up at Naruto again, a question forming in your mind.

"So… what happened between you and Gaara?" You ask, curious. Shikamaru, Juugo and Tenten turn to listen in. "Why is he mad at you?"

Naruto sighs, running a hand through his wild blonde locks.

"Well… ages ago, me and Gaara were friends. Sasuke and that too." Naruto mutters. "But after Sasuke… yeah… well, I refused to be friends with Sasuke and anyone who was friends with him. Gaara said he wasn't going to break up his friendships because of me and Sasuke, so I told him we couldn't be friends, and stopped talking to him…"

You roll your eyes.

"That's so childish!" You say, shaking your head. Naruto glares at you.

"I was twelve at the time!" He snaps. He sighs suddenly rubbing his eyes. "Gaara and I were friends since we were little, so he took it… hard…"

"Hard is an understatement." Tenten chimes in. "Gaara was a troubled child, which is why he's here. The only reason he had any friends was because of Naruto."

You sigh, sick of all the confusing problems.

"Looks like the main problem is you and Sasuke." You observe. "What happened there?"

Naruto closes down instantly. Tenten sighs looking over at you.

"Sasuke and Naruto were best friends." She says. "Until one day Sasuke just stopped being friends with him, told him he was a loser in front of an all school assembly. It hurt Naruto really bad."

"Whatever." Naruto says dully. "It's all in the past."

You grab another slice of pizza feeling slightly guilty for the awkward silence.

Eyeing the room warily, trying to decide if wagging** on your second day of school is really that bad…

"Ahh! Our new student!" A voice behind you booms. "Well, come on in!"

You wince, and curse the others for having History instead. Turning, you come face to face with a white haired man, two red tattoos running down his cheeks like tears.

"I'm Sannin Jiraiya." He says, gesturing to the door. "Come on in."

You slump into the classroom and notice that it's a rather small class. Temari and Tobi are sitting together, talking calmly. Across from them, Kankuro is alternating between glaring at his sister and poking Kiba. Kiba himself is throwing random objects at Choji. You sigh and drop into a spare seat, away from everyone.

"Welcome back!" Jiraiya says happily. "I've missed our lessons everyone!"

No one bothers to answer the overly excited man.

"Now, I'll be handing something for you to read!" He says, reaching into a folder. Pulling out a large stack of paper, he hands it out, revealing that they are actually stacks of twenty pieces of paper stapled together.

"Another book, sensei?" Kankuro asks, flipping though the paper.

"Correct." Jiraiya says. "Now, read this, it's the prologue, and write a report for homework on how great it is, why it is great and what changes, if any, can be made."

Eyeing the paper, you realize it's a copy of the new Icha Icha Paradise book.

'He's the author!? This lesson's going to be horrible…'

Settling into read, you can't help but repress a twinge of excitement at the fact that you will be one of the first to read it.

…Say goodbye to Mr. Right, lock the door, turn out the light…

Outside the library, you manage to catch Naruto before he can enter. Grabbing his hand, you pull him behind the plant you are hiding behind.

"AHH! RAPE! RA-"

You clamp a hand over his mouth, for the second time that day.

"Shut up!" You hiss. "It's just me!"

He relaxes slightly. You uncover his mouth.

"Suki… you scared me!" He says. "What are you doing here?"

"We're not going in there." You say firmly.

"Huh?" Naruto tilts his head to the side. "Why not?"

"Because! It's stupid! We shouldn't have to listen to them!" You snap. "Let's go somewhere else."

Naruto thinks for a moment.

"Alright… but where…" He mutters. "Can't go to your room… Karin will find us… can't go to my room… the bastard's probably there…"

"You have to share with Sasuke?" You ask, sniggering. "That's just cruel."

Naruto rolls his eyes.

"It's the stupid councilor's fault." He says. "Ebisu decided to tell my Aunt and Uncle that it would be healthy to spend time with Sasuke. He's just annoyed because I caught him peeking in the bathhouse in town."

"Whatever." You mutter. "Let's go to Tenten's room."

Naruto shakes his head.

"No… she shares with Hinata." He says. "Hinata will tell Sasuke, Sasuke will tell Itachi, Itachi will kick our asses for 'disobedience'."

"What about Shikamaru? Juugo?" You ask.

"Shikamaru shares with Choji, who's probably at football practice." Naruto says. "So that's a possibility… but Juugo's our best bet. He's got a room to himself."

"Why?" You ask.

"Because he's a schizophrenic." Naruto says as though it's obvious. "Let's go there."

You both poke your head out from behind the bush, scan the area and grab Naruto. Running, you both make a mad dash to the dorm building. Once inside the lobby you run past a startled Shizune to the elevators, smashing the button repeatedly.

The doors open and you both catapult in, smashing into someone.

"Ahh! What the hell, un!?"

You look up into the startled face of Deidara.

"Oh crap…" You hear Naruto whisper. You step back from Deidara hurriedly.

"Where do you think you're going, un?" Deidara demands. You step back hitting the button for the third floor behind your back. The doors slide shut again.

"We're not going to the library." You say as the elevator starts to move.

"Really, un?" Deidara asks raising an eyebrow. "Says who, un?"

"Me." You say, eyes narrowing. "I'm sick of you lot bossing us around."

Naruto shuffles guiltily. You ignore him, leaving your eyes locked on Deidara's.

"And you honestly think I'm going to let you not show, un?" He demands.

"Yes." You say as the elevator doors ding open. "Because you're sticking with us."

"Nani!?" Naruto shouts. "Are you kidding?!"
"Think about it Naruto." You snap. "The minute we let him go he'll tell the others where we are. So he has to come with us."

You step out of the elevator, grabbing Deidara's hand and dragging him with you. Naruto hurries after you nervously.

"Ahh! Let me go, un!" Deidara snaps. "This is a hostage situation, un!"

"Shut up!" You snap, twisting his arm behind his back like Zabuza taught you. "Naruto, where's Juugo's room?"

"D-Down here…" He says, leading you down the hall. Stopping at room three-oh-four, he knocks on the door. You eye your room warily.

The door creaks open and Juugo stares at the three of you shocked.

"Hi." Naruto says, rubbing the back of his head. "Can we come in?"

Juugo moves aside instantly. You shuffle in, pushing the swearing Deidara ahead of you.

Juugo closes the door behind you, eyeing Deidara warily You push the blonde onto the couch impatiently.

"Ow!" Deidara complains. "You're so rough, un! I prefer it gentle, un…"

You smack him over the head and stomp over to the two boys.

"What are we gonna do about him?" You demand. Naruto and Juugo turn to you, an evil smile plastered across the blonde's face.

"Me and Juugo are going to get food." He says backing towards the door. "We'll see you later."

"WHAT!?"

Quick as a flash the two of them pull the door open and slip out, slamming it shut.

You hear laughter behind you and turn to glare at Deidara.

"Well, this is going to be fun, un." He says, smiling evilly.

'Oh crap…'

* This whole muffin thing happened to me and my friends on the first day of Home Ec -_-

** I'm not sure what you call it exactly everywhere else, but we have many names for it over here. Wagging, Ditching, Skipping… I have no idea what it's called everywhere else… hooky I think?