Ch 3
It had been a month now. They all had scouted the area thoroughly. Each had memorized the pathways of the castle, and had discovered secret passages as they went. Being ninjas they knew how to look underneath the underneath.
Naruto was now bored sitting in the "Great Hall" as it was apparently called. For good reason too. Just look at the place! Yes. This was indeed a great hall. Definitely worthy of Naruto's current worship. Naruto's first night here had consisted of the best ramen ever. Ichiraku's ramen was better, but this place had ramen much better than the instant that he himself had brought.
The forest that he had sent ten of his clones into was incredible. There were all sorts of creatures. He had gotten the rest of his team to go in with him the next day. They concluded that the area was almost uncannily alike to the Forest of Death. And they liked it. It would make great use for a training ground.
As it were, at the moment, Naruto was in the hall eating his favorite dish. It was good. The best part was the bowl could refill itself, so he didn't need to stack a bunch of empty bowls. He didn't know how it happened. But he also didn't know what jutsu was used to make pictures talk or stairs move.
He had asked the old guy they had met in the beginning and he had said it was magic. The statement caused all of the ninja to stare at him blankly.
But the "Wizard" had gone on to explain the purpose of the school. All of them apparently had the capability to use magic. But they used jutsu. So it would take awhile to get used to using a "wand" to transfer their chakra through, instead of their hand signs.
But Naruto didn't care about that. He had gotten the Doton jutsu down after increasing his chakra using the tree walking exercise. He knew he would. But know he still had to get the kaze and suiton jutsus down. He asked Kakashi and he had gotten a few other exercises, but they were hard. He understood the basic theory behind it. But every time he tried it he chakra would jump sporadically.
The exercises were simple enough. One was to take a piece of paper and use his chakra to give it an edge. Which he would then throw that would pierce the tree or rock he had thrown it at. He sometimes had trouble getting the paper back out due to it being stuck to far in. This was one he had gotten down easily, since it revolved around his elemental chakra.
But then he had gotten the leave cutting exercise. He was to use his chakra to slowly cut into the leaf along the vein. He tried and tried. But it was hard to even get the chakra through, let alone slowly and along the vein right down the center.
Then Kakashi had shown him another before he had even finished the leaf cutting exercise.
This one involved putting a kunai point up and balancing in it with your chakra. This one had earned him lots of cuts and wounds on his hand and wrists. Sakura had a lot of work cut out for her in the times it cut the inside of his wrist.
She refused to treat him again if he didn't get the leaf cutting exercise down first.
Needless to say, Naruto was beginning to get very frustrated.
He glared at the leaf. Death to all trees. For they are useless. Look at them! Just standing there. Laughing at him, mocking him. The leafs themselves were chuckling! But not anymore. Oh no. He got up and started a rasengan.
The trees stopped laughing. Actually they looked kinda scared. He grinned manically.
He ran towards the trees ultimate demise. Oh how nice it would feel. Then he could laugh at the trees as he failed to cut they're leaves again and again. Wait, no. He would be cutting them! That's right. And the trees would be crying.
Bwahahahaa! Crying!
"What are you doing, you idiot?" He was promptly broken out of his daydream and his mid running only inches from the tree's surface.
He could hear the tree sigh in relief. He glared at it. I'm not finished with you...
He turned around to see his comrades staring at him kinda freaked out. "What?!" Naruto didn't appreciate being stared at. Always hated it.
"Why were you laughing like some cracked out maniac while running at the tree with a rasengan?" Naruto sweatdropped. He had been laughing aloud?
"What are you talking about?" Now way was he going to admit to anything.
"Why are you here and not in the castle like we planned?" Naruto sweatdropped again. Conversation of the questions. And a major switch-up of the subjects.
"We were supposed to meet in the castle?" This was too cool. How much longer would they be talking in questions?
"You forgot, huh?" Naruto grinned.
"What was I supposed to remember?" They stared at him. He was doing it again. Finding something amusing in a serious conversation. (A/N: I always do that. It annoys my friends... And scares them.)
"Why are you laughing?" He grinned more.
"Who's laughing?"
"..."
"Hmm...?" His eyes looked more amused than his face. As he had at least tried to look a little serious.
His friends just stared at him. Finally Sakura turned around. "Let's go." She was turned, but the others saw the suddenly disappointed look on his face. Sakura had obviously just ruined whatever game that Naruto had been playing.
They weren't even going to ask.
They each made their way to the castle.
-.-;;
Finally they were all in front of the castle. Kakashi appeared out of nowhere, again.
"Alright, today is the day that the train is going to be coming to the school. Since our objective is to become friends with our assignment. You all will be posing as students of the fifth year. It has already been arranged that at least three of you will be in his classes at all times. Your story is your transfer students from Japan. You will take the boat ride into the school with the first years and be assigned into your own house. There are four houses You will all be undercover for whatever houses your placed in. While we are here, we will not give ANY information about our occupation or reason, no matter what the circumstances. Any questions?" Kakashi ended his rather long lecture. There were no questions.
Naruto tilted his head. Now remembering why they had to gather at the castle. Oh well. He would get his revenge eventually. It was a well known fact to be better served cold anyway.
Suddenly a weapon was thrust at his face. He reacted as any ninja does. He fell on his butt. He stared at the rather odd weapon that Kakashi had tried to give him. It sort of looked like a spoon... but it had a bunch of pointy things at the end... Soooo... A fpoon? Kakashi looked at him oddly. Like a fpoon was an everyday occurrence. "This is a spork." Kakashi said. "This is what we'll use to get to an area near the train station.
Naruto blinked. Spork? What a stupid name. Fpoon was much better.
Nevertheless, he put a finger on it as did everyone else.
He once again felt the unpleasurable feeling of his belly button being yanked. Ouch.
-.-;;
Would you all get mad if I ended the chapie right here? I wonder... - sees raised fpoons- Hehehe... those are dangerous you guys...
-.-;;
They arrived in an empty alley.
Slowly they got up. Naruto snickered at Shikamaru who had landed in a trashcan. Sasuke was on his butt. He was getting pretty good. Maybe a few more and he wouldn't land in a way that made him look stupid. Naruto chuckled at the thought. The girls landed like Sasuke. Naruto himself had landed like he was a crawling toddler. Neji was leaning on the wall face first. Kakashi was standing there... Naruto decided that he would find a way to make him land just as stupidly as them.
As if he had said it aloud, Kakashi glanced at him as if to say "Don't you dare." Naruto sulked. He really wanted to though...
They walked to to train station once Kakashi got their "belongings" from his scroll. It actually had their backpacks in them. But it was mostly nothing. Kakashi parted ways with them afterwards. Telling them that he would see them at the school.
As the meandered to the station they looked for 9 ¾. Which was not locatable. Imagine that. After looking for awhile they all noticed that people who went past a column didn't go by, but disappeared. How odd.
They knew that this was the entrance to the train they would be taking. Slowly Sakura and Hinata approached the column first. The boys watched as they too seemed to vanish. Neji and Shikamaru went next, followed by Sasuke, then Naruto.
Naruto nearly ran into a bunch of short midgets running around the column as he came in.
When all of them had gathered they made their way to the train past all of the loud children and crying mothers and proud fathers. They climbed in and began a search for their target. Neji showed them a picture of the boy that Kakashi had given them. It was a boy with glasses and messy black hair and had a scar on his forehead. Shaped like a lightning bolt.
They all nodded Neji, Hinata, and Sakura going towards the front of the train, while Sasuke, Naruto, and Shikamaru went to the end.
It wasn't long when Naruto spotted a sort of empty compartment. He opened it and saw a two girls with blond hair and red hair. Next to them were two boys. One looked as though he came upon bad luck quite often. And the other was unmistakably their target.
"Oh! Sorry." He said sounding just a apologetic as his words. Even if he wasn't. "We've been searching everywhere and we can't find anywhere to sit. Do you mind if we sit in here?"
The boy with the scar looked at them speculatively. As if checking out a possible enemy. Naruto just tilted his head in foe hope.
The girls and the other boy exchanged glances. "Ummm... yea that's fine. But just you three, alright? We need to save some room for our friends." They explained their hesitation.
"Oh. That's fine. I'm sure we can squeeze our other friends elsewhere." Naruto put his case up, as did the others. "We'll be right back. We have to let the others know."
They left quickly. "Hmm... that dude looked at us like we were pretty suspicious."
"Doesn't matter. As long as your in there, I'm sure we can make "Friends" I hope you don't expect much from me or Sasuke though. It would be too troublesome to try to make friends with someone we'll only be around for a year." Shikamaru said.
Sasuke looked like he agreed.
They soon found the others walking in the front of the train. "We found him. But you guys will have to get different compartments. There isn't enough room for all of us.
Shikamaru looked like he was thinking. "We should change Sasuke for Sasuke for Hinata or Sakura." He said.
"No offense." He explained. "It's just that we need to be guaranteed to make friends on this trip. It was part of the mission objective. I don't want to go, but I'm needed there just in case Naruto almost lets something slip." Naruto gave him a dirty look for that. "Also Sasuke isn't as people friendly as, say Hinata or Sakura."
Sasuke agreed. He hadn't wanted to go back there since he saw them. He would've pitied Shikamaru if he really cared.
"I suggest if be Hinata though." Shikamaru continued. "Sakura, you may be able to make friends easily, but with Naruto there, you might forget yourself and punch him with your "special" punches, which would give us away. Hinata would be perfect for this situation."
Naruto silently thanked Kami-sama that he wouldn't be hit on this ride. "Hinata! Yay! She's perfect for this! She won't hit me at all!" Naruto threw his arms around her in a buddy-buddy fashion.
"U-u-ummm... y-yes I-I will... try... m-my best..." Hinata was slowly going red. She had lost her stutter of the years, but with Naruto this close, she was loosing it. "Naruto, you idiot!" Sakura promptly punched him away from Hinata.
Kami-samaaaaa... Whyyyyy?
Once Naruto and Hinata had both recovered, They plus Shikamaru made there way down to the last compartment. Just as the train was going to start the closed the door.
The people inside looked up curious. They had been joined by a bushy haired girl and a gangly boy with red hair. Looking similar to the red headed girl in the corner.
"'Allo!" Naruto greeted energetically. "Sorry about the sudden leave. We had to help the rest of our friends get a compartment. As an added bonus, we traded the other guy for Hinata!" He said excitedly. "So we'll definitely have much more fun!" He grinned happily.
After the initial shock of his greeting, slowly they grinned back. They didn't even know why. It just felt like this guys deserved to be smiled at.
The only one who didn't grin was the boy with glasses. As Naruto set himself down in a corner, and his friends settled as well, said boy stared at them suspiciously.
Naruto turned at caught his glance. He blinked. "Do I have something on my face?" He said innocently.
Seeing a chance for some information about the newcomer Hermione began an interview.
"Actually you do." She said. " What happened? They look like painful scars." Naruto tilted his head in a fox like way.
"Ah, no. I was born with them. I guess you could call them birth marks."
"What's your name? What about you two?" she continued.
"Well, my name's Naruto Uzumaki. This is Hinata-chan Hyuuga. And that is Shikamaru Nara." He pointed to the "sleeping" boy.
"Where are you from? Are you transfers?"
"Japan. Yes."
"What house do you think you'll be put in?"
"No idea. Don't even know the differences."
At this Ron jumped into the conversation to tell him of all the houses.
"Do you play quidditch?" Ron asked. (Sp?)
"Uhh... no?" Naruto had no idea what that even was.
"Oh... I'm sorry." Ron sounded extremely pitying.
"Thanks?" Naruto continued his question with, "Now my turn. What are your names?"
"I'm Ron Weasley, that's my sister Ginny, her name is Hermione Granger, he's Neville Longbottom, over there is Luna Lovegood, and that right over there is Harry Potter." He finished his answer pointing at Harry.
"Okay, What houses are you in?" Naruto continued without pause. Ron and the other gave a collective blink. There was someone who didn't look at Harry's scar or immediately repeat his name. He would've asked, but the look Hermione gave silenced him.
"Uh, right. All of us are in Gryffindor, except Luna, She's in Ravenclaw."
"And do any of you play 'quidditch'?" Naruto repeated a previous question.
"Yea!" Ron was in his element. "Harry's an awesome seeker!" Ron then proceeded to tell Naruto of the great sport known as quidditch.
"Wow. Harry you sound like your really good." Naruto said in awe after the explanation.
Harry wasn't sure how to react. It was the first time for someone other than his friends to rally appreciate his ability. Usually him being able to play quidditch was just an add-on to his title. He blinked owlishly. "Thanks." He said unsure.
He was drawn in to the conversation little by little after that by Naruto. As they ended up talking about everything from school to quidditch to magic in general and back to quidditch again.
Unseen by anyone, Shikamaru cracked his eyes a bit. Mission Accomplished. He thought as he watched Naruto getting everyone to laugh at his jokes and smile at his goofy personality. He brought Hinata to attention occasionally and himself less. But Naruto was doing his part perfectly. When everyone was occupied, Naruto glanced at him and their eyes locked. He nodded.
He turned back to the conversation and abruptly started talking about the wonders of pickles and much better they would be if the were purple. Shikamaru himself gave a small smile at the hilarity that Naruto brought to the mix.
Before anyone knew it, they were at the castle. Naruto looked just a disappointed as everyone else. "Well I guess I'll see you around!" He said. "Ron, Harry." He suddenly looked extremely serious. "If... If I end up in Slytherin... I want you to kill me!" He gave a shit-eating grin and he ended. They grinned back.
"Right! We won't be changing our minds!" Harry warned.
"Thank God!" Naruto exclaimed.
Everyone laughed.
They quickly changed as they had forgotten about it earlier, and left for their designated traveling vehicles.
As they met up with the others on the shore and climbed in to the boats two at a time, They nodded to them. Target sighted and locked.
-.-;;
O..M...G... I made an huge chapter! Appreciate me! Or... you could use this as an apology because it took so long to update...
Anyway, my masterpiece is coming to life! Breath, my precious! Breath! Next chapie everyone ish sorted and they meet a cow. And what's weird is that it talks. Yes, everyone is very confused. Me two.
Have a gewd summer you slackers! 'Cause you know I love you all! Devil Hinata