C.M.D: Yay, the first update of the New Year! Okay, moving on. There's some thank you's that need to be done. THANK YOU: hanakisa, Haruhi. Hime, Great Karyee-Sama XD, Chaos Dragon-Fox, Broken Sexed Up Bloody Kitten, cluelessninja65, FallenAngel Sayu, tea, redfoxrose, timme. I enoyed reading all your reviews. And THANKS to everyone else who read, but didn't review. I love all of you guys so much!!
Ci, Ci, my playmate,
Come out and play with me.
Bring your dollies,
Climb up my appletree.
Slide down my rainbow,
And through my cellar door....
"It's just not going to work!"
Itachi frowned, fingers tracing the curves of his porcelain ANBU mask. He glanced at the swirls of red painted across the mask's beaked face, before turning his gaze back to the one who had made the protest. Kakashi was seated across from him, hunched over his chair. The older male's brow was furrrowed, and even though it was concealed by his mask, his lips were obviously pulled tight with a frown. The raven shifted slightly in his chair, drawing Hatake's worried stare.
"There's not much else to do. The purpose of this plan was for us to remain unnoticed as we brought my brother and the Yondaime's son together. Our options are already limited. If we can not do this, so far in the plan, then we have run out of things to do," Itachi explained. Kakashi glowered at him, already aware of this fact, but his eyes held more concern than hate. "I understand your trepidation, Hatake-san," the teen continued. "I do not want Naruto-kun's image to be tarnished as well. But the fact of the matter is, that there isn't anything else we can really do at this stage."
The silver-haired nin straightened up in his chair, pressing his thumb and index finger to his eyes as he sighed. "Then I guess this as far as we can go...," the jounin murmured.
Kakashi rose to his feet, his shoulders sagging under an invisible weight. "That's it then. This is as far as our plan goes," he repeated.
Itachi grabbed his mask, standing up as well. His pack and sword jangled against his side with the motion. "And what will become of Naruto?," he asked. "He's an admirable child, extremely hell-bent on befriending my otouto-kun.... With our help, a friendship between the two was making little progress. Without our intervention, I can only assume that all the ground we've gained, will be lost."
The two made their way to the door, the masked man reaching for the knob, another hand coming up to rest at the back of his neck. The Uchiha waited patiently for his superior to open the door. "If a friendship has any chance of forming.....," Kakashi began, "then it's up to Naruto and Sasuke to make it. As for us... we're finished scheming. Any further action on our part might only end up ruining Naruto's stature, and I can't do that to my sensei and his son. I just can't."
The raven smirked a bit, as he slipped his mask over his face. "Our loyalties are always stronger when they lie with those we care deeply about," he paused, to make sure the mask was snug in place, before continuing. "Then I'll consider this interaction between us terminated."
Kakashi nodded, finally swinging the door open. The men stepped out. As Itachi walked past the older shinobi, he said one last thing. "Don't worry so much, Hatake-san. Naruto-kun is so much like his father and mother. He'll find a way to befriend my brother, even without our help, I'm sure. And if those two never become friends... Naruto-kun will still somehow find a way to get out of this deliquent image that is being made about him. That, is the redeeming quality of an Uzumaki: the ability to change a person's poisonous opinions on other individuals."
Hatake's visible eye widened in shock at the teen's words, before the surprise melted away, lips quirking into a smile. How strange for a Uchiha teen to be the one to comfort him, the jounin mused to himself as he watched Itachi walk away. Glad all the same for the raven's words, Kakashi turned on his own heel and headed down the hall to the Hokage's office. And who knows...maybe the boy was right. Maybe Naruto would somehow manage to accomplish things, where they had failed.
'I can only hope so,' the man thought to himself, raising his hand to knock on the Hokage's door.
Hinata shuffled outside the door to the washroom, pale eyes constantly flashing up at the door then down the hall. To an adult, her fidgeting might appear that she needed to go, but in actually the Hyuuga was fine. At the moment she was supposed to be outside with the other children for recess, but instead she had lied to the chunnin doing playground duty, and told them that she needed the bathroom.
She had gotten this far, but now her little bout of courage had left her, and she was anxious about making the last half of the journey. "Poor Naruto-kun.....," she sighed softly to herself. Her friend had gotten in trouble once again today, and so was once more missing out on recess. And Hinata knew how much the Uzumaki loved recess. It was all because of their Sasuke-sempai that Naruto was even getting in trouble!
The black-haired girl blushed furiously, shocked by what she had just said within her mind, and bowed her head in shame, even though there was noone around to see her face or hear her thoughts. The Hyuuga felt her heart drop a bit in her chest, as a wave of sadness ran through her. It had taken a lot of work on her part to even approach Naruto, and even now, when the boy called her 'his friend'; she still couldn't spend time with him.
It seemed rightly unjust, in her opinion. "No.... It's not Naruto-kun's fault," the raven whispered to herself, "It's because Naruto-kun thinks alot about Sasuke-sempai. He wants to be his friend, afterall..."
Even to her ears, it sounded somewhat pathetic. Hinata ran her fingers under her eyes, warding off an tears. She already understood from the beginning that Naruto was the type of person who did big things, and reached for very high places... she just hoped that he wouldn't forget about her.
There was yip, that echoed down the silent hallway, and the Hyuuga threw her head up at the sound. Her white cheeks began to fill with colour, embarrassed, as she waved daintly to the approaching individual.
Kiba was taking some papers to one of their other teachers, as a favor to Iruka-sensei for not skipping out on class at all so far this week, when he spotted a familiar mop of hair. Or should he say, a familiar colour. Back tracing a couple steps, the brunette was overjoyed to see that the person standing by themselves in the hallway was indeed the Hyuuga heiress.
The child had been trying all week to try and spend some more time with the raven, but it just wasn't working. His friends didn't really want to hang out with the younger girl (Shikamaru said that 'females were too troublesome'. Chouji.... Chouji was too busy stuffing his face to give an actual answer) And there was that little fact that Hyuuga had a different recess from Kiba, and with that stupid blonde no less. The Inuzuka cursed the age gap between the two of them. Akamaru was squirming in his jacket by now, having caught Hinata's scent.
Grinning at the eagerness of his pup, and ignoring the fact he himself was itching to race over to the girl, Kiba pulled Akamaru from his coat and set the canine onto the ground. Immediately, the pup ran for Hinata, barking as he went. Not caring that Akamaru's calls might bring unwanted attention, the brunette too ran toward the raven.
"Hey!," he chirped, coming to a stop in front of her.
The girl shifted on her feet, cheeks pink, as she greeted him back. "H-hello se-sempai...."
Kiba twisted his head to the washroom behind them, then back at the black-headed. "Do ya have recess right now?," he asked. He crossed his fingers, and seriously hoped that the answer wasn't yes. He didn't want Hinata to leave just yet.
"M-mmhmm...," the raven nodded. She was starting to get really anxious again, but this time it wasn't because of Naruto. Being in an older student's presence was making her slightly uncomfortable.
Akamaru whined in the back of his throat. He was being ignored by the two he really liked, and he wasn't happy with it at the moment. Hinata jumped a little at the sound, and turned toward the pup. The canine grinned up at her. Smiling softly, the raven reached down and scooped Akamaru up into her arms. The dog instantly melted into her embrace, content to be held.
Kiba watched, beaming secretly to himself. He shifted on the spot, drawing the Hyuuga's attention again. "Wanna hang out for the rest of your recess? Right here?," he asked.
Hinata paused for a second, her cheeks getting darker. Her pale orbs cast about them quickly, before drawing up to the brunette. It seemed unlikely that she would be able to see Naruto now, and recess was almost over....
Slowly, she nodded her head, sharing a small smile with Kiba.
Naruto pouted in his seat, elbows propped on the desk, palms cradling his face. In front of him lay a piece of paper, the additional punishment on top of his revoked recess priviliges, his task was to finish the number of math problems on the page. But of course, the boy didn't even want to pick up his pencil.
He turned his head to the window, staring out skies that mirrored his eyes, feeling hot, angry tears rise to his orbs. Lately, the blonde had started to really hate Mizuki-sensei. The man was very mean, and to Naruto -who though was very young, still retained an uncanny sense of detail- it seemed his teacher was especially singling the Uzumaki out. It unnerved him, and angered him, when ever Mizuki-sensei had that strange look in his eyes.
Naruto turned his head back to the front, staring at the clean chalkboard. His teacher had left him a few minutes ago to go take care of some other duties before recess was over. The blonde blinked, then grinned. This was the perfect time to do some running around!
Giggling to himself, the child rose from his seat, and padded to the front of the room. The blonde came to a stop though, when his ears caught the sound of voices talking in hushed tones just beyond the classroom's doorway. Curious as to who was talking, Naruto tip-toed to the door. The door was open a crack, allowing him to peek out and listen without being caught.
It was Mizuki-sensei, and another teacher -a woman with brown hair- from down the hall. Naruto never had the woman for a teacher before, but he had seen her once or twice during playground duty for their grade. The two adults were still talking, what they were saying exactly the Uzumaki still couldn't tell. Leaning forward more, the blonde focused on what the senseis were saying.
".....just worried. I mean, without a mother....and what with his father being so busy all the time... I think Uzumaki-kun is not developing at the same rate with the other children," the woman said. "He just may fall behind."
Mizuki cocked his head to the side, sighing between clenched teeth. "You shouldn't worry so much. It's not so much his parents' fault, but Uzumaki's. The boy just won't cooperate at all with my lessons. He only pulls pranks, and keeps trying to sneak out of the class."
The woman placed a hand on her cheek. "Why does he do that, I wonder? There's got to be a reason."
"Even if there is one, it's most likely an irrrational one," Mizuki replied, shaking his head. "That child has his head in the clouds constantly. Truth be told, I find the whole fact that he's enrolled in the Academy a waste of time and effort. It's obvious the boy doesn't care for learning, and is only a distraction when the other children are being taught."
The woman nodded her head in acknowledgement. Venting a bit now, the silver-haired man continued. "He lacks obedience, patience and overall, a working memory. Uzumaki hasn't even learned proper speech yet, and he's in the first grade?!"
Releasing a frustrated growl, Mizuki fell quiet for a moment. The other teacher took that as her que to speak up. "It is indeed worrisome that the Yondaime's son can't talk properly," she agreed. "If he can't even learn to talk, then I guess it will be hard for him to even follow the curriculum."
Mizuki hmmed to himself. "My time and efforts shouldn't be wasted on such a deliquent brat...."
Naruto drew back from the doorway quickly, darting back to his seat. His eyes were all warm again, and his gut felt empty, and the boy knew he was really close to crying this time. He wanted his dad to be here, but he also didn't want that, because than the Yondaime would have to hear all those things that Mizuki-sensei said about the child. Disbelief swamped his entire being as the blonde's mind set to work, and began to piece things together.
He, he was.... stupid.... compared to the others?
And it clicked for the Uzumaki. That's why Sasuke never wanted him around, why the other kid was constantly telling him to bug off. And that also explained why other kids picked on him, or ignored him entirely. It was because... he wasn't like them.... at all.
Clenching his fists, Naruto tried to blink away the tears. Outside the classroom, there started a slight rumbling sound, indicating that some classes were coming in now from recess. He didn't care how hard he had to work, the blonde was going to talk to Sasuke again after school, and find out for sure what it was that made the raven not want to be his friend. And then he'd know. Naruto wiped at his eyes, taking a deep breath to get rid of the last of the tears, getting ready for when his class would enter.
When the bell rang, as was custom for him now, Sasuke quickly left the classroom and headed outside. He did it to avoid his fangirls, and overall, Naruto. As soon as the raven was out of the Academy doors, he dashed towards the small woods circling the school's playground. With perfect skill, the Uchiha leapt up among the tree's branches and nestled himself comfortably. He had some time still before he left, and sitting here would ensure that he wouldn't run into any irritating people.
The black-haired child slipped off his bag, placing it in his lap. Coal orbs stared at the navy blue napsack, his thoughts thinking about his lunchbox inside. Sasuke, as smart as he was, had not been fully aware of his brother's intentions when rice crackers started appearing in his lunch everyday. But the child was intelligent enough to know that something was up, now that today there was no rice crackers along with his meal. And it couldn't possibly be that Itachi simply forgot to put them in..... Itachi wasn't that kind of person, Sasuke knew that much.
'Just what is going on,' the raven pondered. This curiosity was driving him a little insane, and the fact that there were no answers available to the Uchiha was more than just annoying, it was downright infuriating. He didn't like not knowing things.
Sasuke was drawn out of his reverie though, when he heard a sound of a cracking twig, turning his head down to see a little blonde head pushing through the bushes. The raven's lips pulled tight across his face as he realized that the golden mop of hair belonged to none other than Naruto. The child crossed his fingers, hoping that the other boy would keep pushing ahead, giving him time to slip away, but it seemed God had other plans today.
Uzumaki stumbled on a root, and fell to his knees, scratching the palms of his hands. With teary eyes, the blonde picked himself back up, looking at his hands and hissing when he clenched his fists. And Naruto must have noticed something, because he tossed his head back, and his eyes widened when he spotted Sasuke sitting up in the tree branches.
"'Suke!," the boy cried out happily, in his ever common mutilated speech. The whiskered child quickly brushed himself off and turned his full attention to the raven. "I look for you, an' I finded you! 'Suke, i-"
"Would you just leave me alone," Sasuke interrupted. He clenched his teeth, pushing his fingers against his temple as he released a frustrated growl. "Honestly, what is your deal? Didn't I tell you to quit bugging me?"
Naruto took a deep, shuddering breathe. "B-but...," he whimpered.
Sasuke butted in again. "No, I don't want to hear it. You're so stupid! It's no wonder no one likes you. I keep telling you things, but you never listen. I want you to go away right now, and leave me alone! Can you get that through your empty skull?"
The blonde clenched his eyes shut, tears just slipping through. "I 'ate you!," he screamed furiously at the raven, turning on the spot and running off. Sasuke pushed himself against the bark of the tree, closing his eyes, not caring enough to watch the Uzumaki leave.
"Serves him right," the Uchiha mumbled.
"Just what is going on?!," Minato demanded.
Kakashi, standing in the doorway, flinched and turned his head away from his sensei. The Yondaime stared at him, eyes wide with confusion and anger, before the man turned back around to his son. Naruto was sitting on his bed, staring blankly at both adults. The child had said not a word, and still would say nothing to this moment.
Kakashi glanced at the boy, and clenched his fists. He had gone to pick Naruto up after school, only to find out that the little Uzumaki had already left a few minutes ago. Panicking, the jounin jumped about, checking their route home and the surrounding areas. It was just a couple minutes later when he found the small blonde, banging madly on the front door of the Uzumaki household. Naruto had been crying up a storm, and when Hatake had made his presence known to the boy, Naruto began to make all manner of angry shrieks.
There was even a bruise on the grey-haired shinobi's side where the blonde's tiny fists had beaten an imprint into his flesh. If he thought he had been scared when he heard Naruto had gone home by himself, Kakashi found himself terrified at the blonde's state. No matter what he did, Naruto just kept screaming and crying, pushing or hitting things around him. There seemed to be no reason to the boy's distraught madness.
Or... maybe there was.
Only fifteen minutes before Minato came home, did Naruto finally calm down. But his tears and cries were replaced with unresponsive silence. What was he supposed to do?! At that moment, Kakashi felt like crying himself. Naruto wasn't supposed to be acting this way, and his teacher wasn't supposed to be looking like someone ripped his heart out.
"Naru?," Minato was whispering to the child. "Naru, what's wrong? Talk to me, please. Come on, speak. Naruto?"
Naruto only blinked, focusing in on his father. Still, the boy made no sound. With a choked sound, Minato plopped his head against his son's chest, wrapping his arms around the tiny frame. Not knowing what else to do, Kakashi stepped out from the doorway, and into the hall, leaving the two blondes alone.
C.M.D: this was such a long chapter compared to the others. And it's sadder too... at least I think so. Oh, what shall become of poor little Naruto? You'll just have to wait and see, next update!
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