Surreal. Surreal is the term one would use when confronted with the village's greatest nightmare, and said horror was sitting there asking for a peaceful resolution.
Neither Sarutobi or Danzou were prepared for this.
The fox remained on its haunches, its voice echoing and booming throughout the room, as all encompassing as its utter darkness was. Ask.
Danzou didn't need to be told twice, and he was far past the point of personal pride, especially when confronted with the Kyuubi itself. "Being as we are not dead and the village does not stand, I take it Naruto does not desire revenge."
The fox turned to look at Sarutobi, No. He is very upset with you, but he does not hate you. I, however, am livid.
And then the fox was close. Far too close. In the time it took both men to blink, the Kyuubi had crossed the room. It loomed over the two men bearing its teeth, a caustic growl rippling out of its throat. The Kyuubi leaned down close enough that it was a scant inch from Sarutobi.
...And for all that the hokage tried, he could not overwhelm the crushing, debilitating and suffocating killing intent that was the Kyuubi incarnate. Being immersed in it was being drowned in tar; Impossible to breath, impossible to think, impossible to move. All that was left was white hot terror and an understanding that his life was currently disposable.
Know that it is only the little one's will that keeps you alive.
There was hatred in its voice, and beyond that, no bluster. The fox spoke the truth. Grass grows, the sky was blue, and if Naruto had wished it, he would be very much dead. Sarutobi forced himself to nod in the hopes of appeasing the kyuubi.
Tch. The fox snapped its jaws closed, and the hokage flinched back from him. The little one will not be pleased with my display. He will appreciate that you still live, though.
Danzou remained pressed back against his seat, careful to remain quiet. This was, mercifully, between the demon fox and Konoha's hokage. Never before had he been so glad that he'd been passed over for the position. He cleared his throat as best he could. "Ah… Kyuub-"
He stopped cold when the fox's icy blue eyes snapped towards him.
"Kurama," He amended quickly, "I have two more questions, if I may."
The fox turned a baleful glance back to the sagging hokage, and then rested back on its haunches.
Danzou took that as an invitation to speak once again, "I would ask the nature of your relationship with the boy."
We made an agreement and destroyed the seal. We became bound to each other. He is my yin chakra, I am his yami.
Both old men balked. The seal was gone. The fox and Naruto were intrinsically linked. The light side of the fox's chakra was under Naruto's contol, and the darker side of Naruto's sub-conscious was under the dominion of the Kyuubi.
Sarutobi had to remind himself to breathe as the implications came to light.
"...When he said that you all were the same, then..."
We are not the same being, but we are of one soul. We wield the same instincts and to some degree, think with the same mind. Did you not wonder why erasing me from the child's mind seemed to have such a dire effect?
The fox's head tilted, and its eyes narrowed dangerously. The sneering grin it wore mocked Sarutobi.
Sarutobi bit back an apology. He would not apologize to the being that nearly ended Konoha and murdered their greatest hero, "We had no way of knowing you did not seek to harm Konoha. What I did was reasonable and expected of me."
The fox tilted its head the other way, All Naruto expected was to be tucked in and loved. What he got was his mind torn apart.
The hokage narrowed his eyes, "How dare you. I couldn't have possibly known what was happening-"
Like a monkey you fling shit and wonder why things get dirty. The Kyuubi turned its head to Danzou, The little one is beginning to miss me. You had one more question. Speak quickly.
Sarutobi's eye twitched outright, "You…" A litany of curses on his tongue and a snarl on his lips, the hokage leaned forward, trembling with anger.
"We are here for information, old friend. We may find what is left of your pride, after." Danzou interrupted, "Why do you appear different than you were?"
The fox's grin became less mocking, The price I paid was a part of my identity. I am his yami, his shadow, and I am free. It yawned, exposing its razor teeth. I am leaving, and you have your answers. My little one will be safe in this village with or without you. Choose carefully.
And then, in a burst of black, the fox sank into the ground. Never did its eyes leave Sarutobi as he descended, seeping into the cracks and the floorboards of the building, leaving two old men sitting alone.
Danzou took a deep breath and sighed as he ran a hand over his head. "Any number of people would have taken him in, you know. I would have seen him trained and properly controlled." He slowly pushed to his feet. "And now you've left the legacy of Konoha's greatest hero to Konoha's most powerful enemy."
The third hokage narrowed his eyes in response, and turned to peer out towards the village.
The bandaged man sneered, and turned to leave.
"Your negligence has benefited Konoha for once, Sarutobi. Try not to sit too proudly."
"Hey…"
No answer.
"You know that feeling you get when you sleep for way too long, then you wake up and find that the world looks really different than what you remember?" Naruto looked over at the giant sleeping fox that'd hunkered down next to the bed, it's tails and ears twitching and leg kicking when a stray dream ran through its mind.
If he tilted his head and focused enough, he could see the fox in the wild, chasing prey through a forest that dwarfed its massive size alongside other… stranger looking beasts. Somehow, it was more vivid than anything he'd ever seen. The scent of the trees more fragrant, the glory of the chase… It was all just wildness and freedom.
Naruto shook off the foreign dream, and clambered out of the bed.
Kurama grumbled something under its breath, and shifted its head towards Naruto. It was instantly rewarded with some idle behind-the-ear scratching.
"Guess I should get ready to go, huh?" The fox licked its lips, and fell into a deeper sleep while doing so. It's tongue hung out of its mouth, and Naruto smirked. "Yeah, okay. I'll get ready to go."
He hadn't bothered to throw on his bright orange jacket, instead, he'd simply settled on that black tshirt he sometimes wore under it, along with his usual orange pants and black sandals. "Man, Mizuki did a number on this thing..." He sighed, and looked back at the ripped and torn orange and blue jacket before shaking his head fondly. "I'm gonna miss you, buddy."
Everything will be okay. The fox, still groggy if Naruto could judge by its voice, had finally gotten up and followed him into dining room. Two tails whipped out, tendrils of smoke that bent their very shape to the fox's will and began searching the boy's cupboard. Haphazardly, Naruto found himself presented with a box of cereal, milk, and a bowl. Change is good… this change is good. Eat.
Naruto smirked, "…You diggin' in my mind again? Heh… thanks. For everything, not just the cereal and milk..." He tilted his head at the sight of the milk. Specifically, the date that was on the side of the milk, "Oh man… this is expired. Lame." He pushed the container across the table away from him. "Man… Kura-kun, what if no one… you know… what if they don't like me?"
The fox raised a single eyebrow, somehow seeming elegant while doing so.
"I mean, today I get teams, right? But I've been a real asshat for like… years. Its all they know about me. What if they don't like how I am now, either?"
Kurama ran a tail through Naruto's hair affectionately, ruffling it up, Some will, some won't. I like how you are though.
Naruto scoffed, "Yeah but of course you'd say that. You're Kura-kun!"
Sometimes that has to be enough.
The boy grumbled and sunk in his chair like the kitchen table was devouring him. His arms crossed, and he pouted down at nothing.
Kurama gave a martyr's sigh, and moved to sit down next to Naruto, You are a likable child, but you will not be swamped with friends in this village because of me. Seeing the boy's face fall, the Kyuubi leaned down and nudged him, You will meet friends, little one, I promise. You may not have many, but you will have truly great friends. And you will always have me.
At the Kyuubi's nudging, Naruto couldn't keep his frown from melting off of his face, replaced by a smile that was matched only by the sun. He patted the fox's side a few times, grinning happily as the Kyuubi circled him. "You're the best, Kura—ehhhh!?" Suddenly, he was being hefted into the air, "Hey! What're you doin'!?"
Kurama's jaws snapped around the back of Naruto's shirt, and began carrying the boy over to the front door. You will leave early so you can grab something to eat. Breakfast is important.
"Wh-what? But Kura-kun, I have like-! Hey, come on!" Whatever argument he had died when the fox began shoving him out the door, pushing him roughly with its head. "Oh come on the door isn't even open!"
Then open it.
"I can't open it if I'm being shoved against it!"
Kakashi found himself reading through the manila folder marked Team 7 repeatedly, the documentation of which was largely useless now. The Uchiha was the same, the Haruno was as expected, but Naruto… he sighed and then he took a moment to look around his surroundings. Naruto's home wasn't much of… well… anything. It looked like it'd been recently cleaned, with a pile of empty instant ramen cups being shoved towards the trash can, filthy clothes piled up in another corner, and the occasional bright orange track jacket thrown onto the floor.
He was thankful that neither Kyuubi or Naruto seemed to care to lock the door after they left… but then, why would they?
"He doesn't have much, does he?" He asked, picking up the expired carton from the table and wrinkling his nose. "At least he started cleaning up." He looked back up at Sarutobi, then put the container down.
"I thought it might be better if you actually saw his standing with the Kyuubi, rather than my trying to explain it." Sarutobi frowned, and shame ran across his face; misery that was buried years deep. "I've… made the mistake of making moving before understanding the situation. I would rather you didn't do the same."
Kakashi raised an eyebrow, and stared at his old hokage for a moment. There was a story there… and he wasn't sure if he wanted to hear it.
To choose between the Yondaime's legacy and the village… that wouldn't work out well.
"He seems happy…" The silver haired jounin mused, before turning to the hokage, "With the kyuubi, I mean. They seemed really happy together." He wasn't entirely sure what to make of that… The same demon that'd murdered his sensei being utterly inseparable and happy with his sensei's legacy.
"He is happy, yes." Sarutobi sighed, and idly ran his hand along the dining room table, "I know he's… The Kyuubi has raised him longer than anyone in this village; watch him closely, Kakashi."
The jounin's eyebrow raised a bit higher. Raised? Not just spent time with, but the Kyuubi outright raised him? Wasn't the hokage supposed to be doing that? "...You think he's a threat?"
Sarutobi pinched the bridge of his nose in response. "I think he's a risk."
The silver haired man ran a hand through his hair. A risk. Not an actual threat, but a risk. A demon was free in Konoha, and he was declared a "risk". Something was going on here, and Kakashi wasn't sure he understood the specifics… but that wasn't his job, either.
He was the sort of man to keep it simple, so he did. Keep an eye out for Naruto. Don't get too close. Read porn in public.
He nodded to the hokage, "I'll keep an eye on them."
Just one eye. Two eyes would be way too much trouble.
"It's kind of weird bein' out like this." Walking through Konoha without feeling that bizarre need to run around screaming at people had Naruto feeling more than a little antsy. Like he didn't quite know what to do with his hands. The boy simply opted to close his eyes and take a deep breath, even the glares of the adults simply didn't bother him as much as it should have. Idly, he let his gaze cross over the somewhat sizable bag in his hands. "So why'd you have me get three cinnamon rolls, anyway? There's no way I'm gonna eat all these alone. I don't even eat these all that much."
That is called consideration and foresight.
The boy mulled over the Kyuubi's thoughts for a moment, and then gave a shrug and a nod. "Oh. Yeah I guess that makes sense. So who's the third one for then?"
Later, in case you get hungry. You're a growing child that needs food to live.
The blonde stopped walking long enough enough to give his shadow a sidelong glance, a lopsided smile crossing his face.
You find my concern… paternal.
"It's just… stuff I hear other parents say, that's all."
You seem pleased about this.
Naruto's hands crossed behind his head, and he smiled up at the sky, "Why wouldn't I be? It's… it's a pretty nice day, isn't it?"
The fox gave a pleased rumble, and Naruto smiled even wider.
Hurry along, little one. I'd rather you weren't late.
"Welp, you don't mean a damn thing any more." Iruka stared down at Uzumaki Naruto's file with narrowed eyes, and tried to ignore the pang of hurt in his shoulder. Naruto went from the most harmless and technically deficient ninja in the village to a complete monster, and Iruka couldn''t figure out if he was okay with that. The boy was in league with the Kyuubi… on friendly terms with it, even.
...He was definitely not okay with it.
Iruka looked over at his clock, then back at the dossier sitting on his desk. "Twenty minutes to class and I haven't gotten anything done yet. Even when you're not here you give me trouble..." He grinned slightly, "God dammit, Naruto."
"Oi, I don't always give you trouble sensei." Naruto said from the doorway.
Iruka's eyebrow raised. Naruto? Early? Bullshit. He watched as the boy walked in slowly, nervously, like a kid who was going to school for the first time. He noticed the boy's shadow was longer and darker than it should have been, and tried not to let his nervousness show, but knowing his parent's killer is in the room with him… well… he did his best.
He ran a tired hand over his face, and released a groan. "Tell me you didn't hear me curse."
"Nah, I definitely didn't hear you curse my name. That woulda been..." Naruto suddenly stopped, mid-sentence, cocked his head and then smiled like he'd just heard something pleasant.
Iruka couldn't shake how weird it was to see Naruto thoughtful, even if he was 120% sure the boy was talking to the demon…
And then he, very abruptly, had a bag of cinnamon rolls being pushed into his face. The sweet scent of dough, cinnamon and early morning spices filled his nose without warning. It wasn't entirely unpleasant.
"Hey, I grabbed breakfast at the bakery today! Got way too many rolls though, you can have one if you want!" Naruto grinned wide, "See how nice I am? You curse at me while I'm not here, and I still bring you breakfast. I'm the best brother."
The teacher rolled his eyes, and mussed Naruto's shaggy blonde hair. To his surprise, Naruto leaned into it like a pleased puppy. "Yeah, okay. Although you're only the best because you saved my life and got me breakfast."
"Yeah, see? I'm awesome." Naruto pulled the bag out of his face, then peered inside of it, nearly sticking his whole head in. "Oh shit… er… shoot, I didn't grab any napkins."
He winced even before Iruka chided him for his slip. The school teacher idly entertained the amusing thought of the demon fussing at Naruto for cursing. But that would be crazy, right?
"I gotta grab some napkins from the bathroom, I'll be back."
"Oi, I have some right here. I always keep some in my desk just in case one of my students does something silly. Like spill paint all over my desk."
To his credit, Naruto had the good grace to look ashamed, nervously scratching the back of his head as he recalled that prank. "Man, that was only once, and I had like… half a brain."
Iruka's rolled his eyes, "Oh what, you saying you got a full brain now?"
He didn't quite know what to make of the smile that he got from Naruto in that moment. It was a sheepish sort of smile that one received when they'd been told a very special secret. Whatever it was, it was very open and very honest. He was very, very pleased about something, and for the life of Iruka, he couldn't figure out what made the boy so happy.
"Hey, come on. Aren't you hungry?" Naruto eagerly reached into the bag and set one cinnamon roll out for each of them, "You didn't' get beat up so bad last night that I gotta feed ya, do I?"
Iruka smirked and shook off his moment of reverie, "What did I do to deserve such a bratty little brother, huh?"
Naruto smirked back, "You showed up and tried to pull him outta a real bad situation." He took a huge bite of the roll, and swallowed. "Sorry sensei, you're stuck with me."
Stuck with Naruto, who was stuck with the kyuubi. The same Kyuubi that invaded Konoha years ago and murdered his parents. The same Kyuubi that ruined Naruto's life. The same Kyuubi that had… allegedly taken care of Naruto before anyone else did.
No, he was not okay with the Kyuubi.
But as he enjoyed the company of Uzumaki Naruto, the kid that smiled in spite of it all, Iruka realized that he was smiling back.
Guess that settled that.
"Yeah… I guess I'll have to live with that then."
There he was again. It was the first thought that crossed Hinata's mind as she walked into the classroom. Naruto was there and Iruka-sensei wasn't fussing for him to leave… in fact, if she didn't know any better, it was almost like Naruto and Iruka were… friendly. Iruka wasn't sitting at his desk tormenting himself over a file, and Naruto… well… Naruto had the oddest smile on his face as he sat peacefully at his desk.
It was probably the most peaceful that she'd ever seen her crush. With the carefree way he rested, hands thrown behind his head. His eyes were closed, his breathing even, yet every once in a while, his smile grew just a little, like he'd heard something funny in his sleep.
It was cute.
"A-ano..." Before she knew it, her heart was in her throat, she was blushing, and she was poking her fingers together. "Naruto-kun?"
Naruto's eyes widened, then flared open and then oh kami he was looking right at her and smiling this brilliant smile that made her knees weak. Naruto gave a nervous laugh and scratched the back of his head. "Hey, Hinata!"
He sounded happy to see her. He sounded legitimately happy to see her. He looked legitimately happy to see her. Hinata shook her head and bit her bottom lip as she moved to sit down next to him. That was another thing, he'd chosen a seat near her, not near Sasuke and Sakura… near her.
Hinata was so elated, she never really noticed as the other students filed into the class. She was completely lost in Naruto-kun. Her Naruto-kun.
"A-ah… uhm… hey, Naruto-kun. You… did you pass, then?"
"Yeah, something like that." He said the words easily, as though he had nothing to prove. It was…. A refreshing change. "Things worked out for the best, anyway."
For a brief moment, neither of them said anything. The two simply looked at each other, blushing hard and Hinata found the memories of The Hug swelling into her mind.
She started to squeak out an apology apology, and then Naruto attacked her with a bag.
"Oh yeah hey I got you a cinnamon roll!" His fist shot out with the bag in hand, and he eagerly shoved it into the girl's not-so-waiting hands. "Its uh… its because you gave me that uh..." Naruto's shoulders slumped, "Man, this is hard. Just like… here… I got this for you."
"F-For me? How did you know I… uhm..." She reached out slowly shakily and took the bag from him, all the while hiding her blush behind her palm. "Uhm… thank you very much!" She squeaked the words out eagerly snatched the bag him, holding it tightly to her chest the second she had it. She sighed happily… her first gift from Naruto-kun, and he'd even got her her favorite food!
How could he be this perfect?
Naruto smiled that smile that made her stomach do flips. "Yeah? You like it?" He leaned in a bit closer, "I'm glad you like it! If I'd known I'd have definitely gotten you more."
No longer trusting her voice, she just nodded eagerly, "M-maybe we could get… uhm….?" Halfway through the question, she squeaked when she realized what she was saying. Asking Naruto to go with her and get some more breakfast pastries?! What was she thinking?
"What?" He started eloquently, "W-wait are you asking me… uh..." Oh kami. He was blushing. He was so cute when he was blushing! And now she was blushing even harder.
"No! Uh… not… I'm not asking...To… to uh…" Hinata tried again, but she found herself trying to explain that she was not asking to go out with her, just that maybe they could go get some sweet rolls. She ended her stuttered, confused rebuttal with the sound of a squealing mouse.
"Maybe we could just… uh..." Naruto countered, but his words died on his lips the second he caught how red she was becoming. His eyes got wider and wider while he was looking at her and she didn't know why he was staring so hard, but she felt herself getting more and more lightheaded.
And then she found herself pouting the second Naruto's attention was inevitably torn away from her by… well… the door. Naruto's ears perked, as though he were hearing something far away, kind of like a puppy that was waiting for someone to come home. "Huh?"
The classroom door burst open, and the classroom was instantly a flurry activity again. Sakura and Ino were the first to charge in, both girls bullrushing the spot nearest Sasuke.
"Ah… how did you know they were..." Her voice died when she saw how intently he was staring at Sakura and Ino. Ahh… so she really didn't stand a chance, huh? The bluenette deflated in her seat, and turned her attention over to the object of Naruto's affection.
"Move it, pig! I was here first!"
"Shut it, forehead, Sasuke definitely wants me next to him! So move!"
"...They're so..." Naruto mumbled to himself.
"Why are they so…?" Hinata sank into her seat.
"Loud." They finished at the same time.
Hinata could have died happy in that moment. She didn't quite understand what brought this change on in Naruto but she liked it. This had to be the luckiest day she'd ever had. For the second time that day, Naruto and Hinata shared a very brief but fond smile before looking away from each other.
And as Naruto sat there, quiet and filled with nervous energy, occasionally smiling at nothing and sometimes at her… Hinata smiled. Naruto had changed, Hinata decided. There was something simply less.. frantic about the way he spoke and moved. Less desperation, she didn't know how to describe it, and she didn't want to. Naruto noticed her, and that was enough.
"Alright, lets get this over with," Despite the excitement, the noise in the class died down at Iruka's voice. For once, they listened, because they all knew what came next: team assignments. Meeting their jounin-sensei… and then sweet ass ninja stuff.
At least, that was how they thought it went, anyway. Regardless, the class was finally quiet, the teacher was standing before them with a roster in hand.
"Oh, so now you all are listening to me? Tch..." He smirked, "Alright, I don't have much time, so I'll just say this. A lot of people don't make it through the academy, you did, and I'm proud of each of you for doing so."
His gaze, for the briefest moment, made its way to Naruto.
"So make sure you listen to your jounin sensei, remember your training, and more than anything, take care of your teammates. Even if you don't like them, their life is on the line alongside yours, so treat 'em well." He tapped the manila folder with the back of his hand. "Let's get down to business, huh?"
The class cheered noisily, dying down only when he held up a hand. Iruka skimmed through the page, and then finally… "Okay, Teams one through six are still in rotation, so we're starting at Team seven."
He took a deep breath. This was gonna be loud.
"Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura-"
"NO!" Ino instantly wailed, and buried her face into her arms.
"CHA! TAKE THAT, PIG!" Sakura was out of her seat in a flash, both fists raised into the air, "True love conquers over all!"
"And Uzumaki Naruto, your jounin sensei is Hatake Kakashi."
Sakura instantly dropped back in her seat, "What?! No… he didn't even pass!" She hid her face in her hands in anguish. Sure, she got Sasuke-kun, but Naruto? Loud, irritating, tripping over his own sandals Naruto? She'd definitely have to work double hard to keep Sasuke's attention on her.
The Kyuubi's anger bubbled up inside of Naruto, and the boy narrowed his eyes. "I did pass." No yelling, no screaming. Just a white hot denial that was dripping with irritation. "I wouldn't be on the list if I didn't pass."
"Wait, wait, hang on," Kiba was suddenly leaning over his desk, "Did he get special treatment or something? He doesn't even have a forehead protector! How's he get to be a ninja if all he did was goof off?!"
Naruto snapped around to face Kiba, "You-"
Iruka untied his forehead protector, "No. This is special treatment." He walked over to Naruto's desk, and placed it in front of Naruto. It snapped against the desk sharply. "Put it on."
The blonde, wide eyed, picked up the forehead protector; it was all nicked and savaged from the previous night's fight, but it still served its purpose. Still, he held it like it was glass… his brother couldn't really just be giving it to him, could he?
As an after thought, Iruka's eyes snapped to Kiba, and then Sakura.
"Inuzuka. Haruno." His voice snapped through the class, "Have either of you been in live combat?"
Haruno said nothing, and ducked her head. Kiba though…
"What the hell? Of course we didn't yet. That's what we're training for, right?"
Iruka's glare settled on him, "I suggest you stop talking if you haven't. The people who are on this list are selected based on the confirmation of the Hokage himself. Everyone is here because they are proven, one way or the other. Naruto, put the forehead protector on."
Something in Iruka's voice made Naruto move a bit faster, and the boy obeyed immediately, only to realize that tying a strap of cloth around one's head with a knot wasn't nearly as easy as he thought it was. "Uh… Hinata-chan, could you…?" He pointed to the back of his head.
"Uhm… y-yes!" She responded a bit too enthusiastically, "But you need to lower your head so… uhm..."
He bowed his head to her, and couldn't help the smile that crossed his lips when her hands played at the cloth, knotting it carefully, but not so carefully that her fingertips didn't brush his scalp.
It felt nice.
When she finished, she gave him a quick tap with two fingers. "I-I'm… uhm..."
Naruto smiled through his blush, and murmured a thanks before turning back to Iruka.
"That one suits you best." Iruka said simply, and returned to his list, "Anyone else have any more grievances? No? Great. Now, team eight: Inuzuka Kiba, Hyuuga Hinata and Aburame Shino, your jounin sensei is Yuuhi Kurenai.
Hinata peered over at Naruto, thoughts of her own team being pushed far back into her own mind. "...You saw real combat?" She murmured, ever the quiet girl, her whispers were just above an exhale… but Naruto seemed to hear her fine.
This time, his smile didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Oh… it was just some assho-" He winced, "It wasn't… Iruka-sensei needed help, so I helped him, you know? It wasn't nothin' big."
A dubious expression crossed her face, "Wh-what kind of help did he need?"
"Oh ya know… some jerk with a kunai."
"Team 9: Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, and Akimichi Chouji. Your sensei will be Sarutobi Asuma." Iruka took a deep breath, and gave the students a wide smile, "This is the beginning of the rest of your careers, and I'm proud of you all!"
Most of the class cheered, and chattered happily to each other. Only a few noticed the way Iruka walked over to Naruto's desk, and leaned down in front of it so he was meeting Naruto eye to eye.
"Hey. Just so we're clear, punk, you deserve to be here more than anyone else. You're proven in combat, so don't you ever let anyone on your team or off your team tell you that you haven't earned this… and tell your friend that if he lets you get killed, I'll kick his ass."
Naruto blushed hard. "I told you I was awesome, didn't I?" No yelling, no fussing, he was just sitting there smiling back at his teacher.
Hinata felt like she was interrupting something just by observing.
"Yeah, and you finally proved it." Iruka mussed the boy's hair, "Do your best, Naruto-kun." And just like that the teacher was walking away, the wide smile on his face never vanished on his way out.
"Ahh man, that's embarrasin'..." The boy nervously scratched at the back of his head, "See Hinata? Everything worked out!"
Somehow, she didn't think that was all there was to it, but underneath Naruto's bashful gaze, Hinata nodded meekly. "Okay. W-well… I'm glad you became a ninja. I'm h-happy for you."
The two smiled widely at each other, and just as soon found something else to look at, both of them blushing brightly. The awkward silence threatened to consume them both.
Fortunately, Yuuhi Kurenai saved the two from themselves. "Team 8?"
"Two hotties on one team!? This is the best!" Kiba whooped, and ran out of the room, completely oblivious to the baleful look Kurenai was giving him.
"The rest of team 8, please?" Kurenai snapped, her exquisite temper flared, and her expression turned frigid.
Shino moved as quickly as anyone had ever seen him.
Hinata found herself admiring the black haired stern woman for her confidence in pulling off a dress made of cloth straps, but with curves like those, who wouldn't? She gave a wistful sigh, and finally pushed herself to her feet.
"Uh… bye Naruto-kun. Thank you for the uhm… for the..." Hinata gestured to the bag holding the pastry and then made her way out of the door and walked away…and she silently kicked herself while she did it. 'Not like this Hinata… he gave you a gift, and you're just going to walk away from him? He finally noticed you! He finally sees you! But… but a gift doesn't mean he likes you… right?'
She stopped cold.
Hyuuga Hinata gave a wistful sigh in the hallway, and turned to peer back into the room.
He waved at her.
She couldn't. She couldn't go back in there, but she could settle for admiring him from where she stood. ...For now.
"Don't give up, Naruto-kun." She murmured. Hinata bit her bottom lip, turned on her heels, and escaped while she was still standing.
Sasuke frowned.
At first, he hadn't thought much of his current team. And why would he? Sakura was useless outside of having her nose in a book, and Naruto was useless outside of… well… he was simply useless.
Except not, apparently. Iruka had just implied, heavily, that it was no accident that Naruto was being made a ninja. That he'd seen live combat, and as a result, the hokage had seen fit to call him into the service of Konoha in spite of his performance in the academy. Just like that, his team was maybe not nearly as hopeless as he thought it was.
Two out of three wasn't bad, after all, and now it seemed that he had all the time in the world to grill the deadlast about it. They'd been waiting nearly an hour for their sensei to arrive, and it was taking its toll on Naruto, it seemed. The boy was sitting there staring at the clock, his legs fidgeting as he waited to finally get a move on.
Sakura had finally given up on staring at him, and opted to glare at Naruto, instead.
"Hey, dobe."
Sakura snapped around to look at him. Naruto eventually did the same after giving his shadow a weird sort of smile. It was almost… sympathetic?
So he was still crazy. Great.
"What's up?" Naruto asked in that carefree, calm way that he'd seemed to discover in the past day. He was so glad the dobe wasn't so loud any more. Crazy, but not loud. Was one really better than the other? Ugh.
"What'd you do to graduate?"
"Cheat." Sakura bit out balefully.
Naruto ignored her comment, and instead ran his hand through his hair, "Man, why's everyone askin' about that? Iruka-sensei needed some help and I helped him out, thats all. Nothin' too big, right?"
Sasuke narrowed his eyes, "So it was favoritism."
"...Sure, lets go with that." Naruto laced his hands behind his head, and leaned back in his seat. A smile played on his lips like he was hearing something pleasant. "I never was a very good student."
"So you really did just cheat?! And now we're stuck on a team with you!" Sakura crossed her arms and turned back to Sasuke, "Can you believe this loser?"
The Uchiha narrowed his eyes at Naruto. "No… no I really don't."
No boasting? You've earned that right.
Naruto smiled lightly, and leaned back in his seat. He closed his eyes and felt himself slip backwards, and suddenly he was falling into nothing, a surprisingly comfortable feeling as he collapsed into the lush forest that made up his and Kurama's mindscape. In an instant he was laying back against Kurama's fluffy hide, and the fox shifted lightly to accommodate his added weight before it curled around Naruto.
"Eh… they already think I'm the class dobe, you know? I ain't gonna chase em' around tryin' to convince em of otherwise… they've seen a different me for years. It sucks, but thats how it is."
We will not hide ourselves. I will not allow you to be seen as weak.
A laugh escaped Naruto's voice. "Yeah, no. I just don't wanna sit here and have an argument about what I am and what I ain't. When we get in an actual fight, they'll..." He trailed off.
You are worried.
"I mean… yeah, little bit, yeah." His lips quirked, and Naruto drew his knees up to himself, "I'm gonna end up goin' from the 'dobe' to the 'monster'…"
A bundle of tails descended across the boy's shoulder, and wrapped around him tightly in an odd, but soft and pleasantly warm sort of hug, followed by a rush of affection that buried itself deep inside of Naruto's chest, chasing away a knot of anxiety.
Some will respond that way. Some will not. Iruka-sensei did not. I believe that is a start.
He subconsciously ran his hand along the cool metal plate resting on his forehead.
Naruto snorted, "You still call him Iruka-sensei."
I show him the respect you do. Your jounin-sensei is on his way. Go. Be good. Be strong.
"Shit, really? How long have we been in here?!"
Language. A single tale swung down, and cuffed the back of Naruto's head.
"Ow! Okay okay! Geez!" He swatted the tail away from his head and pushed up to his feet. "Bye, you big mean fox thing." Naruto buried himself into the Kyuubi's side, hugging the fox tightly before willing himself out of the mindscape.
The Kyuubi huffed.
He hugged like the fox would disappear forever if he let go. Kurama couldn't blame him.
Naruto's eyes snapped open, and his gaze instantly snapped to the door.
Within moments of the blonde waking up, a silver haired, one eyed man walked through the door. He was as tall as he was late, and didn't really seem to hold his stature like the other jounin. Kakashi stood like he didn't care, slouched and uneven. Sagging. He just kind of… existed.
"Yo. Team Seven?"
"You're late!" Sakura yelled.
Sasuke stared balefully at the jounin.
And Naruto… Naruto stared blearily at Kakashi, and raised a single hand in greeting. How could he be mad at a guy that gave him a chance to hang out with Kurama? "Hi!"
"Well…how can I put this?" Kakashi met each of their eyes with an appraising gaze. "You guys seem... annoying. Meet me on the roof."
Laughter echoed in Naruto's head.
Annoying? He has no idea.
Not me though, right?
Of course not you. Hush.
"Alright." Their new sensei leaned back against the railing of the roof, "Why don't you all introduce yourselves one at a time. You know, let everyone get to know each other a little better."
There was a dull pause between his students. Sasuke scoffed, and looked off to the side like he had something more important to do. Naruto pursed his lips and instantly looked away the second eye contact was made, as though he was keeping a million secrets. And Sakura… Sakura talked. A lot.
"But we already know each other," Sakura said, "How do you want us to do it? Oh! I know! Can you show us how you would do it?"
Kakashi stared down at the pinkette, deadpan. "You want me to sit here and explain to you how to introduce yourself, and then give you an example?"
She gave a slow, almost sheepish nod.
He turned his gaze over to Naruto. "You, on the left. Introduce yourself like you did in the academy."
Naruto took a deep, deep breath, "I'M-"
"Not exactly like you did in the academy."
The blonde deflated, "Oh thank kami." He said with a relieved sigh before sitting up straight, "Uh..." The boy's ears perked, and briefly, very briefly, he gave a faint smile as he glanced over his shoulder.
Kakashi hadn't noticed it at first, but Naruto's shadow definitely ran longer and darker than normal, and its head tilted ever so slightly like it was listening carefully.
"I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I like ramen and my friends, but especially Kura-kun. He's the best. Uh… anyway." The blonde took a deep breath, "I don't like people who try to hurt me and mine. I don't really hate em', but I can't stand em right now." He opened his mouth to say something else, but tilted his head again, then grinned like he'd heard a funny joke. "Uh… yeah anyway! My dream is to get strong enough to stop anyone from ever hurtin' my friends again!"
Sasuke scoffed, "What happened to becoming hokage?"
Again, Kakashi found himself curious. What did happen to becoming the hokage? Not that he didn't appreciate the change in Naruto's priorities but…
"That don't seem important now." Naruto winced, a painful memory of an old and powerful hokage rearing its head, "It ain't important. I don't need to be hokage to protect my friends."
Interesting. Kakashi clapped his hands together, catching the attention of the two other genin on the roof. They'd gotten too comfortable staring at Naruto incredulously.
"Do you get it now?" He asked Sakura, and didn't wait for an answer. "Great. Introduce yourself, please."
Sakura looked at Naruto, then back at Kakashim gaping like a fish all the while. "Oh! Uhm! My name is Haruno Sakura and as for what… I mean who I like..." She squeaked like a dying mouse, "And… and my dream? My dream is too…!" This time, she outright squealed. "And I hate crazy people, like Naruto!"
Kakashi narrowed his eyes at the girl. Now wasn't the time for discipline, but damn if old ANBU urges weren't rising up again. He paid a quick glance to Naruto to see how the boy was doing… and… well…
Naruto just gave her this sideways glance. Somewhat hurt, but more confused than anything. He tilted his head, once again very likely listening to something the Kyuubi was saying, and then he turned his gaze back to Kakashi, a tiny smile playing on his lips.
Obito he was not.
"And last but not least, you. Go." It came out snappishly, tersely, and he waved at Sasuke dismissively. Sakura's introduction had not left him in the best of moods.
"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. There are a few things I dislike, and I don't like much any more." He steepled his hands, "All I have is dream… no… I have a goal. I will find and kill a certain man."
"...Yeah, I get that, I guess." Naruto shrugged.
Sasuke's eye twitched, and he glared at Naruto. He was not used to understanding… especially not from the dobe. "What do you know?"
"Huh? I'm just sayin' that if I hated someone like you did, I'd probably want em' dead too… I mean, I should, anyway. I don't though."
Both Sasuke and Sakura looked at Naruto like he'd just eaten a kunai before Sasuke shook it off and glared at Naruto, white hot anger rolling off his body. "How would you know how I feel?"
"Uh… I don't know. Kura-k..."
Sasuke was growling his response before Naruto could even finish, "And just who is kura-kun?"
Fascinating as the situation was, Kakashi knew a bad situation when he saw one and decided to head it off with a clap of his hands. The genin-to-be snapped to attention, three pairs of eyes locked onto him. "Let's get right to the point. You're not genin yet."
"What?!" Sakura yelled.
"Yeah, what the he-" Naruto stopped short, and his eyes widened like he thought he was going to be punched in the face if he finished his sentence. He decided not to, and leaned back into his seat. "Uh… sorry."
"...That was surprisingly courteous." Kakashi raised an eyebrow, "As I was saying, Out of the genin selected, they're all tested for competence in the battlefield. Your test will be tomorrow, at six, morning. Don't eat breakfast or you'll throw up, got it?"
His three genin nodded.
"Great. Sakura, Sasuke, you guys can leave. I need to talk to Naruto."
Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Naruto, "What do you want with him?" Confusion, anger… a little bit of jealousy?
The jounin never thought he'd see the day when Sasuke was jealous of someone. He would have to nip that in the bud if they were going to survive, for sure… but for now…
"Uh huh." He stared at Sasuke with all the patience of a man with absolutely nothing better to do besides read porn in public. "Fine, you can stay if you want. Anyway, Naruto, if you really want to pick up girls, you need to be willing to pull it out any time you want to show you meant."
Sasuke narrowed his eyes.
Sakura whipped her head towards Naruto, "Wh-what?! You pervert."
Naruto looked at Sasuke and Sakura, then his shadow to which he narrowed his eyes dubiously, and then back at Kakashi, "...Wait, whip what out?"
"This is a waste of my time." The Uchiha outright turned and walked away, hands jammed in his pocket, and a scowl on his lips.
Sakura wasn't far behind him.
"...What just happened?" Naruto said, somewhat nervously. The boy fidgeted in his seat, and stared up at Kakashi. "...Is this about Kura-kun?"
So the kid had some brains, too. That was good.
Kakashi rested his elbows on his knees and nodded, "Your teammates don't know about him."
The boy sagged like a bag deflating balloon. "Nah… I don't… I don't think that would go okay."
"You know you're gonna be fighting alongside them on a regular basis, right?" Kakashi raised an eyebrow, "You're going to be fighting with them tomorrow."
"Yeah..." Naruto rubbed his arm and looked away from Kakashi. "Kura-kun said they might not like me, but if they didn't they'd be sucky friends anyway."
This conversation was getting way too close to parental territory.
"He isn't wrong. …Just take it as experience on the field. Sometimes you'll have to work with people that don't like you, and trust me, its better for stuff like this to come out early on, rather than in a mission." Kakashi leaned forward, "There's no room cowardice here, Naruto. If you fight with the Kyuubi-"
"-Kurama. You call him Kurama." Naruto corrected with a pout.
Kakashi rested his head in his hand, "If you fight with Kurama, then you do so with the team. This is the sort of thing you can't hide, alright?"
"I know, but-"
"Sorry, let me rephrase that. I won't let you hide it."
Naruto stared back at Kakashi, and tried not to look too alarmed. He failed. "But Kakashi-sensei-"
"Try not to worry about it," Kakashi sighed, and leaned back in his seat, "Think of it like going to the dentist. One yank, a bit of pain, and then you're either okay or bleeding horribly from the mouth while sobbing uncontrollably."
The blonde Uzumaki felt his eyes rebel, and widen in horror.
"Yeah, see? It'll be fine. Go get some ramen and think about it."
Naruto got some ramen, but he was trying really hard not to think about it.
Teuchi was behind the counter, preparing for another batch of ramen. All in all, it was a companionable silence, if a bit odd. Naruto had been the sort of kid to come running up to the bar and outright yell at Teuchi to get him some ramen. Now…?
"Been a while since you've been here and not screamin' at me. You alright kid?" For some reason, Teuchi had been watching him like a hawk ever since he'd gotten there.
His gaze snapped to his shadow, and he smiled softly.
"...ya know, you used to do that a lot when you were little." Teuchi mused, leaning back against the cutting table as his gaze went far away.
Naruto was simply thankful for a topic that didn't make his stomach squeeze into a knot. Too much.
He looked up at Teuchi, and found himself splitting his attention between his ramen and the old man. Occasionally taking huge bites of his ramen, but nowhere near the horrifying vacuum cleaner of devouring that he used to be.
"The way you look back at nothing. You used to do that all the time, like someone was whisperin' in your ear.." He smirked. "That's the thing in your stomach, right?"
Naruto froze. He stopped chewing and his eyes went wide. His stomach squeezed into a horrible knot.
"So its actually talkin' to you?" Teuchi laughed, an oddly soft sound, "Kid, you gotta learn to hide your hide your emotions better. Anyway, that don't matter to me." He planted the knife into the cutting board, "...So it just started talkin' to you again or somethin'?"
That got a wide smile out of Naruto. "Yeah! We get talk to each other again! It's great because he used to take real good care of me when I was little, and… and when we weren't talking I wasn't really myself b-but he ain't at all like people said and I… uh..." A thought struck the boy like lightning. "You ain't scared?"
All he got was another laugh from Teuchi. "Heh. You ain't scared, so I'm not worried."
"Just like that?"
"Just like that. Wanna do some more work with the chain tomorrow?"
Naruto, excited, eagerly nodded his head and started to practically bounce in his seat. Teuchi grinned back, and the Kyuubi released a short, barking laugh.
That is two friends now, Little one.