A/N:

There were some reviews for the last chapter asking why Naruto's character was different from canon and I just wanted to say he's going to be a bit more like Nagato in this fanfiction in the aspect that he's quiet, silent, and a bit of a wimp for obvious narrative purposes. I do plan on giving him a character arc, though it is going to kind of go all over the place at first but it's only for the purposes of the narrative I'm trying to construct. It also helps with the dynamic I'm trying to build between Sarada and Naruto. I'll try not to get lazy with my endings like the last chapter. Lastly, this fanfiction is slow burn af so you've been warned.

Sarada had never been one for mornings, especially nowadays. In her early years, the Raven hated mornings just as much as she did now, but her distaste only stemmed from the most basic of reasonings. She spent the entire night secluded inside a dark room and was forced to exit said room into another room which was lively and full of light and people. The Uchiha used to hate all the people that would greet her the second she awoke without giving her a single, solitary minute to get adjusted to the sudden shift in atmosphere. But now that everyone was gone, now that they were gone. Sarada kind of missed people. She missed the attention, the love, the care, the occasional scolding she would get from her mother for something she didn't put away the night before...Sarada would give anything to receive though simple pleasures just one more time. Nowadays, the emptiness of her household never failed to ruin her entire day. Just the mere thought of a house that was once full of people made her depressed, and knowing the fate of those said people pushed her over the edge. Her house stood as a reminder of her past, and if she really wanted to, she could've stayed in bed all day just to avoid walking through the house that reminded her of so much pain and suffering. However, Sarada had a goal. And she wasn't going to give up until that goal had been fulfilled. She was going to become Hokage, and she was going to rebuild her clan from the ground up. In her mind, the man who had committed the massacre, her older-brother Itachi Uchiha, stood has the challenge she must overcome. He was meant to consume every fiber of her being with rage which would only cloud her mind of all rational thought and judgement. She figured she could attain peace without killing her brother, and she could create new memories with a new family.

With a heavy sigh, Sarada dressed in her usual attire for the mornings and readied herself for her daily training regimen. The session consisted of all of the things that were taught in class such as Shurikenjutsu, Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, as well as basic planks and push-ups. However, as an Uchiha, basic wasn't good enough for her and she incorporated advanced methods of training into the regimen to ensure her strength was at its peak for her age. With these advanced methods learned through the older scrolls in the Uchiha Archives, she now practiced her aptitude in Fire-Release ninjutsu, the more evolved Shurikenjutsu techniques, and basic chakra control exercises. After the nearly hour-long session, Sarada clothed herself in the usual attire she wore for school. The Raven packed a lunch for the day which was made up of a regular bag of chips, an apple cut into 5 even triangular pieces, and a Mikkusu Sando. Of Sarada's own invention, a Mikkusu Sando was fundamentally a fruit sandwich with butter, cream cheese, strawberry jam, and of course a freshly, cut strawberry. She made her way to the Academy Building, which was a good 15-minute walk away from the Uchiha Compound. She didn't know why it was so far from the rest of the village, while the other Clan's compounds were all 5-3 minutes away from everything else. It was something Sarada thought about more than she begged to differ.

When Sarada arrived at the doors of the Academy, she immediately noticed her new friend Naruto sitting alone at the very back of the classroom as per usual. A frown plastered upon her face and a strong sense of pity in her heart, she hurried over to the blonde and sat down next to him. "Hello Naruto-Kun," she smiled sweetly. The Uzumaki was flabbergasted at the suffix she added at the end of his name. Nobody had ever referred to him by that, much less treat him with such respect. "H-Hey Sarada-Chan.." He replied kindly, hesitant at the 'Chan' he used at the end of her name. Naruto was paranoid at just how gentle and humane Sarada was treating him. On one hand, he enjoyed being treated like a regular human being rather than just a pile of trash. On the other, Naruto still suspected the Uchiha girl to be yet another fake who was just attempting to prey off of Naruto's weak, emotional state in order to tease him for the sake of a good laugh. Or the cerulean-eyed boy could very well be overreacting to this entire situation and Sarada genuinely wanted to be Naruto's friend. Although, even if she was being honest, Naruto didn't want people to think less of Sarada just for hanging out with him. He didn't want to be the fault of ruining another person's life. Still, despite all of this confliction, why did the idea of being her friend appeal to Naruto so much? "L-L-Listen, I know you're trying to be nice and all, but I really don't want to ruin your life just because you talk to me. You're honestly better off if you ignore me like everyone else." Naruto admitted. Sarada raised her eyebrow, "what makes you say that? I mean, I know everybody dislikes you here but...why would that change my perception of you or affect me anyway?"

Naruto sighed heavily, "because...everybody treats me like I'm some sort of disease. Like I'm something to be afraid of, and I don't know why." a tear ran down his cheek, only for the boy to wipe it away just as quickly as it appeared. "Wh-Whatever the reason is, I don't want you to get picked on like I do. So... you're better off without me. Th-Thanks a-anyways."

"Hey, listen...I don't care what other people think. Truth is, I'm lonely too...and, maybe we can help each other out, you know?" Naruto smiled at her doubtingly before quickly turning to face their sensei Iruka who had just entered the classroom through a sliding door located on the left side. "Good morning, students." He greeted, making his way towards the front of the class. "Good morning, sensei!" Everyone responded. "Today we're focusing our attention on the Clone Jutsu." Naruto groaned, damnit! That's my worst jutsu! Iruka began explaining the fundamentals of the jutsu and the minimal amount of chakra to put into it through a visual example he drew on the chalkboard. Once he finished explaining, he called for everyone to line up in front of the classroom to perform it. Everyone obliged, and Sarada made sure to stand right next to Naruto. Everyone seemed to be able to make perfect clone, namely Sarada who outperformed everyone by making 5 clones. Finally, it was Naruto's turn, and everyone had begun snickering to themselves to watch the boy fail yet again. His Uchiha friend watched him hopefully from the sidelines. Come on, Naruto. You can do it. Naruto placed his fingers in the Ram-Seal and began pumping chakra throughout his body. He attempted to expel the chakra and shape into an afterimage clone of himself. Before he even looked at the Clone, the giggles and snorts of his peers gave Naruto a good indication that he failed to produce a regular clone. Usurpingly, his clone was a dud. Iruka gave Naruto a half-hearted smile, "keep trying, Naruto. You'll get there eventually." Except Naruto knew he would never be able to master the clone jutsu, at least not on his own. Naruto began walking back to his seat, ignoring the light snickering and giggling from his classmates.

"I'm just a failure," he mumbled to himself as he lay his head back on the desk. "Don't say that Naruto!" Sarada exclaimed. "Like Iruka Sensei said, you'll keep trying!" Naruto picked his head up and stared Sarada in the eyes, "I have been trying... for years now! And I still can't do the most basic jutsu in the entire universe." A frown plastered Sarada's face, and then her face lit up with joy. "How about it tutor you after school? I could teach it to you, and maybe even a few other things?" Before Naruto could formulate a response, a rather plump boy with a brown mullet and hands bigger than his own head entered the conversation, an arrangement of hype man encompassing him. "You're dumber than I thought if you think anything will come of him, Sarada." He said, slamming his hand down on the table, causing Naruto to flinch. "Anything can be accomplished...as long as you try hard enough." The Ebony-Haired Uchiha defended. The Mullet-Man smirked before letting out a chuckle, "not everything...it's not like you guys are getting a family anytime soon." His posy of children laughed manically, "especially this one." He said, poking Naruto's forehead with two fingers, who was crying by this point. Sarada had had enough and stood from her seat, "want to keep talking? I'll come over and wipe that stupid smirk right off your face!" The boy once again smirked, "I'd like to see you try-" the brown-haired boy's words were cut short. Sarada had jabbed the taller boy in the face faster than he could even react to. It wasn't a full-strength hit, more or less a warning strike to back up. His nose began dripping blood, and the boy wiped it away with his knuckle. He gritted his teeth and attempted to strike his persecutor back. Winding his arm back as if it would make the attack more effective, he attempted to hit Sarada as she did to him, but his Sarada had managed to lock his elbow in place with his arm through the striking position. With a swift roundhouse kick to the gut, the boy was knocked out and his gang of nitwits scattered back to their respective seats. Iruka, unaware of what led up to the fight, shouted from the front of the classroom. "Sarada Uchiha! What in kami's name is going on here?" She looked towards her sensei, "U-Uh...I-" Just then, a friend of the bully chimed in. "It was Sarada's fault, sensei! Sarada and Naruto! They were making fun of us and then-." The Scar-Faced Chunin stopped the ramble, "save it! I've heard enough. Sarada and Naruto, please go to the Hokage's Office immediately!" Sarada groaned, "s-s-sorry Naruto..." she whispered. "I-It's okay..." Naruto was in fact to infatuated by the fact someone, especially someone he had just met the other day, had stood up for him.

Once they walked the numerous flights of stairs, they found the Third-Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi sitting in his office chair facing away from the door and smoking his pipe. "Naruto...Sarada," Hiruzen addressed them without even looking at the pair. "G-Greetings Lord Third," Sarada bowed. The Old-Man chuckled, "please, call me Hiruzen. There's no need for honorifics." He responded, turning his chair to face the two Academy Students.

"Well, Hiruzen, N-Naruto and I... we-" Sarutobi interrupted, "I'm well aware of what occurred between you two and that boy. Iruka informed me beforehand." Normally, Sarada would begin to panic if someone had found out of her misbehavior, especially someone of such high authority as the Hokage. But with Lord Third, he brought such a peaceful and calming atmosphere into any room he entered Much like his sensei, Hashirama Senju, Hiruzen had a general warmth about him that it was impossible to ever feel threatened around him. Though, Naruto and Sarada suspected he could very well easily become serious and threatening if he really wanted to. "Well, I just wanted to say I'm not mad. While attacking another student is undesirable, I suspect that there's more to the conflict than what's presented at face value. So please, explain your respective sides of the conflict." Sarada and Naruto both sighed in relief at the Hokage's generosity. "W-Well..." Naruto piped up in a barely audible voice. Begrudgingly, Naruto began explaining their sides of the conflict as Hiruzen had said they do. Once he finished, the Hokage took another puff of his pipe before speaking. "This isn't the first time something like this has occurred..." Naruto nodded in agreement. "Sarada, while you did knock out another student, you stood up to a bully. You defended your friend, and that's what matters the most." He gave the last Uchiha a warm smile. "I'll let you two take your leave now. You may return home for the rest of the day."

Sarada and Naruto both bowed, "Hai!" They said simultaneously before making their way to the door. Naruto opened the door for Sarada, and before she managed to fully exit Hiruzen's voice stopped her. "And Sarada...I'd apologize to that boy if I were you." Sarada raised an eyebrow at this. The Mullet boy had insulted her and Naruto's lack of parents, and she could never forgive someone over that, nor would she apologize for knocking them out. Still, she didn't question Lord Third.

"Yes Hokage-Sama." She said, bowing before exiting the room with Naruto following not far behind. "S-Sarada-Chan?" Naruto asked timidly. Sarada whipped her head around, "yes Naruto-Kun?" She replied, slowing her walking speed so Naruto could walk by her side. "C-Could you perhaps teach to perform the Clone Jutsu? L-Like you promised?" Sarada grinned, "of course. Follow me!"

A/N:

Sorry it took me a little longer to post the second chapter. I've been busy recently with school, and I've felt an intense lack of motivation to write so it took me an entire week to complete this chapter. I won't give up though, and I'll complete this fanfiction until it reaches it's conclusion. I know the ending got lazy, suffering from writers' block.