Alright, new chapter! I apologize now for the lateness of the update, especially since i told a few of you that it would be up last monday...then that tuesday...after that, i decided to play it by ear since i was having trouble getting the chance to sit down and actually finish it up. To top it off, for some reason i had trouble staying up at ALL every day last week, and then getting up in the morning. I was even lacking sleep or anything,i just couldn't stay up, and I do most of my writing before I go to bed at night because that's when everything else is done.
Anyways, another long chapter, but unlike last time, this will be almost completely original to my story line, and guess what? THE SAND SIBS HAVE ARRIVED! YEAH! They make their appearance at the end of this chapter, and I'm so glad I finally made it to this point in the story. It felt like it was taking forever!
There will also be some definite drama here for team 7, and especially for Naruto-chan. Introducing the Kiba crush... What will he do? What will she do? How will it affect her relationship with Sasuke? Read and find out how it all starts! Final resolutions for pairings will occur at the end of the story, so no one should give up on their hoped for pairings just yet.
Alight, time to RR&E! Read review and enjoy!
disclaimer- don't own Naruto, just having fun and practicing my writing for future personal endeavors.
It had been two days since the attack at the bridge. Everyone was recovering just fine from the wounds that they had taken, and Naruto was doing all she could to show Haku that the girl mattered to them. She was always asking her questions to find out more about her and her time with Zabuza. It turned out that she had been in many countries by this time, and seen many things. She was able to tell Naruto many stories about other countries, how their governments worked, and even what type of shinobi they had. Naruto hung onto every single detail. This fascinated her teammates who had seen her in the classroom and knew how easily she was distracted or made bored. Haku, however, was very patient with Naruto, and every time she was confused, found a way to explain it to her that made sense.
During this time, Haku had also noticed Naruto and Sasuke exchanging looks frequently, but they never seemed to take time alone together. It was almost like they were avoiding what they had talked about on the bridge when Sasuke was 'dying'. It frustrated her, especially as she knew how short life was, especially for shinobi. This particular evening, she decided to try and force it.
"So, Naruto, are you and Sasuke-" She had been surprised by Naruto's speed before, when she had counter attacked after Sasuke's near death, but the speed with which she jumped over the table and coverer her mouth was astounding.
"Hey, how silly, me and Sasuke, haha! Oh, that's a good one Haku-chan. Hey, how about we go outside and you can show me how those mail shinobi did that letter swap thing…" Haku followed the other girl, amused by her reaction, not failing to notice the panicked looks that she had thrown at her pink haired teammate, Sakura. Once outside Naruto threw both of them behind a tree and looked back at the house as if in panic. Haku's eyebrow remained quirked at the oddity of it all.
"So, are you going to explain, Naruto?" Naruto flinched a little, but she seemed satisfied that no one was going to be coming after them. It was still slowly and carefully, however, that she motioned for Haku to keep quiet and follow her a little further from the house. Soon they were sitting in the same clearing that they had first met face to face, and Naruto sighed as she began to explain.
It actually felt somewhat therapeutic, and having known the fear of being hunted for several reasons, Naruto felt that she could share with the other girl her secret, that of the demon that slept within her. So, she started from the beginning, with her birth and the attack of the kyuubi. She had had the kyuubi sealed into her, and so had lived a hard life, even with the Hokage and his family looking after her. She came to the graduation exam, and the betrayal of Mizuki. Haku held the younger girls hand as she recounted the events of that night, and all the pain that had come with it before the joy. Of course, she couldn't help but laugh at the accidental kiss a few days later. It was then that Naruto paused.
"It's funny, but I think that maybe that's about when I started to look at him differently," she said. "Except for Kiba who just made fun of me most of the time, I never really paid attention to the boys; they were annoying, and always thought they were better, just 'cause they're boys!" She shook her head. "Sasuke was…the same but different. He does think he's better, but it's his blood, not his gender, and he never really talks about it. The other boys are always yelling about how great they are, but Sasuke just sits there and shrugs it all off like he doesn't even care, like he doesn't need to prove how strong he is in some 'macho man-athon'. He's always so quite. The guy never talks!" She laughed. "That's probably why all the other girls fell for him: he never talked so they never knew how annoying his is!" Haku cocked her head sideways in confusion.
"So, if he's so annoying, why do you like him?" Naruto shook her head.
"I'm not really sure. I mean, he is strong, not just acting like he is like other boys do, and even though he's annoying, he can be… really gentle sometimes, though mostly with me." She glanced back at the house. "And don't ever tell him I said it, or Anko even (she'll never let me live it down), but he is kind of…cute," she said, saying the last word quietly, as if fearing it would be over heard. Haku smiled.
"Naruto-chan, it sounds to me like you like him because he kissed you." Naruto stared at her in shock.
"What? No, no, I, I just started noticing him after the kiss, that's all!" Haku patted her shoulder lightly.
"I'm not saying that it's a bad thing, Naruto-chan, especially not since he obviously cares about you, the way he threw his life away to protect yours, but you are both still children, as am I, and we're all going through changes. Our bodies are becoming more attractive…and more attracted to the other gender. You're about twelve, right?" Naruto nodded. "I had my first period about then, and that was when…when my master stared to keep me away from boys, to make sure that I would never consider leaving him because of my hormones." She looked at the other girl. Naruto had a mixture of feelings on her face. Anger at Zabuza for treating Haku the way he had, disgust for the 'female' talk, and a wince.
"Hmmm…you had your first period not too long ago, didn't you?" Naruto sulked, looking away.
"Yeah, so what? It doesn't matter that it was…right after…exams and before…that…" Naruto blushed. Haku, of course, giggled.
"Naruto-chan, it's alright! A crush just means that you get to know someone you like better, so then you have good reasons to like someone besides a kiss." Naruto gave her a light slug on the arm.
"Yeah, whatever." They leaned back and lay on the ground for a little while after that, hands behind their heads as they looked up at the sky poking through the trees and listening to the birds. After a little while Haku spoke up again.
"So, when are you two going to talk about it anyways? Or are you afraid Sakura will get mad?" Naruto sighed.
"I promised her that I didn't like Sasuke, that I wasn't going after him." She closed her eyes. "I feel like I'm betraying her for liking him."
"Hmmm…I see. She really like him, then," Haku asked, turning her head to look over at the other girl. Naruto nodded.
"She's had a crush on him since the early academy days; her and just about every other girl," she scoffed.
"Yes, I see how that could make the situation difficult." Haku looked back up at the sky. "Still, the two of you need to talk and make a decision. You can either see each other, or not."
"Yeah, but, but what if, that is how…"
"That's why you talk with him about it. And don't worry about Sakura. I'm sure I can find something to distract her so that you and Sasuke can have a few minutes or so alone to figure things out. He keeps blushing when it looks at you, by the way." Naruto blushed herself, hearing that.
"Huh; and here I thought he was so cold he must be a vampire. Well, if he has enough blood to blush, I guess we can rule that one out after all." Haku chuckled and they stopped talking to look at the sky again.
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Sasuke, looking down at his food, almost face faulted when he heard Haku speak up, but Naruto saved them, for the moment, with her speedy exit, even if it did make everyone quirk an eyebrow. So instead of falling into his bowl, he kept his movements clean and steady…even with everyone now staring at him.
"Naruto and you what? What was she talking about Sasuke-kun," Sakura asked, and he could hear the suspicion in her voice. He calmly took his time, tilting his bowl back to get the remnants of the soup into his mouth before placing his bowl down on the table.
"She said the other day that Naruto and I needed to work on coordinated attacks. After all, she was our enemy a few days ago, and she said that watching us fight inside her ice dome showed her that we needed to be more trained as partners." He shrugged. "I guess she might be right. After all, we worked good together facing Zabuza the first time, but that was still relying on sensei, not just ourselves. Two different kinds of team work. Naruto's still just too embarrassed about it, especially since she thought, from sensei's bell test, that she knew teamwork pretty good." He lifted his bowl again, chopsticks in hand. "More soup please, Tsunami-san?" Sakura bought it, though the adults looked at him suspiciously, even though they were willing to let it slide.
Even if he did make that up, it may be true. You can't always depend on your whole team, just like then when Zabuza effectively kept us out of their fight, which they themselves were trapped in, not able to come to us. I'll have to talk with Haku later about what happened in the ice dome…
The next day Haku asked Sakura to help her find some flowers and herbs for decoration…and for that nights dinner. She and Tsunami would be cooking together while the workmen, including Inari who had left for the bridge earlier with his grandfather, finished the bridge. If all went well, it would be done the next day, finally. She gave Naruto a meaningful look as she left, indicating that now was the time to get Sasuke alone and talk with him. Naruto thought for a moment, then got up.
"Hey! We haven't even trained for real in days! Sensei, shouldn't me an Sasuke make sure we can still do the tree climbing?" Sasuke folded his arms.
"Pft, dobe. You may be that pathetic, but I actually remember the things I learn." Do I like him enough not to kill him for that? There must be ways to make it look like an accident…
"Well, actually, it's true that you can lose the control you gain, just like anything else. Your body may remember it, but it can lose, at least for a while, the ability to do it." Kakashi made a shooing motion with his hand. "Go on, work on the trees for a little while, then we can do some sparing over at the bridge, unless you want o help building?" Sasuke rolled his eyes, but he got up, following the enthusiastic looking Naruto out the door.
She's up to something thought Anko, and she stood to go follow them, but Kakashi held out a hand.
"Yes, she is," he said, "but I they probably need to be alone anyways. They've been off the last few days and they need to work out whatever it is that's creating the problem." Anko sat down, chuckling.
"Isn't it obvious? They like each other bone head!" Kakashi shrugged.
"Not news to me. They blush around each other all the time, and Sasuke has a tendency to be…a little gentler around Naruto." Anko smiled.
"Really? Heh, that's kinda funny. Naruto-chan's pretty dense, though. Does she even get it?" Iruka, who had been lying just behind Anko reading a textbook he would be teaching from spoke up.
"Well, she id dense, but somehow I think it's gotten out. They both know and they both know that they know." The adults looked at him curiously. He looked over at them. "What?"
"Well, what makes you so sure that they know?" Iruka rolled his eyes, smirking as he turned back to his book while Anko turned around slightly so that her arms wrapped around his knee, head resting on her arm.
"I teach kids their age all the time. I know how kids act when they know they like each other but don't want to talk about it. In this case, it's probably because Naruto and Sakura are on better terms than they used to be and Naruto feels bad because she feels like she's betraying her friends trust by even liking Sasuke." Anko stared at him with wide eyes while Tsunami and Kakahsi looked at him in bewilderment for his 'matter-of-fact' manner as he said all this.
"Hahaha! I knew there was a reason I feel for you beside how you-"
"Akno! Give it a rest," Iruka yelled, jolting up to cover her mouth. The moment his hand came down she stuck her tongue out at him and pushed him back down.
"Whatever; now get some rest or you won't be well enough when we back to Konoha to have some real fun in your-"
"ANKO!" Kakashi laughed. Oh theirs was a fun relationship!
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A little away from the house Sasuke stopped.
"Alright," he said, "what's going on Naruto? Maybe they don't get you, but I do." She stopped walking and he waited for her to turn around. He was left waiting for several minutes. "It's about what we said on the bridge, isn't it." Naruto finally turned, looking over her shoulder at him, blushing a little, a shy look on her face.
"Well, yeah, I guess." Sasuke smirked.
"So, are you going to confess your undying love after all?"
"Teme," she said, glaring at him. All the while he kept that same smirk till she turned around, folding her arms stubbornly. "Fine, I don't care," she said. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder, and Sasuke spoke gently.
"Naruto-chan, I meant what I said on the bridge. I thought that I was dying to save you, and I would do it again without a thought. I like you a lot, but I've been waiting for you to make a decision." Naruto turned to give him a look of confusion.
"Decision? About what?"
"You're friends with Sakura, aren't you? It bothers you, and you've been avoiding deciding on what to do because of her." He sighed. "I can't lie, but it bothers me some too. I may not like her like that, but she is my teammate…and I guess a friend. I'm betting she feels like that more to you." Naruto looked down.
"Well, I told her that I wasn't interested in you, that I didn't care and you were all hers. I, I don't want to, to…betray her. It would kill her if she knew…" It was silent for a moment, feeling very awkward for a moment before Sasuke lifted up Naruto's chin.
"She doesn't have to know…" The blonde's eyes widened.
"You mean, you mean, be secret? But, but that's ly-"
"Deceptive," Sasuke said, cutting in. "Deception is something we live with all the time. Everyone has secrets, and it's not like we'd always have to be like that. If, if we stayed together, eventually Sakura's going to get over me, and that will take care of it. We could tell her then." Naruto shook her head.
"No, that's just wrong! I, I can't lie to her, she's my friend." Sasuke sighed.
"I thought you'd feel that way. But it's the only way we could be together without hurting her. If not, well, then we've kissed twice and we never will again. We avoid it all together, never talk more than we need to, and it keep it professional." Naruto quirked an eyebrow.
"Professional? That's a big word for this, don't you think." Sasuke shrugged.
"We're shinobi Naruto-chan. It's our profession so no, I think it's entirely appropriate, even if you…" He cut himself off, grimacing, but Naruto knew what he would have said.
"Why do I like you anyways," she almost shouted, throwing off his hand that was still on her shoulder and getting in his face. "You're always so arrogant and mean! If something doesn't benefit you, it's not even worth your notice! I'm probably just a part of some stupid scheme of yours to some other stupid goal you have!" Sasuke winced visibly at the accusation.
"Naruto, I wouldn't never use you like that-"
"And yet you encouraged me to lie to Sakura-chan! You were totally justifying it!" Naruto was fuming now, yelling full out at the Uchiha. For him, it was torture. He moved suddenly, pinning her arms to her side.
"I WOULD NEVER TRY TO HURT YOU!"
"LET GO OF ME YOU CREEP!"
"I'M SORRY, ALRIGHT!" Now that made Naruto shut up. She'd never heard the boy say he was sorry for anything. She grinned wryly and chuckled.
"Heeheehee, care to say that again, Uchiha?" He glared at her, his lips twitching with effort.
"I'm…sorry," he repeated, his voice low. "I know it was…wrong to ask you to betray our teammates trust, but I, I just want to be able to, to be with you and, and see what it would be like." It was his turn to look away. "My mom used to tell me that I needed to be friends with you," he said and, while still very low, his voice had a new, soft tone to it. "She never liked how the villagers were treating you, and she told me that, when I got to the academy, I should be your friend." There were a few moments of silence as Naruto looked at him in wonder.
"So, so why weren't we?" Sasuke sighed.
"Ever since my brother…killed our clan, I've been blocking everything out, but now…" he looked back into her eyes. "Now I look at you, and I think, I don't have to focus on Itachi every moment. I can let someone in. I can plan for the after, too have a life with someone. And I think I'd like to do it with you." Naruto blushed.
"We're, we're kinda young to be thinking about that, you know," she said. Sasuke cracked a grin.
"Yeah, maybe, but it doesn't keep us from doing it anyway. I, I know that most likely this won't last, that we'll each find someone else, but, but I know my mom would want me to find some happiness, even while I'm still working to avenge her death. I think she would be especially happy to know that it's you that I want to try and find some happiness with." Naruto moved in, giving him a soft hug and snuggling slightly into his chest. He wrapped his arms around her in return.
"Well, you always have been a bit too emo for your own good," she said. "Maybe I can take some time to try and…expose you to another side of life."
"Yeah, maybe so…it could take a lot of work, though."
"Psha, so? If I don't learn to work hard I'll never be Hokage!" Sasuke chuckled and soon the two were making their way back to the house holding hands, having forgotten completely that they were supposed to have been training. As they were about to come into view, Naruto turned, glancing around once more.
"I, I don't want to hurt Sakura so, so we will keep it a secret that we're, you know…" Sasuke nodded, letting go of her hand.
"We'll find a way for her to be happy without me. After all, there has to be some boy that can put up with her yelling-ow!" He rubbed his arm where Naruto had slugged it. She winked.
"I think it's our job to work on that for her; so, I'll get to her to stop yelling, you find her another boy!" Sasuke rolled his eyes.
"Yeah whatever. Let's just get back."
"K!"
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The bridge was son completed, and there was a lot of celebration that went on afterwards. The people celebrated heartily their pathway back to economic stability and independence. They would never be taken over by men like Gato again.
The Konoha shinobi left the next morning, never even knowing the name of the bridge.
"Naruto," Tazuna said, "for the girl that gave us back our courage. A more brave little girl I've never known." His family smiled in agreement around him, the villagers showing their approval by their clapping. Thank-you, Naruto, he thought, he have shown me, and my family, and even this whole village the meaning of courage…and you will forever have my respect and admiration.
For the shinobi, the trip back was relatively uneventful. There were no more surprise attacks, no bad weather, and not even any annoying bugs. The adults kept a little ahead, talking about the academy (mostly; Anko kept making suggestions that made Iruka blush and Kakashi giggle). The kids were behind them a few meters. Haku asked many questions about the village and, though she felt loath to admit it, Sakura told her that the Yamanaka's had the best flower shop around and if she really wanted to get into that kind of thing and save her money, that was the place to go. With Ino being a shinobi now, they would need another helper to cover the girl's shifts.
Sasuke kept silent, as he was want to do, and Naruto kept making loud comments about the most random things (who in the world brought up ramen? Or snakes for that matter?) The two nights that they had to camp, Naruto and Sasuke would casually make sure that they had the shifts next to each other. The first would wake the other a half hour early and they would sit together for the next hour before the other would to bed. They talked quietly, held hands, pecked each other's cheeks her and there. They wouldn't do a full kiss until the other went to bed. Even with that Naruto was a bit uncomfortable. She was worried that they were moving faster than they should, even though they had already kissed. Sasuke would smile and nod, saying, "Whatever you feel is best."
When it came down to it, he could be quite understanding, despite his uncaring facade he put up all the time. It helped that he was just an inexperienced as she was. Neither had ever dated anyone, so they decided that if either felt uncomfortable with something, they would say it, and the other would accept.
Once back in the village, Naruto excitedly ran into her grandfathers office, full of spirit and desire to give the mission report. Of course, that was before he gave her a rather wrath filled glare. She quailed beneath it, running to hide behind Sasuke, much to the latter's embarrassment.
"Naruto, stop being such a scaredy cat; you're going to tear my clothes." She stuck her tongue out at him and went to hide behind Anko instead. She was scarier anyways.
"Ahem." The hokage turned his glare to Kakashi. The man managed to not take a step back.
"Well, what do you have to say for yourself, eh Kakashi? A missing nin like Zabuza shows up and you kept going? What if my granddaughter had gotten killed!"
"I would have made sure she didn't, Hokage-sama," Haku said. The hokage turned to look at the possessor of the unfamiliar voice. It was a girl wearing a pink kimono with a floral design, along with a plain black choker, hair hanging loosly down to her lower back. He eyed her up and down.
"Who might you be, miss? And please explain what you meant by that comment." Haku bowed.
"My name is Haku, Hokage-sama, and until recently, I was Zabuza-sama's subordinate." The hokage's eyes widened and everyone could feel the change in his demeanor. He was ready for a fight at the slightest hint. Kakashi sighed mentally. I should have been more explanative of Haku's position in that letter he thought. But honestly, he should have been able to connect the dots….
"My late master gave me into your villages care as he died, specifically to Naruto, as I understand. He has told me to live my life on my own. That is how I came to be here.
"However, before, as his subordinate, I was often asked to kill for him, though I disliked it. Being as young as she is, and having become friends quickly, I would made sure that she would not have died, but put her into a temporary death like state, as I did with…" she looked over at Sasuke, realizing that she probably shouldn't have mentioned that she had 'killed' the Uchiha in their battle. The hokage was starting to really fume. It was then that Anko spoke up.
"Hokage-sama, are only two of our reports opened?" She pointed to the envelopes on the desk. The hokage stopped, jaw half open to yell at them, embarresment coming over his face.
"Well, that is, very busy and, little time…" She rolled her eyes as Iruka slapped his forehead.
"You don't have to worry about her every second old man! Naruto- chan's tough! If I really thought she might die I would have pulled her out! If you'd taken a few mintues to actually read the reports we sent you'd know already that she was fine and did great!" The old man slumped back into his chair, deflated. Naruto dared to peak out from behind the older Kunoichi who winked at her, smirking.
"Well, I admit I may have been…negligent of my work since I learned of the danger." He winced. "I actually wasn't sure I wanted to read the reports." He looked over at Naruto. "I'm sorry, but I was scared for you. I've lost many people dear to me, though few have been as young as you when I lost them. I was afraid that I'd open a report and see Kakashi telling me that you were dead, but as long as the reports kept coming, it meant that you would be alive; I preferred not to read, with that in mind." He bowed his head. "I'm sorry." He soon found himself gasping for air as he was put into a tight hug from his granddaughter.
"Awww Jii-san! You know better than that! I'm a shinobi now, and Kakashi sensei's awesome at making sure we're taken care of anyways." Kakashi winced. Sure, to her he may have seemed like that, but he knew better. For example, leaving out his many mistakes of the past, notably Rin, he had allowed Sasuke to find Haku alone, not immediately seeking to help him or to take care of their other problem at the time, Zabuza, instead choosing to 'show off' his students. While yes, he still believed in his students and their strength, he should have known better than to be so careless in such a high risk situation. No one seemed to notice his wince, though, and the scene continued.
"Ali1' Llright already Naruto! I need to breath!" Laughing, Naruto let go. The Hokage breather deeply for a moment before his ruffled Naruto's hair. "Alright you little brat, you and your teammates can go. I'll go over the rest of the mission report with the others and I'll bring your pay for the mission home with me."
"Alright! Now I can show Haku our house and where she'll sleep and-" She stopped as he raised a hand.
"No, for the moment Haku needs to stay behind." Naruto stared.
"But, but, but-" He wagged a finger.
"No buts about it. It's true that I didn't read all the reports, so I need her here before I decide what to do with her." The older girl paled slightly, but was comforted by Iruka. He did, after all, have the most experience reassuring people her age.
"It will be okay," he said. "You were never officially a shinobi, so there is little they even could do to you that's worth being scared about, and since Naruto's already made it a point that you two are friends, he's going to be especially careful to make sure nothing happens." He gave her a wink. "he has a soft spot for her, and she has this look that makes him crumble faster than dry leaf." The hokage sputtered denials, but the lightness of atmosphere, and the obviousness that Naruto did indeed have a great deal of control over the old man, was quite comforting. So the two girls parted with a quick hug and a promise that they would see each other again soon at Ichiraku's. Anko agreed to show her the way, nudging Iruka (who winced as he was still recovering from the slash on his chest) saying she would drop the girl off there while infuring that she had Iruka would be having some 'private time' afterwards. More male sputtering ensued and a laughing Naruto exited with her teammates as they headed out to eat in celebration of their first completed 'real ninja mission'.
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Over the next couple of days, Haku tagged along with team 7 as they completed a few 'd' ranks so that she could get to understand the lay of the village. She also took the room next to Naruto's at the hokage's home. Having had a fair sized family in the past, the Sarutobi residence was fairly large, so there was little trouble finding the space for her.
Konohamaru was shocked to see her at the table the next morning. He'd coming running back up the stairs yelling that there was a pretty lady in the dinning room and accusing his grandfather of many horrible things. He calmed down quickly, though he was shy around Haku for the first few days. It would only be a few weeks before he would be referring to her as his 'honorary sister'. Haku would always chuckle at the reference, happy to have what felt like a family again.
On the third day they finished early and Sakura said that she was sure Ino wouldn't be at the flower shop, so she could show Haku were it was that day and she could ask about work. Sasuke and Naruto used to time to take a walk in the forest. They used the Uchiha's training district to avoid any prying eyes.
"So, how is it feeling," Sasuke asked as Naruto held onto his arm. He put a finger to her lips thoughtfully.
"Well, I still don't like that we're fooling Sakura-chan, but…it feels nice," she said. Sasuke smiled.
"Yeah, same here." Naruto laughed; Sasuke frowned. "What are you laughing about?"
"Well, it's so odd to see you smile, you're always so gloomy!" Sasuke 'harumphed', sulking until Naruto finished her thought. "But you look so cute when you smile." Sasuke managed a bored look, but he couldn't quite keep the smirk off of his face. This time he ignored the giggle.
"As odd as it is to see me smile, it's probably even odder to hear you giggle like one of my fan girls." She socked him hard in the arm, but it was worth it.
The days continued like that. They didn't see much of the other rookie teams except in passing. Naruto was thinking that she needed to just give up on sensei showing up on time and going to the mission hall early so that she could talk with Hinata. She'd been wanting her advice on relationships, and she also just wanted to talk with her friend again. Hinata had always been a calm personality. It was refreshing, especially next to Sakura's constant yelling. However, it was after team practice one day that she ran into Kiba instead.
She had been planning on going on another walk with Sasuke, but then jii-san had asked her to pick up some things after their mission. A quick nod and she and Sasuke knew that they'd have to forgo their walk till the next day. So, there she was, jogging down the roads, taking a couple short cuts when she ran into Kiba…literally.
"Ow! Hey, watch where you're going mutt!" Naruto rubbed her forehead trying to ease the pain. Kiba picked himself up into a sitting postion.
"hehe, sorry about that Naruto-chan! I was supposed to help out at the kennel today, but Akamaru and I got caught up in our training." He stood up, holding out a hand to help her as Akamaru barked his concern. Naruto rolled her eyes.
"I'm not so flimsly I need help getting up." Kiba shrugged.
"Yeah, I know, but guys are supposed to offer girls help up." Naruto pushed his hand away, standing up on her own.
"Feh, just because girls are supposed to be 'weaker' than guys, right? So guys have to protect us 'wimpy girls' from hurting ourselves as we fall over again." Kiba cringed, Akamaru letting his ears fall, putting his tail between his legs.
"I don't think you're wimpy," he said softly.
"As if you care anyways," Naruto said. "All you ever do is make fun of me. Sasuke's a lot better than-"
"What? Sasuke doesn't give a rats half baked behind about anyone but himself! I may not be a good talker, but that doesn't mean I don't…umm…"
"Hey, Sasuke-kun does too care!" Naruto clapped a hand to her mouth. She'd been making sure to still just call him Sasuke-san, to keep up the appearances, but she'd just let slip. Kiba stared.
"No way," he said. "No way! You two! Arg! What did that guy ever do to deserve a girl like you!" Naruto put her hands down, instead placing them on her hips defiantly.
"Well, at least he knows to say sorry when he insults a girl!"
"What? I've apologized to you plenty of times! I even said I wanted to have you on my team back when we were in the academy." Naruto flushed, remembering that he had indeed said that. She brushed it off.
"Well, Sasuke knows how to be a teammate, even with if one of them is one of his 'annoying fangirls'" she said, imitating Sasuke's voice in one of his most well known academy sayings. Kiba prepared to yell back at her again, but then paused, holding up a finger.
"One?" He said. "Just one? Sakura for sure, but if aren't a fangirl…no, no what in heck has he gone on a date with you." Naruto flipped her hair over her shoulder.
"Well, unlike you, maybe he has good pick in women."
"Hey! I've have great taste in women!"
"Oh yeah? Then tell me, who would you say is the best looking girl from our academy class, huh? Say it!" Kiba looked around uncomfortably. He looked down at Akamaru.
"Hey boy, keep an eye out, would ya?" The small dog barked in the affirmative, running off and out of sight. Naruto eyed the Inuzuka suspiciously.
"Why'd you do that?" Kiba blushed.
"Because I feel embarrassed because I'm about to admit something; I haven't said anything for years, but now that you're dating Sasuke, I have to say it!"
"Heh; Sasuke doesn't feel embarrassed to say-"
"Don't you get it," Kiba practically yelled, grabbing her by her shoulders. "That jerk doesn't deserve you! He doesn't even care about anyone but himself!" Naruto tried to get out of his grip, but the Inuzuka had a tight grip on her, refusing to let go yet.
"Let go of me, Kiba; I date who I want to date, and I-" she was cut off as Kiba moved in, kissing her. She was in total shock. Kiba was kissing her? Kiba? Since when did he like her? Sure, despite what she'd just been yelling at him they'd pretty much always been friendly and all, except when he made fun of girls... but he had always stood up for her when the other kids made fun of her, and he had a fierceness to his kiss that Sasuke didn't, a fire that filled it with energy and playfulness and…no!
Naruto put up her hands and violently pushed him away. He stumbled backwards, catching his balance. His grip had relaxed as he'd been kissing her, and he now sported a major blush. Naruto breathed heavily for a few seconds before speaking.
"No, this isn't, this isn't right! I, I-" She clenched her fist. "Why did you do that you stupid dog!" Kiba flinched, but he didn't back down.
"Why should Sasuke get to have you? I've liked you for years, always waiting for you to be ready, so why can't it be me!" Naruto shook her head.
"It, it doesn't work like that! You, you can't just kiss someone else's girlfriend!"
"So? What if maybe you liked kissing me better than him? What if I make a better boyfriend? After all, you seemed to be enjoying it!" Naruto gasped, realizing that she had indeed kissed him back.
"That, that as a mistake! I, I just, I never…" She sat down, leaning against the wall, gripping her arms as if she was cold and not looking at Kiba. "Why? Why does this have to happen now?"
"Huh?" She still didn't look at the boy, but after a few seconds she spoke to him again.
"For years no one would even pay attention to me, no one liked me, and now, right when I find someone who likes me, someone else decides they like me, too! I, I only want to go one step at a time! I don't want all of this!" Kiba laughed, earning him a glare that set him shivering.
"Hey, it's what we do! It's puberty! The guys start liking the girls, especially the pretty ones like you. I liked you before that, though. I noticed you for years, but I didn't want to rush it, so I tried to be funny and stupid to make you laugh, or even just to get in a fight with you so I could talk with you. I wanted to be friends, and more than friends, but you always just kept pushing me away, never letting me in. I just wanted you to like me back!" Naruto shook her head.
"I'm sorry, Kiba. If you'd actually acted like you liked me instead of making all of those…stupid jokes you used to get me to notice you…maybe, maybe something could have happened, but you have to really be a friend if you want someone to like you!" She stood up, turning to walk away.
"I, I have to go now. See you around."
"Naruto, I-"
"BYE!" She ran off, leaving the boy standing there, arm outstretched. As she disappeared he turned and hit the nearest wall as hard as he could, giving it quite the dent. Akamaru came back out, barking sadly.
"Yeah, I know buddy; I messed up big time…still, there's got to be a way to make it up to her…"
A few blocks away, Naruto was slowing down, seeing that Kiba wasn't following her. Now she was really confused. She needed to talk with someone, someone who would understand. Anko? No, she was crazy, and she'd only ever had Iruka as a boyfriend. Jii-san? No, he was a boy…Sakura liked Sasuke, so she was out. But what about Hinata? Yeah, she seemed to understand people really well, maybe she could-
"Stop." Naruto halted as the very girl she'd been thinking about stepped out, hand held in front of her, a determined look on her face.
"Oh, Hinata! Just who I-"
"No, not now." Naruto looked at her confused. Unbeknownst to her, Hinata had been close by when she'd heard the raised voices and she'd turned on her byakugan, recognizing her teammate and crushes voice. Naruto and Kiba had come into view just as Kiba kissed Naruto, and she saw Naruto kiss him back before she turned off her byakugan and began to cry. Why did her only friend have to go and kiss the boy she liked? Why did he have to like Naruto instead of her?
Sitting there clutching her knees as she cried, she had stopped, jerking her head up suddenly, realizing the main difference between her and Naruto. Naruto was confident and full of energy, while Hinata was quiet and timid. If she was going to stand a chance at winning him away from Naruto, she had to become confident…even if it meant not being friends with the one person who had always assured her of herself. She had to learn to stand strong without Naruto, if only to prove that she could. This was what she had to do to get his heart. She stood, activating her byakugan again, spotting Naruto just down the road, and moving to do what she felt she must before she wavered. She had to become strong and confident, just like Naruto, if Kiba was going to fall in love with her.
So now, there she stood, looking at the surprised Naruto, her old time friend, the one who always stood by her. She almost faltered, but then she straightened, and she spoke.
"Naruto, we are now rivals! I, I will become strong on my own, and I will win him from you!" She turned and ran away after that, fighting back her tears, not even turning around to see Naruto's own eyes slowly filling with tears at the loss of her first friend.
"Hinata…" Why now….?
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The rest of the day, Naruto was in slump. She hardly ate her food at dinner, shrugging off Sarutobi's concerns about her, and almost ignoring Konohamaru completely when he asked her to play ninja with him and his friends Moegi and Udon. Instead she told him that she'd play with them that weekend.
The next day didn't see much improvement, and Kakashi almost ordered her to go the hospital when she slipped up the third time on her spare against Sakura. Even the pinkette was worried about her.
"The dobe probably just didn't get enough sleep," Sasuke said, acting as though he didn't care. Inwardly he was in a state of near panic. However, he couldn't act any differently for now, not until they figured out a way to break the news to Sakura. "How about I take her home to rest and you two keep practicing. I need to get food today anyways, so I'll pick up my groceries and train at home." Kakashi looked at him for a moment then nodded.
"Sure, that's fine. I had some things I wanted to work on with Sakura specifically anyways," he said. Though to be honest, I have a feeling that you have something to do with Naruto's sloppiness today. Talking with you alone may be just what she needs.
Naruto tried to protest, but Kakashi insisted, and with as little energy as Naruto was putting out today, it wasn't hard to win the debate. Soon, Naruto and Sasuke were walking down the path back to the village. The blonde refused to look at him, even as he slouched next to her side, concern finally showing in his eyes.
"If you don't tell me, then I'm going to have to ask Hokage-sama," he said finally. Naruto didn't respond. "If you got beat by your brother I promise I won't tell." Ah, that had made her mouth twitch. "Honestly though, I think a broken down snail could beat you…"
"What! How dare you, you arrogant little-" The girl broke off as she saw the amused, and slightly relieved, grin on his face and she started laughing.
"Hahahah! Okay, you have admit, that was a little below the belt," she said. He shrugged, putting an arm around her and giving her a small hug.
"It was worth it to see you act like normal for the first time today. What's going on, Naruto-chan, for real? You can tell me!" Naruto looked away, not even feeling like she should let him hold her like he was.
"I, I…" she looked away, though they continued walking and she didn't pull out of his embrace. She wanted to enjoy his company for a few more seconds before he pulled away on his own. She took a deep breath. "I kissed Kiba yesterday." Sasuke stopped walking, and she with him, but his arm stayed around her.
"Okay," he said, though in a low voice. She turned to look at him.
"What, that's it? I'm dating you and kissed him, and you aren't even angry?" She crossed her arms and stepped away. "Well, if that's how little you care, then I don't care either!" Sasuke face palmed himself and reached for her arm, grasping it lightly.
"Naruto-chan, it's not that I don't care," he said, voice still soft and low. "At the moment I want nothing more than to go out and rip that dog breathed idiot apart for kissing my girl." He sighed. "I assumed that he made the move to kiss you, so I was waiting for you to finish the whole story before choosing to be mad at you." Naruto, who had been refusing to look at him the whole time, choosing to look down instead, slowly turned her face towards him, eyes slightly watery.
"Well, yes, he was the one that kissed me, but I kissed him back! Oh Sasuke, I, I was so surprised, and it felt so nice, but I shouldn't have done it! I, I'm so sorry I, I-" She stopped talking as Sasuke held her in his arms.
"It's okay," he said, feeling very awkward. Naruto had definitely been forcing him out of his emotionless shell, but especially in comforting others he felt awkward. "We're still kids," he said, "still learning about the world. I know that I really like you, and that you really like me, but…" man, I'm starting to sound like I'm talking from a soap opera! "Naruto-chan, I think I'd die if you dumped me, but I'd live in hell if I knew that you weren't happy because I made you stay with me. Choose your own way; I hope it's me, but if you decide you like Kiba…Ow!" Sasuke rubbed his arm as Naruto hugged him.
"You baka, of course I'm staying with you. After all, you still have to stop being such an emo before I move on." She looked up at him, smiling.
Hn, dobe.
"Fine; I'll just stay 'emo' then, and you'll never get to move on." She laughed.
"As if; Naruto Uzumaki never goes back on her word! I'll make a normal person out of you yet Uchiha!"
The two of them continued to walk on back to the village, holding hands. Neither of them noticed Sakura, standing a ways off behind a tree, slumped down and crying.
It figures, she said. Even Naruto's prettier than me. Me and my stupid big forehead… She stayed there, crying for hours as she clutched her knees, realizing that the boy of her dreams was taken by the girl she had thought had become her best friend.
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The rest of the week had team seven wondering why Sakura was so down. She had stopped yelling as much, and a lot of them time her smiles were kind of sad. At the same time, unlike Naruto's slump, Sakura's had her training harder. Naruto tried to corner her one evening while she was shopping to get her to tell her what was going on. She even canceled her date with Sasuke because she was worried about her friend, and after losing Hinata over Sasuke, she didn't want to lose Sakura too.
"alright," she said, standing in Sakura's path, "spill it; what's going on?" Sakura laughed bitterly.
"Heh, as if you'd care. You're just my teammate anyways. You don't care about me." Naruto's heart broke, and she lost the confidence in her stance immediately. It shocked Sakura how quickly she slumped over. It was like the sun had gone out. Why did she do that?
"No, not you too," she mumbled. Sakura stepped forward cautiously.
"Naruto? What are you talking about?" Naruto looked up, facing her teammate.
"It, it's nothing, I just… I have to go," she said, turning quickly. Now it was Sakura's heart that broke. She had gotten to know Naruto well enough that she knew Naruto was being deeply troubled. It was like that one day earlier that week when she'd actually beaten her…the day Sakura had figured out that Sasuke was taken…
"Naruto…chan, what's wrong." Naruto stopped as Sakura grabbed her arm, but still refused to look at her.
I keep making friends, but even though I want to be their friend, they keep not wanting to be mine any more." She turned around. "I though Hinata and I would always be friends, but now, for a boy, she doesn't want to be friends any more. She was my best friend! And know you…who's next…" Sakura put down her bags she'd been carrying and enveloped her teammate in a hug. I lost Ino like that too, she thought. That was horrible, but at least I had other friends. Sensei told us about Naruto. She doesn't have other friends. I have to push it down. She looked at her blond teammate who was trying not to cry. After all, what kind of friend would I be if I didn't stick with her? Besides, there are other boys…
"I'm sorry, Naruto," she said. "I just, well, I can't tell you," she said. "But something happened, and I was actually feeling like you were with Hinata, but that was unfair to you. I'm still your friend, Naruto-chan, so don't worry about it." Then Naruto did cry, happy that she hadn't lost a friend. Of course, she made Sakura swear never to tell that she'd cried like that. Sakura laughed, promising, and they walked back to the Haruno home, Naruto helping Sakura carry her bags.
Her mom gave her one of those looks, but ended up very confused when her daughter, whom she had warn countless times about how dangerous that Uzumaki girl was, gave that same girl a good solid hug. In the end, they nodded politely to the blond and were left with much to think about as Sakura told them all about how nice Naruto was and what a great teammate she was being. I'm going to do what I can to help her have friends forever, she thought. And that means sharing what a good person she is.
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The very next day came with a big surprise for all three of the members of team 7. Kakashi showed up only an hour late. Naruto kept staring at her watch, then at her sensei, back at her watch and her sensei again. She looked over at Sakura.
"is someone using a bushin to play a trick on us." Kakashi face faulted, almost breaking his nose as he fell from the arch. Wow, I must be worse than I thought if an hour seems unbelievable to them. He quickly stood up.
"No no, not a bushin. I just happened to have some interesting news for you today…"
"Really? What is it sensei, what, what, what!"
"calm down Naruto, calm down. It would be nice if you could put some of that energy into Sasuke over there, though." Naruto blushed and calmed down quickly. Sasuke blushed slightly while Sakura suddenly discovered a knot in her hair. Ah…it would seem I've hit the nail on the head… and Sakura knows too…no wonder she's been depressed. And yet, she and Naruto seem to be closer than ever today. Hm…
"well, anyways, I've decided to enter you into the chuunin exams," he said, holding up their sign up forms.
"What? The chuunin exams." Sasuke and Sakura rolled their eyes as Kakashi prepared to explain before Anko, walking by the bridge with Iruka (who looked slightly miffed) yelled out, "Banana, Naruto, it's like a banana!" The whole of team 7 face faulted…except Naruto who's eyes lit up.
"Oh yeah! It's the next rank of shinobi, the chuunin exams, held every six months!" She got an excited look on her face and stars in her eyes as her team looked at her in shock…Iruka as well. How does a banana relate to this at all! Iruka looked at his girl friend, his frustration with Kakashi and the other rookie sensei's temporarily forgotten.
"What?" She waved a hand as they continued walking further away, Anko still working to calm his frustrations.
"Trust me, it won't make sense. Only Naruto would get the explanation. I didn't even get it when I said it; it just happened to work and that was what mattered." Iruka shook his head.
"That only reinforces…"
"Well, um, yes, Naruto," Kakashi said, still confused as to what a banana had to do with the chuunin exams. "That's right; the chuunin exams are the next step for you to continue your shinobi career." He held out the applications to each of them. "Here you go. I was going to wait till next week but…" he shivered as he thought about Anko back in the meeting. She'd made sure to…impress it on him that Naruto should get the application post haste so that she could start her training. "Well, anyways, here you go. Seven days from now you'll need to turn those in at the academy, room 301 at 4 pm. The exams will start there."
"Alright, yeah! Thanks Kakashi sensei!" Kakashi flinched as Naruto launched in to give him a hug. Well, this is a little awkward, he thought. I'm not really a hugs person… he sighed.
"No problem, Naruto. All three of you have improved a lot, so there wasn't any second thoughts when I nominated you guys for the exam." He noticed Sakura's look of surprise when he said that last bit. All of them knew that Sakura was the weakest of the three, but she tended not to let that bother her, and neither of her teammates really brought it up. Naruto even went out of her way to compliment Sakura on how much she was improving. He eye smiled.
"Well, for the rest of the week you can take a break from missions if you want and just train for the exams. Though if you do want to do missions, well, Naruto lives with the Hokage so I'm sure you all can find me, if you really need to. See you later." With that he sushined away and the three talked for a moment about the coming exams.
"Well, I'm going to train every day," Naruto proclaimed, puffing out her chest. Sasuke rolled his eyes.
"Dobe, if you train every day you'll be tired on the day the exam finally starts." Sakura laughed.
"Hah, with the energy Naruto has, it probably wouldn't matter." Naruto grinned.
"Yup yup, and Sakura-chan's going to be great, too! After all, she's smarter than anyone else!" Sakura smiled at the compliment. Maybe, maybe I can do this after all… Soon Sasuke left to go train at the Uchiha compound, leaving Naruto and Sakura to go grab some extra supplies for the exam. Of course, it was then that Naruto noticed the square 'rock' following them. She rolled her eyes, then jumped backwards, pointing at the rock.
"Hah , what a lame disguise! Rocks aren't square!" There was a poof, and through the smoke a young voice came out.
"Just what I'd expect from my rival and sister!" Sakura quirked an eyebrow in confusion as the smoke cleared, revealing Konohamura and his two friends Moegi and Udon.
"Konohamaru, what are you doing anyways?" The boy with the blue scarf around his neck smiled.
"Well, are you free right now sis?" Naruto smirked, pointing at herself and acting impressive.
"Nah, not today. I've gotta get ready to face the chuunin exams!"
"What? But you promised you'd play ninja with us today!" Naruto balked. Aw crap…I did say that. But, she looked over at Sakura who was trying decide whether or not to laugh at the crazyness of a ninja playing ninja. But we need to get supplies… It was then that Konohamaru noticed the other girl. He leaned forward, whispering very loudly.
"Hey, sis, who's the ugly girl you're hanging out with? Are you helping her get a boyfriend 'cause she's too ugly to find one on her own?" Naruto froze, feeling the killer intent. Sure enough, as she looked over her shoulder she could see Sakura cracking her knuckles, scary look on her face.
"Run away!" And run they did, for several minutes until Konohamaru came into a rather unpleasant stop.
"Ow; hey that hurt you little runt!" He was stopped by an older boy wearing all black clothes, including a hood with would looked like pointy dog eyes, a mummy wrapped package on his back, and purple war paint. Standing next to him was a blond girl carrying a large fan and wearing an odd purple dress with mesh underneath. They both had headbands from another village, Suna. The boy picked up Konohamaru by the scruff of his neck.
"Hey, let go of my bro you fat lard," Naruto yelled as they all looked on in surprise that the guy could be so mean to a kid. In reply to Naruto's comment, he shrugged, looking over at her even as the girl next to him told him to stop messing around.
"Nah, I think I'll play a little before sensei get's here…"
"Why you," Naruto growled as she charged him. He twitched his hand, smirking, and Naruto slipped and fell.
"Phah, leaf genin are so weak," he said, turning back to look at the boy in his hand. Naruto jumped back up, yelling and pointing at him.
"Hey if you don't let my bro down right now I'm make you pay, you fat idiot." Again the boy simply brushed her off, which made her even more annoyed.
"You're so annoying, and you know what? I hate midgets, especially the young, rude ones. Makes me want to kill them." His teammate rolled her eyes.
"Whatever, I'm involved," she said.
"Heh; after I'm done with this one, maybe I'll take care of that blond brat!" He moved to hit Konohamaru in the face, but he dropped him suddenly as a rock hit his hand.
"OW!"
"Hey, why don't you stop picking on kids," Sasuke said, sitting coolly in a tree. Thank goodness, Naruto and Sakura both thought. After that strange trick where he tripped me, I wasn't sure what to do. How did he do that anyways? "So, what are you guys doing in our village anyways?"
"hey, I don't have to answer to a brat like you," the boy in black said, though his female companion mentally noted that the boy was pretty cute. "You're just another short idiot who ticks me off!"
"Pft, whatever. Get lost, looser." The Suna genin growled, pulling the wrapped thing off of his back, placing his hand on the top, which seemed to be a mass of dark brown hair.
"Alright, how about you get down here!"
"Stop it, Kankurō," a low gravely voice said. "You're an embarrassment to the village." Sasuke wheeled his head around to see a red headed boy, about their age, hanging upside down from another tree limb. He was wearing a gourd on his back that seemed to be held in place by a large brown strap that came over his left shoulder and down to his right hip, with another smaller strap going over his right shoulder as well. He also had a long white cloth wrapped around him, from right shoulder to left hid, and black tee and pants, mesh showing through underneath. His eyes looked almost like a raccoons with the heavy dark lines and no eyebrows, and he had the kanji, 'love', on his forehead. The look on his face was anything but, and it was obvious that the two older sand genin deferred to him.
"But, but they started it! I was just-"
"Save it. We may have gotten here early, but this is not the way to use our time, so just shut up or I'll kill you." The boy, Kankurō, gulped and proceed to earnestly apologize. Meanwhile, the sand swirled around the other boy, and he disappeared for a moment only to reappear in another swirl of sand on the ground next to his teammates.
"Sorry about that," he said, though by his tone one could tell he didn't really care, and the concentration in his eyes as he looked at Sasuke showed that he was measuring him up, estimating his skills. After a moment of silence, he turned, arms folded uncaringly. "It's time to stop fooling around. Let's go."
"Wait! Why are you here? Is it for the chuunin exams?" Temari chuckled, pulling out a small card.
"Of course," she said, flashing the card which turned out to be a pass for entrance to the exams. "We wouldn't have been able to get through the front gate otherwise you silly girl." Sakura huffed at the affront as Sasuke jumped down to stand next to his teammates.
"What's your name," he asked. The girl immediately perked up, a slight blush that reminded Sasuke of his fan girls spreading across her cheeks.
"Oh, you mean me? It's Temari-"
"No not you, him," he said, pointing to the red head. The boy finally turned around, his posture still completely relaxed and bored.
"I am called Gaara of the desert," he said, "and I would like your name as well." Sasuke smirked. It was about then that Naruto, who had been checking on Konohamaru to make sure he was alright, tuned back into the conversation.
"I am Uchiha Sasuke," he said. For the first time, Gaara grinned.
"Hmmm…this will be fun, Uchiha. I look forward to…competing with you in the exams." He began to turn again, ignoring Temari's disappointment that the cute boy didn't care about her.
"Hey, hey! What about my name," Naruto yelled, looking forward to a chance to brag, especially since that guy in the black clown suit had embarresed her infront of her brother. Gaara and the others kept walking.
"Not interested; it's obvious that only the Uchiha is worth my time," Garra said as he continued moving.
"Yeah, well, my name's Naruto," she yelled after them, not wanting to be overshadowed by her boyfriends reputation. "And you're gonna want to remember it!" Of course, she didn't expect them to freeze. The taller two looked back at her with shock on their faces, but the short red head, Gaara, he was just staring at her in a rather odd fashion. It was something between amusement and fascination.
"N, N, Naruto, did you say," the girl, Temari, asked.
"Yeah, it's Naruto, and I'm gonna be the next Hokage, so I'm gonna be the one you'll have to worry about in the exams, believe it!" Temari and Kankurō looked at each other, jaws dropped as memories flooded their minds. It couldn't be!
"Well, hey, come on Garra, we need to meet Baki sensei, remember? We'll…we'll talk about this later," Temari said, whispering the last part, tugging slightly on her brother's sleeve.
"Hnnn," he grunted, turning to follow her. Naruto…perhaps I wasn't dreaming that all up after all, he thought. I need to find out for sure; if it is her…well, if it is her, I have a promise to keep…
So, that's how it is. The next couple of chapters or so will delve back into the history of the sand sibs, picking up where we left with them as they traveled back to Suna right before the Kyuubi attack on Konoha. Feel free to go back and review those chapters if you feel the need. With this in mind, I also want to get ya'll opinion on something. In the past I've had several shorter chapters, mostly about 5k words or less. Putting up longer chapters tends to add a week to the update time, even though I've had them twice as long as a normal chapter. So, in interest of update time vs chapter length, I'm putting up a poll to get ya'll opinion on whether i should do shorter chapters with one week less wait, or add a week and do longer chapter. It's up to you!
Just vague curiosity, what did you think about the drama? Note that Naruto, being Naruto, wouldn't even realize that Hinata might have seen what just happened with Kiba as that was very new to her and she doesn't feel that she's competing for anyones attention besides Sasuke's. More will be coming in future chapters, of course, on that, all to be resolved by the end of the story. And don't assume that Hinata might not find someone else. It happens all the time. As i said, don't give up hopes on any pairings, all possibilities are still possible...within reason, of course.
Well, thanks for reading, I hope ya'll enjoyed! Take care and don't forget to review real fast!