A/N: The writing tense for the next two chapters is purposely different, and together they compile how Naruto fell in love with Iruka, among other things. As a warning, this chapter is not focused on being 'funny' like the rest of the story, though there is still (hopefully) some humour.

Disclaimer: The only thing that belongs to me are the random OC's that I threw in- the rest is all Kishimoto's.

When Kakashi said it all began the day of the genin assignments, he meant it as the beginning of his predicament; the imminent breaking of his oath to Minato, who had demanded, after finding out Kushina would give birth to a little girl, that Kakashi 'better protect my angel from the old lechers that will try and seduce her! Keep Naruto from caving for any older men!'…

Which was a promise Kakashi couldn't keep. Naruto, after all, had a crush the size of the Hokage monument on a man Minato would have frothed at the mouth at. And that crush had grown into a pure and real love, the likes of which made Kakashi feel guilty whenever he even thought about stopping Naruto from caring for the man of her dreams.

No, the real beginning of the story was much, much earlier…

Everything is put into the right perspective, in retrospect.

Xxx

It all starts with a little girl on a swing. She's cute, with her chubby cheeks and poof of short blonde hair, and if she was anyone else adults would probably coo over her, give her the hugs and love she's always craved.

But Naruto's not anyone else. So she sits alone.

Naruto stares blankly out onto the playground. It's a happy place, just outside the academy that she's been going to school to for the past year and a half. Kids race around, play ninja, mess around on the jungle gym, or even just stare up at the clouds. Regardless of what they are doing, they don't do it near the blonde. There is an invisible wall around her, pressing away the peers that laugh and smile (but never at her.)

When Naruto started going to school here when she was six, she thought things might be different-be better. But the children are almost worse than the adults that will never look her in the eye. Sometimes, they do talk to her, and for a time, she thinks, 'this is it'. But they always leave, once their parents drag them away. It hurts so much more, when that intangible hope is within her grasp, only to be so abruptly wrenched away.

Deep within Naruto, something takes root within her where childish happiness and warmth should go.

She is alone, and so, so cold.

Blue eyes narrow at the dirt as her trailing foot that lacks a shoe scuffs the grass. She's frowning, and her nose is crinkled up like she's about to sneeze. On top of that, her eyes feel funny, like they did that time she mistimed a prank and had a pepper bomb explode in her face.

Naruto wants to smile, but for the first time in her life, she can't find the strength to force herself to.

Pranks have always been her fall back when these feelings start to creep towards her, like the one she pulled today in the academy sensei's break room after her sensei for her second year class refused to answer any of her questions. They make people look at her, yell at her, and if she squints her eyes enough she can pretend that their faces aren't angry, but amused.

But pranks don't make the feeling in her chest go away.

Naruto wants to be happy. She wants to smile and have it be real. But more than anything else, she wants someone to smile at her- smile because of her.

Uzumaki Naruto is dying piece by little piece, and no one gives a damn.

…Until someone does.

"Hey, it's almost dark! What are you still doing out here? You might catch a cold!"

Glassy eyes whip towards the teenager that stands in front of her with his arms indignantly crossed in front of his chest. He's vaguely familiar, and Naruto recognizes him as one of the assistant academy instructors for the older years. He's never really caught her attention before- he's average height, average build, and his eyes and hair are brown as dirt. The only noteworthy thing she's ever bothered to notice about him is the scar slicing across his nose, and that it makes him look kinda cool, maybe even rugged.

His face, still streaked with orange from the paint bomb she set off earlier in the teacher's break room, is scrunched up in a frown, and Naruto realizes that she's just been staring at him. Her cheeks redden as he impatiently waits for an answer.

"…Didn't think it was a crime to swing. Guess I'll just go somewhere else- somewhere without paint splattered weirdos like you." Naruto puts on the mask she always wears, and makes her face twist up at the chuunin like he's one of the little-green-tree-thingies that they tried to tell her to eat in the nutrition seminar (gross!). She jumps off the swing, and turns to stomp away, but-

GRRR.

-Her stomach growls. Naruto comically freezes in her tracks, like she's been caught in the act of the greatest robbery. Behind her, she hears a muffled choke. Which then breaks into laughter.

"Oh, Kami! Ha- that was a pretty impressive exit there- you almost seemed tough." The chuunin is still snickering, and in any other situation Naruto would have made a break for it, but; he laughed. She turns around and simply stares at him- she doesn't notice that her mask has dropped. For once, there's not sadness beneath it. Instead, she's surprised- and feeling a tiny bit of hope she can never seem to crush…

The scarred teenager is smiling slightly, and he shakes his head. "You're one of the students here, in second year, aren't you?" Naruto forces herself to nod. "Thought so. Look, I'm actually out here to pick up some of the kunai used in another class's exercises- if you help me pick them up, I'll buy you some supper. How's that sound?"

Naruto's not an idiot- picking up some dumb kunai for food is a no-brainer.

And so Naruto finds herself picking up kunai when she would usually be drowning her woes by planning pranks. As she dumps the weaponry scattered throughout the academy training ground into the growing pile, the chuunin, whose name is apparently Iruka, talks to her.

"So, are you liking the academy?" "What were you doing out here anyways? And without shoes!" "Have you ever had ramen before? It's pretty good." "CAREFUL with those kunai- you might cut yourself!"

Naruto finds herself dazedly answering his questions- "The academy's boring, they never teach any cool ninja stuff, dattebayo!" "I was swinging. DUH. Don't need shoes for that…" "…No? Isn't that the noodly stuff?"

The Uzumaki doesn't know how to respond to his worry about how she's been carrying the kunai, which she had just been loading up into her jacket and hauling over, pile at a time. It's… nice. The talking, the caring… But it's suspicious. Why the hell is he talking to her like she's just some normal acquaintance when no one else ever does?

Eventually, after what seems like forever- "It was only twenty minutes!" - "No, that took forever- ya better buy me lots of that ramen stuff!"- they make their way to the food stand.

Naruto finds herself joking with him- he may be almost ten years older than her, but he's not grouchy and mean like the other adults she knows. He apparently knew it was her that pulled the prank today, but he's not acting angry… Instead, he tells her how Kama-sensei got all the pink paint in her hair from the timed paint bomb next to the water cooler, which is hilarious because that bat is always harping about her 'feminine kunoichi beauty.'

Naruto finds herself laughing, and Iruka is smiling when he tells her that about six years back, 'someone' rigged all the coffee machines with laxatives and all the students got a free day because the teachers were in no condition to teach. Naruto is still snickering when they finally reach the ramen stand. It's called 'Ichiraku's', and the cook smiles at her. This entire day feels like a dream…

Naruto wonders when she's going to 'wake up'. She always does.

Iruka orders some Miso ramen for Naruto, 'cause she has no clue what she wants. They're not really talking anymore, yet the quiet between them… feels nice. But it's still bugging her- why is he doing this?

So Naruto charges in like she always does. "Why the hell are you doing this?" Her face is scrunched up like she just ate a whole lemon, and Iruka comically freezes under her heavy stare before he lets out a nervous laugh. He anxiously rubs the back of his neck.

"Doing what?" he asks, and darts his eyes away from hers like they always do. Naruto feels the cold return.

"Why're you talking to me? Why're you taking me out for supper? Is this some kind of, of pity party?! Oh no, some kid is alone on a swing, I guess I'll talk to her… Is that what this is, dattebayo?!"

Iruka flinches, and ducks his head. After a moment, he seems to… swell up, with some newfound confidence, and suddenly he's looking right at her.

He's lightly tracing the grain of the counter with an idle hand when he finally responds. "No. This isn't a 'pity party'. It's… well, it's because a long time ago, I wa- I knew this kid. He was pretty lonely, and no one ever seemed to pay attention to him. He always had this smile on his face, and he was always pulling the craziest of pranks. But before long, the pranks stopped being funny. They took on a… malicious edge." Iruka stares at his hand, which has stopped in its movements, and lets out a sigh before turning to look Naruto directly in the eyes again.

"Naruto, you remind me of him. You're prank today was funny, especially what happened to Kama." The chuunin quirks a small smile, and Naruto finds herself automatically sending one back. His smile slides away into a light frown as he continues. "But… you put high-grade itching powder in some of the paint bombs. Masami-sensei, she's really allergic to the stuff- luckily, that particular bomb missed her, but if it hadn't… well, you might have actually hurt someone."

Both of them are silent and still as stone. Iruka is still staring at her, with this look Naruto can't read (she's not used to people paying her this much attention), and the blonde finds herself shrinking into her coat and turning her eyes away from his piercing brown ones. Something in Naruto's stomach squirms, and it feels like she just drank a litre of bad milk. It feels awful. But what's even worse is Iruka's silence.

Finally, he speaks again. "…Naruto, I wanted to see what kind of person you were. Because I know with m- with that boy, it wasn't that he was bad. He was just… lonely, and wanted people to notice him, to acknowledge him." Iruka's eyes are distant for a moment, but he quickly pulls himself back to the present, and focuses intently on the blonde before him.

"Naruto, you're not a bad person. You may be a bit of a brat-"

"Hey!"

"But you seem like you really want to be a great shinobi, and you love pulling pranks- you're pretty good at them, too!" Naruto, still red in the face from her earlier indignation, perks up her head, and slowly meets Iruka's eyes. He's not frowning anymore. No; he's smiling at her.

"So, Uzumaki Naruto, I guess I'm talking to you because… I'm acknowledging you. And I wanted to say… You're important." Naruto's jaw drops, and Iruka reddens under her heavy gaze. "Be-because I think you should know that you are, no matter what everyone else says. Hell, I wish someone would have told me th- the boy that sooner, and, uh…"

Iruka is anxiously fidgeting in his chair. Naruto is slack-jawed and probably looks like a complete moron, but she can't find it in herself to say anything back. This has never happened to her before…

"Order's ready!"

Iruka and Naruto jump, and spin back to the counter just in time to catch the amused smile the cook shoots at them. With a mumbled "Thanks," Iruka grabs the bowls and cracks open two pairs of chopsticks, putting a pair in each of the bowls.

Naruto's previous stupor was broken with the cook's surprise arrival, but she can't choke out more than a quiet "Thanks, dattebayo," when Iruka hands her her bowl.

Iruka quirks a small smile at the flustered Uzumaki. "Hope you like it!"

With slightly trembling hands, Naruto picks up her chopsticks, and scoops up a hefty portion of noodles. The Uzumaki charges in, takes a bite…

…And promptly spits it out.

"HOTHOTHOT!" Naruto exclaims, and with frenzied hands reaches for her cup of water that has gone untouched till now. She guzzles it back, and some of the water ends up dribbling down her chin, but she can't bring herself to care- she almost died!

Iruka breaks out in laughter. "Oh Kami, Naruto, take it slow! Man, you really are something…"

Naruto's face reddens, and she quickly drags the heel of her hand across her chin to catch the trailing water. "Y-you bet I am! I'm awesome, dattebayo- and someday, I'm gonna be Hokage!"

Iruka smiles, and reaches out a hand towards Naruto. The blonde finds herself flinching, but it's not a slap or a pinch like she had been expecting. He just ruffles her hair, and shoots her a grin that makes her stomach do weird little flips. It doesn't hurt like it did earlier though. No, it just feels… warm.

Something in Naruto unwinds. And for the first time in her life that she can remember, she smiles, content and happy, with someone smiling back at her.

For the rest of the evening, Iruka and Naruto continue to talk. The cook, whose name is Teuchi, keeps the ramen coming, and Naruto never wants this supper to end. They keep trading funny stories, and Iruka even gives her some tips for her pranks- he vehemently denies that he's a prankster, but Naruto's not an idiot. She knows that the boy he was talking about was him.

They have more in common than just the pranks, though. Neither of them can stand liars, or people that snoop into their private lives. Despite this, they both secretly admit to hoarding information- blackmail is prime material for any prankster!

As they talk, they continue to eat. The ramen is too salty, and once the noodles are gone, it's just spicy broth.

It's the best food Naruto has ever eaten.

With Iruka sitting next to her, and willing to give her the chance to be his friend, the oblivion, the cold and empty feeling that always seems to linger inside of her- it's suddenly history.

Right now, all that matters is the present she shares with him.

Xxx

And so it begins.

Xxx

Iruka thinks Uzumaki Naruto has been dealt a bad hand in life.

She's nice, and very funny, once you get past the bluster that she's always putting up and the lingering feelings of hate that come with her being the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi. He noticed her before she pulled the prank in the break room- it's hard to ignore her, despite how hard people try to, because she's so loud. Before he talked to her though, she was just the 'Orange Menace', a distant figure to hate. But now that he knows her, and is maybe even her friend, he has to say…

She's an annoying brat.

"Come on, teach me some ninja stuff! Or come help me with my taijutsu, 'cause Izumi-sensei never teaches me anything. Or, or we could do pranking stuff!"

…So very, very annoying. But Iruka wouldn't want her any other way. Naruto is an enthusiastic bundle of orange, and things are never boring around her. Just the other day when she cornered him to take her out for ramen, they ended up getting chased by a pack of ninja-geese, which ended with them somehow finding out about a secret chicken smuggling ring that gets Iruka a B-rank pay stub. It defies all logic, but that's just the normal when you hang around Uzumaki Naruto.

As Iruka comes to know her better, he also learns about the soft side she vehemently denies exists. Naruto has a secret adoration for small, fluffy animals, though she also goes against the norm when Iruka learns that she loves toads, too.

Naruto is also more than she seems; she loves gardening, and treats her plants like her own children. On top of that, Iruka once caught her writing out some stories, and she admitted that someday she'd like to be a writer, though as a secondary hobby to being Hokage. The stories that she writes make something twist within him- they all have a piece of the loneliness she feels imbedded in the pages, and despite the quality of the writing (she is just eight, after all), the emotion is still profound, opening scars Iruka was sure he had sealed long ago.

The more he learns about Naruto, the more Iruka finds himself smiling at her, caring about her, worrying for her. So when she puts on the bluster, and acts wildly to get his attention, Iruka goes along with it. She's not one of his students, but he finds himself teaching her all sorts of things. Naruto soaks it all up like a sponge, and seems to glow with every piece of attention he gives her.

Things between them are comfortable and… feel like home. Almost three years after their first meeting, Iruka finds that, despite their age difference, she has become one of his closest friends.

And then suddenly, things change.

The academy is set up in three segments that are each two years long, and students generally attend from the ages of six to twelve. Naruto was halfway through her second year of the first segment when they became friends, and Iruka had still been an assistant teacher for the fifth and sixth years of the third segment.

In Naruto's fifth year, he finally receives his teaching license… and becomes her sensei.

Iruka finds he can no longer treat her like he once did- as her sensei, he can't show favouritism in class, and it's strange for a teacher and student to be as close as they are. Slowly, Iruka tries to distance himself into the position of her authority figure, while the blonde frantically tries to reclaim their previous status quo.

Outside of class, she manages to hold onto a semblance of their former relationship- Iruka still helps her with her taijutsu and trapping skills, and she always finds a way to wheedle some ramen out of him. In the safety of Ichiraku's, Iruka's guard drops, and during those little moments, things are almost like they once were.

But in class, he is once again her sensei, and only that. Naruto begins to act out, desperate to hold more attention than her fellow students. She pranks him almost every day, and Iruka finds that it's almost like a game between them. While they are in the school, Naruto will work to catch him off guard, make him be her friend again, and Iruka will fervently attempt to hold his position as her teacher.

Despite Naruto's struggles, the new bond between them sticks, and Iruka is no longer her friend- he's her sensei.

Sometimes, he's sees her shooting him these looks when she thinks he can't see her (which is stupid- she wears bright orange, and he's a master prankster- he always notices her). Sometimes, it's just her sticking her tongue out at him, or giving him hurt looks edged with pain. But sometimes, her eyes, which are always so, so blue, hold this… longing. Those looks make Iruka afraid- for himself or Naruto, he doesn't know. What's going to happen when Naruto isn't a little kid anymore?

He keeps these thoughts to himself, buried beneath mountains of denial.

Eventually, the day of the academy graduation tests come. And with it, the beginning of Iruka's true problem.

Xxx

Naruto doesn't know what to do anymore. Pulling pranks all the time to get Iruka's attention affects her marks, and she knows she won't do well on any of the written exams. She tried to pass twice before- some feeble hope that if she wasn't his student, things would go back to way they used to be. But Iruka keeps drifting away. It's not a sudden wrench, like it was with the other kids so long ago. This is almost worse, because Naruto can feel him slipping away from her, piece by little piece.

"Naruto, you fail!"

…And suddenly, it all comes crashing down.

"B-but Iruka, I did good on lots of the other tests- who cares about some stupid bunshin?!"

Iruka's eyes are narrowed and unforgiving- he even has the gall to look disappointed, even though he's the one failing her.

"That's Iruka-sensei to you. And it's not just the bunshin- Mizuki graded your written exam earlier. The low marks you received on it, added to your poor weapons handling and ninjutsu scores, set you below the passing grade." Iruka's eyes flicker with some unreadable emotion, and Naruto finds herself, for the first time in her life, hating him.

Mizuki fidgets beside him, and a smile like oil slides greasily onto his face. "Iruka, I'm sure some sort of exception could be made- Naruto had the best traps scores in the class, and her taijutsu was above average! I'm sure we could let this slide by, just this once."

Iruka shutters in on himself, and stares coldly at Mizuki. "No. Naruto failed. To say otherwise would be favouritism."

Naruto eyes begin to itch, but she ignores them. "Please, Iruka!" she whispers, "You know how much this means to me!"

Iruka is still as stone, but eventually he responds in a hushed whisper. "I'm sorry, Naruto. You failed."

Iruka won't look her in the eyes when she stares at him, betrayed and hurt like never before. Naruto feels something inside of her twist, and she looks down at her feet. With dragging steps, she leaves the examination room without a hiate-ate… And without the only friendship she's ever had.

Later, she swings on the swing- the same one Iruka first talked to her at so long ago. With distant eyes, she watches the other students hug their parents, celebrate their passes, and leave the academy.

When she sees the other kids with the parents she wishes she could have, Naruto usually pastes on a grin while she waits for Iruka. But Iruka's not going to come, is he? He doesn't care about her, the 'demon brat' (whatever that means- everyone seems to call her it when they think she can't hear). He wouldn't look her in the eye, just like them. For the first time in her life, Naruto doesn't want to smile. She never wants to smile ever again (because every time she smiles, she going to think of the first person who ever smiled at her, and how he was just like the rest of them).

"Ah, Naruto, I'm sorry about what happened- Iruka can be pretty strict sometimes, haha…"

Naruto slightly lifts her head to look at Mizuki with dead eyes. Naruto hadn't heard him approach, but here he is, standing in front of her swing where he stood so long ago. Mizuki nervously chuckles, rubbing the back of his head. "I know you really wanted to pass, and because, unlike Iruka, I think you're a good ninja, I figured I could tell you… the secret…"

Naruto perks up her head completely. "What secret, dattebayo?" she asks suspiciously.

Mizuki grins. "The secret test to become a genin."

The silver-haired assistant teacher has always felt… off to Naruto. Iruka yells, and gets embarrassed, but Mizuki never does. He's just… always smiling. But Iruka is an ass that betrayed her trust, so Naruto doesn't feel too bad about smiling at Mizuki.

"What's the test, dattebayo?"

Naruto is going to become a genin, whether Iruka likes it or not.

Xxx

…But things never go as planned when Naruto is involved.

"You're the Kyuubi!" Mizuki exclaims, and Naruto finds herself clutching at the scroll in her hands, petrified in the face of the silver-haired man's manic grin. Mizuki sweeps his arms outwards, and continues speaking with a dramatic flourish.

"You're the one that killed the fourth Hokage, along with all those people… And you're the reason Iruka has no parents- that's why Iruka hates you, why everyone hates you!"

Naruto tries to speak, but nothing comes out. Mizuki is saying something else, but it all fades into white noise. Naruto's eyes are frozen to Iruka's tense form, whose brown eyes are wide and panicked. He's yelling at Mizuki, but Naruto doesn't hear what he's saying either. Instead, her head spins round and round, swallowed by a single lingering mantra.

Iruka hates you Iruka hates you IrukahatesyouIrukahatesyouIrukahates-

"NARUTO!" And suddenly, Iruka is in front of her, protectively falling over her, the wet THUD! of the fuuma shuriken stabbing into his back echoing throughout the clearing. His eyes are squinted with pain, and his entire body spasms, but Iruka still manages to weakly grin at her.

"I know how you feel, Naruto- you feel lonely, and it hurts inside… I let you down. I've been ignoring you, trying so hard not to play favourites, but all I did in the end was push you away. No one should have to feel alone like that."

Naruto's eyes are wide, and Iruka is close and so warm. He's here, he's protecting her, even though-

"Hah!" Mizuki interrupts. "He'd say anything to get the scroll from you! How could Iruka ever care about what a monster like you feels?!"

-even though Naruto is a monster- a monster that killed his parents.

Iruka hates me Iruka hates me Irukahatesme-

Naruto runs away before Iruka can say he hates her himself. It would kill her to hear those awful words from his own mouth.

After a frantic race through the forest, Naruto finds herself circling back against her will, some primal need tugging her. Stumbling to a halt behind an ancient oak, Naruto achingly holds her breath, back to the bark as she listens intently to the men fighting behind her.

"We both know Naruto's just like me!" Mizuki crows. "She's a beast, and she only cares about herself! The nine tail fox is a monster- Naruto was always going to abandon you. It was in her nature!"

"…You're right. The nine tailed fox is like that." Iruka whispers. Naruto freezes, and something inside her cracks, fragmenting into millions of little pieces. Burning cold leaks through her veins, and she is dimly aware that she has bit clean through her lip. The taste of iron in her mouth is distant to the numbness in her mind. Iruka hates me-

"But Naruto is nothing like that!" Iruka suddenly cries, his voice a cooling balm to the red hot cold that's seeping into her.

"She loves to garden, and the rain. She likes orange because it reminds her of the sunset, and pranking because she loves it when people laugh, and because she wants human connection. She wants to be a writer, because inside her she has a story that needs to be told. She works harder than anyone, and even though more often than not, she fails… she never stops trying! Because she's not the nine-tails- she's Uzumaki Naruto, my friend!"

Mizuki laughs, the slick sound breaking Naruto from her wide-eyed surprise. "Ha! Who cares what you think- despite how much you care for her, she still abandoned you... And now, you're mine! Die, Iruka!"

The next moment blurs, and Naruto is distantly aware that she's racing to her feet, driven with unholy rage that leaks around her, painting her vision red. "If you lay a hand on Iruka, I'll kill you!" she yells. Naruto's hands fall into the hand sign she's been religiously practicing all night. "Taiju Kage Bunshin!"

Everything around her explodes with orange.

Before Naruto, the pummelled form of Mizuki lies unconscious. Light sparks of wrath still leak through her, but within that tempered rage is a bone deep satisfaction, the pride that comes with protecting her most important person.

Naruto tenses, finally breaking through the battle haze. Iruka… She turns carefully in place. What is he going to say? Will he hate her?... Even if he does, Naruto won't blame him.

When Naruto meets Iruka's eyes, she's expecting hate, or even just apathy, but… Iruka's smiling at her.

"Naruto, come here a minute," he whispers. With shaky steps, Naruto carefully makes her way over to his seated form. Iruka is still smiling softly at her, like she's not a demon, like she's- like she's-

"Close your eyes." Naruto immediately closes her eyes. The blonde is hyper aware of Iruka's every movement, the tender removing of her goggles, and then him… putting his hiate-ate on her?! No, that can't be right, Iruka said only ninja can wear them, and she failed her exam-

"Open your eyes." When Naruto's eyes flutter open, the first thing she sees is warm brown. This close, Iruka's eyelashes are longer than she had ever realized, and his tanned face, though weathered, is smoothed by kindness. His chapped lips are spread into a wide grin, and his eyes are crinkled, little crow's feet appearing that send Naruto's stomach whooshing with some weird, but still good, feeling.

There's no hiate-ate on Iruka's head.

Iruka sheepishly lifts a hand to scratch at the scar across his nose, nervous under Naruto's unblinking gaze. "Obviously, you earned your graduation right now, but I want you to know that even if you hadn't learned the Kage Bunshin, or beaten Mizuki, you still would have passed. Something felt off about your graduation- so I re-graded your written exam." Iruka's eyes narrow. "Mizuki botched your results- you didn't do fantastic, but you still passed. You earned this hiate-ate, Naruto... Congratulations." Iruka's eyes are warm again, and staring right at Naruto.

As tears form at the corners of her eyes and her mouth twists into a soppy smile, Naruto crumples into herself and throws herself forward to crush Iruka in a powerful hug. For a single, glorious moment, the smell of leather, sweat, and pine fills her nose, Iruka's body a steady comfort as she presses her face into his vest.

"OW!"

"SHIT! Sorry, your back, I forgot!"

Naruto blushes as she sits in front of the wincing academy sensei. Iruka manages to shoot her a forgiving grin, and Naruto feels the weight on her shoulders lighten. But she needs to know…

"Did you mean it?" Naruto whispers. "Are we friends now?" For a moment, Iruka is quiet, but then his face slides into exasperated amusement, and he gently reaches out a hand to ruffle her short blonde hair.

"Naruto, we've always been friends- even if you tend to clean out my wallet every time I take you out for ramen." Iruka happily laughs, and something in Naruto's chest pounds. Her heart feels like it's going to explode out of her chest, and the constant thumping is making her stomach feel tight, but she's so happy. Her cheeks are warm, and in this moment, the cold is a distant memory.

Iruka says something about going out for ramen, and Naruto quickly agrees, latching onto his arm as she helps him stand. Carefully, she leans closer into his side, the warmth emanating from him a solid comfort.

Later at Ichiraku's, Naruto finds the status quo is finally back. Iruka sputters that he's still her sensei, and Naruto absentmindedly agrees to finally call him as such (even though she's not his student anymore- what a weirdo, she thinks fondly). Iruka makes a big speech about how she should respect her next sensei a lot more to make up for all the pranks she's pulled on him over the years. Naruto jibes back at him, saying he earned it because of his pranking days, but Iruka is adamant. He manages to weasel a promise out of her to give her sensei a chance- because he may acknowledge her, and even like her pranks!

Naruto doesn't really care about any of that, though. She gently raises a hand to touch her new hiate-ate, and her cheeks go warm as she fills with euphoric happiness. All that matters is that Iruka is here beside her, once again her friend. He accepts her despite the beast within her. He risked his life to save her own. But most important of all…

Ramen never tastes as good as it does when he's beside her.