"You look homeless," Sakura observes as we follow Kakashi down the busy morning streets of the village.

Naruto looks at me, observes me for several seconds, then nods in agreement: "She's right, Sasuke; you look like a bum. It's cause of your hair; it's way too pointy."

I look pointedly at Naruto's own hair.

"Sure," I say.

"What do you mean his hair's way too pointy?" Sakura asks Naruto sounding offended, then to me, she says reassuringly; "Don't mind him, Sasuke, your hair's beautiful."

Back to Naruto, she continues; "And I meant you, dum-dum. You look homeless. I mean, really, look at yourself."

Naruto does look at himself.

"Oh," he says.

To be honest, I personally feel that Naruto currently looks less like a homeless person and more like the escaped victim of a particularly chaotic abduction. He's still in the PJs Kakashi had brought him to training in, only now those pyjamas are dirty, torn, and singed in numerous places thanks to Kakashi's aggressive training methods.

In fact, the boy has been drawing looks from passersby this entire time, though none seem to worry too much when they notice him walking in the presence of a jōnin.

Extremely confused, sure, but not worried.

Good thing I at least had the foresight to heal his bruises back at my place, civilian tongues like to wag.

"You can't blame me for this though," Naruto argues, after quickly giving up on a doomed effort to make himself presentable. "Kakashi's the one who kidnapped me from my bed and beat me up."

Maybe I spoke too soon about the passersby not looking worried.

At Naruto's words, Kakashi says: "You're making me sound like such a sketchy guy."

"You are a sketchy guy," Naruto says. "You even wear a mask all the time, we've never seen your face."

"He's got you there, sensei," Sakura points out, then adds; "Why do you even wear that mask all the time? Are you hiding your face or something?"

"I bet it's because he's got huge teeth," Naruto says before bursting into laughter.

Sakura shoots the boy a look of disapproval.

"Naruto?" a voice calls from some distance away to our right and we look in the direction of it.

"Kiba," Naruto calls back in greeting at the approaching genin.

Kiba Inuzuka isn't alone, he's with his teammates, Hinata Hyūga and Shino Aburame, as well as their jōnin-sensei, Kurenai… something. I forget her family name.

"Why the fuck do you look like a homeless bum, man?" is the first thing Kiba asks as they near. "You lose a fight with an alley cat?"

"You wish, you bastard," Naruto fires back. "This is from training."

"And what skill were you training?" Kiba asks. "How to get your ass kicked?"

Naruto's eyes blaze. "Well, maybe I should kick your ass, you jerk," he screams.

"Try it, you little shit," Kiba screams back.

"Don't call me little, we're the same height."

"I'm one inch taller and you know it, little shit."

"Will you two shut up!?" Sakura screams. "Every time you meet it's the same thing!"

It's true. Naruto and Kiba have an… unusual relationship. Every time they meet all they seem to do is antagonize and insult one another.

In fact, the only times they ever seem to be capable of respecting each other as human beings are either when they're punching each other in the face, or after they've done so.

Honestly, I would go so far as to say that their relationship is creepy and more than a little toxic, but I don't really think I'm in a position to speak on that, especially considering that the person I think about most is one whose throat I fantasize about sinking a kunai into… Repeatedly… Some days.

On other days, I sit in my room, wishing that he would come walking through the door. I sit in my room wishing that he would come in and flick me on my forehead like he used to do, and we would sit and talk as Mother made dinner and Father attended to his duties, and the Uchiha Compound wouldn't be a ghostland because he would never have done what he did…

…

No, I really don't think I'm in a position to speak on relationships.

"Um, good morning, everyone," Hinata says to our group in her characteristically soft voice.

"Hey, Hinata," Sakura replies. "How've you been?"

"Well, thank you," the Hyūga responds, then to Kakashi, she bows: "Jōnin Hatake, good morning."

Kakashi bows back, a small dipping of the head. "Genin Hyūga, good morning to you too."

"Hatake," Hinata's sensei, Kurenai, says in greeting.

Kakashi waves at the woman. "Yo."

Shino Aburame and I simply nod at one another.

Naruto and Kiba are still glowering at each other, heads leaned forward and teeth bared in some nonsensical, and likely instinctive, display of aggression (and I guess dominance).

Kiba's puppy, Akamaru, currently sitting on his partner's head like always, apparently takes offense to this, or maybe just Naruto's presence in general, because he barks at the blonde.

"Shut up, you," Naruto snaps at the animal.

"Hey, don't tell Akamaru to shut up, you shut up," Kiba yells.

"No, you shut up," Naruto screams back.

"No, you—"

Sakura grabs both boys by their collars and pulls them apart.

"Hey/What gives?" both boys yell indignantly.

Their indignation quickly fizzles out however when Sakura pierces them with a glare that promises intense violence.

"Kiba, Naruto," she says, "I am tired and I am hungry, so unless one of you wants to fight me, shut up. Please."

Both boys seem to actually consider taking up her offer for a fight, Kiba more so than Naruto. Eventually however, they seem to decide against it, and with a shared glance and a nod, a détente is called.

Temporary, all who's watching can tell, but a détente all the same.

"Well," Kakashi says into the ensuing silence, "now that whatever that was is over, where are you headed?"

The question having been directed at her, it's Team Eight's sensei who answers.

"To get some food, actually," the jōnin says. "I've been making them run drills all morning."

With a self-satisfied smirk on his face, Kiba interjects: "It's cause we're going on our first mission tomorrow."

Naruto blinks in surprise, then he smirks to match Kiba's. "So are we. So don't go feeling pleased with yourself, you bastard."

Kiba scowls. "Tch. Well, I'm sure our mission's still gonna be cooler; it's a B-rank, and we're guarding cargo going all the way to Wave."

'Wait, what!?'