Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Naruto or any characters in this story; it belongs to masashi kishimoto.
Chapter 6: When two losers meet
"Ugh!" mumbled a groggy Naruto as he dusted the cobwebs from his mind and tried to orient himself. Last night was the most restful night of sleep he remembers ever having. It was the kind of sleep that when you woke up made you wonder if you were even in the same lifetime or universe. Naruto stretched in his bed like a cat while trying to get his mind jumpstarted. He barely noticed that he could no longer see the sun from his window, meaning it was pretty late in the day. He turned his head to his alarm clock and saw that it marked 3:51 PM, and he groaned.
Although Naruto was usually a ball of energy, he was not a morning person at all. Thus, the first couple of minutes of his day always became a test of whether he would give into the coziness of his bed or not. He was about to succumb to temptation when the whisper of a dream crossed his mind, and he suddenly jumped out of bed as he began recalling his dream.
"No way!" Naruto thought out loud as he reviewed all the information he had gotten in his dream. From meeting his mom and learning he was the Jinchuriki of the Kyūbi no Yōko to being the son of Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage. Naruto sat silently and unmoving in his bed, reviewing everything from his 'dream'. At the same time, a few tears escaped his eyes when he remembered the happiest moments. As he remembered everything that had happened in his dream, a little doubt mixed with fear began to creep up inside him. Could it possibly be that what he was remembering was just a dream? A fantasy created by the brain of an orphan child who cried out for knowledge about his parents on the day of his 11th birthday?
Naruto's heart started to accelerate, and he could feel it thumping in his chest as panic set in, but like an oasis in the middle of the desert, he remembered something.
"Naruto, I know part of you believes this is a dream and that I'm not real... There is a clearing just like this one near the old Senju compound. Minato and I left some gifts for you there." He could perfectly remember a lovely face with beautiful red hair and a melodic voice saying that to him. In a flash of yellow hair, Naruto started to put on some clothes to go and search for this clearing.
'Thank Kami it's Sunday, and I don't have to go the academy today!' he thought excitedly as he zipped up his orange jacket and adjusted his green goggles. As he made his way to the door, he was surprised when he heard multiple knocking sounds coming from it. He silently walked closer to look through his door's spyhole. The jump scare that followed was rather comical and was due to that through the spyhole, a single huge brown eye that took most of his field of vision stared back at him. That single brown eye belonged to one Umino Iruka.
'What?! Iruka-Sensei?! What's Iruka-Sensei doing here?' As Naruto mentally wondered why was his academy teacher coming to his apartment on Sunday and not looking too happy, another knock on his door broke him out of his thoughts.
"Naruto, I know you are there! I heard you! open up, please I need to talk to you." Iruka's slightly irritated voice sounded.
Having been heard, Naruto resigned himself to open the door. "Hi Iruka-sensei... is there something I can help with?" Naruto then saw that his teacher was holding several books and scrolls in his arms and got a bad feeling about it. "I was about to head out so... can you make it quick?" said a rather sheepish Naruto.
Iruka's eye started to twitch violently, and he had to take a deep breath before speaking. "Naruto... why didn't you come to the academy today?"
"Huh? What do you mean? Why would I go to the academy today?" he asked in confusion.
Iruka couldn't hold it anymore. He had spent almost every second since last Friday thinking of the best to teach Naruto and make sure that if the blonde didn't learn, at least it wasn't because he didn't try it his all. He had been so motivated to teach the blonde but come Monday, lo and behold, said blonde was a no-show. Previously Iruka wouldn't have given a shit if Naruto didn't show up. Hell, he would have actually enjoyed the unexpected but warranted break from teaching or attempting to teach the blonde jinchuriki. But what happens now that he is finally ready to turn the page and be the best goddam teacher the academy has seen? The blonde mess goes missing! If he could count on the blonde for something besides pranks, it was that Naruto always showed up to the academy, be it five minutes or two hours. It didn't matter. He would always be there to be his usual loud self.
Having lost all his patience, Iruka's head grew inexplicably to gigantic proportions. "You were supposed to attend the academy today because it's Monday!"
Naruto's confusion only grew at the statement. "Huh?! What are you talking about, Iruka-Sensei? Its Sunday. Yesterday was Saturday. I remember because it was my birthday, and I just woke up, which means it's Sunday." Under normal circumstances, Naruto's logic would have been Kunai-proof but not today. You see, the revelations that had been made to him had caused him to be emotionally exhausted hence why he slept for a day and a half.
"If it is Sunday, why all the other students were at the academy today?! They were all on time and ready to learn!" that was a lie, at least a partial lie. Every student besides a certain Nara had been ready.
Naruto didn't respond to his Sensei's statement; he just stared and gaped at him.
Iruka, for his part just sighed. "Look Naruto, can I come in? There is something important that I want to talk to you about."
Naruto seemed to think about it for a few seconds before nodding, letting Iruka into his apartment, and leading him to the kitchen. Iruka was surprised by two factors when he entered the apartment. The first was that the apartment was far bigger than he expected, and the second one was how messy it was. Iruka would admit that he wasn't the most organized person, especially during his teenage years but holy shit, he couldn't hold a candle to Naruto. Dirty dishes, multiple empty cups of ramen, and an expired milk cartridge stood on the dining table, but that wasn't the worst part. The worst part was the floor. Iruka actually wished he hadn't taken his sandals off before entering when he felt the sticky floor grab onto his feet. He scanned the floor as if it was Bobby trapped with explosive tags in order to not step on anything gross.
'I can't believe he lives like this... is that? Never mind, I don't want to know. Just do what you came here to do Iruka.' he said to himself.
Naruto saw Iruka's expression and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I'm sorry for the mess. I don't usually get visits."
"It's... alright." Iruka said as he moved empty cups of ramen to place the books and scrolls he had been carrying. "Naruto, I need to talk to you about your academy performance." Iruka said with a serious face as he saw the embarrassed grin melt away from the young blonde.
"You aren't on track to graduate, and I seriously doubt that you'll manage to pass like you did last year." He eyed the blonde skeptically, waiting for him to complain or deny it, but it never happened. The only thing that happened was that Naruto opened his mouth but quickly closed it, choosing to listen to Iruka.
Iruka grabbed a piece of paper and started reading, "You are failing Ninjutsu, genjutsu, Shinobi world history, and chakra theory." Iruka's words seemed to hit the ninja in training like a hammer. Iruka saw a very demoralized Naruto, which was the opposite of why he came here, and tried to lift his spirits up a bit. "On a brighter tone, you are doing good in survival skills, okay in taijutsu, and although you are barely passing shurikenjutsu, I think you can improve a lot with a few pointers and practice."
Despite the slight praise, Naruto's mood didn't seem to improve. The blonde seemed to be trying to glare a hole through his floor, and Iruka sighed. "Look, I know that you don't enjoy it, but if you want to become a ninja, you'll have to graduate, and for that, you have to study and improve your grades... and for what it's worth... I'm sorry."
Hearing those last words, Naruto looked up in astonishment. "Y-you are sorry?" he said, slightly confused.
Iruka gave a grave nod. "It's true that at the moment you aren't a good student, but it's also true that I haven't been a good teacher to you. I know what it is like to come home with no parents and that you rather do other things besides your studies, but it's important. I'm partially to blame for your academic performance but starting tomorrow, that will change. I will answer Every question or doubt you have and try to explain it to you as best as I can."
Naruto remained quiet as he scrutinized Iruka with his cerulean eyes. "Do you believe I can graduate?" he asked in a low tone.
Iruka lifted an eyebrow at the blonde's behavior and reaction. It certainly wasn't the usual loud and confident blonde he was used to seeing in the academy. "You know... I used to be a lot like you when I was your age... I used to play a lot of pranks and ignored my studies. I did worse in the academy than you are doing now. Still, eventually, someone made me become serious about being a ninja, and I graduated. So If I could, I believe you can ."
Naruto met Iruka's gaze, and feeling that his teacher was being honest, he nodded wordlessly. "I promise that I will be a better student from now on and that I will graduate -ttebayo!"
Iruka was used to hearing the blonde make outlandish claims like how the blonde was going to become Hokage one day but hearing his voice now, it seemed fueled with pure resolve, which made Iruka nod in approval.
"Here is everything you have to catch up with." Iruka signaled to the pile of books and scrolls on the table. "You will need to study everything in there in order to pass this year." He said as he stood up to leave. To Naruto's credit, his face only faltered a bit at seeing how much he would have to study.
Iruka opened the door to leave when suddenly Naruto spoke. "I'm sorry to... for being a difficult student and... thank you... for believing in me."
Iruka turned around, and with a soft smile, he said. "No problem."
After seeing the door close, Naruto returned to his kitchen, saw the book pile, and sighed before composing himself. "I'll get to you later, but right now, I have something to do, dattebayo!" he screamed while pointing at the books.
It had taken him little time to find where the Senju compound was, and now, he was going around the forest searching for the clearing he had met his mother in. He was running through the woods when he heard a thumping someone shouting numbers.
"396... 397... 398... 399... If I can't do five hundred log kicks, then I'll do one thousand
squats!"
Naruto's hyperactive mind was momentarily distracted from his search as he followed the voice that kept on shouting.
"404... 405...406."
After following the sounds of voice for a few seconds, he found a kid about his age with long black hair fastened in a braid who wore a cream tai-chi uniform with brown pants. Naruto also noted that the kid had abnormally thick eyebrows. He observed him continue kicking the long for a few seconds before shrugging and continuing with his search.
Eventually, Naruto found the clearing. He stood there analyzing every little aspect he remembered from his dream. Everything was an exact replica of his dream, from a specific patch of grass to where the tallest tree was, except for a small and slightly run-down cabin hidden behind some trees. Naruto gulped as he approached the non-descript cabin with a curious step and stopped in front of the door for a minute, not knowing really what to do.
After staring blankly at the door for a minute, he slowly brought his hand to the rusty doorknob. As soon as his bare skin touched the cold metal, he felt a sense of familiarity overwhelm him as he heard a soft click that signaled the door was unlocked. After a slight push and the sound of a creaking door, Naruto's eyes were welcomed by the sight of an old closet, a bed, and a nightstand. Naruto's curious eyes danced over the small roam in wonder until his cerulean orbs came to rest on something placed over the nightstand.
Without taking his eyes off the object, Naruto walked with uncharacteristic carefulness next to it. Naruto made it to the nightstand only to stare in silent awe at the dusty picture that stood in there. Tears started coming out of his eyes as he softly started saying. "It wasn't a dream... it wasn't a dream... it wasn't a dream!" Naruto laughed and cried simultaneously as he celebrated everything he learned about himself, be it good or bad, because it meant that he had a mother and father who had loved him.
Naruto didn't know when but grabbed the picture and sat on the small bed as he wordlessly admired the picture of his parents. It was a beautiful picture of the pair when they were sixteen years old. Minato wore a baby blue kimono with yellow highlights. Kushina had on a beautiful pale-yellow kimono with several flowers printed on it. Both had huge smiles on their faces as the fireworks exploded behind them. After staring at the picture for a while, Naruto put it back on top of the nightstand and began exploring the small cabin.
He started with the closet. Standing before it, his eyes landed on some words randomly written in the closet. "Sword of Shinobi's love." It read, which confused him a lot, but he opened the closet only to find some dusty covers, blankets, and old clothes that were too big for him. Some people might have seen it as trash, but to Naruto, there wasn't anything more valuable in the world at the moment. After examining the closet, Naruto opened the drawers of the nightstand only to find two scrolls next to a piece of paper. Naruto grabbed the paper and carefully read it over.
"Adoption form for Hatake Kakashi..." His brows furrowed slightly as he remembered the name his mother had spoken. She had asked him if he lived in Kakashi, Tsunade, or Jiraiya. Who were they? Her mother knew them enough to expect him to live with them. Still, he was completely sure he had never met anyone of them. What had happened to them? Did they die like his parents? Did they ignore his existence because of the Kyubi? Did they even know that his mother was also a Jinchuriki?
Naruto's thoughts had become rather dark rather quickly, and he had to snap himself out of his spiraling train of thought. Concentrating on other objects in the drawer, Naruto pulled both scrolls out and examined them before opening the yellow scroll he held onto in his right hand. He opened it only to find the kanji for family, taijutsu, ninjutsu, notes, and fūinjutsu. Naruto, without thinking, put his hand on the kanji for family and subconsciously let out a small pulse of chakra and envelop materialized out the scroll.
"Fūinjutsu..." he said automatically as he stared in awe at the scroll and envelope. Naruto opened the envelope only to find a letter from his father to him.
Dear Naruto,
It's me! Your old man! Yep, I'm your father, Namikaze Minato, Yondaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato. I'm pretty awesome, huh? Actually, if you are reading this, I guess I wasn't that awesome, really. Naruto, I don't know what events led you to read this letter from me, but I just want you to know I'm sorry. There is nothing I would have liked more than to be there with you and watch you grow up with Kushina and be a family together. I want you to know that although you haven't been born yet, you are already the best thing to ever happen to me. I wish I could have seen you grow into the great man and shinobi I know you will be. I love you, Naruto, and although I may have never told it to you in person or even met you yet, it doesn't make it any less true. Take care, my son, and know I'm proud of you.
With love,
Namikaze Minato
Naruto let some few fall on the letter as he read it. "Thank you, Tou-chan..." Half sobbed Naruto as he brought the letter close to his chest. For the most part, Naruto still had to digest that his father was the greatest hero the village had ever seen. On top of that, he was holding what could possibly be the most valuable scroll in the whole ninja world.
He just couldn't believe it, but when he turned his head to see the picture of his parents together, it just had to be true. 'Kaa-chan wasn't joking when she said I was a chibified version of Tou-chan.' He thought as he touched his shorter hair. He folded the letter back into the envelope with great care as he shifted his eyes to the rest of the scroll. Normally he would have dived right into the ninjutsu part, trying to find some kick-ass jutsu to show the people how cool he was, but after reading his father's words, he wanted to approach this with precaution.
Naruto then turned his eyes to the red scroll he assumed was placed there by his mother and opened it. It looked identical to his father's scroll, but instead of saying family, it said clan history. Naruto repeated the same process as he did with Minato's scroll, and another envelope appeared from the larger scroll. Naruto quickly opened the new envelope and found another letter and a deep-red-covered book with a swirl in the center.
My baby Naruto,
I really hope that you never get to read this letter, but if you are, I'm sorry for not being there with you. You are the most precious thing to have ever happened to me, and I'm glad that you are at least safe. I'm not really good with letters, but I want you to know that I love you so much that it hurts to write this letter. Don't you ever forget or question how much I love you! And because I love you so much, I made you this gift. In this scroll, you will find everything there is to know about our clan, from the traditions and values we had to the powerful techniques that once made our clan feared throughout the elemental nations. Since, sadly, I'm no longer there, you are the one that needs to carry the Uzumaki name. I have complete confidence that you will make me and the clan proud of the Uzumaki you will become. Good luck Naruto and never ever give up!
With the eternal love of a mother,
Uzumaki Kushina
Naruto's tears flowed without restraint at this point, but he smiled nonetheless. Several questions formed at the back of his young mind, like why did the Hokage didn't tell him about his parents or the Kyūbi? The Hokage had known his parents, it was impossible for him not to know, and the whole village seemed to know about the Kyūbi. His mother had told her about how Kumo had attempted to kidnap her because of who she was and how his father saved him. Would they try to kidnap him just like they did with her? With all those questions, Naruto decided to store them at the back of his mind like he often did with the most depressing matters of his life.
Having buried the more morbid and depressing thoughts, Naruto concentrated on the book that had appeared along with his mother's letter. Grabbing the old deep red covered, Naruto read the title out loud.
"The Uzumaki clan: The clan that rules the whirlpools."
Although Naruto wasn't one for books, he handled it with extreme care. He felt excited at the prospect of learning something about his clan. Opening the old book Naruto delved right in.
Naruto yawned as he closed the book. He had read a good portion and learned about the lore and traditions of his clan, from their blessed bodies with huge chakra reserves and vitality to their prowess as sensors and sealing masters. The Uzumaki's were also known for their fiery and outgoing personalities, determination, and belief to never go back on their word.
"Above everything an Uzumaki has, the most valuable and important thing is their word, a true Uzumaki never goes back on their word." Naruto took those words to heart.
Naruto wanted to keep reading about his clan but remembered he had made a promise today... He had promised to be a better student to Iruka, and according to his mother, he also needed proper amounts of sleep, so he decided to leave things for now and go to his apartment now. He exited the small cabin observing that the sun had already set and the moon floated in the starry sky of Konoha. Trying to remember the path he took on his way here, Naruto started walking around the dark forest.
He continued to walk until he heard the shouting and thumping he had heard earlier that day. Getting curious again, Naruto followed the noise only to see the same kid from earlier still practicing. However, he now had a much more sluggish pace.
"1993... 1994... 1995... Just five punches more!" he shouted in an exhausted voice.
After finishing the next five punches, the kid plummeted to the ground like a puppet with his strings cut.
"Hey! Are you okay? Do you need help?" Naruto asked as he approached the now resting kid.
The kid made to stand but instantly fell back on his ass. It was then that Naruto noted who truly trashed he was. His skin of knuckles was torn off his, and his pants had holes. "Hi! I'm fine, I was doing a little training, and now I just need to return to my house and rest." He said in a suspiring cheerful voice, considering how beat up he looked.
"Right..." Said Naruto as he saw the slightly older kid attempt to stand again, only to fail. He tried to analyze how he was looking at him. He saw that his eyes didn't hold the usual contempt he was accustomed to and decided to approach him to help him stand up.
"Thanks! My name is Rock Lee." He said between ragged breaths as Naruto slung Lee's arm over his shoulder.
"Nice to meet you, Lee! My name is..." He was afraid of how Lee would react to him if he knew him by name but decided to trust the look in Lee's eyes. "Uzumaki Naruto." He paused again to see if something in Lee's demeanor changed but was glad to see his smile didn't falter.
"I'll help you home. So, what are you doing training like that? Are you in the ninja academy? I don't remember seeing you there." asked Naruto attempting to make a conversation.
"Hai Naruto-san! I'm in the last year of the academy. Are you also in the academy?"
"Yeah! I think a year behind you. You must be pretty awesome if you train that hard..." Lee's demeanor instantly changed.
"Actually... I'm the dead last of my class..." he murmured in an embarrassed tone.
Naruto laughed good Naturedly but stopped when he saw Lee glaring at him. "Sorry, it's just that I'm also the dead last of my class. I just find it funny that we ran into each other by chance."
With that, Lee returned to his usual demeanor as they continued walking to Lee's home.
A week later
Naruto was trying his damn hardest to concentrate in class and listen to Iruka's last lecture of the day, he really was, but right now his mind revolved around three names. Jiraiya, Tsunade and Kakashi. He didn't even have their last names to go off from. Are they shinobi? They seemed close with his parents, and shinobi often only hung out with other shinobi for the most part. This much he had picked up when he saw the uniformed man and women throughout the village. If they were shinobi, did they die on a mission, and why had he not met them if they weren't? He knew that those people couldn't be related to him by blood. After all, he was probably the last survivor of the Uzumaki clan, and he read in one of Minato's journals that he had also been an orphan. So blood ties were out of the picture, and also, if they were family and alive, they would be with him, right? The fact that he held the Kyubi shouldn't have scarred his family away.
'But this Jiraiya guy is supposed to be my godfather and Kakashi, my brother. Aren't families supposed to love each other?'
For Naruto to know that his parents had loved him made him feel... special and whole, but the fact that the people that his mother expected to be with him hadn't ever shown up still made him feel... well, he didn't quite know.
He continued his thoughts as a frown developed on his features and he gained a blank look in sky-blue eyes.
"Naruto..." he seldom heard his name being called, but it didn't quite register.
"Naruto..." the voice became louder.
"NARUTO!"
"Huh? What? What happened?" he said dumbly as the class erupted in laughter except for a select few.
Iruka just had to take a big breath. "I asked what battle brought the third shinobi world war to an end?"
"Oh, the battle of Kanabi bridge, in which my..." Naruto trailed off before recuperating. "My idol, the Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato, brought down the last push from Iwagakure to cross the border between Hi no Kuni and Kusa no Kuni."
There was a moment of stunned silence from the class in which multiple mouths hung open, pairs of eyes were repeatedly blinking, and a smile formed on the face of a lavender-eyed girl.
"You forgot to say that he killed one thousand ninjas in that battle alone." A loud voice came from a random student in the class.
"You are wrong." Naruto said simply, which caused some to look at him like he had just reverted to the normal Naruto everyone knew. At the same time, a few more educated eyed the blonde to see what he would say next. "The yondaime didn't defeat one thousand shinobi in that battle. That was his number of confirmed kills all through the war."
"Baka!" several voices screamed at the top of their lungs as Iruka tried to get the class back in order.
"I don't understand why you admire the Yondaime that much... it's not like you'll ever be like him." Said Kiba in a dismissive that invited challenge.
Oh, that struck a nerve that Naruto didn't even know he had. For the first time in his life, Naruto became angry, truly angry, and he couldn't quite put a finger on the reason.
Was it the first part of the statement? 'I don't understand why you admire the Yondaime that much.' Didn't they know what he did for everyone? What had he sacrificed? Who had he sacrificed? Or was it the second part of the statement? 'it's not like you'll ever be like him.'
"Shut the fuck up." Naruto swore and abruptly stood from his seat as he pierced Kiba with a glare that slightly unnerved Kiba. Naruto was about to take the first step towards Kiba when he heard Iruka's booming voice.
"Naruto! Don't you dare take another step!"
Naruto slowly shifted his eyes towards Iruka's own, who met the glare unflinchingly.
"Ha, as if you could do something de-"
Still locking eyes with the blonde, Iruka's voice shifted target. "Kiba! You better not finish that sentence!" And promptly, the Inuzuka shut his snout. Although Iruka was a pretty easy-going teacher, besides being academically demanding, he was still a seasoned chunin who had served years on the field.
"Sit down Naruto." He didn't raise his voice, but it still held the same level of strictness.
As the room filled with tense silence, Naruto kept the staring contest with his teacher before moving the slightest of nods, and he roughly and begrudgingly flopped back in his seat.
The tense silence continued before Iruka awkwardly coughed into his fist. "Actually, Naruto is right." He said, surprising almost everyone. "It's a misconception that the Yondaime Hokage defeated one thousand Iwa shinobi in that battle alone. Although there is no official record of how many shinobi fell to Yondaime-Sama, it's a pretty safe assumption that the number is around that number."
The most uneducated students, which was the vast majority, remained speechless. Iruka didn't know how to continue after what just transpired. Luckily, he didn't have to because the bell rang at that moment, signaling the end of classes for the day.
With a scowl, Naruto packed his things and was about to head out to train with Lee. He had bonded a little with him since Naruto always saw him training on his way to the clearing, where he would read about his clan and his father's notes. He had been so immersed in both Minato's journals and all the scrolls and books regarding the history of his clan that he hadn't touched anything else at the moment. He would go straight there after leaving the academy and read them for hours. Who would have thought it? Uzumaki Naruto was reading books and actually enjoying it! After that, he would practice a little on what Iruka needed to improve to pass this year. Ninjutsu, genjutsu, Konoha history, and chakra theory. He actually knocked out a bit of Konoha just by reading his father's journals, and he could have also advanced in chakra theory... if he only understood what the hell his father wrote.
Naruto was about to reach the door when he heard Iruka's voice which still held an air of authority. "Naruto, stay here and wait for a moment, please." Naruto just let out a moan but stayed nonetheless.
Naruto heard someone snickering before Iruka spoke again. "Kiba, I wouldn't be laughing if I was you. You are coming with me." Said in a less kind tone. Iruka exited the classroom with Kiba next to him, looking not too pleased while Akamaru whined on top of his head. Naruto took a seat at one of the desks near the door and saw as the other students exited the room one by one. However, he completely missed the worried glance Hinata threw him before leaving.
Leaving Naruto alone in the classroom was perhaps a miscalculation on Iruka's part. Naruto's bored mind had enough time to devise a prank to teach Kiba a lesson. Speaking of pranks...
Iruka was just coming back from chewing the shit out of Kiba for the insensitive comment he had made about the Yondaime. Iruka wouldn't call the man his idol like Naruto, but everyone who had seen the beast and lived to tell the tale was eternally grateful to Yondaime. There wouldn't be any disrespect towards the man on his watch. Iruka opened the door and thought he caught Naruto sitting abruptly but shrugged it off.
He approached the blonde with a neutral expression on his face. "Naruto, you shouldn't be picking fights with your classmates."
"But Iruka-Sensei he sai-"
Iruka lifted a hand, cutting off Naruto. "I know what he said, and believe me, Kiba won't be doing it again, but you shouldn't lose your temper the way you did."
Naruto muttered an apology that he totally didn't mean, and Iruka sighed and decided to change the topic. "Where did you learn that expression?"
"What expression? Could you say so I know what you are talking about?" he said with a grin.
The edges of Iruka's mouth threatened to form the begging of a smile. "Don't play with me, Naruto. You shouldn't be using that sort of language in my class... well, you should be using it anywhere really."
"You also need to concentrate in class, Naruto. You did a good job, but you should concentrate more. If you space out, you will miss what I'm teaching... but you have been improving Naruto."
Naruto smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "I know I'm awesome!"
"You still have a lot to catch up Naruto... but good job, just try to keep it up."
"I will! I promise, and Uzumaki Naruto never goes back on his word!"
Iruka let a small smile appear on his face. "Okay, Naruto, but I have some homework for you."
Naruto groaned and Iruka channeled his teacher persona. "Now Naruto, this will help you concentrate a little more and help with your ninjutsu also."
"Huh?" Naruto instantly felt a slight touch on his forehead, and when his eyes looked up, he saw a leaf sticking to his forehead.
"You are going to be doing leaf concentration exercises. It should help you concentrate, and it will improve your ninjutsu."
"Agh, not this again!"
"Yes Naruto, this again. Concentration is key for a shinobi; you will be practicing this exercise to stop losing focus on my class."
Naruto just sighed in resignation. "Okay Iruka-Sensei."
"Good." Naruto was about to leave when Iruka spoke again. "Naruto thanks for dialing it down on the pranks in my class."
"I don't know what you are talking about Iruka-Sensei. I haven't done any pranks." He said as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"Naruto, I'm not dumb. I know you have continued your pranks, and just because I haven't caught you yet doesn't mean I don't know its you." Naruto just gave him a huge and devious grin. His mother had told him that even if he was going to keep up the pranks, at least not be caught, and he was precisely doing that. Although everyone knew it was Naruto doing the pranks, they didn't have any proof yet, but they also had zero doubts that he was behind every last one of them. It was the best of both worlds for him actually. Getting the recognition but not getting the punishment or having to clean after his mess. Yep, he was having his cake and eating too.
"Whatever Iruka-Sensei. See you on Monday." And Naruto rushed out of the classroom with tremendous speed.
Iruka just shook his head and smiled and went to open one drawer in his desk to get some papers out to grade, but when he opened it, he received a splash of paint right on his face. Iruka blinked a couple of times before he realized it was orange paint. "NARUTO!"
Iruka had grumbled and complained about the paint and having to remove it, but that prankster side of him, that one that had been his loyal companion throughout his years as an academy student, inwardly smiled at the prank.
Author's notes:
And that's the chapter! Admittedly I felt it was not as good as Chapter 5, so I took some extra days to make it better. Also, holy shit guys 74 likes and 110 followers in just eight days! I'm glad y'all like the story and thanks for the comments and reviews to Kitten Arina, Tumelo Uzumaki Midoriya Mariri, fastin, Lady Elwyn, Beastyd22 and Stag98. I appreciate all the comments and reviews. I think I should be able to get the next chapter out in less time than I did in this chapter. Also I'll probably quicken the pace of the story so that the action can start.
