Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Naruto didn’t like stares. He ignored them, just like always. Kept his head up, never looking down.  

Looking down meant letting them win. So, he didn’t. 

(He could feel their hatred. Their fear.)

He stared right back at them. 

The villagers averted their gazes, fearful. Cowards . 

He absentmindedly wondered what they were gonna learn today. He hoped it was about the Hokages – those lessons were fun. 

Maybe he could annoy Iruka-sensei into getting him ramen.... 

Naruto shook his head, snapping out of his thoughts. Huh. When did he pass the marketplace? 

The stares stopped as he got closer to the Academy. Less civilians around. The shinobi didn’t bother staring—if they hated him, they at least knew better than to be obvious about it. 

(The feeling of hate didn’t stop.)

Oh well, he was closer to the academy, now.  

He walked slowly, in no real rush to get to his lessons (and the stares ). 

Hmm, maybe he should bunk after break time.... they had History and Taijutsu with Iruka-sensei before break, and Maths and Chakra Theory with Mizuki-sensei after break.... 

Yup. Skipping for sure. Mizuki-sensei may be nice (nicer than most others were), but the subjects he taught were boring . 

Before he knew it, Naruto had arrived at his classroom – he was only, like, a couple minutes late, and it was a Tuesday, and Iruka-sensei came a bit late on Tuesdays anyways - it was one of the Academy’s greatest mysteries.

(Naruto later found out that Iruka had therapy sessions early in the morning. Why early in the morning? Hell, if Naruto knows.)

The first thing that hit him was the smell of paper and scrolls– which Naruto didn’t particularly care for. 

He swept his eyes across the room.  Sakura and Ino were bickering. No surprise there – them not fighting would mean a Zombie Apocalypse. 

(Someone was staring . Naruto’s hair stood on end. He glanced towards the stare.) 

Sasuke sat a couple chairs away from the arguing girls, arms crossed, gaze fixed out the window. The only thing more predictable than Ino and Sakura’s fights was the fact that Sasuke wanted no part in them. 

(He reeked of annoyance-sorrow-guilt- regret .)

Shikamaru and Choji sat together at the other end of the classroom, Choji eating chips, and talking about something - probably the new food stall in the marketplace – and Shikamaru barely nodded, looking half-asleep. If he put in any less effort, he’d slide off his chair entirely. 

The Bug Boy – what was his name?....oh yeah, Shino – was sitting in the corner. 

Hinata sat in front of Shino, and when Naruto’s eyes landed on her, she ducked her head. 

(She reeked of embarrassed-shy-awkward- fear .)

Odd , Naruto thought. He’d tried to talk to her once- she’d gone all red and stuttering. Scared , that’s what she’d reeked of. He didn’t really try to approach her after that.

Then there was Kiba – who Naruto liked, because he was a fellow class-bunker, and never ever stared at him in a bad way. So yeah, Kiba was chill. Akamaru was on the table in front of him. They were chatting. 

Or well, Akamaru was probably telling Kiba gossip he’d heard. People never cared if there was a dog in the vicinity. Made for good gossip-mongering.

(Akamaru was the biggest gossip ever, and had rubbed off on Kiba, who’d rubbed off on Naruto. Now they swapped gossip with Shikamaru in exchange for information for…stuff. It was a whole goddamn blackmarket, it was.)

Naruto paused, when he reached Kiba’s table.  

(He reeked of trouble-mischief-tired- hurt .)

Oh, he had a bad morning, Naruto thought. He knew that Kiba didn’t have a great relationship with his mom- he always came to school tired-drowsy-hurt, and whenever he talked about his mom, his mood would turn sour.

Naruto had learnt not to mention it. Ignore it. Step-aside the big-ass problem was Kiba rarely wanting to go home.

Naruto ruffled Akamaru’s fur, his grin widening as the pup let out a happy yap. He spoke, quietly,  “I’m gonna bunk after break. What say you?” 

Kiba grinned back, thankfully, it wasn’t forced, “I’ll join. Math goes over my head, anyways,” 

“Well, I will see you and Akamaru at break then,” Naruto smirked, before turning away, finding a seat at the back of the classroom. 

And just in time, too, as not even a moment later, Iruka-sensei entered, a stack of papers in hand.  

(He reeked of frustration-annoyance-irritation. It faded away quickly, as it always did.)

“We’re going to study the distribution of Genin Teams,” Iruka announced, “and how they’ve changed since the Second Hokage’s reign.”

Naruto sighed, not going to study about the Hokages themselves, then.  

--- 

By the time Break rolled around, Naruto’s hand hurt from taking notes in History, and his legs felt ready to give out, from practicing all the Taijutsu stances.  

Urgh. Iruka-sensei was a real slavedriver, when he wanted to be.  

Naruto sped across the classroom to get out, and just as he was about to get out- He bumped into Sasuke.  

“Fu- Sorry,” Naruto apologized, when Sasuke stumbled back. 

“’s fine,” Sasuke said, steadying himself.

(He reeked of annoyance. It caused Naruto’s cheeks to heat up.)

 Naruto bit his lip. Then he bolted. 

Look, don’t get him wrong, Sasuke was great. Probably. He was probably a chill guy – but there was something about him that made Naruto’s hair stand on end.  

(Probably how depressed he was. Which made sense, with what’d happen last year….but, well, it deeply unsettling, to reek so thoroughly of anger-sad-guilt. It made Naruto’s head swim.) 

He waited outside of the classroom for Kiba to come out - he was being lectured by Iruka-sensei about his handwriting. Which. Fair. 

Kiba’s handwriting was barely readable on a good day. 

When Kiba, at last , stepped out of the classroom, Akamaru by his side, Naruto sighed in relief. 

He was starting to wonder if he should pretend to faint, just to get Kiba out of trouble. 

(He no longer reeked of hurt-tired-drowsy, but seemed quite happy, if a bit annoyed. Good.)  

“Hey, mutt” Naruto greeted Kiba, squatting to pet Akamaru. He was just so fluffy and soft-  

“Hiya, Ramen King,” Kiba replied, flashing him a grin. He stretched, yawning. “Man, Iruka-sensei needs to take a chill-axation pill, man.” 

“This has nothing to do with your hurt ego, Kiba?” Naruto threw back. “Iruka-sensei is pretty good at reading bad handwriting. Yours is just really bad,”  

“Shaddap, Knucklehead,” Kiba grumbled, shoving Naruto’s shoulder. Naruto stumbled a step, then shoved him right back, laughing.  

Kiba laughed, shaking his head, “Anyways, we’re bunking for the sake of bunking or are bunking and pranking?” 

“Dunno,” Naruto replied, shrugging, as he got up. “We can figure something out.” 

“True,” Kiba agreed. “Hey, wanna race to the apple tree in the yard? Whoever gets there first....gets first dibs on the apples,” 

Naruto’s eyes lit up, “ Yes. ” 

They both ran off, spending away the rest of the break arguing who won the race, and climbing the tree to take a couple apples each. 

As Break ended, Kiba and Naruto (and of course – Akamaru) blended into the crowds of kids who entered back into the classrooms. Except – they were going the opposite way to all the other kids. 

Almost no one noticed the three slip away. Almost. A pair of sharp eyes followed them, narrowing slightly in thought. 

"Guess those two are up to something again, huh?" Shikamaru muttered, eyes glittering almost amusedly. 

“Yup,” Choji said, in between eating chips.

Shikamaru sighed. “Hope they bring back something juicy. I’m still three scandals short of Ino.”

“Hey, I heard from Ino that Yuki and Runa got into a brawl last night- something about Runa insulting Yuki’s mom,” Choji spoke, his voice dropping a couple octaves, as he crunched through his salted chips.

Shikamaru’s eyes glittered. He sat up a bit straighter, “Oh? Tell me more .”

Chapter Text

Naruto and Kiba crouched behind the bushes near the entrance of the shop-stall, both struggling to suppress their snickers. Akamaru, tail wagging, was right beside them, looking like he was in on the joke. 

The school-day had ended with the boys (and dog) successfully bunking lessons, and had decided that, yeah, they were pranking someone. 

Victim of their latest prank? 

The Lousy-Shopkeeper-who-was-Glaring-at-Naruto-yesterday. 

(Bastard. Reeked of anger-hate-wrong, whenever Naruto was near. Prank deserved.)

"Okay," Naruto whispered, holding up a small, wrapped bundle of what looked like something between a frog and a piece of cloth. "The moment the bastard steps away, we slap this on his register, and boom—chaos."

Kiba grinned, rubbing his hands together. "Perfect. He’ll flip.” 

Naruto snorted. "Yeah, and the bastard deserves it. Y’know he tried to heighten his prices on me?" 

Kiba frowned, “What happened after?” 

Naruto shrugged, flashing him a smirk. “Left the shop, swearing up-and-down I’ll get my revenge,” 

Kiba’s grin faded. “He did what ?”

Naruto sighed, now was really not the time, their victim was gonna come any next moment!

Footsteps could be heard. "Right on time. Ready?" 

Before Naruto could answer, Kiba dashed forward, quietly sneaking into the shop. Naruto followed closely behind. As the shopkeeper turned his back to grab something, the two launched their prank. Kiba tossed the bundle onto his register counter with expert precision. Akamaru barked from the doorway, alerting the shopkeeper just a second too late. 

The shopkeeper froze, staring at the "frog-thing" with confusion. He reached for it, only for the prank to hop —and slap his face with a wet splat. 

"WHAT THE—?!" 

Naruto was already on his feet, running, laughing so hard he almost tripped on his way out, and Kiba followed suit. The sound of the shopkeeper’s flustered shout could be heard all throughout the marketplace. 

-- 

As they reached Naruto's apartment, tripping and stumbling over their own feet, they couldn’t stop grinning and laughing. It was the thrill of a successful prank - the thrill of frustrating someone, and the thrill of knowing they were better than those pesky civilian adults.

They were surrounded by the smell of Naruto’s precious instant ramen, and Akamaru barked relentlessly, excited. 

There were a lot of swear words, Akamaru would probably make an old woman blush, so Kiba won’t translate it. 

“O-Oh lord, that was priceless,” Kiba gasped out, struggling to breathe. “Naruto, we did it again.” 

Naruto nodded, “Hell yeah, we’re, like—I dunno—prank-masters or something." 

“Yeah,” Kiba murmured, smiling, “And, fuckin’ hell, I was right: He flipped,” 

Naruto laughed, “Deserved it, that bastard did,” 

“ Let’s bite him, ” Akamaru barked. Naruto couldn’t understand him, but Kiba could. Kiba also very much liked the idea. Kiba made a mental note of it.

“Yeah,” Kiba mumbled, frowning now. He remembered what the shopkeeper had tried to do – trying to charge Naruto more than the original price. The thought of people trying to rip off his friend made Kiba’s blood boil. 

It made Kiba angry.

Guys like this made Kiba sick . 

They were disgusting , pieces of humanity, like his dad. And that was a fucking insult .

Really, Kiba never got why people didn’t like Naruto. Sure, he was a bit loud, but really, he was getting better.  

At the start, when he’d just joined the academy, his mum had warned him to stay away from the “Uzumaki brat”. 

(She’d also decided to pass out, naked on the couch, not long after. And she wondered where the rumours about the Inuzuka clan came from.)

Kiba being Kiba, did the exact opposite. He went out of his way to find  Naruto.  And what he’d found wasn't some thug-like kid, but a kid who was just a bit socially awkward. 

Naruto just didn’t really get a lot of social cues. 

(Probably because he lived alone.) 

He was broken out of thoughts when Naruto shoved him, “Mutt, stop staring out the window like a psycho,” 

“Shut up, Knucklehead,” Kiba shoved him back.  

And just like that, it turned into a wrestling match, both laughing, pushing each other in mock fury. Akamaru was barking happily, running in circles around them as if egging them on. Soon, they started bickering about who Akamaru was cheering for. 

(He was cheering for Naruto. Mostly so he gets treats. And to annoy Kiba.

But Naruto doesn't understand dogs, so it's fine. He won’t know.)

“He obviously likes me better, wolf-breath,” Naruto argued, jabbing Kiba in the side. 

“Hell no, he’s my dog, knucklehead, ‘course he’s cheering me on,” 

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever. Akamaru has taste, and I'm obviously better.” 

Kiba laughed, flipping Naruto over onto the floor in a playful move. “Better than me, huh? Is that what you’re calling it?” 

Naruto, now on his back, grinned up at the roof of his apartment. “You’ll see, Kiba. One day, I’ll be the Hokage, and all the village will be singing my praises.” 

Kiba cocked an eyebrow, laughing. “Sure, Naruto. You keep believing that.” He offered a hand to help Naruto up, but when Naruto took it, Kiba pulled him into a quick headlock, ruffling his hair. “You're not getting away that easy.” 

Naruto sputtered and grumbled, struggling to break free. "You're dead when I get out of this!" 

Kiba smirked, finally letting him go. "Alright, alright. You're lucky I’m in a good mood." 

As they both got up, Akamaru jumped excitedly between them, still barking happily. Kiba glanced at Naruto, his thoughts shifting for a moment. Despite the playful teasing, Kiba found himself grinning like a maniac. 

For all his faults, Naruto was his friend. And that was something Kiba valued, maybe more than he let on. The guy might not always get things right, but Kiba didn’t mind. He was getting better, and Kiba had his back. 

“Let’s get some ramen before you decide to prank anyone else,” Kiba said, nudging Naruto with his shoulder. 

Naruto grinned, always up for food. “You know what? You’re right. Let’s go, Kiba.” 

And just like that, they left the mess behind, laughing and joking, already looking forward to whatever madness came next. 

The sound of Akamaru’s excited barks echoed in the distance, a reminder that in the end, it didn’t matter how loud or crazy they were—they were a team. 

Chapter Text

(Three years later.)

Naruto stared at Kiba. 

Kiba stared at Naruto. 

Akamaru stared at them both. 

“Well, we kinda guessed the team formations, Naruto,” Kiba offered, voice careful. 

(He reeked of sad-but-not-sad-enough. Traitor.)

 Kiba was in Team 8, with Hinata and Bug Boy – And Naruto was with Sasuke and Sakura. Urgh. Sasuke had a real stick up his ass, and Sakura wasn’t very nice – according to Kiba. Naruto thought she was fine, but - according to Kiba – she had anger issues. 

Naruto grumbled, “I can’t even go and annoy Jiji into changing the teams – then I could probably be with you! But, I’m on thin ice, over the whole Scroll of Seals thing.” 

(He’d looked ready to kill someone after the whole incident.)

Kiba snorted, “Yeah, you still need to tell me about that – I was sure you would’ve had to redo this year – or get kicked out! How are you even here, you Knucklehead? I thought you failed the Graduation Exam?” 

“Yeah,” Naruto mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck, “Um, I can’t really tell you? S-Rank secret....” 

Kiba stared at him, perplexed, before shaking his head, “Only you, Naruto, could’ve gotten tangled up in a S-rank secret,” 

“Okay,” Naruto mumbled, quieter this time. He didn’t want Kiba to know how much he didn’t feel okay. The whole him-being-a-Jinchuriki thing had left him kinda drained….

Kiba frowned, “You okay?” 

Naruto forced a grin, “’Course, I’m fine!” 

Kiba eyed him, before sighing, “Let’s meet after our Jonin-Senseis are done with us, yeah? Then you can tell me what’s going on,” 

“Ok,” Naruto mumbled.  

-- 

Team 10 – The Ino-Shika-Cho Team – were picked first. Their sensei was a tanned, muscular man that Naruto vaguely remembers seeing here and there, when he was about six or seven, when he went to see the Hokage.  

Naruto was pretty sure that he was Jiji’s son – or some relative, but he couldn’t exactly remember. 

Next Team 8’s sensei came along – a beautiful woman, with long curly hair, and an odd fashion choice (She was wearing bandages!).  

Before leaving, Kiba gave him a high-five, promising to see him in the evening. 

(He resolutely didn’t feel a stab in the chest when Kiba left, leaving with his sensei and teammates, laughing and joking at Shino and Hinata. 

Fuck, he was being a jealous git.)

Then they waited. For what felt like a thousand years (but was really just two hours. Two!).

Three hours in, Naruto decided enough was enough., and he set up a prank – when the door would open, a board eraser and a cloud of chalk powder would fall out. 

A simple prank, yes, but Naruto felt kinda lazy.

Sakura tried to stop him (“Don’t do that, Naruto-baka!”), but pretty soon into her tirade, decided that, yes, their sensei deserved it for being late . 

Naruto caught Sasuke smirking once, but other than that, he stayed poker-faced. 

When their sensei finally opened the door—about four hours later—he was ambushed by the falling board eraser, which he sidestepped with ease. However, he hadn’t anticipated the cloud of chalk dust, and it covered him completely. 

He....He looked like a ghoul! 

Naruto laughed, Sakura tried not to laugh – apologizing to the (chalk-covered!) jonin, while trying to hide her own mirth. 

And, if you asked Naruto – then he would swear up-and-down that Sasuke smirked too. 

The jonin stared at all of them, for what felt like an eternity, before finally drawling: “My first impression: I don’t like any of you,” 

(He also reeked of old grief, and guilt- sorry -depressed-hurt- 

Gods.

 Naruto ended up with the Jonin who needs fucking therapy, didn’t he. 

Fuck.)

—

“Meet me on the roof in one minute,” Their Sensei ordered, before disappearing in a puff of smoke that made Naruto’s nose itch. 

“Wha— One minutes?” Sakura echoed. “That’s seven flights of stairs!” 

Sasuke stared at her for a second—then bolted, like this was a race and not just a walk upstairs.

(Urgh, showoff.)

Sakura followed him. 

Naruto sighed. He and Kiba had raced up these stairs enough times for him to know: one minute? Not happening.

 Three minutes? Probably. Four? Optimal. 

 He decided that he could probably just jog up the stairs and get there in 7 minutes. He probably shouldn’t waste energy. What if their Jonin-sensei makes them do a lot of training? ….But, he would be last…

He shook his head, Save energy, Uzumaki. Think like Shikamaru.

When he reached the roof, their Jonin-sensei - who’d cleaned himself up, of the chalk-powder, he was a lean, white-haired man, wearing a mask, and his Forehead Protector at an angle (he so did not look cool – he looked like a dork) - and Sasuke and Sakura, were all sitting on the ground.  

Aww, he was late. Well, he’d already guessed that. 

Also, their sensei was reading an orange book – one of those pervy ones which annoyed Iruka-sensei. 

.... Great. Their sensei was a perv.... 

(And his posture was atrocious. Iruka-sensei would cry, with how slouched the man sat.) 

“You’re late,” their sensei drawled, and Naruto felt a jolt of whiplash at how calm he sounded. Iruka-sensei would have given him an earful for being late. 

“Uh, yeah...” Naruto said, rubbing the back of his neck. He wondered if their sensei had figured out that he was the one who pulled the prank.... 

Their sensei shook his head, “Come sit down,” 

Naruto did, sitting down next to Sakura. 

Their sensei stretched, yawning, “Now why don't you all introduce yourselves." 

"Introduce ourselves? Umm...what should we say?" Sakura frowned. 

"Likes, dislikes, hobbies, dreams for the future. Things like that." Kakashi closed his book and put it in his pocket, looking at them all expectantly. 

"Why don't you go first, sensei?" Sakura said brightly, "Show us what to do!" 

"Well, my name is Hatake Kakashi. Things I like and dislike...there are a few. I don't have many hobbies. Never really thought about any dreams." 

“Well, that was informative,” Sasuke muttered. 

“Yeah, he gave us literally no information!” Sakura added, nodding. 

Naruto snorted, “I got a hell lot out of that – he's depressed as hell, and dosen’t seem to have many friends, if his fashion-choices are anything to go by. Like, look at him, he looks like a himbo,” 

Their Sensei – Kakashi – narrowed his only visible eye. 

Sakura failed to stifle a giggle, “Don’t insult Kakashi-sensei, Naruto,” 

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Naruto grumbled, yawning. “Hey? Kakashi-sensei? Can I go first? Introducing myself?” 

Kakashi nodded. “Sure,” 

Naruto smiled brightly, “Well, I’m Uzumaki Naruto...I like ramen, and Akamaru, and...Kiba, too, I guess...My dislikes are however long it takes to cook ramen, and when Akamaru decided to poop in my apartment....Gods, that’s absolutely hellish....My hobbies are racing with Kiba, and playing with Akamaru,” He paused, “My dreams is to be Hokage, or see Akamaru become Hokage...” 

Kakashi blinks slowly, lille he was recalibrating his expressions.. Sakura made a face at the “Akamaru pooping in the apartment”. Sasuke stayed annoyingly impassive. 

Kakashi cleared his throat, “That’s....informative. Hey, Pinky, you are next,” 

Naruto and Sauke wince, sharing a glance....You DON’T call Sakura “Pinky”. Period. 

“My name’s not Pinky!” Sakura blew up at once. 

Kakashi tilted his head, “Sorry, I don’t know your names, that’s why we are introducing ourselves, y’know?” 

Naruto raised an eyebrow. Yeah, right. Whatever. 

Sakura took a deep breath. “I’m Haruno Sakura. I like Sasuke-kun and...um, mochi and sushi, I guess. My dream for the future is, well... My hobby is beating Ino-pig in anything and everything.” 

Kakshi seems to sigh, like a heavy burden had been placed upon him. “You next, Emo-Kid,” 

Naruto stifled a laugh. Sakura giggled, despite herself. Sasuke glared. 

Sasuke clicked his tongue, “My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I have no particular likes or dislikes. I...don’t have a dream...but an ambition. It’s to restore my clan, and....kill a certain man,” 

Naruto stared at him. Wasn’t twelve....y’know, too young to swear vengeance? 

Naruto shrugged. He didn’t get his family and whole clan murdered, he wouldn’t really know. 

Kakashi clapped his hands lazily, “Brilliant! Now that introductions are done.... Well, it's late. Tomorrow, meet me at training ground seven by five in the morning. I'd advise against breakfast; you might puke. Now, you're dismissed." 

Naruto bit back, “ And whose fault is that ?” 

Kakashi, once again, disappeared in a puff of smoke. 

Naruto huffed, “ Stop doing that…It makes my nose feel itchy… ”

Naruto sighed, getting up. The others doing the same.  

“I guess I’ll see you two tomorrow, huh?”  

“Yeah...” Sakura mumbled, before turning around to face Sasuke, “Hey, Sasuke-kun, you wanna go to dinner with me?” 

Naruto sighed. He was starting to be thankful to Kiba...Urgh. Nightmarish thoughts.

He still remembered when he’d had a puppy crush on Sakura, back when he had just started at the acadamy – she’d had been pretty, and Naruto had been fascinated by the colour of her hair. 

Kiba ruthlessly destroyed the rose-tinted glasses with which he’s viewed her. He’d went on a long tirade of why “Sakura isn’t girlfriend-material, you Knucklehead”, and had even made a “101 reasons Uzumaki Naruto shouldn’t date Sakura”. 

Reason 23: “Sakura is Sasuke-sexual. Are you Sasuke? No? Then keep dreaming, Knucklehead.”

Naruto walked away, chuckling, and faintly being able to make out Sasuke rejecting Sakura, on her proposal. 

Maybe he should get Ramen....But, he promised Kiba to go see him.... 

Choices, choices. Ramen now, or later? With Kiba, maybe... Nah, ramen first. Kiba could survive without him for a bit. 

Chapter Text

Kiba had been debating making a sandwich when Inuzuka Tsume crashed through the front door like a very drunk hurricane in combat boots.

Kiba froze, halfway through deciding between mustard or cheese or just giving up and eating dry bread.

Another crash. Maybe a bottle. Maybe her ankle. Maybe the floor finally gave up. Who knew? Who cared? 

Not Kiba.

Then the slow, dragging thump of someone attempting stairs without full control of their limbs.

She was drunk. Or stabbed.
Honestly, he hoped it was stabbed. He could deal with blood. Alcohol was worse.

He listened carefully, ears twitching like he was on a mission. Which, technically, he was. Operation: Don’t See Anything Traumatizing Tonight.

Look—don’t get him wrong. His mom was—fine. Good. Great, even. In the stories other people told about her. A war hero. A fierce shinobi.
She once took down a whole platoon of Iwa-nin in the Third Ninja War, with just her and her dog.

But those were stories.
Stories didn’t come home drunk.

Stories didn’t trip on stairs.

Stories definitely didn’t expect their kid to be the adult..

(Kiba sometimes wished the stories Hana used to tell him were true.

The stories about the woman who’d saved her daughter from a cannibal, without a second thought. The stories about the woman who ran off her own husband, for her kids.

But those were just stories.

 Sure, they’d been true, once, but the woman of those stories wouldn’t come home drunk every week, and she wouldn’t go away for months on end on missions which she took like clockwork, just to skip dinner and pretend her kids weren’t waiting.)

A particularly heavy thud came from the room beside his own. Probably the shirt. Or her pants. Or her face, knowing her luck.

He made a face like he'd just bitten into a bad onigiri and tried to focus on the genjutsu book Kurenai-sensei had given him - to study up on genjutsu, for tomorrow’s test.
(Which was basically the shinobi equivalent of a horror novel for someone like him. It was also very boring. Kiba hated boring.)

When the noise died down upstairs, he finally stood up, shoulders tense like someone about to check for traps. Sandwich time. Hopefully some peace.

He descended the stairs like they were booby-trapped — which, in fairness, they kinda were.

The kitchen greeted him with the warm, loving embrace of a shattered beer bottle.

“Fucking hell,” he muttered, thankful — so thankful — that Akamaru and Kuromaru were out in the kennel tonight. Glass and paws did not mix.

He stepped over the shards, huffing.
She could clean it up. She made this mess.
He was not her janitor. He was not her fucking clean-up crew. He was her kid.

He grabbed some bread and cheese and mashed it together into what he’d generously call a sandwich.

Then came the yell.

Slurred, almost incomprehensible, and very clearly aimed in his direction:
“CoMM UPP wIdD a BlankETTT!”

He yelled back, “No! Get one yourself.”

“You’re f—hic—fucking grounded if ya don’t!”

He rolled his eyes so hard he might have sprained something.
“Some jōnin,” he muttered.

Still chewing, he wandered into the storage room and grabbed the first blanket that didn’t smell like wet dog and regret.

The hallway to her room felt longer than usual. Like it was stretching just to mess with him. He stopped in front of her door. Knocked.

“Come in!”

Kiba paused, hand on the doorknob. Whispered a prayer to every god he didn’t believe in.

“You decent?”

“As much as I’ll ever be, moron. Come in!”

Gross.
He stepped in, careful not to make eye contact with anything too traumatizing.

She was sprawled across the bed like a corpse that had given up halfway through haunting. An open beer bottle teetered on the edge of her nightstand. The smell made Kiba feel sick.

(Same script as last week, and the week before that. The same script as next week.)

She was in underwear, which, yeah. Technically better than last time. Still awful.

He dropped the blanket on the edge of the bed like it was radioactive. “Here.”

Turned to leave.

“Lay it on me, idiot-boy.”

His teeth clenched. So hard he felt his molars click.
But he did it.
Because arguing would drag it out.

The blanket went over her like a shroud, fast and clinical. He didn’t even adjust it. No hospital corners. This wasn’t a bedtime story.

And yet—there was irony, sour and lingering.
He was tucking her in.
Wasn’t that supposed to be the other way around?

When he turned to go, she said, “Hey, Kiba… come cuddle with me.”

He froze.

Every hair on his body stood up.
Ants under his skin. A thousand bugs crawling through his veins.

That’s what led to those goddamn rumors. Whispers about what kind of boy gets called into his mom’s room that late. About what he must be doing in there.

Nothing ever happened. Nothing ever would. But that didn’t stop the whispers.

He left.

Didn’t say a word.

He went downstairs. Found his sad sandwich, bit into it like it had personally offended him, wrote a note for Hana, and was out the door before she could yell for him again.

The night air hit him like a bucket of ice water. He breathed it in like it was freedom.

Akamaru greeted him at the kennel, tail wagging, face tilted like, "Rough night, man?"

Kiba scratched his ears. “C’mon. We’re going to Naruto’s.”

He paused by Kuromaru. “Don’t go into the kitchen. It’s a murder scene in there.”

Kuromaru barked in acknowledgement.

He and Akamaru walked out of the Inuzuka Compound, silence settling around them like a much better blanket than the one he'd dragged upstairs.

—

It was 9 in the evening, when Naruto heard a knock at the door.

Kiba , he thought, racing to the door, and throwing it open.

(Even before opening the door, he was hit with the smell of shame-hurt- disgust . It made him grind his teeth. 

He sometimes wished the bastard’d just crash here full-time. Wouldn’t have to smell like heartbreak every time.)

Kiba and Akamaru were at his door, Kiba, as always, looked all awkward about the whole thing- like he didn’t crash regularly at Naruto’s apartment.

“Hey,” He greeted. “Come in,” 

He ushered them in, and locked the door- he never not locked the door, some bastard would love to spray-paint the jinchuriki’ s home otherwise.

(It had happened before, but he’d never known why , until this week. He’d wondered if it was his parents, if they’d been traitors or spies, but he’d never guessed that he had a fucking demon in his gut.)

Kiba flopped down on his milk-stained couch, and Akamaru decided to greet Naruto by jumping at his feet, barking loudly.

Naruto smiled, kneeling down to pet the dog’s head. “Hey, ‘Maru,”

Kiba huffed, “You have an apple?”

Naruto rolled his eyes, Kiba had an unhealthy obsession with apples, and (without his consent!) his apartment had become Kiba’s apple-storage shed.

His fridge was 80% apples, 10% ramen, and 10% bad decisions.

“In the kitchen, get them yourselves.” He replied, after a minute’s delay.

“So bossy,” Kiba mocked, getting up. 

(He reeked less of shame-hurt-shame. Good.)

There were some thuds , and Kiba retired, two red apples, and a bowl of dog-food  in hand.

He tossed Naruto one, and Naruto made a face. “Nu-uh. I ain’t eating this shit.”

“You are,” Kiba replied, kneeling down to set the dog food in front of Akamaru. 

He glanced up, grinning. “Or you’ll stay a midget.”

Naruto scowled. “That’s blackmail.”

Kiba just grinned at him annoyingly.

Akamaru ate his food in record time, gobbling the whole thing up, like a little monster.

(Literally, he broke his record—3 minutes 34 seconds, to 3 minutes 23 seconds. Yes, Naruto timed him. Sue him. It’s kinda interesting to watch Akamaru eat a whole bowlful of dog-food in less than 4 minutes.)

“So, how’s your sensei?” Kiba asked, mouth full of apple chunks like a damn savage.

“Seems... eventful. Smells so depressed, though,” Naruto replied, shuddering. Kakashi-sensei reeked of grief and guilt so thick it was like trying to breathe underwater.

Kiba smirked. “You think he goes to Tuesday Therapy?”

Naruto snorted . It was kind of an inside joke—Iruka had always been mysteriously late on Tuesday mornings, until Naruto wheedled it out of him: therapy sessions. It wasn’t actually funny, but back in the Academy, he and Kiba used to say weird stuff just to confuse their classmates.

And “Where the hell does Iruka go on Tuesdays?” had become one of the Academy’s greatest unsolved mysteries.

“Heh, don’t think so. He should, though.” Naruto replied, then paused. “So, how’s your sensei?”

Kiba leaned back, finishing off his apple. “Fine. Pretty sure she’d dating Team 10’s sensei, though.”

Naruto’s eyes lit up- “Oh?”

“Yeah, Kurenai-sensei sent us off, after training but I hung around, ‘cos wanted to ask her about that genjutsu she used on Akamaru, yeah, and then Team 10’s Sensei came along, and they were chatting, and both of them were blushing and making heart-eyes at each other.”

Kiba made a face, “It was traumatising.”

Naruto snorted, “Sounds like they at least have a crush on each other, if they aren’t dating.”

“Naruto,” Kiba grew all somber, “They for sure have a crush on each other. Kurenai-sensei was giggling like Ino when she’s near Sasuke.”

Naruto shuddered. “I did not need that mental image.”

Kiba cackled manically, “ Suffer! ”

“Man, I sure hope Kakashi sensei doesn't ever giggle. I would need fucking mind-bleach after that.”

“Kakashi?” Kiba asked, turning his head.

“Yeah?”

“Oh, I know him. Kinda. Mum’s related to him, tho. I think his mum was an Inuzuka.”

“Cool.” Naruto hummed. It was kinda cool that his sensei was kinda related to Kiba.

Kiba screwed up his eyebrows, “Yeah, mum said it was a shame he kept his dad’s name, and ... .bla-bla-bla, and then she said he is the only known ... Jinchiki? Killer?”

Naruto froze, “What?”

“No, I don’t think I’m pronouncing it right….”

Naruto’s skin crawled, “Was it- was it jinchuriki ?”

Kiba paused for a moment, “Yeah. I think so.”

Naruto’s thoughts snagged on that word like barbed wire.

“Wait. Killer?”

His heart picked up speed. That wasn’t just gossip. That wasn’t a fun little family tree factoid.

If Kakashi had killed a jinchuriki— 

(What'd Jiji say? That jinchuriki’s were very hard to kill-)

No. No way. 

But what if that’s why he was chosen? What if that’s why the Hokage assigned him to Team 7?

(No- No. Jiji…Jiji was supposed to be good…)

Naruto felt like he was suffocating. His- his sensei was a jinchuuriki-killer. Naruto was a jinchuuriki.

Naruto didn’t think it was a coincidence.

The realization hit him like a brick.

Kakashi was a fail-safe. To stop him from- from killing someone. From losing control.

Kakashi would kill him, if it came down to it.

(Why did he hope again?

Why did he think Kakashi would be different?

That he would be good?

They were all the same.

He was just the demon-boy, who was better off dead. )

Naruto was having a hard time breathing. His breaths were too short, and he couldn’t breath -

“Naruto?” Someone said- a- a familiar voice. But it was so far away, so- distorted . 

Naruto felt like he was underwater. Everything felt fuzzy. 

(There wasn’t enough oxygen in his lungs-)

Naruto couldn’t breathe-

“Naruto!” 

There- there was a weight on his lap. Kinda heavy. Fluffy.

He could faintly hear barking. Who was barking?

“Uh- fuck . Um. Naruto, breath .” The voice said again. “L-like this: In, out. In, out. Follow my breathing.”

Naruto tried to follow. Deep breaths in, deep breaths out. Deep breaths in, deep breaths out.Deep breaths in, deep breaths out. Repeat.

It was stupidly hard. 

(He couldn’t even breathe properly. Stupid, stupid, demon - ) 

Slowly- much too slowly, for Naruto’s liking- he didn’t feel like he was submerged underwater, with no way out. The knot in his chest loosened.

“Naruto?” The voice tried. Oh. The voice was Kiba’s. 

Kiba was nice…

And, the weight on his lap- it was Akamaru. He ran a hand through Akamaru’s fur. It was very fluffy. Relaxing.

“Yeah?” Naruto rasped, wincing. 

(He even sounded like a demon-)

“Um…” Kiba was in front of him, eyes wide. Scared. 

…Naruto had never seen him scared before. He could feel it, sure, but Kiba never let him see he was scared. It was….wrong.

( Kiba reeked of scared-confused- helpless -

Naruto hated the fact he was the reason. )

Akamaru barked, seemingly happy that Naruto wasn’t freaking out like a little girl anymore.

“Umm, I’m fine.” Naruto said, when Kiba didn’t reply.

“O…..okay.” Kiba took a deep breath. “Do...do you want to…talk about it?”

“I…don’t know.” Naruto mumbled. 

Kiba gave him a forced smile, “This is….about the word, isn’t it? Jin- whatever?”

Naruto stared at him, and then quietly, ”I’m- I’m- Do you know what a jinchuriki is?”

Naruto knew he shouldn’t have- that it was meant to be a S-Rank secret. But he needed someone to talk to. 

Kiba shook his head, but stayed quiet.

It’s… basically a human sacrifice,” Naruto muttered. He wanted to bury his head in Akamaru’s fur and vanish. Not die—just stop existing for a bit. Hit pause on being.

Bark, Naruto urged him mentally. Get me outta this conversation. BARK.

“Naruto…” Kiba’s voice was barely above a whisper. “A sacrifice to who ?”

Naruto didn’t answer for a while. “The Tailed-beasts.”

Kiba stared at him.  “Is- is that what you are? The jinchuriki of...some tailed-beast?”

“To the Nine-Tailed Fox,” Naruto said, barely audible. He curled tighter around Akamaru, like if he squeezed hard enough, he could make it a lie.

Yeah. Kiba was looking at him like he was a madman.

“Are you… messing with me?” Kiba asked, hesitantly. “I mean—I always joked your birthday was the night the Kyubi attacked, but… that was just a dumb joke.”

“No,” Naruto said, almost bitterly. “The Fourth Hokage found a few hour old baby, and sealed the Kyubi no Kitsune in his gut.”

Kiba didn’t say anything. Not right away.

And Naruto didn’t look up.

He didn’t want to see pity. Or fear.

He didn’t know which would hurt worse.

Naruto didn’t look at him. Couldn’t.

He waited for the silence to snap. For Kiba to back away. For the scrabble of boots on tile and a mumbled excuse.

Instead, he heard a breath. Then another. Then—

“That’s… messed up.”

Naruto blinked.

“Like—seriously. What kind of sick bastard looks at a baby and goes, ‘yup, you’ll do’?”
Kiba’s voice cracked halfway through, equal parts horror and fury. “Was there not a scroll or a frog or something?”

Naruto snorted. He didn’t mean to. “I don’t think a frog could keep the Nine-Tailed Fox in its gut, Kiba…”

Kiba was still talking. “You were hours old, man. That’s not a ninja, that’s crazy. ”
He paused. “Wait. Can you get arrested for war crimes if you're dead? Because I’d like to press charges.”

Naruto wiped at his eyes. "You're such an idiot."

“You’re a bigger one.”
Kiba replied, reaching over to scritch the top of Naruto’s head like it was no big deal. “You think a stupid fox in your gut changes the fact we are gonna see Akamaru become Hokage together?”

Naruto stared at him. Still no boots scrabbling away.

Just Kiba. Sitting there. Being an idiot and loud and still there.

“....You want an apple?” Kiba asked, making one appear from thin air. How the fuck did he do that? 

“No.”

“Liar,” Kiba said, then shoved the apple  into his hand anyway. “Here. Eat something or I’ll tell Iruka you cried at that one sad ninja movie.”

“That movie had depth, you emotionally constipated raccoon.”

“I am emotionally constipated, thank you very much. But I also brought apples and dog comfort, so I am, objectively, the best friend.”

Naruto almost smiled.

Kiba hadn’t run screaming. Hadn’t looked at him like he was a monster.

Kiba had stayed.

That was something.

(Kakashi was still a Jinchuriki-killer—)

Naruto looked at the apple. “Still not eating this.”

“Eat the apple, you tiny, midget of a liar.”

“No.”

“I’ll sit on you.”

“Keep your disgusting ass away from me.”

Akamaru barked like he was on Kiba’s side.

Naruto scowled at both of them, but there was no real fire in it.

“…Fine. But I’m eating it angrily.”

“As the gods intended.”

Chapter Text

Sakura decided that their sensei was a bit of a loon.

Yay. First, he told them to be at the training ground by 5 in the morning, and then he didn’t show up.

Sakura had come to the training ground a bit early, as it was a habit from her academy days.

Sasuke had made his way to the training ground next, looking all cool and handsome and kinda-pretty. 

Next came Naruto, barely awake, stumbling in like a zombie.

By eight o clock, Sakura was seriously debating murder.

She had been deciding between strangling their sensei, or stabbing him with a kunai, and making him choke on his own intestines—when sensei finally showed up, he gave the most half-assed excuse she’d ever heard: “A black cat crossed my path on the road! I needed to take the long route here.”

No murders. Sakura took a deep breath. I washed my hair last night. I don’t want to have to wash it again.

(Strangling wouldn’t be that bloody-)

“Now, you three aren't actual genin, yet.” He held a finger up, to stop the resulting comotion. “Yes, yes, I know. Very disappointing. You need to pass a test, to become an actual genin.”

“What’s the test, sensei?” Sakura asked, all sweet and nice. She felt quite the opposite— homicidal and angry.

“Now, the test is quite simple:” Kakashi-sensei replied. “All you need to do is take the bells.”

He reached down to his pocket, and held up two, shiny bells. “Everyone understood?”

Sakura was about to speak up, but- “Sensei, why are there only two bells?”

Eh, it was good that Naruto said it. She didn’t want to seem like a nag in front of Sasuke. 

“Ah, now that’s the catch.” Kakashi-sensei replied, monotonous. “Only two of you will become genin. One will have to go back to the academy.”

Naruto and Sasuke looked as confused as Sakura felt.

(What? No. That doesn't make sense. There are no known three-man teams in Konoha history-)

“What?” Sasuke said, saying the first word that Sakura had heard from him all morning. His voice was beautiful, as always.

Oh, thank heavens someone asked. Sakura wasn’t sure she could talk right now.

“Only two of you will get the privilege of becoming genin.” Kakashi-sensei repeated. “One of you will repeat a year at the academy.” 

Sasuke tilted his head, coolly. “Hn.”

Kakashi cleared his throat, behind his mask. “Ok, so, everyone ready?”

Sakura did not feel ready. This was bad. Sasuke would take one bell, for sure. 

While yes, Naruto was the deadlast, he had surprisingly good stamina, compared to Sakura, he could probably take a beating and just get straight back up.

She needed to be smart about this. She couldn’t fail this. For one thing, that would mean repeating the year at the academy and her parent’s disappointment. For another, she was on Sasuke’s team! She needed to make the most of it.

So, failing just wasn’t an option.

(Why would there be only two genin-)

Kakashi, oblivious to her internal pep-talk, and due to the fact that none of his students had said anything, declared, “Ok, the test starts now.”

Sasuke at once ran off into the trees. Sakura followed. Naruto ran towards the other side of the forest.

She quickly scrambled up a tree, and hid herself behind the bushes.

She had a good view of Kakashi-sensei, and could see everything around a couple hundred meters from him. 

Naruto didn’t stay hidden long. Instead, like an idiot, he ran out of the trees, and ran straight at Kakashi-sensei.

Sakura watched as he yelled, and tried to stab their sensei with a kunai.

Their sensei easily stepped aside. “Not going to hide? Not very ninja like of you.”

“I like facing my enemies head on,” Naruto replied, trying once again to stab him.

Their sensei sighed, before pulling out a book from nowhere. An orange book. 

….Their sensei was gonna read smut? Right now? Pardon the language, but, what the fuck ?

Naruto saw the book too. “Are you….Are you reading porn? Instead of paying attention to me, dattebayo?

“Ma, ma, Naruto, don’t you want to get the bells?”

Naruto took a deep breath. Sakura tried to figure out how to get Kakashi’s bell before Naruto.

Naruto ran at him again, about to punch him, but Kakashi moved away.

“Can’t catch me, Naruto?” Kakashi-sensei mocked. “A good ninja could.”

This seemed to crack something in Naruto, as he ran at the man, savage.

Kakashi made a hand-sign, with only one hand, and poked Naruto. What?

….Naruto poofed away. 

It- It was a clone?

A solid clone? Was that even possible?

Evidently, if even Naruto could do it.

“So the rumours are true,” Kakashi called out into the trees. “You know the Forbidden Shadow Clone Jutsu.

Before he could go on, a blazing fireball (which must’ve been from Sasuke-kun) engulfed Kakashi, but when the flames died down… all that was left was a scorched piece of wood.

Substitution Jutsu, Sakura cursed. Then…Where is Kakashi-sensei?

Wait. The forest was too quiet.

She felt a prickling on her neck, like she was being—

“Sakura! Behind you!” A voice whispered. Sakura turned around, much too quickly, causing her neck to ache. Behind her was Kakashi-sensei, in all his grey-haired glory.

“Boo.”

—

Sakura had woken up just as the alarm rang.

It turned out, Kakashi-sensei put her under a genjutsu.

They’d also failed. Yay.

Sakura wanted to punch someone. Probably Kakashi-sensei. 

Naruto had been tied to the post, because, according to Kakashi-sensei, Naruto was an idiot.

Sakura had no idea what’d happen after she’d been put under a genjutsu, but whatever it was, it’d given Naruto the spot as The-One-Who-Gets-Tied-Up. It’d also gotten Sasuke clenching his fists, and trying to hide a smirk.

Sakura really wanted to know what had happened.

Naruto had objected vehemently to being on the log. “You’re just being a basta-...a jerk about it, ‘cos I called your fashion-sense a disgrace aren’t you?!? I literally did better than Sakura! …Sorry, Sakura.” He added sheepishly at the end.

Sakura blinked. What? Naruto called Kakashi-sensei’s fashion sense a disgrace?

…Well, he isn’t exactly wrong…who wears a mask in the middle of summer?!? It’s boiling hot in Konoha!

Kakashi gave him an eye-smile, “Of course not, Naruto-kun.” He turned to them. “By the way, the goal of the test was to check your teamwork. Which you have none of, apparently.”

Naruto mumbled curse words under his breath.

(Oh–That makes sense. It dosen’t make sense to have only two genins, but a teamwork test? It was obvious. Dammit, Haruno!)

“I’ll give you another chance.” Sakura’s head snapped up. Yes. “....You can eat now. I’’l be back after you've eaten.” He waved at the bento boxes.

“What about me?” Naruto asked.

Kakashi gave him an eye-smile. “Did I forget to tell you? Whoever gets tied to the log dosen’t get lunch.”

Naruto clenched his teeth, but took a deep breath.

“Don’t give Naruto anything to eat,” Kakashi warned, as he disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Sasuke, predictably, stayed silent. He stared at the bento box for a second, before slowly reaching for it.

Sakura sighed, playing with her food in her bento.

Sakura, very faintly, heard the blond hiss, “ Jinchuuriki-Killer .”

Sasuke must’ve heard too. “What?”

Naruto’s head snapped up. “Um…Nothing.”

His eyes lingered at their bento boxes but soon find their way to the clouds. “That cloud looks like a dog. Ooh, and…huh, that one looks like a bowl of ramen. Um…that one looks like a dango. Hmm….”

Sakura stared at him. Sasuke stared at him.

Sasuke sighed, before turning around to bring his chopsticks up to Naruto’s mouth.

“Huh?” Naruto said, flushing ever so slightly. 

“Well…” Sasuke cleared his throat. “If Kakashi’s gonna give us another chance…And the whole thing’s about teamwork…Well, Naruto needs to be paying some attention isn’t he? Otherwise he’s gonna be seeing ramen in the clouds. ”

Naruto blushed . It was kinda funny. “Shuddup, teme…”

Sasuke tried again to get Naruto to eat something. 

Naruto took it, chewing. “...Thanks.”

Sakura sighed, before giving him some of hers too. What? She can’t not now . Sasuke already did. She would feel like a jerk if she didn't give Naruto some now.

“Here,” She mumbled, bringing her chopsticks up to his mouth.

Then, a big cloud of dust appeared, and when it disappeared, Kakashi was crouching down in front of them. . 

“What the f-” Naruto started.

“Ma, ma, language, Naruto,” Kakashi said. “Oh, and you all passed.”

“What? But we…broke your rules…” Sakura gaped.

He shrugged. “Some rules are meant to be broken.”

“...So, we passed?” Sasuke asked at last.

Kakashi eye-smiled. Again. It was getting annoying. “Yup.”

Sakura felt like punching Sensei again.