In an unaltered universe, Sakura Haruno would have been Sasuke Uchiha's devoted fangirl. While that was still true to some extent, things weren't quite the same.
Sasuke glared over at the boy who was meditating, then over at the girl who was now groaning and finally coming to.
"Are you okay, Haruno-san?" asked Naruto in the usual friendly but formal manner he'd developed in the past year.
"Wha? I? It wasn't a dream? YES!" said Sakura as she came awake.
"Hmph," hmphed Sasuke, striking a cool brooding pose.
Naruto merely smiled and inclined his head, before going back to his meditations.
Sakura smiled and looked from one to the other. Naruto, once upon a time, had been an annoying clown. That had changed over the past two years.
Sasuke had always been the elite, the best of their year. Everything he turned his hand to - he excelled at. And he had that whole cool brooding air around him.
Naruto, in the past two years, had gone from pathetic clown to competent. Beyond competent in some respects. Just flat out powerful in some respects. It was said by some that he'd been touched by the gods, become their servant or something. That would at least explain the golden aura that frequently went around him - his ability to heal people's injuries and cure diseases.
Sasuke was very attractive in his own way. Naruto had become very attractive in a completely different way.
She had lucked completely out! Okay, her two team-mates on this Team 7 had abilities that she couldn't really compare her own to. On the other hand, this team had two powerhouses! Anything she couldn't handle - they'd be able to.
Okay, she could admit she'd had a crush on Sasuke for years - but Naruto was pretty cool lately too. Naruto or Sasuke? Sasuke or Naruto? Cool, aloof, and intriguing. Friendly, warm, and capable. Why choose when she had them both!
Sakura sat back and smiled, sure that her ninja career was now going places.
"So, Sakura, do you know anything about our new sensei?" asked Naruto, not opening his eyes.
"Uhm, no," said Sakura.
"What about you?" asked Sasuke, breaking his silence.
"Not much, I've heard Kurenai-chan and Anko-chan mention him a couple of times," admitted Naruto. "Might have met him once or twice. Been trying to remember. I think he might have been the scarecrow."
"'Scarecrow'?" asked Sakura.
Kakashi Hatake felt some uncertainty in how to proceed.
He knew what had happened to Naruto a little over two years previously. Since then he was quite aware of what Naruto had become. While there were many in the civilian sector who were not as aware of it, practically all the higher ranking shinobi knew.
He was faster, stronger, and had more stamina than most chunin even though he was only twelve. He was very good at fuuinjutsu, had some healing talents, and had demonstrated some barrier jutsu. He also had a tendency to gift new jutsu to people who helped him out regularly. Such as Hanabi Hyuga's Katon: Tamaya jutsu or Hinata's Onmyoji Defense Barrier. Kurenai's Fast Water Dragon was another good example.
The other two were also known variables. Sasuke Uchiha had not awoken his Sharingan since the night of the massacre, but he wasn't as bad as he'd been years ago. He seemed to actively dislike Naruto, but also had some respect for the blonde's protective jutsu.
Sakura Haruno was a bookworm. Good solid skills in taijutsu, though both of the boys were stronger and faster.
There was a strong temptation for him to fail this group, send them back to the Academy, let them be kids for awhile longer. Unfortunately, Naruto had been targetted twice for assassination while still an Academy student. A peaceful life was not going to be his destiny.
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(Posted Fri, 14 Sep 2012 00:52)
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