Naruto Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ More Than Anything ❯ A Name ( Chapter 2 )

Chapter Two: A Name

 

“Hey,” Naruto whispered, “have you noticed anything odd?”

 

“No,” Kagome whispered back. She knew that they were not being very secretive about it, but it was fun nonetheless. “What did you notice?”

 

“Sasuke's slouching!” Naruto allowed his voice to boom.

 

Many of the shinobi-in-training turned at Naruto's voice, and found that Uchiha Sasuke was slouching. Whispers quickly rose in the air, because it was simply not the Uchiha way. They demanded attention with their haunting Sharingan eyes and arrogant nature, but they never slouched. It was simply not in their nature!

 

“Maybe he's just tired,” Kagome said, leaning over her desk a bit. She blinked at the sight of Sasuke slouching over his desk, the Uchiwa fan on the back of his shirt quite visible for her to see.

 

“But!” Naruto cried. “This is the Uchiha Sasuke! Slouching! Come on, you've got to find this funny?”

 

She scowled a little at her hyper friend, saying, “I slouch whenever I'm tired.”

 

“You sleep whenever you're tired, Kagome,” Naruto replied.

 

She slapped a hand over his mouth as Iruka-sensei glanced up toward them. “You're supposed to keep that on the down-low, remember,” she hissed. Then, making a move between them, she continued, “Just between us.”

 

“Right, because nobody notices,” Naruto smirked.

 

Her scowl deepened a bit, as she glared at him. She saw the humor in his words, but it was not that funny. “Iruka-sensei doesn't, and I really want to keep it that way, Naruto. You know what would happen if my mother ever found out.”

 

He nodded quickly, stating, “She would be very angry with you, but then she would sigh and say that you needed more sleep, before letting you go on your way.”

 

“Alright, smart guy,” Kagome growled. “You know what will happen if Souta finds out.”

 

“Oh, poor kid. His heart would be broken, knowing that his older sibling does such a shameful thing,” Naruto sighed sadly. Then, in a dramatic gesture, he stood up and put his foot onto his desk. His voice rose, as he continued, “And then! Oh, then poor Higurashi Souta would drop out of the Academy and begin living as a civilian! And because he never got the proper shinobi training, the rogue shinobi that comes to kill him will succeed in his mission! The saddest part of this tale, though, has to be that his older sister, because of her actions so long ago, will not be able to save him!”

 

“Get down.” Kagome's voice was low and dangerous, warning Naruto not to continue with his little tale. People were beginning to stare and she knew that the attention would only lead to Iruka-sensei finding out her secret.

 

“But,” Naruto allowed tears to gather at the corner of his eyes, “the story of Higurashi Souta must be told!”

 

“Idiot.”

 

Naruto's head snapped in the direction of the voice, and he found Sasuke sitting up, glaring at him. The look in his dark eyes made Naruto's head swirl a bit in wonder, but his mind was more focused on what had come out of his mouth. So, he jumped down onto the Uchiha's desk and looked at him closely with narrowed eyes. He did not look tired, but that was not what concerned Naruto at the moment. “What did you say?”

 

“Nobody would stop trying to become a shinobi simply because of their older sibling's actions,” Sasuke replied. He ignored Naruto's question with ease, redirecting the idiot's attention away when he noticed the look in his eyes. It would do him no good to have Naruto become aware of his desire, especially while he was trying to determine the quickest way to Higurashi Kagome's heart.

 

“How would you know?” Naruto frowned. “Your brother is the great Uchiha Itachi!” He struck a pose for effect. “The very same Uchiha that graduated the Academy at seven and is currently going on dangerous missions!”

 

“You're right,” Sasuke nodded. A hint of venom leaked into his voice at the very thought, because he was really sick of being stuck in his brother's shadow. “He did graduate the Academy early, and he is going on ANBU-related missions. But, if he had decided to fall asleep during class, I would not stop trying to reach my goal.”

 

“Eh?” Naruto squinted his eyes. “And what's that?”

 

“To beat him,” Sasuke smirked. “To become better than him.”

 

“That's not why my brother is going to become a shinobi, though.”

 

Sasuke turned to find Kagome's face close enough that he could have touched her, as her hot breathe fanned across his face. He gulped in that moment, wondering if the girl knew how close she was to stepping into dangerous territory.

 

“He wants to become an ANBU,” Kagome smiled fondly. “He wants to do the best he can in order to protect the village and the people he loves in it. He wants to know he's done something good for them, maybe die a heroes death, and have a bit of danger thrown at him from time to time.”

 

“Yeah, so you should just shut your mouth.” Naruto smirked at the scowl the Uchiha sent him. He had clearly done a good job of striking a nerve from the look on his face and that made Naruto very happy.

 

“Naruto, don't be mean,” Kagome sighed. “Sasuke doesn't know anything about my family, so he couldn't have known that Souta wasn't striving to someday beat me.”

 

Naruto's eyes widened comically, as he shouted, “I can't believe you're defending that bastard!”

 

“Well,” Kagome huffed. Naruto acted like it was the most horrible thing in the world. “I'd defend you, too, if he suddenly decided to jump on your desk and start acting like he knows everything about you.”

 

Naruto crossed his arms, settling down until he was sitting on Sasuke's desk. “That's not what I was doing,” he huffed back. “I was trying to find out what he said, but he technically never told me.”

 

“Tch.” The sound left Sasuke's throat, as he turned his eyes to find Naruto staring at him deeply. He stared back and a contest quickly ensued between them to see who would break eye contact first.

 

Kagome ignored them, turning her attention to the girl sitting next to Sasuke once more. “Hey,” she called, “what do you want to be when you're older, Sakura?”

 

Sakura stopped glaring in that moment, having been trying to bore holes into the side of Kagome's head for daring to talk to Sasuke. A blush spread across her cheeks, as she said, “Um. Of course I want to be the best kunoichi that I can be, definitely a jounin rank or higher. But, if I can't do that, I want to be a medic-nin so that I can—uh… well…”

 

Knowing that the conversation ended there, Kagome turned her attention away from her. “And you, Ino?” she called, smiling at the other girl.

 

“I'm going to be an ANBU!” Ino proudly stated. “And I'm going to work underneath Uchiha Itachi!”

 

“Do you have any plans in case you can't do that?” Kagome asked out of curiosity.

 

Ino smiled, nodding. “If I can't become an ANBU, I'm going to become a medic-nin. I'm going to make sure that I'm the one that treats Itachi-kun's wounds and checks him over whenever he comes back from a mission!”

 

“That's going to be a little hard to do,” Sasuke stated. He never broke eye contact with the idiot sitting on his desk. “My brother treats his own wounds when he comes back from a mission. And on the rare occasion that my father can convince him to have someone else check him over, he usually goes to find an Uchiha medic that's off duty.”

 

“I still think it's a good dream to have,” Kagome said.

 

“Thank you,” Ino grinned, flipping her hair over her shoulder.

 

Finally, Naruto tore his eyes away from the bastard sitting in front of him. He smiled up at his friend, asking, “What do you want to be, Kagome?” And his smile widened a bit more at the fire that suddenly sprang up into her eyes. She was always so proud of everything she did, so it was no surprise when she rose up onto her knees with her fists clenched.

 

“I'm going to be a jounin-instructor!” she grinned. “One day I'm going to have my own genin squad and watch them grow into formidable shinobi!”

 

“Ew, you want to hang around little genin all day?” Mizuki asked.

 

“Yup!” Kagome nodded.

 

“But, there's always a chance that all the students you train come out wrong. Like, they turned against the village or kill someone close to them,” Mizuki replied. “Wouldn't that just eat away at your conscience?”

 

“Of course it would!” Kagome did not stop smiling. “But that would give me all the more reason to leave the village in order to bring them back kicking and screaming, before kicking their butts back into gear!”

 

“Genin usually end up becoming better than their jounin-instructor,” Mizuki frowned. “They'd probably kill you.”

 

“That's a risk I'm willing to take!” Kagome pumped her fist. “I like living with a little danger, after all! What fun is life if there's nothing to strive for? Nothing to make you watch your back?”

 

Mizuki snorted a little, as her frown deepened. She would never understand what Neji saw in that girl, no matter how hard she tried to see what he saw. She was just not normal.

 

Kagome smiled, despite Mizuki's clear distain toward her. There was no love lost between them, after all. She leaned down, asking, “What about you, Sasuke?”

 

“I want to become an ANBU,” Sasuke replied evenly. “But, I have also always thought about becoming apart of the Police Force. I would be able to train directly underneath my father and learn all of the Uchiha clan secrets.”

 

“Wow,” Naruto smirked. “I don't think I've ever heard you say that much before.”

 

“And you're point?” Sasuke growled.

 

“Oh, nothing,” Naruto grinned slyly. “Just, you said it all to Kagome.”

 

Kagome cursed Naruto in that moment, as the Uchiha Sasuke Fan Club members turned to glare at her heatedly. She could have done without them noticing that Sasuke had decided to speak in complete sentences.

 

“What's the matter, Sasuke-kun?” Naruto asked. “Cat got yer tongue?”

 

“If you're referring to the cat charm that Kagome was given yesterday, I was not the one that gave it to her,” Sasuke easily lied. He did not know Naruto's game at the moment, but he was quick to sidestep whatever he had planned up his sleeve. Kagome might be completely oblivious to what he felt for her, but Naruto had a keen eye when it came to his friend. And it would do him no good for the blonde to find out his mission, because he would probably do everything in his power to corrupt Kagome's mind away from him.

 

That was not something he was willing to risk.

 

Naruto's grin stretched a little wider, as he said, “You're sure quick to defend yourself, though.”

 

Sakura, having pulled herself out of her little fantasy, huffed at Naruto's words. She glared at him from beyond Sasuke, pressing down the urge to latch onto the Uchiha's arm as she defended him. “Sasuke-kun wouldn't think of giving such a thing to Kagome,” she said. “Not only was it simple and plain—” obviously not something an Uchiha would give, “—but there are far superior kunoichi that he would have chosen.”

 

“Oh, like you?” Ino asked, rolling her eyes.

 

“Well,” Sakura blushed at the sudden attention directed at her, and she had to press down the urge to grab onto him, again. “Um—o-of course! I can perform all of the Academy's basic ninjutsu, my chakra control is excellent, and my taijutsu—”

 

“Is lacking!” Mizuki, surprisingly on Kagome's side, shouted.

 

“What did you say?” Sakura growled, turning to the Hyuuga follower.

 

“Your taijutsu,” Mizuki smirked, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “It's lacking! You don't train at all, whereas I've seen Kagome beat the crap out of a wooden log—” the other shinobi-in-training briefly wondered why Mizuki would be watching such a thing, “and your taijutsu skills are nothing in comparison to hers. She could easily kick your Uchiha following ass all the way to Lightning Country if she wanted to!”

 

“You think Hyuuga Neji is so great!” Sakura growled. It was quite clear that the most she had heard was the comment directed at her precious Sasuke.

 

“I don't think,” Mizuki growled back, “I know.”

 

The verbal fight quickly escalated into something more, as Sakura rose from her seat to continue yelling at the Neji fan club member. Mizuki followed her example, leaning over her desk to yell back. They fought over which was better, Hyuuga or Uchiha, each raising their voice just a little higher each time the other spoke. And they refused to stop, even when Iruka-sensei rose from his desk to put a stop to the yelling.

 

“So,” Naruto ignored the girl's close by, “ANBU, huh?”

 

“Yes,” Sasuke said. “Or are you hard of hearing now, too?”

 

“Why you—!”

 

“Enough!” Iruka screamed. The room quickly quieted, Sakura and Mizuki turning to stare at him in bewilderment. He narrowed his eyes, his eyebrow twitching, as he finally hollered, “Outside, the lot of you!”

 

The shinobi-in-training fled in that moment, knowing that they had finally shoved Iruka-sensei over the edge. And they hoped, as they raced for the door and windows, that today would not be the day he took a grab at one of them. His angry yelling was bad enough, but then there was the guilt trip from the Hokage and the punishment their parents would no doubt come up with.

 

None of them wanted that.

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

“Damn it!” Naruto growled. “Did you hear that? That bastard said it again!”

 

Kagome sighed, looking up at her friend. “I thought you didn't care about what Uchiha Sasuke did or said, Naruto?” she asked. Then again, she knew that was a lie. Naruto made it his job to torment every Uchiha that he could find. Sasuke, Itachi, anyone on the Police Force. They were all targets, all prey, and Naruto needed no reason other than they were Uchiha to try and prank them.

 

“Well, yeah,” Naruto scowled. “But that bastard keeps going on about how great his brother and father are!”

 

“Don't you think he's allowed to like the fact that he's the son of the Uchiha patriarch?” Kagome blinked. “Or the brother of Uchiha Itachi? They are really great shinobi, after all.”

 

“He doesn't have to be so damn arrogant about it, though,” he snorted. “Especially not today, or tomorrow—or any day this year!”

 

Kagome shook her head, returning her attention to the bento box in front of her. She could not remember a time when Sasuke had not been arrogant about his lineage, so she did not see the problem.

 

“Again!” Naruto shouted. “He said `Uchiha' again! What is that, the eighth time?!”

 

“It's just a name, Naruto.”

 

Naruto clearly did not hear her, as he continued to stare in the direction of that arrogant bastard. He simply growled again, sick of hearing Sasuke talk about his family like they were the greatest thing in the world. However, he was surprised when Kagome's arm looped around his shoulders and the girl leaned her face in close to his. He squeaked in that moment, wondering what Kagome was playing at.

 

Kagome smiled a little too sweetly, knowing that Naruto was uncomfortable in his current position. People might think that they were one day going to be together, but she knew that the blonde only saw himself as her protective older brother that needed to keep all the evil men in the world at bay. But! She would admit that she smiled a little more when Naruto suddenly began leaning away from her, a blush coating his cheeks.

 

“K-Kagome?”

 

“Naruto,” Kagome stated, making sure her voice was breathless. “My name is Higurashi Kagome. Do you understand? Higurashi Kagome. Daughter to Higurashi Sayoko and Higurashi Katsuro, sister to Higurashi Souta, and granddaughter to Higurashi Hisao. A noble member of the Higurashi family that will one day become a great and powerful shinobi for Konoha. Higurashi Kagome. That's my name, so learn it; love it; use it. Higurashi Kagom—”

 

“Knock it off!” Naruto suddenly shoved her away, growling. “It's not funny!”

 

“It is from where I'm standing,” she grinned.

 

“You're sitting down,” he scowled back.

 

She shrugged, returning her attention back to the bento box in front of her, before briefly glancing at Naruto's. Then, noticing that Naruto had returned to his watch over Sasuke, she asked, “Are you going to eat that?”

 

“Nah,” he said. He had not actually heard the question.

 

“Alrighty then!” Kagome grinned, grabbing onto the box. With lightning fast reflexes she dug into the delicious food that her mother had made for Naruto, knowing that the boy had a bad habit of only eating ramen. However, it took Naruto only a few seconds to realize what she had done, and his head snapped to her with a horrified expression plastered on his face.

 

“Hey! That's mine!” Naruto whined. He could not believe that Kagome had done that. She knew that he would not give up Higurashi-san's cooking for anything in the world!

 

Giggling lightly, Kagome bumped her own box toward him. “There now,” she said, “eat and forget about whatever Sasuke's talking about. It's not healthy for you to continue to listen to him anyway.”

 

Naruto nodded, grabbing onto the box and digging in. Tears filled his eyes as the taste hit his tongue, and he quickly raised his face toward the sky, hoping the woman could hear him when he shouted. “Higurashi-san, I love you!”

 

Kagome smiled. However, Naruto quickly dampened her happy mood when he swung his head around, food spraying from his mouth as he spoke.

 

“Again!” Naruto growled, despite his crammed mouth. “That bastard said it again!”

 

Kagome could only sigh in defeat. Deep inside of herself she cried, because there was no way she was going to be able to distract Naruto a second time.

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

Sasuke ignored Iruka-sensei as he went over the review on the shadow clone technique. He had far more important things to think about, and the technique was simple enough to perform anyway. He linked his fingers together, resting his nose on them in a thoughtful expression as he thought. Though, distantly, he heard the faint sigh from Sakura next to him and shuddered a bit.

 

His plan to use the Uchiha name had failed. Not that he had been leaning on the idea all that much, since Kagome basically ignored everything about the Uchiha clan, anyway. He had just hoped that he might be able to spark some interest in her by talking about how great—though it pained him to say it—his brother was, and how much his father planned to teach him once he reached the age of fifteen. He had hoped that maybe, just maybe, she might turn in his direction and begin noticing the fact that he wanted her.

 

Her comment had quickly washed his hope down the drain, though.

 

A name. That was the word was to Kagome. A name. A simple thing that described a family, or clan, of people that were related to one another—a simple thing that set them a part from the rest of society. It had no other meaning that that to her. She did not care that they were the greatest clan in Konoha, clearly, which meant he would need to begin his next tactic.

 

Briefly, Sasuke shifted in his seat and glanced back at the two friends. Naruto was doodling on a scrap of paper, his tongue sticking out in concentration, before Kagome bumped him in the side. The idiot glanced up, blinking innocently, before Kagome hissed that he needed to pay attention. By the time they had glanced up, he had already looked away, knowing that his staring would only cause him more trouble.

 

A smirk lit his face, hidden by his hands, as he thought about his next plan. It would be unfair of him, yes, but he was willing to do anything in order to catch Kagome's attention. Besides, from all the trouble the blonde gave him and the rest of the Uchiha clan, he deserved to be beat down once more twice. And he was sure that showing her how much better he was—that he truly was the best shinobi-in-training trying to grab a hold of her heart—would finally bring her attention to him.

 

Yes, fighting Naruto might just be his best idea yet.