Naruto Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ More Than Anything ❯ Academy Rank ( Chapter 17 )

Chapter Fifteen: Academy Rank

 

The Academy rank. It came once every few weeks to inform parents and guardians of their pupil's progress, or lack thereof. And, depending on the pupil, parents and guardians were either very impressed or very upset whenever the letter arrived.

 

From Uchiha Fugaku's gaze, it would be quite clear to anyone that the Uchiha was not very impressed with his son's current score. And, if his flickering Sharingan was any indication, Sasuke would most definitely receive a severe punishment for attempting to further bury the Uchiha name after Leiko's little mishap.

 

Frowning, Sasuke returned his father's gaze without hesitation. There was nothing he could say that might appease the older Uchiha, for he knew that his constant failure in ninjutsu and taijutsu class was the reason for his sudden fall in rank. And, no doubt, telling his father that he had failed on purpose time after time would only serve to anger him further.

 

There was no time for that. Not when he was so close to obtaining what he needed.

 

“I am sure you are aware, Sasuke—” Fugaku did not miss the moment his son crumpled the letter with his rank on it, “—how displeased I am at this moment.”

 

Sasuke did not feel there was any reason to respond.

 

“Third—!” Fugaku spat, his anger beginning to show. His son had never been removed from the number one rookie position! It was very disappointing to see it fall so close to graduation. “—beneath Sasaki Kohaku and Aburame Shino!”

 

Shifting only a little, Sasuke wondered when the explosion would occur. His father was a very quiet man by nature. He did not feel the need to raise his voice often, for it was clear that anyone and everyone in the Uchiha clan would perform whatever task he required. Yet, he was also a very aggressive man, and that fact, Sasuke knew, would be the reason his temper would finally soar.

 

“I do not want to be angry with you, Sasuke,” Fugaku growled, his voice saying otherwise. “Despite what you might be thinking, I don't. But, after Leiko's little attempt, this is not something that can just be ignored. People talk, Sasuke. They spread lies without hesitation, and once word gets out that Leiko and you have fallen from grace, they will believe that the entire clan has become structurally unsound.”

 

Sasuke waited. It would not be long now.

 

“We were already forced to undergo the Hyuuga clan's ridicule when that blasted fox attacked the village so many years ago,” Fugaku continued. “We were forced to participate in extensive tests in order to prove that the Uchiha clan did not summon that blasted creature. And I will not, Sasuke, have the rest of the village think that that event weakened us to the point we cannot even train shinobi anymore.”

 

A little more.

 

“Itachi would never have done something this foolish!”

 

There it was. Sasuke practically snarled beneath his breath, as his father began to rant about how Itachi would never disgrace the Uchiha clan. Itachi could do no wrong. Itachi was the perfect prodigy and son. Itachi this and Itachi that.

 

Sasuke knew that his failure to pass the Academy at, at least, the age of seven had officially made Itachi his father's favorite son. But, that knowledge had never really dampened the sheer disappointment that he felt every time his father chose to look upon Itachi whenever he, Sasuke, accomplished something. Almost as if he was mocking him, silently, with the fact that his brother had managed to accomplish every single thing he had ever accomplished in half the time.

 

And that, in Sasuke's opinion, was all the more reason to hate his brother.

 

“Sasuke,” Fugaku scowled, “are you paying attention to what I'm saying?”

 

“Yes, father.” Sasuke never failed to answer immediately.

 

Fugaku allowed his Sharingan to finally come to the surface, filling his eyes with crimson, while he gazed upon his son. “Don't lie to me, boy,” Fugaku snapped.

 

Sasuke stiffened completely, as he narrowed his onyx colored eyes upon his father. He did not care that he was glaring, quite literally, at the man that had spawned him. He had performed the Uchiha clan's signature fireball technique long ago and that alone made him his father's equal. How dare he speak to him as if he was some kind of child!?

 

Slowly, a smirk spread onto Fugaku's face. Even if Sasuke had fallen from the number one rookie position, his pride and arrogance would never diminish. Uchiha blood ran swiftly through his veins, and pride had been etched into his very soul. And that was something for Fugaku to be proud of.

 

“Are we done?” Sasuke asked.

 

“No,” the older Uchiha stated. “I still want to know why you have suddenly fallen in rank, Sasuke. So, please, do enlighten me.”

 

A scowl merely appeared on Sasuke's face.

 

“Tell me, Sasuke—” Fugaku would not take lightly to such blatant disrespect for long, “—why has your score in taijutsu and ninjutsu class suddenly fallen? It is obvious that you are no longer trying, but I want to know why.”

 

Sasuke debated on his answer. He would not tell his father the truth, but he knew that one little slip could easily lead the other Uchiha to his true goal. And that was not acceptable. No one, not even his father, would stop him from obtaining Higurashi Kagome's love.

 

“Now, Sasuke,” Fugaku ordered.

 

“I have no reason,” Sasuke finally said. It was not an answer his father would like, he knew that, but it was one that would keep him far from the truth that lie underneath the underneath.

 

Uchiha Fugaku stared long and hard at his youngest son. His blazing Sharingan ordered him to crack, but even beneath the chilling red eyes, Sasuke would not budge from his answer. He refused to be moved from his simple, disrespectful answer, and Fugaku decided, at last, that he should inform his son about the information he held.

 

Sasuke nearly stepped away when Fugaku smirked, blinking in confusion. The facial expression spoke volumes, and a terrible shiver raced up Sasuke's spine right before his father spoke again.

 

“It's because of that Higurashi girl, isn't it?”

 

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

 

“Lightning Release: Electrification!”

 

Naruto watched, shivering, as Higurashi Kagome twisted on her foot and slammed the palm of her hands against the rough bark of a tree. In a dazzling display, lightning rushed across her skin and immediately entered the other organism. The tree lit up not long after, as lightning scorched the bark from the inside out until, finally, the entire tree caught fire.

 

Kagome jumped far away from the tree, her sharp eyes watching the flames as they danced upward toward the sky. Then, swiftly performing a series of hand seals, she shouted, “Water Release: Water Bullet Technique!”

 

“That tree must hate you—!” Kagome's technique hit the tree multiple times, dousing the flames, but she squeaked at the sudden voice, “—I mean, I've seen you try to kill that thing a hundred times over the years, and you've finally succeeded!”

 

Stumbling, Kagome gapped a little at Naruto's sudden appearance.

 

“Way to go, Kagome!” Naruto grinned.

 

“Nar-u-to,” Kagome snorted. She was not in the mood to deal with anyone at the moment. And though Naruto was her best friend, he definitely fell under that category.

 

“Eh?” Naruto blinked. “What's gotten into you?”

 

“I'm practicing my newest lightning technique!” Kagome proudly announced. It was not entirely true. She was practicing her new lightning technique, but not because she wanted to, and because of that, that little brat Souta would get what he had coming to him soon enough.

 

Naruto eyed her suspiciously, muttering, “That's cool. But, are you practicing because you want to or because—?”

 

Kagome cut him off, snapping, “Of course I want to!”

 

“All right,” Naruto scowled. “You don't have to yell at me.”

 

“Oh,” Kagome frowned. “I'm sorry, Naruto, it's just my mother expects me to train until she calls me in for dinner. And, if I don't, she's probably going to make me skip the meal. She promised this morning to make oden tonight and I don't want to, you know, miss it.”

 

Listening to her voice trail off, the shinobi-in-training quickly restarted the conversation. “Well, that's nice and all, but do you know what finally came in the mail today!”

 

“No, like I said, I've been practicing since—”

 

“Yeah, yeah, that's great!” Naruto grinned happily. “But, you have to read what I got, Kagome!” Quickly, he dug into his pocket, pulling forth an extremely wrinkled and somewhat torn piece of white paper from inside to wave in Kagome's face.

 

“Uh huh, I really want to do that.” Kagome's voice was clearly sarcastic, but Naruto did not seem to notice. But, then again, there were many times when she wondered if Naruto noticed anything at all.

 

“It's happened, Kagome! It's happened!” Naruto practically sang. He was so happy!

 

“And, what exactly has—?” Her eyebrow twitched a little when her blonde friend cut her off, again.

 

“Iruka-sensei finally noticed how hard I've been working with the shadow clone technique!” The Uzumaki's bright blue eyes seemed to glitter in glee, while he hopped from one foot to the other. He expected his friend to brighten up the moment the sentence left his mouth, but disappointment quickly set into his brain when the Higurashi girl merely blinked at him curiously. “Why aren't you excited about this?!”

 

“Give me that!” Kagome ordered. She snagged the paper from the air as it waved by her face, before beginning the tedious process of trying to remove the wrinkles that had nearly ruined the information. Then, her blue eyes sharp from her constant training, she began to skim over the words.

 

“Isn't it great?!” Naruto asked, excited.

 

“Naruto,” Kagome said slowly, “you're still—”

 

“I know!” Naruto laughed. “It's great, right? Tell me it is!”

 

“But, Nar-u-to—” the black haired girl had long ago perfected the art of growling, “—you're still in the lowest rank slot.”

 

“Bah!” Naruto waved his hand dismissingly. “I might be dead last right now, but I'll do something that will prove to Iruka-sensei what an awesome shinobi I'll be in the future. You'll see, Kagome! I will shoot up to the top and prove to this entire village that I deserve to be Hokage!”

 

“Naruto, you still have to—”

 

“Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah!” Naruto stuffed his fingers into his ears, effectively blocking out whatever negative comment Kagome had planned to throw at him. He understood that she was upset with the fact that Higurashi-san was making her train to the bone, he even accepted it at the moment, but he was not about to let her attitude dampen his mood.

 

Huffing, Kagome crossed her arms over her chest. “See if I care,” she stated.

 

“I will!” Naruto declared. He was twice as loud with his hearing blocked. “I will show everyone in this village that I deserve to sit in that old man's chair and—!”

 

Higurashi Kagome clamped a hand over his mouth, as she growled, “You're voice is way too loud, Naruto.” Then, she practically screamed when his cold, slippery, wet tongue slid across the palm of her hand. “Oh my—Ugh! You licked my hand, again!”

 

Naruto laughed nervously, as Kagome glared at him murderously. “Uh, I think I'll just be—”

 

“I'm gonna kill you, Uzumaki Naruto!”

 

“—going!” Naruto finished with a yelp. He immediately turned tail and ran, hoping he could lose the kunoichi-in-training somewhere in the dense foliage.

 

Her eyes sharpening a little more, Kagome finished her series of hand seals as she chased after him. “Lightning Release—!” she shouted.

 

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

 

Higurashi-san was startled a little when a thick cloud of electricity shot up from the forest close to her home, the sound of thunder managing to rattle the floor. Then, with a sigh, she went to return to her task until she heard a terrified scream fill the air.

 

“Kagome, no, don't do it!”

 

Frowning, Higurashi-san decided that she would leave Kagome to train a little longer than she had originally planned. After all, if her daughter had time to play around with Uzumaki Naruto, then she had more than enough energy to train well after dark.

 

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

 

His dark eyes widened a margin, as he stared, shocked, at the firm frown that finally settled onto his father's face. How did he—!? Sasuke was positive that he had done every little thing in his power to keep his father from ever knowing about his wish to obtain Higurashi Kagome's heart. He had combed through every little detail and made sure his father would not figure it out until he had her heart firmly tucked where he wanted it. Yet, if that were the case, how had he—!?

 

Then, narrowing his eyes once more, Sasuke decided it was best to play dumb. So, he quickly snapped, “I don't have any idea what you're talking about, father.”

 

“Do not take me for a fool, Sasuke,” Fugaku replied.

 

The Uchiha boy clenched his jaw tight. There had to be some way to get himself out of his current situation. There had to be some way to distract his father from the subject. There had to be some way to make the older Uchiha forget that he, Sasuke, wanted Higurashi Kagome more than anything else.

 

But, how could he do that?

 

“Or, have forgotten that I was your age at one point in my life?” Fugaku continued.

 

“I have not forgotten,” Sasuke growled. “It is only common sense that you were once my age. Every person was or will be.”

 

Fugaku quickly realized that his son was trying to distract him from the original subject, and he refused to be pulled away. “You're trying to distract me, Sasuke,” he said in a dry tone, “and, since I do not want to play your game today, I will ask you again. Your rank has dropped because of Higurashi Kagome, hasn't it?”

 

Sasuke felt his throat tighten, as Kagome's name slipped from his father's mouth. It was almost as if the other Uchiha was prepared to sign her death certificate, and he had no right to speak about her in such a tone! He did not even deserve to say her name!

 

“Sasuke,” Fugaku's voice ordered his son to answer. He was growing tired of Sasuke's attempt to either distract him or force him into an endless circle. If he did not answer soon—

 

“No,” Sasuke finally muttered.

 

“No?” Fugaku was almost amused. Almost. “This girl appears on my property twice with every intention of helping you train—despite the fact that there are plenty of Uchiha that would kiss your feet if you demanded their help!—and you expect me to believe that she is not the reason your rank has fallen?”

 

Anger erupted in Sasuke's chest. It would never be Kagome's fault, and he was really tired of his father's constant insinuation that it was! “It's not like it matters!” Sasuke snapped harshly. “I could easily claim the rookie position once more if that is all that matters to you!”

 

Fugaku faltered a little, saying, “Sasuke, I never said that that is all that—”

 

“An Uchiha must be the best in order to have the best!” Sasuke recited from memory. “We must strive toward perfection in order to give the rest of the village something to strive for! We must—!”

 

“That is enough,” Fugaku snarled.

 

Sasuke knew, underneath his father's glare, that he should feel embarrassed. But, his pride refused to let him. The Uchiha blood coursing madly through his veins allowed him to stand tall, and he found nothing wrong with his outburst.

 

“You will not put words in my mouth, do you understand me, boy?” Fugaku hissed.

 

“But, father, they are—” Sasuke began.

 

“I said enough!” The Uchiha patriarch's did not yell, he did not have to, but his voice alone demanded that his son listen, and listen well, to what he said. “You will tell me this instant whether or not Higurashi Kagome is the reason for your fall in rank.”

 

“It doesn't matter,” Sasuke said, his voice firm. “I'll reclaim the rookie position before graduation, father.”

 

Fugaku's Sharingan was fierce, as it pierced into Sasuke, for he did not enjoy the fact that his son had once again denied him the information he wanted. It was very clear to him, true, that Higurashi Kagome was the reason for his fall in rank, but he wanted to hear it from Sasuke's mouth. He wanted him to realize that he was foolishly allowing his emotions to control him. But…

 

“Father?”

 

“What makes you so certain that you will surpass Sasaki Kohaku and Aburame Shino now that they are aware you have fallen beneath them?” Fugaku asked.

 

“Because—” Sasuke smirked quite suddenly, as a plan came to his mind, “—I want something in exchange, father. And, I am willing to do anything in order to get it.”

 

“Oh?” Fugaku blinked. Perhaps Sasuke was not merely following his emotions blindly. “What is it you want, Sasuke?”

 

Straightening his back, Sasuke said, “I want you to leave Higurashi Kagome alone, and I want you to give me an Uchiwa fan.”

 

Fugaku's amusement shined in his eyes, as he replied, “I did not realize that your lust for that girl ran so deep, Sasuke.”

 

“It is not lust!” Sasuke snapped. He knew what his father was implying. It was as plain as day! And, it seemed, his father would never understand that he wanted Kagome to one day become his wife, not merely lie in his bed as his lover.

 

“Perhaps it is not,” Fugaku nodded. “However, though I will agree to give you an Uchiwa fan if and when you are once again in the rookie position, I will not agree to leave Higurashi Kagome alone until you prove to me that what you feel is not just lust, Uchiha Sasuke.”

 

“I will not—!” Sasuke was quickly cut off.

 

“It is my final offer, Sasuke,” Fugaku stated.

 

Frustrated, Sasuke snorted, “Very well. I'll reclaim the rookie position and I will show you that I, Uchiha Sasuke—” he fisted his shirt near his heart, “—feel more for Higurashi Kagome then mere lust!”

 

Fugaku did not have a chance to reply, as his son spun on his heel and quickly fled the area. However, as he stood alone, he found himself unable to contain the slight chuckles that escaped his mouth.

 

Sasuke's blunt nature always amused him to a point, and his Uchiha pride and arrogance was definitely something the Uchiha patriarch could be proud of.