Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ From Here to Eternity ❯ Butlers, BS, and FOOTBALL! ( Chapter 22 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Kat: … Heh… Sorry this took so long, guys. I haven't been on in almost two days. - - Okay.

I LOVE FANTASTICAL QUEEN EBONY BLACK! Thank you for such helpful reviews! Keep reviewing. It really helps when people give me constructive criticism. You get TWO cookies, AND a hug! -hugs-

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Passive Aggressive Butlers, and FRIDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL! Foxes vs. Raccoons, Game START!

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`I SAW WHAT YOU DID FAGGOT! BURN IN HELL!'

That was what was written in slanting letters on the note that was shoved in Itachi's locker the next morning. He held the crumbled paper with shaking hands as he reread the words, five times, ten times. He thought he recognized the writing.

He felt a lump form in his throat, and fear curl its way into his stomach.

`Oh God,' he thought, `this couldn't be from-`

“GOOD MORNING ITACHI!” Haku cried, leaping up onto Itachi's back, almost sending him flying backwards. “KONOHATON SHALL DEFEAT SUNAGA! LET'S GO FOXES!”

“Oh, yeah, football game tonight,” Itachi said, remembering suddenly. Kankuro walked up, followed closely by Zabuza, as Itachi shoved the note into his pocket. Kankuro watched the paper disappeared, frowned, but shrugged it off.

“Excited, Zabuza?” Itachi asked. “First game of the season.”

“No.”

“AND it's against Sunaga,” Haku declared, sliding off of Itachi's back. “They're our RIVALS! We MUST destroy the Raccoons!” He clenched his fists, and punched the air. “In the words of Rock Lee, `YOSH!'”

Itachi gave a half-hearted smile, before pulling out his calculus book.

“Yeah, heh. You coming tonight, Kankuro?” he asked.

“I dunno. Football isn't really my… forte.”

“Ah, c'mon, Kankuro!” Haku laughed, giving him a light punch on the arm. “You should come and hang out with me! No one ever sits next to me at games.” He frowned. “I don't know why.”

Kankuro and Itachi exchanged glances. Haku got quite riled up when there was something competitive going on, especially a football game. He was… well… scary.

“I'm not worried,” Zabuza grunted, crossing his mammoth arms, and frowning. “When Sunaga goes down, they go down. I heard that the team ain't all that great this year.”

“Ooooooh, Zabi, there's nothing wrong with being an itty-bit nervous!” Haku said with a giggle.

“I'm NOT nervous.”

“Then why did you tell me last night, `Haku, I'm nervous about tomorrow's game.'”

“… You do realize that I have to kill you now.”

“If you kill me I won't let you get to second base tonight.”

“…Damn you.”

Haku just grinned. Kankuro muffled his snickers with his hand, and Itachi had to feign a coughing fit.

Kankuro turned to Itachi. “Can you get Sasuke to come to the game so I can bring Gaara?” he asked, grinning weakly.

“I can try.”

“Good. Gaara really needs to get out more. I mean, he spends almost all day held up in his room,” Kankuro said, shrugging.

“And that isn't just a smidgen hypocritical?”

“Not a bit!”

“Riiiight.” Itachi smiled, and rolled his eyes. “I shall drag Sasuke with me to the game. I don't know what that will entail, but he will be there.”

“Great. Then I'll come, and I'll drag Gaara, who will probably drag Naruto, who may or may not bring Neji, judging from what I've seen so far,” Kankuro said, examining his badly bitten nails.

“Then it's a date,” Itachi said with a grin. Haku pressed a hand to his mouth to stifle a choked laugh. He glanced up at Zabuza, who rolled his eyes.

“Whatever,” the burly football player grumbled, turning, and shuffling off.

“See you guys later!” Haku said, before scampering after Zabuza.

It was at that moment the bell rang. Kankuro turned to say good-bye to Itachi, only to find that the other junior had disappeared.

Feeling slightly dejected, Kankuro stalked off to band.

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It wasn't until lunch that it hit him.

Well, okay, it didn't actually physically HIT him, but it still felt like a slap in the face.

“Oh my God… Sasori is on Sunaga!” Kankuro gasped, almost choking on his Mystery Meat.

“What was that?” Neji mumbled, lazy turning to see Kankuro fully. Neji was always at the table now, next to Naruto, who didn't seem to mind in the slightest.

“Our cousin, Sasori. He's on the Sunaga football team. I just remembered,” the puppet master said, crossing his arms.

“If he's anything like MY cousin, I have absolutely no interest in meeting him,” Sasuke grumbled, glancing over to the Jock table, where a small food fight had ensued, no doubt started by Shisui.

“Well, I don't really know. I haven't seen Sasori in… several years,” Kankuro said with a frown. “He's our cousin on our father's side, but he's out in Sunaga, and we haven't been to Sunaga since we moved here after… well… you know.”

Gaara had become oddly quiet, appearing quite interested in the properties of his sandwich.

“After what?” Ten-Ten asked brightly, setting down her water. Then she remembered. “Oh. S-sorry,” she said, looking down and blushing bright red.

“No, it's okay.”

An awkward silence fell over the table. Two minutes later, no longer able to stand it, Naruto said, “Sooo… who's up for a rousing game of strip poker?”

“Perv.”

“Ew.”

“What?”

“I have no clue how to play.”

Naruto breathed from his mouth in one angry huff.

“What about Bullshit? I'm going to assume everyone knows how to play Bullshit?”

“Of course.”

“Yeah.”

“YOSH!”

“How troublesome.”

In the end, everyone had to move so that Naruto, Neji, Kankuro, Lee, Haku, Ten-Ten and Sasuke could be close enough to play. Gaara, Zabuza, Shikamaru, Chouji, Kiba, and Hinata decided to watch. Lee, Kiba, and Hinata had become permanent members of the `Bench Gang'.

“What are we starting on?” Naruto asked perkily, glancing from face to face after the cards had been dealt.

“Don't we always start on aces?”

“Yeah, that's what I thought, too.”

“Okay!” Naruto said, laying three cards down. “Three aces!”

“Bullshit.” Sasuke said boredly, his eyes not leaving Naruto's face.

“EH?”

“I said `Bullshit', Dead Last,” Sasuke said.

Grumbling incoherently, Naruto shoved his cards back into his hands. He hadn't had any aces. He had set down two sevens and a ten.

“One two,” Neji said, setting a card facedown on the table.

“Three threes,” Kankuro said smoothly.

“TWO FOURS!” Lee cried, slamming the cards down.

“Um… oh, we're on fives, right?”

“Yes, Haku.”

“One five.”

“Bullshit!” Naruto cried, pointing avidly at Haku, who jumped in surprised.

“Uh-uh. Read `em and weep!” he laughed, turning his card over.

“Dammit,” Naruto cursed, gathering the cards and adding them to his hand.

“Where were we, sixes?” Ten-Ten asked, already drawing her cards. “Two sixes.”

“One seven,” Sasuke said, setting down his card.

“Two eights!”

“Bullshit,” Sasuke said placidly, grinning. Naruto's jaw dropped.

“HOW DID YOU…?”

“I can read you like a book, Uzumaki,” Sasuke said, leaning his elbow onto the table.

Naruto's eye twitched.

“Bastard,” he growled, taking the cards off of the table.

“Three nines,” Neji said, setting down his cards.

“One ten.”

“TWO JACKS OF YOUTH!

“Three queens!”

“One king,” Ten-Ten said, neatly setting down her card.

“Four aces,” Sasuke said, setting down four cards.

“BULLSHIT! BULLSHIT!” Naruto cried, bouncing up and down in place.

“Take `em, Dead Last.”

“AAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGHHHHHHH!”

The game continued on in the fashion, until Naruto was holding almost all of the cards. Ten-Ten got rid of all her cards first, followed by Sasuke, then Neji, Haku, Lee, Haku, and then Kankuro. Naruto lost. Badly.

“AAAHHH! HOW DID I LOSE? I'M USUALLY SO GOOD AT THAT GAME!” Naruto moaned, banging a fist on the table.

“Sorry, Babe,” Ten-Ten laughed, taking another long drink of her water. “Some of us are just natural card players.”

“I've only played it once before,” Haku said, grinning. “I'm surprised I wasn't in YOUR shoes, Naruto!”

“WHY YOU-!”

Then the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. Naruto didn't finish his threat. He gathered his cards, sighed, and said, “All right, see you guys later, I guess.”

“Bye, Naru!”

As everyone shoved his or her way out of the lunchroom, Kankuro grabbed Gaara's arm to hold him up.

“Hang on, Gaara,” he said. “Can you come to the football game tonight? Sasuke's coming,” Kankuro said. “And you can bring Naruto, and he can bring whoever he wants! I wouldn't ask you if I wasn't going, which I just found out I had to.” He made a face. “Band has to play for halftime.”

Gaara blinked in surprise, trying to process so much at once.

“… I guess,” he said finally. “Sasuke IS coming?”

“Yup!”

“Yeah, all right.”

“Spectacular!” Kankuro let go of his arm. “See ya later!” Then he disappeared into the crowd, leaving Gaara by himself.

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Yashamaru stared at the phone.

`He gave you the number so you could call him,' he thought, rolling the paper over in his hands. `So do it! Come on… what could it hurt? Besides… he's teaching right now, right? So you'll get the machine, right?'

He swallowed, picked up the phone, and dialed the number he had already memorized. It rang six times, before an answering machine picked it up.

“Hello, you've reached Iruka Umino-“

“AND NARUTO UZUMAKI!!!”

There was the sound of someone giving a small laugh.

“Leave a message!” Iruka's voice stated, before a loud beep sounded through the speakers. Yashamaru swallowed again.

“H-Hi, this is Yashamaru. I'm just calling for Iruka. I was wondering if you wanted to do something tonight. I was thinking about going to the football game; Sunaga's playing and, you know, I live in Sunaga, so I wanted to see how they were doing…”

Great, he was rambling. Pick it up, Blondie!

“So anyway, call me back if you get the chance! The number is-“ Then he gave the house number. “So… bye!”

He set the phone down, and exhaled with a trembling laugh. He hadn't realized he was holding his breath.

“That was so bad,” he laughed, shaking his head. “God…” He tutted and went off to the kitchen to see if he could possibly clean it any more than he already had.

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“Naruto,” Gaara hissed as Captain Morino droned on about the First Battle of Bull Run in the front of the room.

“Yo?” Naruto said, looking up from his doodles.

“You're coming to the football game with me tonight,” Gaara informed him. “You can bring Neji if you want.”

Naruto grinned. “Sure! I mean,” he coughed. “Why the hell would I do that?”

Gaara shrugged.

“Whatever. Just be ready at six.”

“Fine, fine, fine.”

Gaara sighed, and tuned out everything. His eyes drifted over to Sasuke, who had a pair of headphones expertly hidden behind locks of gorgeous ebony hair, and was nodding his head to the beat of the music. Gaara ran a hand through his own hair. Maybe he should grow it out a little bit… Long hair was supposed to be sexy, right?

Huh. Who had he heard that from, anyway? Probably Temari. She spoke so loudly on the phone, it was hard NOT to hear.

Gaara was suddenly aware that Morino had stopped talking, and half the class was staring directly at him. Realizing what had happened, he sat up.

“What?”

Morino made face.

“I SAID, MAGGOT, WHAT STARTED THE CIVIL WAR?” he boomed, causing many to slide down in their seats.

Gaara's eyes widened. He noticed that Sasuke had turned back in his seat to watch him.

What started… the Civil War…?

Oh yeah.

“Well, Sir,” Gaara said sarcastically, crossing his arms. “That's a rather vague question. One could say that many things contributed to the start of the Civil War. But many would say that the South firing on Fort Sumpter in April of 1861 was what truly started it.”

The class was silent as the grave. Morino's confident glare was suddenly gone.

“That's… correct,” he grumbled. He turned back to the board.

Sasuke flashed Gaara thumbs up, which Gaara returned.

“Thank you, Karma,” Gaara muttered to himself.

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“What does one wear to a football game?” Gaara asked Naruto, digging through his closet.

Naruto frowned.

“Clothes?”

Gaara paused.

“I suppose,” he muttered, pulling a dark brown jacket out of the mess. “Eugh… Is this the only jacket I have?”

“It's gonna be cold,” Naruto nodded. “Glad I brought Ol' Faithful.” He squeezed the orange parka. Its faux fur-lined hood was dangling over the edge of Gaara's bed. The redhead rolled his eyes.

“Right. Are you staying over tonight?”

“Sure. Why not,” Naruto said, turning, and hanging his head over the side of the bed, so the room seemed upside-down. “Soooo… Your cousin, Sasori? He's on the team?”

“Yes.”

“Is he any good?”

“I really have no clue.”

“Oh. Oh!” He hopped up. “Can I call Neji and ask if he wants to come?”

“Knock yourself out,” Gaara said, attempting to tug his black hoodie from within the bowels of the closet. “Come on you piece of-“

Naruto picked up Gaara's phone, realized he had no idea what Neji's number was, then left the room in search of Kankuro, who no doubt would know. He traipsed down the hall, and knocked loudly on Kankuro's door.

“Hello? Kankuro? Are you in there?”

“Yeah! Come on in!”

He twisted the handle, and pushed open the door. Kankuro was also going through his closet, which was easily ten times as crammed as Gaara's.

“What can I do you for?”

“Do you know Neji's number?” Naruto asked.

“Yeah. Here,” Kankuro said, leaving the closet, and going over to his computer desk. There was a notebook lying beside it, which he picked up. He pulled a pen out of his pocket, and scrawled something out on the paper, which he tore out, and handed to Naruto.

“There you go,” he said.

“Thanks, dude.”

Naruto left the room, dialing the number as he went. He pressed the cordless to his ear, and listened to it ring twice, before a snooty sounding voice answered.

“Good evening, Hyuga residence.” Naruto frowned.

“Uh… hi. Is Neji there?”

“Whom shall I say is calling?” the voice said slowly and snootily. Naruto decided that he did not like the voice.

“Naruto. Naruto Uzumaki.”

“Hold please.”

“You got it.”

There was a faint `click' as the phone was set down. Naruto walked back into Gaara's room, where he saw the redhead comparing beanies.

“What do you think?” Gaara said, holding up the hats. “This one that makes me look like an idiot, or THIS one that makes me look like an idiot?”

“The one that makes you look like an idiot,” Naruto said with a nod. Gaara rolled his eyes, and chose the beanie with an hourglass on it. It was the logo for some company, but the name escaped him for the moment.

“Hello?” Neji's voice sounded at the other end.

“Oh, uh, hi Neji! Naruto here,” Naruto chirped, turning to look out the window. “Hey… who answered the phone? That didn't sound like your uncle. He got a cold or something?”

“Oh, no, that was just our passive aggressive butler, Heinz. Don't mind him… he has a vendetta against everyone,” Neji said, sounding cool and calm and serene as usually. Naruto sighed dreamily, then shook his head furiously. What the hell?

“Uh, anyway, I was wondering if you were going to the football game tonight,” Naruto asked.

“Well, I was thinking about it,” Neji lied. He hadn't even THOUGHT about going to the game. He HATED football, HATED being crammed in the bleachers with all those… PEOPLE. But he wasn't going to say any of that to Naruto.

“Well, do you want to come with us? That is, me and Gaara and Kankuro. Or,” Naruto said thoughtfully. “You could meet us there?”

“That sounds good,” Neji said. “How about I meet you there? I don't know if I trust Kankuro's driving.”

“Fair enough. Okay… so I'll see you there?”

“I guess so. All right, bye,” Neji said.

“Later!” Naruto said, before hanging up the phone. “Neji is gonna meet us there… what are you doing?” Gaara was standing on his tiptoes, and pulling things off of the shelf at the top of his closet.

“I'm trying to find my gloves,” Gaara informed him. “Why?”

“Oh… no reason,” Naruto said, muffling his laughter with his hand. “Can I borrow some gloves?”

“If I can find any.”

“Right.”

At that moment, the phone rang. Gaara reached over to pick it up, but Yashamaru's voice echoed from downstairs.

“I GOT IT!” he called, picking it up in the middle of the second ring. Gaara shrugged.

“Okay. WAH!” Suddenly, a hail of old clothes slid from the shelf, and collapsed on top of Gaara, who fell to the floor.

“Oh, hey!” Naruto said. “Gloves!”

“Shut up, Blondie.”

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“LET'S GO FOXES!” Clap, clap, clap clap clap. “LET'S GO FOXES!” Clap, clap, clap clap clap.

Ino Yamanaka was quite literally freezing her ass off. She was going to kill whoever had decided to make their cheerleading skirts so damn short. She glanced over at Sakura, who didn't seem to notice the cold in the slightest.

The game was yet to start, but the bleachers were already completely full. She shook her head. People were way too obsessive about high school football these days.

And she wasn't too happy with the cheer routine either. Left, right, left, right, reverse, half turn, pose. Take that any way you please.

Meanwhile, up in the stands, several people were not too happy.

“It's… so… COLD!” Naruto moaned. He had borrowed a sweatshirt, gloves, and a hat from Gaara, then put on his parka over it, yet the cold was still penetrating his many layers.

“Ah, it's not that cold,” Kankuro said, waving a gloved hand through the air, as if testing it. He had on a jacket, a sweatshirt, and his kitty-eared hat. He had painted the Kabuki make-up on his face with red, one of the school colors, which were red and green.

“It's not cold at all!” Haku cried triumphantly. He had on blue ear muffs, and a pale blue parka over his sweater. ”COME ON, FOXES! WOO HOO!”

One could say that it was almost comical to see Haku bounce up and down in his seat, looking so much like a girl. But not on this night, oh no! Haku was RILED, Haku was PIQUED, Haku was INCENSED! Haku could take on ANYONE!

“Fie on you, Shisui!” he whispered dramatically. “Try and pull my hair NOW!”

Gaara, meanwhile, remained silent, watching the players warm up. His eyes drifted off of the field, and began scanning the crowd for any sign of Sasuke and Itachi. Well, mostly Sasuke, but if he found Itachi, then Sasuke would no doubt be close behind. Or in front of. Or not really close, seeing as Sasuke seemed to detest his brother.

At that moment, the school mascot paraded out onto the track, which circled the football field, and joined the cheerleaders.

“Hey, there's Lee!” Haku said, pointing fervently down at the person in the fox costume.

“Oh my God…” Kankuro laughed. “It is Lee!”

The fox was striking many ridiculous poses, each one more absurd than the last. A voice down in the lower bleachers exclaimed, “YES! POSE WITH YOUTHFUL ENERGY, MASCOT LEE!”

Kankuro, Naruto, and Haku burst out laughing. Even Gaara smiled.

“Oh, Kankuro! Haku! Down here!” a familiar voice rang out. It was Itachi, dragging a very sullen-looking Sasuke by the arm. He waved enthusiastically, before tromping up the wooden steps built at the sides of the bleachers, which were divided into a `HOME' section, and a `VISITOR' section. Itachi towed Sasuke by the elbow over to where the `gang' was seated.

“Hi all!” he said breathlessly, dropping Sasuke next to Gaara, and sitting next to Kankuro.

“Itachi! Welcome!” Haku said.

“Someone's in higher spirits!” Kankuro noted, clapping Itachi on the shoulder. “Didja OD on Prozac again, `Tachi?”

“Maaaaybeeee!” Itachi laughed. He twisted the sleeves of his dark blue jacket, and grinned. He had a wool band around his forehead, covering his ears, and dark gloves. “The game start yet?”

“Nope. Which reminds me, I'd better go set up my saxophone,” Kankuro said, standing.

“I thought you played oboe?”

“I do, but for pep band, I'm an alto saxo-ma-phonist,” Kankuro laughed. “I'll see you guys when the game starts.”

“All right! Later!”

Sasuke brushed a strand of hair from his eyes, and turned to Gaara. “Hey. You get dragged here too?”

“You could say that,” Gaara said with a grin.

“Sasuke-bastard! What're YOU doing here?” Naruto snarled, making a face that suggested he had come across a rather foul odor.

“I was forced here, Dead Last. It's not like I want to be here,” Sasuke grumbled. “But I guess it's okay.”

Gaara smiled.

“Bah!” Naruto scoffed. Then his eyes widened. “NEJI! UP! HERE!” He stood up suddenly, and flailed his arms up and down, until Neji, who was standing down near the fence separating the bleachers from the track. He looked up, his pale eyes wide. He saw Naruto, nodded, and came up to the top of the bleachers.

“Hey,” he said. “Naruto. Everyone.”

“What's up, NEJI?” Haku cried.

Suddenly, a voice boomed from the speakers overhead.

“LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! WELCOME TO THE FIRST GAME OF THE FOOTBALL SEASON!”

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Chouji scratched his head.

“So… all I have to do is talk into this microphone, right?” he asked, pointing at the microphone sitting on the desk.

“Yup,” Kabuto said, adjusting his glasses. Kabuto was not only one of Shisui's chosen few, but he was also part of the AV club, and he was what several would call a `Teachers' Pet'. For some reason, teachers actually liked him. He helped out the janitor and the secretaries, mostly keeping records of who used the many sets of keys to the school's classrooms, stairways, and lockers. For the most part, Kabuto was a quiet, well-minded person. Of course, until he was with Shisui, Dosu, Zaku and Kin.

“All right,” Chouji said, taking a seat at the desk. The room was built into the building that held the bleachers. It was much warmer in the room than outside, and Chouji had to say that he enjoyed it. He scanned the list in front of him one more time, cleared his throat, and then turned the microphone on. Using a trick he often used when in drama, he made his voice several pitches deeper.

“Ladies and gentlemen!” he said, his voice much deeper, and amplified about one hundred times. “The Foxes Varsity team starting line up tonight shall be…”

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“SHISUI UCHIHA!”

Shisui ran out onto the field, his uniform number `7' practically glowing under the lights. The crowd erupted into the cheers, the band played a short line of notes, and the cheerleaders practically went mad.

“KISAME HOSHIGAKI!”

Kisame jogged out onto the field, waving to the crowd. Just a tad less cheering, the band played again, and the cheerleaders continued to scream.

“ZABUZA MOMOCHI!”

Haku, Itachi, and Naruto stood up and screamed, while Neji, Gaara and Sasuke clapped.

“GO ZABI! YEAH!” Haku squealed, his hands cupped around his mouth to increase the sound.

On the field, Zabuza visibly flinched.

Chouji continued to rattle off names that Naruto and Gaara didn't recognize. Most of them were seniors, or juniors that neither of the freshmen knew.

Finally, the game started. A few minutes later, Kankuro reappeared, sitting in the spot between Haku and Itachi.

“How'd we sound?” he asked.

“Not bad, not bad at all!” Itachi said, nodding. “A little wavery on the third measure, though.”

“You're full of it,” Kankuro laughed.

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“We don't really have to do this if you don't want to,” Yashamaru said, releasing his seatbelt.

“No, it's fine,” Iruka said for the umpteenth time. “Besides, I want to see how badly Konohaton kills Sunaga.”

“Oh, REALLY?” Yashamaru laughed, as they stepped out of the car.

Once at the bleachers, Iruka noticed someone he wasn't sure he wanted to see.

“Oh God…” he muttered. “It's… Naruto!”

“…Is that Kankuro and Gaara?” Yashamaru asked the air, squinting up into the crowd. “What are they doing here?”

“You didn't know they would come?”

“Well,” Yashamaru said. “They told me they were going out, so I assumed, I don't know… a movie?” He scratched his head, his face turning slightly pink. Iruka cast a wary glance up the stands.

“Here… let's stay down at the bottom row,” he said, finding an empty row.

“That's not a bad idea,” Yashamaru nodded, sitting. “ We just won't stay for long. So… who's winning?”

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Grrr-rrrrummmbbb…

Naruto glanced down at his stomach. He looked up, blinked, and cleared his throat.

“I'm gonna go get some nachos,” he said, standing. “Anyone wanna come with me?”

“I'll go,” Neji said.

“Buy me something!” Kankuro said, raising a hand.

“Ooh! Bring me a soda!” Itachi cried, reaching over, and catching a hold of Neji's brown sweatshirt.

“I want a hotdog,” Sasuke said.

“Yeah! Make that two!” added Kankuro, nodding

“CHOCOLATE!”

“Haku, are you sure you need any sugar…?”

“YES!”

“…Can you bring me some nachos, too?” Gaara asked, frowning.

“Yeah, sure, because I'm MADE of MONEY!” Naruto snarled, rolling his eyes. “Come on, come on, cough up the dough!”

Sasuke rolled his eyes, pulled out his wallet, and passed over a fifty-dollar bill. “I'll buy,” he said. “But I want change.”

“You got it, Sasuke-bastard!” Naruto said, examining the bill in the light. “Come on, Neji, let's go blow this money.”

“Coming.”

Neji followed Naruto down the stairs, then onto the pavement that surrounded the bleachers and the stands. He swept a hand through his hair, and sighed. The cold night air stabbed through his lungs, waking him up, and alerting his senses. The snack bar was built into the stands. There was no line, thankfully. Naruto frowned.

“Neji… what did everyone want?” he asked, grinning weakly.

“You didn't listen at all?”

“Er… no.”

“Oh… well… neither did I. Wait…” He blinked.

“Haku wanted chocolate!” Naruto said. “So… one Snickers bar!” he told the teen behind the counter. Naruto almost choked on the words. “SHIKAMARU?”

“What?” the spiky haired teen asked, placing a chocolate bar on the counter. “…Oh.”

“I didn't know you were AWAKE this late!”

“Shut up,” Shikamaru grumbled. “This is so troublesome… I got tricked into doing this by my mother.”

“Right. Sure,” Naruto said, giving him a thumbs up. “Oh! And two orders of nachos! And… and a Pepsi! And… ah…”

“Two hotdogs,” Neji said placidly. “Hi Ten-Ten.”

Ten-Ten, who was also working behind the counter, waved.

“What's up, Neji?” she said. “Naruto?”

“KIBA!!! HIIII!!!” Naruto exclaimed.

“Whatever,” Shikamaru said, shrugging.

“Oh! Don't you want anything, Neji?” Naruto asked, his eyes widening with realization.

“I'll just share your nachos.”

“Oh. Okay!”

“How troublesome,” Shikamaru said, as the cheese dispenser spat clotted cheddar in his face. He wiped it off, and squeezed some out onto the small paper bowl of chips. Naruto, Kiba, and Ten-Ten howled with laughter, causing Ten-Ten to slap Kiba in the face with a misplaced squirt of ketchup, which insinuated laughter again.

“Okay, okay,” Shikamaru said, once the madness had ended. He shoved the food forward on the counter. “Eleven dollars.”

“Here,” Naruto said, dropping the fifty, and balancing the nachos on his arms. The Snickers bar went in his pocket, and Neji carried the hotdogs and the soda.

“Right… that's thirty-nine dollars change… do we even HAVE thirty-nine dollars?” he grumbled, digging through the cash register. “Jeez. How troublesome.” He withdrew a twenty, a ten, a five, and four ones. “You practically cleaned us out.”

“Yeah, whoops.” Naruto said, setting down one of the nachos, and shoving the bills in his pocket. He picked up the nachos again. “Thanks, guys.”

“Later, dudes!”

“See ya.”

“Meh.”

Naruto was walking close to the wall of the stands, careful not to spill a glob of cheese, his mouth running without him even realizing it.

“I can't believe they got Shikamaru working behind the counter did you see him with the cheese? I really like nachos I mean personally I like Ramen more do you like Ramen Neji? It's really really good what with the spices and the-“

“Naruto?”

“Yes?”

“Shut up.”

“Huh?”

Suddenly, Neji turned, and placed a well-positioned kiss on Naruto's lips, which made Naruto back into the wall.

“MMMM!” Naruto attempted to protest, then gave up, his hands full with the nachos. Neji deepened the kiss, sliding his tongue past Naruto's lips. Neji's mouth was so hot on his own cold lips, his tongue was like fire. The unfamiliar experience tore a moan from Naruto's throat.

Then, just as suddenly as it started, it ended. Neji withdrew from Naruto, and walked on ahead up to the edge of the stands.

“Are you coming, Naruto?”

Naruto was still glued to the wall, his face the color of Gaara's hair, and his eyes wide.

“Mrreeehh hmmmmrrre nngggnnhhggg,” was all he could get out. He forced his legs to move, and he followed Neji. As they rounded the edge of the stands, he was met with the shock of his life.

“IRUKA?” he squeaked, his voice returning rather fast, as he almost ran head-on into his guardian.

“Naruto! Hi, didn't know you'd be here!” Iruka said shakily, his face rather pale.

“Iruka, are you all right?” Naruto asked, frowning.

“Fine! Fine! Fine!” Iruka said, waving a hand dismissively. “So, Naruto! Who's your friend?”

“Huh…? Oh! Iruka, Neji, Neji, Iruka,” Naruto said, his face turning rather pink when he looked at Neji's impassive expression.

“Hello,” Neji said.

“Oh! Neji! Right, I have you for first and second!” Iruka said squeakily. “Well, I'm off to the snack bar, you know… for food? Heh… heh.”

“Yeah, right, food. Ha ha. Bye.” Then Naruto hurried up the stairs to the stands, Neji following slowly after him.

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“I don't know why, but I just got a chocolate craving,” Yashamaru said suddenly, digging through his pockets in search of his wallet. “I'm going to go to the snack bar and see what they have. Do you want anything?”

“Here, I'll go instead,” Iruka said, standing frigidly. “Uh… I'm hungry, anyway,” he said, seeing the confused look Yashamaru gave him.

“Okay… then at least let me give you some money-“

“No, no! I can get this easy,” Iruka said, waving a hand. “I'll be right back,” he said, hopping down onto the stairs. Humming to himself, he rounded the corner. The sight before him caused his throat to suddenly constrict.

Naruto.

Kissing.

Neji Hyuga.

He swung back around the corner, his eyes wide.

“Oh dear oh dear oh dear,” he rutted, the air around him suddenly too warm to breathe. Wait! Perhaps his eyes had deceived him! He looked back around the corner.

Naruto.

Still.

Kissing.

Neji Hyuga.

…Nope, apparently his eyes were fine.

Suddenly, Neji pulled back away from Naruto. Iruka hid back behind the corner, rubbing his eyes.

Okay, Iruka. Play it cool. Pretend you didn't see anything. You saw NOTHING, understand? You're just on your way to get a hotdog and a chocolate bar, and maybe some fries and a soda if you have enough cash. Just play it cool. Play it coooool.

“IRUKA?” Naruto's voice squealed. Iruka's vision blurred for a moment, then returned to normal.

“Naruto! Hi, didn't know you'd be here!” he said, hoping his voice was really that wavery.

“Iruka, are you all right?” the blonde questioned, frowning.

“Fine! Fine! Fine!” Iruka said, waving a hand dismissively. “So, Naruto! Who's your friend?”

“Huh…? Oh! Iruka, Neji, Neji, Iruka,” Naruto said, blushing, as he glanced up at the dark haired sophomore.

“Hello,” Neji murmured, his eyes daring Iruka to say something, anything.

`I wonder if he knows that I saw them…' Iruka thought, before dismissing the idea.

“Oh! Neji! Right, I have you for first and second!” Iruka said squeakily. “Well, I'm off to the snack bar, you know… for food? Heh… heh.”

“Yeah, right, food. Ha ha. Bye.” Then Naruto hurried up the stairs to the stands, Neji following slowly after him.

`I'm getting too old for this,' Iruka thought, before shaking his head, and stumbling over to retrieve the food.

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“About time!” Kankuro cried, pulling the hotdog out of Neji's hands, and passing the chocolate and soda over to Haku and Itachi, respectively. “Now, Haku, don't eat that too fast, or else you'll get a sugar-“

Haku crammed the entire Snickers bar in his mouth, barely getting the wrapper off.

“… rush. Right.”

“Oh, stop worrying, Kankuro! I'm sure he'll be fine.“

“COME ON ZABUZA! KILL THAT SORRY EXCUSE OF A MOUSE!”

“… Forget I said anything, would you?”

“Done and done.”

“Here's your change, Sasuke-bastard.”

“Thank you, Dead Last.” Sasuke shoved the money directly into his pocket with one hand, the other hand clutching the hotdog. He hadn't realized how hungry he was until just a few minutes ago. He hadn't had a chance to eat dinner, Itachi having literally DRAGGED him out of the house at six.

He pulled the paper out from under the hotdog, then took a large bite. To his horror, the hotdog flew out from the bun, and hit the ground. He blinked, getting a mouthful of bread.

“Oh. That's perfect,” he growled, swallowing. “Today… is not my day,” he sighed, tossing the bread down between the seat and the wall behind him. He heard a soft sound beside him, and he turned his head. Gaara was futilely attempting to muffle his laughter, his face pink.

“What? You think that's funny, Red?” Sasuke said, beginning to laugh himself.

“N-No, not a-at all… AHAHAHAHAHA!” Gaara laughed, giving up. Sasuke laughed too, thought not quite as hard.

“Yes, yes, very funny,” he said, grinning.

“Here…” Gaara said, once he was calm. “I'll share these with you, if you want,” he said, offering the nachos.

“Yeah… why not?” Sasuke said, shrugging. “Thanks.”

“No problem.”

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“We are SUCKING TONIGHT!” Haku screamed, massaging his temples, and rocking back and forth. It was almost half time, and the score was 70 to 7, Sunaga in the lead. Konohaton had gotten only one touchdown so far, scored by Shisui Uchiha. It was, as many Sunaga residents would later recall, a fluke, too. The referee had OBVIOUSLY made a faulty call. The ball was no where NEAR a touchdown.

It was depressing. Iruka sighed, and stared at the scoreboard.

“This is just sad,” he grumbled. “Want to get out of here?”

“Yeah, sure,” Yashamaru said, nodding. “Seeing your team get crushed must be so hard on you.”

“Was that SARCASM?”

“Oh, just a little bit.”

They were both laughing when they left the stadium.

Meanwhile, Naruto was having a hard time figuring out what had just taken place.

“Um… Neji…” he asked timidly. “About the… thing… um… why… uh… well…”

Neji pressed one slender finger against the blonde's lips, then grabbed his hands, and dragged him down the stairs.

“Where the hell are they going?” Kankuro said to the air, following the deserters' paths. He frowned, shrugged, and went back to watching the sad display.

“This… this is just… just… just…” Itachi was at a loss for words.

Suddenly, down on the fields, Zabuza had been thrown the ball. He took off down the green, only to receive an elbow to the face by one of the Sunaga players. A groan rippled through the home team side of the crowd. Haku was enraged.

“WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT, REF?” he screamed, waving his arms in the air, his high-pitched voice stabbing harshly through the lower sounds of the crowd.

“Haku… please… control yourself!” Kankuro hissed, tugging him down.

“You are NEVER allowed to have sugar AGAIN!” Itachi said, rubbing his brow. “My God!”

“Errrrr… THIS IS CRAP!” Haku screamed from his seat. Kankuro groaned.

“You wanna get us thrown out?” he snapped.

Gaara and Sasuke glanced at each other, and grinned.

“I wouldn't mind getting thrown out right now,” Sasuke said, gazing ruefully at the scoreboard. Gaara followed his stare, and nodded, then looked down at the field. Sasuke looked down at Gaara's hand, which hanging limply at his side. He bit his lip, forced himself to calm down, then, calmly, slid his own hand into Gaara's.

The redhead stiffened, glanced down at their hands, then up at Sasuke's face, down to their hands, then up again. Sasuke was staring intently out at the field, a small smile on his lips. Gaara grinned, and closed his fingers around Sasuke's hand.

Itachi, Kankuro, and Haku watched attentively as the scene unfolded next to them Sasuke swiveled his head to glare at them, and they went back to watching the game, Kankuro faking a coughing attack.

At that moment, the buzzer sounded, signaling for halftime.

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Hmmm… developments! Haku is sugar high! Neji and Naruto… SCANDAL! Finally some GaaraSasuke action… MY GOSH! Sunaga is kicking Konohaton's non-existent ass. This is not at all like the Chuunin exams, eh? OMGOMGOMG SOMEONE SENT ITACHI A NOTE!!!!!112six -gasp- Do I smell VIOLENCE coming? !

Kat: WOO WOO! LONGEST CHAPTER! Uh… damn… Sorry, guys, I'm on my computer, and I can't check to see who had the names right. I don't have the Internet on this computer. -weak grin- Heh heh… sorry… Okay. Here's the list. If you got it right, you get a cookie.

Gaara - Raccoon-Eyes

Naruto - Fox-Boy

Kankuro - Puppet-Master

Itachi - The-Weasel

Neji - Screwed-Up-Tape

Haku - Pure-As-Snow

Shikamaru - Clouds

Sasuke - Avenger

Zabuza - Zabuza

-cough- Okay. Neji is Screwed-Up-Tape, because, yeah, `neji' is Japanese for `screw'. Itachi is The-Weasel, because `itachi' is Japanese for `weasel'. Yeah. I'm not a very creative person. Sue me.

ANYWAY! Hope this wasn't too boring… this story's going to start speeding up a little bit in a few chapters. Don't worry… I know it's going kinda slow. So, please review!