Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Life Without Her ❯ Chapter 8
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: IMIAST 
Anime/Manga: Naruto Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 07.21.2008 | Updated On: 08.06.2008 | Pages: 1 | Words: 854 | Visits: 394 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: Naruto Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 07.21.2008 | Updated On: 08.06.2008 | Pages: 1 | Words: 854 | Visits: 394 | Status: Completed
At first Naruto thought Kakashi and Anko would be angry with him for butting into their family's business. To his surprise, they instead thanked him for convincing their daughters to do the right thing.
Three months had passed since then, and the Akatsuki investigation was making some progress. Officer Tenten managed to escape her captors, but not without several scars from beatings she'd received. Her information enabled police to shut down several of the group's operations. Unfortunately, there was no luck finding the kidnapped women, or the Akatsuki's leadership.
Naruto did his best not to think about any of that, instead focusing on getting the recently-vacated position which he'd wanted for some time. His main competition was Sasuke, who had to pay for babysitters now that he was raising his daughters alone. At the end of the day, since Iruka was now their immediate supervisor, he'd be the one to decide. Naruto couldn't help feeling for Sasuke, but he wasn't about to let them get in the way of his own dream.
As his way of testing Naruto and Sasuke, Iruka assigned them two parts of a project. Whoever he felt did the better job would get the position. Sasuke would handle the planning, and Naruto would be responsible to getting the supplies. As he left the two men to their jobs, he found himself wondering if he might've made a mistake.
Sasuke got to work right away, taking several books and pieces of paper to his desk. He was fairly certain he wouldn't need his computer, but he made sure it was turned on, just in case. He first read the company's handbook to make sure nothing he came up with would violate any policies. He then looked through records of similar projects to get a feel for what might or might not work. He then drew up a list of what he and Naruto would have to do.
He had just finished his list when he looked at the family picture he kept at his desk. He saw himself, Ino, and the girls all smiling. For the longest time he couldn't understand how Naruto felt about Sakura. He now wished there'd been a less painful way for him to learn. He resisted the urge to put the picture into a drawer. No, he wouldn't let anybody forget about Ino. Some of Naruto had apparently rubbed off on him.
Just to be safe, Sasuke typed up his list on the computer and printed up several copies. One for himself, one for Naruto, one for Iruka, and the rest for whoever else worked on this project. He went ahead and made some spare copies, in case anyone lost theirs.
Meanwhile, Naruto was out getting the things they'd need. Iruka had given him a "shopping list" and a company credit card, with a warning not to use the card for any personal purchases. It wasn't that Naruto wasn't trusted; that warning was required every time a credit card was used, due to past abuse.
Naruto went from store to store, until he had everything he was supposed to get. He was on his way back to the company when he noticed the car was low on gas. He stopped at the nearest convenience store to fill it up. Since this would be a company expense, he figured it was okay to use their card. A few minutes later, he was back at the office.
Naruto, Sasuke, and several others spent the next few hours working on the project. There were a few glitches, and more than a few arguments, but they were able to finish on time.
"I'm glad that's over," said Naruto. "That was hard work."
"I won't dispute that," replied Sasuke.
"It's just a shame we can't both be winners."
"Would winning be a big deal, if you never lost?"
"I suppose that makes sense."
As Iruka would soon reveal, though, they'd both lost.
"You know that position I was offering to one of you?" Iruka said. "It turns out the reason it was vacated was that Kakashi had decided to get rid of it. Neither of you will be getting promoted, it seems."
Later, as Naruto and Sasuke left work, they took a moment to discuss what had happened.
"It looks like we went through all that for nothing," said Sasuke.
"I'm not too sure about that," said Naruto. "It kinda felt good to spend the day just doing my job."
"Anyway, I'll see you later."
"Okay. Later!" Naruto then went home. Sure, he was disappointed that he didn't get the position, but he decided to put that behind him. All he wanted to do now was lie down for a while.
Three months had passed since then, and the Akatsuki investigation was making some progress. Officer Tenten managed to escape her captors, but not without several scars from beatings she'd received. Her information enabled police to shut down several of the group's operations. Unfortunately, there was no luck finding the kidnapped women, or the Akatsuki's leadership.
Naruto did his best not to think about any of that, instead focusing on getting the recently-vacated position which he'd wanted for some time. His main competition was Sasuke, who had to pay for babysitters now that he was raising his daughters alone. At the end of the day, since Iruka was now their immediate supervisor, he'd be the one to decide. Naruto couldn't help feeling for Sasuke, but he wasn't about to let them get in the way of his own dream.
As his way of testing Naruto and Sasuke, Iruka assigned them two parts of a project. Whoever he felt did the better job would get the position. Sasuke would handle the planning, and Naruto would be responsible to getting the supplies. As he left the two men to their jobs, he found himself wondering if he might've made a mistake.
Sasuke got to work right away, taking several books and pieces of paper to his desk. He was fairly certain he wouldn't need his computer, but he made sure it was turned on, just in case. He first read the company's handbook to make sure nothing he came up with would violate any policies. He then looked through records of similar projects to get a feel for what might or might not work. He then drew up a list of what he and Naruto would have to do.
He had just finished his list when he looked at the family picture he kept at his desk. He saw himself, Ino, and the girls all smiling. For the longest time he couldn't understand how Naruto felt about Sakura. He now wished there'd been a less painful way for him to learn. He resisted the urge to put the picture into a drawer. No, he wouldn't let anybody forget about Ino. Some of Naruto had apparently rubbed off on him.
Just to be safe, Sasuke typed up his list on the computer and printed up several copies. One for himself, one for Naruto, one for Iruka, and the rest for whoever else worked on this project. He went ahead and made some spare copies, in case anyone lost theirs.
Meanwhile, Naruto was out getting the things they'd need. Iruka had given him a "shopping list" and a company credit card, with a warning not to use the card for any personal purchases. It wasn't that Naruto wasn't trusted; that warning was required every time a credit card was used, due to past abuse.
Naruto went from store to store, until he had everything he was supposed to get. He was on his way back to the company when he noticed the car was low on gas. He stopped at the nearest convenience store to fill it up. Since this would be a company expense, he figured it was okay to use their card. A few minutes later, he was back at the office.
Naruto, Sasuke, and several others spent the next few hours working on the project. There were a few glitches, and more than a few arguments, but they were able to finish on time.
"I'm glad that's over," said Naruto. "That was hard work."
"I won't dispute that," replied Sasuke.
"It's just a shame we can't both be winners."
"Would winning be a big deal, if you never lost?"
"I suppose that makes sense."
As Iruka would soon reveal, though, they'd both lost.
"You know that position I was offering to one of you?" Iruka said. "It turns out the reason it was vacated was that Kakashi had decided to get rid of it. Neither of you will be getting promoted, it seems."
Later, as Naruto and Sasuke left work, they took a moment to discuss what had happened.
"It looks like we went through all that for nothing," said Sasuke.
"I'm not too sure about that," said Naruto. "It kinda felt good to spend the day just doing my job."
"Anyway, I'll see you later."
"Okay. Later!" Naruto then went home. Sure, he was disappointed that he didn't get the position, but he decided to put that behind him. All he wanted to do now was lie down for a while.