Inbred

This chapter is incredibly long and contains nothing NC-17 but does have strong language near the end. For those of you who'd rather not read all of it there's a summary at the bottom. I never intended it to be so long but one thing led to another and I found I was trying to get as many comparisons from the actual Naruto story-line. This chapter is also an attempt at humour.

Chapter 8

Naruto had wanted to confront Sasuke about Neji ever since that day but he either gave him vague answers or told Naruto to mind his own business. Eventually he let it drop because he now had his own life to worry about.

His classes had officially started but they were spending the first half of the day in orientation. Iruka-sensei and a bunch of other teachers sat at the front of the class and Naruto wondered just how many teachers taught here if they could spare this many for just orientation.

Iruka-sensei introduced himself again to the new students and explained what was expected of them during their stay here. There were quite alot of rules and regulations and Naruto forced himself to pay attention because he really didn't want to cause any trouble to have Sasuke come and bail him out. He found that most of the rules could be placed under one big rule which probably would have been 'Be Respectful', whether it be: respect for teachers, respect for seniors, respect for class-mates and respect for school property, he also encouraged them to have respect for themselves and while Naruto assumed he meant keeping themselves tidy and behaving in an appropriate manner he explained that they shouldn't be ashamed or embarrassed to ask a question or seek help if they weren't sure about anything.

Naruto liked Iruka-sensei alot.

When he finished with the protocol, he asked if anyone had any questions. No one did, so he moved on to introduce the teachers that were there. Kurenai-sensei was to be their History teacher, along with teaching them about Japan's ancient history she would also introduce them to some their older and popular culture that was still practiced to this day. She stood and bowed her head politely to the class, a beautiful smile across her red lips. She said something Naruto didn't quite understand but what he assumed was a polite greeting before she sat again.

Iruka-sensei laughed as he saw some of the confused expressions on the students in the room. "It's alright if you didn't understand," he said. "Because the next teacher will be your Language teacher," and he introduced the man that sat next to Kurenai-sensei as Asuma-sensei. "He will be teaching you more about the Japanese language and even some popular slang terms that you've probably heard already." He stood and nodded as well but didn't say anything.

"Next to him is Gai-sensei, he's the gym teacher, now you may not think that this class is as important as the others but we here at Konohamaru University believe a strong mind should be housed in a strong body, and besides," he added with a wink. "It does count as a class so doing well in gym counts towards your final grade."

Gai stood and gave the class a big thumbs up while flashing perfectly even, white teeth. "Do your best kids, while the spring-time of youth is upon you. He put his hands on his hips and threw back his head to laugh loudly. Naruto shifted in his chair uncomfortably and hoped the guy wasn't going to go mental.

"Uh, okay, thanks Gai," Iruka-sensei chuckled. He was just as embarrassed about Gai-sensei's outburst as everyone else was. "Uh, next we have Kakashi-sensei who is..." he looked around behind him into the empty chair where the man was apparently supposed to be. He chuckled in embarrassment again and scratched the back of his head. "Umm...apparently not here, but you'll probably see him when you get to his class."

"Of course you know me, Iruka-sensei. I'm your home-room teacher and it will be my honour to teach you the first class today after orientation is complete."

The rest of the teachers were introduced but they weren't going to be seeing much of them apparently. Ebisu-sensei, was the school's Guidance Counselor, he also taught Advanced Economics; Shizune wasn't really a teacher, she was the school nurse and like Ebisu, they thought it imperative that they knew what she looked like and how to get in touch with her. Next to her was Hayate-sensei, then Anko-sensei, Ibiki-sensei and Genma-sensei. Naruto missed what Iruka was saying and didn't hear what their respective classes were because he was too busy staring at the old man who sat quietly at the far end. That guy looked way too old to be a teacher but that wasn't just it, something about him looked familiar. Maybe if he was younger, didn't have so many wrinkles and if his hair was a different colour...

The old man must have felt an intense gaze upon him because he looked straight at Naruto and small, dark eyes met bright, blue ones. Naruto stiffened and felt guilty for being caught starting at the man like that and snapped his head back to look at Iruka-sensei who was apologizing profusely to Anko-sensei who was now standing with her legs planted far apart with a pout on her lips and her hands shaking by her sides as she glared at Iruka. She sat with a huff and crossed her arms over her chest the angry pout still visible on her face.

Iruka scratched his head in embarrassment once again and prepared to introduce Sarutobi-sensei, the Headmaster of the school. The teachers applauded as he rose and made his way to the podium.

"So, he's the Dean? Isn't he a little old to be running a school?" Naruto hadn't realized that he was musing out loud until the girl next to him spoke up.

"Well he had retired and given the position to his son, but after his death while overseas with his family Sarutobi reclaimed headship of the school."

Naruto turned to look at her and she in turn smiled at him. "I'm Temari," she stated and held out one hand while pointing to her name tag with the other.

"My name's Naruto," The boy replied, taking her hand and giving it two small pumps.

"Nice to meet you Naruto."

It had never been that easy to meet someone new before but then again the girl seemed pleasant enough maybe she was just friendly by nature. "So where're you fr-"

The girl cut him off with a sharp 'Shh' her index finger pressed lightly against her lips and her face reflected annoyance as she pointed to the old man at the front of the room who had just started speaking. Naruto took her hint and turned to pay attention to what was being said.

He introduced himself as the headmaster of the University then went into a brief history of how the school was founded and how far it has come since then. He expressed his pleasure at seeing so many eager, young faces and went into some oratory about them being the leaders of tomorrow and how they should broaden their horizons. If it was anyone else Naruto would have put his mind on automatic pilot but the way he spoke demanded his attention and he couldn't help but feel a certain cognizance with this old man.

He ended his speech and hoped that they all learned something during their stay here before dismissing the students. Iruka-sensei informed them that there was a buffet table in the back of the room where they could grab something to eat since it was about lunch-time and the rest of the school was at lunch anyway.

The students took this opportunity to mingle and get to know one another better. Naruto met up with Temari who introduced him to her fraternal twin brother, Kankuro. He was just as friendly as Temari, maybe even more so and Naruto found that he and the guy had some things in common. They disclosed that they actually had a younger brother but he was too ill to accompany them and while they were unhappy he couldn't join them he made them promise to enjoy themselves for his sake. Since they already formed a little group Naruto didn't bother to become acquainted with anyone else. He did however, try to get ahold of some of the snacks on the table because there was this particular chubby guy who was more interested in stuffing his mouth than talking.

Iruka-sensei gathered up the students after some time and escorted them to their first class. The halls were quiet and empty, signifying that the rest of the school was in class as well.

Would it be fair to call this a class? They didn't really learn much except what everyone's name was and where they all came from. Iruka-sensei asked if any of them knew what their names meant and Naruto heard all kinds of responses like 'Avenger', 'Lotus', 'Pure' and 'Butterfly'.

A final bell rang and Iruka informed them that they had just run out of time but to meet back here tomorrow morning because their first class was with him.

Naruto exited the building among the swarm of other chattering students and for one second he almost felt as if he had been attending this school all his life.

"Oi, dobe. How was your first day?"

"Great, great," he grinned and made his way over to his friend who was leaning against the railing on the stairs. "I met this cute girl in class, she's got these really pretty eyes and long, blond hair and when she smiles," he sighed dramatically and put his hand over his heart. "It's enough to light up a room."

"A blonde, huh?" he chuckled and raised an eyebrow. "Well I hope she's intelligent enough to stay away from you."

"Actually my good friend, I'm gonna be staying away from her."

"Huh?" Sasuke wasn't sure he heard him right.

"Yeah, I was planning on putting the moves on her but her twin brother's also in the exchange programme."

"Since when has that ever stopped you?"

"Since I actually like her brother."

"Ahh!"

"Grr! Not like that you, bastard," and Naruto playfully punched him on his arm. Sasuke just laughed.

"I also met the headmaster," Naruto was surprised with himself for bringing up Sarutobi-sensei as the topic.

"Do you like him too?"

"Gah! Shut up." Naruto took another swing but Sasuke gracefully dodged it.

"So, what about, Sarutobi-sensei? Naruto, I hope you're not planning to slash his tyres or put stink-bombs in his office?" He recalled a few of the blond's pranks he had pulled on the Dean at his old school while he was there.

"No, no nothing like that," his countenance suddenly becoming very solemn. "I was just thinking about how he lost his son and then had to come out of retirement so suddenly like that."

Sasuke examined the boy for a while and crossed his arms over his chest. There was no way Sarutobi-sensei would have disclosed that kind of information during orientation so then, how did Naruto come to know about it. "Yeah it's a shame. I heard Yondaime-sensei made a great principal."

"Yon-daime?"

"Yeah, c'mon." Sasuke pushed himself off of the railing and led Naruto back inside of the building. They walked along the corridor which was now sparse with other students. He led him around a corner and Naruto recalled this was the way towards the auditorium where the orientation was held. Sasuke walked over to a far wall where a large cupboard with glass doors housed many school trophies, ribbons and plaques. "Up there," he said indicating to a row of four pictures on the very top shelf. He wasn't sure what the characters engraved in gold beneath meant but he assumed it was the names of the school's headmasters; past and present.

The first was a black and white photograph in a wooden frame. The man in it had striking black eyes, long, dark hair and wore a very serious expression on his face. The second picture was housed in a wodden frame as well but was painted white. This photograph was monochrome too but it was of a brown tint, the man in it wore a much more serious expression than the first. The man in the third picture, Naruto recognized immediately, it was Sarutobi-sensei a MUCH younger Sarutobi-sensei. The picture was in colour but it looked faded with age.

It was the man in the fourth picture that made Naruto catch his breath.

It was Yondaime, Sarutobi's son. He was a very young man, maybe in his late-twenties. His blond hair was long and some-what unkempt, falling to frame his handsome face. His lips were pulled up in a broad grin exposing perfectly, even, white teeth. His eyes were closed so Naruto couldn't discern their colour. If he was about that man's age and allowed his hair to grow that long Naruto would have sworn he was looking in a mirror.

He looks like...me...

He thought he had said that to himself but Sasuke heard him and looked from the blond, to the picture to the blond again. "Hn, now that you mention it, there IS a slight resembl-"

"Sasuke-kun!"

Both boys turned at the high pitched yell that came from across the other side of the auditorium and watched as a girl bounced her way over to the two boys. He heard Sasuke swear under his breath and mutter something about 'not having time for this now'.

"What are you doing, Sasuke-kun?" the girl asked cheerfully while giving him a coy smile.

"I'm showing my friend around campus," he stated flatly hoping the girl would take the hint and go away.

"Silly, let me do that, I'm Head of the Student Committee, you know." She said that as if she was trying to impress the boy, but he clearly wasn't.

"Good for you," he muttered under his breath.

"So-" she stared at the boy's name tag. "Naruto, you must be one of the foreign exchange students. My name is Haruno Sakura."

"Nice to meet-"

"Sasuke-kun, where are you going?" the girl asked as Sasuke started to make his way out of the auditorium. "Aren't you going to join us?"

"No, I already know what the school looks like, besides two's company, three's a crowd. I'll meet up with you later, Naruto." And with a wave of his hand and not even a second glance back he was gone.

Not this shit again. Naruto knew the only reason she volunteered to show him around was so that she could walk with Sasuke and the disappointed look on her face confirmed his analysis. He wished women would stop trying to play stupid little games at his expense and just leave him the fuck alone.

"Look, you don't have to do this if you don't want to," his voice was gruff and he didn't even feel bad for using that tone of voice with her. He made an attempt to walk away but the girl grabbed his arm and smiled up at him.

"Don't be silly, it's my duty and it's also my pleasure to help a friend of Sasuke-kun."

She gave him a very detailed tour of the campus, most of the areas Sasuke had already shown him but he pretended he was seeing it for the very first time. If anything good came out of this, it was that Sakura actually showed him where the girl's dorm was, although she explicitly told him he was NOT to set foot inside or around the property without authorized permission.

The tour ended just outside his dorm and it had already become late since the street lights were now bathing the grounds in a soft, yellow glow.

Naruto made his way across the car-park but when he got half-way he noticed that Sakura was still standing there just outside the entrance. 'Oh, right, this was the boy's dorm and she wasn't allowed in it'. "Umm, thanks for the tour Sakura-kun, I really appreciate it."

"Don't mention it, Naruto-kun, and by the way, when addressing a girl, the correct honourific is '-chan'."

"Oh, sorry, Sakura-chan. Well, good-bye."

"Bye!"

He smiled and turned to walk off once again but then noticed that she still hadn't moved and that her head was down while she fiddled her index fingers together. What on earth did she want?

"Umm, do you want to come inside?" He spaced the words out evenly, not really believing he was asking that question himself but he didn't know what else to tell her, he had already said his good-byes and she wasn't going away.

Her head snapped up and her face was painted with a deep blush. "Don't be silly, Naruto-kun. You'd get in trouble for even saying such things..." her voice trailed off before she took a deep breath and sighed. Regaining her composure, she smiled at him and raised a hand in a wave. "Just tell Sasuke-kun I said 'good-night'," and with that she walked off.

Naruto rolled his eyes and made his way up to his room. Damn Sasuke fan-girls, didn't he have enough of them back home? He opened the door and slammed it behind him tossing his book bag noisily in a corner. Neji and Sasuke were busy doing research and neither boy looked up at him.

"Enjoy the tour, dobe?" he asked even as he continued making notes in his book.

"Fuck you, Uchiha."

This got his attention and he raised his head to look at his friend, one hand removed his reading glasses and he tapped the hook on his bottom lip.

"Something happened?"

"No, just the same old shit," Naruto said with a sigh and ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

"Oh honey, did you have a bad day? Do you want to talk about it?" It was Hyuga who spoke and his attempt at sounding like a concerned mother only ticked off Naruto further, but damn he did a convincing female voice.

"Don't you start, Hyuga," Naruto roared and Neji just chuckled that his taunt got the desired response before turning his attention back to his notes.

There was something a little different about the boy this time. True it was the first time he had seen him in his school uniform (and he imagined it was the first time he looked more masculine than ever) but there was something else...

"What, are you guys BFF, now?" he asked gesturing to the choker wrapped securely around the pale Hyuga's neck. Neji's hand went up to finger the article in question and a slight blush creeped across his face. It was of a black, shiny material that Naruto imagined was either leather (or pleather) and in the front dangled a silver ring similar in fashion to the Uchiha's own even down to having Kanji engraved on the inside. If Naruto didn't know better he'd assume...

The blond burst out laughing. "Nice collar, Hyuga."

Neji jumped up and made a rush towards Naruto but Sasuke got up in time grab the boy by his waist and pull him hard against his chest.

"Let me GO, Uchiha." he screamed and struggled against the strong arms that held him in place.

"Let me see if I can translate what's on that ring: Name: Hyuga Neji, if lost please call Uchiha Sasuke."

"FUCK YOU! UZUMAKI," he spat. His face was red with anger and he wrestled desperately against Sasuke who was trying to restrain his arms without giving the boy a chance to escape. Naruto just continued to laugh.

"Hey Sasuke, make sure you keep that thing on it's leash, okay."

Sasuke growled and just for one second, contemplated letting Neji go so he could maul the other boy. "Neji calm down," he yelled and shook the boy for good measure.

He stopped struggling and glared at Naruto with hate-filled eyes through the curtain of hair that had fallen in a mess over his face. His breath was haggard and he had to take deep breaths to calm his pounding heat that was pumping blood and fury through his veins.

Naruto giggled to himself and just before departing he spoke to Neji as if addressing a pet. "Good girl, Down!."

"FUCK YOU, UZUMAKI YOU FUCKING, SON OF A BITCH!"

But Naruto was already safely locked away in his room leaving the Uchicha to deal with the wild animal.


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Summary:

Naruto attends orientation and is introduced to some of the faculty. He meets the school principal and can't help but feel a cognizance towards the old man. He also meets Temari and Kankuro, a twin brother and sister who he warms to instantly.

When classes end he runs into Sasuke who was waiting patiently for him outside the main doors. They discuss his first day and Naruto mentions the headmaster, Sarutobi-sensei. He had retired long ago and handed his son, Yondaime, the responsibility of running the school, but after his unfortunate death in a foreign country, Sarutobi was forced to become principal again. Sasuke shows Naruto a picture of Yondaime and Naruto can't help but notice how similar in appearance they look. Sasuke agrees but they are interrupted by Sakura, Head of the Student Council and also a Sasuke fan-girl.

Sasuke abandons Naruto and leaves him with the girl who, under the guise of wanting to help give Naruto a tour of the school was really hoping to get a chance to walk with Sasuke. She gives the tour anyway and when Naruto returns to his room he throws a tantrum. Neji teases him and Naruto notices a choker around his neck which sports a ring identical to the one Sasuke wears. Using this as an opportunity to get back at Neji for his previous taunt Naruto makes fun of him being Sasuke's pet but apparently hit's the nail on the head as the Hyuga becomes enraged and Sasuke tries to calm him down.