Happy Birthday

This is the first fic i've ever posted one the web, so please don't be to harsh.

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY
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It started out as another normal day in Konoha for Rookie Team 7. Both Naruto and Sasuke are busy sparring while their sensei, Jounin Kakashi, was working with the third member of their group, Sakura.

Everything seemed to be normal to common everyday observer. The clashing of kunai, the bickering insults, and the angry cry of challenge filled the morning air.

But as the day continued, Kakashi finally called the two boys from their aggressive battle for a small break. Strangely enough, as the Team choose their seats, Naruto became rather quiet, almost withdrawn. Which that in and of itself was odd for the normally loud and boastful youth.

Kakashi, who was the first to notice the odd behavior, quirked an eyebrow as he watched the young genin settle down for lunch. Normally Naruto would have already dug into his lunch, but today he was just picking at it.

Unsurprisingly, neither Sasuke nor Sakura has taken notice of the difference in their normally loud companion. Probably because Sasuke was too busy trying to avoid Sakura’s advances while still trying to eat. Thankfully, none of his pupils ever really paid too much attention to their sensei, or otherwise they would come to realize just how observant the copy ninja really was. Something was bothering the young blonde, that much Kakashi was sure of, but as to what it was he had no clue.

In the mean time, Sasuke quickly finished his lunch and cleaned up his mess. Walking swiftly towards Naruto, he ignored the cry of his name as Sakura tried to catch up with him. Quickly grabbing Naruto’s arm, Sasuke pulled the blonde to his feet, causing the poor genin to lose the apple he had been nibbling on.

“Arrg! Teme! That was my lunch!”

Blinking, Sasuke looked down. The apple only had a few bites takes out of it. ‘Surely he’s eaten more than that,’ thought the Uchiha prodigy.

“Sasuke-kun!”

Sasuke froze. Glaring unintentionally at the high pitched squeal of his name, Sasuke once again grabbed Naruto’s arm and began dragging the blonde back to their sparring area.

“Damnit, Teme!” yelled the blonde as he struggled against Sasuke’s hold. “That was my lunch! Let- Let me go, Damn it!”

“Sasuke!Y”

Pulling Naruto around to face him, the black-haired youth jumps back and falls into a familar fighting stance. Naruto just stares at him for a moment. Then with a ‘hmph’ turns and starts to walk away. He’d taken no more than three steps, before he had to jump out of the way. There buried in the dirt were he had almost stepped stood three kunai.

“Teme!” yelled the blue-eyed genin as he turned back around to face the young prodigy.

Sasuke met his angry blue eyes with his own cool black. In his hands he easily flipped two more kunai. “Fight me,” was all that he said.

“Hell no!” Naruto refused. “I was still eating. Why don’t you go train with Kakashi-sensei, or better yet, Sakura? I’m going to go finish my lunch.” With that said, the blonde genin turned once more to leave.

Not wanting to be paired up with either their perverted sensei or the pink haired fangirl, Sasuke acted out of shear desperation. He attacked. Sensing Sasuke’s battle aura, Naruto immediately went on the defensive.

Using their close range combat, Sasuke tried another tactic to get Naruto to stay as his sparring partner. He began to bargain.

“If it bothers you so much, Dobe. I’ll take you out for ramen later.” hissed the Uchiha heir. “For now, just fight.”

“Ramen? Seriously?”

“I said so, didn’t I, Usuratonkachi?”

“Teme! Who are you calling Usuratonkachi?!” yelled Naruto predictably.

Sasuke couldn’t help but smirk as Naruto fell for the bait. Settling into their normal flow, Sasuke began to relax. Everything was perfect. The bickering, the taunting, and the clash of battle as the sparred.

But even as time passed, Sasuke began to notice a slight change. Something was different, but what? He didn’t truly realize what it was until it hit him. Or rather, until he actually hit Naruto, that is.

He had managed to land a full contact blow to Naruto. And the blonde dobe had actually failed to block it. Not only that, but Naruto had become rather quiet. Naruto was never quiet, and he rarely missed a block, at least not one as obvious as that one had been any ways. All Sasuke could do was stare dumbfounded as he watched his teammate pick himself back up off the ground.

Taking up his stance, Naruto waited. Snapping back out of his shock, Sasuke also took up his stance once again. As they resumed sparring, Sasuke began to watch the blonde more closely.


As Sasuke was able to land more and more blows, it became quite obvious that something was on the blonde’s mind. In a effort to try and bring the dobe’s attention back to where it should be, Sasuke began to taunt the blonde. Calling the blonde’s temper into play always managed to help the blonde to focus, most of the time any ways.

However, this didn’t seem to be one of those times. In fact, not only did the taunt not have the desired effect, it also seemed to make the usually smiling blonde quite depressed.

Now angry and confused, the black-eye genius was at a loss as to what to do. He was angry because Naruto was both ignoring him and he wasn’t paying attention to his own training. He was confused because of his own feelings. He was actually worried about what it was that could be bother Naruto so much.

Very few thing were ever able to cause Naruto to lose his focus so completely during their spars. Ever with as much as it worried him, it also irked Sasuke. So much so that he was just about to knock some sense into the blue-eyed teen, when their sensei interrupted them.

“Yo! Sasuke. Naruto. That should be enough for today, no?”

“Alright!” shouted Naruto happily, as he rushed about the area gathering his scattered gear. Picking up three kunai from the ground, Sasuke also began to gather his own things.

As Naruto finished packing the last of his shurikens away, he rushed past his two fellow teammates with a quick “Bye” to each. But in his hurry to leave, Naruto forgot to watch out for their sensei. In just one move, Kakashi manages to stop the hyperactive blonde in a matter of seconds.

“Wha - WHAT?! Kakashi, cut me down!” screamed the fuming blonde, as he dangled from a nearby tree.

“Aww. But Naruto, you said goodbye to Sasuke and Sakura, yet you were in such a rush to leave that you weren’t going to do the same for your sensei?” whined Kakashi.

“KAKASHI!!!!”

Sasuke, who was close-by, pretended to examine one of the shurikens he had just pulled from a nearby tree. It was hard not to laugh as he overheard the exchange between the two.

Frowning under his mask, Kakashi lowered Naruto back down to the ground. Bending down, the jounin sensei began to help the young genin from the wire, while also keeping him from damaging the highly flexible yet strong metal. As he assists his young pupil, Kakashi also begins to question the boy.

“Naruto.”

“Nani?” asks Naruto as he looks up form his task.

“Naruto, a distracted ninja is often a dead ninja, you know this.”

Not one to make excuses, Naruto merely lowered his head. Hiding his eyes as much as he could behind his wild but short bangs.

“Naruto. If it is so bad, perhaps it would help to talk about it,” suggested the white-haired sensei, “or at the least you can ask for help.”

“I know. I’ve been trying to focus, Kakashi, honest, but I just can’t. It’s nothing major though. After tomorrow it will be over with and I’ll be back to normal,” reassured the young teen.

“Are you sure about that?”

“Yes Kakashi. By the time tomorrow’s over everything will be fine.”

Kakashi regards the blonde for a moment. Finally, he gives in. “Alright, Naruto. I trust you, but promise me that if you need help or just need to talk, that you will ask someone?”

The blonde ninja smiled, but even as he did, Kakashi was able to tell that it was a fake. “Promise, Sensei.”

Shaking his head at the false promise, Kakashi recoiled the wire and put it away in one of the many pockets of his vest. Looking around at everyone, the jounin smiled. “Til tomorrow then. Chow.” And with a ‘poof’ of smoke, the wild, white-haired sensei was gone.

Tucking the last of his kunai away, Sasuke walked over to Naruto. He had heard everything that had transpired between the two, but unlike their sensei, he wasn’t as trusting.

“Hey, Dobe.”

Dusting himself off, Naruto looked up only to be met by cold, dark eyes. “Huh?”

“Why did you lie?”

“Wha - What do you mean?” question Naruto, nervous that he had been found out.

“Your ‘Promise,’” stated Sasuke. “I know you. You won’t ask for help - even if you need it. So why did you lie?”

“It’s none of your business, ok?!” answered Naruto, angrily. “Besides, there are some things that a person has to face on their own. Things that only they, themselves can do. Things that no one will be able to help them with.”

Needless to say, that surprised Sasuke. Naruto had actually stated that as a serious fact of life. A reality. Something that was totally out of character for the normally optimistic blonde.

“Well, see ya, Teme,” called out the blonde as he ran off. Pausing for a moment, Naruto turned back around and shouted “By the way, you still owe me for lunch.”

Peeved that he had been reminded about his promise, Sasuke just glared after the blonde’s retreating back. Unfortunately the glare was wasted, and withered away. His dark eyes softened as he worry leaked through. ‘What could bother Naruto so badly that he couldn’t, no wouldn’t ask for help?’

With that thought in mind, Sasuke decided to follow his blonde companion. ‘Just to make sure that everything was alright’ he reassured himself. Following from the rooftops, Sasuke hid his chakra to keep the dobe from noticing his presence.

As it would happen, Naruto ended up leading him to the grocery store. Not wanting to lose the other boy or to have to wait outside and get bored or spotted by the girls around town, Sasuke left the rooftops and went inside.

Hiding behind food displays and around aisles, Sasuke watched as Naruto went about his business. He wasn’t surprised when the dobe stopped and threw a few boxes of instant ramen into his cart. It was no secret the boy loved the stuff. But he did eat other things as Sasuke quickly learned.

They went just about everywhere in the store. From the deli for cheese and meat to the dry food section for noodles, to the dessert section and even the kitchen supplies area. By the time Naruto was done, he had fresh meat and fish, even fresh fruit and vegetables (probably influenced by Kakashi). He also had things like cheese, noodles, eggs, milk, cake mix along with icing and candles, and kitchen supplies.

Once he was sure that he had everything he needed, Naruto began to make his way to the check out lines, with a dark shadow following not too far behind. But as he drew closer to his destination, he ended up walking past a display of stuffed animals.

Two of which seemed to catch the blonde’s eye. So much so that the dobe was unable to pass either of the two up. Reaching out he picked up one and looked it over closely. From where he was by the magazines, Sasuke saw that the item was a cat.

But it wasn’t just an ordinary cat. It was a very well designed black cat. A black cat with red eyes. Odd, but something that would be great for Halloween. Obviously satisfied with it, Naruto placed in his cart and picked up the other animal.

This one was got as well made as the first and just as odd. It was a beautifully crafted fox - but with three tails! Kind of like a miniature or young kyuubi or kitsune. Setting along side the cat, Naruto continued on towards the check out.

Picking a short line, Naruto waited patiently. But as his turn in line got closer, the lady at the register became tight lipped and even began to glare darkly at Naruto. Smiling nervously, Naruto began to unload his cart.

The lady, rudely began to scan each of the items before carelessly tossing them into separate bags. Sasuke had to bite his own tongue to keep from going over there and demanding to know what the woman thought she was doing. Not only did she roughly handle Naruto’s carefully chosen fruits and vegetables but he could have sworn that he saw her charge Naruto twice for a few of his items.

What really surprised him, though, was when the woman saw the stuffed fox. She fairly snarled at the sight of the harmless item. Reaching for it, Sasuke could tell that the woman intended to try and damage it in some way. But before she could even touch it, Naruto caught her wrist. Glaring up at the woman, he fairly growled in warning, “Be Gentle.”

Something in Naruto’s glare caused the woman to flinch and cringe away. Releasing the woman’s wrist, Naruto watched her closely as she nervously picked up the fox. Treating it as if it were glass, she carefully rang it up. Holding out his hand, Naruto took the fox from the woman and carefully tucked it into a bag so that it would be safe.

Seeing that the fox had escaped, the lady practically oozed with evil intent when she saw the cat. Reaching out with her nicely polished and manicured nails, though now the only thing that they truly possibly resemble to Sasuke was claws. But before she could touch it, Naruto distinct silent and deadly voice stopped her.

“Don’t even Think about it.”

Cringing the woman looked up only to see Naruto glaring down at her. However, something about Naruto caused the woman to start trembling.

Curious Sasuke activated his Sharigan and took a closer look at the blonde.

Barely managing to cover his gasp, Sasuke couldn’t blame the woman for her fear. Rather than Naruto’s normal, clear blue eyes, the woman was faced with the full fury of red-slitted ones instead.

Sasuke had known, ever since their mission in the Country of the Wave and their fight against Haku, that there was something different about Naruto. Something that made him different from every other person in the village. But anytime that he tried to inquire about Naruto or his past from someone of the older generations, they wouldn’t answer.

He didn’t know what it was but he did know that the source lay hidden behind - or better yet - within those slitted, red eyes.

Quickly the check out lady finished ringing up the cat and gingerly handed it over to Naruto. Naruto took the cat and tucked it safely away in the bag with the fox. Then tossing his money onto the counter, Naruto turned and left without even waiting for his change or a receipt.

The woman made no move to even touch the money until Naruto had left the store completely. But as soon as he was gone, she immediately reached for it. Unfortunately, before she could lay her hands on it, Sasuke had rushed forward and scooped it up and began counting.

The Uchiha frowned as he counted the money a second time. ‘I can’t believe this.’ He thought. ‘Naruto actually gave this stupid bitch the exact amount that is showing on the register!’

Before she could stop him, Sasuke reached over the counter and ripped off the receipt from where it came out of the computer. He then began to double check Naruto’s purchases. He wasn’t surprised either when he saw that he had been right. The bitch had over charged Naruto! On six different items!

Knowing what Naruto had really bought, Sasuke quickly sorted through the money. Handing the stupid female the proper amount, he then pocketed the rest to return to Naruto later. However, the dumb woman tried to protest when she saw Sasuke pocket what would have been a rather large tip. But one look into Sauske’s red-whirling eyes silenced her immediately.

Leaving the silently fuming woman behind, Sasuke exited the store. Looking up and down the street, the normally cool-headed genius began to curse. Thanks to the time he wasted dealing with that insufferable female he had probably lost Naruto.

Taking a chance and hoping against hope that the boy had not wandered off else where, Sasuke decided to head for Naruto’s apartment. Leaping to the rooftop of the nearby building, Sasuke followed the street, watching carefully for the loud orange jumpsuit that was Naruto.

But in his rush to reach Naruto’s apartment, Sasuke nearly passed the blonde dobe as he stood staring at something. Stopping as well, Sasuke took a closer look at the building Naruto was standing in front of. He saw that the building was just an old pawn shop.

Below him on the street, Naruto paid absolutely no attention to the people of the village as they to avoid him. Instead, he continued to stare at the whatever it was that held his attention. He stood there for so long, that the store owner eventually came out and demanded that he either buy something or leave. Just that he do one or the other since he was running off potential customers.

Digging into his pockets, Naruto pulled out what remained of his money. Silently counting it, the blonde looked up at the item in the window. With a wistful sigh and his head down, Naruto tucked his money away and gathered his things. Apologizing to the owner, Naruto then continued on his way.

Not wanting to lose the boy, Sasuke followed from above. But he was curious as to what it was in the pawn shop’s windows that had held the blonde’s attention. Since he had been too far away to see, even with the Sharigan, Sasuke had no clue what the item was.

Once Naruto made it home, the young genin proceeds to move about the apartment, putting away his purchases. Shimming down the tree beside the building, Sasuke crawled out onto the branch right outside Naruto’s window. As he was finishing, Sasuke saw him put on some ramen to cook for dinner. While the ramen was cooking, Naruto turned his attention to the two stuffed animals he had purchased.

Placing the two on the table, Naruto left the room for a few minutes. Upon his return, Sasuke saw that he was carrying two boxes. Setting the two on the table beside the two animals, Naruto disappeared once more. This time when he returned, he was carrying wrapping paper, ribbons and tape. Curious, Sasuke settled himself more comfortably on his branch as he prepared to stay.

Setting the last of his items on the table, Naruto returned to the kitchen to check on his food. Tossing ramen noodles into the pot, the blonde lowered the fire and placed the lid on the pot. Then setting a timer, Naruto turned and began to rummage through a nearby drawer. After a minute or two of searching, Naruto finally pulled out a pair of scissors and then returned to the small table.

Sitting down at the table, Naruto pulled the fox over close to him. Then sorting through the pile of ribbons, he picked up a rich, dark red with gold edging. Wrapping the ribbon around the fox’s neck, he tied it into a decorative bow. Taking only a moment to straighten the bow, Naruto then placed it inside one of the two boxes beside him and taped it shut.

He then reached out for the cat and proceed to do the same to it. When he finished with it, he placed inside of the other empty box. After taping it shut, Naruto sorted through his small amount of wrapping paper. Pulling out a roll of rich blue and another of pale gold he set them on the table before leaving to go and check on his food once more.

Seeing that the noodles were done, Naruto turned the fire off and drained out some of the water before added some seasoning. That done, he then began to stir the contents of the pot for a few minutes. Once the seasonings were stirred in to his satisfaction, he covered the pot once more and left it to set.

Returning to the table, Naruto then proceeded to wrap the two boxes. As Sasuke watched, he began to smile. Now he was beginning to understand - his nervousness, his lack of concentration, the cake mix, the candles, even the animals. Naruto was preparing for someone’s birthday!

Then Sasuke began to frown. Who’s birthday is Naruto getting ready for?

Looking back through the window, Sasuke sighed. He was relieved that Naruto’s behavior was nothing more serious than a case of the jitters over someone’s birthday. Leaving his perch in the tree near Naruto’s window, Sasuke headed for home. Looking up at the sky, the young prodigy was surprised to see that the sky was beginning to darken. He didn’t realize it was so late.

Making his way home, Sasuke began to think. Just whose birthday is coming up that would make Naruto nervous? Mentally, Sasuke began to go through a list of all the people both he and Naruto knew. All the one’s that Naruto considered as friends, anyways.

Gaara’s was near the beginning of the year, plus he’s too far away. Neji’s was in July. There is no way it’s Sakura’s - her’s is on March 28. The pink-haired girl had told him so many times that he was sure that it was burned into his memory by now. Ino’s was last month. Both of us are fond of Lee but as far as I can recall we have yet to learn his birthday. Hinata’s and Konohamaru’s are both in December, and that’s a month away. There’s no way he has learned Kakashi’s - that damned pervert won’t tell anyone anything he doesn’t want known.

Then he paused for a minute, trying to think of who else Naruto was close to. The only one’s left were himself and their former sensei, Iruka. It most certainly wasn’t his since his birthday was on July the 23rd. So that just left Iruka-sensei.(* Iruka’s b-day is 5-26 for those of you who don’t know.)

Finally arriving back home, Sasuke decided that it was too late be to go over his equipment like he had planned to that morning. Though he knew it wasn’t a good idea to put off the care of his equipment, he just couldn’t bring himself to sit down for the next three hours so that he could sharpen and fix all the items that needed fixing. Perhaps tomorrow he would be able to take care of them.

Then removing his weapons pouch, Sasuke began to move about his large, empty house. Making his way to the kitchen, the Uchiha began to put together a small meal for himself. Having to learn how to make it on his own after the massacre his brother caused, Sasuke had first been forced to learn how to cook.

Admittedly, his first ten attempts had ended in disaster. And after he near set the kitchen of fire due to a grease fire, he had finally swallowed his Uchiha pride and had hired someone to teach him how to cook. Oh, he had no need for fancy dishes, or complex recipes. All he need was simple cooking instructions and methods. Tips and hints on how things worked. Like using bread crumbs in oil to know when the oil is hot enough for cooking.

So, putting together a simple meal was nothing. Once he had everything going, he then turned his attention to his weapons. Since he was going to work on some of them tomorrow, he would go ahead and remove those. So, sorting through the equipment, he began to separate those that needed work from those that were still good.

Once he was finished, he took stock of what needed work. Well, rather than be short on weapons tomorrow, the black-eyed ninja pulled open one of the hidden drawers in the counter. His family had once been the proud ninjas’ that had founded the police of Kohona. Plus many of them had been ANBU. So it really wasn’t surprising to find several hidden cabinets in the homes of the Uchiha district.

Pulling out what he would need to replace those he had removed from his pouch, Sasuke then re-packed his his weapons. Then leaving the pouch on the counter where it was, the black-haired youth turned his attention back to his food.

Satisfied that it was done, Sasuke fixed himself a plate and then sat down to eat. With a quick prayer of thanks, and a small thought to wish a certain blonde good luck, Sasuke began to eat.


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That's all for part 1! Hope it was alright. Slow moving for now - but there will only be 4 chapters!

ps. forgive the many errors - i haven't had time to edit.