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"Naruto?! Again?!"
"Yep! My stomach is in TURMOIL, Iruka-Sensei! Ya better let me leave early today in case you want me to let her rip! Heehee!"
"NARRUUUUTOOO!"
A gust of wind from Naruto's speedy legs exploded like a paper bomb right before Iruka's face. The young teacher might've popped a blood vessel then and there. Unimpressed, Shikamaru leaned his face on his palm. Choji munched on spicy chips beside him, and Kiba was nodding off with Akamaru nested comfortably under his hoodie. With all the noise, Kiba's head shot up.
"Jeez, here we go again. As if lessons aren't enough of a drag, now Iruka-Sensei's gonna teach them through his teeth and a short fuse... I'm getting sick of it."
"If anything, Naruto used to skip class with us. Think I wanna be here?!" Kiba interjected as Akamaru gave an assertive bark!
Shikamaru sighed. The young, lazy genius put his hands behind his head. "He's been leaving around this time every day this week, never short of 1:40. Maybe he's factoring in those 20 minutes to get where he has to go. That, or he'll get there in 15 minutes, and arrive 5 minutes early, almost like he really doesn't want to be late. I mean, Naruto arriving somewhere on time, let alone early..? He's always late or sleeping in. That's not like him. But now, today was different. He left at 2:30... Almost an hour later than he usually does and with the same rush... Why?"
"What do you mean?" Kiba asked as Akamaru gave an unsure whine.
"You ever wonder where he's heading off these days?"
┊ ˚➶ ｡˚˚ · • . ° .
The training grounds they met were different this time. It was much farther from the Konoha Memorial (which was near Adohiba's home) and this time was nearest to the Hyuuga clan. This was convenient for Naruto because now he didn't have to run all the way across the village (on his tiny legs, it took over an hour!) Now, he could speed over in ten minutes.
Two days ago, Adohira was staring at a map of Konoha that was framed in her father's study when he wasn't home. She tried to point to Naruto's apartment on the map, but couldn't succeed. Then, she stared at the Ninja Academy all the way opposite her home in the village... Was it strategic to keep me away? She wondered. Living so far from there?
It occurred to her then and there that the training grounds she frequented were also just as far from Ninja Academy. Naruto would race so far just to see her. She pressed her lips together at the thought of him sprinting throughout the entire village, likely dodging bullies and cold stares for nearly an hour... It made her nauseous.
That day, she told Naruto to meet her at the training grounds closest to the Academy - the ones by the Hyuuga Clan. She radiantly smiled at her resolve. This time, it'd be her turn to sprint an hour to see her buddy.
