Inori

1

Twelve-year-old Uzumaki Naruto sat on his desk, tapping his pencil impatiently against its wooden counter. A look of overt boredom was on his prominently-scratched face.

If there was anything he hated more than not being able to eat ramen, it was getting tied to his seat and listening to Iruka-sensei's BORING lecture. 

Boring, boring, boring. 

Had he been blessed with a wider vocabulary, he could have come up with more vivid descriptions for today's class.

His eyes went to his teacher. Iruka was holding a book while discussing the circles drawn on the board, detailing the right distance to throw a shuriken.

Iruka-sensei may be boring, but he wasn't bad at all for an average Konoha adult. Everyone else in the village treated him with contempt. Not his Iruka-sensei, though. His smiles were always warm, and although the man would frequently scold him often for getting into trouble, he knew those eyes spell concern for him.

It was his saving grace, Iruka-sensei's kindness.

However, there were days when he wished his Iruka-sensei extended his kindness towards him even in class hours. Like right now, when he would rather be out eating ramen in his favorite stall, instead of learning how to throw a stupid shuriken.

Naruto chewed on the rubber eraser of his pencil. "Pft. Why measure? Just go and kick the bastard's ass face to face!"

Haruno Sakura temporarily snapped from her stare-at-my-personal-god's-face mode and looked at him, her emerald eyes narrowed. "Geez. A real idiot." She tucked a stray wisp of her cherry-hued hair in annoyance. 

She still had not forgiven her classmate for being included in her team division. Aside from the fact that his vocal affection for her was freaking the living daylights out of her, it was only too easy to dislike him. The whole town did, and the whole class laughed at him. And his demeanor was not apologizing for anything.

But after that incident in the bench...

Her eyes went to the boy who told her she was annoying. His back was cold, unmovable, and indifferent.

She let out a sigh and turned her gaze back at Naruto, guilt forming within her again. Getting a taste of her own medicine yesterday made her hesitate in loathing the blond with the same intensity as before.

But still! Her Inner Sakura blazed. DAMMIT! Why didn't we get to have pairs instead? Then Sasuke-kun and I would be alone!

If Uchiha Sasuke felt any air of tension radiate from his seatmates, he didn't give any damn. He was wrapped in his own dark swirls of thoughts, the subject forbidden even to the gods themselves.

Iruka shut his book close. "And that wraps up your basic knowledge on wielding the most common tools of a shinobi. Use your knowledge well."

"So can we go home now?" Naruto asked, looking very eager.

A sweatdrop formed on the teacher's head, but he quickly coughed to compose himself again. "Naruto, since you and everyone else here are graduating from the Academy soon, I think it's time that we do a bonding activity"

"Bondage?" Naruto thought of the magazines he illicitly read, and then chuckled evilly. "Yeah..."

A book smashed soundly on the blond's head. 

"Shut yer' trap, Naruto! It's BONDING, idiot, BONDING!" Iruka cleared his throat and grinned at his students. "Now where was I? Right. I'm hoping we all get to know each other more before we part ways. The missions will take your time, so we might not see each other for a long, long time." He turned to pick up some pieces of flaglets on his table.