NARUTO

SORROW & SADNESS

CHAPTER ONE

Has it really been that long? Naruto Uzamaki wondered as he sat on his bed. He was staring at the calendar checking the days. And why did he care how long? It didn't concern him did it? He looked over at the picture on his table. His apartment was only one big room plus the bathroom. It was empty due to his lack of money. No one would give the 'demon' kid a job. In fact he only had one mattress and a table with one chair. Two cups and one set of silverware. He hadn't had a family like other kids. He had grown up in this apartment. Barely able to afford it with the fund he got from Konoha's fund for people like Naruto… for orphans.

He hadn't been himself in the past month. He kept thinking about his feelings. Ever since he was young and he had stood alone on that playground he had promised to become the greatest Hokage. The greatest leader of the village! But his dreams had taken a backseat to these feelings now. He let a small smile come when he remembered later on in his life when he started pulling pranks. He remembered being the one always falling or saying weird things on purpose. Although he was really a good student he didn't try. He didn't care. He wanted someone to notice him. The smile faltered as he remembered how several times he had messed up on accident and how people had treated him.

'YOU'VE BEEN AT THE ACADEMY FOR THREE YEARS AND YOU CAN'T EVEN TRANSFORM RIGHT!' Iruka Sensei's voice pounded through his head. He remembered the laughter of everyone in the room except for a few people. Sasuke Uchiha was one who didn't laugh. He never laughed at anything. Shino… he just sat in the back being Shino. He was silent and was probably whispering to his bugs about how students like that shouldn't be allowed in.

Naruto stood up and sat down at the table. He remembered how he got his first friend. He had failed the graduation exam again and had been fooled. A man named Mizuki decided to trick him. Iruka Sensei had ended up rescuing him and passing him. While he was at the academy Naruto had always pulled pranks or disrespected Iruka. But he wasn't always acting that way. In fact he spent half the time looking at Sakura. She was a girl in his class who he had cared for, for a long time. But she only cared about Sasuke Uchiha!

Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto ended up joining the same Genin team under Hatake Kakashi, also known as the Copy Ninja. Naruto looked at the small picture of himself with the rest of the team. He didn't smile this time at the memories. Instead he set the photo down so he couldn't see it. He sighed remembering a month ago. He had been carefree then. No worries no cares. In fact his day was almost normal. Until the late evening…

Naruto had finished paying for his meal at the ramen bar and had walked off home. He didn't have anything to do so he decided to go and train at the site of his first test under Kakashi. When he arrived he had begun to unpack when he heard a voice behind him.

"What are you doing?" It asked. He didn't answer but turned around to see Sasuke. He just sighed and picked his backpack up.
"Nothing, I guess." He said. He hadn't wanted the company at this time since he wanted to practice a new technique. Sasuke smiled slightly but his eyes never changed giving the impression of someone with a devious plot.

"I know you didn't come here for nothing." He told Naruto. Naruto just began to walk away. He didn't want Sasuke to see his new technique since it involved the chakra of the demon within him. Sasuke had begun taunting him about being frightened and even though it shouldn't have bothered him, it did. He began yelling at Sasuke and it began a fight. And that fight got out of hand. No one even saw Sakura walking onto the place. She was looking for a quiet place to think. At first she didn't notice them because they were in the trees. Neither of them noticed her. Sasuke used a Genjutsu (illusionary technique) and left his hiding place. Naruto knew it was a trick but lost Sasuke. He had seen a figure sitting at the three tree trunks. He automatically assumed it was Sasuke! And he aimed a Kunai and threw it!