Disclaimer: Characters are property of M. Kishimoto.

Sasuke flipped the switch to his alarm clock as he woke. Today was the start of a new term at school. Groaning, he turned on his side and looked out the window. Bright and sunny, just the way he hated it.

Grudgingly, he sat up in bed. He looked around his room at the four walls encasing him. They were white, bare, bland, and peeling. What more could you expect from the government, though?

Being an orphan, Sasuke lived in assigned housing. It wasn't horrible, he had to admit. He had shelter, food, water: all the basic necessities to survive. It just wasn't him though. Sasuke Uchiha deserved more than this shabby flat they had stuck him in. And it wasn't only him. There were others in the apartment as well. You could tell by the obscenely loud music coming from the second floor above him.

"Lower that shit down!" He yelled, chucking a book from his bedside table at his ceiling. "Can't wait until I'm eighteen. Stupid laws. I deserve my full inheritance right now. Not just a three-hundred dollar check every month. How the hell do they expect me to survive with three-hundred dollars a month?"

Sasuke continued his rant and he grabbed a towel and hopped into the shower.

Iruka Umino whistled as he walked the halls of the Konoha Hillside Apartment Complex. It was September 9th, and the new school year started today. Being a social worker, it was his job to look after the orphaned teenagers in Konoha. Lucky for him, there were only three.

He turned to a door marked with a big, silver 5 and knocked. After no answer, he walked away.

"Sasuke's probably in the shower getting ready. Reliable kid." He mumbled to himself.

He stopped again, three doors down at room 8. He knocked three times and waited. After a few seconds, he knocked again. No one answered. He knocked once more. Then, he started to bang, and eventually, he kicked.

"Naruto Uzumaki!" He yelled through the door. "Wake up right now! The new term starts today and I'll be damned if you're late again!"

He walked away and up a flight of stairs at the end of the corridor. He stopped at room 16, in which he heard an ear-shattering guitar solo streaming out of. He waited until the solo stopped to knock.

"Just a minute!" A girl yelled from the inside. A moment later, the door opened.

"Morning, Tenten. Just wanted to chec- What the hell are you wearing?" Iruka gasped in disbelief.

Before him stood Tenten, another orphan the government had put under his care. Only it wasn't really Tenten. It was as if a box of dark make-up, multi-coloured hair dye, black leather clothing, and studded accessories had eaten her up and spit her back out.

"Oh, this is nothing. I just bought myself some new clothes with the money I earned from my summer job. Not all of us we're left with a huge inheritance." She said, casting her eyes to the ground below her.

"Well, it's a tad too much. Go a little easy, why don't you?" Iruka suggested. "Also, Mrs. Portimier from room 17 called and complained about your music again. Please don't play it so loud. I swear, you're making that woman deafer tens times faster than usual."

"Hah, okay. I guess. She just doesn't appreciate good music." Tenten rolled her eyes.

"Anyway, just wanted to check-up on you guys. Don't be late for school. I'll be back again next week to see you." Iruka said, smiling.

"Mm-kay, Iruka. See you, then." Tenten said, shutting her door with a smile.

Iruka walked back downstairs to room 8. He banged on the door once more.

"Naruto! You better open this door or I'll- Oh! Sasuke. Did I get the wrong room?" Iruka asked when he came face to face with Sasuke.

"Oh, no. I just came over to wake this stupid idiot up. It's no good. I think he stayed up all night." Sasuke said, picking up a shoe from the floor and chucking it at a seemingly lifeless heap nestled on the bed in the room.

"What the hell?" Came a groggy, stifled reply. A tousled mess of blond hair popped out of the blankets at the foot of the bed. Blue eyes blinked groggily as the teen yawned widely.

"Naruto, wake up! You're going to be late for school." Iruka scolded as he walked into the room.

"Oh crap, that's today, isn't it?" Naruto sighed as he rolled over in bed.

"God, this place is a mess." Iruka said as he did his very best to avoid the mountains of trash, clothes, and other questionable items strewn throughout the room.

"I'm going on ahead." Sasuke said as he walked out the open door.

"Wait! Sasuke, wait for me." Naruto said, jumping out of bed.

"Naruto! Pants!" Iruka yelled.

"Aww, shit." Naruto sighed as he pulled the sheet around his waist.

"Heehee." A loud giggle came from the hallway.

"Tenten! Look away!" Iruka said when he saw her in the hall.

"Aha, sorry Iruka. It's not a big deal, anyways. I'm seventeen, not nine. Anyways, I was just passing on my way out. You really should keep the door closed, you know." Tenten said as she continued walking away.

"Dammit, Naruto. Now you've gone and scarred an innocent girl." Iruka scolded.

Sasuke scoffed when he heard Iruka's comment as he walked away from the room as well.

"What's so funny to you?" Tenten questioned, looking back at Sasuke.

"Iruka just called you innocent. He's really naïve for an adult." Sasuke smirked.

"Whatever. I'm an innocent girl as far as you know." Tenten glared, walking out of the apartment complex.

Sasuke smirked on as he walked out after her. "Walking to school?"

"Not all of us came from a family of rich snobs." Tenten said, walking away.

Sasuke smiled in self-satisfaction as he walked towards the parking lot. He pulled out the keys and opened his new convertible. He had received his license over the summer and had then gained access to his choice of one of the many cars his family left behind. Being Sasuke, he of course had to pick the best car of the lot. Starting it up, he glanced in the rearview mirror.

"Sasuke! Take me with you!" Naruto yelled as he burst through the front doors of the complex.

"Naruto, your backpack!" Iruka yelled after him.

"Sorry, can't take you. Picking up someone else." Sasuke yelled as he backed out of the space and pulled onto the road.

"Dammit." Naruto sighed. "Iruka! Can you drive me?"

"No, I can't. I have to go back to work at the office. Walk like Tenten." Iruka said, shoving Naruto's bag at him. "And if I hear you're late today, I'm cutting your allowance."

Naruto sighed dejectedly as he pulled on his bag and walked down the street. A buzzing started in his back pocket and he pulled out his cellphone.

"What?" He grumbled into the phone.

"Oh! Naruto, you're actually awake."

"Sakura!" Naruto said cheerily.

"Haha, I was thinking you'd still be asleep, that's why I called. You can't be late again." Sakura laughed from the other end.

"I'll do whatever I please." Naruto said. "Anyways, what's up?"

"Oh, I was wondering if Sasuke left the apartments, yet."

"Oh… Sasuke." Naruto sighed. "Yeah, he left just a moment ago. I can't believe you're still with that snob."

"That's no way to be talking about your best friend." Sakura scolded.

"Some best friend. He's making me walk to school when he's got a new car. The asshole can't even take me in the spare seat."

"That's because that seat is for me." Sakura teased. "Anyways, I think that's him pulling in. See you at school. Don't be late!"

Naruto flipped the phone shut as she hung up. Sighing, he continued his walk to school.

"Why the long face?"

"Haha, what's up, Shikamaru?" Naruto grinned, looking up at the house he was passing.

Shikamaru Nara was bent out over the window, looking down at Naruto. His hair was pulled back into a puffy ponytail.

"Nothing much. Just having a smoke." Shikamaru mumbled, taking a drag from the white roll between his fingers.

"That better just be a cigarette." Came a voice from across the street. Naruto looked over and saw Ino Yamanaka walking through the doors of a house parallel to Shikamaru's.

"Ino. Looking posh as ever." Shikamaru drawled, noting the girl's pristine look. She had her long blond hair pulled back into a tight ponytail. Her shirt was a simple button-up with a wool sweater pulled over it, and under her plaid skirt was the leggings of a black leotard.

"Why are you bringing ballet shoes to school?" Naruto asked.

"And why are you walking? Didn't your parents buy you a decent car during summer vacation?" Shikamaru asked, putting out the roll on his windowsill.

"Walking is excellent exercise, and I'm going to the gym to practice a little before class starts. Excuse me, I'm leaving now." Ino said, as she walked away from them.

"Heh, whatever. All that girl has on her mind is ballet. I'm telling you, man. She practiced everyday during the summer." Shikamaru said.

"Watching her, are you?" Naruto laughed.

"Can't really help it, you know. Her window's right across mine." Shikamaru replied.

"That being the case, she got a nice bod?" Naruto smirked.

"That ballet really does a body good." Shikamaru smirked. "Anyways, come in for breakfast. My mom made pancakes."

"I wish. I'm starving, but I have to get to school. Not all of us are smart enough to be excepted from half of our classes." Naruto said, continuing his walk.

"My genius is a gift that only few are granted." Shikamaru laughed as he retreated in the house and closed the window.

"With all the weed that guys smokes, it's a miracle he's still so smart." Naruto mumbled as he took a turn into another road.

BEEEEE-EEEEEP!

Naruto yelled in surprise as a car horn blasted from behind him.

"Need a lift?"

"The fuck, Gaara?" Naruto scowled. "You're going to make me go deaf."

"Haha, whatever. Get in or walk the remaining twelve blocks to school.

Naruto grinned and hopped into the back of the jeep. "What's up, Kankuro." He greeted the driver.

"Not much. Just taking Gaara to school. You were on the sidewalk. Now, you're in my jeep. You?" Kankuro questioned as he drove on.

"Ah, not much. I was walking to school. You almost blew my ear drums to bits. Now, I'm in your jeep." Naruto casually replied. "Hey, why isn't Temari taking you to school?"

"Oh, she left hours ago." Gaara said from the passenger seat. "She got a job at the school as a teacher in training and had to be at the school earlier. And hell if I'm waking up as early as her just to sit in the school and wait."

"We're here. Have Temari take you home." Kankuro said.

"Whatever." Gaara replied, jumping out of the jeep.

"Damn… I hate this place." Naruto grumbled as they walked through the front doors of the building. The entrance way was laden with a Back-To-School banner, as well as many posters promoting healthy habits, and flyers for school clubs.

"At least we get to hang out in the senior lounge this year." Gaara shrugged.

"Yes! Finally. Thank god, I never thought I'd make it to my senior year." Naruto exclaimed.

"Neither did anyone else." Gaara smirked at his own joke.

"You know, if they find out you brought him to school, you'll get in trouble." Shino said, lounging on the couch in the Senior Lounge.

"It's fine. I'll just keep him in here during the day. Teachers barely come in here. Isn't that right, Akamaru?" Kiba laughed, petting Akamaru as he sat across a lounge chair.

"Get him off the furniture, Kiba. I've waited three years to get into this lounge and I don't want it smelling like dog." Tenten mumbled from a computer desk against the outer wall of the room.

"Just leave him. This will be his chair, okay? Only this one. That way, nothing else will smell like him." Kiba said, rubbing the spot between Akamaru's ears.

"Hello, Senior Lounge!" Came a voice from the doorway.

"Morning, Naruto. Gaara." Shino greeted the two that just walked in.

"Only you, guys? Where's everyone else? Besides Shikamaru, stupid git has to go and pass every test known to mankind to salvage extra hours away from this place." Gaara asked, slinging himself the couch with Shino.

"Ahh… senior lockers… kept away from the rest of the school, graffiti free, and no signs of chewing gum stuck anywhere." Naruto said, throwing his bag into one of the lockers that lined the left wall of the room. They stood tall and gleaming, spacious and shelved.

"Chouji isn't coming in for a few weeks. He caught some sort of sickness… the mumps or diabetes. Something like that." Kiba mumbled absentmindedly, playing with his phone.

"Ino's in the gym, I saw her when I walked by." Shino said, flipping through a book of insects.

"Neji isn't coming until later. He said he had to do something first." Tenten said as she pulled an iPod from her bag.

"And Sakura is with Sasuke, which still confuses me because that guy is a total ass and doesn't deserve a girl like her." Naruto grumbled, slamming the locker shut and placing a combination lock on it.

"Ah, still pinning after Sakura, eh?" Kiba asked.

"She's the most beautiful girl in the world. She's smart, and sexy, and funny, and incredible." Naruto sighed.

"She's alright, I guess. Huge forehead." Gaara shrugged, leaning over to take a peek at Shino's book.

"Alright? She's more than alright. What I wouldn't give to be with her."

"If you keep talking about my girlfriend like that, I'll have to beat you, you know." Said Sasuke as he entered the room, Sakura following closely behind him.

"You don't scare me, Uchiha." Naruto smirked, flicking off his best friend.

"Tenten, what in the world have you done to yourself?" Sakura paled as she walked over to her friend.

"It's not a big deal. I'm just being more expressive. Jeez." Tenten said, brushing back a newly coloured strand of electric blue hair.

"I don't want to go in." Hinata mumbled from the passenger seat of Neji's car in the parking lot.

"Come on. It'll be okay. Everyone's going to be happy to see you." Neji said as he turned the car off.

"No they won't. They're going to think I'm a freak. I've been in a mental hospital for the past six months."

"It's not a mental hospital. It's a rehabilitation center. And it's fine. You had a breakdown, but you're okay now. Nobody's going to think you're a freak because you had a little too much pressure on yourself a while back." Neji said, pulling his bag from the backseat.

"It was a mental hospital, and you know. Using fancier words doesn't change it." Hinata retorted.

"Whatever you say, Hinata." Neji said. "Listen, I need to go in to see my counselor about some extra after-school class. When you're ready, just lock the door and go in. Tenten texted me and said they're all in the Senior lounge."

"Yeah, okay." Hinata replied.

"And make sure you eat breakfast." Neji said sternly. "We don't want you getting sick again."

"Yeah… okay." Hinata said.

"One. Two. Three. Four. One. Two. Three. Four."

Ino muttered to herself as she danced in time to the classical music playing in the gym. She loved ballet. She was the best dancer in the whole town and wanted to go to join a professional ballet school after high school. Professional schools don't take the best in towns, though. They only take the best in the world. So, Ino practiced.

"Pirouette. Sissonne. Entrechat. Grand Je-"

"BAM!"

Ino gasped as she fell to the ground in surprise. She turned around to angrily yell at whoever distracted her from her grand jete. Standing there at the gym doors was her neighbor from across the street.

"Damnit, Shikamaru. What did you do that for?" She glared.

"Fun." Shikamaru shrugged, walking into the gym.

"What are you doing here? You don't have a first or second class." She huffed as she picked herself off from the floor.

"I was bored at home, so I decided to come hang out for a while. See everyone, you know." He said as he stopped to help her up.

"Whatever." Ino mumbled as she walked over to the radio and stopped the music.

"Don't quit on my account."

"Trust me, I'm not." Ino said as she picked the radio up. "The bell's going to ring soon. I need to get changed. See you."

"Yeah." Shikamaru said as he watched her disappear into the girls locker room in the corner of the gym.

"GET OFF ME, SASUKE." Naruto yelled.

"Let me sit here." Sasuke said, sitting on Naruto, who was sitting on apparently the comfiest chair in the lounge.

"No way! I sat here first. It's my chair!" Naruto grunted, trying to push Sasuke off.

"Let me sit and I'll take you to school for the next two days." Sasuke offered.

"A month."

"Hell no. Walk here." Sasuke smirked, applying more pressure.

"Fuck you!" Naruto wailed.

"Stop fighting you two." Sakura rolled her eyes at the pair of boys fighting over the chair.

"So childish." Shino muttered, not looking up from his book.

The door to the lounge opened and in walked a boy. He was tall and skinny, his stature could be best described as a pole. He had black hair that was clipped in a fashion that gave the impression that they had placed a bowl over his head. His eyes were wide and atop them were too extremely bushy eyebrows. He smiled brightly as everyone looked on in astonishment.

"Hello! I'm a senior transfer student. My name is Lee! Rock, Lee. Please to make your acquaintance. The kind people in the office told be to come here to meet my fellow seniors. I hope I can get to know all of you and become great friends in the coming year!" Lee smiled widely as he held out a hand to Gaara, who sat nearest to the door.

Gaara stared at Lee in disbelief for a brief moment, then stood. "You annoy me." He said as he walked out of the room. Lee's face fell as he stood there, rejected.

"Oh, don't worry about Gaara. It takes a while for him to warm up to people. God knows it took us years before he even started talking to us. I'm Kiba." Kiba said, standing to shake Lee's still outstretched hand.

"Yeah," Tenten said from her seat the desk. "Just give him time. Lucky for you, not everyone is like him. I'm Tenten. This is Sakura. That's Sasuke, Naruto, and Shino. You'll meet everyone else later." Tenten said as she pointed to everyone in turn.

"Welcome to Konoha Academy. Home of the Slugs." Shino said, pointing at a poster above the computer Tenten sat at of the school crest. It was green and golden, with a white slug slung across in an arc.

At that moment, the bell rang clearly through halls indicating that class was to start.

"Ugh… thus marks the beginning of a year of total shit." Naruto grumbled.

Well, there it is. First chapter of many to come. I plan to make this a long term project, but I will finish it within six months, a year max.

Feedback appreciated.

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