Wands and Hand Seals
A Naruto x Harry Potter Crossover Fic
Author's Notes: If you've gone this far into the story, then I would like to thank you very very much for reading! Nothing gives a writer (I'm a writer now! Woot!) more satisfaction than knowing that his story is being read by people who actually like it! Sorry for the later-than-usual post! The last three weeks have been the ones leading to my midterm exams and I just couldn't find the time to write…Chemistry sucks ass…big time…Oh well…that's life for ya'… Here's an extra long chapter for all of you guys! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Naruto and Harry Potter are properties of their respective owners. I do not have any claim on them whatsoever. The only thing I own in this story is the plot, I guess…although it won't hurt to dream a little and pretend that they're mine…Oo
Warning: No pairings yet…although they really won't be central to the story…I do have a plot and romance isn't really a big part of it yet…I stilll have to make up my mind about a few things…so what do you guys want? Het or Slash? Right now, I'm tilting towards the slash side…a lot of reviewers favor slash…and being an avid slash reader myself…well…you know…only time will tell…/gg
Things you should know about this fic: I am not going to incorporate the storyline of the second part of the Naruto manga nor the storyline of HP & the Half-Blood Prince. The story won't work if I do, although some elements from these storylines might be included here.
Anything else: Okay, this is the part where Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura will become bilingual. My explanation for this is that they received language classes during their stay at the Ninja Academy. Please keep in mind that this fic is set in the present and since English is the dominant language today, it would seem insensible not to have them learn English. I mean, what if the enemy spoke English and you only spoke Japanese? A ninja wouldn't be very useful for gathering information, now would he? So as not to confuse anyone, I'll write this way:
English: "Naruto!"
Japanese: "Naruto!"
Ok? This'll start once they get to Diagon Alley, not at the beginning of the chapter.
Chapter 3
The One with the Shopping Trip
Neat and Tidy. These are the two words that one cannot use when describing Naruto's place. Dirty clothes strewn haphazardly on the floor, crumpled pieces of paper thrown everywhere, a messy and unmade bed, and most prominent of all, empty instant ramen bowls scattered all over the table and the countertops; one could say that his apartment was literally covered in filth.
Still, this is home and Naruto likes it the way it is. Besides, visitors never came except for Iruka and he usually cleans up the mess though, judging by the state of the room, it seems that Iruka hadn't dropped by in a while.
'Hmm…' Naruto thought as he entered his residence. 'I better say goodbye before I go…he'd probably worry if I left without saying anything.'
It was already nighttime and they would be leaving for London tomorrow. Still, Naruto had not yet packed any clothes as he had spent most of the day at Ichiraku Ramen, stuffing himself with all the Ramen that he could eat. Never travel on an empty stomach, he says.
'Well,' he thought to himself. 'I better pack now.'
Getting his duffel bag from under his bed, he began sorting through the different articles of clothing that he had in his closet, namely two orange-and-black colored jump suits and a pair of pyjamas.
'I should have done my laundry…' he thought glumly.
Knowing that they would be staying abroad for several months, he took all of his clothes, even the ones on the floor, and crammed all of them in his bag. Being a ninja meant also meant that you should have good packing skills, right? Even if that meant jumping up and down the bag just to get the zipper to close.
While taking off the clothes that he was already wearing to put on a pair of pyjamas that he left out of his packing, he noticed the letter that the old man, Dumbledore, had given him. It was sticking out of his pocket and he had completely forgotten all about it until now.
Tearing the flap open and taking the letter, he started to read what was written inside.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
Headmaster:
Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc. Chf. Warlock,
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. Of Wizards)
Dear Mr. Uzumaki,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins September 1. Due to the special circumstances concerning your admission, you are required to attend a meeting with the headmaster after your trip to Diagon Alley to discuss certain matters about your education.
Yours Sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
'Hmm…a meeting?' Naruto thought glumly. 'No doubt we're gonna get another long story that's gonna take all day to tell…'
Looking inside the envelope and finding the list that was indeed enclosed there, he found that a lot of the book titles related to topics that he knew absolutely nothing about! And the clothes! They're all black! And gloves made of Dragon Hide? There were Dragons over there?
Knowing next to nothing about the magical world, Naruto was now suffering from information overload. There's only so much new information his mind can take in a short amount of time. Knowing that the things that he thought existed only in fairy tales were actually real was too much.
Putting the letter and his bag aside, he lied down on his bed and closed his eyes. Sleep was what he needed right now.
He would just have to finish packing his other stuff before leaving tomorrow.
ooooooooo
Sunday morning dawned bright and early for everyone in Konoha. This time of the week meant that people were shopping in the market for food that they would eat for the new week. As it already is, Sasuke was squeezing his way through the market and the overcrowded throng of people who were busy with their shopping.
They were supposed to meet at Tsunade's office at 9:00 in the morning and seeing that he only had about ten more minutes to get there, he shouldn't waste more time.
Jumping up to the nearest rooftop, Sasuke made his way to the next one, jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Continuing in this manner until he reaches Tsunade's office, certain thoughts from yesterday happened to drift into his head.
Sasuke had spent most of yesterday thinking about the things that he found out about magic and Naruto. Mostly about Naruto. Knowing that a powerful demon currently resided in his teammate came as a real shock to him. It was disturbing to find out that someone with whom he had worked with for almost five years had been keeping a secret this big from his team. Although, Sasuke couldn't really blame him for that after remembering how the villagers treated Naruto.
Still, knowing that the Kyuubi was the reason for Naruto's extraordinary quantity of chakra and strength, not to mention his remarkable healing abilities and reflexes, was enough to make Sasuke just a little bit envious.
After debating with himself, he ascertained that none of this was Naruto's fault at all. He was just a baby when it happened and there was nothing he could do about it. Just like the time when Itachi had killed his family and he had been too powerless to stop him…
'Don't think about that now!' he scolded himself.
Arriving at the foot of tower that housed the Hokage's main office, he entered the building and made his way to the stairs leading to the top floor, to where his teammates waited for him. A sound of running footsteps someone calling out his name made him stop walking.
"Oi, Sasuke!" said an extremely familiar voice.
Turning around, he saw Naruto who was wearing his usual orange jump suit and carrying an oddly bumpy blue duffel bag which Sasuke assumed to be his clothes.
'The dobe can't even pack his clothes properly…' he thought, with an almost exasperating tone. "Yeah? What do you want?"
Without stopping, Naruto yelled as he ran up the stairs, "I'll race you there! Last one to arrive is a big loser!"
Within seconds, Naruto was already a level above Sasuke. Not wanting to look weak, Sasuke drew his brows together and raced after Naruto.
It looks like everything is going to be fine now.
ooooooooo
Arriving at the door of Tsunade's office only a few seconds after Naruto did, Sasuke scowled and crossed his arms.
"Ha!" Naruto cried while jumping in the air and raising his right fist. "I won! You're a BIG loser!"
"You had an unfair head start," Sasuke smirked. "Dobe."
"Don't call me a dobe!" Naruto cried resentfully. "Bastard!"
Sasuke was about to reply when the door suddenly opened, revealing an irritated-looking Jiraiya.
"What are you two doing yelling out here?" The legendary sannin practically screamed. "Come inside right now so we can leave and get everything over with!"
Not being used to such a moody Jiraiya, the two chuunin were compelled to obey him. Stepping over the threshold, they were stunned to see Jiraiya wearing a set of plain green and red robes instead of his usual attire. In effect, he rather looked like a walking Christmas tree.
'Maybe this is why he's so pissed…' Sasuke thought to himself.
Naruto and Sasuke went over to the couch where Sakura was sitting and sat down when Tsunade spoke.
"You'd better not irritate Jiraiya," she said. "Apparently, he has a hangover from a drinking binge last night."
Jiraiya looked up from where he was sitting and gave Tsunade a dirty look that said it all.
"Don't look at me like that." Tsunade said reprovingly. "You knew you were going with them and you still chose to get drunk. It's your fault."
Jiraiya wisely chose to stay silent.
"He's accompanying us?" Sasuke asked Tsunade.
"Yes, he is, that's why he's wearing robes. As you might know, that is the standard attire in the wizarding community."
Having deduced as much from Dumbledore's outfit and the robes that they were supposed to buy on their lists, Sasuke and Sakura were not surprised about this piece of information. Naruto, however, had quite a violent reaction.
"Whaaaat?" he cried, standing up from the couch. "You mean we have to wear that kind of outfit all the time?"
"Not all the time, of course," Tsunade said briskly. "Just when you're out in public."
"But, but, but…" Naruto stuttered. "How are we going to move in that outfit? Where will we put our shuriken and kunai holsters? We won't be able to reach them under all of that!"
"First of all," Tsunade said. "we have to discuss a few ground rules. You don't have to bring your weapons with you all the time. You are to refrain from showing your skills to the people there, and you should not alert anyone to the fact that you are ninjas. Is that clear?"
All three chuunin apparently had a problem with these rules.
"How are we going to defend ourselves then?" Naruto said.
"What if we get attacked while were there?" Sakura asked.
"So you mean to say that we won't be doing any training while were there?" Sasuke said doubtfully.
"Enough!" Tsunade yelled, pounding her fist on her desktop.
The three young shinobi immediately fell silent.
"Okay," Tsunade said patiently. "You are under the impression that you will be attacked while you are over there. Be assured that you will be well protected where you are and that no one can penetrate the school grounds without the knowledge of the Headmaster."
After looking at the three of them to make sure that they understood, Tsunade spoke again.
"As for your training, there are many available rooms there and the grounds are big. You may train at your own time, provided that you will not be seen by any of the students or the teachers."
"You mean," Naruto said enthusiastically. "that there are going to be other students like us at Hogwarts?"
"It's a school, dobe." Sasuke said condescendingly. "Of course there are going to be other students."
"Don't call me a dobe!" Naruto screamed back.
"Alright, that's it!" Jiraiya suddenly said, standing up from his chair. "If you two brats are going to argue the whole day, then I should just go home to sleep and we can all leave tomorrow!"
Sasuke and Naruto fell silent once again and sat back down on the couch.
"Okay," Tsunade said again. "You should probably get going in a while. Let me just explain how things are going to go today."
The three shinobi listened intently as Tsunade explained the plans for the day.
"When you get there, you are to meet with a wizard with the name of Rubeus Hagrid. He is an old friend of mine and he will be one of your teachers at Hogwarts. First off, you will go to a place called Diagon Alley and do your school shopping there. But before that, you will visit Gringotts, the wizarding bank, and get the money I gave to Jiraiya converted into their currency. After you have got all of your school things, you will go o a wizarding village called Hogsmeade and from there, you shall make your way to Hogwarts where the three of you and Jiraiya will part company. Questions?"
"How are we going to get to London?" Sasuke asked.
Tsunade smiled knowingly and opened a drawer, pulling out a medium-sized jar with greenish powder inside. She placed the jar on op of her desk and said vaguely, "Floo Powder."
"What…Powder?" Naruto asked confusedly.
"Floo Powder." Tsunade repeated. "You take a handful of this powder, throw it into he fireplace, and when the flame turns green, you step inside and say your destination loudly and clearly."
"What? Won't we get burned?" Naruto screamed again.
"I think it's better if they would just see it done." Jiraiya said.
"Alright," Tsunade said, unscrewing the cap of the jar. "You should probably leave now, anyway."
Taking the jar from Tsunade's desk, Jiraiya strode over to the fireplace in which the fire was burning brightly and took a handful of Floo Powder. After setting the jar on top of the fireplace mantle, he threw the powder inside the fireplace and stepped inside.
"The Leaky Cauldron, London." Jiraiya spoke clearly, oblivious to the green flames surrounding his body.
In a flare of green light, Jiraiya was gone and the flames had turned back to their normal yellow-orange hue.
"Well, then," Tsunade said. "Who wants to go next?"
ooooooooo
The moment that his feet found solid ground once again, Sasuke decided right there and then that travelling by Floo Powder was absolutely worst way to travel. The feeling of being sucked down a giant drain and spinning around and around at a very high speed did not suit well for the dark-haired ninja.
Brushing the soot that had clung all over his body, he looked around the place where he currently was. He was obviously at a restaurant of some sort, seeing that there were people seated around the many tables in the room with a plate of food or a cup of coffee. These people were visibly wizards, as they were wearing robes, not to mention that Sasuke saw many cups of coffee and tea being stirred only by spoons that were moving of their own accord.
A second later, Naruto appeared out of the fireplace followed shortly by Sakura, looking very much like they were about to retch their morning meals. Not minding the soot that covered her, Sakura placed her palms at her sides and let out a small wave of chakra that was just enough to calm her stomach. Doing the same for an extremely grateful Naruto, she turned her questioning eyes towards Sasuke.
"I'm alright, Sakura." Sasuke said coolly, even though he was feeling a bit queasy.
Sasuke turned back to the wizards that were minding their own businesses behind him, he found that not one of them had turned to see the newcomers that shot out of the fireplace. Evidently, people coming and going through the fireplace were a very common occurrence to these people. The only people who seemed to notice their arrival was Jiraiya, who was walking up to them right now.
"How did you guys like the journey?" he smirked as he reached them.
"Ero-sennin!" Naruto growled loudly. "I'm gonna get you for that! Whoever came up with that way of travelling is a big idiot! I almost threw up my breakfast!"
Jiraiya just laughed lightly at this when Sasuke saw that he was not alone. Just behind Jiraiya, there was a very huge man who was more than twice his size and about four times as wide. His face was covered with a very wild, tangled beard. Never in his life had Sasuke seen a man so large. Naruto and Sakura had also noticed the giant of a man and were looking up at him with widely astonished eyes.
"Quite the feisty one, eh Jiraiya?" the man grunted amusedly in English.
Not knowing what to do, the three of them just kept staring until Jiraiya spoke up, also in English.
"I'd like the three of you to meet Rubeus Hagrid." He said. "He will be your teacher this coming year at Hogwarts."
"It's a pleasure ter meet yeh!" the man said. "Yeh can call me Hagrid, it's what the other students call me."
"These are Sakura, Sasuke, and the noisy one with the bright clothes in Naruto." Jiraiya said, pointing to each of them in turn.
Snapping out of their momentary mental lapse but still a little overwhelmed to speak, the three chuunin bowed as one to Hagrid.
"Now, now, Yeh don' need ter bow ter me," Hagrid said. "A han'shake would do jus' fine."
He then took each of their hands, which were extremely small in comparison to his, and shook them vigorously.
"There yeh go." He said after shaking Naruto's hand. "I'll be goin' with yeh to get your school things. I told yer chaperone here ter get himself a room so he can rest. Hangovers are really nasty, I tell yeh."
"Rest, yeah right," Naruto said doubtfully. "The moment we go, he'll be out and chasing girls!"
Hagrid gave a deep bellowing laugh while Jiraiya just glared at Naruto.
"Yeah, well," Hagrid said. "He's bin like tha' ever since I met him."
Jiraiya then turned to Hagrid and just sighed.
"I just never get any respect anymore."
Hagrid laughed again and Naruto muttered, "That's because we know what you really are, ero-sennin."
"Well, we best be goin' now." Hagrid said after having his laugh at Jiraiya's expense. "We'll be headin' terl Gringotts first. Jus' to get yer money changed an' then we can go get yer stuff."
"Let's go!" Naruto yelled, walking towards the exit, with Sasuke and Sakura walking behind him, looking annoyed.
Hagrid exchanged a few words with Jiraiya, and after giving him an amused look, went out the door to follow the three.
ooooooooo
New sights and sounds greeted the Konoha ninjas on their way to the Wizard Bank. Everywhere they looked, something new and interesting always caught their attention. Moving pictures, strange toys, and even brooms that supposedly could fly! Gringotts wasn't that far away from the Leaky Cauldron but they could have arrived there a lot faster if Naruto hadn't stopped to look at every window that they passed.
"Ne, Sakura-chan," Naruto said excitedly, pointing at a model of the solar system that was suspended in mid-air and had all the planets revolving around the sun. "Look at this! It's floating all on it's own!"
Hagrid chuckled to himself, finding Naruto's behaviour amusing even though he couldn't understand a word that he was saying while Sakura just rolled her eyes while telling Naruto to quit embarrassing them.
Sasuke, on the other hand, was also secretly amazed at the things around him. Being much more discreet that Naruto about it, he looked at most of the windows that they passed and found the things displayed quite remarkable.
"Here we are," Hagrid said, indicating the huge white building that was in front of them. "Gringotts Bank."
Following Hagrid's lead through the pair of gigantic oak doors the three shinobi walked innside behind him, observing the strange creatures that were seemingly running the bank.
"They're Goblins," Hagrid said after noticing the way that the children were looking around. "They're in charge 'o runnin' the bank. The Foreign Exchange Section is righ' o'er there." He said, pointing at a desk a few meters away.
They strode over to the desk and Hagrid took out a small pouch from his coat. Putting it down on the desk, he spoke to the goblin who was in charge.
"I'll be wantin' to exchange these inter our money, if you don't mind." He said.
"Certainly, sir." The goblin replied curtly, taking the pouch from Hagrid and opening it, revealing a thick wad of rolled-up bills inside.
"Japanese Yen, I see." He said, placing the bills on one side of an ornately crafted golden pair of measuring scales that didn't even shift with the added weight of the bills. After fiddling a few weights on the base of the scales, the side holding the bills suddenly started to lower.
The goblin seemed particularly pleased as he took out a heavy bag and started to pour it's contents onto the other side of the scales. Naruto's jaw literally dropped when he saw that big gold coins were coming out of it. Apparently, the bag of coins wasn't enough so the goblin then took another bag and then also proceeded to pour its contents over the already considerably big mound of gold on one side of the scales. This time, the scales were starting even out already and it only took about half of one more bag to completely balance it. Satisfied, the goblin tipped over the gold onto his desk and turned to Hagrid.
"How will you be taking this money, sir?" he asked politely.
"Could yeh divide it up inter three bags, please?" Hagrid asked.
"Certainly, sir." The goblin said, placing his hand over the mound of gold.
With a graceful movement of his fingers, the gold separated into three equal piles and he deftly swept the contents into three individual pouches. He then handed the pouches over to Hagrid and thanked him.
"A pleasure to do business with you, sir." He said.
"Same here." Hagrid said cordially.
Turning to the three shinobi, he handed each of them a pouch of gold.
"Now, tha's a lot 'o money, you three," he said seriously. "There's abou' a thousan' galleons in each 'o those bags so yeh better be careful where yeh put it. Now, it'll be safer if yeh jus' bring with yeh a couple 'o galleons and then keep the rest locked up in yer trunks."
"Thank You, Mr. Hagrid." Sakura said politely, putting the heavy pouch away.
"Now, now," Hagrid said. "I told yeh ter call me Hagrid. Jus' Hagrid's fine."
"Okay." Sakura said shyly.
"Ne, Hagrid-san," Naruto said suddenly. "Where are we going next?"
"Well, I guess Hagrid-san's jus' fine." He said amusedly, walking towards the exit. "Madam Malkin's o'course. We need ter get yeh three a set of robes so yeh won' stand out so much."
"Awww…you mean we really have to wear those things?" Naruto asked dejectedly, following Hagrid.
"Heh, heh," Hagrid smirked. "I don' care much for them robes meself…but those are standard school uniforms…can't mess with school rules, now can you?"
Sighing defeatedly, Naruto kept walking beside Hagrid and decided to ask him a few questions.
"Hagrid-san," He called. "What things are we gonna learn over there?"
"What? Oh--" Hagrid said. "Well, I guess tha' would really depend on what year level yer gonna be in. I'm guessin' Dumbledore'll put you in with students yer age, so I think you three will prob'ly be sixth years. Of course, that'll depend on how much you learn in the next two weeks."
"Learn?" Naruto asked confusedly. Sasuke and Sakura were just behind them, trying to hear every word of the conversation.
"Oh, didn't Dumbledore tell you then?" Hagrid said. "He's designed a special program for you three so yeh'll be able ter learn the things that yer supposed to know, being transfer students an' all."
Catching on to Hagrid's allusion quickly, Sasuke and Sakura just kept quiet. However, Naruto didn't quite get it as quickly.
"What?" he asked loudly. "We're supposed to learn everything in two weeks? How can we do that? We're not even real transfer students, we're— Ouch!"
Whatever Naruto was going to say, he was stopped abruptly by a smart kick in the shin by Sasuke.
"What'd you do that for?" Naruto said angrily, turning around to yell at Sasuke.
"Dobe, Don't go yelling around about what we really are. Remember that we're not even allowed to be here." Sasuke said seriously.
Grumbling irately because he knows that Sasuke was right, Naruto turned back to Hagrid to find him stop in front of a shop with clothed mannequins on the window and had a sign just above the door that read:
MADAM MALKIN'S ROBES for ALL OCCASIONS
"Here we are," Hagrid said, opening the door to let the three of them in. "now if you just—"
Hagrid stopped suddenly and stepped aside as a boy with silvery-blonde hair stepped out of the shop followed closely by a woman who also had blonde hair and was dressed more elegantly than all the other women that they had seen so far. The boy paused for the shortest second, gave Hagrid an odd look that resembled contempt and then walked away with the woman that was presumably his mother.
Sasuke found the boy's behaviour quite peculiar and he posed this matter to Hagrid.
"Did you know who that boy was?" he asked Hagrid.
"Wha'? Oh—" Hagrid said, being brought back to their attention. "Tha's Draco Malfoy. I'm not exactly his favorite person in the world but he's not mine either. I 'spect yeh'll be in his year. Well now, let's go in." he said, holding the door open wider so they could enter.
"Welcome, welcome!" a cheery voice came out of nowhere. "I'll be with you in just a second!"
A moment later, a squat, smiling witch that was dressed all in mauve appeared from behind the curtains.
"Hogwarts, I presume?" she asked the three shinobi.
"Yes, please." Hagrid said. "This is their first fitting, so give them a whole set of school uniforms."
"My,my," Madam Malkin tutted. "First fitting? Aren't you a tad…old to only be starting at Hogwarts?"
"They're exchange students." was all Hagrid said.
"Exchange students?" Madam Malkin asked skeptically. "I've never heard of Hogwarts ever having those before…"
"It's a new program tha' Dumbledore's tryin' out." Hagrid said confidently.
"Well," Madam Malkin said, turning to the three shinobi. "I hope that things would go well for you in Hogwarts. What country are you from, dearies?"
"Japan." Sakura said plainly before Naruto could open his mouth.
"Ah, I see. Well, let's head to the back for your fitting then, shall we?" madam Malkin replied. "Oh, Hagrid, would you mind staying here while the children are being fitted? I'm not entirely sure if you can fit at the back…"
"It's no problem." Hagrid said dismissively. "In fact, I'll be headin' towards Knockturn Alley for a while. Need to get more flesh-eatin' slug repellants for me cabbages. "
"Wonderful, then!" Madam Malkin exclaimed.
"Now, you three," Hagrid said to he team. "I'll be meetin' yeh at Flourish an' Blotts to get yer books."
"Now, Tha's just in front of this shop." He said, pointing outside the window. "I doubt that yeh'll get lost on the way."
Nodding silently, the three shinobi went towards the fitting rooms while Hagrid exited he shop.
ooooooooo
Naruto could only do as Madam Malkin asked as she took his and Sasuke's sizes. Sakura was in another fitting room, being fitted by another witch.
"So," madam Malkin asked Naruto as she took his waistline. "What year will you be in, dearie?"
"Uhhmm…" Naruto mumbled.
Not wanting her to suspect anything, Sasuke provided the details.
"We don't know yet. Professor Dumbledore will sort it out when we get to Hogwarts."
"I see," Madam Malkin said while standing up and gesturing for Naruto to get off the pedestal. "All done. Your turn, dearie." She said, looking at Sasuke.
Naruto sat on the bench where Sasuke was sitting just a few moments ago while Madam Malkin continued her inquiry.
"And what's your name?" she asked Sasuke as she measured his height.
"Sasuke Uchiha." Sasuke said plainly. They were told that when people asked for their names, they should say their given name first before their surnames.
"Such a serious young man you are…" Madam Malkin said quietly.
The rest of the fitting went by quickly and they were free to go as they got their robes. With a shopping bag in each of their hands, the three shinobi left the shop and proceeded to the store that was directly in front of it.
Before they could enter Flourish and Blotts, Naruto's eyes found something that it liked. Two stores away from The book shop, there was a brightly colored blue and orange building that stood out from the rest. The big sign on the roof read:
WeAsLeY's WiZaRD WhEeZeS
Judging by the funny-looking products displayed on the window, it must be a jokeshop of some sort.
"Sasuke! Sakura-chan!" Naruto said excitedly while pointing at the store. "I wanna check that store out!"
"Huh?" Sakura asked. "Which one?"
"Forget it." Sasuke said with a tone of finality. "We aren't separating."
"Sasuke-kun's right." Sakura said, agreeing with Sasuke. "It won't be safe if we split up."
"But..but!" Naruto said pleadingly. "It's just beside the store! I won't get lost!"
Sakura could see that Naruto was really excited about the store, so she decided that maybe it would be alright if he was supervised.
"Oh, alright." she said with a sigh. "Sasuke, would you go with him to make sure he won't get into trouble?"
Sasuke gave Sakura a sharp glare that clearly meant "No!" but then grudgingly nodded his head in agreement when Sakura gave him a look that plainly said "Pleeeease…"
"I don't need a baby-sitter!" Naruto said indignantly.
Sakura fixed Naruto with a stare that clearly said "Sasuke's-going-with-you-or-you won't-go-at-all" and that was all it took to make Naruto sigh in defeat.
"Good." Sakura said triumphantly. "I'll just get three copies of everything that we need. Meet me back here when you're done."
With that said, Sakura entered the bookshop and Naruto and Sasuke started to walk in the direction of the brightly-colored building.
As they reached the entrance of the store, the door swung open and two boys, one who had untidy black hair and was wearing glasses and another one who had red hair and lots of freckles stepped out. Naruto estimated that they might be about the same age as he was, give or take a few months.
"Your brothers are brilliant, Ron." Naruto heard the black-haired boy say to the red-haired one.
"I reckon they're pretty rich now, too." The boy named Ron replied. "Maybe I can get them to buy me the new set of Chudley Canon robes that we saw earlier at Quality Quidditch Supplies!"
"They probably will," The dark-haired boy said thoughtfully. "But they might do something to it first…like they might make it strangle you when you try to put it on something." He added jokingly.
The two boys walked in the direction where Naruto and Sasuke came from, laughing and throwing playful punches at each other.
As Naruto walked inside the store, he noticed that Sasuke had stopped following and had stationed himself near the entrance.
"Oi, Sasuke!" Naruto called. "Aren't you coming in?"
"I'm not going inside a place like that." Sasuke said indifferently.
Scratching his head and wondering what Sasuke's problem was, Naruto shrugged his shoulders and told Sasuke to suit himself. Excited and happy that he had money to spend, Naruto walked inside the store and was amazed, and a little bit confused, at what he saw.
There were different kinds of things on the shelves. Products labelled as StinkBombs, Fake Wands, Skiving Snackboxes, Headless Hats, and many other products were for sale. Something that was called "Ethereal Edges" caught Naruto's attention. There was a picture of a simple knife, almost similar to a Ninja's kunai, printed on the box and the label that said:
Stab your friends and throw it at pesky relatives and see the knives pass right through them! These knives are great for scaring people!
In front of the boxes, there was a sample of the product. Naruto picked it up with his right hand and poked his left palm with the tip of the knife. When he didn't feel anything, he pushed the knife further in until the point was already protruding from the other side of his hand. It was like his hand wasn't solid. There was no resistance at all and it you couldn't feel anything from the knife at all.
'Magic is amazing…" Naruto thought to himself.
Turning the box over to see the price, he saw that it was 1 galleon and three sickles.
'Hmm…wonder how much that is…" Naruto thought. 'Well, Hagrid-san said I had a lot of money…guess it should be enoughfor let's say…five…"
Taking five boxes of the Ethereal Edges with him, Naruto made his way towards the cashier, which to his dismay, had a long line.
After several minutes of standing in line and looking at other products that were near him (and getting himself some more stuff), it was finally Naruto's turn to pay. He was greeted by a red-haired man who was wearing robes of royal purple and had a very pleased smile on his face.
"That's quite a haul you've got there." He said, looking at the things that Naruto had placed on the counter.
"I can't wait to try all of this stuff out!" Naruto said excitedly. "They all look great!"
"Why, thank you." said the man as he was punching in Naruto's purchases. "Would you like to see how we make these things?"
"Really? I can?" Naruto asked excitedly.
"Sure!" the cashier said happily. "I'm Fred, by the way and over there is my brother George." He said, pointing near a door at the back of the store towards another red-haired man who looked exactly like him.
"Wow!" Naruto exclaimed. "You look the same!"
"Of course we do. We won't be very good twins if we don't look at each other. Now, go to him and tell him that I told you that you could see the production. "
"Thanks!" Naruto said, now teeming with excitement.
"That'll be seventeen galleons and twelve sickles." Fred said, handing Naruto his bag full of his purchases.
"Oh, okay…wait…" Naruto said, pulling out the pouch that Hagrid gave him earlier and counting eighteen gold pieces.
Putting the gold coins on the countertop, he asked Fred unsurely.
"Is this enough?" he asked.
"Yes…" Fred said thoughtfully. "Are you a muggle-born? It seems like you're not familiar with the money."
Alarmed because he didn't know what that meant, Naruto stuck to the lie that he was told to repeat.
"Uhhmm…I'm from another country." He said unhesitatingly. "Japan."
"Oh, I see," Fred said contentedly. "Well then, here's your change. Now go to George and he'll give you a tour."
Happily, Naruto said thanks and went over to Fred's twin brother, George for his tour.
ooooooooo
Naruto came out of the shop about a quarter of an hour later, carrying two shopping bags and his money bag considerably lighter. He was greeted by an irritated Sasuke who reprimanded him for taking so long inside the store.
"What took you so long?" Sasuke asked Naruto agitatedly.
"They gave me a tour and there were so many cool things in there!" Naruto replied enthusiastically.
"You mean to say that you spent money for a couple of toys?" Sasuke said irately. "Remember that it's Konoha's money that you're spending and that it should only be used to support the mission!"
"But…some of the things I got could be really useful!" Naruto said defensively.
"I doubt that…"
"Fine! I won't show it to you then!" Naruto said, sticking ot his tongue.
"Let's just go back." Sasuke said. "Sakura's probably waiting for us."
Turning his back to Naruto, Sasuke began walking in the direction of the bookshop when they heard Hagrid's voice.
"Got yer stuff, then?" the half-giant said.
"Hagrid-san!" Naruto said excitedly. "Look at all the stuff I got! It's from this cool store called Weasley's Wizard Wheezes!"
"Wha's tha', you say?" said Hagrid. "Oh, yes. Them two runnin' the shop, Fred and George, they were my students before."
"Really?" Naruto asked curiously. "They went to Hogwart's too?"
"Yeh, they did." Hagrid said. "They have a little brother. I 'spect he's 'bout yer age."
"That must be the boy we saw earlier." Naruto said, looking at Sasuke. "Right, Sasuke?"
Sasuke just nodded his head.
"Well, anyway, where's Sakura?" Hagrid asked, looking around for the missing girl.
"She's still at the book place, getting our stuff." Naruto answered.
"Well, let's go get her then." Hagrid said, leading the way to Flourish and Blotts.
"So, yeh had fun shopping, eh?" Hagrid quipped, looking at Naruto's shopping bags.
"Yep! I got lots of stuff from that store earlier!" Naruto said happily.
"Well, you better not let the caretaker see you with those things." Hagrid warned Naruto. "He's banned those things from Hogwarts."
"Why would he do that?" Naruto asked, disheartened.
"He's not too fond o' the twins." Hagrid said.
Reaching the entrance to Flourish and Blotts, Sasuke immediately went inside to look for Sakura. Excusing himself, Naruto followed inside.
The interior of Flourish and Blotts was literally lined with books. Books about every single topic were displayed everywhere. On shelves, in the walls, there were even books stacked on the floor because there was no more space to put them. Looking around for a head of pink hair, Naruto began walking between the shelves.
Sasuke on the other hand was making his way towards the second level of the store when he heard Sakura's familiar voice.
"Really? That's absolutely fascinating!" Sakura said.
"Well, there's much more to it, actually, you can find it all there in the book." Said a second voice.
Peering around a shelf lined with books, Sasuke saw that Sakura was seated on a chair and was talking to a bushy-haired girl that was seated opposite to her. She was clutching a book with the title Hogwarts, A History on the cover and there were three shopping bags lying at her feet.
"Sakura-chan…" Sasuke called quietly.
Sakura abruptly turned her head towards Sasuke and stood up.
"Sasuke-kun." She acknowledged.
"Are you done?" he asked her. "I think we have to go."
"Of course," Sakura said. "Please wait a moment."
Sakura turned to her new friend and bowed. "I'm sorry, but we have to go. Thanks for the information. I'll buy the book and hopefully, I'll see you at Hogwarts when the term starts."
"Oh, it's no problem. In fact, I should be on my way too." The other girl said, picking up her own shopping bags. "Why don't I accompany you while you pay for the book and we can leave together? My friends are downstairs and I'm supposed to meet them."
"That would be nice." Sakura said. "Oh, this is my friend, Sasuke." She said, indicating Sasuke with her hand.
"It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Hermione Granger." The girl said, looking at Sasuke.
"Nice to meet you." Sasuke said, bowing his head slightly in acknowledgement.
Together, the three of them made their way down into the lower floor and to the cashier where Sakura paid for her book. On their way to the exit, they spotted Naruto between two bookshelves, holding open a Black book that had the title The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts: A Comprehensive History. Naruto was skimming through the pages, as if looking for something. Whatever he was looking for, it seemed that he couldn't find it because he closed the book and placed it back on the shelf. Then looking up, Naruto saw his two teammates staring at him.
"Sakura-chan! Sasuke!" Naruto called out. "Old man Dumbledore was right! There nothing at all about ninjas or chakra in their history books!"
Then noticing that there was another person with them, Naruto stopped talking and looked at Sakura inquiringly.
"This is Hermione." Sakura said, introducing her new friend to Naruto. And then, looking at Hermione and indicating the blonde ninja, she said, "And this is Naruto."
After the pleasantries have been exchanged, Hermione asked Naruto, "Did you just say Dumbledore's name?"
"Uhh…yes." Naruto replied. "It's nothing." he added.
"Oh." Hermione said, taken aback.
"Shall we move on?" Sakura said, breaking the awkwardness.
The four of them moved on towards the exit when they heard Hagrid's unmistakable booming laughter. He was still outside and was apparently talking to the two boys that Naruto and Sasuke had seen exiting the joke shop earlier.
"Hagrid!" Hermione said excitedly, rushing forward to meet her huge friend.
"'Mione! There you are!" Hagrid said. "And I see you've met yer new schoolmates!"
The two boys who were looking at Hagrid just a moment ago turned their heads to look at the three shinobi.
"Harry, Ron," Hagrid said, looking at the two boys and then gesturing at the three shinobi. "These are Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura. They'll be yer new schoolmates. They're exchange students from Japan."
Not knowing what to do, the two boys awkwardly said "hello" and waved their hands.
"Now, now," Hagrid said. "There's no need for yeh ter be shy."
"Hey," the boy called Ron said, pointing at Naruto's shopping bags. "You bought something from my brothers' joke shop."
"Yeah!" Naruto said, glad to have someone to discuss his new toys with. "They have great stuff in there!"
"Yeh see," Hagrid said. "Now, we gotta go. We still have ter get a few more things. Now, I'll see yeh three when term starts, okay?" he said, looking at Harry, Ron and Hermione.
"Okay, Hagrid!"
"See you, Hagrid!"
"Nice to meet you guys!"
The three friends walked away, leaving Hagrid with the three shinobi.
"Those three are the best students a teacher like me could ever ask for." Hagrid said. "Well, we still have to get yer wands. Ollivanders is the only place ter go. Come on."
Hagrid turned and made his way to the joke shop, the three shinobi following in his trail.
ooooooooo
A few hours later, our three heroes can be seen walking through the halls of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The three of them had decided that there were worse ways to travel than Floo Powder, and that was via portkeys. After getting their wands at Ollivander's, they used a portkey that was charmed by Dumbledore to go to Hogseade and from there, they were transported to Hogwarts by carriages. It had been a couple of minutes since they had arrived but Naruto's stomach was still churning.
Presently, they were on their way to Dumbledore's office, being led by Hagrid. Naruto couldn't help staring in amazement at the hugeness of the castle and everything that was in it. He moved his head from side to side, quietly taking in the grandeur of the place. He could see that his two teammates were also amazed by everything.
Hagrid suddenly stopped in front of a statue of a gargoyle and spoke clearly.
"Cheesecake." He said to the gargoyle.
Suddenly, the gargoyle leaped to the side and a spiral staircase was revealed. Too shocked to do anything, the three shinobi just stood there and watched as Hagrid climbed the stone steps.
"Come on, yeh three," Hagrid called from above. "It's okay, it won' move no more."
Swiflty, the three shinobi ascended the stairs and arrived at the threshold of a pair of big oak doors.
"Come in, come in." said the familiar voice of Albus Dumbledore.
The three shinobi entered and saw that there were two more people in the room besides Hagrid and Dumbledore. There was an old woman wearing robes of an emerald green and a small old man seated on a couch in front of Dumbledore's desk.
"Have you got everything you need?" Dumbledore inquired.
"Yes, we have." Sakura spoke for the group.
"Good, good." Dumbledore said, sitting down on behind his desk.
He gestured for the three to be seated on the other couch in front of the one occupied by the two people.
"These are Professors McGonagall and Flitwick." Dumbledore said, indicating the two people. "Professor McGonagall teaches the art of Transfiguration while Professor Flitwick teaches charms."
The three shinobi immediately stood up, and bowed to their teachers, as was customary to them in Japan.
Professor McGonagall bowed her head in acknowledgement while Professor Flitwick said, "It's such a delight to meet the three of you."
As they all went back to their seats, Dumbledore spoke again.
"I will now tell you how we are to proceed with everything. Naturally, everyone in this room has been informed as to your real identities, and so have some of your other teachers." He started.
"This is how things are going to be for the next two weeks. Professors' Mc Gonagall and Flitwick will train you in the basics of magic and you will be put into the appropriate year level depending on your assessments. You will be sorted into your proper houses along with the first years who will arrive at the beginning of the term."
At this point, Professor McGonagall stood up and looked at the three shinobi. "I will be teaching you the magic of transfiguration. Now, I want you to try and read your schoolbooks so that we won't have such hard time. Two weeks is a very short time to learn what you have to learn but we will have to do the best we can." She said.
Professor Flitwick then took over. "You will have lessons with us daily for the next two weeks. The sessions will start at eight in the morning and until nine in the evening, pausing only for meals. We know that this is very laborious but it is the only way to make sure that you three will learn what you have to learn."
"Now, Your quarters will be on the third floor." Dumbledore said. "It is guarded by a portrait of the wizard Agrippa and the password to get inside is "Konohagakure. Of course, you shall be staying at your house dormitories after you have been sorted but feel free to use the room at any time. This room is a suite and it has two separate bedrooms inside. The two boys will share a room while Sakura-chan will have one all to herself."
After a giving the three shinobi a few moments to digest everything, Dumbledore spoke again.
"Well, that's everything." He said. "You may now head to your room or you may want to explore the castle for a little while after Hagrid has shown you the room. Lunch will be served at noon in the great hall or if you would prefer, a house elf can serve it to you in your room. You will find that your things are already in your respective rooms."
The three shinobi stood up and bowed to Dumbledore, and then to the two teachers.
"Thank you for receiving us." Sasuke said reverently. "It will be our pleasure to learn from you and we will do our best to master what you have to teach us."
"It is also a pleasure to have you here at our school." Dumbledore said. "One more thing, I would like to remind to please, if possible, refrain from using your abilities. No one should know about your true nature."
"Of course," Sasuke said. "A pleasant afternoon to all of you."
Having said that, the three shinobi left the room and went down the stairs, following Hagrid on the way to their room.
With this new schoolyear comes a promise that things will be somehow different at Hogwarts, owing to the fact that three of Konoha's best ninja's are so far away from home. This new schoolyear promises to be an exciting one and it will be a year that will not be easily forgotten by the people who were around to witness the events that will take place in the coming months.
ooooooooo
Hmm…well? What do you guys think? Was it worth the wait? The last part was a bit of last minute typing because I really wanted to post this chapter already. There was supposed to be a scene where they get their wands and I even thought about what kind of wand I was going to give each one of them…I'm just pressed for time so I edited that part out…Anyway, I might revise this chapter if I get the time to do it…Next chapter will be from Harry and the Gang's point of view! Wheee! The new schoolyear is about to start and I'm excited to start writing it! Well, see you the next time I post! Please review! It will really help me a lot if I have people's opinions about this story! Thanks for reading! Thanks to everyone who reviews!