Disclaimer: If only I owned the rights to Naruto. I wouldn't be a poor, starving university student writing fanfiction whenever I consume too much sugar. No copyright or trademark infringement intended. Just using these fictional characters for my personal pleasure. Definitely not making money off of this – poor, starving student remember?

Note: Special Effects was inspired by eiko-chan's fanart on deviantArt titled I'm sorry Naruto. Clearly anyone with their sanity intact will interpret the fanart as NaruHina but as soon as I saw it, well…my brain just twisted it to suit my fancy. I apologize in advance (my writing was and still is awful).

Alternate Universe. Non-canon ship. Avert your eyes if you're touchy about that sort of thing.

Uchiha Sasuke could not help the shiver of disgust. The six year old cherub tugged at his mother's sleeve fiercely and the Uchiha Matriarch crouched down.

"Do I have to wear that?" he whispered, eyeing the costume with abhorrence.

Uchiha Mikoto raised the rather ghastly green, scaly outfit and tilted her head as she inspected it with a much exaggerated look of contemplation.

She hummed thoughtfully and looked at her baby boy.

"It's not that awful, Sasu-chan."

Sasu-chan scowled, or at least attempted to. His efforts in imitating Itachi's trademark look of displeasure resorted in his pink lips pouting and rosy cheeks puffing. Mikoto had to bite back her grin at the adorable picture her son presented.

"I don't want to!" he proclaimed, lower lip quivering.

Sighing, she wondered how she was going to get him into the outfit for the rehearsal without much fuss. As much as she adored Sasuke, Mikoto was not in the mood to deal with one of his tantrums. Absently scanning the auditorium she spotted the Hyuga Clan Head standing on the opposite side of the room. With him was a little girl, dressed already in her costume, clutching his yukata tightly and looking faint.

Hyuga Hiashi usually looked intimidating, what with his stern eyes and expressionless face, but with his eldest daughter clinging onto him like that he looked rather…awkward. Mikoto was tempted to take a picture to show to Fugaku – her husband certainly would find it hysterical and torment his rival about it.

Noting the girl's costume, she realized the little heiress had been cast as the princess. She was quite adorable in her dress and tiara, Mikoto mused, before looking down at her suspiciously silent son. He was staring at the girl with a light flush across his cheeks.

Huh.

Mikoto smirked.

"Sasu-chan," she said in a sing-song voice, crouching down again.

Sasuke looked at his mother and stepped back when he saw the gleeful expression she was sporting. Young he may be, Sasuke knew that nothing good came from that expression. His father and Itachi ran away from her when she had that expression.

"Do you like Hinata-chan?" she asked softly, secretively glancing to her right and then her left, putting on a show for her poor, naïve son.

Sasuke stopped breathing.

"W-what?! No!" little Sasuke denied furiously, though his steaming red face was all the encouragement his mother needed to press onwards.

"You've been given a very important role," she intoned as seriously as she could and her baby's eyes widened, "you have to protect her from the evil Prince! You do want to protect her, don't you?"

Forgetting the fact that he denied liking Hinata just a second ago, Sasuke nodded his head – chest puffing out in a manly display of strength – when he answered, "Yes! I'll protect her!"

Covering her laugh with a cough, Mikoto crowed, "Let's put on your costume then!"

Sasuke went willingly towards the changing stalls, not noticing his mother's wicked smile.

Sasuke eyed the blond standing before him. The idiot looked ridiculous in his stupid armor, holding a shield and sword that was too large for his small frame. Eyes twitching, Sasuke tugged at the collar of his costume, feeling warm and uncomfortable with all the stares he was receiving.

"Look at the Uchiha boy…isn't he adorable?"

Flushing, he shuffled his feet on the spot – hating himself for letting his mother trick him into wearing this awful, awful costume. It did not help that almost all the mothers (and their icky daughters) were cooing over him and he wondered if they were blind.

He was green and scaly! He had a tail! And claws! He was a ferocious beast!

He was not supposed to be adorable!

B-But how was he ever going to get Hinata to even like him if he was a green, scaly lizard with wings and a tail? Not to mention he had cones sticking out from his head that were supposedly his ears…

He looked even more ridiculous than Naruto.

Damn his mother.

Coming back to himself, he caught the last of Naruto's monologue.

"…now move you beast for I, Hokage Naruto, shall kill you if you stay in my way. Believe it!"

Iruka-sensei growled. Loudly.

"NARUTO! How many times do I have to tell you to stop changing and adding lines! It's 'I shall slay thee dragon to recuse my beloved!'"

The blond boy just shrugged, sticking out his tongue in defiance and Iruka held back a scream.

Sasuke opened his mouth to utter his line and said in a bored tone:

"Roar."

Everyone blinked.

Crickets chirped.

Hinata giggled into her hands.

Iruka closed his gaping mouth and decided then and there that he was going to kill himself. Did they not understand what acting is? All he asked was for some focus, some passion! He had slaved day and night to write the script, to prepare the costumes and work on the set designs!

And these ungrateful little brats were ruining his masterpiece!

"MY YOUTHFUL FRIEND!" screeched the green spandex clothed P.E. teacher, appearing out of nowhere. Iruka and every other occupant in the auditorium startled.

"YOU HAVE TO SHOUT OUT LOUD WITH PASSION AND FERIOCITY! LIKE THIS: ROOOAARR!"

Calmly Iruka bonked his clipboard hard on the head of said spandex clad teacher and watched with disinterest as Gai fell onto the floor unconscious. Turning his attention back to the children on the stage he said, "I have to agree with Gai-sensei. Sasuke-kun, you can't just say 'Roar' like that. You are a dragon; you have to say it in the scariest and loudest way possible, okay?"

Sasuke nodded his little head and looked back at Naruto. Suddenly his mother's voice echoed in his head.

"You have to protect her from the big bad prince. You do want to protect her, don't you?"

Was Naruto the bad Prince? Looking at him Sasuke thought Yeah.

Glancing behind him and up to the balcony, Sasuke saw Hinata looking down at them with a smile on her face and felt his face responding in kind. He had to protect her, protect her from this-this Prince…and if that meant scaring the shit (he heard Itachi say it!) out of him then he was going to do so.

Setting his face into a determined scowl, he edged himself a little to the left so he would be directly in front of the tower that his princess was in.

Naruto was not getting anywhere near her!

Opening his mouth, something came to mind and he grinned a bit – hands flying to perform the correct hand signals.

"ROOAARR!"

A burst of fire erupted from his mouth aimed directly at poor Naruto. Quickly shielding himself with the flimsy paper shield, Naruto let go of his shield with a surprised yelp as it burst into flames.

Sasuke smirked, pleased with himself before letting out another roar that had Naruto falling on his butt and scrambling back.

"Sasuke!" said his mother sharply from her seat next to Hiashi and he turned his eyes towards her with an innocent look.

"What?"

"Why did you do that?" she demanded watching her son in confusion, for she knew her husband never taught him that (maybe it was Itachi?).

"I'm a fire breathing dragon protecting the Princess," Sasuke deadpanned.

"Ooh…special effects! This is way better than what I thought of! Fabulous, the play will be a success!" Iruka said, giggling to himself as he jotted all this down on his clipboard completely ignoring Mikoto's glare.

"Well," she murmured, "if Sasuke is this gullible at this age then it wouldn't be too hard to manipulate him into marrying Hinata-chan when he's older…"

Hiashi blinked and eyed the Uchiha woman next to him with suspicion. Did he hear what she had said right?

"…ooh yes, I can see my future grandchildren! Now the only thing I have to worry about is getting Itachi hooked up…"

Turning to Hiashi, she smiled sweetly at him. "You approve of a marriage between my Sasuke and your Hinata right?"

Hiashi blinked and before he could say 'Hell no' she continued on happily, "Great! A marriage between our two clans will surely produce the cutest babies! Just imagine with Hinata-chan's cuteness and Sasuke's hair…"

Inching away from the Uchiha, Hiashi contemplated what he had just learned.

Mikoto Uchiha was crazy and how Fugaku survived all these years married to her he would never know.

He needed to get his daughter away from her and her duck butt hair spawn.

Hinata stared at Sasuke in awe as he declared that he would forever protect her. Feeling herself blush when he smiled at her, she decided that Uchiha Sasuke was nice.