---
The classroom smelled like chalk dust, ink, and nerves.
Naruto Uzumaki kicked his legs under the desk, arms folded behind his head, pretending to nap. In truth, he wasn't even close to sleeping. He'd already counted the cracks on the ceiling four times and rearranged the scrolls in his pouch twice.
Waiting sucked.
But more than waiting—it was the not knowing.
Team assignments, huh…
He stole a glance around the room. The usual suspects were scattered about, grouped in their little cliques.
Sasuke sat like a statue near the window, gaze fixed outside like he was auditioning for "Most Brooding Uchiha." Sakura was chatting with Ino—well, arguing—in their usual way. Shikamaru had already fallen asleep next to Chōji, and Kiba was poking Akamaru with a chopstick for no good reason.
Which team would he end up on?
After all the chaos, training, and rogue snake-women with a love for explosives, Naruto didn't exactly feel like the same prank-loving idiot he used to be.
Okay, fine—he was still a little bit of a prank-loving idiot.
But also more.
He'd fought a fake snowstorm. Mastered chakra flow (sort of). Earned bruises from someone who'd actually survived torture training. Learned to shape ice, dodge wire-traps, and throw a punch without flailing like a windmill.
He wasn't just loud anymore.
He was focused.
Kind of.
Sometimes.
…Maybe.
---
Iruka walked in, holding a thick folder in one hand and a faint smile on his face.
"Alright, settle down. We're assigning your teams."
Naruto sat up straighter. His heart thudded once, hard.
Iruka's eyes flicked to him briefly—just a glance—but there was a flicker of something like pride.
Maybe.
Probably.
Naruto hoped so.
---
"Team 1…"
"Team 2…"
"Team 4…"
Naruto stopped listening. The names didn't matter until—
"Team 7. Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura…"
His grin widened. He was in. First name called. This was it.
"…and Uchiha Sasuke."
His grin died.
"WHAT?!"
Iruka didn't flinch. "Yes, Naruto. Sasuke and Sakura. Team 7."
"But—but—him?! Why do I have to team up with that guy?!" Naruto pointed dramatically, as if Sasuke were a national disaster.
Sasuke didn't even blink. Just kept staring out the window.
Sakura, meanwhile, beamed. "Yes! Teaming with Sasuke-kun!"
Then she turned to Naruto and scowled. "But why do we have to bring the dead weight?"
"Dead weight?!" Naruto bristled. "I've got more chakra than both of you combined!"
Iruka sighed. "It's a balanced team. That's the decision."
Balanced.
Yeah, right.
A brooding genius, a lovestruck fangirl, and a reformed ice-happy prankster.
Realbalanced.
---
After the rest of the class had been sorted out, Team 7 was told to wait for their jonin instructor.
The one who was, apparently, "running late."
Naruto slumped against the wall, arms folded.
"He better not be another weirdo. I've had enough of snake ladies with sneak attacks and throwing logs."
Sakura frowned. "What are you even talking about?"
Naruto glanced at her. "Long story. Involves ice, kunai, and a very sarcastic mentor with too much time on her hands."
"…You mean Iruka-sensei?"
"No. I mean the other one who eats dango and talks like she's about to stab you and give you candy."
Sakura blinked. "I'm scared to ask."
Naruto shrugged. "You should be."
---
Time passed.
More time passed.
Naruto eventually stood upside down on the ceiling, just to test his chakra control. Then drew mustaches on the blackboard clones he made for entertainment. Sakura yelled at him twice. Sasuke still hadn't spoken.
"Why is he like that?" Naruto muttered under his breath, peering at the Uchiha. "Like a moody statue made of grunts and ego."
He poked him with a pencil.
Sasuke dodged it with a twitch of his eye. Didn't look away from the window.
"…Tch."
Naruto sulked back to his desk.
That's when the door finally opened.
And a man with gravity-defying silver hair, one eye visible and unimpressed, stood there with his hands in his pockets.
"Yo."
He blinked slowly. "You all… look like a handful."
Naruto narrowed his eyes. "You're late."
The man shrugged. "There was a black cat crossing the road. Bad luck and all."
"THAT'S YOUR EXCUSE?!"
He held up a tiny orange book with an innocent smile. "Also, chapter seventeen was getting good."
Naruto had a feeling this was going to be worse than Anko.
Much worse.
---
They moved to the rooftop for introductions.
Sakura was all about her dreams, her crush, and her frustration with you-know-who. Sasuke was short and broody. Something-something-revenge, power, cold glare.
Then it was Naruto's turn.
He paused.
Felt the frost-blue charm under his collar.
Thought of Anko's traps, of Elsa's magic, of the feeling of standing alone in a strange kingdom and choosing to protect it.
"My name's Naruto Uzumaki. I like ramen. And winning."
He paused again. Grinned.
"…And lately, I've been working hard. So don't blink, or you'll miss me getting stronger."
Kakashi gave him a long, unreadable look.
"…Alright," he said finally. "You're… not boring, I'll give you that."
Naruto beamed.
Then Kakashi added, "Tomorrow, we do survival training. Don't eat breakfast."
"Why?" Sakura asked, tilting her head.
Kakashi's eye curved in a way that was somehow cheerful and ominous.
"You'll just throw it up anyway."
---
As Kakashi disappeared in a blink, Team 7 sat in stunned silence.
Naruto stood up first, stretching. "Well, at least he didn't stab me on day one."
Sakura rolled her eyes. "What kind of teachers do you have?"
Sasuke didn't answer.
Naruto just looked up at the clouds.
His ice chakra stirred faintly at his fingertips.
Not the end.
Just another beginning.
Let's see what this team can do.
---