I sighed inwardly. At this rate I was never going to make it to the academy on time. I might as well skip. I yawned and searched for a place to sleep without being disturbed. I woke up late this morning because I stayed up late last night, which is how I got into this predicament. 'Ah, a secluded hill! How oddly random yet convenient!' I made my way up to the top of the hill. It was a beautiful scenery, with rolling waves of grass and flowers and a clear view of the cloudy sky. It was like a utopia. I took a moment to take in the scenery before laying down in the grass. Even though I was a ninja, I always wore a kimono, to make myself seem like an innocent ordinary girl. I crossed my legs just in case someone happened to pass by. I put my hands behind my head and closed my eye. I heard soft footsteps behind me, but I assumed it was just a passerby.

“Hey. This is my spot.” I lazily opened my eye. There, standing above me, was a boy my age with both of his ears pierced and his semi-long hair pulled into a slightly messy ponytail. I blushed slightly and noticed he was wearing an open jacket with mesh armour underneath. I hastily closed my eye to make my blush stop spreading.

“I don't see you name on it,” I replied.

“What a drag...” he muttered. I smirked slightly. “Do you even know my name?”

“No, but to be honest, I don't care. There's no names here so I may lie here as I please. Anyways, you're wearing the clothes of a ninja, and you look about my age; shouldn't you be at the academy?” I opened my eye again as he lay down beside me.

“I'm skipping,” he answered. I mused.

“Why? It can't be all that bad.”

“It's too troublesome to go to class. I already know it all so what's the point.”

“You know it all?” I wasn't really surprised as I knew a few people who could pull off A's without going to class, and I didn't really care much about why he knew everything already, but for some reason I enjoyed hearing his voice.

“I'm from the Nara clan.” I recognized the name instantly. Those from the Nara clan tended to be known for being lazy geniuses.

“Ah, souka*.” We lay in silence for a while.

“What clan are you from?” I didn't respond for a moment; I was shocked someone from the Nara clan was taking interest in something, much less a person.

“Nekozawa, the feline counterparts to the Inuzukas.”

“I've heard of them. Instead of a canine companion they have a feline companion and instead of canine senses they have feline senses. Also, they don't have markings but cat ears and a tail. They learn a special jutsu at a young age that keeps these features hidden. Because of evolution, the Nekozawas have developed a higher level of chakra than the Inuzukas.”

“.....For someone who's too lazy to go to class, you sure are informed.”

“My name's Shikamaru.” I looked over at him. I wondered why he was talking to me; I assumed one so lazy as him wouldn't bother to care about a random girl who happened to sit on “his hill”.

“I'm Chihiko. Nice to meet you.” I covered my eye with my arms to avoid the sun. We sat in silence again.

“I wish I was a cloud,” Shikamaru said finally.

“Why?” I asked in a soft voice.

“Life is such a bother. If I were a cloud, I could just drift by and not have to worry about anything.” I considered this for a moment.

“...Even if life is hard, isn't there something that makes it worthwhile? Isn't there something you would miss if you became a soulless being?”

“....I guess there are some things I would miss...” I smiled.

“See? Even if life is troublesome, it's still a wonderful journey.”

“....Troublesome woman.” I sat up and looked at him.

“What do you mean by that?” I asked, slightly offended. After a few moments of silence, I gave up and lie back down.

“If I don't respond I’m asleep.” Still I received no reply. I sighed and let myself drift off into a dreamless sleep.

 

When I awoke it was evening. I groaned and sat up, taking a look at my surroundings. Shikamaru had left, and anyone passing by was couples looking for some privacy. I yawned and headed toward the nightlife of Konoha. My stomach growled as I smelled ramen. I turned to my left and saw a ramen stand called Ichiraku. I headed inside to see what was on the menu tonight. My eyes widened as I saw there was one with slabs of meat in it.

“I'll have what he's having!” I cried, pointing to a blonde boy wearing an orange jumpsuit. He stopped eating for a moment to see who was pointing to him. For some reason, he almost dropped his chopsticks when he saw me. I blushed slightly at his gaze and grinned.

“Sorry about that. It's just that your ramen looks so good!” The boy returned my grin.

“It's fine nee-san!” I smiled.

“My name's Chihiko. Chihiko Nekozawa!”

“I'm Naruto Uzumaki! I’m gonna be the next hokage, believe it!” I giggled.

“I'm honored to be in the presence of someone so great!” Naruto blushed slightly and chuckled.

“Your ramen ma’am.” A waiter set a steaming bowl of ramen in front of me. I grinned again.

“Arigatou**! Itadakimasu***!” I broke my chosticks and scarfed my ramen down. Naruto stared at me wide eyed.

“No one's ever been able to eat ramen as fast as me...” I blushed slightly, embarrassed to let go in front of a stranger like that.

“I love ramen. I can eat a lot of ramen if I set my mind to it.”

“...Let's have a ramen eating contest!” I grinned yet again.

“Bring it ramen-boy!! Seconds please!”

 

Twenty bowls of ramen later, it was dark and I was ready to burst.

“Ugh...no more...” I groaned.

“I could keep eating! Believe it!” I put my head on the table.

“I don't know how you can eat so much....I can't even walk right now....” Naruto stood up.

“I can carry you home if you want,” he offered. I looked up at him.

“Oh no, I couldn't. Under this kimono there happens to be a lot of fat.”

“Don't worry! I’m really strong, believe it! Besides, I’d love to carry a pretty girl like you!” I blushed.

“I-if you insist....” I got up from my seat. Naruto crouched down and opened his arms. I climbed onto Naruto's back slowly so he could adjust to my weight. When he had a good hold onto my legs, he rose quickly.

“See? You're not heavy at all!” I turned my face to hide my deepening blush. “So where do you live?” he asked. I froze. Not only could I not remember the directions to my house, I completely forgot my address too.

“Um....I don't remember?” I chuckled nervously as Naruto sweatdropped.

“Well....You could stay at my place for tonight.” My eyes widened.

“Oh no! You've already offered to take me home and I’m inconveniencing you by not remembering my address. Plus I just met you, I don't want to seem like a freeloader.”

“Don't worry! It's not a bother at all, believe it!” I hesitated. Was Naruto really ok with this?

“Well....If you insist. But if it's too much of a burden for you then tell me ok!” Naruto nodded. I rested my head on Naruto's shoulder and wrapped my arms around his neck.

“Thanks Naruto-kun. I owe you one,” I said softly. Naruto didn't reply and started running to his house.

 

 

A/N: Man, surprisingly this took forever to type. Please leave comments and rate so I know how well, or, not well, I’m doing~ Anything with a asterisk next to it is in Japanese. I’ll provide an explanation at the end of each chapter for your convenience.

 

*Souka- I see

 

**Arigatou- Thank you

 

***Itadakimasu- something along the lines of “Thank you for this meal” or “Let's eat”.