First, I would like to say... THANK YOU FOR READING MY STORY! ARIGATOU!!! You don't know how much this means to me, guys! Thank you again! Please continued to read it!
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When I woke up, Kakashi was already gone. I looked at the clock. It was around 4 am. I got out of bed and decided to buy some new clothes as my normal clothes were considered strange in this world.
I found a small bag of whatever-the-people-here-used-as-money on the nightstand beside the bed and put it in my pocket. I exited the building.
Most of the shops were closed but I found one shop that was opened. The owner, an old lady, greeted me and I greeted her back. I walked around the shop, choosing what to buy.
Finally, I brought an outfit similar to what Naruto wore in Shippuden but it has short sleeves, fitted me perfectly, the orange areas were blue and it was for girls. I also brought a pair of black ninja sandals, a pair of fingerless black gloves, a blue ribbon so that I could tied my hair up and a cool midnight-blue mask that covered the lower part of my face.
I paid for those things and quickly went back to the Jounins’ building. I rushed into Kakashi’s room, changed into my new clothes, wore the sandals and gloves, stuffed my old clothes into a plastic bag, threw the bag into the closet and rushed out of the room again.
I walked to the training grounds, tying my hair up with the blue ribbon on the way. I put my phone in a safe inside pocket.
I saw that Sasuke was already there, leaning against a tree. He hadn’t notice me so I crept up behind him. I quickly and quietly put on the mask and stretched my hands out.
Then, I gripped Sasuke’s shoulders. The reaction was priceless.
Sasuke jumped and did a little scream that sounded like ‘kya’. I was already on the ground, laughing hysterically, trying to get up. Then, in a flash, Sasuke had me pinned to the ground and a kunai was pointed at my throat.
I quickly stammered, “S-Sasuke, i-it’s me.” I took off the mask.
Sasuke relaxed his grip on me but he narrowed his eyes at me. “… I don’t believe you.”
An irk mark (the ╬ used in animes) appeared on my head and I growled. “It’s me, you stupid Duck-.”
Sasuke smirked then released me. “That’s more like it.”
I got up and brushed some dirt off my clothes. “Jeez, look at what you did, Sasuke… and I just brought them!”
Sasuke totally ignored me. “How come I didn’t sense your presence?”
“You ninjas sensed chakras, right? Well, I don’t have any charkas, okay? And that’s because I’m not a freakin’ ninja. So don’t go attacking weak innocent girls just because they scared you.”
We started a glaring contest. It was going well… until Sasuke leaned in a little. I was freaked out but kept a straight face.
Can’t… lose… this time…
I also leaned in. He did too and soon we were in a headlock, lightning flashes connecting our eyes. Midnight-blue met onyx, raven black met –
“GOOD MORNING, SASUKE-KUN! OH MY GOD WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”
Sasuke quickly banged my forehead, causing me to fall back and yelped in pain. Then, he went back to leaning against the tree like nothing happened and closed his eyes.
I rubbed my forehead and looked up. “G-Good morning, Sakura.”
Then, a dark Sakura loomed over me with red devil-like eyes and fangs, hell fire burning in the background. “CHIBA ETSUKO… WHAT WERE YOU DOING WITH SASUKE?!”
I sweat-dropped and said, “W-Well… me and Sasuke were just training for today’s mission! Isn’t that right, Sasuke?”
“Hn.”
Sakura and I sweat-dropped and surprisingly, she helped me up. “Thanks, Saku-chan!” I said cheerfully.
“Sa… Saku-chan?”
I nodded, smiling. “Let’s be friends… since I only arrived here yesterday.”
“Eh? You’re not from Konoha?”
“Nope. And it’s pretty weird here, seeing that things are not like back home.”
“I see…”
Sakura and I were then engaged in a conversation, ignoring Sasuke. Naruto showed up after a few minutes and everyone had to wait for Kakashi.
Sakura went to flirt/talk with Sasuke while I taught Naruto some games. He was very interested in the games and… well, we became BEST FRIENDS!!!
…........................................... 2 hours later…................................................
“Rock, paper, scissors!”
“Argh!”
“AHA! I won!” Naruto cheered and flicked my forehead.
“Ouch…” I said and we laughed. I saw Sasuke giving us a glare.
“Again! Rock, paper, sciss –”
“Hey, guys…” Kakashi popped up beside me.
I yelped in surprise while Sakura and Naruto yelled, “YOU’RE LATE!”
“A black cat crossed my path so I had to take the long way.”
“LIAR!”
“Anyway, let’s move on,” Kakashi said and placed an alarm clock on a log nearby. “This clock is set to noon.” He pulled out two small silver bells on dark red strings.
“Your assignment is very simple. You just have to take these bells from me. That’s all. If you don’t get one by noon, then you go without lunch –”
“WHAT?!” Naruto exclaimed.
“– and be tied and watch me eat lunch in front of you.”
Sakura and Naruto’s mouths dropped open and I watched with amusement.
“But wait… why only two bells?” Sakura asked.
“Well, that way only one of you gets tied to a poll and is disqualified for not completing the assignment. That person will go back to the academy,” said Kakashi. “Then again, all three of you could flunk out too. You can use any weapon for this assignment, including shurikens. You won’t be able to get a bell unless you have the will to kill me.”
“Not that I doubt you or anything…” Sakura started. “But do you think that it’s a good idea, sensei?”
“Yeah, you couldn’t even dodge an eraser!” Naruto said, laughing from the memory. I laughed too and we high-fived each other.
“Class clowns are usually the weakest links,” Kakashi said. “Just ignore the guy with the lowest score.” Naruto glared at him. “We’re going to start after I say ‘go’.”
Then, Naruto charged at Kakashi with a kunai. In a flash, Kakashi was behind him, holding his head with one hand and pointing the kunai at Naruto’s throat with the other.
What amazing speed… I thought.
“Don’t get too hasty,” Kakashi said. “I haven’t said ‘go’ yet.” He released Naruto and everyone, except me, took steps back.
“But it looks like you have the will to kill me now so…” Kakashi chuckled. “How can I say this? I think I’m starting to like you guys.” I smiled but Kakashi got serious again. “Get ready… and… GO!”
Sasuke and Sakura jumped back into the trees and bushes but I sat on a rock, watching the show. And Naruto was standing in front of Kakashi, looking all proud.
“Let’s have a fair match!” Naruto said.
Kakashi sweat-dropped. “Aren’t you a little weird compared to the others?”
“The only thing weird here is your hairstyle!” Naruto said angrily. I giggled softly and continued watching. Naruto charged at Kakashi… but stopped when Kakashi reached into his pocket to take something out.
“Ninja Fighting Lesson #1, Taijutsu. I’ll teach you about it,” Kakashi said, pulling out a book. Wait… is that… ICHA ICHA PARADISE again?! “What’s wrong? Hurry and come at me.”
“But… hey! Hey! Why do you have a book?” Naruto asked, clueless.
“Why? Well, I want find out what happens next. Don’t worry about it. It won’t make a difference against you guys.”
Naruto screamed angrily, holding up a fist. “I’LL BEAT YOU TO A PULP!”
Then he charged, exchanging kicks and punches but each time Kakashi caught it or dodged. Suddenly, Naruto punched empty air. Kakashi was behind him, his hand in the form of the tiger seal. 
Suddenly, Sakura shouted from somewhere to my right, “Naruto, get out of there! You’re going to get yourself killed!”
Naruto turned but Kakashi muttered, “Too late.”
“Hidden Leaf Village Secret Finger Jutsu!” Kakashi yelled as he pulled back and took effective aim. Naruto looked in horror. Kakashi shoved his finger into Naruto’s… . “A Thousand Years of Pain!”
I was already laughing hysterically as Naruto landed into the river nearby.
Suddenly, multiple shadow clones jumped out of the water. One grabbed Kakashi from behind but suddenly, Naruto was punching himself. All the Narutos disappeared, leaving one very beat up Naruto.
“You okay?” I asked, walking towards Naruto and extending a hand.
“Yeah,” he said as he took my hand. “Thanks, Etsuko-chan.”
“Look…” I said. “You need to work together with Sasuke and Sakura. That’s what this test is about.”
“It’s okay, Etsuko-chan! I can do it by myself.” Then, his eyes widened. I looked at the direction Naruto was looking at. “A BELL? He must have dropped it in a hurry.”
“Er… Naruto, you shouldn’t - ”
Naruto ran towards the bell and reached out to grab it. And before he knew it, a rope was tied to his ankle and Naruto was hanging upside down.
I sighed. “Don’t take something when it’s obvious.” I got out my Swiss Army Knife and cut the rope around Naruto’s ankle. He fell head-first. “Sorry!”
“It’s fine.” Naruto got up, rubbing his head. “Thanks, Etsuko-chan!” Then, he ran off.
“N-Naruto, wait!” I yelled but he had already disappeared.
 I gotta find Sakura or Sasuke… this is such a drag… oh my god, I’m becoming like Shikamaru!
I walked in a random direction and soon found Sakura, who was looking like she was searching for someone, probably Sasuke.
“Hey, Saku-chan.”
She turned around. “Oh, Etsuko-chan! Have you got a bell yet?”
“No. And besides, I don’t think I’m taking this test. Remember I’m not a ninja or anything like that. But I can help you get a bell… if you want.”
“Really?” Sakura exclaimed. “Thank you, Etsuko-chan!”
“But first, we gotta find Sasuke.”
Sakura nodded and we wandered around, searching for any signs of the emo-ish Uchiha. We arrived at a clearing… and saw a bloody Sasuke with kunais and shurikens sticking out of him, lying on the ground.   
“E-Etsuko, S-Sakura… help me…” Sasuke cried, trying to crawl towards us.
Sakura screamed and passed out. I also screamed but remember what happened in the anime and face-palmed. Right, an illusion…
“E-Etsuko, please… help me…” Sasuke croaked, slowly crawling towards me.
“That’s sooo not Sasuke, Kakashi-san!” I said, hoping that Kakashi could hear me. “He only calls me ‘baka’. Plus, Sasuke’s not that weak. You gotta do better than that!”
Kakashi dropped down in front me suddenly and I yelped. The fake Sasuke vanished.
“How?” the Jounin asked.
“Huh?”
“How did you know that it wasn’t Sasuke?”
“Um… I just do?”
Kakashi chuckled. “And I bet you found out about this task?”
“Yep!” I chirped. “The answer is teamwork. And why did you bring me here to the training grounds, Kakashi-san, if I’m not a ninja?”
“Like I said before, there’s something strange about you. Our hopes are to keep you here and examine you, then send you back home, if we can. The Hokage told me to discover that potential of yours because you could be very helpful to us. And I was wondering about training you to do that… hm…”
My eyes immediately lit up. “Whoa… train me to be… a NINJA?!”
Kakashi nodded.
“Yes, please! I sooo want to be a ninja. Please, Kakashi-san, can we start the training today, after this test?”
Kakashi smiled. “Okay. Man, you sure are eager. And count this test as a training too, which means you gotta get a bell!”
“WHAT?!” I yelled. Kakashi laughed and disappeared in a puff of smoke. I stood there… and realisation hit me. I started running in a random direction again.
Gotta find Sasuke, gotta find the Duck-… WHERE IS HE?! If I remember correctly, he should be buried with only his head – oh, there he is!
“Sasuke!” I stopped a few feet away from the head.
I covered my mouth, trying VERY HARD not to laugh. He looked really hilarious right now with his scowling face just above the ground. But just to be sure, I squatted down and poked his cheek three times.
“Will you stop that?” he snapped.
“So you are real… are you?”
“Of course I’m real, baka!”
“Hm… I still don’t believe you. Tell what happened between you and me this morning!”
Sasuke smirked. “You begged for mercy.”
“Fine,” I said. “So, it is you, Duck-. Then…” I flicked his forehead really hard and he yelped in surprised.
“Ouch… what was that for?”
“For banging me,” I said, using a strong twig I found nearby to dig him out.
“Hn.”
I dug for a minute then said, “Sasuke?”
“…”
“You know, we should work together to get the bells. The actual purpose of this test is teamwork. If we work together, we may be able to get a bell… maybe even all of them.”
“…”
I dug for a few more minutes until his arms were free. Sasuke grabbed my hand and I froze momentarily. I looked at his and my hand. So… different.
I had a crush on Sasuke for very long… for years. Now that I was in the Naruto world, I met him and was even on the same team as him. There’s a chance that he could be mine… and I could be his.
But there are too many obstacles in our path.
In Sasuke’s path, there was his desire to kill Itachi, his revenge. He was cold and hardly ever showed any emotions. And even if we did become together, he… he will leave Konoha in the future… a-and…
In my path, I was just a nobody to him, a fangirl in his eyes. I could die in this dangerous world of ninjas. If we ever had a relationship and if I return back to my world, both of us would be heartbroken.
This was turning out… to be a freakin’ Romeo and Juliet story! We can’t be together. And not to broke my already broken heart further… I think that I better stop talking or making contact with him too much. But that doesn’t mean that I couldn’t have some fun while doing it…
Anyway, I shook all of my thoughts away and pulled with all my might.
Sasuke fell on top of me and I immediately pushed him away. He looked quite shocked but I didn’t pay any attention to it. Not really…
“Thanks,” he muttered.
“So…?”
He looked at me for a second and said, “No.”
“But we can get one. You can’t beat Kakashi on your own. Don’t try to do things alone!”
“I touched a bell last time.”
“Yeah, I know that. Let’s just help each other! Sometimes you need to realize that you can’t do everything on your own.”
“I’m an avenger. I must become stronger than him. I don’t have time for all that.”
“But - ”
“I said no, Etsuko. So… just… don’t bother me anymore.” He walked away, leaving me behind, stunned.
Did he just… call me by my name?
…................................................. after a few minutes….........................................................
I head back to the area to see Naruto tied to the poll. Sakura was already there and I sat down between her and Naruto. Sasuke arrived a minute later and sat down next to the pink-haired girl.
“Your stomachs are growling, huh?” Kakashi asked, appearing before us. “By the way, about the results of the test… none of you need to go back to the academy.”
“Really?” Sakura exclaimed, surprised.
Sasuke smirked.
“So does that mean the three of us…?” Naruto asked.
“Yeah,” answered Kakashi with a smile. “The three of you are being dropped from the program. Permanently!”
Naruto and Sakura’s mouths dropped while Sasuke glared at the Jounin.
Kakashi continued, “None of you understood the point of this test.”
“Wasn’t it taking a bell?” Naruto asked.
I saw that Sasuke couldn’t take it anymore. He took out a kunai and charged blindly at Kakashi. In a second, Kakashi was sitting on top of Sasuke, twisting the hand with the kunai behind his back.
“Stop! You’ll hurt him!” Sakura cried, scared for her ‘love’.
“See? You’re just kids,” Kakashi stated. “You think being a ninja is easy? Why do you think we’re training by breaking up into teams?”
When no one answered, I decided to speak up. “Teamwork.”
Everyone looked at me with wide eyes.
“That’s right. If all three of you come at me at once, maybe you could have gotten a bell.”
“But why do we need to use teamwork when there are only two bells?” asked Naruto. “If two people work hard to get it, one person will have to bite the bullet. A conflict will occur instead of teamwork!”
“Of course. This task tries to put you three against each other. The situation was set up to reveal which of you would set aside your individual interests and and purposes to work together for the greater good.”
“Naruto!” Kakashi called out. “Etsuko tried talking to you about working together, even after she cut the rope to free you, but you said no! You were worried about doing everything by yourself.”
Naruto hung his head.
“Sakura! You did agree to work together but that was because you were in a hurry to find Sasuke. And you were weak not to see through the illusion and thus, fainted on the spot.”
Sakura blushed in shame.
“Sasuke… you were the worst. Etsuko tired to team up and even told you why. You refused because you thought that she would just get in the way. She dug you out but even after that, you still didn’t think of teamwork!”
Sasuke frowned a little then went back to being mad.
“Missions are done in groups,” Kakashi continued. “It’s true that ninja need to develop individual abilities but it’s teamwork that is much more important. An individual action that disrupts teamwork will result in danger or even deaths of the teammates. For example…” He took Sasuke’s kunai out of his hand and held it at Sasuke’s throat. “Sakura, kill Naruto or Sasuke dies!”
Naruto’s eyes widened in panic and he looked at Sakura, then Sasuke, then at Kakashi.
“I wouldn’t even think about it…” said Sakura. “No matter how annoying you may be…”
Kakashi put the kunai away. Naruto sighed in relief and said, “Oh, you surprised me…”
“After getting someone taken as a hostage, you will be faced with a difficult decision and someone will die,” Kakashi got up and let Sasuke go, who got up looking extremely pissed. “In every mission, you put your life on the line.”
Kakashi walked up to the strange black stone in front of us. “Look here. The numerous names craved into this stone. All these names are those praised as heroes in this village.”
“I like that! I like that!” Naruto declared. “I’ve decided that I’m going to have my name craved into that stone. A hero! I’m not going to die a useless death!”
“But they are not normal heroes,” Kakashi said.
“So what kind of heroes are they?”
The Jounin stood in silence.
“Come on! Tell me!” Naruto insisted.
“Those who were K.I.A.”
“K.I.A?”
“Killed In Action,” I explained.
Naruto’s face dropped and Sakura looked at the ground sadly.
“This is a cenotaph,” Kakashi said. “The names of my friends are craved in here as well.”
A short heavy silence filled the area.
Then, Kakashi turned to us. “I’ll give you one more chance. However, the battle for the bell will be harsher after the lunch. Eat lunch only if you’re up for the challenge. But don’t let Naruto eat.”
“WHAT?!”
“That’s punishment for breaking the rule and trying to eat lunch early. If anyone feeds him, the person will immediately fail. I’m the rule here, got it?”
Before anyone could say something, Kakashi disappeared in a puff of smoke.
...........................................................................................................................................
“I’m okay if I don’t eat. I’m okay!” Naruto said. His stomach growled. “Okay...”
I couldn’t help but giggle a little. I extended my lunch box to Naruto. Sasuke and Sakura stared at me in shock.
“B-But, Etsuko-chan! You’ll get into trouble,” Naruto protested.
I shrugged. “It’s okay. I’m not even a ninja anyway… plus, I’m kind of on a diet. And I’m not gonna let my best friend starve to death.”
Naruto’s eyes widened in complete shock when Sasuke and Sakura also offered their lunch boxes.
“Here,” Sasuke said.
“B-But Sasuke, Sakura-chan…” Naruto stammered.
Sakura smiled. “Etsuko-chan is right.”
“If Naruto doesn’t eat, he’ll only be a burden,” Sasuke said.
Stars started to appear in Naruto’s eyes. “Thanks, you guys.”
“You don’t need to thank us just hurry up and eat!”
“Okay! But… um…”
I smiled and fed Naruto a chopstick full of rice and meat. Naruto smiled back and chewed happily. Suddenly, a cloud of smoke appeared in front of us and…
“YOU FOUR!” Kakashi yelled. I jumped and Naruto started to scream his head off while Sasuke and Sakura stood protectively in front of us.
“You broke the rule. Are you ready for the punishment?” Kakashi asked scarily as he performed hand seals.
Dark clouds blocked out the sun and thunder sounded off for dramatic effect. Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura freaked out a little while I wondered if it was going to rain too.
“Any last words?” Kakashi did the last hand seals.
“B-B-But you said…” Naruto stammered. “T-That’s why the f-four of us…”
… four?
“We are a four man team, right?” Sasuke asked.
Four?!
“When we fed Naruto, we were working together!” Sakura added.
W-We?!
“Yeah, believe it!” Naruto yelled, gaining some confidence.
“The four of us are one team!” Sasuke shouted.
THE FOUR OF US?! Now, I was really confused. Did they… consider me as a teammate too?!
“The FOUR of you are one team, huh?” Kakashi asked, walking towards us. He probably had the same idea as me. Sasuke and Sakura stood their ground as I grabbed Naruto’s hand to show I was there to protect him.
“You pass,” Kakashi said happily. Everyone, except me, had a question mark above their heads. “You. Pass.” Kakashi smiled under the mask.
“Pass? Why?” Naruto asked.
The sky started to clear as Kakashi spoke, “You guys are the first. People I had previously were blockheads who just listened to what I said. Ninjas need to think beyond the normal. In the world of ninjas, those who break rules are called scum. But those who don’t take care of their friends are even worse scum.”
Sakura and I high-fived, Naruto looked like he was about to cry and Sasuke, as usual, just smirk.
“He’s… he’s kind of cool…” Naruto said with teary eyes.
“And,” Kakashi smiled. “It seems as you three had taken Etsuko as a teammate too.”
My eyes lit up. “Really?”
“Yep!” Sakura said and she actually hugged me. “Because you were the one who convinced us to use teamwork and made us pass! Isn’t that right, Sasuke-kun?”
Sasuke nodded and smirked a little.
“WHAT?! Etsuko-chan is in our team! COOL!” Naruto said happily.
“The training ends here,” Kakashi announced. “Everyone passes. Team 7, including Etsuko, will be doing missions starting tomorrow.” He gave us a thumbs-up.
“Yeah!” Naruto, Sakura and I cheered while Sasuke gave a small smile that appeared only once in a blue moon.
I was so happy that I hugged Sakura and she hugged me back. I hugged Naruto too, even though he was tied up. I tackled both Kakashi and Sasuke at once (since they were standing side by side) and hugged them till my heart’s content.
“We did it! We’re ninjas! Ninjas!”
“Let’s go home,” said Kakashi as he started to walk away. Sakura and Sasuke nodded and followed him. I did too and Naruto…
“Hey, don’t forget about me! ETSUKO-CHAN! SAKURA-CHAN! TEME!”
I laughed and ran back to untie Naruto. Then, we ran to catch up with the others. I smiled brightly as I walked beside my new friends and teammates.