run-ins and birthdays
Everyone at school was dumbfounded to see Naruto trading in his casual, sporty street shoes for plain school shoes the next day, and when Neji scoffed at his appearance in homeroom, Naruto did his best to ignore the snickers from the Hyuuga and his cronies.
Iruka-sensei gave him a whole earful in the counseling office for missing three days of autumn term already, catastrophizing about Naruto’s potentially never being able to graduate ever and dying alone on the street, a miserable headline in the Tokyo papers, but he knew secretly deep down the tan man with a scar across his nose was just happy he was trying. Iruka had attempted the “let me share our similarities to motivate you” speech a number of times, and even though Naruto still thought school was pointless, and he rolled his eyes at Iruka’s attempts at motivational speech, he did appreciate the genuine sense of care. Between Iruka-sensei and Jiraiya, that care was the only sense of adult support Naruto had in Tokyo. And now Iruka was poring through his transcript, lamenting his bizarre grades, and sent him off to his next class weeping in his office.
As much as he was a bad student, he really didn’t want to come off a complete idiot in front of Kakashi-sensei their first meeting. So for the first time ever, Naruto really sat there in his classes, and tried.
In the past, he had passed his classes through his tremendous powers of bullshit or annoying the teacher so much that they just did what they could to pass him through as quickly as possible. Now, he listened to their boring lectures. Even if he didn’t understand why someone was right, he at least noticed who was right. Even though the teachers sniffed when they passed his desk and saw a series of complex and near unintelligible drawings, he really did attempt to make connections and make sense of the work.
But god, did it suck.
Sakura and Sai were pleasantly shocked by the sudden turnaround in Naruto’s behavior. They asked him what had happened as they ate lunch together on the school rooftop. “Just seemed like something I should finish properly, I guess,” he muttered. Sakura had squinted at him with suspicion, but also offered up her support. He yelped when she clapped a hand on his shoulder—that crazy pink-haired girl had near superhuman strength.
“You’re gonna break my collarbone!” he whined.
“Yes, do remember Naruto has a delicate, fragile composition, Haruno-san.” Sai said as he daintily sipped from his vending machine bottle of lemon tea.
“Shut up Sai!”
Tuesday couldn’t come soon enough. But the coffeeshop was busy on the weekends and Shikamaru had finally returned from his business trip, so they all had dinner together at Chouji’s restaurant. Naruto tried every night before bed to look through his homework, and attempted a fair number of assignments on his own, but it was just a lot to keep track of.
By the time Tuesday rolled around, Naruto practically flew out of the school building to rush for the subway station, nearly knocking over some classmates in the process.
“Sorry!” he yelled, but he knew he didn’t sound very sorry at all, the sheer delight in his voice unmistakable. He certainly knew his joy was infectious, as the customers all seemed to walk away blushing or in a daze, struck by his energy. He didn’t mind. He was going to see Kakashi-sensei today.
But five o’clock came around, and the professor was nowhere to be seen. Maybe he was running late, Naruto thought, and took the time to clean up the coffeeshop. By 6:45, he was starting to get discouraged. Maybe that guy was just being overly polite. He could have just been honest, that stupid old man—
A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts and it creaked open to reveal a masked man smiling sheepishly.
“You’re late!” the words left him before he could help himself, but Naruto indeed was frustrated. “I was getting ready to go home!”
“Heh, apologies, Naruto-kun. I got lost on the road of life.”
“What the hell kind of reason is that?” Naruto grumbled, but he sat back down at the long rectangular table where the contents of his backpack were strewn about.
The man stepped into the shop, and draped his army green suit jacket and leather bag over a chair. He looked just as charming as he did the week before, in a navy-blue shirt and black slacks. Kakashi loosened his tie, deep red color with a geometric asanoha pattern, before running a hand through his hair.
He’s…kinda hot, Naruto thought to himself with a wince.
“What subjects are they starting you off with? Aren’t you a third year?”
The blond shook his out, snapping out of his ogling. “Uh, yeah. It’s all the usual stuff. Social studies is gonna kick my ass though.” He pushed his textbooks across the table. “We’re covering civics, economics, and political science through the winter and it’s so boring. Too many details,” he whined. His short stint at genuinely attempting school had actually helped him to relax for most subjects—he liked mathematics, where it felt like one thing was meant to just lead into another, and while ancient kanji was a pain in the ass, the rest of Japanese literature was kind of fun. His science teacher hated him but that didn’t stop him from performing lab experiments correctly—in the end, barring some small explosions. “Please tell me you teach social studies at Tokyo Polytechnic.”
The older man laughed, flipping through the books. “I suppose here is where I quit, then.”
“Seriously? What the hell? And here I thought maybe I’d actually pass high school…” Naruto dramatically crumpled into his hands. “I thought all professors were smart.”
Kakashi chucked even more. “If you worked with my colleagues, you certainly wouldn’t think that. Lucky for you though, Naruto, I graduated first in my class in senior high, so maybe not all hope is lost.”
Blue eyes picked back up and Naruto shot out of his chair. “Yes! Let’s do this!”
The silver-haired man shook his head. “Have I told you you’re all over the place?”
“Un!” Naruto nodded. “But you’re a pervy professor, so you’re weirder.”
“Hey now…”
“Anyway, let’s get started. What the hell is civics? Isn’t our government useless?”
“Well, I can’t disagree with you, but the trick to social studies is that you always want to see the greater systems at play. For example…”
Some hours passed like that, as they navigated Naruto’s tedious assignments, and the blond was captivated by Kakashi’s pleasant and easygoing teaching. If all his teachers were as interesting as Kakashi, maybe he would have done better in high school. The professor was clearly experienced, and Naruto learned that school was boring for him because everybody got caught up in pointless details. When Kakashi talked about the greater impact these topics had on society or people, Naruto couldn’t help but be invested. That laws made by people who seemed just a short walk away in the Metropolitan Building could have huge effects on Anko’s job stability, or his morning commute from one district city of Tokyo to another. Kakashi even was faintly impressed by Naruto’s bizarre notes, which took the blond by surprise.
“My teacher glared at me for not doing it the way everyone else does it, orderly and shit.”
“Your teacher’s missing out on the connections you’re making, Naruto. Not bad.”
Naruto couldn’t help but beam the whole time.
So late summer became autumn. Naruto still got bad marks at first. Kakashi had sighed deeply when Naruto pulled out his first assignments, low numbers affixed to the top of each one. Naruto had never really felt shame about them before, but now in front of a proper tutor who cared about him, he didn’t like those numbers associated with him in front of this man he wanted to do right by.
Kakashi had to teach him how to take a test, and Naruto didn’t even know that was something you had to learn. He learned how to breathe and focus on one question at a time, how to make memory patterns to help him chunk information, etc. He finally understood why Sakura came up with elaborate mnemonics for exams, or why Sai always rewrote his notes rigorously the days leading up to a major exam. He didn’t like those things and teachers were still perplexed why he refused to do school the way everyone else did. But slowly and surely, his marks started to improve.
School itself didn’t necessarily feel any better, but at least it wasn’t such an unbearable burden anymore. Even if his tedious teachers started to treat him like less of a pariah, deep down Naruto knew that nothing compared to that hour and a half with Kakashi-sensei every Tuesday evening.
It didn’t mean all his habits changed, however.
It took six weeks and the first set of major exams before his constant wheedling finally convinced Sakura to skip school the Friday before his birthday, as a celebration. Sai didn’t have any issue with ditching classes at any point, but he said Naruto was too annoying to spend time one-on-one, it was more entertaining to see Sakura eventually punch Naruto when he became too much, and Sakura would ultimately be the one to sweet talk them out of trouble should anything go awry.
The trees in Tokyo were just starting to shift color but many were still a waning yellow-green. Sakura of course had set pretty much the entire day’s itinerary, but the boys didn’t mind since Naruto just wanted to be away from the oppressive classroom and Sai hardly ever cared for anything other than his very specific interests. The trio had a delightfully slow brunch at a hip new spot in Ikebukuro where Sai continued his search for the jiggliest, fluffiest pancakes in all of Tokyo. (This one was A-class, excellent buttery sweet flavor with a solid jiggle while maintaining its pancake shape, but not quite the S-class of the dessert café they had tried in Naka-meguro last spring. Sai had spent the week after that in a meditative silence, having transcended this meagre existence.)
“So. Again,” Sakura declared as she finished the last bit of millionaire’s bacon from her meal. Naruto remarked to himself that she looked very pretty and mature in her loose, off-the-shoulder sweater dress in a pale green that matched her eyes. Her trim legs were covered in dark green lace tights covered in a red rose pattern, and today she pulled her shoulder-length light pink hair into a loose bun. He rarely saw Sakura on the weekends since he had work and she spent the weekends at cram school, piano lessons, or otherwise preparing for college entrance exams somehow in her pursuit to become a doctor, so it was nice to see her looking comfortable outside of their Konoha High school uniform. “We’re going to the Kawaii Flea Market next—no groaning from either of you!—and that record store so Naruto can finally buy that vinyl he wants, and then midday karaoke in Ueno until Sai can’t sing another song…or we run out of money! And then Ichiraku Ramen to top it all off. Naruto, are you really drinking another cup of coffee? It’s a wonder you ever got tall.”
The blond shrugged after he nodded his gratitude at the server for his second cup. “What? They use a good espresso here. You know I never feel the caffeine and ‘sides I don’t drink coffee when I’m working, which is most days, you know.”
“He’s constantly revved up as it is,” Sai quipped. The pale-skinned artist opted for a thin black jacket over a black button down and black skinny jeans, his non-school uniform. Oftentimes he was approached by shy young girls in Harajuku who asked if he was part of a visual kei band, to which he always responded he had no interest in music or feminizing himself for the sake of young women, to which the girls always sighed, unable to hear his actual words over their infatuation.
“Shut up Sai.”
The flea market wasn’t as bad as Naruto thought it would be. Even though it was clearly middle-aged and older women and the occasional oddball with a clear penchant for hoarding, Naruto found himself enjoying the open-air market as people offered their wares. It wasn’t as cutesy as the name suggested, though that didn’t stop Sakura from squealing every few minutes at another thing that caught her eye. The air was cool and fresh and the sun was easy on their shoulders. Sai was immersed in a conversation with an old man about his calligraphy brushes, and the pale young man had pulled out his own portfolio of ink-brush paintings from his bag. Naruto stretched and sighed loudly, the taste of freedom clean on his tongue.
“Didn’t realize the weekend started early, Naruto.”
Chills ran up his spine as Naruto recognized that cool, pleasant voice. He turned around to face none other than Hatake Kakashi, his placid face somehow terrifying as he smiled too easily at Naruto.
“Are classes not in session today, Na-ru-to-kun?”
“Hey you’re ditching school too, sensei! I can tell because you’re wearing work clothes!”
At that Kakashi looked down at his outfit and blinked. It was only another beat before that masked face completely transformed, and the smile on his face was much more comfortable. “Maa, I suppose you’ve caught me. I may have skipped my faculty meetings to find some…”
“You just skipped your meetings because you were bored,” Naruto accused again.
When Kakashi seemed to completely crumple in his charcoal colored twill coat, the young blond felt fully in his power, leering with delight. “Well, I won’t tell if you won’t tell.”
“Fair enough.”
“Narutooooo!! Look at these cool earrings I found!” Sakura bounded over and launched herself into her best friend’s face, dangling her new wares in front of him. It took her a moment to notice that he had still been looking past her at Kakashi, at which point she turned around. “Oh. Hi! I’m Haruno Sakura.” She bowed.
Kakashi returned the gesture. “Hatake Kakashi. Nice to meet you.”
“Do you know Naruto-kun?” Naruto wanted to blush, as he could hear the protective edge in her voice. “You’re not one of those guys always recruiting him into the host clubs, are you?”
“Oh?”
“Sakura-chan, serio—”
“Have I seen you around? Have we had words? You look familiar!” The pink haired young woman leaned forward and squinted at the professor, who was growing meeker by the second. If Naruto had thought he had any sway over the older man before, it was nothing compared to the power Sakura exuded over him now. Birds fled from nearby power lines.
“Sakura-chan! He’s my tutor! The one I see on Tuesdays!”
And just like that, the coolness of the autumn air returned. “Oh!” she exclaimed, smiling sweetly. “Why didn’t you just say so? Thank you for getting my friend back on track.”
At that, Kakashi and Naruto smiled shyly at the same time.
“Well, we’re hardly at the midpoint of your semester. We’ll see if he stays on track. He can barely stay on track for one tutoring session.”
“Hey!” Naruto cut in.
The pink-haired girl laughed. “Well all my bullying didn’t make a difference, so I think you’re doing okay. Please continue to take care of my friend!”
“I'll try my best. But I will leave you two be. Have a good day, Naruto-kun. Haruno-san.”
The two watched his back disappear into the crowd. When he was out of earshot, Sakura sighed loudly. “I like him,” she declared.
“Sure didn’t feel that way at first,” the blond grumbled. “And why’d you have to bring up the host clubs?”
Her voice took on a singsong quality. “Oh, I’m just testing the waters.”
“For what?”
“Oh, nothing much. Just confirming things you’ve said. Or rather, how you’ve said them.”
“Huh? You’re weird, Sakura-chan.”
“Dumbass. Let’s go find Sai. Let’s buy you some records and then I want to spend the whole day singing!”
The three of them had a splendid day cutting classes, ordering snacks and singing loudly, awfully, in unison, in chaos, until they ran out of money and it was time to go home.
The Tuesday after was Naruto’s birthday. Sakura had tackled-hugged him in the morning and Sai provided glittery confetti for the occasion, as well as a broom and dustpan to clean up before Principal Sarutobi yelled at them. The day was uneventful otherwise, aside from a crew that included Hinata, Lee, and Kiba joining them at lunch to just eat together and make fun of their favorite screwball Naruto. In his corner of the classroom, Sasuke had huffed loudly but everyone ignored him. Other than that, it was a normal Tuesday for Naruto, which included work at the café and tutoring with Kakashi-sensei.
If he was being really honest with himself, he hadn’t wanted to ditch school the day of his birthday for reasons other than wanting a convenient three-day weekend prior. Sakura had made a strange ‘hmm’ when he told her he wasn’t going to cancel his tutoring session but said nothing further when he asked her why she made odd noises.
Kakashi came late as usual, but surprisingly earlier than the norm. They got straight to work on reviewing Naruto’s recent science exam. About an hour in, there was a knock at the café door.
“Happy birthday Naruto!!” shouted Ino and Chouji as they popped their heads in. Shikamaru trailed behind them, carrying a small gift bag.
“Are we interrupting?” Ino said in a suggestive tone, her eyes honing in immediately on the professor at Naruto’s side.
“Just trying to get Naruto to graduate,” Kakashi chirped. “I’m his tutor.”
“I hope he isn’t being too troublesome,” Shikamaru offered.
“Just troublesome enough.”
“Sorry we’ve been so busy with school and work, Naruto!” Chouji said on their behalf. “We wanted to say hi real quick though before we all went home.”
Shikamaru handed the bag to the birthday boy, who opened it immediately to pull out a plotted plant, a video game, and two instant noodle cups. Naruto grinned.
“Thanks, guys.”
There was some light chatting, but soon enough the Ino-Shika-Cho trio said their goodbyes, leaving it just Kakashi and Naruto again. It was quiet now, and pleasant for the most part, but Naruto could sense Kakashi-sensei had something on his mind.
Finally the professor spoke up. “You could have told me it was your birthday, Naruto. You could have taken the day off, spent it with your girlfriend.”
“Girlfriend?” Naruto balked.
Dark eyes blinked. Then blinked again. “Not that pink-haired young lady? Haruno-san?”
Naruto made a face. “No way! I had a crush on her in middle school but then we got older and she got scary. Besides, I wanted to spend it here, with you, sensei!”
The blond said it with such ease that he hadn’t thought about it, but as soon as surprise and a faint pink blush crossed Kakashi’s face, he felt a vague confusion. Why would Kakashi-sensei react like that?
“I see. Well, I guess we should make the most of it then.” Kakashi clapped his hands together. Naruto was still confused, but he went with it, and they eased back into a comfortable dynamic. When it came time to go home, for the first time ever, Kakashi offered to wait until he closed up the shop and they could walk to Shinjuku station together and take the same train. Naruto lit up, delighted, and again that blush crept back up Kakashi’s face. The blond decided he liked the blushing. The walk was quiet and they didn’t talk the rest of the trip as Kakashi opted to read his book and Naruto put his headphones on. The train was empty since it was late, and they sat next to each other peacefully. When it came time for Kakashi to disembark, he tapped Naruto lightly. The boy pulled off his headphones.
“I’ll see you next week. Happy birthday, Naruto.” It seemed like it was awkward, uncomfortable even for Kakashi to say the words. But that didn’t stop the Uzumaki from grinning ear to ear.
“Thanks, sensei.”
With that, Kakashi gave him a two-fingered salute goodbye, and stepped out.
As he leaned against one of the poles in the train and watched Kakashi’s back as he disappeared into the crowd, his gift bag from his friends in hand, Naruto decided it had been one of his better birthdays in a long time.