Naruto Namikaze: Konoha's Golden Prodigy

Part 4: Lost Friendships, The Massacre, Sasuke's Resolve, and Sparring

Timeskip 2 years: Naruto, Sasuke, Mira, Ino, and Sakura have gotten closer over the years. They all train together, eat together, and play together. Mira, while still having a tough exterior, has loosened up a bit around Naruto, Sasuke, and Ino. She is still a bit reserved around Sakura as she doesn't know Sakura too well. Sakura did not particularly like Mira's blunt attitude and toughness, but she put up with it for the sake of her friends. Sakura during this time also started developing a crush on Naruto, as she admired his looks, radiant smile, and cool demeanor. So, she decided to tell Ino about her crush.

"Ino hey!" Sakura yelled from a distance, seeing her friend in a flower field.

"Hey Sakura, what's up?" Ino asked, excited to see her best friend looking all confident and more sure of herself. "That bowtie really suits you, you know? It shows off your best features!"

"Thanks Ino, you look great too!" Sakura could not help but acknowledge Ino's beauty. Over time, she grew out her hair to the point where she tied it in a ponytail and a part of her hair hanging over her face on the right side. All of this made Ino pretty much eye candy to many of the boys in the academy, but she had her eyes on one man. One man who noticed her before any of them.

"So anything new with you? Any boys you like?" Ino asked, hoping to spark some girl talk with Sakura. She couldn't do such things with Mira as Mira was a tough girl who thought girl talk about boys was a waste of time.

"Well, there is one." Sakura said, blushing while thinking about Naruto.

Ino got excited and jumped up "Tell me, Tell me, Tell me, Tell me, Tell me EVERYTHING! Who is it? What do you like about them? Are you going to ask them out anytime soon?"

"I'll give you one hint, it's someone from our friend group." Sakura said.

"Is it Sasuke?"

"Nope"

"MIRA?!?"

"No! I don't swing that way, what made you think that I did?"

"Wait... Is it Naruto?"

"Yes. He is just so hot! Plus his smile makes me melt every time he does it, plus his cool demeanor is just perfect!"

"Well, I also like Naruto. But just because we like the same guy doesn't mean we can't be friends still." Ino was holding onto a sliver of hope that Sakura wouldn't use this as an excuse to end their friendship. She saw Sakura as her best friend, and having that end over a guy was the last thing she wanted. But at the same time, she was in a relationship with Naruto, and she made a decision that if Sakura didn't want to be her friend even though they liked the same person, then she wasn't a true friend to begin with.

Unfortunately, the latter came true, as Sakura crushed Ino by saying: "We both like the same boy, that makes us rivals. I'm sorry, but I cannot be friends with a rival."

Even though she saw it coming, Ino could not help but feel crushed by Sakura's words. The one who she considered her best friend really ended their friendship over a petty crush. Hell, Sakura didn't even know the hardships Naruto went through, she just sees his exterior, and not the man he truly is on the inside. She broke down in tears after losing her friend. She did the only thing she could think of to calm down, she went to Naruto.

Meanwhile in the Hokage office:

"Do you understand the mission parameters Itachi?" Obito asked his most trusted Anbu member.

"Yes sir." Itachi responded.

"The Akatsuki are posing a danger to everyone. I need you to monitor their activity. I will allow you to see your girlfriend as I am not cruel, but please remember that aside from us and Izumi, no one else can know about this mission. Not even Sasuke." Kakashi told Itachi, knowing full well that Itachi might not survive this mission if he was ever found out.