"Sakura-chan, do we have to do this," Naruto asked hopefully.

Sakura sighed as she looked up from her laptop to meet his graze. All day the boy had whined and complained like a child less than half his age. She was loosing her patience. "For the last time, Naruto, yes. We need to study really hard for this mid-term."

Naruto frowned and fell backwards onto Sakura's bed. He didn't understand why he was expected to study. It wouldn't make any difference. It never did. He was just going to fail like always. "But you always get good grades on all your work Sakura-chan, whether you study or not. Last mid-term you get a B without even trying."

Aggravated, Sakura slammed her laptop shut. Why would he choose to bring up the time she failed? Not literally, of course, but still… "That B would have been an A if it weren't for you dragging me 78 miles to some lame ass hippy concert in the middle of nowhere!" With that said she successfully bitch slapped him with a throw pillow. "I had never gotten a B before in my life. I was so embarrassed, Naruto. Do you realize how traumatized my parents were when they saw my report card? Six beautiful A's and a B! My mom cried for two days straight."

Naruto rolled his eyes dramatically. Sakura's parents overreacted way too much. Thank the heavens they weren't home. Her father would kill him if he knew the boy was in his daughter's room, let alone laying on her bed. "My mother would cry too if I got a B, but they'd be tears of joy," He snatched the pillow she used as a weapon and placed it under his head. "I'm going to sleep now. Night-night."

"The hell you are!" Sakura stood up off of her bed, "Naruto Uzumaki, today I am going to help you study your butt off so you can pass your mid-term."

Naruto watched in awe as Sakura beamed with motivation and confidence. "You've got to be fucking kidding me," he sat up, took both of Sakura's hands in his and pulled her down next to him. "Sakura-chan," he placed his hands on her shoulders, "I don't know how to tell you this but…" he trailed off as he looked away from her face and outside the window.

Sakura became worried. Naruto never acted this nervous or solemn. Not even when the supermarket was out of instant ramen. "Naruto, just spit it out. You know you can tell me anything."

Naruto closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "I'm as dumb as fuck, Sakura-chan."

Sakura blinked, "What?"

"You heard me. I'm just plain stupid. It doesn't matter how much I study…or cheat, I still flat out bomb."

Sakura put a hand up, "Wait, you've cheated?"

"Yeah but that's not the point I'm trying to make."

Sakura crossed her arms, "Then what is your point, Naruto?"

"That's it's useless."

"What's useless?"

"Me studying, me putting any amount of effort into school, and you trying to help me. It's all futile." Naruto added to his dramatics by lowering his head sorrowfully and allowing his arms to fall to his sides with a thud.

Sakura shook her head and rose from the bed, "You're an idiot."

"Well duh, Sakura-chan."

"No I mean you're really an idiot if you think I'm going to believe that load of BS," Sakura began to walk to the door.

"Where are you going?"

"Downstairs."

"Why?"

"They'll be here any minute."

Naruto cocked his head to the side, "Who?"

Sakura turned around and gave him a smile. A devious one. "The other half of our study party."

Naruto stumbled off the bed onto the floor, "First off never use 'study' and 'party' in the same sentence. Second: why was I not informed about this sudden change of events? I thought it was just going to be the two of us…like a date."

Sakura placed a hand on her hip and smirked, "First: you just did. Second: you just were. Third: you were horribly mistaken, Uzumaki," and with a wink of her eye she was gone.

Naruto just sat there on the floor. He was partially confused but mostly mesmerized, "I hate to see her go, but I love to watch her leave. Especially when she's in those shorts…"

"Omigod, Sakura, Sakura!"

Things weren't going to good. At least that's how Naruto saw it. How could Sakura even think for a second that this was a good idea?

Sakura mentally smacked herself in the face for agreeing to this "study party." At first it sounded like a great idea, and actually it was still was a great idea. She just made a bad guest list.

"Sakura, are you even listening to me? You have to see this!"

Sakura sighed, "Ino, I'm busying studying for tomorrow, and you should be too."

Ino pouted, "You're so boring. No wonder you're still single, Billboard Brow."

Sakura ignored that statement and resisted the urge to throw her laptop at her frienemy's pretty little head. Ino was apparently still refusing to acknowledge Naruto as her boyfriend. Then again, they weren't official or anything.

"You know," Ino went on, "there's an article in here on how to catch a hottie in 5 days."

"Great! Why don't you go try it out?"

"Ha! I don't need to. I already have my hottie right here. Isn't that right, Sai-e-kins?"

Sai smiled and nodded nervously in agreement, "That's right my beautiful flower."

Ino blushed and squealed. Everyone else cringed. "Isn't he the best?"

Naruto sighed out of boredom. He would try to study if he could, but with Ino bugging Sakura every other minute and trying to sweet talk Sai in between, there was simply no peace and quite. Naruto leaned over towards the bean bag chair in which Sai was sitting, "Psst, Hey, Sai, whatcha got there?" He was referring to the book that Sai appeared to be attempting to hide from the girls. Naruto assumed, or hoped, it was really a hidden issue of Playboy.

Sai looked around nervously. Luckily both the girls were busy amongst themselves at the moment. Sai quickly showed Naruto the front of the book.

Naruto raised an eyebrow then his face broke out into a full blown grin, "'How to tell her that you're just not into her without getting physically harmed'? Seriously?"

Sai jumped up and placed his hand over Naruto's mouth shushing him, "Shhhhh! Not so loud."

"Uh, what are you guys doing over there?"

Naruto and Sai smiled fearfully. "Nothing, sugar bear," Sai replied taking his hand off of Naruto's mouth.

Ino went back to reading her magazine, "Well keep it down, we're suppose to be studying not playing around."

Sakura rolled her eyes, "Since when did reading a cover story on Jacob Beaver count as studying?"

"Hey, I don't see you cracking open any books either, Billboard Brow. You've just been on your laptop this whole time, probably talking to some pedophile online."

"Not that it's any of your business, Ino, but I'm doing the online practice tests that Mr. Stevens told us about."

Ino stood up exasperated, "There you go again being such a teacher's pet! I bet you'd suck his dick if he asked you to. Come to think of it that's probably how you get A+'s in his class, huh?"

It was at this point that Naruto took to silently exiting the room with Sai right on his tail. They cringed when Sakura's reply reached their ears, "You…you…YOU BLEACHED BLONDE BITCH! Everyone knows you're the biggest whore in school!"

"Okay, Sai. I have a plan," Naruto said as they descended the staircase.

"What is it?" Considering Naruto's track recorded, Sai knew nothing good could come of him "having a plan."

Naruto pulled out his phone from his pocket and began pressing buttons. "This is a study party right?" Naruto asked Sai the rhetorical question, outwardly ignoring his prior one.

"Yes," Sai replied slowly.

"Then we should party,"

"Just the four of us?"

Naruto blinked, "No, our entire class. 'Just the four of us.' Goodness, I can't be the only guy, Sai."

Sai chose to ignore the latter comment, "So what are you doing now?"

"Texting people the deits, duh," Naruto sighed.

"'Deits'? Is this really a good idea, Naruto? Sakura is bound to be pissed at you for this," Sai fidgeted with his book's cover nervously. A loud crash came from upstairs.

"Eh, she'll get over it…eventually. Besides, having a party will help those two…come to an understanding." Another loud crash was heard followed by shrieking, "I think."

"Dammit, Sakura, you've always been jealous of me!"

Sakura snorted dramatically, "Why in the world would I be jealous of you?"

"Because I'm gorgeous and have a totally hot piece of man candy, obviously!"

"Sai's gay, Ino."

"No he isn't! He loves me with all his heart and is just aching to have his way with me," Ino stuck her nose in the air and crossed her arms like a child. "Too bad for you no guy wants a flat-chested, ugly prude.

Sakura glared. "Ino you're such a two-faced, pig-headed sl-" Sakura cut herself off as a loud beat shook the house. "Ino, do you hear that?"

Ino looked puzzled, "It sounds like its coming from downstairs."

Sakura's eyes became as huge as saucers as she reached the bottom of the staircase. There, in her own living room, was the entire senior class of Konoha High. Music was blasting from her parents' vintage stereo and a keg was set in the middle of the room. "What. The. Hell."

"You can say that again. Billboard, why didn't you tell me you were planning on having a party?" Ino asked as they approached the crowd of half drunken teens.

"I didn't," was all she could say but Ino didn't hear her. The blonde had already started to make her way to her emotionally impaired "boyfriend" who was simply sitting on the couch watching a beer chugging contest.

Sakura surveyed the scene before her. Now that she was over the initial shock, she was growing more and more angry by the minute. There was only one person who could be responsible for this…this monstrosity. Naruto. Now all she had to do was find him so she could kill him.

Naruto leaned against the kitchen counter and watched the festivities which he initiated unfold before him. A huge grin spread across his face. He was so proud of himself getting an awesome party together-on a Sunday no less-in only 30 minutes. He mentally patted himself on the back. He was about to take a sip of his beer when-

"Naruto!"

"Oh shit," Naruto cussed under his breath. Part of him really believed Sakura would either be cool with this or she would never find him amongst the crowd. The way she called his name just now showed neither was a possibility anymore.

"Naruto, what the hell?" Sakura was completely flushed.

Naruto decided to play dumb, "What's the matter, Sakura-chan?" He cocked his head to the side like a confused puppy. This only made Sakura grow even redder. She hit him upside his head. Hard. "Ow, Sakura-chan, that hurt!" Naruto cupped his ear.

"Come with me, Uzumaki," Sakura demanded as she as she took hold of his other ear and led him away from the crowd and into a closet. Yes, a closet.

"Sakura-chan, I didn't think you'd want to do this so quickly-or in a closet-, but, okay!" This comment earned Naruto a fist in the chest as he started to take off his shirt.

"Keep your clothes on, Idiot!" Sakura hissed at him.

Naruto's eyes went wide with realization, "Oh so you want to do it like that?" This time he attempted to zip down his pants, "Hold on a minute while I get it out Sakura-chan."

"Naruto, I swear, if you pull it out, I'll cut it off!"

Naruto gulped. He slowly removed his hand from inside his pants and zipped them back up, "Sakura-chan, what's wrong?" Oh, that did it.

Sakura twitched, "'What's wrong, what's wrong'? I'll tell you what's wrong, Uzumaki! Our entire 12th grade class is partying their drunken asses off in my parents' living room and it's all your fault!" Sakura took a minute to catch her breath before she asked "What the hell were you thinking, Naruto?"

Naruto scrunched up his eyebrows and pouted in deep concentration, "That too much studying is bad for you (and any studying is bad for me) and that once in a while you need to just let loose. So, in conclusion, I threw an improve party." Naruto finished with a grin, clearly proud of his explanation.

Sakura rubbed her temples in frustration, "You realize my parents are going to kill me right?

"But Sakura-chan, your parents aren't even here and won't be until tomorrow night."

"That doesn't matter, Naruto. They'll still find out."

"How?" There he went giving her that puppy look.

"This house is going to be a mess, goodness, it already is."

"Then I'll clean it."

"What if something gets broken?"

"I'll replace it," he gave her a thumbs up.

"But what if-" Naruto placed a finger to her lips.

"Sakura-chan, no matter what it is, or what happens I'll take full responsibility."

"That's a first…" Sakura mumbled under her breath. Naruto and responsibility have never gone hand in hand.

Naruto got up from his current position of resting against the wall of the closet and closed the foot of space between him a Sakura. He leaned over her and put his mouth next to her ear. "How about we finish what we came in here to do," he breathed huskily. Sakura shoved him away and stared disappointedly at him.

"We came in here to talk, dummy," with that she opened the closet door to leave. Ino (and a few other classmates) were standing in front of it waiting for them to exit. Ino's arms were crossed and there was a smirk on her face.

"Who's the slut now?"

Sakura sighed as she walked past the small group, "Still you, pig-face."

Due to Naruto's "reassuring" words, Sakura allowed the party to continue. For the major part of the evening she simply sat on her couch sipping a non-alcoholic drink and watching everyone else have no-so-clean fun. But then something unexpected happened…

"HELLO MY FELLOW YOUTHFUL CLASSMATES!"

Naruto turned to the front door in horror, "Oh fuck."

"Why the hell is he here?"

"Okay, who the fuck invited Bushy-brows?"

"Dammit, I told you not to say anything."

"I need another drink. NOW."

"Here comes the lean, green convulsion machine."

"Shit, I just got finish with therapy for what happened the last time."

Those were just a few of the remarks made by the party goers as the infamous Rock Lee made his way to the dance floor. Naruto ran to Sakura beer in hand.

"Here," Naruto said as he handed her the bottle.

Sakura looked confused, "Naruto, you know I don't drink."

"Dammit, Sakura, just chug it, now!" Naruto had never spoken to her in that tone before. Usually if he had, he'd be dead by now. But instead of pounding his face in, she did as she was told.

"Y'know…it's single hand-ed-ly Broccoli's fault I haves a drink-in prob-lim…" a completely drunk Ino slurred as she rubbed up against Sai, who, incidentally, was the only sober person there. "Sai-eeeee-kins, are you ee-vin lisening to meeeh!"

Said cringed at her voice, "Yes, dear."

Ino smirked seductively, "Goooood, cuz I am totes okay with you having your way with me to-night." She allowed her hand to drift from his chest to a…lower region.

Sai smiled nervously and removed her hand, "No thank you."

Ino gawked, then she glared, "'No thank you….no thank you'? How da fuck cud you turn meh doooown? Oh dear hev-ins, you are gays, aren't chu? I should of knoooown!"

At one point they ran out of alcohol. Sadly, Rock Lee never ran out of energy. "Okay I can't take this anymore!" Naruto screamed as he all but tackled the stereo.

"Dude, what are you doing?" Kiba asked.

Naruto turned to him, completely serious and said, "I'm putting on the slow jams."

Slow songs are meant couples only and no girl (not even one drunk out of her mind) would dance with Rock Lee. So, dejectedly and without youthfulness, he departed. It goes without saying that Naruto got more than three cheers. As a slow song filled the air, he (tried to) smoothly make his way over to his soon to be official girlfriend. He was determined to receive his first kiss from her tonight and maybe even more if he was (extremely) lucky. "Sakura-chan," he held his hand out to her, "May I have this dance?"

Sakura, who at this point was only buzzed, cocked an eyebrow, "Nope."

Naruto let his shoulders fall, "But Sakura-chan," he whined. He sounded exactly like he did earlier that day only now Sakura found it cute. Oh, the wonders of alcohol. "Please," Naruto pressed his hands together, "I beg of you, Sakura-chan."

Sakura smiled at him, "Fine"

"Hehe…"

And so they danced. Sakura's arms were around Naruto's neck and his encircled her waist. There was literally no space between them and Naruto liked it that way. Sakura did too, though she'd never admit it (to him or herself for that matter). "Sakura-chan…" he breathed in her ear just as before. This time she didn't pull away.

"What, Naruto…?" she whispered.

"I think we should go back up to your room now," he said pulling her even closer into him.

Sakura smirked, "That's just what I was thinking."

"Okay, let's get started! We should have come up here a lot sooner." Sakura said with a grin as she led Naruto into her room.

Naruto smiled, "Wow, Sakura-chan, I didn't think you'd be this enthusiastic."

"But, Naruto, you know how much I love to do this."

"You do?"

"Yes. I've been trying to do this with you all day. Scratch that, all year."

"You have?"

Sakura sat on the bed and patted the spot next to her. Naruto obeyed and sat down. "Naruto, I know you're not that dumb," she with a giggle.

Naruto took this as his queue. He leaned in to kiss her, but his lips met something cold and hard. Naruto opened his eyes. There in front of him was his Algebra II text book. "Sakura-chan, what's is this?" He was about to start whining again.

"It's your text book," Sakura said slowly.

"But, but, but…"

"But what?"

Naruto twiddled his fingers bashfully. "I thought we were going to have sex," he murmured with a pout as he slumped down on the bed.

"What! Where would you get an idea like that?" Sakura now was completely flustered and pissed.

"From you! You agreed that we should come up to your room," Naruto stated defensively.

"Yeah, to study, Idiot!" The next thing Naruto knew something hard connected with his skull making him fall backwards on the bed.

"…Ouch…" he groaned nursing his head.

Sakura sighed for what seemed like the umpteenth time that day. She probably shouldn't have thrown his text book at him. Then again, maybe the information would reach his brain better that way. Hey, a girl can dream, can't she? Sakura slowly made her way over to Naruto on all fours. She couldn't believe what she was planning to do. "Naruto," she called his name in a sing-song manner trying to show there was no hard feelings.

"Sakura-chan…" Naruto was still rubbing his head but opened his eyes to see what the girl wanted. To his surprise, she was positioned directly above him. "What…are…you…do-"

"It's not like you really deserve this…" Sakura lowered herself on top of him so that there bodies were pressed against each other, "But I feel like being generous." She said with a small, timid smile and she took his face in her hands and kissed him.

"Alright, class," John Stevens' eyes scanned over his Algebra II class with a look of disapproval. All but three students unmistakably had chronic hangovers. "You may begin."

Sakura was a smart girl no doubt. She figured she'd never get any real studying done with Naruto let alone Ino and Sai. That's why she did her real studying Saturday night. She smiled to herself as she worked out every equation with ease.

Naruto, on the other hand, was not so lucky. He simply sat in his seat and doodled on his scratch paper and test. He contemplated he'd get more credit for that than nothing. In fact, he'd probably get more credit for his art than he would for actually trying to take the darn thing. All his drawings dealt with his dreams: becoming president, winning a lifetime supply of instant ramen and having Sakura say "I love you" to him. Yeah, he knew they sounded cheesy (especially the last one), but hey, a guy can dream, can't he? When Mr. Stevens gave the five minute warning, that's when he started to come to his senses and out of his hangover wonderland. Unfortunately, what he decided to do wasn't the best choice he could've made. He looked to his left. He looked to his right. He looked dead on at Mr. Stevens. No ones eyes were on him. Slowly he scooted his entire desk two feet over to where Sakura's was. Giving her the best puppy-dog look he could muster he silently inquired, "Sakura-chan, what's the answer to number 6?"

At first the girl twitched out of annoyance then she sighed and continued to work. She smiled smugly as she replied, "I'm not telling you. Figure it out for yourself, Naruto." Amazing she didn't sound mad or irritated. Every word sounded like a note from a beautiful melody. So, in short, she was mocking him.

Naruto pouted, "But, Sakura-cha-"

"Is there a problem, Mr. Uzumaki?"

Naruto sat up straight and smiled nervously, "No, sir."

"Good. I'd much appreciated it if you and your desk returned to your appointed spot."

"Yes, Mr. Stevens, sir…" Naruto responded gloomily as he scooted away from Sakura.

Sakura let a smirk come across her face as she stole a glance at her boyfriend. "You know, you should have studied," was all she said as their eyes met. Naruto couldn't help but smirk back.

"What was that, Miss Haruno?"

"N-nothing, sir,"

THE END…?

YES, YES IT IS!