Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.
The Gift That Matters Most
Nagato sat by the fire, his arms wrapped around his knees. Today was supposed to be a holiday, a time of joy and comfort, but he just felt like crying. They had taken shelter in an abandoned shed, and rain dripped through the leaky roof. The only food they had left was one turnip and a loaf of bread that was going moldy at one end.
Some Christmas, he thought to himself.
Yahiko had left a while ago, promising to come back with some food for them. Konan was huddled in a corner, her back turned to Nagato and hunched over something he couldn't see. At times like this, Nagato would normally have taken comfort in Chibi's presence, but the puppy was out with Yahiko. Nagato sniffled and hugged himself tighter.
The door banged open, and Yahiko burst in, face flushed with excitement. Chibi followed him in, trotting over to Nagato and yapping enthusiastically.
"Guys!" As usual, Yahiko's voice was much louder than the enclosed space warranted. "Guys, look what I brought!" He opened the dull brown, much-patched satchel that he carried his few belongings in, revealing a few potatoes and carrots. Compared to the lonely turnip and moldy bread, it was practically a cornucopia.
Konan looked up from whatever she was doing, and her face lit up. "We could make a stew with those!" she suggested. Nagato's stomach rumbled at the thought of food, but he felt no happier. How come I can never do anything to make Konan smile like that?
"That's not all!" Yahiko declared triumphantly. He reached into the satchel again, and reverently lifted out a small package wrapped in wax paper. He pulled back the edges, and Nagato gasped.
"Is that beef?" Nagato couldn't remember the last time they'd had any meat that wasn't fish (that, at least, was plentiful, since Amegakure was built over a huge inland sea), and even that was usually a little past its prime.
"Uh huh," Yahiko answered, the pride radiating in his voice.
"How did you get that?" Konan asked.
Yahiko ducked his head, and scratched the back of his neck with the hand that wasn't holding the meat. "I kinda stole it," he admitted. "Chibi was barking and jumping around and wagging his tail, and the guy running the butcher's stall was yelling at him to get away. So while he was distracted, I swiped this and ran." He drew himself up to his full height, as if defying his two friends to scold him. "That guy totally has plenty to eat, otherwise he wouldn't be so fat! And he never gives us anything when we ask nice for it, even now when people are supposed to be generous!"
Konan smiled. "I wasn't going to blame you, Yahiko," she said softly. "I'm just glad you didn't get caught. I wouldn't want you to get in trouble because of us."
Yahiko grinned at her. "Don't you worry about me! I'll always take care of you guys!" He held out the lump of beef towards Konan. "Consider this my Christmas gift to you."
Now it was Konan's turn to duck her head and blush. "Actually, I have something for both of you, too," she said. She stood up and approached the two boys, with her hands hidden behind her back. Slowly, she brought them forward, revealing a pair of paper flowers.
Everything was scarce in Amegakure these days, especially for three war orphans. Konan had long ago given up most of her stash of paper to use as kindling for fires to keep them warm. But she had held onto a few fliers she scavenged from the city and made origami from those, folding and smoothing and re-folding them over and over until the paper was soft as cloth and frayed at the edges. It was two of these precious sheets of paper that she held out to them now in the form of flowers.
Yahiko accepted his flower with a smile and an uncharacteristically quiet, "Thanks, Konan."
Unlike his friend, Nagato made no move to take the flower Konan was offering him. Instead, he laid his forehead down on his arms, hiding his face.
Yahiko blinked at him. "Nagato? What's wrong?"
"I..." Nagato's voice was muffled by his arms, but it was obvious that he was distressed. "I don't have anything for either of you."
Yahiko and Konan looked at each other. "That's okay, Nagato," Konan said. She tried to press the paper flower into one of his hands, but he pulled away.
"Don't you get it? I'm just a burden to the two of you! I can never do anything! Konan, you hoarded that paper and kept it safe for months to make those flowers, and Yahiko, you got us food! Even Chibi helped, by distracting the guy at the butcher's stall. I'm the only one who can't do anything for you guys!"
"No, Nagato, that's not true!" Konan's eyes were wide and starting to fill with tears. "You're not a burden! You're our friend! Just having you here with us is a big help." She knelt down beside Nagato and threw her arms around his shoulders.
"Yeah, she's right," Yahiko added. "Friendship is a way more important gift than anything else. We can always steal more food or paper, but you can't replace friends."
"...Really?" Nagato lifted his head, revealing a tear-stained face and red-rimmed Rinnegan eyes.
"Really," Yahiko said decisively. "You don't have to give us stuff, Nagato. You've already given us a lot, even if it's something we can't see or touch."
Konan nodded. "As long as we're together, we can overcome any hardship. Even if we're cold and hungry and poor, we'll help each other get through it. But all the gifts in the world wouldn't matter if we didn't have each other." She hugged Nagato tighter. Yahiko set the package of meat down on a crate and laid a hand on Nagato's shoulder.
"I..." Nagato tried to swallow back his tears. "Thank you..."
I'm so lucky, Nagato thought later, as the three of them sat around the fire eating their stew. I'm so lucky to have friends like Konan and Yahiko. Someday, I'll be able to repay them for how kind they've been to me! I'm going to become strong enough to protect them both! The stew was delicious, and the paper flower was beautiful, but Nagato thought that the acceptance and understanding of his friends was the most precious gift he'd received.
A/N: Happy Holidays, everyone!