This story is a different take on the basic premise of my Cougar story: the unusual and unlikely relationship that occurs between Naruto and Nao. I had been toying with the idea of revisiting that storyline for quite a while because honestly I don't care too much for the unfocused approach I took to writing that story. When I received a private message from someone requesting a rewrite, that was the nudge I needed to just jump right in and do it. I am using the OC Nao again, but the story will be quite different from the other. So here we go...

INTRODUCTION

Nao was sitting on the front steps that led into her shop. She watched a herd of the village children run by, all of them laughing and yelling at each other. So young and carefree...and happy. She envied them. Her childhood had been taken away from her when her mother died two years ago. At the age of fourteen she had been forced to take over her mother's shop so she could take care of herself. Thankfully her mother had been training her to be an herbalist and shopkeeper practically since the day she had been born. Her extensive knowledge gained at an early age had spared her from being trapped in the village welfare system that supported the orphans of Konoha. Sighing deeply and wallowing in a bit of self-pity, her eyes landed on the little blonde that had been left behind by the pack of wild children. She watched him walk past with his head hanging low, looking sorrowful and dejected. Lonely; he looked so incredibly lonely walking by himself down the street kicking random stones. She could hear the occasional sob and sniff as he continued on his way to find the others.

"Hey, are you looking for your friends?" Nao asked, giving him a sympathetic smile. His eyes mesmerized her; so big, so blue, and so full of hurt. Tears had made streaks through the dirt on his face.

"They're not my friends," he sniffed, wiping his arm over his face which turned the tears and dirt into mud smudges.

"Oh? Why not?" she inquired, waving for him to come over. She patted the wooden step next to her in an invitation for him to sit down.

"They don't like me. They say I'm a demon. They throw rocks at me and call me names," he sobbed, fresh tears flowing down his cheeks.

"Are you?" She put her finger under his chin to raise it and make him look at her.

"Am I what?" His sapphire blue eyes filled with confusion.

"A demon," she said, her eyes following the path of the stray tear that zigzagged down his cheek.

"No...yes," he corrected, averting his gaze from her kind eyes that were the color of leaves in the spring.

"Which is it?" She released his chin, and he turned his head away from her.

"I don't know." He sighed noisily, stomping his feet on the step beneath them in frustration.

"Come inside," she invited him, standing up to open the door. She allowed him to walk in first, then followed. Picking him up beneath the arms, she hugged his little body briefly before sitting him down on one of the bar stools at her counter. He was so small, so thin. "How old are you?"

"Eight," he answered, clutching the seat between his legs as if he were afraid he might fall off. He watched her pour water from the cast iron kettle over the fire into a deep wooden bowl. "How old are you?"

"It's not proper to ask a lady her age," she reprimanded him, taking a washcloth from the cabinet beside the stone fireplace.

"I'm a kid. I don't know what's proper. How old are you, lady?" he repeated boldly, staring at her with his over sized blue eyes.

Nao smiled, dipping the washcloth down into the hot water. She squeezed out the steaming water not noticing the temperature. Cupping his chin, she raised his dirty face to study it. "You're going to pay for asking that question little brat," she muttered, forcing her lips down into a frown. She wanted to giggle from seeing the abject terror rush into his eyes when he realized he was about to be cleaned up. "I'm sixteen."

"AAAAHHHH!" he screamed, turning his head from side to side as she commenced to scraping off the filth.

"What's your name?" she questioned him, dipping the washcloth again and squeezing out as much dirt as possible before going at him for a second round.

"Na-Na-Naruto," he sputtered, struggling uselessly.

"Oh! There's a cute little boy under all that muck!" she exclaimed once she had managed to clean off his face thoroughly. Her fingers traced the three black streaks on one of his cheeks. She had heard of this little boy who they claimed was the holder of the fox demon. He looked about as vicious as a cute fluffy kitten.

"Hmph," he muttered, poking out his bottom lip in a pout as he narrowed his big eyes to angrily glare at her. A blush had painted his whisker marked cheeks a bright rosy red. "What's your name?"

"Nao," she replied, glancing at the bowl full of muddy water. Her eyes scanned his hands which were still very dirty. "Go wash your hands, and I'll give you a treat," she promised, pointing to the door of the bathroom that was just down the hall. She was not beyond a bribe to get him to agree to get clean. Besides, the poor little thing looked as if he had not eaten in days, and he was as light as a feather.

"Oh, boy!" he exclaimed happily, rushing to clean his hands.

Nao smiled to herself as she made her way to the kitchen at the very back of the shop. She also lived here. It was not a palace, but it was a roof over her head and the commute to work was convenient. All she had to do was walk out of her bedroom and she had arrived. Reaching into the cookie jar shaped like a big fat toad, she took out three of the chocolate chip cookies she had just baked this morning. Occasionally she would bake things and sell them or give them away. Pouring him a glass of milk, she returned to the shop up front to find him sitting on the bar stool waiting for her. Setting the plate down in front of him, she patted him on his head covered with golden spikes. She kept silent as he inhaled the cookies and milk.

"Want more?"

"Oh, yes, please!"

"At least you're polite sometimes. Stay right there. I'll be back."

Naruto was not the kind of child to always do what he was told. As a matter of fact, he hardly ever followed instructions. He slid from the bar stool to investigate his surroundings. His eyes scanned over the myriad of glass jars, vials, and tins that were filled with all sorts of leaves, powders, and liquids. Standing up on his tiptoes, he reached for a bottle of black and grey powder. He rolled the bottle between his hands to examine the powder inside before pulling out the cork. Bringing the little jar to his nose, he sniffed. His nose began to burn and his eyes watered. Then a tickle started deep in his nose before he sneezed loudly. He grimaced, quickly corking the bottle and returning it to its shelf. Wiping his nose on his sleeve and sniffing, he continued his exploration. His fingers dredged through the baskets full of wheat, rice, and other kinds of grains. There were jars containing nuts and dried fruits, a few of which he sampled. Once he was done investigating the shop, he strolled down the hall where she had disappeared. He knew a bathroom was behind the first door. What lay behind the second door?

Carefully pushing open the door with his fingertips, he jumped when it creaked loudly. Once it was completely open, he walked inside uttering a mesmerized "Wow." He had found her bedroom. Almost closing the door behind him, he decided to take a look around. There was a large futon covered with black and white blankets and a big fluffy pillow at the head of it. White curtains surrounded the bed along with heavier black curtains that had been pulled back. A big white wardrobe sat against one wall and a simple writing desk and chair were on the other side of the room. His hands pulled apart the see-through white curtains so he could get to the bed. He laid down, rolling up in the black blanket that felt like soft fur. For the first time in a while, he felt warm and relaxed - content. His eyelids grew heavy, and he felt a bit light-headed. Closing his eyes for a second could not hurt. He was sound asleep in less than a minute.

Nao returned to the counter with not only a refill of milk and cookies but a steaming bowl of vegetable ramen. She knew he needed real food and good nutrients so she had taken the time to prepare him something healthy to eat.

"Naruto?" she called, setting the tray of food on the counter. She searched under tables and in the cabinets for him, calling his name. The bathroom was empty so she looked outside. Nothing. If he had left, he would be long gone by now. "Hmmmm...now where could he have gone? Oh, well..." she mumbled to herself, picking up the tray to return the food to the kitchen.

On her way back up front, she noticed her bedroom door was open just a crack. She saw that there was a large lump in the middle of her bed. A lopsided smile tilted her lips when she saw the blond spikes poking out of the top of the rolled up black blanket. She went to him, kneeling down beside the human caterpillar on her bed. Peeling back the cover, she revealed his cute face that looked so incredibly sweet in sleep.

"Sleep well," she whispered, kissing his forehead. "You're not a demon. You have one locked inside of you. There's a difference."

Please don't complain about the length of this chapter. It is the introduction for pete's sake. Thanks for reading!