News flash people: SF88's here with another Naru/Yugi One-shot, which might develop into a multi-shot. Now, before anything else can be said, I want to address a few things that you readers should be aware of. This is loosely AU, one of the differences being the fact that Yugito is not twenty-nine years old. She's younger I'd say maybe around the same age as Temari; which I think is reasonable if I do say-so myself. If you disagree, well sorry but that's what I'm going with. With the knowledge of this being an AU, you'll see that certain things haven't happened yet and all that jazz. I'll leave it to your imagination when it concerns the timeline in cannon; but for a heads up Pein didn't attack Konoha so I'll leave you, the readers, to think of a timeframe if you absolutely need to have one.
So, with all things being said, on to the story!
I don't own Naruto: If I did, Yugito would still be alive and fornicating with Naruto by now...
Evening hours are generally depicted in two different manners dependant on the individual in question. To some people, evenings were quiet and relatively uneventful; passing the time until slumber truly claims them by means such as watching television or reading some literature. To others, the evenings were when they were most lively; bar hopping with associates and friends or through certain other means of entertainment that inevitably consumed large portions of time. To the youth, the latter was a more common practice that was taken as 'staying at home' was much less appealing thing to do. Older individuals, though occasionally taking part in those activities themselves, found the idea of the staying at home a much more alluring than wasting funds and time on such trivial events.
When it concerned one Uzumaki Naruto, despite popular belief, he tended to spend his nights at home during the evenings. To be fair, it wasn't the fact that he didn't wish to join his peers and enjoy himself into the wee hours of the morning. Far from it actually, as he would love nothing better than to join them in those events and share some memories of his youth with them. The fact remained though that Naruto wasn't always fortunate when it concerned funds or time like some of his friends were. Being a Genin while the rest of his peers were Chuunin or higher made the process of gaining funds much more tedious than he would have liked; even if his skills did rival and even surpass his said peers who were of higher rank than he was.
It sucked, as he often complained it did, but it was just how things worked and there was little he could do to change it until the next Chuunin Exams came around.
But that wasn't the only reason he didn't go out at night. There was another reason that surpassed his lack of funds or time that made him stay at home. Fact was, it was the only real reason that he never complained about staying at home in the first place; and that reason was in the form of a person named Nii Yugito.
Said woman in question was sitting in his living-room, her body coiled up between the cushion and arm of the couch, her shamisen resting in her lap while she half-heartedly strummed on the cords. Not even a room away stood Naruto, his arms folded on top of the counter-top as his eyes stared impatiently at the stove which had his still cooking ramen to be ready. Neither party was in their standard attire; Yugito dressed in a simple white shirt and loose pale purple sweat-pants while Naruto was merely garbed in a black shirt and green shorts. To these two, this was a rather nightly event that played out just the same as the night prior. Some would call it monotonous and, both parties themselves would be inclined to agree that it indeed was; given someone would need to explain what monotonous meant to Naruto. That still didn't mean that they cared at all, it was just how their nights tended to go since Yugito's arrival here.
You see, with Akatsuki having made such a bold action as attacking and kidnapping the Kazekage, Sabaku no Gaara, other villages who bore a Jinchuuriki or two took matters into their own hands in regards to protecting them; less Akatsuki attempt to capture yet another in an equally bold manner as before. While Kumogakure was no slouch, extra precautions were done for the sake of ensuring that neither of their Jinchuuriki were captured during these troubled times. It was for that reason that Yugito had been paired up with Kumo's other resident Jinchuuriki; Kirabi. With their position being a close-guarded secret, both individuals had been safe from discovery for a substantial amount of time. Course, even a closely guarded secret was bound to be uncovered eventually; both Jinchuuriki and the Kage himself knew this much. So, with that being said, the Raikage imposed on an idea which would both secure the safety of his weapons along with his village. His solution is what ultimately lead to Yugito being where she sits today; in Naruto's, at first, unwilling, care.
The specifics behind how the woman had been put into Naruto's care were largely unknown to the young man. Politics wasn't really his strongest suit and Tsunade felt it was easier to just go with the short, sweet, and simple way of explaining things to him; by telling him to shut up and deal with it.
Course, that had been almost three months ago and in that time four Akatsuki members were now dead; one of which was largely due to Naruto's own actions. Yet, even with the demise of several members, Akatsuki was still a large threat to them all, though their consequential lack of attaining any of the other Jinchuuriki since Gaara simply proved how serious the villages were taking the Akatsuki threat. The fact remained though that, throughout this entire time, Naruto was the caretaker of his fellow Jinchuuriki and, personally, he didn't mind it as much as he had before.
Hell, he had come to accept the woman as one of his friends. Course; having met her, he had also come to known of Kirabi as well. The difference between the two was that, unlike with Yugito, Naruto and Kirabi were rather fast-friends and had bonded pretty quickly. When questioned as to how people who should be considered enemies could bond so well; the answer would quickly become common knowledge upon seeing the two together in one place.
Sakura's own words basically summarized the two's quick friendship:
"It's because they're both idiots who annoy the hell out of everyone."
Course, another close bond that was shared was between Gai and Bi, something which surprised a number of people. Course, when you put into consideration the reason behind Naruto and Bi's quick bonding, it can just as easily be said that it would be a similar case with those two. Gai was a man of great patience, yet could annoy even the unflappable Hatake Kakashi to no end at times. It just went without saying that with Kirabi's terrible 'rapping' skills and Gai's willingness to expand his challenges to his 'hip rival' it could be easy to deduce the result of that concoction.
Naruto thought the rapping duo was awesome; he just couldn't see why everyone else despised it so much.
With Yugito, however, the task of becoming her friend was one that took significantly longer than it had been with Bi. The woman was, as he put it, pretty stuck-up. Course that was generally how she was raised and not something that could be helped. Being a highly respected Jounin of Kumogakure along with being a Jinchuuriki of the Nibi entitled her to a lot of well deserved respect. When she was 'given' to Naruto as her charge, her first statement had been a rather distasteful regarding being put into the care of a mere Genin; Jinchuuriki or not. This was what created the distain between the two in the first place, which lasted a good portion of the first month of her stay in Naruto's care. She didn't like it, but she could accept things as they were despite her objections. Naruto, however, made his displeasure of her presence pretty clear to all those who bore witness to their interactions together; having found her remarks regarding his capabilities and treating him as inferior to her quiet an annoyance.
But, with time, Naruto had come to let that go and simply make do with what he could. He didn't know why, but something about Yugito had changed during the final course of her first month's stay in the village. What had happened; he had absolutely no idea. All he knew was that she suddenly grew interested in some of the things he did in his spare time aside from training. Like the gardening that he personally enjoyed doing, having caught her once observing the potted plants he kept near the window-frame by his bed. But it wasn't just potted plants that she grew interested in; as she soon started asking questions that he personally didn't expect her to ask.
It had started as just random tidbits of conversation created out of boredom that was shared between the two. From simple questions such as past missions to more compelling questions such as love interests; course these questions did have a threshold that wasn't crossed when it became too personal. Neither realized it at the time, but those bouts of question and answers tended to last for pretty long durations of time; sometimes going into the early mornings with just idle conversation. With each night that passed new questions came up, more time just spent talking to one another, which ultimately lead to more than just talking at home. Within the beginning of her second month's stay in Konoha, Naruto and Yugito were seen in each other's company, talking away with whatever thought came to mind; be it food or hobbies. Soon after, it escalated into training; which ultimately allowed Yugito to see firsthand that Naruto was indeed not as she originally pegged him as.
Eventually, with the bond between them steadily growing much better, Naruto formally introduced her to the rest of his friends. While she had no real intention upon her arrival here to make acquaintances, she soon found herself being compelled into doing so despite herself. While it was to be expected that she would get along well with the Jounin's, with the only real exception here being Gai, she did generally find herself comfortable in the presence of the other's as well. While she was indeed comfortable in their presence, that did not mean that all of them were comfortable in her's; something which she could understand with all things considering. The rather stained history between Kumo and Konoha was not something to be ignorant about when you consider the fact that two Hyuuga were among the list of people Naruto considered friends. They had done their best to hide it, but the discomfort was still present; along with a commendable amount of restraint in regards to anger. With those factors now known, Yugito had taken to declining any invitation that had been given to her in regards to getting to know the entire group. Being uninterested wasn't the entire reason that she did not participate, nor was the discomfort that was shared by two Hyuuga the reason either. The thing that really turned her off from the idea was the fact that Naruto was not partaking in the events himself; nor was he ever invited to join them in the first place. Of course, she wasn't aware of the fact that they had, on numerous occasions, tried to do so only for it to end with Naruto's decline to join. They just gave up after so many attempts, though sometimes still taking a shot at getting him to participate, but Naruto himself had his reasons; most of which revolved around the lack of funds to go out and enjoy himself to the fullest.
It was for that reason that, most of the evenings, she found herself mostly in the confines of Naruto's apartment, if not conversing than simply lounging around and playing her shamisen. Even after nearly three months of time together, Naruto found Yugito's hobby to be a rather pleasurable to listen to; having not ever really heard people play the instrument that often growing up. He had once asked about learning how to play and quickly discovered he sucked at it. So he simply took to enjoying the tunes that Yugito played during the course of the evenings when she decided to play. Nights such as this, which brings us back to Naruto's position now on the floor, noodles slowly being consumed in a quiet pace as Yugito continued to play without a care in the world. One of the things he took to understanding was that slurping loudly while she played wasn't the way to go.
You could say whatever you wanted about Naruto, but one thing that could not be said was that he was inattentive to things he found enjoyable. That was a conclusion which Yugito herself had come to over the time spent with him. Not a single moment in the entire time she played did he divert his attention away from her; not once. The way his eyes would switch from each of her hands as she struck and manipulated the cords, or the fact that a few stands of noodles would fall from out of the cup and onto his shirt. Even if she didn't know him as well as his friends did, she knew enough about him to know that if he's spilling ramen of all things, than she truly had his undivided attention. If she were to be truly honest with herself, the fact that she was getting such unspoken praise was flattering. As for Naruto, well he was just enthralled in the music she was creating and how well she played it, in his eyes. It was new to him, something he had never heard before, and that was all it took to have him hooked to it.
"You know," Uttered the woman, breaking Naruto out of his dazed state of mind; making him almost spill whatever remained of his ramen. "As much as I enjoy an audience, you don't need to make a mess in the process of listening."
At this statement, Naruto's gaze turned puzzled before taking in his own appearance; only to let out a grunt of annoyance as he picked off the noodles that had fallen onto his shirt. This actually erected a light chuckle to escape Yugito's lips, which was soon joined by Naruto's own sheepish laughter as his left hand rose to scratch the back of his head.
"Y-yeah, kinda got distracted for a minute there." Responded the young man, still looking rather embarrassed about his little blunder with the noodles. "Can you blame me though? I mean, I've never heard someone play with that thing before and to me that sounds pretty sweet."
Yugito couldn't suppress the small smile from forming on her lips even if she tried. Most of the time, she did this in private without any sort of audience that would actually appreciate the music she created. She knew she was a skilled shinobi, the respect that she had gained in Kumo was proof enough of that fact alone. As a shinobi, she knew she was skilled; but when it came down to her hobby she had always considered herself sub-par at best. Fact was, the only people that even knew she played the Shamisen were close friends and Kirabi due to their time together before coming here. Of course, just because they knew she played it did not mean that they knew if she was good at it or not. So, to her, it was a pretty nice to know that she was at least decent enough at something outside of her profession. Even if it did come from a young man who had claimed to have never heard someone play the instrument before.
"Thanks." Despite how she felt regarding his statement, her tone betrayed her in a ways; making it seem as if dismissing the complement entirely.
"I'm serious!" At this, Naruto was no longer concerned with the ramen anymore and the grin that was plastered to his face instantly caught her attention. "Even if I had heard someone else play that thing, I'll bet all the ramen in my cabinet that you're better than them."
Not even a second after this statement was made; the sound of Yugito's laughter filled the usually quiet apartment. She was laughing not because of how outrageous his statement was, if anything she was quiet flattered by it. But the fact that he would bet ramen of all things over something so trivial as her skill in an instrument was simply too much to endure without cracking up just a bit. At this point, the said instrument was removed from her lap and onto the vacant spot beside her on the couch. As her laughter began to die down, she took note of the confused expression that was planted onto Naruto's face, his grin no longer present and his facial expression clearly displaying his curiosity.
"What?"
Yugito didn't really respond to that statement, merely chose to shake her head before stretching herself out where she sat, causing the her shirt to hike up slightly and thus expose her naval. Naruto, still confused, merely pouted at her response but just let the matter slide and rose to his feet himself; his intent being to dispose of the now empty cup of ramen.
"Oh, I forgot." Was the statement that could be heard from Yugito not but a couple feet away from his person. Clearly able to hear the shifting of her body on the sofa, he guessed that she had turned to face his back from her position on the couch. "Some of your friends gave me and you an invitation to go out with them tonight. They said they told you already, but you said no."
Confusion was still present on his face as he tried to recall exactly who could have asked him about an outing this evening. After a few moments time, the memory returned before shrugging off the question with a simple word. "So?"
"So," Responded the woman, her gaze was something that Naruto could, honest to god, feel when directed onto him. In addition to that, the way she dragged the word longer than she should have was sending off warnings for questions he was not sure he was going to like. "Care to explain why?"
Once again, Naruto merely shrugged his shoulders in response before turning to face the woman, the same grin once more plastered onto his face as he faced her. "Cause if I didn't, you'd have been stuck here by yourself all night. I wouldn't want ya to be stuck here bored out of your mind if you didn't go and I wouldn't want ya to force yourself to go to avoid being stuck here."
It was here that Naruto actually took notice of the fact that only the top portion of her head was visible to him. He was not mistaken about the fact that her eyes were locked onto his form, though the lower half of her nose and face remained hidden behind the cushion. But with the way that a single eyebrow of her's was cocked upwards was pretty obvious, even to him, that his answer had confused her in some way. Though, he personally didn't see how or why she would be confused in regards to his statement. As the resident of this apartment, Yugito was a guest in his home; and Naruto hardly ever had guests stay in his home for longer than a few hours at most, minutes at least. Sad fact was that, as Jiriaya had more than likely mentioned somewhere down the lines, Yugito was the first girl –no, an actual grown woman– to even stay in his home for longer than a few moments. Even Sakura had never been in his home for anything longer than a few minutes. Yet here Yugito was, sitting in his home in her night-wear, chatting with him as if they had been roommates for a number of years now.
Upon entering that train of thought though, Naruto's thought process soon shifted in a direction which he would result in a number of mental curses towards not just himself, but to that damnable sensei of his for exposing him to his stupid perverted thoughts and tendencies over the course of the three years they spent together in training.
Yugito, however, didn't really take the time to ponder the grimace that formed on the fellow blonde's face as he stood there mentally bashing his foot into the wall. Her thoughts were more focused on something else, something she had come to accept when it came to the young man in front of her. Despite how he seemed, despite a good portion of things regarding him that she head heard since her stay here, Naruto was not by any means selfish. It was one of the things that his teammate had mentioned during one of the few instances in which the two spoke to one another. And she could clearly see that he wasn't, hell anyone who took the time to know him as his friends have would be able to reach the same conclusion. He supposedly never did anything that could possibly hurt anyone he considered close to him. He would suffer any pain that threatened to be inflicted on someone else, lift the burdens of others off their shoulders and carry it himself, and he supposedly never went back on his word. At the time, she found such things as just bravado and nothing more than that; which was something she admittedly felt guilty about now that she knew the truth behind the orange-clad Genin. She was not ignorant of his status either, nor was she ignorant of the village's disdain towards him in his youth. That knowledge had been the first real wake-up call that drove her to try and understand more about the young man in the first place. That knowledge, compiled with the knowledge gained by his teammates and friends, all lead up to painting a picture she never expected to see in someone like him.
Being exposed to that selflessness, no matter how trivial it was, only served as a reminder that Naruto was indeed a unique individual given his profession. A killer who shouldered burdens, took the blame for other's weakness, experienced pain to protect another; those things and so much more made Naruto a very interesting piece of work. If she could, if she truly honestly could, Yugito would have been very interested in seeing where this selfless persona had originated from and what spurred on to grow into the man he was today.
Even with the only facial feature visible being her eyes, had he been paying attention, those same sharp eyes displayed a warmth that was not seen very often; even in her own home.
"You're entitled to at least enjoy yourself every once in a while." Commented the woman, the lower portion of her face no longer being hidden by the cushion any longer, but instead covered by her folded arms that were now perched on top of the cushion itself. "Don't let me staying here keep you from enjoying time with your friends Naruto."
Hearing her statements, both of them, caused Naruto to pry himself away from the rather perverse thoughts that were slowing rising to the surface to at least listen to her. Though, upon hearing them, Naruto's gaze turned flat as he stared back at the woman on his couch, who was still peering at him from where she sat. He himself couldn't see the glint of warmth in those eyes that she unknowingly had this entire time, only the same flat stare that he was now returning back towards her. The only difference really was that Naruto's emotions were like an open book, and they were currently sending the woman a signal that pretty much spoke for itself. But, as Yugito had come to realize, his title of 'Most Surprising Ninja of Konoha' made reading him and knowing what his next words would be impossible to determine.
"I'm with a friend right now aint I?" The way he had said it made it seem like it was the most obvious thing in the world, as if he really shouldn't have needed to say it in the first place. After which, his infamous grin once again returned full force. "I enjoy myself a lot just hanging out here with you; so I don't need to go out to have a good time. Besides, I'm still not leaving you here alone while I go and have fun on my own. You're my friend too Yugito-chan, and I'm not gonna leave you behind."
The silence that followed this statement, aside from the slight chuckling from Naruto of course. For Yugito, however, the silence didn't signify anything at all really. She just had very little to say about that statement, if nothing at all regarding a retort. If there was one thing she could note, however, it was that Naruto was observant if nothing else. Had he noticed that her presence, to this day, was still the cause of his friend's discomfort? If that was the case, than it would explain why he was always here with her on nights such as these. It had been the sole reason for the entire time she had been here that she hadn't accepted one invitation that was offered to her. It wasn't that she cared about it, but these were Naruto's friends, people he had grown to cherish and care about since the moment they accepted him into their lives as someone important to them too. She didn't want her presence there to ruin that friendship that he had taken so long to finally attain just by considering her one of those people he cherished so much. She didn't want her status here to ruin everything he tried so hard to gain only to lose it all solely due to association with her.
She couldn't let that happen.
She wouldn't let that happen; not after what she had been told.
Course, what she didn't know was that Naruto was still, by all accounts, an idiot who simply didn't want to leave his new friend alone.
But, that's beside the point.
The silence that had been quick to claim the two of them was abruptly brushed away with a sigh that had escaped the woman's lips as she pushed herself back up from the couch, leaving the Shamisen where it laid as she walked around the sofa and towards the bedroom, the bedroom that they both shared with the additional bed added to the opposite wall adjacent to Naruto's own. In doing this, her path was bound to cross Naruto's, given the fact that the small kitchen that made up his apartment was directly across from his living room; if it could be called a kitchen that is. Still, Naruto watched with a confused and slightly worried gaze, unsure if something he had said had upset the woman in question if her sudden retreat to the bedroom was of any indicator. However, just as her from was about to pass him and his mouth opened to question her on this sudden retreat, the woman did something that actually made anything he was about to say and every thought that was to be conceived vanish in an instant.
And that was in the form of a rather quick, short, sweet, and simple kiss right on the lips.
The instant she pulled away, her cheeks slightly tinted with a rosy hue, she offered the young man the smile that had been hidden and masked this entire time.
"That's for being a sweetheart." Was the statement of pure, absolute, truth. There wasn't any special requirement for something like this, not in her eyes at least. Of all the tales he had shared with her, from his greatest victories to his most devastating defeats, from his pranks as a child to overcoming the challenges that came with adulthood. All those tales, all those times, and never once in those stories had she heard of him getting a reward that was deserving of all he had done for those around him. Wave Country named their bridge after him, the Kazekage, along with Suna as a whole, was eternally in his debt. While useful and honorable on many levels, she just didn't feel as though that was enough. Nothing was enough for all the good he had supposedly done. And she believed every word now, after-all no one had yet to say that any of those tales weren't true.
She now understood why the Hokage had told her what she had two months ago, why she felt the need to tell her the things regarding Naruto that the people around him had just started to take note of.
She claimed, in her own words, that Naruto had a gift; a gift that wasn't about fighting, wasn't about getting an upper hand against another. It was the simple, yet powerful, gift of changing people for the better. The power of change and she could honestly say that she was now a firm believer in what the Hokage had said.
Because, as subtle as it was, she too was beginning change. For better or for worse, she didn't know nor care; that was something that would come with time. For now, though, this would hopefully suffice as a great enough reward; even if he himself didn't know why he got it in the first place.
"Don't ever change, alright?" It wasn't really a question, if her tone was of any indicator at all. It was a demand more like, but that all depended on how one viewed this situation. "I like the Naruto I'm looking at right now the way he is."
And just like that, without waiting for any confirmation at all, she swept past his still frozen form. Only his eyes had followed her as she disappeared into the bedroom they shared that was immersed in darkness. She didn't need the light to see through the dark; a passive trait that he had soon discovered she had over the course of her stay. That, or she was just that fucking skilled as a kunoichi; which wouldn't surprise him at all considering she is a Jounin. Yet, even after several long moments passed him by, Naruto had still yet to move. The only movement that was made was the opening and closing of his eyelids in rapid secession. Dumbfounded beyond all belief regarding the events that had played out just a few moments ago; his mind desperately trying to wrap his mind around what Yugito had just done. Why had she done that? Why kiss him? What did he do to deserve that? How was he supposed to deal with this in the coming days? So many questions, so many things that were traveling through his brain at this given moment that he honestly had no fucking answer for.
He honestly didn't know when he sat himself down onto the couch in his living room. Honestly, he didn't even remember moving in here. But he was here now, he was just sitting here; in a bit of a daze and outright baffled. Sure, he had gotten a kiss from Tsunade once but that was more in a motherly kind of fashion rather than the one Yugito had just given him. He was NOT counting his accidental kiss with Sasuke in this at all; fact that was a memory he was wishing to burn out of his memory forever; along with that entire day for that matter. As small, as minor, as insignificant and petty as it could be considered, Naruto's mind simply could not tear itself away from that random action that she had performed. Nobody had done something such as that to him; not a single soul had done that and it was just messing with his head severely.
The sudden movement of his left hand abruptly resulted in a familiar noise beside him; something which had been quick to finally jolt him out of his thoughts. It was Yugito's Shamisen, apparently his hands had brushed against the cords when he moved a moment ago. The strum did help, if only to provide him with a distraction for the time being, as he reached over and picked up the instrument. With it now positioned in his lap, his deep sapphire spheres examined every inch of the device; having never really done so when he first tried to play it. Damn thing looked so simple; yet when he had done it he could not produce the same music that the fellow blond had displayed not even ten minutes ago. It was annoying, but it was also something he found neat. With only three strings the woman could create such music that he personally found quite enjoyable. It only took three strings to create such an amazing sound, three strings that could fill this usually empty and quiet apartment with music that he was never privileged to hear.
Three strings, three, damn, strings to have him captivated into the melody that was created.
One of these days, hopefully before her time in his care was over, he was gonna learn how to play this damn thing. That though alone, was enough to erect a bit of a stained smile before picking up the instrument along with himself off the couch and outdoors; specifically heading for the roof.
No use trying to play the thing when the woman who owns it was trying to sleep now is there?
And there we are, something for those Naru/Yugi fans can enjoy. The One-Shot itself was actually inspired by a song that I had the oddly sudden urge to listen to; and once I heard it I though of this. Song was The Way I Are, Timbaland; shoot me if you wish but fuck you Keri Hilson was hot in that video.
Also, to those who are familiar with my work and such, I'm throwing this information out there for you. The purpose of this was so I could get my creative spark back, for it seems I may have lost my touch over the years. For the massive stalling, the lack of information regarding my status and all the waiting you have put up with; I don't know what to say in that regard. I would apologize but that kinda seems pointless since I still can't promise anything and it would be half-hearted. I don't apologize half-heartedly, so all I can say is that I'll see how this idea of mine works. if I get my creative spark back, maybe I can finally overcome the writers block that has been kicking me in the quads since my last update.
In my closing statements I will state that this has not been beta'ed and any grammatical or spelling errors that are found will be adjusted the moment I am made aware of them. Also, I would honestly like some feedback on how I made Yugito appear in this, since she's still a bit of a wild-card in my eyes. I think I did a good job, but that's not for me to decide; hence why there's that nice little button that says 'review' at the bottom there.
You know, the one you click after putting forth your opinion in the text box above it?
Yeeeeah, that one: Click it.
