Well, so far most people seem to be enjoying the changes I've made, so here we go with Chapter 2!
Gina glanced at the rear view mirror and tried to hide a soft smile at the sight of her grinning sister. "Is he still sleeping, Bri?"
"Yep, he's still out like a light. That or he's enjoying the fact that I'm letting him use my lap as a pillow too much to move." Brianna giggled softly as she slowly ran her fingers through the sleeping blonde's hair, her thoughts turning to all the fun 'activities' she planned on introducing the shinobi to over the next few days.
"Well considering what happened, I'd say he deserves a rest." Britanny yawned loudly, her hands resting behind her head as she stared out of the car windows. "All that crazy stuff he did in China probably took a lot out of him, kinda like how some of Mom's techniques can only use a few times before she's wiped out."
Nodding her head slowly, Gina squinted at the dimly lit screen built into the car's dashboard. "Maybe, but I think over six hours of sleep should be enough for him to be able to move under his own power. We're almost home so it's time to wake him up, Brianna."
Grumbling softly at how unfair her sister was being, Brianna gently prodded the sleeping blonde's cheek. "Hey, Naruto, wake up, we're almost home." After several seconds of silence, Brianna poked the blonde once more but the results were the same. Eyes narrowing in suspicion, Brianna gently rolled the shinobi on his back and began to curse at what she saw. "Oh shit! Sis, you better step on it, something's wrong with Naruto!"
Stomping down on the accelerator, Gina spared a glance at the rear view mirror. "What is it? What's wrong!?"
Brianna instantly began taking note of the blonde's symptoms, her concern growing stronger by the moment. "Slow pulse, pale skin, how could I have not noticed this before..."
"Brianna, focus!" Tearing her eyes away from the man in her lap, Brianna fearfully met Britanny's determined gaze. "Stop worrying about what you've missed and worry about how we can help him."
"Y-you're right. Thanks, Brit, I needed that. I think... I think we should take him to mom and dad."
"Bring him to mom and dad? We're trying to help Naruto," Gina said, her voice taking on the a sarcastic tone as she brought the Ginamobile down to the street, the car's powerful engine revving loudly as they tore down the deserted road.. "Not get him killed by our overprotective father!"
"Considering Dad hired him to protect us," Brianna retorted angrily. "I have the feeling that he'll be safe! So stop arguing and get us to the mansion!"
Chapter 2
Naruto groaned softly as he awoke to a painful throbbing at the base of his skull. Naruto paused for a moment as he took stock of his situation, old lessons from his youth forcing him to use all of his senses to determine where exactly he was. 'Let's see, it feels like I'm in some kind of liquid, there's a breathing mask on my face, and... am I naked?' Opening his eyes, Naruto looked down and let out a sigh of relief at the sight of his boxers, the blonde turning his attention to the dimly lit room he found himself in. 'Well, how nice of them to leave me my boxers when they put me into the regeneration chamber, those girls are all heart. The last thing I remember was heading back to Atlanta, I must have passed out...' Frowning for a moment, Naruto closed his eyes and took stock of his chakra levels. 'Hmph, chakra exhaustion. I really shouldn't be surprised, I used up a lot of power during that rescue and I'm not an unlimited well of chakra at the moment.'
Taking a moment to study the dimly lit infirmary, Naruto let out a soft bark of laughter at the sight of Brianna asleep at a nearby desk, her head resting peacefully on her arms. Bits and pieces of equipment were strewn across the workspace, not to mention a large amount of empty food wrappers and water bottles. 'Huh, looks like someone was worried about me... how long was I out for?'
Tapping the glass gently, Naruto watched his minder slowly stir, her arm sending several pieces of trash falling to the ground as she slowly began to wake. Blinking tiredly, Brianna turned towards the regeneration chamber and gave the floating blonde a half-lidded grin before closing her eyes once more. Ginning happily, Naruto folded his arms against his bare chest and watched as Brianna's eyes suddenly flew open, the half were-cheetah tripping over her two feet as she tried to stand and race towards the regeneration chamber's controls at the same time. "ACK!" His grin widening even further, Naruto waited patiently as Brianna lay twitching on the ground. Moments later the young clone pushed herself off of the floor, a bright blush staining her cheeks as she glared at the grinning shinobi. "Not. A. Word."
Raising his hands in surrender, Naruto watched as Brianna approached the console at a more sedate pace. After several moments all the fluid in the chamber had been drained away, the glass barrier silently sliding into the floor at Naruto's feet. Pulling the mask from his face, Naruto took a deep breath of the cool air and let out a relived sigh. "Whew, it feels good to breath fresh air again. Thanks for letting me out BriOW!" Naruto let out a strangled yelp as Brianna reached over and slapped him in the back of the head, the shorter man glaring angrily at the cat girl. "Ow! Don't hit a patient! What kind of doctor are you... you..." Naruto's voice trailed of as a pair of arms gently wrapped around him, his head resting against Brianna's breasts as she slowly ran a hand through his damp hair.
"Do you know how scared I've been over the last few days, Naruto? You just appeared out of nowhere, saving my sisters and I and then when we got home you wouldn't wake up. When we couldn't find anything wrong with you we panicked and took you to mom and dad, we didn't know what else to do." Naruto blinked slowly as he listened to Brianna, the blonde's arms wrapping around the half were-cheetah as she sniffled softly. "Dad told us that you should be fine, that all you needed was rest. And now that you're awake I think it's time I thanked you for saving all of us."
Pulling Naruto's head from between her breasts, Naruto's eyes widened as Brianna leaned forward and softly kissed him, her arms wrapping around the stunned man's neck. Naruto's eyes widened in surprise as he felt another pair of arms wrap around him from behind and pull both of them towards a nearby bed. "And don't forget about me, Naruto-kun."
Breaking the kiss, Naruto looked over his shoulder in surprise and was met by Gina's sultry gaze, the shinobi's mind spinning as the back of his knees hitting a bed and he was pushed onto his back. "What's gotten into the both of...wait a minute, when did you change clothes!?"
Brianna and Gina giggled softly as they stood at the foot of the bed, dressed in matching silk slips. The clinging fabric did absolutely nothing to hide the girl's charms from their prey as both girls leaned forward and slowly crawled towards the frozen shinobi. "Don't you like them, Naruto-kun? We wore them especially for you."
Naruto opened his mouth to respond when a third person at the foot of the bed cleared their throat, the blonde's eyes widening in panic at the sight of a stern looking Theodore Diggers glaring down at him. "Am I interrupting something?"
"Wait, it's not what you... hang on a second... ohhhh, you clever bastard!" Naruto shook his head slowly while both of Theo's daughters rubbing happily against the annoyed shinobi, ignoring the presence of their scowling father. "You're peeking in on my dreams! Does your wife know you're a voyeur?"
Scowling at the blonde's remark, Theo let out an annoyed sigh. "It'd probably just turn her on more, you know how she is."
"Yes, I do. So was there something important you wanted," Naruto said as he wrapped his arms around the giggling women leaning against him. "Or can I get back to my naughty little fantasy?"
"You've been out for three days, the girls are getting... concerned. So I think it's time that you wake up, wouldn't you agree?" When Naruto didn't immediately respond, Theo's head faded away and a flaming skull appeared in it's place.
"Alright, alright! You're such a meddlesome killjoy." Swearing softly, Naruto closed his eyes and the world around him faded away in an instant, a room in Theo's mansion and the owner of said home smirking at the prone blonde once he opened his eyes again.
"So tell me, as their father should I be worried that you're dreaming about my girls?"
"Oh come on," Naruto said with a groan as he slowly sat up in his bed. "We're all single so what's the harm in a little dream like that. Besides, it's not like that would happen in real life. Both of them sharing me, as if." Rising to his feet, Naruto grimaced as he slowly stretched his tense muscles. "How did I end up here anyways?"
"Julia and I were about to retire for the evening when our daughters brought you here, they felt that since you knew us that we may be able to explain what had happened to you. After a through examination I realized that you'd gone past your limits, again."
Arms falling to his sides, Naruto gave Theo a meaningful look before nodding. "It wasn't by choice, things kinda spiralled out of control when I ran into something that I never expected to see again from home. I haven't used that much chakra since... probably since the war."
"Well then maybe it's time to think about retiring, you've done more than enough to earn a break." Naruto cocked an eyebrow at the Arch-Mage, the two men staring at each other for several moments before they laughed out loud.
"Very funny, now where's your wife? I need someone to help me work out my stiff muscles, a little workout with her is just what the doctor ordered." Naruto smirked at the arched eyebrow Theo sported at his choice of words, the blonde turning towards the nearby closet in search of his clothing. "Don't give me that look, I'm fine. Really, I am."
Frowning at the blonde's words, Theo gestured towards the open doorway with a put upon sigh. "She's out practising in the forest in her usual spot. I know you won't listen to me, but I think you really need to take it easy." Naruto fixed the Arch-Mage with a silent stare as he zipped up his long sleeved shirt, his forehead protector hanging loosely from his hand. "Ok, never mind, go ahead an get yourself beaten to a pulp. Just try and keep the collateral damage to a minimum, the last time you let loose I had to regrow half of a forest. But before you go, when do you want to tell the girls that you're alright?"
"I dunno, I was thinking maybe over dinner?"
Gina growled angrily as she continued typing away at her keyboard, the lines of code flashing before her eyes causing her mood to plummet even further. "When I get my hands on Naruto, I'm making him put everything back the way it was before he got into my systems."
Stifling a giggle, Brianna rose from her seat and looked over Gina's shoulder. "Let's see... forged accounts, security overrides and back doors, surveillance footage... hmmm, he has been a bad boy, hasn't he?"
"I don't know," Gina said as she glanced at her grinning sibling. "I'm withholding my judgement until after I open the video surveillance folder."
While Gina hesitated at opening the folder, Brianna reached over her sister's shoulder and clicked on the icon. Both women blinked in surprise at the sight of a text document. "One text file? What the heck... " Tapping return, Brianna and Gina both giggled softly at the words on the screen.
AS IF, YOUR DAD WOULD KILL ME. WELL, HE'D AT LEAST TRY :P
Gina snorted loudly as she held in her laughter, the young genius smiling as she met her sister's gaze. "Ok, I admit I may have been a little worried. But it looks like Naruto didn't do anything creepy, he was just... through." Signing loudly, Gina's grin faded quickly as her mood became sombre at the thought of the blonde who had saved them. "Bri... d-do you think he'll wake up soon?"
"Oh, sis." Wrapping her arms around Gina, Brianna rested her cheek against the top of sister's head and held on tightly. "Dad said that he'll be fine. When has Dad ever let us down?"
Her hands clinging to her sister's arms, Gina let out a soft bark of laughter. "Never."
"That's right, never. So stop worrying about Naruto, he'll be fine. Now, how about you tell me what's really bugging you?" Gina winced softly at her sister's demanding tone, but before she could respond the phone on Gina's desk started to ring. Both girls shared a look before Brianna released her sister and grabbed the phone. "Hello? Hey Dad, we were just talking about you. Uh huh. Yeah, I think Brit and Strype are around. Dinner, tonight? Yeah, that should work. Fancy, why fancy? Really? Well, I think we can do fancy just this once. Ok, we'll see you then, bye!"
While Brianna placed the receiver in it's cradle, Gina waited until Brianna turned towards her before giving her a questioning look. "I'm guessing that we have plans for dinner tonight?"
"My word, this must by why they call you a genius!" Giggling softly as Gina gave her a soft whack on the arm, Brianna stretched her arms overhead and let out a self satisfied groan.
"Brat. Mom want's us to dress up?"
"Yes she does," Brianna said as she placed a finger against her cheek. "Something about an old family friend showing up, they said he was someone that we should have met years ago but circumstances prevented it. Apparently he has something to do with continuing an old tradition."
Eyes narrowing in suspicion, Gina thoughtfully stroked her chin. "Hmmm, who could it be? Someone from Jade? Or maybe someone Dad worked with when he was younger?"
"All I know is that Dad said to be there for 7. Although there was something strange going on in the background..." Brianna paused for a moment and returned to her terminal, her fingers swiftly typing in a line of commands while she focused on her screen. Gina waited patiently for her sister to finish her task, the young genius remembering how annoyed she would get when someone interrupted her during one of her contemplative moments. Finally after several moments of silence, Brianna let out a triumphant sound before motioning for Grin to join her.
Leaning over her sister's shoulder, Gina's eyes narrowed as she read the information displayed on the screen. "Seismic activity in the area? What's so important about... wait, that can't be right..." Reaching towards the keyboard, Gina typed in several more lines of code before giving her sister a surprised look. "A localized seismic anomaly in the woods surrounding Dad's house? That shouldn't be possible..."
"Yep," Brianna said as she leaned back in her chair. "It wasn't that powerful, so I doubt that there's trouble. But let me ask you this, who else have we met recently that can cause the ground to shake like that?" Gina's eyes narrowed for a moment before she looked at her sister happily. Brianna grinned at Gina before shrugging her shoulders. "It's just a guess, but you have to admit it makes sense."
Gina let out a happy squeal before she turned to the door and raced out of the room. Brianna took her time to slowly rise from her chair, the half were-cheetah stretching languidly as she watched her sister exit the lab. "Sorry, sis, you've only put off our conversation. But for now, I think it's time to raid my closet..."
Several minutes earlier...
Smiling fondly as he made his way deeper into the forest surrounding Theo's home, Naruto felt a brief pang of homesickness at the sight of the trees towering over him. As he passed a tall oak tree the shinobi let his hand slowly caress the bark, the last known Sage of Mount Myōboku reaching out with his senses and humming softly as he sampled the natural energy coursing through the massive tree. 'It's there alright, but it's not as potent as I'm used to. It''ll work for sage mode, but not for my other needs. Dammit.'
Burying his frustration as he turned towards his destination, Naruto grinned at the sight before him in as he entered a large meadow on the other side of the treeline. Leaning against a massive tree, Naruto watched Julia Diggers run through a fast paced kata, the sword in her hand silently slicing through the air as she wove it through a deadly dance. Raising his hands to his mouth, Naruto suppressed a grin as he waited for the right moment to announce his presence. "Oi! You're getting sloppy, kiddo!"
Without missing a beat Julia spun around and sent her sword hurtling towards the shinobi, his grin never leaving his face as the deadly weapon nearly nicked his ear before it sank deeply in the tree at his back. "Naruto, you should still be in bed! Go back to the house, right now!"
"Oh come on," Naruto said as he continued to lean casually against the tree, his blase attitude eliciting a growl from the fiery redhead.. "I'm fine, I'll go stir crazy within the hour if I stay in bed. Let's have a little spar and get the old blood pumping!"
"Oh yeah? Those are big words from an old man who nearly got his ticket punched the other day! Go back inside, gramps!"
"Gramps? Oh it's on now, brat!" Pulling the sword from the tree, Naruto tossed the weapon to it's owner before a kunai slipped into his waiting hand. Breathing deeply, Naruto flared his chakra and disappeared from sight before suddenly appearing in front of Julia. Grimacing at the blonde's speed, Julia raised her sword to parry his blade, sparks flying as she pushed against the small knife. Naruto swung his free hand at Julia's face but she ducked under the blow, her free hand clenching into a fist that she drove into the blonde's stomach, the powerful blow launching the shinobi into the air. Julia thrust her sword in the ground and disappeared, the airborne blonde's eyes widening in surprise as she reappeared in the air over top of him. Her fist glowing brightly for a brief moment, Julia grinned evilly and slammed her fist in the airborne blonde's jaw, launching him back towards the clearing below. The force of Julia's blow sent Naruto's body crashing into the ground, the hard packed earth splintering under the blow and nearly burying the shinobi alive. Julia landed a moment later, calmly sheathed her weapon and approached the sundered ground and the large dust cloud the brief scuffle had kicked up.
"You still alive down there, old timer?" A soft groan from the torn up earth had Julia grinning from ear to ear as she waited for the dust to settle.
"Hate you, hate you so much. I'd kick your ass if I wasn't buried under a ton of dirt at the moment."
"Now don't be like that," Julia said as she crouched down and helped free one of Naruto's arms. "You're just too stubborn to listen to reason. One punch and you're up to your neck in dirt. Remember when you used to run circles around me when I was still in my prime? You just woke up from chakra exhaustion," Julia said while holding out an arm for the half buried blonde. "So sparring is really the last thing you should be thinking about right now."
Grumbling softly about pushy redheads, Naruto reached for the offered hand and was immediately pulled from the ground, the shinobi brushing at the dirt dusting his clothing. "Alright, alright. I'll be a good little boy, do I get a treat if I behave?"
"Dammit, Naruto, you know I'm just worried about you. You're not indestructible, no one is."
Naruto sat heavily on the ground, his hands resting on his knees while he looked up at Julia. "Yeah, well I'm not used to feeling this helpless. Normally it's the other guy that feels this way. Anyways, I told Theo to invite the girls over for dinner so we can all talk about what's happening. It's time they know some of what's really going on around here."
Julia nodded as she sat on the ground beside the blonde, her head resting on his shoulder as she looked into the sky. "Yeah, it's high time they learn about who you really are. So you're going to stick around, are you?"
"Yeah," Naruto said as he looked at Julia out of the corner of his eye. "There's only a few of us left that I know of, so I think it's time that I settle down in one spot, for now at least."
Smiling softly, Julia pushed herself to her feet and let out a relieved sigh. "Good. I've missed having you around, it's just not the same when you disappear. Plus, I can make sure you stay out of trouble."
Turning his gaze towards the standing woman, Naruto glared at her happy expression. "Oi, I wasn't that bad!"
Cocking an eyebrow at his words, Julia folded her arms against her chest and gave the still seated blonde a deadpan stare. "Really? You're really going to try and pull that with me?"
Naruto defiant expression met Julia's steady gaze for several seconds before he turned his attention the grass at his feet. "Ok, fine, I was that bad!. Are you happy now?"
Smirking triumphantly, Julia nodded as she turned towards her home. "Yes, I am. Now get up, you need to get ready for dinner. I'm not letting the girls see you in your dirty training clothes, I'm thinking something... respectable."
"Respectable!? Oi, I'm not a doll for you to dress up, brat!"
Later that evening...
Gina's eyes were locked on her mirror as she turned from side to side, the sight of the slinky black dress clinging to her curves bringing a smile to her lips. "I better be right about who we're going to meet, I don't break out this kind of dress for just anyone you know..."
"That's true, you haven't even worn it for Ryan yet." Gina glared at her mirror's reflection of her sister in a dark blue dress that accentuated her sister's curvy form.
"I'll thank you to not mention that man's name in my presence. Mr. Tabbot is currently in the doghouse and will remain there for the foreseeable future."
"Really? So tell me," Brianna said as she sat down on Gina's bed. "What exactly did Ryan do to earn your ire, sis?"
"If you must know, he was supposed to come with us on our last expedition. But he blew me off at the last moment after saying 'Something important has come up and I gotta bail, Gina.'." Turning away from her mirror, Gina sat beside her younger sister and frowned angrily. "Not to mention how he talks to Seance. His attitude is terrible, he's so full of himself and..."
"And he's not Naruto, right?"
Gina let out an annoyed huff as she lay back on her bed. "I don't know what's happening! I mean I know I get excited when I see a guy that interests me, but Naruto... that's something about him that just draws me towards him. It's like being caught in a star's gravitational pull, it's impossible to resist!"
"Tell me about it," Brianna said as she stood up. "He's a definite 10 on the hot stud-muffin scale and that's not even taking into account the freaking superpowers! Which means that I'm not just going to let him go, you're going to have to beat me fair and square if you want that blonde stud all to yourself."
Chuckling softly, Gina stood up and gave her sister a smirk while extending a hand towards her. "Well then, may the best woman win."
"Oh don't worry about that," Brianna said, her grin becoming positively feral as she firmly clasped hands with her sister. "I will."
"HEY YOU TWO, GET A MOVE ON OR WE'RE GONNA BE LATE!" Gina glared at Brianna for a moment before pulling her hand free and exiting her room.
Brianna giggled at Gina's annoyed expression for a moment before following her sibling downstairs. As she stepped down the last few steps, the sight of a well dressed Strype triggering a momentary pang of desire that the half were-cheetah ruthlessly quashed, her attention turning to her frowning sister on the Kryn's arm. "Relax Brit, we have plenty of time to get there. Besides, you're not as anxious as Gina is to go and see that blonde stud again."
"Of course I'm not," Britanny said happily, her arms wrapped around an embarrassed looking Strype. "I have my muffin after all! But I do want to eat, I'm starving!"
"I'm actually interested in meeting this Naruto you've told me about, he sounds like an accomplished warrior."
"Strype," Gina said as she grabbed a small purse from the couch. "You have no idea. Alright, let's go!"
Julia slowly approached the front door, a smirk on her lips as she silently counted down. 'Three, two, one...' Reaching for the doorknob, Julia smirked internally at her daughter's expressions of surprise.
"Mom! How did you know we were here?" Julia grinned mysteriously at Gina's question and motioned for everyone to come inside.
"Never mind that now, I'm sure you've guessed why you're all here tonight?" Both Gina and Brianna looked at each other happily before racing into the house, the sound of their happy giggling reminding Julia of years long past. Turning to Britanny and Strype, Julia gestured towards the dining room. "Let's get going, I don't think we want to miss this."
The trio made their way towards the dining room, their progress halting when they reached the immobile forms of Gina and Brianna in the middle of the hall. Peering over her sister's shoulders, Britanny's eyes narrowed at the sight of Naruto in an expensive looking black suit as he chatted with their father, the burnt orange shirt and navy blue tie he wore looking oddly fitting on the blonde. "Hmmm, he does clean up nicely."
Julia gently manoeuvred everyone into the room, her hands clapping together several times to attract everyone's attention. "Now then, I believe a formal introduction is in order. Girls, Strype, allow me to introduce Uzumaki Naruto, he's an old friend of the family."
As Julia began her introduction Naruto aimed a soft grin at the girls before bowing deeply. "Ladies, it's nice to see you when we're not in the middle of fighting for our lives. And you must be Strype, nice to meet you."
Gina and Brianna looked at each other for a moment before leaping towards the grinning blonde. Naruto cried out in surprise as both women tackled him to the ground, their arms wrapping around the blonde in an instant. Britanny let out an undignified snort at the sight of her sister's happily clinging to the man in their clutches, while Strype merely raised his eyebrows in surprise. As for Julia and Theo...
"Gina! Brianna! I can't believe that either of you would assault a guest like that!" Julia said, her hands resting on her hips as she glared at her daughters. "Why couldn't you have warned me first? I could have gotten that on film! Do you know how long I've been looking for something I can use as blackmail material?"
"Thanks a lot, Brat," Naruto said from under the two excited woman. "Your concern for my well being is so heart warming. But I'd watch what you say, after all there are things that I can tell the girls that will absolutely ruin their image of you."
"Gramps! Not. Another. Word."
Everyone's gaze focused on Julia as she growled out her warning, their mouths dropping as they stared at her. Gina shook her head in denial while Brianna looked as if she was about to cry. "Mom," Gina said, her finger pointing shakily at the man she was currently straddling. "What do you mean, GRAMPS? Please tell me that your joking, he can't be related to us!"
"Julia, behave." Every eye in the room turned towards Theo, the patriarch of the Diggers family shaking his head as he turned towards his daughters. "He's not related to you by blood, Julia just calls him Gramps to annoy him. And I'm sorry to say it actually works, he hates it when she calls him that."
Brianna cocked an eyebrow as she sat up, her hands resting comfortably on Naruto's chest. "But why? I mean he doesn't look that old, so why should he be annoyed when Mom calls him Gramps?"
"Because I am old. Like really, really old." Everyone slowly looked at the the scowling Naruto and blinked slowly. "Nice job, Brat. Way to ease them into the fact that I'm several millennium old. I am so going to get you for this."
"Yeah, yeah, I've heard it before, Old man. Anyways," Julia said while gesturing towards the table. "I think it's time we all sat down and ate. This is going to be an interesting night."
The mood during dinner was somewhat subdued after Naruto revealed that he was much more than he appeared to be. That is until a group of his clones appeared from the kitchen, the sassy constructs literally gushing over each woman while utilizing several outrageous accents that were guaranteed to make anyone crack a smile. After that everything ran much smoother, with Naruto sharing several humorous stories from his youth with everyone while demolishing several helpings of food.
After everyone had eaten their fill, Theo suggested that they make their way to the library for the inevitable flood of questions for the ancient blonde. While everyone else got comfortable on several couches in the centre of the room, Naruto sat down heavily in a large armchair and let out a relived sigh. "Damn, I must be getting old. I remember when I could fight all day and still be ready for more."
"I expected you to keel over halfway through dinner," Julia said while aiming a scowl at the blonde. "What with just coming out of a coma and all. You need to slow down, you don't have..."
"Julia, stop. I know you were worried, but there's nothing that could have been done to prevent what happened. I think it was a small price to pay, don't you?"
Turning her attention towards her children and husband, Julia turned back towards the blonde and gave him a frosty look. "Oh, you clever bastard. Using my family's well being against me. Alright, I'll admit you're right. This time."
Smirking happily, Naruto turned his attention back towards the girls. "So, I'm guessing that you have questions for me... Gina, are you alright?"
Brianna and Britanny looked at their sister for a moment before they both let out identical groans at the sight of Gina as she sat on the edge of her seat while she quivered in anticipation. "She's fine," Brianna said as she gave Naruto a grin while waving away his concerns. "She just gets like this when she's discovered something new and interesting. I think we should let her start before she wets herself."
Ignoring Gina's indignant shout, Naruto nodded thoughtfully at Brianna's suggestion and gestured towards the now glaring young woman. "Ok, but just to let you know there are some questions I won't fully answer, for now at least. Lay it on me, Gina."
"Ok, first off... are you even human?" Gina winced when her mother and sisters berated her for her lack of tact but a single word from Naruto silenced them all.
"Mostly." All eyes turned towards the grinning blonde, his casual admission swiftly ending the argument. "It's a little more complex than that and I don't know all the details, but I'll tell you a story about man named Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki and how he relates to a place known as the Elemental Nations."
And so Naruto told them the tale of the Sage of Six Paths and how he defeated his mother, Princess Kaguya, bringing her enslavement of the world to an end. The blonde felt his grin growing as he told them about how Hagoromo became the first Jinchūriki and how he spread his teachings and the wonders of chakra throughout the world. Gina nearly squealed when she heard that his own clan was one of the direct descendants of the legendary man and many others could also trace their lineage back to the powerful being.
Naruto paused for a moment in his tale, his keen eyes observing everyone as they took a moment to contemplate his words. Brianna and Britanny whispered to each other while sneaking occasional looks at the him, while Strype appeared to be trying to size him up. Theo and Julia shared a look before turning back towards the blonde, both of them nodding at him silently. Gina on the other hand...
"Oh wow, oh wow! There's so much more we need to talk about later on! And I need to get you into my lab so we can run some tests! Oh, can you..."
"Gina, calm down." Turning towards her mother, Gina swallowed loudly at the look on her mother's face. Turning towards Naruto, Gina gave him a bashful look while pressing her fingers together bashfully. "M'sorry, Naruto. I got too excited..."
Laughing loudly, Naruto shook his head while waving off Gina's apology. "Oh stop that, it's alright. Most people look at me like I'm gonna explode or something when they hear crazy stuff like that, it's refreshing to see your reaction. So, that addresses the whole human question, what's next?"
Gina smiled widely and started to say something when a question from Britanny caused her to falter. "Your hand. What happened to it?"
Looking at his right hand, Naruto flexed the bandaged hand for several seconds before replying. "An old friend and I had a disagreement."
"A disagreement? What kind of disagreement ends up with your hand being bandaged up like that?"
Smirking lightly at Britanny's words, Naruto stood up, removed his jacket and rolled his sleeve up just below his elbow. With everyone watching the blonde began unwrapping the upper portion of his bandages, the sight of pale white flesh fused together wit his normal hued skin causing several people to wince. " A heated one. Don't worry, he got a similar treatment from me." Gina and her sister's stared at the heavily bandages limb in silence until Naruto retied the coverings and pulled his sleeve down, the shinobi taking his seat once again. "Come on, stop giving me those looks. It doesn't even hurt, I just cover it up because it looks weird to have one tanned arm and one that's pale white. Come on, there must be something else you lot want to know."
Brianna 's eyes narrowed as she stared at the seated blonde, her intent gaze became slightly unnerving the longer she stared at him "You don't look several thousand years old. How does that happen if you're mostly human?"
Chuckling nervously, Naruto shrugged while wearing a weak grin. "Good genes?" Gina, Britanny and Brianna each gave the shinobi a deadpan stare, their arms folding under their breasts as they stared at the nervous blonde. "Yeah, I didn't think that would work. This answer's gonna take a little while so you better get comfortable. I was originally born in a village named Konohagakure..."
"The village hidden in the leaves?"
Naruto nodded at Gina's translation, a smile appearing as he recalled his homeland. "Konoha was a hidden village created and run by people like me, shinobi. It was probably the most peaceful of all of the Five Hidden Villages, which was strange because we were also one of the most powerful. I guess you could call it peace through superior firepower, ne?"
Naruto ignored the confused expressions he received and continued with his explanation. "Anyways, I was an important member of our armed forces. Not only was I one of our most powerful fighters, but I was quickly becoming an accomplished Seal Master. I was kind of a big thing."
Brianna giggled softly while Gina smirked at the blonde's 'humble' words. "Oh yes, I can see that. Keep going. Though I will want to hear more about what a seal master is later."
"Sure thing, Gina. I was working on a type of stasis array, one that would create a pocket dimension where we could hide civilians or important structures if there was another war. The idea was to create a energy field that pulled a building out of phase with the rest of the world, while a second seal on a person would allow them to enter and leave at will. I thought that I'd finally cracked it and decided that I'd test it out on myself."
Silence met the shinobi's words as everyone levelled an incredulous look at the blonde. Julia was the first to recovery, her lips curing into a large grin. "You tested an unknown ability on yourself that messed with an alternate dimension? Now I know why you never told me this before, this story just keeps getting better and better."
"Yeah, it wasn't exactly a great idea but I was kind of an idiot when i was younger. I still don't know what happened exactly, but the next thing I knew the abandoned apartment building I'd selected for the test was in the middle of an empty meadow and I was dangerously low on chakra. Somehow I'd been pulled into another world, one that was completely uninhabited and I had no idea how to get home. It was a peaceful, idyllic world... I was bored within a month."
Each of the girls giggled loudly, while their parents and Strype merely grinned at the blonde's words. "And so my boredom continued for many, many years. For some reason I didn't need to eat or sleep and as far as I could tell I wasn't ageing anymore. But one day, I came across a group of people that were setting up camp. I was so excited, human contact at last! I entered the camp but everyone I spoke with acted as if I wasn't even there. That's when I realized that part of the seal was still active. I was phased out of reality and no one could see me. I decided to leave when a heavy hand landed on my shoulder, spun me around and jabbed a finger into my chest..."
Flashback
"You! Who are you?" Naruto let out a growl as he was spun around forcefully to face a very tall, muscular woman. Swallowing loudly, the shinobi felt his cheeks grow warm at the sight of her scantily clad body, his hands rising in a gesture of peace.
"Whoa, it's ok, I was just about the leave, we can work this out..." Pausing in mid step, Naruto's eyes widened as he stared at the glaring woman. "You can see me. YOU CAN SEE ME!" Racing forward, Naruto wrapped his arms around the startled woman and laughed happily, the tall woman growling angrily as she tried to pry the shinobi off of her. After several seconds of futilely struggling against the shinobi's grip, the muscular woman pulled a large knife from her belt and swung at the clingy blonde. Naruto let out a yelp as he shunshin'ed into a tree, hands waving at the angry woman frantically . "Oi, there's no need to get violent, I was just excited! Can't we talk... oh, right, language barrier." Reaching for his kunai pouch, Naruto pulled a single blade free and showed it to the woman, her eyes tightening as she brandished her weapon at the shinobi. "No, no, just watch." Pointing at the tense woman, Naruto opened his hand and let his weapon fall to the ground, hoping that the woman understood that he wanted her to drop her weapon. But moments after the kunai left his hand, the weapon vanished in a burst of light, the shinobi scratching his head at the strange phenomenon. "That's weird, that's never happenED OH MY SWEET KAMI, STOP ATTACKING ME!"
Growling angrily, the tall woman lunged at Naruto, her weapon biting deeply into the tree as he used another Shunshin to escape. "A Spirit has entered the camp! To arms, we must defend ourselves!" Naruto watched as the surprised woman gestured fearfully towards him, but the other humans surrounding her gave just looked at her in confusion.
"Huh, I get the feeling that they don't believe her... hehehehehe... this is just too perfect." Using shunshin once again, Naruto decided a little payback was in order for the unprovoked attack. Appearing behind the ranting woman, Naruto slapped her ass firmly, her loud squeal of shock bring a smirk to the blonde's face as he disappeared into another tree. "That'll teach you to attack me!"
"Wait, you never told me any of this before! You told me that your first meeting with the barbarians was a peaceful one," Julia said with a glare. "That they welcomed you with open arms!"
Naruto grinned as he leaned back in his chair. "I lied. I do that from time to time, I blame it on Jiji Sarutobi and his wonderful example on how to handle difficult people."
Naruto grinned at the sight of the once organized camp as it descended into chaos, his eyes focusing on the woman he'd spanked as she continued barking orders to the rest of the camp. "Hmmm, it looks like they're actually paying attention to what she's saying now. Well, I've had my fun, maybe it's time for me to get a bit more serious."
Running through several hands seals, Naruto landed in front of the woman and slammed his hands onto the ground. Before the tall woman could move an Earth Wall rose from the ground, separating the both Naruto and the tall woman from the rest of the camp. Looking up at the terrified woman, Naruto ignored the panicked cries from the other side of the wall and sat comfortably on the ground. "Well now that we're alone," Naruto said as he looked into the tall woman's fear filled eyes. "Lets see if we can communicate a little." Placing his hand on his chest, Naruto gently tapped himself and smiled at the scared woman. "Naruto. Na-ru-to."
Placing his hands on his knees, Naruto waited patiently for a response. Several minutes of silence passed before the tall woman swallowed nervously, her knees shaking as she sank to the ground. A trembling hand rose up and tapped her breastbone once before she spoke. "Angia."
Nodding happily, Naruto picked up a a handful of dirt from the ground and pointed to it expectantly. Angia blinked slowly for a moment before catching on, a smile slowly forming as she caught on to Naruto's intent. "Earth." Naruto's hand slapped against the wall surrounding the pair, the barbarian leader thinking for a moment before she gave the seated man a triumphant look. "Wall." Smiling happily, Naruto placed his hands on the ground and the earth wall surrounding them receded into the ground, revealing that the villagers had armed themselves and were itching for a fight.
End flashback
"It took a while, but Angia got the others to calm down and lower their weapons once she realized I wasn't a threat. While she was speaking with her people, several others approached that could see me, proving that their leader hadn't lost her mind. Over the next month or so they helped me learn their language and in return I taught them some of my own. I was happier than I'd been in a long time, not just because I'd found people that could see me again but because of what they showed me several months later..."
Flashback
Naruto whistled softly while taking in the sight of the large cavern that Angia had brought him to. "Wow, nice place. The acoustics must be awesome in here."
"Sorry, I no understand ah-coo-sticks..." Laughing softly, Naruto waved off Angia's question and switched to her language, deciding to give the woman a break.
"Never mind, it was a joke. Why are we here, Angia?" Gesturing towards a nearby wall, Naruto grabbed a torch and narrowed his eyes at the sight of hundreds of small holes carved into the rock. Narrowing his eyes as he reached into a hole, Naruto pulled a scroll free and studied it for a moment. "Huh, scrolls. I'm guessing these are your records?"
"Not only that," A muscular, middle aged man said as he entered the cave. "They also contain the history of others that we have met over the years. I am Mattock, Mentor of our tribe. And from the discussions I've had with Angia, I believe that you'll be most interested in the scrolls stored at the top of that wall."
Looking towards the area that Mattock had pointed out, Naruto grinned and leaped into the air. Hands and feet glowing softly with chakra, Naruto effortlessly ascended the wall within moments. Naruto's eyes narrowed as he reached into a larger hole than the ones at the base of the wall, the curious blonde reaching in and pulling a single scroll free. "What's so special about this..." Blinking slowly, Naruto's eyes widened at the characters adorning the scroll, the lost shinobi pushing off of the wall and landed lightly in front of Angia and Mattock. "Where did you get this?!"
"Many years ago, our clan encountered a group of wanderers during one of our migrations. They spoke a language that we had never heard before, not to mention that they were able to call upon a power that was both frightening and comforting at the same time. They stayed with us for several years before most of them moved on. But several young men had found wives among the clan and decided to stay. One of them was a man named Shiro, my great-great-great grandfather. He tried to teach several of our people how to read his language, but our ancestors were not able to complete their education before a rival tribe attacked us. Each of the visitors sacrificed themselves so that the rest of our clan could escape." Angia's hand slid under her cloak for a moment before she presented Naruto with a necklace, the shinobi's eyes widening at the sight of a half dozen black magatama glittering in the torchlight. "We were told that if we ever encountered someone with my ancestor's name or abilities, they should understand the importance of this necklace. Do you know the name of the path these men followed?"
Swallowing loudly, Naruto nodded as he reached for the necklace, his hand gently caressing the black beads before he let out a soft chuckle. "Ninshu... they followed the path of Ninshu."
End flashback
"Afterwards I realized that everyone who could see me had something in common, they all had an ancestor that had been a follower of Ninshu. I still have no idea why they were even there in the first place, none of their records gave me any kind of clue."
"Wow, and I'm descended from people like you? Oooh, does that mean I can learn how to use chakra like you can, Naruto?
Clearing his throat nervously, Naruto gave the happily bouncing girl an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, Gina, but that's just not possible."
"Why not!?"
"Blame him." Naruto jerked his thumb towards a sheepish looking Theo. "While barbarians don't generally use magic, they did mingle with enough races that had enough magical potential that they somehow changed their chakra. One boy I trained was an accomplished katon user, but he couldn't even use chakra to stick to walls or walk on water. A little girl was able to communicate with any animal she met but that was it. Apparently magic can cause random chakra related traits to appear while suppressing others, it's like the ultimate lottery. Play and possibly win a superpower... or get something more mundane like enhanced senses. They're still useful but they're not as cool as blowing stuff up. Your dad's high affinity for magic pretty much finished the job that your ancestors started, wiping out any chance of you getting any of the more destructive abilities. But there's still a spark of chakra inside of you so there is a chance you may develop some kind of ability, someday. Maybe?"
Gina's expression fell before she turned towards her father and pouted angrily. "So I suck at magic and the genes I got from Dad means I suck as at using chakra. Thanks for nothing, Dad."
Both Brianna and Britanny giggled softly at their sister while Theo gave the seated shinobi a dirty look. Strype still had the same thoughtful expression while Julia glared at the blonde. "So, do you have any other things to tell me that were lies, Old Man?"
"Well, there was the time that Angia tried to get me drunk so I'd sleep with her..." Naruto grinned impishly at the shocked looks he received from Julia and her daughters. "Of course she didn't realize I could drink the entire clan under the table, so nothing came of that plan. Other than that, no, everything else is the same as what you were told as a child. After I few years I left the barbarians and wandered the world, becoming a invisible protector of the defenceless and weak and a teacher for those that possessed chakra. Those that could see me were known as the Chosen and many of them rose to greatness throughout Jade's history. Hell, some of them are still spoken of with great reverence and pride even today. But after several thousand years of war, death and disease the number of people still possessing even a spark of chakra had dwindled to a scant few. For the last fifty years or so there haven't been more than a handful of people that could still see me, so I stopped wandering the world and decided to keep a closer eye on what was left of this dying branch of Ninshu. One of them them in particular was a red headed, snot nosed little brat that was positive that she knew everything and anything regarding fighting. Man, she was a real crybaby when I first met her."
Naruto grinned evilly at Julia while her daughters and Strype tried to edge away from the angry mother, her hair slowly rising into the air as a powerful aura of chakra flared up around her. Theo appeared unruffled by the sight, the archmage calmly resting a hand on his wife's thigh. "Dear, you know you're not allowed to kill Naruto while he's inside the house. If you want to maim him you'll have to catch him outside... after he's had a chance to rest."
Naruto chuckled at the 'weak' killing intent Julia sent his way before he continued with his story "Love you too, Brat. I trained Julia when she was younger and she gained the same thing that most of her family inherited from their Ninshu ancestor, super strength. It's not quiet as good as Tusnade-baachan's, but she still packs way more of a punch than she has any right to. Strangely enough she's also a very accomplished sensor, which makes it that much harder to hide from her when I'm running for my life..."
"Wait a minute," Britanny said as she angrily turned towards her mother. "That's how you always knew if we were doing something wrong?! That's cheating!"
"Of course I used it on both you and your sister, Britanny. You were very adventurous children," Julia said as she gave her adopted daughter a smirk. "Even when you were only a few years old you both got into so much trouble. I had to make sure that you weren't getting in over your head somehow, so I cheated a little."
Her arms folding up against her chest, Britanny glared angrily at her mother as she began muttering softly about unfair advantages. Naruto smiled softly at the scene, a sigh passing his lips as he turned to Gina. "You may not have super strength, but there is something about you that is different... we'll figure it out eventually. And before i forget, thank you Gina and Brianna."
Blinking slowly, Gina looked at Brianna in confusion for a moment before she turning back towards Naruto. "Why are you thanking us?"
"Simple," Naruto said happily. "All these years I've tried to find a way to remove the seal that kept me trapped on Jade. I finally realized that my chakra had been changed and was producing some kind of aura that anchored me to Jade. Eventually I figured out how to create a beacon that would pull me back to earth and purge the phase field, but there were two problems. First, the beacon needed to be created with my chakra to be able to lock onto me. And second," Naruto said as he pulled a tri-pronged kunai from an inner pocket of his jacket. "Anything inanimate that came in contact with me for more then a few minutes would be flooded with my chakra and disperse, so any beacon I made would literally fall apart once it got too far from me. So I was effectively stuck on Jade, there was no way to for me to free myself. After your mother was banished from Earth we started travelling together again. She was furious enough that I worried about her safety, so I thought it would be best that I kept an eye on her. One night while we sat around a fire Julia asked me for one of my kunai, it's an old tradition we had during the years I taught her. So I passed her a kunai and waited for it to disappear, but it never did."
"I was just as surprised as you were, Naruto. I dropped the kunai in shock and within moments it vanished like normal. Both of us sat there in silence until the old man here started laughing crazily, the crazy old coot picked me up and started swinging me around like a child! After I clocked him over the head a few times he finally put me down and explained why he was so happy. It looks like your grandpa's spell somehow changed the nature of my chakra, just like Naruto's. It was the first time in thousands of years that the old man finally felt some hope that he could get home... if I ever did. That's why he has to thank the both of you, you're the reason he's even here."
Naruto nodded sagely as he pushed himself out of his chair, the ancient shinobi approaching the seated girls. As he stood in front of them silently, the blonde crouched down and gave the trio a wide smile. "That's when I decided to watch over you, as thanks for helping me get home. Although I can understand if you'd want me to stay somewhere else, I mean I did break into your home and I'm pretty sure I'd be cramping your style..."
"NO!" Naruto's eyes widened as all three girls yelled at him, his head tilting to the side as he studied their expressions.
"No? Hmm, well I guess I could stay in the sub-basement where I setup my workshop so I'm out of the way then..."
Brianna's eyes narrowed as she jabbed a finger at the crouching shinobi, Naruto's eyes crossing as he focused on the finger. "Oh no you don't, you're not living in the basement! That's for storage and lab space. We have extra rooms on the ground floor, if you're staying with us then you're using one of those. And no arguments, our house, our rules!"
Turning towards Julia and Theo, Naruto cocked an eyebrow and shrugged his shoulders. "Well, I guess Brianna has spoken. Very well then, I'll be under your care."
Brianna withdrew her finger and gave Naruto a bright smile before leaping at the blonde and bowling him over, her arms happily wrapping around the surprised shinobi. Gina pouted at the missed opportunity while Britanny and Strype tried to contain their laughter. Julia smirked at the pair knowingly while Theo activated his Burning Skull spell, his glowing eyes glaring at the sight of his daughter as she clung to the shinobi. "I trust that there won't be any... inappropriate situations while you're staying with my daughters?"
"No comment." Theo's burning eyes tightened angrily but his wife gently smacked his arm before glaring at her husband.
"Theo, behave." Grumbling softly, Theo's head returned to normal as he continued to glare at the pinned shinobi.
"You can relax Theo, I'm sure that the girls won't even notice that I'm there."
The next morning...
Gina groaned softly, her arms stretching over her head as she let out a yawn. Glancing at her clock with half lidded eyes, the young genius groaned and pulled her blanket back over her head. "Ugh, too early. Goin' back to... wait, what's that noise?" Pushing herself up on her elbows, Gina listened for several moments before she leaped out of her bed, donned a robe and headed towards the kitchen. The sound of several people moving around the large room was perplexing, since Gina knew Britanny would be in the middle of her early morning run and Brianna liked sleeping in as well. Peeking cautiously through the doorway, Gina placed a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle at the sight of a trio of Naruto's swiftly preparing ingredients for breakfast. Leaning against the door jam, Gina smiled softly as she spent the next few minutes silently watching the shinobi while he continued to cook.
"You know, you can sit down and still watch me just as easily from the table, Gina." Gina felt her cheeks flush at being caught staring, the cooking blonde letting out a chuckle as she approached the table and quickly sat down.
"How did you know it was me?"
Looking over his shoulder, Naruto grinned cheekily before he turned his attention back to the stove.
"Gina, I've lived in your house for the last three months. I know Britanny is already out doing her morning run while Brianna is still being lazy and sleeping in. I give her another... ten minutes before she wakes up and makes her way here for some food." Whistling softly, one of Naruto's clones hand's his creator a pair of plates and before vanishing in a puff of smoke. The original shinobi transferred the meal he'd prepared to the dishes before presenting the finished product to the seated woman with a flourish. "Breakfast is served."
Gina looked down at the plate in amazement, the sight of real food triggering a powerful hunger in the young woman as she dug into the meal with gusto. "Mmmm! Real food! This is so good, where did you learn to cook?"
"Well, when you don't grow up with parents you kinda have to learn. It's either that or you learn to like premade food, which does get kinda old after a while."
"Your an orphan?" Nodding indifferently, Naruto ignored Gina's contrite expression. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought up something like that..."
"Relax, it's alright. You couldn't have known, I never told you I was one. Plus, I've had some time to come to grips with the situation." Giggling softly, Gina gave the blonde a shy look as he gave her a wink. "That's better, now eat your food before it gets cold."
Gina nodded and turned back to her meal just as Brianna shuffled into the kitchen, a hand scratching at her sleep mused hair. "Mmmm, something smells good..."
"Sit, eat." Yawning cutely, Brianna gave Naruto a beatific smile as she followed his instructions, a plate appearing in front of her thanks to a clone within moments of taking her seat.
"Mmm, a man that can cook. I could get used to this." Naruto let out a bark of laughter as he watched both girls dig in while he finished off his own plate, the shinobi rising to his feet depositing his dishes in the sink. "So, any big plans for the day, Naruto?"
Leaning against the counter, Naruto crossed his arms against his chest as he gave the girls a thoughtful look. "Hmmm, I don't have much to move into that room you gave me, so not really? Maybe some light training..."
"Hah, as if! You're on a strict regimen of bed rest, mister! Mom would freak if she knew you were training."
"Ugh, Gina's so mean... fine then, I guess I'm not doing much of anything then."
"Well since you have some free time," Gina said while aiming a sly smile at the frowning blonde. "Maybe you could come with me to my lab? I want to run a few tests, there's so much I could learn from your physiology!"
Naruto's eyes narrowed as he stared at the eldest Diggers daughter, a hand coming up and stroking his chin thoughtfully. "You're not going to infect me with a parasitic energy source in a bid to take over my body, are you?
"What? No! Where did you get an idea like that?"
"How about using my genetics to create an army of clones to conquer the world?"
Brianna snickered loudly as Gina rose from her seat angrily, a brilliant blush staining her cheeks as she glared at the relaxed shinobi. "What? NO! Where did you getting a crazy idea like that! I just want to take some scans, maybe do a little blood work! You make it sound like I'm some kind of mad scientist hell bent on conquering the world!"
Chuckling nervously, Naruto scratched the back of his head as he gave the indignant woman an apologetic smile. "Sorry, sorry! But the last person I met who called himself a scientist was as insane madman that wanted to learn every shinobi technique in the world. He caused a lot of crazy shit over the years. I guess it's ok, that is if you still want to run your tests?"
Huffing angrily, Gina folded her arms under her breasts and glared at the apologetic man. "Fine. But no more mad scientist jokes! Brianna, do you want to come give me a hand?"
"Did you seriously think I'd pass up a chance like this?" Rising from her seat Brianna approached Naruto and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek after placing her dishes in the sink. "Thanks for breakfast, you've just been selected as head cook from now on."
Eyes widening in surprise, Naruto looked towards Gina for help but the young genius gave the shinobi a smirk while nodding happily. "Yep, I agree. He does need to pull his weight around here and that's exactly how he'll do it."
"I feel like I'm being railroaded here... so this is how everyone else feels when I do it. Huh." Shrugging his shoulders in surrender, Naruto gave the girls a lopsided grin. "Alright, fine. I'll cook for you all. But for now, let's go and get these tests out of the way."
Several hours later
Britanny let out a happy sigh as she exited the elevator into the lower levels of the house. After her morning run, the were-cheetah noticed that everyone was missing so she decided to see what the others had gotten into after a refreshing shower. Just as she was about to enter her sister's lab a frustrated scream froze her in her tracks. "What the hell is wrong with you!?" Blinking in surprise, Britanny poked her head into the open laboratory and watched as Naruto thrust his hands in his pockets, a grinning Brianna sat on a nearby couch and watched as her sister lost her temper.
"Sis, what's wrong?" Pointing at the grinning man, Gina let out a frustrated growl as she turned towards Britanny.
"It's him, he's literally a walking medical impossibility! The average human body temperature is 98.6 degrees. His is 110!"
"So he's running a little warmer, what's the big deal..."
"Brain death occurs at 108 degrees! That's what wrong! Not to mention his skeletal and muscular structures are about ten times denser than normal, which should be impossible! Stop smiling at me like that, Naruto, I still don't know how you're even alive! This should be impossible..."
"I can bend time and space and I'm over 7000 years old... why are you surprised that my body isn't exactly normal?"
"Because you. Are. Human! There are limits to what the human body can withstand, limits that have been around for longer than you've lived!"
"I'm still part alien, so..." Gina's annoyed stare shifted towards furious in a second, the shinobi's mouth closing with an audible click. Britanny held in her laughter as she sat down beside an equally amused Brianna.
Letting out another frustrated scream, Gina glared at the rest of the information she'd discovered. "I don't know whether to swear at you or be happy that you're so unique. You're just so..."
"Frustrating? Yeah, I get that a lot." Stepping up behind the seated scientist, Naruto's hands rested on Gina's shoulders for a moment before he started to massage her stiff muscles.
"Wait, what are you... ooooh, that feels good..." Brianna pouted at the sight of her sister as she enjoyed the massage, a sympathetic Britanny laying a hand on her shoulder.
"There there, it's ok."
"No fair," Brianna said as she gave Gina a mock glare. "I wanted a massage tooOHHhhhh, that does feel good..." Brianna nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt a pair of hands firmly kneading her shoulders, a clone of Naruto grinning happily at the content sounds Brianna was making.
"I'm a master of the Kage Bushin, so it's pretty much guaranteed that there's at least one clone wandering around this house at all times." Britanny giggled at the happy expressions her sister's wore, the were-cheetah turning to the grinning clone before she batted her eyelashes at him.
"And what about me?"
"You?" The clone raised an eyebrow in surprise before turning towards his creator and shrugging in surprise. "Considering you have a boyfriend, I kinda thought you'd be pissed if I just went and laid a hand on you like that."
"Well then I think you better stop Gina's massage, if Ryan saw her enjoying that then I bet he'd be pretty steamed!"
Gina groaned softly before cracking an eyelid open and focusing on Britanny. "He's in the doghouse right now ... ooooh yeah, that's the spot. Don't spoil my happy time, sis."
"Hey babe, I know you were bummed that I couldn't make that expedition, how about we head out and catch a mov... what the hell do you think you're doing with my girl, asshole?!" Everyone turned towards the lab entrance as a furious redhead stalked into the room.
Naruto cocked an eyebrow at the anger rolling off the young man and looked down at a lightly scowling Gina. "Ah, there he is, the boyfriend that's in the doghouse."
"What do you mean, 'in the doghouse' ? And just who the hell do you think you are?"
"Ryan, stop. You barged in here and started to insult Naruto in his own home, you need to apologize right n..."
"Wait, he's living HERE?" Sighing heavily, Gina gave Naruto a pointed look, the shinobi immediately backing away from the angry young woman. Rising from her seat, Gina stalked towards their uninvited guest and angrily jabbed a finger into his chest.
"Whomever we allow to live in our home is OUR business. Not yours, Ryan Tabbot. He's the only reason we're even alive right now! The expedition that I had a few days ago? The one you blew off? We almost died there but Naruto rescued us! He didn't care about his own safety, all he cared about was getting us out of that deathtrap and back home! So yes, as of right now I am reconsidering the whole girlfriend/boyfriend situation with you since you cannot be bothered to be there when I need you. And lets not even get started on how you act and treat others."
Folding his arms petulantly, Ryan gave the only other male a once over before looking back at Gina. "I couldn't get away, there was something important that I had to take care of here. Plus it couldn't have been that bad, the wimp looks fine to me."
"Oh of course," Gina said sarcastically as she planted her clenched fists on her hips. "He looks fine so nothing could have possibly happened. A three day coma is nothing to worry about, it's completely normal. Apologize to Naruto right now or you can see yourself out."
Frowning at her declaration, Ryan looked over Gina's head and glared at a stern faced Naruto for several moments before he let out a defeated sigh. "Alright, I'm sorry. I was out of line."
Naruto waved away Ryan's apology as he approaches the pair. "Don't worry about it, it's fine. I'm going to head up to my room and unpack my stuff. But before I do," Naruto said as he laid his hand on Ryan's shoulder in a friendly manner while focusing a small burst of killing intent at the treasure hunter. "Remember to behave yourself or else we'll have a problem, understood?" Ryan's face quickly grew pale as he unsuccessfully tries to jerk free from Naruto's iron grip. After several seconds of mind numbing terror Ryan finally gave the blonde a shaky nod, the powerful impulse to flee quickly fading as the unknown blonde gave him a friendly smile. "Good! I'll be back soon, I haven't got much stuff to put away in the first place. My clone will make sure that there are no more 'misunderstandings'. Play nice."
"Clone?" Ryan looked over at a grinning Brianna and the man that stood behind her, his eyes widening at the feral grin the clone threw his way. Turning to Gina, Ryan points at the clone while giving the genius a wild eyed stare. "Gina, what's going on here?"
Naruto frowned thoughtfully at the unfurled scroll laying on his bed. "Hmm, it's weird you know? Being able to have stuff again without worrying about it disappearing... you can stop hiding outside Cheetah, I know you're there."
Grinning at the were-cheetah's frustrated grumbling, Naruto glanced over his shoulder at the sight of Cheetah pouting cutely. "Damn, you've got better hearing that my were-jaguar friends."
"Of course I do, chakra enhanced hearing. Along with some other inherited abilities. It makes it harder to sneak up on me."
Glancing at the nearly bare room, Britanny turned her gaze towards the blonde and narrowed her eyes. "You said you were going to unpack, so where is all your stuff?"
"This is it. Like I said, anything that got too far away from me would disappear, so I don't really have that many worldly possessions left. Where are your sisters?"
"They're reading Ryan the riot act and cluing him in on the basics of what you told us. Nothing about you being older than dirt," Britanny said distractedly while she looked at the nearly empty closet in surprise. "But they did tell him you are not someone to mess around with... are you serious?! This is all you have to wear?"
"Well, yeah." Turning to the closet, Naruto saw the few shirts and pairs of pants he owned hanging there innocently as Britanny pointed at them in horror. "I just said I don't have a lot of stuff anymore. Try and keep up, Cheetah."
"I refuse to accept this, I'm taking you shopping!"
Naruto paled dramatically as he quickly backed away from the grinning woman, his thoughts turning to the memories he received from the clone he'd sent to tail her during her last shopping sprees. "No, really, that's ok! I can go shopping on my own! I don't need your help picking out clothes!"
"Aw, don't you want a cute girl to help you pick out stuff that makes you look irresistible?" Britanny wrapped her arms around one of the struggling blonde's arms, the shinobi's eyes widening in panic as he was hauled from his room and downstairs with ease. While Britanny paused for a moment at the intercom system, Naruto tried to break free once again but it was impossible, the were-cheetah's iron grip was unbreakable. "Bri, Gina, this is a fashion emergency! We need to take Naruto to the mall and get him some new duds, ASAP! Meet me in the garage in five minutes!"
Turning towards the still struggling blonde with a happy grin, Naruto sighed. 'I have a bad feeling about this...'
Gina giggled at their blonde pack mule as she made sure he didn't hit anyone while manoeuvring through the busy shopping centre, his arms laden with a multitude of bags and boxes. "Oh come on, Naruto, it's not that bad!"
"Not that bad? NOT THAT BAD? We've been here for hours and most of this stuff isn't even mine! I signed on for protection, not manual labour!"
"Aww, is the big, tough super powered bad ass getting tired? I still don't see why I should be scared of you if you can't even handle a few bags and boxes." Naruto growled angrily as he glared at a smirking Ryan, his eyes narrowing at the infuriating redhead.
"You know what, your lucky that the girls even invited you along after the crap you constantly pull so I think you should keep your mouth shut..."
"You actually have a good point, Ryan, thank you for reminding me. Naruto is supposed to be on bed rest and since you're in the doghouse, I'm going to need you to carry all of our things for the rest of the shopping trip."
"Wait, but I...!" Ryan grunted loudly as Naruto swiftly handed the stunned redhead his cargo before he happily patted the wobbling martial artist on the shoulder.
"Hey, thanks a lot! IO take back every mean thing I said about you, I won't even beat you black and blue now for all the crap you've been spewing at me since we met!" Turning towards Gina, Naruto offered the snickering woman his arm. "Milady, shall we be off to our next destination?"
"Hey, sis, Naruto! I found some stuff that'd look great on our new roomie!" Gina waved towards Brianna and Britanny before releasing Naruto's arm, the young scientist racing towards her siblings to look over their find before it was presented to the blonde. Naruto hung back and turned back towards the heavily laden Ryan, his grin growing as the fighter glared at him.
"You're so lucky that my arms aren't free, otherwise I'd kick your scrawny ass."
Glancing at the scowling adventurer, Naruto grinned cheekily at the fuming adventurer. "Oh, come on, it's not that bad. Is the big, bad, martial artist getting tired?" Whistling innocently, Naruto shoved his hands in his pockets before he slowly approached the girls, their faces lighting up as he gave them a grin. "Alright, lay it on me girls."
"Well, I know you like orange but you need a little more variety, Naruto. Some reds, blues, and we know that you look good in black..." Britanny paused for a moment as Brianna handed the blonde a stack of clothes, his eyes brows rising as he noticed a trend.
"Oi, there isn't anything in here that's orange. What gives?"
Well, maybe we could get you a few things with orange in them," Britanny said as she thoughtfully stroked her chin. "But you need to try on everything we give you... deal?"
Naruto's gaze narrowed as he studied the were-cheetah's serious expression for several moments before doing the same to her sister's. Despite their serious expressions, Naruto's highly trained senses were warning him that the girls were up to something. "Alright, I'll bite. But I get to veto anything I don't like, alright?"
"Great! Now, we have just the thing for you to try on next!" Gina said as she pulled a pair of burnt orange speedos from behind her back and presented the scrap of cloth to the wide eyed shinobi. "You need swimwear since we'll be going to the beach next week! We all decided that you'd look amazing in this!"
Taking the brief swimwear in his hands, Naruto narrowed his eyes as he glared at the giggling trio. "Oh, it's on now, girls."
And there we have it! Read, review, let me know how I did!