I can almost guarantee these people are not quite who I think they are...oh my. As always, if you see errors, please do tell.

All that said - off we go...

Recipe for Disaster
Part 2:

Rabbit Hole
(cont.)

"You're up early, Pop," Hito said when he entered the kitchen the next morning. His father was standing at the counter reading a magazine and favored his son with an almost embarrassed expression. It was then Hito realized which magazine his father was flipping through. It was the same one Hito had abandoned on the counter the day before.

"You are so lucky your mother worked the late shift yesterday," his father said as he closed it and held it out to his son. Hito snatched it and shoved it under his arm. "Anyway I'm taking your brother's fishing after I finish up a few things, want to come?"

"No thanks, Pop, I got some stuff I gotta do today."

"More training? It is your day off."

"So?"

His father shrugged.

Can we

come too?

"No."

Why

Not?

"Mi, Yon, please come down from there. If your mother catches you eating breakfast while hanging from the rafters like that, she'll likely add to your current laundry duties."

Come on Pop!

We're training!

"Your funeral, do your best boys," his father said as he picked up a small pile of papers from the counter, waved and vanished in a puff of smoke. Hito looked up, sure enough there they were. He rolled his eyes and grabbed his bowl full of cereal heading to the dining room. Little show offs Hito thought as he sat on the table and shoveled down a mouthful just as his mother walked in the room from another part of the house. She was reading one of the charts she was carrying and was already dressed in her Medic uniform. That meant she was due to be at the hospital soon. Hito was not playing nursemaid today and did his best to turn his back toward her. Maybe if he didn't make eye contact…as she walked toward the kitchen, she caught the back of his shirt and yanked him down onto one of the floor mats and said sweetly, "Good Morning, Hito-chan."

Hito fumbled with his bowl, trying hard not to let the rolled up magazine under his arm escape and said in a voice loud enough for his brother's to hear, "Morning Mom!" and was pleased to hear two thuds from the kitchen. Hito snickered and his mother gave him that look and Hito immediately shoved another spoonful of cereal into his mouth to keep from laughing. Sliding the door to the kitchen open, his mother let out an exasperated sigh when she found her youngest sons rubbing their backsides as they got up from the floor. Wolfing down the rest of his cereal, he abandon his bowl and bolted out the front door before his mother could find a reason to stop him.

Returning to his chosen outpost, Hito sat on the wooden fence outside the old man's apartment for a good long while as he tried to think up a good excuse for being there in the first place. It wasn't coming to him, but the problem was solved for him when an unseen hand pushed him forward off the fence. Hito hit the ground with a thud and scrambling to his feet as he looked around for the person who pushed him. Turning back around Hito jumped away from the person there, smashing backward into the fence. It was the old guy. Where hell did he come from?

"What brings you back here? I'd have thought you be training with your brothers?"

"It's our day off so they're going fishing with our father."

"Sounds like fun. That still doesn't explain why you're here."

"Do I need to?"

"I suppose not," the old man said and walked away.

Never seeming to take notice of anyone around him, Hito watched the old guy as he weaved through the crowded street, never even coming close to running into anyone. Okay this is just stupid, he thought, you came here for a reason idiot, so just get on with it already. SinceHito thought he knew where the old man was headed, he decided to beat him there. Taking a shortcut through town he reached the training grounds and sat atop one of the thick logs stuck in the ground there.

After sitting for there for almost an hour, Hito was ready call it a day, obviously he'd guessed wrong, besides it was lunchtime and he was hungry. As he got ready to step off the log, Hito felt a smack from behind and was knocked to the ground. He turned over ready to pounce on whoever hit him but found his legs immobilized by some sort of wire.

"You're not very good at this ninja thing are you boy."

It wasn't a question, it was a statement and it immediately pissed Hito off. "What the hell do you want?"

"To know why you're following me or are you going to tell me it's some kind of odd coincidence you keep turning up?"

You didn't come here to piss him off, idiot. Hito sighed and let his head fall back on the grass. "I just wanted..." God this so stupid, he thought.

"You just wanted?"

"I just wanted to find out how that story about the cake ended up."

Other than the wires around his legs going slack there was a complete and total lack of response from the old guy. Hito disentangled himself and waited. Seconds stretched into minutes and Hito decided he'd had enough. Just one more thing he wasn't going to find out.

"I guess that's a no then...sorry to have bothered you, old man."

Hito got up and started back on the path toward town when he heard: "First tell me, why is it you want to know, and make sure it's the truth, I don't take well to being lied to."

The question brought Hito to a halt, he'd probably only get one chance at this so he'd better make it count. Keeping his voice as even as he could he said, "There was someone you mentioned in the story that I always wanted to know more about. I've asked, but no one ever talks about what happened when he was a kid...it's like there some sort of huge secret...anyway I guess I was hoping you..."

"That I'd accidentally spill it during the telling?"

Hito shrugged but when the other cocked an eyebrow, Hito just sighed and nodded.

"I'll tell you what, boy. You buy lunch, and I'll give you some more details."

"Really?"

"Really."

True to his word, the old man said nothing until they reached the ramen shop and Hito had ordered up two bowls of barbecue pork ramen. Once they settled into their lunch the old man started up his story, by reminding Hito where they'd left off. Hito didn't actually need it, but figured he'd humor the old guy.

Naruto's first inkling that something wasn't right came when he realized he was falling, and fast. Crap! Shoving the handle of his bag of groceries in his teeth, unable to see anything around him, Naruto thrust his hands out and discovered the walls were barely within reach. He struggled for a moment to calm himself enough to focus chakra into his hands and feet. Pushing as far out as his arms and legs could stretch he focused on sticking to the wall. Skidding to a halt, Naruto looked up but the exit was just a small dot above him. Below was just more darkness.

"Naruto nii-chan..." Konohamaru's voice almost caused Naruto to lose his tentative grip on the wall. The boy was standing on some sort of ledge just above him and Naruto glared at Konohamaru. He would have shouted but for the grocery bag still stuffed between his teeth. "Why didn't you just use the ladder?" Konohamaru asked looking very puzzled. Naruto's eyes finally adjusted to the gloom and he did in fact see the ladder just a few inches from his right hand. Not wanting lose face in the younger boy's eyes, Naruto thought up an almost reasonable explanation a lot quicker than he normally would. Shifting his hand, Naruto caught hold of the ladder and breathed a sigh as he shifted the bag into his left.

"It's training, Konohamaru," Naruto said as he climbed up to the ledge. "I told you I don't have time to waste."

"Oh," Konohamaru replied accepting the answer.

"So where next?" Naruto asked.

"This way." The boy then turned and started into the dimly lit tunnel they found themselves in front of. Naruto actually had to duck to follow him and after several twists and turns, Naruto could only hope Konohamaru knew where he was going because he was completely lost.

Finally they stepped out into a deeply walled garden. It was overgrown from years of neglect, and the pond at the center was choked with dead grasses and leaves. Naruto was aghast; he could tell the garden was really beautiful once just by the path that led through it. It was well worn so someone used to spend a lot of time here and Naruto wonder what happened to the gardener who had cared for it.

"The princess is over here!"

Naruto snapped out of his trance and walked over to where Konohamaru was standing pointing at something. At first Naruto thought the princess must be behind the sickly looking palm and looked to one side then the other, but there was no one there.

"Konohamaru?" Naruto asked, "Where is she?"

"Right in front of you Naruto nii-chan!"

"What!" Naruto shouted and smacked Konohamaru up the back of his head as he finally realized the boy was talking about the plant. "Dammit, you idiot, I told you I didn't have time to play today and now I've wasted half the day for ... a plant?!"

"But she's special! She's sick and you're the only one who can save her, Naruto nii-chan!"

Naruto felt the weight of his groceries on his arm and sat on the ground with a disheartened thud. Not only did he still not have his eggs, but he was quite sure he'd never have time to find some and still get home to make the cake. He was going to miss his chance to impress the girl of his dreams. The longer Naruto thought about it, the more it depressed him. Still he'd accepted this mission from Konohamaru and if there was one thing Uzumaki Naruto was known for it was finishing what he started.

"What's wrong, boss?"

"It's nothing, Konohamaru," Naruto said as he got up and set the grocery bag down. "Let's have a look at your princess."

"Okay wait a minute old man, I'm confused," Hito said, "What happened to the water...and I thought you said there was a battle?"

"You certainly are an impatient brat. Who's telling this story anyway? The battle, such as it was, was not until later. We are also done for today. It's time for you to go, Uzumaki Hito."

As always, thanks for reading and know that all opinions, suggestions and crits are welcome and most highly appreciated.

cya - achitka