The gentle breeze wafted through area as the two children made their way to a nearby tree. The male of the two was carrying a basket full of food, while the girl was carrying a rolled up blanket.
"This was a really good idea, Shinobu-chan!" exclaimed the fox boy with a smile.
The shy little chef couldn't help but blush at Naruto's praise. "A-Arigatou, N-Naruto-kun!"
"Although, shouldn't we have invited the others on this picnic?" questioned Naruto, tilting his head in confusion.
"Th-They had other things to do," replied Shinobu, averting her gaze. She didn't want to lie to Naruto-kun, but she wanted this to be just her and him, with no interference.
"Oh, okay!"
Shinobu let out a sigh of relief as she continued walking side-by-side with the grinning blond. They soon reached their destination where Shinobu then laid out the blanket and Naruto set the basket down. Once they were settled, Shinobu unpacked the food and handed Naruto his lunch.
"How is it, Naruto-kun?" asked Shinobu as they started to eat.
"Seriously, Shinobu-chan, you'd make for an amazing wife with the way you cook," replied Naruto before going back to his food. He missed the bright red blush on Shinobu's face.
Shinobu couldn't help but feel giddy. Here she was, having what was essentially a date with Naruto-kun, and everything was going perfectly! Unfortunately, Murphy's Law decided to rear its ugly head at this moment.
"Naruto!"
The two children turned to see an angry Naru stomping her way towards them. Letting out a sigh, Naruto leveled a look at her.
"What now, Naru? What did I do this time to set you off?" questioned the young shinobi with a sigh.
He unfortunately never got an answer as the next thing Naruto and Shinobu knew was Naru blindsiding him with a Naru Punch, sending him flying back a few feet and tumbling to the ground.
"Naruto-kun!" exclaimed Shinobu, shocked by what just happened. She then looked at Naru with wide eyes. "N-Naru-sempai! Why did you do that?!"
Naru didn't answer as she stalked towards Naruto, who was struggling to stand up. When she reached him she kicked him hard in the ribs, sending him back another few feet and causing him to cough up blood.
"Wh-What the hell?!" coughed Naruto, as he tried to regain his breath. He glared at Naru, but lost his breath once again when the older girl grabbed him by the throat.
"Sempai! Stop, please!" yelled Shinobu as she ran towards them. She stopped in her tracks though when Naru cast her a glare though.
Turning back to the struggling Naruto, Naru finally spoke. "You've been nothing but a pain in my side since you got here. Since Keitaro is too much of a wimp to get rid of you, I'll get rid of you myself."
Naruto and Shinobu's eyes widened in fear when Naru then pulled out what Shinobu recognized as the Hina Blade. Where Naru was hiding it on her person was a mystery, but all that mattered now was that it was aimed directly for Naruto's heart.
"No! Naruto-kun!" cried Shinobu. She had to stop this before it was too late!
But with a single thrust, the earth turned red.
-:-
Shinobu awoke with gasp, as fear gripped her heart. With tears streaming down her face, she frantically took in her surroundings to see that she was in her room.
'Naruto-kun!' thought Shinobu as the nightmare she had replayed itself in her mind. 'Please be alive! Please be alive!'
The blue-haired girl scrambled out of her bed with only one thought on her mind. Making her way out of her room she hurriedly, yet quietly, made her way to Keitaro's room to see if Naruto-kun was okay. Once she arrived she was hesitant to open the door since she would technically be intruding, but her need to know if Naruto-kun was alive overrode everything.
Opening the door as quietly as she could, Shinobu snuck inside and let out a sigh of relief when she found Naruto-kun sound asleep in his futon. With the knowledge that he was all right, Shinobu was about to head back to her room before she stopped and looked back at the sleeping blond. Memories of the nightmare she had were still there and she was afraid to go back to sleep…at least by herself. Blushing at what she was about to do, she made her way towards Naruto.
"Mm, ramen," muttered Naruto in his sleep. Shinobu had to hold back a giggle as she kneeled before the blond.
"N-Naruto-kun. Wake up," said Shinobu in a whisper as she gently shook Naruto.
Naruto let out a soft groan as he opened his eyes slightly and saw the shy little chef. "Shinobu?"
"G-Gomen, N-Naruto-kun, for waking you, b-but I had a bad dream and I was w-wondering…if I c-could sleep in here with you?" asked Shinobu, her blush coming back as she avoided eye contact.
Naruto just stared at Shinobu as his sleep addled mind tried to comprehend the girl's words. Wanting to get back to sleep though, he merely gave off a shrug. "Sure."
Whipping her head back up, the still blushing Shinobu watched with wide eyes as the boy scooted over. She gave off a soft smile. "Arigatou, Naruto-kun!"
It didn't take her long to get under the blankets and lay next to the boy she had come to love. Snuggling close to Naruto, she laid her head on his chest and blushed when she felt him wrap his arm around her and held her close.
"Goodnight, Shinobu-chan," muttered Naruto, sleep taking over once more.
"Goodnight, Naruto-kun," replied Shinobu, nuzzling her (in her mind) Naruto-kun.
The girl had no more nightmares that night.
-:-
The sun came up a few hours later as the birds started their morning song. One of the first people up was Keitaro, usually to get a head start on his daily chores. He especially had to do this early now since ever since Naruto sealed up the hole, the young blond had been doing other chores as well as repayment for staying at the inn.
As he was about to get up though, what caught his eye made him freeze in shock as what he saw were Naruto and Shinobu sleeping together in the same futon. His mind tried to comprehend what he was seeing and why they were in the same futon, but he kept coming up blank. Hell, he wasn't even sure what he was supposed to do right now. Waking them up would cause Shinobu so much embarrassment and he didn't have the heart to do that to the girl and who knew how Naruto would react.
Having no choice, Keitaro tiptoed out of the room and headed downstairs, leaving the two children in peace. Looks like he'd have to make breakfast since Shinobu was still asleep. When he reached the kitchen though, he ran into Motoko, Tsuruko, and Haruka.
"Keitaro, have you seen Shinobu? Why hasn't breakfast been made yet?" questioned Motoko as she turned to the ronin. Seeing him tense though, made her give him a narrowed look. "Urashima, what did you do?"
"Nothing!" yelped Keitaro, holding up his hands in defense.
"Then where is Shinobu?" questioned Haruka as she crossed her arms. "And for that matter, where is Naruto?"
At the mention of both of the pre-teens' names, Keitaro became slightly red and averted his eyes. It didn't take long for the pieces to fall into place for the two women, while Tsuruko was the one to speak up.
"Oh my, I didn't think children in this day and age started so early~"
Not even waiting for confirmation, an angry Haruka made her way upstairs to find the now wayward children that were her responsibility. Motoko wasn't far behind, actually disappointed that she might have to kill Naruto. Keitaro and Tsuruko followed after them to make sure they didn't do something so drastic. As they reached the hallway where Keitaro's room was, Kitsune and Su were coming from the opposite direction.
"What's goin' on?" asked a still tired Kitsune, as she noticed the others.
She got her answer when Haruka slammed the door open, causing the sleeping Naruto and Shinobu to jump awake and let out a yelp and eep respectively. "What the hell are you two doing?!"
Due to being awoken so suddenly, Naruto was still disoriented and didn't notice how Shinobu hid her face in his chest to hide her embarrassment. When he noticed Haruka glaring down at him, he grew confused. "Haruka-san?"
"I'll repeat, what the hell are you two doing?" growled out Haruka, still glaring down at the two.
"What are you talking about?" questioned Naruto, giving her a pouty glare.
"Ya might want to look down, Naruto," said Kitsune, a smirk on her face.
Naruto did as Kitsune said, only to see a mass of blue.
"…A blueberry?" questioned the fox boy as he gave the object a tentative touch. In doing so, the object let out an "eep". "A squeaky blueberry?"
Kitsune couldn't hold it anymore. She busted out laughing at Naruto's description of Shinobu. Tsuruko also couldn't hold her giggles at the scene. Haruka, Motoko, and Keitaro on the other hand sweatdropped. Lastly, Su was giving off a pout.
"No fair! Why Shinobu get to sleep with Naruto? I want sleep with Naruto too!" exclaimed the island girl as she tried to make her way into the room, causing Naruto to go pale.
Luckily Motoko was able to pull her back in time. "Now is not the time, Su."
It was at that moment Shinobu stopped hiding and released herself from Naruto, causing the boy to look at her with wide eyes. "Sh-Shinobu-chan?"
"I want both of you downstairs now," demanded Haruka. "I want answers."
The two pre-teens could feel the fear building up. Haruka, despite coming off as mellow and calm, could be frightening when she needed to be. Not wasting anytime, Naruto and Shinobu followed after Haruka.
When they were gone, Motoko turned to Keitaro with a narrowed look, making him flinch. "Why didn't you do something when you first found them like that?"
"I know I should have, but I couldn't bring myself to embarrass Shinobu," replied the guilty ronin. "I was hoping they would have woken up on their own before everyone else."
Motoko pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "Keitaro, your indecision might have made things worse for them. In fact, I was very close to punishing Naruto myself because I had thought he did something perverted to Shinobu, but since the incident happened in your room Naruto obviously was the instigator in this case."
"Who knew Shinobu had it in her?" questioned Kitsune with a smirk. This earned her a glare from Motoko.
"I believe it might be best that we make sure Haruka-san doesn't do something too severe," said Tsuruko as she walked passed the Hinata residents. "She was quite angry after all."
"I still want to sleep with Naruto!" cried Su as she ran on ahead. That was all Motoko and Keitaro needed to get in gear. Keeping Su out of this was the best thing they could do.
Kitsune was about to follow after them, but stopped when a thought hit her. She looked back into Keitaro's room and up at the sealed hole. "I'm surprised Naru didn' hear any of that. The others can handle the kids, I better check on Naru."
With that, the vixen went in the other direction to find her friend.
-:-
Downstairs, Naruto and Shinobu were sitting on the couch with Haruka standing in front of them and staring down at them with a narrowed look. Looking between the two, she set her sights on Shinobu first, making the girl jump.
"Explain to me why you were in Naruto's futon last night. You are the last person I would think who would do something like this, so you better have a really good reason for it."
Shinobu blushed in embarrassment. She didn't regret going to Naruto-kun last night or even sharing a futon with him, but to be caught like they were was too much for the shy little chef. It didn't help that she had to tell them about the nightmare she had. Just remembering what had happened in the realm of dreams brought tears to he eyes.
"I…I had a g-good reason, H-Haruka-san!" squeaked Shinobu, wiping away the tears.
Haruka merely crossed her arms. "Which was?"
"I…I had a nightmare and c-couldn't get back to sleep," replied the girl, looking down at her lap. "I just didn't want to be alone."
Haruka raised an eyebrow at this. She then turned to Naruto. "Is this true? Was that the only reason she was with you last night?"
Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "Well I was drifting in and out last night, but I'm pretty sure it was. I remember waking up to see Shinobu and she said something about a nightmare, but not much else. I went right back to sleep afterwards."
"And you just agreed to let her sleep in your futon with you?" demanded Haruka, still giving the boy a questioning look.
"I don't see what the big deal is! Shinobu-chan had a nightmare and I helped her get over it!" exclaimed Naruto with a pout. He then muttered. "I wish I had someone to go to when I had nightmares when I was younger."
Despite his mutterings, Haruka still heard what he said, but didn't question it out right. Focusing back on the problem at hand, she let out a sigh of frustration. "Okay, look, obviously nothing happened last night other than sleep, but I do not want this to happen again. You two are too young to be sharing a futon and I do not need to give you two The Talk, understood?"
The two pre-teens blushed up a storm at the mention of getting The Talk. Shinobu went silent, while Naruto spoke up. "No! We don't need that! My Baachan already gave me The Talk after Ero-sennin gave it to me and I don't need it for a third time!"
"Then you two will be sleeping in your own beddings from now on," replied Haruka, secretly enjoying how fearful Naruto had become. It meant that he would listen to her warning. Shinobu on the other hand…
Haruka glanced at Shinobu to find the young girl, while still blushing and her head down, kept glancing at Naruto. The den mother frowned at this; worried that Shinobu might try to get into Naruto's futon again. This led to a new thought. Was Naruto and Shinobu's nightmare connected? Was that why Shinobu went straight to Naruto instead of one of the other girls? She had to find out so this incident wouldn't repeat itself.
"Haruka-san? Can I go now? I haven't had breakfast yet," said Naruto, his stomach letting out a growl.
It was then that Keitaro, Motoko, Su, and Tsuruko entered the room. This gave Haruka the perfect opportunity to talk with Shinobu without Naruto around.
"Keitaro, since breakfast is a little late thanks to this morning's incident (this caused Shinobu to blush) I want you to take Naruto into town a pickup some breakfast for everyone."
"…Why not just make breakfast here?" asked Keitaro, raising an eyebrow at the request. He received a look that made him shiver in fear. "Right! Let's get going, Naruto!"
Once the two males dressed and left, this allowed Haruka to question Shinobu without embarrassing her in front of Naruto. "Shinobu, about that nightmare you had…"
Shinobu shuddered in fear at the mention of her nightmare. She didn't want to remember. "H-Hai, Haruka-san?"
"Did it by chance have anything to do with Naruto?"
This time Shinobu tensed up. How did Haruka know?! Before Shinobu could reply, Motoko spoke up.
"A nightmare about Naruto? Why would Shinobu have a nightmare about Naruto?" questioned the swordswoman as she crossed her arms. "It would make no sense considering how they interact with each other when they're awake."
Haruka let out a sigh at Motoko's words. It was more logical though. Looking back at the now blushing Shinobu, she got back on track. "Well, Shinobu?"
"I-It wasn't about N-Naruto-kun, but he was in it," replied Shinobu. "I don't want to talk about this!"
Tsuruko spoke up next. "But talking about it will help. I remember when Motoko-han was younger and had nightmare, I had her tell me about them and once she did she always felt better afterwards."
Motoko looked away with a blush. "I did not have nightmares."
"Oh? I do remember you having an occasional nightmare involving a certain shelled reptile that I believe you are still afraid of," replied Tsuruko with a smirk as Motoko went pale as a sheet at the mention of her least favorite thing in the world.
"S-Sister!"
"Would you two knock it off?!" growled out Haruka as she glared at the two swordswomen. She then turned back to Shinobu. "Turtle dreams not withstanding, Tsuruko is right when she said talking about your nightmare would help. Now what happened, Shinobu?"
The other older women were surprised when tears came to Shinobu's eyes and were even more surprised by her next words. "N-Naruto-kun died!"
"…Died? What do you mean he died? How?" questioned Haruka, narrowing her eyes.
Shinobu, though hesitant, went on to explain her dream. From how her and Naruto-kun were on a picnic date to when Naru showed up. She broke down in sobs, as she had to tell them how Naru beat Naruto and then stabbed him through the heart with the Hina Blade and there was nothing she could do to stop Naru.
At this point, Motoko had embraced Shinobu, letting the little girl cry on her shoulder as she rubbed Shinobu's back to try and calm her. Su was no longer her hyperactive self, realizing that the situation was not the time for her antics, and went over to give Shinobu a reassuring hug. Haruka's reaction though…
Tsuruko noticed Haruka making her way towards the stairs and could sense the anger radiating off the den mother. "Haruka-san?"
"I need to have a talk with Naru," replied Haruka, venom dripping from her words.
Watching Haruka make her way up the stairs, Tsuruko wondered if she should be calling for an ambulance right now.
-:-
It was a good thing that no one was in Haruka's way as she made her way to Naru's room; otherwise they probably would have felt her burning wrath. Upon reaching the room, Haruka slammed the door open, making the occupant jump in fright. "Naru!"
"Damn it, Haruka! What the hell ya think yer doin'?! Ya scared the hell outta me!" exclaimed Kitsune as she glared at Haruka once her heart stopped trying to jump out of her chest.
Haruka glared back at the vixen, causing the dirty blonde to flinch back when she noticed the anger swimming in them. "Where is Naru?"
Kitsune frowned at the question before handing Haruka a piece of paper. Snatching the paper from Kitsune, Haruka read what was on the paper, her grip becoming tighter as her anger rose.
"Yeah, she's not here," said Kitsune, explaining the note she had found when she came up earlier to check on Naru. "Apparently she snuck out last night and went back home for awhile, sayin' things were gettin' too stressful here or somethin'."
"…I'm done with her."
Kitsune raised an eyebrow at Haruka's words. "Come again?"
"I'm done with Naru. I'm done with her attitude and how she believe everything has to be her way," yelled Haruka, glaring at Kitsune and making the vixen flinch once more. "I don't care if she was Granny Hina's favorite, Naru is not allowed back here if she decided to come back."
"Y-Ya can't be serious, Haruka!"
"I am serious, Mitsune!" hissed Haruka, using the other woman's real name. "I've held my tongue for too long when it came to Naru and I'm not letting that continue. If Naru wants to keep acting like a spoiled brat and run away whenever she can't deal with a problem, then she can find somewhere else to live."
"B-But Keitaro is the one who makes the final decision! Ya know just as well as I do that he'll never kick Naru outta here!" explained Kitsune, hoping she could reason with Haruka.
"Not this time. I'll make damn sure Keitaro doesn't allow Naru back," replied Haruka, her anger still there. "…Do you know why Shinobu slept with Naruto last night?"
"…What does that have to do with this?"
"Shinobu had a nightmare where Naru killed Naruto right in front of her," answered the den mother, causing Kitsune to look at her in surprise. "This situation between Naru and Naruto has gotten so out of hand that it's affecting others."
"B-But Naru wouldn' really kill Naruto! I mean, sure she might have said she would, but she wouldn' go through with it! Hell, Motoko and me would have made sure she didn'! Kid might be annoyin' as hell, but he's still a kid."
"She's threatened to kill Naruto before?" demanded Haruka, her narrowed gaze on the fox woman.
"Sh-She was still upset about Naruto accidently ripping her skirt off…"
"…She's not allowed back here and that's final," replied Haruka as she stormed out the room.
Kitsune frowned in sadness at what had just transpired. Looking around the room once more, she spoke to no one. "Damn it, Naru. You really did it this time."
-:-
Hours had passed since then and the Hinata-sou was surprisingly quiet. When Keitaro and Naruto had returned with breakfast, Haruka took Keitaro aside and had explained to him the situation. To say Keitaro was unhappy was an understatement. He was downright depressed to learn that not only did Naru leave again, but that she was not allowed back no matter what. Like Kitsune, Keitaro tried to defend Naru and reason with Haruka, but this earned him a smack to the head from Haruka much to his surprise.
"When are you going to get it through your head that Naru is not perfect?! She's not some person who should be put on a pedestal like some goddess!" Haruka had said as she glared at Keitaro.
Keitaro was at a loss as he tried to think of how to get Naru back on Haruka's good side. It didn't help that Haruka learned of Naru's plan to convince him to kick Naruto out of the Hinata-sou.
"I know you don't want to hear this, Keitaro, but Haruka is right when she says that Naru is not perfect, no matter what you may think. Maybe it's for the best that Naru stays away for awhile and hopefully she'll learn from this," was what Motoko had said when he asked her what he should do.
The ronin wished there was something he could do, but all he could think about was how Haruka might have been right. Maybe he did always put Naru on a pedestal and see her as someone who could do no wrong, which made him wonder what the hell was wrong with him considering all she ever did was hit him if he did the slightest thing wrong.
He really needed to reevaluate his life and figure out where he went wrong to get to this point.
Elsewhere, Naruto was busy packing a bag with supplies. He had overheard Keitaro and Haruka's conversation, learning of Naru's departure and felt that he was at fault for it. As much as he didn't like Naru, the fox child was going to set things right and go and find Naru and bring her home. He might have failed to bring back Sasuke back in his world, but he wasn't going to fail here.
Just as he was about to leave on his journey though, a soft voice stopped him.
"Naruto-kun? Where are you going?"
The blond turned to find Shinobu looking at him with a worried look. He gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Shinobu-chan. I won't be gone long."
"Th-That didn't answer my question, Naruto-kun. Haruka-san would be worried if you just left," replied Shinobu. "Please, tell me where you're going."
"…I'm going to go find Naru and bring her back. It's pretty much my fault she left and everyone has become upset because of everything that's happened, so I'm going to set things right!" explained Naruto with a determined look. His look of determination though soon became a look of shock by Shinobu's next words.
"No! You can't!" exclaimed Shinobu, her face now full of fear.
"N-Nani? What do you mean I can't, Shinobu-chan?"
Shinobu came closer to the boy she cared deeply for until she was standing directly in front of him and looked him in the eye. "Naruto-kun, it's not your fault that Naru left. She left of her own free will like she has done multiple times before."
"Wait, she's left before?"
"…Naru usually leaves the Hinata-sou and heads back to her own home if something doesn't go her way," explained Shinobu with a frown.
Naruto gave the girl a blank look. "So basically she runs away from her problems like a coward? What the hell?!"
Flinching at his shout, Shinobu continued. "Gomen, Naruto-kun, but it's true. I…I would like to say we try to talk to her about it, but Naru tends to not listen to us most of the time."
Clenching his fist, Naruto turned back to the door. "All the more reason to drag her ass back here!"
"Eh?! You can't!" squeaked Shinobu, grabbing hold of Naruto's sleeve. "D-Do you even know where she is?!"
"I'll find her eventually!" exclaimed Naruto as he walked towards the door, dragging Shinobu in the process.
Shinobu bit her lip in worry. She didn't want Naruto to leave and if she were being honest with herself, she didn't want Naru to come back. She always regretted not standing up for Keitaro-sempai whenever Naru abused him and she was not going to make that same mistake when it came to Naruto-kun. If Naru stayed away, then Naruto-kun would be safe and she was going to keep it that way!
It was all for naught though as Naruto grabbed hold of the door and opened it…only to come face-to-face with a woman who was about to knock.
"Oh my! I didn't even knock yet and you knew I was here!" replied the woman with a smile.
The woman had a kind look to her; a smile always on her face and her eyes always closed. She had long brown hair tied in a braided ponytail. She also wore a green and beige dress, giving her an earthy look.
The two children blinked at the woman's sudden appearance before Naruto turned his head back. "Obachan! We have a visitor!"
"Damn it, kid! What did I tell ya about callin' me that?! And stop yellin'!" growled out a slightly hungover Kitsune as she walked into the room. Upon seeing the visitor though, she raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Mutsumi?"
"Hello, Kitsune-san! I thought I would come by for a visit since it feels like it's been so long since I last visited!" said Mutsumi before looking back and forth between Kitsune and Naruto. "Ara, although it looks like it has been too long."
Kitsune's eye twitched in anger at the Mutsumi's implication. Did she really look like someone's mother?! Hell no! If it weren't for the fact that Mutsumi was as dense as oil, Kitsune would slap the hell out of her.
"Just get in here!" yelled the irritated vixen.
All Mutsumi did was smile as she entered the inn, walking passed Naruto and Shinobu. "Arigatou, Kitsune-san!"
"Whatever," grumbled Kitsune. She then turned to the two children to see Naruto with a backpack and Shinobu. She gave the two a narrowed look. "What are ya two doin'?"
Shinobu let out an "eep" as she let go of Naruto, while the boy gave Kitsune a defiant look. "I was going on a mission!"
"H-He wanted to go and find Naru," added Shinobu.
"Shinobu-chan! Why would you tell Obachan that?! I wanted it to be a surprise!" exclaimed Naruto, giving the blue-haired girl a pout.
Kitsune gave the boy a blank look before pointing towards the stairs. "Go put your things away before I tell Haruka what yer plannin'!"
The still pouting Naruto did as he was told, muttering something along the lines of "mean Obachan" all the way up the stairs. Shinobu let out a sigh of relief before she followed after the boy to help him.
-:-
Some time later everyone was sitting at the table for dinner, with Keitaro sitting between Mutsumi and Motoko.
"Oh, how sad that Naru is not here, but I suppose it can't be helped," said Mutsumi after hearing about Naru.
"She made her own bed," replied Haruka, wanting to get off of the Naru topic.
Mutsumi nodded in understanding. She then turned to Naruto with a smile. "I do not believe I've met you though."
Naruto gave the brunette a grin "My name's Uzumaki Naruto, dattebayo!"
"And my name is Otohime Mutsumi," replied Mutsumi with a giggle.
The blond blinked in confusion. "Otohime? Why does that sound familiar?"
"Don't see how it is, considerin' you just met her," replied Kitsune, giving the boy a light bop on the head and earning a pout from him.
"I'm sure you'll remember why soon, Naruto-kun," said Shinobu.
"Anyway, so what brings you here aside to visit, Mutsumi?" asked Keitaro.
"Ara, nothing much, really. I just thought it would be nice to see everyone again. Oh! And Tama-chan missed everyone too!"
It was then that a familiar flying reptile appeared, although this one was not mechanical. "Myu!"
Of course the sudden appearance of the turtle had the standard effect.
"T-Turtle!" cried out Motoko as she grabbed hold of Keitaro and used him as a shield.
"M-Motoko!" exclaimed Keitaro, blushing a bit at how close Motoko was.
Tsuruko let out a sigh. How could her sister still be afraid of turtles after all this time?
Naruto on the other hand, upon seeing Tama-chan, just realized something. "That's why it sounded familiar!"
Everyone then looked at the boy with Haruka asking the question. "What's familiar, Naruto?"
"Otohime. It's just like in the story! When I was little, Hokage-jiji used to tell me stories and one of them was about a princess named Otohime and a fisherman named Urashima!"
The Hinata-sou residents all looked at Naruto with varying looks, some of confusion and some of curiosity.
"Oh, so that story exists where you come from then, Naruto-kun?" asked Tsuruko.
Naruto nodded in excitement. "Hai!"
"What is it about, Naruto-kun?" asked Shinobu, her curiosity growing.
Naruto tilted his head in thought. "Well, it's been awhile since I've heard it, but if I remember correctly there's a princess by the name of Otohime who lives in an underwater palace and then there's this fisherman named Urashima who can control turtles and visits the princess under the water because they loved each other. I didn't think they were real, though."
The others, minus Mutsumi, merely sweatdropped at how Naruto thought Keitaro and Mutsumi were the same people from the fable.
"I doubt Otohime-san and Keitaro are the same ones from the story, Naruto," replied Motoko as she stayed hidden behind Keitaro. She also thought. 'And Keitaro can't command turtles! He just can't!'
Just the thought of Keitaro being able to command those wretched reptiles made her shudder in fear.
"So they're not boyfriend and girlfriend like in the story either?" asked Naruto, getting a blush from Keitaro and a beaming smile from Mutsumi.
'Like hell they are!' thought Motoko. "They have no connection to the story other than the names!"
"Although I wouldn't mind if Kei-kun were to be my fisherman!" replied Mutsumi as she grabbed hold of Keitaro's arm, making him blush even further.
At Mutsumi's action, Motoko became irritated, something Tsuruko noticed with glee.
Naruto then rubbed the back of his head as he took in Motoko's words. "I guess that makes sense. Seeing a flying turtle though would make you wonder."
"Ara, do you like turtles, Naruto-kun?" asked Mutsumi as she watched Tama-chan land on the boy's head.
"Eh, they're okay. Frogs are way cooler though!" exclaimed Naruto, causing Tama-chan to deflate a bit.
'Ha! Take that, turtle!' exclaimed Motoko in her mind as she took sadistic glee at seeing Tama-chan become sad at learning that she was outranked by an amphibian.
Kitsune frowned at the mention of frogs. "How can anyone like frogs? They're slimy and noisy!"
"Oi, frogs are awesome! I can even summon them with my ninja skills!"
"…You can summon frogs?" questioned the vixen with some disbelief. Granted she has seen Naruto use some ninja abilities, the thought of summoning an animal was to far out there to be real.
"Hai! Ero-sennin was the one to teach me!" replied the kit with a grin.
"From the way you always describe this "Ero-sennin", I'm surprised he taught you anything," replied Motoko with a frown.
Naruto pouted in response. "I know, but I can usually get him to teach me if I'm persistent enough. Plus, if that doesn't work, Baachan steps in and gives him hell!"
Tsuruko then asked a question that had been bugging her. "Naruto-kun, you keep speaking of this "Ero-sennin", but that can't be his real name."
"Well I call him Ero-sennin because he's a pervert and it pisses him off because I call him that public, but despite that he's like my Jiisan! I'd call him Ero-jiisan, but Baachan says that would be going too far."
"So then what is his real name?" asked the elder Aoyama, having a good idea as to what it was with the clues provided.
"His name is Jiraiya."
"…And your Baachan's name, by chance?"
"Tsunade! She can summon slugs, but they're still not as cool as frogs!"
The Hinata-sou residents took in this new information as they looked at Naruto with wide eyes. Once the information was processed, they realized…
Naruto was the grandson of two mythical ninja.
CHAPTER END
-:-
Extra long chapter for you all, since it's because of you that this story is as popular as it is.
First thing I should address about this chapter is Naru's leaving. I did not get rid of her, just to get rid of her. Her leaving is to help set up the next part of the story, so there's an actual purpose. Besides, her leaving is no different than from the actual LH canon where she often leaves if something doesn't go her way. It's kinda like how in Inuyasha Kagome does the same thing.
We also have Mutsumi make her appearance. What will our ditzy little watermelon lover get into now that she's at the Hinata-sou? And will it involve the other Hinata-sou residents? Find out next time!
