Disclaimer: All HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and respective publishing companies and all Naruto characters are the property of Masashi Kishimoto. This is nothing more than a simple FanFiction that I have written. I have made no money from this or any of the other stories I have posted on this or other sites.
Warnings: Mentions of character death, angst and drama, mild to moderate violence, mature content (foul language & mentions of alcohol), and AU. Child!Harry, Powerful!Harry, Intelligent!Harry, NOTstupid!Naruto, Powerful!Naruto, and Protective!Naruto.
AN: This story is self-beta'd; so there may be occasional grammatical or spelling errors that crop up every now and then and for those I apologize in advance.
Chapter 9: Homecomings and Interrogations
September 30, 1986 ~ October 03, 1986
Sunagakure no Sato, Kaze no Kuni/Konohagakure, Hi no Kuni
Three days after returning to Suna, Team Kakashi, Team Gai, Shikamaru, and Nanashi said their farewells to the Sand Siblings as they prepared to head back to Konoha. The Konoha shinobi had stayed in Suna for an extra couple of days in order to make certain that the Akatsuki didn't immediately attack the village a second time to kidnap a still recovering Gaara again. The extra time also allowed everyone to recover from their battles.
Nanashi had clammed up and withdrawn immediately after they'd been joined by the large contingent of Suna shinobi; the kid was apparently extremely uncomfortable around crowds (this being the most people the six year old had been around since Naruto had found him; not counting when they first arrived in Suna nearly a week earlier). Naruto was sad to see his ward withdrawing once more; the blond had quickly grown to prefer the child's near endless chatter and curious questions to his constant silence. The six year old at least hadn't shied away from Gaara after the others joined them, his fascination with the redhead as strong as ever; especially once Gaara recovered enough chakra to take control of his sand once more.
In fact, after watching Gaara manipulate the sand a couple of times, Nanashi took to carrying around a small bag of sand with him everywhere he went and often sat scowling at the bag as he tried to make the sand obey him. It was actually kind of amusing to watch the kid sit in the corner for long stretches of time just staring at the small bag of sand while wearing an adorable scowling pout. Gaara eventually took pity on the kid and showed him how he imbued his chakra in the sand to make it obey him.
Unfortunately, because Nanashi didn't have chakra, he couldn't imbue the sand to make it obey him and whenever he tried to pour his own energy into the bag of sand, he always turned it into glass instead. It didn't turn the bag of sand into a solid lump of glass though; it turned each individual grain of sand into glass and after the first two days of trying he had close to ten pounds of miniscule glass beads.
The beads themselves were rather dangerous as they had sharp edges and were easy to get in your eye or breathe into your lungs where the edges would cut and tear everything they came into contact with. That was something that Naruto had had the misfortune to experience first hand and if not for the Kyuubi and Sakura's skills he'd have ended up blind or potentially have drowned in his own blood. Naruto had been quick to seal each bag Nanashi created into a storage scroll to prevent the kid from hurting himself shortly after he'd learned how dangerous they were.
On the day they were due to leave, Gaara gifted Nanashi with a foot and a half tall hand carved puppet that looked exactly like Gaara and a small bag that held about four ounces of Gaara's special sand. So long as Nanashi always kept the small bag of sand with him, Gaara would be able to watch over him from a distance due to his connection to the sand. Nanashi had allowed Naruto to thread a leather thong around the mouth of the bag holding the sand so he could wear it around his neck. The puppet, on the other hand, had been made by Kankurou and even had a small gourd on its back fashioned from clay. Nanashi had given Gaara a hug and the scroll holding the glass sand he had made in return.
Over the course of the first day's travel, Nanashi remained quiet and would frequently glance back behind him to watch the rapidly disappearing bulk of Suna's great stone walls. Naruto wondered if the boy was missing Gaara that much and if he would have preferred staying in Suna with him; the kid had grown quite fond of the rather stoic Kazekage. That thought was a surprisingly painful thought; the mere possibility that Nanashi would prefer someone else cut deeply. On the other hand, because it was Gaara that Nanashi was so fond of, Naruto would not hesitate to let the boy go if that was what he really wanted.
Naruto knew that Gaara would both be able to protect Nanashi and would take good care of Nanashi.
The blond needn't have worried, once Suna had vanished completely from sight Nanashi stopped peering over his shoulder and instead began taking an interest in his surroundings again. He wouldn't start talking again until they had left the desert behind and set up camp well after sunset that night.
The rest of the trip back to Konoha passed in a blur of endless babble for the blond teen as Nanashi once again asked question after question about the things he found, saw, or heard. If Nanashi had been left to walk on his own, the trip probably would have taken far longer since the kid would have meandered back and forth across the road in search of mysteries to unravel instead of just walking in a straight line. As it was, the moment they made camp each night, Nanashi would explore every last inch of their camp site and dig up all manner of strange things; including old rusted shinobi weapons and tools, an assortment of colored rocks and stones, and the leaves of any plant he found that he didn't recognize.
The moment that the walls of Konoha rose up out of the forest in front of them, Nanashi retreated into silence again. In fact, the closer they got to the village, the tenser his ward grew. Naruto was puzzled about why his ward was growing apprehensive but before he could try and coax an answer out of Nanashi, Kakashi called a halt and shuffled their group off the road. The Jounin then summoned half of his ninken pack (much to Nanashi's distress) to stand guard around the small clearing they stopped in to make certain they weren't being followed or spied upon while he raised a rather simplistic privacy barrier.
"Alright, listen up everyone," Kakashi ordered once the clearing was secure. "Tsunade-sama, after she finished yelling at me in her latest letter, gave me very specific instructions on what was to happen once we returned to the village. Far too many people have seen Nanashi-kun to keep his presence a secret for much longer. The Hokage came up with a solution and a way to introduce Nanashi without revealing he'd been secretly living in the village for the past two months; one that will allow for him to remain in Naruto's care."
"What did shishou come up with sensei?" Sakura asked when Naruto didn't immediately speak up.
"I'm getting there. The first thing you need to know is that while Nanashi will be officially granted citizenship and his presence will become public record; his abilities are still considered classified. That means even breathing a single word of what you know Nanashi can do will have grave consequences. Naruto, that means you need to be extra careful whenever you take Nanashi out in public in order to avoid dragging him into a situation where he would be tempted to use his abilities in clear view of the villagers. Tsunade-sama knows it will be impossible to hide his talents forever but the longer we can keep them under wraps, the more time we will have to properly train him so that he can protect himself."
"I understand."
"Good. Tsunade-sama came to the conclusion that the only way to prevent anyone from stepping in and trying to take Nanashi-kun away from Naruto was for Nanashi to become part of Naruto's family; a distant cousin specifically. Since it is known throughout Konoha that Naruto is an orphan, Tsunade and Shizune plan to create test records that will prove the two of them are related; they will have been preparing those documents over the past week and will just need blood samples from both of you in order to add the finishing touches. Nanashi's back story is that his parents were refugees from Uzushiogakure no Sato in Uzu no Kuni and they were killed when the small family crossed paths with the pair of Akatsuki members that kidnapped the Kazekage."
"Why would they spare Nanashi though?" Tenten inquired with a frown. "If they supposedly killed his parents just because they were seen, then shouldn't they have killed him too?"
"Not necessarily," Shikamaru answered before Kakashi could reply. "Orphans are often taken by shinobi so that they could be raised as spies or weapons; this is especially true of children that are from families or clans with known Kekkei Genkai. Nanashi-kun's eye color alone is enough to hint at some unknown doujutsu; most green eyed individuals you come across usually have eyes that are more hazel than green (like Sakura's) or a shade of sea green rather than deep leaf-green or forest green."
"So we were to have saved Nanashi-kun when we rescued Gaara?" Neji asked logically.
"Correct. Nanashi's lost memory actually works in our favor, since we won't have to worry about him slipping up and revealing the lie; his captors obviously tampered with his memory in order to prevent him from rebelling against them at some point – leaving him with nothing but his name," Kakashi continued. "His lack of education can be attributed to both the memory loss and a life lived constantly on the move; his parents had been rather poor, paranoid, and too old to find a steady job."
"His surname, along with the blue Uzushio Spiral (which has been sewn onto the clothes that Tsunade sent with her letter), will be our primary reason for bringing him back to the village instead of leaving him in an orphanage in Suna. Tsunade also slipped in an old Uzushio hitai-ate that used to belong to her grandmother that she wishes for Nanashi to carry as a 'keepsake' from his parents."
"What about his lack of a chakra network?" Sakura inquired with concern.
"That is easily solved with one of Naruto's shadow clones henged to look like a jacket which can be worn over his clothes," Kakashi explained. "Any shinobi with the ability to sense chakra will contribute the similarities between the clone representing Nanashi's chakra signature and Naruto's signature to their relationship; which will further make the ruse more believable. The only ones who would not be fooled are the Hyuuga but Tsunade said she already had plans to neutralize any potential trouble makers from the clan; specifically the Hyuuga Elders. The only possible glitch in the story is the fact that Nanashi has black hair instead of red."
"How is that a problem? Naruto has blond hair," Lee pointed out with some confusion.
"The Uzumaki Clan was mostly known for their red hair, longevity, vast chakra reserves, and their creation of complex fuuinjutsu. Naruto's hair color is a rare exception; part of the reason why a large number of people don't believe that he is really part of the Uzumaki Clan. Nanashi having black hair would make people question the authenticity of both their claims to the Uzumaki name since while one exception is believable, two would be suspicious. So, we are going to bleach Nanashi's hair red; something that will have to be done regularly for several years. As he grows older, we can slowly allow his hair color to darken so that it appears that his hair turned darker over time until it is no longer necessary to bleach his hair."
"How do you know that bleaching his hair will turn it red?"
"Tsunade-sama tested a few strands of hair that she found in Naruto's bathroom and discovered that the underlying color of Nanashi's hair is actually a very dark red rather than a true black. The bleaching solution Tsunade created based upon that revelation will strip the concentration of color from Nanashi's hair and leave him a redhead; the exact shade will depend on how long we leave it in his hair. Are there any more questions? No? Then let's get busy."
Two hours later, a now redheaded and highly self-conscious Nanashi stood in the middle of the clearing while Kakashi inspected him closely. The torn orange jumpsuit he'd been wearing had been replaced with a slightly overlarge pale brown tunic that was more than a little threadbare. A large pale-blue spiral outlined with dark blue (the Uzushio Village and Uzumaki Clan symbol) was centered on the front of the tunic. The hems of the shirt had been sewn with dark blue designs that had been based upon the Uzumaki Sealing Technique (according to Tsunade's letter).
His pants were dark brown and had ragged hems where they ended several inches below Nanashi's ankles and half hid his bare feet. Around his neck, he wore the slightly rusted hitai-ate with a stylized spiral on it that attached to a frayed and faded light blue headband that Tsunade had given him. Over top of his clothes, he wore an exact copy of Naruto's orange and black tracksuit jacket that was actually one of Naruto's clones under a henge.
On his back he wore an old brown backpack that also carried the Uzushio Spiral on the top flap with the spiral design repeated on all of the zipper pulls. Inside the pack were a couple more changes of second hand clothes that had been sewn with the Uzushio Spiral design, the puppet Kankurou had made for him, and a pair of the rusty kunai that he'd found in the forest during their journey home (the latter only grudgingly as Nanashi disliked the throwing knives).
During the two hours they'd spent transforming Nanashi into a redheaded refugee, Naruto had had Nanashi repeatedly practice stating his full name, age, and birthdate. He'd also had him practice saying mother, father, and a small handful of other words that would be needed to answer the questions that he was bound to be asked by Tsunade's unwanted, unneeded, and unavoidable advisors at some point. Naruto also tried to get him to call him cousin but Nanashi's stubbornness had reared its head again and he adamantly refused to even say the word cousin once he understood what the word meant, let alone use it address Naruto.
"Acceptable," Kakashi finally declared as he finished his inspection. "Once Pakkun has confirmed the road is clear we will step out of the forest and continue on our way."
The group headed out a few minutes later, Nanashi walking at Naruto's side with his left hand firmly clinging to the black t-shirt that Naruto had been wearing beneath his jacket (the blond had taken his jacket off and sealed in a scroll to reinforce the impression that Nanashi was currently borrowing it). Naruto settled his right hand on Nanashi's back both to offer him a measure of reassurance and to prevent the six year old from bolting; the tension radiating through the kid's entire body quite obvious.
The revelation that they had a welcoming committee waiting for them sent the poor kid into a panic the moment he saw Iruka (the Chuunin had been assigned gate duty for the day), Shikaku, Inoichi, and Shizune impatiently waiting just inside of the gate. Naruto swept his ward up into his arms the moment the kid had stumbled to a stop and began backing up. Naruto did his best to reassure the kid but the less than welcoming expressions on the faces of those waiting for them weren't exactly helping (the adults were obviously irritated by something).
"Welcome back, Team Kakashi, Team Gai, and Shikamaru. Tsunade-sama is waiting for you in her office," Shizune stated the moment they stepped inside the gate after checking in with Iruka. "Naruto-kun, the Hokage has ordered that the young child you rescued during your mission submit to a series of medical and psychological tests in order to confirm that he is not a threat to the village, to assess his current health, and determine whether or not he is related to you by blood. I'll need you both to go with Shikaku and Inoichi."
"Hai, Shizune-chan," Naruto replied as he split away from the rest of the group.
Nanashi let out a soft whimper of fright when Shikaku and Inoichi each dropped a hand onto Naruto's shoulders before all four of them disappeared in a swirl of leaves. They reappeared in a second swirl of leaves inside of Inoichi's office within Konoha's Torture and Interrogation Facility where Kitou was waiting for them alongside Jiraiya. Kitou spent about ten minutes giving Nanashi a cursory check up (including a careful inspection of the mostly healed kunai wound and the faded bruising from the dislocation on his right shoulder) and drew a vial of blood from both boys (to keep up appearances) before he left the room. The moment the medic left, the Sannin immediately activated the privacy seals he'd placed about the room in order to prevent anyone from spying upon their meeting; the walls briefly flashing blue as the barrier formed.
"Mendoukusei," Shikaku groused the moment the barrier was in place as he dropped down to sit on the corner of Inoichi's desk while the head of the Yamanaka Clan sat down behind the desk. "I could almost swear you really are an Uzumaki by birth based upon the size and number of the headaches you manage to induce without actively trying, Nanashi-kun."
"Nashi not like hurt. Nashi need stay Narto. Nashi keep Narto safe."
"That's a new development; how long has he been speaking, Naruto?" Inoichi inquired while Shikaku was busy trying to analyze Nanashi's fiercely whispered statements.
"Since the moment I tried to leave him behind with Kankurou in Suna after Kakashi's ninken had tracked the Akatsuki to their base. He was very vocal in his refusal to be left behind. He believes that it is his job to protect me and that it causes him physical pain when he is not with me."
"He was in quite a bit of unexplainable pain before he disappeared," Shikaku mused thoughtfully.
"That was another problem; it didn't take him long to master that ability to transport himself. We were holed up in a cave waiting out a sandstorm in the middle of the desert less than half a day away from Suna when he popped up in the middle of camp. He even used that ability to snatch Gaara away from the Akatsuki."
"Has he shown any other new abilities?" Jiraiya asked curiously.
"A few; he can turn sand into glass, he can sense the presence of clones from several yards away, he can dispel genjutsu and possibly barriers, and…" Naruto began only to trail off when he couldn't bring himself to mention what happened when the Itachi-look-a-like failed Nanashi's test or Nanashi's ability to sense the souls of the bijuu sealed within their hosts.
"And what?" Inoichi prompted when Naruto didn't continue.
"His ability to heal is capable of far more then we originally believed; he'd flushed the poison from Kankurou when we first arrived in Suna. He also finished healing Gaara after the Akatsuki failed to finish extracting the Ichibi; bringing him back from the brink of death. Sakura had been too exhausted to fully heal Gaara and he didn't hesitate to heal what she couldn't. He's gotten better at shielding too; he's now capable of shielding others from a distance."
"That wasn't what you were originally going to say," Shikaku bluntly stated as he narrowed his eyes at the teen. "What is it you are trying to hide?"
"Does it have anything to do with the corpse that had Tsunade and Shizune all up in arms?" Jiraiya pointedly asked right on the heels of Shikaku's question.
Naruto couldn't help wincing in response to Jiraiya's question and he knew that he had no choice but to answer both men despite his desire to hide that knowledge from everyone in order to protect his ward. Sighing, Naruto dropped his chin down onto Nanashi's head and hugged him close as he reluctantly answered, "Hai, Ero-Sennin; the man failed Nanashi-kun's soul weighing test. From what was said by the Akatsuki member I fought against alongside of Lee, Neji, and Tenten, whatever Nanashi did to the man affected three of the members that were performing the jutsu to extract the Ichibi; one of which was Itachi, which was the face the dead man was wearing when Nanashi-kun weighed him. He is also able to sense the presence of a bijuu within a Jinchuuriki."
"Do you know why the man failed the test?" Jiraiya demanded at the same time as Shikaku asked, "How can he sense the presence of a clone or the bijuu if he himself doesn't have any chakra?"
"I don't know," Naruto answered in reply to both questions.
"Nanashi-kun, can you tell me how you know if there is a Bunshin nearby?" Shikaku asked the six year old, all traces of laziness disappearing as he focused on the child.
"Dead not dead have no souls."
"That's right, he spoke of Gaara and I both having two souls inside of us," Naruto added as he recalled what Nanashi had said when Naruto had asked him why he was so fascinated by Gaara. "I think he even knew that the Ichibi had been almost completely drained of chakra during the attempted extraction; he'd said something about the second soul being empty."
"He has the ability to sense a person's soul without the need to meet their gaze?" Inoichi asked in mild surprise.
"I suspect he can sense a person's chakra on some level as well; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a clone and a tree," Shikaku added as he stroked his goatee and pursed his lips as he continued to study Nanashi.
"Most likely; given that he can sense both the presence of the clone and the fact that it is not actually alive. And since the clones are not actually alive they would not have a soul inside of them," Jiraiya deduced. "That's a rather handy ability."
"Anything else you can tell us about his new abilities?"
"Well, his transportation technique seemed to take a lot of energy out of him the first time he used it. It didn't tire him out anywhere near as badly if he was flashing just a few feet away though and the sound he makes when he disappears wasn't as loud. When he transported Gaara with him, on the other hand, the sound was much louder. I don't know how much it took out of him though because he'd still been recovering from the failed test, uncovering a hidden tunnel into the Akatsuki base, and shielding myself and Lee a couple of times from some rather large explosions."
"Aside from his newly revealed abilities, what other things did you observe about Nanashi during the time he was with you out of the village?"
"He's rather uncomfortable around crowds and far less willing to speak or explore if there are more than a handful of people around him. He's still very particular about who he lets touch him. Out of everyone new he met since joining us on the way to Suna; he was most taken with Gaara. Once he was comfortable enough around Team Gai and before we met back up with a contingent of Suna shinobi, Nanashi spent hours exploring the forest around us as we traveled; constantly asking what everything was each time he found something new. After we joined up with the Suna shinobi he didn't speak another word until long after we left Suna."
Naruto paused a moment before continuing, "Now that he's started speaking it's obvious that he doesn't know that many words. It's hard to understand him sometimes and because he leaves out so many words, it's easy to make a mistake in figuring out what he is saying. That's what happened when our fight with the clay user first started; he had asked me two questions."
"He only used two words in each sentence though; asking 'red friend?' and 'save friend?' and at the time I just thought he was asking if Gaara was my friend and if I was going to save him. I told him yes and the next thing I know he transported himself right to Gaara, who was being held captive by the clay user, and then he transported Gaara right out of the mouth of the clay bird that had been holding him. He'd been asking me if I wanted him to save Gaara but I didn't realize it at the time and when I'd answered yes he'd done it without any hesitation."
"That's also how we ended up learning that he actually does know his birthday. We've only ever asked him when his birthday is and he always shook his head no because he didn't know what the word birthday meant; not because he didn't know what day his birthday was on. When I asked him what day he was born he answered immediately with; July thirty-first, nineteen-eighty."
"Anything else you can think of?" Shikaku asked when Naruto trailed off for a moment.
"No… wait there are a couple of things; I've noticed that the more he uses an ability the easier it becomes for him to use it the next time," Naruto replied as he lifted his chin off Nanashi's bleached red hair and turned his gaze down to study his ward. "He was also fascinated by Gaara's ability to manipulate sand and he spent hours trying to control his own bit of sand; that's what led to him turning sand to glass. I don't think he's given up on the idea of controlling the sand either. And lastly, I think he's frightened of large bodies of water because he became terrified when he realized that we were standing on top of the river and he completely panicked when we were knocked into the water at one point."
"So, you actually learned quite a bit in the short time he was out of the village with you," Jiraiya mused. "It also sounds like his Kekkei Genkai responds instinctively when under pressure; adapting and expanding as needed."
"I guess," Naruto replied with a shrug.
"Is there something bothering you, Naruto?" Inoichi asked in concern as he leaned forward to inspect the blond a moment. "You've been rather… tense and hesitant since you arrived."
"I… I'm worried. The Akatsuki saw Nanashi and saw enough of what happened to that guy that was pretending to be Itachi that they are interested in him. The clay user nearly managed to take him from me because he'd tricked me by disguising a pair of his clay clones to look like me and I'd let them get close because I thought they were my shadow clones. If not for Nanashi's shielding and transportation abilities, I'd have lost him and been seriously injured in the explosion when the second clone blew up while it was holding me. How can I protect him if I can't even tell the difference between my shadow clones and an enemy clone henged to look like me? How do I keep him safe if he refuses to stay home when I go on missions?"
"The news about the Akatsuki being interested in him is disturbing but not the end of the world. They also don't know the full extent of his abilities; heck we don't even know the full extent of his abilities. The fact that both of the members you faced during the mission were killed means that the remaining members won't have learned anything else from that fight," Shikaku pointed out logically.
"As for being able to distinguish a henged clone from one of your own without dispelling the henge or destroying the clone; there are few people who have that kind of ability. Beating yourself up about a mistake you made during the heat of the battle is pointless; learn from the mistake and move on. I'm sure you would have found a way to get the gaki back if he hadn't done it himself," Inoichi added with a shrug.
"Why exactly can't he stay in Konoha when you are out on missions?" Jiraiya asked in confusion.
"No make Nashi stay," Nanashi practically growled as his fingers tightened on Naruto's shirt and he swung his head around to glare at the white haired Sannin. "Nashi go Narto. Nashi need stay Narto. Nashi need keep Narto safe. Nashi not stay. Hurt Nashi not stay Narto. Nashi not like burn."
"And that is why I can't leave him, Ero-Sennin; he won't let me and I can't stop him from flashing to my side if I try to leave him behind," Naruto sighed as he ran his hand through his hair. "Could you imagine what would happen if he were to flash to me in the middle of a fight? Or if I was crossing a large river on foot and he was too far away for me to catch before he fell into the water?"
"Mendoukusei," Shikaku muttered as he ran a hand across his face.
"Why don't you have a seat, Naruto-kun," Inoichi suggested after a few minutes. "We still need to hear the full details of the mission and a clearer description of the fight you participated in with one of the Akatsuki members. Any more information you can supply about Nanashi-kun's new abilities would be appreciated as well; such as what triggered the new ability and whether the control is conscious or unconscious."
"Hai," Naruto murmured as he complied.
Over the next three hours, the blond relayed everything he could remember about everything that had taken place from the moment they'd left the village; the three adults occasionally asking a question or two for clarification. After the first hour, Nanashi finally relaxed his death grip on Naruto's shirt. After the second, the kid slipped down off Naruto's lap to hesitantly explore Inoichi's office; carefully avoiding the three adults. After the third hour, near the end of Naruto's report, Nanashi finally worked up the courage to creep up beside Shikaku though he still wasn't close enough for the man to pick him up or touch him.
"… and the moment we were close enough to see the walls of Konoha, Nanashi fell silent and grew nervous. He didn't like having his hair bleached but he didn't fuss or fight us and he seemed happy enough with the color once the ordeal was over. We had him practice stating his name, birthday, and age so that if he is asked those questions he will answer properly though he still tends to speak in clipped sentences. The only thing I can't figure out is why he seemed so scared of returning to the village; I thought he'd be happy to be back so he could visit the deer. And he almost bolted the moment he saw you guys standing at the gate."
Naruto slumped back in his chair as he finished speaking, letting his eyes fall closed for a moment. His brain more than a little fried from having to dredge up every little detail that he could remember about the mission in addition to Nanashi's skills and behavior. He immediately sat up and focused on his ward when the kid spoke up in response to his final statements though.
"Nashi fear. Nashi not want… not want… Nashi not know word. Nashi told stay. Nashi not stay. Nashi need go. Nashi bad," Nashi stated, his voice dropping to a soft whisper by the time he finished. The kid then glanced worriedly at Naruto before he focused intently on Shikaku as he nervously asked, "You mad Nashi? You send Nashi way now?"
"No, I'm not mad at you Nanashi-kun. I was worried that something would happen to you when you disappeared. I was afraid you might be hurt," Shikaku answered without any hesitation. "And I would never send you away; even if you did do something that made me mad. I might make you do chores, stand in the corner for a few minutes, or not let you help me feed the deer once in a while as punishment for getting in trouble but I would never send you away."
Naruto could see the last of Nanashi's tension melt away as the kid held Shikaku's gaze for a moment before he crossed the remaining distance separating him from one of his favorite adults. Naruto felt himself relax knowing that his ward was in good hands as he watched the kid deftly climb up Shikaku's legs so he could cuddle up against the man's deer skin jacket. Sometimes, Naruto swore that the kid liked that jacket far more than he actually liked the man wearing the jacket.
"I guess that explains his apprehension over returning to Konoha. He was afraid he was going to be in big trouble for sneaking off when he was told to stay," Jiraiya concluded with a soft chuckle. "It's actually refreshing to see him behave normally for a child his age for once."
"Nashi not normal. Nashi not like normal. Normal not like Nashi. Nashi just fine Nashi. Nashi not need normal. Nashi have Narto. Narto all Nashi need."
All three adults immediately began chuckling over Nanashi's implication that Naruto wasn't normal either while Naruto blushed as he grumbled under his breath; he couldn't deny the truth in Nanashi's statement though – he'd never been normal either. Inoichi and Jiraiya asked a few more questions while Shikaku spent a few minutes doting on Nanashi before the Sennin dropped the privacy barrier and the five of them headed to the Hokage's Office.
Translations: Japanese to English
Bijuu – tailed beasts/demons
Ero-Sennin – pervy sage
Hai – yes
Mendoukusei – how troublesome, what a drag, or this sucks
Narto – Nanashi's butchering of Naruto's name
Shishou – master
Uzu no Kuni – Whirlpool Country
Uzushiogakure no Sato – Hidden Whirling Tides Village
AN: The next chapter will provide a bit of background on Harry/Nanashi's story, for those of you who are chomping at the bit and wondering what the heck is going on. It won't provide all of the answers but it will provide some. For those of you who are annoyed by Nanashi's speech patterns (yes, I'm speaking to the Grammar Nazies), please be patient, he will not speak like that forever; however, I'm trying to make his speech progression a little more realistic than the instant fix most FanFics employ, so it will take a couple of chapters. ~ Jenn