Disclaimer: Copyright infringements are no laughing matter... usually. Still, there isn't one here because I admit I don't own Naruto! Yeehaw!
Though the hearing was over, the rest of Naruto's afternoon was spent in the hokage's office, trying to finish enough paperwork to actually give him permission to leave-because, as Sarutobi had informed him with a laugh, it looked more professional to detain the newly-recovered genin, and he was hoping that it would look like the boy was in trouble from a distance.
Ironically, pretending to be in trouble was almost as bad as being in trouble. Regardless of the reasoning behind sentencing someone to sit upright in a chair for several hours while writing a detailed description of several events that hadn't even happened yet, said person's neck begins to cramp. They get tired, and their writing suffers. So, though Sarutobi would be left with several decent and accurate descriptions, names, and warnings, he would also find half a page wasted with doodles of various jounin picking their noses.
By the time the blonde left the hokage's tower, the sun was hanging low in the horizon. He wanted to visit his teammates, but in all honesty, he was very tired. If only to make him more miserable, his belly chose then to constrict and burn, reminding him painfully of just how starved he had been.
The smells of Konoha during suppertime called out to him like sirens, but with all the sorrow he could melodramatically call upon without feeling shame, he realized that he had no money. Anything that he had on him that was currency at some point had decayed or morphed into something that vaguely resembled its former self. It was at this point that something white and chakra-laced flew at the back of his head with deadly accuracy.
"Owowowowow! OW! What the hell?!" Naruto shrieked at the hokage's tower, where he saw an shriveled hand wave congenially. All irritation fled from Naruto's mind as he realized what he'd almost missed, and reminded himself to thank the old man later. For now, there was celebrating to do. His grocery stipend had arrived, and the famine had ended.
The Uzumaki's fatigue deserted him and replaced itself with adrenaline. The main street of Konoha was greeted with a breeze, courtesy of the sprint that Naruto had taken up with a grin. After all, at the end of that street, there was a stand-one that he hadn't gone a day without missing.
Shikamaru was the first person to recognize the yellow-haired streak as it ran past him. Of course, he just shook his head at the massive amount of hyperactive energy being displayed and wasted.
"Typical Naruto," the Nara groaned, making the mistake of taking a swig of his tea before his overly-powerful brain reminded him of something that had been an accepted fact. Chouji's face was soon covered in the liquid, an occupational hazard of being so nearby. However, he seemed more confused than angry.
"Did you see that, too?" the pudgy genin asked with uncharacteristic seriousness.
"Yeah, I did." Shikamaru replied, the shock wearing off quickly as he mulled things over, "-but that would explain the high amounts of administrative activity today, wouldn't it?"
"Should we tell someone?" Chouji asked, stopping just long enough to jam a tea-sogged piece of meat into his maw between words.
Shikamaru just looked at his companion, fully aware that the background noise would eliminate the need for him to answer such a stupid question. Surely enough, the resounding sounds of joy that Konoha had been deprived of in the last month and half started making themselves known.
"GIMME RAMEN, DATTEBAIYOOOOO!"
"Oh, guess not." Chouji grunted, wiping the last of the spilled tea from his face with an already-stained napkin before resuming his messy and more-than-adequately-sized meal.
In the thirty seconds after Naruto's dramatic entrance into the stand, Teuchi stared at his old patron without moving. Despite the fact that said boy was raving like a lunatic and smiling widely, it took a moment for the man's brain to register the identity of the genin at his counter. While the blonde mess of hair was hardly mistakable, it was long and matted, covering parts of Naruto's face.
"-and so I want a special. No, wait, TWO specials!" the painstakingly familiar demands ensued loudly, catching the attention of an uncharacteristically slouched Ayame, who abandoned her cooking post to look behind her.
"Oh, actually… THREE specials! With extra helpings of whatever you've got!"
"Naruto, is that really you?" she asked cautiously, almost doubting her eyes. From her angle, she could barely make out the adolescent's frame behind her father.
Hearing his name, the addressed leaned to the side and gave a wave. "Hey, Ayame! How's it goin'?"
Teuchi looked from his daughter to his prodigal regular very slowly, taking the sight in as Ayame's voice burst into melodious laughter. The girl nudged her parent aside gently and pinched the long-missing blonde's cheek, examining the gauntness of her friend's face.
"Well, you're real, so that's 'going'." she stated casually, giving the skin a slight tug for posterity before letting it return to its natural position. Her brown hair bobbed with her head in satisfaction as she turned around to resume cooking.
"..That kinda stung." Naruto muttered, noticing that Ayame's fingernails needed a trim.
"Serves you right, kiddo." Teuchi grumbled, grabbing as many bowls as he could. "You shoulda wrote. Things weren't the same around here without the Uzumaki tab."
"Hey, I pay when I can!" Naruto asserted. "Almost every time!"
"He meant that as a good thing, you know," Ayame chuckled, setting the first of Naruto's enormous supper on the counter. "A tab is a bill, paid or no. When you stopped showing up, so did several other people."
"And you always said I scared the customers, old man!" Naruto grinned, inhaling his first bowl with gusto.
"Well, you do," Teuchi laughed heartily, "-some of em', but it just goes to show how important atmosphere is to a place's economic success. If your slurping and yammering don't make a place memorable, I don't know what will."
By this point, Naruto was no longer interested in the conversation, as his whole being was now involved in the act of devouring whatever it could find. Broth flew in several different directions, and the noodles we slurped up so quickly they appeared to be alive. This pattern continued without pause for a few minutes, the ramen vendors allowing themselves to observe it in quiet amusement. By the time Naruto left their little shop, his clothes were as thoroughly fed as he was, and his wallet was considerably lighter.
"Ah… sweet bliss." He cooed with a smack to his swollen belly.
"Do you still have room for dessert?" a voice asked politely, making Naruto's night that much better.
"Home, sweet home…" Iruka Umino hummed, surveying the wreck that waited beyond his doorway.
Naruto's sandals were met with broken glass the moment he entered Iruka's apartment. While the matter of his permanent residency was up in the air, the genin was pleased to find that his former teacher's offer to allow him a place to stay remained in place. Admittedly, he had been excited until the moment he entered Iruka's home.
To say that the place was a wreck was an understatement, and though Naruto hadn't been in Iruka's house often, he could tell that it wasn't normally in the sad state it was in now. What must have once been painted dishware littered the remains of a few tattered shelves, walls were chipped, and sometimes Naruto would spot books completely without spines. With Iruka entering behind him, the Uzumaki dared not say a word for a few seconds. While at first he had assumed villagers or vandals had trashed the place by the way the windows were shattered, the lack of surprise or reaction from Iruka had him think otherwise.
"Was there an earthquake while I was gone, sensei?" Naruto asked casually, unsure of how else to take the situation. Iruka gave a weak chuckle in response before clearing a spot of debris to drop his gear. The chuunin didn't seem very interested in explaining the situation, but it didn't seem to bother him that much. The man just unpacked like nothing had ever happened, giving Naruto the time to investigate the matter further.
Several pieces of evidence helped Naruto piece together the puzzle that was the glass-littered deathtrap that Iruka's apartment had become . Firstly, there were a few necessary items that weren't broken. The bed , sink, toilet, and stove were all intact, although the last was a bit dented. Most vagabonds that would break into a house to mindlessly destroy things wouldn't spare those objects. Secondly, there was the fact that Iruka had gotten a few looks of fear out of the villagers of Konoha as they had walked in the evening shadows, and lastly, there was a familiar photo that Naruto KNEW had been in his apartment was at the base of a set of cracked shelves.
"Iruka-sensei," Naruto muttered, picking up the frame and suddenly feeling sick to his stomach,"-how did you get this?"
Iruka slowly looked up from the vest he was dusting off, barely meeting Naruto's gaze with as much resignation as possible. "It was pretty much all that was left, I'm thinking…"
"…What?" a bubble of shame rose in the jinchuuriki's middle.
"By the time I got to your apartment, everything was gone, but there were still a few straggling scavengers. I… dealt with them." Iruka said the last part nervously, like a child who'd been caught doing something wrong. Naruto could only speculate the meaning of his words.
"I came home, and I couldn't control myself. I'm ashamed, Naruto, I really am, but you were the straw that broke the camel's back."
The shame inside the young Uzumaki intensified. "You, you did all that… because of me?"
A smile covered Iruka Umino's face while he nodded, but Naruto could see the glistening of tears at the edges of the man's upturned eyes.
"Iruka", the yondaime's son fell forward to engulf his cherished friend with a warm hug, "I'm sorry."
Tears began to flow freely from Iruka's eyes as he returned the platonic embrace. He hadn't realized how much the boy had meant until he had thought he'd lost him forever. Though they hadn't gotten along at first, by being there for Naruto, the Umino had redeemed himself in his own eyes. In nurturing the blonde boy, he had been able to nurture himself. Before he had noticed the change, the kid had found a way under his skin. Despite any efforts the man had made to separate himself from the interests of the young Uzumaki, as any teacher should, he just grew more attached to him. Through the ramen-eating rituals and recreational outings, their meetings had a different effect. They became times of bonding, and Naruto took the place of a little brother in his heart. So, as it could be imagined, it hurt like a mother to lose him.
"Don't be sorry, you little delinquent." The schoolteacher choked out, pushing the boy off of him. "-just don't be so damned reckless!"
"Says the man who turned his own house into a deathtrap." Naruto jabbed at his friend's ribcage playfully.
"Ah, and the man who made you help him clean it up." Iruka added, hastily wiping his eyes.
Somehow, Naruto had been expecting that, and he gladly pitched in with the reconstruction process. They worked on the apartment most of the night, and slept deeply for the rest. While Naruto still had many things to worry about, they could wait until morning.
Author's note: Filler with a side of sap. Can't wait to get back to the storyline... can't... wait! Hopefully, you guys will like it.
