I want to thank all of you for the multiple encouraging reviews and critique you gave me on last chapter
I apologise for the relative long waiting period for this chapter, at first i was about to post another version i wrote on the usual schedule, but upon reading it, i found it to be very sub par both in term of quality of writing and plot, so i had to delete it all and start back from the drawing board, this time, however, i think i produced something i can at least be proud of.
Very huge thanks to axelsempai for the help he has given me so that i can improve my writing skills even by a little bit.
I've posted a sondage on my profile about whether or not you would want a Fem-Sasuke (I only plan to have this gender swap and potentially another for my story, if it ever comes to be) i would appreciate if you posted your opinion so that i can take it into account
I do not own Naruto.
Chapter five: To Be Somebody
"Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armour yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you."
― George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones
There were multiple reasons that led to the classification of sealing techniques or as they are better known 'fuinjutsu' as a lost art; The only noticeable group of people that were proficient in the field were members of the Uzumaki clan, now long extinct after the village where they lived has been raised to the ground from a coalition of their enemies, and with them, the collection of all the knowledge they had gathered upon generations and generations of small discoveries and advances on the subject.
As Naruto read about the history of fuinjutsu and its undeniable link to the Uzumaki clan, he began to wonder if he had any relation whatsoever to these people, maybe he was a survivor of the massacre? No, the dates didn't match, he must've been a descendent of one of the survivors, although even that was put into question as the colour of his hair was golden yellow instead of the blood red that most members of the clan had, he would have to ask his jiji about this the next time they meet.
"Naruto? are you listening to me?" called for him a very soft voice
Focusing back into reality, he saw a raven-haired beauty trying to shake him out of his daze "Sorry Kurenaï-nee, I was just thinking about something" he vaguely declared
However that didn't appease the worry apparent in her red eyes, seeing as she deepened her frown.
For the past two years, she was spending a few hours a week tutoring the blonde, his grades weren't terrible, and she knew that he didn't want the attention that came with being on top of his classmates, yet she still kept their sessions; She couldn't tell anyone, and even less the young man in front of her, but the few hours she spent with Naruto were one of the best of her week, they would at first humour the show of studying the academic subjects in question, before randomly starting a very deep and mind simulating conversation about serious subjects, ranging from morality and ethics to the meaning of life and death, hell they even explored subject as touchy as theology and the existence of a supreme being; and each time Kurenaï felt as if she was talking to a man decades her senior, she never had such experiences with anyone before, and frankly she wondered if there was anybody else she could get herself lost in such discussions.
She tried to further examine her counterpart, for the past few weeks, the ever full of energy Uzumaki Naruto seemed as if he got more fatigued as the days went by, the bags under his eyes and messy hair were certainly good indicators as well, deciding to inquire further she asked, "Are you getting enough sleep, Naruto?"
"Sleep? I guess I haven't been doing enough of that lately" he answered in with a fatigued expression
"And what exactly is weighing on your mind? did a girl break your heart? " she teased
"I must really be looking like crap for you think that" mused the blonde before adding "…truth is, I've been hitting a brick wall on my project, and I've been trying to forcefully break it for the past few weeks" he finally admitted
"A project? what are you working on? " she curiously asked
"I could tell you, but I'd have to kill you afterward" warned the blonde with an expression that didn't betray any lack of seriousness
Taken aback by the declaration Kurenaï was about to change subjects as she was starting to feel uncomfortable before she heard the blonde's laugh
"Did you really believe me? man if only you could see the look on your face" he continued in a goofy manner
Sighing at the young man's antics, she declared sarcastically "Very funny, Naruto "
"Alright, I'm going to tell you, although I would like it to stay between us if possible, Kurenaï-nee"
"It's not a problem, I could promise you that if you want"
"No, I don't need you to promise me anything, you're the person I trust the most" he said with the softest of smiles that nearly made the woman's heart skip a beat
"O-okay, so what is it then?" she stuttered, she wasn't expecting how happy she could feel from just a simple declaration
"I have been trying to learn fuinjutsu" he solemnly said
taking a few moment to digest his declaration, Kurenaï then asked "And why would an eighteen year old teenager bother to learn an art as specialised and obscure as fuinjutsu ?"
"As for that well…I want to help Anko"
Taking a moment to digest what the young man just said, Kurenaï slowly began to understand his objectives "…Does she know that you're doing all of this for her ?"
"She doesn't even know that I'm doing it, and I wouldn't be surprised if she were to chase me around until I agreed to stop if she took wind of what im working on instead of studying for my graduation exams"
Kurenaï was feeling a sea of emotions; Awe at the young man's dedication, Pride understanding his objective, and even a hint of jealousy as she wondered if he would ever go that far for her
"And maybe she would be right, shouldn't you focus on your academic life? you are to graduate this year are you not?"
"Well, for that I'm counting on you Kurenaï-sensei!" he exclaimed casually
Feeling happy that she was of use to his younger brother figure Kurenaï shook her head before stating "Well then, young man, let me tell you that you won't get anywhere being as fatigued as you are right now, so today's session is dismissed, go get some rest"
"Yes ma'm" he accepted her request as he turned to leave, however a pair of slender arms enrolled themselves around his body
"And Naruto ?" she began before she hugged him with all her might while snuggling her head into his neck "Thank you"
"was this really necessary, Kurenaï-nee ?" he asked, only to get a small laugh as his answer
"Maybe not…but I wanted to"
-Scene Break-
As Naruto was walking under the soothing light of the late afternoon, he sat on a bench in a random park, enjoying how calm his surrounding was.
It has been a long time since he went on a pranking spree, since Anko got that job in the T and I department, she had much less time to fool around with him, and to be frank, it didn't feel fun without her anymore, he just hoped she would have more time once she got promoted to jonin.
"You better do, because I'm starting to miss you, dumbass"
Staring at the book that was taunting him on his lap he couldn't help but feel a hint of frustration, no matter how many late nights he spent searching for anything that would help him breakthrough, he would utterly fail "and how exactly could I master such a hard subject in two years ? did I think of myself as some kind of genius ? how pathetic" , trying to get his mind off of the subject at hand, he lit a cigarette, longing to relax and forget about his shortcomings, hoping this comforting moment could last just a little bit longer…Unfortunately for Naruto, his hopes would be scattered by the clear cry of someone in distress, cursing the gods, he reluctantly got up "Can I ever get some rest ?"
-Scene Break-
In an isolated part of the park, a teenage girl was looking scared as she was being surrounded by three older looking boys, she had lost the person that was supposed to guard her while she was perhaps too excitingly exploring the park, she first felt uncomfortable seeing as they were clearly interested in her, then, she began to feel scared as they started throwing insults at her for refusing their advances, fear became terror as they approached her with a look on their eyes that conveyed emotions ranging from greed, anger and lust.
"You guys aren't gonna get any pussy acting like such losers" suddenly came a voice from behind the aggressors
"you must know a lot about pussies, seeing as you are one, demon" spat one of them recognising the blond in question as they turned to face him
A look that could only be described as evil adorned his face "if you guys are longing so much for some fun, why don't you play with me instead?" he declared as his hands were still calmly stuffed in his pockets
"and what are you going to do, talk us into submission?" they taunted while they prepared for a fight
His smirk enlarging even further he got a kunai out of his pocket with his left hand and began spinning it on his fingers "Try me, bitch"
Not excepting their opponent to have a weapon, the group of teens calmed down in defeat "A kunai ? against unarmed opponents ? what a fucking coward" what seemed as their leader spat venomously
"Yeah, going on a teenage girl three on one, and I'm the coward" he joked before menacingly adding "Now get lost before I change my mind about leaving your bodies scar-free"
Boiling with anger, the three agressors spat on the ground next to Naruto as they walked past him "Demon bastard"
The moment they were far enough, Naruto sighed as his eyes fell on the girl, she was wearing a bulky white and lavender sweet-shirt that matched the colour of her beautiful pupil-less eyes, and navy-blue pants that complimented her dark blue waist reaching straight hair, she could only be described as majestic, yet the timid and reserved expression on her face betrayed her gentle side.
"Ano…you got called a coward because of me, I'm so sorry mister…"
"Just call me Naruto" he interrupted with a smile "And don't worry about that, in this world, there is only two kinds of people: the cowards and the idiots, so I take pride in being called the former" he declared before adding
"but looking at you, I see a cowardly idiot…tell me, why didn't you defend yourself? you seem stronger than those bastards"
"I-I…I didn't want to hurt them" admitted the young girl as she was trying to make herself as small as possible, before feeling fingers flickering the top of her head "ouch" she cried weakly
Naruto laughed a bit at her shyness before declaring "You need to stop living your life for others, If good people like you don't defend themselves, then I'm gonna be stuck in this world with assholes"
"But…I don't know if I can do it"
"Listen, don't ever change the goodness in your heart, but to survive in this world, you will need to be strong, and the moment you feel some doubts…"
He flipped the kunai in his hand as to have the sharp side facing toward him, then proceeded to extend his arm to her
"you'll just have to hold on to this" he finished with a beam
She hesitantly took the rusty looking weapon and proceeded to hold it against her chest while bowing "I don't know how to thank you Naruto-san"
Feeling another pinch on her head she whined "ouchie…"
"you can start by not bowing to people anymore" he joked
As they both laughed lightly a tall and distressed looking man came into view, understanding he was in one way or another related to the girl, Naruto sighed before declaring
"I'm sorry little kitten, but If I stay any longer, he might think that I'm trying to corrupt you or some bullshit like that, so I'll see you around!" he waved at her before taking off
What was left was a girl gently patting the top of her head, trying to sooth the small pain she felt while her cheeks took on a very noticeable shade of red "Little kitten?" she thought before a small smile was drawn on her cute face as her eyes fell on the object still pressed on her chest "To be strong…"
Getting out of her daze a distressed look suddenly came on the girl face as she just noticed a detail "I didn't even tell him my name!"
-Scene Break-
As Naruto was walking the streets of Konoha he could not help but let out a snicker "Not living your life for others? how hypocritical coming from me, when I've been longing for the village attention ever since I came here" he looked up at the hokage tower "When was it that I discarded my promise to Jiji ?" then looked even further above to the sculptures portraying the great men of history "How did I forget my goal to follow your legacy?" Entering his messy appartement he did not even mind to eat something and waltzed straight toward his bed, feeling the fatigue taking over "If only it was simpler" he muttered before losing consciousness
-Scene Break-
Naruto groggily woke up while the sun had yet to rise, looking at his room in disorder, books and parchments were splattered all around, reminding him about his stagnation in his project as he grunted before starting his usual morning routine; He was thankful for his fuinjutsu research as he now could take normal showers instead of ice cold ones using some heat seals, he then went on to eat a breakfast composed of fruits, oatmeal, eggs and coffee, it was a healthy regime that Kurenaï helped him put in place; after that he proceeded to prepare a very simple rice and meat meal with some vegetables and stock it in his luch box which he sealed in a piece of paper that he stored in his notebook, Putting on his usual clothes and securing the entrance of his home with a security seal he took off to the forest of death.
Arriving at his second home in the village, Naruto felt a semblance of serenity invade him as he took position to start his morning training.
"Fuin" the boy said after forming a sign with both of his hands
The effect of that action was immediately visible as the blonde was now seen struggling to move even a muscle of his body "maybe I wasn't quite ready to add another level on my resistance seal yet…whatever I'll just suffer through it" he thought as he began trying to walk,and thankfully, after a few minutes he could finally do a semblance of a jog.
After what seemed like an hour, he started doing some basic exercises, push-ups pull-ups, squats and sit ups while perched from a tree branch; Only stopping after being satisfied from the congestion and ache he felt in his muscle "That should do it for the physical part" he thought as the first rays of the sun finally started filling the morning sky
"Bunshin no justu"
A deformed a sickly-looking copy of himself was created besides him, sighing at his apparent failure he dispelled the clone "I'm still far from succeeding, I just hope I'll get it right by the end of the year…"
His determination seemingly not wavering from that, he gathered several fallen leaves then sat down in a meditation pose, training his chakra control as he was trying to make each leaf stick to his body with his chakra only.
He sat in this position for a bit more than an hour until he was interrupted by a thought "Let's try not to be late on the first day of school" he proceeded to get up and casually walk in the direction of the academy
-Scene Break-
Sitting at his usual place, Naruto was reading a fuinjutsu book while trying his best to ignore his environment, he didn't mean to be antisocial, he tried to approach and befriend the people on his class, but the vast majority were distant and cold, it wasn't as bad as the treatment he got from the adult population but he hypothesized that the parents warned their child about the demon, so he was left sitting alone and far from any person he could 'corrupt', at least that gave him more time to focus on his research so he didn't mind, it wasn't anything new for him.
"There has been a student exchange program between Konoha and Suna this year, so we will have a new student from there" he turned to said girl and asked her to introduce herself
The girl had teal eyes and sandy blonde hair, which was gathered into four consecutive pigtails, her face was defined by very strong and attractive traits that radiated pride and confidence, she was wearing a white robe that stopped above her ankles with a mesh armour underneat, with the last touch being a red ribbon tied to her weist
"My name is Temari, I am the daughter of the kazekage, and my dream is to become a strong kunoichi respect for her skill, I hope we can get along" she confidently declared with a small bow
The young woman seemed content with the attention she was given by her classmates, receiving all sorts of questions about her life as a princess and what not, yet when her eyes fell on a certain blond boy reading a book seemingly ignoring her, as if her whole existence didn't matter to him, she decided to go and sit beside him, she'll teach him a lesson or two about not disregarding her of all the people.
She leaned in closer as if to try and catch a glimpse at whatever the boy was reading, yet as she was about to see the content of the book, the boy suddenly distanced himself while turning toward her, eyes wide open in shock
"Holy shit, who the fuck are you?" the blonde exclaimed
"so, he really wasn't paying attention after all" she thought with a deadpan
Regaining a serious expression, she declared "If you listened a bit earlier, you would've known that I'm Temari, daughter of the fourth kazegake and I…"
"Wowie, that's very nice" he interrupted with a casual tone giving her a thumbs up before diving right back to his book
Frozen in place, Temari could only stare in shock with her mouth wide open, before she decided she was not gonna let this affront slip, she firmly put her hand on his shoulder and spat with an authoritative tone
"And who do you think you are to dismiss me in such fashion?"
"If you don't pull your hand in the next three seconds, I can become your worst nightmare" he retorted in a deep tone not even bothering to look up at her
The menace seemed to work seeing as the girl flinched a bit while she retrieved her hand
"and besides" he said as he locked his blue eyes with her dark green ones before adding "The first thing you identified yourself with was your royal lineage, that alone tells me that you're not interesting, although the second thing you said about your person in this case your dream, was somewhat remarkable, I just can't respect people that rely on their oh so noble blood to be respected"
"Y-you were listening all along?" she stuttered in disbelief
"Of course, I was, we are trained to become ninjas after all, aren't we?" he rhetorically asked before averting his eyes once more into his reading material
Temari could not believe her eyes, for all her life, she had been seen as nothing more and nothing less than the princess of Suna, never did they see her impressive talent as an academy student, her higher than average charisma or her stunning intelligence, whatever she tried, the princess was never able to escape the shadow of her own name; it was one of the reasons she begged her father to send her on a student exchange program, where maybe she could prove herself to be something "more" than just the daughter of someone important; and yet, when faced with the challenge of presenting herself, her subconscious didn't even hesitate for a moment before her mouth let out the words that haunted her all her life.
Yet, after her whole entourage showered her with attention and praise solely because she was the 'princess', here she stood, in front of a person that wasn't interested in her and even worse, didn't respect her for the very reason;had she already failed her goals ? No, her father pulled all the strings he could to give her this chance, and she wasn't going to waste it; Eyes filling with determination, Temari once again put her hand on the boy's shoulder forcing him to face her while lowering the book he was holding with her other hand, and instead of being angered or surprised, the boy just seemed…curious?
"Then I'm going to prove my being to you, I'll be so great you won't be able to take your eyes off of me" she declared with an unwavering resolve
It was only after she noticed the beginning of a smirk form itself onto the blonde's face that she realized what she had just promised to a total stranger
"I'll be waiting to see that, Hime-chan" he teased as Temari's face turned bright red with what he guessed was anger mixed in with embarrassment /* AN : Hime in Japanese means princess */
-Scene Break-
Naruto would not admit it to anyone, even less so to the princess, but after a few months he grew impressed by Temari, she was smart in her academic life, scoring the highest grade in their class, and strong as she won every taijutsu spar they had (he had yet to understand why she always choose him as her sparring partner)
She was stunningly beautiful, and contrary to the rigid and formal princess she acted like when people drowned her in attention for the sole sake of gaining favours with the 'daughter of the kazekage", she was an open and fun to talk to adolescent girl around him.
And upon noticing the change in attitude, he finally understood her: She is exactly like him, trying to escape the shadow of an identity she didn't choose to affirm her own being.
"Ara ara, it's very unlike you to get distracted in the middle of a fight" he heard a voice say before feeling a hard knuckle connect with the side of his face, making him slightly wince before he threw a frontal kick to disengage from his opponent, but to his dismay, the girl just slightly side stepped as she locked her arm around his overextended limb, disallowing him to retract it as he found himself trying to stay stable standing on one leg.
"Were you hitting on me, Naruto?" she teased confidently as if she was toying with him
Those words however struck home as the now embarrassed Naruto couldn't believe the feeling that snuck itself in his heart yet Naruto didn't have time to reflect as he suddenly found himself looking at the blue sky after the girl swept her leg and tackled him into the ground, feeling the blonde girl get up from him, he saw that smug and victorious expression plastered on her face "now I know how Anko and Kurenaï-nee feel, you're lucky I only took off one level of my resistance seal" he thought as she presented her arm to help him get up
"fine, you got me, what do you want this time?" he admitted in defeat as he had once again to fulfil one of her wishes as per their agreement
"hmm…how about you show me around in Konoha?" she finally came up with after pondering for a few moments with her hand on her chin
"you're telling me that you were in Konoha for the last few months, and nobody volunteered to show you around?" he sceptically asked
"some did actually, but I wanted that to be you, is there a problem with this? " she confidently declared prompting him to blush a bit
"Alright, your wishes are my command, Hime-chan " he sarcastically bowed to the princess before feeling a hard fist connect with the top of his head
"how many times did I tell you not to call me that? Idiot" she spat with hints of frustration
"Oh, come on, you already beat me earlier, at least let me have some fun" he dejectedly whined
"Whatever, just meet me at the academy's gate after you finish changing your clothes"
"It might take some time as I'll have to tend to the multiple fractures you gave me, you violent women" he joked as he held his arm in fake pain
Letting out a small laugh, the blonde girl just shook her head at his antics before leaving to the girl changing room
"I guess that means no afternoon training for today" Letting out a sigh, Naruto formed a sign with his hand as he muttered "Fuin" slightly shifting his position as his body got heavier; he looked at the beauty walking off and couldn't help but glance at her swaying hips, that was until she put her hand behind her back and waved her index finger as if to say 'no, no, no, you naughty boy' "She is Totally doing this on purpose…and she's trying to make me look like the pervert, what a pain"
-Scene Break-
After about fifteen minutes, a brown eyed teenage boy with short black hair was approaching the blonde princess that was leaning on a wall close to the academy's gate
"I heard you wanted to be shown around the village, Temari-san" he declared
Taken a little aback by what the boy said, Temari regained her composure as she respectfully answered him "I am deeply sorry to inform you that I have no such desires, mister"
Keeping his eyes locked with hers for a moment, he suddenly burst out laughing as he said "Okay I can't do this anymore, it's too weird, it's me Naruto, let's get going with that village tour"
Temari widened her eyes in surprise before she blushed a bit, embarrassed that she talked to her friend in such a formal way, but surprise quickly turned into anger as she questioned him
"Why are you Henged? Are you ashamed of spending time with me? do you not want other people to see me with you? "
"No! it's not like that…it's…the opposite, really" he quickly exclaimed
"Huh ? what the hell are you talking about ?" she asked in a confused tone with some anger still present before she threatened "Whatever, just get this henge off before I beat it off of you myself"
'Did you even consider how would I feel?', his eyes shot wide open in realisation as he sighed in a dejected manner "Will I ever learn from my mistakes?"
He then declared after dispelling his transformation "I guess you'll understand quickly enough"
The two teenagers spent the rest of the afternoon strolling through the streets of Konoha, and Temari had to admit that it was more fun than she had expected as Naruto showed her places she had never visited before, from the top of one specific part of the village walls where she could gaze at a magnificent endless green plain, to a very relaxing park that very few people frequented, he even sneaked her inside one of the clan compounds; Yet the best place in her opinion was where she was with him right now, on top of the third hokage head sculpted in the mountain.
"This is the place I come to when I want some peace" he calmly declared with a serene smile
"Peace from the people's glares and insults?"
He slightly squinted his eyes, but didn't avert his gaze from the horizon "I take it that you've noticed…"
"Why do they hate you so much?" she asked him with a serious expression
The boy shrugged his shoulder "They were like that for as far as I can remember, maybe my parents were traitors to the village? I don't know, I don't care, not anymore"
"But it's not fair! You don't deserve to be hated for something you were born with!" she exclaimed with anger
"Life is not fair, nobody deserves anything, and we only have what we get, I don't know if I'll ever be able to change their mind, but I'm content knowing my own worth"
"Doesn't it get…Lonely?" she tentatively asked in a low tone
"Does it, Temari?" he quickly retorted, now locking his eyes with hers
The blonde girl gasped as the boy called her by her name for the first time, she felt as if the boy sitting beside her understood all of what she had gone through, all the pain that came from being identified by something you don't want to be, the endless battle to show them that the 'real' you exist, her eyes began to slowly tear up as she looked down to her legs
"yes…" she finally managed to painfully answer
"You know… you're one of the toughest persons I've came to meet, both physically and mentally, you are way above your peers in terms of intelligence, and even as I hate to see your smug face, you are stronger than I am in my state, and hanging out with you for the past months, I've came to feel many things, friendship, admiration, respect, and even a tad bit of attraction for the strong woman you are; And at last I can finally say that I acknowledge you, Temari " he solemnly declared as tears now fell freely from the beaming girl's face
"Although I still don't get why you seeked acknowledgement from a random stranger like me" he casually added with a deadpan, prompting her to burst out laughing, still crying what seemed like tears of joys
They sat like that in a happy yet silent atmosphere for some time as the sun began to set on the village hidden in the leaf
"So, what was it exactly that you said about being attracted to me?" she tried teasing while blushing herself
"Shit, did I really say that?" he embarrassingly asked
"You totally did, idiot" not giving him any way out of this situation
"Eh, I guess I did" he sighed in defeat before adding while rubbing the back of his head "To be honest, if it wasn't for the fact that you're only here temporarily, I would've already asked you out, but now it's somewhat awkward…"
That declaration surprised her for a moment before she buried her mouth behind the legs that she bonds to her body
"I also have something for you, you know…" she admitted while trying to avert his gaze
Feeling his heart beat faster than usual, Naruto's face was plastered with a happy smile seeing as the feelings he felt were mutual "Then why don't we call today a date?" prompting her to join him in laughter
"I don't think I would want anything that would happen between us to only last… what? five months? Man, this year really passed by quickly, in the past, it was really hard for me to come to the academy on a regular basis since it was so boring, but while you were around, I just felt happy to see your face whenever I attended a lesson"
Feeling the happy feeling in her chest beat even stronger, she teased him
"Really? If I knew you were such a lazy person, I would've come earlier"
He let out a snicker before retorting "Instead of that, can't you return back home a bit later?"
Her smile slowly fell into a sad one as she put her hand on top of his "You don't know how much I would love that…"
Naruto grabbed her hand firmly into his own and told her with hope "Maybe we shouldn't worry too much about that, we'll be ninjas, and I'm sure I'll manage to find missions to Suna so that I can visit you from time to time"
Shaking her head dejectedly "That won't give us much of an opportunity to be in a relationship thought…"
Letting out a resigned sigh he tried to brighten her up as he said, "Then perhaps we should stop talking about the future and enjoy the ephemeral present we have?"
"Yes…as long as it lasts" she finally let out leaning into his shoulders as they both watched the last rays of light disappear
-Scene Break-
Naruto was waiting in front of an apartment door, still blushing from the kiss on the cheek that gave him Temari after he escorted her to the place she lived, still feeling his heartbeat at the warmth her body emitted, feelings he foolishly wished would never fade.
" I'm coming!" a woman's voice was heard from inside the residence
The door opened to reveal Kurenaï in her casual home clothes, with a somewhat curious expression on her face
"Naruto? we didn't have any tutoring session planned out for today, did we?"
"We didn't Kurenaï-nee, I just wanted to talked with you for a bit, but you're right, i just noticed how late it is, I'll just pass by tomorrow" He was about to turn around and leave but a hand grabbed him by the arm and pulled him inside, where he was suddenly enclosed in a tight hug from the woman, "she seems so happy…maybe I should visit her more?"
"go get comfortable in the living room,Naruto, I'll be coming right away with some tea" she told him in a soft tone
"still as sweet as ever, I'm surprised you're not yet married Kurenaï-nee, are you still scaring men away with your not-so-gentle genjutsus?" he joked, enjoying the embarrassed look on her that never failed to entertain him before he decided to end her misery by moving to the lounge.
What he found there however wasn't something he was excepting, his eyes fell on a very childish looking pyjama, but it was the person wearing them that surprised him
"Like what you see?" teased one Mitarashi Anko, still finding ways to make the most innocent nightwear look sexy
"Yeah, you're pretty cute, didn't think I'd ever say that about you, I wonder what people would think about the infamous snake mistress if they saw you like that"
"Well, you're one hell of a lucky guy, cause if it was anyone else I'd make sure It is the very last sight they ever lay their eyes upon"
"Glad to see you haven't lost your charms "
"And I'm glad to see you're still an annoying dickhead, kid" she retorted with a sneer
"Bzzzt, you've lost the rights to call me that the moment I became taller than you, shrimp"
"you fucker!" she got up and tackled him to the carpet, starting a friendly wrestling combat
After a few minutes, Kurenaï entered the room with the tea glasses on a tray and sighed looking at the squabbling children "stop it now, you two" came the loving, yet authoritative voice of the raven haired women
"alright Nai-chan/Kurenaï-nee" they said in unison seemingly calming down as fast as they began fighting
Naruto sat with his back on the couch on which Anko was laying, facing the table across of which sat the red-eyed kunoichi, they talked for some time about light subjects, asking each other about their routine and work for example before Kurenaï decided to tackle the reason Naruto came to see her in the first place
"So, what did you want to talk with me about, Naruto?" gently asked the red-eyed big sister figure
Pondering for a moment about how to start the conversation Naruto opened with "So It's been a few months since the beginning of the academic year, and there is this one friend that I made…"
"No way" abruptly interrupted Anko in a tone that conveyed that she was already calling bullshit on his story
"that was a low-blow, Anko" said Naruto in a fake dejected tone
"Yeah, you're right sorry, I couldn't resist" apologised said woman while rubbing the back of her head
"Anyway, as I was saying, I won't tell you his or her name for privacy reasons, but he had some problems with his identity, and more precisely the way people identified him"
"Kind of like you, Naruto?" Kurenaï asked the blond
"Yes…exactly" he admitted before adding "It made me ponder, what exactly made us…'us'? what was it that made each one of us different then the other ? what made us special? and before you say it, Anko, I am not talking about genetics and what not"
"Well, I wasn't gonna say it, jackass, but it's still a valid point, on top of making us look different, perhaps it's our difference in genetics that makes us act and react differently compared to others?" pondered Anko, she wasn't used to the deep conversations she knew Naruto had with her big sister figure, but she could still be smart and mature when needed
"As for me, I adhere to the idea that we are but the sum of our choices, we are all subject to completely different questions in the span of our lives, and the way we answer those questions determine our character, that's how a pair of twins can sometime have totally different personalities " declared Kurenaï with a confident smile, she was already beginning to enjoy this conversation with her two favourite persons
"and yet, people that experience relatively similar hardships can turn out to be totally different from one another…I have never been of the spiritual kind, but for some reason, I've always felt as if our soul was painted a colour, and it gets tainted by other people's being as we interact with them, as to, in the end, form a dye that is solely unique to us" he stated while relaxing his head, not minding the physical contact he made with Anko's legs
Both women were surprised at the idea as they had never heard it before, was the boy coming with those thoughts on his own? The group went on back and forth, one person would layer out some argument while the other two added their input or shared a counter argument when they didn't agree with what was said
That was until Anko declared in a frustrated manner " We could argue until morning and still not find any concrete answer, at least, the best we can agree on is that the complexity of one's personality is just the collection of small and simple actions, events or choices that happens in one's life"
Naruto could only nod his head slowly in agreement, after all, every complex entity or phenomenon in nature could be divided into multiple small and simple parts.
And it was at this moment that it hit him, Naruto abruptly opened his eyes wide open and suddenly got up from his sitting position, he gave both woman a glance each as he hurriedly said "you both are incredible people, and I love you two so much, sorry, but I have to go, I think I found something huge" he didn't leave them any time to protest as he blitzed through the corridor out of the apartment , leaving two very blushing and confused women at his declaration, they both knew he didn't mean it in a romantic way, but it still warmed their heart considerably
That night, Naruto's few neighbours felt chills down their spine as they heard sporadic, yet very distinct evil-sounding laughs coming from the demon's residence.
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