A/N: Thank you for your kind reviews! Responses will be at the end of the chapter. I will apologize in advance for the crazy update 'schedule' that this fic will be on; I am a college student, and my productivity for this story will depend entirely on the changing tides of my classes. That is coupled with the fact that my chapter updates will always be rather beefy, which I hope will redeem me slightly lol. Finally, do let me know any pairing suggestions you may have, and I'll keep a running tally! So far, we have 1 vote for Shikamaru!
That said, enjoy this update!
Chapter 3
Charlie was... struggling.
Maybe not in the normal sense of the word, but struggling nonetheless.
She held two pieces of fabric that were probably tunics, and was grimacing quite noticeably. She had run out of steam about two stores in, and now, well, now her situation was dawning bleakly upon her.
'I... have no clue about fashion.' Especially shinobi fashion. In her time before, she'd always had her mom pick her clothes up. It had been at the woman's discretion, as well; Charlie never cared for fashion or clothes or appearances. She'd had more important things to worry about- like the life and times of Edgar Allen Poe, or the life cycle of hornworms.
But now, standing here with two equally black tops, she realized she perhaps should've paid more attention. "I can't just wear black," she voiced aloud, glancing into the other shopping bags around her arm. Indeed, she had flown through the past two stores with fervor, but in her haste had just picked whatever would match. Unfortunately, everything was black. Not because she particularly liked the color- in fact, she thought it quite boring- but well, one tenet of fashion she'd bothered to remember was that black went with everything.
Be that as it may... she looked like a ninja who had a MySpace and wore Hot Topic on the reg.
"Doing okay?" pipped up a bright voice from over her shoulder. Charlie jumped a bit at the proximity and turned. It was a blonde girl, about ten years her senior, with a cheerful smile and a name tag reading 'Haruna'.
Charlie felt an embarrassed blush cross her face. "Not really. Do you know what looks good together?" 'Obviously she knows, she works here,' her brain supplied. Thanks, brain.
Haruna nodded her head understandingly. "It's a bit overwhelming. You seem pretty warm toned though, so let's stick with some autumn-y colors. We have a lot of-"
I will spare you the details of the next harrowing twenty minutes as Charlie learned what she should've known, or figured out, a long time ago.
Suffice it to say, she left the shop with brand new red ninja pants, her black sandals, a mesh top over a chest binder, and an open, dark red haori that reached her knees. There were a few more outfits similar to it in her shopping bag.
'I look so cool now,' she thought happily as she strolled down the street. Now that her crisis had been averted, she felt at ease enough to shove her hands in her pockets. She smiled slightly at the passerby, feeling, for the first time, like she at least slightly fit in. The fashion in Konoha was quite different from the world she'd came from, but it wasn't bad, and honestly, pretty comfortable too.
"Charlie-chan," Minato suddenly intoned, and she paused not so subtly at the scare.
'Shit, Minato, don't do that,' she chastised, and resumed walking.
"Sorry, I was just checking in. Are you having fun?"
Charlie made a face. ''Fun' is stretching it. But I do like spending money, so...'
He laughed at her. "Well, if you're interested, there should still be a weapons shop a few streets over. If he plans to have you start the Academy tomorrow, you'll at least need your own shuriken."
Oh. Oh. How could she have forgotten the most fun part of the day? 'Hey, you're pretty smart, Minato,' she thought as she skipped through the alley to her right. 'Are you always watching, or do you just know what I'm doing?'
"Yes," he replied ambiguously. "Turn left here."
She was about to insist he answer her, when the sign for the shop came in sight. She felt her toes curl in her sandals in her excitement- what weapon should she get? A sword? Some senbon? Ooh, a spear-
"Let's... stick with the basics, for now," her new mentor said.
'Fun-sucker,' she accused as she marched in purposefully. The shop smelled like metal, unsurprisingly, and she suddenly felt like a fish out of water. The shop owner turned to stare at her, along with a bunch of shinobi customers. She sweat nervously. 'They're totally judging me,' she thought, and absurdly wished she could go back to five minutes ago when she'd felt more at ease.
"You have as much right to be there as they do. Just move along and grab what you need," Minato said. Easy for him to say; he wasn't getting gawked at.
Trying to conceal her hesitation, she let her eyes flit over the wares. There were different sections to the store, she realized; most of the swords (or derivatives thereof) were mounted on the wall to her left. The wall to her right, behind the cashier, had miscellaneous items (was that a flail?). There were independent racks that formed neat aisles, and basins filled with any kind of gear one would need. The shuriken were there, she saw, stacked in plastic boxes to keep them sharp and wrapped tight with a price tag stamped on top. She picked up a few boxes of roughly 5, figuring that would be enough for the moment. The kunai weren't too far away either, also packaged neatly.
'What else? I feel like I should be getting more than this...' she thought.
"There's plated gloves on the rack behind you. Those are useful to shield against enemy blades. And you need a pouch to put those in, as well as some gauze to secure them to you," Minato piped up helpfully.
Charlie did as he said and turned to try on the gloves, all the while fighting to ignore the stares she was still receiving. 'Don't they have anything better to do? I'm sure the Academy kids come in here all the time!'
"They come with their parents. It's not usual to see an unaccompanied minor in this store. Plus, they've never seen you before, either."
The redhead couldn't resist making a face at one of the shinobi she passed by, inwardly grinning maliciously at his affronted face. The pouches were in a bin at the back of the store, and she picked one at random, black of course to match. Gauze was right beside it. 'Right, then. That ought to do it,' she thought, and made her way to the front counter. The cashier gave her a smile, though she could sense his questioning eyes.
The transaction took only a few moments, but she left feeling a bit more on edge than she had before. 'Konoha must be a closer knit community than I'd thought. You'd think in a village this big, an unfamiliar face wouldn't be so strange...'
Minato had no response to that. It was true enough- while it was smaller than Philadelphia, she was sure they came across those whom they didn't know. Maybe she just smelled like an outsider. Whatever.
The joys of grocery shopping I will also spare you, though I will say that she bought more unhealthy food than she cared to admit. She used her youth as the excuse, however, since the pounds weren't likely to stay on her long. 'Minato, will you help me get shredded?' she asked, arms heavy with groceries as she made her way slowly to the Hokage tower. The sun was beginning to set now, and she had quite literally shopped until she dropped. Naruto was probably bouncing off the walls at this very moment waiting for her.
"Excuse me?" Oh, right. He didn't keep up with the slang.
'I want a six pack,' she clarified. 'And bulging muscles. Probably a neck thicker than my own head.' Okay, it was a bit of an exaggeration. But she did want to be able to make an impact should she need to, in more ways than one.
"... I'm not sure about that last part, Charlie-chan. But I can help you establish a routine. It will have to start with you diet, though." She could feel his disapproval of her latest purchases, and grinned.
'You should see Naruto's cabinet, it's even worse.' She shuddered at the thought. Oh, poor boy. He had not a single clue (or care?).
It was nearing seven in the evening when she finally spilled into the Hokage's office (only after knocking, like the polite girl she was). Naruto was sitting in the corner, but he stood as she came in, yelling about how late it was. She kind of felt mothered in that moment, which was really weird.
Sarutobi watched with amusement as she finally dropped all of her items on the floor and followed them down. "A successful trip?" he asked aloud.
"You could say that," she groaned, rolling her sore shoulders. "Naru-chan, how was school?"
"Fine," the blond said dismissively, "but when are you gonna come? Huh? I was bored all day!"
Charlie frowned at him. "If you paid attention and focused on learning everything they have to teach you, you wouldn't be bored," she chided gently. "That's what I'll be doing." No way was she getting in trouble with him. She had been a good student all her life, and she wasn't about to stop now. If anything, she would whip Naruto himself into shape.
If that was even possible.
Naruto groaned at the implications of what a studious friend would mean. "But I thought friends ditched class together!"
"Friends go to class together. And study. It's important information anyway, Naru-chan."
"Whatever, I'll make you go with me anyway. Hey, come on, it's dark anyway, I was waiting for you to get dinner." He grabbed her hand and half of her bags, and she barely got in a wave to their honorable leader before she was whisked out the door.
'He might be ten, but he sure is strong,' she thought, raising an eyebrow at his death grip on her wrist.
"Do you want to go to Ichiraku's? It's this ramen bar, it's really good!" Naruto exclaimed as he dragged her down the stairs. She could clearly see the nervous energy all around him, like any moment he would bust out in a dead sprint to work it off. She always knew he was a powerhouse, but it was quite different to experience it firsthand. His endless energy managed its way into his entire being, in the speed of his walking, talking, his animation.
No wonder he hated school so much, to sit there must be torture.
"Naru-chan, can we stop by the apartment first? I can't keep carrying these, my arms are cramping up," she whined good naturedly. Partially true, and also because she didn't want anyone to steal her shit while she was trying to enjoy a meal.
The blond bobbed his head and abruptly tugged her to the right.
It was another fifteen minute walk to Naruto's (and now hers) apartment complex, and then a few flights of stairs, before she finally stuck her key in the door of her new home. "Isn't it cool that we're neighbors now?" she asked him, shouldering her way inside. Naruto followed suit, almost tripping over the genkan in his haste.
"Yeah, does this mean you'll make me breakfast and stuff too?" he asked, grinning widely at her. Her heart melted a little at the cuteness of it.
"That's what girlfriends do." Charlie laughed at him, and he wilted a little before she nudged him. "I'll make you food once in a while, Naru-chan. Sure."
And he pipped right back up. She wasn't sure she'd ever get used to his tenacity. She sighed, shaking her head as he meandered further into her new digs, glancing around curiously. "Hey, it looks exactly like mine!" he noted cheerfully. As she followed him, she couldn't disagree- they even had the same standard furniture. The front door entered right into the living room, which was semi-spacious and had a couch and coffee table. The kitchen was to the right of the door, small but adequate, and to the left, a short hallway with the bathroom to the right and the bedroom to the left.
"Hey, put my groceries away wouldja?" she asked, and unceremoniously slung her bags of new clothes over her shoulder. The redhead chuckled at the faint voice of dissent from behind her, and ignored it in favor of checking out her new room.
It, too, was standard, with just a bed, dresser, and a nightstand table. The closet was woefully small, but that wouldn't make much of a difference- as one could probably tell, Charlie wasn't a fashion freak. She thumped her clothes onto the bed and, since she had no hangers, began to fold them quickly to shove them in the drawers. She now had (including what she now wore): four pairs of ninja pants (two black, one red, one brown), a black tunic with red detail near the bottom, her red haori, two mesh tops (one ending above her belly button, the other full length), one pair of simple black stretch shorts, three chest binders (bras apparently weren't readily accessible here, not that she would complain), and ten pairs of underwear. Her gear- the plated fingerless black gloves she'd chosen, her thigh pouch, the gauze, and her new weapons- she laid gently on her nightstand. She'd also managed to procure some body wash and shampoo, which followed suit.
It was not an extensive wardrobe, admittedly. It had, in fact, hardly depleted the wad of cash the Hokage had given her. But it was a start, and she was happy.
With thoughtful precision, and a little help from Minato, she managed to secure the kunai holster tightly round her leg. In it, she could fit a few kunai, and one box of the shuriken she'd purchased. It was certainly enough to go off of. Now, all she needed was to learn how to use them.
Finally feeling comfortable, she made her way out of the room, following Naruto's loud protests of how slow she was being. "Sorry," she said as she came upon him rolling around despondently on the floor, "I was trying to wrap this right." She gestured.
"How come no one's shown you before?" the blond asked curiously, sitting up. It was another loaded question, whether he'd intended it to be or not. Naruto had to be curious about her background- he had been the one to find her, roaming naked in the forest no less. He was also probably wondering why the Hokage had done so much for her. It was only natural.
But as much as she wanted to, she could tell the child nothing. Telling him anything besides the backstory the Hokage had given her would spell disaster, and as much as she liked Naruto, she couldn't trust a ten-year-old to keep his mouth shut. He was still too naive.
So, Charlie managed a sheepish smile and, with a heavy heart, began to lie to him. "I don't come from good circumstances, Naru-chan. No, I wasn't taught much of anything." Someday, she would tell him, she promised herself. Someday.
His big blue eyes stared widely into hers, searchingly almost. For the first time, she couldn't really read his expression. "Oh. Well, uh, you did it right, anyway," he mumbled, looking away. Obviously he didn't want to press the issue, which she was more than thankful for.
Charlie gave him a small grin and, grabbing his hand, pulled him from his seat. "C'mon, I believe I was promised ramen?"
By the time they'd reached Ichiraku's, the sun had set on Konoha. She'd probably been too busy unpacking to notice, though now she grew a bit sad to have missed it. Naruto, however, was all laughs, recounting story after story of all of his escapades regarding Ichiraku's. And once they'd entered, he greeted Teuchi like an old friend.
"Hey, Naruto-kun! Brought a friend along, have you?" the man chuckled, though she felt his eyes bore through her. Obviously he was a bit suspicious of her, and it made her heart warm to think that he looked out for Naruto like that.
Naruto nodded apprehensively. "Yeah, she's my new friend Charlie-chan. She's starting at the Academy tomorrow." Thankfully, he didn't introduce her as 'the girl he found naked in the forest', though she presumed it was less to spare her embarrassment and more because he just hadn't thought to include it.
Charlie gave a serene smile to the man. "Naru-chan speaks very highly of you and your shop, so I figured why not give it a shot?"
Teuchi's shoulders loosened slightly. "Alright, kids. What'll it be?"
Naruto ordered beef, and Charlie pork. They sat, and chatted amicably with Teuchi as he prepared their meal. Naruto was quite the storyteller, animated and excitable, and he had both Teuchi and herself laughing from time to time. She found herself wondering how on Earth anyone could mistake him for anything beyond an energetic little kid, or how anyone could hate him at all. She snuck glances at him when he wasn't looking, too deep in his story of his prank on the TI department to notice. With his blue eyes sparkling and his big, wide smile, and his cheeks flushed and round, how could anyone think he was anything but adorable?
Unfortunately, it is not the depths of your heart you are judged on, but rather the rumors that circle you.
Case in point: Teuchi had finished preparing their ramen, and had dished it out with a goodnatured grin, by the time the two kids were joined by a few older shinobi. Two men, in standard gear with their headbands round their necks. They were having some lighthearted conversation about their previous mission as they ducked into the stand, but it puttered a bit as they entered. Their grins seemed to flicker, and then fade altogether, as their gazes came to rest on Naruto.
Oh, she knew what was coming alright. And Naruto seemed to, too. He leaned away from them, closer to her, bringing his bowl with him. His smile, too, had faded, and instead he had fixed his gaze steadily on his lap.
The two ninja sat on the farthest end of the counter, as if Naruto was contagious, and ordered their food from a stony-faced Teuchi in whispered tones.
Charlie gritted her teeth, but decided to let the matter rest, instead nonchalantly blowing the steam from her noodles. 'Who cares what a few ignorant people think? They'll realize their errors eventually, and that will be penance enough.'
Perhaps Naruto didn't see it that way, because he was casting glances at her as if he was worried she would judge him too. She couldn't help patting his head for a split second, sending him a grin between bites. It seemed to encourage him enough to continue eating.
The rest of their meal went as planned, though she did see that Naruto hastened to be done. She paid for the both of them, ignoring Naruto's protests, and then dragged him out by the hand. The moon had risen as they had eaten, and a swift breeze had picked up somewhere along the way. It rustled the windchimes by the cafe across the road, and sent shivers up her back. It was definitely time to go home.
"I'm excited to start Academy tomorrow," she said, as they picked their way back to their apartments.
Naruto was unusually quiet, but he gave her a smile anyway.
"Will you walk with me?" she added. Charlie found that she didn't like quiet Naruto, not at all.
His bright eyes landed on her in poorly concealed surprise, before a wide grin split his cheeks. "Obviously, -ttebayo!"
At their respective doors, they parted with happy goodbyes, and promises to meet at eight tomorrow at the base of the steps. Charlie stepped into her new apartment, locking the door behind her, and plopped down to pry off her shoes. It had been a long day, but a fruitful one. She followed her memorized route to the bathroom, did her nightly duties, and fell into bed with bone-deep exhaustion.
And that was how Charlie's first full day as Konoha citizen Charlie Shimizu came to its close.
.
.
ALC. ALC. ALC.
.
.
The next day, Charlie woke even earlier than usual.
Of no fault of her own.
"Wake up!" Minato had said, rather loudly, at around 5 AM. And so she had, but not willingly, and certainly not without putting him through the ringer first.
A slew of red curls popped up from where they were tucked under her covers, and she glared icicles at nothing in particular. "Exactly who do you think you are?" she said groggily, though her voice promised death. Probably her breath did, too.
Minato was annoyingly chipper as he responded, "Well, this is the beginning of your new training regimen! Starting today, you are now my pupil!"
"I'll show you a pupil," she hissed, and banged her head into her pillow as if it would help. It was easy for him to be so casual in that little mindscape of his, he didn't even need sleep. Obviously he hadn't taken into consideration that she was still, unfortunately, in mortal form.
That was fine. She would give him a stern talking to. In about two hours. Charlie's head hit the pillow again, this time more gently, and she let her body relax. If she stayed still enough, she could fall back to sleep in roughly 47 seconds- she knew her body well.
"Nope! Get up, get up, you're wasting precious daylight! Get dressed and presentable and then call on me!" And his presence was gone again. Oh, she could kill him.
With leaden feet and a brain swimming with caustic thoughts towards a particular blond, she did as he asked, with jerky, irritated movements. Of course, logically, she knew he was just trying to help. But couldn't he have at least warned her first? Or just... let her sleep in the first day? What was so important that it had to be done at 5 AM?
As she found out, after growling his name in her head, meditation. Meditation was the most important thing, and no, he wasn't kidding. 5:15 AM saw her scooting her coffee table out of the way and sitting straight-backed on the rug, eyes closed, trying to 'align her chakra'. Whatever the hell that meant.
"Minato, I admire you greatly, I do, but-"
"Stop right there! You've said enough. I thank you for your admiration, my student. Now, tree pose."
Oh. She could kill him.
Charlie did as he bade, yet again, though with a ruthless look on her face. 'Minato, what's the point? I can't even feel my 'aligning chakra'!' She wobbled dangerously on one foot.
"That's because you're not focusing enough. Stare at the floor in front of you to balance yourself, and steady your breathing. It'll come to you." He sounded annoyingly optimistic. She should've known he was one of those quinoa-kale-drink-8-cups-a-day types. And now that she had nowhere to run from him, she would probably become one, too.
Though, perhaps he wasn't entirely trying to waste her time. Hopefully. With that hope in mind, she set about clearing her head, batting away her irritation alongside it. It was incredibly difficult, she found. Her mind was always humming, like a well-oiled machine, and to get it to stop was virtually impossible. It wasn't in her blood to not think. Thinking was what she was best at, after all.
"You can try humming. Just one tone, to focus your attention," Minato offered.
She did that too, and thankfully, concentrating on humming did seem to subtract the distractions of her mind. Her foot steadied on the ground, and she blew out a slow gust of air, letting her emotions go with it. Still, she wasn't really feeling anything besides stupid. 'Minato-'
"Focus," he demanded, and she sighed irritably, but did so.
Long minutes past. Charlie kept humming, resolutely thinking nothing at all. Minato was silent, though his presence hadn't left her mind. It was hard for her to explain what that felt like. Sharing a head with someone else, who could come and go virtually as they pleased. It was... a strange feeling, she supposed. His presence wasn't bad, per se, and it didn't feel oppressive or scary like one might think. He felt warm and familiar, like an old friend. It still wasn't something she had at all grown used to, and she doubted she ever would.
Eventually, she had all but fallen asleep standing there in that stupid tree pose, and she still hadn't felt anything resembling chakra.
It was a quarter 'til seven by the time Minato relinquished her of her duties. "I can't believe I couldn't feel anything," Charlie muttered to herself, a bit discouraged, as she pushed her coffee table back into place. Perhaps she just didn't have chakra? It wouldn't surprise her; after all, she was from another world. What could be expected?
"Maybe you have a point. But it also may just be that your body isn't able to recognize it yet. We'll just have to keep trying, ne?" Charlie huffed. It wasn't often that she faced something she couldn't have right away.
How was she supposed to save the day if she didn't even have chakra? She definitely wasn't as badass as Lee, at least not yet.
Sighing, the girl migrated to the kitchen. Maybe making breakfast would keep her mind off of it. She pulled a carton of eggs from the fridge, along with a jug of orange juice- the breakfast necessities. It had been quite a while since she'd made her own food- her mother was a capable and willing cook, and Charlie had perhaps assumed she would always be there to cook for her.
Strange, how things turned out.
Still, the redhead could make eggs, which was probably more than the boy next door could. So she pulled out the nifty frying pan that had been left on the stovetop (perhaps from the last tenents?) from the cupboard and, hoping it was clean, cracked an egg on its surface. Scrambled eggs it was.
Charlie made enough for her and her new friend, and put an even amount into two styrofoam plates (she didn't want to spend money on the real thing yet). She didn't have pepper, but she did have salt, and she gave each a healthy (unhealthy?) dose. She had bought a loaf of bread, but without a toaster, she merely placed two plain pieces beside them. Finally, with two plates and the jug of juice in tow, she waddled to the door, throwing it open and taking two steps to knock on Naruto's door.
There was a crashing sound from beyond the door. "Coming!" the kid called, sounding all the world like he had been asleep a few seconds prior.
He answered the door in a plain tee shirt and boxer shorts, rubbing his eyes blearily. He gave her a grin, though less animated than usual. "Oh, hey, Charlie-chan!"
"Early bird catches the breakfast, you know, Naru-chan," Charlie said, smiling back as she lifted the two plates for his viewing pleasure. "I hope you have a toaster."
His eyes lit up.
As it turned out, he did, in fact, have a toaster. So they ate eggs on toast, and managed to finish the entire jug of juice. Charlie felt as though a watery bowling ball had settled in her stomach, but she was sated. Naruto looked as if she'd need to roll him to school, but he managed to heave himself to his feet and waddle to the kitchen for a second. He came back with a plastic container she assumed was his lunch.
"Are you ready to go?" she asked, patting her stomach and letting out a contented sigh. She'd needed that more than she'd realized- apparently meditation was hard work.
The blond nodded excitedly from where he stood in the doorway. "Yeah, let's go, Charlie-chan!"
Charlie grinned and followed him as he beelined for the door, only pausing to throw her plate and the jug of juice away. 'I'll never get past his boundless enthusiasm,' she thought. He truly was a fireball of pent up energy and determination, in the body of a 4-nothing kid.
She could feel Minato's pride radiating out, and was glad for it. Though Naruto was still a little kid, still got into trouble and did things he wasn't supposed to, he was a sturdy individual with an infectious mood. Charlie could already see his ability to boost people up alongside him, like a wave that carried a ship to sea, until they were just as worked up as he. It was part of what made him great. Part of what made him genuine.
As they marched their way to school, Naruto chattered away excitedly, all about his class and his sensei. If he noticed the odd stare, he didn't mention it. The walk to school took about as long as she'd figured- about 15 minutes- so that by the time they were in the front courtyard, they were about ten minutes early. A few students milled about around the doors, talking quietly due to the early hour. All eyes were on the duo as they walked straight for the doors.
Well, she supposed they didn't get new kids in all that often. Plus, the fact that she was already hanging out with Naruto would make her a subject of interest. She would have to play it cool and keep the middle ground if she wanted to stay under the radar. Inside, however, she worried she wouldn't be able to reign it in.
If one of their classmates decided to do something stupid involving Naruto, she wasn't sure if she'd be able to hold herself back. True, they were children, but then again, how would they learn that he was a person if he was the one to fight back against them? She'd rather be the demon, in that case, than to have them consider Naruto one.
Rather than staring the kids in the eye and challenging them, Charlie found her eyes tracking the little tree swing as she passed it. It had always been a symbol of his loneliness, his ostracization. Her eyebrows furrowed without her meaning to, and she snapped her gaze forward resolutely. The kids' opinions didn't matter, at least not at the moment. What had been in his past would not be in his future, and it wasn't worth dwelling over. She was here to help him avoid that anyway, wasn't she?
So she looked one of the kids in the eye, an older one by the looks of it, and shot her a bold grin. Naruto was nothing to be afraid of.
Kuboyashi's classroom was at the end of a long hallway, and it was already bustling with voices and laughter. Naruto shoved his hands in his pockets, the picture of nonchalance, as they headed towards the open door, though the grin he pasted on seemed more for show than anything. "C'mon, Charlie-chan, I'll show you where my seat is," he said, and walked backwards over the threshold of the room. Charlie was about ready to follow after him when a hand clamped down on her shoulder (with a bit too much pressure, might she add). She halted a bit awkwardly, and turned around with raised eyebrows.
It was a taller man in the standard green flak jacket. His dark brown hair reached his nape, but was controlled by a blue cap that covered his head and proudly displayed his Konoha forehead protector. He had dark eyes set deep in his face, his eyebrows pushed together like he was brooding. There was no smile on his lips as he said, "Are you the new student?"
Charlie nodded silently. She didn't like this man- she could already tell he was too stern to be teaching a bunch of ten-year-olds, even if they were to become ninja in the future.
The feeling appeared to be mutual as he eyed her with distrust. She wondered absently what, exactly, he'd been told about her, because apparently he hadn't taken it well. "Stay back until I introduce you. Class is about to begin," he instructed, and with nary another word, brushed past her into the classroom. Naruto gave her an apologetic look as he disappeared from view to find his seat.
'Ah, does there really have to be an introduction?' Charlie whined mentally. She was never good at those- it wasn't that she had stage fright, exactly, but being put on the spot in front of a bunch of kids was a bit humiliating in her book.
"Good morning, class," Kuboyashi said as he found his place behind his podium. He adjusted the stack of papers in front of him casually as the class replied the same in unison. "Before we begin, we have a new student." He gave Charlie a single look, and she took it as her cue. Steeling herself, she walked right in, turning to face the class with a small, constrained smile. She really did hate introductions.
There were about twenty kids in Naruto's class, and all of them looked exceedingly ordinary. She recognized almost none of them, save for Shikamaru and Chouji sitting in the back near Naruto. Naruto had a whole table to himself in the back corner, and he was grinning encouragingly at her. She gave him in particular a wider smile than the rest- what a goofball.
"My name is Charlie Shimizu. I'm new to the village," she started. "My goal is to protect the people I care about. I hope we can all be friends." She gave a quick bow. Hopefully that was generic enough.
"Very good, Charlie-chan. You may take a seat wherever you like," Kuboyashi told her.
She found more and more peoples' eyebrows raising as she passed all the open spots to sit next to her new friend. Naruto leaned over to her once she'd sat, and he had a little smile on his face. "You can borrow some of my paper if you want," he offered, and slid her a sheet, along with a pen.
Ah, shit. She'd forgotten that she'd actually need school supplies. In the whirlwind that was yesterday, she hadn't even thought of it, which was a rarity. Ideally, she wouldn't need it at all- she could memorize anything she saw, after all- but she did need to keep up appearances. She'd have to make a pitstop at the store after school.
"Thanks, Naru-chan," she whispered to him, and sat with her back straight as the lecture began.
Ever the diligent student.
As Kuboyashi began talking about their latest writing exercises- apparently language was their first class of the day- Naruto was quickly losing interest. She found that as many of the students began taking notes on stroke order, the blond was rolling his eyes, loosely jotting down the character on his paper before glancing out the window.
Charlie sighed. No wonder he'd graduated last, his mind drifted elsewhere almost immediately. Granted they weren't talking about anything that would interest him much, but still...
"He clearly doesn't take after me in that respect," Minato voiced sheepishly. She noticed that he always seemed to tune in when Naruto was around. It was kind of cute, and at the same time she really could'nt blame him for it. He had missed a great portion of the kid's life.
Charlie cracked a grin. 'Doesn't he know that Hokages need to write sometimes?'
She bopped the boy in his side, and he frowned at her. "Pay attention, at least for a little while," she told him in a hushed tone.
Naruto grimaced, but reluctantly turned to face the front. Then, his eyes slid over to her. "I hope you're not going to make me study too," he mumbled puckishly, and doodled a tree in the corner of his paper.
Oh, Lord.
'You bet your ass I'll make you study,' she replied in her head. No friend of hers was failing out of the fifth grade- or whatever system they had.
Charlie watched as the friend in question blew out a dramatic sigh and rested his chin in his palm, and made a face.
She'd have her work cut out for her.
.
.
Jazzmeene: Thank you for your kind words and support! I believe also that she is quite strategic. I have a few ideas I am playing around with as far as character development goes, but we'll have to see; character development is one of the aspects I'm playing by ear in this story.
SkullMuffinGirl: Thank you, I'm excited as well to see how she develops! I apologize if the description was a little ambiguous, to tell the truth I haven't decided if adding another person to her head would bog down the story progression- though I am considering it. Let me know what you think on the matter, advice is always helpful!
OldCHild: Thank you for the pairing suggestion! It would be funny I think to see how she and Shika interact, being cut from the same cloth so to speak. With Charlie's red hair, she will definitely be suspected of being an Uzumaki by some of the village- I do imagine it being closer to Kushina's color rather than ginger- and the question of her heritage will definitely play a role in the coming chapters, so good spotting. Stay tuned!