A/N: Heyo, comin' at ya live with a new update. I may fool around and give you chapter six later on today, too, since there's not much action in this one. Tally for pairings so far is:

ShikaxOC: 7

ObitoxOC: 2

SasuxOC: 2

MinaXOC: 1

Chapter 5

After what had happened during taijutsu class a few days ago, people began giving Taro a wide berth.

Charlie had noticed it, though of course, how could she not? She heard very well what they would whisper about him, and the rumors they spread. It had been the opposite of what she'd wanted, and now, she was starting to get a bit annoyed.

It didn't help that they all saw her as a damsel in distress, now. The next day, she had arrived to class followed by an entourage- they'd stumbled up to her along her route to school, started talking, and didn't stop. They were all, apparently, so very worried- though none of them had bothered to visit her at the nurse's. And they were quite upset that one of their own had decided to, in their words, 'attack the new girl'.

It didn't stop there. They even believed she needed to be saved from Naruto, himself. That day, and the next two following it, they somehow managed to shoo him away from her every time they set out to school together. She could tell it was grating on his nerves, not only the hurt look he would give them, but also the righteous "HEY!" he would yell soon after. They didn't seem to mind.

"Stay away from him," they'd whisper, though they may as well have been yelling it because she was sure Naruto heard it all. "He's weird, Kaa-chan said he was a demon once." "My Tou-san got mad at me for talking to him once." "I heard he stole cabbage from one of the merchants one time." "I heard he-"

Oh, it went on. They were kids, all of them, and perhaps they didn't know any better. But perhaps she could be the one to teach them. So, on Friday, the last day of the school week, Charlie made a point of grabbing Naruto's hand as she saw the usual suspects approaching her on their way to school- three girls that were named Mayu, Akiko, and Chiyoko. The blond boy shot her a small grin, which she returned.

"Ohayou, Charlie-chan!" the girls greeted in unison. Their voices were approriately cheery, though their eyes were all fixed on her hand in his. "How are you feeling today?" For some reason, even though she'd been completely healed, they still seemed to be concerned about it. It warmed her a little, though, to tell the truth. They weren't heartless, like she had come to expect from the villagers who hated on Naruto- they were just badly misled.

Charlie smiled a little. "I'm fine." Honestly, after that second ice pack, she'd felt completely fine. The wonders of medical ninjutsu were beyond compare.

"Ne, ne, I heard Kuboyashi-sensei is making Taro-kun wash the boards for the rest of the month! Can you believe it?" Mayu said, grinning. She was the biggest gossip of the three of them, and perhaps of the entire class. She thrived on being 'in the know'. She would make a great intel gatherer in the future, provided she could keep a lid on what she learned.

Akiko and Chiyoko laughed, as if it was the best news they'd heard all day. "He deserves it. You know, I can't believe he was so mean that day. Who knew he hated outsiders so much?" Akiko blurted, and then turned scarlet red as her eyes darted to Charlie. "N-not that you're an outsider, Charlie-chan, just y-you're new, you know!"

Chiyoko and Mayu rolled their eyes at the faux pas. "Way to go, Akiko-chan. Now she's going to think we're just like him."

Charlie's hand squeezed Naruto's hard enough that he squeaked. She'd had enough of their assumptions. They had been spitballing all week about how he hated new kids, people from other villages, non-clan kids, the poor, the rich, girls. There were so many rumors about his punishment, his grades, his family. One small act could decimate a person here, it seemed.

She was silent the rest of the way to school, and barely greeted the other kids who joined after. The girls probably thought she was mad at them now, but she sort of was; just not for what they'd expect. She couldn't remember fifth grade being this... harsh. And judgy.

Naruto didn't say much either. From the way his sky blue eyes lingered on her, she knew he could tell she was getting angry. It didn't really happen that often, to tell the truth; even in her past life, she could get frustrated, but nothing could make her angry. Except for righteous causes such as this. Obvious wrongs.

As she entered the classroom, around ten kids following after, she had to remind herself to keep the lid on the boiling pot that was her temper. Taro was slumped at his desk, looking for all the world like he hadn't slept in the past week. Around him, three boys mercilessly taunted him, picking at his hair, his clothes. Taro had mostly drawn into a corner after the event had happened, and perhaps he even felt that he deserved it. She had caught looks of resignation on his face often during these little torture sessions, and he wore one now.

Charlie'd had enough. Just like that, her patience burst. The lid flew off the pot.

She stomped towards them, poor Naruto dragged in her wake, and pointed an accusatory finger at each of the three boys in turn. "Cut it out!" she exclaimed. Their jeering stopped, and they stared at her as if she'd grown a second head. "Did you think bullying another kid would make me happy? Or did you just want an excuse to be mean?"

You could hear a pin drop.

The redhead turned to the rest of the class, who were all stood stock still and watching her. "He's apologized to me. I have forgiven him. So let it go." She whirled on the three boys next, a cold glare on her face. "Apologize. And you better mean it."

They eyed each other hesitantly. "B-but Charlie-chan, we-"

She cut him off with a growl. "Apologize. And hope he forgives you."

One by one, they bowed to Taro, and muttered an apology under their breaths before taking their seats. For his part, Taro looked as uncomfortable as a fish out of water. He merely gave each of them a shaky nod.

Huffing, she continued past him to her seat, dragging Naruto along behind her. Hopefully, that would be the end of it.

Charlie relaxed on the bench, pulling out the brand new notebook she had purchased a few days ago and a pen. Naruto was watching her again, curiousity alight in his young features. She glanced at him, raising an eyebrow.

The kid grinned. "Charlie-chan. You're scary when you're mad."

She bopped his head, rolling her eyes as a small smile curled her lips.

Perhaps she had scared them a bit too much.

She realized this at lunch, when her spare time with Naruto was blissfully unperturbed. Rather than outright coming up to her and inviting themselves along, everyone decided to merely watch from afar.

The blond, for his part, was laughing at her. "I told you you were scary," he said, shoving a mouthful of rice down his gullet. She had managed to get back to the store to find more healthy options for the both of them, which Minato had been pleased about. Both of their lunches now looked more normal, though she couldn't say she felt any healthier.

Charlie rolled her eyes. "Well, I couldn't just let them keep picking on him, could I?" She glanced surreptitiously over her shoulder, where a large number of their classmates were huddled together. They kept casting stares her way, and she knew without a doubt they were talking about her.

She leaned back on her hands, bento forgotten in her lap as a cool breeze wafted through the area. She'd never get over how nice the weather was here, or how clean the air. "The weather's much to nice to be gossiping like that," she added, sighing.

Naruto waved his chopsticks dismissively. "The weather's always nice. Anyway, I think he got what was coming to him, -ttebayo."

The redhead glared at him with critical eyes. "He just got carried away, Naru-chan. You know as well as I do that bullying isn't right." The blond flushed and looked away in embarrassment.

"Oi."

The two looked up, surprised at the voice. They didn't think they'd be disturbed, given the circumstances, but there Taro stood, looking all the world like he really didn't want to be there. His scratched his cheek, not willing to meet either of their gazes. "Thanks. For earlier," he said, shuffling awkwardly.

Charlie smiled a little. "It needed to be done." Her eyes flitted down to the bento in his hands. "Care to join us?"

She saw how the kid looked at Naruto nervously before he shook his head. "Ah, n-no, I'm fine. See you in class." And off he went.

Charlie puffed out her cheeks in annoyance at his retreating back, and shoved a string bean into her mouth. "Brat," she mumbled out loud.

Her blond companion stared down at his food, a little sadly. "I don't know what makes them like that," he grumbled. "It's not like I did anything."

The girl felt her heart constrict for the poor boy, and cursed those ignorant people who passed their hatred on to their children. They continually ostracized a good kid, with a brave heart. They made him act out to get any attention at all, and when it worked, they felt reaffirmed that he was a demon rather than just a sad, lonely kid.

Minato must've felt her sadness, because his presence flared in her head, brighter than ever. She didn't really want him to have to see Naruto's pain. It was a grim reminder that his plan had gone awry. But nevertheless, he saw.

His feelings of hurt buzzed between her ears.

Charlie grit her teeth, and lunged at her friend, pulling him to her and holding him there as if she could shield him from their words with her body. "They're dumb," she muttered to him, setting her chin in his hair as he hung limply in her grip. "They don't know you. I've only known you for a week, Naru-chan, and you're the brightest bulb out of anyone. So don't let anyone hurt you, okay?"

His face was smooshed in her chest, but he extricated himself enough to mumble an "okay".

She held onto him just a bit longer, just because she could, before releasing him. "Oh, and Naruto?"

He looked at her in surprise at the use of his full name.

"You're my best friend now."

Naruto gave her a megawatt grin.

Charlie stood in the center of training grounds 8 with an irked look on her face. Air came in labored puffs from her mouth, and sweat beaded on her forehead. The night had already begun to cast the clearing into shades of blue and purple, but there she stood still nevertheless. The somber air that had taken over her during her first visit here had all but abated the more she visited it, and now, well, now it was just a field.

'Exactly how many times are you going to make me do this?' she thought disparagingly, stretching her arms above her head and willing her heart to calm. The evening air had cooled enough that she could see her breath as the wind took it from her. It must've been bordering on fall, by now.

"Until you pass out," Minato replied. If she'd been able to see his face, she knew he probably would've been giving her a Kakashi-esque close-eyed smile.

The bastard.

Oh, sure, he wasn't serious. He didn't really want her to pass out, or at least she didn't think so. He just wanted her to run until she tripped, fell, and didn't have the energy to get back up. His tyrant qualities had only magnified since their first session, and she'd grown a bit put out to be honest.

'Are you sure this training isn't going to kill me early?' she grumbled, regretfully lowering herself into the start position.

"Hope not!" Oh, she'd kill him.

Shaking her head, the girl set off in a dead sprint, following the long-memorized route around the training grounds. It wasn't a large area, but it took its toll on her. There were inclines, declines, unsteady ground, roots and branches and holes to either jump over or vault. It truly was an obstacle course, and she ran it over and over and over again until one tree blended into the next and the motions she went through, she could do with her eyes closed.

She'd better be ripped by the time this training was over. Minato put her through enough turmoil that she woke every day to her body screaming. She felt like an old hag at the ripe age of ten. Yet she did what he said each day, reminded over and over that he was going easy on her. If he could do it, well hell, why couldn't she? Sure, it took its toll, but it felt better than just staying in place and waiting to stumble upon her chakra.

Oh, and that was the other sticking point. Chakra. She'd tried her damndest, each and every day, to reach for it, to feel it somehow. But each morning felt more and more disappointing. The redhead wasn't used to failure, yet each time she woke she felt closer and closer to it. Minato still seemed surprisingly optimistic, but perhaps he was more used to trial and error than she was. Charlie was used to results, and to quick ones at that.

One could argue it was a humbling experience, to work for what you get. Charlie would argue that she would rather be humbled in any other way. She needed that chakra. If she didn't have it, she didn't know what she'd do, save seek out Guy. She sincerely doubted she'd ever be on the taijutsu level of him or Rock Lee, though. And so she doubled her efforts.

Charlie grit her teeth, forcing her protesting muscles faster and faster as she jumped over branches and dips in the ground. She would run until her body failed, if that was what it took to find the chakra she was seeking. She'd go beyond.

"You're looking pretty ruthless for how small you are," a voice suddenly said. Her eyes had been focusing on her feet as she tried not to trip, but now she glanced up, shocked at the new arrival. She recognized him, of course, and wondered what it was about her that brought all the main characters out of the woodworks. First Naruto stumbles upon her, and now Kakashi? In the training grounds that are supposed to be deserted?

Charlie dug her heels into the dirt to stop from running into the guy, and gave him a reproachful look as she skidded to a halt right under his nose. "He finally got taller," Minato said, sounding pleasantly surprised. She didn't blame him; Kakashi'd been a little twerp for a long while before he'd come into his own.

"What are you doing here?" she blurted without thinking, eyebrows drawing together. "And why are you in the running path?"

The silver-haired man grinned at her behind his mask. "Well, I thought it was a nice, quiet spot to read." He flapped the suspicious orange book in his hand. "Imagine my surprise at seeing such a little person working herself to death."

The redhead pouted. Sure, she was only ten, but she wasn't little. It felt strangely humiliating to be talked to like that, especially since she'd grown out of being little a long time ago. "I'm not working myself to death, I'm working myself to exhaustion. If you'll excuse me." She brushed past him. He was every bit as odd and teasing as she'd expected him to be.

"This is where I used to take them to train," Minato revealed suddenly, after she'd already started jogging again. "There are a lot of memories here. Some of the felled trees and branches you see are from us." His tone was wistful. "That was a long time ago. If I know Kakashi-kun, he's probably reliving old memories." Well, if she'd thought of that, she would've left the place in peace immediately after seeing the guy.

Interestingly, Kakashi didn't seem to mind. He watched her, his one dark eye following her form as she trampled the ground underfoot. Never once did he flip open his book, though he did seem lost in thought. The man kept watching, until the sun finally set completely and the girl ran herself into the ground.

On her back there, letting the aches of the workout settle over her like she'd been dipped in fire, Charlie stuck a hand over her heart. It was beating faster than a galloping horse, and it jumped even further when his face suddenly appeared over hers. He blocked out the moon, and just stared at her.

"You stayed," she noted, raising a single eyebrow.

"I couldn't well let you pass out here, after all," Kakashi explained, giving her that eye smile again.

Charlie found herself laughing. "I do this every night. Somehow, I manage to drag myself home. Thanks for worrying about me, though." She stuck her hand straight in the air. "Shimizu Charlie. Nice to meet you."

He slowly shook her hand, though he offered no name in return.

Charlie cleared her throat to cover a wheeze as she pulled herself to her knees, and then to her feet. "I'll leave you to your reading," she said, though it was clearly too dark to read now and it had been almost the entire duration of his visit.

"Goodnight," he called as she strode off, and she threw a casual wave over her shoulder.

She had a feeling she'd be seeing more of him.

Charlie headed straight home after that, too dog tired to do anything else. Her brain felt about as mushy as her legs, and it was all she could do to not stumble into some bushes for a quick nap.

'So, what do you think, Minato? About Kakashi? Is it weird seeing him?'

"He's different than he was as my student. I'm... conflicted." She wondered if there was more to it than that, but she didn't pry.

Instead, Charlie said, 'He's Naruto's future sensei, did I tell you that? I think it's a good thing, for both of them. Though he may not be the sullen kid he used to be, he still has a lot of pain in him. Not that anyone would be able to tell from first glance.' She held a finger to her chin thoughtfully. 'I think I'm glad I met him today. Maybe I can introduce Naruto to him one of these days.'

"It's still strange, knowing that you know everything about our lives," Minato replied, more candidly than she was used to from him. She stuttered a bit in her walk, hoping she hadn't creeped him out. Truth be told, it was weird for her, too; knowing everything about everyone, and not being able to say anything about it. The product of being in a different universe.

'Does it make you uncomfortable? I can stop...'

He laughed at her. "It's alright. It's not like you can help the position you've been put in." That was the wrong thing to say, it turned out, because her thoughts took a more morose turn. She hadn't really thought about it much, or really wanted to, but the elephant in the room seemed to be getting larger and larger.

'Neither of us can. Jeez, this week has been so weird.' It was finally hitting her that she'd been completely normal and fine in her own universe a little over a week ago. Now, now she was talking with the Fourth Hokage in her head, playing big sister to his son, and psychoanalyzing his former student? She didn't know what she'd do if she suddenly woke up right back where she'd been. Coming here was already enough of a trip.

It all felt so real, though. And as logical as she was, Charlie couldn't believe that it wasn't her reality anymore. She didn't know how she'd gotten here, or how long she'd be here, but damn it, she'd been preparing for the long haul- and she hadn't even realized it. Trying to access her chakra, making best friends with Naruto, confiding in the Hokage, training until she felt like dying every night? What the hell was she doing? Did she really want to stay here forever? Did she want to potentially change the timeline, all in the name of keeping Naruto safe and well?

Hell, did she even have the right? To talk to Kakashi like she didn't know what had happened to him in the past? To watch over Naruto under the guise of a child, though she was really 17?

Charlie glared down at her feet, stopping abruptly in the middle of the street. She hated having so many questions. She hated how out of control this world made her feel, how out of her own depths she was. Why was she trying so hard? What drove her to do what she'd been doing, besides that she wanted to change things for the better? She had never been a particularly motivated person before, as everything came easily to her, and yet now, she was determined as all hell to keep the kid safe.

The redhead's teeth clenched. She'd never even had a second thought. She hadn't even thought about her family back home, or what a life she could've led if it turned out that she didn't want to return later on. Not a damn thought crossed her mind, until now.

'Is this what they call an existential crisis?' she wondered, displeased that her voice sounded slightly hysterical.

Her companion had no words for her. Charlie doubted any witty words would help, anyway.

She finished the walk home a bit more slumped than before, and didn't even knock on Naruto's door when she got there, merely passing it with a short glance. She kicked off her shoes in her own apartment, and beelined it for the shower, not allowing it to take more than around five minutes.

Then, she curled up on her bed, and cried herself to sleep. Thankfully, Minato hadn't been there for that.

The next few days, she did her best to push all of those thoughts away.

It was the weekend, which meant freetime for her and her little blond buddy. Saturday, Naruto had been extremely upset that she hadn't knocked down his door as she usually did when she returned home, but after a brief excuse that she hadn't been feeling well, all was forgiven. He showed her more places around Konoha, all his little secret hiding spots, more places and people that he'd pranked.

She gladly let him do all the talking, merely watching on with a semi-smile. Thankfully, none of the villagers took much notice of them, too busy with their weekend shopping to bother.

Naruto led her all the way to the top of the Hokage Monument, and she found it almost funny that they ended up on top of Minato's head. They sat there, and enjoyed a few apples that she'd managed to pack away before he'd dragged her out in the morning.

"You're quiet today," Naruto noted, glancing at her shyly. It sounded strange, something so observant coming from one so young. And Naruto, at that.

Charlie gave a wry smile to him. "Ah, I'm just thinking, Naru-chan, sorry." Well, she'd been trying not to, but the aching in her heart didn't tamp down just because she didn't want to listen to it.

He looked about as sad as she felt, and his blue eyes seemed even bigger than usual. "Are you sad?"

An interesting question. Part of her was, and another part was wondering why she was here in the first place. But she wouldn't be able to tell Naruto that. He didn't deserve to feel her pain, anyway. So she shook her head, giving him a wider smile as she said, "Nope, just distracted is all." Hadn't that been her resolve? To smile fakely until she could smile for real?

The following day saw her grocery shopping. Naruto had declined to join her on this particular excursion, though he had asked rather sweetly for some candy, and how could she decline?

It struck her as odd, how mundane it felt. Weighing tomatoes in the vegetable section, picking the appropriate potato chips, deciding what kind of macaroni she wanted to use in the pasta salad she'd make eventually. Odd, yet also comforting. She watched the people walking by, some holding hands with their children, others talking quietly amongst themselves over a particular loaf of bread. So very normal, as though the world around them couldn't possibly be any different.

Little did they know.

But for now, she allowed the normalcy to overcome her. She collected a few things, used up a sizable amount of her remaining money, and even managed to get Naruto a chocolate orange while she was at it. She climbed the stairs to their apartments with heavy feet, bags of groceries weighing down her arms, and remembered just a few weeks ago, when she'd done the same exact thing. Though at that point, she had been going to her dorm room, and she had been about two feet taller.

Anyway.

She knocked on her blond friend's door with her sandal, and listened with a small smile as there was a clattering on the other end. He always seemed to trip over everything on his way to the door.

He threw it open with a wide grin. "Charlie-chan! Did you get me candy?" he inquired immediately, bouncing on the balls of his feet. She really had to get the kid some sort of treadmill to run off all that energy.

"I did," she groaned, dropping the bags unceremoniously as her arms finally gave out. They were, believe it or not, even weaker than they had been when she'd started her training. Minato had attributed this to the muscles tearing and reforming, though she liked to tease that he was making her weaker instead.

Charlie dug through a few bags before procuring the chocolate orange, and tossing it his way. He caught it with surprising ease, and looked at it with a weird expression. "It says 'orange', though?"

She rolled her eyes, took it back, and tore the foil enough to pull out a slice. "It says 'chocolate' above that, dummy," she said, and shoved it in his mouth. He chewed thoughtfully, then swallowed.

"Hey, that's pretty good!" He took it back from her, and pulled out another piece, handing it to her. "You have this one."

Her lips twitched up as she took a bite, letting the chocolate and orangey flavor melt over her tongue. She'd always loved getting these for Christmas, and it had been a surprise to see them sitting there on the shelf.

"Thanks, Charlie-chan," Naruto said, with his mouth full. "You're the best ever."

Charlie laughed, warm spreading in her chest. He looked unquestionably adorable, as he always had as a kid, with his hair strewn in all different directions and his bright eyes wide and clear. She felt like the tired older sibling to a little brother she'd never had, though she found that she didn't mind it. Little moments like this, ones of peace and okayness, things she took for granted before; she noticed how important they were, and how much the little boy before her truly deserved it.

Okay, so maybe she didn't know what she was doing here. Perhaps she did feel guilty about not missing home as much as she should've. And there were a thousand other questions and things she did not know and probably would never find out. But standing there, with her arms aching, watching ten-year-old Naruto eat a chocolate orange for the first time?

She couldn't say she regretted it.

skye-speedy: Who knows? ;) Have any guesses?

time-twilight: That's quite true. I think Charlie would love to have someone who challenges her intellect, as there aren't many who could. Also, stay tuned on what Minato teaches her, I haven't decided. I think he's super powerful and it would be awesome for her to learn some from him, but I also want to make sure she's not going to be a carbon copy lol! Thank you for your review friend!

WolfRaposa: Thanks for your review! I've been attempting to write that part a bit ambiguously. You'll see later on, but I've viewed it as part of him is still in the Shinigami with the Yin half of Kurama. I hope the next two ish chapters will clarify it further!

MeiaAdey12: You're so kind, thank you! I think the same way. They have both become constants in a situation which seems bigger than them, so I do believe there is a bit of dependence there.

SkullMuffinGirl: I know, my poor bean is so out of her depth :( My author maliciousness, however, is winning out. Who do you think the big scary guy is? Is it Danzou... or someone worse! D: Thanks for your review and continued support!