A/N: I want to thank everyone that added this story to their favourite and follows as well as everyone that reviewed the last chapter.
A week passed since Naruto informed him of her situation and only now Jiraiya reached the hospital that Naruto was currently staying in. He went through almost every hospital in the city, searching for his godchild. All of them replied they didn't have an Uzumaki Naruto and Jiraiya wondered if his goddaughter believed that it would be easy for him to find her.
Not even that blasted landlord knew which hospital Naruto was in. What was the point of paying the man, not just for rent but also to keep an eye on Naruto, if he didn't even know which hospital Naruto was in. Jiraiya slammed the doors open and charged straight towards the receptionist. This had to be the hospital that Naruto was in.
"Hello, do you have a patient named Uzumaki Naruto?"
The receptionist blinked but did not say a word. She just looked down at her computer, tying down a couple of letter and chewed on her bottom lip. Normally he would try to make a couple of moves but Jiraiya needed to find out if Naruto was here. He needed to know if his godchild was here before resuming his search again for the girl.
"Uzumaki Naruto?" Jiraiya swirled his head around and blinked at the sight of a doctor. Purple eyes grew large at the sight of him. "Wait aren't you Jiraiya? The author of the Icha-Icha series? I love—"
"We can talk about my books later! Is my goddaughter here?"
"Right! Uzumaki-san!" The doctor laughed nervously and pulled his collar as the receptionist shook her head, her lips pressed into a thin line. "Before I take you to see Uzumaki-san, I need to inform you about the injuries that your goddaughter sustained in the attack."
Black eyes widened. "Attack? What attack? She didn't tell me anything about an attack!"
That girl was definitely her mother's child because this was a Kushina's move, not a Minato's move. He always presumed Naruto started a fight, not the fact that Naruto got attacked. Jiraiya grinded his teeth as the doctor sweated, pulling his collar to the side as several male doctors and patients slowed down to see him.
"A couple of villains attacked Yuuei High," the doctor explained. "Uzumaki-san was the only one that got severely wounded in the attack."
Attack? Severely wounded? That girl had some explaining to do because she made it seem like she got into a fight. Of course this was Naruto that he was talking about. If his godchild snapped out of it then Naruto didn't want to worry him. He sighed. When would the girl get it through her head that he had the right to worry for her? Not just as her 'guardian' but as her teacher.
Jiraiya shook his head and pressed his lips into a thin line. "How severely wounded are we talking about?"
"The villain managed to punch a hole through her stomach," the doctor admitted.
Jiraiya grinded his teeth, balled his hands into a fist and kept quiet as the doctor continued to list out the injuries Naruto sustained. How the hell was a person able to land a hit against Naruto? His godchild could easily handle a criminal here so how could someone hit her? And Naruto not able to block? That was really concerning because Naruto was naturally gifted with super strength.
He rubbed the side of his head and darted his eyes to the various people surrounding him. Several people had ears of various animals while a few had horns growing out of the side of their faces or various parts of their bodies. Some of the patients looked normal while a few patients had skin colours that didn't fit the norm. It was easy for a person to blend in this part of the world, so was it possible that a shinobi attack her?
It had to be the only explanation because Jiraiya refused to believe that his godchild could have been defeated by a civilian.
"We weren't even sure if Uzumaki-san was going to pull through," the doctor grimaced. "The wounds she sustained would have killed an ordinary person, but your goddaughter pulled through."
Jiraiya smiled and darted his eyes to the various patients being helped by either the nurses or by their family members and friends. Had his godchild been alone throughout the whole process? The thought built the guilt in his stomach like it always did whenever Jiraiya thought about the little girl that he chose to leave behind in Japan.
"Did she have anyone else visit her?" Jiraiya asked.
It really made his stomach turn at the thought that Naruto staying in the hospital without anyone visiting her. In Konoha, there had been the reassurance of her childhood friend: Hinata but he had no clue here. The landlord told him that Naruto spent more time working, more time alone than making friends.
He looked up to the ceiling, praying to God that his goddaughter had at least made one friend in this country.
"Naruto-neechan! This is Hana!"
Naruto smiled as Eri raised up a purple-haired doll to her and handed her a doll. It was a pretty doll with its straight long hair and bright blue eyes, looking almost delicate. Children probably liked delicate things but she would never know. She didn't actually understand the appeal of dolls, not when they looked so thin and had the perfect body proportions. She twirled it around.
"Hana is a pretty name."
Knock.
Everyone turned their body around as the door slid open and her doctor and Jiraiya stepped in. Black eyes focused on her and Naruto shifted to the right, blue eyes avoiding the concern and furious eyes of her teacher. It didn't need to be stated that he found out about the extent of her wounds, it was just said by the way he kept looking at her with disappointment.
"I presume that you are Uzumaki's guardian," Aizawa stood up from his seat and pressed his lips into a thin line. No smile decorated his face and his eyes held only pure irritation at the sight of her godfather. It was kind of sweet that Aizawa cared this much about her, but it was her fault. Naruto balled her hands into a fist.
Jiraiya nodded. "And who might you be?"
"I am her homeroom teacher." Aizawa darted his eyes from her to Eri and then back to Jiraiya. The white-haired man stiffened his back, looking almost guilty as the black eyes of her teacher looked at him with anger and frustration. It didn't really surprise Naruto because her teacher was probably a master of making anyone feel guilty. Naruto darted her eyes to Jiraiya.
The man focused his eyes on her and searched her eyes like he was trying to find something. She rubbed the back of her neck, avoiding his concern eyes and suddenly found an interest in one of Eri-chan's dolls. Anything was better than looking at his disappointed eyes.
"Eri, why don't we leave Uzumaki and her guardian to talk?" Naruto swirled her head at her teacher. The man seemed to focus entirely on the frowning Toad Sannin, lips pressed into a thin line. "You can play with Uzumaki after her guardian and her have their talk."
The white-haired girl pouted, dragged her feet away from the bed and made her way to stand beside her foster father. Naruto sighed, hanging her head down and barely heard that Aizawa saying something to Jiraiya. Everything just seemed to be muffled in her ears as her brain tried to think of what to say to the man that brought her to this country. Did she start with an apology? Or make some kind of joke? She tugged her hair and stared at the solemn white-haired man.
Jiraiya sat down on the chair as Aizawa closed the door, leaving the teen and the adult alone in the room with no way of escaping from their talk. Not that Naruto wanted to escape, because they needed this. In the few years they were apart, Naruto never really talked about anything. Naruto sucked in a deep breath, stretching her ribs till it cracked.
"I am sorry."
Jiraiya blinked. "Sorry? What are you sorry for?"
"For saying that you only sent me here because you didn't care about me and that you just wanted to make sure no one wants to take the monster away," Naruto admitted. "For telling you to leave me alone and that your job with me is done."
The Toad Sannin took a seat on the chair and regarded her. No emotions shone through his eyes, almost making it seem like he had a mask over him and it was weird. Before things went to hell for her, Naruto could always count on the man to have some silly expression playing on his face or some joy in his eyes. She nibbled her lips and took a deep breath.
"If anyone should be apologizing then it should be me," Naruto blinked as her mentor took a deep breath and focused his eyes on the television screen. "I shouldn't have left you alone in a foreign country even if you begged me."
"Ero-Sennin?"
The white-haired man took a deep breath. "I knew you were deeply hurt by Tsunade's words but we just thought that you could see the bigger picture and I knew you were in no state to be left alone. I should have just ignored your wishes and stay with you."
"If you had stayed, I woulda make your life difficult." Jiraiya curled his lips into a smile as the blond-haired girl tucked her blond hair to the side. She flickered her eyes to the window as the birds flew out of their nest, zooming through the sky without a care in the world.
"It would have been worth it to make sure that you didn't do anything stupid."
Naruto didn't even smile at his words. "I really wasn't in my best state, was I?"
"You worried Tsunade and me with how upset you were to fail the mission," Jiraiya admitted. "And it got even worse when Tsunade exiled you. You didn't even wait to hear what she had to say and you didn't even try to hear my explanations for her actions."
"I accused you with siding with the Old Hag because you are deeply in love with her," Naruto muttered, rubbing the back of her neck. She avoided his eyes, only pressed her lips into a thin line and finding a sudden new found interest in the blank television screen.
Jiraiya sighed. "My feelings to Tsunade would never affect my relationship with you. You are my student, the apprentice that I chose to train, and she is my teammate. Even if I love her, it doesn't mean that I will allow my love to blind me when it comes to you."
"I just thought Tsunade wanted to get rid of me because I failed to bring Sasuke back." Naruto rubbed the back of her neck as her guardian stared at her with concern. She took a deep breath. "A lot of people blame me for not being able to knock some sense into him."
The Toad Sannin sighed. "Naruto, no one blames you for not bringing him back."
"Sakura blamed me," Naruto muttered.
The man pinched his nose and grinded his teeth. "That was only one person, Naruto and I'm going to be honest about your teammate: she doesn't seem to understand you at all. If she understood you then she would know that you gave it your all to bring him back."
Naruto chewed on her bottom lip and stared at her teacher. A part of her wanted to say that he was only saying those words because he wanted her to come back to Konoha. She grinded her teeth together as more thoughts rushed into her mind. No, the man cared for her.
He came here when she asked him to come.
"I'm sorry."
Jiraiya ruffled her hair. "You can apologize again when we get you discharge to your apartment. As a form of an apology, you should take me out for some ramen."
"Are you paying?" Naruto tilted her head at him.
Her mentor tilted his head, rubbed his chin and deadpanned. "If you are apologizing then you should be paying for my meal."
"Cheapskate."
"I'm teaching you—"
"—Bullshit! You are making a poor student pay for your meal again!"
Even though they were arguing like this, Naruto had a large smile playing on her lips and she thought that maybe just maybe that things between them were going to be okay. Now all she needed was for Ero-Sennin to sign her out of here.
Aizawa sipped on his coffee as his black eyes fixated at the solemn eyes that belonged to Uzumaki' Guardian. The two of them sat in the mostly empty cafeteria, their arms folded against their chest as they sized each other up. The other visitors stared at them, lips pressed into a thin line and sweat dripping down their faces.
"Thank you for looking after her."
The Pro Hero blinked at the sight of the rather tall, older male bowing down to him. The irritation inside of Aizawa grew slightly as several hurtful words tried to claw its way out of his throat, but the male swallowed it down. Not the time for him to make a scene but Aizawa really felt tempted.
"It's my job as my homeroom teacher to be there for her." Jiraiya winced at the subtle dig as Aizawa took another sip of his coffee. The bitterness clung to his tongue, forcing him to bottle down the anger that seemed ready to erupt. He slammed the coffee cup on the table, rattling the spoons set on the table.
Jiraiya took a deep breath. "I know that I should have been there for Naruto."
"You left a 15-year-old girl to fend for herself." He growled. "It is your responsibility to make sure that she goes to school on time and that she doesn't do anything reckless. You don't just abandon her—"
"I know I shouldn't have abandon her," Jiraiya took a deep breath as his body trembled. The black eyes of Naruto's guardian shone with grief and guilt, making Aizawa loosen his grip on the coffee cup. "But I didn't know what to do with Naruto. She refused to travel with me and didn't trust me enough to think that I care for her."
"Maybe because your actions proved the opposite." Aizawa grunted and Jiraiya blinked. "You think letting her live alone show you care for her? That shows people that you don't care and have no sense of responsibility."
The man winced, pulled his collar and finally hung his head. Jiraiya's broad shoulders tensed up and Aizawa just pressed his lips into a thinner line. A part of him softened because at least the man did seem like he cared for Uzumaki. But then he remembered how Uzumaki was hurt and his anger rose again.
He couldn't stop himself from saying the next couple of words.
"Why do you think it was a good idea not to tell her that you are paying for her rent? Or that her money is going to an account that will open if you die?"
"Have you seen her?" Jiraiya rubbed the side of his head. "Naruto refused to believe that anything I do is because I care for her. If I told her that I am paying for her rent then the brat would just find another place to live and try to pay the money back."
Aizawa grimaced and almost felt tempted to get a bottle of alcohol out. It might be the afternoon but it felt like this might be one of those long, painful days that needed him to have a couple of bottles of sake to survive. He took several deep breaths, before flickering his eyes to the man.
Jiraiya hung his shoulder up, eyes focused anywhere but at him and Aizawa felt another growing headache flying his way. He needed to breath again because anger was not a good face to show to either his foster child or Naruto. The world seemed to grow still as Aizawa regained control of himself. Only Uzumaki could make him feel this way.
"And not putting a phone number for us to reach? What is your reason?" Aizawa questioned and Jiraiya stiffened at those words. "Do you know what your ward has been doing for the last two weeks? Did the landlord tell you that Uzumaki was nearly kidnapped by the Yakuza?"
Jiraiya shook his head and pressed his lips into a thin line. Only curiosity shone through his eyes, there was no concern or fear for what happened to Uzumaki and that made Aizawa want to grind his teeth together and shake the man. Of course, Uzumaki seemed surprise if someone cared for her. Her own guardian didn't seem to give a shit about her.
"You aren't even worried about her."
The man cleared his throat. "I know Naruto and I know that girl can handle a bunch of Yakuza."
But this isn't the point. Aizawa grinded his teeth and felt like pulling his hair at the blatant way that the man wasn't voicing out his fears or concerns for the girl. Great, he was confident about Uzumaki but didn't he care if she got wounded? Or went through some terrible acts? He shouldn't be drinking his tea without a care in the world.
"It doesn't matter that she can handle it," Aizawa snapped. "What matters is that you ask about her! That you check up on her and realize when someone needs you. When her parents assigned you as her guardian then it is your responsibility to be there for her as a parent."
Silence reined between them as the man regarded him. Aizawa grinded his teeth, clenched and unclenched his hands as he waited for some words to be spoken. How could anyone think that this man should take care of a child? Aizawa exhaled.
"I know I haven't been a great guardian to her," Jiraiya took a deep breath. "And you're right I have been crappy to that child and that my actions haven't been the best, which is why I plan to stay with her."
Aizawa narrowed his eyes and focused his attention on the man. Sincerety shone through his eyes and the fury in those black eyes flashed before his eyes, reminding him again that the man did care for Uzumaki. He took a deep breath as several thoughts floated through his head. If he had to give back the responsibility to this man, then Aizawa should tell him everything.
He just prayed that the man would actually follow through if his words for Uzumaki's sake.
A/N: Please review and tell me what you think about this chapter.