~NRK~
Naruto snickered despite everyone else getting up in arms.
"The fuck are they doing here?! You brought them?!" Max accused the blonde boy who shrugged.
"That's quite enough, Maxwell, we'll be here to take our astounding member and leave," the male childhood friend of the latest pain in his ass said.
Being at a moderate height for his age, which couldn't have been that much older than Naruto's by maybe a year or two, he had short maroon-colored hair that had two leaf-like tufts coming up by his forehead, fair skin with freckles, yellow eyes, and some acne around his chin. Wearing the Wood Scouts Camp uniform which consisted of brown shoes, dark green pants, and a tan dress shirt, he had on two sashes that held a series of badges on them.
"Oh, you brought my sash!" Naruto grinned as the older boy smirked, coming forward and handing it to the blonde. "Thanks!"
"Of course, as the greatest member next to me, it's only right to have you bear your accomplishments to the world!" Edward 'Eddy' Pikeman declared, hands folded behind his back.
"Ew!" Came the 'leader' of the Flower Scouts troop as she stomped over. "Of course, YOU'D show up," she growled as Edward shot her an unimpressed look.
She was a year of so younger-looking than the blonde boy at the center of all the 'craziness' with pink almond-shaped eyes, light salmon hair that fell down to her waist with a dark magenta hair band in it, peach skin, and black eyeliner with pink blush, she had on the Flower Scouts uniform.
Composed of a white blouse with pink trim, a skirt with diamond-patterns composed of three different shades of pink, a purplish-pink sash with some badges, and a pair of brown boots, the uniform's 'abilities' were more than most people would know.
Naruto would, his cousin had explained to him the 'intricacies' of their uniforms, speaking of.
"Yo, Cuz Tabii," he chuckled as the blonde girl of the Flower Scouts grinned before hurrying over.
"Naru!" She beamed at him.
Tabii Namikaze, his cousin on his dad's side from an uncle, was a short girl with round fair-skinned cheeks covered in freckles, big round yellow eyes, and thick-looking blonde hair with a scrunchie that held up a decent amount of it.
Wearing the Flower Scouts uniform, Naruto got up before giving her a big hug, the young girl grinning brighter as they embraced with fervor.
"So, what's Sasha on today?" He asked her flatly as she smirked.
"We're planning our cookie sales soon," she whispered as Sasha and Edward bickered back-and-forth. "And, well, she's not exactly a fan of the popcorn."
"... Oh," he realized as he put her down before she grinned at someone behind him. "?" Turning his head, Naruto sweatdropped at Neil currently trying to sneak away.
"Fuck," the science boy groaned as Tabii approached. "H-Hey, Tabii," he said nervously as she batted her eyelashes.
"Sup, lover boy~"
Naruto snorted at that before finding a familiar presence above him. "Snake, what's up? Well, besides you?" He chuckled as a form descended behind him.
"Your senses haven't dulled," a diminutive boy said as he stood up from his crouch with a smirk. "Long time no see," he, Snake, said as he and Naruto bumped fists.
As stated before, 'Snake' or Billy Nikssilp, was short. Bearing dark brown hair that fell down his head and parted by his forehead, he had brown skin and a single-revealed blue eye, the other, his left, hidden behind a black eyepatch.
Wearing the Wood Scouts uniform but with the pants legs rolled up to his knees, grayish-brown boots, and his shirt being short-sleeved, he also had bandages wrapped around his wrists and a scar on his chin.
"Of course, dude, animals, remember?"
"I do. Your Forestry Badges can never be forgotten," Snake smirked before frowning as he locked eyes with Max, slowly squinting in suspicion. "Be careful of that one, he speaks like a… snake."
"Excuse me?!" Max stomped over. "Last I checked, Billy," Snake's eyebrows furrowed. "I'm not the one lying about names and camps, ya bitch!"
"Mmm," Nikki growled before jumping back and landing in a kung-fu pose, the last of the Wood Scouts arriving with crossed arms and narrowed eyes.
"Petrol, it's fine, seriously," Naruto said as he and the tallest of the group of kids locked eyes.
"..."
"... Glad you understand," the blonde grinned as the taller teen nodded.
Petrol, or 'Stephen van Petrol', was tall and broad-shouldered, being the most muscular-looking kid there. Having tan skin, black eyes, and a bald head of no hair, he was like Snake in that he customized his uniform in a similar fashion but minus the wrist bandages.
"Hmph," he grunted as he and the blonde knocked knuckles, Neil whining behind them while Max stared in utter disbelief.
"You understand him?!" The short Indian balked.
"Well, yeah, it took me a year but I figured him out," Naruto chuckled before rolling his eyes and stepping forward between the arguing 'redheads'. "Alright, alright, what the hell is going on?" He asked the two who stopped before facing him.
"Come to our camp," they said in unison before growling at one another, Eddy revealing his braces. "Not to YOUR camp of all places! Stop copying me!"
Naruto crossed his arms with a hum as the last of the Flower Scouts slunk over with a raised brow.
She was the tallest of the girls, right up there with Meredith, bearing brown skin, shoulder-length blue hair with a combover, and a single exposed blue eye.
"Yo~" She said to him with a smile and wave that he reciprocated.
"Sup, Erin. Now, come on, guys, we're back together in over a year, let's not fight over this," Naruto said to his childhood friends. "Come on, I was, apparently, just learning the wonders of technology."
"It's art!" Neil said before hiding behind the blonde as Tabii stalked him. "Tell your cousin to cease and desist PERMANENTLY!"
"Come on, cuz, let me at him," Tabii said as Naruto rubbed the back of his head.
"I feel like I'm missing a lot of info here," he said. "Look, come on, can we all just take a second to chill?" Naruto offered.
Moments later, he chuckled as they all sat in a circle.
"So, you guys seem to know each other but these guys are Flower Scouts Troop #789 and Wood Scouts Regimen #818. They're the friends I made along the way," Naruto explained. "Guys, I just met these guys from this year's Camp Campbell."
"We know them, unfortunately," Neil said flatly before shying away from the grinning Tabii sitting next to him. "Why did I allow this?" He asked himself in horror.
"Because you know you want me, sexy~" She purred.
"I didn't want any part in this!"
"Tabii, ew," Sasha said with a flat look. "Besides, Naru, you shouldn't be at no dinky Camp Campbell. This place reeks of the poor and beggars."
"... Wow, I really haven't been exposed to this in a while," Naruto said as Edward smirked.
"It'd be for the best that you don't allow that," he said as Sasha growled. "After all, you're a part of our troop, 818 sticks together!"
"I know, Eddy, I'm just doing like I always do. I switch between 'em. This year, you guys know I'm here, it'd be hard to break that cycle," Naruto said. "Besides, I can just sneak over if I want to hang or you guys can, like ya just did!"
"... Ugh, fine," Sasha and Edward groaned.
"Now, let's get back to learning about the internet."
"You leave that pure boy alone!" The two hissed at Neil who squawked.
"Excuse me?! I'm not some weirdo on the internet!" He defended, offended on every level. "Okay?! I know how to use a pure web browser that doesn't need Incognito Mode."
"Hmm," Erin tilted her head as Naruto raised a brow at it all.
"I'm glad to have… whatever honor of mine protected… but this is getting on my nerves, you guys might be older than me but I'm not a puppy!" He declared.
"It's about the principle, Naru," Sasha said with determination before Max blinked.
"Wait, hold on!" He stared. "Did he say you were older than him?!"
"Hmm?" She looked at Max with disdain. "You don't ask a lady her age."
"Fuck the manners! How old are you?!"
"Ugh, this is such a drippy mood," Erin said as Ered raised a brow. "No class, no posh, it's a wonder you all survive the Summer."
"That's rich coming from you," the skater said with a flat look as the dark-skinned Flower Scout turned her head with a glare. "As if I'd expect some prissy fruu-fruu girls to survive in the wilds."
"Excuse me, you reprobate?!"
"You heard me, prissy."
"Whoa, girls, let's calm this down," Naruto said nervously.
"No," they told him before glaring at one another once again.
"Guys, help!"
"And miss this?" Max smirked. "Nope, you're on your own," watching the blonde at least squirm would make the Summer more bearable.
"Max, you suck hard."
The younger male's eyebrows twitched.
"Don't do it, Erin, it'll ruin your routine!" Tabii said as Erin gasped, touching her cheeks.
"You're right!" She realized as Meredith wore a flat expression.
"I'll never understand that," Naruto said. "I… your skin looks the same as always!"
"Aw, thanks, Naru!" Erin smiled. "At least, some boys get the usage of our products."
Naruto looked ready to dispute this claim but figured it'd be a bad idea.
"Ignoring that, so, I'm curious. Didn't you guys have a Camporee recently?" He asked.
And got two huffs for his troubles.
"Those classless Campbell Campers won," Sasha and Edward admitted as Naruto blinked.
He looked at them and then the smug Max. "... How?"
"What?!" Max choked before grunting. "I knew it!"
"Look, guys, no offense but Camp Campbell's only really won those things when I was here or my friends weren't," Naruto said like it was a fact as Nikki 'oohed' and 'awwed'.
"Wait, could they catch you in tag?!" She asked as Snake raised a brow.
"Tag?" He asked Naruto who chuckled.
"Well, I figured we'd get to know one another better and they suggested a game of Tag. Obviously, I won," he grinned. "Made a whole new record, too, though they weren't as good as the Wood Scouts were. I beat your record by a whole minute and a half."
"Hmph, it's not shocking," Eddy said. "They lack order and discipline. Their macabre of skill sets may have won them the Camporee but they're not exactly all-stars," he grinned. "And when the Ultimate Frisbee Tournament comes up… W-Well, you won't be joining… correct?" He now looked nervous.
Naruto chuckled. "Nah, that'd make it too lopsided, especially since you guys usually use your trio for most comps. I'll probably be going to look for my Hidden Grotto," he smirked while leaning forward. "Anyone looking for some adventure?"
~NRK~
The trek towards the 'Hidden Grotto' had been done with half-enthusiasm.
Well, mostly from Max.
"Dammit, why'd I come with?" He groaned to himself as Nikki grinned before a shadow passed overhead. "And stop being a fucking weeb for five seconds and walk like a normal person!" Max shouted at Naruto who snickered as he hung upside-down from a tree branch that hooked between his feet and shins. "You bastard," he growled.
"Hey, man, I travel with style," Naruto snickered. "And it's been a while since I've been able to take in these forests, gotta get the most out of it," he said as he flipped back onto the trunk upright before hopping off again, Snake right behind him.
"Tell me, Naruto, are you here for good again?" He asked as they landed on a branch.
"Yep, from here on out, I'll be here in America," the blonde answered. "We were handling some family business in Tokyo with the government on my dad's behalf."
"Hmm?" Ered blinked. "What kind?"
"He had to get his visa to come back but was swamped with agent work," he told her and she looked more surprised.
"Wait, your dad's also a government agent?"
"Also? Wait, is your dad the same?"
"Yep, both my dads," she smirked as Naruto looked confused. "My dad met my dad and then I got adopted."
"... Oh," he looked like he barely got it. "Well, it might be a bit weird to me but I don't decide how people love, that's for them to decide."
"You say that mushy shit like it's the most natural thing in the world!" Max whined.
"It's not mushy… okay, it's a bit mushy but it's not like it's supposed to be hard," Naruto said. "I mean, well, most of us exist don't we?" He smirked cheekily as Max's eyebrow twitched.
"Hmm, my mom said it was a whirlwind of some sort!" Nikki said from the branch above the two boys in the tree. "Then she said there wasn't a call or something," she considered afterward.
"... Right," Naruto shot her finger guns. 'Not touching that,' Naruto was sure love existed in every way and/or form.
He just wasn't going to touch on that one.
"Naru?" Tabii called him as she hopped off a large tree root. "Are you gonna help with the sales this year?!" She grinned as Sasha perked up.
"Hold up! That's right!" She declared as Edward tutted his finger, getting a growl out of the redhead. "Don't. You. DARE."
"Oh, poor Sasha, you always were… mmm," he tapped his chin before grinning. "Lacking."
"I will remove your FACE."
"Adequate rage, too bad it's no good," he said. "You see, Naruto's ability to sell is surprisingly second to none, he's quite brand-worthy."
"Huh?" Naruto blinked as Snake nodded. "What? How the hell am I brand worthy?"
"It's the image," the short teen said as he put a candy cane into his mouth. "Working to our advantage."
"... I'm still not sure," Naruto said before he perked up as Nikki dropped down onto their branch. "... Heh," he grinned before crouching. "Time for a greeting," he whispered as he saw the bushes out in the distance rustling with the event coming closer.
"Hold on there, Ed, Naru's my cousin, he'd see way more reason to help us," Tabii said as Petrol crossed his arms.
"Hmph," he rolled his eyes as her eyebrow twitched before she hissed.
"... Do you want to go, baldie?!"
"Easy, Tabii," Erin said as she crossed her arms. "Besides, let's just argue at Naru's place, the forest is gonna get humid."
"Worry not, you'll get some popcorn, Sarah," Edward said with a smirk as Sasha's eyebrow began to twitch violently.
"It's SASHA, you bitch!" She howled.
"Oh, right?" He made a curious sound. "Sometimes, I forget."
"That's it! You're dead-!"
There was rustling in the bushes and they all stopped what they were doing as they heard snorting and clopping.
When the bushes parted… well, needless to say.
"NARUTO GET DOWN HERE AND SAVE ME!" Sasha screeched as she quickly climbed up the tree he was in and hid behind him.
"Oh, good hustle-" Naruto began to compliment only for her to grab both sides of his face.
"Less talking! More SAVING!"
"O-Okay, seriously, it's fine," Naruto groaned as the large warthog that came out of the bushes snorted again before glaring at the group of now nervous kids. "... Oh, crap, she probably doesn't remember me," he said before dropping down with Sasha held in a piggyback fashion.
The warthog was easily five-feet tall at the hump on her back, covered in light scars on her black hide, and bearing red eyes.
"Hey there, come on, it's me," Naruto said slowly as he put Sasha down and inched forward as Muack came out of the underbrush with a growl. "Easy there, Muack, I've got this," he told the platypus as the warthog huffed thrice as she looked at the blonde boy. "Long time no see, I know," Naruto grinned as he crouched down to face level with the large animal.
"That thing looks like it'll EAT you! What the fuck are you doing?!" Max yelled at him while gripping his hair, Tabii's eyes narrowing as she stalked forward.
"Better watch it, Miss Piggie, I know you don't remember him but you remember me," she hissed as the warthog's eyebrows furrowed again. "Oh, please! There are more than enough pigs over in Camp Camp, I can handle you!"
"Hey!" Nurf frowned. "That was rude! We only have one pig named 'Nikki'!"
"Yeah!" The girl in question agreed as Neil stared at her.
"That's not the point, Nikki!" He exclaimed. "And when did you… wait, you snuck over here?!" Neil paled as she bowed.
"Flower Scouts don't sneak, we travel," she grinned before stalking the now huffing warthog. "Oh?"
"Alright, alright, I get it," Naruto chuckled. "I guess Tabii, with two 'I's," he smirked as she grinned. "Has been keepin' ya busy but it's me, ya boy, I've been feeding you for years…" The warthog snorted. "... Oh!" He smiled shakily. "We dug up truffles for Campbell two years back."
The warthog's mouth dropped as the others balked.
"Seriously?" Max asked flatly as Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "Dude, he's a con artist."
"Yeah but I was helping out uncle and Gwen more than him, I keep trying to keep David-ojii-chan away from him but that's a work-in-progress," Naruto said before his eyes narrowed. "Well, him and Quartermaster," he growled as Max stared along with the others.
"I… You know how fucked-up that guy is?"
"Yeah, he tried to hunt my friends over here and dethrone the squirrel royalty," Max flinched.
"Y-Yeah, uh, I'm sure he'd do something like… that," he said with a bit of a green face. 'Do not tell me that that was his fucking friend,' the blonde might freak out… wait. 'Wait, this is it!' Max grinned cruelly.
"Yeah, so be careful arou-Oi!" Naruto began to say before being tackled by a happy warthog. "Huh? Hahahaha, alright, alright!" He grinned, jumping to his feet with a warthog held over his head. "Lead the way!"
Muack looked bothered as the blonde walked off.
"Wait, huh, since when was he that strong?!" Nikki asked with stars in her eyes. "Can he train me!? Oh, I'd love to be able to piledrive Nurf!"
"Hmm," Nurf cupped his chin with a thoughtful expression. "Well, it would be nice to be carried around here for a change."
"Right?!"
"Huh…" Neil blinked. "Maybe that Nurf plan wouldn't have worked as well as we thought," he said as Snake raised a brow. "O-Oh! Uh, well, we were playing tag and we figured we could use Nurf and Nikki to hold him down?"
"Hah!" Snake walked off with a smirk. "You all clearly don't know how strong Naruto really is."
"Correct," Edward said with his hands behind his back. "Naruto's badges are very physically-intensive, why, he beat out poor Petrol!" The tall teen saluted. "Arm-wrestling, wrestling, animal handling, farming, and more! Why, were he not looking to be a zookeeper, I'm sure his boxing career would be permanent!"
"Hmm," Sasha considered her options. "... I just got an idea," she grinned slyly as Erin tilted her head.
"Cookie sales?" She offered.
"Cookie sales."
~NRK~
Now riding atop the warthog with the 'demure' Sasha and an eager Nikki, Naruto nodded as they came to a stop by a river.
And the others gaped at what had to be a nature paradise with a giant river, a huge tree that didn't make sense with a cool tree house, swings, more treehouses, and animals.
Lots and lots of animals. Hell… wait.
"What the hell is a capybara doing here?" Neil asked as Space Kid, the kid in the astronaut uniform, cheered.
"The greatest animal!" He declared as he hurried over before flopping into the river. "HQ! HQ! We're taking on water!"
Naruto rolled his eyes as some of the others laughed before he held up his hands curiously.
"I wonder if they can grab him," he said to himself before clapping thrice.
Space Kiid stopped going downstream in confusion before yelping as he was lifted out the waters by a series of… alligators?!
"You trained alligators?!" Nikki squealed as Sasha grinned.
"Speaking of, Naru, have you been considering the upcoming sales this year?" She asked innocently as Naruto chuckled nervously before Petrol walked over and blocked her. "Excuse me?!"
"Now, now, girls, you can keep your… middling sales," Edward grinned as she growled. "To yourselves. This soldier has basically been the face of Wood Scouts popcorn for quite a few years."
"Then, it's time to change management, Brace Face."
"R-Rude!"
Snake's eye narrowed while Tabii giggled a bit.
"T-Thanks, sir," Space Kid said to Naruto as the alligators put him down on the riverbank by the blonde, the 'nature kid' grinning as he crouched to their levels and scratched their eye ridges.
Muack grew envious.
"Alright, welcome to my Hidden Grotto," Naruto snickered as the kids stared in awe at it all. "I know it looks awesome but there's a couple areas you need to be careful of," he told them with a nod as Tabii tilted her head.
"Are the bears still here?" She asked him as the others sans Erin flinched.
"I mean, there should be," Naruto said as the others paled. "Like, last time I was here, there were a pair of black bears."
"Stop talking about that!" Preston trembled. "Do you wish to summon a bear?"
"Eh," Naruto tilted a bit, balanced perfectly. "It's honestly not as bad as you think, hell, I'm sure David could put down a black bear if he had an actual killer instinct," he shrugged as the gorup shot him a look. "... what?"
"David?" Max asked him like he was insane. "That happy fuck?!"
"Um, no offense, Naru," Ered said as Erin's eyebrow slowly narrowed. "But David's only sharp edge is from being a square."
"I can honestly tell ya, David being actually good at being mad wouldn't be something you want to see," Naruto said with a shrug as they shot him curious looks. "Just saying, I mean, do you honestly think working in nature is that easy?"
"Well, statistically, it shouldn't be," Neil said slowly. "But David's a twig!"
"Speaking from experience, obviously," Sasha rolled her eyes as Neil balked. "Now, come on, we have business to speak on."
"Only barely," Edward declared simply as she growled again, Naruto chuckling nervously at the two.
"Alright, alright, come on, let's go into the main house, I might need to do some cleaning," the blonde boy said.
"Oh, it was easy," Erin said as he perked up.
"Seriously? Thanks!" He shot her a thumbs-up as she blushed a bit but nodded. "Let me guess, the ol' bird treatment."
"I'm not surprised you'd know," Tabii said as Sasha huffed. "Come on, Sasha! You're the greatest at this!"
"Ugh, I don't want them in my hair again!" Sasha whined as Naruto crossed his arms with a raised, if not amused, brow. "Mmm," she huffed with redder-than-her-make-up-blush cheeks.
She folded her arms behind her back and stepped on one of the alligator's snouts.
Nikki leaned forward in excitement.
Naruto sweatdropped as the salmon-haired girl was led perfectly to the other end of the river. "Ugh, don't let anybody hear about this," she told the gator who cracked his jaws twice before going back to the chuckling Naruto.
"No way," he said, stepping onto its back and being ferried across. "Sasha, you became one of their own!"
"Don't remind me!" She cried in horror as a capybara trotted over and shot her a weird look. "Not now, Barry!"
"..." The large rodent trotted on over to the chuckling Naruto who rubbed his side.
Barry the Capybara was immediately put into a catatonic state as he laid on his side and subjected himself to bellyrubs.
"Hehehehe," Naruto snickered as some flying squirrels and birds came down and landed on his shoulders. "So, Barry, huh?"
Sasha blushed and grumbled as the boy chuckled.
After everyone was, nervously in their minds, ferried over by alligators, they watched in disbelief as all the animals, the alligators, capybaras, squirrels, birds, deer, foxes, and more converged in on them while Naruto stood at the center of it all.
"Alright, you guys, I'm back!" The blonde boy declared to the 'roaring' animals.
"Ered, I'm confused," the 'archeologist' boy came forward with shining eyes. "I did not know the animals had a leader! I shall salute him, too!"
"Yeah, I think you should give up on that," Max said with a flat expression. "What the hell is going on?! It's been one hour and he's some Tarzan character?!"
"To be fair, we have been missing a few of those types and David doesn't count," Niel said as he stepped away from a grinning Tabii. "R-Right, ahem, how long has your cousin been Anime-Tarzan?"
"Hmm, Naru's been like this since we were kids," Tabii smiled. "He's always had a Disney touch when it comes to animals all around! He gets a couple pictures on the news at every zoo he goes to!"
"So, he's famous?" Ered asked.
"Of course, Naru's been well-liked everywhere he's been," Erin said with a shrug. "It's common to surround yourself with good company so we're all friends via Tabs."
"Good company, huh?"
"Yes, I know you're lacking."
Ered's eyebrow twitched dangerously.
~NRK~
"Who built this?" The magician boy asked as Nerris gasped in awe. "L-Like, this place is cool," he smiled as Naruto chuckled.
"Me, David, and a few of the beavers," he said as Nikki grinned.
"You control all these animals?" She asked him. "C-Can you teach me? I know my beaver isn't as good as it used to be."
"Hmph," Petrol grunted as he nodded at the height of the treehouse.
"Set up to prepare for you, bud," Naruto shot him finger guns. "And, one I don't really talk animal-speak, they get me on the spiritual level and vice-versa. Honestly, I can't literally talk a bear into, say, being my sparring partner, we gotta feel each other out."
"Stop saying stuff like that, she's getting excited," Max said as he sat at a table. "... What the hell did you do in the Summer? T-This is furniture! You have a house in a forest!"
"Oh, yeah, we used the beavers and some stuff from Handicraft Camp before it all got confiscated."
"The 'What' Camp?"
"I'm sure you'll get to it, I mean, I even helped make a water generator," Naruto said as he flicked a wooden switch.
And light came on, what the FUCK?!
"... Y-You're an electrician?!" Neil asked with hope.
"You're smart?!" Max asked, feeling despair.
"What? Nah, nah, honestly, I don't really get all the words in those books," Naruto shivered. "God, I hate textbooks with a passion, sorry, Neil."
"O-Oh, well, I mean, you and David built power, Naruto! That's incredible," the nerd deflated a bit but felt some of his cheer return. "H-How?! I mean, I'm sure it's in the river but that must have taken so much… manpower… Okay, I think I get it," Neil said as he looked at the window where a squirrel… in King attire? "What?" He stared in disbelief.
Nope, that squirrel had on a cape and a crown alright.
"I mean, we kinda looked it up but we just ended up watching YouTube videos about it from some guy called… I think his name was 'Dennis'?" Naruto shrugged. "I'm better at doing than theory so I just went at it. It worked out, the beavers got a ton of wood and my failure and I didn't have to clean up too much."
"... So, you're saying," Meredith began. "You can work on an engine?"
"I did it a couple times, worked on a few for my uncles and aunt, Kakashi, Obito, and Rin, they go racing sometimes due to Rin-obaa-chan's need for speed."
"So, you're saying you can?" She asked, looking excited. "Because Campbell left one old one around that needs work."
"Oh, right, when he tried to make the X games come here?" Naruto sweatdropped as she grinned. "I will never understand what that guy gets up to. He's wanted in, like, three countries and has bunkers everywhere! Hell, I built this all over one," he said flatly.
"Ah, a chamber?" That 'kid without the mustache' said with a smile. "You wouldn't happen to know where it is, do you? I'd like to see the architecture."
"..." Sasha blinked in disbelief.
"..." Max facepalmed.
"... No, we're touching that," Edward said flatly as Snake blinked in confusion.
"These campers are… strange," he said slowly as if trying to place this particular boy somewhere. "Right."
Petrol just looked disturbed.
"I mean, uh, probably not dude, that'd require moving a lot of stuff first and this is my first day here," Naruto said before humming. "Well, actually, can you guys finally tell me all your names?"
"Nerris the Cute!" Nerris presented herself happily while Nikki gasped.
"Nikki the Vicious!" She declared as Naruto snorted.
"Right, next?"
"Harrison, pleased to make your acquaintance," the magician kid said with a smile, a bow, and a tilted hat. "I didn't think I'd see another who's good at animals," Harrison said as he presented his hat and pulled out a rabbit.
"... Where exactly does that one come from?" Naruto asked the magician boy who blinked, putting the rabbit down and scratching his head.
"Um, I can't really explain it but think of it like a Great Beyond."
"... I kinda get it," the older boy said before finding a rabbit at his feet. "... You don't need her, do ya?" Naruto asked as the creature climbed his pants and then shirt before sitting on his shoulder, cleaning her face. "Or is it like some kinda alchemy?"
"It's just magic, it's fake," Neil said as Harrison tutted his finger.
"If you believe, Neil, sometimes things are different," the magic kid said as he pulled out a dove next. "And, um, I think you can keep that one? I-I wasn't really great at… calling things back," he muttered.
"Gotcha… kinda, next?"
"Yo," Meredith introduced.
"Don't they call you Ered?" Naruto asked, putting the rabbit on his sink. "Or is that just a nickname?"
"Ered's cool, my name's on a cool-enough-to-know basis," she said with a thumbs-up.
"Gotcha, I might be too cool for you," Naruto snickered as she gawked at him. "Hey man, being this handsome and cute is hard pull off sometimes," he said smugly as she shot him a look.
"... We'll see about that."
"He's right," Erin said daintily. "We can never tell how he does it, it's like he's got James Bond genes."
"Hehe, his hair's always soft for some reason," Tabii declared as Sasha made a 'realized' face and came over to Naruto with some tweezers and a paper bag. "And he's never had acne but his voice got deeper, it's kinda the opposite of Eddy," Pikeman flinched.
"I-I'm fine!" He wheezed out in a higher octave, Max and Snake's snickering gaining his attention. "At ease, men, there's no need for such childishness."
"Right," Tabii smirked.
"Natural care?" Ered asked, glaring at an equally-glaring Erin. "Might be interesting, it's probably a better routine than hers," she smirked as Erin gasped.
"How dare you," The blue-haired one said with a growl.
"Oh, trust me, I'm plenty daring."
Naruto looked between them with a nervous smile. "They aren't rivals, are they?" He asked the now-next-to-him Nikki.
"Hmm, well, I'd consider them our archnemeses!" She declared. "Honestly, though, I didn't know Ered didn't like Erin, maybe she thinks she's stealing her groove!"
"Huh," Naruto walked over to the table before sitting down. "Alright, who's next?"
"Nurf, new kid," Nurf said simply but professionally. "I'm the 'muscle' around these parts."
"Oh, so like me and Petrol," Naruto hummed as Nurf cupped his chin.
"I am big for my age but I'm not sure how I fare against warthogs."
"Eh, they're both fat and muscle but on a, usually, small frame. That one, I call her Obuta," Naruto grinned. "Became that way because of specialized training, food I grow on my own in a patch out back, and it's likely also because it's about to be breeding season, she's bulking up, it's almost the middle of June, after all."
"Huh, you really take care of all these animals?" Neil asked as a parrot sat on his head. "A parrot? In this climate? Speaking of, how is there a capybara here? And alligators? I know they can live in fresh water but this far into a forest near to the city?"
"You can blame Campbell, he basically stranded some of these guys here because he thought he could get a zoo going if we used my rep," Naruto huffed. "Turned him down on the spot, good thing, too, because he was gone basically the entire next year. Also, next?"
"I am Dolph," Dolph, the 'archeologist' kid, smiled. "I'm from America and Germany," he told Naruto who blinked.
"... Oh! You mean you're both American and German," he said as Dolph smiled. "Ah, nice to meet another mix-natured dude out here."
"Hmm? I suppose you're American and Japanese?" Dolph offered and Naruto grinned while Sasha 'pashawed'.
"Goodness no, he's a bit more exotic," she said with a grin. "Naru is half-Japanese, a fifth-American, a fifth-German," Sasha checked the blonde for verification.
"Yep, a fifth-Chinese and a fifth-Bri'ish."
"That's a lot of fifths," Neil said.
"I'm not exactly great at math but I think that's how that works?" Naruto offered with a weak grin. "Soz."
"I've long since learned mathematics isn't everyone's strong suit."
"Nice, next?"
"Preston Goodplay!" Preston introduced himself with a bow. "You wouldn't happen to be looking for a playwright, would you?!"
"What? Dude, no, I thought I told you no slavery!"
"... I like the idea," Sasha smirked as Naruto facepalmed. "Naru, what the hell is he talking about? And is he talking professional slave because that's definitely a useful one."
"Ignore that, it was just part of the Tag Bet and I dropped it already," he said flatly as she gasped.
"Naru, you can't keep doing that!"
"Yes, as much as it pains me to admit it," Edward huffed. "Sasha is correct, why, imagine the leeway. You could have controlled dear Maxwell."
"Excuse me?!" Max shot up. "I never want to join your fucking camp!"
"Oh, Maxwell, sometimes, we don't choose."
"Oh, I'm about to choose fucking violence."
Naruto rolled his eyes at that. "Nikki, is Max always like this?" The blonde asked the teal-haired girl who sprouted down from the roof.
"Usually," she said as she spoke chipmunk to some… chipmunks. "Whoa! These guys all love ya!"
"Well, I did help deliver a couple babies in this place, hell, Obunta had-"
The front door of the treehouse opened to reveal said warthog who trotted on in followed by a series of five miniature warthogs.
"There she is," Naruto sweatdropped as the warthog shook her head with an expectant look. "Sometimes, I really wonder if she's too well-trained," he chuckled before Space Kid grinned.
"Baby pigs!" He declared as he crouched by one. "Nice ta meetcha, friend, I am Space Kid."
"What's your name, Space Kid?" Naruto asked.
"Oh, it's Neil!"
Science-Neil exploded.
"WHAT?!"
~NRK~
That's a wrap on another chapter.
For those who like them, I'm working on the next chapters of This Changeling Life, Atlas Wilds, and Deadman's Fairytale. The second is bound to come out soon and the latter two are close to halfway finished.
Ciao.
~NRK Out~