A Naruto Fanfiction
By asa-chan
Warnings: PG, Ramen, not proofread... Many grammar/spelling mistakes?
Pairing: None...
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
Summary: It's common knowledge that Naruto Uzumaki loves Ramen? But why? This fic tries to explain it..., in a, maybe weird fashion.
It was well known that Naruto Uzumaki liked Ramen. Hell, he adored his Ramen, especially at Icharaku's, his favorite restaurant in Konohagakure.
These thin supple noddles in a fine broth, miso flavor, shoyu flavor, with pork or seafood, served in a large steaming bowl, radiating a wonderful enticing pleasent smell, everyone just had to love and slurp down.
And love he did.
He ate there often, at the same seat, boasting about his successes, with his eyes shut, grinning like there was no tomorrow, grinning like there was no one who ever could stop him, grinning at nobody and everybody. But sometimes, there was a person who willingly shared the seat next to him, slurping the noodles down together and there was an answering toothful grin and warm brown eyes.
Naruto loved these occasions. Ramen eating was one of the few thing he could enjoy with another person. So why not worship Ramen, the first thing which tied him together with a human, but of course, only at Icharaku's, which had been a constant companion in his small and lonely life.
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The Ramen bar had always been there in the village, a small little house at the street leading to his home. Naruto, at the age of six, often stared at the glowing red lanters on his way back home from grocery shopping, gazing with large blue eyes and ears perking up to listen to the sound of laughter coming from the tiny resturant, while trying to balance a huge bag in his small arms.
Laughter. Happiness. Smell of freshly cooked food. Light.Warmth.
It looked like, it sounded like, it smelled like home. A home, filled with other persons, a home Naruto desperately wanted for himself.
But he knew he wouldn't be allowed there. He had often tried to go to restaurants, but the owners of these restaurants had refused to let him order and had thrown him back to the streets, glaring at him with hate-filled eyes, mouths drawn into ugly sneers.
So Naruto would always stop to stare at the Ramen bar for a few minutes, breathing in deeply, nearly able to taste the flavor on his tongue and thenhe would resumeto walk towards his apartment.
At his flat, he would set down his bag on the table, pack everything out, vegetables, milk, meat, rice. After that, he would pull out his tattered cookbook, trying to read the hiragana with squinted eyes and then his eyes would turn sad, as he read that all the recipes were for four people and not for one person.
Naruto lived alone. He never had a person to share his food with. There would always be leftovers. So many. Sometimes he had to throw them away after they turned bad. Everything wasted.
Naruto Uzumaki hated to cook. He hated being in the cold kitchen with no company, but his shadow. He hated being alone. But what could he do?
On a sunday afternoon Naruto, at the age of seven, had been walking again on the street leading towards his home. Passing the Ramen bar, he noticed that there was no laughter coming from it. The lanters were on, the smell of food was present, though not as strong as before, but there was no laughter. No happiness?
So the blond slowly walked towards the open shogi door with cautious steps, looking over his shoulders, but there were no passersby on the street, it was deserted.
Wide blue eyes took everything in the restaurant had to offer. The polished bar with the wooden stools, the tiny tables scattered through the room, the chef looking at him with friendly eyes.
Naruto drew back as if he had been hit.
"Hey kid." The aged man grinned and adjusted the hat on his head, tapping his fingers against the surface of the bar. "What are you doing here, on this sunny afternoon? Shouldn't you be playing outsides with others kids, enjoying yourself?"
"I..., they..., don't like to play with me. They...., hate me." A spiky head drooped.
The chef frowned, looked at the child more closely and then recognized the boy in front of him. Wasn't that the young one who had the Kyubi sealed in him? The one, his customers all complained about? The devil's child? This young boy?
The old man sighed and shook his head in disappointment. People who fear hate.
The poor boy. Looking so lost.
"Hey kid." The child looked up, surprise etched on his face for being adressed in that cheerful voice.
"I just have my break and want to eat. You want some Ramen too? I assure you, they are the best in Konoha, maybe even in this world."
Naruto just gaped at the man behind the counter.
"Uh..."
"Come on, you looks so scrawny and small. You need some food." The chef chuckled.
"I'm not small! But I don't have money...." He bit his lip and looked down at his feet.
The old man waved his worries away. "It's okay, it's for free. So, what do you want? Miso? Shoyu?" He already had the noodles in the sieve, ready to boil them.
"Miso flavor!" Naruto replied eagerly with a grin and hurried to the counter, climbing on the seat facing the chef.
"Okay. Hold the young horses. Just wait for a few minutes." Laughed the owner of Icharaku and turned around, missing the pout suddenly crossing Naruto's face.
"Whaaat? Waiting? I don't like that!" He whined.
"Sometimes boy, you just have to wait and see." Replied the old man back.
"Why?" Naruto asked, playing with his chopsticks.
"I can't explain it. Just accept it boy."
"No. I won't." The blond stubbornly replied back.
"Do what you want..., but believe me there are some things you don't want to know, but some things you have to know."
Naruto frowned at the answer, but stayed silent and continued watching the chef working on the Ramen. His blue eyes lit up as a steaming bowl of Ramen was put in front of him. He clapped his hands together, grinned and cried: "Itadakimasu!"
"Itadakimasu!" The chef also said and dug into his own bowl of ramen. The twin sound of Ramen slurping was heard through the restaurant and for the first time of his life Naruto felt at home. The hot broth was warming his insides, there was another person eating with him, it was simply wonderful.
Having finished his food, Naruto wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his arm and grinned, thouroughly satisfied. "That was so good!" He cried, patting his stomach, where the warmth originated from.
"Thanks." The skin around the eyes wrinkled even more as the old man smiled.
"I decided to become the best Ramen maker ever!" Naruto announced loudly, blue eyes sparkling.
"Errr..., I don't think that that will be your right profession."
"Why?"
"Don't ask."
Naruto contined to visit Icharaku after this incident with a grin, causing most customers to be angry and the chef to grin back.
At the age of nine Naruto once again was in Icharaku, sitting in his seat, face propped up by his hand. "There are always ignoring me! Turning their backs on me, like I am air! I hate it! Hate it! Hate it!" His first pummeled the counter.
"Kid. If you want them to acknowledge you, make them notice you. I had to do these and that before people actually went to my restaurant to eat. You have to be flashy to catch their attention, you have to be unique to hold their attention. That's the only way." Old man adviced, putting another bowl of ramen down.
"Flashy, eh...?" The blond muttered and pusred his lip, eyes closed. "Flashy..."
From this point on a monster was born. Or as other people describe it, prankster Naruto.
The old man sighed and shook his head as another loud enraged shout of Narutooooo was heard in the entire village. "This wasn't what I had in my mind..., but it's definitely an eye-catcher. Good job..., kid." A wry grin tugged at his lips.
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"Old man!" Naruto cried after he finished his first bowl of miso-flavored ramen, tapping his hand impatiently against the counter.
"Another---" But he was interrupted by another voice.
"Four bowls of ramen and one for Naruto too, please."
Blue eyes opened wide as Naruto recognized the voice and he turned around, catching sight of a smiling Iruka, a grinning Kakashi, an uncomfortable looking Sasuke and a suffering looking Sakura.
"Five bowls, kid?" Old man smiled and turned around.
Naruto grinned brightly and nodded, blue eyes twinkling. This was it. This was home. His home.
"Yeah, five bowls of ramen."
"Just wait for a few minutes, then they will be ready." Just like their first meeting.
"Maaaan, I hate waiting!! Hurry up!" He whined resting his head on his arms. It will be not their last meeting.
"Idiot."
"Don't be so rude Naruto!"
"Dumbass."
"Naruto!!"
-FIN-
A/N: I've no idea how Icharaku looks on the inside, so please forgive me when something is wrong. And this is dedicated to... Everyone who likes Naruto Uzumaki and Ramen. An early merry christmas. And the name is Icharaku, right??? -is clueless-