Altered Destiny:
Title subject to change, rating PG13 to be on the safe side.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, I do own the plot of this story (for as far as there is one) and the extra characters I may or may not add.
Response to reviews at the bottom, be sure to read the A/N's.
Chapter 02 – Terror Duo:
Naruko looked up in surprise when Anko bent over and patted her softly on the head. "Don't worry Naruko-chan. I won't let these people hurt you." She whispered conspiratorially and gave the blonde girl a cheeky wink before she turned to the angry mob with a maniacal gleam in her eyes…
Naruko hung limply in the arms of this very intimidating woman as she nonchalantly carried the child while she strolled through the streets of Konohagakure, paying no attention whatsoever to the stares and gawks of various onlookers.
The little girl couldn't believe what had transpired only a few moments ago. The high-pitched squeals of agony that had come from the porcine-like man still rang in her ears, making her jaw clench together almost painfully.
She couldn't be completely sure, but she knew that the large piece of wood with which he had threatened her was definitely not supposed to go up the place where Anko jammed it so forcefully. If Naruko hadn't been so scared, she might have felt sorry for the man. After all, that obese man wouldn't be able to sit down properly for a while…
The rhythmic motion and the tell-tale clapping of padded sandals hitting the ground at an increasingly rapid pace were oddly comforting to her shot nerves. Naruko certainly thought that Anko was mildly frightening but for after seeing someone protect her like that… well, she didn't know what to think.
All her life she had been forced to do things on her own. Apparently, those people who stomped into her tiny little apartment once a month, slammed a handful of coins on the kitchen table, and stalked out again after shooting her a shilling glare, were supposed to be the caretakers who had been assigned by the Third to look after her. But they never took care of her at all. It had been nothing different than being alone all the time. It was still all up to her to scrape the money off the table and make a miserable trip to the grocery shops to buy her food, facing the constant looks of revulsion from the staff. Still herself who had stand on a chair to clean the dishes as best she could, still Naruko who had to puff and pant all the way down the stairs, heaving a washing basket almost bigger than herself to the machine to do her laundry.
Blinking slowly, her eyes refocused back to the present, the confused little girl took one glance at the face above her. The woman's brow was contorted in a thoughtful frown, and her lips pressed into a thin line. Bright blue eyes rolled to the side, and in disbelief witnessed the lampposts flash by very quickly – just how fast was the woman walking?!
Yawning again, she clutched the coat Anko had wrapped around her more tightly. As the girl's eyelids fluttered shut, she only wondered about how it had been such a terribly long day…
"Hey kid." A voice called through murky darkness. It was oddly gentle...
"Mmhm…" Naruko mewled and snuggled closer to the squishy fleshy mass that radiated warmth against her own body.
"Hey, wake up." The voice called again in a slightly amused tone, and Naruko felt something prod her several times in the ribs, eliciting a soft giggle from the little girl. "We're here."
Naruko let out a languid yawn, but even while being dreadfully tired, the child's curiosity won through. Ever so slowly she sat up, propping herself on her small hands to steady herself. Wobbling slightly still, she carefully opened her eyes. One eye, her right one, still remained half-closed due to the swollen eyelids that still remained from her own fight earlier that day. As Naruko's mind steadily began working at full steam again, she tried to focus and take in her foreign surroundings.
Still somewhat groggy and ignoring the creak of several protesting hinges and the clap of a wooden door being shut, Naruko's first thoughts were something along the lines of; 'This is just like my own apartment!'
And indeed it was, except for the fact there were a few differences. A few big differences.
Instead of one big window that looked out over the busy streets of Konoha and several apartment complexes like hers was, this apartment consisted of a significant amount of large windows with several small glass plates held firmly in place by strips of metal. Through the windows, Naruko could only see various sorts of shrubbery and trees illuminated by moonlight.
The pale beams filtered through, falling on light-brown tatami mats which dominated the room which Naruko found herself in. Strangely enough, in the middle of the room was an odd looking rug patterned with kanji. With all the experience with reading she was taught in Iruka-sensei's classes, she could only make out several of the symbols. Strength, wisdom, intelligence, health and prosperity were most definitely the dominant ones. The kanji were in a various variety of colours that fitted perfectly with the brown -bordering on dark-brown- of the rug itself.
On the rug that dominated the middle of the room, stood a plain four-legged coffee table littered with scrolls of all sizes, both opened and unopened. Aside from the moon, further light during the evening and night was provided by both small and large candles, all set on top of small wooden stools and on numerous gnarled planks that dotted the thick and sturdy walls. Aside from the wooden planks, wall scrolls with an assortment of different quotes and rules were nailed to the wall. One saying: "Without victory, there is only death", contained an extra scrawl at the bottom, curtly proclaiming it would be the case without dango as well.
After taking in the other furnishing –two overly large squashy armchairs laden with an exuberant amount of pillows and the large sofa she found herself on- a slight flickering of light drew Naruko's attention to a corner of the room. Between two of the large windows stood a plain TV-set which was currently switched on and showing a movie of sorts with a strange man wielding a katana as he shouted out some badly synchronised Japanese to his enemies.
Snorting, Naruko bounced back and the same warm and squishy mass she had felt earlier. She turned to the resulting soft sniggering that sounded above her head and immediately fell from the sofa she was sitting on with a strangled yelp.
"Owww…" Naruko moaned pitifully be she furiously rubbed the back of her head.
"Still the idiot I see." The same voice that had awoken her resounded with mirth dulling the sharp edge of the spoken words.
Naruko looked up once more and saw the same woman who had saved her from the large group of people who had set out to hurt her.
Anko's eyes danced with repressed laughter while her lips were curved in a broad smile as she loomed over the six-year old. "Hello."
"Hello…" Naruko replied hesitantly.
The dark-haired Jounin decided this wasn't exactly the best way to start out things with. But it would do. And as she looked down at this young child, who was still cradling her head due to her fall, Anko's smile remained in place. And perhaps, it softened, just slightly…
'Yeah, it'll do…'
This certainly was a culture shock for Naruko. To go from not being cared for, to actually have someone who actively looked out for her. It felt completely foreign and strange, but she accepted it all the same.
Now, Anko wasn't exactly the gentlest person of the village, but she wouldn't deliberately hurt Naruko. Well, the little girl didn't think so anyway.
She had her doubts though when Anko forced her to have a bath and practically dragged her to the bathroom despite all her futile protests. When they entered a small room which was dominated by a large tub and littered with a small sink and several cabinets that held toiletries, towels and so forth, Naruko was still desperately trying to grab hold of anything.
Naruko had adamantly refused to go in the rather large wooden tub -the rim of which was way over her head- filled with steaming water and brightly white foam drifting lazily on top of it. When Anko asked her nicely to get in, the girl sniffed the scented water and shook her head fiercely.
What followed next would surely constitute as comical to some, but it had been terrifying to the small girl. Without warning, and with the seemingly perpetual wicked grin that graced Anko's features, the dark-haired woman effortlessly picked Naruko up, stripped her of the ragged remains of her clothes and dunked her unceremoniously into the tub.
Well she would have, if Naruko hadn't pushed herself up on the sides of the tub with her hands and her feet.
Incensed, Anko proceeded to press ruthlessly on the child's back in an effort to make her give way. But when after three minutes she began panting slightly, and Naruko was still not showing any signs of giving up, Anko decided on a new approach. One that was particularly effective and she would certainly use in years to come. With a maniacal giggle, and with madly waggling fingers, she tickled Naruko in the sides until finally, she retracted her hands and feet to fall into the water with a loud splash, with her mouth still open from laughing so hard.
A smug look plastered on Anko's face, then straightened up to place her hands on her hips. But it quickly disappeared after a fair few moments. Naruko still hadn't resurfaced. The Jounin became slightly worried. Anko hadn't gone through all the trouble of saving the little girl to be killing her herself at home, now had she?
Leaning over the side, she peered down into the water, trying to see what the child was doing. And indeed, she did find out. No sooner did her head hover over the water, did Naruko jump up, spraying water all over the Jounin. Anko had been effectively soaked completely. Naruko took in the sight gleefully, barely holding back a peal of laughter. Several tense seconds followed, until the older woman brushed her sopping wet mass of hair away that was now plastered over her eyes with forced calm.
Naruko's delighted giggles died away slowly. She began to become slightly scared of the lack of response from the dark-haired woman. Anko seemed to notice this, and immediately her cold stare, that usually promised horrendous retribution, softened as she took in the frightened look in those big blue eyes.
"Hey…" She began softly, slowly stretching out her hand to the small girl. She winced noticeably as Naruko backed off quickly, huddling against one of the sides of the tub, as far away from her as she could. Anko froze.
'Who am I kidding?' Anko thought. 'Of course she's going to be scared of me. I only just brought her home with me after all.'
With deliberately slow motions so she wouldn't frighten the girl more, she undressed, allowing her wet clothes to fall on the tiled floor with wet slaps. The dark-haired woman only paused to grab a small towel from a nearly cabinet and used it to cover herself as she made her way over to the girl.
Naruko turned shimmering orbs to the Jounin, analyzing every movement away and clutched herself with shaking hands. After seeing what the older woman had done to that big group of people, she wasn't going to take any chances. There were plenty of events engrained into her memory of being hurt after even the simplest of pranks.
"Y-you're not going to hurt me, are you?" She asked in a small voice and bit her lip.
Anko gave her a gentle smile. "Of course not, Naruko-chan." Slowly she put her first leg into the warm water and let out an audible sigh. "The water feels good, doesn't it?" She asked in an attempt to lighten the mood.
Naruko, however gave her a cramped nod, still not willing to get any closer but unable to stop the other woman from doing so.
When Anko had finally seated herself, undid her hair band and let her slightly spiky hair cascade down her shoulders, she sat for a few moments in silence to let the blonde girl adjust to her presence.
Not really knowing what was going on, Naruko just remained where she was, stealing furtive glances at Anko as she seemed to be perfectly comfortable.
When Anko had moaned and stretched her arms above her head luxuriously, she cracked open one eye after she had closed her eyelids to fully enjoy the water. She was slightly disappointed to see Naruko in her odd position still and decided enough was enough. With swift movements and a loud squeak from the blonde girl, Anko grabbed her, careful to avoid her apparent bruises, and positioned her in front of her, back first.
"Now listen." She whispered in Naruko's ear, her grip on the girl's shoulders firm but gentle. "I'm really not going to hurt you. Not now, not ever."
The girl seemed to relax ever so slightly after those words, but was still way too tense. With another sigh, Anko let the girl's shoulders go, only to wrap her arms around them a moment later. Her tan was a stark contrast with Naruko's own fair skin.
When Naruko felt herself being tightly pressed back into Anko's chest, she let out a watery sniff. "You promise?"
Putting her chin on the child's shoulder, Anko nodded. "I promise."
Silent tears leaked down Naruko's cheeks, mixing with the water that still ran down her long hair and over her face. Anko felt her shoulders shake slightly but chose not to comment on it, instead she remained silent.
A little while later, Anko spoke up again. "Let's get you cleaned up, okay?"
"Okay." Naruko responded, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.
SIX YEARS LATER…
A young girl woke up with a startling scream, golden spikes of hair cascading over her large blue eyes, widened in horror…
Said girl immediately bolted upright, her chest heaving slightly. Sheets decorated with tasteful red swirls dropped from her shoulders as she wearily untangled her hands from the sheets and rested them on top of them… then suddenly the hands flew to her face, her features contorted in a look of abject terror. A single hoarse whisper escaped her lips…
'Uh-oh.'
Three seconds later –
"Na-ru-KOOOO!!!!"
Her bedroom door was nearly ripped viciously from its hinges by the sheer force with which it was thrown open.
A woman stood framed in the doorway. Her normally glossy back hair was dishevelled, her clothes in disarray… and dark eyes shooting electric sparks.
Naruko cowered before the raging entity that was Mitarashi Anko.
"Where's - my - damn - dango!" An incensed Anko screeched, her dark brown eyes wide and livid. A long slender hand suddenly shot up, fingers trembling with rage as she pointed it at the figure on the bed. "You ate it all again, didn't you?!"
A barely audible squeak managed to get past Naruko's lips as she shook her head fiercely.
"LIAR!" Anko shouted in unsuppressed fury and suddenly her hands clenched, and a vein throbbed at her temple. "I'm going to kill you, you little twerp!!!"
With every ounce of agility she possessed, and with years of predicting the enraged woman's movements, Naruko hurtled from her bed and onto the shaggy carpet of her bedroom floor as the older woman literally jumped at her with her arms outstretched. Pillows went flying and sounds of tearing fabric filled the air as Anko missed her target and ripped up everything in her path instead.
Not pausing to thank whatever god who was looking down on her, Naruko took a few swift somersaults to the doorway and promptly bolted out of her room. She didn't dare look back as she heard an inhuman roar behind her.
Oh boy, she had sure botched it up this time.
Nobody. Nobody was allowed to deprive Anko of her carefully cultivated assortment of dango. It was her lifeline, her work of art even…
And Naruko just happened to eat it all after the Jounin had gone to bed the evening before.
'It's her own fault for not buying me any ramen…' Naruko reasoned logically.
Too bad that logic wouldn't save her though. And judging from the stampeding that came ever closer from behind her, she wouldn't have much time to think up a proper excuse either.
Out of instinct, Naruko began to weave from room to room, crashing open the doors shoulder first. If six years of hectic rampaging through Anko's house didn't make you an expert on where everything was exactly, Naruko didn't know what would. Her weaving became more frantic as the screaming and raving behind her became louder and various objects sailed over her head and past her upper body.
"Anko nee-chan sure is serious today." The blonde girl grunted as she ducked her head to avoid a particularly large object. 'Was that a chair?!'
"Stand still!" A roar resounded close by.
Naruko however, grasped a rather chipped doorframe –its paint and woodwork having slightly decayed over the past few years due to both of their rather rambunctious nature- and spun a sharp ninety degrees straight into another room.
The dark-haired female swore loudly as she steamed straight past the door and lost sight of her target.
Grinning wickedly as she heard a rather nasty thunk of flesh hitting wood, Naruko quickly let her eyes drift through the room. It seemed she had made a slight miscalculation.
'Well crap.' She thought glumly.
Whereas she thought she had entered a room with several escape options, the blonde girl found herself at a dead-end. In their only bathroom of all places. A few years ago she might have wiggled out of the small window in the top-left corner. But she had grown. Naruko was still small, but was too big to fit through the window anyway.
Looking for a spot to hide, she quickly found one and after taking a deep breath, headed there as quickly as she could.
Anko, on the other hand, was enraged. Today she would get back at that kid if it was the last thing she would ever do. 'How dare she eat my precious dango?! She knows it's sacred to me!' Rubbing her nose gingerly, -for she had slammed face first into a closed door when she ran past the room Naruko had entered after all- she stalked backwards.
A Cheshire grin transformed her face into something truly wicked. She was having some rather malicious thoughts right now. Oh yes she was.
She knew that Naruko had fowled up. She knew that the young girl was trapped. And she knew that now the time had come for her most righteous revenge.
Even the demons of old would shudder at the horrible torture the –still young as she so often proclaimed- Jounin was able to exact on her poor victims.
"Oh, Naruko-chaaaaan. Where aaaaaare youuuu?" She called out in an overly sweet tone, tapping her fingers on either side of the doorposts. Somewhere outside, a pack of wolves already started howling. And somewhere inside the bathroom, a blue-eyed little girl started shivering uncontrollably.
"I know you're in here. There's no use in hiding." Anko continued, unperturbed by the fact she got no reply. "I won't hurt you… much..." She added as an afterthought.
Chocolate-brown eyes sparkled as they caught a hint of movement at the precipice of her field of vision. It hadn't been much, just a tiny tremor. Anko chuckled throatily as she moved silently from the open door to what appeared to be a laundry-basket. It was a simple thing, made out of tastefully entwined reed, and just big enough to hold a certain twelve-year old…
A perfect hiding place…
Bared teeth glinted dangerously as the basket wobbled ever so slightly.
'This is too good to be true.' Anko wondered in amazement. 'Oh-ho, you're mine!'
With what could only be described as a feral scream, she pounced on the laundry-basket, ripping off the lid at the same time in one fluid motion. Immediately she began groping in the large assortment of clothing, only to find…
"Eeeeeeh?! Where is… Ack!" Anko let out a yelp of surprise when she felt herself being pushed in the small of her back, inadvertently forced headfirst into the basket she had been searching through in the first place.
Behind her, a rather smug-looking Naruko was barely able to stop her from laughing. She was still surprised though about having been able to fool the older Jounin. Was this finally the day? The day that the student out-pranked the master?
Not daring to take any chances, Naruko spun on her heels and wanted to make a beeline straight out of the bathroom. Until…
"Not. So. Fast." Someone growled ominously, freezing the girl in her tracks.
"Eep!" Blue eyes grew frightfully large as a rather peeved Anko made her way over to her –a pale-blue sock dangling in her black hair.
"You didn't really think you could get away with what you did, did you?" Was the following dangerous hiss as Anko sat back on her haunches and stared Naruko straight in the eyes.
Not even daring to shake her head, the blonde girl stood perfectly still. 'Maybe she'll think I'm dead, maybe she'll think I'm dead!' This was of course hopeful thinking. The older woman might show some animalistic traits every now and again, but mostly she was just slightly sadistic. She loved watching people squirm, and no one other than Naruko knew that better.
It had been a good six years so far, the blonde girl reckoned. It seemed today really would be her last…
"But…"
"But?" Naruko mirrored without thinking.
"I'm going to let you go right now, since you need to be on time." Anko sighed, shaking her head sadly. She really had wanted to get back at Naruko…
The young girl couldn't believe her ears. Was she getting off this easily?
"But!" The woman said sharply.
Ah, another but. There it was…
"Don't think you're getting away with this that easily. You owe me, big-time."
The girl just nodded, elated by the fact she wouldn't get horribly disembowelled or something along those lines today. She had no doubt though that Anko would one day collect on her debt. And even though it would probably be something really embarrassing –'…or painful.' Naruko thought with a wince- she was still going to grab this opportunity with both hands.
"Thanks, nee-chan!" Naruko squealed –as the dark-haired woman seemed to be a sucker for "cute" sounds and other things- and flung her arms around her neck, adding a quick peck to the cheek for good measure.
"Yeah, yeah." Anko sighed, trying her best to keep the annoyed look plastered on her face and failing miserably. She mentally cursed the twitching corners of her lips.
In what seemed to be no time at all, Naruko dashed out of the bathroom, only to return quickly and fully dressed.
Anko smirked as she saw the girl's attire. Although she had certainly rubbed off on Naruko's sense of fashion, their sense of style was distinctively different. While Anko didn't care if she flaunted her own body, Naruko was slightly more reserved. However, both of them were, figuratively and quite literally, dressed to kill.
Both of them had a different approach on how to achieve a wide range of mobility. Anko had achieved this by covering the majority of her body in netting, only covering up enough with a rather short skirt and a trench coat.
It had taken years for Anko to get rid of Naruko's horrible fetish with the colour orange, but she had succeeded. At least she didn't seem like a bright road marker to potential enemies anymore. Like her, the girl had adopted to wearing a fishnet bodice, only this one clung high to her neck like a choker yet left her arms bare.
Instead of exposing her belly and bust to view, Naruko had also found a simple seamless dress she wore nearly everyday. It was pale grey, made out of good durable cloth, and no tears were visible to the naked eye. Because of her smaller frame, the dress didn't hug tightly around her like it was intended for. This sleeveless shift stretched from just above her still-developing bosom and to the middle of her thighs, enabled her to move more freely, allowing maximum movement of her slender shoulders and arms.
Naruko sometimes still complained about the shortness of the dress, because her netting still peeked out from under it, as her bodice ended just above the knees, and because her shoulders and collarbones were still displayed prominently. But Anko had simply whacked her on the head and told her to shut up because she looked fine.
Barely noticing the girl finishing drying her medium-length and spiky hair and tying the goggles she had given her on her tenth birthday securely on her forehead as she spat out the remains of toothpaste from her mouth into the sink, Anko only had the chance to see Naruko zoom out of the bathroom.
"Hey, wait up!" Anko said suddenly.
"What is it?" Was the muffled reply.
'Damn that girl moves fast!' Complaining mentally, the dark-haired Jounin stepped into Naruko's room. She bit back a wince as she saw the mess they, well rather she, had made then focused on Naruko who was currently fastening her sandals on her feet.
"What?" The girl asked, one of her eyebrows lifting slightly as Anko stared at her silently.
Snapping out of her slight daze, the woman smiled warmly. "Just… Have fun today, okay?"
"Yeah, I will!" Naruko grinned and nodded, picking up her dark-blue jacket. "I'm going to get back at Kiba for mooning me yesterday!" She laughed, and put a foot on her bedroom's windowsill. "Well, see ya!" The girl shot back over her shoulder as she jumped out of her window.
Sighing and hanging her head slightly, Anko watched the girl go.
Though she made a point not to tell Naruko, she was worried. The Academy's graduation exams were fast approaching. 'If only Naruko-chan can make it this year…' She mused. Anko was by no means disappointed in Naruko's academic results. Like her, what the girl lacked in book-smarts she made up with raw physical energy. Who wanted to know how this and that were named when you could use that particular object to beat your opponent to death?
It had always worked for her at least…
Moving to the girl's bed and bending down to pick up two pillows from the floor, Anko reminisced on her time she had spent with Naruko. She had certainly grown up so fast. Without knowing why, a particular memory suddenly popped up in her mind and made her snigger.
The first time Naruko ever went through PMS… Oh the horror…
The hysterical, and not to mention extremely loud screams still echoed through Anko's mind. That particular morning, Naruko had woken up and seen something in her bed she had not expected to see…
'Anko nee-chan!!! I'm dying!!!'
She had a hell of a time trying to explain the proverbial "birds" and "bees" to Naruko. It wasn't as if Anko was a prude for not informing her sooner. It was only because she thought the girl wouldn't need that information so soon. Besides, she still got the urge to beat the crap out of any guy coming within a one-meter radius of the blonde child. It wasn't as if it would have done her any good anyway...
Regardless, it had been a slightly embarrassing, if not harrowing, experience. After Naruko had gotten past the first shock, and subsequent disgust, she kept nagging Anko about things she would never have asked about before. But still, now she had gained this new knowledge, there was now a slight reserve in whatever Naruko dealt with, and she never looked at boys quite the same way anymore.
With a gentle shake of her head, Anko resumed the cleaning of Naruko's room. Maybe she could get a mission from that old geezer today. Lately he had been suspiciously reluctant in giving her some high-rank missions…
"Nee-chan! Nee-chan!" A jubilant exclamation sounded through Anko's house, followed swiftly by the sharp snap of a door being slammed shut.
"What is it, Naruko-chan?" Anko called back, not surprised in the slightest about Naruko's energetic disposition.
Skidding to a stop in front of her self-proclaimed older sister, Naruko beamed the brightest smile she could muster. "I so kicked Kiba's ass today!"
Anko could already imagine the various reactions 'normal' parents would respond with to this message, but the slightly sadistic Jounin smirked and ruffled Naruko's hair affectionately. "Great job, you sure showed those dog-loving bastards!"
Naruko pouted and raked her hands through her hair. Not that it did her any good though. Ever since she started keeping it short, -well, shorter- her natural spikiness was allowed free reign. This resulted in a near untameable mass that despite everything, maintained to still look great. It shone with a brilliance and energy rarely seen and was only matched by the sparkle in her brilliantly blue eyes.
Naruko wasn't vain really. But anyone touching her hair aside from Anko would die on the spot... In a particularly gruesome fashion…
Waiting for Naruko to re-arrange her hair to her own liking, –and having it spring back immediately- Anko winked at the girl. "I think that deserves a special treat!"
"Really?!" Naruko exclaimed happily. She sure was a sucker for rewards…
"Yes, really." Anko affirmed with a nod and tapped her index finger on her chin thoughtfully. "Hmmm, what would be a good thing to give you…"
Anko already knew what she was going to give Naruko. But seeing the little girl bounce impatiently from side to side in front of her was still loads of fun. When she remained silent for a few minutes, Naruko couldn't take it anymore.
"Nee-chaaaaaaaaaan!!!"
"Alright, alright. Don't get your panties in a twist." Anko laughed and once again ruffled Naruko's hair –and immediately had her hand swatted away before she could do too much damage. "I know." She said brightly and clapped her hands together in front of her.
"Mm? Mhmm?" Naruko hummed in an effort to hurry her sister up.
"Ramen!" Anko finally shouted and pumped her fists into the air, her eyes closing to a happy crinkle.
Naruko nearly face-faulted. "Ramen?!"
Her fists coming down, Anko looked concernedly at the slightly put-out blonde girl. "What? I thought you loved ramen?"
"Well yeah…" Naruko acknowledged. And indeed, it was on the top of her list of favourite foods. "But…"
"But what?" The raven-haired Jounin prompted her.
Poking the tips of her index fingers together, Naruko stared at the floor. "I thought… Maybe, you could teach me a new Jutsu…"
"A Jutsu huh?" Anko murmured and saw the blonde girl give an uncharacteristically shy nod. "Well… I suppose I could…"
Naruko's head snapped upwards, her mouth curved upwards in a hopeful smile. "Really?"
"But on one condition!" Anko warned her and held up a single finger to accentuate her point.
"What?! I'll do anything!" Naruko shouted, all inhibitions lost at the prospect of learning a new technique, and spread her arms wide to show how much she was actually willing to do.
Anko merely grinned broadly. "After I've taught you this, you have to beat that little twerp again with it!"
Thegrin now being mirrored on Naruko's features, theyoung girl nodded happily.
Somewhere in a cluttered room, dog toys and other things strewn across the floor, a certain Inuzuka Kiba, who was nursing his bruises from his earlier fight with a blonde girl, suddenly sneezed twice in succession. Blinking in confusion at the sudden hay fever attack, his face cleared.
"Ahh, must be some pretty girl thinking about me …" Sniffling happily, he wiped his nose. "Hm, maybe even two pretty girls."
Akamaru, however looked up from where he was lying nearby and whined pitifully.
While Naruko had been slightly disappointed at not being taught the new technique right after Anko had promised her she would, the older woman had told her she would do it when they both would have more time. But for now, she had sent the blonde girl on a mission.
A mission of great importance, and one that was almost completed…
"What is that brat doing?!"
"She's desecrating the Hokage-monument!"
"Has anyone called the ANBU?!"
"You'll pay for this!"
Naruko howled with laughter as she heard the roaring crowd from beneath her and heard their cries of outrage as they pointed impotently at the girl as she was, quite literally, defacing the face of one of the past Hokage. Sandaime as a matter of fact. And she was quite proud of having already smeared copious amounts of colourful paint in tasteful swirls and other forms on their faces.
With another long swath of her heavy paintbrush –and finishing a moustache under the third's rather prominent nose- she craned her neck to look down at the crowd below from the harness she was currently fitted in. It had been slightly dizzying, but Naruko had managed to suspend herself from a rope fastened at the top of the monument, it gave her free access to all of the faces. Perfect for her latest prank.
She grinned at the enraged faces of the people on the ground and stuck her pink tongue out at them and giving them the evil eye at the same time. "Shut up you bastards! None of you could do something this horrible, but I can! Because I'm the great Mitarashi Naruko; future Hokage!"
More screams and roars followed her bold statement, just before one stood out like no other.
"Naruko! What the hell are you doing during class-time?! Get down from there, you moron!"
"Aah! That's Iruka-sensei!" The girl yelped and in a great panic she dropped the bucket of paint and the brush she had been holding, which was quickly followed by a rather satisfying yelp of someone getting splattered in paint.
Clambering up the rope as fast as she could, Naruko tried to make a quick escape before her teacher would be able to get her. She was sorely disappointed though…
As she finally hoisted herself up on the precipice of the Hokage monument, she let out a grunt which was followed by a series of sharp wheezes as she struggled to regain her breath.
"Naruko..."
An ominous growl resounded above her, and the girl froze.
"Aw shit…" Naruko cursed before she felt herself being lifted by the back of her jacket. 'Man this is embarrassing…'
"Naruko…" The same growl and now the blonde found herself face to face with the only teacher she remotely respected, and maybe, just maybe, slightly feared.
"Hehehehe…" Naruko chuckled nervously as she scratched the back of her head. "Nice day today, isn't it, Iruka-sensei?"
Needless to say, he didn't agree. So, after receiving an earful on how her latest prank was her worst yet –Naruko had disagreed on that particular point, which only served to anger her teacher more-, the girl heard her teacher use some rather colourful language as he dragged her of to a somewhat familiar place. Some of which she hadn't even heard before and some she was sure even Anko wouldn't use. And that was saying a lot…
Speaking of Anko…
"Anko-san!" Iruka cried out, clamping his hand on Naruko's shoulder, who stood with her arms folded in front of her chest, scowling miserably.
A few tense seconds passed before a grinning Anko appeared out of nowhere in front of the two.
Naruko involuntarily jumped back. "Damn teleportation Jutsu." She muttered.
"Heya, Iruka-kun!" Anko said jovially, waving at the kind-hearted teacher. "Have you come to play?"
Blushing heavily, the Chuunin shook his head. "No, Anko-san." He said gravely. Well, he tried to, but his bluster had died down somewhat at the sight of what was technically his superior.
"Then what… oh! Hey Naruko-chan!" Anko continued innocently, taking notice of the blonde girl who still stood scowling. "Is this a field-trip or something? But if it is, why did you come to our house?"
"Anko-san…" Iruka said exasperatedly, scratching his nose.
"Well spill it then! What's going on?" Was the impatient reply.
Instead of answering right away, Iruka pushed Naruko in front of him and pointed at her. "Naruko got herself in a bit of trouble…"
The dark-haired woman looked down at the girl, giving her a conspicuous wink which Iruka didn't notice and then nodded her head knowingly. "Ohhh, what has the brat done now?" She let out in an overly dramatic, long-suffering sigh.
Nonplussed, Iruka cleared his throat and patted Naruko's shoulders. "I don't know if I can handle her anymore, Anko-san. She did something truly horrible today. She made a mockery of the Hokage monument!"
"Did she now?" The Jounin replied, trying her best to prevent herself from laughing outright.
"Yes! This cannot go unpunished!" He said fervently.
"I quite agree!" Anko nodded.
"I mean she can't be allowed to… huh, you do?" Now Iruka was truly confused. Here was possibly the most zealous prankster of the village, and instead of hooting like a madwoman as he expected her to do, she… agreed with him?
Stepping forward, and placing one of her hands on Iruka's, Anko nodded again. "Yes, I do." She said softly and trailed her hand up his arm, over his shoulder and finally placed it on his cheek. "Don't worry, I will make very, very sure she is punished accordingly…"
While this was all going on, Naruko couldn't help but grin. 'Iruka-sensei is such a sucker for Anko-nee-chan.'
And she was right. Bells and whistles went off inside Iruka's head warning him of a possible meltdown. If he was anything, he was shy around women. Especially around forward women like Anko. A fact that she exploited eagerly.
Though he had previous experience with the woman, most of which was rather unpleasant and made him slightly scared of the imposing Jounin, there was something about her that…
"Now why don't you just leave her with me. I'm sure your class is waiting for your return." Iruka heard her whisper in his ear, halting his train of thought.
"Yes…" He said, his anger leaving him rapidly until he was pretty much devoid of rational thought. "I think… I think I'll head back then… And Naruko, don't do it again…"
"Bye, Iruka-sensei!" The girl snorted, giving the teacher a mock-salute.
Something stuck in the back of his fogged brain. His student seemed oddly happy of being left in the care of Anko… But he shrugged it off. He had to make sure someone would clean up the mess Naruko's mess. He wondered… A special fieldtrip for his students sounded good right about now…
Iruka never noticed the high-five Anko and Naruko exchanged or the laughter behind their hands as they pointed at him. And he most definitely didn't notice the two of them walking around their house to clean up a significant number of empty paint cans.
"Hey, Hinata-chan!" An excited Naruko yelled as she made her way closer to a rather nervous looking girl with navy-blue hair.
Hyuuga Hinata; she was the hyperactive blonde's best friend. And even if Naruko hadn't said that out loud, Hinata still knew and was deeply grateful. No other girl had seemed to want to get close to her. Partly it had been her own fault, since she had been rather reclusive. But instead of giving up, Naruko kept on talking to her. Telling her about her latest pranks. And asking Hinata about the things she had done.
The girl swivelled on her feet and nearly tripped over in the process. Naruko, thankfully, was close enough to catch her before she would kiss the dirt.
Crimson crept its way to Hinata's cheeks. "I-I'm sorry N-naruko-chan…" She stammered as an apology.
Naruko stared at her curiously. "Huh? What are you apologizing for?"
"O-oh… N-nothing…" The blue-haired girl whispered and stared at the ground.
"Eh?" Naruko raised an eyebrow. "You're weird, Hinata-chan!"
Hinata remained silent, deciding the dirt was rather interesting to stare at. That was, until she felt an arm loop its way around her right arm.
"Come on. You know I was kidding, right?" Naruko asked and tugged on Hinata's arm to gain her attention. "I don't think you're weird… Well, maybe just a little bit…"
Hinata looked positively ready to cry, which didn't go unnoticed by the blonde girl. "But it's a good weird!" She added hastily to cover up for her blunder.
"I-if y-you say so…" Hinata amended softly. "W-why don't w-we go to class?"
"Oh, right! Graduation exams are today!" Naruko yelled loudly which caused Hinata to flinch visibly before she felt another tug on her arm. She turned her head sideways slightly and saw Naruko pump a fist repeatedly in the air. "Let's gooooo!!!"
Even while feeling slightly embarrassed, Hinata couldn't help but smile just a little bit.
Ten minutes later, Hinata and Naruko barged into a rather rowdy looking classroom with a man, obviously a teacher, with a long scar across the bridge of his nose and cheekbones and a ponytail, looking forlornly at the children in front of him as he sat behind his desk. Well actually, it was Naruko who barged in, wordlessly proclaiming that she had arrived. Hinata lagged behind like a silent shadow, trying desperately not to be noticed.
Though Hinata's effort were commendable, they were ultimately futile as Naruko picked that particular moment to shout out their arrival just in case anyone had missed them.
"Oi, you lazy bums!" She shouted loudly and caused every head to turn in their direction. "Me and Hinata-chan…" Naruko paused here to wrap an arm around the poor girl's shoulders and shake her affectionately. "…Are gonna leave you guys in the dust!"
During the painful silence that followed, disbelieving stares framed the majority of the faces in the classroom.
"Hehe, we sure showed them! Didn't we, Hinata-chan?" Naruko whispered behind an outstretched hand as she leaned over to the other girl.
Hinata, however was completely mortified. 'Oh no!' She thought franticly and her lower lip started trembling. "Y-you s-shouldn't have d-d-done that..."
"Why not?" Naruko asked while smiling broadly.
Before Hinata got a chance to answer though, a duo of angry looking girls literally stomped through several rows of benches and over to where they were standing –which was still by the door.
"Naruko!" A pink-haired girl with a rather large forehead growled ominously.
The other, a very skinny blonde with angry blue eyes backed her up. "Why are you so loud!? You're interrupting our conquest of Sasuke-kun's heart!"
"Sakura-chan, Ino-chan, we're…" Hinata started but was cut off by an equally angered Naruko.
"Shove off, pinky and matchstick! What's so great about that moody Uchiha bastard anyway?!" Naruko shouted, pointing at the person in question who was hunched over his bench, his hands entwined before his face and doing his very best to ignore the whole thing. "He's a damn emotionally challenged dimwit!"
"Pinky?!"
"Matchstick?!"
"Yeah, you got a problem with that?!" Naruko asked, quite proud of herself for coming up with such aptly chosen insults.
"Yeah we've got a problem with that!" The two girls screeched at the same time and raised their fists at Naruko. "And you'll pay for insulting our dear Sasuke-kun!"
"Settle down!" Iruka shouted over the tumult in a desperate attempt to flex his authority. "Go back to your seats, all of you!"
Grudgingly and with scowls that promised retribution, Sakura and Ino backed off, and stalked towards their seats.
Naruko only grinned, spotted two free spots after giving the classroom a brief scan with her bright blue eyes and dragged a still stammering Hinata along with her.
"Naruko-chan…" She whispered softly, not even trying to resist the other girl.
The blonde Genin-to-be merely ignored her. She was too used to Hinata to be surprised about her shy nature. Instead she continued her hold on her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze to let her know it was alright.
For the next hour, five minutes of which Naruko managed to stay awake for since she had heard it two times before, Iruka instructed them on their possible future as Genin, and quite possibly their future promotions to Chuunin and Jounin. He even made a point to tell them about possible career paths, telling them they need not only be fighting for their lives, but could fight against suffering and death as medic-nin. Or they could choose the path of administrating-personnel to the third Hokage –or any Hokage after that for that matter. The list went on and on, and when Iruka was finally finished –gulping down a whole glass of water after talking for so long, Hinata inconspicuously poked Naruko in the side, causing said girl to wake up with a startled yelp.
Reassessing her bearings, Naruko looked around until she focused on the demure girl next to her. "Thanks Hinata-chan."
Hinata blushed. "You're welcome…"
"Oi, oi, what did I say about being so timid last week?" The blonde girl told her and wrapped an arm around Hinata's shoulders.
"Y-you said I should b-be more a-assertive…" Hinata acquiesced.
"I did?" Naruko questioned, scratching her chin with one finger as a veritable question mark appeared over her head. She couldn't remember using a word like that… "Anyway," she exclaimed, "you should be louder! Like me!" She finished by pointing at herself with a beaming smile.
"O-okay…" The blue-haired girl agreed, and began fiddling with her fingers just before Naruko clamped her own hands over them.
"And no doing weird stuff with your fingers too. If you have to use them, use them to punch somebody's lights out!" Naruko laughed. "Or gouge out somebody's eyes!" She continued, listing several gruesome ways to use your fingers.
Hinata's head threatened to pop off from all the blood that was steadily being pumped to her face. By now, most of the class was looking at them, and even Iruka -who had announced that they would have a slight break before he would announce what the test would be about, gave them an odd look. But for some reason, the most embarrassing for some reason was Naruko still holding her hands. Hinata could not really explain why.
'They're really soft…' Hinata thought to herself, and then shook her head forcefully, which earned her more stares. 'What am I thinking?!'
"…You could pinch their nipples really, really hard. That would be fun…"
Naruko was still going strong and showed no signs of stopping until Hinata cleared her throat tactfully.
"…or, huh? What? What is it Hinata-chan?" Naruko asked as she shifted her gaze to the other girl.
Hinata merely pointed silently over Naruko's shoulder. The blonde girl shifted on her bench to look at where the Hyuuga-heiress was pointing and began chuckling nervously.
"Hehehe, Iruka-sensei…" She began softly in an effort to calm the teacher.
"Naruko…" He growled. "Thinking up ways to torture people, are you?"
"No, no! Of course I wouldn't, Iruka-sensei! Right, Hinata-chan?" Naruko protested in mock indignation and turned to her friend for support, to which Hinata nodded dutifully. "Who do you take me for? Anko-nee-chan?"
Those seemed to be the magic words as Iruka suddenly began scanning the classroom nervously. "N-no, of course not." He stuttered hastily.
"Hehehe…" Naruko grinned and winked at Hinata who was looking quite puzzled.
Unbeknownst to the rest of the village, well Naruko and Anko liked to think so -Iruka did too, but they didn't really care-, they had "played with him" the night before after the whole Hokage monument debacle. Anko had actually, but had told Naruko all about it, every glorious detail to the blonde girl's delight. It seemed that the under-paid Chuunin slash teacher had gone to the public bathhouse after his plumbing "mysteriously" clogged up. To make matters worse, his clothing had undergone a "strange" transformation during his refreshing bath.
To make a long story short, he had been forced to sneak back to his house, wearing his clothes that had been dyed in a clashing mix of sickly green and girlish pink. Along with these colours, several phrases had been placed on his front and back, some of them along the lines of: "Iruka-kun is a cutie-pie", "I bow down to my mistress" and of course some things that just weren't proper to repeat in public.
Iruka cleared his throat, forcing away his rather unpleasant memories of this not so isolated incident, desperate to move on to a new subject.
"Right." He coughed again and shot Naruko -who was leaning backwards feeling quite content with herself-, a nervous glance. "Now, it's time for the exam!"
"Yes!" Naruko exclaimed happily and burst from her seat like a veritable jack-in-the-box.
"This time the subject will be: Bunshin-no-Jutsu!"
Iruka waited for the eventual rowdy response, and wasn't disappointed. Cries of outrage filled his ears only to be punctuated by regular loud thumps. Letting his eyes wander for a moment to locate the source, his eyes fell upon a Naruko, slumped over and banging her forehead on her wooden desk, flanked by a panicky Hinata.
'Damn…' Naruko thought, ignoring everything around her as her confidence crashed like an inbound comet. 'That's my worst skill…'
Hinata, who knew that already, stared worriedly at the person she secretly, and not so secretly, admired so much. 'Don't worry, Naruko-chan.' She mentally comforted the other girl. 'You won't fail this year.'
Sadly, she would be proven wrong…
Some nerve-wracking minutes later, Naruko was finally called into a small side-room by Iruka, flanked by another teacher. If Naruko wasn't mistaken, his name was Mizuki. Or something like that anyway…
"State your name." Mizuki ordered in a lazy drawl, giving Naruko a peculiar look as she stood before them with her hands on her hips, tugging on her dress impatiently while he shuffled some papers on his desk.
Iruka stared at him for a few moments before giving the girl an encouraging smile.
The twelve-year old grinned broadly and ran a hand through her spiky hair before she pointed at the two teachers in a threatening manner. "Naruko! Mitarashi Naruko! And I'm going to kick all of you bastard's asses!"
"Naruko…" Iruka shook his head in disbelief. "You just have to make a few clones. You don't have to fight us…"
"Oh…" Naruko deadpanned. 'Well that's disappointing…' She thought glumly. If she was supposed to perform her worst skill, she wanted to do something exciting with it, not just make a fool out of herself…
"Anytime you're ready, Naruko." Iruka supplied.
"Right…" Naruko gulped and placed her feet at shoulders width, using her hands to form the necessary ram seal. Unable to take the scrutiny of both teachers, she closed her eyes and concentrated as best as she could.
'Focus, focus, focus!' She kept repeating to herself like a mantra…
She looked on from her swing. Watching every other classmate being patted on the back, receiving compliments from her family.
'Damnit…'
Their radiant smiles and those happy twinkles in their eyes.
'Damnit!'
Why couldn't she be one of them, why didn't she pass?
'It's all my fault… Why am I so…'
She was glad that her big sister wasn't able to make it today. Naruko wouldn't be able to face her. How could she? Anko would probably say it was alright, and say that there was always next year. But the disappointment that would be so apparent in her eyes… Those chocolate-brown orbs full of warmth would lose just the tiniest amount of their pride. And that more than she could bear.
'Why am I so weak?!'
She couldn't come home and say she failed. Not again…
Looking up, Naruko saw the sympathetic smile, Iruka sent her way before he walked away with a short old geezer, whom the girl recognized as Sandaime. The third Hokage. Yet instead of being comforted, Naruko only grew angrier.
How dare he fail her! She had tried so hard!
It wasn't her fault that Bunshin-no-Jutsu was her worst skill. It wasn't her fault that they had somehow managed to make it part of the exam three damn years in a row!
Jumping off the swing, she turned to the tree it was suspended on and punched the thick trunk as hard as she could. Naruko ignored the pain as it shot through her arm.
It was nothing compared to the giant blow to her self-esteem.
"He didn't do it on purpose you know…" A voice said behind her.
Startled, Naruko spun around. "Mizuki-sensei…"
"He's just a serious person…" He continued unperturbed and sat next to her on the ground and settled himself against the tree.
Naruko lowered her eyes. "But why does he only pick on me?" She whispered and kicked the dirt with her foot sending a cloud of dust into the air before it was swept away.
"He doesn't. It only seems that way." Mizuki chuckled and leaned forwards. "You're quite a handful."
"Well it sure seems that way." Naruko retorted, her voice rising slightly to make her anger apparent.
Mizuki made a non-committal sound and stayed silent.
The blonde girl sighed. "I just wish I had graduated…"
As he heard her disappointment, Mizuki gave her a sideways glance, and said something that perked Naruko's attention. "Well then, I'll tell you a special secret…"
A/N:
Porcine: Someone/something resembling a swine or pig.
Yeah, so uhm, it took a bit longer than I expected, but here it is. I hope you enjoyed reading it because I put quite a bit of effort into it. And the length alone should attest to that, don't you think? I'm not really happy about how it turned out, but I guess it isn't half-bad.
There seemed to have been some slight confusion going on with some reviews, so I'll clear it up here again. Anko is not getting together with Naruko. Sorry folks, the age difference is too big. I may do one with that pairing later. Well with the "normal" Naruto anyway.
And please don't worry about the sudden time-jump. I will probably put some flashbacks or memories in later chapters. I mean, Anko trying to raise a little kid is too good of an opportunity to give up, right?
Before I go to the review response, I'd like to thank Princess-Tsunade for beta-ing this chapter for me. Sorry for giving you such a hassle, princess.
Well here we go then:
Princess-Tsunade: I hope you enjoyed the chapter despite my constant whining. Thanks again for the kind words and the help you've given me. Discussing her clothing at 3 am… Honestly… ; )
Yondaime-samaKazaraYume: I dropped ya a review today. Sorry it was so brief, but I didn't really know what to say.
SxStrngSamurai13: God, don't worry. I won't let her go off with Sasuke. I hate him as I've said tons of times before.
Dragon Man 180: Well I replied to your email, so… But thanks for the review!
Buku Schk Long: Well it's your own choice if you dislike Yuri or Yaoi (I dislike Yaoi which makes me kind of a hypocrite, but meh). I took your suggestion about the pitchforks etc, as I reread the first chapters it did seem a tad too much. I changed it in any case. And about the last name? Hmm, well as I'll be explaining more about it in the next chapter I won't go into detail here, but I don't really understand why you would be so upset about it. Oh well, I hope this chapter has been able to give you a few chuckles at least.
Stratagemini: Well as you've seen in this chapter, Naruko failed. But that was to be expected. But don't worry, she'll have a few surprises up her sleeve. Thanks for the review!
En Satsu Koku Ryuu Ha: No Anko/Naru pairing I'm afraid. And I haven't been able to work on DYHM yet since I've focused on this one instead for now. But don't worry, I'll update again but you'll have to wait a bit longer.
Frank Moore: Well I don't plan to stop in the middle with this, I'm quite motivated to finish my fics. And about Naruko's attacks, well, you'll have to wait and see. You got the gist of it though. ; )
Seravy: Thanks for your kind words. Your own works are insurmountably better though. I'm afraid this chapter didn't flow as much as the first one did, but it'll do I guess. Thanks for the review!
FenrisLupus: Thanks for the review mate. And if I inspire you, why haven't you released a chapter again eh? I wanna read more!
Me, Ventmonster, Chedving, Jimbo, Chaos-Sempai, trent, (wow, that's a rather short nickname don't you think?), Andreas, Leo-Yoko, Kittfox. Thanks a million for your reviews as well.
There you have it, please leave a review for me so I can giggle with joy when I read them! Okay, so I won't giggle, but I'll smile. Really!
Preview for the next chapter:
"Sensei, you can't be serious!" Shikamaru shouted in indignation, his lazy attitude completely forgotten. "You can't put me with those two… those two girls!"
Iruka barely held back a smile. "I'm sorry, Shikamaru. But that's just the way it is. Now you and your team-mates wait here. Your Jounin instructor will be here shortly."
And now for a final closing point, I would like to give you a few titles of fics I think you should read, and please give them a review as well, they truly deserve it! (remove the stripes from the links)
-http-:-www-fanfiction-net-/s/2161-752/1
All that made me, me
Based around Anko, an awesome fic describing the childhood of Mitarashi Anko. I couldn't have done it better myself. Please give it a go.
-http-:-www-fanfiction-net-/s/2170-425/1
Forged in Water
Gives you an interesting peak into the possible past of Kisame, but is based around a cousin of his. It is really well written, you'll be missing out if you don't read this.