Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, or any properties in this work that I did not make myself.
Harold of Konoha
Chapter fifteen: Happy Birthday, Natsu Uzumaki! (AKA the obligatory Birthday Episode)
Over at the Hokage office building in the village of Konohagakure, Naruto Uzumaki, the sixth (and current) Hokage, was talking to Sasuke Uchiha and Shikamaru Nara, two men whose words Naruto would listen to first and foremost on very important issues. There was no work at the moment, however, leaving the three men free to talk about whatever. The 'whatever' of the current conversation was a video recording made by the wife of Harold Fisher, Konoha's oldest active jonin (oldest active ninja overall). It was a video recording of a play that Harold, Inoichi Yamanaka, Tsume Inuzuka and Sakaki Inuzuka took part in while they were in prison.
"That play got SO many things wrong," Shikamaru declared with the utmost confidence, "That play had men in the roles of women, women in the roles of men… that tall muscular black man played BOTH Ino and Natsu, the latter of which was only around for the scene depicting her birth!"
"The way Mrs. Inuzuka played me was rather embarrassing," Naruto remarked with a slight blush on his face, "Although to be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if the reason she kept saying 'Kunai attack' was because that's what it actually said in the script."
"Even my idiot uncle-in-law isn't dumb enough to write a play script that bad," Sasuke said, "Hell, I bet that Haru could write a better play script!"
"Natsu's written fanfictions that are better than the script that the play must have had," Naruto stated, "Like this one where an Espurr threw a birthday party for a Volcarona."
"Hey, speaking of your daughter and birthdays, isn't your daughter's birthday coming up?" Shikamaru asked.
"Yes it is," Naruto replied with a smile, opening a drawer in his desk, pulling out a small wrapped gift, and setting it on his desk, "I've already gotten the gift that I'm planning on giving to Natsu."
Looking at the wrapped gift, Shikamaru said, "I'm guessing it's one of those Pokémon plushies that your daughter collects."
"It's one she doesn't have yet," Naruto stated, "I should know, as I can correctly identify most species of Pokémon." (1)
"Haru is worrying about what he's going to get Natsu," Sasuke remarked, "Can you give me any ideas so I could pass them along?"
"Ehh, probably something like a plushy of a kitten or a dragon," Naruto replied, "Natsu says she wants to get a plushy of Toothless from Dragons."
"Hey Naruto, when IS your daughter's birthday, exactly?" Shikamaru asked.
"It's this Friday," Naruto replied, "Why do you ask?"
"We have some important business to take care of here at the office building on Friday," Shikamaru pointed out.
"Damn it!" Naruto exclaimed, "Why did there have to be a…I got it!"
"What is it, Naruto?" Sasuke asked, his interest piqued.
"I can create a shadow clone to help out," Naruto explained.
"Good idea," Shikamaru remarked as he thought he knew what Naruto had planned, "You can create a shadow clone to head to Natsu's party in your place, while the real-"
"Actually," Naruto interrupted, "I was going to have the shadow clone take care of work here while the real me went to Natsu's party."
"Are…are you sure you should do that?" Shikamaru asked.
"One-hundred percent," Naruto declared, "I mean, the hell kind of a father would I be if I sent a shadow clone to my daughter's birthday party instead of heading there myself? A sucky one, that's what."
"Well it's not like Konoha will be receiving any visitors of note this Friday," Sasuke remarked to Shikamaru.
"I still think the real you should stay here while the clone you head to your daughter's birthday party," Shikamaru said to Naruto in a mildly worried tone, "I mean, you never know-"
"You remember when Kiba and Sakaki threw a party for their son's eighth birthday," Naruto began, "And Kiba decided to send a clone of himself to the party instead of heading to the party himself because he decided to put work first? Remember what Sakaki did when she found out the truth?"
"I…see," Shikamaru replied, looking mildly shocked and frightened; the kind of shock and fright that only comes from remembering a particularly scary memory.
"As much as Hinata lets me walk over her, which is something that I REALLY want to remedy by the way," Naruto finished, "When it comes to Natsu's happiness and well-being, Hinata can be nightmarishly scary. You remember a while back, when Shikaru and Bankai accused Natsu of cheating at video games and making her cry?"
"I was legitimately afraid that Hinata was going to try and kill my son," Shikamaru remarked.
Looking to Shikamaru, Naruto said, "Now you see why I want to go to Natsu's birthday party myself, rather than send a shadow clone in my place." Gesturing to the wrapped gift on his desk, Naruto added, "Besides which, who's going to give Natsu the gift that I got her?"
Later that day, Harold Fisher and Inoichi Yamanaka were walking down a sidewalk as they made their way to a bar to watch sports. "…So that's when I told my grandnephew that if he feels the gift he got for his little girlfriend isn't nice enough, he can pad the gift by throwing in a bag or two of the girl's favorite candy," Harold said to his best friend.
"My granddaughter really likes Hiashi's granddaughter, seeing her as a sort of older sister," Inoichi said with a smile, the kind of smile that comes from thinking that something is really adorable.
"Oh yeah, I forgot about that," Harold remarked, "Man, the bond of friendship isn't just limited by gender or age group, huh?"
"Inohime even asked me to help her buy a birthday gift for Hiashi's granddaughter," Inoichi added, "Inohime even insisted on paying for the gift."
"Did she pay for it?" Harold asked.
"Well…" Inoichi replied, "…She DID help cover the cost, technically." (2)
"Well it's still the thought that counts, right dude?" Harold asked.
"Oh totally," Inoichi answered, "And given the reason WHY Inohime picked out the gift that she did, I'm confident that Hiashi's granddaughter will love it."
Looking over a way, Harold saw something that made him say, "Speak of the devil and he shall appear!" (3) Looking to where his best friend was looking, Inoichi saw that Harold had spotted Hiashi Hyuga; the Hyuga clan lord was seen by the patriarchs of houses Fisher and Yamanaka heading into a toy store. "Hiashi must have headed inside to get a gift for his granddaughter," Harold remarked. Patting Inoichi on the shoulder, Harold said, "Come on, dude. Let's go see what Hiashi is up to exactly."
Inside the toy shop, Hiashi stood a few feet from the front door; the Hyuga clan lord looked around uncertainly, until a clerk of the toy store came up; the clerk was a pretty, early twenties woman, with a slim yet healthy body, auburn hair tied back into a bun save for bangs that framed her face, fair skin, and she wore a blue skirt that reached her knees, a pale light pink shirt under a cream-colored apron (also reaching her knees) with the toy store's logo on it, and to complete the woman's outfit, a pair of shinobi sandals (the clerk has a boyfriend who is a jonin-ranked shinobi of Konoha; he gave her a spare pair of footwear when his dog tore up her shoes).
"Excuse me, sir, may I help you?" the clerk asked.
"Oh, you work here?" Hiashi replied when he turned around, "Yes, I could use your help. You see, my grand-"
"Hiashi, dude, wazzup?!" Harold called out when he and Inoichi entered the toy store and approached the Hyuga clan lord.
"Harold? Inoichi? What are you two doing here?" Hiashi asked, mildly annoyed over being cut off, but overall curious.
"We were going to ask the same of you, dude," Inoichi remarked.
"I came in to try and find a suitable gift for my granddaughter," Hiashi explained, "Her birthday is this Friday, after all."
"Oh, you're shopping for a birthday gift for your granddaughter!" the clerk said, getting Hiashi's attention, "How old will she be turning?"
"I believe she is turning twelve," Hiashi replied as he gave the notion some thought.
"Yes, yes she is turning twelve," Inoichi confirmed, "Both my grandson and my granddaughter will be attending the party this Friday."
A mildly confused look appearing across his face, Hiashi asked, "Isn't your granddaughter four, Inoichi?"
"She still wanted to go to the party and get Natsu a gift," Inoichi explained, "Inohime and Natsu have a sort of big sister-little sister thing going on, and Ino, Hinata, Sakura and I think it's downright adorable."
"Heh," Hiashi chuckled as he gave the notion some thought, "You're got a point, Inoichi. That does sound adorable."
"Yeah, I bet you'll get to see the sisterly bond while you're at the party this Friday," Harold stated. At Harold's remark, Hiashi's smile changed to an uncomfortable one, which Harold, Inoichi and the toy store clerk all picked up on.
"Yeah, I don't think I'll be at the party," Hiashi replied, "I'll probably only stay long enough to drop off the gift. But other than that, I won't be around."
"Why don't you want to attend your granddaughter's birthday party?" Harold asked.
"Yeah man, what's going on with you?" Inoichi added, sounding mildly disappointed in a stern way.
"It's not that I don't want to go," Hiashi quickly explained, "Trust me, I'd love to attend the party being thrown to celebrate my granddaughter's special day."
"What is it, then?" Harold asked, "Do you have some reason that's keeping you from going?"
"I know that, as the Hyuga clan leader, you're often very busy," Inoichi remarked, "But surely you can make time this Friday."
"I actually don't have any such business this Friday," Hiashi replied, "Or for the rest of the week, as a matter of fact."
"Then what's the reason?" Harold asked.
"I won't be at the party because…" Hiashi said in a mildly sad tone, "…I don't think I'd be welcomed at the party."
A silence hung over the others for a few seconds until Inoichi broke it by saying in a mildly confused tone, "You don't think you'd be welcomed at the party? Why not? From what I hear from Ino whenever she and Hinata have girl time, Natsu likes you. I mean, what kind of grandchildren DON'T like their grandparents?"
"Shikaru and Inohime not liking Shikaku and Yoshino?" Harold offered, a mildly confused look on his face as he gave a shrug.
"Shikaku and Yoshino are working to remedy why the grandkids are so frightened of them," Inoichi pointed out.
"Oh yeah, I forgot," Harold remarked.
"No worries, dude," Inoichi replied with a light clap on Harold's right shoulder, "As a matter of fact, Shikaku and Yoshino have made some considerable progress lately. Why, just the other day, Shikaru asked Shikaku to help him with-"
"Aren't we getting a little off subject here?" Hiashi interrupted.
"Oops, sorry," Inoichi replied with an embarrassed smile, "But seriously. I doubt that Natsu doesn't like and or is afraid of you. Why wouldn't she want you at her birthday party?"
"It's not Natsu who I believe wouldn't want me at the birthday party," Hiashi clarified, "It's Hinata who I believe wouldn't want me at the birthday party."
"Your first born daughter?" Harold asked.
Nodding in the affirmative, Hiashi replied, "I will admit that I wasn't the most…supportive father in the world to Hinata. I was far too strict, placed far too many high expectations on Hinata…I even made Hanabi, Hinata's little sister, heir to lead the Hyuga clan over Hinata, simply because Hanabi was a more skilled fighter at the time. Of course, I made Hinata my heir again after one too many doubts on Hanabi's competency as an heir had been cast, but damage was still done to my first born daughter. I wouldn't be surprised if Hinata tried to cut me out completely."
"Wait a minute, your second born daughter is no longer your heir?" Harold asked, a confused look on his face. After the Hyuga clan lord nodded in the affirmative, the Fisher patriarch said, "What the hell did she do to warrant such a decision?"
"I think that's a story for another time," Inoichi pointed out to his best friend. To Hiashi, Inoichi continued, "Back to what you said about you worrying that Hinata considering cutting you out altogether. If that does happen…I wouldn't be surprised in the least."
"Sir, I don't think that's all that nice a thing to say to your friend here," the toy store clerk said to Inoichi.
"No, no Inoichi here is correct," Hiashi remarked to the toy store clerk, "I have really been a terrible father to my first born daughter. Perhaps I should have followed Inoichi's example when it came to being a father to-"
"Oh, I didn't expect to see you here," a female voice called out, distracting the three older men and the toy store clerk. All eyes turned in the direction the voice came from, leading to everyone seeing Hinata Uzumaki enter the toy store.
"Yo, it's the woman of the hour!" Harold said as Hinata approached the group, "What brings you by?"
"I was looking for a present to get for Natsu, since her birthday is this Friday," the Uzumaki matriarch explained, "Although like I had just said, I didn't expect to see the three of you here." Turning her eyes to focus more directly on her father, Hinata added with her tone seeping with mild bitterness, "Least of all you."
"I'll have you know that I'm here for the same reason as you," Hiashi explained as firmly as he could (which wasn't all that much given his overall guilty feeling and the fact the reason for his guilt was giving him the stink eye), "Can a man NOT get a present for his granddaughter's birthday?"
"I suppose that I don't see a problem with that," Hinata relented after everyone was silent for a few seconds, "And knowing Natsu, I bet she'd love whatever you get her all the more simply because it was YOU who got it for her."
"A shame that Hiashi can only show up at the party long enough to drop off the gift, though," Harold remarked.
Hearing the Fisher patriarch say this line made Hinata's eyes narrow in such a manner to show that she was slightly angrier than she started. "Excuse me?" Hinata said.
"Well your father gets the feeling that he won't be welcomed at the party," Harold explained, "Hence why the dude is planning on only show up long enough to drop off whatever gift he gets for your daughter."
Closing her eyes to think, Hinata was quiet for a few seconds before speaking again. "Actually, that's part of the reason why I was hoping to run into my father," Hinata said, "To tell him that he is, in fact, welcomed to come to the party if he wishes."
Hearing this surprised the three older men, Hiashi most of all. "You're letting your father come?" Inoichi said, sounding like he was having trouble believing it.
"It's wasn't my idea," Hinata remarked to the three older men in a firm tone that made Hiashi flinch slightly, "Natsu has expressed a very strong interest in seeing her grandfather this Friday." Looking more directly at her father, Hinata said, "Natsu really cares about you, father. She would really like it if you came to her birthday party."
Smiling as kindly as he had in a while, the Hyuga clan lord said, "As it just so happens, I would-"
"That being said," Hinata interrupted, "You are expected to come." The way that Hinata just spoke, her tone making her statement sound more like a demand than a request, confused and slightly startled the three older men. Continuing in the same tone, Hinata said to her father, "You're one of the first people that Natsu said she would like to see at her birthday party. You're her grandfather, and as such she loves you. That being said, if you do NOT show up for her party, it would break Natsu's heart. And if that happens…" Hinata stopped so she could close the distance between her and her father, until she was less than an inch away from his face.
With the angriest glare she had ever given anyone in her entire life, Hinata said, "…I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU."
The Uzumaki matriarch backed up a foot or two, revealing that she had made her father looked more worried and freaked out than he had ever looked in his entire life. The expressions of Harold and Inoichi matched that of Hiashi's expression. Instantly, Hinata's demeanor changed to the kind, caring demeanor that she always had. "So I can expect to see you at Natsu's party this Friday?" Hinata asked her father in a kind, almost perky tone.
"Y-y-y-yes," Hiashi stammered in response, too frightened and confused to reply in any other way.
"Great!" Hinata replied happily as she turned to leave, "Natsu's going to be really happy to see you, father! Oh, the party will begin sometime around two in the afternoon. Don't be late!" After Hinata left the toy store, Harold and Inoichi turned to look at Hiashi.
"Wow, dude," Harold said to the Hyuga clan lord, "And here I thought that Mebuki was scary when Kizashi forgot her birthday last year."
"Well that certainly explains why you that thought you were going to get Kizashi's golf club set the day after your sister's birthday last year," Inoichi remarked, "By the way, your brother-in-law DOES have a really nice golf club set."
"I know, right?" Harold replied, high-fiving his best friend.
Later that day, Harold and Inoichi followed Hiashi on a visit to the Hokage office building. As Naruto's father-in-law, Hiashi was going to ask Naruto for ideas on what to get Natsu for her birthday, and maybe try to get on Hinata's good side. The three older men stood in Naruto's office, with the man himself using one of the exercise machines that he had installed in his office in order to keep himself in shape (Naruto had no work at the moment, so he was getting a work out in). "To be honest, I'm actually rather surprised that Hinata's letting you come to Natsu's birthday party," was the first thing Naruto said after Hiashi explained the situation.
"Which is why I want to make sure I make a good impression," Hiashi explained, "Plus, I was wondering if you can give me any ideas on what to get for Natsu."
"Knowing Natsu, she would so happy to see you that you showing up at her party would be enough of a present in and of itself," Naruto remarked as he gave it a bit of thought, "And knowing Hinata, she would be so mad if you showed up empty-handed and or not at all that she might very well disown you as a parent." Giving his father-in-law a knowing look, Naruto said, "It'd be like karma had finally decided to give you a swift kick in the rear, huh?"
"I hear that!" Inoichi declared, doing a high-five with Harold.
"Which is why I was hoping that you'd give me an idea on what to get Natsu," Hiashi repeated to his son-in-law.
Getting up from the exercise machine, Naruto said, "I got Natsu one of those Pokémon plushies that she likes. It's one she doesn't own yet. Perhaps you can get her one that she doesn't have yet either. Failing that, a plushy of a cat or a dragon will work just as well."
"A cat or a dragon?" the Hyuga clan lord repeated in a confused tone.
"Cats and dragons are Natsu's two favorite animals," Naruto explained, "Hell, most of the aforementioned Pokémon plushies Natsu owns are either cat-like Pokémon or dragon-type Pokémon."
"I don't suppose you'd consider helping me pick one out?" Hiashi requested, "I know very little about the things that kids Natsu's age are into, and I don't want to run the risk of getting something for Natsu that she already has."
"Well I can help you pick something that I know she doesn't have," Naruto replied to his father-in-law, "And I can keep you from getting the thing that I got for her. But neither of us can control what other people get for Natsu."
"If it helps, Haru is getting your daughter a little lion-dog plushy with blue fiery eyebrows and a little green bag over its back," Harold said to Naruto, "Haru's also throwing in two bags of non-sour gummy worms. Your daughter likes those, right?"
"Yes, non-sour gummy worms are one of Natsu's favorite candies," Naruto replied to Harold with a nod and a small smile, "And I'm sure she'd like the Komasan plushy." (4) To Hiashi, Naruto said, "Sure, let me get ready and I'll head out with you to shop for a gift you can get for Natsu."
Smiling kindly, Hiashi said, "Thank you."
"Nah, don't mention it," Naruto replied, "I'm doing this mostly so that Hinata doesn't kill you."
While Hiashi had a startled look on his face due to what Naruto said, Harold whispered into the Hyuga clan lord's right ear, "Yeah, I bet that she'd totally kill you."
Later that afternoon, the three older ninja and Naruto were at a different toy store than the one Harold, Inoichi and Hiashi were at earlier that day. Naruto had led the three older ninja to one of the aisles in the store, where one could find a variety of Pokémon merchandise. Gesturing to a few shelves lined with various eight-inch-tall Pokémon plushies, Naruto said to Hiashi, "Well, here we are."
"So all I have to do is get Natsu one of those?" Hiashi asked. After Naruto nodded in the affirmative, Hiashi walked over to where the plushies were at and picked up one of them. It was a plushy of a Volcarona.
"How about I get Natsu this Pikachu?" Hiashi suggested. (5)
"That's a Volcarona, sir, not a Pikachu," Naruto pointed out, "Also, that's the plushy I got for Natsu, so you can't get that one." Placing the Volcarona plushy back down, Hiashi picked up a plushy of a Meowth.
"How about this Pikachu?" Hiashi asked.
"That's a Meowth, and Natsu already owns one," Naruto replied.
"Well I have no idea which one to get," Hiashi admitted, trying his best not to be snappy (it was working really well, by the way).
In response, Naruto walked up to join his father-in-law, and fished around for a bit. Coming across something, Naruto pulled it out; it was a plushy of a Goodra. "Huh, I wasn't aware that there was a plushy of this one," Naruto remarked as he looked at the plushy of the pseudo-legend. Handing the Goodra plushy to Hiashi, Naruto suggested, "Try getting this for Natsu."
"So I should get Natsu this Pikachu," Hiashi said.
"Goodra," Naruto corrected, "It's a plushy that Natsu doesn't own yet. Also, I'm pretty sure no one else is getting her one."
"Hey Lord Sixth, do you think that they sell Pape Konoha's Brand Lager here?" Harold asked.
"Yeah, I could go for a cold frosty one myself," Inoichi added. Both the Lord Sixth and the Hyuga clan lord gave the two men stern looks.
"I'll choose to take that as a no," Harold remarked.
That Friday, the Uzumaki residence was abuzz with activity. Space was cleared in the living room so that the party could take place inside (it was going to be raining hard starting from one in the afternoon until about eleven that night, with light showering after that lasting until seven or so the following morning; this ruined Hinata's plans of having the party outside in the back yard). As Ko and Neji were helping set up decorations in the living room for the party, a male voice said, "No, no, no! Miss Natsu's favorite colors are orange and lavender! Why are you putting up blue and black streamers?"
Looking down at the source of the voice, Ko said, "I'm sorry, Pantherlily, but Neji and I couldn't find any streamers in the colors that Lady Natsu likes."
"Lady Hinata had already gotten party streamers in the proper colors," replied Natsu's talking cat, who waived a paw in a stern manner at the cadet branch Hyuga, "Weren't you told to ask her for the party décor?" Turing around before Ko could reply to his question, Pantherlily saw another cadet branch Hyuga setting the presents that were brought in so far on one of the cleared tables. "The table on the west side of the room is for the cake, punch and other party foodstuffs," Pantherlily said to the cadet branch Hyuga in a stern tone, "The presents go on the table on the EAST side of the room! Do the lot of you know nothing of party Feng Shui?"
As the party was being set up, Harold, Inoichi and Hinata were watching everything. "Wow, your daughter's cat is taking his self-appointed role of 'steward of house Uzumaki' very seriously, huh?" Harold said to the Uzumaki matriarch.
"I think it's absolutely adorable," Hinata remarked, "It's like having a mini Alfred in cat form."
"Hey Lady Hinata," Ko said as he approached Hinata and the two older ninja, "Lady Natsu's cat said that you have orange and lavender party streamers."
"Oh, let me go get them for you," Hinata replied as she turned to go retrieve the streamers. Alone, Harold and Inoichi began to talk amongst themselves.
"Did you get Hiashi's granddaughter anything?" Harold asked Inoichi.
"Were we supposed to?" Inoichi relied in a mildly confused tone.
"Well my grandnephew, your grandson and your granddaughter each got Hiashi's granddaughter a gift," Harold pointed out, "And since we're here, we should have gotten something for her."
"…You think it would piss Hinata off if the two of us just pooled some money together, put it in an envelope, and handed it to Natsu as a joint gift from the two of us?" Inoichi asked.
"I thought that the two of you were here because you were escorting Haru, Shikaru and Inohime," Hinata's voice said from behind the two older men, making them jump and turn to see Hinata standing right behind them.
"Holy geez, Hinata, you're one hell of a ninja if you can sneak up on us like that," Inoichi remarked.
"I wasn't really expecting the two of you to get anything for Natsu," Hinata said, "But if the two of you really feel obliged to do so, then I suppose the idea of an envelope of spending money isn't too bad an idea, given how last minute it is."
"Do you have an envelope we could use?" Harold asked.
"Let me go get one really quick," Hinata replied, turning around to walk to a hallway closet. Opening the closet door, Hinata reached in, pulled out a small box of business envelopes, took one out, put the box back where she got it, closed the closet door, then walked back over to the two older men and handed them the envelope. "This should work," Hinata said.
"Thank you very much, young lady," Inoichi said as he and Harold received the envelope. After Hinata took her leave to help oversee the decorating for the party, Harold took out a pen from his flask jacket.
"We should sign our names on the envelope, so that Hiashi's granddaughter knows that it came from us," Harold suggested.
"Wanna also draw some doodles on the envelope?" the Yamanaka patriarch suggested, "You know, for decoration?"
"Hells yeah, man!" Harold agreed as he and Inoichi proceeded to stark working on the envelope. The two older men would be of the opinion that they had made the single most awesome-looking envelope in the entire history of envelopes.
Later, everyone was around for Natsu's birthday party. After everyone enjoyed cake, punch and the like ("A darn good thing I made sure the party foodstuffs were on the proper table!" declared Pantherlily), the party moved to Natsu opening presents, at the suggestion of some of the adults. The first gift that Natsu decided to open was a gift from Tsume Inuzuka, surprisingly enough.
"Yeah, my Ma couldn't come because she dropped something heavy on her foot by accident," Kiba explained to Hinata as Natsu looked at the wrapped gift from the Inuzuka matriarch.
"It seems to be a video game of some sort," Hinata remarked to Kiba as the birthday girl proceeded to open the gift. It was, in fact, a video game. One for one of the platforms Natsu owned that wasn't her handheld system. But Hinata didn't quite seem to like the new game that Natsu got from Tsume.
"I-is that an M for mature-rated horror-survival game?!" Hinata exclaimed, looking very ticked.
"Yeah, those are the kind of games Ma tends to favor," Kiba remarked, obviously looking rather embarrassed, "Ma probably figured that your daughter would like it." Natsu set the gift from Tsume aside, unsure of how to react to it (Natsu didn't want to seem rude or unappreciative, since someone went through the trouble of getting her a gift).
"I'm probably going to have to ask your mother to take the gift back," Hinata whispered to Kiba, "That is NOT the kind of game I want my daughter to play. She turns twelve today, and that video game is for people seventeen and up!"
"You think your nephew would like it?" Kiba suggested.
"Not now, Kiba," Hinata replied as Natsu continued to open gifts. At Inohime's prompting, Natsu decided to open the gift from her next. It was an eight-inch-tall plushy of princess Twilight Sparkle from My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic (the Twilight plushy had wings).
"Both Natsu onee-chan and Princess Twilight are very smart and very pretty," Inohime said, "So Natsu onee-chan should have Princess Twilight plushy!"
"Aww, that's so sweet!" Natsu remarked, "Thank you, Inohime." Natsu ruffled the top of Inohime's head, making the young Nara girl giggle cutely.
Over where Harold and Inoichi stood, Inoichi whispered to Harold, "I told you that she'd like the gift Inohime got her."
Setting the Twilight plushy on top of the video game from Tsume, Natsu proceeded to open the gift from Haru. She was surprised to see the Komasan plushy and two bags of gummy worms spill out from the wrapping paper. "I was kind of worried that the plushy on its own would be kinda cheap," Haru explained, "So I threw in a few bags of what I was told is one of your favorite candies."
"Thank you, Haru," Natsu replied, "And yes, non-sour gummy worms are one of my favorites."
"Oh, oh, open the gift from Harold and me next!" Inoichi said as he raised his hand up.
A confused look on her face, Natsu scanned the table of presents until she found an envelope with 'From Harold Fisher and Inoichi Yamanaka to Hiashi's granddaughter' written along the top. Covering the rest of the front of the envelope were various doodles; there was one of a muscular man firing a machine crossbow at a bear, one of Harold slaying a dragon (an arrow labeled 'Harold' was pointing at the stick figure), one of Inoichi kicking a Kumo ninja in the groin (both stick figures were pointed out by arrows that were labeled 'Inoichi' and 'Kumo ninja' respectively), one of Fluttershy (which was rather good, by the way), and there were lots and LOTS of doodles of cans of Pape Konoha's Brand Lager.
As Natsu examined the front of the envelope, Naruto and Sasuke both got a quick look at the envelope. But that was all either of them needed. "That is the single worst-looking envelope I have ever seen in my entire life," Sasuke whispered to Naruto.
After watching Natsu open the envelope, revealing a decent amount of ryo, Naruto whispered to Sasuke, "At least they gave her a good bit of spending money."
The Uchiha patriarch nodded in response as he and Naruto watched Natsu open the gift from Naruto himself. "Oh! A Volcarona plushy!" Natsu exclaimed, "Volcarona is my favorite bug-type Pokémon!" Turning to face Naruto, Natsu said, "Thank you, father."
"Hey, you're welcome," Naruto replied with a smile, "I knew you'd like it."
"Hey Natsu," Shikaru said when the birthday girl looked to see which gift to open next, "Why don't you open the-"
"Hey, it's a gift from my grandfather!" Natsu interrupted, having not heard any of what Shikaru said. Taking the gift from Hiashi, Natsu opened it, revealing the Goodra plushy.
"Hey, it's a Goodra plushy," Bankai remarked in a mildly surprised tone, "I didn't know that there were plushies of Goodra."
"Me neither," Natsu replied, "And Goodra is a dragon-type, which is one of my favorite types of Pokémon." Facing Hiashi, who had joined Hinata, Natsu said, "Thank you, grandfather."
Nodding slowly, Hiashi said, "You're welcome. I'm just glad that you like it, and that you're enjoying today."
"I am, thanks," Natsu replied. Hearing the conversation between Natsu and Hiashi, Hinata could not help but smile. It was a small one, but it was there none the less.
That evening at the Uzumaki residence, after the party guests had gone home, Naruto and Hinata were sitting together at the dining table; Hinata was having another slice of cake, whereas Naruto had helped himself to another glass of punch. "Natsu went to bed rather early tonight, huh?" Naruto remarked to his wife, "You think the party had too much excitement for her?"
"I think Natsu heading to bed early is more due to the fact that it's raining," Hinata replied, "She always gets sleepy on rainy days, you know."
"Isn't that a trait that cats usually have?" Naruto asked in a curious tone, raising an eyebrow.
Nodding in the affirmative, Hinata replied as Naruto took another swig from his glass of punch, "I guess that's one of the reasons why Natsu likes cats so much."
"I think Natsu likes all of the gifts she got today," Naruto remarked, "With the possible exception of the video game that Kiba's mom got her. Although Natsu didn't give a clear response one way or the other to receiving the game."
"Yes, and that reminds me that I'm going to have to have a conversation with Kiba's mom tomorrow," Hinata replied.
As the parents talked, their daughter, now twelve years of age, was laying on her bed in her room, her loyal talking cat curled up on a cat bed located on the floor at the foot-end of the bed. On the shelf against the wall opposite of the bed, you could see the various plushies that decorated it. On one section of the shelf, you could see four of the plushies Natsu received today; from left to right, Twilight, Volcarona, Goodra and Komasan. The plushies of Volcarona and Goodra were turned slightly so that they were sort of facing each other, like they were about to hug each other.
END, CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Author's Notes:
(1) And yet Naruto thinks that every character in MLP: FIM is called Rainbow Dash.
(2) Inohime only covered one ryo of the cost; Inoichi covered the rest.
(3) In his best impersonation of Bane from 'The Dark Knight Rises'.
(4) Komasan is one of the various critters you can get in the first 'Yo-kai Watch' game. You auto-befriend one during the main storyline.
(5) Hiashi is one of those adults who thinks that every Pokémon is called Pikachu.