Chapter Four- Kawaki

Finally summer arrived and with it, more time with Boruto. With him having no school he was around a lot more, every day and for longer hours. We spent nearly all of our time on the beach and walking along it whenever we weren't surfing. He was a quick learner and had gotten even better during the spring. I was honestly glad he was out of school because I did like being with him. He was a lot better than anyone else I hung around and lately I wasn't even meeting with Iwabe more than once a week.

Raiko and I weren't on good terms so we were both avoiding each other and Iwabe was the only one who bothered checking up on me every so often, but I was spending most of my free time with Boruto. I liked him and his family. They were different from anything I was used to. I'd never felt so comfortable anywhere else, not since I didn't have a home anymore. Since the cliff incident, Boruto had kept true to his word and steered clear of strangers and didn't do any exploring without me.

Recently we'd started walking the boardwalk as well, checking out all the different shops. Some days we'd stop for ice cream or spend a while at the arcade, but that was about all we were doing. Neither one of us had ever really messed around at the arcade so we had fun getting used to it and when I was at home by myself, I found myself drawing my friend. Even though when he asked me I turned him down, I'd already drawn him several times since then. Whenever I managed to draw the perfect version, I would gift it to him.

Boruto was still painfully innocent, annoyingly oblivious but I knew those traits only made me like him more. He was so different from everyone else and that's why I couldn't help but worry about him. The urge to see to his well being was strong enough to irk me, but I never bothered fighting it. One day was all it had taken for me to fear him getting into trouble. We were having a lot of fun over the summer but it was flying by.

We were sitting on the beach tonight. It was past midnight but we both liked the beach at night and we'd been staying out late almost every night since the summer had begun. We'd both been quiet for a while, just staring out at the moon looming over the ocean. I could tell Boruto was brooding about something, but I didn't feel the need to question him. I wasn't prepared for what was on his mind.

"I don't want to go back to school." He sighed and then looked at me curiously. "Say, how come you're not in school?"

"Why don't you want to go back?" I asked thoughtfully.

He fell back so he was laying on the sand and turned his blue eyes back to the stars. "Cause it was so much fun hanging out . . . and I'm probably going to get stuck in the same class as Hajime."

I raised a brow at the unfamiliar name. "Who's that?" I asked, already knowing Boruto wasn't a fan of whoever it was.

"Just some jerk who almost everyone likes for some reason." He huffed and then added, "Although I will get to go back to pet club and see Metal and Shikadai at least."

"It doesn't sound like you like him." I hummed, feeling certain he would enjoy being back at school even if he didn't think so.

He held his hand up to the sky before replying. "Hate is a strong word, but he makes me want to use it."

"Why?" It wasn't like him to feel such a way towards someone, so I couldn't help being curious.

"He's a bully." He stated simply. "I don't know what I did, but he doesn't like me either."

I didn't like the thought of someone bullying him but there wasn't much I could do about it. "Don't take any shit from him." I told him seriously. "If he kicks your ass I'll be pissed at you."

He turned his head towards me and dropped his hand. "What?! Why would you be mad at me?"

"Isn't it obvious?" I rolled my eyes at him. "Stand up for yourself and beat the shit out of him if you need to."

He blinked at me before he started laughing. "I like that solution, but it'd be better if I didn't. Hajime doesn't hit me or anything though, he just has a big mouth."

"I said don't take his shit and I meant it. You're already pissing me off." I scoffed and laid back on the sand beside him.

He sighed again. "It's not that easy. He likes it when I insult him back, it's really weird."

"If you'd kick his ass one good time it would shut him up." I muttered, already over this guy.

He chuckled and turned the conversation back on me. "Is that how you dealt with bullies?"

"If I ever needed to." I admitted. Taking shit was not something I believed in. "I hope you don't let the guy run over you. If you do… I'll have no choice but to knock you the fuck out."

Boruto sat up and leaned over me, blond hair full of sand. "Oh yeah? Think you can take me?" He asked, eyes full of amusement.

I laughed and tackled him onto his back in the next instant. "I know I can." I taunted him, enjoying the moment as much as he was.

He grinned cheekily and kicked my leg out from underneath me for more leverage, flipping us back over. "Not so fast! I got moves."

I had to force myself not to roll my eyes. "You're such a dork." I mused knowing I could never bring myself to hurt him. I'd probably let him kick my ass and I wasn't sure why.

"A dork you hang out with so what does that make you?" He asked before answering his own question. "A bigger dork."

I shrugged and flipped him back onto his back a little rougher than I intended. "Dork, really? I guess." There was no sense in arguing about it.

He laughed and his gaze looked me over. "You're covered in sand."

"So are you, asshole." I smiled and moved off of him, sitting back up and looking back out over the ocean. "Seriously though… you only have a week left huh?"

He sat up as well and brushed his hands through his hair to get the sand out. "Yeah . . . it's gonna suck because now I'm used to seeing you everyday."

"I'll come see you most days." I muttered without thinking about it, surprising myself.

"Really? I'll have to do my homework first if you come during the week." He said. "It'd be easier if we went to the same school and I could see you everyday there too . . . and copy your homework."

I laughed and glanced over at him. "What if you didn't want to be copying mine?" For all he knew I could have really sucked at anything school related. "Guess we'll never find out. My aunt would never go for putting me back in public school."

"How come?" He asked curiously.

Him and his billion questions… "Does it matter?"

"I guess not . . . so you don't do anything school related?"

Figuring it wasn't a big deal if he knew, I told him, "I'm homeschooled."

"Oh. Is it better than public school? I always wondered what that would be like." He said and folded his legs.

"For me, definitely. For you, no. You're too curious to be home all the time." I sighed, laying back again and closing my eyes. "I always hated school… but I guess if I got to go with you it wouldn't be so bad."

"That's because I'm fun." He said and I could hear the smile in his voice. "I wish you could . . . it would be great to have you there."

I wondered if it would be a horrible idea to bring it up. Deep down I knew it wouldn't be good for me and I would more than likely get into trouble some way or another but for some reason, I felt like I wanted to go. Maybe I only wanted to keep an eye on Boruto or maybe I was worried about being bored with him at school most of the time. I wasn't sure what it was that had me interested, but the next day I brought it up to my aunt.

She didn't like the idea at all and went on about how she couldn't trust me with a bunch of kids my age and how she wasn't going to have anything to do with me anymore if I got locked away again—as if she had anything to do with me now. She ranted for a good hour before I left the house, not willing to listen to her shit any longer. Sometimes she was a complete bitch. Maybe I'd changed. Maybe I wouldn't be so bad and it was possible that I could avoid trouble.

Okay, maybe I couldn't but that didn't mean I didn't deserve another chance. Right?

For the next two days, I stayed pissed about her attitude but when Boruto questioned me about it, I didn't tell him what was on my mind. He would probably just get worried and make things worse by questioning me endlessly. I didn't want that and so I tried to keep myself and him distracted as much as I could.

The next day when I woke up and left my room to leave for the day, she stopped me. She didn't look happy, so I was expecting an argument, but instead she admitted that she'd been thinking about the school situation since it had come up and thought it might be best for me to be back in a school setting instead of teaching myself every day. She would register me under the condition that I stayed on my best behavior and I told her that I would do my best.

It had really taken me by surprise and I couldn't wait to tell Boruto. When I made it to the beach that day he wasn't there, so I wandered down towards his house. He wasn't on the beach anywhere so I jogged up to his house and knocked on the door. Boruto's dad was the one who came to answer the door which had me backpedaling in surprise. He was never home when I came by and I hadn't expected him to be now.

"Uh, hey. Is Boruto home?" I asked, staring at his face that looked like a future Boruto.

He studied me for a moment before smiling. "So you're Kawaki? Nice to meet you, please come on in. Boruto's waiting on his mother." He said and stepped aside.

I walked in, accepting the invitation while wondering what Boruto was waiting on her for. "Why?" I asked before I could stop myself.

"They're arguing about lunch." He chuckled as we went to the living room.

"Mom, I'm going to be late." Boruto whined, his voice carrying from the kitchen. I could hear his mother's voice but couldn't tell what she was saying. "He doesn't need one, we can just share mine if he's hungry."

"Oh." I nodded, finding this the typical Boruto, and even his mother. "I'll just wait here." I said, making myself at home on the couch.

Boruto's dad sat in the recliner. "Wise decision. Boruto is fighting a losing battle."

"That's nothing unusual." I smiled. "It must be nice for you to have some time at home, huh?" He was always working it seemed.

"Definitely. I'm trying to get more days off and it's looking good, so we'll see how it goes." He said and returned my smile. "Any big plans today? I heard about you and Boruto surfing and I admit I'm jealous. Sounds like fun."

I nodded. "It's a lot of fun and he's gotten pretty good. I don't know what we're doing today. I'll just leave it up to Boruto."

He chuckled. "That could be dangerous, a fifty fifty chance between a good idea and a bad one. My son is impulsive for sure, but I'm sure you two will be alright judging from the countless stories he tells me."

Boruto was so excitable. It was really cute but sometimes annoying as hell. Just as I thought that he came hurrying out of the kitchen, a big brown sack in his hands. I stood up before he ran out without spotting me and his eyes landed on me and widened in surprise.

"Yo."

"Hey!" He grinned. "Sorry I took so long, mom made you lunch."

"Thanks for lunch, mom!" I yelled, grinning at Boruto as I waved to his dad on our way out. As soon as we got outside I stopped him with a hand laying on his shoulder. "Guess what, man."

His expression brightened, excitement clear on his face even though he had no idea what I was talking about. "What? Tell me, tell me."

"My aunt agreed to register me for school." I told him without hesitation and watched as his blue eyes widened.

"No way! That's so awesome!" He exclaimed. "Kawaki, I really hope you get put in my class."

"Yeah that would be cool." I agreed and we started walking towards the beach. I supposed we weren't surfing today since neither one of us were wearing our wetsuits. "And I can keep an eye on you." I snorted.

He shook his head. "Why do you always assume I'm going to cause trouble?" He asked with a laugh.

"Because." I muttered, shoving my hands in my pockets as we walked down the beach. "But I'm not any better than you, really."

"Does that mean I have to keep an eye on you?" He teased. "Oh, you get to meet Shikadai and Metal too."

I was already over hearing about those two. "Hm." I rolled my eyes but looked away so he wouldn't notice. "Been a long time since I was in school." I wondered if it was even possible for me to attend without having to kick anyone's ass.

The next few days flew by and before I knew it, the first day of school arrived. I'd just barely managed to get registered and get all the supplies I needed to attend. I didn't get my schedule until the morning of when I had to meet the principal. It was mine and Boruto's first year of high school and I wasn't sure if we'd have any classes together or not but when I found my way to my first class and walked in, he was the first thing I spotted.

He was sitting next to a boy with a short ponytail, engaged in conversation and having yet to notice me. I walked over silently, ignoring all the looks I was receiving from the other students. I sat down in the open seat next to him and he turned to glance at me.

"What do you know." I mumbled, smirking at him.

He grinned widely. "Funny meeting you here."

I shrugged and leaned back in my chair, wondering what this school year would entail. "This feels weird as fuck."

"I bet." He laughed and introduced me to his friends. "Guys, this is Kawaki."

"What's up, I'm Shikadai." The boy with the ponytail said and the guy in front of him introduced himself as Metal.

Metal was giving Boruto a look before turning back to me. "It's about time we met the Kawaki. You're all he talked about every Monday last year."

Only Monday? "Really?" I laughed. He must have always been excited after the weekends.

"I was just telling them what we did." Boruto explained after giving Metal a dirty look. "I don't see what he's complaining about, I listen to him talk about his training all the time."

"You both are always going on about something." Shikadai said fondly. "Luckily I'm a good enough friend to pay attention."

It felt weird being in a classroom surrounded by a bunch of kids my age but I wasn't necessarily uncomfortable. Soon enough the teacher entered and we all had to introduce ourselves. The first day was moving smoothly and then lunch came. Boruto and I stayed close to each other, getting our trays together and then going to sit at an open table together before Shikadai and Metal would undoubtedly join us.

Instead of them though it was a few girls who ended up taking the open seats at our table. One of them had blond hair that was a lot lighter than Boruto's and she leaned close to him, smiling brightly. "Boruto, you haven't introduced me to your friend."

"Uh, do I know you?" Boruto asked.

He wasn't trying to be rude but Shikadai and Metal snorted anyway as they walked up, not appearing to like the fact that their seats were taken.

"What? We had classes together last year." She pouted playfully and started rubbing his arm. "How was your summer?"

Boruto frowned and looked uncomfortable. "It was fine."

Metal and Shikadai sat at the table next to ours, watching everything unfold. I cleared my throat when one of the other girls scooted closer to me, feeling uncomfortable as well and losing my appetite immediately. I sighed and pushed my tray away, staring off at nothing. It probably wasn't a good idea to piss people off on the first day but I was finding it hard to not be a straight up asshole.

"Do you and your friend want to hang out after school?" The blond girl asked hopefully and I couldn't stop myself from scowling but I did keep my mouth shut while hoping Boruto answered like he had some sense.

"Sorry, but no. We already have plans." He said and looked at me, tilting his head to the table Metal and Shikadai were at. "Thanks for the offer though and it was nice seeing you again." He said before picking up his tray and going to the other table.

I followed him quickly, breathing a sigh of relief at being away from those girls. They would have needed not another minute to drive me up the damn wall. I still couldn't bring myself to eat anything but I was glad Boruto wasn't having the same problem.

"Yo, Kawaki. What the hell?"

I turned at the sound of Iwabe's surprised voice and stood up, bumping his fist in greeting. "I didn't know you went to school here." Apparently neither did Boruto judging by the look on his face.

"What's strange here is you being here. Not me." He laughed and leaned closer to me before adding, "Wanna sneak off and get high?"

That was tempting as hell but I wasn't sure how much more time we had for lunch and I didn't really want to risk getting kicked out on the first day… did I? After thinking it over for a moment, I shrugged. "I guess we could."

My eyes caught sight of Boruto's sour expression on my way off with Iwabe. It was wrong of us to be sneaking off and getting high during school hours but there was something thrilling about it. We got high as fuck but still managed to make it to our next classes on time. Or I did anyway. I took another open seat beside Boruto, surprised that we had all of our classes together. He was giving me a look that was far from happy and I just stared at him for what felt like forever, brows raised as I waited for him to tell me what his problem was.

He kept quiet as if he didn't want me to know what had crawled up his ass and died but he was pissing me off so I wasn't going to let it go. "Got a problem?" I asked, running my hand through my hair and kicking back in my seat.

He turned around with a pout. "Quit it. I don't have a problem . . . I'm just . . ." He sighed, not wanting to admit it. "Jealous." He said quietly.

"The hell kind of shit is that?" I frowned, never in a million years expecting that one. I thought he was pissed because I was getting high and then coming to class.

"Well you asked! I didn't even know Iwabe went here and then on your first day he's already dragging you away." He complained.

This was such typical Boruto shit. "He didn't drag me, I went because I wanted to. Relax. I came back." I grumbled and looked to my side at feeling someone staring at me. It was basically everyone on that side of me. What the hell? I looked back at Boruto and gestured to all my onlookers. "The fuck is up with these bitches?"

He looked at them, confused as well. "I don't know . . ." He waited for a few moments to see if they would stop and when they didn't he waved his hand in front of me to get their attention. "Hello, we're having class. Stop staring, it's rude."

"Weirdos." I grumbled but otherwise ignored them.

Soon enough our first day was over and Boruto and I walked home together. It wasn't the shortest walk, but we were always walking so it was no big deal. I had mixed feelings about school at this point. People were already getting on my nerves but I was glad all of my classes were with Boruto. We didn't have any homework today so we stopped by the arcade on our way home to kill some time.

"How come you never talked about all those clingy girls?" I asked, trying to think of a way to get rid of them.

Boruto shrugged. "That's the first time they ever came up to me. I guess that girl was in my class last year, but the only ones I really talked to was Metal and Shikadai. It was weird for sure."

Weird and annoying. I continued my game for a minute before getting bored of it and watching Boruto instead. It wasn't long before I started recognizing kids from the school piling in and I lost interest in the arcade for the day.

"Hey, let's get out of here." I said, grabbing my backpack and his.

He glanced at me for a second and died, the game over appearing on the screen. "Dang it! Alright, let's go."

I handed him his backpack and led the way out, not wanting to deal with any unnecessary people. "We could surf if you want. It's a nice day." I suggested as we started walking down the boardwalk.

"Okay. Will you teach me that one trick you did? The one when you grabbed the side of the board?" He asked eagerly.

I nodded, staring ahead as I walked. "Yeah I'll show you. We better check in with mom first."

"She'll say yes for sure if you ask." He chuckled. "So what did you think of your first day?"

"It was okay. Will be better if mom made something sweet today." I grinned at him. "How much do you wanna bet? I'm thinking cookies."

"I'll take that bet, loser has to do what the winner says for one whole day." He challenged. "You cool with those stakes? I think she made cake."

"Yeah, how could I pass up having you as my personal servant for a day?" I laughed. "I'm gonna wipe the floor with your ass."

He laughed as well before tossing me a cheeky grin. "I can't wait to see your face when you lose, Kawaki."

"Let's race the rest of the way then." I suggested and of course Boruto agreed.

We ran the whole way to his house but ended up making it at the same time and almost knocking each other over as we started up the stairs to the front door. We were both laughing as we stumbled inside and hurried into the kitchen. Hinata was just placing a plate loaded with cookies onto the table and I grinned wider than I ever had.

"Mom! How could you do this to me?!" Boruto groaned and Hinata gave him a confused look.

"What he means to say is thanks for making the cookies you promised us yesterday." I smiled warmly at her and patted Boruto on the back.

Boruto gasped and look between us in disbelief. "What! You totally cheated!"

"You were the one so eager to bet me." I snickered and went to sit at the table frowning when Hinata smacked my hand the instant it stretched out for a cookie. "Why?" I pouted, completely wounded by the rejection.

"Dinner first. And you boys need to wash your hands." She said with a smile. "Quickly now, hop to it."

"Ugh fine." Boruto and I both groaned as we left the kitchen and headed to the bathroom.

I waited while he washed his hands first and then shoved him out of the way to hurry and wash mine. We both rushed back to the kitchen to find his dad at the table, sneaking a cookie and I pointed at him in shock.

"Hey!" I snapped and elbowed Boruto so he would do something about this betrayal.

Naruto shook his hand in protest, but Boruto wasn't having it. "Mom! Dad's in the cookies!"

Hinata came back into the kitchen and Naruto looked at her sheepishly. "Hey, Honey."

"Naruto!" Hinata scolded and he winced. "Really now, I can't even trust my husband with a plate full of cookies around. I'm giving the boys half of your share."

"Hell yeah." I whispered victoriously and pulled Boruto to the table. "Maybe we should just hang out here today." I suggested when we were both sitting across from his dad. I couldn't help but love being at home with his family. They were a real family and it was nice being with them.

"Sounds good. Will you teach me the trick tomorrow?" He asked.

"What trick?" Naruto voiced, looking between us curiously.

Boruto turned up his nose and crossed his arms. "Traitors don't get to know." He said and Naruto shook his head, a smile on his face.

"It's true." I said quietly in agreement. "And yeah, we'll get on it tomorrow."

Boruto grinned in excitement as Hinata started placing the food out. "There will be a big storm this weekend so it would be better for you two to stay inside then. Naruto, I want you off that ship before it starts."

"I'll do what I can." He promised.

Boruto's room had a great view of the ocean, so I would probably invite myself over so we could sit in his room and watch the storm go on. I didn't know about him, but storms really fascinated me. The four of us ate dinner and then cookies before Boruto and I ran up to his room and started playing his game. It sure beat the hell out of going home to be by myself and for some reason, I was feeling lazy today.

I didn't make it further than one game before I laid back on his bead, so full I could barely move. I really overdid it and suddenly wanted nothing more than to take a nap. My eyes closed after a second and I was already drifting when Boruto suddenly plopped down beside me as if he weighed a thousand pounds.

"Stop it." I groaned and rolled onto my side, facing him. "I'm sleep."

"You're 'sleep'?" He giggled quietly. "If that's the case I guess you can sleepover. Hey, we've never had a sleepover before."

I nodded and yawned before grumbling, "Just a nap."

"Okay."

It was probably a little messed up that I came over, ate his food and now was going to take a nap in his bed but Boruto didn't seem to mind and I didn't give a damn. His bed was comfortable and it took me little to no time to fall asleep.

When I woke up it was late and Boruto was sleeping deeply beside me. I sat up and stretched, rubbing my eyes. It pissed me off knowing I had to go back to my aunt's place but I didn't have any clothes here at Boruto's. Not wanting him to wake up and think I ran off somewhere, I shook him awake and he sat up immediately as if I startled him.

"Hey, I gotta go home." I told him quietly.

He glanced out the window and then back at me. "Alright. Maybe you could spend the night over the weekend or something." He suggested.

I nodded and got out of bed. "Yeah, I wouldn't go home tonight if I had some clothes." I admitted and grabbed my backpack. "See you in the morning."

"See you." He smiled and laid back down."Bye Kawaki."

As soon as I got to my aunt's place, I passed out not bothering to shower until the following morning. It was a new day, the second day of my first year of high school. I needed to talk to Iwabe and get something to smoke considering I'd been out for a few days now.

After my shower I had to leave quickly or else I'd be late. I was hoping to meet with Boruto and walk with him this morning but I was running too late for that. I still ended up making it to class on time and it was a relatively good day. The whole week wasn't bad really until Friday rolled around and Boruto was late for lunch. We left our class at the same time but he did run off to the bathroom first. It still shouldn't have taken him long, so naturally I felt concerned.

Just as I stood up to go find him, I spotted him coming into the cafeteria, face contorted in a deep frown that I matched as soon as I saw him. I waited for him impatiently, eyes locked solely on him and urging him to tell me what happened as soon as he sat at my table.

When he never said anything, I scowled. "What's up, asshole?"

"Nothing . . . just ran into Hajime." He muttered and started playing with his food.

That bitch again? "The jerk?" I questioned, not liking the way my skin crawled at the thought alone. "What did he do?"

Boruto hesitated for a second, but told me anyway. "He was running his mouth, the usual. I thought I lucked out since he wasn't in our class but of course he's still around. I can't avoid him completely."

I pushed my tray away to concentrate on glaring at him. "Are you telling me you let him run his mouth?"

"Not at first." He insisted and glanced up at me.

"You bowed down to the fucker and let him have his way with you?" I shook my head in disappointment. "Now I'm pissed. What did I tell you?"

"But he gets weird when I talk back." He pointed out. "And I can't hit him if he doesn't hit me first."

"Who the hell told you that?" I gaped at him. "And weird how?"

He stopped playing with his food and furrowed his brow. "What, it's okay if I hit him first?" He asked and added, "I'm not sure how to explain it exactly, but it's creepy."

"If you let him hit you first I will beat the shit out of you." I warned and sighed. "He sounds like a bitch. Where is he anyway?"

Boruto took a quick look around the cafeteria. "He's not in here . . . I don't know where he went."

"Make sure you point him out if you see him." I told him, willing to put the bastard in his place if I needed to.

But he never came into the cafeteria and school ended without incident. Or so I thought, but when I finished talking to my teacher after class and went in search of Boruto I came across him outside right in time to see him knock the hell out of some guy with a strong right hook that impressed me. Feeling amused and proud at the same time, I walked over to him and looked down at the guy holding his bloody nose while laying on the ground.

"I'm so glad I didn't miss that." I hummed, laying my hand on Boruto's shoulder and meeting his eyes. "You really knocked the attitude out of his ass." I teased before looking down at the guy, gaze hardening. "I'm sure of it."

"That . . . felt pretty good." Boruto confessed with a chuckled.

"Of course it did." I laughed and wrapped my arm around his shoulder, pulling him along with me. "I brought some extra clothes by the way. So, I'm staying over tonight whether you like it or not."

Boruto's face lit up and he cheered, "Alright!"

I smiled to myself as we started walking a little faster. The storm was approaching quickly, dark grey clouds looming overhead. The smell of soon to come rain was thick in the air and I was tempted to suggest hanging out on the beach during it, but I knew his mom would kick our asses. It would still be nice to watch the storm from Boruto's room and his mom would more than likely have something nice to eat for us already waiting. I was really looking forward to spending the night at his place and I knew he was excited about it too.