• CHAPTER THREE •
"You're here to see the final exam, right?" A curious voice rang, clad in childishness, though no less determined. The black haired boy twisted his gaze to face him, watching as Naruto performed lively strides, his arms stretched behind his head, his hair still dripping occasionally, from when he had fallen into the water during training. Around his chest, he only bore the shirt worn underneath his usual jacket, which had been tied around Yaruka's own waist, a disguise from the underwear threatening to drop from his hips.
"Huh?" Yaruka blinked, shaking away his forced fatigue. "Oh, yeah, I guess you could say I am." The reminder of the praise for Sasuke's potential match stung into his gut, and soon he forced out words of encouragement, though too careful if he could alter the story. His empathy toward the boy who is constantly ignored and belittled rose, until it settled upon his tongue. "I'm here to see you fight though, I guarantee you'll win." And it was the truth.
"Yeah!" The blond pumped his fist in the air with a squeal, earning a disapproving glance from Jiraiya. "I'm going to be the hokage, so I have to win!"
"Then I'll cheer you on." He smiled at the enthusiasm, though his eyes focused on his own appearance. His large shirt had been tied into a twisted knot at his belly, ensuring a grip onto his figure, as Naruto's bright orange jacket wrapped over to protect his waist. A reminder of his alien place within the world had been prompted. "Hey, Naruto? You don't happen to have some spare clothes, do you?" He had abandoned his jeans by the bush he had previously occupied, figuring he shouldn't stand out more than he already was. "I'm sorry to ask for this, but I don't have anything to wear. Would I be able to borrow something for the meantime?"
"Yeah, so let's hurry up and we'll get to my house in no time!" The child raced ahead, a spring to his sprint, his stamina not even budging, no sign of it ceasing ever arriving.
"Can I ask how you even ended up in those strange clothes?" Jiraiya interrupted.
"It's a long story, and I don't really remember much at all." He lied. His thoughts corrupted his mindset, a worry swelling within him, distracted by the thought that this dream had been merely an outlet of escape from his outer responsibilities elsewhere. He paused in his tracks, followed by the estranged glares of the young boy and the older man. "Hey, Naruto? Punch me. Really hard."
"Eh?" Naruto titled his head, a childlike manner to his movements, his arms dropping to his sides.
"Just- I need this, show me your strength, please." Yaruka lowered his desperate gaze, a slight shudder to his distorted reality. The young boy only blinked, a momentary response before he pulled his fist backwards, and launched it to Yaruka's cheek. He stumbled, a slight daze to his eyes, before he shook himself awake and rubbed the attacked location. His eyes widened, and he blinked almost uselessly at nothing.
"You kind of suck." He teased, releasing an uneasy smile.
"But you said I'm gonna win!" Naruto stretched a finger accusingly to the black haired male, a challenging stride to his actions, as he just about prepared to pounce. Yaruka laughed, more to himself, and began to trudge to meet with Jiraiya, who stood only slightly ahead, and flicked the blonds nose with his index finger.
"Not like that, you're not." Good to know this isn't exactly a dream. The old man beside them burst into a fit of laughter, a grin stretched onto his face. Despite his perverted hobbies and attitude, Yaruka had grown to admire him, throughout the series, and couldn't help but contemplate the strength of the sage in experience to this reality. The three returned to walking at a solid pace, before Yaruka sparked up another purposeless distraction. "How about you, Master Jiraiya? Can you punch me, please?"
"You're quite polite for a brat." The man shrugged. "But no, I'm not punching any kids."
"But I'm not a kid!" Yaruka almost protested.
"Erm." A cough erupted from Naruto, who walked at a dog like trot beside him. "So, how'd you know my name?" He really is unobservant.
"Jiraiya said it as you found me." Yaruka rolled his eyes, gesturing an open palm to the older male on the opposing side, who only glanced at the response of his name.
"And how do you know the pervs name?" The child raised his eyebrows, his arms a pretzel at his chest.
"I told you, squirt. I'm famous!" The sage raised his fist to retort, a grin, though with an angered gaze, plastered to his face.
"And what's yours? You know us but you still haven't told us who you are."
Should I tell them? He gulped a nervous lump dwelling in his throat. Will it do anything if I tell them? What if I alter the story? Yaruka hadn't noticed he had stopped, earning yet another set of stares from the other two. A shadow clouded his thoughts, a contemplation of ill fated dangers and possible outcomes resting within his very mind, decided by his very hands. They'll get suspicious if I keep too much of myself a secret.
"Kid?" Jiraiya's muttered voice became his wake up call.
"Huh? Oh." Yaruka inhaled deeply. "My name is Yaruka, Yaruka Hidemichi." Naruto nodded in understanding, his eyes still on the stranger loosely sandwiched between him and the sage. The black haired male shuddered under the pressure, a bead of sweat pooling at the back of his neck. Naruto's eyes wondered from his face, to his bust, then lingered by the lower features of his body. Yaruka grew red, and snapped his attention to growl at the boy, opening his mouth to yell, though had already been interrupted by the child himself.
"Where's your headband? Are you not even a genin?" So he'd been looking for a headband, Yaruka sighed to himself, the anger drowning from his grudged mind. He flashed an anxious smile, scratching his shrunken fingernails against the creases of his bottom lip.
"You could say that." He shrugged, a casual action to his reply. Naruto had begun to point his index finger, outstretching his arm until his finger had slightly brushed against Yaruka's ear cartilage. The dark haired male inched his face away cautiously, a slight fear of being touched by either characters.
"Then let's fight! Show me your skills!"
"I don't have any!"
"How? That's a stupid lie, you have to show me!"
"I'm not good at anything, I have never trained in my life!"
"You what!?"
"Shut up, brat." Grumbled the old man, who'd barely made an effort to speak. Naruto only stuck his tongue out, returning his arms to his chest, and sticking out his lip to a pout. Neither males had spoken after the interaction, an awkward tension dancing over their heads. Yaruka lifted the weight of his gaze, until he was able to scan each individual blemish along the mans skin, a certain method to convincing him of the reality he stood in, had been his actual reality. A pressure beneath his skin reminded him of his own needs.
"Um," Yaruka coughed, "Can you point me to where you can buy ramen then, please? I'm quite hungry." Truthfully, Yaruka already had a common idea on where to find the place, though requited a strong urge to break the silence. The energetic boy jumped in his steps, offering to show him in a voice too fast paced to process. Jiraiya released a clear sigh, reminding the boy of the original plans for a bath, and he soon grew tense from changing something so carelessly.
•••
"I heard Iruka sensei is good with teaching." Yaruka's voice held at a distinct muffled volume, the forgotten hunger now aware and demanding. He forced another mouthful of ramen, with his previous batch still a complete solid. Barely leaving any room to chew or swallow, he cleaned the bowl with almost a vacuumed inhale, a competitive pace compared to Naruto's natural eating speed.
"Where'd you hear that?" The genin returned the mumble, mouth just as full, though no surrounding customer appeared to be bothered by it.
"Where I'm from, the hidden leaf village is very famous."
"Oh yeah? For what? Where are you from?" Naruto placed the ceramic upon the wooden surface he leaned over, his eyes wild with questions. Yaruka furrowed his brows, a sudden regret to his words, as he contemplated a reveal, his time thinking cut short by the eager child beside him.
"I don't know if I can tell you."
"What? Why not?" Naruto brought his bottom lip to stick from his face, his brows creased to form a line. Yaruka hadn't replied that time, and only listened to the child squabble, Jiraiya scolding him. The black haired male closed his eyes, bringing the remaining pieces of his ramen within his bowl to his lips, a slow pace to his feed.
"Thank you for letting me borrow your clothes, by the way. I'll repay the favour someday." He bowed in his seat, a sigh to his words, as both Naruto and the older male seemed to pause at their petty argument. Naruto blinked, his blue eyes empty, before a grin stretched upon his face, and he leant to close the distance between him and Yaruka, who inched away anxiously,
"Repay it by fighting me!" Naruto exclaimed at a loud volume, his eyes now bright with an eagerness Yaruka was close to fearing. He opened his mouth to scold the boy, before Jiraiya grumbled beside them, reminding them of his presence, who Yaruka had forgotten about carelessly.
"Idiot, if he's not even an academy graduate, then what's the point?" Jiraiya slapped the back of the blond's head, though gently, and Yaruka revealed a soft smile to the interaction.
"But he's always asking me for favours!" Naruto countered, now leaning to yell at the sage, who hadn't budged.
"Please accept my apology." Yaruka brought a finger to scratch his lower lip, avoiding eye contact with the two males beside him. "I'm not even worth fighting, we do nothing like what you do back home." He placed the chopsticks within his bowl.
"Speaking of home," Jiraiya sighed, "I need to get going. See you, kids." Yaruka jumped from his seat to follow him, much at the confusion of Naruto, though a sudden thought crossed his mind, and he scolded himself mentally of allowing it to slip.
"Before you leave, Master Jiraiya, is there a hotel you'll be willing to point me to?" The black haired male gripped the hem of the sages vest, though recoiling at the contact. He feels so real, Yaruka panicked, swallowing an anxious doubt within his throat.
"Well, how much do you have to spend?" The elders voice interrupted him from his sweat inducing panic, and he only stared at the sage with empty expressions.
"How much..?" A reality check slammed itself to Yaruka's skull. "Oh, I don't have any money."
"Then what was the point in asking, brat!?"
"Forget it, I hope the trees are safe to sleep in." Yaruka scoffed, charging in the direction he assumed to be where the training grounds had been located. Trees were a widely common appearance within that area, and the boy assumed it to be a simple place to disguise himself within, though the resting doubt of sleeping so open had forced him to worry once again. A large hand forced his own arm to stretch out, before a handful of small metallic pieces fell into his palm.
"Here, this should be enough for a night. Get yourself a job, squirt."
•••
Yaruka pressed his back against the comfort resting upon the grounds surface, his hands pressed to his face. Whatever nightmare, fever dream, or wicked curse he's experiencing, he is sure to return to his home eventually. Though, despite his age within this reality, and his misplacement within his favourite series, he began to wonder if it was even worse returning home. But, would the outer world be paused whilst he's missing? The girl he had planned to meet, perhaps understood he had stood her up, as surrounding witnesses would have described, and perhaps would acknowledge his wasted time among the world.
Tears had fallen down the warmth of his cheeks, by then, soaking the palms of his hands as he disguised the chokes of his sobs with the mere sniffling of his nose. It wasn't as if he cared where he was at all, though the confusion fighting within his mind had distracted him from the worst for too long. Perhaps, as the following day rolled by, he'd take the time to search for applicable answers.