"Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty." – Mother Teresa
Naruto could only watch, stunned, as Haru's hands hovered above Tsuna's wounds and glowed green. He shuffled a little closer to get a better view before grimacing at the damages. There were several cuts and bruises on Tsuna's arms and chest, his shirt torn to the point Naruto could see his stomach.
"Tsuna-kun, what happened?" Haru said. "Multiple lacerations and bruises, three broken ribs, a swollen eye. Explain yourself."
Tsuna's breaths turned less raspy as Haru moved her glowing green hands from his stomach to his chest. "Your bedside manner…is great as usual…"
He winced when Haru glared at him. "Tsuna, explain."
Naruto shivered and made himself scarce by standing at the doorway. If he learned anything from the Academy, it was that girls were scary, even scarier than the boys. Haru looked like she would actually kill Tsuna and Naruto wasn't sure what to think about that. He just stared at her green hands. The teachers never talked about green chakra—well, if they did, he must've never heard it. He thought chakra was only blue. But with the way Tsuna's wounds were disappearing, maybe the green chakra was good?
"Naruto-kun," Haru said, snapping him out of his thoughts, "can you get a cup of water from the kitchen for me, please?"
Naruto flinched when Tsuna briefly glanced at him from the couch and let out a breathless laugh. "I didn't know you had a kid," he muttered.
Finding a clean cup, Naruto poured some water in it from the sink with the help of a small stepping stool. He pursed his lips, almost afraid of what Haru would say. His small fingers barely encircled the cup so he had to hold it with two hands instead.
"Tsuna," Haru said softly, "this isn't about me. Tell me what happened."
Naruto handed Haru the cup and received a nod in thanks. He peered at Tsuna's wounds, which were mostly gone. "That's so cool, Haru-nee-chan," he blurted out. "How did you do that? Hey, what was that green thing around your hands? Is that some kind of special chakra? Can I do that, too?"
A bout of silence fell before Naruto realized what he had just said. Blushing, he looked down at his slippers, which were too big for his feet. He felt small, really small. And he hated it. "I'm sorry," he whispered.
He jumped a bit when Haru laughed. "It's okay, Naruto-kun," she said. The green glow around her hands disappeared. "You don't have to apologize. You can eat the crackers and milk in the kitchen, okay?" She winked. "I'll let you know when we're done so you can tell him what you wanted to say before, alright?"
Naruto knew when the adults had to talk. Jiji did that whenever he got a message or some shinobi wanted to talk to him. Even if Naruto knew it wasn't polite, he still couldn't help listening in. His curiosity got the better of him. When he carried the tray of crackers and milk to the kitchen table, he pretended to sit by pulling out the chair, making sure it was loud enough so Haru and Tsuna could hear, and tiptoed towards the wall that blocked some of the kitchen from view. Pressing his ear against the cool surface, he scrunched his nose.
Are they talking or not? he thought.
He couldn't pick up any sound. Were they having a staring contest or something?
"What?" Haru suddenly said. "They did what?"
Gasping, Naruto fell back onto his butt. Haru soon appeared, heading towards the door with terrifying eyes. "I'm going to kill them!" she said, reaching for the handle. "No, I'll harvest their stupid eyes and let them all rot!"
Naruto's eyes widened just as Tsuna grabbed Haru's wrist. "Haru," he said, "leave it."
Haru whirled around so quickly Naruto thought her neck almost snapped. "What? I can't just leave this alone, Tsuna-kun! They hurt you and now they're saying you can't see Nagi-chan anymore? What right do they have t—"
"They have the right," Tsuna said, eerily calm amidst Haru's fury. "They're her family."
Naruto furrowed his brows. Nagi? Who was Nagi? Was she another friend of theirs? Was she hurt? Did something happen between Tsuna and the Uchihas? Naruto huffed under his breath. Well, Sasuke was an Uchiha and he was all high and mighty about his skills, even if he was pretty strong, and Naruto had seen some of his family members. They looked pretty scary with their serious eyes and stern brow.
"But they still can't do that!" Haru said. "To you, to Nagi-chan!"
"Enough, Haru!"
Naruto flinched when Tsuna's voice rose. His heart pumped faster in his chest and he suddenly felt hot and cold all over. Tsuna sighed, his hand dropping like deadweight from Haru's wrist. He looked older than he seemed, like the shinobi sharing stories about their missions at the bar, all fresh-faced before they took their first shot of liquor and spilled tears and war onto the table. Naruto crawled a little closer despite himself, his palms sweaty against the wooden floors.
"Just leave it," Tsuna said tiredly. "Just leave it. There's nothing we can do."
Haru inhaled sharply. Her whole body trembled. "What do you mean there's nothing we can do? Why didn't you fight back?" She weakly shoved Tsuna's shoulders and he let her. "Why won't you fight back? Are you going to let them keep stepping over you like that? Don't you have any pride? What kind of man are you?" Her voice rose higher and higher until she was heaving for breath, her shoulder shaking from the effort.
Naruto covered his ears and screwed his eyes shut. He hated screaming. It was loud and it hurt. His neighbors did that all the time, preventing him from sleeping all night. It was never his fault that he was late to the Academy. He had reasons, but his teachers called them excuses. What was the difference? It didn't matter. At the end of the day, he was still the dead last.
A long, suffocating silence hung in the apartment. For a second, Naruto didn't think he was breathing. Slowly, he cracked one eye open and peered over his shoulder. Haru and Tsuna were still standing there, not saying a word. Tears streamed down Haru's cheeks, but she didn't move to wipe them away, her eyes focused on nothing but Tsuna's hung head. Finally, Tsuna gently pushed Haru aside and headed for the door.
"Thank you for healing me, Haru," he said quietly, his voice cracking the silence.
With that, he left the apartment as quickly as he had come. Naruto gaped as he closed to the door behind him. Glancing at Haru, the boy looked away when she swiftly wiped her tears away and gave him a shaky smile. "I'm sorry about that, Naruto-kun," she said. "You couldn't tell him."
"Why is he like that?" Naruto said, standing up. "Why…What's wrong with him?"
Haru tensed. "Ah, it's just…difficult."
"Is he going to be okay?"
"He'll be fine. He just needs more time."
Naruto wasn't convinced. To him, Tsuna looked weak, and not at all like he thought him to be. But there was still a small part of him that held onto the image of the man unhanding the shop owner's grip from Naruto's shirt, his frame oozing confidence and power.
"It's getting late, Naruto-kun," Haru said. "I can walk you home if you'd like."
Naruto shook his head. "I'm okay, Haru-nee-chan." He grinned widely. "Thanks for having me over! I'll see you around!"
He bolted out the door before Haru could respond. Dashing down the stairs, Naruto noticed that there wasn't any blood. How did Tsuna get in then? He burst through the doors and looked around wildly, hoping to catch the man.
Again, he had vanished like smoke.
"Naruto! Pay attention!"
Yelping, Naruto quickly straightened in his seat. "Um, forty-two!"
He blushed when the class started to laugh and grinned to save face. Scratching the back of his head, he squeaked when a chalk struck his forehead. He rubbed the sore spot, grimacing slightly. That hurt and it sucked that Ito-sensei was the one teaching. Wait, Ito-sensei?
"I'd rather have you focus more of your efforts in learning the names of the Hokages rather than on taking a nap in my class," Ito-sensei said, fixing his glasses. "You still haven't learned them, have you?"
Another round of laughter filled the classroom.
"Naruto's an idiot!"
"How can you not know who they are yet? It's been a year!"
"Stupid!"
"He's never going to become a shinobi!"
Naruto slammed his hands on the table as he stood up. "H—Hey! I'm going to become Hokage someday so you better keep your traps shut! I'll—I'll remember all your faces and you're going to pay!"
This only got him more laughter.
"Whatever," his classmate, Kiba, said. "Hokage or not, I'm going to be it first, dummy!"
"Eh, but you're pretty dumb, too, Kiba," Ino said, snickering.
Kiba flushed. "S—Shut up, you little pig!"
"D—Don't call Ino-chan that!" Sakura squeaked out.
"What did you call me?" Ino said, her eyes alighting with flames. "Say it to my face, you idiot!"
Shikamaru yawned. "Troublesome."
"Everyone, quiet!" Ito-sensei said. Silence immediately fell over the classroom. "Naruto, stand outside and think about what you've done. Take the bucket with you. I better not see you slack off."
"But—"
"Now!"
Arms aching, Naruto grimaced as he rolled his shoulders. Holding a bucket of water above his head wasn't his favorite punishment.
"I wasn't the one who talked a lot," he muttered under his breath, kicking a stray pebble. Most of the students were already gone, already picked up by their parents an hour ago. Ito-sensei made sure he got the Hokage's names down before he let him go. Naruto tugged his hair. "Argh, it's not fair! It's not my fault they have such long and weird names! Hashiramba—Hashino—Gah!"
"What are you doing?"
Naruto shrieked and fell backwards onto his butt. He gaped when he saw Sasuke crouched behind a bush, his brows furrowed. The other boy stared at him strangely. Naruto pointed a shaky finger at him. "Y—You! What are you d—"
Sasuke quickly hushed him, his finger against his lips. "Be quiet!" he said. "They're going to hear you!"
As if on cue, some girls ran by, their screams deafening to Naruto's ears.
"Sasuke-kun, where are you?"
"I brought more cookies! Can you try them for me?"
"Come out, come out, wherever you are!"
Naruto winced as they disappeared down the street. Huffing, he stood up and brushed the dirt off his shorts. "What, so you were hiding?" he said. "What a coward. They're just a bunch of girls."
Sasuke scowled at him. "I'm not a coward. You don't know anything so don't talk like you do!"
Naruto smirked. "So you do talk. Man, I thought you were like Shino or something."
"What are you talking about? Of course, I talk. What do you think I'm doing right now?"
Naruto shrugged. "I just don't see you talk a lot outside. It's kind of weird. Hey, was your voice always so squeaky?"
Red dusted Sasuke's cheeks before he composed himself. "My voice isn't squeaky. I'm just…not old enough yet."
"Huh? What does that mean?"
Sasuke stood up from his hiding spot. "Besides, what does that make you? Your voice is so loud and sounds like a horn!"
Naruto widened his eyes. "A—A horn? Why, you!"
He pounced on Sasuke and pushed him to the ground. They scuffled, tumbling around and scratching each other's arms like wild cats. Naruto gritted his teeth when Sasuke grabbed his arm and rolled over onto his back, pinning it down.
"Take that back!" Sasuke said, not letting go.
Naruto struggled in his grasp. "Let me go, pipsqueak!"
"No!"
"Then don't call me a horn!"
"Don't call me a pipsqueak!"
"I'm not taking it back until you let me go!"
"You first!"
"Nuh-uh, you first!"
They struggled some more until Naruto groaned and smacked his forehead on the ground. "Okay, okay, I give! Let me go! You're hurting my arm!"
Sasuke gasped softly before quickly releasing him. "Are you okay? I didn't mean to press it that hard."
Panting, Naruto rolled over until he lied on his back. The sky was blue, with hints of orange and purple streaking in the horizon. "Hey," he said. "Why aren't your parents here yet? I thought you'd be home by now or something."
Sasuke frowned at the sudden question. He looked down at his hands. "My brother picks me up."
Naruto perked up. "You have a brother?"
Sasuke looked at him weirdly again. "You don't know Itachi? Uchiha Itachi?"
Naruto hummed in thought. Maybe it was from their scuffle or the bucket punishment earlier, but his mind was blank and nothing came up, not even a face, and he was usually good with faces. "Nope. Doesn't ring a bell."
Sasuke gaped at him. "Why don't you—Do you live under a rock? My brother's, like, the strongest shinobi ever!"
Naruto sat up. "Eh? What are you talking about? The Hokage is the strongest shinobi!"
Sasuke scowled. "No! My brother's already in the ANBU and he's only 12!"
Naruto's jaw just dropped. ANBU were those weird people with animal masks that sometimes visited Jiji in his office. Jiji had told him that they were strong shinobi that he trusted with his life and that was saying something. But at 12? What was this kid saying?
"You're lying," he said. "Only strong people can be in the ANBU!"
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "That's my point! My brother's really strong!" He crossed his arms over his chest. "Why do you think he's in the ANBU in the first place, dummy? He was the smartest in his class in the Academy, too!"
Naruto made a face. "That doesn't mean anything."
Sasuke huffed. "Yes, it does. He graduated when he was 7."
Naruto widened his eyes. "S—Seven? We're only 6!"
Sasuke puffed his chest. "I just turned 7 in July."
Naruto scrutinized him for a second before his lips curled into a grin. "It's not like you're graduating or anything. You're still here, aren't ya?"
Sasuke turned red again. "S—Shut up!" He looked away. "My brother's better than me. I'm not smart or strong like him. That's why I have to train harder, so I can't get behind."
That sounded…really sad. Naruto tilted his head. He always thought Sasuke was a goody two-shoes. Everyone loved him and well, he wasn't that bad. Kind of annoying with all those fangirls but not bad. Shaking his head, Naruto crossed his legs. "Hey, I mean, your brother sounds cool and everything but it's not like you're him. That's kind of weird." He scratched his cheek. Kami, his words never seemed to come out right. "What I mean is, uh, you're…Sasuke. Not…Itami?"
"Itachi," Sasuke corrected. "Get it right, dummy."
"Whatever." Naruto waved him off. "You get what I mean, right?"
"No," Sasuke deadpanned.
Naruto scowled at him frustration. "And you're calling me the dummy? Look at you!"
Sasuke scoffed. "You don't even make sense. What am I supposed to do?"
"I don't know! Aren't you the smart one here? Figure it out! Make it make sense!"
"It doesn't even make sense in the first place!"
"I just told you to make it make sense!"
"You're—You're stupid!"
"Hah? Look who's talking! You can't even do something so easy like figuring out what I just said. A smart person would probably get it already!"
Both boys heaved for breath, glaring each other down. Soon, Naruto's lips twitched into a smile despite himself. Sasuke blinked before doing the same a bit shyly. A warm feeling spread in Naruto's chest. He didn't know what it was but it felt kind of nice. Weird, but nice.
"You're not too bad," Naruto said.
Sasuke smiled faintly. "You too."
Inhaling deeply, Naruto sighed out loud. A nice breeze kicked in then. "Hey, you're from the Uchiha Clan, right?"
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Yes."
"Is there a Nagi in your family? Or someone you know named Nagi?"
Sasuke tensed. "What do you mean?"
Naruto furrowed his brows. "I'm pretty sure I was clear there, I think."
Sasuke looked down at the ground, his bangs hiding his face. "Why do you want to know?"
"Just curious." Naruto tilted his head. "So do you?"
A bout of silence passed. Sasuke didn't speak for a while until he said, "Nagi-nee-chan is my cousin."
"Eh? Really?"
Sasuke nodded. "She's…really hurt now though. She's in the hospital. I don't know if she's going to wake up."
Naruto's breath hitched. His heart picked up its pace. "What do you mean she's not going to wake up?"
"That's what the doctors said. But Auntie said she'd be okay." Sasuke scowled at his feet. "Otou-san says there's no hope though. I don't know."
Naruto was almost afraid to ask the question. "What happened to her?"
Sasuke pursed his lips. "Why do you want to know anyway? Do you know her?"
"Oh, um." Naruto wasn't sure if he could tell Sasuke about Tsuna. Haru had even asked him to promise to keep their meeting a secret and stuff. "I just heard stuff. Do you know someone named Sawada?"
Sasuke looked up then, his eyes terrified, catching Naruto off-guard. "Don't say his name! It's bad luck."
Naruto blinked. "Bad luck?"
Sasuke nodded vehemently. "That's what Auntie and Otou-san said. Sawada Tsunayoshi is the reason why Nagi-onee-chan is in the hospital."
Naruto suddenly felt cold. "Hey, what are you talking about? You're joking, right?"
Sasuke furrowed his brows. "Why would I be joking? I'm not. That's what Otou-san said. He never lies."
Before Naruto could respond, someone walked up to the Academy gates. It was a young boy a few years older than them who kind of looked like Sasuke. His hair was in a low ponytail and he looked really familiar. Naruto tilted his head. Oh, he'd seen him around sometimes. He was pretty nice to him and even had helped him get some books he couldn't reach in the library. It wasn't like Naruto didn't read, he just liked looking at the pictures. Besides, the library was quiet and the lady there was nice to him, too.
Sasuke stood up and waved at the other boy. "That's my brother! I'll see you tomorrow, Naruto!" After taking a few steps, he paused. "If you see Sawada, run away. That's what Otou-san told me. You'll end up in the hospital like Nagi-nee-chan or…"
"Or?" Naruto said. "Or what?"
Sasuke looked away. "Be killed. Otou-san said his team died because of him. He killed them."
Naruto could only stare in silence as Sasuke ran over to hug his brother, grinning and chatting rapidly about Kami knew what. He blinked when Itachi gave him a slight smile before holding his brother's hand and walking away.
The sun was setting in the horizon, but everything looked hazy. Tsuna…wasn't a killer. He helped Naruto then. Killers didn't help kids. They didn't do that. They…just hurt people, right?
Still, a small part of him wondered, "Was he?"
A/N Oof, and the ball is rolling. Get ready, peeps. It's going to get wild. :^)
Thank you for reading! I hope to see you again in the next chapter.
Have a lovely day~
Little Miss Bunny
