Sinclair: Makukukukuku. I'll bet you all believed I we forgot you all right?

Kyo: I swear to the God of Anime that we didn't! Our computer broke and we couldn't get it fixed until this morning!

Sinclair: Yeah. Sorry. (doesn't really care all that much.)

Kyo: I woulda updated first since this was originally my account, but seeing as I drew instead of writing over my forced break, I've forgotten how and until I retrain myself, only Sinclair can. (sobs)

Sinclair: (smirks) The break was actually cool. We had fun. (insert leer) Enjoy my chapter!

Naruto sat on his sink, his most frequent perch in the last few days. It had been a few days since the ramen ran out, and without food it seemed best to stay by the sink, where the water was, seeing as soon he was certain that he wouldn't have the strength to get there on his own. The bathroom housed everything he really needed though. The sink, the shower, the toilet, the mirror.

Naruto lifted a handful of water to his lips, before turning once more to the mirror. He looked horrible, but that wasn't important. "Ohayo!" he chirped, smiling brightly. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto!"

His words echoed around the bathroom eerily, before he glowered at the mirror. No. Too weak. His eyes looked so… dead. He tried to force happiness into his eyes, but it didn't work. Deciding there was nothing for it, he closed his eyes, make his face look fox-like, before exclaiming his greeting once again, even louder to distract his invisible companion from any other mistakes he couldn't fix yet. After all, any noises he ever heard startled him, so it would probably startle other people too.

He squinted at the mirror, purposely turning his mind in every direction possible. No matter how sad or angry his thoughts made him, his bright smile didn't waver. Though the more intense the feeling, the more he'd squint his eyes. It worked, surprisingly enough. If he hadn't felt the emotions himself, he wouldn't have guessed they were there just by looking.

Amazing. Only a few days of nonstop practicing, and he'd created an almost perfect mask of what his mommy wanted. Maybe if he wore the mask long enough, it would get stuck, and he'd always be this way.

He cringed as a horrible pain overtook his abdomen. He wrapped his thin arms around it, doing his best not to cry out. He couldn't smile through pain, that much was certain, but he was pretty sure most people couldn't anyways. It bothered him to have a chip in his mask, but it would have to stay is until he could get a reprieve.

A pair of whispered voices reached his ears. His head snapped to the side, looking with suspicious eyes to the front door, which was directly across from the bathroom. He'd tried many times to open it, once he'd started to run low on food, but there was some sort of Jutsu on the sides (he'd seem the light when it was performed) that kept it as unyielding as a wall, even after he'd managed to unlock it.

The voices were male, obviously not his mommy's, but seeing as the only sounds he'd heard for such a long time were his own voice and the muffled noises from the streets outside his unlock-able window, he was all too eager to find the owners. Scrambling from his perch to the floor, nearly falling to his face, Naruto hurried to middle of the room. Were they here to help him? No, he hadn't ever known men who were nice to him. None that would help him. Maybe they were here to bring food? They did seem to be outside the door….

A thought suddenly struck him. This was his test! Mommy must've known he'd eventually figure out why he was there, and that's why she'd left. She knew he'd realize that he was supposed to get better, and so she left him alone to practice. Now these people would come, and Naruto would show his mask for the first time!

Fixing his new, beaming smile to his face, feeling self-conscious since it was the first time he'd practiced without a mirror, he watched as the Jutsu was dispelled with a poof. There was a moment of crushing silence, before the handle slowly lowered, and the door was pushed open.

Two men, maybe in their late teens, early twenties, walked in, eyes immediately falling on him. The shorter one had deeply tanned skin, and a scar over his nose. He also had dark brown hair in a ponytail, and green vest. The other wore the same clothes, but he had pale skin and white hair. Naruto had never met either of them.

The men seemed startled to find him standing directly in front of the door. "Hi!" he exclaimed, voice bouncing around the room. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki!"

X

Sinclair: Short and evil, as per usual. Hate me as much as you want, but be sure to review!

Kyo: You're mean, man….