I have to apologize for the incredibly long wait. I've been lacking inspiration for this story, but after watching a few Shippuden episodes yesterday, I think I can actually write this chapter. Also, I'm sorry for the abrupt ending to the last chapter. I hope this one makes up for it. Thank you so much for reading.
Thanks to Morcalivan7, InARealPickle, BigfootSighted, injuiin-luna, wolfkun, starlightscribe, and drake999 for your reviews. I still don't own the Naruto characters. Enjoy!
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It took Naruto a second to realize what he had done. He glanced around quickly to make sure no one had noticed, then looked back at Iruka-sensei who was eyeing him quizzically.
"Do I know you?" the jounin asked, peering under Naruto's hood. Naruto motioned his former sensei into an alley and ducked inside, checking to make sure no one was following them. Shikamaru grabbed his arm and leaned to whisper in his ear.
"Naruto, I've got to get to the Academy. I'll meet you at my place later. You okay?" Naruto nodded and Shikamaru left, lazily making his way to the Academy. Naruto turned back to look at Iruka, whose eyes had gone wide and whose mouth had dropped open.
"N-Naruto? Did he call you Naruto?" Damn Shikamaru and his loud mouth, Naruto thought. He plastered his trademark grin on his face and pulled his mask down, revealing his face but leaving his hair covered.
"What can I say? You just can't get rid of me," If possible, Iruka-sensei eyes grew even wider.
"B-but you were… I saw you and…." Iruka's eyes filled with tears and he reached out to grab Naruto's shoulder as if to reassure himself that he was real. "Is it really you Naruto?" Suddenly Naruto found it impossible to speak around the massive lump in his throat. He hadn't expected to be affected so much by seeing his sensei again, but he had obviously missed him more than he thought. He nodded slightly,
staring at the ground. The next thing he knew he had been pulled into a tight embrace and, to his great surprise, he was hugging his friend back.
Eventually Iruka pulled back and looked intently at Naruto. They now stood at almost the same height, looking each other directly in the eyes. "What happened?" he choked, noticing that the younger shinobi wasn't returning his gaze.
"Um… I'd rather not tell you here. Is there anywhere we can go?" Iruka looked around as if realizing where they were for the first time.
"Of course. We can go to my apartment." Naruto pulled his mask back over his nose and followed Iruka-sensei out of the alley and down the road.
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It was getting dark by the time Naruto finally left Iruka's apartment and headed toward Shikamaru's home. His friend was probably wondering where he was by now, and Naruto didn't want to keep him waiting too long. He walked down the road, going over his conversation with Iruka in his head.
At first they had stuck to events in the village and how everyone was. Iruka was excited about some new students in the academy who showed a lot of promise, and slightly less enthusiastic about one or two of them. Naruto was more than a little shocked to find out that Konohamaru and his teammates had passed the latest chuunin exam, but when he thought about it, it made sense. They would be fourteen now, definitely old enough to have taken and passed the exam. Still, it sparked a little bit of his old competitiveness to know that the kid who had once looked up to him now outranked him.
The closer Naruto got to Shikamaru's, the slower he walked. The events of the day were beginning to sink in, as was the realization that tomorrow he would have to explain to the Hokage and Shikamaru what had happened during his years away. He had come close to telling Iruka everything, but had merely explained his capture and the fact that he had eventually escaped and made his slow way back to the village.
Soon Naruto realized that he couldn't delay his arrival at the Nara home any longer. He walked hesitantly up to the door of the medium-sized house and knocked quietly on the door. He barely had time to move his fist before the door swung open, revealing an older version of Shikamaru. Naruto had only seen Shikamaru's father a few times, but there was something about seeing him there that really drove home the fact that he had returned. He floundered for a few moments before finding his voice.
"Um… I think Shikamaru is expecting me…."
"Ah, you must be Kizake. Come in; he's upstairs." Naruto nodded his thanks and swallowed hard, hoping he could make it to his friend's room before he broke down.
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I'm sorry it's short again, but I'm going out of town for the next five days and I wanted to go ahead and post what I had so far. I'll be working on the next chapter while I'm gone, but I won't have internet access so I should have something to post shortly after I get home.
Sorry it's moving so slow, but I'm trying to give little insights into Naruto's mind without giving everything away yet. I hope it's not too boring. Again, I'm sorry for the long wait. Thank you for reading.