Shikamaru – The Park

When I was almost 6 my father thought it was fine to leave me on my own in the park. My mother wasn't around to scold him so I wandered into the 'unsavory' parts I hadn't been allowed to visit before. The park is really one big plot of land divided by path that has trees lining either part of it. On side for the lower class, one side for the respected families – or at least that's how it turned out.

Being from a respectable ninja clan I'd heard stories about how I shouldn't talk to people on that side of the park – especially the little boy with the blond hair. He was a bad egg and that's why he had no family. It was too troublesome to wonder if there was anything special about him.

Due to the Kyuubi attack there were lots of orphans and I was told not to talk to most of them. I never noticed how they picked Naruto out on purpose – I just thought he was an example.

When I got to the other side of the park, I noticed how it was so much smaller and dirtier than the part where I would play. There was mostly dirt instead of grass and there was only a port-a-potty instead of the public toilets in the pavilion I'd always used.

Atop one of the grassier hills there was a tree. Seeing nothing better, I headed over to see if I could get a better view. About halfway up the hill I saw a hand laying in the grass from the other side of the tree. It was small so I knew it belonged to someone around my age. Coming around the tree I saw the 'dirty street-urchin' my father had told me never to talk to.

He was lying with his feet out towards the tree and his head at the edge of the tree's shadow. He hadn't noticed me so I sat down next to him to see what he was looking at. I wanted to know if it was some sort of civilian game. He startled and pushed himself with his arms so he was looking right at me. He looked scared.

I looked out beyond the canopy and all I saw was clouds. Was he seeing something I wasn't? I faced him and asked what he was doing before. He was quiet for a long time before he decided to answer. He had been watching the clouds.

I asked him why.

He turned his head away and I just barely heard his answer. "The clouds can't look at me."

I didn't get it but I laid back with my head towards the tree and watched the clouds. After a while he cautiously laid back down too, his feet by my head. We watched clouds for the better part of a half-hour before I heard his stomach rumble and decided I was hungry myself. I sat up and he watched me warily. I told him I had to go eat lunch and that he should get some too. I walked away without looking back.

The next couple times my father left me alone there I walked back across the park, up the hill, and laid down under the tree. Naruto would already be there and I still remember how shocked he looked when I came back the first time. He asked if I didn't hate him and I said of course not. I didn't really get it and decided it was something troublesome that adults had come up with like the story that Naruto was a 'bad sort' to associate with.

We talked a little bit but mostly we watched the sky. I told him how adults were always making things troublesome and he agreed. He told me that clouds were nicer because they never said mean things. I decided he was right. Clouds were easy.

One time when I was leaving I decided to introduce Naruto to my dad to show him that he was wrong. When I tried to pull Naruto across the path he refused saying he wasn't allowed over there. I said it was ok since he was with me and my dad would be ok with it. As soon as I crossed the tree line on the 'right' side of the park I saw that my mother was there and apparently looking for me. I remember saying troublesome and then calling for my mom's attention. When she started running towards me Naruto grabbed the back of my shirt and hid back there.

My mom immediately started scolding me on running off in between saying how irresponsible my dad was. I was used to this. When she finally calmed down enough for me to tell her I'd been on the other side of the park she noticed Naruto. She asked who my new friend was. When he finally looked up instead of ducking his head, I just remember the look of utter shock and then utter fury on my mother's face.

She pulled me harshly by my arm and practically threw me so I was standing behind her while she started yelling at Naruto. That was the first time I heard him called a demon among a bunch of other nasty things – not all of which I understood. She yelled at him to never come near me again and Naruto just bowed his head and let her. When my mother stopped yelling at him – at which point a whole crowd had formed and nasty words were being muttered about my new friend left and right – did he run back to his side of the park.

My mother walked me straight back to the pavilion where my father had shown up and told him all about 'what' I had been associating with. My father looked so upset I knew that I had done something very wrong. I asked my father why Naruto was such a bad person. He said that Naruto wasn't a person, he was a demon and if he ever did something to seem normal it was all an act so he could hurt me later.

I didn't understand deception very well and I didn't think my parents would lie so all I could think was that they were mistaken but I didn't tell them that. It would be too troublesome to argue.

Both my parents kept a close eye on me at the park after that and I was absolutely forbidden to cross the path again. My next chance to get across the path was about a month later when my mom was talking with another lady and I knew she wouldn't look up for a few minutes. I ran to the tree line and across the path. Looking out from the trees that bordered the 'bad' part I saw Naruto with his head down on his knees and his arms wrapped around him. I wondered if he was crying but didn't go check because it would be too troublesome if my mom noticed I was gone. I ran back to the 'good' side and my mom never knew that I'd left. She just knew I'd wandered over to the swings.

My next chance to go look was when my dad was with me a couple weeks after that. He left with strict orders for me not to tell my mom. I took the chance to go look out from the path again. Naruto wasn't even on the hill.

I rarely checked again after that but I did take to cloud watching on the 'good' side of the park. When I became friends with Chouji much the way I'd became friends with Naruto – except that I was cloud watching first this time – I was glad that my father was happy for me to have made friends with him. I didn't go look for Naruto again after that because it was too 'troublesome' and I had a friend who would watch clouds with me on the good side so things were easy.

I never thought about why Naruto was always waiting for me there. I never thought about why his stomach would always rumble and yet he never got up to get food himself. I never wondered why he would hate being looked at. I never looked into why my parents would even know who Naruto was. I never wondered why the first question he asked me was about me hating him. He was always just the strange kid who adults said was 'bad' but wasn't really.

And most of all, I regret making him come to the 'good' side of the park. I didn't mean to get him yelled at and I didn't mean to stop us from being friends. I should have listened to him when he said he wasn't allowed over there. Now I know that by making my life easier I left Naruto all alone. I wonder how many days Naruto waited there for me. I wonder if he still cloud watches.

How troublesome.