Epilogue: Intergenerational Part 1
'I shouldn't be doing this.'
But he couldn't stop having this aching curiosity.
Sarada would pound him into the Earth if she knew he was here and rocked his feet carefully back into the tree's shrubs to avoid catching her eyes.
Dusk was setting in, sky gaining shades of indigos and pinks. There was still enough sunlight out for him to make it home in time before mom worried or questioned where exactly he had been.
"Why am I doing this?" He whispered under his breathe.
His stomach twisted again nervously, palms becoming coated with another sheen of sweat.
He had heard the girls whisper about it, especially when they hoped the guys weren't around. It was all silly things mostly, talks of changes happening to their bodies, makeup, clothes or new movies to check out.
Strangely as of late despite how far away they could be having these discussions, he could always hear them.
And in spite of his vehement denials to the other guys, part of him wanted to see, to know if said changes were happening to Sarada as well...
"Is that a new skirt Sarada? Ooh, are you trying to impress Boruto or some new guy I don't know?" ChoCho teased, flicking a hand against the striped fabric only for Sarada to brush it away.
"Stop it, you're getting potato crumbs all over it and as if I care what that idiot Boruto thinks! She snapped.
ChoCho only hummed, munching on her barbecue flavored chips thoughtfully. "If you say so. I overheard Sumire say she wanted to ask him to the Spring Dance. You'll miss out on your big chance if you wait too long!"
Sarada restrained back the grimace nearly crossing against her face. 'She asked me if I liked him…'
And she had told her no.
"It…It doesn't matter! I need to focus on my studying and making sure I can reach my goals over being near a cheater like him."
She wishes she could take those words back as soon as they escape into the air like a poison, ChoCho's chips scattering to the ground in slight shock.
"You know, he's trying to move past that; right?" She whispered, glaring back at the odd stares sent their way.
At the time he was down the hall, supposedly a good enough distance from them. Before he even had time to think about it, he had walked back around towards the pair ready with a comeback too.
"Good, because your body isn't anything I want to look at either or waste time at a dance with!"
The detention wasn't worth it.
Nor did he deserve the black eye that came with it.
"Sarada, dinner is ready! Come down before it gets cold!" Sakura's voice rings out from somewhere downstairs and Boruto watches as Sarada scurries to her feet, pushing away from her desk.
"Alright, I'll be there in a minute!" She yells back.
It always happens at this moment.
Her ebony orbs shift from her closet to her bed, her mirror and finally…to him.
The shock in her expression quickly morphs to rage, eyes shifting to a dark scarlet like Uncle Sasuke's when he's annoyed that makes him scoot back fast.
Too fast.
And before he can say a word, the sound of branches crunching and breaking echoes all around him as he loses his footing; the pressure of his weight suddenly too much.
"Boruto!"
Ugh, he always wakes up before he ends up crashing to the ground.
"Himawari, can you go wake up your brother? He should've gotten up by now unless he forgot to set his alarm." He can hear mom ask.
"Okay!"
Weird. He knows their downstairs right now, surely by the kitchen and yet he can hear them so clearly as if they're standing right by him.
It's been this way since the advent of his 12th birthday nearly two weeks ago…
He yawned, pushing off his blankets and frowning at the sudden mass he felt upon his head. Sleepy blue eyes peer over to his mirror, fuzzy orange fox ears staring back at him.
'What the?'
Was this some type of prank Shikadai or Inojin had done? It seemed far too complex for Shikadai knowing his usual laziness for grand schemes and Inojin seemed more like the type to do an artsy type of joke.
Besides, neither were talking to him that much at the moment…
He slowly reached up to touch at ears, tugging at them slightly and frowning at the jolt of pain that spiked through him when they refused to budge.
"Are these things glued in or something?"
Not only that, as he stepped out of bed he felt the heaviness of something trailing behind him and nearly yelped.
'Why is a tail sticking out of my butt?!'
Same golden-brown as the ears, same pain resulting from trying to rip them off.
They were real.
"Bolt, Mama says to get ready or else we'll be late for school!" Himawari states, clicking open his door and entering into his meltdown with a cheery smile.
She cocks her head in confusion though upon seeing his fox ears and tail, cobalt orbs narrowing.
"What's with the get up; are you performing in a play later on?"
If only it was that simple.
Boruto shook his head, gritting his teeth. His whole body felt warm and prickly, nails sharpening before his eyes, canines of his teeth poking against his tongue.
"Something's wrong with me Hima! You'll have to go to school without me." He replied hurriedly, rushing for his closet.
It was soon to be the beginnings of summer with the way the cicadas buzzed in the lazy afternoons and how easy it was to become drenched in sweat staying outside too long, but he needs to keep these…things now sticking out of him hidden!
Himawari simply watched as he pulled on a heavy gray hoodie and sweatpants. "You'll get hot in that, won't you? Shouldn't you take off those tails and ears first?"
"They won't come off!" He sighed, keeping his temper in check as his sister attempted to pull at them as well.
"I woke up with these and I feel odd, I'm going to check with Auntie Sakura and Mom at the hospital. You go on ahead okay?" Boruto explained, adjusting on his shoes and heading downstairs.
Himawari trailed after him, squeezing her hands against the edges of her yellow jacket. "I don't know…are you sure you're not just pretending to be sick again?"
It wouldn't be the first time he had created a bizarre excuse to skip out on classes.
Boruto turned to look back at her, smiling despite his own worries over his well being.
"I'm okay. I just need to figure out what's going on me. Auntie knows everything about disorders and the human body, she'll know what to do and then I'll catch up with you at school."
'Well, at least I hope she's maybe heard of whatever this is…'
His assurance does little to calm her, cheeks pouting out. "Mama and Papa will be mad!"
He nearly snorted. Mom, yes. But Dad was far too busy with his judicial work.
But hopefully though, neither of their parents going to find out about this.
-X-
"Dr. Uchiha is doing her morning rounds, you'll have to stay in the waiting room." The secretary repeats, smiling nervously at his growling.
It doesn't matter now if he's drawing attention to himself, other patients and faculty stepping back from him.
"Tell her this is an emergency; her godson is in danger!" Boruto snaps, eventually scooting back at the sight of security walking in.
'Crap, I need to stay calm. Relax.' He reminds himself, he must look crazy to everyone here, barking out orders and demands.
The seats in the holding area are rigid and cold and he sighs in relief when he sees familiar rose pink hair come through the doors.
"Someone paged me?" Sakura questioned, glancing around before spotting Boruto rush up to her.
"Bolt, what are you doing here? Are you and Sarada okay?" Her brows furrowed, glancing him over for any injuries or bleeding.
Boruto shook his head, gesturing for them to go somewhere quieter. Away from the nosy eyes of everyone gazing at them.
Sakura guides them to her office, lips still pursed in concern at his behavior. He was never this jumpy unless he was excited or worried about Hinata punishing him in some fashion or some newest game he liked being released. And he was layered in clothes not fit for the season…
"What's going on? You'll have to be quick about it because I have some critical patients I still need to check on who came in overnight."
Instead of speaking, Boruto pulled off his hoodie, fox ears popping back out and tail coming to swish around from his back.
"I woke up this morning with these things attached to me! Do you know what the heck is causing this?" He spoke rapidly, trembling when her verdant eyes widened.
'Ah, it's happening again.'
Sakura patted the chair beside her and Boruto moved to sit. A quick head to toe assessment shows the same other symptoms she expected, sharp teeth and nails, eyes flickering between red and blue…
"Hmm, did you run here? Your heartbeat is quite fast." She noted, patting his hand to help him relax. He grins nervously in return, spinning in the seat. Other than that, his vital signs were relatively normal.
"Auntie, what's happening to me; surely you know right? You, Mom, and Auntie Ino are the best doctors here." Boruto ventured.
'Why haven't Naruto and Hinata told him about the fox features? Maybe they didn't expect it to happen considering this is the first time he's probably showing these signs really, at least as far I've seen or remember.' Sakura wondered.
And she definitely wasn't an expert on this.
He was going to need to go back to his family for answers.
"You're okay Bolt. Tell me, when did you begin to first start noticing these weird signs? Was there a particular trigger that caused it?" Sakura inquired.
Naruto's had been such lewd and perverted things from what Hinata had told her, hopefully Boruto's weren't the same way…
But Sarada and his annoying dreams pop to mind and Boruto scowls, fox ears twitching.
"N-No!" He sputtered.
'Just like Hinata, he stutters when he's nervous or lying.'
Sakura grinned teasingly, leaning her head against her palm. Her hospital phone rings, her resident in training asking for her.
"We need you in pod 3 Dr. Uchiha, I think we have a code sepsis on our hands!"
And Boruto watches as she moves to stand again, adjusting strands of her hair back into a bun and tugging her white coat and stethoscope back on.
"I'm sorry I can't be of much help to you Bolt, but I will tell you this; what you have going on is something that runs in your family. Your genetics essentially. You'll have to ask Hinata, Naruto, or someone else in your family if you want more information." She explains gently and before he can say or ask anything else, she heads back for the ER.
'Mom is probably busy handling cases as well, I don't want to bother her with this. There's no way I'm going to try the old man, Aunt Hanabi is still at work teaching, who does that leave me?' He considered before letting out a low groan in realization.
Grandpa and Uncle Neji.
-X-
"So he's skipping again? What silly illness is it this time? Stomach Flu? Ear Infection? Time of the month even though he's a boy?!" Sarada paced, hands wound tightly together.
Himawari nods, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "I don't think Big Brother was faking it this time though."
Sarada doesn't hear her though, too caught up in her thoughts.
Boruto's lucky they don't have any group presentations to do, always coming in dramatically late like a grand showing in an effort to impress their classmates.
Mitsuki smiles pleasantly, patting her shoulder gently. "Now, now. I'm sure Boruto has a good reason for not coming in."
"You always defend him!"
Morning classes have ended, Himawari joining them for lunch to explain Boruto's absence. His lack of appearance is odd, even in the past he would've shown up by now.
The trees cast long shadows saving them from the heat, even the greenery underneath them has dried to a patchy brown from the lack of rain Konoha has been having.
"Bolt said he was going to the hospital to see if Auntie knew what it was. Maybe he's gone back home by now." Himawari reasoned, standing up again to brush blades of dirt and grass off. She waves goodbye to the duo before heading over to her friends calling for her.
"Hmm, perhaps this more serious than you thought." Mitsuki mused as he watched Himawari walk away, golden orbs sparkling in interest as they switched back to her.
Sarada only huffed, crossing her arms in disagreement. "I don't understand why you think so highly of that idiot."
Mitsuki simply shrugged. "He makes good grades despite what he did during the national exams, gets along easily with everyone, can handle fighting you one on one with relative ease when he's serious…I say he's a pretty good catch! Are you sure you don't secretly like him?"
Anger becomes embarrassment, her cheeks flooding a rosy red.
"W-What?! Of course not! I swear you say the weirdest things like Mama!" She faltered over her words, sighing at Mitsuki's continued unfazed grin.
"Do you want to go check the Uzumaki household then, to see if Boruto was indeed telling the truth?"
He knew her family had spare keys, watching over each other home's whenever one went on vacation.
Sarada blinked, glancing back to the main clock centered in front of the middle school. They only had a few minutes of lunch left…
'Though I'm a bit worried now. For him to go to Mom must mean he wasn't feeling good…on the other hand, he could be lazing around his room playing that Ninja game all the guys seem to like.'
To his surprise Sarada agrees, adjusting her backpack on.
"Sure, the school year is almost over and I want to see what could have made him so sick. It may make for an interesting story I could use against him at some point!"
-X-
"Oh Boruto; you've gotten so big! It's great to see you after so long!" Hiashi exclaimed excitedly, locking him in an affectionate hug as he swung him about giddily.
This had been going on for a long 10 minutes now.
"Grandpa, stop it; I can't breathe!" Boruto muffled out between his squeezing, relieved when he finally let him go.
Honestly, he was here last weekend!
"What brings you by? I thought it was a school day unless the school year gets out earlier now than what Hanabi told me." Hiashi questioned, guiding him inside the manor.
Boruto sighed, pulling out his phone from his pocket. "Grandpa, I texted you to say I was coming! Where's your phone at anyways, I told you back on last Sunday to keep it on and close by you."
Hiashi merely grinned, paying no mind to his complaining. "Oh Bolt, you know I don't do any of that 'texting' or whatever slang you call it. My good old flip phone or the landline works just as fine if you need to reach me."
"It's a losing battle trying to get him to change his mind on that. Hanabi has tried to no avail as well." A voice states in front of them, Neji sitting on the edge of the steps with a small smile.
At least Neji only hugs him for 5 minutes, ruffling up his hair and pausing when his hands brushed against the tips of his fox ears.
"Hmm, I assume this is what brought you by?"
Boruto nods, pulling off his hood to reveal the ears fully and letting the fox tail swing out from behind his jacket.
He's finally gotten a little control over it.
"Ah, you're coated in sweat! Let me get you some water." Hiashi notes, heading for the kitchen.
And regardless of the warmth of the air breezing by them, his body seems to instantly cool no longer covered with his winter attire. The compound reminds of him of passing summers, of nights spent chasing fireflies through the maze of bushes, the smell of roses, jasmine, and lilies in the garden after a passing storm, and mom and dad chasing him and Hima until they're red in face from laughter at their tickling.
"Sakura said someone in my family could better explain these?" He asked slowly, pointing with emphasize to his new body parts.
Neji nods, and Boruto follows after him to his room. His bookshelf is littered with various information on fighting techniques, business innovations, and medicine.
Far too complicated and a bit boring in his opinion.
But he picks up a particularly heavy book, brushing off the dust.
'History of Konoha clans in the Warring States Era.'
"I think I gave Hinata the other original edition I managed to find of this book, but this should help clear up some of your confusion." Neji reasoned, shifting the book open to a bookmarked page.
Boruto shifted up to read over him, the name Uzumaki atop the page in an old style of black cursive.
"You see, this isn't the first time your Grandpa and I had to deal with this, your father's side of the family has been having this…err issue for generations now. From what information we managed to gather, it seems to come with the onset of puberty with the triggers ranging from protecting loved ones to…umm lust." He explained.
'Lust?!'
History must be wrong!
"Well, how do I stop this? Is there a way to reverse it or make it stop happening?! I don't see Dad with these features after all, maybe he found a cure for it or something you know!"
Neji said nothing to that, Naruto had long ago learned not to get frisky around Hinata if he or Hiashi were going to be close by.
"You'll have to ask Naruto for a better answer to that. I'm afraid we don't know much beyond what I've told you. Your father would get tails and fox ears just like that though, he learned to stay calm and manage it and we know you can too."
'Of course he did.'
Dad was perfect after all.
Neji noticed his change in expression and smiled. "I didn't use to think highly of your Father either. I didn't want him to date Hinata or get near her knowing how he acted when his emotions got to him."
The thought of Naruto not having a stoic look on his face sounds foreign, it must be a different man he's referring to.
Boruto wrinkled his nose, unable to hide his slight interest. "What made you change your mind?"
"I learned about his past…and you should too."
-X-
'Dad must've stopped by.'
It reeks of his stupid forestry cologne around the entrance and kitchen, the one Mom seems to love that his new senses pick up a hundred times better now.
He imagines then seeing him fumble around for his papers, dark bags still under his eyes from lack of sleep.
Seriously, why do people hold him in such high regard?
His fox ears and tail haven't left, things are getting worse when after a quick shower he suddenly has a second tail brushing up on him.
And then from downstairs he hears the front door slowly creaking open, Sarada's voice booming out and he freezes up.
"Boruto Uzumaki, you better not be hiding out in here instead of being at school!"
For the first time today, he's thankful for his new heightened abilities, scampering for the one place he can think she won't look for him.
The attic.
Mitsuki trails behind her, opening different cabinets and closets. "It seems like the last time anyone was here was maybe a few hours ago."
Sarada only hums, marching straight for his room.
'She better not mess up anything in there!' He growls before covering his mouth, backing away from the attic's door.
There isn't anything she'll find anyways to indicate he's been there.
He hopes.
"Hmm, seems like he might've taken a shower not too long ago." Mitsuki notes, holding up a still damp towel for Sarada to check.
"True, there's some moisture on the ground too that leads away from the bathroom though other than that, there really isn't any other sign he's been here. He could've came by to pick up some of his belongings and then gone back to the hospital or elsewhere."
Mitsuki grinned, placing the towel back on the rack with the others.
"Worried?"
Sarada scowled before reluctantly nodding, staring at childhood photos aligning his dresser.
'He used to smile a lot more then…'
And she still hasn't worked up the nerve to apologize, to question what reasons pushed him to cheat and do what he did in their national exams when he was already one of the top students in their class.
But it would have to wait.
"Let's get back to school, we still have enough time to make it to last period and he may be back waiting on us. This is stupid anyways, breaking into his house like this; the home too of the great judge Uzumaki. Though he still hasn't answered any of our texts and calls, it really isn't like him."
'Great judge Uzumaki?'
Clearly Sarada must've hit her head or ran too fast coming here…his Dad isn't great!
Boruto watches them through the slit in the door until they're gone, gut coiling at their worry. He's been ignoring his friend's texts and calls all day and it's only making their concern for him worsen.
Even after hearing the main entrance door be shut and locked he still can't bring himself to move.
Dust invades his nose as he sits back up, the musty smell permeating around him.
When was the last time he or anyone had been up here?
Boxes sit neatly stacked and in rows in the corner, blanketed with webs and grime he wipes away to read the ink settled below.
'Jiraiya's old tapes.'
The name doesn't immediately bring up a face, though he faintly recalls Mom showing him a spiky white haired guy holding him in baby pictures. The man who his Dad looked up to and referred to as his godfather like old man Kakashi and Iruka.
Littered inside are VHS tapes and cassettes, most haven't seen the light of day in years.
But written in blue ink along the side of each is a title to represent each video.
And the one his eyes are drawn to is labeled Naruto's 12th birthday.
'I looked into his past…and you should too.'
Well, now couldn't be a better time.
Next to the boxes is one of the last old wooden television sets from their first house, the one for some reason his parents couldn't let go of or maybe couldn't sell.
"I doubt it still even works."
Though with a few kicks and tugs, he manages to get a static screen to appear; Jiraiya's face emerging through the buzz and zigzagging lines.
"Hello, the Great Jiraiya here! I've decided to put this new video camera to use in highlighting major events that I'll look back on one day as part of my memoirs and journeys. To start, let's introduce the birthday boy to the scene!" He narrated, pointed the camera in Naruto's direction only for him to harshly push it away.
"Get that out of my face." He grunts.
The coldness of his tone makes him falter and Jiraiya briefly quiets before going on again.
"Anyways, it's a beautiful fall day! I'm taking Naruto to his birthday surprise by using a quiet route through the forest." He gestured, the camera shaking as he moved to show bright golden and crimson leaves surrounding them.
And all the while Boruto watches as Naruto remains quiet, eyes never once moving to the camera.
Even through the static he can see his brooding steadily growing, shoulders slumped and cerulean orbs dulling.
Shouldn't there be more people with him to celebrate? All his adoring fans and friends presenting him with gifts?
"Alright, this is the place! Isn't it nice? I found it on one of my many walks. It has a great view overlooking the city. Maybe you can bring one of your lady friends here one day!" Jiraiya teased, walking over to a set out picnic cloth with a blue and white cake centered in the middle.
12 candles decorate the top, orange icing spelling out his name.
"What do you think? Just need to light them and then you can make your wish!" Jiraiya went on, excitement fading as he watched Naruto approach the cake.
And smash it to pieces.
Crumples of cake and frosting splatter against his feet, mixing with the dirt and grass.
Jiraiya is stunned silent before he scowls and stomps forward, forcing Naruto to turn and face him. "Hey, what was that for?! I don't understand why you've been so grumpy all day today when I did all of this for you!"
'Yeah, why are you being so mean Dad?' Boruto wonders, leaning in to hear better.
"Why?" Naruto instead asks softly, face partially obscured by his spiky locks.
Jiraiya paused, confusion settling across his face. "Why, what?"
Heat envelopes Naruto then, fox ears and tails suddenly sprouting forth as blue becomes stained with red.
"Why did you tell everyone?!" He roared, shoving him back with enough force for him to nearly slam into the nearby trees.
"You just had to go and tell everyone that it was today, didn't you?! Giving all those stupid invitations to my classmates…you know what they did with them? Burned or threw them away right in front of me and laughed!" He growled.
Naruto peered down to his elongated nails, sighing. "Damn it, I hate this! I keep transforming, everyone is afraid of me now or hate me, especially knowing today's anniversary is the same as my birth…what is there to celebrate anyways?"
He stepped back over to the muddled cake and picnic cloth, ants and other bugs now crawling over the pieces.
But none of that interests him, fingers reaching for the knife that was to be used to cut the cake.
His heartbeat picks up in speed, Jiraiya and his eyes both studying him nervously. 'Dad, what are you doing?'
"The other day as I was leaving the convenience store, an old lady stopped me. Those hazel eyes of hers held the same contempt and malice I'm used to, but there was something else mixed in too. Sadness.
"Naruto, it's not your fault any of the war happened or-"Jiraiya attempts.
"She said it was my family, the Uzumaki's that had caused her granddaughter to end up in the crossfire going home that faithful day due to our 'monstrous powers' that even I don't understand…" Naruto prattled on not even hearing him, pointing up the silver blade into the sunlight to make it beam.
"In the end, she wished it had been me instead. Me who had to go through the pain of surgery, of blood transfusions, of broken bones and loss limbs…of death and saying goodbye." He finished, twisting the knife abruptly to his arm and letting it rest against his skin.
And Naruto finally turns to face him then, vacant grin stretching across his face.
"So maybe this year for my wish, I'll make hers' and probably a lot of other people's wishes come true and just...die."
Boruto looks away before the knife cuts through his skin, to see the blood that will spill out and surely make him throw up.
The camera buzzes and screeches from being sharply dropped to the ground, minutes of blackness appearing on screen when he finally works up the nerve to look again.
Through the scratchiness he can hear voices, Jiraiya's followed by Dad's until the image somewhat clears up again.
"You idiot! Don't ever scare me like that again!" Jiraiya snaps, wrapping his arm up with a torn off piece of his shirt.
Naruto only observes him blankly, knowing better than to try and move away this time. The blood is soaking through, though it will heal quickly.
Everyone's wounds in his family always do.
"Listen Naruto, you may not believe or think it right now. But I'm happy you were born. Minato and Kushina were so excited too, a bright and hopeful moment to look forward to among all the people who wanted Kushina dead. Minato stood by her and you through the whole ordeal…"
Naruto swallowed, gaze focusing on him briefly before pointing with his good hand to the camera.
"Hey, seems like your old clunker survived." He noted.
Jiraiya followed his stare, nodding with a small grin. "Ah, it's a good omen! Next year maybe I should invite Kakashi, Oh and Teuchi along with his daughter Ayame! It can be a small affair, and maybe in time some of your friends from school will join you."
Naruto rolled his eyes, but a small smile crossed his face. "Sure."
The rest of the recording is too difficult to see or hear.
"You're bad at faking smiles Dad." Boruto whispers, pausing the footage on a still capture of Naruto as they eat a tiny piece of cake not damaged by his earlier destruction.
The ends of his grin twitches just the slightest bit when Jiraiya asks them to pose, falling apart again once he isn't looking.
He sits through the other tapes, prying through the past. Each recording is less sad than the last, Naruto's smiles becoming more genuine as more recognizable faces come into view.
"So you're 17 now, what type of field are you planning to go into?" Jiraiya inquired, grinning as Naruto blew out the last of the candles upon his cake.
"You know I've started becoming interested in government and politics, it would be nice to be a top judge one day. Someone people who can look up to and know will be fair and do right. Someday I'm sure people will be able to look at me and not think of my family's past, not be afraid of me. I want them to believe in me and trust me..." He mused with a grin.
They all culminate into the final one among the set that's sometime a little after his 21st birthday, Hinata presents him with the last gift out of their friends: a pair of tiny blue socks.
"Yes, we're having a boy!"
Boruto moves to stand as the reeling ends, his legs feel numb from having sat cross-legged for so long and heading downstairs he realizes school has already ended nearly an hour ago. Sunlight filters through the blinds he hadn't opened and he carefully looks around to make sure none of his friends are suddenly close by.
His fox ears twitch while his eyes roam upstairs and downstairs for Himawari. On Fridays, she usually eats with her friends at Thunder Burger before coming home.
'Where's mom?' Her office closes at 2:00 pm on Fridays and it's almost 3 o clock now.
At least he knew now she wouldn't freak out at the sight of his fox ears and tails.
"Sorry I wasn't able to reach you. Please leave a message or call my office at-"Boruto frowned. That's the third time Hinata hasn't answered.
She hasn't responded to any of his texts either…
'Geez, at the worse time too! Maybe Mom got held up with one of those long-winded patients asking multiple questions.'
That only unfortunately left one person left.
Dad.
-X-
It's very easy to break into Naruto's office.
Or at least act like the innocent boy most of his co-workers seem to think he is that just wants to visit with his Dad for a bit. Most of these old farts haven't seen him since he was a toddler or don't know of his reputation as of late.
Shikamaru is the only one who can see right through him, stopping him from even getting halfway down the hall.
"Boruto? What are you doing here on a Friday after school?" He questioned.
'Just act casual, don't give him any reason to look at you too much.' He reminded himself.
Granted, these stupid tails and fox ears were difficult to hide even with his bulkiest sweaters and jackets tucking them in.
And they were starting to itch!
"Do I need to have a reason to see my Father?" He retorted back.
Shikamaru only raised a brow. "Knowing you? Yes."
Well then.
They complete a staring match for a minute before Shikamaru lets out a groan, shaking his head.
"You're being way too troublesome like him. Naruto isn't even here; he went out for lunch and hasn't come back yet."
Typical, of course he isn't available.
But his mind wanders back to the hollow expression he held for his 12th birthday, it doesn't even seem like the same person. Definitely not the man he's been trying to get to look at him, to come home early, to really see his accomplishments and the reason he cheated in the first place so he would witness him being nationally ranked above all the other students in the different regions…
There's a side to his Dad he's long ago buried, stories he's never told him or Hima.
"Can, can I please leave him a message then? I doubt he would see a voicemail or text until hours later." He asked more politely, hoping he doesn't sound too pathetic.
Shikamaru cracks a small grin, gesturing for him to follow and clicking the door open.
"Don't do anything too chaotic. We have a big case on Monday and if Naruto ever decides to come back, he needs to read over the defendant's and prosecutor's information."
And then he's left alone.
Naruto's office looks the same as always, stacks of various folders and files nearly reaching the ceiling. Discarded to-go Ichiraku ramen cups litter his desk and some of the ground.
At least the view is still nice!
Clouds drift over the city, sunlight making sky-rise buildings gleam in bright yellows and the wind scattering greenery about.
He shifted into his chair, the chair of the head judge and looked around his desk. Most of it is boring files he halfway reads until he comes upon a post-it note sticking to his laptop.
'Vacation 7th-15th. Ask Shikamaru.'
His screensaver is new too, an image of them taken at the beginning of the year to ring in the New Year among a field of snow and winter lights.
"I didn't know Dad was even at some of these." Boruto muttered to himself. There are other photos that scroll across the screen, of Himawari's junior martial arts competition, him showing off a mathlete medal he had won, Mom in the garden…
There's probably more, but he's changed his password since the last time he was here.
He pulled out his phone once more, scrolling to the name he kept him under: Stupid Old Man.
'After everything I've learned today, it doesn't seem right to keep it under this title.'
Slowly, he deleted the characters and returned it back to what it was when he had first gotten him this phone.
Dad.
"Hey, call me back whenever you get this. It's really important; I'm at your office now." The voicemail clicks off and he swirls in his chair nervously, fox ears drooping as his tails swished about a bit frantically.
'Where are Mom and Dad at?'
-x-
Yes, where are Naruto and Hinata? As I sort of figured while sneaking in writing time and posting this, my plans for the epilogue were too long and I didn't want to cram it all into one so I broke it into 2 parts! Tsundere Boruto and Sarada are so much fun to write, actually this whole chapter was fun! Just how long is Boruto going to be able to hide his fox features from his friends? Any thoughts, let me know!
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