Konohamaru was a young boy born to privilege; spoiled and coddled and encouraged while he trained to live up to the expectations they had put upon him as the coming heir to the Sarutobi line.
Gramps didn't know what to think when one day he had been throwing his stuff around carelessly and then the next day he had been coveting it all like it was the most valuable thing in the world.
He sighed, waiting in the hokage tower and overlooking the geometric streets of Konoha in boredom. His boss was on a mission. A grin lit his face up as he thought of what he wanted to give the blonde teen when he returned.
He had entered Naruto's apartment with the boy, watching him unlock the many locks- despite the fact that Konohamaru could only see two of them plainly. He also was irritated at the time it took from their schedule (not that they were in any rush) and no one else he knew was so careful with their security- Konoha was a very connected town, and neighbors took care to look after neighbors (Konohamaru thought they took it too far at times, to the point of where they were being irritating and nosy - really not being good neighbors at all to the tired ninjas who made sure they were so secure in their beds at night).
But Konohamaru kept quiet and followed boss-man into the small apartment, carefully toeing off his sandals and turning them to face the door even as Naruto carefully locked at least three of the safety measures before carelessly setting his shoes to the proper position facing the exit.
He turned his usual blinding grin to him, and that little laugh (quiet; like when they were in the midst of setting up a prank and didn't want anyone to notice them) came out before he pointed to the bathroom. "Put the bag down and go wash up, Jii-chan shouldn't see you with such a dirty face."
Konohamaru scowled and stuck out his tongue. "You're just as dirty as I am!"
Naruto bared his teeth – displaying a set of fangs that had never seemed menacing, only playful and mischievous – as he grinned and squinted his eyes. "That's why I'm washing up at the kitchen sink. So get to it!"
Konohamaru yelped at the authority Naruto managed to instill in the last sentence; already set to running the short distance to the bathroom before he realized what oyabun had done. He scowled at the mirror as he stepped up onto the toilet seat to reach the sink, thankful that the bathroom was small enough he was able to do so.
At his own house he needed a stool.
He glanced around in disinterest as he finished drying his hands, scrunching his nose as he wondered how such a cool person like his boss could live in such a boring place- even the towels were plain grey things!
He scowled as he inched around the door, finding it impossible to move in the tiny bathroom to enter the sparse hallway.
He didn't like Nii-san's apartment.
He shuffled impatiently as he walked to the kitchenette, trying not to look at bare walls with chipping paint. Really, Nii-san should take better care of his place. He sniffled irritably and stomped the rest of his way, finding the happy boss murmuring over two instant ramen cups.
He lost most of his ire in the sparsely cluttered room, if only because the rising steam and spicy scent created a homier feel that the rest of the apartment lacked. And Naruto grinned up at him.
Konohamaru smiled shyly, and climbed his way onto one of the old heavy wooden chairs, dragging the hot noodles across the top of the table and unaccountably happy that Naruto wasn't stingy with his favorite food.
And that oyabun seemed to know how to always make it just right.
He slurped up his noodles happily with Naruto, enjoying the silent acceptance of two boys simply eating- and having to do nothing else.
Naruto was like that- he had a single minded focus that Konohamaru could only admire and envy.
Boss just might beat him for the hokage title, with determination and heart like that.
They finished quietly, a brotherly affection between them as they tossed their chopsticks into the sink and placed their ramen cups beside it upon the counter.
He blindly followed boss-man around the small table, trying not to look at his feet because they would mean he'd see the worn carpet under his toes and the fraying edges of Naruto's pant cuffs.
They came upon Naruto's room and Konohamaru near stumbled as Boss quickly unrolled his futon and set about pushing aside some clutter.
Naruto bent over to shove aside some unrolled scrolls and clear off his bed, absently straightening the cover and gesturing for him to sit as he continued talking about the taijutsu he was thinking of altering from some genin named Rock Lee. Konahamaru could only blink and shake his head as he cautiously sat, unused to the abrupt difference the new view of the apartment yielded.
He felt like he'd just entered a genjutsu, or maybe emerged from one.
He cautiously moved aside a loose photograph, of Iruka-sensei and Naruto joking around in some part of Konohagakure's streets. He turned to look at boss when the tone of his voice shifted, and he watched the cautious light to blue eyes clear into the normal happy determination that had drawn him in.
He felt like he'd stumbled on apart of Naruto he shouldn't have.
Upon entering the trickster's abode it seemed bare, almost painfully neat and empty near the door- but at the bed, everything was almost everywhere. You could look and see all the desperate attempts Naruto had made to make his home comfortable; some crisp posters taped to the wall, his uncovered window, the motivational phrases written to fill empty wall space, and the almost deliberate clutter to fill up the true vacancy of the room.
So he swallowed and entered the boss' den.
There were some more photos spread upon the ground, a few kunai near the desk beside a smattering of books and brushes, a box of paint and the sturdier chalk hid in the shadows of one corner, a pair of green goggles sat proudly on a shelf, a stack of worn scrolls near there, an overturned milk crate used to set some framed pictures of his team and some rocks that Konohamaru distinctly remembered from a trip the four of them had taken to the creek.
The standard houseplants Naruto collected were there, well taken care of like the rest of the apartment wasn't.
He nervously settled down upon the rumpled bed, but Naruto spoke and engaged him and made it all better.
Konohamaru beamed; because he was in the center of Naruto's world. This was the place where he kept all his treasures, where he protected and nurtured and lived. And he'd let a little boy become part of that- Naruto was a vicious bastard when protecting what was his, and Konohamaru blinked back unmanly watery eyes as he realized that boss-man fought for everything he had and took nothing for granted.
It was all hidden away in the farthest reaches of his apartment, where he slept and spent most of his time in scrolls and loneliness.
And Konohamaru was one of his precious people.
He firmed his lips against a tremble and lifted his chin as Naruto continued to talk about what he thought of the hard working Rock Lee. And he grinned instead because he admired boss, admired the things he considered precious and the careful way he collected them and cared.
Naruto was slowly gaining, and every piece and person meant so much more than they realized.
Konohamaru swallowed as boss finally entered; his hands behind his head and his eyes squinted as if he was always so relaxed and carefree upon returning from a mission. He lost all his nerve and quickly approached, thrusting his gift into the stunned blonde's hands before rushing from the room.
He grinned as he ran, though, because he knew exactly where his gift was going.
The picture of Konohamaruy Corps was going right into the heart of Naruto's apartment, where he kept all his treasures from damage and prying eyes.
X X X X X X Dragon's Hoard, Kitsune Collect!!!! X X X X X X X X X
There we go, the promised Installment of Konohamaru.
I hope you enjoyed it!
Edited: September 22, 2007