New Blood
Chapter 2 – Settling Down
"Good day, young sir! What brings an eccentric man such as you to our humble abode?" Naruto's eyes shot open when a loud voice spoke in his ear, and he would've jumped out of the bed he was on if Hinata and Shiori weren't still sleeping on top of him. He still looked around frantically, panicking when he couldn't find a body to go with the voice he just heard.
"I'm right behind you. Honestly, neglecting your paintings better not become one of those 'fad' things the young people do…" As the voice continued to ramble on, Naruto turned around to see a large portrait of an ancient doctor, apparently from a time where they still considered leeches good remedies.
"What the…okay, talking paintings, right. Just be calm, stay calm."
"Naruto? What's going on?" Hinata came around as well, wobbling to the edge of their shared cot, unfortunately waking up their daughter in the act. Not being alive for even a year leaves a person…unable to contain certain elements of their anatomy. Namely, the stench from Shiori's garments and her cries gave the entire wing an ear-piercing wake up.
Madame Promfrey ran straight into the ward, looking very haggard at the unfamiliar sound, "I'm here! Settle down, what's going on…oh." She finally realized the situation, tipped off by the fact that Hinata was blushing furiously in embarrassment while Shiori did her best to annoy all spectators of the ward.
"Um…d-do you happen to have a place where I can deal with this, ma'am?" Hinata stuttered slightly; old habits die-hard, it seems. Pomfrey smiled knowingly before leading Hinata into her office, leaving Naruto by himself in the ward, still dazed from waking up so early, and with that noise. Thankfully, everything was quieter now…maybe he'd be able to go back to sleep for a few more minutes.
"…I must say, that little girl has quite the mouth on her! What caused that, do you suppose? Hm, maybe a spell was cast during her birth? Or, maybe she's the descendent of a banshee! That reminds me of that time where I met a banshee while traveling in the New World, oh you must hear this, boy! See, I was…"
The door to Madame Pomfrey's office opened and shut again with a loud bang.
"Now, that's just rude."
After the morning fiasco, Madame Pomfrey led the family towards Dumbledore's office. Both of them dropped back a couple paces behind the nurse.
"How much do you think we should tell them?" Naruto asked Hinata.
"We're starting a new life right now. Do you really think that continuing to hide like we used to will help us start anew?"
"I know we shouldn't still act like shinobi." Naruto looked a little sheepish after Hinata's response, "I'm just worried for you and little Shiori."
"Well, if they're planning anything, you do remember that I can tell when people are lying with my Byakugan, right?" Hinata stated exasperatedly to Naruto, who just scratched the back of his head with another sheepish grin. However, the time for talk had ended, as the group finally reached their destination, which appeared to the couple to be two stone figures that guarded an empty stretch of wall.
"Sugar Quills." Both of the shinobi looked oddly at Madame Pomfrey for saying such a weird phrase, but they were amazed once more when the gargoyles nodded and spun on their platforms towards the wall, which had now opened up to reveal a rather grandiose winding staircase.
Madame Pomfrey turned back to the group, pausing for a second to notice the sizeable distance between them and her before motioning for the couple to follow the staircase. "The headmaster's office is right up here dears. Please take care of yourselves and that cute little girl." With a final wave goodbye, Madame Pomfrey vanished around the edge of a corridor, leaving the family to walk up the stairways with an odd sense of trepidation. 'It's almost like we're back in school…bad Naruto, don't think about that, paperwork can't hurt you here' Walking a little more briskly, Naruto scaled the staircase with Hinata right behind him. After a few seconds of walking, they arrived at a door just as grand as the stairway they had just climbed. Naruto knocked a couple times, getting a swift response.
"Come in, please," Whatever the family had seen before in this castle did not accurately prepare them for the sheer amount of oddities in Dumbledore's office. Overall, it was grand, just as the rest of the castle proved to be, but cluttered with an array of devices that whirred to an unseen rhythm, pulsing with power to fulfill unknown missions. From the table full of shining silver objects that bounced in a giant tank, glowing differently as time went on, to the bowl of silvery liquid that pooled around the edges of it and dissipated into wisps of smoke, all of it was a little much for the family. Shiori, for one, seemed fascinated by the silvery tank, reaching out a chubby little hand to try to play with the devices. "I wouldn't let the little one touch those if I were you." Dumbledore's voice commanded the attention of the couple.
He sat in a desk in the middle of the room, flocked on his left side by the woman from yesterday, McGonagall, if they remembered correctly. His grandfatherly smile remained where it always had been, a little brighter in the sunlight streaming from the windows.
"I wasn't planning on it. If she's anything like I was as a kid, then it would be a terrible idea to let her play with random objects." Naruto chuckled slightly at the reminder of his own childhood tendencies. He had been very oblivious to many dangerous things…okay, it was a little stupid as well, but he had an ego to maintain.
"Please, sit down." Dumbledore motioned to two plush chairs sitting opposite of him at the table, "Now that yesterday's troubles are over, we can relax and enjoy this new day. I, for one, am planning on visiting Hogsmeade; I hear there's a lovely new selection of goods at Honey dukes, and Rosmerta offered me a lovely evening at the Three Broomsticks."
"Um…not to interrupt, but didn't you ask for us to discuss our situation?" Naruto spoke up, noticing the headmaster begin to go on a tangent. He'd had enough experience with old, very eccentric men to know exactly how long it took them to get back to the topic on hand. Let's just say that it would be too long…far too long.
"Right, where are my manners?" Dumbledore seemed to switch directly from rambling to jovially apologetic in a second, a change that prompted a few awkward stares from his audience, "Now, we didn't have the chance to discuss this last night, with all of your injuries. Today, I simply ask you to tell us the truth. Where are you from and what brings you to our country?"
Hinata answered first, sighing slightly before speaking, "You may not believe us, Dumbledore, sir. But we came here with the intent to start new lives, away from all of the bloodshed of our own."
"How exactly is coming here escaping bloodshed? The only war going on, in the magical community or otherwise, has just ended here in England; you would have been arriving in a war-torn country had you arrived just a day earlier." McGonagall responded to the first statement Hinata made with a great deal of confusion, mirrored on Dumbledore's face.
"You misunderstand us. We did not come from anywhere around this country, I believe you called it England." Naruto spoke up, shifting restlessly before continuing his story, "The technique that sent us here was not designed to travel small distances. I created it for sending us to a different world, dimension, if you will. You would not have heard of any bloodshed that we were involved in because the war that destroyed our previous lives was in the world we were living in."
There was the big reveal the family of travelers had to come to grips with. It seemed that the two teachers were as shocked as Hinata had been when Naruto first brought up the idea. Neither could form sentences for a few seconds, and it actually caused the couple to start laughing softly at the utterly dumbstruck expressions on their faces. This gave them reason to wipe the surprise from the features, instead staring wondrously at the couple.
"You…actually invented this technique, by yourself no less, to travel across dimensions?" McGonagall was the first of the Hogwarts group to speak up again, and her shock was still eminent, "That's lunacy! In the entire history of magic, there has never been a single wizard capable of such a feat!"
"I think," Hinata spoke again this time, wrapping the blankets more securely around her restless daughter to keep her in place, "That's because our way of using the power we possess is far different. I have felt this and seen it when Naruto and I arrived. Your people channel power through objects, such as wands, to increase the strength of whatever technique, spell, I guess, you are casting. Our people, instead of using things like wands, increased the power we held in our bodies to help us mold the energy ourselves, then directing the energy to our intent with our minds and bodies."
"That's why our people became a race of warriors, called shinobi, who used strength of body and mind to conquer our enemies with devastating jutsu." Naruto added onto Hinata's explanation.
"Jutsu?"
"Techniques, you'd call them spells. Maybe that's why we were always prone to fighting wars with each other, even after the hidden villages began forming…"
Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, taking in all of this new information. A race of warriors, using magic to accomplish feats that the wizards of today probably couldn't even fathom! Sure, the people of his world could use their magic in millions of ways for different purposes, but he could tell by sensing the power of the two in front of him that most spells they devised had paltry amounts of power compared to these shinobi. Even weakened, Naruto and Hinata exuded more power than Dumbledore had at his prime, though not by a wide margin. He smiled crookedly. So much information, and an entirely new way of looking at magic! If he was the age of his students, he would be clamoring to get these two to teach him everything they knew, whether they wanted to or not.
He'd grown up since then, and he could see the downfalls this might have for the magical community. These people had obviously seen too much of war, all caused by the immense power that they were able to harness. Still, if he could find a way to have these two teach his students slowly, so that they had time to adjust to such a change…the next generation would be greater than any they wizarding world had seen in decades.
"It seems," Dumbledore began, "That you three have had quite a journey arriving to our world. Since you invented the technique that allowed you to come here, I will have to ask. Will anyone from your world replicate this and come here as well? I have placed a measure of trust into your family to not harm any member of the wizarding world, but I cannot say the same for the rest of your people, given what you have just said about them."
This question seemed to strike a harsher chord with the outsiders, causing Naruto to clench his hands while Hinata gripped tighter to Shiori, a few tears sprinkling the edges of her vision.
"No, no one else will be coming." Naruto stated, "If they could, I'd tell them to get their asses-"
"Naruto!"
"Sorry, Hinata." He sighed. "They can't come, because no one is left in our world. Everyone – our friends, allies, family – they all died. It's just us three…the last survivors of that hell."
The office was silent for a while. Naruto had moved closer to Hinata, holding her closely while they both reminisced about their world with teary eyes. McGonagall and Dumbledore seemed to want to comfort the two, but what could they say. No matter how terrible the war against Voldemort was, the wizarding community was still intact. Shiori herself started sniffling, about to cry. Outside, the weather had worsened, with clouds blocking out the morning sun and bringing in shady cool, accompanied by a drizzle of mist that wetted the ground's appetite.
After a minute of the heavy atmosphere, Dumbledore stood up from his desk, bringing the group out of their thoughts. He walked over to the couple before smiling again and speaking in a softer tone.
"It seems that I misjudged just how much you have lost. I know no better cure than time to heal such wounds of the heart, so I think we should talk about getting you three a nice place to stay. A new start needs stability, doesn't it?" Dumbledore's words elicited two small, but very genuine, smiles from the shinobi. At the very least, they had arrived in a place with people they could trust – and eccentric old men to make life more interesting.
"If you are willing, I could provide lodging for all of you here at Hogwarts; it has always been a home for those who haven't found their own." A slightly mournful smile accompanied Dumbledore's question. The couple was taken aback by the generosity extended to them, a far cry from their treatment as kids. Well, the offer was very tempting, but as Naruto and Hinata looked at each other, they knew that this wasn't a proposition they would accept this time. A few ways of the shinobi tend to stick into one's psyche longer than they may want it too, and mistrust was the lifestyle of a ninja.
Naruto stood up, "While that does sound nice, I think it would be better for us to make a living here on our own. I don't want to be burdened this soon, and all of us need some time to settle down." He helped Hinata stand up as well, and the two professors straightened, recognizing the end of the conversation.
"Time to recuperate is one thing all of us would love. However, my offer still stands." Dumbledore guided the couple back towards the door, taking the chance to shake hands with Naruto once before his departure.
"Maybe we'll take it one day. For now though, I think we are going to head off back to that village you took us to." Naruto responded.
"Thank you for all of your help, professors. May we meet again in the future." With a slight bow to their helpful companions, Hinata walked out the door, followed quickly by her husband. Dumbledore watched from his large windows as the pair walked out of the castle, walking briskly but taking care to pay attention to the little child that was now in Naruto's arms.
"Alas, if only they had stayed," Dumbledore commented, "Maybe they could have taught everyone here some new, wondrous ideas."
McGonagall walked up besides Dumbledore, curious herself about the possibilities of knowledge that could come from the travelers. What would they have been able to teach a new generation? Perhaps their knowledge of combat could have helped the Order of the Phoenix put an end to Voldemort's reign earlier. In either case, now that they were staying in England, the future will be far more interesting.
"Ah, I can't believe I forgot in all the excitement." Dumbledore began.
"What? There was nothing else we needed to ask from those two, they deserve the chance to rest." McGonagall turned back to the headmaster, giving him a piercing stare.
"I didn't invite them for a drink! How silly of me." McGonagall just stared unabashed at Dumbledore, "It must have slipped my mind. Oh well, there's always another opportunity. I wonder what Aberforth would think of those two…on second thought, maybe Rosmerta would be a more gracious host. What do you think, Professor McGonagall?" Silence was his response, as his doorway opened and closed a second time in the last few minutes.
Sunlight streamed down from the clear sky as the family of shinobi approached Hogsmeade, entering the village grounds just as the sun reached its zenith. Many wizards were bustling about, strolling leisurely from store to store in the nice warmth of the July sun. However, Naruto did wonder how any of them could be comfortable in the body length robes every wizard except for a few younger folk was wearing.
"So," Naruto finally spoke up, having spent the majority of the time walking paying attention to Shiori, who had fallen asleep again at this point, "Do you have a plan for what we're going to do from now on?"
Hinata turned back to him, having been regarding the assortment of candies in the bright store called Honey dukes with a wistful gleam in her eyes. "Why is it that I have to be the one thinking of a plan for our lives?" She asked.
"Well, you're better at this stuff than I am." Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "I mean, we both remember how my life plans were when I was younger. They were…not the best, kind of." He trailed off limply, reminded yet again of his…uniqueness as a kid. Hinata giggled before responding more seriously.
"For now, we should just rent out a room somewhere. We have some money, but that won't last us long, and they may have a different currency than us. I think we'll have to look for jobs soon."
"I might have a plan to make a good amount of money, but I'd really like to sit down before we do anything…what about this place?" It was a nice enough apartment complex that Naruto had pointed to, if one discounted the fact that the entire left half of the building constantly changed paint colors every few seconds, blazing advertisements for different magical products. Still, by itself, the building looked inconspicuous, and there was a steady stream of people going in and out, all tourists by the look of it. The family entered the building, heading straight for an open kiosk with a rather bored looking male attendant using his wand to create a constant shower of sparks.
"Excuse me, we'd like to book a room for the three of us for two nights please, sir." Hinata was the one who spoke up to the attendant, being that she had more experience with travel. Naruto just stood off to the side a little awkwardly, trying to catch the attention of a squirming Shiori who strained to reach the pretty lights of the man's wand.
Without looking up, the attendant conjured a pair of keys on the desk, repeating a stale list of warnings that Hinata could hear from all around the lobby. "Your room is on the third floor, number 311. All payment must come in the wizarding currency of England, no exceptions. The management of Thomas' Travel Center for Wizarding Travel Needs would like to remind all guests that the use of Class 3 spells and above is strictly prohibited inside the premises, including all incantations to produce damaging substances. Guests are forbidden to make potions in the rooms, along with possessing any Class C or higher dangerous magical creatures, such as hinkypinks, doxies, pixies, or acromantulas. Have a nice stay." With that long amble, the attendant waved the family off, back to being preoccupied by his wand.
A little dazed, Naruto and Hinata made their way up the staircases to the third floor, dodging an assortment of rushing people going down past them, with suitcases flying after them. It took a bit of work, even for the two shinobi, to gracefully slide by the whirlwind of bodies and make it to the emptier third floor. Quickly finding room 311, Hinata unlocked the door and the family entered the suite, glad to be out of the chaos below them. The room was a little more normal than the rest of the hotel, despite the fact that some self-cleaning objects sat around the place and the greeting the bathroom mirror gave Naruto when he entered with Shiori.
Hinata flopped down on the bed, relieved to have some semblance of stability after everything that had happened in the last day. Naruto joined her shortly, having taken care of Shiori's needs and put her to rest in a baby crib that the room provided, complete with an arrangement of spells designed to keep babies entertained. Hinata curled up against Naruto, wrapping her arms around his chest. Just for a moment, the two of them stayed still. Sadly, even though they finally arrived here, quite a few things remained for them to figure out before they could rest. Namely, solving their money problem.
"So," Naruto sat up a bit, to prevent himself from falling asleep, "I was gonna mention a way we could get some money earlier."
"Yes, you were."
"Please, don't get mad right now, but…I do have Jiraiya's original Icha-Icha copies in a scroll."
This time, Hinata sat up, staring at Naruto critically in a fine imitation of Professor McGonagall. "You're telling me that the plan you had in place for making a living here was re-selling Jiraiya's porn?" Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, expecting this reaction from the woman who had become a lot more confident ever since they got married. "Now, what made you think that would ever be a good idea?"
Naruto sighed before speaking, "Look, Hina, I know that Jiraiya's novels are…well, just smut. But this way we can both take care of Shiori when she's young, and she'll be able to grow up without the pain we had in our own childhoods. It won't last us forever, but we can at least do that for her." His reasons were valid, and he knew looking at Hinata that she realized that as well. She sighed as well, for even though she hated the books that Naruto's teacher wrote, it was very tempting to be able to take care of their beautiful daughter together.
"If it's any consolation, I promise I won't ever take up his legacy further and start writing novels." Naruto tried to give her a compromise, but this statement backfired a little, with Hinata sitting up completely and pointing down at Naruto.
"That's a given. If I ever find you trying to follow your teacher's legacy, then I'll show you exactly how dangerous the Jyuuken can be, dear." With that reprimand, Naruto knew not to bring that up again. Hinata proved that, despite her meekness when they were younger, she wouldn't hesitate to put him in his place, especially if it involved other women.
"S-So…can we talk about where we're going to live now?" Naruto spoke after a few seconds, eager to get his wife off the topic of maiming him with her skills. Hinata dropped her hand and smiled softly, slipping back down on the bed next to Naruto.
"It won't be difficult to get a house for ourselves, we have enough money for that, but they may require papers from us here."
"I think that will be easy. After all, the old man told us that the entire magical community is hidden from all of the normal people. It won't be hard to get papers from some wizards, if we need them." Naruto get off the bed after his statement, with Hinata getting up as well before going over to Shiori. There wasn't enough time for the both of them to be dallying here, after all.
"So, should we do that now?" Hinata inquired.
"It will probably be better if we split up. I'll go to that Gringotts bank the old man mentioned while you can stay here and gather information, find out if we need anything besides money here." Hinata nodded, agreeing to her part of the plan. The two shared a kiss for a while before Naruto left with a final parting words to Shiori; to be fair, nothing he said was really coherent…babies tend to do that to able-minded people.
Hinata watched Naruto leave, a little concerned. She hadn't been apart from her husband for months, at this point. Honestly, it felt like a novel experience…until a foul smell assaulted her nostrils. She turned back to Shiori, whose diapers had a stain on them while her face scrunched up, ready to explode.
"Of course, he left me to do this…" It may be a messy job, but Hinata couldn't hold it against her daughter. Maybe Naruto.
As for the male member of the shinobi family, Naruto stared up at the impressive and strange display that was the Gringotts. The largest, and supposedly the most secure, bank in England had a snow white paint hob that covered archaic but impressive architecture, slanted as if a giant had taken the original structure and shook it back and forth a few times. In front of the building were stands that served as standing platforms for two small creatures in scarlet and gold, each a third the size of Naruto himself. He had heard a few passerby refer to them as goblins, also calling out the creatures for their apparently zealous protection of gold.
In any case, it had taken Naruto only an hour to find this place, getting some direction from random wizards he had asked at Hogsmeade and using his sensing abilities to find the dense hive of magic that was Diagon Alley. Walking up to the massive entrance to the building, Naruto passed by the goblins swiftly, finding it disconcerting that both goblins followed his footsteps precisely, more so than any other wizard who had entered into the building. A bustle of sophisticated activity greeted him upon entering, a crowd that was as busy as the main street of Hogsmeade but quieter, only creating a low drone of assorted conversations to bounce around the gold plated walls. A goblin sitting behind a desk wordlessly directed Naruto to another goblin sitting on a larger desk before the entrance to the vaults, in some sort of attempt to appear intimidating. It was a little laughable to a man who had experienced a hell no one on this world could imagine, but he indulged their attempt by schooling his face to appear respectful to the goblins.
"Good afternoon. My name is Uzumaki Naruto, and I'd like to open an account here, and convert a large sum of money into English currency." Naruto addressed the goblin with a good deal of respect, in his opinion. It seems that the goblin himself didn't expect his tone, putting down a form he was holding previously to respond.
"Well, Mr. Uzumaki, I first have to inquire if you originate from an elder bloodline. We have a policy of giving greater protection to those who have been customers for centuries." The goblin's expression reflected that of a man forced to chew nails, but nonetheless, Naruto recognized the truth behind that statement.
"I'm afraid that my family comes from an island in the Far East, so none of my ancestors would have been a customer of yours. However, I would like to pay extra for a more secure vault, if you have room."
"Sadly, that is not possible. Grima!" After this exclamation, another goblin waddled out of the entrance to the vaults; only differing slightly from the one Naruto had been talking to. "Take Mr. Uzumaki to the exchange unit, and then to vault 1203 to make his deposit." The goblin who had just come out, Grima, nodded roughly before motioning for Naruto to follow him, which he did, after bowing slightly to the goblin attendant, much to his shock.
As it turns out, the money Naruto and Hinata had saved up in preparation for arrival in a different world was quite valuable in the magical community. The pure silver Ryo the shinobi had taken from the personal funds of the Hyuuga family had a 5 to one exchange rate with the magical 'galleon', giving Naruto a total sum of 15,000 galleons to his family name. His guide, Grima, continued to be pleasantly surprised at the respect Naruto gave to him and the fellow goblins guarding his funds. When Naruto was about to leave Gringotts with 5,000 galleons for immediate expenses, Grima met his grateful bow with a bow of his own, and the promise to personally make sure his funds were safe. Respecting goblins, it seems, was unusual for any wizard with funds equal to or above that of the Uzumaki's. It certainly was strange to Naruto, who was of the opinion that the people who held control of a part of your life need to be respected immensely. What would happen to those rich wizards if the goblins refused to service them?
Shaking his head, Naruto briskly left Diagon Alley while humming a jaunty tune, planning to give Hinata a pleasant surprise when he came back. He didn't manage to catch the interested eyes that watched him exit the Leaky Cauldron with a large sum of cash.
Quite a few miles away, Hinata was still trying to gather the information that her family needed. To give herself some freedom, she made a shadow clone to stay with Shiori, even though making just that one took up half of her reserves. With her daughter taken care of, she had chosen the lively tavern down the street from her hotel, called The Three Broomsticks. It was very rowdy in the pub, though it was a much cleaner location compared to some others Hinata had been to. She sat down on a seat at the bar, where the attractive bartender Rosmerta, according to the men who shouted out to her, bustled about to fill more glasses of fire-whisky, rum, gin, and an appealing drink called butterbeer.
Taking care to ignore the few drunks at the bar that catcalled to her when she came in, Hinata grabbed the attention of Rosmerta and ordered a butterbeer. It seemed that the bartender was desperate for a conversation with someone other than a lecher, so she stuck around to talk to Hinata.
"Welcome to The Three Broomsticks! Would ya like anything besides that drink?" Rosmerta asked in a singsong voice, eliciting a small smile from Hinata.
"No, I'm with this. I just wanted to ask you a few things."
"Well, I can do that; I'd just like to ask one question first."
"Go ahead."
"What brings ya here?" Leaning forward a little, Rosmerta lowered her voice, "I'm not complaining, but the summer crowd's usually just these guys, I don't see any younger women here a lot 'round this time of year."
Hinata nodded while looking around. The people sitting in the pub here weren't the rowdy type that usually goes to dives, but there wasn't a single woman or teenager among them. Before answering, she took a sip of the warm drink in her hand, expecting the bitter taste of alcohol. Instead, it flowed down her throat, giving off a warm feeling that spread through the rest of her body, also bringing a fantastic taste of cream and sugar, reminding her of her beloved cinnamon rolls. Rosmerta looked amused at the delighted expression on Hinata's face, causing her old blush to appear for a bit.
"Sorry, I've never had that before. It's amazing." Hinata said enthusiastically.
Rosmerta winked knowingly, putting her chin on her hand before speaking up again. "I can tell. No one ever forgets the first time they drink butterbeer."
"W-well, to answer your question, I'm passing a bit of time before my husband comes back from Gringotts." Hinata responded, shifting the conversation away from her slight lapse.
"Oh, you're married? Geez, I didn't even notice! Good on ya!" Rosmerta seemed to become even bubblier, clasping Hinata's hand in excitement, "Wow, that's a beautiful ring! I can't believe you're already married. Everybody I know waits forever to tie the knot."
"U-um…thank you. My husband and I just moved here, so we're still looking for somewhere to settle down. Are we going to need anything for that? Back at home, everyone was always so concerned when people did anything big like moving, so it took forever to get the papers and other things to relax, and I was just worried that it would take a long time here." Hinata acted nervous, trying to keep the helpful barmaid oblivious to her actual situation.
"Don't worry," Rosmerta stood up from the countertop and smiled at Hinata, "Ya don't need anything fancy like that here, 'long as you don't anger any big wig politicians. Just find a nice place to settle down, even in a muggle village if you don't want to be dragged into wizard incidents all the time."
Hinata smiled back, satisfied in the information she had gotten from Rosmerta. She could sense Naruto walking along the street a few blocks away, so she just nursed her butterbeer for a few more minutes, making small talk when she could with Rosmerta. It was enjoyable, and when Naruto arrived, they had a fun time making a big show of their relationship to Rosmerta, who squealed in excitement over all of the small details they usually would share with their parents. It felt…normal.
After spending the afternoon with Rosmerta at The Three Broomsticks, the couple returned to the hotel room, allowing the fatigued shadow clone to pop and leaving the slightly tipsy couple to fawn over Shiori for a while. Hinata left Shiori for Naruto while she took a shower, glad to enjoy the basic luxuries she had missed during the war. When she finished, Naruto had put Shiori to sleep, and the two, with lowered inhibitions, had a little fun before turning in for the night as well.
The next morning, the family, standing out with a wide-eyed Shiori who happily sucked on the bottle of milk the room service had provided, checked out of the hotel. It was only a little less hectic than the day before, but Naruto was able to get them out quickly with a much more attentive secretary.
One argument later, a smug Hinata led Naruto back to the location where they first arrived. He had wanted to find a home in the center of the city, where, by his logic, there were thousands of people "Just waiting for the great Uzumaki family to prank their sorry lives!"
Hinata, for good reason, refused. So here they were, walking on the disappointingly average street called Privet Drive, looking at the multiple properties for sale. It wasn't too surprising. Everyone they could see in the many similar houses where utterly normal, uninteresting people. Neither Naruto nor Hinata were ones to judge people on appearances, but both of them agreed that this neighborhood was the most…inconspicuous location they had ever seen.
This convinced the two to call the realtor selling house number 15 and buy the plot. Certainly, there was nothing entertaining for them to experience in this village. Being so normal compared to the rest of this world, it was the perfect place for shinobi to settle, away from the scrutinizing eyes of the magical community.
Actually, Naruto reflected as he sat on his new porch during the fading sunlight, that wasn't the only reason. No, it was good to be safe, enclosed in this neighborhood. However, as his eyes drifted towards a house a few plots down on the other side of the road, he acknowledged the other reason he and Hinata chose this house.
In front of another average looking house that was numbered four, an unimpressive woman with a neck that looked entirely too long to be real cooed to a ball of fat that waddled on the freshly mowed grass. Naruto's eyes chose to ignore this scene and focus on the small part of the lawn where a different boy, younger than the blonde-haired toddler, was crying. The boy was curled into a ball and cried out, cries that attracted the attention of many on the street, including the woman on the lawn. She grabbed the bigger toddler and picked up the younger one by the scruff of his neck, bringing them both into the house and away from prying eyes.
Hinata joined Naruto on the porch, noticing his tense frame and clenched hands. Sliding onto the swinging bench with grace, she unclasped his hands and slid her own in that space.
"Something wrong?" Hinata asked softly.
Naruto sighed, closing his hands around Hinata's smaller ones. "Yeah. There was a small boy, Shiori's age, over on the lawn at that house. He was crying while his mother just stood there, not even looking at him."
Hinata gasped a little. "How could that woman do that to her own son?"
"I don't know," Naruto replied, "But I think Shiori will make a friend quickly here, since I don't think I'll stand by while that boy suffers."
Hinata's leaned closer to Naruto, resting her head on his shoulder. It wasn't a moment for words; both of them had seen what the boy was going through before. They had seen it far too much.
"I guess," Hinata started as Naruto looked at her, "We'll have one more thing to do. I can't wait." Naruto smiled, claiming Hinata's lips in a soft kiss. They may have lost most of what they knew, but at the least, they would be able to make a far better life here. It was an entirely new world, after all.
Well, there's another chapter. I hope that all of you like this one, and thanks to everyone who reviewed and favorited the story.
So, review again please and favorite this if you didn't. I'll try to keep an up to date measure of where I am in the story on my profile.
Best of luck in everything, see all of you later! Accio Firebolt! *zoooom* PAIN SIGNING OFF! WHEEEEEEEEEEEE!