Chapter 2: Homework.
Naruto walked home long after the sun had set and night had settled in. Even the warm noodles of Ichiraku failed to cheer the boy as he watched enviously as Ayame and her Father bantered back and forth to one another. The blonde child took in every inflection and smile the two shared. Ino was feeling, rather than seeing, a whole new side of Naruto she had never known existed and not for the first time cursed Sakura for pulling her into this. How did such a happy acting boy really be so sad and depressed? It was easy to believe his mask of happiness when one merely glazed over the fox eyed genin, because you never looked beyond the skin deep reactions. The young man had built so many walls that it wasn't until one did something that Naruto did not expect that a glimpse of the wounded soul surfaced. She had seen Naruto when the mask went down, she had known he wasn't as happy as he let on but the terrible lack there was to be happy worried her.
After giving up after just a bowl and a half, much to the concern of Techui and Ayame, the boy paid for his meal, said a quiet goodbye, and slinked out of the Ramen stand for home. Home, as Ino gazed upon it for the first time, was one of the oldest buildings in town and it looked every bit it's age. The red walls had faded to a dull cracked orange-pink façade. The damage from both age and years of Shinobi invasion grew every story as the boy struggled up the old steps to the very top, well beyond the stories with other tenants, to a small apartment that sat by itself at the top of the slum.
When the door opened Ino slide inside with some awe. It was a mass of contradictions. The barely 8 mat* rectangular shaped apartment was sparse, but what filled it's small space gave off a warm comfortable feel. Fridge, table, shelves, and bed all looked to be at least second hand, the girl was certain that Naruto had brought them home from the trash. Plants filled in where the meager items failed and Ino, being a florist, was interested in them. Each one was very unique and in a way pretty, but not one was a flower. In fact the one she looked at as Naruto happily watered was a weed. How stupid to cultivate a weed. Taking a second look around, the remaining vegetation resembled like old plants people would remove from their yards.
"I don't think Mizuki-sensei would like it if I turned into one of you guys." His muttering cheekily. Guilt at once made Ino wince at her insensitive thoughts. Naruto was poor. Almost as poor as the people who lived in the streets below and he would be one of them if not for the Third Hokage. He had no money for pretty things, and treasured anything he could have. These plants, all of them neglected or unwanted, were just like him, and thus, his family. The sobering idea was hard for Ino to understand. To be so utterly alone from the moment of your birth. From the start of her life her mother and father were always there for her. If she was hurt or someone mistreated her she could always run to the waiting arms of either and be held and showered with attention or protection. Naruto had no one but himself. If he was hurt or bullied he had no one to come home to and be comforted by. It made her sick at herself yet so grateful that she had her family.
Ino watched 'sitting' on his bed as he traversed the house with a water pail humming out of tune and talking to each one of his 'family' it made her wonder what it had to do with his Orioke No Jutsu. No sooner were the words been contemplated that Naruto was done watering and the boy moved to the mirror that hung over his drawer. Ino watched closely as he brought his hands up in ram.
"Henge!" there was a cloud of smoke and there stood a four foot tall Iruka. Iruka-chan frowned and dispelled himself. Then Naruto focused again with similar results. Slowly but surely Naruto began to adapt work on both shape and form. Without rest Naruto began experimenting with the Henge. After a few hours the blonde boy had the technique down… it was then that Mizuki's words bored into him again bringing the cheerful ninja to be back down again. Ino sighed as she rode the wave of emotions. Naruto never stayed composed in any emotion long enough for her to remain objective and it was beginning to frustrate her.
Naruto's thoughts raced as ideas to his family grew. Sitting in front of the mirror he spoke aloud.
"… and he was a hard worker! Yeah and… and…. He would eat m-Mama's Ramen because Mama's ramen was the best…." He looked lost in thought. "And I have an older sister who is really pretty and everyone likes her!" He smiled brightly and brought up his hands.
"HENGE!" The voice changed during the shout, higher, more womanly and sans the boy's normally scratchy guttural. Naruto, and Ino, stood amazed by the feminine vision he had cut. She was tall, lithe, and very pretty. Her hair was much longer than his untamed spikes, held in twin pigtails like the fashion was then, She was around fifteen and looked every bit like the developing girl she was suppose to. Ino looked to her chest a little jealous. But Naruto never looked more than a cursory curious glance at her female bits. It didn't affect him as he merely thought this form as a sister, nude or clothed. No, what intrigued him was her doe like eyes. They had the same eyes but yet hers were wide and open, not upturned and foxy like his were. "Hitomi." The image mused and tried to touch her face… Naruto's eyes widened in horror as her hand passed through her face and the image was dispelled.
The next few hours the boy struggled, Women of various types also appeared but they were never enough to meet Naruto's view of his 'Mother'. He was experimenting with the Henge once more, producing odd renditions of people, many she recognized until he sat down on his bed, unknowingly next to a semi-blushing Ino, deep in thought while stroking a plant's leaves.
He finally hit upon a stroke of genius nearly ten minutes later, unwittingly the idea was a Chunin chakra exercise in reverse. He had held one of Mr. Po-po's** fallen leaves to his brow in thought. While the boy was thinking Ino had moved into them deeply and felt the chakra moving upwards towards the touch of the leaf, even away from his body as he tapped his forehead. From the leaf he could manipulate the chakra outside the body to form a shell then transform into said shell creating a new form. It was dangerous, risky and ultimately insane to even suggest it. The human body was a form of water and various other elements combined. Theoretically he would be producing the remaining missing pieces from Chakra, unheard of, and then sustain it or even store matter inside the field, and it was an ability that appeared in his sage fight against Pein, when he transformed into a rasengan, chakra in it's purest form then back. A single wrong step and he would fail, he could cut himself in half, or worse yet, explode. Yet Naruto persisted, showing his trust in Mr. Po-po, and focused once more. It also helped he had no idea about how volatile him turning his matter into Chakra could be.
"HENGE!" The whole apartment rocked with the smoke from the change. The image was striking to Naruto's teenage body, A little leaner, tall and almost regal. The resulting appa-henge was a 30 year old Naruto. Naruto was filled with wonder, yet at the same time fear. Slowly his hands moved towards each other, this unbridled urge to feel his father's embrace. The blondes both gasped as solid fingers touched together but whimpered when the feel remained the same, there was no presence, no other feeling, than Naruto's hand in his own. The 'Father' form wavered as tears slid down his face then erupted in a cloud of smoke. Ino wanted to cry like the child, he had created the first ever solid Henge, a work of genius, but as he lay crumpled on the floor sobbing into his hands, it felt like a defeat rather than success.
"Next!" Ino jumped up startled out of Naruto's deeper thoughts as they switched gears and back into the very classroom that started it all. "UZUMAKI NARUTO!" Iruka yelled out even though Naruto stood before him in the line. Naruto brought his attention forward as he began pulling his hands from the jumpsuits pockets.
"This is all your fault" One of the students behind Naruto growled out. Naruto gave a snort.
"Like I give a damn." But Ino knew he did. 'Man… this sucks.' He thought then grinned, a bit of inspiration coming to him. He placed a leaf to his head. With his focus in place he charged up his Chakra. 'Well here we go.' "HENGE!"
With a billow of smoke Hitomi stood sexily with little clouds hiding her nudity before Iruka. She gave a haughty blown kiss to the Chunin and Iruka fell back with a blast of blood. Ino expected haughtiness or Ego matching his cry of the technique but there was none. 'Iruka would have loved Hitomi. Too bad she was never born.' Naruto's mind was only filled with both a sense of pride in his 'sister's' beauty and sadness of never knowing a sibling.
It was then Ino could take no more and pulled out of his psyche. For a moment or two she sat disoriented against the tree as she looked around. Only seconds had passed since she started her jutsu, but to her it felt like years had passed since she put the man asleep. Moving over to him she ran a hand through his hair.
"I'm so sorry Naruto… I wish I…" Ino was at a loss. Coupled with the daze of her rampant emotions… and his, the woman did the one thing that could exacerbate the situation. She kissed him.
_-_-_-_
And there you have Part two. Truthfully I do not like it as much as I did writing chapter three. Which will be out in a matter of minutes from this one. In fact Chapter three: Research was done a week ago. Chapter two which I have been working on for nearly a month just took a lot to force out in spots and I am sure it shows.
* Mats or Tatami Mats (畳?) (originally meaning "folded and piled") mats are a traditional type of Japanese flooring. Made of woven soft rush straw, and traditionally packed with rice straw, Tatami are made in individual mats of uniform size and shape, bordered by brocade or plain cloth.
Tatami were originally a luxury item for the wealthy at a time when lower classes had mat-covered dirt floors. Tatami were gradually popularized and finally reached the homes of commoners toward the end of the 17th century.
There are rules concerning the number and layout of tatami mats; an inauspicious layout is said to bring bad fortune. In homes, the mats must not be laid in a grid pattern, and in any layout there is never a point where the corners of three or four mats touch.
In Japan, the size of a room is typically measured by the number of Tatami mats and each Tatami equals a 3'x6' space. So as such a 8 Tatami apartment would equal 160 square feet for Naruto's apartment.
** Mr. Po-po is short of Tanpopo, or dandelion (Taraxacum Japonicum). This would be the 'weed' Ino caught Naruto watering. Though this author finds a dandelion much nicer than a rose any day.