Chapter 2: Mirror Image
"I know that mirrors give us a false sense of confidence." I continued. "The reflection that we see every day has nothing to do with how others see us. The glass lies."
― Rasmenia Massoud, Human Detritus
Team 7-Land of Fire Outskirts
'That's odd.'
A messenger hawk circles overhead, Kakashi holding out his arm.
It dips down to land, retrieving the note from its leg before it takes to the air once more in the direction of Konoha.
'A situation has come up in the village that requires your immediate attention. I need to hold a private meeting with Naruto. You may potentially need to be present as well so make sure the rest of your schedule is open upon arrival.' -Sarutobi.' He reads.
'Strange. Does this involve the Nine Tails maybe or something else entirely?' Kakashi considers.
He'd felt its chakra presence during Naruto's fight with Haku, but the seal remained still in place once everything came to an end.
He crumples and burns the letter just as Naruto approaches up from behind, bounces on his feet.
"Was that our next assignment sensei?! I'm ready for another one y'know!" He beams.
Kakashi shakes his head.
"No. Lord Third just needs to do a check-in with us once we arrive back in the village."
He'll wait on telling him it needs to be private, already knows he'll take it the wrong way and assume he's in trouble.
Naruto instantly deflates, rolls his eyes.
"Ugh, I'm not going back to those boring D-rank missions walking dogs or finding lost trinkets for ungrateful old farts y'know!"
Sasuke walks up behind him, tired of their dawdling around these parts of the forests. Sakura fans at herself quietly, sends Sasuke a half-smile he ignores. She masks her frown at his iciness, verdant moving next to Kakashi-sensei, arching a brow at his shift in posture.
'What was in that letter anyways? He didn't even let us see it!'
She glances to Sasuke to see if he's noted Kakashi's slight behavioral change, sighs noting his scowl instead at Naruto's continued dour look.
'Here it comes.'
Despite it being still early in the day, the heat is sinking in like glue to them with no clouds to provide some form of shade. Dew covers the surrounding grass and moss in a shiny sheen of white, wiping away beads of forming sweat.
Combined, it's making them all snappier than usual.
They're supposed to arrive in Konoha by midday and it will be evening time by the pace they're currently moving at.
"Can we stop wasting time standing around already? And anyways, it's not like you can handle anything more than D-rank assignments Naruto. We had to take on Haku together and even that was a struggle during part of it." Sasuke grunts.
Cobalt instantly twists to him, clicks his tongue.
"Asshole, nobody was talking you! If you want to keep taking on D-rank assignments, go right ahead!"
Sasuke scowls, balls his hands at his side.
There's something dark and malicious within Naruto that he's heard amid whispers from both civilians and shinobi alike.
A viciousness they fear that gives him power.
But he has no control over said beast and that just makes him a burden.
"Moron, the only reason you're even a bit strong is because of-"
Kakashi steps between them before he can finish, single look freezing the words on his tongue.
"Enough, both of you. Let's keep moving; now."
He blows out a breath when neither boy moves to match his and Sakura's pace.
'What happened to that teamwork they used in fighting those Demon Brothers and then Haku?' He sighs.
Clearly it fell into the waters as soon as Naruto realized Sasuke wasn't dead after all.
"Today you two or I'll drag you back in." Kakashi warns.
Naruto jolts at that, starts jogging ahead of them all.
They arrive shortly after noon, nod their greetings to Kotetsu and Izumo.
Kakashi turns back to the trio.
"Alright you three, I need to turn in our official report and summary of the trip. The ryo received from this assignment I'll either deliver to you by hand or have it mailed over before the end of the week. You're free the rest of the day now to relax until I call you for our next mission."
Sakura beams, a hot bath calling for her sore feet and shoulders.
But first...
"Sasuke, wanna get lunch?! I heard a new sushi place just opened next to the mochi shop!"
Sasuke avoids her gaze. "I'll pass. I can find something to make out of the food I have at home."
Sakura's grin cracks just slightly, Naruto reaching a sympathetic hand towards her.
She moves out of his reach, viridian eyes still locked on avoidant obsidian.
"Oi, forget about that jerkass Sakura! Let's go get ramen instead at Ichiraku's!" Naruto suggests.
Undeterred, Sakura lightly grabs at Sasuke's arm.
"They have a salad bar that has tomatoes homegrown from their garden! Some as big as a melon I've heard."
To her surprise and Naruto's, Sasuke stills, blows out an impatient breath.
"Fine, one date. If it will get you to stop constantly nagging me. However, I'm not going to stay if the prices are too expensive."
Sakura nods, loosens her hold to walk properly beside him. "Sure, based on what my parents have said, everything there is reasonably priced and healthier compared to the other establishments close by."
'Hell yeah! I just knew I could get through to Sasuke via his stomach!' She internally pumps up a hand in victory.
Naruto blinks as the duo head north without him, feels himself crumpling before schooling his features to stay calm.
"Hey, wait up you guys! I want to check out this place too-"
Kakashi grabs at his shoulder before he can give chase.
"Naruto. You're actually needed at the Hokage's office with me. Sushi will have to wait for another day."
Azure hazes over hearing that, crimson flickering through.
"Why? I didn't do anything to Old Man Third to deserve being punished alone."
Is this because of his past pranks or stealing that forbidden scroll?
Kakashi holds up his hands, abates his rising ire quickly at dropping his voice.
"Who said anything about being punished? This involves a private meeting I couldn't speak openly of with Sasuke and Sakura within earshot."
Naruto studies him skeptically, cerulean slowly washing back over red.
"Really?! That means Old Man Third is finally seeing how great I am! This must be for a S-class assignment only I can take on, huh?"
Kakashi simply nods slowly, moves them along before Sasuke changes his mind and peers back at where they're truly going.
Hiruzen is already in a meeting when they arrive, door cracked just slightly revealing Hiashi Hyuga's figure.
Kakashi pauses at seeing two children sitting opposite him, the byakugan active in the girl's eyes before they return to an ocean blue.
Hiashi blows out a breath.
"-Based on what I've just seen and the lab results, I'll take them in. However, I don't want this to become a part of the rumor mills. I'm not sure why my daughter would choose him of all people, but that isn't important right now."
Hiruzen taps at his pipe. "People talk Hiashi. Unless you plan to keep these two locked away for the foreseeable future, people will eventually connect the dots on their parentage."
Hiashi scoffs, pearl eyes twisting to the siblings.
"I'll have Ko or one of the other guards return in 2 hours to retrieve them and any personal belongings."
Hiruzen nods, Kakashi and Naruto stepping back as the Hyuga patriarch leaves.
Opalescent locks on Naruto as he departs, frown deepening.
'What's his problem?!' Naruto glares right back, man simply shaking his head before carrying on.
"I've brought Naruto Lord Third." Kakashi announces in greeting, waiting a moment as he hears shuffling about the room before bowing.
He forces Naruto into a head bow too, grumbling all the while.
Hiruzen chuckles, gestures for them to come in. "Thank you for stopping by so fast after just getting back in Kakashi. I assume you've already read my rather cryptic letter. I had to leave out many details regarding this...matter so that it doesn't spread through the gossip mongers of the village."
He nods then to the advisor on his left.
"Have Rumi bring them back in. I didn't realize Kakashi would be here so soon."
Naruto looks behind him curiously as the man leaves to follow his order, returns a moment later with the same two kids from before.
The girl looks his way and smiles while the boy wavers between staring at him openly in surprise to looking everywhere else in the room but at him.
'Who are they supposed to be? Should I know them from the Academy?'
He cocks his head at the boy in particular as he does everything possible to avoid his stare.
Kakashi notes their features right away, peers from Naruto to them.
'They're relatives of Naruto. But how?'
His stare goes back to Naruto, arching a brow. "Did you create a shadow clone you left in the village?"
Naruto gives Kakashi an indignant look in return.
"No!"
"Naruto. Kakashi. This is Boruto and Himawari. Pull up a chair, there's much we need to discuss."
Boruto & Himawari-Hokage Tower (Past)
Kakashi blinks. "And we're sure this isn't just one of Naruto's shadow clones?"
"Ugh, will everyone stop calling me a clone?! My name is Boruto, we're two different people y'know!"
Kakashi hides a laugh through his vitriol and complaining as he reviews Hiruzen's notes and the lab work done to get caught up to speed.
"Sorry, sorry. It was an honest mistake; I hadn't realized bloodwork had already been done to confirm your identity."
'You sound just like Naruto, it's like gazing at his reflection.'
His apparent future son matches him in looks and attitude.
A cool breeze slips into the room, paper towers surrounding Hiruzen collapsing, Boruto moving from his chair to help pick them up.
'Hmm, well sounds like and looks like aren't fully the same as personality in general.' Kakashi notes.
Naruto's future kids. Hiruzen has avoided saying their full names and parentage for now, following his lead. He eyes Naruto again who's been eerily quiet this whole time, brows furrowed.
Himawari kicks Boruto's shins, voice a sharp shush. "Big brother, stop causing us potential trouble!"
Boruto fidgets, eventually acquiesces with an apologetic bow. "You'd get annoyed too if people kept calling you Mama's name or a clone of her."
Kakashi studies the pair's mannerisms and features.
Whisker marks like Naruto, both have his blue eyes...
'So truly not long lost siblings? No, Minato-sensei and Kushina only had one child before dying: Naruto.'
And as far as he's aware, violet hair wasn't common in Uzushiogakure.
But he has seen similar hair in that color and style amid the Hyūga clan.
The alternative idea of time travel is far and away stranger though as much as the facts lay before him on their identities, taking in their clothing next.
'Hmm, little accessories that I don't see are in fashion from the latest Academy graduates.'
Like it's from another era.
Hiruzen clears his throat. "Naru or ah, Boruto and Himawari here were messing with a forbidden scroll that sent them 20 years back in time. You'll probably be seeing them around the village periodically until we can get sorted out how to get them back to their proper time period. I was going to ask you Naruto regarding housing them temporarily, but Hiashi Hyūga got here first before you two and has already agreed to take them in."
Himawari raises her hand. "No, it was only Big brother that messed with the scroll! I know we're not supposed to go in Papa's office without permission."
Boruto crosses his arms, slouches backwards in his seat. "Tattletale."
Himawari sticks her tongue out in response.
Naruto leans forward in his seat, finally states what's on his mind. "Why do you two look so much like...me? Are you fans of mine or...just making fun of the way I look?"
Boruto and Himawari both look at each other before back to him, features softening.
'No, I don't want Papa to be sad!' Himawari straightens.
She swallows back the truth at Boruto and Lord Third's warning looks.
"We're not making fun of you. It's just an..err coincidence that we kinda look alike!" Himawari reasons quickly.
Boruto nods along with her. "I'm sure you've run into cases of people using doppelgängers for an assignment or as protection from their enemies. This is similar to that y'know!"
His stomach twists seeing their Dad's confusion, flash of hurt in his eyes having possibly assumed a familial connection between them that they've now lied about.
On some level he doesn't even seem to believe them, puzzled look morphing into suspicion.
Hiruzen clacks his papers against the desk saving him from stiffening under his darkening stare.
"Now, since Boruto and Himawari don't currently have their parents around, they may ask you for advice Naruto or possibly stay with you a night or two at times. That's all I wanted to discuss with you."
Naruto snorts, moves from his chair.
"Whatever you say goes Old Man, not like you're giving me a real choice in the matter. I can go now, right? I haven't eaten lunch yet y'know."
Hiruzen nods, observes as he gives one last lingering glance to the siblings before heading out.
Himawari blows out a breath, halfway slides down out of her chair once Naruto's fully gone.
"I don't like lying to Papa, no matter how old or young he is."
Kakashi clears his throat, pair gazing his way.
"It's for the best we try not to disrupt the timeline unnecessarily."
'Though just being here has already started ripple effects we just haven't seen yet.' He mulls over.
Boruto sighs. "He's right Hima, better Papa and Mama don't realize who we truly are."
'I didn't know Dad was so rude to pretty much every Elder he grew up around though.' He considers.
What else have he and Mom been keeping from them?
Boruto & Himawari, Hyūga Compound-Meditation Room/Dojo Hall
"Why did Master Hiashi bring them in?"
Hizuki doesn't bother lowering his voice, Hiroko shrugging. The pair study Boruto and Himawari as they lounge in the garden waiting for Hiashi to return from his morning meeting with the clan regarding their presence here for the time being, surrounding by chrysanthemums and daffodils shades of pink to yellow.
Boruto eyes them testily and Hiroko's smirk broadens meeting his stare right back.
"I heard the girl can do the byakugan. They must be some illegitimate children from a Branch member, right?"
Hizuki scoffs. "Since when is Master Hiashi known to take in bastard kids or have sympathy for them? He just gave away Hinata's title as heiress-"
"If you two are done gossiping, you should get back to helping clear the kitchen with the other aides. I have a scheduled meeting with the Taketori clan tomorrow afternoon that will need to be catered with our best dishes." Hiashi icily interrupts them from behind.
Both men go rigid, hurriedly shift to stand and bow before retreating away from the patio. Himawari watches them from the corner of her eye as they rush off, tightens up her hands ripping the very flowers she just carefully plucked. Papa and Mama did away with the separate Main and Branch families of the Hyūga, she'd always imagined said polices were something from generations ago...
Not something their Mom and Aunt actively grew up under.
"Grandpa is so harsh in this time period." Himawari whispers.
Boruto nods slowly, not used to man regarding them with outright annoyance. "I never thought I would miss his crushing hugs."
Hiashi turns in their direction as soon as Hizuki and Hiroko are out of sight, sighs. "I would like to test you all's sparring skills. It will be important you two know how to protect yourselves as I can't be certain that your true identities won't slip out eventually."
"We spar with you, Mama, and Auntie regularly in our time period y'know." Boruto voices.
Hiashi hums thoughtfully, looks then to the dojo. "Good. Considering your ages, you can both have a practice match against Neji and Hinata. I need to get an idea of how capable you both are to ward off any potential rogue shinobi that enter the village."
Himawari wavers, skin gaining a sheen of white. "...Neji?"
Hiashi half looks back to her. "Yes, I'm sure you've sparred with him plenty of times before too unless he's moved away from Konoha between now and then? He's a prodigy in our clan despite having been born into the Branch family."
Boruto grabs at Himawari's hand to keep her trembling from growing too noticeable. "That's fine, but um Grandpa, how are we supposed to introduce ourselves?"
The familial title makes Hiashi pause, momentarily unsure what to say peering back to the duo. Saying they're distant clan members should be enough to fight off too many questions for now, though going by Hizuki and Hiroko's earlier conversing, that won't be enough to stop the whispers.
"...You're Hyūga from a side family that are under our watch for now. You don't need to give any further details beyond that to anybody unless it's Lord Third or one of his advisors." He decides before gesturing for them to follow him.
Boruto matches his pace, steps forward just as he hears the clash of palms striking.
"Weak. It's no wonder Uncle no longer bothers sparring with you. I don't understand why you haven't given up on being a shinobi already." Neji snaps between blows.
'That's Uncle Neji?' Boruto inadvertently steps forward, gritting his teeth. This is the same boy Mom spoke fondly of spending hours training with, still mourns visiting his grave with Papa annually to commemorate the end of the Fourth Shinobi World War.
"Your uncle Neji died protecting your Father and I..."
A cold sneer marks his face now, arms crossed with derision.
And Hinata hovers below him catching her breath, slowly gets back to her feet. "I-I don't want to. Besides, I can't just let my team down by quitting so soon when the Exams are coming up next month-"
"You're a liability; not an asset. I'm sure Team 8 could easily find a decent replacement in time before you further endanger or embarrass yourself." Neji cuts her off.
Pearl eyes switch towards the entrance, narrow seeing Boruto's scowl.
"Uncle, why is Naruto of all people here?"
Hinata peers their way as well hearing that name, lips pursing in confusion taking in the duo. "That's...not Naruto."
'But he looks very much like him, I didn't know Naruto had any living relatives.'
The girl beside him shares similar features, his sibling she guesses as she follows after him into the main arena.
"I'm not Naruto. However, I'm not going to just stand by and watch you verbally attack a fellow clan member y'know!" Boruto declares.
White melts away the blue of Himawari's eyes, stunning both Neji and Hinata.
"And neither will I; you're being too harsh on Ma- err Hinata!"
'Why does this girl have the byakugan?' Neji studies them, looks to Hiashi to explain their background. Why is this his and Hinata's first time apparently meeting them?
"We'll be your opponents now." Boruto determines.
Neji ignores him, gaze focused on Hiashi alone. "Uncle, again I have to ask, why did you let him in? What is the meaning of this? Surely you haven't been roped into doing one of Naruto's ridiculous pranks to invite him in as a guest?"
Hiashi simply gestures to Boruto and Himawari as both get into an offensive stance. "It's as he says. He's not Naruto Uzumaki; he and his sister are distant relatives of our clan that will be staying with us for a while. I want to test their abilities out with a match against you both. Are you willing to do a 2 vs 2?"
Hinata goes rigid, half looks to Neji to see if he would even fathom the idea of tag teaming with her.
Neji steps forward without sparing her a glance, clicks his tongue.
"I don't know what type of genjutsu or trick you're trying to pull Naruto, but it ends now."
His hand moves forward to knock Himawari out of the way first, Hinata stepping forward without thinking seeing his bemused grin at Himawari's nervousness.
Electricity crackles to life in her fingers moving towards his blind spot, jabs straight into his back right as Himawari manages to slightly knock his arm away from being a direct hit to her chest.
"Lightning release: Flash Palm!"
Neji instantly crumples, gasps as a searing heat burns at his skin before racing down to his legs.
He twists his venomous gaze back to her, stunned to see Hinata's hardened stare right back.
"Stop! You were just about to seriously attack two fellow clansmen!"
Neji spits out a glob of blood, of all the people to injure him...
"Oh, I get it. You're in on whatever this is too considering how obvious it is that you love that idiot."
Hinata reddens but keeps her gaze steady.
"That's not Naruto just like Father said. You saw just now that his sister has the byakugan too. Hyūga blood runs through them."
Neji slowly moves to stand, pearl eyes shifting between her and Boruto as he moves Himawari behind him. Hiashi and the Elders that have poked their heads in look on, study him silently waiting for his next move.
His hands tighten at his sides.
"You got one lucky shot in; that will be your last."
'What's wrong with him?! He seriously wants to kill Mom!' Boruto panics.
He races between them, blows up a gale of wind.
"Wind Release: Twister!"
Neji gets knocked back into Hiashi while Boruto steadies Hinata to the opposite side of the dojo. She catches her breath placing a hand to her chest, Boruto noting a constellation of bruises various shades of purple to crimson along her arms from their previous sparring sessions.
"I'm fine; don't worry about me." Hinata mentions lightly at his staring.
Boruto clenches his teeth, glances back to Hiashi, fingers already up at ready.
Himawari's eyes widen too, swallowing in alarm.
"That's enough Neji; stand down."
Verdant light emits from his forehead and his body instantly curls up, fingers clutching, tearing at his head until Hiashi puts his hand down. Brown locks fall over his curse seal, Neji lying unmoving as the spectators silently dismiss themselves.
Opalescent looks up to the siblings, stare softening briefly seeing the pained look in their eyes.
'They must come from an era of peace to be so spooked.'
That or Naruto and Hinata haven't told them about the darker aspects of the clan.
Hiashi sighs and the concern vanishes as he snaps his fingers for an aide to take Neji back to his quarters.
"As long as you two are here, I'm going to ensure you at least get in a round of sparring daily."
Boruto openly groans at that while Himawari studies the oakwood quietly, legs pulled up to her chest.
His stare moves on to Hinata who stiffens, gaze falling to the wood flooring as well.
Hiashi steps in front of her, forces her chin up to look at him.
"Where have you been hiding that coldness? And how can we draw it out again without prompting?"
Hinata wrenches herself from his hold, gaze flickering to Boruto and Himawari before back to him.
"M-My body moved on its own Father. Please excuse me, I want to attend to my own wounds too." She murmurs out in a single breath.
Hiashi lets her go, rubs at his head.
"Mama doesn't know we're actually-" Boruto begins as Hinata patters away out of sight.
Hiashi shakes his head before he can finish with a shush.
"No, but with each passing day it's going to be harder and harder to keep it a secret."
Boruto & Naruto- Konoha Restaurant District
'It was way too stuffy in there!'
As soon as Lady Natsu cleaned and double checked them for injuries, he slipped out the window.
"Wait, I want a burger Big brother or pancakes if you're getting food!" Himawari chimes out.
Boruto looks around to ensure the coast is clear before nodding.
"Okay, I'll see what I can bring back!"
In truth, he doubts he'll be able to bring back even a light snack at these continued stink eyes he gets.
"Ugh, Yumeko, lock the front doors. Looks like he's back from that Wave mission."
Yumeko openly grimaces as he walks by. "And just when I was getting used to not hearing his voice or seeing his face around."
'Should I use a transformation jutsu? I don't want to go back empty handed.' Boruto considers, moving away from the crowds into the grass that leads to the training grounds.
Streetlights flicker on around him, sky moving from fuchsia to ink black.
Pretty soon or if they haven't already, Grandpa and the guards will realize he's gone.
"How did Papa put up with this?" Boruto mutters, startling feeling a hand in his shoulder.
Naruto.
"Oi, if you're really my doppelgänger or whatever, you shouldn't try to barter with the people around these shops. I was watching your interactions from the stalls at the other end. Even if you say you aren't me, they'll never believe you after my past pranks y'know! Anyways, they tend to ignore me or give me bad deals too." He advises.
Boruto blinks as he plops down beside him, passes him a bag of taiyaki.
"There's enough for your sister too in different flavors." Naruto mentions.
Boruto blinks, blurts out the first thing on his mind.
"Why do so many of the adults treat you this way?
Naruto shrugs. "I'm used to being treated as invisible. Guess it's just your luck that you and your sis look like me, so you're getting the same kind of treatment."
Boruto blows out a breath, stomach churning as the moon rises once more.
'How long will Hima and I be stuck here?'
It's been over a day now, what if that time scroll was the only one of its type with that kind of ability?
"Thank you. You didn't need to buy us anything, I can't even pay you back y'know." Boruto grumbles, shuffling to stand.
Naruto shakes his head, slaps a hand to his back to keep him in place.
His grin turns devious, and Boruto realizes too late his Father planned this all on purpose to get him alone.
He discreetly looks around, notes dozens of his clones watching from the trees and bushes with matching smiles.
'Shit, I should've known something was off by Papa being so nice! Ugh, how am I going to get out of this?' Boruto thinks quickly.
Naruto's grip tightens upon his shoulder forcing his gaze back to him.
"Oh, I don't need any ryo in return! I just want the truth. Because I know you and your sister were lying or at least not telling the full truth back in the Hokage office. Tell me who you two really are."
-x-
Well, I lied. Here's chapter 2 lol. But I really don't plan to update again until I'm closer to finishing The Emperor & I. This is just a lot of fun to write!
Readers: I need suggestions readers on ways to differentiate the young and old Naruto and Hinata! We're not at that stage yet, but I want to do my best to lessen the potential confusion! I don't know if I should do like a Naruto-A/Naruto-B, Young-Naruto/Old-Naruto, or Naruto-1/Naruto-2 for examples. I just want to get some ideas tossed out that will avoid mix-ups.
Of course, once the adult forms of Naruto and Hinata do actually show up, things are essentially over lol. The main conflict comes from their absence as Boruto and Himawari try to navigate the effects their presence in the past will have on the future.
As always, pa-tre-ons get early access to chapters. I'm starting something new there basically called The Couple Of The Month! I want to do a special theme and write about 1 unique couple or characters from any anime, show, or book of you guys choosing. It can be something mainstream like Naruto, Marvel, DC, AOT, Dragon Ball, or One Piece to something super obscure or old like Astro Boy or Fist of The North Star! (The only thing I request is no incest or couples with like super large age gaps between them)
The couple I see the most votes for will officially be August's couple after collecting votes over this next week. This is open to the public at least during the first week of voting and probably will be as I adjust out the kinks through the rest of 2024! So far I've gotten votes for a Soul x Maka month or a Barry Alan (Flash) x Patty month.
So, feel free to send suggestions there or message me here. I go by TheLovelyMidnightWriter there!
Enjoy. Review. Favorite. Follow!