Chapter 5: The Truth About Us
"It's discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit."
― Noël Coward, Blithe Spirit
Boruto, Himawari, & Neji-Hyūga Compound
"Wake up clone."
Each word is punctuated with a jab to his pillows, Boruto startling and rolling away from the rush of Neji's piercing fingers along his blankets. His presence is a smog of fury suddenly here in the guest quarters before sunrise, so close to Grandpa's private section this early in the day too not caring apparently if he or one of the night guards hears them.
'Ugh, why now?!' Boruto silently bemoans.
Moonlight shines on opalescent while his eyes hurriedly adjust to the surrounding dark. Already Neji has his byakugan active, swish of his chestnut hair nearly hitting him as well each time he launches into a new barrage of striking blows he blocks or counters.
This isn't like past sparring sessions, if Neji isn't going to get the answers he seeks from Grandpa on their true identities, then he will force the answers out of them here and now and then dispose of them both it seems.
Boruto leaps himself up to get in front of him, goes into a defensive stance to get him away from Himawari who jolts awake as well getting behind him, last vestiges of sleep draining out of him seeing pearl eyes harden.
"Naruto or whoever you really are, I will no longer tolerate your trickery or presence here in the manor. I'm ensuring the both of you are dead before I make my departure for the exams." Neji voices.
Boruto scoffs, draws up his hands to create a secondary clone.
One forms a spiral of wind while the original draws up a gush of water.
"We haven't used any type of genjutsu on Gramps! And how many times do I have to tell you? I'm not Naruto Uzumaki y'know!" They state in unison.
"Water Release: Surging Sea!"
"Wind Release: Cyclone!
Neji moves left before the combination blast can fully push him out of the room, vortex nicking his shoulder as he ducks low out of the twister's range. It crashes into the adjacent wall, rumbles following in its wake across the room as the foundation crumbles to pieces. Neji slams a palm to the ground to increase the quaking, scoffs lowly.
"You don't think I haven't been watching the way you move with each sparring session you've done? The abilities you possess? I know just how to counter or block any of your attacks to ensure you never truly harm me!"
Boruto follows his gaze to the ground, tatami tiles cracking apart revealing a series of spikes.
"Earth Release: Gravel Spears!"
The first pieces of stone rip at his arms and hands, Boruto wincing, drawing back as Neji moves in closer with his Gentle Fist once more.
His fingers pierce his right leg throwing him off balance, heartbeat skittering into his ears.
'Damn it, this isn't good! At this rate, he's going to try and go for my chest next!'
Himawari tiptoes for Neji from behind with his focus on Boruto alone, byakugan activated, poised for his neck.
'If I can lock on, that will stop him, stop this!'
Neji turns just in time catching her arm, twists it backwards until she yelps, collapses to the ground.
"Hinata may have gotten a lucky hit in on me, but you won't. You're so much more pathetic and slower than her that there's no way you could land a true strike on me unless I was standing still. You must not do any training wherever you two came from."
Boruto looks between them, Himawari whose arm is about to break under Neji's pressure, Neji who studies her fearful azure eyes with a widening taunting grin, mutters once more the one thing all Branch members have been calling them as of late.
"You two are just bastard children, if you're even telling the truth about being some distant Hyūga relatives. I don't know why Uncle is showing pity on two half-breeds when your fate has already been predetermined you both will experience nothing but suffering. And it's all because one of our clan members, either your mother or father strayed from their familial duties."
Boruto cracks his knuckles, tightens them into his fists.
A heat consumes at him, launches himself forward.
"Let her go!"
His roar gets Neji's attention just as his fist connects with the side of his cheek and jaw, beams at the crunch of bone ringing out. His body topples backwards onto the remnants of wood and mats, hold loosening from Himawari as Boruto pins him down from above.
"Move back from him." He orders, Himawari shaking her head in return, milk white turning back to Neji.
"Not yet. We need to be sure he can't keep attacking us." Her voice warbles before sharpening.
Even with a growing bruising to her hands and arms she matches his intense glare in return amid his thrashings, poises her fingers for every pressure point in his arms.
"Lock. On."
Neji grunts between his twisting, kicks at air as Himawari moves out of his range, pearl twisting back to Boruto just as his fist slams into his chest to fully keep him still. The taste of copper and metal fill his mouth, spits away a glob of crimson.
'Why? How? These two shouldn't even be at genin level!'
He stills when the taste of salt mixes with his blood, white looking up into now watery blue.
"You're nothing like how Papa and Mama described you! Why are you treating us this way too?!" Boruto snaps between wiping at his tears, frustration cracking at his voice.
Neji's eyes narrow, color of Boruto's right eye briefly morphed to white, surrounding sclerae dark as charcoal.
'What's wrong with his eye?'
Boruto calms his breathing. Uncle Neji, at least from Mama and Papa's stories is supposed be the man who helped Mama train and perfect in her mastery of the Hyūga clan's secret techniques, must've told Papa at some point that he no longer felt chained by his past thanks to their fight...
They place sunflowers on his grave bi-annually for the anniversary of the end of the Fourth Shinobi World War and his birthday to honor him and his sacrifice, but maybe it's for a different Neji and not the boy before them now that treats them with the same level of disgust and suspicion as the other Branch members.
Neji scoffs, attempts to roll away from his pained expression, Himawari settling on her brother's opposite side to force him to listen.
"Is it...Is it because of something Ma or err Hinata said? Or Grandpa? Hanabi? Uncle Hizashi?" She tumbles out a flurry of names, face flush with tears as well.
The embers of his rage reignite hearing his Father's name, Neji sitting up startling the siblings back. His headband fell off at some point during their skirmish, caged bird seal openly visible.
Pearl burns on the two of them as they take in his curse seal. "What do you two know about my Father? About the suffering he went through before being forced to go to his death all for the Main family?! Neither of you have the curse seal and seem to have little understanding of the what the Branch family actually has to deal with-"
"Because there's no Branch Family in the future; the Hyūga is just one clan altogether! All that Main and Branch family stuff was abolished before Hima and I were born y'know! And...we know that Uncle Hizashi chose to go in place of Grandpa! He wasn't forced to!" Boruto snaps testily.
Neji freezes, glances to Himawari who nods slowly confirming her brother's words.
'What? Why would Father not tell me before he...'
He swallows the thought down.
"It's true. Nobody has the caged bird seals like that anymore. Mama learned how to remove them and then she taught Papa who helped in removing them too. Ask Grandpa, he'll tell you about Uncle Hizashi's letter." Himawari promises.
Her fingers hesitantly brush at his forehead, Neji turning himself away from her touch. A twinge pulses at the back of his head, clenching his teeth. This could all just be lies, but then again, they both lack the caged bird seal, sound so sure of his Father as if they've heard his story dozens of times of before...
Sunlight seeps into the room exposing the damage to both them and everything surrounding them. Upturned tiles reveal patches of cement, grass, and warped wood pieces while blankets and pillows are sliced open exposing white stuffing.
Footsteps approach in a frenzy, gasps and stifled curses filling the area.
"What on Earth happened?!" One woman asks at taking in shattered glass from a painting near her feet. Maroon stains the wood chipping closest to the door, river of dark cracks lining each wall.
A night guard clicks his tongue, grimacing at the destruction. "Master Hiashi is going to-"
"Going to what?" Hiashi's voice cuts through the discord and clamor of voices, stepping forward as a hush of silence falls down.
He takes in Boruto and Himawari's appearances first, the scrapes and bruises along their arms and faces, plum colored to deep sanguine, blows out a slow breath.
And then he looks to Neji with equal trails of inflamed skin, indigo bruise blooming out from his cheek akin to a splash of paint, swelling rising up in mini hills of scarlet along the sides of his nose, lips, jaw, and even down to his chest.
Neji forces himself to stand even under the weight of his glare and this pain digging into him, meets Hiashi face to face.
"I want to know about this apparent letter my Father left in your care before his passing."
Boruto & Himawari-Hyūga Compound-Koi Pond/Guest Quarters
Lunch curdles in her stomach.
Not even her favorite curry and tamagoyaki help to ease this coming restlessness. Grandpa isn't here to offset these looks from both Main and Branch members, Lady Natsu sighing at her lack of appetite.
"Are you sure you're done Lady Himawari?" She gently asks.
Himawari nods, pushes back from the table with a quick bow, chest tightening further seeing the flash of upset upon the attendants faces at her barely touched meal after the hours they spent working on it. Her and Boruto barely touched their breakfast after their encounter with Neji earlier, Neji having been whisked away by Grandpa to his room alone while the other attendants worked on getting a new room for them.
"Thank you for the food."
She blows out a breath hearing the wave of mutterings she leaves in her wake.
"You'd think they would be hungry after that eventful morning." Hikari mutters.
Hanaka shrugs. "It's fine, we can just use this as leftovers later, no reason to let good food go to waste. Or maybe Ichiraku's shop owner will take pity on them again and give them a free meal."
Himawari closes her eyes as she patters away, feels that same tug in her chest for home.
The Konoha that isn't this Konoha.
She plops down on the outer steps of the patio, looks at her bandaged arm.
Nothing broken according to Dr. Hirozaki, light smile briefly having lifted her and Boruto's spirits tending to their wounds before he left for his shift at the hospital.
Has she ever been injured or sick like this? Felt this ache in her stomach and head like unending knots and tightness?
"Hmm, your fever still isn't broken even with that soup. This flu bug is taking longer than I expected for you to get over. Sakura prescribed a different medication though that I'll run to get from the pharmacy before it closes." Hinata decides.
Fingers pat at her forehead again a moment later, Boruto hovering over her with a new washcloth.
"Mom said I'm charge while she's gone!"
If her throat didn't feel like it's on fire she'd protest she didn't hear that, Himawari just huffing in return.
"Don't worry, I know just what to do because I've watched Mama and Papa plenty of times y'know! I can make you porridge or hamburg steak, which do you want?" Boruto questions.
A cough escapes her before she can request Hamburg, new footsteps rushing up the stairs.
"Did Mama forget something?" Boruto turns to look as well.
Naruto instead sweeps into the room, two clones following after him with equal franticness. "I got Mama's text your fever is still high Hima! 38.5 C (101.3 F). That's even worse than yesterday! But don't worry, Papa is here now!" He declares.
He nods to his two clones.
"One of you prepare a cold bath, the other start making porridge!" He orders.
The duo nods, setting off in opposite directions to their tasks.
Boruto taps at his arm.
"Papa, Hima probably wants hamburg steak."
Naruto considers the idea for a moment before shaking his head.
"Hmm, porridge would be better! She'll recover faster that way y'know!"
Boruto pouts, looks ready to argue before considering his disheveled appearance. His Hokage cape is twisted at the back, his hair is in disarray, and splotches of ink lay smudged against his fingers.
"Papa did you run here from the Hokage tower?"
Naruto fiddles with his phone at a buzz of apparent emails, nods.
"Hmm? Yeah, I was in the middle of a meeting with Shikamaru and the daimyo when I got Hinata's update! Good thing it was just a zoom meeting so Shikamaru could take over for me."
He ruffles at Boruto's hair.
"Mama said you've been a good Big Brother watching Hima most of the day while she finished helping out at the hospital and running errands! We're proud of you!"
Himawari twists her head to watch them silently, Boruto's features caught between lingering annoyance he can no longer do what he wants to surprise and joy Papa is actually here.
"Hmm, usually you push me away by now Boruto! Are you sick too?" Naruto jokes.
Boruto stiffens, cheeks going red, looking down. He catches Himawari's gaze, knows then he's stuck between leaving to escape this creeping embarrassment or staying before deciding as he slides out of her desk chair to sit beside Naruto, leans his head against his shoulder.
"Yeah, maybe. Now you can't leave." Boruto mutters while burrowing his head in.
Naruto's clones return, first carrying in the bowl of porridge while the other confirms with a thumbs up the bath is ready.
"Himawari, sit up so you can eat." Naruto voices, pulls her blankets off.
Her head is beating like a drum and her tongue feels too dry to actually eat anything, but she does as he wants.
"You'll feel better with food in your system." Naruto promises while handing her a spoon. Cerulean flits between him and Boruto half dozing now in his lap, though awake enough to watch her as well at Papa's shuffling about.
Neither are probably going to leave until she at least takes a few bites.
Boruto sits up curiously seeing her hesitation. "Do you feel nauseous again Hima?"
Himawari shakes her head even as Naruto nods back to the chef clone who runs off to get towels and barf bags.
The thought makes her smile lightly. When Mama gets back, she'll give Papa and Boruto new duties besides hovering over her in her room like this.
"I'm alright, really. Thank you, Papa. Boruto."
Himawari opens her eyes again hearing cicadas fill the afternoon air, Boruto wiping at her cheek stray tears.
Right, that was back during late winter to early spring...
Months ago.
She catches Boruto's hand.
"I hate it here."
The rasp and venom in her voice makes her toes curl in surprise. This unfamiliar coldness she and Boruto have gained the longer they're stuck in the past, looking away as Boruto sighs. She's never spoken aloud her growing upset with each passing day here, didn't want to give it name for fear it would take root.
"...Me too and I know I've said I'm sorry a thousand times, but I'm really sorry for causing all this. So, let's get away for a bit and visit the library. We need to do some research outside of what Old Man Third told us on how to get back to the future. See if even Grandpa has anything in his room that could be useful, granted he probably would've mentioned it by now already if he did." Boruto determines.
Their gazes turn conspiratorially towards the still shut doors of Hiashi's room. Neither Neji nor Grandpa have left the area as far as they're aware, but Neji will need to leave shortly if he's to be on time for the first part of the Chunin Exams.
"Maybe Gramps is being honest with him now." Boruto voices.
Himawari nods slowly. "It's getting hard to not say or do something with how awful he's been to Mama."
As if hearing them, Hiashi's door finally cracks open. Neji is the first to depart the room, features giving nothing away as he ambles over to them. Boruto immediately moves himself in front of Himawari only for Neji to move into a deep bow.
"I'm...sorry. Uncle explained my Father's decision that fateful day. I know my words mean little right now and I will explain them better another time. But for now, I must depart for the exams." He explains before heading for the gates.
Boruto blinks as Neji leaves, glances back over to Hiashi, expression wracked with guilt, bowing to them as well.
"I apologize for causing you two such undue stress and pain. I know Dr. Hirozaki paid you two a visit earlier, but are any of your injuries still bothering you?"
Boruto shakes his head while Himawari crumples, scoots further behind Boruto when Hiashi reaches a hand forward to check her.
Opalescent softens, nods retracting his hand back.
"Right. Words alone mean nothing to you two really. It's been a month now pretty much; hasn't it?"
Hiashi settles himself on the patio a comfortable enough distance from the pair, sighs studying the beginnings of orange yellows on the tips of the trees towering over the darkening verdant of the koi pond.
Autumn is approaching.
"Growing up, my brother and I used to climb that very tree every afternoon before lunch, race each other to see who could get to the top first. Hizashi knew I wasn't the biggest fan of eggs, so he would always add shoyu tamago to my plate if I lost. Heh, he used to say on a clear day that you could see even past the Hokage monument to the mountains that stretched beyond them." He chuckles.
Hiashi taps at his own head then.
"Being twins, our Father wasn't sure how to go about who would get the curse seal. Twins hadn't been born into the Main Family since probably the Warring States Period or even before then, there were no rules on it. In the end, Hizashi was chosen to become a member of the Branch Family upon our 3rd birthdays due to having been born only a few seconds after me."
His lips turn downward, body slumping staring into a memory.
"Father...he always said protecting the byakugan came first, being a brother second. Sometimes I wondered if he even missed him, if anyone missed Hizashi when it felt like I alone mourned for him, that we couldn't even give him a proper ceremony and burial."
He rubs at his eyes, sighs.
"Especially in those early days after he departed for Kumo, I would lie awake all night restless from nightmares, lost so much weight despairing over what-ifs until Father and the Elders told me to train, train until the memory of Hizashi was buried down. I've pushed that same mentality to be strong, to bury one's emotions onto my daughters." Hiashi murmurs.
He peers over to Boruto and Himawari, smiles.
"I can see things have changed by the era that I have grandchildren though."
'And it's nice to see they get along so well.' Hiashi notes as Boruto whispers something to Himawari.
Himawari scrapes her feet against the dirt, pokes her head out from her brother's side. "Can we...go to the library? Big Brother and I want to do another review of the scrolls to see if any of them discuss time travel."
Hiashi nods. "That's fine, you probably won't even need to use a transformation jutsu Boruto. Now would be a good time to go considering Naruto and Hinata will be busy with the chunin exams, there should be less people patrolling about the library hopefully, but still keep low profiles."
Himawari lights up, looks over to Boruto who beams.
Hiashi pats at their shoulders before they can get too far, clears his throat.
"First, you two need to change out of those dirty clothes. You're still Hyūga clan members on your Mother's side and it would be unbecoming to walk around with dried blood and dirt on you. Luckily, Lady Natsu found some old clothes from my youth and from your grandmother's that you two can wear!"
He ignores the way their shoulders fall, hides a grin when they both look up to him with matching pouts.
Naruto & Hinata-Classroom 301
"My goodness Neji, what happened to your cheek?!" Lee bellows.
His voice carries on the wind getting other people to look their away, Hinata twisting towards their direction too. Room 301 is still being set up for a surprisingly high amount of applicants this year, everyone breaking off into their own groups to discuss what they think this first part entails.
Kiba whistles lowly, smirk rising up. "That's nearly a shiner he's got there! Who'd he piss off Hinata?"
Neji bristles at the attention, trying and failing to push Lee's concerned hands away, Tenten trying to hold him back too to no avail. Hinata takes in the brush of purples and blues to his bandaged cheek, recognizes that particular ointment and wrappings to his skin as the work of Dr. Hirozaki.
He was attacked or maybe did the attacking himself at the Hyūga manor.
And then her feet propel her forward, ignoring Shino and Kiba's questioning on where she's going.
"Seriously Neji; please tell us! Was this the matter of a youthful skirmish with one of the shinobi visiting our nation?! You should save such things for when we have the official matches-"
Lee falters on saying anything more as Hinata abruptly steps in front of him, opalescent icy.
She can feel her heartbeat rising to a deafening pitch in her ears as more whispers rise up around them, tuning them out to study Neji's growing ashen expression.
"What did you do?" Hinata asks, soft lilt to her voice almost hiding the stormy edge to them.
Malice simmers beneath the question, Tenten frowning as she studies the two. She's never seen Hinata so boldly approach Neji of all people, usually avoids his stare the most whenever she must be in the same room as him and he the same. Most everyone knows of their strained relationship even with how private the Hyūga try to be over such matters.
'That look. What's gotten into her?' Tenten considers.
She reaches a hand to Hinata's shoulder she shrugs away, stepping closer.
Neji blows out a breath. "Uncle explained what I didn't know regarding my Father. But before that I just wanted to know what those two were hiding-"
Hinata's voice turns sharper, eyes narrow. "Neji. Just tell me."
He sighs. "Yes, I attacked them. However-"
Hinata moves her fingers up against his bruised cheek before he can fully explain himself, steadily applies pressure until she sees him start to wince. Pearl briefly flickers to his forehead, to his hidden curse seal and he considers if he's finally pushed Hinata to the point where she'll use the only technique he could never gain from watching the Main Family practice in the dojo hall.
She retracts her hand, schools her features into one of calm.
"...I hope the answers you got from Father were sufficient enough knowing what you did beforehand to get them."
Neji nods slowly, drops his voice an octave to stop Tenten and Lee from overhearing.
"You're quite protective of Boruto and Himawari despite them supposedly just being distant clan members. That's all Uncle would tell me regarding their pasts when I kept trying to inquire further."
Hinata purses her lips, stare moving from him. "It isn't just me who is protective of them."
Neji follows her gaze as she heads back to her team, frowns at meeting equally annoyed azure.
Naruto.
A whistle is blown from the front of the lines before he can head his way to question him as well, Ibiki's hardened stare roaming over everyone waiting. It's a mix of old and new faces it seems, eyes lingering on Konoha's latest Rookie 9.
'Seems a lot of children from the noble clans are taking part in the exams this year.' He notes.
"Alright, that's enough small talk! Everyone planning to take part in this year's chunin exams, line up by the wall!" He bellows out.
Naruto barely restrains a scowl seeing a stack of papers at the front of the room as they head in single file. So, this is going to include written and knowledge components. Still, answering these questions isn't the top priority on his mind right now.
'Hey, so I think Boruto and Himawari are OUR kids from the future! Do you agree? YES, or NO?' Hinata reads Naruto's messy scrawl in the corner of his paper as soon as they're seated.
Nothing about Naruto's current behavior is conspicuous really despite him whispering to her on the way in they need to avoid the proctors noticing them to go over this matter.
That idea of being sneaky fell away when he walked right over to the open seat beside her as soon as he grabbed an exam paper, sunny grin on his face without a seeming care in the world. They both know he has no idea of the answers to any of these questions, Ibiki's gaze slowly tracking across the room along with the other aides.
Just a little over 2 hours to answer these first 9 questions.
Hinata twirls at her pencil before answering Naruto. 'Yes, well maybe. I can't be 100% certain; I'm just going off of what I've observed of them at the compound and the fact that they look so much like, well us.'
Naruto nods discreetly as he reads her response. 'I'm gonna find a way to catch them in a lie! Stop them from changing the subject!'
Sakura breezes through questions 1-4, emerald skirting up to Naruto nervously. These are questions regarding the necessary components and physics needed to create tag bombs, the theories behind the correct positions and distances 3-man squads should use when out in the field.
Questions beyond that of a genin.
But instead of anxiety, Naruto is...passing notes with Hinata?
'Okay, maybe he formed a plan with her?' Sakura wonders.
Hinata's byakugan after all can let her peer at other people's answers, though neither has to get caught during the transfer of said responses.
Her back goes rigid as Ibiki yells out a warning to a boy in the row below her, other testers dropping out from the room like flies from the tension.
"Caught another one here cheating Morino!" A man announces to Naruto's left making him stiffen, reviews the questions once more before writing out a final scribble to Hinata.
'We can discuss this more on how to actually ask them over Ichiraku's after we get these exams over with? I don't want you to get caught cheating on my behalf.' He suggests.
Hinata's cheeks warm pink, nods moving her paper back out of sight.
Naruto almost tells her he's changed his mind when she moves on to questions 5-9 without him.
'No, I can do this!' He reminds himself.
He looks back down to questions 1 and 2.
'Himawari said that there's always a second meaning to these exams. If it's not about the answers, then it must be about collecting information maybe? There's no way everyone beside me is writing away like they understand...the atoms and molecules involved in the creation of paper and tag bombs?! So, the only other thing people must be doing is...cheating off each other using their clan's techniques!' He realizes.
He rubs at his chin, he doesn't have a byakugan, Sakura's brains, or a sharingan, but he knows how to create a distraction!
'How did Boruto do it again? He molded his chakra to form a gust of wind. He said wind is my affinity, even if I haven't heard that from Kakashi-sensei, Old Man Third or anyone else yet. However, it should be something basic I can do, right?' Naruto decides.
He moves one hand below his desk, focuses on the duo in front of him as he concentrates on gathering and drawing up air towards him
"Wind Release: Twister!" He mutters under his breath.
A swirl forms beneath the pair, launches their seats and papers temporarily into the air.
'Oops, too fast and too much energy!' Naruto clicks his tongue.
'But, it worked!' He covers his mouth to hide his smile, hurriedly scribbles down the answers the duo have gotten.
Why didn't anyone tell him this was his nature affinity? His grin falters at the thought of how many times Kakashi-sensei and Iruka have watched him struggle during sparring sessions...
'No, can't think about that right now.'
"You two, stop messing around!" Ibiki shouts their way as both Kusagakure boys get back into their seats with quick apologies.
Naruto turns his gaze to the other side of the room, nods to himself.
This is how he'll pass.
Hopefully.
The 10th question comes and goes with him hardly getting out much more people, Ibiki taking in Naruto's exam sheet amid the stack with an arched brow as he marches out proudly in victory to the second phase of the exams, chuckles to himself.
'Well, he answered the first 5 questions at least.' He notes.
Black ink stains the top of the sheet where he was clearly having an ongoing conversation with that Hyūga girl, lines of conversation crossed out enough times to prevent him and any of his assistants from apparently reading what they were talking about.
His eyes move downward to the bottom, hums to himself lowly at the message at the bottom left specifically for him.
'There's a lot you and the other jonin sensei have been keeping from me apparently. That's about to come to an end!'
Boruto & Himawari-Konoha Central Library
"Hima, how ya holding up over there?"
A grunt answers him in return, using the scrolls more as pillows than for reading. Her violet hair sticks out in disarray as she reluctantly sits up, scoots her chair closer to him to avoid the stare of the librarian, Mr. Akasaki as he makes another round to check in on them.
Or really just make sure they aren't trying to take one of these books or scrolls home.
"I thought you and your team were taking those chunin exams? Unless you dropped out?" Mr. Akasaki questions with a tilt of his glasses.
Boruto shakes his head, feels his smile start to strain at his bemused auburn eyes, assuming already the worse. He absently fiddles with the gray pockets of this jacket Grandpa gave them.
It doesn't matter what he and Himawari wear, unless he's transformed, this will continue to happen.
"You've got me confused for Naruto Uzumaki." Boruto remarks as casually as he can.
Akasaki's eyes narrow, clearly doesn't believe him from the way he looks him up and down before sighing. Lord Third told him to be kind to the Nine Tails boy if he ever inquired on any reading materials outside the forbidden ones despite all the pranks and destruction he's seen him do around the village, to his very own sibling's weapons shop just for refusing him service once.
"Fine. But the library closes early today at 4:00 pm sharp. I don't want you or your sister dawdling or bothering the other patrons with any of your pranks." He grunts in warning while turning away.
Since then, he's been looming around the shadows of each aisle around every 30 minutes asking if they need 'help' with anything else.
Himawari leans her shoulder to him. "I'm not finding much information on time travel except theories. It's just like Lord Third said, this isn't something enough people have done research on yet in this current time period."
Boruto nods warily. "I was hoping one of these old clans from the Warring States Era days might have a secret technique that just got lost to time."
He shuts back the book on Founding Clans of Konoha: The Warring States Period to Today.
'Maybe Gramps or one of the Elders knows someone from the neighboring smaller villages that could be hiding something that could help us?' An old scroll collecting dust in some corner from a previous war?' Boruto lists out their options before hearing a ringing noise his left.
He glances to the main clock overhead.
2:55 PM.
Mr. Akasaki comes up behind them.
"It's about time you two start packing up your belongings; don't you think?"
Boruto grits his teeth, there's still an hour left and he can even see people behind him casually strolling the aisles, walking upstairs to the corners he hasn't even seen Mr. Akasaki check once.
Himawari squeezes at his arm before any vitriol can slip from his lips, blows up a gust of wind instead tossing books and scrolls into towers of white across the table and floor. Akasaki wrinkles his nose, shoulders falling at the mess.
"Have fun cleaning that up!" Boruto smiles before quickly gathering his and Himawari's belongings, rushing out into late afternoon sunshine.
"Let's get some snacks on the way back to the manor?" Himawari suggests to brighten their moods.
Boruto shrugs, nods his agreement to turn them towards the markets. He doubts they'll get any good deals really considering the best products are gone in the morning rush, but they could both use something sweet or salty.
He freezes just as they come upon a stand selling takoyaki, glances backwards into the crowds.
'Someone's following us.'
He doubts it's Old Man Akasaki with how he grumbled and cursed them away, with that bad knee of his he wouldn't have gone out of his way to track them down. Nobody is particularly looking at him and Himawari either...
"Big Brother, can we get takoyaki and ice cream?! Grandpa gave us enough ryo, right?" Himawari chirps out, regaining his focus.
Boruto nods slowly as he turns back to her, pulls out the coins needed.
They walk two steps before a flash of white covers their eyes, hand on their shoulders keeping them in place.
"Ice cream? Nice! I could use something cold since I just got back in! Share some with me!" The man above them jests.
They've seen this man in photos around the house and Papa's album, both paling in alarm. His presence in the village is just as strange as their own, all of the stories Papa and Mama told them is he always enjoyed traveling to places faraway from Konoha.
The wandering Toad Sannin.
'Jiraiya? Papa's old pervert mentor?' Boruto looks him over once.
His heartbeat rises.
'Is this because of what I told Old Man Third? Is he here to imprison us maybe to find out what else I kept from him?'
He breaks his hold on both of them, unleashes a dust storm of wind while pulling Himawari onto his back, leaps up to the trees.
His back knocks against something hard, peers up into pools of onyx, grin widening.
"Not bad Kid! Figures you two wouldn't be so easy to capture knowing the genetics you have." Jiraiya muses.
The pair briefly still, look to each other before back to him.
White pours into the blue of Himawari's eyes, Jiraiya casually observing her between dodges of her hands.
'Oh, so there's the Hyūga component.'
She slackens when he tightens his hold, pulls the two into a bear hug until all their squirming runs out.
"Let go of us toad pervert!" Boruto snaps between his wiggling.
Jiraiya twists them so they're eye to eye, huffs indignantly.
"Rude! I'm not the one who went and messed with a time scroll!"
Boruto pauses, considers his silly grin.
"Why...Why are you here?"
Jiraiya chuckles as he leans his head back against the bark of the tree, takes in the scent of pine and moss that will always remind him of home. Hiruzen didn't say he was going to be dealing with kids, his letter only giving him the bare bones for him to piece everything else together.
"I have my reasons. But for now, I'll just say you and your sister here are included in that!"
-x-
This story calls me to write it and I answer its call! And hey, Jiraiya is here in the village now earlier than canon! Why exactly he's here and what he has in the plans he's keeping to himself mostly for now!
I do keep up with Boruto and True-Blue Vortex off and on, but they won't play major factors in this story. Well, besides a few things here and there that will come up eventually as this is really a Part 1 Naruto story with canon and my own ideas mixed in. Figured I'd mention that since I've gotten updates/questions on it from you guys. Good thing none of it was spoilers to me lol!
As always, pa-tre-ons get early access to chapters and other NSFW goodies. September's Couple Of The Month I officially decided to be Goku x Chi-Chi from DBZ and the other DBZ couples. Mostly because I know Dragonball Daima is coming out next month (but I have a spooky themed couple in mind for October) and to honor Toriyama with his passing earlier this year. A two-part NSFW is already up for those two. I go by TheLovelyMidnightWriter there!
Let me know your thoughts as always!
Enjoy. Review. Favorite. Follow!