Disclaimer, first chapter!

Mikan watched the scene in front of her with a twitching eyebrow. That pink-haired girl from earlier, now wearing Naruto's oversized shirt like it was some kind of dress, was happily digging into the ramen she had made from scratch.

For her crush, no less.

"Mmmm~! Delicious!" Lala's emerald eyes sparkled. "I had no idea Earth food was this tasty! Mikan, you're amazing! You could totally give our chefs a run for their money!"

The girl blinked, caught off guard. She hadn't expected such a straightforward compliment and... the word chefs, plural. And with how damn cheerful Lala was, it was kinda hard to stay annoyed at her.

"I know, right?" Naruto chimed in between slurps. "Mikan's a pro in the kitchen! Any guy would be lucky to have her as his wife!"

Her cheeks warmed at that. He'd said stuff like that before, but this was the first time he'd said it in front of someone besides her brother, Rito.

Lala nodded along, agreeing with him.

knock, knock.

All three of them turned toward the glass door leading to the garden.

Outside, floating midair, was a... weird little thing. Small, white, with bat wings and spirals for eyes, tapping against the glass.

"Ah! Peke!" Lala perked up, quickly setting down her bowl before jogging over to the door. She slid it open just as the tiny creature shot inside.

"Lala-sama!" It flew straight into her arms. "Thank goodness you're okay!"

Naruto and Mikan exchanged glances.

"...Okay, so you weren't lying about her popping up out of nowhere," Mikan admitted with her arms crossed.

Naruto gasped dramatically, his hand flying to his chest.

"Mikan...! You didn't believe me? I thought we had something special!"

"Stop saying stuff people will misunderstand!" she huffed though her tone lacked any real bite.

"But you are special," he smiled.

Mikan's brain short-circuited.

One second, she was fine. The next, her hands were suddenly super interesting.

'Wait... wait, isn't this my chance?!'

Five months. That's how long she'd known him.

The day he moved in next door, she and Rito had gone to say hello, expecting a family, only to find a single boy, a few years older than her brother, standing there with a grin and zero adult supervision.

She immediately had a crush on their blonde neighbor from that day on. The messy spikes of his blonde hair, those bright blue eyes, and the whisker-like marks on his cheeks, he kind of reminded her of a fox. A really attractive fox.

And just like that, she was done for.

Mikan stole a glance at Naruto, her heart thudding.

He looked so... sure of himself when he said that.

Was he so certain she'd accept him?

The girl nodded to herself, even as her cheeks burned.

'Age is just a number and we're only five years apart... if he gets arrested, then jail is just a room...' She thought to herself before opening her mouth.

"Y-You're also spe—"

"Your brother and parents too," Naruto added, completely unaware of what she was about to say. "All of you are special to me. You treated me normally despite my hair and eye colors." He smiled like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

She froze.

Mikan should have expected this from the dense blonde, but the way he said it made it impossible not to misinterpret.

Her face burned bright. Her hands clenched into fists. Her whole body trembled.

Naruto blinked, finally noticing how quiet she'd gotten.

"Uh, Mikan...?"

Before he could get another word out, she puffed up her cheeks in frustration, shot to her feet, and stomped off toward the hallway. She stopped at the entrance, glanced back at him, scowled and let out a dramatic hmph before storming off, making sure every step was loud as hell.

A second later, the front door slammed shut.

The ninja winced.

"...What the hell just happened?"

"Eeeeh? Did Mikan go home already?" Naruto turned to see Lala standing there, Peke nestled in her arms. "I still wanted to talk with her..." she pouted.

"Maybe next time," he replied with a wry grin before shifting his attention to the... thing in her hands. "So... who's the little one?"

"Ah! This is Peke!" Lala introduced cheerfully.

The tiny figure gave a small bow. "Nice to meet you. I'm Peke, an All-Purpose Costume Robot designed by Lala-sama." It turned toward Naruto, looking him up and down before glancing back at its creator. "Lala-sama, why are you in the house of an idiotic-looking Earthling?"

"...Whoa. Rude much?" Naruto deadpanned.

Without missing a beat, Lala lightly smacked Peke on the head.

"Peke, be polite!" she scolded. "Naruto has been super nice to me! He let me stay over, gave me a shirt, and even shared his dinner!" She laughed before turning back to him with an apologetic smile. "Sorry about that, Naruto."

He waved a hand dismissively. "No big deal. But aren't you gonna have Peke transform into clothes or something? Wearing my shirt has to be uncomfortable... and kinda chilly."

"Oh! Right! Peke, do your thing!"

Without hesitation, Lala let go of the tiny robot.

Then, she stripped.

Naruto's brain stuttered.

His oversized shirt slipped right off her shoulders, gliding down her arms before pooling at her feet, leaving her naked, again.

This time, he didn't look away.

His mind automatically flipped to that part of Jiraiya's training.

Observe. Memorize. Appreciate.

"Ossu! Transform! Dress Form!" Peke glowed. Strands of energy burst outward, wrapping around Lala's legs first, creeping up her thighs, curling over her hips. Naruto swallowed hard as the glowing tendrils cinched around her shapely ass, then moved upward, hugging the soft swell of her boobs.

When the glow finally faded, it revealed her new outfit.

Or, well... what technically counted as an outfit.

It looked less like clothing and more like a skintight, human-sized version of Peke, hugging every curve, every dip, every line of her body.

E-very-where.

Not that he was complaining.

Lala looked undeniably cute in it.

The bodysuit suited her, complimenting her energetic nature... though it wasn't exactly modest. Then again, modesty didn't seem to be a concept she cared about much.

His gaze flickered down for a brief second.

Then another.

And another.

"89, 57, and 87..." he muttered under his breath, nodding to himself as he stored the numbers in his mind.

'Pervy Sage... I finally put your teachings to good use.'

Jiraiya's training had emphasized many things.

Strength. Perseverance. Technique.

This? This was a lesson he'd never had the chance to apply.

After coming back from the training trip, it had been mission after mission. No time for research. No time for appreciation.

But now...?

He was appreciating.

"Is it too tight, Lala-sama?" Peke's voice snapped Naruto out of his thoughts.

"Nope! It's perfect!" Lala grinned, stretching her arms above her head.

The ninja almost choked when she did that.

Completely unaware, or just completely not caring, her boobs bounced with every movement, rising and falling like she was showing off on purpose.

She spun a few times, making the skirt-like part of her outfit flutter around her legs. After a few playful twirls, she stopped and turned to Naruto with a bright, expectant smile.

"Well? What do you think? It looks good, right?"

He tilted his head slightly and gave her outfit a once-over before nodding.

"It's cute."

"Tee hee!" Lala giggled, clearly pleased.

Naruto let out a quiet breath at her contagious smile.

Then Peke spoke up again.

"By the way, Lala-sama, what do you plan to do now?"

The young man perked up. Right, she had mentioned something about being in trouble before literally crashing into his life.

"You said you were in a pinch before teleporting into my bathroom," he recalled. "What happened?"

Lala let out a small huff and leaned back in her seat.

"I'm being chased by bad guys, so I had to make a quick escape..." She puffed her cheeks in displeasure, and when Peke tried to add something, she casually pinched the fabric of her outfit, silencing the tiny robot.

Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"I thought I'd be safe coming to Earth, but they followed me here..." Lala lifted her left wrist, showing off a strange bracelet. "I was about to be taken away on their ship, so I used Pyon-Pyon Warp-kun to escape. If I hadn't, I probably would've been..."

A confused hum escaped him.

She wasn't lying. He could tell that much. But something still felt... off. Like she was telling the truth and holding something back at the same time.

Having no choice, since it wasn't part of him to just abandon someone in need of help, he sighed.

"Well... whatever's going on, I won't force you to tell me," he said finally. "But I will help you while you're here."

"Ah, you will!?" Lala's eyes went impossibly wide, her hopeful smile blooming.

"You will?" Peke echoed, sounding just as surprised.

"Yup," Naruto said. "I mean, I don't get why anyone would be after you. You seem pretty nice to me." He shot her a grin before smoothly changing topics. "So, Lala, what do you like to do?"

"Uh... um..."

Lala blinked, caught off guard.

She hadn't expected that.

Not only was he offering to help, just like that, no hesitation, but he actually cared about her interests?

Her gaze searched his face.

"Why would you say that? You just met me..."

"Do I need a reason to help someone in trouble?" Naruto shrugged.

"O-oh..." Lala fidgeted for a moment before perking up. "Well, I like inventing things and pulling pranks!" she declared, her usual excitement returning. "Actually, I made my own teleporter—Pyon-Pyon Warp-kun!"

But then, just as quickly, her mood dipped again.

Her arms folded under her impressive chest as she sighed.

"...But I hate being forced to do things. Especially marriage. It's stupid."

"Yeah, that sounds shitty." Naruto deadpanned.

Lala blinked.

"You should marry the person you love," he continued. "Marriage without love? That's just asking for a disaster. And—"

Before he could finish, Lala suddenly lunged across the table.

Naruto barely had time to react before she glomped him, arms wrapped tight around his neck as she shoved his face straight into her boobs.

"YOU GET ME!" she squealed, pressing closer to him. "You understand me soooo much! That's right! I should be allowed to choose who I marry! And it should be because I like the guy!"

His arms flailedas he struggled for air. His muffled protests lost somewhere between softness and warmth.

After a few frantic seconds, he finally pried himself free, gasping as he leaned back.

Holy shit.

As he caught his breath, something new caught his attention.

A long, devilish tail wagged behind her, tipped with a tiny black heart.

And it stuck out just above her... glorious ass.

"You have a tail?" he asked, still staring.

"Ah, yup!" Lala chirped. "All Devilukians have tails! Though the—"

Before she could finish, two men in black suits and sunglasses suddenly came into the dining room, flanking the table.

The teacher didn't move right away.

Because now, two more tails had entered his sight.

Tails that looked similar to Lala's.

"...The hell?" The two stood up.

"Goodness, what a troublesome lady," the one with a scar over his left eye muttered. "I should've restricted your movements, even if it meant tying your hands and feet, until we left Earth..."

Naruto raised an eyebrow.

No malice. Annoyance? Oh, definitely. But these guys weren't hostile.

"Peke..." Lala whined.

"Y-Yes?"

"Didn't I tell you to make sure no one followed you when coming here?"

"Yes..."

"Geeeez, you stupid robot!" Lala threw her hands in the air, stomping her foot like a child throwing a tantrum. "Now everything's ruined!"

The scarred man, ignoring her outburst, stepped forward.

"Well, are you prepared now?" He asked.

Naruto's eyes flicked between them.

Up close, they were taller than he expected. Intimidating? Sure. But after everything he'd been through, these guys barely even registered on his 'scary' scale.

Now, if they were ghosts...? Yeah, then they might've stood a chance.

IF he didn't go berserk.

One of them suddenly grabbed Lala's wrist.

"Ah! Let go!"

Her voice snapped Naruto out of his thoughts.

With a sigh, he reached out and grabbed the man's wrist.

The guy barely reacted at first, until he tried to shrug Naruto off.

Nothing happened.

He blinked. Tried again. Still nothing.

"Relax, will ya? That's no way to treat a lady." Naruto said with a smile.

The man's grip slackened almost immediately, and Lala wasted no time darting behind the blonde and peeked over his shoulder.

Peke, meanwhile, was staring, clearly impressed that an Earthling had just restrained a Devilukian.

"Look, instead of dragging her off, why don't we sit down and talk about this? I've heard Lala's side, so it's only fair to hear yours." He offered.

War had taught him an important lesson, there were always two sides to a story.

He didn't have to resort to his fi—

"Stand down, human."

His eye twitched.

"This doesn't concern you or your planet." The other guy spoke up, dismissing him.

And just like that, the chance to settle things peacefully went out the window.

"You sure we can't just discuss it first?" Naruto asked again but his eyebrow twitched just a little harder.

"There is nothing to discuss," the man stated flatly. "We are tasked with bringing her back, no matter what, as His Majesty ordered."

He raised an eyebrow at that.

Still, he exhaled through his nose, forcing himself to stay relaxed.

"Fine. If that's how you wanna do this..." He turned toward the door. "But can we at least take this outside? I'd rather not trash my house."

The two men exchanged glances and surprisingly, they nodded.

They'd humor the human but they forgot the part where he had just restrained one of them like it was nothing.

"N-Naruto?" Lala called out, worry lacing her voice.

She hadn't expected him to go this far for her. He barely knew her, so why was he putting himself in danger?

"Don't worry, I'll be fine," The blonde reassured her with a grin. "Besides, you might be surprised, I actually have something in common with you."

Lala blinked. "Huh?"

Naruto just smirked and turned toward the two men, rolling his shoulders as they stepped into the garden.

"Speaking of which..." he started, tilting his head at the men. "You guys ever hear of the rule 'never barge into someone's house uninvited'?"

They exchanged glances, confusion marring their faces.

Naruto's finger twitched and all of the sudden, the ground lurched.

Before they could react, the earth swallowed their bodies in an instant, leaving only their heads exposed above ground.

Lala and Peke gasped while Naruto just laughed at them.

"How's that!? Welcome to Uzumaki's trap house!"

The men struggled, faces twisting in shock as they tried—and failed—to move.

"Shit! What is this!?" The scarred man scowled. "I can't move!"

"No matter," the other man huffed. "I managed to send a distress signal just now. Zastin-sama should be arriving in about—"

SHINK!

A sudden flash in the sky caught their attention.

They turned upward as something fell before slamming into the ground.

As the dust settled, it revealed a tall man in demonic-looking armor with silver hair was on his knee. He tilted his head upward, his gaze locking onto Naruto and Lala.

"...You need a sec?" The ninja asked wryly. "That armor looks heavy, and I know it's really hard on your knees doing the superhero landing."

"... please." The man nodded gratefully.

At that moment, someone who had left the house earlier suddenly returned.

"Naruto!? I heard something loud! Are you alright!?"

Mikan rushed into the garden, eyes scanning the scene, only to stop dead in her tracks.

She noticed two men buried up to their necks, a tall guy in demonic-looking armor, still on one knee and Lala, standing next to Naruto, now dressed in some very strange outfit, waving cheerfully at her.

She blinked.

"What... the hell?"

"Oh, hey, Mikan! I thought you went home?" Naruto greeted her casually despite the bizarre situation.

Her gaze flicked between him, the trapped men, and the armored guy.

"I did, but then I heard—wait, what's going on!?"

"Ah, right. Sorry about the noise. These guys were trying to kidnap Lala." Naruto scratched his cheek.

"Kidnap?" The word came simultaneously from Mikan and the three men.

"Yup." Naruto nodded like it was obvious. "Lala told me some bad guys tried to snatch her, so she escaped to Earth. Then these guys found her again, dragged her onto their spaceship, and she used some kinda warp thingy to escape into my bathroom. And after you left, these guys showed up, I tricked them and they walked straight into my trap before this guy fell out of the sky."

Mikan stared.

She stared hard.

"...Are you messing with me?"

"Nope," her neighbor grinned.

Before she could say anything else—

"Wait!"

Zastin suddenly shouted, pulling their attention back to him.

"What do you mean bad men!?" He scoffed as he rose to his full height. "I am Lala-sama's personal bodyguard, Zastin! These two are my men! Lala-sama ran away from home because she refuses to marry any of her suitors! We were ordered by His Majesty, Emperor of the Milky Way Galaxy, Gid Lucione Deviluke, to retrieve his daughter!"

Naruto and Mikan blinked.

Then, slowly, both turned to Lala.

She gave a small, nervous laugh, rubbing the back of her head, tongue sticking out in an oopsie expression.

"Ehe?"

Naruto's eye twitched.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY 'EHE'!?"

His voice boomed through all of Sainan, startling several people who definitely recognized it. He nearly got into a fight with the Emperor of the Galaxy just because of her mishaps.

Don't get him wrong. He'd still help her even if she told him the truth.

Enjoy!