Naruto: Akira’s Story

Coming home, I dismissed my clones with a kick and nearly collapsed right there in the bathroom.

"Damn... forgot that along with the intel, you get all the pain too," I muttered, clutching my head as a migraine and a jumble of images hit me. I dragged myself to the kitchen for some green tea, then went straight to bed.

I was woken up by a knock at the door - and not a gentle one, either. Each knock felt like someone was drilling into my skull. Holding my head, I shuffled over to see who could possibly be visiting me at this hour.

"Huh? Naruko?" I asked, rubbing my eyes.

"Akira-san, hello... you're just in your shorts," she said, glancing away.

"Yeah..." I agreed, trying to stifle a yawn. "Did something happen?" I squinted at her, trying to figure out what brought her here.

"It's just... remember, I wanted to invite you to eat at Ichiraku Ramen?" she said, blushing and looking away.

"Oh, right, you did mention that. I'll go get changed, come on in." Naruko nodded and followed me inside. Sighing, I shuffled off to the bathroom to quickly fix my hair and wash up.

"What should I wear? Ugh, I really don't feel like putting on a kimono - it takes forever, and I'm not in the mood to fuss. Besides, Naruko's already wearing that awful yellow outfit again. She's definitely not worried about appearances."

"All set, let's go?" I asked. Naruko nodded enthusiastically and led the way, but after about ten seconds, she launched into a rapid-fire recap of her week at the academy. She kept jumping from one topic to another, and by the time we reached Ichiraku, she'd settled on talking about the restaurant and how kind Ayame was to her - "like a big sister."

"Welcome! Oh, Naruko, good to see you! Who's this you've brought?" A pretty brunette with kind eyes smiled as soon as she saw us.

"Hey, Ayame-chan, this is... my neighbor, Akira-san," Naruko said, stumbling a bit at the entrance.

"Oh, the one you told me about?" Ayame winked, and Naruko started waving her hands in protest, as if I couldn't see her. "Got it, I'm always happy to see new faces."

"Naruko's here?" An older man came out from the kitchen. I greeted him properly, the way you're supposed to greet your elders - with respect.

Even though I knew this world was different, Teuchi was still the same pillar for Naruto that kept him sane as a kid. Judging by the smile on Naruko's face, this old man was just as warm as in the anime.

"Nice to know some things are still the same," I thought with relief. [ image ]



"Old man! I'll have my usual - ten bowls!" Naruko started, but then paused. "Akira-san, what about you?"

"Me? Honestly, I have no idea," I said, scanning the menu on the wall. Then I glanced at Naruko and added, "You know what, I'll trust your taste. I'll have whatever you're having."

"Oh, then two bowls of pork ramen for us!"

"Haha, you got it," the old man chuckled kindly and went back to the kitchen.

"Knowing your appetite, I doubt one bowl will be enough for you," I teased.

"It's just..." Naruko looked down, embarrassed.

"Hey, don't worry about it. We're not leaving until you're full."

She seemed to think about that for a second, then smiled and held up five fingers to Ayame. Ayame grinned and jotted it down.

While Naruko chattered away - sometimes with me, sometimes with Ayame, sometimes yelling to Teuchi in the kitchen - I watched the old man's daughter. She was not just pretty, but genuinely pleasant. She kept the conversation going, but still managed to politely chat with other customers as they came in.

When our bowls of ramen arrived, I looked at Teuchi and said, "Teuchi-san, would you give me your daughter's hand?"

"WHAAAT?" the old man roared, Ayame turned bright red and looked away, and Naruko nearly choked on her noodles.

I quickly explained that I was opening a restaurant, and after hearing how much Naruko praised Ayame - and seeing her in action myself - I wanted to invite her to work for me as a manager.

"No-no-no and no! You can ask for her hand in marriage if you want, but you're not getting her for your restaurant!" Teuchi said, full of righteous indignation.

"Like he'd ever hand over the heir to his life's work to some random new place? He'd rather marry her off than let her go work somewhere else. Not that I'd say yes right away, but at least the guy's got manners, can provide for himself, and most importantly, Naruko speaks well of him. That, I could maybe accept. But not this restaurant nonsense." - That's what Teuchi was thinking.

Ayame, meanwhile, was still standing where she'd been, cheeks burning, silently agreeing with her dad.

"Oh, what a shame... Well then, Teuchi-san, would you mind if I came by in a few days to ask your advice about running my own restaurant?"

"Order a bowl of ramen, and I'll answer any questions you've got," Teuchi nodded graciously.

One bowl was enough to fill me up, and apparently five were enough for Naruko too. Despite her protests, I paid for both of us and we headed out.

"Well, I did invite you..." Naruko mumbled, blushing and looking away.

"Once you're officially a shinobi, I'll let you pay for both of us."

Naruko beamed at that.

****

As we walked through the village, enjoying the evening, I noticed the looks people were giving us were different from usual. The women and girls glared at Naruko with open jealousy, while the men and boys didn't even look at her - they were shooting daggers at me. Naruko had long since learned to sense people's emotions, and she was used to the usual mix: hatred, contempt, anger, fear. But envy? That was new. Realizing why, she felt both happy and embarrassed. As for me, I either didn't notice the cocktail of emotions aimed my way, or I just didn't care. At least, that's how Naruko saw it.

"Seriously... Akira-san just doesn't care what strangers think of him. So why should I?" With that thought, she felt lighter, able to focus on enjoying the walk with someone she actually liked.

Akira was different from other people - she'd realized that the first time she visited his place. People are hypocrites; they say one thing, but their feelings say another. He wasn't like that, at least not with her. His emotions were always varied, but never hateful or negative, and she liked that about him. Unlike her mom, from whom she felt deep care and motherly love, Akira respected her. Naruko didn't know why, but she was glad that at least one person respected her. Now she just had to figure out why.

"Oh, we're in the northeast district. I actually got mugged here recently," he said suddenly.

"What? Who mugged you?" Naruko felt a surge of anger - and for once, she didn't try to suppress it. She wanted to find those people and politely explain with her fists that this was not okay.

"Whew, calm down," Akira said, glancing at her. "It's fine, Naruko, the muggers already got what was coming to them." He patted her on the shoulder.

"Of course, I immediately asked him for all the details. And even though Akira didn't act like some hero from a story, maybe that was for the best. What if something had happened to him?"

Whew, that was close. Did Naruto's pupils ever dilate that easily in the anime? Or is it just because she's a girl that she's so quick to get emotional? Whatever, I need to remind myself not to get on Naruko's bad side. Not that I plan to...

"Oh, isn't that Ino?" Naruko asked suddenly, and I looked around. Sure enough, there was a flower shop nearby - must be where her family runs their business.

A young blonde was trimming a potted bush, humming to herself. Next to her stood a pink-haired girl, chatting away. That had to be Sakura - the most useless character in Naruto's first season.

"Ino, Sakura!" Naruko called out.

"Oh, Akira-san, what a surprise!" Ino said brightly. "Hey, Naruko!" She greeted her classmate in a totally normal way, which was a big change.

"So you work here too? Do you ever get a break?" I asked, eyeing the flowers and pots.

"Yeah, I just come in for a couple hours to take care of the flowers. It helps me relax."

"That's a good hobby - and useful, too. And this is..." I looked at Sakura, who'd been staring wide-eyed since we arrived.

"That's just Sakura," Naruko and Ino said in unison, as if talking about a tree, not a person.

"I'm Akira, nice to meet you," I said with a small smile.

I wondered if, in this world, she was still chasing after Sasuke. Though that'd be weird, since he's a girl now.

"Uh, yeah, nice to meet you too," Sakura said, bowing at a perfect 50-degree angle, making Ino giggle.

"Akira-san, I just remembered - your place could use a little greenery. Want to pick something out?" Ino smiled.

Actually, a couple people had already told me my house looked empty. Maybe some plants would help.

"Hmm, not a bad idea... Can you recommend something low-maintenance?"

"Spathiphyllum, lady palm, cactus..." Ino listed, pointing to each plant. "The first one actually comes from Ozu Island - we only started growing it recently..." When it came to flowers, Ino could talk as much as Naruko.

"Yeah, I'll take the spathiphyllum, it'll look good in the entryway. And I'd like two cacti and... a bonsai." My gaze landed on the miniature tree.

"Are you sure? Bonsai need a lot of care," Ino said, a little doubtful.

"Well, you talked up all these plants so much, I got curious. Plus, it looks beautiful and calming."

"That's true, especially when you take the scissors and start..." Ino launched into another lecture, this time about bonsai care - from lighting to water type to the right fertilizer.

"Only thing is, I don't think I can carry all this home..." I said, rubbing my chin.

"No problem, I'll have someone deliver it all to you tomorrow."

I paid for my order, we said our goodbyes, and left. Passing an ice cream stand, I couldn't resist and bought us both a treat.

"Heh, Jiraiya, you old perv, you're going to have to work hard to impress Naruko now. Maybe in this reality, they've already met?"

Soon enough, we were heading home together, eating our sweet ice and enjoying the evening view of Konoha.

****

— POV Naruko —

As soon as I walked in the door, Mom was there, peppering me with questions about why I was out so late.

I was happy to tell her about my day, so I shared everything.

"What? Who mugged him?" Mom's hair practically stood on end, like it always did when she was mad.

I had to tell her that story too. Once again, I was reminded how kind and caring my mom was - just look at how much she worried about our neighbor's safety.

"I see... So, did you enjoy your first date?" she asked, grinning slyly.

"Yeah, it was... No! It wasn't a date! I just treated him to ramen." Well, maybe... it was a little like a date, but I'd never admit it!

"Sure, sure. But are you really floating on air just because of ramen?" she teased.

"Mom! That's enough, I'm going to my room." I ran off, her laughter following me.

Man, she can be so annoying sometimes.

***

[ The true face of Teuchi ]



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