La Speranza Ultima

V. Naruto

“Uzumaki Naruto! Get back here right this instant!”

Cackling, the ten-year-old bolted from the chicken coop, feathers stuck in hair and fur. The chickens squawked and cried at his passing, and the boy barely dodged the rolling pin lodged at his head. He hit the corner, spun around and stuck his tongue out at the elderly woman before darting off again.

In a few minutes, the story would reach his big brother and Naruto would be hauled back here to apologize for whatever mischief he’d caused. It was routine in Konoha, though, ever since the blonde boy figured out he could walk on two feet. Once he’d realized he could leave the safety of Iruka’s side, Naruto had gone and had gotten himself in as much trouble as he could. Grinning, Naruto leapt a fence and tumbled head over heels into a garden, popping up again to keep running.

He hit Iruka’s shins and both went down hard.

“Iruka!” Naruto cried, fur of his tail standing on end at the sight of his big brother lying motionless before him. The boy rolled to his feet and pounced on the brunette, squealing as arms came around him, trapping him to Iruka’s chest.

“You went and terrorized Akiko-san’s chickens again, didn’t you?” The brunette asked, hugging the blonde tight before letting him go, watching the ten-year-old hurry to pick up Iruka’s dropped basket. That rusty tail went between the boy’s legs at the sound of the stern voice.

“I couldn’t help it. They were looking so tasty…”

“Please tell me you didn’t eat one.”

Naruto gave Iruka a wide-eyed innocent stare and giggled when the man gave a groan. “Of course I didn’t eat one. They’re too alive.”

“Typically your food is alive before you eat it.”

“Yeah, but I’m not the one who has to kill it.”

Iruka set his hand on Naruto’s head and sighed, smiling. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with you.”

“You’re gonna take me back to Akiko-san’s and make me apologize.” Naruto whined.

“Of course I am.” Iruka said sternly. “You can’t go around doing things like that without consequences.”

Naruto made a pouty face and stuck his tongue out at his big brother, frowning when the older man replied in kind. ‘Harrumph’-ing, Naruto lifted the basket up onto his head and followed Iruka through the streets back to Akiko’s house, tail tucked between his legs the entire way. He always hated apologies, but Iruka made him for a reason. What reason, Naruto wasn’t sure yet, but he was confident he’d figure it out.

After apologizing to the elderly woman – and Iruka promising Naruto would never, ever do it again – the pair began to slow walk home. Naruto loved walking home with Iruka, because Iruka would always stop and listen to the wind and he would tell Naruto stories of the great Lord of the forest that used to live in these very woods. Since the other kids in Konoha avoided Naruto like the plague, Naruto always enjoyed playing by himself, pretending he was the Lord of the forest and he would always be around to protect Iruka.

“Naruto, you’re not listening to me,” Iruka called gently. The boy paused in mid-step and slowly turned to face the man he’d lived with for ten years. The blonde gave a sheepish smile and trotted back to his brother, electric blue turning up to the cerulean sky that could be seen between the trees. Iruka lifted an arm and pointed. “See it now?”

“I see a bird,” Naruto said in reply. “It’s a big bird.”

Iruka smiled a little and looked down at the boy he’d come to love so much. “Not that, little twit. Up there, in the branches.”
Naruto’s eyes darkened at Iruka’s name calling, but peered harder into the branches of the trees above his head. Then he saw it, grinning widely. Using his claws, the ten-year-old scrambled up the tree and grabbed the pinecone, taking a wild leap and falling to land in Iruka’s arms. He held up his prize, grinning.

Naruto loved pinecones. When rolled in molasses and nuts they attracted all sorts of birds that he could spend hours chasing. Iruka hugged his little brother tight before setting him down and picking up the discarded basket, taking Naruto’s hand as they walked home.

Naruto hurried into their cabin to set the pinecone beside the others he’d collected, moving to help Iruka with his basket and bouncing with joy as he watched Iruka pull out the ingredients for miso ramen. His energy, though, wasn’t going to be able to be contained for much longer.

“Naruto,” Iruka said, “why don’t you play outside until I have dinner ready?”

“But I wanna help.”

“When you’re older.”

“That’s what you said last night,” Naruto groused and grinned when Iruka handed him a little piece of naruto noodle to nibble on. Pleased, at least a little bit, the blonde boy ran outside to unleash his energy on those who could take it: the trees.
He’d always loved the forest without being able to explain why. He just did. Iruka loved the forest too, but Naruto couldn’t understand why. Iruka couldn’t hear the trees the way Naruto could and every time Naruto tried to tell Iruka what the trees were saying, the man would always get so upset. So Naruto had stopped telling Iruka, but it hadn’t stopped him from talking to the trees. He understood that Iruka was only trying to protect him. All big brothers tried to protect their little brothers, after all. But Naruto never could figure out why he and Iruka were so different from the rest of the villagers. Grandpa-Sarutobi always told Naruto he was just special. Special how? For having a tail? What did that mean, anyway?

The ten-year-old sighed and looked back to the cabin he’d grown up in. The trees were saying it was time to leave now that he was old enough to take care of himself. But he didn’t want to leave Iruka. Iruka was like Naruto; he had no one. If Naruto left, what would happen to Iruka? Would he cry again?

The boy frowned, kicking at a few pebbles. Naruto had gotten so angry at Iruka once when he was seven and he’d run away. He hadn’t gone far, just to the edge of the wheat fields where he was sure Iruka would find him, and had only been missing for a few hours at most. Iruka had been hysterical, looking everywhere for Naruto, and when the boy finally returned at the behest (and bribing) of Grandpa-Sarutobi, he’d been so startled to see Iruka’s face red and his eyes filled with tears that he ran right up to the man and clung tight to him.

Naruto never wanted to see Iruka cry again.

But something bad was coming this way, the trees said. Something bad that you can’t protect him from if you stay.

“I’m gonna stay,” Naruto said with a finality that none would disobey. “I’m going to stay with Iruka!”

“I’m afraid, prince, I can’t allow that.”