21 Uzumaki Saruto
Winter crept into Konoha, with the first snowflakes delicately adorning the village. Despite the cold weather, the village retained its liveliness as children frolicked, adults engaged in animated chatter, and so on. Peace had prevailed upon the village.
In the Hokage office, Hiruzen, the notorious Lord Third, perused the documents in front of him, his eyes darting across the pages.
Similarly, the person opposite him, whose upstanding feature was his elegant crimson hair tied in a ponytail, flipped across several pages, his violet eyes registering the data with a single sweep.
Alongside him was a light-haired individual clad in a flak jacket, analysing the stacks of documents, deep in concentration.
These 2 were none other than Namikaze Hayato, and Yamanaka Inoichi.
Finally, Hayato was the first to break the silence; "Yeah, I believe this should do."
Inoichi nodded in support with his eyes fixed on the paper, "Agreed. Uzumaki Saruto, an orphan who met his end during the Kyuubi attack at the age of 19. A rather obscure figure with no friends or notable talents as a ninja. An apt cover story... We've used the identity of this deceased Uzumaki to assist with the creation of the background, and make it seem as though he never died. In other words, we morphed the documents completely."
"What about his grave?" Hayato questioned.
"His body was never found, but just like many other people, he was deemed disintegrated by the Bijuudama, and since he had no relations to speak, he never even had a cremation," Inoichi
answered, disheartened by this revelation given his lowering pitch.
"I see... He was so young too."
Hayato expressed, empathising with the unfortunate soul claimed by the Kyuubi. Clasping his hands together in a motion of prayer, he intoned, "May he find peace with his parents."
"Indeed," Hiruzen concurred.
Scanning the documents, Hayato tucked a finger under his chin and opinionated; "Well, I think this cover is solid. With the lack of information and the passage of six years since the Kyuubi attack, no one should question the details. The age gap is also very minute, I was only a year older it seems."
Hiruzen stated, "Very well, Uzumaki Saruto. You're an individual who had participated in the front lines of the investigative units devised by myself, as a spy, and finally, you've returned. Because of your predominant time outside the village, you're not very well known. You should be able to cover up your identity if anyone questions you."
Sliding the documents back to Hiruzen, Hayato approved in satisfaction, "Yeah, with this, my identity should be complete. Now to adopt my nephew."
Filing the documents, Hiruzen stacked them atop one another, and to leverage the stack, he gently smacked the edge of the stack multiple times across the surface.
While he adjusted the stack, Hiruzen questioned, "When will you adopt him?"
Hayato replied bluntly, "When she returns."
"Very well."
"By the way Hayato-san, I believe I saw Naruto earlier with Shikamaru and Choji," Inoichi chimed in.
Hayato arched a brow, regaining a sense of familiarity as he heard those names; "Shikamaru? Choji? Those names... Are they perhaps... The sons of Shikaku-san and Choza-san?"
"Yes," Inoichi admitted.
Smiling, Hayato voiced, "I see. That's great news..."
He paused, eyeing Inoichi skeptically, and couldn't help but raise a brow. Inoichi understood, and corrected his train of thought; "I have a daughter, Ino-chan, and she'd much rather be with other girls her age."
"Ahh, I see. Alright then," Hayato said. "In that case Inoichi-san, how about you show me around, and perhaps I'll run into Naruto," Hayato asserted, rising from his seat.
"Sigh," Inoichi let out a tired breath. He was supposed to be helping with the sensory unit, but now he had to help this person whom he just met yesterday.
"I'm certain you don't have to worry about the sensory team. Plus, if anything were to happen...." Hayato pointed at himself with his thumb cockily;
"You got me," he reassured, additionally flashing his signature smile.
Inoichi rose from his position, inclined to help this person.
"Well Lord Third, I'll see ya later," Hayato waved. He patted Inoichi on the shoulder, who stood at the same height, and they vanished right from the spot.
...
Upon the Hokage Mansion, two figures materialised abruptly. Inoichi experienced a sudden distortion in his vision; the surroundings plunged into darkness, and then, in less than a second, the brilliance of the outside world reappeared. Inoichi teetered slightly, but Hayato's steady grip on his shoulder prevented a fall.
"Let's meet my nephew, I can't wait," Hayato declared, striding towards the mansion's edge. Winter's cold breeze enveloped him, causing his hair and clothes to billow in response. He drew a deep breath, exhaling mist that signaled a notable drop in temperature.
"So, mind showing me around?" Hayato inquired, redirecting his gaze to Inoichi.
'Haa, what a drag. I feel like you right now Shikaku,' Inoichi sighed inwardly.
Inoichi stood at the edge beside Hayato, absorbing the view alongside him from a vantage point. The prevailing peace of the village was visible, and the two individuals felt the weight of their shared responsibility to maintain that peace. As such, they tacitly shared a moment of solemnity, digesting the cheerful landscape.
Finally, Inoichi proposed, "Let's go."
The duo vanished from their spot.
...
Hayato and Inoichi watched atop infrastructures, Hayato's face lit up as he observed the interaction between 3 people.
One had yellow hair, and blue eyes, and looked to be 6. A smile adorned his face as he walked along the street, engaged in conversation with his 2 peers of similar age.
Another kid had a robust build and was casually devouring a packet of crisps. He had spiky brown hair, and strolled along with eyes closed. The crumbs etched on his face were visible, yet he seemed unfazed; Akimichi Choji.
Another had black spiky hair, tied back, and deep brown eyes. He had a more laid-back demeanor, and would occasionally show a smile; Nara Shikamaru.
'Naruto,' Hayato thought, a smile gracing his lips as he saw the yellow-haired youth who was immersed in animated chatter with his peers, playfully motioning with his hands.
Hayato observed the youth with vigor, 'He looks a lot more like nii-san...'
However, a peculiar trait of Naruto took him off guard, causing him to momentarily frown; 'And those whiskers... Must be because of the Kyuubi...'
"Sooo..." Inoichi interjected, snapping Hayato from his reverie.
"No, not yet. I don't want to disturb them. Naruto seems to be having fun," Hayato replied.
Inoichi hummed in understanding, and the spectating resumed.
As hours passed, the two adults discreetly trailed the children, even after the sun had set and the sky turned pitch black.
Finally, Inoichi voiced his opinion on the current situation; "This feels weird. You're making us seem like stalkers."
"Not us, just me," Hayato retorted, insinuating he was the only stalker here.
A bead of sweat formed by Inoichi's temple before he snapped back, "You're... not making me feel better about this. That would make me a stalker's helper."
"I apologise," Hayato half-heartedly apologised, to which Inoichi could only draw in a breath of cold air.
Before long, the trio of children parted ways, bidding farewell to each other. Naruto was finally alone, and retaining an aura of optimism as he recalled today's activities, especially the timely fun he had with Shikamaru and Choji. Remembering such precious moments, the youth couldn't help but grin in ecstasy.
Noticing that this was a perfect opening, Inoichi prompted, "So now?"
"Nope," Hayato rebuked, much to Inoichi's surprise.
"What? I thought..."
"No, I'll do so when my wife returns. All I wanted to do was see him, and check if he seemed happy," Hayato answered, rising from his spot. He continued, "I'm plenty satisfied. Those 2 kids also seem good, and I can see that one day they'll be great friends."
Turning to Inoichi, he added with a warm smile "Hopefully your Ino-chan will also be good friends with Naruto."
Inoichi remained silent as he heard Hayato's remarks.
With slouched shoulders, Hayato regaled, "C'mon Inoichi-san, you can smile sometimes y'know, you can't always be serious."
"Right," Inoichi answered indifferently, though it was evident that he seemed to be ruminating, hence unconsciously feigning ignorance.
Observing Inoichi's sallow expression, Hayato spoke, "Hmm... You seem tired... Well, I guess it's cuz you've been helping me out this whole time after. I'm sorry to have troubled you Inoichi-san."
Inoichi replied, "No, it's quite alright."
Hayato shook his head, "No, you've been helping me for quite a while, you actually seem like a corpse right now. I guess you ended up overdoing it. It's only right I apologise."
"Hayato-san..." Inoichi rasped. Though Hayato wasn't wrong, he mulled over something else... Something he wasn't willing to tell Hayato.
"Yeah? You wanna say something?" Hayato called, arching a brow at Inoichi's unusual demeanor.
After a momentary silence, Inoichi refrained, "No, I'm just really tired."
Hayato admitted, "Understandable. In that case, I believe I won't need your assistance anymore, and thank you very much for everything. I hope in the future, we can get along on good terms."
"Sure," Inoichi replied flatly.
Turning his back on Inoichi, Hayato perched atop the railings.
"Ahh, Inoichi-san, one more thing," Hayato questioned, shooting a glance back at Inoichi.
"Hmm," Inoichi welcomed the query.
"Do you have news of Aiko-sensei? I haven't heard from her in a while?" Hayato asked, his tone tinged with doubt.
Inoichi mused for a while, recollecting his thoughts until the name of the said individual echoed in his mind.
'Aiko?' He internally mused. Soon enough, his memory regained clarity as he reminisced of a female adult donned in the standard attire of a Jonin, who had orange hair tied back in a ponytail, and orange eyes, with an ecstatic grin gracing her lips.
The prodigy of the Yamanaka; Yamanaka Aiko.
"Oh, right, Aiko-san. She's been preoccupied with Shinobi work somewhere far away and hasn't come home in a long time... But I have heard she should be returning soon."
"Mm, yep, that's sensei alright. She's still as busy as ever," Hayato sighed in resignation.
Despite losing a limb, her perseverance prevented her from taking rest. She could've long retired but refrained from doing so. As such, Hayato could only sigh in resignation at her bold-headedness, and steadfast courage.
"Well, please do tell me when she returns. I'd very much like to pay her a visit," Hayato apprised, to which Inoichi nodded in approval.
Hayato vanished from his spot, leaving Inoichi alone, lost in his thoughts, lamenting over Hayato's statement from earlier today...
-----
"All I wanted to do was see him, and check if he seemed happy."
-----
Staring at Naruto whose expression had become that of sadness as he sauntered toward his apartment, Inoichi mumbled inaudibly to himself, "Happy, huh?"
Hayato couldn't have been further from the truth.
Inoichi knew all too well what Naruto had been enduring, and should Hayato find out, he knew for a fact this wouldn't bode well for the Hokage.
Especially the fact that Hayato seemed uninformed about the abuse Naruto had undergone.
This was the reason his mood had become somber in the final hour.
Arising, Inoichi stood firm, embracing the brisk winter breeze, gazing skyward at the night sky veiled in darkness and decorated in sparkling stars.
For now, there was no sign of snowfall or any sort of negative phenomenon in this regard...
Yet...
A storm was brewing!
