Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ I'm Not Alone Anymore ❯ Iruka ( Chapter 2 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Naruto blinked and looked to the sky, taking in the deep violet and light pink of the setting sun. Beside him, Haku fell to the grass, panting slightly.

"Naruto-kun?" the dark-haired child asked. "What's wrong?"

"It's getting dark," the blonde replied. He looked at Haku. "Where are you going to sleep?"

Haku paused and thought for a moment. Just where would he sleep? He had no home here (not that he did back in the Mist) and only one here he knew he could trust…

Seeing Haku's frown deepening more and more, Naruto said slowly, "Well, there is one person who often lets me stay with him, but he's not here right now."

"Then what are we going to do?"

"We could…"

~*~

With all the hustle and bustle of people heading home, no one noticed the two small children heading purposefully down the street. Pausing in front of a house with a dolphin painted on the mailbox, Naruto strode up to the door and attempted to open it. Pouting at it being locked, he motioned for Haku to follow him, and the two scuttled down the side of the house.

Approaching a window with a large crack in it, Naruto grinned at Haku and pushed it open, the broken window sliding open easily. Clambering over the sill, Naruto pulled Haku inside and then closed the window, making sure it didn't lock.

"Are you sure we should be doing this?" Haku asked warily as the blonde led him down a hallway.

"Sure," Naruto responded. "Iruka knows me and I do this all the time." He conveniently forgot to mention that Iruka had always been in the house before. He smiled at Haku before the other boy could question him anymore and reached up to push open the door they had stopped in front of.

"C'mon," Naruto told Haku, grabbing him by the wrist and dragging him over to the bed. "Iruka'll let us sleep here."

"Just tonight?" Haku asked, clambering onto the bed.

"Sure," Naruto said, curling up under the sheets and yawning. "Why not?"

Within moments, the two were fast asleep.

~*~

Iruka yawned and stretched his tired limbs as he walked up to his house. Mission complete and now time for sleep, he thought, fishing his keys from one of his belt pouches and unlocking his door. He shrugged off his Chuunin vest and threw it into a chair, untying his hitai-ate as he closed the door with his foot. He placed the forehead protector on the coffee table as he passed by and made his way to his room, ready for sleep.

He pushed open his bedroom door and blinked tiredly at the sight of two small children having usurped his bed. He could tell Naruto right away, what with the boy's bright blonde hair and whisker-marking on his cheeks, but the other was completely new. With soft, delicate features, the child looked decidedly female, but he wasn't sure.

For a moment, he was torn between waking the children and demanding to know who they were and passing out on the spot.

Finally, he decided that it could wait until morning. Besides, Naruto was the only one who knew how to get inside and, Iruka was certain, that the boy wouldn't allow anyone he didn't know in.

Nodding at his decision to wait until morning, Iruka wandered his way back to the living room, deciding that the couch would be more comfortable than the floor.

~*~

"Naruto-kun."

Poke.

The child groaned and buried himself deeper into the bed.

"Naruto-kun/"

Poke poke.

Naruto opened one groggy eye and looked at Haku, grumbling out, "What?"

The dark-haired child told him, "You said we'd only stay one night."

Naruto sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and he thought back to the night before. Recalling his sleep-fogged words, he yawned and nodded.

"Ok, then, let's go," he told Haku as they slid out of bed.

The two, awakening more and more with every step, had just approached the door when it swung open to reveal a man of about the age of twenty with dark eyes and long black hair pulled into a ponytail. Across the bridge of his nose ran a long scar

At the sight of the strange man, Haku gasped and ducked behind Naruto. The blonde, however, with a big grin, called out, "Iruka!"

~*~

~*~

~*~

~*~

*looks at how many reviews this has* Holy! This is a lot! I didn't expect this much! Thank you to all who reviewed!

Naruto: *mutter* suck up.

Angel: *baps him* Shut-up. *ignores him* This is the most reviews for anything of mine (I think) and I know this is going to devastate you all, but I don't have a plot for this thing! So please, loyal reviewers -

Nine: *cough; gets a kunai thrown at her*

Angel: - if any of you have a decent plot idea - or at least an idea as to how the teams are gonna work! - please tell me!

Kakashi: And now that the pathetic pleading is over with…

Angel: Time for reviewer responses! ^^

Sailor Omega/ White Valkerie - Yeah, muses suck *gets stuff thrown at her; turns around and yells at muses* And I'm glad you enjoyed this. ^^

Continuity - You're right - yes there is. *pout*

Sour Green Apple - Yup - AU.

Nora D - Here you go then ^^

RamenSquirrel - Waa! Arigatou!

Demon-owl - updated ^^

east-is-red - No - pranks is who Naruto is! Now he just has a partner in crime ^^ Meh - fangirl nature. And, yup ^^

Ryuuen Chou - May not be soon - but it is updated.

Kiharu - Thank you. ^^

S-Wanderer999 - Yes; I have no earthly idea; and as for the Haku x Naru thing, I'm thinking of writing a side-story for the pairing and keeping the main fic clean and romance-less.

Skittles the Sugar Fairy - Thank you.

Shitsumon - Yay friends! ^^

Midnight Fairy - Thank you! ^^

Hanachan - Haku x Naru is kawaii, but it won't be in this fic - look for a side story, tho.

Akira - No yaoi. Just an eventual shounen-ai side story.

Puppet in the Corner - Really? Well, I haven't read you fic yet, and I hope you aren't mad with me a'cause of it. ^^; And thanks.

Sadistic Demon - Here's another one for ya ^^

e - Thank you ^^

lilvietdevilgrl - Here you go!

- Not in this one. And Thanks.

someone - Thank you ^^

vixen - here's the next chap ^^

Dark Flame Girl - You bethcha ^^

Miako - Thakns. And here's another chapter.

Distant Stars - Yeah, Haku is pretty thoughtful, but in this one, he hasn't been alone for so long that her starts contemplating things that much. That comes later. ^^ And yes, I am planning on having others join them in later chapters - yay for them.

Angel: Wow. That's a lot. And now that that's done with - I don't own Naruto, so, till next time! ^^