Love Hina Fan Fiction / Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Through the Punching Glass ❯ Chapter 02 ( Chapter 2 )

DISCLAIMER I do not own Naruto or Love Hina. They are owned by the wonderful Masashi Kishimoto and Ken Akamatsu respectively.

 

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The beginning of this chapter is exactly the same as the ending of the ORIGINAL previous chapter, so if you've read this story before, you can skip ahead a bit to the Tsunade's office scene. I promise not to let my OCD gnomes change too much along the way there.

 

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The Naruto world is SLIGHTLY A/U. Age-wise is directly after the Sasuke Retrieval arc so 13/14, but will incorporate some of the knowledge gained after the time skip, like chakra blades and learning with shadow clones. Also, for my story, Ki energy like Motoko uses is purely spiritual energy. It may need a bit of physical training to release it, but no where near the amount of training a ninja uses to utilize chakra, which is both physical and spiritual.

 

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--In Konohagakure--

 

Sakura was getting bored. It had been almost 6 hours since the strange man had fallen on her and her teacher, and she was running out of things to keep herself occupied. She hadn't once left Naruto's small apartment, and in fact hadn't even left the bedroom aside from stepping out to use the restroom and bring in a pitcher of water with a pair of glasses. She's already gone through most of Naruto's scrolls and books scattered around the room, hoping to train or even just to find an interesting read. All she had found, though, were basic scrolls that she had memorized years ago, a few Manga, scrolls depicting how to do the “Sexy Jutsu” and “Harem Jutsu”, and a note from Naruto's new teacher, Jiraya, telling him to train while he was out conducting research.

 

As much as she hated to admit it, the jutsus used for Naruto's signature moves were actually quite advanced, especially the “Harem Jutsu”. It had a brief explanation on how to make a shadow clone, but mostly it described how to use the “Sexy Jutsu” at the same time, and on each of the clones created. Curious, Sakura attempted to follow the poorly written directions for making a shadow clone. She knew that the “Sexy Jutsu” was a waste of time, but shadow clones were very helpful, especially if what she remembered about them was true, that the user learned anything the clone did once it was dispelled.. That, and adding a henge simultaneously would make for an excellent ability. Unfortunately, for the most important parts of creating shadow clones, Naruto had left it with a description so vague, she wasn't even sure what the words themselves were.

 

Just as she was about to snap from boredom, the figure resting in the bed began to stir. The man didn't seem to notice her sitting near the wall, and began talking to himself. “Man, why don't they ever let me explain myself. That has to be the farthest they've ever launched me. I'm lucky they didn't see how I landed, or I'd probably be dead. Man, I hope those girls don't hate me, I never meant to grab them like that, it was an accident. But man, were Motoko and Naru mad, I should probably lay low a couple days.”

 

At the name Naru, Sakura perked up even more. “Naru? That some kind of nickname you have for Naruto,” she asked the man.

 

“No, no, that's her name, Naru. Naru Narusegawa,” he replied. Suddenly he jerked upright. He wasn't alone. He saw his glasses on the nightstand, and put them on, taking the room into focus. There, seated on a chair by the door, was one of the girls he'd landed on. Suddenly remembering what she asked him, he said, “Who's Naruto?”

 

“Naruto is the name of the guy whose bed you're resting in, although he's not here at the moment. He had to take a little trip.” She didn't bother to tell him that his trip was accelerated by the force of her and her teacher's fists. “I've got lots of questions for you, but I'm supposed to take you to the Hokage's office as soon as you woke up. She should still be there today, it's not too late yet.” With that, she stood up. She went over to the bed and poured a glass of water. She handed it to the man, who tentatively reached out and accepted it, drinking it quickly. “My name's Sakura Haruno, Genin Kunoichi of the Hidden Leaf Village. And you are?”

 

“Oh, my names Keitaro Urashima. I...I'm sorry about earlier, I didn't mean to grab you there,” he replied shakily. He was very nervous, especially since this girl looked to be about the same age as Shinobu, maybe even younger. He spared a glance around the room. It was the single most tacky room he had ever experienced. There was a bookshelf, but most of the books and scrolls Scrolls? were littered about the floor. The dresser was in similar disarray, looking like someone had been throwing them open in haste. On the wall was a poster of a strange symbol, as well as a hand drawn poster of a face, with a large circle around it, and an X that appeared to have been erased. Their was writing at the bottom. It had once said “Beat Sasuke”, but the beat had been crossed out, and a “Find” had been written above it. There was a strange doll hanging from the ceiling, with a few odd looking knives, and what appeared to be throwing stars, embedded in it. The doll wore a face mask over his mouth and nose, and had a headband covering one eye. The headband had the same symbol upon it as the poster. Finally, he looked at the bed and saw that it was a simple twin sized western style bed. The comforter was bright orange, and covered in the same symbol found on the poster and headband.

 

Finally, Keitaro looked at the girl. She appeared to be 12 or 13, and had bright pink hair that wasn't even shoulder length. Her hair was held up by a bandanna of sorts, and when she moved, he realized it was the same as the headband on the dummy. She had emerald green eyes, and wore a red dress. As he looked at her more closely, he realized the dress was slit all the way up to her hips on both sides and that she wore black shorts underneath. Her right thigh was wrapped up, and he wondered if he had hurt her when he had landed. She was just watching him as he checked out his surroundings. “I'm sorry if I hurt you,” he said, looking very guilty.

 

“What? Hurt me?”

 

“Yeah, I noticed your leg is bandaged. Did I do that when I crashed into you?”

 

“Oh this,” she said, looking down at the spot her Kunai holster usually sat. “I keep it wrapped so my holster doesn't dig into my leg. It's not hurt at all.” She was amazed at how worried this man seemed to be. Although from what she had been told he had said, it seems like violence was a part of his life. “C'mon, we have to go meet the Hokage still.”

 

“Who,” came the confused response.

 

“Tsunade, my teacher and the Hokage of the Konoha.”

 

“What's a Hokage?”

 

'Man, this guy must be from way out of town if he didn't know what Hokage was,' Sakura thought. “Hokage is the leader of our village. Now, no more questions. She'll want to do that herself.” She opened the door and gestured him to follow her. Nervously, Keitaro followed. She led him out of the small bedroom and into a small living room slash kitchen that was equally messy. There were dirty dishes everywhere and what appeared to be weapons strewn about, similar to the ones he had seen stuck in the doll. She went straight for the door, but stopped shortly before she reached it. Turning around, she said, “If you have to go to the bathroom, now would be a good time. I don't know how long the Hokage will take meeting with you.”

 

Keitaro realized that he did have to use the restroom, and when he nodded at the girl, she pointed to the other door in the small space. Rushing in, he began to relieve himself. Again, he found himself examining the room. A shower, toilet, and sink were the only fixtures, save for a single uncovered bulb hanging by its wires, not even mounted to the ceiling. This room, like the other two, gave the distinct feeling that this 'Naruto' person lived alone. He finished up and returned to find the girl already standing with the door open. He took his cue and walked past her into the hallway.

 

Once they got to street level, Keitaro began to see just how strange the city was. There were buildings all over, and they almost all had flat roofs. In the distance, he could see a large red building, the highest in the city. Behind that was a mountain with faces carved upon it. It reminded him of something he had read in one of his textbooks, some monument they had in America. He wondered if that's where he was. Everything was certainly odd enough. As they walked, he noticed a large number of people wearing headbands similar to the one the girl wore, and they all had that same symbol on it. No one really gave him a second look, but he was used to that, and silently thanked the gods that he didn't stand out too badly.

 

After about five minutes, a voice rang out behind them. “Hey, forehead girl, you finally give up on Sasuke and get yourself a real man?” Turning, he found himself looking at a girl around the same age as his current companion. She had white hair, with large bangs sticking up in the front, and pale blue eyes. She was wearing a purple dress and had her headband tied around her waist.

 

“Ino, you pig, what do you want,” Sakura yelled at her. “Keitaro is not my boyfriend, I'm just taking him to see the Hokage.” She seemed a little flustered by the ordeal. “You know I'd never give up on my precious Sasuke, and I will beat you for him.”

 

“Whatever, you can have that traitor. I've realized that maybe I should try someone who doesn't cringe when I talk to him and try to hide. Speaking of which, I need to go and meet him for dinner. Bye Sakura, Sakura's boy toy.” With that final jab at her friend, Ino ran off towards a boy with a ponytail, wearing a vest, his hands in his pockets. “Shikamaru, you ready for our date?”

 

Keitaro couldn't help but laugh when the boy both cringed and attempted to hide from the young woman.

 

“Sorry about her, she just doesn't know how to keep that big mouth of hers shut,” Sakura apologized. 'That was Ino, one of my friends. At least now I don't have to battle her for my precious Sasuke.”

 

The man remembered what Ino had said about this 'Sasuke' person, but he wisely kept his mouth shut. 'I wonder if that's the same “Sasuke” from the poster in Naruto's bedroom?' They made their way towards the red building, and were stopped by guards, also wearing vests similar to the one that Shikamaru boy wore. Sakura explained that they were meeting with the Hokage, on her orders, and they were let through. The young girl led him up several flights of stairs and paused in front of a large set of doors. She knocked loudly and the door opened. A woman with short dark hair, holding a pig opened the door.

 

“Oh, hi Sakura. I take it this is the man? Come on in. The Hokage is busy at the moment, but will see you shortly. She ushered the two in and took her first look at the man. He was about 21, with a slightly nerdy look to him. Still, she couldn't help but think that he looked kind of cute. “Hi, I'm Shizune, assistant to the Hokage,” introducing herself. “And this is Tonton,” she gestured towards the pig in her arms.

 

'Um, hi, I'm Keitaro Urashima, pleased to meet you.” He bowed, and then looked at the woman in front of him. She had a cute face, and Keitaro found himself blushing. To distract himself, he took a good look at the pig and about shouted when he realized that not only was it wearing a dress, but it had a pearl necklace on as well. Suddenly, the door to the inner office opened and a man wearing a face mask, vest, and headband covering one eye stepped out, casually reading a small yellow book as he walked. 'Wait a minute, he looks just like that dummy I saw in the bedroom,' Keitaro thought.

 

The man paused when he saw the three of them. “Hi Sakura,” he said, and then continued out the door.

 

“That was my other teacher, Kakashi Hatake,” Sakura explained.

 

“Is that you Sakura?” A voice from the inner office called out.

 

“Yes, Tsunade”

 

“Is the man with you?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Well, send him in.”

 

Sakura turned to Keitaro. “Good luck!”

 

Keitaro looked towards the large doors to the inner office and gulped as he noticed two masked men standing guard next to them. One had the mask of an eagle, the other a panther. Taking a deep breath, he walked forward and pushed on the door that the man had come out of. It opened easily and quietly, and he took his first step inside. What he saw surprised him, as it was nothing more than a large, yet elegant desk with a few chairs in front of it. There were five pictures on the wall, but with the glare coming from the window, he couldn't make them out. There was a large section of windows along the back wall, and the view overlooked the entire city. And there, sitting behind the desk surrounded by paperwork, was the other woman he had fallen on. 'Oh god, I'm dead. I groped their leader!'

 

She watched as he looked around, and smirked a bit as he recognized her. “Well, sit down. We have a lot to talk about.” She gestured towards the chair directly in front of her, which he nervously sat down in. “My name is Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage of Konohagakure. And you are?”

 

Keitaro was beginning to sweat, he had never been so nervous in his life as he thought about the possible punishments he could receive. “K-Keitaro Ur-Ur-Urashima,” he managed to gulp out. She laughed gently at his stutter.

 

“Maybe you'd like some tea to relax you. Or possibly a bit of sake,” she questioned him, the smirk still not leaving her face.

 

“T-Tea would be fine.”

 

“Alright,” she replied, then lifted her head towards the door. “Shizune!” The woman from the waiting room poked her head in. “Could you please bring us some tea?”

 

“At once, Tsunade.”

 

“Thank you,” she replied to the already closing door. Turning her attention back towards Keitaro, “Well, since we're waiting for something to relax you, how about I just ask a few basic questions to pass the time.”

 

“Okay.” Keitaro was glad that he hadn't stuttered, but his voice did crack a bit.

 

“First off, Mr. Urashima, from what village do you hail?”

 

“The Hinata District near Tokyo.”

 

“That's strange. I've never heard of it before. Is it here, in the Fire Country?”

 

'Fire Country? What the hell is she talking about.' “No, it's in Japan. I've been studying a lot lately, and I've never heard of the 'Fire Country'.” He looked at her with a face rife with confusion.

 

Just as the Hokage was going to speak, there was a gentle knock on the door, before it opened admitting Shizune carrying a tray. “Excuse me, Hokage,” she said politely before placing the tray on the desk between the two. She looked at Keitaro and gave him a small smile before leaving as quietly as she had entered. Tsunade gestured towards the pot of fresh brewed tea, indicating that he should have some so they could finish their discussion.

 

Keitaro looked at the tray, which contained an ornate teapot and two delicate looking cups. Standing, he gently picked the urn up and, remembering his manners, poured first for the Hokage, and then for himself. Carefully setting the pot back town he returned to his seat. The woman smiled warmly at him, and picked up her cup, taking a small sip of the amber liquid inside. Keitaro did the same, and marveled at the perfect temperature and consistency it had, as well as the exotic yet delicious flavor it contained. As he continued to drink, the leader stood up and walked towards a stack of papers on the far side of her desk, searching a moment before grabbing one and bringing it towards him.

 

“I'd like you to point out the relative position of your village on this map, if you don't mind,” she told him, spreading the paper out on top of one of the smaller stacks of paper. Setting his cup back on the tray, he walked towards the map and gazed at it.

 

“Um, it's not on here. Do you have a map of more of the world?”

 

Tsunade was beginning to get upset. He could see the agitation in her eyes as she opened her mouth to speak. “This is a map of all the countries in the known world. What do you mean you 'can't find it'? Surely you know what your home country looks like.”

 

“Of course I know what it looks like. But it's not on there, I swear it.” He was starting to panic. The nice looking woman in front of him was starting to look scarier and scarier by the second.

 

“Alright, if it's not on here, where is it? Do you have a map of your own hidden somewhere to show me?”

 

Keitaro shook his head. The look on the Hokage was getting darker when suddenly he remembered something. Reaching into his back pocket, he pulled out his travel study guide for Tokyo University. Flipping to the back cover, he unfolded a small map he had tucked in there when he and Naru had studied world geography. Handing the map to the woman, he watched her face nervously. He watched as her face turned from upset, to wonder, to curiosity. She looked at him for a moment before holding up a single finger and running into a side room that Keitaro hadn't noticed. He could hear her moving things around, frantically searching for something, until after about 2 minutes, she gasped and ran back out, a tattered old scroll in her hands.

 

To say Tsunade was excited would be an understatement. She had searched high and low in the records hall before finally finding what she was looking for. It was a map that the first Hokage, her grandfather, had owned, which showed lands far beyond any they had explored. She lay it out on the desk next to the one the boy had given her, and compared them. The land masses were identical, and as she read the writing at the bottom closely, she almost fainted. In her grandfathers handwriting was a small note that read “A complete map of a different world. Possible parallel dimension to our own, as they have similar language and customs. Unknown how to travel between them, as it was an accident that thrust the maps owner into our world, while taking one of our own to their world. Our visitor was one Hina Urashima, a young lady, while Arashi Uzumaki went to their world.”

 

Tsunade went back to her desk and looked at the boy with a sense of fascination in her eyes. She knew she was going to have to work long and hard to see if she could find more of the First Hokage's research involving the matter. “So, Mr. Urashima. Why don't you tell me about life where you're from, hmm?”

 

And with that, Keitaro began telling her his story about living as the manager of the Hinata All-Girls dormitory, complete with undeserved beatings, misunderstandings, and all the other pranks, quirks, and pleasantries of the job. It took all of 2 hours to finish the story, during which time Tsunade said little, letting this man work out what seemed to be a lot of stress. When he came to the events of that morning, she stopped him.

 

“Well, I don't think you'll be a threat to our village anytime soon.” Remembering the smile that Shizune had given the man, she decided to play a little matchmaker. “I'll have a guide show you around a bit while there's still daylight, and then you can have one of the guest rooms here that are reserved for visiting dignitaries and nobles.”

 

“I can't take one of those rooms, I'm just a prep-school student!”

 

“You can, because at the moment, you are the unofficial representative of your land, and it is only fair that I offer you the best Konoha has to offer.” She smiled, the gears in her mind moving at warp speed as she decided what room to put him in. Tsunade grabbed a small scroll and wrote a short note on it. “Give this to Shizune please, and have a pleasant day.” She stood up and showed the younger man out.

 

Keitaro walked back into the entrance office and approached the desk where the dark haired woman sat. She noticed his approach and looked up from the paperwork, smiling at him. “Um, I was supposed to give this to you.” He handed her the scroll and took a seat, waiting for her to tell him about his guide. As he looked at her, he saw her blush while reading, before catching his eye and nervously holding the scroll in front of her face.

 

'Tsunade, I'm going to kill you!' Shizune thought as she read the note again.

 

“Shizune - I would like you to show this charming young man around Konoha today. You're relieved of your duties for the rest of the afternoon as well. Please take him somewhere for dinner and show him a good time. When you're ready to turn in, I will have Suite 6 prepared. Tonton can stay with me tonight. Be gentle with him! - Tsunade”

 

'Just like her to play matchmaker for me. And Suite 6, that's right next to my room. I will get her back for this.' Shizune mentally swore at her friend, while forcing her blush back down. Rolling the scroll back up, she stood and offered her hand to the man. “It looks like I get to show you around Konoha. C'mon, there's plenty to see.”

 

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TBC

 

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A/N Okay, as I've been going over the plan in my head for this story, I realized I have way WAY more ideas for Naruto than I do for Keitaro. This piece will focus more on Naruto from this point on, but will touch base at least with Keitaro on a regular basis.