Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Fairy Tale ❯ Chapter One ( Chapter 1 )

Author's Note: Yes, this is another Cinderella inspired story. But don't worry, I fully intend on finishing this one -is determined- Also, things might be a little dull in the beginning (as Dr. Frebbie told me), but don't worry, I'll make things progress a bit faster. I just need to set the mood first. Again, special thanks to Unce, Tracy-kin, and XiaoBai for being patient while I constantly bug them to finish beta-reading this chapter. You two are the best! -major glompage-

 

Warnings: YAOI, AU, OOC and some profanity.

 

This chapter is dedicated to Maliciously-Creative, because I'm such a stupid person to have forgotten my favorite nee-san. D:

 

Standard Disclaimers Apply

 

 

Fairy Tale

By Wowie

 

Chapter One

 

It was another typical morning at Ichiraku Court. The sun has yet come out but the servants had already started with their chores, just like what they've been doing ever since they've started working at Konoha Mansion. But somehow, Naruto didn't feel like getting out of bed, because as soon as he woke up, there was a bitter taste left in his throat and his head felt like it was being split in two.

 

He tried to recall the events of the previous night but it just intensify the aching his head even more. He vaguely remembered stumbling into random objects on his way back to his room but couldn't figure out why he felt like shit first thing in the morning.

 

“Does your head feel like crap?”

 

He was mildly surprised by the sudden intrusion and tried to focus his attention to his bedroom door where the voice came from, only to find his guardian Iruka Umino standing there with a basin-full of water and a washcloth soaked in it.

 

“Hey Iruka, good morning!” Naruto grinned at his favorite brother-figure but immediately groaned when he felt another throbbing pain in his head.

 

Iruka sighed and proceeded to sit beside the shabby bed. He couldn't contain his grimace at the sorry state of his young master's room. The wooden walls were bare and some parts were either rotting or being eaten by termites. Random junk scaling from old chests to broken furniture were all scattered around. Some wooden floor boards looked like they would give way any minute and no matter how much he tried to clean the room, the dust would always seem to pile up even thicker than before. The bed itself was so old that the mattress was already saggy and some springs were already sticking up and ready to strike anyone unfortunate enough to sit on them.

 

Compared to this one, Iruka's little shack was much cozier and more habitable. He'd asked Naruto countless of times to just sleep in with him, but the boy would just smile and say, “My stepmother and stepsisters need me here. Besides, this is the house where I was born and I've never left it ever since I could remember. So I'm going to stay, no matter how uncomfortable I am in here.”

 

Iruka in return, would shake his head in frustration but would stop arguing further even if it's against his will. If the duke was still alive, he would never, ever allow this to happen to his only son. But none of them could do anything for their young master for they themselves were striving to feed themselves with the little money they earn from serving the baroness. If possible, Iruka's face turned a bit sterner at the thought of the woman who was causing them all the misery, especially to his young master.

 

“Owww…”

 

Iruka snapped out of his stupor and his attention immediately shifted back to the groaning boy who was clutching the wet washcloth over his head.

 

“How come my head hurts this bad…?” Naruto groaned miserably. He never felt worse in his entire life until this day.

 

“Well that's what you get for drinking too much alcohol.” Iruka took the washcloth from the boy's hand then soaked it in the basin and proceeded to rub the boy's forehead with it.

 

“Alcohol? When did I— oh…” Now he remembered. It was Kiba's sixteenth birthday yesterday [1] and as a present, his elder brother gave him a bottle of sake, saying that he's almost a man and that he's ready for something little boys couldn't take. Of course, he discreetly asked Kiba to be careful on not getting caught by their big sister or they're both doomed. After all, even if they're almost man enough for alcohol, the fact remained that they were still minors and were not supposed to be allowed to drink liquor. Unfortunately, secrets were bound to be discovered sooner or later. And Kiba's elder brother received a good spanking from their very pissed off eldest sister (even if he did seem too old to be spanked).

 

“Normally, I would've dragged you back to your room as soon as I've heard you're little escapade with the boys,” Iruka said sternly which made Naruto flinch. “But since you hardly have a break from doing house chores and it's Kiba's birthday, we let you have your fun. We also thought that this might be a way for you boys to learn your lessons well… so… did you get the moral behind this experience?” An evil glint flashed in the older man's brown eyes and there was a hint of amusement in his voice when he said the last line.

 

Naruto only grunted in response as he tried to clear off the fuzziness in his head. In his mind, he vowed never to drink more than he could take. “What happened to the others?”

 

Iruka grinned and then replied, “Shikamaru didn't really drink much so he had no problems going back to their cottage. Same goes to Chouji, who focused more on eating all the food. Kiba, on the other hand, was the one who drank the most and so he didn't even reach inside their house when he passed out.”

 

Naruto did remember that incident. He could vaguely make out from his memories the sight of Kiba completely wasted just outside their cottage's front door while he himself barely made it on his bed. Good thing he still had a little sense left to make him reach his room, or else his stepmother won't be too thrilled to see him sprawled on the hallway the hour she got out of bed. But then he guessed that even if that happened, Iruka would have made sure to bring him back to his bed and keep him away from the baroness' wrath.

 

Speaking of his stepmother, there was something nagging in his head about what he was supposed to do early in the morning. And as the sun slowly peeked from the horizon, he went immediately from being groggy to being wide-awake as he remembered he was supposed to make them breakfast as per usual.

 

“Shit! They'd all be awake before I could even start cooking!” He leaped up and began rummaged through his closet to find anything decent to wear.

 

“There's no need to rush, Naruto. Besides, Mrs. Akimichi has already cooked breakfast for this morning. Mr. Nara has also fed the animals and I've milked the cow. So you can stop panicking, because you do deserve to have a break.”

 

“Really?!” Naruto turned to his highly amused guardian and immediately hugged him.

 

“Oh, thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You don't know how much you've made my day!” He then proceeded to put on an orange pants and a black sweat-shirt that he managed to pull out from his closet.

 

“You're feeling better already?” Iruka chuckled as he watched his young master fix himself in front of the mirror. He was still amazed on how Naruto could jump from gloomy to cheerful in an instant.

 

“Much better!” Naruto gave him his brightest smile to emphasize his point.

 

“Well then, I'm sure you'll also be happy to know that even if it's not market day, the baroness asked me to buy apples from the castle town. And so instead of me going, I'll be passing the errand to you. You haven't been out of this place for almost a month and I'm sure you're dying to visit your godparents.”

 

“Oh wow! Iruka, I love you!!!” Naruto hugged his guardian more tightly this time and gave him a sound kiss on the cheek.

 

“Now, now, don't get too carried away.” Iruka laughed and motioned Naruto to get off his lap which the latter obliged. He took out some bills from his pocket and handed them over to the boy.

 

“Off you go!” He made a motion of shooing Naruto away and the boy gleefully ran out of his room.

 

“Be sure to be back before dusk!” he called out in hopes the boy hasn't gone too far down the stairs yet.

 

He heard a muffled “I will” and that's all he needed to hear.

 

…

 

To say that Neji Hyuuga was pissed off was a big understatement. Not only did he have to wake up early so he could run around the palace to make sure that everything was in order in time for the council meeting, but was now faced with another game of hide and seek with his dark-haired cousin who happened to be the heir to the throne of Uchiha.

 

It's not like it wasn't a common occurrence in Sharingan Castle wherein the prince always made disappearing acts. In fact, Neji would even sometimes help him escape his guards since he did sympathize with him a little about being confined in his own home and being constantly watched by everyone. But what irked Neji was that of all the days he decided to make his little trip to the town, he chose the day when he was most needed in the castle grounds.

 

He was pacing about the main corridor when a messenger by the name of Kotetsu hurriedly caught up with him. Neji just continued pacing while ignoring the messenger who was trying to catch his breath while doing his best to walk alongside with him.

 

“Sir Neji, an important message from the council of Elders arrived,” Kotetsu finally said after regaining his normal breathing.

 

This seemed to catch Neji's attention and immediately halted his steps. “What did they say? Are they on their way now? If so, then we have to make haste and find the prince at once!”

 

Kotetsu became a bit rattled because of the pearl-white eyes piercing through him. There was little indication of what his superior was feeling at the moment but he was sure one wrong move and he'd be sacked from his job.

 

“Uh no, sir, they wanted us to know that they won't be able to make it today. They said that they have an important business to tend to in the Land of Wind and won't be able to come back for a fortnight.”

 

Neji looked at Kotetsu in daze, his brain trying to process the information. After a moment's pause, his face relaxed although one wouldn't be able to tell the difference with his stoic expression. Without a word, he turned around and went back to the direction he entered the corridor, alerting the messenger who was a bit confused at the sudden departure of his superior.

 

“Sir, what should we do with the preparations?” Kotetsu called out before Neji could disappear from his sight. The latter waved his hand to dismiss the topic and turned into the left corridor, leaving Kotetsu standing in the main corridor.

 

Kotetsu rolled his eyes and muttered something about “weird superiors who can't even stay for a while to give a proper order” before going back to the main hall to tell the workers to clear up all the arrangements they made for the council meeting.

 

Neji walked briskly, ignoring the servants who bowed to him when he passed by, intent on reaching the sanctuary of his room as soon as possible. He passed a few more halls before he finally reached it let out a sigh of relief the moment the door was closed behind him.

 

He silently thanked his good fortune for the sudden change in plans. The kingdom was in turmoil as it was, having no ruler for two years since King Itachi's death from the battle near the border of the Land of Earth. Prince Sasuke, the late king's younger brother, could not be immediately crowned King until his was eighteen. [2] Even though the prince has been given the power to govern the kingdom of Tsukiyomi, the council of Elders still has the final say on every decision the prince made until he was rightfully placed to the throne.

 

The prince seem to hold himself together even though he was only fifteen at the time the burden of governing over the kingdom was placed upon him. The only problem was that he got easily bored and would often escape the confinements of the castle when he felt like it.

 

It's not that this habit of his was new to the servants and the soldiers of the castle, for even when the prince was still young it had already been his favorite past time. The first time he did it was when he was twelve and it certainly made quite a racket in the castle.

 

King Itachi, who was then a week old in the throne at that time, ordered a search throughout the castle grounds as well as the surrounding towns to no avail. The possibility that his little brother was abducted by spies crossed his mind since they were at war with Land of Lightning, the very reason why he was ascended to the throne just a month after his eighteenth birthday.

 

Their father, the late king, was killed during a siege at the Valley of the End while the queen mother has also been long dead, being struck by pneumonia when Sasuke was just four years old. He was the one nursing his little brother since then and it distressed him to think that he might be in the hands of the enemy. Just when he was about to loose his wits, he noticed the soldiers gaping at something. And when he followed their gaze, he couldn't help but stare dumbfounded at his brother who was casually biting a half-eaten apple. When the boy noticed that everyone was looking at him, he just said, “I went for a stroll in the town since you don't have time to play with me anymore.”

 

Neji chuckled at the memory. It was the first time they saw King Itachi lost composure and just smacked his little brother on the back of his head, shouting about stupid little brothers who were only thinking of themselves.

 

“What are you laughing about, hmm?”

 

Neji almost jump in surprise and immediately looked up and saw Kakashi, Prince Sasuke's guardian, sitting on his bedroom's windowsill and holding a familiar red book in his right hand. His face went blank again and stared pointedly at the man whose mouth was covered with multiple layers of scarf and his left eye covered with a black eye-patch.

 

“And pray tell what you are doing inside my room?” His voice was toneless and would rival a mechanical robot.

 

“Oh, nothing, I was just checking you out. That's all.” Kakashi's visible eye crinkled, indicating the smile that formed his cloth-covered mouth. Neji also noted the teasing tone but decided not to indulge Kakashi with his daily pursuit of making fun of other people just for his amusement.

 

He went towards his closet to check his wardrobe, and as predicted, his black sweatshirt and pants were missing.

 

“I can never understand why your cousin like dark colors,” Kakashi remarked, his eyes never leaving the pages of his favorite book. Neji just rolled his eyes at the man who was wearing a black silk blazer and pants with dark blue linings.

 

“Speak for yourself.” Kakashi chuckled a little but made no move to negate that statement. Neji glimpsed at the royal blue cloth which was folded neatly on the table near the window where Kakashi sat. He sighed and continued to search his closet for something else to wear.

 

“You're dear cousin sure is lucky for having his ass saved yet again.” Neji raised his brow at that.

 

“From the way you said it, it's like you wanted him to get in trouble.” Kakashi chuckled some more.

 

“Why not? At least it won't be too boring in this place.” His visible eye obviously showed mischief. Neji sighed again.

 

“Sometimes I wonder if you really are Sasuke's guardian. Instead of being a good example, you just make things worse,” Neji blandly said and went back to what he was doing. “And will you please leave my room?” he added without looking at Kakashi. The latter smirked but posed to jump off the window.

 

“You're no fun at all, Neji Hyuuga.” He laughed as he leaped outside.

 

Neji just glared at the window where the annoying man disappeared into.

 

…

 

“Thank you for the apples ma'am!” Naruto said cheerfully as he took the basket-full of apples from the old woman.

 

“No problem, boy! I'm the one who should be thanking you for buying such a generous amount of apples. I'm sure it will bring good business to me for the rest of the day since you're my first customer for this morning.” The old woman smiled at him and handed him his change.

 

“I sure hope it would be the case, ma'am.” Naruto's face had a tinge of pink when he bowed down and took his leave. He was walking down the path that leads to back to the woods of Akahabara when he heard someone calling for him from a distance. He turned around and saw a bushy-browed boy clad in green tight-fitting body suit hurrying up towards him. He smiled at the approaching boy.

 

“Lee!” He called in return and met the boy half-way.

 

“Old pal! What's with the hurry? I haven't seen you around here for a month! You didn't even drop by our bakery!” The boy named Lee slapped Naruto's right shoulder a bit too eagerly, almost making the latter lose his balance and falling with his face on the floor.

 

“Ah, well, I haven't visited my godparents for a month either and it usually takes me long whenever I go there. Iruka asked me to go back home before the sun sets and so I figured I'd have to arrive there as early as possible.” Naruto smiled sheepishly while discreetly rubbing his aching shoulder so as not to offend his friend.

 

“Oh!” Lee nodded and moved to link his arm over Naruto's shoulder who winced a bit at being squeezed. “Well then come with me to our bakeshop and bring your godparents a loaf of chocolate bread! I'll give it to you for free!”

 

Upon hearing the word `free', Naruto's face lit up.

 

“Really?! Then lead on, mate!” He willingly let himself be dragged off by his friend. Both of them didn't notice the two boys who started following them when they passed by a small alley.

 

When they arrived at the bakery, Lee came inside first and Naruto was also on his way in when he felt someone tugging at the basketful of apples he was holding. He turned his head to see a brown-haired boy about his age trying to get the basket out of his hand.

 

“Hey! Stop that!” Naruto was too distracted playing tag-a-war with the boy that he didn't notice another one closing on him. He just realized it when he felt his purse being picked out of his pants pocket. And as soon as the other boy accomplished this, the one tugging at his basket stopped and ran away towards the small alley with his companion.

 

“H-hey!!! Wait!!!” Naruto made a move to go after them when Lee came out of the bakery.

 

“Naruto? What happened?!” Lee asked in a confused voice as he took in his friend's distraught appearance. Naruto didn't think twice and pushed the basket-full of apple towards Lee.

 

“Here take this! I'll come back for it later!” And he immediately ran towards the small alley where the two boys disappeared into.

 

As for the two boys, they ran as fast as they could so that the blond boy would lose track over them. They were so intent on getting away that they both bumped into a stack of barrels and fell down on their asses.

 

“I wonder what two stupid guys like you are running away from.”

 

The two boys looked up but before they could even look at the person who spoke, they felt their heads forcefully bumped together and their world started spinning until they completely blacked out.

 

Just then, Naruto arrived at the scene and saw the two boys he was chasing after were lying unconscious on the floor. His eyes widened and he immediately started to walk over them when he noticed that he wasn't alone. There was a guy in all black leaning casually on the stack of barrels. His pale face contrasted the black outfit and the black bangs that framed his face. His midnight black eyes bored deep into Naruto's crystal blue ones.

 

“Is this purse yours?” The strange guy said in a bored tone. Naruto just nodded dumbly, still being hypnotized by those black pools.

 

The corner of the guy's lips lifted a little as he walked over to the still dumbfounded blond. Lifting the blond boy's hand, he opened the boy's palm, placed the purse on it and closed his hand firmly over it. Naruto, on the other hand, gazed it at as if in a trance which made the pale guy chuckle.

 

“Next time, try to be aware of your surroundings so that this thing never happens again,” he whispered while still holding the blond boys hand and then added as an afterthought, “you total moron.” He then released it slowly and left the boy still frozen in his spot. An amused grin painted his red lips. “Be careful, else I won't always be there to save you.” And he completely disappeared from sight.

 

Naruto still hasn't moved an inch from his place and tried to process the events that transpired before him until a realization struck him.

 

The pale guy was mocking him.

 

And it made his blood boil in indignation.

 

“That cocky bastard! How dare he imply I can't take care of myself?!” His eyes averted back to the two boys who started all of this and his fumed even more. They were now regaining consciousness but before they could even gather their wits, both of them felt a hard kick on their stomach and they passed out again.

 

 

To be continued

[1] Kiba's birthday is July 7, so the story starts on July 8.

[2] Sasuke's birthday and coronation day is July 23.

 

Come on and click that button on the lower left of the screen. :D