Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Let Me Hear You ❯ Gone, Gone and Never to Come Back Again ( Chapter 2 )

This chapter was beautifully edited by Obscure Omen.

 

Disclaimer: Naruto and the characters in it are not mine. This story does not have anything to do with any real person. Any similarities are purely coincidental. I apologize if somebody out there gets hurt from this story. I never intend to do any harm.

 

 

 

Chapter 2: Gone, Gone and Never to Come Back Again

 

 

 

Pak! Pak!

 

 

 

 

 

That was the sound of a palm hitting a table. Jiraiya turned to look at the table in question and saw Naruto there, drying his wet hair with a towel. He had just finished taking a bath.

 

 

 

 

/Jiji, I have finished. If you want to take a bath, I've left the water in the tub./

 

 

 

 

With a wave of his hand, Jiraiya dismissed Naruto's suggestion. He did want to take a bath, but not now. Maybe later. Now he needed to concentrate on his writing and enjoying his sake. Time like this—when he was blessed with ideas for his next installment of his Icha Icha novel series—was very rare; he needed to make good use of it.

 

 

 

And drinking sake while writing just made the blessing all the more enjoyable.

 

 

Jiraiya heard Naruto plop himself onto the seat in front of him—he didn't lift his head from his writing, since he was trying not to break his concentration. Being bluntly ignored by his grandpa, Naruto hit the table with his hand hard to get Jiraiya's attention. When his grandpa went into this state of concentration, it was really difficult to “talk” to him; his head would be all over the place, clouded with over-imaginative, perverted thoughts and drunkenness from the sake.

 

 

 

 

 

If Naruto didn't know better, he would have thought that Jiraiya needed to drink sake to write a good story. But Naruto knew better. Jiraiya—however his appearance suggested otherwise—was a good writer with or without the sake. The old pervert was just addicted to the stuff. He drank sake like it was water.

 

 

 

 

 

That made Naruto a little bit worried. Jiraiya was getting older, and his health was not as good as it used to be. Sometimes, he couldn't even wake up because of a bad headache. Or so Jiraiya said. Naruto guessed that was just a lie to cover up his real illness, because Naruto had seen Jiraiya clutching his waist in pain a few times.

 

 

 

 

 

There was this one day when Jiraiya couldn't get up for three days straight, and he had to call Kakashi-sensei to help him bring his sick grandpa to the hospital. Even with Kakashi-sensei's help, Jiraiya refused to be taken to the hospital. He said that hospital was for sick people, and he was not sick. Naruto kicked up a storm at Jiraiya's childish reaction. He was worried sick for Jiraiya, but the old pervert didn't even want to admit that he was sick.

 

 

 

 

Because of that incident, Jiraiya stopped drinking sake for a few days. Only a few days though. He started drinking again after day four—he was addicted, after all, and bad habits are really hard to break. This really ticked Naruto off, but when Jiraya promised not to drink as much as he used to, Naruto relented a bit, but he still nagged Jiraiya about it all the time.

 

 

 

 

/Seriously Jiji, if you drink that much sake in one day, you're gonna die before you can turn bald./

 

 

 

 

“Stop nagging at me, brat. If I wanted someone to nag at me, I'd go get a wife.”

 

 

 

 

Jiraiya stopped writing as he said this. He had lost his concentration the moment Naruto seated himself on the chair opposite him.

 

 

 

 

 

Uh-huh. Here it comes.

 

 

 

 

According from his previous experiences, the way Naruto was looking at him now, with a disapproved frown marring his face, showed that there would be a nagging coming up. Really, Jiraiya was touched by Naruto's concern over his well-being and all, but that boy nagged too much (even without using his mouth!).

 

 

 

 

He was perfectly aware of why Naruto was so worried about him, and he also knew that the boy wanted him to go to hospital. Jiraiya was not ignorant; he knew he was sick. In fact, he knew he was in a critical condition; he had gone to see an old friend for a check-up, and she had confirmed that his cancer was already in a critical stage.

 

 

 

 

Just as he was not ignorant, he was not stupid, either. He had his own reasons for why he didn't want to receive treatment:

 

 

 

 

One, he was worried that Naruto would be worried about him.

 

 

 

 

Two, they didn't have enough money for his treatment, which would surely be expensive. Naruto was just a student—he didn't earn any money yet—and he was just a B-rate novelist.

 

 

 

Don't get him wrong.: Jiraiya wasn't trying to be a hero here—selflessly sacrificing himself for the sake of others—but he figured that rather than wasting a lot of money for his treatment, it would be better to save it for Naruto's education. He was already old (almost 80 years old) and was in a critical stage of cancer—the chance of survival was not high; it would have just been a waste of money.

 

 

 

 

Truthfully, he regretted not being able to provide Naruto with luxuries or at least a better lifestyle. With him being a B-rate porn author, his income was not high—it was barely enough to cover their monthly expenses, his addiction to sake, and the small portion he kept aside for Naruto's education. They were lucky that Naruto's parent had kept a sum of money for Naruto; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to pay the university's tuition fee.

 

 

 

 

And, for all the reasons mentioned above, he couldn't tell Naruto about his illness. That child had enough burden of his own; he didn't need Jiraiya's. As long as Naruto could be happy with what he had in his life and get a good education, Jiraiya didn't mind dying. In Jiraiya's opinion, if he had left Naruto with no proper education, he would have not survived in this world, especially when some people wanted him “dead.”

 

 

 

Naruto tapped Jiraiya's shoulder when he noticed that Jiraiya was so lost in his thoughts.

 

 

 

 

/So, why don't you get one?/ Naruto made a teasing face.

 

 

 

He was quite surprised when his jiji said that. Was his jiji planning to get married? Naruto wondered what kind of woman would be willing to marry his perverted jiji.

 

 

 

Jiraiya was confused. “Get what, brat?”

 

 

 

He didn't “hear” the first half of what Naruto had just “said.” Sign language was tricky like that; once one diverted one's attention, one could miss what the other was trying to say.(1)

 

 

 

/W. I. F. E./ Naruto made the hand shapes of every letter carefully, in case Jiraiya missed it again.

 

 

 

“Che. I'm too old for that. Why don't you get a wife?”

 

 

 

 

 

Jiraiya wriggled his eyebrows suggestively, quite entertained to see Naruto's flustered face—he was red in the face, and his ears were beginning to turn red, too. Truth be told, Naruto was a bit shy regarding the opposite sex; he didn't have any experience regarding females whatsoever. Jiraiya suspected that Naruto was not so eager to approach the opposite sex (even though he was already 20!) because he was conscious about his disability. He was sure that if Naruto was a bit braver, he would be popular amongst girls—he was cute, to say the least.

 

 

 

 

“You know, you're free to use my books as reference. Free of charge.” Jiraiya was still teasing.

 

 

 

From embarrassment, Naruto's face had turned into the epitome of pure horror. That old pervert did not just suggest that.

/Gah, you ero-jiji! Don't make me sick! That's disgusting!/

 

 

 

Jiraiya laughed loudly at Naruto's reaction—that boy really knew how to make such funny and cute faces like that—so loudly that the laughing turned into coughing. It was a very heavy cough; Naruto had to rub Jiraiya's back to soothe it.

 

 

 

And then, there was blood.

 

 

 

Jiraiya was coughing up blood—a lot—and fainted a few moments later. Naruto shook Jiraiya's still body frantically. No response. Naruto checked Jiraiya's pulse, but, since he was in such shock, he wasn't able to find it. Thinking that Jiraiya was already dead, Naruto let out a silent scream.

 

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As soon as he got the urgent message from Naruto, Kakashi headed immediately to the hospital. This was the second time Naruto had called him for help regarding Jiraiya's health. It was not a strange thing for Naruto to do that. Kakashi was Naruto's private tutor at the university—it was his responsibility to look after Naruto's well-being (2). Furthermore, Naruto was not a stranger to him: Naruto was his deceased mentor's son.

 

 

 

 

Naruto's father—Minato—and he went way back. When he was still at the university, Kakashi took Archaeology as his major. At that time, Naruto's father was still alive, and he was quite a respected archaeologist. Since Kakashi was a brilliant student, he was accepted as Minato's apprentice—along with two other students—for his final project in his last year in Uni. It was really a golden opportunity for an archaeology major like him. Minato was rumoured to have an amazing find in his research, and Kakashi couldn't help but be excited at the prospect of how much he could learn from him.

 

 

 

 

The four of them—Minato, Kakashi, Obito, and Rin—had travelled a lot. Naturally, Minato almost never was at home. So, to make up to it, he always wrote letters home, especially to his son, Naruto. Every time he received a letter from home, his face would light up as if he had found a chest full of gold. Kakashi never thought an old man could smile so sweetly like that. There was only one thing he didn't really like when Minato became cheerful like that: He would speak non-stop about how adorable his son was.

 

 

 

 

His students—willingly or not—had to listen to him going on and on about his son. Even though they never met Naruto in person, Minato's tales about his son were enough to make them felt like they knew this Naruto boy by heart. To Kakashi, who didn't have any siblings, he felt like Naruto was his little brother, since he already thought of Minato as his uncle (or big brother). Kakashi was also convinced that the other two also felt the same way.

 

 

 

The four of them were like a family, with Minato as the father figure; being together for so long did that to people. Even after they graduated from Uni, they still continued the project together.

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, a tragedy happened. In one of their expeditions, Obito died from sand-slide triggered by their digging. Kakashi felt really guilty because Obito died from saving him. He wanted to quit at first, but Minato didn't allow it. So they continued with the research. Perhaps Minato also felt guilty, because he never accepted any new apprentices after that. He'd rather continue the project with fewer people than have a stranger in the “family.”

 

 

 

 

Then, October 10th came.

 

 

 

 

Minato had promised his son that he would be home for his ninth birthday. So he went back home to celebrate Naruto's birthday. The night of Naruto's birthday, there was an accident. Another member of their little family was gone. The project was called off, which left Kakashi and Rin hanging in the air. Rin decided to quit completely after a while and vanished from the surface of the earth without a trace.

 

 

 

 

Not long after, Kakashi also quit. He took a second degree in Mathematics and Statistics -a completely different field from archaeology, for he didn't want to have anything to do with archaeology anymore. For a genius like Kakashi, such thing was not a problem. To prove this, he passed the test for his degree with flying colours and later decided to become a lecturer.

 

 

 

 

 

Because of Kakashi's attachment to Minato, he even thought of adopting little Naruto when he first heard about Minato's death. He knew that, apart from his parents, Naruto didn't have any more relatives (that Kakashi knew of). After all, he already thought of Naruto as his little brother. Still, he was not a suitable candidate: He had just graduated and didn't have the stable finances to support a child.

 

 

 

 

Fortunately, someone stepped up. It was Jiraiya. Kakashi recalled Minato telling them about his adopted father, but, because Jiraiya was missing for so long, he didn't think he would come to take the responsibility. Still, he came and took Naruto into his care. They lived in Naruto's family home together, and Kakashi moved on with his life.

 

 

 

 

It was not until Naruto came to the University of Fire that Kakashi met the boy again. Due to Jiraiya's request, Naruto was put under his care; that was how he became Naruto's personal tutor for the whole three years he was in Uni. Coincidentally, Kakashi knew sign language. Well, to be honest, he learned it for Naruto. He knew back then that because of the accident, Naruto had become deaf, and he thought to himself, if he wanted to talk to the child (that he had come to love), he needed to learn sign language.

 

 

 

 

But Kakashi couldn't deny that Minato's death (and Obito's) left a huge impact on him, especially when he noticed that Naruto had the same appearance as his father—Kakashi was reminded of the people that he had lost; he couldn't bring himself to visit the grandfather-grandchild pair. But he believed that one day he would meet that boy again, so he didn't mind learning the sign language.

 

 

 

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“Naruto, are you okay?”

 

 

 

 

Kakashi quickly went to where Naruto was sitting once he spotted him sitting on a plastic chair outside of the patient room.

 

 

 

Naruto didn't notice Kakashi's presence until Kakashi was crouching in front of him and their faces were level. Kakashi was about to repeat his question but stopped himself because the answer was obvious. Of course he was not okay. Naruto's face was full of agony. He was crying, and his nose was red from wiping it too much.

 

 

 

 

And his eyes. Oh God, his eyes. His eyes were so sad and looked like they had lost their light.

 

 

 

Kakashi took a seat beside Naruto and hugged his shoulders to show his support. He really badly wanted to ask about Jiraiya's condition, but he doubted that Naruto knew the answers. So they just waited in silence.

 

 

 

 

A doctor came out from the room. As fast as he could, Naruto ran to said doctor. He quickly made signs with his hands to ask about Jiraiya. The doctor looked at him with pity in his eyes. Poor guy. Jiraiya's condition was pretty bad, but he didn't know how to tell this blond man, who was obviously the old man's relative. Luckily, Kakashi was there.

 

 

 

 

“How was he, doctor?” Kakashi had to interrupt; Naruto was frantically pulling the doctor's coat.

 

 

 

 

“We have done what we can. The good news is, he is stable now. But his cancer was really severe. We can suggest a liver-transfer surgery, (3) but we have to discuss that. The patient doesn't want the surgery.”

 

 

 

 

 

Kakashi looked at Naruto for a reaction; he himself was surprised to hear about Jiraiya's condition. And Naruto's reaction? He was as still as a rock and as pale as a sheet. Guess that Jiraiya also didn't tell him anything. Kakashi touched him gently on the shoulder to get his attention.

 

 

 

 

/What am I supposed to do, Kakashi-sensei?/ was all Naruto said before he slumped to the floor and cried his eyes out.

 

 

 

 

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The next few days, Naruto spent his time alternating between classes and visiting his grandfather. Sometimes they would get into a fight, because Jiraiya refused surgery and Naruto was adamant in persuading him to have it. He didn't care how much the surgery would cost—he would pay for it. He had money that his parents and Jiraiya saved for his education. They could use that money. He could always earn more money, but Jiraiya's life couldn't be replaced.

 

 

 

 

But Jiraiya was stubborn. He didn't want to be a burden to Naruto.

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, on the fourth day, he had another attack. This time, Naruto took command and signed the surgery contract (Naruto was Jiraiya's next kin). Jiraiya was operated on the very same night.

 

 

 

 

The operation was a success. Jiraiya came out alive with a new liver. Naruto was so happy—but not for long.

 

 

 

Someone poisoned Jiraiya's I.V. drip with something that made him unable to breath. He died in his sleep.

 

 

 

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It had been two weeks since Jiraiya died, and Naruto didn't come to class once. Kakashi visited him almost every day to check on him. He was getting better day by day, but his spirit was still low. Fortunately, Kakashi succeeded in applying a two-week absent from Uni for Naruto—if he hadn't, he wouldn't have enough credits to move on to next year.

 

 

 

On his twelfth visit, Kakashi was hit by unexpected news.

 

 

 

/I want to quit school./

 

 

 

Kakashi was left speechless by the news. Why was it so sudden? Had something happened?

 

 

 

/I don't have the money to go to college. Maybe I'll work first and continue my studies later./

 

 

 

/No, you can't do that. You're already a third-year student; just another year and you'll be finished./ Kakashi used sign language to communicate; he felt the need to do so.

 

 

 

/I—I can't. I don't have the money. I don't want to sell the house. I don't have anywhere else to live./

 

 

 

/You can sell the house, and you can stay with me. Or I can sponsor you. You don't have to—/

 

 

 

Naruto caught Kakashi's hand to cut him off. /Look, Kakashi-sensei. I don't need your pity. I can manage myself on my own. I already have a part-time job at the pet shop down the street./

 

 

 

 

/Hey, don't let your pride get the better of you. Think about—/

 

 

 

 

/No! This is my future, too. I don't want to depend on somebody else. Don't you get it, sensei? I want to prove to myself that I can live without help./

 

 

 

 

Naruto's eyes were full of determination, just like Minato's when he was dead serious about things. When he got like that, nothing could change his mind.

 

 

 

 

/I hope you think through this carefully, Naruto. Don't jeopardize your life because of mundane things like proving yourself./

Kakashi touched Naruto's head affectionately.

/I'll come back in a few days time. Think on what I said carefully, okay?/

 

Naruto nodded. He was pretty sure he wouldn't change his mind even if he did think it over. He didn't want to be a burden to Kakashi like he was to Jiraiya. His jiji died mostly because of him; that old man suffered silently because he didn't want to make Naruto worried. Naruto didn't want the same thing to happen to anyone else. He had had enough of being someone else's burden.

 

 

 

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True to his word, Kakashi came to visit him at his part-time job. Kiba, the pet shop owner's son, was teaching Naruto to groom a dog properly when Kakashi stepped into the shop.

 

/What time does your shift end? I want to take you out for ramen./

 

Kakashi smiled warmly. He knew Naruto liked Ichiraku's ramen, a shop near his house.

 

/Really?/ Naruto looked at his watch. /Another 30 minutes./

 

/Okay, I'll wait./

 

Thirty-five minutes later, they were at Ichiraku's. Naruto looked a bit cheerful inhaling his favourite ramen.

 

/Have you think about what I said the other day?/

 

/Yeah. I'm really thankful for your offer, but no./

 

/I knew you'd say that. So I came to offer you a job./ Naruto frowned in confusion, and Kakashi continued, /Yeah, a job. This way you can go to Uni and have a place to live./

 

/How so?/

 

/Well, since you refused my offer, you still have to sell your house to pay for the tuition fee. But don't worry: This job will provide you with food, accommodation, clothes—if you want—and all basic things that you need./

 

/Huh. What kind of job is this? This sounds suspicious. Do you plan to sell me off, Kakashi-sensei?/ Naruto was pouting.

 

Kakashi laughed heartily. /No. If I did plan to, I'm sure nobody would want to buy you./

 

Naruto huffed, not sure whether he was just being insulted or not.

 

/I want you to take care of my “pet.”/

 

/Your pet?/

 

/Yes, my “pet.” But my “pet” doesn't live with me, so it's kinda difficult to look after him./

 

/But isn't the pay is too high for taking care of a pet?/ Naruto was getting more suspicious.

 

Kakashi grinned. He had to make Naruto agree to do this; Naruto living alone was dangerous. He knew about the threats regarding Naruto. Heck, he was the only person left who knew about them. He had to protect this young man.

 

/Ohh… It's because taking care of him is not easy. I assure you. You have to make him food, talk to him, play with him… Hmm, what else… Ahh—just generally be friends with him./

 

/But, what if he doesn't like me? Where will I go?/

 

“Maa, maaa,” Kakashi said.

/That's your challenge, Naruto-kun. You have to make him like you. You will lose a lot here if you don't take this opportunity. You can't have seriously given up on school, right?/

 

Naruto frowned. Should he take up Kakashi's offer? The offer sounded nice, but he risked losing his house, but, honestly, that house was big for one person. If he sold that house, he could go back to school, and, from what Kakashi said, he would have a place to stay—for as long as he wanted, by the sound of it. That was a bonus; he didn't have to think about bills and such that came with owning a house.

 

Should he try?

 

Naruto took a peek at Kakashi. This man looked genuine to help him. So the offer couldn't be something terrible, right? Maybe he should give it a try. The world is one big gamble, anyway. No, not really. He just wanted to get his degree.

 

/Okay. I'll do it. When should I start?/

 

Kakashi grinned again. His plan worked.

 

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No Sasuke, eh? He will be in the next chapter. This chapter is more like an interlude.

 

Next chapter title:

 

Chapter 3: The Man with a Pride Bigger than Everest

 

 

I want to stress here, according to The Dummy's Guide to Sign Language (yes, I read that book for this story), sign language is not English. It's a totally different language makes up from four parts of “things.” It says in the book that when someone is signing, it is important to give your whole attention to them (unless there is a Boeing about to land behind you) or you won't understand. Facial expressions are important in sign language, so you have to watch people's faces as well as their hands.

 

I don't know if this is true in every university, but it is for mine. The private tutor is like your parent (sort of).

 

(3) I'm not a medic student, so if the medical conditions or terms are wrong, just ignore them. Ok?