Chapter Text
He was running.
And running and running and running. He was always running on nights like these. Nights of the 10th of October. His birthday. But also the night of the Kyubi attack that had happened seven years ago. He may not know what went down exactly, but he wasn't an idiot. He figured that the two events were somehow linked and that's why the majority of the village hated him. I mean, sure, there were people who didn't hate his guts, like Iruka-sensei and Jiji and...well, yeah, that's about it.
He ran as fast as his little legs could carry him, ignoring the burning in his lugs and the cuts from a few minutes prior that were in the process healing softly on their own. They would've been long gone by now, but they cut deeper this time. And deeper. And deeper. He always healed fast and he didn't have any scars. The few they had managed to create last time were gone a week later. That ticked them off. They were angry. So, so angry. He just didn't know why.
As he zoomed past a family of three, he bumped into the girl with bubblegum-pink hair and, with a yelp, they both landed on their butts. The grocery bag she was holding fell from her arms and the contents spilt all over the ground.
"Hey! Watch it!" The girl yelled as he stumbled to get back up as fast as possible.
"S-sorry," He tensed and looked behind him. He always had good hearing and his sense of smell was above average. His pursuers were catching up. He had to go.
But as he turned to leave, he noticed something and froze. The girl kept glancing at her parents nervously, as if she was expecting them to blow up. After said parents were done glaring him down, they turned to their daughter. But their expression didn't change. They looked at her the same way everyone looked at him. With evil eyes filled with hate. He was torn. He should really keep running, but he couldn't leave her like that! If she got into trouble because of him, he wouldn't ever forgive himself. He had seen her hollow eyes when she thought no one was looking. Had seen those bruises she tried to hide but never thought much of it. Bullies were common after all...
With a sigh, he bent down to help her. She looked up surprised and scanned his face warily with her sea-green eyes, like she couldn't believe he was actually helping. He didn't blame her. He wasn't exactly known for being helpful and kind. He wordlessly handed her the stuff and stood back up. The group that was following him that night finally managed to break through the crowd and spotted him easily. No surprise there. His bright orange jumpsuit shone like a beacon in the darkness.
"There he is! The demon brat!"
The two kids turned to them with wide eyes. One a bit shocked but curious, the other scared. He mentally let out a stream of curses a seven-year-old should not know and got ready to sprint again. The headstart he had until now was all for nought. If he couldn't shake them off in the maze of streets within the next five minutes, he was done for.
"Naruto?" The girl asked, a silent question in her eyes. What is going on?
He shook himself out of his stupor and smiled at her. Big and bright and fake. He was afraid, but he couldn't let anyone know. Showing weakness always made it worse. "Don't worry, Sakura-chan! I'm way too fast for them!"
Sakura frowned. "Yeah, but why-"
"No time!" He yelled and sprinted into a nearby alley as soon as the mob started approaching.
He knew the streets of Konoha like the back of his hand, having spent much time exploring and running away from angry people whenever he pulled a prank on them. But he had been running for hours now. He was exhausted. His legs burned and his breath came out as little hectic huffs and the healed cuts were pulling at his skin uncomfortably. He wasn't getting enough oxygen and it made him dizzy. Because of that, he turned a wrong corner and found himself face-to-face with a dead end. There wasn't even a dumpster he could jump on to escape over the wall!
"Shit." He muttered and spun around.
"What do we have here?" The leader grinned disgustingly, twirling a stolen kunai in his hands.
"A cornered fox, it seems."
...
Naruto limped back to his run-down apartment, blood dripping on the floor. He'd have to clean that later, or else Mrs Susuki will get mad and cut off his water again. He unlocked the door and stepped inside. After somehow managing to take off his (too-small) shoes and go to the bathroom, he rinsed off his clothes and tended to his injuries. Like said earlier, they could heal just fine on their own, but there were too many. His strange healing powers focused on the most serious ones first, so it should take about a day to mend them all...hopefully.
Since he lacked to energy to shower, he crashed on his bed immediately after he was done. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he was dead to the world.
.
Naruto rarely ever slept well. He was used to having nightmares and sometimes not sleeping at all. Those were lonely nights. But this was new...
When he opened his eyes, he found himself ankle-deep in yellow-tinted water that smelled kind of funny. He looked around. He was in a cavern of sorts. There were cracks along the walls and it was so huge, he couldn't even see the ceiling. The place reminded him of a sewer, and he'd seen a lot. He found they make great hiding spots. The only thing that didn't belong in there were the enormous metal bars. They were as thick as Naruto was tall, but the spaces in between were wide enough for him to pass through if he wanted to. Which he didn't particularly at the moment. The other side was a bit too dark for his liking. But he was curious.
He took a step forward, the sound echoing around the walls. The movement must've startled whatever was locked behind those bars because something big stirred in the darkness. Giant ruby eyes blinked open, glaring right at him. The creature radiated pure hatred, terror and danger. He knew he should be afraid, but he wasn't. His instincts told him that it couldn't do him any serious harm and he trusted them. They had saved his life multiple times already.
"Hello?" He spoke, his voice too loud in his own ears.
The massive shape moved again and several things swished, some sweeping through the air and some sending ripples across the stinky water. Naruto suspected they were tails, but that would be impossible. No animal had that many! It moved into the dim light and the blond boy finally caught a first full glance at the creature. It clearly resembled a fox, though, it was way too big with way too many tails (!!) and cruel eyes that pierced right through him. The colour of its fur was faded and tinted light orange. Naruto wondered what it normally looked like; blood-red or maybe amber?
It growled at him, but he just tilted his head. "Who are you? And...where am I?"
The fox snarled and didn't reply at first. When Naruto began to wonder if it even understood him or was able to talk at all, a voice so low and deadly that he felt it vibrate through his bones spoke up.
~You are in your sub-conscious. I'm surprised you could reach this place already~
Naruto glanced around again. "So we're in my mind? No wonder it's so gloomy...Don't you get bored in here all alone?"
Again, the fox didn't reply.
"Who are you?" Naruto repeated.
It looked like it was debating on whether or no to tell him, but ultimately, ~Get out! I have no patience for your kind~
A wave of dark and potent energy pushed Naruto back and he startled awake. The force caused him to fall off his bed and land on the floor with a thud. Massaging his still sore muscles, he stood up groaning. It was dawn, so he had a few hours to get ready for the academy. He should change the bandages, though...
"Rude much?"
...
Today's weird, he decided as he walked outside during lunch.
As practically always, he didn't have a bento like all the other kids. They had colourful boxes full of food made by their parents and some even had the audacity to complain when their parents had put something in it that they didn't like. Naruto envied them. Even Sasuke, who was also an orphan, had one every day! Stupid Uchiha and his stupid Uchiha money. The allowance Naruto got from the Hokage wasn't nearly enough for extra food and he spent most of it on medical supplies this time of the year. Besides, even if he wanted to buy actual food, the stores always gave him rotten stuff. Same with his clothes. The last time he got 'new' ones was when he got kicked out of the orphanage almost two years ago.
He felt someone following him but didn't have to look to know who it is. He had memorized the chakra signatures of everyone in their class and the senseis. Plus, she was the reason this day was different from the rest.
Usually, Sakura belonged to the children that scolded him for practically everything. For talking too loud. For standing in the way. For failing a test. For being an absolute moron. She never hit him, unlike other kids, but her words hurt sometimes. Today, however, she was quiet. As quiet as she never was. And she was observing him. Sea-green eyes calculating, taking in everything he did. It was scary. It was like she now saw something that wasn't there before. He had desperately tried to hide the bandages. Especially the ones around his throat, where a very nasty bruise lingered.
He attempted to shake her off in the maze of hallways, but she was persistent. Sighing mentally, he led her to the back of the school where he knew no one would be. Once there, he abruptly spun around and she almost crashed into him. He raised an eyebrow.
"Why are you following me?"
Sakura flinched back, startled. Her cheeks flushed as pink as her hair and she turned her head to the side. "I was just wondering where you disappear every day at lunch and...and..."
Naruto blinked at that. She had noticed? That was new. He always thought she wasn't paying that much attention to him outside of being pissed during class and practice at his mere existence. "And?"
"I-uh, I wanted to make- to make sure you wouldn't tell anyone about what you saw yesterday!" She blurred out.
"What about yesterday?" He asked, tilting his head. Besides being chased and beaten by vengeful villagers that is... "Oh, you mean your parents?"
Sakura flinched again. She bit her lip and glanced around. Naruto took that time to look at her properly. She had bags under her eyes, like she hadn't slept at all, and she wore a red longsleeved shirt over her white skirt. This shouldn't be unusual during autumn, but in the Land of Fire, it was only actually cold in winter. And she was the type of person who liked to wear short-sleeved shirts and dresses. For her to wear this meant...
"Oh no," He said wide-eyed, causing her to look at him again. "You got hurt because of me, didn't you?"
"What? No!" She shook her head and rolled one sleeve up. There was a bruise, a large bruise, but it wasn't a fresh one. "That was from three days ago. I've been wearing this outfit all week, didn't you notice?"
"Oh," He didn't. He was usually pretty observant, but his mind wasn't exactly processing anything other than It is time. I have to think of something if I want to survive. He was kind of embarrassed. "Sorry."
"It's ok," She smiled and, for once, it wasn't fake. Outside of Iruka-sensei and Jiji, he had never received a genuine smile. He didn't know how to feel about that. Sakura scanned their surroundings curiously. "Is this where you run off to every time?"
"Sometimes. I never go to the same place two times in a row and I don't have a routine exactly." He shrugged, ignoring her confused grimace.
Sakura looked ready to comment on it but was cut off by a loud growl. Naruto turned pink around the ears and stared at his stomach in betrayal. She giggled. "You hungry?"
"Yeah, kind of..." He rubbed the back of his neck, momentarily forgetting the bandages. Sakura noticed. Of course she did. Her sea-green eyes bored into his cerulean blue ones.
"You don't have any food, do you?" She asked, clutching her own bento box to her chest. When he shook his head, she sighed and sat down against the wall. As she unwrapped the pink fabric plastered with tiny rabbits, she patted the space beside her. It almost looked like she was inviting him to sit and join her, but he hesitated. He had fallen for these false acts of kindness often enough to be wary. She glanced up. "Come on, I don't bite!"
He wanted to run before she got the chance to hurt him in some way, but his stomach betrayed him once again. Those onigiri looked freaking delicious. The last time he had a proper meal was two days ago when Iruka-sensei invited him for ramen. To that moment, he only had snacks here and there. Like apples, half a sandwich, or spoilt yoghurt. Not the healthiest, but it will do until he graduated and got paid for completed missions. For now, he perched himself beside the pink-haired girl.
She smiled again and handed him the whole thing.
Naruto stared at it with wide eyes, then at her. She must be joking! Why would she give him, of all people, her whole bento? "I can't eat all that! It's yours!"
Sakura rolled her eyes and grabbed an onigiri for herself. "There. Now eat!"
He slowly bit into a baby carrot. The next thing he knew, he had wolfed down everything and was staring at an empty box. His ears burned bright red again and his classmate chuckled. "S-sorry..."
He heard her sigh and turned his head. "You don't have to constantly apologize, you know."
Naruto furrowed his eyebrows. "But you do it all the time too! I once saw you say sorry to a door you bumped into!"
"I guess you're right. I'm quite the hypocrite, huh?" She chuckled, but it was hollow this time. She then shook her head and looked him in the eyes, something like worry swimming in her own. "Are you ok, though? I saw you running away from some civilians yesterday."
Naruto broke the eye contact, not finding the strength to maintain it any longer. "I-I'm fine. I told you, I'm too fast for them!"
"Uh-huh. Then what're those?" She asked and swiftly pulled his collar down, exposing the white cloth around his neck. It was red at some spots where the injuries weren't healed yet. "And please don't tell me this happened only because you stopped to help me..."
Naruto freed himself from her grip and stared at the ground. He could tell her that, yes, he had lost his headstart due to that, but then he'd be lying. Deep down, he knew that they would eventually find him. On the streets, or in his apartment. Like every year. He shook his head. "No. It would've happened either way. It's not your fault. And besides, I was more worried about you...Are your parents always like that?"
Sakura nodded solemnly and stayed silent for a few minutes. It was strangely a mix of awkward and comfortable silence. Awkward because they didn't actually know each other that much, but comfortable in the way like they were supposed to be in each others company. It was really weird for Naruto. He never felt comfortable around another person, not even Iruka. He had a feeling like he could talk to her about anything and she would listen. Which was ridiculous. If he ever told her about the villagers or, god forbid, the giant fox sealed inside of him, he was sure she would just make fun of him.
"I am sorry!"
Naruto's head snapped up at her. "About what? I told you it wasn't your fault-"
She shook her head. "Not about that. About everything I've done to you. I know an apology does not just fix things, but I truly am sorry. I was so convinced that you were a nuisance, I didn't realize that that was what my parents wanted me to believe! I realized after I saw the way they looked at you. All of them! The village! I didn't know people could be so cruel!" She put her head in her arms that she had crossed over her knees.
Naruto watched her silently. He was too shocked to say anything. Why was she apologizing? No one has ever apologized to him about anything before. Not counting the lady of the orphanage; she so obviously hadn't meant it. But Sakura did mean it. It was so sincere, that he didn't know what to do. He knew that some parents told their children to stay away from the demon brat, but he never thought about what the kids' opinion was on the matter. Could it be that there are more children like Sakura who didn't want to treat him like trash? Who were manipulated to hate him? He didn't want to get his hopes that high up, but at least...
"It's okay," He said and hugged the sobbing girl. Yes, he actually hugged her. His crush. But it didn't feel anything like that, more like hugging a sibling. Which, of course, he wouldn't know anything about. He had never truly had any physical contact with anyone, but it felt nice. Comforting in a way he could not describe. Sakura cried harder and clung onto his shirt.
He waited for her to calm down and let go. She sniffed a few times and rubbed the tears away from her cheeks and eyes. She chuckled. "God, this is embarrassing. I usually don't cry in front of people."
"And I don't usually hug people." Naruto shrugged, carefully re-wrapping her bento box before setting it in front of her.
Taking it back, she smiled wobbly at him. "You liked it?"
Naruto nodded eagerly, grinning as bright as the sun and meaning it for once. He felt lighter than ever. "It was delicious, ya know!"
"I can bring you some tomorrow if you like!" She said standing up. Her eyes were still a little puffy, but other than that, there was no sign she had been crying at all. Kind of amazing if you asked him.
"I'd love to, but I don't think your parents would appreciate that." He replied, just a little bit depressed as he stood up as well.
Sakura turned to look at him over her shoulder. With a mischievous twinkle in her eyes, she said, "Oh, but they don't have to know!" and resumed her walk.
Naruto gaped after her. Then, slowly, his mouth stretched into a wide grin. Maybe she isn't so bad after all...