Chapter two
Naruto's eyes remained fixed on the spot where Hiruzen's car had disappeared around the corner, leaving him alone once more. A familiar twinge of anxiety settled in his chest, mixing with the apprehension that churned in his stomach. Fingers fidgeting with the hem of his shirt, he was a bit apprehensive about turning around, turning around will make it all real. He was once more left alone with a stranger because his previous foster house didn’t want him or couldn’t stand, he recognized the two reasons were virtually the same.
Noticing the visible unease in Naruto, Iruka took a step closer, he masked his concern with a gentle gaze, he gathered rather quickly Naruto would not be the first one to speak so he initiated the conversation. "Hungry?" Iruka's gentle voice reached Naruto's ears, the question diverting his attention from his worries. The boy spun around, a momentary reprieve from his anxieties, and a glimmer of eagerness lit up his eyes as he vigorously nodded.
"Yeah, I'm starving!" Naruto caught himself off guard by the volume in which he had just spoken, his enthusiasm accidentally spilling out into his words. A tinge of embarrassment colored his cheeks as the volume of his voice seemed to fully register, prompting him to lower his head and mutter a quick apology. Iruka's warm smile wavered slightly, confused by the boy's shame. Quickly composing himself, he conjured a new smile. He hoped Naruto would be comforted by the warmth coming from his smile, rather than put off by the fact it was a mask used to cover his confusion.
"There's no need to apologize," Iruka crouched down to Naruto's level, his tone gentle as he reassured the boy. He wanted to know why Naruto felt the need to apologize but now wasn't the time. He decided he would address it later when they had known each other for a little longer. "I'm thinking we could go out to eat. How does that sound?"
Naruto's eyes ignited with an infectious spark at the notion. "For real life?" The boy's smile stretched wide, reaching the corners of his ears. Iruka couldn't help but marvel at how something as simple as eating out could elicit such joy from Naruto.
"Mhm," Iruka nodded, his chuckle carrying a tinge of sadness. "We can have a chat. You can ask me questions, and I'll ask you some too. By the time you're ready for bed, we won't be strangers anymore." Rising to his feet, he continued, "Now, what are you thinking for dinner?"
Naruto's shoulders shrugged, his voice laced with an air of uncertainty. "I dunno. I like ramen."
Iruka's thoughts echoed in acknowledgment. 'Hiruzen did mention he's a picky eater. Our options might be limited.' A subtle smile graced Iruka's lips as he offered a hand for Naruto to take, so they could walk hand in hand to the car. "Ramen it is, then.”
While the idea of having to answer questions left Naruto feeling somewhat apprehensive, the allure of actually getting to eat a decent meal outweighed any fears. With the prospect of a good meal in mind, he found the strength to take Iruka's hand.
The car ride to was a bit nerve-racking, you always hear adults say not to get into cars with strangers and yet here he was. He was in the car with someone he met maybe an hour ago, that and he had no clue where they were going. He didn’t know if Iruka was making a wrong turn or maybe he had already gotten tired of Naruto. Was he maybe gonna send him back? Naruto fidgeted with his seat belt, had he been that bad already? Was he gonna drive him to the nearest CPS agency? He’d be lucky in that case, what if Iruka was gonna make him walk there? It wouldn’t be the first time.
Iruka glanced at the rearview mirror. Naruto's thoughts rang loudly in Iruka’s ear, his anxiety creating a thick cloud of gas around the two of them.
Upon reaching a stop light Iruka asked, “You okay?” He turned a bit to face Naruto. He was on the verge of tears. Naruto was going to respond, beg the man for another chance, but he lost his voice. Suddenly no words would come out, he grew frustrated, why now? Why now of all times? Why did he have to lose his voice? He let out of cry of frustration, balling his fists together, he began to hit himself on the head. Hard.
Iruka’s eyes widened in surprise, “Naruto-” The car behind him honked loudly, the light was green, Iruka pulled forward so he could stop on the side of the road. When it was safe he exited his vehicle, running to the other side of the car, opening the back door.
“Naruto,” his voice was soft and he was careful not to touch the boy immediately, he wanted to panic but knew he couldn’t. He gently undid Naruto’s seat belt, he knew the kid was anxious maybe more space would help. Naruto quickly moved away from Iruka to the opposite side of the car. He made no attempt to leave, just put space in between them. He wasn’t hurting himself anymore but he was clearly upset and they needed to address it now before it got worse. “Naruto, are you alright?” He tried to question again, the boy sobbed shaking his head quickly.
Iruka noted he wasn’t speaking. He was given minimal information about Naruto, but he knew Naruto was autistic. That might be it! The only issue was, he didn’t fully know how best to help. When autistic students began displaying signs of overstimulation or were on the verge of meltdown he sent them on an errand or a walk, what was he meant to do here? “Is there any way I could help?”
Naruto let out another noise of frustration, banging his head against the back of the chair. “Okay! Okay, not in a talking mood, that’s fine.” Iruka thought for a moment, “Okay, just nod your head yes or shake your head no. Okay?” Iruka waited for a moment, giving Naruto time to respond, he responded with a nod. “Good, okay. Is it okay if I sit next to you for a bit?”
Naruto stared at Iruka apprehensively before nodding his head. Iruka entered the car, sitting next to Naruto, he closed the door. “Alright, I’m not really sure how to help you, so I might ask a few questions till I get it right.” Iruka knew too many questions could be overwhelming, so he hoped he didn’t have to ask too many. “Would music help?”
Naruto shook his head.
Iruka thought out his next question carefully, “A hug?” Hugs usually only further overwhelmed the kids he knew, but that was usually. For some kids, a tight hug helped, like a weighted blanket.
Naruto thought this offer over with a bit more care than the last. On one hand, he wasn’t super comfortable with Iruka yet, on the other he was really super nice to him. Naruto deeply craved affection, he was so often denied it, he couldn’t help it. He nodded his head.
“Okay,” Iruka’s tone betrayed him, showing his surprise at Naruto's acceptance, “if you want me to let go just pull away and I’ll let go.” He waited for Naruto to respond, once he did Iruka opened his arms for the boy, he all but lunged into them. Naruto was tense at first, Iruka knew he’d need time to adjust, so he just held him. He held him as tightly and soothingly as he could. It didn’t seem as though he was uncomfortable anymore, it was more akin to him not quite knowing how to hug someone. Naruto had relaxed, now he was just a bit awkward in the hug.
“I will never pull away from a hug first,” Iruka began, “I don’t know what the future holds, I don’t wanna make you promises I can’t keep, so I won’t. But, for as long as you are here, I will never pull away from a hug first. That is one thing I can promise. You will be my number one priority, so even if I end up being late, I won’t care because it was time spent hugging you.” Iruka knew words like this would likely hold little weight to Naruto, he’s likely been burned more times than he could count. Regardless, Iruka intended to keep that promise. The determination he felt towards keeping that promise only seemed to multiply when Naruto tightened his grip around Iruka as if to say, “I’ll hold you to it.”
Iruka expected the boy to pull away after a few minutes, he seemed new and generally uncomfortable with physical affection, but maybe it was because of that fact he didn’t pull away for seven minutes. Maybe he was just trying to calm himself down as much as possible. Maybe he was testing Iruka, to see if he was being honest. Maybe it was a mix of the three. Either way, after several minutes, Naruto finally pulled away, wiping tears from his eyes.
“Feel any better?” Iruka questioned, the sides of his lips turned up into a smile, gently petting the boy’s hair. He nodded his head a bit. Iruka considered for a moment, “Do you still wanna get dinner? You aren’t in trouble or anything, I just understand it might be a bit overwhelming.” Iruka clarified quickly, not wanting him to become upset again.
“I do.” Naruto’s voice was barely a whisper, he averted Iruka’s gaze and fiddled with his fingers.
“Okay,” Iruka softened his voice, “I have to get out and go up front so I can drive us there, is that okay? Or do you want me to stay back here a little longer?”
Naruto thought he was conflicted. On one hand, he was starving, on the other he did want Iruka to be close to him. “It’s okay,” he decided, “but can we sit next to each other when we eat?”
The request made Iruka’s heart squeeze a bit, "Of course!” He exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear. Naruto was taken aback by the fact that Iruka seemed like he actually wanted to sit next to Naruto, it didn’t seem like a chore. Iruka confused Naruto’s confusion for being jarred by his volume. He didn’t want to apologize because he had just told Naruto there was nothing to apologize for when he did the very same thing.
“Sometimes, when I’m excited, I can’t help but raise my voice. I’m sorry if that frightened you.” He was careful with how he worded it. He wasn’t apologizing for being excited but rather apologizing for possibly upsetting Naruto.
He shook his head, “I was just surprised you wanted to sit with me.” Naruto explained.
Iruka’s smile fell a bit, he had a feeling a lot of this kid’s life so far would upset him, “Of course, I wanna sit next to you!”
Naruto hugged him one last time before Iruka moved to the front. Iruka didn’t know what triggered Naruto’s upset, whether it was something he did or the fact that he lost his voice for a bit, but he figured some of the uncertainty played a role in it.
“We’re going to Ichiraku Ramen, it’s about five minutes from here. We’re just gonna go straight for a bit then make a right, okay? So, we’ll be there soon!” He waited for some kind of acknowledgment before heading off.
When the two finally arrived and sat to eat the sun had begun to set. Naruto seemed momentarily captivated by the beauty of the sunset. He hadn’t noticed the menus sitting in front of him or the fact that an older man had come to take their order.
“Naruto?” Iruka gently coaxed him back to earth.
“Hm?” Naruto spoke, still a bit dazed.
An amused smile crosses Iruka’s face, “What do you wanna eat?” He taps the menu in front of him.
“Oh…” Naruto stared at the menu for a moment before looking up at Iruka, and then the older man, and then back down to the menu again.
“I can come back in a bit if you need some time.” The old man’s voice was kind and gentle, just like Iruka’s. Naruto glanced back up to the man before quickly looking away. His face burned bright red as he admitted, “I can’t read.”
He knew he was supposed to know, but he didn’t. No one ever taught him and he couldn’t teach himself. Iruka looked at the boy for a moment, quickly he comforted Naruto, “That’s okay! You can still learn to read, but for now, I can read you the menu if you’d like.”
Naruto nodded. Iruka turned to the old man and said, “Can you come back in a few minutes, Mr. Teuchi?”
“Of course, take your time, call me back when you’re ready.” Teuchi walked off with a smile.
They spent some time going over their options before they took turns ordering. Well, Iruka did most of the ordering, Naruto froze up a bit here and there. Now they just had to sit and wait for their food. There were several moments of awkward silence before Iruka started up another conversation.
“You have any questions you wanna ask me?”
Naruto pondered for a moment, a question he asked earlier in the day came back to him, “Why aren’t you married?”
Iruka was surprised he asked something so quickly, up until now he had been quiet, mostly soft-spoken, and generally didn't speak then suddenly he asks a question so easily.
“Mm, I don’t really like anyone like that I suppose.”
“Why not?” Naruto followed up immediately.
“I’m not sure, I just never really have liked anyone in that way. I never really had crushes or anything.”
“Like you can’t fall in love? Is that sad?”
‘Naruto is an extremely empathetic and emotionally intelligent kid,’ Iruka remembers Hiruzen saying. He also called Naruto obscenely oblivious, Iruka felt that the previous adjectives were a bit contradicting. Either way, he was starting to see the emotional intelligence. “Yeah, kinda. I mean I love things. I love teaching, I love my friends, I love fall. I love a lot of things, but, no, I suppose I cannot fall in love. Not in a romantic way.” Iruka pondered the second part of the question for a bit, “I don’t think it’s sad. I just think it’s who I am, y’know?”
“Not really,” Naruto admitted, “I guess, I do know. But, I thought everyone wanted to fall in love?”
Iruka laughed a bit, “Most people do, at one point I wanted to. So, I guess I was sad about it when I was younger, but now I’m okay with it. I’m happy not being married and that’s what counts.”
Naruto nodded, “That’s true. Your turn!” He exclaimed, Iruka furrowed his brows in an amused way, Naruto was beginning to seem more comfortable. Perhaps Iruka was beginning to see who Naruto was really.
“Okay, hmm,” Iruka tapped his chin, thinking of a question that wouldn’t upset him and would make him want to keep playing, “What’s your favorite show in the whole world?” He framed his question a bit juvenile, he found talking to more shy kids at their level or in a way they would talk helps aid in making them more comfortable.
“House!” Naruto exclaimed.
Iruka was taken aback by this answer, “Like House M.D., the doctor show?”
Naruto nodded his head, “Mhm, it’s my favorite.”
It doesn’t entirely surprise him that Naruto’s past consumption of media was not monitored, but still. He expected Naruto to say something more childish, a kid cartoon or something.
“Okay! My turn to ask!” Naruto smiled, clearly getting into this game, “Who are the people across the street?”
“They’re my friends! Kakashi and Gai are the two who were in front of my house when you first arrived. Plus their kids live there. One of them is your age, the other three are a year or two older.”
Their conversation was briefly interrupted by Teuchi bringing out their food. “Here you are, I hope you enjoy!” Naruto marveled a bit at how bright and kind Mr. Teuchi's smile was.
After a moment Naruto spoke hastily, “Wait before your turn, can I ask another question?” He didn’t want to forget his next question.
Iruka smiled a bit, nodding, he responded, “Go ahead.”
“What are their names?”
“Good question, I completely forgot to tell you.” He did intend on telling Naruto, their conversation had just been momentarily interrupted, but he didn’t need to know that. “The one your age is named Sasuke. The three that are a bit older than you, their names, are Lee, Neji, and Tenten. Kakashi and Gai have adopted Lee and Tenten. Sasuke is relatively new, he just became their foster a few months ago. Neji hasn’t been there super long, about six or seven months.”
Naruto took a bit to absorb all of what Iruka said, nodding his head as he processed his words.
“Okay, you can ask me two questions too, since I took your turn.” Naruto began to dig into his food, Iruka took a bite of his own. He was unsure what he wanted to ask Naruto, he more so intended for Naruto to do most of the questioning, but he could adjust. “What do you wanna be when you grow up?” Iruka asked this question to a lot of kids, their answers rarely gave him much insight into who they were, but on occasion, they told him something useful. Naruto slurped up more noodles while he thought. “I dunno, most of my teachers said I won’t be anything special. I wanna prove them wrong, though.” A fiery ambition filled his eyes, “I wanna be a person that makes bad people go away!”
“Like a cop?” Iruka was intrigued by the second part of Naruto’s sentence, he was extremely saddened and angered by the first part.
“No.” He shook his head, “No like the ones who make them go away after. They have to argue lots.” He spoke with his mouth full, Iruka decided against scolding him for it, he’d try and break that habit at a later date.
“Oh! A lawyer?”
Naruto nodded his head, “Yeah I wanna make all the bad be go away and then help all the good people” He smiled widely, he was quiet for a moment, his expression saddened a bit. “Then, when I’m a grownup and help lots of people everyone who was mean to me will say sorry and wanna be my friend.” His voice slowly trailed off.
“I think you have a very admirable goal. For what it’s worth, I think you’ll be great at whatever you do.”
As their conversation continued, Iruka found himself gaining insights into Naruto's resilient spirit. He realized that beneath Naruto's shy exterior, there was a playful and caring young boy, who wanted nothing more than to be loved.
Their dinner progressed, the sun had long since dipped below the horizon, the ramen shop's warm ambiance enveloped them. They talked and talked some more, they asked each other plenty of questions. Naruto didn’t fully trust Iruka yet, but he was beginning to grow more comfortable around him. Iruka was right, by the end of it Naruto didn't feel like he was a stranger anymore!