Nara OneShots

A Crimson Lily

On pure chance back in middle school, Naruto had gotten an opportunity to learn from a program that was being offered to his school. Most girls signed up, and boys teased him for it but Naruto didn't care. In his mind, he was alone in the world so he would do whatever he wanted without anyone's input. The program required you to have your own figure skates it was a tall order, and most if not all of them dropped off the program but Naruto was still determined.

At the orphanage, they gave weekly allowances, which almost always went to food since they didn't get enough but Naruto had learned to curb whatever hunger he had and saved the money for a rainy day. That rainy day was the day he bought the skates, afterward he was sent sailing for 3 months. He trained and improved, nights freezing in the ice rink practicing what he was taught. There was a prize at the end of it, a contest with the winner getting a full scholarship to a figure skating academy in Russia. It was a golden ticket out of his hell hole. So he slaved over the routine but when the day came he failed a triple axel in the finals and lost the opportunity.

He was devasted, he cried in the changing room for hours on end and thought that was it. He was done with this path of trying to escape the hell that was the Japanese Orphanage and his hellish middle school. He could hear the taunts long before tomorrow came. They would be cheering on the girl who had won, an entitled brat named Sakura Haruno. What pissed Naruto off was that she only did it for the fun, she had no need for the scholarship.

As he angrily packed his gear and rushed out he bumped into a young man who sighed lazily. "I've been looking for you," They said.

Naruto looked up confused by a stuffed nose from the cold air, lack of warm clothes, and the crying he had done. "Do I know you?"

"No but you're about to," He said smiling at the crimson-haired male. "Shikaku Nara, 24 and figure skating coach."

In all honesty, Shikaku didn't even need to go further than his name. Naruto knew who he was. Despite his young age, Shikaku had grown up around figure skating, his mother was one and when she got pregnant with him she took the role of a coach. She had founded the Nara School of Ice. The most dominant school of figure skating in Japan. What the son of the CEO would want with him was beyond him.

"Naruto Uzumaki, 15, failed figure skater," He mumbled as his eyes welled with tears.

"Why do you call yourself a failure? I saw your routine, it was passionate and it came from a place close to your heart."

"I didn't win!" Naruto snapped at the man. "I needed that scholarship and I didn't get it. This all started as a trial run, my first real hobby but when the opportunity presented I made it my goal. I failed so back to government wellness checks at the orphanage and hope I don't end up dead in the streets," Naruto sniffed and made a move to step past a legend but Shikaku stopped him.

"Listen to me Naruto, I said I was looking for you. Now hear me out. I have a mission, my mother is convinced I've become jaded and used to talented skaters being handed off to me for supervision. So she said I need to take on an apprentice, one that has a story to tell with their movements and I'm convinced that person is you. So I'm offering a full scholarship under my tutelage as my only personally trained figure skater. You shall be my story to the world and vice versa. I see a fire in you and I want to bring it out. So do you accept?"

Naruto had learned the hard way to take every opportunity, he was actually on his way to go dump the skates he had cared for like a child these past three months. But here he was being offered a scholarship to be trained under the best. He didn't know what he said but it must've been a favorable one as Shikaku didn't hesitate to bring him in a tight hug.

"I'll take care of you Naruto so just dance on the ice for me."

************

5 years later Naruto Uzumaki was a well-known name for anyone who took sports seriously. Over the years he had gotten a full ride from his sensei who paid for private lessons in between his practice sessions. He's been featured in countless magazines and was a figure skater for the Olympics when it came and went. He was successful and his persona has made him very favorable among the Japanese crowd.