"Heya, (Y/N)!" Naruto called out to you from his apartment patio.
"Oh, what's up, Naruto?" You called back. You both lived in the same apartment, right next to each other.
It was a sketchy neighborhood, sure, but it was all you two had ever known.
"Wanna go to Ichiraku's?" He eagerly replied. You nearly laughed. Of course, he'd wanna go there.
"Sure, Naru. I'll be there in a minute. Just lemme find my wallet real quick."
He always found a way to shift the bill onto you. You didn't mind all too much. He only ever asked you when he had run out of money for food. It wasn't because he was bad at managing his allowance - he was rather good at it actually. The villagers always jacked up the prices whenever he went to buy something, and that if they even let him buy something at all.
"Alright! See you in a minute!" He said, then entered his apartment. It was probably a pigsty again. You'd have to help him clean it some time.
You walked back into your apartment as well, slipping off your sandals as you did so. Your patio wasn't the best place to walk on barefooted. If you weren't careful, you could slip, fall, and die. Or get tetanus. Neither was ideal.
You couldn't remember where you had left your wallet last, so you started searching. First, you checked your bedroom, looking on every shelf and under all your books. Then, in the kitchen, where you made sure to check the spice rack and bread holder. Hell, you even checked the dishwasher. In the end, you did find something, but it wasn't your wallet. It was an old photo from seven years ago. It was a picture of five-year-old you and Naruto just days before Naruto was kicked out of the orphanage. You two had been best friends even back then. No matter how hard they tried, the mean adults just couldn't separate you two.
You two did everything together. Whenever Naruto was punished unfairly or mistreated, you would always stand up for him. If they ever took away his dinner, you'd make sure to bring him leftovers later in the night. You often got in a lot of trouble for defending him. They didn't seem to like you very much after they realized you wouldn't just abandon him. Maybe that was why they hadn't made a big deal of you running away to be with Naruto when they had kicked him out. That or they just didn't want the Hokage to know they kicked him out in the first place. Whatever the reason, it didn't matter. You were still with Naruto, so why should it?
You and Naruto had lived on the streets together until his sixth birthday when the Hokage had gone to wish him a happy birthday but realized he wasn't there. He looked furious when he found out the orphanage had not only kicked him out but had lied to him about doing so. It was your first time meeting him. He was very nice to the both of you and even took you and Naruto shopping to get some new clothes, as yours we're practically rags at that point.
He at first thought that you and Naruto had simply met on the streets, but was surprised to hear you had willingly run away from the orphanage just to be with him. And even if that didn't surprise him, then he was definitely shocked when you blatantly refused to step a foot near that orphanage ever again. He had asked Naruto if he wanted to go back there, but you had stopped him before he even had the chance to explain himself. You had put your foot down, refusing to let Naruto go back, knowing they would never stop mistreating him, no matter what he, as the Hokage, promised. You had also made it clear you wouldn't be going anywhere if Naruto wasn't able to be there, too. If the only way you could stay with him was on the streets, then god damn it, you were gonna live in the streets.
You had thought for sure he would take offense to what you had said, but he had just smiled and agreed. He ended up giving you both an apartment and a monthly allowance go spend on necessities. After everything, the Hokage seemed to hold some sort of respect for you. You didn't know why, but you found you didn't really care. You were still with Naruto and that was all that mattered to you.
