Naruto turned out to be quite a loud neighbor. You supposed he didn't have much to worry about before, seeing as you were the only other person in his apartment complex. Maybe it was popular with the orphans.
Even though you were across from him, you could hear when he would get up at random times, thumping around doing who knows what - it was weird. Though, if you went to bed when you were supposed to, it wouldn't bother you. So you kept your mouth shut about it, attending to your own thing. You quickly came to find out that there was a blonde ghost that liked to roam the halls, the first night you moved in - he roamed inside. He looked pretty freaked out at the sight of somebody, and well, he never returned after. But you would catch sight of him when you would leave your apartment - which would usually happen when you had chores to take care of.
You managed to ignore him the first couple of times - but eventually, you had let it known that you could see him - when you jolted to a halt when you were running down the halls - in a hurry to throw your trash out before the emptied them for the week. From behind - and in the hurry, you were in, you assumed he was a live person. Which was a mistake.
He turned around, eyes trailing down to you before they widened. They were focused on the top of your head since you seriously refused to look up - in search for a reaction, he put his hand through your head, making you shiver. You quickly looked up, glaring at him. "Don't do that again." You seriously hated that feeling.
"Oh, so someone as young as you really has unlocked the Poltigan?" (Polti? Poltergeist? Yea I'm a genius) He asked, he wasn't sure it he should be impressed, or if he should've been considered. After all, unlocking even the base form of the Poltigan required serious conditions or burden on physical or mental health.
"Seems the Leaf really like my clan." You sighed, circling around him to continue walking forward. He followed behind you, eager to continue the talk the two of you were having.
"Perhaps not the entire Leaf, but a good friend of mine was of [Lastname] descent." He answered, a small smile on his face. "As far as I'm aware, she was one of the few clan members to unlock all five stages of her Poltigan. It's impressive what your clans Kekkei Genkai can do."
"That so?" You asked, face devoid of a reaction. "Impressive." It really was impressive, seeing as the first five stages weren't even the full extent of the Poltigan, the requirements for the first five were impossible enough.
"That's right. The one she made a Chakra-Control Blood Seal with was an old legend from the Uchiha clan." He smiled, "Such a powerful technique, proves pretty useful, too."
"That's nice." You nodded, walking down the steps to get onto the first floor. You were being so vague with your answers, he assumed you were simply trying to look as if you weren't speaking to yourself.
"I'm sure she was a legend in your clan too? [MotherName]?" He asked, still smiling as he phased himself through the floor. He landed right in front of you as you came to a halt, eyes wide. You weren't aware that the woman known as your mother was one of the only two to achieve the fifth stage of your Kekkei Genkai.
He looked taken aback by your obvious reaction - much clearer and more expression than the last ones.
"So... I take it she was? Did you know her? I'm not sure what happened to her after the Nine tails attack."
"Did I know her?" You repeated, voice hushed and you looked side to side. "That woman was my mother!" You answered him, throwing the trash bag off to the side - hoping it landed next to the garbage can.
He was silent for a second before laughing. "Well, the resemblance is definitely there. I suppose I should've figured." He said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "And of course the daughter of someone so strong would unlock the Poltigan so young."
"Well.. I suppose. But that can be a result of other things, too." You mumbled.
It looked like he cringed at his own words of earlier, regretting what he said once he remembered what his wife had told him just a week ago. "That's right... I heard of what happened to your clan.." He mumbled shamefully. "I'm sorry for speaking so freely."
"No, it's not problem." You shook your head. "It's been almost year since then... I've moved on." You lied. The ghost could tell it was a lie, anybody would be able to tell. An entire clan getting massacred would take years to get over - if it was possible to get over in the first place.
He smiled softly. "Well, if you're from the [Lastname] Clan, that must mean you're from the sand. I'm glad that you came to the Leaf of all places." He brought his hand out to pat your head out of force of habit, but it instead phased through you, making you shiver.
You glared at him for a second before sighing. "Well, the Leaf was the nearest neighboring village that had a reputation for being.. Less hostile." You admitted. "I don't feel threatened here, but maybe a bit unaccepted. I think maybe... People are scared of those from a different land?"
He nodded. "I understand, you know, my wife was actually from a different village before she came to the Leaf." He confessed, watching as you tilted your head as a way to tell him to continue talking. "She was very hotblooded about it, she became a ninja just to be accepted as a ninja of this village."
Your eyes widened slightly. You hadn't thought of the idea of becoming a ninja to be accepted, but it was smart when you thought of it now. Or you could wait a while until people forgot of you as 'a new person', but what was the fun in that? You couldn't let your moms lessons go to complete waste, anyway. There were times you wished you could unlock the second stage of your Poltigan and conjour your parents - but it wouldn't work. Those from the [Lastname] clan weren't allowed to roam the land of the living, neither were they allowed into the afterlife - heaven, hell, the land of the dead - whatever was out there, they weren't allowed. It was their punishment for 'tampering with the dead'. Truly rooted from an clan member of ancient times that progressed to far with their Kekkei Genkai and practically revived somebody.
It was scary to think of what wouls happen after death, so you strayed away from that topic.
"I should become a Ninja, too." You suddenly suggested, putting a hand over your heart and closing your eyes. "I carry the [Lastname]s legacy on my back alone, afterall."
The ghosts eyes widened, suprised that such a statement would come from someone so young - but he supposed he shouldn't be shoked that someone that lost everything would mature faster.
"That's not a bad idea." He nodded.
You thought of what to say next, too many things coming to mind before you perked your head up at the sound of someone rushing down the stairs. You stepped off to the side right before they could hit you - causing Naruto to barrel down and hit the apartment wall infront of you as a result.
"Ah, this is my son." The ghost said proudly, a closed-eye smile on his face. You looked toward him, nodding. "I figured, the resemblance is there." - You were mocking his earlier statement - quietly, though. And it didn't seem like Naruto heard you, not when he was still recovering from the hard hit he received.
"You're up pretty early for a weekend, Naruto." You spoke, hands on your hips. "You alright, by the way?" You asked, watching as he quickly got onto his feet.
"That was nothing, believe it!" He stated boldly, smile on his face as he adjusted the goggles on his head. "And I'm up early today for good reason, ya know!?"
"Really? Why's that?" You asked. tilting your head - face plain. At first, that expressionless face of yours was managing to scare him off a little - it made him believe he was boring you, but he grew used to it. After all, if he was boring, then you wouldn't stick around.
"That Uchiha brat Sasuke accepted my duel! I almost woke up late, but I heard you throw your garbage away pretty loudly and I woke right up!" He pointed at himself with him thumb, smiling. "I really owe ya' one, but I've really got to get going now. Oh, you can come watch if you want, you can see the future Hokage in action!" He declared before running off as quickly as he could. Which wasn't too fast. He was only six, after all.
The blonde beside you kept his smile the entire time. "Looks like my son will continue the title of Hokage for me." He sounded prideful almost as you turned to look at him. "My bets on him being the Sixth, what do you think?"
You looked up at him - confused, before he turned around, proudly showing off the cloak he wore. "I'm the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze."
You gulped, eyes wide. Realizing that you were casually speaking to a Kage of a village you barely moved into was a bit of a crazy one. But in a way, it made you feel hopeful that it would be easier for you to be accepted.
. . .
With the help of Minato - and eventually his wife, Kushina, you ended up finding out where Naruto was having his fight at (since he hadn't told you where he was off to in the first place.) You quickly realized that his parents followed him around everywhere, it was sweet, seeing a family follow their children around even though they had passed.
There were a lot more people than you thought there would be, but you quickly came to realize that they were all there because of the Uchiha. You had heard of their clan, apparently full of prodigies and such. But when your mother spoke of other clans, she didn't forget to mention how villanized the Uchihas were. Apparently feared and unwanted in the leaf - pushed to live all the way on the outskirts of the village. Suddenly, you had the strong urge to befriend the black-haired one.
You quickly came to learn his name, too. With the help of two cheerers,, in particular screaming out his name, a girl with pink hair and a cute red ribbon, and a blonde one two hairclips. If anything, it looked like the pink one was following the blonde ones example at the beginning. You were standing rather close to the two. Most of the murmurs you heard were of how the 'Uchiha one would clearly win', and the other few were of how 'Naruto has no chance.'
"I'm glad atleast one person came here to cheer for my son." Minato sighed loudly next to you, letting the disappointment show on his face. Kushina looked beyond peeved at what she was hearing, a mothers love was strong, after all. You stepped up to the front to let yourself known, Naruto wouldn't know someone was for there for him if they stayed quiet and on the sidelines, right?
The girl next to you noticed you, staring at you very clearly to let herself known to you before you turned toward her. "Um.. Do you need something?" You asked, unsettled.
She stared for another second before shaking her head. "No, nothing. But I haven't seen you before. You're very pretty." She said.
You blinked, taken aback by her compliment. "I-I am?" You asked before shaking your head. "I mean, thank you. You're very pretty, too." You rephrased.
Her smile was so wide it made her eyes crinkle. "Thank you... How'd you end up coming here and watching this fight?" She asked.
"Uh..." You looked back at the two boys infront of you - on opposite sides of the field, Naruto stood in the sun, while 'Sasuke' stood in the shade. "Naruto invited me to watch."
She nodded before her eyes went wide, "Hold on, Naruto himself invited you?" She asked, "Just how long have you been in the Leaf? W-what about your parents?" She asked. "Do they know you speak to him?"
"... They don't, would it be a problem if they did?" You asked, keeping your answer vague.
"... Well, maybe... I'm not sure why exactly, but the village doesn't really like Naruto." She explained. "He's a troublemaker for sure, a little annoying... But not dangerous."
You blinked, looking back at her.
"I guess... I stay away and act like I hate him like the rest do, because I'm scared." She admitted.
"Shh, Sakura! They're finally starting!" The blonde next to her said loudly. "Yay, Sasuke! Beat him to a pulp!"
You looked back at Naruto, eyes steady on his movements. You didn't know why they'd be scared of someone that looked so harmless, but you found yourself growing a little more attached to him. After all, he was a little bit like you. Feared, and alone. Not a good thing to go through when you're so young. Maybe from today onward, you'd go out of your way to speak to him more often.
"Do you know why my son is feared?" Minato asked beside you. "It's something I find you might relate to." You nodded, signifying for him to continue.
"He's the Jinchuriki of the nine-tailed beast, "Like how you're the Jinchuriki of the Fire-Dragon from the West right?"
You looked back at him, playing it off a stretch as you gave him a questioning look. You had no idea how he knew of that.
"Your mother had spoken of her baby during the Ninetails attack, of how she was sealed with a fire-dragon, kind of like me." Kushina spoke up. "I was worried for her, she was already five months pregnant with her second child when she came to the Leafs aid, you know, your mother was a very impressive woman." Kushina complimented, smiling.
You frowned, looking back at the fight in front of you. Your mother was impressive, although she didn't have a good knack for teaching - you could tell just how much battle knowledge she carried with her. So how... How would she fall during an attack on the village? You couldn't really understand it.
And then there was your sister - she made it seem as if she hated you with how envious she was that your mother would pay more attention to her. But you loved your little sister - you made it known with every little action, but it was like she barely wanted to be associated with you.
You frowned as you looked ahead, watching Naruto as he charged toward Sasuke - only for the Uchiha to side-step him, leaving his foot stretched out to make Naruto trip. The ploy worked - seeing as the blond face planted into the dirt. He was quick to support himself with his palms, twisting his body while still close to the floor to try and sweep Sasuke off of his feet - it seemed he moved too slow, seeing as the boy jumped away.
"Why do you even bother?" Sasuke asked, moving his leg back before surging it forward to Narutos side - the impact was loud, surprising strength for a six-year-old to have. You cringed at the noise as Naruto rolled, he landed on his back. You were suddenly glad that these were only six year olds with no proficiency in Ninjutsu, otherwise, someone really could've been killed.
You assumed it was over for a second as Sasuke began to walk off - but it wasn't long before Naruto sat up slowly, turning his head to glare at Sasuke. It seemed only then that he realized you were there in the crowd, he finally saw an expression on your face other than your poker-face for once, but concern was really the first look he was hoping to see.
"You're so lucky, you know that?" He said, catching Sasuke off guard as he turned back around. He let out a confused noise, making Naruto continue speaking as he slowly got to his feet. "You have a family, you have people to return to after a long day of the academy..."
"What does that have to do with anything?" Sasuke scoffed, getting off his feet and running toward Naruto, reeling his arm back for a punch. "I don't care about your sob story!"
Naruto didn't move as he saw the boy running toward him, instead, he copied Sasuke and reeled his arm back - timing himself just right to land a punch on his cheek. "Some people would die for that! Some people would kill for that!" You figured he was talking about himself - that he would do anything to know his parents. And now you felt a little awkward - standing next to them. Maybe you could tell him straight to his face you could see them, or would that freak him out? Or make him mad? You weren't sure.
Sasukes head was thrown back after the impact on his cheek - but it wasn't long until he threw his head forward, headbutting Naruto. The impact was strong, causing the both of them to stumble back.
"And you have people who admire you, hearing them all call your name is so..." He couldn't find a right word for it, so instead, he threw himself onto Sasuke, tackling him onto the floor. "Do you really take that all for granted!?"
Your worried expression didn't even begin to fade as you watched ahead, although you hadn't known Naruto for long, you hadn't seen him look so sad before - he didn't seem like the type to let his sadness show.
"Shut up!" Sasuke yelled, punching Naruto in the cheek to get him off and get the upperhand - pinning him down instead. "You're so annoying, you know that?!"
Naruto grabbed the sides of Sasukes head, forcing him to stay still before he copied his earlier move - headbutting him with as much force as he could. Sakura let out a pained hiss as if she was the one that received that blow.
Naruto's arms went limp and fell to his sides as his head fell back, Sasuke was wavering, but he eventually stood up, hand on his forehead as he looked at the crowd. He heard the cheers for him, but he scoffed, turning his head away before he walked off.
"Of course, Sasuke won, I don't know why Naruto even bothers!" Sakura said, cheering. It seemed she had a big liking toward Sasuke - if the switch up on her words from earlier meant anything. You supposed most kids were like that - always taking the side their crush was on.
"... I think its because Naruto has something to prove.." You answered honestly, making Sakura go silent. Although she hadn't known you long, your nonchalant attitude made her think you were cool.
"... That's a good point!" She suddenly blurted. "Oh, I'm Sakura by the way."
She nodded, looking toward her. "I'm [Firstname]." You answered, and the girl smiled.
You quickly hurried over toward Naruto after that, Sakura seemed like a nice girl, her morals were just all over the place in the moment.
"She's cool, isn't she, Ino?" Sakura asked, watching your back as you walked off.
"Huh?" The blond asked, turning her head away from the path Sasuke took and toward Sakura. ".. I guess." She shrugged, watching as the crowd started to part. "That's weird, a teacher usually comes out to stop fights like these." She pointed out.
Sakura was silent before she nodded, "You're right... But it is a day off, I guess." The two eventually dispersed along with the crowd - not before Sakura spared another glance toward you.
You knelt beside Naruto, eyes focused on his face - you could already tell a bruise was going to form on his cheek. Maybe even on his forehead, you had no clue why he took his goggles off.
"Narutos always getting himself into trouble like this." Kushina sighed, lowering her head in defeat. "I feel hopeless when I see my son hurt and lonely. I wish I could hug him just once."
You processed her words. That was definitely possible - or, it would be if you weren't on boring stage one of youe Poltigan. You didn't even have to activate it - seeing ghosts only became as natural as seeing civilians walking down the street on the first stage. Stage two didn't do much to help, but stage three could definitely help in getting her a hug from her son. Or maybe she wanted to be seen... Which would take stage four.... It was to complicated for you to even want to begin thinking to hard about it.
You heard Naruto groan as he regained consciousness, you looked back at him as he slowly opened his eyes - clearly groggy. The grogginess didn't last long as he sat up, looking at you. He was silent for a second, hand coming up to rub his cheek.
"Hey, wait... Why are you here?" He suddenly asked.
"You lost consciousness. I didn't want to leave you here alone, so I stayed. Though, you woke up pretty fast." You answered, standing up before lending him a hand. He stared at it for a second before taking it - standing up with a big smile.
"Heh, you really didn't have to stay behind. But thanks!" A hint of a blush played at his cheeks. "And I woke up early because I had things to settle with Sasuke! But by the looks of it, he ran away." He scoffed, looking off to the side. Everybody was gone.
"I think Sasuke took your words to heart..." You answered, shutting your eyes. "He looked a little flustered before he walked off."
"Oh yeah? Well, he better have taken it to heart! Every word I said was true!" He fumed, crossing his arms. "And I mean, if you can see ghosts, can you see your family?" He asked.
You shook your head. "It makes sense for you to think that, but... Well, the [Lastname]s are cursed, after death, we can't roam the earth. Or whatever afterlife there might be."
Naruto frowned, regretting asking in the first place. Asking valid questions only left him feeling awkward after. "Right, sorry.."
It was silent for a moment - and only was it then that he realized that you had come to watch him - probably with the help of others since you were one, new to the village, and two, he hadn't even told you where he was going. He realized that although Sasuke had an entourage of people cheering for him - none of them had really stayed behind for him out of concern, but out of admiration and a hopeless crush.
He smiled again. "Any curse can be broken, ya know?"
You stared at him, blinking. You didn't really care for breaking the curse - you weren't sure how you'd even begin to do such a thing. But seeing his happy expression had you agreeing. "I guess.. You're right." You nodded, a small smile coming onto his face.
He took a step backward in surprise, eyes wide - making your smile disappear as quickly as it came.
"Hey...! You smiled! I knew you had it in you!" He cheered, making you tilt your head in confusion. "What does that have to do with anything?" You've smiled plenty of times in your life.
He reached his hands out and placed them on your cheeks - forcing another smile onto your face. "You've never smiled around me, I was starting to think I was annoying, believe it!"
You sweatdropped, "No... You don't annoy me." Your voice was strained as he continued to mess with your face, changing your expression back and forth from a frown to a smile.
He chuckled before removing his hands, instead throwing his arms behind his head. "You know, you could make a fortune with your Kekkei Genkai, I mean, people are into that kind of stuff, right?"
"... What kind of stuff?" You asked.
"Speaking to the dead!" He answered as if it should be an obvious answer. "Like... Someone wanting to know what their dead family wants to say to them?"
You raised an eyebrow. "Are you trying to suggest something?" You asked.
He was silent, kicking his foot out nonchalantly before nodding vigorously. "Yeah... I gotta know...! Can you see my parents?!"
You were silent, looking back at his two parents who were suddenly very close to you.
"Tell him his dad is very proud! But he should really add something new to his diet!" Minato said.
"Tell him his mom loves him very much, and that to much ramen isn't good for him!" Kushina plead.
You blinked in surprise before you turned your head back toward Naruto, smiling sheepishly. "They're both love you very much, they're proud of you too."
Naruto was silent, finding his emotions conflicting - he didn't know how to respond, he wasn't even sure if he should've believed you when you first said you could see ghosts. For all he knew, you could've been messing with him. "I-..."
"They also said to switch up your diet a little, the pure ramen is stressing them out." Only then did he believe you, after all - you had zero clue of his ramen obsession.
He ended up crying - and it ended up being very awkward for you.