Solar Eclipse *Rewrite*

Chapter 2

Three more months went by and the villagers were starting to get used to the strange girl. She was very different from the rest of the children in Kohona she had learned. She spoke very formally, dressed in two-piece outfits, and her hair was always up and out of her face. Her eyes were blue, and she hadn’t seen anyone else with blue eyes yet. Most had brown or black eyes, although there was the occasional green or off-purple. She was yet to meet a person with blue eyes. Her hair was curly and bouncy, not straight or spiked like everyone else’s. It was very obvious that she wasn’t from there.

Koinu smiled at the granny who had offered her some sweets. She was a kind old lady, sadly her kids and grandkids rarely ever came by. It wasn’t a surprise when she confessed that she had been her first visitor in over two years. “Thank you for the treats and the rice balls. Goodbye, granny!” She leaped over the railing and into the empty alleyway below.

That Hokage got you very busy today. Why don’t you take a lunch break?”

“Great idea! To the park!”

The park was oddly empty, the academy had just let out. Usually. Parents would bring their kids here to tire them out before dinner. But it was uncharacteristically empty.

But it wasn’t. There was a single boy on the swings. He was staring down at his feet as he swung. He didn’t look too happy, something inside her told her that he was lonely. That same something made her want to approach him, so she did. “Hey.”

He looked up, his eyes were blue. They were a light blue, cerulean blue to be exact. They weren’t ocean blue like hers, but they were blue nonetheless. “…Hey.”

“What are you doing?”

“Swinging.”

“Can I join?”

He was taken back, but after some time, he nodded. “Yeah. Sure.”

She took the swing next to him. He smelled nice, like a flower field, and clean fur. Fox fur. Weirdly enough there weren't any more smells coming off him. Then it dawned on her. She dug her heels into the ground, stopping the swing. “You’re an orphan?”

“Yeah… How’d you know?”

“Most kids have multiple smells coming off them, as well as their own. But you don’t.”

“You have a strong nose. Are you an Inuzuka?”

“No, Gin Mizu.” She sat up and held out her hand. “Gin Mizu, Koinu. And you are?”

“Naruto. Uzumaki, Naruto. Are your parents okay with you being around me?”

“I don’t have parents. Not anymore. They died.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. We’re kinda the same. You and me.”

“Yeah, I guess we are.” He jumped off his swing, turning to face her. His eyes twinkled with hope, a wide toothy grin took up most of his face. “Can we be friends?!”

She considered it. In almost four months, she still hadn’t had much time to get to know the other kids her age. It would be an opportunity missed if she didn’t accept. “Yes. Let’s be friends.”

“Awesome! What do friends do?”

“You’ve never had a friend before?”

“I had. Choji, Shikamaru, and Kiba, but we usually play pranks or train. But you can’t do that, can you? Are you a civilian? I’ve never seen you at the academy before.”

She crossed her arms in faux-anger. “I’m not a civilian, thank you very much. I’m an active shinobi for your information. I’m just on break right now.”