Solar Eclipse *Rewrite*

Chapter 5

Choji was an early riser. The sun had started to show its face when he threw off his sheets and jumped out of his bed. He was genuinely excited to meet up with his friends. Before then, Shikamaru had been his only friend. His best friend. All the other kids at the academy called him stupid and fat, Shikamaru didn’t. And yeah, neither did Ino but she was more of a cousin if anything. Naruto had never been mean to him either now that he thought about it. The boy was loud in class, but was easily startled by loud noises. Do people like that exist? Then there was Koinu. Every moment with the new girl was a left turn and he didn’t mind it. She was funny in an inconsistent way. One minute she was clueless and then the next she’ll confess a mouthful of secrets. She was also a good eater, never once did she make fun of him for being chubby. So she was good in his book.

He wandered down to breakfast, his mother was piling dishes upon dishes of food. It was enough to feed a small army. His dad must have come home last night. “Morning, mom.”

His mother was an elegant, curvy woman. Fitted into a casual purple dress, she looked like a tulip and smelt like one too. She looked over her shoulder and smiled. “Good morning, Choji. Did you sleep well last night?” He nodded, opting to help his mom set the table. “And where did you and Shikamaru run off to? I was worried when I didn’t see you there at the academy when I went to pick you up. If Iruka hadn’t told me that you ran off with Shikamaru, I would have sent the Inuzuka after you.”

Choji rubbed the back of his head, he felt bad for making his mother worry like that. “Sorry, mom. I went to a friend’s house.”

“The Naras? They would have told me.”

“No. It was a new friend’s.”

His mother set down the dishes she was balancing, reaching out to embrace her son. “Oh baby! I’m so happy you made some more friends! It’s not that I don’t like Shikamaru, but a boy like you needs at least three good friends. So when can I meet him?”

She releases him, taking in her son as she cards her fingers through his brown hair. It was just like hers, other than that Choji was a near spitting image of his father. “Well…” He started, “one is a boy. The other’s a girl. But she’s really cool! Naruto and Koinu!”

She knew Naruto. After all, she and a few other of the clan wives had come together, trying to adopt the boy. Koinu… now she wasn’t too sure of that one. Yes, she had heard the name mentioned here and there, but she had never met the girl. Though rumors have it that she was a survivor of genicide. “Hm… Well, you should bring them by one day.”

“I’ll try, mom.” His attention was drawn away when his father, Choza, walked in. “Dad!” The boy threw his arms around his father. The older man easily caught his son, lifting him up. “When did you get home?”

“Late last night. You were already asleep, didn’t want to wake you up.” He hugged his son before dropping him into one of the chairs. “Your mother tells me you run off with Shikamaru. You didn’t get yourself into too much trouble, now did you?”

“No. I went to a friend’s house. Dad? Can I ask you a question?”

Choza nodded, piling food into his platter. His son wasn’t the most inquisitive child, so he didn’t ask very many questions. “Sure.”

The boy copied his father, adding food to his own plate. “Do you know why everyone hates Naruto?”

A silence fell over the kitchen. For a second, Choji worried that he had asked the wrong question. His father swallowed. “Hm… Choji… I can’t tell you that. Not yet, at least.”

“Why?”

“There are some things that you are still too young to understand.”

Choji sank into his seat. This doesn't make any sense. “What could a kid do to make everyone hate him so much?”