amethyst solitary (naruto u.)

alternative ending

Three years have passed since the great ninja war ended, and life in the shinobi world has evoked itself in a never-ending sequence of changes.

Manaka has gone down the path in doing volunteer work at the academy where prospective ninjas are usually trained. Whereas Naruto, he's been working relentlessly to fulfill his goal once and for all.

The now-matured girl, who has grown both mentally and physically, chose to work in the educational establishment for one reason only. And that is to teach strategies to students who are struggling with their mental health.

Many children are affected with mental illnesses at an early age, yet only a small percentage of them are able to receive the care they require. Therefore, Manaka was determined in executing a change.

She went to Kakashi, who currently holds the title as Konohagakure's 6th Hokage, and brought a proposal onto the table in which he delightedly agreed to implement from now on.

Every Monday through Thursday, Manaka arrives at the academy early, well prepared with an activity targeted to empower the students' mentality. Today's assignment involves jotting down future goals and the rationale for wanting to become a ninja. Since many struggle with verbally articulating their inner thoughts, Manaka discovered that writing down their thoughts on a sheet of paper then getting into groups to engage with one another would be an effective method of producing communication.

As Manaka watched her students indulge themselves in the cool, tree-lined backyard with only packs of crayons and papers in their clutch, a group of girls crept up behind her. They appeared to be too timid to attract her attention. But one of them managed to breakthrough by tugging at the hem of her brown long-sleeve top. The ravenette shuffled in her stance and smiled once she perceived one of them holding out what appeared to be a paper crown.

"Is this for me?" She feigned a hand against her chest and knelt down on both knees. The girl with the pigtails and freckles nodded shyly.

"It's beautiful!" Manaka said, taking ahold of it and placing it ontop of her head.

"Now you look like a real princess!" Mirai whose hair was bright like cherry blossoms exclaimed with reddened cheeks.

Manaka giggled before she watched them scurry away and focus on their projects once and for all. Almost immediately, she suddenly felt emptiness above her head.

Has the crown fallen?

She swayed her palm, expecting to touch paper, but a sly grin seeped across her lips as she acknowledged a familiar voice clear his throat.

"Looking for something, princess?" The way his words rolled off his tongue made her damn near dissolve. She playfully rolled her eyes, straightening back to her full height.

Crossing her arms and putting on a sly smirk, she confronted her savior.

"Can I have my crown back?" she said, tilting her hip.

Naruto pursed his lips, extending his arms ahead and examined the papery crown. "But I think it looks better on me."

The girl sighed. "Well if you wanted to be a princess in the first place, you could've just said so?"

That triggered Naruto's ego. "Hey!"

She giggled as Naruto drew her into his arms. He has grown taller than when she first met him. Hair shorter, figure more muscular. The black-heeled boots she was wearing didn't give her enough height to reach him- her head barely reached his chest.

And she looked like a tiny ass grain of rice next to him.

Manaka stood on her tippy toes, wrapping her arms around his neck. "So, what brings you here, Naruto?"