The Stars

Chapter 2

Disclaimer, first chapter!

OnKxN

Ai stood quietly outside Naruto's room, the soft sound of his sobs filtering through the thin walls.

She had known him for only a month now, since the day she was brought to the orphanage, waiting for her mother to be released from prison.

Yet, in that short time, she had come to see Naruto as something more than just the boy who helped everyone. 

He was strong or at least, she had thought so.

The boy who always gave them emotional support, who told them it was okay to cry and feel pain, was now bawling his eyes out, without any care if someone heard him.

The other children, busy playing in the common room, seemed not to notice. 

Or maybe they did, and they were just used to it by now.

"Aah, it's happening again..." Yugao's voice broke the silence as she approached, a small, almost fond smile on her lips. In her hands, she carried a small box, probably some of the children's things left behind when they were adopted.

Ai turned to the caretaker, tilting her head in confusion.

"Again?" she asked softly, her mind trying to reconcile the image of Naruto, the cheerful, confident boy who had become like a big brother to them all, crying behind that closed door.

Yugao's smile widened, though there was a hint of sadness behind it. "Don't worry, Ai-chan. It's a normal occurrence around here," she said, her voice gentle as if she were explaining something tender and fragile. "Naruto-kun is always like this every time a child gets adopted..."

Ai blinked, her confusion deepening.

"But he was smiling when Illya-chan and Ushio-chan left."

The girl's thoughts flickered to the girls who both seemed happy to be adopted by their new families though there were a staring contest between Izumi and Illya happening before the latter left.

She remembered the way Naruto had waved them off, his grin bright and wide, just like it always was.

It hadn't crossed her mind that anything might be wrong.

Yugao chuckled softly, tinged with an understanding Ai didn't yet have.

"He'll always act strong when it happens," she explained, glancing down at the parcel box in her hands.

"He doesn't want to make them sad, you know? He feels it's his job as their big brother to send them off with a smile. But once they're gone..." She paused, a soft sigh escaping her lips. "He'll immediately lock himself in his room for an hour or two."

Ai looked back at the door, her heart tightening.

So even someone like Naruto, someone she thought was unbreakable, had his moments of weakness.

He wasn't just their pillar of strength.

He was also a boy who hurt, just like the rest of them.

For a moment, she considered knocking, telling him it was okay to cry openly, the same way he had told her not to hide her own sadness.

But something held her back.

Maybe, in that moment, Naruto needed his own space to let it all out, just as he gave space to everyone else.

"I see..." Ai finally whispered, though her thoughts were far from settled.

The image of Naruto's strong, smiling face now felt layered with something much more complex, an emotion she hadn't understood until now.