Naru: Misty Eyes (A Naruto Fanfic) [Complete]

Chapter Seven: Good Food, Good Friends

When the three of them arrived at the restaurant where they were meeting Kohaku's friends, Naru breathed deeply, smiling. "This smells amazing. What is it?"

"It's a ramen bar, Naru," Gaara said, sounding confused as to why she wouldn't know that.

"Ah. Well, like I said, it smells amazing!" She felt a hand rest on her shoulder. Kohaku. "Are your friends here, Kohaku-san?" Translation: Is Ryuu-san here?

"Yeah, they're all here," Kohaku sounded happy, so Naru smiled. She was actually a bit nervous. Sure Kohaku said everyone would love her, but she didn't exactly have a record for people loving her. Kohaku's hand left her shoulder as the Suna nin started forward into the restaurant, Gaara and Naru trailing behind.

"Hey, Gaara?" Naru asked quietly, hoping none of the others would hear.

"What is it, Naru?" The reply was immediate and equally quiet.

"I was just wondering... What does everyone look like?"

Gaara's hand, which had yet to leave hers, squeezed her hand gently. "Well, Kohaku-san is kinda tall, and she has really short, orange hair. Um, her eyes are a brown-ish color, I guess, and she's super tan from being outside in the sun all the time. There's a guy with dark blue hair and really dark green eyes. He's sitting down so... Wait, he stood up. He's super tall. Taller than Kohaku-san anyway. Another guy with tan skin like Kohaku-san's and light brown hair, kinda like sand; he's just a little taller than Kohaku-san..."

"What about you?"

"Me?"

"Yeah. What do you look like, Gaara?"

"A monster."

Naru sighed, tugging on Gaara's hand to get his attention, even though she already had it. "Nope. You're not a monster, and I'm not a demon. Let's make that a deal right now. No matter what other people think, you're Gaara, and I'm Naru. Not a monster, not a demon. Just Gaara and Naru. Ok?"

"Alright." There was something of disbelief in Gaara's tone. "Deal."

"Now, what do you look like?"

"Uh... Let's see... I suppose my hair is sorta dark red, and my eyes are green, not dark like the other person's though. They're light green. Um, I guess I'm pretty pale... and there are these dark circle things around my eyes. Nothing special."

"Yes, you are. You're my friend, so you're special to me." Naru changed the subject, figuring Gaara had had enough of talking about himself for the moment. "Is that everyone here?"

"No. There's one other girl. She's got real long hair that looks sorta silvery, and she's kinda pale. Oh, she's looking at us now. Her eyes are a dark blue," Gaara continued his narration of their appearances. "Ok, that's everybody."

"I thought you were only bringing the Konoha girl, Kohaku," a female voice spoke, lilting and almost breezy, Naru assuming it was the silvery-haired woman Gaara described. "Why is the Kazekage's younger son here?"

"He and Naru became friends while I was talking to the Kazekage," Kohaku responded. "Naru wanted him to stay over tonight, so here he is."

"Couldn't say no to the kid, could you?" one of the men said, his voice low and amused. Naru tilted her head, wondering which one had spoken.

"The one with the brown hair," Gaara whispered in her ear, and Naru nodded her thanks.

"S-Shut up! I could... I just didn't," Kohaku retorted. "Besides, the kid needs somebody to talk to besides you lot."

"Speaking of us, I believe we should introduce ourselves," the other man spoke. His voice was naturally loud and even deeper than the first man's. "I'm Karasu Yatagarasu."

"Ryuu Senshi," the first man spoke. Naru smiled. Now she knew which one Kohaku had a crush on.

"I'm Tsuki Akiyama," the woman spoke last.

Naru's smile grew a bit nervous. "I'm Naru Uzumaki. It's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too, kiddo," Ryuu said. "What are you two still standing there for? Come and sit. We haven't ordered yet."

Naru and Gaara came over to the booth they had chosen to occupy. Kohaku, sitting furthest in on one of the two benches, sat Naru next to her, Gaara on Naru's other side. Ryuu, Karasu, and Tsuki sat on the other side of the table. Someone came to take their order almost immediately, and everyone got something different. When it was Naru's turn, though, she said, "I don't know..."

"The miso ramen is good," Gaara whispered to her, and she nodded.

"Um, the miso ramen please."

Their food came quickly, and it was delicious. Naru grinned happily after she finished her food. "Kohaku-san, can I still pick what my favorite food is?"

"Of course, Naru," Kohaku replied.

"Then I want to pick miso ramen."

"Alright!" Ryuu laughed. While Karasu and Tsuki had remained fairly silent throughout the meal, Ryuu had talked to Kohaku a lot and even asked Naru and Gaara some questions. Naru could see why Kohaku liked him. He was nice. "Another ramen fan! You're officially outnumbered, Kohaku."

"She likes dango too," Kohaku shot back. "So we're still tied."

"Alright, then," Karasu spoke up. "Gaara, do you prefer dango or ramen?"

Gaara shrunk back a little at the sudden attention he was given but said, "Well, I have to say ramen, I think. I'm not a super big fan of dango."

"There! Now you're officially outnumbered," Ryuu said, still laughing.

Naru heard Kohaku's head fall on the table, luckily not one of the ramen bowls, as the woman groaned, "What is wrong with kids these days? No respect for good food."

"This was good food," Naru piped up with a giggle.

"I like this kid," Ryuu declared. "She's smart."

"You know, Ryuu-san--"

Kohaku bolted upright, arm coming around Naru and hand covering her mouth before she could finish the statement. "I think it's time I get these two home. It's late, and they need to sleep."

"Kohaku-san likes you!" Gaara said for Naru, both of them laughing even as Kohaku's hand still covered Naru's mouth. Kohaku couldn't even stutter out a reply. She just herded the two of them out of the restaurant as quickly as possible, mumbling about kids and their crazy imaginations the whole way.