Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
= Naruto =
(First Person)
"Do you have that last box?" My father strained to speak loud enough behind the cliff of cardboard boxes stacked in his arms. We were moving, for the sixth time this year. This was the 'final time' he promised, 'business was rough in that last town' he kept saying. But, I knew the truth.
Debt was bleeding us dry. Ever since mom left, dad had been trying his hardest to run our little street stall. But, bills would pile up, our returning customers dwindled, and eventually we had to find a new place to go once the lights turned off and our water stopped running.
"No worries, I got it" I mumbled out.
On the bright side, our load was much lighter this time. To pay our apartment lease off we had to liquidate. So now, it was only the essentials. Our utensils, clothing, and any small keepsakes we could fit. By the feel of it I was holding our entire wardrobe in a box the size of a throw pillow. Graciously, my father had taken the heavy bits. He always looked out for me that way.
It took only an hour to unpack in our new home (a small two bedroom apartment with a cramped kitchen) and even less time to set up our cart in the busy streets of Konoha. My dad was in a rush, things were super tight and our pockets needed some padding if we wanted to eat tonight.
What did we make? Taiyaki. My dad did the frying, I worked the bean paste, and together we made the best fish cakes around! Well, at least we boasted. But in my honest opinion it was delicious--and affordable.
As the afternoon sun faded and the evening chill began creeping up, we had hardly sold a thing. Some impulse buyers here and there, two or three kids getting out of school. But, as my dad repeated to himself while tending the fryers, 'beggars cant be choosers'.
I had just taken a break to light the paper lanterns decorating the side of our stall when he showed up. Or rather, he and his whole squad.
"Woah! Taiyaki! Was this always here?" Bounding up to the counter was a short, blond haired boy in a bright orange jumpsuit. Lagging behind him was a taller boy with a spikey haircut and piercing eyes and a girl with soft pink hair. They looked asleep on their feet and disinterested, the girl in particular seemed like she was ready to clock the blond any second.
"We're not here to eat! Come on, we'll end up making Kakashi sensei wait!"
"Make him wait? I bet he's still helping old ladies cross the street, or getting a cat out of a tree or something" the blond kid waved her off without taking his eyes off our menu board.
