Kazaguruma [Naruto Fanfic]

Kazaguruma

this is a weird drabble thing that i suddenly thought about? like i dont even ship karin/sasuke but i needed it to happen for some reason. soooo

and also kaka-sensei doesnt play a large part in the story but hes mentioned at the end and he matters damnit

Kazaguruma

Naruto's toes are numb and his snot feels thick and sticky as he sniffs, the cold air sending a chill through his body. This is the coldest Naruto has ever been in Konoha and it scares him; it's not meant to snow in the Land of Fire, yet here Naruto is, warily watching the massive gray cloud that hovers above the village, cold winds shrieking across the landscape.

Naruto looks down at his opened-toes sandals and sniffs again, his eyes burning as tears start to mingle with his runny nose. He doesn't know what to do. He's only been living on his own for three months when his landlord told him that there was some kind of infestation in the building. When Naruto had asked him what that word meant, the man had sneered at him, a vicious curl on his lip, before he told Naruto that it meant unwanted vermin were making burrows within the walls of the building.

"You have to leave," the man had growled at him, glare persistent as he looks down at Naruto.

"But when can I come back?" Naruto had asked, shrinking back from the hostility that man was showing him.

"When I say you can," was the man's answer. Before Naruto knew it, he had a small satchel with two extra pairs of clothes, an extra pair of shoes, Gama-chan, and no longer any place to live.

Naruto wasn't stupid. He would bet money he didn't have that he was the vermin the landlord was getting rid of. It's not like anyone was there to stop him, after all. Jiji used to help him, the kind old man Hokage visiting him and frowning whenever he'd notice any disrespectful behavior being thrown Naruto's way, but there had been a big funeral recently, one that the whole village attended, where the Hokage had explained with tears in his eyes that a very old friend, a man called Danzo, had passed away in his sleep.

Naruto understands that the Hokage is mourning, that he has to take care of things that Danzo left behind after death, but he's tired of being cold, and smelly, and tired. Always so tired.

His stomach grumbling breaks him out of his thoughts, the painful ache making him wince and tear up again. He's been hungry before, has missed meals for a few days, but it's never been like this. Naruto can feel how tiny he is now, his ribs bony against his hands whenever he actually takes the time to look at himself. He hasn't eaten anything more than slim findings from a garbage can in two weeks and he doesn't know how much longer he can go on.

He holds back a sob when he looks up from his stomach and notices white particles falling from the sky. He stares up for a moment, shock making his tears stop. He's never seen snow before; the only reason he knows what it is is because Jiji had told him bed time stories about the Land of Snow and all the bright whiteness that laid upon the land. He never thought he'd experience the weather phenomenon in the consistently warm Konoha.

He shivers, a chilly wind wrapping around him, before almost jumping out of his skin when a warm hand rests on his shoulder.

"Where's your coat?"

Naruto whips around, eyes wide and fearful as he catches sight of a dark haired man. His skin is very pale and his eyes are very dark. The next thing Naruto notices is the seemingly genuine concern for Naruto's well-being.

"I-," Naruto stutters, his already red face turning warmer from embarrassment, "I don't have one."

"Here, you can have mine," a new voice adds, making Naruto break eye contact with the concerned man. He blinks, teeth chattering slightly as a woman with bright red hair smiles at him, offering the coat she had just taken off of her own back.