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1. Uzumaki Naruto learned very early that grownups paid much less attention to kids when they thought someone’s mother was only a storefront or two away. Children in Konoha were notoriously independent, even civilian ones. The saying that it takes a village to raise children was rather on the nose-- except for the people with white eyes and the others who had that red and white fan on their clothes. They kept to themselves. The other families didn’t ignore each other, but they did ignore Naruto. Or, they ignored him when they weren’t saying mean things. Naruto couldn’t figure out why so many people snarled at him, or hustled their children away when all he wanted to do was play. Ojiisan liked to play with Naruto, but they could never play for long because he needed to take care of the village. He once explained to Naruto that the village was his family and it was his job as Hokage to take care of that family. Naruto decided right then that he wanted to be Hokage because he wanted to have his own precious people (as many as possible!) to love and protect. He wouldn’t learn until later that being Hokage meant more than that, but he was Uzumaki Naruto and his heart was big and his will was strong. Naruto was five years old the first time he met the nice lady who worked in the secondhand shop in one of the residential districts he sometimes wandered. The old man who owned the shop tolerated him (well, he didn’t refuse service or call him “monster”, at any rate), so Naruto made a point to shop there when he saved up enough money from his allowance from ojiisan after buying food. It wasn’t often. He didn’t understand how food could be so expensive! He saw HUGE families in the market and had no idea how they could afford the food they needed when he couldn’t afford rice. He saw the nice lady a few times before he ever spoke to her. The first time he saw her, she was wearing an orange shirt and he decided that she must be nice because orange was the greatest color ever and there was no way a mean person could like it. The first time he spoke to her, she was juggling a large pile of clothes that needed to be hung back up on the racks and she hadn’t seen the dress that had fallen from her grasp. He followed her, dress held gently in his pudgy, child hands. “Ne, shopkeeper-san!” She turned to him after placing her pile on a table to fold. “You dropped this!” He held the dress up to her. She paused for the briefest of moments (but just long enough that he worried she might raise a hand at him) before bestowing upon him the brightest smile he’d ever seen. “Thank you so much!” She reached down and took the dress from him then ruffled his hair. Naruto froze at the gesture. No one ever ruffled his hair like that. Well, ojiisan did, but he was ojiisan -- he always did stuff like that. The old ladies back at the orphanage would sooner take the wooden spoon to his behind, and his new landlady pretended he didn’t exist. Naruto noticed she saw him tense up and could tell she was about to say something about it, so he pasted a smile on his face. “You’re welcome!” And he skipped away. The nice lady smiled at him. She thanked him. She hadn’t hit him and pat him on the head instead. He might just make a point to hang around there more often.
2. Naruto needed socks. Normally, he didn’t really care if his socks matched or not, but they kept going missing and now he only had one-- only one, and it had a hole in the toe. Even he knew he couldn’t live like that. So he put his little Gama-chan in his pocket and made his way to the one shop that let him be there. This was a mistake , he thought as he saw the crowd when he got there. It must have been because of the large sign in the window that read “Sale!”-- he learned that word early on. Sales were good, because everything was always so expensive, and he kept outgrowing his clothes. The crowd was even worse than he thought when he got inside. The old man must have been on a break or something because the nice lady from last time was all by herself and she looked so stressed. Naruto knew what stressed looked like because the old ladies at the orphanage told each other all the time that they looked stressed. There was a loud crash on the other side of the store as someone knocked a display vase onto the ground. Naruto glanced around, happy that it happened far enough away from him that he wouldn’t get blamed for it. But-- Rude! The person who did it just walked away! Pretended like it didn’t even happen! Wasn’t going to clean it up! Naruto frowned. Now, that wasn’t right at all. He knew what he should do. He was small, so he was able to dart between shoppers with minimal disturbance until he got to the back of the counter. Nice Lady barely saw him, so he tugged on her apron. “Excuse me, where’s the dustpan?” he asked. She paused from the transaction she was handling to say “Oh, you’re a lifesaver” and pointed him to a cabinet behind her. He very carefully picked up the large, jaggedy shards of porcelain, avoiding the sharp edges, and threw them in the trash before sweeping the tiny pieces into the dustpan. Naruto was pretty sure he got all of it, but he should probably tell her to push a vacuum in that spot after everyone went home. He went back to the counter to return the pan, and Nice Lady caught his eye and nodded to a small bundle at the end of the workspace. He picked it up and looked at it. Socks! How did she know? He looked back up at her and she dropped him a wink. She was awesome. 3. Naruto was skipping school. No one ever paid attention and anything was better than being cooped up in a boring classroom where everyone hated him. Besides, the teachers didn’t care whether or not he showed up. He wasn’t too sure how Iruka-sensei would react, but Naruto would eat his left shoe if the chuunin actually cared enough to find him. He skipped his way through the market, taking care to avoid the notice of any shinobi, who were by now more than familiar enough with him to drag him back to school by the ear. Up ahead he saw the friendly shop lady. He stopped, noticing her struggle with her groceries. The decision he came to wasn’t a hard one. He bounded up to her. “Ne, ne, that looks like a lot of stuff to carry! Do you need help?” “Oh!” she looked down at him in surprise and tried to adjust her grip on her bags. “I know you from the shop.” She paused. “I’m sorry-- I’m afraid I don’t know your name.” Naruto grinned widely. “I’m Uzumaki Naruto, and when I grow up, I’m gonna be the Hokage, dattebayo!” “Wow!” she smiled, impressed. “I’m Mei. Er… Satogo Mei.” “Satogo…” Naruto knew that name. A few kids in the orphanage had it. It went to the ones whose parents were still alive and didn’t want them. He wasn’t the sort of person who liked to think unkind things, but on days when the old ladies were particularly mean, he’d catch himself thinking at least he was lucky enough to have parents who loved him enough to name him. He pasted a huge smile on his face. “Mei-san let me help you carry those!” She glanced up the street. “Where’s your mother? Shouldn’t you be in school?” Naruto latched onto the easier question. “Ehehehe, um, it’s a day off! Yeah, day off!” Mei just raised an eyebrow at him and he scuffed his shoes in the dirt. “Okay, fine. But we’re only doing really boring stuff today, ‘ttebayo. Just dumb history stuff.” “Naruto-kun, school is important! Shouldn’t a Hokage know about the past so he can remember the good things and try to fix the bad ones?” She was so sincere that Naruto had a hard time thinking up an argument against her. He guessed she could tell he was struggling with an answer when she suggested, “How about this? Help me with my bags and then I’ll walk you back to school. Is that a fair deal?” Naruto turned that idea over in his head, finger pressed to his chin in an exaggerated thinking pose. He thought he could her Mei suppress a giggle. “Okay! You drive a tough bargain, lady, but okay!” This time Mei didn’t hide her laughter and he grinned, really happy he could make her smile. She handed him the two lightest bags, but that freed her arms up enough to hold the rest securely. They chatted about little things on the way to her apartment. Naruto pointed out some of his favorite places, and so did she. He felt a prickle of discomfort every time her eyes darted over to him when other shopkeepers glared at them. At him. She didn’t say anything as he chattered on about the time Hokage-ojii bought him ice cream at the stand on the corner. The walk was short and before long she was unlocking the front door to her apartment. Naruto absentmindedly placed his bags on the table as he looked around. It was small. Maybe tinier than his, even. There was a bed pushed against the far wall next to the window with a small dresser at its foot. Next to the door was a small kitchen with a counter, two burner stovetop, and a refrigerator about the size of his. In between the two areas was a table that sat two chairs and a single bookcase stuffed with books. It was small, but it was clean and cozy and it felt like home in a way that his apartment didn’t. Maybe it was the art on the wall, maybe it was the elephant plushie on the bed. He didn’t know. “Here.” Naruto was jerked out of his thoughts. “I’ve got all the cold stuff put away. How about we walk on over back to the Academy, huh?” He rubbed the back of his head. He had half hoped that she would forget about that, but she asked really nicely and he decided that maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. Just this once. They were back out on the street when Mei asked him what he liked about the Academy. It was a hard question. It was way easier to list what he hated: math, the way teachers ignored him, how most of the other kids wouldn’t let him play with them. “Eh, well, I like when we spar in the afternoon. It helps my legs from getting too jumpy, you know? And I guess Kiba’s okay. Even if he does keep bragging about maybe being allowed to bring a dog to school soon.” “What about your teacher?” she asked. “Iruka-sensei?” Naruto shrugged. “He’s new?” He phrased it like a question. “The other ones suck, though.” Realizing what he said, he flinched, waiting for the blow the old ladies would have given him for his language. It didn’t come. He peeked up at Mei and was surprised to find her nodding. “Sometimes that happens,” she explained. Naruto was floored. Any time he didn’t praise the teachers, the old ladies would lecture him for hours about being respectful. When they got close to the Academy, Naruto could tell it was recess because he could hear the other kids shouting. He kept moving, but Mei touched his shoulder so he stopped. She looked at him with an expression he couldn’t place. Then she squatted down so she was at his eye level. “Would you do something for me, Naruto-kun?” she asked. Naruto was confused, but agreed anyway. “Uh, sure?” “When you see… Iruka-sensei, right? When you see him, can you apologize to him?” Her expression told Naruto that she thought it was really important. He scratched his head. “Eh, how come?” She tilted her head and explained, “Well, he’s your teacher, right? His job isn’t just to give you lectures and tests. Part of it is also to make sure his students are safe. He can’t do that if he doesn’t know where you are. He’s probably very worried about you right now. It’s always a good thing to apologize when you make someone worry.” “Do you really think Iruka-sensei is worried about me?” Naruto’s voice was small. Mei ruffled his hair in response. “Well, I know I would be if I were in his place.” Naruto humphed. “Okay, fine. I’ll apologize.” “Good.” She rose, and the two of them walked the last two blocks to the Academy. She stopped at the gate as Naruto waved goodbye to her and watched as he looked around the yard. He approached a young man around her age, presumably Iruka-sensei. With a backwards glance at her, Naruto scratched the back of his head and said something to his teacher. The man’s eyes widened, almost in disbelief, and his gaze shot up to meet hers. She smiled at him and nodded in acknowledgement. Then she turned and made her way back home.
4. Naruto knew what it sounded like when someone was trying to hide the fact that they wanted to cry. Your breathing sounds funny, your nose gets a little sniffly, your voice gets a little wobbly. The shop was closed the last three days. He didn’t have to do this kind of shopping very often, but Mei-nee and the Old Man were nice and he liked to walk by when he could. The Old Man was dead now, he heard, and Mei-nee was was sitting on the bench outside the store trying very hard not to cry. He knew what it sounded like because he had lots of practice trying not to cry. Climbing up on the bench next to Mei-nee, Naruto looked at her for a minute. She didn’t notice him right away, but when she did, she sniffed and rubbed at her eyes some more. “Hi, Naruto,” she whispered, trying to smile at him. He saw how sad she was. “Do you want a hug, Mei-nee?” he asked in his best inside voice (even though they were outside). Her lip trembled as she nodded. He wrapped his arms around her middle and she gave him a hug back. They stayed that way for awhile.
5. “What’s this?” Naruto was holding up a fistful of wildflowers and trying not to make eye contact. He chewed on his bottom lip before answering. “IheardInosmomsayitwasyourbirthday.” It came out all in a rush, so he breathed deeper and repeated himself slower. “I heard Ino’s mom say it was your birthday.” Mei-nee takes the flowers with a big smile. “Oh they’re beautiful!” Naruto thinks she might just be being nice, because now that she’s holding them, he can see that he squished the leaves from holding the stems so tightly. And maybe he should have taken the time to cut off some of the roots that came out when he pulled the flowers up-- --but the look on her face is just so happy that he thinks she really means it. And then she sits on the floor and pats the ground next to her. He sits with her. “So how do you know Ino’s mom?” he asks. That question has been nagging him all day. Mei-nee sniff the flowers and looks like she’s stuck in a memory or something. Then all of a sudden it looked like she just washed the memory away. “I used to work in the Yamanaka Flower Shop a long time ago. I worked with Ino’s dad, so that’s how I know Ino’s mom. And Ino, too. How is she doing? You go to school together, right?” Naruto makes a face and Mei-nee laughs.
+1 The garbage bag fell from Mei’s hand with a muffled thump. “Naruto?” The boy was curled up on a bench in the alleyway, shivering in his sleep. She ignored the dropped bag and rushed to kneel next to his prone form. Mei pressed the inside of her wrist against his forehead-- he was burning up-- and swears. “Naruto, you should be home! Where on earth is your mother?” Mei had a feeling she already knows the answer to that, but ignored the sinking pit in her stomach in favor of taking care of the most pressing issue at the moment. She left the fallen trash where it was and carefully lifted him up into her arms. He barely responded to the movement, and that sent a frisson of fear down her spine. Naruto was much too light for his age, she thought as she walked up the stairs to her apartment above the shop-- the one she inherited when she inherited the business. It’s another point towards confirming her suspicions. Mei gently eased him into her guest bed and piled on the blankets to warm up his chills and sweat the fever out. After preparing a bowl of ice water, Mei brought it to the bedside to wet the cloth she intended to use as a cold compress for his forehead. A glance at the clock told her it was nearing nine o’clock and she settled herself in for a long night of making sure his condition didn’t worsen. She stayed awake through the night, mopping his brow and singing quietly to him as he whimpered through nightmares. Just after midnight, she realized she had no idea when he might have last ate, so she made a plain broth that she carefully spooned down his throat. Then she sat back to wait the rest of the night. “Wha- where am I?” Naruto’s haggard voice jerked Mei out of her doze. A quick glance out the window told her it was morning sometime. She stumbled out of her chair to feel his forehead to take his temperature. “Oh, thank God!” “Mei-nee, what’s going on?” Naruto sounded very confused and she couldn’t blame him.“You were so sick!” She continued to fuss over him, brushing his sweat-matted hair off his forehead. “I found you outside last night all by yourself. You should have been at home in bed-- what were you doing?” Naruto started fidgeting. “Uh, Mei-nee? I gotta pee. Like, really bad.” “Oh! Of course. Here.” Mei pulled the covers down and helped him out of bed to her bathroom. She waited outside while he did his business, listening carefully in case he fell. When he was done-- “Be sure to wash your hands!” she called through the door-- she helped him back to bed. She sat down on the bed next to him with her back against the headboard. “Now, what were you doing outside last night?” Naruto carefully averted his eyes. “Naruto? I won’t be mad. I promise.” “I… I didn’t want to be alone,” he mumbled. Mei’s heart broke as her suspicions were confirmed. “C’mere, kid.” She wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him into her side. “Next time, knock on the door okay? What would have happened if I hadn’t come out and found you?” Naruto shrugged. “One of the masks would probably have taken me home.” Masks. A tiger mask flashed in her memory and she suppressed a shudder. That gave her an idea though-- a half-baked idea, but still an idea. “How about I make us some breakfast?” “Ramen?” Mei laughed. “Silly, ramen isn’t for breakfast!” An offended gasp followed her out of the room. Naruto stayed for another two days-- Mei hadn’t wanted to send him home all by himself, not when he was still recovering from being sick. His break from the Academy was winding down, though, and he would need to go back to school. He got quiet when she told him she’d be walking him home. “You don’t have to. I know the way myself.” She brooked no argument, and took his hand as they walked through the streets. The longer they walked, the shabbier the streets started looking, and a quick glance at the position of the Hokage Monument gave a hint at what district they seemed to be steadily approaching. Outrage bubbled up in her chest. Thankfully, when they reached his apartment she discovered it wasn’t in the red lantern district. Just near it. It really was shabby, though. Shabbier than a seven-year-old should be living in. Naruto pressed a finger to his lips as they passed the landlady’s door, and they walked up six flights of stairs to his unit. She watched as he took a deep breath to fortify his courage before unlocking the door. Mei’s breath caught. She didn’t know what she was expecting, but somehow this was worse. There were cracks running up the walls. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a handful of roaches scurry back under the stove away from the light. Walking over to the sink felt like an out-of-body experience. She barely heard Naruto ask what she was doing as she turned the faucet onto the hottest setting and stuck her hand under the slowly dripping stream of water. Minutes went by while she eyed the probably-black-mold creeping up the wall behind the sink and the temperature stayed at a dismaying lukewarm. Indignant rage exploded in her as she wiped her hand on her pants leg to dry it. “We’re leaving.” She surprised herself with how calm she sounded. “What? Why?” She ignored his questions in favor of asking, “How about a piggyback ride, huh? We’re going to be late.” Naruto blinked at her. “Late for what?” But he shrugged and climbed up onto her back anyway. Mei marched back down the steps pausing just long enough to throw a glare at the landlady that she imagined could have curdled milk. Even people on the street gave them a wider berth than they usually gave to Naruto. “Hey, are we going to the Hokage Tower? Why are we going to the Hokage Tower?” Naruto asked as he adjusted his grip around her neck. “Because we’re going to see the Hokage.” She wondered what she must look like to everyone else-- storming through the streets with a child clinging to her back and looking like she was ready to raise holy hell. Well, she was. “We’re going to see Hokage-ojii? Wait-- you know him?” Naruto was trying hard not to bounce in excitement and fall off her back. “We’ve met,” was all she answered. They reached the anteroom outside the Hokage’s office, and she set Naruto back down on the ground. Mei fully expected to sit and wait because one doesn’t simply barge in on a military dictator, so she was surprised when when the chuunin sitting outside the door and announced, “The Hokage is expecting you. You may go in.” Entering the room, Mei bowed. She nudged Naruto to do the same and he gave her the stink eye before copying. “Satogo-san, I was told you wanted to speak with me. How may I help you?” The Hokage asked with no hint of emotion on his face to give a clue as to what he was thinking. Mei drew herself up. “I’m here to petition for guardianship over Naruto.” ”What?” She ignored Naruto’s stupefied outburst. The Hokage’s brow furrowed minutely. “I’m afraid I can’t allow that.” She inhaled. “Why?” “Please understand that it is for safety reasons that I deny this request.” Mei thought there might be regret behind his eyes, but he was too skilled at hiding his feelings to indulge in any wishful thinking on her part. “Hokage-sama, please,” she pleaded. “It’s for safety reasons that I make this petition.” His gaze sharpened. “Explain.” “Sir, I was under the impression that orphans lived at the orphanage until they became genin.” “This is the case usually, yes.” “Then why is a seven-year-old living on his own in the shoddiest living quarters I’ve ever seen alarmingly close to the red lantern district?” Mei studied the Hokage to gauge his reaction. “Naruto how long have you been living in that apartment by yourself?” She didn’t take her eyes off the old man as Naruto hesitatingly answered, “Two years.” Her head snapped around to look at the child. “Two years? Two years?” She shrieked. Naruto was worrying his lip between his teeth like he was afraid she was mad at him. She spun back to face Sarutobi. “Sir! A five-year-old isn’t capable of--” “Naruto,” Sarutobi interrupted, “would you step outside while Satogo-san and I finish talking?” It wasn’t a request, and Naruto at least knew enough to recognize that. When the door shut behind him, the Hokage continued, “There are extenuating circumstances.” Mei knew what that meant-- it meant classified. “Hokage-sama, extenuating circumstances or not, there are things children his age are not capable of doing on their own and fending for themselves is at the top of the list. It’s just not safe for him to be living alone, even setting aside the fact his apartment isn’t fit for human habitation.” All of a sudden, the Hokage looked much older. “There are many things you don’t understand, given your background.” “And I’m not asking to understand,” she countered. “He needs a stable, loving home and the food security of regular meals. He needs a support system. It’s no wonder he’s having such a hard time at school when he told me he’s being charged five times the normal rate for rice.” She bowed deeply in supplication. “Hokage-sama, you took a chance on me once. I ask that you do so once more.” He was silent for so long that Mei thought she would be stuck in her bow forever. “There will be political fallout if I grant this guardianship. A family of much greater import than you was already denied in their request. Why should I grant to you what I refused them?” Mei’s breath caught. What was she getting herself into? “I don’t care. He needs a good home-- a happy home-- and I can provide that.” Should she bring it up? Oh, what could it hurt? “Whatever it is that will cause the political fallout, whatever it is that causes the villagers to spit at him in the street is baggage I don’t have, given my background.” “If you are sure you’re prepared, I will grant your request.” It took every ounce of self control Mei had to keep from sagging in relief. “We will draw up the proper documents immediately and sign them here,” the Hokage continued. “Later, a member of my personal guard will come to your apartment to assess the security and provide upgrades. There are things that can be done to overcome your civilian status.” Mei tapped her lips and mused, “I’ve been saving up to purchase a home. I’m not quite ready yet, but it will probably happen sooner rather than later.” Sarutobi nodded. “Be sure to consult about security before you purchase.” They had not been discussing logistics very long before smoke poofed in the middle of the room and a shinobi stood to present a folder. “Ah,” Sarutobi observed. “The paperwork. Excellent.” He gestured for her to approach the desk and offered her a pen. She skimmed the text. Standard biographical information and basic medical records. His parents’ names were redacted, which was interesting and probably the basis for the political problems the Hokage was referring to. The rest was a standard contract outlining her basic responsibilities to him. She sniffed at that-- she didn’t need a contract to compel her to do right by Naruto. When she was finished, Mei signed the document and the Hokage countersigned. Then he offered her a knife, which she used to slice her thumb and press a bloody fingerprint next to her name. Sarutobi then affixed his seal to the contract to finalize it. “Now,” he smiled. “Would you like to go tell him?” Mei beamed and bowed deeply again. “Thank you. Thank you so much.” She returned to the anteroom to see Naruto sitting on the bench swinging his legs. When he saw her he launched himself to his feet. “Hey, hey what did you and the old man talk about.” The chuunin at the desk choked at the phrase ‘old man’. Mei smiled and squatted down so that she was at his level. “Would you like to come live with me, Naruto?” Naruto’s grin wobbled a bit. “You mean like a family?” She nodded. “We’d be a little different from other families, but yeah, like a family.” She barely had time to brace herself before Naruto threw himself into her arms. Mei wrapped him in a hug as she felt his breathing shudder and a wet spot form on her shirt. Pressing a kiss to the top of his head, she told him, “There’s still a lot we have to figure out, but in time, things will fall into place.” She pulled back a bit to look him in the eyes. “You don’t have to call me Mom if you don’t want to. I won’t make you. You can keep calling me Mei-nee if you want. Do what feels most comfortable, okay?” “Can… can I think about it?” Mei reached up to ruffle his hair and he laughed. “Absolutely.” She stood. “Now, how about we go get some dinner to celebrate, and then we can pick up your things? Does that sound like a good idea?” “Does it ever!” Naruto exclaimed. “Can we get ramen from the Ichiraku stand?” “You bet.” Mei took his hand and she thought as they walked down the stairs of the tower, Yep, he’s worth anything.