Chapter 119: Mariko Cart?

*Ding dong*

Homura was waiting outside a door inside an apartment complex while carrying a grocery bag with him.

With the 2nd year exam now, over he was mostly free to do as he wished, though he didn't really have anything he wished to do besides training to get stronger.

But he still had relationships that he needed to maintain and could not simply forget everyone and just delve further into his own endeavors.

Such was the case for today, he had to come to meet someone that he considered an important friend, although he always felt slightly guilty for refusing their requests to meet up.

Though he wouldn't have to wait much longer as he heard some noise behind the door and slowly after it opened, the figure of a bright yellow-haired child with whisker marks on his cheeks appeared as the door was fully opened.

-H-Homura? You came!? (Naruto)

Naruto asked surprised by seeing Homura outside his apartment.

There was both a mixture of surprise and joy behind his voice, though Homura was not emotionally intelligent enough to detect the latter.

-You invited me. Where are the others?

He didn't really want to come and meet Naruto, but with things, as they were recently, he had no good excuse to not at least show up once.

So he had to bite the bullet at some point and meet with Naruto at least once in a while for their bond to not completely deteriorate as it had been the case at some point in the past.

- Busy. But yeah, I didn't think that you would show up either, you almost never show up. Telling me that you're busy or something. I never thought that you would actually show up...Is this a prank? (Naruto)

- Well, I came. And are you trying to make me feel guilty or something? Because it's not working. Here! (Shikamaru and the rest are d*cks... I don't know why he hangs out with those guys...but I guess Naruto never gives up. Even stuff like that, huh? )

Homura dug inside the grocery bag he was carrying and presented Naruto with some kind of cylinder object.

-What's th-! A-An extra large sweet pork cup ramen with black beans soup!? (Naruto)

Homura literally just grabbed the first cup of ramen he found in one of the stores on his way to Naruto's apartment.

It was almost one of the only things Naruto would talk about besides Sasuke or Sakura, to much of his chagrin as he tried to ignore Naruto's voice, but since he couldn't grab either Sasuke or Sakura at a store; a cup of ramen was the only option left available to him.

- What? It's no good? You eat a lot and I think you like pork? (I really don't know) so I got the large one.

- Rude. I don't eat a lot! I am a growing boy trying to become the next Hokage, so, of course, I need my energy. (Naruto)

- Sure.

Homura remembered the many portions of ramen Naruto could eat in one seating inside his mind; thus rending the entire argument Naruto just gave him worthless inside his mind.

- Wait, why are you giving me a gift? I invited you, so why are you giving this?… What do you want? I smell trouble. (Naruto)

- Now, who's rude? It's a simple housewarming gift or something. Polite guests give them to someone when they invite them to their house, but if you don't want it… I can always get it back. (I mean that's what Saya said that I had to do when I visit someone... Was she trying to get free food from me?)

Homura said it, trying to reach toward the cup ramen, but Naruto quickly moved it away from his grasp.

-N-no! (Naruto)

-?!

Naruto's action surprised Homura who was not expecting Naruto to protect the cup ramen as much as he did, he knew Naruto liked those things, very, very much. But he never thought he would react this way.

He ignored that the flavor of cup-ramen he gave Naruto was quite the delicacy and rare to come around, in fact after he had left the door a young Hinata had gone there to buy it for herself but was disappointed not finding it for herself, followed by a Choji a few minutes later.

It was just that much of a delicacy that the shop owner puts it on display, where he could easily catch anyone's attention so as those who go there to look for it especially to not go ask him about it.

-I mean I knew that, and I never say I didn't want it… I was just testing you. (Naruto)

- (I'm so confused right now... I should have stayed home or train.) Sure. Can I come in now? 

-Yeah, come on in! (Naruto)

Naruto urged Homura to come inside. It wasn't Homura's first time inside Naruto's apartment but it had been about a year or so since he had been inside.

Though he dreaded going there since leaving a young child like Naruto to live by his lonesome, was a rather ridiculous thing to do.

He was also a child leaving on his own, but he had people screaming at him to clean up all the while he lived at the orphanage.

Homura isn't even sure who took care of Naruto when he was an infant or how he ended up living in such a shabby apartment.

He believed that the the last "Uzumaki" and the fourth Hokage should have been loaded, but ninja economics never made much sense. It was tied with to too many things.

They even took commission fees from a shinobi during their mission, and they were quite high, it didn't seem like a very good job for one to pursue in the future.

But it did beat peasant work or having to work in a trade when bandits are everywhere.

Besides, Homura just wanted strength above all else. 

However, he still didn't understand what the third Hokage was thinking by letting Naruto live by himself.

He did pose too much danger.

Assigning a fake family to Naruto would be the smarter move but that also came with a series of problems. 

Nonetheless, as a ninja cadet and a resident of Konohagakure, his views on the matter was that it was normal for children to live on their own if they don't have any parents.

Though Naruto wasn't a normal child and he didn't seemed to have lived at an orphanage prior living alone, or at the very least, it was not very long. Not long enough before he became truly self aware by some of the things he would sometimes say. 

Though Homura never asked since he understands well the pain that comes from solitude. 

He was lucky enough to never have had to face the pain of having been truly left alone, at least for long periods of time.

Otherwise, he may have ended up similar to Naruto that had to figure out everything by himself.

Naruto's apartment was a reflection of that very own possibility.

Naruto's apartment was always a mess, and he only took care of it when it became impossible to live inside of it or when it started to smell.

This time it was no different.

Weights on the floor, the same with books and scrolls, not to mention several pairs of dirty clothes laying around the floor and empty packages of processed food.

-…(It's as messy as always. This guy can't be allowed to live by himself.)

Thought Homura as he looked around, he was surprised that the window was opened so it didn't really smell bad, but it was still a terrible sight to witness.

Though it was less of a mess than a year ago, the discipline Naruto was getting at the academy or the drive he had to defeat Sasuke had made him grow up a bit more.

Even though a good diet was out of the question at least the corner where he seemingly trained at was not full of litter. 

At least now the roomwas simply messy and slightly dirty, before it was practically a biohazard.

-(At least, he is studying more or less properly… Wait, sealing jutsu?)

Homura grabbed a scroll on Naruto's bed and started reading it, he was rather surprised by the contents inside.

It wasn't anything deep, every academy student had a passing knowledge about all types of ninja arts, and that did include fuinjutsu, but it was not really something they needed to learn how to perform.

The misconception that some may have at the academy is that all students had to known and be able to perform everything taught at the academy but that was wrong. 

The more things you excel at the better but if you truly performed well in an area and pretty much your teachers agreed to let you pass the exam. 

You were allowed to be a shinobi. 

But if they knew you weren't cut out to become a shinobi or that you could be polished further then one had to spend another year, polishing their skills at the academy.

Under normal circumstances. 

- (Even for an Uzumaki... Naruto seems to have almost no talent for sealing jutsu…I wonder if Kurama purposely messes with him every time he tries to perform a sealing jutsu out of spite… both his parents are geniuses at it… seems unlikely that he would be bad at such a discipline...Though I heard that concentration and state of mind does affect it a lot...Naruto seems to have 20 different thoughts per seconds, sometimes. And he does have too much chakra inside him for a kid...also there's the fact that he inherited Asura's chakra... his entire situation is so messed up that I can't even fully understand.)

However, it was long before Homura realized that the contents written inside of the scroll he was currently reading was stuff that he was already quite familiar with and that it was quite basic overall; Homura closed it and left it next to Naruto's desk after sealing it but he then happened to catch sight of something that truly surprised him.

- Hm? What is this? (It almost looks like...)

Seeing Homura pointing at something, Naruto, finally paid attention to something else than the cup ramen that he was filling with hot water.

-Ah? That's my game console. (Naruto)

- Game console? (What? Those exist here too? I thought they were talking of consoles it was those machines at the pachinko parlor...but to think it was an actual game console...*sigh* I give up...I probably should hang around a bit more with kids my age.)

It had been quite a while since Homura stopped hanging around kids his age for anything except for eating or training.

His house was now mostly deserted since he made his secret bunker, he could spend days inside it either training or studying as to not let anyone bother him.

- Do you want to play a game? (Naruto)

Naruto asked with glee in his voice, it wasn't every day he would get someone to play with him, every single one of his classmates was always busy, and he himself was always busy as well.

But now the exams were over, there was enough time that he could use to spend just being a normal kid.

- Huh... no.

- Come on, we can play it for a while. (Naruto)

- ...*sigh* fine.

Naruto knew Homura very well, he knew that he was quite weak to being pressured.

- Alright, I will bring the second joystick. (Naruto)

Naruto went inside his wardrobe to look for another remote he had stashed away. Leaving Homura to his lonesome, next to the tv and game console.

- (I guess I can't escape the total weirdness of technology from our world. But How did I not know Naruto in the original series had that in probably in his world too?)

He looked at the games Naruto had in his room and the graphics displayed on their boxes.

-(we're far away from anything square enix has produced in the… the… What was the last released game before I died?...Was it ff 23? Or ff25? Meh, who cares. Square really went to shit after they made a villain like S*phiroth a good guy. Lost my faith in them. With the knowledge I have, I could try to make games in the future. It would be an honest way to gather funds.

The world that Homura came from was quite advanced.

They had flying cars and even a space elevator, and before he died; a company had said they had found a way to create a fully simulative virtual reality game.

Though he could not be sure if it was true. Companies lied a lot there too, but it was not impossible for the technology available there.

So him thinking that he could reproduce some of the things from there was not entirely impossible, the people in his reality were taught via computers inside cybernetic helmets.

-(But the market for such a thing shouldn't be that big. Only in the big villages or cities would be a chance for profit, bu) Hey Naruto?

- Huh? (Naruto)

- Can I borrow that console for 3 days?

- 3 days!? Nope! Never! (Naruto)

Naruto's response was clear but Homura did not give up.

- I will give you 20 cup-ramen.

- Nah huh! (Naruto)

- 40.

- No. There's no need for you to try to bribe me. (Naruto)

- 60.

- I mean...3 days is a really long time. Plus we're on break it's the holidays...and we never hang out anymore... (Naruto)

Naruto's defenses were about to crumble as he realized how many cup of ramen he could eat, so he wanted to sweeten the deal further.

- (? What does that have to do with anything) 70. That's my final offer.

- You see I... (Naruto)

- Hm ...I wonder if Choji or Shikamaru have one of those too? Maybe I should ask th-!

- 70! That's a good deal 3 days right? Then you can get good and we play together. (Naruto)

- (That's hardly part of the deal but if it will shut him up. Then I guess it is fine.) Fine, you drive a hard bargain naruto.

-Hehehe... (Naruto)

A proud Naruto was happy that he got to earn a lot of food, he then came next to Homura and handed him a joystick.

- Thanks. (I guess I will need to save a bit more for that chakra blade, but there's so much to learn from this little box. I guess reproducing chips is impossible even with my current knowledge. )

Homura had found a shop that did sell electronic goods in parts but nothing that sold chips in bulk, or even more powerful chips for a matter of fact.

However, it was quite expensive and he could not easily get his hands on such a precious piece of merchandise.

But if Naruto were to lend him a full console, he believed that he may find a lot to work with.

He had a supercomputer and he had memories of a more advanced society, if he played his cards right it was not impossible for him to create his own inventions or even update the ones that currently existed.

- (I guess in the future if I can't buy a computer. I will have to buy a lot of game consoles. But that will have to wait until I become a shinobi and start earning money for real, my current pace would take too long and I have many things to buy.)

- Hey Homura what should we put in the game console? I have the latest Mariko cart. (Naruto)

Naruto showed him a box with a plumb lady in a small vehicle that looked very familiar to Homura as memories he had dormant inside his mind suddenly resurfaced.

- Mariko cart, huh? You don't say...(is that) Is that the box?

- Yep! (Naruto)

Naruto handed Homura the box, soon the memory of a plumber with a green hat and a mustache surfaced in his mind, though the memory might not have been totally accurate.

Only with the help of C would he know the truth,

-(is that some sort of cosmic joke? Or cosmic copyright enforcement?) This is the latest in the series?

- Yep, look they have added 5 new tracks? And this game came out just last month! I also bought Sidewalk brawlers too 3 months ago. Look Kiryuu is so cool on the box art. (Naruto)

Naruto said as he showed Homura the box art.

- (Sidewalk brawlers…What the…I don't even care anymore) Is that why you're always broke? And let me see that!

-... You're looking too deep into this. I use my money responsibly unlike some people who use it to buy junk from the junkyard to build things all the time. (Naruto)

- So you know about that, huh?

- Yep. (Naruto)

-…Every man has their own guilty pleasures.

Said Homura while giving a meek smile, he had clearly been outsmarted by Naruto.

He was no better than the boy next to him that he so openly criticized.

- ..Indeed. (Naruto)

Both boys then proceeded to sigh as they realized that they may be using the money they were given to buy junk, but neither could stop.

chapter end.