A.

One train ride left before he's standing in front of Konoha once more. This time, he's patiently waiting to enter instead of desperate to leave. No figurative bandana-on-a-stick thrown over his shoulder like last time, tears in his eyes, swallowing hard as his heavy legs carried him far away from here. This time, there's a repurposed gym bag dangling on his fingertips and the other hand in his pocket fists a small knife in case anyone gets any ideas.

Wait, it was like that last time, too, wasn't it?

Hmm.

He'd been pretty fucked up then, just eighteen and lost in the world. It's not like he's doing much better now, or anything, but times were definitely tougher back in the day. At least, he thinks so; time has a funny way of blurring the edges of pictures he swore were once clear.

Now he's twenty four. Still too young for everything he's seen and done in this rotten city, but at least he feels like his head is on straight.

Or, it's not, seeing as how he's willing to go back into the lion's den without hesitation at all. Old habits die hard, don't they?

But he owes it to Haku. If Naruto would have just listened to him this wouldn't be necessary. Maybe. Maybe not. Either way Haku didn't deserve to die like a dog in unfamiliar territory like Naruto believes he did. Some stupid part of him still thinks that maybe, just maybe, he could be okay. A larger, wiser part knows that's not the case. It doesn't matter though. He's going to find out what happened and then he's going to take care of it.

That's what he's always done and that's what he's going to do. Not the way he usually would, though, before. Not that, never that.

He worked hard and reinvented as best he could—buried his old self, is more like. He dug a deep hole for those parts of him and poured himself into it. Tore up the map so he couldn't find the disturbed earth again and plugged his ears and covered his eyes until he stumbled out of the woods with bare, bruised feet.

He's not going to go back to who he once was, even if he's forced to stare the cause of it in the face once more.

Naruto stands on inbound platform lucky number seven, loose cigarette in hand, sneer on his lips and eyebrows pushed low. His black hoodie covers his wild hair but that's not really enough to be incognito. His face is a bit...unmistakable. If he was smart, he would have worn sunglasses. No one's ever really called him smart, though, so there's that.

He's looking at the case file one more time before he tears it to shreds and leaves it on the tracks. There's no way he's taking something like this in with him because he just can't risk it. Konoha's even more of a shithole now, as he's heard, and he wants to make it two steps into town before dropping fucking dead from what he knows, alright?

He doesn't have colors anymore, so there's no telling how much he's going to stick out like a sore thumb.

It's not like the people here will have forgotten him. It hasn't been nearly long enough for that. If he'd even be forgotten at all. His blood dots the streets just as much as anyone else's here. It's hard to say if the echoes of him would ever truly disappear.

Not to mention that, just as his absence was sorely felt, his reappearance is just as likely to turn heads.

His mother will be happy to see him, at least. He thinks that's enough to look forward to, all things considered.

Now, I know what you're thinking: what's this all about? Why so nervous? Well, he'll explain all that as best he can soon enough so sit tight and get ready for a ride, alright?

Speaking of rides, his just pulled up. The old beat up train rattles in a way that concerns him as it screeches to a stop. Naruto hesitates as the door breaks open and drones of stone-faced strangers spill out like a fork in the road around his still form. He gets some annoyed looks but thinks nothing of them.

Can he do this? Really do this? It was hard enough getting out the first time and he no doubt burned every bridge in his wake with his hasty departure. He doesn't want to be caught in the web again. Doesn't want to see his whole world crash down around his ears again. But he owes it to Haku after everything they've been through, so he spurs his locked legs forward and takes a seat before he can change his mind.

Fuck. This is a mistake.

No, it's not. He has to. He has to.

He's stronger now, more sensible. More in control. As long as he focuses on the task at hand he can get out of this with as few cuts and scrapes as possible. That's what he's telling himself and he prides himself on at least halfway believing it.

The train pulls off, lurching so suddenly that Naruto starts and grips his seat to steady himself. God, when did he become so jumpy? He hasn't lost his edge that much, right?

He shouldn't make it so obvious that he doesn't really want to be here because someone's sure to pick up on it. People can and will use that to their advantage.

He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, steeling himself for the days to come. In and out. One breath, two breaths, three. There, that's better. He's calmed down a little, settling into his seat with a sigh as he lets his head loll back so he can absently stare at the metal bars above.

There's some shitty graffiti on the ceiling, drawn in some looping handwriting that spells out obscenities. Naruto can't help but smirk at it, recalling when his own hands were never parted from a spray can. He'd gotten pretty good at doing figures. He's never heard of drawing ability completely disappearing from disuse so he wonders if he can still—

Someone is watching him.

Naruto's always been able to tell when eyes are on him and these happen to be burning a hole in the side of his skull. He doesn't look away from the writing above, choosing to focus on it as he subtly figures out what direction the eyes are coming from.

It's early as all hell, in both the morning and in his mission, so it'd really suck if someone recognized him right off the bat and went blabbing to the whole town that he's back before he's ready for that.

It could be nothing; people stare all the time for a number of reasons. They could be wondering why the random, hooded stranger looks like he's ready to choke someone out so early in the morning, or they could find him attractive and are sneaking looks since they think he's not paying attention.

No, that's not it. This gaze is steady, unflinching. Uncomfortable and unnerving. Since Naruto noticed that their were eyes on him they haven't looked away once.

Fuck.

Naruto slowly lowers his head, pretending to rifle through his bag that's sitting on his left. He looks up subtly while absently touching all the contents, but he sees nobody with a wandering gaze. Those on the left of the nearly empty train are too busy with their headphones or private conversations. He still feels the eyes, though. Must be on the right.

To hell with it, Naruto thinks. He stops pretending to search his bag and leans back on his seat, turning his head to his right to search for the culprit. At first, he sees nothing; no one out of place, no one shocked when their eyes meet. He feels his brow furrow in confusion. Did he imagine it? Is he truly so paranoid that he thinks he's being watched when no one is there? Dammit, He's really got to get a handle on himself.

"Well, I'll be damned." A familiar voice says. Naruto blinks, swiveling his head so it's facing forward.

Asuma Sarutobi stands in front of him, arms folded as he leans against a pole, looking older than he remembers. Of course he does; it's been years—much longer than the time he's been gone. The former first lieutenant bowed out gracefully once all the kids he was so fond of got old enough for the charges to stick.

Did he really just think that? Strike it from the record.

"Holy shit." Naruto hears himself sigh out, relieved it's not someone else. Asuma won't snitch on him. He was always good at keeping secrets, all things considered. "What are you doing here?"

The call of home must be really fucking strong to bring him back, too—like a sultry siren or a lighthouse beacon in the dead of night, ushering all the wayward ships back to shore. Naruto doesn't know what to make of that.

"I could ask you the same," Asuma echoes, sad smile curving on his face. "I heard you left."

Word around here gets everywhere, huh? Even to whatever hole Asuma was hiding in.

"Yeah," Is all Naruto can really say. There's much more to it than that and they both know it. "I just have a few things I gotta take care of."

Asuma nods, looking away. "I heard that." He purses his lips and clicks his tongue before looking at Naruto again. "There's been some strange disappearances in the area. More than usual, I mean. I've been asked to come help out since I know this place like the back of my hand."

Naruto's heart jumps at that, beating wildly in his chest. He knows all about them, since that's what Haku was going to investigate before he strangely disappeared, too. But he can't say that since even if Asuma's familiar—not safe, but certainly familiar— it doesn't mean he can trust him. Asuma seems to think that he can since he offers the information so freely.

"Must be serious if they'd pull you out of retirement." Naruto replies casually. At least, he thinks it's casual. Maybe not with the way his palms are sweating.

Asuma chuckles. "I was never retired, kid. Just laying low. They still needed someone who was willing to search all the dark corners for the boogeymen. That's why I'm here now."

"Should you be telling me this?" Naruto asks lowly, wary of any perked ears and thoughtful glances of those around them.

Asuma smiles slow, dangerous edge in his eyes. He was never afraid of anyone here and that's why he's lasted this long. It's strangely encouraging. Naruto can't help but smirk back.

"I'm not pointing any fingers just yet, so this is harmless talk between old friends, isn't it?" Asuma offers with a shrug. Nothing they ever do is harmless, but fair enough.

"If you say so." Naruto replies.

"Besides, you're wearing all black. That's why I almost didn't recognize you." Asuma says quietly, looking him up and down. "Never thought I'd see the day without you in your colors."

Naruto will be hearing that a lot in the days to come, that he's sure of. He tries not to let it bother him.

"Things change." He says as calmly as he can. It doesn't work as well as he wishes it did.

Asuma nods sagely. "That they do." and that's that. He's sure the other man knows there's plenty of things he doesn't want to talk about and that this isn't the time to do it.

They fall into silence, listening to the rattling of the train as it speeds down the tracks. Naruto rubs his hands together nervously, trying to find words to say so their conversation doesn't end on an awkward note. Despite his own cagey aprehension, it is good to see the man still kicking after so long. He just wishes they could have met under different circumstances.

"My stop's coming up." Asuma informs before he gets the chance. The next stop is the city center, three stops from where Naruto's getting off himself. "Tell your mother I said hello. I'll probably stop in soon to come see her, when I get the chance."

"Will do."

"You will take care of yourself, you understand?" Asuma continues, face stern like he's lecturing him.

" If you get into any trouble you know I'm good at getting you out of it, so don't hesitate to call, alright?"

Naruto grins despite himself. "Yeah. Of course." He says, grunting when Asuma pushes his hood back to ruffle his hair.

Naruto hastily pulls the hood back up, hazarding a wary look around, just in case. Asuma rolls his eyes at him.

"Take that shit off, will you?" Asuma says around a grin. "You look like a fucking gangbanger."

At Naruto's dry, slightly mortified look, He laughs heartily.

"Too soon?" He quips, as the train screeches to a stop.

…

His mother all but pulls him in the house once he knocks, crushing him into a tight hug. Naruto groans, always amazed by her physical strength, but he grips her back just as tight.

"Jesus Christ, Naruto." She says, voice slightly choked up. "I thought you were bullshitting me when you said you'd be coming, but here you are."

He can't tell if she's happy about that or not.

"Yeah, well, I told you why." She pulls back to stare at his face, searching his eyes for something he's not sure of.

"Yeah." She echoes, sighing heavily. They pull away from their embrace and she ushers him further in the house.

Nothing's changed much. It's as he remembers it; brightly colored vases and pots all around the living room, crafted from his mother's hand. The old, woven blanket thrown on the back of the couch. He used to unravel some of the frayed ends when he was bored as a kid until his mother slapped his hands away. The shiny family crest on the mantel, freshly waxed since Kushina never let's it get dusty. Yep, just as he recalls it. It brings tears to his eyes but he stamps them down as quickly as they come.

"How's your father?" She asks quietly. Naruto knew it was coming. She always asks whenever they call each other and his father always asks the minute Naruto hangs up the phone. It would be annoying if it wasn't so sad. They still don't talk these days unless they have to, since they divorced so long ago, but the love's still clearly there. A shame, really, but he won't comment.

"He's fine, as always." Naruto replies. "He sends his best but he had some other high profile cases he was in the middle of so he regrets not being able to come with me."

No he doesn't. Not really. His dad wouldn't step foot back in this town even if you paid him. Not even then, since Haku was getting paid to look into the disappearances and look where that got him, and Minato knows much more than Haku ever could about this place.

"I'm sure he does." Kushina says around a snort, eyes knowing. "You're still doing that with him? The private investigations?"

Naruto nods. They've been over this before. His sordid past doesn't give him that many options for honest work. If his father runs a P.I firm and still lets him in the door then he'll be damned if he's not going to take him up on that.

"You know I do." He replies, trying not to get irritated.

"Don't make that face. I was just wondering since, you know…" She cuts herself off, eyes downcast.

"Know what?" He questions. He's sure he doesn't like where this is going.

"Well, a lot of P.I's work with cops, don't they? Do you really think that will go over well once people find out?"

"I'm not a cop." Naruto protests immediately, almost surprised that he doesn't burst into flames at uttering the word.

"I know you're not, honey, but the others won't—"

"The others will mind their fucking business because I'm not here for them." He sneers without meaning to. He collects himself, not trying to yell at his mother since she's done nothing wrong. She's right; if his old friends hear about what he does now they probably won't understand, won't separate him in their minds from the cops they hate so much.

Friends? Is that what they are, still?

Kushina sighs, shaking her head. "You know that's not possible. They'll want to see you once they hear that you're back." She says. Then, quieter. "You should tell him that you're in town. He won't want to hear it from someone else."

No. Absolutely fucking not. Not if he can help it.

"Maybe later. I'm going to put it off for as long as I can, if I'm honest." Naruto says instead.

"Is that a good idea?" Kushina asks carefully.

"Is any of this a good idea?" Naruto retorts, exasperated.

His mother chuckles, patting the side of his face fondly.

"You got me there." She says. "C'mon, let's get you something to eat. You can tell me more about this friend of yours that you're looking for."

"Okay." He feels exhausted and he hasn't done anything today. That's not a good sign, is it?

His mother tuts at him as he walks into the kitchen, sitting him down at the head of the table. He raises an eyebrow at that but she just smiles as her eyes twinkle.

She pours him some orange juice and goes to get him a plate. Without turning around, she says, quite snarkily:

"Take that hoodie off, honey. You look like some sort of thug."

"Seriously?" Naruto can't help but say. Is this funny to them? Why does everyone keep saying that? Probably because he does, but whatever. Tch.

"What?" His mother says around a laugh. "I'm not allowed to make jokes now?"

God, he didn't think it was possible to regret this anymore than he already did, but it looks like he was wrong.

Fuck. This won't end well, will it?

B.

He's eight years old the first time he sees someone die.

He remembers it clearly, like some old film noir that plays on a half-burned out reel in the bowels of his memory. He was cross legged on the floor playing 8-bit video games when a noise catches his attention.

Naruto's always had a wandering mind, worse than all the other children his age. He notices the bright birds on their branches singing sorrowful songs that make his ears twitch in curiosity. The smell of cooking wafts in through the cracks in the door and his poor, empty stomach rumbles low. Out of the corner of his eyes he sees a tiny row of soldiers marching back through a fissure in the wall with bounty on their backs. He's losing at the game because he's already so distracted when the noise catches his attention.

Sasuke sucks his teeth and drops his controller, staring daggers at Neji's triumphant mug, demanding: "Rematch!" even though he's lost three times in a row. Their friend is just too good at racing games and Naruto knows it, but Sasuke isn't used to losing so he'll try again and again until he gets the what he wants.

That never changed about him, now that he thinks about it.

"Naruto?" Neji questions, making Naruto pulls his eyes away from the door. "You wanna play again?"

"Not right now." He replies, pushing up off the floor. "Hold on a sec, okay?"

They aren't supposed to leave Sasuke's room unless they have expressed permission but Naruto's curiosity wants to get the best of him. Something isn't right. He hasn't heard a noise like that before and he can't help but be worried. It sounded like a wounded animal of some sort, but the Uchiha's don't have any pets. What could it possibly be?

"What's wrong?" Sasuke questions, brow screwed up in slight worry. He knows Naruto shouldn't go out into the hall, either, but he's not doing anything to stop him.

"You didn't hear that?" Naruto replies, cracking the door open slightly. He peeks his head out but doesn't hear anything more.

"Hear what?" Neji questions, rising so he can stand beside him. Sasuke follows suit and then all three of them are standing in the doorway, unsure.

"I don't know," Naruto begins. "It sounded like—"

They startle when a shout echoes from the floor below, loud and booming.

"Fuck!" The voice says, before many more join it, overlapped in hurried tones. Naruto shares a look with his friends and they tiptoe to the railing so they can see the front entrance.

Naruto wishes they would have stayed in Sasuke's room, ignorant to the proceedings below. He would have slept much better for the next few weeks if he had.

Neji's father Hizashi was there, bright red blood blossoming from the hole in his chest. Or, holes, it's hard to tell from this angle. Naruto hears Neji gasp beside him, ragged and pained just like Hizashi as he struggles for air. He's vaguely aware of Neji's legs giving out as he watches through the balustrade. Sasuke sucks in an equally shocked breath while Naruto can do nothing but stare.

Fugaku Uchiha rushes out from the living room, dropping down on both knees to support his friend's head. They're saying something to each other quietly while the rest of the group scrambles around. One puts pressure on the wound, another calls out orders like a drill sergeant, someone calls the personal doctor and demands she get here as fast as she fucking can. Not that it matters.

Naruto sees from his perch when Hizashi mouths something—a name, one that will haunt them all for years, both literally and figuratively— he sees when Fugaku's eyes widen with understanding and righteous anger, he sees when Hizashi's hand that grips Fugaku's arm goes limp and when the blood bubbles up from his throat as he coughs violently. His eyes roll up and he spots them. Naruto thinks that must have been fatherly instinct, to know that his son was watching. He smiles—warm and whole and loving—

And then he's gone.

Neji's sob is drowned out by the chaos that follows. Naruto feels sick, like he might throw up. He looks at Sasuke and sees tears in the other boy's eyes, just as he knows there are tears in his. He cannot utter a word, too mortified to speak. He cannot comfort his friend even though he desperately wants to. He's frozen; in fear, in confusion, in horror.

What happened? Who did this? What's going to happen now? Naruto doesn't really want to think of that, too rattled by just watching a man he was so close to die, right in front of his face.

Something tells him to look up, so he does. Naruto sees that Itachi's come out of his room as well, looking down at the body on the ground and his father barking out orders to the rest of the group as he gently lays Hizashi down on the stained, wooden floor.

Itachi drags his eyes away, face blank, finally noticing the three of them huddled next to each other. His face contorts—with what, Naruto isn't sure—but then he's marching over and grabbing them by their collars, all but throwing them back into Sasuke's room.

"Aniki—" Sasuke starts mournfully, but Itachi cuts him off with a sharp look.

"Don't come out until I tell you, do you understand?"

Itachi says firmly, sounding much older than his thirteen years. Neji's crying fully now, body shaking, knees weak. Naruto holds him as best he can, fighting down his own tears. He nods to Itachi, biting down a sob. Itachi nods back, blinking rapidly like he's willing away his own emotion. Sasuke looks down at his feet but he eventually nods, too.

Neji gives no answer but it's not like Itachi expected one, so he gives them one last sad look before disappearing behind the door.

Silence.

Save for Neji's wracking sobs. Sasuke joins them in their heap on the floor, adding his warm arms to Naruto's as they hug Neji tightly.

Naruto doesn't understand; none of the families are at war right now, so why attack Hizashi unprovoked? And to go after such a high ranking man at that? This must be serious.

Of course, he didn't know how right he was until much later.

That's how they're found, after the slow crawl of an hour. Every ticking minute sorely felt; curled into a ball on the floor, their game forgotten, sniffling into each other's shoulders.

Fugaku hesitates when he walks in, cursing lowly under his breath. He's still covered in blood but at least it's dry now. Neji takes one look at him and bursts into fresh tears again.

It's chaos, after.

That's the only way to describe it.

He learns of the new big bad who moved into town, stirring the pot with all these uneasy alliances. Orochimaru he's called, and he means business. Before him, there was almost enough territory to go around. If it wasn't your part of town you stayed out of it. Easy. Simple. But that wasn't enough for Orochimaru. So naturally, everyone got drawn into the fray.

Before he and his goons shot Hizashi and Hiashi Hyuga dead in the middle of a Sunday brunch, there were thirteen prominent families in the area.

And after the shot heard 'round the world? There were five.

Spring cleaning and all that.

The Uchiha, The Shukaku, The Sarutobi, The Kumo, and the Yakushi.

That's all. That's it. The rest are dead and buried.

But that comes later, over the course of the year. Soon after, once the blood's scrubbed off the wood and after Naruto stands beside to Neji—holding his hand as the coffins are lowered into the ground— he sees his father pacing, nearly pulling out his hair as he whispers into the phone next to his ear.

Naruto teeters in the doorway, unsure if he should enter the living room since he's not supposed to interrupt while his father's talking business. But Naruto's always had a wandering mind, worse than all the other children his age, and his homework can't distract him from the desperate tones his father is speaking in.

His mother's upstairs, still crying over her own brother who didn't make the cut while Orochimaru was handing down judgements. She's just as much Uzumaki as he was but she was spared for being a woman.

That's worse than death for her, to be so disrespected.

"Enough, Fugaku." His father says, running a tired hand through his hair. "No more. I can't take this. You don't have to do this."

Minato never was one of them. Naruto didn't understand why he shacked up with a crime princess if he never had the stomach for it. Why he also became best friends with a beast if he fears his bite. In the end, Naruto never asked and Minato never offered, so there's that.

Naruto doesn't hear what Fugaku says but from the look on his father's face it isn't what he wants to hear. Minato sits heavily down on the couch, holding his head.

"If you do this, will it end?" Minato asks solemnly.

All three of them know that it won't.

That won't stop whatever's about to happen and Minato knows this, but he has to try anyway. Diplomatic as he is, he's going to try anyway. Fruitless. A waste of time. Naruto's chest starts to hurt so he has to look away. He sits down at the kitchen table and tries to focus on his work, but he fails.

Two days later a man called Obito is strung up on the overpass, body swaying in the wind. Naruto only knew him in passing so it doesn't cut as deeply as the Hyugas or his uncle. It's still horrifying to see him like that, still sears itself in his brain even as his mother quickly covers his eyes and ushers him away.

Once a friend of his parents, of Fugaku and Mikoto too, once upon a time. Now branded a traitor and snitch. He apparently gave Orochimaru information and he paid the price for it.

To be stuck like a pig and gutted like one, though, Naruto isn't sure if the cost was worth it.

A week later, Minato packs up and leaves town with barely a word to anyone. Kushina can't be convinced to go since this is her home and she won't retreat like that, not in the middle of war. Naruto's naturally caught in the middle; He cannot leave his mother and can't abandoned his friends, as they are just as much family as his father is. It doesn't matter though. His mother's word is law, so he stays with her. He was happy to at the time, still wistful for the days when his family was whole. But it never would be again, given the circumstances.

It isn't until years later when he thinks: Damn, He should have went with him.

That's how it starts.

C.

Naruto wakes in slow degrees; bleary-eyed and confused, yawning wide enough for his jaw to crack in two places. It's been awhile since he's been in his old bed and he'd forgotten how comfortable it was. Too comfortable, in fact, since it takes longer than it should for him to realize someone else is in his room with him.

His hand is already curled underneath his pillow, fist loosely around his knife. He knows the other person can see that he's already awake and already alert, so it's too late for either of them to catch the other by surprise. Why they are here is anyone's guess; they don't have security systems around here—since the police won't come and the nameplate on the mailbox is it's own screaming alarm.

Too early, he thinks. He hates fighting in the morning. Such violence is best done under the cover of night.

Naruto turns over sharply right as his mother is placing breakfast on the nightstand. She raises an eyebrow at his readiness and tuts. He can't help but feel like an idiot but shakes it off easily enough.

"You still sleep with something under your pillow?" She asks, shaking her head this way and that in slight disapproval.

Naruto yawns again, shrugging. "You don't?" He retorts pointedly. She purses her lips and mirrors his shrug, the slight smirk on her face is answer enough.

"Fair enough." She says, chuckling warmly. She picks up the plate she made for him and pushes it towards his face. "Now, eat. You're way too skinny and it's worrying me."

He can't help but look down at himself, confused. He has no idea where she sees skinny on him; sure, he was a tad more muscular in his younger youth: all that brick throwing and bat swinging paid off, after all. But he hasn't lost more than five to ten pounds since that time. He looks back up with a raised eyebrow and Kushina only pushes the plate further into his space. He takes it dutifully like the good son he is, eating big bites to appease her and making a show of how much he's enjoying it.

He's smart enough to know what this is really about. His mother missed having someone to take care of and now she's doing to dote on him like there's no tomorrow. Well, there could be, if he doesn't play his cards right.

His father had done the same when they first reunited, subtly making up for the milestones he missed and treating Naruto like he was made of spun glass. He pretended to be that for his father since he knew that's what the older man needed to see. A vulnerable and naive boy instead of a hardened, crooked man. At least, he thinks he was pretending. It also could have been all his trauma pushing through the cracks in him after being hidden away for so long.

It's anyone's guess, at this point.

"What's your plan for today?" Kushina asks, not-so-subtly batting her lashes in the hopes that he'll spend it with her. Unfortunately, he can't, even though he'd love to. It's been forever since he's taken a vacation, even longer since he's spent time with his mother in person. But he stayed up half the night mapping out his days to get the most out of them, already planning to ask around town in a low-key way as to not get his head taken off in the middle of the street.

Someone here knows something—whether it's about Haku, the missing people, or both—and Naruto plans to find out just that is.

If only he knew where to start.

"I need leads. Something to point me in the right direction or somewhere close to it." He replies, running a hand through his hair once he's finished eating.

"And you think you'll get that from the locals?" Kushina says with only slight hints of disgust. Naruto bites down a smirk so he can nod instead. "They'd rather fall on their own swords then tell you anything. Some of them actual might, if you aren't careful."

"Then I'll be careful." He says like it's the easiest thing in the world. Like his bones aren't threatening to vibrate out of his skin at the thought of tiptoeing around this town like some outsider. But he is now, isn't he? It's strange to have to remind himself of that when he was so sure of it yesterday.

"Alright." Kushina says slowly, like she doesn't believe him. It's okay; he doesn't believe himself, either. "But I still think you should―"

"I know. I might. We'll see." He cuts her off, voice clipped. She shakes her head again, sighing heavily.

"Okay. I'll leave you to it." She says after a while, clearly giving up. He's always been stubborn and she's always been pushy, so it works. "You shouldn't be out too late after dark, though. I'm sure you heard that―"

"Things are worse. I know, mom." He says, snorting. She tuts and pats the side of his face almost patronizingly.

"Oh honey," She says breathily, shaking her head. "You don't know the half of it."

…

He hesitates who to call first, or, if he should call anyone at all. He doesn't know if most of their numbers are the same or if they'll want to talk, period. Probably not, since he avoided their calls until they stopped coming and changed his number just to be sure. He told his mother to shred the letters they resorted to writing that nearly begged for him to stop ignoring them. Nearly, since no one in the Uchiha Clan deigns to beg . Not Neji, not Shikamaru, not Choji, not Kiba.

And certainly not Sasuke.

So in the end, he doesn't call any of them. Easy, right? Avoid all of his problem until he can't anymore, that's his motto.

Still, that leaves him with nothing. Less than nothing if he's honest. But who is he kidding? None of them would give him any information. Not for free. He'd have to do some dumb favor, some convoluted task just for a handful of breadcrumbs. Or they'd ask for worse and he's just not ready for that.

He'll have to figure it out himself, like he's always done. It shouldn't be too hard, right? Find the right people, twist the right arms. This isn't his first rodeo. Naruto's gotten down and dirty for investigations before, but just how far is he willing to go for Haku? Pretty damn far, he thinks, but he can't lose himself in the process. Not this time. Not again.

So, he draws up some half-assed plan and decides on his first stop, pausing just long enough to tell his mother where he's going before he sets out. The police won't come looking if he were to go missing, but he tells her just in case.

Kushina pauses, looking up from her book as he throws his jacket on and tugs up the hood.

"Really?" She asks slowly, looking at him like he's already lost it. "You're gonna trust him to give you something good to go on?"

Naruto raises an eyebrow pointedly, grabbing his keys. "If you have a better idea…" He starts fishing for more.

His mother shakes her head, sighing heavily.

"No, no," "She says, pursing her lips like she wants to say more. She doesn't, so he won't push. "If you're sure."

He's not sure about anything in his life right now, that's a given.

"I am." He mumbles, lying through his teeth. This is his best bet, so he's going for it.

As soon as he steps outside, raising his black-covered arm to shield out the sun's rays, he thinks:

Damn, this really won't end well, will it?