Naruto's POV (Yamanaka Residence - Hidden Leaf Village)
Naruto and Neji landed on the street outside their teammates' homes. They have had to take alleyways and roofs to avoid Naruto being spotted but had managed to avoid detection. They paused outside the door, feeling slightly awkward outside Ino's home, especially uninvited. But Naruto stomped toward the house, being the bold young man he was. He knocked on the door firmly and stood with his best smile facing it. Neji shook his head, hoping the blonde wouldn't shame Team Seven too much.
The door opened, and a woman who looked similar to Ino opened the door. She had short blonde hair done in a bob. Her blue eyes were identical, holding the same mischievous shine her daughter did as well. She was a short woman and unquestionably beautiful, enough to where Naruto felt his confidence in grabbing Ino die a vicious death. He had never been good with attractive ladies. Even Ino had been a chore only made accessible by Neji being such a tool. He nervously rubbed his head. "Is Ino home?" He asked in what he hoped was a likable tone. Based on the sound of Neji's face-palming, he supposed it didn't quite work.
"Ohhh, you're blondie; my sweet daughter has mentioned you often." The older woman crowed. "You as well, Hyuga, though less sweet, though as of late, you've performed better according to my daughter."
"I see," Neji said, sounding somewhat suspicious. Naruto was sure Ino would be interrogated at some point today—if not Neji, then himself; she had never mentioned talking about him to her mom. He supposed he did, too, but still, it felt odd.
"MOM NO!" Ino's voice suddenly boomed.
"Is that Blondie?" Inoichi's voice rang out from the back of the house.
Ino suddenly appeared in the doorway, offering her teammates a beautiful smile before slamming the door in their faces.
"Neji?"
"Yes," Neji answered.
"Women are strange," Naruto concluded with a nod.
"At least our teammate, yes." Neji agreed.
The door opened as suddenly as it closed. Ino popped out, looking somewhat disheveled. Before she could say anything, the door opened. Inoichi was revealed, looking just as disheveled. His eyes landed on Naruto, who flinched, thinking the man disapproved of him. Before he could plead his case, Inoichi spoke.
"I disagree with how people have treated you as of late. I'm sorry I can't offer more aid," Inoichi said, his tone evoking something Naruto couldn't quite identify: guilt.
"Not your fault," Naruto replied awkwardly.
"Daddy!" Ino complained, pushing her father back inside her home. Then she slammed the door in his face. "I'm sorry. My dad has been weird since the last council meeting."
"It's fine," Naruto said quickly, moving on from the odd words of Inoichi and his wife. "We wanted to know if you wanted to chill at my place? Maybe crash."
"To chill? We're supposed to be training." Ino remarked.
"I said something similar." Neji chimed in.
"You two are sooo boring," Naruto complained. "There's so much going on, so much to worry about. Aren't you guys feeling stressed out?"
Ino pondered this silently as she saw Neji begrudgingly nod his head, "Yes." She supposed that if the mature and intelligent Neji agreed…
"I guess that is a great idea," Ino concluded with a small smile. Neji seemed to agree but was always too stubborn to voice his disagreement.
"Awesome! Knew I could count on my teammates!" Naruto said joyously. He wasn't sure they would agree initially, but he was glad they did. He just wanted one night to relax. Forget his issues… well maybe he should seek their answer on his latest one. "So… you guys know anything about summoning creatures?" He asked.
"Not particularly," Ino answered honestly. "My clan doesn't have one, and they are sporadic. I do know the three Sannins are all famed for having powerful summons. They say even an unknown summoning contract is worth a fortune."
Naruto slightly frowned. While he supposed money was excellent, he would feel wrong selling it.
"I know little else except for having access to such a thing would certainly be a boon," Neji added.
"Well, I brought it up because one appeared today," Naruto explained.
"You should explain in full," Neji stated with a raised brow.
Naruto explained his meeting with the raccoon and admitted to meeting with the Kyuubi. While he trusted them, he preferred to keep it to himself that he could hear and see the beast. It would only complicate things.
"Ikam…" Ino growled. She seemed to dislike the man. All the better for Naruto. If he caught the bastard, she could help him kick his ass.
"Accepting would be wise," Neji concluded. "Even if they're useless, keeping them from Ikam would be beneficial."
"How do you figure?" Naruto asked, having an idea but unsure of what Neji was suggesting.
"Allow me if you don't mind." Muri chimed in suddenly on Naruto's shoulder. Ino and Neji looked at the small creature…..
Ino suddenly cooed at it, declaring it cute, while Neji seemed somewhat disappointed.
"Don't be alarmed; I have been chosen to be your personal summon!" The small raccoon crawled onto the top of Naruto's head, posing. "Now allow me to explain. See, while you, as a novice summoner, do not know our true worth, an intelligent man like Ikam knows our true value."
"Furthermore, he's aware that getting our contract saves him from having us as enemies. But by proxy, if we find another summoner, as long as they live, he cannot become one, even by force. Our clan is limited to one summoner by power, and even Ikam cannot challenge it."
"So cute…" Ino said, seemingly not focused on the serious conversation.
"So signing up with you guys would screw him over?" Naruto asked.
"As well as make you a target," Neji added cynically.
"I already am," Naruto shrugged. Go back and tell them; after tonight, I'll sign up. "
"So bossy to think he is blessed to have Muri as his summon." Muri rambled before poofing away.
"Ok, now we're ready to party?!" Naruto asked.
"Hell yeah!" Ino roared.
"I suppose."
Ino and Naruto stared at Neji with frowns.
"Stick in the mud." Both echoed. Neji frowned back.
"I see Naruto has already gathered you all." Kakashi suddenly chimed in, somehow having sneaked behind them. "I'll take us to Kushina's home."
With this decree, the man's body somehow flickered with the three Genin.
They arrived just outside the door of Naruto's home. Anko, Eagle, and Jiriaya waiting. Naruto heard Ino and Neji gasp at Jiraiya. He often forgot he was a legend. The man was usually a giant goofball. The door of his home flew open. Naruto had sent clones to ask and help his mom prepare for the get-together.
As they were about to start the party, Naruto stopped them, saying, "Before we start this, guys, I want to introduce you to someone." A puff of smoke masked the arrival of Muri, who was now perched on the shoulder of a grinning Naruto, excitedly exchanging glances with his summon.
"Hello there, summoner! I have arrived! I have come to inform our allies of our enemy!" Muri said excitedly, flexing as if he was a bodybuilder.
"My, is that a raccoon?" Kakashi asked quizzically.
"Isn't it called a tanuki or something?" Anko added. "My snakes could use a snack…"
"I am much too valuable for a snack! I have info on our shared enemy! As well as the contract for you, summoner!" Muri said, with a large scroll in hand.
"Hey, I was gonna!" Jiraiya complained.
"Sorry, Pervy Sage," Jiraiya screamed in pain at this. "But I promised," Naruto said simply. Naruto then raised an arm for Muri to climb it and unfurl the scroll.
"Indeed, we prefer not to interact with humans. If not for Ikam, we would not be here."
"Ikam?" Jiraiya asked, now serious. "You have info."
"Tell us." Kushina also added, now interested.
"That bastard's lieutenant spared me. I'll make him regret that." Anko promised darkly.
"Perfect, we all hate the man!" Muri cheered happily. "See, he is forcing us to be his summons."
"Such should be impossible," Jiraiya said. "You must sign the master scroll. Even if you tried force, they would hide it somewhere, and it would never be found. They would rather be slaughtered than allow that to be used against them." He explained, seeming somewhat unhappy to hear someone was trying to force a clan of summons to be slaves.
"He uses his knowledge of Fuinjutsu to attempt to bind our leader. He frequently attacks; should he manage to gain control of him, the rest of us would be forced to follow." Muri explained.
"But why should this be the Leaf's problem?" Eagle asked. Neji was the only one who seemed to agree.
"Ikam seeks to reap the souls of all Uzumaki. Last I checked, that included the two in this room." Muri said casually.
"Point taken," Kakashi replied. "Naruto, you may as well. They may be helpful.
Naruto signed his name on the scroll, which poofed away once he did.
"My clan and you will talk business soon enough," Muri said before poofing away.
Silence filled the room.
"Anyway," Kakashi said, interrupting the loud silence.
"Let's party!" Kushina declared excitedly. The assorted group cheered quickly and rushed into the home.
His mother had decorated their home with various flowers and banners. The banners read multiple sayings, such as Happy Birthday, Miss You Dearly, and even one that said 50% off. But it mattered little to the group. They drank, played games, sang, and danced. Naruto had yet to have this much fun. His mind completely forgot, at least for a short while, his woes.
As he said before, Neji seemed to truly enjoy the rice win. They drank heavily but obviously had learned from their previous stints of doing so. He is nursing the drink and managing his liquor much better. Eagle sat with him, a silent drinking duo. But based on Neji's smile and the Eagles' rare relaxation, they were enjoying the night.
Ino stuck to Naruto like glue. She seemed guilty for some reason, just like her father. But he didn't ask; instead, he ensured to be as entertaining as possible. The shaky smile held by Ino became a beaming one over time.
Like Ino, his mother stuck close and seemed to enjoy herself. He bet she was happy. Naruto seemed happy. Moms were weird like that, he supposed.
Jiraiya got roaringly drunk. Hitting on Anko without shame and being hit by her without shame. He told half stories, usually forgetting them as quickly as he told them.
Anko also got drunk, seemingly aiming to outdo Jiraiya. But seemed to fail soon, singing and dancing loudly for the rest of the night. Kakashi seemed to egg this on, taking several pictures of it in joy.
Naruto wasn't sure he had had a better day. Even as they left, he felt overjoyed. At least until he heard a gasp of shock and the loud chattering of a crowd. Kushina and him joined their guests outside to see what had bothered them. It was once again a sign. The familiar message now came back to haunt him.
Naruto Uzumaki is a Demon
Kushina Uzumaki is a Demon
Ino Yamanaka is a whore
Naruto felt his stomach drop at this, looking over at Ino in dismay. She seemed stunned, and her face showed that she was offended. The crowd then started to cruelly jeer at them. Insults and rage screamed with ease. The crowd was deafening.
"Wow, the slut had a lot of customers." A drunk voice rang out cruelly.
"To think the Yamanaka have fallen so low." An old man complained.
"She associates with Orochimaru's toy, too." A shinobi mocked.
"Fitting for a slut to train a slut." A female voice concluded.
Kushina, Kakashi, Anko, Eagle, and Jiraiya moved quickly, attempting to dispel the crowd.
But Naruto could only focus on Ino, who seemed to collapse to her knees from the hate. Tears welled in her eyes. She…ran…..ran away.
And it was all his fault.