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Today, and like for two days now, Naruto hadn’t come to the academy and Iruka had the impression that he was the only one who had noticed it. When he had approached some of his colleagues during lunch break to ask them if they had seen the young blond, most of them were surprised because they hadn’t even noticed Naruto’s absence. Well, none of them had named him obviously, instead, it was “the demon” or “the monster”, he had also heard “that evil prankster” but that last one was less bad.
Iruka didn’t understand the constant hatred the young blond boy received all the time. Iruka could understand why some people were angry at what Naruto was, but he didn’t understand why that anger was transferred to who he was.
True, Naruto was loud, disruptive, and honestly, he didn’t listen much in class, but he mostly did that to get noticed because he was incredibly lonely. Iruka didn’t know how things were at home, or even who Naruto lived with or where, but he did know that at school, Naruto was very lonely.
Naruto skipped school every few days, but this was the third day in a row he hadn’t been there, and Iruka was starting to worry. And since no one seemed to care, Iruka would take care of it himself.
At the end of his classes, he looked at the address of the young blond boy, which didn’t mean anything to him, and went in that direction.
After asking two different people, Iruka finally found himself in front of the door of a dilapidated apartment and frowned. There had to be some mistake. But no, written in messy handwriting on the door were the words “Uzumaki Naruto”, proving that he was in the right place, despite appearances.
Uncertain as he was, Iruka pressed the doorbell, but nothing came. And upon closer inspection, the doorbell was indeed broken. Iruka was growing increasingly worried about what he would find behind that door.
Hesitant but now determined, Iruka knocked on the door.
No answer.
“Naruto, are you there?” He asked, following.
Still no response.
“I'm coming in, Naruto.” He said, taking out something to pick the lock.
The lock didn’t oppose much resistance, and Iruka gently opened the door. And nothing could have prepared him for what he found on the other side of that door.
The place he was in could hardly be described as an apartment.
The first room, which was probably the main room, was cramped and cluttered. The lock on the only window had been repaired with tape, and a pane was broken. The sink in the kitchen area was leaking, and mountains of dirty dishes and trash were piled up there.
There was no way Naruto was living here. And where was his guardian? Iruka knew Naruto was an orphan, he knew that all too well, but the boy had to live with someone. He was only 7 years old, by the Lords!
But there was no one else there. There was no sign of anyone else being regularly in that apartment.
Iruka hoped he was wrong, he really did, but if it turned out that this was really Naruto’s living conditions, he was going to go scream very loudly at someone in particular.
And while Iruka was still trying to rationalize the situation, his absent student appeared in a doorway, presumably leading to his room. Naruto was in his pajamas, dragging a holey blanket halfway around his shoulders, and was clearly sick. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes glassy, but he was there.
“Iruka-sensei?” The boy asked, rubbing his eyes roughly. “What are you doing here?”
“I... it’s been three days since you’ve been to the Academy, Naruto.” Iruka stammered. He was so shocked by what he discovered that that was all that came out of his mouth.
“Oh.” The younger one simply said. “I didn’t think it had been that long.” He muttered quietly.
“What did you say?” Iruka asked, taking a step forward, truly not having heard what Naruto had just said.
Naruto flinched violently and recoiled at the simple gesture and Iruka froze.
“S-Sorry.” Naruto apologized. “I-I’ll be there tomorrow, I promise. I-I just couldn’t get up w-without throwing up or passing o-out.”
Iruka was growing increasingly angry at those who had allowed this situation to happen. “I’m not going to hurt you, Naruto, and I’m not angry. I’m just worried.” Iruka assured, keeping his voice as gentle as possible.
“Worried?” Naruto repeated in a small voice.
“Yes, worried. You’ve clearly been sick for the past three days. I’m worried about you.”
“Oh.” The little boy said again, his eyes filling with tears.
“What’s wrong, Naruto?”
“N-No one has ever w-worried about me.” Naruto managed to get out between growing sobs, burying his face in his hands and his torn blanket.
Yeah, Iruka was definitely going to yell at some people. And maybe throw a few punches too.
“Oh Naruto… Can I come closer?”
The young blond nodded and Iruka approached, crouching down in front of Naruto and gently taking him in his arms slowly, so that the younger boy could back away if he wanted.
But it seemed like he didn’t want to, the way Naruto collapsed almost entirely against Iruka, letting exhausted tears stream down his cheeks.
“It’s okay.” Iruka said softly. “I don’t know how you ended up in this situation, but I’ll fix it, I promise.”
“T-They said I was b-big enough to be o-on my own.” The little boy hiccuped.
“Who? Who said that, Naruto?”
“Jiji and t-the people from the orphanage. They-they no more want a monster.”
“You’re not a monster, Naruto, never.” Iruka assured. “And… when you say ‘Jiji’, are you talking about the Third Hokage?”
Iruka had always been quite perceptive, but for once, he wanted more than anything to be wrong.
But Naruto nodded and Iruka had to close his eyes and concentrate on not exploding right then and there.
“Everything’s going to be okay.” He simply repeated. “Can I take you at my home, Naruto? You’re sick, and I don’t like having you here alone.”
Naruto nodded again and tightened his grip on Iruka a little more.
Naruto, with Iruka’s help, then gathered a few things before the older man took them to his house. There, he gave Naruto a shower, then wrapped the child in countless blankets on his couch, giving him a hot drink to warm him up a little.
Naruto fell asleep in just a few minutes, exhausted from the illness and the day’s emotions combined.
And there, Iruka was faced with a dilemma: leave Naruto to go yell at people or stay with him, postponing his other plans until later. On the one hand, he really didn’t want to wait to tell the people involved what he thought about all this; but on the other, he couldn’t leave Naruto alone after promising him he’d never be alone again.
Fortunately, he didn’t need to torture himself for long because outside help arrived at that moment, taking the form of a very particular Anbu coming to perch on Iruka’s windowsill.
The brunette would have been surprised or maybe even scared if it had been the first time, but it wasn’t at all uncommon for this particular Anbu to visit him. Why? Iruka had no idea but today was perfect timing.
“Perfect timing, I just needed someone.” Iruka said, going to open the window, even though he knew perfectly well that the Anbu could enter alone if he wanted.
The Anbu tilted his head to the side, waiting for Iruka to tell him more.
“You need to keep an eye on Naruto while I go take care of something important. He’s sick, and I really don’t want to leave him alone here, even for a few dozen minutes.”
“Naruto?” The Anbu repeated, looking over Iruka’s shoulder, noticing the tuft of blond hair sticking out from under a pile of blankets. “What is he doing here?”
“He hadn’t been to the Academy for three days, so I went to his house to see if he was okay. The short answer is no, he’s not. I also realized that he lives entirely alone, practically on his own, in an unsanitary and dilapidated apartment.”
“How?” The Anbu asked, and Iruka felt like he was angry. “Who allowed this?”
“According to him, the Third Hokage. That’s why I need you to stay with him. I have a few words to exchange with our dear leader.”
The man opposite him didn’t respond, as if frozen in place, his face fixed on the sleeping child.
“Come on, Hound, I’ll be back in less than an hour, but I can’t leave him alone.” Iruka asked again, almost pleading.
Hound remained motionless for a few more moments before fully refocusing on Iruka. “What are your intentions with him?” He asked, in the same neutral voice he always used.
“I plan to tell him what I think of Naruto’s living conditions and I-”
“Not the Hokage.” Hound interrupted. “Naruto. What are your intentions with Naruto?”
Iruka was largely taken aback by this question, but he immediately answered anyway. “Since no one seems willing to do it, I’ll take care of him. I can never give him back his parents, his family, or his lost childhood years, but I can make sure that from now on, he won’t be alone. I intend to be there for him through whatever he has to go through, whatever that may be.”
“The Hokage won’t let you. You're too young.” Hound countered, his voice distant, as if that wasn’t what he thought, only what he’d heard before.
“I’d like to see him try.” Iruka snarled. “It’s his fault Naruto spent the first seven years of his life being excluded and rejected by everyone. He didn’t do anything, and everyone treats him like a monster.”
“He is-”
“I know what he is!” Iruka cut dryly. “Believe me, I know perfectly well what he is. But I also know who he is, and that’s what I’m interested in now. People have already mistreated him enough for what he is, it’s time someone took an interest in who he is.”
Iruka must have been convincing because Hound nodded. “Very well. Go. Change things up. I’ll keep an eye on him.” Hound agreed, perching on a chair, keeping a reasonable distance from Naruto, yet still within reach if necessary.
Iruka nodded and then quickly left his apartment, heading furiously towards the Hokage Tower, certain to find the man he was looking for there.
And as he climbed the stairs that would take him to the Hokage’s office floor, Iruka almost ran into someone. “Whoa, you should watch where you’re going, Iruka.” The person he'd almost knocked over said playfully.
Iruka looked up at the familiar voice, but even the sight of the man he considered his big brother didn’t calm him down.
“Whoa.” Asuma smirked, noticing the younger man’s furious look. “I don’t know who pissed you off, but I have a feeling they’re going to regret it.”
“You’re right. Where is your father?”
“In his office, I think.” Asuma replied, not thinking much of the question.
“Perfect. I have a few words to say to him.” Iruka said curtly, stepping around the other man to continue his ascent.
“Wait a minute.” Asuma interrupted, grabbing his arm. “Is the Hokage the one who put you in this state?”
“Him and all the people who made the decision to leave a 7-year-old orphan to fend for himself, allowing the entire village to hate him without him doing nothing to deserve that.”
Asuma frowned for a moment before realizing who the brunette was talking about. “If you’re talking about the young Uzumaki-”
“His name is Naruto!” Iruka corrected sharply. “He’s 7 years old, he lives entirely alone, and he’s just spent the last 3 days sick as a dog without anyone checking on him or worrying about him even once. If I hadn’t gone to see him tonight, no one would have ever noticed he was sick. He burst into tears in my arms, telling me that no one has ever been interested or worried about him. He’s 7 years old, by the Lords, he doesn’t deserve any of this!”
“Iruka-nii…” Asuma sighed softly.
“No. Don’t “Iruka-nii” me. I am extremely grateful for what the Third Hokage did for me after the Nine-Tails attack, but I will not forgive him for his actions towards Naruto, who is the first victim of that attack.”
“He is-”
“I don’t give a damn about what he is!” Iruka exploded. “I care about who he is, and that’s what we all should have done in the first place. So, like it or not, I’m going to give the person responsible for all this a piece of my mind. And like it or not, I don’t intend to leave Naruto in this situation another day.”
After that, Iruka abruptly pulled away from Asuma’s grasp and continued on his way, even more wound up than he had been a few minutes ago.
Watching the one he considered a little brother walk away furiously, Asuma couldn’t help but feel at least a little sorry for his father. But after all, Iruka wasn’t entirely wrong, and Hiruzen was only reaping what he had sown.
Asuma wasn’t too worried, though. Iruka would know what needed to be done and would know how to fix the mistakes made by others.
With Iruka like this, Asuma also knew that Naruto would never be left to his own devices again, and honestly, it was for the best. Asuma trusted his brother to right the wrongs caused by others.