Travel between realities never became normal.
Drake suspected it never would.
One moment there was endless fractured starlight stretching across dimensional pathways—
The next—
Rain.
Cold rain hammered against forest leaves while thunder rolled across distant mountains.
A crimson-black spatial rift opened soundlessly between towering trees overlooking an enormous village built beneath stone faces carved into the mountainside.
Ciri stepped through first and immediately stopped.
"…Okay."
Wind tugged silver hair across her face while she stared toward the distant cliffside monument.
"That's either incredibly important or someone overcompensating dramatically."
Drake followed beside her as the portal sealed shut behind them.
The instant his boots touched the ground—
The world felt different.
Alive.
Not supernatural exactly.
Not magic in the way he understood it.
Something deeper.
Energy pulsed invisibly through the air, the trees, the earth itself like an enormous interconnected web surrounding the entire planet.
Drake frowned slightly.
"…Interesting."
Ciri glanced sideways immediately.
"You feel it too?"
He nodded slowly.
"Everything here is connected."
The sensation spread endlessly around him.
Plants.
Animals.
Humans.
Spiritual and physical energies woven together naturally inside every living thing.
Chakra.
Though unlike the people of this world—
Drake sensed the imbalance immediately.
Power born through harmony between body and soul.
Honestly?
Kind of beautiful.
The village below them glowed warmly despite the storm.
Lights flickered through apartment windows while civilians hurried along crowded streets beneath umbrellas and hanging lanterns.
Peaceful on the surface.
But underneath—
Something else lingered.
Old grief.
Fear.
Loneliness.
Drake knew this world too well from his previous life.
Wars disguised as tradition.
Children turned into weapons.
Entire generations shaped by violence before they even understood what peace meant.
And at the center of it all—
One loud, stubborn boy carrying hatred he never deserved.
His expression softened slightly.
"He's here already."
Ciri noticed instantly.
"Naruto?"
"Yeah."
Rain intensified briefly around them.
Ciri adjusted the sword resting across her back.
"So."
She looked toward the village.
"What's the plan?"
Drake smiled faintly.
"We don't interfere too much."
Ciri stared at him flatly.
"That sentence has literally never survived contact with reality."
"…Fair."
The two descended toward the village afterward.
Konoha bustled with evening life despite the weather.
Street vendors packed away food carts while children ran laughing beneath awnings. Shinobi moved silently across rooftops overhead while civilians chatted comfortably beneath lantern-lit storefronts.
To anyone else—
It looked warm.
Safe.
Home-like.
Drake saw the cracks immediately.
People lowered their voices whenever certain subjects surfaced.
Shinobi watched each other too carefully.
Fear hid behind politeness.
And beneath all of it—
The village carried old wounds that never healed properly.
Ciri looked around curiously while they walked.
"So everyone here uses chakra?"
"Mostly."
"And the child soldiers?"
Drake grimaced slightly.
"…Also mostly."
Ciri's eyes narrowed faintly.
"Already disliking parts of this world."
"Reasonable reaction."
Then Drake stopped walking.
Something tugged hard at his instincts.
Subtle.
Familiar.
Loneliness.
His gaze shifted instinctively toward a small park farther down the street.
"…There."
Ciri followed his line of sight.
The playground sat nearly empty beneath the pouring rain.
Swings creaked softly in the wind while puddles reflected dim streetlights across soaked ground.
And sitting alone on one of the swings—
Was a little blond boy.
Maybe six years old.
Small.
Thin.
Bright blue eyes dimmed with quiet exhaustion far too old for his age.
Naruto Uzumaki.
Rain soaked completely through his orange jacket while distant laughter echoed from nearby children leaving the park hand-in-hand with their parents.
One by one they disappeared into warm homes.
Warm dinners.
Warm lives.
None of them looked back at him.
Not one.
Naruto watched them leave silently.
Trying very hard not to look hurt.
The sight hit Drake harder than expected.
Because he recognized that expression instantly.
Loneliness pretending not to care.
Ciri went quiet beside him too.
"…He's just a kid."
Drake nodded slowly.
And somehow—
That made it infinitely worse.
Naruto kicked lightly at a puddle beneath the swing while the rain continued pouring around him.
No one approached.
No one called for him.
No one waited.
The lights around the playground flickered dimmer as nearby apartments shut their curtains against the storm.
Leaving him alone in the dark.
Naruto sniffed once before rubbing aggressively at his face.
Trying not to cry.
Drake felt something ugly twist sharply inside his chest.
Ancient.
Protective.
The pack instinct surged hard enough to surprise him.
Ciri noticed immediately.
"Oh no."
Drake blinked once.
"What?"
"You're doing the thing again."
"What thing?"
"The emotionally adopting dangerous children thing."
"I do not emotionally adopt people."
Ciri pointed directly at him.
"Klaus is literally spiritually bonded to us now."
"That was an accident."
Naruto sneezed suddenly below.
Drake immediately started walking toward the playground.
Ciri sighed dramatically while following him.
"Yep. There it is."
The wet ground crunched softly beneath Drake's boots as he approached the swings.
Naruto looked up instantly.
Guarded.
Wary.
Used to adults staring at him badly.
The little boy tensed automatically the moment he noticed Drake walking toward him.
Expectation filled his eyes immediately.
Not hope.
Resignation.
Like he already expected anger before Drake even spoke.
That realization nearly made Drake physically ill.
Instead of towering over him—
Drake crouched nearby casually.
For several seconds neither spoke.
Rain poured steadily around them while thunder rumbled faintly overhead.
Then quietly—
"You know," Drake said, "this weather kind of sucks."
Naruto blinked.
Clearly not expecting that.
"…Huh?"
Drake gestured vaguely upward.
"Rain. Wet socks. Cold hands. Objectively terrible experience."
Naruto stared at him another second.
Then unexpectedly—
A tiny laugh escaped him.
Small.
But real.
Ciri smiled faintly nearby while Drake sat on the swing beside Naruto casually.
The chains creaked softly.
Naruto looked suspicious now.
"…You're weird."
"Accurate."
The little boy studied him carefully afterward.
Most adults either ignored Naruto entirely or glared openly at him.
This stranger was doing neither.
Which honestly confused him more.
Drake glanced sideways casually.
"So why're you sitting out here alone?"
The question came gently.
No pity.
No judgment.
Naruto immediately looked away afterward.
"My friends went home."
The hesitation before the word "friends" hurt more than Drake expected.
Because he knew.
They weren't really friends.
Not yet.
Just children who played with Naruto until parents called them away.
Then suddenly remembered who he was supposed to be.
The demon fox.
The problem.
The thing adults hated.
Naruto kicked at the puddle again quietly.
"They always leave early."
Ciri's expression darkened faintly.
Drake remained silent for a moment.
Then softly—
"That's their loss."
Naruto blinked in surprise.
"…What?"
Drake leaned back slightly on the swing.
"You seem fun."
The little boy stared at him like he'd spoken another language entirely.
Because almost nobody ever said things like that to Naruto sincerely.
Drake reached into his coat afterward and pulled out a wrapped piece of candy from another world entirely.
"Want one?"
Naruto immediately looked suspicious.
"…Why?"
Drake blinked once.
"Because candy exists?"
Naruto narrowed his eyes carefully.
"That sounds fake."
Ciri snorted softly nearby.
Drake looked deeply offended.
"I'm being emotionally vulnerable right now."
"You offered him sugar."
"It's a start."
Naruto laughed again.
Louder this time.
Real laughter.
And for the first time that evening—
The crushing loneliness around him eased slightly.
Drake watched him quietly afterward.
This child would someday change the world.
Carry impossible burdens.
Forgive people who never deserved forgiveness.
Save an entire system built to destroy children like him.
But right now—
He was just a lonely little boy sitting alone in the rain pretending not to be sad.
And Drake understood that kind of loneliness far too well.
Naruto carefully unwrapped the candy before glancing back toward Drake curiously.
"…What're your names?"
Drake smiled faintly.
"I'm Drake."
Ciri stepped closer beside them.
"And I'm Ciri."
Naruto repeated the names quietly under his breath like he was committing them to memory.
Because kindness never stayed long in his life.
Then softly—
"I'm Naruto."
Drake's expression warmed.
"Yeah."
Naruto blinked.
"…You already knew?"
Drake grinned slightly.
"Hard not to recognize the loudest kid in the village."
Naruto looked absurdly pleased by that answer.
Then suspicious again immediately afterward.
"…Wait."
His eyes narrowed.
"You don't hate me?"
The question hit like a knife.
Simple.
Honest.
Asked with the kind of caution only hurt children learned.
Ciri visibly stiffened beside Drake.
But Drake only looked at Naruto calmly.
"No."
Naruto stared at him silently.
Rain continued falling softly around the playground.
"…Why not?"
Because none of this was your fault.
Because adults failed you.
Because you deserved love long before you earned it.
Because loneliness should never belong to children.
Drake swallowed quietly.
Then answered with the simplest truth possible.
"Because I think people who hate kids for existing are idiots."
Naruto froze completely.
For several long seconds he just stared.
Then suddenly—
His eyes watered.
He looked away immediately afterward rubbing aggressively at his face again.
Trying not to cry.
Trying not to hope.
Drake pretended not to notice.
Because pride mattered when you were hurting.
After another moment Naruto sniffed quietly.
"…You really think I'm fun?"
Drake smirked faintly.
"I think you're gonna be trouble."
Naruto grinned instantly.
Bright.
Sudden.
Like sunlight finally breaking through storm clouds.
And somehow—
That smile felt important.
The pack instinct inside Drake surged harder again.
Protective.
Ancient.
Certain.
Ciri noticed immediately and buried her face in one hand.
"Oh no," she muttered quietly.
Naruto looked confused.
"What?"
Ciri pointed at Drake.
"He's attached now."
"I am not."
"You emotionally imprinted on the child in under ten minutes."
"That sounds fake."
Naruto laughed loudly again.
And somewhere deep inside—
Without realizing it—
Naruto Uzumaki stopped feeling completely alone for the first time in a very long while.