Naruto sat atop the rooftop, her legs swinging idly over the edge as the night wind played with her snow-white hair. Her sapphire eyes glowed faintly in the moonlight, fixed on the stars above. The village below was quiet, save for the occasional distant bark of a dog or the rustle of leaves. This was her usual routine—watching the world while everyone else rested.
After all, 2B didn't sleep.
But tonight was... different.
"Naruto feels... strange. Dattebayo," she muttered to herself, her robotic tone laced with uncharacteristic confusion. She shook her head, as if to clear the fog that seemed to settle over her mind.
The feeling didn't go away.
Naruto blinked. Her legs stopped swinging, and she placed a gloved hand on her chest. "Naruto feels... tired?"
She tilted her head, processing the unfamiliar sensation. Tiredness wasn't something she experienced. Ever.
"Impossible. Naruto does not... sleep. Dattebayo," she insisted, but her voice lacked its usual conviction.
Her eyelids drooped. She shook her head more vigorously this time, nearly toppling off the rooftop.
"Naruto's systems must be malfunctioning," she reasoned, tapping the side of her head with stiff fingers.
Still, the heaviness didn't relent. It was as though an invisible force was pressing down on her, making her limbs feel sluggish.
"Naruto must investigate this anomaly. Dattebayo," she decided, leaping down from the rooftop with far less precision than usual. She landed awkwardly, stumbling slightly before straightening herself.
Her apartment was quiet and dim when she entered. The mess Karin had left earlier was mostly cleaned, though a few stray socks still littered the floor. Naruto didn't pay them any mind as she headed straight for her bed.
The bed that had gone unused for over a year.
She sat down gingerly on the edge, her hands resting in her lap as her glowing eyes scanned the room. "Naruto's eyelids are heavy. Dattebayo," she murmured, her head dipping slightly before she jerked it back up.
Her lips pursed in a stubborn pout. "Naruto does not sleep!" she declared, though her voice lacked its usual robotic certainty.
She sat up straighter, crossing her arms as if to ward off the strange sensation. But the more she resisted, the heavier her body felt. Her shoulders slumped, her head tilted to one side, and a small yawn escaped her lips.
Naruto blinked, startled. "Naruto... yawned?"
She shook her head again, her movements slower now. She pinched her cheeks, tapped her face, and even muttered her catchphrase repeatedly in an attempt to stay awake.
"Naruto will not—dattebayo—not... fall... asleep..."
Her words trailed off as she swayed to the side, her eyes half-lidded. She caught herself just before toppling over, straightening up once more.
"Naruto... is strong. Dattebayo," she whispered, her voice soft and drowsy. Her head bobbed forward, then back, her posture drooping further with each passing second.
Eventually, her resistance crumbled. With a quiet sigh, Naruto flopped backward onto the bed, her glowing eyes flickering briefly before dimming entirely.
She lay there, her frilly black dress crumpled beneath her, her boots still on, and one arm hanging off the side of the bed. Her chest rose and fell in slow, steady breaths as a soft, almost imperceptible snore escaped her lips.
It was a sight both endearing and surreal.
Hours later, Karin returned from her shift at the hospital. She entered the apartment with a tired sigh, her hand running through her disheveled red hair. She kicked off her shoes, tossed her bag onto the couch, and stretched, wincing as her muscles protested.
She froze when her gaze landed on the bed.
Naruto was there.
Sleeping.
Karin blinked, certain she was imagining things. She stepped closer, her brows furrowed in confusion.
Naruto's boots were still on, her gloves awkwardly twisted, and her frilly black dress was wrinkled beyond repair. Her white bob-cut hair was splayed messily across the pillow, and her peaceful expression was completely at odds with her usual robotic demeanor.
Karin frowned, muttering to herself. "What the hell happened to you?"
She leaned over the bed, carefully reaching out to adjust Naruto's awkward position. "You're gonna wake up with a stiff neck if you keep sleeping like that, dummy."
Naruto didn't stir, her soft snores continuing uninterrupted. Karin shook her head, a small, exasperated smile tugging at her lips.
"Guess even robots need rest sometimes," she said softly.
Karin moved with practiced care, removing Naruto's boots and setting them neatly by the bed. She slid off the elbow-length gloves and smoothed out the wrinkled dress before deciding it wouldn't do.
"You can't sleep in this," Karin muttered, rummaging through the dresser for something more suitable. She found a simple nightie and quickly changed Naruto into it, grumbling under her breath the entire time.
Once Naruto was properly dressed, Karin pulled the blanket over her and gave her a final once-over.
Satisfied, she grabbed her own futon and laid it out on the floor. She stretched out, her head resting on the pillow as she glanced over at the peacefully sleeping Naruto.
"Goodnight, weirdo," she whispered, a faint smile on her lips.
And for the first time in a long while, the apartment felt warm and quiet, the kind of peace that only family could bring.
Naruto yawned, stretching her arms above her head as her eyes fluttered open. It was such a nice, warm sleep—wait, what the dattebayo?!
Her body jerked upright, her glowing sapphire eyes wide with confusion. Sleeping? Sleeping?! She was Naruto, the Synthetic Shinobi! She wasn't supposed to sleep!
Naruto's robotic mind spiraled into a flurry of calculations, trying to make sense of what had happened. She patted herself down, her movements jerky and stiff. Then she froze, staring at the soft, pastel nightie she was wearing.
"Why is Naruto in... this?" she muttered, her voice unusually high-pitched. "Who changed Naruto's clothes?!"
Her mechanical thought processes were working overtime, verging on what could only be described as a robotic panic attack. Her hands grabbed at the hem of the nightie, and she examined the fabric as though it might hold the answers to her existential crisis.
Across the room, Karin stirred in her futon, groaning softly as she rubbed her eyes. "Oi, Naruto," she mumbled, her voice groggy, "you awake already?"
Naruto snapped her head toward Karin, her expression a mixture of horror and bewilderment. "Naruto is not even supposed to sleep—!" She paused mid-sentence as a yawn escaped her lips, completely undermining her point.
Karin blinked, sitting up and stretching. She stared at Naruto, her sleep-addled brain slowly processing the scene before her. Then, a grin spread across her face. "Well, would you look at that. You're finally humanizing."
Naruto tilted her head, her confusion deepening. "Huh? What does Karin mean?"
"You're becoming... human," Karin explained, crossing her arms and giving Naruto a smug look. "I mean, you slept. You yawned. And you're freaking out about wearing a cute nightie. If that's not human, I don't know what is."
Naruto blinked, her glowing eyes dimming slightly as she processed Karin's words. "Naruto is... human?"
"Not fully, but you're getting there," Karin said with a shrug. "You're evolving or something. I don't know. Ask someone smarter."
Naruto frowned, still unsure how to feel about this revelation. "Oh... well... Naruto will dwell on it later. Dattebayo."
Karin raised an eyebrow. "Later? You're just gonna—"
"Got to look for Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto interrupted, her voice chipper as she leaped to her feet.
Karin blinked, her jaw dropping as Naruto darted toward the window, still clad in the cute nightie. "Oi! At least put some clothes on first!"
But Naruto was already gone, her short white hair tousled from sleep, her bare feet disappearing as she leaped out of the window with her usual ninja grace.
Karin sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Well, that's embarrassing. For both of us." She stood up, stretching once more. "Guess I've got my own job to do. Patients aren't gonna nurse themselves."
She shook her head, a small smile tugging at her lips as she grabbed her clothes. "At least she's finally acting less like a robot and more like a person. Progress, I guess."