"Thank you for coming with me," a young Therin lass in a maid outfit said as she strode along with a young blonde with spiky locks dressed in a uniform butler attire on a crowded, bustling city street.
Despite their outfits, they didn't stand out. Maids and butlers were a common sight in New Eridu. And at this time of the day, they were at their busiest.
"This is the third time this week this client has specifically requested you and no one else. I am duty-bound to ensure your safety." The young man replied casually, screwing his nose as he glanced up and into the apartment complex with a mild amount of disgust. "This place reeks. How does he afford our services? Is he a proxy?"
"Can't be a very good one. Too much junk food and the state of his place." The Therin's shark tail swayed behind her as they walked up the steps, sending a shade glare back at her partner. "And I don't need you to protect me."
"Yeah, I know. Trust me, I know." The blonde snorted at both statements before rubbing his jaw, three clear claw marks visible on his cheeks. "But Rina asked, so I'm not about to let you go alone."
"Which I'm thankful for...Guy is a..." The Therin made several ick motions with his face before her expression shifted to professional upon reaching their destination and knocking on the door.
"Ah, Ellen!" A very slovenly man opened the apartment door with enthusiasm that immediately faded upon seeing the young butler. "Uh, who are you?"
"Victoria Housekeeping, at your service." Naruto bowed alongside Ellen. Adjusting his position, yet remaining quite welcoming, his gaze bored into the man's. "We're here to assist with whatever your commands are. Cook, clean, landscaping, and if need be...
[ X ]
"To take out the trash."
A Butler?
I know, it's weird, right? I thought I would have been a shinobi by now...
Things change.
I barely remember my home. I was a kid when I found myself on the streets of Eridu. One moment, I was walking with the old man, and the next, I found myself in a strange new world.
Looking back on it, what I experienced back then was most likely a Hollow. I'm not sure what else it could have been. But my world changed because of it.
I wasn't surrounded by shinobi or kunoichi.
Don't get me wrong, there were still ninjas around. Uncle Lycaon set me up with a local shinobi to help train me, since it was something I had wanted since I was a kid.
Uncle Lycaon? Oh, he found me when I was wandering the streets one day, and, to this day, I still don't know why he took me in. Help me become a gentleman...
Or tried to, as Ellen would say.
Still calls me a wild child. Tch! I'll show her! I'll be the best damn gentleman there ever was!
But this is now my life. In the afternoons, I work as a Butler at Victoria's Housekeeping Company with Lycaon, Ellen, Corin, and Alexandrina, while during the day, I go to school.
And on some days when a Hollow overtakes part of the city...
Well, we get to partake in the awesome part of our job.
After all, a butler must serve his master and clean up.
[ X ]
He was running late again!
Why did school have to start so early in the morning?! Ugh!
Naruto shook his head. The mornings were always rough on him. And it wasn't because he slept in!
He had long since outgrown that childish behavior... Although on the weekends, it was nice...
No, he had a strict training regime enforced by his sensei, Kurenai, even when she wasn't around! She had drilled them into his head until that laziness was beaten out of him!
The problem was that those drills took most of his morning to complete. He barely had time to make a ramen breakfast! Sure, it was three minutes, and he ate it even faster, ignoring the mysterious fruit that showed up in a basket on his small table every week.
Whoever was breaking into his home just to do that was gonna get an earful! It was the principle of the matter!
Grumbling as he closed the door to his apartment, Naruto's eyes were treated to a glorious sight. Two thick, firm, and powerful legs swayed back and forth down the hall before swiftly passing him. His eyes followed, landing upon that voluptuous rump and thick tail...
He could just devour them...
"Eyes up," Ellen's tail slapped him in the cheek, spinning Naruto slightly from the force. "Could you be normal for once?"
"Morning, Ellen," Naruto rubbed his jaw and grinned before cocking his neck. "Me? Normal?"
"I don't know why I bothered to ask." Ellen clicked her tongue before turning around, sending a shade look his way. "You're lucky I waited. Did you do your homework?"
"Well, about that," Naruto nervously chuckled while scratching his neck.
"Ugh! You are hopeless!" Ellen exhaled, exasperated with him. With another stare, she removed her homework and shoved it toward Naruto. "You owe me."
"Got a box of them with your name on 'em." Naruto zipped open his backpack and tossed a case of lollipops to the shark Therin.
"Hm, whatever," Ellen huffed after catching her treats. She popped it open, took off the wrapper, and stuffed it into the corner of her mouth. Slipping the rest of the case into her backpack, she scoffed and turned down the hall. "Now let's get moving. We're running late..."
"Right behind you," Naruto grinned, causing Ellen to stop and send a dark glance at him.
"I don't know why I bother putting up with your antics!" She huffed and continued forward, uncaring. Wasn't worth the energy, he assumed.
Good for him. He would get a fantastic view on the way to school.
[ X ]
Why did he always beat Ellen to work?
Naruto frowned, slipping into his vest. It was weird that she worked here as well.
They had been friends since he was a little boy. Went to school with one another. Moved into the same apartment complex within a month of each other. And they did have the same job?
If he didn't know any better, it seemed as if someone was following him...
Or the other way around.
Naruto scoffed. He knew it was all entirely coincidental, but it was certainly peculiar.
"At least I get to work with my frenemy," Naruto grunted as he slid on the last piece of his uniform and looked into the mirror, checking for any minor imperfections.
Didn't want Ellen commenting on it later...
"Spire as ever," Naruto's attention shifted to see Lycaon entering the changing room, a smile on his muzzle. "The suit fits you well."
"Thank you, Uncle." Naruto bowed respectfully before he cocked an eyebrow. "Do I already have a commission for the day? It's not another bachelorette party, is it?"
"No, no. I promise that won't happen again." Lycaon responded with slight amusement while shaking his head. His expression shifted to a more serious note. "I'll be out of the building for the rest of the day."
"Mayor?" Naruto mused.
Lycaon nodded at his assumption. "Indeed. It will take most of the day. I'm putting you in charge of the office while I'm out."
"Me?" Naruto responded, surprised but with a sense of eagerness thinly hidden behind his calm demeanor.
He was in charge! Suck it, Ellen!
His expression soured before sending Lycaon a doubting glance. "Rina is usually in charge. What gives? Why am I tasked with keeping the building in check?"
"She is on assignment to take Corin into that small Hollow that emerged in Old Eridu." Lycaon thoughtfully responded, arms crossed over his massive chest.
Naruto instantly caught on to the meaning. Training...
"And you won't be the only one," Lycaon added much to Naruto's dismay.
"I will assign Ellen to secretary work to give you some company."
[ X ]
Everything was prim and proper. It took devoted dedication and an iron will to see it through...
But the reception room of their office was finally cleaned! Not a speck of dust in sight! He was almost proud of his accomplishment...
If it wasn't for the lazy Shark Thiren, who was tiredly slumped forward on the reception desk, that left him to do all the clean-up on his own accord!
Naruto repressed the urge to growl. The desire to snap back at her. It was paramount for a gentleman to retain his composure at all times...
Even when the bane of their ire so dared to yawn.
Oh, he hated Ellen Joe!
Her dumb, smug, lackadaisical face! Her sharp, pointy teeth were visibly exposed in her lulled mouth. Her slick tongue that lapped at the tip of the lollipop...
Naruto furiously flushed, snapping his attention away from Ellen. Down! Bad thoughts! Ellen was the enemy, not a friend!
...Unless they were working on a job together...
"Hm?" Ellen raised her head curiously from the desk. She cocked her head, noting Naruto's flushed cheeks, but shrugged, gazing around at the office. "Oh. Sorry. I must have dozed again."
"As usual." Naruto mocked under his breath and rolled his eyes.
Ellen raised a brow. He knew she heard him, but Ellen shrugged it off. Probably too much of a hassle to deal with. Only put forth the effort when necessary or fun.
In many ways, mimicking the real animal she was kin to.
Or was she? Naruto had no idea how it worked. Thiren biology mystified him.
"Has Rina returned with Corin?" Ellen asked, sitting fully up while her lollipop swayed on the corner of her lips. "Or Lycaon? I would like to get back. I have a lot of homework tonight."
"You aren't the only one." Naruto deadpanned.
They went to the same school! Were in the same grade! They had many of the same classes!
He grimaced. Oh, how he hated homework...
"And?" Ellen quirked her brow at Naruto. "I plan on doing my homework tonight instead of making a gigantic hotpot of ramen and playing games all night."
Naruto glowered. She read him like a book...
Not that it was difficult. He had the same routine most days... Unless it was a day with one of their unusual job requests.
Those days were fun.
"It's fine. You can copy it in the morning when I come over. Just try to make it look like you did the work." Ellen stretched her arms upward, Naruto's eyes betraying him briefly to catch the bounce of her...
His attention shifted to her cold, calculated expression as she stared at him. "As long as you've got it... Otherwise... Well, you know."
Naruto blinked. It took him a moment to register what Ellen was referencing.
Then he flashed a grin, and out of one of his pockets, Naruto slyly caught a retro game cartridge between his fingers. "Oh, I found it. You were in luck. The oldie video store happened to be renting it!"
Ellen flashed a rare smirk before her expression returned to its usual indifference. "Good. We're still on for tomorrow?"
"You know it." Naruto laughed before glowering at Ellen. "I'm free all weekend, so you better not bail like the last time."
Ellen shrugged her shoulders but nodded, her gaze shifting to the opening door as the bell rang. "All my friends had something coming up this weekend, so I should be unless a job comes up... Afternoon, Rina. Corin. No trouble, I assume?"
"None at all. It was cleaned up without issue." Rina smiled and bowed at Ellen's greeting.
"Well, it was time-consuming... Sorry for making you stay after work hours." Corin winced before bowing in forgiveness.
"Worry not. We took care of the office while everyone was away," Naruto respectfully returned the bow, ignoring the roll of Ellen's eyes, silently mouthing off.
Naruto hid his rising agitation. She knew what buttons to press...
"Now, now. No fighting at the workplace." Rina playfully scolded Ellen and Naruto with a smile. She then withdrew two letters from beneath her apron. "Lycaon won't be back until much later tonight. He entrusted me to give you your checks after work. Here you are. Don't spend it all over the weekend, dears."
"We won't," Ellen and Naruto gestured respectfully upon receiving their wages.
However, their eyes clashed, and Ellen muttered under her breath. "Better not spend it all on ramen again..."
"Better not ask me for some spare denny for lunch after blowing it on karaoke night." Naruto countered.
Only for a chill to run up his spine, as Naruto and Ellen froze in place. A spectral dread filled them as Rina eerily snuck behind them, her two Bangboo rising like phantoms behind her. Her smile was too sweet as she gingerly touched their shoulders. "No more bickering. People might start to think you are sweet on one another."
Despite Alexandrina's terrifying aesthetic, Naruto and Ellen's indignation rose to the surface, replacing fear, as their attention focused solely on each other.
"We're not going out!"
[ X ]
It was a long walk back.
Naruto didn't want to say a word. Didn't want anyone thinking anything weird about them as they walked home. He was sure Ellen was on the same page!
Nothing strange about them walking about together at night in New Eridu!
They lived in the same apartment complex. They had been friends as long as he remembered being in New Eridu...
...They were once really close friends when they were little...
He may have even had a cr...
"Over ten years... And we still live just around the corner from each other." Ellen scoffed before her features sank quickly, glancing at Naruto as they approached their complex.
"The more things change, the more things stay the same, I suppose." Naruto chuckled, reminiscing on those times before she mentioned anything. He shrugged and pulled out his key card, swiping open the door. "Lady's first."
"Not after this morning," Ellen glowered, crossing her arms over her buxom chest. However, she faintly smiled as she gestured her head forward. "You first. Only fair, Mr. Gentleman."
Naruto squinted his gaze before clicking his tongue. Spoil sport...
...Now, why did it feel like someone was watching him?
Something felt off. He swore he caught Ellen's gaze lift as he turned around, but that didn't bother him. It was only fair.
No... Was someone...
"Is something wrong?" Ellen had turned, her gaze sharply piercing into the darkness of the city, searching the same streets.
"I thought I sensed something..." Naruto scanned the darkness for a moment longer. His eyes sharpened on the top of a nearby complex for a brief second.
Did something move...
"I guess not." Naruto shook his head, allowing the door to the complex to close.
"Fine." Ellen gave Naruto a dissatisfied but measured glare. She huffed before heading down the hall. "See you tomorrow. Do your homework, for once!"
"No promises... Have a good night." Naruto waved, his eyes drifting slightly to glimpse those well-toned thighs...
Before his gaze shifted to the glass door.
Naruto didn't want to worry Ellen or involve her in suspicion. Didn't want her to burn her energy before tomorrow's gaming session; otherwise, she would just be lazing about all day.
All was good...
And it wasn't as if there was something dangerous that wouldn't be taken care of with the military nearby. A Hollow wasn't just going to open up and swallow New Eridu...
Hopefully. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be the first time...
There was a reason it was called New Eridu.
Slowly rising from the shadows, a masked man stood and peered down from the building on which he was perched.
He observed his target from above as he entered his apartment building. Watching studiously, like always.
Too close. He was getting better. More aware of his surroundings.
With a simple nod, the man in the mask faded into darkness, as if he had never been there.