Chapter Text
Knock! Knock! Knock! Three thuds rang throughout the house. Boruto’s eyes shot open, and he fell from his precarious position on the edge of his bed. His head hit the floor with a THUD, and a moment later he heard the sound of tiny footsteps creeping down the hall. Great, Boruto thought, I woke Hima when I fell.
He looked at the time, surprised to find that it was already noon. The night before he’d stayed up playing video games with Shikadai and Inojin because he’d known that today was his free day. So he’d chosen to sleep in. It wasn’t anything unusual, but he was still disoriented by the few hours of the day he’d lost to sleep.
Knock! Knock! Knock! Someone was pounding on the door again. Boruto had almost forgotten that that was what had woken him up in the first place. He quickly threw on the first cotton tee he found laying in his drawer and pounded down the stairs to answer the door. It was probably Sarada or Mitsuki, wanting to hang out with him.
He passed Hima in the hall. She was headed to the bathroom to brush her teeth.
“Goodmorning”, Boruto muttered.
“Goomornin” She yawned, clearly still half asleep.
Boruto half smiled to himself, glad she was going to brush her teeth with the monstrous bad breath she had.
After saying hi to Hima, he sauntered over to the front entryway .He quickly found himself standing in front of the door, prepared to turn the knob and open it. That was until the door slipped from his grasp and slammed open on it’s own. Boruto jumped back, all semblance of tiredness now gone from him. How did the door do that? He thought, Was it a ghost? No, that’s stupid. Ghosts aren’t real.
Boruto quickly shook the childish thought away and prepared himself for what he might see in front of him. It could be enemy ninja, or thieves, or- nothing?
No, it wasn’t nothing. Looking more closely, Boruto saw that there was a package on the ground. It was brown but otherwise plain, except for one phrase written in black marker on the top.
“Tales of A Gutsy Ninja”, it said. Boruto had no idea what that meant. Warily, he crouched down to examine the package. It didn’t look dangerous. But dangerous things rarely did. He carefully picked it up and shook it vigorously. You know, for safety reasons.
He deemed that it probably wasn’t a threat, and chose to ignore the strange door incident. The package was a decent size and not too heavy, so Boruto was able to lift it with ease and carry it into the living room.
Hima was already sitting at the table, waiting for someone to feed her breakfast.
“Don’t you know how to feed yourself?” Boruto remarked, upset that making breakfast was on him. Being the older sibling sucked.
“Well usually Mom makes it for me, but she went to have lunch with some other people. She told me she was going to last night. So you have to make it for me today.”
“Yeah, and of course Dad’s always ‘too busy’ with all of his ‘responsibilities’ to stay and make you food. Figures. That stupid old man could care less about his family if it doesn’t involve saving them from enemies like Momoshiki.”
“Hey, don’t talk mean about Dad. He just has work.”
Boruto smiled at Hima and said sorry, but of course he didn’t actually mean any of it. Even after his Dad saved him, Boruto still couldn’t get over how much he was gone. Why couldn’t he be there for them when enemies aren't attacking? Momoshiki was dead. He shouldn’t have been so busy still. It just made Boruto’s blood boil when he thought about it. What did that old man know about family anyway?
Boruto sulked over his dad while he made breakfast, but quickly forgot all about it when he glimpsed the brown package sitting innocently on the couch. He couldn’t wait to open it! He thought about all of the crazy stuff that could be inside it, and almost wanted to abandon breakfast and open the package instead. In the end, though, his stomach beat his curiosity, and he decided to open it after he ate some breakfast.
“That was so good! Thank you, Boruto!” Hima cried after eating her eggs.
“Yup! I can teach you how to make them later if you want.”
“Really?!”
They both smiled mischievously at the thought of the kitchen mayhem that would break out as soon as they started cooking. It only seemed to spur Boruto on as he dashed to the sink to clean the plates and then jumped excitedly over to the box basking in the early afternoon sun.
“What’s that?” Hima asked, clutching her teddy bear as she came towards it to get a better look.
“Don’t know. But we’re about to find out!” Boruto maniacally held up scissors he’d gotten from the kitchen over the tape sealing up the mystery package. Hima laughed at his exaggerated expression, like someone about to brutally murder a package in cold blood.
Then, Boruto ever so gently cut into it. He gulped nervously as the anticipation grew. Whatever was inside the package had to be epic, or else the door wouldn’t have swung open for it.
What was actually inside, however, made Boruto falter.
“What?! Video tapes?! You have got to be kidding me!” He threw the scissors down and slumped against the living room ottoman in defeat.
Hima didn’t seem affected, but Boruto was utterly crushed. The treasure he’d so eagerly awaited for a whole fifteen minutes was a bunch of video tapes? He couldn’t accept it.
Reaching into the box, Boruto pulled out one of the tapes.
On its spine it read, “17th Birthday” Boruto flipped it over in his hand. There was nothing else on it. Boruto was at a loss.
He had no idea what to do with a bunch of cryptic, random tapes. That was when Hima had the brilliant idea to “watch them”.
“Watch them?”
“Yeah. Put it in the video player and see what’s on it.”
Boruto, with all of his genius, had failed to think of that idea. “Oh, yeah, you’re right!” He exclaimed and bounced over to the TV. Underneath it lay a black box where video tapes could be inserted.
Hima took a seat on the couch with her stuffed bear, and after Boruto carefully inserted the video tape and grabbed the remote, he came over and claimed the seat next to her.
Before they knew it, the video started playing. Hima quickly suggested that they should make popcorn, but Boruto hushed her and told her later.
The scene started with an old man. He had eyes that looked like Mr. Sasuke’s left eye, all purple with a bunch of circles. Boruto didn’t know what it was called though. The dude also had a big red eye on his forehead and two horns coming out of his head. In other words, Boruto thought he looked pretty wacky.
He started off by saying, “This is the perfect moment. I will release the jutsu, free the Five Kages, and those under the Reanimation.”
Boruto had absolutely no idea what any of that meant. Then the camera suddenly panned to-
“Dad?” Hima asked. Boruto had to do a double take, he couldn’t believe it. But it was very clearly his Dad. He looked like he was a teenager, maybe 16 or 17. His clothes were all torn up and dirty, but Boruto had no idea why.
Their dad looked around, until he finally laid eyes on something. The camera then panned over to a figure in the distance, who Boruto was just able to make out. He had bright yellow hair and no arms. He looked as if his skin was cracking, and the whites of his eyes weren't white, they were black. It took Boruto a second before he realized that the figure standing there was his grandpa. But wait, he thought his grandpa died when his dad was a baby. It didn’t make sense that he would be there while his dad was still a teenager. And what was with the black eyes? It had only been a few seconds, but Boruto was already really confused.
The clip kept going, however, and Boruto watched as his dad looked up at- a giant fox? Was that Kurama, the fox that lived inside his dad? Boruto’s confusion only worsened as this video went on.
Kurama told Boruto’s dad, “Go.” A moment later, his dad bounced over to his grandpa, Minato.
“Dad-” Boruto’s dad, Naruto, said, looking upset.
“Oh, that’s right”, Minato (Boruto’s grandpa) told him, smiling, “I’ve been meaning to tell you…”
The sun rose before Minato finished his sentence, coming up over what seemed like a vast desert. Boruto recognized it as the place where they’d fought Momoshiki during the chunin exams. So they must’ve just finished a fight when this was recorded.
All was silent for a moment as the camera showed Naruto and Minato staring at each other, as if they were trying to find the right words to say before a final goodbye.
Finally, Minato finished his sentence from before. "Happy birthday!”
That single phrase seemed to carry a sort of weight to it, one Boruto didn’t fully understand. But nevertheless Minato continued, “You’ve become a splendid young man, Naruto.”
Naruto smiled and responded, “Yeah, thank you.”
Minato smiled back, but then continued in a melancholy tone, “We’re an existence outside of the rules. We can’t remain in this world forever. It’s time to say goodbye.”
Boruto wasn’t sure what he meant by that, but he did know that this meant Naruto would have to say goodbye to his dad. He couldn’t imagine having to say goodbye to his own dad. As much as he resented his dad for being gone a lot, he would still probably be pretty crushed if that happened.
As the clip continued, Naruto looked dispiritedly at his father. It was clear he had prepared himself for this moment. And that fact also made this sad. But still he nodded at Minato, telling him he was ready to say goodbye.
Then Minato closed his eyes as a white light enveloped him. Parts of him started to flake away while he said, “I promise to tell Kushina everything.”
The two then exchanged looks of sadness, maybe longing. But Naruto refused to let that consume him and instead started animatedly speaking, “Tell her not to worry. I’m eating properly! I’m not picky and eat lots of different stuff! Like tonkotsu ramen, miso ramen, and shoyu ramen… oh but, not just ramen though!”
The camera panned to Minato again as Naruto went on, “I try to bathe everyday! I go to the Leaf Hot Springs once in a while too! Although everyone just says I only take quick dips…”
Naruto laughed almost nervously. The camera showed Mister Kakashi and Miss Sakura, all bloodied from battle and listening in on the conversation as he did. Then Naruto did that thing that Boruto liked to do, where he put his hands over his head. Boruto had thought it made him look cool, but thinking about it now, maybe he’d inherited that nervous tick from his dad.
Naruto continued, saying, “What else, what else… I’ve made lots of friends! And they’re all good guys!”
The camera panned to Mr. Sasuke now, and Boruto smiled. Of course Mr. Sasuke was Naruto’s friend. Anyone would want to be friends with someone as cool as Mr. Sasuke.
“And… I was really awful at school, but I never got depressed and had more confidence than anyone else.” More people were shown now, most of which had the same white glow around them that Minato did.
“Naturally, I always obeyed Lord Third and Kakashi Sensei. I respect them both! They’re right here, so you can ask them yourself!”
The man with horns and purple eyes was shown again, along with some big animals that Boruto thought might be tailed beasts. They all seemed to be listening closely to Naruto’s conversation with Minato, and they all looked just a little bit sad.
“Oh, and those Three Prohibitions of Shinobi? I learned a lot about that when I was with Pervy Sage! He was hopeless when it came to them though, but he was an awesome Sannin, and I respect him the most!”
The camera focused on Minato again, and he was smiling now.
Naruto's voice cracked a little when he added, “I just turned 17 today, so I don’t know much about alcohol or girls… I know Mom said to find someone like her… but… that’s...um…” Naruto faltered now, and seemed to retain a bit of nervousness in everything he said.
His face scrunched up now as the camera focused on him, and he cried, “Anyways! Not everything Mom told me about went well,” his eyes welled up with tears now, and little Hima sitting beside Boruto began to cry with him. “But I’m doing the best I can! I’ve got dreams too! I’m gonna become an even greater Hokage than you, Dad!”
Minato burst into white flakes now as his soul began to ascend. At least, that’s what Boruto figured.
“I swear I will!” Naruto yelled, voice filled with desperation. Tears were rolling down his face now. “So when you see Mom over there, please tell her… that she doesn’t have to worry about me at all! Tell her, I’m doin’ my best!”
As Minato floated up, he said, “Got it… I’ll make sure to tell her everything.”
The rest of the ghosts floated away, and Minato’s remains rested on the ground in front of Naruto as he wept.
The screen went black then, and Boruto sat there in shock. He didn't know what to think or feel then, but all he knew is that that was not what he expected. His brain swam with questions. He looked over at Himawari and saw that she was crying.
“Hima-”
She wiped her tears and looked up at him. “That was sad.” She said, hugging her teddy bear closer.
Boruto sat for a minute, the cogs in his brain working through a few things. Then he nodded, as if deciding something, and he got up to look at the box again.
It was just like figured. Every tape had a number written at the top of the spine, above the title. They seemed to be going in chronological order. He took the tape they’d just watched out of the video player and looked at the number on it’s spine. Sure enough, a number was inscribed above the title, just like all the other tapes.
By this point Hima had stopped crying and had come up beside him to look into the box.
Boruto turned to her and began explaining, “I thought that that video was weird because it had no context, and I was right. We weren’t supposed to watch that one first. We were supposed to watch them in chronological order, see?” He pointed to the numbers and Hima nodded.
“So we have to start with tape one?”
“Yeah, I think so.”
Hima smiled despite her tear-stained cheeks and cheerfully added, “We should invite Sarada and Mistuki over to watch with us! I bet they’d want to watch.”
Boruto was about to refuse Hima, not wanting to leave the house so early in the day (He was aware that it was already the afternoon, but he’d only just barely woke up and didn’t feel like leaving these tapes alone at home). But just when he was about to open his mouth and refuse her, as if on cue a knock sounded from the front door.
Boruto ran a hand down his face, already dreading having to explain the tapes to Sarada and Mitsuki. He grudgingly walked toward what he knew had to be his friends at the front door, and Hima happily followed him, her fox patterned pajamas fluttering as she hopped along.
When they got to the door and Boruto looked through the peephole, his suspicions were confirmed. He swung the door open, and in front of him stood Sarada, Mitsuki, Chocho, Inojin, and Shikadai.
Hima smiled widely at the sight of so many friendly faces, and Boruto started to complain to them, “Why’d you all come over so early in the morning?”
“Early?” Sarada asked as she rolled her eyes, “It’s one in the afternoon!”
Boruto shrugged, “It’s early enough.”
Sarada looked even more annoyed than before, but Shikadai interrupted before she could spout some snarky comment back to him, “We’re here to see if you want to come train with us. Our parents said they could help us today, so we thought it would be good if your team came with.”
Usually Boruto would have said yes without hesitation, but seeing as Hima would be all alone without him, and the tapes were just sitting there waiting to reveal all of his dad’s most embarrassing moments, Boruto was more inclined to say no.
He hesitated, but finally came up with an answer. “Well, actually, Hima and I were just watching something together, and I kind of just want to finish watching it with her. Sorry, but if we finish before you’re done I’ll meet up with you.”
Hima visibly perked up at the prospect of spending the day with her brother, and only seemed to confirm Boruto’s decision to stay in and watch those tapes.
“Can I watch?” Mitsuki asked, in what can only be described in the most Mitsuki way possible.
“Yeah, sure.” Boruto said, knowing Hima would like having some company.
Sarada huffed and added, “I guess I can spend the afternoon hanging out with you instead of training. Sorry guys, guess I’m out.”
She hadn’t even asked him if it was okay if she stayed over! Boruto couldn’t believe how rude she was sometimes. But despite that, he was kind of glad she was staying.
Shikadai turned then and muttered, “Whatever” as he, Inojin, and Chocho left to go train.
Chocho shouted, “We’ll come here when we’re done and we can all play games together and stuff!”
Sarada smiled and waved, “Good idea!” she shouted.
What was it with these girls and inviting themselves over to his house? Boruto huffed and turned to go inside, thinking that maybe he was a little excited to hang out with all of them later. Just a little, though.
He led them all into the living room, and Mitsuki and Sarada scanned the area, eyeing the box sitting on top of the ottoman.
“What’s that?” Sarada asked.
“It’s what Boruto and I were watching. They’re video tapes of Dad, but we don’t know where they came from.” Hima answered before Boruto had the chance to.
“Videos of Lord Seventh?” Sarada responded, clearly oblivious to Boruto’s rising levels of annoyance.
“Yep! Of when he was younger. We only watched one so far, but we’re gonna start watching them in order now. See, they have numbers on them.” Hima plucked number one out of the box as she explained, and pointed to the number on top to show Sarada.
Sarada nodded in understanding, and turned to Boruto with a smile. “Let’s watch them! I want to see Lord Seventh when he was younger. We should make some popcorn too.”
Boruto was glad she wasn’t just blatantly ignoring him now, but was still annoyed that she was talking to him like it was all her idea to watch them. He was going to do it whether Sarada and Mistuki had come over or not.
Mitsuki peered at them in his usual way, and stated, “I want to watch them too.”
Boruto put his hand up and said, “We were going to watch them anyway, so just settle down, okay? I’ll make some popcorn and then we can watch until my Mom gets home, which should be pretty soon.”
They all nodded and Hima did a little jump and yelled, “Yay!”, and then they all took seats on the couch next to Mr. Fluffers the bear while Boruto went to the kitchen to make them some popcorn.
He was sure Mitsuki and Sarada were thinking the same things as him. Like, how did these videos even come to be, and why had they just randomly shown up at Boruto’s house?
Actually, Sarada and Mitsuki didn’t know that the tapes had just showed up randomly this morning. They probably assumed they were old tapes that had been sitting in their storage room. But, as Boruto peered over at them, giddy with anticipation to watch the tapes, he figured maybe it didn’t matter. They’d have a good time anyway.
Boruto finished cooking the popcorn and poured it in about equal portions into four different bowls. He waved Hima over to help him carry them, and then they all settled down, girls on the couch and boys on the floor, to start tape number one.