Story Reflections: Naruto Twinverse

[bastion]

This will be a thread of my AU for Naruto where he has a twin sister. Everything will be rough drafts.

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A red ball rolled across the grass, coming to a stop at the feet of a pair of twins. Nanami was quick to pick it up, smiling hopefully as she trotted over to the group of kids it belonged to. Naruto followed close behind, expression pensive.
“Um, here’s your ball,” Nanami held it out nervously. “Could- Could we play with you?”
The request was met with disgust, as one of the kids smacked the ball from her hands. “Ew! I don’t want something you freaks touched!”
The other kids joined in, declaring their own disgust as they left the park. Tears rolled down Nanami’s cheeks as she stared at the ground, silently accepting the abuse. Naruto quickly wrapped her in a hug, anger winning out over pain.
“We don’t need them anyway!” he declared. “We have each other! We don’t need anyone else.”
Nanami swallowed back her tears, clinging to the words like a charm.

It was dark by the time the twins reached their apartment. There was no one waiting for them, no reason for them to rush home. Naruto got the kettle boiling, while Nanami cut some veggies to add to their instant ramen.
“I’m tired of only ever eating ramen,” Nanami grumbled, staring into the cup with blurry eyes. Every night she was forced to smell the variety of meals being cooked in the apartments around them. Just once, she wanted a proper meal. A meal cooked by…
“What do you want to eat then?” Naruto asked. “I’ll make you whatever you want!”
Nanami looked up, blinking her eyes until she could see Naruto clearly. He stared back with unwavering determination.
“Mmm… I want nabe!” Nanami decided, smiling. She didn’t know how to make it herself, or how Naruto would know either for that matter. Still, if Naruto said he’d make it, she was sure he would!

Naruto kept his promise. He always did. He didn’t look happy though, as he presented the nabe to Nanami. She looked over the bowl of burnt ingredients, then at his hands covered in bandages. Tears came to her eyes at the thought of how hard Naruto must have worked, all so she could have this meal.
“Thank you!” she exclaimed, hugging him. “I’m so happy! It’s just like I hoped for!”
“You don’t need to act excited,” Naruto mumbled, looking discouraged. “I know I did a bad job.”
“But I really am happy! You made this for me, even though you’ve never made it before! It’s the special meal my brother made for me! I’m gonna eat now! Thank you for the meal!”
She took a big bite, eating eagerly. Naruto watched doubtfully, worried even.
“It’s delicious!” Nanami declared. Sure, it was burnt, and over seasoned, but that didn’t matter. Each bite filled her heart with warmth.

 

[bastion]

Naruto was used to hearing the hushed voices everywhere he went. What he wasn’t used to, was the comments being directed at someone else. Especially not directed towards another child. But here they were, with most of the eyes on the street turned towards the Uchiha kid. Everyone was talking about the tragedy, about how he was the only one who survived. The thing that really bothered him was how many of the whispers were filled with suspicion.
“What are you staring at?” Nanami asked, backtracking to where Naruto had come to a stop. She adjusted her grip on the bags in her hands, absently blowing her bangs out of her face.
“Nothing!” Naruto hurriedly answered, pulling his gaze away from the Uchiha. It was hardly convincing. Nanami looked in the direction he’d been staring, quickly catching sight of the boy. People were staying clear of him, making Sasuke easy to spot.
“Oh, he’s shopping for dinner too, huh?” Nanami murmured, noticing the bags Sasuke carried. She glanced back at Naruto, who was staring at the Uchiha once more, gaze hesitant. It didn’t take her long to figure out what was on his mind.
“You want to invite him over, don’t you?” she asked, voice knowing.
“What? No way!” Naruto flushed and shook his head furiously. “Why would I? He’d just refuse anyway! Just like everyone else…”
Nanami chewed her lip, considering. They’d given up on reaching out to others years ago. Every time they’d tried, it’d been met with contempt. They’d agreed they only needed each other…
But Sasuke was alone, like them. No, he was alone in a way they could never understand. They’d never had anyone but each other. Sasuke though… he had lost everyone. He had no one.
Determination in her eyes, Nanami strode over to Sasuke. Naruto followed quickly, trying and failing to stop her. He fell silent as they reached the Uchiha, who either hadn’t noticed their approach, or was ignoring them.
“Hey, Uchiha,” Nanami called, voice demanding attention.
Sasuke stopped, looking over his shoulder. His eyes were so lifeless… There wasn’t even pain in them. Just… emptiness.
“What?” was all he said, voice as dead as his eyes.
“You’re eating dinner with us,” Nanami declared, leaving no room for argument. Sasuke argued anyway.
“Why would I do that?” he scoffed. “I don’t need your pity. Just leave me alone-”
“Oh, shut up,” Nanami cut him off. “No one should eat alone. Besides, I bet you don’t even know how to cook. We’ve been doing it for years. Now come on.”
Despite Sasuke’s protests, Nanami grabbed his wrist and began pulling him along. Naruto took hold of his other wrist, laughing a little. There was no stopping Nanami when she decided something. And maybe that was a good thing.

 

[The Great Sage]

I hope you keep doing these because I think they're just as good as actual Naruto episodes. They remind me of the ones from the first season, which are my favourite. Are you gonna take Nanami to the chunin exams eventually?

 

[bastion]

I hope you keep doing these because I think they're just as good as actual Naruto episodes. They remind me of the ones from the first season, which are my favourite. Are you gonna take Nanami to the chunin exams eventually?

Thank you! That's so nice to hear! I'm not sure how far I'll go with this, since it's a matter of inspiration holding out, but ideally I'd write as far as the end of part one.