Home Sweet Home

Hestia felt quite a chill due to a distress and quick crumble to her domain, and hurriedly went in search for it's deteriorating source. From there she arrived deep into Central Park where she found a young man with blonde hair and tan skin, who is seen to be unconscious; engulfed by a huge pit of fire and was surprisingly unharmed. The goddess easily extinguished it with a flick of her hand. It wasn't only her flames that were abused but also the boy's sense of family. She carefully made her way on her subject, easily getting access into his mindscape. She saw flashes of each struggle in his life and what she saw horrified her, she wouldn't even want to pass that life upon anyone else's. No matter how evil or corrupted today's human race is.

'A boy from another dimension.' From what she'd seen so far, this boy was a warrior for his homeland, fighting to win a war against one tyrant. The memory of their win released so much happiness, but all were quickly replaced by sorrow once Hestia saw the next scene. The boy was losing life along with the family and friends he longed to have. He used up all his power to defeat his enemy, and in the last ditch of effort his partner- A gasp cut off her mind search.

A being... A powerful being created by their Gods used all its power to give his life to its comrade whom she now knew was named Naruto; and from what is left of its power was used to transport the boy from a place unknown to him. The creature died knowing that its partner would live another life before fusing its essence with the mortal. Each memory released a stream of hurt, pain, and sorrow but that boy Naruto always found a way to smile upon all of that.

'Such an admirable strength.'

With a light caress to his forehead, Hestia decided to alter his memory just a little bit. And by a bit, she meant a lot. All those significant moments in his life would stay the same but it would change to match the modern era. From a hidden village to a small village in Japan, ninja school to public school, ninja troops to a military community. All the emotional attachments and developments would stay the same. His skill would be kept, but shall be sealed for safety purposes and will only be summoned in life threatening situations. The boy would not be himself if she changed more.

Naruto would get a life he deserved. With the watchful eye of lady Hestia and her mighty blessing, she would make sure that Naruto would have a guide in his new world.

For now, her discovery would have to be kept in secret and she needed the boy to be taken to a hospital. She easily manipulated the mist around the burnt patches of grass and found the nearest citizen who could call emergency for Naruto. She will not be taking him there herself, because it was still too early for her to be introduced to Naruto. Before flashing away from the scene, she replaced his clothes into a simple t-shirt and black slacks with some dress shoes, also conjuring him a wallet with his new personal information. She moved to step away but paused upon realising that he looked too neat to be injured. With a snap, she altered it, making his clothes look tattered to match his injuries. With the memories she left him, she would have chances to send him new items of necessities.

Naruto woke up to possibly the worst headache of his entire life, partnered with extreme soreness in every muscle in his body. A bright flash of light caught him off guard that made his eyes immediately shut closed. After he gave his eyes a few seconds of rest, his eyes fluttered open to a vision of a plain white room and upon examining his surrounding, he saw a man wearing a white coat with a clipboard in his hands which obviously hinted him being in a hospital. How? He had no fucking clue. Why? Probably because he was being stupid.. Again.

'Way to cause more trouble in your life Naruto.'

"Good morning Mr. Uzumaki, I am doctor Clarkson. I see that you have not had any struggles to move your neck around and I'm assuming that the rest of your body would be fine as well."

Naruto carefully pulled himself up to sit upright with much needed effort than the usual. "For a few days your body will be feeling soreness and you will need to be careful around your torso due to a huge blow on your rib area." The doctor handed Naruto a glass of water which he was grateful for, he needed to quench that thirst. "From what we have seen on your charts, you seem to be have dealt with heavy hits from every corner of your body, areas highlighted are on your ribs, head, and thighs." Dr. Clarkson took the glass from Naruto then placed it on the side table. "Are there any recollection to what happened?"

He shook his head. "Last thing that pops in my mind is Central park in the dark. After that, nothing else."

"I see." Dr. Clarkson wrote that down on his clipboard. "You seem to have been mugged. A nearby citizen saw you on their walk thinking you were dead. Luckily, they called emergency after their shock. They only saw your wallet with you, no cash, no card, only your personal info." He came onto Naruto for a customary check up before he continued. "On your emergency contact was a representative of Hearth Foundation, she came just a few days ago to check on you and to pay your medical bills. Once you're on the clear, you should be good to go."

Naruto was confused but nodded anyway. "That's good." After the quick examination, the doctor left him to rest. "Odd." But the teen just brushed it off with a shrug before going back to sleep.

And just 2 days after waking up, he was discharged and it was as if he was not immobile just days ago. Now he was back in school, as always NYU was filled with students and oddly enough no one looked familiar to him. He sighed, he was used to being alone. 'I guess 18 still wasn't it.' Naruto was comfortably seated in his Art History class, it was quite an odd choice considering he was majoring in Hotel Management, but the subject piqued his interest.

He quietly scanned his notes when he heard someone sit beside him. He turned to the seat beside him.

"Hi!" A cute smile on a very beautiful face got his cheeks blushing light pink.

"Hello." Naruto offered her a handshake. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki, from Japan. Majoring in Hotel Management."

"I'm Danielle La Rue, from Arizona. Dance major." She shook his hand before she leaned into his personal space. "I've never seen you around the university before."

"I don't know, I'm probably extra cool today?"

Now it was Danielle's turn to blush once she saw that cute little grin that brightened up his face. "You're quite silly aren't you?"

With a small smile. "Well, if you're okay with having a silly friend from now on. Then I'm quite fine with it as well."

"I adore silly." Both shared a smile before they turned to the direction of the professor who had just walked in.

He whispered. "So, La Rue? How frenchy."

She teased back. "Uzumaki? How rameny."

"Hey, I resent that. I'm as Japanese as it goes."

She turned and scanned his face. "Hmm. It doesn't look like it, maybe just a little."

"Okay, maybe I'm part Japanese. Or maybe its my made up name and you just don't know it." He confidently had his arms crossed, against his chest, thinking that he had won their short banter.

"You truly are silly." She grinned.

Yup, he lost.

All the excitement from the University exams, friends, and after exam party exhausted him. Naruto was lying on his bed with his arms and legs spread. With a huff, his eyes scanned his room. He smiled because it wasn't as bare as it used to be, it was filled with band posters. Well mostly posters of The Beatles. Several picture frames now hanged on his walls and that made his smile just a tiny bit brighter. Photos of his University friends, also mostly of him and Danielle because why not? She was his first ever friend in New York and probably now cemented as his best friend. But the photo that he loved the most was the photo of him with the arms of Mr. Luka Manfe and Mrs. Eleonora Manfe comfortably placed on each side of his shoulder. They were the elder Italian couple who lived and owned a cafe on the building beside his place. Naruto adored the couple and he would visit them occasionally because he always felt like home around them, they treated him like he was their grandson and he felt like one too.

With a smile still on his face, he got out of his bed to get changed. He put on a plain white cuban collar shirt tucked in a pair of his navy blue formal trousers, partnered by black socks and black ankle boots. Naruto was pretty proud with what he's put up, happy that he was getting better dressing himself up. Although he was still disappointed about letting go of orange but at least he has a wider color preference.

Naruto hurried out of his apartment for a meeting he had scheduled with the head of Hearth Foundation. But before that, he needed to stop by the Manfe's.

He entered their cafe and looked around, it was a slow hour. "Luka? Ellie?"

Eleonora stepped out of their kitchen to greet the young man. "My, don't you look dashing?"

"I am, aren't I?" He brushed his fingers through his hair, failing to tame its wild locks.

"You have a date?" Luka stepped after Eleonora.

"Nah, I'm meeting with the head of the foundation that's funding my schooling."

Eleonora stepped closer to Naruto so she could brush over his shirt. She scanned him from head to toe, and what she saw made her very proud. "Excited?"

"Very. Oh, and nervous." Naruto, out of habit, scratched his cheek. He did that whenever he got nervous. "To this day, I still have no clue why their helping me. I'm not the only orphan with any potential in the city— in the whole country."

Luka stood beside his wife, his hand was now placed on top of Naruto's shoulder. "That's because they saw something special in you son. They see what me and my wife would see in you everyday."

"And what's that?"

"Greatness." The married couple spoke in tandem.

Naruto's eyes quickly filled with tears. "I'm so lucky I have you guys." He pulled both of them into his arms and hugged them real tight. He cried harder when he felt them hug him as tight as he did them.

Once Naruto calmed, Eleonora wiped the tears from his cheek before caressing it. "Well go on, we wouldn't want you to be late."

"Oh yeah." With a big grin on Naruto's face, he quickly made his way for the exit but before he got to the glass doors, he halted. "Oh yeah, if Dani calls your telephone line tell her I won't be available today."

"Sure son."

"Thanks Luka, Thanks Ellie." With a final wave, he left the vicinity.

Naruto was patiently seated on a couch inside a very homey living room. He was instructed to wait inside the living room of this pretty neat mansion. And so far, he loved the atmosphere.

His thoughts were cut off by the sound of the open double doors. He quickly stood from his seat and when he saw the person who entered the room, his initial response was to gawk but he now had more control of his natural idiocy.

In front of him stood a very elegant, definitely gorgeous woman who had her hand reached out to him. Naruto immediately shook her hand. "I hope i did not make you wait too long Naruto."

"Nope, not at all miss—"

"Hester, Hester Hearth. But you can call me Hess."

"Thank you miss Hess, for inviting me to your humble abode and for everything you and your foundation has done for me."

"Oh, it was no problem Naruto. Please have a seat." She gestured at the seat behind him before she sat on the opposing couch. "You have been the best investment this foundation could ever ask for." She finished with a warm smile.

"Thank you again miss Hess. I truly did hope that my progress have not disappointed you."

"I assure you, it hasn't. I've heard the you've planned on opening a French Bistro, is it true?"

"Yes ma'am." He scratched his cheek.

"Please, just call me Hess and there's no need to be nervous around me." She chuckled at his quickly covered cringe. "I'm honestly quite proud of you, your dream is quite admirable."

"Really? Cause I plan to make my French Bistro as homey as your place here. Where families could find comfort in food and in the company of the people around them." He heard another chuckle from the woman in front of him and hoped that he didn't embarrass himself too much.

"Your enthusiasm and gentle heart is what fits this foundation. Tell me, how many years do you have left before graduating?"

"A year and a half, miss Hess."

"Great progress, Mr. Uzumaki. Now, how would you feel if I were to fund your project with an added bonus just to spice things up?"

After that statement, Naruto's jaw literally dropped and if he was in an anime then his jaw would definitely be on the floor. "For real?"

She nodded. "Yes Mr. Uzumaki. I am, as you say, for real." A bright smile was on her face.

"For real, for real?"

Another nod.

With a big grin on his face, he exclaimed. "You're the GOAT miss Hess!"

She only laughed at another display of his enthusiasm. "Goat?"

"Yeah. Ya know, the Greatest. Of. All. Time. You're the real life MJ23."

Laughter filled the room. "I have no idea who or what MJ23 is but I like it, I am the GOAT."

Naruto folded his arms across his chest, and was nodding along with her. "Better believe it."

"Of course I believe it. Oh, and before I forget. Along with funding your project, I would also like you to be in charge of a building, which we will be turning into a hotel that was fortunately out in the market, that would be a part of your bistro." And again, Naruto's jaw dropped. "I wouldn't call you a landlord, per se, you will be its owner and I do hope for you to be involved with its operations."

The silence went on for a full 2 minutes, with Hess anticipating Naruto's reaction and Naruto with his mouth still open.

"So, like an owner, manager, and possibly a cook?"

And again, a nod.

"How would that work, miss Hess?"

"With your leadership. I trust that you will be surrounding yourself with people that you trust and you will be responsible with the workers you hire. Worry not, I will always be here to help. I will also be assigning people to help you. But this is how your establishment would differ from every other hotel in New York City; a certain area of your hotel will also be a housing for orphaned, neglected, and abused children. Children in need of permanent shelter, if they have a guardian left they will also be welcome. Along with your bistro, you will also have a Child Care Center. You can find extra care takers, but you're the one I trust the most to care for those children." With a hopeful look on her face, she continued. "I hope you will find this project of most importance since you yourself could relate to them."

Then came his immediate response. "Of course. How could I say no to that. It is the best job I could ever ask for. Doing a job that I love and doing something that could help?" He flashed a confident grin. "I will do my very best miss Hess." Naruto stretched an arm out her with his thumb up. "I promise, and I never break my promises."

Now she was definitely fascinated by this young man. She was impressed by the type of person that Naruto was. He did not change, even when she altered his memory and changed his life and its future. Yes, and if it wasn't obvious already, Hester Hearth was lady Hestia. Virgin Goddess of the hearth, the right ordering of domesticity, the family, the home, and the state. The goddess knew right then that giving protection and guidance over the young man in front of her would be the greatest decision she will ever make regarding the future and the protection of the children of her siblings, nieces, and nephew's.

When Hess stood up from her seat, Naruto followed suit. Hess walked towards Naruto to give him a warm hug. "I will be holding you to that promise, Naruto." She smiled once more upon feeling him hug her back.

They eventually let go of each other but Hess kept her hand on him. Her hand cupped his cheek. "Whoever your parents were." Her thumb was caressing his soft skin. "They would be really, really proud of you."

I've already written the next chapter and I just wanted to know your thoughts and opinion on this little story. I've been staying at home and enjoying Naruto crossover's lately and I was heavily inspired by some of my favorite stories. One was 'A Father's Love' written by Kyoka Suigetsu Totsuka and 'Dining with Divinity' by SoulReaperCrewe. If you don't already know them, then you should.

Keep safe and always wear your masks in public.

Remember to leave a review,

MadVulcanus