I OWN NOTHING

Good thing is that my friend and I are having a blast writing this. Sad thing is that we are doing our best without a clear destination other than having fun.

X-X-X-X-X

"So, it's a tie?"

Alix didn't know what else to say after Naruto helped her up without his mask and hood, "Please take it more seriously."

She grinned, "I knew you were hoping I'd forget about it." She winked, "But worry not, since you saved me from being a villain, I can let it slide."

"Thank Ladybug and Cat Noir, you really gave us a hard time." He commented before finding them gone, "Or...wait until you see them next."

"Yeah, but they weren't here right from the start. Actually, aren't you having it too convenient to always get somewhere before a villain arrives?" she questioned with an arched eyebrow to which he replied with both hands held up.

"Frankly, I think I am a magnet for this stuff. Max was trying to make studies about it, too." The intellectual boy in question appeared.

"As I've told you, this has to be the work of a natural force of cosmic origins." He then turned to his friend Kim, "Although, we should put that aside and ask, what about the race? If I may be so bold, the conclusion of this event was rather unlikely to be foretold with such... drama."

"Hey, I get it. I got mad, so that Hawkmoth creep used me." the girl shrugged.

"Point. But I don't feel like doing a rematch." Kim surprised everyone when he said that, "What? I can kinda read the atmosphere. Besides, it was part of my ultimate and smart plan to hook-" he paused when Max made a rapidly repeated motion where he moved his palm horizontally from side to side in front of his neck. "Uh...us into being race buds!"

His smarter friend gave him a thumb up while Alix groaned, rubbing her helmet-covered head, "You know, you make no sense."

"I welcome that, actually." Naruto said with a small smile, "I've never got used to being around others like this, and even if this is odd, it is...nice."

"Yeah, so, Naruto, why don't ya and Alix go ahead and see what to do about that bet between you?" the athlete's words made his best friend slap his face.

"How'd you know that!?" a furious Alix skated to him.

"Uh, you did make another bet?" the red-hoodie wearing boy asked rather baffled, "Did you bet about a date?"

"A free meal for her." Naruto explained, then grumbled, "And I didn't get to decide what to ask of her if I won... Guess I'm glad the race ended this way."

"We could go again." Kim replied with a large smile.

"No." the other two racers and Max shot him down swiftly. The spectacled boy continued, "Kim, we need to study your thought process and how it's linked to your speech as well as discuss it for future reference."

"Max, smaller words." Naruto asked, scratching his head.

"He needs to learn tact." Alix guessed and Max nodded.

The director chose that moment to step in, "Naruto-kun, to the studio! We have to edit this after we call Adrien!"

His grin irked the blond, "Give me a break, I just got kicked around by Alix time-stopping me and a super tough Lunatic with swords."

"And time is gold, and we will make this a golden show!" the director winked, making the four teens before him and those within hearing shot wince.

"I see who taught you the heroic lines." Alix commented.

"Don't remind me..." the blond groaned while rubbing his face, shaking his head into his palm. With a sigh, he moved forward while waving to the others, "See you at school." Then he pulled out his cellphone, making a swift call, "Hey, Adrien, you can guess what will happen since you were at the race."

"Yeah, saw it all from my hiding spot. Yeah, those bushes kept me well-hidden from that Timebreaker... Hehe... yeah..."

"Alright..." Naruto replied slowly to the model's awkward response, "See you at the studio soon."

"Speaking of which, what will we do about Marinette?" the other blond asked, "She won the contest and will be part of the show, right?"

"Only an episode." The blond sighed, "Putting a new actor or actress out of the blue and who may not know how to act can be tricky. Too bad, though. She is cute."

"Hey, if you want me to, I could hook you two up." The model made his action star friend chuckle.

"I like mature women." The model grinned wider at his words.

"Then I'll keep it in mind and dismiss it, you look like you need a girlfriend."

"Please don't." Naruto sighed, but the boy was out of earshot, "Great... I better tell Alya about this when I see her next."

X-X-X-X-X

After editing the episode Dark Star Blade transported Naruto to the park through a portal to fight Timebreaker, everything went smoother. They changed the scene, but it came out well. Naruto was ready to leave, feeling comfortable with Marinette's jacket once again. For a moment he thought of taking Adrien's offer.

"You know, if you like her clothing so much, you could compliment her and use that to get to know her." The model said behind him as both exited the studio.

"Shut it." He replied with a good-natured smile, "As I've said, I have a thing for adult women. It'd be nice to wait for her to grow, though."

"Hey, I'm not judging, everyone has their preferences, but she is cute." The model shrugged and ignored the actor's frown, "Anyway, are you up for a bite?"

"If you stop the idea of pairing me with someone, sure. Where to?"

"You know, Marinette's dad is the best baker in all of Paris, right?" Adrien grinned, and then trembled when Naruto gripped him by his collar, "Hey, we need to give her the news!"

"If you do anything to embarrass me, I'll be mad." he warned him before letting him go.

For her part, Marinette was a girl who'd say talent is what dedication towards something a person loves doing becomes. She loved fashion. Gabriel Agreste was her first inspiration. Famous fashionistas like Junko Enoshima had styles that enraptured her. And Nui Harime herself could be an odd ball, but she loved her work due to its boldness.

However, she had some issues that had her groaning, face down on her desk. Tikki pitied the girl, for it wasn't a personal issue keeping her down. It was something far more realistic and insanely cruel. A budget. Perhaps a pain that many who either had an allowance or a job faced. And Marinette being an enthusiastic amateur designer had a lot of that pain.

"Ugh, I can't believe I blew my allowance already..." she groaned, rubbing her forehead on her desk.

"Wow, I didn't think making Adrien's scarf or Naruto's jacket would've affected you that much." She patted the girl's shoulders.

"I couldn't help myself with that fox design or the faux fur collar..." the girl leant back, her head hanging backwards and looking how everything turned upside down, "Oh well, I can try to tighten my budget. I'll have to cut on the sweets, though. Although, since you run on cookies, maybe I should cut on-"

"Marinette, please, we can try and solve this." The Kwami said gently patting her cheek, "How about finding a job? A simple part-time one."

"That'd be good, but weird. I mean, I go fight villains, so I would need to work my schedule if that doesn't already fire me." closing her eyes as she sunk deeper into a despair that an insane fashionista would've loved to see, she sighed, "I so wish someone would just come and tell me of a simple job."

"Marinette." Her mother called, "Your friend's here, he's asking for you."

"Uh, coming!" she replied and looked at Tikki confused, "Who could it be?"

None other than Naruto and Adrien at the door at the bakery, waving once she came into view, "Hey."

The girl's father chuckled, rubbing his mustache, "You know, if you keep coming so often, I may have to have the talk with you."

"The don't touch your daughter one?" Adrien asked while ruffling his hair.

"Dad!" Marinette exclaimed, beet red.

Marinette's mother replied before her, "Come on, don't embarrass her." She leaned close to her husband, "We'll ask her for details later." She whispered and he nodded before the two left the teenagers alone.

"Hey there!" Alya, as if on cue, had appeared. "Oh, hello handsome." She smiled at Naruto, giving him a brief idea.

Thus, the actor turned to his fellow blond, "Hey Adrien, why not look around and order for me while you're at it? I'm still no good with French cuisine. I need to talk to Alya."

The blogger beamed inwardly, 'Yes!' she pumped a fist while both boys talked to each other, Marinette palming her face when seeing that.

"Uh, sure." The model said while the stuntman quickly had Alya follow him outside.

A quick explanation later... "He's your wingman!?" the spectacled girl exclaimed outside the door.

Naruto shushed her, "Not so loud, but yeah, that's the gist of it." He moved to get away from onlookers. "Adrien offered to help me hook up with her, but you can see the problem. It's why I waited to tell you."

"And you didn't tell Marinette? Good." The blogger let out a relieved sigh, "She'd have freaked out until the end of time."

"Well, he thinks I'm into her, and she's crushing on him. I'm still indifferent and like girls to be more mature..." he trailed off, "Uh, sorry. I don't understand why I say that so often. I mean no offense to you or any young girl."

Alya grinned, "Worry not, I can show you how mature I can be." she grinned coquettishly.

"Please don't, this is already too big of a pain." He resisted the urge to grunt before getting serious. "Any plans?"

"Well..." she gained a catty grin, "Why not let him help you?"

"Wait, did you miss the part where I want nothing to do with this love triangle?" he asked bluntly.

"Yup, and it's why this is a good chance to get them close enough so they can talk and figure out if there's anything." She kept her grin until he frowned. To which the dusky-skinned beauty shrugged, "Hey, we're following your code. We're not forcing them together, just letting them figure out if they want to be."

"Can this day be any weirder?" the blond asked.

As if on cue, a suited man walked into the bakery. Extremely thin, with more limbs than torso. Picturing a rather owlish appearance with his nose, wide eyes, and feathery hair, he approached a table. Looking around like a pigeon trying to find crumbs to eat, he twisted his head from side to side. Bizarre barely described him.

"Good day, sir. How may I serve you?" Marinette's mother asked politely with a wave of the hand.

He looked around from side to side, before he gave them an awkward smile, "Well, I just want to feed the pigeons. They're, well…So nice to me." He said, holding out his hand, one of the eponymous birds landing on his arm to accentuate his point. He petted the creature on his arm, making the woman smile slightly with some effort.

Alya looked at him curiously as she also walked in, "You are Mr. Pigeon then? I've heard a lot about you, that you're one of the most curious residents of Paris."

"I am? Oh! Of course, I am! I'm Xavier Ramier or... Roo! Roo! ROO!" he made a noise, a large number of the flying birds landing on his arms, allowing for him to extend both long lanky arms out, admiring the friendly birds, "Mr. Pigeon too!"

"What?" Naruto asked, baffled for a couple seconds, "That's going to get Mr. Dupain on the health department's bad side... What am I saying!?" he slapped his face before turning to the man, "Listen, sir, if you haven't noticed, this is a bakery. I don't think they allow pets just like that."

"Oh well." The man said, slumping his shoulders which the birds took as their cue to fly off.

Feeling guilty, Naruto ruffled his hair, "Do you want to wait outside while I get you what you want?" the blond asked politely.

"In that case, can I get some of your best bread?" the odd man said with a smile, a hand extended as if expecting the boy to hand a loaf to him.

"As long as you're paying...wait, I don't work here." Naruto replied rather tiredly, he felt exhausted talking to the strange man.

"Thank you, dear boy." Xavier said with a genuine smile.

After that odd event, everything went smoothly and without any bigger moments. "What was that about?" Naruto asked the resident Parisians, Adrien answering.

"Oh, Mr. Ramier is just a lonely man whose only company seem to be the pigeons of Paris." He was genuinely sad, "A pity. Sure, he's rather unusual, but he cannot be considered a bad person or someone with an unhealthy habit."

Nodding, the whiskered blond replied, "Everyone deals with loneliness however they can. Better to be alone than with bad company, or having people whisper behind your back..." he stared into space, then rubbed the back of his head, "Where did that come from?"

"Are you alright?" Marinette grew concerned.

"Yeah...I just need to gather my thoughts a bit." The blond replied.

"And we have some good news," Adrien added, "which Naruto will tell you."

"Why you..." Naruto grumbled under his breath until forcing himself to regain his composure, "Fine. Marinette, are you interested in making a bit of cash?"

"Am I!" the girl exclaimed.

"Good, we could use a designer like you." Naruto said.

"W-WHAT!?" she exclaimed, stepping back. "You mean...Actually working with...you guys?" she blushed at the possibilities.

"Sure, I'd love to see more of you, as would Naruto." Adrien added with a smile, irking his friend.

'This will be a pain in the ass.' He groaned inwardly before putting on a straight face, "Kaguya-san wants to talk to you, if you don't mind."

"Oh, well, can it...wait? It's a bit sudden." The girl said shyly.

"Of course, no rush, just...can we get something to eat? I am hungry." The whiskered boy said, making the others chuckle.

X-X-X-X-X

Another day, and people did their best to move forward.

"Alright, I need to find Adrien, drag Marinette, and get them to talk." Naruto sighed to himself after classes before heading to see the girl, pulling out his cellphone. "Yo, Marinette, I have a couple things I'd like to talk to you about, if you don't mind seeing me."

As for the model, he remained at the school, "Everything to look good in camera, huh?" Adrien asked himself, pulling his fencing helmet out of his locker.

"Come along, boy. Your father is paying for this to help that show, right?" his teacher, Armand D'Argencourt asked.

"Yes sir." The model exited the locker room to see the man waiting for him, holding his own foil.

Adrien pulled out his own, donned his mask, and got into a stance. Both bowed, then readied themselves, and Naruto arrived, pushing a nervous Marinette forward. Both his hands were on the pigtailed girl's shoulders to keep her from leaving. She didn't make it easy, for he had to drag her with her feet skidding on the ground. But it was still easy.

"Why didn't you say we'd see him!?" she asked, uselessly fighting back.

"Because I knew you'd try to run away." He said as the match began.

Holding her in place, they watched the match start with the teacher yelling, "Now, begin!" and from there, some artistic fencing took place.

Adrien stepped forward, starting with a series of thrusts and swings of his foil. The teacher showed why he was the master by parrying and deflecting them before forcing the model back. A series of quick, lightning fast strikes that pushed the blond fencer back until the more experienced fighter extended his arms to his sides, welcoming an attack.

Naively, Adrien took the invitation and attacked, only for the man to put his sword behind his back, spinning around to capture Adrien's foil with it. The defenseless green-eyed boy saw his foil be taken from his hand before he was put on the floor. His opponent's weapon was aimed right at his face to keep him from moving, signaling the victor.

Observing their moves carefully, Naruto grew wide-eyed, "That's rad!" Keeping Marinette in place, he saw himself using those moves in his mind.

Using the sword Kaguya gave him, he'd take a simple stance. Legs spread with the left one forward, body hunched over, and his right hand on the chokuto's handle, keeping it on its sheath. Quickly, he'd take out the blade, slashing twice before stabbing, then a side kick to push his opponent forward, and then spin to them with a rising slash then sheathe it.

"Who are you!?" Mr. D'Argencourt yelled at them.

Naruto replied, "We're friends of Adrien and his co-workers."

"Hi." Marinette waved awkwardly at them.

"Fair enough, I guess Adrien can use his break to talk to you." The teacher said, turning to the boy who nodded.

"Sure, I don't mind. So, how did things go on that contract?" Adrien asked.

Marinette blurted the first thing that came to mind, "It'll be done when I feel ready, and I'm not ready, so-" she was saved further embarrassment when being cut off.

"We have to talk." Naruto said, firmly holding the girl in place.

Moments later, everything went rather smoothly outside the school.

"So, you're interested in another guy?" Adrien asked the madly blushing girl.

"Y-yeah, as Naruto just said, I am not into him. Sorry for making you think otherwise."

"No, it was my bad!" Adrien exclaimed, "Ugh, I really wanted to help him for being a good friend and get him a girlfriend. Had I known, I wouldn't have said anything. Back to square one I guess." Naruto immediately pulled him up by his collar.

"Do not." He glared at the model, making him break in a nervous sweat.

"Ok, ok, I won't! I swear I'll only do so if you ask for help!" the Parisian blond felt like he was pleading for his life.

Ruffling his spiky hairdo, Naruto let out a sigh of relief, "Good enough. Now, how about you two do me a favor and don't involve me in anything crazy. I feel like the world has given me enough reasons to think I attract trouble."

As if on cue, they noted Xavier walking by, looking dejected as he sat on a bench. He still had the paper bag with the loaf of bread he got and a whistle he looked at. None of the kids could help it when they approached the man. Perhaps it was their sense of justice, but they could see something would be wrong. Others had a sense of injustice.

"Hey, it's the creep always feeding those flying rats!" a punk shouted, aiming a finger at the sad Xavier, scaring the pigeons that had approached the man.

"Ah, wait!" Xavier called out to his birds, but the punks surrounded him.

"Hey, you think it's funny that they leave their crap all around the parks?" one of them asked, annoyed.

"Oh, it's you guys again." Naruto noted they were the same punks he dealt with on a regular basis.

"W-What!? Max's bodyguard!?" they cried as Naruto walked past a trash can, pulling out a broken umbrella.

"I know you guys like to fight me, so here's the deal. Leave now, and I won't try my new moves on you." He hefted the parasol, which was basically a cane, on his shoulder. Using his new stance, he waited for a response.

"Joke's on you, we got weapons too!" one shouted, pulling out a baseball bat.

"Naruto, are you sure?" Marinette asked.

"Let's see if they learn now." The blond said.

Dashing forward, he pulled the umbrella from his back, holding it with both hands to stab the punk on the stomach. The thug grunted and didn't get time to reply before a foot sunk in his gut to throw him down. The batter swung his weapon down, which Naruto sidestepped, smacking him on both sides of the torso as if he were slashing him.

To finish the batman up, Naruto jumped up, spinning around to kick him with his heel slamming on the thug's jaw. A third one approached Naruto from behind, holding a lead pipe. Reacting on instinct, Naruto brought up his weapon, stopping and deflecting the blow. Turning around, he kicked the punk to send him back, and spun forward for a rising slash.

"Oh come on! What kind of monster are you!?" the other delinquents asked, backing away.

"One who deals with the kind of monsters attacking anyone who doesn't want a fight." Naruto replied, "Come near the man again, and we'll see if I can use a real sword."

"Ah!" they exclaimed-gasped at the same time, running off, "W-We'll remember this!"

"Ok... that was awesome..." Adrien said, awed.

"Indeed." Marinette agreed, equally surprised.

"I...kinda expected a bigger reaction from you two." Naruto admitted.

Then again, having fought with him already, they figured he'd do something like that. Who was really amazed was the pigeon man, "Thank you! Thank you, kind young boy!" as he said that, Xavier grabbed Naruto's hand in both of his and shook them energetically, nearly undressing Naruto with the speed.

"Y-You're welcome, now give me back my hand!" the blond yelped, finally free and slightly dizzy.

"Ah, I knew you were a kind man when I saw you. My pigeons were at ease around you!" Xavier smiled, reaching into his pocket to hand Naruto something, "Here, take it as a token of my appreciation."

"Are you sure?" Naruto asked, dumbfounded.

"It's the least I can do." Xavier said as Naruto took a wooden whistle similar to his, "Use it to make friends with pigeons. Every now and again, they may find odd treasure and bring it to you. Aren't they just the friendliest birds?"

"Uh, sure..." the three teens awkwardly replied.

With that, the pigeon man waved goodbye and left, "What a weird guy. But I think my break's over." Adrien said.

"You." Mr. D'Argencourt said, aiming his foil at Naruto, "You go to this school, right? If so, welcome to the fencing team."

"Wait, where's the part when I agreed to that?" Naruto retorted, justified in his confusion.

"Your form's sloppy at best, even if your technique shows talent. Come see me so we can polish you and see if you're a diamond in the rough." With that, the teacher left.

Adrien sighed as he put his helmet back on, "Well, wish me luck guys. See you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Marinette asked, then panicked, "Oh no, the new episode!"

Naruto was taken back, "You remembered just now!?"

X-X-X-X-X

The next day at the studio, things were interesting.

The subject of today's shoot was one that Marinette had won for her costume design being the one chosen. She got to participate in the episode, being the subject of Dark Star Blade's focus. It meant that she got to be up close and personal to her (not so) secret crush and someone she was rapidly seeing as a truly wonderful friend and comrade.

"DARK STAR BLADE! UNHAND HER! That maiden's Pure Heart is not some object you can steal and play with!" her job as it stood was originally to just act out a bit part and scream. When the director saw how cute she was, and how she unintentionally was a genuinely good actor when not scripted, she could go a bit nuts with her lines.

Rapidly ascending to a more important role than just a mere bit part, she was now the star of the current two-part episode. She had replaced the former actress who hadn't been able to make it to shooting from Japan in the time necessary. Naruto kindly used some of his pay to compensate her, much to Kaguya's surprise and jealousy. Speaking of...

"Hahaha…! And lose the most potent Pure Heart I've discovered up to this point?! Never! I will gain this power for the Shadow Moon Queen! And not even your new gear will stop me, Steel Ninja White Fox!" Naruto dashed right towards him.

Marinette dangled from Dark Star Blade's right arm as he made to extract something from her chest. On the special effect guy's laptop, he was animating the CGI of a glowing pink and white light in the shape of a heart raising from Marinette's unconscious body.

"Then! I'll just surpass you, and keep racing towards that far off horizon where peace can last!" Naruto yelled, flipping skyward, and whirling around like a top! Dark Star Blade dropped Marinette, and held out his hand as he summoned forth the Fallen Sun Sword!

"You will never defeat me, Fox!" Dark Star yelled, blocking a powerful kick from Naruto! The special effects guy was having a field day. He animated a massive Fox's head with nine tails spiraling around it in a drill emerging from Naruto's leg. Fallen Sun emitted a dark beam of energy that was pushed back by the kick!

"I'll save Hikari-san, then bring down Shadow Moon Queen! Take this Dark Star Blade! My ultimate technique! Steel Ninja Secret Art: Nine Tails White Album… KICK!"

He pierced the dark beam, shooting through Adrien, landing on the opposite side. The special effects went off at that exact moment. Timed explosions had Dark Star Blade stumble back, cracks appeared over his armor before Adrien's face could be seen from the confines of his mask!

"My…My Lady Shadow Moon Queen. I have, I have…! GAHHHHHH!" his scream as he exploded into dark energy was the stuff of legends. Naruto slowly got up, panting while he struggled to Marinette's limp form.

"That's quite more than enough, my dear White Fox~!" An ominous voice was heard.

A dark explosion shot up as a rip in time appeared when the Shadow Moon Queen stepped out in full form. Having stepped out from behind a large screen that blended through the background. Marinette weakly got her head up as she saw Naruto facing the Shadow Moon Queen at long last!

"AND CUT! THAT'S A WRAP PEOPLE!" The director shouted with a huge grin. "Kaguya-sama, I really appreciate you doing this role on short notice! I mean, whew, it's been hard getting our female actresses back home over here!"

Naruto sighed as he pulled down his mask and Adrien relaxed on a chair with a water bottle in hand. Kaguya took off her own mask, she and her charge were more alike than they thought as they sighed in synchronization. Naruto sat on an armchair, Kaguya sat near him with her hand on his arm, gently holding it while he rubbed the back of his blond hair.

"We should be filming the next few episodes in rapid sequence, Kaguya-san. Sorry for this…" he apologized to his adoptive mother figure and boss.

She in response merely gave him a genuine smile, "It is of no great trouble, my dear boy. I'm glad to aid you, and I'm interested in acting for the show, it makes me feel like a young woman again! Ohohoho…" she gave off a cultured laugh, making Naruto grin up at her.

'She's a lot prettier than I thought.' Marinette thought with a blush and slight envy of her figure.

"You're barely a day over twenty in my eyes Kaguya-san, you're as pretty as I remember you being when I was just a kid and living with you…that came off wrong..." he blushed beet red while she gave off another cultured laugh.

"Ohohoho! Naruto-kun, you know I'm happy to be complimented by a man as young and handsome as you! I stand by my previous offer; my door and my home are your home. I miss having you live with me, and I'm worried you're not eating right." Her voice was as soft and kind as ever.

Naruto smiled slightly, "I'm…I'm fine Kaguya-san, I'm sorry for worrying you."

"Now..." she turned to Marinette, who was drinking from her own bottle, slightly fidgeting on a corner, "My dear, why don't you come over here?"

"I'm good, thank you!" the girl blurted out.

"I insist, after all, you agreed to that contract." Kaguya wouldn't take no for an answer, she patted a nearby seat.

"Ah... Alright." The girl said finally and stood before them, still nervous.

"Such a talented young lady." Kaguya said, getting the poor Eurasian maiden to blush harder than usual, "Made my charge's favorite jacket, won admiration from my associates, and you even possess true beauty." Her hand caressed the girl's cheek, getting her heartbeat to sky-rocket.

Immediately, Marinette pulled away, "N-No need for the praises! I'm t-trying my best! It's a wonder I haven't messed up yet!" she blurted out, feeling an odd electric shock from the touch. Almost as if her body and the woman before her repelled each other.

"You're also in good enough shape to endure this." Kaguya started, "My dear child really finds the most extraordinary people."

"Take the compliments or she'll keep going until you accept them." Naruto said with a small smile, not a mocking one but a good-spirited one.

"Well, thanks, although I still have a long way to go..." Marinette was the good artist that always saw room for improvement.

"And modest too." She stood up, towering over the girl. Kaguya smiled softly while caressing the petite Parisian heroine's head, getting her to blush. And yet, that odd electric shock remained, and the woman felt it. "I will keep my eye on you, Marinette-chan. You're welcome here with my arms open."

"Thank you..." the girl squeaked.

"I am glad I could talk to you, but sadly I must leave." Kaguya sighed sadly and moved forward, "Take care, all of you."

Adrien, who had been silently watching, spoke up, "She certainly tries to leave an impression...I still have to decide if it's good or bad."

"She tries." Naruto offered as if it were a consolation.

"At least I can see she got where she is by being herself." Marinette said. "Odd...I kind of envy her now. That confidence of hers is terrifying and aweing."

"Well, I know of someone who didn't have such confidence but helped us a lot." Adrien commented, "We owe you one, Marinette."

"Thanks!" she squeaked instantly, blushing again.

Patting her shoulder to calm her down, Naruto spoke up, "Just try to loosen up. Everyone here isn't too much of a diva like other TV stations."

"Not too much?" both his friends asked.

Naruto aimed at the director, the small pudgy man was enough of an answer, getting an understanding "Oh" from the two Parisians.

X-X-X-X-X

Another day at school, and Naruto groaned as he slammed his head on his locker.

"Bad day?" a classmate, a red-haired boy with a gray jacket, a dark orange shirt and purple pants called Nathaniel, asked.

"We have to make a hat." Naruto grumbled, "I don't know the first thing about knitting."

"I know a thing or two about drawing, so maybe I can give you a hand." The boy offered.

"Are you sure?" Naruto asked, turning to the artist.

He knew something was up when Nathaniel seemed to jolt slightly, "Yeah, I just, uh-"

"Need some help?" he interrupted him, "Yeah, I kinda figured you'd say that."

"Not so loud!" the boy whisper-shouted, trying to shush him with the finger-on-lips sign.

"Alright, what's the matter?" Naruto asked, getting slightly impatient.

"Can you come over?" the blond did as told, and both ended at an alley outside school, "So, uh, you know people, right?"

"If you're going to ask for me to vouch for you, I don't even know what to say." The blond grumbled, holding his head, "Listen, I get it that you want your designs to be seen by every person under the sun, but-"

"No, not that!" Nathaniel snapped, ruffling his hair, "I...I don't want to make this awkward, but..."

He opened a sketchbook, filled to the brim with drawings of, "Marinette?" to say Naruto was baffled was an understatement, he nearly jumped out of his skin at the revelation. No thought crossed his mind, his brain just stopped for a bit.

"I...I have never seen such a great girl, and you know her well..." Nathaniel blushed, "See, I find her not only beautiful, but virtuous, kind, generous, a bit clumsy but always meaning well. She's a great girl. But I, um, well, I'm me."

Something snapped in Naruto, whose finger was aimed at the redhead's face, "First off, lose the defeatist attitude!"

"Y-Yes!" he yelped.

"Secondly, explain loud and clear. I hate it when people already moan and whine how they can't do a thing without even trying!"

"Alright...?" the artist questioned slightly perplexed by the change in attitude. "Uh, Marinette is amazing, we can agree on that, right? Which is why, since you seem to talk to her, I, well, I..." he gulped, but finally came out clean, "I would like to know how to approach such a girl without fear!"

Naruto nodded slowly, "Ok, what makes me – a random punk for all you know – the best option?"

"Please, you're capable of talking to people so bluntly, it's no wonder a few girls at our class are interested in you!" Nathaniel's burst gave the blond pause.

"Wait, hold up, what girls?" his question made the redhead grin.

"Help me and I'll tell you." The artist said with a large grin.

Glaring, Naruto aimed a finger to his face, "You know that if you're lying I can and will break your bones." The nervous glance the boy in love gave him said it all, "Oh come on, at the very least make it convincing!" shaking his head angrily, he replied with, "But, fine, I'll help you. If you're idiotic enough to lie to me, you'd put yourself in danger for that girl."

Nathaniel was ecstatic, "Really!? I owe you big time!"

"However!" Naruto cut the joy short with another finger up and aimed at the Parisian artist's face, "Let me make this clear, if you think this is a freebie, you're sorely mistaken. Your ass is mine for that little stunt trying to pull a fast one on me."

"I... Alright..." Nathaniel nodded. "I'll think of something for the design and you can add your thoughts. We can make this hat together." Then he rubbed his hands nervously, "But I, uh, would appreciate ideas on how to talk to her."

Taking a deep breath, Naruto looked at the time and sighed, "Well, if you wanna talk to her, I guess I'm not breaking my code. I hope she's not too busy with that project." And as he said that, he noticed Sabrina giggling as she followed Marinette closely. "Ok, that's odd."

"So, when do we start?" Nathaniel asked, taking him out of his thoughts.

Later that day, at the Dupain-Cheng household, Marinette was having some trouble.

"Where is it?! Where is it?!" She was rushing from drawer to drawer, panicking as no matter where she looked, she couldn't find her sketchbook, the one that she kept as a frame of reference towards her fashion designing, specifically the ones that related to Naruto and Adrien's costume designs.

She had been busy sketching up a 'power-up' form for Dark Star. The script that she had been given stated that Adrien would become a redeemed hero, following his defeat and the character revelation towards his past. As she had unknowingly become the principal designer for their clothes and costumes, much to her shock.

She was also being paid! Her mother and father were accepting checks and placing them into an account that she could access when she came of age. She had a spare copy, which she always made sure to back up and hid very carefully, but that note book was still hers!

"Tiki, have you seen it?" She asked her companion, the little Ladybug Kwami frowning as she looked around her companion's room.

"I'm sorry Marinette, but I haven't! It's so confusing, wherever could it be though?"

"Argh, did someone take it? Mom and dad don't throw any of my stuff since it could be used for later." She was about to bite her nails when, suddenly, she got a call.

"Alya here with some rat in my hands." Her friend said after Marinette answered, "I was just about to go check on you for tips on how to make a hat, but guess who I found not too far off with something yours? Here's a hint, she's slaving herself to the nastiest bee in Paris."

Marinette was in shock, "Sabrina would steal? I never thought Chloe would make her sink so low."

"I did, so, I've followed them to the hotel." The spectacled blogger said, "Seeing as it's a matter of time before they try to make your stuff Chloe's, I've had a plan of my own."

"Alya, you're the best, I'll be right there." The Eurasian girl grinned with determination, "Tikki, I know it'll be selfish, but a theft is something Ladybug would stop."

"Agreed." The Kwami nodded, cheeks puffed in anger, "Time for some payback." Quickly transforming into Ladybug, the two made their way to Alya, who was in front of Paris' best hotel. Owned by the mayor, Chloe's father. After dropping in a random alleyway without drawing attention, Marinette walked out as herself to meet her best friend.

"Good to see you, they're at her suite." Alya told the pigtailed girl.

Marinette nodded and cracked her knuckles, "Right, we'll sneak in and-"

"No need for that, I called for reinforcements." The spectacled blogger beamed.

"Who...?" as if in a theatrical play, Naruto and Nathaniel appeared, the redhead tagging close behind the blond.

Alya stared at them, tilting her head to the side, "Um, I called for one knight with shining hair, not two."

"What're you..." Naruto started until noticing a presence, then turned to Nathaniel, "...doing here?"

"I heard the phone call about how Marinette needed help, so I wanted to lend a hand." The redhead blushed slightly.

"That's sweet, Nathaniel, but I think I see Alya's plan now." Marinette started, nodding to her friend with a smile, "Chloe's not interested in Naruto as much as she's interested in Adrien, but she's got a weakness: her pride."

Alya held up her palm, "Meaning Naruto telling her he's thinking of adding her to his show, let her see Adrien, and such simple things would get him to her suite easy." Marinette's hand met hers in a high-five while Naruto and Nathaniel were surprised at the plan.

Until one of them thought some more, "Wait, won't it be suspicious if it's only Naruto?" Nathaniel commented, "Chloe could overlook it, but Sabrina could point out how unofficial it'd be without a manager or that tall lady producer of his."

"Shoot..." Marinette bit her bottom lip, "If only we had..." an idea hit her as she then looked at Nathaniel, "Say, what size are you?"

"Beg pardon?" the redhead had the wheels turning in his head, "Wait, you mean you want me to pose as..."

"I'd need a reference to make you look like a producer or manager." Marinette added as she turned to the only blond in the group.

"I see..." Naruto commented as he smirked. "I got the perfect producer/manager look for Nathaniel, then. You'll look like a male Chloe, though."

The redhead winced, but ended up nodding, "Ugh, well, if it helps Marinette..."

"Thank you." The girl said with a sweet smile.

X-X-X-X-X

As Naruto and the girls prepared Nathaniel, Hawkmoth felt a dark aura from Paris. Xavier Ramier, the Pigeon Man, was looking down at his whistle after none other than the face of Paris' police force, officer Roger, had banned him from another park. And as he held his whistle with a miserable look on his face, the Shadow Moon Queen appeared.

"Did you call for me, Hawkmoth?" she asked casually with a hand on her hip.

The dark masked man let out a deep, humored chuckle through his nose, "Indeed. Making villains is quite a thrill when I can grant them desires. Blame the inner child in me who loved old-fashioned cartoons of those whose silly wishes drove them forward. Ah, but I am rambling."

"I find your company entertaining, so don't mind me." she said politely, 'After all, it gives me material for the show... I'll have to tweak this conversation.'

"And this one man enjoys the company of his precious birds yet is deprived of being around them." The villain held up his hand for one of his butterflies to land on his opened palm, "For that, I shall grant him control over them. A veritable army. What would you be pleased to gift him with?"

"A perfect way of protecting his soldiers and fight alongside them." She cackled and snapped her fingers, a dark blob flying into the butterfly's body.

Our heroes were on their own little adventure after exiting a small shop.

"I feel like a pretentious golf player." Nathaniel commented as he checked the pink sweater tied around his shoulders like a cape over a blue shirt and a pair of red slacks. For more pretentiousness, he was given a white trilby hat, aviator sunglasses, and a fake set of gold rings.

"Yeah, that's the look." Naruto replied and ruffled his hair, "Sorry for putting you through this."

"Hey, we're helping Marinette." The redhead retorted energetically.

"And I couldn't thank you enough." She said with a grateful smile.

"You're more than welcome, but, uh, what do I do?" Nathaniel was already starting to feel nervous.

"Fluff job's what." Naruto replied, "Producers don't really do much but prance around and look important. Anyone can do their job. Kaguya-san being my manager gives her more to do than kill time... Don't tell her I said that." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"My lips are sealed, champ." Alya told him and pointed up to the hotel, "Suite's at the top, make sure to look important."

"Alright." Nathaniel gulped but did as told, straightening his back unnaturally.

"Let's get this over with..." Naruto sighed.

Once inside, after meeting Chloe's butler, there was a few minutes of waiting, "Finally, you see talent!" Sure enough, just as predicted, Chloe exited the elevator with Sabrina close behind. Nathaniel tried to hide his face by tilting down his trilby hat and gulped. Naruto put on a fake, charming smile Kaguya helped him to practice for promotions.

"It'll be something simple." Naruto lied, "See, we could use someone like you with your connections for a shoot, so this friend of Kaguya-san's is here to help."

"Nice to meet you..." Nathaniel said with a forcefully deeper voice.

"Wait, you don't sound Japanese, like, at all." Chloe narrowed her eyes, "Aren't all your producers from that little island?"

Nathaniel then blurted out his words, surprising Naruto, "Um, you see, I'm a new guy from here, France. I've been a fan of superheroes and wanted to join in. Sadly, I travel a lot to aid in other studios, so you've probably not heard of me since this is my first big gig!"

Chloe beamed, "Are you for real!? Oh, we so gotta talk about putting this face on that show of yours! Sabrina's told me it's gaining popularity around our countries! We shouldn't do them injustice and deprive them of...all this!" she dramatically motioned to her body and face.

"Gag me." Alya grunted from her hiding spot.

"We'd like to talk more in private. You know, avoid spoilers and all that." Naruto continued, nodding to Nathaniel.

"Sure, Sabrina, please clear the suite as fast as you can." Chloe told her lackey, who quickly nodded and ran off.

'Shoot!' Naruto and Nathaniel thought, fearing the book would be lost.

Until Nathaniel had an idea, "A-actually, I could talk about some details here while Naruto goes to...get some air?" he grinned awkwardly at the blond, who nodded back.

"Yeah, I am a bit under the weather, just tell me where the restrooms are, and you can talk stardom." He looked at Sabrina get into the elevator.

Worry was barely kept at bay on the two boy's faces until Chloe agreed, "Sure, freshen up. Mr. Big Shot and I have a lot to talk about my shining future."

"I feel so bad for Nathaniel right now." Marinette winced as she saw the poor artist get dragged by Chloe for a good talk of her perfection.

"Sacrifices are needed." Alya told her, rubbing her shoulder with a hand.

Of course, Naruto wasn't in need to take a leak, "Just a couple dozen floors, right?" he said as he looked at the elevator go up and then at the stairs. Deciding that'd take too much of the precious time he couldn't lose, he jumped out through one of the bathroom's windows. Once on the streets, he looked up and started to climb like a human spider.

"Not how I expected to spend this evening." Naruto groaned as he leapt from alley wall to wall, gaining enough height and momentum to reach one of the drain pipes. Climbing and ignoring how dangerous everything was, he hurried to the last floor and got to the balcony while some Parisians had gathered to watch him.

"What's that noise?" Chloe asked and was about to exit the lobby, but Nathaniel stepped in front of her hurriedly.

"Wait, we still need to discuss, um, what part would you like to play?" he chuckled sheepishly, "We, uh, want you to be yourself, but we could do more..."

"Like making me a hero or a new start?" Chloe's eyes sparkled.

Alya and Marinette for their part were on metaphorical pins and needles from the tension of seeing Naruto climb, "I know he's a pro, but I'm starting to feel vertigo." The blogger's hands shook as she filmed the whiskered actor while Marinette bit her thumb.

"Made it." The blond grunted as he arrived to the penthouse's balcony, opened it, and found Sabrina.

"Are you here to check on something? If it's Chloe's good side, I've got a collection of perfect selfies for-" she went to grab her phone from her back, but accidentally dropped what he had been looking for. Judging by the design and catching a glimpse of the name, he recognized it as Marinette's sketchbook.

"I'll be taking that." He told her and moved forward, but Sabrina grabbed the sketchbook before he could get it.

"No way, you'll have to pry it off my dead hands!" she exclaimed, hugging it to her chest.

"Listen, why do you even follow Chloe?" the blond asked, ruffling his spiky hairdo, "All that abuse? Geesh, my first and last ex wasn't as bad, and I don't even recall her name." as he tried to, memories got foggier and he'd chalk it to the relationship being that rotten. Truly a woman obsessed was terrifyingly manipulative, which described Kaguya perfectly.

"Oh, but I am her only friend and she even lets me have cool stuff and accompany her to great places." Sabrina smiled either obliviously or devotedly.

"For crying out... What are you, gay for her?" he had to ask that. The result surprised him when Sabrina blushed a bright red and averted her eyes from his. Naruto's mouth hung limp at that. Everything made too much sense afterwards. Either Sabrina was really obsessed or she was a masochist, which just baffled him more.

"Um, no..." she lied awfully.

Rubbing his face with a hand, the blond waved the other, "Listen, I couldn't care less what someone likes or dislikes unless they do something to harm others. Right now, you're taking something from Marinette. Whatever your reasons are, robbing someone who has done nothing to you is nothing I stay idle for."

"But Chloe is the only one who'd associate with me." Sabrina argued.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Naruto came up with a simple idea: blackmail, "Okay, how does this sound? I've already climbed up to get this sketchbook, so I will keep your secret if you hand it over and Chloe will only know we took it back without you even knowing. That way, she won't blame you and Marinette's happy."

"Ugh, you've driven a hard bargain..." she extended her arms and he calmly took the book.

"Alright, now I'll..." he was about to leave, but saw the redhead tear up, lower lip trembling, 'Oh for the love of... I'll hate myself for this.' He turned to her and sighed, "Do you want to please her that badly?"

"I know my place since I was little, I'm not attractive, or social savvy, or normal." Sabrina listed with a hand's fingers, "Serving Chloe is the only way I've been useful without people telling me to stay away. And even when she does, she calls me back."

'Dammit, woman, you're getting yourself in an abusive relationship!' he cursed and then took a deep breath, "Alright...I'll just...see if I can give you a hand with this." He used both hands to rub his face as he said that, "Again, I don't care about what you do with your life so long as you don't harm anyone, including yourself."

"Y-you mean it...?" she asked, lips quivering.

"I'll kick my own ass if I don't." he grumbled out, "Better that than letting you be a puppet."

"Oh, thank you!" she was about to hug him, but he placed a hand on her forehead to keep her at bay.

"Just so you know, this isn't free. You'll have to realize by yourself if you truly want this, because if you end alone, I'm out." He told her firmly, to which she stepped back to salute him, making the blond regret his life choices even more. 'Why did Kaguya-san force me to be nice to all girls?' he asked himself before going down the same way he ascended.

"You made it!" Marinette cheered, hugging him.

"It was a pain, but yeah, here it is." He told her and then winced, "Now comes the hard part, taking out Nathaniel."

"Um, no need, he saw us." Alya pointed to the running redhead.

"Freedom!" he chanted as he stopped in front of them, bending over with his hands holding Naruto's shoulders, shaking him, "Tell me you got the book, I can't take another second of Chloe's plans to first be a disciple of yours only to then take the spotlight and be better than Ladybug and Cat Noir!"

"W-we did, now let me go before I puke!" the blond exclaimed.

"Thank goodness, I convinced Chloe I needed fresh air, now let's get out of here!" Nathaniel was basically begging.

"Over here." Naruto hurried them.

As they ran, they stopped at the local park, panting weakly, the group looked around in mutual confusion. The pigeons were flying about, scattering when they saw an overweight but ultimately well-meaning police officer blowing a whistle and running about. Marinette gave a cute little gasp, picking up a small feather with an awestruck expression.

"This is just what I needed to complete my design! Naruto, you chose the right place to come to!"

He turned to face her, looking surprised at her happy little smile, she was stupidly cute as she stuffed the feather into her book, nodding happily, "Glad to help you." He did his level best to keep a blush off his face. When the Eurasian girl wanted, she could be a perfect girlfriend in terms of personality and appearance.

"Hey! What are you kids doing here? The park will close in an hour! I'm just getting rid of these dratted pigeons, they're all over the place thanks to him!" The police officer pointed at Xavier Ramier, the man lowered his head with a sad expression, preparing to get up and leave.

"Mr. Ramier, you alright?" Naruto hated when people he knew were upset, and the man had been nothing but polite to him when they had met prior to this.

The pigeon-loving man looked up and gave Naruto a sad little wave and a smile that looked to be forced, "Oh, I've been better. I could always be better. But you look like you've got your hands busy, so I don't want to trouble you…" His shoulders were slumped and his expression downcast as he slowly walked out of the park.

The police officer huffed in anger, "Don't let me catch you feeding those sky-rats again! You'll attract them to the park and then they'll become a nuisance!"

Marinette's smile turned to a frown as Ayla rubbed the back of her arm with a grimace, "C'mon, officer Roger. Give Mr. Ramier a break! He's not a bad guy, what's him feeding the pigeons going to do anyway?"

"Attract more, increase the budget for cleaning parks and monuments and also-" the officer started to rant, not noticing a butterfly passing by.

X-X-X-X-X

Far and away, a window opened up and shone down light on a room full of butterflies. Rising up from his platform, Hawkmoth had his eyes closed just as an eclipse formed. Shadow Moon Queen stepped out elegantly with the two giving their respective comrade a nod. Their conversation from before had been the set up they needed to get the creative juices flowing. Even though she had been present before, something had needed her attention. Thus, the Shadow Moon Queen had left his company for half a second.

"At last! A poor innocent man, simply wishing to spend time with his beloved friends, outcast once more from the sanctum and company he so desires! Enough to put a tear to my eye!" He wiped said tear from his eyehole with a sigh, before he gripped his cane once the butterfly landed on Mr. Ramier's shoulder.

A butterfly mask appeared in front of his face, as Mr. Ramier's face became cast in a disturbing light, "Ah, the desire for those you love, how I sympathize." Shadow Moon Queen let a genuine smile show on her face, which turned wicked as her partner continued.

"Mr. Pigeon! I am Hawkmoth! Your humble ally in this battle for your friends! Together with my comrade Shadow Moon Queen we will make your deepest wish come true! A home all your own for your peaceful flying friends! In return for our blessing, you will take the Miraculous of Cat Noir and Ladybug!"

The Shadow Moon Queen placed an elegant hand on his shoulder as he let her speak next, "I will enhance you and your pigeons beyond their initial state! In return however, you will test Naruto Uzumaki personally! His growth is paramount to my plan's success!"

"Is that clear, Mr. Pigeon?" Hawkmoth asked him dramatically.

The man made an absurd cooing noise, "Roo-roo! It is crystal clear! Hawkmoth, Shadow Moon Queen!"

His body was being akumatized, Hawkmoth throwing out his arm as the Shadow Moon Queen danced in the air around him, "Then go! And take their Miraculous for me!"

Naruto's foxy-senses tingled. Really more the back of his neck than some kind of super power. But he liked the idea of being like his favorite obscure Tokusatsu hero. He had gotten into American comic books thanks to watching replays of that show on Kaguya's television. She owned an extensive library of obscure tokusatsu, many of which had influenced his desire to become an actor.

So, he knew that when something bad was about to happen, the back of his neck prickled. He flipped back, extending both arms and yanking Ayla and Nathaniel with him in the middle of his flip. Marinette had been quick to react and stepped to the side, for she wasn't the main target. She let out a gasp when javelins struck the ground in front of her.

Finishing his flip, Naruto let go of Nathaniel and Ayla, who crashed safely on nearby bushes. Upon landing, he turned to the source of the attack, "Oh crud!" He didn't have time, he had to dodge more javelins from the sky. Each spear nailed the floor his body until he had put enough distance to breathe. He was naturally acrobatic, but not in the superhero way he had seen Miraculous Ladybug and Cat Noir move.

Unknown to him, his body glowed a faint blue and his birthmarks had extended a few inches, "Finally, a reaction." Shadow Moon Queen grinned.

The akumatized Mr. Ramier spoke up, "Roo-roo! Most impressive! You've managed to dodge every bit of my divine spears! They wouldn't have hurt you though, just kept you there long enough to be considered out of the fight!" A voice declared from up high, naturally it made everyone look up to the sky in confusion.

The skies had grown dark strangely, "Is that a plane...?" Nathaniel asked.

Ayla responded with horror, "No, it's a super villain up in the sky!"

Marinette gaped when she saw him, "You're right but it's also a bird! It's one of Hawkmoth's Akumatized victims!" she didn't want to play along with the cliché reference, but when it fit, it fit. A flock of birds as far as the eye could see were clouding the skies, and atop a flying platform of them, was none other than the akumatized Mr. Pigeon!

"ROO-ROO!" Mr. Pigeon when transformed fully, his call heralded a storm of pigeons that flew out and blanketed the skies! Flocking in a great number before he blew his whistle, sending them down in great spear like shapes! "My javelins will pierce all who have insulted me and the love of my pigeons!"

A dark aura flowed out from a portal, making him whirl about before it took the form of a rabbit, from which the Shadow Moon Queen appeared in front of him with her arm outstretched, "Mr. Pigeon, I grant upon you the armor of a guardian as the wings to be with your beloved pets! Take them and soar to battle! Turn all faces into ones of despair!"

The Shadow Moon Queen intoned, before the darkness shot into him! Solidifying into dark purple armor that covered his body, black tar merged into a pair of wings which spread behind him! The armor gained a helmet that covered his head like that of a Roman gladiator's!

"That's my cue!" Naruto told the group, "Everyone, get to safety!"

"And cut!" exclaimed a voice he expected to hear.

Naruto sighed and let his head hang low, "Why am I even surprised?"

The director beamed and turned to the villain, waving, "Excuse us, Mr. Villain, sir, a few questions while our hero gets dressed!"

And the villain didn't waste time to place a hand on his chest and bow politely to the energetic Japanese man, "Sure, so long as you allow the Parisians understand the needs of our feathered wonders, the pigeons!" he demanded with respect and a beaming smile.

Naruto couldn't take it, "Okay, do I really need to keep the hero persona when I fight this guy!?" he angrily asked behind the changing screen with his head popping out.

The director nearly cried as he got offended, "Naruto-kun, it's part of the character, so please don't let the children lose the love for classic heroism!"

"I think we better go now." Marinette told the two normal humans.

Her best friend didn't budge, "Are you kidding? Ladybug will come here, and..." Ayla giggled to herself as she zoomed in to try to see if she could catch glimpses of Naruto changing.

Nathaniel gulped as he pulled out his sketchbook, "As an artist, I feel compelled to sketch the moves of these fighters with firsthand experience, not just what I see on TV."

"Alright, I'll go get help." Marinette said and ran off, finding an empty alley, "Alright Tikki, we can't let Naruto down after all he did for us."

"You got it!" the Kwami chirped with a nod.

"Tikki, spots on!"

X-X-X-X-X

As that happened, Adrien had already finished taking a shower with Plagg pondering what cheese to eat first.

"Hmm, twelve years, ten years, or this exquisitely made one aged for eleven..." the black Kwami groaned as Adrien got him some expensive samples with his allowance as a present.

"Being French, I really have to question how fermented cheese became such a priced meal... Then again, Naruto told me that in Japan they eat sea urchins raw." He commented as he finally dried off his hair and prepared himself for his fencing classes. "Make your meal quick, we have lessons in-"

Knocking at the door halted his train of thought, "Adrien, I came to inform you of a change of schedule." His father's assistant, Natalie, told him from the other side of the door. "As of now, there seems to be a pigeon infestation which has interrupted any possible chances for fencing. Please remain in your room until later notice."

"Pigeon infestation?" he echoed in disbelief. "Surely, it can't be that-" and that was when a massive flock of hundreds of pigeons passed by his window. "Alright, you're not pulling my leg." He turned to Plagg who started to panic.

"Wait, at least let me take one!" the Kwami begged with his hands clasped.

"Sorry, but Ladybug must be out and birds of a feather fly together." He said as he locked the door and opened the window, "Plagg, claws out!"

"Wait for me, cheese!" the Kwami cried as he got sucked into the ring.

Back with Naruto, he was done changing and facing Mr. Pigeon, "Everybody to your posts! And action!" the director's shout was followed by the blond leaping at the villain with his right fist ready for a powerful hook...and immediately regretted it.

"Kh..." he grunted and forced himself not to curse when his knuckles cracked from hitting the wings.

Mr. Pigeon chuckled, "Do you like the Shadow Moon Queen's armor!?" he then flapped the new appendages, creating powerful gusts of wind which blasted him backwards! "This is the power to protect my beloved pigeons! This is a truly ultimate defense!"

As the villain continued flapping his wings to further push back the blond, Ladybug already appeared, "Fox, grab on!" she threw her yoyo which he caught. "And now hang on tight!" she exclaimed and pulled him to her with her deceivingly strong arms. He landed right next to the masked heroine with a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, Ladybug." The blond forced himself to use the hero voice. "That villain's armor will be a challenge to get through."

"Any armor has its blind spot." Her retort was accompanied with a determined face. "Cat Noir's Cataclysm should be more than enough to get past it."

"Roo-roo, do you think you can play the waiting game!?" Mr. Pigeon crowed as he used his wings to fly with a veritable armada of pigeons around him. "Don't think that escape is possible! I shall teach Paris to not let my pigeons starve!"

Once again, Naruto had enough and palmed his face, "Are we seriously doing this?"

"Fox, cover me, I will try to get his wings." Ladybug ignored him as she took it seriously.

"What am I doing with my life...?" he mumbled to himself before taking his standard fighting pose, "Alright, Ladybug, lead the way!"

"Not so fast, Fox and Ladybug!" the villain chortled and pulled out a whistle. "Come, my pretties, and go after them!" blowing the akumatized item, he sent thousands of birds after the duo. It'd be worrisome enough, but the pigeons merged to form a gigantic boxing glove.

"Dodge!" Ladybug exclaimed as she swung upwards with her yoyo. For his part, Naruto took a more direct approach.

"Hyper Jump!" he declared as he got on the birds, using them as steps to try to get to Mr. Pigeon, "Hyper Kick!" he went in for a kung-fu kick to the villain, who only smirked.

"Did you not learn!?" Mr. Pigeon folded his wings around his body, letting Naruto's foot crash against it painfully. "You can't break through the Shadow Moon Queen's present, one which she granted me to protect my beloved pigeons!" he snarled angrily and spread his wings, sending Naruto directly to the floor as if swatting a fly. "Pigeons you stepped on!"

"Crud!" Naruto cursed as he neared the floor.

"Hey, missed me?" Cat Noir asked as he caught his fellow blond bridal style. "Um...let's never talk about this."

"So long as you put me down." Naruto replied as himself.

"Hmm...keep it, for bloopers." The director told his cameramen.

Cat Noir twirled his staff once Naruto was down, the two bringing up their weapons as they stared at the villain, "Is it me or does Hawkmoth need a hobby?" Cat Noir asked out loud to his friend. Naruto knew he had to keep the act of a heroic persona, but Mr. Pigeon made him question the need of that.

"He's certainly not short on crazy ideas." He retorted, though using the heroic voice. "Anyway, I saw where the akuma is, that whistle of his."

Ladybug landed beside them, "Good to know. Cat Noir, we need your Cataclysm to get rid of that armor. Go, White Fox and I will back you up."

"You got it, milady! Cataclysm!"

Hawkmoth fretted as he called the villain, "Mr. Pigeon, be careful, that attack is sure to ruin your armor and leave you defenseless!" he turned to the Shadow Moon Queen. "My fair lady, it's time to send in your Lunatics and-"

To his shock, she was amused, "Ahahaha... Hawkmoth, my dear friend, did you think I made that armor without that cat's power in mind? Observe, please."

All three heroes rushed at the villain, who laughed and flew straight at them, "Try as you might, my queen's armor is for my pigeons' safety!" he flapped his wings, sending at least a dozen javelins forward. Naruto was quick to swing his blade and swat aside three. Ladybug's yoyo deflected others as she spun it around like a deadly saw blade. Cat Noir's skills and agility were still top notch, letting him get close to the flying villain and deliver a solid palm-strike on his chest.

"Sorry to clip your wings!" he snickered as Mr. Pigeon fell, rolling on the floor. Rust corroded his armor in a flash, overtaking it in the blink of an eye...just as new armor sprouted out of his body and replaced it! "What!?" Cat Noir asked in shock as his Cataclysm's power, a one-hit-destruction move, was useless against instant regeneration.

"As I've said..." Mr. Pigeon growled as he got up, "This armor shall protect my pigeons from all harm! This living organism can regenerate instantly! Even if you were to rip it off me, it can get easily reattached! I am the pigeons' shield!"

"Gah, such passion!" the director was taken back, tears rolling down his cheeks, "Such determination for his friends... this man...is a true tragic villain!"

Naruto finally had enough as he didn't know whether to feel awkward about his director's attitude or shocked at the villain's power, so he settled for groaning, "Is this a joke...?" he would've used some profanity but remembered his show was rated T.

Hawkmoth was ecstatic, "My fair lady, I shall never doubt you again!"

The Shadow Moon Queen giggled maliciously, "Thank you, but it is time to bring out the boy's potential, for my heart remains in his clutches." She then bared her teeth in a mirthful smile, "But I must warn you. That armor is a modified Lunatic. Not very bright, but it gets the work done."

"Ah yes, why deny you of a proper show when you've made my joy soar through the skies." It was said the Agreste family had a natural love for puns.

Mr. Pigeon grinned maniacally as he extended an arm forward, "Go now, my pretties, after them!" he blew his whistle and his army of birds went after the trip.

"Oh, s-s-shoot! I'm…I'm!" Cat Noir panicked, his nose twitching as he landed down near Naruto, he held his nose before he sneezed loudly, "ACHOO! Allergic to feathers!"

"You're telling me this now!?" The suit-actor asked him with a shocked tone, before he realized that things would getting dire. Unconsciously, his whiskers grew another few inches, holding back the uncertainty and focusing his desire to win and fight, Naruto felt weirdly calm.

"S-sorry Naruto! I'm running low on energy! ACHOO! ACHOO!" Cat Noir's constant sneezing and the ringing of his Miraculous only brought with it a sense of worry.

"We'll win this together, don't give up now Cat Noir, White Fox! Lucky Charm!" her announcement of her own super power only made Naruto look concerned.

"What do I do!?" the whiskered actor asked in worry.

"Stand back!" Ladybug's words stung him...

Cat Noir turned to the blond, speaking seriously as he calmed down on his sneezing, "These power modes aren't constant use, you know! We only get one pop and that's it!"

Meanwhile, what came out of the Lucky Charm was nothing other than a basket net! "How do I use this?! There's too many of them to catch in one net!" Ladybug swallowed, realizing that the situation was dire.

Hawkmoth had his fists in an eager pose, "At last! We finally have them at our mercy my fair lady! We can win! Go Mr. Pigeon! Take their miraculous while they are still struggling!"

The Shadow Moon Queen smiled with her hand in front of her face, "Perfect timing! We have at last become victorious, my dear Hawkmoth!" she had been monitoring Naruto, and despite him being close, his chakra was still far from his control. They were about to win, and the moment was perfect!

"GAHH! Ooowocohoo…!" Capitalizing on the fact that Cat Noir was sneezing uncontrollably, Mr. Pigeon held out his hands, seeming to power up something or another, right before a bunch of pigeons formed into a ball on his hands. "PIGEON ME…HA ME HA…" The ball kept growing with each announcement, dark energy surrounding it.

Ladybug shouted in terror, "CAT NOIR! LOOK OUT!"

"What, milady!?" Shaking his head much like a real cat, he turned around just as he saw what Mr. Pigeon was doing, "Ah…!"

"GOOOOO!" the villain sent a gigantic wave of pigeons out like a beam with both hands clenching their fingers in front of him. The beam smashed into Cat Noir, piledriving him into a brick wall that surrounded the park. When it was over, the abused cat-boy fell onto his butt, groaning and sneezing weakly.

With Ladybug panicking, Cat Noir needing a few moments, and himself feeling powerless, Naruto felt like everything was going bad. "What can I do?! What can I do…? I don't have any power of my own…" it broke his heart to say that to himself. Especially on camera. The feeling of hopelessness threatened to bring him into the pits of despair.

"Naruto…" The director said sympathetically, tears running down his face at the thought that for once, the villains might win.

Out of nowhere, a soft voice appeared as faint and distant as the wind itself, "Do you desire power? The power to save those you love and respect more than anything?"

"W-what?" Naruto clutched his head, almost close to curling into a ball from the dark despair he was falling into.

The voice asked again, growing more forceful and determined as it talked to him. "You have something that they do not. The rogue strugglers will. When the hand of fate threatens to crush you, you defy her control and go your own way. When destiny tells you to give in, you fight back and refuse to allow despair to take your hope away. Do you desire power?"

"What kind of power?" he asked it warily, looking up hesitantly to see his friends struggling to fight back.

"Walk forward with your head held high. The power has always been yours to command were you to truly need it. And now, the strings of fate and your bonds that have brought you here have given you the right to decide that for yourself. Stand up. Walk towards your true self." With faltering steps, Naruto got to his feet, feeling a strange calm enter his heart.

"Naruto!? Stay back! We're not sure if we can beat him, but you'd get hurt!" Naruto gave Miraculous Ladybug a slight grin as he kept going.

"How can I help you guys if I don't keep going? If I want to beat him, I have to keep stepping forward. One foot at a time." He explained with a voice that was his own and someone else's, not just his hero persona but a deeper presence in him.

Cat Noir struggled to his feet and braced himself with his staff, "Fox, buddy… What is he doing?" he asked himself and Ladybug, wondering what just came over their human friend.

Walking forward, Naruto wondered where this confidence was coming from, was it just this state of calm? Was it his natural ability as a stuntman? Or… Was it the power that flowed through him? He didn't know, so he just ran forward. Straight towards Mr. Pigeon!

"Roo-rrroo! You approach me?! You dare to approach me!?" A cliché and stock villain line if an old classic, Naruto responded in kind.

"Yeah! If I don't, then I won't be able to strike you down!"

"Then fall into the pit of darkness that is called despair!" Holding out both hands, a flock of pigeons rotated around his limbs before he sent them forward like Gatling missiles!

"Oh man, of all the cheesy stuff I've seen and done today…!" Naruto cursed to himself, running forward none the less, "Still…This is getting fun!" He jumped into the air, surprising himself when he went far beyond his normal height range, going skywards with his hands pulling out the chokuto at his side!

"YES! THAT SHOT IS PERFECT NARUTO! KEEP IT GOING! SLOW MOTION CAMERA! EVERY SHOT COUUUUNTS!" The director shouted, pointing frantically as the cameramen filmed every single frame of Naruto swinging his blade down!

Blue energy covered his entire body and made the blade extend far past its normal range, "LET'S GO! SECRET ART: BRILLIANT BLUE BLADE!" He swung it down, cleaving the armor apart, flying past Mr. Pigeon, he sheathed the sword with a dramatic spin of his wrist. Clicking into the scabbard and bowing his head.

Suddenly, the armor cracked, then shattered into pieces! "Nnngh...NOOO!" Mr. Pigeon's face twisted in shock before he let out a wide-mouthed, blank-eyed shriek of horror as his armor fell into a puddle on the floor, "No, come back to me, my precious gift!" he grabbed it, trying hard to put it in place, but Ladybug was quicker.

"Keep going, Fox!" the heroine had seen the world in black and red dots, first Naruto's sword, then Cat Noir's extendable staff, the pigeons, and finally Mr. Pigeon's head. "Cat Noir, send me towards those birds!" she shouted, shocking the green-eyed boy.

"What!?" he exclaimed, but she jumped to him. It suddenly clicked to him, "Alright, got it!" he planted his feet firmly on the ground, "Hey, birdy, birdy! Swing!" he chanted as if in a true game once Ladybug's feet connected to the pole. Once sent flying forward, she threw her yoyo.

"Grr, annoying little...STOP CUTTING MY ARMOR!" Mr. Pigeon exclaimed while using his arms to grab all the pieces of armor that were falling off and reattaching them. Unlike with Cat Noir's Cataclysm, the armor couldn't keep up with losing large chunks of itself at a time.

Naruto grinned as he saw the armor's flaw, "I see, it can regenerate quickly, but when I cut out big chunks then it needs more time to put those back together, like a lizard losing its tail!" he smirked and flipped in the air, spinning like a top to deliver three simultaneous slashes which left the man exposed once again!

"Got you!" Ladybug exclaimed as she landed on Mr. Pigeon's head with the net over her head! A flock of pigeons was trying to furiously get out of the net and started to peck each other and the unfortunate villain.

"GYAAAHH!" cried Mr. Pigeon as he tried to get them off, "N-no, my friends! I am your protector, your defender, your guard- Ah! Ow! Please, stop it!" his armor moved erratically in an attempt to help its wearer but halted by his mission and love for the birds.

Cat Noir approached the villain once Naruto took the akumatized whistle, "Wow, he loves those birds so much he can't do anything to stop them from mauling here. That's messed up." he commented honestly with an eyebrow raised.

"At least it's over." Naruto said before crushing the item and turning to the heroine.

Once the de-evilizing was done, the heroes relaxed.

"Thank you, Fox. I guess you're more dependable than we first thought." She admitted with a soft smile.

"I'm starting to believe something's at play now..." he retorted.

"You tell me, that stuff with your sword wasn't normal." Cat told him. "Anyway, time to look good for the cameras." He grinned and held up his fist.

All three smiled and bumped knuckles, "Pound it."

X-X-X-X-X

"Oooooh~! Finally! FINALLY! He is ascending past the mortal frame that he has been cursed with!" Shadow Moon Queen held both hands to the sky, an eery grin enveloped her face as tears ran down her eyes and forehead, three streams of water that brought with them a joyous outcry.

Hawkmoth looked more thoughtful, his eyes closed as he contemplated this situation, "Hm… We might lose then, if he becomes even stronger. Was that part of your calculations then, my fair lady?"

"Of course! But he will be controlled, focused, I will not let him ascend to a point that he threatens me! Only…becomes worthy of my desired outcome with him!" She faced him, her elegant black fingernails reached to her lips, the light of evil glittering in all three of her eyes.

Smiling himself, Hawkmoth clapped his hands, "I welcome this current loss then! The more we know of our opponents, the closer we both will come to our goals!" he turned to the sun with a triumphant smile, feeling his victory closer in defeat. "Fly higher and higher, Ladybug. Like Icarus, your closeness to the sun shall be your downfall."

Both villains laughed maniacally while Mr. Ramier shook his head.

"Ugh, what just happened...?" he asked, then yelped when seeing the whiskered actor without his mask, "Ah, you, the kind boy."

"Sorry about you not being able to help your pigeons, but would you feel better off if I lent you a hand?" he chortled as he pulled the whistle he was gifted. "I think I enjoy helping others more than I thought I did."

"Oh, that'd be splendid." The lanky man beamed and he was soon given a hand to get up.

"And CUT!" The director ruined the moment, "Good job everyone, now, Ladybug, Cat Noir, regarding a closing scene, you... YOU'RE GONE!?"

Naruto sighed, "He'll never change."

"Ugh, I wanted to have them aid us in closing an episode at least once!" the director fretted, then turned to Mr. Ramier, "You! Come here, reformed villain! Tell us what important if not inspirational reason moved you to turn to villainy!"

"Me?" Mr. Ramier asked surprised with a finger aimed at his face.

"Yes, tell us why you love those birds and share it with the public! Please!" the small Japanese man begged on his knees, hands clasped.

Naruto chortled, "Well, I guess this is useful." He turned to the suited Parisian, "What say you? Do you want others to watch over pigeons?"

Mr. Ramier beamed, he really liked the boy.

X-X-X-X-X

Meanwhile, in the Louvre, Alix's father and brother were bonding in their own way.

"Hm! Such a strange weapon, isn't it, father? Once used by ancient people, supposedly related to the Japanese but not quite among their number, but I can't figure out how it was meant to be used. As a kunai goes, it's hardly aerodynamic with these prongs, and it looks too unfocused to be used well as a stabbing tool…or even a cutting one."

Looking over the strange weapon that he had been given, Jalil talked to his father, the two of them looking over it in their personal workshop. It had everything the two curators needed, from specialized microscopes, acid-proof tubes for bathing bones and getting rid of the minerals that clung to them, and various mechanical tools for repair work.

In a corner of the shop, Alix was inspecting her rollerblades, repairing them herself was one of the first major responsibilities she had been given as a young girl. Her father told her, when she broke that pair years ago, that maintaining them herself would lead to her being able to keep anything she had. It'd save money rather than spend it on new things.

She had taken that message to heart, and over the years, she had been able to continuously upgrade and maintain her roller skates. The level of commitment she had was worth applause. At her side, was the watch he had given her, shielded in a protective hard plastic case with a snap lock. She learned her lesson in keeping it safe from harm.

Their father walked over to his son's call, inspecting the strange weapon with an extra attachment upon his glasses, giving them more of a scope like ability, "You are right, my boy; it is most unusual. I've never seen anything quite like it. As you know, traditional ninja were mere peasant farmers who rebelled against the tyranny of the samurai and the daimyo to fight them with spy-work, subterfuge, and infiltrative business. Every weapon they had was makeshift, from kunai and shuriken to the kusarigama, built from farming tools."

When their father shifted into lecture mode, Alix shut her brain off normally, but this time she couldn't help but overhear this. Thinking it useful information to hold over Naruto or at the very least understand him better. Also, after what he did to stop her and her brother's theory, she really wanted to know if he had a secret.

Jalil nodded with a large, enthusiastic grin, "Ninjutsu itself is less of a martial art discipline and more a way of philosophy mixed with trickery to beguile the traditionalist samurai. But this weapon, and those ancient people, suggest that at one point in time they were far more efficient than the ones used by the Japanese."

His father took the strange weapon from his son to turn it over in his hands, staring at it with an intrigued look before talking to her, "Well Alix, it's about time for lunch, I'll treat you and Jalil out today as thanks for helping me with this interesting if bizarre tool."

Alix got up, grinning widely, "Sounds great, dad!" She pulled her case with her, the man setting down the three-pronged kunai into a containment case and closing the door after his children exited with him, it locked silently.

In the darkness, the kunai laid still, before it begun to glow ever so slightly. The dented and dinged appearance of the metal begun to correct itself with agonizing slowness, each soft twinkle of the metal bending into shape heralded the kunai regaining its luster and deadly sharpness. When it was done, it laid in its box, having regained some of its old glory and wonder. A soft blue figure looked at the kunai, before they silently walked out of the room, the fading of their form was all that could be seen as they left.

"Say, dad, do you think we could give Alix's classroom a tour?" Jalil suddenly asked once they left the room.

"I suppose they...wait, you're not talking about this new item, are you?" his father knew the young curator too well.

"If I may be so bold, that boy we saw in the scrolls has such an uncanny resemblance to-"

And that was as far as Jalil got before Alix stopped him, "Please, leave Naruto out of your crazy magical theories."

"Come on, we've seen Ladybug fix Paris with her powers, and he not only looks like the hero of legend but can hold his own against akumatized villains?" Jalil turned to his father, a hopeful and determined look in his eyes, "Father, even you can't deny the possibility that he may have a connection and-"

"If you're going to say the boy will awaken to his past life, you need to remain in the real world, this one." Alix stepped away, her father could be intimidating when serious, "Jalil, I'd lie if I said the coincidence isn't too on the nose, but what do you expect will happen if the boy sees this?"

"Just think about it, there's no reason to not try and-" Jalil was once again cut off.

"Enough, you're talking about living people, and this isn't a game or fantasy. You can't play around with these items based on some farfetched idea without grounded ideas." Alix let out a sigh of pity when her brother slumped his shoulders at their father's harsh words. "Now come along, we...we should eat as a family more often. No talk about work."

"I've...lost my appetite." Jalil whispered and turned away, leaving his father to sigh and rub his face.

"Hey, I know he's a bit out of touch with reality, but I can't help but think Naruto IS special." His daughter tried to argue.

Rather than argue, her father turned and kept walking, "Not now, Alix, he is messing with things that could get him in trouble."

The girl stood where she was, unsure of where to go.

X-X-X-X-X

And that's my rap!

My deepest apologies for not making this chapter as long as the others, but I guessed you guys really wanted to see it rather than wait more months for an update. I may cut down, if not round up the length of each chapter to 15k-20k words, but we shall see. The first four chapters are obviously my babies made out of passion and love for the show. Now that I sadly got into my perfectionist mindset, I keep banging my head against a wall trying to think if something works or not. Anyhow...

Again, this fic's chapters will be a bit out of order since Ladybug has some odd regional differences when it comes to airing episodes. I hope you're glad that Naruto get his chakra slowly back. Some of you pushed for the idea of him having a Miraculous, and at first I said now. Now... I think it can work, but I make no promises. It'd have to be for a much later time, which my friend and I are still debating. Anyway, here's a long omake I did because I was just too damn inspired by Yakuza 0.

Beta's notes, The Lord Of Pages: Hello everyone! This is The Lord Of Pages here, as always helping out my big bro with his project. This chapter took a lot out of us to do, mainly to get inspired on, me and him butting heads in regards to getting the writing out, and our arguments regarding the how's, when's, and why's of this fic. We were also distracted with real life drama and constant barrages of work, but at long last, we got this chapter out and I'm glad everyone is enjoying it so much. This note is getting a bit long, so I'll leave it at that! So please be patient with us and for now, this is The Lord Of Pages, so long, farewell, until we meet again!

Naruto's Maid Café Quest.

"So, want a bite to eat?" Adrien asked Naruto after they finished their latest shoot.

"Sure, know a good place?" his fellow blond asked.

"I promise nothing, but I saw a café I passed by on a patrol- I mean, a documentary on patrols." He chuckled nervously, hoping his little lie worked.

"Sounds good. Odd, but good." The whiskered boy could see his friend was weird and decided to leave it at that.

A few moments of sitting in a limousine later, Naruto and Adrien got out of the vehicle and walked around Paris' streets in search for a good café. Despite his father being stinking rich, Adrien had simple tastes who didn't need a lot to be happy. On the other hand, Naruto was more straightforward and would settle with anything that looked good enough.

In the end, they passed by a new if small place Adrien guided them to, "Huh? How do you pronounce this word?" Naruto asked as he looked at a sign.

"Miraculeux, meaning something that is peculiarly fortunate." Adrien answered as he pointed to the sign.

"Seems good enough." Naruto responded and got in, followed by Adrien who was calling Nino.

The two took a seat at a small round table. The place wasn't too bad. It had simple enough wooden chairs, six tables, a counter with pastries, and coffee machines behind it. It did lack one crucial thing: people. Not a single soul could be seen, and neither the staff or any other costumer had appeared.

"Uh, was the sign wrong?" the model asked, "Did they forget to flip it to say it's closed?"

"If it's open, I've been to livelier cemeteries..." Naruto commented.

"Don't be mean, I'm sure-" Adrien started until a nervous wreck of a man walked in.

"Ah, clients!" he panicked with a Cockney accent.

And he really stood out. He had a lanky body, dark skin, chin-length curly black hair, and a round nose. His outfit consisted of a black polo shirt, a red blazer, black dress pants, a pair of brown shoes, and a white fedora. With a square if youthful face, he looked more like a pop idol than someone who'd work or even own a café.

"Hi..." Adrien waved awkwardly, "So, uh, can we get a menu?"

"S-Sure!" the man panicked and raced back into the kitchen, immediately running out with two menus, "Take your time."

Even if he said that, reading the menus with his intense gaze at the back of their heads made the teens feel uneasy, "I'll have the spicy chicken sandwich and a coffee." Naruto told the man as he handed him back the menu.

"I'd like the meatball special and a soda, please." Adrien said calmly.

Immediately, the man raced back into the kitchen, and Naruto didn't hide his thoughts, "We shouldn't have come."

"Wait, we just ordered our food." his friend exclaimed. "At least let us taste it before judging."

"You've seen the guy, he's so nervous I don't think the food will be any good." The actor sighed tiredly, "Seriously, the lack of people and everything says we'd be better at a hotdog stand. Admit it, you don't even feel that hungry anymore."

"You don't have to word it that way..." Adrien told him sheepishly, "But, come on, let's just try it."

"Mark my words, make sure to eat it quick so the taste doesn't stick to your tongue." Was Naruto's warning.

After a short time, their meals had arrived, the odd man staring intently at them for their reactions, rubbing his hands nervously.

"Okay... I'll take your advice..." Adrien whispered nervously, looking away from the man.

"I hope hunger really is the best spice." Naruto said as he bit into his sandwich... and his eyes went wide, "What the!? This is good!"

He started devouring his meal almost furiously, Adrien taking a bite out of his half-foot long sandwich and being as shocked, "W-Wow, the bread's toasted to perfection, the meat is so tender, the sauce has enough spice to make my taste buds dance, but not enough to overwhelm!"

"Y-Yes, thank you!" the man cheered, pumping his fists shyly.

"Why is your food so amazing and this place so empty?" Naruto finally asked, still wide-eyed.

The man sighed, hanging his head low, "I fear I don't impact people enough... I've tried dressing more confidently, but anyone I tried hiring walks away. I gave my restaurant a name to make people remember it, but they think it's pretentious... All I'm doing is a big mistake..."

"Wow, you sure could use more confidence!" Adrien exclaimed.

Sighing again, the man stood straight, adjusting his hat, "Sorry. I shouldn't depress my clients. Oh, I'm Michelangelo Jacobson, owner of café Miraculeux."

"Food like this could make any man rise to the top with enough passion." Naruto firmly said, "So, why is your place so empty? Come on, looks can't be the only reason."

Rubbing his chin, the lanky owner responded tiredly, "I fear I can't compete with the other cafés. Such fine establishments have atmosphere, looks, and fine waiters... All the people I had as staff left me already after I tried changing my image..." the man hung his head low again.

"I never thought I'd feel so sorry for a grown man..." Adrien whispered to his friend, "Naruto, what do we do? This is... sad."

"How should I know!?" the whiskered boy whisper-shouted at him.

"Hmm..." looking intently at them, Michelangelo stared at Naruto in particular, "Young man, I feel there's an aura around you..."

"What're you talking about?" Naruto asked, uncomfortable.

"After you set foot here and spoke your mind of what you thought about my place and myself, I couldn't help but wonder what made you so blunt." Michelangelo answered, "To be so young but so direct... Such a direct approach to things, an honest voice, and confident mannerisms are what I desperately lack. Young man..."

The staring became even more intense, "Yeah...?" Naruto was really uncomfortable.

"Please..." Michelangelo took a step forward, "Work as my manager!"

"Huh..." was all Naruto's brain could muster as it rebooted itself, and when it finally worked again, it went with, "Hold it! What're you even saying!?"

"Please, young man, you've the style of a smooth criminal: dangerous but confident without being overconfident!" Michelangelo cheered, "I could use your advice to turn this café around, perhaps even make it one of the best in Paris!"

"Hold up, hold up, hold up!" Adrien exclaimed, a hand up, "What makes you think it'd work!? We're still kids!"

"Attitude can get anyone forward!" Michelangelo firmly stated, "That's why I beg of you, lend me a hand with my business!"

Naruto closed his eyes, inwardly regretting his life choices, 'He's desperate enough to ask me for help, not even thinking twice...' taking a deep breath, he gave his answer, "Fine. I'll try to say what's on my mind."

"Excellent!" Michelangelo cheered, "What's your name, young man?"

"Naruto Uzumaki." The blond politely bowed his head.

"Good, so, Naruto, what can we do?" the café owner asked eagerly.

"How am I supposed to know!?" Naruto exclaimed.

Adrien took a thinking pose, "You know, with all that talk about maid cafés I think we know a guy who could tell us what to do."

And then, Naruto turned seriously to Michelangelo, "Ah, that's the look of a truly determined man!" the owner cheered.

"It won't be easy, since you don't have any staff, but..." Naruto turned to an increasingly worried Adrien, "Do we have anyone else for ideas?"

"Are you sure it's a good idea? We know how...uh, eccentric he is." the secret superhero was afraid, very afraid.

"Yeah. And I had another. Since maids cater to men, what would be good to cater to women?" Naruto's cryptic question confused the model.

Which Michelangelo easily solved, "Butlers! If we're talking appeal from romanticized servants, a butler would be ideal for ladies."

Nodding with a large grin, Naruto elaborated his idea to Adrien, "So, we'd have to get you a butler outfit and some cute girl as a maid."

"Wait, why me!?" Adrien yelled, panicking.

Michelangelo was quick to get on his knees before the model, "Please young man, for the sake of this business for my daughter's future in college."

When Adrien groaned in defeat, Naruto mumbled to himself, "I can't tell if he's honest or really cunning..."

"Are we really doing this?" the other blond asked.

"Of course." Naruto fished out his phone, and quickly made a call, "Yo... No... We're planning to make a maid café? ...Yes... How long will you take to get here?"

"I've just arrived." Answered the director right behind Naruto, holding his own phone and getting Adrien and Michelangelo to jump in shock.

"That's actually faster than usual." Was the whiskered teen's only observation as he and the man put away their cellphones, "Since you're the only guy to know this kind of business like the palm of his hand, we need your help."

"I see, I see, but what of the staff?" the man asked, frowning, "You have not got enough maids. You need a solace in this place, a river in the desert!" A pair of determined flames burst in the man's eyes at his furious declaration.

To which Adrien replied, "Um, so far, it'd be just me as the only butler, and even that's unofficial."

Less than a millisecond passed before the director turned for his reply, "That's one too many!"

Passion erupted from the man's words, surprising the owner of the café, but also worrying him, "That's the thing. All the other establishments and cafés have taken my staff. At this point I'm desperate enough to hire anyone."

"Do you have money for the outfits?" the short Japanese man demanded, getting a nod, "Good enough! Naruto-kun, go scout us some girls!"

That took the action star off guard, "What!? Why me!?"

Fire could be seen engulfing the director with passion, "Because you've an aura unlike that of normal men, a mystical cosmic energy drawing people to you! If anyone can convince young ladies to work here, it's you! Go out there and get us smiles to melt away any man's worries!"

Before he could reply, Naruto was shoved out of the café so fast he nearly tripped, "Alright, alright! Sheesh, I'm never taking that guy out for lunch again!"

"I'll see if I can get Nino to help us." Adrien told him while waiting for their other friend.

X-X-X-X-X

"I got to find girls willing to be maids. Yeah, am I really going to have an easy time?" scratching the back of his head, he made a mental note, "Although, I have a good idea who to go to for the outfits. I hope she's willing."

As he asked that, he came across a certain girl he worked with, "Oh my, Naruto?" Aurore asked with a pleased if small grin and her parasol in one hand, "It's lovely to see you."

"Huh, Aurore, right?" he scratched the back of his head, "Sorry, I was lost in thought."

"I can forgive that, but did you really had trouble remembering me?" she asked, slightly hurt as she lowered her umbrella.

"My bad, I'm still getting used to this place." He tried to sound honest, but truth be told he was just confused due to not getting why she looked hurt.

"Perhaps a little tour could help you." She gained her smile back almost instantly, confusing him further, 'So innocent too! Lucky me! I'll keep the soft-spoken, eloquent classy girl act as long as needed to bag myself this hunk. And when he's mine...' she giggled at the idea, 'A perfect wedding, four healthy kids, and a house by the beach.'

"Actually, I'm scouting." He told her, ending her quite dark thoughts, "Uh, you wouldn't know any girls looking for a decent job?"

Frowning in disappointment, she asked, "Why would you need to know that instead of asking someone like me? After all, you've seen some of my skills as an actress."

Pausing to think her words, he rubbed his chin, "Saying it like that... Yeah, you'd be perfect for the job, but I don't know..."

She felt hurt, was she not good enough? Placing a hand on her chest, she asked that, "Am I really that bad?" she looked down, her negativity almost reaching Hawkmoth.

Almost, "No, I'd say you're too good for this kind of job. Unless you really need the extra cash."

Beaming, she walked to him, "I assure you I do everything I can to leave lasting impressions. Sure, I may have lost to Mireille, but this look of mine took a lot of effort."

"Yeah, I can see that." He crossed his arms, thinking it through, "Would you be willing to dress as a maid for this job?"

Giggling, she tilted her head with her best smile, "I'd say you have good taste choosing to see me in such an attire."

Nodding, he smiled at her, "Good. Meet me at Café Miraculeux, we can get you measured to work there."

All joy Aurore had was sandblasted off her, "Wait, a café?" she was at a loss, truly and utterly dumbfounded.

"Believe it or not, I'm the manager." That made her mind turn, even more when he bowed respectfully, "I'll try to be a good boss and take care of you."

Looking away briefly, she thought it over, 'A risky relationship with someone who'd be my boss out of a set...? Oh, this is gold for a novel! I should totally try being a writer!' she gave him her brightest grin, "I'd be delighted, Naruto."

AURORE HAS JOINED YOUR CAFÉ!

Stamina – 200

Skills – 2/5

Talk – 4/5

Charm – 4/5

"Good. I'll see you there, then."

X-X-X-X-X

Before you ask, yes, this omake will be canon to this story. I'll show more girls joining in and working there, but since it's not really relevant to the main plot, it'll be a juicy and quite lengthy set of events or a short amount.

Swordslinger out!