//------------------------------// // Chapter 9 // Story: Shinobi of Equestria // by Fan of Fanfics //------------------------------// Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor do I own MLP “Thank you for the help Naruto,” Twilight said, smiling at the shinobi-turned-stallion. The blonde was giving her a hand in putting away a few new additions to the Ponyville library, simultaneously picking out a few to read himself. After all, it was his job. Twilight was doing the same, but her mind was elsewhere, thinking of the scrolls she had upstairs. She had managed to find some form of inner energy during her meditations, and she was excited when Naruto had told her it felt very similar, if not identical to Chakra. He couldn't be sure because he wasn't sure on the Nature of unicorn magic. Unfortunately, he was attempting to get her to work on using it before trying to teach her Shadow Clones. Twilight Sparkle wasn't really a 'walk before you run' type Mare. And while she loved learning in general, the waiting to learn Shadow Clones was driving her absolutely crazy. “It's no problem,” replied the ninja pony. “At least you aren't trying to force me to accept bits for it.” Thinking about the farm mare made Naruto sigh in irritation. Between her stubbornness and Konohamaru's teasing, he had been avoiding the orchard. With his clones, the harvest was still going ahead of schedule, so it wasn't like he was leaving Applejack out in the cold. “Why such a rush? Don't you normally read all the books before you put them out?” Twilight blushed a bit in embarrassment, before regaining her composure. “Normally yes, but the girls and I are going to meet up at Pinkie's for a party tonight.” Naruto quirked an eyebrow. “What's the occasion?” he asked. Twilight giggled, rolling her eyes. “Wednesday.” Naruto nodded at her answer. Bizarre, yes, but Pinkie Pie was both an amusingly and frighteningly bizarre pony. “You're welcome to come, you know,” she continued. “In fact, Pinkie Pie would probably insist. I'm surprised you didn't get the invite.” Naruto chuckled nervously rubbing the back of his head. Surprisingly, it was no longer feeling odd to do so with a hoof rather than a hand. “Yeah, I've kind of been avoiding Pinkie lately,” he replied, getting a nod from the Unicorn. “Because of the kiss?” she asked suggestively, giggling as she nearly made the ninja-pony choke on air. She outright laughed when he began sputtering incoherently. “It was NOT a kiss!!!” he shouted. “It was-...” Stopping, he thought back to the morning about three days ago, when he awoke to find the pink mare in his bed, for some reason covered in Maple Syrup, and acting very...cuddly. Shaking his head, he changed his mind. “You know what, sure, let's go with that...” Twilight stopped laughing and looked at him funny, but decided not to ask. She was sure whatever it was involved Pinkie, and that itself was enough of an explanation. “But you are right, I guess. It's been pretty boring around here the last few days. I knew being an ambassador wasn't going to be too full of action, but I'm starting to get a little stir crazy.” “Great!” Twilight announced with a smile, putting the last of the books into place with her magic. “We should probably head over.” As Spike hopped onto Twilight's back, and the three made their way out the door, Naruto couldn't help but ask... “So, Wednesday, huh? What's so special about Wednesday...?” x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x o “Woop WOOP!” Pinkie practically screamed, twisting to the music. “It's HUMP DAY, EVERYPONY!” Naruto just chuckled and shook his head. “That mare could find any reason to throw a party, couldn't she?” he asked aloud, getting nods from the other mares, who were content to just stand back and watch as the pink party pony boogied through the crowd, mingling with her other invited guests. As he went to take a sip of his punch, he mused, “Can't wait to see what happens for a real occasion, like a holiday, or a birthday...” Taking a sip, his eyes widened in disgust as he spat out a tuft of pink mane, dropping the glass in the process. And from the tiny little glass, Pinkie Pie's head appeared, decked out in goggles and a snorkel. Spitting out the breathing apparatus, she did what she did best --- besides throwing parties, that is --- and began speaking at a near unintelligible rate. “Ohmygosh, how could I be so inconsiderate! We've been friends for weeks and I haven't even learned when your birthday is!” As she leapt from the glass, Naruto looked on amazed, wondering how she somehow fit into something so small. He didn't notice the pen in her teeth, or the calendar she was holding, until they were practically shoved into his face. “Come on, come on!” she yelled excitedly. “The sooner I find out, the sooner I can start planning! Maybe we can have my marshmallow cake! It'll be just like that time I made my marshmallow cake, and we each took a bite and went 'meeeh' and 'uuummmhh!” As she made her sound effects, she pantomimed having her mouth sealed shut, but of course, all Naruto could remember was having their lips sealed together. “And then we can drink some more hot chocolate! So come on! When is it! When IS IT!” The pink mare had literally backed him into a corner, and the rest of the mares seemed equally as interested in when his birthday was to take place. It was actually kind of freaking him out. Just the way they stared at him. Not even Neji's Byakugan glare made him feel this uncomfortable. “Ok, ok, geez!” he said, backing further away and holding up his hooves defensively. “It's October tenth, alright?” The uncomfortable gazes shifted from him onto Pinkie Pie, whose jaw had gone slack and her already poofy hair looked a bit frazzled. “But that's TOMORROW!” she finally shouted. Naruto just chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his head. “Umm, surprise?” he replied. Luckily, it seemed the Earth Pony was too busy devising plans for what sounded like a big, Birthday Blowout. “Um, Pinkie, when I said I wanted to see a Birthday Party, I wasn't talking about my own...” he deadpanned, but it fell on deaf ears. “Really, a simple bowl of ramen and some quiet time alone is all I'm looking for...” He realized the full capacity of his mistake when Pinkie Pie shot off like a rocket, creating a gust of wind in her wake. He sighed. “Why don't you want a party, Naruto?” Spike asked, having been the only one to have heard Naruto over Pinkie's planner's rant. “Everyone loves a good Pinkie Pie party.” Naruto shook his head. “Not really my thing. Normally I just get a few gifts from Iruka-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, Sakura, and then go get my free Birthday bowl of Ramen from old man Ichiraku. I never really saw much sense in having a big party to celebrate being alive a whole year longer...” he replied. Twilight's eyes widened in pseudo-realization at this announcement. “Oh, because you're a shinobi, right? I guess ninjas don't have a lot of time for that kind of stuff.” Not wanting to tell her the real reason, he just nodded in confirmation. “Still,” she continued. “Pinkie is gonna throw you a party no matter what you tell her. In fact, I wouldn't even tell her that much, she might decide to do belated parties for every one you didn't have growing up.” Naruto blinked a few times, before sighing and shaking his head. “Point taken. Could you keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't go overboard.” The girls giggled, and Applejack, who had been silent toward Naruto for most of the night for some reason, shook her head. “Well, we can try, but no promises, Partner,” she said, as the girls went off after the Party Pony, leaving Naruto alone with Spike, who hopped onto his back. “I'll say one thing, I definitely agree with you about the Ramen. Just wish we could get some here in Ponyville...” Spike announced, both he and Naruto's head filled with visions of the noodle goodness. “Maybe we could get Twilight to bring you to Konoha tomorrow for your birthday bowl. You know, and maybe bring a handsome young dragon along to, you know...” Despite himself, Naruto couldn't help but chuckle. “Your bowl's on me,” the blonde said. “It'll have to be. We don't have any Elemental Nation money.” Naruto quirked an eyebrow. “Right, kind of forgot about that...” Looking around at all the guests, Naruto then noticed somepony missing. “Wonder where Konohamaru's been. I haven't seen him all day...” Spike just snickered. “Probably hiding from his marefriends.” Naruto chuckled a bit. He didn't feel like that would ever get old. One of these days, he'd have to find out what kind of antics those three were putting his assistant through. Oh well, a story for another day. Deciding to call it a night, Naruto eased his way through the crowd, making sure to leave a tip for the town's resident DJ, Vinyl Scratch, aka DJ PON-3. The two had become acquainted at Pinkie's last big bash, and she seemed pretty intense, but definitely cool. But as cool and friendly as she was, Naruto could only hope she wouldn't be at his Birthday party. Pinkie Pie partied. DJ PON-3 partied HARD...Vinyl raised her shades and gave him and Spike a wink, before going back to her turntable. “Speaking of Marefriends, I hear you and Pinkie Pie had an interesting time the other da-WHOA!” Spike couldn't say more as Naruto bucked, sending the baby dragon high into the air. Luckily, it was straight up, so as he came back down, he landed right back on Naruto, who continued on as though it hadn't happened. “That answer your question?” he asked, getting a furious nod from Spike. The dragon made a mental note not to tease Naruto about it anymore...he'd tell Konohamaru about it and let the younger shinobi have a little revenge...It didn't take long for the two to reach the library, which was Spike's stop. It took only slightly longer to reach his own home, which was located at the edge of the town. As he made his way inside and up to his room, he made a mental note that back in his own world, he'd have actually gone to do some training, rather than to bed. It seemed odd to him, but it was no habit that couldn't be broken. It would probably do him good to get to training with his pony body. Sure, his jutsu worked and his chakra flowed normally, but it would likely be a while before he could factor in any type of taijutsu. x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x “TWILIGHT!” The unicorn pony awoke to the loud shriek, leaping out of bed in shock and fright. Spike grumbled something about noisy ponies as he shoved his head under his own pillow, following Twilight Sparkle's ever-so-graceful faceplant into the floor. Sitting up and shaking the dizziness away, the unicorn came face to face with the only pony crazy enough to wake her in such a manner. “Pinkie Pie? Do you have any idea what time it is?” she demanded. “Sorry, Darling, we did try to stop her.” Quirking an eyebrow, Twilight peered past the pink party pony to see the rest of her friends, sans Naruto, also in her room. “What is-” “No time for chit chat!” announced Pinkie Pie, her voice and expression clearly marking her as a pony on a mission. “We need a Portal to Konoha, stat!” “What? What for?” Twilight asked, still a bit groggy after her rude awakening. “For Naruto's Birthday Party!” Pinkie replied, bouncing around Twilight. “I spent all night planning and planning, and eating, and planning some more. I got all the decorations, the sweets, the drinks, but then I felt like I forgot something, so I checked the guest list, and realized I haven't invited ANY of Naruto's Ninja friends. And we can't have a birthday party for a ninja and not have his own friends there!!!” Twilight opened her mouth to protest, remembering what Naruto had said, but stopped herself. Pinkie had a point this time. They could go get a bowl of Ramen for Naruto, bring some of his friends to Equestria, and that might make him feel a little better about how overboard he felt Pinkie was going. “Alright,” she said, as her horn began to glow with its usual Aura. “But shouldn't at least one of us stay here, so he won't get suspicious?” Despite not looking forward to losing her wings, Rainbow Dash laughed. “Don't worry about that. We've got the Crusaders to keep him distracted. They're going to have him 'escort' them to Zecora's. He knows nopony likes the Everfree forest, so there's no way he'll let three fillies go in there alone,” she announced, confidently. “And then Zecora will just 'happen' to be in need of some ingredients for one of her remedies and be in need of a nice, strong stallion to get them for her.” Dash almost couldn't say the last part with a straight face. If there was one thing Zecora didn't need, it was a stallion to help her in the Everfree. If anything, it was the other way around. But Naruto didn't have to know that. Twilight giggled, knowing that fact just as well as Rainbow Dash and the other mares. As her magic flashed, that familiar mist condensed in the air into that swirling vortex, forming the portal between worlds. Leaping out of basket-bed, his exhaustion forgotten, Spike hopped onto Twilight's back. “Ramen, here we come!” Pinkie, determined to make Naruto's party a success, zipped in first, followed shortly by Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and finally Twilight and her dragon companion, sealing the portal behind them. x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x As it turned out, Twilight's aim was improving, and this time, the Equestria Girls and Spike landed directly outside the gates of the village. They made sure to sign in, the Guards having been informed of who they are and their new status of importance in the village, and set off toward the Hokage Tower. They just hoped they weren't too early to catch Lady Tsunade at the office, as the sun was only just beginning to rise. As it happened, the Hokage was just sitting down to her morning paperwork, and as such, could have kissed the ponies --- and dragon --- as they stepped into the office in their human forms. It was just the distraction she needed. Though she was ashamed of herself for forgetting Naruto's birthday, she agreed to travel with them to Equestria for his party. Anything to break the monotony of signing, stamping, and approving forms. She'd have to find out if Celestia or Luna ever had to deal with the crap she did on a regular basis. Shizune, her assistant, was likewise happy to join in on the festivities, and it was agreed that after they had gathered all their planned guests, to meet back in the office to open the portal to Ponyville. Before departing, a list was made, displaying the names and photos of others who would be good invites for the party. Shikamaru Nara Choji Akimichi Ino Yamanaka (Rarity chuckled nervously as this one came up) Hinata Hyuuga Kiba Inuzuka Shino Aburame Rock Lee Neji Hyuuga Tenten Jiraiya Kakashi Hatake Iruka Umino “Come on, everypony!” Shouted Pinkie Pie, enthusiastically shoving the group out the door. “Operation Ninja Birthday Bash is go!” “Why are you talking like that?” Rainbow asked, as the door to the office slammed shut, eliciting a chuckle from Tsunade. She absentmindedly wondered if there was any alcohol in Equestria, and made note to bring some saké for the party. x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x “So, you must be this 'shinobi'...perhaps you can do a favor for me?” Naruto quirked a brow as the strange 'Zebra' the Crusaders had gone to meet spoke to him in rhyme. Naruto had heard of Zecora from Twilight and the girls before, but not enough to really get a gist of what she was like other than she was good at making remedies and antidotes to various ailments. He had yet to meet her until now. “Several flowers and herbs I seek. But against this forest, I feel somewhat weak.” For a second, Naruto thought it odd. After all, if she lived here, why did she feel unprepared for dealing with the forest. It was explained to him that because there was a path directly to her hut, she usually never dealt with too much danger, but these ingredients she required were only obtainable by going deeper into the woods, off the beaten path. Which he supposed made sense. “If I supply you with the book, would you be kind enough to go and look?” “What about these three?” he asked, motioning with his right hoof toward the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who for some reason seemed to be trying very hard not to laugh. “My home always has plenty of room, for Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and little Apple Bloom.” Three Halos sprouted above the heads of the three fillies, and if they didn't do it so often, Naruto would have thought it a trick of the light, or some form of Genjutsu. “They will be safe with me here, so you have nothing to fear.” Naruto seemed to think it over for a second, before nodding, and when Zecora brought him the proper book, the pages marked for easier finding, he took it readily. He sighed to himself, knowing he just couldn't say no. But hey, it was a mission, he thought. A D-rank, but a mission none the less. There was just one more thing to deal with then. “So, I mean no disrespect, but do you rhyme like that on purpose, or is it some kind of nervous tick?” The Zebra just laughed heartily, before giving him a sly look. “I could stop without a second thought...but then again, perhaps not.” “...Well played...” was Naruto's final response, as he left the hut. It took everything the crusaders had not to laugh their flanks off until the blonde actually left. Zecora chimed in with some chuckling all her own. “This is awesome!” Scootaloo announced. “You think Bro suspects anything?” “I did see a gleam in his eye. He knows that something is awry.” the rhyming zebra continued. “Hopefully his spirits rise, after Pinkie's Birthday surprise.” “It's too bad we didn't get to go. I wanna see what Konoha is like,” Sweetie Belle lamented. “Me too, but this is important. Somepony had to be a distraction,” Apple Bloom replied, before her eyes widened. “Hey! Maybe we can get distraction cutie marks!” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, even Zecora looked at the youngest Apple strangely at that one.