text; un: 🍥🍜

[acknowledgement]

(≡ ｀ｗ´≡)/
hey everyone!
i'm Uzumaki Naruto
um in my world we give family name first
so you can just call me Naruto!

listen…
i have an important question that i'd like to hear your opinions on

some people doubt this place is really the afterlife
and if we’re actually dead

but let’s say there’s a chance we can all return to our own dimensions, alive
…would you want to?
or would you prefer to stay here instead, permanently?

it’s kinda personal, so i get it if you wanna use the
uh
anonymous
thingy
just don’t ask me how to switch it on
because idk (that means i don’t know)

oh also
if anyone needs help with anything
or wants to tackle some missions together
i'm your shinobi!

[Sorry, Sasuke and Sakura. Naruto forgot the “keep our profession/backgrounds a secret” rule. (And already broke the rule several times over.)]

Comments

[acknowledgement]

see that's the kind of thing i was afraid of...
can you describe your situation?
is there some way we could protect you if you were sent back?
what if we trained you in self defense?
or is it something else that you're in danger of?

[appeale]

even if i could fight back, it wouldn't matter. it's not that simple.
and if i wasn't killed, i'd be stuck with a fate much worse than death.
i don't want to go into details, just
it's the kind of life i don't have any control over.

so
i kind of hope we are dead.
it'd be nice if i could reincarnate, you know?

[acknowledgement]

[Naruto is quiet for a time, stewing over this. Though he may not know the anonymous Restless, he feels compelled to try and help them regardless. The hopelessness of their situation seems too cruel.]

okay i won't ask for more details

i'm actually a reincarnation myself
so it's definitely possible
but i don't know what the chances of that happening are...

maybe we can look into that
or try to find a way to send you to a different world
instead of your own home

i don't know...i just don't wanna accept your fate as a lost cause
there's gotta be something we can do

[appeale]

haha i've actually done something similar
not quite reincarnation but i was on my second life
and it sucked just the same as my first one
that's why i hope i just start fresh. maybe third time's the charm

i won't hold my breath though
seems like everyone else just wants to go home so it's not like anyone will care that much if there's just one person who'd rather die than go back
if it comes down to it you can consider me collateral damage, it's fine

sorry for this late tag!

[acknowledgement]

that's not fine at all
not to me at least
and i'll fight anyone who thinks it IS okay
you deserve a chance to be happy as much as anyone else here
no one should have to make that kind of sacrifice
i don't want my own happiness to come at that kind of cost
but...i also know it's not just my choice

no worries!

[appeale]

i don't really believe that but thanks
even if you mean it it probably won't matter
not everyone is that altruistic and i wouldn't expect them to be

didn't mean for this to be a pity party lol i just thought i'd give my honest answer
it's not the end of the world. i'll get by. i always do

[acknowledgement]

listen...
i know you want to stay anonymous
and not talk about details but...
if you ever wanna chat or anything
message me! you can stay anonymous
i don't mind

or if you ever meet me in person
this is what i look like

[And he sends a blurry selfie, hastily taken with his nondominant hand. Though the clarity sucks, the details are still easy to pick out: a blond young man in his late teens with whisker marks on his cheeks, blue eyes, a single arm, and a cringeworthy propensity for the color orange.]

you don't hafta tell me who you are
if we DO meet in person
just feel free to talk to me
i won't find it weird or anything
i like making new friends!
and if being friends with you is all i can offer
i'm gonna give it my all

in the meantime though
i'll keep trying to find ways that might help you

[appeale]

[ it's a relief to see the picture and know this is only someone she's seen in passing, not anyone she's really spoken to before. as good as it is to speak honestly for the first time in years, there's too much risk involved with being two people. when she inevitably meets him as "Ruby" in the future, she'll just try to forget this conversation ever happened. ]

sure.
don't be too upset if i don't contact you again, though
it's not your fault or anything, i'm just that kind of person

it was nice of you to ask about it. if there's anyone who doesn't want to go home i mean.
good luck getting out of here naruto
i'm not good at wishing others well but
ig the least i can do is say it'd be better if you don't get stuck in this place
since you seem like a decent ish guy