"No. That was that big city we were in, right?" asked Naruto.
"How could you not know about London?" asked Hermione.
"Not from around here," Naruto reminded them as he looked out the window.
"Where's your luggage anyway? Don't tell me you forgot to bring your school supplies," said Hermione, ready to show off how prepared she was.
Naruto fished in a pocket and pulled out a scroll. "Got it all right here."
Neville stared. "Where?"
"Right here," said Naruto, pointing at the scroll with the hand not currently occupied in holding it.
"You're holding a scroll," pointed out Hermione. "That's not going to be sufficient. You need a cauldron, for example."
"Right, it's in here," said Naruto, now moving the arm back and forth to further indicate the scroll he was holding in the other hand.
"That's not like one of those Mokeskin Bags is it?" asked Hermione, making a connection.
"Nah, this is just a Sealing Scroll," said Naruto. "I'm not as good as Pervy-sensei though. He can seal away LOTS more in one of these than I can."
Hermione looked at the scroll. A scroll that could be lifted easily in one hand. A scroll that this impossible boy said contained all his school supplies. She'd already decided that as soon as she could - she'd get something like that. She was now moving it up a couple of items on her 'to-do' list. "If that's true, then I would very much like to learn how to do that."
"Of course it's true," said Naruto. "Any ninja learns how to do this. Otherwise you'd be weighted down with all the stuff you need to take with you."
"But ninjas don't exist," said Hermione.
"If you listen to the Muggles, neither do wizards," pointed out Trevor.
Hermione opened her mouth, visibly considered, closed her mouth, then nodded. "Point."
"Hello dears, anyone want something from the trolley?" asked a woman passing by their compartment.
"Got any ramen?" asked Naruto, on seeing what was obviously a food cart.
"Afraid not, but I DO have some Chocolate Frogs," said the woman. "I had to replenish my stocks after that one compartment bought me out."
"Oh?" asked Naruto, who then deflated a bit on realizing how little money he actually had. Which was to say he didn't have any money.
"Well, have a nice trip, dearies," said the woman, going past them. "Do you mind moving, child?"
Two large boys got up from where they'd been creeping down the corridor and rushed into the compartment.
"Oh, you two again," said Naruto. He frowned as he realized if these two hit him, they'd likely dispel his henge.
"You can't beat us again," said one.
"We're ready for your tricks," said the other.
"I kinda doubt that," admitted Naruto. "Still, if you want to fight. Kage Bunshin No Jutsu!"
BAMF!
The two looked at the six Naruto standing there looking confident and decided that maybe they needed to rethink their strategy.
"Wait? What?" asked Naruto. "They're running away?"
"You didn't use a wand for that either," noted Hermione. "What did you do anyway?"
"My favorite jutsu... I mean spell," explained Naruto. "Multiple Shadow Clone."
Hermione reached out and touched one. Then reached out and touched another. "They're... solid? You can actually be in two places at once?"
"More like six places at once," noted Trevor, who was quite capable of counting. "That's awesome."
Hermione's eyes lit up. "You could take multiple classes at the same time!"
"Uhm, I suppose," said Naruto, who had certainly never thought of that sort of application of the technique.
"You could attend your classes while sleeping in late," said Trevor.
"I suppose," repeated Naruto, who didn't think that'd quite work but wasn't going to argue the point.
"Right then," said a very large fellow with a lantern at the train's stop. "First years, this way please."
"Wish I could just fly in," grumped Naruto.
"It's tradition," said Neville, still looking around for his toad. "First years have to do it the hard way. Not that the train's particularly bad."
"Why, do you have a 'jutsu' that lets you fly?" asked Hermione.
"Nah, I got a few lessons on one of them broom-thingies," said Naruto. "That was cool."
"Well, of course, not all of the students are going to be 'ninja' and have access to such things," said Hermione. "I've been over the basic spells and there's nothing really to help with that."
"After all," continued Neville. "They really managed to clean it up since the mold monster attacked. Even have an anti-fungal charm installed. Just don't don't use compartment twelve if you have allergies."
"I've already studied the anti-histamine spell," stated Hermione proudly.
"Just watch that one, makes you drowsy," said Neville. "My gram used it on me a few times."
"Come on, first years, don't be shy." The really big guy was waving on the group of kids. "Come on now. Hurry up. Hello, Harry."
"Hello, Hagrid."
"Oh, that must be Harry Potter then," said Neville, going to tiptoe to get a better look.
Naruto glanced over but all he saw was a bunch of kids that looked mostly the same and all dressed the same. There was a bench nearby that read 'Hogsmeade' and made him wonder why the locals liked pigs so much.
"Right then. This way to the boats. Come on, follow me."
"Takes all day to get here then got to do a boat ride, but it only took six or seven hours by broom," grumbled Naruto as he followed the little kids.
The boats were crowded, had a bit of water down at the bottom, and Naruto was absolutely convinced that there was something in the water watching them.
"There, I saw it move," said Naruto, pointing.
"That's just the giant squid," said Hagrid from two boats over, noticing the boy that was pointing. "He's just keeping an eye on you in case someone slips overboard."
"To eat?" asked Naruto, wondering if he should be ready to throw a few explosive-tipped kunai into the water just as a precaution.
"To eat? What? NO!" Hagrid fixed the boy with a stare. "Don't insult the poor thing. She's got feelings too you know."
"Uhm, right," said Naruto, sitting back down from where he'd risen to a crouch.
"And don't go rocking the boat," instructed Hagrid.
"Yes, please don't do that," Hermione instructed him from her own boat. "I'm not sure what the 'ninja' custom is - but I would prefer to be dry when we arrive at the castle."
"Hmmm," hmmmed Naruto, figuring that most of them probably didn't know the water-walking technique.
"There's no such thing as 'ninja'," scoffed the rich-looking kid he'd met while looking for a toad. "Even if there were, everyone knows the Japanese wizards don't amount to much."
"Oh boy," said Hagrid. "Look! Hogwarts Castle. See that spot there? That's where the... no. I can't tell you about that one. Too young. Uhm, that spot there on the main tower! That's where Gellert Grindenwald fought Albus Dumbledore way back in the '40s."
"1945," came Hermione's voice. "And that was in France."
"Who's telling this story?" asked Hagrid.
"So that's where we're staying? Wicked," said a ginger-haired boy.
"I thought your brothers went there, haven't you seen pictures before?" asked some other boy.
"It's different seeing it in person," complained the ginger-haired boy.
"What I want to know is. Why we don't have a magic elevator or escalator or something. Feels like we've gone up seven flights of stairs so far."
"Oi, this lot," grumbled Hagrid.
"That's about right actually, if you don't count the stairs that are inside the castle," said some girl's voice from the crowd.
"Well, at least Naruto stopped running on the walls, leaping about and all," complained Neville.
"Not my fault you guys are so slow," grumped Naruto.
"Finally the main doors," said another tired-sounding voice as they came up to where one of the teachers was waiting.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," said the teacher. "Shortly you'll pass through these doors and join your classmates. But before you take your seats, you must be sorted into your houses."
"Oh yeah, that house-thingie," said Naruto, wincing thereafter because everyone spent a moment looking at him. Including that teacher who had the sort of bit-into-something-sour look that Iruka-sensei had given him a few times. "Sorry."
"Ahem. Yes," said the teacher. "They are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. While you're here, your house will be like your family. Your triumphs will earn you points. Any rule-breaking and you will lose points."
Naruto fidgeted. Different culture, so he'd likely be breaking lots of rules before he even knew there was a rule involved.
"At the end of the year," continued the teacher, "the house with the most points wins the house cup."
"TREVOR!"
"That's the scrawniest toad I've ever seen," noted Naruto as he saw Neville pounce on the thing.
"Sorry," said Neville as he retreated back to the crowd with his toad.
Naruto wondered if he could summon Gamakichi and have him talk to 'Trevor' toad-to-toad. Maybe teach him a few things.
"The Sorting Ceremony will begin momentarily," said the teacher, still with the 'bit-into-something-sour' look before she turned and walked away.
"It's true then," said the rich-looking kid with the two toadies. "What they were saying on the train. Harry Potter has come to Hogwarts."
There was a lot of muttering at that amongst the crowd.
"This is Crabbe and Goyle. And I'm Malfoy," said the kid, moving forward to stand on the step above the kid he was talking to. "Draco Malfoy."
The ginger-haired kid snickered though it looked like he was trying to hold it in.
"Think my name's funny, do you?" The rich kid looked down with a sneer at the ginger-hair. "No need to ask yours. Red hair and a hand-me-down robe? You must be a Weasley."
There was just something in that sneering nasty manner that rubbed Naruto the wrong way. Maybe it was remembering too many villagers with that attitude. In fact, Naruto realized that the rich kid wasn't seeing the ginger as a person. Now THAT he had issue with. Naruto began to move forward.
Crabbe and Goyle glanced away at the movement, saw who it was, and froze in place with their expressions changing from smirks to 'oh hell' very rapidly.
That caused Draco to glance that way and frown himself. "And our 'ninja' is here too."
"I never told ya I was a ninja," said Naruto, remembering he was supposed to be working a cover. Not that it was most likely completely hopeless to hide it at this point.
"Some half-breed wizardling from some inferior family no doubt, but you may be of use," said Draco, before turning back. "So how about it, Potter... Potter?"
"How about what?" asked Naruto, now considerably closer.
"Oh, you're over there," said Draco, noting that Potter was just a bit further away. "You'll find that some wizarding families are better than others. Better connected. Better equipped. Also just - better. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort."
"Huh, I'd say you're the wrong sort," said Naruto, leaning against a wall.
Draco spared a moment to glare at the foreign kid before stepping forward towards Potter. "I can help you there."
"I think I can tell the wrong sort for myself, thanks," said Potter.
"Yup," said Hagrid, still in the background watching. Something told him that if the foreign kid got into a fight with any of the other first-years, there'd be little bits of the first year they'd be fishing up from the Black Lake for the next year. There were creatures in the Forbidden Forest that had that sort of air about them. Perfectly willing to let you do whatever you want until you riled 'em up, at which point it wouldn't be pretty at all.
The teacher came back, tapped Draco on the shoulder, then indicated the doors. "This way."
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