Author's Note: If you're enjoying the story and want early access, plus some bonus content, check out my patreon at banmido
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The front door clicked shut behind them with a soft finality.
Mark exhaled like he'd just gotten done with a strenuous boss fight.
"Alright," he muttered, scratching the back of his neck almost nervously. "Let's get this over with."
Naruto stood beside him on the welcome mat, hands in his hoodie pockets, face unreadable as always. His eyes drifted across the room. The hallway was clean. Lived-in.
Framed photos lined the walls. Mark as a kid, gap-toothed and beaming in front of a science fair project.
A beach trip frozen in time. Debbie in the kitchen, flour on her cheeks, laughing at something behind the camera.
Warm light pooled gently from overhead fixtures. The floor creaked slightly in the way old wood does when it remembers who's walked on it too many times. There was the faint scent of tea leaves and something sweet in the air. Like cinnamon. Or nostalgia.
It didn't look like a house built to hold secrets.
It looked like a regular Earth home.
"Mom? Dad?" Mark called out. "There's someone I want you to meet."
From the kitchen came the shuffle of slippers on tile.
Debbie Grayson stepped into view, apron still tied around her waist, hair pulled back in a loose bun. She wiped her hands on a dish towel, pausing only for a second when her eyes landed on Naruto.
Then she smiled.
"Hi there," she said, walking over without hesitation. "I'm Debbie. You must be Naruto."
He gave a small nod.
Naruto watched her move, soft-spoken and steady, with no fear in her eyes and warmth in her smile. She was kind. Nurturing. The kind of woman who made a house feel lived in. Inviting. Safe.
Almost reminded him of his mother.
Not in voice or in face.
But in the way she made the room feel less cold.
Before he could say anything else, she pulled him into a warm hug.
Naruto stiffened at the contact, slightly caught off guard.
She didn't care. She hugged like she meant it. Like he wasn't some strange space alien but a lost kid who needed a hug.
"Any friend of Mark's might as well be family to us," she said.
Naruto blinked, unsure what to do with that.
Behind her, heavy footsteps echoed from upstairs.
Nolan Grayson entered the room.
He was tall. But not too tall to pass as normal, even if no one said anything out loud. And broad shoulders built like they were carved for war armor, not cotton button-downs.
There was something heavy about him, not just in size but in presence, like the air bent differently around him and rooms adjusted the moment he walked in.
His mustache was perfectly trimmed, not a hair out of place. Clean. Intentional. The kind of detail that said he cared about appearances.
His eyes, though those were the real giveaway.
Calm on the surface. And steady like still water.
But behind them?
Sharp and cold calculation. A mind that never stopped measuring.
And he didn't need to raise his voice to own the space. He just sat there, quietly coiled. Relaxed in a way only the truly dangerous ever were.
He smiled like a man who had nothing to prove.
But Naruto knew behind the smile was a Viltrumite warrior who trained to conquer worlds.
He stopped just a few feet from Naruto, arms crossed. Studying him up and down.
Naruto stepped forward, extending a hand towards him
Nolan looked at it for a moment, then took it.
The shake was firm and controlled. Almost too polite.
"The boy from Planet Centauria, huh?" Nolan said. "Can't say I've heard much about them."
Naruto met his gaze without flinching. "We tend to be solitary people. Whether by nature, or old customs, I'm not sure. But we tend to keep to ourselves in the galaxy."
Nolan's brow twitched just slightly. "I see."
Debbie looked between the two of them with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
Mark cleared his throat. "Naruto saved my life. Remember that mech fight? I wouldn't be standing here in one piece if it weren't for him."
Debbie's hand went to her chest. "Oh God. I didn't realize, thank you so much for having our babies back."
Naruto shrugged. "I was just repaying a debt that I owed."
Nolan's eyes narrowed just a little.
But Debbie just smiled tighter and ushered them toward the living room.
"Come on, both of you. Sit. I was just making tea."
Naruto followed.
The living room smelled like cinnamon and fresh tea leaves.
A tray rested on the coffee table, three mismatched mugs and a chipped sugar bowl set out like this was just another normal evening.
Debbie moved with practiced ease, pouring tea into the cups while Mark flopped down on the couch, elbows on his knees. Naruto sat beside him, silent, posture relaxed but not casual. Like he could melt through the cushion at any moment if he had to.
Nolan remained standing for a beat longer than necessary.
Then he took the armchair across from Naruto and settled in slow, like a weight being set down carefully.
"So," Nolan began, lifting his cup but not drinking. "Planet Centauria."
Naruto met his eyes. "Yes."
"I've been to a lot of planets. Fought on a few. Can't say I've ever crossed paths with anyone from there."
Naruto shrugged. "The universe is a huge place. Hard to see everything."
"I've seen most of it."
"Then you missed a spot."
Nolan raised an eyebrow. "You make it sound like I should've heard of it."
Naruto's voice stayed level. "We're near Thraxia. You've probably flown past it and missed it. Or maybe you didn't get the warm welcome. We don't get visitors much.."
Nolan considered that. "You did say you were a xenophobic planet."
"Solitary," Naruto corrected. "But sure. Same ballpark."
"And yet here you are."
Naruto cracked a faint grin. "Guess I'm a bad Centaurian. Rebellious youth and all that."
Nolan studied him. "You ran away?"
"Got bored," Naruto said. "Wanted to see something different. Stretch my legs. Experience mediocrity."
That earned a slow blink from Nolan. "You think Earth is mediocre?"
"I think it's noisy. But it's got good noodles."
Mark looked between them, clearly feeling the heat, but didn't jump in.
"So," Nolan said, voice casual in that carefully neutral way, "tell me more about Centauria. I'm curious. What is it like on the planet?"
Naruto didn't answer right away.
He set his tea down gently.
Then leaned back, arms folded, eyes unfocused like he was looking at something far away. Something only he could see.
"We didn't build cities. Not like Earth at least. No towers. No highways. No sprawl. Our homes were carved into the cliffs or grown from the trees. Each one shaped to fit the land, not the other way around."
He paused for a breath.
"Our elders taught us that the planet was alive. That the wind and river carries memories of our past lives.. That you don't walk through the forests as a master but more as a guest."
Debbie leaned forward, resting her chin on one hand. Her eyes were soft.
"That sounds… beautiful."
Naruto nodded faintly. "There were rivers that glowed silver in the moonlight. Valleys where birds sang in languages only the Elders could understand. We farmed with our hands. Listened to voice of our sky. Honored our dead by planting trees so they could keep watching over us."
Nolan's voice broke the brief silence, still casual but edged with curiosity.
"And your people?" he asked. "What were they like… physically?"
Naruto leaned back slightly, resting an arm along the back of the couch. His tone was relaxed, almost bored.
"Strong," he said. "That's just how we come out."
Nolan raised an eyebrow, waiting in response.
Naruto continued, more evenly now. "Centauria's gravity is much heavier than Earth's. You learn to move through the environment. Our bones are denser. Muscles too. It's not about training. It's just biology."
He paused, then added with a shrug, "The climate doesn't help either. Freezing winters, brutal summers. You adapt or you die."
Nolan nodded once, taking a sip from his mug. "I've met species with similar conditions. Harsh environments. Tough atmospheres. But most of them turned warlike. Territorial and primitive."
Naruto gave a small shrug. "We weren't like that. At least, not when I was there."
"Peaceful, then?"
"Cooperative," Naruto said. "Didn't mean we were nice. Just meant we weren't interested in fighting amongst each other."
"Hm."
Nolan didn't push further.
Debbie broke the silence. "What about technology? Did you have ships?"
"We had ships," Naruto said. "Not for war but for study. The stars were sacred to us. We didn't think they needed conquering, though."
Nolan smiled. But it didn't reach his eyes.
"Well. That's one way to look at the universe."
Naruto didn't blink. "It's a way that kept us alive for a millenia."
Mark gave a low whistle. "Man, I gotta visit sometime. Sounds like the best nature documentary ever."
Naruto gave a soft, hollow laugh. "Yeah. Maybe someday."
But his eyes never left Nolan's.
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Author's Note: If you're enjoying the story and want early access, plus some bonus content, check out my P tr e 0n at banmido