Disclaimer: I certainly don't own Naruto, Disney or any of its affiliated properties. If I did, I wouldn't be writing this now would I?
"The connection of our hearts…" : Speech (Bold for yelling ,Bijuu, or massive creatures)
'The connection of our hearts…' : Thought
The open ocean, late afternoon…
The last two days had been a wild ride for Santiago – having been crowned the salao (basically the unlucky one) for not having a single catch in a whopping eighty four days, he and his wife had been scrounging for any scraps to tide them through the days. Now though, he was returning to shore with four mako sharks, an absolute beast of a great marlin and a potential first mate (he respected Manolin's loyalty to him despite all the hearsay about his rotten luck but the boy had better prospects in life anyway – Naruto on the other hand was a man looking to be around his age while still retaining the vigor of a much younger one). After Naruto had saved his catch from the thieving beasts and rescued a bleedin' mermaid to boot, the two men had decided that keeping Flounder was pointless – Santiago had little over a ton in fish meat with him so a small fish wasn't going to change things for him anymore even if he could talk (Naruto had a hard time convincing him of that one but his charisma was legendary for a reason).
As such, the two men returned to the town triumphant, their catches illuminated in the glowing orange hue of the setting sun. The locals were astonished-far be it from them to wish anyone any real harm but the general consensus was that Old Man Santiago was getting a little too long in the tooth to be a capable fisherman – normally, his son would take over for him but his wife hadn't borne him one (a pity that – they had been married for over forty years with nothing significant to show for it). Now seeing the man gloating about his catches, the people had to wonder – just how did the local salao get so lucky?
"Haha! You see! Look at this great beast of a marlin – somebody measure this leviathan for me while I get myself some ale! Naruto – make sure nobody messes with my fish!" Santiago hollered as he was being dragged off to the local tavern by Manolin and a group of excited fishermen, his wife in hot pursuit.
"Eh…sure…just make sure to return soon. I have a wife (or rather wives…he was being discreet) to get back to as well!" Naruto said, leaning against Santiago's boat as he took a cursory glance at the beach they were on(the town was poor so no real harbors for them) while keeping an eye out for the taxidermist (a fisherman by trade – just more bookish so the man was given this job as well). He didn't have to wait for long before a burly man walked over to him.
"You Naruto?" He said, rubbing his bushy black beard while pulling out a tape measure.
"That's me – you must be Gregor. Santiago told me about you when we were coming back with our catch. I guess you're here to measure the fish huh? Go ahead." Naruto said, getting up and untying the marlin from the boat, the fish landing on the sand with a meaty thud (despite the bite the shark took out of it, it was still as hefty as ever).
"So you were the one who went out to check on the old codger? Good on you man – his wife was at her wits end worrying after his health. He hasn't been eating well these last couple of months trying to love off his meager life savings. Now let's see what we got here – four mako sharks, average size and weight – I would estimate you have around 600 kilograms of meat here. Take the fins off and sell them in the city market for a high price for the best results. Now for the marlin…" Gregor mumbled, crouching down to measure the fish, uncaring of the crowd behind him curiously waiting for his verdict.
They weren't disappointed either, since it was only a minute later when Gregor squawked in shock and shakily got to his feet.
"T-this can't even be called a king marlin anymore – this fish, if you can even call it that, is eighteen bleedin' feet long! Why, I am more curious about how you managed to lug this beast to shore without capsizing your boat!" Gregor said, his voice cracking with disbelief at his measurements.
Off to the side, the surrounding crowd of people began chattering excitedly, with some of them even starting to throw offers to buy the marlin itself. Naruto paid them no heed however, saying that it was Santiago's catch first and foremost and as such, the decision fell to him instead. Thankfully, they didn't have to wait for long as the man of the hour arrived half an hour later, his face ruddy with all the food and drink he had consumed.
"So Gregor, what's the verdict? Has this salao finally proven his worth?" He said, merrily clapping the man on the back before walking over to Naruto and wrapping an arm around his shoulder.
"Indeed. Some people here even want to take the fish off your hands for a king's ransom…" Gregor said, pointing over to two well dressed gentlemen, who excitedly walked over to Santiago.
"Yes sir, as the owner of such a fine catch, it would be a shame if it didn't get the recognition it deserves. We propose a deal – let us purchase this fish and bring it to the king. In return, we will pay you handsomely and return the skeleton of the fish to serve as a tourist attraction." One man said, brushing his monocle while his companion pulled out a bulging coin purse.
It was at this moment that Santiago's wife and Naruto's companions burst out of the crowd to walk over to their respective men.
"Dear, let these gentlemen have the fish – the sharks will sell well on their own and we can also eat some of them. This offer may even land you a contract with the king so you can buy a better boat and hire some men to help you with fishing!" Santiago's wife(named Maria –in the novella, she was dead but some literary liberties are being taken here) said, tugging at her husband's shirt and whispering in his ear.
Off to the side, Naruto had begun recounting his tale to Grimhilde, Alice and Shanti, who were all quite surprised to hear that he had encountered a mermaid on a seemingly mundane journey.
After much deliberation, Santiago decided to sell the great marlin to the tourists to use the funds and fame he got to get a better boat. He also hired Naruto as a deckhand and his first mate (granted they didn't have any other crew members given Naruto's resourcefulness but since Santiago had decided to effectively retire, this was a way to keep making money while also giving Naruto a trade to ply – he knew he owed the man a lot).
In such a fashion, the months passed by and the old decrepit fisherman town gradually became a bustling center of trade and tourism, with many newcomers coming to see the great marlin skeleton or to visit the men who caught it. Speaking of the men however, Naruto also came up with a great idea to boost Santiago's fish sales compared to his competitors. Having remembered just how bewitching women could help a commercial establishment from his time in the Montague/Tremaine estate, he asked Grimhilde and Alice to man a fish shop. Shanti also helped, seeing as her exotic skin tone and appearance garnered a great deal of attention, even if it was only curiosity(which it usually wasn't – the ordinary man was no match for the beauty of Naruto's companions and usually cursed the merry ninja's luck to have ensnared such beauties).
After a few months, Santiago officially retired to live peacefully with his wife – they had grown to see Naruto and his ladies as their in laws and as such, the money they made was shared amongst them all. It was no paltry sum either – with Naruto's extraordinary luck, his prowess as a fisherman reached ears far and wide, meaning that he always had people curious to see what he caught on a daily basis. Naruto never forgot Ariel and Flounder however, always checking to see if the animals he caught were sentient before bringing them back to town, something that Ariel really appreciated. Speaking of the mermaid princess however, she eventually became friends with Naruto (granted, he did save her life already but they really bonded over their mutual love for adventure) despite the perceived age difference – he may have looked like an older gentleman but he was still handsome and fun and that was all she wanted (besides…he was her first human friend!).
A few months later…
Naruto was having a lazy Sunday – shooting the breeze with the local fauna (a notable mention being Scuttle, another one of Ariel's friends – with Naruto's affinity to nature, making friends with sentient animals was easy) while casting his fishing line into the clear, calm waters of the ocean. He was really enjoying the slow lifestyle in this world – he would go out to fish in the day and come home to his wives' warm embrace in the night (Shanti had her own room, although he had the sneaking suspicion that was about to change soon).
Unbeknownst to him to though, Ariel and Flounder were close by, the mermaid searching the wreckage of a sunken ship for any knick knacks she could get Naruto to identify later (it was certainly an eye opener to hear his verdict on her findings compared to what she'd normally get from Scuttle).
"Look alive Flounder! If we can find some good stuff, maybe I can show them to Naruto today!" Ariel said, excitedly rifling through the assorted debris all while Flounder looked around a little worried.
"Careful Ariel – we're in shark territory so don't make too many movements…" He said, his eyes darting around the interior of the ship they were in, jumping at shadows to the girl's hidden amusement.
"Oh don't worry – even if a nasty shark was to attack us, all I have to do is lead it to Naruto. He'll handle it just fine~." Ariel said waving away his worries before fishing out a fork and pipe.
"Oh! I wonder what these are? Oh well – back to Naruto we go…I wonder what stories he has for me today…" She mumbled thoughtfully, only for the two of them to be rudely interrupted by a shark which burst into the room they were in before chasing them out of the shipwreck and into the open water.
"Hurry Flounder – to the surface! If we can get Naruto to catch the shark, we'll be safe again!" She said, spotting Naruto's fishing line and swimming close to it to bait the shark's lunge attack.
Her strategy was sound – the shark did lunge, only to be caught by Naruto, who gave his line a mighty tug to pull the shark out of the water. He then dispatched the fish with a quick stab to the eye before looking into the water, where a certain mermaid was looking at him with a smile.
"Hey Naruto! How are you doing this fine morning?" She asked him, seemingly ignoring the faux exasperation on his face.
"Oh I was doing just fine – Ariel, you've got to stop doing these stunts. I won't always be around to save ya, ya know?" Naruto said, reaching over to ruffle her hair as she laughed at his concern (but she appreciated it all the same).
And that was chapter 63! Naruto is Ariel's human friend and soon her closest confidant when Ursula enters the picture. How the story changes from here on out is anyone's guess so keep reading to find out what happens next!
If you'd like to support me you can find me on Patreon on the 'search for creators' bar under DudeWithaMac (I only get free time on Sundays since money's extremely tight-details on Panacea chapter 14). Alternatively, you guys can follow this link:p#at#re#on.#com/DudeWithaMac (remove the hash tags). Reviews and comments are always welcome!