Uzumaki Naruko was used to attracting looks.
Whether it be because of the criminally short skirts she favored, the blinding orange of her clothes that made everyone turn to her just due to how bright she usually was, or something outrageous, or hilarious, she had just done. Of course, to her, it was just business as usual to be stared at, and to smile and wave at the people who did the same for her, as well as quite a few that didn't, for a variety of reasons.
What was new, however, was the reason why people were looking at her today. It wasn't normal to see a pirate in a ninja village, after all. Much less a ninja pirate, like Naruko was. After her visit to the hospital, she'd realized that the glare of the sun was a bit stronger than before, and as such, she put on the tricorn hat she'd stolen from the same person she'd taken her coat from, completing the set.
Unfortunately, it didn't quite match her sandals. So she went and bought herself a pair of knee high brown leather boots. Wearing socks was a novel experience for her, but necessary to put on the boots. She was due for a new pair of sandals anyway, so she might as well replace them and drop them off at the orphanage. So she went and did exactly that.
The matron at the orphanage seemed glad to see Naruko, and they chatted for a bit. Nothing too important. After Naruko dropped off her used sandals so that someone who didn't have another pair could use the sturdy, shinobi-grade footwear, Naruko and the matron parted ways.
Deciding she might as well do what she had originally intended to do, Naruko went to the central market district of Konoha, also known as the Bazaar or 'That Street Full Of Food Vendors', to some.
Along the way, Naruko contemplated buying a pair of golden hoop earrings. If only because the images of pirates in storybooks usually had those. Konoha's commercial district was a thing to behold, being by far the richest of the five villages had quite a few advantages to it after all.
In contrast with the rather boring normality of the rest of the village, the affectionately nicknamed "Big Badass Mall" that comprised an entire district of the city-sized village was a mishmash of colors, shapes and scents, all of which contrasted beautifully against each other, from the most garish and attention grabbing orange and blue contrasts to the dark cave-like shops that catered to less than wholesome interests. From the beautifully bright toystores (and the civilian children that were bunched up looking at the latest toys from the line of some TV show Naruko didn't watch), to the enticingly provocative, out of the way little cafés that offered a moment of calm and respite, so you could then move on and go towards the entertainment side of things, with Konoha's world-renowned money sinks, casinos, brothels and the like.
Truly, it was a village that had everything, and everything to thank its overly large shinobi population for, as Shinobi had large paychecks and didn't really mind spending them all at once. Ninja didn't have high life expectancies and holding oneself back from earthly pleasures was seen as a waste of time and effort.
Better to get it off your system so you can die with a few less regrets on the field.
Naruko liked everything about the Big Badass Mall. Even more so at night, when instead of bright sunlight, it was the artificial glare of man made light sources of all colors and shapes that gave the entire place life of its own, like a pulsing, shining link that connected everything.
During night, it was impossible to make any kind of good time when one ran through the district, and indeed, it was this district that had earned Konoha ninja their reputation for never using the beaten path, it was just unfeasible to do so here, instead ninja had managed to eventually build an entire network of places they could jump to and from, moving about the district with unparalleled ease and agility. To some, nothing was out of the ordinary layout, though billboards and ledges were a bit more noticeable and abundant than in most other commercial districts in the world.
A keen eye would've noticed spaces where there were missing windows in buildings that otherwise had them evenly spaced and distributed. Someone paying lots of attention would've noticed that there were quite a few air conditioning systems that had the main motor placed on the roof. Someone who looked closely enough would also be able to tell you that a grand majority of those was either outright fake or designed of uncommon materials, designed to be sturdy and not functional.
Any ninja would be able to tell you that their main purpose was to be platforms they could use to reach higher places than they would otherwise be able to. Any ninja would've told you what purpose each and every seemingly out of place rail or billboard served.
But most civilians didn't really care, and that was okay.
It was intended for the ANBU, the silent shadows that protected the populace, to be able to move about better. So it was okay.
Of course, any ninja could use them, but they didn't need to be told that.
This day, Naruko was NOT using said network. The district wasn't empty or desolate or anything of the sort. In fact, it was bustling with people. But it was manageable. There was space to walk in, so it was okay. She wasn't in a hurry anyway, as she had totally forgotten what purpose she'd originally gone out of the house for.
A common hazard, really, when dealing with Naruko and shiny, attention grabbing things.
So, with a spring in her step brought on by the mood uplifting beauty of human consumerism, Naruko headed towards her destiny, in search of food, treasure and fun.
It was kind of sad that she didn't have a properly peppy sounding soundtrack to accompany her, but it was okay. She'd sing it herself if she had to. "Den den den den densetsu no, hotori mezashite sanzenri," she sang to herself as she walked. "Ini ini ini ini inishie no, densho ni shirusareta."