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Naruto had flatly refused to escort Sasuke all the way home last night, though he did drop him off near his house. Walking him to the door was Hinata's privilege, after all.
The next morning, Naruto sent a shadow clone to pick up Sasuke, and the two began their training again.
First, they pulled out a bed.
Then came the blankets—twenty of them, piled up in no time.
"Hey, Sasuke, don't just start pounding on trees like that," Naruto called out as Sasuke prepared to unleash his fury on yet another poor innocent tree. "What did that tree ever do to you?"
"What is it?" asked the nine-year-old cool guy, turning to face Naruto with an indifferent expression.
"Today we're doing something different. We're climbing trees." Naruto spread ten layers of blankets beneath the tree, then focused chakra into his feet. Using the chakra to adhere to the trunk, he slowly ascended four steps before accidentally overloading the chakra and sinking his foot into the bark.
He dispersed the chakra and fell back into the pile of blankets.
"What's the point of this?" Sasuke already understood how Naruto climbed the tree but didn't see the purpose.
"Bigger Fireball Jutsu, less chakra wasted," Naruto replied lazily. He didn't bother elaborating on the finer points of chakra control; this explanation was simple enough.
"Oh," said the young cool guy. Picking up the remaining blankets, Sasuke moved to a nearby tree.
Naruto had laid out the blankets because he needed to head to class later—not because the ground was hard or the water cold.
Sasuke managed three steps before losing his grip on the chakra and falling.
Half an hour later, Naruto switched to a new tree—the previous one had been completely shattered under his weight.
By the time class started, Naruto had broken four or five trees, while Sasuke had fallen countless times. Neither of them had even reached ten steps.
Before the third period began, Naruto sent a shadow clone to escort Sasuke back to school while he headed home himself.
The leftover grilled meat from last night's practice hadn't gone to waste—it was stored neatly in a barrel. Today, Naruto decided to gift it to Choji Akimichi, the little chubby kid who loved food.
Naruto figured it was about time to get to know the future generation of heroes. After all, having no friends or family at his wedding would be quite awkward.
Hoisting the barrel onto his shoulder, he made his way back to the classroom.
When he reached Choji, the plump boy was munching on potato chips. The moment he caught a whiff of grilled meat, he turned his head and stared intently at the barrel.
"It's for you," Naruto said, lifting the lid to reveal an entire barrel filled with grilled meat.
"For real?!" Choji couldn't believe it. This mysterious classmate of his had just given him a whole barrel of grilled meat—how generous!
"It's my special ability," Naruto explained. "Think of it as a kekkei genkai—a bloodline limit—or summoning grilled meat." To demonstrate, he casually summoned a piece of grilled meat and tossed it into the barrel.
"This is what I had left over from practicing last night. I remembered your dream is to eat grilled meat, so I brought it for you. Hope you don't mind."
The expressions around the room were priceless. Even Shikamaru, who had been sleeping, sat up groggily. A kekkei genkai for summoning grilled meat? Was that even a thing?!
"Not at all, not at all!" Choji eagerly grabbed a piece of meat and stuffed it into his mouth.
Even Asuma-sensei felt心疼 (heartache) when treating Team 10 to grilled meat, which spoke volumes about how expensive it was.
"You're definitely my friend now," Choji declared firmly, looking at Naruto with newfound admiration. What an incredible ability—why didn't he have something like that?
"Let's introduce ourselves properly. Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto said, extending his hand.
"Akimichi Choji."
"Woof woof…" A sharp, puppy-like bark echoed through the air.
"Does it want some too?" Naruto glanced down at Akamaru, who was nestled beside Kiba.
"You can understand what it's saying?" Kiba asked, surprised.
"I guessed from its expression," Naruto replied nonchalantly. Having once owned a dog, he was familiar with canine mannerisms.
"Does it prefer raw or cooked meat?" Naruto gently patted Akamaru's head.
"If possible, Akamaru likes it raw," Kiba answered, still incredulous. Could this ability summon raw meat too? What kind of kekkei genkai was this?!
Naruto pulled out two pieces of raw meat—they were identical in size to the grilled portions. According to the game's description, these were simply "meat," uncooked and ready to serve. Two pieces would suffice for Akamaru.
"I'm Inuzuka Kiba, and I'm definitely making you my friend too!" Kiba grinned widely, his personality strikingly similar to Naruto's original self.
Just like that, Naruto gained two more friends. As someone from the 21st century, he knew full well the power of culinary diplomacy and pet diplomacy.
To celebrate their newfound friendship, Kiba suggested a lunch gathering, which Choji happily accepted.
And so, Naruto invited Hinata along with Sasuke, while Choji brought Shikamaru and Ino. Ino, in turn, invited Sakura, and Kiba rounded out the group by calling Shino Aburame.
All nine members of Konoha's Rookie Nine were present.
At a grassy clearing somewhere in the Hidden Leaf Village, the nine children bustled about, fully witnessing what it meant to have a walking cafeteria.
The girls used kunai knives to carve makeshift chopsticks and skewers for grilling meat and fish. The wood was provided by Naruto.
Kiba, Choji, and Naruto worked together to build a stove. Bricks, clay, and pots—all supplied by Naruto.
Meanwhile, Sasuke and Shikamaru were tasked with constructing a rack to hold the food. How they did it didn't matter to Naruto; both boys were smart enough to figure it out.
Once everything was set up, several mats were laid out, covered with an impressive spread: grilled meat, fried eggs, fish soup, bread, apple pies, roasted fish, and bowls of apples and berries.
For drinks, there was only tea and water.
These were merely appetizers—the main event involved grilling. Large chunks of meat were cut into smaller pieces, skewered, and hung on the rack to roast. Fish were impaled near the fire, slowly cooking over the flames.
Ino and Sakura hovered around Sasuke, chatting incessantly. Sasuke looked visibly irritated.
Choji was eating.
Kiba was cutting raw meat into small pieces to feed Akamaru.
Hinata sat quietly beside Naruto, eating modestly. No one could tell how much she'd consumed.
Naruto lay sprawled on the grass, with Shikamaru lounging nearby. Despite complaining earlier, Shikamaru had done an excellent job assembling the grill.
As Naruto gazed at the sky, memories of his childhood flooded back. It wasn't so different from this moment—running wild with friends day and night, climbing mountains, swimming in rivers, catching fish, and almost getting lost twice. Coming home to a scolding, only to run off again the next day. Visiting neighbors during New Year's to feast and celebrate.
And his family… During festivals, three siblings would fight over a dumpling containing a coin, stuffing themselves silly in the process.
Humans were social creatures, after all. Listening to the lively chatter around him, Naruto felt a deep sense of nostalgia.
He had the strength to survive alone if necessary, but he couldn't live like that forever. No one could. He wasn't Robinson Crusoe, capable of enduring solitude indefinitely. Besides, even Robinson wanted to return to society eventually.
For the first time since arriving in this world, Naruto felt a genuine desire to connect with those around him—even if they were just kids under ten years old.
"Kiba, toss me that skewer of grilled fish!" Naruto shouted above the din. His voice carried clearly despite the chaos.
No one cared about missing afternoon classes. If two people skipped, it was truancy; if the whole class skipped, it was a holiday.
Meanwhile, Iruka complained bitterly to the Third Hokage about Naruto's antics.
The Third watched the scene unfold within the crystal ball—Naruto playing with Akamaru alongside Kiba—and smiled warmly.
"Iruka, look how much Naruto has grown," the Third said, chuckling.
It had been years since the boy first stepped outside, burdened by emotional scars. Now, those wounds were beginning to heal, bit by bit.
Later that evening, as Naruto returned to training, a nagging feeling lingered in the back of his mind. He felt like he'd forgotten someone—but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember who.