"Ah, I'm full." Naruto said, gently patting his stomach.
Souji could only smile at that.
"Naruto, I'm curious. Why do you call him 'Dad'?" Teuchi asked Naruto.
"Oh? That..." Naruto said, scratching his cheek.
"..."
Teuchi nodded after hearing Naruto's explanation. "So that's how it is."
Teuchi was amazed by Souji. Even though he was an orphan like Naruto, he thought more about others than himself.
'A good kid.' Teuchi thought.
"All right, then. You two wait a moment, okay?"
"Eh? What's up, Uncle?" Naruto asked.
"Just wait." Teuchi replied, and then he made ramen again.
Naruto looked at Souji. "I don't know. We better just wait." Souji said.
Naruto nodded his head.
"..."
Not long after, Teuchi came with two more bowls of ramen.
"These are for you, free of charge." Teuchi said with a smile.
Hearing that, Naruto seemed to forget that he was already full. "Thank you, Uncle Teuchi." he said.
"Thank you, Uncle Teuchi." Souji said.
"Don't worry about it. Enjoy it."
"Oh yeah, Uncle. Where's Ayame-nee? I don't see her." Naruto asked, looking for her.
"Ayame? She's in the back tidying up the ingredients."
"I see." Naruto said. Then he started enjoying his ramen again.
Souji also ate his ramen and enjoyed the food, slightly oily taste of the broth combined with the chewy noodles. Eating ramen turned out to have its own sensation.
Souji often ate noodles, especially instant ones. But ramen? This was his first time.
Of course, the instant ramen he had eaten with Naruto didn't count, but instant ramen and the ramen at Ichiraku were indeed different. He was very happy with his experience.
"..."
While the two of them were enjoying their ramen, Ayame arrived with the ingredients.
"Oh, there's Naruto?" Ayame said, looking from Naruto to Souji, who was standing beside him. 'Oh, he's handsome.' she thought.
Naruto, who was eating ramen, stopped to look at Ayame.
"Ayame-nee, long time no see." he said.
Ayame nodded. "Hm, you too, Naruto." Then, she asked, "What's the name of your friend, Naruto?"
"Ah, Souji isn't my friend, he's my Dad." Naruto answered.
"Hm... So your friend's name is Souji... Wait, what?" Ayame asked again to make sure she hadn't misheard.
Before Naruto could answer, Teuchi explained to Ayame.
"..."
"Woah..." Ayame was amazed by Souji. She didn't expect someone like him to exist.
"Hey... Souji, I bet you're popular with girls." Ayame teased.
Before he could answer, Naruto spoke up, "Yes, Dad is very popular. If it weren't for Ino, the girls would bother him all the time."
The previous Naruto would have been jealous of that person, but the current Naruto is different. He can also feel the terrifying atmosphere of the female students in his class when they gather. Naruto shuddered at the thought.
"Hee? I thought so." Ayame nodded.
"Yes, it's nothing. I think I'm just ordinary." Souji said.
"Oh my god, Souji, if you say that, what about Naruto?" Ayame asked.
'If a handsome person says they're ordinary, what about an ordinary person?' Ayame thought.
"Hm... What about me?" Naruto asked, confused.
"It's nothing, Naruto." Souji answered. "Well, maybe I am popular." Souji admitted, winking at Ayame.
Badum Badum Badum
Ayame's heart suddenly beat fast and her cheeks blushed.
"..."
[Harem target detected.]
[Do you want to add Ayame to the list?]
[Yes / No]
"..."
'Yes.'
[Ding.]
[Target registered.]
[Ayame :
Heart : 35%
Mood : happy and embarrassed.
Thoughts: Ah...? I'm...? What...?
Lust: 80%
Satisfaction: 0%]
"..."
'What the... Eighty percent?!' Souji thought, shocked.
He's never seen a number that big. Even Mikoto wasn't like that.
'Could it be because Mikoto already has a husband? What about Ayame?' As far as Souji could remember, Ayame didn't have a boyfriend.
'And when she saw Kakashi eating ramen without his mask, she was like Sakura looking at Sasuke.' Souji thought.
"..."
And Ayame herself? She was still silent.
"..."
"I'm done!" Naruto said, bringing Ayame back to reality.
"Me too." Souji said, still looking at Ayame. Ayame blushed and averted her gaze.
[Thoughts: Did I just blush and look away?]
Souji, who saw that, could only smile a little.
"How about we go home, Naruto?"
"Un." Naruto replied.
"Uncle Teuchi and Ayame-nee, we're leaving first." Naruto said.
"Oh? Of course. Don't forget to visit often." Teuchi said.
"Of course!" Naruto replied.
"Thank you, Uncle Teuchi and Ayame-san." Souji said.
"You're welcome." Teuchi replied with a smile, and Ayame nodded her head, still blushing.
Teuchi could only shake his head when he saw Ayame.
"..."
After that, they stopped by to buy lot of papers and ink for Souji to write his story.
"..."
"..."
———————————————————
When they arrived at the house, Souji and Naruto cleaned up. After Naruto finished showering, Souji entered the bathroom.
"..."
While showering, Souji thought about the conflict on the border. He imagined participating in the war and defeating many enemy ninja troops.
However, he came to his senses. Even so, it was just his imagination. He didn't really want to participate in the war, especially since he was still an amateur.
'Let the adults take care of it.'
"..."
Then, he remembered Karin. As far as he could recall, Karin and her mother were in Kusagakure. From his geography lessons at the academy, he knew that Kusagakure was located between Iwa and Konoha.
Then, Souji thought, 'Are Karin and her mother really there? Is her mother still alive?'
"..."
He thought about saving Karin and her mother, of course if her mother was still alive. And the reason he wants to saving them was because he wanted them.
When he remembered how Sasuke treated Karin, he became annoyed. Of course, it wasn't entirely Sasuke's fault because Karin was infatuated with him. Even during the Fourth Shinobi World War, Karin forgave Sasuke.
'The advantage of having a handsome face.' Souji thought enviously.
"..."
'What if I use my shadow clone to go to Kusagakure?' Souji thought.
'Or... what if my real self goes there? And my shadow clone stays in the village?'
"..."
Souji thought about how easy it would be if he had a jutsu like Hiraishin.
'Well, I can use my shadow clone. That's the safest option.'
After finishing his bath and putting on his clothes, Souji used the Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Poff
"..."
"You know what your task is, right?" Souji asked.
"Of course." his shadow clone said.
"But how do I get out of the village? Doesn't the village have a barrier?" His shadow clone asked.
"..."
"Hey, we have a master key. With that, you can leave the village without anyone knowing." Souji said, having just remembered that he had an exclusive skill suitable for that.
"Ah? You're right." His shadow clone said.
"Then, if I find them, what should I do?" His shadow clone asked again.
Souji raised his eyebrows. "Didn't you say earlier that you knew what your task was?"
"Yes, I know, find Karin and her mother. But after that, I don't know. Should I bring them to Konoha? Or should I take them somewhere else?"
"..."
"Hm... Just bring them to Konoha. I'll take care of it after that."
"Yes, boss. I'm leaving." His shadow clone said, then left using the body flicker jutsu.
Swish
Seeing his shadow clones leave using the Body Flicker Jutsu, reminded Souji of a similar jutsu. Of course, the jutsu wasn't the same.
'Ah? I forgot. There's another jutsu I haven't learned yet.'
'Substitution jutsu.' Maybe I'll ask the old man or Iruka-sensei, Souji thought.
"..."
'Wait, if I can send my shadow clones to take care of problems outside the village, can I use them inside the village, too?' Souji thought. 'For example, I could make my shadow clones watch Danzo.'
"..."
'Hehehe... Danzo... Danzo...'
"..."
"..."
———————————————————
Souji, who was already dressed, saw that Naruto had fallen asleep. He smiled and covered him properly.
"..."
'Yosh! First, do I want to create a series? Or should I just write one book?'
"..."
'Maybe just one book first. Alright, what about the idea? What story do I want to write?' Souji thought.
"..."
Souji was curious. What if he wrote Romeo and Juliet, but set in a shinobi world?
No, what about a Hashirama and Madara version?
"..."
'Interesting.' Souji thought. 'I can try it.'
"Shadow clone jutsu."
Poff Poff Poff
Souji used shadow clones to help him finish his story that night.
"Shadow clones are really helpful."
"..."
"..."
———————————————————
Morning.
Souji and Naruto did their usual routine, but this time, Naruto was reading the story Souji had written with his shadow clones. He didn't even touch his breakfast.
Seeing Naruto so focused on reading his story, Souji chuckled and reminded him, "Naruto, eat first, then you can read it."
"Oh, wait a moment..." Naruto said, his eyes still focused on the story. Souji shook his head and decided to wrap up Naruto's breakfast so he could eat it later at the academy.
"..."
Throughout the journey to school, Naruto was completely engrossed in his reading. Usually lazy about reading, Naruto felt drawn into the story Souji wrote this time. He felt like he was witnessing the events experienced by the characters firsthand. At least, that's what he thought. Everyone has different experiences and perspectives, and Naruto was curious about his father's story, which is why he read it with passion.
"..."
Then, Souji and Naruto arrived at a bookstore.
"All right, Naruto. You wait here for a moment." Souji said. Naruto only nodded in response. Souji went inside and looked for the owner of the bookstore.
"Can I help you?" the owner asked.
"I have a story that I want to turn into a book. Do you know where I can publish it?" Souji asked.
The owner looked at Souji hesitantly and asked, "You?"
"Yes." Without wanting to waste much time, Souji boasted that he was also a student of the Third Hokage. This was actually true, though Souji didn't remember being recognized by Hiruzen as his student.
"If you doubt me, you can ask the Hokage directly."
The bookstore owner asked to confirm, "Is your name Souji?"
"Yes, that's me."
"Ah, forgive me, because I didn't realize it." The bookstore owner had also heard a rumor that the Third Hokage had a student named Souji who had easily defeated an Anbu belong to the Third Hokage, as well as easily defeated the genius Uchiha clan heir. Of course, the last rumor was bad, but considering that not even the Uchiha clan could touch him, who could? He as a civilian?
Would he believe the words of a ninja academy student? He could confirm it later.
"You said you wanted to publish a book, right?" the bookstore owner said. "Coincidentally, I'm also a publisher. Can I see the story you wrote?"
"Here, take it."
Fortunately, Souji made two copies of his writing. He gave one to the bookstore owner and kept the other with Naruto.
The owner took it and asked, "How do I contact you?"
"You can come to the academy. My homeroom teacher is Umino Iruka."
"Thank you. I will read your story and let you know as soon as possible. But before that, I want to apologize if your story might not be published." the owner said.
"Of course, that's not a problem." After that, Souji left the bookstore and found Naruto, who was still focused on reading.
"Naruto, let's go."
"Un." Naruto responded.
Souji could only shake his head.
"..."
"..."
———————————————————
In the Hokage's office.
Hiruzen, along with Inoichi and Shikaku, faced Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu.
"Hiruzen, Iwa and Kusa are really working together to attack Konoha. Even from the information Danzo obtained, Takigakure joined in on the attack, especially Iwa, which was led directly by Onoki. They pushed back our troops and forced us to retreat to our defense line." said Homura.
"..."
Hiruzen looked at Shikaku. Shikaku, seeing Hiruzen looking at him, spoke.
"Our reinforcements arrived late because we didn't expect Onoki to lead the Iwagakure troops himself. We also lack ninjas to overcome the attacks from Takigakure. Suna is moving suspiciously. Kumo has deployed troops on our borders. They are likely waiting for an opportunity to quickly attack us."
"What about Jiraiya?" Hiruzen asked.
"Jiraiya-sama has joined our forces fighting against Iwagakure and Kusagakure, but he can't easily handle them. Also, according to the information he sent, Iwagakure will deploy their jinchuriki."
"How can that be? Aren't they afraid that Kumo will take advantage of that?" Homura asked.
"Onoki might have prepared for that. Moreover, the Fourth Raikage is not the same as his father. If the Third Raikage were still alive, Onoki wouldn't be so bold." said Hiruzen.
"..."
"I will lead the forces on the border." Hiruzen said confidently.
"..."
"..."