14... 15... 16...
A red-haired boy was doing squats in a courtyard; drenched in sweat, but his eyes shone with unwavering will.
Kaito had been working out these past few days, trying to get as strong as he could.
His workout consisted of some warm-ups and then conditioning; his training was brutal for a boy his age, but his physical stamina allowed him to repeatedly push his limits, a living anomaly.
Now I'll do push-ups... Kaito thought to himself as he began to do push-ups.
Then sit-ups; then practice stability and posture.
That's what Kaito had been doing these past few days, pushing his body to the limit, tearing at his muscles to regenerate stronger.
Sweat beaded on his forehead as he performed his last repetition; when he finished, he sighed with a smile on his face.
Seven days of intense training had passed, bearing small but important fruits.
He felt more flexible and capable, not in a big way, but significant for his growth.
And he felt it was time. It was boring to be in an orphanage all day, you know?
To explore the Whirlpool Village! Kaito whispered mentally.
Kaito entered the orphanage, going to get ready to explore.
"Kaito! Why so hasty?" Hako asked.
"I'm just going to explore the village a little," Kaito replied.
"Oh, can I come?"
"No," Kaito said abruptly; and without letting Hako protest, he went to his room.
"That baka..." Hako muttered to himself.
A few minutes passed, during which Kaito got ready, taking a bath, changing his sweaty clothes, and brushing his teeth, a common routine for him.
After getting ready, he said goodbye to the other children at the orphanage and went to explore the village.
Beautiful. Rewarding. Elegant.
That's what Kaito saw, and he looked surprised at the Whirlpool Village, brimming with energy and vitality.
Red-haired people everywhere, all with peaceful smiles on their faces, signs of the fleeting peace before the storm.
He knew it—
This peace wouldn't last long.
The Whirlpool Village would be destroyed; no, wiped out down to almost the last living thing.
And that wasn't far off; in fact, it was very close.
But this wasn't the time for such thoughts; the problem would be how to prevent that occurrence.
Leaving these thoughts behind, Kaito began walking through the Whirlpool Village, becoming more and more amazed by its beauty.
I don't understand. Why would they want to destroy something so beautiful? Kaito thought doubtfully.
But then he realized the stupidity of these thoughts; the reason was super simple. Selfishness, ambition, and power.
In this world, the strongest reigned supreme; they were simply annihilated by their insufficient strength.
On the way to a convenience store, he had brought a few ryō to eat on the way; exactly 300 ryō.
"Kid, are you here to buy some?" a young adult asked, a gentle smile on her face.
Kaito nodded.
"Great! We sell delicious ramen here! Each bowl costs 150 ryō," said the adult.
How cheap. He remembered that a bowl of Ichiraku Ramen cost a few hundred ryō. Kaito thought as he handed over the 300 ryō he had.
"Two bowls of Miso Chashū Ramen, please," Kaito said politely.
"Done!" The girl grabbed the ryō and then called her father, who was in the kitchen.
"Dad, two bowls of Miso Chashū Ramen!" the girl said. "Understood!" her father replied.
Kaito sat for several minutes. Why had he chosen Miso Chashū Ramen? Because it was Naruto's favorite, and he wanted to try it, that's all.
After those minutes, a smoky smell of rich braised pork filled the shop, entering his nostrils, making him hungry.
The girl arrived with two steaming bowls, made of broth with miso paste and extra braised pork. She placed the bowls on the table where Kaito was sitting.
Kaito's mouth watered at the sight. He clumsily gripped his chopsticks in excitement and began to eat.
The first bite—
And an explosion of flavors invaded his palate.
In less than 6 seconds, he had already finished both bowls.
The girl looked at him, surprised, but then gave a gentle smile and grabbed both bowls to wash them.
"Thanks for the food! I'm leaving!" Kaito said, intending to return to this place several times in the future.
I understand now why Naruto loves this place... I'm going to become obsessed, Kaito thought.
"Also! See you later!" the girl waved goodbye.
Kaito left, his stomach nowhere near full; just eating that Miso Chashū Ramen had taken his appetite to extraordinary levels.
He continued exploring the village, seeing countless sights, children playing and running happily, while their parents or guardians watched them, but they all had one thing in common: their amazing vitality and their vibrant red hair.
Kaito smiled, for a moment forgetting the cruelties of this world and how all this happiness would be destroyed in just two years.
But... the world was going to remind him... and in a cruel and merciless way.
As he walked through the village, he heard some sobs, almost inaudible, but his hearing picked them up.
"Leave me alone... please," a girl whispered weakly.
Kaito ran to see, only to find a cruel scene before his eyes.
Three boys were kicking a girl with a scar on her cheek, who was hugging herself on the ground, tears falling from her eyes and sliding down her cheeks.
"Of course not, you're ugly! You disgrace our clan!" one of the boys spoke, with an arrogant smile on his face.
He had forgotten. Why do we need power? Simple, the law is the law dictated by the strongest, the strong are those who dominate, the weak comply and suffer.
Kaito clenched his fists, preparing to intervene and help the girl. He didn't care if it was a 3-on-1, he was going to win, because without willpower, how would he survive in this cruel world?
"Enough!"
End of bonus chapter
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Thank you for reading the first chapter of this novel!
Please give me Power Stones and I'll put more effort into this story.
On weekends, I'll upload an extra chapter for every 5 Power Stones; I'll upload one chapter per day.
This story is my own.