8: Chapter 8 An unexpected encounter at Ichiraku RamenFeeling the power within his body, Naruto felt that the nutrients he had previously lacked were being slowly replenished.
Moreover, the physique of the complete Uzumaki clan is constantly being strengthened.
Things are getting better, everything will get better gradually.
But it's already past midnight.I'm still in the growth stage, so I need to go to sleep early so my body can continue to get stronger!
"I'll eat one more can of food and then go to sleep!" You can't blame Naruto for that.He's suffered for so long, what's wrong with enjoying himself a little?
Canned food is so delicious and nutritious, it's only natural!
After finishing the canned food, Naruto fell asleep contentedly.
Within his unseen space of consciousness.
The Nine-Tailed Fox slowly calmed down, but it couldn't quite figure out what had gone wrong.
It watched Naruto grow up from a young age, so logically, it should remember everything Naruto went through.
However, Naruto seems to be acting strangely lately.Sometimes when I observe Naruto, I feel like my view of him is being cut off.
A special force is stopping it.
And Naruto's body seems to have gotten stronger again?
As the tailed beast within Naruto, it could naturally sense that something seemed to be changing in Naruto's body.
After so many years, the red pillar of the seal had already loosened somewhat, which is why it was able to leak a trace of Nine-Tails chakra when Naruto's emotions were running high.
Silently, the seal was being broken.
Tonight, the seal was suddenly reinforced again, and it could sense that Naruto's aura was stronger.
It reminded it of its previous Jinchūriki, with whom it had a relationship that was neither particularly good nor bad.
Naruto's mother, Kushina Uzumaki.
I've thought about it so much, but I still can't figure out the problem.
The Nine-Tails could only lie silently in the sewer.Looking back now, it felt that Naruto had a slightly closer feeling to it this time.Was it just its imagination?
Heh, I am the mighty Nine-Tails, the strongest of all tailed beasts, how could I possibly be close to a human?
Next time, when Naruto comes in again, I'll try to have a proper talk with him.
However, looking at the seal that had been reinforced again.
Like an empty-nest old man, Nine-Tails let out a faint sigh: "If I had known, I wouldn't have chased him away.How boring!"
Its nine tails were also swaying anxiously back and forth; what a proud nine-tailed creature!
Naruto was completely unaware of all this.
Naruto, who was fast asleep, slept until after 11 o'clock.
I slept very comfortably.I felt warm all over while I was dreaming, and I felt my body was still adapting to the complete physique of the Uzumaki clan.
It's really good.
"I'm a little hungry, time to go eat.Let's go to Ichiraku Ramen, Uncle Tetsuji must be missing me!"
Naruto put on his clothes and went out.
The pointing and whispering of villagers by the roadside no longer have any effect on him.
When you first come here, you might be a little concerned.
Once he had gained some strength, he could easily kill the villagers even without systematically learning taijutsu, simply by using some chakra.
Naruto felt it was unnecessary; an elephant wouldn't care about an ant's provocation.
Naruto suddenly felt something flying towards him.He turned around and saw it was another small stone!
Even though the attack came from behind, Naruto could clearly sense it.Even without using Kagura's Mind's Eye, his passive perception alone was already incredibly sharp.
He just glared at the group of children.
The children felt as if they were being watched by some terrifying wild beast, as if they were about to be beheaded at any moment!
They ran into the house in fear and cried while hugging their parents.
Naruto said, "You guys were the ones who started it, and you're acting all wronged?"
After easily dodging the rocks, Naruto quickened his pace.Although they posed no real threat, these ignorant villagers were still quite annoying.
We arrived at Ichiraku Ramen, run by a hand-cooked uncle.
"Uncle, give me a bowl of ramen, with all the toppings extra, the super luxurious kind!"
Naruto, pretending to be nonchalant, plopped down in a chair and shouted at the hand-hitting uncle.
When the middle-aged man saw that the person who came was Naruto, he didn't show any different expression.
"Oh, it's Naruto!Have a seat, I'll get you something right away, just wait here!"
The middle-aged man began skillfully making ramen.
A nearby diner also showed a disgusted expression when he saw Naruto, and shouted at the man in the hand, "Hey boss, why are you serving the fox spirit here?Get him out of here, or we'll never come back!"
"That's right!Chase the fox demon away!We don't want to eat noodles with a fox demon!"
Seeing that the other audience members were starting to make a fuss, Naruto didn't care, but Uncle Tsubasa had been good to him, and he couldn't let Uncle Tsubasa's business suffer because of his own actions.
"Well, uncle, I'll be going now.Come again next time!" Naruto politely said goodbye to Uncle Tetsuya and prepared to leave.
"Wait, Naruto!Don't go yet!" Uncle Hand was also a little angry when he heard what the diners said.In his opinion, Naruto was such a good kid who would not waste food and would even drink the soup clean.How could he be the demon fox they were talking about?
He approached each of the restless diners, whispered something in their ear, and the previously noisy diners instantly quieted down.They looked at Naruto with a surprised expression and a hint of resentment, and finally said nothing more.
Naruto was also very curious about what the old man had said.His hearing had also improved significantly after his physical enhancement.
He listened attentively and also heard what the man with the hands said.
"Naruto, did the Third Hokage agree to this?""If you don't agree to him eating noodles here, I'll go talk to the Third Hokage!"
It turns out they were using a trivial matter as a pretext, but Naruto liked it.
He instantly realized why Uncle Hand-Strike didn't speak loudly in front of Naruto.
Currently, Hiruzen Sarutobi has not revealed his identity as the Third Hokage to Naruto, and Naruto is also pretending not to know about it.
Naruto was probably the only one in the entire village who pretended not to know that Hiruzen Sarutobi was the Hokage.
Under Hiruzen Sarutobi's arrangement, everyone who encounters both Naruto and Hiruzen Sarutobi at the same time will help him conceal this matter.
Come to think of it, portraying an old man makes him much more approachable than portraying a high-ranking village ruler.
One day in the future, when his true identity is suddenly revealed, the foolish Naruto will surely be moved to tears and overwhelmed with gratitude towards Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Unfortunately, he already knew everything; he was just playing along.
After calming the other customers down, the uncle who made the ramen went back to making more noodles.
This time, he brought out a bowl of fragrant ramen.
All the ingredients were added, filling Naruto's bowl to the brim; it looked very nutritious.
"Thank you, Uncle Hand-Strike!" Naruto expressed his heartfelt gratitude.
Then they began to feast.
Seeing Naruto's satisfied expression, Uncle Tsubasa was also overjoyed.
The other diners clearly didn't want to eat noodles with Naruto.After quickly finishing their food, they also hurried away.They couldn't afford to offend the Third Hokage's orders, so they had no choice but to make a quick getaway.
"Hahaha, this young man eats with such gusto!How about he have a contest with us, father and son, to see who can eat the most!"
Just then, a father and son who looked alike walked in from outside.
"Oh, it's Ding Zuo.What brings your son here for noodles today?"
The older man who was typing also greeted them warmly.
Naruto also turned to look at the newcomer.
From the old man's words, he understood that the two should be loyal followers of the Hokage lineage, the Butterfly of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, Akimichi Choza of the Akimichi clan, and Akimichi Choji who would become one of the Konoha Twelve in the future.
Akimichi Choza is a middle-aged man with a burly build, muscular build, short red hair, a thick beard, and a firm, sharp gaze.
His son, Choji, inherited his father's physique, becoming a slightly chubby boy with a round face and short brown hair.His eyes were gentle and friendly, often carrying a hint of innocence.
Both of them wore the family's signature clothing, loose-fitting garments bearing the family crest.Choji's clothing was often decorated with various snack patterns, reflecting his love for food.
"Young man, do you mind if we sit here?We like to be friends with people who eat heartily!" Akimichi Choza asked politely.
"Sure, please sit down, uncle!" Naruto pretended to be innocent.
On the surface, he was eating ramen, but in his heart he was wondering what the Akimichi clan was up to.
It's important to know that the Akimichi clan are supporters of the Hokage lineage.The fact that they approached Naruto must have been at the request of Hiruzen Sarutobi for them to do so.
It's impossible to approach the sensitive identity of a Jinchuriki without the Hokage's permission.
Remembering that Hiruzen Sarutobi had mentioned sending Naruto to the Ninja Academy, Naruto understood.This was to make Naruto more noticeable so that Choji Akimichi would become his friend and create some bonds within the village.
The third generation, oh the third generation, you really know what's good for you.
"Boss, five bowls of the same ramen, please!" As expected of the Akimichi clan, they started with five bowls right off the bat.
"Dad, is this ramen really that delicious?If it's not good, I'm going to eat barbecue instead!"
The chubby Choji said to Choza.
"Don't worry, when has your dad ever lied to you about food!"
When the ramen was served, Dingza began to eat quickly.
Choji first ate a little tentatively, then his eyes lit up and he began to wolf it down.
"Dad, you're absolutely right, this ramen is really delicious, I could eat four bowls!" Choji said to Choza while eating.
"Of course, young man, do you like ramen too?What's your name?"
"Uncle, my name is Naruto.I love ramen.I can eat several bowls of this!"
Upon hearing that Naruto could eat several bowls of ramen, Choji instantly became interested.
"Your name is Naruto, right?My name is Choji.Let's have a contest to see who can eat more!The loser has to treat us, how about that!"
Choji's competitive spirit was instantly ignited.Looking at Naruto's small stature, he felt that Naruto probably couldn't eat as much as him!
"Choji!How can you compare like this?Eating is supposed to be an enjoyable experience.Don't mix it into a competition and ruin this sacred event!" Choji earnestly advised Choji.
"Naruto, just eat normally.I'll pay for today's expenses!" Choza said to Naruto with a smile.
"It's okay, it's fine to compare.I just love ramen, uncle, give me four bowls first!"
"Uncle, I want five bowls!" Naruto then started a ramen-eating contest with Choji.
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