The first rays of morning sunlight filtered through the leaves of Konoha's trees, scattering mottled patches of light across the Nohara family's window.
"Shin-chan, hurry up and get out of bed! It's almost seven!"
Misae's voice came from the kitchen. She'd already called him five minutes ago, but there had been no response.
That brat had definitely burrowed back under the covers again.
Wiping her hands, Misae strode toward the bedroom.
Sure enough.
A small lump bulged beneath the blanket, wriggling every now and then.
"Shin-chan!" Misae yanked the blanket away in one go.
Five-year-old Shin-chan was curled up in his pajamas like a tiny shrimp, eyes squeezed shut, with a suspicious trail of drool hanging from the corner of his mouth.
"Mmm... five more minutes…"
"You've already said 'five more minutes' three times." Misae put her hands on her hips. "Today's the first day of ninja school. Weren't you excited about it yesterday?"
Shin-chan rolled over and buried his face in the pillow, completely ignoring the point. "Mommy's a liar. Yesterday you said I could have chocolate sticks for breakfast today."
"That was obviously your dream. When did I ever say that?"
"But Dream-Mommy promised."
A vein bulged on Misae's forehead. She grabbed the back of his collar and hauled him upright. "Enough nonsense. Get up!"
"So violent. I'm telling Dad that Mommy abuses children."
"Your dad already left early for a mission. Now get dressed."
Five minutes later, Shin-chan had finally squeezed himself into his trademark red shirt and yellow shorts. After wobbling his way through breakfast, he started toward the front door.
Then, at the entryway, he suddenly stopped.
"Mom."
"What now?"
"I need to use the bathroom."
The little school bag in Misae's hand dropped to the floor. "What were you doing just now?"
"I didn't want to go then. I want to go now."
"Then go, now!!!"
After another long while, Shin-chan finally came strolling out of the bathroom.
"Mom, I—"
Misae grabbed his hand before he could finish. "There's no time. Run."
One big figure and one small figure burst out of the house and sprinted down Konoha's streets.
"This is all your fault. We're definitely going to be late," Misae panted. "It's the very first day. How embarrassing would that be?"
Shin-chan's feet were practically leaving the ground from how hard she was dragging him, but he still looked perfectly calm. "It's fine. The teacher will forgive me."
"In your dreams!"
The two of them passed through Konoha's main street and turned onto the path leading to the ninja academy.
Then Misae slowed down.
Up ahead, a small crowd had gathered in an open area, and faint bursts of laughter drifted over.
"There go those two 'eternal genin' again."
"Haha, just look at those green bodysuits. What terrible taste!"
"Talking about youth at their age? Doing something this stupid? No wonder they'll be genin forever."
Misae frowned and looked over.
There were two men in green bodysuits, one big and one small.
The older one had a bowl cut, huge eyes, and thick eyebrows. Tears were streaming down his face, yet he still held both hands high in the air, giving a giant thumbs-up and flashing a dazzling white grin.
It was Might Duy, Konoha's famous "eternal genin." Everyone in the village thought he was a fool.
The younger one looked about six or seven years old, with the same bowl cut, the same thick eyebrows, and the same green bodysuit.
But right now, his head was lowered, his face flushed red, and his tiny fists clenched and unclenched as if he wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear.
"Why are you crying? Youth is meant to burn even in the face of ridicule!" Duy shouted through his tears, his thumbs-up still standing proud.
"Dad... please stop..." Guy's voice was barely louder than a mosquito.
The crowd laughed even harder.
Misae let out a sigh and tried to pull Shin-chan around them. In the ninja world, strength spoke for itself. It was normal for the weak to be mocked. She didn't agree with it, but there was nothing she could do to change it.
Then suddenly, her hand felt empty.
At some point, Shin-chan had slipped free from her grip.
"Shin-chan!" Misae cried out.
The small figure in the red shirt had already dashed over to Might Duy at lightning speed. Then he puffed out his chest, raised his right thumb, and bared a row of tiny white teeth.
"Youth is supposed to shine brightly!"
He shouted even louder than Might Duy.
The whole place fell silent for a second.
Might Duy froze, tears still hanging on his face.
Guy jerked his head up and stared in disbelief at this child who looked about his own age.
Shin-chan turned to meet Guy's eyes, still holding up his thumb. "Hey, you've got thick eyebrows too. Let's shout together!"
Guy opened his mouth, but no words came out.
Someone in the crowd snorted. "Where'd this little brat come from?"
"Haha, great, now there's another idiot!"
But Shin-chan didn't care at all. He turned to Might Duy and tilted his head. "Mister, what kind of training are you doing? Can I join too? I have to go to ninja school today, but I can come after classes."
Fresh tears poured from Might Duy's eyes, but this time they were different.
He dropped into a crouch and grabbed Shin-chan's tiny shoulders with trembling hands. "What's your name?"
"My name is Shinnosuke Nohara. I'm five years old." Shin-chan kept his thumb raised. "I love chocolate sticks, and I hate green peppers!"
"A fine name!" Might Duy threw his head back and roared at the sky. "Youth! Do you see this? This is the inheritance of youth!"
Guy stared blankly at the scene. The child who was even shorter than him winked at him. "Your dad is really funny. Way more fun than Misae."
"My... my dad, he..."
"Come on, come on, together." Shin-chan grabbed Guy's hand and raised it high. "One, two, three."
"YOUTH!!!"
This time, it was all three of them shouting together.
Might Duy was so moved that tears poured down like rain. Hugging Shin-chan tightly, he declared, "From today onward, let us burn with youth!"
The crowd gradually dispersed, losing interest. In the end, it was just two fools becoming three fools.
Standing outside the crowd, Misae covered her face.
Who on earth did this child take after...?
"Shin-chan, you really are going to be late!" Misae finally remembered school.
"Coming!" Shin-chan wriggled free from Might Duy's arms, ran a couple of steps, then turned back and waved at the father and son. "Mister! Thick Eyebrows! See you this afternoon!"
Might Duy waved back with all his strength, his teeth gleaming in the sunlight. "See you this afternoon, youthful boy!"
At last, Guy lifted his head and waved hard too. Watching that tiny red figure disappear around the corner, he said quietly, "Dad... he's amazing."
Might Duy patted his son on the shoulder. "Guy, remember today. That child has taught us something. True youth never cares about the eyes of others."
Guy nodded hard, light flickering in his eyes.
Meanwhile, Shin-chan was being dragged away by Misae at full speed, still muttering the whole time:
"Mom, that mister's eyebrows are so thick. They look like two caterpillars crawling across his face. Do you think he can eat with his eyebrows?"
"Shut up and run!"
"But I really can't run anymore…"
"Oh, please. Weren't you full of energy when you were yelling about youth just now?"
"That's different. Ah! My shoe fell off."
Misae looked down.
It really had.
She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, then opened them again.
"NOHARA SHINNOSUKE!!!"
And so Konoha's morning remained as noisy and warm as ever.