Sunrise
Naruto watched as the sun slowly started to rise on the horizon. He could see the red and yellow mixing as they spread out on the sky. Finally they decided to form a deep shade of orange. The orange stood in contrast to the deep-blue colour that was the backdrop. The blue changed as time went by, slowly but surely.
And Naruto watched it all.
Sitting above the head of the fourth, he got a brilliant view of the sunrise. He loved watching it. Almost as much as ramen, he decided. And for him, that was pretty much.
Someone chuckled behind him and he hastily turned around. It was the old man.
"So, what are you doing up here this early, Naruto-kun?"
Unlike other adults, his voice only held kindness when he spoke to Naruto.
"I'm watching the sunrise." He turned his back to the old man and continued his watching. He shifted slightly so that the adult could take his place beside him.
They sat there for a while, neither speaking. It was a comfortable silence, though unusual for the boy.
"Today is your big day, isn't it, Naruto-kun?"
Naruto grinned while thinking about his dream's first step.
"Yup. Now I can become a ninja, and then I'm gonna take your title away from you in no time!" Naruto stood up while he declared this to the world. He heard chuckling beside him. He pouted. "It's not funny!"
A hand reached up and ruffled his golden hair. Naruto held himself stiffly for a moment before leaning into the rare touch.
"I never said that. But it is going to take some time. You know this, do you not, Naruto-kun?"
The boy frowned, before crossing his arms in defiant manner.
"You will have to go through the academy first and then you can become a ninja. But even so it will take some time to become strong. But as long as you protect your loved ones, you will become strong."
Naruto was silent for a moment.
"Like... you, Ayame-neechan and Teuchi-ojisan?" The young boy looked curiously at the old man.
The old man smiled at him for a moment before he looked up at the sky.
"Yes, Naruto-kun."
"Then I will become strong enough to protect you!"
"I'm sure you will, Naruto-kun."
Another silent moment.
"Who are your loved ones?" Naruto asked.
The old man pointed to something beneath them. Naruto couldn't find the person.
"Huh, who do you mean, old man?"
"The whole village are my loved ones. For them I will fight, kill and die for. As every Hokage do."
"Then I will do so too!"
The old man smiled at him, before he looked back at the sky again. The orange had turned into yellow from the sun and the sky complimented that with an azure colour. The day had begun.
"You should get ready. You have to be at the academy in an hour, Naruto-kun, and I have to get back to work."
"What do you have to do?"
"Paperwork." He sighed.
Naruto scrunched up his face in confusion.
"I thought you said that paperwork was boring. Why do you do something that is boring?"
"It is my duty as the Hokage."
The old man ruffled his hair and stood up. Naruto slowly got up too.
"But why do something you don't like?"
"This is also a part of protecting your loved ones. Just not through fighting."
"So I will have to do it too?"
"Yes. As a Hokage you will have to."
"I don't want to!" He pouted for a bit and then he bit his lip. "But I will if it is for Ayame-neechan, Teuchi-ojisan and you."
The old man smiled down at him and took his hand.
"Come on, Naruto-kun. It would be bad to be late on your first day. Better not have a reputation for being late."
"Yeah. I'm going to be the best ninja there and then I'm going to make sure no one can hurt my loved ones."
"You surely will, Naruto-kun." They started to go down the stairs leading to and away from the monument, while the boy still was lost in thought.
'I'm going to become the best Hokage ever and then I will protect this village. That's a promise! And I'll never break a promise. A promise is for forever!'
Next: Children's Games
