I was really surprised to see such a reaction for my latest story, 'A Sale on Ramen'. I wasn't expecting such a overwhelming amount of readers to select this for a story alert or favorite story in a short amount of time. Now, I'll try to update this story as much as I can. But with my senior year of college starting real soon, it will be a little difficult especially with two other stories.
I'll try not to let you down
Timeskip: 6 years later.
Naruto cackled madly as he put the final touches on his 'masterpiece' at the Hokage monument. He had to admit, after all of his pranks, this one would top them all. The blond ninja-in-training could hear the disapproved voices from below, but that didn't stop him. With this prank, he would let the who village know that he would become a Hokage.
True, he was supposed to be in class right now. But Naruto knew Iruka was only giving a lecture about the First Great Shinobi War. If he hurried, he could get back in time for Henge training. He had a new killer-move he wanted to try out after he finally had control of his chakra.
Flashback: Naruto 9-years-old.
Naruto grumbled underneath his breath as he helped Teuchi with the dishes. He had a bad time at school earlier in the day when Iruka called on all the students to practices their henges. The idea was to focus their chakra into their bodies, perform the appropriate hand symbols and focus on the image they were transforming into. It was one of the three basic jutsus there were required to master before they graduate.
However, Naruto would always have trouble when he performed any kind of jutsu. He would spend hours meditating so he could properly clear his mind and focus on the image he wanted to transform into. But when he would tried to perform the jutsu, the henge would backfire and look like a deformed monstrosity of the original image
Naruto was berated by Iruka earlier today for screwing up the image. At first, he laughed it off and told everyone it was a joke. He only humiliated himself further when it backfired once again.
Naruto swore lightly and placed a clean bowl on the drying rack, only for it to clatter loudly on the countertop.
Teuchi turned around from balancing his records to turn to his favorite customer. "What's wrong?"
Naruto sighed and dried his hands with a towel. "Nothing, pops."
Teuchi smiled. After two years of spending everyday at the stand, Teuchi finally offered him a job. He noticed the boy was being overpriced for food and clothes so he figured Naruto could use some extra spending money. The blonde immediately agreed and started working at once. Everyday after school, Naruto would come to stand and work for a few hours. Then, he would go train on a training ground the Sandaime told him about so he wouldn't be bothered by any other ninjas.
The ramen cook knew that once he hired Naruto, his business attendance would go down, due to the fact that many civilians would not associate in a place where the village 'demon' would work. But Teuchi didn't care about that.
What he cared about was the smile that was on the young child's face when he was around people who cared about him.
"Come on. Tell your favorite boss what's wrong."
Naruto scratched his head in confusion. "But you're my only boss."
"And don't you forget it. Now, what happened today?"
The boy sighed and sat down on a stool. "I goofed up on a henge test today. We were supposed to transform into a copy of the Hokage, but mine ended looking a something out of a cartoon."
"I bet the Third would have loved to see that," Teuchi laughed. Naruto scowled.
"It's not funny! Iruka-sensei was really mad at me! I tell ya, that guy has it in for me!"
Teuchi stopped chuckling and looked Naruto in the eye. "If Iruka was really mad at you, he wouldn't have taken the time from his schedule to help tutor you on the weekends on proper hand signs, now would he?"
Naruto sighed. Teuchi had a point. When Naruto started working, he was surprised to Iruka stop by for lunch, in which the man was surprised to see Naruto working in a ramen stand. Naruto was nervous at first, but the more they got to talk, the more they realized they were alike. They had both lost their parent's in the Kyuubi attack, they didn't have many friends, and even though Naruto didn't show it much, they both enjoyed learning.
Then, when Iruka was done and about to leave, Naruto left to go practice his henge's assignment that Iruka gave him the day before. When the teacher asked his student how his progress was, Naruto admitted he was having trouble with the hand signs.
Iruka spent the rest of his free time showing Naruto some hand exercises to help loosen his fingers and increase his agility. He also suggested Naruto might try playing an instrument that involved using his fingers to make them nimble.
He hadn't picked one yet.
"Still, why does Iruka-sensei give me such a hard time? I try real hard in his classes, but he still gets angry at me when I mess up," Naruto complained.
"I don't think he's angry at you," Teuchi said. "I think he was just being stern to encourage to try harder. After all, teachers can't show favoritism towards students."
Naruto bowed his head. "I guess you're right."
"How long have you been practicing?" called a voice from the back. Ayame entered the stand carrying Naruto's weekly groceries. She volunteered to do his shopping for him when she realized he was being overcharged.
Naruto scratched his cheek and looked up at the ceiling in thought. "Well, right now, it's been about three weeks since Iruka-sensei gave us this assignment. Since then, I haven't had a single successful henge."
"And you got everything you need?" asked Ayame.
"Yep. Picture the image, perform the hand signs, and add the chakra."
"Wait," Teuchi said suddenly. "Maybe that's it. How much chakra are you adding to your henges?"
Naruto's eyebrows went together. "All I can. Why?"
Teuchi put his hand on his chin and got into a thinking pose. "I remember a genin team came to the stand for lunch a couple of years ago. They were complaining about not being able to perform a certain jutsus their teacher taught them. When they asked their teacher for advice, she said they needed to work on their chakra control.
"Control?" asked Naruto.
"I remember that," added Ayame. "Their jonin sensei said that the amount of chakra they put into jutsus could heavily determine if they would be successful or not. Too little and the jutsu wouldn't work. Too much and it would probably backfire on them."
Naruto's face strained as he tried to put the pieces together. "So....you're saying I'm using too much chakra?"
Teuchi nodded. "It's a possibility."
"So how do I learn to control my chakra?"
"The jonin didn't say. However, I do remember several chunin talk about an exercise called 'tree walking' a lot. That may be one of them."
Naruto's eyes brightened, then began looking around. "I'm done with the dishes, pops. I just remembered that I forgot my homework back at the academy. Can I..."
"Yes, you can go ask Iruka how tree-walking works," Teuchi chuckled.
In a flash, Naruto hopped over the counter and took off down the street.
Flashback over.
As Naruto put the final touches on they Yondaime's head, he thought back to that day he really did know that Iruka-sensei did care about Naruto. When he busted through the door, he caught his teacher grading papers, which all them went flying. When Iruka asked what Naruto wanted, he was very surprised that Naruto wanted to learn tree walking. It was too advance of an exercise for an academy student. But when Naruto explained why his henges weren't working, Iruka could see the logic in the boy's theory.
The teacher smiled and began to teach Naruto how tree-walking worked.
That's what technique Naruto was using now. It wasn't just trees. Naruto learned that he could stick to pretty much anything if applied chakra to the soles of his feet.
It was a lot safer than swinging from a rope.
Every since then, Iruka would come by the stand at least twice a week to eat and visit with Naruto. Outside the classroom, Naruto realized that Iruka had become an older brother to him.
With a wave of his brush, he put the final touches on the Hokage monument. The cries of the villagers became more outraged as he began walking to the top.
"Losers! You don't have what it takes to do something like this!" he yelled as he cheerfully waved at the villagers.
His roll as an outcast had not changed in the past six years. He was still overcharged for groceries, ninja tools, and clothes. In fact, he was wearing a cheap two piece orange jumpsuit that he got from a throwaway sale last year.
Teuchi and Ayame once took him shopping for clothes last month for the first time, but they just received the same treat as he did. The closest people he had to a family were kicked out of the store just for being with him.
So he decided to send the village a message. That one day, he will become Hokage and the villagers will begin to respect him. That one day, his face will be carved into the mountain.
Then, he suddenly got a brilliant idea.
"Lord Hokage! Lord Hokage! It's terrible!"
The Sandaime sighed, but did not turn away from the painting he was working on. "What has Naruto done now?"
The chunin was stood in shock at the Hokage's correct question.
"How did you know sir?"
"Because I recognize that tone when that boy's done something?" said the Third. And that tone the guy uses always makes him sound like a whiny little bitch. "So what's the boy done?"
"He's decorating the Hokage moment sir. With paint!" said the chunin.
"Let's go see then," sighed the Hokage as he grabbed his hat. He kept the brim down over his face so the chunin wouldn't see the smirk on his face.
I can't wait to see what he's done now. It's going to be good.
"The horror! This is the final straw!" said the chunin as followed his leader to the roof. When two got to the top of the tower, Naruto had just added his final mark to the mountain. Below, many of the villagers were voicing the chunin's reaction.
The Sandaime, however, thought it was funniest thing in the world.
The First Hokage's head was painted with black paint. The eyes were painted with knockout-X eyes, had swirls on his cheeks that made him look like an Akimichi, and had a beard painted along his chin. Including a little goatee in front of his bottom lip.
The Second Hokage's head was painted with blue and white paint. His spiky hair was painted with blue tips, but painted white. His eyes were painted white with little half-blue circles to give the impression he was looking up. The final touch was that his lips were blue as well.
The Third Hokage's head had green and white. His hair and beard was painted in green and had white lines running from the corners of his eyes, making him look like he was crying. To top it off, the eyes were painted white with green pupils. However, they made him look cross-eyed.
The Fourth Hokage's head was yellow and red. The hair was painted yellow as were the eyes with red pupils. There were also red drops hanging from his nose that made it look like he had a nosebleed.
But that wasn't even the most noticeable item on the mountain. Right beside the Yondaime's head, on a good chunk of rock, was a head drawing. The drawing was the size of the others, but was made up of black, yellow, and blue paint. The black paint outlined a head, eyes, spiky hair, and a nose. The hair had bright yellow paint on the inside of the lines with blue paint in the eyes.
The final touch was there was a smirk painted on along with whisker marks on the cheeks. That made the Hokage chuckle.
Not bad. Not bad at all.
"I can't watch anymore," said the chunin as he sushined away.
"Wuss," said the Hokage as he went back to admiring the boy's work. A moment later, Iruka shushined beside him.
"Lord Hokage, I can't apologize enough. I'll make sure he cleans it up later," Iruka said breathlessly.
"Ah, Iruka. Yes, that would be a sufficient enough punishment. But before you take him back to class, I have a couple of questions to ask."
"Yes, Lord?"
"First, how does is head look on the monument?"
Iruka was speechless for a moment. Then, a smile spread across his face.
"Like it belongs up there," Iruka answered.
"Good. Next question: my eyes are not that crooked, are they?"
"Aw, come on. You've got admit it was a nice touch!" Naruto complained to his sensei. Currently, the young ninja was tied up on the floor of his academy classroom.
"Naruto you can't keep screwing around like this! Your graduation ceremony is tomorrow and you have yet to make a successful henge, kawarmi, or clone jutsu! You've failed the last two years here, so it's time for you to grow up!"
Naruto scoffed and turned his head away. The times he failed was not his fault.
A tick mark appeared above Iruka's head as he spun towards his class. "Fine. Since Naruto doesn't seem to care, we'll be reviewing the henge transformation!"
Everyone in the class groaned. A few even threw papers and pencils at Naruto.
One by one, Naruto's classmates walked to the front of the class to perform a henge of their teacher. So far, each one had been success.
"All right Naruto, it's your turn," Iruka said.
Naruto tried to hide a grin on his face as was about to bust out his new secret weapon. He focused his chakra into his handsigns and focused on the mental image.
"Transform!" he yelled. There was a puff of smoke, which quickly cleared.
And Iruka felt his jaw drop. Standing in front of him was....
A perfect copy of himself.
"What do you think, Iruka-sensei?" said Naruto in an exact copy of Iruka's voice.
"Wow, Naruto. This is your first time I ever seen you do a perfect henge."
"Great. Now watch this one!" Naruto put his hands together again. There was another puff of smoke and Iruka's eyes widened in surprise.
Standing in front of him was a buxom blonde girl, completely naked with only pink smoke covering her most private parts. She smiled coyly at Iruka and gave him a wink.
That was enough to shut down Iruka's brain and cause him to blowback with a nosebleed.
Another puff of smoke and Naruto was on ground, normal and laughing his ass off.
"What did you think of my Sexy jutsu, Iruka-sensei?"
Despite the amount of blood he lost, Iruka was back on his feet with plugs in his nose.
"Cut the tricks! This is your last warning!"
Later that day, Naruto and Iruka were on top of the Hokage monument. Iruka pushed a bucket, several rags, a mop, and a brush into Naruto's hands.
"You're not leaving until every scrap of paint is cleaned off this monument," said Iruka.
"But I got to get to work in an hour," complained Naruto.
"You should have though of that before you decided to make you mark in this village. Honestly, what were you thinking?"
Naruto stood tall and puffed out his chest. "I was sending a message to the village. That one day, I'll be Hokage and when I do, the village will respect me and my friends."
Iruka immediately knew what he meant. Teuchi told him what happened last month and how badly it affected Naruto. There was a sudden drop in his grades and he spent most of the time with a scowl on his face and just staring off into space.
"Naruto, that wasn't your fault," Iruka said.
"Why, though?" Naruto asked. "Why is it they hate me, niisan?"
Big Brother. That's what Naruto called Iruka when there was no people around. Their friendship had developed in the past few years outside of the classroom. Iruka had become one of the few people that Naruto trusted.
"Don't listen to them, Naruto. You have never done anything to deserve their hatred," said Iruka. He put a hand on his little brother's shoulders. "You are who you are. Don't ever stop believing that."
The blond smiled. "Thanks, niisan."
Iruka grinned. "Good. Now get to work." Iruka then sat down and pulled a book from his pocket. "If you are correct, you know only got 55 minutes before you have to go to work."
Naruto stood there for a moment with his mouth agape. He then shook his head. "Jerk."
About an hour and half later, Naruto was walking down the street while rubbing his sore shoulder. It was the late afternoon and the shops around him were preparing to close down. All around him, people were finishing up their shopping and walking home. When he caught people glancing at him, they would scowl and turn away, muttering about his latest prank and how he should have been arrested.
Naruto ignored them and kept walking. Luckily, he thought ahead and water-based paint to use on the monument, so he was done quicker than usual.
He finally reached Ichiraku's and lifted up the curtain to walk inside.
"All hail, the Fifth Hokage!" said a group of voices. Naruto blinked and saw that Teuchi, Ayame and his only three friends bowing in his presence.
His good friend, Choji Akimichi was sitting in the middle of the trio, a bowl of ramen in his hand as he slurped up the remaining noodles. The two met about three years ago, when Naruto got out of his first day at day at the academy. He came back to Ichiraku's to see two boys at the counter, eating ramen. One was Choji and had already knocked down ten bowls and kept on going while his friend watched in disbelief. Naruto sat down beside him and told Ichiraku to give him what the boy was having. Choji looked up and said that he was an Akimichi and Naruto had no chance of beating him at eating. However, Naruto caught up to him quickly and before they knew, Naruto had actually beat an Akimichi in an eating contest.
Choji swore that day that Naruto would always his rival when it came to eating.
On Choji's left was another good friend, Shikamaru Nara. He was with Choji that day and had become good friends with the round boy a few days before. At first, Naruto and Shikamaru didn't get along. But when Naruto helped defend Choji from a couple of punks who were making fun of his weight, Shikamaru had began to see Naruto in a new light. Since then, Choji and Shikamaru would visit Naruto everyday at the stand when the academy was done for the day. And although he said it was 'troublesome' to visit him everyday, he did with a smile.
The last person had just join their group last year. Her name was Hinata Hyuga. She was a very shy girl, who only spoke in class when she was called upon by the teacher to answer. Naruto met her when he was serving meals to his friends when he spotted a girl peeking around from a telephone pole across the street. He watched her for a few minutes, before he finally waved her over. She blushed furiously and slowly made her way to the stand. Naruto finally recognized her from his class and introduced himself and his friends to her. It took her a while to break out of her shell, but soon, she was almost able to make complete sentences without stuttering.
Hinata was Naruto's only sparring partner when he went to train after work. Shikamaru said it was too troublesome to train and Choji often just watched instead of joining them. But the two would always support Hinata and Naruto.
Everyday after class, the four would go to Naruto's training field to train. Hinata would help Naruto with his taijutsu, which everyone except Naruto knew was horrible, while Naruto helped Hinata build more confidence in her fighting. It took a few months, but now, Naruto could go toe-to-toe with anyone in his class. Hinata had also become one the top konouchis of the class, tying Sakara Haranou for first place.
When he didn't think it was troublesome, Shikamaru would help Naruto with his chakra control. As a clan heir, his was required by his dad to learn all of their clan's shadow-type jutsus, so he had to learn chakra control earlier than most students. Naruto had already mastered the tree-walking exercise, so Shikamaru showed him the next step: water-walking. Naruto had not quite mastered this exercise, but he was getting better.
Choji, well.....,Choji was happy to help out with whatever he could. It wasn't much, but Naruto appreciated it all the same.
With their help, Naruto rose in the class standings. Not exactly at the top, like Sasuke Uchiha or Kiba Inuzuka, but a good student nevertheless.
All of the time he could spend was with his friends. Whether it was training, eating at the ramen stand, or just watching clouds. They were always together.
Naruto just smiled, walked behind the counter, and tied an apron around his waist.
"It's a good thing everyone here recognizes greatness when they see it," said Naruto. This caused everyone to laugh in their bowls.
"While it was good prank, Naruto-sempai, should you waste such time when you should be preparing for the finals tomorrow," said Hinata as she pressed her fingers together.
"Yeah, that's right," Choji agreed. "You've failed the test twice so far."
"It would be real troublesome to repeat for a third time," finished Shikamaru.
Naruto sighed. They were right. He was supposed to have graduated twice. This made him one of the oldest students in his class. He was only a year older than his friends.
But it really wasn't his fault that he failed. The first time he was supposed to take his test, Ayame got sick that morning with the flu. With Teuchi being shorthanded, Naruto skipped his test to help him out. It took ages for him to finally get a window and visit Iruka to see if you could retake the test. However, rules were rules and Naruto had to wait until the next semester.
The second time, he knew he was ready. He spent the whole week training, studying, and practicing for the test. But, by some accident or not, on the day of the test, Irchiraku's stand was damaged by a fire. When he arrived for breakfast, he saw Teuchi and Ayame standing in the streets beside a blackened, smoking stand while ANBU searched for the cause. When he asked Teuchi what happened, the man said he must have left the burner on.
But Naruto always believed the fire was caused by an arsonist. One who didn't want a demon in the stand and burnt it down to send a message to its owners.
Teuchi told Naruto that he shouldn't worry about it and he needed to go to the academy. Naruto refused and spent the day helping the Ichiraku's salvaging what they could from their stand.
"Well, let's hope lighting won't strike a third time," said Teuchi as he clapped Naruto on the shoulder. "Don't worry, kids. Naruto will be there tomorrow. And when all four of you arrive here with your new handbands tomorrow, I'll give a bowl on the house."
Naruto and Choji cheered while Hinata smiled and Shikamaru just shook his head. But he did so with a grin.
Naruto waved goodbye to his friends as they went home for the evening. They had spent the evening discussing what might be on the test tomorrow, all of them giving tips for each other. Naruto had to thank Kami for all of their help. Without his friends, he would have probably never had been the ninja he was today.
As he cleaned off the counters, he spotted Teuchi's record book sticking out of the cabinet behind the safe box. Curious, Naruto pulled the book out and opened it from the middle. His eyes grew wide he read the amount Ichiraku's stand had as the numbers kept getting lower and lower. Then he reached the profits from this year.
There were none. Throughout the year, there was nothing but red marks and slashes. It looked like a badly drawn doodle by a three-year-old with a red crayon.
"Hey, Naruto! Have you seen where we put the extra box of fishcakes?"
Naruto closed the book and stuffed it quickly back in the cabinet. "Yeah, it's under the box of miso ingredients!"
There was a nauseous feeling coming from his stomach. Naruto knew that he was the cause of all the Ichiraku's misfortunes. He and his friends were pretty much the only customers they had these days. And yet, they had never complained.
What should I do? He thought.
"Hey, is everything ok?" Ayame asked as she came from the back.
Naruto put up a quick, fake smile. "Everything alright. Believe it."
Naruto pulled down the metal shutter and locked it with his very own key. He grabbed his bag from the ground and turned to the Ichiraku's, who were waiting nearby.
"Well, good luck tomorrow," said Teuchi. "Let's hope nothing bad happens this time."
Naruto frowned and looked at his feet. "If something happens, I'll just skip my test again and come to help. I don't care what happens."
"No," Teuchi said sternly. Naruto looked up in shock. The only time he heard Teuchi used that tone was chasing out customers.
"I don't care what happens tomorrow. I want you to be at the academy, on time, and ready to take your test."
"But-"
"That's final!" Teuchi yelled. Naruto jumped back, scared. When Teuchi saw this, he calmed down and knelt on one knee.
"Naruto, you're a ninja. This is what you were born to do, not become a ramen cook. Your destined to become our Hokage and you can't do that if you keep hanging around here."
"But I love it here," Naruto argued.
Teuchi felt his heart tug at that comment. He loved the boy like he was his own son, but he sure had a real thick head.
"Hey, I didn't say quit hanging out with us permanently. Even a Hokage needs a break now and again. In fact, after your art display earlier, the Sandaime was here laughing about it."
Naruto's eyes went wide. "The old man was here? He actually escaped his secretary and paperwork?"
Teuchi laughed and nodded. Besides Naruto and his friends, the Third was a regular customer in here as well
Flashback: Naruto age 7
Teuchi was wondering where his newest customer was when he heard his excited voice outside the curtain. He seemed to be talking to someone about how this was the greatest place with the best food.
Imagine his surprise when Naruto pulled none other than the Third Hokage through curtains and into his stand.
"Lord Hokage," stuttered Teuchi. He quickly bowed. "Your honor me with your presence."
Ayame just stood still, shocked that her future fiancé was friends with the leader of their village.
"See, Jiji, here we are," piped the small blonde. "That's Teuchi and Ayame! They're my best friends and serve the best ramen!"
Teuchi was shocked that Naruto addressed the Sandaime in such a way. He was even more shocked when the man laughed and sat in a seat.
"Well, we'll just have to see about that," said the Third. "I'll have bowl of barbeque flavor ramen with beef chunks, please?"
"And I'll have the miso, sir!" added Naruto.
Teuchi and Ayame were frozen for a moment before finally snapping back to reality and worked on their orders. When they were finished cooking, Teuchi pushed the bowls forward with shaky hands.
After a while though, the Ichiraku's began to relax and laugh along with the Naruto and the Sandaime. Naruto went on and on about how mad his teacher was when he pulled the old Snakes-in-a-drawer trick in class today. Instead of berating the boy for his mischief, the Hokage chuckled at the antics the boy was making.
Then, the Hokage wowed all three of them with his stories about his past battles during the Ninja wars. All this time, Naruto knew what a great ninja the Hokage was, but it never ceased to amaze him how strong his idol could be.
When they finished, the Hokage pushed his bowl back and fished some money out of his pocket. "Naruto, why don't you and your friend Ayame go get some ice cream?"
Naruto brightened and grabbed the money from his hand. "Sure thing, Jiji. Come on, Ayame!"
Ayame looked at her father, who smiled and nodded. She pulled off her apron and followed Naruto out into the street, where the duo broke off into a run to the stand just a few blocks down.
When they were gone, the smile left the Sandaime's face. He turned to Teuchi with a calculating look.
"Why are you helping him?" asked the Third. "You know what he contains, don't you?"
Teuchi swallowed and nodded. "Yes, I do. And I don't care."
This answer caused the Third's eyebrows to rise to his hairline. "Oh? And why is that?"
Teuchi took a deep breath. "Because he is not what everybody thinks he his. I had to witness his treatment by other villagers myself just yesterday. In my very own stand, nonetheless. And when I looked at Naruto, I didn't see a demon as the villagers called him. I saw a boy with no friends or family. A boy that has been an outcast for something he never did. Just a child, no demon."
Teuchi stood tall and finished his speech. "And I'll do what I can to see that he remains safe."
For several long minutes, the Third just started unblinkly at Teuchi. Then, a smile blossomed over the old man's face and a single tear rolled down his eye.
"For the longest time, I've tried everything I can to keep Naruto safe and happy. But no matter how hard I try, something keeps hammering him down."
"Now, I've seen that Naruto has made more friends by just being himself."
The Hokage slid out of his chair and bowed to Teuchi. "Thank you for being his friend."
Teuchi's jaw dropped. Here, the strongest ninja in Konoha, was bowing to him, a ramen cook.
"Please, Hokage-sama, there's no need to-"
The Sandaime chuckled and sat back down. "We're friends now, Teuchi. Hiruzen will be ok. Just as long as it's here."
Before Teuchi could say anything, Naruto and Ayame just returned.
"Hey, Jiji! So how did you like the ramen?" Naruto asked. His mouth was smeared from the chocolate ice cream bar in his hand.
"It was great, Naruto. I'm going to have to come back here more often," smiled the Third. "But sadly, I must go face my greatest enemy."
Naruto's eyes lit up and began to hop up and down. "You're going to fight, Jiji? Who? Some warlord or evil emperor?"
The Third smiled. "Yep. Paperwork."
Flashback ends
With running a stand full-time, the Third had become one of Teuchi's only friends. It seems the stand was the key to all of the building friendships when Naruto was envolved.
"Yes, the Third was here. And he wants you to pass even more than I do," Teuchi said.
"Really?" Naruto asked.
"Yes. He said he really needed someone to take over being Hokage and deal with all the paperwork he's got."
Naruto tried to scowl and smile at the same time, causing Teuchi to laugh and ruffle the boy's hair.
"Well, I better get going. Good luck tomorrow!" Teuchi said as he walked away.
Naruto waved the old man and walked up to Ayame. The girl had blossomed into a very beautiful young woman. Her hair had grown out longer and was still tied in a ponytail. She had grown taller as well. At sixteen, she stood a head higher than Naruto, who at thirteen, had not hit his growth spurt yet.
When they were younger, the two were always together. Any day off they had immediately was spent at the park, playing on the playground equipment or eating ice cream on a park bench. Since the day the Sandaime came to the stand, the two would always order a few ice cream bars on Sunday after work. The other kids avoided them, but Naruto didn't mind that anymore. He had someone to play with and that was better than anything.
One of the games they played was the marriage game. Ayame always pretended that Naruto was her husband and swore every time the played that when they were older, they would get married for real.
But as they got older, Ayame hit puberty and got the attention of other boys her own age. They would flirt with her while Naruto was at the academy and ask her on dates. She would sometimes oblige and spent her weekend nights on dates to the movies and other eateries besides a ramen stand.
Naruto grew with Ayame and knew there would be an age difference between the two. Since Naruto had no parents, Teuchi gave him the 'talk'(embarrassingly) and Naruto understood that Ayame was just growing up.
But that didn't stop him from keeping an eye on her from the shadows.
And with the lectures Iruka gave them in class, he understood that the life of a shinobi was a perilous one and took a toll on the spouses. One of the hardest things in life was to open a letter delivered by a courier ninja telling you your husband or wife died in the line of duty.
Naruto would never put Ayame in that position. She desereved to grow old and happy with a civilian, not lose sleep wondering if her husband was ever going to come home.
But, there would always be a part of him that will love her. No matter what happened.
"Good luck tomorrow, Naru-kun. Be sure to stop by tomorrow before you go to the academy," Ayame said.
"I will, Aya-chan," replied Naruto. "You and pops are going to come to my graduation tomorrow if I pass, right?"
"When you pass. I have no doubt in my mind you're going to pass tomorrow."
"And why is that?" Naruto asked.
"Because my future husband needs to be a genin before he can become Hokage," Ayame smiled.
Naruto rolled his eyes. "Ayame, we're not ten and seven anymore. Besides, I thought you thought me as a brother, not a fiancé."
Ayame pouted. "Are you saying you don't won't to marry me?"
"No! I mean...uh..." Naruto stuttered and blushed.
The girl laughed and pulled Naruto into a hug. "Don't worry. You'll always be the one I care about the most. Even when I'm old and gray and wondering whether or not if it's Saturday or Wednesday."
"You're already halfway there," Naruto muttered.
Ayame mock gasped and ruffled his hair. "What did you say, Naru-kun?"
"Nothing! I was just saying goodnight!"
"Goodnight, Naruto," Ayame whispered as she pulled away. She bent down and pecked Naruto on the cheek. "And there is a good luck charm for tomorrow."
Naruto blushed harder, but smiled. "Thanks, Aya-chan."
The two teens waved to each other, then turned and walked to there homes. Each of them had a smile on their face.
In the shadows, a figure watched as the two interacted. He could see that they cared for one another and that made a perfect plan 'B'.
If the brat doesn't fail tomorrow, I could always use the girl to get what I want.
Sorry about the wait. I planned on introducing Naruto's heritage in this chapter, but the more I kept writing, the more detailed of his life I wanted to get. I'll try to get the scroll chase in the next chapter.
Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'll try to update the next one as soon as I can.