Ichiraku Ramen, an Encounter with Team 7

Early the next morning, Hyuga Kei sensed that the Anbu watching them had already left.

Hyuga Kei took Karin Uzumaki and Uchiha Hikari out for breakfast.

"Brother, where are we going to eat?"

"Ichiraku Ramen."

How could anyone come to Konoha without visiting Ichiraku Ramen? Since defecting from Konoha, Hyuga Kei had not eaten Ichiraku Ramen in a long time.

With the two girls in tow, Hyuga Kei expertly made his way into Ichiraku Ramen.

"Boss, three bowls of Tonkotsu Ramen, please."

The owner, Teuchi, was a very enthusiastic middle-aged man. Because he always kept his eyes narrowed, netizens jokingly called him Otsutsuki Ichiraku.

"Coming right up! Three bowls of Tonkotsu Ramen!"

Uncle Teuchi quickly got busy. He poured fresh bone broth over the cooked noodles and added the toppings, and three steaming bowls of Tonkotsu Ramen were soon ready.

"Three bowls of Tonkotsu Ramen. Please enjoy."

"Thank you."

After accepting the ramen and thanking him, the three slowly savored the steaming noodles.

"You all seem like unfamiliar faces?"

Hyuga Kei smiled. "I'm a foreign examinee here for the Chunin Exams. I came early to look around."

"I see. Then I hope you enjoy your visit."

There was an endless stream of customers coming in for breakfast.

Just as they were leisurely enjoying their meal, Hyuga Kei heard a loud voice calling out, "Uncle, one bowl of Tonkotsu Ramen! Teacher Kakashi is paying!"

He had not expected one of the targets of this grand show to arrive so quickly.

Hyuga Kei suddenly wanted to laugh. Now that neither Tenzo nor he was around, he wondered who Kakashi would find to pay this time.

He watched as Uzumaki Naruto eagerly took a seat beside someone, followed by Uchiha Sasuke, Sakura Haruno, and Kakashi.

It seemed Kakashi had had his Sharingan taken back by Obito, but he had not sunk into despair. He had replaced it with an ordinary eye and was once again carrying a short sword on his back.

The four sat beside Hyuga Kei and each ordered their ramen.

"Ever since we entered, you've been staring at us, Sound ninja." Kakashi took out four pairs of chopsticks and handed them to his students as he spoke casually.

"Huh? He was looking at me?" Naruto was still as oblivious as ever.

Sasuke, meanwhile, silently went on guard against the three of them. They had just gone through the Land of Waves incident and were highly wary of foreign ninja.

Hyuga Kei showed no surprise at being noticed. He turned toward the four of them. "I was merely curious what Konoha's elite ninja, Kakashi, looked like."

"You're here for the Chunin Exams?"

"That's right. If these are Kakashi's students, then I imagine they'll be participating in the Chunin Exams as well. Let me introduce us. My name is Chiba Kishu. The one on my left is Chiba Hikari, and the one on my right is Karin Uzumaki."

Kakashi also noticed the red-haired girl. Was she from the same clan as his teacher's wife? A refugee who had ended up in the Land of Rice?

"Hello!"

Naruto enthusiastically extended a hand and shook Hyuga Kei's. "Hello, my name is Uzumaki Naruto."

"My name is Sakura Haruno."

"Uchiha Sasuke." Sasuke still wore that cold expression.

Uchiha Hikari looked at him curiously. So this was the last descendant of the Uchiha.

The hatred she had once held toward the Uchiha was long gone. Those who had harmed her had already become ashes of history.

Brother Kei was right. It was all caused by the shinobi world's mistakes. Pain came from mistakes. Everyone was merely foam drifting with the current, so we should follow Brother Kei and change all of this.

Sakura leaned close to Naruto and whispered, "That red-haired girl has the same surname as you?"

"Yeah!" Naruto only realized it then, excitedly thinking that if they were from the same clan, she might know his parents.

Naruto excitedly jumped down from his seat, abandoning the ramen in his hands, and went over to Karin Uzumaki. "You have the same surname as me. Do you know my parents?"

Karin Uzumaki shook her head. "No. Ever since I can remember, I haven't been in the Land of Whirlpools."

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "The Land of Whirlpools... where is that?"

Karin Uzumaki looked astonished. Though Uzumaki Clan members their age had not been born in the Land of Whirlpools, they should at least have heard of it.

"You don't even know that?"

Naruto still wore an eager, inquisitive expression. "I don't. What country is that? It isn't even on the maps now, is it?"

Hyuga Kei answered, "Let me explain. The Land of Whirlpools was located on an island east of the Land of Fire. Most of the island's inhabitants were Uzumaki Clan members, renowned for their powerful Fuinjutsu and vitality."

"Yeah! Naruto always recovers quickly whenever he gets hurt," Sakura reminded them.

"At the beginning of Konoha's founding, Konoha and the Land of Whirlpools signed a treaty of friendship and remained allies for generations. The red whirlpool on the back of the Leaf Village Jonin uniform is their clan crest. Naruto, isn't it also on your clothes?"

Everyone looked toward Naruto's sleeve, and he suddenly understood. "So the clothes Grandpa Hokage prepared for me had that meaning too."

"However, other nations later coveted their powerful Fuinjutsu. Kirigakure of the Land of Water launched a war and destroyed the country. That is why you cannot find the Land of Whirlpools on any map."

"The Uzumaki Clan was slaughtered by Kirigakure. Only a small number survived, scattered and displaced, living miserable lives. Naruto's parents were likely immigrants from the Land of Whirlpools."

Naruto's eyes widened. He could not believe an entire country's people had been killed just like that. "So it was Kirigakure ninja again... How could they be so cruel?!"

"Naruto, eat your noodles before they get soggy. Don't you hate soggy noodles the most?" Seeing that Naruto was upset, Kakashi hurriedly spoke to calm him down.

Hyuga Kei continued, "Looking at some of your traits, I am reminded of a couple I once saw in recorded mission files."

"Who?!" Naruto turned toward Hyuga Kei with an immensely pleading look in his eyes.

He had wanted to know who his parents were countless times, to prove that he was not some demon fox.

Why did everyone else have their parents' love, while he alone did not?

"Kishu!" Kakashi suddenly interrupted Hyuga Kei. "That is a Leaf Village secret."

Hyuga Kei obediently shut his mouth. One had to eat a meal one bite at a time; if he wanted Naruto and Sasuke to fall into darkness, that too would require patience.

"Sorry, so it's a Leaf Village secret. I spoke out of turn."

Hyuga Kei said no more and focused on eating the noodles in his bowl. No matter how Naruto anxiously tried to persuade him, he would not speak again.

"Just tell me, please? It's the one thing I want most in my life!"

"Sorry, Naruto."

Hyuga Kei shook his head.

Naruto tightly clutched Hyuga Kei's clothes, tears and snot streaming uncontrollably down his face as he begged, "Please, tell me... Ever since I was little, the villagers treated me like a demon fox. They all said I was the reincarnation of a demon fox, but I never believed it. I definitely have parents."

"Please don't make things difficult for me. We're only ninja from a small hidden village. We can't bear Konoha's wrath. Sorry."

Hyuga Kei took out a one-thousand-ryo bill from his pocket and placed it on the table. "This meal is on me."

Hyuga Kei patted Naruto on the shoulder and softly said, "Sorry..."

Then Hyuga Kei led Hikari and Karin away.

Karin could not help looking back at Naruto, her heart filled with sympathy. She softly said to Hyuga Kei, "Naruto is so pitiful..."

Hyuga Kei silently nodded and rubbed Karin's red hair, comforting her. "Don't worry. We came to save him."

Come to think of it, the three of them had a rather similar lineup to Team 7.

One Uchiha, one Uzumaki... didn't that make me Sakura?