Ramen and Naruto!

The two arrived at Ichiraku Ramen Shop just as the previous customers were leaving. They took seats at the counter.

"Boss, ten large bowls of Miso Chashu Ramen to start!"

Neji's calm voice drew silent glances from the people around them, making Hinata lower her head shyly.

She tugged lightly at the corner of Neji's clothes. He smiled to himself and spoke softly.

"It's fine. Having a big appetite is a good thing. Only by eating more can you become stronger!"

Hinata gave a quiet hum and relaxed a little. After all, Brother Neji was by her side.

"Ten bowls?"

The rather young Uncle Ichiraku gave Neji and Hinata a surprised look.

Neji smiled. "Yes, Boss!"

Uncle Ichiraku nodded, turned around, and began making the ramen. Look at these noodles, so big and...

Ahem!

He couldn't help it, couldn't help it!

The ramen was served quickly. Before long, a bowl sat in front of each of them.

"Let's eat!"

"Mm!"

After one bite, their eyes lit up slightly, and they immediately began a ravenous feast.

Ten large bowls of Miso Chashu Ramen—five bowls each—were merely enough to fill their stomachs.

However, considering their limited funds, they ultimately did not eat too much. Only twenty bowls altogether, with Neji eating most of them.

As expected of a popular Konoha check-in spot, the taste was pretty good. He just wondered...

"Uncle Ichiraku, one bowl of ramen!"

Just as he had been wondering whether he would run into Naruto, Naruto walked in, fox-like whiskers on his face.

"Yo! Hinata, you're here too."

Naruto greeted her, then curiously looked at the eyepatched Neji, as though he had heard of him somewhere before.

"Naruto, are you here for ramen too?" Hinata asked curiously.

Though she rather admired Naruto's carefree personality, she always felt he was too reckless and not as steady as Brother Neji.

"Yeah! I love Uncle Ichiraku's ramen the most. There's no food in the world more delicious than his ramen."

Naruto praised Ichiraku Ramen without holding back, making Uncle Ichiraku chuckle.

"It's not as exaggerated as you say. Naruto, your ramen's ready."

A bowl of ramen with an obviously extra-large portion was placed before Naruto. He happily began eating, while Neji silently took note of it all.

The corners of Neji's lips rose. He had no intention of having much to do with Naruto, so he did not greet him. After all, he had to maintain his cool persona.

"Let's go. Boss, the bill."

Neji placed the meal money on the table, then pointed at Naruto, who was hunched over his noodles, indicating that he was treating him to that bowl.

Uncle Ichiraku smiled and said nothing. He accepted the money and silently made another bowl.

He understood that Naruto had saved up for a long time before he had enough money to come eat here once.

Every time, he still could not eat his fill and would quietly leave. Unfortunately, Uncle Ichiraku ran a small business and could not afford to help much, so he could only give him a larger portion.

Neji stood up. As the eldest daughter of the Hyuga Clan, Hinata still had to show proper manners.

"Goodbye, Naruto."

"Mm! Mmph..."

Hinata bid him farewell, but Naruto was busy eating and could only make muffled noises.

The two left Ichiraku Ramen. It was already dusk, so they headed toward the Hyuga Compound.

"Was that Hinata's classmate?"

"Mm, his name is Uzumaki Naruto. He's a very rowdy guy. He often skips class with Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Choji, giving Teacher Iruka quite a headache."

Neji listened as Hinata spoke about school. After all, he was only one year ahead of her, so he knew a little about it.

"When the Hot Pot Restaurant opens, Hinata can invite some friends over too."

"Okay, Brother Neji!"

Inside Ichiraku Ramen, Naruto finished eating and was about to pay when Uncle Ichiraku pushed another bowl over.

Naruto froze and hurriedly refused. "Uncle Ichiraku, I only have enough money for one bowl!"

Uncle Ichiraku shook his head. "Eat. Hinata's brother just treated you to it."

"Treated... me...?"

Naruto even stuttered. Uncle Ichiraku nodded very seriously and said with a smile.

"Don't waste his kindness."

He forcibly pushed the ramen in front of Naruto, then turned around to collect the bowls the earlier customers had finished, leaving Naruto staring at the bowl before him.

A glimmer of tears flashed in Naruto's eyes. He immediately wiped them away with his hand, pulled the bowl of ramen close, and began eating.

He would never forget anyone willing to be kind to him, because no one had ever been willing to treat him well.

As he ate, tears kept welling up in his eyes. Naruto smiled as he wiped them away.

"What's with today? Stuff keeps coming out of my eyes. It'll ruin the flavor of the ramen. Seriously!"

Uncle Ichiraku quietly cleaned up, pretending not to hear. This was the final bit of stubbornness in a child's heart.

He could not expose it.

After all, he had watched this child grow up. It was truly not easy for him to preserve his true heart in such an environment.

Meanwhile, Naruto quietly ate his ramen and remembered this moment. Hinata's brother?

He would remember him!

After returning to the Hyuga Estate, Neji parted ways with Hinata and returned to his own home.

Thinking of Naruto, this should have been their second meeting. However, Naruto probably had no impression of the first one.

Neji sighed softly. If he were Naruto, he would probably have long since hated Konoha beyond measure.

Yet Naruto could still maintain such an optimistic attitude. Neji truly did not know what to say.

"Is it true that the beloved child is never cared for, while the most disliked child is the one who looks after them in their old age?"

Neji sighed. Just like in his previous life, the children parents favored would not care for them when they grew old.

Instead, it would be the children they disliked the most who supported them in their old age.

The human heart...

In the end, it was the hardest thing to fathom. Some people treated you well because they wanted something from you, or because they wanted to harm you.

Some people looked down on you and mocked you coldly, yet were actually warning you for your own good. It was truly hard to tell!

He stopped thinking about it. In any case, all the blame in this world belonged to Pot Kage.

Danzo!

Carry the blame properly. Every black pot is yours; no one can take them from you.

Of course, setting aside bias, Danzo was indeed not clean himself, so he could not blame others.

Sitting cross-legged, Neji began refining Chakra.

His current Chakra reserves were not small. Thanks to the traits of Life Return, he refined it quickly and controlled it easily.

His ability to cultivate Medical Ninjutsu was entirely due to Life Return, not Observation Haki.

At the same time, another force that fused with Chakra—Nen—circulated within Neji's body.

Originally, he possessed the three attributes of fire, earth, and water. However, the DNF Qi Gong Master class had given him the attributes of wind and lightning.

He could now be said to possess all five attributes, along with the Yang Attribute Chakra mastered through Medical Ninjutsu.

Only Yin Attribute Chakra remained beyond his control. He was considering extracting the Dojutsu Power of the Sharingan, which was also representative of the Yin Attribute.

However, he did not know what the result would be if he extracted the Sharingan's Dojutsu Power and fused it with the Byakugan.

For now, he planned to stock up on some materials a year later. After all, the Uchiha Clan would be gone in a year, and there would be nothing left to obtain.

Unless he went to Orochimaru, Danzo, or Obito, which was obviously impossible.

Kelly: Huh?! That young man passing by is pretty handsome!