You Have Courted Death

Little Naruto walked home openly and confidently. The looks around him were still full of coldness and disgust; the village's malice had not diminished in the slightest and had even grown somewhat stronger.

However, no one dared gather together and whisper vicious curses about him anymore. Unlike before, their malice toward him now stemmed more from fear.

Everyone avoided him as if he were a venomous snake or scorpion.

As the saying went, good news never left the house, but bad news traveled a thousand miles.

Konoha was only a village. What had happened that morning was already known by nearly the entire village by afternoon. It was only because Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, had issued a gag order, and because the Konoha Military Police Force had truly arrested people, that everyone dared to be angry but not speak out.

Naruto felt clearer than ever before. This was more like it—he was the Demon Fox, after all.

Fear was normal. Constantly bullying and cursing him was completely backward.

With both hands in his pockets and a gentle smile on his face, he swaggered down Konoha Street as though he were walking through his own living room. After all, no one dared approach him; everyone made way from far away whenever they saw him.

No matter where he went, the place would instantly fall silent at his arrival, as though even the birds had been silenced. Only after he had gone some distance did people dare mutter a few curses under their breaths.

Even the stray dogs in the corners of the streets bolted without a trace when they sensed the aura of the Nine-Tails' Chakra on Naruto. He truly embodied being hated by both people and dogs.

Since that was the case, Naruto was in no hurry to go home.

For the entire afternoon, Naruto wandered all over Konoha. Wherever was lively, he went there. Whichever shop held the strongest malice toward him, he walked straight inside, touching this and looking at that. In one afternoon, several shops nearly went out of business.

Still, there were a few who had backbone. They cursed him outright, spouting endless vicious insults and venomous curses.

Then Naruto watched with a regretful expression as they were dragged away by the Konoha Military Police Force for a chat.

The feeling of someone hating him yet being unable to do anything about it, of cursing him only to end up in jail, naturally put Naruto in an even better mood.

"Kid, do you really enjoy such a boring game that much?"

At last, the Nine-Tails lying in the Sealing Space could no longer hold it in.

Naruto was somewhat surprised and replied in his mind.

"Kurama, you're not angry anymore?"

Naruto's words made the Nine-Tails feel stifled again. It snorted coldly.

"Hmph. Even if I were angry, could you come in here and let me beat you up?"

"Haha, once I improve my strength a little more, I'll come fight you." Naruto spoke shamelessly.

"Hmph!" The Nine-Tails did not want to keep bullshitting with Naruto about this. After more than a year together, it had long discovered that this little blondie had no idea what shame was.

It instead said disdainfully, "Is this how you plan to take revenge on Konoha?"

"Well, there's nothing I can do about it. I can't just go around doing bad things in broad daylight." Naruto felt somewhat helpless, but then a great deal of wickedness welled up within him. He said sinisterly, "No matter how impatient I am, I still have to wait until nightfall."

"..."

The Nine-Tails fell silent. It suddenly realized that the already dim Sealing Space had become even deeper and darker. Even the seal's gate and its iron bars had been stained with black patterns.

It finally understood why its Chakra had not caused this kid to lose control. What effect could a drop of dirty water have when it fell into an ink vat, aside from making a few ripples?

After gaining those eyes, Naruto's malice had already been freed of its shackles.

Dusk was the boundary between day and night, also known as the hour of meeting demons.

After wandering around all day, Naruto still had plenty of energy, but the scent of cooking drifting from the buildings lining the street made him feel a little hungry.

In a corner of the shopping street, Naruto looked at the storefront before him and hesitated, unsure whether he should enter.

The red-and-white sign at the entrance was especially eye-catching. Written across it in bold, rugged characters were the words "Ichiraku Ramen." The warm aroma of steaming ramen drifted out through gaps in the curtains, drawing in passing pedestrians.

After hesitating for a moment, Naruto pulled aside the two curtains and walked in.

There was only a long counter inside for customers to eat at. At the moment, two people were already seated at opposite ends of it, while a man and woman worked busily behind the counter.

Having worked alongside her father for years, Ayame immediately noticed another customer entering. She stopped what she was doing and put on a warm smile.

"Welcome. May I ask... Naruto!" Ayame froze for a moment, then her expression quickly turned into delight.

"Naruto, where have you been for the past year? We were so worried about you."

Ayame's expression became serious again. The way she looked at Naruto carried the concern of an older sister for her younger brother.

"Oh, it really is Naruto. You haven't come by in over a year, and my ramen shop has added quite a few new items."

Teuchi turned around at the sound and greeted him with a smile.

"Haha, I've been training outside all this time. I only got back today. I'm going to try every one of Teuchi Uncle's new dishes."

Naruto smiled and scratched his head. This was one of the rare occasions when he showed a genuinely sincere smile in front of others.

Sure enough, Teuchi Uncle and Miss Ayame had not developed any malice toward him, even after what had happened today.

This was one of his few havens in Konoha. Still, the sudden surge of malice from someone in the shop upon his arrival made him feel somewhat uncomfortable.

Frowning, he chose a seat near the other person. Strange—this person did not have any malice toward him either.

Naruto looked over curiously. Distinctive silver hair, a forehead protector covering one eye, a mask hiding half his face, and a little book with no visible cover.

Kakashi Hatake!

Naruto had not expected to run into him here, but he did not think much of it and calmly sat down beside him.

Kakashi Hatake had only glanced at Naruto when he entered. His dead-water eyes rippled slightly before returning to their lifeless stillness.

"Come to think of it, Naruto has grown quite a bit taller this past year. You didn't even reach the counter before, hahaha."

Ayame laughed as she prepared Naruto's bowl and chopsticks.

"Really?" Naruto stood up and compared himself against it. Sure enough, he was now half a head taller than the counter.

That was normal, though. He had spent more than a year outside eating all kinds of wild game, all high-protein and nutritious food. Combined with Chakra assistance, it was only natural that he had grown quite a bit.

"Maybe it's because of my training." Naruto smiled as he explained, then put on a show-offish expression. "Sister Ayame, I've learned ninjutsu now."

"Ninjutsu? Naruto, you're amazing."

Ayame's eyes sparkled with admiration. She and her father had run a ramen shop in Konoha for more than a decade, so she naturally knew how impressive it was for a six-year-old to know ninjutsu.

"Come to think of it, didn't Lord Kakashi learn ninjutsu when he was six too?"

Ayame suddenly started talking to Kakashi beside them. Since she had not sensed any hostility toward Naruto from him, she probably wanted to use this opportunity to introduce them. Geniuses should have more common topics to talk about with each other.

Kakashi's fingers tightened unconsciously around his book. After hesitating for a moment, he still gave a slight nod.

Naruto put on an exaggerated, goofy expression and exclaimed, "Eh—this One-Eyed Uncle is as amazing as me?"

One-Eyed Uncle...

Even Kakashi's Dead Fish Eyes could not help rolling upward. He gave no response at all.

His teacher's child really had a completely different personality from his teacher's.

The atmosphere suddenly became a little silent. Ayame, who had started the conversation, grew somewhat awkward and changed the subject.

"Now that Naruto has finished training, is it because you're going to enroll in the Ninja Academy?"

"Yep." Naruto nodded happily, completely unaffected by Kakashi's indifference.

Ayame looked pleased. "If you're going to school, you'll definitely make more friends."

"I definitely—"

Bang!

A loud crash suddenly interrupted Naruto before he could finish. Ayame jumped in fright and discovered that the customer beside them had finished his ramen, stood up, and slammed his chopsticks hard onto the counter.

Ayame quickly stepped forward with a polite expression and asked, "Sir, was the ramen not to your taste?"

The man snorted and shot a sidelong glance in Naruto's direction. His lips silently formed the word "unlucky," then he looked at Ayame with disgust and shouted in a voice loud enough to carry down several streets.

"Your noodles are the worst thing I've ever eaten. Opening a shop here is nothing but a waste of land on Konoha Street. You should shut down already."

After saying that, he hurried out without looking back.

Ayame was stunned for a moment, then naturally realized that he was deliberately causing trouble. Her once-gentle face turned cold, her brows knitting slightly as a faint flush rose to her cheeks from agitation.

Looking at the spotless empty bowl on the table, she gritted her teeth.

She braced both hands against the counter, leaned forward, and angrily shouted at the departing figure, "If the ramen was so bad, why did you eat it all? Come back and tell me exactly what was bad about it if you've got the guts!"

The man only quickened his pace and soon vanished into the crowd.

There was nothing Ayame could do. She began clearing the empty bowl from the table, only to discover another problem.

"That bastard! He ate without paying!"

Ayame grew even angrier. She had never seen someone dine and dash while acting so arrogantly.

This guy has courted death.

Naruto lowered his head, a fierce glint appearing in his eyes. He had already memorized the man's scent.

I'll be at your doorstep soon.

"Sister Ayame, I'm sorry."

Ayame's expression softened considerably upon hearing that, though she still looked somewhat displeased. "Naruto, this has nothing to do with you. It's bad enough that he ate ramen without paying, but he was so rude too."

At that moment, Naruto suddenly felt a hand pat his head.

He turned around and discovered that Kakashi had already finished his ramen and was heading outside. He had the Sharingan, and Konoha's higher-ups did not want him to have too much contact with the Jinchuriki.

On the table Kakashi had left behind were bills worth far more than two bowls of ramen.

"Looks like Kakashi actually likes Naruto quite a lot." Ayame looked at the money on the table in surprise, holding back a laugh as she said, "Kakashi is such a tsundere."

"Is that so?"

Naruto propped his cheek up with his left hand and watched Kakashi's back disappear into the darkness, lost in thought.