Shino and Hinata

The morning sunlight fell softly over Konoha, filling Menma's room with a warm glow.

Naruto was immersed in a beautiful dream, a faint smile on his lips as he seemed to be savoring Uncle Ichiraku's ramen.

Menma was already awake. He stretched out of habit, then looked over at Naruto, who was still fast asleep.

"Big brother, wake up! Didn't you make plans with Shikamaru and the others?" Menma said, gently shaking Naruto.

Naruto grunted sleepily without opening his eyes. "Let me sleep a little longer, Menma," he mumbled.

Seeing that, Menma simply pulled the blanket off Naruto and grinned. "If you don't get up, I'll eat all your breakfast."

The word "breakfast" instantly woke Naruto up. He sat bolt upright and shouted, "No! The breakfast is mine!"

Kushina had spent this whole time working to improve her cooking, and she was getting better and better. Her food tasted much better than before.

On top of that, she made new dishes for Naruto and Menma to try every day, turning them both into her biggest fans. They looked forward to mealtimes every day.

The two quickly got dressed and went to the bathroom on the second floor to wash up. Afterward, they headed to the kitchen on the first floor. Kushina was humming a little tune as she set the steaming breakfast on the table.

"Come and eat, boys," Kushina said warmly.

Naruto looked at the food spread across the table, his eyes lighting up. "Wow, Mom, breakfast looks delicious today!"

Menma smiled at Kushina, too. "Thanks, Mom."

After breakfast, Naruto and Menma ran to the small clearing where they usually played. When they arrived, they saw Shikamaru, Choji, and Ino already waiting for them.

"What took you so long?" Ino asked, hands on her hips.

"We thought you weren't coming," Shikamaru added in his usual unhurried manner.

"So, what are we playing?" Naruto asked.

Choji's eyes lit up. "Let's play ninja!"

Everyone thought it was a great idea, and just as they were about to start, Inuzuka Kiba came running over.

"Hey, I'm late! What are we playing? Count me in," Kiba panted.

The game had two teams: a guard team of four and an attacking team of two.

The guard team had to protect the scarecrow within the designated area from being hit by the attackers' wooden shuriken. They also couldn't get hit themselves. Anyone who was hit had to run five laps around the area.

The guards could also attack the opposing team with wooden shuriken. Anyone on the attacking team who got hit had to run three laps around the area.

The guard team had a simple way to win: either the scarecrow had to avoid being hit by a wooden shuriken ten times before time ran out, or they had to eliminate the entire attacking team.

The attacking team had to hit the scarecrow with wooden shuriken ten times to win.

After drawing lots, Menma and Kiba were assigned to the attacking team, while the other four became the guards. As soon as the game started, Menma and Kiba quickly split up.

They exchanged a glance and immediately understood each other's intentions. The two ran in opposite directions, throwing wooden shuriken as they went.

Naruto and the others weren't about to let them have it easy, and threw shuriken at the pair in return. Menma's aim was excellent, and he hit several of them. Naruto's shuriken hit Kiba, too.

The five of them began running laps. Menma sat down and watched, not even bothering to attack the scarecrow.

After playing for a while, everyone was getting tired. Choji wiped the sweat from his forehead. "This game takes too much energy. Let's play something more relaxing. How about hide-and-seek?"

Everyone nodded in agreement. They started playing, and Shikamaru volunteered to be the seeker.

The others hurried off to find hiding places. Naruto thought for a moment, then ran behind a big tree and hid, taking care to cover himself completely with leaves.

Menma looked up at the top of a tall tree. A slight smile appeared on his lips. He gathered chakra in his feet and dashed up the trunk.

Ino ran into a flower bed and carefully hid behind the blossoms, peeking through the gaps now and then to watch what was happening outside.

Choji found a big wooden barrel, tipped it onto its side, and hid behind it.

Kiba ran behind a large rock and pressed himself against it, afraid Shikamaru would spot him.

Shikamaru closed his eyes and began to count. "One, two, three..."

When he finished counting, Shikamaru started looking. He found Ino among the flowers first, because a bit of her hair had accidentally poked out.

"Ha, found you, Ino," Shikamaru said with a laugh.

Next, he found Choji behind the barrel. Then he found Kiba behind the big rock.

While Shikamaru was searching for Naruto and Menma, Sasuke happened to pass by.

"Sasuke, come play hide-and-seek with us!" Naruto called, poking his head out from behind the tree.

Sasuke glanced at them and said coolly, "I'm not interested." Then he walked away with his hands in his pockets.

At last, Shikamaru found Naruto behind the tree. Menma was the only one left. Shikamaru searched around, but eventually decided to give up.

Shikamaru lay down and looked up at the sky. Suddenly, he thought he saw someone's silhouette at the top of a tree. He looked closer and realized it was Menma. Once he was sure, he could only shake his head in resignation.

Everyone was having a great time when Choji ran toward another spot to start the next game and nearly stepped on a bug.

Just then, a voice rang out. "Careful! Don't step on it."

Shino called out urgently. His voice wasn't loud, but it was full of concern.

Everyone was drawn by the sudden voice and turned to look at Shino.

Naruto walked over curiously and asked, "Who are you? Why did you suddenly show up here?"

Shino lowered his head a little shyly. "My name is Shino. I've been watching bugs nearby. I saw him almost step on this one, so I couldn't help calling out."

Menma smiled. "So you really like bugs. Do you want to play with us?"

Shino looked up, a hint of hope in his eyes. "Can I?"

"Of course!" Naruto said enthusiastically.

And so, Shino joined their group.

Then they noticed a little girl secretly watching them from nearby. It was Hinata.

It was Hinata's first time at the clearing. She had come looking for a quiet place to practice her ninja techniques, but when she saw everyone having so much fun, she couldn't help stopping to watch.

Naruto spotted Hinata and thought she looked a little shy, but cute.

He ran over and asked, "Hi! Who are you? Why are you here by yourself?"

Hinata's face turned red. "I... I'm Hinata. I was looking for a place to practice my ninja techniques," she stammered.

Ino came over and took Hinata by the hand. "Hinata, don't practice by yourself. Come play with us!"

Hinata hesitated. She looked at everyone, then at Ino, and said softly, "O-okay."

And so, Hinata joined them, too. Just then, Kiba suggested that they take turns showing off their ninja techniques. The others didn't object, and one by one, they began demonstrating their specialties.

Shikamaru went first. He calmly demonstrated his Shadow Imitation Technique. It was only a simple demonstration, but everyone could see how powerful the technique was.

Next was Choji. He showed them the initial form of his Multi-Size Jutsu, making his body grow a little bigger. Everyone jumped in surprise, then burst out laughing.

Ino demonstrated her Mind Transfer Jutsu by briefly making a little butterfly fly according to her wishes. Everyone thought it was amazing.

Kiba showed them the basic movements of Passing Fang. He didn't use his full strength, but his momentum still impressed everyone.

When it was Shino's turn, he took a small box from his clothes and opened it. A few little bugs flew out. At his command, they arranged themselves into a small pattern, and everyone was amazed by his Insect Control Jutsu.

Then it was Hinata's turn. She was a little nervous, her face flushed red. She took a deep breath and demonstrated some basic Gentle Fist movements. Her motions were gentle but powerful, and everyone applauded.

Next was Naruto. He demonstrated his Shadow Clone Jutsu, creating several clones in an instant. They performed all sorts of funny actions together, making everyone laugh.

Finally, it was Menma's turn. He couldn't resist showing off. "Well, the main character always makes the last entrance," he said, taking a Flying Thunder God Kunai from his pocket.

"Now I'll show you the Spiral Flash Super Round Dance Howl Style Three." As Menma spoke, he threw the kunai in his hand. A flash of light streaked past, leaving marks on the nearby tree. He finished with a Rasengan, slamming it into a tree.

A huge hole was left in the tree. The others stared in shock, though they couldn't help making fun of the technique's name.

Menma awkwardly scratched his head and explained that he hadn't come up with the name—his father had. When they heard that, everyone laughed.

And so, they spent a wonderful time together, surrounded by laughter.

That evening, after Naruto returned home and washed up, he sat on his bed and chatted with Menma.

Menma looked at Naruto and asked, "By the way, big brother, did you notice that girl named Hinata was a little strange?"

Naruto thought about it carefully before answering. "Hinata was a little strange. I don't know why, but her face was always red."

Menma looked at Naruto, unsurprised. His brother was still as oblivious as ever when it came to this sort of thing. He glanced at Naruto helplessly, then thought it over. Nearly all of Konoha's 12 were gathered now, and things were much better than they had been originally.

As he watched Naruto happily talking about the day's events, Menma felt happy, too. At least he had done what he wanted to do.