Originating from the First Glance

The setting sun gradually sank, its lingering rays seemingly abandoning the world.

Ueno Kei sat on a park bench in Konoha Village, bored, eating a bento box he had bought with the living allowance provided by the Konoha ninja.

"Ah," a sound came from beside Ueno Kei at that moment.

Uzumaki Naruto slowly opened his eyes, suddenly feeling pain all over his body. He frowned and tried to recall what had happened. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, only to dim again. Yes, he had seen a girl being bullied and wanted to help her.

He hadn't expected to be beaten up so severely. Those people had called him a monster. Uzumaki Naruto curled his lips bitterly; this was reality.

Uzumaki Naruto thought with a touch of sorrow, was he destined to live a life like this forever?

"You're awake?"

Uzumaki Naruto's body jolted, and he immediately sat up from the bench, staring at the unfamiliar, expressionless boy with purple hair before him.

Uzumaki Naruto glanced at Ueno Kei cautiously.

Then, he asked timidly, "Are... are you talking to me?"

Ueno Kei was slightly taken aback, then the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. He hadn't expected this blond boy's reaction to be, well, a bit beyond his expectations. Ueno Kei made no effort to hide his smile.

Uzumaki Naruto just stared blankly at Ueno Kei, looking as if he didn't understand why he was laughing.

Seeing the blond boy's dazed look, Ueno Kei felt even more that this was a very simple-minded child. Although, when he had been carrying this boy, the Konoha villagers he encountered along the way had all looked at Ueno Kei with very strange expressions, and when their gazes shifted to the blond boy behind him, they were all filled with disgust.

Some had even come up to advise him not to bother with this "monster," saying it would be best to just throw him aside and ignore him. Ueno Kei had always nodded politely to thank them for the reminder, maintaining an attitude of sincere apology while firmly refusing to change his mind, laboriously carrying the blond boy toward the nearest park.

However, everything he had seen along the way only made Ueno Kei more curious about the blond boy's identity.

But at this moment, Ueno Kei was infected by the blond boy's innocent demeanor. This was a child without any ulterior motives, a very simple soul.

Ueno Kei smiled and asked in return, "Is there anyone else here?"

Uzumaki Naruto paused, "It seems like it's just the two of us."

Ueno Kei chuckled softly, shook his head, reached out his hand, and said, "Let's get to know each other. Hello, my name is Ueno Kei. I just moved to Konoha Village."

When Uzumaki Naruto saw Ueno Kei's outstretched right hand, he seemed startled, scrambling in a flustered mess. In his haste, he extended his left hand instead. Ueno Kei froze.

Uzumaki Naruto realized his mistake, his face turning red instantly. He hurriedly pulled back his left hand, extended his right, and grasped Ueno Kei's hand, saying softly, "H-hello. I... I'm Uzumaki Naruto."

As he spoke, Uzumaki Naruto kept his eyes fixed on their joined hands, as if he couldn't believe he was actually shaking hands with someone.

Ueno Kei shook his hand, pulled back, and said, "Naruto-kun, er, you don't mind if I call you that, do you?"

Before Ueno Kei could finish, the Uzumaki Naruto opposite him waved his hands frantically. "I don't mind, of course I don't mind."

He looked excited, and in contrast, Uzumaki Naruto asked in a very cautious tone, as if afraid of offending Ueno Kei, "Then, then, can I call you Kei-kun too?"

Ueno Kei nodded casually. What seemed like a very simple matter to Ueno Kei made Uzumaki Naruto even more elated.

"So, Naruto-kun, why were you there this afternoon? Do you know that girl?"

"No, I don't know her. It's just that I saw those three guys bullying her and wanted to help, but..." At this point, Uzumaki Naruto scratched his head in embarrassment. He felt it was very shameful to be beaten up in front of Ueno Kei.

"What do you plan to do now? Since you were beaten, are you going to go home and tell your parents?" Ueno Kei asked.

As soon as Ueno Kei finished speaking, he suddenly felt the atmosphere turn strange. Naruto, who had been in high spirits, seemed to have been struck by something, his mood plummeting instantly.

A look of disappointment appeared on his face. Ueno Kei's eyelids twitched, as if he had realized something.

Sure enough, he heard the words, "I don't have parents. I've been on my own for as long as I can remember."

Ueno Kei sighed imperceptibly. He had had a hunch when he saw Uzumaki Naruto's expression. It made sense; if he had parents, how could they let their child be treated with such disgust by the villagers, and be beaten and bullied by other children?

Thinking that the blond boy's circumstances were similar to his own, Ueno Kei couldn't help but show a look of shared sympathy.

"I'm sorry, Naruto. I didn't know. I touched on a painful subject."

"No, no, I've been used to it for years. You don't need to worry, Kei-kun." Uzumaki Naruto laughed in a carefree manner, as if he had swept away his previous dejection.

But Ueno Kei could feel the loneliness and sorrow in Uzumaki Naruto's eyes. Yet, the fact that he could still be so optimistic left Ueno Kei with an indescribable feeling.

Furthermore, from the start of their conversation until now, Ueno Kei hadn't heard a single word of complaint or resentment toward the three children who had beaten him, not even a hint of it in his attitude.

This situation meant he was either incredibly deep or remarkably optimistic and incapable of holding grudges.

In Ueno Kei's view, Uzumaki Naruto was the latter. Their similar life circumstances and his positive attitude gave Ueno Kei, who had just arrived in Konoha and knew no one, a sense of affinity. The Uzumaki Naruto before him was someone worth befriending.

It was as if a voice in the dark was telling him exactly that.

What did it matter if he was hated by others, or if he had no friends? Ueno Kei felt that such a person was worth deep friendship. This was why, even knowing that Uzumaki Naruto was shunned and rejected by the villagers of Konoha, Ueno Kei still chose to associate with him.

It was simple: fate! Being a "good guy" or following the crowd was not Ueno Kei's personality. Once he made up his mind, nothing could change it, even if he possessed an adult's mind and was making a decision that appeared highly irrational.

Ueno Kei would never regret it.

Of course, what Ueno Kei did not know was that Uzumaki Naruto was not just shunned by the villagers on the surface; he was one of the highest secrets in all of Konoha.

There were Konoha Anbu monitoring Uzumaki Naruto at all times, though with Ueno Kei's current strength, he couldn't detect them in the slightest.

"Um, I heard Kei-kun just arrived in Konoha? Did you move in from outside?" Uzumaki Naruto clearly changed the subject in a clumsy attempt to dispel the awkward atmosphere.

Although Ueno Kei saw through it, he didn't call him out, smiling instead. "Yeah, I did just move here today, so I wanted to scout the area a bit."

"Scout the area...?"

"Er, no, I mean just walk around Konoha and get to know the roads. Yeah, something like that."

"Oh, so, why did Kei-kun move to Konoha? Wait, no, Konoha is great, so it's normal for you to move here... Our Konoha is..."

Uzumaki Naruto talked to himself, and proceeded to introduce Konoha Village to Ueno Kei on his own accord.