Naruto

Meanwhile

Ichiraku Ramen was soon served, its fragrant aroma making Josuke swallow his drool for quite a while.

Itachi gently portioned the ramen into small bowls, then poured in the broth. He knew the two little ones had already been weaned, so there was no problem with them eating ramen.

Josuke did not stand on ceremony. "Thanks for the meal."

Then he became completely absorbed in eating. Seeing that his brother had started, Sasuke naturally did not fall behind.

He began taking small bites as well. The moment the ramen entered their mouths, both boys' eyes lit up!

This truly was the best ramen in the Hidden Leaf Village! Delicious!

It looked like ordinary ramen, yet it was made so delicious! Josuke now had no choice but to learn how it was made.

After all, besides growing stronger, that tiny body of his also held the dream of becoming a chef.

Itachi elegantly brought the ramen to his mouth. Even though he had tasted it many times, he could not help sighing.

Ichiraku Ramen really was better than the other ramen shops.

"Is it good, Sasuke?"

Sasuke puffed out both cheeks and nodded, making a muffled sound through his mouthful.

Itachi smiled, then looked at Josuke. Josuke said nothing and merely raised a thumbs-up.

Naturally, Itachi understood. Just then, a small figure seemed to gather up tremendous courage.

He slowly walked toward Ichiraku Ramen.

Josuke was too focused on eating to notice someone approaching, but Itachi noticed the thin little body.

His heart skipped a beat.

Why was he here?

The little figure had yellow hair, with whisker-like markings on his cheeks.

He wore a small pair of goggles on his forehead, an old T-shirt, and had a thin frame.

At that moment, he was looking over nervously.

"Um... I... can I sit beside you?"

The sudden voice made Josuke look over.

Holy crap.

Guess who this was??

Wasn't this our Lord Yellow Monkey? Though he was still a child, Josuke was somewhat surprised.

But on second thought, it made sense. Naruto was Ichiraku Ramen's number-one fan, so it was only natural for him to show up here. Josuke's luck was pretty good too—he had run into Naruto on his very first trip outside.

In Josuke's plans, he absolutely had to befriend the young prince—and become close friends with him. It would be best if they could form some kind of bond. Though Naruto was just as much of a loser as he was right now, their young prince would rise up big time later on.

Still, Naruto was way too skinny as a child, wasn't he? They were both three years old, yet Josuke and Sasuke were chubby, while Naruto was clearly malnourished.

He truly deserved to have been born in the Hidden Leaf Village.

Sasuke looked at him in confusion.

He was filthy and so skinny. Was he here to steal his onii-chan? Hmph, he absolutely could not let him succeed.

Sasuke said fiercely in his childish voice, "No!!"

Naruto looked devastated. He lowered his head and began doubting himself. Am I really the fox demon disaster everyone in the village talks about?

Josuke glanced at his little brother.

"Of course you can. This ramen shop is really delicious! Come try it too!"

Hearing that, Naruto raised his head in disbelief, his eyes already glistening with tears.

"I... I really can?"

Josuke nodded, motioning for Naruto to come over. Naruto slowly walked over, two or three little teardrops falling from his eyes.

Itachi merely watched everything calmly.

Seeing Naruto like that, Josuke could not help teasing him.

"So you're a big crybaby after all."

Naruto quickly wiped his eyes with his hands and stubbornly said, "I'm not. It's just that the wind blew sand into my eyes."

Josuke smiled and did not expose Naruto's excuse.

Sasuke looked at Naruto with disgust. It was all because of Naruto that Brother Josuke was no longer playing with him.

Naruto was also a regular at Ichiraku Ramen. The owner warmly welcomed him upon seeing him. In the current Hidden Leaf Village, Uncle Ichiraku was surely one of the few people who did not discriminate against the young prince.

The two of them got to know each other like this, exchanging their names.

They chatted on and off.

The atmosphere was somewhat awkward, so Josuke thought of something and asked, "Naruto, what's your dream?"

"Dream...?"

Naruto looked toward Hokage Rock in the distance.

Excitement unconsciously appeared on his face.

"I'm going to become Hokage!"

After saying that, he flashed his signature smile. Sasuke, sitting beside him, could not stand it anymore and angrily said, "I'm the one who's going to become Hokage!"

"Huh?"

Naruto was shocked that someone else had the same dream as him.

Josuke could not help laughing at the two little troublemakers.

"Josuke, Sasuke, aren't you going to say goodbye to your friend?"

Itachi took their little hands and asked gently.

Sasuke put on a cool expression and turned his head away.

Josuke smiled faintly and waved goodbye to Naruto.

"Goodbye, Naruto. Let's play together sometime."

Naruto was extremely reluctant, but he still waved goodbye to Josuke and the others. As he left, he loudly called out, "Remember, my name is Naruto Uzumaki, and I'm going to become Hokage!"

With that, he ran off without looking back.

His rapid departure was meant to hide the tears on his face. I... I, Naruto, finally made friends. I finally have friends!!!!

Naruto could hardly contain the excitement in his heart. Josuke, Sasuke... he silently repeated their names to himself.

Their bond was formed just like that. In the future, the two would face all kinds of crises and challenges, but that was a story for later.

Back home

Fugaku and Mikoto were chatting in the living room. Seeing the three return, Mikoto quickly came forward to greet them.

"You're back?"

Mikoto patted her younger son's head and said affectionately.

Itachi nodded slightly.

"I took my little brothers to eat Ichiraku Ramen, and they even made a new friend..."

Mikoto looked surprised. She had not expected her two younger sons to make a new friend on their first outing. She wondered if it was a girlfriend. If it was a girlfriend, was she pretty... Hehe (╹▽╹).

Ahem, ahem. What was she thinking?

Mikoto hurriedly pushed those thoughts from her mind.

With an innocent expression, Josuke said, "Yeah, his name is Naruto Uzumaki. Just like Sasuke, he wants to become Hokage!"

Fugaku:?

Naruto? The images of the Fourth Hokage and Kushina flashed through Mikoto's mind, and she could not help feeling a little dejected...

But she hid it in front of the children. Although the villagers hated Naruto, she did not object to the two boys being friends with him. Fugaku did not object either. After all, they would get to know each other sooner or later at the ninja academy.

Hearing his brother, Sasuke said indignantly, "Brother, I'll definitely be the future Hokage!!"