Konoha's gates, noon.
Jiraiya walked ahead with a sake gourd in hand, not because he was thirsty, but to celebrate. To celebrate the end of two years of training, to celebrate his student mastering the Big Ball Rasengan. Naruto followed behind him. The way he walked was different from two years ago—his shoulders were broader, his steps steadier, and there was no impulsiveness in his blue eyes, only confidence. He had trained for two years, made thousands of Rasengan, until his palms were covered in calluses, until Jiraiya said, "All right, you've graduated."
"Go let Kakashi inspect that Sexy Technique!"
"It's not the Sexy Technique!!" Naruto shouted back, the corners of his mouth lifted. Not because he was angry, but because he was home.
Sakura rushed out through the gates and threw herself around him, squeezing Naruto so hard he could barely breathe. After two years apart, Sakura's arms were stronger than before. Tsunade's training had not been for nothing. Hands that could smash boulders with one punch could also lock Naruto in a crushing embrace. It was not violence. She was just afraid he would run off again.
"Naruto—you idiot! You didn't write a single letter in two years!"
"Jiraiya-sensei said writing letters was a waste of time—"
"He lied to you!"
"I know."
Naruto smiled. Sakura took a step back and looked at his face. He was half a head taller than before, his shoulders a fist-width broader. The dead last who had once chased after Sasuke had become a ninja capable of bearing S-rank missions.
"Two years ago, I learned a Rasengan this big."
Naruto stretched out his right hand, chakra spinning in his palm. It was not merely a blue sphere. While compressing and spinning, it also rotated into a spherical shape along its latitude. The