"I'm so full!"
Naruto came out of the Barbecue Restaurant and patted his round belly, looking utterly satisfied.
"Heh, kid, you really can eat. You actually finished all that meat. Aren't you going to get an upset stomach tonight?"
Tetsuya teased Naruto as he looked at his noticeably rounder belly.
"Don't worry, big bro! I'm super healthy. There's no way I'll get an upset stomach, believe it!"
As he spoke, he seemed to remember something else.
"Well, except for that time I drank expired milk."
"Tsk, kid, don't drink milk that's expired. Tell you what, there's a shop with a Chiba Emblem halfway down this street. Whenever you want milk, just go get some there."
"Really? Big bro, you're so good to me!"
"All right, kid, I've got things to do, so I'm heading off. If you don't have anything to do, stop wandering around and get home."
Naruto thought it over. It really was time to go home. Eating his fill had made him sleepy, and he needed to get back and have a good rest.
"Okay. Bye, big bro!"
"Bye, kid."
Naruto waved and ran off toward his home.
Tetsuya watched Naruto until he turned into an alley and disappeared, only then looking away.
He hadn't just been watching Naruto. He had been looking back at his own past, too.
"Hmm, I've been in Konoha for a day now. The Land of Lightning's delegation should arrive tomorrow or the day after, right? Hehehe, Neji, are you ready to face this cruel fate?"
Chuckling, Tetsuya headed toward his villa in Konoha.
Just as he had expected, the Kumogakure Delegation from the Land of Lightning arrived two days later.
Leading it were none other than those two idiot ninja, Yeruka and Yurubi, who were now among Kumogakure's higher-ups.
After rising