Chapter 25: A Meeting at Ichiraku Ramen
"Old man! One bowl of ramen, the usual!" Naruto slammed the mission pay he'd just received onto the counter.
Teuchi poked his head out from the kitchen, laughing when he saw Naruto. "Yo, Naruto! You're in a great mood. Mission go well?"
"Of course!" Naruto puffed out his chest proudly. "And all the guys today were super nice to me! Not only did they help me pick up trash, they even said I could be Hokage someday!"
Teuchi froze for a second. He'd watched this kid grow up from nothing and knew how much he craved acknowledgment. A simple "you could be Hokage" was more precious to him than any reward.
"Is that right? That's great! Looks like people are finally starting to see your potential."
Naruto stared down at his bowl of ramen, practically drooling, but he didn't immediately grab his chopsticks. He scratched his head, a goofy grin on his face. "Hehe, I think so too! Maybe in a few more years, I really will be Hokage!"
Teuchi handed Naruto the chopsticks, smiling. "Well, I'll be waiting. The day you become Hokage, I'll make you the biggest bowl of ramen this shop has ever seen, with double chashu!"
"All right!" Naruto took the chopsticks and, without a second's hesitation, grabbed a huge mouthful, blew on it, and stuffed it into his mouth.
He mumbled enthusiastically around the noodles, "Don't worry, old man, I'll definitely become Hokage! Then everyone will know that I, Naruto Uzumaki, am not just some prankster brat!"
Meanwhile, Jiraiya was excitedly pointing out the shops on either side of the street to Orochimaru.
"It's been so many years. Do you even remember these places?"
Orochimaru narrowed her eyes, scanning the street. Her gaze lingered on the familiar signs.
"It's changed a lot. But some things... haven't."
She stopped in front of a run-down ninja tool shop. "This shop. The three of us used to come here often."
The shopkeeper was an old man, his head down as he polished a kunai, seemingly unaware of the two outside.
Jiraiya clapped Orochimaru on the shoulder. "What, feeling nostalgic?"
Orochimaru pulled her gaze away. "I just find it... surprising how quickly time passes."
Jiraiya grinned, nudging her with his elbow. "Oh? I never knew you were the sentimental type. Getting soft in your old age?"
"Hn." Orochimaru ignored him and kept walking.
In her years away, aside from the time she'd spent with the Akatsuki, the rest had been dedicated to building Otogakure.
If the village needed money, she "secured investors."
If it needed people, she "recruited employees."
Years of this hands-on work had given her the habit of assessing any new place she visited.
The Konoha of today wasn't much different from when she'd left. Dreary streets, cookie-cutter buildings.
Even the expressions on the faces of the passersby seemed bound by some invisible set of rules. Their smiles were formulaic.
The ninja tool shop they just passed... she, Tsunade, and Jiraiya used to go there all the time. The Konoha back then may have been a bit run-down, but at least it had life.
And now?
She narrowed her eyes, her gaze sweeping over the shops. The new stores were gaudy, but it couldn't hide the rot in their bones.
Sarutobi-sensei's Konoha... in the end, it was still bound by so-called 'tradition.'
"Really... no progress at all."
Rumble... rumble...
Jiraiya's stomach suddenly growled. He rubbed it, laughing awkwardly. "Ahaha, speaking of... shouldn't we find a place to eat?"
Orochimaru glanced at him, a flash of disdain in her eyes. "After all these years, you're still so crude."
"Hey! Being hungry is human nature!" Jiraiya argued. His eyes suddenly lit up, and he pointed at a nearby shop. "How about that place? I remember we used to go all the time."
"No." Orochimaru cut him off. "I have no interest in sake."
Jiraiya blinked. "Huh? You don't?"
Orochimaru couldn't be bothered to explain and just walked on.
Jiraiya hurried after her. "Then... Ichiraku Ramen?" he suggested, not giving up. "It's the best ramen in all of Konoha..."
"I have no interest in crowded little stalls," Orochimaru refused flatly.
"But... my student, Minato Namikaze, used to love that place."
"Hm? What did you say?" Hearing Minato's name, Orochimaru stopped dead. "If the Yondaime loved it... then I'll try it. I'm curious what could be so good that a man like Minato would go often."
Orochimaru's sudden reversal made Jiraiya pause, then grin, as if he'd known it all along. "Ha! I knew mentioning Minato would work. Even you had to admit that kid was a genius."
The two of them arrived at Ichiraku Ramen. Orochimaru stood at the entrance, her eyes narrowed as she sized up the unimpressive little stall.
She had passed this place countless times but had never once gone in.
Because she, Orochimaru, had standards. This kind of street stall was for hot-blooded idiots, not for someone with her cool, aloof persona.
"What's wrong? Don't tell me the great Sannin Orochimaru is... scared of a little commoner's stall?" Jiraiya goaded her.
Orochimaru "Hn'd" and pulled back the curtain, stepping inside first.
The shop was small, but surprisingly clean.
A few shinobi were eating at the counter. When they saw the two enter, their expressions were pure shock.
"L-Lord Jiraiya!" a Chunin nearly spat out his noodles. "And... is this... your new apprentice? Her looks are... very unique. Did you not tell Naruto?"
"Naruto? Who's Naruto?" Jiraiya said instinctively. The moment the words left his mouth, he remembered: Naruto... my student's son. That makes me... his grandfather, in a way.
He slapped his forehead. "Oh, Naruto. Why would I tell him about this?"
Jiraiya didn't get it. He barely knew his relationship with Naruto, so how did this Chunin know? And he made it sound like they were close.
But he had only seen Naruto once, right after he was born, after Minato had died.
"Naruto? Isn't Naruto your student?" the Chunin asked, confused.
Just then, his companion tugged his sleeve, whispering urgently in his ear, "Not yet! Shut up!"
The Chunin jumped up as if he'd been scalded, nearly dropping his chopsticks. His face turned bright red. "S-Sorry! I just think Naruto has a ton of talent! He'd be the perfect student for you! Look at that drive he has! He's just like you were when you were young!"
Jiraiya burst out laughing at the man's reaction. He clapped him on the shoulder. "You've got good eyes, kid! But Naruto's still young. When he's a little older... maybe I really will take him on as my student."
"Really?!"
A blond kid in the middle of the counter whipped his head around.
He had kept his head buried in his bowl, but he had heard everything.