On Naruto's side, light spilled through the window into Uzumaki Naruto's apartment, which finally looked decent; the furniture was neat, and the room was clean.
Needless to say, Kushina had forced Naruto to do it.
He was sleeping sprawled out on the bedding, a bit of glistening drool hanging from the corner of his mouth. His brow was relaxed, without a trace of the lonely shadow that used to occasionally flicker there even in his dreams.
(Hey! Naruto! The sun is hitting your butt! What time do you think it is? Still sleeping!)
A cheerful woman's voice rang out directly in his mind.
"Mmm... five more minutes, Mom..." Naruto mumbled groggily, burying his face into the pillow.
(That won't do.) Another gentle voice joined in.
"Didn't we agree to help Iruka-sensei organize things today? Being late isn't behavior befitting a future Hokage."
Hearing this, Naruto finally opened his eyes.
His mental world no longer consisted of only a cold Seal space and that stinky fox.
Now, there was a warm beach there, and Minato Namikaze and Uzumaki Kushina were there too.
They communicated with Naruto constantly, guiding his cultivation, listening to his troubles, and sharing his joy.
This period of time had filled the deepest, most hollow part of Naruto's heart from the past sixteen years.
He no longer needed to speak loudly to an empty house to create a sense of liveliness, and he no longer needed to use pranks to attract attention.
He knew that at any time, there were two pairs of loving eyes watching over him and two voices cheering him on.
"Hehe, I know, I know!" Naruto sprang up with a kip-up, his movements agile and full of youthful energy.
He washed up at lightning speed, gave a big grin to the mirror, and then grabbed his orange jacket.
Walking out of the apartment building, the sunlight was just right.
The streets had returned to their usual bustle, with people already busy, but as Naruto walked by, things were completely different from before.
"Yo, Naruto, morning!" A Chunin looked up, saw him, and greeted him naturally with a smile on his face.
"Morning! Thanks for the hard work!" Naruto waved back, his voice booming.
On his way to buy breakfast, he passed by the Ichiraku Ramen shop.
"Naruto, you're here." Uncle Teuchi leaned his head out from the window, his smile even friendlier than before.
"We have special chashu today."
"Really? You're the best, Uncle!" Naruto's eyes lit up as he leaned toward the window, chatting familiarly.
There were other villagers eating breakfast nearby, and the way they looked at Naruto was no longer with the loathing, fear, or indifference of the past, but with curiosity.
"Is Naruto really that powerful?"
"Yeah, it was him just a few days ago who blocked that terrifying guy all by himself..."
"I used to... sigh, I didn't expect that kid..."
"I heard that the thing inside his body has also been brought under control by him? That's really amazing."
Whispers reached Naruto's keen ears while he was devouring his ramen.
Having gained everyone's recognition, Naruto couldn't hide the grin on his face.
"Did you hear that, Naruto? Everyone is starting to accept you." Kushina's voice carried relief and a trace of subtle heartache.
"Mm!" Naruto nodded vigorously in his heart. "But now, I don't just want everyone to accept me. I want to be like Dad—to gain everyone's genuine trust and recognition! And then become Hokage!"
"Good, quite spirited." Minato's voice carried approval.
"However, the path must be taken one step at a time."
"I understand!"
After finishing breakfast, he encountered the Konohamaru Trio on the road.
"Big Brother Naruto!" Konohamaru rushed over excitedly, the light of admiration in his eyes almost tangible.
"You were so cool that day! Your whole body was glowing! And those Clones! Teach me new Ninjutsu!"
"Naruto-sensei! We want to learn too!" Moegi and Ise Udon followed along, acknowledging him as their teacher on the spot, their faces equally full of admiration.
"Haha, no problem! But first, I have to go help Iruka-sensei with some work today!" Naruto ruffled Konohamaru's spiky hair. "When I'm done, I'll come find you guys!"
"It's a promise!"
Arriving at the Ninja Academy, Iruka was looking worried, but when he saw Naruto arrive on time, a warm smile immediately appeared on his face: "Naruto, you're here."
"Iruka-sensei! Leave it to me!" Naruto joined the work while Iruka helped from the side. Watching Naruto's profile as he sweated under the sun yet always maintained a brilliant smile, Iruka felt a surge of emotion.
This child he had looked after and felt for since he was young seemed to have truly grown up overnight, dispelling all gloom and insecurity, becoming so reliable and dazzling.
After a busy morning, the warehouse was basically organized.
Naruto bid farewell to Iruka and walked home, feeling refreshed all over.
It wasn't just the satisfaction of labor, but also the warmth of being needed, recognized, and integrated into the community.
"Naruto."
A familiar voice came from above. Naruto looked up and saw Kakashi-sensei crouching on a tree branch by the roadside, holding that copy of icha icha paradise, his single visible eye curved into a crescent.
"Kakashi-sensei! What are you doing here?"
"Just passing by. I saw a certain over-energetic brat and thought I'd give a reminder," Kakashi closed his book.
"Although you performed well this time, you can't slack off on your training. Meet at 3:00 PM; there's a mission."
"Really? That's great! What's the mission?" Naruto asked excitedly.
"D-rank," Kakashi said lazily. "Helping an old lady in the neighboring village find a lost cat."
"Huh?? Why is it this kind of mission again! I'm already very strong!" Naruto's face immediately fell, but he quickly regained his smile.
Kakashi looked at Naruto's revitalized face; he had seen all the changes in this Disciple.
That sunshine was no longer a heat deliberately emitted to cover up loneliness, but a warmth and confidence truly overflowing from within.
"Alright then, it's a deal. Kakashi-sensei, don't you dare be late!"
Naruto waved goodbye to Kakashi... However, things weren't as relaxed and pleasant in the mental space with two powerful Souls existing in Naruto's body.
The Nine-Tailed didn't even dare to breathe too loudly; it couldn't afford to provoke either of these two.
The key was that these two would hug and show off their affection from time to time. The Seal space wasn't large, so it could only close its eyes and pretend not to see.
But it could still hear their lovey-dovey voices. It didn't even dare to complain and could only silently swallow the dog food...
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