Uchiha Hikaru did not answer Naruto's question immediately. Instead, he silently pulled a scroll from his tool pouch and held it out to him.
Naruto caught it, confusion flashing across his face.
"Brother Hikaru… what is this?"
"You'll know when you open it."
Naruto stared at Uchiha Hikaru's mysterious expression and instantly became curious. He unrolled the gray-white scroll.
With a bang, smoke burst out.
Two cardboard boxes appeared in front of Naruto. One box was a style he knew all too well—the retail instant ramen pack from Ichiraku Ramen. The other was divided into three colors: blue on the left, pink in the middle, and orange on the right, tied neatly with a white ribbon.
The moment Naruto saw that ribboned box, the photo of Team 7 flashed through his mind. He went silent for several seconds, his voice trembling.
"Brother Hikaru… what is this?"
"Isn't it obvious? Why don't you open it and see what they prepared for you?"
Killer Bee watched from nearby, a rare warm smile appearing on his face.
So Naruto really does have precious comrades.
Naruto carefully pulled the white ribbon loose, terrified of damaging it, and lifted the lid.
Inside was a rough black sculpture that looked more like a lump of coal. Naruto stared at it in mute confusion, then slowly turned his head toward Uchiha Hikaru. His eyebrows twitched wildly, his expression collapsing.
"Is… is this from Sasuke?"
Uchiha Hikaru nodded.
Naruto took a deep breath, already preparing the speech he would give Sasuke when he got back. What kind of gift is this!? Just you wait—next time, I'm punching you!
Then he noticed an exquisite pink pouch embroidered with a swirling red crest and a large 7 stitched at the center.
Naruto knew instantly that Sakura had made it, so he snatched it up eagerly.
"I know it! This must be from Sakura-chan!"
Hearing Naruto's excitement, Killer Bee felt the air fill with gossip. He discreetly signed to Uchiha Hikaru, raising his little finger twice.
Hikaru hesitated, then nodded, shook his head, signed again, pointed at the blue section of the box, and raised his little finger.
Killer Bee immediately looked at Naruto with eyes full of pity.
Little brother… your path of love is too rough… life is full of surprises, yo…
But Naruto didn't notice any of this. He opened Sakura's pouch and froze.
Inside were small black-and-purple pills. Even before tasting them, the smell punched him in the face.
Sweet, salty, spicy, bitter, sour… and an additional stench like ramen left out for two months.
Uchiha Hikaru watched Naruto's trembling fingers as he picked up a pill, his body tight and legs shaking, gulping like he was preparing for death. Hikaru finally took pity on him.
"That's a special soldier's ration pill Sakura spent an entire week making."
"But if you really don't want to eat it, you don't have to—"
"I'll eat it!"
Naruto shouted, punching his chest for courage, then tossed the pill into his mouth.
CRACK.
The sound was so violent Killer Bee thought Naruto's teeth shattered.
Then came the grinding crunch of metal, and Naruto's face cycled violently from red to green to purple to colors no human face should display… before he swallowed it whole.
Naruto lifted a trembling hand, fingers unsteady, and gave them a thumbs-up while swaying.
"O-okay… ha… chi…"
"It's just a little hard. Like a rock."
"Like Akaishi rock…"
But after ten seconds, heat surged through his stomach. Even the pain in his head from Killer Bee's earlier punch faded.
He clenched his fists—the chakra overflowing so intensely it was almost visible.
"This… this is!?"
Uchiha Hikaru nodded in satisfaction.
"This is a medical soldier pill Sakura developed by enhancing the healing potion formula with medical chakra theory. Even Tsunade acknowledged its power—more than twice as effective as traditional healing pills, longer shelf life, easier transport, and nearly indestructible."
"You can even hide it under your tongue before battle. The practicality is incredible."
"Right now, fewer than five people in all of Konoha can make these. Sakura prepared them especially for you."
Naruto burst into tears—whether from emotion or trauma from the taste… unclear.
Then he looked toward the left pile, a stack of letters, the top written by Kakashi.
[Naruto, you know your teacher doesn't have much money. I'm just an ordinary Jonin. I trust that traveling with Jiraiya, you won't lack anything important. So instead, I collected letters from your friends from your class and other villages.]
Naruto opened them one by one.
Shikamaru said not to overwork and to learn to be lazy sometimes.
Choji promised chips when Naruto returned.
Ino said she'd give him a discount on flowers.
Kiba told him to train hard or he'd get surpassed.
He accidentally slipped past Shino's letter and missed it completely (as always).
Hinata encouraged him and wished him luck.
Rock Lee said to burn with youthful passion.
Tenten promised a set of fine ninja tools.
Neji warned that he could surpass Naruto anytime.
Then came letters from Gaara, Yuukimaru, Utakata, and Fu.
[Naruto, there are many new forests around the Sand Village now. When training is over, I'll invite you to visit.]
[Naruto, if you want to coexist with the tailed beasts, then you must become their friend.]
[Naruto, you must learn calmness. Don't waste time doubting yourself. A peaceful mind is the key.]
[What are you waiting for? When are you coming back to Konoha? I'm waiting for you to take me shopping! And you're carrying my bags, okay~ (*￣︶￣)Y]
"Everyone…"
Naruto whispered, tears streaming down his face. He laughed weakly and lifted Sasuke's charcoal sculpture again.
The rough shapes of three small figures and one tall one—Team 7—were visible beneath burnt and lightning-scarred marks. And taped to the bottom was a short message.
[Hmph! You big idiot. This is my masterpiece using Fire and Lightning Release. Consider it a souvenir. If you're weak when you come back, I'll beat you up and make you cry.]
Naruto clutched the statue to his chest and cried uncontrollably.
...
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Send Power Stones
Bonus Chapter at 100 Power Stone
Second Bonus Chapter - 200 Power Stones
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