Nara Shikamaru lay sprawled on the ground, nose swollen and one eye already purpling. He stretched out a trembling hand toward his supposed best friend, Choji Akimichi. His chest heaved as he tried to speak, but all that came out was a strangled wheeze.
Meanwhile, Choji looked positively cheerful. "See, Shikamaru? Now you're Naruto's friend too! We're all friends together!" He brushed his hands together, as if washing them of the whole affair.
"I can't believe you sold me out!" Shikamaru's eyes grew suspiciously moist with what might have been tears of regret.
"Don't be so dramatic, Shikamaru. I did you a favor." Choji's expression turned serious, as though he were imparting great wisdom. "Like they say, another friend means another path in life. Right, Naruto? Let's go get those lamb skewers now!"
Hearing this, Shikamaru understood with perfect, horrible clarity: his best friend had betrayed him for a single meal of grilled meat. His chest heaved again, this time purely from indignation.
Naruto walked over and extended a hand. Shikamaru accepted it obediently, letting himself be pulled to his feet. He could have dodged Choji's setup, but he definitely couldn't dodge Naruto. What if refusing led to another beating? Not that he was afraid of pain, of course. He just didn't believe in pointless sacrifice.
Things had come to this. There was no escaping it now. Shikamaru was officially Naruto's friend.
His already dejected expression grew even more morose.
Naturally, Naruto noticed. His eyes narrowed. "Shikamaru, are you unhappy about being my friend?"
The squint triggered an instant survival instinct. Shikamaru's face split into a forced smile. "No, no! It's an honor to have a friend like you, Naruto. I'm very happy."
His smile looked more painful than if he'd been crying.
Hearing the confirmation, Naruto relaxed. He wasn't the type to force friendship on anyone. Everything depended on mutual willingness.
As for why Shikamaru's smile looked like someone was twisting his arm behind his back, Naruto assumed it was just his natural expression. Like Sasuke being born with that cold stare.
The three of them headed toward the back mountain together. Naruto supported the still-limping Shikamaru while Choji munched on chips. Naruto felt warm satisfaction at adding another friend to his small circle. With Sasuke, Choji, and now Shikamaru, he had three friends. He was one step closer to his dream.
Choji was happy because mutton skewers awaited.
Shikamaru had to pretend to be happy.
When they reached the back mountain, Naruto told Shikamaru and Choji to prepare the charcoal while he selected their meal.
As for Nine-Tails, when he wasn't cooking, he spent his days sprawled on the couch in the cabin, napping in perfect contentment.
Naruto approached the sheep pen and vaulted over the fence. The flock had learned from previous encounters. Last time, a particularly fast runner had caught Naruto's attention and ended up as dinner. So now, when Naruto entered their domain, none of the sheep ran. Instead, they all eyed each other warily, moving in slow, deliberate steps. No one wanted to be the fastest.
"Hm. You're moving the slowest. Must be something wrong with you." Naruto grabbed the sheep performing the most exaggerated slow-motion walk and tucked it under his arm.
The sheep's eyes widened in betrayal. "Baaaaa! That's not fair!"
Soon, the three boys sat around the fire, eating grilled lamb skewers.
Choji's mouth glistened with grease, his face radiating pure bliss. He glanced at Shikamaru, who was nibbling slowly at a single skewer, and asked in confusion, "Shikamaru, aren't the skewers good?"
Hearing this, Shikamaru swallowed the meat along with what looked suspiciously like tears. His voice caught. "They're amazing. Best lamb skewers I've ever had. So good I could cry."
Choji blinked at his friend's theatrical performance.
Naruto beamed. After all, having a new friend appreciate his cooking was a happy thing.
Time passed quickly. The next day arrived.
After school let out, Naruto waited by the gate for Sasuke as usual. Sasuke reported his latest progress with the Shadow Clone Jutsu, then headed home.
That's when Choji emerged from the school gates. His face looked oddly downcast, and most shocking of all, he wasn't eating anything.
"Choji!" Naruto called out.
Strangely, Choji didn't seem to hear him. He walked past in a daze, expression blank.
"Naruto, what's wrong with Choji?" Shikamaru appeared behind him. "He's acting really weird today."
"Yeah, he was fine yesterday. Now he's not even eating. Something serious must have happened." Naruto frowned. "Shikamaru, follow him. Make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."
"Got it." Shikamaru took off immediately, hurrying after his friend.
Naruto walked home alone, puzzling over it. "That's strange. He was so happy eating lamb skewers yesterday. Said he wanted more today..."
He shook his head. "I'll ask Shikamaru about it tomorrow."
As he walked, Naruto suddenly stopped. He spun around.
The moment he'd stopped thinking so hard, he'd felt it: someone was following him. But when he looked back, the street was empty.
Where'd they go?
He definitely felt someone.
Naruto scanned the area carefully. His gaze landed on a large tree, where he spotted half a schoolbag strap sticking out from behind the trunk.
"Come out. I can see you," Naruto called.
Rustle, rustle.
A girl with short dark blue hair stepped out slowly from behind the tree. She wore a baggy jacket and pants despite the warm weather. Her head was down, face flushed red, hands gripping the hem of her jacket so tightly her knuckles were white. She looked absolutely terrified.
Naruto almost laughed. Are you following me, or am I following you?
He recognized her. Hinata Hyūga, one of his classmates. The same girl he'd accidentally bumped into that one time. She'd just stared at him with those pale eyes for several long, awkward minutes.
"Why are you following me?" Naruto asked, genuinely curious.
I don't have anything valuable. I'm only seven. I do like baths, but...
"Um... that... I... I... I didn't mean to follow Naruto-kun..." Hinata's head dropped even lower. Her small hands came up under her chin, index fingers poking together. The words stumbled out in fragments.
Tracking is either intentional or it's not. How can it be unintentional? Naruto's eye twitched. That made about as much sense as accidentally doing homework. "Do you live this way too?"
He could practically feel her about to cry.
"Okay, okay. Then why are you following me?" His tone softened immediately.
He was terrified of girls crying. Looking at Hinata, so small and nervous, a sudden thought flashed through his mind: I wonder how long it would take to make her cry with one punch?
The thought shocked even him. Why would I even think that? I can't hit her.
Right, if I want to be friends with Hinata, I can't use my usual method.
So... what else can we be if not friends?
Before he could finish that thought, Hinata finally spoke.
"I... I wanted to say thank you to Naruto-kun..."
She raised her head bravely. Her pale Byakugan eyes held a strange gleam. Then she bowed, a full ninety-degree angle, completely sincere.
"Thank you, Naruto-kun."