The Hokage Office door closed behind him, cutting off the suffocating smell of tobacco.
Naruto didn't linger for a moment.
He avoided the sparse pedestrians on the morning streets and headed straight for Training Ground Seven.
The faint morning light filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on him.
He stopped before the wooden post he had personally destroyed.
Splintered wood curled outwards, and deep fist imprints, like ugly scars, covered the post's body.
Assessment initiated.
Last night's power output exceeded the regular threshold by thirty-seven percent.
Reason: Emotional energy injection led to an uncontrolled Chakra burst.
Conclusion: Emotions are a weakness and require stricter control training.
He reached out, his fingertips probing the deepest indentation, feeling the texture of the wood fibers violently torn apart.
A clumsy, hurried footsteps sounded from behind him.
Accompanied by the rustling of plastic bags straining under their weight.
Naruto didn't turn around.
He had already identified the newcomer by their familiar gait.
Iruka.
"Naruto!"
Iruka panted, fine beads of sweat on his forehead, as he forced out what he thought was a casual smile.
He held up two large bags he was carrying, and the instant noodles and potato chips inside clinked together.
"I... I passed by the store and thought you might be hungry."
Even to Iruka himself, the excuse sounded stiff and awkward.
Naruto's brain automatically analyzed the other's physiological data.
Iruka.
Heart rate slightly elevated, ruptured micro-blood vessels in the eyes, indicating sleep deprivation exceeding 18 hours... Overall assessment: In a state of high anxiety and mental exhaustion.
"To celebrate you passing the test and officially becoming a Ninja."
Iruka added another sentence.
"Let's go eat at Ichiraku Ramen, my treat."
Naruto slowly turned around.
Objective: To provide emotional comfort and attempt to bring my behavior patterns back into his understandable 'normal' range.
Potential risk: Exposing more 'abnormal' traits, exacerbating his anxiety.
Potential benefit: Assessing Iruka Sensei's psychological resilience and performing necessary psychological state stabilization.
"Okay."
One word escaped his lips.
Devoid of extra emotion, yet it brought Iruka immense relief.
The two walked one after another on the gradually awakening streets of the Village.
Iruka kept searching for topics, from the weather to Ninja tool maintenance, each topic dry and crumbling.
Naruto responded only with "Mm," "Yes," and "Understood."
His senses had long since spread out, like an invisible spiderweb, covering a three-hundred-meter radius around him.
Conversations of pedestrians in the wind.
The chirping of sparrows on the roof tiles.
The low-voiced complaints of the tofu shop owner's wife, a hundred and twenty meters away.
All data converged in his mind, forming a real-time, updated 3D map.
In that other world, his Chakra was treated as a manifestation of psychic abilities, and he received systematic training at the Star Whisper Court.
The curtain of Ichiraku Ramen was pushed aside, and the rich aroma of tonkotsu broth wafted out.
"Welcome! Oh, Iruka Sensei and Naruto!"
Teuchi greeted them warmly, and his daughter Ayame also peeked out, smiling and waving.
"Uncle, one extra-large char siu miso ramen, double meat, triple noodles."
Naruto ordered skillfully.
This appetite made both Teuchi and Ayame pause, but Iruka's taut nerves inexplicably relaxed a bit.
Hungry, gluttonous—this was still the Naruto he knew.
The steaming ramen was served quickly, and the mountain of char siu meat made Iruka's eye twitch.
Naruto picked up his chopsticks and began to eat with almost mechanical precision.
No expression of enjoyment, no sigh of satisfaction.
Only efficient, steady chewing and swallowing.
"Naruto, what are your plans... going forward?"
Iruka asked cautiously, trying to steer the conversation back on track.
"The Village will soon assign you a Jonin instructor and teammates."
"Follow orders."
Naruto replied, his attention never leaving the bowl in front of him.
"Teammates are very important; they are comrades you can entrust your back to, they are bonds..."
Iruka prattled on about his understanding of the "will of fire."
But in Naruto's world, a different scene unfolded.
He seemed to be eating noodles, but his icy blue pupils were using the smooth inner wall of the ramen bowl to catch an insignificant reflection.
Across the street, on the roof of a teahouse.
The light there was subtly distorted.
Target locked: three individuals.
Bearing: Southeast, elevation thirty degrees, distance forty-two meters.
Formation: Standard triangular surveillance position.
Physiological characteristics: Breathing rate extremely suppressed, heartbeat forcibly slowed by Chakra. Abnormal human state.
Naruto picked up a slice of bamboo shoot, and the broth dripped, rippling in the bowl.
The mask pattern was more menacing; it could be Anbu, but Root was more likely.
Is Danzo monitoring me, or is he making preliminary preparations for Jinchuriki retrieval?
...So, no matter what, never abandon your comrades, Naruto. That is Konoha's most precious asset."
Iruka's words carried a hint of plea.
Naruto suddenly stopped his movements.
"Iruka Sensei."
He spoke, interrupting the other man.
"You're holding your chopsticks backward."
"Eh?"
Iruka was startled and looked down at his hand.
Indeed, he had completely reversed the thick and thin ends of the chopsticks, and he hadn't even noticed.
A flush of embarrassment crept up his cheeks.
He hastily tried to adjust the chopsticks.
Just as he looked down, his attention completely drawn to the wooden chopsticks in his hand.
Naruto moved.
His right wrist gave a subtle, almost imperceptible flick.
The chopsticks picked up a slice of char siu soaked in broth.
There was no sound of wind.
No sound of cutting through the air.
That thick slice of char siu, as if possessing a life of its own, traced an arc undetectable to the naked eye, crossing the noisy street, passing through the bustling crowd.
"Plop."
A faint, almost inaudible sticking sound.
Beneath the shadow of the teahouse roof across the street, on the wall directly below the commander's position, that glistening slice of char siu was stuck, perfectly centered.
Like an abrupt, mockingly placed marker.
In the shadows of the rooftop, a Root Ninja's hand gesture instantly changed from "surveillance" to "Level One Alert."
An icy killing intent, piercing through the ramen's steam and the din of human voices, silently locked onto the blond youth eating noodles with his head down.
Iruka finally adjusted his chopsticks, and he looked up somewhat awkwardly, completely unaware of what had just happened.
He only saw that Naruto had finished his last bite of noodles and put down the bowl.
Not a drop of broth remained in the bowl.
Naruto picked up a napkin and slowly wiped his mouth.
Then, he looked at Iruka, his expression calm and unruffled.
"I'm full."
He paused.
"Iruka Sensei, thank you for always looking out for me."