"Hmm… pulse is normal. Maybe he's just tired from all the missions," Kakashi muttered, kneeling beside Naruto. "Guess we'll take the day off."
A small smile crept across his masked face.
"Hehe… I can finally finish the new volume of Icha Icha Paradise."
Kakashi was practically glowing with joy at the thought—until something nudged at the back of his mind.
Better double-check his condition… just in case.
He reached out, scanning Naruto's chakra.
❓❓❓
"..."
Everything was fine—except the chakra levels.
Kakashi froze.
His visible eye twitched slightly.
That amount of chakra… wait a minute.
It took a moment to register what he was sensing. Then the realization hit.
Good grief. The rich keep getting richer while the rest of us crawl.
He sighed internally.
"Why is the world so unfair?" Kakashi lamented with a blank look.
"This brat has more chakra than me. Is he trying to become a tailed beast?"
Even worse?
"It's eight times mine…"
He stared down at the sleeping Naruto, still snoring without a care.
Kakashi exhaled slowly.
...Yeah, he's going to need serious training. Not that I'm jealous or anything.
He stood up, adjusting his headband.
Kakashi Hatake doesn't get jealous. I'm an elite jonin. Completely mature. Also, I totally have plenty of chakra. Yup. Definitely.
With a sigh of defeat, he left the apartment, his mood to read Icha Icha Paradise thoroughly ruined.
A Few Hours Later…
"Ahh… what a good sleep that was!" Naruto stretched out wide, cracking his joints as he sat up in bed.
He yawned.
"How long was I out? It's already morning…" he said, glancing out the window. "I remember crashing right after training."
He stood up and rolled his shoulders.
"Man, I feel totally refreshed. Heh… time to challenge that bastard Sasuke again!"
He blinked.
"Wait… OH NOOOOOOO! How could I forget it again ?!"
He has overslept again checking at clock it was already 3 hours late to their metting time.
"Sakura's going to kill me!!" he shouted, panicking. Sweat poured down his face as he sprinted out of the apartment.
He bolted toward the Hokage Building, expecting the worst.
But when he arrived—no one was there.
Confused, he asked the front desk.
"Oh, Team 7? You've got the day off."
Naruto collapsed to the floor in relief.
"Thank God... If there had been a mission, I'd be a dead man."
But now the question remained—
"What should I do today?"
The answer came to him immediately.
A wicked grin formed on his face.
"Heh… rematch with Sasuke it is."
He nodded confidently to himself and set off.
Uchiha Residence
Sasuke Uchiha was not having a great week.
His team dynamic was, frankly, a mess.
His jonin instructor was a laid-back slacker who did nothing but read pervy books in public and show up late.
His female teammate? A loud, love-obsessed fangirl who seemed more interested in clinging to him than training.
And then… Naruto.
Even thinking his name gave Sasuke a headache.
That incident still haunted him. That stupid idiot.
"Oi, Sasuke! Get out here and fight me!"
"..."
Speak of the devil.
Sasuke's eyebrow twitched.
That's it. I'm going to kill him today.
Outside, Naruto was already shadowboxing.
"You scared, Sasuke?! C'mon, don't chicken out!" Naruto perked up his neck like a peacock clearly confident in his uzumaki bloodline he had just Awakened.
Sasuke emerged from the house, eyes dark, black lines practically etched on his face from annoyance.
Naruto grinned.
"Haha! Come on, Sasuke! Let's spar—don't cry when you lose!"
.
.
.
.
A few Minutes Later
Naruto lay on the ground with a busted lip, tattered clothes, and one eye twitching.
"Ouch… does he always have to go that hard? My clothes are ruined!"
He groaned, sitting up slowly.
"I'm definitely asking him for compensation next time…"
But not today. He wasn't dumb enough to ask while still sore.
"At least I lasted longer this time," Naruto muttered, smiling to himself. "That Uzumaki Physique is already kicking in. Hehe."
Still, there was a lot of time left before sunset, so Naruto wandered the village aimlessly.
Ever since becoming a ninja, his habit of wandering had lessened—but he still liked to walk around the village. Even outside of it, if he ever got the chance.
As he looked up at the Hokage Rock, a wave of nostalgia hit him.
Back when he was younger, his favorite pastime had been drawing silly things on the faces of the Hokage statues.
It had been his way to fight off loneliness—something fun to do, something that made him feel seen, even if only for a moment.
Today, he decided to climb the Hokage Rock again. But this time, not for a prank. He just wanted to see the view from the top.
The place gave a full overview of the village—and somehow, that always helped him think.
"How many times have I climbed this?" Naruto muttered to himself. He couldn't even count.
He had always found himself up here for one reason or another.
Standing at the top, nostalgia swept over him again.
He sat down on top of the Fourth Hokage's face, thinking about his childhood. Although he didn't like the treatment he had faced growing up, that was all in the past now.
Back then, people would curse at him whenever he appeared in public—sometimes even throwing things at him. Eventually, he stopped going out altogether for a while, until the Third Hokage managed to cheer him up.
His cheerful personality had helped him survive those days filled with hatred and harsh words.
Words like "demon fox"—that was the one he heard the most.
These were sealed-away memories, now being released due to the awakening of the
Uzumaki Physique's ability: a seal-less body,
which had begun unlocking fragments of his past.
Most of those memories were painful... but some, some were precious.
Suddenly, a whistling sound broke the silence.
Naruto wasn't even sure when he started, but he found himself whistling softly.
The tune felt familiar, old—something from long ago. As the melody flowed from his lips, something stirred deep in his chest.
Each note seemed to tug at his heartstrings, like a key unlocking sealed doors in his mind.
The more he whistled, the more his chest tightened.
Images flashed across his thoughts—laughter in the woods, the sound of rain, a small hand reaching out toward him.
Tears began to slide down his cheeks, dripping onto the stone beneath him. But they didn't stop.
"Yota… I actually forgot about you… my first friend."
His voice cracked, breaking the rhythm of his whistle.
He remembered meeting Yota in the forest near the village.
Yota had been a crybaby—tears seemed to follow him everywhere—but he was always cheerful, always laughing.
He had made Naruto laugh more than anyone ever had.
Later, Shikamaru and the others had joined them. The little group had felt like a family—brief, but real.
Even now, remembering those moments brought a few soft chuckles through the tears.
"Man… you cried even more than me back then," Naruto whispered, smiling sadly. "But somehow, you were the one who made me smile."