Naruto Uzumaki walked down the streets of Konoha; arms laced behind his head. The spiky haired blond had just come back from a mission that took much longer than expected. As a result he had eaten barely anything the last few days and was starving!
“Ugh, I need some grub.” Naruto told himself as he touched his growling belly with one hand. His blue eyes glanced around for a place to eat. As he looked slightly behind him he noticed his favorite restaurant: Ramen Ichiraku. “Oh wow! I wasn’t paying attention and almost walked by Ichiraku!” Naruto mentally slapped himself for the near mistake and hurried toward the small shop; the smell of ramen pulling him toward it by his nose.
“Naruto! I thought I heard your stomach growling out there!” Teuchi greeted the young ninja as he appeared through the sliding door.
“Hehe.” Naruto chuckled as he blushed and scratched the hair on the back of his head. The orange ninja took a seat on one of the stools in front of him before speaking to the older man. “Well I’m starving! Get me something really filling, Teuchi!” Naruto barked in his usual hyperactive voice.
“Filling, eh?” the chef scratched his chin before smiling. “Well, that’d be most of your usuals, but I have something special for you today!” the restaurant owner turned away from Naruto and started preparing his favorite customer’s meal. Naruto blinked in curiosity; wondering what the man had planned. It was Ayame who spoke up moments later.
“A friend of father’s stopped by not long ago,” the girl stated to explain. “He gave us a very strange herb that’s apparently really good in ramen dishes.”
“That’s right!” Teuchi cut in as he stood over a boiling pot. “See, he’s also in the ramen business and he says this stuff’s been making him a fortune. It’s supposed to shrink your hunger right down!”
“Oooh…” Naruto watched as the older man prepared the ramen; his mouth already drooling and his ears only listening to half of what he was saying. He was just too famished to care where the delicious smelling ramen came from. After a few more minutes Teuchi carried over a steaming bowl of ramen and placed it in front of Naruto. The blond teen stared at the bowl of goodness with pure joy, though he didn’t recognize any difference compared to a normal bowl of pork ramen.
“Unfortunately, he only gave me enough for one bowl. You’ll have to decide whether I go ask him if he can sell me any of the stuff!”
“Well it smells the same…” Naruto muttered as he separated his chopsticks. “But it’s the taste that matters! Ikadakimasu!” The sixteen year-old genin immediately got to work scarfing down the ramen. Teuchi and Ayame both watched as their #1 customer consumed the contents of the bowl as if he inhaled the meats and noodles. It was a sight they were very used to and in just five minutes Naruto was already picking up the bowl and pouring the last of the broth down his throat. “Wow!” Naruto shouted as he slammed the bowl down upon the counter. He leaned back and gave his stomach a few pats. “That was great! Your friend was right, I’m really-“
Before he could finish, the young teenager disappeared in a cloud of white smoke. The two ramen chefs stared in disbelief as the smoke dissipated and revealed an empty stool where Naruto once sat.
“Not again…” the older chef said with a sigh as he recalled the last time Naruto had vanished like this in his restaurant. “Now how am I supposed to know if these herbs are worth buying?”
“Don’t worry, father. He’ll be back soon like last time.” Ayame replied as she gathered up Naruto’s bowl and chopsticks and brought them to the sink.
Unbeknownst to the father and daughter, Naruto was still very much among them this time. For you see, Teuchi’s “friend” was actually a bitter rival of his who harbored a deep hatred for him and his successful ramen shop. The rival had thus given Teuchi a dangerous herb that spelt doom for whoever consumed it. The bitter rival knew the tainted ramen would be prepared only for Teuchi’s best customer. Without their best customer, Ichiraku’s business would surely dwindle. Speaking of dwindle…
“W-What?” Naruto stuttered, blinking in confusion. He was still seated like he was seconds ago, but this time he was sitting on a strange green landscape. No longer was he looking into the faces of his two favorite ramen chefs; they had just vanished. “What’s going on?! Did you summon me away again, Fukasaku?!” Naruto shouted for the toad sage as he leaped to his feet, but he saw no sign of him…or anyone for that matter. “Where am I?!” Right after shouting this, the Leaf ninja went wide eyed and looked down at the green “land” below him. Slowly he bent down and touched it; the texture, while thicker, was much like the seats of Ichiraku! “N-No way…that’s impossible.” Naruto fell back onto his butt as his body shook in fright. He was STILL in Ichiraku…but his seat was now enormous! For it to be mistaken for a whole other landscape he had to be ant sized…maybe even smaller! “T-This has to be a dream…Teuchi wouldn’t give me a ramen that-“
Before Naruto could finish reassuring himself, he heard a loud sound behind him. The blue eyed, shrunken ninja turned his head around to see that someone had slid open the door to Ichiraku and stepped in. Naruto craned his neck and gaped as the titanic figure of a fellow ninja stood before him; his shadow surrounding him. Naruto recognized the titan’s clothes, face, and soon his voice. It was none other than…   indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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