I cried.
Yes scenes like this always makes me cry whenever I watch the anime.
... : "Hey are you alright? Did naruto do something to you too.?"
I turned around to find a dark brown skin man with a scare horizontally on his nose. This must be Iruka.
Kuro: " hmmmn? oh no, he didn't do anything it's another matter I am crying about"
Iruka: " I see, that's good. I mean not that it's good that you'reur crying, I mean it's good that naruto didn't do anything to you"
and as if by timing naruto was about to pass us by but was stopped by Iruka. He was of course reprimanded and punished. I look at the stonefaces again, there doesn't seem to be any paint on it. That particular information is crucial for me because that is the indication of the start of canon. I seemed to need to hurry training and get the basics so that I won't be a nothing waiting to die in this world. Since I am already somewhat familiar with 1st and 2nd exercise, I still need to get the 3rd one down to my bones and have it mastered as soon as possible, but I don't know where I can find any river or pond to practice to. So I went over to Iruka and Naruto to ask. Although it's taking a lot of time for me to get there due to nervousness, man I'm still getting cold feet even after growing old, oh right I'm young again. Anyway, I mustered up my courage and walked faster and asked Iruka the nearest river or pond to which he provided me the location at the get go and ask me why? I told him that I like playing in the water (although I am going to train though)
Naruto: "Sounds like fun, can I join you? playing together is better than alone right? "
"Sure, why not?"
Iruka seems surprised I accepted.
"Is it really okay for naruto to join? uhm?" he asked
"kuro, Ito Kuro is my name. it's nice to meet you and yes it's okay for naruto to join me, I don't have any friends anwyay" I brightly said
"Yosh! I get to play with someone Hahahaha" naruto's happily said
"ah well alright, but both of you be careful and dont go too deep okay?" Iruka warned
"Yes we'll be careful!" we both answered
Naruto lead the way since he's familiar with the place. As we arrived at the riverbank we started playing. I enjoyed more than I thought I would. Naruto doesn't seem that bad. In fact he has a lot of stamina that I got tired way faster than him but I still played with him barely keeping up. When we finally get to rest by the grass under a tree I asked.
"hey naruto, want to come to my house for lunch later?"
Naruto was surprised and only nodded.
"what's this? why are you quiet all of a sudden? it's not like we're going to do anything to you when we go to my house to get lunch?" i joked
Then he sadly answered " I have never been invited to a house for lunch before, you are the first one to invite me." he suddenly started sniffing trying to hold it in.
Damn Naruto! stop crying or I'll cry too!
oh man!!
"Well I have never invited anyone else before so that makes you the first one I have ever invited by hehe, anyway it was fun playing with you. Will you be my first friend then?" I asked him while smiling and closed my eyes holding my tears, and chanted on my mind repeatedly
' DON'T COME OUT! DON'T COME OUT! DON'T COME OUT!DON'T COME OUT! DON'T COME OUT! DON'T COME OUT! '
"Yes yes I want to be friends with you" shouted naruto as soon as I finished asking. I shaked his hand for acknowledging him. "anyway we still got a bit of time before lunch so let me just train a little before we go to my house okay?" I said
"Train? what are you going to train for?" Naruto asked curiously
"just the basics so that I can enroll in the ninja academy" I said to him
"oh you're also going to the academy? I want to be a hokage and surpass the previous once, so I am already in the academy hehehe" he said to me as a matter of a factly
"wow that's great to have such a dream, anyway let me me just train a little, you can continue to rest there and we'll go to my house for lunch" I told him to which he nodded and lied down on the grass
As I started the exercise, I seem to understand it almost the same putting chakra on your feet when climbing a tree but this time it needs full attention so you won't start sinking. I plan to return after having lunch then naruto and I went back home. I introduced naruto to mom and dad to which they were happy for me to have a friend. They don't seem to know that naruto is a jinchuuriki. well that's a good thing so I don't have to convince them. after lunch naruto said he is going back home to his apartment for the moment to rest because he's still full. I told him to come tomorrow morning so we can play again together and he agreed. I went back to the riverbank and started my training exercise. Just like that months pass, in the morning naruto and I play, in the afternoon I train and train. then one fine evening I decided to inform my parents my plan to enroll. to which they were surprised and was against it first but I told them naruto is already in the academy and that I might make more friends there. They talked and discussed it first before confirming to me, with this kind of situation i know there will be a 'but'
But they told me that If i dont have the aptitude for it I must quit. To which I agreed. Then they hugged me. It was a warm feeling. I've never been hugged like this by my parents, maybe when I was a child but never like this when I am fully aware they are hugging me. 'So this is how it feels to be hugged by your parents.'