"Froakie."
"Hey there little guy, I'm Naruto Uzumaki. You're looking at the future Hokage, dattebayo!" Naruto announced his dream with pride. He can't help but be an open book. The first thing the frog saw when he opened his eyes was the sun, and yet his eyes didn't burn. Rather, they couldn't look away. The two formed a bond deeper than you or I could fathom. It's almost as if they are the same being yet separate. Their thoughts are conveyed to each other without any words necessary. Naruto felt in his heart that the little frog in front of him was nothing short of family. It was the same for the frog; Naruto became his big brother in that very moment. The feeling was mutual, the meeting almost perfect.
"Since when do toads skip being tadpoles and go straight to being a toad?" Jiraiya was staring at the anomaly. His curiosity peaked; he needed to find out more. Suddenly, the eggshell began to crumble, turning to ash.
"Well, I guess that settles it. From today forth, you are Ash. Pretty cool name, huh?"
"Froakie~" The frog, now known as Ash, was pleased with his name and jumped onto Naruto's shoulder.
"Naruto," hearing his name, turned back. "What is it? Can't you see I'm busy, old man?"
"We need to talk about this frog. I've never seen any like him in Mount Myoboku." Jiraiya was perplexed by the turn of events and needed some answers now.
"Mount Myoboku? Where's that?" Naruto was curious as to what a mountain had to do with anything.
"Mount Myoboku is the home of the summoned frogs. It's where you summoned the egg from."
"Oh, it's Ash's home."
"Yeah, it's Ash's home."
"Alright, let's go there."
"No."
"..."
"..."
"Froakie?"
Jiraiya suddenly had an idea. "I'll just ask one of the toads. I'm sure they'll have some idea." Jiraiya bit his thumb and went through a series of hand signs. "SUMMONING JUTSU!"
*POOF* Before Naruto could even complain, Jiraiya had already summoned a toad without any warning.
"Why'd you summon me, Jiraiya?" a voice came from the smoke.
"It's about one of your own that the kid over there managed to summon."
The toad stepped out of the smoke. "What's with the tiny toad, Jiraiya? Even a hatchling like Ash is bigger than him."
Jiraiya looked at Naruto with a bored expression. "That is one of the most powerful toads in Mount Myoboku, Elder Fukasaku."
Naruto took another look at Fukasaku with disbelief in his eyes. "That can't be right. Do toads shrink when they get old?"
Fukasaku, hearing this, sighed and turned to look at Naruto. His first impression of him wasn't good. "Did no one ever teach you how to respect your elders, boy?" Fukasaku, looking at Naruto, noticed there was a toad on his shoulder, one he'd never seen before. It was more like a frog: smooth blue skin, large yellow eyes, white hands, and a mane made of bubbles around its neck flowing down to its chest and back.
"What do you know, old man?" Bringing up Naruto's lack of education on respect was bound to remind Naruto that he lives alone. Feeling Naruto's loneliness, Ash comforted him by patting the back of his head. "Froo, Froo."
Being consoled by Ash left Naruto short for words. All he knew was he wasn't alone anymore, and slowly his loneliness faded away, replaced with a genuine smile.
"Jiraiya, I haven't seen or heard reports of this young one roaming Mount Myoboku. I would know if such a unique child was seen wandering the mountain." Fukasaku couldn't identify the child. 'By the looks of it, he must have hatched a few years ago. Such a long time is enough for news of this child to reach me.'
"That's because he was summoned here as an egg and hatched when he came in contact with Naruto—not as a tadpole but as a frog. This is why I called you. What could this mean?" Fukasaku was intrigued. 'Interesting. I wonder if this child holds potential.'
"That's not all. Even his egg wasn't normal. It had a hard white shell. Could any of the toads of Mount Myoboku lay such eggs?" Shock evident on Fukasaku's face. 'After so many centuries, has he finally returned?'
*Ahem* Jiraiya cleared his throat to get Fukasaku back to the topic. "Jiraiya boy, did you say the child hatched when that kid touched the egg?" Fukasaku stared at Naruto playing with Ash in the river.
"Yeah, there was a build-up of large amounts of chakra the moment he laid his hand on it."
*Sigh* Jiraiya summoned Fukasaku to get some answers, and yet he's the one being interrogated. "These two are special, Jiraiya. When it's time, I want you to bring them to Mount Myoboku. I have to return and inform the Great Toad Sage." *POOF*
"WAIT, you haven't told me anything yet." Jiraiya was left hanging with no answers and felt defeated.
"Might as well continue the training. HEY, YOU TWO, STOP FOOLING AROUND AND GET TO WORK!"
---
The training continues. Naruto persisted with the summoning jutsu, constantly failing at that. Meanwhile, Ash, feeling his partner's resolve to grow stronger, asked Naruto to train him.
"Froakie," looking at Ash's determined face, how could Naruto refuse? "Alright, I'll train you, but first you gotta unlock your chakra. Sit down, close your eyes, and look for something inside you. Let me show you."
Naruto sat down, and Ash mimicked him. Just as Naruto did, Ash flawlessly followed, and within moments, all of Ash's chakra nodes were opened. The bond that binds them seemed to have more uses than the two realized. Naruto had an idea. "Since you can copy me, why don't we cheat a little?"
Naruto ran up a tree, and Ash followed behind him like a shadow. It seemed he had the same experience that Naruto has built up his whole life. "Let's not stop here." Naruto jumped off the tree, followed by Ash. They both ran on the river.
"Still not a challenge, huh?" With a smug smile, Ash stood on the river like a veteran ninja. "Froak."