When Naruto woke up again, the sky had darkened. He looked around, confused by the familiar bed. How did he end up here?
"Awake, huh?"
A familiar voice made Naruto widen his eyes and turn his head. It was indeed Natsuro.
At that moment, Naruto recalled what had happened. He had been knocked out by Natsuro. However, he remembered that he had managed to hold on to their friendship.
Seeing Naruto's expression, Natsuro guessed that Naruto was recalling the events. He felt a bit helpless about their friendship; Naruto saw him as a friend, but Natsuro felt like he was playing the role of an overbearing parent.
Moreover, it was awkward for him, with his decades-old soul, to regard a child as a friend. But if Naruto was okay with it, then so be it.
"You're still here, Natsuro?" Naruto asked as he got out of bed, feeling no discomfort.
Seeing this, he couldn't help but click his tongue. For Naruto to recover so quickly after being beaten like that was astonishing. Although he had controlled his strikes to avoid hitting critical areas, the pain Naruto experienced would have taken him several days to recover from.
Truly, people could make one feel envious. This was also why he had hit him so hard.
"Yeah, I'm still here. After all, I knocked you out. I was a bit worried until you woke up."
"Oh, I see." Naruto nodded, appearing to understand.
"Do you know why I did that?" Natsuro asked, considering that Naruto probably wouldn't mind, but he felt he should explain.
"Well, you said that if I didn't become a ninja, I wouldn't qualify to be your friend, but I didn't think you really meant it." Naruto replied, scratching his head.
"Of course not. But since you felt that way, why did you try so hard?" Natsuro gave Naruto a disapproving look and suddenly realized something, staring at Naruto.
Naruto hesitated and couldn't provide a clear reason, finally saying, "I don't know. I just felt like I had to work hard. Even if there's only a tiny chance, I can't give up!"
Was he afraid that what I said might have been true? Natsuro looked at Naruto with a deep gaze, sighing. Naruto's sensitivity to those words was higher than he had imagined.
Putting himself in Naruto's shoes, he could guess how Naruto felt upon hearing those words…
"I'm sorry. It was my mistake. I shouldn't have said those things, even if they weren't true." Natsuro said sincerely. It was his fault for trying to force Naruto with such words. Naruto was too innocent, and it was inappropriate for an older man to use such tactics.
He didn't want to use any excuses to justify himself, realizing that the phrase "I'm doing this for your own good" was utterly unsuitable for Naruto's purity.
Such words were no different from the "for your own good" phrases used by parents in his past life. Oh, it seemed he wasn't related to Naruto?
Since he was wrong, he needed to apologize.
"Huh? Natsuro, you didn't really do anything wrong. Why are you apologizing?" Naruto asked, confused.
"...If you don't understand, then don't worry about it." he said after a moment of silence.
"Okay."
He began explaining his reasons for his actions and why he had beaten Naruto so badly.
"So you were doing it for my own good." Naruto said, scratching his head. He felt a warmth from being cared for, even though the method was a bit unusual.
"That's about right. But even though you have great recovery abilities, don't overdo it. When you feel you've reached your limit, take a break. Don't collapse like today." Natsuro advised.
"Is my recovery really that strong? Isn't everyone like that?" Naruto asked another question that made Natsuro want to hit him.
"Since you've recovered, come with me. I'll teach you some training exercises." he restrained his urge to hit Naruto and stood up, heading toward the door.
Soon, Natsuro watched with satisfaction as Naruto practiced the exercises. Teaching physical movements was much easier than teaching theoretical knowledge. Naruto's physical talent far exceeded his mental talent.
As for whether making Naruto stronger would alter the plot significantly…
Natsuro thought it didn't matter much. He couldn't remember too many details of the plot.
Moreover, since the world already had a new character named Shindōkawa Natsuro, the plot had changed. Clinging to a vaguely remembered plot seemed meaningless.
What mattered most were his memories of people's characters. For instance, he knew to seek out Iruka rather than the seemingly gentle Mizuki because he was aware of Iruka's personality. His position as a student meant he didn't need to worry about Iruka harming him, so he could be straightforward.
Similarly, with Guy, Natsuro knew he liked hardworking people. Even without Lee, he would have sought Guy's guidance without worry. And since Lee was present, Natsuro didn't need to worry about being rejected or mistreated.
In fact, he was most at ease with them. He had no plans to seek out others like Kakashi, who, while a good person, might not take kindly to an unfamiliar child approaching him. Seeking Kakashi would be more trouble than it was worth, unlike Iruka and Guy.
Understanding people was valuable. Remembering the plot details would be beneficial, but it wasn't critical. As long as he was strong enough, he wouldn't have to worry about it.
"Alright, that's enough for today. Naruto, remember to keep up your training every day." Natsuro said, clapping his hands to get Naruto's attention.
"Yeah, I'll work hard!" Naruto said, looking hopefully at Natsuro. "Will you come over again?"
"Come over for what? Do you want me to beat you again?" Natsuro teased.
"Not exactly." Naruto grinned.
"Alright, I'll come by when I have time to check on your training." agreeing after thinking it over.
"That's great!" Naruto cheered.
He watched Naruto, not inviting him to the training ground he shared with Lee. Although it was a public training area, it had few people, and only he and Lee ever persevered to the end.
Naruto wouldn't fit in well there.
At that moment, Naruto looked at the sky, touched his stomach, and suddenly brightened up. "Natsuro, I'll treat you to something delicious!"
"...What's delicious?" He had a bad feeling when he thought of instant noodles.
"My special edition pork bone instant noodles!"
"I knew it…"
Natsuro slapped his forehead. After all the effort, Naruto was treating him to instant noodles.
However, he stayed. Despite being instant noodles, they were Naruto's prized collection. Moreover, he had told his mother he might not come back for dinner, so he had no worries. Seeing Naruto's happy face, he couldn't spoil the mood.
And he had to admit, instant noodles tasted pretty good after a long time!