Sunday in Konoha Village. The sky was a nearly transparent blue,
The warm, clear sunlight bathed the village's orderly rooftops and streets, casting a soft golden glow over this Ninja Village.
The massive stone faces of the First, Second, and Third Hokage gazed solemnly down upon the village, and beside them, the youthful visage of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, also basked in this sunlight.
At this moment, atop the viewing platform on the Hokage Rocks, Menma leaned leisurely against the cold railing.
An orange lollipop was in his mouth, its sweetness spreading across his tongue. He leaned out slightly, looking down, a faint, almost imperceptible smile playing on his lips.
Below, a conspicuous golden figure was busy having the time of his life.
Naruto, a thick rope tied around his waist, clumsily rappelled down the steep rock face like a clumsy Spiderman, finally coming to a halt suspended right in front of the Fourth Hokage's forehead.
He clutched a large bucket of paint in one hand and waved a wide brush with the other, his face beaming with the excited grin of a successful prankster.
Bright orange paint was slathered roughly onto the handsome face of the Fourth Hokage's statue… exaggerated whiskers were drawn, his forehead was painted with the crooked characters for [Dead Last], and a large 'X' was even scrawled on one cheek.
Menma's Mind's Eye of Kagura, like an invisible radar, had long since detected several deliberately concealed Chakra Signatures nearby.
Those were Konoha's Anbu, and they had apparently discovered Naruto's 'artistic creations'.
Menma clearly 'saw' these chakra signatures moving rapidly towards the Hokage Building. Without a doubt, they were going to report to the Third Hokage.
Sure enough, just as Naruto finally finished his 'masterpiece' and was climbing back up the rope to the viewing platform, panting heavily and not yet having had time to boast to Menma about his 'great achievement', a familiar figure charged onto the platform, brimming with suppressed fury.
"Naruto!!!" Iruka's voice thundered across the viewing platform.
A vein throbbed on his forehead, his face flushed red… he was clearly furious.
He rushed over to Naruto, who was still basking in his smugness, and without another word, raised a fist full of anger and frustration.
Bang!
A powerful, well-aimed knuckle punch landed precisely on top of Naruto's head!
"Owww…!!!" Naruto instantly let out a piercing shriek, clutching his head with both hands, tears welling in his eyes.
A visible, bright red bump swelled up at an alarming rate beneath his blond hair, like a small hill.
"You idiot! Moron!!" Iruka pointed a trembling finger at the defaced Fourth Hokage's statue below, so angry his finger shook, "Do you have any idea what you've done?! That's the statue of the Hokage! You... you actually painted it to look like this! This is... this is absolutely outrageous!"
Iruka scolded him vehemently, spittle practically flying into Naruto's face.
Naruto held his head, grimacing in pain. Facing Iruka's wrath, he muttered under his breath, "But... but it looks cool... And that spot was just empty anyway..."
"You dare talk back?!" Iruka raised his hand again, scaring Naruto into ducking his head quickly.
Iruka took several deep breaths, forcefully suppressing the urge to give Naruto another knuckle sandwich. His gaze turned to Menma, who had been standing by the entire time, sucking on his lollipop as if completely detached from the situation.
His tone carried clear dissatisfaction and confusion: "Menma! You were here the whole time, right? Why didn't you stop this idiot?! You just watched him cause this trouble?!"
Menma slowly straightened up from the railing, taking the lollipop stick out of his mouth to play with it.
He shrugged, his tone flat, as if stating the most ordinary thing: "This kid's energy is like a perpetual motion machine. It's better to channel it than to block it. Anyway…"
Menma glanced down at the miserable-looking statue, "He painted it. He can just clean it off himself. It'll give him something to do, save him from using up that energy causing other mischief. Two birds with one stone."
Iruka was momentarily speechless, stunned by Menma's almost coldly rational analysis. He could only sigh deeply and helplessly, holding his forehead.
"And besides, the Fourth Hokage would probably be happy to know." Menma said, waving the lollipop stick.
To be honest, since obtaining the Impure World Reincarnation from Orochimaru, Menma hadn't quite figured out how to break the ice with his parents.
Iruka, however, felt his blood pressure rising again.
"You... you two..." He waved a hand weakly, "Alright, alright! Enough talk! Now, immediately, right this minute! Clean that statue! Restore it to its original state!"
He pointed to a pile of cleaning supplies in the corner of the viewing platform, buckets, rags, scrapers, cleaner clearly prepared in advance.
And so, under Iruka's stern supervision, an arduous 'restoration project' began atop the Hokage Rocks.
Naruto, sporting that conspicuous bump, pulled a long face. With a wet rag and a scraper, he was carefully lowered by the rope again to begin painstakingly removing his 'masterpiece'.
Menma, though his expression remained lazy, also rolled up his sleeves and began efficiently dealing with the graffiti near the top.
His movements had a peculiar rhythm to them, clean and precise, as if imbued with some unique Taijutsu Skill, making him far more efficient than the clumsy Naruto.
He knew Naruto's pranks were just a way to attract attention, just like back in his previous life when schoolboys would pull girls' hair ribbons to get their notice.
Iruka stood at the edge of the viewing platform, arms crossed, watching the two busy figures below.
The warm autumn sun shone down on him, also illuminating the Fourth Hokage's statue being slowly cleaned below.
Watching that young, handsome face with its sunny, warm smile gradually reappear, Iruka's gaze became somewhat complicated.
He remembered the time the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, had spoken to him alone.
The Hokage's tone was gentle yet carried a heavy weight: "Iruka, that child Naruto... the Nine-Tails is sealed within him. That is a fact. Many villagers fear him because of it, shun him, even resent him, believing he was the cause of the Fourth Hokage and his wife's deaths... I understand these feelings."
Hiruzen took a puff from his pipe. Amidst the swirling smoke, his eyes were profound, "But, the child is innocent. Naruto... he lost his parents at a young age. He grew up bearing the name [Demon Fox], enduring endless scorn and isolation. His loneliness and pain likely run deeper than we can imagine."
"I hope you can try to let go of the pain from your parents' sacrifice, to truly understand him, teach him, and guide him towards the light. Treat him as a student in need of care, not a monster that must be guarded against."
Iruka's heart had been conflicted then.
He couldn't forget the scene of his parents' tragic deaths during the Nine-Tails Attack. That heart-wrenching pain and the hatred from losing his loved ones had once made him deeply resentful of Naruto, the vessel of the Nine-Tails.
But Hiruzen's words, and later witnessing with his own eyes Naruto living alone in an empty apartment, eating expired milk and instant noodles, shunned by all the children, only able to seek a pitiful bit of attention through pranks... all of this reminded Iruka of his own years after losing his parents… those same lonely years, yearning for recognition.
He looked down at Naruto, diligently scraping away at the paint, wobbling occasionally from losing his footing, then at Menma, whose movements were steady and highly efficient.
The tightness at the corner of Iruka's mouth relaxed a fraction.
'At least... at least Naruto wasn't completely alone.'
'This boy called Menma, though his personality was somewhat cold and detached, and his actions were hard to fathom, he was indeed by Naruto's side, accompanying him in his own peculiar way.'
'And lately, Naruto had also been getting closer to Akimichi Choji, Nara Shikamaru, and Inuzuka Kiba. It seemed he had truly made some friends.'
Time slipped away quietly in the monotonous cleaning work.
As the sunset's afterglow dyed the horizon a warm orange-red, enveloping the Hokage Rocks and the entire Konoha Village in a soft glow,
Naruto and Menma finally finished the cleaning.
The Fourth Hokage's statue was restored to its original dignity and cleanliness, as if the absurd graffiti had never happened.
Naruto collapsed onto the floor of the viewing platform, exhausted, breathing heavily. His blond hair was soaked with sweat, strands plastered to his forehead.
Dried paint stains still clung to his face, cracking into fine lines with his exaggerated breaths.
Iruka looked at the restored statue, then at his two thoroughly exhausted students. His face, tense all afternoon, finally softened, even holding a trace of a barely perceptible smile.
"You've worked hard," His voice was much gentler: "As a reward, though it's mainly a punishment for Naruto, but Menma worked hard too, Sensei will treat you to Ichiraku Ramen."
"Ichiraku Ramen?!" The previous moment, lying on the ground like a dead fish, Naruto instantly seemed to receive a shot of adrenaline upon hearing those words.
He sprang up from the ground, eyes wide and shining with astonishing intensity, chunks of dried paint flaking off his face with his exaggerated grin: "Really?! Iruka-sensei! You're the best! I want the extra-large bowl! With double narutomaki!"
Watching Naruto instantly revive, dancing around with excitement, Iruka shook his head with a helpless smile.
However, right at that moment, on the back of Menma's left hand, a red seal pattern glowed, suddenly transmitting a faint yet distinct sensation of heat.
A stream of intangible information, like an encrypted signal, instantly flowed into his consciousness through the [Chakra Network].
It was a message from Gato.
Menma's expression remained calm. He casually tossed the cleaning tools back into the corner and brushed off his clothes which had gathered some dust and paint splatters.
Then, he said naturally to Naruto, who was still excitedly planning how many bowls of ramen to eat, and to Iruka: "I'm all sweaty, feels sticky and uncomfortable. I'm heading home first to take a quick shower and change. I'll be fast and meet you at Ichiraku Ramen in half an hour."
His reason was perfectly logical, his actions casual and natural.
"Huh? Menma, hurry up! Don't keep me waiting too long!" Naruto waved and shouted, completely absorbed in his ramen anticipation, not suspicious in the least.
"Got it, I'll be quick," Menma replied. Then, without hesitation, he turned, took a few running steps, nimbly vaulted over the viewing platform's guardrail, and leapt towards the direction of his home below.
His figure traced a smooth arc in the twilight, like an agile leopard. Using protruding rocks and rooftops as footholds, he swiftly disappeared into the rows of buildings below, his movements clean and precise.
Iruka watched the direction where Menma had quickly vanished, then looked at the excitedly bouncing Naruto beside him. He simply thought the boy was particular about cleanliness and didn't think much of it.
He patted Naruto's shoulder and said, "Come on, we should head down too. Remember, if you dare cause trouble again next time, no ramen!"
He said it half as a threat, half as an admonishment, leading Naruto towards the steps down the mountain.
Feeling Iruka's care, Naruto scratched the back of his head, smiling happily.
The setting sun stretched their shadows long.