"Sorry for the wait! Naruto, Menma, your ramen!" Teuchi placed two bowls of ramen in front of Naruto and Menma.
"Wow! Finally! Let's eat!" Naruto instantly forgot the strange feeling from before, clapped his hands together energetically, then eagerly picked up his chopsticks. He blew on the steaming noodles and started eating in big mouthfuls, his cheeks puffing out immediately.
Menma also picked up his chopsticks. Compared to Naruto's voraciousness, his eating was much more refined.
The corner of his eye glanced at the red-haired woman beside him and the blond man on the other side. He knew exactly who these two 'uninvited guests' really were. His movements seemed to pause for a fraction of a second before returning to normal as he silently began eating his noodles.
Minato and Kushina's ramen arrived soon after.
Teuchi placed the bowls down while making his usual small talk, "Here you go, two bowls. Please enjoy. Hmm... you two look unfamiliar, not regulars in Konoha, are you?"
He looked at Minato and Kushina, especially Minato's brilliant blond hair, which was rare even in Konoha Village, feeling an inexplicable sense of familiarity but unable to place it.
Minato smiled gently, answering in his altered voice, "Yes, it's been a long time since we've been back. It's changed a lot."
He wasn't lying.
Kushina looked down at her [Family Delight] Ramen, so full it was almost overflowing.
She picked up her chopsticks, carefully lifted a piece of chashu pork, and put it in her mouth. Although her Impure World Reincarnated body had no sense of taste, and the food turned to flavorless ash in her mouth, she ate with extreme care, as if savoring the most delicious treasure in the world.
Every bite was taken with a near-reverent cherishing.
She could hear Naruto's satisfied eating sounds beside her. This simple, everyday act of a family eating together had been an unattainable luxury for her and Minato.
Now, even if achieved in this bizarre and secretive way, it was enough to make her long-still heart feel a bittersweet warmth.
Minato was the same. Watching Naruto and Menma, he ate his noodles quietly, his movements elegant but equally tasteless.
Most of his attention was focused on his two sons beside him. Hearing Naruto hiss from the heat, watching Menma's profile as he ate quietly, he wished time could stand still for just a little longer.
For a while, the small shop was filled only with Naruto's satisfied swallowing sounds, the faint clatter of Teuchi organizing his utensils, and the distant noise from the street outside.
After a while, Naruto finished first, slurping down the last of his broth. He patted his stomach contentedly and let out a loud "Ahhh… So good!" which made Minato and Kushina beside him glance over involuntarily, their eyes full of tenderness.
"Full? Let's go." Menma, who had also finished, put down his chopsticks and took out his small wallet.
"Yeah! To the park! You promised to teach me that awesome throwing technique today!" Naruto hopped off his stool, full of energy.
Menma paid for both bowls of ramen and nodded to Teuchi and Ayame, "Thanks for the meal."
"Come again!" Ayame responded with a smile.
Watching the two children leave one after the other, their figures disappearing behind the curtain, Minato and Kushina almost simultaneously stopped their unnecessary 'eating'.
They looked at each other, seeing deep reluctance and satisfaction in each other's eyes.
Minato gently put down his chopsticks, also took out money, and placed it on the counter. His voice held a bit more of its original gentleness, "Check, please."
Teuchi came over to collect the money, smiling, "How was it? Did it suit your taste?"
"It was very delicious," Minato said sincerely, even though he couldn't taste anything, "The broth was very rich. Nostalgic."
Kushina also stood up. She looked at Teuchi, suddenly stepped forward, and gave a very formal, slight bow. Her voice carried a barely noticeable tremor, "Thank you very much... for always taking care of that child."
Teuchi and Ayame, who was clearing dishes, were both taken aback, confused by this sudden, solemn thanks.
"Ah? You're too kind, ma'am-" Teuchi quickly waved his hands, "We just run a ramen shop. All customers who come are guests and should be treated well..."
Kushina straightened up, her eyes slightly red. She forced a smile and didn't explain further, only repeated, "Really... thank you very much."
With that, she and Minato turned and walked out through the curtain.
Teuchi held the money, looking at the still-swaying curtain, scratching his head in confusion, "Strange customers... But they seemed like good people."
He simply attributed the thanks to their kind hearts.
Ayame came over with a cloth to clear Minato and Kushina's bowls. She suddenly stopped, a look of confusion on her face, "Huh? Dad, look-"
She showed the bowls to Teuchi, "These two customers' ramen... it looks almost untouched?"
Indeed, the noodles and toppings in the two bowls were almost exactly as they were when served. Only the broth seemed a bit reduced, as if it had been stirred slightly, but it definitely didn't look like anyone had eaten from them properly.
This was completely at odds with the money they paid and the 'satisfaction' they expressed.
"Is that so?" Teuchi leaned over to look, also finding it strange, "Maybe they had poor appetites? Or just wanted to taste the broth?" He shook his head, not dwelling on it, "Alright, hurry up and clean. More customers will be here soon."
Just as Ayame was about to clear the table, the curtain was pushed aside again.
A figure walked in. He wore a standard Konoha's Jonin flak jacket, with unruly silver-white hair covering part of his face. A black mask covered most of his face, leaving only one somewhat lazy, half-drooping black eye visible.
Most notably, his forehead protector was worn slightly askew, covering his left eye.
It was Hatake Kakashi, who had just finished with a mission and ready to appease his stomach.
He habitually scanned the shop, his eyes passing over the empty seats as he prepared to find a place to sit, but he suddenly froze.
His peripheral vision, through the gap in the curtain, caught the retreating backs of the man and woman who had just left the shop, merging into the street crowd.
The blond man and the red-haired woman.
Just a fleeting glimpse, but those two backs struck Kakashi's nerves like a bolt of lightning.
Blond and red hair weren't particularly strange colors in the Ninja World. But that combination, that height difference... especially the blond man's walking posture, that innate gentleness and upright bearing...
A feeling so familiar it was heart-stopping instantly seized him!
"What!?" Kakashi's visible eye widened abruptly, all laziness gone, replaced by immense shock and disbelief.
Without even thinking, his body moved first. He spun around and rushed out of the ramen shop, standing on the street and looking around anxiously.
The evening street was crowded and bustling.
There was no trace of the two figures left.
They had vanished without a trace, like drops of water in the ocean, as if that glimpse had been an illusion.
Kakashi stood still, his brow tightly furrowed.
'An illusion?'
'Am I too tired from recent missions? Or...'
He couldn't convince himself that the intense feeling was false. That bone-deep familiarity, especially the blond back...
He took a deep breath, suppressing the storm in his heart, and pushed the curtain aside again, returning to the slightly noisy Ichiraku Ramen.
"Welcome… Oh, Kakashi," Ayame greeted him with a smile.
But Kakashi didn't respond with his usual laziness. His sharp gaze swept to the seats where the couple had been sitting. His voice held a barely perceptible tension, "Ayame, that man and woman, the two customers who were just sitting there. Do you remember them? One with blond hair, one with red hair."
"The customers just now?" Ayame was taken aback by Kakashi's slightly urgent tone. She thought for a moment, "Hmm, I remember. What about them? Do you know them, Kakashi-san?"
"Did they... do anything special? Say anything? Or do anything?" Kakashi didn't answer, pressing on.
His gaze fell on the counter Ayame hadn't finished cleaning, where a bit of moisture seemed to remain.
"Special?" Ayame tried hard to recall, "Well... the male customer ordered Tonkotsu Chashu Ramen, with extra menma and narutomaki. The female customer ordered the Family Delight. They... seemed to like Naruto quite a bit, looked at him several times. Oh, and when the female customer left, she thanked my dad very formally, which confused us a bit-"
As Ayame spoke, she picked up the two almost untouched bowls from the counter.
"Wait!" Kakashi suddenly stopped her.
His gaze was fixed on the two bowls in Ayame's hands.
The ramen inside was almost completely intact. Only the broth seemed reduced, and the toppings weren't very disturbed.
'This almost untouched state-'
'And the blond man ordered the same flavor as Naruto… extra menma and narutomaki...'
A memory buried deep, almost forgotten, slammed into Kakashi's mind.
A sunny afternoon. The young Minato, with a gentle smile, sat at the Ichiraku Ramen's counter, picking the narutomaki from his bowl and putting it into the bowl of his red-haired wife, Kushina, beside him, saying with a laugh, "Kushina, have some more. I still prefer the texture of menma, after all."
And Kushina would complain with a smile, "Really, Minato, narutomaki is delicious too!"
But her face was radiant with happiness.
Back then, Minato-sensei always habitually ordered Tonkotsu Ramen, with an extra side of menma...
'Blond hair... Red hair...'
'Familiar order preferences...'
'Unusual attention towards Naruto-'
'Almost untouched ramen-'
'And that familiar back...'
'Sensei... Could it be that you…' Countless clue fragments collided and pieced together madly in Kakashi's rapidly working brain, pointing towards an absurd, yet heart-pounding possibility!
His breathing suddenly became rapid. The single visible eye was filled with shock, confusion, and a faint glimmer of something he didn't dare hope for.
He looked up sharply towards the direction the two had disappeared, his fingers unconsciously tightening.
"No... It's impossible... How could it…" He muttered to himself, his voice drowned out by the noise of the ramen shop.
But the seed of doubt had been planted and was growing at an unprecedented, frantic rate.
'I had to find out who those two people were!'
…
Elsewhere.
Sasuke, who had parted ways with Menma and Naruto by the river, returned to the Uchiha Clan's compound with a pout and some fatigue.
The evening glow painted the ancient eaves of the Uchiha Clan's compound a warm golden-red, creating a subtle contrast with the increasingly heavy atmosphere within.
Sasuke opened the door. The genkan was unusually quiet, with only the faint sounds of his mother, Mikoto, busy in the kitchen, the aroma of miso soup wafting from the pot.
"Mom, I'm home," Sasuke called out while changing his shoes.
"Welcome back, Sasuke," Mikoto peeked out from the kitchen with a gentle smile, "Was training hard? Your father and Itachi aren't back yet. Dinner will be a little while."
"Oh," Sasuke replied, feeling slightly disappointed. He had wanted to show his father the new Jutsu he mastered today and, even more, hoped for recognition from his brother, Itachi.
He went and sat on the engawa, letting his legs dangle over the edge, swinging them.
His gaze fell on the long shadows cast by the setting sun in the garden.
The compound was quiet, but this quiet felt different from usual, carrying an indescribable tension, like the heaviness before a storm.
Sasuke vaguely knew the adults were busy with something important lately, often gathering for meetings.
His father's and brother's expressions were always especially grave. But he was, after all, still a child. Those conflicts and pressures seemed distant. Right now, he just wanted to get stronger, earn his father's praise, and surpass that annoying Menma!
Sasuke rested his chin in his hands, lifting his small face to watch the twilight sky gradually being dyed by ink-black night, silently calculating when his father and brother would return.