My daughter and I have adapted very well. The people of Konoha are friendly, and no one has deliberately bullied us."
Arata nodded in agreement. "That's good to hear. The residents of Konoha are generally quite kind.
Originally, I planned to arrange for you to stay in my clan's district so I could keep an eye on you.
"But the clan is preparing for relocation right now....it's chaotic. Besides, you already have a relative living here.
His status is somewhat special, so he can't be moved to the Uchiha compound. This arrangement ended up being the most suitable."
Hearing the trace of apology in Arata's words, Xianglin hurriedly replied, "Please don't say that, Arata-kun.
Being arranged here already exceeds our expectations.
It's lively, there are many people around, and it helps us integrate more quickly."
Arata nodded again. "As long as you're comfortable.
If anything comes up, just come find me. I live in the Uchiha clan district...anyone there can point you in the right direction."
Xianglin said gratefully, "Thank you, Arata-kun. Truly."
As she spoke, she invited Arata into the living room and hurried off to prepare fruit, snacks, and tea.
Arata sat down and casually surveyed Xiangling's new home. His gaze soon met that of a small figure sitting quietly in the corner.
That child was Uzumaki Naruto, who was also curiously studying the newcomer.
From Xiangling's words, Naruto understood that this man had once saved her and her daughter. Because of that, Naruto already felt a natural sense of goodwill toward him. After all, without this man, he might never have met Aunt Xiangling and Karin at all.
Still, Naruto felt that the man before him looked strangely familiar....so familiar that he was sure they had met before.
Naruto stared at Arata, the sense of recognition growing stronger by the second. Then, as their eyes met, inspiration struck.
"You're the uncle who gave me the Ichiraku Ramen coupons!"
His voice was filled with excitement. It was this very uncle who had given him a thick stack of Ichiraku discount coupons, allowing him to go an entire month without going hungry....and even plan to eat a large bowl of ramen the next day.
Later on, Naruto realized that the uncle hadn't actually gone on a long mission outside the village, like he claimed. Naruto had seen him eating ramen at Ichiraku several times afterward.
Which meant those coupons were just an excuse....a kind-hearted gift meant for him.
Naruto had wanted to thank him when he saw him at the shop, but his sensitive nature held him back.
He knew many people avoided him, and he worried that approaching might put the uncle in an awkward position.
That was the kind of child Naruto was. He held no darkness in his heart.
Those who bullied or rejected him only made him sad...but anyone who showed him even a little kindness, he remembered forever and wished to repay a hundredfold.
Arata was mildly surprised that Naruto still remembered him.
Still, he responded kindly to Naruto's greeting, smiling as he said,
"So it's you, the kid who loves ramen. Well? Have you used up all the coupons yet? Don't waste them."
Hearing Arata's words, Uzumaki Naruto became even more certain that the coupons had been deliberately given to him by this kind-hearted uncle. Energized, he replied immediately,
"Thank you, Uncle! I've already used all the coupons. Ichiraku Ramen is really delicious!"
Arata chuckled at Naruto's response. "Good that you used them all. No need to give the ramen boss a free advantage. Ichiraku really does have great flavor....I go there often myself. I especially like their tonkotsu ramen."
Naruto nodded vigorously in agreement. "Yeah, yeah! The tonkotsu is super good—especially the broth. It's amazing."
As he spoke, his face showed a look of deep satisfaction. Clearly, he was a true ramen fanatic.
Hearing this, Arata smiled and said, "If there's time, I'll treat you to the ultra-luxury version of tonkotsu ramen.
That's the real deal. Once you've had it, I guarantee you'll never forget it for the rest of your life."
When Naruto heard that this kind uncle wanted to treat him to luxury ramen, his eyes practically lit up.
He nodded eagerly.
"Mm! Okay! Thank you, Uncle!"
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