Along the banks of Konoha's river, a figure lay sprawled on the riverside grass, bored and lonely, a foxtail weed hanging from the corner of his mouth. A short distance in front of him stood a smaller figure. The two had clearly noticed each other's presence, yet both pretended they hadn't—quietly competing in stubborn silence.
"Yo, Naruto. What're you doing?" Renka called out with a grin. He'd just finished training, and on his way back from the practice grounds, he happened to pass the river.
Naruto jolted like he'd been struck by lightning, then snapped upright with a quick kip-up.
"Nothing!" he blurted. "Renka-bro—no, Renka big bro—what about you? What have you been doing these days? You promised to treat me to ramen! Don't tell me you're the kind of adult who even lies to kids!"
"Aren't you the one who hates being treated like a kid?" Renka teased. "So you'll drop your pride the second food's involved?"
Out of the corner of his eye, Renka glanced at the kid standing not far ahead of Naruto—familiar hair, a young face, and that unmistakable outfit and clan crest.
Sasuke, huh… Renka found it oddly fascinating. Is this the protagonists' first meeting? If someone ever writes the history of this era, maybe I'll get a tiny cameo.
Maybe Sasuke caught his gaze. He turned his face slightly and stole a look. Renka noticed and gave him a friendly nod.
"That's not the same thing!" Naruto exploded. "Ah, I get it—you're trying to wriggle out of paying! Is that what an adult does?! That's shameless!"
Renka just waved him off and headed straight toward the village. Naruto panicked when he saw him leaving, immediately abandoning Sasuke and chasing after Renka, clinging to his side and rattling off complaints nonstop—clearly determined to stick to him until he got that ramen.
---
At Ichiraku Ramen...
"Slurp~"
Naruto drained the last of his broth and patted his belly in satisfaction. On the table to his right, empty bowls were stacked into a small mountain.
Renka stared at it, speechless. "You really didn't hold back, did you?"
"Hmph!" Naruto grumbled instead of feeling guilty. "It's your fault for always disappearing. I never see you around. Do you know how long I've been waiting for this bowl?"
"Alright, alright—yeah, yeah. I give up," Renka said, paying the bill. As the two walked out and wandered to help the food settle, Renka asked casually, "That kid back there… your friend?"
Naruto's face twisted. "No way. He's just an annoying guy. So what if his grades are good? He acts like he's better than everyone. Once I show my real strength, I'll be stronger than him for sure!"
"A classmate, then. Even more reason to get along," Renka said. "After you graduate the Academy, you'll be assigned missions. Usually it's one jonin leading a three-man genin team. You might even end up in the same squad."
Renka felt a little disappointed. So much for leaving my name in history.
"Huh? Then I really don't want to be on a team with him!" Naruto said. "You have no idea how annoying he is. I don't get why Sakura likes him."
"You jealous?" Renka jabbed playfully.
Naruto's face went bright red. "I'm worried he'll trick Sakura!"
Renka was about to tease him more when someone walked toward them—standard shinobi gear, a short sword on his back, and two deep crease-like lines running down from the sides of his nose.
Uchiha Itachi.
Renka's eyes narrowed slightly. People's opinions of Itachi were always split—some called him a man of duty and sacrifice, others said he was unforgivable.
Renka didn't really care either way. Everyone made choices, and if you chose a path, you'd better be ready to bear the consequences.
As long as it didn't involve his own interests, he didn't like meddling in other people's affairs.
Judging by his expression… the Uchiha's resentment is getting worse. Konoha's heading for a storm of blood.
Renka met Itachi's eyes for an instant as they passed shoulder to shoulder.
—
Meanwhile...
Inside Itachi's thoughts:
He broke out of my genjutsu instantly. Since when did Konoha have a genjutsu user like that? Uzumaki Renka… fresh out of the Academy, yet he took down two Mist chunin. Doesn't look like someone who's always in the hospital.
Is he hiding his strength… or does he have another agenda?
He signed up for the Chunin Exams three days from now. I'll see what he's really capable of then.
Itachi's brows furrowed slightly. He was surprised—enough to start paying attention to Renka.
---
"Renka-bro? What's wrong?" Naruto asked, noticing Renka's odd pause.
"Huh? Oh, nothing," Renka said quickly, shaking it off. "Just thinking. Hey—didn't you say you wanted to learn ninjutsu? I'm free right now. Let's go."
He deliberately changed the subject.
That split second… I felt something like blood-red. Renka's mind churned. Did he activate the Sharingan? Did he just peek at my strength? No wonder he's one of the early big threats—he's seriously dangerous.
As they brushed past, Renka felt his mind sharpen, then return to normal in the next instant. He didn't dwell on it. Itachi's probe ended there.
Otherwise, Itachi might have noticed the faint flicker—the Ninjutsu Codex in Renka's mind had trembled ever so slightly.
---
Renka House "Backyard"
Calling it a "backyard" was generous. Renka's place was simply tucked away, backed up against the forest, and he'd cleared and marked off a patch of open ground himself.
Now, an adult and a kid stood together. The smaller one—Naruto—was practically bouncing with excitement.
"Naruto, listen up," Renka said seriously.
"The technique I'm teaching you today is a high-level jutsu—even jonin use it. Shadow Clone Jutsu."
The moment Naruto heard the name, his bright face clouded over. "But… I can't even do the Clone Jutsu."
Renka chuckled. "You and I are both Uzumaki. Our chakra reserves are naturally way bigger than normal people's—dozens, even hundreds of times more. Plain Clone Jutsu doesn't suit us. A Shadow Clone has a physical body. That's the one we should learn."
"Nothing is instant, though. Your situation's special—learning Clone Jutsu would take you more time and effort than it's worth. So instead of starting with that, you might as well start with Shadow Clone Jutsu. Compared to most ninja, you don't need to 'save' that little bit of chakra."
(Even though Shadow Clones are actually harder.)
"And besides—once you can do Shadow Clones, do you really think you'll still struggle with basic clones?"
"I'll demonstrate once. If anything doesn't make sense, ask me."
Naruto felt the concern in Renka's tone. It lit a fire in him.
"It's just Shadow Clone Jutsu, right? Lord Naruto will totally learn it!"
"That's the spirit." Renka nodded. "Also, the Chunin Exams are in three days. I'm entering too. Once I bulldoze my way through and make it past the prelims, come cheer for me."
"Don't lose too badly," Naruto shot back. "If you're that pathetic, I'll pretend I don't know you."
"Heh. Then I'll try not to embarrass you," Renka said—and flicked Naruto in the forehead out of habit.
"Ow!!"
Two-faced jerk… One day I'm gonna flick you back! Naruto swore silently.
Renka taught him step-by-step, then left the rest to Naruto's repetition.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu! Hah! Hah! Hah—!"
Under the sunset, Naruto formed seals properly and shouted like he was trying to force the jutsu out through sheer willpower.
Renka, meanwhile, lounged on a recliner off to the side, calmly adjusting his body and condition for the Chunin Exams three days from now.
"This scene really makes me want to recite something poetic…" he muttered. "The sun sinks in the west—no, wait, wrong line… Right one is: The sunset is endlessly beautiful… but it's already near dusk."