"Brother, can I have another bowl?"
Naruto had already finished his first bowl—there wasn't even a drop of soup left. He was still craving more.
"Uncle Teuchi, one more bowl," Menma said, looking up.
"Coming right up," Teuchi replied cheerfully.
After they were full and satisfied, the two brothers left Ichiraku Ramen.
"Brother, where are we going next?" Naruto asked, beaming. He was overjoyed to have eaten his favorite ramen—and even two whole bowls!
"We're going clothes shopping," Menma said. Winter was approaching, and both of them seemed to have grown taller.
"Ooh, new clothes!" Naruto cheered and started skipping ahead excitedly.
Do you really need to be that happy just for clothes? Menma shook his head with a wry smile.
The two arrived at a clothing shop run by a fat merchant. The moment the merchant saw them, his expression soured.
"Fox!"
Huh? Menma's expression darkened. A kunai silently flew from his sleeve.
Clang!
But it was deflected mid-air by another kunai. Both weapons dropped to the ground.
A man in gray clothes, wearing a mask and carrying a blade on his back, stood at the entrance.
Menma took note of him but didn't show much reaction. Instead, he turned to Naruto.
"Go on, Naruto. Pick whatever clothes you like."
Naruto nodded, completely unfazed by what just happened. In his world, as long as his brother was there, everything would be fine.
He darted toward the racks of colorful clothing.
Menma stepped outside and walked up to the masked man.
"Hi. First time meeting. I'm Menma Uzumaki. Why did you stop me just now?" Menma asked coldly, his eyes locked onto the masked man.
"Konoha has a rule: ninjas are not allowed to harm villagers," the masked man replied.
"Hahahahahahaha!" Menma suddenly burst into loud laughter, clutching his stomach.
Then, he raised a pinky and pointed at himself.
"You think I'm a ninja? Sorry to disappoint—I'm just a kid with no father or mother."
His smile faded. His eyes sharpened.
"But if my parents were still alive and heard villagers speak to us like that... my mother would have definitely stood up for us. Don't you agree, Hatake Kakashi?"
With that, Menma turned around and walked back toward the store.
What?! Behind the mask, Kakashi's eyes widened in shock. How does he know?
"Wait—how do you know who I am?" Kakashi called after him.
Menma stopped walking but didn't look back.
"Kakashi Hatake... I know far more than you can imagine. Don't show yourself in front of me again. If you do, I won't hesitate to use the power of the Nine Tails to kill you."
Then he walked back inside and helped Naruto pick out clothes.
Kakashi stood frozen, overwhelmed by Menma's words. He even knows about the Nine Tails?
This... this must be reported to Lord Hokage immediately!
In a flash, Kakashi disappeared.
Inside the store:
"Brother, does this outfit look good?"
"How about this one?"
"Or this one?"
Every time Naruto found something he liked, he ran over to show his brother.
"They all look great—as long as Naruto wears them," Menma said with a smile. Then he turned and shot a cold look at the fat merchant.
"Pack them all."
"Y-yes!" the merchant stammered. He was still trembling from earlier, frightened by how close he came to death. Now, all he wanted was for these two "foxes" to leave.
He stuffed three bags full and handed them over, bowing nervously.
"How much?" Menma asked, taking the bags. They were heavier than expected. Maybe I went overboard...
"N-no charge." Just leave already... the merchant thought.
"I said—how much?" Menma repeated, this time placing the bags down and pulling out a kunai.
Seeing the weapon, the fat man broke into a cold sweat and immediately replied, "I'll count! Right away!"
He scrambled to tally up the total.
"Naruto," Menma said calmly, "remember this—when you buy something, you always pay for it. Understood?"
"Yes, brother," Naruto nodded. Then he suddenly remembered something and asked,
"Aren't you getting anything?"
"It's fine. I'm about the same size as you. I'll just wear your clothes. You won't mind sharing with your brother, right?"
"Of course not! You can wear mine anytime," Naruto said proudly.
Menma clenched his fist briefly, then relaxed and patted Naruto's head.
"Good boy. You already know how to share."
Naruto looked a little shy at the praise.
"Okay, your total is 888 ryō," the merchant finally said.
Menma handed him 900 ryō.
"Keep the change," he said, taking the bags and heading toward the door.
On the way out, he suddenly realized—Why am I carrying all of these myself?
He handed two of the bags to Naruto, who happily took them.
Together, the brothers headed home with their "loot."
In the center of the village stood a tall building—the highest in Konoha. From its top, one could see the entire village.
This was the Hokage Residence.
On its highest floor, a man knelt on one knee before the Third Hokage.
If Menma had been there, he would have recognized him immediately.
It was Hatake Kakashi—the man he'd just met outside the clothing store.
"Kakashi, is what you just told me true?" the Third Hokage asked, face serious.
"It's true. That's why I reported it immediately," Kakashi replied.
It must be Danzo!
Hiruzen's brows furrowed. He was 90% certain Danzo had leaked information to Menma—very few people knew those details.
Kakashi suddenly remembered something.
"Lord Hokage, there's one more thing to report. It's a story Menma and Naruto told today."
"A story?"
"Yes. I'll repeat it now."
Kakashi proceeded to recite the story in full.
After hearing it, the Third Hokage's expression darkened even more.
"Kakashi, bring Menma and Naruto to me immediately."
"Yes!"
And with that, Kakashi vanished again.
(End Of Chapter)
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