Naruto's POV
The mornings used to feel the same—cold, quiet, and pointless.
He'd wake up to the same cracked walls, the same stale air, the same empty fridge. Then he'd throw on his orange hoodie, force a grin, and start the act.
Because if he didn't laugh, he'd break.
But lately…
Lately, things were different.
Naruto rolled onto his side, arm draped over the edge of his lumpy mattress. His eyes drifted toward the window, where sunlight slipped through the gaps in the curtain.
Warm. Gentle.
Almost like a promise.
He smiled to himself.
It wasn't anything huge that changed. Not some grand event. Just… a moment.
A person.
Kaizen.
---
That Day
He remembered it so clearly. The first time they met.
Kaizen didn't flinch. Didn't look away. Didn't sneer or whisper or pretend Naruto didn't exist.
He looked him in the eyes.
Like he was worth something.
It rattled Naruto in a way nothing else ever had. For the first time, he didn't feel like he was trying to earn someone's attention. It was already there.
And then Kaizen trained with him. Gave him advice. Didn't laugh when he messed up. Helped him do that weird chakra trick—tree climbing.
Naruto had tried it alone before and failed every time. But with Kaizen showing him how…
He actually did it.
His palms still stung from the bark.
But the feeling—that feeling of standing sideways on a tree trunk, heart pounding, eyes wide with disbelief—it hadn't left him since.
---
A Real Friend
Naruto wasn't dumb. Not really.
He knew people only smiled at him out of pity. Or fear. Or because they didn't want trouble.
But Kaizen? He didn't smile like that.
He smiled like he meant it.
Naruto didn't know why. He didn't know what Kaizen saw in him. But he clung to it like a lifeline.
Someone believed in him. Someone talked to him like a person.
And not just someone… someone cool.
Kaizen was strong. Calm. Smart. Like he was born to be a ninja. But he didn't act like he was better than anyone. He just was.
Naruto wanted to be like that.
---
Hope
He sat up slowly, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
The day hadn't even started yet, but something in his chest was already buzzing. Not dread. Not loneliness.
Excitement.
There was still a long way to go. He hadn't joined the Academy yet. He still got weird looks in the street. Still had to fake that grin sometimes.
But now—he had something real.
A friend.
And maybe—just maybe—if he worked hard, trained harder, and kept showing up…
He could earn more of those moments. More smiles. More trust.
More of whatever this new feeling was.
Naruto didn't know what the future held.
But for the first time in his life—
He was looking forward to it.