The next morning was just as cold as it had been the night before. The day had just transitioned into the final week of November, yet the arrival of the winter season was earlier than anticipated.
Hikaru woke up feeling fatigued from his training accumulation. Not wanting to give up, he still tried to lift himself up from the bed and start getting ready for the morning training.
It was just a little slower than the previous day.
There was something else today that made Hikaru feel different than before: he had his first guest visit his home unexpectedly. When he was preparing to eat breakfast, he noticed his new friend, Kajiwara Ryōta, through the window.
The boy was already standing in front of his house, waiting to join him in the early morning training. Hikaru did mention the training plan but did not expect Ryōta to come so early in the morning. He could have gone to the training ground and waited for him.
Surprised by the young boy's enthusiasm, Hikaru couldn't help but smile and open the door, greeting him. "Good morning!, Come inside first; have you had any breakfast?"
Ryōta shook his head as he rubbed his hand to fight the coldness from the weather and said quickly, "It's ok, I'm not hungry."
Seeing the boy's condition, Hikaru shook his head and persistently invited Ryōta to come inside, saying, "Even the most powerful Shinobi couldn't go to war with an empty stomach."
"Hurriedly, the house will get cold if I keep the door open."
Ryōta only replied "sorry" and got inside his house. He greets Ayako in the kitchen, where she is currently making breakfast. Hikaru told him to sit on the table while he poured some hot tea from the kettle to warm up his body.
"Is there anything you can't eat? any allergy we should know of?" Hikaru asks as he sits on the same table, pouring himself and his sister the same tea and placing the cup on their respective seats.
"No, I can eat anything." Ryōta said as he waved his hand and denied any allergy he has. "Sorry for troubling you and Ayako-san in the morning."
"No need, Ryōta-kun," Ayako said with a cheerful voice as she served the boys breakfast and took her seat. "We are happy that you are here."
After testing the temperature of the tea, Ayako took a sip and then turned to tease her brother, saying, "To be honest, I'm still surprised that Hikaru-kun made any friends."
Hikaru could only roll his eyes at hearing his sister tease before adding his thought as he started eating: "It's cold outside, so a warm meal will help you get through; let's dig in."
The sibiling's hospitality touched Ryōta, and he was unable to express his gratitude in words. He began to enjoy the meal with the Muranaka family, complimenting Ayako's cooking and inviting Hikaru to his house to have a meal together next time.
Both finished the food quickly and said good-bye to Ayako before heading out for the morning training. Before leaving the house, she reminded Ryōta to wear thicker clothes next time because it's cold and he could get sick.
Ryōta said his thanks, while Hikaru also nodded in agreement.
After walking on the streets, Ryōta then suggests running around the town instead of the training ground to enjoy the view along the way, and Hikaru agrees.
Running around the village actually feels better. Hikaru feels as though he has missed out on numerous beautiful views that he could have enjoyed.
The coldness also lessened the more he ran; he could see a stream of smoke come out of his mouth as he breathed out.
As they ran along the village for awhile, Hikaru could see the determination in the young boy's eyes and couldn't help but ask curiously, "Why do you want to become strong?" Seeing Ryōta suddenly stop running to catch his breath, Hikaru also stopped and added,
"What are your goals? become a Hokage?"
The fat boy in front of him stared intently at the ground, as if in contemplation, looking a bit hesitant before shaking his head. "My parents and brother died in the Third Shinobi War against the Iwagakure (Village of the Hidden Stone)." Ryōta said as he clenched his fist.
"They were everything to me, and I want to follow their footstep and be a hero like them."
Surprised by his answer, Hikaru recalls the war event and assumes it likely occurred during a period of battle between Konoha and Iwa at Kusagakure (Village Hidden in the Glass) land.
This was the event that made the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, famous, earning him the title "Yellow Flash."
"But I can't do it myself." Ryōta said as he loosened his fist and started to get teary in his eye, "I was too stupid and did not try hard when they were with me."
Observing the unfolding situation, Hikaru couldn't help but sympathize with the poor boy's predicament and felt he shouldn't have posed such a personal question. He was glad that Ryōta decided to share his background with him, though; the boy must have considered him truly his friend to share his story.
Ryōta was still a young kid; playing around at this age was actually considered normal. Not many kids could be mature like Uchiha Itachi, who already thought about the meaning of life at the age of four. He could also somewhat relate to the situation, as his parents in this world died fighting for the village.
However, their circumstances were not precisely the same.
"What about you?" Ryōta, feeling more calm in his mind, turned his head toward Hikaru as he asked, "Why do you train so hard every day? What's your goal?"
"My goal?" Hikaru murmurs, lifting his chin, and thinks seriously.
The question he asked Ryōta earlier stunned him instead, as he had never pondered it before.
At first, he trains intensely because he has transmigrated to the world of ninjas, specifically after the attack of the Nine-Tails demon fox. It seems dangerous that he cannot protect himself without proper training.
Hikaru also considered the promise he had made to his parents, but this didn't truly explain why he wanted to work hard every day. After receiving the heritance from his parents, he just feels more of a sense of obligation to do it.
Hikaru admitted that he had read the manga before or even watched a movie about the story, but he wasn't a die-hard fan. He didn't display the posters all over his room like he did for Dragonball.
After contemplating for a few moments, Hikaru then answers, "Honestly, I don't really know."
"Maybe it's to protect my sister, and learning the jutsu is kind of cool."
Ryōta furrowed his eyebrow as he heard a reason and asked, "What about your dream?"
"Don't you want to become a Hokage in the future?"
"No, not really," Hikaru responded, shaking his head in denial. "I don't want to work in the office; it's not my style."
'I also hate politics,' Hikaru added, giving a reason in his mind.
"What about becoming the strongest Shinobi in the village? Perhaps an S-rank ninja like the three Sannins." Ryōta still persists and gives more examples.
Hikaru only responded with a shaking head as an answer.
Ryōta, confused by his answer, was lost for words. Afterward, he decided to keep his mouth shut and no longer say anything. Hikaru appears to have a carefree attitude in his life, yet he seems to be training hard every day.
This really puzzles him.
Look at the sun rise and feel a bit of warmth in his body. Hikaru then said, "Let's hurry; we can still do another one or two rounds before school starts."
Ryōta nodded and agreed, and they completed the morning exercise before cleaning up and arriving at the academy separately.
Hikaru's excitement for training begins to fade gradually at the academy. After a talk with Ryōta in the morning, he feels he lacks a sense of purpose for training.
The lesson at the academy today was a fundamental class. Each lesson seems to pass through one ear and leave the other. He even skipped out on his normal routine of wind transformation practice and sensory skill training exercises.
Hikaru leans forward on his table and gazes out the window, using his right hand to support his chin and thinking deeply about his goals and dreams. He used to think that being better than yesterday was enough, but Ryōta seems to think otherwise.
After giving it serious thought all day long, Hikaru could only come up with a proper reason for training hard.
A sense of accomplishment.
It's almost the same as feeling a thrill from leveling up in the game, getting through difficult tasks and finally getting the skill he wanted, or even pulling a gacha and getting the right hero.
It was that kind of feeling that brought him so much joy.
So far, learning ninjutsu, taijutsu, and other ninja skills has been fulfilling in his life. He has the ability to perform numerous feats that others would only dream of achieving in their lifetimes.
In his previous life, people could only watch anime, manga, or even novels about the story, but he actually lived in them. He was living everyone's dream right now, and this was the greatest accomplishment he could boast about throughout his life.
On the other hand, the goal of becoming the strongest Shinobi seems like a hassle. Unlike others, all he wants is to eat healthily, sleep well, and train hard to survive. If other die-hard fans of the story were aware of his thoughts, they would undoubtedly kick him in the buttocks.
His dream is even more plain and simple, as he only wants to travel to many different places, enjoy a lot of cuisine along the way, and spend a lot of time with his family.
In the past, if someone were to ask who he thought was the coolest person in the story, his answer would be the same as many others: the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, for his amazing jutsu skill that most people dream of, Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique).
However, if someone were to pose the question today, his answer would undoubtedly be Jiraiya, one of Konoha's three Sannins.
Jiraiya has the opportunity to travel the world and enjoy his life in a leisurely manner as he works on building an intelligent network for the village. Along the way, he gets to indulge in a variety of cuisines at different locations.
Hikaru is somewhat jealous of him every time he thinks about it, and he hopes that one day he will have the opportunity to do the same.
Hikaru feels that he doesn't have any ambitious traits like others. As long as no one is bothering him, he won't care about others' business.
When the bell rang to indicate that school was over, Hikaru only realized now that he had been slacking off all day and felt awful about himself for not doing anything.
'I shouldn't put much time into this.' Hikaru thought as he got his backpack and started leaving the classroom, 'I already planned my training schedule; just go on with it for now and consider it a short-term plan.'
'As for the longer one or the goal,' Hikaru looked at Ryōta, who was walking beside him, and feeling somewhat embarrassed at his thought, 'Will he think I'm lame if I say I only want to travel around and eat delicious food?'