---
The sun peeked through the thin veil of clouds as Nawaki and his companion double walked through the streets of Konoha, now slightly more famous than before after their last mission's... explosive results.
"I swear that boar had chakra!" Nawaki argued, waving his hands wildly.
"It had fat," Double replied dryly, "and you screamed louder than it did."
"I didn't scream. I was... battle roaring."
"Right."
They reached the mission board, only to find Sakumo Hatake already there, arms crossed, eyeing them like a hawk who just found two mice stealing from his pantry.
"You're late," Sakumo muttered.
"We're not—" Nawaki began, but Double just elbowed him and smiled at Sakumo.
"What's today's mission, sir?" he asked politely.
Sakumo handed them a scroll. "B-rank. Escort a merchant outside the Fire Country borders. He's paranoid, rich, and allergic to noise. Good luck."
"...Perfect," Nawaki sighed.
---
The merchant, a snobbish man named Noboru, had a shiny head and a personality duller than unsharpened kunai. He insisted on riding in a custom-made cart with golden wheels and required complete silence every hour during his "meditation breaks."
Nawaki almost jumped out of the cart by day two.
"I swear, if I have to hear about how his chakra 'feels blocked' one more time—"
"—you'll open your Sharingan out of rage?" Double teased, smirking.
Nawaki froze. "Wh-what? I—I don't have—"
"Relax. I'm kidding. Probably."
Their conversation ended abruptly when they sensed movement in the woods. Double made a hand signal. Nawaki nodded. They split and moved into formation.
From the trees emerged... a band of masked shinobi?
"Oh come on!" Nawaki whispered. "Why do they always wear masks? We're in the same country, not a masquerade!"
---
The battle was sharp, short, and oddly comedic.
One enemy ninja tripped on the merchant's fancy carpet and took out two of his own allies. Another accidentally triggered Noboru's alarm bell, causing him to start screaming in chakra-disrupting tones, which stunned everyone—including Double.
After the dust settled, Nawaki stood with a kunai at the throat of the last conscious attacker.
"Who sent you?" he asked.
"I—I don't know! I was told to stop the merchant from reaching the border!"
"Why?"
"I just deliver ramen normally! I got paid triple to wear a mask and pretend to be a missing-nin!"
Nawaki and Double exchanged glances.
"Did we just get ambushed by ramen shop workers?" Double said slowly.
The man nodded.
There was a long pause.
Nawaki blinked. "...Wait. Are you the guy from Ichiraku?"
---
Back in Konoha, hours later, Nawaki sat in front of a bowl of steaming ramen at Ichiraku.
"So... he really was the delivery guy?"
Teuchi, the owner, sighed. "Yeah. Noboru owed me over 100 bowls of ramen. I thought a fake scare would spook him into paying. Didn't expect it to escalate."
Double sipped his tea. "You turned a ramen debt into a ninja mission."
"I respect the hustle," Nawaki muttered.
Sakumo walked into the shop then, silent as always.
"Report," he said simply.
Nawaki straightened. "Mission successful. No injuries. Merchant delivered. Ramen crisis... resolved."
Sakumo looked at them. Then at the owner. Then at the golden noodle-shaped scar on the mission scroll.
"I'm not even going to ask."
---
As the day ended, Nawaki stared up at the stars, lying on a rooftop. Double joined him quietly.
"You know... it's weird," Nawaki said. "This world feels both familiar and different. Like I've done this before, but not like this."
Double looked at him. "Maybe you're remembering a past life."
"Or maybe I read too much fanfiction before I died."
They both laughed.
But deep down... Nawaki's heart beat a little faster.
Something inside him was awakening.
And someone..... wathching