Chapter 257: Two Years Old
"Alright, Kiba, that's Uncle Kuromaru's bowl!"
Inuzuka Hana pulled her younger brother away from Kuromaru's food bowl.
Kuromaru breathed a sigh of relief.
"Even though I'm a dog, I still think Tsume is raising her kids too roughly."
As a speaking Ninken, Kuromaru would occasionally complain about some of Inuzuka Tsume's behaviors.
Back then, she left her daughter to them to raise, and now her son is also left in their care.
Little Hana is a bit older now, so she's fine, but Kiba is already two years old and still eats on the floor like a puppy, yet Tsume doesn't do anything about it.
"It can't be helped. Since Dad went far away on a long-term mission, Mom has been too busy."
Inuzuka Hana carried her brother and sat at the dining table.
Kuromaru remained silent.
Inuzuka Hana's father hadn't gone on a mission; he had died in battle at the border.
The so-called long-term mission was merely Inuzuka Hana's pretext.
Kuromaru lowered his head and began to eat.
Inuzuka Hana held down the restless Kiba, wiping his mouth and getting him to eat.
Inuzuka Kiba was very poorly behaved at the table, starting to squirm restlessly.
"Ah—Pfft!"
Soon, he knocked over the bowl in front of him, leaving Miso Soup and rice in a mess all over the table.
Hana hurriedly tried to wipe it, but the wooden table was already stained.
Inuzuka Tsume, who had just returned home and hadn't even taken off her Ninja Flak Jacket, saw this and immediately rushed over, scooped up Inuzuka Kiba, and tossed him next to a large gray dog.
"Since you won't eat properly at the table, then eat on the floor!"
Inuzuka Kiba didn't cry or fuss when he hit the ground; instead, he giggled and crawled on all fours to Haimaru's dog bowl, lowering his head to eat just like Haimaru.
Inuzuka Hana watched this scene, dumbfounded.
At that moment, she suddenly felt very envious of the younger brother Itachi had mentioned.
Itachi's brother should be about the same age as Kiba; he's called Sasuke, right?
Having returned from a busy day, Inuzuka Tsume didn't feel like cleaning up the mess on the table either, so she took Hana's hand and stood up.
"Let's go, we're eating out. Until Kiba learns to behave, don't bring him to the table; he won't starve at home anyway."
In the beginning, Inuzuka Tsume had tried to teach Kiba properly, but Kiba flipped his food bowl almost every time.
Finally, she discovered one day that Kuromaru seemed to be quite skilled at this... quite the paw.
Since he wouldn't sit and eat, he might as well eat while lying down.
Inuzuka Hana looked back at Kiba, who let out a satisfied burp and patted his stomach, and nodded.
She really wanted to swap Kiba with Itachi's brother, but Itachi probably wouldn't agree.
Itachi clearly adored his brother; whenever they talked, he easily steered the conversation toward him.
Mother and daughter walked out onto the street together.
"What do you want to eat?"
"I want to eat Chicken Meatballs!"
"Alright, how about we have Chicken Meatballs with ramen?"
"Okay!"
After buying the Chicken Meatballs, the two arrived at Ichiraku Ramen. As they lifted the curtain, a wind chime tinkled softly, and warm yellow light flooded out along with the aroma of bone broth.
"Teuchi, two bowls of Tonkotsu Ramen."
Inuzuka Hana handed over the Chicken Meatballs she had bought.
"Add some Chicken Meatballs."
Teuchi took the Chicken Meatballs with a smile.
"Alright, please wait a moment. I'll serve this little guest first."
Saying that, Teuchi placed the Chicken Meatballs on the stove, then picked up a bowl of Chashu Ramen and placed it in front of a blonde boy.
The boy sat alone on a stool in the corner, his feet not yet reaching the floor.
"Please enjoy your meal."
"Thank you, Uncle Teuchi."
Inuzuka Hana looked at the boy beside her.
The little blonde boy wore a slightly faded white T-shirt and black shorts, with six whisker-like marks on his face.
He was very quiet as he lowered his head to eat his noodles, making almost no sound.
He looked to be about ninety centimeters tall, slightly taller than Kiba but much thinner.
Inuzuka Tsume's eyes flickered slightly.
Blonde hair, blue eyes?
Such features were rare in Hidden Leaf Village.
"Yo, kid, where are your parents?"
The boy looked up, his blue eyes like the sky after rain—clear but devoid of emotion.
"I grew up in the Orphanage. I don't have parents."
"Which Orphanage? They actually let a child as small as you come out to eat alone?"
"It's already closed down."
The boy gently poked the Chashu in his bowl with his chopsticks.
"Grandpa Third Hokage gives me some money every week to come out and eat."
There was no smile on his face as he spoke, because the Orphanage had closed, leaving many children like him homeless once again.
When children even younger than him were taken in by other families, he would stand at the door watching. The director would pat his head and say, 'Naruto, wait a little longer.'
But he knew that it was impossible for anyone to adopt him.
He was merely observing the Third Hokage, who appeared every time.
Inuzuka Tsume was silent for a moment, and Teuchi sighed softly behind the counter.
"I see. Teuchi, this child's noodles are on me."
"The little guest has already paid. He always pays before eating."
Teuchi lowered his voice.
"Customer, that child... he's a very sharp kid. I wouldn't recommend doing that."
"What's your name?"
Just then, Inuzuka Hana leaned over.
The blonde boy looked up, a bit of soup stain still on the corner of his mouth.
When those deep blue eyes looked at Inuzuka Hana, there was neither avoidance nor forced enthusiasm, just a calm gaze.
His voice was clear and concise:
"My name is Naruto."
"No surname?"
Inuzuka Hana continued to ask, remembering how Itachi would introduce his brother as 'Uchiha Sasuke,' and she herself had the full name 'Inuzuka Hana.'
Naruto didn't feel offended.
He put down his chopsticks and shrugged.
There was no self-pity in his tone: "I don't even have parents, where would I get a surname?"
Inside Ichiraku Ramen, the air seemed to freeze for a moment.
The bubbling of the soup pot on the stove and the occasional footsteps passing outside became exceptionally clear.
Inuzuka Hana opened her mouth, momentarily unsure of what to say.
Inuzuka Tsume pulled Inuzuka Hana over, gently drawing her daughter to her side.
Neither of the two children was easy to deal with.
Seeing the inverted triangle face paint on Inuzuka Hana and Inuzuka Tsume, Naruto recognized them now.
They were Inuzuka Kiba's sister and mother.
By the way, where was Inuzuka Kiba?
Was he too small to come out?
"Customers, here are your noodles."
Two portions of noodles were placed on the table, and Inuzuka Hana pushed her own bowl slightly toward Naruto.
"Want some Chicken Meatballs? They're delicious."
Naruto shook his head.
"Thank you, but I have enough noodles."
Then he lowered his head to eat and said no more. After devouring the ramen and side dishes in his bowl like a whirlwind, Naruto stood up and left.
He walked out of the ramen shop.
Inuzuka Tsume held her daughter's hand as they walked home.
Passing a dango shop, a sweet aroma wafted out, and a few children were pestering their parents to buy Tri-color Dango.
Inuzuka Hana thought of her father.
Had he really just gone on a trip?
Whether it was from Uncle Kuromaru's expression or Itachi's reaction upon hearing the news...
Her father was probably dead... no, that's not right.
He must still be alive.
Inuzuka Hana looked up at the clouds in the sky.
He was up in the sky, watching over her, Mom, and Kiba.
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