Naruto: Akira’s Story

After a hearty bowl of ramen and a refreshing walk, my headache was completely gone. Along with it, new ideas for my book started popping into my head, so I spent the rest of the evening, right up until midnight, thickening my stack of finished pages. I only went to bed when I started making typos from sheer exhaustion.

The next morning, as I wondered whether it was healthy to go for a run after such a big breakfast, I stepped outside.

As usual, the streets were almost empty at this hour. Everything was calm, the run felt good, but about a third of the way through, I suddenly heard a shout:

"Oh, my student, look! The fire of youth burns within him too! Let's pick up the pace!"

"Yes, Guy-sensei!" came another loud voice.

Before I could even turn around, two blurs shot past me - one green, one white. Watching their rapidly disappearing backs, all I could manage was a single word:

"Insane."

After a shower, I settled back down to work on my book. Sure, I wanted to go out for a walk, but I was expecting a delivery of plants today, so it was better not to leave for too long.

Caught up in writing, I didn't even notice how hungry I'd gotten. Pushing the pages aside, I headed to the kitchen, thinking about what to cook.

First, I checked the fridge to see what ingredients I had, then rummaged through the cupboards.

"Alright, I don't feel like making anything complicated, but I do want to treat myself to something tasty - preferably with meat..."

"Pizza!" I jumped up from my chair, struck by inspiration.

If Naruko's love for ramen could be matched by anything, it would be my own love for pizza. Honestly, it's the one food I could eat almost every day. That settles it - today is pizza day.

And since Kushina had recently treated me to pancakes, I was basically honor-bound to let her try some Italian-style ones in return.

Let's see... flour, yeast, tomatoes, onions, meat, cheese - got it all! Even some leftover mayo from last time.

Someone making pizza for the first time would spend over an hour on the dough, sauce, and prepping the toppings. But I'd made this food of the gods so many times that, back in my old world, I could've easily landed a job as a pizza maker anywhere.

Forty minutes later, the first pizza was ready. Ten minutes after that, the second. While the third was baking, I grabbed the first two and headed over to my neighbors.

****

[ Third person ]

"Good afternoon, Akira-san... oh, what's this?" Kushina looked at the young man holding two plates with interest.

"Hey, Kushina-san. I figured, since you treated me to pancakes, I'd return the favor with a dish from faraway lands. Please, enjoy! I've got a third pizza in the oven, so I have to run." Handing her the plates, he waved and left, leaving Kushina standing in the doorway, looking surprised.

She set the... pizzas? on the table and glanced thoughtfully at her soup from yesterday, which was simmering on the stove. Kushina was about to call Naruko to try this new dish, but then remembered she was at the academy.

"Ohhh, tough luck, Naruko-chan," she said, taking her first bite. "Well, I'll save you a pizza."

Twenty minutes later, the young woman wiped her mouth and looked sheepishly at the two empty plates.

"Or maybe I won't..."

"Well, as long as Naruko doesn't find out. Actually, why am I worrying? I'll just ask Akira for the recipe," she decided, nodding to herself as she stood up.

With the now sparkling clean plates in hand, Kushina knocked on her neighbor's door.

"It's open!" came the shout. Just like her own place, the entryway opened right into the living room and kitchen, where Akira - in a pink apron, flour on his cheek, and wearing gloves - was pulling a blazing hot pizza from the oven.

"Oh, Kushina-san, did you like it?"

"It was delicious, I've never had anything like it," she admitted honestly, blushing as she confessed she'd forgotten to save even a single slice for her daughter.

"Haha, no worries. Here, let me show you how to make it from scratch - even a kid could do it."

She watched and listened closely as he worked. Akira's movements were confident and professional, and he explained all sorts of little tricks while working the dough. The most mesmerizing part was watching him toss and spin the dough in the air, though he admitted that wasn't necessary - a simple rolling pin would do just fine.

It was the first time Kushina had ever watched a man cook. Sure, she'd seen the Akimichi clan guys at restaurants a couple of times, but that was always flashy and wild, with meat flying onto the grill. Here, though... every movement was refined, almost like a dance, not a single wasted motion, and a smile that showed how much he enjoyed the process.

She'd always thought the kitchen was a woman's domain, and Minato's awkward attempts at even making eggs only reinforced that belief. But watching Akira now, she thought:

"I wouldn't mind watching him cook every day..." And then immediately scolded herself for how that sounded.

"So, how's your fuinjutsu study going?" she asked.

"Slow, tedious, but steady. I've learned 200 more kanji on top of the 2,000 I already know, and I've practiced writing each one ten times. I just feel bad about all the wasted paper," he said, pointing to three mountains of sheets in the living room.

"Hm, is he really taking this seriously?" she wondered.

"Can I take a look?"

"Of course," he said, turning back to his cooking.

Kushina started looking through the top sheets with interest. Each one had ten kanji, written in ink with a brush. The calligraphy left something to be desired, but the symbols were correct. Which meant he really was practicing.

"Now to see how long he keeps it up," she thought, smirking.

Taking a clean sheet, she used chakra to inscribe a few fuin. Now, anything written on that page would disappear after a few seconds, which she explained to a delighted Akira.

"Kushina-san, you're a miracle worker," he said, watching the ink vanish - even the faintest pen mark. Smiling, he thanked her.

"Oh, it's nothing. I'm capable of much more, dattebane." She immediately covered her mouth, blushing.

She always said that word when she was a little nervous - a bad habit she'd passed on to her daughter. She hadn't used it in years.

"So that's where Naruko gets that cute habit," Akira grinned, flashing a perfect set of white teeth.

"It's not cute at all! Do you know how embarrassing it is?" she blushed again, realizing she was acting like a flustered schoolgirl.

"Kushina-san, you look even prettier when you're embarrassed, so don't hold back, haha." He turned and slid another pizza into the oven.

"You... baka, how can you make a woman blush like that?"

"Sorry," he said, raising both hands in mock surrender, barely holding back a laugh.

"You're forgiven. Anyway, I should go - I've got laundry to do. Thanks for the treat." Kushina hurried out.

"Come by anytime," Akira called, walking her to the door.

Back home, Kushina turned to the mirror in her entryway. A beautiful woman looked back at her - no one would guess she was even twenty-five. She saw herself like this every day, but for the first time in ages, she noticed a silly smile on her face that just wouldn't go away. [ image ]

"Well, I'll go visit Mikoto, see how she's doing. She's barely stopped by at all lately."

****

[ First POV ]

I put the remaining ten pizzas in the freezer and got back to my book. An hour later, there was a knock at the door - a broad-shouldered man stood there, several pots at his feet.

"Whew," he said, wiping sweat from his brow. He greeted me and asked if I was Akira. After I confirmed, he helped carry the pots inside and left, politely refusing a glass of cold water.

With that out of the way, I could finally get some fresh air.

First, I went to check on the construction. The first floor was already finished, and the second was halfway done. I praised the guys for their hard work, then headed to Ichiraku to ask old man Teuchi a few questions - mainly, whether I needed to register the restaurant, what documents were required, what taxes I'd have to pay, and most importantly, where to find staff like Ayame.

He said I could just put up a notice, but then leaned in and said:

"Akira-kun, if you want to do a good deed and not worry about your restaurant's safety, you should hire former kunoichi."

"Would they even agree to that?" I asked, surprised.

"See, Akira-kun, a lot of shinobi - because of physical or mental injuries - can't continue their careers. Many of them just sit at home, trying to scrape by. Their situation is nothing to envy, so if you offer good conditions, plenty will say yes."

"Don't villagers offer them jobs?"

"Some do, but not everyone. You know how people feel about shinobi, even retired ones. And honestly, not all ex-shinobi can handle what seem like simple jobs."

"Yeah, I guess all they've ever done is learn how to kill."

"That's exactly it," the old man said, shaking his head sadly. "So, if you don't mind having former killers with physical or mental scars working in your restaurant, I'd suggest looking among them for staff... or waitresses. I just don't have any openings myself, but I wouldn't mind having someone who could escort rowdy customers out of my place - and believe me, there are plenty of those on weekends."

"I get it. Thanks for the advice, Teuchi-san." I bowed and left, deep in thought.

So, shinobi don't get any kind of social benefits? What kind of nonsense is that? With that question in mind, I went to see my acquaintance, Homuri.

"The village pays for treatment as much as it can, but yeah, we don't have a system for supporting veterans or shinobi who retired due to injuries. As for clan members, their clans take care of them."

"Homuri-san... that's bad. The village could really suffer because of this," I said, shaking my head.

"How so?" the man frowned, his bald head gleaming.

"Even if non-clan shinobi are weaker than clan members, they're still shinobi - even with their flaws. And the village has basically abandoned a bunch of potentially dangerous people. Sure, things might be fine now, but if someone clever started quietly stirring them up, who knows what could happen?"

"But... that can't happen, they're loyal to Konoha. They've been taught that since the academy..." He trailed off.

"Yeah, I know - the Will of Fire and all that. But don't forget, a lot of them have mental scars, and who knows how that'll affect how they see the village. Only Kami knows."

"That... that could really happen?" Homuri asked, looking a little pale.

"Yes! That's why I'm here - please, hand me some paper." Homuri, trying to read the letters upside down, mentally urged Akira to hurry. He needed to report this to his boss immediately. How had everyone missed this? Why was this the first guy to bring it up? Village arrogance?

"Here you go," Akira finally handed over the sheet, and Homuri started reading hungrily.

"Pension... reform?" He read the title again, then went through the document. Thanks to Akira's detailed writing, he understood exactly what the young man was proposing - and realized only the daimyo could approve something like this.

What he liked most about this so-called reform was the note that former administrative workers who reached retirement age at forty-five would also receive pension payments. And in two years, he'd be forty-five himself!

Stamping the document immediately, Homuri asked Akira to come with him to the third floor, where the head of Konoha's administrative office and civilian council had his office. The head was the daimyo's cousin, and all important matters went through him.

Luckily, the man was in. After greeting him respectfully, Homuri explained why they were there, the nature of the problem, and the possible solution. Whenever he hesitated, Akira backed him up.

Torio might have gotten his position through family ties, but he didn't consider himself a fool. Imagining a possible revolt by former shinobi, he realized it was entirely possible - all it would take was one smart, persuasive person.

Looking from the document to Akira, he slowly picked up his stamp, scanned the main points again, and stamped it at the bottom before setting the paper aside.

"All right, Homuri-san, you've been working hard lately. I'll increase your salary by five percent - you've earned it."

"Thank you so much, Torio-sama," the official said, as happy as a cat with a bowl of cream.

"As for you, Akira-san, I'd also like to thank you for your loyalty to the Land of Fire and your active civic position. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Torio-sama, I'm planning to open a restaurant at the end of the month, and..."

"No need to say more," Torio waved a hand authoritatively. "All the paperwork will be ready in no time. And as a gift from me - and as motivation for others - I'm exempting you from all taxes."

"My deepest thanks," I said, bowing slightly.

"Good. You're both dismissed."

As soon as we left, Homuri clapped me on the shoulder and said:

"Akira-san, have I ever told you that you can come to me with any question, anytime? If not, well, now you know where to find me."

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