Night had fallen over Konoha, but the darkness was sprinkled with the warm glow of paper lanterns and the murmur of a village coming back to life after a long day. for most, it was a night like any other. But for three genin walking together toward the heavenly aroma of ramen, it felt like the beginning of a new era.

Inside a small, quiet tavern—the kind where the smoke from tobacco mixed with the smell of cheap sake and stories of past missions—three of the village’s most respected senseis were gathered.

“MY DEAREST RIVAL!” Might Guy’s voice boomed, causing several heads to turn. “I must admit, your decision to pass your team on the first try is a flame of youth that burns with unexpected brilliance! Although, of course, not as brilliantly as my own team, led by the genius of hard work, my student Rock Lee!”

Kakashi Hatake, leaning back in his seat with a practiced laziness, didn’t even look up from his book.

“Congratulations, Guy. You sound like a proud father.”

“Of course I am!” Guy exclaimed, slamming a fist on the table that made the teacups rattle. “A sensei must be the fuel for his students’ fire!”

Iruka Umino, sitting across from them, smiled wearily. He had spent the entire day waiting for news, his stomach in knots with anxiety.

“I’m glad all the rookie teams passed, Guy-sensei,” his gaze shifted to Kakashi, his tone growing more serious, filled with a concern he couldn’t hide. “And your team, Kakashi? I heard you passed them. How… how was Naruto?”

Kakashi turned a page in his book.

“A complete and utter disaster,” he said in his usual lazy drawl.

Iruka shot up straight, defensive.

“Don’t say that about him! Naruto tries harder than anyone! He just needs a chance and—!”

“A disaster,” Kakashi interrupted, finally closing his book and letting his words hang in the air, “that passed. All of them.”

Guy’s jaw dropped. Iruka froze for a second, and then, a smile of pure, overwhelming pride spread across his face, erasing all the exhaustion from his expression.

“Really? All three of them?”

Kakashi nodded, his single visible eye curving into a wry smile.

“I underestimated them,” he admitted, and the confession made Iruka lean forward, fascinated. “The test was designed to break them. To force individualism and conflict. And for a while, it worked. The Uchiha acted exactly as I expected: a lone wolf convinced of his own superiority.”

“And Naruto?” Iruka asked, holding his breath.

“And Naruto…” Kakashi paused, as if searching for the words. “I expected him to be an idiot. And he was. The problem is, the script had a couple of twists I didn’t see coming.”

He recounted a condensed version of events. He spoke of Sakura’s unexpected intervention, of her logic in stopping Naruto’s suicidal charge. And then, he spoke of Naruto himself.

“When everything was on the line,” Kakashi said, his voice losing its laziness and taking on a shade of genuine surprise, “the kid everyone calls a loser, the one who should have been the most desperate to get a bell for himself, sacrificed himself. He used his own body to pin me down and ensure his teammate wouldn’t lose the victory they had earned together. And later, when given the choice to leave his rival behind, he found a way to break the rules to keep the team together.”

He looked at Iruka, and in his eye was a new light of respect.

“He’s not just a loudmouthed idiot, Iruka. There’s… something else there. Some kind of glue. A strange will that somehow forces others to rally around him. It’s problematic. And fascinating.”

Iruka leaned back in his seat, the smile on his face so bright it could have lit up the entire tavern. He didn’t say “I told you so.” He didn’t need to. He simply savored the moment.

****

Ichiraku Ramen was a sanctuary of steam, aromas, and happiness. To Naruto, it was heaven on earth. He was on his third bowl, slurping the noodles with an enthusiasm that was music to Teuchi’s ears.

“And then, BAM!” he was recounting, gesturing with his chopsticks. “I trapped Kakashi-sensei with my incredible strength and Sakura-chan snatched the bells from him! It was perfect teamwork!”

Sakura, sitting beside him, rolled her eyes, but she was smiling.

“That’s not exactly how it happened. My part of the plan was ‘keep Naruto from getting pulverized in the first thirty seconds.’ And you didn’t ‘trap’ him, you clung to him like a scared monkey.”

“A tactical monkey!” he corrected. “It was a high-level immobilization maneuver!”

Hinata, sitting on Naruto’s other side, giggled, a soft, happy sound. The atmosphere among the three was incredibly light. The day’s exhaustion had melted away, replaced by the warmth of the broth and the comfort of a newfound camaraderie.

“Still,” Sakura said, turning to Hinata with genuine curiosity, “how did it go for you, Hinata?.”

Hinata blushed, a little overwhelmed by Sakura’s direct attention.

“W-well… Kurenai-sensei gave us a combat test. And… and things went well.”

“‘Well’!” Naruto exclaimed. “I bet you were amazing! With your new power, you must’ve blown them away! Believe it!”

“Your Byakugan must be really useful for tracking,” Sakura said, her analytical mind taking over. “Our team has a lot of offensive power with Sasuke-kun and Naruto, but we’re lacking a good sensor. You’re lucky to have such a useful ability.”

The way Sakura spoke of her skills, with genuine respect and tactical interest, made Hinata feel… seen. Seen as a kunoichi, not just as a shy girl.

“Th-thank you, Sakura-san. Your… your skills are amazing too. What you did in the test… was very smart.”

A strange current of mutual respect began to form between them. The old rivalry Sakura felt for any girl who might be interested in Sasuke seemed irrelevant now. Hinata wasn’t a rival. She was… an ally. A friend.

Naruto, watching them talk, grinned from ear to ear. His plan, intentional or not, of bringing people together around him, seemed to be working on its own. He finished his fourth bowl with a loud slurp.

“Old man! Another one!” he shouted. Then he slapped his pocket, which made a hollow sound. He turned to Sakura and Hinata with a shameless grin. “Well, uh… do either of you have a chunin friend we can ask for a loan? Iruka-sensei is gonna kill me!”

He was about to get up to find his teacher when a small, timid hand stopped his on the counter.

“N-no, Naruto-kun. There’s no need.”

Hinata opened her small coin purse. Her hands trembled slightly, but her expression was determined.

“I-I’ll… I’ll treat you this time.”

Naruto blinked.

“Huh? No way! I invited you guys to celebrate! A man always pays!”

“To be a man, you have to have money first, idiot,” Sakura interjected with a smirk. She turned to Hinata. “Let it go, Naruto. It’s called being thoughtful. It’s your turn to be treated.”

“B-but…”

“It’s my way of saying thank you,” Hinata said, her voice gaining a surprising firmness. “For… for everything. For being my friend. Please.”

Naruto looked at her. He saw the determination in her eyes and knew that arguing would be an insult to her gesture. He sighed dramatically.

“Alright. But next time, it’s my treat! Even if I have to wash Teuchi’s dishes for a month!”

Just as Hinata was about to give the money to Ayame, a large, calloused hand stopped hers.

“Not a chance, young lady.”

Teuchi, the owner of the stand, was looking at them with a smile that crinkled the corners of his eyes. He had been listening to the whole conversation.

“Seeing Konoha’s genin, tired and dirty but celebrating together after their first big test… that’s the best payment an old man like me can receive. This round is on the house. Congratulations on passing, kids. You’ve earned it.”

The gesture, so unexpected and fatherly, left the three of them speechless. Naruto was the first to recover.

“OLD MAN TEUCHI, YOU’RE THE GREATEST GUY IN THE WORLD!” he yelled, nearly jumping over the counter to hug him.

As they ate their free bowls of ramen, the conversation turned deeper. They talked about the future.

“I’m going to be the best team leader ever,” Naruto declared. “I’ll lead Team 7 to the top! And I’m going to become Hokage!”

“I… I want to be a kunoichi my team can always count on,” Sakura said, her gaze lost in the steam from her broth. “I don’t want to be a burden ever again.”

“And I,” Hinata added, her voice quiet but clear, “want to be strong enough to stand by my friends’ side. To protect them.”

Their dreams, though different, all orbited around the same idea: companionship, protection, strength gained not just for oneself, but for others.

****

The walk back was quiet. The night was cool, and the sky was full of stars. They dropped Sakura off at her front door.

“Thanks for dinner, guys,” she said, and for the first time, her smile at Naruto was completely genuine and free of sarcasm. “See you tomorrow. Don’t be late.”

“Never!” he lied shamelessly.

As Naruto and Hinata continued on alone toward the Hyuga complex, the silence that enveloped them was comfortable, intimate. The group’s energy had faded, leaving only the calm of their mutual company.

They reached the imposing gate. The full moon lit the path, casting long shadows. It was the end of a perfect day.

“Well, here we are again,” Naruto said with a smile.

“Yeah,” Hinata replied softly. She stopped and turned to him, her face blushing in the light of the lanterns. She was twisting her fingers together, gathering every ounce of her newfound courage. “Naruto-kun… o-one more thing.”

Naruto waited, curious.

“Thank you…” she began, her voice trembling but sincere. “For… for this morning. When… when you noticed. My… my hair. And… you said I looked pretty.”

The memory made her blush deepen.

“It… it made me really happy.”

Naruto was taken aback. To him, it had just been an honest observation. He didn’t know the weight those simple words had held for her.

“Well, uh… I was just telling the truth!” he said, scratching the back of his neck.

Before he could say anything else, she took a step forward. She stood on her tiptoes and, with a swiftness born from a mix of courage and absolute panic, gave him a quick, soft kiss on the cheek.

The contact was like a small electric shock, warm and fleeting.

Naruto was left completely frozen.

The instant after the kiss, all of Hinata’s courage evaporated. She turned the color of a ripe tomato, let out a choked squeak that sounded like, “G-good night!”, and spun around and ran through the compound gates, disappearing into the darkness before Naruto could even process what had just happened.

He stood alone on the street, under the moonlight. He was paralyzed, his eyes wide. Slowly, he brought a hand to his cheek. He could still feel the warmth, the soft touch of her lips.

A slow, goofy, disbelieving, and absolutely radiant smile began to spread across his face, from ear to ear. He looked at the closed gate, and then up at the starry sky.

Wow… he thought, a feeling of pure, overwhelming happiness filling every corner of his being.

…my life has gotten so much better.