Chapter 4: The Crow That Likes Ramen
Late at night.
Kitahara once again witnessed Uchiha Itachi's attentiveness... He actually got up in the middle of the night to cover a crow with its little blanket. When Kitahara was startled by the movement, Itachi even whispered, "Sorry, are you thirsty?"
"...Caw..."
Kitahara turned his head to look at the puzzled little boy. He had been thinking about many things: the source and activation method of the chakra and jutsu within his body, the future crises and direction of the ninja world... and... Uchiha Itachi...
Itachi of the Sharingan was still such a kind, naturally naive kid right now!
Kitahara gradually grew accustomed to life with Uchiha Itachi. Every morning, they regularly went to the forest to train shuriken and basic taijutsu. In the afternoons, they would wander around the village, occasionally going to the bustling districts for "afternoon tea," listening to the ninjas' stories.
Several of the techniques within his body had been activated... According to his deductions, it indeed required someone to actively mention the technique in front of him. The problem was, the activated ninjutsu didn't seem quite right...
Hmm, Clone Jutsu, Substitution Jutsu, and the like... So, could only the common, run-of-the-mill stuff be activated?
Come to think of it, Summoning Jutsu also seemed to be... a technique almost any ninja could master.
Kitahara's mood was low for a few days until he activated Shadow Clone, which improved things slightly. This could prove that he might be able to activate a forbidden jutsu: the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu.
In the small training ground in the forest.
Kitahara stood on a tree stump, struggling with a wild fruit he had pecked full of holes... A strong gust of wind suddenly blew through the woods, sending dust and leaves flying. The fruit pulp got covered in dust...
"Caw!"
The crow's cry was filled with dissatisfaction.
A figure stomped the ground hard, leaping into the air. Four shuriken flew out mid-air, consecutively hitting wooden targets in four directions. After landing, Uchiha Itachi saw the shuriken hit their marks, turned his head, and said, "Sorry, I'll treat you to cake later..."
"...Caw... Caw?"
Kitahara was still somewhat reluctant. The little boy clearly just wants to treat himself!
Through chakra communication, Itachi could understand Kitahara's meaning. He scratched his cheek helplessly, "But if we go eat at Ichiraku Ramen, it feels really strange..."
After all, every time they went to Ichiraku Ramen, this crow's behavior was quite rude! It would either stare intently at the owner or fixate on a particular ninja customer. Itachi had advised him many times, but saw no change in Kitahara's attitude...
Besides, if they ate out, Mom would ask if he wanted her to change the menu... whether her cooking wasn't appetizing... Mom was going to the hospital this morning, so they could go just once...
"Caw!"
Kitahara flapped his wings, knocking the fruit onto the ground... Going to Ichiraku Ramen for the first time, it's hard not to be drawn to Teuchi, right? Besides, it's also one of the ninja gathering spots. Most Konoha ninjas have been to Ichiraku Ramen; it's a place to activate the jutsu within me.
Perhaps a ninja training ground would be more suitable, but at Uchiha Itachi's age, it was unlikely he'd interact with other ninjas... Wait!
Kitahara realized he seemed trapped in flawed thinking. He could totally go to the ninja training grounds himself instead of quietly waiting for the little boy to grow up... Maybe Itachi was taking too good care of him, making life too comfortable...
Shadow Clone Jutsu!
This was the technique he had newly activated yesterday, just right for the occasion.
"Hmm?"
Itachi looked on in surprise as Kitahara formed the Shadow Clone seals, subconsciously mimicking the sequence to perform the jutsu... A B-rank ninjutsu was clearly somewhat difficult. Itachi couldn't possibly learn it successfully from a simple hand seal sequence, especially since his chakra was already depleted after training.
"It's not the ordinary Clone Jutsu, it's a new technique." Itachi memorized the crow wing's seal sequence and patted his own shoulder, "Okay, let's go, let's go eat at Ichiraku Ramen."
"..."
Honestly, my interest in Ichiraku Ramen has already... well, I'm still very interested!
Kitahara flapped his wings and landed on the little boy's shoulder. His shadow clone had just flown near a training ground when it was pierced by a shuriken!
How could ninja training grounds be approached so casually... Ninjas use all sorts of targets for training; a crow suddenly approaching looks exactly like a live target...
"We need to pick up Mom this afternoon, we can't stay too long." Uchiha Itachi placed Kitahara on the long counter of the ramen shop before climbing onto the stool himself.
Kitahara obediently nodded, tapping the menu with his sharp beak: "Caw!"
"Mr. Teuchi, one Chashu Ramen and one Miso Ramen, please."
"Got it! Bringing your crow to visit the shop again, huh, little Itachi." Teuchi looked up at the strange pair at the counter, took out a small dish of soybeans from underneath, and placed it in front of Kitahara. "Looks like he really likes ramen!"
"...Yes, thank you for the trouble." The little boy bowed his head.
Teuchi shook his head helplessly, "You don't always have to be so polite, little guy!"
Ninjas made up a large portion of Ichiraku Ramen's clientele, and most were quite straightforward. Uchiha Itachi lacked the arrogance of other Uchiha clan members. Although he hadn't visited many times, his politeness and his combination with the crow left a deep impression on Teuchi.
Ichiraku Ramen had fewer customers lately. The war against the Hidden Stone Village had just ended, essentially cementing Konoha's victory in the Third Shinobi World War. Konoha had accumulated a large number of missions, and post-war tasks and outpost reconstruction required ninjas to be dispatched.
Clearly, there was one person in Konoha Village who absolutely couldn't leave for missions... Konoha's ultimate weapon – the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Kushina Uzumaki.
"Itachi? What are you doing here?"
"Auntie Kushina?" Uchiha Itachi was surprised and about to jump down to greet her but was held back by Kushina pressing his shoulder. "Kid, no need to be so formal with me! You haven't answered my question yet? Where's Mikoto?"
"Mom said this morning she was going to the hospital for a check-up..."
"Huh? Is Mikoto sick?"
"Dad and Mom said..." Itachi shook his head, recalling his parents' flushed faces that morning, "...it's just a routine check-up. Where is Lord Minato Namikaze?"
"I heard those bastards from the Hidden Mist want to stir up war again, so Minato went on a mission..." Kushina helplessly rested her hand on her forehead, emanating a thick, gloomy atmosphere. "Cooking and stuff is such a hassle! It's rare that I can finally..."
"Your ramen is ready!"
Teuchi brought out two bowls of noodles. He placed one in front of Itachi and the other in front of Kitahara before looking at the new customer, "Kushina, what are you having today?"
"Just Tonkotsu Ramen..." Her gaze was drawn to Kitahara, who was meticulously pecking at the soybeans. She pointed in surprise at the ramen bowl in front of him, "This crow likes ramen?"
This was the first time she'd seen such a Ninja Beast!
Even with the Nine-Tails sealed inside her, having encountered many Ninja Beasts, like Ninja Dogs that could talk... but a bird that liked ramen like an ordinary person was rather...
Itachi couldn't understand it either, but... he could always find a suitable reason for the occasion: "It's probably because Mr. Teuchi's ramen smells so good..."
Kitahara snapped out of his bean-pecking game. Seems like quite the... remarkable person has arrived!
His crimson eyes suddenly turned towards Kushina, piercing through all barriers. There resided a ferocious creature, the being with the most chakra in the ninja world – the Nine-Tails.
Compared to other Tailed Beasts, the Nine-Tails had a somewhat miserable history. Konoha Village wasn't very interested in using its power, simply because its fierce reputation was well-known... although that was debatable.
After all, the last time the Nine-Tails showed off its great power was likely... when it was controlled by Uchiha Madara, which doesn't sound like anything glorious... Of course, its subsequent so-called ferocity was even less glorious... Hmm, being pinned down and beaten senseless by Hashirama Senju.
Compared to future events, it was even less worth mentioning... The God of Shinobi, who had thrashed the Nine-Tails, suggested it was a bit too threatening and had his wife, Mito Uzumaki, seal it away.
...
Is that something a human would say? Is that something a human would do?
From then on, the Nine-Tails had to begin its life as a tenant. Currently, the Nine-Tails resided in the belly of its second landlord(Jinchuriki). The environment wasn't great, and the landlord collected rent(chakra)irregularly...
(End of this chapter)