Naruto: I'm in Konoha, my name is Uzumaki Menma

Chapter 190 The Fourth Hokage will be very happy to know.

On Sunday, the sky over Konoha Village was an almost transparent azure.

The warm and clear sunlight shone on the rooftops and streets of Konoha Village, giving this ninja village a soft golden glow.

The massive rock statues of the First, Second, and Third Hokage majestically overlook the village, while beside them, the young face of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, is bathed in sunlight.

At this moment, on the observation platform at the top of Hokage Rock, Menma is leisurely leaning against the cold railing.

He had an orange lollipop dangling from his mouth, the sweetness spreading across his tongue. He leaned forward slightly, looking down, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Below, a conspicuous golden figure is busy at work.

With a thick rope tied around his waist, Naruto, like a clumsy Spider-Man, carefully slid down the steep rock face, eventually hovering over the forehead of the Fourth Hokage statue.

He was clutching a large paint bucket tightly in one hand and waving a wide brush in the other, his face beaming with the excited smile of someone who had pulled off a prank.

Orange paint was roughly smeared on the handsome face of the fourth generation of the rock statue, creating an exaggerated mustache. The forehead was painted with a crooked "loser" sign, and even a large X was drawn on the cheek.

Kagura's numbed eyes, like an invisible radar, had already detected several deliberately concealed chakra fluctuations nearby.

Those were Konoha's ANBU ninjas; they had clearly discovered Naruto's "artwork."

Menma clearly "saw" these chakra fluctuations moving rapidly towards the Hokage Building, undoubtedly heading to report to the Third Hokage.

Sure enough, when Naruto finally finished his "masterpiece" and climbed back to the observation deck panting down the rope, before he could even boast to Menma about his "great achievement," a familiar figure rushed onto the platform with suppressed anger.

"Naruto!!!" Iruka-sensei's voice boomed like thunder, echoing across the observation deck.

His forehead veins bulged, and his face turned bright red; he was clearly furious.

He rushed over to Naruto, who was still basking in his triumph, and without saying a word, raised his fist high, filled with anger and helplessness.

Snapped!
A powerful, precise flick of the forehead landed squarely on Naruto's head!

"Agh—!!!" Naruto let out a shrill scream, clutching his head tightly with both hands, tears welling up in his eyes.

A large, bright red bulge, visible to the naked eye, swelled up at an astonishing speed beneath his golden hair, resembling a small hill.

"You idiot! Moron!!" Iruka pointed at the Fourth Generation Rock Statue below, which was completely defaced by paint, his fingers trembling with anger.

"Do you know what you're doing?! Those are stone statues of the Hokage from all the generations! How could you... how could you draw them like this! It's simply... simply outrageous!" Iruka berated him, his spittle almost hitting Naruto's face.

Naruto clutched his head, wincing in pain, and muttered under Iruka's rage, "But...but it looks cool...and that seat is just sitting empty anyway..."

"You dare talk back!" Iruka raised his hand in anger, scaring Naruto into quickly shrinking back.

Iruka took a few deep breaths, suppressing the urge to give Naruto another flick on the forehead, and turned his gaze to Menma, who was still chewing on a lollipop and seemed to be detached from the situation.

His tone was clearly one of dissatisfaction and confusion: "Menma! You've been here the whole time, haven't you? Why didn't you stop this idiot?! Just watched him act like this?!"

Mianma slowly straightened up from the railing and took the lollipop stick from his mouth and played with it in his hand.

He shrugged, his tone as calm as if he were stating something trivial: "This kid has energy like a perpetual motion machine, so it's better to guide than to block. Anyway, he drew it."

Mianma glanced at the horribly mangled rock statues below: "Let him clean it up himself. It'll give him something to do, so he won't waste his energy on other acts of destruction. It's a win-win situation."

Iruka was speechless for a moment, choked by Menma's almost indifferent "rational analysis." He could only helplessly hold his forehead and let out a long, deep sigh.

"Besides, maybe the Fourth Hokage would be happy to know." Menma shook the lollipop in his hand.

To be honest, ever since Menma received the Impure World Reincarnation technique from Orochimaru, he hasn't figured out how to tell his parents.

Iruka, however, felt his blood pressure rise even more.

“You…you two…” He waved his hand weakly: “Alright, alright! Stop talking nonsense! Now, immediately, right now! Clean up the rock statue! Put it back to normal!”

He pointed to the cleaning tools piled up in the corner of the observation deck: buckets, rags, scrapers, and cleaning agents, clearly indicating that they had been prepared in advance.

Thus, under Iruka's strict supervision, a difficult "restoration project" began on the observation deck at the top of Hokage Rock.

Naruto, with that conspicuous big bag on his head and a long face, carefully lowered down again with a wet rag and scraper, and began to clean up his "masterpiece" little by little.

Although Menma's expression remained lazy, he rolled up his sleeves and cleanly and efficiently dealt with the graffiti near the top.

His movements carried a peculiar rhythm, clean and crisp, as if they contained some unique taijutsu skills, making him much more efficient than the clumsy Naruto.

He knew that Naruto's pranks were just to attract attention, just like how, in his previous life, when boys in school were just beginning to experience romantic feelings, they would pull on girls' hair ties.

Iruka stood at the edge of the observation deck, arms crossed, watching two busy figures below. The warm autumn sun shone on him, illuminating the fourth-generation rock statue being cleaned little by little below.

As the young, handsome face with a warm, sunny smile gradually reappeared on the rock statue, Iruka's gaze became somewhat complicated.

He recalled the scene when the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, spoke to him alone.

The Hokage's tone was gentle yet carried a heavy weight: "Iruka, Naruto... it's a fact that the Nine-Tails is sealed within him. Many villagers fear him, distance themselves from him, and even resent him because of this, believing that he killed the Fourth Hokage and his wife... I understand these emotions."

The Third Hokage took a puff of his pipe, his eyes deep through the swirling smoke: "But the child is innocent. Naruto... he lost his parents at a young age, grew up bearing the name 'Demon Fox,' and suffered endless scorn and isolation. His loneliness and pain may be deeper than we imagine."

"I hope you can try to let go of the pain caused by your parents' sacrifice and truly... understand him, teach him, and guide him toward the light. Treat him as a student who needs care, not a monster that must be guarded against."

Iruka was struggling internally at the time.

He could not forget the scene of his parents' tragic death in the Nine-Tails' attack. The heart-wrenching pain and hatred of losing his loved ones once made him feel repulsed by Naruto, who had the Nine-Tails sealed within him.

But the Third Hokage's words, and later what he witnessed firsthand—Naruto living alone in an empty apartment, eating expired milk noodles, being ostracized by all the other kids, and only being able to seek a little bit of pitiful attention through pranks…

All of this reminded Iruka of the same lonely years after losing his parents, a time when he longed for recognition.

He looked down at Naruto, who was diligently scraping paint and occasionally wobbling because he wasn't standing properly, and then at Menma, whose movements were steady and highly efficient.

Iruka's tense lips relaxed slightly.

At least... at least Naruto isn't completely alone.

This boy named Menma, although he has a somewhat cold and aloof personality and his actions are unpredictable, is indeed by Naruto's side, accompanying him in a peculiar way.

Moreover, Naruto has recently become closer to Choji Akimichi, Shikamaru Nara, Kiba Inuzuka, and others, and it seems that he has really made friends.

Time slipped away quietly amidst the tedious cleaning work.

As the afterglow of the setting sun painted the sky a warm orange-red, bathing the Hokage Rock and the entire Hidden Leaf Village in a soft glow, Naruto and Menma finally finished their cleanup.

The fourth-generation rock statues have regained their original solemnity and cleanliness, as if that absurd graffiti had never happened.

Naruto collapsed onto the ground of the observation deck, panting heavily. His golden hair was soaked with sweat, strands of it sticking to his forehead. His face was also covered in dried paint stains, which cracked with each exaggerated breath.

Iruka looked at the restored rock statue, then at the two exhausted students. His tense face, which had been tense all afternoon, finally relaxed, and even showed a faint smile.

"You've worked hard." His voice was much gentler. "As a reward for you... although it was mainly to punish Naruto, Menma has also worked hard... I'll treat you to Ichiraku Ramen."

"Ichiraku Ramen?!" Naruto, who had been sprawled on the ground like a dead fish just a second ago, was instantly energized upon hearing these four words.

He sprang to his feet, his eyes wide and gleaming with astonishing light, the cracked paint on his face peeling off with his exaggerated smile: "Really? Iruka-sensei! You're so kind! I want a super-sized bowl! And double the Naruto roll!"

Seeing Naruto instantly revived and dancing with joy, Iruka shook his head with a helpless smile.

However, at that moment, Menma, who was standing next to Naruto, had a red marking pattern appear on the back of his left hand, and suddenly felt a faint but clear burning sensation.

An invisible flow of information, like encrypted radio waves, instantly transmitted into his consciousness through the "Chakra Network".

It was a message from Kado.

Mianma's expression remained calm. He casually tossed the cleaning tools back into the corner and patted his clothes, which were covered in dust and paint.

Speaking casually to Naruto and Iruka, who were still excitedly planning how many bowls of ramen they would eat, he said, "I'm all sweaty and sticky, it's uncomfortable. I'm going home to take a shower and change my clothes, it'll be quick. See you at Ichiraku Ramen in half an hour."

His reasons were reasonable, and his actions were casual and natural.

"Hey? Menma, hurry up! Don't keep me waiting too long!" Naruto shouted, waving his hand, completely absorbed in the anticipation of the ramen, without any doubt.

"Okay, soon." Menma replied, then turned around decisively, took a few running steps, and lightly flipped over the railing of the observation deck, leaping down towards his home.

His figure traced a smooth arc in the twilight light, like an agile cheetah. With a few leaps and bounds, using protruding rocks and rooftops as leverage, he quickly disappeared into the densely packed buildings below, his movements clean and swift.

Iruka watched Menma disappear in the direction he had gone, then glanced at Naruto, who was jumping around excitedly beside him. He just thought the kid was clean and didn't think much of it.

He patted Naruto on the shoulder: "Let's go, we should head down now. Remember, if you dare to mess around again, there won't be any ramen left!"

He spoke in a tone that was half threatening and half admonishing, leading Naruto toward the steps leading down the mountain.

Feeling Iruka-sensei's care, Naruto scratched the back of his head and smiled happily.

The setting sun made their shadows very long.

(End of this chapter)