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On a certain street in the village of Konoha.
Naruto pointed ahead, enthusiastically explaining something to Goku.
"Goku, look! That's the Hokage Rock! The face of every Hokage is carved up there. My dream is to become the next Hokage, and then my face will be carved there too. Isn't that awesome?"
Goku looked curiously at the four giant faces carved into the cliff and nodded thoughtfully.
"So those are the Hokages of the past. What a shame I couldn't have a match with them."
As soon as he said this, the villagers on both sides of the street turned to stare, their eyes filled with suspicion and wariness.
After all, Goku's attire already made him stick out like a sore thumb.
If it weren't for the three genin accompanying him, they would have already reported him to the patrolling ninja.
Now, hearing him say something like that, some of them could no longer hold back and began walking toward a ninja patrol in the distance, ready to report Goku's words.
Seeing this, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura knew the situation was bad.
They exchanged a look, and in the next second, with perfect unspoken coordination, they grabbed Goku and quickly fled the scene.
Hah... hah... hah...
After running to another street, the three of them finally stopped, bending over to catch their breath.
"Go-Goku, did you forget what Kakashi-sensei told you before?" Sakura asked, leaning against a wall for support, panting for air.
That had nearly scared her to death.
Even though they had brought Goku back and Kakashi-sensei, Kakashi wasn't with them right now, and the three of them held little authority.
If they were called in for questioning, there was no telling what kind of trouble would erupt.
At this point, Goku, who had just snapped out of his confusion, scratched his head and gave an embarrassed laugh.
"Haha, sorry, sorry. I forgot for a second there."
It wasn't that he didn't remember Kakashi's warning; it was just that he was a warrior by nature, and sometimes, the words just slipped out.
Naruto and the others looked at each other, not sure what to say. In truth, he hadn't said anything truly outrageous; it was just that the villagers were overly sensitive.
After that little episode, Naruto suddenly realised that this street looked very familiar. Wasn't this where Old Man Teuchi's ramen shop used to be?
At this thought, his eyes lit up. He still remembered his promise to treat Goku to a bowl of Ichiraku Ramen. Wasn't this the perfect opportunity?
And so.
"Goku! The best ramen I was telling you about is on this street! Come on! I'm treating you to Ichiraku Ramen right now!" he declared magnanimously, completely oblivious to the strange looks on Sasuke and Sakura's faces.
'Has this guy forgotten how terrifying Goku's appetite is? Can he even afford it?'
Hearing there was good food, Goku's eyes also lit up. "Where? Where?" he asked eagerly.
A few moments later, Naruto led Goku to the front of Ichiraku Ramen. Sasuke and Sakura followed along.
It was dinnertime anyway, and eating here would also give them a front-row seat to the embarrassing spectacle Naruto was about to create. The thought alone was quite appetising.
"Hey, old man! I brought a friend to eat ramen!" Naruto lifted the curtain and entered the shop, shouting to a middle-aged man who was making ramen in the back.
This man was the owner of Ichiraku Ramen—Teuchi.
Hearing the familiar voice, Teuchi's lips curved into a slight smile as he looked over. "It's you, Naruto. It's been a while."
Naruto grinned as he hopped onto a stool. "Hey, old man! I was out of the village on a mission and just got back this morning."
"See? I came straight here to eat! And I brought a friend! I told him you make the best ramen there is. You've gotta show him what you've got!"
As he spoke, Goku, Sasuke, and Sakura, who had followed him in, also took seats and looked around the shop curiously.
"Oh? Are all these people your friends?" Teuchi asked, a little surprised.
He remembered that not long ago, Naruto had always been alone, often complaining to him about his loneliness.
To see him now with so many friends filled him with a sense of warmth.
"Yeah, but today I'm only treating him," Naruto said, pointing at Goku.
"Well then, Naruto, and our other esteemed guests, what kind of ramen would you like?"
"I'll have a bowl of pork bone ramen!" Naruto said without a second thought.
Sasuke and Sakura followed. "One bowl of miso ramen."
"Same for me, one bowl of miso ramen."
Goku, however, looked at the menu, scratched his face, and asked tentatively, "Um, excuse me, can I have one of every flavour?"
Hearing this, Teuchi looked over in surprise. "Sir, will you be able to finish all that?"
It was only then that Naruto remembered Goku's terrifying appetite, and his face instantly turned pale.
'I'm doomed, I'm doomed, I'm doomed! How could I have forgotten about that? My money... wait, will my money even be enough?'
The thought that the cost of Goku's meal would not only drain his entire savings but that even his savings wouldn't be enough made his world go dark.
'Whatever. In the worst-case scenario, I'll put it on a tab and pay it back after I complete a few more missions. I'm sure the old man will be okay with that.'
After a few seconds of internal struggle, he devised this less-than-ideal solution. The die was already cast; there was no way he could back out now.
He would have to grit his teeth and bear it.
Meanwhile, after getting confirmation from Goku, Teuchi didn't ask any more questions and started making the ramen.
Soon, a bowl of ramen was placed in front of Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura and in front of Goku, there were nearly ten bowls!
"Whoa! It smells so good!" Goku's eyes lit up as he looked at the fragrant and delicious ramen in front of him. "Well then, time to dig in!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he picked up one of the bowls, his chopsticks moving in a blur.
Slurrrrp—!!
Munch, munch, munch!!
Gulp, gulp, gulp!!
The ramen in the bowl vanished at a speed visible to the naked eye. In less than five seconds, the bowl was empty.
"What the...?!" Even though Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were already aware of Goku's appetite, they were still shocked by the scene, to say nothing of Teuchi, who was witnessing it for the first time.
"Another round, please!" Before Teuchi could even recover from his shock, Goku had already finished all the ramen in front of him and was signalling for another full set.
"Y-yes, right away!" For some reason, Teuchi suddenly felt a heavy weight in his heart, as if he were about to march into battle.
His hands moved with incredible speed, and he soon presented a new set to Goku.
Slurrrrp—!
Munch, munch, munch!
Gulp, gulp, gulp!!
"Another round, please!"
"Coming right up!!"
"Another round, please!"
"Immediately!!"
"Another round, please!"
"It's ready!!!"
At some point, Teuchi had stopped waiting for Goku's signal and started making the next batch in advance.
The moment Goku finished eating, the next set was ready to be served.
So, the two of them fell into a frantic rhythm of one making and the other eating, leaving Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura so dumbfounded that they didn't even notice their own ramen had gone cold.
After some time, when Teuchi's production speed could no longer keep up with Goku's eating speed, Goku finally put down his empty bowl, rubbed his stomach, and said with contentment, "Ah~ I'm so full!"
Hearing this, Teuchi, who was trembling in the back as he prepared the next bowl, let out a long breath, feeling as if he had just escaped death.
Heaven have mercy! In just one hour, he had made several hundred bowls of ramen, completing an entire day's worth of work.
It was fortunate that he was still in his prime and his body could handle it; otherwise, he would have collapsed long ago.
After Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura had also finished their ramen, he looked at Naruto and said, "Naruto, your meal is on the house today. As for your guest, I'll give you a discount. Let's call it twenty thousand ryo."
Naruto gulped and emptied the entire contents of his wallet onto the counter, a sheepish grin on his face.
"Hey, old man, this is all the money I have right now. Can I... uh... put the rest on a tab? Hahaha..."
Looking at the amount on the counter, which was not even a tenth of the bill, Teuchi shook his head with a sigh.
He knew it. The kid definitely didn't have that kind of money, even with the discount.
Just then, Goku suddenly started patting his clothes. He soon pulled out a thick wad of bills and placed them on the counter.
"Um, is this enough?"
(T/N: Please give me some power stone, I hope it can at least reach the top 100)
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