Chapter 2: "So, You Wanna Be Hokage?"
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The moonlight filtered through the paper screen of Naruto's apartment, casting a soft glow on the tatami mat floor. A half-empty cup of instant ramen sat beside a messy futon, and Naruto—still wide-eyed—stared at the blue creature lounging casually like he owned the place.
Doraemon, or rather, Conner-turned-Doraemon, stretched his short arms and yawned like a housecat that had seen too much.
Naruto pointed, still stunned. "You're a guardian angel? Like, a real one?!"
"Yup." Doraemon nodded, then adjusted the bell on his collar. "Came all the way from the afterlife just to babysit you."
Naruto puffed his cheeks. "I don't need babysitting! I'm gonna be Hokage someday, ya know—dattebayo!"
Doraemon blinked. "Datte…what now?"
"It's my cool ninja phrase!" Naruto grinned, proudly crossing his arms. "All real ninjas have one, right?"
"…Sure, let's go with that."
Naruto flopped onto his futon with a big sigh, kicking his feet up. "So what do you do anyway? You don't even look like a ninja."
"I'm more like a… consultant." Doraemon smirked. "With gadgets. And sass."
"You don't look like you got gadgets."
"Wanna bet?" He reached into his pouch and pulled out… a rubber chicken. "…Wrong pocket."
Naruto burst into laughter. "BAHAHA! What even is that?!"
"Emergency comic relief," Doraemon muttered, tossing it aside.
A long pause followed, the mood calming. Then Doraemon asked:
"So, Naruto... what's your dream?"
Naruto turned toward him, face serious for the first time that night.
"…Well, my dream? Hmm…" He sat up, eyes glowing with sincerity. "All I want is to become the Hokage!! Believe it!"
Doraemon blinked. "Why? What's so great about them, anyway?"
Naruto's face twisted in shock. "HUUUHHHH?! What's so great about them?! Are you kidding me?!"
He jumped to his feet, arms flailing.
"The Hokage are the strongest! The coolest! The most respected people in the whole village, dattebayo! They're legends—ninja heroes! Everyone loves them!"
"Uh-huh." Doraemon lay down on his side, picking his nose with a bored expression. "Do you even know who the Hokages are?"
"Of course I do!"
"Alright then, smart guy. Name them."
Naruto puffed his chest. "There's the First Hokage, then the Second Hokage, and then the Th—uh…"
He paused.
"…Third?" he said uncertainly.
Doraemon faceplanted into the tatami. A dramatic thunk.
Even the shadows seemed to sigh.
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On the rooftop…
Yugao Uzuki stared through the window, mask on, utterly dumbfounded.
"…He doesn't know the names of the Hokage?"
A pause.
"I'm not paid enough for this."
Still, she didn't move. Her instincts screamed to intervene, but years of ANBU training held her back. Observe. Only act if the target is threatened.
She pulled a scroll from her pouch, scribbled a message, and handed it to a shadow clone that she summoned with quick hand signs.
"Deliver to Lord Hokage. Immediate eyes-only," she whispered.
The clone vanished in a poof.
She turned back to the window.
"Talking blue cats. Clueless orphans. Ramen-smelling apartments… Konoha is getting weirder."
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Back inside…
Doraemon sat up, rubbing his face. "Look, I'm not saying your dream's bad, but you don't even know who you're trying to be like."
"Hey! That doesn't matter!" Naruto said defiantly. "I'll become even better than all of 'em! They'll have to remember my name!"
"Big words for a kid who couldn't pass a history quiz."
Naruto glared. "Tch. Who needs books when I got fists?"
Doraemon sighed. "Oh boy. We've got a lot of work to do."
Then, something unexpected happened. Naruto looked down, face falling slightly.
"…But really… I just want people to notice me, ya know?"
His voice was small. Raw.
"I wanna stop being alone."
Doraemon didn't laugh. He didn't roll his eyes. He just looked at him. Silently.
"…I get it," he finally said.
And in that moment, Naruto felt it.
Not just kindness.
But understanding.
Not pity.
But connection.
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TO BE CONTINUED...
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