💎 WEEKLY POWER GOALS 💎🔥 30→2ch | 60→5ch | 100→8ch | 200→15ch | 400→25ch⏰ Resets Monday!
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Morning classes were over. It was still break time.
After the bell, Kushina Uzumaki found herself surrounded by a few boys from the class.
"Tomato! From today, your name is Tomato! A round, chubby face plus red hair? That's a tomato!"
"How could a tomato ever become Hokage?"
"I hate tomatoes!"
"Me too! I always leave them in my salad!"
"An unpopular tomato could never win the villagers' respect!"
"Hahaha…"
Kushina puffed out her cheeks, fuming, but she had no comeback.
Because… damn it, they had a point. She did kind of look like one.
"An unpopular tomato and an unpopular traitor. No wonder you two sit together."
"Tomato and Traitor. A perfect match."
…
Qianyu curled his lip in disgust. He had a nickname at school too: Traitor. The two-faced rat.
He got it because that's what their parents called him.
The little brats were getting carried away, dragging him into their teasing of Kushina. Qianyu couldn't ignore it anymore.
Mostly, he glanced at Minato Namikaze. The blond kid was watching Kushina, but seemed to have zero intention of stepping in.
Just as Qianyu stood up to walk over, one of the brats grabbed a handful of Kushina's hair.
"It's ripe! Tomato harvest festival! Time to pick the fruit!"
Kushina grabbed the kid's wrist, about to explode—but Qianyu was already behind the hair-puller.
"Hey. Move."
The circle of boys instantly shifted their focus to him. "What gives you, the traitor, the right to tell us to move? Get lost!"
Qianyu's voice was flat. "You really wanna get beaten up here? In front of everyone?"
Not long after he first enrolled, a few students had tried to corner him too. But with half-Senju blood running through his veins, Qianyu's physique was… exceptional. He'd taken on several at once.
After that, even if he wasn't on Minato's level, he was firmly in the top tier of the school. Gradually, the bullies—cowards who preyed on the weak—stopped bothering him.
His words made the boys freeze.
Qianyu walked forward. He shoved past the kid still holding Kushina's hair with his shoulder and left the classroom.
Outside, he stopped. A realization hit him.
Kushina Uzumaki… probably didn't need his help.
She had a fighter's spirit. And Uzumaki stamina was anything but normal.
A second later.
THUD. SMACK. OOF!
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A TOMATO? FOR THE RECORD, I HATE TOMATOES TOO!"
He heard Kushina's voice, followed by the sound of bodies hitting the floor. She'd grabbed the hair-puller's arm and used him as a flail, sweeping the others aside.
Then, a rhythmic thump-thump-thump. She was sitting on one of them, tiny fists raining down on his head. "Look down on me again! Call me tomato again! I'll make you regret it!"
Then her voice, annoyed. "What's so funny?!"
Qianyu peeked back in. Kushina was glaring at a brightly smiling Minato Namikaze. Minato instantly snapped his head away, only daring to watch her from the corner of his eye.
Afternoon classes were about to start.
Qianyu bought a rice ball from the convenience store, ate it on the walk back, and slid into his seat.
Kushina sat beside him, lips still pursed in a pout.
He glanced at the boys from earlier. Their heads were covered in lumps.
Still mad? Feel like you didn't hit them enough?
He said nothing, tuning into the teacher's droning lecture.
During class, he felt eyes on him. Frequent, furtive glances from the redhead beside him.
The whole afternoon. It made his skin crawl.
Finally, the bell rang. School was out. Qianyu was out of his seat and halfway down the hall before most had packed their bags.
His mind was consumed by one thing: Thunder Breathing.
He didn't notice the redhead behind him, hand half-raised, expression awkward.
Kushina had been about to speak. He was an outcast. She was an outcast. She was just a kid, in a strange new place, and she desperately wanted a friend.
His attempt to help her—however clumsy—had sparked hope. She wanted to be his friend.
Watching his retreating back, she clenched her small fists. Her eyes filled with determination. She ran after him.
But Qianyu was a boy on a mission. He practically sprinted home.
Kushina chased him, her short legs pumping furiously.
They left the main streets of Konoha, reaching the quieter edge of the village. Exhausted, Kushina yelled, "Hey! Wait up!"
The familiar voice made Qianyu stop. He turned, genuinely shocked to see her there.
Seeing he'd finally stopped, Kushina bent over, hands on her knees, gasping for air.
Qianyu walked back to her. "Did you need something?"
Kushina took a deep breath, stood up straight, and thrust out her small hand. "My name is Kushina Uzumaki!" she declared loudly.
Qianyu looked at her, his expression unreadable.
Kushina's courage wavered under his gaze. Her heart pounded.
"Qianyu."
He reached out, gave her hand a brief, perfunctory shake, and let go.
"Qianyu? Is that your family name? Or your given name?"
"Given name. I don't have a family name."
"Huh? No family name?"
Her mind short-circuited. How could someone not have a family name?
"Did you need something?" Qianyu asked again.
Kushina mustered all her courage. "I… I want to be your friend!"
Just as I thought.
"Uzumaki," he said, his voice calm. "You've seen how it is for me in class."
She nodded naively. "Yeah. I know. You're isolated, like me."
A faint, humorless smile touched his lips. "Your situation is different from mine. I'm isolated by the entire village. If you become my friend, you might be isolated by everyone too."
"Today was just your first day. You ran into some bad apples. You'll find other friends."
"Ask the teacher to change your seat. Even sitting next to me will make it harder. It's getting late. You should head back. See you."
He gave her a small wave, a clear dismissal, and turned to leave.
Kushina watched his back grow smaller and smaller. Her head drooped, shoulders slumping.
She'd finally gathered the courage to reach out… only to be rejected. It hurt.
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