Morning came quietly.
Eiji woke before the sun rose, and carefully folded his futon. He washed his face, straightened his clothes, and stepped downstairs.
"Morning matron" he yawned as he saw the matron already in the kitchen as usual, preparing a healthy breakfast for everyone with little of what they had.
"Why are you up so early Eiji? You should still be resting" she said as she continued stirring a pot of soup.
"I'm fine, matron, I feel okay. In fact I started to exercise since yesterday"
"Oh really?" She looked at him a little surprised. "Why did you want to start exercising Eiji?"
"I want to be strong, matron. So I can help the orphanage by gathering food and money, and maybe when I'm older I'll be a ninja."
"...Eiji, we've talked about this."
"I know matron, I promise I'll be safe and careful. I just wanted to help you since you always take care of us."
"Awh Eiji… Thank you dear. Thank you for caring about me, I'm always happy to take care of you kids." She said as she crouched down and hugged him with glistening eyes.
"Fine, if that's what you want to do Eiji, I'll always support you" as she whispered from his side as she still hugged him.
"But ALWAYS be safe, you hear me young man? Don't train too much, or go too deep into the forest" she pulled back and stared into his eyes.
"Okay matron, I promise" He replied sincerely.
"Good" She smiled satisfied. "Now go on with your training my little ninja, I'll make sure to add more of the greens and mushrooms you picked to your soup. Just don't tell the others okay, especially Kota, he'll get jealous" she smirked as she stood up to continue cooking.
"Okay matron." as he started to walk to his usual spot in the yard.
It was still roughly an hour before the sun would rise, so the air was not too hot.
"Okay, time to start training." as he started doing some normal exercises and added a few punches and kicks.
He started with stretches, slow, careful.
Then squats.
"One… two… three… fifteen"
He counted quietly, breath steady.
He sat back and shook his thighs lightly. It hurt, but he could feel the improvement. It wasn't dramatic, but it existed.
Push-ups next.
"Ten… better than yesterday."
He lay on his stomach for a moment, breathing into the cool morning earth, then rolled onto his back and stretched his arms overhead.
Surprisingly the amount of exercises he could do increased compared to yesterday.
"Fifteen squats and ten push-ups huh. That's weird, I don't feel as tired as yesterday."
He continued exercising until the sun rose, meditating between sets, feeling the warmth of his chakra. From inside he started to hear the matron's voice and kids waking up.
Breakfast passed in usual chaos. Kids bickering, laughter echoing, spoons clattering. Eiji ate quietly.
His mind drifted to his list from yesterday.
Hunting, fishing, herbs, knowledge, chakra.
The matron made him drink the medicinal tea from the doctor.
"Drink."
"…Yes Matron."
He gulped it down in one go, nearly gagging from the taste.
Kota stared at him like he had witnessed something heroic. "Ewww Eiji, why are you drinking that?"
"…It's just tea."
'I've had worse before'
But the younger boy shook his head seriously. "No. It's gross tea."
After breakfast, when everyone scattered into their usual play, Eiji slipped out into the yard again. Sunlight stretched across the grass, still soft, still fresh. He breathed it in.
"Alright… today again."
He picked up the basket again.
"Forest edge… then library."
The forest greeted him with the same cool air as before. The same quiet.
He stepped only where the sunlight still reached.
He crouched near the greens he saw yesterday, checking the leaves carefully.
"Same shape… same smell."
He picked a few more. Not too many. Enough for one portion.
He spotted another set of berries and paused.
Red, round, shiny.
He remembered the picture from yesterday's book.
Unsafe.
Stomach pain for days.
Eiji didn't touch them.
As he walked, he found a small cluster of mushrooms again. Different shape, rounder top, shorter stem.
"…This one."
He compared it to the book's memory.
Edible but bland. Not worth much.
He picked a few for the orphanage.
Next he picked some plant fibers, enough to make rope for traps
After that he started to create a few traps for small animals that could pass by. Rope traps using stones and the rope he made, coverage traps using sticks and berries as bait, bird traps using sticky plant resin he recognized from a tree, holes in the ground covered with mud, sticks, and foliage.
'I should really get some tools'
He said as he looked at his reddened hands from making the ropes, gathering, and digging holes.
He repeated it a few times. Gathering herbs, greens, berries, and mushrooms, separated into edible and poisonous ones for later, while creating a few traps spaced out, enough to catch small animals, birds, a few bugs for bait, etc.
As he was finishing his last trap, the sun had risen a few degrees, probably a few hours after sunrise.
Rustle.
His head snapped up again.
The same feeling from yesterday washed over him, something quiet. Something or someone was observing him.
He looked around slowly, heart thumping. Nothing, it was just the trees.
Still, he felt it.
Now he was sure, someone was there.
Watching.
But didn't approach.
Not threatening either.
"…It's probably a ninja on patrol," he mumbled. "That's normal. I think."
But the feeling lingered for a second too long before fading again.
He shook it off and retreated back to the orphanage.
After arriving at the orphanage, he prepared to sort and store his gatherings.
"Matron, can you please help me again with these"
"Wow Eiji, you gathered a lot" The Matron was genuinely surprised. "Okay come help me sort these Eiji"
"Thanks Matron"
"Eiji, these are poisonous, why did you collect these?" The Matron asked, confused.
"These are to make poison, matron, so I can catch larger animals or make better traps. I made a few basic ones I read in a book today" he explained.
"Poison traps? Eiji, those are still very dangerous" she said worriedly.
"I know matron, I will be very careful. But these are very useful in hunting, it can help get more food for the orphanage, and maybe even sell at the market" as he looked resolutely into the Matron's eyes.
"Hunting? …. Fine Eiji, I know you are a very careful boy, so I'll trust you on this, but don't let the other kids know okay"
"Okay Matron" he replied, happy he got approval.
After finished sorting, he prepared a few that he and the matron didn't know about, to bring to the village market.
"Matron, I'm going to the market," he said.
"MATRON, I WANT TO GO TO THE MARKET TOO!!" Kota yelled from outside as he ran inside.
"Me too, I want to go with Eiji-Nii" said Mizu following behind.
"No, you guys go have fun outside, I have work to do" said Eiji
""Awhhhh…""
"Listen to Eiji kids, and Eiji, here's some food to eat for lunch" as the Matron smiled warmly.
"Thanks Matron" Eiji accepted the packed lunch.
He stepped back onto the village road with the basket in one hand and the wrapped lunch in the other. The sun was already higher now, warming the stones beneath his sandals. People moved about more freely compared to the early morning, voices overlapping, shutters opening, metal clinking somewhere down the street.
Eiji slowed his steps as he entered the market area.
Same rule as always. Watch first. Listen first.
He didn't rush to any stall. Instead, he circled once, pretending to look at things he couldn't afford. Dried fish. Cheap tools. Bundles of rope. His eyes lingered longer than necessary, memorizing shapes and prices.
"Fresh greens!"
"River fish, still kicking!"
"Herbs for fevers. Cheap today!"
He adjusted the basket in his hand.
Eventually, he stopped near a familiar stall, the same vegetable seller from yesterday. She noticed him immediately.
"Oh? Back again, little gentleman?" she said with a smile. "What have you got there today?"
Eiji bowed slightly. "Just a few things. I wanted to ask if any of these are… useful."
He opened the basket just enough to show the contents. The woman leaned closer, inspecting carefully.
"These greens are fine," she said. "Cleanly picked too. That's good."
She nudged a mushroom aside. "This one's edible, but not popular. Better for home cooking."
Then she paused. "And these fibers… where'd you learn to collect those?"
"I read about them," Eiji said honestly.
She laughed softly. "Figures."
She counted a few coins into her palm. "It's not much, but I can take the greens. The fibers too. Someone always needs rope."
She handed him the ryo.
Eiji stared at the coins for half a second longer than necessary.
"…Thank you."
"Don't spend it all on sweets dear," she teased.
He shook his head. "I won't."
As he walked away, the weight of the coins felt heavier than they should've been. Not because of their value itself, but the potential help he can give to the matron, the orphanage.
'This works.'
He didn't stop at more stalls. Instead, he wandered, helping where he could. Carrying water. Holding crates steady. Sweeping dust from a storefront. A few people gave him money. Others just thanked him with some produce. Both mattered.
One man ruffled his hair. "You're a strange kid."
Eiji smiled politely.
By the time he left the market, his basket was lighter. But his thoughts were full.
He headed straight for the library.
The librarian raised an eyebrow when she saw him again. "You're here again kid, quite a persistent one aren't you? Most kids get bored by the first half of a single book."
"I love to read," he said simply.
"Hmm" She waved him in.
This time, he moved differently. Focusing more on specific books, instead of general topics. He found a book with training instructions. Another on forest animals and their habits, along with the best traps and bait for each. One thin booklet on chakra basics, nothing advanced, mostly warnings and simple chakra pathways for meditating.
"Children should not force chakra," he muttered quietly as he read. "Focus on breathing and awareness…"
That matched what he felt.
He copied what he could into memory. How to set traps where animals naturally pass. How to check wind direction. Which parts of rivers had more fish. Which herbs sold better.
When he left, the librarian watched him go with a thoughtful look.
Back at the orphanage, the noise greeted him again. It always did. He slipped the coins into a small cloth pouch and handed it to the matron.
"This is from the market," he said.
She froze.
"…Eiji."
"It's not much," he added quickly. "But it helps."
She didn't speak for a moment. Then she pulled him into a tight hug.
"Thank you," she whispered. "You really didn't have to…"
"I wanted to."
That night, after everyone slept, Eiji slipped outside again.
The stars were faint. The air was calm.
He sat beneath the tree, closed his eyes, and breathed.
Slow.
Steady.
The warmth stirred, gentler now. More obedient. It didn't surge or fight him.
"Good," he whispered.
For a brief moment, high above, a presence shifted. Light, curious, gone before Eiji could notice.
He kept breathing.
(To Be Continued)
A/N
If you want to read ahead, you can follow my journey while supporting me at;
p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m/HASONGSKY
and I know this might be annoying, but if you could leave some POWERSTONES, it would motivate me a lot. It's free and won't cost you anything. Thanks.