Naruto was buried under a mountain of Hokage paperwork, his pen scratching furiously across the pages. He barely noticed the soft footsteps approaching until a small tug at his cloak snapped him from his focus. Looking down, he found Himawari staring up at him, her big blue eyes sparkling with mischief.

“Papa,” she said with a pout, crossing her arms. “I have a friend—better than Boruto!”

Naruto blinked, caught off guard. “Huh?”

From the doorway, Boruto froze mid-step, his ear tilting toward them. His usual cocky smirk faltered.

Himawari nodded proudly, her twin pigtails bouncing. “Yeah! I met him a few days ago. He’s been helping me a lot! With my powers, and he even bought me a new teddy bear. He’s a way better brother than Boruto!”

She shot a quick glance at Boruto, who scowled but stayed hidden behind the wall, listening.

Naruto set his pen down, leaning back in his chair with a mix of surprise and confusion. His daughter’s words stung—he remembered Boruto breaking her old stuffed panda in one of his careless fits, and even the incident that triggered Himawari’s Byakugan awakening. Still, hearing her compare her brother to someone else made his heart twist.

“Is that so?” Naruto asked gently, folding his arms. “And who is this ‘better brother’ of yours?”

Himawari’s eyes lit up, a secretive smile tugging at her lips. “You’ll see! He’s really kind to me, and he believes I’m strong. Stronger than Boruto thinks I am!”

Naruto’s brow furrowed as he listened to Himawari’s excited explanation. She was smiling, her little hands clasped in front of her as if she was sharing the best secret in the world. But beneath her words, all he could hear was “I met him a few days ago.”

A stranger.