The afternoon sun hung low over Konoha, spilling gold over the rooftops and bathing the training fields in soft, slanted light. Somewhere behind the academy, where the shadows of the buildings stretched long and forgotten, Naruto Uzumaki crouched with his back to a peeling wooden fence, dirt smudged across one cheek and a rip in the elbow of his orange sweatshirt.

"Hey, demon brat!" A rock bounced near his foot, clattering off the stone path. Laughter followed, cruel and easy.

Three kids stood a few meters away—older than Naruto, but not by much. One had a stick slung across his shoulders, another a smug smirk, and the third held another pebble between his thumb and forefinger, rolling it contemplatively.

"You still think you're one of us?" said the smirking boy. "You're just a monster in a kid's skin. My mom says we're not supposed to go near you. Says you're dangerous." "Bet he eats real kids at night!" the one with the stick added, chuckling.

Naruto didn’t say anything. His fists were clenched tight in his lap, knuckles pale. He wasn’t crying. Not yet. Not this time. He stared at the ground like he could will it to swallow him whole. His face burned—not from shame exactly, but something heavier, hotter. Lonelier.

"Why don't you just go away?" "Yeah, no one wants you here!" Another rock, this one landing with a sharp thwack against the wall behind Naruto’s head.

Then the wind shifted.

Zip. A stone zipped through the air, striking the smug kid square on the shoulder. He yelped.

"What the—?" Another—thwack—hit the stick-holder on the thigh. He stumbled back, dropping the stick.

"Who's doing that!?"

They didn’t see anyone, not at first. But then came a flurry—half a dozen small stones, flying fast, each one biting sharply at ankles, arms, legs. One even pinged off the top of the third kid's head, who shrieked and ducked.

"It's the demon!" one of them shouted, panicked. "No, it's ghosts or something—" "I'm outta here!"

They scattered, tripping over each other as they fled down the alley, still dodging rocks that never missed. The silence afterward came quickly, the only sounds Naruto’s shaky breath and the distant rustle of leaves.

He didn’t look up right away. He was used to people walking past, or whispering, or throwing things. But not this. Not... this silence, this feeling. Different. He glanced up, cautiously.

There you were.