The morning sun spilled gently over the tiled roofs of the Hidden Leaf Village, casting golden streaks across the market streets. The Arai household was already awake, the scent of grilled rice cakes and miso drifting through the open windows.
Haruki sat cross-legged at the table, stuffing his face with sticky rice, his hair sticking up in wild directions. He was three now -older, braver, and (in his words) "almost a real ninja."
Kenji leaned over from the pottery wheel in the next room. "Slow down, sprout, or you'll choke."
"Mfff'mgonna see ninja today," Haruki mumbled through a mouthful of food.
Mika raised an eyebrow. "Again? You just watched them three days ago."
Haruki beamed. "I wanna see if they can do the water-whoosh kick!"
"The what now?" Kenji chuckled.
Haruki stood on the cushion and struck a dramatic pose, one leg up, arms flailing. "It's like whoosh! and then they land in water and don't even fall!"
Mika gave a mock gasp. "Incredible. That sounds like serious shinobi business."
"It is," Haruki said solemnly. "I gotta learn."
***
That afternoon, Haruki followed the narrow dirt path that led past the civilian quarter and up the gentle slope toward the training fields near the Academy. He moved like a mission boy -quiet, swift, sticking close to walls and bushes the way he'd seen ninja do.
He reached the edge of the practice ground just as a class of academy students assembled under a tall jonin with a long scar down one cheek. Haruki stayed behind the old fence, crouching low, peeking between slats.
They practiced throws, hand seals, and footwork. Haruki mimicked every movement with quiet determination, palms slapping together awkwardly as he tried to remember the patterns.
"One-two-RAM… wait… RAM-TIGER-BIRD? …I need a scroll…" he whispered, scrunching up his face.
"You look like you're passing a tough dumpling," came a voice behind him.
Haruki yelped and nearly fell backward.
Towering over him was a man with a wide grin, a strong jaw, thick eyebrows, and a vibrant green jumpsuit stretched tightly across a barrel chest. His hair was pulled back into a bowl cut, and he had his hands proudly on his hips.
"Stealthy! But not stealthy enough!" he declared with a thumbs-up.
Haruki blinked, confused. "Who… who are you?"
"I- am MIGHT DUY!" he said dramatically, birds flying off a nearby tree from the volume alone. "The Eternal Genin! Master of Youthful Spirit and Hard Work!"
"…Eternal what?" Haruki asked cautiously.
"GENIN!" Duy shouted again, flexing one arm. "Though I never passed the chunin exams, my flames of perseverance burn BRIGHTER THAN THE SUN!"
Haruki stared at him in baffled silence. Then, after a moment, "Are you a ninja?"
"Yes indeed! A man of perseverance, sweat, and the Eight Gates!"
Haruki's eyes lit up. "Can you teach me how to do the water-whoosh kick?"
Duy blinked. Then he smiled, dropping to one knee. "That depends… can you endure 500 laps around the village first?!"
Haruki gasped. "I don't even know how big the village is!"
Duy laughed, and not in a mocking way. It was full-bellied and warm. "Then we will begin with ten! No! FIVE! And then… basic stances! Are you ready, tiny flame of potential?"
Haruki nodded fiercely. "I'm ready!"
***
Thus began Haruki's strange, secret training.
Every other afternoon, when Kenji and Mika thought he was watching Academy practice, Haruki met Might Duy in the forest glade just beyond the village perimeter. The sessions weren't fancy, no jutsu, no chakra tricks. But to Haruki, they were everything.
Duy taught him balance, breath control, and stances. They did push-ups in the grass, ran between trees, and practiced leaping with knees tucked. Most of all, they sweated.
"Don't seek to be the best overnight," Duy said, holding a perfectly stable crane stance on one foot. "Seek to be better than yesterday! That is true strength!"
Haruki mimicked him, swaying dangerously. "Even if you fall?"
"Especially if you fall!"
Sometimes, Haruki would stumble and get dirt on his face. He'd pout, shake it off, and try again. Duy cheered every effort.
"Young man, your determination burns hotter than the flames of youth I've been building for decades!"
***
Mika noticed a change before long.
Haruki was livelier. Hungrier. He had new bruises on his knees and twigs in his hair.
"Are you sure you're just watching the ninja?" she asked one evening as she cleaned him up.
Haruki paused, chewing his lip. "I'm… doing practice. But not dangerous stuff."
"Who's training you?" she asked gently.
Haruki hesitated. "Might Duy."
Mika's hands stopped.
"The Eternal Genin?" she said softly.
Haruki nodded. "He's really nice. He says I'm full of potential and spirit."
Kenji, who had overheard from the doorway, smiled. "Duy's harmless. Bit eccentric, but sincere."
Mika looked uncertain. "He's… known for overdoing it."
"But he's helping me get strong!" Haruki said quickly.
That night, Mika and Kenji talked again.
"He's just a boy," Mika said. "Three years old, Kenji."
"I know," Kenji replied. "But I've never seen him so focused."
Mika sighed, rubbing her temples. "I don't want him to get hurt. And I don't want him to feel like he has to become a ninja to matter."
Kenji nodded. "But maybe… maybe this is just him finding his way."
She looked out the window at the moonlit street.
"Then we'll watch. Closely. And if it ever feels wrong… we stop it."
***
The next day, Haruki arrived early to the glade. Duy was already there, balancing upside down on one finger atop a boulder.
"Today!" Duy announced. "We learn the art of endurance through stillness!"
Haruki blinked. "What does that mean?"
"It means we sit like frogs until we can hear the wind moving through our bones!"
Haruki blinked again. "...Are you sure you're not crazy?"
"CERTAINLY NOT!" Duy grinned. "Now, frog pose!"
They sat together, legs folded, backs straight, eyes closed. Haruki fidgeted at first. Then slowly, he found stillness.
He could hear birds. Leaves. His own breath.
It was quiet. But powerful.
"I feel like I'm floating," he whispered.
"That," Duy said softly, "is the feeling of focus. No chakra needed. Just you. And the world."
***
Haruki trained like this for months.
He never asked for shortcuts. Never complained. He didn't try to leap ahead of what Duy taught him. He simply showed up, again and again.
Duy was impressed.
Not by strength, Haruki was still clumsy and small, but by spirit.
"This boy," Duy muttered one day, watching him punch a wooden post with determined little fists, "he has the fire of youth. Not forged in jutsu… but in heart. And that may be rarer still."
Haruki stopped to catch his breath. "How do you… keep trying when everyone says you're not strong?"
Duy knelt beside him, eyes serious.
"Because strength isn't what they think. Strength isn't just chakra or winning fights. It's getting back up. It's doing one more rep. It's believing in your own worth, even when no one else sees it yet."
Haruki blinked. "Even if… I'm not a ninja?"
"Especially then," Duy said with a fierce smile.
***
On Haruki's fourth birthday, he received his usual gifts—a new vest from Mika, a miniature vase from Kenji. But there was one more.
A neatly folded green scarf.
Handmade. The same shade as Duy's jumpsuit.
Attached was a note:
"To the Sprout of Determination, May your spirit bloom eternally. – M.D."
Haruki hugged it tight, tears pricking his eyes.
***
And somewhere on the outskirts of the village, Might Duy smiled to himself beneath a tree, watching cherry blossoms drift on the wind.
"Grow well, little seedling," he whispered. "One day… you'll be a force no one saw coming."
Konoha Year: 37