Morning light filtered into the small Uzumaki home, casting soft gold across the wooden floor and modest furniture. The smell of warm broth filled the kitchen as Ren sat at the table, calmly finishing his breakfast while Naruto enthusiastically slurped the last of his ramen.
"Man, I'm ready for today! First mission as a real team!" Naruto grinned, wiping his mouth with his sleeve.
Ren raised an eyebrow. "Just don't mess it up with your excitement."
Naruto pouted. "Hey! I'm totally dependable now. Believe it."
Ren chuckled under his breath, then looked over at his brother.
"By the way... that clone jutsu you stole and somehow mastered? Think you could teach it to me?"
Naruto blinked. "You mean the Shadow Clone Jutsu? The awesome jutsu I learned from the Scroll of Seals?"
Ren gave a nod, sipping from his tea. "Yes. That one."
Naruto beamed. "Of course! So first, you have to make this hand sign, then you have to focus your chakra like you're about to split it but not really, and then—boom! Clone!"
He flailed his hands dramatically, as if that explained everything.
Ren just blinked. "That... didn't make any sense."
Naruto scratched his head. "Yeah, it's kinda hard to explain. I just sort of... feel it. You know?"
Ren sighed and set his cup down. "Just walk me through the basics. I'll figure the rest out myself."
Naruto gave a thumbs up. "You got it, little bro."
Ren rolled his eyes. "Five seconds older doesn't make you wiser."
"Still makes me older!" Naruto shouted.
They both stood, ready to head out.
"Let's both survive our first missions, yeah?"
"Tch. I plan on more than surviving."
And with that, the Uzumaki twins parted ways once more — one step closer to becoming legends.