Chapter Text
Rain fell heavily outside the window of the tenth floor of Process Inc.'s main office. Everyone inside sat glued to their cubicles, ignoring the weather outside as they typed on the computers. But one person stared out the window beside his cubicle, a solemn longing look in his once bright blue eyes. Naruto Uzumaki, a 14 year old, gazed out past the drops of rain on the glass and into the gloomy horizon, the silhouettes of the factories hidden in the smog. Giving a huff, he turned back to his work. His desk was covered in papers, office supplies, and empty ramen cups. He knocked one over with his elbow as his hands returned to the keyboard, typing away at something he long wished to forget. His mind faintly echoed with memories of his youth, living on his adopted father's farm in a valley far away. Pausing from his work, he glanced over at a picture frame, the image shrouded in dust. Taking it in his hand, he wiped the dust away, revealing a picture of him and Old Man Jiraiya when he caught his first salmon. He smirked, resting his gaze on his younger self, grinning wildly while struggling to keep his balance as he held the huge salmon in his 9 year old hands.
Putting the picture back on the desk, he sighed as he leaned back in his chair. Jiraiya had passed away two years ago, and his heart ached almost all the time. He had longed to return to the simple life, away from the concrete jungle he now called home. At that moment, something stirred inside his head, a memory of something very important that Jiraiya gave him as he lay on his deathbed. Unconsciously, he opened a drawer and pulled out an envelope. He took a moment to inspect it, and then carefully opened it. Inside was a letter and a strange document. By the look of it, it seemed important, but Naruto knew that the letter had to come first. Unfolding it, he carefully read each handwritten word, his pace slow at first, but then picking up significantly towards the end. At the end, his hands were shaking, his shoulders quivering as he began to cry tears of pure joy. After a few moments, he hastily wrote a note, shut off his computer, and gathered his belongings before racing towards the elevator. One of his co-workers saw him dash out his cubicle and glanced at the note hastily taped to the outer wall of his workspace. Two words graced the page, underlined and written in large handwriting with a black Sharpie:
"I QUIT".
No one knew why he quit, but once they figured it out, they shrugged it off and continued their daily grind. As Naruto raced out of the building, the rain began to slowly die down and a small ray of sunshine broke through the clouds. Jiraiya was looking out for the boy he treated as a son and always will, even in death.