I'm Inside Naruto Manga

On the way to meet the sponsors, Summer felt a familiar nervousness similar to when she took the bus to the anime convention.

Following Hannah, she arrived at the official Naruto exhibition area. A previously instructed staff member greeted them and led them through the winding queue.

The stares from passersby were drawn to them, and though usually unnoticed, these gazes now felt piercing, lingering on her face, chest, and thighs, like needles lightly pricking her skin.

She saw many fans wearing forehead protectors, 'This seemed to be a group activity.'

Summer felt a bit envious as she watched a few cosplayers dressed in Ninja vests being surrounded by fans taking pictures. She had also thought about cosplaying as a Naruto's character, and smiling at the camera with pure joy as she did before.

'Wow, there's even a wall for throwing kunai and shuriken...'

"Summer, keep up." Hannah glanced back and gently pulled her hand.

"Oh, right."

Summer took one last reluctant look at the pile of Naruto merchandises before entering the resting tent behind the exhibition stand.

The space wasn't very large. Hosting an exhibition stand at the venue was already impressive, considering the investment the company had put into the Naruto franchise.

Staff members with badges hurried around, the host was touching up makeup, indicating the stage activity was about to start. When Summer and Hannah, two eye-catching cosplayers, entered, they drew a glance from others before they resumed their tasks.

Unfortunately, they weren't here to perform cosplay on stage. After all, a stand of this level wouldn't invite cosplayers without much fame.

Summer immediately noticed the men in suits sitting in the most comfortable seats, surrounded by attendants. She instinctively clenched her skirt.

Hannah already smiled and greeted him, "Hello, who is Mr. Spencer?"

"Oh, you're here!" A Surprisingly, it was a staff member talking to the men in suits who raised his hand, his badge reading 'Deputy Director of the Naruto Exhibition Activities'.

The deputy director, slightly bald, smiled and said, "I am Mr. Spencer, and you are Hannah and Summer, right?"

Summer, half-hiding behind Hannah, nodded while clutching her arm.

Most of the men in suits had long hair over their ears and seemed reticent. The deputy director gestured towards them and lowered his voice slightly, "These are the Japanese representatives sent by the partners. You're here to accompany them. "

The situation became clear. Mr. Spence, as the 'sponsor', had provided the funds, but the actual clients were the ones seated.

'Japanese...' Summer glanced over and felt even more bitter for some reason.

The representatives from the animation production company and the original manga team stood up, speaking in Japanese to the deputy director.

After a translator conveyed the message, the deputy director cheerfully patted the two Japanese men on the shoulders, looking very familiar, and whispered a few words through the translator. Upon hearing this, the two Japanese men also smiled knowingly.

The atmosphere suddenly became very cordial. Finally managing to break the ice with these Japanese, who pretended to be nonchalant from the moment he got off the plane, the deputy director genuinely laughed. At this time, some previously difficult negotiations seemed to be resolved. He then pointed at Summer and Hannah, giving a thumbs-up and said in broken Japanase, "Utskusitj!"

The Japanese didn't understand but happily gave a thumbs-up too.

Summer didn't catch the conversation, but the friendly expressions made her feel uneasy. One of the Japanese men, with a poor physique, seemed worried his suit would burst at the seams. Amid the laughter, he glanced at Summer, who lowered her head.

At this time, she felt a chill from the air conditioning down her spine and a wave of melancholy.

Hannah kept smiling, unconcerned about who the clients were. In fact, if they were foreign representatives, it might be even more lucrative.

"Hannah and Summer, you two accompany Mr. Shimada and Mr. Yamamoto. I need to attend to other matters!" The deputy director winked a few times before disappearing.

In front of the resting tent, the music from the stage began to roar, and the event at the Naruto stand had started. Sitting next to the poorly-built Mr. Shimada, Summer's mind went blank several times.

She barely noticed when the OP she had been looking forward to ended. Sitting stiffly, Summer's mind replayed all the difficulties in her life like a slideshow.

Mr. Shimada, the Japanese man, seemed interested in the reactions of the fans outside. He chatted with his companion, Yamamoto, in Japanese, occasionally glancing at the stiff girl beside him and spoke warmly, expressing some concern.

"What? What did you say?" Summer looked confused.

"Mr. Shimada asked if you were okay, Miss Summer. He noticed you seem a bit tense. Are you feeling uncomfortable?" The Japanese translator conveyed the message in a timely manner, though his tone was cold.

"I'm fine, thank you..." Although she felt very uncomfortable, Summer forced a smile and bowed to both the translator and Shimada.

The translator's eyes flashed with a hint of disdain as he formally translated Shimada's further comforting words.

Time dragged on painfully. Summer clutched the hem of her skirt, which barely covered a few inches of her thighs. Her long, pale legs extended straight down, once a source of pride, now felt different.

Outside, fans continued to revel. Summer tried to distract herself by watching a staff member sneakily lift the curtain to peek at the stage.

"Next is number 48! Let's welcome this lucky fan~"

"Is number 48 here? If you have this number, please raise your hand. A staff member will bring you up..."

Summer also glanced towards the small stage, now exposed to the bright, almost otherworldly light that contrasted sharply with the dark, blurry faces in the crowd. Amid the brightness, a clean-cut young man reluctantly stepped onto the stage and stood next to the host.

A stagehand rushed to lower the curtain, cutting off the view of the stage. Summer suddenly felt like she had lost a lifeline, a distraction from her current environment.

The sound is still coming faintly——

"Congratulations to this... anything you'd like to say..."

"..."

"Who's your favorite character in Naruto?"

"This, it's Raiden Hattori..."

Summer was stunned, and then buried her head deeper. This is the official Naruto exhibition, and Hattori is the only Anime character she had truly liked. In the fictional world, he was so strong and pure, while she, being here, wasn't facing this with a pure heart or mind.

"Then, how about you come and perform as Hattori! Lines, actions, anything, otherwise, I won't give you a prize..."

"..."

The roaring noises started, and Summer felt an odd urge to laugh at the absurdity, 'They actually asked him to perform as Hattori…' The curtain had been lowered, but it was just a few steps away. She wanted to look, but didn't.

The same staff member who had lifted the curtain earlier mischievously lifted a corner again. Light and sound poured in louder. Summer couldn't help but raise her head, revealing her gray, seventeen-year-old youth.

What she saw was a figure completely different from the reluctant one earlier. She stood stunned, as if struck by an illusion that hit her core. The figure wore a Konoha forehead protector and a fox mask, common yet uncommon in their harmony. The figure stood strangely upright. She opened her mouth slightly, seeing the scene she had envisioned. The Ninja she had imagined, that purity appeared, she couldn't understand it, but her pupils still deeply imprinted them on her mind. It was Raiden Hattori.

In October 2017, the heat hadn't yet faded. At the Los Angeles Anime Convention, Logan accidentally became an interactive audience member and reluctantly took the ANBU mask on stage.

The moment he put on the mask, a sense of overlap between the two worlds occurred. Not only for Logan, but also for the thousands of spectators at the scene. The transformation, shaped by time and bloodshed, felt natural. Everyone felt a strange authenticity, as if the real Hattori had arrived.

The intense aura blurred the line between reality and fiction, and the whole audience was silent for a while.