One night, under a blood moon, he finds a growing from the ruins of Ichiraku Ramen. Its fruit glows like a tiny sun. Part II: The Lemon Girl When Naruto plucks the lemon, it bleeds . The juice forms a woman’s silhouette—translucent, golden, naked. Her hair is citrus-scented vines. Her eyes are seeds.

"I’m scared," she admits. "I don’t want to be a memory."

She splits the . They each bite half.

Naruto does the unthinkable: . Instead, he grafts his own heart into the tree. The bark pulses with nine-tailed fox fire.

But Naruto collapses, aging 300 years in seconds. His hair turns white. His whisker scars fade. Lemon cradles him. "You gave me mortality. Let me give you eternity."