Chapter 3

Just like this the days passed by and eventually months passed by as I was nearing 4 years of age. That sadistic nosy woman Mariko still regularly taught me to exercise and keep my body fit. She was all smiley but her training methods were truly too sadistic. She kept pushing my small body more and more. I couldn't get used to it a single day. My body was wrecked by pain every single day. Today was also the same. She made me run around in a circle for half an hour already. "Can I stop now?" I asked her hopefully. I could now form full sentences with ease.

"No~ you still need to go for 15 more minutes, and don't let your pace drop. Remember today is food day and you won't be getting any if you don't complete the exercise properly." She replied, she was sitting on a branch reading her book.

I grunted before increasing my pace a little bit. I should've known better this fox dressed in sheep clothing was a secret sadist who enjoyed watching children suffer. There was no way she would relent.

After training we went to the village like usual as we did on food days. This time we were having some barbeque. "So did you manage to find any friends?" she asked me.

I simply kept eating my food and ignored her. This was precious food time why did she have to ask such terrible questions right now and ruin it. "Kenji, I asked you something" she said taking away the barbeque from my mouth.

"Ah!.. No" I replied while trying to take back the meat that was snatched away. "It's not good to be so anti-social Kenji, you need to go out more and talk to kids your age."

I didn't have any friends in my previous life either and was living fine by myself. I was always a staunch believer that one could be happy by themselves and didn't need others. Besides I was an adult in a kids body how could I go and play around with dumb children.

"Kids are too dumb" I said before trying to get back the mean again.

Mariko's expression turned serious. "This won't do Kenji; you need to go out and make a new friend before the next food day alright? If you don't then there will be no more food days until you make at least 1 friend. Treat this as a mission."

"UGH, ok" I replied, I was finally able to get back the meat and started to refocus on eating. There was no point arguing when she turns serious.

The next day when I got up, my first priority was going to the village and making a friend. I didn't really know how to do it because I hadn't really made any friends before but how hard could it be. I ate the bland breakfast that the old man always prepares and left the house. That old man just ignored me and was focusing on his swords like usual.

When I reached the village, I went to some of the playgrounds to meet some kids but after seeing them I got annoyed at how they were playing around so I left. Yes, it was definitely not because I was nervous or I didn't know how to approach them. As I was leaving a ball that they were playing with suddenly dropped near me. I picked it up and turned to return it but the kid who was chasing after the ball suddenly screamed and ran away.

I knew I looked a little weird but there was no need to react like that! The other kids finally turned towards me and looked at me apprehensively. I got angry at them and threw the ball at some tree harshly accidently puncturing it. 'Fuck'. I thought as the kids started getting even more scared. Some of the parents even took their kids away looking at me like I was some freak.

I had slightly dark sclera instead of plain white and my iris was a golden yellow colored. It combined with my big lips and pronounced nose and lack of any facial expression other than an angry one made me a strange looking person. The only thing normal about me were my dark brown hair that I had probably inherited from my mother. Everything else was probably from that old man who also had a weird greying silver hair and sclera that was darker than mine. This gave me yet another reason to hate him he had given me nothing but undesirable traits. Truly the epitome of uselessness.

I just ignored these ignorant kids and parents and left them to go find another playground. While looking around I found a small compound with a kid doing pushups in it. He was loudly calling out the number of pushups.

Who else could it be but Rock Lee that famous knucklehead who believed in hard work more than anything. He looked almost malnutritional, made up of only bones. Even with that pathetic body he had impeccable form. I took an apple out of the sack tied behind my back and started eating it. I only had one food day provided Mariko-sensei in a week but that was too little for me. In the end I started foraging around the house and found someone's apple farm not too far away. I steal some apples from there occasionally. I also found some non-poisonous berries arounds which were placed safely in my sack.