This Must Be...

This must be... Japanese 101.

Random metal clanking forced its way through my ear canals and pounded against my eardrums. I turned to my side and pulled a corner of the pillow my head rested on to cover my exposed ear. But then, a strange smell emitted into the room. 'Food...?' My eyes opened slowly and I could see that the sun was lighting up the room rather brightly. I let go of the pillow and rubbed the crust off of my eyes. I sat up on the bed and looked around - the room was unfamiliar, but then I remembered what happened last. 'Ugh... still here... why?...' My eyes scanned the room - there was no sign of life, but then a loud yelp caught my attention and brought me to my feet. The smells continued to get stronger (and not in a good way) from the direction of some mumbling I heard and so I made my way slowly to the opening of the room, peeking into the next.

"Itai!" (Ouch!) Naruto was in front of his stove looking pained at his reddened hand then back at the pan on the stove, giving it an annoyed look. His pajamas were slightly singed at the sleeves. I couldn't help but giggle at his misfortune which, to my unfortunate amusement, caught his attention.


"Ā! Ohayō! Watashi wa chōshoku o tsukuru shiyō to shite itaga, watashi wa ryōri ga hontōni yoide wanaidesu." (Oh! Good morning! I was trying to make breakfast, but I'm not really good at cooking.) He rubbed the back of his head and giggled nervously. The food in the pan had burnt and was starting to disintegrate into dark dust. A swirl of smoke stank up the kitchen/dining room as it rose to the ceiling. I made my way towards the stove and looked at it disappointedly. I took the pan to the sink to wash after I had thrown the burnt food into a nearby trash can.

"I," my index finger pressed firmly onto my chest a few times, "cook," then made a stirring motion with my hand over the pan. "Reira cook." I made the same gestures, hoping he understood, and waited - plus I added the funky accent everyone seemed to have put on my name. He looked at me funny but then nodded his head in agreement.

"Kokku?" Naruto copied my stirring motion as well as the word. It sounded so funny, but I held in my giggle and instead smiled as I nodded.

"Cook," I repeated happily.

"Kokku." He continued to reply back. As we went back and forth trying to get him to pronounce the word correctly, an idea flooded my mind. I immediately looked around for pieces of scrap paper and a writing tool. For some odd reason, I found some crayons lying around and decided to use them. 'He truly is a kid at heart.' I sat down at his small dining table and laid the papers and crayons on top of the table and continued to search for random household items. I excitedly gestured him to sit down as I placed the few items I wanted to use on the table. When I finished, I sat across from him and smiled anxiously at what I was about to try.



First, I grabbed an empty cup, "Cup," and pointed to it. Naruto nodded and abruptly stood up. My eyes followed him, confused, as he went to his fridge, opened it and took out a carton of milk. He then pointed to the milk.

"No! No..." My head shook as I waved both hands emphatically. 'How do you say no?'


"Īe!" It finally dawned on me. I gestured him to sit down, but he was busy sniffing the carton. He gave it a disgusted look, threw it in the trash and finally sat back down. I decided to grab the pan again along with a cooking utensil and made the stirring motion again.
 "Cook," I stopped and gestured to him, hoping he would try.


"Kokku." He was rather blank about it, but it was exciting for me.


"Hai!" 'Yes! Close enough! Hopefully, he understands what I want him to do.' I put the pan down and grabbed the cup again and pointed.


"Cup." I held the cup closer to him and nodded.


"Kappu?" he gave the item a puzzled look.