Chapter 40: The Beginning of Konoha's Great Change
"Billboard Brow! I got here first!"
"Ino-pig! Clearly, I was the one who got here first!"
Before the main subject, Uchiha Sasuke, could even speak, the two girls pushing and shoving their way in began to argue. This was exactly what Narutohad predicted; the show was about to begin.
"If you don't ask the person in question first and just bicker among yourselves, it won't help either of you sit next to Sasuke."
Naruto's mischievous side was on full display. He was already annoyed that Uchiha Sasuke pestered him every day to learn swordsmanship, leaving him with no time for more secretive training. Under these circumstances, Naruto was more than happy to see this play out.
The relationship between boys and girls is subtle and one of the most difficult to handle. Narutobelieved that as long as Uchiha Sasuke was occupied with trouble, he would have a much easier time.
However, Naruto still underestimated Uchiha Sasuke. What Sasuke wanted most right now was to learn Naruto's swordsmanship and, while he was at it, defeat Naruto a few more times.
"Boring!" Uchiha Sasuke spoke coldly, without even lifting his head to look at the two of them.
"Uh..."
"This..."
Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka glanced at each other. After a brief moment of shock, a raging fire erupted in both of their eyes.
"It's all your fault! Ino-pig!"
"Billboard Brow! You're the one who scared Sasuke-kun!"
The two of them crowded close to Sasuke, and a new round of confrontation officially began. This annoyed the aloof Sasuke to no end, leaving him with no choice but to continue feigning indifference with his head down.
Naruto, on the other hand, was quite happy. He had found another topic that could instantly shut Uchiha Sasuke up, and he was curious to see how the relationship between the three in front of him would develop in the future.
After all, gossip is human nature. Even though a young adult's Soul was locked inside Naruto's six-year-old body, it couldn't stop the raging fire of gossip deep within his heart.
But this brief farce did not last long. After the Ninjateacher entered the classroom, not only did Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka stop their quarreling, but the entire classroom instantly became silent.
"Would these two students please return to their seats? The teacher is about to start the lesson!"
"Let me introduce myself. My name is Iruka Umino, Rank Chunin. If nothing unexpected happens, I will be your teacher and Homeroom Teacher for the next six years at the Ninja Academy."
"Alright, I've finished my introduction. Now it's the students' turn!" Iruka Umino pointed to the row by the window, starting with Naruto who sat at the very front. "We'll start with this student and go in order."
"Oh, right. When you introduce yourselves, you can be detailed, like mentioning your hobbies, dreams, and so on."
Naruto had already prepared himself for this when he sat at the front. After all, the front row is the best place to listen to the lecture, and naturally, it's the place where the teacher calls on students most frequently.
Of course, the probability of students in the back row being called on was also high, but the front row still had priority.
"Hello everyone, my name is Uzumaki Naruto. I'm six years old. My favorite things are learning and training. My dream... is to become a great Ninja like Hokage Grandpa!"
Naruto showed no sign of shyness. Sitting at the front was a calculated move; he wanted to build his Personal Network during his time at the Ninja Academy, which would definitely be of great help in the future.
After all, of the strongest bonds in life, the bond between classmates Ranks among the highest. Naruto would not let this opportunity slip by.
"Hello everyone, my name is Hyuga Hinata. I'm six years old. I like... I like making bento for Naruto-kun... My dream is... is..." Hyuga Hinata, who sat right next to Naruto, stood up and began her introduction. But as she spoke, Naruto noticed something was wrong—the girl's body temperature was rising rapidly!
This was a precursor to fainting!
"Reporting, Teacher! Hinata's dream is my dream!" To prevent Hyuga Hinata from making a fool of herself by fainting in public on the first day of school, Naruto quickly stood up to bail her out.
Although it was a bit intrusive, Iruka Umino only frowned slightly before moving on, turning his gaze toward Uchiha Sasuke, who was staring blankly out the window.
"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I like learning and training. My dream is to tear someone's mouth and beat him until he's looking for his teeth on the ground!"
Naruto had expected this kind of performance from Uchiha Sasuke. After all, the boy's aloofness seemed innate. However, the latter half of the sentence, which sounded like a declaration of challenge, still made the corners of Naruto's mouth curl up.
He liked a human sandbag like Uchiha Sasuke, someone who could keep up with his pace of progress and remained undaunted. Not only could he take a beating, but he also provided Naruto with surprises sometimes. Such a sparring partner was exactly what Naruto wanted.
"Hello everyone, my name is..."
"Hello everyone, my name is..."
More than half the class time passed quickly with various introductions. This kind of boring, childish education didn't interest many adults, and Narutowas no exception.
However, Naruto was prepared. After the introductions of several descendants of Konoha's medium and large clans that he cared about were finished, he took out a book on Ninjutsu theory he had taken from Hiruzen Sarutobi's home and began to study it.
If one looked closely at the book in Naruto's hand, it was quite different from a standard book. At best, it could only be considered a collection of various hand-copied bound volumes.
But this simple bound volume contained the theories of all Ninjutsu research results by Hiruzen Sarutobi before the age of thirty. It was the personal insights of the "Ninja Professor" on Five Elements Ninjutsu.
This was a treatment that ordinary people, or even members of the large Hyuga and Uchiha Clans, could not obtain. Such insights from a Kage-level Ninja who had ruled over an era were true treasures!
And yet, such a treasure was being held openly in Naruto's hand. Looking at the position of the bookmark in the hand-copied volume, it was clear that Naruto had been studying it for quite some time.
A day of idle time passed quickly. If not for Hiruzen Sarutobi's hand-copied book, Naruto figured he would have died of boredom. So, as soon as school was over, Naruto pulled the equally bored-looking Uchiha Sasuke straight to the training ground.
Naturally, they were joined by Hyuga Hinata, Naruto's die-hard "follower."
However, while the three were sweating profusely at the training ground, Uchiha Itachi encountered the first major turning point in his life, which also meant the Uchiha Clan was about to enter a crossroads concerning the Family's survival.
"I'm leaving this eye of mine in your care, Itachi!"
On a cliffside, Uchiha Shisui, having escaped the pursuit of the Root Ninja, spoke his final words with his one remaining eye open.
"Itachi, I have one more gift for you. Although it seems cruel, this is undoubtedly your greatest capital for saving the Uchiha Clan!"
Uchiha Shisui gouged out his only remaining eye and placed it in Uchiha Itachi's hand. "Kill me! This is the secret of the Uchiha Clan's Ultimate Power, and also a curse from deep within our Bloodline!"
After speaking, Uchiha Shisui opened his arms with a smile.
After hesitating for a moment, Uchiha Itachi drew his blade with tears in his eyes!
[If you like this novel, please share it on Facebook. The author would be very grateful.]