"Naruto-kun, I really want to kill it…"
The moment Naruto opened his eyes, he found Yakumo hugging him tightly, eyes rimmed with red.
After learning the truth—that she had killed her own parents with her own hands—she had nearly collapsed in despair.
It was only Naruto's comfort that gave her the courage to continue living.
"All right," Naruto smiled, gently rubbing Yakumo's head. "Then I'll go see if I can kill that thing for you."
While he knew Busōshoku Haki could strike a heart demon, he had yet to try killing one.
After all, according to the original story, only Yakumo herself could destroy Ido completely.
But Yakumo shook her head after a moment's hesitation.
"No… let's not. That thing's power is strong. If I can control it, I'll become even stronger…"
Her bloodline limit—the ability to manipulate the five senses—paired with her illusion arts, surpassed even the Uchiha's Sharingan illusions.
And with Ido, her illusions had evolved into something terrifying—True Illusions that could bring fantasy into reality.
"You've worked hard."
Naruto patted her head again.
Yakumo blushed and leaned gently against his chest.
...
A week passed.
Inside the Ninja Academy, Naruto—as always—sat alone near the window. Calm and disinterested, he gazed out at the clouds.
Every seat around him remained empty.
Ever since the chaos on the first day, no student dared sit near the blond boy.
In fact, in the entire half-month since school started, no one had spoken a single word to Naruto.
Even Iruka, standing on the podium, sighed heavily.
"Hokage-sama… the task you gave me… it's just too difficult…"
He had been asked to help Naruto make friends, but none of the students even dared look at Naruto for long.
Despite his efforts to persuade them, no one dared approach Naruto, and Naruto himself never made an effort either.
Just when Iruka thought things would stay this way indefinitely—
A change came.
As class ended, Sasuke suddenly stood up, took a deep breath, and marched toward Naruto.
"Uzumaki Naruto! I challenge you!"
Naruto's clone paused, blinking in mild surprise at the future edgelord.
"…You're challenging me?"
"Yes!" Sasuke nodded stiffly. "I've learned Katon! You're the strongest in class—so I want to test myself!"
His declaration instantly caused a stir.
Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Chōji, Yamanaka Ino, Haruno Sakura, Inuzuka Kiba…
All eyes turned to them.
Excited whispers filled the room:
"Did you hear that!? Sasuke's challenging Naruto!"
"Finally! Someone's gonna put that monster in his place! Beat him to a pulp!"
"Yeah! My dad got his face turned into mincemeat on enrollment day!"
"But… can Sasuke really do it? That's the Nine-Tails, you know…"
"Shut up! You're underestimating Sasuke-kun! He's the Uchiha prodigy!"
"Totally! He's so cool! That monster doesn't stand a chance—"
…
While Naruto was feared, Sasuke was admired.
Especially among the girls—Sakura, Ino, and the like were already cheering him on.
Everyone was buzzing with excitement, eager to see a clash between the fox demon and the Uchiha genius.
But under everyone's expectant gazes, Naruto's clone only replied coolly:
"I'm not interested. Find someone else."
He had no desire to deal with a brat. He had lived a past life as a high schooler, and now had experienced far more.
Having a clone attend class was just to maintain appearances.
Sasuke, however, misinterpreted the indifference as an insult.
His face turned red and he slammed the desk.
"Uzumaki Naruto! I know you're strong—but don't look down on me! I've mastered Katon! I'm a Uchiha!"
More students began to jeer.
The girls especially were loud and mocking:
"Scared, Uzumaki?"
"Only real ninja can use ninjutsu—Sasuke-kun's amazing!"
"Apologize if you're scared! Stop acting tough!"
"I knew it! He's just a coward who won't fight Sasuke-kun!"
…
Naruto sighed, stood up slowly.
Sasuke grinned. "So you accept? Great! Let's head to the trai—"
Before he could finish, Naruto calmly raised his right hand, extended his index finger, and flicked it against his thumb.
"Pak!"
The crisp sound echoed through the classroom.
Sasuke collapsed.
Clutching his forehead, he howled in pain as he rolled on the floor.
"Aaaagh!"
The classroom fell into stunned silence.
All the students stood frozen, mouths agape, staring at the fallen Sasuke who was writhing in agony.
No one had expected it.
The proud Uchiha genius was taken down with a simple forehead flick.
The blond "fox demon" hadn't even moved from his spot.
Just one tap—and Sasuke had been defeated.
As realization dawned, fear crept into their expressions.
Half a month had gone by. They had nearly forgotten what happened during the opening ceremony—how it took five elite ninja to suppress this boy.
Naruto's clone calmly sat back down, ignoring the fear in their eyes.
Outside the window, the skies were clear and blue.
He muttered softly to himself:
"I really want to go back… to that endless ocean…"
(End of Chapter)
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