Haruno Sakura let out a soft sigh, roughly understanding the difficulty Sarutobi Hiruzen faced.
Right now, Konoha was practically being held up by Hiruzen alone. The only person under his command who was capable of inheriting the title of Hokage, Hatake Kakashi, was clearly unmotivated.
Minato Namikaze had died tragically, Orochimaru defected, Tsunade had a severe fear of blood, Jiraiya had left the village, and Danzo was watching like a hawk...
The entire village, from top to bottom, had to be managed by Hiruzen himself—he truly didn't have the time.
Actually, the best person to take care of Naruto should have been Hiruzen's wife, Biwako Sarutobi. But unfortunately, she had been killed by Uchiha Obito during the Nine-Tails attack that fateful night...
"Tsk. No more instant noodles from now on."
"You won't grow tall if you keep eating that stuff!"
Sakura took a step closer to Naruto, glanced at their height difference, and found that Naruto was even shorter than she was.
Naruto blushed slightly as the girl came closer and curiously asked:
"If I don't eat ramen, then what should I eat?"
Sakura pulled a book from her bag and placed it in front of Naruto.
Don't eat ramen… eat books?
Naruto looked at the book in front of him, hesitating, wondering if he should take a bite out of it.
---
"When the egg mixture begins to solidify, use the spatula to roll it up, then pour in more egg mixture."
"Repeat the process."
"And that's how you make a tamagoyaki!"
Standing on a small stool, Sakura followed the chewed-up recipe next to her as she taught Naruto how to cook.
Despite the process being clumsy and awkward, at least it resulted in Sakura successfully completing her first dish in life.
"Wow! Sakura, you're amazing!"
Naruto looked at the neatly plated egg rolls, his bright blue eyes full of admiration.
Sakura, seeing Naruto like this, couldn't help but knock him on the head with a sigh.
"You idiot, I gave you the recipe to follow it, not to eat it!"
"And you actually tried to bite it!"
"Uh… hehe…"
Naruto scratched his head and gave her a goofy smile.
"Here, now it's your turn to try."
Sakura stepped aside and offered him her spot.
"Me?"
Naruto looked nervous.
"Of course, give it a try."
"How will you know if you can do it or not unless you try?"
"And it's so simple, I know you can do it."
Sakura encouraged him with a soft smile.
"Okay!"
…
Looking at the scrambled eggs Naruto had made, Sakura fell silent.
Well, scrambled eggs are still eggs, right? At least they weren't burnt.
"Forget it. You can practice making tamagoyaki more later. For now, let's move on to cooking rice."
As time went by, under Sakura's guidance, Naruto managed to put together a simple meal.
A plate of scrambled eggs, a bowl of miso soup, and a pot of rice.
"You did great, Naruto."
"You'll definitely be a good cook in the future."
Faced with a child, Sakura gave gentle encouragement.
It was already an excellent first attempt—after all, he was just a six-year-old boy. What more could you ask for?
Though Naruto had added a bit too much salt to the miso soup, she figured it could be fixed by adding more water. If it became too bland, just add more salt…
"Hehehe~~"
Naruto beamed with pride as he looked at the two dishes in front of him.
"Well then, I'll start eating now."
Sakura clasped her hands together and said a little prayer before picking up her chopsticks and taking a bite of the "tamago-yaki" under Naruto's amazed gaze.
"Huh? Naruto, aren't you going to eat?"
Sakura's glance made Naruto panic a little, and he fumbled for words:
"Y-Yeah, I'll eat now…"
---
Success.
Sarutobi Hiruzen watched the scene in the crystal ball with satisfaction.
He hadn't been able to care for Naruto properly. The village nannies didn't want to take care of him, and there were even signs of abuse.
He had told Naruto several times to eat less ramen, but it hadn't worked…
If Naruto could learn to cook for himself, that would be the best outcome.
To Hiruzen, Sakura's talent no longer mattered.
As long as she could keep Naruto calm and help him take care of himself, that was enough.
Hiruzen knocked on the desk, and an Anbu appeared before him in a flash.
"Go bring Iruka to me."
The Anbu instantly disappeared as soon as the order was given.
Not long after, a man with a scar across the bridge of his nose appeared in front of Hiruzen.
"Hokage-sama."
Iruka bowed respectfully.
"Mm. About Haruno Sakura's intention to skip a grade..."
Hiruzen hesitated, making Iruka a bit confused.
Hadn't this already been decided yesterday?
Was he changing his mind?
"Be as strict as you can. You understand what I mean?"
Iruka's heart tightened as he heard those words.
This... meant he didn't want Sakura to pass?
"Yes, I understand."
Iruka didn't know what Hiruzen's intentions were, but he still obeyed.
He was just an ordinary chunin, a ninja teacher—he had no say in these matters.
All he could do was follow orders.
---
As the sun dipped westward, the twilight spread across the land.
"Naruto, I'm heading back now."
"Try not to eat ramen anymore, and remember—the milk in the fridge has to be thrown out in three days."
"If you can't finish it, don't buy fresh milk again. Even if you do, don't buy so much."
"And follow the recipe step by step when cooking."
"If there's anything you don't understand, come ask me."
Outside Naruto's house, Sakura nagged like a mother, endlessly listing reminders.
After all, she had watched this guy grow up—from elementary school until graduation—thanks to chasing the anime in her past life.
"Mmhm, I got it!"
Naruto looked at her with glowing eyes, not the slightest bit annoyed.
"Alright then, I'm leaving. See you at school tomorrow."
Naruto watched the girl's back until she disappeared around the corner, reluctant to shift his gaze. Only then did he finally return inside.
Sakura didn't linger at all after leaving Naruto's house and went straight back to her own.
Though Konoha was the most prosperous of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, to Sakura, it was just so-so.
There wasn't much worth exploring.
"Sakura!"
"Where were you today?"
"You didn't come home all day!"
"Daddy missed you so much!"
As soon as she stepped through the door, Haruno Zhao's voice rang out, and a large shadow rushed toward her!
"Eek!"
Sakura froze in place as she saw the mysterious creature lunging at her.
"Baka!"
"Are you trying to crush Sakura to death?!"
Haruno Mebuki's voice rang out, and she grabbed Zhao by the collar and yanked him back.
This guy… was definitely a daughter-con...
Watching her father struggle to break free from her mother's grip and lunge toward her again, Sakura's eye twitched.
"I was hanging out with a classmate."
She casually waved her hand and sat at the entrance to take off her shoes.
"Was it Ino?"
"You better not be hanging out with some blonde brat!"
Zhao's voice echoed again, making Sakura pause.
Naruto... does he count... or not...?
[Author's note: I'm not really someone who believes too much in the Third Hokage conspiracy theories, but honestly, the Hokage position is full of plot holes. You can only explain some of it through those theories... It's just a personal opinion.]
(End of Chapter)
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