Naruto stood up and couldn't help but call out as he looked at her small figure in the morning sunlight.
"Hinata…"
"Um?" Hinata stopped and looked back at Naruto with some unease. "W-what's wrong, Naruto-kun?"
Naruto gave her a bright and sunny smile. "Thank you."
Hinata shuddered slightly when she heard that, and her face turned an even deeper shade of red. She didn't dare to respond, just nodded almost imperceptibly, and then ran away immediately.
Just as Naruto wanted to say something else…
[Host, please start practicing the Chakra Refining Technique immediately!]
[Warning…]
[Warning!]
Naruto sighed. *I truly am grateful to hinata but this damn system won't even let me do it properly!'* He immediately ran towards the classroom and prepared to start practicing.
Sasuke snorted coldly. Although he had said it was boring, he had still watched the entire show. He put his hands in his pockets and left, but his mind was still replaying the look in Naruto's eyes just now… That look filled with fighting spirit, even something else… At that moment, what he had been thinking was fear. Fear from dead last surpassing him.
*'Just the dead last in the class actually made me feel scared?! No, that's impossible…'*
But deep down, Sasuke knew that this was his true thought. That man's voice constantly reminded him, even appearing in his nightmares.
"My foolish little brother… If you want to kill me and avenge your parents and our clan, then hate me, despise me! Then… live in ugliness, try your best to catch up to me, try your best to just cling to life…"
That was the devilish voice of Uchiha Itachi, the executioner who had slaughtered his entire clan and killed his own parents! Even though he was the person he hated the most, Sasuke was still subtly influenced by his words, which had deeply affected his mind and everything he did. Therefore, when faced with fear and despair, Sasuke would have the urge to escape.
But… even so, what was that fear he felt from naruto?! It wasn't a powerful enemy, nor was it a desperate situation. It was just… just Naruto!
"Hmmph—" Sasuke clenched his teeth and his fists. *'I am still too weak now, not only in terms of strength but also in my state of mind. I must find ways to force myself to grow quickly! Otherwise, even Naruto will surpass me, let alone killing Uchiha Itachi!'*
…
The crowd gradually dispersed. Still eating his potato chips, Shikamaru had watched the whole show. "Shikamaru, what do you think?" Choji asked.
Shikamaru curled his lip. "Women… are indeed the most troublesome and terrifying creatures… My mom is like this, Ino is like this, Sakura is like this… And Hinata, the most introverted and shy one, also hides such a terrifying side. So, I will never marry and avoid all this drag…" He said this as he yawned and walked towards the classroom.
Choji ate his potato chips in big mouthfuls, a smile appearing at the corners of his mouth. "I bet you will marry before me, Shikamaru…"
"In your dreams choji"
…
When Iruka-sensei walked into the classroom, he noticed an unusual atmosphere. And… "Hm? Why aren't Sakura and Ino in class?"
Hinata lowered her head, feeling a little guilty, and subconsciously twisted her fingers together. But the "culprit," Uzumaki Naruto, had his eyes wide open , seizing every moment to practice hard, and didn't even hear what Iruka-sensei had said.
A girl said timidly, "Iruka sensei, Sakura and Ino… had a fight…"
Iruka-sensei frowned. "Really? Why?I understand you're all in your youth, but you can't all be fighting each other. You are konohas future."
A boy chuckled and said, "Teacher Iruka, it's because of Naruto that all this happened …"
Iruka-sensei was stunned. "What?" He followed everyone's focused gaze and quickly locked onto his target. Hinata? Naruto? And Sakura, Ino… Could it be that the three girls were surrounding Naruto? A battleground of romance?!
Iruka-sensei looked confused. The changes in Naruto were indeed quite significant, but not to this extent, right? Not to mention Hinata. He could also tell that the little girl had always looked at Naruto differently. Iruka had always been paying attention to Naruto, and he knew very well who was good to him and who was not. He subconsciously glanced at Hinata, who quickly lowered her head shyly.
But… weren't Sakura and Ino always around Sasuke? How strange… Although Iruka-sensei was old, he was a bachelor and had no idea about matters of love. He shook his head. "Ahem, Attention. I'll talk to them later. Class will begin now."
[Host, class time has arrived. However, please maintain your chakra refining technique while absorbing knowledge. Do two things at once and listen carefully.]
Naruto then realized that Iruka-sensei had come in without him even noticing. Although he was a little puzzled by what had just happened, he didn't think much about it because he was "addicted" to his spiritual practice. But… it was really too much to ask him to practice chakra refining and attend class at the same time!
Even if he were to recite while doing a handstand with weights on his way to school, at least his hands and brain would be working together and not interfering with each other. But you want me to refine my chakra while listening to the lessons?! Is that even possible?! Trying to do two things at once and still listen attentively? Is that even possible ?!
[Host, please start practicing immediately, otherwise you will be baptized by the lightning release.]
[Warning, countdown 5...]
"Okay, okay, damn you system!" Naruto cursed in his heart but didn't dare to disobey, so he immediately did it with the attitude of just giving it a try. He was already practicing his chakra refining techniques. After such a long period of practice, his proficiency in chakra refining had reached 80 points! It was indeed the technique he was best at now.
"Um… if I want to practice my chakra refining techniques while attending classes and enter a state of knowledge absorption, there is only one way… It means I don't need to use my brain at all, my body has to generate chakra on its own!"
Naruto could now analyze things much more clearly. If he wanted the [Knowledge Absorption] ability to be effective, he had to give it his all, which meant occupying all his brain cells. So, if he wanted to do two things at once, he had to get his body moving on its own. In other words… it had to be subconscious. Or maybe it was muscle memory.
In fact, this wasn't impossible. For many sports or jobs, once you become very proficient, you can do them without having to think at all. For example, anyone can talk while walking. You won't fall down while walking just because you're using your brain to chat. There is no special reason for this; it's just a matter of practice. The same idea applied when a Jonin like Kakashi Hatake could defeat a Genin like Team 7 while reading his "Make-Out Paradise" book.
Having said that, Naruto could only try it out one step at a time. Fortunately, Naruto had gained some experience in multitasking, which had improved his proficiency.