Hinata said, "I… I think… the meaning of liking someone is… to become a better version of yourself."
Ino couldn't help but be stunned again. "Become a better version of yourself?"
"What I mean is, I hope that the person I love can see me more and for him I have to become better as well…" Hinata nodded and said softly, "Yeah, that's what I thought…"
Ino sighed and patted her small head. "You're very mature, Hinata…"
Hinata's face was red, but she was also very touched that there was someone to share these things with. "Thank you, Ino…"
"Thank me? What is there to thank me for?"
"No, nothing…"
"You are too timid. Guys like Naruto are very dense. If you don't tell him, he will probably never understand your feelings."
Hinata blushed and shook her head. "No, this is enough for me now…"
"What a silly girl…" Ino sighed helplessly. "But… maybe we are all equally stupid…" The faces of Sasuke and Sakura appeared in her mind.
The two had almost never really spoken to each other before, but when they had this first conversation on the way home from school in the evening, they felt like close friends. But they didn't notice that, beside the road they were walking on, behind the trunk of a large tree, Haruno Sakura was peeking out, staring blankly at the scene.
…
At the same time, while doing frog jumps with weights on his body, Naruto tried to "do two things at once" and continued to refine his chakra. This endeavor was by no means simple. It was even more difficult than summarizing while listening to a lecture. After all, this was equivalent to practicing both taijutsu and ninjutsu at the same time. He was afraid no one had ever done this before.
But Naruto felt his own progress and became more eager to try than ever before. Along the way, he did not slack off at all and persisted to the end without any prompts or warnings from the System. Although, most of the time, it ended in failure, he was not discouraged at all.
Finally, when he was about to reach his home, Naruto completed his dual-core training for the first time. While doing the weighted frog jump, he maintained the chakra refining technique for a single moment. Just a moment. But that was enough! It proved that this path was feasible!
What was the most important thing for Naruto to rise to the top ten in the class within a month? It was time. Or efficiency. With his level of hard work, he firmly believed that he could surpass everyone. But the problem was, there was so little time. If he could successfully do two things at once, he would have twice as much time and energy as others! This was almost the only way for him to succeed!
Just as he was cheering for his momentary success, in the setting sun ahead, a long shadow fell over him.
"Hm?" Naruto looked up and saw a very familiar figure approaching him against the setting sun. Although the light was shining from behind him, his face was in darkness, so dark that his features and expression could not be seen clearly. But Naruto could guess that face. "Sasuke. What are you doing here?!"
Not far in front of Naruto was his home. If Sasuke hadn't done it on purpose, he would never have come here. The shadow with his hands in his pockets was getting closer and closer, and the shadow swallowed Naruto's entire body.
"Hey, dead last."
Naruto became furious when he heard this name. "Sasuke, you bastard, what did you say…"
"Fight me."
Naruto's eyes suddenly widened, and his cursing stopped abruptly. "You… what did you say?"
Uchiha Sasuke looked down at Naruto, who was squatting on the ground, with an arrogant and indifferent expression. "Don't make me say it a second time."
A storm of emotions instantly surged in Naruto's heart. This simple sentence was no less than the collapse of the heavens and the earth for him. Even he himself might not realize that the recognition he most desired actually came from Uchiha Sasuke. He worked so hard, so desperately. In addition to becoming Hokage and having everyone recognize him, a more direct goal was to surpass Sasuke and defeat Sasuke! What he wanted was to stand in front of Sasuke with dignity, fight him on an equal footing, and make him completely recognize his strength! But even Naruto didn't expect it to come so soon.
He stood up, clenched his fists, and his eyes burned with flames. "Hey, why did you go out of your way to pick a fight with me? Is it because of what happened this morning? You were scared to get beat in front of everyone, weren't you?!"
When Sasuke heard this, he seemed to be stung, and his expression changed instantly! " Dead last, what did you say?!"
Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and gave a confident smile. "Others may not have noticed, but I saw it… Faced with my attack, you subconsciously took a step back, so Sakura ended up standing between us and got punched by me by accident! So… you were scared, right?!"
Naruto's words hit the nail on the head and were a deadly and accurate blow! It was because Sasuke hated his own dodging at that moment and was unable to break through the demon in his heart that he had come to Naruto's door and waited for him. If he couldn't defeat Naruto completely, he was afraid he wouldn't be able to become stronger! Rather than hating Naruto, it would be more accurate to say that he hated himself. He absolutely could not tolerate his own cowardice!
"Dead last, why would I be afraid of a loser like you? Stop joking!" Sasuke roared hysterically.
Naruto, however, made a face and didn't seem to care at all. "No matter how powerful you say you are, your body reaction said it all"
Sasuke gritted his teeth, his pretty features contorting slightly. "Naruto!! I'll let you know the unbridgeable gap between the last-place student and a genius! Bring it on!"
The dim setting sun shone on the two young men, casting a somewhat dim golden light. An evening breeze blew past, and Naruto and Sasuke's hair flew up gently. Right in front of Naruto's house, on a street with few pedestrians, the battle was about to begin. That is… a fateful showdown that had lasted for thousands of years.
At dusk, the evening breeze had faded the hot setting sun, and the streets were deserted with pedestrians. Naruto and Sasuke stood facing each other, staring at each other from a distance. Occasionally, passers-by looked at the two of them with some curiosity but were quickly pulled away by their companions.
"It's that demon…"
"Hmm? That child is from the Uchiha clan…"
"Shh, go away and don't cause any trouble."
"Let's go, let's go."
Although the ninjas and villagers of Konoha Village may not have known the whole truth, it was well known that the identities of Naruto and Sasuke were sensitive and special. Seeing the two people confronting each other, most people would choose to avoid them quietly. But they were not alone. Because… there were always Anbu ninjas watching this scene in secret.
"That… that is… the orphan of the Uchiha clan, Uchiha Sasuke?"
"What does he want to do?"
"These two are about to fight. Go and inform the Hokage."
"Yes!"
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