Ino Yamanaka and Sakura Haruno were still inseparable best friends.
Their falling-out over mutual feelings for Sasuke Uchiha hadn't happened yet.
Arm in arm, the two girls stepped into the slightly rowdy classroom.
Once inside, Ino's gaze drifted almost unconsciously toward the back row—the seat by the window.
Ever since that brief but memorable encounter at the flower shop on New Year's, she'd found herself sneakily watching the blond boy.
Those morning runs through the village with his teacher had become something she looked forward to.
She noticed Naruto's hair had grown a bit longer, yet those whisker marks were still showing, and she felt a tiny pang of disappointment.
She had to admit, without the marks Naruto was actually pretty handsome.
Instead of napping alone or staring out the window as usual, Naruto was laughing and chatting with Kiba Inuzuka and another boy in sunglasses who'd pulled his collar high.
The atmosphere looked relaxed and cheerful.
Ino tilted her head, trying to identify the low-profile boy behind the shades.
That kid… from the Aburame clan, right? Shino Aburame?
It had taken her forever to recall his name; he was so quiet he practically blended into the background.
She hadn't expected Naruto to get along with him.
Seeing the three wildly different boys together piqued her curiosity.
"Yo, Naruto, Kiba, Shino!"
A lazy but familiar voice sounded as Choji Akimichi and Shikamaru Nara strolled in through the back door and headed straight for Naruto's corner.
They were clearly part of the same circle.
Naruto beamed at them, looking as if he'd been expecting them.
He bent down, rummaged in his desk drawer, and produced a specially prepared bag of barbecue-flavored chips, casually handing it to Choji.
"Wow! Thanks, Naruto!"
Choji's favorite flavor—he was over the moon.
His already-small eyes widened with delight as he eagerly tore open the bag and started munching.
"Hey hey, where's mine, Naruto? I want snacks too!"
Kiba bounded over, loud and playful, throwing an arm around Naruto's shoulders.
Naruto dodged with a laugh and pulled out a bag of plain chips for him.
"Here, but it's original flavor."
"Heh, good enough. Ramen's on me later!"
Kiba ripped open the bag, slung an arm around Shino, and offered him some chips.
Though Shino's collar hid his expression, he silently took a few chips.
Shikamaru yawned. "Troublesome, Naruto," he muttered, a faint warmth in his eyes.
He dragged Choji into the empty seats directly in front of Naruto.
Leaning back lazily, he caught sight of Ino and Sakura still standing by the door.
Without much energy he lifted a hand. "Oi, Ino, quit loitering—come here."
His tone stayed sluggish,
"Class is about to start."
The seating was neat and regular.
Left, right, or center—every row had two desks seating four students.
Shikamaru and Choji had claimed the second-to-last row; behind them sat Naruto, Kiba, Shino, and one empty seat.
At Shikamaru's call, Ino tugged Sakura over and slid into the seats beside the two boys.
She sat right in front of Naruto and turned to greet Shikamaru. "Long time no see, Shikamaru."
"Wasn't that long."
Shikamaru yawned, too lazy for pleasantries.
"We saw each other at Uncle Inoichi's birthday two days ago."
As members of the Ino–Shika–Chō trio, their clans were close.
Inoichi Yamanaka's birthday was a family affair the Nara and Akimichi elders wouldn't miss.
"Oh? Uncle Inoichi had a birthday?"
Naruto's ears perked up.
When Shikamaru and Ino didn't continue,
Naruto dug in his pocket and produced a small paper packet of carefully kept flower seeds.
"I bought these special seeds from a traveling merchant who passed through Konoha."
he explained.
"I wanted to give them to Uncle Inoichi as thanks, but every time I visited the flower shop he wasn't there."
He handed the packet to Ino with a friendly smile. "Could you pass these to your dad for me, Ino? As a thank-you."
"It's not—"
Ino started to refuse, then changed her mind and accepted the seeds.
"Since it's from you, I'll give them to Dad. Thanks, Naruto."
She kept her voice calm, but after turning back to face the blackboard she tried to settle her racing heart.
No way!
she scolded herself.
'I have to trick Naruto into covering those whiskers!'
The thought was firm.
Letting a few lines rob the world of a gorgeous, sunny boy would be a tragic waste.
Her inner "face-judger" overrode every other feeling for the moment.
Beside her, Shikamaru and Sakura exchanged surprised glances.
Both silently asked the same question:
Naruto… knows Uncle Inoichi?
And it sounds like they're on good terms?
It didn't fit their picture of Naruto's social life.
To them, Naruto had always been shunned—how could he be friendly with the Yamanaka Clan head?