"That's weird. Why isn't Sasuke in class? Did he oversleep?"
"Isn't that something Naruto would do?"
Sasuke's little fangirls noticed that class was about to start, but his seat was still empty.
Some were worried that he had just slept in, but before they knew it, the conversation had completely gone off track.
Since Sasuke was rarely late, it was actually Naruto—who wasn't popular with the girls and loved to go against Sasuke—who was often late.
"Damn it! If you're talking about Sasuke, just talk about Sasuke! Why drag me into this?!"
Naruto, who had been lying on his desk doing nothing, immediately shouted in anger when he heard this.
"Look, look! Naruto's getting mad."
"Yeah, yeah, he's always like this. So rude, not even a little bit cool like Sasuke-kun."
"...."
What the hell did I do to deserve this?
Naruto was so mad he felt like spitting blood.
He was annoyed whenever Sasuke came to school.
Because the girls he liked were always circling around Sasuke. Even the ones he didn't like would join in, as if Sasuke was the only person left in the world.
Sometimes, Naruto wished Sasuke just didn't exist in their class.
And yet, today, Sasuke was late, and somehow that made things even worse.
Because now all the girls were putting him down just to make Sasuke look better.
Even Sakura, the girl he liked, had no patience for him.
Ever since that fight last time, Sakura had completely hated Naruto.
She could accept being rejected by Sasuke, but Naruto challenging Sasuke? That was unacceptable. And actually landing a hit on him, giving Sasuke a black eye? That was unforgivable.
As for Naruto, who was also beaten black and blue, he was simply ignored.
Being a simp wasn't easy. Sakura had a rough time, and Naruto wasn't any better off.
The worst part? In the future, there was no Hinata waiting patiently for him anymore.
Because now, Hinata was already taken.
Compared to before, when she was shy and always kept to herself, Hinata had become much more outgoing.
Right now, she was sitting in her seat, watching her classmates fool around.
Over the years, her natural beauty had started to blossom.
Knowing that Yan liked girls with long hair, Hinata had grown hers out, becoming exactly his type—long, straight black hair.
"Teacher's here!!"
Someone suddenly shouted, and the noisy classroom quickly fell silent.
Not long after, heavy footsteps—heavier than a normal child's—could be heard from the doorway.
A familiar figure appeared at the entrance, walked into the room, and glanced at the neatly seated students before nodding in satisfaction.
"Alright, let's continue from where we left off yesterday..."
"Teacher, why isn't Sasuke here today?"
Ino, who was more cheerful and outspoken than Sakura, couldn't help but raise her hand.
"Oh, Sasuke?"
The teacher, instead of getting annoyed at the interruption, smiled and explained:
"Someone from the Uchiha clan came to the school today to inform us.
Sasuke was taken by their elder—who is also one of the Hokage's advisors—to Orochimaru-sama. Orochimaru-sama has accepted Sasuke as his disciple."
For a while, Sasuke won't be coming to school. Instead, he'll be training under Orochimaru-sama.
He'll only come back to take exams.
"Alright, let's start the lesson."
"Ahh!!! No way!!!"
"Sasuke isn't coming to class anymore?"
The whole class erupted in wails of disappointment, with Sakura and Ino reacting the most dramatically.
They were completely losing it, especially Sakura.
"Quiet! Quiet!! What's with all this noise? Sit down and get ready for class!!"
The teacher slammed the desk, silencing the students who were whining like ghosts.
After that, everyone finally sat down properly and prepared for class.
At first, Naruto felt a little happy. But it didn't take long for him to realize something was off.
Sasuke was now Orochimaru's student. He wouldn't be attending the academy anymore—only coming back for exams.
So basically, he was getting special training?
Once Sasuke finished his training, his strength would probably improve a lot. And when that time came…
A bad feeling crept over Naruto.
Next time he met Sasuke, he might get completely destroyed.
Just imagining Sasuke pinning him to the ground and beating him up made Naruto restless.
He started squirming in his seat, unable to sit still.
The moment class ended, he didn't even care about skipping or getting scolded. He bolted straight toward the Hokage's office.
"Move! Move! I need to see Granny Tsunade!!"
"I need to see Granny Tsunade!!!"
Naruto ran straight to the second floor of the Hokage's office building—
Only to be stopped by ANBU guards.
Not willing to give up, he took a deep breath and started shouting at the top of his lungs.
Before Jiraiya left, he had told Naruto that if anything happened, he could go to Tsunade. If that didn't work, he could find Yan instead.
Even in the letters Jiraiya sent back, he always said the same thing.
Basically, whenever he had a problem, just go to Tsunade.
"..."
Damn brat!!
Hearing the commotion outside, Tsunade's forehead twitched with anger.
She clenched her fist, slammed her desk, and grumbled,
"Ugh, do I really look that old? Who's his grandma?!"
Shizune blinked in surprise.
"Hokage-sama, since when did you start caring about what people call you?"
"*Cough, cough!!*"
Tsunade rolled her eyes at Shizune.
"Of course! Back when I was single, I didn't care if people called me 'Granny.' Whatever!
But now? If you keep calling me that, it makes me sound old!"
Thinking about the age gap between her and Yan, Tsunade felt annoyed.
"Bring that brat over here."
"Yes."
Seeing Tsunade's irritated expression, Shizune looked confused.
Since when did Hokage-sama care about stuff like this?
And lately, Hokage-sama's skin looks better and better. Am I imagining things?
But she hasn't been using any skincare products...
Shizune couldn't figure it out, so she just went to fetch Naruto.
"-Granny Tsunade! I want special training! I don't want Sasuke to surpass me! I demand special training!"
The moment Tsunade, who was sitting in her chair, heard that, she lost her composure. She immediately jumped up and smacked Naruto hard on the head.
"You little brat! If you call me 'Granny' again, I'll beat you to a pulp!
Call me Hokage-sama! And besides, Sasuke is Orochimaru's disciple. How Orochimaru trains him is none of your business. Why are you butting in?"
"Ouch! That hurts!"
Naruto clutched his forehead, looking completely confused.
I've been calling her that for years! And now she suddenly says I can't?
Fine. Whatever. She's the Hokage, her fists make the rules.
It's just a title. Naruto didn't feel like arguing over it. He crossed his arms and huffed.
"I don't care! I still want special training! Pervy Sage said before he left that if I needed anything, I should come to you… uh, I mean, Hokage-sama. He said you'd help me!"
Noticing Tsunade's expression turn even more unfriendly, Naruto quickly corrected himself.
"This annoying brat… Damn you, Jiraiya."
Tsunade rubbed her temples in frustration.
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