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In the 60th year of Konoha, the graduation exam had finally begun.
Iruka stood on the podium, holding a list in his hands, filled with emotion. It was his first time teaching a class, and despite the various issues that aroseâtwo chronic truants, three minor truants, and occasional othersâhe had still managed to guide them to graduation.
The two main truants were Naruto and Sasuke, while the minor ones were Shikamaru, Choji, and Kiba. Occasionally, there was one more⊠who was it again?
Naruto was slumped over his desk, playing chess with Kurama. The two beings from entirely different species were evenly matched, as they had never changed opponents. Kurama could only play with Naruto, and Naruto refused to play with anyone elseâfor fairness' sake.
Kurama's size now fit the description from earlier: if he moved, mountains would crumble and the earth would shake. After all, he was a tangerine (a metaphor for his immense power).
Naruto hadn't skipped school todayâhe had been forced to attend by the Third Hokage.
He didn't care what the exam entailed. While his transformation jutsu wasn't as smooth as in the original story, his Sexy Technique was still reliable. He could transform into a person easily enough, but transforming into objects was another matter. Naruto had never understood how to turn himself into a kunai, let alone a Rasenshuriken. He firmly believed such transformations weren't physically possible.
For the Clone Technique, he had Shadow Clones to fall back on.
If the Third Hokage dared to make them test the Substitution Technique, Naruto would simply stay in school until his 17th birthday and let everyone dream together.
The Third Hokage also knew that assigning Naruto something he couldn't do would ensure Naruto wouldn't graduate.
Iruka cleared his throat and held up two sheets of paper, reading aloud: "We will now begin the graduation exam. Those whose names are called will proceed to the next room. By the way, today's test is on the Clone Technique."
As expected, the Third Hokage had given him some leeway.
When it was Naruto's turn, he lazily created a single Shadow Clone.
"Pass," both Iruka and Mizuki announced simultaneously.
Naruto stepped forward to receive his forehead protector and tied it around his head.
He gave Iruka a deep bow.
"Thank you, Iruka-sensei," Naruto said with heartfelt gratitude.
This bow carried multiple layers of meaning: gratitude for Iruka's guidance throughout the years, appreciation for the Iruka of this world, and respect for the Iruka from the anime who had touched his heart.
Iruka struggled to hold back his tears. Naruto's bow was the greatest affirmation of his career as a teacher.
In the past, Iruka had harbored resentment toward Naruto, but Naruto had chosen to ignore it. Later, when Iruka let go of his resentment, Naruto stopped avoiding him, even greeting him with a respectful "Sensei" whenever they met.
All these memories, combined with this heartfelt thanks and bow, nearly overwhelmed the young man who had once sought revenge for his parents but now devoted himself to teaching students.
Naruto ignored Mizuki completely. If Mizuki wanted to find someone else to steal the Scroll of Seals, so be it. Even if Mizuki claimed to be the savior, Naruto wouldn't bother.
Naruto teleported directly to the rooftop, where Sasuke was already waiting. Knowing Naruto well, Sasuke assumed he would train, as Naruto felt restless without training.
Habits truly were a terrifying force.
---
In the morning, Naruto continued practicing chakra nature manipulation. This time, he worked on cutting through burning electric rods.
After six months of slicing leaves, he had moved on to wooden sticks and planned to eventually cut trees. After all, he had been forcibly transferred to the civil engineering major.
Sasuke, lacking earth-based techniques, could only consider himself part of the gardening department.
Over the years, this small grove had suffered greatly under their training.
The most prominent feature of the grove was the deep circular trenches carved into the groundâmarks left by Naruto dragging trees day after day. Now, Naruto had upgraded to dragging iron bars, following the example of Kakarot.
Dragging trees wasn't as fun as dragging iron.
Sasuke had trained alongside him all this time, always being outmatched. With limited ninjutsu, he relied mainly on Fireball Jutsu and Phoenix Flower Jutsu. His Lightning Release techniques were only useful for activating cells, and he was still far from mastering them.
Genjutsu had almost no effect on jinchuriki. Though the sake-drinking fox trapped inside the seal might have been rendered powerless, disrupting Naruto's chakra flow was still possible unless an exceptionally powerful genjutsu could control a jinchuriki. But Sasuke didn't possess such skills.
Thus, relying mostly on taijutsu, Sasuke could barely last half an hour against Naruto before collapsing on the ground, waiting for rescue.
Sasuke no longer hoped to surpass Naruto in taijutsu, especially after learning that Naruto trained while carrying weights equivalent to 600 kilograms per leg. He felt Naruto's physique was beyond human.
Later, Sasuke considered countering Naruto with ninjutsu but quickly abandoned the idea upon realizing the sheer amount of chakra Naruto possessedâit was too discouraging.
In the end, Sasuke focused solely on developing his Sharingan to compete with Naruto.
Both of Sasuke's eyes now bore double tomoe.
Naruto viewed himself as a high-speed tank with a splash of healing capabilities.
He was fast, had massive health and chakra reserves, regenerated quickly, and even had basic healing abilities.
In the future, after learning more skills, he planned to transition into a magical tank.
As for Sasuke, Naruto saw him as a high-speed mage-type assassin who could later evolve into a hidden-class role: a mech hunter.
And for Hinata? Her role was simple: the mother of his child.
Anyone who dared to touch her would face a mixed doubles matchâone human and one fox. Even if Naruto released Kurama temporarily, he wouldn't die, and Kurama would return eventually.
In the future, anyone who dared to provoke them would face the full might of Kurama's Nine-Tails Chakra Mode. After all, Kurama had helped Naruto for years. If his wife were bullied, Kurama wouldn't refuse to step in.
---
In the afternoon, after hours of training, Naruto picked up Hinata from her house at 5 PM for dinner.
Naruto sat in the middle, flanked by one pair of white eyes and one pair of red eyes.
Throughout the meal, Naruto kept piling food onto Hinata's plate, worried she wouldn't take enough for herself. This wife of mine sure can eatâŠÂ
"Sasuke, do you believe we'll be in the same class?" Naruto asked casually.
"Really? Why?" Sasuke replied, intrigued. Being in the same class as Naruto would be ideal.
"More or less," Naruto muttered. He couldn't exactly say that the Third Hokage wanted to use Sasuke's Sharingan to suppress the tangerine pig within him.
"Naruto-kun, what about me?" Hinata set down her chopsticks and asked. For Hinata to put down her chopsticks, this question clearly weighed heavily on her mind.
"You probably won't be in my class," Naruto whispered softly, secretly taking her twelve-year-old hand. It was incredibly soft.
"Why can't I be in Naruto-kun's class?" Hinata's voice was tinged with sadness. She hadn't expected to be separated so soon after graduation.
"Ahem," Naruto coughed, recognizing this rare opportunity to show off. He had to seize it.
"Well," Naruto began, "you see, Sasuke and I are both assault-type shinobi, while your Byakugan excels in reconnaissance. Therefore, you'll likely be placed in a reconnaissance team."
Taking a sip of water, Naruto continued, "Among our classmates, people like Kiba, who also has tracking abilities, should be your teammates. As for the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, everyone knows about their legendary teamwork, so Choji, Shikamaru, and Ino will undoubtedly be in the same class."
"As for your other teammate and my other teammate, I'm not sure," Naruto trailed off, unwilling to reveal too much and ruin his carefully maintained image.
Hinata and Sasuke were stunned. Was this really the Naruto they knew? Shouldn't he just start fighting whenever disagreements arose?
Naruto's analysis shattered their previous perceptions of him.
"Naruto-kun is so amazing," Hinata praised softly before resuming her meal. While she couldn't solve the class assignment issue, she could at least address her hunger.
Hinata gently pulled her hand away, leaving Naruto feeling regretful.
After a moment of thought, Naruto spoke up, "Sasuke, Sensei said we'll be taking ID photos tomorrow morning instead of training. In the afternoon, I'm going shopping with Hinata, so you'll have to practice on your own."
"Mm," Sasuke nodded in understanding.
Unless they were blind, everyone in the class could tell that Naruto and Hinata were a couple.
The Sharingan wasn't blindâit saw everything.
"Really?" Hinata blushed, asking shyly. She hadn't blushed when Naruto held her hand earlier, but this was different.
This would be their first official date. The young girl grew bashful once more.
"Really," Naruto confirmed with a smile.
They had never confessed their feelings to each other. Naruto feared confessing to a twelve-year-old would land him in jail, while Hinata was too shy to speak up.
Thus, they remained in a state of ambiguity, even though everyone already treated them as a couple.
Such ambiguity was indescribably sweetâa feeling familiar to anyone who had ever been in love.