"Naruto, you just stand here and take your punishment. Don't move until I call you. Got it?"
Iruka scolded the boy standing in front of him—the boy who had changed so drastically overnight. His voice was stern, but his emotions were conflicted.
Today was the day of the graduation exam, and Iruka had been busy since early morning. The moment he arrived at the Ninja Academy, he heard troubling news from his fellow instructors.
Naruto had knocked Inuzuka Kiba unconscious.
Naruto had humiliated both Sakura and Ino.
Naruto had bullied Hinata to the point of fainting.
Each report was more outrageous than the last. Even after hearing it straight from Naruto himself, Iruka could hardly believe it.
With a heavy sigh, Iruka softened his tone. "Naruto, if you really want to become Hokage one day, you can't go around hurting your classmates. Do you understand?"
Iruka, having known hardship himself, always had a soft spot for Naruto. Even now—despite everything—he just clenched his teeth and made Naruto stand in the corner instead of handing out a harsher punishment.
"I understand, Iruka-sensei. You should get to the exam room now—everyone else is waiting." Naruto waved him off casually.
"You little brat... can't wait to get rid of me, huh?"
Iruka felt like Naruto was trying to chase him away. He wanted to scold him again, but considering the exam was about to begin, he held back. He didn't want to mess with Naruto's mindset right before a big test.
"Do your best, Naruto. I'll treat you to ramen after the exam."
"Sure! Bye, Iruka-sensei!"
As Iruka disappeared from view, the floating options in front of Naruto's eyes slowly faded away.
[Ding! Target has left the host's field of view. Failure to pursue counts as forfeiting the option.]
So just not chasing after someone counts as giving up?
Naruto felt like he was beginning to understand how this mysterious "Selector" system worked.
After her brief blackout, Hinata slowly regained consciousness. Her heart was still racing, and Naruto's words echoed in her mind over and over.
"Marry me."
Her face turned bright red, blushing all the way to the tips of her ears. She couldn't stop thinking about how Naruto had stood right in front of her and said those words.
Naruto-kun... Will he be upset if I didn't give him an answer?
If only I hadn't fainted… If only I'd been braver...
Her head grew warm again just thinking about it, and her body began to sway. Just as she was about to pass out once more, a hand landed gently on her shoulder.
"Hinata."
"Eep!"
Hinata jumped, snapping back to reality. She turned around quickly.
"Ino-chan! What's wrong?"
Ino looked furious. "Naruto was such a jerk today! He humiliated me, and then he made you faint. After the exam, let's go find him and give him a piece of our minds!"
Go... confront Naruto-kun?
No way!
Hinata shook her head frantically. "N-No, I'm not going!"
"Don't worry, Hinata."
Ino assumed Hinata was just scared. After all, everyone knew how timid she was. But Ino was burning with frustration. She needed someone—anyone—to help her corner Naruto after what he said.
That idiot had actually told her, in front of everyone, to do a striptease for him. It was beyond humiliating. Someone had to teach him a lesson.
Kiba was still out cold. Sakura? That big forehead wouldn't help. Shikamaru and Choji were too close to Naruto. That left only Hinata—the other victim.
"Listen, Hinata. No one gets that strong overnight. Naruto has always been dead last in class. The only reason he beat Kiba was because Kiba underestimated him. If we prepare properly, we can totally beat him."
Ino started dissecting Naruto's fight with Kiba, hoping to convince Hinata by pointing out any weaknesses.
Hinata looked down, unsure how to tell her that she hadn't felt bullied at all.
"Next, Hyuga Hinata!"
The exam room door opened, and the instructor called her name. Hinata's eyes lit up like she'd seen a lifeline. She quickly stood up and bowed out of the conversation.
"I-Ino-chan, I have to go take my exam now! I can't help you with Naruto-kun."
"…"
Watching Hinata run off, Ino sighed in frustration. The speech she'd given Hinata had only been half true. In reality, Ino wasn't confident she could beat Naruto at all. That's why she was trying to rope someone else in.
"Fine... If no one else is going, I'll do it myself. I don't believe someone who's always dead last could suddenly get this strong."
"Naruto, just you wait!"
"Next, Uzumaki Naruto!"
Since he had been punished to stand in the hallway, Naruto was the last to take the exam. The technique he drew was Clone Jutsu. Thanks to the Shadow Clone Jutsu he had just learned through the system, he passed easily with full marks.
"Naruto, you've finally grown up. You'll be a real ninja now—one who can stand on his own."
Iruka smiled warmly as he tied the forehead protector on Naruto himself.
"Once you become a Genin, you've got to keep working hard. Otherwise, you'll never become Hokage."
Naruto tilted his head slightly, looking out the window at the red-orange sky. The sunset clouds looked like they were glowing.
Iruka didn't realize that Naruto wasn't the same person anymore.
He no longer had any interest in becoming Hokage.
Better to keep that to myself, Naruto thought. Telling Iruka would just worry him and bring unnecessary trouble.
Who knew if the Third Hokage was watching him right now through that weird crystal ball?
Then there was the Root division, and the ever-present Anbu. He was constantly being watched.
Sure, he could mess around and act wild—but if he ever said something that went against the village's ideals? The consequences wouldn't be light.
"Come on, Naruto. I promised I'd treat you to ramen."
"Alright!"
"What's up with you today? You seem kind of... out of it."
"That's because you're too childish, Iruka-sensei. That's why you're always so full of energy."
"You little punk! Trying to lecture your teacher now?"
The two of them laughed and bickered as they walked out of the Ninja Academy.
It was already dusk—the most beautiful time of day.
Meanwhile, down the road leading to Naruto's home, a blonde girl was still waiting.
She had been standing there for a long time.
The sun had set, and the night breeze was starting to blow.
"Achoo!"
Ino sneezed violently. The wind was cold tonight, and her outfit wasn't made for chilly weather. Her long, pale legs were exposed, and she was starting to shiver.
"Ugh... Where the hell are you? Why haven't you shown up yet?"
She grumbled, hugging herself tightly.
"You're lucky I'm feeling generous today. I'll let you off the hook—for now."
Muttering to herself, Ino turned and quickly ran toward her home, arms wrapped around her cold frame.