Konoha Notes

Chapter 257 Naruto's Daily Life

Sasuke is a bit strange.

Naruto kept looking back.

He was just punched by Karin again, so why did this happen?
This isn't the first time; besides, I often get punched during actual combat training sessions.

"Naruto!"

"Huh? Eh..." The sudden shout startled him. Looking at Iruka's dark face on the podium, he muttered, "What's wrong, Iruka-sensei? Why are you shouting so loudly all of a sudden? It scared me to death."

Iruka took a deep breath, veins bulging on his forehead: "How dare you say that! During class time, what are you looking at, turning your head back and forth like that!"

"I, I..." Naruto lowered his head, unsure of what he was looking at.

"Get out of the classroom and stand outside!"

"Yes—" Naruto drawled as he slowly made his way to the corridor.

He rested his hands behind his head, leaning against the wall, his mind still revolving around Sasuke. It wasn't until the bell rang and Iruka grabbed his ear and scolded him that he finally returned to the classroom with his head drooping.

He stared at Sasuke until that gloomy profile suddenly loomed large in his field of vision.

"What are you looking at, you idiot?"

"Hey—wait! Sasuke, why are you suddenly so close!"

"Idiot, you came here by yourself!" Sasuke pushed away Naruto's approaching face with a look of disgust. "One after another, you're all acting out of nowhere."

"My brother too..." His voice suddenly lowered, filled with confusion and frustration.

Why do I always find out? I only went back after my injuries had healed.

The swelling on my face has gone down.

Some people were saying strange things.

The statements like "Sasuke was in the wrong this time" are simply absurd.

Sasuke turned his face away, not wanting to see Naruto's silly look, and stared out the window with a sour expression.

Then, the face with six whisker marks came closer, squinting as it looked him over.

Sasuke's eye twitched.

"You stinky bastard," Naruto said.

Sasuke's face darkened: "Want to fight? Last place."

Before he could finish speaking, Naruto headbutted him. Seeing the approaching golden head, Sasuke jerked to his feet and backed away, knocking over his chair with a screeching sound.

Having narrowly escaped the attack, Sasuke's anger flared up. Taking advantage of Naruto's momentum, he used his right foot to wedge Naruto's heel and tripped him forcefully.

Seeing the astonishment on Naruto's face, Sasuke instinctively grabbed his left arm to slow his fall. In that instant, his fist was about to strike Naruto's face, but he stopped abruptly.

At this moment, the previously noisy break time suddenly became quiet.

"Naruto! What are you doing now?!"

"As expected of Sasuke-kun!"

The girl's scream followed immediately.

Naruto yelled "Waaah!" and got up from the ground. He was about to pounce again, but Shikamaru and Choji arrived just in time and held him off from the left and right.

"Idiot, stop messing around, Sakura and the others are coming to kill us," Shikamaru warned in a low voice.

Shikamaru's words made Naruto look up in the other direction, where he saw the girls with fire in their eyes, and his face immediately turned pale.

"You'll remember this, Sasuke!"

After saying that, he immediately rushed out of the classroom and ran into Iruka, who was on his way to class.

"Naruto, you must..."

"We'll talk about it later, Teacher Iruka!"

"Hey!" Iruka was about to call out to him when he saw the girls from his class, mixed with students from other classes who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, surge past him and chase after Naruto in the direction he had fled.

Umino Iruka gazed at the now empty doorway and sighed deeply.

"Class is about to start... there are only five minutes left..."

"No matter what..."

Halfway through his self-pity, he suddenly remembered something, and his expression changed instantly.

Oh no... Captain Shuji seems to still be at school today...

Meanwhile, in the corridor on the other side of the teaching building.

Shuji was invited to observe the progress of a student named Kamano's ninjutsu training. The boy had mastered a basic ninjutsu technique within a week.

He nodded slightly. Among geniuses, this progress would be considered mediocre. Among ordinary people, it could be considered quite good.

From this perspective alone, the investment in the Ninja Academy in the past may indeed have been somewhat insufficient. Even though an ordinary ninja can only unleash a limited number of ninjutsu in a single battle, their impact on the entire team should not be underestimated if the timing is right.

"not bad."

"I will urge him to practice more." Ebisu put his hands behind his back, responded, and then nodded to Kamano, indicating that he could leave.

Just then, a commotion that grew louder as it approached broke the silence of the corridor. Footsteps, girls' screams, and Iruka's attempts to maintain order were all mixed together.

"Grab Naruto!"

"How dare you attack Sasuke-kun!"

The unrest was rapidly approaching.

Ino Yamanaka and Sakura Haruno, who were originally surrounded by girls, were the first to notice the figure at the end of the corridor. As Shuji's gaze swept over them, the noisy crowd seemed to be muted, instantly falling silent.

Iruka, who had just been trying to stop them, froze in place.

The teacher and the students chasing each other were frozen in the corridor in an eerie moment.

As Naruto was running, a hand reached out from the side and grabbed him by the back of his collar, lifting his feet off the ground and kicking a few times in vain.

"Iruka-sensei," Ebisu said coldly, grabbing Naruto by the arm, "Class is about to start. Take the students back to the classroom immediately."

"Yes, yes! Ebisu-sensei!" Iruka replied hastily, as if waking from a dream, beads of sweat appearing on his forehead.

Naruto, who was being held in mid-air, turned his head and grinned at Shuuji: "Shuuji-nii! You came to school today too!"

"Hello, Naruto."

Naruto wanted to say something more, but Iruka took it from him and tucked it under his arm.

The girls quickly exchanged glances and silently dispersed. Naruto, who was being held by Iruka, couldn't help but be curious, having never witnessed a fan group so efficiently and quietly evacuate in the midst of their rage.

“Iruka-sensei, and Sakura and the others, why do you all seem so afraid of Shuuji-nii?”

“It’s not fear,” Iruka corrected in a low voice, “it’s respect. Captain Shuji… is now a hero of the village.”

"A hero?" Naruto blinked. "Does becoming a hero mean everyone will respect you?"

“…This…of course…” Iruka’s voice trailed off, as if he didn’t know how to give a complete answer to the question.

Naruto turned his head, watching the figure grow ever more distant.

"Are heroes... more respected than the Hokage?"

Iruka stopped in his tracks.

He looked down at the blond boy in his arms, his eyes filled with nothing but pure curiosity.

“Naruto,” he paused, searching for the right words, “is a ninja who can become Hokage, and he is a hero of the village.”

He tightened his grip on his arms and continued walking forward.

"The Hokage is not revered simply because he is a 'Kage'."

(End of this chapter)