What he could recall was her…
The next class was purely theoretical. When they were finally let down from the tree, Iruka sternly admonished them with a roar: “What just happened must never happen again. Pay attention in class, understand?”
The three, still dizzy from being hung upside down, replied dejectedly:
“Yes.”
“Okay.”
“Got it.”
Their responses were utterly lacking in synchronization.
Back in the classroom, Sasuke turned sideways and suddenly extended his hand toward Sakura Haruno—a gesture of reconciliation.
Sakura Haruno, her mind still preoccupied with the idea of holding hands, didn’t even think twice before eagerly grabbing his hand and exclaiming excitedly, “Are we arm wrestling?”
Sasuke felt the soft warmth of her fingers, and his puffy cheeks were just about to soften when he heard her words. His expression immediately stiffened again, and he grew irritated, tightening his grip forcefully.
Sakura Haruno stopped smiling too, matching his strength. Neither of the two was the type to back down, and they squeezed each other’s hands so hard that their bones creaked.
As they continued to exert force back and forth, their eyes grew fierce, and a palpable killing intent began to emanate from them.
Slowly, the rest of the classroom fell silent, too afraid to make a sound.
Only Naruto looked left and right, finally realizing they were competing in strength before slamming his hand on the table. “Go, Sakura! Beat that guy down!”
In the back row, Ino hesitated, wanting to say something. Seeing Sakura in a state unlike her usual self, she felt a bit sorry for the handsome new boy, but she didn’t dare intervene. She nudged Choji with her elbow, who was busy stuffing his face with potato chips and looked utterly confused. “What?”
“Aren’t you going to stop them?”
“Think about Sakura’s strength. If I tried to stop her, I’d get sent flying.” Choji shuddered, breaking out in a cold sweat as if recalling something terrifying.
Ino immediately settled back into her seat with a clear conscience. It wasn’tt that she didn’t want to save the handsome boy—it was just that Sakura was too terrifying.
Remembering her childhood playtime with Sakura—the toys crushed into mush, the floors smashed to pieces, and various objects twisted and broken—Ino silently shrank back, haunted by both preschool and childhood trauma. As much as she liked the handsome boy, her life was far more important.
Sakura Haruno wasn’t exactly a devil, though. She wasn’t using her full strength. According to her System panel data, her stamina was actually about the same as Sasuke’s at this point.
As for Naruto, his stamina and Chakra reserves were backed by a Nine-Tails supply line. Whether he was a dead-last or not, his System stats were off the charts—literally explosive.
So explosive that she couldn’t help but wonder how Sasuke Uchiha later managed to go toe-to-toe with Naruto. Seriously, Kishimoto must have forced some overpowered hacks without any regard for fairness.
Otherwise, how could a pair of rabbit-like eyes suddenly pilot a Gundam? Just look at the Byakugan, which was initially set up as a rival to the Sharingan—what did it become in the later stages? If it weren’t for the Rinnegan being introduced as a patch, Kishimoto would have probably tossed it into the setting trash bin and forgotten about it.
Although their stats were similar, Sakura knew she could definitely win an arm-wrestling match against Sasuke.
Her Chakra control was superior to his. She pretended to unconsciously infuse her strength with Chakra as she exerted force.
Chakra not only protected the body but also significantly enhanced stamina, agility, and explosive power.
Winning an arm-wrestling match against Sasuke and making him cry for his parents wouldn’t be difficult. The real challenge was making it seem like this level of control was something she had revealed unconsciously.
Maintaining the persona of a six-year-old brat without wavering, not letting herself appear overly precocious.
Even if she occasionally does something genius-like, she’s just a child with potential talent, not a terrifyingly intelligent super-genius mature child.
After all, the precocious geniuses in Konohagakure all end up miserable—looking down, she sees either corpses or various tragic experiences.
Uchiha Shisui, Uchiha Itachi, Kakashi, Uchiha Madara…
What’s the deal with all of them being related to the Sharingan? Is the Sharingan actually another name for ethylene?
Sakura Haruno looked at Sasuke, whose hand she had squeezed swollen, and felt a bit guilty. Wasn’t this just bullying a child?
“You should just admit defeat. I can hold on for a long time,” Sakura Haruno kindly advised.
Sasuke’s face was half-swollen from the pain, but his gaze was frighteningly determined. “In your eyes, am I a weakling who can’t persevere?”
Sakura Haruno then remembered that the Uchiha were a bunch of tsundere types—the more you said they couldn’t do something, the more they insisted on doing it. Their thought processes were forged from steel, unbreakable and unbendable. You could call anyone a weakling, but never them.
She had been too disrespectful. Immediately changing her tone to a gentle one, she said, “Alright then, to respect your identity as a strong person, I’m going to increase my strength. Don’t worry, even if I crush your fingers, I won’t let go.”
Sasuke immediately thought of that tragically destroyed desk and couldn’t help but stiffen. She really, truly could crush his hand.
Naruto, seeing victory within reach, jumped up and laughed, “Sakura wins!”
Sakura Haruno also grinned fiercely and was about to increase her strength when a sharp knock landed on the back of her head. She yelped, and the previously ferocious carnivore suddenly reached out both hands to clutch her pink hair, her clear green eyes brimming with tears that fell one by one.
Sasuke’s hand was saved. He bent over slightly, unable to bear it, his swollen hand trembling uncontrollably. It hurt so much. This wasn’t like the pain from training; it was a direct, intense, and sudden agony.
He blew on his palm, still not fully recovered, when someone grabbed him by the back of his neck and dragged him away.
It was Iruka. He held a little Sakura Haruno in his left hand, a little Sasuke in his right, and tucked a little Naruto under his right arm.
“All of you, stand in punishment until class ends.”
There were still two classes left until dismissal—meaning he didn’t want to see them for the rest of the day.
Iruka, furious, said, “It’s only been a few days of class, and you’re already fighting with your comrades. How will you become ninja in the future? Today, I’ll teach you a lesson. Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, hold out your hands.”
The two exchanged glances for a moment before extending their hands. Iruka expressionlessly clasped their hands together and barked sternly, “Hold on.”
Startled, they immediately gripped each other’s hands.
Iruka sneered, “Good. Now hold hands and face each other until class ends. If you can’t understand what camaraderie means, I’ll make you hold hands in class from now on.”
Naruto immediately grew anxious. “Holding hands? I want to hold Sakura’s hand too! What about me, Iruka-sensei?”
Iruka instantly softened. “You? Of course, you get to join too.”
And so, Naruto holding Sasuke’s hand and Sasuke holding Sakura Haruno’s hand turned into a sandwich, leaving all three of them utterly bewildered.
Especially Sasuke, who seemed unable to comprehend how he, who had come to school obediently to attend class, had ended up as a troublemaker singled out for punishment.
Thinking of his brother’s perfect exam scores, and then his own—would he really bring home a zero?
Sakura Haruno had just heard the System’s completion chime. So all that time she spent arm-wrestling was deemed invalid, and only now was it officially recognized as holding hands.
The System chimed in cheerfully, “Of course, look at you two—fingers tightly intertwined.”
Sakura immediately looked down and realized she and Sasuke Uchiha were indeed holding hands, fingers interlaced one by one, tightly woven together. She was about to explode with frustration but quickly calmed down.
Wait, how old were these kids anyway? What was she thinking, with such dirty, disgusting thoughts? She returned to her normal attitude and continued holding Sasuke’s hand.
Meanwhile, Naruto squirmed left and right, grumbling discontentedly, “I want to hold Sakura’s hand, not this guy’s.”
Sasuke replied coldly, “Do you think I want to hold your hand?”
Naruto pouted, “Then do you really like holding Sakura’s hand?”
Sasuke fell silent for a moment, realizing his attitude was off, and quickly said, “I don’t like either.”
Naruto insisted, “Then switch places with me. I’ll hold Sakura’s hand.”
Sasuke looked at him as if he were an idiot. What difference would it make? He’d still have to hold Naruto’s hand.
Naruto grew impatient, “I think you just like holding Sakura’s hand.”
“Uzumaki Naruto, if you keep making noise, I’ll make you regret it!” Iruka, who was teaching the class, hurled a chalkboard eraser out the window, hitting Naruto squarely on the back of the head.
Naruto yelped in pain, his eyes nearly popping out. He quickly apologized, “Got it, got it, sensei.” Then, out of habit, he pouted and complained to Sakura, “That really hurt, Sakura.”
Sakura was feeling hungry. She fumbled for a chocolate candy and was about to eat it when she heard Naruto’s whining. Used to comforting children, she straightforwardly said, “Open your mouth.”
Naruto instinctively opened his mouth, and a piece of candy flew over Sasuke, landing right in it.
“Have some candy, and it won’t hurt as much,” Sakura said, popping a milk candy into her own mouth and mumbling.
Then she remembered there was another child. This little Uchiha couldn’t be associated with the future show-off king, and she couldn’t let him feel left out.
“Here, have some candy.”
Sakura took out a pure fruit juice candy and handed it to little Sasuke, only to find him staring at her with his big, dark eyes.
Why was he looking at her? She noticed his hand was already being held and suddenly understood. She quickly unwrapped the candy with one hand, brought it to his mouth, and stuffed it in, saying, “Eat up.”
Sasuke had initially wanted to say he didn’t like sweets, but as the candy entered his mouth, he realized it was more sour than sweet and actually not bad. He held it in his mouth for a moment before realizing he’d missed the chance to spit it out, so he could only frown and continue eating it.
As he ate, his frown gradually eased.
Outside the corridor, cherry blossoms drifted down from the tree, landing gently on them. The sunlight was warm enough to carry the scent of candy. The three of them ate their candies, unusually quiet as they gazed at the scenery outside.
Later, Sasuke thought about it. Standing through two classes hadn’t felt humiliating or uncomfortable at all. Even when he was surrounded by curious onlookers after class, there was no memory of anger.
What he could recall was that Sakura Haruno’s hand was very soft, though he couldn’t understand why it was so strong. Uzumaki Naruto was incredibly noisy and had been warned four times by the teacher with chalkboard erasers to the head.
The sunlight was warm, and the candy was delicious.
After class, Sasuke grabbed his single-strap bag and ran outside. Seeing his brother there to pick him up, he happily dashed over, smiling as he said, “Brother, are you free now?”
Itachi bent down and patted his head. “I just finished a mission, so I came to pick you up.”
Just as Sasuke was about to say something, he saw Sakura Haruno and Naruto Uzumaki walking side by side out of the school gate.
“Sakura, I’ll treat you to ramen today. I just got this month’s allowance yesterday.”
“What ramen? Don’t waste your money even if you have it. Come to my house for dinner instead, and we can do our homework together. You were last in Chakra extraction again today, so today’s assignment is Chakra control.”
“I, I… But is it really okay for me to go to your house?” Naruto’s mood sank.
Sakura Haruno wrapped an arm around his shoulder and dragged him along. “Stop talking nonsense. In my house, I’m the boss. If I say it’s okay, it’s okay. Let’s go.”
Naruto: “Hehehe.”
Sakura Haruno looked at him with disdain. “Stop giggling foolishly.” She then noticed Ino and the others and naturally pulled Naruto over to greet them.
The few kids who had once been somewhat indifferent to Naruto’s situation had long since accepted him into their circle, influenced by Sakura’s natural attitude and the time they spent playing together.
The main reason was that the children from influential families had a greater ability to handle risks compared to other ordinary kids.
Even if their families knew that Naruto had a “nuclear bomb” sealed inside him, they had the capability to handle any consequences that might arise from their children befriending him.
Since they would have met eventually anyway, Sakura Haruno simply introduced them earlier, and it didn’t trigger the System’s Death Notice.
“Are those your friends, Sasuke?” Itachi noticed his younger brother’s gaze lingering on them and couldn’t help but tease him.
Sasuke immediately looked away, hesitated slightly with some discomfort, and then whispered, “I guess so…”
After all, didn’t she say “I like you”? Doesn’t that mean being friends?
He reluctantly agreed, so that means… they’re friends, right?