“Listen to me—I have someone I like!”
After the physical test, the students in the class were split into male and female groups for quality education classes.
As the homeroom teacher, Iruka remained responsible for teaching the boys.
The girls, meanwhile, were led to the flower garden by a female teacher wearing glasses for a Flower Arrangement Class.
Perhaps because the boys weren’t around, the girls’ groups, which had formed their own small circles in the morning, began to excitedly and recklessly discuss their views on the boys in their class.
“It’s Sasuke, right?”
“Eh?! How did you know?”
“You’re not the only one who likes Sasuke, you know!”
That was the extent of the girls’ evaluation of the boys.
They seemed to only focus on Sasuke and had almost no impression of the other boys.
Sakura did not participate in these topics.
She stayed away from those little girl groups, sitting silently alone on the green grass, leaning against a tree and looking up at the azure sky where the afternoon sun was no longer blinding.
“Everyone has a crush on Sasuke.”
Ino walked through the chatting girls and came to Sakura’s side.
Hearing Sakura’s casual rebuttal of “Don’t count me in,” Ino noticed Sakura’s empty flower basket.
“Even though you have the most beautiful flower in your name, you don’t seem to have any interest in flowers at all, Sakura.”
Ino couldn’t help but find it strange.
Unlike Sakura, although Ino was still young, she already had a deep knowledge of flowers.
Her favorite thing to do was spend time in her family’s flower shop.
Ino couldn’t help but feel a bit of regret that Sakura had no interest in flowers.
“Aren’t we Ninjas? What does a Flower Arrangement Class have to do with being a Ninja?”
Withdrawing her gaze from the sky, Sakura voiced her confusion.
“…’Most of the time, Ninjas need to hide themselves. Not just hiding their physical forms in battle, but also hiding their identities during infiltration missions to deceive the enemy and obtain intelligence. Systematically understanding and learning the knowledge of various industries is the only way for a Ninja to create a fake identity that can pass for the real thing.'”
Ino repeated the teacher’s explanation for why the Ninja Academy held this class.
She took half of the flowers from her own full basket and placed them into Sakura’s empty one, helping her arrange them to prevent Sakura from being punished for not completing the assignment.
“I see…”
Sakura stared at Ino, lost in thought.
“What is it?”
“Nothing.”
The morning classes had felt very much like a normal school, but this school was ultimately training Ninjas who could kill enemies.
The fact that a ‘normal’ class like flower arrangement, which seemed unrelated to being a Ninja, was taught at the Ninja Academy actually demonstrated the essence of a Ninja more intuitively when one looked for the deeper meaning.
The so-called quality education was, in essence, training’spies.’
Sakura used to find it strange that a girl like Ino, born into a prestigious clan and raised to be the next clan head, would do something as frivolous and unlikable as’seducing’ Neji during the Chunin Exams in the original story.
She initially thought it was due to Yamanaka Inoichi’s indulgent parenting, but given Yamanaka Inoichi’s personality, it was impossible for him to let Ino become like that.
It seemed the root of it all came from the Ninja Academy’s education.
No wonder this course specifically separated the boys and girls for independent teaching.
Right now, this class was teaching the girls ‘flower arrangement’…
as the school years went on, what else would they be taught?
Sakura frowned.
Although she had accepted her current gender, she wasn’t generous enough to allow herself to master techniques for ‘pleasing others.’
“I don’t like this class.”
Sakura stood up and took Ino’s hand, interrupting her fiddling with the flowers in Sakura’s basket.
“Sakura, what’s wrong?”
As her hand was taken by Sakura, Ino felt the sudden displeasure rising in her.
Although she was confused by Sakura’s behavior, she followed her lead and was brought before the teacher.
“Teacher, I don’t feel well.”
Sakura wore a face that was still somewhat pale.
She suddenly felt that the twenty laps that had nearly killed her earlier weren’t in vain.
At least when used as an excuse to lie and skip class, the effect was excellent.
“I’m going to the infirmary to rest for a while. Ino will come with me.”
Perhaps because Iruka had specifically reminded her to watch Sakura’s physical condition, and because Sakura’s face truly was worrying, the female teacher of the Flower Arrangement Class didn’t suspect anything and granted Sakura and Ino leave from the class.
And so, the two girls—one with cherry-blossom hair and the other with pale gold—left the flower garden.
But their destination was not the ‘infirmary’ Sakura had mentioned.
“The boys are still on the playground.”
Unlike the Flower Arrangement Class, which required the girls to move to a specific teaching area, the boys had not left the school playground, and Iruka was lecturing them.
Sakura felt that rather than wasting time in a girls’ Quality Education Class she would never listen to, it was better to use the time to think of a way to become friends with Sasuke and Naruto and deepen their friendship bonds.
She watched with interest as the students sat in rows.
Naruto was, as expected, ostracized by everyone.
In the rectangular formation, his position in the group was somewhat detached.
No one was willing to partner with Naruto.
People like Shikamaru Nara and Choji Akimichi, who had a good relationship with Naruto in the Ninja Academy in the original story, were not yet close to him.
The two of them currently had their own small circle inherited from their elders’ generation.
Shino did not have an active personality.
And Inuzuka Kiba probably cared a lot about Naruto’s Hokage declaration.
Among the Konoha 12 Genin in the original story, three people explicitly said they wanted to become Hokage—excluding Sasuke, who said it during the Fourth Great Ninja War—the two who had a special attachment to the Hokage title since childhood were Naruto and Inuzuka Kiba.
Inuzuka Kiba’s’straightforward idiot’ personality somewhat overlapped with Naruto’s.
At this time, he likely already showed signs of viewing Naruto as a rival for the position of Hokage.
Interestingly, at the end of the empty space Naruto had left between himself and the rest of the formation, Sasuke sat there.
It was unclear whether Sasuke’s position was intentional or accidental.
But regardless of the unknown reason, Sakura was quite pleased with the result.
“That’s a great spot, Ino. It’s just enough to fit the two of us.”
“Sakura… you don’t mean to…”
Feeling the grip on her wrist tighten slightly, Ino guessed Sakura’s next move.
Sure enough, as Ino expected, Sakura pulled her along to face Iruka.
Students skipping class were naturally most afraid of being caught by their homeroom teacher, but Sakura seemed worried that Iruka wouldn’t notice her.
Instead, she boldly exposed herself and Ino.
“Haruno, Yamanaka… what are you two doing here?”
Sakura and Ino’s appearance interrupted Iruka’s teaching.
He looked at the two before him in confusion.
“Um… we…”
The young girl with pale gold hair was filled with the nervousness of being caught skipping class, and she was too flustered to even speak clearly.
Unable to calm her inner panic, Ino could only close her mouth in the end and silently look at the culprit who had caused all this.
Unfortunately, the culprit showed no attitude of having done anything wrong.
Sakura even pushed her luck: “Iruka-sensei, can Ino and I join the boys for the rest of the quality education classes?”
“Haruno, the quality education classes for boys and girls are different.”
“I know, that’s why I’m asking.”
Iruka stared at the pink-haired girl for a good while.
Sakura…
among this year’s new students, her student file contained special remarks summarized by Ninjas from the intelligence department who had gathered information on her.
“Sakura’s Ninja talent is not among the most prominent of her peers, but she is more mature in her dealings with others, has stronger initiative than her peers, and possesses excellent leadership skills. During her time at the school, attempts can be made to systematically strengthen the leadership she has shown.”
The teachers at the Ninja Academy were not ignorant of the new students.
Ninjas are beings of intelligence.
The teachers were both educators and Ninjas who deeply understood the importance of intelligence.
New students who could receive special remarks were all talents with the potential for personalized teaching.
Like Naruto and Sasuke…
and some other students, their student files also had special remarks.
For intelligence-driven beings like Ninjas, Sakura’s innate leadership, which was different from ordinary people, was sometimes more important than a Ninja’s individual strength.
A young lady from a Ninja clan like Ino had received a more early, comprehensive, and systematic education than Sakura, a child from an ordinary Ninja family, yet she was willing to follow Sakura’s decisions implicitly.
As an excellent educator, Iruka had already guessed that the two had skipped their Flower Arrangement Class to come here.
Looking at Ino’s attitude, she clearly hadn’t skipped class voluntarily, but seemed to have been forcibly taken away from the classroom by Sakura.
But Ino clearly didn’t resent Sakura’s assertiveness; instead, she chose to accept Sakura’s instigation.
Iruka thought back to the physical test earlier, where Sakura was panting after just twenty laps of long-distance running…
this girl truly was as the student file remarks said: her Ninja talent was weak, but her leadership was extraordinary.
Seeing Iruka remain silent, Sakura didn’t really think she could change the rules set by the school with just one sentence.
But she was indeed prepared to be persistent.
At the very least, she had to break into the boys’ Quality Education Class today.
“Then at least let us join the boys for today’s class…”
“Alright, you and Yamanaka will attend class here for now. I’ll adjust the subsequent classes later.”
“…”
Whatever Iruka had been thinking during his silence, he had actually agreed so simply to Sakura’s pushy request, although according to Iruka, this decision was only temporary.
But it was just enough to help Sakura execute her plan.
“Thank you, Iruka-sensei!”
Sakura smiled at Iruka.
He was truly generous and sincere toward his students.
No wonder he would later hold a ‘fatherly’ status in Naruto’s heart.
After expressing her gratitude to Iruka for his understanding, Sakura pulled Ino and walked straight toward Naruto and Sasuke’s position, sitting down right in the middle of the original gap.
With Sakura and Ino joining in, the entire group suddenly no longer had that sense of detachment brought by Naruto.
The formation finally became a neat rectangle, an indivisible whole.
Sasuke, who always mimicked his older brother by keeping a stiff face, looked curiously at Sakura, this girl whose words and actions were somewhat unrestrained.
“Hello there, Sasuke!”
Sakura also sat casually on the ground, tilting her head and greeting Sasuke with a very familiar attitude.
Finding it difficult to adapt to the warmth Sakura was radiating toward him, Sasuke withdrew his gaze and did not answer, refocusing his attention on the lecture.
I must listen to the lesson seriously…
even if I can’t surpass my brother at school, I must never let a gap form!
Sakura didn’t care that her enthusiasm met Sasuke’s cold face.
Having officially met Sasuke, her goal was achieved.
What Sakura needed to do next was to distinguish herself from those love-struck girls, control her social distance, and engage in daily interactions with Sasuke as a classmate with a simpler identity.
If she started by being persistent and shouting things like “Friendship!” and “Bonds!”, it would only make Sasuke, who was socially slow-to-warm, feel that Sakura was no different from the other girls who always swarmed around him, just trying to gain his favor in a different way.
Sakura had to avoid such an impression at all costs.
She wasn’t farming favorability!
She really just wanted to farm those “Friendship” and “Bonds” friendship points!
As long as she wasn’t misunderstood by Sasuke, his attitude was actually not important when dealing with this twisted kid.
As long as Sasuke didn’t explicitly say Sakura was annoying, then by pestering him just enough every time for a few days, a friendship would be initially cultivated.
In the Ninja World, going to the battlefield to kill at five or six years old was a norm, but they were still just children after all, longing for friends, longing for recognition, and also very easily satisfied.
Especially for the current Sasuke, whose family was happy and harmonious, who was full of hope for the future, and whose personality was cold on the outside but warm on the inside.
Knowing that Sasuke was unwilling to be distracted by idle chatter during class, Sakura also shifted her attention away from him.
Sakura leaned her upper body forward on her knees, her gaze passing Ino sitting on her other side, and met the eyes of Naruto, who was quietly and curiously watching her talk with Sasuke.
Naruto, who craved friends and recognition even more than Sasuke, felt a hint of embarrassment at being caught in the act by Sakura…
If he could become like Sasuke, if he could surpass someone like him, would he be able to make friends?
Even Sasuke might become his friend…
but the fact was that everyone wanted to be friends with Sasuke, while no one wanted to talk to him.
The way the same person treated him and others was always diametrically opposite…
Naruto had already experienced such things many times.
Based on his past experience, Naruto instinctively thought that Sakura might want to be friends with Sasuke, but wouldn’t necessarily be willing to talk to him—Naruto was afraid that in the next second, Sakura’s eyes would show the disgust he could not bear, no matter how many times he had seen it.
Naruto subconsciously wanted to avoid Sakura’s gaze, but he saw that Sakura’s eyes were not mocking, but smiling with kindness.
Whether it was Sasuke or Naruto, Sakura could treat them equally.
Hearing the words coming from Sakura’s mouth, Naruto felt as if he had made his first friend of the same age.
Sakura said:
“Hello there~ Naruto~”