The next day.
Naruto threw the original, eternally unchanged, and utterly tacky orange jacket into the trash.
He changed into a summer outfit, tidied up a bit, and instantly felt refreshed.
After a simple breakfast of the original's treasured, deluxe limited-edition instant noodles, he left a few Shadow Clones at home to research the Flying Thunder God. The main body of Naruto then strolled towards the Ninja Academy.
"Hmm? Isn't that Sakura?"
On a street not far from the school, Naruto saw Sakura Haruno, who was also walking towards the academy.
She was probably daydreaming about something embarrassing, with a completely lovesick expression, and her little face was flushed.
It didn't take a genius to figure out that the male lead in her mind wasn't Naruto.
When he saw Sakura, Naruto's heart fluttered slightly.
It wasn't that he hadn't seen the world; it was mainly the original host's obsession influencing him.
Of course, for someone determined to be a harem king, whether or not he had this obsession, he wouldn't miss the first female lead in the original story.
Maybe a lot of people didn't like her, but it was undeniable that Sakura's cool style later on made the Naruto/Sakura pairing surpass the Naruto/Hinata pairing for a time.
The only pity was that Sakura had almost copied everything about Tsunade, but she couldn't replicate that surging passion.
But it didn't matter; Naruto thought this could be cultivated from a young age.
And her personality, he could also change it into the shape he wanted early on.
"Good morning, Sakura-chan!" Naruto immediately went after her, greeting her first.
Sakura looked back, a little stunned.
"In... Naruto?"
No longer noisy, Naruto, looking fresh and sunny, gave off a completely different vibe.
He still looked the same, but there was an inexplicable attraction to him, making him seem very reliable.
Asura's chakra attribute buff began to take effect, but Naruto hadn't noticed it yet.
Of course, whether he noticed it or not didn't affect his performance.
"Sakura-chan, can I have a few minutes of your time? I have something to tell you," Naruto said, smiling, inviting Sakura.
Back then, Sakura would have slammed a fist into Naruto without a second thought, never getting close to him.
But facing the current Naruto, she couldn't bring herself to refuse, for some reason.
The two of them went to a quieter corner. Sakura asked with a hint of suspicion, "Are you really Naruto? You seem completely different."
"Because I changed my clothes?" Naruto asked with a smile.
"No!" Sakura shook her head, struggling to explain. "I can't put my finger on it, but you're just different."
"Also, you would have been shouting and yelling long ago. Today, you're so quiet. It's not like you at all. Did something happen?"
"Never mind, it's not my business. Just tell me what you want. If you're here to borrow money, don't even bother!"
Although Naruto gave her a different feeling now, her old impression wasn't so easily changed. At most, she didn't hate him as much anymore.
Thump!
However, Naruto suddenly pressed one hand against the wall, effectively "wall-dashing" her.
"What... what are you doing?" Sakura was instinctively a little flustered.
But before she could react further, Naruto pressed closer, and then gave her a deep kiss, also putting his hands on her.
At that moment, Sakura's mind went completely blank.
She never expected that Naruto, who was her number one simp, would be so bold today.
Besides, at their age, almost no one had done anything like this, so naturally, she wasn't prepared.
When she realized she was being taken advantage of, Sakura immediately wanted to fight back.
But with Naruto's current strength, there was no way she could resist.
It wasn't until Sakura was about to cry that Naruto finally let her go.
"You... you... you..." Sakura's eyes were filled with tears, and she didn't know how to speak for a moment.
Even though she was usually a bit feisty, it was hard to react when suddenly faced with this kind of thing.
Naruto chuckled softly, "What I wanted to say is, now you're no longer pure. You can only be my woman from now on, understand?"
"I hate you!" Sakura didn't want to accept this and ran off crying.
"Heh, there's plenty of time."
Naruto shrugged and didn't chase after her. He strolled towards the school, savoring the feeling from just now.
As Naruto reached the school gates, a figure suddenly darted out and blocked his path.
Naruto actually sensed it coming, otherwise, he would have reflexively kicked out.
Although the person wore an Anbu mask, the graceful and alluring figure, coupled with the purple hair trailing behind, made their identity clear.
"Tsk!" Naruto clicked his tongue. Before the person could speak, he preempted, "Miss, you're so beautiful, be my girlfriend!"
Yugao Uzuki: "..."
She didn't discriminate against the legendary Nine-Tailed Jinchuriki, but she couldn't say she felt any fondness either, just a neutral feeling like any other passerby.
However, her first impression now was slightly unpleasant.
So beautiful, she thought, he was talking about her while she was wearing a mask. Even if he was just making things up, he should at least have some basis for it. He seemed like the type who was used to being glib and unreliable.
However, Yugao Uzuki was professionally trained and didn't react, simply stating in a cold voice, "Naruto Uzumaki, the Hokage wants to see you. Come with me."
"Alright, miss! No problem, miss!" Naruto immediately latched on, grabbing Yugao's fair hand and saying with a touch of affection, "If it's you, I'll go with you to the ends of the earth, grow old together, and be forever bound."
Yugao couldn't focus on being taken advantage of; she was shocked.
Just a rookie from the Ninja Academy, and he could get so close to her so easily? Even her hand was held without any resistance!
Before this, she hadn't felt any warning signs, only realizing it when her hand was grabbed. Could it be that she subconsciously felt a sense of closeness to him?
Of course, she could still resist, but considering Naruto was just a child, she hesitated, not wanting to hurt him with a sudden movement.
In that brief moment, Naruto had already interlaced their fingers, and his other hand was gently caressing the back of hers.
"So white and smooth, not at all like someone who always holds a blade. Worthy of being my wife, you take good care of yourself!" Naruto exclaimed.
Yugao's expression behind her mask was a mess of black lines. He'd just said "girlfriend," and now he was jumping straight to "wife"?
"Naruto Uzumaki, this is your first warning!" Yugao's voice was devoid of emotion, making it impossible to tell if she was pleased or angry.
If it weren't for his young age, she would have dealt with him swiftly.
Although Yugao Uzuki was dedicated to her job, she wasn't the type to sacrifice her appearance for a mission.
"Alright!" Naruto conceded, his face a picture of disappointment. "I won't call you 'wife' then. I'll wait until we're married. But calling you 'sister' should be fine, right? Oh yeah, yeah, didn't you say the Third Hokage was looking for me? Let's go!"
And then, while Yugao was still in a daze, Naruto grabbed her hand and dragged her through the streets at a run.