"[Knowledge Absorption]!"
"Activate the ability…"
"[Multitasking]!"
Naruto activated two entries at the same time and instantly seemed to have turned into two separate beings. His left and right brains had an extremely clear division of labor. Not only could he see the textbook in front of him clearly, but his chakra refining technique was also almost completely unaffected!
"This… this is too amazing!" Naruto's eyes lit up, and he was overjoyed. *'In this way, I have twice as much time as others! My future goals are not just a dream!'*
Naruto then stood up happily and prepared to go home. The System's requirements on the road were weighted frog jumps and studying cultural courses, which was not a difficult task for Naruto. However, just as he was getting ready to hit the road for the first time…
"Naruto."
"Ah—" Naruto was startled by the sudden interruption and almost fell to the ground. He looked back and saw a face that was extremely familiar yet a little strange.
"S… Sakura-chan?!"
Haruno Sakura's face was clearly full of smiles, but Naruto felt a little scared. Even stranger was… he had punched Sakura before. If it were his old self, he would probably be terrified and would have tried every possible way to apologize and beg for her forgiveness. But now, he had actually forgotten about this matter. However, now that he saw her face again, Naruto suddenly remembered.
"You… what do you want to do? Didn't I already apologize, Sakura-chan?"
Haruno Sakura's face moved closer, as if she wanted to see through Naruto completely. "I'm not here for that."
"Then, why are you here…"
"I want you to tell me, what on earth is going on with you?!"
Haruno Sakura was more curious about Naruto than ever before. Because… this guy whom she had always looked down upon, for some unknown reason, had now become the focus of the entire class! Hinata was one thing, but now even Ino and Sasuke thought so highly of him. There must be a reason for this! She moved closer, her eyes already close to Naruto's face.
Naruto's expression suddenly changed when she pressed him. "Sakura-chan… you're so close to me… No, but… I can't possibly tell her what happened to me! Don't even mention whether I want to say it or not. The System won't allow me to say it at all!"
He waved his hands wildly with a smile on his face, and his head involuntarily stepped back. "Sakura-chan, nothing happened to me…"
Of course, Haruno Sakura didn't believe him. She put her hands on her hips and continued to advance, looking Naruto up and down, left and right, carefully. "Don't try to trick me. Naruto, I know very well what you were like before. Even if a person could change, it wouldn't be so sudden and drastic! Tell me, what did you do? Why are Hinata, Ino, and even Sasuke-kun paying so much attention to you?"
"Um?!" Naruto felt something in his heart, scratched his head, and looked around subconsciously. "Is that truth ? Hinata, Ino, and… that Sasuke guy? Are they all paying attention to me? How come I don't know…"
Haruno Sakura said angrily, "Stop talking nonsense! What secrets are you hiding? Tell me now!"
If it were the case before, Naruto would have been overjoyed if Sakura had been so interested in him. But now, not only was he unable to reveal his secret, but more importantly… the System had begun to issue warnings.
[It has been detected that the host has finished school. Please immediately continue your training on the way home, otherwise you will be baptized by the system's lightning release!]
[Warning, countdown 5… 4…]
Naruto thought of the horror of the Lightning Release and hurriedly stepped back, away from Haruno Sakura. "Ahhhh— Sakura, I really can't tell you, and I… I have something urgent to do right now! Bye-bye!"
Naruto wanted to run away, but Haruno Sakura refused to give up. "Stop, Naruto! Speak your mind clearly!" She tried to grab Naruto by the collar. However…
[Countdown 3…]
Naruto was already sweating profusely. The terrifying baptism of lightning release could come at any time. Even though he really wanted to talk to Sakura for a few more moments… he also knew what was more important.
[2…]
"Sakura… can we talk about this next time? I… I'm really running late!"
[1…]
"No!" Haruno Sakura suddenly reached out to grab Naruto's arm.
At this critical moment, Naruto had no choice. "Let go!" In his desperation, Naruto couldn't help but roar loudly and slapped her palm away.
*Slap—*
With a crisp sound, not only did he knock Sakura Haruno's arm away, but he also slapped her in the face with an unstoppable force! Suddenly, five red finger marks appeared on her fair cheeks, and a burning pain came over her instantly!
"Ah—" she screamed, covering her face in pain, tears already welling up in her eyes.
But Naruto seemed to have completely ignored it. Without hesitation, he immediately squatted down and began to hop back home.
[0.]
Fortunately, Naruto finally caught up at the last moment and escaped the critical moment of life and death. He finally breathed a sigh of relief and suddenly felt a little pain in his fingers.
"I think I hit something just now…" Naruto looked back and saw Sakura holding her cheek, standing there blankly, with two lines of tears sliding down her cheeks. "No… no way?! Did I hit Sakura again?!"
Naruto had a very complicated expression and wanted to turn back, but the System's warning would not show any mercy. "Sakura-chan…" He gritted his teeth and finally turned around to continue his practice. "I can only apologize next time… Ahhh, what a sin!"
…
At this moment, the crying Sakura suddenly felt a hand gently patting her shoulder. She was so confused that she turned her head back suddenly.
"Sasuke… kun… Iruka-sensei?"
The scene she had imagined did not appear. When she turned around, she saw the serious look on Iruka-sensei's face.
"Sakura, come with me."
Haruno Sakura wiped her tears and nodded, but her cheeks still ached slightly. *'You bastard, Naruto…'* she cursed inwardly and followed Iruka-sensei into his office. Iruka-sensei asked her to sit across from him and observed her with a scrutinizing look.
"What's going on, Sakura? You've been so absent-minded lately. You even skipped class yesterday, and your grades have been declining… What happened?"
After all, Haruno Sakura was the top student in the class, and Iruka could see her changes clearly.
"Iruka-sensei, I…" She shook her head and kept her mouth shut.
__________________________
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