On the way home, Naruto clasped his hands behind his head, whistled, and walked toward the sunset with a bright smile on his face.
He felt genuinely happy today.
Because today, he'd finally taken the first step toward making friends. Even though he hadn't succeeded yet, he was satisfied.
Some things would never happen if you didn't try.
But if you did try, success became possible.
The friendly discussion with Sasuke played through his mind again. That stubborn boy, a full head shorter than Naruto, was an excellent choice for friendship. Tomorrow, he'd have another friendly discussion with him. If that didn't work, he'd simply continue the discussions.
Naruto believed that persistence would triumph!
Thinking ahead, he imagined that stubborn boy lying on the ground with bruises covering his face, reaching out with a friendly hand: "Naruto, can I be your friend?"
The mental image brought an unconscious smile to Naruto's face.
The farm was operational, the pigs were thriving, and he saw progress with Iron Body every single day. Today, he'd boldly taken his first step toward making friends.
Naruto watched foxtail grass swaying gently in the wind beneath the setting sun. Everything is developing for the better, he thought. Life will only get better from here.
[Naruto, what is a ninja?]
The System's question appeared suddenly in his mind.
What is a ninja? Naruto considered it carefully. He'd observed many people who could become ninjas and understood the basic concepts.
[A ninja is an assassin with high attack power but low defense.]
[Yes, that's an excellent summary,] the System replied.
[Ninjas are indeed high-attack, low-defense assassins. Their attack power comes from chakra within their bodies. The stronger the ninja, the greater their chakra reserves. Using chakra as a base energy unit and releasing it through ninjutsu can cause tremendous damage. However, ninjas neglect physical cultivation, leaving their bodies at ordinary human levels.]
[As for the assassin designation, it means operating from the shadows, delivering killing blows, or using deceptive techniques. Transformation, Substitution, and Clone Jutsu are all misdirection-based techniques. By confusing an opponent's perception, they prevent enemies from finding the real target, creating opportunities to defeat or kill.]
[So Naruto, remember not to grow complacent. You must work even harder. Even with your Iron Body training, a powerful ninja can still harm you. While blades may not penetrate once you reach the entry level, a blade wielded with sufficient strength and speed can pierce even iron and stone.]
Naruto nodded. He understood the System's concern. Yes, he'd beaten that Uchiha boy today, but he couldn't let it go to his head.
His dream wasn't limited to one Uchiha boy.
It encompassed all of Konoha's ninjas, ninjas from other nations, and eventually the entire world.
Deeply engraving the System's teachings in his heart, Naruto returned to the back mountain. The Nine-Tails was in the kitchen studying recipes. Now that they had pigs in the enclosure, Nine-Tails was researching pork dishes.
Naruto checked on the pigsty first. The pigs lay on the ground with carefree expressions and excellent attitudes.
He nodded approvingly. Good attitude means fast growth.
After inspecting the pigs, Naruto visited the cattle herd. What he saw made his blood boil. Those bulls were leisurely lying under trees, enjoying the shade!
Blatant laziness was absolutely intolerable.
So Naruto pulled out his livestock breeding manual, opened it, and showed the bulls the educational diagrams one by one. The bulls reluctantly moved behind the cows and began their work with huffing and puffing sounds.
Looking at the manual in his hand, Naruto felt disappointed. The techniques and information were becoming familiar to the bulls. They'd seen it all before, making it difficult to maintain their enthusiasm.
The industry desperately needs innovation.
He couldn't figure out why more research materials weren't being produced and simply stopped thinking about it. Time to train.
The next day, Naruto arrived at school. In the hallway outside the classroom, he spotted Sasuke walking toward him and greeted him with a smile. "Hey, Sasuke! Good morning!"
Sasuke's face was wrapped in gauze that his brother Itachi had applied personally. Thinking of Itachi's care made Sasuke's heart warm, but seeing the large figure opposite him destroyed any sense of calm. He walked over, looked up at Naruto, and snorted coldly. "Meet me at the same place after school!"
Same place? Naruto was confused for a second, then understood. Yesterday's discussion location. It seemed he and Sasuke really were developing a connection—they both wanted another friendly discussion today.
After speaking, Sasuke walked into the classroom expressionless.
"Whoa, Sasuke, what happened?"
"Oh no! Who would dare hurt that handsome face?"
"This is terrible! Sasuke, are you okay?"
As the most popular student in class, Sasuke's bandaged appearance immediately drew massive attention.
Haruno Sakura and Yamanaka Ino felt particularly distressed, their protective instincts exploding. They wished those injuries were on their own bodies instead.
Regarding the two girls, Sasuke thought a single word: Annoying. He turned his head away, happened to meet Naruto walking past, who smiled brightly at him. Sasuke's expression turned cold. He turned to face the other direction and ignored everyone.
Class began. Iruka-sensei came in and taught them about ninjas.
What frustrated Sasuke was that despite always being an attentive listener, he couldn't concentrate on the lecture all morning.
Every time he tried to focus, yesterday's scene replayed in his mind. That large boy named Uzumaki Naruto, with his strange physical technique, had controlled him completely. He couldn't break free.
Breathing had become difficult.
I must beat you today! Sasuke clenched his fists, swearing internally.
Lost in distraction, school ended before he realized it. Hearing the dismissal bell, Sasuke snapped back to awareness and found that the large boy had already left, his exclusive pink backpack on his shoulders.
Sasuke quickly packed his things and followed.
The two maintained an unspoken understanding, keeping the same distance—neither approaching nor separating. Soon they arrived at yesterday's discussion location.
Naruto stopped, turned, and looked at the Uchiha boy.
The Uchiha boy also stopped, set his bag aside, and spoke seriously. "I admit it. Yesterday, I underestimated you, which led to..."
He paused, then continued firmly. "But this time, I definitely won't let you grab me like that."
Hearing the black-haired boy's serious declaration, Naruto grew serious as well. He set his backpack aside carefully. Grandpa Third had given him this bag, so it absolutely couldn't get dirty.
After securing his belongings, Naruto looked at Sasuke and asked, "Sasuke, will you be my friend?"
"No."
The answer came cold and immediate.
Two boys stood on the path, ten meters apart, regarding each other with serious expressions.