Naruto picked up the jacket on the table and said, "Kurama, you should know this is a failing shared by all intelligent creatures. You just don't like that way of living."
"You've been in the Shinobi World for so long. Maybe you should consider learning a little about it. Otherwise, once you're free, you might end up getting the short end of the stick from humans again someday."
Inside the Sealed Space, Kurama closed his crimson, slit-pupiled eyes and fell silent.
For some reason, the thought that his freedom was drawing near only made him hate the Shinobi World more.
That afternoon's class took place in the dojo.
Standing in a distant corner of the dojo, Naruto casually held out a bag of chips beside him. "Choji, is your father picking you up today?"
Choji's half-lidded eyes flew open. He quickly took the chips, tore open the bag, and stuffed a handful into his mouth. After a few crisp crunches, he nodded. "Yep, yep. My father's picking me up all this week."
Leaning beside Naruto on his other side, Shikamaru's ears perked up. He yawned and said, "Naruto, you could at least give me a bag too."
Naruto turned his head and spread his hands. "You were sleeping, so I didn't want to disturb you. Besides, I thought you didn't like chips. Why don't you ask Choji?"
"Burp~"
Before he had even finished speaking, the two heard a burp beside them. They turned to look and found that Choji had already crumpled the bag into a ball.
Shikamaru shook his head helplessly, then looked toward Iruka in the center of the dojo. "If I've got the timing right, the teacher will call your name after one more pair. Unless something unexpected happens, your opponent will be Sasuke again."
"Are