A Sense of Déjà Vu

"My first friend? Looks like he's just like me…"

Nao was genuinely happy to have found someone whose circumstances matched her own, and to become friends with him.

"So, as your friend, can I ask you a question?" She blinked her cute little eyes, smiling as she looked at her first friend.

"Sure."

Having received permission, she immediately asked, "Why did you act like that on the first day of school?"

Shin didn't feel the slightest bit strange facing this question.

With her perceptive abilities, there was no way she hadn't noticed that he was deliberately putting on an act that day.

So, speaking from a friend's perspective, he told her the whole story without holding back.

The more Nao listened, the more surprised she became.

This person actually chose to passively drop out of school for the sake of his reputation.

All of this was just because of that good-for-nothing Senju young master, as he called him.

"Tell me, isn't that guy a total idiot? Nothing good ever happens when you run into him!" Shin excitedly concluded that the problem was Nawaki.

He felt like he was just unlucky to have run into this guy and gotten screwed over.

"Yes, he is," Nao replied patiently after listening.

Although she didn't know what an "idiot" was, she didn't find his unserious, playful tone annoying at all.

Perhaps this was because they both recognized each other? Or maybe… ahem.

"So, I'm here to stir things up today. I plan to burn down the school when no one's around after school!" Shin proudly announced his plan.

The content of his words scared Nao's delicate little face pale: "You… you trust me so much that you don't think I'll tell anyone?"

"Maybe? I figured out something really important to me today…"

"Thank you, Nao. Without today's duel, I'm afraid it would have taken me a long time to figure it out." Shin bowed to Nao, full of gratitude.

"You… you don't… don't do that." The little ice mountain seemed to melt, her cheeks flushed as she stammered.

Shin didn't pay much attention to her state.

He was wondering whether to continue with his plan for today.

When he raised his hand, he realized that he had been holding her wrist ever since he finished healing her.

He looked at Nao's red little face, thinking that his behavior had offended her: "Ah, I'm really sorry, I'll let go now."

"It's okay, you don't need to apologize. By the way, shall we continue?" Nao successfully changed the subject.

From childhood to adulthood, this was the first time she had been thanked to her face.

"No, your body's cells are showing signs of over-fatigue. If you want to spar or exchange ideas in the future, you can come find me anytime," Shin shook his head, explaining.

He probably never imagined that the reason her face was red wasn't because he had been holding her wrist, but because he had thanked her to her face.

"Then… okay, if you need any help in the future, you must come find me," Nao's tone was now much gentler than before.

"Of course, we're friends!" Shin replied with a smile.

"So, what do we do now? The classroom is in such a state, won't the Hokage get mad at us?" Nao was very worried about being punished by the school for the duel.

After all, so many students were watching at the time, and it was uncertain whether they would report them.

"Don't worry, the Hokage isn't petty enough to bother children over a classroom."

Shin, who had been calmly explaining, suddenly slapped his forehead: "Besides, this classroom is so dilapidated, why don't we do a good deed and burn it down?"

"Then, it can be rebuilt!"

"…" Nao was speechless.

Just how much did this person like to stir up trouble to be able to say this so lightly with such a calm expression?

Moreover, his tone really made people want to beat him up.

"If you don't say anything, I'll take it as a yes. Coincidentally, I also have a Ninjutsu I want to try out." Shin turned around immediately, not waiting for her reply.

Nao, who had been "agreed to," was now back in her little ice mountain state.

Squinting her eyes, she stared intently at the Fan Crest on his back.

It seemed she was considering whether to knock this person unconscious to stop him from continuing to stir up trouble.

Shin activated the Sharingan, and Chakra began to circulate within his body's meridians.

Under the power of his strong calculation ability and body control, several independent strands of Chakra in his whole body quickly gathered at his throat.

"Fire Release: Multiple Great Fireball Technique!"

Several miniature fireballs, as if they had been shrunk down, spewed out of his mouth.

However, the situation that Nao's Byakugan could see was far more than that.

"Gather!"

He muttered under his breath, and the miniature Great Fireballs that had appeared earlier gathered together.

Nao, seeing the Fire Release Chakra concentrating towards his mouth, finally understood what Ninjutsu he was trying to perform.

"Scatter!"

Fire Release Chakra came into contact with the miniature Great Fireballs from the air.

With a booming sound, the miniature Great Fireballs seemed to be ignited by the explosion, forming a dozen or so normal-sized Great Fireballs that scattered and flew towards the classroom.

Shin looked at the experimental results and nodded with satisfaction.

He turned to Nao and asked, "So, how's the power of the Multiple Great Fireball Technique?"

Nao, who was too late to stop him, nodded blankly.

Her little ice queen state had been completely melted away by the burning classroom before her eyes.

"Let's go, or the fire will catch up to us!"

Shin waited for a moment, then suddenly grabbed Nao's soft little hand and quickly ran out the door.

"..."

Nao, no longer in her ice queen state, didn't resist at all.

Perhaps she thought this was a normal interaction between friends and didn't feel any aversion to it?

The students at the edge of the corridor were still discussing intensely.

They were all very curious about the outcome of the duel in the classroom.

Soon, they all saw the scene of the two of them running out of the classroom, hand in hand.

This completely crashed their collective brains.

"It's over, is dueling with this guy a guaranteed way to make friends?" Heiji clearly misunderstood something and wailed in his heart.

"You... you two are?"

Mikoto was still very concerned about the Uchiha clan's most troublesome young master.

Ever since she snitched to the family, she had received the task of keeping a close eye on a certain troublemaker at school on behalf of her clan leader.

"We're friends, don't misunderstand the holding hands..." Shin knew that he was being misunderstood again.

But since his friend was a girl, he didn't really care.

"Also, the classroom is on fire, everyone hurry up and get out."

With his high EQ, he couldn't possibly not explain to his classmates.

Otherwise, the friend he just made might end up going their separate ways like Hashirama and Madara, and eventually have a final showdown.

"!!!"

After hearing that the classroom was on fire, the students no longer cared whether the two's friendship was real or fake.

Such gossip was nothing compared to their own lives.

They all hurried and fled towards outside the Ninja Academy.

Outside the Ninja Academy.

Shin let go of Nao's little hand and then instructed the students: "I started the fire, if you have any problems, come at me, Uchiha Shin!"

"I have things to do, so I'll leave first."

After he finished speaking, his whole body turned into a white lightning flash and disappeared into the air.

This situation made the students wonder.

Why would someone set a fire and then admit it?

Come at him if they have any problems? It felt like he was deliberately asking people to come and cause trouble for him.

Nao re-entered her little ice queen state.

But her full moon-like white Byakugan stared blankly at the place where he disappeared.

She still wondered in her heart: "What kind of person is Uchiha Shin? Is his goal really just to drop out of school?"

Filled with questions, she took the lead and left again.

"What is the Second Young Master doing? Setting fire to the classroom? I have to go back and report!" Mikoto said goodbye to the students and then left.

Little Fatty Heiji stared blankly as the students left one after another.

He felt that this scene had a sense of déjà vu.

Looking back, Heiji indeed found their homeroom teacher, Nishinodera.

At this time, the other was holding a brand new set of desks in both hands, walking quickly towards him.

"Heiji, you are..."

"Teacher, the classroom is on fire!"

"Also, Uchiha Shin said that if anyone asks, tell them he started the fire, and to take it up with him if there's a problem."

Before Nishinodera could finish his question, Heiji quickly interrupted him.

Then he stepped forward and gave him a brief, encouraging hug.

This familiar feeling only intensified.