Open Your Eyes and See the Real World

"Ahem, first of all, I'm definitely not a pervert," Naruto muttered in a low voice, "And she's not some ignorant girl either, damn it!"

"Ding-a-ling!" An elderly man with hearing problems at the stall rang the bell and looked up to speak.

"Takoyaki, sir."

"Ugh!" Sakura struggled to grab the Takoyaki wrapped in the paper bag, ignoring Naruto covering her mouth, and reached out to grab it, making the scene somewhat indecent.

Naruto couldn't stand it anymore, so he grabbed the bag of food and dragged Sakura away. After walking for a while, away from the crowd, he reluctantly handed the food to Sakura.

"Here, is this stuff really that delicious?"

"It's delicious." Sakura carefully took the paper bag, tossing it between her left and right hands, her mouth spitting out hot air, her cheeks flushed red.

After saying that, she suddenly seemed to remember something and asked a question.

Do you want some?

Naruto looked at her hesitantly, opened his mouth, but still didn't say anything.

"I didn't poison her." Sakura blinked. "Lord Tsunade didn't teach me much about poison techniques either. I can't possibly learn everything from books by myself, can I?"

Upon hearing this, Naruto completely abandoned the idea of trying it. It's unlikely that a scene like Qiao Feng being drugged while traveling the martial arts world would appear in a martial arts movie.

"I'm not hungry," he said, coughing.

"Oh." Sakura turned her head away and started eating Takoyaki herself, slowly walking towards the light.

Naruto followed behind her, maintaining a distance between them at all times. There was a contrasting quality to her restrained desires, a pure and innocent air about her despite wearing old-fashioned Black Sakura -rimmed glasses.

In short, despite having the exact same facial features as Sakura and sharing the same body, she gave Naruto the illusion of being a completely different person. Perhaps it was her eating habits or the changes in her eyes when she spoke.

He had seen Sakura speak in front of others; her speech was normal, and her expression was frank and natural. Most of the time, she had a peaceful smile on her face, giving the impression of being a very kind girl.

I heard she's very popular at Konoha Hospital, since the Medical Department is full of men. Even the most meticulous and gentle treatment during dressing changes can't compare to a girl telling you to be patient, that changing the dressing will hurt a little. Plus, Sakura is serious and attentive in her work, so she was quickly dubbed an angel.

Sakura stopped, as if she had something to say. She only spoke when Naruto caught up and stood shoulder to shoulder with her.

"Actually, I wanted to give it a try; I treated today like a date."

Upon hearing this, Naruto glanced at her.

"Forget it, it's too much trouble."

As night fell, a few lights flickered on the Konohagakure Street. The summer heat lingered in the breeze, and Sakura, wearing a sleeveless top, turned to look at him.

"Alright then, whether you pretend to be stupid, lie, or tell the truth, I don't mind if you're just being perfunctory."

The next day, Naruto woke up.

I sighed as I looked at the empty room. I'd stayed out quite late last night. Nothing particularly special had happened; I'd just been wandering around.

Sakura seemed very happy, and he didn't dislike the feeling either. He didn't feel uncomfortable either; the date, where they maintained a certain distance, made him feel very safe.

He could vaguely sense that something had changed—not him, but Sakura's side. She had a feeling that Sakura had had a lot of fun that night, way too much fun.

Naruto even felt like he was just an accessory, something he could just stand there for.

Never mind, I'll ask again when I have time today.

He got out of bed and went to the Hokage Building as summoned. Tsunade was still not there, and Naruto had no idea what she was busy with. After searching around, he found Shizune.

"You're here?" Shizune didn't even look up, her hands moving so fast they left afterimages as she processed the documents, as swiftly as an octopus.

"Yes, that guy from the Anbu said Lord Tsunade is looking for me." Whenever Naruto has free time, he can see Uzuki Yugao every few days.

Her purple hair and the animal mask from the Anbu were too eye-catching. After Tsunade took over the Anbu, Uzuki Yugao seemed to be given important responsibilities.

I don't know if it has anything to do with Gekko Hayate, since her fiancé died in the line of duty and she became a widow.

"Actually, it was me who came to find you. I asked the Anbu to send someone to call you over." Shizune stopped what she was doing and looked up at him. "Lord Tsunade has been quite busy lately, mainly because of matters concerning Sand."

"Sand?" Naruto's eyelids twitched slightly, a bad feeling creeping over him.

"Yes, Gaara of Sand is poised to become the Fifth Kazekage. A small number of high-ranking officials in Sunagakure are no longer able to stop him, so they have resorted to despicable means to force him to leave the Sunagakure."

Shizune, she spoke calmly, as if laying the groundwork for her words.

"The village will provide Gaara allies, and most of the high-ranking officials in Sand are also on Gaara's side, so..."

"So?" Naruto asked.

"Gaara succeeding as the Fifth Kazekage is a good outcome for the village and even the Land of Fire," Shizune nodded and said.

"I don't care if the world is at peace or not, even if there's a war, it doesn't matter," Naruto said, interrupting Shizune. "Anyway, I don't do any strange missions, and I don't do any troublesome missions either."

"Your personality is really something." Shizune's expression remained unchanged.

"Huh? There's nothing we can do about it. This village is terrible too." Naruto made no attempt to hide his dislike for the village as he turned and said.

"The environment shapes a person, and my personality was gradually formed in Konohagakure. Regardless, Konohagakure is the one that should bear the responsibility, after all."

Shizune, unable to bear it any longer, gradually understood why Lord Tsunade wanted to lash out whenever she saw Naruto. His despicable personality made her want to smack Naruto into a wall right then and there.

But she was not Tsunade after all. Facing this unruly Crown Prince of Konohagakure, Shizune took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed her anger, gently persuading him.

"Well, it's not a strange mission. It's just about getting to know the eldest princess Sand more. Naruto, you know the relationship between Konohagakure and Sand. Although they've become allies, the relationship has always been rather strained."

"Relationships based on mutual interests are never as close as other, more intimate relationships, even if they are just friends."

"What does this have to do with me?" Naruto asked, hands in his pockets.

"Of course it's related. Lord Tsunade is also very concerned about this matter. Don't you want to share Lord Tsunade?" Shizune stood up directly from her chair.

She would never say anything like "for the village" or "for the peace of the Shinobi World." She knew Naruto too well; he had no interest in such things.

"I don't want to." Naruto like a rattle-drum.

"Lord Tsunade— " He had barely uttered the words when crisp footsteps echoed in the corridor outside, footsteps he knew all too well.

The thuds felt like they were hitting his heart, creating an overwhelming sense of pressure.

"Lord Tsunade is overworked every Tenten. It would be my honor to help with such a small matter." Naruto quickly changed his words to avoid danger.

The eldest princess of the Senju Clan stood outside the door, frowned, stared at Naruto's back, said nothing, came in, took a document, and left.

The green robe brushed past Naruto's side, instantly making him tense; the Konohagakure Empress's aura was too heavy. Mainly, Tsunade had been too busy lately, and her temper wasn't very good.

Naruto would basically stay away and keep quiet whenever possible, for fear of being noticed by Tsunade.

Tsunade. She turned to look at Naruto and spoke.

"I'll wait for you outside. Come out for a bit after you've finished what you were doing."

"Good."

Shizune stared blankly at Naruto's sudden change in tone, thinking to herself that there's always someone who can subdue another. She had tried so hard to persuade him, but Naruto hadn't budged at all. Yet, as soon as Lord Tsunade arrived, his attitude completely changed.

Ah, men.

Since Naruto had already agreed, Shizune had nothing more to say. She briefly explained the details of things between Sand and then finished. She also urged Naruto to leave quickly so that Lord Tsunade wouldn't have to wait too long.

Naruto was somewhat reluctant and dragged himself out.

Tsunade stood outside the corridor, her blue robe billowing in the wind. She had been the Fifth Hokage for almost a year now, and much of the willfulness Tsunade earlier had faded.

"If you don't like what's going on with Sand, you can just deal with it casually," she said. "Jiraiya has sent word that he has found some information about Akatsuki Organization."

"They seem to be entrenched in the Land of Land of Rain, where there is frequent warfare. He wants to investigate on his own, but he also wants to come back first to take you to Mount Myōboku."

"Is this asking for my opinion?" Naruto was slightly taken aback.

"Hmm." Tsunade let out a breath and reached out to pinch his cheek. "He is, after all, your teacher. I'd like to hear your opinion."

Naruto pondered for a moment, then looked up and said.

"Let's bring the Pervy Sage back first. The matter of the Land of Rain isn't urgent. Since someone like Itachi Uchiha can serve the Akatsuki Organization, it proves that the Akatsuki Organization are no ordinary people."

"If we venture in with limited intelligence, even Pervy Sage would be in danger."

"Yes, I had the same concerns." Tsunade smiled with relief. "Since you've said that, there's nothing to hesitate about."

"You won't be assigned any more missions recently. The matter of reorganizing Team Seven has also been put on hold. We'll discuss everything Jiraiya returns. Kakashi is no longer in charge of Team Seven's missions; he's gone to further his training."

Naruto pondered for a moment, carefully considering the meaning behind Tsunade's words, and then, thinking of another possibility, he frowned and asked.

"Do the higher-ups have some plans regarding the Tailed Beast?"

"Hmm," Tsunade said. "You don't need to worry about those things. Whether it's the advisors or the other high-ranking officials, they're all old. Their thinking is outdated and corrupt; all they think about all day is annexation and war."

"Will Lord Tsunade be in a difficult position? Will she have to argue with the higher-ups or something?"

"What?" Tsunade was clearly taken aback, her gaze towards Naruto filled with surprise. "Difficult? Why would you think that?"

"After all, she's a high-ranking member of the village; there's bound to be some trouble." Naruto didn't understand why Tsunade was reacting this way, and stammered.

"Although Lord Tsunade is the Fifth Hokage, her foundation is not yet stable. Wouldn't it be a bad thing for her to have such a big conflict with the higher-ups after only one year in office?"

"Although Danzo and his Danzo are indeed no good, and they even sent people to test me before, there's nothing I can do if he doesn't admit it."

Naruto rattled off a long list of things he found troublesome. Anything involving the village's higher-ups seemed like a real hassle to him.

Tsunade patted him on the shoulder, looking at him with amusement.

"Aren't you underestimating me?"

"Huh?" Naruto was speechless for a moment.

His understanding of Konoha High Command was limited to the storyline; he certainly didn't have any real, thorough understanding of them.

Tsunade reached out again, pinching Naruto's face with both hands, and asked with a smile.

"What do you think the village was built on?"

"It's probably because the families have united to form a supportive group, abandoning prejudices and forging Seal of Reconciliation," Naruto said haltingly.

"I memorized the Ninja Academy material, but it's been so long, I've forgotten it."

"You can't completely trust what's in books," Tsunade said with a smile. "The village was built by the First Hokage through force, whether it was the Uchiha or any other family."

"It was strength that enabled Konohagakure to emerge from the long war."

"Wasn't the First Hokage a peace lover?" Naruto swallowed and said with a forced smile.

"Does loving peace mean loving armed conflict?" Tsunade countered. "There has never been true peace in the Shinobi World. Wherever there are people, fighting will never stop."

"The Third Hokage's Will of Fire is indeed impressive; in Konohagakure, life never ceases."

"But Konohagakure, in the end, was founded by force and maintained peace in the Shinobi World by force. There's no reason for it to have changed now, so why do you think I wouldn't dare to clash with the higher-ups?"

"Isn't Lord Tsunade the Hokage?" Naruto was dumbfounded. "Well, I don't think I'm afraid, I just think it's too much trouble, arguing won't solve anything."

"Arguing won't solve anything." Tsunade nodded, indicating that she agreed with the statement. "I don't plan to argue with those old guys either."

"Don't underestimate me, kid. I have plenty of supporters. What's so great about the higher-ups? Why do you think they can control me?"

"If they really have that ability, why aren't they Hokage?"

"This..." Something new suddenly popped into Naruto's mind; he realized that Tsunade was redefining his understanding of the world.

"Because of power?" he asked tentatively.

"It seems you finally understand." Tsunade seemed somewhat relieved as she released his slightly swollen cheek. "The position of Hokage has never been obtained solely through prestige; it is earned through strength."

"Within the framework of the village, it's true that we need to be more careful about the impact. But on some matters, even if I disagree with the higher-ups, they can't do anything about it."

"Who do they think they are? Just a bunch of old guys. The Third Hokage has been too lenient, given too much respect. I disagree, so why should I bother with you?"

"Let them dream on!"

Beginning to enter Naruto: Shippuden