"You're up early too, Naruto. You're still so full of energy first thing in the morning."
Shikamaru answered with a yawn.
"You're the one who's too lazy. Besides, it's not that early anymore. If we don't get inside, Iruka-sensei will scold us."
Naruto looked at him, speechless. He really was terrible at school, but Shikamaru was clearly playing dumb. What made Naruto angriest was that this guy was just as lazy as he was, yet never fell behind in his studies. Shikamaru always ranked near the bottom, but Naruto and the others knew he did it on purpose. Otherwise, explain how he managed to just barely pass every single exam.
By the time they finished talking, the two of them had ambled into the classroom.
Fortunately, even though class had already started, the teacher hadn't arrived yet.
They easily found the last row and sat down with Choji.
"Here you are. If you hadn't shown up soon, Iruka-sensei would've come looking for you."
Choji grinned when he saw his two friends.
"I'm catching up on some sleep. Wake me when the teacher gets here."
Shikamaru rolled his dead-fish eyes and promptly slumped over his desk. Naruto couldn't help feeling speechless.
"Naruto, the teacher isn't here yet. Want some?"
Just then, Choji offered him some of the food he was eating.
Naruto had always known that Choji was one of his few friends and genuinely cared about him, but seeing this still touched him. Naruto knew that for a foodie to share something he loved with a friend meant he truly considered that person a good friend.
How long had it been since he'd experienced such a pure friendship?
"Sure. I'm a little hungry."
Naruto beamed and grabbed a handful of snacks.
Choji paused when he saw Naruto's smile. They'd always been good friends, but because of Naruto's circumstances, he was usually awkward and hesitant. Today, though, there was something about Naruto's smile that felt incredibly comforting.
Seeing Naruto smile, Choji couldn't help feeling that today's snacks tasted especially good.
Choji wasn't the only one who noticed Naruto's smile. Little Hinata, who had been quietly watching him, was touched by the smile that came from the heart.
"Naruto-kun seems so happy today. His smile is really lovely. Maybe Naruto-kun likes food..."
Seeing Naruto smile made Hinata's heart flutter. She wanted to bring him some treats and share them with him, but as the young lady of the Hyuga Clan, she was always surrounded by people's attention. And with her own shy nature, she just couldn't bring herself to do it.
Her mood sank.
"I'm so useless. Naruto helped me, and I want to help him, but I don't even have the courage to do that."
While little Hinata was lost in her thoughts, Naruto had already begun observing the other students in the classroom.
First, he looked at Sasuke in the front row and the group of girls surrounding him. The familiar sight made Naruto think that the story really hadn't changed.
A crowd of young girls chattered around Sasuke, while he gazed coolly out the window. The more aloof he acted, the more the girls liked him. Perhaps sensing Naruto's gaze, Sasuke glanced over, his eyes full of disdain.
"That dead-last seems a little different today."
Seeing that Naruto hadn't rushed over and made a scene like he usually did, Sasuke found it strange. Sasuke paid quite a bit of attention to Naruto—not just because Naruto often annoyed him, but because they shared a similar situation: neither had parents. That was also why Sasuke disliked Sakura. She was loud and always brought up Naruto's situation. Sakura didn't think anything of it, but to Sasuke, criticizing Naruto was no different from criticizing him.
Naruto paid no attention to Sasuke's gaze. Given how he felt now, he didn't want to get involved with that troublesome guy.
He turned his attention to the others. Everyone in this class would become an important figure in Konoha's future, and most of the Eleven Rookie Nine were here. Finally, Naruto's gaze fell on a girl about his age. She wore black and had short, ear-length hair, adorable big eyes, and pure white pupils. Hinata Hyuga—his wife in the original story.
When Hinata noticed Naruto looking at her, she immediately lowered her head, her face turning a little red. Perhaps it was because of her quiet nature that she hardly stood out. At least at school, almost no one noticed the young lady of the Hyuga Clan.
"So this is little Hinata? She's really cute."
Of all the beautiful sights in the world, a shy, blushing beauty was surely one of the loveliest. Hinata was still a little girl, but both her looks and figure made her a pretty little thing. And on top of that, she had the passive skill of blushing whenever she saw Naruto.
Watching her blush, Naruto's heart still couldn't help pounding, even though he'd expected it.
"Hehe, she's so adorable."
Naruto hadn't expected to be charmed by a little girl.
"Good morning, Hinata-chan."
The adorable girl was impossible not to like. Naruto flashed her a big smile and greeted her.
Hinata never would have imagined that Naruto would greet her first today. She was so happy and wanted to greet him back, but she was so excited that she couldn't get the words out.
If this had been the old Naruto, he would have thought the girl was strange. But now he understood her personality, so he didn't mind. In fact, he found her even cuter and smiled warmly.
It had to be said that Hinata was easy to like, even for a stranger. Of course, people in the Ninja World weren't like people here; their values were different. Perhaps they preferred someone with a fiery temper like Sakura.
For a boy, if there were someone he liked and someone who liked him, which would he choose? Of course he'd choose the one he liked. Naruto had liked Sakura before, but he himself knew that the main reason might have been that he wanted to get Sasuke's attention. Whatever the reason, Naruto now preferred someone like Hinata. More importantly, little Hinata liked him too.
Just as little Hinata had finally worked up the courage to say something to Naruto, the teacher walked in.
The classroom fell silent at once. Iruka glanced over everyone, then began the lesson, though he couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing today.
It wasn't until the morning classes ended that Iruka realized how quiet Naruto had been today. Naruto used to be loud and always getting into trouble because he wanted to draw everyone's attention.
Children didn't understand. They kept at it even when this was how they sought attention. But the more mature Naruto naturally wouldn't do something so childish.