Desk Mate Mikoto Uchiha

Hyuga Shin looked at Nawaki, the corner of his mouth twitching. Was this guy here to make people laugh?

It took Nawaki a great deal of effort to pull his head free. Then he complained, "I told you not to hit me on the head! If I end up stupid, it'll be because you hit me!"

I think you're already stupid! Shin thought. He hadn't expected Nawaki to be this much of a doofus. He really was a lot like Naruto.

The only difference was that one had the protagonist's halo, while the other was just a bit player. It was pretty tragic, really. The two of them had similar personalities, but their circumstances were completely different.

Chapter 18: Desk Mate Mikoto Uchiha

After that bit of fooling around, Tsunade introduced Shin and Senju Nawaki to each other.

Nawaki was the sort of person who warmed up to people right away. He walked over, clapped Shin on the shoulder, and said, "Don't worry. Once we start school, I'll look out for you."

"Sounds good! If I get into trouble, I'll definitely come to you. Don't regret saying that later." Shin smiled brightly.

"I'm going to become Hokage, so of course I'll keep my word!" Senju Nawaki said, thumping his chest.

Once most of the new students had arrived, the old Third Hokage appeared at the podium.

Actually, it wasn't quite right to call him the old Third Hokage. The Third Hokage was in his prime, with his strength at its peak. He was at least at the pinnacle of Kage Level.

Sarutobi Hiruzen stepped up to the podium and began a long-winded speech, starting with how the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, had founded Konoha.

He talked about Konoha's prosperity and the turmoil in the other ninja villages. In summary, Konoha was peaceful and harmonious, while the other villages were a mess.

Then he talked about how bad the other villages were and how good Konoha was, about Konoha's spirit and the Will of Fire, and about how powerful the First and Second Hokage had been.

"I hope you will grow into powerful ninja who can protect Konoha. Perhaps one of you will become the next Hokage."

"Wherever the leaves dance, fire burns on. The fire will continue to light the village and help new leaves sprout. This is the Will of Fire of our Konoha. It has been passed down from the First Hokage to this day, and I hope you will continue to carry it forward, endlessly."

Sarutobi Hiruzen's speech had the children who had just started school fired up and excited.

Senju Nawaki, sitting beside Shin, was especially fired up. His blood was practically boiling. He almost crushed an egg by accident. That was how fired up he was.

Shin was fighting to stay awake. He hadn't taken in a word. He'd heard speeches like this too many times; they couldn't hold his attention at all.

Besides, the Will of Fire was a selfless ideal, and it simply wasn't right for Shin.

In fact, Shin and the Will of Fire were headed in completely opposite directions.

Shin believed in looking out for yourself or the heavens would strike you down—in other words, he was selfish.

Apart from the people he cared about, even if everyone in Konoha died right in front of him, he wouldn't bat an eye. That was how selfish and cold he was.

So even though Shin wore a smile every day, behind it he was colder than anyone.

Shin's personality was a lot like Aizen's. The difference was that Shin didn't have Aizen's ambition, nor did he go around causing trouble like Aizen.

Even after coming to the Naruto world and receiving help from the system, Shin had never thought about conquering the Ninja World or ruling over everything.

What he wanted more was to spend every day shamelessly surrounded by beautiful women, watching the world change with a smile.

"Shin, you don't seem very interested in the old man's speech."

Seeing Shin yawn again and again, Tsunade, sitting behind him, remarked.

"Aren't you uninterested too, Big Sister Tsunade?" Shin replied.

"He's said this a few hundred times already. I'm sick of hearing it." Tsunade looked bored.

"Shin, don't change the subject."

Shin smiled at that, then said, "No one but the First Hokage ever truly lived by the Will of Fire. So it disappeared along with him. Maybe one day it'll appear again."

Tsunade furrowed her brow, then pondered his words. She agreed with him to some extent.

Tsunade knew the situation inside Konoha very well. The various clans were constantly at odds, and in light of that, the Will of Fire seemed more like a joke.

Shin had nothing but contempt for the Will of Fire. It might sound wonderful, but it was just a beautiful fantasy—unless everyone in Konoha was like Hashirama Senju or Uzumaki Naruto.

Otherwise, the Will of Fire would always be nothing but words.

Or perhaps the Will of Fire was only suited to a select few.

It took Sarutobi Hiruzen the entire morning to finish. Shin finally breathed a sigh of relief and looked at him with admiration.

He'd spoken all morning without stopping. Shin genuinely admired his stamina. But seeing the young ninja students around him burning with enthusiasm, he had to admit that the indoctrination had been very successful.

The morning finally came to an end. After lunch, the students would be divided into classes.

Everyone had brought a packed lunch and found a place to eat. Shin had brought one too.

But when Shin took out his enormous lunchbox, Senju Nawaki swallowed hard and asked with difficulty, "Can you really eat all that?"

Shin just smiled at Nawaki's question, lowered his head, and began battling his lunch. Actions spoke louder than words.

Tsunade smiled at the sight. After seeing the Six Powers, she understood why Shin could eat so much.

Shin's lunchbox didn't just shock Nawaki. The children around them and even the parents accompanying them were stunned.

Shin paid their stares no mind. He walked his own path; why care what others thought?

After he finished his lunch, the schoolteachers began assigning students to classes. Shin's name was called before long, and he was placed in Class A.

He also heard some familiar names: the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, the brothers Hiashi and Hizashi, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, Mikoto Uchiha, Senju Nawaki, and others.

He headed to Class A with Senju Nawaki. Tsunade had already left.

There weren't many people in Class A yet. Senju Nawaki tugged at Shin and said, "Shin, let's sit together!"

"I'd rather not. I like sitting by myself." Shin turned Nawaki down without hesitation. Nawaki looked disappointed, but he didn't press the matter.

But after rejecting Nawaki, Shin promptly abandoned all principles and sat beside Mikoto Uchiha.

Senju Nawaki stared at Shin resentfully. So much for liking to sit by yourself.

Feeling Nawaki's gaze, Shin shuddered. Could Senju Nawaki be gay?!

He turned away from Nawaki and said to Mikoto Uchiha, "I'm Hyuga Shin. I'll be your desk mate from now on. I hope we get along."

Looking at Shin's strikingly handsome face, Mikoto's cheeks turned a little pink. She replied softly, "I'm Mikoto Uchiha. It's nice to meet you, Hyuga Shin."

"Just call me Shin, Mikoto. Otherwise, we'll seem like strangers," Shin said, trying to get closer to her.

Mikoto's face grew even redder. Only family members or people who were very close to each other called one another by their given names.

This was where good looks and the appeal of the opposite sex came in handy. The fact that Mikoto wasn't angry said it all.