Naruto, What's the point of being Hokage without you!

The room grew increasingly bright.

Outside the window, the chirping of cicadas and the calls of sparrows began to ring out.

Summer had arrived.

Naruto's foundation went without saying.

It could be described as destitute, empty, and barren.

His main selling point was infinite potential.

Therefore, even with tutoring, this was an absolutely impossible task to complete.

Fortunately, Hinata's patience seemed equally infinite.

Sometimes, Naruto felt he was too stupid, wondering why he couldn't understand, yet Hinata maintained her gentle, shy smile and continued to work hard to explain things to him.

"Sorry, Hinata, am I too stupid?"

Hinata shook her head.

"No, Naruto, I have never thought that..."

"Really?"

"Mm... I, I have actually always admired you, Naruto..."

"Admired me? What for?"

Hinata's face flushed red as she thought for a moment, then whispered.

"Naruto is always so optimistic, cheerful, and full of energy. No matter how others look at you or what they say, you never get discouraged. Even when facing everyone's mockery, you don't care, and even when facing the genius Sasuke, you never admit defeat."

Naruto looked at Hinata's small face, opening his mouth, but stopped himself.

"Hinata, actually, I'm not as good as you say, and it's not that I don't care about others' opinions, it's just..."

"I can't really explain it, but I just want to prove myself and let those who look down on me see."

Hinata smiled gently: "That is exactly why you are so amazing, Naruto..."

Watching the girl's smile, Naruto's heart stirred slightly.

"Hinata, this seems to be the first time you've said so much..."

Hinata's face turned even redder, and she lowered her head.

"Because these are things I have always wanted to say to you, Naruto."

"You might not remember, but back when I was being bullied by a group of bad kids, it was you, Naruto, who stood up and saved me..."

Naruto rubbed his chin, carefully trying to recall.

"Hmm... did I?"

Hinata smiled: "Of course you did. From... from that moment on, I have always paid attention to you, Naruto. Your strength, your optimism, your hard work, and your refusal to admit defeat have all been the motivation that encourages me..."

To someone sensitive, Hinata's words would have been equivalent to a confession.

But Naruto remained completely unmoved, instead crossing his arms and puffing out his chest with pride.

"Is that so? Heh, looks like I really am pretty amazing after all!"

Hinata nodded gently: "Mm, of course you are..."

Naruto suddenly gained confidence, and a flash of inspiration struck him.

"Ah!"

"I almost forgot about that!"

He suddenly remembered that he had obtained his first trait ability yesterday...

Knowledge Absorption.

As long as he entered a state of total concentration, he could significantly improve his understanding and mastery of knowledge!

Hinata tilted her little head.

"What is it?"

Naruto patted his chest with full confidence.

"Hinata, I'm about to go full throttle now!"

"Don't be scared by me!"

Although Hinata didn't understand what he was talking about, she still nodded.

"Mm... okay."

Sure enough.

Once Naruto entered the state of total concentration, under the effect of the Knowledge Absorption trait, his understanding of Hinata's explanations instantly improved by several levels.

Not only were things no longer so obscure, but he could even draw inferences about other cases.

This left Hinata feeling both surprised and delighted.

The morning hours slipped away quietly as the two of them went through the tutoring session.

Hinata glanced out the window.

The sun was high in the sky.

Flustered, she said, "Naruto-kun, I... I only asked for a half-day leave, it's time for me to head back."

"Leave? Isn't today the weekend?"

Hinata replied with a helpless smile, "Yes, I had to ask my father for permission..."

"Because..."

"In any case, I have a lot of training to complete this afternoon, so I'm afraid I won't be able to continue tutoring you, Naruto-kun."

"If there's another chance, I'll let you know in advance, Naruto-kun."

Even as thick-skinned as Naruto was, he could understand the situation now.

He scratched his head and laughed dryly, "Right, that's true. I shouldn't just think about myself; Hinata needs to work hard on her training too!"

"But... are you just going to leave like this?"

"I haven't even had a chance to thank you properly!"

Hinata stood up, walked to the door, and turned back with a shy, blushing face to offer a smile and a wave to Naruto.

"No... there's no need, Naruto-kun."

"I've already received the best thank-you gift."

She said goodbye, turned away with a flushed face, and quickly hurried downstairs. She seemed incredibly embarrassed, scurrying away like a little rabbit.

Naruto watched from the window as the girl clutched her sun hat and sprinted away, feeling a bit bewildered for a moment.

"Hinata..."

"What a strange person, but..."

"Besides Iruka, she's the second person to treat me this well..."

Although Naruto was dense, he was very clear about who treated him kindly.

"Well, I'll express my gratitude to Hinata properly once we're at school!"

[Congratulations to the host, after a morning of tutoring, all subjects have been improved to a certain degree!]

Naruto grinned.

Even without the system telling him, he could feel that he had grasped a great deal of new knowledge.

With Hinata's patient explanations, the assistance of the [Knowledge Absorption] trait while he was fully focused, and, of course, his own hard work...

This morning of tutoring was equivalent to half a year of study!

Of course, before this, he wouldn't have learned much in half a year anyway.

Current Academic Proficiency:

Academic Subjects:

Physics (48/100)

Chemistry (39/100)

Mathematics (40/100)

Language Arts (52/100)

History (46/100)

English (58/100)

Biology (52/100)

Civics (44/100)

Ninja Theory (52/100)

Naruto checked his current stats. Compared to the scores of twenty or thirty he started with, he had undergone a complete transformation and made rapid progress!

Almost every subject had increased by 10 to 20 points.

To be honest, even if an exam started right now, while Naruto might not reach the top ten, he would at least be at a lower-middle level.

He was no longer the bottom-tier dead last he used to be.

Naruto stretched his arms wide.

At least System Brother was being reasonable; it hadn't caused any trouble during the morning tutoring, nor had it triggered any warnings like the Baptism of Lightning Release.

Clearly, it understood the necessity of his studying...

Naruto stretched his arms wide again.

Although he hadn't done any real training, these academic subjects were even more torturous for him than performing the Clone Technique three hundred times.

One is physical strength, the other is mental energy.

Naruto saw the sun was directly overhead, and the system immediately prompted him that it was time for lunch.

He quickly prepared a sumptuous meal for himself and wolfed it down, thinking to himself, I should invite Hinata to eat with me next time...

[The host has completed morning academic studies. Please head to the Ninja Training Ground in Konoha immediately this afternoon to begin taijutsu training!]

"Taijutsu?"

Naruto did not refuse. He nodded obediently, cleaned up the mess, changed into clothes suitable for training, and headed toward the Ninja Training Ground in Konoha.

Before he even arrived, he suddenly heard a terrifying sound.

Bang, bang, bang—

Bang, bang, bang!

"What is this? An earthquake?!"

Naruto parted the bushes to take a peek and saw a guy with a bowl cut and thick eyebrows frantically unleashing attacks on a wooden stake, punching and kicking with gritted teeth!

It was as if he were burning with passion, burning his very life!

"What a, what a terrifying guy!"

"Is it necessary to push yourself to this extent?"

[The host's taijutsu training is very simple; you only need to work a little bit harder than the Rock Lee before you!]

Naruto: "???"

"That means you want me dead?!"