Ino... Has She Fallen for Someone Else?! Please Vote!!!

Still as gentle, as faint as the buzz of a mosquito.

"Hinata, you saw that too..."

Ino didn't turn around. She let out a soft sigh.

Hinata stepped forward and nodded.

"I can understand, actually. Sakura's heart is completely occupied by Sasuke now..."

"I know..." Ino said.

"There's nothing wrong with liking someone, but the condition is..."

"You shouldn't hurt other people or get in their way..."

"Right now, Sakura isn't just hurting Naruto. She's also getting in Sasuke-kun's way. But she doesn't seem to realize it anymore—or maybe she just doesn't want to..."

Hinata looked thoughtful too.

"Something terrible seems to have happened to Sasuke..."

"He really hasn't seemed like himself lately..."

Ino didn't know the full story about the Uchiha Clan either. But as the eldest daughter of the Yamanaka Clan, she had picked up on bits and pieces.

The same was true of Hinata.

"No, there's more to it. Sasuke was already cold because of what he'd been through, but today he seemed even worse..."

"I don't know what happened."

Ino shook her head, then seemed to think of something.

"If I had to guess, it probably has something to do with Naruto again."

At Naruto's name, Hinata's heart gave a sudden flutter.

"N-Naruto-kun?"

"Mm. You must have noticed, right?"

"Even though he's always putting Naruto down, the person Sasuke-kun cares about most is him..."

Hinata nodded softly. As someone who paid close attention to Naruto, she had noticed that long ago.

"Th-that's true..."

"Because even though he's always making sarcastic remarks, Naruto-kun is the only person Sasuke ever goes out of his way to talk to..."

Ino sighed. "Maybe that's because they share a quality that no one else has..."

Hinata fell silent for a moment, then spoke sadly.

"Is it loneliness...?"

Ino's heart stirred. She'd always had a similar feeling, but it was only now, after hearing Hinata say it, that she truly understood.

"Hinata, you really are perceptive..."

"The loneliness those two feel is something we can't understand."

"Only they can find a little comfort in each other..."

"What complicated feelings. I doubt even they know what's going on between them."

Just then, Naruto appeared before Hinata, coming toward her in the morning sunlight.

"Naruto-kun..."

"I... sincerely hope that one day, you'll be free of your loneliness..."

Ino turned around and spotted Naruto too.

She watched the girl standing in the morning sunlight, fingers clasped tightly together as she silently prayed for Naruto, and felt deeply moved.

"Naruto, oh, Naruto..."

"You have no idea how lucky you are..."

Naruto came over, feeling mighty pleased with how much more proficient he'd become at Dual-Tasking.

He bounced along with a bright smile and greeted Hinata and Ino.

"Good morning!"

"Hinata, Ino!"

Hinata's face instantly turned red. She lowered her head and spoke softly.

"G-good morning, Naruto-kun..."

Ino burst out laughing.

"He's already run off!"

Hinata looked up and saw that Naruto had indeed bounced away.

But she didn't mind. A gentle smile still rested on her face.

"Is Naruto really that great?"

Watching Hinata's expression, Ino couldn't help growing curious.

She decided to keep a close eye on him...

Naruto was in a great mood.

On his way to school, he'd realized that his Dual-Tasking had improved a lot.

He could now easily review his schoolwork while doing a handstand with weights.

His leg was still injured.

But his body was now strong enough to endure it, and he could even bounce around without worrying.

Before class, he decided to keep practicing Dual-Tasking and try to turn the Chakra Refinement Technique into a passive skill. That way...

Whether he was studying or training, his body could refine chakra on its own.

When that happened, his chakra reserves would surely reach an unimaginable level.

Naruto's eyes shone at the thought, as if he could already see his brilliant future.

Ignoring his injuries and exhaustion, he went to his seat, took out his textbook, and silently began refining chakra as he studied.

Sasuke, who was already training nearby, saw Naruto arrive. His brows knitted at once, and he clenched his fists, pushing himself even harder.

He'd barely slept at all the night before.

Now he was utterly exhausted.

But when Sasuke saw Naruto, he suddenly found new strength and resolve. All his pain and fatigue vanished, and he immediately resumed training!

Their seats were at opposite ends of the classroom.

Yet the other students could all sense two inexplicably powerful, terrifying auras bursting out from the pair and sweeping through the room, bearing down on everyone...

How terrifying!

Before, Naruto had been the only one pushing himself. He'd always been the dead-last, so no one minded if he worked a little harder.

But now...

Even Sasuke Uchiha, the so-called genius, had started pushing himself!

This was too much!

Normally, Sasuke didn't train this hard at the Ninja Academy.

He was the type to work hard in secret...

But now...

The people better than you are working harder than you!

Then...

What's the point of us even trying?!

A lot of the students had an epiphany and went right back to slacking off...

Of course, not everyone felt that way.

Quite a few were still pushed into joining the grind...

So when Iruka-sensei walked into the classroom, he immediately sensed an inexplicable air of tension.

"This class is getting stranger and stranger..."

Naruto, no longer mischievous and now working so hard it was frightening...

Sasuke, once cold and indifferent, disdainful of everything, but now pushing himself just as hard...

And Hinata, following Naruto's lead and working hard too, along with Kiba Inuzuka and Shino Aburame, who'd been dragged into the competition...

Meanwhile, Sakura, once the top student, had lately been distracted all the time. The day before, she'd even skipped class for the first time.

Iruka-sensei couldn't help scratching his head.

Was this some kind of world under a reversal genjutsu?

But when he saw Choji still stuffing his face with snacks and Shikamaru fast asleep, Iruka-sensei finally relaxed.

Thank goodness those two were still being themselves...

"Ahem. Class is starting!"

Naruto opened his eyes, a confident smile on his face.

[Knowledge Absorption]...

Activate!

Dual-Tasking...

Activate!

He was still using Dual-Tasking, but there was one difference from before...

Previously, most of his focus had gone toward the Chakra Refinement Technique.

Now, it was focused more on Knowledge Absorption.

Either way, he was getting more and more proficient with this new ability...

He'd gone from pausing every three minutes to lasting five.

"Five minutes?"

"That's not bad, but it's still a long way from my goal..."

"I have to last longer!"

Naruto gritted his teeth and entered the state of Dual-Tasking again.

He had no idea that Ino Yamanaka, intensely curious about him, was watching him closely with almost microscopic scrutiny...

"Four minutes and fifty seconds..."

Ino silently counted the time, her eyes lighting up.

"Just as I thought!"

"Again, around five minutes..."

"That Naruto pauses every five minutes, then enters a state of total concentration again, staring intently at Iruka-sensei as he teaches. He's so focused, it's almost like Sakura staring at Sasuke or Hinata staring at Naruto—obsessively so..."

"No wonder Naruto's improved so much these past few days..."

"But why does he pause every five minutes or so?"