The Ninja Academy's Incredible Legends (72) *Young people are always too wild, isn't it better to make money, get married, and have kids?

How many romances between eleven- or twelve-year-old children ever truly came to fruition? Most of them failed to withstand the test of time.

Naruto Uzumaki especially—just looking at how he had grown up made it clear that what he desperately needed was not love, but recognition.

Perhaps he had treated his pursuit of Sakura Haruno as part of his quest to gain recognition as well.

Wasn't his fixation on his bond with Sasuke Uchiha as a teammate also just him hoping that the top student in the class would acknowledge his strength?

Defeating Sasuke Uchiha to gain attention was indeed something worth working hard for.

Even though he constantly said he wanted to become Hokage, his own stated wish was to earn the villagers' recognition. Becoming Hokage was merely the means he believed would earn him that approval.

There was not much difference between those feelings and his desire to stand out.

It was just the same old underdog-turns-the-tables-on-the-rich-and-handsome,-marries-the-fair-and-wealthy trope. In the end, his wish to defeat Sasuke Uchiha could barely be considered half fulfilled, while Sakura Haruno had never given Naruto Uzumaki a chance at all.

Compared to Sakura Haruno, whose abilities and family background were both ordinary, it was only natural that she paid more attention to Sasuke Uchiha, who was outstanding, aloof, and handsome.

"You know, I used to wonder what exactly Naruto liked about me, so I could make him stop pestering me accordingly. But later, I realized I simply couldn't find anything."

Sakura Haruno sighed and said leisurely, "People like Naruto find it difficult to truly like a girl. Sasuke is about the same. They're the kind of men who love ambition more than beauty, unlike us girls, who feel like love is everything in life."

"Sakura, you seem a little uneasy. You and Sasuke