The Love Triangle

By the time the smoke cleared and Hatake Kakashi's figure had completely vanished, the three people present still felt as though they hadn't quite processed what had happened.

Even Naruto felt a faint trace of astonishment at that moment. He truly hadn't expected Kakashi to be so clean and efficient—finishing his self-introduction, stating the time and location for tomorrow's meeting, and then simply walking away like that.

Beside him, Sakura widened her eyes, seemingly unable to believe that their Jōnin instructor could be so casual.

Sasuke also furrowed his brows slightly, the confusion in his pupils deepening.

He really is a very laid-back ninja... Hatake Kakashi... Naruto thought to himself.

However, this was simply one aspect of Kakashi's nature.

As for the warnings Kakashi had just given, Naruto hadn't taken them to heart at all.

Huh? Meet at five? And don't eat breakfast?

Please, if he hadn't read the original story, he would have been fooled one hundred percent. After all, this was the team leader assigned to them by the Hidden Leaf Village, a top-tier Jōnin. As Genin, they would certainly be expected to obey the words of their direct superior.

But Naruto, naturally, did not fall into that category.

Five o'clock?

Although he couldn't remember exactly what time Kakashi arrived in the original story, Naruto didn't doubt for a second that pushing the time back by three or four hours would be perfectly fine. In any case, he certainly wouldn't be arriving at the meeting spot at five; the earliest would be eight or nine o'clock. Even arriving at ten felt like a reasonable range to him.

Thinking of this, Naruto glanced at his two teammates from the corner of his eye. He stood up, lightly brushed the dust off his clothes, and said with a faint smile, "Since Kakashi-sensei said so, we should just follow his instructions. From today on, we're members of the same squad. You can just call me Naruto; no need for honorifics."

"Eh? Oh, right. Then, Naruto, you can just call me Sakura." Sakura Haruno was slightly startled at first, then came to her senses. She nodded gently and replied immediately. Seeing Naruto take the initiative to talk to her, a look of obvious joy appeared on her face. Clearly, the bizarre, silent atmosphere of the past few hours had almost driven her crazy.

Sasuke, standing to the side, didn't say anything, but he gave a slight nod. His expression wasn't as icy as before; although his heart was filled with hatred for his brother, he was, after all, only a twelve-year-old boy.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have displayed such conflicting psychology and behavior in the early stages of the original story.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Naruto took his leave.

Today was just a straightforward first meeting.

The true formation of Team 7 would depend on tomorrow's Survival Exercise.

Don't let the original story fool you into thinking Kakashi would definitely let Team 7 pass. Naruto didn't view the matter so simply. This wasn't the first time Hatake Kakashi had been assigned as a team leader, and all his previous squads had failed to become true ninja. That spoke volumes. Even with his and Sasuke's special backgrounds, Naruto didn't think Kakashi would grant them special treatment, so he still needed to go back and make some preparations.

Before leaving, Naruto hesitated for a moment, then spoke up.

"It's best not to show up at five tomorrow. Arriving a little late shouldn't be a problem. Also, it's better to eat breakfast before you go."

With a faint smile on his face, Naruto said this to Sasuke and Sakura. Leaving behind a slightly frowning Sasuke and a bewildered Sakura, he didn't wait for their response. He waved his hand, leaped off the roof, and quickly vanished from their sight.

"Eh? What does that mean? Kakashi-sensei clearly told us to meet at five and not to eat breakfast. Why would Naruto say that? Could it be because...?"

After Naruto had left, Sakura finally reacted. She turned her head to look at Sasuke, asking with a very confused expression.

Unfortunately, Sasuke didn't understand the meaning behind Naruto's words either (in reality, it was a very straightforward, literal meaning, but the two of them had overthought it, assuming there was some hidden depth). He remained deep in thought with a furrowed brow, but without any intention of answering Sakura, he simply nodded and turned to leave on his own.

"Eh? Um, Sasuke-kun, since it's just about the right time, and our squad was just formed today, would you like to go get something to eat? Just as a..."

Seeing Sasuke about to leave, Sakura instantly cast her confusion aside. Realizing that she and Sasuke were now alone, her eyes lit up. She looked at him excitedly and blurted out the invitation. However, before she could finish, Sasuke cast a slight glance her way, the coldness radiating from his pupils cutting her off.

"Uh..."

Sakura's expression stiffened once again, and the rest of the words stuck in her throat, unable to come out.

After giving Sakura a cold look, Sasuke's figure flickered and vanished from the spot, speeding off toward his home.

Only after Sasuke had left did Sakura's frozen expression slowly return to normal. The image of her beloved Sasuke-kun's icy demeanor kept flashing through her mind. Sakura felt like a deflated balloon. She had thought that after six years of longing, being on the same squad would finally make her dreams come true, but she hadn't expected...

Why did it feel like Sasuke was growing to dislike her even more?

Sakura's face crumpled, and she thought to herself with a sense of grievance.

Could it be that there was really no way for her to win Sasuke-kun over?

"No! Sakura Haruno! You're a girl who can do anything she sets her mind to! You absolutely cannot give up. This is only the first day, after all! Hmm! Believe in yourself. We're on the same squad now, so there will be plenty of opportunities and time! Sasuke-kun, don't worry, I definitely won't give up. One day, I'll make you realize my charm!"

Sakura took a deep breath, patted her cheeks firmly, and swung her right hand through the air, clenching it into a fist. A look of absolute determination appeared on her face, as if she were about to embark on a life-or-death mission.

The next day, early morning, five o'clock sharp, Hidden Leaf Village, Training Ground 2.

Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno clearly hadn't taken Naruto's advice from the day before to heart, or perhaps they had dismissed it as a harmless joke from the start. As the sky was just beginning to brighten, the two of them appeared directly at Training Ground 2.

Undoubtedly, since both of them had arrived so obediently at the appointed time, they had also taken Kakashi's second instruction to heart: neither of them had eaten breakfast.