Hinata, Stop Pretending — Chapter 12

Of course, it was also because Hinata had always been like this in the past, so Sakura naturally had no reason to suspect anything.

Seeing Hinata like this, Sakura's tone immediately softened. "Forget it. This isn't the first time. Let's hurry to the Academy so we won't be late."

Hinata quickly responded from the side, then followed behind Sakura as they headed in one direction.

As they walked, Sakura said to Hinata, "Hinata, come here, let me tell you something!"

Sakura then tirelessly explained things to Hinata, looking remarkably patient. Amid their conversation, the two finally arrived at the Academy.

Sakura was slightly out of breath by then. She had discovered that explaining directions to Hinata was more exhausting than a full day of training in the woods.

But at least she had finished explaining everything. As for how much Hinata could remember, Sakura had already decided to take things bit by bit. If she kept at it, she would succeed one day.

Seeing Sakura slightly out of breath, Hinata immediately said gratefully, "Thank you, Sakura."

Ninja Academy's Nine Rookie Powerhouses

Sakura immediately raised a hand to cut off Hinata's thanks. "Forget it! You're my good friend, after all."

Hinata lowered her head again, seeming somewhat shy, but inwardly she roared, Sakura really is as overwhelmingly badass as ever.

Seeing this, Sakura rubbed her forehead and said helplessly, "Hinata, can't you be a little more confident?"

This time, Hinata raised her voice slightly. "I-I understand."

Sakura sighed again, inwardly lamenting her poor choice in friends. Then she suddenly thought of Ino Yamanaka, the girl with the golden ponytail whose personality was so similar to hers.

If Hinata could be as confident as Ino, no one would have to worry about her, right? But then a cool, handsome, and aloof face flashed through her mind.

Sakura immediately abandoned the idea of making Hinata as confident as Ino. Having one Piggy Ino competing with her for Sasuke was troublesome enough.

If there were another Piggy Hinata, Sakura did not even dare imagine it. She could practically see Sasuke wrapping an arm around Hinata or Ino and smiling at her as he said, "Thank you, Sakura."

The image was too beautiful; it practically made Sakura collapse inside. Thinking about it that way, Hinata was better as she was now. Though she was a little... well, lacking in confidence, she was still pretty cute.

(Note: The Ninja Academy was founded by the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju. Its first purpose was to uncover gifted ninja hidden among the civilian population; its second was to spread the Will of Fire,

and its third was that the Land of Fire possessed the richest resources in the ninja world but was surrounded by other great nations, making it necessary to prepare against war.)

Hinata entered this campus that was both unfamiliar and familiar. To be honest, she did not feel much about it. Compared to her previous life, its appearance merely had a touch of splendor unique to this world.

It was school time, and everywhere she looked, there were children around Hinata's age—some in small groups, some accompanied by their parents, and some walking alone.

Led by Sakura, Hinata finally arrived at the classroom. Before she had even reached the door, she heard the noisy clamor inside, with one voice especially standing out.

"Hey! Sasuke, I want to duel you!" As the sliding door opened, she saw a boy dressed in orange and blue, with yellow hair, goggles on his head, and marks on his cheeks like cat whiskers.

Wearing Ninja Boots, he was crouched in an unusual pose atop a desk, challenging a boy some distance away with black hair, a blue short-sleeved shirt bearing the Uchiha Gunbai, white shorts, and bandages wrapped around his wrists and ankles.

The blond was naturally Naruto, while the other was naturally Uchiha Sasuke. Most of the other students, especially the boys, looked delighted by the prospect of trouble and kept egging them on from the side.

Although they knew the dead last in their class was definitely no match for Sasuke, they believed that anyone who passed up a good show was a fool, their faces full of anticipation.

The girls, meanwhile, were completely united as they immediately turned on Naruto, saying that a dead last was not qualified to make Sasuke fight.

Sasuke, however, sat with his hands clasped on the desk. After merely glancing at Naruto, he turned his head away, utterly aloof.

He softly muttered, "Dead last." Though his voice was quiet, Naruto apparently still heard it, and immediately pointed a finger at Sasuke.