Little Hinata's Great Admiration

Hinata's words left the people around her uncertain and surprised. They turned to look at Naruto, then at Hinata's serious expression, their hearts filled with intense curiosity.

Sasuke, who had originally been ignoring Naruto, turned to look as well, feeling a little annoyed.

Naruto could carve wood and draw, and now someone was saying he could cook too. With so many hobbies and skills, he really made people see him in a new light.

However, Sasuke valued strength more. He muttered, "Strength is the foundation of everything. You can't let all those random hobbies affect the improvement of your strength."

[Experience Points +1]

"Random hobbies?"

Naruto turned to Sasuke upon hearing that. "Sour grapes. If you've got the ability, then learn as many skills as I have."

"Hmph. I may not know how to do those things, but I'm stronger than you. Strength is the foundation of everything," Sasuke said deliberately coolly.

"Oh ho, Uchiha Sasuke is acting all tsundere now."

Naruto looked at Sasuke with a faint smile and deliberately brought up his nickname.

"Uchiha Sasuke again? Can't you stop calling me Uchiha Sasuke? And how am I tsundere?"

Sasuke spoke gloomily. Every time he was called Uchiha Sasuke, he felt that the people around him looked at him strangely.

"You are Uchiha Sasuke. You're even too tsundere to admit it."

"You!"

Sasuke was so angry that he could not speak. No matter what, he could not outargue Naruto, so in the end he could only bring it back to strength. "Say whatever you want. My strength is still greater than yours."

"Oh? Is that so? Then how about we have an arm-wrestling match?" Naruto said, feeling the explosive power within his body.

"Sure."

Sasuke was not afraid in the slightest. He walked straight in front of Naruto, placed his right hand on the desk, and struck a cool pose.

That posture drew frequent glances from the female students nearby. Sakura, in particular, turned into a lovestruck fangirl.

"Sasuke is so handsome! Go for it! You'll definitely beat Naruto!" Sakura cheered.

"That's right, that's right. Naruto's the dead last. He'll lose one hundred percent."

Several other fangirls spoke up as well, unhesitatingly choosing to support Sasuke.

As the top student, Sasuke's strength was obvious to all, and he had won the support of the vast majority of the girls.

Only Hinata and Ino said nothing. Hinata had liked Naruto since childhood and would support him no matter what.

As for Ino—

After the drawing and wood-carving incidents, she thought Naruto was actually pretty decent, so she did not plan to say anything. Of course, she still felt that Naruto had very little chance of winning.

[Experience Points +1]

[Experience Points +1]

Listening to the constant notification sounds, Naruto smiled and placed his right hand on the desk.

"Uchiha Sasuke, I'll let you know that you'll always be second."

"You—just wait and see whether you can still talk so tough." Sasuke suddenly gripped Naruto's right hand and said before everyone, "Start!"

Bang!

The arm-wrestling match was over. Sasuke stared blankly at his right hand pressed tightly against the desk.

"Naruto... Naruto actually won." Ino's eyes widened in surprise, unable to believe it at all.

"Yeah, and he won instantly."

Kiba Inuzuka also looked at Naruto in disbelief. He had not held much hope for Naruto either, but he had never expected Naruto to win in an instant.

That result made him, and all the students around him, see Naruto in a new light.

"Could it have been an accident? Maybe Sasuke wasn't ready. How about another match?" Sakura could not help speaking up for Sasuke.

"Right, right, it's possible."

The other girls also chimed in, thinking that Sasuke might not have been prepared.

Naruto smiled faintly when he heard that and continued, "Fine, then let's do it again. Sasuke, you call the start."

"Alright!"

This time, Sasuke finally became serious. He focused completely as he gripped Naruto's hand, then quickly said, "Start!"

Bang!

A dull sound rang out. Looking at Sasuke, who had lost again, and at the result of Naruto defeating him in seconds, everyone felt their minds go blank.

"He... he won again. Naruto actually won again in seconds."

Kiba Inuzuka swallowed, feeling that Naruto's strength was even greater than he had imagined.

"I really didn't expect Naruto to be this strong. No wonder he was able to graduate," Ino could not help saying.

"I always thought he was the dead last. I never expected him to have such talent in strength."

The surrounding students discussed it among themselves. The way they looked at Naruto had completely changed, and they felt that Naruto was far more outstanding than they had imagined.

"I lost."

Sasuke staggered to his feet and walked back to his seat in a daze. He silently lay facedown on the desk, clearly having suffered quite a blow.

"Sasuke."

Seeing this, Sakura shot Naruto a fierce glare, then ran over to comfort Sasuke.

"Why are you glaring at me? Is it my fault for beating him?" Naruto replied unhappily, then turned to interact with Hinata.

[Experience Points +1]

[Experience Points +1]

Not long afterward, Iruka arrived and began arranging the class assignments. As expected, Naruto became a member of Team 7, meaning he was teamed with Sasuke and Sakura.

Hinata was a little disappointed by this, but fortunately Naruto paid close attention to her feelings. After school, he invited her to his home and made a lavish home-cooked dinner.

"Hinata, eat up before it gets cold," Naruto said with a smile.

"Mm, thank you, Naruto. It all looks so delicious."

Hinata looked at the fragrant dishes filling the room. Her little foodie nature seemed to be showing signs of emerging.

[Experience Points +1]

"Try this braised pork. They're all just home-cooked dishes, but they taste pretty good," Naruto said with a smile.

These were all simple stir-fried dishes from his previous life. They were not especially amazing, but food in the ninja world was quite scarce, so Naruto was fairly confident in these dishes.

"Mm-hmm, I'll try it."

Hinata picked up a piece of braised pork and carefully took a bite. She paused slightly, then quickly stuffed it into her mouth and began eating.

"It's so good! Hot—mm, it smells so good."

Hinata's appetite was completely awakened. Unafraid of the hot braised pork, she ate a piece in just a few bites, transforming from the shy, adorable girl she had been moments ago into a little foodie.

"Slow down, slow down. No one's going to steal it from you."

Naruto smiled as he watched Hinata eat. Even after turning into a little foodie, she was still so adorably cute and airheaded. Those beautiful large eyes especially made Naruto fond of her.

[Experience Points +1]

"Mm! Naruto, you should eat too. It's really delicious."

As Hinata spoke, she picked up a piece for Naruto, then continued helping herself to more braised pork. In no time at all, she had eaten several pieces.

"Hinata, didn't you say you liked spicy food too? Try this spicy tofu. It's really good," Naruto said, placing a piece in her bowl.

"Mm-hmm."

Hinata nodded her little head, holding her chopsticks in her fair, tender hand as she quickly tasted the spicy tofu.

"It's delicious, really delicious. Naruto, how did you do it? I've never eaten food this good before." As she tasted it, Hinata looked at Naruto with admiration in her eyes.

"I just figured it out on my own before. If you like it, you can come to my house often."

"Really?" Hinata's eyes brightened slightly, and she immediately became interested.

"Of course. But just like today, you'll be responsible for buying the ingredients. I'm really poor," Naruto joked.

"Mm-hmm, don't worry. Leave it to me."

"Hey, I was only joking. Hinata, don't take it seriously."

"It's okay, Naruto. I really like the food you make. It's really super delicious."

[Experience Points +1]

"Alright, alright. If you like buying ingredients, then buy them. After all, you're a little rich girl."

"Mm, this is delicious too. What is this?"