Alive... Become Stronger!

Naruto made it sound simple, but Iruka knew the process must have been incredibly dangerous!

He had seen the mission certifications. They included mission reports that clearly recorded every enemy they encountered and how many there were!

It was hard to imagine how Naruto and the other two had persevered!

Looking at Naruto, Iruka suddenly felt relieved. This was the price they had paid to become so strong!

As their former teacher, he felt very proud!

"Your ramen is here!"

"Please enjoy, you two!"

"Thanks for the hard work, sir!"

"Iruka-sensei, thanks for the meal!"

Naruto rubbed his hands together, his eyes fixed on the ramen. This felt like the happiest moment in the world!

The two ate ramen and chatted at the same time!

"Naruto, your team's missions are so dangerous. Have you ever thought about switching to another team or teacher?"

Naruto froze for a moment, then shook his head!

"No!"

"I won't change either my team or my teacher!"

"Why?"

"Isn't it scary, facing that much danger?"

"It is!"

"But... being scared is useless!"

"Before I started school at six, I spent my whole life in fear!"

"After I started school, I made one or two friends, even if not many!"

"But I was still scared!"

"Iruka-sensei!"

"To be honest, at first, I was really afraid of Tian Ge-sensei!"

"The first time we met him, he killed three people!"

"That was the first time I saw three lives disappear right before my eyes!"

"Our teacher was so cold, as if he had no feelings at all. He scared me!"

"But he didn't look at me the way everyone else did!"

"He was willing to teach me so many things, and he never looked down on me!"

"As we gradually got along, I realized that as long as he wasn't angry, he was actually pretty nice!"

"He wasn't as scary as everyone imagined!"

"These past three months, I've learned a lot of things!"

"For example, when dealing with enemies, you have to be ruthless. If you can kill them when you strike, don't just wound them!"

"Once you've made an enemy, you have to find every possible way to kill them. Otherwise, you'll be the one who loses out in the end!"

"When killing someone, you absolutely can't go soft!"

"I learned that lesson the hard way. If it hadn't been for Sakura and Sasuke, I probably wouldn't have made it back!"

"What left the deepest impression on me was our last mission!"

Naruto suddenly exuded a chilling killing intent as he spoke in a low voice.

"Tian Ge-sensei said that when dealing with enemies, you must put away your mercy!"

"You have to wipe them out completely!"

"Leaving future trouble behind is the stupidest thing you can do!"

Iruka looked at Naruto's current expression with deep concern!

Before coming to see Naruto, he had deliberately asked around about Team 7!

He had heard people call Team 7 a squad of killing stars—three little killing stars raised by an ancestor among killing stars!

He had not believed it at first. After seeing Naruto, he had felt even more certain that those people were talking nonsense!

But now, this sudden glimpse of Naruto, and those "principles" he had spoken of!

Were those really principles?

Iruka did not know. It touched upon a blind spot in his understanding as a teacher!

But Iruka knew that all those principles had been forged through killing!

Otherwise, Naruto would not possess such powerful killing intent. Still, this was Naruto's choice!

And Naruto seemed quite happy there, didn't he?

Naruto continued speaking. Iruka gathered his thoughts and listened seriously!

"I know following Tian Ge-sensei is indeed dangerous!"

"I don't even know whether I'll come back alive the next time we go out on a mission!"

"But as long as we stay alive, we can become stronger!"

"Me, Sakura, and Sasuke!"

"The three of us are the same. For every mission, we have only four words!"

"Stay alive, become stronger!"

After saying that, Naruto suddenly smiled, a very natural smile.

"Iruka-sensei!"

"I'm still afraid now!"

"But I really like it. I'm willing to face those fears!"

"Mm, Naruto!"

"You really have grown up!"

"Then as your teacher, I wish you—and Team 7—"

"That you'll keep living and keep growing stronger!"

"We will!"

"We definitely will!"

Naruto was utterly resolute. Every mission was a gamble with his life; without resolve, it was easy to die!

At noon the next day, after Team 7 finished eating, the three wandered lazily through the streets again!

This sort of peace and comfort had seemed completely cut off from them for the past three months!

They had never had such a long break before. Taking this chance, the three of them wanted to enjoy themselves properly for once!

"Let me go, you cat-faced freak!"

"Do you know who my big brother is?"

"If you don't let me go, you'll be in big trouble when he gets here!"

"Hm?"

"Konohamaru?"

Hearing the distant voice, Naruto turned his head and happened to see Konohamaru being held by someone dressed entirely in black!

His face was covered in ugly markings, and he carried something on his back wrapped in bandages, though it was impossible to tell what it was!

He gripped Konohamaru by the neck, his voice full of mockery and disdain!

"Your big brother?"

"Is he strong?"

"Don't tell me you think you're still playing ninja games, brat?"

Sasuke and Sakura also noticed the commotion and looked at Naruto!

"His big brother is you, right?"

"I remember that for a while, you played with him every day!"

Sakura was not entirely sure. They were some distance away, and the child had his back to her, so she could not clearly see whether he was the same child from back then!

"That's him!"

"That guy's gone too far!"

Naruto casually picked up several pebbles and walked toward Konohamaru!

"Ugly freak!"

"Let Konohamaru go!"

"Big Brother Naruto!"

Konohamaru was thrilled. His big brother had finally arrived. In his mind—

Naruto was a man who could even defeat the Hokage. Dealing with this oversized cat-face would be a piece of cake!

"Oh?"

"You're his big brother?"

"You're just a brat too!"

"So you really are playing ninja games!"

"What if I don't let him go?"

The moment Kankuro saw Naruto, he started talking trash!

Whoosh!

Whoosh, whoosh!

Agh!

Naruto threw three pebbles. One struck the wrist of the hand Kankuro was using to grip Konohamaru!

The other two hit the knees of his legs!

Kankuro cried out in pain!

He released Konohamaru, and his knees gave way as he dropped to both knees!

"Huh?"

"Making such a grand gesture the first time we meet!"

"Looks like I misunderstood you. You're actually quite polite!"

Using the Body Flicker Technique, Naruto caught the falling Konohamaru and appeared directly in front of Kankuro!

"You little brat!"

"I'll kill you!"

Kankuro was humiliated and enraged. An ordinary-looking little brat had humiliated him like this!

He could not swallow this insult. He had to get even!

"Wow!"

"You're kneeling there begging me to let you kill me?"

"I just said you were polite. Why are you still such an idiot?"

"Get up before you talk... oversized cat-face!"

It had to be said that after following Tian Ge for three months, Naruto seemed to have lost his ultimate secret technique: Talk-no-Jutsu!

Instead, it had reversed into something dedicated to drawing aggro. What should this new kind of jutsu be called?