Shikamaru nodded without any change in expression.
He sat down beside Naruto, scratched his head, and wore a look of utter reluctance.
"What a pain. A kid like me has to do this?"
As he spoke, a note slipped into Naruto's palm without anyone noticing.
Naruto let out a huge yawn and climbed off Karin's lap.
"Let's go. This is boring."
He scratched his head and waved to Hinata and the others, his gaze finally settling on Karin.
"I'll pick you up after school tonight."
Karin nodded vigorously, her eyes curving into crescents with her smile.
Having wandered from place to place since childhood, she had never known what it felt like to be cherished like this.
Combined with what had happened to her mother, Naruto was like a hand reaching out from hell, forcibly dragging her back up.
The current Karin would not even blink if asked to die for Naruto.
In the original story, Sasuke had merely helped her drive away a tiger, yet she had followed him with unwavering devotion, never changing her heart even after he stabbed her in the back.
With how Naruto treated her, she had long since regarded him as the only light in her life.
Naruto raised his eyes and glanced toward the classrooms above the office building.
By the window, Might Guy, wearing a green vest and sporting a bowl cut, gave him an enormous thumbs-up.
This was Might Guy's first year serving as a Supervising Jonin.
Taijutsu ninja had always been looked down upon, and before this, no one had been willing to become his student.
At that moment, a white-haired man appeared from behind him. It was Kakashi.
Naruto waved without stopping, continuing toward the school gates.
He casually crushed the note in his hand into scraps.
At this