Naruto's Invitation

Naruto's Invitation

One day after the Midterm Exam, at the Ninja Academy's First Grade classroom.

A few days had passed since the Midterm Exam. What relieved Ayato was that, thanks to his habit of barely interacting with others, his popularity had finally returned to normal. Though quite a few people still paid attention to him, it was far better than being surrounded by people all the time like he had been those past few days.

However, Ayato looked at Naruto beside him, who was fidgeting awkwardly. He sighed and said,

"If you have something to say, just say it. There's no need to be so awkward."

"As expected of Ayato, you could even tell!" Naruto laughed as he scratched the back of his head.

"So, what is it?" Ayato asked helplessly.

"Well, tomorrow's a day off. I want to invite Ayato over to my house!" Naruto stopped hesitating and said it outright, then looked at Ayato expectantly. If Ayato agreed, then he would have his first guest besides the Third Old Man!

"Hm?" Ayato froze, having never expected Naruto to invite him over.

"Is that not okay?" Naruto saw that Ayato did not answer and thought he was troubled by it. He immediately became dejected.

"It's not that I can't. I just didn't expect you to suddenly invite me over," Ayato said after coming back to himself.

"Eh, so?" Naruto's eyes lit up.

"Yeah, I accept. Just tell me your address, and I'll go by myself. You know what would happen if I went with you." Ayato did not hide his thoughts. He did not want villagers gossiping about him everywhere he went.

"Oh, okay." Naturally, Naruto did not mind such a minor detail. Besides, wasn't that the exact reason he had not approached Ayato before they came to the Ninja Academy?

Ayato, meanwhile, considered the visit. First of all, though he did not know where Naruto lived, he could basically be sure that there were no other residents near his home. As long as he avoided the villagers' eyes, simply visiting would be fine.

As for the Anbu secretly monitoring Naruto, and... Root, Ayato had nothing to worry about now. He and Naruto sat at the same desk at school, so wasn't it perfectly normal for him to go play at Naruto's house? Besides, if the Third Hokage wanted to strengthen Naruto's ties to the village, he would be more than happy to see this happen.

The only trouble was Root. In the past, Ayato might have hesitated, but now he was certain that the Third Hokage had noticed him. Even if the Third Hokage was old, there was no need to worry about that. He had not become so senile that he would let Danzo reach into the village's future.

With a way to deal with everything, Ayato naturally did not refuse.

Naruto quickly told Ayato where he lived. Sure enough, it was exactly as Ayato had expected—if anything, even more remote. Naruto would probably have to come pick him up for the latter stretch of the way, or it would be hard to find.

Ayato quickly arranged a time with Naruto. Even if he was visiting someone, he could not waste his training time because of it.

The thought of using a Shadow Clone to keep the appointment briefly crossed Ayato's mind, but he quickly dismissed it. He felt it would be impolite to use a Shadow Clone when visiting someone, even if the other party was only a child.

"Eh? Ayato is going to Uzumaki classmate's house as a guest?" Ino, who had overheard their conversation nearby, could not help asking.

"Yeah. Is there a problem?" Ayato looked at Ino.

"Um..." Ino frowned and looked at Naruto Uzumaki. Her father had told her it was best to stay away from him, but she did not really understand why. Thinking about his usual behavior, especially since they had become a little more familiar recently, he seemed alright, didn't he?

"It should be fine, right?" Ino said based on her own feelings.

"I don't know what Naruto is like in other people's eyes, but I'd rather trust my own judgment. I think Naruto is a pretty good little... friend." Ayato nearly called him a little kid, but after considering his own age, he decided to call him a friend instead.

"Mm, I understand." Ino nodded vaguely, as if she had heard some profound truth.

Naruto, meanwhile, looked so moved that he was about to cry.

Shikamaru, who was lying facedown on his desk, twitched an ear, and a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. That guy was pretty troublesome, but he was unexpectedly decent.

Still not quite understanding and unable to figure it out, Ino shook her head. She would ask her mother when she got home. But when she looked at Naruto, who seemed about to cry, she felt he was kind of tacky. And that tearful look was really unsightly. Sure enough, Ayato looked much better, and his grades were good too.

However, since Naruto had invited Ayato to his house, should she invite Ayato too? But as a girl, was it inappropriate to take the initiative? Ino hesitated, and before she could make a decision, class began.

Ayato did not notice anything unusual about Ino. After all, not everyone wore their thoughts on their face like Naruto, and Ino had not stayed long, so it was normal that he had not noticed.

After school, Ino was still thinking about it when she accidentally spotted a somewhat familiar figure. She stopped and looked over, then realized it seemed to be her classmate, and the second-ranked student in the class, Haruno Sakura. She seemed a little lonely at the moment.

Her grades were so good, so what could she possibly be unhappy about? After thinking about it, Ino walked over anyway.

Ayato also saw this scene on his way to the Training Ground. Thinking about it, Ino and Sakura did seem to become good friends because of something. He had wondered before why the two of them acted like complete strangers. It seemed the right moment had not arrived yet.

At that moment, Ayato remembered that Sakura seemed to lack confidence because of her broad forehead. Even so, she had nearly gotten full marks in theoretical knowledge. Once she gained confidence later on, she would probably get full marks in theory as well.

Seeing it this way, Ayato could not relax either. To make sure his genius persona continued reaching the Third Hokage's ears, he needed to take first place in every category.

But it was still too early to think about that. Ayato looked over at Ino and Sakura, who had already started talking. Although the two would later fight over Sasuke, their friendship had always been quite good. They were a fine pair of friends.

Ayato thought of Naruto again. That guy often stole glances at Sakura, so he probably liked her just as he had in the original story. Naruto at this point had barely had any chance to interact with others, so he basically judged by looks. Sakura really was quite cute... Forget it. Ayato felt his opinion did not count. Why did he think all these little kids were cute?

Still, Ayato was looking at them from an adult's perspective, while Naruto observed them as a peer. They were not quite the same.

Although he was lost in thought, Ayato never stopped walking. He still had to carry out today's training step by step. He absolutely could not slack off.