Gradually, more people began to fill the classroom.
The moment most of the girls walked in, their eyes instantly landed on Sasuke.
Naruto, on the other hand, didn't get even a fraction of that attention.
Not just the girls—even among the boys, aside from Choji and Shikamaru, the rest looked at him no differently from how the villagers outside usually did.
...
After a while, Iruka walked into the classroom carrying a textbook, officially starting the lesson.
The morning classes focused mainly on theory.
Not just Naruto—even Carl was nearly dozing off.
At one point, Naruto even tried to start a conversation with Sakura, only to get smacked by a chalk projectile from Iruka.
Watching Naruto's obsession with Sakura, Carl sighed helplessly.
He's ignoring the white-eyed princess in the back who only has eyes for him… and instead is fixated on this pink-haired, big-foreheaded girl.
Too young… far too young.
...
Time passed, and in the afternoon, Iruka announced they'd be doing combat simulations.
The graduation exam was coming up, and the practical assessment carried the heaviest weight, so these training sessions had basically become a daily thing.
And every time this happened, Naruto's face would instantly collapse into a bitter melon expression—because right now, there was almost no one he could beat.
Thanks to the Nine-Tails sealed within him, he couldn't even manage a basic Clone Jutsu.
Most of the time, he just ended up as a living punching bag.
...
Dragging his feet, Naruto followed the others as Iruka led the class to the training field.
When they saw a familiar figure already standing there, the entire group erupted in shock.
"Lord Hokage!!"
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was smoking his pipe, his face carrying a kindly smile as he looked at Iruka and the group approaching him.
Even Iruka looked surprised.
Clearly, he hadn't expected the Hokage to be here today.
After his initial shock, Iruka quickly bowed respectfully.
The Third Hokage gave a small smile and said,
"These kids are about to graduate, right? I came to see how they're doing."
As he spoke, his eyes kept glancing toward Naruto in the crowd.
Naruto made a face at him.
The Hokage only smiled, removed his pipe, and said,
"Alright. Don't let my presence affect you. Go on and start."
Iruka nodded, then turned back to the students.
"Same as always—we'll draw lots to decide your sparring partners. Let's begin."
The students lined up to draw from the lottery box.
...
When it was done, everyone suddenly became very interested in Naruto.
Or rather—in the number he was holding.
The reason was simple: nobody wanted to lose in front of the Hokage.
And if you could fight Naruto, the class underdog, the pressure instantly dropped to zero.
Naruto unfolded his paper.
On it was a large number "1."
This meant he would be in the very first match.
Feeling everyone's eyes on him, Naruto raised the paper high and shouted his number aloud.
Immediately, the other students checked their own numbers—then most sighed in disappointment.
At that moment, Sasuke stepped forward expressionlessly and held up his own paper.
It also had the number "1."
...
Realizing his opponent was Sasuke—the class genius and the guy he hated most—Naruto wiped his nose with his sleeve and muttered,
"Big deal… Just watch, I'll knock you flat later..."
But his voice grew smaller and smaller.
Clearly, he wasn't very confident.
Sasuke, meanwhile, was already walking to the center of the field under the cheers of all the girls, his face still cold as ice.
Naruto gritted his teeth and ran to stand across from him, his expression full of defiance.
Of course, Sasuke didn't take him seriously at all.
Completely ignoring Naruto, he turned to Iruka and asked,
"Iruka-sensei, can we start?"
Iruka glanced worriedly at Naruto, then nodded.
The Third Hokage watched silently, his eyes on the two boys.
He hadn't expected this coincidence—the two students most watched by the village elders facing each other.
But right now, one was a genius.
The other… the class underdog.
The outcome seemed obvious.
...
Sure enough, the moment Iruka gave the signal to start, Sasuke's figure vanished from where he stood.
His speed was far beyond anything students from ordinary families could follow.
Before Naruto could even react, Sasuke appeared right in front of him and drove his fist into Naruto's stomach.
The force instantly turned Naruto's face the color of pig liver.
He clutched his stomach, dropped to his knees, then collapsed completely.
A total, uncontested knockout.
After a brief silence, Sasuke's fangirls erupted into screams.
"Sasuke-kun is so cool!"
"He's amazing!!"
"As expected, the gap between a genius and a dead-last is just too big!"
Even some of the boys started praising Sasuke.
Only a few wondered quietly—
If they were in Naruto's place… would the result have been any different?
Probably not.
The only one watching Naruto with pity was Hinata.
Everyone else treated the collapsed, pain-wracked boy on the ground like air.
Naruto lifted his head with difficulty.
He'd expected this outcome, but actually experiencing it still stung deeply.
What hurt the most was the admiration in the Hokage's eyes—
Admiration for Sasuke.
Naruto might seem disrespectful to the Third Hokage at times, but in his heart, he admired him greatly.
Becoming Hokage had always been his dream.
And his image of a Hokage… was Hiruzen Sarutobi himself.
"Why… is the gap so big?"
"Why does nobody like me?"
"What did I do wrong?"
Iruka sighed, ready to help Naruto up—
But Naruto suddenly gritted his teeth, stood up on his own, and shouted at the departing Sasuke,
"I haven't lost yet!"
The crowd burst into ridicule.
To them, this was pure delusion.
Sasuke looked at him calmly and said,
"Forget it. Fighting you means nothing to me."
He wasn't trying to mock Naruto.
He was just being blunt.
But the words cut like a blade.
Adding to that, Sakura's lovestruck cheer came at the worst possible time, and Naruto, forgetting his pain, charged at Sasuke again.
No sudden awakening.
No hidden power.
He just got kicked back even harder.
Two hits in a row, and Naruto was on the verge of fainting.
Maybe in the original timeline, this was exactly how things ended—
With Naruto knocked unconscious.
Through the haze of pain, Naruto heard a voice.
A voice like it was calling to him from a dream.
"Oi, Uzumaki Naruto… Do you crave power?"
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+100 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg