Chapter 121: Becoming a Ninja
The day of the graduation exam finally arrived. The test content remained exactly the same as in the original story—the most basic Clone Jutsu.
However, this time's Naruto had completely shed the title of "dead last."
Ever since that first day of school, after his shocking battle with Uchiha Satsuki that rivaled a real ninja confrontation and amazed the entire audience, he had consistently been regarded by his fellow students and teachers as an undeniable genius.
Therefore, when it was Naruto's turn to be tested, he felt no nervousness whatsoever. He calmly and unhurriedly formed the hand seals that he had long since mastered by heart.
"Clone Jutsu!"
Poof! Poof! Poof!
Accompanied by several clean, crisp sounds, three clones that were virtually indistinguishable from the original—solid and stable—instantly appeared in the center of the examination room.
Iruka, serving as the examiner, displayed an undisguised smile of relief and pride on his face, declaring without hesitation, "Uzumaki Naruto, you pass!"
He picked up a brand new Leaf Village headband from the table, symbolizing his status as a ninja, and solemnly handed it to Naruto.
As Iruka watched Naruto accept the headband, his caring eyes were filled with countless emotions. This child he had looked after for several years had finally become—truly become—a real ninja!
With the talent and character that Naruto had displayed, he would surely become a great, respected ninja in the future...
Naruto took the headband but didn't immediately put it on. Instead, he faced Iruka and bowed respectfully and properly, his voice clear and sincere. "Thank you, Iruka-sensei! Thank you for your guidance over these past few years!"
This sudden, incredibly solemn expression of gratitude left Iruka momentarily stunned. Looking at this blonde boy who had grown up before his eyes, the reluctance and excitement that had been building in his heart suddenly surged up, and his eyes couldn't help but redden slightly.
He forcefully suppressed his surging emotions, nodded vigorously, and responded in as steady a voice as possible, "Yes! Naruto, congratulations on graduating! You must continue to work hard in the future!"
This scene between teacher and student, filled with trust and gratitude, appeared particularly heartwarming in the sunlight.
However, beside this warm scene, Mizuki, who was co-supervising the exam, secretly turned his head away. The usual fake, gentle smile on his face was almost impossible to maintain, and he was grinding his back teeth audibly.
---
Walking out of the Ninja Academy gates side by side with Satsuki, Naruto immediately spotted two familiar figures waiting not far away—none other than Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Mikoto.
"Dad! Mom!"
Satsuki's face beamed with the joy of graduation as she ran over, eager to show her parents the headband she had just received, symbolizing her ninja status.
Seeing this, Mikoto's face showed a gentle, relieved smile as she lightly stroked Satsuki's hair. "You've already become a ninja who can stand on her own so quickly. What would you like to eat tonight?"
With slightly flushed cheeks, Satsuki didn't immediately respond to her mother's dinner suggestion, but instinctively first looked toward her father, whose expression appeared somewhat serious.
Uchiha Fugaku stepped forward two paces, his gaze falling on the headband in his daughter's hands. Though his face still showed little additional expression, he said, "Hmm, truly worthy of being my daughter."
Naruto stood at a slightly greater distance, watching this scene. His heart was filled with countless emotions. Satsuki's life trajectory had ultimately been completely changed...
The current Satsuki, though she had experienced that nightmarish night, hadn't become as cold and aloof as in the original story because both her parents had survived. No... it seems like aside from her parents and me, she still maintains that indifferent attitude toward everyone else...
Just then, Satsuki pulled her mother's hand and came to Naruto's side, saying in a light tone, "Naruto, Dad said that to celebrate graduation, we're going out for dinner tonight. You should come too."
"Eh? I can come too?" Naruto instinctively looked toward Fugaku and Mikoto.
Mikoto looked at Naruto with incredibly loving eyes. "Yes, of course you can. Naruto doesn't need to be polite with us." She had long regarded Naruto as her own child.
Fugaku, seeing this, only let out an almost imperceptible sigh and didn't voice any objection, essentially giving tacit approval to his wife's invitation.
Just then, Naruto noticed from the corner of his eye that Iruka-sensei seemed to have finished handling the follow-up work at school and was walking out of the Ninja Academy.
Naruto turned to look at Aunt Mikoto with an inquiring gaze, and after receiving her gentle, affirming nod of permission, he immediately turned and ran toward Iruka.
"Iruka-sensei!" Naruto called out. "Tonight Satsuki and I are going out to dinner to celebrate graduation. You should come too!"
Hearing Naruto's invitation, Iruka wasn't particularly surprised and readily agreed with a smile. "Sure! Graduation should definitely be celebrated. Tonight I'll treat everyone..."
However, before he could finish speaking, he heard Naruto add, "Yeah! And Satsuki and her mom and dad are coming too!"
"Eh?! Wait... the Uchiha clan head and his wife are also...?!" The smile on Iruka's face instantly froze, replaced by a trace of caught-off-guard panic.
Although he was close to Naruto, often treating him to Ichiraku Ramen, and frequently receiving amazingly delicious homemade lunch boxes that Naruto brought, suddenly having to dine with the formerly dignified ex-Uchiha clan head and his wife... this sudden "meeting important people" atmosphere immediately made Iruka-sensei feel some pressure.
---
That evening, in a rather famous barbecue restaurant in Konoha Village, Satsuki's family, Naruto, and a slightly nervous Iruka-sensei sat around a grilling table, having a graduation celebration dinner.
The charcoal fire crackled and popped, various meat slices and vegetables sizzled with oil on the grill, filling the air with delicious aromas. The evening's conversation mainly revolved around interesting stories from Naruto and Satsuki's time at the Ninja Academy. Iruka-sensei recounted their performance in classes and training, while Aunt Mikoto listened with great interest, occasionally laughing softly. The conversation was also filled with emotion and expectations about the two children finally growing into ninjas and being about to embark on a new journey.
While Naruto enjoyed the delicious food, he observed Iruka with some confusion. Logically speaking, Iruka-sensei had dined with the Third Hokage and hadn't seemed this nervous even when facing that truly important figure. For some reason, when facing Uchiha Fugaku and Mikoto, he always appeared somewhat constrained and respectful, even sitting much more upright than usual.
The conversation continued until Fugaku put down his tea cup and turned his gaze to Iruka. "Iruka-sensei, these past few years, my daughter Satsuki has been under your care at the Ninja Academy. Thank you very much."
Upon hearing this, Iruka immediately straightened his back, hurriedly waving his hands, his tone even somewhat flustered. "No, no, no! You're too kind, Fugaku-san! Rather, I should say..." He seemed to want to be polite and ease the atmosphere, but in his nervousness, words slipped out of his mouth without going through his brain first.
"In the future, please take good care of Naruto too!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, the atmosphere at the entire table became subtly tense for a moment.
Naruto: "???" Why would he ask Satsuki's dad to take care of me?
Iruka himself immediately realized that something was wrong with what he'd said. His face turned red, and he opened his mouth, not knowing how to cover for his mistake.
But this statement directly hit Uchiha Fugaku's heart. His body stiffened almost imperceptibly, and his fingers gripping the tea cup tightened slightly.
Me take care of him?
Bitterness and stuffiness instantly surged in his heart. He instinctively looked up across the table—only to see his precious daughter Satsuki naturally placing grilled meat from the rack into Naruto's bowl, her eyes looking at Naruto sparkling with undisguised dependence and joy.
Fugaku's inner displeasure and conflicted feelings ultimately transformed into deep helplessness. All his emotions finally condensed into one extremely brief syllable, accompanied by an almost imperceptible nod.
"...Mm."