Worried that his mother, Hanako Ito, might say something else bizarre, Ito Hirofumi hurriedly took a couple of bites of his meal and put down his chopsticks.
"Grandpa, Father, Mother, I'm done eating! I'm heading to school now!" he announced.
Ito Aoyama caught the look his wife shot him and stood up.
Ito Hirofumi glanced back at his father, who seemed hesitant to speak. Normally, his father never saw him off to school—Hirofumi wasn't a little kid anymore, after all.
"Father… is something up?" Hirofumi asked, curiosity piqued.
"Uh… well, it's like this…" Aoyama started, looking oddly sheepish.
"Father, just spit it out! This isn't like you!" Hirofumi pressed.
"Well… it's about what your mother said earlier," Aoyama began, rubbing the back of his neck. "I was your age once, you know. It's normal for a young guy to have… weird thoughts sometimes…
But you've gotta take care of yourself, okay? You're still a bit young for that stuff.
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It's totally normal to have strange thoughts at night!
Just… try to get more rest from now on, alright? Those dark circles under your eyes are way too heavy!"
Hirofumi's mouth twitched, his face flushing bright red.
What the heck was his father talking about?!
Did he think Hirofumi had stayed up all night doing something weird?!
Damn it!!!
"Father! What are you even saying?! I have no idea what you're talking about! You don't need to see me off! Bye!!!" Hirofumi blurted out, then bolted toward the Ninja Academy like he was fleeing for his life.
Aoyama stood there, awkwardly scratching the tip of his nose.
Back when he was curious about those kinds of things, his own father had given him a similar talk. So why did it feel so off when he tried it with his son?!
At the Ninja Academy, Hirofumi let out a long sigh of relief…
Yeah, he'd definitely overdone it last night training with Uchiha Madara.
No wonder his parents got the wrong idea!
He'd have to be more careful with his training from now on.
Inside the classroom, Iruka-sensei hadn't arrived yet, so the room was a chaotic mess.
Nara Shikamaru was slumped over his desk, looking half-dead. Ino Yamanaka was fiddling with some flowers. Choji Akimichi was scarfing down potato chips like there was no tomorrow. Sakura Haruno was staring at Sasuke Uchiha with a lovesick expression, and Naruto Uzumaki was standing on a desk, yelling about who-knows-what…
"Yo, Choji, already digging in? How many snacks did you bring today?" Hirofumi called out.
"Tons, obviously! You know my backpack's only for snacks!" Choji grinned, pulling out another bag of chips and tossing it to Hirofumi.
"Nice flowers, Ino! Who're they for?" Hirofumi teased.
Ino's face turned pink, and she stammered, unable to get a word out.
"Shikamaru! Didn't sleep well last night?" Hirofumi asked.
"School's such a drag…" Shikamaru mumbled, scratching his pineapple-shaped hair with zero enthusiasm.
"Hey, Naruto! What's with the performance art up there?" Hirofumi laughed.
"Hirofumi, why do you seem… different today? It's weird—you're giving off the same vibe as that stuck-up Sasuke!!!" Naruto said, scratching his head as he glanced from Hirofumi to Sasuke, who was sitting quietly by the window.
"Oh, come on, Forehead! Still sneaking peeks at Sasuke?" Hirofumi teased Sakura.
"What?! No way, Hirofumi! Stop talking nonsense! I'm not sneaking anything!!!" Sakura protested, her face turning beet red.
She stole a quick glance at Sasuke, hoping to catch his reaction to the accusation, but Sasuke just sat there, calm and unbothered, like nothing was happening…
Hirofumi greeted everyone in the class with ease. After years together, they were all pretty tight. He could even proudly say he was one of the few who got to share Choji's chips!
Sasuke, sitting by the window, seemed focused on the view outside, but his peripheral vision kept drifting toward Hirofumi. A faint, almost imperceptible glint of envy flickered in his eyes…
Just then, Sasuke noticed Hirofumi heading his way, and his heart gave a nervous jolt.
Sure, Hirofumi had talked to him plenty of times before, but Sasuke had never exactly been friendly in return…
Deep down, he did want to make friends, but… he just didn't know how to handle it!
Sometimes he wanted to have a real conversation, but the words always came out wrong!
"Yo, Sasuke! Looking extra handsome today, huh? Still not quite on my level, though! Heh heh heh!" Hirofumi teased with a grin.
Sasuke's face flushed red instantly. "Tch! All you do is talk big, huh?!
I heard we've got combat training today, Hirofumi! I'll show you what real Uchiha strength looks like! You'll see the pride of the Uchiha!!!" he shot back.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Sasuke turned his face away, inwardly kicking himself.
Damn it!!!
He'd just wanted to argue about who was more handsome—why did it turn into some grand speech about Uchiha strength and pride?!
Sneaking a glance at Hirofumi and seeing he didn't seem mad, Sasuke let out a quiet sigh of relief…
Last night, back in the empty Uchiha compound with only himself for company, Sasuke had spent the whole night thinking.
Especially about that strange feeling Hirofumi gave him!
It was like they shared the same blood or something!!!
His instincts told him that Hirofumi might just have Uchiha blood running through his veins!
Sure, that idiot Naruto gave him a weird feeling too, but it was completely different from what he felt with Hirofumi!