Around noon, Hirofumi Ito, who had been slumped over his desk, slowly opened his eyes and stretched, easing the slight ache in his joints.
"That damn Uchiha Madara! He really doesn't hold back!" Hirofumi muttered to himself.
"But… I think I've actually gotten stronger…"
In his heart, Hirofumi couldn't help but reflect. In just a day and a half, the feeling of getting stronger was almost tangible! His reaction speed, physical strength, and even his chakra reserves had noticeably improved. This wasn't an illusion—he was stronger!
Learning ninjutsu didn't seem all that tough either. In just half a day in the summoning space, he'd mastered the C-rank Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu! And not just some half-baked version—he could perform it with skill. With his current chakra reserves, he could cast Fireball Jutsu three times in a row!
Of course, it was just the standard version of the jutsu, not the monstrous kind Uchiha Madara used…
When Madara was training him, he'd demonstrated his own ninjutsu prowess. Hirofumi had seen Madara's abilities in the original anime, but witnessing them in person was a whole different experience! The Fireball Jutsu Hirofumi could muster was, well, a small fireball. Madara's? It was practically a miniature sun!
Madara himself was surprised at how quickly Hirofumi picked up the C-rank jutsu, especially since Hirofumi didn't have a Sharingan to copy techniques with. Mastering a C-rank jutsu in half a day was proof of Hirofumi's impressive talent.
But Hirofumi didn't think his talent was anything special. He figured his rapid progress was probably thanks to Indra's chakra. Every time he summoned a spirit, he could "copy and paste" one of their abilities onto himself. And Indra's chakra? That came straight from Uchiha Madara.
It was exactly because of Indra's chakra that Hirofumi felt like he was leveling up so fast.
Thinking about it, Hirofumi gave a wry smile. Naruto? Might as well call it Cheat Code Ninja! Or maybe Tailed Beast Pokémon or Legend of the Eyes—those names fit just as well!
"Hey, Hirofumi! How'd you sleep so long this morning?!" Naruto Uzumaki's voice cut through his thoughts. "Your great lord Naruto woke up ages ago, and you're still snoozing!"
Hirofumi glanced over and noticed everyone else had already pulled out their bentos and snacks, ready for lunch.
Over the years at the Ninja Academy, largely because of Hirofumi's influence, the bonds among Konoha's young ninja were tighter than in the original story. They'd already started forming a little clique at school. Naruto had managed to become part of it too.
At first, the group was just Hirofumi and Naruto. Then Ino Yamanaka, who had a crush on Hirofumi, joined in, followed by Shikamaru Nara and Choji Akimichi. After that, Kiba Inuzuka and Shino Aburame hopped on board. Hinata Hyuga, probably because of her crush on Naruto, started hanging around the group and eventually became a full-fledged member. Sakura Haruno, being Ino's best friend, naturally joined too.
Now, aside from Sasuke Uchiha, all nine of Konoha's "little strong ones" had come together early.
Sasuke sat by the window, quietly unpacking his bento. Every now and then, his eyes flicked toward the group, a hint of envy in his gaze.
Naruto, being his loud and carefree self, dragged Hirofumi over to the table where everyone was gathered.
"Secret hamburger! Naruto's secret hamburger! Secret hamburger! Naruto's secret hamburger!" Naruto sang in a weird, catchy tune, pulling something that vaguely resembled a hamburger from his bag. "Woke up early today, had nothing to do, so I made a burger! Tastes good if you pick the right ingredients…"
The group was used to this by now. Over the years at the academy, they'd picked up all sorts of odd habits and phrases from Hirofumi. At first, everyone thought it was weird, but now it was just normal.
Hinata, sitting next to Naruto, watched him shyly. Naruto's song is so nice… she thought. He must really love hamburgers. Maybe I should learn how to make them too…
Sadly, Naruto didn't notice her attention. Instead, he turned into a total simp and looked at Sakura. "Sakura! I made this Naruto secret hamburger this morning—try it!"
Sakura stared at the questionable "hamburger" and couldn't shake the feeling that Naruto was trying to poison her.
BAM!
A fist slammed down on Naruto's head.
"Who'd eat something that weird?!" Sakura snapped.
Everyone smirked at the scene. Choji, grinning, dumped a pile of snacks from his bag onto the table. "Let's go, guys! Dig in!"
Ino pulled out her own bento and then revealed a second, beautifully crafted one. "Hirofumi… I made this for you. Try it and tell me what you think!"
Hirofumi raised an eyebrow. The bento was a work of art—neatly arranged rice balls, garnished with little snacks. Ino had clearly put in a lot of effort.
Then Hirofumi reached into his desk and pulled out a massive bento of his own. The moment it appeared, everyone's eyes lit up.
There was no helping it—Hirofumi's mom made the best bentos, packed with dishes no one else had ever tasted. Hirofumi knew exactly what they were all excited about. His mom's cooking came from recipes he remembered from his past life, and in the culinary wasteland of the Naruto world, those dishes were absolutely irresistible!