Along the silent and empty street, Mamoru walked at a leisurely pace.
The wind occasionally swept past, making the seals on the doors of the shops on both sides of the street flap loudly. Lanterns printed with the Uchiha clan's crest lay scattered on the ground, their colors long faded, rolling slightly in the wind.
Since the annihilation of the Uchiha clan, ordinary Konoha villagers rarely approached this area. The thinning human presence was one of the reasons the village decided to demolish this area.
The once bustling and noisy commercial street was now left with only desolation and silence. It was hard to imagine that this had once been one of the most prosperous areas of Konoha.
After walking and stopping for about fifty minutes, Mamoru arrived at the Ninja Academy.
At this time, students were already entering the school gates one after another, some greeting each other in a relaxed atmosphere.
Mamoru walked into the school with his hands in his pockets and a lazy expression, following the crowd into the teaching building. His appearance was like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, not only splashing water but also causing layers of ripples to spread out.
The students in the hallway cast all sorts of complex looks at him, with the gazes of the girls being particularly intense.
Becoming the center of attention, Mamoru remained calm, ignoring everything around him as if nothing were happening, while sighing internally, 'Don't be obsessed with me, I'm a man you can't have.'
He seemed to still be immersed in some kind of good self-feeling as he casually pulled open the classroom door and walked in.
Many students had already arrived in the classroom, some sitting quietly in their seats, while others were gathered in front of the podium talking about something.
Today was the first day of the new semester, and the classroom was full of old acquaintances, such as his previous desk-mate, Shikamaru.
Mamoru walked towards his old seat, climbing the steps between the desks.
Just as he was about to reach his seat, someone called out a greeting.
"Morning, Mamoru."
"Good morning, Mamoru..."
Crunch!
Mamoru looked at the two people who greeted him. The former was his desk-mate Shikamaru, who was lying face down on the desk looking listless. The latter was Choji sitting in front of him, constantly stuffing potato chips into his mouth.
"Good morning, we're in the same class again." He replied with a slight nod.
Walking to his seat, he took off the backpack from his back, tossed it casually into the desk, then sat back against the desk behind him, hands pillowed behind his head, and his two legs propped onto the tabletop.
"It's rare for you to be this early today. Don't you usually come to school just in the nick of time?" Shikamaru's listless voice came over.
"Shouldn't you feel honored to be able to see your handsome and cute desk-mate a bit earlier?" Mamoru turned his head and replied with a smile.
"You..."
Shikamaru turned to look at him, but froze slightly upon seeing that excessively exquisite face, then turned back to look straight ahead, his tone helpless. "Tch... only those girls would be fooled by your face. I know exactly how bad your nature is."
"It seems you have a very deep prejudice against me." Mamoru curled his lips into his signature mischievous smile.
"How can a person like me, who respects teachers and is kind to classmates, sound like a villain in your words?"
"Re-respecting teachers... kind to classmates? You... how do you have the nerve to say those words?" Shikamaru was shocked by Mamoru's shameless remarks.
Mamoru chose not to continue bickering with him and instead reached out to pat Choji in the front seat. "Eating snacks so early in the morning, are they that good?"
Choji turned his head and handed over the snack bag. "Want some?"
Mamoru looked at Choji, who was willing to share with him, with some amusement, but ultimately shook his head.
"Look. That person is from the Uchiha clan."
"I heard that clan was almost entirely killed overnight, with only two survivors left. He must be one of them."
While Mamoru and the others were chatting, some discordant dialogue sounded from the back row.
In the last row of seats diagonally behind Mamoru, two boys were talking in low voices, their whispers falling into Mamoru's ears in fragments.
"I heard my parents say it too."
"They must have made a powerful enemy to end up so miserable. Stay away from him in the future to avoid being implicated."
"Forget about the Uchiha, don't forget about teaching Jiro a lesson today."
"How could I forget? It's rare that Tadakuni's group is willing to help. I've been annoyed with Jiro for a long time. Does he think staying back a grade means he's fine? Let's see how he escapes today."
"Right, we absolutely can't let him slip away. We have to give him a severe lesson."
As the two spoke, sinister smiles appeared on their faces.
Shikamaru sat up straight at some point, first glancing at the two behind him, then turning to look at Mamoru, muttering in his heart, 'Can't these two idiots speak more quietly? Everything was heard over here.'
Seeing Shikamaru acting contrary to his usual self, Mamoru thought he was worried about him and said nonchalantly, "What are you looking at me for? I'm fine."
His indifferent attitude made Shikamaru frown, thinking to himself, 'Don't be so full of yourself. Who's worried about you?'
What he was really worried about was whether those two loose-lipped guys would suffer after school. He knew best that Mamoru was a violent element with a bad personality.
Although he knew Mamoru used his own way to 'solve problems,' he could never agree with that crude method.
In his words—why go looking for trouble? If you have that free time, you might as well sleep a bit more.
Just as Shikamaru feared, Mamoru was thinking along the same lines.
Regarding kids with foul mouths, especially when he was the subject, he was very happy to educate them on behalf of their parents. 'Home service' also fully reflected his enthusiasm for the 'cause of education.'
He didn't care at all about how others saw him. As the saying goes—I've freaking transmigrated, would I still care about others' opinions?
He was a man who didn't know Talk no Jutsu, only Beatdown no Jutsu.
Sometimes, violent deterrence can easily solve some problems and make people learn to have awe.
At that moment, the classroom door was pulled open with a 'clatter,' and two figures entered one after another.
After Mamoru saw clearly who had come, he froze slightly, his mouth involuntarily opening wide, and his surprised gaze fell upon the two of them.
Walking in front was a blonde kid wearing green goggles on his forehead, with six whisker-like markings on his cheeks.
Undoubtedly, this person was Naruto.
But what truly caused Mamoru's emotions to fluctuate was the one behind him.
Medium-length black hair and a small face almost identical to Mamoru's. Although his face was slightly haggard, his eyes were resolute and deep.
Sasuke had been depressed since the clan massacre and hadn't come to school. His appearance here meant he had finally stepped out of his slump and pulled himself together.
It wasn't easy for this kid. His whole family was killed at a young age, and the culprit on the surface was his own brother. It could be said he suffered immense physical and mental torture.
At this moment, both Naruto and Sasuke had one emotion revealed on their faces: annoyance. They perfectly interpreted the meaning of 'mutual dislike at first sight.'
However, despite how they looked now, in a few years, the two would have a relationship of love and hate.
An ill-fated relationship was currently budding.