As Iruka announced the next sparring match to be between Naruto and Homura, the playground was filled with excitement. Naruto's eyes lit up with enthusiasm, eager to test his skills against his classmates once again. On the other hand, Homura's expression remained stoic and somewhat tired, his mind preoccupied with his upcoming responsibilities at the clinic.

Naruto couldn't wait to prove himself, and he quickly got up, ready to spring into action. He saw this as a perfect opportunity to finally defeat Homura, who always seemed a step ahead during their previous encounters.

To him, beating Homura was a step closer to beating Sasuke.

Which he had more beef against, mostly because he never took him seriously and a certain pink haired girl affection for him.

Homura, however, wasn't sharing Naruto's enthusiasm. Beating Naruto at this point in time was more of a tedious task. He had a lot on his plate and wasn't in the mood for an intense sparring session. He had already accepted the offer to help out at the clinic, which meant his free time was limited.

He'd rather save his energy and planned to not mentally and physically drained stress himself since he could no longer sleep in class, thus the hope he had to avoid any unnecessary fights today was shattered.

If he could give up, he would do it in a heartbeat. But everything in class that ultimately came about them proving themselves mattered.

So, as the two students stood across from each other in the training area, Naruto couldn't contain his enthusiasm. His desire to win was overwhelming, he truly wanted to prove himself against foes he considered strong and those around him.

As if answering his wish, the other students gathered around, because they had no choice but also they were curious to see how the match would unfold.

Though most still knew that the chances of Naruto winning agaisnt Homura were slim.

Naruto: "Alright, Homura! Get ready to face my awesome ninja skills!" he exclaimed, striking a dynamic pose.

Homura, in contrast, simply raised an eyebrow in response. His usual nonexistent enthusiasm for a challenge seemed to be the same today as well.

Homura: "*Sigh* Let's get this over with," he muttered under his breath, not putting much energy into his reply.

As the match began, Naruto wasted no time.

He charged at Homura with impressive speed, for an academy student it was far from impressive but any normal person would think that he was quite fast.

So as he closed in on Homura's location, he wasted no time, immediately launching a series of fast punches and kicks. But Homura seemed unfazed, effortlessly blocking Naruto's attacks with a nonchalant demeanor.

For someone who seemed to have a hard time following the rules. Naruto's taijutsu seemed rather in grained in the teachings he had been taught, it was just that the order of his strikes and his movements seemed to be rather unruly and more focused towards attacking than defending.

He had sacrificed his defense for attacking continuously.

But for Homura, that just made him more predictable.

Avoiding and using Naruto's strength against him was the more suitable way to proceed in a fight where the other party wasted their energy, but unfortunately, Naruto has a rather large amount of stamina for a boy his age.

Homura thought that they were about twice as high, if he was better able to control his breathing and movements it could probably become 3 times higher than instead just twice.

So he made sure avoid and block Naruto's attacks with minimal effort but as well at the very last possible moment in order to make Naruto unable to chain combos and tire him out faster.

Naruto: "Grrr!" 

Naruto's frustration grew with each blocked strike. He was used to having lively and engaging sparring sessions, but Homura's lack of enthusiasm was dampening the experience. "Come on, Homura! Show me what you've got!" Naruto shouted, hoping to ignite some kind of response from his classmate.

Homura, however, remained stoic and composed. He parried Naruto's attacks with precision and skill, but his heart wasn't fully in it. His mind kept wandering to the tasks and responsibilities that awaited him after the match.

Seeing Homura's lackluster performance only fueled Naruto's determination to push harder. Not realizing that although Homura wasn't fully immersed in their fight, it was also a ploy to have Naruto waste his energy faster.

Unbeknownst to the truth, Naruto channeled all his energy into a powerful barrage of attacks, hoping to break through Homura's defenses.

Naruto: "Hey, Homura! Are you even paying attention?" Naruto called out, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

Naruto's frustration mounted, and he continued to press forward, unleashing even more powerful attacks. He was determined to make Homura take the fight seriously and give him a real challenge.

But with each attacks Homura simply began to move slightly faster to break up Naruto's natural rhythm. It was easy enough for Homura who was faster and more experienced than Naruto to do.

Although it seemed that Homura was playing around, it was simply more of a cost effective way to fight, because Naruto was slightly a problematic foe to Homura.

Homura:"(This guy, truly is a bother. How come he can hit so hard with so much strength behind his punches and kicks. Blocking his hits are a bother.)" Homura thought as he jumped out of the way of another of Naruto's leg swipes. 

As Naruto's attacks intensified, Homura finally decided to respond. He gracefully dodged Naruto's incoming strikes, seemingly moving with the flow of the battle. His movements were precise and calculated, showcasing his exceptional physical prowess.

Naruto's eyes widened as he realized that Homura was indeed an incredibly skilled, as he avoided one of his attacks by moving a two steps away from himself as his back was opened to him, but it revealed to be a trap as he was easily able to avoid his charge towards him.

Nonetheless, he couldn’t accept it. He couldn't shake the feeling that Homura wasn't giving it his all, which was true, and which only fueled his determination further.

Naruto: "Come on, Homura! Show me what you've got!" Naruto taunted, his competitive spirit driving him forward.

Homura's expression remained stoic, but he knew he had to take Naruto's challenge seriously. The boy's attack pattern were becoming more sloppy and there was more gaps in his defenses.

With a swift backflip, he avoided Naruto's next attack and delivered a powerful kick that sent Naruto skidding backward.

Homura: "If you want me to spar seriously, then bring your best."

Naruto gritted his teeth, feeling frustrated at the difference between his and Homura's skills.

He couldn't comprehend how was there such a gap if they had been taught the same taijutsu teachings by the same teachers, however, Homura's style wasn't really any style at all.

It looked close to the style taught by the academy but it wasn't. 

It shared a few foundations, but Homura's style was just a mixed match of pattern used by many different people, that seemed to be a mess on paper but in practice allowed him to swiftly change his approach. 

It was rather more reactive and focused on counter attacking the opponents and defend against  several foes at the same time.

Ironically it was developed mostly because of Naruto, or rather the Naruto Homura conducted battles against inside the program he had created to train by himself.

Though as the match was intensifying, Naruto saw an opening and decided to go for a sneak attack. He quickly moved behind Homura, planning to deliver a swift kick to his head. However, before Naruto could even complete his move, Homura's keen senses detected the incoming attack a mile away. Without turning back, he reached out and effortlessly grabbed Naruto's leg mid-air.

It wasn't telegraphed but Homura knew quite well how Naruto thought and how he'd react if he thought he got a chance, the boy's battle skills were sharp but also easily exploitable. 

Since Homura was unfortunately faster and had C running simulations at all time, the result was simply unavoidable.

Naruto: “What the?“

Caught off guard, Naruto was stunned by Homura's quick reaction. He tried to break free, but Homura's grip was like a vice, and he found himself unable to escape. With a sudden twist, Homura spun around, using Naruto's own momentum to throw him away.

Naruto landed with a thud, but he didn't let the setback deter him. He jumped back up and dashed towards Homura, attempting to trip him up. Naruto aimed a sweeping kick towards Homura's legs, hoping to knock him off balance.

Homura: “(He is persistent I will give him that…)“

But Homura's agility proved to be a formidable challenge. He effortlessly evaded Naruto's kick, gracefully stepping to the side with a fluid movement. Naruto's foot met nothing but air, and before he could recover, Homura was already prepared to counter.

With a swift backflip, Homura soared into the air, narrowly avoiding Naruto's follow-up attack. The crowd watching the sparring match gasped in amazement at Homura's acrobatic display.

Undeterred, Naruto pressed on, determined to make Homura take him seriously. He launched a series of fast and powerful strikes, trying to find a weakness in Homura's defense. But Homura seemed almost bored, blocking Naruto's attacks with minimal effort.

Naruto decided to try a different approach. Instead of attacking head-on, he feigned a strike towards Homura's chest and quickly changed direction, aiming for his side.

Homura: "(He's definitely creative...and doesn't know when to give in. )" thought Homura as he saw Naruto's ploy unfolding with not much of a reaction.

To Naruto's surprise, Homura saw through the feint and swiftly blocked the attack, leaving Naruto exposed. With lightning-fast reflexes, Homura seized the opportunity and performed a sweeping leg kick, knocking Naruto off his feet.

As Naruto hit the ground, he couldn't help but smile.

Naruto: "Fine then! I'll show you my ultimate technique that I beat Iruka sensei with!" Declared Naruto.

Homura: “?(What is talking about?)“ Homura couldn’t help himself but let out a confused look at Naruto’s claims, there was no way Naruto could beat a chunin as he is now, so it was just utter nonsense.

To not only Homura’s confusion but the rest of the class as well, only Umino Iruka seemed to have understood Naruto’s declaration.

With a pained look on his face and inner turmoil, Iruka was not entirely sure of what would happen but knew it was something bad.

Iruka: “(D-don’t tell me.)”

But before he had time to fully process his inner fears, Naruto began molding his chakra as he performed a hand seal with both hands.

Naruto: “Here we go!“ Naruto declared, gathering his chakra for the transformation jutsu.

Homura's eyes widened in surprise. In a sparring session, using attack ninjutsu was against the rules but not other types of ninjutsu. So as Naruto only performed a simple hand seal so he had no idea exactly what he was about to do, and he wasn't prepared for this turn of events. After all Naruto was not exactly the greatest at performing ninjutsu, he lacked finesse. Which was mostly what most of the basics ninjutsu they learned required, and not a high chakra amount. But as the smoke from the transformation filled the air, he couldn't help but be intrigued by what Naruto had in store.

Homura: “(Smoke? Transformation jutsu? He’s always being abnormally good at transforming himself, I guess a demon fox is a demon fox after all.)“ thought Homura as he blocked the sudden wind burst created by Naruto’s jutsu.

In Eastern mythology of his past life, demon foxes were often creatures that impersonated others to usually carry out a scheme or a nefarious plot, in fact that was more or less how foxes were seen over in this world as well; though it seemed that those said magical transformation abilities to carry over to Naruto as well.

As he was an avatar for a powerful demonic fox.

However, this was not what Homura had in mind, but the time Naruto in the anime transformed himself alongside Gamabunta, the boss of the toads of Mount Miyaboku, into the nine tails.

Although in the manga it was just a not so normal one-tailed giant fox in his former world, Homura couldn’t help but wonder what it would be this time around in this world.

He realized that he could use that battle to see if this world was closer to the anime or manga.

It was unexpected, but he had now unknowingly found something that could give him a clear answer as to how to proceed.

So, as the smoke cleared, and the figure of a blonde girl appeared before Homura, completely naked except for the smoke that covered her private parts. It became clear that Naruto had transformed into a rather inappropriate form, and the other students looked on in shock and disbelief that it was something that he would do.

Homura: “What the?“ A surprised Homura couldn’t help but let out words of confusion.

The other students in the sparring area looked at Iruka-sensei with questioning glances, wondering if it was true that Naruto defeated him in that form.

Iruka quickly denied it, trying to regain his composure, and trying to hide his nosebleed with his right hand. "N-No, that's not what happened! Let's focus on the match, everyone! (Naruto…)"

As the smoke was about to completely clear up, and revealing the figure of a blonde, naked girl with strategically placed smoke covering her private parts. Homura was baffled by Naruto's actions.

Homura: "*Sigh* You've got to be kidding me, Naruto." Homura sighed, exasperated by his friend's antics.

He would have facepalmed, but he was now in a fight, but although he was disappointed he could admit that it wasn't a totally useless strategy  since he himself almost lost any will to continue fighting.

Though, soon enough Naruto struck a rather risky pose, seemingly feeling confident in his disguise.

Naruto: "How do you like me now, little boy? This Onee-san will send you to heaven." Naruto boasted, emphasizing the curves of his transformed body.

Homura:"…"

But Homura remained silent and did not move at all.

Frankly he didn't really understand what Naruto was planning, he was after all wide open and wouldn't be able to put much of a fight in a form that he wasn't used to.

Naruto:” Speechless, huh? I guess I will have to-Guargh!!!”

As Naruto closed one eye to wink at Homura and blow a kiss his way, he was surprised to suddenly feel like he had been struck by something at full speed.

Homura used the opening that Naruto created by closing one eye and dashed at him with all he got.

As Naruto attempted to blow a kiss in a teasing manner, Homura had already leaped out of harm's way from that kiss Naruto blew. In one fluid motion, he delivered a double front kick to Naruto's transformed face, sending him flying backward.

The force of the kick caused the transformation jutsu to unravel, and Naruto reverted to his original form. He landed with a thud, a bit dazed from the impact.

Homura, however, was unimpressed. His focus was elsewhere, and he had no interest in Naruto's antics. He had seen Naruto use this technique before in his simulation fights, and it held no surprises for him.

He couldn’t help but think that those simulations were more accurate than he gave them credit.

Naruto was left lying on the ground, dazed and confused. He couldn't believe he had been defeated so quickly.

Naruto: "Ouch! That was a dirty move!" Naruto groaned, rubbing his sore face.

Iruka: “Winner, Homura.“

As Iruka declared Homura the winner, Naruto couldn't believe it. He protested loudly, "Hey, that's not fair! He didn't even take my technique seriously!"

Iruka sighed, trying to reason with Naruto.

Iruka: "Naruto, in a sparring match, the goal is to outmaneuver your opponent. Homura did just that."

Naruto's frustration was evident as he crossed his arms and glared at Homura. "You're just pretending not to be affected by my technique! You're trying to act all cool!" Naruto declared at a seemingly unfazed Homura.

Homura, who had already started walking away from the training field, heard Naruto's words and as he passed by him, he couldn't help but sigh and soon delivered a word that was stuck inside his throat for a while now.

Homura: ”Moron.”

Naruto having heard what Homura had whispered couldn’t help but react.

Naruto: “What did you say?!”

But Homura continued simply walking away.

Naruto: “Grrr! You think you're so cool, don't you? You’re just pretending! I know it! My master technique always works! Hmph!“

Homura finally turned to face Naruto, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Homura: “Always work? May be on others but not me.“

Naruto: “Huh? And how is that?“

Homura: “ Well, for one. I am not into blondes, they remind me of a certain blond idiot that likes to eat ramen all the time; that’s why.“

Naruto hearing Homura’s response was slightly confused.

Naruto: “Ramen?…!!! Why you-!“

Naruto's face turned even redder, a mixture of anger and embarrassment consuming him. He hated being mocked, especially by someone he considered a rival.

Before Naruto could attack once again, Umino Iruka had already grabbed and held Naruto in his arms.

Iruka quickly stepped in, trying to defuse the situation before it escalated further.

Iruka: “Alright you two, let’s calm down and do the sign of reconciliation already. There are others that need to be accessed too.“

Naruto and Homura looked at each other and were exactly willing to do as much.

Iruka: “If you don’t I am sure you could both learn about cooperation, after class.“

Iruka said with a smile on his face but that smile was far from the kind smile he would usually show to others, but the kind of smile that he flashed when he was about to lose patience.

So reluctantly the 2 boys sighed and had no choice but to obey their sensei.

………………

………..

…

After the sparring session, the students returned to their usual classes, slightly fatigued but eager to continue their training. The academy's hallways buzzed with whispers and excited chatter as the day went on. Homura's mind, however, was still preoccupied with the sparring session and the encounter with Mizuki earlier in the month.

Since then, it seems that nothing happened.

He had seen Mizuki several times and even had classes with the new teacher, but nothing seemed out of the norm.

In fact, he was way more lax than Umino Iruka, his current homeroom teacher.

Which was far more his speed, sadly he couldn’t let his guard down.

So he kept up appearances and always had an eye open, trying to figure out what was Mizuki planning.

Homura at first thought of tailing Mizuki, to see if he was truly already Orochimaru’s spy but that was a rather stupid idea so he gave up.

Mizuki seemed to have already been on probation or under investigation before becoming a teacher at the academy.

So he wouldn’t be doing anything suspicious for quite a while until his case was forgotten by most.

As the final bell rang, signaling the end of classes, students anxiously waited to receive their report cards. Homura calmly made his way to the front of the class, where Iruka stood with a pile of sealed envelopes, each containing the students' academic evaluations.

After he received his report card, Homura quickly skimmed through the grades, acknowledging his strong areas while trying to brush aside the less-than-ideal ones. His academic performance had always been a strong suit, and he took great pride in maintaining high standards. However, as he reached the section on cooperation, he couldn't help but feel a sense of dissatisfaction.

Though Homura failed to realize that his grades did slightly increase, but since it wasn't perfect or close to perfect, he simply ignored it altogether.

Homura:"Cooperation... I never really liked working in teams," he mumbled to himself. "I prefer to handle things on my own."

His mind flashed back to the sparring session with Naruto earlier. Homura had been dismissive and disinterested, not truly engaging in the fight. Working with others didn't interest him, and he believed it would only slow him down.

He sighed to himself, feeling a mix of frustration and indifference towards those grades.

Homura: " Lacks cooperation and social skills… who needs them anyway?" he thought to himself, as he read the words written on the report card, brushing off the importance of those aspects. "I'm here to become stronger and protect those I care about, not to make friends or work well with others."

In Homura’s mind the other kids didn’t work anywhere hard enough and were not being serious so he saw them as dead weight.

Being a shinobi was all he could realistically strive for in this world, and he was not bad at it. So for the other kids to not do all that they could to ensure that they would succeed, was a clear lack of conscience on their part.

Since Homura had no direct family he knew enough about loss, but most of the children in his class still had parents and family members. They couldn’t truly understand reality was, except for one of them.

The only one who put his all in getting stronger was Uchiha Sasuke, he was a genius but he didn’t get to his head completely.

He would always train until he was almost physically exhausted.

So he grudgingly had to respect the young Uchiha, he was the only one who could give him a fight.

Though he could never go all out, but he also hated that Sasuke would use him as a stepping stone to get stronger, and was aiming at defeating someone else.

Homura was a prideful individual and hated that about Sasuke, and those feelings only grew bigger as the years passed.

Homura: “*sigh* Whatever, there’s still quite a while before graduation.“ he thought.

Ignoring the blemishes on his report card, Homura focused on the areas where he excelled. His academic and combat skills were top-notch, and he took pride in his abilities.

But deep down, there was a part of him that couldn't help but wonder if he was missing out on something important. He saw how his classmates, especially Naruto, Shikamaru, and Choji, formed bonds and supported each other. They were becoming better as a team, and he couldn't help but feel a sense of envy.

As the commotion continued among his classmates over their report cards, Homura tried to tune out the noise and focus on his own thoughts. He couldn't help but notice Naruto's reaction to his grades, and didn’t really think much of it.

Although Naruto does try to apply himself, he also likes to play around a lot.

He was still quite childish after all.

Though he wasn’t a total prankster like he once was, he still pulled a few pranks from time to time and wasted his time with things Homura considered to be stupid nonsense.

Just a few nights ago as he was done working at the clinic he saw Naruto spying on one of his classmates alongside Choji and

Naruto's face turned red with embarrassment and frustration as he stared at his report card.

Naruto: "Why do I always mess up?!" he exclaimed, his voice filled with disappointment.

Choji and Shikamaru exchanged amused glances, knowing how competitive Naruto could be.

Shikamaru: "Well, at least your taijutsu grade isn't that bad," Shikamaru remarked lazily.

Choji: "Yeah, for Naruto, it's actually quite good," Choji added with a grin.

Naruto scowled at them.

Naruto: "That's not the point! I want to be the best in everything! How am I supposed to beat Sasuke, Kiba, and Homura!" he declared, clenching his fists.

Shikamaru: “*Sigh* Well, whatever. See ya!“

Shikamaru said to Naruto as he was about to leave.

Naruto: “Wait! You leaving already?!“

Shikamaru: “My dad said that I had to go home early to train.“

Naruto: “What? So it’s just me and Choji?“ Exclaimed Naruto.

Choji: “Actually Naruto I have to leave too, my mom wants to go home early today.“

Hearing Choji’s revelation, Naruto was seemingly distressed for a short moment, but soon he regained his composure.

Naruto: “Y-yeah, I see. No problem. I have other things to do as well.“ He said with a grin.

As they walked away, Naruto watched them go with a mix of envy and sadness.

Homura, observing from a distance, couldn't help but find the whole situation weird. He had never been one to prioritize friendships, so he found it interesting to see how Naruto struggled with the dynamics of his social circle.

There was a time in the past, that he would go cheer up Naruto as soon as he felt sad because of his own personal interests, but now there was truly no need. And these feelings of loneliness were part of Naruto’s backstory.

Besides, he just had to spar against Naruto, so today didn’t seem like the best day for him to cheer up Naruto. Also, he was simply still inside the classroom, because he had time to kill before going to help out at the clinic until late at night, since the weekend was just a few hours away.

Naruto: “*Sigh*“

As Naruto sat in his seat once again, it was easy to tell that the boy was lonely, which left Homura wondering what kind of relationship or how close the 3 boys were.

Homura: "Are they truly friends, or are they just sticking together out of convenience?" Homura mused silently. "It's not like I care enough to find out."

He had observed the dynamic between Shikamaru, Choji, and Naruto for a while, and it puzzled him. They seemed to spend a lot of time together, and Naruto often joined in their activities. But there was a disconnect, an unspoken distance that Homura sensed.

He himself had never been interested in forming close friendships. As a child, he had always been more focused on his studies and training. While he hung around with some of his classmates, he kept them at arm's length, never allowing himself to get too attached.

As Naruto's gaze met his, soon the boy found himself looking away, which left Homura rather puzzled. Naruto was not the shy type, but more of the loud type of guy, that didn’t shy away from anything. But before he could ponder the implication another voice entered his radius.

Ino Yamanaka and two other girls were chatting, and it seemed like Ino was upset about her recent grades.

Ino had seemingly felt quite down for a while as of late, not that Homura noticed, he considered Ino to be worthless and hardly a threat to him; so he paid her no mind.

She was not as smart as Sakura or good at chakra control, so ultimately his focus always lay more towards Sakura as someone he had to try to be ahead in the class rankings. Though Ino being part of the Yamanaka clan did leave him interested in her.

But he doubted the current Ino knew much of their secret techniques at this point. In the first half of the original manga, she only knew a single jutsu from her clan. So Homura didn’t think that she ever truly applied herself, which made him irritated thinking that someone who had everything given to them at birth would squander their own potential.

Ino: "…."

Girl 1: "Don't worry, Ino. It happens to all of us sometimes. You'll do better next time."

Girl 2: "Yeah, just take a deep breath and focus on improving. You've got this!"

Ino sighed, still looking downcast. Naruto, who had been eavesdropping on their conversation, seemed intrigued. But instead of stepping in to cheer Ino up, something that Homura thought the cheery Naruto he knew would normally do like those manga protagonists he somewhat remembered; instead Naruto chose to turn away and mutter to himself.

Naruto: "What's with them anyway? Who cares about their grades? T-That’s right, my grades don’t reflect how truly talented I am." Naruto then proceed to nod 2 times, as if he was agreeing to his own claim.

Homura couldn't help but find it amusing that Naruto, who was never one to back down from a challenge, was now seemingly avoiding a situation that required his usual enthusiasm.

Ino: "I'm fine," she replied, trying to sound convincing.

Girl 1: "We just wanted to cheer her up, you know?"

Girl 2: (Taken aback) "Yeah, Ino cheer up..."

Seeing something that he considered to be a pathetic display of dependency between brats that he loathe, Homura couldn’t help himself by scoffing at their ridiculous issues.

Homura (muttering to himself): "Hmph! If someone (Ino) spent their time applying themselves, instead of trying to confess and offering flowers to a certain someone at night in the middle of the street, they would probably do better and stop their pity party."

Homura's eyes widen as he realizes his mistake. He had said the last part out loud instead of keeping it inside his head. He sees Ino not too far away, and he can’t make out her current expression since he could only see her back…but it would not be surprising if she was angry.

Though Homura told himself that she wouldn’t dare to do anything against him since he was so much stronger than her and faster, so he feigned composure.

But he wasn’t the only one who was feigning composure as of the recent events.

Naruto who was a few seats away looked quite alarmed, he was present when the event that Homura referenced happened.

And the look that Ino gave him as he assisted the whole affair was scary.

He could not believe that Homura said what he said out loud for all to hear even if he just said with his normal composed voice.

Naruto (seating away from Homura, thinking to himself): "Whoa, did Homura just say that out loud? He's got some nerve, especially with Ino right there! But man, I hope Ino doesn't hear him... She can be pretty scary when she's mad.

As Naruto observes the situation, he contemplates whether he should intervene or not. He knows that Ino can be quite assertive, and he doesn't want to be caught in the crossfire if she confronts Homura.

Naruto (still whispering, trying to stay unnoticed): "Maybe I should go over there and try to diffuse the situation. But what if Ino turns her anger on me? Maybe I should just keep my distance and let them sort it out... Yeah, that might be for the best."

Despite his inner turmoil, Naruto decides to stay out of it for now and hopes that Ino and Homura can work things out themselves.

Saya: “Homura, apologize to Ino-chan!“ Saya who was next to Homura immediately yelled at him.

Homura: “Why should I apologize? It’s the tru…th…“Before he could finish his sentence, the last person he wanted to talk to at this moment was right next to him.

A previously seated Ino, was now right next to him. He was distracted by Saya enough that he didn’t realize when that happened. But Homura was nothing if not stubborn and confident in his abilities. In other words, why should he be sacred, of someone much weaker than himself?

But the silent Ino next to him, whom he could not even see the visage was making him feel uncomfortable, he never felt so unsettled so he tried his best to mask it and remained seemingly unbothered by it all.

Ino: “…You…”

Although Ino starts talking next to him, Homura simply ignored her, refusing to even meet her line of sight until suddenly Ino raised her left hand and ultimately slaps Homura.

*Slap*

The slap left everyone that was still inside the classroom speechless.

They had no idea how it would end.

Homura’s reputation was far from the friendliest of all their classmates, he was usually quite passive but he could easily get physical when he was pushed.

So no one knew how things would turn out.

But to everyone’s surprise, Homura did nothing at all.

Seemingly unfazed and still refused to meet Ino’s line of sight.

But the latter still had misgivings she wanted to voice out, perhaps Homura became the perfect tool for that.

Ino (angry, raising her voice): "…You think you can just say whatever you want and hurt others with your words, just because you’re a bit stronger and smarter than others?….”

Truth be told, Homura, was slightly shocked for a moment but quickly regains his composure. He remains silent, refusing to meet Ino's gaze.

Ino: “ Who do you think you are, acting all superior and belittling people? Answer me!”

Homura still doesn't respond, and his lack of reaction only fuels Ino's anger.

Ino: “Kuh…Jerk.“

As Ino storms out of the classroom, the rest of the students watch the scene in shock. Homura remains silent and stoic, seemingly unaffected by the confrontation. But deep down, he can't deny that Ino's words have struck a chord. He may not show it, but her words have left a mark on him.

Not that he hasn’t been slapped in the face prior or called a jerk, but he simply didn’t think he could be made to feel that way by someone he barely knew.

Still, he couldn’t believe that she said that he was only a bit smarter and stronger than his other classmates. He never even paid attention to most of them whatsoever, if he had to think about them or evaluate them in any way, most of them would be slightly better than filth in his eyes.

That might as well not exist.

However, he still chose to disregard her misgivings at the end of the day, since she was ultimately a nobody that did not matter to his plans.

Saya's pinch on his cheek does nothing to elicit a reaction from Homura. He maintains his stoic expression, seemingly unaffected by her touch or her words.

Saya's pinch on his cheek does nothing to elicit a reaction from Homura. He maintains his stoic expression, seemingly unaffected by her touch or her words.

Saya (pinching Homura's cheek): "…Homura. You need to apologize to Ino. What you said was hurtful, and you know it."

Homura remains stoic, not showing any signs of remorse.

Homura: “….“

Saya (pinching Homura's cheek harder than before): “Apologizing to girls is quite difficult, You should do the same as when you apologize to me and buy those plushies you give me.“

Homura’s whose right cheek was almost at breaking point had no other choice but to start talking or suffer more drastic consequences.

Homura: ”(I don’t buy those and she forces me to give them to her…)…No.”

Homura said feigning composure.

Saya: “If you apologize to her I am sure you could make Ino-chan your friend too.“

Homura: "I don’t need friends and I don't owe her an apology," Homura states flatly, his voice devoid of any emotion. "Everything I said was true. If she is going to cry about her performance in public, she should focus on her training instead of wasting time on trivial matters."

Saya: "*Sigh* This big sister is always troubled by her cheeky little brother it seems…Listen Homura, I know you don't like showing emotions, but you can't just go around saying hurtful things to people," she says firmly.

Homura: *grumble*

Saya:”…If you don’t I won’t help you by cooking for you.”

Homura: “You can’t cook. You would starve without me.“

The slightly mad Saya who was putting her big sister (nice face) for others to see became visibly flustered.

That’s right, Saya is a terrible cook. She was only allowed to help at the orphanage’s kitchen and never cook herself.

Partially because she was slightly too young at the time even for the people in this world, but it is not unheard of for young children learning to cook at 5 years old.

She was often relegated to go buy groceries with Homura, another person who was also quite useless at the orphanage.

It was during one of those expeditions that Homura first became aware of Naruto’s existence.

Regardless, any excuse to get her out from helping in the kitchen was something the sisters at the orphanage were very meticulous about.

They didn’t have it in them to break her heart or waste money.

She once poisoned Homura so badly that he ended up unconscious for 3 days straight at the hospital. When she cooks for Homura it is not because he wants to eat her cooking, but he uses it for several other utilities.

Which made the latter pissed and finally revealed to her that long-kept secret.

And to prove it, he left one of her dishes in the wild no animal that passed by ate it, they would smell it and run away in fear or pass out from it.

So now that they were students, she had to cook for herself and although she seems to be able to stomach her own cooking somehow, she can’t still help herself from cremating most of her home cooked meals.

In fact, Homura often cooks for her.

Saya: ”T-then I won’t buy groceries for you!” She said slightly flustered.

Homura: “Tch!“

Sharing his grocery money with Saya is one thing that allows Homura a lot of money and time if she were to do this, Homura’s life would greatly change, for the worst.

So Saya finally somehow got Homura where it actually was vulnerable.

His lack of money.

…………..

…….

…

After the scene that happened in the classroom, it didn’t take long for students to leave one after the other, leaving Homura by himself. And when it was time to go most of the academy was rather quiet and empty. Though a few students stayed behind for extra classes as always and the same was true for several of the teachers working there.

Regardless, it didn’t take long after the classroom was completely empty for him to leave as well.

Homura walked out of the classroom and headed toward the clinic as he usually did after school. The doctor greeted him warmly, but as the busy day of helping at the clinic concluded, he was suddenly stopped. It was Doctor Ueno who saw Homura about to leave, usually, he says goodbye only to the receptionist before leaving, since it wasn’t unusual for the doctor to be busy with a patient or something important.

The doctor, who seemed to trust and rely on Homura's skills, approached him with a small favor.

Doctor: " Ah! Homura, just the person I wanted to see; could you do me a little favor?"

Though he said it was a small matter, Homura himself didn’t think he had much of a choice. It always starts with a small favor until it inevitably becomes his job. That’s why he now wastes time in class before leaving for the clinic.

He still had extra classes to attend on some days, but he didn’t want the doctor to find out which days he had more free time, especially since he has been working for almost two months at the clinic and he hasn’t been taught anything. So whenever he has free time, he just reads whatever he can but he has already read most of the things he could read without asking direct permission from the doctor. If things do not get better he was not going to do this job next year.

Since there was no pay and he had to get stronger before becoming a genin. Wasting time was not something he could afford, since he only found out recently his sharingan had evolved and he wanted to practice genjutsu within the next 2 months since he thought by then things would have cooled down.

Though as of now working at the clinic was the perfect cover, to let anyone keeping an eye on him that he was an upstanding young citizen.

Which he was in actuality far from it.

Homura: “Yes! What is it sensei?“ Homura said it while trying very hard to hide his annoyance with the doctor’s usual small favors.

Doctor: "I need you to pick up some supplies for the clinic. Here's a list of the herbs and flowers we're running low on."

Homura took the small piece of paper and glanced over the list.

Homura: "These are mostly herbs and plants," he observed. " Are these all? (I know quite a bit about plants from granny Akane's teachings…but some of those… you cannot find them in the land of fire, because they can’t simply grow here…or at least in areas I don’t know about, but since I am pretty much a walking encyclopedia it can’t be easy.)" thought Homura as a gathering of small windows inside his mind detailing a few of the plants that appeared inside his mind as soon as the name of a few of those plants appeared.”

Unaware of Homura’s inner thoughts, the doctor nonetheless nodded to Homura’s inquery.

Doctor: "That's right. We need to restock a few items to prepare for the coming week. Can I count on you to get them for us?"

Homura: "Of course," Homura replied, trying to sound nonchalant. "Where should I go to get these supplies?"

Doctor: "You'll be heading to Yamanaka Flowers tomorrow morning, before coming here. Just go inside and ask to speak to Yamaka Inoichi or his wife. They have what we need, and they're quite reliable."

The mention of the shop's name caught Homura off guard, and he couldn't hide the surprise in his voice.

Homura: "Yamanaka Flowers?… Are you sure?"

Doctor: "Yes, they have what we need, and they've always been our go-to for these supplies."

Hearing that they were always the clinic’s “go-to“ for anything caused Homura’s composure to shatter a little, this would mean that it wasn’t a one-time incident.

It was as if the gods themselves had a weird sense of humor, how could so many things go wrong at the same time? If the good doctor learns that…Homura is actually a jerk and had emotionally hurt the daughter of one of his business partners…how bad would things go for him?

Homura: “I-I see. Is that so? "

Trying to appear nonchalant, Homura nodded, but inside, his mind was racing. Yamanaka Flowers was Ino's family's flower shop. The name brought back memories of the confrontation with Ino earlier that day.

Taking a deep breath, Homura reminded himself that this errand had nothing to do with his encounter with Ino. It was just a simple task to help the clinic restock. He decided to focus on the task at hand and try to put his emotions aside.

After all, he didn’t beat the cr*p out of Ino or beat her up like some of the kids who tried to jump him in the past. He has more knowledge on how to fight now, there was no need to beat the opponent until they are down.

Homura: "Alright, I'll pick up the order from Yamanaka Flowers. Consider it done."

The doctor nodded, seemingly satisfied with Homura's response. As Homura left the clinic, he couldn't shake the feeling that this errand might not be as straightforward as he hoped.

Homura: “(A gift, huh?)“

Homura remembered the words of a supposedly nice and wise older sister.

Saya said that girls will forgive anyone as long as they receive gifts, he didn’t know if that was true or if Saya was an idiot. But it did come to mind that it would be a good excuse, but Homura was broke, and new money wouldn’t come up until next week.

He wasted all his money buying another stupid chakra paper like every month since he first bought one, he didn’t know what to do.

Homura: “If I show up as Sasuke will that…work? No, that’s a stupid idea.“

 

 

chapter end.

 

Notice

Hey guys. If you read this far I want to thank you. This means you've kept up with this little series all this time, it has been a lot of work, though I guess a part of it is worth it, since I have now learned so much from it. Though a small sad news. I've decided that this platform will no longer be my main platform for updates. Those who may have known this story prior my update here. May know that I originally uploaded on webnovel. The site had its problems but when I left, it was at its worse. But this site is really not that much better there are errors all the time, so many things have happened. That I don't want to explain. Regardless, this is pretty much it. I don't know if I will continue update or even if I do, that I will do it consistently here since I think it will be a bother having to upload the same things over several websites. It is too much work so I will update whenever I can. I will keep updating there at not my current pace because I have so many things to do that pile up each year and have my own projects. 

Thanks you, for reading this far and I hope perhaps to see some of you guys over there.