Chapter 33 - The First Day of School
"Okay, I'll be teaching your class from now on."
Looking at the members of this class, Iruka felt a little flustered.
After all, look at who's here.
Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba, Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Choji...
They were all scions of powerful families, not to mention Naruto Uzumaki, who was specifically chosen by the Hokage.
Being a teacher to these children was no easy task.
It took Sarutobi's patient persuasion, along with promises of support and future promotions, before he finally agreed.
The seats were chosen by the participants themselves, emphasizing democracy — after all, many people already had their own circles.
Naruto sat in the middle of the fourth row, with Hinata on his left and Sasuke on his right.
Shikamaru and Choji sat in the middle of the fifth row, behind Naruto.
Sakura and Ino sat in the fourth row on the right, next to Sasuke.
It's worth mentioning that Hinata wore a high ponytail today we'll talk about the reason behind that later.
After quickly assigning seats, Iruka cleared his throat and began to speak.
"Classmates, we will be spending the next six years together, so let's start by introducing ourselves."
"You can talk about what you like and who you want to become in the future."
Hmm, a self-introduction? That's interesting.
Sasuke thought to himself.
"Yes, first up is... the boy in the front row."
A child dressed in ordinary clothes walked onto the stage.
"Hello everyone, I love animals fish, dogs, pigs, and cows."
Hmm, he seems to be a very friendly child.
"I want to become a veterinarian in the future, and take care of these animals every day."
He paused for a moment, then shyly revealed his future dream before running back to his seat.
...
Hey, is this really how you express your love for animals?! Are all kids these days this surprising?
Iruka suppressed his urge to complain and called on the next student.
"..."
After some time, it was finally Hinata's turn.
Hinata Hyuga.
Since many children had unusual dreams and interests, Iruka's enthusiasm had dimmed somewhat.
Hinata stood up from her chair.
"Naruto-kun, I'm going up now."
After gently saying goodbye to Naruto, Hinata made her way to the front.
"Go get 'em!"
Naruto gave her an encouraging thumbs up.
Hinata's ears turned a little red, but thanks to the changes in her strength over the past two years and her time spent with friends, her confidence had improved a great deal compared to before.
Hinata: I get shy just thinking about what I'm going to say next ⁄(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)⁄
She walked to the podium. The sunlight outside shone through the window onto Hinata's face, making her cheeks slightly flushed.
Her high ponytail swayed with youthful energy.
Iruka's previously somewhat deflated spirit quietly rekindled.
As expected of the young lady of the Hyuga clan. That composure is something else entirely.
"Hello everyone, I'm Hinata Hyuga.
What I love most is... my friends..."
"My dream for the future is to become someone my father is proud of, and... to witness Naruto become Hokage."
What a wonderful relationship with her friends.
Her dream is to make her father proud? As expected of the Hyuga clan's young lady she sets high standards for herself.
Wait!!!
Witness Naruto becoming Hokage?
Naruto? Uzumaki Naruto? That blond kid sitting next to her — is he also the one the Third Hokage asked me to look after?
Iruka hadn't been told that Naruto already had such a close relationship with the young lady of the Hyuga clan.
Add to that Uchiha Sasuke, who had been sitting right next to him during the opening ceremony tsk tsk.
Did the Third Hokage expect him to manage these relationships on top of everything else?
Iruka began to seriously reconsider the Third Hokage's intentions.
Is he being set up to take the blame when Naruto inevitably causes trouble?
Or is this some kind of punishment disguised as a promotion?
Hinata, meanwhile, had no attention to spare for Iruka's internal crisis.
Her face was already turning red. Even though she had mentally prepared herself, the shyness still hit hard.
"Hehehe, that's a wonderful dream... I wish everyone's dreams come true."
Iruka clapped his hands stiffly, then moved on.
"Uchiha... Sasuke."
Sasuke strode forward with his usual air of quiet pride.
He spoke coolly.
"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I love my older brother and my friends.
My dream is to become like my brother —and to become Naruto's older brother."
Iruka was already going numb.
He had known Sasuke's introduction would somehow circle back to Naruto.
"Yes, very good. I wish you success."
After years of teaching, Iruka had developed a solid understanding of Uchiha children.
The pride, the posturing it was all very standard.
Not a big problem.
"Next up, Uzumaki... Naruto."
Yoho! Finally my turn!
Naruto got up from his seat, squeezed past Sasuke, and walked up to the podium.
The students in the audience were quite curious after all, both the Uchiha and Hyuga clans had been mentioning Naruto's name.
But upon actually seeing him, many of the children from civilian families went pale.
"Hey, Ino," Sakura whispered, "that's the Nine-Tailed Fox my parents were talking about."
Naruto sensed a wave of hostility washing toward him but underneath it, he felt something closer to fear from the other children than hatred.
It doesn't matter. I'm used to it. They won't start anything, and I can't be bothered.
Instead of wasting energy on this, I'd rather be in the sealed space having a horse race with Sensei and Kurama.
"Hey, listen up everyone! My name is Naruto Uzumaki.
I'm Sasuke's older brother and Hinata's best friend.
My favorite things are my friends, foxes, and big trees. My dream is to become Hokage!"
Not far away, Shikamaru narrowed his eyes, looking quietly troubled.
Was Naruto really that close to people from both major clans?
Whatever. I'm still young. Let Dad worry about this.
"Yes, that's a wonderful dream. Your teacher believes you can do it."
When Iruka said that, he actually meant it at least somewhat.
After all, look at the people around Naruto. The Third Hokage backing him directly. Open friendships with the young masters of the Uchiha and Hyuga clans.
Whether Naruto would actually become Hokage depended on what path he chose going forward but the foundation was already remarkable.
"Waaaah, I'm so moved!"
Inside the sealed space, Hashirama pulled out his well-worn handkerchief and continued wiping away fresh tears.
Naruto's dream of becoming Hokage hadn't come from the Third Hokage's teachings alone.
A large part of it had grown from his admiration for his own teacher.
Seeing Naruto stand up there, ignore the fear and hostility in the room, and declare his dream without hesitation Hashirama couldn't hold back.
"Hey, is it really that serious?"
Kurama watched Hashirama speechlessly for a moment.
Fine. Let him cry.
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End of Chapter .