Naruto: Naruto's Uchiha girlfriend is too arrogant

Chapter 63 Plan

Soon, Naruto and Satsuki engaged in a taijutsu exchange that could be described as ninja-level. The two figures moved swiftly across the open ground, the muffled thuds of fists and feet colliding echoing from time to time. Their movements were so fast that it was dazzling, yet they always maintained a delicate balance, exchanging blows back and forth with equal force.

The exciting competition drew gasps and cheers from the students watching.

Of course, most of the cheers from the sidelines were directed at Satsuki. The boys in the class blushed and shouted "Go Satsuki-san!" at the top of their lungs, trying to attract her attention in this direct way, although Satsuki completely ignored them.

In reality, this seemingly evenly matched taijutsu battle revealed signs of Naruto's deliberate manipulation from the very beginning. With the taijutsu enhancements provided by the system, his status shifted from simply being a "hard-working genius" to a more nuanced and controlled performance.

It's more like "a hard-working wall hanging".

Although Naruto obtained his Flying Thunder God Technique through a system lottery, he gradually realized that he seemed to have inherited some of his father Minato Namikaze's reflexes. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to overpower the Raikage back then.

During their first sparring session, when Zuo Yue used the Substitution Jutsu, he clearly had the opportunity to interrupt her directly and disable her technique, but he deliberately slowed down his movements and chose to hold back.

Why deliberately control the pace and make this practice match a back-and-forth affair? The answer is actually quite simple—to take care of Satsuki's feelings.

Although the Uchiha clan is warlike and possesses an inherently proud and unyielding spirit, they dislike battles where they are overwhelmingly suppressed. If the gap in strength becomes too large, creating an insurmountable chasm for her, her proud nature might severely damage her.

What if? What if Satsuki starts to doubt himself because of this huge gap, feels that there is no room for improvement in Konoha, and Orochimaru takes advantage of the situation and runs away with him?

However, reason tells Naruto that this situation is highly unlikely to occur. Sasuke is sentimental and has a strong attachment to those around him. Moreover, he has already made up his mind to prevent the tragedy of the Uchiha clan's annihilation—as long as that event doesn't happen, Sasuke has no reason to defect.

Even so, Naruto still wanted to do things perfectly. Why? He couldn't quite explain it himself. Perhaps subconsciously he didn't want any accidents to happen, and he just wanted to secure Sasuke's presence by his side with one insurance policy after another, ensuring that nothing went wrong.

The sparring continued on the field, but Iruka, seeing this, finally called for a stop. "Alright, that's enough for this sparring session!" If it dragged on any longer, the other students wouldn't be able to train at all.

Ultimately, the contest ended in a draw. Upon hearing the result, both Naruto and Satsuki showed obvious dissatisfaction—of course, Naruto's expression was mostly feigned.

The two followed instructions and formed a reconciliation seal. Afterward, they walked back to the stands together, leaving the training ground bustling with activity again behind them.

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As all the practice sessions ended, the sun was already beginning to set. Iruka clapped his hands and announced that school was over. The children immediately cheered and packed up their things, and the noise surged toward the school gate like a tide.

Most of the children were quickly picked up by their waiting parents at the school gate. Some rushed into their parents' arms and snuggled up, while others excitedly talked about the funny things that happened at school. Laughter and cheerful voices drifted into the air as the children walked away.

Iruka stood there watching this scene, a faint sense of loneliness welling up inside him, tinged with an indescribable emptiness.

Just then, out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a figure at the school gate—Naruto was still standing there, his back to him, seemingly talking to Uchiha Satsuki beside him. Satsuki had his head slightly turned, and the two were very close, clearly engrossed in their conversation.

Was he chatting with a friend because no one was coming to pick him up? Iruka's heart skipped a beat. This child, like himself, probably came home to an empty house.

With that thought in mind, he walked towards the school gate, having already made up his mind—he would invite Naruto to have a bowl of Ichiraku Ramen, just like last time. At least, he could let the boy experience a bit more liveliness before going home.

As Iruka approached the two people with their backs to him, he could vaguely hear their conversation.

"Seriously, Iruka-sensei is worrying way too much. Without being able to use ninjutsu, we can't really enjoy the fight."

"That's right, he won't even let us use ninja tools. Doesn't he know that throwing techniques are the Uchiha's forte? Otherwise, you might not be my match."

"Huh? You've got quite the nerve. You should know that I've almost mastered the ninjutsu scrolls the Third Hokage gave me. I can even use the Water Dragon Bullet Technique, which is basically only used by Jonin, skillfully now."

"With your tortoise-like hand seal speed?"

"What's wrong, Erzhuzi? You're really not convinced, are you? How about we find a place and have a full-on contest? Let's see who's stronger!"

"Hmph, that's exactly what I was thinking too. Let's find a place then..."

As Iruka listened to their conversation, he felt a lump in his throat, almost unable to catch his breath—these two guys weren't listening to a word he said!

"Hey, koro!"

Iruka's voice suddenly exploded beside them, filled with suppressed anger. Naruto and Satsuki were startled and hurriedly turned around, their faces still showing surprise, only to meet Iruka's angry glare.

"I...Iruka-sensei?" Naruto shrank back, and Satsuki, unusually, also restrained his arrogance, his eyes darting away.

"You two big idiots! Didn't you listen to a single thing I said?!"

Iruka's voice suddenly rose, "I've already said, those ninjutsu techniques are too dangerous for your age! And you want to use real ninja tools? Do you want to become ninjas with wounds that can't heal? The meaning of being a ninja isn't about who has the most powerful ninjutsu or the sharpest ninja tools! It's about knowing how to control your power, about protecting those who are important to you, not about indulging in momentary pleasure! If something happens during sparring, how will you carry out missions in the future? Do you think a ninja's growth is based on this kind of reckless competition? It's utter nonsense!"

Iruka's nagging continued, seemingly without end. Perhaps he was indeed suited to be a teacher; his patience was unmatched by most.

However, Naruto suddenly interrupted Iruka. "Ugh, this is so annoying, I know... but..."

He gave Iruka a bright smile, "You can't become a powerful ninja by just playing house all the time. Goodbye, teacher."

After saying that, Naruto grabbed Satsuki's wrist and ran. Satsuki complied and didn't struggle. The two rushed towards the school gate.

"Hey! You two, stop right there!"

"No way! See you tomorrow, teacher!" Naruto shouted without turning his head, not stopping in his tracks. Iruka didn't see the "planned" expression on Naruto's face.

"You bastard! You little brat who got what he deserved!"

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(Thanks to the amazing verification from Giorno Giovanna's boss! Four updates tomorrow!)