Naruto: Boruto Returns to Shippuden

Chapter 12 Numbness

After Boruto promised Naruto that he would teach him how to use the Rasengan today, he slowly closed his eyes, his heavy eyelids concealing his tired eyes.

Before long, soft snoring came from his mouth, showing how tired he was from being tormented by Naruto the night before.

Naruto didn't urge Boruto any further. After all, he bore undeniable responsibility for Boruto's current state, so he decided to let him rest here.

However, Naruto couldn't just wait there for Boruto to wake up, because Sasuke would definitely be up and training by now, and he couldn't stand still either.

Remember, time waits for no one! Every minute and every second is precious. If you don't make the most of it, you'll fall behind others or even be eliminated by the world.

Naruto yanked the curtains open and quickly closed the window. Then, he dashed out of the house like a gust of wind and ran towards their usual training ground to meet up with Sakura and Sasuke.

When Naruto arrived at the training location, he saw Sakura already waiting for him there, while Sasuke had already started practicing throwing shurikens.

Sakura frowned slightly as she looked at Naruto, who was arriving late, and a hint of displeasure flashed in her eyes. She couldn't help but say, "Naruto, really, why are you only arriving now? Have you picked up Kakashi-sensei's bad habit of being late?"

"Haha, I'm so sorry, Sakura! Something unexpected happened today, which made me late. I'm really sorry to have kept you waiting!" Naruto scratched his head and laughed.

Naruto then asked, "Aren't there any missions today?"

Sakura shook her head helplessly and said, "Where are we going to find so many lost cat and dog missions to do?"

"I'm tired of missions that are always about finding cats or dogs, and the pay is low. The slightly higher-level missions are never assigned to us genin who have just graduated from the ninja academy for less than a year."

Although Sakura kept complaining about these repetitive and boring tasks, she was perfectly aware of her current situation and choices.

Compared to those seemingly simple and easy tasks that actually harbor countless dangers and are full of variables, such as "playing dumb to catch a tiger," she would rather deal with relatively trivial matters like finding lost pets.

That mission in the Land of Waves had put their squad in an extremely dangerous situation, and they almost suffered total annihilation!

Therefore, she prefers those ordinary but relatively safe tasks, at least ensuring everyone's safety.

“Oh, right…” Naruto touched his chin, a look of sudden realization on his face.

"Huh? I don't see Boruto." Sakura realized that Boruto, who was very close to Naruto, wasn't there.

Naruto explained, "Oh, Boruto! That kid's still fast asleep in bed, so I came over by myself."

"Really?" Sakura looked at Naruto suspiciously, her eyes full of doubt. "If you were the one who sleeps in late, I could believe it to some extent, but Boruto doesn't seem like the type to sleep in late. Could it be that you were snoring too loudly last night, keeping Boruto awake all night?"

Naruto's face showed a hint of awkwardness, and he chuckled awkwardly, changing the subject: "Haha, since there are no new missions today, I have to make good use of this opportunity to strengthen my training and ensure that I can perform at my best when I carry out the next mission."

......

Before they knew it, it was noon, and Boruto finally arrived at the practice field.

Because Naruto had taken him on a brief tour of Konoha Village in this era the night before, Boruto knew where they gathered for training.

When Boruto arrived at the training location, he saw Naruto and Sasuke competing again, neither willing to concede to the other.

The atmosphere between the two was tense, as if a battle was about to erupt, and the air seemed to smell of gunpowder.

However, this contest was not a test of strength, but rather a test of accuracy in throwing darts.

Sasuke demonstrated his strengths in this match, throwing darts like precision-guided arrows, each one hitting the bullseye with perfect accuracy.

In contrast, although Naruto tried his best, he was ultimately unable to match Sasuke's precision, and Sasuke defeated Naruto with an overwhelming advantage.

Even though he was defeated by Sasuke's shuriken skills, Naruto was still unconvinced and insisted that he had not performed well today and that he had only "narrowly lost" to Sasuke because he was not in good condition.

Instead of offering herself any consolation after her defeat, Sakura kept praising Sasuke's incredible abilities with starry eyes.

Naruto stood there, a hint of disappointment on his face. He looked at Sakura, his voice carrying a weak protest: "Sakura, why are you like this..." He seemed listless, like a defeated rooster, having lost his usual vitality.

Boruto suddenly slapped his forehead, feeling helpless. He really couldn't bear to watch anymore and shouted in his heart: "Mom! Where are you? Come and save this hopeless idiot dad!"

Boruto made up his mind that he couldn't stand idly by and had to take action to put his father's twisted emotions back on track.

At that moment, Naruto saw Boruto shaking his head and rubbing his forehead. Overjoyed, he immediately regained his spirits and waved to Boruto, saying, "Hey! Boruto! We're here."

Upon hearing Naruto's shout, Sasuke and Sakura simultaneously turned their gazes toward Boruto's location.

They saw Boruto walking in their direction.

"Boruto, you didn't actually sleep right until now like Naruto said, did you?" Sakura's tone clearly showed her distrust of Naruto.

Boruto's eyes darted around, quickly devising a plan to embellish his story about yesterday's events for Sakura: "Oh, Sakura, you don't know, last night Naruto not only dreamt... um... um..."

The first step to changing your dad is to address the root cause of the problem.

Boruto was about to continue explaining his plan, but before he could finish speaking, Naruto quickly covered his mouth, preventing him from saying anything more.

After all, he had just lost face in front of Sakura, and in order to protect his image, how could he let Boruto say something detrimental to him?

Naruto suddenly burst into laughter, trying to cover up his embarrassment with his laughter, and suggested, "Hahaha, let's go, Boruto, let's go for special training." As he spoke, Naruto was about to drag Boruto away, he didn't want the person he liked to know about his embarrassing moment.

When Sasuke heard that Boruto and Naruto planned to train together, he immediately understood Naruto's intentions.

He knew that Naruto had always wanted to improve his strength, so Naruto must have asked Boruto to teach him some powerful moves last night.

Sasuke recalled his time in the Land of Waves, when Naruto had just started tree-climbing training and was not as good as him.

He was firmly ahead of Naruto, but after Naruto asked Boruto and Sakura how to better use chakra techniques, Naruto gradually began to catch up.

Although Sasuke longed to join Boruto and Naruto's special training to further improve his strength, his cold and proud personality made it difficult for him to ask, so he chose to remain silent.

Sasuke stood there, watching Naruto and Boruto's figures gradually disappear into the distance, his heart filled with conflict. Should he secretly follow them to see what kind of training they were doing?

If he went with Naruto, Naruto would inevitably start mocking him again, but if he didn't go, he was afraid that Naruto would surpass him.

After a struggle within himself, Sasuke suddenly felt a strong determination surge within him, and his thoughts were drawn back to that tragic night—the night of the massacre of his clan, and the night when Itachi Uchiha took the lives of his parents.

He had always longed for revenge, for washing away the shame of the Uchiha clan. Now that he had the opportunity to improve his strength, he should have used any means necessary to become stronger. However, he hesitated here because of his insignificant pride.

Only when I become stronger than that man can I avenge my parents and my Uchiha clan.

Sasuke had made up his mind. He no longer hesitated and walked firmly toward Naruto and Boruto, intending to observe what techniques they were preparing for their special training and see if he could learn from them.

Naruto noticed Sasuke following behind and teased, "Hey, isn't this Sasuke? Why are you sneaking around following us? Are you planning to steal our skills?"

"Hmph! Stupid Naruto, it just so happens that I'm going this way too. Besides, it's none of your business what I do," Sasuke said with an arrogant expression.

Naruto glared at Sasuke, gritting his teeth, and said, "Sasuke! You..."

At this moment, Sakura also ran over and chimed in for Sasuke, saying, "That's right, Naruto. We're all on the same team. It's really not fair of you to try and eat it all by yourself."

Naruto was speechless for a moment because of Sakura's bluntness, and he couldn't refute her.

"Alright, alright, stop arguing and listen to me." Boruto, seeing that the atmosphere was getting tense, quickly stepped in to act as a peacemaker and prevent things from escalating further.

"Humph!"

Boruto suddenly felt a sense of unease. In the future, his father and master had such a good relationship, fighting side by side, facing difficulties together, and trusting each other completely.

Now it feels like the two of them are mortal enemies, always carrying a subtle hostility and always wearing a sour face.

"Hey everyone, I'm so sorry, I accidentally got lost on my journey through life today, so I'm a little late." Kakashi's figure suddenly appeared on a tree, greeting them with a smile.

Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke exchanged a glance, their faces all wearing expressions that said, "Go on, we're listening, but we definitely won't believe you."

They've become numb to Kakashi-sensei's daily lateness.

Kakashi saw their distrustful expressions and smiled slightly, then changed his tune, saying, "Well, actually I deliberately arrived a few hours late just to see if you had trained properly while I was away."

Kakashi's tone became serious, and he continued, "However, it seems that you are not very self-aware. It is probably because after the battle in the Land of Waves, you have become complacent and arrogant. Even your usual training is so lazy."

Kakashi used the tactic of the thief crying "stop thief!" to turn the tables on them.