Naruto's ninja student career begins.
In class, he met a few good friends: Shikamaru and Chōji.
At least during school, the classmates didn't call him names like "demon fox."
Naruto often played pranks and did silly things, which made him a target of laughter among his classmates.
He especially struggled with controlling his Chakra, and his attempts at ninjutsu often caused the class to burst into laughter.
His clumsy Clone Technique, the time he turned the Third Hokage into a sausage-mouth, and other strange actions secured his last place in class rankings.
During school, Iruka often spoke about the Will of Fire.
Naruto was captivated.
Suddenly, he had a revelation:
"Be a Hokage!"
Yes! Because Hokage is the most powerful person in Konoha Village.
Seeing the villagers' respect for the Third Hokage, he finally understood: if he became Hokage, he would surely gain everyone's recognition.
"My name is Naruto, the future Hokage!"
One day, he stood up for Hinata when she was being bullied, but he was severely punished for it.
After the incident, Naruto didn't realize there was a pair of white eyes watching him from the shadows.
For reasons unknown, Naruto developed a crush on a classmate with pink hair, Sakura.
Unfortunately, Sakura had her sights set on Sasuke.
She constantly talked about Sasuke, and it seemed like nearly 99% of the girls in class liked him.
Sasuke.
Handsome, with top grades, and always first in class.
Naruto envied him and looked at him with a sense of rivalry.
Until one day...
"Hey, did you hear? The Uchiha clan was wiped out."
"Sasuke is the only one left?"
"He's become an orphan."
"..."
Orphan!?
Naruto felt a deep pang in his heart.
As the sun set, Naruto walked along the riverbank and spotted Sasuke sitting by the water.
Sasuke's lonely figure deeply resonated with Naruto.
From that moment, Naruto felt like he had found a kindred spirit.
"Hmph!"
Sasuke seemed to notice Naruto watching him, and after a brief glance, turned away angrily.
Seeing this, Naruto turned away too, striding into the distance with a hint of arrogance.
However, when both turned their heads at the same time, they secretly smiled to themselves.
Naruto caused a stir once again in class.
Hinata?
Naruto had taken a beating to protect the bullied Hinata.
Afterward, Hinata looked at Naruto with newfound admiration.
Ino: "No wonder, during the Chūnin exams, Hinata from the eighth class offered him a healing salve after Kiba lost to Naruto."
Sakura: "I see. So this is what it feels like to be in love."
Hinata blushed at the thought, her face growing warm as she quickly looked down, avoiding everyone's gaze.
Shikamaru: "It's understandable that Hinata cares for Naruto, whether as a friend or because he helped her."
Chōji: "Yeah, I think it's fair."
Kiba: "The real issue is with Naruto and Sasuke, those two..."
Shino: "They seem to compete with each other, but deep down, they value one another."
Sakura: "I can vouch for that; the bond within our Team 7 is strong."
Naruto and Sasuke.
They might appear competitive, but deep inside, they see each other as close companions.
No one understood this better than Sakura.
Time passed, little by little.
After the Uchiha massacre, Sasuke rarely smiled.
Naruto would sometimes glance at Sasuke's back and feel a loneliness that was all too familiar.
Still, Naruto often felt frustrated around Sasuke for always being in the spotlight, while Sasuke would call him a big idiot.
Graduation day finally arrived.
Naruto, who struggled with the Clone Technique, was the only one in the class who didn't become a ninja.
At this moment, the "kind" Mizuki approached Naruto, encouraging him to steal the Scroll of Seals, claiming that mastering the techniques within would allow him to graduate.
Tobirama: "Nonsense! This guy Mizuki must be deceiving Naruto."
Hashirama: "The Scroll of Seals? Tobirama, isn't that where you recorded your ninjutsu? I remember it's all Forbidden Techniques."
Tobirama: "Yes, big brother, Mizuki is clearly plotting something sinister."
Hashirama: "Don't worry. The Third Hokage would never let a child steal the Scroll of Seals so easily. Mizuki clearly underestimated him."
Naruto was beyond excited.
Late that night, he snuck into the Third Hokage's house and used his Transformation Jutsu to catch him off guard.
Afterwards, he took the Scroll of Seals and headed to the designated meeting spot, eager to graduate as a ninja.
The turn of events was swift.
Before anyone could react, Naruto had knocked out the Third Hokage and stolen the Scroll of Seals.
Hashirama: "?"
Tobirama: "?"
Madara: "Hahaha, Hashirama, didn't you just say he couldn't manage that?"
Onoki: "Well, who would've thought the mighty First Hokage could misjudge this? The old monkey seems incompetent as Hokage."
Fourth Raikage: "It's unbelievable that the Third Hokage let something as critical as the Scroll of Seals get stolen so easily."
Terumi Mei: "Maybe the Third Hokage is just past his prime."
Rasa: "I don't know if he's old, but he definitely seems distracted."
Jiraiya: "To be fair, he did learn some tricks from me."
Tsunade: "You two have always been peas in a pod, both being perverts."
The Third Hokage: "Ahem, I'm just old and a little careless."
On a high platform in Konoha Village.
Orochimaru's eyes gleamed coldly.
He hadn't expected Mizuki to manage such an interesting feat by having Naruto steal the Scroll of Seals.
But deep down, he knew that only Naruto could enter the Third Hokage's house so openly.
"But..."
"Hey, Orochimaru, what are you scheming again?"
The Third Hokage tried to question him, but Orochimaru continued: "It just crossed my mind—did you set Mizuki up to steal the Scroll of Seals?"
"I know that you have gotten weaker with time.."
"But I don't think Naruto could've gotten the book so easily."
"Did you allow him to take it?"
The Third Hokage blushed: "What, are you blind? Can't you see?"
"I was clearly defeated by Naruto's Transformation Jutsu."
Orochimaru: "...."
Damn it!
Even if you're past your prime, you're still the Third Hokage! You can't be taken down by a mere trick like that, can you?
If dealing with Konoha's Third Hokage was this easy, why would he have bothered to design such an intricate plan to destroy Konoha?