2 Academy

The old man brought down his hat that had the 'Kanji' symbol imprinted on it. His eyes were covered.

He stepped up to the stage and looked down at Konoha's future 'Seedlings'.

'This bunch looks promising, unlike the previous one...I just hope that it doesn't just "look" promising'

"Thank you for putting your heart to become a Shinobi for this village"

"When you grow up, I hope you remember the words of this old man...This is a way of thinking, that is sure to be useful to you in the future, and concerns the will of fire"

Suddenly, the wind got more intense and leaves flew past him. Every kid felt awe looking at him... except for Sasuke who was daydreaming about fighting him.

"In this place where leaves dance... the fire burns...The shadow of the fire shines on the village...once again, new leaves sprout"

The third Hokage, Hiruzen ended his speech with a grandfatherly smile. And in the blink of an eye, he disappeared from their vision.

——"Woah!"——

——"The Hokage is so cool! His speech gave me goosebumps!"——

Cheers erupted and compliments arose from the crowd. All the while Sasuke just looked at the previous place the Hokage stood.

'The body-Flicker Jutsu...He used it like it was child's play

Ignorant of what the world held for him. Sasuke was flabbergasted just because of a mere Body-Flicker.

"Hello"

Without any warning, someone poked him on the shoulder. Curious, Sasuke tilted his head only to meet two cyan-colored pupils.

"...Hi"

Sasuke responded, his eyes glued to the blonde-haired girl. Her mouth closed, she looked at him with the same stare.

Suddenly, the blonde's heart skipped a beat. Her face reddened, and her breathing became rigid. Every time she breathed, she felt hot air burning her chest.

"M-My name's I-Ino...What...What's yours?"

She refused to look away. captivated by the deep black eyes of the Uchiha. Unconscious to even her, her face was reddened like a tomato.

"Sasuke, Sasuke Uchiha"

He replied, not bothering to look at his surroundings. His eyes only fixated on her for some reason, his heart was calm. Not even beating at the average speed.

"Hey, Ino!!"

The silence between them was broken by a yell that was nearing them. Sasuke got out of his trance and snapped his head toward the source, annoyed.

"A-ah! Kazumi! I'm coming!!"

The blonde-haired girl responded back. Running toward the brown-haired girl at full speed.

Sasuke sighed and turned his head away. He walked toward the school board to find his classroom.

Unknown to him. The cyan-eyed girl had turned her head back to glance at him.

'Why isn't he looking back?'

She thought to herself, desperate to see his eyes once more. Her heart beat like a drum.

"You okay, Ino? Your face is red"

She looked away from his figure and took deep breaths to regain her composure.

"I'm fine. Let's go!"

She said cheerfully. Both of them then walked away toward a small group of girls close to their age.

***

"Class 1-A"

Sasuke muttered, looking at the small board hung beside a classroom. He entered the classroom and gazed at everyone present there.

'Unique'

That's what popped into his mind seeing the different children. They all had a unique traits. Some of them with markings, and others with peculiar hair colors.

He took a seat on the middle bench and waited for everyone else to arrive, also looking forward to meeting their new teacher.

"Hey...Name's Naruto"

The familiar blonde-haired kid with blue eyes asked him. His eyes widened for a split moment but instantly regained his posture.

"Sasuke"

Naruto had a bored expression. His eyes were gloomy and his eyebags were dark.

'Why do I have to be stuck with this guy now?'

Sasuke internally sighed. Naruto's aura always got him on the edge.

"Sasuke-Kun!!"

'Now who's this?'

A long pink-haired girl with green eyes approached him while yelling out his name.

At the same time, Ino also entered the classroom. Sasuke's eyes fell on her without even him knowing.

"Hello, Sasuke. Can I sit here?"

"Sure"

Sasuke replied without hesitation. Completely ignoring the pink-haired girl's existence.

"I asked him first, Ino! Get away from him!"

Ino also ignored her words... more like she couldn't even hear them, she was too busy looking at Sasuke who was currently laying his head on the desk, presumably sleeping.

She also laid her head, looking at the black-haired kid. All of her senses went blank. She could now only see Sasuke, nothing else.

*Ring*

She was then snapped back to reality by the academy's bell. She looked around and saw that Sakura was nowhere to be found.

'Thank god'

She breathed a sigh of relief. She then looked at Sasuke, he was then looking at her.

She blinked...He was looking at her!?

"This is Naruto, Ino"

Sasuke said, pointing at Naruto who was looking at her with a deadpan expression.

"H-Hey! I'm Ino, nice to meet you"

"Likewise"

Naruto responded. almost looking bored.

***

"I'm Iruka Umino, your new Sensei. You can call me Iruka-Sensei from now on"

"Ok, Iruka-Sensei"

Everyone responded simultaneously. Iruka warmly smiled and introduced himself.

Sasuke found it odd. Whenever his new "Sensei" looked at Naruto, it almost seemed like the guy wanted to rip him apart then and there.

'Something is really cooking up. I'm itching to find it out'

Sasuke thought to himself. He had noticed that almost everyone here was giving Naruto the same looks.

If he was honest, he would say that he didn't give two shits about Naruto or his problems... But this situation was really out of the ordinary.

A kid getting such hateful glances no older than him. Now, that was suspicious.

'I need information...who's better to ask if Ino herself is here'

After having a small conversation with Ino, he found out that she has many friends. One of them is bound to know it, right?

"Hey, Ino...can I ask a favor?"