Chapter 66

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Chapter 66: Little Rabbit

After Sarutobi Hiruzen left, and the battle came to an end. Although the outcome had been decided, the result certainly wasn't that the proud Uchiha Sasuke would voluntarily admit defeat. Instead, it was Naruto, bruised and swollen, pinning Sasuke to the ground, refusing to let him get up. Sasuke was forced to give up resistance due to this humiliating position. He really didn't want the two Hyuga onlookers to witness this embarrassing scene any longer.

"You're good."

After standing up, Naruto approached Sasuke with a playful smile and extended his arm to help him up. Sasuke, however, maintained a cold expression, slapped Naruto's hand away, and stood up by himself.

"You are indeed much stronger than me. You can take the title of the first in the grade," Sasuke said, pausing before speaking again. "But I will catch up with you soon, and then... I will let you see why the Uchiha clan is truly powerful."

From the moment the battle began, Sasuke realized he had underestimated Naruto, who had always maintained a low profile in class. He admitted that Naruto, with his vast repertoire of ninjutsu and immense chakra reserves, was indeed formidable. 

"Hopefully, that day won't be too far away."

Naruto smiled and nodded. In this battle, he found that Uchiha Sasuke, despite his aloof exterior, harbored no ill will towards him. While Sasuke appeared impolite at school, in actual contact, he wasn't as unpleasant as Naruto had thought.

"Let's go."

After taking a deep look at Naruto, Sasuke dragged his heavy body and turned to leave. Although he didn't want to admit it, Naruto was much stronger than him in both physical prowess and the number of ninjutsu he had mastered. The battle had exhausted Sasuke, making standing difficult. In contrast, Naruto seemed unscathed.

As Sasuke passed by Ryosuke and the others, he unconsciously glanced up at them standing on the treetop, meeting Ryosuke's smiling gaze. 

"Are you laughing at me?"

Ryosuke's eyes reminded Sasuke of his previous arrogance before the battle, making his face, already flushed from the intense fight, feel even hotter. But then, another thought crossed Sasuke's mind.

"If even Naruto is hiding his abilities, then this Ryosuke..."

"It looks good. Not as impulsive as I thought."

Observing the look in Sasuke's eyes as he left, Ryosuke chuckled and jumped down from the treetop, "It seems that as long as it doesn't involve that man, he can still control his emotions."

After Sarutobi Hiruzen left, the feeling of being watched disappeared. The Uchiha clan possessed an eye technique called the sharingan. This ability would evolve and grant the uchihas great strength, at the cost of their emotions being unstable.

This is also why the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, always believed the Uchiha clan was uncontrollable and posed a significant threat to the village. Although strong, their instability turned their strength into a weakness.

"Uchiha Sasuke is always so cold at school. I alwaysthought he had facial paralysis," Hinata remarked, jumping down from the tree and landing lightly on the ground. "Sakura and Ino like him so much, but he doesn't react at all, like a wooden man, indifferent."

"And here was he displayed such rich emotional changes."

As the future head of her clan, Hinata had been learning to observe those around her under the influence of her father and Ryosuke. The Uchiha Sasuke she saw in school was very different from the Sasuke in the ward, during the battle, and after the battle. They seemed like two different people.

"...How dare you talk about others?"

Hearing her mumbling, Ryosuke couldn't help but laugh, "When you are outside, you always have a cold face and pretend to be someone who is not easy to mess with. But when you get home, you become as well-behaved as a little rabbit."

"Shh!"

Hinata pouted angrily and put her finger to her lips, indicating that Ryosuke should stop talking. Her appearance made Ryosuke pause for a moment before he laughed helplessly. This was the first time Hinata had shown such emotion since they met.

Although she could maintain a cool demeanor outside and challenge male classmates to a fight, when the facade was peeled away, there wasn't much change inside. In the past, whether in practice or life, she always endured silently. If she felt wronged, tired, or suffering due to harsh words from her father or Ryosuke, she would keep her feelings to herself, never expressing them easily.

Ryosuke always had to notice her mood changes and comfort her. But now, as she grew more confident, she slowly learned to express her inner dissatisfaction.

Hinata realized her behavior was different from before, her face reddening as she put her hands behind her back, feeling a little at a loss.

Ryosuke smiled lightly, extended his hand gently, and said, "Let's go and inform Naruto that he can graduate tomorrow."

"Um!"

Hinata, who had been emotional just moments ago, held Ryosuke's hand obediently. The two walked towards Naruto, who was resting nearby. Ryosuke could clearly feel Hinata's bouncy-like movement beside him, transforming from a quiet girl into a tiny lively rabbit.

"Ryosuke, it seems that I underestimated Uchiha Sasuke."

As soon as he approached, Naruto stood up and said to Ryosuke, "Actually, I thought I would win easily. After all, my ninjutsu was taught by the Third Hokage."

"Moreover, Sasuke does not yet have the ability to master the Sharingan, so his strength is greatly reduced."

"But even so, it wasn't easy for me to win."

"He didn't get to be the top of the grade by relying on the Sharingan. Whether it was theoretical knowledge, ninjutsu, or taijutsu, he achieved it through his own hard work."

Ryosuke smiled and threw the scroll left by Sarutobi Hiruzen over, "Don't use the three words Uchiha to cover up the hard work and talent he put in."

"This is the assessment application form left by the Third Hokage. He came to watch the competition just now but left early when it ended. However, he asked me to give you this application form that has been approved."

"If everything goes well, you should be able to become a real ninja tomorrow."

(End of this chapter)

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