Chapter 11 Popularity

Konoha.

Ninja Academy.

"You are all the future of Konoha; as long as the younger generation continues to work hard, the will of fire will continue to burn"

In the playground, all the school kids were gathered as they looked at the old man wearing the Hokage Haori with respect and awe in their eyes.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, The Third Hokage, is the strongest person in the village and is also famous in the Ninja World as "Professor of Ninjutsu."

"Is this old man the strongest in the village?"

Gojo looked at the Third Hokage, and his eyes had some confusion in them.

According to the ranks of the Ninja, the Kage is the strongest in the world, just like Special Grade Sorcerer.

Gojo can see that this old man is strong, but it is a lot weaker than he expected him to be.

Of course, his judgment can be wrong if the old man is the master of concealing.

Soon Sarutobi ended his speech as he left, and the students were escorted back to the class.

"Hey Shikamaru, is that old man really that strong?"

In the hallway, Naruto put his right arm around the shoulder of Shikamaru and asked with some confusion evident in his eyes.

"How could I know and when did we become so close… What a pain!"

Shikamaru, with lazy eyes, walked through the hallway as, after standing in the playground for an hour, he was too tired.

"Sigh…"

"I think... I should quit school"

Just the thought of 4 more years at school scares Shikamaru.

"Ah, it's Satoru Kun"

"So Cool"

Suddenly Naruto and Shikamaru heard some loud shouts as they saw lots of little girls looking at the kid with white hair and black glasses with an excited expression on their face.

"Satoru Kun~, I... made... these cookies for you.

A courageous little girl walked forward, and with her face red, she presented Gojo the handmade cookies.

"So delicious~, you would be a great wife in the future"

"Satoru Kun~ don't tease me like this"

The girl hearing his words, ran back, her face red from embarrassment.

"Haha~ this place sure is fun"

Gojo laughed inwardly, seeing the little girl running away from his teasing.

He didn't dislike these peaceful days at the academy, as he didn't mind taking an extended break after fighting gruesome monsters for such a long time.

"Satoru sure is popular"

Naruto saw Gojo being the center of attention a little envious.

"Hey! you know him?"

Shikamaru hearing his words looked at Naruto with some surprise on his face.

"Of course, we are friends!!"

Naruto told with a smile as Gojo was the first person who believed in him, that he could become a Hokage one day.

"How did you become friends with him? he is ranked first in his class, and you are at the bottom!"

Shikamaru had heard about Gojo from Kiba that he is one grade above them and was ranked first in his class along with a person from Hyuga Clan.

"Don't look down on me, Shikamaru; I'm a man destined to be Hokage, and Satoru believed that I could become a Hokage one day"

Naruto yelled as he couldn't stand being looked down.

"Don't yell so loudly… What a Drag..."

Shikamaru held his head in a headache as he wondered why he became a friend of this noisy guy.

"Naruto, Shikamaru, hurry up and go back to class"

Crap!!!

Suddenly they heard a large familiar shout from behind, and they didn't need a second thought to recognize that it was Iruka and immediately ran back.

___________________

"What should I eat today? Dumplings or Red bean cake"

Gojo, who quietly sneaked out from the class, walked towards the school exit and was having a hard time deciding.

"Come on, Sasuke Kun"

"Do your best!!"

Gojo, who was about to exit the school, suddenly heard shouts from the playground.

Arriving there, he saw two familiar faces standing in the middle of the ground facing each other as Iruka stood beside them as the fight was just seconds away.

"This is interesting!"

Seeing Naruto and Sasuke, Gojo became curious as both were unique; they had so much in common, yet they were so different.

One was shunned by the whole village, and the other lost his family; one was the source of light, and the other was standing at the border of light and darkness.

Iruka announced the start of the fight, and the result was just like Gojo had expected, Sasuke pinning down Naruto quickly.

But what happened after the fight surprised Gojo as he wondered whether these two were really tied by fate.

"Bastard Sasuke, next time I'll defeat you for sure"

"Loser, just keep daydreaming"

Naruto didn't back down after losing, and Sasuke taunted him back.

But Gojo didn't see hate in their eyes; all he saw was a relief as they seemed happy seeing each other, "someone like them who understands their pain exists."

"Hehe~ I wonder how much will these two grow in the future"

Gojo grinned as he suddenly had some expectations for their future, and after looking at them for a while, he turned around and left.