Chapter 9 Dreams

"Perfect score? Amazing." Sakura muttered, stunned for a moment, "Naruto seems different from before."

Ino was completely dumbfounded, thinking to herself, 'Today is really strange. How come that last-place guy become so powerful now?'

"Tsk, that guy" Inuzuka Kiba muttered and walked away with the white puppy on his head.

As a member of the truancy trio, Kiba was thankful that Naruto's poor grades kept him from being the worst in the class.

Sasuke, after watching for a while, also turned away, his eyes reflecting the lush trees at the end of the corridor, showing his usual indifferent demeanor.

"Sa...Sasuke-kun, since we graduated, can we have a meal together?" A girl who had just emerged from the corridor's corner asked as she nervously clutched her forehead protector. It was obvious that she had just passed the exam.

"I have things to do, find someone else." Sasuke said coldly. He was a proud person who did not allow himself to stagnate, so he intended to go back and redouble his training.

The hatred for his clan's extermination drove him to live, and aside from that, he had no interest in anything else, so without hesitation, he refused the girl.

Sakura, in the crowd, watched the scene of the girl being rejected by Sasuke at the end of the corridor, and her heart was filled with mixed emotions. Suddenly, a hand slapped her shoulder, startling her.

"Ino, what are you doing?"

"Hehe, stop looking. Sasuke-kun won't go on a date with you alone." Ino said as she looked at Sakura smugly.

For some reason, Naruto's annoying face flashed through her mind, and his vile voice echoed in her ears.

"Sasuke doesn't like women! Wo! Men!"

"Ah!!!! Damn it!" Ino suddenly squatted on the ground with her head in her hands, her face twisted in pain.

After passing the Graduation Exam successfully, Naruto's life was back on track. During the three-day break, Naruto was lazily lying at home for two days.

Naturally, he did not meet Konohamaru.

On the last day of the break, as Naruto was dozing off, the sunlight filtered through the window onto him, making him feel warm and cozy.

Suddenly, a dazzling light made Naruto frown and he opened his eyes directly.

An Anbu's member wearing an animal mask was squatting on the tree outside the window, his cold eyes visible through the holes in the mask, his voice emotionless.

"Hokage-sama wants to see you."

After saying this, without giving Naruto a chance to react, the Anbu's member vanished instantly.

Naruto stared at the ceiling for several minutes, confirming that someone had indeed been there, 'But where did he go?'

"Go…"

"The sun is so warm and comfortable, just like soaking in hot spring water."

"Hot spring."

Even breaths sounded as Naruto fell asleep again.

When he woke up, it was already dark.

There was no light in the room. A dark figure was sitting at the desk, flipping through Naruto's training plan. In the dim light, the rustling pages sound quietly, suddenly stopping after a while.

"Ah, you're awake." An old and familiar voice sounded, with a hint of gentleness and kindness.

When the light came on, the room was directly illuminated.

The Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was sitting at the desk, and he turned his head to look at Naruto with a smile. On the desk were Naruto's brand new forehead protector, diary, and recipe book.

"Hokage-sama." Naruto, groggy from sleep, rubbed his eyes and called out.

"Didn't you call me Grandpa Hokage before?" Hiruzen was stunned for a moment, then laughed heartily, "What's wrong? Now that you're a Shinobi, you're becoming distant?"

"Hehe." Naruto scratched his head a little embarrassedly, "I am already a qualified Shinobi now, so it is not appropriate to call you that."

Hearing this, Hiruzen smiled and let it go, then asked, "Did you forget something today?"

"Something?" Naruto looked puzzled. After thinking for a long time, he finally remembered that an Anbu seemed to have come and asked him to go see the Hokage.

"Ah! I forgot!"

"You little rascal!" Hiruzen sighed helplessly, "But it's normal for you to rest."

"Hokage-sama, is there something you want to talk to me about?" Naruto asked.

"Well, it's not really something important." Hiruzen said, "I wanted to ask about your dreams for the future."

"My dream is take it easy." Naruto said without thinking.

"Take it easy?" Hiruzen was puzzled.

"It means living a stable and relaxed life," Naruto explained.

"Have young people become like this now? I guess I'm out of touch with the times." Hiruzen said self-deprecatingly.

"But Naruto, wasn't your dream to become the Hokage?"

"What is life like after becoming Hokage? Are you happy?" Naruto asked.

"Well," Hiruzen coughed and said, "I'm usually quite busy, and sometimes, Konohamaru would complain that I can't spend time with him."

"But in order to protect the village and its people, this responsibility drives me forward, even to the point of risking my life for the village at any time. I think I am probably happy."

"Well, that's is the life of the Hokage-sama. It sounds tough." Naruto said, sitting cross-legged on the bed, "But I don't want to live such a hard life. I don't want to be looked at with strange eyes anymore."

"For someone like me, even to have a fresh meal, I have to consider whether the store owner will sell me the vegetables. Even if I become the Hokage, nothing will change."

"Naruto, if you become the Hokage, the people in the village will definitely respect and love you." Hiruzen tried to persuade.

"But Hokage-sama, I'm doing pretty well now." Naruto said, holding his head. "If I don't make mistakes and slowly become an ordinary person, everyone will forget their hatred towards me."

"Although I don't know why so many people are hostile to me, I think by becoming a Shinobi, I probably won't have to deal with such looks anymore."

Hiruzen wanted to say something, but the words got stuck in his throat, and he didn't have the courage to say them out loud. He knew that it was his negligence that caused a child to become what he is now.

Rome wasn't built in a day. Naruto is an optimistic person by nature, and it is obvious that he has become like this because of the hostility he has suffered over the years.

If he wanted to change Naruto's attitude, he may need to guide him slowly in the future.

"Naruto, if the enemy breaks into the village in the future and wants to harm the people you care about, what will you do then?" Hiruzen asked.

Naruto thought about it, and after thinking for a moment, he looked at Hiruzen and said seriously.

"I don't know."

…

Hiruzen left without saying more.

Naruto sat at the desk where Hiruzen had been, touching the forehead protector, his gaze gradually turning indifferent. Although this system appeared to be a 'take it easy' system, it was actually a competitive one.

Naruto could take it easy, but his strength would continuously grow. If there's a more relaxed way to become stronger, why not take it easy?

Take it easy yourself, and let others compete.

In this terrifying world where strength reigns supreme, having no power means being at the mercy of others.