"Alright!" Naruto cheered, his despair instantly vanishing at the mention of free food.
Sasuke couldn't help but notice the worn-out fabric of Naruto's orange jumpsuit. He had seen it before, but now, knowing what he knew, he saw it differently. It wasn't just a loud fashion choice; it was likely one of the few outfits he owned. Aiko's words about him barely being able to afford to eat echoed in his mind.
The son of a hero, his mother one of his own mother's best friends... and this was what he got?
It was sad, it really was, yet at least it meant he didn't choose to wear that hideous outfit by choice, but by necessity.
Sasuke knew that while the Uchiha clan lacked many things, money wasn't one of them, and since Naruto was the son of his mother's friend, he might as well give him enough to give him a better outfit.
If nothing else, just to ensure their enemies didn't spot them from miles away while out on missions together.
As for Sakura? Sasuke didn't even look at her as he walked out.
"Hey, Sasuke! Wait for me!" the pink-haired fangirl shouted, hearts in her eyes as she was over the moon at the prospect of being on a date with her beloved Sasuke-kun.
Naruto was equally happy, though not because of Sasuke, but because of Sakura, one wishing Sasuke wasn't there, and the other wishing Naruto wasn't there.
All of this was clear to Sasuke, he didn't even need to use his dojutsu to see it.
So he knew, this team... was indeed a special one, though also one that would give him a headache.
With those two following behind him, it didn't take long before they left the Academy and made their way into the commercial district.
"So, anywhere in particular you two want to eat?" he asked, because he had to admit, he never went out to eat like this.
If he did, it was always within the Hyūga clan compound itself, so he really didn't know where they had good food.
The only place he could think of was those run by the Akimichi clan, but while he knew they had them, he wasn't sure where they were.
"I want to go to Ichiraku Ramen!" Naruto shouted, pointing towards a small, slightly out-of-the-way stand with a red curtain.
Sasuke gave it a quick glance, and while it looked small, it also looked clean, and the smell coming from it wasn't half bad.
"Ichiraku? That old place? Can't we go somewhere better?" Sakura complained, making a face as if the mere mention of the place was beneath her.
While Sakura was a civilian, her parents were not poor, so she likely wanted to go to a proper restaurant, not a simple stand.
Sasuke saw it all, the way Naruto looked at the ramen stand, and the way Sakura looked for something better, he carefully read his teammates.
Naruto hesitated at her words, clearly wanting to make her happy.
"Let's get ramen this time," Sasuke said before Naruto could give in to his crush on Sakura, he didn't want his future teammate to follow the whims of a foolish fangirl.
He only hoped his future teacher would deal with that problem, though given what he read about Kakashi, he wasn't sure how much he could rely on him.
Still, he apparently went really into team building, even using the famous bell test to assess his students.
A test that was easy to pass once you knew about it, but nearly impossible to pass if you didn't.
As they entered the ramen stand, Sasuke couldn't help but feel his heart fill with pride as he thought about his clan and the advantage of information.
He already knew the answers to the test. All he had to do was play along and make sure Naruto and Sakura passed too.
After all, they were his team, and while Sakura was useless, Naruto wasn't, he would be useful in any fight as long as he learned to use the power sealed inside him.
Whoever that man's allies were, as long as Naruto could master that power, he would be able to give Sasuke what he wanted, a one-on-one against HIM.
"Naruto-kun, you are here early today, aren't you?" the stall owner said as they entered. "You aren't skipping class, are you?"
Sasuke noticed how the owner was nice to Naruto, something that was clearly rare, even just on the walk over here, he had clearly seen the looks people gave him.
"Of course not! It's just lunch break, old man Teuchi!" Naruto cheered.
Teuchi looked towards Sasuke and Sakura. "And you brought along your friends today? This is a surprise."
"I'm not friends with Naruto, I'm just here with Sasuke-kun!" Sakura said, clearly annoyed to even be in the same place as Naruto.
Naruto scratched the back of his head, clearly embarrassed by Sakura's words.
Sasuke sighed. "We are all on the same team, so I decided to treat them to a meal, and Naruto picked this place." He helped cover for the orange clown.
Teuchi was no fool; he had seen the kind of look the Uchiha was giving him, and while he didn't know what it meant, he knew enough not to ask. He just nodded.
"So, what will it be?" he asked.
"I want a bowl of miso ramen, and I want it extra large!" Naruto shouted.
"I'll take a regular miso ramen," Sasuke said as he sat down.
Sakura sighed. "Just give me a bowl of tonkotsu ramen," she said, clearly not happy with the place.
With their orders placed, Teuchi and his daughter Ayame quickly started to cook. While waiting, the three sat in silence. Naruto was bouncing about, impatient, Sakura was trying her best not to look at Naruto, and Sasuke was just observing them both, trying to understand them.
He understood Sakura enough, a shallow fangirl, but Naruto, he was a mystery, and Aiko's words only made him more of a mystery.
How could someone so loud and stupid also be a jinchūriki and a legacy of the Uzumaki clan?
The two things didn't fit together.
He just couldn't imagine someone as stupid as Naruto could ever be someone important, but then again, Aiko had no reason to lie to him.
Still, it was clear to him that they were both idiots in their own way, so he would have to do all the thinking for the team. "Alright, you two have any thoughts about our team?"
"Heh! With me on the team, we will be the best team in Konoha! I'll become Hokage, believe it!" Naruto boasted.
Sasuke couldn't help but frown at his answer. Not only was it delusional, but it also was a selfish answer. He was thinking about himself, not the team.
He then turned to Sakura. "What about you?"
Sakura sighed. "As long as I'm on the same team as Sasuke-kun, I don't care."
As expected, another selfish answer, one that didn't help at all.
"I guess it's all up to me then," Sasuke said, causing both Naruto and Sakura to look at him.
"What do you mean, Sasuke?" Naruto asked.
"I mean that you two are hopeless," he said, "Naruto, you're the dead last, and Sakura, you are the weakest kunoichi in our class, while I am the top of our class. So if we are to survive, you two will have to listen to me." he explained.
Sasuke's words caused Naruto to frown. "Hey! I'm not the dead last, and I'll show you, I'll show you all!" he shouted, clearly not happy about being called the dead last.
"Yeah, you are," Sakura quickly said, "You didn't even pass the final exam, I don't know how you even got to be a shinobi in the first place."
Sasuke couldn't help but agree with her on this one point, even if she was useless, she was right about this.
"So I heard," Sasuke said, "You took down a traitor, but that's still just a fluke. A single lucky shot doesn't make you a good shinobi." he said, trying to provoke him, to see if there was any truth to Aiko's words.
Naruto clenched his fists. "It wasn't a fluke! I worked hard, and I'm going to work even harder, and I'll become a great shinobi, you'll see!"
Sasuke didn't say anything, he just watched him. He wanted to see if Naruto would show any signs of power, of the Kyūbi, but he saw nothing. Just a loudmouth kid trying to defend himself.
He couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. Maybe Aiko was wrong? Maybe Naruto wasn't as special as she thought he was.
Still, he had to be patient. He would just have to keep pushing Naruto, to see if he could get him to show his true potential.
"Have you thought about what kind of role you want in the future? In our team, what kind of shinobi do you want to be?" he asked, wanting to use this chance to learn more about them.
Naruto paused for a moment. "I want to be a great ninja like the Fourth Hokage! He was the strongest, the coolest, and he saved the village! I want to be just like him!"
"Stupid Naruto, if anyone is going to be the strongest and coolest, it's Sasuke-kun!" Sakura said, "He is a Uchiha, and they are the strongest clan in Konoha! And Sasuke-kun is the best of the Uchiha!" she said, her eyes filled with admiration for him.
Sasuke felt a small smile touch his lips at her words. While he found her annoying, he couldn't deny that he liked the praise.
"Be serious for a moment, we are a team, so we gotta work together, surely you have thought about what path your training should lean towards?" he asked again.
Naruto thought for a moment. "Well, I'm not really good with ninjutsu, and genjutsu is a total mystery to me, so I guess I'll just have to be a taijutsu specialist."
Sasuke was surprised by this answer. He had expected Naruto to say something about wanting to learn a powerful ninjutsu, not taijutsu.
"Are you sure? You are not very good at taijutsu either," Sasuke said, not to be mean, but to be honest. He had seen Naruto in class, and he was terrible at it.
Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, I know, but I'm good at taking a beating, so I guess I'll just have to get better at hitting back."
Sasuke couldn't help but frown at this answer. He wanted a powerful teammate, not a punching bag.
Still, he did admit that Naruto clearly had plenty of stamina.
As for Sakura, she just looked at him with hearts in her eyes. "Oh, Sasuke-kun, you are so smart, I'm sure you'll be the best ninja in the world!"
Sasuke had to stop himself from sighing. He knew he wouldn't get anything useful out of her.
"So, let me guess, you are going to be the ninjutsu specialist?" Naruto asked.
"The Uchiha have their own unique path. Thanks to our Sharingan, we can master any ninjutsu we see, and our genjutsu is peerless, even our taijutsu is among the best, only beaten by the Hyūga clan." Sasuke didn't mind telling them this, because it was the truth.
The Uchiha could easily master all paths, so their focus was more on learning to flow flawlessly between the disciplines.
"Sasuke is the best!" Sakura cheered, though Sasuke could see she really didn't understand what he was talking about.
It suddenly hit him that these two were indeed completely hopeless.
(End of chapter)
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