Chapter 27: A Different Naruto
"Inuzuka Kiba! You were pretty badass in that last sparring match—wanna run it back?"
"Why the hell not?"
"Uchiha Sasuke! I'm challenging you next!"
...
In this world where strength is everything, break time between classes is always loud and chaotic.
Many students use this opportunity to hit the academy's special training grounds, burning off the boredom of endless theory lessons by throwing hands. Whether it's Sasuke—cool and aloof like Hinata—or any of the other familiar faces Ryosuke knew from the original storyline, no one backed down. Almost every challenge was accepted. Refusing was rare.
In Ryosuke's past life, this kind of thing would've just been called a school fight and gotten you suspended. But here? It was basically part of the curriculum.
The Academy's system silently approved of these little duels. Teachers were even assigned to monitor the matches to make sure nobody got too wild and started hurting people for real.
Still, accidents happened. Sometimes, a teacher wouldn't get there fast enough, and a kid would end up seriously hurt. Some students were even forced to pause or completely drop out of school because of it.
Usually, the school would step in, get the more reckless student to pay some kind of compensation, and smooth things over. But rarely, if ever, did they actually kick someone out for fighting. Injuries were just part of life in a world like this.
But today...
"Ryosuke, ever since I refined my chakra, I've been having a hell of a time trying to control it. You got any tips?" Naruto asked, sitting beside him with a frustrated sigh.
"I don't," Ryosuke replied flatly, shaking his head. Then he turned back to the ninja manual spread open on his desk.
Except... he wasn't actually reading. His mind was somewhere else entirely.
He was wondering: why hadn't Naruto gone out to join the brawls like usual? Why was he still here, sitting quietly next to him, reading and studying like some of the girls who cared more about theory than fighting?
So far, the plot hadn't shifted too far from the original timeline. No major changes had occurred—at least not ones Ryosuke could see. But maybe… maybe he was being too optimistic.
This world had a strange gravity. And Naruto was its center.
Any change to Naruto—even a small one—could send ripples through the entire future.
The boy who was supposed to be loud, reckless, and constantly pulling pranks just to get noticed… now sat beside him, studying quietly, trying to get better like some nerdy honor student.
It was a huge shift.
Could this version of Naruto even master his legendary "Talk-no-Jutsu" in the future?
But why was he like this?
Ryosuke mentally replayed every interaction he'd had since arriving in this world. He hadn't even really talked to Naruto until recently, much less influenced him on purpose.
So what had changed?
It had to be something that happened here in school.
Could simply sitting at the same desk as Naruto really cause such a massive difference?
No… that seemed too shallow.
Then Ryosuke's gaze landed on Haruno Sakura, who was chatting with Hinata a few rows ahead. A realization clicked in his mind.
Turning to Naruto, who was now trying to circulate his chakra with his eyes closed, Ryosuke suddenly asked, "Hey, Naruto. What do you think about Sakura?"
Naruto flinched, his concentration instantly shattered. The chakra he'd barely managed to control scattered throughout his body.
"Damn it, Ryosuke! I was this close to finishing a full cycle!" he groaned, scratching his head in frustration.
"Sorry, sorry," Ryosuke said with a sheepish smile. "I was just curious. So… what do you think of Sakura?"
"Sakura?" Naruto blinked, caught off guard by the question. "You mean Haruno Sakura?"
"Yeah."
Naruto tilted his head, thinking. "Hmm… she's alright. Ranked second in the theory exam, I think."
Then he looked at Ryosuke with confusion. "Why're you asking, though?"
"No reason. Carry on," Ryosuke waved it off, turning back to his book.
Naruto was clearly puzzled but didn't push it. He didn't have many friends—barely any, actually. So when someone like Ryosuke talked to him without judgment or scorn, he naturally appreciated it, even if the guy was weird sometimes.
And just like that, Ryosuke had his answer.
In this timeline, Naruto didn't have any sort of romantic interest in Sakura.
That changed everything.
Maybe it was because Hinata's personality had shifted a little and now she was friendly with Shikamaru and the other guys. Because of that, Sakura and Naruto didn't end up crossing paths the same way they originally had.
Back in the original timeline, Sakura was the one who "saved" Naruto emotionally—maybe not in a huge, dramatic way, but in little ways that mattered.
Naruto had a massive crush on her. He admired her, tried to impress her, even acted out because of her. And when she liked Sasuke instead, he'd get jealous and throw tantrums.
That drove him to get stronger, to be noticed. And over time, he bonded with guys like Shikamaru and Kiba—loud, reckless kids like him.
Their influence molded his personality. Kiba especially was a total wildcard—carefree, rebellious, the kind of guy who'd convince Naruto to skip class just for the hell of it.
And then there was Iruka, who became a mentor and showed him what it meant to be acknowledged and protected.
All of these relationships came at just the right time to shape Naruto into who he was meant to be.
But now?
Now Naruto wasn't influenced by Sakura. He wasn't friends with Shikamaru. He wasn't close with Kiba. He just had that core belief about becoming Hokage, drilled into him by the Third Hokage.
Aside from that, he was quiet. Introverted. Isolated.
Would this version of Naruto—this softer, lonelier kid—ever become that glowing beacon of hope? That loud, warmhearted idiot who gave everything without expecting anything in return?
Ryosuke glanced sideways at Naruto, who had closed his eyes again and was concentrating hard, probably imagining himself as Hokage.
Then he looked around the classroom. Some kids were chatting, some were sparring, others just minding their own business. But Ryosuke also caught the subtle sneers, the looks of disdain some students still cast toward Naruto.
And yet… Naruto just kept going.
Ryosuke's lips curled into a smile.
He was genuinely curious now—what kind of man would this version of Naruto grow into?
Would he still become the same "little sun" that lit up everyone's life?
Maybe. Maybe not.
But either way, Ryosuke was looking forward to watching it all unfold.
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