Chapter 67: In the Heart of Every Ninja

With panic, Naruto turned his head and saw the familiar face under the dim moonlight, immediately recognizing the person's identity.

After all, there was no other face as striking as this in the whole village.

"Sasuke? Why are you here?"

Naruto was immediately in a state of panic, with mixed emotions and a sense of shame at being caught.

Sasuke calmly took the scroll of the Sealed Book, glanced at it, and put it back before Naruto could react.

Then he took the initiative and said, "Before asking why I'm here, you should explain why you are."

"Well... because, because I want to graduate!" Naruto hesitated.

Since he started a side job in the summer of that year, he had spent most of his efforts gaining recognition from others, particularly from the readers in the Land of Fire. Almost all of his time spent on mischief was now forced into writing. He was inexperienced in doing bad things and was still a little nervous after being caught.

If it were the kind of experience he had seen and experienced before, and if his face were thick enough, then of course there would be no problem. But at this moment, this was still a little unfamiliar.

"Didn't you say that you would definitely succeed in graduating this time? Why resort to such unconventional means?" Ivory, who looked like a ninja cat, spoke and easily provoked Naruto's emotions.

"I had a chance to graduate, and now I have the guidance of Mizuki-sensei, so I want to seize this last chance to graduate," Naruto wanted to emphasize the possibility of his successful graduation. "In the Hokage's house, there's a Sealed Book containing countless ninjutsu. As long as I can learn any of them, Iruka-sensei might let me graduate!

"In order to get this jutsu, I used my newly created ninjutsu to defeat the Hokage once!"

Ivory continued, "But what you are least good at is the Clone Jutsu. You just said that the first jutsu is related to the Clone Jutsu."

"I..." Naruto blushed and wanted to argue, but when it came to something he was not good at, to be honest, he did not think miracles could happen so easily.

Sasuke spoke again, not fast: "If you repeat a year, you can continue to participate in the graduation assessment next year. With an extra year, as long as the assessment items have nothing to do with the Clone Technique next time, you will have a high probability of graduating.

"Why are you obsessed with this year?"

Naruto stopped arguing with Sasuke's cat and explained, "Because becoming a ninja is the first step on this road, I hope...

"One day, I can become a Hokage, take over the symbol of the Hokage, and be recognized by everyone."

"But in fact, you have been recognized by many people, and this is much safer than becoming a Hokage."

"I'm not afraid of danger."

"I'm not talking about you, but others." Sasuke's voice was not loud, but it inexplicably carried a sense of oppression, making the other party quiet down and continue to listen to him. "Many years ago, I told you about the necessary factors to become a good Hokage. You couldn't understand it at that time, but now you should be able to understand it.

"The greater the power, the greater the responsibility. Socialized people gather the collective common power into one or a few individuals, thus forming the core of power. Hokage is such a position.

"Whether willing or not, when a person sits in the position of Hokage, the present and future of the entire village are entrusted to him. As a writer, or even an actor, or other professions, you become famous and the main responsibility is only you, because you will not be tainted with too much power.

"But to become a shadow, are you simply pursuing a dream, or do you want... power?"

Naruto fell silent. He lowered his head and listened to the other person's words. He was confused and thoughtful.

"Don't mention the issue of awareness or ability. Just look at what you want. If you just want to be recognized, then you should give up the idea of graduating by overtaking on the curve and do your side job well. That's enough."

Listening to Sasuke's subsequent suggestions, Naruto shook his head at this time: "Maybe, becoming a Hokage can no longer be completely a dream! What I like may not be the real Hokage, but the brilliant figure and the position that everyone admires.

"But those readers only like the person you helped me create in the publishing house, and the talented new writers circulated in the Land of Fire, but these are not me.

"The real me has to learn to concentrate on this matter for several years. I am an ordinary ninja who failed the graduation exam three times. I feel very uneasy that I can even get your help.

"The gap between us is too big..."

In the moonlight, he looked very lonely.

In all these years of chasing, he felt like a traveler running towards the sun. No matter how far he walked, the distance between him and the sun seemed to remain unchanged, and he couldn't even tell how much distance he was still far away.

But soon, Naruto cheered up again and said, "Of course I know that it is a bit unrealistic to want to compete directly with the first in the grade, but I think at least I can start this career as a ninja.

"I am not the creator of the pen name [Uzumaki Naruko]. I am Uzumaki Naruto, a graduate of the Ninja Academy of Konoha Ninja Village. I want to be a ninja, an excellent ninja that can be recognized by others."

"Don't want to be a Hokage anymore?"

"Think about it later. Since being a Hokage without the ability will hurt others, I will try to become a Genin first."

He slightly changed his words. He felt that if he continued to talk about becoming a Hokage, it would no longer be a dream, but rather a self-interest. It would be embarrassing to say it out loud.

At this time, Sasuke did not hit him again, but said, "In fact, there are more than one way to graduate from the Ninja Academy, just like getting recognition from others, there is not only one way to become a Hokage.

"You can graduate not only by learning the Clone Technique. Similarly, after becoming a ninja, what you do may not necessarily be glamorous. The overly powerful power of a ninja can be used to protect, but it can also be used to destroy...

"Do you really understand this industry?"

Listening to Sasuke's rare praise, Naruto was just happy for a while, and immediately heard the requirements behind it. He felt a headache. He didn't expect that getting those positions was just the beginning. Whether the subsequent things can be done well is the key to judging success or not.

But what kind of ninja can be considered a good ninja?

While he was confused, Iruka's voice came from afar: "Naruto, Sasuke... why are you here too?"

"After all, I saw Mizuki-sensei coming to my house."

Sasuke looked at the breathless Iruka and explained, "As an ordinary Chunin, it is normal to focus on an ordinary student, but when you focus on the Hokage family, the burden is not ordinary.

"Iruka-sensei, do you really know your friend?"

"You mean... Mizuki?"

Iruka was a little confused.

But at this time, Naruto had raised the scroll and said to Iruka: "Mizuki-sensei told me that as long as I learn any ninjutsu on this scroll, you can let me graduate.

"Is this okay? Iruka-sensei!"

Hearing this, Iruka recalled all the abnormalities about Mizuki, and his expression changed at this moment.

But at this moment, multiple shurikens came at the same time from a distance, showing the extraordinary talents of the users.

With the help of the adhesion of chakra, these shurikens still have great power even if they are fired at the same time, and can easily cause fatal damage to ordinary people who do not defend themselves.

At this moment, these shurikens all fell on Naruto and Sasuke, with a dense range. It seems that there is no time to dodge them if they seize this momentary gap.

Swish—

Sasuke drew a long sword from behind him, and a bright light flashed.

Accompanied by the continuous sound of ping-pong, those shurikens were scratched with sparks, and then they were all swept away and fell to the ground.

---