In the Ninja School classroom.
Naruto glances at the silent crowd, observing the uncertain expressions of his classmates, and sneers disdainfully.
In the past, Sakura, who Naruto was infatuated with, often did outrageous things to attract attention, hoping this girl would regard him differently...
But Sakura would only wrinkle her brow with disgust, muttering "demon fox," "orphan," "weirdo," and then turn her gaze to Sasuke, her eyes full of infatuation.
Often at this time, Naruto watched Sakura, Sakura watched Sasuke, and Sasuke would be staring at Naruto, forming a perfect triangular loop.
But today, after Naruto displayed the Shadow Clone Jutsu and the technique of Chakra-infused projectiles...
Stunned Sakura finally looked at Naruto directly.
Sakura was surprised to find that the demon fox orphan she always thought of as unsophisticated, once dressed in clean clothes, washed his hair and shaved off his weird whiskers, seemed to possess a charm no less than Sasuke?
Her gaze involuntarily held a hint of admiration...
It was exactly what Naruto had always longed for but never approached!
However, when Naruto saw the sparkle in Sakura's eyes, he felt a slight stir in his heart but did not experience joy, pride, or happiness...
There was even a trace of disappointment.
It turned out that gaining Sakura's attention wasn't as gratifying as imagined...
Pretty boring, pretty dull.
He really couldn't understand why he used to be so obsessed with making Sakura notice him, making these classmates and teachers, who were merely shocked by Shadow Clones and a trace of fox Chakra, recognize him...
Life seems to have higher pursuits.
If one always indulges in these trivial interests, how can one live up to Aomi brother's earnest teachings?
Naruto strides confidently out of the classroom, showing no attachment to the awe-struck glances of others.
At this moment.
Naruto savors this conflicting feeling, an inkling of understanding arises in his heart, suddenly feeling as if the shackles on his body shattered, bringing an ever more intense joy from the liberation of his mind.
"Aomi brother, did I do the right thing just now?"
In a small forest in Konoha, Naruto looks at the azure sky, his clear eyes like reflections of the sky, somewhat nervously speaking to Aomi:
"I seem to have grasped something… Aomi brother!"
"I truly have advantages that others lack… I have Aomi brother instructing me, and a damn fox accompanying me in training, I fundamentally do not need other people's approval!"
Naruto slowly clenches his fists and takes a long, deep breath:
"Since they look down on me, I have no need to think highly of them!"
"I just need to care about the people who are good to me. Why should I, when being bullied, still think about seeking others' approval?"
Nine-tails snickers at this moment, cynically adding: "Because you like getting slapped on the left cheek, then putting the right cheek forward for them to hit…"
"Small dummy always has some special interests, this old man can kind of understand."
Naruto, still in a stage of enlightenment, suddenly bursts out from a state of mixed emotions into a flaring redness!
"Stupid fox, what are you shouting about here?"
Naruto angrily points at Nine-tails: "Is there anything wrong with what I said?"
Nine-tails first glances at Aomi, seeing that Aomi has no reaction to its sharp critique, and even flashes a kind smile at it, instantly puts it at ease.
In these recent days of training.
Aomi's teachings can be described as all-encompassing, sparing no detail, sharing everything...
There is no discrimination because Nine-tails is a demon fox or not human in form, Aomi does not treat it differently.
Just like Naruto's treatment, whenever Nine-tails raises a question about training, Aomi patiently explains it in detail.
For Nine-tails, who's craved this kind of teaching for almost a century, when Aomi elaborated on various ninjutsu, helping this fox quickly master different jutsu, it found the learning extremely satisfying...
Aomi describes many details of ninjutsu execution, prompting Nine-tails to marvel at how much intricacy lies within—
No wonder it previously tried figuring things out itself, but couldn't conjure up a single ninjutsu…
During this process.
Nine-tails also realizes Aomi's uniqueness.
This man possesses terrifying power beyond Ten-tails, even Six Paths Sage, yet remains extremely patient in teaching Naruto something as trivial as Chakra aggregation, these basic jutsu...
Including this fox that had once attacked Aomi.
Nine-tails cannot fathom why Aomi comes down from such a noble status to enter Naruto's body, patiently teaching it and Naruto, demanding nothing in return…
Just like a traveler encountering an intriguing yet withering flower, casually watering and tending it out of mere interest.
Seeking nothing, only acting on interest.
Whether from a perspective of malevolence awareness or from the substantial disparity in power, Nine-tails does not believe Aomi harbors any schemes against it and Naruto, as the difference is simply too vast…
In Nine-tails' understanding, if Aomi desired its Chakra, it would have been depleted and utterly dead a million times over by now...
So, is Aomi really just acting out of interest, a supreme, spontaneously descended teacher?