Seeing Naruto's serious expression, Iruka smiled warmly. "It seems you take friendship very seriously, Naruto. You have a whole process for it."
"Tell me—what exactly does this process involve? I'd like to see how you make friends."
Naruto met his teacher's eyes. "To become my friend, Iruka-sensei, you have to spar with me. That's how I ensure the friendship is sincere."
Iruka couldn't help but laugh. "You're quite unique, Naruto. Alright—your teacher promises. Let's have a match."
"Thank you, Iruka-sensei. I can already feel your sincerity."
"Should we begin then?" Iruka glanced around the school grounds. The area was empty—all the other students and teachers had already left for the day.
"Yes. Please do your best, Iruka-sensei." Naruto bowed respectfully.
"I will."
Internally, though, Iruka felt confident. Naruto had only attended the Academy for about half a year and hadn't even learned the basic three jutsu yet. He'd need to be careful not to hurt the boy.
"Then I'll start, Iruka-sensei!"
The words barely left Naruto's mouth before he vanished.
In the next instant, he appeared directly in front of Iruka with a devastating punch.
CRACK.
A wooden log exploded into splinters.
Iruka's eyes widened as he materialized several meters away. That speed! And that power! He'd barely managed to use the Substitution Jutsu in time.
This wasn't the performance of a struggling student. Naruto had both speed and strength. Good thing his reflexes were sharp.
As a chunin instructor who'd spent years teaching Academy students, Iruka didn't know many advanced techniques—mostly just the basics like Substitution, Transformation, and Clone Jutsu.
He also knew genjutsu, barrier techniques, and a few ninjutsu, but he had no intention of using those against a student.
His fundamental skills, honed over many years, should be more than enough to handle Naruto.
CRACK. CRACK.
Two more wooden substitutes shattered under Naruto's assault.
Iruka mentally calculated Naruto's capabilities and nodded to himself. Alright, time to use shuriken. At Naruto's speed, he should be able to dodge them easily enough.
His wrist flicked. Five shuriken shot toward Naruto like silver lightning.
Naruto observed the incoming projectiles and made no move to evade. He'd deliberately smashed three substitutes to preserve Iruka-sensei's dignity—to prevent him from losing too badly.
This would be enough.
"Get out of the way!" Iruka screamed when Naruto charged straight at the shuriken without dodging.
Ting. Ting. Ting. Ting. Ting.
Iruka's pupils contracted. The shuriken struck Naruto's body and simply bounced off, leaving him completely unharmed.
"That defense..."
Shock rippled through Iruka. The level of durability was beyond anything he'd seen.
He searched for adequate words to describe it. After a long moment, only four came to mind:
Completely inhuman.
While Iruka processed this revelation, Naruto's form began to blur. In the blink of an eye, his figure faded and disappeared entirely.
Iruka felt wind behind him. His feet shifted, preparing to use the Body Flicker Technique—but before he could activate it, a pair of powerful arms wrapped around his waist from behind.
The grip was crushing. One wrong move and his spine would snap.
Iruka desperately condensed chakra for defense.
Shatter.
The protective chakra barrier broke like glass under overwhelming force. The pressure intensified. Iruka couldn't breathe.
Then the process truly began.
Three minutes later, Iruka lay on the ground with a bruised and swollen face, staring up at what appeared to be two suns in the sky. The light was very bright. Very dazzling.
Also, he now understood why Shino had looked so miserable this morning.
"Iruka-sensei, the process is complete! We're friends now." Naruto helped him up from the ground and enthusiastically brushed dust from his clothes.
Iruka looked at Naruto speechlessly.
Internally, he was reeling. Naruto had just defeated him—a chunin.
But beneath the shock, he felt genuine happiness for his student.
"By the way, Iruka-sensei, as my good friend, you should treat me to ramen!"
Normally, Naruto would invite new friends to the farm for roasted lamb. But Iruka had a salary—he was a professional with income. Naruto was just a student. How could he possibly afford to host his teacher?
Hearing Naruto's words, Iruka felt pain not only in his face but also in his heart.
"Goodbye, Iruka-sensei!"
At Ichiraku Ramen, Iruka watched Naruto wave cheerfully and depart. He felt his heart bleeding.
His debt to Ichiraku had just increased by over ten thousand ryō.
But he maintained his smile.
The afternoon class was taught by Mizuki-sensei. After dismissal, Naruto said goodbye to his friends as usual.
Mizuki left school immediately, planning to visit his friend Iruka. He was worried—how had Iruka managed to injure himself so badly? The man was a grown adult but somehow had a bruised and swollen face like he'd fallen down stairs.
Come to think of it, most of the students in Iruka's class also had bruised faces. What kind of teaching methods is he using?
Only Naruto Uzumaki seemed unaffected.
Oh, and Iruka had mentioned introducing him to a friend—possibly someone important. With that prospect in mind, Mizuki's steps grew lighter.
"Shino, are you really willing to be my friend?"
On an empty grass field, Naruto looked at Shino's dejected expression.
"Yes," Shino forced himself to nod.
I don't want to. But I have no choice.
"Then let's begin." Naruto waited for his opponent to make the first move.
"Alright, Naruto." Shino refused to be beaten passively. No matter what, he'd struggle first. Only when struggling became futile would he consider passive acceptance.
"Secret Art: Parasitic Insects!"
Countless bugs rose from Shino's body in a dense swarm, flying toward Naruto like a living cloud.
Naruto stood still, allowing the insects to land on him. He wanted to test whether their mandibles could penetrate the Iron Body defense that even blades couldn't pierce.
Moments later, bugs covered Naruto's entire body in a writhing mass.
Confirming they couldn't break through his skin, Naruto activated his Vibration Force. High-frequency tremors rippled across his body. The insects dropped to the ground one by one, strange liquid leaking from their bodies.
With the bugs dealt with, Naruto used Heavenly Steps and appeared directly in front of Shino.
Seeing Naruto rush toward him with overwhelming momentum, Shino hastily raised his arms in a taijutsu defense.
BOOM.
Naruto didn't budge. Shino flew backward and crashed to the ground.
Without question, Shino had now become Naruto's friend—complete with bruised and swollen face.
The next morning, Iruka walked into the classroom.
Every single student had a bruised and swollen face.
The students all stared at Iruka-sensei's bruised and swollen face.
For a long moment, the atmosphere hung delicately between them.
No one said a word.