The morning classes had already ended; it was currently recess.
After class, Uzumaki Kushina was surrounded by a few boys from her class.
"Tomato, from today on, you'll be called Tomato! A chubby round face, plus red hair, isn't that a tomato?"
"How could a Tomato ever become Hokage?"
"I absolutely hate Tomatoes!"
"Me too, if there's Tomato in a salad, I'll leave it!"
"How could an unpopular Tomato gain the Villager's approval?"
"Hahaha..."
Uzumaki Kushina pouted, full of anger, but she couldn't retort.
Because with them saying that, she did seem quite like a Tomato.
"An unpopular Tomato and an unpopular Traitor, no wonder you two can be deskmates."
"Tomato Traitor, a perfect match."
...
Sora pursed his lips in disdain; he also had a nickname at school, and Traitor was his nickname.
The reason his nickname was Traitor was because the parents of these brats called him that.
Seeing these brats go too far, even dragging him into it to mock Uzumaki Kushina, Sora could no longer ignore it.
Most importantly, Sora glanced at Minato Namikaze. Although Minato Namikaze was looking at Uzumaki Kushina, he didn't seem to have any intention of helping her out.
Just as Sora got up and walked over, one of the brats grabbed Uzumaki Kushina's hair.
"It's almost ripe, the Tomato festival is here, let's harvest the fruits!"
Uzumaki Kushina grabbed the brat's hand, just about to explode, when Sora had already walked behind the brat who was holding Uzumaki Kushina's hair.
"Hey, can you move aside?"
The few brats surrounding Uzumaki Kushina instantly turned their aggression towards Sora: "What right do you, a Traitor, have to tell us to move? Get lost!"
Sora said faintly: "If you fight here, you'll probably lose a lot of face, won't you?"
Not long after enrolling, Sora had also been cornered by a few students, but perhaps because Sora, possessing half of the Senju Clan's bloodline, had excellent physical conditioning, he could fight several at once.
After that, although Sora's strength was not as good as Minato Namikaze's, he was still among the top students at school.
Gradually, no one who bullied the weak and feared the strong came to bother Sora anymore.
Hearing Sora say that, the brats' faces stiffened.
Sora walked forward, bumping the brat who was still holding Uzumaki Kushina's hair with his shoulder, and walked out of the classroom.
Sora, having walked out of the classroom, suddenly froze; he remembered.
Uzumaki Kushina... apparently didn't need him to rescue her.
Uzumaki Kushina herself had an unyielding personality, and the Uzumaki Clan's physique was extraordinary.
The next second.
Sora heard the sounds from inside the classroom.
"Who are you calling Tomato?! Let me state this first, I hate Tomatoes too!"
Uzumaki Kushina grabbed the arm of the brat who had previously grabbed her hair, then swung him hard, directly sending all the surrounding brats flying.
Then Uzumaki Kushina straddled one of the brats, her small fists repeatedly landing on the brat's head: "Look down on me again, call me Tomato, and I'll make sure you can't walk away!"
At this moment, Uzumaki Kushina saw Minato Namikaze's bright smile, and Uzumaki Kushina said unhappily: "What's so funny?!"
Minato Namikaze instantly turned his head away, only daring to look at Uzumaki Kushina out of the corner of his eye.
The afternoon classes were about to begin.
After Sora bought a rice ball at the convenience store, he ate it as he returned to his seat in the classroom.
Uzumaki Kushina was pouting and looked very angry.
Sora glanced at the few brats who had previously cornered Uzumaki Kushina; their heads were full of bumps.
Was she angry because she felt she hadn't beaten them enough?
Sora listened silently as Masada Hayabusa continued his lecture.
During class.
Uzumaki Kushina's frequency of peeking at Sora noticeably increased.
An entire afternoon left Sora feeling uncomfortable.
Finally, the afternoon classes ended, and school was finally dismissed. Sora eagerly left the classroom.
Now, Sora's mind was filled with Lightning Breathing.
However, Sora didn't notice that Uzumaki Kushina's hand was halfway raised in the air, her expression a bit awkward.
Just now, Uzumaki Kushina had wanted to talk to Sora, because Sora was an outcast, and she, Uzumaki Kushina, was also an outcast.
Uzumaki Kushina, still a child, especially having come to a strange place for the first time, was very eager for friends.
Sora's action of helping her out just now made Uzumaki Kushina want to be friends with Sora.
Looking at Sora's retreating back, Uzumaki Kushina clenched her two small fists, her eyes filled with determination, and she chased after him.
But Sora was eager to return home now, almost running to get there.
To catch up with Sora, Uzumaki Kushina also frantically moved her two short legs, chasing after Sora.
It wasn't until they left the Konoha streets, in the outskirts of Konoha, that Uzumaki Kushina, chasing after Sora, called out breathlessly: "Hey! Wait!"
Sora heard the familiar voice, turned around in surprise, and seeing Uzumaki Kushina, he was beyond astonished.
Uzumaki Kushina saw that Sora had finally stopped, placed her hands on her thighs, and breathed heavily, panting.
Sora proactively walked up to Uzumaki Kushina and asked: "Do you need something from me?"
After taking a deep breath, Uzumaki Kushina extended her small hand towards Sora and said loudly: "My name is Uzumaki Kushina!"
Sora looked at Uzumaki Kushina with a strange gaze.
Uzumaki Kushina felt uneasy under Sora's gaze.
"My name is Sora."
Sora reached out and briefly clasped Uzumaki Kushina's small hand, then immediately let go.
Uzumaki Kushina asked curiously: "Sora? Is that your surname or your given name?"
"Given name, I don't have a surname."
"Ah? No surname?"
Uzumaki Kushina's little brain was a bit confused; were there people without surnames?
Sora asked again: "Do you need something from me?"
Uzumaki Kushina gathered her courage and said: "I want to be friends with you!"
Sora thought to himself, 'As expected.'
"Uzumaki Kushina, you should have also seen my situation in class."
Uzumaki Kushina said innocently: "Yes, I know, you're isolated just like me."
Sora smiled and said: "Your situation is different from mine. I'm isolated by the entire Village. If you become friends with me, you might also be isolated by everyone.
Today is just your first day of school; you just encountered some bad students. You'll still be able to find friends later.
Try to ask the teacher to change your seat, because even being my deskmate will make it very difficult for you to find friends. It's getting late, you should go back too. Goodbye."
After politely declining Uzumaki Kushina, Sora waved at her and turned to leave.
Uzumaki Kushina watched Sora's retreating back, lowering her head in disappointment.
She had finally gathered the courage to want to be friends with Sora, but she was rejected, feeling a little sad inside.