*Chapter 7: Winning Hearts and Minds!*

Sasuke's calm voice echoed in the gradually darkening, empty streets. His words were like a heavy hammer, striking the weakest point of Naruto's heart.

*+5*

The number flashed before Sasuke's eyes.

This...

Sasuke was taken aback—it was completely unexpected.

He never thought that casually saying some cool-sounding words would earn him more points than revealing his Sharingan earlier!

Why is that?  

Sasuke hesitated. Did this sentence really deserve so many points? Could the system have a different method of judgment?

He had to figure it out.

This was the key to obtaining large amounts of points!

Sasuke looked at Naruto questioningly, only to see him standing dazedly behind him, tears faintly shimmering in his eyes.

"Uh... it's not that bad, is it?"

Sasuke's lips twitched. He remembered Naruto as a strong character in the original story, but now he seemed overly sentimental. What was going on? This was a bit different from what he had expected.

"No, it's nothing." Naruto rolled up his sleeves, rubbed his eyes vigorously, and said, "The wind was too strong; I got sand in my eyes."

"..."

Sasuke was speechless. This guy was stubborn, and his excuse was pretty lame—there was clearly no wind at all.

Wait!  

A light bulb went off in Sasuke's head as he suddenly had an epiphany.

At the beginning of the original anime, Naruto was an unwelcome orphan who didn't know his heroic parents and was misunderstood as the demon fox. Almost everyone kept their distance from him.

If it had been anyone else, their mentality would have collapsed long ago, and who knows how dark they would have become.

However, Naruto had always maintained a strong and optimistic attitude. Not only did he not resent Konoha Village, but he even harbored the dream of becoming Hokage. Beneath his childish actions—like defacing the Hokage Rock—he hid a heart that longed to be recognized.

The current Naruto still yearned for recognition. Any subtle actions or words from others could touch his sensitive heart.

The words Sasuke had just said...

They precisely satisfied Naruto's desire to be recognized.

From this perspective, it could be said that this showing off hit the mark—it was perfectly timed and deeply resonated with Naruto.

"I see."

Sasuke instantly understood. Any form of showing off would be judged by the Showing Off System. If it was ordinary showing off, the points added would be few. But if it was just the right kind of showing off, even a simple sentence could yield significant points.

This was easier said than done.

However...

The corners of Sasuke's mouth curled into a slight smile. He was no longer the same Sasuke as before but the Sasuke King who knew the entire Naruto plot. Armed with this information, targeted showing off wouldn’t be too difficult.

"Yes, that's right, I got sand in my eyes!"

Naruto was still rubbing his eyes. He mistakenly thought Sasuke's "I see" was a response to his excuse and assumed he'd covered it up successfully.

"Let's go, Naruto. I'll treat you to your favorite Ichiraku Ramen. You can eat as much as you want—it's on me."

Sasuke walked toward Naruto and patted him lightly on the shoulder. This young "prince" before him was the only person in Konoha Village he considered worth investing in.

By nurturing his relationship with Naruto, Sasuke could not only generate points directly but also gain points through anything related to Naruto.

And more importantly, Naruto was truly persistent!

When Sasuke defected to Orochimaru, Naruto chased him for three years. Even after becoming Hokage, getting married, and having children, Naruto still couldn't forget Sasuke.

So now...

Sasuke believed that after his future "training," Naruto would be even more devoted than in the original storyline.

Cough, cough, cough!  

The thought made Sasuke choke on his own saliva. He had no ulterior motives in befriending Naruto—it was just for the sake of showing off.

Without further ado, Sasuke turned stylishly and began walking toward the brightly lit Ichiraku Ramen. The moment he took a step, Naruto lowered his sleeves and followed him.

One after the other, the two arrived at Ichiraku Ramen and sat down.

"Sasuke, do you have enough money?" Naruto asked after sitting down. He was about to order ramen but worried that Sasuke might not have brought enough money. If they ordered too much and couldn’t pay, it would be embarrassing.

"Eat as much as you want." Sasuke took out a banknote with a "1" followed by four zeros and slapped it on the table. The sound of his palm hitting the surface emphasized the generosity of the 10,000 Ryo.

"You're so rich!" Naruto's eyes widened. For him, 10,000 Ryo was an astronomical sum.

*+2*

The number flashed before Sasuke's eyes once again.

As expected, targeted showing off worked. The main reason was that Naruto was poor now!

"Uncle Ichiraku, I want three bowls of ramen!" Naruto smiled and raised three fingers. Eating ramen was pure happiness. But as he spoke, he remembered Sasuke sitting beside him and quickly raised three more fingers on his other hand, saying, "No, add three more bowls—a total of six!"

"Alright!"

Uncle Ichiraku started cooking noodles without any intention of joining the conversation. His white chef's uniform gave off an air of detachment from worldly matters.

Sasuke took a deep look at the man cooking the noodles.

This was the person analysts often speculated was a hidden member of the Otsutsuki clan, but he never revealed himself until the end.

Since Sasuke had come to the world of Naruto...

He had to remain cautious.

What if Ichiraku really had hidden boss-level powers?

"Naruto, we're graduating in March. You're aware of this, right?" Sasuke asked, steering the conversation in the direction he wanted.

"Graduation..." Naruto immediately deflated, thinking about the cruel graduation exam. His excitement over ramen disappeared, leaving him listless.

"Naruto, don't you want to become Hokage? Why are you even afraid of a mere graduation exam?" Sasuke smirked, gradually guiding Naruto toward his goal.

"Your grades are good, so of course, you're not afraid. I’ve failed the exam twice before—it’s too hard for me!" Naruto admitted, his confidence dwindling.

"You started school early enough..." Sasuke was stunned. This "prince" had repeated two grades and was still the same age as him. Why the Third Hokage allowed Naruto to start school early only to face repeated setbacks was beyond him.

"Yeah." Naruto's smile disappeared completely as unpleasant memories of his childhood resurfaced.

"Naruto, the subject of our graduation exam is the Clone Jutsu," Sasuke revealed, leveraging his information advantage.

"What?!?!" Naruto's head shot up, his eyes wide with shock. His voice grew louder as he asked, "Sasuke, how do you know that?"

*+3*

Immediately, the number flashed before Sasuke's eyes.

Naruto’s shock threshold was indeed lower, making the effects of showing off even better.

"Uh... I have good grades. Iruka-sensei told me," Sasuke casually deflected, knowing Naruto wouldn’t check.

"It's over! The Clone Jutsu is my weakest technique. What should I do? I'll fail the exam again!" Naruto panicked. Among the three basic jutsu, his best was the Transformation Jutsu, which wasn’t tested.

"We’re friends, and friends help each other. Train with me during this time, and I guarantee you’ll pass the graduation exam smoothly!" Sasuke patted his chest and smiled confidently.

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*End of Chapter*