Naruto: With Favorabiltity System

Chapter 342: Shikaku's Unwarranted Blame

"Sasuke, why is your face so red?"

Haneda noticed Sasuke glaring at him with an indignant pout. That slightly flushed face made Haneda want to laugh for no reason.

Sasuke grumbled, "It's because of that total idiot, Naruto!"

"I told him not to recklessly use the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu, but did he listen? No, he did it again and made a mess for Iruka-sensei!"

Haneda found it odd. Naruto making Iruka angry didn't seem to have much to do with Sasuke, so why was Sasuke so worked up?

Sasuke continued, "And in the end, who had to clean up his mess? Me! If it weren't for me, Haneda-uncle, you would've been called in by the school!"

"Ah???" Haneda turned to Naruto in confusion.

Naruto averted his gaze and muttered, "It wasn't that big of a deal in the end… Arigato, Sasuke-kun!"

The moment Naruto thanked him, Sasuke's flushed face instantly cooled, and he turned to scold another person who made him red.

"And Haneda-uncle, when are we going to resume my Chidori training? It's been days since our last session!"

"Actually, it was like this last time too!"

"Haneda-uncle, can we train tonight?"

Sasuke looked at Haneda with anticipation. Naruto, remembering his own Rasengan training, also stared at Haneda expectantly.

Faced with those two eager gazes, Haneda found it hard to outright refuse.

"Ahem… Elder Shikaku is dealing with a big issue, and I need to help him clean up the mess. I probably won't be back for a few days."

"Ah???" Naruto and Sasuke looked heartbroken.

Toneri and Gaara felt similarly, though their attachment wasn't as deep as Naruto and Sasuke's.

"How many days, exactly?" Sasuke pressed. He didn't believe Haneda's excuse unless it came with a concrete timeline.

"A few days? Let me think…" Haneda raised his fingers, pretending to calculate. Truthfully, he had no idea.

After "thinking deeply" for a moment, he dropped his hand and said, "Maybe a few months? Or, uh… a year or two?"

The more he spoke, the guiltier he felt.

"What?! A few months? A year or two?!"

Naruto and Sasuke exclaimed in unison.

They immediately launched a full-blown protest against Haneda.

Naruto complained, "Haneda-uncle, this is so unfair! You're abandoning me just for work?!"

Sasuke chimed in, "Exactly! Toneri and Gaara just got to Konoha. How can you be so heartless, Haneda-uncle?"

"Didn't you say you don't even care about Toneri and Gaara?"

"Mind your own business, Naruto!"

"But I will mind it! You're my best friend, Sasuke!"

"No, I'm your rival! And you're the ultimate idiot, Naruto!"

…

The argument spiraled completely off-topic. What began as a protest against Haneda turned into a one-sided quarrel between Sasuke and Naruto.

Their bickering continued as they walked through the streets. Haneda, feeling more relaxed, took his time, stopping occasionally to admire Konoha's development.

Once home, Haneda cooked up a feast. However, despite the enticing aroma, Naruto and the others had little appetite, having already heard about Haneda's impending departure.

After dinner, Haneda left alone, leaving Naruto and the others slumped on the couch, aimlessly passing time. Occasionally, Naruto would voice his complaints.

For the newcomers, Toneri and Gaara, things weren't as difficult. Both were accustomed to loneliness, and they enjoyed the lively atmosphere with so many interesting friends.

As for Haku and Kimimaro, they were long capable of living independently.

Kimimaro, in particular, had grown disinterested in school life. He wanted to graduate early—not only to satisfy Haneda but also to serve him as soon as possible, just like Deidara.

Naruto's complaints received no response from his companions. Dejected, he retreated to his room and shut the door.

Inside, he looked up at a photo hanging on the wall—a picture of him and Haneda.

In the photo, Haneda had his hand on Naruto's head, and Naruto was beaming at the camera.

This picture was taken when Haneda first adopted Naruto. Back then, Naruto had been utterly alone.

At the time, he still believed the Third Hokage was a good person.

"Haneda-uncle lost his parents when he was very young, so he doesn't understand the joy of having a family together!"

"He doesn't realize how important this kind of love is to us!"

"Hmph! And he doesn't care either! He just adopts people without taking care of them!"

Naruto lay on his bed, staring at the photo on the wall. It hung at the foot of his bed, in a spot he saw every morning when he woke up.

"Naruto!"

Suddenly, a very familiar voice called out from the window.

"Sasuke! What are you doing here?"

It was none other than Sasuke, who had wandered over to Naruto's window.

He felt bad about leaving Naruto alone at home, so he came over to keep him company. If possible, he even wanted to drag Naruto along for some training.

However, Sasuke had overheard Naruto's complaints from the window.

"You shouldn't be so biased against Haneda-uncle, Naruto," Sasuke said.

"Haneda-uncle is the Hokage. He has a lot of responsibilities."

"I heard from my brother that Haneda-uncle is busy with something extremely important lately. My brother didn't say what, though."

"You know, it's Anbu-level classified information. Not even most Anbu know about it—only a handful of people do."

Naruto, of course, knew that the Hokage had a lot of duties. But…

Shikamaru once told him that his dad, Elder Shikaku, often handled Haneda-uncle's office work. Haneda-uncle rarely even went to the office.

Naruto's admiration for the Hokage had already been shattered.

"What could be so important? Is it more important than family?"

"What's the point of a secret that only a few people know?"

Sasuke knocked repeatedly on Naruto's forehead. He had heard plenty of Haneda's achievements from Itachi, Shisui, and Fugaku.

This included some of those so-called classified secrets.

"I don't even know how to argue with you, Naruto! Without Haneda-uncle protecting Konoha, you, the Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki, would've been targeted a long time ago!"

"Just recently, Sunagakure stirred up trouble with Gaara, but Haneda-uncle personally stepped in and prevented a war."

"And that's just the latest! Before that, there was Iwagakure and Kumogakure!"

"Haneda-uncle's dream isn't something as simple or shallow as being a good father. He wants to create lasting peace, a happy and beautiful world!"

"Naruto, do you understand?!"

Sasuke lectured sternly, and Naruto nodded repeatedly.

Somehow, Sasuke's lecture made Naruto, who had been full of complaints, feel guilty.

In the end, Naruto shifted his blame to someone else.

"It's all Shikaku-uncle's fault for not working harder! That's why Haneda-uncle is so busy!"

Hearing this, Sasuke glanced at Naruto several times.

He remembered how Itachi and Shisui, like Haneda-uncle, were always busy. So, he joined in on the blame.

"Exactly! If Elder Shikaku worked harder, my brother would have time to practice shuriken with me!"

Far away on the moon, Haneda had no idea that his casual excuse had unfairly shifted all the blame onto Shikaku.

…

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