At the entrance of Ichiraku Ramen.
When Naruto rushed to the designated meeting point, he found that Sasuke and Sakura had already arrived.
Sasuke still had his cool expression, hands in his pockets, leaning against the wall next to the ramen shop, eyes slightly closed, as if indifferent to everything around him; only the slightly dark circles under his eyes indicated that he hadn't slept very well last night.
What surprised Naruto a little was that Sakura today wasn't sticking to Sasuke like a piece of chewing gum, chattering endlessly, as she usually did.
Instead, she stood a few steps away from Sasuke, hands behind her back, pacing back and forth anxiously, her emerald green eyes constantly glancing at both ends of the street, seemingly looking for someone?
Is she looking for me?
Naruto's heart suddenly stirred!
He subconsciously recalled that incredibly real dream from last night.
Sakura actively confessed her feelings to him, even calling him "Naruto-sama"...
Could it be... could that dream be real?
Sakura... she... she really...
An uncontrollable surge of ecstasy once again welled up in Naruto's heart, washing away the bitterness of being disliked by the villagers just now.
The disappointment on his face was instantly replaced by an incredibly brilliant smile.
Just then, Sakura, who was looking around, finally spotted Naruto rushing towards her.
Her body visibly stiffened, and then, a blazing fury instantly ignited in her beautiful emerald green eyes.
"Na-ru-to!!!"
The murderous roar startled several early-rising passersby.
Sakura almost instantly vanished from her spot, rushing in front of Naruto like a pink lightning bolt.
"Eh? Sakura-chan..."
Naruto saw Sakura rushing straight towards him, her face, in his eyes, showing a shy and adorable expression, and his sense of happiness reached its peak.
He subconsciously raised his hand, a most brilliant smile on his face, ready to receive Sakura-chan's hug or perhaps... a kiss?
However...
What greeted him was not a sweet kiss, nor a hug, but—
"Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!"
A series of pink iron fists, filled with a maiden's fury, rained down heavily on Naruto's head.
"Ouch! Ow ow ow! It hurts!"
Naruto was instantly dazed, feeling stars in his eyes, and several round bumps visibly swelled on his head at a rapid pace.
He clutched his throbbing head, squatting on the ground, tears welling up as he looked at Sakura, who was exuding a terrifyingly eerie aura, completely clueless about the situation.
"Sa-Sakura-chan... why... why are you hitting me?!" he asked pitifully.
"I hit you?!"
Sakura stood with her hands on her hips, glaring down at him, gritting her teeth as she said, "Naruto! You super invincible idiot! I ask you, what kind of ridiculous dream did you have last night?!"
"Eh? Dream?" Naruto was startled by her words, then his cheeks flushed slightly, and he subconsciously looked at Sasuke, who was still leaning against the wall acting cool, his voice dropping, "Wh-what dream... I... I don't remember..."
Of course, he remembered.
He remembered perfectly clearly!
In the dream, Sakura had confessed to him with a blush.
Could it be... could she... know what was in my dream?!
Impossible, right? How could things from a dream be known by others?
Naruto felt a pang of guilt in his heart, and his gaze began to wander.
"Don't remember?!" Seeing his guilty look, Sakura became even more furious, raising her hand to hit his head a few more times.
She suppressed the urge to beat him, and said fiercely, "Hmph, you'd better truly not remember, if I find you having that kind of... that kind of shameless, idiotic dream again, see if I don't punch you to death."
'Wuwuwu... she really knows, she actually knows.'
'But... why? It's too terrifying!'
Naruto clutched his head, on the verge of tears.
Sakura looked at his idiotic expression, too lazy to argue with him further, she snorted coldly, turned her head away, and ignored him.
Seeing Sakura ignoring him, Naruto could only turn his pleading gaze towards Sasuke.
However, when his eyes met Sasuke's, he found that Sasuke was also looking at him with a strange gaze.
Sasuke remembered that during yesterday's test, although Naruto acted like an idiot, he was able to come up with a cooperative tactic at the last moment, and even succeeded in a sneak attack.
This dead last, perhaps he wasn't as simple as he appeared.
Feeling Sasuke's scrutinizing gaze, Naruto felt even more guilty, he let out two dry laughs, and quickly changed the subject, trying to break the awkward atmosphere:
"Um... Sasuke, where's Kakashi-sensei? Is he late again?"
Sasuke withdrew his gaze, and calmly hummed, his tone and expression both serene.
"Kakashi-sensei is late again."
"What the heck!"
Upon hearing this, Naruto immediately found an outlet for his complaints, jumping up and down, shouting, "How many times have we met, and he's late every single time! Does the meeting time even mean anything anymore, I ask you! Kakashi-sensei is truly unreliable!"
However, Naruto had truly misunderstood Kakashi this time.
In fact, Kakashi had arrived long ago.
He was hiding in a large tree at a nearby street corner, observing them.
He had even activated his Sharingan, taking in every interaction between the few of them just now.
Indeed, Sakura's and Sasuke's reactions both proved that last night's experience was real.
And not just my own hallucination.
Moreover, looking at Naruto's dazed yet guilty expression after being hit, he seemed unaware that his dream had been broadcast live.
This ruled out the possibility that he had actively used some secret Ninjutsu that they didn't know about.
After confirming this, Kakashi's frown deepened.
It wasn't Naruto's doing...
Then what kind of existence possesses such terrifying ability?
Silently drawing Team 7, including himself, into a shared dream space.
Precisely capturing and broadcasting the dreams of specific individuals...
This ability had already exceeded his understanding of the known Ninjutsu system.
Is it some unknown Genjutsu?
Or some special barrier that transcends space-time Ninjutsu?
Or perhaps an even more inconceivable power?
Kakashi felt that his usually calm brain was struggling.
The strangeness of this matter had far exceeded his imagination.
'No... this matter must be reported to the Third Hokage!'
'But... how should I say it?'
'Say I had a dream about Naruto's mother, and even involved two students? What would the Third Hokage think? Too tired from recent missions? Mental instability due to guilt towards Naruto?'
'Moreover, the ability of that mastermind is so strange, would reporting it rashly alert the enemy? Or even bring greater danger to the Village?'
Kakashi pondered, unable to find a suitable solution, and fell into a dilemma.
He pulled down his forehead protector, covering his Sharingan, temporarily suppressing the surprise and unease in his heart.
Let's wait and see for now.
At least, he needed to figure out the other party's objective first.
Having made up his mind, Kakashi no longer concealed himself.
He silently appeared before the three members of Team 7, a perpetually lazy smile on his face, and raised his hand to greet them:
"Yo~ Good morning, everyone."
"Ah, Kakashi-sensei!" As soon as Naruto saw Kakashi, he immediately forgot his troubles from earlier, pointing at him and loudly complaining, "You're late again! You're really the worst!"
"Well, well..." Kakashi maintained his perfunctory attitude, casually making up an unreliable excuse like "I met an old lady who needed help on the way."
Then, with no sincerity, he clasped his hands together and apologized, "Sorry, sorry, I'll pay attention next time."
His gaze swept over the three kids, seeing the obvious bumps on Naruto's head, Sakura's still pouting face, and Sasuke's indifferent expression as if it had nothing to do with him, he couldn't help but shake his head inwardly.
He cleared his throat and changed the subject, "Alright, save your complaints for later. Did you guys eat breakfast? We're starting official missions today, and being hungry will affect efficiency."
Before Naruto could speak, his stomach let out a rumbling protest.
He scratched the back of his head sheepishly, chuckling foolishly, "Um... I woke up late, so I just drank some milk..."
Sasuke's complexion was still a bit pale, clearly, that absurd dream last night had also affected his sleep quality, he said coldly, "No."
Sakura, on the other hand, stuck out her tongue and patted her flat stomach, "I'm trying to control my figure..."
Though what she was really thinking was that she had no appetite because that idiot Naruto had angered her.
Kakashi looked at these three kids, each in their own state, and clapped his hands helplessly.
"Alright, alright, since none of you have eaten..." A lazy smile appeared on his face, "Then, to express my apology for being late, this breakfast today will be on me, your 'terrible' sensei! I'll treat you to Ichiraku Ramen!"
"Wow!!!"
Naruto's eyes instantly turned into stars upon hearing they were going to Ichiraku Ramen!
All his minor emotions were completely thrown to the wind.
He was the first to cheer, jumping up with both arms raised, "Awesome! Ichiraku Ramen! Kakashi-sensei is the best!"
Although Sasuke and Sakura didn't have any particular fondness for ramen, since their sensei was treating, there was no reason to refuse.
Thus, amidst Naruto's excited cheers, Team 7, the four of them, lifted the cloth curtain with the character "Ichiraku" printed on it and entered the legendary ramen shop.