Journey to the West: Life Simulation of Sun Wukong

As for holding the sun and moon and plucking the stars, she dared not imagine, but she had already felt a flicker of longing.

In class.

A strand of Sun Wukong's consciousness returned the body back to Sakura, and Sakura, looking at the handwriting in her notes identical to hers, couldn't help but smile knowingly.

"Thank you, Mr. Wukong."

After class, Haruno Sakura didn't rush home but greeted Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru, Choji, and Naruto, saying she wanted to stroll around the village and asking if they wanted to join.

Ino happily agreed, Shikamaru complained about it being a hassle but followed anyway, and Choji, while eating, nodded along.

Naruto also greeted the trio.

The trio just nodded.

Shikamaru, however, sized up Naruto for a while.

"Why are you looking at me like that, dead-fish eyes?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing, it's just such a hassle," Shikamaru muttered his catchphrase, having probably guessed Naruto's identity.

Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.

This guy, though innocent, carried the Nine-Tails and had to bear everyone's malice regardless of his actual identity.

For someone like him, Shikamaru instinctively felt he should stay away.

But since Ino had tied up some relation with Sakura and Sakura and Naruto were friends, he, this "deer," and Choji, that "butterfly," couldn't stay unrelated.

So, he found it troublesome.

"Hmph! Let me tell you, I am going to be the Hokage one day!" Naruto declared loudly, lifting a thumb to his chin.

"Yeah, yeah," Shikamaru dismissed nonchalantly, "Men and women in our class who talk about becoming Hokage are a dime a dozen."

"It's not the same! I really am going to be the Hokage!" Naruto corrected Shikamaru.

"What's the difference?" Shikamaru yawned lazily, looking utterly worn out.

"Of course, there's a difference! That's because I will definitely succeed!" Naruto said confidently.

Yamanaka Ino quietly approached Sakura and whispered, "Sakura, how did you end up thinking of befriending this scruffy guy?"

"I just feel like he's a bit like the me from yesterday," Sakura confided her true thoughts to Ino. E!nj%oy.i*ng! the st@ory? F^i%nd mo-r-e at MV$-LE%MP&Y$R^.

"Out of sympathy?" Ino glanced at Naruto, who was still arguing with Shikamaru, "This kid is lively, but it seems he's latched onto you, you're in for some trouble ahead."

Sakura didn't detect the schadenfreude in Ino's tone, simply responding, "I think it's okay. He's different from me; he genuinely didn't have a single friend before, so he probably wants to cherish me extra."

"Huh~ your words sound weird." Ino shivered and then asked, "Where to next?"

"Let's head to Tea Street."

Tea Street.

It was Konoha's gourmet street, filled with a multitude of delicious eateries.

"Going for some gourmet food?" Choji perked up upon hearing they were heading to Tea Street, "I want barbecue!"

"Choji, don't go overboard, this isn't a party," Shikamaru chided Choji.

"All right," Choji somewhat reluctantly continued munching on his chips.

The five of them arrived at Tea Street, where everyone bought quite a few snacks except Naruto, who bought less because fewer people were willing to sell him food due to his identity.

"I only bought five cups of instant noodles," Naruto said somewhat embarrassedly.

Although now, when he went on the streets, people didn't throw things at him anymore, and their attitude had improved slightly compared to when he was four or five years old, they still looked at him coldly.

Naruto found it odd; he wasn't actually a demon fox, so could it really just be because of the marks on his face?

But those marks weren't whiskers.

If he could cut them off, he would have done so already, but those six patterns were imprinted on his skin. Was he expected to gouge out his flesh?

That would hurt a lot.

Meanwhile, Haruno Sakura bought some vegetables and fruits, and most importantly, she asked the two vendors if they needed help.

Unfortunately, neither needed any.

However, Sakura wasn't discouraged because she then asked a nearby barbecue shop if they needed a server, and the proprietor, after peering at the petite Haruno Sakura for a long while, agreed.

Sakura was thrilled.

Not only could she earn money, but the barbecue shop's proprietor also allowed her to eat meals there for free until she was full.

Sakura already felt, maybe in the future, she might become a big eater who wouldn't trouble her family, naturally sparing her family any hassle.

"Instant noodles? It's nice to change things up once in a while," Sakura did not get upset that Naruto had only managed to buy instant noodles but consoled him instead.

"Sakura~"

Naruto's eyes shone brightly.

The five of them arrived at a riverside, cleared a spot, and started a fire.

Since Choji's lunchbox was the largest, Sakura borrowed it to wash the vegetables, tearing them into pieces and boiling them in the lunchbox.

As for seasoning, of course, it came from the sauce inside Naruto's instant noodles and some snacks that could be cooked in water.

Once the broth in the lunchbox started boiling, Sakura put all five blocks of instant noodles in, then loosely covered the lid, waiting for the noodles to cook thoroughly in the broth.

During this time, the five of them sat by the river and started discussing life.

Sakura asked, "Ino, what do you plan to do in the future?"

"Well, though I'd like to say become the Hokage, to be more realistic, I'll probably inherit my family's flower shop. The only luxury I'm hoping for is to marry a handsome husband," Ino chuckled.