Chapter 34: Chapter 34

A new day dawned.

Kitazawa arrived early at the Ninja Academy.

The training ground, usually quiet at this hour, was already lively with students stretching and warming up.

“Kitazawa!”

Mizuki called out, striding toward him.

“Mizuki,” Kitazawa replied with a small nod. “Has Iruka arrived yet?”

“He’s probably still in bed,” Mizuki said with a chuckle. “You wouldn’t know this, but he’s been a procrastinator since he was a kid. And timid, too—he’d burst into tears whenever he got scared.”

Of course, Mizuki had purposely neglected to inform Iruka Umino about this morning’s gathering.

“Oh? If you two were childhood friends, does that mean you were also crying your eyes out back then?”

Kitazawa shot back lazily.

It only proved the saying that in any group of three people, one was bound to be an idiot.

“Wha—? Of course not!”

Mizuki’s grin stiffened, and he quickly tried to deny it.

“I see.”

Kitazawa smiled, patted Mizuki lightly on the shoulder, and gave him a knowing look.

’No—what exactly do you ’see,’ you bastard?!’

Mizuki’s jaw clenched. He wanted to explain himself, but Kitazawa had already turned away, heading back to Class 1-A.

“Damn you, Kitazawa!” Mizuki snarled under his breath. “One day, you’ll regret this!”

His eyes glinted with suppressed fury.

Right now, Kitazawa was basking in Hiruzen Sarutobi’s attention, making it nearly impossible for Mizuki’s little schemes to succeed.

Taking a deep breath, Mizuki shifted his gaze toward Hyuga Neji, who was practicing nearby.

He’d originally sought out Kitazawa to brag about his own genius student—but instead, he’d been completely outmaneuvered.

Kitazawa paused mid-step, stroking his chin thoughtfully.

’They say a gentleman’s revenge can wait ten years… but I’m no gentleman.’

Besides, he might tolerate being pursued by a woman—but never by a man.

Still, dealing with Mizuki was a delicate matter.

After all, Mizuki hadn’t yet committed any major crimes that could justify action against him.

“Kitazawa-sensei!”

A familiar voice rang out.

Naruto came running over, brimming with energy as always.

Kitazawa glanced at him, a sharp gleam sparking in his eyes.

Suddenly, an idea struck him—a perfect way to deal with Mizuki.

In the original story, Mizuki had manipulated Naruto into stealing the Scroll of Seals.

Back in his previous life, Kitazawa had always found that incident suspicious.

How could the Scroll of Seals, containing Konoha’s most forbidden and powerful jutsu, be stolen so easily?

Kitazawa had always assumed the worst of people—but there had to be deeper forces at work behind that event, like Hiruzen Sarutobi’s subtle machinations.

Current Mission: Send Mizuki to Prison.

Mission Reward: Fire Release: Heavenly Prison.

Kitazawa raised an eyebrow, grinning in delight.

’Mizuki, your rat-like existence ends today—with one swift move.’

Kitazawa recalled the Prison in the Land of Grass—Hozuki Castle—a notorious prison known for holding dangerous shinobi.

In that prison was a brilliant warden named Mui, whose signature technique was Fire Release: Heavenly Prison.

The jutsu was impressive. It sealed an enemy’s chakra, preventing them from forming any jutsu.

Even more terrifying, if the target moved too far away after being marked by Heavenly Prison, they’d spontaneously erupt in flames.

Though called “Fire Release,” the technique was actually a hybrid of Fire Release and advanced Fuinjutsu.

And in the shinobi world, there was no overstating how fearsome fuinjutsu truly was.

They were practically the “source code” of the ninja world—right up there with Sage Mode.

In other words… utterly terrifying.

—

A new day had begun at the Ninja Academy.

“Kitazawa-sensei.”

Sasuke cast a brief glance at Naruto, hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward to approach Kitazawa.

“Sasuke!”

Uzumaki Naruto greeted him with a huge grin.

“I won’t lose to you in the physical test this time.”

Sasuke’s brow twitched. Somehow, Naruto’s cheerful smile always felt like a provocation. He responded coolly:

“If I could beat you once, I can beat you again!”

Naruto puffed out his chest, his eyes sparkling with confidence. “See you at first place!”

’Have you grown up or something, talking about “meeting at the top”…?’

Sasuke subtly edged backward. Any longer around Naruto and he’d be dragged down to his level.

“Ahhh!”

A sudden beast-like yell split the air.

Iruka Umino came charging across the training grounds at what was probably the top speed of his life.

Seventeen years old—and already a teacher.

Kitazawa glanced at the clock. It was 8:55 a.m. Iruka had just barely avoided being late.

“S-sorry, Kitazawa-senpai!” Iruka gasped, doubled over and sweating buckets.

“It’s fine, as long as you made it.”

Kitazawa paused, then added, “And… be careful around Mizuki.”

“Huh?”

Iruka blinked, bewildered.

’What’s that supposed to mean?’

“Alright, everyone, gather around! I’m going to explain the rules for today’s practical exam.”

Kitazawa clapped his hands, drawing everyone’s attention.

Normally, a practical exam would be an all-out brawl—a real shinobi clash.

But the students had only been enrolled for a month. Most of them still hadn’t mastered the three basic jutsu. Right now, they were basically just baby birds pecking at each other.

Besides, if it were a true fight, it would be an utter massacre for the kids from civilian families. The clan heirs would wipe the floor with them.

To avoid traumatizing the civilian students, the first practical exam wasn’t a full-scale battle. There was no one-on-one matchup system.

“This exam has four parts: the Clone Technique, a physical fitness test, shuriken throwing, and kunai throwing.”

Kitazawa raised four fingers as he spoke. “I’ll demonstrate first.”

Technically, it was a demonstration… But in reality, he was sneakily showing off.

Kitazawa pulled out a kunai and a shuriken. With a quick flick of both wrists, he threw them simultaneously.

Clang!

The kunai and shuriken collided midair, then spun off on perfect arcs and embedded themselves dead center in two distant bullseyes.

He’d definitely done it on purpose—to keep Uchiha Sasuke in check.

“Amazing!”

Naruto whooped with genuine excitement, clapping wildly.

This wasn’t fake praise. That flashy throw was seriously cool.

Nearby, Hinata clenched her fists, eyes shining with quiet longing.

’If only I could be as strong as Kitazawa-sensei…’

But it wasn’t impossible. If she managed to win first place, maybe even Hiashi would finally look at her differently.

Sasuke squinted at Kitazawa, feeling a surge of competitiveness.

’What’s with this guy…? Even his “demonstration” is ridiculous.’

Sasuke let out a silent sigh.

It was a pity he hadn’t yet learned how to manipulate shuriken trajectories. Otherwise, he could’ve put on a show to steal Kitazawa’s spotlight.

“The first part of the exam is the clone jutsu,” Kitazawa announced.

After demonstrating the jutsu again, he said, “Step up in order.”

He took out the class roster and a pen, ready to record scores.

“It’s my turn!”

Naruto, bursting with energy, strode to the center of the training ground like a rooster ready to fight.

“Naruto, go get ’em!”

Shikamaru and Choji yelled from the sidelines.

Naruto swept his gaze around. He knew most people expected him to fail.

But Kitazawa’s calm, encouraging look struck a chord deep inside him.

’If I mess up here… my whole future at the Academy is over!’

“Clone Jutsu!”

Naruto shouted dramatically, forming rapid hand seals.

Kitazawa’s eyelid twitched.

’Where did you pick up the habit of yelling out the name of your jutsu like it’s a finishing move?’

Bang!

Two Naruto clones appeared in puffs of smoke.

They were identical, solid, and—finally—normal-looking.

“Not bad,” Kitazawa praised. “This time you’ve outdone yourself.”

“Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei!” Naruto said, beaming with pride.

Meanwhile, in the Hokage’s office, a crystal ball shimmered on Hiruzen Sarutobi’s desk, showing Naruto’s determined face.

Hiruzen stroked his beard, a thoughtful smile playing on his lips.

’Kitazawa really does have a knack for this teaching business…’

——————————-

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