Chapter 71: Chapter 71

The next day—Monday.

With June’s arrival, the sun beat down harder over Konoha, bringing with it the thick, muggy heat of early summer.

In front of the Ninja Academy, a large crowd of students had gathered, crowding around the bulletin board that displayed the overall grade rankings for the May monthly exam.

Kitazawa strolled up casually and took a glance.

As expected, the top ten students in Class 1A also dominated the top ten in the entire grade.

“Kitazawa.”

A familiar voice called out.

Mizuki stepped forward, a smug look on his face. “Shame your class didn’t get any perfect scores.”

’Still trying to flex after last time?’

Kitazawa smiled faintly. “Oh, by the way—Hokage-sama has agreed to my request. He’ll be the referee for our friendly match this Friday.”

Mizuki froze, caught completely off guard.

He wanted to call it a lie, but with the Hokage involved, even he knew Kitazawa wouldn’t dare fabricate something like that.

Which meant—it was true.

His face darkened slightly.

What good were perfect scores now?

Kitazawa wasn’t just some promising young chunin instructor anymore. He’d gained the Hokage’s favor and had a bright future ahead. Mizuki could already sense it wouldn’t be long before Kitazawa outranked him.

“I’ll be heading to class now. See you around.”

Kitazawa turned away, hiding a satisfied smirk as he watched Mizuki’s expression cycle from pale to green. ’There’s no happiness quite like the kind that comes from watching your enemy squirm.’

Of course, Kitazawa considered himself a kind and reasonable man.

It’s just that Mizuki had insisted on walking into his own defeat. Honestly, he was more of a bump in the road than a rival.

Later that morning, after the first class ended, Kitazawa led four students to the Academy’s training ground.

Trailing behind him was the so-called truancy squad: Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuga Hinata, Ino Yamanaka, and Sakura Haruno.

“Kitazawa-sensei!” Sasuke called out eagerly. “What Fire Release jutsu am I learning today?”

He was still riding high from the praise he’d received from both his father and older brother the night before. The thrill hadn’t worn off, and now he was hungry for more power.

“You’ve already mastered two C-rank Fire Release jutsu. To boost your strength further, it’s time to tackle a B-rank jutsu. But that takes time,” Kitazawa said after some thought. “With the friendly match approaching, I have something more immediately useful in mind.”

“What is it?” Sasuke asked quickly, eyes lighting up. He didn’t care if it wasn’t Fire Release—so long as it made him stronger.

“Manipulating shuriken using strings mid-flight”

Kitazawa grinned slightly.

Sasuke’s expression brightened instantly.

Everyone in Konoha knew Sasuke’s three signature talents: Sharingan, Fire Release, and ninja tool mastery. And this particular technique was a classic from the Uchiha clan arsenal.

“The key is using nearly invisible wire to control your shuriken mid-flight,” Kitazawa explained, pulling out two shuriken.

He flicked his wrists—thwip! The shuriken flew into a nearby tree with a satisfying thud.

With another quick motion, the blades reversed direction, pulled back by the wire, and stuck neatly into the ground at his feet.

“Start with stationary targets. Once you get the hang of it, we’ll move on to moving ones.”

He handed the shuriken to Sasuke.

“Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei!”

Sasuke gripped them tightly, immediately throwing himself into training with laser focus.

“The rest of you, get started on your training too,” Kitazawa called over to Hinata, Ino, and Sakura.

Hinata resumed her leaf-catching concentration drills, while Ino and Sakura continued practicing water-walking exercises.

Kitazawa didn’t idle either—he sent a Shadow Clone off to a quiet corner to keep working on Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Jutsu.

Time passed quickly, and before he knew it, the orange hues of sunset stretched across the sky.

As he casually tossed a leaf into the air, three glowing lines of text appeared before his eyes:

[Mission Complete: Help Sakura Haruno finish her water-walking special training.]

[Reward: Healing Jutsu acquired.]

Kitazawa blinked and looked over.

Sakura stood with her hands on her hips, face glowing with pride.

Opposite her, Ino was clearly sulking, her expression a mix of frustration and reluctant admiration.

Today’s victory clearly belonged to Sakura.

Meanwhile, Kitazawa received a rush of knowledge about the Healing Jutsu—a more basic version of the Mystic Palm jutsu. It was just as he’d expected: a stepping stone toward advanced medical ninjutsu.

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. With their water-walking training complete, it was time to move Sakura and Ino onto something new.

But… what?

He didn’t have an immediate answer, so he decided to call it a day.

“Training ends here. You’re all dismissed.”

“Thanks, Kitazawa-sensei! See you tomorrow!”

Sasuke, Hinata, Sakura, and Ino gathered their things and left one by one.

Kitazawa stood in the fading light, already thinking about what tomorrow’s lesson would bring.

After leaving the Ninja Academy, Kitazawa made his way toward Kurenai’s house.

Today, they planned to discuss Yakumo’s fourth jutsu.

The door opened, revealing Kurenai standing there in red.

Since she was at home, she’d changed into her usual low-cut red dress.

To be honest, Kitazawa preferred this version of her attire—it accentuated Kurenai’s elegant figure, highlighting the subtle glow of her fair skin.

“Seeing a beautiful woman like you after work washes away all my fatigue,” Kitazawa said with a grin.

“Oh? Are you flirting with me now?” Kurenai asked, crossing her arms under her chest.

The movement pulled the fabric of her dress taut, making her curves even more prominent.

“How could I be?” Kitazawa answered solemnly. “I’m simply stating a fact.”

“Alright, get in here,” Kurenai said, giving him a playful glare before turning around.

As she walked toward the living room, her hips swayed ever so slightly.

“Has Lady Tsunade not arrived yet?” Kitazawa asked, noticing the room was empty.

“She’s probably at the casino,” Kurenai replied with a resigned smile. She’d spent enough time with Tsunade to know exactly where to look for her.

“You get used to it,” Kitazawa chuckled, settling onto the sofa beside her.

A small tilt of his head gave him a perfect view of her long legs.

“You really are a pervert,” Kurenai teased, catching his wandering gaze. She lifted her foot and pressed it down lightly on the top of his.

She wasn’t wearing shoes, and Kitazawa could distinctly feel the soft warmth of her sole against his instep.

“You’re welcome,” Kurenai said with a playful smile.

She already liked Kitazawa enough to enjoy teasing him without reservation.

“Next time, you should wear black stockings,” Kitazawa said with a completely straight face.

“…?”

Kurenai blinked, momentarily speechless.

This man who was so serious with others had become increasingly shameless when speaking to her lately.

A thought crossed her mind that made her pause.

“What’s wrong?” Kitazawa waved his hand in front of her face when she fell silent.

“Nothing,” Kurenai said quickly, snapping out of her daze. Then she added, “Are you free tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow I have to take the Special Jōnin assessment,” Kitazawa said, pausing for a moment. “But it shouldn’t take too long.”

“Wait… the Special Jōnin assessment?” Kurenai’s eyes widened in surprise.

“The Hokage said my abilities meet the requirements, so I’m being promoted,” Kitazawa explained, smiling faintly.

Kurenai felt a moment of quiet shock.

She’d always believed herself to be the standout talent in genjutsu and had considered Kitazawa’s skills to be merely average.

She never imagined she’d fall behind him in rank.

Her feelings toward him shifted subtly in that instant. Kitazawa no longer felt like someone beneath her; in that moment, he felt like an equal.

“I’ll come with you tomorrow,” Kurenai said after a moment’s thought. “When you’re done, we can take a walk and have lunch.”

Kitazawa blinked, surprised.

That… definitely sounded like a date.

Given Kurenai’s personality, it was entirely possible she meant exactly that.

“Alright,” Kitazawa agreed without hesitation.

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