After losing the duel and wetting himself in front of everyone, Hyūga Shinmune left the field in shame, his eyes red even after being patched up with a simple bandage. He returned to report to his parents, his pride shattered.
Makoto Kiyono, the Academy instructor overseeing the duel, sighed. Whether it was Hyūga Shinmune or Uchiha Fenghuo, both came from prominent Konoha clans. He could only hope this incident wouldn't escalate into a dispute between the Hyūga and Uchiha.
"Maybe… this should be reported to the Third Hokage," Kiyono murmured thoughtfully, already on his way back to the training ground.
"Good morning, Teacher Kiyono!" called Asuma Sarutobi, arriving with the rest of the students.
"Yes, let's get started right away!" Kiyono responded quickly, not wanting the children to gossip and embarrass Shinmune any further.
"Regarding kunai techniques—there are five basic forms: horizontal slash, vertical slash, diagonal slash, straight thrust, and ranged throw. You all practiced throwing techniques last term. Today, we'll focus on the others. Since we're doing close-quarters drills, be careful! No full force, no strikes to vital areas, no—"
He rattled off the rules so quickly that many students felt dizzy just trying to keep up.
"Now, pair up and begin!"
With a wave of Kiyono's hand, the children eagerly grabbed kunai and began to spar.
"Watch my Fūma Shuriken technique!"
"Ha! Behold my Super Gale Demon Throw!"
Excitement filled the air as the children turned training into play.
Uchiha Obito dragged Fenghuo into a match. "Man, if I knew you were this strong, I'd have trained more seriously with you before," he said, stabbing forward with a kunai—but slowly and clumsily.
Fenghuo dodged with ease, raising his kunai lazily to parry. "You? Without some kind of motivation, you'll never settle down and train seriously."
"Motivation? What kind of motivation?" Obito blinked in confusion.
Fenghuo's gaze drifted lightly toward Rin.
"Hah?! You better not be thinking about Rin! If you try anything, I'll fight you!" Obito barked, his face flushing red, his eyes burning with jealous intensity.
"Geez… we're only six. Isn't it a bit early for this kind of talk?" Fenghuo muttered, exasperated.
"I don't care! You stay away from Rin!"
Just as Fenghuo was about to reply, a sudden scream broke the air.
"Ahh!"
"What happened?"
"Who screamed?"
"Someone's bleeding!"
A sharp scent of blood drifted through the air. A student had collapsed, clutching his chest and writhing on the ground. His uniform soaked up the blood pouring from his hands, staining the training field.
Across from him stood a white-haired boy—Mizuki—his kunai smeared with blood, his face pale and panicked. "I-I didn't mean to! It was an accident! I didn't do it on purpose!"
"Mizuki!" Kiyono appeared in a flash, giving the boy a sharp glare before kneeling beside the injured student. After a quick inspection, he determined the injury wasn't fatal, but any movement could worsen it.
"Asuma! Don't let anyone move him—I'm fetching a medical-nin now!"
With that, Kiyono disappeared in a puff of smoke, using the Body Flicker Technique.
"Mizuki, what did you do?!"
"If anything happens to him, I swear—!"
"Mizuki is dangerous!"
"He did it on purpose!"
"Murderer!"
The moment Kiyono left, the class turned on Mizuki, condemning him without hesitation.
Mizuki stood frozen, trembling. His grip on the bloodied kunai shook violently. "It wasn't like that… I didn't mean to hurt him… I swear… it wasn't my fault! It's not my fault!"
"Liar! You did it on purpose!"
"Murderer!"
Fenghuo watched quietly from the back of the crowd, his expression unreadable. His thoughts drifted to Naruto. Back in the manga's early chapters, Naruto had been treated just like this: ostracized, ignored, blamed for things beyond his control. And yet, Naruto carried on for years with a smile.
Fenghuo tilted his head. Come to think of it… Mizuki stayed bitter for just as long, didn't he? All that jealousy... festering for years until he snapped in the original story. Talk about holding a grudge. That's… kind of impressive in its own way.
"Ah! There's more blood down there!" Rin suddenly shouted.
"What?!"
Asuma turned toward the injured student. The boy was now gripping his chest tightly with both hands, aggravating the wound. Blood poured from him like a broken faucet.
"You idiot!" Asuma's voice cracked in panic. "Don't squeeze it like that! Are you trying to bleed out?!"
But the more Asuma shouted, the more the boy panicked, pressing down harder. Blood gushed freely.
"Someone get Kiyono-sensei!"
"Kiyono-sensei went to get a medical-nin. He won't be back for at least five minutes," came a calm voice.
It was Ibiki Morino, quiet until now. "The best option is to knock him unconscious. Otherwise, he might die before help arrives."
"Knock him out?!" Asuma hesitated. If he doesn't wake up…
Asuma, the Hokage's son, felt the weight of his name pressing down on him.
Nearby, Fenghuo turned toward Ibiki, suddenly intrigued.
Ibiki… I remember him. He looked minor in the early manga, but he's the head of the Konoha Torture and Interrogation Division. A jōnin in charge of extracting information. Strong, cold, sharp.
Fenghuo rubbed his chin, lost in thought, not noticing the sudden silence around him.
"Hey, what's up with Fenghuo?"
"Fenghuo?"
"Fenghuo!"
Uchiha Obito shook his arm, snapping him out of his thoughts.
"Huh? What is it?" Fenghuo blinked, dazed. Can't I space out for two seconds?
He looked up to find the entire class staring at him—Asuma, Ibiki, Mizuki… everyone.
"Why's everyone looking at me? Don't stare, I'm shy," he said, hiding his face with his hands.
"..." Obito.
"..." Asuma, Rin, Kurenai.
Everyone stared, deadpan.