"Tsk, why is there another kid…" Tazuna looked at Ethan. Although this child was cute and not as noisy as the blond one, what was the point of having more kids like this?
He had come because of the reputation of the Leaf Village's ninja. "Is this really okay? Are you here to protect me, or are you taking these kids out on a picnic?"
Tazuna had already been unhappy before, but at least the Leaf Village had sent a jonin to take over the mission of protecting him. Now, however, there were more and more kids, and looking at these people…
"Do not worry, do not worry."
Kakashi was also embarrassed. Ordinary people found it difficult to understand the strength of ninja. Even these children who looked barely over ten years old possessed power far beyond that of ordinary adults.
After calming Tazuna down, Kakashi gave some instructions to Naruto and the others.
"Anyway, Ethan will be joining us from now on. You were classmates at the Ninja Academy, so you are not strangers. Get along well."
Sakura and Naruto both thought the same thing. We are not familiar with him at all.
Only Sasuke stared silently at Ethan without saying anything. That look was something Sakura and Naruto did not notice, but Kakashi sensed the change in Sasuke's emotions.
"Sasuke and Ethan… I remember Sasuke lost to Ethan during sparring at the academy. Is he unwilling to accept it?"
He had been with these kids for some time now. Kakashi had thoroughly reviewed all the relevant information about them and naturally knew about Sasuke's rare defeat at the academy.
At first, his thoughts had been similar to Sasuke's at the time. Maybe that match was just an accident.
Sasuke's strength was outstanding among this group of new graduates. He had even mastered some intermediate ninjutsu and was steadily approaching the Chunin level.
As long as he accumulated some practical combat experience, Sasuke's strength would steadily reach the Chunin level. If his talent was strong enough, he might even go further.
With that kind of strength, it did not make sense for Sasuke to lose to a classmate with no background, ordinary origins, and several years of unremarkable performance.
It was not until recently, when he learned from the Third Hokage that there was a genius among the genin led by Aoba, and that because the situation was special he needed Kakashi to look after him for a while, that Kakashi began paying attention to this child named Ethan.
"A genius from a civilian background?"
Thinking of Sasuke's personality and his behavior just now, Kakashi was almost certain that Sasuke had not given up easily after losing to Ethan. Perhaps the two had sparred privately again, and the result could be guessed from Sasuke's reaction.
"Should I find this interesting, or has it just become more troublesome?"
These three students already gave him a headache. Naruto was always competing with Sasuke. Sasuke had a contemptuous attitude and treated his teammates as burdens. Sakura was completely infatuated.
Even though they had been a team for some time, he had constantly arranged low level missions to hone their basics. Unfortunately, these few had not yet developed the mindset of diligently refining themselves. As things stood, making them grow quickly would require some kind of special stimulus.
Did the Third Hokage assign this escort mission because he wanted them to grow faster?
Everyone was very quiet along the way, which gave Kakashi time to think. However, this calm was quickly broken by Naruto, who was never the type to stay quiet for long.
"Why are you the only one from your class who came? Where are the others?"
Naruto had argued with Tazuna earlier, but soon lost interest in the old man and instead kept looking at Ethan walking nearby.
He had wanted to ask this question from the beginning, but too many things had happened, and since he was not familiar with Ethan, he had held it in until now.
"Katsuki and Yui were transferred to other teams."
"Huh?"
The three genin beside him looked at Ethan with confused expressions. They had never imagined that after forming a team, transfers could actually happen.
Seeing these greenhouse grown flowers, Ethan did not explain much and only said something simple.
"There are many ninja in the village, and transfers are actually very common."
"Is that so?"
Sakura turned to ask Kakashi. After all, he was their sensei and a Leaf Village jonin, so his answer would be more reliable.
"Generally speaking, yes. That is how it works. For example, if a team has injured members and is understaffed, they need to add people, so transfers are common."
However, the team he was leading was not a typical case, but he could not explain that to them.
After Kakashi answered, the three had different reactions.
Naruto, being carefree, did not think much about it. Hearing that it was normal, he stopped caring.
Sakura, however, began to worry. What if she or Sasuke was transferred one day? Would they no longer be teammates?
Sasuke thought more deeply. A formed ninja team lacking manpower would not need a complete novice. That meant they needed immediate combat power.
Then why was he, the top graduate of the Ninja Academy, not chosen? Could those two classmates he barely remembered really be better than him?
He turned to look at Ethan, curious. Would Ethan feel unhappy when he learned that his teammates were considered more valuable than him?
Then another thought occurred to him. Ethan's strength was even greater than his. Why was he completely indifferent to this situation? Was there something he had not noticed?
Lost in thought, Sasuke stared at Ethan, finally drawing Sakura's attention.
"Sasuke, why are you staring at Ethan?"
Sasuke realized his behavior was too obvious, but he reacted quickly and immediately found an excuse.
"I noticed you have a short sword at the back of your waist, Ethan. When did you start learning swordsmanship?"
"This?"
Ethan touched the short sword at the back of his waist. This position did not hinder his movements, and he could easily reach the hilt with his right hand.
"I bought it yesterday."
"… "
The Ninja Academy taught some basic weapon usage, but only very basic content, with few practice sessions.
Most of the instruction focused on kunai and shuriken, which were standard ninja tools.
"So you have never learned swordsmanship?"
"The academy taught the basics."
Even Sakura, who excelled in theory, barely remembered that class. She did not think such basic knowledge was useful. Rather than using an unfamiliar weapon, it would be better to use a kunai.
Kakashi thought the same way. He did not really approve of Ethan's choice, but Ethan was not his student, so it was inappropriate to lecture him. In any case, Ethan would soon learn how dangerous it was to casually use an unfamiliar weapon in combat.
Glancing at the small puddle on the road, Kakashi continued forward without changing his expression. In the original situation, the Demon Brothers would target Kakashi with a surprise attack and believe they had killed him.
"Oh, they are here."
Ethan did not move. Sasuke would stop these two unlucky ones in time anyway.
What followed was the same as before. The chain used by the Demon Brothers was pinned to the tree by Sasuke with shuriken and kunai, forcing them to abandon this weapon.
Their reaction was very fast. They immediately bypassed Sasuke, who had not yet landed after his large movement, and attacked Tazuna and Naruto.
At this moment, the situation changed, because Kakashi showed no intention of intervening.
"Does he want to see my reaction?"
Ethan reached for the hilt at the back of his waist. There was the panicked Tazuna, the barely reacting Sakura, the frozen Naruto, and Sasuke who had just landed and could not move yet.
Including Kakashi, Aoba, and Izumo Kamizuki hidden in the shadows, everyone only saw two flashes of light. Ethan's figure blurred for an instant, as if he had never moved. Only his hand motion changed as he wiped the blade.
If this were a manga panel, everyone present would have one or more exclamation marks beside their heads.
"So fast."
Sakura and Naruto did not understand what had happened. The enemies charging toward them had already fallen, blood slowly spreading beneath them. Judging from the amount of blood, they were clearly dead.
"So that is it. With that kind of speed, there is no need for complicated swordsmanship. Just strike the vital points…"
Sasuke stood up and watched Ethan return the short sword to his waist.
"With his strength, is this really necessary? Or is he just saving energy?"
Only then did Sakura and Naruto realize what had happened. They stared at Ethan with completely incredulous expressions.
Even Tazuna was frightened. He had never imagined that such a delicate and cute child could be so terrifying.
"Is this… a ninja?"
"Yes. Although they are still young, they are ninjas."
Seeing that everything was over, Kakashi emerged from hiding and praised Sasuke and Ethan for their appropriate reactions and for killing the enemies decisively.
"Well done."
After that, he turned to question Tazuna about why ninja had appeared. While asking, he could not help glancing at Ethan again.
"That speed. A genius from a civilian background. Could there really be two people so similar?"
(To be continued.)