Chapter 23: How Could We Not Come?
Bang!
The makeshift caltrop, formed from kunai and steel wire, spun rapidly like a black meteor streaking across the rooftop.
Tsuruma Nobuyuki, wielding his Level 3 Ninja Tool Manipulation, expertly controlled the weapon, keeping it locked onto Hyuga Neji.
Once.
Twice.
Finally—
Thud!
Neji failed to evade in time and took the full brunt of the impact.
Shrrrip!
The sharp kunai tore into his left shoulder, slicing through flesh with brutal force.
"Argh!!"
Neji gritted his teeth, letting out a suppressed scream as pain jolted through his body. His Byakugan, drained of chakra from the shock, deactivated on its own.
Thump!
His body slammed into the rooftop floor, skidding across the surface, leaving behind a long, crimson smear.
Nobuyuki froze.
Did I just kill him?!
He had lashed out in anger, frustrated by Neji's psychological warfare, but he hadn't expected the counterattack to hit this hard. The sheer force behind his attack had been much stronger than anticipated.
A cold sweat formed on his brow as he rushed forward.
But before he could reach Neji—
"You should treat that wound immediately, or he'll go into shock from blood loss."
A calm, metallic voice cut through the air.
Nobuyuki's body tensed. He instantly recognized the voice—
Utada Hayabusa, their second-year ninjutsu instructor.
His mind clicked into place.
So he was watching all along...
He had thought they were alone on the rooftop, but in reality, someone had been observing the fight from the shadows.
Neji, still kneeling, lifted his head. His voice was low, filled with bitterness.
"To think I'd lose to a nobody relying on cheap tricks."
The last remnants of guilt evaporated from Nobuyuki's mind.
"A nobody?"
"Excuse me?"
I have a whole system at my disposal, and you're calling me a nobody?
Nobuyuki took a deep breath and gave Neji a smirk.
"Neji, let me teach you something important."
"When you lose, your insults just sound like the whining of a sore loser."
"So next time, if you don't want to be humiliated, don't lose to someone like me."
Neji's expression darkened.
But before he could retort, another voice boomed across the rooftop—
"You brat! You realize how much trouble you just caused?!"
Nobuyuki turned, only to see Iruka Umino storming toward him, nostrils flaring.
"Using such a dangerous technique on a fellow student?! Your ninja tool score for the year is completely revoked!"
Nobuyuki opened his mouth to argue, but before he could get a word in—
Utada Hayabusa spoke again, his voice cool and mechanical.
"Relax, Iruka. It was just a sparring match between students."
"Even the Hyuga Clan won't complain about a minor wound like this."
Iruka's face twitched in embarrassment. He quickly bowed in apology to Hayabusa, but as he straightened up, he still shot Nobuyuki a deadly glare.
Utada Hayabusa, clearly uninterested in the drama, placed a firm grip on Neji's shoulder—
Poof!
With a flicker, both he and Neji vanished in a Body Flicker Technique.
As soon as they disappeared, Iruka exhaled deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I thought you were one of the least troublesome kids in class, but I see I was wrong."
"You're lucky that didn't go worse. If the kunai had landed just a few inches off, you might've been taken in by the Anbu for questioning!"
Nobuyuki blinked.
"Wait... what?"
Iruka knocked him on the head, his tone turning serious.
"Nobuyuki, I know you're intelligent and talented, but you don't seem to have any fear of what it truly means to be a ninja."
"Even the weakest Genin has the power to destroy lives. The moment you lose control of that power, you become a threat—one that the village will not hesitate to deal with."
"If you ever severely injure or kill a fellow comrade, even if it's an accident, you'll be labeled as unstable."
"And do you know what happens to ninjas deemed unstable?"
Nobuyuki's stomach dropped.
Suddenly, the reality of it all crashed down on him.
All this time, he had been treating this as just another shōnen anime story, where fights between students were nothing more than dramatic training arcs.
But Konoha wasn't just a school.
It was a military organization.
Underneath its warm, nostalgic charm, it was still a strict, combat-driven institution where children were trained to become weapons.
And he—despite being only seven years old—was already expected to function as an elite soldier.
Seeing his silence, Iruka sighed, his tone softening.
"From now on, you are not allowed to fight without my approval or another supervising ninja's permission."
Nobuyuki groaned internally.
"There goes my plan to challenge the second-years one by one..."
Still, he understood why Iruka was doing this.
Even though it sucked, he had no choice but to accept it.
---
Descending the long staircase of the academy, Nobuyuki stepped into the dimming light of sunset.
Each step felt heavier than the last.
He had barely taken in everything when—
"Yo, Nobuyuki!"
A familiar voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
Looking up, he spotted a group of familiar faces waiting for him at the base of the stairs.
At the front stood Inuzuka Kiba, his usual cocky grin plastered across his face.
"Man, you look pretty beat. Don't tell me you actually lost to a second-year?"
Nobuyuki blinked, confused.
"Wait, why are you guys here?"
Kiba scoffed, as if the question itself was absurd.
"What do you mean why?! You were challenging the second-years on our behalf!"
"How could we not come?!"
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