"Me? I'm called Takayama Haru. Your turn."
Then, Haru opened The New Ninja Instructor's Guide and read aloud as it suggested:
"Talk about what you like, what you dislike, any dreams you have, or interests, that sort of thing."
The three students turned to Haru and said, "Sensei, you go first!"
Haru was speechless. "Am I the teacher or are you? It's your turn now—start from left to right!"
"I'll go first!"
Obito raised his goggles proudly and grinned. "My name is Uchiha Obito. What I like most is... and what I hate most is war!"
"My dream is to become Hokage! To end this war, and to make both my clan and the villagers acknowledge my existence!"
Kakashi burst into laughter. "You? Hokage? You're more likely to spend a hundred years helping old ladies cross the street than become Hokage."
Obito immediately exploded with anger. "What do you mean, Kakashi? You think you're so great?"
"I'm Uchiha Obito from the Uchiha clan. One day, I'll surpass you—just wait until I awaken my Sharingan!"
Kakashi looked at him like he was an idiot. "Aren't all Uchiha supposed to be elite? You should be strong even without a Sharingan."
Obito gritted his teeth. "What did you just say!?"
Rin quickly stepped in, "Alright, alright, stop fighting! Sensei is watching."
Haru watched them with great interest, a bit amused. This really was love and rivalry wrapped in one, huh?
"Your turn, Nohara Rin, right?"
Rin straightened up and said clearly, "Yes, Sensei. My name is Nohara Rin!"
"What I like most is... cake. What I dislike is curry rice. My dream is to become a medical ninja and save lives on the battlefield!"
Haru nodded. "Good."
This little girl would indeed receive high-level treatment in the future. Without her, Obito and Kakashi probably wouldn't have lasted very long.
Rin nodded energetically and looked at Haru with admiration—this teacher didn't seem so bad.
Then, Haru turned to the small, serious-faced Kakashi, who stood there full of pride.
Haru couldn't help ruffling Kakashi's spiky silver hair. "Kakashi, your turn!"
Kakashi angrily pushed Haru's hand away. "Sensei! You messed up my hair! Since you already know my name, there's no need for me to say anything."
Haru looked at the three little brats, each with their own expression, and suddenly thought of a certain Naruto.
Who did Rin like?
Both sides had "irrefutable proof," and Kishimoto-sensei never clarified, so the debate had always lingered.
Now, looking at these three kids in person, Haru knew the truth.
They were...
Not even ten years old! What did they know about love?
Ahem.
"Alright then, now that we all know each other—and you know me—I'll say it again: my name is Takayama Haru, your future mentor."
"That's it for the introductions. Starting tomorrow—"
All three turned to Haru.
"Sensei, what kind of mission?"
"Survival training, in the wild."
Obito instantly lit up. "We did drills all the time back in school!"
Haru smiled. "This one's a little different... because your opponent is me."
"Huh, Sensei?"
"Sensei, what do you mean by that?"
"…"
Haru chuckled. "Yep. This time, you better be mentally prepared. The elimination rate is over 66%. Out of thirty graduates in your class, at most ten will pass. The rest will be sent back to the academy for retraining. Got it?"
Obito's eyes widened, Rin was speechless, and Kakashi went silent.
"Tomorrow morning at nine. Meet at the Konoha Forest, by the Triple Ninja Gates. Don't be late."
The moment Haru finished speaking, he vanished—leaving the three kids stunned.
Rin rubbed her eyes. "Did Sensei just disappear?"
"That was awesome! Like magic!" Obito gasped.
Kakashi scoffed. "Idiot. That's just a Body Flicker Technique."
"Who are you calling an idiot, Kakashi!?"
Rin quickly stepped between them again as they prepared to argue.
"Stop it already. Focus on what we're going to do tomorrow."
Obito muttered, "Sensei is just trying to scare us. No way he'll actually eliminate almost everyone…"
"I wasn't lying."
Obito jumped in shock.
"Ah! Sensei, don't sneak up like that—you looked like a ghost!"
Haru laughed. "Obito, you need to toughen up. I forgot to remind you—don't forget your ninja tools tomorrow. Also... skip breakfast. If you throw up, don't say I didn't warn you."
As soon as he finished speaking, Haru suddenly jolted and turned into a log.
Rin picked up the wooden log with a shocked expression.
Kakashi said seriously, "That was a substitution technique… What appeared just now was Sensei's clone."