"Careless?"
"You better stay alert from now on."
Kurenai frowned at his comment. This kid really asked for it.
Right after she said that, she charged forward again.
This time, she fully utilized her speed advantage and engaged Asuma in hit-and-run tactics.
Within just a few moves, she landed an elbow strike right into Asuma's chest.
His face contorted in pain as he was sent flying backward.
"Kurenai, great job!"
Gai shouted excitedly, as if he himself had landed the hit.
"Keep your voice down a bit."
Kakashi teased Gai, though a smile unconsciously crept onto his lips.
"Still feeling lucky?"
Kurenai pressed her advantage, giving Asuma no quarter.
Instructor Suzuki stood nearby, ready at any moment to intervene if Asuma couldn't withstand this attack.
It wouldn't be easy to explain things if Asuma sustained serious injuries.
"Don't get too cocky."
Asuma didn't care about appearances anymore.
He rolled aside like a startled mule to dodge Kurenai's aerial stomp, then slapped the ground with one hand and sprang back up.
"Tougher than I expected."
That offhand comment made Asuma flush with anger.
Even though Hiruzen had stepped down, he'd never experienced such humiliation.
"What a sharp-tongued little girl."
"Talk after we finish fighting."
A thousand curses raced through Asuma's mind. He must've been blind to ever think this girl was cute.
"I'm gonna turn your face into a pig's!"
Kids will be kids. Kurenai spoke without holding back.
"Just you alone?"
Asuma gritted those words out between his teeth, already consumed by rage.
"Me alone."
Before Asuma could say more, Kurenai flew forward in attack.
This time, Asuma had learned his lesson. He used a defensive strategy, fully leveraging his strength advantage.
After all, Kurenai was a girl, naturally at a physical disadvantage.
As her attacks dragged on without success, her stamina gradually waned.
Her speed dropped, and even her strikes lost much of their force.
"Not good, Kurenai's going to lose."
Kakashi furrowed his brow, swatting away Gai's arm that had been resting on his shoulder, preparing for emergency assistance.
Sure enough, just half a minute later, exactly as Kakashi predicted!
After leaving a small opening, Kurenai was kicked into the air by Asuma.
"You win."
Kakashi leapt forward, catching Kurenai before she could hit the ground.
Asuma, who wanted to continue attacking, was stopped by Gai's foot and forced to retreat several steps.
Shaking his sore arm, he thought, 'Damn, that girl has a solid kick.'
"Asuma wins."
Instructor Suzuki announced the result directly without further comment.
"I lost."
Thinking about the bold words she had spoken earlier, Kurenai felt embarrassed.
She looked up with a pout in Kakashi's arms, her eyes already glistening with tears.
"There, there. It's okay."
"You did great already."
Kakashi could only whisper soothing words.
Though she had lost, reaching this point was quite remarkable for Kurenai.
After all, her opponent wasn't an ordinary person either—he was the son of the previous Hokage.
Without question, he had received world-class training in every aspect.
If it were on the battlefield, Kurenai might have a slightly higher chance of winning between the two.
"I've decided," Kurenai said resolutely. "I'll train even harder from now on."
Kurenai wiped her tears with the back of her hand and stood up from Kakashi's embrace.
"Alright then, I'll supervise your training."
Seeing Kurenai reignite her fighting spirit, Kakashi also smiled.
"Looking forward to sparring with you."
Asuma tossed those words at Gai before turning and walking away.
"In that case, be ready to get beaten up."
Gai mumbled under his breath, his lips curling upward slightly.
This time, he actually felt a bit of goodwill toward Asuma. How bad could someone who enjoys challenges really be?
"You three hurry down and don't interrupt the next group."
Instructor Suzuki spoke, driving Kakashi and the others off the field.
The following sparring matches weren't very impressive. There wasn't a single exciting fight.
They were barely better than children pretending to fight—and not even that convincingly.
Who knows how long passed, Kakashi yawned out of sheer boredom.
Finally, the last match ended.
"I've roughly assessed your levels."
"Go back to the classroom."
Instructor Suzuki put away his paper and pen, leading the children back to class.
"I won't rearrange the seats, figure out your own arrangement."
"But let me make one thing clear beforehand."
"If anyone isn't paying attention in class or starts whispering to each other, don't expect me to go easy on you."
Instructor Suzuki's lone eye opened wide as he swept another glance over the kids sitting below.
"Yes."
"Got it."
...
The students responded nervously while Obito secretly felt delighted.
He had been worried earlier about not being able to sit beside Rin.
"We'll rely on each other from now on."
Obito leaned in slightly, quietly saying to Rin.
"No need to be so formal; we all should support each other."
Rin smiled gently, and Obito felt his heart melt.
"Yeah, mutual support."
Lost in thought, Obito spoke louder without realizing it.
And immediately stirred trouble.
"Just finished talking, yet someone already started whispering."
"Why don't you come up here instead?"
Instructor Suzuki turned his gaze onto Obito. Instantly, the classroom fell into complete silence.
Obito was so nervous that sweat broke out on his forehead—he didn't dare raise his head.
"Sorry, teacher. It was my question just now."
Mustering courage, Rin stood up and took the blame for Obito.
There's more coming—stay tuned for the next part!
"Hmph!"
"This time I'll let it slide, but I don't want to see it again."
Instructor Suzuki didn't push Rin any further. Openly admitting her mistake showed what a good student she was.
"Phew~"
After sitting down, Rin exhaled in relief, having braced herself for a scolding.
She hadn't expected to escape so easily.
"Shh!" Rin hissed, seeing Obito preparing to speak again.
Unspoken understanding passed between them, and Obito's eyes filled with gratitude.
"She's so brave."
Kurenai leaned closer to Kakashi, whispering quietly.
She was also afraid of getting caught by Instructor Suzuki.
"You're still not as brave as her."
Kakashi and Kawaki teased Kurenai with sweet words, making her delighted.
If Instructor Suzuki hadn't been chattering nonstop at the front of the class, she probably would've already burst into laughter.
"You only know how to say nice things."
Gai rolled his eyes. He felt like he had been force-fed nothing but dog food.
But since Kakashi and Kurenai were bound by a childhood betrothal, there was nothing he could do about it.
"That's all I'll say for today."
Suzuki timed his speech perfectly—the instant he finished, the bell rang.
"Class dismissed."
As Suzuki left the classroom, noise erupted inside almost immediately.
"Thanks just now… um…"
Obito felt ashamed—he hadn't been brave enough to do what a girl had just done.
"It's fine, it's over now."
Rin smiled that gentle smile of hers again—her most endearing trait.
"If you really feel bad about it, just treat me to some dumplings."
Seeing Obito still hesitating, Rin kindly offered him an easy way out.
"Sure thing, no problem!"
Obito agreed instantly, practically eager to buy the dumplings right away. It wasn't like he couldn't afford it.
"Hi, mind if we get to know each other?"
At this moment, Kurenai approached them. She had taken a liking to Rin after seeing how she stood up earlier, and had developed the idea of befriending Rin.
"Of course not. You're Yūhi Kurenai, right?"
"My name is Nohara Rin. You were amazing earlier in class!"
Rin's eyes sparkled with admiration.
"Oh come on, I'm barely scraping by."
Kurenai could tell Rin wasn't mocking her, so she felt flattered but stayed humble.
Though her words were modest, her heart swelled with joy—her vanity thoroughly satisfied.
"If your skills are barely average, what does that make people like us?"
Rin cracked a joke that caused everyone to laugh out loud.
Girlhood friendships could be surprisingly simple like that.
In just one short break, Kurenai and Rin had become close friends.
As the sun set, the first day of school came to an end, and the children headed home.
...
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