The Ninja Academy's largest playground was now packed with children.
Under the teachers' arrangement, they lined up neatly in formation.
Parents stood behind barricades to observe the ceremony—Orochimaru and his group were among them.
At this moment, they all shared the same role: that of a parent.
At the front of the formation stood a raised platform, where school officials sat on the stage, with Lord Kawaki presiding at the head.
Once everyone had arrived, Hidetada Onoda rose and stepped to the front of the stage.
"Hello everyone, I am Vice Principal Hidetada Onoda from Konoha Ninja Academy."
His powerful introduction echoed across the grounds, officially beginning the ceremony.
"First of all, we warmly welcome all our new students joining us today."
"We also thank all parents for coming to witness this important occasion."
...
Hidetada Onoda spoke enthusiastically for over ten minutes, and clearly still enjoying every moment of it.
If not for the limits of his prepared notes, he might have spoken even longer.
"Now, please welcome our student representative to say a few words."
"Everyone give them a round of applause."
Onoda led the clapping, then slowly returned to his seat.
Nearby, just off the platform, Kakashi and Kurenai were standing together.
During the adults' conversation, she had already rejoined Kakashi's group.
"Come on."
Kurenai whispered into Kakashi's ear—soft encouragement, though her voice had unmistakably turned masculine.
"You've got to be kidding me."
Kakashi shot her a sidelong glance before walking toward the stage as applause broke out.
Watching Kakashi approach the stage, Lord Kawaki furrowed his brow slightly.
There was something slightly off about him compared to the usual Kakashi.
Before Kawaki could dwell on it, Kakashi had already reached the stage.
"Cough cough~"
Kakashi started with a couple of coughs, and the applause stopped instantly.
"It is an honor to address all the new students and graduating seniors here today."
"I'm Kakashi Hatake from the Commander Class."
After a brief self-introduction, Kakashi grew more confident and fluent.
Standing on stage, he exuded confidence.
"That's my big brother."
Ginji suddenly blurted out to the unfamiliar girl on his left.
Rather than sounding embarrassed, he spoke with clear pride.
For sure, he was a kid who always makes good on his word.
"Really? Wow, that's amazing!"
This girl stared at Kakashi with sparkling eyes—just another starry-eyed fan.
"You're Hatake Ginji, right?"
"I know who you are."
Before Ginji could continue bragging, a boy on his right spoke up.
This boy had deep dark circles under his eyes, looked pale, and gave a gentle cough after speaking.
"And you are?"
Ginji turned his head, puzzled by this sudden interruption.
He found the interruption a bit forward—not exactly fair coming from someone who just cut in himself.
"My name is Hayate Gekkō. I deeply admire your father's swordsmanship."
"My father once said that Lord Kawaki is the greatest swordsman in all Konoha."
Hayate's eyes shone with genuine admiration—he truly lived for swordsmanship.
"Nice to meet you, nice to meet you."
Ginji smiled happily upon hearing such praise for his father.
"I hope we get a chance to spar someday."
Hayate Gekkō had no malicious intent; he simply wanted to see Ginji's swordsmanship.
"Sure, let's learn from each other and grow together," Ginji replied easily.
He was easygoing by nature anyway.
"Me too."
At Ginji's agreement, the purple-haired girl behind Hayate took a small step forward.
"This is Yūgao Uzuki. We grew up together," Hayate explained, seeing Ginji still looked confused.
"Oh right—hello," Ginji said, glancing at Yūgao. She was pretty, though not quite on par with Aoi Tsukigami in his eyes.
"Hi, I'm Aoi," she introduced herself, leaning back against Ginji like staking a claim.
Girls could be surprisingly possessive.
"I'm Might Kinoto, and this is Shisui Uchiha."
"And I'm Naruto!"
Hearing Aoi speak, the other children began introducing themselves one by one.
Meeting so many people all at once left Hayate and Yūgao a little flustered. After taking a careful look around, they finally managed to remember everyone's names.
"Pleased to meet you all," they replied politely.
After a round of introductions among the seven children, Kakashi's speech was also coming to an end.
"Finally, I hope everyone can enjoy their time here at school."
"I'll be waiting for you all in the Advanced Class."
With those final words, Kakashi bowed and stepped down, receiving enthusiastic applause.
"That was great," Kurenai gave Kakashi a thumbs-up.
"Yeah, right—hurry up and change back. This feels awkward."
Kakashi quickly pulled Kurenai away, though the opening ceremony was far from over.
"Just now, Kakashi's presentation was excellent. I hope every student can achieve academic success here."
"Now, let Principal Kawaki Hatake deliver his concluding remarks."
Surprisingly, Hidetada Onoda didn't launch into a long speech but returned to his seat after saying only a few words.
Standing up, Kawaki straightened his clothes and strode confidently toward the stage.
"Hello everyone. I am Principal Kawaki Hatake."
"It gives me great pleasure to welcome you all today."
...
He went on with some encouraging words—his speech was nothing particularly unique or special.
"Dad sure is chatty today," Ginji muttered. It was the first time he thought Kawaki talked too much—normally it was him always bugging Kawaki for conversation.
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"Haha, watch what you say or Uncle Kawaki'll tan your hide."
Aoi couldn't help but laugh. Ginji was that kind of guy—never learning his lesson. He never understood the saying, "A slip of the tongue may invite disaster."
"Don't worry, he's way too far away to hear me."
Ginji wasn't afraid at all. Kawaki was still speaking endlessly on the stage.
"What if I go snitch on you then?"
Aoi grinned mischievously, trying to scare Ginji.
"You dare?!"
With that, Ginji reached over and started tickling Aoi's sides.
"Hahaha~ Ha ha ha~"
"I won't snitch! I won't!"
Twisting and turning, Aoi quickly lost her balance.
"Uncle Kawaki is watching you."
Kinoto glared straight ahead, grinding his teeth as he spat out a sentence.
"Great, there's no way we're getting out of this beating now."
Ginji froze, like a soul lost in limbo.
"That's what you get for clawing at me," Aoi said.
She stuck out her tongue but suddenly caught Orochimaru glaring at them from the corner of her eye and immediately stood up straight.
"Don't think you can misbehave and get away with it," Orochimaru warned.
Naruto rubbed salt into their wounds and got two glares in return.
"There's nothing else I want to say. Just wish you both success in your studies," Kawaki said.
Kawaki turned his gaze away, concluding his speech.
Already, his mind was plotting how to punish Ginji later so that brat would finally learn a lesson.
He could even repay the beating he dodged that morning.
"Hey, Aoi, remember to plead for mercy for me," Ginji muttered.
"I can barely save myself," Aoi replied bitterly, shooting him a sideways glance.
One glance was all Ginji needed before he snapped his head back.
Orochimaru's murderous glare scared the hell out of him.
"Guess we'll all just have to pray for mercy."
Ginji sighed deeply, hoping Mama wouldn't show up at noon. He couldn't take another round of double punishment from both parents.
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