"I know you boys are all competitive, but I really don't want to see you get hurt. If it comes to that, it's perfectly fine to just be an ordinary person instead of a ninja," Kushina said, her eyes flickering with concern.
Upon hearing her words, Yuya was momentarily taken aback.
Becoming an ordinary person?
That thought had never crossed his mind.
Even when he had no access to the Shock Release Bloodline Limit and was just a bottom-tier student unable to master ninjutsu, he had never given up.
In his previous life, he had lived a mundane existence, only to meet an untimely end. Now, in this familiar world of Naruto, he refused to be ordinary again!
After obtaining the Shock Release Bloodline Limit, that resolve had only strengthened!
"I won't get hurt," Yuya said, taking a deep breath and speaking calmly yet earnestly.
Hearing Yuya's voice, Kushina felt a twinge of regret.
Had her words been too heavy?
However, it was true that Yuya lacked talent in ninjutsu, making him less suited to be a ninja.
As she thought this, a hint of guilt crept into her heart. If Yuya truly decided not to pursue being a ninja, she would always protect him.
After a while, the Chunin teacher entered the classroom. After a few brief words, he led all the students outside to the training ground.
There, the Chunin teacher began reading from a pre-arranged list.
One by one, pairs of students stepped forward to compete.
The shuriken and kunai they used were unsharpened, making it less likely for serious injuries to occur, but bloodshed could not be entirely avoided.
After all, this was a ninja school, and the world of ninjas was harsh.
Even though Konoha's system was somewhat gentler compared to the brutal blood mist policies of the Land of Water, it was still not a place to cultivate a bunch of sheltered flowers.
Among the students, Yuya recognized many familiar faces.
Kushina was one of them, along with the prodigious Minato Namikaze and Mikoto Uchiha, the mother of Itachi and Sasuke in the original story.
Of course, they were all just seven or eight years old now.
Yet Minato was still an astonishingly talented young boy, undoubtedly the best in Yuya's class, and no one in the entire grade could match him!
When Minato stepped up to compete, cheers erupted from a group of girls. His popularity was off the charts.
With his handsome face, incredible strength, and talent, Minato was treated similarly to Itachi and Sasuke in the original story.
Yuya's appearance actually resembled Itachi's, though his hair was a light silver color.
In terms of popularity, Yuya had been neck and neck with Minato when they first entered school, but as time went on, Yuya's lack of talent in ninjutsu caused him to fall behind, and his popularity gradually waned.
As Minato swiftly defeated his opponent in just a few moves, cheers and screams filled the air.
Kushina glanced at Yuya, feeling a bit indignant on his behalf.
In terms of effort and other aspects, Yuya was no less capable than Minato.
But it was precisely because of his lack of talent in ninjutsu that such a significant gap had formed between them.
Just as Kushina sighed in frustration, the Chunin teacher called out from the list.
"Next up is Yuya, against Izumi Uchiha. Please step forward."
Upon hearing this announcement, Kushina was taken aback, exclaiming, "Why does it have to be a ninja from the Uchiha clan, and Izumi Uchiha at that?"
If Minato was the top genius, then Izumi was undoubtedly the second-best.
Even against Minato, Izumi could hold her own for a few rounds, making her the strongest after him.
The Chunin teacher pairing Yuya with Izumi was clearly intentional!
"There's definitely something wrong with this! Yuya, don't go up there. Just admit defeat! Izumi will definitely…" Kushina said, her voice filled with urgency and anger as she looked at Yuya.
"No need," Yuya interrupted, placing a reassuring hand on Kushina's shoulder. "Don't worry, I won't get hurt."
His words carried an inexplicable weight, leaving Kushina momentarily speechless.
After saying that, Yuya turned and calmly walked onto the field.
He knew full well that this was the Chunin teacher's intention.
This teacher had never treated him, an outsider, with any kindness.
Outsiders were often viewed with suspicion, seen as enemies, and that animosity was hard to shake off.
Yuya's treatment in Konoha was hardly better than that of Naruto, the Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails in the original story. Not every teacher was as understanding as Iruka.
Especially after Yuya's poor performance in ninjutsu, he had gradually fallen to the bottom of the class, and this Chunin teacher seemed determined to push him out.
The school had its own rules; unless Yuya requested to drop out, even a Chunin teacher couldn't directly expel a student.
"Yuya, are you sure you don't want to just admit defeat? It wouldn't be good if you get hurt," the Chunin teacher said, feigning concern.
In his mind, the more he said this, the less likely Yuya would admit defeat in front of the entire class, allowing Izumi to beat him half to death, which would surely make Yuya want to drop out.
Yuya remained silent, simply giving the Chunin teacher a steady gaze.
That look made the teacher's heart skip a beat.
Such calmness, such serenity... it was not something a seven-year-old child should possess!
"No need. We can start right away," Yuya replied, turning to face Izumi.
Kushina, watching from the crowd, was taken aback. She hadn't expected Yuya to insist on fighting instead of conceding.
"Such a shame... Their attitude towards Yuya is just getting worse," she thought, clenching her small fists. She wanted to rush onto the field but could only watch with worried eyes.
She hoped Yuya would concede before getting hurt.
In the arena, Izumi looked down at Yuya with a cold, arrogant expression. Seeing that he wouldn't concede, a hint of disdain crossed her face.
A bottom-tier student who couldn't even practice ninjutsu thought he could win against her?!
Since he dared to choose to fight, she would make sure he learned a lesson, so he would know to concede next time he encountered someone from the Uchiha clan.
"Alright, let's begin!" the Chunin teacher announced, shaking off his earlier unease from Yuya's gaze.
As soon as the teacher's voice fell, Izumi swiftly flipped her hands and pulled out two shuriken, hurling them at Yuya.
Whoosh!!!
In an instant, eight shuriken transformed into black shadows, four targeting Yuya's vital points while the other four blocked his escape routes!