A new day dawned.
Kitazawa was up at the crack of dawn, knowing he'd be teaching his first class of the day: the Will of Fire.
From another angle, though, this also showed just how much importance Hiruzen Sarutobi placed on him.
'That old man… He's a sly fox. And a bit of a pervert.'
Kitazawa was certain Hiruzen would be spying on his class through his crystal ball.
Not because of him personally—but because of Uzumaki Naruto and the other kids.
When Kitazawa arrived at the Class 1-A classroom, only five students were there so far.
He scanned the room, and his eyes landed on a quiet little girl sitting in the middle row.
She was dressed in long, modest clothing and had short, dark blue hair.
But what caught his attention most were her eyes—pure white and luminous.
'The Byakugan… a Kekkei Genkai.'
The Byakugan, unique to the Hyuga clan, granted its wielder x-ray vision and extraordinary insight.
Current Mission: Help your deskmate, Hyuga Hinata, retrieve her scarf.
Mission Reward: Leaf Whirlwind.
[Accept]?
Kitazawa stared at the blue text hovering in front of his eyes and couldn't help but twitch his lips.
'How am I supposed to become Hyuga Hinata's deskmate?'
He paused for a few seconds, then a sly idea came to him.
Slowly, he walked forward—and plopped himself into the seat beside her.
"…?"
Hyuga Hinata blinked, startled.
But her shy nature kept her silent. Instead, she lowered her gaze, nervously poking her two index fingers together.
"I'm Kitazawa, your Class 1-A sensei."
Kitazawa turned to look at her properly. Her skin was as pale as snow, as delicate as a porcelain doll.
"Se-sensei… hello!" Hinata stammered, her cheeks turning faintly pink.
As one from the noble Hyuga clan, Hinata was thoroughly trained in manners and etiquette.
"No need to be so formal." Kitazawa gave her a gentle smile. "Say, would you mind if I sat next to you?"
He didn't bring up the scarf right away. It'd be too abrupt.
"Y-Yes…" Hinata answered reflexively, then tilted her head in confusion.
Kitazawa leaned closer, lowering his voice. "I haven't finished preparing my lessons, and there's no desk up at the podium. So, for now, I'll be your temporary deskmate."
It was, of course, a total lie.
But Hinata seemed to accept it without question.
Current Mission: Be the first student in class to catch the attention of Principal Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Mission Reward: Wind Release: Great Breakthrough.
[Accept]?
'Well, look at that. This system isn't as idiotic as I thought.'
Kitazawa immediately accepted. After all, leaving a strong impression on Hiruzen during the first lesson was part of his plan from the start.
That was how you handled relationships in the ninja world—it all came down to loyalty and connections.
Hinata, meanwhile, was staring wide-eyed at her new seatmate.
'He sure makes himself comfortable fast…'
And yet, she felt a pang of envy.
'If only I had that kind of confidence… maybe I wouldn't keep disappointing Father.'
"What are you looking at?" Kitazawa suddenly asked. He'd been thinking up a strategy when he noticed Hinata's dazed expression and shining eyes fixed on him.
"N-Nothing!"
Hinata snapped out of it, her cheeks blazing crimson as she quickly looked away.
"By the way, you haven't told me your name yet, Hyuga-san."
Kitazawa tilted his head, giving her a friendly smile.
"Eh?"
Hinata jumped to her feet, bowing hastily. "I-I'm so sorry! My name is Hyuga Hinata!"
"See? There you go being all polite again."
Kitazawa reached out and gently patted her head. "We're deskmates now. No need for such stiff formality."
"S-Sorry…"
Hinata froze under his touch, shoulders stiffening, and lowered her head once again.
"Sit down and chat for a bit."
Kitazawa withdrew his hand and gestured to the seat beside him.
Hyuga Hinata obediently sat down, knees pressed together and small hands folded neatly in her lap.
A thought seemed to occur to her, and she looked up hesitantly.
"Um… how did you know my surname is Hyuga?" she asked, curiosity flickering in her pale eyes.
"Easy—it's the Byakugan," Kitazawa replied, giving her eyes a deliberate look.
"D-Don't… don't stare!" Hinata turned away quickly. "They're… not pretty."
"I think they're beautiful," Kitazawa said, a spark of curiosity igniting in his mind. "Why would you say they're not?"
"I…"
Hinata hesitated, chewing her lower lip as uncertainty clouded her face.
"We're friends now, aren't we?" Kitazawa encouraged her with a gentle smile.
"They… they said so…" Hinata murmured, her small face paling slightly. "They said the Byakugan is ugly."
'Just as I thought,' Kitazawa mused grimly.
Those were the same words the three mischievous boys in the original story used to bully Hinata.
And the scarf mentioned in the mission? Those brats had stolen it from her too.
"Did they really say that?" Kitazawa's expression grew serious. "Then I'll have to deal with them."
"Eh?" Hinata blinked at him in shock, completely frozen by his sudden intensity.
"Do you remember who they are?" Kitazawa softened his voice. "Don't worry—I'm a teacher. I'm not going to hurt them."
"I remember…" Hinata said at last, her voice barely above a whisper. "But… I don't know their names."
"That's fine."
Kitazawa waved it off like it was nothing. "Just tell me what they look like."
"They're… three boys… about my age. That's… all I remember."
Hinata tried to recall more details, but her voice trailed off.
"That's enough." Kitazawa gave a confident smile. "I've already narrowed down a few suspects. I'll confirm it after class."
After all, every class had its share of troublemakers. And Hinata had at least given him a starting point.
"Y-You're amazing!" Hinata blurted out.
In her eyes, Kitazawa was swiftly becoming a dependable adult she could trust.
"It's nothing." Kitazawa waved off her praise. "I'll let you know once I've sorted it out."
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei," Hinata said, gratitude shining in her pale eyes.
Kitazawa was about to reply when voices drifted in from the doorway.
"Sakura, do you think our new sensei is handsome?"
"Who cares if the sensei's handsome? What matters is having lots of cute boys in our class!"
Two little girls bustled into the classroom.
One had short pink hair pulled back with a red ribbon, leaving her smooth forehead exposed.
The other wore her blonde hair in a clip, framing her hair to one side.
Kitazawa only needed one glance to recognize them: Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka.
Sakura was one of the main female characters in the original story. Along with Naruto and Sasuke, she'd eventually help save the ninja world—though she was hardly the MVP. At best, she'd earned herself a lot of flak for her treatment of Naruto.
Ino, on the other hand, was Konoha's "Ino" of the new generation's Ino–Shika–Chō trio, specializing in sensory and mind-reading jutsu.
Both girls had once crushed hard on Uchiha Sasuke—but without the protagonist's halo, Ino ultimately ended up the "blonde loser."
"So handsome!" Ino gasped as her eyes fell on Kitazawa.
"Is this our sensei?" Sakura asked, perking up immediately.
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