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~~~
Kitazawa couldn't help smiling as he listened to their discussion.
In their telling, Hyūga Neji had practically turned into the Demon King.
But after thinking about it, he couldn't really blame them—
Hyūga Neji's reputation preceded him, after all.
"I'll now announce the rules for the friendly match."
Kitazawa clapped his hands, waited for them to quiet down, and read out the four events one by one.
"These four events sound really familiar," Yamanaka Ino said in surprise. "Aren't they exactly the special‑training drills Kitazawa‑sensei gave us?"
"Don't tell me Kitazawa‑sensei can see the future?" Haruno Sakura marveled.
In her memory, the special training for Uchiha Sasuke and Hyūga Hinata had started a month ago—well before anyone had set up a friendly match with Class 2‑A.
"It's not fortune‑telling," Nara Shikamaru reasoned after a moment. "Most likely Kitazawa‑sensei designed the events himself."
"Haha!" Uzumaki Naruto put his hands on his hips. "First place in the physical test is mine for sure!"
With his sturdy constitution and Might Guy's training, his confidence was sky‑high.
"You show‑off," Inuzuka Kiba grumbled, unable to stand Naruto's cockiness.
"You're just jealous!" Naruto said smugly.
"…," Kiba ground his teeth. In a pure stamina test he really couldn't outrun Naruto; the guy's endurance was scarier than Kiba's own ninja dogs—practically Konoha's mad dog.
"Watch out for Hyūga Neji," Aburame Shino reminded them, adjusting his sunglasses.
"It's fine, Kitazawa‑sensei will handle it," Ino replied with a smile.
"Right," Hinata echoed softly.
Shikamaru shook his head. You're putting all that pressure on a chūnin teacher—you really have no idea how capable he is, he thought. It seemed pretty tough. Still, it was only a friendly match; losing wouldn't be the end of the world.
"To prepare for next month's match, I've drawn up individual training plans based on your situations," Kitazawa said evenly. "We'll go over them in combat class. For now, let's begin."
The first period today was "The Will of Fire."
Kitazawa taught the lesson with practiced ease.
Amid laughter and chatter, the class ended.
Kitazawa left the classroom and headed back to the office.
Uchiha Sasuke and Hyūga Hinata followed; without any prompting, they began their own training.
Afternoon arrived.
Class 1‑A's final period—combat practice.
Kitazawa revealed the training plan.
Using the first monthly‑exam results, he split the class into two groups.
Group One: the middling students, who would not enter the friendly match and just needed to focus on regular lessons.
Group Two: the top students, headed by Hinata and Sasuke.
Sasuke would continue working on chakra nature transformation.
For chakra‑control training, on top of Hinata, Ino, and Sakura, Kitazawa added Shikamaru and Akimichi Chōji—
Oh, and Aburame Shino.
The remaining students, led by Naruto and Kiba, would do physical‑conditioning drills.
As for live sparring, Kitazawa decided to hold an intensive session in two weeks.
Class ended.
Nara Shikamaru flopped onto the ground in despair.
He would never have guessed Kitazawa would assign him tree‑climbing practice—utterly ruining his "slacking" career.
Kitazawa noticed Shikamaru lying there like a salted fish. He chuckled and let it be; Shikamaru was that type—if you didn't push him, he simply wouldn't work hard.
"Good work today, everyone. I brought snacks for you," Kitazawa said, producing a summoning‑storage scroll.
Hinata unconsciously touched her stomach; after that remark, she suddenly felt hungry.
"Awesome!" Akimichi Chōji sprang up, fully revived.
"Trust Kitazawa‑sensei to think of that," Ino laughed. She wasn't a glutton, but she certainly didn't mind snacks.
"Sasuke‑kun, I'll get your snacks!" Sakura struggled to her feet and dashed over to Kitazawa.
"…," Sasuke looked helpless; he didn't really like junk food.
"Sasuke‑kun, this is for you!" Sakura reappeared with his snack bundle.
Sasuke started to refuse—then noticed three‑color dango in the pack. It was Itachi's favorite, and his own.
He glanced at Sakura's bundle: hers wasn't identical to his. Even in tiny details, so much thought? Sasuke felt a flash of admiration for Kitazawa. He bit into a dango—"So sweet," he thought.
"Kitazawa‑sensei," Hinata hurried over after most students had left.
"This is yours." Kitazawa stuffed four large snack bags into her arms.
"Th‑thank you, Kitazawa‑sensei," Hinata said shyly, her cheeks flushing.
"I told you: being able to eat well is a blessing," Kitazawa said, patting her head. "No need to be polite."
"Mm." Warmth filled Hinata's heart.
"I'll walk you home," Kitazawa said, taking the snacks from her arms. "Hard to carry all that."
Hinata's heart leapt; she quickly nodded. She subconsciously wanted to spend more time with him.
At the Hyūga compound—
From a distance Kitazawa saw a man standing ramrod straight, exuding authority.
"Father," Hinata hurried over and bowed properly.
"Clan Head Hiashi," Kitazawa thought—so it's him—then greeted aloud.
"You're Kitazawa?" Hyūga Hiashi asked calmly.
"Yes," Kitazawa nodded.
"Thank you for taking care of Hinata these days," Hiashi said, then turned and walked into the courtyard. Polite on the surface, but the underlying condescension was real.
Kitazawa wasn't surprised. The Hyūga, like the Uchiha, were proud; the Hyūga were simply smarter about hiding it.
"See you tomorrow, Kitazawa‑sensei," Hinata said reluctantly, hugging her snacks.
"Why are you carrying so many snacks?" Hiashi asked, surprised at the four bulging bags.
"Kitazawa‑sensei gave them to me as a reward," Hinata hesitated, then added, "And I can eat them all."
"Snacks are fine, but don't overdo it," Hiashi frowned. "Your three proper meals matter most."
"I can eat everything," Hinata mustered her courage. "I have a big appetite."
Hiashi froze. His first thought was that she was talking nonsense—then he stiffened. As clan head, he knew that eating well could be an advantage: the Akimichi clan, after all, stored energy by eating.
"How much can you eat?" Hiashi asked gravely.
"Using our household's bowls… right now I can eat ten," Hinata answered carefully.
"Hahaha!" Hiashi stared for two seconds, then burst out laughing.
"…?" Hinata had never seen him this happy. Was it because I can eat so much? Looks like Kitazawa‑sensei was right.
[Current mission: Feed your deskmate Hyūga Hinata until she voluntarily reveals her secret.]
[Mission reward: Byakugan.]
[Mission completed. Reward issued.]
Walking down the street, Kitazawa's eyes suddenly widened.
Damn!
~~~
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