Kitazawa hadn't changed his teaching methods.
Just like he did with Class 1-A, he divided the students of Class 2-A into three groups based on how they performed in their sparring matches:
Group 1: Learning the Clone Jutsu
Group 2: Learning the Transformation Jutsu
Group 3: Already mastered both and free to train however they wanted
Most students ended up in the first two groups. The third group? Just four students—including Hyūga Neji and Tenten.
Kitazawa sent two shadow clones to teach the first two groups while he stayed back and focused on watching Neji from afar.
Even with just the basics, Neji's Gentle Fist technique was miles ahead of Hinata's.
Kitazawa stroked his chin thoughtfully.
Wait… I haven't learned the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms from him yet?
Well, "learned" might not be the right word—it felt more like Hiashi gave him a silent green light. There's no way someone like Hiashi wouldn't notice Neji practicing it in secret.
Still, Neji actually mastering the technique? That probably blew even Hiashi's expectations, which explains the surprise in the original story.
At that moment, Kitazawa's eyes narrowed slightly—Neji had just switched forms. Yep, it was the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. Kitazawa recognized it instantly.
He watched closely.
Neji probably assumed no one in the academy knew enough to recognize what he was doing, so he didn't hold back.
Of course, Kitazawa figured it was probably something he'd said earlier that fired Neji up. That kid had always been stronger than Hinata—losing to her now? No way he'd accept that.
Plus, there's the whole Main House vs. Branch House thing.
Neji was a legit genius, no doubt about that. But he was still a kid, and without a proper teacher guiding him, he'd only nailed the first six strikes.
Know yourself, know your enemy—win every time.
Kitazawa now figured Hinata's chances of winning had gone way up.
But only if she could master more of the Sixty-Four Palms before next semester.
To make sure, she'd need more hands-on combat. Kitazawa planned to give her some serious summer training.
After observing Neji a while longer, he turned away and headed toward a quiet corner of the training field.
Now that he had a read on Neji's skill, it was time to test out what a 10% boost in Byakugan purity actually meant.
He glanced around. No one in sight. Then—Byakugan: activated.
"Huh."
First impression? Way sharper visuals.
Not by a huge amount—probably around 10%.
Next? He noticed his eye power—his "chakra stamina"—had also gone up.
Using dojutsu burns through eye power. Among the Uchiha, there's even a saying:
"The true test of the Sharingan is a test of eye power."
At the Mangekyō level, that's even more true. Push too far and you risk going blind.
Kitazawa tested it—yep, his Byakugan eye power had jumped about 10% too.
Nice.
Then he looked into the distance—and this time, his range didn't just improve 10%. It doubled.
Now that was a game-changer.
Being able to see farther means huge advantages in scouting and intel-gathering.
Kitazawa deactivated the Byakugan and headed back toward the field.
He casually pulled out a medical textbook to read—his shadow clones had class handled.
Time passed, and soon enough, the bell rang.
"See you tomorrow."
He dismissed the clones and walked off, looking like he'd just wrapped a fashion shoot.
"Wait… a teacher that doesn't go overtime?"
"Honestly, Kitazawa-sensei explained the Clone and Transformation Jutsu way better than Mizuki-sensei ever did!"
"Same! One class today felt like an entire week's worth of learning!"
"No wonder Class 1-A is so strong."
One class was all it took for Class 2-A to fully respect Kitazawa.
…
"Neji, heading back to class?"
Tenten found him still throwing punches.
"You go on ahead. I'm still training," Neji replied without even looking at her.
"My eternal rival!" Rock Lee pumped his fists. "This is what youth looks like! After school today—300 extra laps!"
"…"
Tenten was speechless.
Neji used to train hard, sure—but he also knew how to pace himself. Now he was turning into Lee 2.0.
…
Kitazawa didn't return to his office—he still had Class 1-A's final period: live combat training.
During break, he headed to the school's man-made lake to watch the students practice.
Shikamaru was progressing fast—his hard work was finally paying off.
Kitazawa figured he'd finish his Water Walking training by the end of the week, and like Ino, start learning his clan's secret jutsu.
In fact, Shikamaru had already begun learning the Shadow Imitation Technique from his dad, Shikaku. He was planning to surprise Kitazawa during their next sparring session.
Not that Kitazawa knew, but even if he did—he wouldn't be worried. A single jutsu wasn't enough to bridge the gap in skill.
"Ino," Kitazawa said, walking over to her.
After some weeks of observation, he had a solid understanding of the Mind Body Switch Technique.
The Yamanaka clan's jutsu were based on Yin Release.
Kitazawa had a Yin chakra nature himself and studied genjutsu, so he had a few insights to share.
Technically, Ino could probably learn it on her own—but giving her a few tips made him feel involved, and more importantly, made sure he'd complete his mission.
…
The bell rang again.
Kitazawa looked at Class 1-A and had a sudden thought:
Could I combine Class 1-A and Class 2-A for training?
If so, he'd save a whole lesson slot.
He thought it over and realized—it could work.
After all, the school's ninjutsu curriculum only covered the three basic jutsu. Sure, the classes were at different stages, but he could just split them into ability groups.
"Today we're continuing with Konoha-Style Taijutsu."
He'd wait until after this month's exams to merge the classes.
…
Kitazawa had already finished organizing the written test papers for all grade levels.
He scheduled the midterms like this:
Thursday: written exams
Friday: practicals
Saturday & Sunday: rest days
"Man, I'm so considerate," Kitazawa muttered with a smirk.
He could've thrown both exams onto the weekend—no class time lost. But then the students would've had back-to-back school weeks.
And in his past life, he hated weekend work with a passion.
Knock Knock
"Come in."
Iruka stepped into the office—he looked more exhausted than usual.
No surprise. Mizuki was dead, and since he had no family, his girlfriend Tsubaki had to arrange the funeral.
Iruka, being the kind soul he is—and a former friend—had taken it upon himself to help while still managing his classes. No wonder he looked wiped.
Kitazawa suddenly remembered something. In the original series, Iruka never had a wife or girlfriend mentioned. Probably stayed single.
Tsubaki, on the other hand, had just lost someone and was in a fragile place.
Let's not go there, Kitazawa thought, brushing the idea away. He wasn't one to mess with people's relationships.
Yūhi Kurenai wasn't dating Asuma yet, so that didn't count.
"Here's the monthly exam schedule," he said, handing Iruka a sheet. "Please pass it on to all grade offices."
"Yes, Kitazawa-senpai."
"Oh—and Iruka? Make sure you get some rest."
"…Thanks for looking out, Sensei," Iruka replied, warmed by the concern.
Even though Kitazawa had killed Mizuki, he held no grudge. Mizuki had made his own bed.
…
Kitazawa took the test papers to Vice Principal Sarutobi Hisao for printing—exams were tomorrow, and time was tight.
Luckily, printing wasn't his problem.
[Mission: Help Shikamaru establish a foundation for learning his clan's jutsu.]
[Reward: Shadow Imitation Technique]
[Mission Complete. Reward Received.]
Kitazawa stopped in his tracks.
Shikamaru finished his water walking already?
Yep—pressure builds diamonds.
Between constant jutsu drills and live training, the kid had surpassed his limits.
A rush of info hit Kitazawa's mind—Shadow Imitation, like Mind Body Switch, was a Yin Release technique.
Tempting as it was to try it out, he held back and headed to the lake.
…
Shikamaru was still at it.
"Shikamaru," Kitazawa called out, dismissing the shadow clone.
"Y-Yes, Sensei?" Shikamaru huffed, out of breath.
"You're done with Water Walking."
"Huh? So early?"
He blinked. It wasn't even mid-morning yet.
"Not just for today. You don't need it anymore."
"…What?" Shikamaru's eyes went wide. "Are you serious?"
"Why would I lie?" Kitazawa chuckled. "Your chakra control's solid now. Water training won't help anymore."
"Let's go!"
Shikamaru fist-pumped—but immediately slipped and plunged into the lake. Too hyped to focus chakra into his feet.
"Glub—Help—!"
Kitazawa burst out laughing, hopped over the water, and scooped him up like a flailing Magikarp. Shikamaru coughed out a stream of lake water.
"You okay?" Kitazawa grinned. "Need me to dry you with Fire Release?"
"Nope! I live nearby. I'll just head home, shower, and change."
"Good call. You don't want to catch a cold."
"Thanks, Sensei!" Shikamaru walked a few steps, then turned back. "Uh… do I have more training later?"
"I only promised your dad a month."
"…Oh."
He couldn't explain why, but something about that bummed him out.
Do I actually like training now? No way. No chance.
"Alright then, Sensei! See you!"
…
Back home, Shikamaru changed clothes, took a hot shower, and crashed on the couch. For a few minutes, he just stared at the ceiling.
Then… restlessness.
He sat up and glanced out the window. A random bird had landed on the sill.
Hand signs formed. Shadow Imitation Technique!
His shadow slithered across the floor, climbed the wall, and locked onto the bird's shadow.
The bird froze in panic.
"I actually pulled it off?" he whispered in disbelief.
With a thought, he released it. The bird vanished in a flutter.
He gasped. The technique was awesome—but chakra-hungry.
Then again, with enough chakra, you could lock down even the Ten-Tails. In the original story, Naruto's chakra helped him do just that.
"You mastered Shadow Imitation?"
A woman in an apron appeared—it was his mom, Yoshino.
"Yeah. First time I actually got it to work," he admitted, scratching his head. Even he hadn't expected it to happen so fast.
Only real explanation? The water training. His chakra control had leveled up like crazy.
"My son really is a genius!" Yoshino beamed. "Your dad didn't learn that jutsu at your age."
"Kitazawa-sensei helped a ton."
As soon as he said it, he regretted it.
Shoot. I just reminded her.
"Your dad made the right choice hiring him," Yoshino nodded approvingly.
They'd both noticed the change—Shikamaru had turned a corner. No more lazy lounging. He trained hard all day and practiced jutsu at night. Total transformation.
~~~
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