"Kurenai, what's going on here?"
Panicked - completely panicked - Sarutobi Asuma asked in a fluster.
Kurenai blinked, not understanding why he was reacting so strongly. They hadn't known each other for long, and at their age, she simply saw him as a friend. She had no idea how devastating her words had been - enough to make Asuma instantly darken into a clown.
"It's like this."
Kurenai briefly explained the situation.
After hearing it, Asuma trembled with anger in broad daylight.
The culprit was actually his old man?
At this point in his life, Asuma was a rebellious teenager who didn't want to live under Hiruzen's shadow, so their relationship was strained.
"Asuma?"
Kurenai noticed something odd. "Why is your face red?"
"Ah, it's nothing."
Asuma steadied himself and forced a smile.
"We're going to be late if we don't hurry. Let's go."
Kurenai didn't think much of it and walked ahead.
Asuma followed behind her, his eyes flickering toward Satoru.
Satoru's lips twitched.
The entire way, Asuma had been staring at him, reminding him of a certain meme about always watching someone.
"Asuma, I need to take Satoru to the teacher's office. You go ahead to class."
Once they reached the academy, Kurenai spoke up.
"I can take him!"
Asuma volunteered eagerly.
"No."
Kurenai refused. "This is a mission my dad gave me."
"But-"
Asuma wanted to argue, but Kurenai had already turned away with Satoru.
No!
He reached out helplessly as he watched them leave.
Damn you, Satoru!
Asuma's face twisted in frustration.
Teacher's Office
Satoru handed his enrollment letter to a young chunin.
According to Kurenai, his name was Yamamoto Eiichirou - an ordinary, unremarkable instructor.
"Satoru Hanekawa, welcome to Class 1-A."
Eiichirou closed the letter with a polite smile.
A student personally approved by the Hokage? He had to take this seriously.
"Thank you, sensei."
Satoru responded politely.
Eiichirou nodded slightly.
At least he didn't seem like a troublemaker.
"Kurenai, you can go ahead."
Eiichirou explained, "I'll take Satoru to the classroom."
"Alright."
Kurenai shot Satoru a meaningful look before leaving.
"These are the first-year textbooks."
Eiichirou handed him a stack of books.
Satoru counted them - seven in total.
The top one read "Chakra Theory and Extraction Techniques."
"Class starts in a few minutes. Feel free to skim through them."
Eiichirou smiled.
"Mm."
With little time left, Satoru flipped through the table of contents.
"Weapon Throwing," "The Will of Fire," "Ninja Code of Conduct," "History of Konoha," and more - it was a comprehensive curriculum.
He remembered that in his past life, some fans had analyzed the chunin exam's written test, discovering questions on English, chemistry, and physics.
While graduating as a genin technically only required mastery of the three basic jutsu, the academy actually taught a lot more.
Ding-dong.
The bell rang.
"Let's go."
Eiichirou picked up a book and headed out.
Satoru quickly followed.
Class 1-A
Eiichirou stepped up to the lectern.
Satoru waited at the door, but he had already been noticed. Curious eyes scrutinized him, some of them - particularly the girls - glowing with unsettling intensity, as if they wanted to devour him.
His gaze immediately landed on Hatake Kakashi.
That shock of white hair and the weird mask made him impossible to miss.
In the original story, Kakashi had graduated at five, become a chunin at six, and made jonin by thirteen - an undisputed genius.
In the future, he would be the Fourth Hokage's student and the team leader for Naruto and Sasuke.
The seat to Kakashi's left was empty, while the one on his right was occupied by a girl - undoubtedly Nohara Rin.
Her features were just as distinctive: short brown hair, a gentle face, and two purple markings on her cheeks.
The empty seat had to belong to Uchiha Obito.
The future mastermind behind everything, currently just a clumsy, perpetually late underdog.
"Ahhh-!"
Suddenly, a scream tore through the air.
Satoru turned to see a boy around his age, wearing a tracksuit jacket and goggles, sprinting at full speed, his face red with exertion.
"Move!"
The boy shouted when he saw Satoru.
Satoru stepped aside.
The boy barreled into the classroom, skidded to a stop, wobbled a few times, and then faceplanted spectacularly.
"Late again, Obito."
Eiichirou sighed.
"Sorry, sensei!"
Obito scrambled up. "I was helping an old lady cross the street!"
"Find a better excuse next time."
Eiichirou sounded exhausted.
"But it's true!"
Obito insisted.
"Just sit down."
Eiichirou didn't believe him.
Who helped old ladies cross the street every single day?
"Rin!"
Obito plopped into his seat, grinning at her.
"Good morning, Obito."
Rin replied softly.
"Heh."
Obito immediately broke into a dumb smile.
"Before class starts, I have an announcement."
Eiichirou tapped the lectern.
The room fell silent. The sharper students had already guessed this was about Satoru.
"Starting today, Satoru Hanekawa will be joining our class. Let's give him a warm welcome!"
Eiichirou began clapping.
The classroom erupted in applause - except for Asuma, who sat with his arms crossed, watching Kurenai clap enthusiastically with bitter envy.
"The new kid's kinda good-looking..."
A black-haired girl sitting behind Rin murmured.
"Rin, what do you think?"
Obito immediately went on high alert.
Rin hesitated when she saw his expression.
She did think Satoru was handsome, but saying so would upset Obito.
"Looks don't matter. Strength does."
Kakashi said coolly.
"You smug bastard!"
Obito bristled at the word "strength."
"Just wait until I unlock my Sharingan! I'll beat you so bad you'll beg for mercy!"
He had always assumed Rin paid more attention to Kakashi because he was stronger.
"I think Kakashi's right!"
A boy in a green jumpsuit spun around from the front row, flashing a thumbs-up and a blinding grin.
"Alright, that's enough."
Eiichirou raised a hand, cutting off their chatter.
"Now, Satoru, please introduce yourself."