Walking openly through a ninja village without being chased or attacked was quite a fresh experience for Kakuzu. All of this came down to that weird little punk standing in front of him.
He's clearly weaker than most, yet still has the nerve to call me "Uncle." Based on age, he could probably call me "grandfather" and it wouldn't be far off—this brat is practically making himself sound younger by calling me uncle.
As Kakuzu was lost in thought, Anya's voice suddenly interrupted his mind. "Uncle, what were you thinking about? We've already arrived at the school."
Already? Kakuzu blinked in surprise. Before him stood the Ninja Academy—a place he had never visited in his youth. If only I had come here as a child...
"You're spacing out again," Anya whispered quietly. "The surroundings are clear now. Did you spot any suspicious targets along the way?"
"Suspicious targets?" Kakuzu asked with some confusion.
Anya looked even more puzzled. "You're here searching for the Heart of Lightning Chakra, aren't you? Haven't you been observing people this whole time?"
Kakuzu snapped back into focus and quickly replied, "Of course. So far, there hasn't been a suitable one."
That made sense to Anya. "Fair enough. A target worthy of your standards wouldn't be strolling around like an ordinary passerby anyway. Let me check things out once I'm inside the Ninja Academy."
"Kid," Kakuzu finally asked, "why are you helping me?"
Anya chuckled. "Haha, isn't it mutual help? I help you first, then you help me."
Kakuzu remained expressionless. "Let's make this clear—I haven't agreed to your offer yet."
Anya gave a knowing gesture. "Understood. Why don't you find a place to stay while I go check out the school? I'll let you know if I find anything appropriate."
For Anya, entering the Ninja Academy was like coming home. He showed no sign of caution or stealth usually expected from someone sneaking in—he simply walked in boldly and confidently.
As soon as he entered the classroom, chaos broke out before the teacher could even start introducing him.
Several girls' eyes turned into hearts as they squealed excitedly, "Wow! Look, there's a new hot guy!"
Meanwhile, the boys grumbled, "Hmph, he's all skin and bones—ugly too. Real men should have muscles!"
Seemed like first impressions were mostly based on appearances. Nothing unusual about that—after all, appreciation of beauty is only natural.
Anya smiled slightly and greeted everyone with calm confidence. "Hello, everyone!"
"Wow, he looks even better when he smiles."
One smitten girl gasped, "Was that smile meant for me?"
The teacher at the podium couldn't stand it anymore and shouted, "Quiet! Let me introduce him. His name is Yunbai. He comes from a small village in the Land of Lightning—the place was destroyed by ninja from Iwagakure. Now he's here to study. Please don't bully him."
Anya played his part well, wearing a sorrowful expression.
All the students immediately stood up and yelled, "Who would dare bully him? I'll beat them up until they spit teeth!"
Once the teacher left, Anya quickly became friends with the other students. Whether male or female, everyone felt this new student was great.
When their relationship seemed warm enough, Anya casually asked, "Hey, do you guys know who's the strongest with Lightning Release here?"
One of the white-haired boys said, "That goes without saying—it's definitely Lord Raikage! My family told me he once sent the Eight-Tails sprawling!"
Could someone really stand up to the Eight-Tails head-on? This generation's Raikage truly isn't simple. Using him as Kakuzu's target clearly isn't appropriate. Leaving aside whether he could be defeated or not, even if he was beaten, one would still have to face an entire village hunting you down. Without thinking, you'd surely be unable to escape.
Anya thought for a moment before asking curiously, "Are there any powerful ninja ranked below Raikage?"
"That definitely would be Raikage's son. He's sure to succeed Raikage one day."
Raikage's son wouldn't work either. Although the difficulty wasn't as high as Raikage's, the consequences were effectively the same. Anya quickly abandoned this option.
Another female classmate spoke up, "I think Lord Killer Bee is pretty good too, and his rap lyrics are very interesting."
"Where's the fun in that?"
"Don't you find it enjoyable?"
Several classmates chimed in with their opinions.
Just then, a voice came over, "Yo, sounds like I heard my name mentioned."
A muscular man with blond hair, dark skin, and black sunglasses walked in. He was holding a pen, scribbling something down, then suddenly burst into an energetic dance, rapping under his breath.
The whole room instantly went awkward; even Anya looked dumbfounded. Could this really be Killer Bee?
After finishing, the girl who had praised him earlier asked, "Lord Killer Bee, are you teaching us today?"
Killer Bee beamed with excitement and said, "Yes, today I'm here to teach you all. Ready to learn something? How about a rap lesson first?"
"Ahh, no way!" The rest of the students couldn't help but groan collectively.
"A bunch of kids with no taste in music," Killer Bee remarked. Then he pulled out several blades from behind him and said, "Then today, I'll teach you Taijutsu."
This suggestion received unanimous approval: "Great."
With a loud burst of energy, everyone rushed out of the classroom. Indeed, no matter where in the world, physical education classes always remained the most popular.
Arriving at the training ground, after warming up with some rapping, Killer Bee pulled seven blades from his person. In his hands, the seven blades moved as nimbly as arms, flipping left and right, up and down. Before anyone noticed, the training dummies around the area had already been pierced into pieces.
Anya, who had originally been rather lazy and indifferent, watched with wide eyes. What kind of swordsmanship was this? It completely exceeded his imagination. Though seemingly somewhat comical, its actual attack speed and coverage were even faster and wider than his own. In close combat, purely based on sword techniques, he might actually lose to this guy.
Indeed, traveling ten thousand miles teaches more than reading ten thousand scrolls. Just watching that set of sword techniques made this trip worthwhile.
After the demonstration, the students swarmed around him, eager to learn his techniques. While the others clustered around, Anya sat quietly alone, contemplating how to counter those moves.
Soon, the class ended. Anya opened his eyes, gazing in the direction where Killer Bee had left, and followed directly.
Since Anya didn't deliberately hide himself, Killer Bee quickly noticed a young follower behind him and stopped on the spot.
"Yo, aren't you that quiet little kid from just now? Why are you following me? Oh, I know, you want to hear my rap, don't you?" Killer Bee said confidently.
Anya shook her head and said, "No, I want to test our swordsmanship against each other."
"Oh, a swordsmanship contest?" Killer Bee replied with curiosity. "Kid, you don't even have a sword. How do you plan to fight?"
"Couldn't you just lend me one?"
"Huh, interesting," Killer Bee said, intrigued by the little girl in front of him as he tossed a blade her way. "Hey, dummy! Idiot! This blade's super sharp—don't cut yourself!"
Anya caught the blade and tested its weight with a few practice swings. Then she charged forward and said, "That's *exactly* what I was going to say."
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