The sun was bright, and a gentle breeze was blowing.
An Yan was in a state of deep focus, rapidly flipping through The 137 Most Common Poisonous Plants, which he had just checked out from the library. Beside him, Tsunade was also engrossed in a medical text.
Hiruko watched them with envy. He wanted to study so freely too, but he was always conscious of his classmates' feelings. No one liked a "roll king" (someone who overworks and makes others feel pressured), and he didn't want to be ostracized.
But watching others make progress was agonizing. Why could An Yan be so indifferent to the opinions of others?
So, during lunch, Hiruko cautiously asked him this question.
An Yan took a bite of the rice ball he had made, looked at the slightly confused Hiruko, then glanced at the other students who were watching them. He chose to answer a question with a question.
"Is your life controlled by you, or by the opinions of others?"
Hiruko looked at An Yan with a dazed expression, not quite understanding. In his mind, people were supposed to fit in; it was a form of self-preservation.
An Yan continued, "Too often, we care too much about what others think, and we become their puppets."
Hiruko asked, "But if you don't fit in, you'll be ostracized by the group."
An Yan patted Hiruko's shoulder and quoted a famous saying: "Being ostracized won't kill you. And what doesn't kill me makes me stronger. Besides, Hiruko, I want to share something with you: Only sheep and cattle move in herds. The beast walks alone."
Hiruko's body jolted as if struck by lightning. The words sent a shiver down his spine, and the hairs on his arms stood on end.
"That's so powerful!" Hiruko murmured to himself. An Yan's mindset was incredibly strong.
Tsunade, who had been quietly eating, was also stunned. She looked up and re-evaluated An Yan, seemingly forming a new opinion of him in her mind.
The other students who had been watching them also heard An Yan's words and began to discuss among themselves.
"What An Yan said is so arrogant! I really want to punch him."
"That line was amazing! I've decided, that's my new catchphrase."
"Why wasn't I the one who said something so cool? That was awesome!"
An Yan ignored the noisy classmates, quickly finished his lunch, and returned to the classroom to continue studying.
Inspired, Hiruko also took out a book on biology that he had been interested in and began to study openly. Tsunade glanced at Hiruko, then at An Yan, and a smile touched the corners of her lips.
As other students returned to the classroom and saw everyone studying, they felt compelled to join in. The power of example was immense. The students who came back later saw the entire class engrossed in their books and had no choice but to follow suit.
When Teacher Sato entered the classroom and saw the intense academic atmosphere, he was overjoyed. He had been a teacher for seven or eight years, but he had never had a class as self-motivated as this one.
In his excitement, Teacher Sato decided to speed up the curriculum.
"Class, after a month of study, you have all basically learned how to extract and use chakra. Next, we will begin practical lessons. Theory alone is not enough. I will teach you how to use chakra in combat."
With a wave of his hand, Teacher Sato led the students to the training grounds.
He first took them to the target range and gave each student a few kunai. Teacher Sato demonstrated by hitting the bullseye perfectly. Then, he let the students practice while he stood by, occasionally correcting their form.
An Yan picked up a kunai, and a crosshair immediately appeared in his vision. With a flick of his wrist, he hit the bullseye.
Nearby, Tsunade stood with her arms crossed. She frowned at the clumsy attempts of the other students. She picked up a kunai and, with a casual throw, sent it straight through the target, obliterating the red dot in the center.
"What a boring, childish game. It's only ten meters. Is it really that hard to hit?"
The moment Tsunade's words left her mouth, An Yan tugged on her sleeve. Tsunade paused and followed his gaze, just in time to see Hiruko's kunai miss the target completely.
Hiruko froze on the spot. Hearing Tsunade's comment, he felt embarrassed and fell silent.
What's going on? Why am I the only one who can't do it?
An Yan walked over, put an arm around Hiruko, and led him aside, comforting him as they walked.
"We're just first-year students. It's normal to miss on your first try with a ninja tool."
But you both hit it. I'm the only one who missed.
Hiruko looked down, clenching his fists, and resolved to practice more at night.
Teacher Sato was taking notes in his notebook. After everyone had a turn, he came forward and distributed a large number of shuriken.
An Yan played with the star-shaped weapon. Although he had been in this world for a month, he had never used a shuriken before. But it didn't matter. After Teacher Sato gave a demonstration, An Yan immediately understood how to use the small weapon.
The students began their shuriken practice, and An Yan was no exception. He held four shuriken in each hand. With a flick of both wrists, eight shuriken flew through the air in a graceful arc, all of them landing on the very edge of the target, perfectly tracing the white line to form a circle.
Tsunade pursed her lips. She didn't believe for a second that An Yan couldn't hit the bullseye. He was clearly showing off. One moment he was comforting Hiruko, the next he was flaunting his skills. What a mischievous guy.
Hiruko, having composed himself, began to throw shuriken. This time, he did better, hitting the target with two or three. His expression finally relaxed a little.
But when he turned around and saw Tsunade's target, which was riddled with shuriken, he was still a little shocked.
Truly outstanding people are outstanding in every way.
Hiruko sighed and then looked at An Yan's target. His eyebrow twitched. He looked at An Yan.
"Do you think I'm that fragile? You deliberately missed the target."
An Yan shook his head. "You're mistaken. I was just showing off. I wasn't going easy on you."
Hiruko gave An Yan the middle finger.
-------
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