The sun was warm, the breeze was gentle.
Rihito Sato was already fully immersed in study mode, flipping quickly through the thick book he'd just pulled from the library: 137 Common Poisonous Plants. Next to him, Tsunade was just as focused, buried in a text on medical ninjutsu.
Hiruko sat nearby, watching the two of them with envy.
He wanted to dive into learning like that, uninhibited, wholehearted. But he always held back, worried about what others would think. No one liked a try-hard, and he didn't want to be shunned by his classmates.
Yet watching Rihito and Tsunade progress day after day, it stung.
"Why... Why can Rihito just ignore everyone else's opinions so easily?" he muttered to himself.
Finally, during lunch, Hiruko gathered his courage and asked.
Rihito was halfway through a rice ball he'd packed himself. Glancing at Hiruko's uncertain face, then at the few students subtly observing them from across the yard, he chose to answer the question with another question.
"Do you live your life under your own control, or under the eyes of others?"
Hiruko blinked in confusion, not quite following.
From what he'd always been told, people were supposed to blend in. Fitting in meant protection. Safety in numbers.
But Rihito continued, calm and direct.
"Too often, we care so much about others' opinions that we become puppets, dancing to their strings."
Hiruko frowned. "But… if you don't blend in, won't you just get isolated?"
Rihito clapped a hand on his shoulder and said firmly:
"Being isolated won't kill you. And what doesn't kill you? Makes you stronger."
Then, with a grin, he added:
"Hiruko, I want you to remember something:
Sheep move in flocks.
But beasts… beasts always walk alone."
Hiruko jolted like he'd been struck by lightning. Goosebumps rose all over his arms.
"That's… incredible," he muttered. "Rihito, your mindset is really something else."
Even Tsunade, who had been silently munching on her lunch nearby, was stunned. She slowly lifted her head, giving Rihito a second, more serious look. Something in her eyes had shifted.
Around them, the other students who had been eavesdropping suddenly burst into hushed whispers.
Rihito ignored the chatter. He calmly finished the last bite of his lunch, then returned to the classroom to keep studying.
Hiruko followed shortly after, boldly pulling out the biology book he'd been itching to read and diving into his notes right there at his desk. Tsunade glanced between them and smiled faintly.
As more students trickled back from lunch and saw the trio already deep in study, they felt a strange sense of pressure, and began reading too.
After all, no one wanted to be labeled the sheep. Everyone secretly wanted to be the beast.
And so it happened:
The unstoppable force of peer pressure reversed.
Soon, when even the latecomers returned and found the entire classroom studying, they too reluctantly sat down and opened their textbooks.
When Teacher Sato walked in and saw the entire class deeply focused, he was thrilled. In his seven or eight years of teaching, he'd never had a class as self-motivated as this.
Buoyed by their momentum, he made a decision on the spot.
"Alright everyone! After a month of study, most of you have learned to refine and use chakra. So starting today, we'll begin your practical training. Theory alone won't cut it. You're going to learn how to fight."
He waved his hand, leading the students to the training field.
Their first stop: the target range. Each student was handed a few kunai. Sato demonstrated a perfect throw, embedding his blade dead-center in the bullseye.
Then he stepped back and let them practice, occasionally correcting their forms.
Rihito took a kunai in hand, and like always, a crosshair flickered into existence in his vision.
He let it fly.
Bullseye.
Tsunade stood nearby, arms folded, watching her classmates with growing disdain as they flailed and missed.
With an annoyed sigh, she casually flicked her wrist and threw her kunai, piercing the center of the target so cleanly the red dot vanished.
"What a childish game. It's only ten meters. Is it really that hard?"
The moment her words left her lips, Rihito tugged her sleeve.
She blinked, then followed his gaze,
Only to see Hiruko missing the target completely, standing frozen with embarrassment.
He hadn't hit anything. Then he heard Tsunade's voice. His face fell. He sank into silent humiliation.
Why… why is it just me who can't do it?
Rihito stepped forward, slung an arm around Hiruko's shoulder, and led him aside.
"Hey, don't sweat it. We're just first-years. It's your first time using ninja tools. Missing is normal."
Hiruko didn't reply. He just looked down and clenched his fists.
But everyone else hit something…
His heart burned. He made a silent vow: Tonight, I'll train. Hard.
Teacher Sato was nearby, scribbling in a notebook as he watched.
Once everyone had thrown their kunai, he stepped forward again and handed out shuriken.
Rihito examined the star-shaped weapons in his hands. Despite living in this world for a month, he'd never actually used them.
No matter.
One glance at Sato's demonstration, and Rihito had it down.
The class began practicing. Rihito raised both hands, four shuriken in each.
With a flick of his wrists, all eight flew through the air in beautiful arcs,
And landed perfectly on the outer white ring of the target, forming a symmetrical circle.
Tsunade squinted.
No way he missed the center on accident.
He's totally showing off on purpose... while pretending to be modest.
This jerk was just comforting Hiruko a second ago, now he's pulling THIS?
Hiruko had recovered a bit and tried again. This time, two or three shuriken landed on the board. He looked visibly relieved, until he glanced at Tsunade's target.
Dozens of shuriken, packed so tightly they overlapped.
So… excellence really is all-encompassing, he thought with awe.
Then he looked at Rihito's target.
Perfect circle. Not a single shot to the center.
He frowned. "You think I'm that fragile? You held back on purpose, didn't you?"
Rihito shook his head. "You're wrong. I was just showing off. Not being considerate."
Hiruko glared, and raised a middle finger.
<150 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter>