Teruhito immediately scurried over and pulled open his backpack with a 'clatter.' It was messily stuffed with various ninja tools, their sharp edges glinting coldly in the sunlight, making one worry if he might accidentally poke himself.
He said generously, "I have plenty in my bag, use mine. Yoko, don't be polite, take whatever you like."
Yoko frowned as she looked at the oblivious Teruhito, secretly biting her lip.
Daichi stood to the side, watching coldly. He hadn't planned on getting along with these Genin anyway. As long as they didn't cause trouble, they could do whatever they wanted.
Mamoru watched the two of them trying to curry favor with some amusement. He wasn't the novice he used to be, he could more or less tell that Yoko was trying to get close to him because of his looks and Teruhito clearly had ulterior motives as well. Was he trying to pursue Yoko?
What a complicated web of interpersonal relationships.
He reached out and plucked four shuriken from Teruhito's bag. His fingers moved with agility, spinning them as the ninja tools vanished and reappeared in his hands like a magic trick.
This technique left the three of them, including Daichi, staring in a daze, completely unable to understand how Mamoru did it.
Mamoru suddenly asked, "These ninja tools of yours... where did you buy them?"
Teruhito snapped out of it and answered subconsciously, "Where else? The Tenten Ninja Tool Shop, of course."
Mamoru nodded and casually tossed the shuriken back into Teruhito's bag, his tone indifferent. "The quality of their ninja tools is indeed top-notch. But I have no use for these toys now. Thanks."
"Toys?"
Teruhito looked down at the cold, glinting ninja tools in his bag, then back up at Mamoru, finding him increasingly incomprehensible.
Mamoru ignored them, busying himself with the paper bag in his hand.
Boom!
The tranquility of the village entrance was shattered by a sudden, loud bang.
The ninjas who were checking their luggage and discussing the operation were all startled, looking around for the source of the sound.
Soon, everyone's gaze locked onto the youth holding the paper bag.
Mamoru nonchalantly crumpled the paper bag into a ball, completely unconcerned about the commotion he had just caused.
He had simply blown air into the bag and popped it, even he hadn't expected it to make such a loud noise.
"What are you doing!?"
A man with a long sword on his back and middle-parted hair walked over angrily, shouting, "Does a Genin like you even know the rules?"
Seeing the irritable man with the middle-parted hair approaching, Teruhito and Yoko, afraid of being implicated, both took several steps back in unison.
Only the person involved remained calmly in place, tossing the paper ball up and down in his hand.
"Daichi, why aren't you disciplining such a lawless Genin?" The man walked straight up to Mamoru and turned to question Daichi.
"This... it was too sudden, I didn't notice either." Daichi replied aggrievedly.
He cursed in his heart, 'Damn it, you throw such a big trouble at me and then have the nerve to talk? This kid is clearly a troublemaker. If you're so capable, handle him yourself.'
"Since Captain gave this mission to you, you must take responsibility for leading the Genin."
After saying this, the man turned back to Mamoru and warned sternly, "Kid, you better watch yourself, do you hear me?"
Mamoru didn't even bother to acknowledge him, his gaze continuing to wander around in search of a nearby trash can.
No one around stepped in to stop it. It seemed they were intentionally letting the man give the Genin a show of authority.
Of course, there were also those who already disliked Mamoru and were eager to see him suffer a bit.
The pair of close friends over by the duty room were looking over with schadenfreude, whispering to each other from time to time.
Seeing Mamoru looking around and clearly ignoring him, the man's anger flared even more. He immediately pointed a finger at Mamoru and barked, "I'm talking to you! Where are you looking?"
Mamoru's gaze fell on the finger almost poking the tip of his nose. With a mocking smirk, he replied playfully, "If you don't want that finger, I can cut it off for you. No charge."
"You bastard!" The man roared.
This response had completely enraged him.
A mere Genin dared to provoke a Chunin.
This made the man feel his authority was being challenged, especially in front of so many colleagues. If he didn't do something, he would lose all face.
Just imagining the scene of those people mocking him was unbearable.
But laying hands on a Genin here wouldn't be very honorable if word got out.
Mamoru stared at the man whose expression was shifting before him. Seeing him struggling, he offered a 'kind' reminder, "I suggest you don't make a move, otherwise the one losing face won't be me."
To Kanta, these words were full of mockery, completely igniting the fuse.
He no longer cared about honor and reached straight for Mamoru's neck, sneering, "We'll see who gets embarrassed in a moment."
Just as Kanta's hand was about to touch Mamoru's collar, a hand shot out like lightning and gripped his wrist.
Crack!
The sickening sound of grinding bones suddenly rang out.
Kanta felt an irresistible, massive force coming from his wrist. His face turned pale instantly, and his knees buckled uncontrollably, hitting the ground.
Thud!
"Aaaaagh—!"
A shrill scream pierced the morning silence.
Kanta's other hand frantically clawed at the hand that was like an iron clamp. Veins bulged on his forehead, and large beads of sweat rolled down from his temples, yet he couldn't budge it an inch.
This sudden turn of events stunned everyone present, the air seemed to freeze.
The two Jonin were the first to react. Two blurred figures flashed by.
Miki had already grabbed Mamoru's wrist, while Yuya's hand was pressed on his shoulder.
"Let go." Miki's voice was low and authoritative.
"That's enough." Yuya followed up, his gaze watching Mamoru warily.
Hearing the voices, the pale blue in Mamoru's eyes slowly faded away.
He released Kanta's wrist, raised his hands, and shrugged with an innocent look. "I'm innocent. He made the first move, I was just acting in self-defense."
Yuya quickly walked to Kanta's side and crouched down, helping him up and asking with concern, "Kanta, is your hand okay?"
Kanta gritted his teeth against the pain and moved his wrist slightly.
"I-I'm fine, the bone... isn't broken." He replied stutteringly, his voice still trembling slightly.
The intense pain in his wrist continued to remind him of exactly what had just happened.