A new day arrived—Wednesday.
Kitazawa changed his clothes and went next door to Ichiraku Ramen for breakfast. As he ate, he organized his thoughts and reviewed his current tasks.
Since obtaining the system, he had triggered a total of eight tasks.
At present, three remained incomplete—those related to Kurama Yakumo, Hyuga Hinata, and Uchiha Sasuke.
Among them, helping Kurama Yakumo return to the Ninja Academy was by far the most troublesome.
Fortunately, Kitazawa had Yūhi Kurenai's help.
They had already agreed to visit the Kurama clan together on Saturday.
After finishing breakfast, Kitazawa headed to the classroom.
The first lesson of the day was his Will of Fire class.
"Kitazawa-sensei."
The moment Hinata Hyuga saw him, a wave of joy rose uncontrollably in her heart.
However, her strict upbringing and shy personality prevented her from showing it openly. She still appeared reserved and composed.
Kitazawa naturally sat down beside her.
The system had designated Hinata as his desk mate.To avoid invalidating the task, he had to play along with the system—at least on the surface.
Besides, Hinata was so adorable. Who could possibly dislike her?
"Hinata,"Kitazawa turned to her and said, "After this class ends, come to my office."
"O-okay,"Hinata froze for a moment, then nodded.
"Aren't you going to ask why?"Kitazawa asked with a smile.
"What… what's the reason?"Hinata tilted her head slightly and asked obediently.
"Special training,"Kitazawa replied.
Hinata immediately recalled what had happened in the small forest yesterday.
In one month, she would have to spar with Toranosuke, and Kitazawa had promised to give her special training.
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei,"Hinata said softly, turning her gaze aside, her cheeks faintly red.
Thinking about yesterday—about how she had hugged him in fear—made her feel embarrassed all over again.
Why is she blushing?Kitazawa noticed the change in her expression and felt puzzled.
Just then, a sudden commotion broke out in the classroom.
Kitazawa turned his head and saw Uchiha Sasuke walk in.
A saying flashed through his mind: Read more books, watch the Uchiha less.
Sasuke glanced around, paused slightly, then changed direction.
He walked straight up to Kitazawa and said,"Good morning, Kitazawa-sensei."
"Good morning,"Kitazawa replied with a slight nod and a smile.
Not far away, Nara Shikamaru and the others exchanged looks.
"Did the sun rise from the west today?"Inuzuka Kiba glanced out the window and asked."Isn't this the first time Sasuke's ever greeted a teacher on his own?"
"As far as I remember, it is,"Shikamaru said thoughtfully.
Sasuke came from the Uchiha clan, was a natural genius, and possessed immense pride.On top of that, he had an overwhelmingly talented older brother.
As a result, he usually treated classroom teachers with indifference.
So why was he suddenly so polite today?
"My guess is that Kitazawa-sensei teaches well,"Aburame Shino said, adjusting his sunglasses.
"Sasuke-kun!"Haruno Sakura didn't care what had happened between Sasuke and Kitazawa.
Her eyes sparkled as she rushed over.
"…"Sasuke's expression turned even colder as he said nothing and returned to his seat.
"Women are terrifying,"Shikamaru muttered with a sigh.
"Ahem."Akimichi Choji raised his arm and elbowed him.
Shikamaru suddenly realized something and stiffly turned his head toward Yamanaka Ino.
"Am I terrifying?"Ino crossed her arms, flicked her blond bangs, and glared at him.
"I'll treat you to barbecue tonight,"Shikamaru blurted out in desperation.
"Then what about me?"Choji instantly perked up at the word barbecue.
"You too,"Shikamaru said painfully.
Members of the Akimichi clan were notorious big eaters—he'd probably have to spend most of his saved allowance.
Ino snorted, glanced at Sakura, and decisively moved to sit on Kitazawa's left.
"If Kitazawa-sensei were our age, he might've stolen all of Sasuke's spotlight,"Shikamaru said, looking at Hinata on Kitazawa's right and Ino on his left.
"Hehehe… barbecue,"Choji was already fantasizing about what kind of meat they'd grill tonight.
"We're not eating beef,"Shikamaru turned and said.
Beef was the most expensive. Skipping it would save him a lot of money.
"No beef? Alright then…"Choji said regretfully.
The bell rang.
Kitazawa ended the class right on time, picked up his lesson materials, and left the classroom.
Hinata hesitated for a few seconds. Making sure no one was paying attention, she quickly stood up and followed him out.
Kitazawa stopped at the entrance to his office.
When he turned around, he spotted Hinata sneaking along behind him.
"Why do you look like a thief?"he teased.
Hinata lowered her head shyly.
"Come in,"Kitazawa said, opening the office door and walking inside.
Hinata quietly let out a sigh of relief.
"Do you have a habit of previewing lessons?"Kitazawa asked as he set down his materials.
"Yes,"Hinata replied."I read through today's lessons last night."
"Good,"Kitazawa said with a smile."In that case, you're skipping class with me."
"Eh?!"Hinata instinctively lifted her head.
A teacher leading her to skip class?She must be under genjutsu.
"This is called efficient time management,"Kitazawa said with a perfectly serious face, confidently spouting nonsense."You've already mastered the material. There's no need to sit through the lesson."
"B-but…"Hinata froze, completely flustered.
Skipping class directly contradicted everything she had been taught since childhood.
For a moment, she didn't know whether she should listen to Kitazawa or not.
"There's no 'but,'"Kitazawa said casually."It's just skipping class."
This was all part of the plan.
A person's personality was largely shaped by their environment.
Hinata had grown up surrounded by strict rules in the Hyuga clan—that was why she was the way she was now.
To change her personality, he first had to break the rules she held in her heart.
"I… okay."Looking at his smile, Hinata nodded almost unconsciously.
"Let's go,"Kitazawa said, patting her head.
Under his lead, the two arrived at one side of the academy wall.
"There are guards at the main gate,"Kitazawa explained."We'll climb over."
"Ah?"Hinata looked completely stunned.
Kitazawa leapt up and landed on top of the wall.
He didn't say anything—just beckoned to her.
Hinata's mind went blank. Her heart pounded wildly.
She had never imagined that on just her third day of school, she would skip class—and even climb over the academy wall.
Yet for some reason, she felt an unprecedented sense of excitement.
Biting her soft lower lip, Hinata hesitated for a few seconds before jumping up with all her strength.
Kitazawa grabbed her wrist and steadied her.
Together, they jumped down and cleared the wall.
Hinata instinctively pressed a hand to her chest, her cheeks glowing red.