A New Student
Ren was lying on the roof of his house, hands behind his head, staring at the stars. The night sky over Konoha was unusually clear, and for a brief moment, he allowed himself to relax.
Then the system rang inside his mind.
(Ding! Candidate Ino Yamanaka has entered High Motivation Phase.)
Ren blinked.
"What happened to this girl?" he muttered. "Did she have some kind of awakening or something?"
He rolled off the roof and quietly returned to his bedroom. The wooden floor creaked slightly as he lay down on his bed and stared at the ceiling.
The system interface appeared again.
(Accept Ino Yamanaka as Student. Yes / No)
(Reward – Yin Release Talent Boost)
Ren stared at the glowing screen in silence for several seconds.
"You shitty system, you finally decided to give me something," he grumbled. "Where are my rewards for teaching Hinata?"
There was no response.
"You motherf— system," Ren cursed under his breath.
Still no response.
He clicked Yes.
Immediately, the notification changed.
(Activating Spiritual Teaching Mode.)
Ren felt his consciousness separate from his body. His spiritual form rose effortlessly, passing through the ceiling as if it were mist. He flew across the quiet village until he reached the Yamanaka residence.
Inside Ino's room, the blonde girl was lying on her bed, hugging her pillow tightly. Her eyes were open, staring blankly at the wall.
Ren hovered near her.
"Yooo, having trouble sleeping?" he asked casually.
"None of your business, Ren," Ino subconsciously replied.
Then she froze.
Slowly, very slowly, she turned her head.
Her eyes widened.
She nearly fainted.
She pointed at Ren, her hands shaking violently. "Yo–you are… are you a ghost?!"
Ren chuckled. "Nope. Just using a jutsu. So what happened?"
Ino stared at him, half terrified and half confused. "Wh–whatever. And what do you mean what happened?"
"You look different," Ren said calmly. "And you weren't sleeping."
Her expression shifted immediately into suspicion.
"You—what were you doing here? You pervert! You were peeping at me, right?!"
Ren's mouth twitched.
He obviously couldn't explain that the system had sent him.
"Don't sprout nonsense," he replied. "And even if I wanted to peep, why would I reveal myself?"
Then his eyes casually dropped to her chest.
"Flat," he said.
Ino's face turned bright red, a mix of fury and embarrassment exploding at once.
"You bastard! I'm still four years old! What do you expect?!" She grabbed a pillow and threw it at him.
The pillow passed straight through his spiritual body.
Ren snorted. "Duh, I'm four too. And you have nothing to peep at."
Ino opened her mouth to argue.
But for a split second, her eyes dropped downward.
Y-yeah… there really is nothing to see.
Her face flushed deeper.
When I grow older it will be big, she thought fiercely.
She shook her head and glared at him again.
"So what are you here for?" she demanded.
Ren folded his arms. "What happened to you? You're different."
Ino hesitated.
Then she told him everything.
She told him about dinner. About her father's words. About watching Hinata train. About watching him train. About how it made her feel.
When she finished, she looked down at her blanket.
"So why do you two train so hard?"
Ren understood immediately.
It was his influence.
If I had known this would motivate her, I would have done it earlier.
He sighed.
"What do you think being a ninja is?" he asked seriously. "Some glory? Being treated like a hero? Bullshit."
Ino looked up, startled by his tone.
"You have to kill people. You have to risk your life on missions. One mistake and you die—or your teammate dies."
The room grew quiet.
Ino's small hands tightened around her pillow.
"So," Ren continued more calmly, "do you want me to help you train?"
Her eyes widened slightly.
"You would?"
"Well, I do it for Hinata. So it's no big deal."
Ino blinked.
"Wait—you train Hinata? How? I don't see you."
"I was in this form," Ren replied. "Only Hinata could see me. And now you."
Understanding dawned on her face.
"So that's why she keeps pushing harder. It's because of y—"
"Don't you dare give her hard work credit to me," Ren snapped.
Ino flinched.
"I have just been counting her repetitions," he said firmly. "She trained that hard on her own will. It's her hard work. I was just a witness."
His eyes were sharp.
"Hinata trained on her own will. So don't you dare give credit to others for her hard work."
Ino lowered her head slightly.
"I'm sorry."
Ren calmed down.
"You can come to my garden at the same time I start training. After finishing Hinata's training, we can train together. If I come separately to train you, I won't have time for mine."
Ino pouted dramatically.
"So Hinata gets private training."
Ren answered without hesitation.
"She's hardworking. Unlike some girls."
"Hey! Say that again, you bastard!"
She threw another pillow.
Ren had already disappeared.
---
The next morning, after completing Hinata's increased training session, Ren returned home and began stretching in his yard.
He didn't expect her to come.
But a few minutes later, Ino appeared at the entrance, her hair tied properly and her expression unusually serious.
Ren raised an eyebrow.
"You really came?"
Ino's mouth twitched.
This bastard is doing that on purpose, she thought.
"Of course I came," she said defensively. "I'm not some lazy person."
Ren smirked slightly.
"Alright. Start with eighty push-ups, eighty sit-ups, eighty crunches, eighty frog jumps, eight minutes force stance, and ten rounds running."
Ino stared at him.
"Eighty?!"
Ren shrugged.
"You wanted to train."
She clenched her fists.
Fine.
She dropped down for push-ups.
By twenty, her arms were shaking.
By forty, she was gritting her teeth.
"Why is this so hard?" she muttered. "Hinata did more than this…"
Ren ignored her complaints and began his own training beside her.
Three hundred push-ups.
His pace was steady.
Ino glanced at him mid-repetition.
Why is he not shaking?
She finished eighty push-ups and collapsed onto her stomach.
"No lying down," Ren said calmly while continuing his own reps. "Sit-ups."
She groaned loudly but forced herself upright.
Her sit-ups were uneven at first, but she stabilized her breathing.
Seventy-five.
Seventy-six.
Seventy-seven.
"I hate you," she muttered.
"Count properly," Ren replied without looking at her.
She completed all eighty.
Crunches came next.
Her stomach burned intensely halfway through.
"I'm going to die," she whispered dramatically.
"You won't," Ren said calmly. "If you were going to die, you would have during frog jumps."
"That's not comforting!"
He continued his own frog jumps—three hundred of them.
Ino started hers.
By forty, her legs trembled.
By sixty, she nearly fell.
"Don't stop," Ren said flatly.
"I'm not stopping!" she shot back stubbornly.
She finished all eighty frog jumps, breathing heavily.
Then came force stance.
Eight minutes felt like eternity.
Her knees shook violently.
Sweat dripped down her chin.
Ren stood in his own stance beside her for thirty minutes without speaking.
Ino noticed.
He's not even looking at me.
He's just training.
Not showing off.
Not mocking.
Just training.
The eight minutes ended.
"Ten rounds," Ren said.
She ran.
Her pace was sloppy at first but improved gradually.
By the eighth lap, she wanted to quit.
By the ninth, she remembered Hinata collapsing.
By the tenth, she pushed forward stubbornly.
When she finished, she dropped to the ground, gasping.
Ren completed his thirty laps and stood calmly.
He looked down at her.
"You didn't quit."
Ino glared up at him weakly.
"Shut up."
But there was a small smile hiding behind her exhaustion.
For the first time in her short life, Ino Yamanaka felt something unfamiliar.
Not admiration.
Not competition.
Not fangirling.
It was the quiet, painful beginning of discipline.
And Ren, watching silently, realized something important.
A new student had truly been born.