The chalk tapped the board with a soft click.
Chakra.
Takeshi-sensei turned, robes brushing the edge of the podium. The word hung behind him in bold strokes, stark against the faded green board.
"This," he said, voice steady, "is the foundation of every jutsu. The breath of the shinobi world."
The classroom fell silent.
Even Reina—the brown-haired girl who'd spent most of the morning whispering with her friends—had stopped talking. She leaned forward now, her eyes sharp with curiosity.
Kaito sat near the middle, beside Daiki. Daiki was broad-shouldered for his age, with a faint scar across his nose and a restless energy that made his leg bounce under the desk.
"There are 365 chakra points in the body," Takeshi-sensei continued, drawing a rough diagram of a human silhouette. "Each one is a node in your internal network. They are gateways for chakra flow. The most important lies here."
He tapped the stomach area of the diagram.
"The core point. It's where chakra first gathers when you begin to mold it."
Daiki leaned toward Kaito, voice proud. "Mine's already unlocked. My father helped me last year."
Kaito nodded. "I figured."
"You?"
"Not yet."
Daiki blinked. "Huh. You seem like the type."
Kaito didn't respond. His eyes were on the board, absorbing every word.
"Those born into shinobi clans often unlock their chakra early," Takeshi said. "With guidance, support, and supervision. But for civilians—and orphans—it's different."
His gaze swept the room.
"You'll need to unlock it yourselves. And you'll need to be careful."
He paused.
"If done improperly, chakra unlocking can lead to backlash. Internal burns. Disrupted flow. In rare cases, permanent damage to your network."
A few students shifted uncomfortably. One boy in the back swallowed audibly.
Reina, who moved back, whispered, "One of my cousins rushed it. Ended up in the hospital for a week." Kaito kept his expression neutral, but the warning etched itself into his thoughts.
The rest of the morning unfolded in a rhythm of lectures—Japanese, mathematics, physics, military theory. Takeshi-sensei moved, assigning homework as he went.
Kaito wrote steadily, his handwriting neat and clear. Daiki groaned beside him, muttering something about "too many numbers."
Reina had drifted back to her group, laughing softly with two other girls. Her voice was light, but her eyes occasionally flickering toward the board show that she is restless, as well.
When the final bell rang, students began to pack up. Some were met by parents at the gates. Others walked off in pairs, chatting about chakra and jutsu.
After saying bye to Reina and Daiki, who were walking to their parents, Kaito walked alone.
The orphanage was quiet when he arrived. His shared room was dim, the curtains drawn. One of the younger boys was curled up on the bed, reading a comic. Another was sketching on the floor.
Kaito sat at his desk, lit the lamp, and opened the chakra basics textbook.
The pages were dense but clear. Diagrams of chakra points. Descriptions of energy flow. Techniques for sensing your core point.
He read slowly, letting the information settle.
Then—
[+1 Knowledge Acquired]
_________________________________________
New Section Unlocked: Knowledge
— Chakra Basics Textbook (3/100)
_________________________________________
He blinked.
The panel had changed.
A new column: Knowledge. Under it, the Chakra Basics Textbook. (3/100)
The other two points should be from the lecture. And the other is from the reading.
And then he felt it.
A quiet shift in his mind. A portion of the textbook had solidified. Not just remembered, engraved in his mind.
He could visualize some diagrams. Recite many of the definitions. Feel the structure of the body.
Even if centuries passed, it would never fade.
He kept reading.
An hour passed.
_________________________________________
Chakra Basics Textbook (14/100)
_________________________________________
He paused.
The book said he could attempt unlocking now. But Takeshi-sensei's warning echoed in his thoughts.
*
Internal burns.
Network collapse.
Permanent damage.
*
Clan children had support. Guidance. Safety nets.
Orphans didn't.
Kaito closed the chakra textbook and opened the others—Japanese, math, physics, history, science. He read each one slowly.
The panel updated.
_________________________________________
Knowledge:
— Chakra Basics Textbook (14/100)
— Japanese Textbook (85/100)
— Math Textbook (63/100)
— Physics Textbook (32/100)
— History Textbook (56/100)
— Science Textbook (33/100)
_________________________________________
It seems like the knowledge I had from my past life still gets reflected on the panel. But, seriously...how do they expect children to understand all of this...
As for the three E-Rank Justus Takeshi-sensei passed out...
He'd study the three basic E-Rank jutsu manuals tomorrow.
For now, he leaned back, eyes drifting to the panel one last time.
It glowed softly in the dark.
He exhaled.
Then closed his eyes.
And slept.