Saul and Hinata were the first ones to arrive in the classroom. This was not the first time Hinata was here early, however. She liked to avoid the bulk of people arriving in the morning. It gave her time to collect herself and present the image of a graceful Hyuuga princess.
Why was it so hard to do so today?
Hinata looked over to the civilian classmate who made her acquaintance today. She still couldn't believe he had been making a clone... of her... Did he really pay attention to her that much?
"So what do you normally do here in the mornings?"
Another question... Hinata didn't like questions about herself. They made her feel like she was standing before the panel of elders and her father. She was being evaluated, judged, and found wanting. Hinata didn't see any of that in his gaze now, but she knew... It was only a matter of time until she screwed up. She always did.
"Well. Ahaha... I um..."
Saul could tell this approach wasn't working. He wanted to connect somehow with the Hyuuga Princess. For one she was a smoking hot babe, and for two, team assignments seemed to be based upon academy relationships. The team Hinata ended up with was likely due to the fact she wasn't close to anyone. The assigning ninja must have scratched their heads and stuffed her in with two other clan academy students to make sure they passed.
"Transform!"
He took the appearance of Hinata once more, scooting closer to her. This time however he mimicked her posture, arms close, slightly glancing away, and spoke with a nervous tic.
"A-am I doing it right?"
Hinata stared blankly at him for a moment. Why did he look so silly? Hinata giggled despite herself.
Saul continued with a pout, "Moh... Don't laugh at me!"
Bit by bit, Hinata seemed to be less guarded against the boy on her right. She felt accepted in his presence, an emotion that was foreign to her. Even Naruto, the man she had a crush on, didn't make her feel this way. After all she knew... He liked Sakura... He would never even consider someone like her.
Students trickled in one by one into the classroom, filling it up slowly. Shikamaru, Ino, a couple civilian students, Choji, Sakura, even Naruto. Speaking of the spiky haired blonde, he seemed surprisingly well behaved today. His afterschool lecture with Iruka must have gone well.
Once all the pre-genin had arrived, Iruka took a stand at the podium. He took attendance of all the genin.
"Alright then, let's go!"
Everyone followed like it was a routine. Saul stood up slightly late to follow. And soon, the entire class was in the training grounds outside Konoha.
The three academy Jutsu were simply add-ons to what they were doing now. A homework the prospective genin were given during their last year to pad their already refined toolset. What was truly important at their level, while they lacked the chakra to perform any advanced Jutsu? Physical training.
Combat. Speed. Parkour. Throwing. All of these skills were the basis for Konoha's stellar reputation. All ninja could jump over buildings and across trees, accurately throw kunai, had incredible speed, and could confidently fight to some degree of competency.
As a degenerate from contemporary society, Saul had no such skills. During training however, he performed *somewhat* competently. Even though he didn't remember the training, his body did.
The original Saul was pretty average though.
"Saul! 7.5 out of 10!"
"Uchiha Sasuke! 10 out of 10!"
"Uzumaki Naruto! 3 out of 10!"
"Hyuuga Hintata! 9 out of 10!"
Yeah, it was no wonder why Naruto never really threw kunai even early on in the series.
Once the physical training was over, everyone was brought back to the homeroom for a lecture. Iruka continued a prior lesson on explaining protocol for interacting with civilians, requirements for headband visibility, the like. It was boring, bureaucratic fluff that really had no effect on our lives as Ninja, and it was all really obvious.
"... And that is all for today. Saul, come speak with me. The rest of you are free to leave."
Iruka motioned Saul forward.
"Hey, I noticed you've been acting strange lately. Is anything going on? You didn't even try to perform the transformation jutsu the other day."
Iruka was clearly speaking from a point of innocent concern. Saul wanted to keep it that way.
"Sorry Iruka-sensei. Some things were on my mind, and I wasn't thinking straight. After last night though, I thought everything over and decided to start taking everything more seriously."
There it was. Playing the part of a troubled young adult, speaking generically enough to let Iruka form his own opinions. Yet providing resolution so no intervention was needed. Saul had plenty of experience with manipulation like this.
Iruka nods. "May I see your transformation jutsu?"
Saul glances back. Hinata was still at her seat, watching. "Yes Sensei."
Normally the student would transform into the instructor grading them. This was the easiest transformation to achieve because they were right in front of you. Saul however wanted to make a statement.
"Transform!"
Iruka's eyes widened as he stared at the Hyuuga clan heiress in front of him. She stood there demurely, blushing and giving him a nervous smile. There was no visible chakra wastage; Saul had been practicing.
Iruka erased the prior evaluation on Saul's record and gave him full marks. He glanced over to the Hyuuga heiress still waiting for Saul in her seat and made an additional note. Iruka put down the clipboard, looking at Saul with a smirk.
"Good work Saul. I won't keep you any longer! Keep this up and you'll earn your headband no problem!"
He patted Saul on the shoulder and headed out of the classroom. Hinata gathered her things. She was happy to see him succeed. Maybe she had been helpful for once? Hinata was unaware of the small smile on her face.
"Shall we go?"
Hinata nods. "En!"
Saul walked Hinata part of the way back to the Hyuuga compound. She trudged her feet as if she was carrying some sort of burden.
"Saul?"
"Yes?"
"...It's nothing"
Saul gazed into her eyes. She averted them quickly, blushing. Hinata's thoughts were a mess.
Narrowing his eyes, Saul smiled and started with an open statement, "Hey, I'd like to hang out with you more often. Today was fun!"
Hinata trembled. Oh no what should she say!? Her father would never let her stay out late, much less with some guy! She was already about to be scolded.
"I must... return to the clan for more training. My father will not be happy with my performance today."
Saul's mind went back to the score she got in Kunai throwing at the academy. A freaking 9 out of 10! Wasn't that enough?
Saul's mouth opened, then closed. No, she wasn't looking for his approval. She was looking for her father's, her clan's. Acknowledging her here would not achieve the desired effect.
"I understand. Maybe we could meet up at the academy for training tomorrow in the morning? I could also use some extra practice with Kunai!"
Hinata was quick to jump on the olive branch that was offered.
"Absolutely!" She exclaimed, before softening her tone, "So, see you tomorrow then?"
"Will do."
Author's Note:
Another chapter finished! Hope you enjoyed! Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts, I look at them every time. Also I made art of Hinata's appearance with AI, but I'm not sure how to show it on Webnovel. Let me know if any of you guys have suggestions!