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"Teacher Umino, can't we get more real combat practice? We didn't become ninja just to learn how to run away."
Complaints rippled through the class.
Compared to boring stamina drills, sparring was way more exciting. At least in a match, you could earn some cheers.
"Yo, Kakashi! My favorite part of training again!"
Might Guy flashed his blindingly polished teeth and gave a huge thumbs-up.
"How about a hot-blooded duel of youth with me?"
"…"
Kakashi, scarf pulled up to his nose, cast a glance at Guy's ridiculous green jumpsuit.
Watching Guy strike bizarre poses every few seconds made him want to scrub his own eyes clean.
He really couldn't understand why his father, Sakumo, had ever warned him that Might Guy would become a formidable rival one day. Right now it just seemed absurd.
"If you don't run, you'll fall behind."
Kakashi took off running.
"Kakashi, I'm coming!"
Guy immediately matched his pace.
"Kakashi, you're as handsome as ever!"
A cluster of girls watched him run, their fatigue lightened just by staring at Kakashi's cool, effortless stride.
Rin Nohara also kept sneaking glances at him as she struggled to keep up.
"Keeping up?" Kakashi asked casually.
"I can," Rin nodded.
From behind, Obito gritted his teeth as he saw the two of them chatting like no one else existed. He pushed harder, sprinting forward to block Rin's view.
"Kakashi, you're too slow!"
He forced a relaxed smile.
"Idiot."
Kakashi didn't even bother hiding his disdain. They had only run a few laps, and Obito was already throwing off his own rhythm just to compete with others. That kind of reckless pacing guaranteed he'd burn out later.
Shaking his head, Kakashi ran on.
"Wait… is that Uchiha Seiji?"
His eyes narrowed.
While distracted, he suddenly noticed Seiji was already among the leaders at the front of the group.
Was it his imagination, or did Seiji look more relaxed the longer he ran?
For the next few laps, Kakashi kept observing him.
To his surprise, Seiji didn't even sweat much by the end.
While everyone else collapsed, gasping for air, Seiji calmly pulled out a notebook and started reading.
That caught Umino-sensei's eye.
Then the teacher remembered Seiji's background.
"Ah… the Land of Lightning."
His mind went back to the Cloud ninja, famous for their raw physical prowess.
It made sense that Seiji's stamina was above average. Even compared to the Senju or Uzumaki, no one was more renowned for taijutsu than the shinobi of the Lightning Country.
"You're not tired?"
Kakashi came over, curious.
He couldn't quite reconcile Seiji's skinny frame with such endurance.
"Not really," Seiji replied, unscrewing a water bottle and taking a sip. With chakra, ninja naturally had better stamina than ordinary people. Running long distances wasn't too hard.
After drinking, he met Kakashi's gaze.
This was Hatake Kakashi, the prodigy who would invent Chidori at twelve.
Ironically, Obito's Sharingan later held back his growth. In the official Kakashi novel Lightning in the Frozen Sky, it was after losing the Sharingan that Kakashi finally developed Purple Lightning, a new lightning-style jutsu that didn't need hand signs or a special eye, created as Chidori's replacement.
"Kakashi, aren't you supposed to be the most impressive one here?" Seiji asked.
Kakashi was, after all, ranked top of their entire year. Of course his physical training was solid too.
"Seiji! You're burning with the fire of youth too!"
Guy ran up, his bowl-cut bouncing wildly.
"No, I'm just… training because I need to."
Seiji gestured at his scrawny body, pausing before adding,
"If I want to be a real ninja, this won't cut it."
"You're right about that," Guy nodded earnestly.
Beneath his green jumpsuit, Guy's body was already built like steel. Seiji definitely needed more work.
"Seiji, you're really hardworking."
Rin wiped sweat from her forehead as she approached.
Her fair skin glistened with a thin sheen of sweat, giving her a delicate glow.
"Bet I looked cool out there, huh?"
Obito staggered across the finish line at last, nearly collapsing.
He had wrecked his pace earlier just to block Kakashi from Rin's view, and now he was the only one finishing late, legs heavy and drained.
But as he scanned the field for Rin, the exhaustion felt worth it—if she saw how hard he worked.
"Rin…"
He spotted her and jogged over, only to freeze when he saw who was standing with her.
Kakashi.
And that annoying transfer student from the Land of Lightning.
"Rin, could I trouble you to keep teaching me jutsu today?" Seiji asked politely. "I think I'm getting the hang of tree-walking. I'd like to move on and learn an E-rank technique soon."
Kakashi frowned slightly, glancing at Rin.
So Rin had been training with Seiji yesterday while he was away? His father had called him home early, and he'd missed it.
"Of course," Rin nodded warmly. "That way you'll get used to our lessons faster."
She naturally made sure to appear kind and gentle in front of Kakashi.
Their words drifted clearly into Obito's ears.
"That guy again?"
He froze, fists clenching.
He barely had time alone with Rin as it was. Usually, it was him, Rin, and Kakashi together. Yesterday he had practically forced himself into their plans so the two of them wouldn't be alone.
His grandmother always said his parents had died young, killed in battle.
And the Land of Lightning… it had been at war with the Leaf back then.
So why was a boy from there constantly hovering around Rin?
Obito could tolerate a lot of things, but not this. Not when it came to her.
With Kakashi, at least he could acknowledge his strength, treating him as both rival and classmate.
But why did Rin have to notice some transfer student too?
"What's wrong, Obito?"
Asuma Sarutobi, chewing on a lollipop stick, noticed his sour expression.
"Nothing."
Obito waved him off.
Asuma didn't push. They weren't especially close anyway.
Then he followed Obito's line of sight, and it clicked.
"Oh… Rin."
Everyone in the class knew Obito's crush. His constant attempts to please her weren't exactly subtle.
"Tch."
Asuma clicked his tongue. He didn't have much respect for Obito's puppy-dog routine. A guy ought to have some pride.
He strolled away with a grin and called out,
"Kurenai! Tired? I've got candy for you…"
"....."