Hinata Hyūga stopped thinking altogether.
Her head felt light and dizzy, her thoughts melting away into the warmth that wrapped around her — a sense of peace she'd never known before.
She didn't know how long she stayed like that, but eventually, she came to her senses.
Startled, she jumped back two steps like a frightened rabbit. Once she'd steadied herself, she lowered her head, her face so red it looked as if it were steaming.
Kitazawa chuckled softly.
"How cute."
He turned away and said,
"Wait here for a moment."
He walked north a few steps before stopping.
Lying before him was the white scarf that Toranosuke had thrown away.
Half-buried under a pile of fallen leaves, it was covered in dust — the once spotless fabric now dulled and torn.
Kitazawa frowned slightly.
It wasn't just dirty; there were several long rips across the cloth.
He bent down and picked it up.
[Current Mission: Help your classmate Hinata Hyūga retrieve her scarf.][Mission Reward: Leaf Whirlwind.][Mission completed. Reward granted.]
Leaf Whirlwind, huh…
A taijutsu technique created by Might Guy.
Kitazawa's eyes lit up.
Until now, he'd been worrying about where to learn a proper C-rank jutsu — and suddenly, the path was clear.
He would go find Might Guy himself.
Taijutsu counted as ninjutsu, after all, and theoretically required no chakra nature.
He had once considered learning genjutsu from Kurenai-sensei, but genjutsu required an affinity for Yin Release. Without it, progress would be painfully slow.
His system mission, however, required him to master a C-rank jutsu faster than Sasuke Uchiha could master the Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique.
In that case, genjutsu was out of the question — but taijutsu fit perfectly.
And now, with Leaf Whirlwind in his arsenal, he already had a head start.
His next goal was clear: learn the advanced version, Leaf Great Whirlwind, directly from Might Guy.
The difference between the two? The latter added a single turning spin before the finishing kick — but the power and control were leagues apart.
Kitazawa turned and called softly,
"Hinata."
He looked at the scarf in his hand.
"This scarf's too damaged to fix. I'll buy you a new one."
"Eh?" Hinata blinked in surprise and quickly shook her head.
"N-No… that's not necessary!"
Kitazawa smiled gently.
"Consider it my apology for making a decision on your behalf."
"Apology?" Hinata tilted her head in confusion.
"For what?"
"Toranosuke challenged you to a one-on-one match in a month," he explained."And I accepted for you."
"M-Me? F-Fight him?" Hinata's voice trembled.
"I-I can't… I'll lose…"
Kitazawa crouched down to meet her eyes.
"You haven't even fought yet — why decide you'll lose?"
His voice was calm but firm.
"Hinata, you're already stronger than he is. You just don't know how to fight back."
Hinata stared at him blankly, unable to find words.
At that moment, several glowing lines appeared before Kitazawa's eyes.
[Unity is strength. As class representative, you must help classmates bullied by others.][New Mission: Help Hinata Hyūga defeat Toranosuke.][Mission Reward: Water Style — Wild Water Wave.][Accept mission?]
Kitazawa narrowed his eyes.
This system really throws out random jutsu… he thought, amused. But I guess it makes sense.
After all, it was called the Strongest Hokage Training System.
If he wanted to surpass every Hokage in history, he'd have to master every kind of jutsu — even Kekkei Genkai.
He stood and smiled warmly.
"Don't worry. There's a whole month ahead of us. I'll give you special training."
Hinata's blush deepened, but she nodded firmly.
"I'll walk you home," Kitazawa said, taking her small hand.
Together, they left the quiet grove.
"Goodbye, Kitazawa-sensei," Hinata said softly as she stood at the Hyūga compound gate, watching him walk away.
Only when his figure disappeared down the street did she reluctantly step inside.
Kitazawa stopped by the commercial district and bought a new white scarf — as close to Hinata's old one as he could find — before heading home.
Unlocking the door, he flipped the sign on his small shop to Open.
"Teuchi-san! Can you send over a bowl of char siu ramen?"
He called toward Ichiraku Ramen across the street.
"Got it!"
Came the cheerful reply.
Kitazawa sat behind the counter, resting his chin on his hands.
He began thinking about how to approach Might Guy.
After a few seconds, he realized… he didn't need a reason.
With Guy's personality, there was only one password required.
Youth.
"I'm coming in, Kitazawa-nii!"
A bright, melodic voice rang out as a girl stepped inside wearing a white chef's uniform.
It was Ayame — Teuchi's daughter.
"Thanks," Kitazawa said, accepting the steaming bowl of ramen.
"No problem!" Ayame smiled brightly, her eyes sparkling.
As she left, she glanced back at him — twice.
Like Yamanaka Ino, she was a bit of a face-lover.
Kitazawa chuckled softly as he ate. When he finished, he carried the empty bowl back to Ichiraku and paid his bill.
When he returned to his shop, someone was already there.
Leaning casually against the counter, arms crossed, stood a woman with long, dark hair and a calm smile. Her long legs extended gracefully, her shapely hips pressing against the wood.
Bathed in the soft evening light, Kurenai Yuhi looked like a living painting.
"Red, huh," Kitazawa said with a grin. "What brings you here? Looking to buy something? I'll give you a discount."
Kurenai smiled faintly.
"Then I'll take a bottle of soda."
She reached for one and cracked it open.
"A bottle of soda can't compare to the breakfast you gave me this morning," Kitazawa said lightly."It's on the house."
"Thanks," Kurenai replied, taking a sip.
"I just got back from the Kurama clan."
Kitazawa tilted his head curiously.
"Did the advice I gave you help?"
"A little," she admitted, sighing softly.
"But the real problem isn't me — it's Yakumo."
Kitazawa pretended not to know.
"Her genjutsu talent isn't good enough?"
"Not quite. It's too good," Kurenai said quietly.
"Her body can't handle her own genjutsu potential."
"I see…" Kitazawa thought for a moment.
"Could you teach her taijutsu instead?"
Kurenai shook her head.
"Difficult. She's frail by nature — her body can't handle physical training."
Kitazawa frowned slightly.
In the original timeline, the solution had been to seal away the Yin monster Idou born from Yakumo's subconscious.
But that hadn't happened yet.
"Sometimes it's better to release than to suppress," Kitazawa said thoughtfully."I could try teaching her taijutsu."
In the original story, Idou had been born because Yakumo's parents and Kurenai had forbidden her from becoming a ninja.
"That's unnecessary," Kurenai said quickly."Besides, I can teach her taijutsu myself."
Kitazawa smiled gently.
"It's no trouble. We're friends, aren't we? And honestly, she should've been my student in the first place."
He leaned on the counter, his tone calm but confident.
"I've been a teacher for five years. I know how to tailor lessons to a student's condition."
Kurenai blinked, slightly surprised.
"But you're already busy at the academy. When would you have time to teach her?"
"That's easy," Kitazawa said.
"I'll just have her attend my practical training classes at the academy."
"Classes?" Kurenai hesitated.
"Her parents won't approve, and her body might not hold up."
"She doesn't have to attend all day," Kitazawa explained.
"Just the combat sessions."
Kurenai fell silent, lost in thought.
Earlier that day, she had tried Kitazawa's advice — approaching Yakumo not as a teacher, but as a friend.
Through that conversation, she'd learned about Yakumo's dream of becoming a ninja.
Maybe… letting her attend class wasn't such a bad idea.
Finally, she looked up.
"When are you free? Let's visit the Kurama clan together."