Thursday.
As soon as Kitazawa arrived at the office, he found an unwelcome guest.
"Kitazawa."
Mizuki stood up and greeted him with a smile.
He was excellent at disguise; his words and demeanor showed no trace of the jealousy seething underneath.
"What do you need?"
Kitazawa nodded, asking calmly.
Mizuki's expression stiffened for a microsecond, instantly displeased.
What kind of attitude is that? How annoying!
"There's a meeting in the second-floor conference room after school next Monday," Mizuki explained, suppressing his emotions. "It's mainly to discuss the content of this month's exam."
"Thanks."
Kitazawa said politely.
Mizuki nodded, turned, and left.
Once out of the office, his face twisted into a look of pure annoyance.
Kitazawa didn't care what Mizuki thought; he was pondering the sudden new mission.
[Current Mission: Take first place in the class during the April Monthly Exam.]
[Mission Reward: Wind Release: Vacuum Bullet.]
[Accept?]
Normally, it was impossible for a teacher to take the monthly exam.
But his System had always been intelligent... or rather, exploitable.
If he took the test in the exam hall, would it count?
Kitazawa rubbed his chin.
Whether it worked or not, he had to try.
Because Wind Release: Vacuum Bullet was a B-rank jutsu.
Although B-rank might not seem high, it was actually quite rare. Many Chūnin didn't master a single B-rank jutsu in their lives.
As an ordinary Chūnin without a specialty, Kitazawa possessed exactly zero B-rank jutsu.
Vacuum Bullet would be his first.
Moreover, this Wind Release jutsu was incredibly powerful; in the original story, it was Danzō Shimura's signature move.
The bell rang, and Kitazawa walked into the classroom.
The noisy room quieted down instantly as students returned to their seats.
"Everyone, open your textbooks. Today, we continue the story of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju."
Kitazawa stood on the podium. "Under Hashirama's leadership, Konoha flourished. But unfortunately, good times didn't last long."
Everyone's curiosity was piqued.
With Hashirama present, how could the invincible Konoha face trouble?
"Madara Uchiha, the head of the Uchiha Clan, broke with the village due to ideological differences."
Kitazawa continued, "He fought an unprecedented ninja battle against the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, at the Valley of the End."
Sasuke's eyes widened.
Something like that happened?
Is the Uchiha Clan's current situation related to Madara Uchiha?
"The result was that Madara Uchiha was defeated and died at the Valley of the End."
After Kitazawa finished, the classroom erupted in noise.
"As expected of the First Hokage!"
"Wood Release is invincible!"
"Of course! The 'Leaf' in Konoha stands for the wood of Wood Release!"
Hashirama Senju was known as the God of Shinobi, and his Wood Release was legendary.
These students were young, so they naturally worshiped the strong.
Only Sasuke remained silent.
After all, the loser was his charismatic ancestor.
"This afternoon's practical training class will involve physical fitness, so don't eat too much for lunch."
When the dismissal bell rang, Kitazawa reminded them before leaving.
Noon.
A knock sounded on the office door.
Hinata walked in, holding a bento box.
"Come here."
Kitazawa sat on the sofa, opened a storage scroll, and pulled out eight bento boxes in one go.
Hinata was stunned by the sight.
Only then did she understand why Kitazawa had invited her to eat together.
It turned out he had prepared a feast for her.
"What are you standing there for?"
Kitazawa picked up his chopsticks. "Sit down and eat."
Hinata suddenly thought of something, pulled out a pink frog wallet, and handed it to him.
"What is this for?"
Kitazawa raised an eyebrow.
Trying to make me a kept man? Do I look like that kind of person?
"For the bentos."
Hinata explained.
"It's just a little money. Forget it."
Kitazawa shook his head, refusing.
"No!"
Hinata became uncharacteristically forceful.
"That's good."
Kitazawa looked her up and down for a moment, then smiled.
Hinata's body trembled. She instinctively lowered her head, two blushes appearing on her cheeks.
"Then I'll take it. Let's eat quickly."
Kitazawa accepted the pink wallet.
After lunch, Hinata returned to the classroom for a nap.
Before the afternoon practical training class began, the students stood in neat rows on the track, waiting.
"This is your first physical fitness training, so today there is no time limit and no lap limit. Let me see where your limits lie."
Kitazawa stood on the field. "Later, based on your rankings, I will distribute snack packs to the top ten."
"Yeah!"
Many cheered.
"First place is definitely mine!"
Naruto shouted confidently.
"First place is mine!"
Kiba crossed his arms.
He wasn't bragging. As a member of the Inuzuka Clan, he had played with ninja dogs since childhood, developing speed far beyond ordinary people.
Sasuke stood there calmly, hands in his pockets.
In his eyes, none of his classmates were his match.
From this moment on, this training ground would be renamed Uchiha Plaza, and everyone would stop to watch his performance.
"They're really motivated."
Shikamaru yawned. "Choji, how about we put in a little effort later and drop out early?"
"I have no objections."
Choji agreed readily.
Although there were snacks, he wasn't guaranteed to get them. As a chubby kid, running was torture.
"Ino, want to compete?"
Sakura waved her arm. "If you lose, you aren't qualified to fight me for Sasuke today."
"No need to compete. I'll let you have him."
Ino looked at Kitazawa.
She had tree climbing later, and Sasuke would be there too, so Sakura was destined to eat dust.
"...?"
Sakura suddenly turned to look at her.
What's going on? Why have you become a stranger?
"Quiet."
Kitazawa clapped his hands and smiled. "I will run with everyone. Whoever can overtake me will get a special prize."
Hearing this, Sasuke's eyes suddenly burst with dazzling light.
He craved a worthy opponent.
Deciding there were no rivals among his peers, he set his sights higher.
Kitazawa was a Chūnin; if he could win, it would at least prove he had Chūnin-level speed.
In that case, his father and brother might praise him.
"Get ready!"
Kitazawa shouted. "Go!"
Sasuke and the others behind him shot out like arrows from a bow.
Kitazawa wasn't in a hurry.
Sprinting at the start of a long-distance run was a huge taboo; one needed to warm up.
Kitazawa looked around.
Leading the pack was Naruto, followed closely by Sasuke, Kiba, and Sakura.
As time passed, the situation changed rapidly.
After half an hour of running, Naruto slowed down, and Sasuke took the lead.
He maintained steady breathing and excellent rhythm from start to finish.
Kitazawa followed behind him, running quite leisurely.
After all, his physical condition was vastly superior.
At his age, his body was in its prime.
Although Sasuke and the others were geniuses, they were physically only six or seven years old, far from fully developed.
After fifty laps, most students were exhausted, walking to the sidelines to become cheerleaders.
"Sasuke-kun, you can do it!"
Sakura sat on the ground, shouting weakly.
Sasuke couldn't hear her cheering at all.
His gaze was fixed solely on Kitazawa, but no matter how he pushed, he couldn't close the gap.
"Can you still run?"
Kitazawa looked back and asked.
At this point, only Sasuke was left running with him.
How frustrating!
Seeing Kitazawa's relaxed demeanor, Sasuke trembled with anger. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and despite the summer heat, his hands and feet felt ice-cold.