Then, Teacher Kushina, We're Off!

"I understand, Teacher Kushina!"

Taking a deep breath, Chiba solemnly raised both hands and accepted the item from Kushina, speaking with utmost seriousness.

"Mm... mm!"

Seeing how serious Chiba was, Kushina froze for a moment.

This child... it was rare to see him moved like this.

That thought suddenly surfaced in Kushina's heart.

And this was also the first time Chiba had treated her so solemnly, as if he had truly begun to see her as his teacher. It left her both surprised and a little flattered.

As their teacher, Kushina knew her three disciples very well. Of the three, Hirohiko and Yukina had both initially been rather aloof. As they spent more time together, Yukina's obedient and earnest nature gradually emerged, and she began showing more expressions.

As for Hirohiko, although he still wore a poker face, that was probably simply his nature. He was not cold both inside and out. Though he seemed cold on the surface, his heart, like that of any Uchiha, was full of delicate feelings. Cold outside, warm within. Once she got to know him, she could often see different emotions in Hirohiko's eyes.

Only Chiba was different. He seemed neither cold nor warm, appearing approachable toward everyone. As though if you approached him with goodwill, he would respond in kind, while if you approached him with malice, he would at most ignore you. Yet Kushina knew that he was the hardest one to get close to, the hardest one to enter the heart of. He seemed like an observer standing outside everyone's perspective, dealing with people as though watching a movie. He might seem close to you, easy to get along with, but he was actually a hundred thousand miles away. He would never let you into his heart. It was as if