Seeing quite a few new students "challenging" them with their eyes, the delinquents sitting on the third-floor railing were all displeased.
"Bastards, what kind of looks are those brats giving us?"
"Hmph, do they think we won't dare teach them a lesson just because they're the Hokage's sons?"
Though they said that, there was little confidence in their voices. Their gazes kept drifting toward the person in the middle.
"Shūnen, what do you think we should do?"
"You're the rising star of the Uchiha clan. You can't lose to the Sarutobi clan!"
In their eyes, although the Sarutobi clan had the Third Hokage backing them, they still did not amount to much compared to the Uchiha, a prestigious clan famous throughout the Shinobi World since the Warring States period.
Besides, they did not think a fight between children would cause any real conflict between two great clans.
The boy called Shūnen looked somewhat hesitant. His father had instructed him not to clash with those connected to the Hokage's faction at school.
The beliefs and pride he had been raised with made it impossible for him to understand why the Uchiha, Leaf Village's foremost clan, should yield to anyone else. Yet his father's insistence left him with no choice but to agree.
It was precisely because of this that he hung around with these "companions," using bullying the weak to conceal his own lack of confidence.
However, he would never repeat that cowardly excuse his father had given him.
After thinking for a moment, Shūnen shook his head. "It's not that I'm afraid of Asuma, but there's nothing to gain. They've already learned to stick together. If we make a move, we might have to face a group of dozens."
"No way? A bunch of new students already know how to band together?"
"They probably just look hard to deal with. If they really run into trouble, maybe they'll still back down."
In truth, they were already beginning to hesitate.
For most students who had not yet learned ninjutsu, sheer numbers were a very effective deterrent.
They only had the nerve to bully others at school because of their little clique. Even among the older students, few dared provoke them.
Thinking of that, the dissatisfaction in their hearts gradually faded. Somewhat listlessly, they said, "They got lucky. Later, let's go 'borrow' some money from those Second Years."
"But those cowards in second year seem to be grouping up too."
"It's fine. We'll just pick the easiest ones to bully. Besides, second year doesn't have monsters and prodigies like that group of new students. With Boss Shūnen here, they won't dare stand up for anyone else."
On the playground.
"Quick, stop Asuma! Don't let him use the Clone Technique!"
"Damn it, we're at too much of a disadvantage without ninjutsu!"
"Don't worry, we have the Class Leader too!"
"Soseki, I definitely won't lose to you this time!" Asuma dribbled the ball, his five bodies constantly switching positions as he charged toward Soseki with a shout.
"Didn't you notice there's one extra you?" Soseki asked with a smile.
"Huh? What?" Asuma asked in confusion, instinctively kicking the ball toward another version of himself.
After receiving the ball, Asuma Number Five did not keep advancing. Instead, he gave a strange smile. "Asuma, thanks."
With a bang, Asuma Number Five turned into Soseki, then swiftly carried the ball back down the field.
The one talking to me was a clone... Damn it, when did that happen? Asuma was filled with frustration. If Soseki had not distracted him with words, he should have noticed at the last moment.
Soseki did not choose to charge straight through alone with the ball. Instead, he passed it to his teammates. Even though they often lost possession, he still patiently supported them.
To him, individual heroics like Asuma's were not advisable, though if victory alone was the goal, that actually would have been the best approach.
Just as the match was growing increasingly intense, a little girl from their class hurried over.
"Bad news, bad news! There's a fight in the classroom!"
However, Soseki did not see any panic on her face. Instead, she seemed excited, as though she had stumbled upon juicy gossip.
"Was this level of suggestion already enough?" Soseki had roughly guessed what had happened, but he still feigned surprise. "Suzuki, what's wrong?"
"It's Yūhi Kurenai, Meigawa Kaoru, Delia, and Yui! The four of them started fighting!"
"Hm? Why did they suddenly start fighting?"
"It's because Yui and the other two launched a Class Leader Protection Battle!"
"Eh?!" As soon as those words fell, everyone around them looked at Soseki with strange expressions.
Children in this world matured early, but not to the point where they would be talking about love and romance at five or six years old. In Soseki's view, such budding feelings were more a kind of longing—a longing for beautiful things.
That beauty could exist on many levels: appearance, form, personality, temperament, knowledge. Such beauty made people feel comfortable, causing them to naturally gather around those who were more outstanding.
Children whose minds had not yet matured did not understand how to hide their emotions. Thus, it was not difficult to accept that this could trigger a "battlefield of love."
In fact, such things had not been uncommon in Soseki's previous life either. Thanks to his family's excellent genes, his nephew, who was still in kindergarten, had already complained to him several times about how hard it was to manage a harem.
Of course, Soseki was fully capable of preventing this from happening. The reason things had developed into their current state was because he had personally pushed things along from behind the scenes.
Heh, even deceiving the feelings of five-year-old girls. I really am trash. With that thought, Soseki returned to the classroom.
The moment he entered, he heard the noisy shouting and crying inside.
"My head hurts so much! Waaaaah!"
"Ah! Delia isn't responding anymore!"
"What? Delia isn't breathing?"
"What? Delia's dead?"
"Hoho, hurry and tell Teacher Yagami!"
Two little girls sat on the floor, crying their hearts out. Another lay quietly nearby. Kurenai sat at her desk, looking utterly at a loss, a misty haze filling her large eyes.
As for everyone else, they were merely onlookers stirring up the commotion.
After only a few glances, Soseki had already deduced the general course of events.
Delia and the other two had probably tried to trouble Kurenai by relying on their numbers. But Kurenai was, after all, the most gifted in Genjutsu among Leaf Village's ordinary geniuses. Naturally, three ordinary girls could not handle her. One Genjutsu was all it took for her to turn the tables.
However, Kurenai had clearly underestimated the power of Genjutsu. For children with immature minds, Genjutsu was obviously more dangerous than other ninjutsu. Yui and the other girl were fine, suffering only from mental swelling and pain, but Delia, whose resistance was weaker, had fainted outright.
Moreover, unlike the elite female ninja she would become in the future, Kurenai was now merely a somewhat talented little girl. Faced with something like this, she was naturally frightened out of her wits.
When she saw Soseki enter, Kurenai instinctively ran up to him. Grabbing the corner of his clothes, she sobbed, "So-Soseki, I-I might have killed someone. Arrest me!"
Soseki smiled and comforted her. "It's not as bad as you think. Delia probably just fainted."
"I-Is that true?" Like a little beast afraid her owner would abandon her, Kurenai looked at Soseki with wide eyes.
The others in the classroom also noticed Soseki's arrival. As if they had found their backbone, they swarmed around him and noisily explained what had happened.
Soseki spread his arms, his gentle yet firm voice carrying through the room. "Everyone, don't worry. I'm here!"
Those few words seemed to possess endless magic, instantly quieting the noisy classroom.
Seeing this, boys like Asuma were filled with envy. They wanted that kind of authority too, while the other girls looked at Soseki with admiration, waiting for his "performance."
Thanks to Infinite AFK for the 2,600 reward, Kai Yang for the 1,500 reward, Sanyu Wumengsheng A for the 1,000 reward, Jiedaobu A for the 1,000 reward, Saint Yi for the 500 reward, I'm Not a Big Shot Haha for the 400 reward, and Qingyi Gongzi for the 100 reward. Also, happy holidays to all you bosses—from a construction-site dog who still had to work on the eleventh and was genuinely envious (;`).
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