The commotion outside did not affect Shinji.
Over the next few days, he went to and from school as usual. Nothing much changed.
Of course.
If there was one change, it was that his fame had spread from the Ninja Academy to the whole village. Defeating Wood Release was certainly a hot topic in Konoha, and whenever villagers ran into him on the street, they whispered about him.
Shinji just smiled and let it pass.
As for the Ninja Academy, he had already been the top student, so his classmates' attitudes toward him hadn't changed much.
Besides, many people knew that Shinji had beaten Yakumo this time only because she had just undergone surgery and hadn't yet mastered Wood Release. Her Taijutsu fundamentals were also a little lacking.
But all of that was only temporary.
As Yakumo gradually adapted to the First Hokage cells and grew proficient at using her newly awakened dōjutsu Kekkei Genkai, her strength would surely improve by leaps and bounds.
By then, Shinji, who still hadn't awakened the Sharingan, would certainly be no match for Yakumo. After all, he'd already won this time only with great difficulty.
Therefore.
Quite a few students at the Ninja Academy privately wondered how much longer Shinji could hold on to his place as the academy's top student!
On the training field.
Sasuke and Neji were locked in an intense Taijutsu match.
They hadn't usually sparred with each other, but with Yakumo's meteoric rise, their sense of urgency had grown. They had no choice but to do everything they could to improve their strength.
Naruto, Sakura, Tenten, and Rock Lee watched from the sidelines.
As she watched, Tenten said, "In a pure Taijutsu match, Sasuke doesn't stand a chance!"
Sakura retorted indignantly, "Our Sasuke is really good at Taijutsu, too!"
Tenten