"Then, the opening test officially begins!"
Kashima Isamu somehow produced a notebook and a pen. "Iruka, you go first. Pick your opponent!"
Iruka stepped out of the crowd and looked around. In the end, his gaze settled on Anko.
"Anko, please go easy on me!"
"Hmph."
Anko gave an arrogant snort, pushed through the crowd, and walked to the edge of the Training Ground. She took a pouch of blunt kunai and tied it to her leg, then said casually, "Iruka, you idiot. You're going to regret this."
"The kunai and shuriken aren't sharp, but you still can't attack your classmates' vital points. Iruka, Anko, and everyone else, do you understand?"
"Yes!"
Everyone answered, and Anko struck first.
She casually took two kunai from the Ninja Tool Pouch on her leg and threw them at Iruka.
The kunai became streaks of shadow in midair, shooting toward Iruka's right and left hands.
Iruka bent slightly and gripped a kunai in his right hand. With a clang, he knocked aside one incoming kunai, but could only take the other one with his body.
Fortunately, the kunai weren't sharp. It hurt to get hit, but he wasn't injured or bleeding.
"Come on!" Iruka gritted his teeth and charged at Anko.
Anko's expression tensed. She quickly retreated to keep her distance from Iruka while pulling kunai from her Ninja Tool Pouch and throwing them at him. In just ten seconds, she had thrown more than half the pouch. Iruka, meanwhile, was already bruised and battered!
"That's enough. Iruka, you did very well, but Anko is the winner of this test."
Kashima Isamu regretfully stopped Iruka and said, "Now, make the Seal of Reconciliation."
"Hmph-hmph, hmph-hmph-hmph, hmph-hmph-hmph-hmph-hmph..."
Anko hummed happily as she walked over to Iruka and made the Seal of Reconciliation with him. "Iruka, you're not mad at me, are you?"
Iruka shook his head. "Of course not, but that really hurt."
"Sorry, sorry. I'll go easier on you next time. Hehe."
"There won't be a next time. I'll definitely beat you then!" Iruka said earnestly.
Meanwhile, Kashima Isamu quickly jotted down a brief record of Anko and Iruka's performances, then called on the next student.
"Ito Ni, you're up!"
"Yes!"
Ito Ni was a chubby little boy. He picked up a kunai and walked onto the Training Ground, then turned to look at the crowd. The people, who had been quiet at first, were now beginning to stir!
Most of the class stared at Ito Nipan with shining eyes. Their eager expressions looked just like lovesick boys who'd spotted their first crush.
"Big bro, pick me!"
"Chef Ito, pick me! Pick me!"
"Me! I'm the weakest, so pick me!"
Everyone raised their hands, desperate to get into the ring and fight Ito Nipan!
They're this enthusiastic?
Could this chubby kid be the coolest guy in our class?
Hanfu's eyes lit up.
At the same time, Kotetsu Hagane had somehow come up beside Hanfu. "Hanfu, I think you should go up."
His inseparable companion, Izumo Kamizuki, was there too. "Hanfu, this is your only chance!"
A chance...?
Just as I thought. Ito Nipan, whose dream was to become a chef, was the Dead Last of Class 8. Whoever went up against him could win!
Hanfu was overjoyed. He thought that, thanks to his own "excellence," he ought to stand out from the crowd and catch Ito Nipan's attention. So he hurriedly pushed through the crowd to the front and calmly met Ito Nipan's gaze.
As if sensing Hanfu's eyes on him, Ito Ni looked his way. His eyes lit up, as though a hero had recognized another hero, and he pointed with his index finger. "I pick him! I pick Hanfu!"
Wait!
Hanfu frowned. What was with that excited look?
Hanfu turned around and saw Kotetsu Hagane, Izumo Kamizuki, Anko, and Iruka, who had just left the ring, watching him expectantly. They were shouting hoarsely, "You can do it! You can do it! You'll definitely beat him! You'll win!"
Hanfu was a little confused.
Wasn't this chubby guy the Dead Last?
Or was Hanfu even worse than him?
This was a disaster!
Hanfu quickly searched through his memories and soon found what he was looking for.
Ito Ni, seven years old, dreamed of becoming a chef, a complete weakling in a fight. His grades in Class 8 were consistently poor; he'd never placed lower than third from the bottom!
His grades were just as consistent as Hanfu's.
So that's it. Ito Nipan is the biggest obstacle on my road to securing second place and competing for third!
Hanfu felt he'd found his life's goal: surpassing Ito Nipan!
"Hanfu, pick your sword!" Seeing him stand there for so long without moving, Kashima Isamu couldn't help urging him on.
Hanfu nodded solemnly and went to the edge of the Training Ground to choose a sword. All the swords here had flat blades and flat tips. They were basically no different from sticks.
As Hanfu picked a sword, the other students watched from the sidelines with regret. One student in particular—the one tied with Hanfu and Ito Nipan for "top three"—looked especially miserable, as if he'd been abandoned.
A moment later, Hanfu had chosen a sword. He walked to the center of the Training Ground and looked at Ito Ni solemnly. "Ito Nipan, make your move!"
"My name is Ito Ni, not Ito Nipan!" Ito Ni corrected him, then shouted, "Here I come!"
Ito Nipan gripped the kunai with his greasy hands and charged at Hanfu in short, quick steps: pat, pat, pat.
Hanfu held his sword in front of him, his feet set in an uneven stance. Ito Nipan drew closer, but Hanfu didn't move a muscle.
Hanfu was still Hanfu, but the soul inside him was now a mature one. So when Ito Nipan charged, he didn't panic and dodge or rush to counterattack.
Ito Nipan was now half a meter away. He shouted and thrust with his kunai.
That was it?
There wasn't a shred of technique to it.
Hanfu hesitated, then sidestepped. As Ito Nipan's kunai passed him, Hanfu stuck out a foot and tripped him, sending him sprawling face-first. Then he pressed his sword against Ito Ni's back.
"I-I lost!"
Ito Nipan lay on the ground and looked over his shoulder at the sword against his back. His expression was complicated as he stared at Hanfu, as if Hanfu had stolen the title of greatest in the world that should have been his.
Hanfu, however, looked at Ito Nipan with an innocent expression. Just how terrible had his original self been to keep hovering among the "top three" with him?
He'd been so eager to collect abilities, but there was no need at all. In Class 8, he was a king among the Bronze ranks!
"How is that possible? Ito Ni was defeated by Hanfu in a single move?"
"What just happened? Why did Ito Ni suddenly fall?"
"When did Hanfu get so strong?"
The onlooking students exclaimed in amazement and chattered among themselves.
"Hanfu, well done. I never expected your combat instincts to improve so much."
Kashima Isamu quickly jotted down the key points in his notebook, then explained loudly, "Ito Nipan... ahem, Ito Ni charged up to Hanfu, but Hanfu stayed very calm. He didn't rush to counterattack or dodge. Instead, he waited until the instant Ito Ni made his move, then easily sidestepped the kunai and quickly stuck out his foot. He used the momentum of Ito Ni's charge to trip him. Excellent! Hanfu, you must have trained really hard over Summer Holiday, right?"
Hanfu couldn't help remembering how he'd spent every day napping and eating rice balls after crossing over. He nodded solemnly. "Yes. I went through a lot."
"Keep it up. If you persevere, you'll become an excellent ninja!" Kashima Isamu encouraged him.
"I will. Thank you, teacher!" Hanfu nodded with a serious expression.
Please give me a recommendation. Love ya! o(^｀)o
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