After Hanfu came down from the Training Ground, the best friends Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki went up together and got straight to it.
Their strength was about equal, though Kotetsu Hagane's Taijutsu was a little better, earning him a narrow victory over Izumo Kamizuki.
The tests continued. One student after another entered the Training Ground and faced off in pairs, with the weak students wildly flailing at each other.
Kashima Isamu diligently recorded everyone's performance. Soon, only the final two remained out of the thirty students.
One of them was Inuzuka Sa!
As for the other...
Hanfu stared at her, completely dumbfounded. "Huh, she..."
The last student was none other than Aburame Yui!
Hanfu knew there was someone like her in the class, since she was from the Aburame Clan. But what was with her lack of presence?
He hadn't noticed her at all in class earlier. It was as if she didn't exist!
Aburame Yui wore a long coat that hid most of her body. Its collar was very high, covering everything below her eyes.
So the Aburame Clan really do all dress like this, but...
Hanfu glanced up at the blazing sun, then at Aburame Yui's thick coat. Isn't she hot?
"All right, Inuzuka Sa, Aburame Yui. It's your turn."
Kashima Isamu smiled.
"Yes!"
"Woof, woof!"
Inuzuka Sa set her Ninja Dog, Shiromaru, on her shoulder, then walked onto the Training Ground and picked more than a dozen Shuriken to put in her Ninja Tool Pouch.
At the same time, Aburame Yui had already reached the center of the Training Ground. She kept her head slightly bowed, her high collar hiding her expression. Her eyes were lowered toward the ground, giving her an aloof, cold impression.
The students of Class 8 all seemed a little afraid of Aburame Yui. When she stepped forward, not one of them spoke. Some even deliberately slowed their breathing.
As Hanfu thought back over everything, he suddenly realized that this quiet, reserved, barely noticeable Aburame Yui was actually the best student in their class!
No wonder she was saved for last.
At first, Hanfu had assumed that she'd simply gone unnoticed because she was so inconspicuous. Now he understood the real reason: she was the strongest in Class 8, so nobody wanted to fight her!
As for why Inuzuka Sa had gone last, Hanfu could immediately imagine a few reasons.
Among the thirty students in Class 8, Aburame Yui and Inuzuka Sa had the best backgrounds. They were both from prominent clans and had their pride. If they chose ordinary students as opponents, even winning probably wouldn't feel like much of an accomplishment... right?
"Here I come!"
While Hanfu's mind wandered, Inuzuka Sa had already given a sharp cry and hurled the Shuriken in her hand.
With a piercing whistle, the rapidly spinning Shuriken covered five meters in an instant, hurtling toward Aburame Yui's right shoulder!
The next moment, Aburame Yui raised her eyes. Countless insects had somehow crawled across her black-and-white pupils, making them look like insect-filled pits!
"Yikes!"
Hanfu sucked in a sharp breath. He knew the Aburame Clan controlled insects, but the sight was so shocking that his legs nearly gave out.
The other students shrieked even louder. Some of the more timid girls squeezed their eyes shut, afraid to look at Aburame Yui, the total freak.
Iruka stood beside Hanfu and said, "Yui's the strongest student in our class, but she's also the least popular. Her fighting style is just too... too..."
Iruka stared uneasily at the insects fluttering around Aburame Yui, unsure how to describe it.
"Maybe she'd be better off wearing sunglasses."
Hanfu said. In the Original Work, many members of the Aburame Clan wore sunglasses. At first, he'd thought they were trying to look cool, but now he figured it might have something to do with what he'd just seen.
After all, the sight of someone's pupils covered in insects was just too terrifying.
On the Training Ground, Aburame Yui had already released a large number of insects into the air. She had switched to defense, and swarms of insects gathered overhead in clouds of black, darting around Inuzuka Sa from all sides.
Inuzuka Sa didn't dare stand still. She dodged constantly, hurling Shuriken with both hands. Each one spun through the air toward Aburame Yui.
"Woof! Woof, woof!"
Shiromaru barked as hard as it could, trying to scare the insects away with its tiny, babyish growl.
Shiromaru was a Ninja Dog, but it was still too young to fight. The only help it could offer its little master, Inuzuka Sa, was its barking.
Faced with Inuzuka Sa's Shuriken, Aburame Yui didn't call the insects back to protect her. Instead, she simply crouched to dodge.
The Shuriken shot straight past her and toward Kashima Isamu, who stood behind her.
Kashima Isamu calmly tucked his notebook under his arm, then caught the Shuriken with his bare hands.
Yui's at her limit too!
Kashima Isamu dropped the Shuriken on the ground, a smile touching his lips.
The Aburame Clan could keep insects inside their bodies, but they had to feed them Chakra. Yui was only in her second year, so her Chakra was limited, and she couldn't have many insects inside her. When faced with Inuzuka Sa's Shuriken, Yui had dodged instead of using her insects to block them. That made it clear that she'd already sent all the insects inside her body into battle. In other words, Yui was now completely defenseless!
As long as Inuzuka Sa could hold on, she would definitely win. Unfortunately, the insects chasing her were rapidly draining her stamina. When she noticed only one Shuriken remained in her Ninja Tool Pouch, she knew she'd lost this match too.
"I lose."
Inuzuka Sa panted heavily and conceded without hesitation.
At the same time, the insects chasing her in the air stopped at once and flew back to Aburame Yui. They crawled into her coat through the collar and sleeves, vanishing in an instant.
The others had seen it before, but imagining countless insects crawling all over their bodies still made them shudder.
"And the winner of the final test is Yui!"
Kashima Isamu recorded the two girls' performances as he spoke. "The tests are over. Everyone, head back to the classroom. We'll have a theory lesson in ten minutes!"
"Yes!"
"Too bad, Sasha."
Anko supported Inuzuka Sa, who was exhausted, and encouraged her. "You almost won."
"No, Yui held back." Inuzuka Sa gave a wry smile. "Her insects weren't chasing me with all their strength. Otherwise, I'd have lost ages ago."
"Woof, woof."
Shiromaru suddenly barked twice, looking unhappy. It was still too young to help its little master.
"You did your best too, Shiromaru. Thank you."
Inuzuka Sa stroked the head of Shiromaru, who was perched on her shoulder, and smiled, revealing two little dimples.
"But Yui's really strong. She's definitely the strongest student in our year. I don't think she's any weaker than the upperclassmen."
Iruka looked starstruck. "I wish I were as strong as her."
"That's easy. Just raise a few thousand insects inside your body."
Hanfu hooked an arm around Iruka's neck and whispered in his ear.
"No, absolutely not!"
Just thinking about thousands of insects crawling all over him made Iruka's scalp prickle. "Hanfu, please don't say such terrifying things."
"That's prejudice. If Yui heard you, she'd be so hurt."
Hanfu teased him.
"E-even so, no." Iruka was a principled person.
Hanfu shrugged. He figured the other students in the class felt the same way: they admired Aburame Yui's strength, but were also afraid of her insects. So they all kept their distance, making the already inconspicuous Aburame Yui seem like an invisible person.
So if he went up to Aburame Yui now and really laid it on thick, Hanfu figured he'd have a pretty good chance of earning her favor, and then... collecting?
Hanfu rubbed his chin, deep in thought.
Please recommend the novel!
Thanks to readers Shadowover and Kishimoto Yeeshi for the support!
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