As the head of the Akimichi Clan, Akimichi Choza had arranged yesterday for a personal chef, who had arrived at the house that morning to prepare his meals.
After having the chef pack some extra braised beef and grabbing a bag of Military Ration Pills, Denji and Choji headed to the Ninja Academy together.
On the way there, Akimichi Choji noticed that people kept looking at him. It was different from usual.
At first, Choji thought he had gotten food on his clothes, but then he realized they weren't looking at him.
They were looking at Akimichi Denji, walking beside him.
Although they were both members of the Akimichi Clan, Denji had a lean build and was quite handsome, with delicate features and fair skin. You wouldn't even know he was an Akimichi unless someone told you.
Denji smiled faintly. "You'll get used to it. Kids are purely visual creatures."
Handsome guys were treated that way in every world.
He was already used to this kind of attention.
They weren't especially early, and there were already a few people in the classroom.
When Uchiha Sasuke saw Akimichi Denji walk into the classroom, his eyes lit up.
But when he noticed Akimichi Choji following beside him, he hesitated a little.
His older brother had told him to befriend Denji and study hard.
His older brother was a powerful ninja, so Sasuke naturally listened to his advice.
But he didn't want too many people to know about it.
After all, he was a noble Uchiha. If word got out that he'd taken the initiative to befriend someone, it would tarnish the Uchiha's reputation.
So Sasuke found himself hesitating.
Denji looked at Sasuke, who was acting strangely, and thought he seemed constipated.
When he looked above Sasuke's head, he saw a wish floating there: [Big Brother's Mission].
Denji was surprised. Why did that sound so weird? It was like some sort of master's mission.
He didn't understand, but he respected it.
When Hyuga Hinata saw Denji enter the classroom, her eyes drifted over to him on their own.
Denji met her gaze, and she shyly turned back, pretending to read.
When she felt Denji walking straight toward her, Hinata blushed and looked at him.
She spoke in a soft, stammering voice. "D-Denji..."
A classmate... "Denji..."
Akimichi Denji looked above her head. There was no wish, and he felt disappointed.
He'd wanted to see if he could fulfill one of Hinata's wishes. Since she was a big eater, he'd brought extra breakfast just for her.
No matter. He'd get the chance sooner or later.
Denji placed a rice ball and some dried braised meat on Hinata's desk. "I thought you might get hungry, so I brought you these."
Then he turned and went back to his seat.
Sasuke witnessed the whole thing and suddenly understood what his older brother had meant.
Denji had just shown him how to make friends.
All he had to do was learn from him and befriend Denji.
So this had been part of his older brother's plan all along?
Just as he was about to set off, he saw a girl with blonde bangs, wearing fishnet clothing, walk in happily and call out, "Good morning, Denji!"
Sasuke's steps came to a halt once more.
It was me who came first.
"Good morning."
Denji nodded in response.
Ino looked unusually excited to have received a reply. She strode over and sat down beside Denji.
"You're especially handsome today, too, Denji!"
Haruno Sakura, walking behind her friend, couldn't help feeling embarrassed at how lovestruck Ino looked.
She didn't understand why Ino was suddenly so friendly with the new student.
He was pretty good-looking, and he didn't have the fat build of the Akimichi Clan.
But Sasuke was still the best-looking...
The conversation she'd had with Ino yesterday came to mind.
"Don't you like Sasuke? Why are you so interested in Denji now?"
"You just don't get it! Denji is handsome, too! And he actually talks to you. Sasuke-kun is so cold."
"If you unlock Denji's special storyline, you might even get a special CG of holding hands."
Either way, Ino the Pig had shifted her sights and fallen for Denji.
Sakura was glad to have one less rival pursuing Sasuke.
At the Ninja Academy, theory lessons were held in the morning and practical lessons in the afternoon.
Iruka stood in the open space and began, "Today, we'll be learning Ninja Tool Throwing.
"As ninjas, we often have to use ninja tools to harass our targets and buy ourselves time to perform ninjutsu.
"We may also run low on chakra, and in those situations, we'll need to fight with ninja tools."
As he spoke, he handed out some Shuriken.
Since Shuriken were ninja tools, even though they were basic, they were quite expensive.
Each person received only ten Shuriken.
Denji curiously examined the ninja tool in his hand.
The Shuriken and Kunai in Naruto's world were specially made, and only ninjas used these throwing weapons.
The fact that ninjas were strong on offense but weak on defense meant that most of them fought like agile assassins.
Shuriken and Kunai were perfect for that style, whether for ranged attacks or sneak attacks. They suited the ninja profession to a tee.
But that also made Shuriken and Kunai very difficult to use. They required specific techniques.
Shuriken were especially inhuman: they had four sharpened sides and no handle to grip.
Iruka demonstrated how to hold one, then flicked a Shuriken from his hand.
It hit the bull's-eye dead center.
Denji followed his example. He held the Shuriken, got ready, took aim, and threw!
The Shuriken flew weakly over the target, missing by at least the width of another target.
When Naruto saw Denji's throw go wide, he walked over with a grin. "New guy! Looks like you're no good at this after all!"
He'd seen Denji master the Transformation Technique in a single afternoon the day before, and it had left him feeling discouraged.
But seeing Denji miss had restored his confidence!
A new guy was still a new guy, after all.
"Let me show you how it's done."
Naruto threw a Shuriken, which stuck in the edge of the target.
"Hold it like this, aim, and throw."
He gave Denji a more detailed demonstration of how to hold the Shuriken, then threw another with all his strength.
"Like this?"
Denji tried to copy him, adjusting his grip.
"Not bad!"
Although he still missed, at least his throw had some power behind it.
Denji praised him. "You're really good at throwing Shuriken, Naruto!"
Naruto laughed happily at the compliment and beamed as he patted Denji on the shoulder. "Of course! I'm pretty good with Shuriken."
Sasuke looked at Naruto's smug face, then at the Shuriken stuck plainly in the edge of the target.
You'd think Naruto hit the bull's-eye every time.
Then it suddenly dawned on Sasuke: this might be what his older brother wanted him to learn.
Denji's knack for socializing.
Sasuke raised his hand and threw two Shuriken. They whistled through the air and hit the bull's-eye dead center.
Akimichi Denji continued practicing, and soon he'd thrown all ten Shuriken in his hand.
Only one had barely managed to hit the target.
A notification appeared on the system panel: [Ninja Tool Throwing (Beginner)].
Denji pursed his lips and went to retrieve them so he could practice again.
Shuriken might not be much use later on, but they were important in the early stages.
The important thing was that this was a skill he could improve just by practicing.
The trouble was that after throwing the Shuriken, he had to go pick them up and reuse them.
It was a pain.
Sasuke saw this and realized his chance had come.
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