Will of Fire

"You monster fox, you want to be Hokage? Keep dreaming!"

"The Third Hokage is the strongest, and you think you're worthy of saying such things? You really don't know your place!"

"You're a dead-last in every exam, I don't know where you get the confidence from?"

"Naruto..."

Sitting in the back row, Hyuga Hinata saw this scene, worry surfacing in her eyes.

Qiushui walked slowly to the podium, his gaze sweeping over the students below as he said sternly, "Why mock Naruto's dream? When you stated your own dreams, did he ever mock you?"

The classroom fell silent for a moment, then a student stood up, unconvinced: "Teacher, you might not know, but he is that monster fox in the village."

"Teacher knows." Qiushui watched him calmly, "But what does that have to do with you mocking his dream?"

The student opened his mouth, unable to say a word.

Qiushui looked around the class and asked, "I want to ask you a question. As the 'monster fox' you call him, has anyone here ever seen him do anything to hurt others with your own eyes?"

Silence.

Those students who had laughed the loudest just moments ago, those who usually threw stones at Naruto or pushed and insulted him, now found themselves involuntarily lost in memory.

Where did their impression of Naruto come from?

Warnings from parents, whispers from neighbors, the looks on the faces of adults...

But if they were truly asked to name one bad thing Naruto had done to hurt someone, they couldn't name a single one.

"None, right?" Qiushui answered for them, his voice softening, "To understand a person, you shouldn't just listen to what others say, but look at what that person does in their daily life."

Naruto felt as if a nuclear bomb had gone off in his eyes. He turned his head and stared blankly at Qiushui, feeling that his figure was incredibly tall, as if his entire being were glowing.

Qiushui did not continue to press the students who had mocked him, nor did he deliberately comfort Naruto. He simply began today's lesson naturally: "Alright, everyone back to your seats. After hearing your introductions earlier, I discovered that many of you dream of becoming Hokage. Although teachers have told you about it before, in this lesson we will continue to discuss the Will of Fire. Does anyone know who proposed the Will of Fire?"

The question of who proposed the Will of Fire caused the noisy classroom to fall into silence once again. Some looked up at the ceiling, some looked down pretending to read, and some knew the answer but were afraid of being wrong and losing face in front of their classmates.

As a top student, Sakura Haruno immediately raised her hand, and seeing this, Ino Yamanaka was not to be outdone and raised hers as well.

Naruto Uzumaki also raised his hand immediately and blurted out the answer: "I know! The Will of Fire must have been proposed by the Hokage!"

Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka immediately formed a united front, glaring at Naruto.

Noticing their unfriendly gazes, Naruto instinctively swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

Qiushui smiled and nodded in affirmation: "Naruto is right; the Will of Fire was indeed proposed by the First Hokage." He paused, then said earnestly, "But you must understand, why was the Will of Fire born? And what is its true meaning?"

The classroom quieted down. Sensing the change in their teacher's tone, the students sat up straight unconsciously.

"Every few years, the ninja world ignites with the flames of war due to disputes over resources. In places you cannot see, countless predecessors have used their flesh and blood to shield you from the wind and rain. The stable life you lead today, being able to study in school with peace of mind, and being able to go home to eat a hot meal—all of this is because of their struggle and sacrifice."

"To disregard life and death to protect those behind you—this selfless spirit of dedication is the Will of Fire."

Although these children had not experienced war, children in the ninja world were usually precocious. They listened and vaguely sensed the weight of the teacher's words, and could faintly perceive the meaning behind those sacrifices.

A moment later, a student spoke up: "When I grow up, I want to be an excellent ninja of the Will of Fire and protect the village like our predecessors!"

"I'm going to the cemetery to visit those heroes after school!"

"I'm going too!"

Qiushui watched this scene and nodded with satisfaction.

He knew that old man, the Third Hokage, was definitely peeking through his crystal ball in his office right now, so the content of his lecture was perfectly aligned with the Will of Fire.

Qiushui had received nine years of compulsory education and could see that there was nothing wrong with the Will of Fire itself; the problem lay with those who used the guise of the Will of Fire as an excuse to do bad things for their own gain.

For example, the Pot Kage Shimura Danzō, who used kunai against Susanoo, used Izanagi as a Substitution Technique, and in a fit of rage, sealed a bridge with his own life.

"Well said." Qiushui signaled for everyone to be quiet, "Next, I will tell you how the First Hokage pacified the chaotic world, why the Second Hokage established the Ninja Academy, and how the Third and Fourth protected the village during the wars. Furthermore, you will learn how all three of them earned everyone's recognition to become Hokage. Once you hear this, you will understand what the true Will of Fire looks like."

He recounted the stories of the successive Hokage in vivid language, sometimes impassioned, sometimes gentle and plain, occasionally interjecting with small jokes to make the potentially dry history lesson lively and interesting.

The time for the four classes passed quietly amidst the children's focus and laughter.

Qiushui had always detested dragging out class time and practiced a firm resistance to this bad habit. The moment the bell rang, he announced decisively: "Class dismissed."

When the bell rang, many people were stunned for a moment.

"Huh? Class is over?"

"So fast?"

"Why does it feel like we only had one lesson?"

Kiba Inuzuka sat in his seat, rarely failing to rush out for air at the first opportunity.

He looked down at his open notebook, where several lines of text were written neatly.

Tsume Inuzuka stared at those words for a few seconds, finding it unbelievable herself.

The Inuzuka Clan was naturally unrestrained and loved freedom; they liked to run in vast spaces and hated staying in small, enclosed areas.

This was the first time in his four years of school that he had listened so attentively to an entire lesson—no, two lessons.

Sitting in the back row, Shikamaru Nara also rarely failed to sleep on his desk, sitting upright for once with a serious expression on his face.

He felt that this teacher's lectures were actually quite interesting.

Beside him, Choji Akimichi was frantically tearing open a bag of potato chips. Usually, he would either sleep or eat during class, yet he had actually listened to both lessons intently. He found it unbelievable himself, and as soon as class ended, his stomach let out a violent protest, forcing him to snack frantically.

Shino Aburame sat in the corner, as expressionless as ever, without any unnecessary movements, welded to his seat like a meditating monk.

The area around Uchiha Sasuke's seat was very lively at this moment.