Sakura Haruno and the Others Are Lost

Sakura Haruno was stunned.

Ino Yamanaka was also stunned.

The few girls nearby who were preparing to continue their protest also hit a snag; they looked at one another, momentarily unsure of how to respond.

They had originally assumed that, given Naruto's usual personality, he would definitely stiffen his neck and retort with something like, "I'll do what I want, it's none of your business."

As it turned out, he had agreed?

How was he so straightforward?

This wasn't right, was it?

When things are abnormal, there must be a demon. Based on their understanding of Naruto, they were certain he wouldn't give up so easily and was likely cooking up some wicked scheme in his head.

After a quick discussion, the girls decided to assign Sakura Haruno and two other girls sitting closer to Naruto to keep a sharp eye on him during class.

The bell for class rang.

Qiushui walked into the classroom, stepped up to the podium, opened the textbook, and said, "Today, we are discussing Trap Theory."

He looked at the faces below—some earnest, some perfunctory, others bored—and said loudly, "The course on Trap Theory is far more interesting and far more important than you imagine."

He closed the textbook, set it aside, and said, "Come, let me ask you this: suppose you have spent many years training hard and your strength is clearly superior to your opponent's, but you accidentally step into a trap they set and lose in the most baffling way possible—how would that make you feel?"

The students below looked at each other, and someone muttered, "I definitely wouldn't accept it."

Qiushui nodded, a hint of profound meaning in his smile, and said, "After you become true ninjas, what is your primary goal?"

Benefiting from the indoctrination of the Will of Fire, a student immediately replied, "To complete the mission."

Qiushui took over the conversation and said, "Correct, it is indeed to complete the mission. But those veteran ninjas who have been grinding through missions for over a decade won't be foolish enough to stand before you and shout, 'Let's have a duel!' They will only use any means necessary to kill every obstacle and enemy that hinders the execution of their mission."

The atmosphere in the classroom changed slightly. These students were no longer five or six-year-old children; as they grew older, they were no longer as naive as they had been at the start.

Qiushui said earnestly, "You don't have to use traps, and you don't have to play dirty, but you must understand them. Because if you don't understand them, you won't be able to identify them. If you can't identify them, you will fall into them. And what happens after you fall in?"

Without Qiushui needing to continue, they knew that whatever awaited them after falling in certainly wouldn't be anything good.

Qiushui continued, "Think about it: you spend six years working hard at the Ninja Academy, finally graduate to become a ninja, and then on your very first mission, you die in someone else's trap without even seeing what the enemy looks like. At that moment, how would you feel?"

The classroom fell silent instantly.

A few students subconsciously swallowed hard.

That kind of death... was truly too frustrating.

Qiushui looked at their expressions, nodded with satisfaction, and said sternly, "Therefore, being unwilling to accept it is useless. The enemy will not give you a second chance. Even if you think your strength is great and you don't need to set traps, you must at least be able to recognize them—not to harm others, but to ensure you don't become that fool."

With the examples Qiushui provided, the students' faces began to turn serious.

For the remainder of the time, Qiushui didn't seem like he was teaching a class at all.

As he spoke, he interspersed a few jokes, occasionally threw out questions related to traps, and randomly called on students to answer. Regardless of whether they answered correctly or incorrectly, he would give a gentle comment or a small word of encouragement.

"Good answer, your line of thinking is correct."

"That's an interesting idea; although it's not quite right, it shows you're using your brain."

"It's okay, answering incorrectly is normal. You only remember things once you've made a mistake."

For students accustomed to the rigid, stiff teaching style of other teachers who criticized them for every wrong answer, Qiushui's style was a breath of fresh air.

So, this is how a class can be taught?

Gradually, they discovered something strange.

Even though this teacher was teaching the same dry, theoretical knowledge, why were they actually able to listen?

There was no feeling of being unable to sit still, no urge to doze off while listening, and certainly no desire to do things unrelated to the lesson.

On the contrary, they found themselves unconsciously following his train of thought, wondering what he would say next or how a story would end.

Time slipped away quietly in such a relaxed and pleasant atmosphere.

Ever since class began, a few people had been restless.

Sakura Haruno's eyes darted toward Naruto from time to time.

Ino Yamanaka did the same.

The other two girls nearby were no different.

They were prepared to act at any moment. If Naruto were to do his usual routine—suddenly pulling a toad out of his desk or throwing something onto the podium while the teacher turned to write on the blackboard—they would rush up to stop him immediately.

They absolutely could not let this guy Naruto ruin their chance to listen to the handsome teacher's lecture!

However...

Ten minutes passed.

Twenty minutes passed.

Four periods passed.

Naruto had been sitting there the whole time, motionless. He had no sneaky little movements, let alone any furtive glances.

Instead, he stood straight, his expression exceptionally earnest.

If it were someone who didn't know Naruto's past exploits, they would truly believe he was a good student who loved to learn.

Sakura Haruno, Ino Yamanaka, and several other girls did not notice Naruto commit a single act of classroom misconduct until the bell rang.

They had clearly intended to stop Naruto from misbehaving, and their goal had been achieved, so why did they feel a sense of disappointment in their hearts?

[Talent Cultivation Complete]

[Overall Rating: A]

[Obtained Cultivation Reward: Shuriken Jutsu (Max Level)]

As a mandatory basic skill for ninjas, Qiushui had already mastered Shuriken Jutsu long ago; he could steadily hold three shuriken between his fingers, and his throwing form was decent, but limited by his proficiency, his accuracy had always fluctuated, making it difficult to hit enemies in actual combat.

However, the [Max Level Shuriken Jutsu] bestowed by the system surged into his mind like a clear spring, unfolding countless throwing techniques and insights deep within his consciousness. The slight tilt of the wrist, the subtle flow of chakra attached to the blade's surface, the calculation of predicting a target's movement trajectory, and even the tactical conception of achieving multi-stage strikes by utilizing rebound angles—these experiences, once belonging to a top-tier Jonin, were now clearly imprinted into his muscle memory and combat instincts as if they were innate abilities.

Qiushui could feel that he, who had previously only been able to barely control three shuriken between both hands with questionable accuracy, could now fire four with one hand, hitting the mark every single time.