Nintaijutsu: Guard Lv2

Afternoon.

Training could not possibly last the entire day.

And in the afternoon, they could no longer skip class.

Otherwise, there would be no difference to the Ninja Academy whether they were there or not.

Did you attend the Ninja Academy?

I did. Where are the people? They didn't show up.

They arrived at the classroom right on the dot.

As the five of them entered, the previously chaotic classroom instantly fell silent.

Upon seeing them, most of the commoner ninjas in the front rows looked on with jealousy.

Jealous of their good families, jealous of their success compared to their own, and jealous that they didn't have to study here.

As for the students in the back, most felt envy.

They didn't really feel jealousy.

Everyone was the same; they had just skipped class, so what was there to be jealous of?

But the envy was genuine.

Skipping class was not something just anyone dared to do.

When Nohara Rin saw Uchiha Obito, she felt a bit worried, but seeing Yuki Yuichi and the others, she did not step forward.

On the contrary, Uchiha Obito, upon seeing Nohara Rin, excitedly stepped forward.

"Rin!"

"Let me tell you, this morning we..."

Uchiha Obito spoke tirelessly to Nohara Rin about the morning's events.

Nohara Rin listened quietly with a smile, but seeing the prominent bump on his head, she couldn't help but laugh.

"Rin, what are you laughing at?" Uchiha Obito asked, confused.

"Obito, you look so funny like that."

Nohara Rin poked the large bump on his head, and Uchiha Obito immediately winced in pain.

Nohara Rin froze at the sight, then looked at him apologetically.

"Obito, I'm sorry. I didn't know you..."

Before she could finish her sentence, Uchiha Obito waved his hand, "It's fine, it'll be better soon."

"Let me bandage it for you."

Watching Nohara Rin bandage Uchiha Obito, Yuki Yuichi smiled, then sat down at his seat with Yuhi Kurenai.

"Yuichi, where did you guys go this morning?" Might Guy leaned over and asked curiously.

At the same time, he admonished, "Skipping class is wrong."

"Youth should be spent studying diligently!"

Looking at Might Guy, Yuki Yuichi pulled out a bag containing tricolor dango.

He took out a skewer and handed it to Might Guy, saying, "Guy, this is for you."

At the same time, he replied, "We went to train this morning."

"Youth is about constantly improving oneself!"

"Seize every opportunity to improve yourself!"

Just as the two were talking, Umino Ikkaku walked in. He glanced at Yuki Yuichi and the others, but said nothing else, instead picking up a copy of the Will of Fire.

"Students, this lesson will continue with chakra refinement and literacy."

"Now, open to the third page of the Will of Fire."

Yuki Yuichi and Yuhi Kurenai exchanged glances; they had expected to be reprimanded.

It wasn't just them; Kakashi Hatake, Sarutobi Asuma, and Uchiha Obito were equally bewildered.

All five of them had prepared themselves to be scolded.

Yet, the teacher acted as if nothing had happened.

Just as Yuki Yuichi was feeling puzzled, a pale blue panel suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[Achievement Unlocked: I Do What I Want.]

[The classes I can skip, I will skip; the classes I can't skip, I'll skip even more! Skip first, get scolded later—authorized by the village head, this is what a genius is!]

[Reward: Nintaijutsu: Guard]

[Nintaijutsu: Guard: Passively gain 20% damage reduction. Perhaps you can try to tank a Tengai Shinsei and see what the Pure Land is really like.]

[Nintaijutsu: Guard upgraded to Nintaijutsu: Guard lv2]

Nintaijutsu: Guard lv2: Passively gain 20% damage reduction. Can be activated for 1 second to double the reduction effect. Cooldown: one day. For the first time, you finally see a glimmer of hope in tanking Tengai Shinsei!

Why on earth would I want to tank Tengai Shinsei...

Looking at the achievement reward that had suddenly popped up, especially the final remark in its description, I couldn't help but retort.

What kind of sin did I commit that I would have to go and tank Tengai Shinsei?

Despite how full of holes the logic was, Yuki Yuichi still focused his attention on this achievement.

This was the first time he had realized that this thing could actually be leveled up.

From a constant 20% passive damage reduction to an active ability that doubles the reduction, this upgrade was practically negligible.

It sounds powerful to have so much damage reduction, but in reality... if you get slashed, you're still going to die.

A ninja blade isn't going to lose its sharpness just because of some damage reduction.

Even with 50% damage reduction, a ninja blade would still kill him; unless it was 100% reduction, it wouldn't matter.

Just imagine, you're fighting someone, their kunai is about to pierce you, and you confidently activate this ability.

The kunai, which would have easily slid in, now encounters some resistance, but it still pierces through—or maybe it only goes in 60% of the way?

At that moment, Yuki Yuichi even thought of the Iron Body technique from that pirate world next door... it seemed like people who used it were just too confident, standing there like idiots waiting to get beaten up.

No! Can't think about it! Can't use it!

Yuki Yuichi shook his head, making up his mind that it was best not to use this ability if he could help it.

If he developed a habit of relying on it, he couldn't imagine how miserable his future would be.

He might actually end up like someone with a screw loose, running under Madara to tank Tengai Shinsei.

"Yuichi... Yuichi!" Yuhi Kurenai's voice gradually became clear. Yuki Yuichi snapped out of his thoughts, turned to look at her, and flashed a smile.

"What's wrong?"

"It's nothing." Yuhi Kurenai shook her head, looking at him with concern. "You were staring at the desk without moving just now, and the expression on your face was so strange."

"You were crying and laughing at the same time; I was a bit worried about you."

As Yuhi Kurenai spoke, the worry in her eyes didn't fade. "Why don't you let your father take you to the hospital when you get home today?"

As she said this, she glanced at Yuki Yuichi's chest.

His chest was injured, and now it seemed his brain wasn't working right either.

"I'm fine, I was just thinking about something."

"Oh." Yuhi Kurenai nodded, said nothing more, and went back to listening to Umino Ikkaku's lecture while holding her book.

Yuki Yuichi sank his consciousness back into the achievement panel.

This time, he focused on the achievement's description.

[Classes I can skip, I will skip; classes I can't skip, I'll skip even more! Skip first, get scolded later, specially permitted by the village chief—this is what a genius is!]

From this sentence, it was obvious that this achievement had been earned by skipping class.

"Specially permitted by the village chief" and "this is what a genius is"—these two phrases made it even clearer.

So that old geezer Sarutobi Hiruzen has spoken up, Yuki Yuichi thought silently to himself.

Sometimes, when the Achievement System popped up out of nowhere, it could also provide information.

This was Information Yuichi at work.

Looking at the description, it wasn't hard to guess that Sarutobi Hiruzen had used the excuse of him being a "genius" to tell Umino Ikkaku not to interfere.

This also explained why Umino Ikkaku hadn't called them to his office to lecture them like he did yesterday.

However, while he might not interfere, he probably wouldn't go so far as to tell them they could skip class whenever they wanted.

Thinking of this, a smile tugged at the corners of Yuki Yuichi's mouth.

He wouldn't have any burden when skipping class from now on.

Umino Ikkaku, who was on the podium explaining the Will of Fire while teaching the students how to read and write, inadvertently caught sight of Yuki Yuichi's smile and felt a sudden tightness in his chest.

Why did he suddenly feel a chill running down his back?