Nintaijutsu: Guard Lv. 2

Afternoon.

Training wasn't something they could keep up all day.

And they couldn't skip class again that afternoon.

Otherwise, the Ninja Academy might as well have been without them.

"Did you go to the Ninja Academy?"

"I did. Where was everyone? They didn't show up."

The five of them arrived in the classroom just as class was about to begin.

As soon as they entered, the once-bustling classroom fell silent.

Most of the civilian ninja in the front rows looked at them with envy.

They envied their good families, their success, and the fact that they didn't have to study here.

Most of the students in the back rows, on the other hand, were simply impressed.

They didn't feel particularly jealous.

Everyone was the same. They'd only skipped class, so what was there to be jealous of?

But they were definitely impressed.

Not everyone dared to skip class.

When Nohara Rin saw Uchiha Obito, she looked a little worried, but she didn't go over to him with Yuki Yuichi and the others there.

Instead, Uchiha Obito got excited as soon as he spotted Nohara Rin and hurried over.

"Rin!"

"Listen, this morning we..."

Uchiha Obito eagerly told Nohara Rin about what had happened that morning.

Nohara Rin listened quietly with a smile, but when she saw the huge bumps on his head, she couldn't help laughing.

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

"Obito, you look so funny."

Nohara Rin poked one of the bumps on his head, and Uchiha Obito immediately grimaced in pain.

Nohara Rin froze, then looked at him apologetically.

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

Before she could finish, Uchiha Obito waved a 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 took his seat with Yuhi Kurenai.

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

Then he admonished them, "Skipping class is wrong."

"You should take your studies seriously—that's what youth is all about!"

Yuki Yuichi looked at Might Guy, took out a bag of Three-color Dango, pulled out a skewer, and handed it to him. "Guy, this is for you."

Then he answered, "We went training this morning."

"Youth is about constantly improving yourself!"

"Seize every opportunity to get stronger!"

While the two were talking, Umino Ikkaku walked in. He glanced at Yuki Yuichi and the others but said nothing. Instead, he picked up a copy of the Will of Fire.

"Class, we'll be working on chakra extraction and reading again today."

"Now, turn to page three of the Will of Fire."

Yuki Yuichi and Yuhi Kurenai exchanged a glance. They'd thought they were going to get chewed out.

And it wasn't just the two of them. Kakashi Hatake, Asuma, and Uchiha Obito were just as baffled.

All five of them had braced themselves for a scolding.

But the teacher acted as though nothing had happened.

Just as Yuki Yuichi was wondering about it, a pale blue panel suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[Achievement unlocked: I Do What I Want.]

[If I can skip class, I will. If I can't skip class, I'll skip it anyway! Skip first, get scolded later. The village chief says it's okay—that's what makes me a genius!]

[Reward: Nintaijutsu: Guard]

[Nintaijutsu: Guard: Passively reduces damage taken by 20%. Maybe you can try tanking Tengai Shinsei and see what the Pure Land is like.]

[Nintaijutsu: Guard upgraded to Nintaijutsu: Guard Lv. 2]

[Nintaijutsu: Guard Lv. 2: Passively reduces damage taken by 20%. Can be activated for 1 second to double the damage reduction. Cooldown: 1 day. At last, you've got a chance of surviving Tengai Shinsei head-on!]

Why would I want to tank Tengai Shinsei...

Looking at the achievement reward that had suddenly popped up, especially its final description, he couldn't help grumbling.

What had he done to deserve having to tank Tengai Shinsei?

Even with all its flaws, Yuki Yuichi still focused on the achievement.

He'd never known this thing could level up.

Going from a constant 20% damage reduction to double that when activated was barely an improvement.

It sounded like a lot of damage reduction, but in practice... one slash, and he'd still die.

A Ninja Blade wouldn't become any less sharp just because he had damage reduction.

Even with 50% damage reduction, he'd still die if someone stabbed him with a Ninja Blade. He'd need 100% reduction to survive.

Imagine getting into a fight with someone, and just as their Kunai was about to stab him, he confidently activated this ability.

The Kunai that could have easily pierced him would meet a little resistance, but it would still pierce him. Or maybe it would only go in sixty percent of the way?

At that moment, Yuki Yuichi even thought of that Iron Body technique from the One Piece world next door... It seemed like the user had gotten beaten up while standing there like an idiot because he was too confident in it...

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

Yuki Yuichi shook his head and decided he'd better not use this ability if he could help it.

If it became a habit, he couldn't imagine how miserable he'd be in the future.

He might really end up with a screw loose and go stand beneath Madara to tank Tengai Shinsei.

"Yuichi... Yuichi!" Yuhi Kurenai's voice gradually came into focus. Yuki Yuichi came back to his senses, turned to look at her, and smiled.

"What is it?"

"Nothing." Yuhi Kurenai shook her head, looking at him with concern. "You were staring at the desk without moving, and your expression was really strange."

"You kept going from looking like you were crying to looking like you were laughing. I was worried about you."

Yuhi Kurenai's concern didn't fade. "Maybe you should ask Dad to take you to the hospital when you get home today."

As she spoke, she looked at Yuki Yuichi's chest.

He'd hurt his chest, so why was his brain acting up too?

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

"Oh." Yuhi Kurenai nodded and said no more. She picked up her book and listened attentively to Umino Ikkaku's lesson.

Yuki Yuichi focused on the achievement panel again.

This time, he paid particular attention to the achievement's description.

[If I can skip class, I will. If I can't skip class, I'll skip it anyway! Skip first, get scolded later. The village chief says it's okay—that's what makes me a genius!]

It was obvious from that line that he'd earned this achievement by skipping class.

The lines about the village chief saying it was okay and that this was what made him a genius made it even clearer.

"Did that old geezer Sarutobi Hiruzen give the word?" Yuki Yuichi wondered silently.

Sometimes, the Achievement System could give him useful information when it popped up out of nowhere.

A solid win for Intelligence Yuichi.

From the description, it wasn't hard to guess that Sarutobi Hiruzen had told Umino Ikkaku to let them off because they were geniuses.

That also explained why Umino Ikkaku hadn't called them into the office to scold them like he had yesterday.

But while he probably wouldn't interfere, that didn't mean he'd tell them they could skip class whenever they wanted.

At that thought, Yuki Yuichi smiled.

He wouldn't have to feel guilty about skipping class from now on.

Umino Ikkaku was explaining the Will of Fire at the front of the room and teaching the students to read at the same time. He happened to notice Yuki Yuichi's smile, and his heart suddenly clenched.

Why did he suddenly feel a chill down his back?