"Konoha Village was founded as a shinobi village by the First Hokage, Lord Hashirama Senju, together with many shinobi clans. Under Lord Hashirama Senju's leadership..."
A ray of morning sunlight slipped through the window and fell across the desks. It was Jiuming's first class at the Ninja Academy. He sat in the second-to-last row by the window, in the fabled sunbathing zone.
There were only a dozen or so students in the class. Jiuming propped his chin on his left hand and toyed with a kunai beneath his desk with his right, staring out the window in boredom.
The History of Konoha sat neatly on his desk, but Jiuming hadn't even opened it.
At least Jiuming already had the Ninja Academy timetable. Honestly, it was a huge disappointment. Aside from learning so-called history, the subject that took up the largest part of the first-years' studies was learning how to read and write...
As for ninjutsu, they didn't even get half a lesson. Taijutsu, on the other hand, came up three times a week. Though disappointed, Jiuming quickly understood why the Academy had set up its curriculum this way.
It was simple: most first-years were under seven, and many of them didn't even know all the basic characters yet. Learning to read and write was essential. And teaching the history of Konoha was probably meant to instill a sense of belonging in the children. That was understandable.
As for why the Academy didn't teach ninjutsu, Jiuming quickly figured that out, too. After all, at the end of a six-year course, the graduation exam was the most basic Three Body Technique. Given that, he couldn't expect the school to teach any amazing techniques.
Calling the Ninja Academy a factory for producing cannon fodder during wartime wasn't wrong. A bunch of brats who only knew the Three Body Technique—what else could they do on the battlefield besides serve as cannon fodder?
"No wonder so many geniuses graduate early. The test is just the Three Body Technique. I could already do that when I was four~"
"Man, how depressing. I actually have to spend six more years studying with these kids. Six years! I don't even know how I'm going to get through them."
"But at least I won't be wasting my time. I need to build up the Chakra in my Yin Seal, so I'll have something to do for the next couple of years~"
Unlike the other children, Uzumaki Kuming wasn't paying attention in class. Whenever the others heard Hashirama Senju's name, their faces lit up with admiration, but Kuming's mind wasn't on the lesson at all. His odd behavior soon caught the teacher's eye.
"Tap, tap, tap!" The sound of chalk striking the blackboard rang out.
"Uzumaki Kuming! Stand up and tell me what I was just talking about."
The teacher for History of Konoha was a man in his thirties named Katori Shingo, a devoted supporter of the Third Hokage. He was already getting a little portly, and his belly jiggled as he spoke.
"Were teachers in my old world just the same as teachers in this one?"
"If I can't answer, will he make me stand outside against the wall?"
Thinking this, Jiuming slowly rose from his seat and slipped the kunai into his sleeve.
"Sorry, Teacher Shingo. I don't know."
Uzumaki Kuming hadn't even opened his book, so of course he didn't know where the lesson had reached. Once he stood up, all he could do was tell the truth. But even though he was being honest, his attitude left Katori Shingo's face turning pale, then red.
"Uzumaki Kuming! You haven't even opened your book? Are you making a fool of me?"
"You little brat!"
"Take your book and go stand outside against the wall!"
At Katori Shingo's furious shout, Uzumaki Kuming picked up History of Konoha and shuffled out into the hall.
"Sure enough, teachers are all the same~"
"I should've made a Shadow Clone. Then I wouldn't have had to sit through the lesson..."
Jiuming stepped outside and casually opened the book, balancing it on his head. Reaching behind his back with his right hand, he pulled out the kunai and played with it. After a sigh, he closed his eyes and began focusing on refining Chakra.
Uzumaki Kuming's Yin Seal had been built with Uzumaki Mito's help, so its structure was extremely stable and it could store a tremendous amount of Chakra. Though Kuming was an Uzumaki with a naturally vast supply of Chakra, filling the Yin Seal would still take a long time.
So, he spent most of his time refining Chakra, and at school he seized every opportunity he could to do it.
"Class is over for today!"
Who knew how much time had passed? After announcing the end of class, Katori Shingo left the classroom. As he passed Jiuming, he glanced at him and saw that his eyes were closed, as if he were sleeping. His anger flared, and he reached out to rap Jiuming on the head.
But as soon as he did, he seemed to remember something. He snorted and walked away. Uzumaki Jiuming had been refining Chakra, but he'd still heard the dismissal. When he opened his eyes, he just caught sight of Katori Shingo's retreating back.
"Next time, I should look more studious. Refining Chakra while sitting is much more comfortable than doing it standing up."
Jiuming took the book off his head and turned to walk back into the classroom. Before he could even reach his seat, a grating voice rang in his ears.
"So this is Uzumaki Jiuming, the only student who made it to the finish line?"
"What an arrogant brat. He's already slacking off on the very first day of school?"
Three little boys stood in Jiuming's way. The one in the middle had spoken, and his spiky, outlandish haircut left Jiuming momentarily stunned.
"I can't believe you're not even ten, kid. You'd need ten years of brain damage to come up with a line like that."
"Since you know I'm the only one who made it to the finish line, you should know our abilities aren't even on the same level. If I were you, I wouldn't provoke someone stronger than me."
"Move aside. I'll pretend this never happened."
Jiuming spoke coolly and reached out to shove the boy aside.
"Damn it! How dare some outsider act so arrogantly!"
"How dare you look down on me!"
The spiky-haired boy suddenly flew into a rage at Jiuming's words and swung a punch at his face. He moved so fast that even Uzumaki Jiuming was taken by surprise.
"He knows I'm from another village? Is he from one of Konoha's shinobi clans?"
Faced with the sudden attack, Jiuming only had time to dodge by turning his head. He hadn't wanted to pick a fight with a child, but seeing how viciously the other boy attacked stirred up his anger, too.
After dodging the punch, he spun and kicked at the boy's stomach, putting eight-tenths of his strength into it. If the boy took the hit, he'd lose the ability to fight at once.
But to Jiuming's surprise, his counterattack was dodged with ease.
"Hm?" Jiuming's kick struck nothing, and he felt a flicker of alarm. The next second, the spiky-haired boy pulled a paper covered in talismans from his clothes and thrust it straight at Jiuming's chest.
"Damn it, these guys aren't ordinary students!"
"They're attacking me in the Ninja Academy. Who'd be bold enough to try this?"
The other boy had moved far too quickly. Jiuming didn't know what the talisman in his hand was, but he knew he absolutely couldn't let it hit him. Because of the Yin Seal, he couldn't use Chakra right now. Whatever the boy was holding, if it struck him, Jiuming wouldn't be able to fight back.
"Who are you people?!"
Jiuming roared as he swiftly drew the kunai from his sleeve and stabbed toward the hand thrusting at him.
Jiuming could only hope his shout would quickly attract a teacher's attention. The other children in the class had thought it was just an ordinary case of school bullying, and many had been watching for fun. But when Jiuming shouted, they realized something was wrong. One of them quickly left the classroom to find a teacher.
When the spiky-haired boy saw Jiuming draw his kunai, he immediately pulled back. His first strike had failed, so he sprang backward, then swiftly twisted and smashed through the classroom window before making his escape. His movements were practiced and fluid. He was clearly a shinobi who'd received professional training.
Even after the boy jumped out the window and fled, Jiuming was still in shock. The other children who'd blocked his way alongside the spiky-haired boy had already vanished when the attack began.
"Was this a planned attack? Were the kids standing with him just an illusion?"
"I thought I'd get to enjoy a peaceful school life, but it looks like that won't be so easy."
Jiuming tried to guess who the attacker was, then put away his kunai, his face darkening.
"If I can't figure out who's behind this, blaming the pot-stirrer can't hurt."
"Has Danzo already taken an interest in me?"
Uzumaki Jiuming returned to his seat, lost in thought. Not long after, a Ninja Academy teacher arrived and called him outside to ask what had happened.
After explaining the situation to the teachers, Jiuming went back to class. Meanwhile, the Ninja Academy teachers hurried to the Hokage Building to report the incident to the Third Hokage.
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