Perhaps There Won't Be a Next Semester

It was a beautiful, sunny day.

The glorious sunlight spilled over Konoha.

The land was vast and flat, the houses standing in orderly rows.

The streets were almost entirely free of any clutter.

In contrast, there were surprisingly few pedestrians on the streets, which felt a bit strange.

Miki, the owner of the general store, looked out at this beautiful scene in Konoha and began to reminisce about his recent experiences.

Lately, Miki had heard a great many complaints from the village children.

In the past, they could earn some pocket money by scavenging scraps and trading them at his shop. At some point, however, the entirety of Konoha had become exceptionally clean.

This had effectively cut off the children's source of pocket money.

Miki's business had been good lately, though the primary method of operation had shifted slightly. He thought of that blond-haired boy and a faint smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

The Demon Fox? Don't make me laugh.

The sparse crowd moved to and fro.

Miki watched two Uchiha children walk past his shop and felt they looked familiar. However, he immediately cast the thought aside.

Uchiha?

How could he possibly know anyone from that clan?

He must have misremembered.

Sasuke and Hui, passing by Miki's shop, glanced at it instinctively. It gave Miki such a start that he shuddered.

The Military Police!

He certainly didn't want to be investigated.

And so, Miki vanished from the doorway at once.

This left Hui and Sasuke feeling quite puzzled.

They arrived at the classroom.

The atmosphere in the class today was the same as ever.

It was as if nothing had ever changed.

It was just that a few familiar classmates seemed to have taken sick leave today, making the classroom appear a bit desolate.

However, the usually energetic Naruto seemed somewhat listless lately.

"Idiot Naruto... Naruto? Naruto! Are you alright?"

Sasuke looked at the dispirited Naruto and began his own brand of Sasuke-style concern.

"Sasuke, the Third is just too hateful. Those two techniques he gave me aren't meant for humans to practice. The semester is almost over, and I've only managed to learn the [Rasengan]."

Naruto's complaining reached Sasuke's ears.

This made Sasuke, who had been feeling a bit concerned, suddenly grow very irritable; he hadn't had any new techniques to practice lately.

Fugaku hadn't taught him anything, and his brother had told him not to go looking for Chuanhe for the time being.

The bustling noise in the classroom gradually died down, and the converging gazes made Naruto Uzumaki awkwardly scratch the back of his head.

It seemed he had said the wrong thing.

A hot-headed boy with face paint could no longer hold back: "Damn it, Naruto Uzumaki! I challenge you to a duel, let's settle this!"

His name was Kiba Inuzuka, and Akamaru, perched on his head, barked twice in agreement.

Such a challenge held no real meaning; as first-years, their chakra reserves were incredibly meager.

Even under the supervision of their elders, the ninjutsu they could learn was extremely limited.

Watching this familiar scene, Hui felt something different.

He was reluctant to let go of everything before his eyes.

Because...

Perhaps there would be no next semester.

What happened yesterday made Hui realize that this tranquility had reached its end.

Hui looked back behind him at an empty seat, which left his heart feeling lost and hollow.

Ino hadn't come today.

It seemed Hinata wasn't there either.

There were quite a few people on sick leave today.

Finally, had this silent stillness reached its end? Today was the time to bring it all to a close.

The circle of Konoha was a very small one. In many matters, one only needed to take a simple look to understand the intentions of the higher-ups.

The cleverness these clans prided themselves on was actually seen through clearly by everyone; only the Uchiha failed to understand any of it.

As Hui pondered, he saw Kiba Inuzuka walk through the classroom door, bruised and battered, with even Akamaru on his head looking as if he'd taken a couple of punches.

Naruto Uzumaki was by his side, offering endless apologies and comfort.

Naruto had been quite troubled by these challenges lately. It wasn't that he didn't want to accept them; it was just that he barely used any chakra, yet everyone still ended up on the floor.

When he sparred with Sasuke, he held back a little, and Sasuke could still manage to hold his own. This made him feel more and more that—Sasuke was truly impressive.

Naruto pressed his palms together and pleaded with the Sasuke in front of him: "Sasuke, Sasuke! I need one more bottle of that stuff. Sorry, sorry, I'll treat you to Ichiraku Ramen next time."

The Sasuke before him seemed to be trembling with rage, a vein-like symbol practically popping out on his forehead.

"NARUTO! UZUMAKI! This is the last time! Next time, solve it yourself!"

Sasuke tossed a bottle of Secret Medicine over and stopped paying any attention to Naruto.

At the same time, Sasuke roared inwardly: Who cares about Ichiraku Ramen? You idiot Naruto!

Naruto didn't mind Sasuke's attitude. After spending so much time together, he had long since mastered the user manual for Sasuke.

The last time?

He had already heard that line a few times.

Naruto thought to himself: I'll just treat Sasuke to a big meal this time. Damn Sasuke, he always eats more than I do.

And so, holding the Secret Medicine, a happy Naruto went off to find Kiba—oh, and Akamaru too.

The familiar Iruka, the familiar lessons, the familiar classmates. One by one, they slowly left the classroom.

In the end, with the classroom bathed in the glow of the setting sun, only Hui, Naruto, and Sasuke remained.

Naruto, who was extremely sensitive to such things, noticed that something was off with Hui today. He simply sat there silently, keeping his two friends company.

Having gained a new friend again today, Naruto's friend count had officially crossed into double digits and was now striding toward the triple digits.

But he cherished these first two friends dearly.

Hui kept staring off into an unknown direction.

From Hui's perspective, although Chuanhe hadn't deliberately hidden the Uchiha matter from him, Hui didn't know much about it either.

He only knew that the other night, Chuanhe had asked him how he would handle the situation if he were the one in charge.

He hadn't learned much new information yesterday, either.

They would leave this Konoha, the main culprits would be punished, and casualties would be kept to a minimum.

That was everything Hui knew.

What would the future hold? Hui wasn't sure; he only felt lost.

Naruto was one of his few friends. If he and Sasuke weren't around, would Naruto's life be even worse?

Hui had gotten the answer from the Anbu monitoring Naruto—no, it would never change.

As long as Naruto remained the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, this relationship would never soften, even if everything seemed to be moving in a positive direction; there were reasons for this that Naruto could never understand.

Even if Naruto hit him or cursed him today, Hui would still firmly take him away.

The current Konoha did not deserve Naruto.

Hui made his decision: "Naruto, come with us! I don't know what Konoha will be like after today, but I guarantee that coming with us will be better than staying here."

The Anbu ninjas lurking outside the classroom became incredibly tense, their bodies coiled like springs.

Even their leader, Kakashi, seemed to have cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.

What on earth was this brat talking about?

Sasuke, who knew very little about the inside story, was completely confused. What did he mean by "come with us"? Didn't they walk home together every day after school?

Clearly, Naruto didn't know either.

"Eh? What do you mean, come with you?"

Hui continued to stare into the distance: "It means leaving Konoha to live in a brand new place."

"If you do that, you won't have to live under surveillance anymore."

Hearing this, Kakashi instinctively threw the kunai in his hand.

Nine Anbu members appeared in the classroom instantly, surrounding the three of them.

One of them prepared to grab Naruto and pull him from the scene, but neither the kunai nor the Anbu ninja's hand touched anything at all.

Yet, the images of the three continued to play in the classroom.

Naruto appeared to have discovered something; he looked down at the floor, his expression turning blank.

Sasuke did the same, but after the previous incident, he reacted faster. He had already drawn a kunai and assumed a combat stance.

Kakashi, wearing his mask, realized the anomaly: "Genjutsu! On the roof! Go!"

But when they reached the roof, it was empty, save for the faint, lingering scent of the three boys in the air.

Kakashi performed hand seals at lightning speed and slammed his palm onto the ground.

[Summoning Technique]

A ninja hound appeared on the ceiling; this was Pakkun, Kakashi's summon, known for his exceptional tracking abilities.

Kakashi, who should have been handling the situation with his usual composure, was extremely tense, his voice muffled by his mask carrying a hint of panic.

"Pakkun, please, which direction did they head?"

Pakkun sniffed rapidly around the rooftop, but his entire face grew grave.

"Sorry, Kakashi, it's as if they vanished into thin air. Only space-time ninjutsu could account for this."

Kakashi quickly analyzed the situation. The Heavenly Transfer Technique to transport a person? Impossible; that technique could only transport objects. Could it be... the Flying Thunder God?!

Had they stolen the Scroll of Seals from Konoha?

Damnable spies!

If it were the Flying Thunder God...

Then the range of the technique shouldn't be too far; the brat's chakra shouldn't be sufficient to leave Konoha entirely.

Then the only possible answer was—the Uchiha Compound!

"The Uchiha Compound! Go! You, report to the Third Hokage and tell them they must mobilize immediately."

Kakashi knew some of the inside story, and while he felt profound sorrow over this matter, he felt even more apologetic toward Obito in his heart.

The Uchiha clan...

I'm sorry, Obito, I've let you down.

A group of eight figures dashed continuously across the rooftops.

One of the two bowl-cut figures performing frog jumps below noticed this unusual scene.

The mature man spoke in a deep voice: "Lee, let's stop here for today. It seems something serious has occurred, and I must go take a look."

The smaller bowl-cut figure looked puzzled: "Guy-sensei, was it those ninjas just now? Are they enemies?"

Guy gazed at the retreating figures ahead: "No, they are comrades. Don't slack off when you get back, Lee! Youth never stops!"

Guy flashed his pearly white teeth at Lee and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Oh!!! Yes, Guy-sensei!" Lee responded excitedly.

As Lee departed, Guy looked toward the direction Kakashi had vanished with a grave expression.

Kakashi was his eternal rival; there was no way he could mistake that silhouette. This was the first time he had ever seen Kakashi in such a rush.

With a powerful leap, Guy landed on the roof. Following that, he also sped off in that same direction.