It's a Cheat, I Added a Cheat

Kushina Uzumaki hurriedly covered her mouth. Her cheeks flushed, and she looked nervously at her classmates.

The students exchanged glances.

"Her hair is so red."

"I can't believe it. How can anyone have hair that red?"

"How do you even get it that red? It's so weird."

The students weren't speaking quietly, and soon the whole classroom grew noisy.

Teacher Kinoshita tapped the desk. "That's enough. All of you, quiet down."

The pointing and judgmental remarks reached Kushina's ears. She was getting angry. So what if her hair was that red?

Clenching her fists, she summoned her courage and loudly declared the dream she'd had ever since coming to Konoha. She wouldn't let everyone look down on her!

"I... I'm going to become the first female Hokage of this village! Just you wait and see, believe it!"

Clap! Clap!

Uchiha Chonhua's applause sounded out of place, drawing the attention of his classmates and Kushina.

Uchiha Chonhua stood up with a smile. "That's a great dream. I want to become a Hokage recognized by the villagers, too."

Namikaze Minato stared at Uchiha Chonhua in shock. That was... what he'd wanted to say.

Kushina studied Uchiha Chonhua. He was pretty handsome. Wait...

She remembered what Tsunade had told her before she came to school: in her class, there were two exceptionally good-looking boys, one blond and one dark-haired. They could both become trusted friends and companions.

The dark-haired one... Was he Uchiha Chonhua?

Kushina curiously sized him up.

Seeing Kushina staring at Uchiha Chonhua without blinking, Teacher Kinoshita thought, Has the Uchiha Chonhua fan club just gained a new member?

"Kushina, the boy who stood up is Uchiha Chonhua. He's also the class monitor. You can sit in front of him. If you have any questions, you can ask him."

Kushina nodded and went to sit in the seat in front of Uchiha Chonhua.

She was a transfer student from another village, and her red hair was rare in Konoha. As she walked, the children in the classroom sneaked glances at her.

"Hello, Kushina. I'm Chonhua. Is it okay if I call you Kushina?"

"Oh, hello! Hello! I know you. Tsunade and Nawaki told me about you, believe it!"

Uchiha Chonhua looked surprised. "You know Teacher Tsunade and Nawaki? How come I've never seen you before?"

"I came from somewhere else, so it's normal that you haven't seen me. But now I live at Tsunade's house. Can I call you Chonhua?"

Kushina sounded a little tentative. As someone from out of town, everything about Konoha was unfamiliar to her. She couldn't act as freely as she had back home in the Land of Whirlpools.

Uchiha Chonhua's voice was gentle and kind. "Of course. If there's anything you don't understand about Konoha, feel free to ask me. I know the village pretty well."

"Though, as a boy, I'm afraid I can't help with everything."

Uchiha Chonhua introduced his desk mate, Uchiha Mikoto. "This is my clanswoman, Uchiha Mikoto. You might feel more comfortable asking another girl."

"Hello, I'm Uchiha Mikoto. Just call me Mikoto."

"Oh, hello! I'm Kushina Uzumaki. Just call me Kushina, believe it!"

Uchiha Chonhua stepped away, leaving the conversation to the two girls, who were starting to open up to each other.

He glanced at Namikaze Minato and caught him looking their way.

Namikaze Minato paused. Then he saw the knowing smile on Uchiha Chonhua's face and became even more confused.

What's that supposed to mean? Namikaze Minato scratched his head, unable to figure out what the smile meant.

The bell rang, and class ended.

As a transfer student from out of town, Kushina drew a great deal of attention.

Several boys in the class crowded around her.

"Wow, up close, your hair looks even redder. Just like a tomato!"

"Round, chubby face and red hair—Tomato, that's your nickname! I hate tomatoes the most!"

"How could a tomato ever become Hokage? That's hilarious."

"Yeah! If there's tomato in my food, I pick it out and throw it straight in the trash. It tastes awful!"

Kushina held her temper, telling herself not to get angry. She wanted to make a good impression and fit into this unfamiliar place.

But she was still so mad. I hate tomatoes, too!

She'd never thought that the red hair she'd taken for granted back home would make her stand out in a strange place. Kushina tugged at her hair, and a sudden dislike for it stirred inside her.

Just then, she saw Namikaze Minato watching with an amused smile.

Kushina frowned. What are you smiling at? What's so funny, believe it?

So he's the good-looking blond Tsunade mentioned. Hmph. I'm being teased and he won't even come help.

Right, Chonhua. Chonhua would help me out, wouldn't he?

Their conversation in class had left her with a good impression of Uchiha Chonhua, so she looked around for him.

Just then, one of the boys reached for Kushina's hair with a nasty grin.

"Let me see why your hair is so red..."

"Don't pick on the transfer student, Nikai. You're making it hard for me to do my job as class monitor."

Uchiha Chonhua appeared just in time and grabbed the hand reaching for her hair.

"Chonhua!"

Kushina's eyes lit up. He really had come to help her.

"I just wanted to see why her hair was so red."

The boy named Nikai gave an awkward laugh and pulled his hand back.

"Enough. You all need to watch yourselves. Kushina may be a transfer student, but she's still part of this class. She's a new friend of mine."

Uchiha Chonhua patted Nikai on the shoulder, his tone friendly. "I get along pretty well with everyone, so I'm not sure what it looks like when I'm unhappy. But you probably don't want to find out, right?"

"Ah... haha. If she's your friend, then she's our friend, too. Of course we wouldn't treat her badly. It was a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding."

The boys hurriedly promised, then laughed awkwardly as they put their arms around each other's shoulders and left the classroom.

They couldn't afford to offend Uchiha Chonhua.

"Thank you, Chonhua."

Kushina thanked him sincerely, her smile finally genuine.

Uchiha Chonhua smiled and shook his head. "I was just saving them from getting beaten up."

"Kushina, I can tell you're a lot stronger than they are. If they make you angry, they'll be the ones who suffer."

Kushina blinked. Was she really stronger than those boys? She had no idea whether Chonhua was telling the truth.

"I'm not even sure..."

Before Kushina could finish, Uchiha Chonhua spoke up. "This is a school for training shinobi. In the shinobi world, there's a simple way to earn people's respect."

"There'll be a practical test in a few days. You can show everyone in class what you can do then. If you get an excellent score, your classmates will start to recognize you, and no one will dare bother you again."

Chapter 20: It's a Cheat, I Added a Cheat

Kushina's shinobi training wasn't systematic, but her bloodline was incredibly powerful.

She had an enormous amount of chakra from birth, and with chakra enhancing her strength, every punch and kick packed a wallop.

Her strong vitality gave her greater energy and stamina, allowing her to endure pain better and fight for longer.

During the practical test a few days later, Kushina displayed impressive strength. Her classmates were left with a deep impression and saw her in a new light.

The boys who'd picked on her before looked especially shaken.

Their fear made them look at Uchiha Chonhua with deep gratitude.

How could that girl from out of town have such strong Taijutsu—and such incredible strength? She'd swung them this way and that, beating them until all they could do was cry out in pain.

When she slammed her fist into their chests, it was even worse. She knocked the wind right out of them.

Not someone to mess with. Not at all.

Seeing the boys' expressions, Kushina grinned.

She stood with her hands on her hips, looking smug as she gave a little huff and clenched her fist. "Hmph! Let's see who looks down on me now."

Uchiha Mikoto praised her from the side. "You're amazing, Kushina."

"Hehe, I'm okay. You're even more amazing, Mikoto!"

After all, Mikoto was third in their year. Kushina had watched her fight, and compared to Kushina's wild swings, Mikoto's fighting was much more graceful. She looked more like a shinobi in battle.

"Compared to Minato and Chonhua, I'm nothing. Look, they're about to fight."

Mikoto's words brought Kushina back to the present. She hurriedly looked toward the center of the field.

Uchiha Chonhua and Namikaze Minato formed the Seal of Confrontation. The next moment, both used the Body Flicker Technique and charged at each other.

Thud!

A dull impact rang out as their fists and feet met in a Taijutsu clash.

Uchiha Chonhua struck with his palm. Namikaze Minato dodged to the side, turning with the movement and bringing his right leg up in a powerful axe kick.

Uchiha Chonhua crossed his arms to block the downward kick. Chakra surged, and he shoved Minato back.

Namikaze Minato flipped as he landed, then pushed off the ground and collided with Uchiha Chonhua again.

Kushina's mouth fell open as she watched the two of them fight.

"T-this... They're so fast! I can barely keep up with my eyes. Those two... they're way too strong, believe it!"

Uchiha Mikoto nodded with a smile. "That's Chonhua and Minato for you. Their strength is on a whole different level from ours."

"I wonder how they train. We're the same age." Tsume Inuzuka chimed in from the side.

Her Ninja Dog, Kuro-maru, whimpered, looking a little scared.

"We're the same age, but our fates are different."

Hizashi Hyuga, who had been shy three years ago, was now expressionless. Even his pale eyes no longer looked as clear as they once had.

He touched the bandages wrapped around his head and spoke in an even tone. "The moment we're born, our fates are decided. Mine, and theirs."

"Uh... What's with him? Why's he talking like some fortune-teller?"

Kushina gave him a strange look. What was all this talk about fate? He spoke so oddly, and his words made her uncomfortable.

"Hizashi's a good person, really, but..." Uchiha Mikoto offered a quiet reminder. "Something that happened in his family changed the way he thinks."

Family troubles? Kushina looked at Hizashi with a little more understanding.

She, too, had left her home because of family circumstances and come to unfamiliar Konoha.

Ah, Kushina sighed. Why did it have to be me?

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

Namikaze Minato formed Hand Seals, then blew out a powerful gust of wind toward Uchiha Chonhua.

The strong wind swept Uchiha Chonhua up, and wind blades sliced through his clothes. Kushina nearly cried out.

But the next moment, Uchiha Chonhua, struck by the wind blades, suddenly burst into a cloud of smoke.

The real Uchiha Chonhua had appeared behind Namikaze Minato.

Namikaze Minato had known Uchiha Chonhua wouldn't be defeated so easily. He'd been losing to him for three years and had long since lowered his expectations.

He focused and fought Uchiha Chonhua, but as time passed, something strange happened. A moment earlier, he could still hear the classmates around the field. Now everything had gone silent.

"Something's wrong."

Namikaze Minato backed away, his face wary.

Uchiha Chonhua didn't press the attack. He stopped, and the two of them stood motionless, locked in a standoff.