The Tail

Seeing Ueda Shin obediently leave the classroom, Iruka breathed a sigh of relief.

He had no idea how to deal with Ueda Shin. He couldn't hit him, and he couldn't scold him. How was he supposed to correct the boy's way of thinking?

Looks like it's time to ask the Third Hokage for advice on dealing with this kind of ninjutsu, Iruka thought.

Since the Ninja Academy was the village's only educational institution, it was directly under the Hokage's authority. Even ordinary teachers like him could report their work directly to the Hokage.

The Hokage would also pay special attention to a genius like Ueda Shin. If there were any problems, Iruka could report them directly.

Though the introductions had been full of twists and turns, they still had to continue.

At last, it was the turn of the final student who might be a Transmigrator: Senju Kotoha.

Senju Kotoha rose from beside Sakura and walked up to the podium.

"My name is Senju Kotoha. I like kendo, and my dream is to become the first female Hokage."

Ito Makoto was a little puzzled. Senju Kotoha had to be a Transmigrator, but most Transmigrators who had watched the Naruto anime knew the first female Hokage was the Slug Princess, Tsunade. Since they were both from the Senju Clan, there was almost no chance Kotoha could outdo Tsunade in age or experience.

Yet she still said she wanted to become the first female Hokage. If she wasn't making it up, could she really be unaware of the original storyline?

That was a new discovery.

Senju Kotoha seemed unaware that her introduction had revealed a weakness in her knowledge as a Transmigrator. She came down from the podium as if nothing had happened.

The students who introduced themselves after her weren't particularly noteworthy.

"My name is Inuzuka Kiba. I like Ninja Dogs, and my dream is to establish a dog holiday in the village after becoming Hokage."

"My name is Hinata Hyuga. I like pressed flowers, and my dream is to become the strong ninja my father hopes I'll be."

"My name is Aburame Shino. I like vegetable salad, and my dream is to raise the most powerful Kikaichū."

These three characters from the original storyline had all been perfectly ordinary.

From what he had seen so far, none of the characters from the original story seemed to be Transmigrators. So far, Ito Makoto had only found signs that Uchiha Itachi's body had been taken over by one. The other Transmigrators, like him, had their own unique identities.

And now, apart from Uchiha Itachi, nearly all the Transmigrators were around the same age.

Could they all have transmigrated at the same time? Ito Makoto wondered.

The Sage of Six Paths had once said that souls from another world had come to this one. Could they all have arrived in the same batch?

If so, apart from those who had taken over characters from the original story, like Uchiha Itachi, all the Transmigrators who had been reborn would be around the same age as him.

That was a new discovery. If he was right, it narrowed down the possible Transmigrators considerably.

Ito Makoto formed a hypothesis.

The introductions went on, with student after student taking the podium. Ito Makoto also paid attention to the ordinary students' introductions. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

Still, some might be hiding their identities very well.

The introductions came to an end.

Iruka-sensei walked up to the podium.

"Now that we know a little about one another, I hope you'll build strong friendships and develop solid skills during your time at the Academy."

After class, the students gathered around Senju Kotoha and Uchiha Sasuke, chattering as they tried to learn more about them. They were fascinated by the Senju and Uchiha clans.

After all, members of the two clans who had founded Konoha Hidden Village were in the same class.

Most of the students around Uchiha Sasuke were girls, while both boys and girls gathered around Senju Kotoha.

Ito Makoto sat to Sakura's left, by the window. Senju Kotoha sat to Sakura's right, by the aisle. They were close enough that he could take the opportunity to eavesdrop on the details about her.

"Kotoha, are you really a descendant of the Senju Clan?" one girl asked curiously.

"I really am a descendant of the Senju. I just didn't have the Senju name before. After my parents died, the Third Hokage changed my surname so I could inherit the Senju name."

"Some people say you look a lot like Lady Tsunade, one of the legendary Sannin. Are you related to her?"

"Lady Tsunade and I are probably family," Senju Kotoha replied calmly. "The Third Hokage said my grandfather was Lady Tsunade's cousin."

"As for why I look so much like Lady Tsunade, it's probably just a coincidence. We're family, and our blood ties are close, so it's only natural that we might look alike."

The students surrounding her kept asking about the Senju Clan and Senju Kotoha. She handled herself normally, answering every question without giving anything away. But there wasn't much useful information in her answers.

Looks like eavesdropping won't get me anything useful, Ito Makoto thought helplessly.

But it didn't really matter. No matter what these Transmigrators were hiding, this world still valued strength above all else. He had his own trump cards, so he didn't need to follow anyone else's lead.

Getting stronger was the top priority.

At this point, Ito Makoto and the others had only just started school, and they didn't have many classes.

At the basic level, the Ninja Academy's curriculum covered only three areas: foundational knowledge, physical training, and ninjutsu and ninja tools.

Foundational knowledge included subjects like writing, mathematics, and physics.

Physical training was meant to strengthen the body.

Ninjutsu and ninja tools covered the Three Body Technique and Kunai throwing.

The day's classes weren't difficult, but none of the material was useful to Ito Makoto. After becoming a Transmigrator, he had learned the language of this world to access useful information, and in the process had already mastered its writing system. As for physics and mathematics, this world lagged behind his previous one. There was no point in studying them.

The dull classes made him want to skip school. But since he had only just enrolled, cutting class would make him an easy target, so he gave up on the idea.

He could only spend breaks and physical training sessions running laps and practicing Taijutsu. The rest of the time, he had nothing to do but count his fingers in class. Fortunately, he had left a clone at home to work on Genjutsu and Medical Ninjutsu; otherwise, even his training would have been delayed.

After enduring the day, classes finally came to an end. Ito Makoto couldn't wait to leave the Ninja Academy with Sakura.

The other students left with them, of course. Ito Makoto made a point of keeping an eye on the few Transmigrators, too.

Out of the corner of his eye, Ito Makoto noticed that Ueda Shin had gone in the same direction as Senju Kotoha. It looked like he was following her.

Could Ueda Shin be planning something?