By afternoon, it was time for the first class.
A practical lesson.
On the first day of school, the main goal was to give the students a taste of things.
Teacher Oki led the children over to a wooden target and handed each of them a few shuriken to throw.
This was where the difference between civilian and clan-born students showed.
Children from ninja clans had probably drawn either Explosive Tags or shuriken when they picked their equipment.
Naturally, they handled them with ease, and at the very least, had a high hit rate.
Civilian-born children were overjoyed if they managed to hit the target once. When they went to war in the future, they would probably be nothing more than cannon fodder.
One thing worth mentioning:
In this life, because Ruohuo was so interested in training, Obito had also been exposed to quite a bit of ninja knowledge from a young age.
All five shuriken hit the target, and two even struck the bullseye.
The result might have been merely average, but it was still much better than in his previous life.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Kakashi threw several shuriken in quick succession, and every one of them hit the bullseye!
"Wow! Kakashi is amazing!"
"He hit every one!"
"Only the class monitor is left, right? I can't wait..."
"If it's the class monitor, he'll definitely hit them all too!"
Kakashi had at least been the most handsome boy in the Ninja Academy's first-year class for three whole lessons, and he'd earned plenty of cheers.
Then it was time for the class monitor, Guanxi, to take the stage.
The Uchiha Clan's good looks never disappointed.
Ruohuo's buzz cut made him stand out from the other Uchiha, but while he still looked aloof, it also gave him an added air of dominance.
"Big bro, here!"
Obito hurried off to retrieve the shuriken. He often did this for Ruohuo.
"Mm..."
Ruohuo didn't throw right away. Instead, he looked at Kakashi.
"Since the gap between us is so great, and my duty as class monitor is to protect my classmates,"
"I'll give you a little information before our match begins."
Ruohuo toyed with the shuriken in his hand. "Watch closely. This is how you throw shuriken!"
Whoosh!
All five shuriken flew out almost simultaneously, their cutting sounds nearly identical!
But their trajectories differed ever so slightly. As they traveled, those tiny differences grew many times over. The shuriken collided with one another, each changing its arc!
Bang, bang, bang!
After locking onto their targets a second time, all the shuriken struck the board. They lined up in a row, precisely hitting every section!
"Wow!!!!"
"No wonder he's the class monitor. So cool!"
"The class monitor's Shurikenjutsu is incredible! They made a perfect 'one'!"
"What should I do? Kakashi's on the left, and the class monitor's on the right. I can't choose..."
The earlier one awakened the Sharingan, the better.
Even if it was only one Tomoe.
Ruohuo had started using his Sharingan to throw pebbles when he was just two!
After all these years of practice, even without activating the Sharingan, he could hit whatever he aimed at!
"Hah! That little brat."
Teacher Oki chuckled and shook his head. Ruohuo's Shurikenjutsu didn't surprise him.
The time when it could have surprised him was long past.
After this morning, Oki had seen his fair share of extraordinary things!
'So the shuriken collided and changed course...'
'That takes precise calculations and fine control over the force.'
Kakashi frowned as he studied the target. He'd trained with his father from a young age, so he knew just how difficult Ruohuo's technique was.
It wasn't that he couldn't do it.
He'd just need a lot of time to practice.
And ever since he'd begun training with his old man, his focus had always been Hatake Kenjutsu.
Kakashi looked at Ruohuo again, his gaze finally turning serious.
Kakashi had yet to experience the darkness, and he was still just a little boy.
He still had some competitive spirit in him...
As luck would have it,
Ruohuo enjoyed his journey to this world, even though his soul belonged to an adult. His mindset was every bit as youthful.
People said that early Kakashi had all the makings of a protagonist.
He'd graduated in half a year and become a Chunin in another half. By the time his classmates were Chunin, he'd already become a Jonin.
Ruohuo had started with one Tomoe, and had spent four years adapting to it and training.
This was the perfect chance to compare himself with this "protagonist" and see how he measured up!
"All right, next up is sparring practice."
"Kakashi and Ruohuo, stay here. Everyone else, move back!"
Oki had noticed the tension between the two boys long ago.
Not only did he not stop them, he was thoughtful enough to set up the match.
One was the son of White Fang.
The other was a gifted young Uchiha.
Both boys were clearly geniuses.
They could compete and push each other to improve. Maybe they'd even become teammates someday.
It was just a shame...
Those three Hyuga students had originally been part of this competition, too.
'I wonder how the Lord Third will handle this incident.'
As Oki pondered, he saw the two boys voluntarily form the Seal of Confrontation. He gave the order. "Begin!"
Whoosh!
Teacher Oki used the Body Flicker Technique to leave the field.
And the very next moment,
Whoosh!
Both boys charged at once, their right forearms colliding!
'His strength is no less than mine,' Kakashi quickly judged.
'He's even faster than me?' Ruohuo realized.
Based on where they'd been when they collided, Kakashi had indeed rushed half a step farther.
'That doesn't make sense... I've been taking Obito to catch rabbits, and I've done plenty of sprinting.'
Ruohuo wasn't convinced.
Kakashi felt the same.
He'd trained with a sword since childhood, yet he couldn't even claim the advantage in strength over someone his own age?
What a joke!
Kakashi, now 20% fired up, attacked again, driving his knee toward Ruohuo.
Ruohuo had been a little frustrated, but now he almost laughed.
When he and Obito threw their weight around in the Uchiha neighborhood, Obito loved using this move in fights.
But the knee strike was just a feint. Obito's real "killer move" was stepping on his opponent's toes.
Thump!
Ruohuo pressed down on Kakashi's knee with one hand, then hooked his leg around Kakashi's lower body, trying to throw him off balance.
Kakashi didn't just sit back and take it. He swung a left hook at Ruohuo. Even if he fell half a second later, it would be worth it!
Ruohuo had no intention of taking a punch.
Kakashi was a fraction faster and had seized the initiative. Ruohuo was already on the back foot in this exchange.
He'd just fight him again next round!
Ruohuo ended the round in a simple, brutal way: he ducked the swinging punch and slammed his forehead into Kakashi's nose!
'This lunatic!'
A forehead was much harder than a nose. Kakashi drove his knee forward again, using the recoil to quickly retreat and dodge Ruohuo's headbutt.
The two boys moved apart.
Kakashi drew a kunai.
Ruohuo activated his Sharingan.
Teacher Oki tensed, afraid the two little ones might get hurt.
The whole class fell silent. The students had even forgotten to cheer. Both handsome boys in their class were so strong!
It was Obito who broke the silence with a shout.
"Big bro! Burn him!"
Ruohuo's lips curled.
Obito might not look very bright, but having grown up with him and dominated the Uchiha kids' circle for four years, they'd naturally developed a bit of rapport.
He had a kunai, too, and even shuriken in his ninja pouch.
But why not use them?
Well, naturally... he was going to form Hand Seals and use a jutsu!
Ruohuo formed Hand Seals rapidly. Thanks to the pen-spinning skills he'd mastered in his previous life, and with the Sharingan's boost, his hands moved so fast they became a blur!
'So fast!'
Kakashi's eyes narrowed. He hadn't expected Ruohuo to form Hand Seals so quickly. It was already too late to interrupt him.
He could only retreat to gain some distance, drop his kunai, and rapidly form Hand Seals as well!
"Fire Style: Great Fireball!"
(One second later)
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
Before you continue