School Begins

April, Year 58 of the Leaf Village, the first day of the Ninja Academy.

The weather was fine, with warm sunlight spilling over the academy's playground, making the brand-new school buildings look exceptionally bright.

The campus was bustling with noise, filled with new students arriving for enrollment and their accompanying parents; the air was thick with excitement, anticipation, and a hint of nervousness.

Ning Xue stood at the school gate wearing the new clothes his mother had prepared, watching the commotion with a calm expression. His parents, Hyuga Ning and Hyuga Yuki, stood beside him with encouraging smiles on their faces.

"Ning Xue, good luck! Make sure to listen to your teachers."

Hyuga Yuki gently straightened his collar.

"Mm, I know."

Ning Xue nodded, though his gaze habitually swept across the surroundings, assessing the school, potential hiding spots, and the children who might become his classmates or future headaches.

Just then, his gaze was drawn to a swing in the corner of the playground.

A lone figure sat there—Uzumaki Naruto.

He was wearing that orange and blue outfit today, sitting by himself on the swaying swing beneath a tree, looking completely out of place compared to the groups of children surrounded by their parents.

He kept his head down, his toes unconsciously tracing patterns in the sand. Those bright blue eyes, usually so full of energy, looked dim and dejected, as if he had been isolated from the surrounding festivities.

Ning Xue's gaze lingered on him for a moment.

However, he wasn't surprised.

He didn't step forward, nor did he show any emotion; he simply shifted his gaze away calmly, as if he had merely been observing the area.

Soon, the entrance ceremony began.

All the new students gathered in the center of the playground.

The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, arrived right on schedule. He wore his Hokage robes and a conical hat, a pipe dangling from his mouth, his face a mix of kindness and authority.

He walked to the podium and began his annual address.

"Where the leaves dance, fire shall burn..." His voice was resonant and infectious, speaking of the Will of Fire, the importance of protecting the village and guarding one's comrades, and encouraging the children to study hard and grow into excellent ninjas who would become the pillars of the Leaf Village.

The Third Hokage's speech left most of the new students and parents in the audience feeling fired up.

But Ning Xue, standing in the crowd, remained expressionless as he muttered to himself in his heart.

The Will of Fire...? Protecting... the village? Heh... that sounds grand, but how is this any different from the pyramid schemes of my past life? When things go wrong, it's usually people like us who get pushed out to be sacrificed first... It feels so hypocritical.

Besides, Ning Xue touched his forehead.

I don't even have freedom, so why should I throw my life away for this?

The only thing he believed in was the power held in his own hands, and how to use that power to protect those he truly cared about.

As for the "greater good" of the village? That was too distant and far too fragile.

After the address, it was time for the basic assessment. The teachers began calling names, and the new students stepped forward one by one to undergo the most fundamental chakra sensitivity test and physical fitness evaluation.

Ning Xue controlled his performance without a hitch, keeping it at a standard, moderately talented, but by no means outstanding level, perfectly concealing his true strength.

Finally, it was time for the photo session that many families took part in.

"Ning Xue, come here, let's take a picture!" Hyuga Yuki happily pulled her husband and son toward a spot with the school emblem in the background.

Hyuga Ning remained stern-faced but stood straight. Hyuga Yuki's face was radiant with a happy and proud smile. Ning Xue was sandwiched between them, facing the camera and forcing a barely passable, faint smile.

Click—

The camera flash went off, freezing the moment in time.

The Hyuga family in their new clothes, with the brand-new Ninja Academy in the background.

A stern father, a joyful mother, and Ning Xue with a smile as stiff as a mannequin's.

And just like that, the entrance ceremony concluded. After the noise and bustle of the crowd, the parents left with various emotions.

They had officially entrusted their children to the school.

Once the teachers finished organizing the classes, the new students were led by their respective homeroom teachers toward different classrooms.

Ning Xue was assigned to the class led by Iruka.

The seating in the classroom wasn't fixed yet, and most of the children chose to sit with those they had chatted with or who looked agreeable.

Ning Xue, happy for the peace and quiet, walked straight to the seat by the window in the back row.

The view was wide, allowing him to observe the entire class while remaining inconspicuous.

He silently observed his classmates, gauging whether they would cause him any trouble.

Uzumaki Naruto sat brazenly in the middle of the front row, seemingly wanting to attract everyone's attention, but most of the children around him subconsciously avoided him, leaving a small, invisible vacuum around him.

Naruto didn't seem to care, continuing to look around, full of curiosity about everything.

Uchiha Sasuke sat alone by the window on the other side, arms crossed, chin tilted up, radiating a cold, arrogant aura that kept others at a distance, though it did attract the secret, lingering gazes of quite a few young girls.

Haruno Sakura and Yamanaka Ino sat not far apart, seemingly already at odds over some shared topic.

Nara Shikamaru let out a massive yawn and found the most inconspicuous corner to slump down in.

Akimichi Choji sat beside him, already crunching away on his snacks.

Aburame Shino sat there quietly.

Hyuga Hinata...

Lady Hinata was poking her fingers together, looking shy, and stealing glances at Uzumaki Naruto from time to time.

"Naruto-kun."

Meanwhile, Inuzuka Kiba was busy playing with his Akamaru.

At this moment, the homeroom teacher, Umino Iruka, stepped up to the podium.

He wore a gentle smile on his face, attempting to soothe the restless children in the classroom.

"Hello everyone, I am your future homeroom teacher, Umino Iruka. From today on, we will spend several years of study time together."

Iruka began his opening remarks, introducing the school's rules and regulations, the curriculum, and so on.

Most of the children listened with curiosity, but only a few, such as Ning Xue, Sasuke, and Shikamaru, appeared uninterested.