Tragedy caused by rice balls

The morning classes passed by in the blink of an eye.

In the classroom, Oshima-sensei explained the methods of chakra refinement in great detail, making the complex concepts easy to grasp.

Lihuo couldn't help but sigh to himself; being born into a major clan truly offered a distinct advantage.

Major clans like the Uchiha, Hyuga, and Sarutobi provided their children with systematic foundational education, ensuring they possessed essential common sense and skills from the start.

Take Aotian as an example: while civilian ninjas were still stuck practicing hand-to-hand combat with kunai, Aotian was already capable of unleashing a Fireball Jutsu at Lihuo in the training grounds.

That level of skill was certainly not something a child who had just entered the Ninja Academy could achieve.

This advantage wasn't just limited to the instruction of ninja techniques; it also included a deep understanding of ninja history, culture, and other such fields.

Conversely, children from small clans or civilian backgrounds, lacking such a foundation, were highly likely to lose out right at the starting line.

Since Lihuo was already well-versed in the methods of chakra refinement, he decisively chose between listening to the lecture and slacking off: he chose to cultivate!

And so, Lihuo remained focused on refining his chakra throughout the class.

Over these past ten days, he was surprised to discover that his chakra reserves were slowly increasing.

Lihuo surmised that this change was likely closely related to the "limit-breaking" style of training he had been undergoing.

This training had not only strengthened Lihuo's physique but had also stimulated his latent potential.

As of now, Lihuo's chakra volume was already double what it used to be.

Previously, aside from performing the Three Body Technique, he would be completely exhausted after using just one other ninjutsu.

However, times had changed; Lihuo was now capable of consecutively unleashing a whole... two ninjutsu!

As expected, when you're at rock bottom, any little hop is progress, Lihuo muttered to himself.

Still, he diligently continued to refine his chakra, striving to resolve his lack of reserves as soon as possible.

This class is so boring! It's all knowledge I've already mastered. If the afternoon's practical exercise is just as dull, I'll really have to consider whether to let a Shadow Clone take my place in class, Lihuo thought, looking around listlessly while continuing to refine the chakra within his body.

He noticed that most of the students in the classroom were listening intently to Oshima-sensei's lecture, their faces filled with curiosity and a thirst for knowledge; yet, a small portion of them looked bored.

Just then, one figure caught Lihuo's attention.

Because he was sitting in the back row by the window, Lihuo could only vaguely make out that it was a girl with a high ponytail. Her hair was dark and glossy, shimmering under the sunlight, and beneath those black locks was a fair, slender neck.

As Oshima-sensei lectured, her head bobbed up and down with the rhythmic regularity of a metronome.

She's listening quite intently, even nodding in agreement from time to time.

But looking at her clan crest, she must be from the Nara clan. Why is this generation of the Nara clan so diligent?

Huh? Why is there something shiny on her desk? It's drool, isn't it? She really was asleep after all!

Lihuo grumbled in his heart; as expected, people from the Nara clan were all like this.

Coming back to his senses, the morning class had already reached its end.

As the bell rang, Oshima-sensei left the classroom, and it was time for lunch.

The students took out their bento boxes one after another, gathering in small groups to tuck into their meals.

The little chubby boy from the Akimichi clan was particularly impressive, finishing three bento boxes in one go and still looking unsatisfied as he tore open a bag of snacks to stuff into his mouth.

Familiar faces like Asuma and Ebisu also pulled out their food containers, chatting with their close friends while they ate.

In contrast, Obito and Lihuo were slumped over their desks, looking as if life had lost all meaning.

"You idiot Obito, it's one thing that you were late, but what right did you have to steal my rice ball? Do you have any idea that was my lunch?"

Upon hearing this, Obito reacted as if he'd been injected with stimulants, springing up and shouting with a flushed face.

"You moron Lihuo, if it weren't for you, how could I have ended up eating an expired rice ball?"

Perhaps Obito's voice was simply too loud, causing a brief silence to fall over the classroom.

This was the second time Lihuo had become the center of social attention, the first being when Guy delivered his youthful declaration in public.

Ah, this familiar feeling, this toe-curling embarrassment—it's back, it's all back...

Before Lihuo could recover from the awkwardness, a gentle voice rang out.

"Obito-kun, Lihuo-kun, did you not bring lunch? If you don't mind, you can share some of mine; I haven't eaten yet."

It was Nohara Rin.

Because of Obito, Lihuo and Rin were acquainted.

Looking at the modest amount of food in her container, Lihuo felt a surge of emotion.

What a truly kind girl.

Seeing his own pathetic state exposed to Rin, Obito wished he could crawl into a hole in the ground.

But unable to resist his growling stomach, Obito eventually accepted Rin's kindness.

Lihuo, however, did not take any of Rin's food; firstly, they weren't that close, and secondly, he didn't want to let someone who had done a good deed go hungry herself.

Watching Obito trot off happily with Rin, Lihuo could only slump back over his desk, left to his own devices.

Suddenly, a food container slid over toward him, bearing a large Uchiha clan crest.

"I'm returning the favor for the medicinal wine," Uchiha Aotian said quietly.

Lihuo was stunned for a moment, but after confirming that Aotian had eaten his fill, he said thank you and accepted Aotian's goodwill.

In the blink of an eye, it was afternoon, and the highlight that all the students had been looking forward to arrived—practical combat drills.

Oshima-sensei was still leading the class, with the first half dedicated to practice and the second half to combat training.

During the first half, Lihuo focused on practicing kunai throwing techniques.

Although Lihuo was an orphan and had never received hands-on personal instruction, his accuracy in throwing kunai had risen rapidly thanks to his diligent training.

The next step is to get close to an Uchiha clansman and try to obtain the Uchiha Kunai Throwing Technique.

Obito stuck to Lihuo, insisting on training with him, but halfway through, Obito's stomach began to rumble like a drum.

"Didn't you already eat your bento? Are you still hungry?"

"I'm not hungry, it's just that my stomach feels a bit strange. Forget it, forget it, Lihuo, hurry up and teach me how to train."

The second half of the class was for combat training, with students pairing up for sparring.

The first pair was Uchiha Aotian versus Kojima Genta.

Aotian stood on the training ground, wanting to say something but hesitating.

Lihuo could tell he wanted to challenge him, but to Lihuo's surprise, Aotian didn't express his dissatisfaction directly like last time; instead, he ended the fight quickly.

It seems Aotian has really changed a lot.

Next up was Shiranui Genma versus Ebisu.

Asuma versus Kamado Tanjiro.

"Next match: Uchiha Obito versus Hatake Kakashi."

"Hehehe~" Obito let out a weird cry and poked Lihuo with his elbow. "Watch Brother Obito pull off something big."

But unexpectedly, as soon as he took a step, a loud, rumbling sound erupted from his stomach.

Immediately, Obito's face changed color.

"It's no good, my stomach hurts so much!" With that, he sprinted toward the restroom in front of everyone.

"Lihuo! I hate you!"

Brother Obito didn't pull off something big; he ended up taking a big one instead.

Oshima-sensei also covered his forehead in speechlessness before announcing, "Due to Obito's absence, the order will be shifted. Uchiha Lihuo will face Hatake Kakashi."

Lihuo was stunned and pointed at himself.

"Me? Fight Kakashi?"

Hatake Kakashi was undoubtedly a genius among geniuses; he had graduated from the Ninja Academy at six and mastered the Hatake Sword Technique. At this stage, he could almost crush every other student in the Ninja Academy.

To be honest, Lihuo didn't want to face Kakashi right now because he wasn't entirely sure he could win.

However, Lihuo didn't feel like retreating; instead, a surge of fighting spirit welled up inside him.

He wanted to see the gap between himself and a genius, and to test the results of his ten days of training.

Walking onto the training ground, Lihuo observed Kakashi up close for the first time.

There was a look of boredom in Kakashi's eyes, as if the opponent in front of him couldn't spark the slightest bit of interest.

The two exchanged no unnecessary trash talk. After performing the Seal of Confrontation, the battle was ready to erupt at any moment.