Protecting Someone by Accident

The day after the rankings were posted, the atmosphere at the Ninja Academy was noticeably tenser than before.

It was not because the teachers had increased the workload, but because everyone had suddenly realized that the once-vague "genius tier" was beginning to take clear shape. Sasuke led the way, with Ling close behind. Even students like Kiba and Ino, who had always had decent grades, were being pushed to work harder than usual.

Tension brought effort, but it also brought mistakes.

That afternoon's class was on moving obstacles and evasion. Several sets of pendulums, rolling logs, and spring-loaded wooden stakes had been set up around the training ground. The students had to avoid every attack along a designated route, then retrieve the flag at the finish line. Normally, teachers would stand nearby to control the speed of the mechanisms, so nothing serious should have happened.

But accidents happened precisely outside of what should have happened.

When it was Hinata's group's turn, the first half went fairly smoothly. She was a little slower, but extremely focused, placing every step with precision. But as she prepared to pass through the third pendulum section, a rolling log at her side, which should have been slowing down, suddenly surged forward when its rope axle slipped.

"Watch out!" someone shouted from the sidelines.

Hinata had clearly heard it, but she was still half a beat too slow. She had only just turned when the rolling log came crashing at her from the side. At that speed, it would not be a minor injury—she could be sent flying outright.

The next moment, a figure darted into the course from outside.

Bang!

Ling moved almost the instant the warning rang out. Compressed chakra flooded into his legs in a flash, forcibly launching him into the field. He did not reach for Hinata's arm. Instead, he slammed himself between her and the rolling log from the side, raised an arm to block it, then used the angle of his body to pull the girl away from where she had been standing.

Amid a dull impact, the rolling log grazed Ling's arm and shoulder before smashing heavily into the guardrail behind them.

The training ground fell dead silent.

Hinata had been pulled down with him and sat on the ground, pale-faced, clearly not yet recovered from that instant. Ling knelt on one knee before her. His right arm burned with pain, and his shoulder felt as if it had been swept by a sledgehammer, but the first thing he did was look at her. "Are you hurt?"

Hinata stared blankly for a moment, then shook her head. Her eyes reddened at once.

"I... I'm fine..."

Though she said that, her hand instinctively grabbed Ling's sleeve, her fingertips trembling. Her grip was not strong, but she held on tightly, as though she had truly been terrified by what had just happened.

Ling glanced at the hand clutching his sleeve. He did not pull away, only adding quietly, "Don't be afraid. It's over."

Iruka rushed over quickly, inspecting the mechanism first before checking the two of them. Only after confirming that Hinata had merely been frightened, while Ling had obvious red bruising across his arm and shoulder, did his expression truly darken.

"Who was responsible for inspecting this set of mechanisms?"

The older student assisting nearby went pale and hurriedly explained that the rope axle had suddenly come loose.

Iruka did not lash out in public. He merely ordered all the other students to step back and suspended the lesson for the time being.

Among the watching crowd, many people's gazes toward Ling had quietly changed.

In that instant, he had barely thought at all.

He had not done it to show off, much less to seek attention. He had simply rushed in before danger struck. That kind of instinctive reaction often said more about a person than a dazzling score ever could.

Ino hurried over and crouched down, staring at the bruised patch on Ling's arm that had already begun to swell. Her brows were tightly furrowed. "Are you crazy? You blocked it with your body?"

Ling flexed his arm, making sure the bone was fine before replying, "I had time, so I blocked it."

"You call that having time?" Ino was so angry she wanted to poke him, but she was afraid of touching the injury. "If you'd been even a little slower, your arm wouldn't just look like this."

After saying that, her gaze fell on the hand Hinata had not fully let go of yet. Her expression paused unconsciously. Amid her pure worry, an inexplicable hint of awkwardness appeared.

Hinata knelt beside him, her eyes still carrying panic and guilt she had not managed to suppress. "I'm sorry... It's all my fault..."

"It has nothing to do with you." Ling looked at her, his tone gentler than usual. "It was the mechanism's problem."

Those words seemed to finally loosen the taut string inside Hinata a little. She bit her lip, her eyes red, but still held back her tears.

Iruka brought over some ointment and told Ling to treat his injuries first. As the cool paste touched the swollen areas, pain made him frown slightly. But compared to the physical discomfort, something else concerned him more at that moment.

Saving her just now had been entirely instinctive.

But precisely because it had been so instinctive, he realized for the first time that when faced with the possibility of someone getting hurt, he simply could not stand by and do nothing.

He was no longer the person from his previous life who had been used to keeping himself apart from everyone else.

After class ended early, Hinata kept following behind him. It seemed like she had many things she wanted to say, yet she could never quite arrange the words. Only when they reached the school gate did she finally stop and offer him a small cloth bundle.

"There's... medicated oil inside." Her voice trembled softly. "I, I went back and got some new ones. Thank you so much for today."

Ling accepted the bundle. Looking at the redness around her eyes, he fell silent for a moment before saying, "Next time, check the mechanisms before you move."

It sounded like a reminder, but Hinata heard the rare concern in it. She froze briefly, then nodded gently. "Mm."

She seemed to want to say something else. Her fingertips lifted slightly, as though she wanted to touch his injured arm, but in the end they stopped in midair. She could only press all her concern into a whisper-soft reminder. "When you get home... remember to apply the medicine early."

The setting sun stretched her shadow long behind her.

She stood there watching Ling's departing back, her heart racing beyond her control.

Elsewhere, Kiba and Shikamaru had also seen everything.

"This guy isn't just good at fighting." Kiba rubbed his nose, unusually not trying to act tough. "His reactions are way too ridiculous."

Shikamaru had his hands in his pockets, his tone as lazy as ever. "What's more troublesome is that he didn't save her to become famous."

That was what made him the hardest to deal with.

Because once people like that decided on something, they were often fiercer and steadier than everyone else.

That night, Ling applied the medicated oil to his shoulder, and the stinging pain slowly spread. Sitting in the courtyard, he looked up at the gradually darkening sky and suddenly thought of Hinata's reddened eyes earlier.

He had not thought much when he saved her.

But looking back now, he found himself a little glad that he had made it in time.

Once someone took even a small place in your heart, you would begin instinctively wanting to protect her.