First Practical Combat Lesson

The first truly meaningful "team combat lesson" after the Ninja Academy opened came far earlier than anyone had expected.

Iruka led the students to a small simulated woodland, its boundaries marked by wooden stakes and warning ropes. Low walls, trees, and fake scroll locations were scattered throughout the area. Unlike their previous simple sparring exercises, this time involved basic objective capture and team coordination.

The rules were simple.

Teams of three had to seize a scroll and bring it back to the starting point within the allotted time. They could obstruct and take from one another along the way, but genuinely dangerous ninjutsu was forbidden.

"A ninja doesn't charge ahead alone." Iruka looked at the group of children, excited and nervous alike, his tone unusually grave. "When you go on missions in the future, it often won't be about whose punch is harder, but who understands best how to survive alongside their comrades."

When the team lists were handed out, Ling saw that he had been grouped with Nara Shikamaru and Hinata.

It was the same temporary combination as in their previous tactics class.

The moment Shikamaru saw the list, he sighed. "Why me again? What a drag..."

Hinata, meanwhile, visibly relaxed, as if being grouped with them had eased much of her unease.

"Let's talk strategy first." Shikamaru spoke lazily. "I suggest we go around the outermost edge and avoid running into people."

"We'll get blocked." Ling looked at the map. "Everyone knows you like taking the easy way today. Going around the edge makes it easiest to run into positions other teams have already set up."

Shikamaru raised a brow. "So?"

"We head quickly into the center of the woods. Don't rush for the fake scroll; first, find the teams most likely to confront us." Ling pointed to several routes. "Some will like charging head-on, while others will lie in ambush. We clear out the most aggressive ones first, then take the return route."

Hinata listened intently and asked softly, "What... what can I do?"

"Watch," Ling answered bluntly. "Who's hiding, who's moving, where there's an ambush—you tell us first."

Hinata froze for a moment, then nodded firmly.

Once the match began, Shikamaru complained about the hassle even as he ran, but his body honestly followed Ling's route. The facts proved that Ling's judgment had been accurate. Not long after the three entered the woods, they encountered the first team trying to intercept them head-on.

Kiba was leading them.

"Looks like we really did run into each other." His eyes lit up, as though he had been waiting for this moment for a long time.

The two classmates beside him immediately spread out, taking up positions to flank them.

"Step back half a pace," Ling said quietly.

Hinata and Shikamaru obeyed almost simultaneously.

The next moment, Kiba lunged straight at them, clearly intending to tear their team apart with the most direct possible charge. Ling did not yield. He shifted his footing and met him head-on, though an ordinary shuriken had silently appeared in his hand.

Not an Explosive Shuriken.

He did not want to reveal all his trump cards in a setting like this.

As the two collided, Kiba tried to tie him down while a teammate on the other side circled toward Hinata. But just as that person was about to close in, Hinata had already retreated in advance under Ling's warning. Shikamaru also threw a practice rope from the side at just the right moment. It did not truly bind the opponent, but it was enough to disrupt his rhythm.

"There's another one behind the tree on the right!" Hinata suddenly warned urgently.

Ling's gaze shifted, and he immediately twisted aside.

Almost at the same time, a wooden kunai flew from behind the tree, grazing past his shoulder before embedding itself in the ground.

This was Hinata's value.

Her observation was more meticulous than anyone else's.

"Shikamaru, block the route on the right," Ling barked.

"You really know how to order people around," Shikamaru complained, but he moved quickly. He immediately circled behind the tree and forced the hidden person out.

The situation reversed in an instant.

Kiba had intended to pressure them head-on, only to find that his own side had lost its formation first. Taking advantage of his distraction, Ling rammed his shoulder into him, knocking him back half a step. Then Ling flicked his wrist, and a wooden kunai was already pressed against Kiba's chest.

If this had been a real battle, that would have been enough to count as a hit.

Kiba gritted his teeth and retreated, forced to give up the fight in frustration.

"Fall back!"

Watching them leave, Shikamaru let out a long breath. "What a pain, but that went pretty smoothly."

Ling did not relax. "Keep going toward the center."

The three quickly obtained their first scroll, but they did not immediately return. Instead, they continued circling along their original route. This proved to be the right choice, because they encountered another ambush team on the way back. If they had turned around right after getting the scroll without clearing the route in advance, they would have been easily blocked in the narrowest stretch of forest path.

When they crossed the finish line, they were among the first teams to return to the starting point.

After the results were announced, Iruka looked at their group and, unusually, said a few more words.

"Your route judgment was accurate, your coordination was clear, and your information sharing was especially well done."

When Hinata heard the praise, her eyes brightened.

Shikamaru wore the expression of someone whose forced work shift had finally ended.

Standing beside them, Ling understood better than anyone that what had truly made this practical lesson go so smoothly was not any one person's strength. It was the first time they had truly put their individual traits together.

After class, Hinata jogged over to catch up with him, her voice still carrying some lingering excitement. "Just now... if you hadn't arranged things first, I might have held everyone back."

"You didn't." Ling looked at her. "You saw things before either of us did."

Hinata stared blankly, and a faint light slowly rose in her pale eyes.

She clearly had rarely been affirmed so directly.

Meanwhile, Shikamaru leaned against a tree trunk and yawned, but his gaze remained fixed on Ling's retreating back.

Not far away, Ino stood by the edge of the stands with her arms crossed. Though she had not been part of their group, she had still watched for a long time. When Ling turned around after speaking with Hinata, she looked away as if nothing had happened, though the corner of her lips lifted unconsciously.

This person was not merely strong himself.

He had even begun to instinctively place others where they belonged, making the entire team stronger.

"What a bigger pain..." Shikamaru muttered, rubbing his hair.

Because the more someone was like that, the less likely he was to remain at the Ninja Academy for long.