After greeting Might Duy and his son, Might Guy, he jogged another half circuit around the village, then decisively wrapped things up once he confirmed that his legs were starting to ache.
He knew perfectly well that training did not mean running himself into the ground.
Especially now.
The Rumble-Rumble Fruit had given him a high ceiling, and Lightning Body Tempering helped too, but his physical foundation was what it was. Forcing himself to copy Guy's reckless training methods would only leave him unable to get out of bed the next day.
After returning home, Fang Xu quickly washed up and ate breakfast.
Rice, eggs, and dried meat.
Twice as much as before.
By the end of the meal, he looked at his empty bowl, feeling a little helpless.
"My appetite is growing way too fast."
Lightning Body Tempering really did work.
But it really did burn through money, too.
Still, there was no rushing this.
The most important thing right now was to keep the Rumble-Rumble Fruit hidden and maintain his footing at the Ninja Academy. Once the exchange cooldown ended, he would see whether he could trade for something more suitable.
Fang Xu packed his things, shut the door, and headed to school.
Konoha was as lively as ever in the early morning.
Breakfast stalls lined the streets, ninja flitted across the rooftops, and a few children with schoolbags chased one another toward the Ninja Academy.
It all looked perfectly peaceful.
But Fang Xu knew better than anyone that this peace would not last much longer.
The shadow of the Third Shinobi World War already loomed over everyone.
Most students simply had not truly felt it yet.
When he entered the classroom, a few people were already seated inside.
Kakashi Hatate had arrived early and was sitting by the window.
His silver-white hair was rather eye-catching, and a black mask covered half his face, leaving only one dull eye visible. He looked languid, as though nothing could interest him.
The instant Fang Xu entered, Kakashi glanced up at him.
Just once.
Then he quickly looked away.
Fang Xu.
Below average in class.
Ordinary aptitude for ninjutsu, an ordinary amount of chakra, and no particularly impressive performances in taijutsu.
He wasn't usually at the very bottom, but he certainly wasn't a strong contender anyone would remember.
By Kakashi's standards, someone at that level was not worth much attention.
Still...
Though Kakashi had looked away, a thought still surfaced in his mind.
This guy really was excessively handsome.
In looks alone, he could barely manage an even match with me.
Of course.
That was assuming I took off my mask.
Kakashi delivered this assessment quite calmly to himself.
At the Ninja Academy, Fang Xu couldn't compete in strength.
He couldn't compete in talent, either.
But in looks, this guy really was one of the few classmates who qualified as an opponent worth taking a little seriously.
That was probably one of Fang Xu's few outstanding qualities.
Fang Xu was unaware of what Kakashi was thinking.
Even if he had known, he probably would only have replied, "You really do like making yourself the star of the show."
He walked to his seat and put down his schoolbag.
His deskmate, Kurenai Yuhi, had already arrived.
The girl had black hair and distinctive red eyes, and she sat much more properly than most of the boys.
Rin Nohara was also organizing her textbooks in the row ahead.
Fang Xu greeted them with a smile.
"Morning, Kurenai."
Kurenai Yuhi looked up, a hint of surprise on her face.
"Morning, Fang Xu. You're here so early today."
Fang Xu turned toward the row ahead.
"Morning, Rin."
Rin Nohara turned around with a gentle smile.
"Morning. This really is unusual. Didn't you always arrive just before class?"
Fang Xu pulled out his chair and sat down.
"That was then. Things are different now."
Kurenai Yuhi blinked.
"Different how?"
Fang Xu thought for a moment, his tone calm.
"I realized something."
"What?" Rin Nohara asked curiously.
"War might be coming soon," Fang Xu said.
At those words, both Kurenai Yuhi and Rin Nohara fell silent for a moment.
Students at the Ninja Academy were not ordinary children.
They all understood what the word "war" meant.
The atmosphere in the village really had been different lately.
More ninja were coming and going at the mission hall.
Deployments toward the borders had also grown more frequent.
The teachers simply would not discuss these matters openly.
Some of the ease faded from Kurenai Yuhi's face.
"Why are you suddenly thinking about that?"
Fang Xu leaned against his chair, his voice quiet.
"It's not sudden. I just couldn't be bothered to think about it before."
He raised his hand and tapped the desk.
"We're still in school, and the battlefield seems far away. But once we graduate, we'll be genin, and genin have to go on missions too. If fighting really breaks out, civilian-born genin are the most likely to be sent to fill the lines."
Rin Nohara pressed her lips together lightly.
Those words were unpleasant.
But they were very true.
Fang Xu continued, "My talent is average, and I don't have much chakra. I used to think I could just train at my own pace, but war won't wait for me to take my time."
Kurenai Yuhi looked at him, her tone growing more serious.
"So you went training this morning?"
"Yeah."
Fang Xu nodded.
"I'm starting with basic stamina. If I'm not strong enough, I need to slack off less. At least when I really face danger, I'll have a slightly better chance of surviving."
"It's good that you can think that way," Rin Nohara said softly.
Kurenai Yuhi smiled too.
"It is. You feel much more dependable today than you used to, Fang Xu."
Fang Xu raised an eyebrow.
"Was I that unreliable before?"
Kurenai Yuhi nodded very seriously.
"A little."
Rin Nohara could not help laughing.
"It wasn't really that you were unreliable. You just didn't seem so worried before."
Fang Xu sighed.
"Can't help it. Everyone has to grow up."
At those words, the corners of Kurenai Yuhi's mouth lifted slightly.
"Then you'd better stick with it. Don't keep starting and stopping."
"Don't worry."
"I don't intend to slack off this time," Fang Xu said.
The three chatted easily.
Fang Xu mentioned neither the Rumble-Rumble Fruit nor last night's Lightning Body Tempering.
He absolutely could not reveal those things now.
All he could mention was his changed attitude toward training.
That also made the most sense.
A civilian student had sensed that war was approaching, so he had started working hard.
It would not arouse suspicion.
Just then, someone shoved the classroom door open.
There was a bang.
Several students who had already arrived looked over.
Asuma Sarutobi walked in.
He immediately spotted Kurenai Yuhi sitting with Fang Xu, and the two had clearly been having a pleasant conversation.
Even more glaringly, Rin Nohara had turned around to join in.
Asuma's face fell at once.
He already liked Kurenai Yuhi.
Quite a few classmates could tell.
But Kurenai Yuhi had never given him any special response.
Now, seeing Fang Xu chatting so naturally with Kurenai Yuhi, Asuma immediately felt a surge of boyish jealousy.
He strode over to Fang Xu's desk and slapped it.
"Fang Xu!"
The blow made the desktop shudder.
Kurenai Yuhi immediately frowned.
Fang Xu looked up at him, his tone indifferent.
"Need something?"
Asuma gritted his teeth. "I challenge you to a duel!"
The classroom immediately grew a little quieter.
Several students looked over at once.
Ninja Academy students their age loved nothing more than watching a conflict.
Especially when one was the Third Hokage's son, and the other was Fang Xu, who usually did not stand out much but was very handsome.
There was no reason to miss a show like this.