Yugaeri

Damn it, how could someone be like this? He had a decent face and even looked rather handsome in hakama. I thought he had some promise.

Do birds of a feather really flock together?

Remembering the scavenger-like gaze Tanaka Hikaru had used to sneak looks at her earlier, Yasero Saki shuddered. In the middle of drawing her bow, she released the arrow before completing the motion. Unsurprisingly, she missed the target.

When she glanced back, Tanaka Hikaru was slouching against the wall with his legs sprawled apart, his gaze wandering. His sidekick, the one called Uchiha, had his head down, playing on his phone.

If you want to play on your phone, why do it in a sacred dojo?

Yasero Saki checked the clock in the dojo. It was almost five. Although it was still early, she had lost all desire to continue the demonstration. She just wanted to get those two out of there.

Putting away her bow and arrows, Yasero Saki smiled at the visiting first-years. "That concludes today's Kyudo Club demonstration. We'll be holding demonstrations right after school every day this week. Anyone interested in joining can get an application form from me."

Perhaps moved by Yasero Saki's graceful shooting form, almost every visiting first-year took a form from her before leaving the archery hall in small groups.

Only Uchiha Naruto deliberately stayed until the end, and Tanaka Hikaru stayed with him.

"You two, today's Kyudo Club demonstration is over. I still need to tidy up the range and clean, so you can leave now."

"Yasero, watching your wonderful demonstration helped me appreciate just how much there is to kyudo. I learned a lot, and now I'm itching to try it. Could you let me shoot once more?" Uchiha Naruto put away his phone and looked at Yasero Saki as he asked.

Liar. Weren't you looking down at your phone for that whole hour?

"But the time..." Yasero Saki looked a little reluctant.

Tanaka Hikaru spoke up for him. "President Yasero, it's only one arrow. He'll be done in no time. Dragging this out might waste even more time."

After getting Yasero Saki's permission, Uchiha Naruto borrowed Tanaka Hikaru's bow and protective gear again and returned to the shooting area.

Uchiha Naruto stood at the shooting position, gazing coolly at the target twenty-eight meters away. His whole demeanor had suddenly become calm and composed, entirely unlike the clumsy excitement of his first attempt at drawing a bow. He looked like a veteran who had devoted decades to kyudo.

The moment he assumed the stance for foot placement, the first of the Eight Steps of Archery, Yasero Saki's eyes widened.

His spread feet planted themselves as firmly as rock on the paulownia floor. His upper body was straight, the line from his spine to his waist taut with strength.

He nocked the arrow, raised the bow, and drew it in one seamless sequence, as though each movement had been honed through countless repetitions.

With a crisp twang, the arrow sank into the bull's-eye, its fletching trembling faintly.

Thud.

Yasero Saki had not even looked at the target. With her extensive experience, she could tell by sound alone whether an arrow had hit. She stared in astonishment at Uchiha Naruto as he maintained Zanshin, then slowly lowered his bow.

"How is that possible?"

As mentioned earlier, kyudo placed the greatest importance on correct shooting form. Hitting the target could be a fluke, but such breathtaking form could not. Watching Uchiha Naruto's shot, Yasero Saki felt as though she were seeing a ninth- or tenth-dan hanshi, a holder of kyudo's highest honorary title, draw and shoot in person.

What was more, Yasero Saki saw the bow in Uchiha Naruto's hand rotate 270 degrees after the shot.

"A hit! One shot, right on the money! Uchiha, you actually pulled off Yugaeri! Damn, that was way too cool. Learning Yugaeri was the whole reason I started kyudo, but I haven't managed it once in all these months."

Tanaka Hikaru could also see that Uchiha's shooting form was beautiful and that he had hit the bull's-eye, but what he envied most was the Yugaeri Uchiha had performed.

The Japanese bow's distinctive offset construction determined the bowstring's path. Driven by the string, the bow rotated more than 180 degrees in the palm, moving the bow limb out of the arrow's way at the instant of release to avoid interference. This was Yugaeri.

Yugaeri was an advanced kyudo technique. It was both a practical method of clearing the arrow's path and reducing vibration, and incredibly cool to watch.

Experienced kyudo practitioners would deliberately employ Yugaeri, sometimes even losing sight of the essentials in their pursuit of it. But Yugaeri was the result of a shot, not its purpose. For someone whose kyudo had reached true mastery, it would occur naturally, without any deliberate effort.

"With such beautiful shooting, and Yugaeri too... is this really your first day trying kyudo, Uchiha?" Yasero Saki asked, her expression conflicted.

Could this handsome junior be an expert pretending to be a beginner?

But that doesn't make sense. His earlier shooting stance, the way he applied force, and even his grip while drawing were all unmistakably those of a complete novice. Although I taught him the Eight Steps of Archery, his actual shooting method was still fundamentally unorthodox.

How could he become a completely different person in just an hour? Even Minamoto no Tametomo, who supposedly sank a warship with a single arrow, couldn't have done any better on his first day of practice.

Before Uchiha Naruto could say anything, Tanaka Hikaru objected.

"Yasero, you came up from the junior high division too, so you must have heard of the Kendo Club Witch. She only started kendo in her first year of junior high, then won the national championship that same year. She was so strong that she was banned from competing for the rest of junior high. There really are geniuses in this world who go beyond anything ordinary people can imagine. I think Uchiha is that kind of genius. Don't judge talented people by ordinary standards."

Talented people?

I have a kyudo rank too. Every instructor I've had since childhood has called me gifted, but I could never do anything like this. Can the gap between people's talents really be that enormous?

Yasero Saki bit her lip, looking rather dejected.

"You really are a genius, Uchiha."

"A genius..."

Being called a genius was a novel experience for Uchiha Naruto. He knew his own limitations. Although he had transmigrated into this world, he was really only of average ability.

He knew this was all cheating with the Sharingan, but being praised still felt wonderful, especially when the praise came from a beautiful girl.

"Uchiha, please, you must join the Kyudo Club." Yasero Saki extended the invitation with the utmost seriousness.

The Kyudo Club at Jinguji Private High School was hardly outstanding, especially its boys' division. They struggled even to assemble five competent members for team events.

The format of kyudo team competitions meant that no matter how strong one person was, he could not turn everything around alone. But there were individual events as well. Judging by the form and accuracy Uchiha had displayed in that last shot, winning the national championship would be no problem.

As long as they achieved good results, they could make a name for Jinguji's Kyudo Club. Recruiting new members and requesting funds from the school would both become much easier.

Most importantly, Yasero Saki studied Uchiha Naruto closely.

Uchiha has such wonderful bearing. He looked so handsome in the kyudo hakama earlier. For someone like him not to practice kyudo would be an utter waste. He's no longer an unpolished gem, but a glittering jewel that has already been carefully cut. All he needs is a stage to shine brightly enough to astonish the world.

"I'm sorry, Yasero, but I don't intend to join the Kyudo Club."

Unexpectedly, Uchiha Naruto shook his head and handed the bow to Tanaka Hikaru beside him.

"Why won't you join? Wouldn't it be a terrible waste not to make good use of your talent? Do you dislike kyudo?"

"Your shooting form is beautiful, and I like it very much. It's not that I have no interest in kyudo, either. But I don't think the Kyudo Club is right for me. I'd still like to look at some other clubs." Uchiha Naruto was telling the truth. Although kyudo struck him as somewhat flashy rather than practical, in terms of sheer coolness, it surpassed even kendo.

With its protective armor and bamboo swords, kendo might look incredibly cool, but wearing all that gear was far from comfortable. After training in the height of summer, in particular, taking off the face guard released a wave of sweaty odor. Even a handsome boy could not escape that.

But Uchiha Naruto had no intention of joining the Kyudo Club.

Kyudo was not cheap. The bows, arrows, and protective equipment all cost a considerable amount. A full set would run to at least two or three hundred thousand yen.

Uchiha Naruto was only mildly interested in kyudo. Buying all that equipment for it did not seem worthwhile.

Most importantly, Uchiha Naruto had no time to spend on such trivial matters.

Uchiha Naruto did not want to devote too much time to club sports, but Jinguji Private High School's motto emphasized excellence in both academics and martial pursuits, and the school placed great importance on club activities. Not joining any club and simply going home would make him far too conspicuous. He only wanted to find an easygoing club, put his name on its roster as a member who never showed up, then continue training, studying, and quietly developing his abilities.

But judging by how full of expectations Yasero from the Kyudo Club was, she clearly would not let him slack off.

"Yasero, thank you very much for your guidance. I learned a great deal. I'll be going now."

Uchiha Naruto was about to change back into his school uniform, but just as he turned, Yasero Saki caught his sleeve.

For Yasero Saki, who valued graceful manners, this was quite a bold gesture. A blush spread across her cheeks, but she still spoke earnestly:

"I hope you'll reconsider, Uchiha. It would be such a shame for someone with talent not to follow the right path."

Uchiha Naruto regretted it a little. When he used the Sharingan to copy kyudo techniques earlier, he should not have chosen those gray-haired kyudo hanshi. It had drawn far too much attention.

But there was no harm in having more skills. If he was going to learn, he should still choose the best.

She quickly let go again and bowed. "Please reconsider."

"Uchiha, you really are the ice-cold type. A beautiful girl like Yasero begged you with that pitiful look, and you still turned her down without a second thought."

After they left the archery hall, Tanaka Hikaru kept chattering at Uchiha Naruto as they walked.

"Besides, the Kyudo Club has more girls than boys, and there are beauties like Yasero too. It's such a waste for you not to join. With how highly she values your talent, you'd definitely get plenty of chances to practice together in private. In that kind of atmosphere, you'd only have to put in a little effort to win her over."