Araki had not gone out of his way to hide this, nor had he deliberately advertised it. On top of that, he had virtually no presence, and hardly anyone paid attention to him, so no one knew he went out every night.
The fact that the Third knew about this was enough for him to conclude that, at this point in time, the Third had already begun using the Telescope Technique to spy on all of Konoha.
This also made Araki extremely cautious in everything he did, leaving no openings, because he did not know when the Third might be watching him.
"Araki!"
Suddenly, a cold, harsh voice rang out, its tone thick with anger, as though its owner wanted to tear Araki apart.
A figure appeared immediately afterward.
Judging by the air currents, this was the person following him. Since he had called out Araki's name so precisely, he was definitely here for him.
Most importantly...
This person's voice sounded somewhat familiar.
The stern tone could not conceal the slightly childish voice. He was probably around ten years old and, barring any surprises, should be a classmate.
Araki deduced a great deal in an instant. His anxiety eased, and he turned to look toward the source of the voice.
Beneath the forest's nighttime canopy, cool moonlight spilled over a figure, making him perfectly clear.
It was his opponent from the practice match in class.
Sora Hyuga.
Once Araki confirmed the newcomer's identity, his nervousness vanished.
He had never even considered this possibility.
What classmate would follow him this far out here?
"What do you want?"
Araki asked coldly. By now, he no longer deliberately concealed the fact that he had mastered the language here when he spoke.
At this point, Araki could be said to still be giving Sora Hyuga a chance.
If this could be resolved properly, that would be the best outcome for him.
"Hahaha! Our match this afternoon wasn't finished. Let's go again!"
Sora Hyuga laughed wildly. He had followed him for so long just to wait for this chance to teach Araki a lesson.
He was extremely glad that Araki had ventured this deep into the forest rather than leaving shortly after entering.
From this distance, it would take at least half an hour to return to a populated part of the village.
No one would come to interrupt him now.
"That match was over. You won!"
Araki said without hesitation.
He had not expected Sora Hyuga to care so much about that practice match that he would follow him this far just for this.
At the same time.
Araki silently made a mental note to be wary.
Someone capable of doing this might be extremely narrow-minded, the very definition of a petty person.
Better to offend a gentleman than a petty man.
This was a pearl of wisdom his ancestors had passed down to him.
Araki had already begun considering a solution. Ideally, he could resolve the conflict, and then the two of them could be like strangers, with no further dealings.
"Heh..."
After hearing Araki's words, Sora Hyuga sneered on the spot. His laughter was utterly unrestrained, precisely because he knew no one here could come to Araki's aid.
"Originally, I was just going to teach you a lesson and leave it at that!"
"Who would've thought..."
"You actually played me for a fool!"
"You surrendered outright and left me no room to show what I could do!"
"I even got scolded by Mr. Ibuki over it!"
"This isn't ending just like that. We're having another match now. I'll go easy on you!"
Sora Hyuga spoke one sentence after another, leaving Araki no room whatsoever to respond.
This was also consistent with his usual personality.
Sora Hyuga belonged to the Hyuga Clan, one of Konoha's prestigious clans. Accustomed to relying on his family's influence, he possessed an extremely strong sense of pride.
Especially when facing someone like Araki, he felt an enormous difference in their social standing and considered himself completely above him.
"Not interested."
Araki simply leaped up toward a branch. Having confirmed the identity of his pursuer, he was no longer in the mood to play games with a child.
"You think you can get away?"
Sora Hyuga sneered and immediately chased after Araki. As he ran, he continued shouting at him, "You're the one who came all this way! I checked our surroundings while following you. No one saw us come into the woods. No one's going to help you this time."
"No one saw us?" Araki muttered to himself, rapidly considering his options.
"You're pretty fast!" While chasing Araki, Sora Hyuga suddenly realized that even running at full speed, he was not closing the distance between them. If this continued, Araki really would escape the forest. He immediately said, "You sneak out here alone at night because you've got some secret, don't you?"
Araki remained silent, but he could clearly hear Sora Hyuga's words. He was still thinking about how to deal with this trouble.
"Hahahahaha!"
Sora Hyuga suddenly burst out laughing. He stopped on a branch instead of continuing to chase Araki, raising his voice considerably.
"Are you here to train?"
"Or are you trying to hide some secret?"
"Araki!"
"You wouldn't want everyone in the village finding out about this, would you?!"
Sora Hyuga's tone was thick with menace. He knew he could not catch Araki and realized Araki had concealed his strength, but he did not think Araki was stronger than him...
There was a very simple logic behind this.
In Sora Hyuga's view, if Araki were stronger, he would have no reason to run.
Running meant avoiding a fight!
Avoiding a fight meant he wasn't strong enough!
With this logic supporting him, he felt that all he needed to do was anger Araki and make him come back on his own.
Sure enough...
Just as Sora Hyuga had expected.
Araki stopped running. With an indifferent expression, he turned back and came to a stop on a branch not far from him.
"If I fight you, will that settle this?"
Araki asked coldly. He had still been considering a solution, but once Sora Hyuga threatened him, he instead felt relieved and was no longer nervous.
On the surface, this was a question.
In reality, it was an ultimatum.
They were classmates, after all, so Araki decided to give Sora Hyuga a chance. Whether he could seize it depended on his understanding.
Chapter 21: Then Don't Go Back!
"Settle this?"
"Hahahahahaha!"
"What kind of joke is that!"
"You think things between us can be settled with one beating?"
"Why else would I have followed you here?"
Sora Hyuga spoke one sentence after another. His pupils were almost invisible in his pale eyes, yet they gave Araki the impression that he was staring at him.
"You embarrassed me in class today. Tomorrow, I want you to make up for it. You're going to apologize to me in front of the whole class!"
Sora Hyuga said coldly. As he spoke, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly in a smug smile, as though he already had Araki completely under his thumb.
After all, Sora Hyuga had never considered Araki a match for him from the very beginning. All his dissatisfaction stemmed from Araki's failure to let him show off his skills in front of Kushina.
"..."
Araki said nothing. His expression grew considerably uglier. Apologizing was something he would not do.
It was not because it was humiliating.
It was because it would make him conspicuous!
Araki did not care about a momentary loss of face, but he did care about losing face in front of everyone. It was not a matter of pride; it would shatter the comfortable environment he currently enjoyed.
If he really apologized publicly as Sora Hyuga demanded, Araki would inevitably become a topic of discussion for many people at the Ninja Academy.
At that point, even keeping a low profile would be difficult. Many people would recognize him.
"Why aren't you saying anything?"
Sora Hyuga's brow tightened. He sensed a faint trace of danger from Araki, as though he were looking at a silent beast, but he quickly suppressed that feeling.
Araki, a beast?
Impossible!
It must be an illusion brought on by the forest at night.
Besides...
The real reason Araki wasn't speaking might be that he hadn't understood what he said.
This guy had a hearing impairment!
Sora Hyuga considered many things in that instant. Without waiting for Araki to say anything, he already knew the answer in his heart.