The ringing of the classroom bell, followed by Iruka-sensei's voice, brought an immediate hush over the room. The students quickly chose seats and settled down.
After a round of self-introductions, Iruka began the lesson. Meanwhile, Kurozawa Ren leaned forward on his desk, seemingly dozing off—but in truth, he was deep in meditation.
Whack!
A piece of chalk struck him sharply on the forehead with unerring accuracy.
Iruka glared from the podium, visibly irritated.
"Uchiha Sasuke! Stand up!"
Ren slowly opened his eyes, exhaling in resignation as he rose to his feet. Beside him, both Sakura and Ino looked uneasy.
"Hahaha! So much for the so-called Uchiha prodigy."
"Yeah, all he does is sleep through class!"
A few boys in the class jeered at the situation. After all, being both a member of the Uchiha clan and popular with the girls made Sasuke—and by extension, Ren—the envy and target of many male students.
But Kurozawa Ren didn't care about any of that. As far as he was concerned, theoretical knowledge was largely useless in the world of Naruto. Of all the strongest figures in the shinobi world, how many were top students in class?
Well, admittedly, the original "Second Pillar"—Uchiha Sasuke—did seem pretty competent in theory back at the Academy.
But that wasn't the point. In this world, strength reigned supreme.
Why did Fugaku insist I attend the Ninja Academy, anyway? Ren thought, somewhat annoyed. With his current strength, there probably wasn't a single teacher here who could beat him one-on-one.
"Silence! Everyone, pay attention!" Iruka called the class back to order.
Meanwhile, Ren, still standing, resumed his meditative state…
Moments later, Iruka's voice exploded in frustration.
"KU! RO! ZA! WA! REN! STAND OUTSIDE!"
Ren's meditative focus was shattered once again, and irritation began to boil in his chest. Coming to this academy was more punishment than education.
He tried to defend himself.
"Iruka-sensei, I'm actually training."
But Iruka wasn't buying it.
"Training how to sleep sitting up in class? I've never heard of a technique that lets you get stronger by napping."
At that moment, Ren had an idea—one that might let him bypass the tedious Academy entirely.
"I'm serious, sensei. But if you won't believe me, how about this—let me challenge you. If I win, you allow me to continue my training during class time. If I lose, I'll follow your rules from now on. Fair?"
The classroom erupted.
"He wants to challenge a teacher? Is he crazy?"
"Are all Uchiha this full of themselves?"
Ren shrugged off the mockery. "The Uchiha clan definitely has its share of egomaniacs. But I'm not one of them."
I'm just a professional at pretending to be one. Force King Second Pillar style!
Iruka scoffed. "I'm not accepting your challenge. Today's class is theory. Practical sparring is scheduled for Friday."
The idea that a first-year student dared to challenge a Chūnin-level instructor was laughable. Still, Iruka found himself questioning whether Ren was genuinely training. There was a strange sincerity in the boy's eyes.
After a moment of hesitation, Iruka sighed.
"Fine. Just sit down. I'll let it go today since it's the first day. But don't let this become a habit."
He gestured for Ren to take his seat.
Ren stood there stunned. I didn't want to sit—I wanted to fight!
Still, out of respect for Iruka—one of the most compassionate and understanding characters in the original series—Ren chose not to push further.
Man, if only I could fight Mizuki instead. That'd be satisfying—and maybe I'd get an early graduation out of it, too.
The rest of the day passed in silent meditation. As the final bell rang, Ren stretched with a light yawn.
The classroom had mostly emptied out, but Iruka remained behind, sorting his teaching materials.
"Sasuke—er, Ren. Get some proper rest tonight," Iruka said firmly. "Since it's your first day, I'm letting you off. But if you do this again tomorrow, there will be consequences."
Ren scratched his head. "But I really was practicing… I wasn't even tired last night. I'm meditating—training my spiritual perception."
His tone was honest, but Iruka still looked skeptical.
"Right. Meditating in class. Got it," he said dryly. "How about you meditate tonight instead, and stay awake in class?"
"Okay…" Ren muttered reluctantly.
Iruka packed his books and left the room, leaving Ren alone.
With his satchel slung over one shoulder, Ren left the school grounds and began walking back toward the Uchiha district. His adoptive parents—Fugaku and Mikoto—were busy as always. Even his older brother Itachi hadn't shown up.
Ninja Academy is so dull. I've been in this world for six years, and aside from my initial arrival, there hasn't been a single decent battle. If this keeps up, I'll die of boredom.
Was Minato's Konoha always this uneventful? I want to see Danzo scheming, Hiruzen making questionable calls, maybe even a few assassination attempts by foreign shinobi!
Fourth Hokage! Can you even comprehend my suffering!?
With a straw stem in his mouth, Ren trudged forward, grumbling internally.
Learn something, my foot…
Just then, a rustling in the nearby forest made him freeze.
He turned toward the noise—but saw nothing.
This was a quiet, unfrequented path. Villagers rarely came this way.
An ambush?
His pulse quickened. His hand instinctively went to the hilt of his sword—an asauchi, the blank zanpakutō strapped across his back.
"Who's there?" Ren called out.
No reply.
"Meow!"
A small kitten leapt from the bushes with a startled meow.
Ren sighed, slightly disappointed, and sheathed his blade.
"Just a cat, huh—?"
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
A dozen shuriken suddenly came flying toward him from multiple directions. The kitten bolted away in fear.
Ren's eyes sharpened. In a blur, he activated Shunpo, vanishing from the line of attack. But the assault wasn't over—the shuriken were attached to chakra-threaded steel wire and redirected mid-air.
Uchiha-style shuriken jutsu!
He instantly recognized the technique. It was unique to his clan—an advanced method of manipulating shuriken with wire.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
There were too many projectiles, and they were being guided with wire. A wide-range jutsu was the best counter.
A massive fireball erupted from his mouth, engulfing the area. The wires snapped and burned away, the shuriken clattering harmlessly to the ground.