Before I knew it, the first semester was almost over.
This semester, the first graders only had cultural and physical education classes.
Every day, they either studied or exercised, and then extracted chakra.
Except for the first-grade class one, students in other classes were persuaded to drop out.
Ninjas are so rare.
Not only is the entrance examination difficult, but even the graduation examination is very difficult.
Because graduation is not a real graduation—if you cannot get the recognition of a jonin, you will still have to go back to school to retake it. The elimination rate is ridiculously high.
And this is just the promotion from trainee ninja to genin.
Above genin, there are chunin and special jonin, as well as all-round jonin.
But these have nothing to do with Sanket and the nine little strong men.
Except for the first two weeks, Sanket did not go to school in his original form. He would only come when there was a physical duel.
After all, the reason Sanket entered the ninja school was for Hinata, Naruto, and Sasuke.
To be precise, he was eyeing their red entries.
Before graduating from the Ninja School, Sanket must reveal their red entries—at least one or two.
Otherwise, after graduation, it would be twice as difficult to reveal them.
It's not about strength, but the chances of meeting and fighting would greatly reduce.
After graduation in the original work, the nine strong men met again only during the Chunin Exam.
Graduation at the end of March, and the Chunin Exam on July 1st—these are important days every year.
There is a season in between.
Dinglingling...
With the ringing of the bell for the end of class, another day was over.
The students who had been in physical education class for an afternoon were still energetic.
"Sanket-kun, do you want to play ninja games with us?"
"Sanket, do you want to go home together?"
Some students left for home, while others stayed in school and invited each other to form small groups.
Sanket also received many invitations. He was a very popular figure in the class.
Although only the shadow clones went to school, and the targets were only Hinata and Naruto, Sanket never showed a cold face to others. He always smiled.
Even his rejections were tactful.
It was the same today.
Facing invitations from his male and female classmates, Sanket's shadow clone put his hands together and smiled shyly:
"Sorry, I've already made an appointment with someone else. Next time, next time!"
"Hey, invited again? Sanket-kun is really popular."
"Then let's play ninja games together next time."
The classmates looked disappointed, but they didn't push him.
After Sanket's shadow clone left the school, he entered an alley and automatically dissolved.
All memories and fatigue returned to the original body.
After digesting today's memories, Sanket, who had finished training and was resting at home, murmured:
"The holiday will be in a few days, it's time to start."
---
July 20th
After the morning class, it was lunchtime.
Some students who lived nearby went home, while others brought lunchboxes.
Either they ate in the classroom or somewhere outside.
Sanket usually went home to eat since he attended as a shadow clone.
But today, Sanket rarely came in person and brought a lunchbox.
He and Hinata ate in the classroom.
Over three months, Sanket and Hinata had become friends.
Although not close friends, they knew each other's hobbies and a few small secrets.
For example, Hinata liked pressing flowers.
Hinata also knew her deskmate was usually a shadow clone.
When she first learned about it, Hinata's mouth opened slightly, her eyes widened in surprise.
Then, she looked at Sanket with even more admiration.
It was incredible—Sanket had mastered the Shadow Clone technique when the school hadn't even taught the Three Basic Techniques yet.
While eating lunch with Hinata, Sanket suddenly asked:
"Hinata, tomorrow is a holiday. How are you going to spend it?"
"I should still practice at home," Hinata replied softly.
"Do you want to practice with me?" Sanket invited.
"Can… can I?" Hinata looked at him in surprise.
But before Sanket could answer, she shook her head in a low mood:
"No… my father doesn't allow me to go out freely."
Since the kidnapping incident, Hinata always had to be accompanied by a guard to go out.
And she couldn't go out often—now that she was in ninja school, and with an Uchiha in her class, she had to practice hard for the honor of the Hyuga clan.
"Hey… Don't worry about those things."
Sanket grinned:
"I just want to ask you—do you want to go out and play during the holidays and practice with me?"
"…Yeah."
Hinata lowered her head to eat and responded in a mosquito-like voice.
"Alright, I'll help you tomorrow then…"
Sanket leaned close to Hinata's ear and whispered his plan.
The warmth of his breath touched her ear. Hinata's cheeks turned red, ears burned, and her hand holding the chopsticks trembled.
It was the first time she was so close to Sanket. Three months of built-up resistance shattered instantly.
Luckily, Hinata's personality was not as shy as in the original story—she didn't faint.
But her mind went blank. She forgot what Sanket was saying.
"…Remember, you have to take the initiative tomorrow, or my plan will be exposed." Sanket reminded.
"Oh, oh…"
Hinata nodded clumsily—adorable and silly.
Then she looked up again:
"Sanket-kun… what did you say just now?"
Sanket: "..."
Pop!
He flicked her forehead without mercy. Under Hinata's pitiful expression, he repeated his plan.
Hinata covered her forehead, eyes sparkling.
---
The next day, the ninja school entered a 40-day summer vacation.
Sanket walked out of the house and entered a narrow alley.
With a bang, like a balloon popping, a blonde girl wearing a hat dashed out and headed straight for the Hyuga clan.
If classmates had seen this, they would have recognized the girl as Yamanaka Ino.
"Hello, my name is Yamanaka Ino. I'm here to go out with Hinata—we made an appointment yesterday."
Sanket had transformed into Ino using the Transformation Technique and smiled sweetly at the guard.
The two guards exchanged glances.
"Please wait a moment."
One of them carefully looked at "Ino", bowed politely, and entered the clan.
Not long after, he returned—with a little girl in a white windbreaker.
It was Hinata.
Hinata ran over, smiling at "Ino"—actually Sanket.
The plan had gone smoothly. The young lady was successfully out.
(End of this chapter)
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