"I'm home."
Yuuki pushed open the door of his family's flower shop and stepped inside.
The faint fragrance of flowers filled the air, and as Yuuki inhaled it, he felt his spirits lift. Even the fatigue from his training seemed to ease a little.
He glanced toward a corner of the shop where his father, Hirakawa Shinko, was watering the plants with a can that looked like a flower sprayer.
Hearing the door, Shinko turned around. When he saw Yuuki come home covered in dust and with wrinkled clothes, he couldn't help but frown with concern.
"Go on upstairs. Your mother's been waiting for you to come back so you can eat."
The mention of food immediately made Yuuki feel a wave of hunger.
The ground floor was the shop, while the second floor was where the family lived.
Crossing behind the counter, Yuuki climbed the stairs.
Halfway up, the rich aroma of food reached him. Already hungry, he quickened his pace.
Pushing the door open, he saw his mother, Hirakawa Tomoko, setting the dishes on the table with the bowls and chopsticks already arranged.
Yuuki hurried to the washroom to clean off the dust from his body, then sat down at the table.
Shinko came up from downstairs, poured himself a cup of sake, and joined them.
The family sat together, enjoying their meal.
As they ate, Yuuki's parents kept asking him questions.
Some of them were a bit odd, like:
"Did you get a girlfriend at school yet?"
Of course, Yuuki replied that he hadn't.
But to his surprise, Shinko burst out laughing.
"Hahaha, look at you, still no girlfriend at your age? Back when I was your age..."
Before he could finish, he realized he was sitting at the table with his wife.
"And what happened when you were his age?" Tomoko asked, her tone sharp.
Shinko panicked slightly.
"Heh, well, that's when I met you, dear."
Shinko thought he was clever, but his answer only made Tomoko's glare sharper.
Yuuki ignored his father's pleading look and kept quietly eating.
In this house, it was clear who held the highest position. His mother ruled the roost, while Yuuki and his father were at best ranked at the bottom.
Better to let Shinko draw the fire. It wouldn't do to open his mouth and risk getting caught in the crossfire.
The next day, Yuuki finished his morning training early and arrived at the academy.
Just as he opened his bag to take out his textbooks, someone approached his desk.
It was Inuzuka Tsume, the future mother of Kiba Inuzuka, one of the Twelve Little Leaf Heroes.
"Hehe, Yuuki, could I ask for your help with my homework?"
The academy assigned plenty of homework, and just like in Yuuki's previous world, the subjects included math, chemistry, biology, geography, and so on.
Most of his classmates were gifted fighters, but when it came to academics, they were often at a complete loss.
Tsume was no exception.
"Let me see." Yuuki took the paper from her.
"It's simple. Do it like this... then this... and finally... you'll have the answer."
Tsume stared at him, confused and lost.
"So? Did you get it?" Yuuki asked, his expression saying clearly that such easy problems shouldn't need more than one explanation.
Tsume swallowed hard.
"I... think I'm still confused about some parts..."
Yuuki spread out the paper.
"Where exactly?"
"From here to here."
Yuuki watched as Tsume's finger ran from the top of the paper all the way to the bottom.
Taking a deep breath, Yuuki reviewed the entire sheet.
This level of exam would have been considered junior high at best in his previous life. For Yuuki, it was a breeze.
In fact, it was his strong academic scores that had earned him a place in the elite class. Even Minato Namikaze, ranked second in theory, was far behind Yuuki.
Perhaps it was because the war-torn shinobi world left little room for developing academic learning.
Most of the ninja clan heirs had strict and precise combat training from an early age, and those from the oldest clans also received lessons in etiquette.
But without exception, none of them placed much importance on academic knowledge.
Yuuki glanced at the clock hanging at the front of the room. There were still about ten minutes before class started.
Sighing softly, he began explaining the paper.
The room gradually filled with curious classmates gathering around the back row window seat.
When the teacher, Mizukawa Katsumi, finally entered, he was greeted by an unusual sight.
Nearly the entire class had gathered at the back of the room, listening to Yuuki explain the answers.
"What's going on?"
The students quickly turned toward him and hurried back to their seats, revealing Yuuki in the middle of it all with a paper in hand.
Seeing the test paper, Mizukawa shook his head and walked to the podium.
But today was different from usual.
Following him into the classroom was a red-haired girl who seemed shy and out of place.
"Uzumaki Kushina?"
Yuuki handed the paper back to Tsume, then turned and recognized the girl who had just walked in.
Mizukawa smiled at the class.
"Today we have a transfer student. She's a girl, so I hope you'll all get along."
"To help you get to know each other faster, we'll spend half a class period doing introductions again."
He turned toward Tsume at the back.
"Let's start with you, Inuzuka Tsume."
Tsume blinked, then jumped up, baring her fang-like teeth and giving a thumbs-up.
"Hi, I'm Inuzuka Tsume. I like dogs, love dogs, and my dream is to become Hokage so everyone in the village will have a dog."
"Hi, I'm Nara Shikaku. I like lying in the grass watching clouds. My dream is for every day to be peaceful."
One by one, the students introduced themselves until it was Kushina's turn.
Standing at the podium with Mizukawa's encouraging look, she took a deep breath and stepped forward, just as Yuuki remembered from his past life.
"Hi, I'm Uzumaki Kushina. My dream is to become Konoha's first female Hokage."
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