"Class dismissed."
Kitazawa smiled and waved. "See you all tomorrow."
"See you, Kitazawa-sensei!"
After cheerfully bidding farewell, the students from both classes began to disperse.
Despite being their first joint session, the day had left a memorable impression on most of them.
All except Sasuke.
Still brooding over his defeat to Hyuga Neji, Sasuke wore a face so dark it seemed the entire class owed him five million ryo.
"Sasuke," Kitazawa called, stopping him before he could sulk away. "Neji's a year older and has already awakened the Byakugan. It's not surprising you lost."
"But—"
Sasuke's mouth twitched. He understood the logic, sure—but accepting it? That was a different matter.
He was an Uchiha. The pride of his clan. Losing to a Hyuga wasn't just embarrassing—it was unacceptable. And what would Fugaku say?
"Have you thought about why you lost?" Kitazawa asked, eyeing him.
Sasuke paused. Truthfully, he hadn't.
All he'd done since the match was stew over the new Fire Release jutsu and obsess over why he hadn't awakened his Sharingan yet.
Kitazawa caught the look in his eyes and sighed inwardly.
Classic Sasuke behavior—raw talent, zero reflection.
It was no wonder the original Sasuke earned the nickname 'Brooder.'. Every time he powered up, he got cocky—until someone stronger knocked him back down.
Mangekyo Sharingan? He went from catching the Eight-Tails to storming the Five Kage Summit and almost got killed both times. If not for Itachi, he'd have gone blind in record time.
"Because of his Byakugan," Sasuke finally said. "He saw through my Shuriken Technique."
Kitazawa nodded. "What else?"
Sasuke frowned, thinking hard. What else?
"…His taijutsu's better than mine," he admitted at last, holding up one finger. "Once he got close, I couldn't stop him."
Saying it aloud made him wince.
The Uchiha were known for Sharingan and Genjutsu; the Hyuga, for Byakugan and Gentle Fist. Losing in taijutsu to Neji wasn't exactly shocking—but it still stung.
"If I had my Sharingan, I could've read his moves and countered," Sasuke muttered, clenching his fists. "I'd beat him for sure."
Kitazawa blinked.
There it is again—Sharingan. Three sentences in and already blaming the absence of it.
The Uchiha really had a one-track mind when it came to their eyes.
"Don't fixate on the Sharingan," Kitazawa said. "You've got strengths of your own."
"You mean… Fire Release?"
Sasuke's brow furrowed. That was the only thing he had that made Neji flinch. But Kitazawa's Fire Release was far more precise than his.
Neji could dodge his jutsu too easily with Byakugan.
"Exactly. Your Fire Release is your edge," Kitazawa replied. "If you can land a hit with it, the fight shifts in your favor."
"But I can't hit him," Sasuke said, frustrated. "Not unless I awaken the Sharingan."
Kitazawa looked at him, exasperated.
There it was again. That eye.
"I'm not saying forget the Sharingan forever," he said, placing a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "But right now, focus on what you can control."
Sasuke blinked, unsure.
"You really hate thinking things through, don't you?" Kitazawa sighed. "Here's what you do—keep working on your Fire Release. But also strengthen your taijutsu."
"Really?"
Sasuke looked uncertain.
"Neji's Gentle Fist is strong, yeah—but he's still just one year ahead of you," Kitazawa explained. "You don't need to master taijutsu. Just be fast enough to dodge once. That's all it takes to set up a counter with your Fire Release."
In truth, Kitazawa wasn't just thinking of taijutsu. He was thinking of Lightning Release.
Lightning was fast—and Sasuke had a natural affinity for it. In canon, he shone far brighter with Lightning Release than Fire.
Unfortunately, Kitazawa didn't know any Lightning-style jutsu. But someone else did—Kakashi Hatake.
He had created Chidori and was one of Konoha's few lightning ninjutsu specialists.
Even if Kakashi didn't train Sasuke, the Uchiha Clan definitely had access to lightning jutsu.
But there was no need to rush. Until a mission or opportunity arose, Kitazawa would take things slow.
Plus, without Sharingan, Sasuke couldn't learn Chidori yet anyway.
"I got it!" Sasuke's eyes lit up, the gears in his head finally turning. "Kitazawa-sensei, can you teach me taijutsu?"
"You can train with Naruto," Kitazawa said after a beat.
"No, no, no!" Sasuke waved both hands, eyes wide with horror. "There's no way I'm putting on that green jumpsuit!"
Kitazawa burst out laughing.
"Relax. It's just training. No one said anything about dressing like him."
"Really?"
Sasuke narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
"Would I lie to you?" Kitazawa said, still grinning.
"Should I… go find them, then?" Sasuke asked, hesitating. "Would they even let me train with them?"
"They will," Kitazawa said confidently. "Even if you don't learn the strong fist, just keeping up with their training will make you stronger."
Gai's regimen was infamous. Anyone who endured it came out tougher. Stronger body meant faster reflexes, greater stamina, and more chakra.
"…It's really that effective?"
Sasuke wasn't fully convinced—but then he remembered Naruto's sudden leaps in strength.
Maybe there was something to it.
"You'll see for yourself," Kitazawa said with a knowing smile.
"Alright." Sasuke drew in a breath, fire in his eyes again. "I'll go find them now."
Kitazawa watched Sasuke walk away, and suddenly a wicked idea sparked in his mind.
If Sasuke wore the green jumpsuit in front of everyone... would the sheer humiliation be enough to trigger his Sharingan?
Given Sasuke's personality, there was no way he'd embrace it willingly. That meant double the embarrassment.
And as everyone knows, the Sharingan is usually awakened through emotional upheaval.
Though most Uchiha activated it through negative emotions, in theory, strong positive emotions could work too.
But judging by Sasuke's violently adverse reaction just now, emotional trauma by green spandex might just be the key.
Mission Triggered: "As class monitor of First-Year Class A, your duty isn't just to be the strongest in your own class."
Objective: Help Uchiha Sasuke defeat Hyuga Neji
Reward: One-Tomoe Sharingan
Accept Mission?
Kitazawa stared at the system prompt and nearly blurted, "You've got to be kidding me."
First the Byakugan, and now the Sharingan?
If this ever got out, the Uchiha and Hyuga clans would probably launch a joint investigation to figure out who dropped the ball first.
But the mission wasn't going to be easy.
Byakugan combined with Gentle Fist gave Neji an overwhelming advantage in early- to mid-stage battles.
Even with Kitazawa's guidance, helping Sasuke overcome Neji wouldn't be a walk in the park.
Unless Sasuke somehow learned the Eight Gates—unlikely at best—taijutsu alone wouldn't be enough.
That left Fire Release, but it was hit-or-miss. Literally.
Kitazawa stroked his chin thoughtfully.
No, the best bet was still to trigger Sasuke's Sharingan.
With it, he'd at least be able to counter the Byakugan's vision and land a solid Fire Release strike.
Kitazawa also remembered Naruto's mission to defeat Sasuke.
If both rivals pushed each other to their limits, the Sharingan might activate naturally.
And if that still didn't work... there was always Yakumo.
Her genjutsu was immersive, blurring the lines between illusion and reality.
After all, even Itachi had used genjutsu to repeatedly replay the Uchiha massacre to stimulate Sasuke's awakening. A brutal but effective method.
For now, Kitazawa shelved the idea.
He had more pressing matters today—like continuing his medical ninjutsu training under Tsunade.
Meanwhile, Sasuke had no trouble finding Naruto.
After all, three people in green jumpsuits shouting about "youth" stood out like fireworks in broad daylight.
But the moment Sasuke saw Guy, Lee, and Naruto passionately yelling about passion, his face twisted into one of inner conflict.
If anyone from the Uchiha Clan saw this, he'd never hear the end of it.
Thankfully, nobody had tried to force that green monstrosity onto him yet.
"Sasuke?"
Naruto, currently running on his hands, caught sight of him. He flipped upright in a single motion and landed on his feet.
"It is you," Naruto said, blinking. "What's up?"
"I want to train with you."
Sasuke took a deep breath and got straight to the point.
"Huh?"
Naruto stared like he'd just heard Sasuke ask to join a talent show.
"No...? Is that a problem?" Sasuke asked, slightly thrown off.
"Sasuke... you've awakened to the spirit of youth!"
Naruto beamed, giving a sparkly thumbs-up. "Let's burn together in the fires of hard work!"
"I'm just here to train," Sasuke clarified, already regretting his decision.
"Welcome!" Rock Lee chimed in, eyes shining. "Training is youth! And youth is eternal!"
"What? Even the legendary Uchiha acknowledges the path of youth?"
Guy suddenly appeared next to them, tears streaming down his cheeks.
"This is beautiful! My youthful heart can hardly take it!"
"I—" Sasuke looked more helpless than ever.
"Here," Guy said, reaching into seemingly nowhere and pulling out a shiny green jumpsuit. "I've got a spare uniform—"
"I'm not wearing that!" Sasuke snapped, recoiling like it was cursed. "I'm just here to train. Just train!"
"…Alright then," Guy said, visibly disappointed but respecting his choice.
Eccentric as he was, Guy never forced his students.
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