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~~~
A brand‑new week.
First‑year Class A, combat training period.
Kitazawa stood on the branch of a cherry‑blossom tree, his fingers flicking non‑stop.
With every motion, leaf after leaf shot out like kunai.
Because each leaf was infused with chakra, they moved at tremendous speed.
In an instant they had already travelled three metres.
Just as the leaves were about to fly farther away, a delicate little hand caught one.
Its owner was Hyūga Hinata.
After a week of practice she was now truly proficient.
Within the cramped space Hinata twisted and darted about, eyes sharp and hands swift, gathering up the leaves one by one.
Only when no new leaves appeared did she come to a halt.
"Ki… Kitazawa‑sensei," Hinata asked between breaths, "is the training over?"
"Take a five‑minute break," Kitazawa praised her. "You lasted thirty minutes this time—getting longer and longer."
A smile blossomed on Hinata's pale yet rosy cheeks.
"Kitazawa‑sensei!"
Just then Uchiha Sasuke's voice rang out.
"What is it, Sasuke?" Kitazawa jumped down from the tree.
"I did it!" Sasuke said excitedly, holding up an empty glass.
"Congratulations." Kitazawa accepted the glass. "Your effort these past days has paid off."
Sasuke had not limited himself to training in class; he practised whenever he had a moment, working as hard as Uzumaki Naruto and Rock Lee.
With talent to begin with and that level of diligence, completing stage two of chakra nature transformation was no surprise.
"Try Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu," Kitazawa reminded him. "If nothing goes wrong, you should reach your brother's level."
"Really?" Sasuke couldn't help clenching his fists.
"Your nature transformation meets the standard. Next, just release your chakra at maximum output," Kitazawa nodded.
Though Uchiha Itachi was powerful, he had never spent as much time or energy on the Great Fireball as Sasuke—he possessed too many other jutsu.
Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!
Sasuke drew a deep breath and formed the seals.
All of his chakra poured out; in an instant a massive fireball eight or nine metres tall roared forth.
"Ha‑ha‑ha!" Sasuke burst out laughing. "I've finally surpassed my brother!"
Kitazawa shook his head. He chose not to puncture Sasuke's illusion; at least this moment he was happy.
Kitazawa thought of the upcoming friendly match against Second‑year Class A.
In the "ninjutsu power" event, Sasuke was now almost certain to win.
Forget second‑years—even among sixth‑years, few could perform any ninjutsu beyond the basic Three Techniques.
As for Hyūga Neji, the Gentle Fist was practical, but nowhere near as flashy as the Great Fireball.
"Thank you, Kitazawa‑sensei!" Sasuke stopped laughing and bowed with gratitude.
Though at first he had looked down on this ordinary chūnin teacher, now his view had completely changed.
"Class is nearly over. Since you've finished your training, head home early," Kitazawa saw through his thoughts and said directly.
Without another word Sasuke spun around and ran—just what he wanted. He could scarcely wait to show Uchiha Fugaku and Itachi.
Kitazawa watched him disappear. He was not worried Sasuke would slack off after tasting success: he was a proud Uchiha; being number one was his obsession—he would never allow Naruto and the others to overtake him.
"Kitazawa‑sensei, let's keep training!" Hinata stood up, energised by Sasuke's performance.
"Mm." Kitazawa patted her head and leapt back into the tree.
…
The sun set, leaving only a band of evening glow on the horizon.
Sasuke jogged all the way home, too busy even to return greetings from passing clansmen.
"Father!" he shouted as soon as he stepped into the courtyard.
"Such fuss—mind your manners," Uchiha Fugaku scolded, stepping out of the house.
"Sorry," Sasuke scratched his head, but quickly said with excitement, "Dad, watch!"
He formed hand seals at once and spat out a huge fireball.
Fugaku paused, surprise flickering in his eyes. This level of Great Fireball was truly rare—especially from a six‑year‑old.
"As expected of my son!" Fugaku nodded approvingly. At this moment Sasuke indeed resembled his brother Itachi—worthy Hokage material.
Sasuke suppressed wild laughter, but a smile still crept across his face.
…
The dismissal bell rang.
After seeing Hinata and the others off, Kitazawa headed home.
Just then three lines of text floated before his eyes:
[Current Mission: After Uchiha Sasuke's Great Fireball surpasses Uchiha Itachi's, surpass Sasuke with the same jutsu.]
[Reward: Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation.]
[Mission completed. Reward granted.]
Kitazawa blinked. Wasn't there a missing step? He hadn't even used the Great Fireball to outdo Sasuke, yet the system marked it complete. Still, a good thing is a good thing.
After absorbing the new knowledge, he became like a veteran who had spent decades mastering the Great Fire Annihilation.
Seated on the sofa, he pondered how to trigger Sasuke's next mission. It would have to wait for the sparring match in two days.
Because of the upcoming friendly with Second‑year Class A, Kitazawa decided to hold an internal spar for First‑year Class A. Based on the results, he would pick five students for final special training.
He also thought of Hinata—when would she awaken her Byakugan?
…
The next day, Tuesday.
After breakfast Kitazawa arrived at the academy. To his surprise, waiting in his office besides Hinata was Yamanaka Ino.
"Kitazawa‑sensei, help me!" Ino rushed up like she'd found a saviour and grabbed his hand.
"What's wrong? What happened?" Kitazawa asked, puzzled.
"I don't want to do homework anymore!" Ino cried in agony.
Kitazawa blinked, then realised what she meant. He had set a rule: between Ino and Haruno Sakura, whoever got hit most by kunai during water‑walking practice would have double homework. Sakura, heroine of the original story, held a slight edge in chakra control, so Ino had been saddled with extra assignments every night.
Kitazawa smiled and was about to cancel the rule when three lines of text suddenly appeared:
[Current Mission: Help Yamanaka Ino defeat Haruno Sakura in the water‑walking exercise.]
[Reward: Master‑level Chakra Control.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa's eyes lit up. This reward was excellent—every jutsu relies on good chakra control.
~~~
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