The artificial lake behind the Ninja Academy.
Shikamaru got halfway there, noticed Kitazawa-sensei wasn't around, and plopped down by the lake.
He rubbed his temples. "Is there any way I can get out of training today?"
Suddenly, he thought of the Shadow Clone Jutsu.
"If I learn it, I could just let a clone take the hit for me."
But then he paused. "Wait... would the clone actually work harder than me?"
He groaned. "Giving clones their own will was such a mistake."
Knowing himself, the clone would just slack off right alongside him.
Right then, the lake rippled. Shikamaru glanced up instinctively.
A wall of water shot up—and smacked him right in the face.
Caught off guard, he fell straight into the lake.
Glug. Glug.
He gulped down a mouthful of water before scrambling out, coughing.
"What the—? Kitazawa-sensei?!"
He was stunned. And, frankly, a little embarrassed to be caught ditching.
"Your chakra control's not bad," Kitazawa said coolly. "So I thought I'd up the difficulty."
The only way to deal with a slacker is to force him to move.
"That water just now…?"
"Yep," Kitazawa nodded. "You're treading water, and I'm attacking with it."
"I need to go change first!"
"Nope."
Kitazawa shut him down immediately. "If you don't keep training, I'm calling your parents."
"What?! You can't just do that!"
"Parent calls are a teacher privilege."
Shikamaru stared at him, speechless. Well… he's not wrong.
"You being soaked is a problem though," Kitazawa continued.
Shikamaru perked up. Maybe he'll let me go change?
"So I'll use Fire Style to dry you off."
Kitazawa smirked. "Sound good?"
"...Thanks, I guess."
"Don't worry," he said, grinning. "I won't burn you."
Kitazawa's chakra control was top-tier, and his Fire Style? Maxed out.
"Sensei, I still want to get married someday, so please go easy."
"You'll be fine," Kitazawa assured him.
Shikamaru reluctantly resumed water-walking.
Kitazawa formed some seals and launched a fireball.
Shikamaru flinched and almost bolted.
"Freeze!"
He stopped. Then blinked in surprise.
The fireball was perfectly spaced—warm enough to dry his clothes, not close enough to burn.
Ten minutes later, he wasn't just surprised. He was floored.
Maintaining a jutsu like that? Steady size and temperature? That was next-level control.
Seriously, why is this guy a teacher? And why am I his test dummy?!
He stared at the floating fireball, eyes watering.
This was literally trial by fire.
…
Lunchtime.
"Not bad this morning," Kitazawa said, dismissing the fireball.
Shikamaru collapsed, breathing hard.
His clothes had dried... and then Kitazawa switched to Water Style. And then Fire again. Repeat.
Shikamaru felt like he'd spent the whole morning bouncing between an ice bath and a sauna.
"Take the afternoon off. Go have a med-nin check you out."
Kitazawa was genuinely worried the heat-chill whiplash would mess with his body.
He could've done the check himself, but he was keeping his medical skills on the down-low.
Even when Hinata got hurt in the 2-A match, someone else patched her up. Gotta keep the "not-a-medic" act going.
He was building a genius persona, after all.
Sakura? She was just reading basic medical texts—no threat there.
"So... no classes this afternoon either?"
"You still need to read the textbook," Kitazawa replied.
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei!"
Shikamaru was pumped. Trading a tough morning for a free afternoon? Totally worth it.
"See you tomorrow," Kitazawa chuckled.
Train half a day, rest half a day—easier for kids to accept.
"Hinata, let's eat!"
He waved at her. She jogged over, and he gave her a gentle pat before ending his Shadow Clone.
Sasuke, Sakura, and Ino had already gone to lunch. Balance, after all.
Back in the office, they ate. After lunch, he sent Hinata back to class for a nap.
Kitazawa was about to lie down for one himself when—BANG!
The door flew open.
That familiar feeling...
He opened his eyes.
Red-painted toenails.
Only one woman he knew wore those:
"Tsunade-sama."
He sat up. "What brings you here?"
Did his door just get Hokage-kicked?
"Pay up."
Tsunade held out her hand.
"Pay what?"
He looked up, eyes drifting over the terrain, and met hers.
"Our Rasengan bet. There's only half a day left. You clearly lost. Lend me 500k."
She'd just left the casino, broke. Remembered the bet, and came running.
In her mind, mastering Rasengan in three days? Impossible. Even Jiraiya needed longer.
"Tsunade-sama," Shizune whispered. "Let's wait until tonight. Fairness, remember?"
"I'm not wrong," Tsunade snapped. "So? What do you say?"
"I say no."
"You're so rigid!"
"I've already won. Why bend?"
He raised his hand. Chakra swirled.
Rasengan.
"No way!"
Tsunade leaned in, eyes wide.
Kitazawa flinched.
Let's just say… the view was intense.
"Two and a half days?" Shizune gasped. "You actually pulled it off?"
Rasengan was the Fourth Hokage's signature move. How could anyone learn it that fast?
Or maybe Tsunade's curse of losing bets was just that strong.
Either way, both of them were terrifying.
"You... you..."
Tsunade choked on her words. She'd seen Minato and Jiraiya use it. Kitazawa's version was legit.
"This makes no sense."
She stepped back in disbelief.
"A bet's a bet, Tsunade-sama."
He dispelled the orb with a grin.
"Yeah yeah, I get it. No need to rub it in."
She still couldn't believe she'd lost again.
"Since you want me to teach you medical ninjutsu, pay up."
She instantly switched modes. "Hourly rate, by the way."
Why does that sound so familiar?
Kitazawa pulled out Shikaku's savings book. "Only 500k."
Totally worth it. He'd gained tons of jutsu and a solid link to Tsunade—which boosted his standing in Konoha.
If he became her student, he was basically in the Hokage bloodline.
"Smart move," she said, patting his shoulder.
She hadn't expected him to actually pay.
"Shizune."
"Here," Shizune handed him a scroll. "Basic med-nin books. Read them."
Kitazawa winced.
Great. Tables turned.
He'd assigned Sakura the exact same task earlier. Now it was his turn.
"Two weeks. After that, we begin training."
If he could learn Rasengan in two and a half days, then yeah—his chakra control was more than ready.
"Got it," he nodded. "I'll come by after school."
[You've caught Tsunade's attention. Keep going.]
[New Mission: Earn Tsunade's initial approval]
[Reward: Chakra Scalpel]
[Accept?]
His eyes lit up.
A-rank med-nin jutsu. Critical tool for saving or killing.
He hit [Accept?] in his mind instantly.
"I'm off. See ya."
Tsunade left with her loan, itching for another round of gambling.
"You got this!" Shizune cheered at the door.
She really hoped he'd become Tsunade's student. Maybe then the Hokage would actually stay put, and she wouldn't have to chase her all over the world dodging debt collectors.
Kitazawa took a quick nap.
Afternoon rolled around. Hinata, Ino, Sakura, and Sasuke resumed training.
As the final period approached—Combat Class.
"Come with me," Kitazawa told them. "We're learning a new Taijutsu form today. It'll be useful."
"Yes, Sensei!"
The four followed him to the training field.
Class 1-A was already in formation. They slid into place.
"Before we start, one announcement," Kitazawa said. "This semester's final exam will be a live sparring match."
"YES!"
Naruto practically bounced.
In previous tests—strength drills, clone jutsu, shuriken throwing—he only ever aced the first.
Now it was all about fighting. And that, he could win.
"Sasuke!" he grinned, flashing a thumbs-up. "Let's have a youthful showdown!"
Sasuke twitched.
What is it with this guy and the word 'youth'?
Still, he wasn't wrong. The winner would be either of them. Maybe Hinata too.
"Sigh."
Kiba groaned.
"What's wrong, Kiba?" Shino asked.
"Jealous of how confident Naruto is."
Normally, he'd have snapped back. But after the Class 2-A match, he realized how big the gap really was.
He didn't have the confidence to challenge Naruto anymore.
Shino was quiet.
So you're just mad you can't act cool? Fair enough.
"Where's Shikamaru?" Choji looked around.
"Kitazawa-sensei gave him the afternoon off," Ino said.
"Seriously?" Choji blinked. Envy levels: rising.
"Alright, let's get started," Kitazawa clapped. "To help prep for the finals, I'm teaching you Konoha-style Taijutsu."
"Wait, really?" Ino blinked. "We don't usually learn that in school."
"Exactly," Shino said, adjusting his glasses. "Kitazawa-sensei is way too nice."
~~~
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