On Friday morning, Hagane Kotetsu got up early to head to the Ninja Academy.
"Good morning, Anko," Kotetsu greeted.
Though they occasionally quarreled, the three siblings got along quite well.
"Morning!" Anko cheerfully replied.
"Heh heh, today's breakfast is red bean soup and sweet bread. Not bad," Anko hummed an unknown tune as she shared her breakfast with Kotetsu, clearly in high spirits.
"Today's a good day," Kotetsu remarked.
"We'll get to see our exam results at school later."
"Oh, the results are out today?" Anko's smile began to fade.
Though she kept intending to study before the exam, Anko ended up cramming on the last day.
After the exam, she felt she did well, but previous results had proven her feelings unreliable.
"Isn't it a good thing when results come out? We can ask Teacher Mokgetsu for rewards," Kotetsu said with a smile.
Even though he wasn't as good as Anko in practical skills, he could beat her in theoretical scores.
"You look so happy, Anko. You must have done well. Just tell Teacher Mokgetsu; he'll surely reward you with dango," Kotetsu chuckled.
Anko was speechless. She had no idea how she'd done. If she regressed like last time, there might be no dango for her, and she'd likely get a knock on her head.
"Kotetsu, Anko, good morning!" Kamizuki Izumo greeted as he approached.
"Sigh, I think I might have done well, but my feelings don't seem reliable," Anko said, a bit gloomily.
"Don't overthink it. I feel like this exam wasn't too hard. Your score will surely be higher than last time," Kamizuki Izumo smiled.
Without a doubt, he was bluffing Anko. This exam was harder than last semester's finals, and they didn't have much time to review. He felt he couldn't maintain a perfect score.
"Anko, I've not forgotten the grudge of your taunts during special training," Kamizuki Izumo thought to himself.
During summer training, there was no theory exam. They were often mocked by Anko for lacking strength, so now was the time for revenge.
Hagane Kotetsu caught on immediately when Kamizuki Izumo said the exam was easy. They exchanged looks, and Kotetsu nodded, saying:
"Yeah, the exam wasn't that hard. Your feeling is probably right. Maybe you'll score high, like over ninety."
"Really, do you think I did well too?" Anko's eyes lit up.
These tricksters, even when they said it was bad, they'd score over ninety. Now that they say it's good, it must be a guaranteed perfect score. This exam really wasn't hard.
"Yep," Kamizuki Izumo and Hagane Kotetsu nodded with smiles.
"Hehe, then let's hurry up and see the results," Anko beamed again with joy.
"Good morning, Teacher Mokgetsu,"
On their way, they also met Mokgetsu, who was also on the way to school.
"Ah, morning," Mokgetsu nodded in response.
"Teacher Mokgetsu, is there a reward for improvement this time?" Anko playfully asked.
"Why, are you feeling confident about your exam results?" Mokgetsu asked with a smile.
"Pretty okay, I feel like I should score ten points more than last time," Anko thought and decided to say conservatively.
"Alright then, if you improve by five points, I'll reward you with a dango. Ten points will get you two. But if not..." Mokgetsu said, raising two fingers.
Anko instinctively touched her head and got it instantly.
However, she wasn't worried because she scored only seventy-eight last time. If this exam was easier, even if she couldn't score eighty-eight, getting eighty-three and earning a dango reward shouldn't be hard.
"Why are you two looking so pleased, Izumo and Kotetsu?" Anko suddenly noticed Kamizuki Izumo and Hagane Kotetsu grinning even bigger than her.
"Of course, we're happy for you. Maybe you'll score over ninety and get three dango," Kotetsu laughed.
"Yeah, someone like me and Kotetsu doesn't have room for improvement," Kamizuki Izumo chuckled.
"It's true that with a perfect score, there's no room for improvement," Anko initially wanted to punch Kamizuki Izumo, who was boasting about his score, but decided to let it go because she was in a good mood.
After arriving at school, the three of them went straight to the bulletin board to check their scores.
With their excellent body techniques, the three managed to squeeze to the front and started looking for their results.
"Mitarashi Anko..." Anko mumbled as she quickly looked for her score.
"Huh, what's going on? Did I see it wrong?" Anko stared at her score, questioning everything—it wasn't what she expected.
"Can you two check my score for me?" Anko rubbed her eyes and asked.
"Seventy-seven points," Kotetsu replied, smiling.
He hadn't even checked his own score first and looked for Anko's score. Once he saw it, he knew it was a given she'd get knocked.
"Yeah, I see seventy-seven too," Kamizuki Izumo confirmed.
"Wait a minute, how can it be seventy-seven? Didn't you say the exam was quite easy?" Anko was utterly puzzled.
"Oh no, no dango for me, and I'm sure to get a knock on the head from Teacher Mokgetsu back in class," Anko's face turned back to a gloomy expression.
"Can I take a sick leave? I think I'm getting dizzy, perhaps I'm coming down with something," Anko tried to escape her fate.
"I really doubt Teacher Mokgetsu would believe that," Kotetsu barely held back a laugh, struggling to keep a straight face but failing to hide his amusement.