Iruka looked at Naruto with a mix of emotions. After a moment, he reached out, gently touched Naruto's golden hair, and straightened his slightly disheveled clothes. With a soft tone, he said, "Don't worry, Naruto. You did nothing wrong in this. I'm on your side."
"N-Iruka-sensei!! And everyone else…" Naruto looked up at Iruka, then at Sharly's smiling face, and finally around at everyone else.
His nose was bruised, his face swollen, yet he rubbed his nose and smiled foolishly, showing his bright white teeth. Shikamaru had accidentally been hit in the face, staring blankly like a dead fish, muttering to himself about how he'd gotten into such a mess. Choji didn't even know when he'd gone back to snacking; he had already taken care of Sasuke (who continued to maintain his cool expression, eyes fixed on Sharly), Shino (still mysterious behind his sunglasses), and Hinata (who turned red and averted her gaze upon seeing him).
Even though Naruto never cried from being hit or ridiculed, this time he could no longer hold back his tears. They streamed down uncontrollably.
"There, there. Don't cry," Iruka said, smiling gently. While he couldn't fully understand Naruto's feelings, he could at least empathize.
"Haha! You're still crying at your age!" Ya laughed mercilessly at the scene.
"I-I'm not!" Naruto gritted his teeth, glaring at him, trying in vain to wipe away the tears.
Sharly's lips curved into a smile as she observed. There were many things he couldn't change, but seeing this moment brought a sense of relief. He never clung to changing circumstances, but if his presence could create a positive change, he considered it worthwhile.
"Phew… not bad, not bad," said the Third Hokage from the rooftop, puffing on his cigarette as he gazed down at the scene below, his expression unusually gentle.
He had just been alerted by the Anbu and arrived in time to witness Naruto's sobbing. He knew Naruto's stubborn temperament—he wouldn't cry even if he were knocked down.
It seemed that Naruto had finally found a sense of camaraderie in the village. That was truly wonderful.
Although hearing about the fight initially gave the Third Hokage a headache, seeing this scene brought him relief.
The masked Anbu beside him reported the developments. Initially, they hadn't intended to inform the Third Hokage, since Naruto getting beaten up was not new. Reporting every incident would overwhelm him, and the Anbu weren't sure how events would unfold.
This time, however, someone had actually come to help Naruto. It didn't matter who—it mattered that these were children from various village families who refused to let this slide. Hence, they informed the Third Hokage.
"So… it was basically Sharly alone who took down these fourth-grade students?" the Third Hokage asked, a hint of surprise in his voice.
"Yes," reported the Anbu, equally astonished. A prodigious talent, indeed—but the Third Hokage already knew this name? It seemed someone had been paying attention for some time.
The Anbu quietly recorded Sharly's name. Even if it was unreachable now, who could be sure what might happen later?
"Impressive," the Third Hokage nodded with satisfaction. He had heard of this prodigy from Iruka-sensei, and now he saw it firsthand. These fourth-grade students were all low performers in class, yet Sharly had easily defeated them all, completely disregarding several years of growth. This was a testament to his skill.
Moreover, the Third Hokage learned through Iruka that Sharly had fully mastered all three Kage-style ninja techniques. A talent like this should have been eligible for graduation in the previous war. In fact, he might even surpass Kakashi.
With such an extraordinary next generation, the Third Hokage felt comforted, and a thought crossed his mind: he should observe carefully, though revealing himself publicly wasn't appropriate yet. For now, the matter was settled. Reports would follow in due time.
"Keep observing, and inform me of any developments," said the Third Hokage, before vanishing in a wisp of white smoke. Of course, he hadn't come personally—the figure had been a shadow clone.
"Yes!" the Anbu replied and disappeared to continue their mission.
"Iruka, as a teacher, attacking students? Do you even have any professional ethics?"
Meanwhile, the fourth-grade Chunin teacher—a middle-aged man—arrived belatedly. Seeing the students lying in disarray, apparently gathered intentionally, his expression darkened as he glared at Iruka.
"Ah?" Iruka was momentarily stunned, realizing he hadn't even consciously acted in that moment. Thinking carefully, he understood that Sharly was not only a prodigious talent but also incredibly capable in combat. Yet, he felt no fault lay with himself; he had long been accustomed to Sharly's actions and expected nothing less.
"Don't make excuses. You expect me to believe a first-grader did this?" the Chunin demanded.
"I wouldn't believe it either, but this is Sharly, so I do," Iruka said sincerely, based on his own judgment.
The Chunin's face darkened. He didn't want to believe it. If true, it meant his students couldn't even match a first grader.
Sharly stood calmly, unfazed by the Chunin's intimidating presence, his gaze fierce and unflinching.
"Sharly…" Naruto clenched his fists, feeling conflicted. He had clearly caused trouble for everyone, preferring to take a beating rather than inconvenience others.
Chapter 35: Apology
Sharly stared at the Chunin, seemingly unbothered by his presence.
"Sir, I'm telling you, Iruka-sensei didn't lie. I defeated all your students one by one. If you don't believe me, it's your students who are lying. Ask them, and you'll see."
The Chunin looked at Sharly with surprise. Though not a combat ninja himself, he understood momentum control—and the way Sharly maintained it was beyond what a child could achieve.
Seeing Sharly's composed expression, the Chunin couldn't help but feel a hint of admiration. Iruka had truly cultivated a genius!
Sharly assessed the Chunin, noting that he seemed to be leveraging his authority, but he felt no pressure. How could a teacher accustomed to classrooms be so difficult to intimidate?
"Even so, why did you do this?" the Chunin asked, his tone softening, realizing that if Iruka acted, it would be his fault, but if Sharly acted, it was a different matter entirely.
Iruka then explained the situation further.
The Chunin furrowed his brow. Given what he knew of these students, this was plausible. But if only the "monster" was involved, it would make sense… yet…
"Is that really the case?" the Chunin asked, looking at the almost-standing student.
The lead student hesitated, then, seeing Sharly's cold gaze, bowed deeply and timidly said, "Yes, that's right."
The Chunin was momentarily speechless, face flushed with embarrassment and anger. His students not only humiliated him but had bullied younger students. Especially the one who had been hit—he felt ashamed as a teacher.
"Why aren't you apologizing and returning to class?" he demanded, trying to end this fiasco.
"Wait!"
"Ah? You have something else?" the Chunin asked, his tone disheartened. Though displeased, he understood that this prodigy would grow into a powerful figure. Even as his teacher, it would be difficult to oppose him.
"They made a mistake, but they haven't apologized yet," Sharly said coldly.
The students bristled.
"Why should we apologize to a monster?!"
Yet as the words left their mouths, they saw Sharly clench her fists, glaring at them. They dared not speak further, though her reluctance was evident.
"Students, after what they did to you, don't you feel any guilt?" the Chunin asked Naruto, disdainfully.
"Huh? You bullied younger students and got beaten by a first-grader like me and think it's fair? Want to report to the principal and have all the teachers see?" Sharly sneered at the Chunin. She clearly saw the look he had given Naruto earlier and formed an even worse impression. In her eyes, such a man did not deserve to teach.
The Chunin's face darkened further.
"Sharly… maybe—" Naruto tugged at her sleeve, not wanting to cause her trouble.
"I agree," Iruka said, standing in front of Sharly. He didn't foresee this, but he felt Sharly hadn't done anything wrong. This was the proper course of action. Sharly's words were direct but justifiable.
"Fine… fine!" the Chunin gritted his teeth. He felt this was beyond reason. He couldn't argue, and all the teachers would ridicule his teaching. Even though he might become principal, this boy's stance was infuriating.
The Chunin glared at his students, frustrated, and shouted, "Why are you still standing there? Go apologize!"
The students glanced at each other, then at Sharly, still smiling and watching them. They had no choice but to approach Naruto and apologize reluctantly.
Naruto looked at them, unsure what to say, sensing their unwillingness.
"Can we let them go now?" the Chunin asked, trying to contain his anger.
"Of course," Iruka replied. He wouldn't let Sharly be hated.
The Chunin snorted and left with the students.
After a while, Sharly looked at Naruto, still standing there, unsure.
"This time I made them apologize, but next time, you'll have to rely on your own strength," Sharly said.
Naruto's eyes lit up immediately. Yes—that was exactly what he wanted. He nodded vigorously to Sharly. "I'll do it!"
Iruka watched, smiling. When Ino approached to speak, she was startled and hurried over.
Even though her students had been hit, seeing the students lying in pain and Sharly taking down the last one multiple times nearly scared her.
Luckily, Iruka noticed Sharly had acted cautiously. While everyone had fallen, no one was injured—just sore.
Unbeknownst to Iruka, these were the mirrored experiences of Sharly defeating Naruto.
Seeing Naruto laughing and talking openly with them, Iruka thought perhaps Naruto was no longer just Sharly's friend in class.
"Alright, let's return to class. Next time, report to the teachers immediately if this happens again."
"Got it!"
"Naruto, grit your teeth," Shikamaru's voice called.
"Yeah!" Naruto ran, teeth gritted. Though he'd taken more hits than Shikamaru, he was clearly tougher than the others.
"Move aside, I don't need help!" Shikamaru growled.
"Y-Yeah, Shikamaru… cursing isn't nice…" a weak voice from Hinata.
Everyone laughed.
Amid the laughter, they walked toward the first-grade classroom. Even normally shy Hinata relaxed a little.
Chapter 36: First-Grade Demon Lord
"Sharly, are you… okay?" Ino stood at the classroom door as the group returned, anxious and hesitant to enter.
"I'm fine, but we have a problem," Shikamaru complained.
"Nothing serious. Ino did well, and Iruka-sensei arrived just in time," Sharly replied.
"That's good," Ino breathed a sigh of relief. She had been terrified earlier.
"Alright, let's go to class," Sharly said.
Ino didn't know the full details, but seeing Sharly uninjured and the others looking battered left her puzzled.
The mystery was soon revealed: good news doesn't travel fast, but bad news spreads far. Sharly hadn't expected this incident to spread quickly.
Still, it wasn't surprising—there had been more witnesses than just them. Some onlookers were indifferent, and those who had been beaten wouldn't advertise it because of shame. Those observing had no reason to lie. Wealthy and influential people didn't waste their time.
As a result, news of the first-grade demon in the ninja academy quickly spread throughout the school. Meanwhile, Ino understood why Sharly was so exceptional. He wasn't just excellent academically; his combat ability was outstanding. And strong? Absolutely.
As a member of the ninja reserves, no one had considered holding back. What they saw was Sharly's combat ability far surpassing fourth-grade students. Even if just slightly above the level of Tsuru, it was already astonishing.
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