Yamada Shumu looked curious. "Even Asuma-sensei doesn't know? Does that mean our teacher is some unknown ninja?"
He sounded a little disappointed.
After all, he felt that Kimoto Dōichi was very strong—he should have been a well-known and powerful ninja.
Noticing Shumu's mood, Asuma quickly added, "That shouldn't be the case. As far as I know, all instructors assigned to lead a graduating class are jonin."
"Your teacher must be one as well. It's just that I don't personally know every ninja in Konoha."
Hearing that, Shumu felt better.
Although he had been terrified during Dōichi's evaluation, he was also secretly glad.
In his mind, only by following a powerful ninja could he become strong himself.
At that moment, Shikamaru asked, "Earlier you said your instructor's test nearly killed you. What exactly happened?"
He was genuinely curious.
It was just an evaluation—did it really need to be that harsh?
Asuma also turned his attention to Shumu.
He didn't approve of excessively cruel methods toward students.
Even Kakashi wouldn't deliberately place his students in real danger.
If Dōichi had used brutal measures, that would be against Konoha's rules.
Shumu glanced at Yoru before answering.
"It wasn't anything physical. Sensei used something like a mental-type ninjutsu. It felt like our minds were about to collapse."
"If it weren't for Yoru, Tada and I might've actually died."
Now that he thought about it carefully, Shumu realized most of the pressure had likely been directed at Yoru.
Otherwise, Dōichi wouldn't have treated him differently afterward.
They had probably only endured a small fraction of it.
Yoru, meanwhile, was calmly placing a piece of grilled meat into his mouth.
Suddenly, Asuma, Shikamaru, and Ino all looked at him at once.
Yoru paused mid-bite. "What?"
To him, the sizzling meat on the table was far more interesting than their conversation.
He had lived in this world for twelve years.
He had no close friends.
Aside from training, eating good food was one of his few pleasures.
Seeing their gazes fixed on him, he looked puzzled.
Asuma was confused as well.
He had once reviewed Yoru's Academy records—there had been nothing outstanding.
Yet from Shumu's description, Yoru sounded unusually capable.
After a moment, Asuma asked, "When your instructor used that mental technique, what exactly did you feel?"
Shumu thought for a bit.
"It felt like I was standing in a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. Countless ninja were rushing at me. It was like I'd been stabbed dozens of times. I couldn't escape it at all."
After he finished speaking, Tada instinctively shrank slightly.
The memory of Dōichi's killing intent had left a deep mark on her.
She would likely never forget it.
Based on that description, Asuma could roughly guess what kind of technique had been used.
He could also guess Dōichi's background.
"No wonder I've never heard his name," Asuma muttered.
"He's probably from ANBU."
"ANBU?"
Everyone except Yoru looked at him in confusion.
Asuma took a drag from his cigarette before speaking slowly.
"Yes. ANBU."
"It's a special unit within Konoha—an organization that protects the village from the shadows. It's filled with powerful ninja."
It was the first time most of them had heard of it.
Even Shikamaru and the others, despite coming from prominent clans, hadn't paid much attention to that side of village affairs.
Shikamaru cast a deep look at Yoru.
From Asuma's tone, he could sense how significant ANBU was.
Yet Yoru had withstood the mental suppression of someone like that.
Asuma was thinking the same thing.
He looked at Yoru, who was still focused entirely on the yakiniku.
No one else was eating.
Only Yoru seemed more interested in the food than the conversation.
Asuma understood very well what kind of presence an ANBU jonin carried.
And all instructors for this generation were jonin.
Which meant Yoru's instructor was a jonin—an ANBU jonin at that.
To endure such mental pressure and then behave as if nothing had happened…
That alone proved Yoru was far from ordinary.
Meanwhile, Shumu, oblivious to the deeper implications, was still shocked by what he'd heard.
"ANBU… Sounds like Kimoto-sensei is really strong."
"As expected of our teacher."
What he cared about was simple—
Whether Dōichi was strong enough to teach him powerful ninjutsu.
Because only a powerful mentor could mold a powerful ninja.
Shikamaru glanced at Asuma.
Asuma gave a subtle shake of his head.
Shikamaru had been about to ask Yoru directly about the details.
But Asuma's reaction stopped him.
After that, Asuma didn't press further.
However, he silently committed the matter to memory.
He planned to speak with Kakashi about it later.
A freshly graduated genin enduring the genjutsu—or killing intent—of an ANBU jonin was highly unusual.
Especially one whose Academy record had been so unremarkable.
Was it simply exceptional mental strength?
Or something else?
It warranted investigation.
Yoru, on the other hand, didn't notice Asuma's thoughts.
And even if he had, he wouldn't have cared.
He hadn't displayed anything too abnormal.
Just slightly above-average mental resilience.
After finishing the meal, Yoru grew more familiar with the Ino–Shika–Cho trio, as well as Shumu and Tada.
Later that evening, as they headed home, Shumu suddenly said, "Yoru, Tada and I don't live in the same direction. You can walk her home."
Before Yoru could respond, Shumu ran off.
Yoru blinked.
Tada's fair face flushed red instantly.
Yoru frowned. "What's with that guy?"
He had assumed Shumu was in a hurry.
Tada lowered her head shyly, her toes lightly nudging the ground.
She didn't say anything.
Yoru glanced at her and smiled faintly. "I'll walk you home."
It was already night.
Although Tada had graduated and officially become a ninja, she was still a girl—
And the daughter of a wealthy family.
Kidnapping wasn't unheard of.
Tada nodded shyly.
Ever since she had seen Yoru calmly endure Dōichi's killing intent without flinching, she had developed a good impression of him.
Coupled with his appearance—
At their age, it wasn't unusual to start feeling attraction toward the opposite sex.
Yoru, however, didn't view her as a peer.
Mentally, he was an adult.
Though he had been momentarily struck by her beauty earlier, it had only been appreciation.
If anything, he had thought—
It would be nice to have such a cute little sister.
The two walked side by side down the brightly lit streets.
From an outsider's perspective, they looked like a golden pair.
Passersby even turned to look at them.
Both were good-looking.
Some even mistook them for a couple.
In this world, boys and girls matured early.
It wasn't uncommon for children their age to start dating.
Especially with Tada's flushed cheeks and shy demeanor—
It was hard not to misunderstand.