Tsunade, without a word, pulled Naoki toward the school entrance.
Along the way, Naoki was still processing the information he had just received.
“Jiraiya got cornered?
Because of me?” He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
He spent every day thinking about how to avoid trouble, yet it found him anyway because of who he was, even dragging others into it.
“Yeah,” Tsunade said huffily.
“You’re a big celebrity in school now—the pioneer of ‘Physics Ninjutsu’ and the Second Hokage’s own grandson.
Who knows how many people are green with envy?
That idiot Jiraiya talks about you all day, bragging that you’re his boss.
It’s no wonder he got targeted.
Since they don’t dare mess with you, they went after him instead!”
She paused and added, “The ones cornering him are a few upperclassmen, apparently from a branch of the Inuzuka Clan.
They’ve been acting like bullies in school just because they’ve learned a few clan techniques.
They’ve disliked Jiraiya for a long time, and today they finally found an excuse.”
Naoki sighed.
The Inuzuka Clan?
Those are the dog users.
Their Taijutsu should be decent, but they probably aren’t the brightest.
Perfect, I’ll use them for practice.
He calculated silently.
Ever since his narrow escape in the Uchiha Forbidden Grounds, he realized that relying on temporary experience cards from the system wasn’t enough; his own strength was what truly mattered.
He hadn’t properly used that [Uchiha Fluid Taijutsu Basics] yet.
As for his newly acquired Three-Tomoe Sharingan, he had only experienced its high-definition vision and hadn’t tested its effects in actual combat.
This “school bullying” incident was practically a “newbie tutorial” tailor-made for him.
Moreover, this was a crucial part of his “Underling Cultivation Plan.”
A qualified underling shouldn’t just cheer from the sidelines; at critical moments, they need to be able to recognize their boss’s awesomeness.
Today, he would show Jiraiya exactly what “true power” looked like.
The two of them quickly arrived at the school gates.
On the open ground by the gate, a small circle of people had already gathered.
Most were underclassmen, peeking in curiously but not daring to get close.
In the center of the circle, Jiraiya lay miserably on the ground, his face bruised purple and blue, with a trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth.
Three boys, looking two or three years older than them, surrounded him with faces full of mockery and disdain.
The leader, a boy with wild black hair and the red markings of the Inuzuka Clan on his face, stepped on Jiraiya’s chest and said arrogantly, “Trash, with your pathetic skills, you’re going around calling someone ‘boss’?
Are you even worthy?”
“Exactly!
A dead last who can’t even control his Chakra properly, yet dares to follow Princess Tsunade around all day.
A toad dreaming of swan meat!” a lackey chimed in.
Although Jiraiya had been beaten quite badly, he refused to back down verbally. The source of this chapter is g.com.
“You…
you bastards!
If you’ve got the guts…
wait until Boss Naoki gets here!
He’ll knock you all down with a single finger!”
“Ha!
You’re still counting on him to save you?” The leader laughed, pressing down harder with his foot.
“That coward has probably already hidden away in fear!
‘Physics Ninjutsu’?
I bet he just got lucky!
If it came down to a real fight, he might not even beat my Kuromaru!”
“Who are you calling a coward?”
A cold voice suddenly came from behind the crowd.
Upon hearing the voice, the spectating students scattered like startled rabbits, clearing a path.
Naoki and Tsunade stood there side by side.
Tsunade had her arms crossed, her pretty face covered in frost.
Naoki, on the other hand, looked calm, his red eyes showing no emotional fluctuation.
When the three upperclassmen saw Naoki appear, their arrogance diminished significantly.
After all, the commotion Naoki caused at the entrance ceremony was too great; that soaring fire (though explained away as water vapor) had left a deep impression on everyone.
“Oh, the main attraction is here?” the Inuzuka leader said, acting tough to hide his fear.
“Senju Naoki, your underling has quite a foul mouth.”
Naoki ignored him, his gaze falling on Jiraiya, who was lying on the ground.
Seeing Naoki, Jiraiya’s eyes instantly lit up as if he’d seen a savior.
He shouted excitedly, “Boss!
You’re here!
Quick!
Teach them a lesson!”
Naoki sighed inwardly.
“What a handful.”
He looked away and turned to the Inuzuka boy, saying flatly, “Let him go.”
His voice wasn’t loud, but it carried an unquestionable tone of command.
Infuriated by this attitude, the Inuzuka boy sneered, “And if I don’t?
What are you going to do?
Fight me?
Let me remind you, this is school; you’re not allowed to use those messy Ninjutsu of yours!”
He believed Naoki’s strength came entirely from that peculiar “Fire Release.” As long as Naoki was restricted from using Ninjutsu, he had nothing to fear. Follow the newest chapters on g.com.
“Exactly!
If you’ve got the guts, settle this with Taijutsu!”
“Don’t think we’re afraid of you just because you’re the Hokage’s grandson!”
The other two lackey also started clamoring.
Tsunade was fuming on the sidelines.
Just as she was about to rush forward to stand up for Naoki, he reached out and stopped her.
“Tsunade, just watch,” Naoki said softly.
Then, he took two steps forward, looking at the Inuzuka boy stepping on Jiraiya, and tilted his head slightly.
“Taijutsu?”
He looked as if he had heard something amusing.
“Fine.”
He calmly uttered two words.
“However, if I win, then what?”
Seeing him agree, the Inuzuka boy was overjoyed, as if he could already see victory.
“If you lose in Taijutsu, you have to steer clear of the three of us whenever you see us!”.
“And if you lose?” Naoki countered.
“I lose?” The Inuzuka boy acted as if he’d heard the funniest joke in the world.
“Hahahaha!
If I lose to a brat who hasn’t even been weaned yet, I’ll…
I’ll bark like a dog three times in front of everyone and then crawl a lap around the training field!”
“Fine.”
Naoki nodded, accepting the bet.
He turned to Jiraiya on the ground and said, “Get up and move to the side.”
Jiraiya struggled to his feet and was helped aside by Tsunade.
He looked at Naoki with worry in his eyes.
“Boss, can…
can you handle this?
They’re upperclassmen, their Taijutsu is very strong!”
Naoki didn’t answer him.
He just loosened his wrists and ankles, making a faint cracking sound.
Then, he looked up at the three boys who had already taken their stances.
On his usually expressionless face, the corners of his mouth seemed to curl up slightly into a tiny arc.
It was the expression of someone who had found an interesting toy.
“Come.”
He said indifferently.
“Let me see your Caliber.”
…..