Haruto scratched his head with an innocent look on his face.
“Hey, I was just copying what I saw. How was I supposed to know it’d make such a huge commotion?”
At that moment, Guy, who had mostly been standing around as background decoration, finally walked over.
His eyes were wide as saucers as he stared at the massive trench carved into the mountainside.
“That destructive power… that’s definitely B-rank, maybe even higher!”
“Haruto, this is the power of youth!”
“Kakashi really knows how to teach.”
“At this rate, Konoha might produce an incredible figure in the future.”
Guy had completely given up on the idea of taking Haruto as a disciple.
A ninjutsu genius like this simply shouldn’t be wasted on pure taijutsu.
Haruto smiled modestly.
“Guy-sensei, you’re giving me too much credit.”
But Guy shook his head seriously and gave him a thumbs-up.
“No, I’m serious. Your talent makes my blood boil with excitement!”
After learning two new techniques, night had fully fallen.
The mountain breeze carried a slight chill.
Kakashi glanced up at the moon.
“Let’s call it a day. I’ve got a mission outside the village tomorrow.”
Guy flashed his trademark gleaming smile.
“What a coincidence. I’ve got work too.”
“Haruto, if you ever want to work on your taijutsu, come find me anytime. That’s my specialty.”
Haruto nodded gratefully.
“I definitely will, Guy-sensei.”
Though he had no intention of becoming a taijutsu specialist, learning a few extra survival skills could never hurt.
After all, if his chakra ever ran dry, good taijutsu could still keep him alive.
After returning home, mentally and physically exhausted, Haruto collapsed into bed and slept soundly through the night.
The next morning, Haruto entered the classroom as usual.
Ignoring the noisy chatter around him, he headed straight for his corner seat and sat down quietly, as though an invisible barrier surrounded him.
Just as he was about to pull out his textbook and begin reviewing, a pretty figure suddenly blocked the light.
Ino plopped herself down in the chair in front of him, propping her chin on both hands as she looked at him with amusement.
Without even raising his eyelids, Haruto asked flatly,
“What do you want?”
Ino leaned closer and lowered her voice.
“I saw it, you know. Your little secret.”
Haruto’s expression didn’t change.
“Oh.”
The indifferent response completely caught Ino off guard.
Her eyes widened.
“Hey! Aren’t you worried I’ll tell Iruka-sensei?”
“You deliberately lost to Hinata during the sparring test. That’s cheating!”
Haruto chuckled softly and was just about to respond when the class bell rang.
Ino puffed out her cheeks in frustration.
She’d come prepared to use this as leverage, but this guy acted like a dead pig that wasn’t afraid of boiling water.
When Iruka entered carrying his lesson plans, Ino’s eyes darted around before she simply occupied the empty seat beside Haruto and refused to move.
Taking advantage of a moment when Iruka turned around to write on the blackboard, she leaned in again.
“You’re not even curious how I found out?”
Flipping through his book, Haruto answered casually,
“I sensed a little mouse lurking nearby that day. I just couldn’t be bothered to deal with it.”
Ino froze for a second before realizing she’d been insulted.
Her brows shot up.
“Who are you calling a mouse?!”
“Believe it or not, I can raise my hand and expose you right now!”
A confident smile tugged at Haruto’s lips.
“You won’t.”
Ino bit her lip and glared at him.
“And why are you so sure?”
Turning slightly, Haruto looked at her with a faint smile.
“If you really wanted to tell on me, you’d have shouted it to the entire school already. You wouldn’t wait until now to whisper about it.”
“You…”
Ino felt like she’d punched a cotton pillow.
The helplessness nearly drove her crazy.
Ever since witnessing what happened yesterday, she’d become intensely curious about this usually invisible classmate.
Before, she’d only had eyes for Sasuke.
Now she’d suddenly discovered that a hidden dragon had been lurking in the corner of the classroom all along.
In fact, her instincts told her Haruto might even be stronger than Sasuke.
Thinking back to the shuriken test—
The first four kunai had struck the bullseye perfectly.
The fifth had somehow missed by a ridiculous margin.
Looking back now, it had clearly been an act.
Combined with the frightening display she witnessed yesterday, there was no way someone like him could lose to a timid girl like Hinata.
Ino was now completely convinced.
Haruto was a hidden monster pretending to be ordinary.
“Hey, why do you keep hiding your strength?”
Her curiosity was about to explode.
But Haruto had already entered full honor-student mode.
His eyes remained fixed on the blackboard as he listened attentively, treating her as if she didn’t exist.
Ino ground her teeth in frustration.
She wanted nothing more than to bite him.
On the other side of the classroom, Hinata kept sneaking glances in their direction.
Her cheeks were bright red as she nervously poked her fingers together.
“What are Haruto and Ino talking about…? I really want to know…”
“Could Ino be threatening Haruto? W-Wah… it’s all my fault for causing trouble…”
What worried Hinata wasn’t Ino stealing Haruto away.
She was afraid Ino’s loud mouth would reveal what happened yesterday and put Haruto in a difficult position.
As a result, Hinata spent the entire class sitting on pins and needles.
Her soul practically drifted over to Haruto’s desk.
Meanwhile, Haruto remained as calm as a mountain.
No matter how much Ino buzzed beside him like an annoying fly, he didn’t react.
Finally, class ended.
Summoning all her courage, Hinata shuffled over to Haruto’s desk with tiny steps, her head lowered almost to her chest.
“Y-Haruto… I’m sorry…”
“About yesterday… it was all because of me…”
Looking at the girl who resembled a frightened little rabbit that thought she’d done something wrong, Haruto’s heart softened.
Smiling gently, he said,
“It wasn’t a big deal.”
“Ino just talks a lot. She won’t actually tell anyone.”
“More importantly, you need to stand up for yourself more. You’re clearly talented, so why be so insecure?”
Encouraged by his words, Hinata’s face turned even redder.
She nodded softly.
“Mhm…”
“Um… Haruto… can you tell me where you go every day after school?”
“You always seem so busy…”
The moment she asked, Ino’s ears perked up.
“Yeah! Exactly!”
“You’re always acting mysterious. You’re definitely up to something shady!”
Looking at the two curious girls on either side of him, Haruto spread his hands helplessly.
“It’s a man’s secret.”
“Not suitable for children.”
“Anyway, I’m not out committing murder or arson.”
Hinata obediently nodded.
“Oh…”
She didn’t press further.
Ino, however, wasn’t satisfied.
“Hmph. Acting all mysterious.”
“I’ll uncover all your secrets sooner or later!”
Haruto gave her a look reserved for idiots.
“You?”
“Forget it. Save your energy and eat a couple more bowls of rice.”
That wasn’t boasting.
With his current Body Flicker Technique proficiency, once he slipped into an alley after leaving school, even a chūnin might have trouble catching him.
These two rookies had no chance.
Ino nearly choked on her frustration.
“Stop looking down on me!”
“I’m amazing!”
Haruto responded with a gaze full of pity and turned back to his book.
Ino stomped her foot angrily.
She felt thoroughly insulted.
Eventually, school ended.
Since Kakashi was away and there was no training today, Haruto packed his things far more slowly than usual.
He had barely left the academy grounds when hurried footsteps sounded behind him.
Ino stuck to him like chewing gum.
“Hey! Why aren’t you running off today?”
“Feeling guilty or something?”
Hinata followed quietly on the other side, tugging gently at Ino’s sleeve.
“Ino… don’t say that about Haruto…”
With both hands in his pockets, Haruto continued walking without looking at them.
“If you’re not using that mouth, you should donate it to someone who needs one.”
“You’re really noisy.”
Ino rolled her eyes.
“Hmph. Guess I hit a nerve.”
Haruto ignored her and kept walking.
Since he wasn’t heading to the training grounds today, he planned to go straight home and study his scrolls.
Thus, the three formed a strange little group as they headed west.
About fifteen minutes later, they reached a small grove that lay along the route.
Suddenly, Haruto stopped.
His eyes narrowed.
With lightning speed, he grabbed Hinata’s wrist.
“Stop.”
Ino continued walking several steps before realizing no one was following.
She turned around in confusion.
“Why’d you stop all of a sudden?”
“See a ghost or something?”
Haruto’s expression turned serious as he stared into the dark woods ahead.
“If you don’t want to die, shut up.”
“There’s an ambush in the grove.”
Feeling the warmth of his hand around her wrist, Hinata’s heart pounded wildly.
But hearing the warning, she immediately nodded nervously.
“Okay!”
Ino, meanwhile, looked utterly bewildered.
“Huh?”
“Where?”
“If you don’t want to talk to me, don’t make up ghost stories to scare people.”
“It’s just a grove inside the village. Isn’t it normal for people to be walking around there?”
As a flower raised in a greenhouse, Ino clearly hadn’t grasped the seriousness of the situation.
But Haruto had already sensed a chakra signature filled with undisguised malice.
It was unfamiliar and carried a thug-like aura.
Definitely not a regular Konoha patrol ninja.
A little thought was all it took to guess the truth.
Most likely, the punks he’d beaten up yesterday had hired reinforcements.
“Watch out!”
Before she could react, a blur flashed before her eyes.
Haruto appeared in front of her like a ghost.
A black kunai had somehow materialized in his hand.
Clang!
Sparks flew.
A stone that had been launched toward them was knocked away with perfect precision.
Startled by the metallic impact, Ino jumped in fright.
“W-What just happened?”
She hadn’t even seen Haruto move.
Without turning around, Haruto barked,
“Hinata! Activate your Byakugan!”
“Check the ten o’clock direction!”
At that moment, Haruto radiated an overwhelming authority that allowed no objections.
Instinctively obeying, Hinata formed a hand seal.
“Byakugan!”
Veins bulged around her eyes.
As her vision shifted into black and white, she gasped.
“There are two people hiding behind the trees!”
“Judging from their chakra flow… they’re ninja!”
“At least genin-level!”
Ino’s face immediately turned pale.
“N-Ninja?”
“Why would ninja attack us?”
“Haruto! Let’s run! We should get the police force!”
In her mind, academy students facing real ninja was like chicks facing hawks.
A hopeless battle.
But Haruto simply twirled the kunai in his hand.
His voice turned icy.
“You can avoid trouble once.”
“You can’t avoid it forever.”
“If they’re coming after me, I’d rather hurt them badly enough that they never come back.”
Ino stared at him in disbelief.
“Are you crazy?!”
“Those are actual ninja!”
A cold, almost bloodthirsty smile appeared on Haruto’s face.
His eyes blazed with fighting spirit.
“So what if they’re ninja?”
“So am I.”
The instant the words left his mouth, he shot into the darkness of the grove like an arrow released from a bow.
“Oh, for heaven’s sake!”
“These two are insane!”
Ino stamped her foot anxiously.
But seeing Hinata charge after him without hesitation, she clenched her teeth and followed as well.
Deep inside the grove—
Using his powerful sensory abilities, Haruto instantly locked onto the two lurking figures.
“Come out.”
“Stop hiding.”
“If you’ve taken money from those worthless punks, don’t act like turtles hiding in their shells.”
“You’re Konoha ninja, yet you’ve stooped to bullying academy students.”
“If this reaches the Hokage Tower, you might lose those forehead protectors.”
The two genin hiding behind the trees stiffened.
After exchanging annoyed looks, they abandoned concealment and stepped out openly.
Both appeared around fifteen or sixteen years old.
Their expressions screamed delinquent.
One of them casually tossed a kunai into the air and sneered.
“Well, well. The brat’s got a sharp tongue.”
“You think village regulations scare us?”
“Nobody comes to this grove.”
“We can beat you half to death and threaten you afterward. Who’s going to report us?”
“If you’re smart, kneel down and kowtow.”
“Otherwise you’ll be crying soon enough.”
These two were the type destined to remain genin forever.
They didn’t have the guts to kill anyone.
But terrifying a few academy kids?
That was easy.
Unfortunately for them, Haruto’s next words struck directly at their sore spot.
“Make me cry?”
He looked them up and down with blatant disgust.
“Judging by those wrinkles, you’re what? Sixteen already?”
“And you’re still genin?”
“If I ended up like you, I’d smash my head into a block of tofu out of shame.”
The taunt was like a knife twisting in their hearts.
For untalented older genin, rank was their eternal pain.
“You little bastard!”
“You’re dead!”
Their faces twisted with rage.
The last traces of reason vanished.
“I’m tearing that mouth off your face!”
Roaring, they charged forward with kunai in hand.
Haruto’s eyes filled with contempt.
“Perfect.”
“I’ll use you two losers to test my current strength.”
Whoosh!
Before the words had fully left his mouth—
Haruto vanished from sight.