I Have a Plan!
7: Chapter 7: Wait!
I Have a Plan!
Chapter 7: Wait!
I Have a Plan!
Once the morning’s theory classes wrapped up, it was time for the weapon tool throwing class that Hanekawa had been eagerly anticipating.
Under Yamamoto-sensei’s guidance, the students filed out onto the training field.
The weapon throwing curriculum was split into two halves.
The first half consisted of Yamamoto-sensei explaining the core mechanics, while the second half was dedicated to hands-on practice.
Hanekawa listened with absolute concentration.
After all, this directly impacted how quickly he could secure his next trait.
In stark contrast sat Asuma Sarutobi.
Long before even enrolling, he had already mastered the basic fundamentals of weapon throwing.
Being the Hokage’s son, he had access to elite private tutors, specifically Special Jonin.
Aside from Hatake Kakashi, he was entirely confident he could crush any other student in the class.
But…
Asuma glared at Hanekawa and Kurenai Yuhi, a look of bitter frustration washing over his face.
Why?
I was clearly the one who met her first!
Asuma was practically burning with jealousy.
In the past, Kurenai always stood next to him, but today she was glued to Hanekawa’s side.
Wait!
I have an idea!
Asuma suddenly thought of a way to win Kurenai back.
It was remarkably simple: wouldn’t everything be resolved if he just completely dominated Hanekawa in a fight?
In the shinobi world, the ultimate golden rule was that might makes right.
Besides, the gap between himself and Hanekawa was massive.
It was a guaranteed victory.
“Alright, let’s begin our target practice,” Yamamoto-sensei announced, setting up a neat row of wooden posts.
“If I see any flaws in your form, I’ll call them out.” “Sensei, let me go first!” Asuma raised his chin, shouting confidently.
Finishing his sentence, he shot Kurenai a look that clearly screamed ‘Watch me perform.’ Hanekawa was instantly reminded of a strutting rooster.
Asuma was currently operating entirely on a surge of raw prepubescent hormones.
Unfortunately, Kurenai completely failed to read the room, offering him nothing but a look of sheer confusion.
Thud, thud, thud.
With a sleek, fluid flick of his wrist, Asuma sent three kunai sailing through the air, all landing dead center in the bullseye.
He whipped around, a smug smirk directed straight at Hanekawa, only to freeze instantly.
Kurenai had her head lowered, quietly whispering tips into Hanekawa’s ear.
“Excellent job!” Yamamoto-sensei led the applause.
Yet, Asuma couldn’t find it in himself to celebrate at all.
The excitement belonged entirely to them; he had absolutely nothing.
Was there a structural flaw in his strategy?
There was no way.
“Thanks, Kurenai,” Hanekawa said after listening to her private crash course.
As for Asuma’s perfect score, nobody in the class was particularly surprised.
After all, he was the Hokage’s son.
Hanekawa picked a nearby wooden post.
Aligning his posture with the techniques Kurenai had just passed on, he hurled his kunai.
The blade struck the wood, but it was a considerable distance away from the bullseye.
“That’s it?” Asuma, who had been hyper-focusing on him, couldn’t help but scoff.
“Keep at it!
You’ve got this!” Kurenai cheered, pumping a tiny fist.
“…” Seeing this, Asuma felt a vein practically pop on his forehead.
Seriously, what gives?
Bro, I can barely breathe right now.
By the end of the class, Hanekawa’s trait progress bar had successfully surged to 10%.
The E-Rank Weapon Tool Throwing trait only required introductory proficiency in basic projectiles, so it wasn’t overly demanding.
“Kakashi!
Face me in a battle of youth!” A green blur practically streaked past Hanekawa’s eyes.
He instinctively looked up and spotted Might Guy.
In the original timeline, this was the absolute madman of a powerhouse who almost kicked the series to a premature finale using the Eight Inner Gates.
His personality and antics were just incredibly eccentric.
“Next time, definitely,” Kakashi said, instantly using a Body Flicker Jutsu to vanish from the spot.
Ever since they enrolled, Guy had been relentlessly stalking Kakashi after witnessing the white-haired prodigy’s overwhelming prowess.
Early on, Kakashi had actually entertained him for a few rounds.
But Guy was like an indestructible cockroach—bursting with endless passion every single day, constantly finding new ways to challenge him to a duel.
Who could possibly tolerate that?
“What incredible speed!” Guy’s eyes sparkled as a massive grin broke across his face.
“As expected of my eternal rival!” Watching the classic cat-and-mouse chase, Hanekawa was reminded of his own physical conditioning plans.
But following Guy’s training routine was out of the question.
He wouldn’t be able to take it—mentally or physically.
For Guy to push the Eight Gates to their absolute limit, his innate talent for Taijutsu had to be second to none in the entire shinobi world.
If Hanekawa tried to match that level of self-destruction, Kurenai would be organizing his funeral within a week.
“Hanekawa!” Asuma suddenly blocked Hanekawa’s path.
“I challenge you to a duel!” Guy’s antics had just given him the perfect inspiration.
“Asuma,” Kurenai said, her face dropping into a scowl.
“Aren’t you just picking on him?” She used to have a decent impression of Asuma, but right now she just found him incredibly obnoxious.
Hanekawa had barely been exposed to shinobi training for two days; he was functionally no different from an ordinary civilian.
“I…
I didn’t mean it like that!” Asuma realized he had messed up and quickly tried to salvage the situation.
“We can hold the duel at the end of the term!” He was completely blinded by his childhood crush.
Asuma was actually a decent guy in the original series, but right now he was just throwing a classic rebellious tantrum.
Then again, you couldn’t blame him entirely; kids always act without thinking.
As for this sudden duel challenge, it actually couldn’t have come at a better time.
He had just unlocked a literal cheat system—was he supposed to swallow his pride?
Besides, Asuma was a fantastic litmus test, a perfect baseline measurement for a standard genius.
“Deal,” Hanekawa agreed.
The end of the term meant he still had roughly three months.
If he possessed a system and still couldn’t beat a six-year-old Asuma after three months, he might as well just run face-first into Tsunade and call it a day.
Kurenai opened her mouth to argue but hesitated, a look of genuine worry clouding her face.
“Perfect!” Asuma cheered, instantly thrilled.
He completely failed to notice that Kurenai’s opinion of him had just taken a nosedive.
With a concrete deadline set for the duel, Hanekawa felt a fresh surge of motivation.
The moment he returned home and finished dinner, he immediately sprinted out to the backyard woods to resume his training.
Late into the night, Hanekawa took a shower and collapsed onto his bed, pulling up the system interface.
After an entire evening of continuous practice, Weapon Tool Throwing had climbed by another 5%.
At this rate, it would take roughly a week to officially secure the trait.
But looking at the big picture, his current arsenal of traits was far too barren.
Hanekawa resolved to wake up early tomorrow morning to kickstart his physical conditioning, prioritizing unlocking a physical trait above all else.
Having a visible progress bar always made grinding much more satisfying.
Aside from conditioning, he also needed to tackle the standard Three Academy Jutsu and basic chakra control exercises.
Mulling over his blueprints for the future, Hanekawa drifted into a deep, exhausted sleep.
“Hanekawa…
Hanekawa…” In the dead silence of the night, a faint, eerie whisper suddenly echoed through the room.
Hanekawa snapped upright, vigorously rubbing his eyes.
What the hell?
It’s the middle of the night, who’s casting a summoning chant outside my window?
Right then, the whispering abruptly stopped.
“…?” Hanekawa instinctively cast his gaze out the window.
Under the pale moonlight, a highly refined strand of chakra trace out a neat line of text: Sunday morning at 9:00 AM.
Meet at the Konoha Archives Bookstore.
The text lingered for a mere few seconds before the chakra gradually dispersed into nothingness.
Hanekawa’s heart violently jolted.
That was a Kumogakure operative contacting me!
The spy-to-spy rendezvous is finally happening?
Though…
meeting at a bookstore instead of a desolate rooftop feels slightly off script.
He couldn’t help but wonder which Kumo shinobi was acting as his handler.
When it came to Kumogakure, the things that stood out most vividly in his memory were the legendary, omnipresent Raikage from the fan communities and the stunning, heavily-endowed Samui.