Well, this was novel.
In his previous life, his stellar grades had earned him the reputation of a model student throughout his school years.
Whenever an issue arose, teachers stepped in to resolve it immediately.
Forget schoolyard bullying—even the faintest spark of a teenage romance would be ruthlessly snuffed out before it could even begin.
To think that after reincarnating into a new life, he would actually run into this kind of situation.
It was so absurd it was almost comical.
Aoba slowly rose to his feet.
Only then did the chubby boy and his lackeys realize just how tall Aoba actually was—a full head taller than any of them.
With Shinku Yuhi looking out for him, Aoba received his full orphan pension.
Consequently, he had never skimped on his nutrition.
Combined with the analyses provided by his auxiliary chip, a scientific diet, and regular sleeping habits, his focus had been entirely on healthy physical development.
To that end, he hadn’t actively refined chakra, keeping his reserves at a minimal level and relying solely on natural physical growth.
Because of this, he was taller than most children his age, standing taller even than Raido Namiashi, who was a year older than him.
Staring up at Aoba Yamashiro looming over him, the chubby kid instinctively took a step back.
Then he remembered that this guy had only made it into the Academy via the supplementary roster, whereas his own entrance score had ranked in the top twenty.
How could a dead-last reject possibly compare to him?
Catching a glimpse of their classmates watching the commotion from the corner of his eye, he puffed out his chest, tilted his chin up, and swaggered forward.
“Aren’t you supposed to be a master chef?
Hand over that bento so I can test if it’s actually any good.”
With that, the chubby boy reached out his hand.
*Smack!
Slam!*
Before anyone could even register what had happened, both boys vanished from where they stood.
Aoba stood with one hand casually shoved into his pocket, his other elbow pinning the chubby boy firmly against the classroom wall.
“You dare pick a fight without even knowing your opponent’s strength?”
“Who gave you the nerve?!”
“Y-You gotta be kidding me…
With this kind of strength, how did you end up on the supplementary list?!” the chubby boy stammered, eyes wide with sheer disbelief.
“Oh, the supplementary list?
I see now.”
Aoba had an epiphany—the kid had assumed he was an easy target.
A smirk played on his lips.
“I didn’t take the entrance exam, so that was the only way for me to get in.”
“After all, what kind of respectable ninja takes exams when you can just get scouted through special recruitment?!”
The onlookers stood dumbfounded.
“Damn it!
This guy is even more arrogant than Kakashi!”
Aoba paid no mind to their reactions.
Keeping a low profile didn’t mean letting people walk all over him.
As a great man once said: *Deliver one solid punch, and you spare yourself a hundred more.*
If he didn’t demonstrate some real ability, every random nobody would try stepping on him down the road.
Waiting until he was pushed past his limit to finally lash out and show off his strength?
That was just pure stupidity.
Slowly releasing his grip, Aoba turned his gaze toward the other boys.
“Also, never underestimate anyone.
A shinobi’s life is full of variables.
It’s not unheard of for a genin to kill a jonin in a shinobi war.”
“Consider this a friendly word of advice from a fellow classmate.”
“Y-Yes…
T-Thank you…”
The boys scrambled to help the chubby kid to his feet and scurried off in disgrace.
Returning to his seat, Aoba was met with Kurenai’s wide, sparkling eyes looking up at him with utter adoration.
“Aoba, that move just now was so cool!
What jutsu was that?”
“Just a basic E-rank Body Flicker Technique.
The teacher will cover it eventually.
If you want to learn, I can teach you when we get home.”
Aoba smiled and waved his hand dismissively, then nudged her to hurry up and eat before the bento went cold.
Compared to Aoba’s display of the Body Flicker Technique, everyone else was far more stunned by the revelation of his recruitment.
Aoba hadn’t even taken the exam; he’d been specially scouted.
Naturally, being handpicked by the Hokage himself proved how formidable Aoba truly was.
Some even began whispering that Aoba might be stronger than Kakashi.
Many students from shinobi clans agreed with Aoba’s sentiment.
Before starting school, their elders had drummed it into their heads: once they stepped through the Academy doors, they were shinobi, and a shinobi must never underestimate anyone.
The ninja world was indeed fraught with unpredictability.
*No, that was no ordinary Body Flicker,* Kakashi mused, observing from the sidelines with a sharper eye than the rest.
A standard Body Flicker Technique gathered chakra at the soles of the feet to trigger an explosive burst of acceleration.
The immense recoil invariably left deep footprints, and on soft earth, it could even blast a crater into the ground.
Yet Aoba’s movement had left no such signature footprint.
It hadn’t relied on a simple burst of chakra at all; it looked far more like pure, unadulterated physical speed.
Of course, completely indifferent to the commotion he had caused, Aoba simply enjoyed his meal.
Eat well, live well.
The afternoon taijutsu class proved far less tedious.
Basic taijutsu conditioning methods were demonstrated, though most students remained unenthusiastic.
Those who made it into the elite class were either clan scions or had experienced shinobi relatives at home.
Foundational exercises like these had been drilled into them long ago.
One boy, however, was exceptionally fired up: Might Guy.
While everyone else went through the motions with half-hearted indifference, Guy acted like he’d been injected with pure adrenaline.
If the instructor did one rep, Guy did ten, frequently tacking on extra sets just for good measure.
Yet his zeal wasn’t without merit.
Once they pushed past the initial secondhand embarrassment, the other students gradually began to respect him.
Having also been slipped into the class via the supplementary list by the Hokage, Guy’s capabilities naturally drew their curiosity.
However, unlike Aoba’s special recruitment, Guy had been cut during the initial evaluations due to his dreadful aptitude for ninjutsu and genjutsu—a fact well known among the students.
Because Guy had scored a perfect mark on the taijutsu assessment alongside Kakashi, he had garnered considerable attention back then.
Still, everyone knew that lacking talent in ninjutsu and genjutsu practically doomed a person’s prospects as a ninja.
So why had Guy not only entered the Academy, but been placed in the elite class?
With Aoba setting such a shining precedent, the class naturally assumed Guy possessed some hidden genius recognized by the Hokage as well.
An hour later, they understood exactly why Guy belonged in Class 1.
His stamina was monstrous, as if fatigue simply didn’t exist for him.
Even when the taijutsu instructor called for a break, Guy kept pushing himself alone.
The entire afternoon taijutsu session essentially turned into Might Guy’s one-man show, leaving the instructor completely at a loss for words.
Spurred by Guy hogging the spotlight, several competitive students had initially tried to keep pace with him.
Within forty minutes, every single one of them had collapsed in exhaustion.
Even Aoba threw in the towel after roughly sixty laps.
Guy, meanwhile, not only lapped everyone repeatedly, but was shouting words of encouragement without so much as losing his breath.
At last, the class understood why Might Guy, another supplementary entrant, had been placed alongside Aoba in the elite class.
…
The Academy bell chimed.
“All right, class dismissed!”
At the instructor’s announcement, a collective cheer went up.
School was finally over for the day.
Turning around, however, they saw that familiar green figure heading straight back to the training ground to resume his conditioning, prompting more than a few muttered curses of “freak” under their breath.
Aoba cast a glance at the green figure, then gestured for Kurenai to head home with him.
The Eight Inner Gates were undeniably terrifying, but that wasn’t his path.
He relied on his brain to get by.