Tanya completely ignored Kakashi’s words.
Her expression remained calm, but inwardly, alarm bells were already ringing.
Her small fingers unconsciously rubbed against the cuffs of her sleeves as a growing sense of unease settled in her chest.
This is bad.
That unfathomable man has noticed me.
Even in a village filled with shinobi, Hatake Kakashi was hardly ordinary.
The silver-haired child was already displaying talent far beyond his peers.
For someone like him to pay attention to her was the last thing Tanya wanted.
Before she could dwell on it further, two figures sprinted past her.
One tall.
One short.
Their footsteps struck the ground with practiced rhythm, carrying an energy that was difficult to ignore.
Tanya quickly composed herself and silently followed after them.
“Kid!” Might Dai laughed loudly, his voice carrying across the training field.
“I didn’t expect you to join us for taijutsu training!
This is youth, Guy!”
He slapped his thigh and flashed a brilliant thumbs-up.
Might Guy’s eyes immediately lit up.
“That’s right, Father!” he exclaimed.
“Youth is about giving everything you’ve got!
She truly understands the spirit of youth!”
Tanya stared at the father and son.
Both radiated enough passion to illuminate half of Konoha.
The corner of her eye twitched.
She still couldn’t adapt to this level of hot-blooded enthusiasm.
Neither Dai nor Guy seemed bothered by her silence.
To them, anyone willing to step onto the training ground and challenge themselves was already a companion walking the path of youth.
Might Guy grinned and patted her shoulder.
The force nearly knocked her off balance.
“Come on, kid!
Keep up with us!
Let’s burn with youth together!”
Tanya had never intended to begin physical training this early.
According to her understanding, excessive training placed tremendous strain on a child’s developing body.
A proper balance between exercise, nutrition, and recovery was far more efficient than reckless overexertion.
Unfortunately, reality had forced her to reconsider.
Over the past several days, she had watched Guy’s routine with growing disbelief.
The boy woke before dawn every day.
He ran laps around Konoha until sunset.
After dinner, he resumed training without hesitation.
Rain.
Wind.
Scorching heat.
Nothing interrupted the routine.
The frightening part wasn’t the effort.
It was that Guy actually endured it.
His stamina was absurd.
His determination bordered on obsession.
Every time Tanya saw him training, the pressure in her heart grew heavier.
She intended to conceal her true nature and abilities.
However, concealment only had value if she possessed enough strength to protect herself when things went wrong.
This world wasn’t the civilized Empire she once knew.
It was a world ruled by violence.
A world where children were trained to kill.
Without strength, a person was no different from a stray dog wandering the streets, surviving only through the whims of others.
That was a fate Tanya absolutely refused to accept.
“This is youth!” Dai roared.
“Youth never ends!
Guy, fifty more laps!”
Before he even finished speaking, he exploded forward.
“Yes, Father!”
Guy immediately followed.
“Youth burns eternally!
I will definitely keep up with Father’s pace!”
Tanya clenched her teeth and started running.
One lap.
Two laps.
Three laps.
At first, she managed to keep pace.
Then her breathing began to quicken.
Her legs grew heavier with each stride.
Her lungs burned.
Her chest felt as though an invisible boulder had been placed on top of it.
Still she continued.
Five laps.
Ten laps.
More.
Far more.
By the time she lost count, sweat was pouring down her face.
Her clothes clung to her body.
Every breath felt like inhaling fire.
Yet when she looked ahead—
Dai and Guy were still running.
Still shouting about youth.
Still looking energetic enough to continue until sunrise.
Not a hint of exhaustion could be seen on either face.
Tanya nearly cursed aloud.
What kind of monsters are these people?
Do they not understand the concept of fatigue?
Her vision gradually blurred.
The world swayed slightly.
Her legs felt as heavy as iron.
Each step became a battle of willpower.
She forced herself through two more laps.
Then her body finally reached its limit.
Her knees buckled.
She collapsed onto the grass with a dull thud.
The sky stretched above her.
Blue.
Endless.
Beautiful.
And completely irrelevant.
“Haa…
haa…”
Heavy breathing filled her ears.
Every muscle in her body ached.
Even lifting a finger felt difficult.
Just a moment.
I’ll rest for just a moment…
Her eyelids closed.
Darkness claimed her almost instantly.
When Tanya opened her eyes again, a familiar voice entered her ears.
She jolted upright.
The sky was already dark.
Stars glittered overhead.
For a brief second, confusion flashed across her face.
Then realization struck.
“Oh no!”
Panic immediately filled her expression.
“I’m going to miss dinner!”
She instinctively tried to stand.
The result was immediate.
Pain exploded through her exhausted muscles.
Her body felt as though it had been beaten with clubs.
“You’ve finally woken up.”
Might Dai sat nearby, smiling warmly.
“Don’t worry.
The orphanage director came looking for you earlier.
When he saw you sleeping so soundly, he decided not to wake you.”
As he spoke, he handed over a piece of freshly roasted meat.
The golden-brown surface glistened with fat.
A rich aroma instantly filled the air.
Tanya’s stomach growled.
Without hesitation, she accepted it.
“Thank you.”
Then she devoured it.
First, because she was starving.
Second, because she understood exactly how valuable food like this was.
Maintaining the kind of training regimen practiced by the Might family required enormous nutritional support.
The Third Shinobi War had only recently ended.
Many civilian families still struggled to secure regular meals.
Yet Dai and Guy trained relentlessly every single day.
Without sufficient food, such a lifestyle would have been impossible.
As Tanya ate, Dai suddenly turned toward his son.
His tone became noticeably more serious.
“Guy.”
“Yes, Father?”
“Taijutsu training is important, but you cannot neglect ninjutsu.
You’ll be entering the Academy in a few years.
If you still haven’t learned even one ninjutsu by then, things could become difficult.”
Guy immediately straightened his back.
Determination burned within his eyes.
“Yes, Father!”
His fists clenched tightly.
“I will definitely practice ninjutsu diligently!
I won’t let you down!”
Tanya froze.
The piece of meat in her hand stopped halfway to her mouth.
A crucial piece of information had just entered her ears.
She slowly looked up.
Oil still stained her cheeks.
“To enter the Ninja Academy…”
A hint of urgency slipped into her voice.
“Do I need to know ninjutsu beforehand?”
Guy nodded confidently.
“Of course.”
His answer came without hesitation.
“If you don’t know any ninjutsu at all before enrollment, getting into the Academy would be extremely difficult.”
Tanya’s eyes widened.
Disbelief flooded her face.
Ninjutsu scrolls were expensive.
Painfully expensive.
Even she understood that much.
Which meant something extremely troubling.
The shinobi profession was effectively controlled by those with resources.
Families possessing shinobi backgrounds could pass techniques to their children.
Ordinary civilians possessed no such advantages.
Without access to instruction, how could they learn ninjutsu?
Without ninjutsu, how could they enter the Academy?
The logic formed a vicious cycle.
Her grip tightened.
In her previous life, society had been unequal.
This world was worse.
Far worse.
At least in the Empire, talent and education offered opportunities for advancement.
Here, birth determined everything.
Those born into shinobi clans inherited power.
Those born without it struggled simply to reach the starting line.
And for civilians caught in the chaos of the shinobi world, the future was grim.
War.
Bandits.
Mission collateral.
A single conflict between shinobi could erase countless ordinary lives.
She refused to entrust her survival to chance.
This feeling…
She hated it.
A surge of anger rose within her chest.
For a moment, she almost laughed.
A bitter laugh.
How absurd.
Even the simple bureaucratic career she had once envisioned now seemed completely out of reach.
But Tanya quickly regained control.
Emotion solved nothing.
Information did.
Suppressing the turmoil in her heart, she carefully looked toward Might Dai.
A final sliver of hope remained.
“If it’s an orphan…” she asked cautiously.
“Wouldn’t the village provide someone to teach basic ninjutsu or chakra extraction techniques?”
Her eyes remained fixed on Dai.
Her fingers unconsciously tightened.
Even her breathing became slightly uneven.
For several seconds, Dai simply looked at her.
Then, under Tanya’s increasingly rigid gaze—
He slowly shook his head.
Tanya lowered her head.
The shadows concealed the gloom gathering within her eyes.
It seemed that a peaceful clerical career was out of the question.