The Blood-Red Pepper’s Fury

The teacher frowned. "What's so funny? Care to share with the class?"

Faced with the math teacher's questioning, Kushina's forehead was covered in cold sweat. She hesitated for a long time, unable to come up with an excuse.

Liuyun watched the scene unfold, struggling to hold back his laughter. His eyes were filled with amusement.

Kushina caught a glimpse of Liuyun's gloating expression. The next moment, her eyebrows twitched, and she suddenly pointed at him, loudly declaring, "Teacher, Liuyun was making faces at me to make me laugh!"

"???!!!"

Liuyun's smile froze. His face darkened, and he hurriedly defended himself, "I didn't! I wasn't!"

"You two, out of the classroom! Stand at the back and listen to the lesson from there!" The math teacher didn't bother arguing and directly sent both of them to the back of the room as punishment.

"Damn you, tomato! You framed me!" Liuyun cursed in a low voice as he walked to the back.

"Hmph! It's your fault, you little bastard…" Kushina retorted in a hushed voice.

"Did I make you laugh?" Liuyun glared at her. How was it his fault that she had such a weak sense of humor?

"Well, why did you laugh when the teacher caught me, huh? If I have to suffer, you're coming with me…" Kushina smirked mischievously.

"…"

Liuyun's legs were already sore, and now he had to stand for the entire lesson. He was on the verge of tears.

As the class dragged on, Kushina noticed Liuyun's legs trembling uncontrollably. She leaned over and asked curiously, "Hey, why are your legs shaking like that?"

"It's all because of you," Liuyun grumbled, rolling his eyes at her.

"Pfft, it's just standing. Your legs are shaking like crazy—are you that weak?" Kushina teased, barely holding back her laughter.

"I went for a morning run, and the ninja academy is far from my house. Now, I have to stand here as punishment. If it were you, you'd be struggling too…" Liuyun muttered.

Well… in truth, if it were Kushina, she wouldn't be struggling at all.

After all, as a member of the Uzumaki clan, her physical strength was monstrous. Even after the Nine-Tails was forcibly extracted from her, she managed to survive and restrain the beast for hours. In contrast, Naruto, who had a Sage Body, nearly died instantly when half of Kurama was pulled from him. Without his protagonist halo, the grass on his grave would be several meters high by now.

Simply put, Kushina's endurance was terrifying. Even now, she was physically superior to Liuyun.

"Tsk, I'm not as weak as you…" Kushina scoffed mercilessly.

"You—! Shut up!" Liuyun gritted his teeth in frustration.

Luckily, the class finally ended. Seeing Liuyun's legs trembling and sweat dripping down his forehead, the math teacher took pity on him and decided not to punish them any further. After scolding them a little more, he turned and left.

"Ugh…" Liuyun took a step forward but almost collapsed as his legs gave out.

"Hey, be careful!" Kushina quickly grabbed him, preventing him from falling flat on his face.

"I'll help you back to your seat," she said softly, her face turning slightly red.

At this moment, they were standing very close to each other, and both could faintly smell each other's scent.

"Tch, I'm not thanking you," Liuyun muttered stubbornly.

"Oh? Then I won't help you." Kushina smirked and pretended to let go.

"Brother doesn't need your help…" Liuyun huffed, trying to push her away—only for Kushina to step right back in.

"Forget it. You look so pitiful; I'll be the bigger person and help you," she teased.

Liuyun gritted his teeth. He really wanted to punch that smug look off her face. But in the end, he gave up and let her support him.

"What happened to Liuyun?" A familiar voice asked. It was Minato Namikaze, who had just walked over.

"His legs are numb and weak. His body is too fragile…" Before Liuyun could respond, Kushina answered with a grin.

"… "

Minato chuckled. "Then you should train harder."

With their combined effort, Liuyun was finally seated. He immediately pushed Kushina away and nodded at Minato with a smile.

Meanwhile, Kushina, who had just been shoved, didn't seem the least bit annoyed. Instead, she happily sat beside Liuyun.

Minato watched this exchange with a puzzled expression.

When did Kushina become so easygoing?

Not long after, a group of students suddenly barged into the classroom, their expressions aggressive.

The moment Liuyun saw the kid leading the charge, he sighed.

Seriously? This brat again…?

The leader of the group was Uchiha Kazuhiko, who had already been beaten up earlier. And yet, after just one class, he was back for revenge.

"You really don't learn, do you…" Liuyun muttered, slowly standing up with his hands on his desk.

"What do you want?" Kushina quickly stepped in between Liuyun and the group of Uchiha kids, eyes narrowed.

These students glared at Liuyun, their fists clenched tightly.

"This has nothing to do with you, so move aside. Or else, we'll beat you up too," one of the Uchiha kids snapped.

As he reached out to push Kushina away, he made a grave mistake.

Before he could even react, Kushina grabbed his wrist, spun on her heel, and slammed him into the ground with a flawless shoulder throw.

BOOM!

The kid was knocked unconscious instantly.

"If you want to bully Liuyun, you'll have to get past me first," Kushina declared, her crimson hair flowing as she stood protectively in front of Liuyun.

The other students hesitated, intimidated by the fiery girl in front of them.

"Go get 'em, I'm cheering for you!" Liuyun pumped his fist in encouragement.

Kushina didn't hold back. She grabbed the fallen Uchiha and used him as a weapon, swinging his limp body into the other students like a club.

"AHHH!!"

A chorus of screams echoed through the classroom. The rest of the Uchiha kids backed away in fear, watching in horror as their comrade was literally used to beat them up.

Even Liuyun was stunned.

He knew Kushina was strong, but he didn't expect this!

A single girl was taking on an entire group of older students—many of whom were Uchiha—and winning.

The kid in her grasp had it the worst. He was barely conscious, foaming at the mouth from all the impacts.

Seeing this, Liuyun's scalp tingled.

"Hey, hey, hey! Kushina, put him down first! Or at least pick someone else to use as a weapon—this guy's about to die!"

If she keeps this up, the teachers won't let her off the hook. Even if she's the future Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, there's a limit to how much she can get away with…

Liuyun braced himself and hurried over to stop her before things got out of hand.