Chapter 45

Kitazawa's Office

Hinata paced nervously, clutching her speech manuscript. Her small face was pale, her eyes filled with anxiety.

She only stopped when the office door creaked open, and Kitazawa stepped inside.

"Feeling nervous?" Kitazawa asked gently, walking over and giving her hair a light pat.

"Yes…" Hinata admitted, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment.

Over the past few weeks, Kitazawa had given her special training, putting his heart into helping her grow. Yet now that the moment had come, she felt as though she was letting him down.

"It's normal to be nervous," Kitazawa reassured her with a smile. "Let's eat something first."

He opened a summoning storage scroll and produced a spread of delicious-looking food.

A rich, savory aroma filled the office, and Hinata's stomach gave a tiny growl.

Her face turned even redder.

"Here. Eat," Kitazawa said, handing her a piece of sushi.

"T-thank you, Kitazawa-sensei…" Hinata said softly.

She took a bite. Somehow, the sushi tasted sweeter than anything she'd ever eaten.

She savored the flavor, glancing at Kitazawa before quickly looking away again, her face pink.

Hinata sat on the sofa, eating daintily, her feet swinging slightly with each bite. Little by little, her earlier tension melted away.

"I'm full, Kitazawa-sensei," Hinata finally said, setting down her empty glass of milk.

"Good," Kitazawa replied. "Now, I'll teach you a little trick to calm your nerves."

He picked up a rice ball from the tray and held it up. "When you're on stage, just imagine that everyone in front of you is an onigiri. That way, you won't be so nervous."

"Huh…?" Hinata blinked at him in bewilderment. "Will… will that really work?"

"Let's go. It's time to head to the training ground." Kitazawa said, putting away the leftover food.

Hearing that, Hinata felt her nerves spike again, her heart beating wildly.

Trailing behind Kitazawa, she remembered his odd little method and began murmuring to herself:

"Rice balls… you're all rice balls…"

For some reason, repeating the words made her feel a little braver.

Training Ground

Students from all six grades were lined up in neat formations.

Kitazawa led Hinata straight toward the raised platform.

"Kitazawa."

A voice called out to him.

Kitazawa turned and saw Hisao Sarutobi, who gave him a polite nod.

Kitazawa was now quite a notable figure at the Ninja Academy, trusted deeply by the third hokage himself.

Hisao Sarutobi, a member of the Sarutobi clan and the academy's vice principal, made it a point to stay on friendly terms with him.

"Vice Principal." Kitazawa returned the greeting respectfully.

At precisely 8:30 a.m., the commendation ceremony began.

First on the agenda was a speech from the Outstanding Student Representative.

"Hinata," Kitazawa said softly, leaning closer. "Remember what I told you."

Hinata didn't speak, only nodded.

She took a deep breath and stepped forward toward the podium.

As countless eyes turned to her, her body trembled instinctively. A wave of panic welled up inside her.

'Rice balls… they're all rice balls…'

She clenched her fists, took another breath, and began to speak.

In the formation of Second-Year Class A, Neji listened in mild shock.

He hadn't expected Hinata to even make it onto the stage, much less deliver a coherent speech.

In Neji's opinion, Hinata had never been suited to be a ninja. She was too timid, too soft.

The only advantage she possessed was her luck in being born into the main family.

'Let's see how much you've really changed…' Neji thought, recalling Mizuki's suggestion from the day before.

He hadn't been interested initially—but now, curiosity sparked within him.

Mizuki's idea was simple: a friendly sparring match between the two classes.

Half an hour later, Hinata finished her speech.

Warm applause rippled through the training grounds. Hinata blinked, as if waking from a trance.

She'd been so immersed in reading her manuscript, she'd completely forgotten the rows of students staring back at her.

Hearing the applause, a flicker of delight rose in her chest.

'This… actually feels pretty good…'

She held her speech notes to her chest, gave a shy little wave to the crowd, and stepped down from the platform.

"Kitazawa-sensei!" she called out, her voice bright and excited.

Hinata's small face glowed pink with excitement.

"Congratulations on finishing your speech," Kitazawa said with a warm smile. "See? Everyone's applauding for you."

"Yes!" Hinata nodded enthusiastically.

In that moment, it felt as though a whole new world had opened up for her. If she had to give another speech, she was sure she could do even better next time.

"Do you feel ready to defeat Toranosuke now?" Kitazawa asked, smoothly shifting the conversation.

"I… I can!" Hinata hesitated briefly, then answered in a firm, determined voice.

"Hinata, you've grown so much," Kitazawa praised, giving her head a gentle pat. "Come on, let's go back to the Class 1-A formation."

The two of them returned to join the other first-year students.

"Hinata, you were amazing!" Ino exclaimed with a big smile.

"Next time, I want to give a speech too!" Naruto declared eagerly.

He loved the idea of standing in front of a crowd, soaking up everyone's attention. If people cheered for him, it would mean he'd finally earned their recognition.

"You?" Kiba snorted. "Please. If anyone's giving a speech next time, it's gonna be me."

"We'll see who's ranked higher after next month's exam!" Naruto shot back, full of confidence.

He wasn't just betting on himself—he was betting on Kitazawa-sensei's training.

"It'll be me," Sasuke suddenly interjected.

Everyone fell silent and turned to stare at him, shocked.

Sasuke was always so aloof and rarely joined in their conversations, so his sudden comment left them all stunned.

"Alright, enough chatter," Kitazawa said, clapping his hands. "Quiet down. The principal's about to give his speech."

The second—and most important—part of the ceremony began: the official commendations.

One by one, Hisao Sarutobi called out the top thirty students from each grade.

"Now, I'd like to invite the principal to deliver his closing remarks for this month's exams," Hisao announced with a smile after finishing the awards.

A familiar figure appeared seemingly out of thin air. It was Hiruzen Sarutobi himself, dressed in his Hokage robes.

Instantly, the training grounds erupted with cheers.

Hiruzen's charisma and tireless efforts to maintain his image had earned him immense respect throughout Konoha.

But there was also a ripple of surprise.

After all, the Hokage didn't usually show up for a simple monthly commendation ceremony. Normally, he only appeared at the opening and graduation ceremonies.

"Now then, I have just six brief points to discuss…" Hiruzen began, looking pleased by the enthusiastic reaction.

Kitazawa twitched his lips.

'I've got a bad feeling about this.'

And sure enough…

Hiruzen went on for two full hours. If it hadn't been for time constraints, he might have kept going even longer.

When the ceremony finally ended, the students dispersed and headed back to their classrooms.

Kitazawa was just about to leave when Mizuki stepped in front of him.

"Your class really stole the spotlight this month," Mizuki said, forcing a grin. "Some of my students want to challenge yours. How about we set up a friendly match between our classes?"

"No way," Kitazawa shot back immediately.

"Wh-what? Why not?" Mizuki sputtered, caught off guard.

"You're seriously asking me that?" Kitazawa scoffed. "A bunch of second-year students fighting first-years? Other than calling it shameless, I can't think of another word for it."

A single year's difference in training was no small gap. Kitazawa wasn't about to let his students get trounced just to stroke someone else's ego.

"Wait, wait!" Mizuki chased after him. "We can negotiate! You can decide the time, the place—even the rules of the match!"

He was well aware of how tough it would be for second-years to justify steamrolling first-years. So he tried to sweeten the deal by leaving all the terms up to Kitazawa.

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