Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere

Thursday.

As soon as Kitazawa arrived at the office, he found an uninvited guest.

"Kitazawa." Mizuki stood up and greeted him with a smile.

He masked his emotions well—there was no hint of the jealousy he actually felt toward Kitazawa.

"What do you want to talk to me about?" Kitazawa nodded and asked calmly.

Mizuki's smile stiffened, and dissatisfaction immediately surged within him. 'What's with that attitude? So arrogant. Truly infuriating!'

"We'll be holding a meeting in the second-floor conference room after school next Monday." Mizuki suppressed his irritation and explained, "The main topic is to discuss the contents of this month's exam."

"Thank you for informing me," Kitazawa responded politely.

Mizuki nodded and turned to leave. Once he exited the office, his fake smile dropped, replaced by a scowl of annoyance.

Kitazawa didn't care about Mizuki's inner thoughts. He was preoccupied with a sudden new task that had appeared. 

[Current Task: Rank first in April's class monthly exam.

Task Reward: Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere.]

[Do you accept?]

Under normal circumstances, teachers aren't allowed to participate in student exams. But his system was always unusually intelligent—no, extremely intelligent.

If he sat in the exam room and took the test himself, could he complete the task? Kitazawa touched his chin thoughtfully.

Whether it was allowed or not, he would try. After all, Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere was a B-rank ninjutsu.

Although B-rank didn't seem that high, it was actually quite rare—many Chunin couldn't master B-level jutsu.

As an ordinary Chunin, Kitazawa didn't have a single B-rank technique. Vacuum Sphere would be the first.

And this particular Wind Style technique was incredibly strong—one of Shimura Danzo's signature moves in the original work.

---

The bell rang, and Kitazawa walked into the classroom. The previously noisy classroom instantly quieted, and all the students returned to their seats.

"Everyone, open your textbooks. Today, we'll continue with the story of the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama."

Kitazawa stood on the podium and spoke, "Under his leadership, Konoha Village thrived… but unfortunately, the good times didn't last."

The students were instantly intrigued. With Hashirama around, how could the mighty Konoha fall?

"…Uchiha Madara, the leader of the Uchiha clan at the time, broke with Konoha due to differing ideologies," Kitazawa continued. "He clashed with Hashirama in the legendary battle at the Valley of the End."

Sasuke widened his eyes. That happened? Could the current state of the Uchiha clan be linked to this Madara?

"In the end, Uchiha Madara was defeated and died at the Valley of the End." As Kitazawa finished, the class erupted.

"Worthy of being the First Hokage!"

"Wood Release is too powerful!"

"Obviously! Our Konoha's trees come from Wood Release!"

Hashirama Senju, the "God of Shinobi," and his Wood Release were legendary. These young students naturally admired the strong.

Only Sasuke remained silent. After all, it was his dazzling ancestor who had lost.

"There'll be physical training during today's practical class, so don't overeat at lunch." Kitazawa reminded them before leaving as the bell rang.

---

Noon.

A knock came at the door.

Hinata entered with a lunchbox.

"Come in." Kitazawa sat on the sofa, opened his spatial scroll, and took out eight lunch boxes in one go.

Hinata was stunned. Only then did she realize why Kitazawa had invited her for lunch. He had prepared so many lunch boxes—for her.

"What are you standing there for?" Kitazawa picked up his chopsticks and said, "Sit down and eat."

Hinata suddenly remembered something. She took out a pink wallet and handed it to him.

"What's this supposed to mean?" Kitazawa raised an eyebrow. 'Do you think I'm a gigolo? Do I look like that kind of guy?'

"For the lunch…" Hinata explained.

"It's nothing." Kitazawa shook his head and refused.

"No!" Hinata unexpectedly showed rare determination.

"This spirit isn't bad." Kitazawa smiled at her.

Hinata trembled, and quickly lowered her head, and two red blushes bloomed on her cheeks.

"Alright then, I'll take it. Let's eat." Kitazawa accepted the pink wallet.

After lunch, Hinata returned to class for a nap.

By afternoon, all the students were lined up neatly on the track for the physical training class.

"This is your first time doing physical training," Kitazawa announced. "There's no time limit or required laps today—just show me your limits."

He smiled and added, "The top ten will get snack packs, based on ranking."

"Awesome!" Cheers broke out.

"I'll take first place!" Naruto shouted confidently.

"Nope! First place is mine!" Inuzuka Kiba crossed his arms.

It wasn't an empty boast. As a member of the Inuzuka clan, he'd trained with his ninja dog from childhood, and his speed far exceeded ordinary kids.

Sasuke stood calm, hands in pockets. To him, none of them were competition.

From this moment on, the training field was Uchiha Territory, and everyone else were spectators for his show.

"They're really fired up."

Nara Shikamaru yawned. "Choji, let's put in some effort and finish early?"

"I'm in." Choji agreed. Snacks were nice, but not guaranteed. And running was torture for someone his size.

"Ino, you wanna compete?" Sakura cracked her knuckles. "If you lose, no more competing for Sasuke today!"

"No need. I'll give him to you." Ino looked toward Kitazawa.

She planned to climb trees later—Sasuke would be there too. Sakura didn't stand a chance.

"…?" Sakura looked at her, confused. What's going on? Why are you acting weird?

"Quiet." Kitazawa clapped his hands and smiled. "I'll run with you. Anyone who beats me gets a special prize."

Sasuke's eyes lit up. Finally, a worthy opponent. He believed none of his peers could match him, so he always looked beyond.

But Kitazawa was a Chunin—if he could surpass him, maybe he'd finally earn praise from his father and brother.

"Ready!" Kitazawa shouted, "Start!"

Sasuke and the others shot forward like arrows. Kitazawa didn't rush.

Exploding at the start was a no-go in long-distance runs—pacing was key.

He glanced around. Naruto led early, followed by Sasuke, Kiba, and Sakura.

But as time went on, things shifted. After 30 minutes, Naruto's burst pace slowed, and Sasuke surged into first.

He had maintained steady breathing and rhythm from the beginning.

Kitazawa ran behind him, relaxed and unbothered. After all, his physical capacity was leagues ahead. At his age, his body was in its prime.

Sasuke and the others, though talented, were only six or seven years old—their bodies weren't fully developed yet.

After fifty laps, most students had reached their limit and sat to cheer.

"Sasuke-kun, keep going!" Sakura sat on the ground, calling out weakly.

But Sasuke didn't hear her. All his focus was on Kitazawa. No matter how hard he pushed, he couldn't catch up.

"Still running?" Kitazawa looked back and asked.

Now, only Sasuke remained.

So frustrating! Sasuke trembled in anger seeing Kitazawa's relaxed posture. Sweat drenched his body, and despite the heat, his hands and feet were ice cold.