Chapter 20: Academy Student
The child tilted his head when Hiruzen looked back at him through the window. His expression was laced with an unnerving curiosity now. No longer blank as before.
"..." Hiruzen felt the pull of his gaze, almost making him tilt his head as if he were a mirror.
"Lord Hokage,"
Luckily, someone pulled him out of his thoughts just in time.
"The children are waiting for you to say a few words."
It was Morino Kaede speaking to him.
"Yes," Hiruzen nodded, "I'll be right there."
Walking down the stairs, Hiruzen thought about the child who was looking at him. There was something about him that he could not pinpoint. It felt as if all his movements were being watched, making him twitchy all over.
His war-honed instincts didn't report any threat, but the vague discomfort remained.
Eventually, Hiruzen shook it off and focused on reciting his speech to motivate Konoha's youth. He walked in front of the excited children and began speaking.
Today, he felt like keeping it simple.
"Congratulations, young ones." He started with a smile, "To have the bravery to train as a ninja is admirable. But you will require more bravery from here on out..."
Hiruzen began talking about what it meant to be a shinobi. To Suguru, it meant that he could get lost in his thoughts for a little while longer.
"...Treat your comrades well; they will watch your back even when death comes knocking. The village is our home, after all. It is where our families, no matter how big or small, live and prosper. We must protect the village as others have protected us before us..."
'Simple,' meant fifteen whole minutes. Suguru spent all this time daydreaming.
"...Once again, congratulations! I hope to see you all grow into fine ninjas in the future."
The children erupted with surprising fervor, their hearts burning with a newfound flame they would surely carry for the rest of their lives.
'How inspiring,' Suguru thought, 'I wonder how their expressions will change in the face of Pain's Shinra Tensei.'
Suguru's eyes flashed with a dangerous light.
'What if I do it myself—' He quickly caught himself, 'No, I don't want to destroy Ichiraku...'
***
Once Hiruzen left, the kids continued to talk about being shinobi and what it meant. They joyfully shared their expectations of the future. Their innocence was a heartwarming sight.
"Yo! Hiryu Suguru,"
One of those kids walked up to Suguru with a wave. Looking up to see a boy with jet-black hair and deep black eyes, Suguru nodded. The Nara clan had preferences that his personality aligned well with.
It was Nara Shikiro. One of the kids who performed well in the earlier tests.
"It seems like we're going to be classmates."
Suguru wordlessly tilted his head.
It seemed like Shikiro understood his thoughts as he handed Suguru a scroll.
'Ah, so it was out already? So fast?' Suguru was inwardly surprised, but it didn't show on his face.
Suguru unfurled the scroll and looked at the list. Twenty-four students were in his class. Thirteen were children of Konoha's different clans, eight were those of civilian descent and three were from the Orphanage.
An Uchiha was in his class, which made Suguru wonder how Itachi was doing with the Kotoamatsukami.
'I should look for him later,' Suguru decided.
Now that they had enrolled in the Academy, the orphans would get an apartment to themselves. This would give them the privacy that every shinobi needed to meditate and train.
Suguru could finally visit his beloved laboratory again.
"Hiryu Suguru,"
Another person called out to him as he was about to talk to Shikiro. It was a genin this time, judging by the headband and lack of a flak jacket. He had spiky black hair and green eyes, wearing his protector on his shoulder.
"I'll be showing you your apartment. Do you have time?"
Suguru nodded.
He then turned to Shikiro and waved goodbye. After a short and clean bow, he left with the genin without saying a word.
"What a weird guy," Shikiro mumbled, "Hiryu Suguru, huh..."
***
"We're here,"
—Click!
Unlocking the door, the genin introduced Suguru to his new home. It was already stocked with the basics — a bed, some cooking wares, a stove, tables and chairs, and a cabinet for his clothes.
"Thank you, Kamito," Suguru said with a bow.
"Oh, so you do know how to talk. I wasn't expecting a thanks. Anyways, I hope you enjoy your new place." Kamito waved his hand and left.
Suguru walked to his study where a few scrolls had already been left behind. Upon unfurling a few, he became aware of their contents.
'Nothing I don't already know... kind of,'
He had learned these things by the sheer strength of his obsession. Like Fuinjutsu, which was said to be a difficult skill to learn and master, Suguru already had a good hold of most of the Academy's curriculum.
In fact, he had already delved into realms that other shinobi had yet to dip their toes in.
However, Suguru was a specialist.
His current expertise was like the tip of a needle. Particular and useful only for his singular intentions. He wasn't capable of broader practices like Medical Ninjutsu or the creation of Barriers despite his knowledge of the human body and Fuinjutsu.
The most he could do with Fuinjutsu in terms of combat were his modified Explosive Tags.
'Well, it won't hurt to review.'
Suguru licked his lips. He liked these scrolls more than going around sweating. So, a little bit of note revision wouldn't hurt.
While he did so...
He made the clone seal.
'Shadow Clone Jutsu,'
While he enjoyed his time revising his notes and preparing for the school year, he let his clone look around with his Kaisugan.
Since his apartment was near the Academy, Suguru was within the central portion of the village. Unfortunately, he wasn't on the side that could see into the Uchiha compound. He had to send his clone out a short distance to spy on them this time, making it a little inconvenient.
Fortunately, there was something interesting going on.
"Oh..? Are those Danzo's subordinates?"
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I made a P@treon! Hehe~
Link: pa treon.com/ubemantou
(No space.)
Update! There are four advanced chapters now! The fifth advanced chapter should be there by the end of the weekend~ Mwahaha.
Big thanks to Godphaze and Cosmic Owl for being my first P@treon supporters!!! <3
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