"Sasuke-kun."
Ino Yamanaka stepped forward to greet him.
Sasuke ignored her completely, his entire focus devoted to maintaining the chakra at the soles of his feet.
Feeling rejected, Ino stopped talking.
She looked up at Hinata.
At this moment, Hinata was already suspended high in the air, her feet firmly planted on the vertical trunk. Her expression was serious, her short dark blue hair hanging down.
Seeing this, Ino felt an uncharacteristic surge of competitiveness.
Since Sasuke was ignoring her, she decided she would master this tree climbing training before him.
With that thought, she immediately gathered chakra into her feet and began to climb.
Kitazawa watched for a while, a look of surprise crossing his face.
He realized that among the three, Hinata had the best chakra control.
Is it because of the Byakugan?
The Hyūga Clan's fighting style utilized the Byakugan to observe the flow of chakra in an enemy's body, then used the Gentle Fist to strike tenketsu points, severing that flow.
Once hit, a person became unable to use chakra—essentially turning into a civilian—and was naturally at the mercy of the Hyūga.
Of course, to hit those tiny points successfully, the Hyūga required an extremely refined understanding and control of chakra.
Although Sasuke was a genius, his control was currently slightly inferior.
In the original story, Sakura Haruno had mastered tree climbing even faster than him.
Gasp!
Just then, Ino inhaled sharply and fell backward.
Kitazawa stepped forward and caught her.
Holding her soft body in his arms, Kitazawa felt like he was holding a living doll.
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei."
Ino, still shaken, let out a long breath of relief.
"It's nothing."
Kitazawa bent down and set her on her feet.
"...?"
Sasuke instinctively glanced at him, a question mark practically floating over his head.
I fell from the tree yesterday. Why didn't you catch me?
Is it because men should be self-reliant?
"Hinata can climb that high?"
Once Ino regained her balance, she looked up at Hinata, who was almost at the treetop, and couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
But in the next second, Hinata lost her focus and balance, tumbling downward.
Ino froze, then stuck out her tongue awkwardly.
Heaven knows, I was just simply praising her.
Kitazawa reacted swiftly, catching Hinata as well.
"Thank... thank you."
Hinata stammered, her cheeks flushing red.
"If you feel like you can't hold on, jump down proactively; don't force yourself."
Kitazawa said, patting Hinata on the head.
Thud!
Before they could lament Ino and Hinata's falls, the next combatant joined the fray—Sasuke hit the dirt.
"I'm fine."
Sasuke met their gazes, swallowed his embarrassment, and spoke expressionlessly.
He calmly dusted himself off, turned around, and charged at the tree again.
Although he didn't care about Ino or Hinata personally, he still felt the pressure.
The Uchiha Clan always strove to be number one; he absolutely could not fall behind others.
Ino and Hinata rejoined the training.
Kitazawa watched from the side, offering guidance and occasionally catching them when they fell.
Time passed slowly until the dismissal bell rang.
"You three, finish this run and we're done. I'll go dismiss the others."
Kitazawa shouted, then returned to the main training ground.
"Kitazawa-sensei!"
Naruto saw him and shouted excitedly, "I hit the moving target!"
"Well done."
Kitazawa looked at the target nearby.
Although it wasn't a bullseye, hitting the target at all within one lesson period put him ahead of most students.
"Hehe."
Naruto grinned happily at the praise.
"Class dismissed. Be safe on your way home."
Kitazawa clapped his hands. "Dismissed."
"Goodbye, Kitazawa-sensei!"
The crowd scattered instantly.
Not wanting to leave after school meant there was something wrong with your head.
"Kitazawa-sensei, what are we learning in the next practical class?"
Naruto asked, lingering behind.
"Next class is physical fitness training."
Kitazawa thought for a moment.
"Running?"
Naruto asked, eyes lighting up.
"Yes, there will be races."
Kitazawa was startled, then asked curiously, "Are you interested in running?"
"I want to become the fastest ninja in the world!"
Naruto clenched his fist, explaining, "That way, I can surpass the Fourth Hokage!"
"I see."
Kitazawa understood.
Naruto had likely learned about Minato Namikaze from Hiruzen Sarutobi.
[Your lifelong rival, Naruto Uzumaki, has challenged you to physical fitness training. You gladly accept.]
[Current Mission: Take first place in physical fitness training.]
[Mission Reward: Leaf Strong Whirlwind.]
[Do you accept?]
Kitazawa couldn't help but let out a soft sound of surprise.
This was basically a free reward.
As a teacher, he was expected to participate in physical exercises with the students anyway.
But wasn't my lifelong rival Sasuke? How did it switch to Naruto?
"See you tomorrow."
After bidding farewell to Naruto, Kitazawa returned to the tree.
Before he even reached the spot, he noticed a problem.
Ino looked pale, leaning heavily against Hinata.
Her left foot was on the ground, but her right foot was lifted slightly.
"I'm fine."
Ino spoke up proactively. "I accidentally twisted my ankle coming down."
"Sit down. Let me help you."
Kitazawa stepped forward. "Sasuke, Hinata, you two can go back first."
"No need... Hiss."
Ino stopped mid-sentence, sucking in a breath of cold air from the pain.
"Alright, no need to be stubborn."
Kitazawa helped her sit down. "I'm very good at treating sprains and bruises like this."
Back when he was a Genin, medical ninjas were in short supply.
His four-man squad didn't have a single medic.
In that situation, they had to rely on themselves to survive. As long as the injury wasn't critical, they learned to treat it temporarily with medicine and first aid.
"Thanks."
Hearing this, Ino stopped protesting.
She hesitated for a few seconds, then took off her sandal.
Her dainty, fair foot came into Kitazawa's view.
Ino turned her head away in embarrassment, her pinkish-white toes curling instinctively.
Kitazawa took out some bruise ointment, spread it on his palm, and grabbed her ankle.
Her foot was slender; he could almost wrap his entire hand around it.
Kitazawa lowered his head and gently massaged the medicine into her pale skin.
Ino's gaze fell on him.
That thought surfaced in her mind again: It's a pity he isn't my age.
If he were, she would happily gift Sasuke to Sakura.
"Okay. Find a medical ninja to help you when you get back; it'll heal faster."
Kitazawa withdrew his hand.
"Mm."
Ino gathered her chaotic thoughts and said gratefully, "Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei."
"I'll carry you back."
Kitazawa turned his back to her.
Ino paused, then picked up her shoe with her right hand and wrapped her arms around his neck.
Lying on Kitazawa's back, she secretly thought that this teacher really was a good person.
Kitazawa had absolutely no idea he had just been issued another "Good Guy Card."
He carried Ino all the way to the Yamanaka Flower Shop and set her down.
"Kitazawa-sensei."
Ino held her shoe, smiled, and said, "See you tomorrow."