31 A New Era for the Academy
As the mini-drama played out in her mind, Kushina heard Natsuhiko's response.
"I actually had the same thoughts as you before," Natsuhiko snapped his fingers, while continuing, "But I didn't expect Biwako-sama to be so open-minded. The lengthy dissertation I prepared in advance lost its purpose."
Natsuhiko wasn't lying. Although Biwako-sama verbally lashed him for hours in the Principal's office, she eventually, begrudgingly, acknowledged the difficulty of designing this game. She granted him a reprieve, allowing him to continue experimenting with this teaching method.
Honestly, without the countless experiences with workplace persuasion from his previous life, Natsuhiko might have been in a different situation.
Apart from that, since the Academy would reimburse the cards and Duel Disks, Biwako-sama thoroughly reviewed the Geki-nin game and provided numerous suggestions. This reminded Natsuhiko of the fear of being dominated by the clients from his previous life.
While Biwako-sama didn't make demands like "Black of Multicolored Madara," she did impose various restrictions on Natsuhiko to avoid touching on sensitive subjects.
One consequence was that the set of cards Natsuhiko had planned for Uchiha Madara might not be officially revealed for a long time. Given the increasing tension between the Uchiha Clan and the village, excessive promotion of "Missing-nin" Uchiha Madara seemed inappropriate.
Also, Biwako-sama's guidance made him realise that the card "Sarutobi Sasuke" couldn't fully capture the grandeur of the Third Hokage's father. Thus, he decided to give it an upgrade.
This decision was based on game design considerations for balance and definitely not because he yielded to sinister influences.
At the end of their conversation, Biwako-sama reiterated one thing tirelessly: her support for Natsuhiko had conditions. The performance of students in other subjects should not be affected. Otherwise, she wouldn't mind making the curse of Sealing Jutsu class come true.
At that moment, Natsuhiko, after staring for a long time, couldn't discern Biwako-sama's rarely seen smile whether she was joking or not. So, he quietly added Biwako Sarutobi's name to the list of suspects in the "Natsuhiko Amou Incident Log: Sealing Jutsu Sensei Serial Murder Case."
For the sake of his life, Natsuhiko decided to be careful not to let the students get too obsessed with the game. It seemed necessary to increase the difficulty of rune drawing. The game should be enjoyable for students, but only to a limited extent.
...
After Natsuhiko shared the details of his conversation with Biwako-sama, Kushina couldn't help but feel relieved.
"That's good."
After finding a job she enjoyed, she didn't want any complications after just a few days.
Seeing Kushina's reaction, Natsuhiko thought she was happy because she could continue playing Geki-nin. He couldn't resist teasing her.
"It seems like you really love this game, Kushina."
Hearing this, Kushina felt like Natsuhiko was mocking her for being childish. Her face turned slightly red, and she retorted defiantly.
"I'm happy for the students. We didn't have such fun toys when we were in school!"
"Cough, cough, cough."
Natsuhiko hadn't let Kushina finish before remembering Biwako's instructions. He quickly coughed a few times to interrupt her.
"Kushina-san, remember, from now on, we must call this thing educational tools, not toys. Also, when using the Duel Disks, don't say you're playing a game; say you're testing the effectiveness of rune drawing. Otherwise, Principal-sama will come after me again."
"Yes, yes, they are educational tools."
Kushina covered her mouth and chuckled.
Natsuhiko couldn't help but laugh too.
The office was filled with a lively atmosphere...
---
Young, handsome, skilled in card sealing—Sealing Jutsu Sensei Natsuhiko Amou, also known as the "Duel King," had made Sealing Jutsu class a popular subject with just one statement during a lecture.
"Do you want my cards? If you want them, you can have them all—picture talismans! I've placed all the cards here!"
As a result, little ninjas flocked to Sealing Jutsu class, chasing their dreams...
The Academy began to embrace the arrival of the "Great Duel Era"!
The opening theme played...
Time passed, and unconsciously it was already October.
Having worked at the Academy for a month, Natsuhiko gradually adapted to teaching Sealing Jutsu and became more proficient.
With various motivational measures, little ninjas were enthusiastic about learning Sealing Jutsu.
By the last class, Natsuhiko had taught 13 basic runes, progressing at a rapid pace.
In the "practice" aspect, most students could already draw the four runes required for a basic card deck.
This meant that the Geki-nin card game was rapidly spreading throughout the Academy.
Now, when students argued, they no longer said, "See you at the training grounds after school."
Instead, they pulled out a card deck and yelled, "Let's settle this with Geki-nin cards!"
The entire atmosphere of the Academy began to twist.
In the Sealing Jutsu-specialised lecture hall, whenever there was no class, students crowded the place.
In the open space in front of the platform, three groups were constantly engaged in battles.
As long as students completed drawing all the runes on their entire card deck, they could take turns using the three battle devices for games.
After a game, they had to return to their seats and complete the runes on their cards again.
Because the students' picture talisman skills were average, the completion speed wasn't fast.
It was like charging for two hours and having a five-minute battery life.
Although the actual playing time was much less than the time spent drawing runes, little ninjas still enjoyed it.
At this moment, Natsuhiko fully realised the impact of mature and sophisticated game products from his past life on the dull and dry Ninja World.
It felt like trading glass beads with the indigenous people with their consent.
There was even a sense of illicit pleasure...
To maintain everyone's enthusiasm for the Geki-nin cards, Natsuhiko timely released the second set: "Warring States Heroines of Valor."
It featured over a dozen brilliant and renowned female ninjas from the Warring States era.
如Hyuga夏美,Shimura妙,山中佐和子,不知火舞,井河阿萨姬...(Hyuga Natsumi, Shimura Myo, Yamanaka Sakako, Shiranui Mai, and Iga Asagi.)
Corresponding to them were the next eight runes.
The introduction of this batch of female ninja cards made even the girls who weren't initially interested in Geki-nin become enthusiastic. However, their tendency to pause the game halfway and start critiquing the attire and appearance of those female ninjas gave Natsuhiko a bit of a headache.
It's worth noting that some students with good innate talent even sneaked ahead, mastering the runes scheduled to be learned later. They urged Natsuhiko to quickly release the third set of cards.
Because they had already figured out a pattern: the later the cards were released, the stronger they must be.
Whenever Natsuhiko heard students mysteriously discussing this pattern, as if it were some huge secret, he couldn't help but feel a bit exasperated.
Isn't it a common practice in card games for each generation to be stronger than the last? How else would they encourage you to spend money?
Without spending money, you'll become even more ***PG.
Of course, rather than saying it forces them to spend money, it's more like forcing them to invest their time.
After all, the goal is to make them practise drawing new runes.
If a beginner's deck can dominate everything, wouldn't students only need to practise the first four runes?
Natsuhiko, having experienced many games that forced spending and time investment in his previous life, was well-versed in these strategies and wouldn't make such a basic mistake.
Moreover, the little ninjas were unaware that, in addition to card strength, Natsuhiko had prepared a Ranking List, skins, rarity, permits, duel tournaments, and a series of measures to "motivate" everyone.
The Great Duel Era? It had only just begun...
(End of this chapter)
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