9 Academy

"So Anko-san? No matter how you look at me, I won't give you my Dangos." I said before taking a sip of tea.

Anko narrowed her eyes and replied in a leisurely tone, "Who wants your Dangos, brat?"

I rolled my eyes, "I don't know, maybe the woman who tried to rob a 6-year-old boy?"

However, Anko was unaffected by my comment; she crossed her arms and looked at me.

"I am a Tokubetsu-Jounin. Do you think that if I really wanted to rob you, it would be a simple 'Attempt'?"

I had already figured that out, after all, she left the kabob stick on her plate and didn't even try to hide it.

But still, I don't know the reason behind. "So why did you do it?"

With an "It's obvious" expression and a raised index finger, Anko replied, "Because it's fun, of course."

I looked at her, hoping she will continue.

Anko sighed and lowered her finger. "Listen, yes, from time to time I grab the Dangos from customers here, but it's because I find their reaction entertaining."

"Do you return the kabob sticks later?" I raised an eyebrow and asked.

"Sometimes? But even if I don't, I make up for it in another way. For example, dropping money on their way for them to find it. Paying for Dangos and sending them anonymously. Do you understand? " Anko explained while grabbing her cup.

I nodded in understanding. "Mm-hmm. Basically, you're a freak."

Anko blushed slightly, but continued drinking the tea.

"Still, wouldn't those actions make Shinobi look bad?" I questioned.

Shaking her head, Anko replied, "No, they are so happy with the compensation that they are not paying attention to it."

"I see." I nodded, but still had a doubt. "Why are you explaining all this to me?"

"Well, I didn't want you to have a bad opinion of the Shinobi." Anko replied while wiggling the kabob stick a bit.

"I see." I said, at the same time that I grabbed the last kabob stick and got up. I looked at Anko, who was looking at me confused. "I have to go back to the Academy, however, I will come for compensation in the future." I did not let the woman reply and left the premises after waving at Chuou.

On my way to the Academy, something happened;

In front of me, lying on the ground were 200 Ryo.

The few people around were busy with their own affairs.

'I would be a fool to collect the money.' I thought as I kept going

By the time I got to the Academy, I had been lucky to keep finding money and the amount was increasing every time. And I always made sure to avoid it.

In the future I might need to ask her for something, and, since she took the time to explain her actions, she doesn't seem like the type of person who would refuse.

And if it does, well, I can only blame myself.

After reaching the classroom, I opened the door and walked in.

Iruka hadn't arrived yet but most of the children were inside.

Even Naruto had arrived.

'It must be Teuchi's doing.' I thought as I walked to my seat.

Some time later, Iruka entered the classroom and checked attendance again.

He nodded in satisfaction when he saw that no student was late.

Once this was done, he clapped his hands to get the attention of the class.

"Very well, now you will follow me to the backyard of the academy for Taijutsu class. I will explain what we will do once we arrive. Now follow me."

Once he said that, Iruka gestured for us to follow him and opened the door.

The children quickly got up and followed Iruka out of the classroom.

"Don't push yourselves!" Iruka's voice came from outside.

I got up and followed them.

After reaching the backyard, which was a large open area, Iruka explained what we would do.

Basically;

It will be stretching first, followed by a run around the area and then target practice.

In a week the friendly matches will begin, as well as the physical conditioning.

And in 2 weeks we will start with the obstacle course, although very basic.

It is also possible to alter the time or add new exercises depending on the performance of the class.

The girls ran first, where Hinata emerged victorious, however, Sakura and Ino were hot on her heels.

The poor girl was shy even to run.

She has an advantage thanks to her Clan's training, however, the gap will get smaller now that the other girls will receive training from the Academy.

I lined up at the starting line, accompanied by the others.

Kiba is right in front, because he was waiting nearby, when the girls arrived, he quickly lined up.

The other Clan members are in the center, with civilians in front and behind.

I am in the final part, along with Shikamaru and Chouji.

The Nara Clan member was too lazy to line up quickly and his sturdy friend didn't mind accompanying him.

I, on the other hand, have no interest in competing for a place in line with these children.

But don't get me wrong, I want to win. With my 10 in Dexterity I doubt that I could lose.

"Alright, are you ready?" Once everyone was lined up, Iruka asked.

""Yes!""

"So, on the count of 3."

"1…!" The crowd went silent.

"2…!" The children leaned forward slightly.

"3!" And it started.

I put strength in my left foot and took off.

"Eh?" I heard Shikamaru's exclamation of surprise from behind.

Speeding in a straight line or dodging some other kid, I was soon in 4th place.

I can see Sasuke about to overtake Kiba, while Naruto is in front of me.

I picked up the speed and I quickly got over it.

He said something to me, but I couldn't hear it.

Now it is Kiba who is in second place. He is panting and no longer has the momentum of the beginning; apparently he gave it his all at the start.

I passed it easily and this time I faintly heard an insult.

I ignored him and started sprinting, knowing that Sasuke has a Dexterity almost equal to mine.

Although I don't know how much of that is geared towards movement speed, I'm not going to risk it.

I quickly caught up with it and got over it.

I could hear the cheers of some girls and, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sasuke's surprised expression.

I guess I wasn't expecting someone to catch up with it.

I crossed the Finish Line and the other guys followed soon after.

Sasuke came in second, Naruto third and Kiba in fourth.

When everyone arrived, Iruka spoke with an encouraging smile, "Good job everyone! Especially you Kuro, you did a great job, congratulations on your victory."

I nodded in response, "Thank you, Sensei."

"That was amazing! How can you run so fast!?" Naruto yelled as he raised both arms in the air.

Despite just running, he still has a lot of energy, meanwhile Sasuke is breathing heavily and a bit of sweat on his forehead.

Kiba, on the other hand, is lying on the ground, puffing.

Looking at the blonde, I replied, "Training."

"Training? What kind of training?" Naruto kept asking.

"Running every day."

Hearing my reply, Naruto's eyes seemed to sparkle, "So if I do that training, I'll be able to run that fast too !?"

"Hmph! As if an airhead like you could train"

Before I could reply, Kiba spoke.

He is now seated, with controlled breathing.

Naruto showed an angry expression, but Iruka intervened before he could reply.

"Alright, that's enough. Time for target practice, everyone move on."

The children still resting groaned in protest as they got up.

Naruto followed them as he looked at Kiba with eyes that promised suffering.

I followed them as I looked at a translucent screen that only I could see.

[Sprint (Active) Lvl: 1

Temporarily increases movement speed for 5 seconds.]

After Iruka taught us the correct way to throw a Shuriken, and a Kunai, I learned a skill.

[Shurikenjutsu (Passive) Lvl: 1

Increases accuracy of thrown shuriken and kunai by 10%].

I couldn't tell if it was because of the [Mystic Eyes] skill or because Iruka taught it in detail.

Saving those thoughts for later, I joined the line.

We will start by launching 5 Shurikens, to the same target. That way, Iruka can fix our shape and give us advice.

Once everyone has thrown, they will be distributed among other objectives to put into practice what Iruka told them.

Of course, they will be under supervision and the Shuriken are not even sharp; the targets are modified so they can be nailed.

When it was my turn, I grabbed the Shuriken and threw it like Iruka did during the demo.

*Thuk!*

The first Shuriken came very close to exiting the circle, but managed to stay inside.

The targets are circular pieces of wood, with another circle drawn inside.

*Thuk!*

3 inside and 2 outside.

Iruka nodded, "Well done, Kuro. You just need to practice more to increase your accuracy."

I nodded and went to wait on the side.

We had to wait for everyone to finish to use the other objectives.

Shuriken's launch board;

Girls:

Ino - 4 Inside and 1 Outside.

Hinata - 3 Inside and 2 Outside.

Sakura - 2 Inside and 3 Outside.

Guys:

Sasuke - 5 Inside.

Shikamaru - 4 Inside 1 Outside.

Kuro - 3 Inside 2 Outside.

At the end of each month there is both a written and a practical test, to decide the overall grades, therefore I am not worried about not being in first place during a class.

Once everyone was done, we started training on the other targets.

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