Shibi Aburame and Shino Aburame didn't stay long. Kitazawa had already said everything he needed to; their purpose in coming was simply to express their gratitude.
"Kitazawa-sensei, this small gift is a token of our appreciation," Shibi said as he handed over a summoning scroll.
"Thank you."
Kitazawa thought for a moment before accepting it. Only by doing so could the Aburame Clan feel more at ease.
After the two left, Kitazawa opened the scroll and inspected its contents. There were various ninja tools, secret medicines for chakra recovery, and even a bankbook containing five million ryo.
"Ninja clans are indeed wealthy," Kitazawa remarked with emotion.
But the Aburame Clan wasn't truly at a loss. The Exploding Bugs were worth far more than five million ryo; even twenty million wouldn't have been excessive. However, since Kitazawa only provided the clue rather than the Exploding Bugs themselves, the amount was fair.
For Kitazawa, five million ryo was more than enough to last him a long time. After all, he wasn't as fond of gambling as Tsunade.
Once he confirmed that the Will of Fire Club's activities were on track, Kitazawa made his way to the Ninja Academy's training ground.
His Shadow Clone was currently using leaves to attack Sasuke.
Observing for a while, Kitazawa nodded in satisfaction. Sasuke's talent was truly remarkable. After just a week of training, he had already adapted to the leaf exercise—a much faster rate than Hinata had shown back then.
However, relying solely on the leaf training wouldn't be enough to awaken the Sharingan. A powerful emotional trigger was also necessary.
Kitazawa stroked his chin. 'Another eating contest? … No, the effect won't be as strong the second time. I'll need to change things up.'
Unable to decide on a method for now, Kitazawa turned and headed toward the artificial lake to practice Water Release: Water Dragon Jutsu.
Not far away, Kiba Inuzuka was diligently working on his Shadow Clone Technique.
The Next Day – Friday
Naruto woke up early. After breakfast, he made his way to the Ninja Academy. Today, he skipped his usual morning training with Might Guy.
The reason was simple—there was a Will of Fire Club activity scheduled, and as the head of the External Affairs Department, he had to be there early.
"Sasuke!" Upon arrival, Naruto found Sasuke had beaten him there.
"Hmm." Sasuke gave a curt response, glancing at him briefly.
"How is it? Did you buy the prizes?" Naruto asked quickly.
"They're in here." Sasuke produced a Storage scroll.
"Let me see!" Naruto snatched it, fumbling awkwardly.
"You don't know the Summoning Jutsu?" Sasuke asked, half incredulous.
"Nope," Naruto admitted.
Sighing, Sasuke retrieved the scroll, opened it, and with a puff of smoke, a small mountain of prizes appeared before them.
"Wow!" Naruto cheered. "Sasuke, you're amazing!"
"Really?" Sasuke's lips curved slightly. "Just so-so."
In the Ninja World, most summoning beasts outside the Three Great Sage Regions weren't particularly strong. The Uchiha Clan, however, maintained contracts with ninja cats.
The Ninja Cat Clan was unique because their leader—Granny Cat—was actually human and ran a ninja tool shop, supplying weapons and information to the Uchiha. Thanks to this connection, Sasuke had learned Summoning Jutsu early on.
"You two junior students are here quite early." Hana Inuzuka approached, Kiba following close behind.
"Kiba, why are you here too?" Naruto asked in surprise.
"What do you mean by 'I'm here too'?" Kiba grumbled. "What do you think my relationship with Hana Inuzuka is?"
"Huh?" Naruto blinked, stunned. "You two are siblings?"
"Did you just realize that?" Kiba snorted.
Sasuke subtly looked away, realizing he hadn't noticed either.
"How are you talking to the Council's President like that?" Hana suddenly elbowed her younger brother.
Kiba froze, his face full of question marks.
"Call him President!"
Under his sister's glare, Kiba reluctantly said, "I… President Naruto!"
"Hahaha! Kiba, you don't have to be so polite!" Naruto laughed, almost with a Uchiha-style maniacal chuckle.
"I wasn't planning on being polite!" Kiba muttered with a pout.
"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura's voice rang from a distance as she hurried toward them. "We're here to help you!"
"Why do we have to help, though?" Shikamaru yawned, looking half-asleep.
"Didn't you join the Will of Fire Club?" Choji Akimichi asked through a mouthful of potato chips.
"Ino signed me up!" Shikamaru complained.
"What? You're not willing?" Ino clenched her fist threateningly.
"It's not that I'm unwilling," Shikamaru said quickly. "It's just… There are so many people here already. They don't need us."
"Shikamaru!" Naruto beamed. "Perfect timing! You're the smartest—help us come up with two really hard questions!"
Shikamaru's face froze. This guy's just trying to mess with me…
'Fine. He'd give them two questions so difficult that no one in the academy could solve them!' Suddenly, Shikamaru looked very motivated.
"Is Naruto's word that effective?" Ino blinked, asking in confusion.
"Choji, come and help." Hana Inuzuka looked around, and her gaze fell on Choji Akimichi.
"Me?" Choji Akimichi put away his potato chips and walked in front of her.
"Help me set up the contestant stage," Hana explained. "Their strength isn't as good as yours."
"No problem," Choji said with a simple smile.
---
Nine AM.
Sasuke Uchiha and the others completed the event preparations on time, and the knowledge competition officially began. Students from all grades and classes also gathered on time.
"Everyone, please don't rush. I will first explain the rules of this knowledge competition." Hana Inuzuka stood on the stage and said loudly.
The rules were actually very simple: answer questions to clear stages. Each person will answer ten questions, with one minute given for each question. If they answered correctly, they moved on to the next question; if they didn't, they were eliminated.
As for the prizes, they were awarded based on how many questions were answered correctly.
Answer all correctly, and receive the most prizes. If only one question was answered correctly, it was a participation prize.
While the students enthusiastically began answering questions, Kitazawa was waiting for Hiruzen at the entrance of the Ninja Academy.
Clearly, being late was a Hokage's privilege.
Kitazawa waited for over ten minutes before seeing the belated Hiruzen.
"Something came up, so I'm a little late," Hiruzen said proactively as soon as they met.
"It's not late. The activity just started." Kitazawa raised his hand and said, "Hokage-sama, please."
Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded and walked into the Ninja Academy.
Because of the large number of participants, the activity was held on the Training Ground.
"Good, it's very lively." Hiruzen looked at the excitement and smiles on the students' faces and said, "It's true that an activity should be held occasionally."
The Ninja Academy previously had no entertainment activities. Students only had classes—and more classes.
However, there were also reasons due to the times. After all, frequent Ninja World Wars kept everyone on edge. But now that the wars were over, it was indeed possible to relax from time to time to prevent students from developing mental health issues.
Hiruzen had this realization because of the Psychological Medical Ninja proposed by Kitazawa. And Tsunade's hemophobia also proved that sometimes psychological problems were not much different from physical ones.
"Hokage-sama is here!"
Someone shouted, and the students all turned to look at Hiruzen Sarutobi. Except for the students still answering questions on stage, they all crowded around.
"Children, be careful, don't push." Hiruzen reminded them while saying, "I'm just here to watch the knowledge competition, like all of you, so there's no need to crowd around me."
"The Student Council will maintain order." Kitazawa was originally going to step forward himself, but a thought struck him, and he looked at Sasuke and Naruto.
"Follow me!" Naruto raised his arm and shouted, leading the members of the Student Council towards the crowd.
With their efforts, the students all returned to their original positions.
"Grandpa Third, are you alright?" Naruto walked up to Hiruzen Sarutobi and asked.
"I'm fine. You did very well." Hiruzen patted his head with satisfaction.
To become Hokage, in addition to being strong oneself, one also needs the ability to command many Ninja.
The reason he always disagreed with Danzo Shimura becoming Hokage was that he was too far removed from the ordinary Ninja and villagers of Konoha Village. Many Ninjas had never even seen him, so naturally, they couldn't support him.
Hiruzen looked at Naruto and thought of Minato Namikaze again. Undoubtedly, Minato was an extremely perfect Hokage, practically flawless.
Orochimaru was also a candidate for Hokage at the same time as Minato. Hiruzen didn't even support his own student.
Seeing this, Kitazawa felt that his goal had been achieved. After this incident, Hiruzen would definitely agree to keep the Student Council, and he would be able to successfully complete his task.
The brief interlude ended, and the knowledge competition continued.
"The second question, who popularized the Will of Fire?" Inuzuka Hana looked at the little boy in front of her and asked with a smile.
"It's Third Hokage-sama!" The little boy thought for a moment and immediately said excitedly.
"Correct answer!" Inuzuka Kiba said loudly. "Congratulations, you've advanced to the next round!"
"Who came up with these questions?" Hiruzen turned to Kitazawa and asked.
"Sasuke and Naruto came up with them." Kitazawa paused and added, "The teachers of the Ninja Academy didn't interfere."
Hiruzen immediately laughed upon hearing this. These students are all excellent inheritors of the Will of Fire!
The knowledge competition was divided into two halves—morning and afternoon. Because many people signed up, basically all the students in the school, one morning was simply not enough time.
"Let's just watch until here." Hiruzen watched for half a morning, about two hours.
"I'll see you out." Kitazawa was not surprised.
The Hokage is so busy, it's impossible for him to spend a whole day on a small matter like a knowledge competition.
"Hokage-sama, what do you think of this event they organized?" Kitazawa proactively asked.
"Although there are some flaws, for their age, it can be considered perfect," Hiruzen said with a smile.
"I will convey your words to them," Kitazawa said with a smile. "They will surely be happy for several days."
"It's not that exaggerated." Hiruzen waved his hand and said, "Their performance is also thanks to you."
"I just did some insignificant things," Kitazawa said modestly.
"It now appears that the existence of the Student Council is indeed very necessary for the Ninja Academy." Hiruzen stopped and said, "It can always exist."
"Thank you, Hokage-sama." Kitazawa secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
After receiving the Hokage's personal promise, his mission was finally truly settled.
"Hokage-sama, when will the Student Council member selection be scheduled?" Kitazawa asked again.
"How about replacing the practical exam in the final exam with the selection?" Hiruzen thought for a moment and asked back.
"This semester?" Kitazawa paused slightly and asked.
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded. He had always been keeping an eye on Naruto and was well aware of his Rasengan progress.
By the time of the final exam, Naruto would have basically mastered it. With the Rasengan, Naruto's first place would be even more secure. Even if older students participated, he would not be afraid.
"Okay." Kitazawa paused, then asked, "Hokage-sama, who do you think is more suitable to be the president of the Student Council?"
"Naruto performed very well in this event, and of course, Sasuke and the others were also good." Hiruzen said with a chuckle, "As for who becomes president, that will be decided by the selection at that time."
I don't believe you! Kitazawa had already understood his meaning.
He was clearly more inclined for Naruto to be the president of the Student Council. Otherwise, he wouldn't have mentioned him first.
"I'm leaving now. You don't need to see me out. Go back and continue with the event." Hiruzen finished speaking and disappeared from the spot.
Kitazawa retracted his gaze and turned back to the event site. He subconsciously glanced at the very active Naruto.
Because he was the head of the External Relations Department, he didn't participate in answering questions. Instead, he acted as a judge and scorekeeper.
At noon, the knowledge competition paused, and everyone rushed to eat lunch and rest. At two in the afternoon, the competition resumed, and three hours later, it finally came to an end.
"The students who answered ten questions correctly, please come on stage!" Inuzuka Hana shouted loudly. "Your prizes will be presented by Teacher Kitazawa!"
After she finished speaking, seven students came on stage in order.
Kitazawa walked onto the stage, scanning the group, and found that he only recognized one person—Sakura.
"Shikamaru, the questions you came up with were really too difficult!" Ino complained. She and Sakura had both participated, but she had stopped at the eighth question.
"Indeed." Akimichi Choji scratched his head and said, "I only answered five questions correctly."
"That's because you don't pay attention in class," Shikamaru retorted, "Only the last two questions were mine."
"Ah? Is that so?" Choji smiled sheepishly.
"Answering five questions correctly is already impressive. I only answered two correctly." Rock Lee clenched his fists and said, "My youth is still too weak! I'll go run fifty more laps after the event ends!"
"What's the connection between the two?" Kiba said with a headache. "Don't connect everything to youth!"
"Neji, it's a shame. Just one more question and you would have answered them all correctly." Tenten said, her face showing regret.
"It's nothing," Neji replied calmly. "It's about participation."
"It's ending… I really feel a bit reluctant." Naruto watched Kitazawa present prizes to the seven students and felt a rare sense of melancholy.
"It's okay." Shikamaru patted his shoulder. "This isn't the last event."
"You're right!" Naruto's melancholy quickly vanished. "The next event will definitely be even livelier!"
"When is the next event?" Tenten asked curiously.
Participating was fun, came with prizes, and even brought holidays. It was much better than attending class.
"I don't know." Naruto shook his head. "That depends on Teacher Kitazawa's arrangements."
"Teacher Kitazawa is calling you, Student Council members." Shino adjusted his glasses and reminded him.
"Let's go!" Naruto quickly walked onto the stage.
Sasuke, Hyuga Neji, and Rock Lee followed closely behind. Shikamaru and Sakura were not Student Council members, so they did not go.
"I declare the Student Council's first event a complete success!" Kitazawa announced loudly.
Immediately, a round of enthusiastic applause erupted from the audience.
"Thank you, everyone!" Naruto excitedly ran around on stage.
Listening to the cheers of so many people, he felt like his life had reached its peak. Receiving everyone's approval had always been his dream. Now, a part of that dream had been fulfilled.
Sasuke's lips curled slightly, suppressing the urge to burst out laughing. His thoughts were somewhat similar to Naruto's, but also different.
What Sasuke wanted was not everyone's approval but everyone's praise. Unfortunately, those praises were for the Student Council, not just for him alone.
Kitazawa glanced at him. Children did not know how to hide their emotions. He immediately saw that Sasuke was enjoying himself.
Kitazawa's heart stirred. Awkward emotions could make Sasuke awaken his Sharingan, but happy emotions could too.
So what kind of event could make Sasuke happy enough to awaken his Sharingan?
Kitazawa stroked his chin. The first thing he thought of was getting first place in the monthly exam.
Because Sasuke hadn't taken first place in a very long time. If there were such a monthly exam where Sasuke decisively defeated Yakumo Kurama and Naruto, wouldn't his emotions be intense enough?
Of course, it would also need everyone's praise—Especially from Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Itachi.
But the problem was, such a monthly exam was very difficult to arrange.
In addition to happy emotions, there were also painful ones. Sasuke's two defeats in the monthly exam had significantly increased his strength. And the longer the suppression, the stronger the outburst.
Kitazawa felt that he could add a sparring segment to practical classes, allowing Sasuke to get beaten up from time to time.
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P@atreon/Arvinstorm (45+ Advanced Chapters)