January was drawing to a close.
Over the past half month, the ninja world could truly be described as turbulent.
First came Sunagakure.
The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, was severely injured, and Gaara—the One-Tail jinchūriki—was captured.
If not for Kitazawa and Uzumaki Naruto arriving in time, Chiyo and Gaara would have ended up in trouble as well.
And the news of Naruto defeating Sasori quickly spread throughout the entire shinobi world.
Next was Kirigakure.
The Hidden Mist had two jinchūriki: Yagura Karatachi, the Three-Tails, and Utakata, the Six-Tails.
The Akatsuki sent four members to capture them. After a massive battle, both jinchūriki were taken.
Finally, Iwagakure.
After Kitazawa captured the Four-Tails jinchūriki, Rōshi, he was traded back to Iwa.
But because Rōshi already had conflicts with Ōnoki, he left the village again.
This week, he too was captured by the Akatsuki.
With Akatsuki's continuous tailed-beast hunts, their objective was completely exposed—and every major village's sense of alarm shot through the roof.
They protected their jinchūriki while also preparing for war.
But no village wanted to be the one to take the first swing.
Especially when none of them truly understood how strong Akatsuki was.
So every great village began frantically dispatching intelligence agents to gather information on Akatsuki.
Only Konoha, following Kitazawa's orders, chose to stay put and hold position.
And the commotion in the wider ninja world didn't affect the Ninja Academy.
The Advanced Class students still came to class as usual.
The only difference was Uzumaki Naruto.
He was too famous now, and it made Uchiha Sasuke and the others feel openly jealous.
In Konoha's Forest of Death, Kitazawa was training Wood Release: Wood Golem Technique.
A moment later, footsteps approached.
"Kitazawa-sama."
The Anbu ninja bowed slightly. "We just received notice from Director Yakushi Nono. Gaara has woken up."
"I understand. You may go."
Kitazawa nodded.
After the Anbu left, Kitazawa immediately used the Flying Thunder God Technique.
He entered Konoha Hospital and quickly arrived at Gaara's room.
Before he even stepped inside, he felt a terrifying killing intent.
Kitazawa casually pushed the door open.
Gaara was tied to the bed, eyes bloodshot, struggling violently.
That murderous aura was aimed at Yakushi Nono, who had been treating him.
But the moment Gaara saw Kitazawa, his gaze snapped over—bloodthirst flickering in his eyes.
"Nonō-senpai, you can leave this to me."
Kitazawa said with a smile.
Yakushi Nono nodded and turned to leave.
"You want to kill me? I went through a lot to save you."
Kitazawa met Gaara's eyes, his tone calm.
"I live to kill!"
Gaara's voice twisted with madness.
"So you're very confident in your strength?"
Kitazawa asked, expression unchanged.
"Of course!"
Gaara answered without hesitation.
"Then why did you end up like this? Even Shukaku, the One-Tail, was extracted."
Kitazawa cut straight to the point.
"…"
Gaara froze, instantly speechless.
"Your strength isn't anything special."
Kitazawa chuckled. "In Konoha alone, there are plenty of people your age who can beat you."
"Impossible!"
Gaara blurted out without thinking.
Losing to Sasori, he could accept.
Sasori was stronger in both power and experience—and even had the Third Kazekage as backup.
But someone his age being stronger than him? He didn't believe it for a second.
Back in Sunagakure, he had crushed everyone his age.
More accurately: aside from Rasa, nobody had been able to beat him.
"If you lose, then what?"
Seeing Gaara take the bait, Kitazawa asked.
"If I lose, you can do whatever you want!"
Gaara said immediately.
"Good."
Kitazawa walked up and released him.
"Where are they?"
Gaara swung his legs off the bed at once, standing up and demanding impatiently.
"You just recovered. To keep it fair, I'll restore your chakra first."
Kitazawa held out his hand.
Gaara blinked.
Restore my chakra?
But the next second, his pupils shrank.
An unimaginably vast chakra blanketed him—so overwhelming it felt like facing a tailed beast head-on.
A thought shot through Gaara's mind at once:
This man is stronger than Rasa.
And another question followed right behind it.
As a jinchūriki, he knew: if you lose your tailed beast, you die.
So why wasn't he dead?
As Gaara thought, he realized this chakra felt familiar.
Then he understood.
These past two weeks, every single day, a steady chakra had been injected into his body.
And now it was obvious—that chakra belonged to Kitazawa.
"Why did you save me?"
Gaara asked, confused.
"You'll know soon enough."
Kitazawa withdrew his hand. "Come with me."
Gaara frowned slightly, but followed.
The two soon arrived at the Ninja Academy.
"Kitazawa-sensei."
Naruto glanced at Gaara. "Is he our new classmate?"
Ino Yamanaka and the others also stared at him curiously.
"Not yet."
Kitazawa replied, then instructed, "Sakura, go call Sasuke."
Uchiha Sasuke hadn't been coming to class lately—he'd been at home getting used to and mastering the Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Okay!"
Sakura spun around and dashed off excitedly.
"His name is Gaara. Naruto, spar with him."
Kitazawa said with a smile.
"No problem!"
Naruto shot a thumbs-up. "Gaara, let's have a youthful battle right now!"
"What nonsense."
Gaara said coldly. "I'll kill you!"
The moment those words left his mouth, Kurama Yakumo and the others' expressions shifted.
Kitazawa didn't stop him.
After all, Gaara was about to pay a painful price for talking big.
The Advanced Class students retreated to the sides, leaving the field to Gaara and Naruto.
"Begin."
Kitazawa announced.
Gaara raised a hand expressionlessly.
Sand surged up from beneath the ground.
Then he suddenly froze.
Blood-red chakra erupted into the sky.
Naruto stood in place, six tails forming behind him.
"The Nine-Tails jinchūriki…?!"
Gaara's heart jolted as a suffocating sense of danger poured in from every direction.
"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Naruto roared.
More than two thousand shadow clones appeared.
"…?"
A giant question mark practically popped up on Gaara's face.
Back in Suna, as a jinchūriki, he'd always relied on massive chakra reserves to crush other ninja.
But he never imagined there'd come a day when someone would crush him in chakra.
No time to think—Gaara flung both hands outward.
Naruto and his army of clones were already charging in, yelling about youth.
Centered on Gaara, sand formed into shuriken and blasted outward in all directions.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Shuriken!"
Naruto responded instantly.
A dense storm of shuriken collided.
But Wind Release: Vacuum Shuriken had the edge—ripping through the sand shuriken and continuing toward Gaara.
Sand Shield!
Gaara reflexively formed a solid defense around himself.
This "absolute defense" came from his mother, Karura—sand that normally moved on its own to protect him.
"Rasengan!"
Naruto raised a hand and smashed it down without hesitation.
Nearby clones followed immediately.
Boom!
Dozens of Rasengan punched the sand shield full of holes.
Sand Coffin!
Gaara's expression changed drastically. He snapped his hand toward Naruto.
Countless streams of sand erupted from the ground, trying to wrap him up.
Catch the leader first.
Only by taking down the original could he deal with the endless clones.
"Leaf Dragon God!"
Naruto reacted fast, spinning into motion.
The sand barely got close before a massive blood-red dragon whipped it up and flung it away.
"What?!"
Gaara's eyes shook.
"Leaf Dragon God!"
The other clones didn't hold back anymore.
Countless green dragons spun forward and crashed toward Gaara.
"Man, this is brutal."
Shikamaru Nara shook his head.
"Seriously."
Neji Hyuga agreed.
"Still, Gaara's actually pretty strong. No wonder he was so arrogant earlier."
Kiba Inuzuka said, watching Gaara struggle desperately.
"The Advanced Class isn't short on strength."
Tenten chuckled.
"That's true."
Sakura's voice sounded as she returned.
"Who's Naruto fighting?"
Sasuke asked, puzzled.
"His name's Gaara. Kitazawa-sensei brought him. That's all I know."
Ino explained.
"But earlier, he was super confident."
Kiba waggled his eyebrows. "Even said he'd kill Naruto."
"Did he?"
Sasuke's gaze sharpened. "Doesn't look like much."
"I bet you'll spar him next."
Shikamaru thought for a moment. "Otherwise, Kitazawa-sensei wouldn't have called you here."
Sasuke was about to reply—when a loud impact exploded across the field.
Gaara was smashed into the air.
Before he could land, another dragon slammed into him.
For a moment, he was getting ping-ponged around midair.
"His defense is decent."
Sasuke said, a little surprised.
He knew exactly how destructive Leaf Dragon God was.
If it were someone else, they'd already be cut into pieces.
"There's a special layer of sand protecting his body."
Neji activated his Byakugan.
"But he won't last long."
Shino Aburame adjusted his glasses.
"Cracks are already forming."
Hinata Hyuga had her Byakugan active too.
As she spoke, Kitazawa appeared directly in front of Gaara.
Naruto immediately stopped spinning and canceled Leaf Dragon God.
With a quick Body Flicker, Kitazawa moved to the edge of the field.
Freed at last, Gaara dropped onto the ground, panting hard, still visibly shaken.
"Naruto is the Nine-Tails jinchūriki. It's not fair for you to face him."
Kitazawa held out a hand and healed him. "I'll give you a different opponent. Her name is Kurama Yakumo."
Gaara blinked, then felt that made sense.
To him, Naruto had simply won by overwhelming chakra.
"Yakumo, spar with him."
Kitazawa stood and said.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei."
Yakumo was surprised, but stepped into the field anyway.
Gaara took a deep breath and felt much lighter.
That suffocating chakra pressure was gone.
And as far as he knew, Konoha only had one jinchūriki—the Nine-Tails.
"Do you think he can resist Yakumo's genjutsu?"
Kiba asked curiously.
"He can't."
Sasuke said with absolute certainty.
After awakening the Mangekyō, he'd finally understood just how absurd Yakumo's genjutsu truly was.
That was exactly why he used to be unable to break it.
Of course, now he wasn't that afraid anymore—
because he had a genjutsu bloodline of the same tier: the Mangekyō Sharingan.
"No need to discuss it. Gaara's already under."
Tayuya said, looking at Gaara standing stiffly in place.
Kimimaro Kaguya shook his head.
Gaara reminded him of his former self.
And the outcome was about the same: strong, yes—but still a step short of a true genius.
"A one-sided fight."
Ino sighed.
"Well, it's Yakumo."
Sakura agreed.
Kitazawa smiled to himself.
In his view, among Yakumo's three genjutsu, only Genjutsu: True Illusion was slightly weaker.
Both Terror Dreamscape and Five Senses could rival Mangekyō Sharingan eye techniques.
With Shukaku gone, Gaara stood no chance against Yakumo.
The match ended.
Yakumo released the genjutsu.
Gaara collapsed to the ground again, drenched in sweat like he'd been hauled out of water.
He stared at Yakumo instinctively—fear creeping into him.
Because of his earlier threats, Yakumo hadn't held back at all.
She used Terror Dreamscape and Five Senses—full force.
In the illusion, Gaara had been utterly humiliated, beaten down from start to finish.
"Gaara, third time's the limit. I'll give you one more chance."
Kitazawa raised both hands and healed him again. "Next, you'll spar Sasuke."
"…"
Gaara no longer had his earlier rage.
After getting stomped twice in a row, he finally understood: everyone in the Advanced Class was extraordinary.
"Sasuke."
Kitazawa called after finishing treatment.
Sasuke walked into the field.
Gaara clenched his fist and stood up, facing him.
"I won't use genjutsu on you."
Sasuke said flatly. "Otherwise you'll say I'm bullying you."
Gaara frowned.
This guy was just as arrogant as he was.
He snorted and raised his hand without hesitation.
A flood of yellow sand surged out, forming a giant hand that grabbed toward Sasuke.
"Too slow."
Sasuke opened his Mangekyō Sharingan and easily dodged the sand hand.
He drew the Sword of the Thunder God and accelerated instantly.
Gaara's heart jumped.
What are those eyes?
He hurriedly pulled sand up to form defense in front of him—but he was still too slow.
Hatake Swordsmanship!
Sasuke's blade stabbed into Gaara's heart.
But it didn't go all the way in—because of Gaara's Sand Armor, the full-body layer of sand.
Lightning Release: Chidori Blade!
Sasuke formed seals with one hand.
In an instant, a shrill bird-cry rang out.
Lightning surged along the Sword of the Thunder God and pierced straight through the Sand Armor.
Blood seeped out.
Gaara screamed, instantly enraged, and sent all his sand crashing at Sasuke.
"Pointless."
Sasuke vanished from in front of him.
Gaara froze.
He scanned around instinctively.
The next second, a violent chakra fluctuation erupted behind him.
Gaara whipped around—
and saw Sasuke.
Yin Release: Rasengan!
Sasuke raised a massive Rasengan and slammed it into Gaara's back.
It was too fast. Gaara couldn't react at all.
Only his mother Karura's sand moved on instinct to protect him.
Even so, he was blasted away.
Gaara hit the ground, his back burning with pain.
"You lost, Gaara."
Sasuke lifted his hand, brilliant lightning crackling with a harsh screech.
Gaara's defense was strong—but it wasn't truly absolute.
And the decisive factor was Sasuke's Mangekyō Sharingan.
Every one of Gaara's movements was completely seen through.
With the spatial blink granted by Amenominakanushi, Sasuke defeated him with ease.
"How can Sasuke-kun teleport?"
Sakura's eyes went wide.
"Is it Flying Thunder God?"
Kiba exclaimed in shock.
"It's not Flying Thunder God."
Shikamaru paused. "But it's definitely some kind of space-time ninjutsu."
"Sasuke learned space-time ninjutsu?!"
Ino couldn't help complaining. "Since when?! How did I not know?!"
"His eyes aren't the three-tomoe Sharingan."
Shino caught the key point. "But they look even stronger."
"It's the Mangekyō Sharingan!"
Naruto gave a thumbs-up immediately. "As expected of my lifelong rival! What a troublesome kind of youth!"
Even though they hadn't fought yet, he could already imagine how annoying a Flying Thunder God–like space-time technique would be.
But the stronger Sasuke became, the more excited Naruto got.
"What's Mangekyō Sharingan?"
Chino asked curiously.
Her Ketsuryūgan was on par with the Sharingan in reputation, but she'd never heard of the Mangekyō.
"It's the next stage after the three-tomoe Sharingan."
Naruto scratched his head. "As for what it actually does… I don't really know."
"So the three-tomoe Sharingan can evolve?"
Kiba blanked for a second. "You guys are freaks!"
Neji clenched his fist unconsciously.
He was completely behind Sasuke now.
The Byakugan gave all-around vision, but reacting to sudden spatial movement was incredibly hard.
And on top of that, there was Mangekyō-level genjutsu—he probably couldn't handle it either.
Why doesn't the Byakugan have an evolution?
A deep frustration rose in Neji's chest.
If not for the Fatefeather Bow Kitazawa had given him, the gap between him and Sasuke and Naruto would be even bigger.
Kimimaro felt powerless too.
His Shikotsumyaku offered no advantage at all against the Mangekyō Sharingan.
As for Tayuya, she'd already stopped caring.
She couldn't win anyway, so Sasuke getting stronger didn't really matter.
"Sparring's over. Everyone go train."
Kitazawa clapped his hands.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei."
The Advanced Class students all dispersed, including Sasuke and the others.
"How was that?"
Kitazawa walked up to Gaara, raised both hands, and healed him once more.
"…"
Gaara was speechless.
"They're about your age."
Kitazawa added.
"I lost."
Gaara said expressionlessly. "Do whatever you want with me."
"Starting tomorrow, you'll attend school with them."
Kitazawa smiled.
"What?"
Gaara thought he'd misheard, his face full of shock.
"What—are you going back on your word?"
Kitazawa asked.
"I won't go back on it."
Gaara paused, then said, "I'll come to school tomorrow."
[Current Mission: Make Gaara join the Advanced Class.]
[Reward: Mastery-level Wind Release chakra nature transformation.]
[Mission Completed. Reward Granted.]
Kitazawa looked at the three lines of text and felt satisfied.
Now he was only missing mastery-level chakra nature transformation in Earth Release and Fire Release.
He couldn't help wondering: once all seven natures reached mastery, would a new ability appear—something like forming Truth-Seeking Orbs by hand?
"Let's go."
Kitazawa stood. "I arranged a place for you to stay. I'll take you there now."
Gaara nodded and followed him out of the academy.
In less than three minutes, they arrived at a two-story house.
"To make it easier for school, I found you a place nearby."
Kitazawa took out a key and opened the door.
Gaara followed him into the living room without a word.
He didn't care much about where he lived, so he stayed silent the whole time.
Kitazawa didn't say much either.
Once Gaara got familiar with Naruto and the others, his personality would naturally change.
After all, he wasn't bad at heart—Rasa's bizarre "tests" had simply pushed him into half-madness.
"Get some good rest."
Kitazawa handed Gaara the key and said with a smile. "See you tomorrow."
He vanished with the Flying Thunder God Technique.
When he reappeared, he was already at the Anbu base.
These days, Kitazawa came to Anbu every day.
Mostly because he didn't want to miss any Akatsuki activity.
He casually picked up the documents on the desk and began reading.
His eyebrows lifted—surprised.
Because Akatsuki's tailed-beast hunt had failed for the first time.
They had gone after the Two-Tails jinchūriki, Yugito Nii, and the Eight-Tails jinchūriki, Killer B—so failure was understandable.
But at the root of it, it was still Kitazawa's butterfly effect.
With the timeline shifted, Kumogakure had gathered Yugito and Killer B under concentrated protection.
And with the Fourth Raikage, A, and other ninja stepping in, they repelled Akatsuki.
Kitazawa rubbed his chin.
At this pace, the Five Kage Summit probably wasn't far off.
Because the five great villages would soon realize: no single village could defeat Akatsuki alone.
But Kitazawa had no intention of attending any Five Kage Summit.
He set the document down, stood up, and went back to the Forest of Death to train.
The next day, Gaara arrived at the Ninja Academy on time.
When Kitazawa announced that he had joined the Advanced Class, Naruto and the others accepted him.
But Gaara still couldn't adapt right away.
~~~
Thank you for reading!