"Since we became teammates, from the moment you saw our names on the same list, what have you actually observed about me… and what do you really think about me?"
Sora's chopsticks paused mid air, a piece of grilled fish still caught between them. The rest of the table had gone completely still.
Aiko's grin faded as her face turned serious, Hiyori's amused gaze also sharpened into focus, Hideki stopped chewing, even Chōya lowered his bowl.
Sora finally set his chopsticks down.
He met Murakami's eyes directly.
"How can you have no shame in asking something like that all of a sudden?" Sora sighed as he fiddled with his fingers.
"What is there to be embarrassed about? Your observation is your observation and has no effect on me." Murakami shrugged as he spoke. "I am only curious though. Perhaps I could learn from you."
Sora looked into Murakami's eyes and saw that his gaze was clear and devoid of any form of mischief so he sighed. "Fine."
Looking up at Murakami again, he said. "I've observed that you don't talk just to fill
in the spaces between a conversation. Although I can't put a finger on it, I find that every question and comment you've made carries a hidden meaning."
"Hmm." Murakami hummed but didn't say anything else and continued staring at Sora and he continued.
"You don't react to things the way most, if not all of us do." he said and glanced at Katsuro and the back. "You decide how to react, and you do it faster than anyone notices. I don't know how you do it, but I've never seen you look distressed."
"You're not wrong about that one." Katsuro said and nodded repeatedly. "He's only got that one casual expression for everything."
Murakami chuckled softly. "Well, what good would bring distressed AND appearing distressed do?" He asked, and picked up his chopsticks to continue eating. "Isn't it better to take the events of life as they come?"
"Hehehe." Aiko giggled at his question. "There you go again talking like an old man."
Murakami shot her look but she only stuck out her tongue at him before ignoring him and turning to Sora. "Don't mind me, please go on."
Sora nodded briefly. "You train alone, read things no one else in our grade bothers with, and when you answer questions in class, it's never just to show off, it's to correct something wrong."
"Wow…Mu-chan has a secret admirer." Aiko whistled and then burst out laughing which caused Sora to blush slightly, but he composed himself just as fast, clearing his throat with exaggerated dignity.
"What are you talking about? I'm not… I'm just observant. That's all. It's not like I've been secretly writing poetry about him or something."
Aiko's eyes lit up at the reply.
"Poetry? Oh my god, Sora, do you have a secret notebook? 'Ode to Murakami's Mysterious Silence'?"
Hideki nearly choked on his rice, slapping the table as he laughed.
"'Your eyes are like deep wells of unspoken schemes'—"
"Shut up!" Sora snapped, cheeks now fully flushed. "I do not write poetry! I just… notice things! That's what I said!"
Kenji, grinning wickedly, said. "So you're saying you've noticed a lot about Murakami. Like… a lot a lot."
Sora pointed his chopsticks at Kenji like a weapon.
"I notice things about everyone! You snore in class. Hideki flexes every time someone looks at him. Katsuro falls asleep in every position known to man. It's not special!"
Katsuro, head still resting on his arms, lifted one finger lazily.
"I resemble that remark."
Aiko was already doubled over, clutching her stomach.
"'It's not special', oh my god, Sora, you're making it worse!"
Yui covered her mouth with both hands, shoulders shaking silently. Even Hiyori had to press her lips together to keep from laughing outright.
Sora's face was now the color of a ripe tomato.
"I hate all of you," he muttered, shoving a large piece of fish into his mouth as though it could physically block further humiliation.
Chōya, who had been quietly inhaling his fourth serving, finally looked up with sauce on his chin.
"Wait… so Sora likes Murakami?"
The table erupted in laughter.
Murakami watched everything unfold with the same calm, unreadable expression he always wore, though the faintest upward curve at the corner of his mouth betrayed his smile.
He waited until the worst of the laughter died down, then spoke in his usual quiet tone.
"For the record," he said, picking up a piece of grilled mackerel with perfect composure, "I don't mind being observed."
Sora glared at him through watery eyes.
"You're enjoying this."
Murakami chewed slowly, swallowed and said. "I neither confirm nor deny that accusation. But jokes aside, I don't mind being observed."
His gaze took a mysterious light as he looked through the group locking eyes with all of them before finally landing on Sora once more. "So? What do you think about me?"
The table remained silent, safe for the clinking of the chopsticks against the plate. Sora looked at Murakami, then the others then at Murakami again before exhaling.
"I think you're someone who's already decided what kind of shinobi you want to be, even if the rest of us are still figuring it out."
He said and took a pause as though calculating his next words.
"You're not loud about it like Kenji always is or Hideki today, but you're not hiding it either." He said, ignoring the glare aimed at him from Kenji and Hideki. "That makes you… different. Not better, just different."
He added. Sora had his own pride, he was someone who believes that he has seen enough to be able to profile anyone he takes his time to observe.
So while Murakami was unique, he was just different from them, definitely not better.
"As for what I think as a teammate, I think if we're on the same team, I'd rather be someone you trust than someone you have to babysit."
"Oh?" Murakami paused his movements. "Placing me on such a high pedestal already. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were up to something…nefarious."
Sora waved his hand casually. "It's nothing complicated like that. I just know you're strong enough to do so. You're the strongest person in the room right now after all."
"Huh!?" Kenji slammed his fist on the table and stood up with an ugly expression. "What is that supposed to mean, Sora?"
"It means you're weak. Shut up and sit down."
"What'd you say!?" Kenji turned his object of anger from Sora to Aiko but before he could say anything Murakami had his chopsticks pointed at him.
"Be seated. It's not good to be noisy during meal time." Murakami said softly.
"You bas-" Kenji was just about to curse out loud when a sudden feeling of pressure fell on him, and from the point Murakami's chopsticks facing him, he felt a great sense of danger.
Like one wrong move and he'd be dead.
As this thought settled in his mind, his gaze towards Murakami changed and he nodded and sat down.
"Sora-kun." Murakami began. "Choya here is from the Akimichi clan, hailed for their overwhelming physical might. Katsuro from the Nara clan known for their Shadow manipulation and Hiyori from the Yamanaka clan known for their mind possession technique."
"Not to mention them, others here aren't any weaker in an all out fight. What makes you so sure I'm stronger than them."
"Eh..?" Sora scratched his head as he looked at each one of them then at Murakami then smiled wryly. "Well…they don't give that feeling of wholeness you give."
"Wholeness?" Murakami raised his brow in confusion but Sora shrugged.
"I don't know how else to explain it." He said, then pointed at Murakami then at Aiko then and Daich. "You three give me a similar feeling but yours," he pointed at Murakami. "Is vastly more overwhelming."
"I think he's talking about presence, Murakami." Daichi, who had been silent for most of the meal, suddenly said, "You know… that field you said you wanted to erase."
Murakami already knew what Daichi was talking about and was quite impressed, not at Daich, but at Sora.
Sora was a budding sensor, but due to his civilian background, he doesn't have a specialized training method to enhance that ability.
The current Shinobi system was built on three core classes.
Taijutsu. Ninjutsu. Genjutsu.
Every shinobi learns basics in these, but many specialize heavily in one or two, and outside of these core classes exist other Role based classes.
Medical-nin. Sensor Type. Combat-type. Intelligence/Tactician. Fūinjutsu specialists. Weapon/Tool specialists. Summoning specialists. Black Ops/ANBU
But while these may sound like Shinobi classes, they were more like "jobs" or team roles in the shinobi world.
So unlike with Taijutsu, Ninjutsu and Genjutsu, the other classes aren't fully explored.
Murakami surmised that the constant war caused the inability to develop and innovate on the other classes.
He knew this because he had searched for a way to train his sensory abilities when he awakened it but found nothing.
He shot a glance at Hiyori and wondered if her clan had a technique or two to stimulate the senses, but he shook his head.
He already had a technique he created and passed to Hina who followed its steps and awakened her form of sensory ability.
It is unknown whether that is the final stage but sensory abilities manifest in varying ways.
Sora for example can feel strength in the form of presence, Hina can feel chakra in the form of a 'hum' while Murakami could perceive both chakra and presence.
It is known that various sensors have their ways of perception.
Karin for example feels chakra as a taste or flavor.
The Yamanaka sense mental and emotional states more than raw chakra.
Tobirama could detect precise chakra signatures, quality and quantity.
Naruto with the Sage mode feels life force and natural energy differently.
In the current situation and under the available information, Murakami classified Sora as a physical threat detector.
Murakami wasn't sure, but he felt that with proper guidance, Sora would be capable of sensing killing intent or raw power. A perfect ability for a Taijutsu specialist…something Sora wasn't.
Hina wasn't a Shinobi so while she did have chakra, she could utilize it like the vast majority of humans in this world. However, that doesn't mean that the energy isn't there.
With the Spiritual Consciousness Inducement technique, she was able to stimulate her consciousness and mental energy enough to allow her to detect the flow and fluctuations tied to chakra.
It was the perfect ability she could awaken because it enabled her to read intent and discover when chakra is used secretly. However, it didn't allow her to gauge someone's power level.
This was where Murakami was superior. He could feel both physical presence and chakra flow. Making him a complete sensor.
He could read intents, predict physical attacks, and detect chakra reserves.
Murakami was sure that wasn't the last of the abilities he could awaken but he wasn't in a rush, after all, at the end of the day, it was only one of the many abilities in his arsenal.