Kakashi was pressed against the wall, his hand already on the hilt of his short blade.
Something was wrong.
This was Konoha's ninja academy, one of the most heavily guarded places in the entire Land of Fire.
Even with the Chunin Exams bringing a lot more foreign ninja into the village, there was no way anyone could just casually break in here.
Not to mention the guards outside, the ANBU, the patrol units—there hadn't been a single sign of alarm.
And tonight's overnight stay had been strange from the start.
As Kakashi's eyes adjusted to the dark, he slowly drew his blade.
A cold gleam flashed along its edge in the moonlight.
The leading shadow turned and looked in Kakashi's direction.
Then, in an instant, an invisible pressure exploded out from him.
The whole classroom seemed to be crushed under something. The air turned thick and heavy, so suffocating it was hard to breathe.
Kakashi's breath caught. His fingers started trembling, cold sweat streaming down his forehead.
The short blade was still in his hand, but his arm felt like it had been filled with lead. He couldn't even lift it.
The classroom fell utterly silent.
Then, in that dead quiet, a voice broke the silence.
"Huh?"
Everyone froze.
Shin-chan was standing in the middle of the room, head tilted. "What are you guys here for? Delivering blankets?"
The leader of the shadows was silent for a beat.
"No."
"Then did you go into the wrong classroom?" Shin-chan thought about it. "The second-years are upstairs. Were you trying to go upstairs?"
One of the shadows at the side muttered, "This kid's kind of weird."
"I noticed."
Shin-chan walked forward a couple of steps and leaned in a little, looking up at the leader.
"Are you looking for someone?"
"No."
"Then are you here to borrow something?"
"No."
"Then what are you doing here?" Shin-chan blinked. "If you stay out this late instead of going home, your mom's gonna yell at you."
The leader looked down at him, his voice unreadable.
"You're not scared?"
"Scared of what?"
"Of us."
Shin-chan tilted his head and thought for a second. "You're not green bell peppers, so why would I be scared?"
The corner of the leader's mouth twitched. He lifted a hand and made a small gesture to the side.
One of the other shadows lunged out and reached for Shin-chan's shoulder.
Shin-chan slipped sideways. The hand passed right by his clothes without even brushing them.
The shadow froze for a moment, then reached again with the other hand.
Shin-chan stepped back. It looked like his foot slipped on something, and his whole body swayed, but the grab still missed.
Twice now.
The shadow's expression changed.
He sped up, both hands shooting out at once, one from the left and one from the right.
Shin-chan turned in place, almost like he was dancing, and slipped right through the gap between those two hands.
The leader watched the scene without speaking, but the killing intent in the room grew even stronger.
Kakashi's forehead was pressed against the desk. His whole body was shaking.
That killing intent was too strong—so strong his body wouldn't obey him.
This couldn't continue.
He bit down on his lower lip. The taste of iron spread through his mouth, the sting shooting through his head.
Slowly, Kakashi got to his feet. He gripped the short blade again, the tip leveled at the leader.
At the side, Uchiha Toru was trembling too. He tried several times, but his body wouldn't listen.
Gritting his teeth, he pressed the handle of his kunai into his palm and stabbed.
Pain shot through him like an electric current, driving away part of the fear.
He gasped, and at last his body could move again.
The leader glanced at the two of them.
"Interesting."
He lifted one finger.
One of the shadows standing at the back moved.
Kakashi tightened his grip on the short blade, crouched slightly, and slashed upward from below.
The shadow twisted aside.
Kakashi's blade changed direction mid-swing and cut across horizontally.
The shadow took a step back.
Kakashi pressed forward another step.
Their figures crossed in the moonlight, blades flashing again and again, occasionally colliding with a crisp metallic sound.
At the same time, someone had gone after Uchiha Toru too.
That shadow stood in front of him with his arms folded, as though he didn't think much of him at all.
Uchiha Toru gritted his teeth. The instant he threw his kunai, his hands started forming seals.
"Fire Style—"
But the shadow was faster. He caught Toru by the wrist and hurled him sideways.
Uchiha Toru slammed into the wall with a muffled grunt, but he was back on his feet almost immediately.
He wiped the corner of his mouth and fixed his eyes on the shadow in front of him.
In the back corner of the classroom, Bo-chan was still sitting in his chair, the strand of snot under his nose slowly stretching longer.
Then a hand reached over his shoulder from behind and pressed down on him.
"Don't move."
The voice was quiet, right next to his ear.
Bo-chan's body stiffened, and the snot slowly shrank back.
In the middle of the classroom, Shin-chan was still circling with the shadow.
The shadow lunged again. Shin-chan slipped sideways, grabbed an eraser off a desk, and threw it at him.
The eraser smacked into the shadow's forehead, bounced once, and fell to the floor.
It made a sharp little pat that sounded absurdly loud in the silent classroom.
The shadow's face flushed red.
"You—!"
"You really can't catch me, huh?" Shin-chan said. "If you catch me, then I'll be 'it' next."
Grinding his teeth, the shadow charged again.
Shin-chan leaned back, slipped right under the man's arm, and gave him a quick pat on the back as he passed.
"Keep trying."
The shadow spun and grabbed with both hands again.
Shin-chan dropped into a crouch, and both hands swept over his head without even touching a hair.
"That was close." Shin-chan crouched there, looking up at him. "Maybe get a little closer?"
The shadow's breathing grew heavier.
He stared down at the crouching child, fists tightening.
Shin-chan blinked. "Are you tired? Want to sit down and rest for a bit?"
The shadow said nothing. He just started walking toward Shin-chan, one step at a time.
Shin-chan got to his feet, dusted off his pants, and took one step back.
One advanced, the other retreated, and the two began circling the classroom again.
As Shin-chan passed Kakashi's side, he even spared him a glance.
The shadow behind him was already breathing hard from the chase, but still couldn't catch him.
"That's enough."
The leader looked at Shin-chan, then at Kakashi and Uchiha Toru.
Three of them.
One was skilled with the blade, his movements clean and sharp.
One was an Uchiha. Good nerve, but too reliant on ninjutsu.
And the last—
The leader's gaze settled on Shin-chan.
He couldn't read that kid at all.
There was no real style to him, and yet he still couldn't be caught.
The leader was silent for two seconds, then raised a hand.
"Withdraw."
One of the others froze. "But—"
"That's enough." The leader turned and headed for the door. "We've already achieved our objective."
The others exchanged glances, then followed him out.
At the doorway, the leader looked back once.
His gaze paused briefly on Kakashi, then Uchiha Toru, then Shin-chan.
Then he vanished into the night.
The suffocating killing intent vanished with him.
The classroom stayed silent for quite a while.
And just as everyone finally started to breathe again, the leader's voice drifted in from outside.
~~~
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