…
The next morning arrived quietly.
Sunlight filtered through the clouds, illuminating the land while the streets of Konoha gradually came alive with movement..
Murakami walked through the streets calmly toward the usual meeting point near the Hokage Administration Building.
Compared to normal, his presence felt… lighter.
Not physically, just…subtly.
As though the faint disconnect he once unconsciously felt between himself and the world around him had lessened slightly.
The sensation was difficult to describe. It was like he wasn't just an observer anymore but an active participant.
His chakra circulation remained the same, and his reserves had not increased, yet, his awareness felt clearer.
Sharper so to say.
Even the movement of the morning wind against his skin felt unusually distinct.
Murakami glanced briefly toward the sky before dismissing the thought.
The mysteries of the Sea of Consciousness could wait until tonight.
For now—
"MURAKAMI!"
A loud voice shattered the quiet atmosphere immediately.
Murakami didn't even need to turn around.
Hideki came jogging toward him with his usual energy, waving one arm while carrying what looked like half-finished breakfast skewers in the other.
"You're early again," Hideki complained.
"You're late again," Murakami replied calmly.
Hideki looked offended. "I'm exactly on time."
"You're running."
"That proves dedication."
"It proves you woke up late."
Hideki opened his mouth to argue further before pausing suspiciously.
"…You seem different today."
Murakami glanced at him briefly. "Different?"
"Yeah." Hideki scratched his cheek. "Dunno. You just look… calmer."
Murakami remained silent for a moment as he gave the boy a look that said: 'Haven't I always been calmer?'
"…Maybe you're imagining things."
"Hm."
Before Hideki could continue interrogating him, another figure approached from the opposite direction.
Sora.
Unlike Hideki, he looked fully awake already, glasses properly adjusted while holding a small notebook beneath one arm.
"Good morning you two." Sora greeted. "I see you're both here early,"
Without returning the greeting, Hideki pointed immediately. "Murakami's acting weird."
"I'm standing still."
"That's exactly what I mean!"
Sora ignored the complaint entirely before his gaze shifted toward Murakami more carefully.
Then he paused slightly.
"…You do seem quieter than usual."
Murakami looked at him flatly. "That sentence makes no sense."
"It does to me."
Before the conversation could continue further; "You're all early."
The three turned simultaneously.
Kaito stood nearby with his hands in his pockets as usual, his posture relaxed with his eyes alternating between close and half open, looking as though he had just casually wandered over rather than appearing without any detectable presence whatsoever.
Hideki straightened slightly. "Morning, Kaito-sensei."
Kaito gave a lazy nod before glancing across the trio briefly.
"…Good."
Sora adjusted his glasses. "What mission are we assigned today?"
Kaito reached into his pocket.
Then tossed something toward them.
Hideki caught it instinctively.
"…Training Ground Seven?" Hideki blinked once, confused, then twice. "No mission?"
Kaito began walking immediately. "Change of schedule."
The trio exchanged brief glances before following after him.
Hideki looked suspicious. "Why do I suddenly have a bad feeling about this?"
"Because your instincts occasionally function properly," Sora replied.
"...I hate you."
Murakami didn't see the need to talk as they moved through the village.
Still…his eyes were narrowed slightly.
There was no mission assignment today, which meant this was intentional on Kaito's part.
And from his observation of the man over the month, Kaito-sensei wasn't the type to waste time unnecessarily.
Twenty minutes later, the four arrived at the training ground.
The clearing remained quiet under the morning sunlight.
Several wooden posts stood near the edge of the field while trees surrounded the open area from all sides.
Kaito stopped walking, then slowly turned toward them. The lazy atmosphere around him lessened slightly.
Not completely, but enough to let them know something was about to go down.
"I've spent the last month observing how you operate," he said calmly.
As soon as his words fell, Hideki immediately looked nervous while Sora straightened subtly.
Murakami simply listened.
Kaito's gaze swept across all three of them. "Your mission performance has been acceptable." He paused for a few seconds, then continued. "Your teamwork hasn't."
Silence settled briefly across the field.
Hideki spoke first. "…What do you mean?"
Kaito looked directly at him.
"I mean your team unconsciously revolves around Murakami."
The atmosphere stilled immediately.
Hideki frowned while Sora's expression changed slightly behind his glasses.
Murakami remained still and unbothered.
Kaito continued without caring for their reactions. "During combat, both of you wait for him whether you realize it or not."
"Threat assessment."
"Positioning."
"Timing."
"Decision making."
"You rely on him to stabilize the flow of battle."
Hideki frowned harder. "That's not—"
"It is," Kaito interrupted calmly.
The bluntness of it halted Hideki immediately.
Sora remained quiet, because unlike Hideki… He already knew Kaito was right.
Hideki's expression tightened slightly.
"…Well, we trust him because he's good at it."
"That's not the issue," Kaito replied, shaking his head.
His gaze shifted toward Murakami briefly before returning to the group as a whole.
"A team isn't supposed to collapse the moment one person is removed from the equation."
The words landed hard, Sora's eyes narrowed faintly behind his glasses.
Hideki on the other hand opened his mouth again to retort, but then slowly closed it as if remembering something.
Because neither of them could actually deny it.
During missions, whenever situations became unstable, both of them instinctively looked toward Murakami.
Not Kaito. He barely ever followed them during missions.
It was always Murakami, and somehow… things usually settled afterward.
Kaito folded his arms lazily.
"Murakami is ahead of both of you."
His words were blunt and direct with no sugarcoating whatsoever.
"In combat judgment, situational awareness, chakra control and adaptability…" Kaito continued calmly. "He's already operating at a Chunin-level standard than Genin."
Hideki grimaced slightly upon hearing that.
Not because he was jealous, but because hearing it spoken aloud made the gap feel more real somehow.
He didn't know what classified one as Chunin, but Murakami was definitely not Genin standard.
Sora by the side remained quiet, and internally, he had already reached the same conclusion he always did whenever they fought together.
Kaito wasn't exaggerating.
Murakami's reactions during combat were simply too stable and efficient. Even under pressure.
Kaito glanced toward Murakami again. "…But that creates another problem."
Murakami finally spoke as though responding to Kaito's gaze. "Dependence."
"Correct." Kaito nodded and shoved one hand back into his pocket. "If this continues, the two of you will stop developing properly."
Hideki frowned. "That's a little extreme."
"No," Kaito said flatly. "That's reality." Kaito's eyes curved slightly. "…So we're fixing that today."
Seeing the expression on Kaito-sensei's face, Hideki immediately took a step back. "…Why do I suddenly feel threatened?"
"Because your instincts occasionally function properly," Sora answered again.
"STOP SAYING THAT."
Kaito ignored them completely. "Today's exercise is simple."
He raised one finger. "Murakami will not participate."
There was a brief moment of silence before Hideki broke it. "…What?"
Sora looked toward Kaito curiously. He was interested in the kind of exercise that would exclude Murakami and help them catch up somehow.
Murakami's expression remained calm, though his eyes narrowed slightly.
Kaito continued casually.
"You two will handle everything yourselves."
Hideki pointed aggressively. "That's not 'simple,' that's sabotage."
"You'll survive."
"Based on what evidence?!"
Kaito's gaze shifted lazily toward the forest surrounding the training ground.
"…Because if you don't, I'll step in before permanent damage occurs."
"That is NOT reassuring."
Then Kaito looked directly at Murakami.
"And your task is the opposite."
Murakami waited silently.
"For today," Kaito said, "you are forbidden from helping them unless I explicitly allow it."
A faint period of silence followed before Murakami nodded once. "…Understood."
Hideki looked betrayed instantly. "You accepted that way too quickly."
"You'll learn faster this way." Murakami said flatly.
"That sounds like something people say before disaster."
Kaito smiled faintly. "Good," he said.
Then his hands came together in a single seal.
BOOM.
Three smoke clouds erupted around the clearing instantly.
The trio's eyes narrowed simultaneously.
When the smoke cleared, three shadow clones stood around the trio.
One with a tanto.
One empty-handed.
One already forming hand seals.
Hideki's face immediately paled.
"…Kaito-sensei."
"Hm?"
"…What exactly qualifies as 'training' to you?"
The clone forming seals finished first.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu."
Hideki's soul nearly left his body.
"THAT'S NOT TRAINING—"
WHOOSH.
And just like that, the training ground exploded into a battlefield.
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
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