The three kids froze as they watched Kazuyama, covered in kunai and writhing in pain.
Obito, in particular, looked down at his empty hands, then back at the pile of kunai, his face full of panic.
"It's over, Kakashi! You're such a jinx—you actually made it happen!"
"All of my thread kunai are stuck on Sensei! What do we do?"
"Rin! Hurry up and heal him!"
Rin didn't need Obito's command—she had already stepped forward and started treating Kazuyama.
To heal him, she had to remove the kunai first. With a serious expression, she looked at him and said, "Sensei, hold on!"
"Ugh!"
Just as Kazuyama was about to ask her to be gentle, a sharp pain shot through him.
Rin moved fast, pulling out every kunai at once with both hands.
A second later, his scream echoed again.
"Ow! Rin, easy! I was just a second too slow to say something!"
"I'm your Sensei! Can't you be a little gentler?"
But as the only Medical-nin in the team, Rin—usually so gentle—said something that left Kazuyama speechless.
"Sensei, the best way to heal is to face it head-on. A short pain is better than a long one."
"See? Doesn't that feel better now?"
As he watched the glow of the Mystical Palm Technique spreading over his wounds, slowly healing them, Kazuyama was at a loss for words.
After all, all the blood that could be spilled had already been spilled.
"Rin… who taught you Medical Ninjutsu?"
"The emergency medical instructors! They said wasting even a second on the battlefield is irresponsible to the wounded!"
Kazuyama suddenly felt his vision go dark. Emergency medical instructors?
Those guys were the kind who would just yank an injured person up and carry them home. Forget about delicate treatment—their methods were downright brutal.
To them, as long as you were still breathing, they wouldn't give up on you. Their approach? Well… heh…
Kazuyama was someone who absolutely hated pain. He always made sure he wouldn't get hurt in battle, and in all this time, he could count his injuries on one hand. The worst one had been during his fight with the Fourth A.
He had always scoffed at kunai and shuriken, convinced they could never touch him.
After all, he had both Transparent Escape and Flying Thunder God—how could basic ninja tools ever hurt him?
But today, he knew he had been wrong.
No matter who you are, you can't escape the wrath of ninja tools.
With that thought, Kazuyama turned and shot a murderous glare at Obito.
"Obito, you little bastard! What the hell were you doing?!"
Hearing his Sensei's furious roar, Obito shuddered, his voice shaking along with him.
"Sensei, I didn't do it on purpose! I was just getting ready!"
"This is all Kakashi's fault! His big mouth jinxed it—he kept saying my kunai might hit one of us!"
"And the moment he said it, you showed up… and got hit by them."
Kakashi rolled his eyes so hard he might as well have been using Byakugan. This guy was unbelievable—he just had to drag him into this.
"Great. Just great. You're all just amazing."
"I—"
[Ding! The system has detected a classic case of backfiring—The host attempted a surprise attack on their students but ended up getting injured instead. As a special reward, the system grants the host the phrase: "Reaping What You Sow," along with +5 to Genjutsu.]
Kazuyama was stunned into silence.
Yes, he had flown back to check on things and maybe give his students a little scare to keep them sharp.
But he never expected to end up like this—a human pincushion full of kunai.
Whatever. He'd take it. Attribute points were attribute points.
He'd just have to be more careful next time.
"Kazuyama Sensei, what are you trying to say?"
"If it's really that bad, I don't mind if you don't pay me back."
"I'll just take it as compensation for my nutrition costs."
Even Obito felt that his reasoning was a bit weak. He really wanted to drag Kakashi into this, but Kakashi had only made an offhand comment—who could have predicted things would turn out like this?
But Kazuyama was not the type to let things slide. This was a guy ruthless enough to trick even himself, so there was no way he'd let Kakashi off the hook.
"Obito, just stop talking. Hmph, you were supposed to pay me anyway!"
"Do you have any idea how much blood I lost?"
"And you, Kakashi—were you cursing me or something?"
"Hmm?"
The moment Kazuyama's gaze landed on Kakashi, a chill ran down his spine. Without thinking, he blurted out,
"I'll help cover your recovery costs!"
"After all, I really shouldn't have jinxed my own Sensei. That was my bad."
Kazuyama was quite satisfied with Kakashi's quick compliance and was just about to nod when Rin's sharp voice cut in.
"Kazuyama-sensei! Stop moving!"
"Your wounds are still healing!"
And just like that, Kazuyama, who had been ready to assert his authority as their teacher, found himself scolded by his own student.
"...A Konoha ninja?"
"I didn't expect that."
A cold, murderous voice suddenly echoed from the forest. A masked Kirigakure shinobi emerged before them.
"Kirigakure ANBU..."
"Looks like my shouting just gave us away."
Kazuyama frowned as he watched the enemy appear. It wasn't like he had wanted to yell, but pain had a way of overriding reason.
Oh well, they were targeting him anyway. At least now, they came to him on their own.
"Hmph, a Chūnin with three Genin?"
"Too bad for you. Looks like you're all going to die."
Without hesitation, Kakashi flipped his short sword into a reverse grip and lunged forward, striking first.
The essence of Hatake Kenjutsu—speed, precision, and ruthlessness—was on full display.
"Tch! Brat!"
But the Kirigakure ANBU wasn't easy prey. He raised his katana to block, then countered with enough force to knock Kakashi back.
"Not bad for a kid, but too bad—I've already alerted my comrades."
"You have no way out."
"Water Release: Hiding in Mist Technique."
Thick fog surged forth, quickly shrouding the area.
"Kakashi, Obito, get over here."
Kazuyama was still injured, so he called the two back to his side.
Hearing his voice, Kakashi and Obito quickly retreated to him.
"This mist is blocking our vision. Don't make any reckless—"
Clang!
Before Kazuyama could even finish speaking, Kakashi was already in motion, his short sword flashing as he deflected a barrage of incoming shuriken.
"Tch. Rin, how much longer?"
"Almost done! Just a little more!"
...
(100 Chapters Ahead)
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