A few days later…
"Not bad," said Itachi as he passed the manuscript to Jiraiya.
It was the brief break between their Zanjutsu and Hakuda classes, and the two of them were out in the hallway with their fellow students in the advanced track waiting to be called in by the instructor. There was a considerable air of excitement among the students; the teacher had mentioned the day before that there would be a guest observing the class today, and while the instructor hadn't gone into much detail regarding their identity he had let slip that the observer was an officer in the Thirteen Court Guard Squads. Itachi's mind had immediately gone to Yoruichi, and even though he had absolutely no proof that she was today's observer, there was a feeling in his gut that he couldn't dismiss out of hand.
Whoever it is, I'll still perform to the best of my abilities, he thought, Even if it isn't her, word of a good showing on my part could get back to her. Either way, it can only help my post-graduation placement prospects.
"You really think so?" asked Jiraiya, dragging Itachi out of his musings.
He nodded. "Overall it seems good. I just marked a few grammar and spelling errors that I noticed. Like I told you before, though, I may not be the best person for editing a story like this."
Jiraiya shook his head and smiled as he put the manuscript away. "Don't worry about it. If all goes well, I should have the first copies in print a few weeks from now!"
Itachi raised an eyebrow. "You already have a publisher lined up?"
Jiraiya grinned. "Yup! Remember Lieutenant Mashiro from the meet-and-greet after the exams?"
"Hard to forget," said Itachi, "It's not every day that a girl tries to lick me, after all. What about her?"
"You've got a subscription to the Seireitei News Magazine, right?" asked Jiraiya.
Itachi nodded. "Yes, and I do remember that Squad Nine publishes it. What's that have to do with your new novel?"
"I sent in a letter to the newspaper office asking if they also handled novel publishing," Jiraiya replied, "Turns out they do, although it's not their main source of income. Having both the Squad Nine Captain and Lieutenant at that little gathering of ours after the exams were over is already paying off; I've got a meeting set up with Mashiro this weekend to pitch my book."
"Impressive," said Itachi, "Your networking skills are quite sharp."
"Of course, they are!" said Jiraiya with a smile, "That's an essential intelligence gathering skill, after all; you should know that."
Itachi nodded. "True enough. Best of luck with the meeting."
"Thanks," Jiraiya replied, "If it all pans out, I might just have you help me with editing the second volume, too."
"I make no promises," said Itachi.
It was at that moment that the instructor called them into the room. Unlike the lecture halls devoted to the more academic aspects of their education, the rooms devoted to their combat training were wide open. There were no desks or chairs, just space for drills and sparring. It didn't take long for Itachi to spot the guest observer, and when she met his gaze she gave him a friendly smile; it was Yoruichi.
Next to him, Jiraiya gave him a friendly nudge with his elbow. "Someone's happy to see you."
Itachi wouldn't give Jiraiya the satisfaction of a response, but that didn't change the fact that the feeling was mutual; it was good to see Yoruichi again. He didn't return her smile, but he did give her a nod of recognition, and that seemed to be enough for her.
Their instructor, a man with a receding gray hairline named Akifumi Kato, addressed the class. "Students, I'd like you to meet a very special guest. This is Captain Yoruichi Shihōin of Squad Two. She will be observing your drills and sparring matches today."
Yoruichi smiled and waved at the students. "Good to see you all again! Don't mind me; just go through your class as usual and act like I'm not even here."
Right, Itachi mused, I doubt any of us will be able to do that… and she knows it.
"Now," said Instructor Kato, "let's begin our warmup exercises."
The first third or so of the class was relatively uneventful as Itachi, Jiraiya, and the other students followed their teacher through their drills. It was the normal routine; the real excitement would come once Instructor Kato began pairing up students for sparring matches. Given Itachi and Jiraiya's advanced skills, the teacher had long since ceased pairing them up with anyone other than each other; the former Akatsuki member and the Legendary Sannin were the only students in the advanced track capable of matching each other in a fight.
Itachi could feel Yoruichi's gaze lingering on him as he went through the drills, and when the time came for the sparring matches the excitement in her eyes was palpable. He couldn't blame her; he was actually rather eager to show her just how far his skills in Hakuda had advanced, and he couldn't ask for a better opponent to demonstrate his abilities against than Jiraiya.
"All right," said the sage with a smirk as the two of them squared off in their little section of the hall, "Don't think that I'll go easy on you just because she's watching."
"I wouldn't dream of it," Itachi replied as he dropped into an opening stance, "Ready when you are."
Jiraiya made the first move, lunging forward with a hard right hook straight out of the gate. Itachi ducked beneath the blow and struck back with a quick left jab, but Jiraiya had already brought his arm up to counter. Itachi had planned for that, though, and was already dropping low to make a sweeping kick. However, Jiraiya was ready for it, and he swiftly backflipped to evade the strike.
The move only bought the sage a brief moment of respite, for Itachi surged forward to take the initiative. He pressed hard with a series of swift and surgical punches and kicks, doing all he could to mix up his attacks and keep his opponent off balance. That was much easier said than done; Jiraiya was one of the most formidable hand-to-hand fighters Itachi had ever gone up against, and his years of experience exceeded those of the slayer of the Uchiha Clan. It would only be a matter of time before the Sannin was able to counter and regain the initiative, and Itachi was already bracing for it.
That moment came a few seconds later when Jiraiya grabbed Itachi's right leg mid-kick. Itachi was able to twist free of the sage's grip and leap backwards to regroup, but it was all the opening Jiraiya needed. Now it was Itachi that was on the defensive, and while he held a slight speed advantage over his opponent that was offset by the power behind Jiraiya's blows and the utter relentlessness of his assault. He was hard pressed to block and dodge the sage's attacks, and his onyx-eyes darted this way and that as he searched for even the tiniest of opportunities to turn things around.
A few moments later he found his chance and took it. There was the lightest of gaps between one of Jiraiya's punches and a kick, and Itachi used it to get in a quick jab at the sage's lower torso. Jiraiya was able to twist his body to bleed off most of the force behind the attack, but in doing so he ceded the initiative back to Itachi, who immediately went on the offensive.
As the two veteran Shinobi went back and forth between attack and defense, Itachi was keenly aware of Yoruichi studying his every move. Unfortunately, there was no way that he could shift his focus towards her even the slightest to gauge her reaction to his technique; the tiniest bit of distraction would be all Jiraiya needed to decisively end the fight. All Itachi could do was keep his gaze firmly on his opponent and fight with every ounce of skill that he could muster. It was as intense as all of his previous sparring matches with the sage had been, but at the same time Itachi could not deny the sense of exhilaration he felt as the fight went on. Here he was, going toe-to-toe with the man who had been one of the Third Hokage's greatest students, and holding his own to boot.
It was a shame that it was only in the afterlife that an intense yet friendly sparring match like this between the two of them was possible.
Yes, friendly. As strange as it might've been to imagine, the dynamics between the Legendary Sannin and the bane of the Uchiha Clan had shifted somewhat over the few months since their fight with the Hollow. While Itachi knew that Jiraiya was still watching him like a hawk for the slightest hint that he might become a threat to their fellow students and the Soul Society as a whole, that had not stopped him from treating Itachi like a colleague since they had enrolled in the Academy. It was an utterly surreal situation, one that Itachi was still trying to wrap his head around.
He lost track of time as their sparring match continued, with neither one of them able to land a decisive blow. The two of them almost jumped when they heard their teacher address them.
"Itachi, Jiraiya!" barked Instructor Kato, "Halt!"
The two of them broke off and took a moment to catch their breath before turning towards their teacher. The rest of their classmates had already ceased their matches and were beginning to form a broad circle. That meant only one thing; the assigned sparring matches were over.
Now the free challenge fights would begin.
The sparring portion of their Hakuda classes was always broken up into two halves. The first half was the assigned sparring, where Instructor Kato would try to match up students according to their skill levels to make sure that his pupils were facing off against someone that they were on roughly equal footing with. After that came the free challenge fights where, as the name implied, students were free to call out any of their classmates for a match.
Aside from the obvious rules behind the free challenge matches such as the prohibition of killing or severely injuring one's opponent, there was a layer of unspoken etiquette and protocol that the students were expected to observe. Winning the free challenge fights was a way to stake out one's position in class and advance their social status, but calling out students that everyone knew were weaker than the challenger was frowned upon. Itachi and Jiraiya had only ever challenged each other, and they had stopped issuing those challenges quite some time ago once Instructor Kato has decided to simply pair them up permanently for the assigned sparring matches. Other students had attempted to ascend the informal hierarchy by challenging either Itachi or Jiraiya, but the two former Shinobi had taken down so many challengers since classes had begun that now no one would call them out. The students would only challenge each other, but there was no explicit rule stating that; theoretically, anyone in the hall at the time of the free challenge fights could be called out.
For the past few weeks now, Itachi had begun considering whether or not to call out Instructor Kato. At this point, he suspected that he had a decent chance at winning such a fight, and he imagined that Jiraiya felt the same way. However, he had never crossed that line because he did not wish for their teacher to lose the respect of his students. Kato was not just an instructor, after all; he was also a former Soul Reaper, and Itachi did believe in showing a measure of due deference to one who had put in his time on the front lines in the struggle against the Hollows. Nevertheless, the temptation was always there, but today it had been eclipsed by another desire…
…one that was fueled by the presence of the other veteran Soul Reaper in the room today.
Itachi was under no illusions; there wasn't a ghost of a chance that he could win if he made this move. That wasn't the point, however. It wasn't about victory or defeat now; it was about truly understanding how far his skills had grown…
…and how far he still had to go.
As he and Jiraiya joined the circle, he heard the sage chuckle. "Oh, man. You're really going to do it, aren't you?"
"Nice to see that your powers of observation remain sharp," Itachi replied as Instructor Kato stepped into the middle of the circle, "Yes, I am."
Jiraiya grinned. "And here I am, without any popcorn. What a shame. This is going to be fun!"
"All right, students!" called Instructor Kato, "You all know the drill. Who will be the first to issue a challenge today?"
Before anyone else could make a move, Itachi stepped forward. A collective murmur went through the students of the advanced track, and a few broke out into cold sweats at what Itachi imagined was the thought of going up against him.
You can all rest easy, he thought, I don't plan on challenging any of you today.
He looked past his classmates and made eye contact with the woman who had saved his life just a few months ago. "I challenge Captain Yoruichi."
Every student with the exception of Jiraiya gasped. Even Instructor Kato was unable to maintain his composure; the teacher's face paled as he struggled to comprehend what Itachi had just done.
"Now, now, Itachi," he said, "No one here doubts your gifts in Hakuda, but this… this is…"
"My decision," Itachi finished firmly for him.
Instructor Kato turned to the lady of the hour, as it were. "Captain Shihōin, you don't have to humor him…"
Yoruichi held up her hand and grinned as she kept her gaze locked with Itachi's. "I don't have to, true… but I want to. Actually… I was hoping this would happen."
Instructor Kato's eyes widened in shock and confusion. "What? I… I don't understand!"
"Don't worry," Yoruichi replied as she stepped forward, shedding her white haori and revealing that same black sleeveless and backless uniform that she'd worn the night they'd first met, "You don't have to. You do have to step back, however. Otherwise… well, it'd be a shame for you to get in the way and ruin my fun, don't you think?"
The teacher had no response for that other than to move back as far as he could. The rest of the students followed until Itachi and Yoruichi had almost the entire hall available for their fight.
Good, he thought as he saw the hungry look in her eyes, I have a feeling I'm going to need it.
"I knew you were a bold one," she said as the two of them squared off, "On the very night we first met, you had the guts to go up against a Hollow unarmed and untrained. I'm glad to see that student life hasn't dulled that side of you."
Itachi nodded. "Thank you."
Yoruichi smirked. "Save the thanks until after you've shown me what you're really capable of. I intend to enjoy myself here, so you'd better not disappoint me!"
Itachi dropped into a ready stance, his gaze never leaving Yoruichi's. "I'll give you everything I've got."
The grin on Yoruichi's face was downright predatory now. "Good. Kato! We're waiting on you!"
The teacher jumped before stepping forward and raising his right hand. "Are you ready?"
Itachi and Yoruichi nodded, but they didn't spare Instructor Kato so much as a glance; their eyes remained locked on each other.
"Very well, then," he said, "Three…two…one…begin!"
Yoruichi pounced, and she was on Itachi like a bolt of lightning.