Since the battle between Natsuhiko and Uchiha Shō, the Shinobi Tavern gained a new regular customer.
Uchiha Fugaku.
Unlike other patrons who disguised themselves, he showed his true face.
However, to blend in, he used the technique of transformation and dyed his hair green, following a suggestion from Might Duy.
This earned him praise from Natsuhiko.
Every day after finishing work at the police department, Fugaku would come early to the Tavern to play cards.
However, unlike others who came to relax, he seemed as if he was entering a battlefield, always serious.
Every card game was carefully considered, and he would make a move at the last second of his turn, making even the spectators tired.
Moreover, for some reason, Fugaku liked to sit in front of the Shinobi arcade machine closest to the door so that everyone entering the shop could see him.
As a result, those neurotic members of the Uchiha clan felt better upon seeing Fugaku's stern gaze, and their condition improved, making them less prone to outbreaks.
And his identity as the captain of the police department made other rogue members of the ninja clans less audacious.
For a while, the atmosphere in the tavern improved significantly.
From a terrifying tavern filled with a bunch of delinquents, it turned into an ordinary tavern with a bunch of regulars.
Well, at least it was better than before.
To thank Fugaku for his contribution, Natsuhiko, apart from letting Might Duy serve him a cup of triple-concentrated green juice every day, also personally played several rounds of cards with him to let him gauge the value of being a duel king.
The result was naturally no surprise, ending in Fugaku's dismal defeat.
But Fugaku's expression relaxed considerably because of this.
Because he understood.
Natsuhiko-sensei wanted to tell him that Shinobi card games were profound and extensive, and he still had a long way to go to become the Duel King. So, there was no need to be in such a hurry; he could enjoy the fun of JShinobi card games for a while.
But just as this thought arose in his mind, Natsuhiko patted his shoulder and said, "It seems like you haven't topped up enough money yet..."
Fugaku: "..."
---
With the presence of Fugaku, the fierce-eyed guardian, the operation of the tavern became more stable.
Natsuhiko's focus returned to the ninja school.
Speaking of which, half of this semester passed inadvertently.
Last week, the school even had a midterm exam.
Initially, there was no such custom at the ninja school.
It was Natsuhiko who proposed it to Principal Biwako when he noticed that everyone had been slacking off after studying for two months.
This slight change caused many students who liked to cram at the end of the term to complain endlessly.
Natsuhiko recently received a lot of begrudging thanks from students because of this midterm exam.
Although the students unanimously criticised the maliciousness of this midterm exam, its effect was surprisingly good.
The students' nerves, which had relaxed due to their laziness, tightened again because of this exam, and the atmosphere of learning in the school became intense once more.
Principal Biwako also praised Natsuhiko for this, encouraging him to propose any good suggestions.
She even decided to make this midterm exam a regular occurrence and continue it in the future.
As a result, when the students received this news, their looks towards Natsuhiko-sensei became increasingly resentful.
So, although Natsuhiko had several plans to reform the school, he decided to postpone them to avoid stirring up the students' fragile hearts again.
In sealing jutsu class on Wednesday morning.
Natsuhiko had just finished explaining the questions on the midterm exam paper for the sealing jutsu class.
Seeing that some questions that had been repeated several times were still answered incorrectly, Natsuhiko felt his blood pressure rise and began to understand the feelings of those teachers who were disappointed with their students in their past lives.
He really wanted to slam the table and say:
"You are the worst batch I've ever taught!"
Unfortunately, he had only taught this batch.
So, this move could only be saved for the next academic year.
Seeing that the time was almost up, Natsuhiko began to assign homework.
"Today's homework is to copy the questions you got wrong three times, then analyse the reasons for your mistakes and the methods of correction. It's due next class."
After assigning the homework, he added:
"Could the top twenty students in the mid-term exam please stay behind? The rest of you can be dismissed."
As soon as he finished speaking, the bell for the end of class rang.
The little ninjas couldn't help but look at Natsuhiko-sensei with admiration.
Clearly, they didn't look at the clock or anything, but the timing was so precise every time.
What kind of spirit was this?
Although the class was over, most of the students remained seated, intending to see what
Natsuhiko-sensei had to say to those students.
Unfortunately, Natsuhiko didn't grant their wish.
"Why are you still here after class? Is it because I assigned too little homework just now? In that case..."
Before he could finish, the classroom erupted with the noise of desks and chairs colliding, and the little ninjas picked up their books and scattered away like they were flying over walls and rooftops.
In the spacious classroom, only Natsuhiko, Kushina, and the twenty students remained.
Natsuhiko waved his hand to gather them in front of the podium.
He first scanned these students and saw many familiar faces from the original work, such as Minato Namikaze, Kushina Uzumaki, Shikamaru Nara, Shizune, Ebisu, and Konohamaru Sarutobi, as well as children from various major ninja clans. (Dude, did you travel in some multi-verse lmao)
Natsuhiko got straight to the point:
"The reason I asked you to stay today is this."
"I'm planning to establish a research group—or you can call it an interest class, club, or association, whatever you like."
"The main members of this research group will serve as assistants to help me with sealing just-related work."
"For example, studying sealing jutsu course content in advance and helping me clarify future teaching arrangements."
"There's also the role of testers, helping me test the effectiveness of some new teaching aids."
"Of course, there will also be opportunities to learn advanced sealing jutsu knowledge that won't be taught in class."
"But since these tasks are not simple, only the most outstanding students will have the opportunity to join this group."
Natsuhiko paused for a moment to give them some time to digest.
When he saw the little ninjas gradually puffing up their chests, looking proud, Natsuhiko knew they had all understood.
Kushina couldn't help but cover her mouth, her eyes curved with amusement.
Natsuhiko didn't hesitate to give praise:
"All of you were among the top performers in the mid-term exam, so naturally, you're my first choice."
"But—"
Before the little ninjas could rejoice, they were drawn to attention by Natsuhiko's "but".
Natsuhiko continued:
"But these tasks will take up a considerable amount of extracurricular time."
"And because of the requirement for coherent research data, it's okay at the beginning, but if any of you drop out midway, it will cause me a lot of trouble."
"And although I've tried to make sealing jutsu classes as interesting as possible, as you top students should have noticed, learning real sealing jutsu is not as interesting as you might imagine—no, it's boring."
"So I need you to think carefully about whether you really have the intention to delve into sealing jutsu."
"Of course, more importantly, you must get your parent's permission. After all, this is a choice that will affect your future ninja career."
Seeing Natsuhiko speak so seriously, the smiles on the little ninjas' faces gradually faded, and they began to hesitate.
Natsuhiko didn't feel disappointed at this but nodded:
"That's right, think it over and discuss it with your parents when you get home."
"Give me a definite answer during the next class."
After that, Natsuhiko explained the specific details of the research group to everyone.
The advanced knowledge that couldn't be learned in class, playing with novels and exciting teaching aids—all made the students very envious.
However, deciding to study further sealing jutsu took a lot of work.
So when the little ninjas left the classroom, they all looked conflicted.
Kushina felt a little worried seeing this.
"Natsuhiko, why did you make it sound so serious? What if none of them join?"
Natsuhiko shrugged.
"Aren't there still twenty-one to forty students left?"
Kushina: "..."
Natsuhiko smiled, "Actually, the current rankings don't matter at all. What I care about is whether they have the determination to delve into sealing Jutsu."
"Kushina, I'm sure you understand this very well."
Kushina shuddered at the reminder of her painful experiences studying sealing jutsu in the past, nodding vigorously in solid agreement with Natsuhiko's words.
(End of this Chapter)
P.S. Chapters 98-102(They equal ten chapters as the author posted double and triple chapters in the following updates) are up on my Patreon.
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