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"I have a question," Kakashi's visible eye crinkled with curiosity. "Your eyes possess the power to see through anything. The strength of those white eyes matches your passive nature perfectly. So why do you still insist on wearing those sunglasses?"
"Because they make me look dashing," Satoru adjusted his shades with a slight smirk, the motion practiced and smooth.
Kakashi sighed, tucking away his half-eaten candy. With a casual two-finger salute, he vanished in a whisper of displaced air.
Alone now, Satoru's expression darkened. "Fascinating how the Third Generation and Danzo's veteran dogs all desperately want to harness the Nine Tails' power, yet simultaneously tremble at the mere thought of it." He crushed the lollipop between his teeth, his dangerous smile reflecting in the lenses of his glasses.
The assessment of Class Seven could wait. First, he needed to test the Nine Tails' power himself. After that, he could focus on properly mentoring Naruto Uzumaki. The sooner he could shape these young devils into self-sufficient shinobi, the sooner he could be rid of this troublesome responsibility.
Lost in thought, he almost missed the presence materializing behind him. Almost.
"Si. Wei. Shen. Hai. Yin." Sasuke Uchiha's hands flew through the hand signs, each movement precise but still too deliberate.
"Too slow," Satoru drawled, gnawing on the lollipop stick. His six eyes, hidden behind dark lenses, tracked every movement without him having to turn. "A real enemy could have killed you three times over while you're still forming seals." He paused. "Ah, the Great Fireball Technique? Impressive for a Genin to have enough chakra for that."
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!" Sasuke's chest swelled before he exhaled a massive sphere of flame, easily the size of a grown man.
"Om—" The fireball engulfed Satoru's position, scorching the earth beneath.
"Slow is fine if you can land the hit!" Sasuke's Sharingan blazed as he leaped backward, hurling several shuriken through the flames at the silhouette within.
His triumphant expression faltered. The inferno had stopped dead in front of Satoru, as if held back by an invisible barrier. The shuriken hung suspended in the air, frozen mere inches from their target.
"Is this... your bloodline limit?" Sasuke's grip tightened on his kunai, Sharingan spinning as he tried desperately to understand what he was seeing. No matter how hard he looked, he couldn't detect any trace of how Satoru was doing this.
"*cough Excuse me, smoke went down the wrong way." Satoru waved away the dark clouds, looking almost bored. "It's really quite simple – you missed."
Sasuke's response was a kunai thrown with deadly precision at Satoru's throat.
"Watch closely." Satoru raised a single finger, and the kunai froze an inch from its tip.
His six eyes narrowed slightly. This kunai... was it actually Naruto in disguise? These brats were finally learning to work together. Still, no transformation technique could fool his enhanced vision.
Poof! White smoke erupted, revealing a grinning Naruto where the kunai had been.
"Damn it, Sasuke's always trying to steal the spotlight!" Naruto brandished a real kunai this time. "But I'll be the one to break through Teacher Satoru's defense! That's what a future Hokage would do!"
The blade stopped dead an inch from Satoru's neck, no matter how hard Naruto strained against the invisible force.
"How... why won't it... move?" Naruto's face flushed red with effort.
Satoru watched him struggle with amusement. "Since you're working so hard, would you like some help?"
"You... you... I'll kill you!" Naruto gripped the kunai with both hands now, teeth gritted in frustration. But the blade refused to budge another millimeter.
After several more failed attempts, Naruto pulled back and tried striking from different angles. Each time, the blade stopped just short of contact.
"Naruto, you absolute idiot!" Sasuke spat. "I can't believe I trusted you with the critical strike!"
"Now, now, don't be too harsh," Satoru grabbed Naruto by his spiky hair and casually tossed him toward Sasuke. "That was actually quite a clever plan. Against anyone else, it might have worked."
"Get away from me, moron!" Sasuke, remembering their last collision, kicked Naruto in the side.
Naruto scrambled up, seizing Sasuke's collar. "You bastard! Would it kill you to catch me properly?"
While they bickered, Sasuke kept his eyes locked on their instructor. This is a Jōnin's true power? With strength like this... I might finally catch up to you, Itachi.
"This is so frustrating!" Naruto's voice cracked with anger. "Especially you, Teacher Satoru, always acting so cool and untouchable!"
Satoru's six eyes detected movement behind a nearby tree. "You can come out now, little one. Hiding isn't your strong suit."
Sakura emerged, red-faced and clutching several kunai. "I'm not little! I'll grow bigger soon enough!"
"As I was saying about those seals, Sasuke..." Satoru redirected the conversation.
"All ninja need hand signs for jutsu. I'll just keep practicing until mine are faster." Sasuke's tone was ice.
"So cool!" Sakura swooned, then shot Naruto a disgusted look. "Unlike some people..."
"Sakura-chan..." Naruto wilted.
"Don't compare me to that dead-last idiot," Sasuke scoffed.
Naruto grabbed him again. "How dare you talk to Sakura-chan like that! She's adorable!" He puffed up his chest. "Besides, the Great Fireball is basic stuff. A future Hokage like me needs way more advanced jutsu!"
"These kids..." Satoru sighed heavily. "Fine. Watch carefully – this is how you perform a proper Fire Style technique."
Without forming a single hand sign, Satoru tilted his head back and released a torrent of flames that coalesced into a fireball that dwarfed Sasuke's attempt. The heat distorted the air itself, and the massive sphere of fire seemed to fill the sky.
"No hand signs? And this... this is the same jutsu?" Sasuke's Sharingan spun wildly as he stared in disbelief. He hadn't detected any sign of chakra molding before the technique.
The entire class stood frozen, mouths agape, as they watched the giant fireball slowly dissipate.
"Show-off! But that was awesome!" Naruto bounced with excitement. "Sasuke's fireball was like a peanut compared to Teacher Satoru's watermelon!"
The difference between the same technique, performed by a student versus a master, couldn't have been more stark.
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