Chapter 3. 1:
...
It was the end of the first month of a new year, and the sun peeked through the dusty clouds as if it were trying its best to be kind.
A soft breeze stirred the air, scented with warm stone and dry fabric. For Kiba, those little details mattered. The village's scent, the footsteps on the sand, the distant murmur of vendors setting up their stalls… all signs that something was starting again.
Yeah… today was the start of the academy again…. his second year.
The academy always began a new semester at the end of the first month of the year, and the number of students typically ranged from 35 to 45 total.
The class schedule was quite flexible… Though that didn't mean you could just skip it.
'Second year' Kiba thought. It might not sound like much… but for someone who had already lived more than one life, it wasn't as simple as "back to ninja school." Every year spent in this world meant one more year of advantage over his previous self. Three years in One Piece had been enough to get him killed. Here, he had already made it to seven… and counting.
"Don't pretend you're still asleep," said Karura from the doorway of his house.
Kiba was already awake, of course. Sitting on the edge of his bed, feeling the vibrations that signaled his…. friend's?... arrival.
He could recognize Karura by her cheerful gait, that loose, bouncy rhythm she always had…. like she was dancing as she walked. He didn't need to see her to know she was wearing her fine-cloth tunic and had probably already greeted three or more neighbors on the way over.
"Me? Asleep? Never," he replied sarcastically while finishing adjusting his black tunic. Last night, like every single night, he stayed up training like a madman until his body finally gave out. But that much rest time was plenty enough for [Gamer's Body] to get his body back to 100% without any kind of pain or discomfort, indeed, he really fucking loved this OP ability that let him always be at his best after resting for only a few hours.
Anyway…. Today, Karura wasn't alone like she usually was.
With her were Yashamaru and Pakura… the two new first-year students. One looked nervous, the other… was in full "professional grump" mode. Yeaa… Same as always with that rude little girl.
"Ready for the big day?" asked Karura with that usual spark in her voice. Unlike Kiba, who wasn't a morning person at all, she was always full of energy and happiness. Him? Not so much. He'd take night over morning any day…. mornings were made for sleeping.
"Depends. Are we counting as 'big day' the likelihood that teacher Kaede has some sort of welcome surprise for us?" Kiba replied as he stepped out confidently, using his [Radar Sense] to avoid tripping over the shoes Pakura had left in front of the door.
"Tch, is he really blind?" the girl growled when she noticed he'd avoided them effortlessly.
The four of them walked together toward the academy. Kiba picked up on every detail: Yashamaru's feet dragging slightly against the ground… like someone unsure of himself…, Karura's firm, lively steps, and Pakura's stomps…. always louder than necessary. She walked like the ground owed her something.
"Can you stop acting like the world's out to get you for five minutes?" Kiba asked, sensing the constant hostile vibrations she was giving off.
"Can you stop acting like you're better than everyone?" she snapped. "You're only a year older than me."
Karura turned her head like she was watching a puppet show.
"Well, well. Nothing like starting the school year with so much love," she said with a smile.
Kiba just shook his head. Pakura always had that mix of silent hostility and accidental sarcasm. But since she didn't bother faking kindness, at least she was predictable.
Once inside the academy, Kiba… like always…. sit in the back, on the right, next to the windows. No one but him knew exactly why. To others, it just looked like a personal preference.
Karura, of course, sat next to him without asking. Pakura grumbled but didn't argue. Yashamaru simply accepted his seat with the calm of someone who preferred to avoid unnecessary conflict.
"Nervous?" Kiba asked Yashamaru as they settled in.
"Err… A little…" the boy answered honestly.
"Relax, half the first-years here don't even know how to throw a pair of kunai without poking out an eye. You kinda do."
Karura let out a giggle.
"That doesn't help much, you know?"
Kiba gave a faint smile.
"Wasn't meant to."
.....
"All right, silence," said a deep voice that cut through the air like a kunai.
Teacher Kaede didn't need to shout. His presence alone carried the weight of someone who had seen too much things… yea many things… after all, the shinobi world was not kind to anyone. And he was someone who could teach you ninja history with a creepy smile/grin/smirk and, in the same class, show you how to silently slit someone's throat with a wire thread.
Yep, Kiba respected him. Not out of fear… but out of experience. He was a man of few words, but his presence said plenty.
"Fourth and fifth years: training field. One hundred laps around the perimeter. And you know what happens if you do less," he said, never changing his tone.
A wave of groans and murmurs rose among the older students, but no one dared complain out loud. Within seconds, they were gone.
"Second and third years: written exam. One by one, come get it," he added, placing two separate stacks of papers on the desk.
"Already giving us a test…" Karura murmured with an exaggerated sigh.
"Don't talk like you haven't been studying every day," Kiba said as he stepped forward to collect his exam.
"Not all of us have your 'learn everything instantly and never need to review' gift," she muttered behind him.
"... Jealous?"
"Very. But at least I've got someone who explains everything I don't understand."
Kiba mentally rolled his eyes. He had spent quite a good chunk of the break going over every topic with her, inventing absurd metaphors just to make things easier for her. In the end, she did learn, sure… but she also fell asleep halfway through his explanations. Not that he minded… after all he was usually training his body the entire time anyway…. yep, even while explaining things he used to work out.
Back in his seat, Karura placed the test in front of him in complete silence. He had already read it seconds earlier with his fingers, using a refined tactile reading technique. Another perk of [Supersensitive], another reason he didn't need his eyes to see.
The questions were basic. Too basic, really. But kinda necessary.
"What is taijutsu?"
"What defines a genjutsu?"
"What are the fundamentals of elemental ninjutsu?"
Nothing he hadn't known for years. In fact, he'd probably learned more detail reading scrolls at his parents house or his grandfather's shop than in any classroom.
So…. Once all the other classes had started their assigned tasks, the teacher focused on the first-year group and began giving them basic lessons on everything they needed to know.
For those with prior knowledge… stuff they'd seen with their ninja parents or within their families… it was kinda easy. Yep…Nothing new. But for the kids who came in with no clue, it might as well have been a quantum physics lecture, only made worse by the teacher speeding through everything like he was doing a review instead of explaining from scratch.
Yeah, Suna's education system wasn't exactly top-tier, but it was something. Way better than nothing. And "nothing" was the norm for most ninja villages unless they were one of the Five Great Shinobi Countries.