One month later, the atmosphere inside the Ninja Academy had already become much more lively than before.
Most of the students had gradually become familiar with one another, and basic lessons regarding Chakra control and the Three Basic Techniques had officially begun.
Today was the practical combat class.
At the training grounds behind the Academy, Iruka Umino stood at the sidelines while holding a notebook in his hand.
More than twenty students had already been divided into groups, taking turns demonstrating the Clone Technique they had practiced over the past month.
"Next, Kakashi Hatake."
The moment Iruka called his name, Kakashi calmly walked forward beneath everyone's gaze.
His expression remained indifferent as always.
After stopping in the center of the field, he calmly formed hand seals.
"Clone Technique."
Poof!
White smoke instantly exploded around him.
As the smoke dispersed, three identical Kakashi Hatakes stood neatly side by side.
Their movements were perfectly synchronized.
Their expressions were exactly the same.
Even the angle of their silver hair looked identical.
The entire class immediately erupted into noise.
"Amazing!"
"He made three perfect Clones!"
"As expected of Kakashi Hatake!"
Asuma Sarutobi clicked his tongue quietly, but his gaze remained fixed on the Clones.
Kurenai Yuhi softly gasped in surprise while covering her mouth.
Ebisu adjusted his sunglasses with an unwilling expression but remained silent.
Meanwhile, Kakashi simply dispelled the Clones before calmly walking back to his original position.
His face remained completely expressionless, as though creating three perfect Clones was something entirely ordinary.
Iruka smiled while jotting down notes in his notebook.
"Excellent."
Then he looked toward the next group.
"Next, Uchiha Obito."
Obito immediately inhaled deeply before striding forward with exaggerated confidence.
"Watch carefully!"
He quickly formed hand seals while muttering nervously under his breath.
"Clone Technique!"
Poof!
Smoke exploded once again.
However, after the smoke cleared, the atmosphere instantly became awkward.
Two Clones stood beside Obito.
One had a crooked neck.
The other had slanted eyes.
Both leaned sideways awkwardly as though they were drunk.
For a moment, the entire training ground became silent.
Then someone suddenly burst out laughing.
"Pfft!"
"Hahahaha!"
"What kind of Clone is that?!"
"They look half-dead!"
Obito's face instantly turned bright red as he clenched his fists tightly.
Iruka appeared unsurprised by the result.
Instead, he simply sighed softly before writing something down.
"Next."
"Might Guy."
Might Guy calmly walked forward with an expressionless face.
Then he stopped and formed hand seals.
The Chakra within his body slowly circulated.
Then...
Nothing happened.
There was not even a puff of smoke.
The air suddenly became strangely quiet.
Might Guy's mouth twitched slightly.
A few seconds later, laughter erupted even louder than before.
"Hahahaha!"
"He couldn't even make one Clone!"
"That's even worse than Uchiha Obito!"
"Can someone like him really become a Ninja?"
Might Guy silently lowered his head and looked at his own hands.
Then he helplessly sighed inwardly.
So it still doesn't work after all...
Over the past month, the Muscle-Tendon Change Classic had already significantly improved his Physique.
His Chakra reserves had become far greater than before.
However, his Ninjutsu talent remained just as terrible as ever.
Whenever he tried using Chakra for Ninjutsu, it always dispersed midway before stabilizing properly.
No matter how many times he attempted it, the result remained the same.
At first, Might Guy had tried repeatedly to improve through practice.
But eventually, he gave up.
Rather than wasting huge amounts of time forcing himself down a path completely unsuited for him, it was far better to focus entirely on the things he actually excelled at.
As for what others thought?
He genuinely no longer cared.
Without changing expression, Might Guy calmly walked back toward the group.
As he passed Obito, he noticed the boy standing there with his head lowered while clenching his fists tightly.
Ring ring ring...
The Academy bell soon rang loudly across the grounds.
Students immediately began leaving in groups while discussing the earlier demonstrations excitedly.
"Kakashi Hatake is incredible."
"As expected of a Genius."
"Obito's Clones were hilarious."
"And Might Guy couldn't even create one!"
The mocking voices gradually faded into the distance.
Might Guy acted as though he had not heard any of it.
After calmly packing his things, he prepared to head toward the mountains behind the Academy for extra training as usual.
However, just as he stood up, someone suddenly patted his shoulder.
"Hey! Thick Brows!"
Might Guy turned around.
Obito stood in front of him with wide eyes full of frustration.
"How can you still look so calm?!"
Might Guy blinked slightly.
"Calm about what?"
"They were laughing at us!"
Obito angrily pointed toward the classroom entrance.
"They called us dead lasts!"
"They said we're completely inferior to Kakashi Hatake!"
Might Guy looked at him quietly.
"Oh."
Obito nearly exploded.
"You only have 'oh' to say?!"
"Aren't you angry at all?!"
Might Guy thought about it seriously for a moment.
Angry?
At the beginning, perhaps a little.
After all, nobody enjoyed being mocked by others.
But eventually, he had accepted reality.
If Ninjutsu simply did not suit him, then no amount of frustration would suddenly allow him to produce perfect Clones.
Instead of wasting time feeling bitter, he would rather spend that time throwing another five thousand kicks.
"It's fine."
"I'm already used to it."
Obito froze.
"Used to it?"
"How can someone get used to being looked down on like this?!"
Might Guy suddenly looked directly at him.
"Do you know why Kakashi Hatake is so strong?"
Obito clicked his tongue.
"Because he's a Genius."
However, Might Guy slowly shook his head.
"Because he works hard too."
"We just don't see it."
Obito opened his mouth instinctively.
Yet for a moment, no words came out.
This was the first time anyone had ever explained Kakashi's strength to him that way.
Might Guy casually slung his bag across his shoulder.
"I'm going for extra training."
"Want to come?"
Obito stared blankly.
"Extra training?"
"Yeah."
Might Guy slowly walked toward the classroom door.
"If Ninjutsu doesn't work, then train something else."
"Taijutsu."
"Shuriken."
"Tactics."
"There's always something worth improving."
"It's much better than sitting around feeling miserable."
After reaching the doorway, Might Guy suddenly stopped and looked back toward him.
Then he raised a thumbs-up while revealing his usual bright grin full of white teeth.
"Youth exists to burn brightly!"
"If you don't push yourself, how can you become stronger?"
After saying that, he pushed open the classroom door and walked outside.
Obito silently watched the green figure gradually disappear into the sunlight.
Then he suddenly remembered something his grandmother once told him.
"A truly strong person is not someone who never cries."
"It is someone who continues running after crying."
After standing there silently for a long time, Obito slowly grinned.