In the uppermost row of the Ninja Academy classroom’s tiered seating, Reito Tsu stared absently out of the window. Reflected in the glass pane, a boy with deep blue eyes, evenly parted medium-length dark-brown hair, and wearing the same red t-shirt stared listlessly back at him.

While his classmates noisily entertained themselves, Reito observed the fluffy clouds moving over Konoha, or “the village hidden by leaves,” as its older residents sometimes referred to it. The students arrived for class ten minutes ago, but their teacher had yet to appear.

Reito was privately thankful for this since he couldn’t shake off his sluggishness. He wasn’t simply tired, though, he was unknowingly experiencing the effects of Chakra fatigue. Had he been more alert, he would have realized this. Their teachers had warned them about the dangers of overexertion countless times, after all, but what with it being exam week, he felt he needed all the practice he could get.

With one day left until the big graduation exam, which was an on-the-spot test of any one of the techniques they had been learning, Reito had foolishly stayed up into the early hours practicing his Ninjutsu. Now, he was suffering the consequences.

“I wonder what’s keeping Iruka Sensei,” said his best friend, Kazuki Torimoto, an amiable, green-eyed boy with very long light-brown hair, which he kept tied back in a ponytail. The two of them had known each other all their lives.

“Maybe he’s sick?” suggested Yuji Saito, who, despite his occasional rigidity, had become good friends with Reito and Kazuki in recent years.

Reito huffed with amusement. “When have you ever known Iruka Sensei to take a sick day?” he asked with a raised eyebrow, earning a chuckle from the two boys.

The three of them complimented each other well, in Reito’s opinion. Kazuki’s easygoing nature rubbed off on Yuji, who could be a little uptight, while Yuji’s diligence kept Kazuki in check when they needed to buckle down with their studies, which was often these days.

During the last two years at the academy, they had bonded over their lack of pedigree, seeing as how so many of their classmates were members of Konoha Village’s most revered ninja clans. The Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi Clans were all represented; then there was Kiba from the Inuzuka Clan, the heiress to the Hyuga, the guy who collected bugs… There was even a Uchiha kid.

Being part of a clan didn’t automatically make one more suited for ninja training, of course, or so Iruka Sensei always maintained, but it certainly had its advantages, which had become more and more apparent to Reito, Kazuki, and Yuji of late.

Apart from having a built-in network of mentors who were concerned with your success, clans often possessed special Jutsu and secrets, which they passed down through the generations. Reito had grown to believe that Chakra quality and control may also be an inherited trait. He believed this because of the growing disparity among his peers in terms of skill level and test scores.

Reito resisted his growing resentment, but it had become clear as time went on that ninja clans produced the more talented academy students. As hard as he worked to keep up, he was now one of the lowest-ranked students in the class, with Kazuki and Yuji placed only marginally higher than him. Thankfully, he had escaped the humiliation of last place, but that wasn’t saying much as that was taken by the class clown, Naruto Uzumaki.

Reito was the first in his family to be schooled at Konoha’s Ninja Academy. His parents, proprietors of a small but popular tea shop, weren’t happy when he declared his intention to become a Genin after graduation, but it had been his goal from an early age, sparked by a vivid memory of Konoha ninjas putting on a display at a festival by summoning the elements.

They eventually accepted his choice. Children wanting—and being encouraged—to become full-fledged ninjas was part and parcel of living in a ninja village, after all, and it wasn’t like they were at war or anything. They were flat-out against his younger sister, Reika, doing so, though.

Kazuki’s family operated an aviary where they raised and trained messenger birds, which Reito always thought was cool. His father was a ninja, working in the village’s Intelligence Division, but he didn’t have any clan ties or anything.

Yuji’s family didn’t have any ninjas, but pretty much everyone in Konoha knew of them. They ran the village shrine. Being very religious, his parents were vehemently against Yuji’s decision to become a Genin, but he was determined to create a life for himself separate from duty and obligation.

Reito thought this was admirable but often wondered how committed Yuji was to it. Evidence of the boy’s respect for his family’s work and traditions was clear in his demeanor, his closely cropped hair, and the religious garb he always sported—a white kosode robe with black hakama pants.

“Should we go tell the office that we’re unsupervised?” asked the conscientious Yuji, twiddling his thumbs nervously as his brown eyes darted to the wall clock.

“Are you kidding? Just relax, man,” said Kazuki.

Still staring out of the window, Reito spotted their teacher entering the academy gates with something large slung over his left shoulder. “There’s no need, anyway,” he said. “Iruka Sensei’s coming in now, and… Oh, man, you guys aren’t gonna believe this.”

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

A minute later, Iruka Sensei entered the classroom. He was a good-natured man in his late twenties, with a scar across the bridge of his nose and shoulder-length brown hair tied up high. He wore the typical uniform for one of Konoha’s Chunin-level ninjas—loose-fitting navy-blue clothing emblazoned with red swirling patterns on the upper arms, a hunter-green flak jacket, and a headband with a steel forehead protector bearing the village’s leaf-shaped insignia.

From atop his shoulder, the man heaved the writhing body of Naruto Uzumaki onto the floor, bound tightly with rope. The class erupted into laughter, watching the blonde-haired, goggle-headed, orange-clad boy attempt to wriggle free from his restraints like an overgrown caterpillar. However, they stopped abruptly when their teacher turned on them with one of his sternest expressions.

“I don’t care if it’s the last week of school, if anyone else has any bright ideas about skipping classes, just know I’ll track you down myself!” Iruka Sensei warned before crossing his arms and turning on his captive. “Now listen, Naruto. You failed the graduation test last time and the time before that. Tomorrow, you’ve got another chance. This is no time to be goofing off!”

In reply, Naruto turned away and gave a churlish, “Humph.”

A vein in the man’s temple popped out. “Fine!” he snapped, pointing angrily in the direction of the other students. “We will have a re-test on the Transformation Jutsu! Even those who have already passed will take it!”

The entire class groaned in protest, including Reito, who complained, “You’ve got to be kidding! I suck at transformation!”

“Oh dear,” said Yuji.

“Damn that Naruto!” added Kazuki, pounding the wooden desk.

The students begrudgingly got to their feet at their teacher’s insistence and made their way down to the front of the classroom, where they lined up to perform the Jutsu one at a time. Many of them muttered complaints under their breath while scowling at Naruto, who kept his gaze averted determinedly.

At the head of the line, naturally, was teacher’s pet, Sakura, a pretty girl with long pink hair, who Reito found vexing. It wasn’t the way she sucked up to the teachers that he found most annoying about her, though, it was the fact that she defied his clan theory.

Like him, Sakura had no ninja ties. She, however, was one of the better students in their class, at least academically speaking. Her abilities weren’t anything special, in Reito’s opinion, especially her Taijutsu, but she tested well and had the basics down pat.

“Okay, let’s begin,” said Iruka Sensei with a nod to the first participant, pencil and clipboard at the ready to record their results.

The pink-haired girl stepped forward eagerly, patted down her red tunic dress, and performed the dog, boar, and ram Hand Seals in sequence. “Sakura Haruno, ready!” she announced sycophantically. “Here goes… Transform (Henge)!”

White smoke suddenly billowed around her, then quickly dispersed, revealing a second Iruka Sensei standing in her place.

The teacher looked his copy over approvingly and jotted something down, remarking, “Transformed into me. Good.”

“She did it so quickly,” Reito murmured to himself, his brow furrowed.

With a second burst of smoke, Sakura released her Jutsu, reverting to her original form. “Yes! I did it!” she cheered as if she hadn’t performed the technique perfectly on numerous previous occasions. “Did you see that, Sasuke?”

“I’ll never understand what all the girls see in that guy,” mumbled Kazuki with disdain.

“He is the top-ranked student in our year,” suggested Yuji innocently.

“I don’t think it’s his grades they’re interested in,” said Reito sardonically.

Iruka Sensei consulted his list, then announced, “Next, Sasuke Uchiha.”

Sasuke, an annoyingly handsome, brooding, black-haired boy dressed in a blue top and off-white shorts, stepped forward. He effortlessly transformed into the teacher without a word before the man even had time to look up from his clipboard.

“Err, good,” said Iruka Sensei, surveying the boy’s flawless transformation.

Kazuki tutted with annoyance as many of the female students praised Sasuke, who seemed completely uninterested as he walked to the back of the line with his hands in his pockets.

“Next, Naruto Uzumaki,” said Iruka Sensei.

“Failing this re-test won’t override our pass grade, will it?” Yuji fretted.

“I hope not,” answered Reito. “I barely scraped by the first time. Let’s see what happens when Naruto fails.”

Naruto stepped forward sulkily. After making the Hand Seals, it took him longer and more effort than his predecessors to generate the required Chakra, and then it began to visibly spill out all over the place as blue vapor, indicating the boy’s severe lack of control. Even so, he successfully managed to transform into…a naked girl with blonde pigtails, her body barely concealed by puffs of smoke, blowing a kiss and winking at Iruka sensei!

For a moment, the man was frozen in shock, as were most of the class. Then, his face flushed scarlet, and he stumbled backward and toppled over.

“Gotcha!” said Naruto after releasing his transformation, laughing raucously while pointing at the fallen teacher. “That’s my Sexy Jutsu!”

Despite the hilarity of the scene they had witnessed, it seemed as though the students were too afraid of reprisals to make fun of it, and with good reason because when Iruka Sensei recovered, he was more furious than Reito had ever seen him.

“CUT THE STUPID TRICKS, YOU FOOL!” the man roared. “This is your last warning!”

There weren’t any more interruptions after that. In fact, everyone performed the Jutsu one by one in silence, all opting to mimic their teacher’s form. Now and then, Iruka Sensei would offer individual feedback, but it seemed like they were all getting passing grades.

Reito’s nerves were getting the better of him as his turn approached. After Yuji and Kazuki did their transformations with minor notes from the teacher—about clothing color and the lack of his scar, respectively—Reito stepped out of the line.

He took a calming breath, performed the Seals, and closed his eyes, concentrating on gathering the Physical and Spiritual Energy needed to mold the required Chakra. When he felt the telltale sensation of the churning in his abdomen become smoother, Reito let the Chakra flow throughout his body while uttering, “Transformation (Henge no) Jutsu!”

When the smoke cleared, Iruka Sensei sighed. “It’s the same issue as always, Reito. Everything is reversed,” he explained, pointing to the backward leaf of his doppelganger’s headband. “You’ve produced a mirror image of me because you’re relying on your eyes rather than your mind. You won’t always have a subject to copy in the field. Otherwise…good effort.”

Reito nodded in understanding but moved to the back of the line, feeling dejected and more nervous than ever about the looming Graduation Exam.