Masaru, who was walking ahead of the group, suddenly stopped, bringing the entire group to a halt behind him. The immediate effect was a sudden hush and increased chatter among the kids, accompanied by a question from one of the chunin instructors.
"Any problem, sir?"
Technically speaking, both the chunin and Masaru were academy instructors, but none of the chunins behind him would dare call him by his name.
A smile appeared on Masaru's face upon hearing the chunin's question. The chunin's voice sounded tense, even a little fearful.
Nonchalantly Masaru pointed at the tree and said in a low voice, "Rope marks. Something or somebody was hanged here. The marks are very faint so somebody small or something medium? Suicide, murder… or just a convenient 'hanging' spot?"
The Red Maple Tree, although relatively common was known for its durability. Most if not all of the kenjutsu practice swords for the academy were made from it's wood. Marking it, even with a kunai would be daunting for a non-shinobi. Thus seeing a peculiar marking on one such tree was definitely a matter of interest for the Hoshigaki. After all, his family is well known for their beady eyes, best at tracing finer details. One of the reasons why they are always welcomed in detective firms in the Capital.
Being one of the most famous 'detectives' in the Capital, Masaru was of course happy about finding something to do. But before he could start his little 'investigation', the criminal began confessing.
"S-sir, it was me!" It was the same instructor who questioned him previously.
And there goes my fun.
Slightly irritated, Masaru turned his back and asked the man in his slightly menacing tone.
"You, what?"
The flustered chunin replied immediately, "I k-killed one of those b-brats from drom-5..."
Before he could completely explain his case, Masaru flickered in front of him. Looking dead into the chunin's eyes, he whispered like a ghost, "Explain!". The other instructors also immediately surrounded the man.
Although a low-born being killed anywhere in the village would not raise any alarm, the same couldn't be said when that happens in the academy, and that too right under his watch.
It was a deal with those seven madmen.
Masaru slightly shivered as the image of seven people appeared in his head. Although he was a Jonin, he wasn't a match for any of them. Only his father and a clan elder could match them one-on-one.
Seeing the Jonin before him appearing more and more irritated, the chunin immediately replied. "S-sir, that kid was from the Funato Clan. I s-saw the emblem in his back, I-I couldn't control myself."
The chunin surrounding him sucked a cold breath on hearing that clan's name. But Masaru sounded even more irritated.
"You know that they are just slave markings. And you could have at least consulted me or someone else before killing it. Sigh…"
Well, there is at least some justification. Those seven hound dogs shouldn't come to bite… Even if they do, we will just be losing a chunin at most.
Shaking his head, he looked at the other seven. He knew some of them were the informants of the Seven Swordsmen. Sighing once again, he turned his back and began moving forward.
Well, I will inform Ayame about it. Then it won't be my problem anymore.
****
Ryota, who was in the middle of the pack too felt the march halting for a couple of minutes before it continued.
Confused, he looked around a bit and tried tip-toeing himself to see ahead, trying to make out why they stopped. But being one of the smallest of the bunch, his actions bore no fruit. Not to mention that other kids before him doing the same thing,
Curious, he approached one of the relatively taller kids by his side. He seemed to be alone as well, so not bothering about any formalities he just poked his back. Upon seeing the head-turning, Ryota inquired, "Oi, did you see why they stopped?"
****
Gengo was a bit apprehensive upon seeing a malnourished and tattered-clothed kid suddenly appearing by his side. Calming himself down a bit he replied, trying to remain as polite as possible, "The instructors seem to be ganging up on each other? Dunno why."
Gengo watched as the short guy before him slightly bowed in thanks. But before he could nod back, the shorty straightened himself and began jumping around, his eyes towards the instructors who seemed to have just cooled down. This confused Gengo a bit.
Didn't I just tell you about that? Am I that untrustworthy?
If only this guy understood the struggles of being both short and curious.
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
****
It only took a couple more steps for Ryota to realize the reason why the instructors actually stopped.
Shit, isn't this the location where that kid committed suicide?
Walking past the trauma-inducing tree, Ryota couldn't resist glancing at one of its branches. The same branch that once hung a small dead body, and it was just yesterday at that. Shivering a bit, Xavier immediately looked forward, wanting to forget about the incident entirely.
But before he could do just that, he heard someone speaking behind him, "The instructors were looking at that tree too, do you know something?" It was the same tall guy he questioned previously.
Slightly irritated, he wanted to say no but decided to quietly whisper out the answer.
"Yes, we found a guy's body hanging one of that tree's branches yesterday. Sigh… He was from our dorm."
This immediately had the kid's eyes widen. Looking around him, he whispered back. His voice trembling a bit, "He was killed in the academy?"
Ryota was a bit flustered upon seeing the fear in the kid's eyes, regretting his words a bit.
What the fuck was I even expecting by telling that to a four-year-old? Even I am afraid, and I am supposed to be an adult at that!!
Ryota stopped his train of thought as he once again tried reviewing yesterday's scene.
Wait... murder? Right… it can be a murder too. How would a non-shinobi four-year-old even reach that height to hang himself? Scratch that, will a four-year-old even know about suicide? Shinobi world or not, I don't think that should be common knowledge for any four-year-old… But again they teach four-year-olds how to kill, so I wouldn't be surprised even if they do know about it…
Wanting to change the topic, Ryota asked.
"By the way, what's your name?"
"It's Gengo, just Gengo," Gengo replied. A bit shy. But fear was still evident in his eyes.
On hearing the name, Ryota subconsciously asked. "Mizu Cl-", before he was ruthlessly cut off by Gengo's lecturing.
"No, not from First Mizukage's Clan. You people from the village and the capital need to understand that we tribal people, especially those who have lived in relative isolation don't have surnames. My father is the head of one of those tribes and we don't have any surnames there."
Nodding his head in confusion, Ryota countered, "Well then… can't you guys just use your tribal name? Especially when out of your tribes?"
"We can do that but…" Looking around for a bit, Gengo coughed and whispered, "Ahem, father's words, but he said that occasionally getting misunderstood as a member of Mizu clan has its own benefits."
This immediately impressed Ryota. That was an open secret amongst the people living in the Land of Water. Nodding his head he introduced himself as well, "Reintroducing myself then, the name is Ryota Chinoiki. An orphan from the village."
****
It took about ten minutes for the group to reach another large training ground. This was much larger, almost thrice the size of the one before the barracks. The entire ground was cushioned with a familiar green with a large population of second and third-year students roaming around. At the edge of the ground, there was a three-story tall building. Due to its large width and relatively smaller height, the building looked more circular than cylindrical.
This structure in itself was several times wider than the barracks, made up of red bricks, blue-tinted glass, and a grey roof at the top. Right below the roof, over a large circular platform, the kanji word for "academy" (学院) was embedded. This was one the largest buildings in the entirety of the village just behind the Mizukage estate and some of the noble clan's mansions.
Let's just hope that this won't be where I die for the second time.
Ryota prayed as he walked into the unfamiliar ground; a few eyes scanning his figure. Most of the older students showed indifference not even looking their way, while some were looking with mild curiosity. But all the gazes were immediately retracted upon seeing the scariest monster in the block—Masaru Hoshigaki leading the group.
Looking around, Ryota could see a lot of kids around his age, a couple hundred to be specific. He noticed that most were dressed differently except a relative minority who all had the same dress code for some reason, and this minority was usually spread far out from each other.
Looking at his own tattered clothes Ryota concluded.
Must be for those with no cloths to wear or change.
A bit relived that his clothing problem would be solved, he finally remembered one major problem that he totally forgot about.
Shit, I haven't eaten for two straight days. And why isn't my body protesting yet?
From his memory, he had understood that the original owner of the body suffered from severe anorexia, causing his already malnourished body to become even worse. This was the reason why he got one shot killed by baby Zabuza. But he thought that the problem was just psychological and should be solved after his transmigration.
Well, the body must have probably adapted to survive even with a severe lack of food. Not surprising considering the original owner's conditions. Sigh… I should be more considerate about my diet then. I don't want to starve to death….
****
In the large training ground, right below the academy building was a raised platform. From there the eight chunin instructors with their now de facto 'leader', and a jonin, Masaru Hoshigaki were looking towards the large training ground. In the large green field, the students were arranged in long lines, each line containing about forty students. The shortest ones were at the front while the tallest ones were at the back, reminding Ryota of his school days back on Earth.
A total of fifteen such lines were formed, five lines for each batch of students. As the academy only accepted two hundred students each year, the arrangement was enough to accommodate everyone. The five lines for each batch were arranged based on the class the students were allocated to. This arrangement had Ryota caught a bit off guard.
So, they don't segregate the students based on their backgrounds? So we all learn the same course? Well… not bad at all.
Ryota internally sighed in relief. He thought that the class A he was allocated to was only for forty kids from his dorm. That not being the case would at least lower the chances of his death. After all, even the Academy wouldn't be blatant enough to make the courses with high fatality rates.
At least, not until Yagura comes into power. Then everyone's gonna get fucked in the ass.
Musing to himself Ryota looked ahead at the platform, curious at what the nine instructors had to say.
As the shortest kid in class A of the first year, Ryota was placed at the very front of the line, making him a bit unhappy. Not unhappy about being the shortest, he was already used to that, but unhappy that he was separated from his newly made friend, Gengo. Yes, they were placed in the same class, definitely not an intentional decision made by an omniscient and omnipotent being currently controlling this world, but a pure coincidence. But due to their height difference, they were separated making both of them equally sad.
Never thought I would someday be friends with a four-year-old again. I should try and make more friends… friends that I won't be forced to kill.
====>Chapter 8: A new Friend<====
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