Chapter 19: Someone is following me!

Hyuga Sora now has the intention to kill Araki. In his understanding, the reason he has become so miserable is because of Araki.

If it weren't for Araki...

At this moment, he should have been receiving the adoring gazes of his students!

That would have been a completely different outcome!

However...

Now he is going to apologize to Araki!

Hyuga Sora knows he made a mistake, he admits his wrongdoing, but he doesn't want to apologize to Araki, and he doesn't regret it.

If it weren't for Teacher Yinsui's strict demand that he must apologize...

He wouldn't even bother with Araki right now!

In this moment,

under the gaze of the students,

Hyuga Sora approaches Araki.

His pair of pale eyes, without black pupils, stare fixedly at Araki.

"I'm sorry!"

Hyuga Sora says with bitterness, bowing to Araki as he speaks.

This series of actions is not expressing remorse to Araki at all, but rather giving an explanation to Teacher Yinsui.

As Hyuga Sora stands up, in a position close to Araki, he quickly says something that only the two of them can hear.

"If it weren't for Teacher Yinsui stopping me, you would already be lying on the ground."

Having said that,

Hyuga Sora directly moves away from Araki.

He walks back towards the lineup with his head held high, showing no signs of despair from his previous apology, but instead presenting the posture of a winner.

"Is that so?"

There is still no expression on Araki's face, and his indifferent eyes show no emotional fluctuations. His lips part slightly as he softly says something that only he can hear.

These words seem to be a response to Hyuga Sora, but the other party cannot hear them at all.

Only Araki himself knows...

At the moment Hyuga Sora rushed towards him, he sensed an unusual flow of air behind him.

Years of arduous training in the late-night environment had allowed him to judge many wild beasts in the forest without relying on his vision, but rather on the sensation of the surrounding airflow.

Hyuga Sora was fast, but compared to the venomous snakes in the forest, he was far inferior.

The moment Araki sensed Hyuga Sora, he entered a state of alertness. He indeed kept a low profile and didn't want to expose his true strength or engage in any meaningless conflicts with others.

But that didn't mean he was weak and easily fooled.

The fact that he trained outside every night wasn't widely known in Konoha Village, but it wasn't a secret that had to be hidden either. At least Sarutobi Biwako knew about it, which meant the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was aware as well.

So, it wouldn't hurt to reveal a portion of his physical prowess.

However...

Teacher Yinsui's sudden appearance denied him that opportunity.

It also prevented him from revealing his strength here.

"If it weren't for Teacher Yinsui's intervention, you would already be lying in the Konoha Hospital."

Araki muttered to himself in a voice only he could hear. He had a clear understanding of his own power. If Teacher Yinsui hadn't made any decisions just now, he could easily have dodged Hyuga Sora's punch and delivered a blow strong enough to send the latter into shock and hospitalization.

Of course, that outcome would have been the best for Araki.

Every hidden strength was like a trump card to him.

Trumps had to be revealed at the most opportune moment to have the most explosive effect. If he revealed his hand in such a trivial small-scale situation, it wouldn't be worth it.

As for Hyuga Sora's provocation and the students' mockery, Araki paid them no attention.

At that moment, the only thing that mattered to him was diligently training and developing powerful chakra.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Araki returned to the lineup. However, once he joined the queue, he became virtually unnoticed.

The students' attention towards Araki had always been lacking. The previous attention was only from Kushina, and many of them saw this simulated duel as an opportunity to teach Araki a lesson.

Now that Araki's simulated duel was over, the students no longer had any expectations of him, and their focus shifted back to the ongoing simulated duels.

...

With the sound of the end-of-class bell, all the students in the classroom had completed their simulated duels.

After a short break, the students returned to the classroom and took their respective seats.

Araki watched the entire process of the simulated duels very attentively. He had to carefully record the abilities of each student in his mind in order to make accurate judgments in the future.

The most striking duels for him were between Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina.

Namikaze Minato effortlessly defeated his opponent, appearing completely at ease and without exerting much effort.

At this point in time, Namikaze Minato's strength had far surpassed that of his peers. No one could match him, and it would be difficult to even get him to take it seriously.

Truly a genius among geniuses!

Araki couldn't help but admire Namikaze Minato's simulated duel. With his current strength, Araki wouldn't dare to claim that he could gain the upper hand in a battle against Namikaze Minato.

As for Uzumaki Kushina...

Araki witnessed firsthand the explosive side of the girl with twin ponytails, Kushina, who was smiling in front of him.

Kushina's fighting style was incredibly straightforward and brutal.

Purely relying on physical techniques!

It couldn't even be called proper martial arts!

It was more like wild brawling based on exceptional physical qualities!

Whether it was punches or kicks, there was no sense of form or any combat awareness or instinct. She simply used whichever hand was convenient to strike or kicked with whichever leg was free...

It was as if she was playing a game, using whichever skill was available at the moment.

However...

The results of such a fighting style were unexpectedly good!

Underneath her flowing red hair, Kushina's face, no longer smiling, took on a demonic appearance as she relentlessly attacked her opponents without any rhythm. She rendered them defenseless and left them squatting on the ground, admitting defeat.

This scene deeply impacted the hearts of the students present.

It was only at this moment that they realized Uzumaki Kushina, who seemed gentle and ladylike, actually possessed such a wild side.

But...

Only Araki understood.

Perhaps...

That wild side was the true nature of Kushina.

Everything before this was just a facade she could create!

...

Ring, ring, ring...

With the sound of the end-of-school bell, Araki, as usual, left the classroom at his own pace.

As he put his backpack back at home and walked towards the small forest, a strange feeling arose in his heart.

Someone is following me!

Araki's pupils slightly contracted, and he quickened his pace, walking deeper into the forest under the setting sun.