"Hahahahaha!"
Thunderous laughter erupted all around them.
Hearing it, Obito's face turned crimson. He looked like an overinflated red pepper, his teeth grinding together in humiliation.
He had not lied. When he practiced shuriken throwing inside the clan compound, he really was much better than this.
He simply had no idea why every single throw today had missed.
"All right, Obito. Sensei knows you just didn't perform your best today, okay? Be good and go wait over there. Next, Gen Uchiha."
After soothing Obito as though he were a small child, Ichinori returned to the attendance list.
His gaze settled on Gen.
When it came to shuriken throwing, almost every Uchiha could score full marks.
Obito was the obvious exception.
So the only thing Ichinori really needed to pay attention to was Gen's chakra coating.
Gen stepped forward and picked up the specially made practice shuriken.
Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!
With one swing of his arm, five shuriken flew at once.
After several sharp whistles through the air, all five buried themselves firmly in the wooden target.
They had landed in a perfectly straight line, with almost identical spacing between each blade.
Shuriken throwing?
The Uchiha had absolute authority in that department.
Obito excluded, naturally.
'As expected. Obito really is the exception.'
Looking at the target, Ichinori nodded in satisfaction. Then he glanced at Obito, whose face practically screamed, 'Why can he do that?!'
The corner of Ichinori's mouth rose slightly.
'So it isn't my teaching that's the problem.'
"Gen Uchiha, full marks in both categories. Next, Asuma Sarutobi."
"Six for shuriken. Three for chakra coating. Next, Hikaru Hyuga."
...
"Tch. That Uchiha sure loves showing off. If he can get full marks, why doesn't he graduate early like Kakashi? Hmph. Typical Uchiha. Disgusting."
After hearing his own score immediately after Gen's double perfect marks, Asuma clicked his tongue in irritation.
No matter how he looked at it, the comparison annoyed him.
And Asuma made no effort whatsoever to lower his voice.
Most of the students on the training ground immediately turned toward Gen.
"You bastard, what's that supposed to mean? Looking for trouble?! If you want a fight, fight me! Lord Obito's already pissed off today!"
Before Gen could react, Obito—who had still been sulking over his disastrous performance—stormed forward, grabbed Asuma by the collar, and glared at him viciously.
"Pah! You? The dead last? Go play with your shuriken, zero-boy!"
Asuma looked completely unimpressed and spat the insult back in his face.
"Has anyone ever told you that you're genuinely stupid? Though I suppose it doesn't matter. With your status as the Hokage's son, even an idiot can live comfortably."
Gen had no intention of relying on Obito to defend him.
He walked forward, pulled Obito away, and spoke calmly while looking at Asuma's arrogant expression.
"Bastard! You got a death wish?!"
Asuma instantly exploded.
Being called the Hokage's son was exactly what he hated most. He did not even bother fixing the collar Obito had wrinkled before pointing furiously at Gen.
"Heh."
Gen merely gave a quiet scoff.
Ignoring Asuma's furious red face, he looked past him toward Sarutobi Ichinori, who had approached with an ominously dark expression.
"Asuma. You're causing quite a scene, aren't you?"
With a pleasant smile, Ichinori placed one hand on Asuma's shoulder and spoke each word with terrifying clarity.
"U-Uncle..."
"At school, you will address me properly. Asuma Sarutobi, for disrupting class, you'll stay behind after school and clean the toilets. Now, we continue the lesson. Anyone else who causes trouble can stay and clean with him."
Ichinori straightened Asuma's collar, then turned his eyes toward Obito.
'Why are you looking at me? I didn't say anything...'
Obito gave him an awkward smile under the stare.
...
Not long after Gen returned home from school, someone knocked on his door.
When he opened it, he found a familiar face standing outside.
The man wore a warm smile and held out a thick envelope.
"Gen, here's your living allowance for this month. If it isn't enough, remember to come by the orphanage and find me, all right? You're still growing, so don't try to save money by skipping meals. Got it?"
Gen accepted the envelope. His name and the amount were written on the front.
And the amount was... rather generous.
"Thanks, Kouka-aniki. Don't worry. I won't starve myself."
Kouka Uchiha smiled and nodded. After saying that he still had allowances to deliver to the other children, he disappeared in a Body Flicker.
Kouka Uchiha was the son of the director of the Uchiha clan's orphanage. Under his father's instructions, he personally delivered living expenses to children who had left the orphanage and begun living independently.
Gen usually saw him only once a month, and they rarely spoke beyond a few words, but Kouka treated every one of those children with genuine kindness.
Incidentally, Kouka possessed the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
After he left, Gen returned inside and opened the envelope.
It was stuffed with bills.
Ten thousand ryo.
Not a small amount by any means.
The Uchiha clan always gave its orphans the best possible treatment.
After all, nearly ninety percent of the Uchiha's orphans were the children of heroes... or the children left behind by old friends.
'All right. Check in.'
[Ding! Congratulations. You have obtained the skill: Trick Room.]
[Trick Room: After activation, the order of action across the entire field is rewritten. When moves have equal priority, slower targets act before faster ones, reversing the normal logic of speed-based initiative. Lasts for five turns. Using Trick Room again will cancel the effect.]
'Oh? I actually got something good?!'
After hearing the skill description, Gen froze for a moment before delight spread across his face.
You fought your way out from beneath an entire mountain of cola and instant noodles.
Trick Room, I acknowledge you!