"It's December again, time flies so fast. It feels like the holiday training was just a while ago, and now it's time for the long break again," Hagane Kotetsu sighed.
"Yeah, the final exams are three weeks away, and I feel like I've been out of the learning zone lately. I hope I don't do too poorly on them," Kamizuki Izumo said with a hint of worry on his face.
"Come on, you two. You keep saying you don't do well, but every time you score a hundred or ninety-something. Other than Shisui, who can outperform you?" Anko entered the classroom and couldn't help but scold the two good friends engaged in some friendly boasting.
She had naively believed them many times before, only to be met with the sorrow of low scores by herself.
"You don't understand, Anko. For someone who scores a hundred, even a ninety-five feels like a step backward," Hagane Kotetsu shook his head and said.
"Plus, after you score a hundred, you can no longer enjoy the joy of improving your score. I hope, Anko, you never experience this kind of pain."
Fists clenched hard!
"I really envy you, Anko. You have such a large room for improvement, never taking first place in either theory or practice," Kamizuki Izumo added fuel to the fire.
This time Anko truly couldn't hold back. Always being second in practicals was her eternal pain, with Shisui standing like an insurmountable mountain blocking her path to first place.
Bang bang!!
Anko used Instant Body Jutsu to appear beside them and swung her fists.
Though Hagane Kotetsu and Kamizuki Izumo wanted to dodge, they couldn't match Anko's speed and ultimately couldn't escape her magic fists.
After delivering the punches, Anko felt rejuvenated and her face returned to a smile.
"Anko, you're a girl; you can't just go around hitting people like that. Besides, we were just being honest," Hagane Kotetsu advised.
Even though teasing Anko is fun, facing a punch every time is a bit too much; at least they should talk a bit more to make it worthwhile.
Anko knew she couldn't win in a verbal argument, so she waved her small fists twice.
Kamizuki Izumo and Hagane Kotetsu immediately swallowed back the words they were about to say.
"The weather today is nice."
"Indeed, such a sunny day in December."
The two used the weather card set to forcefully change the topic.
"Wonder who'll be the teacher for this holiday training, Teacher Mokgetsu or someone else. If it's not Teacher Mokgetsu, I'd just skip it," Hagane Kotetsu suddenly pondered about the selection of the holiday training teacher.
Holiday training is mandatory only for graduates; excellent lower-year students like them can choose to opt out.
"I agree, if it's not Teacher Mokgetsu teaching, then I'd rather play games the whole holiday. At least that would be fun," Anko chimed in.
Although a month's training would surely lead to improvement, Anko felt that improvement wouldn't match the joy of having a fun holiday.
"I think there's a high chance he won't be," Kamizuki Izumo maintained a pessimistic attitude.
"Why do you say that? Teacher Mokgetsu hasn't mentioned anything, how do you know?" Anko asked, puzzled.
"Because the second semester holiday training also marks the start of graduate intern placements," Kamizuki Izumo explained.
"Since last year, the academy has selected a group of excellent graduates for internships to get familiar with ninja work in advance. Last year, Teacher Mokgetsu was busy with interns and couldn't take the holiday training."
Holiday training is meant to enhance the strength of graduates, and interns are selected from the elite of the graduates. If Kamizuki Izumo were in charge of Ninja Academy, he'd also have Mokgetsu teach the strongest students.
"Why don't we apply to become intern ninjas with Teacher Mokgetsu as well?" Hagane Kotetsu came up with a good idea.
"We've beaten fourth-year students before; there's no reason they can intern and we can't."
He felt this was entirely reasonable; a ninja's strength speaks for itself, and if you're strong enough, you can apply to graduate early, even before completing the first year.
"Okay, everyone open your books, time for class," Teacher Mokgetsu walked into the classroom.
The three immediately sat upright and opened their textbooks, exchanging looks to agree to approach Mokgetsu after class.
Time always flies during serious classes; before they knew it, the bell rang for the end of the school day.
"See you all in the afternoon," Mokgetsu Shadow Clone warmly bid farewell as he walked out of the classroom.
Originally, Sarutobi Hiruzen was planning to find a substitute teacher for Mokgetsu, but Mokgetsu ultimately refused, using Shadow Clone to teach.
Though the Shadow Clone doesn't possess enhanced teaching skills, Mokgetsu's ninja knowledge and teaching capabilities far surpassed regular teachers.
"Teacher Mokgetsu, wait a moment," Anko and the other two quickly ran out and called after Mokgetsu.
"Teacher Mokgetsu, we also want to become intern ninjas!" Anko didn't waste words, directly stating their purpose, then looked expectantly at Mokgetsu.
"Ah, applying for internships…" Mokgetsu showed a thoughtful expression.
Their talents were quite decent, having been under his teaching. Their skills were much stronger than ordinary fourth-year students, especially Anko, who could compete with the fourth-year rank and secure a good placement.
"I'll add you to the list. The specific results will be announced at the end of the semester," Mokgetsu replied.
"Yay, Teacher Mokgetsu is the best!" Anko raised her hand in cheer.
Hagane Kotetsu and Kamizuki Izumo also revealed smiles, "Participating as interns in the second year, we're making history!"
Indeed, since intern ninjas were first proposed by Mokgetsu last year.
...
In a secluded training field, whether Root Ninja or Anbu Ninja, everyone stood straight, eyes forward, all in a state of readiness.