After screaming "Ahhh" over and over again, Naruto finally dropped from mid-air.
Considering Naruto's durability at this age... which was non-existent, Mirai caught him quite gently. After all, she couldn't just watch her "little brother" fall and get half-crippled, right?
"Tha—" Naruto's face was a bit pale. Toward this kind of rescue, he subconsciously wanted to say thanks.
However...
He saw his red-haired sister flash a sweet smile and unceremoniously interrupt him. "You're welcome, but this spar has only just begun."
In that moment, even though Naruto's brain wasn't the sharpest, he instinctively sensed a certain danger.
"Sti—"
"Still want to continue? Excellent!"
That feeling of weightlessness was something Naruto felt was enough to experience just once, but Mirai hadn't thrown him enough yet. And in this situation, of course, she was the one calling the shots.
Thus... Naruto-kun's experience today was enough to compose a heart-wrenching elegy.
Now he could continue his "Ahhh"s, because he was flying again, and then... a boundless cycle of tossing and catching!
To throw her "little brother" a bit higher, the young miss was even using Lightning Style Nintaijutsu. Otherwise, relying purely on physical strength, throwing a peer of almost equal weight was an impossible feat for a little girl like Mirai.
She really pulled out all the stops. That's a true biological sister for you.
In a world where the most advanced mode of transportation was a horse-drawn carriage, Naruto managed to experience the sensation of airsickness. He could truly be called the pioneer of the ninja world in that regard.
After throwing him more than ten times, Mirai was finally satisfied. She stopped her actions, and Naruto was finally saved... right?
"First Annual Children's Brigade Round-Robin Tournament, Round One winner: Uzumaki Mirai. Next up, please continue..."
"Uzumaki Naruto versus Minazuki Haku."
Hagoromo announced, in a completely deadpan, monotonous voice, something that struck like a bolt from the blue for Naruto... He hasn't even recovered yet, and the matches must continue?!
This just went to show who the most wicked person in this group was. To deepen Naruto's impression and make him honestly focus on building a good foundation, Hagoromo felt it was perfectly justifiable to let him suffer a little bullying. He was a thick-nerved boy, after all.
And the so-called "round-robin tournament" was entirely Naruto's solo gauntlet, his personal journey of being utterly crushed. He had to get stomped by all three companions, one by one, for the set to be complete.
If he wanted to spar with everyone, Naruto needed to at least master chakra control first.
"I... I..." Hagoromo's words left Naruto somewhat unsure of how to react. He was currently in a state of wanting to throw up but being unable to, so his instinct was to outright refuse the match.
He realized his earlier actions could perfectly be categorized as courting death.
"Are you scared?"
But provoked like this by Hagoromo, how else could Naruto react? He took the bait immediately without hesitation... Crushing Naruto's IQ was simply far too easy.
"I am not! Bring it on!"
However... after shouting this, Naruto turned to Haku with considerably less confidence and said, "Miss Haku... Big sister, please go easy on me."
Haku was taken aback for a moment, then smiled. Yes, this 'big sister' smiled even more beautifully... You couldn't blame Naruto for digging his own grave here, because no one had ever told him Haku was a boy.
Regarding basic chakra nature transformations, due to his Ice Style, Haku was naturally able to manipulate Water and Wind Style. He didn't know Lightning Style Nintaijutsu, but as long as one has chakra, they can use regular taijutsu.
And so, Naruto went flying again...
Being a male constantly mistaken for a girl, even Haku would get annoyed sometimes. More importantly, he saw exactly what Hagoromo was aiming for—just bullying the kid... So, he played along.
Then came Kimimaro. How to put it? In short, he just directly copied what the previous two did...
By the end of today, Naruto's fear of heights was completely cured. From now on, even if he plummeted down a three-thousand-foot waterfall, his heart would remain as calm as a tranquil lake!
Truly!
But at the same time, his form of address for Mirai had automatically upgraded to "Big Sis." After all, she was the one who started it all. That title perfectly encapsulated the hardships of his life—a truly painful realization.
Even more tragically, she was actually his younger sister.
Naruto finally went back to practicing water walking honestly... right after he finally threw up.
In summary, the rule of life Naruto concluded at this moment was: Listen to Mirai, don't let her get hurt, and grow up quickly so I can challenge her.
Growing up quickly was an impossible task, but a landmark event of growing up arrived very soon.
With the arrival of spring, the new term at the Ninja Academy finally began, and Hagoromo packed these four kids up and stuffed them all into the school.
This had already been decided long ago.
As for entering the Ninja Academy, you could call it entering elementary school, middle school, or even high school. Now that the war was over, the Ninja Academy had restored—or rather, readjusted—its rhythm. The previous three-year wartime crash courses were gone, now adjusted to a full-time, six-year compulsory education covering the equivalents of primary, middle, and high school.
Hagoromo had explained the enrollment to the kids long ago. Mirai found the idea of a school novel and therefore interesting.
And because he'd be going to school with kids his own age, Naruto was also looking forward to it.
As for Haku and Kimimaro, they completely followed Hagoromo's arrangements. After all, they were nannies, bodyguards, and teammates. Although they were three years older, they still had to stick with Mirai.
On the day of enrollment, due to their numbers, Hagoromo's group was quite eye-catching... Look at the White Yaksha, bringing such a spectacular entourage to school! In terms of hair color, this group had red, white, yellow, and black—a highly complete set.
This enrollment was a relatively simple affair without complicated ceremonies. Surprisingly, even the Third Hokage didn't show up... During this period, the Third Hokage, who usually valued the cultivation of the younger generation the most, was a bit too preoccupied to attend.
After dropping the kids off in the classroom, logically speaking, Hagoromo should have left.
On the surface, he did leave. But in reality, he hadn't gone anywhere... He finally understood that classic feeling of parental anxiety. Regardless, he'd stay and observe the situation in the school first.
Mirai and the others were placed in a class of thirty students. The homeroom teacher in charge of their main education was a Chunin.
Hagoromo didn't recognize this person at all. However, the teacher first explained the significance of the Ninja Academy, the upcoming educational arrangements, and delivered some materials that closely resembled propaganda and brainwashing. Then, per tradition, the class began their self-introductions.
Hagoromo could tell that this teacher genuinely believed in the things he was saying from the bottom of his heart. Therefore, his words carried a bit of infectious enthusiasm... assuming these little brats could even understand them.
In this class, there were Uchiha children, such as Sasuke Uchiha, who at such a young age had already grasped the basics of the "Edgelord Style."
There were also children from the Hyuga clan, like Hinata Hyuga, whom Hagoromo had coincidentally saved.
There were also familiar children from other ninja clans, such as the chubby boy, the pineapple head, and the little blonde girl—the Ino-Shika-Cho trio.
"Next," the Chunin teacher called out again after a random extra finished their self-introduction.
This time it was Mirai's turn. With her head of bright red hair, she was quite conspicuous.
Everyone's eyes practically followed her figure as she moved. Once she stood at the front, she opened her mouth and said, "I have no interest in ordinary..."
Just as the words left her mouth, she realized something. So, she stopped mid-sentence and switched to an extremely crisp and blunt introduction method:
"My name is Uzumaki Mirai. That is all."
"That's it?"
The Chunin teacher, named Iruka Umino, was a bit dumbfounded. He really wanted to broadcast that this child was the orphan of the great Fourth Hokage, but that wouldn't be appropriate for a teacher to do.
Creating such an obvious class disparity wasn't a proper educational method, but Mirai's single-sentence introduction was a bit too monotonous, wasn't it?
"That's it." Mirai nodded. She walked down from the podium with no intention of adding anything else.
In short, she had already memorized the faces of everyone whispering about her hair. Over the next six years, she would have plenty of opportunities to beat them up, and then... beat them up some more.
No one in this class knew that this moment marked the beginning of a certain Second-Generation Princess's iron-fisted rule.
As for Hagoromo? His concern had clouded his judgment. He temporarily forgot that Mirai could completely sense whether he had actually left or not.