"Asuma!"
"Has Asuma lost his mind?? Did he seriously throw a punch at Jin?"
"He's definitely going to get cut down! What should we do?"
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Seeing Asuma charge at Jin, the classroom erupted in chaos.
Who was Jin? He was the guy who had severely injured their previous teacher with a single slash.
Even Kakashi Hatake—hailed as one of the greatest geniuses since the founding of the Konoha Ninja Academy, the son of the "White Fang of Konoha" who surpassed the Sannin during the Second Great Ninja War—had once suffered a crushing defeat at Jin's hands.
Although Asuma was the Third Hokage's son, when it came to strength, he wasn't even in the same league as Jin.
"Damn it!"
Seeing the dangerous glint appearing in Jin's eyes, Mr. Tanaka panicked.
If Jin actually cut Asuma down, how would he explain it to the Third Hokage?
"Hm?"
Jin narrowed his eyes, released Kurenai, and drew a sword from his side.
It was a standard Japanese katana, with a blade length of about 80 centimeters and a width of about 1.6 centimeters.
Vmm—
"Th-This is?"
Mr. Tanaka, who had been about to intervene, froze mid-step. The look he gave Jin changed instantly.
Holding the sword hilt, Jin's entire aura transformed dramatically.
If just moments ago he was a little drunkard obsessed with booze—
Now, Jin was an utterly terrifying demon.
Asuma, caught in Jin's gaze, stopped abruptly. His slightly mature-looking face was now filled with terror.
From his perspective, Jin looked like a demon right now, pinning him with that demonic stare.
Asuma felt like helpless prey laid out on a cutting board, with nowhere to run.
Swish—
"No! Jin!"
Under Mr. Tanaka's horrified watch, Jin gripped the hilt and swung down hard at Asuma.
"I-It's over!"
Fear filled Asuma's eyes, and cold sweat instantly drenched his body.
At this moment, he was overwhelmed with regret.
Why had he been so impulsive? Why had seeing Kurenai pulled into Jin's arms made him lose his mind and charge?
He knew perfectly well Jin was a terrifying monster, that he was no match for him.
"Am... am I going to die?"
Asuma shut his eyes in despair, then felt a sharp, intense pain course through his body.
Splurch!
As the entire class watched in horror, Asuma was seemingly sliced in half, blood splattering everywhere.
"Aaaah!!!"
"Asuma?!"
"It's over! Asuma was killed by Jin!!!"
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The classroom descended into utter panic, everyone staring fearfully at Jin.
Pop—
Gulp— Gulp— Gulp— Ahh!
Jin held the sword hilt in his right hand and the wine Kurenai had given him in his left. With a slight clench of his teeth, he bit the cap off the bottle and started drinking freely.
"Are you guys drunk too? I didn't even draw my sword."
Jin burst out laughing, his face once again flushed with drunkenness.
"Huh? Wh-What..."
The students rubbed their eyes. Looking closely, they saw it was true—the sword Jin held was still in its sheath.
And Asuma slumped to the ground, completely unharmed.
"H-How? I clearly saw..."
Mr. Tanaka rubbed his eyes vigorously, his face etched with disbelief.
He swore he hadn't seen wrong just now. From his perspective, Jin had definitely cut Asuma in half with one slash, blood spraying everywhere.
The reactions of the other students confirmed it—from everyone's viewpoint, Asuma had absolutely been cut down by Jin.
But what was happening now? Jin hadn't even drawn his sword, and Asuma was unharmed.
"C-Could it be? G-Genjutsu?"
Mr. Tanaka stared at Jin, utterly shocked.
There was only one explanation—the power of Genjutsu.
But Jin was only eight years old! And he already possessed unparalleled talent in swordsmanship.
Could his Genjutsu now be so advanced that even an Elite Chūnin like himself could fall for it?
Besides, could anyone even use Genjutsu while drunk?!
If Jin knew what Mr. Tanaka was thinking, he would have definitely laughed out loud and downed a couple more drinks.
That wasn't something like Genjutsu; it was a fusion of Swordsmanship and sheer presence.
"I... I survived?"
Asuma opened his eyes, his body limp on the floor, staring at his hands in disbelief.
Just moments ago, he swore he truly felt himself being cut down by Jin.
That searing pain, that despair of death—it couldn't have been mistaken.
But why...?
Gulp— Gulp— Gulp— Ahh!
Jin tilted the bottle back, drinking deeply, and let out a satisfied sigh.
——
["Ding! Detected Host stunned everyone while intoxicated. Reward: Black Blade, Shūsui! Reward has been placed in the Host's home."]
——
The system notification echoed in Jin's mind.
"A sword? Nice. Shūsui... that name sounds familiar. What was it again?"
Jin pondered drowsily through hazy eyes.
"Who cares? Why waste brainpower thinking about it? Isn't the booze good enough?"
After barely two seconds of thought, Jin dismissed it.
"Hey, you bastard, get lost already. Having you here is making it hard to enjoy my drink."
Jin looked at Asuma, still slumped on the floor in front of him, and waved his hand dismissively.
"Get moving, or I'll cut you down for real this time."
Hearing Jin's words, Asuma's eyes filled with terror.
Finding strength from who-knows-where, his limp body jolted, and he scrambled back to his seat, practically crawling over himself to get away.
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