At the end of the 32nd year of Konoha.
The Land of Fire severely condemned the Land of Wind for invading its territory and officially declared war on the Land of Wind on this basis.
Naturally, the Land of Wind was not willing to show weakness. Immediately, with the Land of Rain as the main battlefield, it began round after round of fierce battles with the Land of Fire.
The 33rd year of Konoha.
The war between Konoha and Sunagakure became more and more stalemated. As the front line tightened, a continuous stream of ninjas were sent to the Land of Rain, and less than one in ten could return alive.
The battlefield in the Land of Rain was like a ruthless meat grinder, devouring a large number of fresh lives and ruining countless originally happy families.
Both the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire were enraged. In order to achieve final victory, they sent most of the young and innocent students from the Ninja Academy to the battlefield.
Konoha's prominent clan members such as Nawaki Senju, Fugaku Uchiha, Kaito Yamanaka, Chōza Akimichi, Shikaku Nara, and Shimi Aburame also successively rushed to the battlefield.
Although there were raging fires and billowing smoke in the front line, for Kaze, who had not graduated yet, he didn't need to worry about these things for the moment.
After the previous life - and - death crisis, in the new semester, Kaze trained with all his might.
After a semester, he did make some improvements. Each of his attributes increased by about 1 point... but compared with Minato, he was still far inferior.
That kid now had all his attributes reaching 15. That meant Minato, at only nine years old, already had the strength of a Chunin!
It was just outrageous!
You know, he had Yukino teaching him personally and the training system passed down from the Shimura family, while Minato had nothing and just figured things out on his own by trial and error, yet he was progressing faster than him...
"This world really leaves no way out for ordinary people," Kaze thought and sighed sadly.
Seeing Kaze looking so depressed, the guard beside him asked in confusion, "Young Master Kaze, what's wrong with you? Is it because you don't have enough money? I still have one hundred thousand ryo here. How about you take it first?"
After saying that, she reached into her bosom to search for the banknote, planning to stuff it into Kaze's hand later.
Kaze turned his body sideways, pressed her hand through the guard's clothes, and shook his head, saying, "It's not about money. I just thought of some things and suddenly felt a bit emotional."
The guard glanced at her flattened and plump chest and said in a soft voice, "Young Master Kaze, you're taking advantage of me again."
Kaze quickly withdrew his hand and coughed awkwardly twice, "Cough, well... the school is here. I'll go first! Bye, Sister Ayako!"
Kaze dashed into the school in a flash. Instead of going to the classroom, he headed straight for the huge playground.
As the end of the semester was approaching, the Ninja Academy was going to hold a single - combat drill that was part performance and part assessment. All third - year students had to participate.
When Kaze arrived at the playground, he found that most of the people had already gathered.
A group of students were grouped in twos and threes under the organization of the teacher. There was an empty area of about one hundred square meters in the middle, which would be used for the battles later.
"Hey, Kaze! Why are you always late, Databane? The battle is about to start and you just show up!"
The moment Kushina saw Kaze, she immediately waved at him, signaling him to come quickly to the side where she and Minato were standing.
"Tsk, being friends with that red - haired weirdo, you must be crazy..."
Just then, a voice drifted lightly from the crowd. Kaze, Minato, and Kushina all heard it.
The light in Kushina's eyes dimmed, and her mood instantly dropped.
If it were in the past, she would definitely find the person who spoke and then beat him up severely!
But even so, soon, there would be new people laughing at her as a freak and calling her a tomboy...
Now she was tired and weary, and didn't want to argue with these people anymore.
Anyway, she didn't care at all about the opinions of people other than Minato and Kaze, not at all...
Minato looked at Kushina's disappointed little face, a hint of pity flashed in his eyes, and he whispered words of comfort to her.
"Kushina - chan, it's okay..."
Being gentle - natured, Minato didn't know what else he could do but comfort Kushina - chan.
Kaze is different. He doesn't give a damn about being polite anyway.
The moment he heard that sentence, his face turned cold, and his wild eyes scanned the surroundings.
"Who said that just now?"
Kaze spoke coldly, sweeping his gaze over the nearby people, but no one in the crowd responded.
Although they couldn't afford to offend Kaze, they also didn't want to unnecessarily offend another classmate. They just pretended not to hear.
"I'm asking, who said that just now?!" Kaze used his Chakra, and his voice became several times louder, instantly spreading throughout the entire playground.
"Kaze..." Kushina looked at Kaze in front of her, and a hint of emotion welled up in her beautiful eyes.
"This guy is going to cause trouble again." Minato also showed a helpless yet proud smile.
It was precisely because of Kaze's attitude towards friends that he and Kushina - chan had become best friends with Kaze.
"Shush!"
The once - noisy playground suddenly fell silent. Everyone's eyes turned towards Kaze.
After a brief silence.
Among a small group of students beside Kaze, several people suddenly began to retreat together, leaving one person within Kaze's field of vision.
"Huh?"
"You... you all...!" When that person suddenly realized he was left behind, his expression changed drastically.
When he saw Kaze walking towards him with a gloomy face, his face turned pale with fright: "Student Kaze, I... I... just now..."
From the reactions of the surrounding people and this guy at the moment, it was obvious that the sentence just now came from his mouth.
"Found you!" Kaze sneered and strode forward.
Just then, a teacher stepped between Kaze and Momonosuke, looking at Kaze with a wry smile. "Student Kaze, although it was Student Momonosuke who was in the wrong this time..."
Seeing the teacher intervene, the icy look on Kaze's face melted away, replaced by a proper smile. "Teacher, you've always taken such good care of the students. I've always respected you a lot."
Hearing this, the teacher secretly let out a sigh of relief. Momonosuke also felt like he had escaped from the jaws of death... He swore he'd never speak recklessly again!
However, before their hearts could fully settle, Kaze continued, "But today's matter isn't me not giving you face. It's that this guy not only insulted my friend but also said there's something wrong with my head."
The teacher's heart hung in the air again as Kaze, speaking in a soft voice, said words that sent shivers down his spine.
"He said there's something wrong with the members of the Shimura clan. Do you understand what I mean?"
The teacher clearly understood the meaning behind Kaze's words and slowly stepped aside, revealing Momonosuke, who was trembling all over.
No one wanted to offend the Shimura clan, even if he was a Jonin and a teacher with a fairly high status in the village.
As long as one was in Konoha, no one wanted to mess with the Shimura clan. Just thinking about the figure behind the Shimura clan made him shudder.
Kaze stared coldly at Momonosuke without saying a word, which made Momonosuke's hair stand on end.
You know, if these children from the great clans wanted to get rid of these commoners, there were simply too many ways!
At this time, Kushina and Minato walked up to Kaze. Minato whispered in persuasion, "Kaze, that's enough."
Kushina also tugged at Kaze's clothes corner and whispered, "It's enough, Databane (Note: The exact meaning of 'Databane' is not clear from the context). Thank you, Kaze."
"Okay, I got it." Kaze showed a smile again, looked at Momonosuke and said, "Student Momonosuke, I, Kaze, am not the kind of guy who bullies others with my power."
"Now, apologize to us. Promise that from now on, when you see my friend, you'll loudly shout 'Hello, dear little princess'. Then this matter will be settled. What do you think?"
"Ah, such an embarrassing name..."
Momonosuke, who had already been scared out of his wits, naturally had no objections.
Before Kushina could finish her words, Momonosuke bowed repeatedly to the three of them. "I was wrong. I'm sorry, Student Kaze... and dear little princess! Please forgive me!"
After the farce ended, it was almost time.
Several teachers maintained the order again and then announced that the battle was officially starting!