Naruto: Becoming a master taijutsu using martial arts.

The academy was a disaster.

I'm not kidding, it had been like 2 months since my classes had started and it was a total mess. I felt like I was back in high school—something I definitely did not expect to feel in a world full of chakra and shinobi who can do insane stuff like walk on water like they're freaking Jesus.

First of all, all that theoretical class nonsense from Sensei Bekkou? Absolute nightmare. Even after two months, my reading was still terrible, and honestly, it was kinda embarrassing.

Before I was reborn here, I was proud to call myself a bookworm. I used to read all sorts of stuff—Dickens, Percy Jackson, Austen and other books. But this world have a grammar so messed up, it could make a grown man cry

There are like 50,000 different writing symbols here. Yep, FIFTY THOUSAND. What kind of madness is this?

What the hell?

And honestly, if that was all, I would be fine. But one symbol could mean two totally different words depending on the context. Oh, and on top of that, there are tiny variations depending on the country.

For example, here in Konoha, we learn the writing system from the Land of Fire, but in Sunagakure, they use the writing system from the Land of Wind. It's pretty much the same, but those small differences? Yeah, they could change everything.

Alright, imagine this: you're a simple villager from the Land of Fire, just trying to get some allergy medicine, so you send a message to a merchant in the Land of Wind. 

Easy, right? Well, in the Land of Fire, 'allergy' is written one way, but in the Land of Wind? That same symbol is like... 'sex.' 

So, instead of getting your hands on a nice nasal spray, you end up getting a delivery of 'performance-enhancing' pills.. Oops! Now, you're sitting there with a package that's giving you more than just a headache — and probably some awkward explanations for your newfound enthusiasm. Guess your allergies won't be the only thing you're treating now!"

So yeah, reading in this ninja world sucks! Really sucks!

Since we're training to be shinobi, we have to learn all this stuff.

And don't even get me started on my writing. It's full trash.

"No, Ken-kun, you gotta stretch that line a little more." Jimei whispers like he's giving me the secret to the universe, staring at my scroll like he's the Da Vinci of writing.

Writing here isn't like drawing, it's like geometry class on crack—everything has to be precise. If fuinjutsu is anything like this, I won't be messing with that any time soon.

"Look, see how I do it? If you don't stretch that first stroke, the whole meaning changes." he explained to me, showing his scroll..

Honestly, the difference between our scrolls was almost nothing. Mine had the symbol 未, and his had 末. Are you kidding me? That tiny difference in a stroke changes "not yet" to "end."

"Thanks, Jimei-san." I said through gritted teeth, trying to keep my frustration in check.

It really pissed me off, Jimei and most of the other students were much better than me. I think that I'm the worst at reading and writing in this class.

And math? Don't even get me started. I wasn't as bad at math as I was at reading and writing, but after the first month of crushing basic stuff like addition and multiplication, I thought I had this.

Now, we're doing more advanced stuff like calculating distances and figuring out diameters and radii of circles. And it's just… nope. I was awful at math in my past life, and clearly, that didn't change. 

I was trying my best, but I definitely wasn't where I thought I'd be when I first joined the academy.

At least I was doing better in other areas. I was killing the village history, and I was actually the best of the class when it came to the history of the Hokages, even if my handwriting was still a mess.

"Alright, students! Leave your papers on the Senju clan on my desk, and after lunch, we'll meet at the training field for shuriken practice." Bekkou-sensei said finishing the morning lessons.

I dropped my scroll on his desk and grabbed my bento before I left the class.

"Hey, Ken-kun, did you hear? Apparently, that boy from the Uchiha clan graduated early." Jimei commented as he followed me to the roof.

Yeah, that guy. Uchiha Itachi—he apparently graduated after only a year. That was the hottest gossip in the halls right now.

"Must be nice to have a huge clan to help you to train." Jimei commented as he sat next to me on the roof floor.

Honestly, I just wanted him to shut the hell up. I didn't even get why he was so stuck to me like some kind of annoying glue. For the past few weeks, he had been following me around during lunch breaks like a lost puppy.

"Uh-huh…" I grunted, trying to tune him out as he babbled on like an old radio stuck on the wrong channel.

Jesus, does this guy have a non-stop talk switch?

I sighed and opened my bento. Even though I didn't get paid much, I did my best to keep a healthy diet. I needed to stay in good shape, so eating right was important.

I picked up a piece of fish with my hashi and looked up at the sky, chewing. The sky is really beautiful today.

"But that Uchiha kid? I bet he's not even that strong. I could totally beat him!" Jimei says, sounding so confident that I almost choked on my rice.

I start coughing like I'm dying, trying not to laugh while gasping for air.

"Eh? Ken-kun?! Are you okay? Here, have some water." Jimei shoved his water bottle at me, slapping my back like I was some kind of malfunctioning vending machine.

After a few seconds, I stopped coughing. But seriously, Jimei's confidence could be patented and sold in stores as "Liquid Delusion." The chance of him beating Itachi was the same as Orochimaru joining the Konoha PTA.

It was a damn good joke.

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OMG, another chapter? Yeah, I decided to give this little treat since I literally disappeared for a while, and I'm happy about the Golden Globes (Well, sorta, Yay Fernanda Torres, watch I'm Still Here. But come on, Emilia Pérez? Really Golden Globe?). It was really fun writing this part with Jimei in the end. He's such a funny character to write, and he'll keep showing up for a while. The academy arc finish in 11/12 chapters. Next chapter tomorrow!