Ninja: Auzhai - After Physical Education Class

Outside, Kaito and the others were walking across the courtyard, laughing. They didn't notice the blur of dark fabric moving across the rooftops above them, silhouetted against the orange sky.

Auzhai stood by the wooden lockers, his chest rising and falling in a steady, controlled rhythm. While his classmates leaned against the walls, gasping for air after a grueling hour of "Wall-Running and Projectile Evasion," Auzhai looked as though he had merely taken a light stroll. Ninja Auzhai - After Physical Education Class

Physical Education was over, but for Ninja Auzhai, the real lesson was just beginning. Outside, Kaito and the others were walking across

As the locker room emptied, a heavy silence settled. Auzhai finished his maintenance and tucked the blade away. He adjusted his headband, the metal plate gleaming under the fluorescent lights. He glanced at the clock; he had exactly four minutes before his next briefing with the Elders. While his classmates leaned against the walls, gasping

The sound was a stark contrast to the slamming of locker doors and the squeak of sneakers on the polished floor. Auzhai wasn't being rude; he was simply existing on a different frequency. To him, P.E. wasn't a grade—it was a survival simulation.

One second he was standing by the lockers; the next, there was only the lingering scent of ozone and the faint vibration of the vent cover clicking back into place.

He reached into his locker, but he didn't pull out a backpack. Instead, he retrieved a small, obsidian-colored whetstone. While the other boys gossiped about the upcoming spring festival or complained about the cafeteria’s ramen, Auzhai began a rhythmic, silent sharpening of a small kunai he kept tucked in his sleeve. Clink. Slide. Clink. Slide.