After sorting through his memories, Felix Olsson sighed inwardly.
"Who would've thought that after graduating from a teachers' college and not becoming a teacher… I'd end up transmigrating and becoming one instead."
He felt like the word "teacher" had some kind of cursed connection with him.
Back in high school, he was one of the better students in his arts class, so many classmates would ask him questions. Because of that, they gave him the nickname "Professor Felix."
Then when he applied to universities, his admission scores kept slipping until he finally landed in a normal university (teacher-training college). Following his family's advice, he chose one of the school's strongest majors—education. During college, he often tutored his roommates, and once again he was nicknamed "Professor Felix."
But to everyone's surprise, when graduation came around, Felix Olsson rebelled for once.
He passed the civil service exam and never became a teacher.
What he never expected was that on his very first day at work, the moment he stepped into the office…
…the next instant, he transmigrated.
Now he had become a new teacher at the Konoha Ninja Academy, who had just walked into the staff office.
His current body's name was Hosokawa Makoto.
The given name was still Makoto, but the surname had changed.
Sigh…
"This really isn't a safe world. There are far too many lunatics, extremists, and psychopaths here—and the worst part is, they're incredibly powerful." Makoto sighed internally.
He casually glanced around the office.
It didn't look that different from a school office in his previous life.
But the sharp kunai casually lying on the desks reminded him that this was no longer the peaceful world he once lived in.
What made things even worse was that he didn't just have the identity of a teacher.
He was also a Root shinobi.
The previous owner of this body had been an orphan raised by Root since childhood. The reason he became a teacher at the Ninja Academy was because of Danzo's orders—to secretly observe and record the academy's students and watch for any emerging geniuses.
"Working under the so-called 'Shadow Hokage' is definitely not a good place to be…"
Just as Makoto was thinking about how to survive in this dangerous world, a cold mechanical voice suddenly echoed in his mind. At the same time, a transparent blue panel appeared before his eyes.
[Teacher System Activated]
[Congratulations. You have successfully become a teacher.]
[Teaching students grants rewards. The more outstanding the students, the greater the reward.]
[You may accept outstanding students as disciples and teach them one-on-one. When a disciple's strength increases, the teacher will receive rewards.]
[PS: Accepting a disciple requires mutual consent. It cannot be done unilaterally.]
Makoto studied the blue interface.
At the moment, it only had two options:
Personal Template and Master–Disciple System.
He first opened the Personal Template.
Name: Hosokawa Makoto
Age: 18
Chakra: 4300
Techniques:
Three Basic Techniques (Clone, Transformation, Substitution)
Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique
Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique
Body Flicker Technique
Konoha Fighting Style Taijutsu
Evaluation:
An elite among Chunin. In war, a somewhat more useful cannon fodder.
Seeing that rather brutal evaluation, Makoto silently closed the panel.
Then he opened the Master–Disciple tab.
It was completely blank.
Apparently, he had no disciples yet.
Just then, the school bell rang.
Makoto suddenly remembered he had a class for the first period. So he gathered his things and headed toward the classroom.
Although he was a new teacher, the Ninja Academy was short on staff, so he had also been assigned as a homeroom teacher for a freshman class.
Looking through the class roster, Makoto noticed several familiar names.
Mitarashi Anko.
Hagane Kotetsu and Kamizuki Izumo—the future "Gate Guardians" of Konoha.
Then his eyes lit up when he saw another name.
Uchiha Shisui.
Now that was an extraordinary genius.
Since the system rewarded the teacher when a disciple grew stronger, it was obvious:
The more talented the disciple, the better.
Before entering the classroom, Makoto adjusted his expression and walked in with a warm smile as bright as sunshine.
The Ninja Academy's classroom design was somewhat special.
Perhaps to help students in the back see more clearly, the rows of seats rose gradually, each row slightly higher than the one in front.
When Makoto entered, the previously noisy classroom instantly fell silent.
After all, these children were only five or six years old, attending school for the first time. Most of them felt both curious and respectful toward a ninja teacher.
Of course, there were exceptions.
A purple-haired little girl with a single ponytail, sitting in the front row, spoke boldly the moment Makoto walked in.
"Big brother, you're really handsome! Are you our teacher?"
Makoto smiled and nodded.
"That's right. And you, young lady, are quite cute yourself. I'll be your homeroom teacher from now on."
"Hehe!"
After being praised, the purple-haired girl immediately decided this blond teacher was a good person.
Watching their interaction, the other students also relaxed.
Even though this was their first day of school, they had heard older relatives complain about strict and scary teachers.
Makoto walked up to the podium and wrote his full name on the blackboard with chalk before turning around.
"My name is Hosokawa Makoto. From today onward, I will be your teacher. Please take care of me."
"Yay! Teacher, my name is Mitarashi Anko!" the purple-haired girl shouted first.
With Anko taking the lead, the other students began introducing themselves as well.
Shisui also responded along with the class.
Makoto quietly sensed the system.
Nothing happened.
He felt a little disappointed. He had thought that acknowledging him as a teacher might count as accepting disciples—maybe he could exploit a loophole and recruit Shisui right away.
Unfortunately, the bug attempt failed.
Makoto didn't let his disappointment show.
After everyone finished introducing themselves, he raised a hand to quiet the class.
"Before we begin the lesson, let me ask you all a question."
"Does anyone know how Konoha was founded?"
The classroom instantly fell silent again.
The children looked at one another, unsure how to answer.
Shisui actually knew a little because of his clan's teachings, but he wasn't the type who liked showing off. Unless called on directly, he wouldn't volunteer.
"People built it?" Anko guessed after thinking for a moment.
"That's correct—it was built by people," Makoto replied. "But the important question is who built it, and why it was created."
"Before the era of ninja villages, the world was in the Warring States Period, where wars never ceased."
"In those days, even children your age might have had to pick up weapons and fight. Brutal battles could break out at any time…"
As he described this harsh history, Makoto's voice became deep and heavy, laying the cruel reality of that era before the children.
Perhaps children in the ninja world matured early, or perhaps it was because they lived in Konoha—but many of them could feel the weight of those words.
The atmosphere in the classroom changed.
"Then two clans stepped forward."
"The Senju Clan… and the Uchiha Clan."
"I know! I know! The First Hokage, Lord Hashirama, was from the Senju Clan!" a student shouted excitedly.
When Senju was mentioned, the class immediately became more engaged. They might not know much about the Warring States Period, but they definitely knew that name.
Hearing everyone focus on Senju while no one mentioned Uchiha, Shisui felt a small pang of disappointment.
He couldn't quite understand it.
Both clans were founding clans of Konoha, weren't they?
"To protect their younger generations… and to create a future where children would no longer have to fight in wars…"
"The two clans joined forces and established Konohagakure. More ninja clans gradually joined them, and the Warring States era finally came to an end."
"And that is how the Konoha we know today was born."
Makoto paused, then continued with solemn conviction.
"Wherever the leaves of Konoha dance, the fire burns on."
"The light of that fire will illuminate the village and allow new leaves to grow."
"It is thanks to the sacrifices and efforts of our predecessors that we have the peaceful life we enjoy today—and even this Ninja Academy."
"That selfless spirit is what we call the Will of Fire."
Makoto's expression became solemn, as if honoring the fallen heroes of the past.
He thought:
Shisui should be interested in a teacher who understands history and the Will of Fire.
Meanwhile, the students below were already imagining heroic ancestors fighting bloody battles to secure their future.
Their blood boiled with excitement.
"So that's how Konoha was founded!"
"Next time I pass by the Hokage Rock, I'm definitely going to bow!"
"I want to become a ninja who carries the Will of Fire and protects Konoha!"
Even Shisui's eyes lit up.
This teacher seemed… different.
For the first time, he began looking forward to life at the Ninja Academy.
Originally, his elders had told him that everything taught here was already covered by the clan, and he planned to graduate early and join the Konoha Military Police Force.
But now it seemed… maybe the academy wouldn't be so boring after all.
"Alright then," Makoto continued.
"Does anyone know how many chakra natures there are?"
"Five!" a student from a ninja family answered quickly. "Water, Earth, Wind, Lightning, and Fire!"
"Not quite correct," Makoto said with a smile.
"There are actually seven chakra natures."
"Besides the five basic nature transformations—Water, Earth, Wind, Lightning, and Fire—there are also two special ones: Yin Release and Yang Release."
This method—asking a question first, then correcting it—would leave a stronger impression on the students.
After that, Makoto began explaining the basic concepts of chakra.
From time to time, he even told little jokes to make the children laugh.
Before anyone realized it, four classes had already passed.
When the dismissal bell rang, Makoto stopped and smiled.
"Class dismissed."
"Tomorrow, we'll learn how to extract chakra."
The students froze for a moment.
Wasn't class just starting? How was school already over?
But when they thought about it carefully… four periods had indeed passed.
Because Makoto's teaching was both engaging and relaxed, they hadn't even noticed time flying by.
"Extracting chakra… I'm so excited!" Anko said eagerly, already wishing tomorrow would come faster.
No one in her family was a ninja, so she had never encountered this knowledge before.
"School is actually this interesting?" Kotetsu said indignantly. "My cousin lied to me and said school was miserable. When I get home, I'm telling my aunt that he secretly steals money to buy snacks."
"Why not just threaten him with that secret and make him give you the snacks?" Izumo suggested beside him.
Kotetsu's eyes widened with realization.
He slapped Izumo on the shoulder.
"Brother, that's genius! If it works, I'll split the snacks with you!"
Meanwhile, Shisui watched Makoto walking out of the classroom.
After thinking for a moment…
He stood up and followed.
At that moment, a notification sounded in Makoto's mind.
[Teaching Complete. Beginning Evaluation.]
[Rating: A]
[Evaluation: Inspired student responsibility and enthusiasm through storytelling of predecessors. Lesson content was coherent with strong interaction. Student satisfaction is high.]
[Calculating rewards…]