Chapter 209: Role Reversal with Obito
Stelle didn't shed a single tear. Honestly, she physically couldn't even if she tried.
But her System? That was a completely different story.
[Waaaah! Host, I'm such an absolute idiot! Why did I design such a miserable alias for you? It's too annoying! You're so gorgeous, why did I have to add such a tragic, disfiguring setting? Waaaah, I've made you lose so much face, Host!]
Listening to the digital wailing echoing in her skull, Stelle really had to wonder who was actually playing the victim here.
Back when it was customizing her current persona, the System had been dead serious and brimming with confidence, speaking as if it held the entire world in the palm of its metaphorical hand. She had assumed it was just a ruthless, calculating program that would do absolutely anything to harvest mood values. Yet, every single time her character looked the slightest bit pathetic, this supposedly emotionless AI would break down into a blubbering mess.
Could a System also be acting? She made a mental note to test its boundaries later.
'[System, there, there. Stop crying. As a mature, high-level system, you need to be strong.]'Sniffling noises echoed in her mind. [Yeah, I need to be strong. Now, hurry up and cry a bit to keep farming those mood values! If you can't squeeze out any tears, I have an Emotion Hosting Function; I can take over your tear ducts and cry for you!]'[Just shut up.]'
Stelle gently patted Obito's back. Because her face was pressed firmly against his chest, her voice came out muffled and soft. "Obito, I'm really fine, so please don't be sad either."
She reached up, gently removing the hand he had protectively placed on her head, and stood up straight. Offering him a light, reassuring smile, she added, "Obito, it's really okay. Don't worry, things will get better in the future."
Obito stood frozen for a moment. He felt a burning need to say something, anything, rather than just letting the matter slide. He racked his brain, his brow furrowing in deep concentration, but he simply didn't know how to properly comfort a girl.
Finally, he reached out and placed both hands firmly on her shoulders, forcing his naturally loud voice into a solemn, heavy register.
"A-Mu, don't be sad. It doesn't matter what you look like under there, because A-Mu is A-Mu. You're the A-Mu I know—Uchiha Obito's best friend, and my most important companion."
Those earnest words actually managed to give Stelle a genuine shock.
Young Obito was truly too kind, almost dangerously gentle for a shinobi-in-training. He was clearly a careless, loud, and clumsy boy on the surface, yet he possessed the rare ability to deliver the most thoughtful, grounding words at the exact moment they were needed.
Strictly speaking, they had only known each other for a little over a month. But simply because she had pulled him out of a marsh back then, Obito had carved out a massive space for her in his heart.
Her eyes curved into warm crescents. "Obito is my best friend, too."
Because of the scarf incident, the atmosphere in the classroom remained incredibly strained for the entire morning.
Ebisu, in particular, kept adjusting his dark glasses and throwing sneaky, lingering glances in her direction. This continued until Obito finally caught him in the act, shooting back a glare so fierce it could have melted kunai. Intimidated, Ebisu covered his face with his hands, but continued to peek through the gaps in his fingers.
That was the last straw. Obito's chair scraped violently against the floor as he stood up, grabbed Ebisu by the back of his collar, and dragged the protesting boy out into the hallway the second class ended. No one knew exactly what kind of "friendly exchange" the two had out there, but Ebisu didn't look her way for the rest of the day.
Basking in this strange, highly protective atmosphere, Stelle passively received mood values from half the room.
Ding. Ding. Ding.
The continuous chiming in her head was sweeter than honey. Playing the victim was great for a quick burst of points, but playing the victim forever was a sustainable goldmine.
Of course, this was accompanied by the System's relentless wailing. It cried for two whole class periods, constantly begging her to just kill off this persona and switch to a slightly more high-end, glamorous alias. It was truly a bizarre mix of pain and pleasure.
When the lunch bell finally rang, Stelle skillfully shook off Obito's shadow once again and carried her bento box toward the edge of the school woods. Reaching the chain-link fence, she carefully passed the food through the gaps to Kikushi.
Under Stelle's careful care over the past few weeks, Kikushi's hollow complexion had improved drastically. The System's Mental Soothing Music was proving highly effective; today, the woman could actually remember her own name without prompting.
"A-Mu... eat... eat..."
Kikushi's hands trembled slightly, but she stubbornly held a piece of fried chicken up to the fence, pressing it toward Stelle's mouth. Smiling softly, Stelle took a small, polite bite, leaving the rest of the meat for the older woman to finish.
On the other side of the academy, Kakashi hadn't touched his lunch either. Instead, he marched straight into the teaching building, handling the halls until he found Senju Naoto's desk in the staff room.
Without a word of greeting, he slapped the theory test paper A-Mu had worked on that morning onto the desk.
"Naoto-sensei. Could you please take a look and tell me if the solutions on this paper are correct?"
Senju Naoto offered his student a polite, customer-service smile and picked up the paper. A few seconds later, a cold bead of sweat rolled down the side of his face.
Good grief, Naoto screamed internally. He was just a mediocre Chunin assigned to an ordinary freshman class! He had been thoroughly average during his own academy days and only landed this cushy first-year teaching position because of his mild temper and the political weight of the Senju surname.
How on earth was he supposed to solve advanced tactical problems pulled straight from the Elite Class curriculum?
Everyone knew that the top monsters in the Elite Class already possessed Jonin-level theoretical knowledge before they even graduated. Meanwhile, Naoto, a grown man, was still just a run-of-the-mill Chunin who struggled with advanced chakra flow equations.
Swallowing hard, Naoto tried his absolute best to read through the dense formulas. His eyes darted across the page until he finally spotted one standard problem he actually recognized.
Forcing a confident smile, he tapped the paper. "Ah, yes. This problem right here is entirely correct, Kakashi."
Kakashi's deadpan gaze didn't waver. "I know how to do that one, Naoto-sensei. I want to know about these three at the bottom."
Naoto almost burst into tears. Kakashi Hatake was bullying him! This six-year-old brat was actively bullying him for his lack of ability, fully aware that his teacher could only solve the easiest question on the page!
Just as the silence stretched into unbearable awkwardness, Principal Uchiha Kaito strolled past the open office door.
Catching sight of the man's imposing figure, Naoto sprang out of his chair as if his pants had caught fire. Clutching the test paper like a lifeline, he rushed out into the corridor, looking at the Principal as if he were a descending god.
"Principal Kaito! Sir! This is an advanced test paper completed by the most outstanding student in our class, Kakashi Hatake. Could you please take a look at it? I beg of you."
Hearing the name 'Kakashi Hatake', Uchiha Kaito paused his patrol. He took the paper from the sweating Chunin and scanned the answers. His Sharingan-less eyes widened slightly as he checked the complex tactical deductions. Every single one was flawless.
He looked up, his gaze landing on Kakashi, who was leaning against the doorframe with his hands stuffed casually into his pockets. Kaito nodded slowly, as if this level of genius was simply the natural order of the world.
"As expected of White Fang-sama's... clansman."
His words paused subtly, catching on the heavy title. Kaito quickly smoothed over the hesitation. "Kakashi-kun, you are exceptionally excellent. I look forward to your performance in the Elite Class selection exams in two months."
Kakashi, sharp as ever, caught the hesitation regarding his father. A slight twitch disrupted his stoic expression, but he ignored the praise. "I only solved the first two problems. The remaining three were done by my deskmate, A-Mu."
Uchiha Kaito blinked, his interest instantly piqued.
"A-Mu? Is that a new genius from one of the noble clans this year? What is the surname?"
"No surname," Kakashi replied flatly. "Just A-Mu."
A commoner?
Uchiha Kaito struck his palm with his fist, a sudden spark of excitement bleeding into his authoritative tone.
"It seems another civilian genius on the level of Minato-kun is going to emerge this year. Kakashi, make sure you get along well with this A-Mu. Since you are both prodigies, you will surely push each other to new heights."
After Kakashi gave a noncommittal grunt and walked away, Uchiha Kaito stood by the second-floor railing, watching the silver-haired boy's receding figure with a heavy sigh.
"Has Sakumo-sama still not moved on from that incident?" he murmured to himself.
Shaking his head, Kaito turned his stern gaze back to the still-sweating homeroom teacher. "Naoto. That girl named A-Mu is clearly a gifted commoner ninja. Take extra care of her. If she encounters any problems or difficulties in her studies, ensure you provide her with full support."
"...Yes, Principal," Naoto replied, his voice strained.
As the Principal walked away, Naoto stared blankly at the floor. He recalled the disastrous display of A-Mu's shuriken-throwing earlier that week—where she had nearly embedded a blade into her own foot—and felt a massive headache coming on. Gifted? Her?
Back at the edge of the school woods, Kikushi quickly finished the last of her meal. She offered Stelle a silly, contented smile, waving her hands in a clumsy goodbye before turning to head back to wherever she spent her afternoons.
Stelle waved back, gently reminding her to be careful on the way and to watch out for the academy patrols.
Just as she turned away from the fence, the sound of soft, deliberate footsteps crunching against the grass caught her attention. Looking over her shoulder, she saw Kakashi approaching.
He didn't bother with a greeting. Walking right up to the chain-link fence, he pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket and flattened it against the metal mesh. It was the test paper she had scribbled on that morning.
Kakashi pointed a slender finger at the most complex tactical equation on the page.
"How did you solve this problem? Walk me through your thought process."
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