Call Me Mr. Knight

Chapter 8

"The Red Flash of Konoha Gakuen?" I asked. That was kind of weird. I wonder who thought of that title. Was it the Knight himself or just his followers?

"Yes, it's said that he's so fast all you can see when he fights is a blur of red. That's why he was called the Red Flash." Kiba explained. This time, they all waited for me at the gate and were more than a little surprised to see me riding a motorcycle when I arrived. And here I thought it would not get any attention. Chouji was eating again. Shikamaru was clearly not a morning person and I could feel the heavy laziness radiating from him just from his continuous yawns.

"I see. Have you seen him?" I asked. They all shook their heads. I knew I was asking too much though. It seemed this Knight was not someone who flaunted himself in public so very few people had actually seen him, except those of upper years. I wonder how heavily tensed a classroom would be if Kimimarou, Bee, and this Knight were classmates in a subject. I bet the class would get all anxious, even the teachers.

Kimimarou emitted an aura of supremacy and had a very intimidating aura despite his good looks. Bee might be warm and friendly but one could feel his immense power just from standing three meters away from him. And then this Knight who was said to be the most problematic of all the Knights, except for Sasuke of course. This Red Flash was usually calm and quiet but was very dangerous, more dangerous than any of the other Knights, especially when angry or provoked. I shivered to think he'd be the one who was challenged by someone.

"Naruto, I think we should tell you something." Shikamaru suddenly said as he looked at me seriously. "The rumor that you beat Yahiko has spread quickly yesterday. By now, many students know that you, the new rich transferee, have beaten an A-Class. Be careful. There will be more opponents for you from now on."

I smiled at him and nodded. But before I could answer, Kiba cut in. "I heard though that this fight is because of what happened yesterday."

I stopped and looked at him. That made them all stop too. It was clear that this news was new to them as well. Kiba looked at us and bit his lower lip, giving it a tinge of red, before he spoke again. "I heard that it was the Red Flash who challenged his own subordinate Yahiko. The fight was rumored to be because Yahiko was not able to defend himself against a mere first-year whose level was just D-Class. The Knight was humiliated by this display of weakness and thus challenged Yahiko to a fight. Of course, the poor guy had no choice but to obey his superior."

"Poor guy." Chouji said. I didn't answer. Although I was really angry at Yahiko, I didn't want him to get beaten to a pulp in front of everyone just because I barely beat him. I felt sorry for him despite myself. My feelings were still there. I couldn't take it out of my heart in just a day. And thus, it somehow hurt to know that he was about to get hurt because of our personal issue. Was it wrong that I challenged him inside the school walls? Maybe I should've challenged him outside the school where no one would be able to report him to his superior? I didn't know what to do...

"Don't feel guilty." Shikamaru voiced beside me. "It was his fault for losing against you. If he lost against you on purpose, then it was his fault. If he lost against you because that was the extent of his power, then it was also his fault." I stared at him for a while, not knowing how to answer that. I didn't know if I would laugh or feel even sorrier for Yahiko.

"That's right! It's not as if you cheated to beat him so there's no need to feel guilty!" Chouji exclaimed and added in a whisper. "Though if you ask his fans, they'd say that you just won by a fluke. They can't accept the fact that their beloved A-Class senpai was beaten by a first year."

"I think it's about to start. Let's go there now!" Kiba exclaimed and we immediately dashed towards the huge stadium. It was kind of disconcerting because everyone kept glancing at me or looking at me with awe and admiration. Or so I thought. Maybe I was getting ahead of myself, but I couldn't help it. That was really new to me. I didn't think anyone would look at me like that, especially if I just put their beloved senpai, and also my ex-lover, in a very serious predicament.