Description
Kawaki & Himawari Academy ArcMain article: Kawaki & Himawari Academy ArcIn the anime, Naruto and Shikamaru assigned Kawaki a secret mission to protect princess Kae Yukiwari from the Land of Bamboo while she attended the Academy as an exchange student, posing as a student himself. Her father discovered a plot to assassinate her, so she sent her to Konohagakure, herself unaware of the plot, while he investigated domestically. Kawaki was picked because of his lower profile, more unknown to the people in the village. Most other students found him scary and standoffish.
When he attempted to befriend Kae to better protect her, other students believed he had a crush on her. Himawari advised him that Kae enjoyed romance novels, so he bought her one. Eiki Fūma, who found Kawaki suspicious due to his attitude and age, developed a crush on Kae, and attempted to force a spar with Kawaki, who merely dodged his every attack. Kawaki later discovered that Kae acted different in public, owing to people's expectations of how a princess should behave. They were interrupted by Eiki, who attacked Kawaki with a summoning scroll, but the summon knocked him unconscious before Kawaki defeated it with a single punch. She promised to be his friend if he kept her true personality a secret. He agreed, gave her the novel he bought, and the two left Eiki to wake up alone. He later reported his progress to Naruto, who felt Kawaki also had things to learn by attending the Academy.