"Yī Jun, I want to challenge you again today." Minato Namikaze turned his head and looked at Uchiha Yī with sincere eyes.
For Minato Namikaze, Uchiha Yī was both his confidant and his rival.
Even though he knew there was a huge gap between himself and Uchiha Yī, every time he sparred with Uchiha Yī, he would discover his own shortcomings and learn some small tricks from Uchiha Yī.
This was extremely valuable for Minato Namikaze, who came from a civilian background.
Sometimes, Uchiha Yī himself would give Minato Namikaze some advice, which greatly benefited Minato Namikaze.
That's why Minato Namikaze came directly to schedule a match with Uchiha Yī.
"Alright! But it will have to be a little later." Uchiha Yī didn't refuse.
It was destined that Minato Namikaze would be noticed by Hiruzen Sarutobi, and it was likely that the current Minato Namikaze had already been reported to Hiruzen Sarutobi by Seichiro Sarutobi.
If it weren't for the purpose of scouting talent, how could a jōnin like Seichiro Sarutobi come to the Ninja Academy to be a teacher for the elite class?
You could say that Hiruzen Sarutobi was an old schemer, and many clan heirs were more or less suppressed by him, but during his time as Hokage, he was still good to civilian ninjas.
Under Seichiro Sarutobi's lead, Uchiha Yī and the others arrived at the training ground. Not only were students from their grade present, but also those from the previous two grades.
Uchiha Yī quickly found the class where Uchiha Mikoto was. Their class had already begun combat training under the teacher's command.
However, the first to train were some of the weaker students. Uchiha Yī felt that even if Minato Namikaze went, he might not necessarily be able to defeat them.
Afterward, Uchiha Yī found the students from the higher grade. The current Ninja Academy had a four-year system, meaning that was this year's graduating class. The Hyūga clan head's two sons, Hiashi Hyūga and Hizashi Hyūga, were in that class.
In addition, there was Hiruzen Sarutobi's eldest son, Shin'nosuke Sarutobi.
This was also currently the strongest class in the school.
Of course, the third-year class with Uchiha Mikoto was also very strong, with Nawaki, Uchiha Mikoto, and the current Ino–Shika–Chō — Shikaku Nara, Chōza Akimichi, and Inoichi Yamanaka.
Compared to them, the second-year class had fewer strong individuals, but it did have future pillars of Konoha like Shibi Aburame.
The future head of the Uchiha clan, Fugaku Uchiha, had just graduated from the Ninja Academy last year.
"Alright, stop looking. Our class's combat training is about to begin. All of you, perform well. Don't embarrass yourselves in front of so many people." Seichiro Sarutobi led his students to their assigned training ground and earnestly instructed them, "Later, students from other first-year classes might challenge us, so don't lose to them."
Uchiha Yī was in Class 1, which was the so-called elite class.
In scenarios like this, they were qualified to have a combat arena, while other first-year classes could only challenge them to gain attention.
"Yes!"
"Alright, the first pair to spar are Shiro Himukai and Shikakawa Nara."
As Seichiro Sarutobi's words fell, the two students came to the combat arena. After performing the Confrontation Seal, they began their battle under Seichiro Sarutobi's command.
............
On the other side, Hiruzen Sarutobi arrived at the Ninja Academy, surrounded by Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya.
With their strength, if they didn't want to reveal their presence, the students in the school naturally wouldn't be able to notice them.
"Old man, is that your son? He looks just like you!" Jiraiya pointed at Shin'nosuke Sarutobi, who had already stepped onto the training ground, and teased.
Hiruzen Sarutobi rolled his eyes at Jiraiya, speechless. This guy actually called him an old man; he was truly too disrespectful.
He wasn't even forty yet, so how was he an old man?
However, when Shin'nosuke Sarutobi was mentioned, Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes were filled with admiration.
Although Shin'nosuke Sarutobi's talent was slightly inferior to Orochimaru's, he was still superior to most people and had inherited his Five-Element Chakra. Once he inherited his Five-Element Release techniques in the future, Shin'nosuke would also become a pillar of Konoha.
Indeed, his bloodline was still very strong.
His gaze swept over the two Hyūga brothers, Hiashi Hyūga and Hizashi Hyūga. According to Shin'nosuke Sarutobi, both brothers were very strong and no worse than him.
They were indeed worthy of the Hyūga clan, but it was also a pity they were of the Hyūga clan, which was a bit too feudal. As Hokage, it was difficult to interfere with the Hyūga clan's affairs.
The existence of the Caged Bird and the main and branch families left Hiruzen Sarutobi helpless. Sometimes, when the power of the Byakugan was needed, he still had to negotiate with the main family. Fortunately, there was no need to worry about the Byakugan being obtained by other villages.
Thinking that other villages might have obtained the sealing jutsu legacy of the Uzumaki clan, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt a pang of sadness.
Heaven help him, he truly didn't want to see the Uzumaki clan wiped out!
If the Uzumaki clan could relocate entirely to Konoha, he couldn't imagine how powerful Konoha would become.
"Orochimaru, how are you doing finding teammates for Nawaki?" Tsunade saw Nawaki in the distance and a smile appeared on her lips.
Her younger brother had a very good reputation.
It was a pity that the current Ino–Shika–Chō couldn't be assigned to Nawaki as teammates; otherwise, she wouldn't have to worry about Nawaki's safety.
"Not yet!" Orochimaru shook his head slightly, his arms crossed. Orochimaru had no dissatisfaction with Tsunade entrusting Nawaki to him for training; in fact, he really liked Nawaki.
The boy's talent was excellent, showing great aptitude in both Earth Release and Water Release.
It was precisely for this reason that he needed to be careful when choosing teammates for Nawaki.
"How about choosing a Uchiha?" Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly gazed at Orochimaru and said.
"Uchiha?" Orochimaru frowned. Although Nawaki didn't have the Senju surname, he was still of Senju blood. If a Uchiha were added, his team would be quite interesting!
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked deeply towards Uchiha Mikoto's location: "Since Kagami's sacrifice, there has been considerable chaos within the Uchiha. We need to help the faction close to Konoha grow quickly. Uchiha Mikoto is the granddaughter of the Second Elder and represents the new generation of the peace faction. Taking her as a disciple would benefit both Konoha and the Uchiha."
Afterward, Hiruzen Sarutobi continued to add: "And there's Yī, that child. I also hope one of you can take him as a disciple. His talent is not inferior to Kagami's, and having also inherited the Will of Fire, he needs someone to protect him."