After a week, it was still too early to tell who truly had the talent to become an exceptional ninja.
But as their homeroom teacher, Ryūji Yamazaki already had a general grasp of each student's attitude toward learning.
On the training field of the Konoha Ninja Academy, the students stood gathered in a circle. At the center, Ryūji Yamazaki glanced down at the roster in his hand, eyes narrowing slightly.
"After a week of study, I trust you all now understand the basic foundation required to become a capable shinobi."
"Today's assessment will be recorded in detail, and your results will be presented directly to Hokage-sama."
"In other words, Hokage-sama has been paying close attention to your performance."
"This will affect your futures."
Pausing briefly, Ryūji Yamazaki raised a hand.
"The test will consist of two sections—fundamentals and practical application."
"The fundamentals will include subjects such as basic ninja knowledge and emergency response techniques."
"As for the practical section, it will be divided into shuriken throwing and team combat exercises."
"Now then..."
The students listened attentively as the Chūnin instructor explained every detail clearly.
But before he could continue, a frail-looking boy slowly stepped forward from the crowd, interrupting his speech.
Step by step.
Until finally, he stood before Hakken Yoru.
"I challenge you!"
In an instant, all eyes turned toward them.
A challenge always drew attention.
Especially one made here, during the assessment—would the outcome be recorded and reported to Hokage-sama as well?
The air grew tense, the atmosphere subtly shifting.
Ryūji Yamazaki frowned slightly as his gaze moved toward the two students.
Hayate Gekkō... challenging Hakken Yoru.
It was unexpected, a disruption to the schedule—but he didn't intervene.
After all, Hakken Yoru was one of the students personally designated for observation by Hokage-sama.
Originally, Ryūji Yamazaki had planned to pair Itachi Uchiha and Hakken Yoru together during the group combat section to better evaluate their capabilities.
But Hayate Gekkō...
He was rumored to possess X-Ray Vision-style perception techniques, and came from a family known for inheriting the Konoha-ryū Kenjutsu.
"I challenge you!"
Staring intently at Hakken Yoru's calm, unreadable face, Hayate repeated himself.
Every night for the past several days, he had thought about the last words Yūgao Uzuki said to him—and that man's indifferent face as he was ignored completely.
It was a humiliation that had gnawed at his heart ever since.
Now, he'd finally made up his mind.
He would prove himself.
He'd make Yūgao see who the real failure was, and how wrong her judgment had been.
Unconsciously, Hayate glanced toward Yūgao Uzuki, who stood a short distance away.
But the hint of mockery on the girl's face pierced him like a knife.
The challenge had been issued.
The surrounding students watched the two with curiosity and excitement.
Hakken Yoru—the guy who did nothing but sleep in class—how would he respond?
Everyone waited in eager anticipation.
At that moment, they realized the elite class might not be so boring after all.
Suddenly, Hakken moved.
He stepped forward with an easy, unhurried motion, then casually lifted his gourd—the one every classmate secretly envied—and took a long drink.
Yes.
They all envied him.
Envied Hakken Yoru's unrestrained, carefree attitude.
The only "delinquent" bold enough to drink in front of their instructor.
Was he accepting the challenge?
Hayate's breathing quickened.
The moment to prove himself had come!
But...
From beginning to end, Hakken didn't even look at him once.
After setting down his sake gourd, Hakken glanced at Itachi beside him.
Itachi gave a small, knowing nod.
The two then stepped onto the field before the eyes of all their classmates.
Swish, swish, swish!
Their hands flashed through seals with incredible speed.
Bang!
Bang!
Two bursts of white smoke erupted—next to Hakken appeared a clone identical to Itachi, and beside Itachi stood a perfect copy of Hakken.
This was…
A combination of the Clone Technique and the Transformation Technique!
On the field, Ryūji Yamazaki's jaw dropped, disbelief written all over his face.
Their sealing speed was so fast, his eyes could barely follow.
A flawless integration of Transformation and Clone Techniques—could these really be his students?
Even he couldn't perform seals that quickly!
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Before Ryūji Yamazaki could recover, Hakken and Itachi moved again. Both drew shuriken from their waists and hurled them toward each other in a flurry of motion.
Bang!
Just before impact, their swiftly dodging figures—and the wooden logs left in their place—demonstrated to the entire class what a perfect Substitution Technique looked like.
The Three Basic Jutsu—mastered to perfection!
Were these really just students?
If it had only been Itachi Uchiha displaying such skill, they might have accepted it.
After all, as a prodigy from the prestigious Uchiha Clan, his brilliance was expected.
But Hakken Yoru—the guy who spent every class asleep—how could he possibly perform at this level?!
How?!
The students' faces flushed red with disbelief.
There was only one thought in their minds—
Unacceptable!
But the next moment, things took an even stranger turn.
Itachi suddenly retreated rapidly, while Hakken, still standing in place, slowly drew the Zanpakutō at his waist.
It wasn't just for show—
It was a real blade!
What was he planning?
From a distance, Itachi steadied himself, gripping ten shuriken between his fingers. He took a deep breath and, before the eyes of the entire class, launched them toward Hakken.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The sharp sound of metal slicing through the air sent chills down every student's spine.
Every throw—its angle, its power—was flawless.
What was he doing?
Was he seriously trying to kill him?
The students stared in shock at the two facing off on the field.
Hakken moved.
He swung his sword.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The metallic clash rang out as every shuriken was deflected away!
Those razor-sharp, perfectly aimed attacks hadn't even grazed him.
And more astonishing still—
Following the direction of the deflected blades, they saw the shuriken embedded deep into the bullseye of a nearby training target that had been untouched moments ago.
The entire field fell silent.
The demonstration was over.
Shouldering his Zanpakutō, Hakken frowned slightly, turning toward the sickly boy who had first stood in his way.
"So," he said quietly, "what was it you just said?"
"Care to repeat it?"
...
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