"Hm?"
"That direction… the academy?"
Watching the scene inside the crystal ball—Aiden heading out with several household attendants—Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly realized that their destination was the Ninja Academy.
You had to understand, last year, when Aiden turned nine, he should've enrolled already.
Yet he hadn't gone even a single day.
And now, of all days, the sun seemed to be rising from the west—
that brat was actually going to school.
The realization filled Hiruzen with genuine delight.
In his eyes, Aiden had shown abnormal maturity since childhood.
Give him some time, and he could absolutely grow into a top-tier powerhouse of the shinobi world.
The only problem was—
the kid simply refused to train.
"Well, would you look at that. He's going to school on his own initiative."
"Perfect timing. I haven't been there in a while either… might as well stop by."
With that thought, Sarutobi Hiruzen picked up his Hokage hat and set off toward the Ninja Academy.
At the academy entrance…
"Which class was I in again?"
Looking at the unfamiliar campus, Aiden frowned slightly, thinking.
Thankfully, one of the attendants quickly brought over a teacher—
a perfectly ordinary chūnin instructor named Kurai Taro.
The moment he saw Aiden, Kurai Taro rushed over with an ingratiating smile.
"Young Master Aiden, please follow me~"
"You haven't attended the academy for an entire year."
"What brings you here today all of a sudden?"
While leading the way, Kurai Taro's curiosity was practically overflowing.
A whole year without showing up, yet suddenly appearing today—
if it were anyone else, they'd have been expelled long ago.
Of course, that was something he only dared think in private.
"What?"
"Do I need to notify you in advance before I come?"
Aiden's indifferent reply was calm—
yet to Kurai Taro's ears, it sounded like a death sentence.
Cold sweat instantly poured down his back.
He hurriedly bent into a deep bow, panic flashing across his face.
Coupled with the rumors of Aiden's notoriously vile temperament, Kurai Taro rushed to plead:
"Young Master Aiden, please forgive me!"
"I'm just stupid—my mouth runs faster than my brain!"
"Who am I to ask for notice from someone like you?!"
"Please, show mercy, Young Master!"
Aiden simply stared at him in silence.
He didn't say a word.
Seconds ticked by.
Kurai Taro remained frozen in his ninety-degree bow, not daring to move an inch, his clothes already soaked through with sweat.
Soon, class dismissal time arrived.
Teachers and students began spilling out, quickly noticing the strange scene.
"Isn't that Teacher Kurai?"
"It really is!"
"He looks like he's in a lot of pain… why is he bowing like that?"
"Tch, don't you see who's standing there?"
"The Third Hokage's grandson—Sarutobi Aiden!"
Instantly, murmurs spread through the crowd, countless gazes landing on Aiden.
Not far away, Iruka—who had just exited his classroom—noticed the situation as well.
His brows furrowed, and he strode straight toward them.
At that moment, a familiar notification sounded in Aiden's mind.
[Ding! Publicly humiliating a teacher at school]
[Fusion Progress +0.01]
As the prompt ended, Aiden lost interest in Kurai Taro entirely.
He stepped past him without another glance and headed straight into his classroom.
Only after Aiden left did Kurai Taro finally exhale, wiping the sweat from his forehead.
Iruka hurried over and helped him straighten up.
"That personality is seriously awful."
"I have to report this to the Hokage!"
But Kurai Taro quickly waved his hands with an awkward laugh.
"No need to trouble the Hokage over something like this."
"As teachers, student issues should be handled by us, shouldn't they?"
With that, he ignored Iruka's conflicted expression and jogged back toward the classroom.
Inside the classroom…
Having witnessed Aiden's behavior earlier, every student sat stiffly upright, terrified of drawing his attention.
Looking around and failing to spot a single familiar face from the original storyline, Aiden felt a wave of boredom.
Hyuga Neji and the others were probably in the neighboring class.
As for the future Twelve Genin—they had only just enrolled this year.
Just as Aiden was about to leave, Kurai Taro entered.
"Everyone, assemble at the training grounds!"
"Starting today, you're officially second-year students."
"We'll be conducting the annual assessment!"
At those words, the students looked as if they'd been granted amnesty, rushing out of the classroom in a flood.
Aiden paused.
"An assessment, huh…"
"Alright. Let's take a look."
Soon, everyone gathered at the training grounds.
But besides their class, there was an unexpected presence.
"Look!! It's the Hokage!!!"
"Ahhh! It really is the Third Hokage!"
"He came to watch us?!"
"Bullshit. He's obviously here for Young Master Aiden!"
The moment Sarutobi Hiruzen appeared, the crowd exploded.
As the class instructor, Kurai Taro hurried over respectfully.
"Hehehe, no need to mind me."
"I'm just here to see how talented this batch of children is."
"Go ahead—begin."
With the Hokage's approval, Kurai Taro immediately began organizing the assessment.
And the first student up—
was naturally Aiden.
"Then we'll start with Student Aiden."
"Just hit the target accurately with a kunai."
As Kurai Taro spoke, all eyes turned toward Aiden.
Sarutobi Hiruzen watched from the side, gaze sharp and focused.
"Tch. Boring."
Aiden casually flicked his wrist.
The kunai shot out like a cannonball—
Bang!
The wooden target shattered on the spot.
As for the kunai itself, no one even knew where it ended up.
The scene left everyone stunned.
Even Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't hide the joy on his face.
Still, power aside, the accuracy was lacking.
Looking at the demolished target, Kurai Taro announced the score.
"Sarutobi Aiden—8 points!"
Not outstanding, not terrible.
But compared to true prodigies, it was still far off.
Next came the rest of the class.
And the results were… unexpected.
Under Aiden's gaze, each student seemed as if they were being watched by something unseen.
"Shiomoku Hyakushaku—6 points!"
"Morita Kojiro—6 points!"
"Inoue Nohana—6.5 points!"
One by one, the scores came in.
Forget the students—even Kurai Taro was sitting on pins and needles.
Not a single student, including the usual top performers, managed to score above 7.
In the end—
Aiden, against all expectations, took first place in the class.
Watching the Third Hokage's face darken like the bottom of a pot, Kurai Taro could only steel himself and announce the final result.
"The top student of the class is—Sarutobi Aiden!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't say a word.
He turned around and left, as if having made some firm decision.
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