Chapter 37
By the time they arrived at the playground, the place was already bustling. Hundreds of ninja school students had gathered, and several teachers were working to maintain order.
"Which grade and class are you from?"
A young male teacher called out, glancing at the group of seven.
"Teacher, we're in Class 1, Grade 3!" Minato Namikaze answered promptly.
The teacher blinked, surprised. "So many civilian students graduating early from Grade 3?" He pointed to an area on the field. "Go wait over there with the other third-graders."
The seven of them looked toward where he gestured. A few students were already gathered there—likely others also attempting early graduation.
As more students filed onto the playground, Naoki Asakawa took a moment to quietly observe the crowd. The largest group, unsurprisingly, belonged to the sixth grade. Most students traditionally graduated in their sixth year, and even those reluctant to leave would be brought to participate in the exam. If they passed, they'd officially become Genin. If not, they could either repeat a year or leave the academy and live as ordinary civilians.
Naoki looked carefully through the sixth-graders, noting that none of them were particularly tall—any who had repeated a year or two wouldn't have stood out physically.
Among the crowd, his sharp eyes caught a familiar figure: Uchiha Mikoto. Their gazes met for a brief moment, and both smiled.
After the sixth grade, the next largest group was the fifth-graders, numbering over thirty. This group included both ninja clan children and talented civilian students choosing to graduate early. The fourth grade had about twenty candidates, all of them wearing ninja clan insignia.
As for their own third grade, only fifteen students were present—including Naoki, Minato, and Kushina. The rest were ninja clan kids. It wasn't common for civilian students to graduate early, so their appearance had already drawn the notice of several teachers.
In the eyes of the instructors, civilian students were naturally at a disadvantage—not just in bloodline, but also in the resources and training ninja children received from birth. For three civilian students to attempt graduation after just three years was enough to label them prodigies.
Before long, an elderly ninja stepped forward to address the crowd.
"Hello everyone," he began, "I am Nakamura Yuichi, acting principal of the Ninja Academy."
A wave of excitement swept through the students, but it quickly dimmed when Nakamura continued.
"Because the Hokage is busy with official duties, I'll be presiding over this year's graduation exam."
Disappointed murmurs rippled through the crowd. Many had hoped to see the Hokage himself.
Nakamura, however, only chuckled.
"Haha, don't look so glum, kids. Before we begin, I need to say a few words."
He grew serious.
"Becoming a ninja isn't a game. It's a difficult, dangerous profession. Most missions you'll take on will be tedious, and some will be life-threatening. Even if you pass today's exam, if you ever feel the path isn't for you, you have the right to withdraw from the ninja corps and choose another life."
Noticing how restless the students were becoming, Nakamura sighed and pressed on.
"Alright, since you're eager to begin, let me explain the graduation exam."
"There are three parts."
"First, a physical test: you'll need to run five laps around the playground in under five minutes."
The playground was 400 meters per lap. Two kilometers in five minutes would be tough for ordinary children, but in this chakra-imbued world, it was achievable for ninja academy students.
"Second," Nakamura continued, "a shuriken throwing test. You'll each throw ten shuriken at a target twenty meters away. Seven out of ten hits to pass."
Students started murmuring. Shuriken practice had begun in second grade, with target distances increasing each year, ending at twenty meters by sixth grade. A 70% hit rate wasn't too harsh—a reasonable standard for academy students.
"And third," Nakamura said gravely, "a ninjutsu assessment. You must successfully perform the Three Body Technique."
This technique was a graduation requirement, and while many students were confident, a few visibly tensed. Despite being a basic jutsu, not everyone could master it. Even some sixth-graders struggled.
Many who'd only watched the later generation's prodigies like Naruto and his peers might think the Three Body Technique was trivial—but those twelve were exceptional. Even Naruto had trouble with it due to the Nine-Tails chakra interfering.
In truth, many average ninja had limited ninjutsu ability. Most Genin and Chunin fought with tools like kunai and shuriken. Those highly skilled in ninjutsu were typically elite jonin.
"Alright, instructors, begin organizing the groups," Nakamura ordered.
Teachers stepped forward with lists and clipboards, calling out names and dividing students into ten groups of around twenty each.
Naoki, Minato, Kushina, and the rest of their third-grade class were placed in the tenth group. Their examiner was a cold, stern-looking man whose expression barely changed.
But when his eyes landed on Naoki, who was nearly his height, a flicker of surprise crossed his face.
"Something wrong, sensei?" Naoki asked, noting the glance.
"No… nothing," the teacher cleared his throat. "You're Asakawa Naoki, correct?"
"Yes. Third grade, class one, ten years old, here for early graduation," Naoki replied calmly.
Ten years old? What has this kid been eating? The examiner thought, but his stoic face gave nothing away.
"You've grown well. Get ready for the exam," the teacher finally said, nodding.
While many students were tense, Kushina couldn't resist teasing.
"Seriously though, what do you eat to get that tall?"
Naoki shrugged, helpless. "Eat more, move more, sleep more."
In truth, he'd considered teaching Kushina and Mikoto the path to immortality cultivation—but right now, it was impossible. Until he was powerful enough to stand at the top of the ninja world, sharing those techniques would only bring disaster.
For now, it was better to wait.
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