"Why are you all staring at me?"
Renye felt a little uneasy under their gazes.
"Renye, do you know that Lord Tobirama intends to take on disciples?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked cautiously.
The others stared intently at Renye, eagerly awaiting his answer.
Renye shook his head. "He never mentioned it to me."
Hearing that, they were somewhat disappointed.
They had hoped to get firsthand information from Renye.
"However..." Renye changed the subject. "Based on what I know about him, he'll most likely take the top-ranked students as disciples."
"Haha, that's great!" Hiruzen Sarutobi was so excited he nearly jumped up.
If things were really as Renye said, then becoming Lord Tobirama's disciple was practically guaranteed for him.
Danzō Shimura clenched his fists uneasily. He ranked fifth in the class, and under normal circumstances, he would have been fairly satisfied with that result.
But now that he knew Tobirama Senju would choose disciples based on rankings, fifth place did not seem nearly good enough.
What if Lord Tobirama only took three disciples? Wouldn't he be finished as the fifth-ranked student?
Noticing Danzō Shimura's poor expression, Renye guessed what he was thinking and said mischievously, "The top three are guaranteed. As for the rest, who knows?"
At those words, Danzō Shimura's face instantly turned pale.
He could not imagine how despairing it would be if he was not selected!
Especially if he had to watch Hiruzen become Lord Tobirama's disciple with his own eyes.
Just imagining that scene made it hard for him to breathe.
Danzō Shimura prayed inwardly, hoping Lord Tobirama would take a liking to him!
Seeing Danzō's face shift between green and white, Renye felt immensely pleased.
For some reason, the more miserable Danzō was, the happier he felt.
As for Tobirama Senju taking disciples, Renye did not have any particular thoughts about it.
Tobirama Senju had guided him plenty in everyday life. He could be considered half of Tobirama's disciple already.
After dinner.
Each of them returned home, occupied by their own thoughts.
Hyuga Clan compound.
As soon as Yuki Hyuga arrived at the entrance to the clan compound, he saw a stern middle-aged man standing by the gate.
The middle-aged man wore a dark expression as he coldly demanded, "Where did you go?"
Yuki Hyuga lowered his head and said nothing.
The middle-aged man did not speak either. He merely watched him quietly.
After a long while, Yuki Hyuga raised his head. "Father, I went out to eat with my classmates."
"What, is the food at home not good enough for you?"
"No..."
"Then why did you go out to eat?"
"Father, I know I was wrong."
"Since it's your first offense, perform the Gentle Fist one thousand times before dinner. No food until you finish!"
"Yes, Father!"
Tobirama Senju Residence.
When Renye returned home, he did not see Tobirama Senju anywhere.
That old man was probably hiding somewhere again, tinkering with Forbidden Techniques.
He began his training for the day.
Renye's talent was fairly good. As long as he trained diligently,
he would be able to protect himself in future shinobi wars, rather than being used as cannon fodder and sent to his death.
He had never harbored particularly lofty ambitions.
His only purpose in becoming stronger was to survive.
Nothing more.
Renye had a clear understanding of his own place.
He was not some overpowered freak like Naruto and Sasuke, nor had he been so thoroughly brainwashed by the Will of Fire that he lost all sense of direction.
He could not shout "Will of Fire" and rush forward on a hotheaded whim to throw his life away...
Night fell.
Tobirama Senju returned with disheveled hair.
He had not slept since last night. He had been researching the origins of the Senju Clan and Uchiha, but unfortunately, he had made no progress.
Seeing Tobirama Senju in that state, Renye became even more certain that the old man had been secretly working on Forbidden Techniques.
Around this time, he should have started researching the Reanimation Technique, right?
"Kid, how did you do on the exam?"
He had seen Renye studying before the exam, so his results should be decent this time, right?
For such basic questions, a glance or two should have been enough...
"Haha, not bad, not bad." Renye laughed awkwardly.
Tobirama Senju did not pursue the matter. After a simple dinner, he returned to the study to continue his research.
Renye could not help but sigh in relief. "Good thing that old man didn't keep asking."
There was no helping it. Being fifth from the bottom was truly too embarrassing to show anyone!
"Theory is my weak point. I have to make up for it this summer!"
No sooner thought than done, Renye took out his books and began studying seriously.
"I'll work hard for thirty days and become first in the grade!"
Five minutes later.
Renye expressionlessly closed the book. "Actually, ninjas only need to be strong. Theory classes aren't that useful..."
Wasn't Naruto Uzumaki unable to even understand what "a motley crew" meant?
That also proved from another angle that academic grades were not important in the Shinobi World.
"Mm, it's not that I can't learn. There's just no need to learn." Renye comforted himself.
"Time to sleep!"
"The feeling of knowledge entering my brain is so intoxicating..."
Renye recalled the knowledge he had learned just now.
Mm, there was nothing at all.
Although none of it had gone into his head, that did not stop him from drifting off to dreamland.
Study.
Tobirama Senju had flipped through all kinds of books from across the Shinobi World and actually found a related record.
He brushed the dust from the final page of an ancient book, revealing a faded mural that flickered indistinctly across the yellowed paper.
In the mural, an elderly man holding a staff floated in midair.
At his feet, two young men knelt separately to his left and right.
The young man on the left wore vine-patterned clothing.
The young man on the right had scarlet ripples blooming in his eyes.
An inscription rose faintly along the edge of the mural: "Indra and Asura, the twin sons of the Sage of Six Paths."
According to the records, Indra inherited powerful Dojutsu and a talent for battle, but fell into darkness because of his obsession.
Asura, meanwhile, cultivated Wood Release with a compassionate heart and protected all living beings with his healing power.
"Dojutsu... Wood Release..." Tobirama Senju muttered.
Although the records were vague, he knew this was the origin of the Uchiha and the Senju Clan.
The ancestors of the Senju and Uchiha were actually descendants of the Sage of Six Paths!
He guessed that Indra and Asura had disagreed in their beliefs, which led to the war between the Uchiha and Senju that had continued for thousands of years.
Tobirama Senju was just about to search for more information to confirm it.
At that moment, the corner of his eye caught the final exam score sheet on the table.
He had asked Takuma Senju to deliver it, but he had been too busy searching through records to look at it.
So, Tobirama Senju opened the score sheet.
First place: Hiruzen Sarutobi
Second place: Yuki Hyuga
Third place: Kagami Uchiha
Fourth place: Homura Mitokado
Fifth place: Danzō Shimura
Tobirama Senju nodded in satisfaction. These were Konoha's future!
"Wait, why can't I find that kid's name?"
He began searching for Renye's name and eventually found it in the fifth-from-last position.
"Perfect score in the Practical Assessment, so why is he still near the bottom?"
He was confused until he saw Renye's theory score.
Tobirama Senju: "???"
Before you continue