Graduation Exam

"Really? Is that true...?" Rei's tone suddenly became much gentler.

"Of course it is. Every drop of sweat you shed during training proves it. If even you can't make it, then more than half our class would probably have to repeat a year."

"Thank you... Kai-kun." The girl smiled brightly and thanked Uchiha Kai.

"Um, I wanted to ask..." Hyuga Rei hesitated.

"What is it?"

"After graduation, what are you planning to do, Kai-kun? I heard that most members of the Uchiha Clan join the police force after graduating..."

"Ah, that. I've already discussed it with Lord Yashiro. If I graduate successfully and become a genin, I'll be randomly assigned to a team with everyone else and take missions." Uchiha Kai paused as he spoke.

"What's wrong? Why ask about that all of a sudden?"

"N-Nothing!" Hyuga Rei suddenly covered her face and ran off.

"See you tomorrow, Kai-kun! Good luck on the graduation test!"

Leaving Uchiha Kai standing there, utterly bewildered.

The next morning, in front of the Ninja Academy gates.

The bustling crowd had completely surrounded the entrance. On such an important day, nearly every parent had come personally to see their child off to school.

Words of encouragement and cheers rang out without end.

Uchiha Kai was clearly not among them, but he did not particularly care. Having lived two lives, he had long grown accustomed to being alone.

"Morning, Kai. How's your recovery?" A boy dressed in a tight combat uniform greeted Uchiha Kai.

"Morning, Kei. It's nothing serious. I've mostly recovered already, so it won't affect the exam."

"Is that so? Good. You suddenly disappeared for two days—I was starting to think you'd dropped dead from overtraining."

The sturdy boy chatting happily with Uchiha Kai was Morino Kei, one of the classmates closest to him.

"Come on, let's go in. I heard this graduation test will be different from the usual ones. It won't just be a simple spot check of the Three Basic Ninjutsu Techniques." Morino Kei leaned close to Uchiha Kai's ear and whispered.

"Your information network really is impressive. You even found out about something this important ahead of time." Uchiha Kai flattered him after hearing that.

"Heh heh—that's right. Who told me to inherit the glory of that surname?" Hearing his friend's praise, Morino Kei's ego immediately soared into the sky, and he began boasting without the slightest shame.

It was not entirely empty boasting. Morino Kei truly had reason to be proud. Though his surname was not one of Konoha's renowned great clans, that was only because he had not taken his father's surname.

His clan had answered the village's call by voluntarily giving up their surname and integrating into Konoha's collective, setting an example for the major ninja clans.

And Morino Kei's grandmother had once been a ninja famed far and wide: Senju Momoka.

"This graduation exam will most likely involve drawing lots at random, then fighting in pairs. Our scores will be determined by our actual combat performance."

"Is that so? Then isn't it basically no different from the usual sparring? Will only the winners be allowed to graduate? Wouldn't the elimination rate be too high?" Uchiha Kai asked.

"Of course not. They'll assess the entire course of the battle. Even if one side loses in a fight between two strong opponents, that doesn't mean the loser is worse than everyone else, right?" Morino Kei waved a hand.

"That does sound reasonable. It's just more complicated than the previous years' tests."

"Stop pretending. Other people might be nervous, but aren't you just dying for some real combat to test yourself...?" Morino Kei teased darkly. As Uchiha Kai's friend, he was naturally among those who understood the boy's strength best.

"We'll see when the time comes. Practice is the sole criterion of truth."

"You're still talking in circles, always so watertight. Doesn't that get tiring...?" While they talked, the two had unknowingly reached their familiar classroom.

The moment they entered, they heard a familiar voice calling out.

"Over here! Kai-kun, Kei-san!" From a window seat in the back row, Hyuga Rei waved them over.

"You two still love cutting it close. Every time, you only arrive right before the bell." The moment they sat down, the girl spoke.

"Isn't it better to sleep a little longer and conserve our energy...?" Morino Kei scratched his head as he answered.

"Making reasonable use of time is a required lesson in life. I rushed here right after finishing my morning training too." Compared to Morino Kei's excuse, Uchiha Kai's words instantly sounded several levels more profound.

Morino Kei's face darkened, as if the whole mood had suddenly changed.

"Heh heh, no matter what, it's fine as long as you weren't late. Funeno-sensei is in charge today. If you'd arrived one step later, you two would have been in trouble." As she spoke, the girl gestured with her lips toward the classroom entrance.

A solidly built, honest-looking man walked in. It was Funeno Daikoku.

"Funeno-sensei? Doesn't he usually teach the lower grades? Why is he suddenly presiding over the graduation exam?" Uchiha Kai asked in confusion.

"It's probably because of the Sand Ninja invasion a while ago. Most of the village's ninja were sent out to resist them. The only one with time to oversee this might be Funeno Daikoku-sensei." Hyuga Rei said, twirling her fingers.

The next moment, Funeno Daikoku suddenly knocked on the blackboard, and his deep voice spread through the entire classroom.

"Quiet down! I'll take attendance first." The classroom instantly seemed to have been muted, and everyone tacitly fell silent.

Funeno Daikoku nodded in satisfaction and began calling names.

"Ryunoma Wajima." "Here!"

"Hyuga Tetsu." "Here!"

"Uchiha Ko." "Here!"

"Mibu Nin." "Here!" "Mitaraishi Anko." "Here!"

"Uchiha Kai." "Here!"...

Three minutes later, Funeno Daikoku finished taking attendance. His gaze swept across the students sitting properly before he slowly spoke.

"I know that, at this very moment, all of you are extremely excited. You have long been impatient to end this lengthy period of study."

"You have long grown tired of this monotonous student life. You are so eager to claim the title of ninja and begin the life you have imagined."

"But I am telling you that you are wrong! Terribly wrong. If you came to take this exam with that mindset today, I advise you to give up now and prepare to repeat a year." Funeno Daikoku began sternly laying out the facts.

"Because ninja have never been glamorous figures. This is not childish role-playing, but a high-risk profession where you struggle through blood and tears at every moment."

"Being a ninja is an inescapable responsibility! Once you set foot on this path, you can never turn back for the rest of your life. Are you prepared for that now?" Funeno Daikoku's voice was not loud, yet it carried an indescribable force that drew everyone together.

"I'm ready!" "Me too!" "I'll never regret becoming a ninja!"...

Voices rose one after another throughout the classroom. Seeing this, Funeno Daikoku's lips curved upward as he nodded.

"Very good. Full of spirit!"

"Then let me announce something. This year's graduation exam will be different from those of previous years. It will not be a simple assessment of the Three Basic Ninjutsu Techniques. Instead, you will draw lots at random, fight in pairs, and be evaluated on whether you can graduate based on your combat performance."

The instant his words fell, the classroom erupted into chaos, everyone chattering at once.

"What?! This time, the exam isn't testing the Three Basic Ninjutsu Techniques?!"

"No way! I practiced for so long specifically so I could graduate! How can they just change it whenever they want?!!"

Complaints like these rang out one after another. Only a small number of students remained calm, unflustered by the sudden change in the exam's content.

"Hmph! A bunch of shortsighted civilian ninja. People who can only wail when something happens want to become ninja? What a joke!" Uchiha Ko, wearing clothes decorated with the fan crest, spoke with a cold snort. His tone was full of discrimination and contempt.

From beginning to end, his gaze had rested on only one person: Uchiha Kai, seated in the back row. As for Uchiha Kai himself? The boy was spacing out at that moment, completely unaware that anyone was staring at him.