Class Assignment, Appointment of a Jonin Instructor

Ling Xuan immediately began assigning tasks.

The first Shadow Clone was responsible for mentally reviewing the fragmented forbidden jutsu segments parsed from the Scroll of Seals last night, attempting to complete their theoretical structure.

The second Shadow Clone was tasked with recalling the texts on high-level chakra nature transformation and shape transformation from the Konoha library, conducting cross-verification and deduction.

The third Shadow Clone began practicing his newly perfected Wind-Flame Spiral Impact, controlling its shape and power within an extremely small range.

One Shadow Clone closed its eyes to conduct deeper-level chakra perception and control training.

The final Shadow Clone was sent to study the introductory medical ninjutsu he had memorized from the library.

Meanwhile, Ling Xuan's original body began his mandatory daily physical conditioning and basic taijutsu training.

In an instant, his cultivation and learning efficiency soared fivefold!

Knowledge rolled like a snowball, growing larger and larger, and his strength steadily improved at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Several days later, all the newly promoted genin gathered on the Ninja Academy playground, waiting for their fates to be decided.

Team assignments, and the appointment of their jonin instructors.

Iruka stood on the high platform, holding the team roster, his expression somewhat complex.

There was both the gratification of seeing his students graduate successfully and the worry and anticipation for them as they were about to step onto the true path of a ninja.

"Team 10: Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi! Your jonin instructor is Asuma Sarutobi!"

Hearing that she was grouped with the two friends she had grown up with, and that they would be personally instructed by the Third Hokage's son, Asuma Sarutobi, Ino wore a satisfied smile.

But she still habitually glanced at Ling Xuan not far away, muttering in her heart, "Hmph, those two got lucky... but, Instructor Asuma sounds really impressive!"

Shikamaru still looked like he couldn't be bothered, while Choji was preoccupied with what he would have for lunch.

"Team 8: Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame, Hinata Hyuga! Your jonin instructor is Kurenai Yuhi!"

Hinata blushed upon hearing her name, but when she heard her teammates were Kiba and Shino, and that their instructor was the beautiful jonin Kurenai Yuhi, famous for her genjutsu, she quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

This combination made her feel quite at ease. She secretly glanced at Ling Xuan, and seeing his calm expression, she felt a small sense of loss, but also a surge of determination to work hard and become stronger, so as not to let down the affirmation he had once given her.

Iruka paused, took a deep breath, and read out the most anticipated team.

"Next, Team 7: Naruto Uzumaki!"

"Yeah! Awesome!" Naruto jumped up in excitement.

"Sasuke Uchiha!"

Sasuke snorted coldly without speaking, while Naruto immediately glared at him.

"Sakura Haruno!"

Sakura first let out a scream of surprise at being on the same team as Sasuke, but then her face fell when she saw Naruto.

Iruka looked at the list in his hand, a flash of surprise in his eyes, which then turned into a meaningful smile.

"And, in view of his outstanding performance in the graduation examination, by special approval of the Hokage, Team 7 will be organized as a special four-man squad. The final member is Ling Xuan!"

"Nani?!"

The entire playground exploded in an instant!

A four-man squad? This was extremely rare in the history of Konoha!

And to cram the three most eye-catching problem children of the entire grade—the class dead-last Naruto, the genius descendant Sasuke, and the mysterious Ling Xuan—into one team?

Naruto was stunned for a moment, then went wild with joy: "Wow! Ling Xuan is in our class too? Great! Our team is definitely the strongest!"

Sasuke's brows furrowed tightly; another opponent he needed to surpass, and one he couldn't see through at all.

Sakura looked at Sasuke, then at Ling Xuan, her mood complex. This Ling Xuan seemed even more impressive than Sasuke...

When the other teams were successively taken away by their respective jonin instructors, only the four members of Team 7 remained in the large classroom, along with their long-overdue instructor.

Naruto paced around the classroom irritably, finally wedging a clean blackboard eraser into the gap of the sliding door.

"Naruto! What are you doing! A jonin is coming soon!" Sakura shrieked.

"Hmph, who told him to be so late! I'll give him a taste of his own medicine!" Naruto said triumphantly.

Sasuke snorted, disdaining to participate in such a boring prank, but he didn't stop it either.

Ling Xuan sat in his seat, calm and composed, closing his eyes to rest, though in reality, his Eye of Truth had already analyzed the surrounding environment, including the small trap, with perfect clarity.

I don't know how much time passed, but just as Naruto was about to lose patience, the sliding door of the classroom was finally pushed open a crack.

Thwack.

The blackboard eraser fell precisely, hitting the messy silver hair of the person entering the room.

Naruto immediately burst into thunderous laughter: "Hahahaha! Gotcha! Gotcha!"

Sakura covered her mouth in fear, looking at Naruto with an expression that said he was doomed.

However, the person outside the door simply brushed his hair aside without haste, revealing a face mostly covered by a black mask and a listless, dead-fish eye.

"Hmm... how should I put this... my first impression of you guys..." Hatake Kakashi's voice was lazy and teasing, "is terrible."

His gaze swept over the laughing Naruto, the panicked Sakura, the cold Sasuke, and finally paused on the calm Ling Xuan, his eyes showing a hint of surprise.

"Oh? There's an extra one. It seems this year's Team 7 is a bit special."

[Target: Hatake Kakashi. Rank: Elite Jonin.]

[Left Eye: Obscured by a forehead protector, contains extremely powerful space-time chakra fluctuations and ocular power reactions; it is the Sharingan of Obito Uchiha.]

[Taijutsu: S-Rank. Ninjutsu: S-Rank (copied over a thousand techniques). Combat Experience: S+. Overall Assessment: Extremely dangerous, deeply calculating; currently appears lazy, but is actually on high alert.]

The moment Kakashi appeared, Ling Xuan's Eye of Truth had already completed its preliminary analysis.

"Alright, follow me." Kakashi waved his hand and began walking out first.

The four of them followed him to a rooftop.

"Now then, let's start with some self-introductions," Kakashi said, leaning against the railing. "Tell me your names, things you like, things you hate, your dreams for the future, your hobbies, and so on."

Naruto was the first to chime in: "My name is Naruto Uzumaki! The thing I like is the Ichiraku Ramen that Iruka-sensei treats me to! The thing I hate is the three minutes I have to wait for instant ramen!"

"My dream for the future is to become a Hokage that surpasses all the previous Hokage, and to make everyone in the village acknowledge my existence!"

Kakashi nodded. "Next."

Sakura fidgeted and said, "My name is Sakura Haruno. The thing I like is... well, I'd rather say the person I like..." She cast a shy glance at Sasuke.

"The thing I hate is Naruto! My dream for the future is..." She glanced at Sasuke again and let out a high-pitched squeal of ambiguous meaning.