Shadow Clone Jutsu

The bitter winter quietly departed, and the warm spring arrived in a flutter. Time slipped away like a white horse galloping past a crack in the wall, and in the blink of an eye, it was already April.

Konoha, inside the Ninja Academy.

All the students in Uchiha Isho's class gathered on the playground, preparing to face their practical assessment.

"Isho, who do you think will take second place this time?" Akiyo, who stood behind Isho and was on good terms with him, asked curiously.

"It should be Jingchuan; he took second last time, too. Of course, there's also a chance it could be..." At this point, Isho paused slightly, then pointed at himself as if joking, "Me."

"Hahaha, he must still be dreaming."

The surrounding students who heard their conversation couldn't help but laugh out loud. The tense atmosphere dissipated significantly, while Neji Hyuga merely swept a calm glance over the two of them.

The only ones in this class with real potential are a handful. Rock Lee is still a dead-last, Tenten is hovering around the middle-lower tier, and Neji goes without saying—he's a lock for first place every single time. Isho analyzed the future of his classmates.

"Isho, you're getting better at joking. In that case, I'll be third; I'm only a little weaker than you, after all." Akiyo stopped smiling and said with a serious expression.

"Alright, quiet down."

Before Isho could reply, a Chunin instructor standing beside two medical ninjas—who held the students' files—spoke sternly. He scanned the crowd, nodded slightly when his gaze landed on Isho, and continued:

"From now on, we will hold practical assessments every week. You must clearly understand that every powerful ninja gains experience and lessons through combat, allowing them to grow stronger at a speed far exceeding ordinary people and eventually become elites."

"Students who rank at the bottom will have their training time and intensity increased. Those who rank higher may arrange their remaining time freely after completing basic training."

"The assessment begins now. First group: Uchiha Isho versus Neji Hyuga."

"How is this possible?! Isho is just too unlucky." Akiyo clutched his forehead, already mourning for Isho in his heart.

Isho walked out of the crowd with a steady gait, his expression somewhat complex. If he were defeated in this duel, his ranking would undoubtedly be at the very bottom, and he had no desire to increase his training load.

I wanted to develop quietly, but it seems I have to go all out. Even if it costs me a Ninja Experience Card, I have to win.

Isho quickly reached the designated spot. At the instructor's signal, both sides performed the Seal of Confrontation, immediately entering a combat state.

Thump, thump, thump. Isho sprinted backward, throwing shuriken at various parts of Neji Hyuga's body simultaneously. The latter pursued relentlessly, quickly using a kunai to defend or dodging with leaps and side-flips, narrowly avoiding every single one.

"Useless tricks again." Neji Hyuga muttered to himself, his heart filled with disdain.

Isho was not discouraged and kept sprinting. He had used the same approach in his previous duels with Neji Hyuga, knowing full well the lethality of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. Once he was struck by the pressure points, he would have no power to resist—unless, of course, he used a cheat.

Before long, the distance between them was less than ten meters. Neji Hyuga's eyes flashed, and he suddenly accelerated like an arrow released from a bow, intending to secure victory in one stroke.

Just then, Isho suddenly turned and finished the final Tiger seal. A bad premonition instantly welled up in Neji Hyuga's heart. He tried to react, but a rolling heat wave accompanied by a massive fireball over a meter in diameter surged toward him.

It was none other than, "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

However, the moment before it could engulf him, the Chunin instructor in charge of the assessment flickered in front of Neji Hyuga. He reached out, then flickered back to his original position; the strange movement looked as if he were performing a Body Flicker Technique demonstration.

Seeing this, Isho didn't dare to be careless and performed seals with his hands once more.

In an instant, a charred piece of wood appeared where he had been standing, while Neji Hyuga reappeared ten meters to Isho's left. He looked quite disheveled; some of his clothes had been burned away, his face was flushed red, and his breathing was heavy.

Isho lunged forward, and in this moment, the roles of pursuer and pursued were reversed.

"How is this possible?! He can still use a ninjutsu of this level? How can his chakra be so abundant?"

Neji Hyuga's expression changed, and he immediately tried to use his speed advantage to create distance.

Isho would not let him have his way. He leaped forward with all his might, closing the distance again. Crimson flames spewed from his mouth, and Neji Hyuga, realizing he couldn't dodge, immediately swerved to the side.

"Earth Style: Earth Wall!"

A thick, heavy brown stone wall appeared in front of Neji Hyuga. It was the instructor who had intervened, which meant Isho had won. From start to finish, the battle had lasted barely two minutes.

"I never expected that a third-year exam would feature a ninjutsu that only a Chunin could master."

After saying this, he flashed to Isho's side, raised his right hand, and declared, "First match, Uchiha Isho wins!"

"What was that jutsu just now? Uchiha Isho was actually able to use it twice in a row."

"To be able to perform such a powerful ninjutsu in the third year, his strength must be at least that of a Genin! When did he become so strong?!"

The surrounding students ignored Isho's victory, focusing instead on the shock brought by his mastery and power with the Fireball Jutsu.

One had to realize that many in the class hadn't even mastered the basic Three Basic Techniques, which showed how difficult it was to learn ninjutsu. Isho's proficient use of a Fire Style technique was at least several grades higher in cultivation.

The main reason for the shock was that Isho's strength had been average, and his sudden surge to the top of the class created a gap that was hard for them to accept.

"Isho, no wonder you said you were second; you were prepared all along! Forget second, you're definitely the first now."

Akiyo smiled, stepped forward to drape an arm over Isho's shoulder, his eyes bright and his back suddenly straightened.

As soon as Isho finished the Seal of Reconciliation and returned to his group, he saw all his classmates looking at him. He curled his lips into a smile and said, "I won by luck. Of course, this victory is also inseparable from my usual diligence."

Effort is nothing compared to having a cheat, Isho added silently in his heart.

Neji Hyuga, who had returned to the group a step behind Isho, witnessed this scene. He clenched his fists tightly, his white eyes flashing with unwillingness as he glanced at Isho, then let out a cold snort and stopped paying attention.

"Next group, Yukino versus Yuino."

"Phew, it's finally almost over. This hellish weather, it's burning me to death."

Isho wiped his forehead with his hand and then flicked it toward the ground. Several droplets of sweat evaporated and vanished the moment they touched the earth.

Those with average strength end up evenly matched, fighting until one side is exhausted to secure a win; what a waste of time. Unlike me, I seized the right moment in the second and third rounds, ending things instantly with a single ninjutsu, Uchiha Isho thought helplessly.

"Final round, Uchiha Isho versus Jingchuan Lirang."

Jingchuan Lirang walked out from the crowd at a steady pace; standing about 1.4 meters tall with a sturdy build, he was quite conspicuous among the students.

As the proctor swung his right hand down, both combatants simultaneously drew their kunai.

"Pop."

Two clones identical to Jingchuan Lirang appeared in an instant, each holding a kunai of their own, and the three figures moved in a line to launch the first assault against Isho.