Ninja Academy Assessment

Seeing this, Naruto also laughed and responded, "Since I could beat you this time, then I'll definitely be the one to win next time. Don't underestimate me, Sasuke!"

"Thwack."

Naruto, who was refusing to admit defeat, was met with a sharp flick to the forehead from Uchiha Isho, who scolded him, "Idiot! Do you remember what I told you? You must never be careless. Don't tell me you don't even know the time limit for using the Multi-Shadow Clone Technique?!"

"I know... but my focus was entirely on Sasuke just now. So... I was a bit slow to act."

Naruto argued with a slightly aggrieved expression, though his voice grew quieter as he spoke, realizing that he had indeed gotten a bit carried away at the start.

"You should learn more from Sasuke on this point. He spotted the biggest weakness in your ninjutsu within seconds. If you had been even a few seconds slower to act, Sasuke would have been the one to win again."

Hearing this, Sasuke suddenly lifted his chin slightly. Being used by Uchiha Isho as a positive example to teach Naruto caused the frustration he felt from his earlier failure to dissipate instantly.

The cold winter quietly departed, and the warm spring arrived gracefully. Time slipped away like a white horse passing a crack in the wall, and in the blink of an eye, it was April.

Inside the Ninja Academy in Konoha.

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

"Isho, who do you think will take second place this time?" Qiupu, who was standing behind Uchiha Isho and had a fairly good relationship with him, asked curiously.

"It should be Jingchuan. He seemed to take second place last time, too. Of course, it could also be..." At this point, Uchiha Isho paused slightly, then pointed at himself as if joking, "Me."

"Hahahaha... he must be sleeping his brains out, thinking he's still at home having a wild dream."

"Yeah, once he fails to even secure thirteenth place later, he'll know what kind of big talk he's been spouting."

The surrounding students who heard the conversation couldn't help but laugh out loud, and the tense atmosphere dissipated quite a bit. Neji Hyuga, meanwhile, scanned the two of them calmly.

"Isho, you're getting better at joking. In that case, I'll be third; at least I'm only a little weaker than you." Akiyo reined in his smile and said, pretending to be serious.

"Isho, I also believe that as long as you work hard enough, you will eventually take second or even first place, just as you believe in me." Rock Lee, standing two spots away from Uchiha Isho, spoke up to encourage him.

Unexpectedly, as soon as Rock Lee's words left his mouth, the small group of six boys standing together burst into uncontrollable laughter. Lingdou Yiyou, with his short hair, mocked them bluntly, "Since when did the 'passionate loser' start hanging out with the only 'mute' left in the Uchiha Clan?

They actually match quite well; even the things they say are equally ridiculous! Hahahaha... don't you all think so!"

"Slap!"

A loud, crisp sound echoed in everyone's ears. Lingdou Yiyou fell to the ground in disbelief, clutching his swollen left cheek. His face twisted instantly, revealing a vicious gaze and painful fury.

However, when he saw who had struck him and met that pair of scarlet eyes, combined with a gaze as cold as frost that seemed to radiate killing intent, he swallowed his curses back into his throat.

The few people in the small group with Lingdou Yiyou snapped out of their shock and immediately surrounded Uchiha Isho.

But to everyone's surprise, Lingdou Yiyou, who kept muttering "monster" under his breath, was trembling so violently that he didn't dare to get up.

"Uchiha Isho, what are you doing! Why did you suddenly strike a classmate!"

Just as the atmosphere grew tense, the Chunin teacher in charge of the assessment flashed to Uchiha Isho's side, staring at him with an unhappy expression.

"Teacher, Lingdou Yiyou didn't just curse at me; he kept mocking me. He called me an orphan and made fun of me being the only mute left in the Uchiha Clan. He even mocked Rock Lee for being the same as me."

Uchiha Isho spoke with a trembling voice that sounded like he was about to cry, tears seemingly swirling in his black pupils, a complete contrast to the imposing figure he had cut just moments ago.

After the Chunin teacher questioned the nearby students and received answers that differed slightly from Uchiha Isho's words but carried the same meaning—compounded by the sight of five students surrounding Uchiha Isho—he suddenly frowned.

"Uchiha Isho, even if Lingdou Yiyou was wrong to curse you, you shouldn't have attacked him directly. You could have reported it to the teacher, and I would naturally have punished him, or let you settle it in a fair match."

"Yes, I know I was wrong, teacher."

Seeing Uchiha Isho's sincere and prompt admission of guilt, the tall, sturdy Chunin teacher's expression returned to its usual sternness, "Then apologize to student Lingdou Yiyou."

"I am very sorry, student Lingdou. I shouldn't have impulsively attacked you."

Although he spoke very vividly, Uchiha Isho was secretly digging his fingernails into his fingertips, worried he might suddenly burst out laughing in this situation, because he felt that acting this part was truly exhausting...

Realizing that the Chunin teacher did not look kindly upon him, Lingdou Yiyou had no choice but to suppress his frustration and confusion, stand up, and accept Uchiha Isho's apology.

Isho, consider this my payback to you. As for this bunch of brats who gave you nicknames and mocked you, I'll deal with them all when I get the chance.

There are only a few strong ones in this class anyway. Rock Lee is still a loser for now, and Tenten is at a low-to-average level. Needless to say, Neji takes first place every time.

After apologizing, Uchiha Isho stood straight as if nothing had happened, analyzing the future of everyone in the class.

"Alright, quiet."

The students, who were still whispering about the scene that had just unfolded, instantly fell silent.

The Chunin teacher, who had a medical ninja beside him and was holding the student files again, spoke sternly. His gaze swept over everyone, pausing slightly when he glanced at Uchiha Isho, before he continued:

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

"Students at the bottom of the rankings will have their training time and intensity increased. Students at the top may arrange their remaining time freely after completing basic training."

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

"How can this be?! This guy Isho is just too unlucky." Qiupu clutched his forehead, mourning for Uchiha Isho in his heart, and guessed that it might be because of what had just happened.

The surrounding students breathed a sigh of relief simultaneously, because the loser of the first match would be considered the bottom-ranked, the second match the second-to-last, and the winner would advance to fight for first place.

Most of the students then looked at Uchiha Isho with schadenfreude, especially the group Lingdou Yiyou belonged to, each of them struggling to hold back their laughter.

Not only was he appearing in the first match, but he was also paired against someone who was guaranteed to win—how was he supposed to fight this?