The Difference Between God and Man

At six years old, ordinary children should have been in an innocent, ignorant stage of childhood. At that age, most children played without a care, living only in worlds of their own.

But Orochimaru was different. Ninja education matured children early to begin with, and compared to their peers, they encountered more mature teachings much sooner.

Furthermore, Orochimaru was a genius. Geniuses were something utterly unreasonable—things that others often needed a long time to master, they could grasp with a single glance.

Konoha valued the education of its next generation. Ever since Uchiha Shin proposed the concept of the Ninja Academy when the village was founded, it had been teaching for more than twenty years.

Ninjas were practical, so the Ninja Academy did not mandate a specific duration of study. As long as one met the graduation requirements, they could take the graduation assessment at any time and become a Genin.

At only six years old, Orochimaru was already preparing for his graduation exam. War raged outside, and the Academy's lessons had become more focused on actual combat. The ninjutsu theory classes he liked had consequently been shortened.

On his way to the classroom, he inadvertently glanced into the distance. At the playground behind him, four or five children were surrounding a white-haired boy, though he could not tell what they were doing. Neither side looked pleased, and judging by their stances, a fight could break out at any moment.

He knew that white-haired boy. His name was Jiraiya, and he was in the same class as him. His grades were nothing special; he was a bottom-ranker. After one glance, Orochimaru lost interest and looked away. He had heard of Jiraiya before. He seemed to be a troublemaker—despite his poor grades, he loved fighting and causing trouble. He had fought