A year later...
Today was the Ninja Academy's graduation exam day.
All the candidates taking the graduation exam that day had gathered in a classroom in the corner of the first floor.
Once they passed the exam, they would become true ninjas.
Yet everyone's feelings were complicated at that moment. After all, whether they could pass the exam smoothly was still uncertain.
Among the many students, one of them seemed particularly unusual. He looked younger than every other candidate there.
With a black mask covering nearly half his face, no one could see his features clearly.
"What's with that kid? Are you kidding? You're letting him take the graduation exam with us? Can he really graduate...?"
As the murmuring continued around him, Kakashi simply closed his eyes as though he had heard nothing.
"Failed!"
When the examiner delivered the verdict, a student at the examination desk suddenly looked dejected.
"Next, Hatake Kakashi."
The examiner glanced at the list and called out again. Kakashi, who had been sitting in his seat, opened his eyes and rose, walking toward the examination desk.
He was clearly much shorter than the failed candidate before him. As he entered the examination area, everyone's eyes turned toward him.
Most of them were full of doubt. After all, Kakashi was only five years old that year.
At five years old, ordinary children had only just reached the age to enter the Ninja Academy. In the Academy's history, no one had ever taken the graduation exam at that age.
However, Kakashi had been personally approved by the Third Hokage.
"Let's begin."
The examiner looked at Kakashi before speaking.
Today's examination topic was the Clone Technique!
Upon hearing this, Kakashi's expression remained calm. His hands swiftly formed several seals with practiced ease.
Poof! Poof!
Amid bursts of smoke, two