Creating a Record (3)

"Hmph!"

Hatake Kakashi, who had been on the verge of leaving, suddenly heard the words Uchiha Yue muttered under his breath. He let out a cold snort and leaped to the spectator stands to watch the upcoming battle.

Yet, even Hatake Kakashi had to admit that Uchiha Yue's words left him feeling incredibly annoyed.

It was common knowledge that Uchiha Yue and Hatake Kakashi were both born in the fourth year of the Konoha era. It was only because Hatake Kakashi was a few months older that he had entered the Ninja Academy earlier. However, Uchiha Yue had only been studying at the Ninja Academy for one year, yet he was already graduating alongside Hatake Kakashi. Furthermore, due to his age advantage, he was set to make history by becoming the youngest genin in the history of Konoha. It was only natural for the ever-proud Hatake Kakashi to feel disgruntled.

Still, Hatake Kakashi knew full well that Uchiha Yue's strength was on par with his own, so he could only watch helplessly as Uchiha Yue provoked him.

In truth, Uchiha Yue hadn't intended to provoke Hatake Kakashi with those words; he simply found teasing him to be quite amusing. Even back at the Ninja Academy, Uchiha Yue and Hatake Kakashi held no deep-seated grudges. Unlike Uchiha Obito, who disliked those of the Hatake clan, Uchiha Yue had no reason to antagonize Hatake Kakashi.

However, Uchiha Yue was a transmigrator who knew the original plot, and in his previous life, he had quite liked the character of Hatake Kakashi.

Therefore, whenever an opportunity to tease Hatake Kakashi arose, Uchiha Yue would never let it pass.

Even just being able to see the tsundere Hatake Kakashi get frustrated brought a secret sense of satisfaction to Uchiha Yue.

Following that...

Once Hatake Kakashi left the training ground to watch Uchiha Yue's exam from the spectator stands, Sarutobi Shinsuke nodded, signaling for the test to begin.

The previous battle with Hatake Kakashi hadn't consumed much of Sarutobi Shinsuke's chakra at all. Had he not been testing Hatake Kakashi's strength, he could have finished him off in a single move. Naturally, he wouldn't use his full strength while evaluating Uchiha Yue either.

However, the moment Uchiha Yue's graduation exam began, a flash of gravity crossed Sarutobi Shinsuke's eyes!

"Whoosh..."

"Whoosh..."

The sound of air being torn apart rang out. The moment the exam started, Uchiha Yue pulled seven kunai from his ninja tool pouch and launched a direct assault.

Watching the seven kunai flying through the air in elegant arcs, Sarutobi Shinsuke was secretly surprised by Uchiha Yue's skill with hidden weapons, and he prepared to sidestep the attack. It was clear that if Sarutobi Shinsuke didn't show some real skill, he might actually suffer a loss against Uchiha Yue's kunai.

After all, Uchiha Yue's ability to throw kunai was already comparable to that of an average chunin; even Sarutobi Shinsuke could not afford to underestimate him at this moment.

But...

What Sarutobi Shinsuke never expected was that even though he had taken Uchiha Yue's attack seriously, he had still underestimated him.

Just as Sarutobi Shinsuke dodged the thrown kunai in mid-air, Uchiha Yue's fingers suddenly began to dance with agility!

Falling Moon Style: Kunai Manipulation Technique!

Suddenly, the chakra threads concentrated at Uchiha Yue's fingertips latched directly onto the kunai he had thrown. Then, those same kunai that Sarutobi Shinsuke had just dodged began to collide with one another in mid-air, guided by the chakra threads, completely sealing off Sarutobi Shinsuke's escape route!

"Good lad, I still underestimated this kid!"

Seeing the seven kunai completely block his path, Sarutobi Shinsuke gave a wry smile. With no other choice, he began weaving hand seals, preparing to use ninjutsu to counter Uchiha Yue's assault!

One must not forget the vast gap in strength between Uchiha Yue and Sarutobi Shinsuke!

The fact that Uchiha Yue could force Sarutobi Shinsuke to use ninjutsu to counter during the very first wave of attacks was proof enough of his strength.

Yet, Uchiha Yue wanted to stun everyone during this graduation exam; he wanted to prove that he was far stronger than Hatake Kakashi!

Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!

"Boom..."

Having finished his hand seals, Sarutobi Shinsuke used the wind-style ninjutsu to forcibly break through Uchiha Yue's kunai attack. As his feet touched the ground, he prepared to announce that Uchiha Yue had passed the exam.

However, before Sarutobi Shinsuke could speak, Uchiha Yue used the Falling Moon Style: Afterimage Fist to appear right in front of him!

Furthermore, Uchiha Yue didn't give Sarutobi Shinsuke a chance to speak, launching another preemptive strike!

Watching Uchiha Yue's fierce offensive, Sarutobi Shinsuke couldn't help but realize the boy's intentions; clearly, Uchiha Yue wanted to take this opportunity to accumulate some real combat experience. Since Sarutobi Shinsuke understood this, he wouldn't pass up the chance to guide Uchiha Yue. After all, Uchiha Yue was a student of the Ninja Academy, and a little guidance before graduation wouldn't hurt.

Thus, Uchiha Yue and Sarutobi Shinsuke clashed once more, their movements truly dazzling to behold.

Even the spectators, who couldn't fully grasp the intricacies of the battle, could tell that the fight between Uchiha Yue and Sarutobi Shinsuke was far more spectacular than the one between Hatake Kakashi and Sarutobi Shinsuke. At the very least, Hatake Kakashi hadn't forced Sarutobi Shinsuke to use ninjutsu during their fight!

"Damn it, is the gap already this wide?"

Watching Uchiha Yue's figure within the training ground, Hatake Kakashi clenched his fists tightly, shouting in frustration within his heart.

However, Uchiha Yue, completely immersed in the thrill of battle, didn't notice Hatake Kakashi's resentful gaze at all. At this moment, he was pulling out all the stops, using the live combat against Sarutobi Shinsuke to test his unfinished techniques and search for flaws in his own strength.

Twenty minutes!

The battle between Uchiha Yue and Sarutobi Shinsuke lasted for a full twenty minutes!

In the end, had Uchiha Yue not run out of chakra, their fight might have continued even longer.

Looking at the panting Uchiha Yue before him, Sarutobi Shinsuke wiped the sweat from his forehead and gave another wry smile. "Yue, your current strength has long since surpassed that of an ordinary genin. No wonder Lady Tsunade wanted you to take this graduation exam. You are truly worthy of being a disciple personally trained by her; even I found it quite troublesome to fight you!"

As he spoke, Sarutobi Shinsuke took a deep breath, slowly walked over to Uchiha Yue, and patted him on the shoulder. "Alright, actually, I wanted to say this earlier: you have passed your assessment. Tomorrow, you can become a true ninja, Yue. I hope you continue to work hard and never become complacent just because you've achieved a little success, you hear me?"

"Yes, Shinsuke-sensei!"

Hearing Sarutobi Shinsuke's words, Uchiha Yue, though exhausted from depleting his chakra, still wore a smile on his lips.

Finally, Uchiha Yue had successfully graduated from the Ninja Academy.

Uchiha Yue was only five years old at the time of his graduation, setting a record for Konoha and becoming the youngest genin in history!

Moreover, the battle Uchiha Yue displayed during his graduation exam became the stuff of legend!

While earning the record for the youngest genin in history, Uchiha Yue also set another record...

That was, he became the only genin in history to ever make his examining instructor feel frustrated!