Wanting to Improve Meant Going to School

March, Konoha Year 42. It was a relatively peaceful time. The Second Shinobi World War had ended not long ago, and after years of conflict, every nation was silently licking its wounds, hoping to secure greater benefits in a war that might break out again in the future.

On the eighth, the weather was clear and cloudless—a perfect day for an outing. Outside the Ninja Academy's bulletin board, however, a crowd had gathered.

Some were examinees checking the results, while even more were family members accompanying them. Some families had come out in full force, making quite a spectacle.

Relying on his small stature, Taichi Matsushita squeezed and wriggled through the crowd until he finally reached the bulletin board.

His eyes swiftly scanned the posted list, and at last, he spotted his own name near the bottom. Only then did the knot in his chest loosen.

Although he had been confident about the exam, as an orphan who had grown up in the Orphanage, he had still been deeply worried about whether he would successfully enter the Ninja Academy.

After all, in Konoha during this period, there was a "rat in the gutter" who always liked to set his sights on children from the Orphanage. Taiichi had been afraid Danzo would abduct him into Root as well. But now that it was settled, there was every reason to be happy.

Having passed the assessment, all that remained was to submit the paperwork and follow the procedure. He had asked around beforehand, and there had never been any problems at this stage. As long as he waited until school officially began on April 1, Taiichi would become a first-year student at the Ninja Academy.

Thinking of this, Taichi Matsushita turned his attention to the Attribute Panel in his mind. It had appeared after he awakened the memories of his past life at the age of four.

Name: Taichi Matsushita

Class: Civilian LV5 Max

Talent: Diligence Makes Up for Mediocrity (Effort brings rewards, no matter how insignificant. As an ordinary person, this is the talent best suited for you.)

Age: 6

Constitution: 7

Strength: 9

Agility: 8

Spirit: 17

Attribute Points: 4

Skill Points: 4

Skills: Basic Taijutsu Lv5 (621/800), Basic Meditation Lv6 (345/1000)

Prompt: Learn the Chakra Refinement Technique and produce your first chakra to change class to "Genin."

Evaluation: You are only a little stronger than children your age. In the Ninja World, you are complete trash.

Even though it was not his first time looking at the panel, he still found it incredible every time.

Other than that damned evaluation, was he really only a little stronger than his peers? From what he had observed, each attribute of a normal adult was generally around 10.

He was only six this year, yet most of his attributes were already close to those of an adult. His Spirit was even at 17. Although that was the result of two lives merging, it was still remarkable.

As for Attribute Points, after adding one point for the first time and discovering that his mental and physical stamina had been completely restored, he had never casually used them again. They were life-saving medicine, miraculous recovery pills. Using even a single point at a critical moment could save his life.

Besides, attributes could be increased through training, which only made Attribute Points all the more valuable.

The same went for Skill Points. Why use Skill Points on levels that could be rapidly raised through independent training in the early stages?

Just thinking about the enormous experience requirements at higher levels, wouldn't it be better to save those Skill Points for then? Taiichi had also discovered that Skill Points could help someone quickly get started with a new skill.

Basic Meditation had once been stuck at Lv0, impossible for him to learn. Yet one Skill Point had brought it straight to Lv1. With that function, once he got the Flying Thunder God, mastering it would be a piece of cake.

As for his only two skills, Basic Taijutsu and Basic Meditation, the panel information said they were the most suitable methods of training his mind and body, independently deduced by the panel based on information from both of his lives.

It was precisely because this panel existed that Taiichi, who had just awakened the memories of his past life, was no longer lost and helpless. It gave him the confidence to survive in this world that devoured people.

In the later stages of the Naruto world, it was a world that valued bloodlines above all else. Without good ancestors, you would truly become trash among trash. The panel gave Taiichi the confidence to break free from that bloodline supremacy.

And the talent Diligence Makes Up for Mediocrity was an extra boost to that confidence. What did people fear most? Putting in effort and getting nothing in return.

Especially when a bottleneck could trap someone for years or even more than a decade. That was enough to make someone want to die. This talent was the best possible one for someone like him, someone without a bloodline.

But the panel alone was not enough. Taiichi's current accomplishments had all come from his own training.

If adding points alone could make him invincible, then considering the likely limited number of Attribute Points and Skill Points, it would already be fortunate if he could reach Kage Level. And above that were Super Kage and Six Paths level.

And the reason he had been able to train without interruption at such a young age was because he had such a wonderful director—Yakushi Nonō!

The Orphanage did not have much funding and could not support Taiichi's high-intensity training.

But that did not stump Yakushi Nonō. Her Medical Ninjutsu could make up, to a certain degree, for the lack of sufficient medicinal ingredients, and she could also provide necessary treatment whenever Taiichi overtrained.

Thinking of that gentle, beautiful older sister filled Taichi Matsushita's heart with warmth.

But when he remembered that Nonō was also a member of Root, and thought of Danzo's sinister face, a chill ran through him.

"I still need to become stronger as quickly as possible. There aren't many years between the Second Shinobi World War and the Third Shinobi World War."

"And I need to make money too." Thinking about all the equipment and secret medicines that would be indispensable for future training gave Taiichi another headache.

He was not an orphan without any foundation. His parents had both been Konoha Chunin, and they had left Taiichi an inheritance.

Once he officially became a Ninja Academy student, he would be able to reclaim his parents' inheritance. Then he could move out of the Orphanage as well. After all, there were too many people there, too many watchful eyes, and not much space.

Still, his parents' inheritance probably was not much. They had only been civilian Chunin, after all. With the village subsidies, living expenses should not be a problem, but training would be difficult. So he still needed to make money!

Taichi Matsushita silently calculated all sorts of ways to earn money when he heard crying from nearby.

"How? How could this happen? My name isn't there! Dad, did you see it?"

"Guy, don't give up. Keep looking. You've already done your very best. You'll definitely succeed!"

When Taiichi turned his head, he saw two figures in green jumpsuits, both sporting bowl cuts.

Might Duy and Might Guy.

The sight really was enough to make people laugh, but after hearing their words, Taiichi could not laugh. These two were also people who would achieve extraordinary things through hard work.

Turning again, he looked at those nearby who would soon become his classmates.

Yūhi Kurenai, Genma, Obito, Shizune.

They were all so tiny! They looked so adorable!

Taiichi withdrew his gaze. If he kept looking, he felt like he would turn evil.

The moment he turned back, Taichi Matsushita saw a white-haired boy with his hands in his pockets walking over from behind the crowd.

He was already putting on airs at such a young age. Taiichi really wanted to beat him up, but that was all it was—a thought. The current Taiichi was no match for Kakashi.

Seeing Kakashi, and thinking of Might Guy and the Eight Inner Gates Technique, Taiichi confirmed that Might Guy's name was not on the list.

But Guy really was a student of this class. So Taiichi changed direction. Instead of heading back to the Orphanage, he walked toward a swing nearby, sat down, and lazily swung back and forth while watching Might Duy and Might Guy.

Before long, the father and son left with their heads hanging low, but Taiichi did not leave. He waited quietly.

Sure enough, less than half an hour later, Might Guy appeared again. A long banner was draped over him as he began madly running laps around the school. Written on the banner were the words: Youth Is Burning.

The scene drew the attention of many nearby people, and plenty of mocking laughter reached Taiichi's ears.

Unmoved, Taiichi got off the swing and walked over.

"Hey!"

Might Guy, who was running, suddenly noticed someone beside him. He froze for a moment, and his steps unconsciously slowed. "Um... did you fail the assessment too?"

"No, I passed. But that doesn't mean I don't need to work hard, does it?"

Might Guy's eyes lit up as he instinctively asked, "What?"

Taichi Matsushita secretly smiled and quickened his pace, passing Might Guy. "Hard work cannot go unrewarded. If we haven't seen results yet, it only means we haven't worked hard enough."

"Guy, my name is Taichi Matsushita. I believe you'll definitely be able to join the Ninja Academy."

That bowl of encouragement made Guy stop in excitement. Looking at Taiichi, who had already run far away, Guy shed two lines of tears. At the same time, limitless strength seemed to surge from within him. "My goal is 500 laps around the Ninja Academy! If I can't do it, I'll do 500 laps of frog jumps!"

After loudly declaring his goal, Guy started running and caught up to Taiichi. Beneath the setting sun, the two ran side by side, circling the school lap after lap.

From that day onward, two figures could be seen running laps around the school every day, rain or shine.

Sometimes Might Duy would appear to cheer them on. Sometimes it was just the two of them, perhaps accompanied by the mocking laughter of a few brats. But none of it affected Taiichi or Guy. At other times, two white-haired figures, one large and one small, could be seen passing by, their gazes sweeping over the pair.

"What is it, Kakashi? Do you know them?"

"No. I'm just curious, Father."

"Remember them, Kakashi. They can become strong in the future," Sakumo said with certainty.

Hearing that, Kakashi looked at Taiichi and Guy again.

"Strong?"