Nature System

Seemingly dissatisfied with Uchiha Sasuke stealing the spotlight, one boy made a startling move.

When it was his turn to test, he flashed a wicked grin, and scorching flames erupted across his body.

A surging heatwave rushed toward those nearby, forcing Iruka, who was standing closest, to instinctively shield himself with his arms.

"What is this?" Iruka stared at the scene before him, caught between shock and suspicion.

The examinee was completely engulfed in searing fire, his figure gradually fading away until he had slowly transformed into flames himself.

"He actually turned his entire body into fire?" Iruka's eyes widened. "Is this a ninjutsu or a unique Kekkei Genkai? To possess such a special ability..."

The other examinees also cried out in alarm. The heat was so intense that they were forced to retreat, scrambling to dodge the waves of fire.

"So amazing!" Sakura exclaimed in surprise.

Seeing that he had captured the attention of everyone around him, the flames the boy had become began to intensify, burning ever more fiercely. They even showed signs of spreading.

"Alright, you've already passed the test. Put the flames away now," Iruka called out; if this continued, the fire might end up hurting the other examinees.

Only then did the boy retract his flames, returning to his human form. He wore a smug expression, satisfied that he had managed to overshadow even Uchiha Sasuke.

"Not even your clothes were destroyed? That is a truly unique ability," Iruka praised.

"Ueda Shin," he read the boy's name from the roster. "Born to a civilian family, no ninjas among your ancestors. You have no hereditary Kekkei Genkai, so how did you suddenly master such an ability?"

As Iruka flipped through the boy's file, many questions arose in his mind, but those would have to wait. He still had to proceed with the testing process, so he gave Ueda Shin a perfect score.

The boy, having had his moment in the limelight, was thoroughly satisfied. He returned to the line, basking in the praise of the crowd.

Seeing that he could turn his entire body into fire—and at such a young age—Ito Makoto realized that this boy was likely another transmigrator.

It wasn't that the ninja world lacked similar abilities; for instance, the Hozuki Clan's Hydrification Technique allowed one to turn their entire body into water. However, the difficulty of such ninjutsu was extremely high. To achieve this level of full-body transformation into fire at the age of three was nothing short of genius. Moreover, such techniques were generally secret, passed down only within specific ninja clans. There was no way an ordinary person could learn them.

Given that Ueda Shin came from a civilian family, it was impossible for him to have access to such high-level ninjutsu. Aside from the possibility of him being a transmigrator, there was no other logical explanation.

Furthermore, that fire ability looked exactly like the power of a Logia Fruit from another anime.

It seemed that the transmigrators who came to this world might not all be like him, gaining special abilities through mere coincidence. Among them, there might be those who possessed systems that defied the laws of this world.

Ito Makoto raised the threat level of the transmigrators in his mind by another notch.

With Ueda Shin as a benchmark, the subsequent testing process seemed rather dull. There were a few older examinees who tried to cheat by hiding special lights in their sleeves, attempting to mimic the glow of chakra. These attempts to pass off fakes were easily seen through, and the culprits were tossed out of the exam hall.

The second test was a physical fitness assessment, the core of which was running.

All a ninja's abilities stemmed from the body. If one's physical condition was subpar or plagued by illness, even the strongest ninjutsu would be useless.

Through chakra activation, even a child's body could run for over 10 kilometers. The entry requirement for the Ninja Academy was exactly ten kilometers.

Ten kilometers was difficult for an average adult to complete; without the support of chakra, an ordinary young child could never do it.

This simple method was enough to filter out qualified students.

The test was conducted in groups of ten, regardless of gender, with the same standards for everyone. After all, the battlefield would not show you any leniency based on your gender; you either could do it, or you couldn't. There was no room for sloppiness.

Because Ito Makoto and Sakura were next to each other in the order, they were assigned to the same group.

Ten kilometers was child's play for him. After training with Might Guy every day for over a year, he could now complete the goal Might Guy had set for himself at age five—running 500 laps around the Ninja Academy track, totaling 200 kilometers.

It wasn't difficult for Sakura either. With his guidance, while her progress wasn't exactly lightning-fast, it was certainly much quicker than her fumbling through it on her own. In the original story, Sakura passed easily, so this was definitely within her reach.

Although he could easily take first place, Ito Makoto, determined to keep a low profile, had no intention of standing out. He simply followed behind Sakura, occasionally reminding her to keep her pace steady.

In the end, Sakura took first place in the group, and Ito Makoto took second. A second-place finish wasn't particularly conspicuous in this exam hall; there were eight groups under Iruka alone, each with their own first and second-place finishers.

However, after the test was over, Sakura was quite unhappy.

"Honestly, A-Cheng, your physical fitness is clearly much better than mine. Why did you have to hide behind me?"

"Oh, isn't it fine as long as we passed?" Ito Makoto said with a grin. "It's just a test, why take it so seriously?"

Seeing his flippant attitude, Sakura turned her head away, pouting.

"Seriously, the way you acted makes it seem like my score was a fluke."

Ito Makoto scratched his head; he hadn't considered that. He could only offer a sheepish smile.

While their group had been calm, the following groups were like stormy seas.

Naruto Uzumaki, as expected, was assigned to the same group as Uchiha Sasuke. Their physical abilities were surprisingly evenly matched; they pushed each other like natural rivals, crossing the finish line almost neck-and-neck.

Ueda Shin pulled another stunt, turning his lower body into fire and flying through the entire course, leaving all the other examinees in his dust.

The Ninja Academy's running test did not restrict the use of ninjutsu. Techniques like the Body Flicker Technique could be used freely, and Ueda Shin's fire was treated as a type of ninjutsu, so it wasn't considered a violation.

When it was Senju Kotoha's turn, it was a different scene entirely. As she ran, she seemed no different from an ordinary person, only her speed far exceeded the others. However, Ito Makoto, relying on his keen perception, noticed that Senju Kotoha was utilizing natural energy while she ran.

Having mastered Sage Jutsu with the help of the Sage of Six Paths, Ito Makoto was no stranger to natural energy. Although he hadn't made much progress, he had been persistently practicing Sage Jutsu for the past year.