The Night Before the Announcement

After the phase tests ended, an even more subtle silence settled over the Ninja Academy than during the exams.

Because the real results had yet to be posted.

Everyone knew the final rankings would be announced early the next morning. That was precisely why every second before that night seemed deliberately drawn out.

Kiba stood by the training field, repeatedly thinking over which part had cost him the most points.

Ino looked relaxed on the surface, but on her way home, she nearly replayed the entire comprehensive test in her head.

Hinata was nervous about her own score, yet she cared more than ever about whether Ling would truly make it to first place.

As for Sasuke, he had been quieter than usual ever since school let out.

Ling noticed, but did not dwell on it. After packing up, he went to the training ground as usual and only practiced the most basic chakra circulation, without continuing to train anything new. The closer it got to a moment like this, the more he needed to keep himself calm.

Before leaving the classroom, Ino deliberately stopped him at the door.

"You'd better really take first tomorrow."

Ling looked at her. "Why?"

"Because I already bragged about it to everyone today." Ino lifted her chin, sounding as if she were joking, though her eyes were more serious than usual. "If you don't beat Sasuke, I'll be completely humiliated."

Ling fell silent for a moment, then said flatly, "Then your pride will probably be safe."

The corner of Ino's lips curved, as though she had finally heard what she wanted to hear. Just as she was about to say something else, she caught sight of Hinata standing some distance away with books in her arms. Her gaze shifted slightly, and in the end, she only raised a hand to brush a tiny scrap of paper from Ling's shoulder.

"Remember what you said."

Only after she walked away did Hinata slowly approach. She did not say as much as Ino had. She simply handed over the small note she had been clutching in her hand.

"Th-this... is what I wrote down about the important exam points," she said softly. "You probably already know all of it, but I still wanted to give it to you."

Ling accepted the neatly folded paper and paused slightly as he looked at the fine handwriting on it.

"What about you?" he asked.

Hinata froze for a moment, then said quietly, "I... I've already memorized it."

Ling looked at her for two seconds, then gave a low response. "I'll read it."

For Hinata, that plain answer alone was enough to make her heart warm. Hugging her books tightly to her chest, even her steps felt lighter than before.

"You're holding steady, at least."

Iruka stood at the edge of the field, watching Ling slowly compress chakra into his palm before dispersing it again. There was a rare note of emotion in his voice.

Ling lowered his hands and asked, "Do you think the result will change, sensei?"

Iruka did not answer directly. Instead, he asked, "Do you want it to change?"

"Yes."

This time, Ling answered without hesitation.

Iruka looked at him, then spoke after a moment. "Then you should accept that whether it changes or not, it is only the result of where you are right now. It is not the end."

Ling nodded.

Of course he understood.

But understanding was one thing. Having truly reached this point, he still wanted to know whether all his training, restraint, and judgment over this period had been enough to claim that first-place spot.

The night deepened, and the wind across the training field was gentle.

Iruka did not disturb him any further. Before leaving, he only said, "Don't be late tomorrow."

Ling remained standing alone in the field for a long time, returning to his residence only after the sky had gone completely dark.

At the courtyard gate, his father did not go inside right away as usual. Instead, he looked at him and said, "The results come out tomorrow."

"I know."

"The Uchiha Clan will not do anything just because you take second." The man's voice was cold and flat. "But if you take first, many people's views of you will change completely."

That statement, almost blunt by his father's standards, made Ling pause slightly.

So even his father acknowledged that he had reached the point where the clan would reevaluate him.

"I will take it," Ling said calmly.

His father looked at him. After a long while, he merely gave a faint "Mm" and turned to head inside.

That night, Ling did not go to sleep immediately.

He sat by the window, watching moonlight fall across his palm, and once again recalled everything people had said about him over the past six months.

Chaotic chakra.

Not like an Uchiha.

Unstable.

Dangerous.

Even now, those words remained in his memories like old marks. But compared to the beginning, they could no longer hold him down.

Instead, they were more like traces he had personally stepped over.

Early the next morning, when Ling arrived at the Ninja Academy, the school gates were already far livelier than usual.

Some people had deliberately arrived early just to see the rankings first.

The moment he entered the gates, he saw Ino wave at him from a distance. She looked as though she wanted to say something, yet deliberately kept him in suspense. Hinata stood at the outer edge of the crowd around the notice board, clearly unable to squeeze in, looking more nervous than usual.

Sasuke, meanwhile, was already standing in the very front.

His back was straight, like a string drawn to its limit.

More and more people gathered around the notice board, and the noise rose with them. Only when Iruka arrived carrying the final rankings did the scene abruptly fall silent.

Everyone's eyes followed that sheet of paper.

One breath.

Two breaths.

The paper was pinned to the wooden board.

Someone in the front unconsciously read out the first line, their voice rising in shock.

"F-first... Uchiha Ling?"

The silence before the notice board stretched to its limit in an instant.

The next moment, every voice erupted at once.