Early Graduation Application (New Book—Please Bookmark and Follow)

Rogge smiled and handed her a cup of water. "Have some water and rinse your mouth."

Kushina took the cup, rinsed her mouth, then wiped the corner of her lips. Her face was full of defeat as she murmured, "Do I really have no talent for cooking?"

Rogge answered without hesitation, "None!"

At his words, Kushina's little face instantly turned serious.

She clenched her teeth and balled up her tiny fists. "Impossible. Next time... next time, I'll definitely make the most delicious fried rice!"

Rogge fell silent.

After sending Kushina away, Rogge sank into thought.

Kushina keeps clinging to me every day. She's obviously got a girl's crush... If this keeps up, it feels like Naruto Uzumaki might not even be born in the future... But I can't just ignore Kushina's feelings for me.

Shaking his head helplessly, Rogge gathered himself and headed toward the ninja academy.

Chunin instructor Hiraoka Sankisai stared at the Early Graduation Application Form Rogge had handed him, his brows tightly furrowed and his expression complicated.

He slowly said, "Um, Rogge, although the Leaf Village ninja academy does allow students to graduate early, you haven't even been enrolled for two and a half years. There's still a lot for you to learn. I suggest you think it over for a while longer..."

Rogge firmly shook his head. "There's no need to think it over. I've already learned everything taught at the academy. I have no problem becoming a qualified genin."

Hiraoka Sankisai frowned. "All right. Since you've made up your mind, we can begin the assessment now. But there's something I need to make clear: even if you pass every part of the graduation assessment, whether you can graduate early... the final decision rests with the Third Hokage."

Rogge nodded expressionlessly. "I understand."

Hiraoka Sankisai then brought Rogge to an outdoor training ground.

Some idle students at the academy gradually gathered around as well, whispering among themselves.

"Hey, isn't that Rogge, the one who defeated Uchiha Iwa? What's he doing?"

"I heard he applied for early graduation. Looks like he's taking the graduation assessment."

"Early graduation? Him? Even Minato Namikaze didn't apply for early graduation. What makes him think he can?"

"Who knows what he's thinking. Maybe beating Uchiha Iwa made him too full of himself."

Hiraoka Sankisai briefly arranged the ninja tools on the training ground, then solemnly announced, "The graduation assessment begins now!"

"First item: ninja tool throwing!"

Rogge walked to a table covered with ninja tools such as shuriken, kunai, and senbon, casually picking up a shuriken.

His gaze sharpened. With a slight flex of his arm, the shuriken shot out with a whoosh.

Clang! The shuriken struck the bullseye dead center.

Rogge then threw three more shuriken in succession. His movements were smooth and swift, and all three struck the bullseye again.

Next, he picked up kunai and threw three in a row, all of them hitting their marks.

The senbon were no exception. Three shots, all dead center.

Hiraoka Sankisai stared at Rogge in disbelief, secretly astonished.

It seemed that after awakening his Lava Release bloodline limit, this kid had suddenly gotten the hang of things.

The surrounding students were equally stunned.

"How did Rogge get so strong?"

"He awakened Lava Release. Didn't you know?"

"Hmph, being accurate with ninja tools is nothing. Ninjutsu is what matters most to a ninja, and Rogge's talent for ninjutsu is terrible. There's no way he'll pass the next test!"

"Heh, I guess you never saw how Rogge defeated Uchiha Iwa?"

Rogge remained expressionless as he said to Hiraoka Sankisai, "Teacher, can we proceed to the next item?"

Hiraoka Sankisai's eyelid twitched. Forcing himself to remain calm, he said, "Very good. Next are the Three Basic Techniques."

Rogge's hands flashed through seals, and he first performed the Shadow Clone Technique.

Poof! A cloud of white smoke burst out beside him, and a shadow clone identical to Rogge appeared.

Then Rogge himself formed another series of hand seals and performed the Substitution Jutsu. His body turned into a log.

Finally, a figure flickered into view beside Hiraoka Sankisai. It was Rogge.

He formed hand seals again and shouted, "Transformation Technique!"

A burst of white smoke rose. When it dispersed, another Hiraoka Sankisai stood in the training ground.

Hiraoka Sankisai was dumbfounded. This kid had used the Shadow Clone Technique in place of the basic Clone Technique, and he had even mastered the Body Flicker Technique!

His Shadow Clone Technique, Substitution Jutsu, Transformation Technique, and Body Flicker Technique were all executed perfectly!

Hiraoka Sankisai took a deep breath. "All right. Next is the practical combat assessment!"

After a brief pause, Hiraoka Sankisai continued, "Ahem... Rogge, for the next test, treat me as an enemy ninja trying to destroy the Leaf Village. Come at me with everything you have."

"Okay."

Rogge's eyes narrowed as he immediately used Flash Step, vanishing from where he stood in the blink of an eye.

Like a ghost, he silently appeared behind Hiraoka Sankisai. His fist, flowing with scorching lava, struck again and again like a barrage of shockwaves. Bang! Bang! Bang!

Smack! Hiraoka Sankisai was blasted apart by the Magma Fist, leaving behind a tree stump.

"A Substitution Jutsu!" Rogge stopped in place, his eyes sweeping from side to side.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Three spinning shuriken shot toward Rogge's back.

At the same time, Hiraoka Sankisai appeared behind Rogge, charging after the three shuriken and swinging a side kick at Rogge's head.

The watching students immediately cried out in admiration.

"Teacher Sankisai is amazing!"

"So fast! Teacher really is an elite chunin. Rogge's going to suffer now."

"Tch, after awakening his Lava Release bloodline limit, Rogge's gotten so arrogant he thinks he's above everyone. Good thing the teacher can teach him a lesson!"

Rogge steadied his breath and focused his mind, unaffected by the voices around him.

Facing the three shuriken speeding toward his back, he neither dodged nor moved.

Hiraoka Sankisai panicked slightly, unable to understand why Rogge was not evading. If all three shuriken hit him, then with Rogge's physical defenses, he would be severely wounded even if he survived!

His mind in turmoil, Hiraoka Sankisai's kicking leg slowed slightly.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft! The three shuriken, gleaming with icy light, shot like ruthless meteors into Rogge's elementalized body!

The instant the shuriken touched the lava, their surfaces turned red-hot. Their originally hard material rapidly softened beneath the scorching heat. Sparks flew, and in an instant, they were consumed by the endless temperature.

"What?!" Hiraoka Sankisai was utterly shocked.

Damn it! Hiraoka Sankisai's heart raced as he forcibly halted his forward charge.

He then turned and retreated, intending to widen the distance and attack with ninjutsu.

But how could Rogge give him that chance? He used Flash Step, his body hurtling toward Hiraoka Sankisai like a jet.

A huge mass of lava splashed out, piling into four enormous "hills" in front, behind, left, and right, trapping Hiraoka Sankisai in the center. Rogge himself descended from above, black smoke rising from the lava erupting out of his fist.

Rogge forcibly stopped his Magma Fist when it was only three inches from Hiraoka Sankisai's face. Then he calmly declared, "Teacher, you lost."

The searing heat wave washing over him made Hiraoka Sankisai feel as though he were suffocating.

The moment Rogge had drawn close, he could even hear the lava bubbling with a gurgle. The air warped under the heat. Every breath became difficult and scorching, as if he were inhaling not air, but blazing flames.

Hiraoka Sankisai gave Rogge, whose entire body was covered in lava, a complicated look. "All right. You pass the practical combat assessment for early graduation."

Then, right before Rogge's eyes, Hiraoka Sankisai's body rapidly melted away... soon turning into a puddle of mud.

The next moment, Hiraoka Sankisai slowly emerged from around the corner of the academy building.

Rogge's face showed surprise. The "Hiraoka Sankisai" he had just fought had only been an Earth Clone!

The students watching also breathed sighs of relief.

"That scared me! I thought Rogge had really defeated a chunin instructor. So it was only a clone!"

"What are you thinking? Teacher Sankisai is an elite chunin and will probably be promoted to jonin soon. How could he possibly lose to Rogge?"

"But Rogge is so strong! I wonder who's stronger between him and Minato Namikaze?"

"Of course Minato Namikaze is stronger! Rogge just got lucky and awakened a special bloodline limit. I could do it too if I were up there!"

Rogge paid no attention to the chatter around him. Right now, he had taken a blow to his confidence.

He had thought he defeated Hiraoka Sankisai, only to discover that he had merely beaten one of the man's Earth Clones.

Hiraoka Sankisai's real body had been hiding in the shadows all along. If he had used ninjutsu to launch a surprise attack, the consequences would have been unimaginable!

After all, although the Magma-Magma Fruit was a Logia-type power and allowed him to use elementalization to ignore physical attacks... it could not make him immune to chakra-based attacks!

Why?

Because chakra was the combination of physical energy and spiritual energy. In essence, it was similar to the concept of Haki from the pirate world!

Observation Haki was an expression of spiritual energy!

Armament Haki was an expression of physical energy!

Conqueror's Haki was likewise a form of spiritual energy. It was a mysterious magnetic sound, a sound wave, and a form of spiritual-energy attack that could intimidate the mind and render people unconscious.

In other words, as long as an enemy used chakra to perform ninjutsu, they could ignore Rogge's elementalization and attack his real body, just like Armament Haki!

To give a simple example, Naruto Uzumaki's ninjutsu, the Rasengan, could attack Rogge's body just like Armament Haki.

After that lesson, Rogge's slightly inflated confidence quickly deflated, and he regained his composure.

No arrogance. No impatience.

At my current level, I'm at best a genin... Hiraoka Sankisai truly deserves to be a chunin. His combat experience and ninjutsu are both formidable. If I fought him to the death now, there's a high chance I'd die at his hands!

"Thank you, Teacher." Rogge calmly nodded to Hiraoka Sankisai.

Hiraoka Sankisai clapped helplessly. "All right, Rogge. You've passed the graduation assessment. I'll report your early graduation application and your graduation assessment results to the Hokage."

"Thank you, Teacher." Rogge nodded once more, then said, "Teacher, I'll be leaving first."

Hiraoka Sankisai watched Rogge's departing back, his face twitching.

"Seven years old. He's graduating from the ninja academy at only seven years old! What a monster!"

"Since the ninja academy was founded, he's the only genius to graduate at seven and earn genin qualifications!"

At the mention of the word genius, Hiraoka Sankisai immediately thought of Minato Namikaze.

Yet now, the title of genius had been placed on Rogge, who had always been dead last. It made Hiraoka Sankisai feel strangely unsettled.

After returning to his little home, Rogge began reviewing the battle.

I'm still too weak! I have very little combat experience, and my sensory abilities are terrible. I didn't even notice Teacher Hiraoka Sankisai's real body...

If I had the Sharingan... or the Byakugan, I could make up for my poor sensing ability. Unfortunately, I'm neither from the Uchiha Clan nor the Hyuga Clan. I'm just an ordinary person... Damn it!

I have to solve this problem as soon as possible! Otherwise, once I reach the battlefield, I could be set up or ambushed at any time!

Meanwhile, Hiraoka Sankisai submitted Rogge's Early Graduation Application Form and graduation examination results to the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.

At the same time, the ANBU ninja who had been secretly monitoring Rogge also reported Rogge's recent movements to the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, dressed in a white Hokage robe, sat in the Hokage's office and lightly tapped his fingers on the desk as he pondered alone.

He was very satisfied with Rogge's performance. He absolutely had to nurture such talent properly... He wanted Rogge to inherit the Will of Fire!

In the future... Hiruzen Sarutobi also intended to recruit Rogge into the ANBU!

But... Rogge was still too immature. He needed to undergo far more trials.

At the same time, the Uchiha Clan had been restless lately, seemingly planning some kind of move.

Danzo Shimura's Root... might also extend an olive branch to Rogge ahead of time.

After all, since ancient times, every faction had treated so-called geniuses the same way...

Either... serve me, or... be strangled in the cradle!

Therefore, the more brilliantly Rogge shone, the greater the danger he faced!