Team Seven's cannon fodder roster

The classroom was so quiet that even a Root needle dropping could have been heard.

Everyone sat stone-faced, ears pricked as Sarutobi Daio continued reading the roster.

Jin Uchiha was no exception.

He could barely contain his curiosity. He wanted to know who he would end up teamed with.

Before long.

His name was called.

"Team Seven: Kazama Nara, Itsuki Ishikawa, Jin Uchiha."

At those words.

Jin Uchiha narrowed his eyes.

His gaze swept through the classroom like a scanner, quickly locking onto his two so-called teammates.

First, Kazama Nara.

He had the typical Nara Household air about him, radiating laziness from head to toe. There was little else Jin could tell just by looking.

He certainly wasn't from the main branch, and his skills were nothing special. Otherwise, he wouldn't have ended up coasting through Class B.

But the problem was, he was a Nara!

The moment Jin thought of that surname, his brow furrowed.

The more he thought about Shikaku Nara's behavior after the Yoshio Uchiha incident, the more suspicious it seemed.

And now another Nara had been slotted into his team.

Was this really just a coincidence?

Or had someone arranged all this behind the scenes?

What exactly were the Nara up to?

Thoughts raced through his mind, but he had too little information. No matter how he turned it over, he couldn't piece together the full picture.

Second, Itsuki Ishikawa.

A civilian-born ninja. There was little else worth mentioning.

From what Jin Uchiha knew, aside from the Three Basic Jutsu, the guy had only trained in taijutsu.

Something like the Eight Gates was out of the question. Even a proper taijutsu tradition was beyond his reach.

In short, he had been fumbling through training on his own.

His muscles were a little bigger than everyone else's, and he had been in a few more fights.

That was it!

His attitude, on the other hand, stank. Ranking third in the class had gone to his head, and he looked down on everyone.

These teammates are trouble.

A Nara I can't figure out, plus a civilian with muscles for brains.

Still, I'll leave things as they are for now.

I'll see how things go.

If they really don't know their place, I'll just have to ask them to make a little "sacrifice."

About half an hour later.

Sarutobi Daio finished reading the entire roster and walked out of the classroom without another word.

Nine chunin came in right after him and led Teams One through Nine away in turn.

It was obvious.

From Team Ten onward, they were genuine cannon fodder.

No leader, no instruction. With nothing but the Three Basic Jutsu and a kunai, they would be thrown onto the battlefield.

If they were lucky enough to come back alive, they might be able to trade their accumulated merits for a couple of commonplace jutsu from the village.

If they weren't tough enough to survive, all that would remain of them was a name carved on the Memorial Stone.

The first nine teams had chunin leaders, but frankly, that was little more than reassurance.

What difference did chunin and genin make on a battlefield?

In wartime, a chunin was merely a genin who had survived an entire war.

The so-called instructors assigned to them probably knew fewer jutsu than children from prominent clans.

And the reality wasn't far off.

In a small grove.

The Chunin leading the three of them brought them there, turned around, and spoke with a calm expression.

"My name is Shin Kudo. Aside from the Three Basic Jutsu, I also know one C-Rank Ninjutsu, Earth-Style Wall."

"My main role in the squad is defense."

"Your turn."

At that, Jin Uchiha's eyes lit up.

He genuinely hadn't expected this.

The Chunin standing before him actually knew an Earth Release jutsu.

That single jutsu was not to be underestimated. It marked the dividing line between cannon fodder and an ordinary ninja.

His surname alone made it clear that he came from an ordinary background.

Yet he had obtained a jutsu, a C-rank one at that. This meant he had not only survived an entire war, but probably earned considerable merit as well.

Otherwise, the village would never have awarded him a C-Rank Ninjutsu!

In a small ninja village, a ninja with a C-Rank Ninjutsu could already become a mid-level leader.

Anyone who got their hands on a B-Rank Ninjutsu would be a core figure with real authority.

The scenes in the original Naruto story could easily give the wrong impression: that B-rank ninjutsu were everywhere, A-rank ninjutsu were nothing special, and only S-rank forbidden techniques were barely worth a look. As though someone needed a Mangekyo, a sage body, or the Rinnegan to count as an expert, and a true powerhouse had to be like Hashirama Senju or Madara Uchiha.

That was all nonsense!

Just look at the Shinobi World as it was now. With a Three-Tomoe Sharingan, Shisui had earned himself the name Shisui of the Body Flicker through his own ability.

Kakashi Hatake had secured his position as an Elite Jonin with a single A-rank Lightning Release jutsu, Chidori.

Even Rin Nohara and Obito Uchiha, who had yet to turn dark, currently held the rank of Elite Chunin in the Hidden Leaf.

Were those two really that strong?

All Rin Nohara knew were the Three Basic Jutsu and a little of the most elementary Medical Ninjutsu.

And Obito Uchiha?

He was an embarrassment even among the Uchiha. He hadn't awakened so much as a One-Tomoe Sharingan, stumbled through the Three Basic Jutsu, and knew only one or two Fire Release jutsu passed down through his clan.

Yet even someone like him had entered Class A, counted among the Hidden Leaf's finest prospects, and now become Minato Namikaze's student.

And this was the Hidden Leaf, the strongest village in the Shinobi World!

What about the other major ninja villages?

And the smaller ninja villages beneath them?

There was even less need to elaborate.

So Shin Kudo really did have something to be proud of.

"My name is Itsuki Ishikawa. I know the Three Basic Jutsu and Taijutsu." Itsuki Ishikawa's face brimmed with arrogance. "I ranked in the top three in our class, so I'm one of the best ninja in our year."

"I believe that with enough time, I can become the strongest."

"I want to be our squad's captain!"

He couldn't suppress the smugness on his face.

Coming from a civilian background, he had no idea how this world really worked.

Especially after reaching the top three in his class, his pride had swollen sky-high.

But he had no idea what his so-called top-three ranking actually meant.

Clan-born ninja couldn't even be bothered to compete for it. Class B was a pile of cannon fodder, after all, not a gathering of geniuses like Class A. What was the point of fighting for the top spots?

Even if they won a high ranking, they would only become a laughingstock back in their clans.

Otherwise, how could he possibly have made the top three?

Jin Uchiha felt nothing but contempt, though he still wore a smile as he spoke.

"My name is Jin Uchiha. Aside from the Three Basic Jutsu, I know a little Fire Release passed down through my clan."

"As for the captain, I'm fine either way."

Kazama Nara yawned.

Seeing that everyone else had finished, he casually added his own introduction.

"My name is Kazama Nara. I know the Three Basic Jutsu, along with a little Clan Jutsu."

"I don't mind who the captain is either."

After hearing all three introductions, Shin Kudo was genuinely a little surprised.

He hadn't expected two clan-born ninja to be assigned to his squad.

Unlike Itsuki Ishikawa, he had actually stepped beyond the academy gates. He knew perfectly well how wide the gulf between clan-born and civilian-born ninja really was.

Still.

Seeing that neither of them wanted to be captain, he paused only briefly before deciding not to waste any more thought on it.

When he looked at Itsuki Ishikawa, however, his face was full of disdain.

Arrogant, overbearing, and civilian-born. People like him died in the greatest numbers on the battlefield.

But what did that have to do with him?

He had already decided to cultivate closer ties with Jin Uchiha and Kazama Nara.

As for Itsuki Ishikawa?

Heh.

In this Chunin's eyes, the fellow was already a dead man.

After taking a breath, he slowly finished speaking.

"All right, it's settled."

"Whenever I'm not with the squad, Itsuki Ishikawa will be captain."

"Meet at the village entrance at eight tomorrow morning. We'll officially set out for the Hidden Mist Front."

"Go home and get everything you need ready."