Graduation Exam

"Didn't I say yesterday that today's exam wouldn't take long? You didn't need to bring me food."

Izayoi closed his Byakugan and came out of his room.

At a glance, he saw Hinata already seated at the dining table, with several bento boxes laid out before her.

Though Izayoi said that, he sat down without the slightest hesitation and began eating the breakfast Hinata had carefully prepared.

"I hadn't planned on making anything, but I forgot to remind Hanabi yesterday."

Hinata placed both hands on the table and explained with a smile, "Hanabi got up even earlier than I did today and specifically made you an exam bento."

"I see. Hanabi was thoughtful."

Izayoi nodded in realization. Then, in one of the bento boxes, he spotted a seaweed rice ball decorated with radish silk to spell out "Exam Success," and his appetite immediately improved.

All these years, he hadn't spoiled his little sister-in-law for nothing.

"You should eat too. I can't finish all this by myself," Izayoi said between bites, gesturing to her.

"No need. I already ate at home."

Hinata shook her head, then got up and walked over to the refrigerator.

After opening it, she took out a bottle of milk and poured a glass for both herself and Izayoi.

From waking Izayoi up to pouring the milk now, everything Hinata did seemed utterly natural, without the slightest awkwardness, as though this were her own home.

And in truth, it was.

Izayoi and Hinata had not gone to meet at the Old Place for years.

Although Izayoi had never once entered the Hyuga Clan compound, both Hinata and Hanabi had already treated his home as their second home.

Hinata and Hanabi each had a key to Izayoi's house.

Whenever they had free time, they would come over to play at Izayoi's place.

The milk and ingredients in the refrigerator were all bought by Hinata and Hanabi.

Even the housework was handled either by Hinata alone or by all three of them together.

Both Izayoi and Hinata had long grown accustomed to this way of getting along.

After breakfast and washing the dishes, Izayoi and Hinata left the house together and headed toward the Ninja Academy.

The handsome boy and beautiful girl drew countless gazes along the way.

Six years had passed. Besides growing into a strikingly handsome youth, Izayoi had reached a height of 1.63 meters.

That height would naturally have been nothing in Cloud Village, where white and black people were everywhere.

But in Hidden Leaf Village, where the average height of children their age was only around 1.5 meters, the 1.63-meter Izayoi stood head and shoulders above the rest of his class and grade.

Hinata beside him was the same.

Izayoi had long forgotten how tall Hinata had been in the original work.

But one thing was certain: whether in height or figure, the original Hinata could not compare to the Hinata of today.

Blessed with the traits of a Big Eater, never lacking nutrition since childhood, and getting an astonishing amount of exercise, Hinata had already grown to 1.55 meters, six or seven centimeters taller than other girls her age.

In just a few more centimeters, she would be as tall as she had been in Shippuden.

That height had also caused Hinata's already modest development at twelve in the original work to surge dramatically.

Even beneath her loose White Coat, her impressive curves could not be concealed.

If she unzipped it to reveal the tight Black Fishnet Undershirt underneath and leaned forward, the sight would surely be breathtaking.

That was precisely why Izayoi's gaze had been drawn to her the moment he woke up and saw her for the second time.

More than once, he had sighed inwardly that this was the wonderful thing about a two-dimensional world.

Only in a two-dimensional world could such an exceptional loli with that kind of figure exist at this age.

"Izayoi-kun, Hinata, good morning."

"Good morning, Minako."

"Still inseparable as ever. Are you two really not a couple?"

Today was March 21st. The first- through fifth-grade students had completed their annual exams yesterday.

The Sixth-Grade Students' Graduation Exam was one day later than theirs.

As a result, when they arrived at school, the campus was much quieter than usual.

Everyone they saw was a sixth-grade student.

Quite a few parents were already standing at the entrance. Rarely, they had accompanied their children to school today and were waiting outside for the results.

After six years of hard work, whether their children could cast off an ordinary life and become ninja depended on today.

Of course, the parents waiting at the entrance were all ordinary people or civilian ninja.

None of the Ninja Clan children had parents come for them.

They were only here today to go through the motions.

Ninja forehead protectors had long since become theirs for the taking.

Even if they failed the Graduation Exam, with their Clan Secret Techniques, they could still use their privileges to join some department and become special ninja.

On the way to the classroom, Izayoi and Hinata ran into several classmates, both boys and girls, who warmly greeted them.

Those close to them even teased Izayoi and Hinata about their relationship.

Izayoi merely smiled without saying anything.

Hinata, meanwhile, lowered her head slightly, her cheeks flushing faintly.

Though he was also one of the academy's prominent figures, Izayoi, the Top Student, was nowhere near as popular or well-liked as Sasuke Uchiha.

The reason was naturally Hinata beside him.

Having sat together as desk mates since their first year, the two were inseparable every day.

At first, some girls had not noticed the relationship between them and often gathered around Izayoi.

But Izayoi turned down every invitation. Once they realized that his attitude toward Hinata differed from his attitude toward them, they gradually stopped bothering him.

Of course, if Hinata had merely been an ordinary girl, those girls would certainly have been jealous and might even have tried to bully her.

However, Hinata was not only the Young Lady of a powerful Ninja Clan, but also consistently ranked among the top three in grades.

Her Pressure Point Strike had made her the great demon king of Taijutsu Sparring.

The students were not afraid of punches or kicks—they were afraid of having an Acupoint struck, followed by agonizing pain or numbness spreading through their entire bodies.

That feeling was even worse than taking a punch.

Most of the boys and girls in class had tasted the Pressure Point Strike's power.

Naturally, those girls did not dare provoke Hinata.

Besides Izayoi, there was also Sasuke Uchiha in the class. They had a second choice.

Gradually, things around Izayoi became much quieter.

With Hinata serving as his shield, he no longer needed to come up with excuses every day to turn down his classmates' invitations, nor did he have to occasionally spare time to deal with them.

By the time they arrived at the classroom, many students were already there.

Some were whispering among themselves, though no one knew what they were discussing.

Others sat at their desks with tense little faces and clenched fists, their anxiety plain to see.

Even Naruto Uzumaki, who had vandalized Hokage Rock only yesterday and caused the whole class to be randomly tested on the Transformation Technique, was unusually sitting quietly today.

After Izayoi and Hinata took their seats, they began whispering to each other as well.

Watching the Top Student and Second Seat whisper together as though they did not care about the Graduation Exam at all, a girl sitting beside Hinata filled her eyes with envy.

Excellent students really did have confidence.

Unlike her, she had been nervous since yesterday and had not even slept well that night.