Sunagakure's Ninja Academy had its origins in Konoha's policies.
But various factors had led the academy to divide its students into specialized classes to a certain extent.
Broadly speaking, there were two major categories.
The first was the Ninjutsu class, made up of civilians, who mainly studied the various transformations of Chakra and Ninjutsu.
The second was the puppet class, made up mainly of children from ninja clans and well-off families, who studied how to make puppets.
Such a division was only natural.
After all, being a puppeteer was an expensive profession that ordinary families simply couldn't afford.
As a result, civilian ninja could at most learn how to control puppets, then buy finished ones directly from shops.
And Hoshino's class was a puppet class.
There weren't many students, only a dozen or so, but they already represented most of Sunagakure's upper class.
August 12, Konoha Year 56. Early morning.
"The so-called Puppet Technique is the art of refining dead things into deadly weapons that living people dare not look in the eye."
At the lectern, the teacher gripped the puppet's broken shoulder joint and held the remains of the left-armed-missing "Ibuse" high above his shoulder.
A Chakra Thread extended from his fingertip.
A dozen pairs of eyes followed the wandering thread, finally settling on the crack running through the puppet's chest.
Several broken Chakra Threads were faintly visible inside.
"Today's lesson is basic repair."
After a brief demonstration, the teacher released the puppet, letting it crash onto the lectern with a bang.
"Work individually. Repair the puppet remains in front of you and make them perform basic movements."
A rustle of discussion immediately rose in the classroom.
Hoshino looked down at the puppet in front of him. It was the remains of a "Black Ant."
Its left leg joint was completely shattered, and the Chakra Threads in its chest were a tangled mess.
He glanced at Kankuro and Temari beside him.
The former was smugly fiddling with a "Crow" puppet, clearly brimming with confidence.
The latter was examining the puppet in front of her with total concentration.
Time to show my talent, starting now!
Hoshino took a deep breath and carefully examined the remains of the "Black Ant" puppet in his hands.
At the same time, he quickly recalled the knowledge of mechanical repair and energy conduction from Divine Machine Hundred Refinements, as well as the puppet repair techniques Grandma Chiyo had taught him before.
Then he began sorting out the Chakra Threads inside Black Ant's chest.
As the minutes and seconds ticked by, the other groups in the classroom worked intently on their repairs.
After straightening out the Chakra Threads, Hoshino set about repairing Black Ant's left leg joint.
Following the methods of Divine Machine Hundred Refinements, he used Qi to make fine adjustments to the parts so they would fit Black Ant's body better.
Once everything was finished, he checked the Chakra Thread connections again to make sure there were no mistakes.
"Done."
Chakra Threads extended from Hoshino's fingertips and connected to the key points on Black Ant.
The "Black Ant" puppet trembled slightly, then slowly lifted its left leg and took a small step forward.
Although its movements were somewhat stiff, it had indeed performed a basic movement.
"Teacher, I've fixed it!"
The teacher came over at the shout. Seeing the "Black Ant" puppet performing various movements, his eyes filled with surprise.
Repairing a puppet in less than ten minutes was more than enough to qualify someone as a genius.
How had he failed to notice before?
"Teacher, does this count as finished?" Hoshino asked.
"Yes, it's finished. Absolutely perfect!" the teacher exclaimed.
Hearing this, the surrounding students turned to look at him in surprise and admiration.
"Wow, Hoshino's amazing! He actually fixed it that fast!"
"Yeah, I thought he wouldn't make much progress, just like before."
"Could this be what the teacher meant by finally seeing the light?"
The students' chatter rose and fell, while Kankuro's face was full of frustration, his hand still clutching the tangle of Chakra Threads he hadn't sorted out.
After class, Hoshino put away his tools and headed for the teacher's office.
Knock, knock, knock-
"Come in."
The teacher's voice came amid the rustle of turning pages.
Hoshino pushed open the door.
He saw puppet blueprints scattered across the desk. One yellowed "Structural Diagram of Chikamatsu's Collection of Ten Puppets" was held down by a paperweight, its curling corners slightly frayed.
"Did you want to ask about the Puppet Technique?" the teacher asked with a smile.
Although he didn't know whether Hoshino had suddenly seen the light or had been hiding his talent before, he was quite tolerant of outstanding students.
He didn't mind Hoshino disturbing him during the break.
"Teacher, I'd like to apply for early graduation," Hoshino said.
The teacher was momentarily startled, then looked at Hoshino seriously. "Early graduation isn't a small matter. Why do you want to do that?"
Hoshino answered, "The school's lessons are moving too slowly for me."
The teacher fell silent for a moment, then asked, "Does Elder Chiyo know?"
Hoshino nodded. "She does. I've already gotten her permission!"
Hearing this, the teacher's eyes flickered thoughtfully.
Grandma Chiyo held an influential position in the field of Puppet Technique. Since she had agreed, she must have complete confidence in Hoshino's abilities.
In that case, he really had no need to stand in the way!
The teacher nodded slightly, took a form from a drawer, and handed it to Hoshino.
"This is the application for early graduation. Fill it out, and I'll pass it on to the higher-ups for you!"
"All right, thank you, teacher!"
Hoshino took the form and quickly looked it over, then picked up a pen and swiftly filled it out.
Once Hoshino had finished, he handed it back.
The teacher took the form, checked the information on it once more, and smiled. "You can go back to class. Now all that's left is to wait for approval from above."
"Thank you, teacher!" Hoshino bowed to him, then turned and left the office.
He returned to the classroom.
The break wasn't over yet, but Kankuro was still at his seat, struggling with his puppet.
He and Hoshino had grown up together, and in the past, his performance in studying the Puppet Technique had always been better than Hoshino's.
But now Hoshino had suddenly seen the light and had even far surpassed him.
Something was wrong, very wrong.
Seeing Hoshino return, Kankuro put down the tools in his hands and turned to ask, "Xiaoye, where did you go?"
Hoshino returned to his seat and sorted the tools he had been using. "I went to ask the teacher to let me graduate early!"
"Graduate early?"
"Graduate early?"
"Graduate early?"
"..."
Before Kankuro could say anything, the students around them heard those words and immediately crowded over.
Early graduation was the mark of a super genius.
Whether he could pass was another matter, but at least he had the courage and resolve to leave the ivory tower and face the dangers outside.
That alone was enough to earn their admiration.
Hearing the commotion, Temari pushed through the crowd and came over as well.
"Hoshino, are you really going to graduate early?"
Hoshino looked at Temari and nodded. "Yeah, I've already submitted the application!"
Temari smiled when she heard that. "That's great. Someone with your talent shouldn't waste time at school. I support you!"