On the arena, Aozora and Ryoichi stood facing each other.
This was already the final match, but neither of them showed any intention to attack.
Ryoichi first glanced at the blood seeping through his bandages, then looked toward Aozora's clothes, which remained as clean as new.
Sighing, he raised his right hand and said, "I forfeit!"
In the four-to-two elimination bracket, Aozora would face Yoken, while he himself would fight against Junping.
Junping was stronger, but had consumed too much chakra; Yoken was weaker, but only suffered minor injuries. There was no clear advantage or disadvantage in the draw.
However, Yoken had a clear understanding of his own capabilities. Knowing that he only reached the level of a Tokubetsu Jonin, being selected as an instructor was already a blessing from his ancestors. Therefore, after throwing out a few Great Fireball Jutsus and several shuriken, offering minimal resistance, he decisively admitted defeat.
On the other side, Junping demonstrated strong determination, battling Ryoichi for over a hundred exchanges. During the fight, Ryoichi had been unexpectedly immobilized for a brief moment—if not for saving some chakra for emergency use, he would have already lost to Junping.
Despite emerging victorious, Ryoichi's old wounds had yet to heal when new ones were added, and his chakra reserves were nearly depleted.
If this were a life-or-death fight, he could push his body even harder. However, this was merely a competition among clansmen for a position. Sacrificing his health and future vitality wasn't worth it just for this role.
Seeing this, the referee wasted no time and announced, "Aozora Uchiha wins!"
Before the crowd could fully react, Fugaku had already risen to his feet.
He scanned the surroundings with his gaze and then loudly declared, "This Police Force's Flying Tigers Instructor Competition has now concluded. After fierce yet friendly matches, the instructors for the Flying Tigers have been decided. They are Aozora Uchiha, Ryoichi Uchiha, Junping Uchiha, and Yoken Uchiha! Among them, Aozora Uchiha achieved ultimate victory and is specially appointed as the Chief Instructor of the Flying Tigers."
As soon as Fugaku's voice dropped, the entire mountaintop training ground erupted into a deafening cheer. The roar shook the stands to their core.
Many spectators rose to their feet, gazing with admiration and awe at the young man standing alone on the battlefield.
Though it was just an instructor selection for a small unit within the Police Force, Aozora had displayed incredible strength.
In this Ninja World where power reigns supreme, age, gender, and appearance mean nothing. Only strength earns true respect.
Among the audience, the Uchiha clansmen cheered especially enthusiastically.
Partly due to pride in their genius clansman, and partly because Aozora had become the chief instructor of the Flying Tigers.
They imagined how, with Aozora training them, their friends and family in the Flying Tigers could grow just as strong.
The barrier fell, and Ryoichi willingly stepped off the arena, letting Aozora alone enjoy all the cheers.
Though somewhat reluctant, he knew Aozora deserved such applause and had sufficient capability to serve as Chief Instructor.
Even though Ryoichi knew Shinki well, he still couldn't defeat her as easily as Aozora did. Therefore, despite some element of luck in Aozora's final victory, it could indeed be called well-deserved.
Meanwhile, Mukashi, Shinki, Junpei, Hidemi, and other clan members who participated in the contest watched Aozora with envious eyes.
So young to have become the Chief Instructor of the Flying Tigers, he would surely become an important figure within the Clan. Even if he didn't end up becoming Clan Leader, a seat among the Elder Council was certainly reserved for him.
Once the cheers and applause from the crowd had quieted slightly, Fugaku spoke again: "Thank you all for coming to watch the Match. The Match is now over, please leave the Training Ground in an orderly fashion!"
As the Match concluded, The Third, Tsunade, and Torifu took their leave one after another.
After seeing off The Third and others, Fugaku and Kintai called Aozora, Ryoichi, Junping, and Yoken over.
He gave the four of them a thorough look-up and down before nodding and saying, "You are all outstanding Uchiha, the future of our Clan. I'm pleased that you've become instructors of the Flying Tigers."
For Fugaku, who was usually strict, to give such praise left everyone feeling delightedly surprised, smiles naturally forming on their faces.
Following this, Fugaku clapped his hands twice, and a ninja from the Police Force approached carrying a tray upon which lay four specially crafted kunai.
"These four kunai are forged using Chakra-conductive Metal and other precious alloys. I hope you will like them!"
With that, Fugaku gestured for Aozora to come forward first, personally handing him a kunai.
"Thank you, Director!"
Aozora stepped forward quickly to accept it.
Holding the slightly cold kunai, Aozora quickly infused it with his chakra, but to his disappointment, it contained very little Chakra-conductive Metal and certainly wasn't an Artifact.
Still, thinking about it rationally, Chakra-conductive Metal was extremely valuable. If they had truly incorporated large amounts of such rare material, how could these be distributed as mere prizes for Flying Tigers instructors?
Once all the kunai had been distributed, Fugaku lightly coughed and continued, "Currently, recruitment for the Flying Tigers has been preliminarily completed. Since you've become instructors, please promptly draft a training plan."
Fugaku glanced at their injuries before adding, "Rest and recover this week; we'll discuss your training plans at next week's meeting!"
Turning specifically to Aozora, he said, "Aozora, as Chief Instructor, you'll be responsible for coordinating this matter."
"Yes!" Aozora nodded firmly.
Kintai interjected, "Though Aozora is strong, he's still quite young and lacks experience in training recruits. I think it best that Ryoichi and the others take primary responsibility."
Ryoichi volunteered, "I actually have considerable experience in training. Previously, I served as a squad leader in the Third Division of the Police Force, training many younger officers. Now, I am Captain of Kintai's personal guard unit, routinely responsible for training his personal guards."
Fugaku offered no opinion, instead turning to Junping and Yoken and asking, "What do the two of you think?"
Junping and Yoken exchanged glances, then shook their heads without uttering a single word.
The two of them had joined the Flying Tigers mainly for its prestige combined with relatively light duties and had no desire to get involved in the political games between the Director and Deputy Director.
Fugaku turned then to Aozora and asked, "What's your opinion?"
Smiling pleasantly, Aozora replied, "Kintai and Ryoichi both make reasonable points, but I think their idea won't work!"
Honestly speaking, if Kintai and others hadn't approached things this way, Aozora might have simply handed the planning responsibilities over to the three of them and quietly coasted along.
But since Kintai and Ryoichi were openly trying to cut him out, Aozora couldn't just sit back and take it.
If I back down now, what authority would I have in the future?
Kintai snorted and asked, "Why?"
Aozora replied, "Master Ryoichi definitely understands how to train ordinary recruits, but are the Flying Tigers just ordinary recruits? They're the cream of the crop among the Police Force! The Flying Tigers are unprecedented, so their training plan should also be unprecedented!"
"Unprecedented? Hmph."
Kintai sneered and said, "You've never trained recruits before. How can you possibly know how to design a training plan?"
Facing Kintai's skepticism, Aozora remained calm and replied, "Captain Kintai, you should understand that age and experience don't necessarily equate to talent."
As a genius who became an Elite Jonin at thirteen, Aozora spoke with particular confidence.
Fugaku mused for a moment before speaking, "Ryoichi has experience, and what Aozora said also makes sense. Here's my suggestion—you both prepare a training plan and submit them for evaluation next Wednesday. Then we can combine the strengths of both plans to create a better one for discussion at the regular meeting."
Kintai said, "That works. After evaluation, we'll go with whichever plan proves superior."
Without another word, Fugaku gave his nod and turned to Aozora and Ryoichi, asking, "What do you two think?"
Aozora and Ryoichi had no objections, so Fugaku waved them off to go rest.
When Aozora returned to his seat, he was surprised to find that his older brother had already left.
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