At the entrance of the Ninja Academy, three figures wearing matching white windbreakers appeared.
"Kitazawa-sensei, you truly have the ability to attract so many people," Shibi Aburame remarked, scanning the audience with admiration.
It was no exaggeration to say that half of Konoha Village's Jonin had arrived.
"Kitazawa-sensei is indeed very impressive," Shino Aburame said, adjusting his glasses.
"What a pity," Shibi Aburame sighed, shaking his head. "This stage would have been perfect for the debut of the Exploding Insects."
Although the Aburame Clan was not a small ninja clan in Konoha, their presence had always been rather low. This was mainly because their strength, while balanced, lacked individuals who stood out as truly powerful.
The emergence of Exploding Insects, however, gave the Aburame Clan a chance to produce such exceptional individuals. Yet, these insects carried significant risks. Without proper control or intelligence, using chakra recklessly could trigger an explosion.
Shibi Aburame dared not let Shino use them during the exams. If something went wrong, the consequences would be dire. Moreover, Kitazawa had already warned them in advance not to use Exploding Insects during the practical exam.
"There will always be an opportunity," Shino said calmly. Though he wished to showcase them, he restrained himself.
"Shino, go for it!" Aburame Torune said, not sharing as many concerns.
"Torune, your teammates are here," Shibi Aburame suddenly noticed Yakushi Kabuto and Uchiha Izumi not far away. Next to Kabuto stood Yakushi Nonou.
"I'll go say hello to them," Torune said after a brief pause.
Thanks to Shino and the others, the Root aura that once clung to him was gradually fading. Simply put, his emotions and behavior were returning to those of a normal human being.
"Director," Kabuto said proactively, "This is my teammate, Aburame Torune."
"Hello," Yakushi Nono greeted warmly.
She had heard Kabuto mention Torune before, knowing that he had once been part of Root. The organization's strict regulations made casual interactions nearly impossible unless members were assigned to the same mission.
Nono found it rather unusual that three Root members could meet openly at the Academy—and all thanks to Tsunade and Kitazawa.
"I'll go find the clan head first," Uchiha Izumi excused herself after a brief exchange, heading toward Uchiha Fugaku and his family.
"Let's go, let's find a spot," Nono suggested softly.
"Mhm," Kabuto nodded.
Together with Shibi and Shino, they moved toward the audience seating.
Not long after, another group arrived—the old and new generations of the Ino–Shika–Chō trio.
"What energetic young people," Nara Shikaku said, watching students move across the field.
"Don't think I can't hear your implication," Shikamaru replied, hands clasped behind his head, looking lazy.
"I said it for you to hear," Shikaku retorted, shaking his head. "What young person acts like you?"
"Uncle Shikaku, you can just ask Kitazawa-sensei to talk some sense into him later," Ino teased, a mischievous smile on her face.
"Hey!" Shikamaru instinctively dropped his hands, glancing left and right. "Did I offend you?"
"Haha, first time I've seen Shikamaru make that face," Akimichi Choza said with a hearty laugh.
"I'll have to ask Kitazawa for some pointers sometime," Inoichi Yamanaka added thoughtfully.
"Dad, I'm so well-behaved. Do you still need to ask for pointers?" Ino protested, hands on her hips.
"Given that you've learned two secret techniques, I'll temporarily agree," Inoichi replied with a smile.
"That's too obvious, Inoichi," Shikaku muttered, his mouth twitching. "I haven't even mentioned that Shikamaru also learned two secret techniques."
"…?" Choza's smile froze, a question-marked expression forming on his face. Are these two trying to one-up me?
"This is all thanks to Kitazawa-sensei," Ino said quickly, then added, "Choji, I think you should join us for Kitazawa-sensei's special training."
"Me?" Choji asked mid-bite, hesitating. "But I don't need special training. I just need to eat."
"You can't say that," Choza said seriously. "Your Kitazawa-sensei is very capable. Ask him next semester."
Training was secondary; building a connection with Kitazawa was more important. While the Ino–Shika–Chō families were always united, the Yamanaka and Nara clans had already taken initiative. The Akimichi clan couldn't lag behind.
"Alright then," Choji agreed, resuming his snack.
"So many people!" Ino exclaimed, scanning the crowd. "I wonder where Kitazawa-sensei is."
"He must be very busy right now," Shikaku said, then gestured toward the field. "You all go down."
"You all do well," Choza encouraged, patting Choji's shoulder.
"There are many spectators today," Inoichi added, "Don't aim for first place—just show the style of Ino–Shika–Chō."
"What a drag," Shikamaru sighed, walking toward the center.
"We'll try our best!" Ino said, clenching her small fists with determination.
Choji remained silent—still eating.
"Ino!" Sakura called out from the Training Ground, waving.
"Good morning, everyone," Ino greeted warmly, smiling at Sasuke, Yakumo, Hinata, Neji, and the others.
"Where's Naruto?" Shikamaru asked, scanning the group. "Did he oversleep?"
"It's such an important day. He wouldn't," Kiba said firmly.
Just then, the bustling Training Ground fell silent. Everyone instinctively turned toward the entrance.
There stood the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen. And beside him… was Naruto.
"Such a grand entrance?" Kiba felt a sting in his eyes at the sight.
Naruto said something to Sarutobi Hiruzen, then walked towards Sasuke and the others.
"We thought you wouldn't come because you were afraid of losing," Kiba walked up, put his arm around his shoulder, and teased.
"How could that be?" Naruto immediately gave a thumbs-up, proudly saying, "My goal is first place!"
"Coincidentally, so is mine," Inuzuka Kiba snorted lightly and said, "When you meet me, I won't go easy on you."
"You seem a bit like Sasuke today," Naruto scratched his head, a little surprised, and said.
"How is he like him? He's not like Sasuke-kun at all!" Sakura immediately retorted.
"They're both very confident," Ino blinked, pointing out their similarity.
"Kitazawa-sensei is here," Shikamaru noticed Kitazawa and quickly said.
Everyone stopped chatting upon hearing this.
"Line up," Kitazawa told them, then turned to greet the students from other classes.
Today's practical exam was attended by all students in the school.
If the previous three-round competition format were used for practical combat, it would be very long, and the 'chicken pecking at each other' would not be exciting enough.
At Kitazawa's suggestion, the Student Council made some changes to the selection mechanism for practical combat.
Based on the previous monthly exam results, he divided all students into two examination venues.
The first venue, the Elite Tournament, was only for outstanding students with an overall score of ninety points or more.
The second venue, the General Tournament, was for ordinary students with less than ninety points.
Kitazawa was responsible for the Elite Tournament. The central Training Ground served as the arena, visible to all spectators.
Vice Principal Hisao Sarutobi was responsible for the General Tournament.
The Training Grounds on both sides served as the arenas, visible to most spectators who wished to watch.
Normally, Kitazawa should have been responsible for the General Tournament, but his current reputation and strength surpassed Hisao's.
Hisao Sarutobi was also self-aware and took the initiative to be responsible for the General Tournament.
Of course, students in the General Tournament were not unable to advance.
Kitazawa introduced a challenge system. Winners of the General Tournament could challenge students participating in the Elite Tournament.
"This rule is quite good," Sarutobi Hiruzen sat in the middle of the first row of the audience seats.
To help the audience understand the rules, Kitazawa had placed a flyer with the rules on each seat.
"Indeed," Nara Shikaku, who sat next to him, said.
He had originally thought it would be a grand free-for-all involving all students, but he hadn't expected Kitazawa to specifically select the outstanding students.
This way, it saved time and also catered to the audience's experience.
The reason he sat to Sarutobi Hiruzen's left was entirely because Danzo Shimura, Homura Mitokado, and Utatane Koharu had not arrived.
To his right was Hiashi Hyuga, and further down was the Uchiha Fugaku family.
Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded slightly. He put down the flyer and scanned the back again, but he did not see Tsunade.
"Hokage-sama, are you looking for someone?" Hiashi Hyuga noticed his movement and asked.
"It's nothing." Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression was normal as he changed the subject and asked, "I heard that Neji and Hinata have both learned Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms?"
"They haven't fully learned it, only mastered a part of it." Hiashi Hyuga couldn't help but show a smile on his face as he spoke.
"The younger generation is truly formidable." Sarutobi Hiruzen said with a chuckle.
"It's all thanks to Hokage-sama's excellent leadership." Hiashi Hyuga replied politely.
"What's there to see in a bunch of kids fighting? Why are all of you here?" A sudden voice rang out.
"Aren't you here too?" Sarutobi Hiruzen was stunned for a moment, then chuckled as he retorted.
Tsunade was still so unforthcoming.
"Lady Tsunade." The nearby Ninja greeted Tsunade one after another.
Many people's eyes flashed with surprise. It was understandable for Sarutobi Hiruzen to come and watch the Student Council selection practical.
He was the Third Hokage and also the headmaster of the Ninja Academy, so it was only right for him to come and see the future of Konoha Village.
But what about Tsunade? She had no connection to the Ninja Academy whatsoever.
The only explanation was that she was here because of Kitazawa.
"Hokage-sama, Lady Tsunade." Kitazawa walked over.
"Mm." Tsunade nodded, then found an empty seat and sat down.
"Hokage-sama." Kitazawa looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen and asked, "Before the practical exam begins, do you have anything you'd like to say?"
"Since that's the case, I'll go up and say a few words." Sarutobi Hiruzen stood up and said.
"Please do." Kitazawa suppressed the urge to complain in his heart, raised his hand, and said.
"Next, I'll simply say six points..." Sarutobi Hiruzen stood in the arena and began to speak eloquently.
"You shouldn't have let him go up." Tsunade pouted and said.
What Sarutobi Hiruzen said was nothing more than the will of Fire, which she had heard countless times.
"I can't help it, I have to follow the rules." Kitazawa bent down slightly and whispered. He naturally couldn't openly criticize the Hokage.
"I should have known and come an hour later," Tsunade said, looking annoyed.
She wasn't afraid to criticize the Hokage; she would even dare to scold him to his face.
Their whispered conversation was noticed by many.
The various Ninja Clans once again confirmed that Kitazawa was Tsunade's student; it just hadn't been announced yet.
Even if he wasn't her student, he had to be a confidant.
Some Jonin from non-Ninja Clan backgrounds felt envious. After all, in their eyes, Tsunade was destined to become the Fifth Hokage.
Kitazawa, a commoner Ninja, being favored by Lady Tsunade, could be said to have soared to success.
Time slowly passed.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, who had been speaking for half an hour, finally left the arena. If it weren't for the upcoming practical exam, he could have easily gone on for another two hours.
"I now declare that this semester's final exam and the Student Council selection practical officially begin!"
Kitazawa walked into the arena and announced loudly, "This practical will adopt a random matching method, and those who perform excellently will advance to the next round."
After he finished speaking, he took out a lottery box.
But this time, the students weren't drawing lots themselves; he was drawing for them. The advantage of this was maintaining suspense and making the matches more exciting.
In fact, the joint Chunin Exams in the original work had also adopted this method.
Kitazawa was simply following suit. He reached out and drew two small slips of paper from the lottery box.
"The first match is Naruto versus Rock Lee!" Kitazawa glanced at the names and announced.
"The first match is me?" Naruto asked, surprised. "And my opponent is actually Lee?"
He immediately felt a surge of excitement, almost like double happiness.
A spar between two Taijutsu specialists could be summed up in three words: exhilarating, intense combat!
"Naruto!" Rock Lee shouted excitedly.
"Lee!" Naruto gave a thumbs-up and said, "Let them witness our youth!"
"The clash of youth—just thinking about it makes my blood boil!" Rock Lee clenched his fists and said, brimming with enthusiasm.
"Naruto, Lee, don't let your youth have any regrets!" Might Guy suddenly stood up and shouted passionately.
The nearby ninja instinctively turned toward him.
Kakashi and Kurenai exchanged a glance, silently regretting their choice of seats.
"Guy Sensei!" Naruto and Rock Lee shouted in unison. "We will definitely live up to our youth!"
The next second, the two of them hugged each other and cried bitterly. The entire Training Ground suddenly fell into a strange atmosphere.
Sarutobi Hiruzen felt a twinge of unease. After all, many of the Jonin present knew he was Naruto's guardian.
"If Minato and Kushina saw this, I wonder what they would think," Tsunade said with a smile.
"Young people—it's normal to be energetic," Sarutobi Hiruzen replied after a brief silence, trying to explain.
"..."
Shikamaru wanted to speak but stopped midway, unsure what to say. He could only be glad that he himself was normal.
"Is he always like this?" Uchiha Fugaku asked from not far away, unable to contain his disbelief.
To be honest, even if beaten to death, he wouldn't believe Naruto was the son of the perfect ninja, Minato Namikaze.
"Mm," Uchiha Izumi nodded.
After becoming Kitazawa's student, she had witnessed such scenes firsthand. Naruto wasn't suffering from a sudden illness—he had always been like this.
"He's quite... spirited," Mikoto managed to comment after racking her brains.
"Thankfully, Sasuke isn't like him," Itachi thought with a sigh of relief.
If Sasuke ever became like Naruto... he couldn't even imagine it.
"Match start!" Kitazawa finally announced, unable to endure the awkwardness any longer.
"Come on, Naruto!" Rock Lee shouted, pulling back and clenching his fists.
"Konoha Whirlwind!" Naruto's body swayed with the words, and he delivered a sweeping kick.
"Konoha Whirlwind!" Rock Lee responded in kind, meeting Naruto's kick with his own.
With a loud bang, their legs collided.
Both retreated slightly from the clash of forces, but Rock Lee took two extra steps back, indicating he was slightly inferior in strength.
"Dynamic Entry!" Naruto seized the opportunity.
Taking advantage of Rock Lee's retreat, he leaped forward and delivered a direct aerial flying kick.
Rock Lee instinctively raised his arms to block. But the sheer force drove him backward, sliding across the ground.
At this critical moment, Rock Lee used the momentum to flip mid-air and shouted, "Konoha Hard Rock Ascending!"
He raised his right arm, aiming his elbow at Naruto's head.
"Konoha Strong Whirlwind!" Naruto tilted his head, his body dropping low as his right hand braced against the ground, executing a back-roundhouse kick.
Rock Lee's pupils contracted. His right elbow descended with momentum, his body pressing forward.
A dull thud resounded. Rock Lee felt his right arm go numb as his body was sent flying backward.
"Lee is still a bit lacking after all," Might Guy said, watching the bout with sharp eyes.
"For his age, it's already very impressive to have such strength," Kurenai sighed.
"I was nowhere near as good as them when I was seven." After speaking, she glanced at Kakashi Hatake.
After all, he became a Chunin at six—truly a genius.
"Did you teach them the Eight Gates Formation?" Kakashi asked after a pause.
"No," Might Guy shook his head. "They are still too young. But Naruto's body is excellent—he might be able to train in a couple of years."
"What a monster," Izumo Kamizuki muttered.
He had also heard of the Eight Gates Formation. After all, Maito Dai had once crippled the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Hidden Mist with it.
"These young people nowadays are really incredible," Kotetsu Hagane said with a twitching mouth.
He and Izumo Kamizuki had come to see the future of Konoha, but instead, they were stunned.
Were these still Ninja Academy students? Why did it feel like the Chunin Exams had already begun?