Tuesday, Ninja Academy.
All the students and teachers of the Genius Class gathered on the Training Ground. Outgoing students like Naruto, Kiba, and Rock Lee were sharing their experiences during their missions.
Kitazawa didn't interrupt them. Instead, he collected the scores of their students from Sarutobi Hiruzen and others.
He glanced at them, thinking that there were quite a few students with perfect scores. Kitazawa could understand why.
After all, the students in the Genius Class were all excellent. Especially Sasuke and Naruto, it was hard to find any fault with them.
Nine o'clock in the morning.
The students of the Genius Class stopped chatting and looked at Kitazawa.
Sasuke unconsciously clenched his fists. He was determined to get first place.
Because he performed perfectly in this mission, Kosuke gave him a perfect score. As long as he got third place in the theoretical exam, his final ranking would be first place.
"I'll announce the ranking of the theoretical exam first." Kitazawa noticed Sasuke's tense expression, smiled, and said, "It's similar to last time."
He picked up the ranking list and read it aloud.
"Third place again!" Sasuke's spirits lifted, feeling that the final first place was beckoning to him.
"Shikamaru, how exactly do you study?" Naruto felt envious.
He often got first place in practical exams, but because of his poor theoretical exam results, he never got first place in the final ranking.
"I don't know." Shikamaru clasped his hands behind his head and said casually, "Anyway, those questions, I understood them after reading them once; I didn't really study."
"...?" Naruto was full of question marks.
"Shikamaru, why are you starting to learn from Sasuke too?" Kiba's face darkened when he heard this, and he angrily said, "Is being smart such a big deal?!"
Sasuke twitched his mouth. What does that have to do with me? When have I ever been so annoying?
"Damn it!" Ino clenched her small fists and said, "When the next practical exam starts, I'm definitely going to beat you up!"
"He should be taught a good lesson!" Sakura rarely sided with Ino.
"Cough, cough, I'm just kidding." Shikamaru immediately said fearfully.
"Intelligence is innate; there's nothing you can do about it." Tenten shook her head and said.
"Kimimaro made great progress in this theoretical exam; everyone should learn from him," Kitazawa said with a smile.
"...?" Tayuya felt that Kitazawa was hinting at her.
Because her theoretical exam ranking basically hadn't changed, she was still at the bottom. Tayuya thought of this and gritted her teeth in anger.
Jugo had no reaction.
Haku felt a little ashamed. He was busy with Ice Release and hadn't put much effort into theory. After Kitazawa mentioned it, he decided to spend more time studying theory next month.
"Next are the performance scores of the top ten students from their missions over the past two days." Kitazawa picked up the second ranking list and said, "This time, there are five students with perfect scores, which is the most ever, and worthy of praise."
"That many?" Ino showed a surprised expression.
Could it be her? No, that's not right, Kitazawa said she and Sakura had the same score.
Although they both performed well, they were still a bit behind Kimimaro, so it shouldn't be a perfect score.
Sasuke's heart trembled. He felt danger.
With so many perfect scores, his perfect score no longer had an advantage. What if... No, there's no what if!
"The students with perfect scores are Sasuke, Naruto, Yakumo, Kimimaro, and Shikamaru," Kitazawa announced directly.
"What? Shikamaru got one?" Kiba couldn't help but widen his eyes.
"You got a perfect score?" Ino subconsciously looked at Shikamaru.
"Can't I get a perfect score?" Shikamaru retorted.
He already knew, so he wasn't surprised.
"If we're just talking about mission precautions, Shikamaru knows more than all of us," Yakumo said thoughtfully.
There was a lesson related to missions in the Ninja Academy's theoretical classes. The main content was what to do when going out on missions, how to deal with enemies, and so on.
"That's true." Tenten nodded and said, "His theoretical score is a perfect score after all."
"Wait!" Sakura suddenly exclaimed, "His theoretical score is perfect, and his mission performance is also perfect, so wouldn't his final ranking be...?"
As she said this, she subconsciously looked at Sasuke.
Sasuke, reminded by her, also realized this problem. He had lost first place.
For a moment, Sasuke felt his head buzzing. How could something with a hundred percent probability still have an unexpected outcome?
"Oh, right!" Choji reacted, even stopping eating his potato chips, and said with a surprised expression, "This time, the final first place is Shikamaru!"
"Someone actually managed to get first place from Sasuke and Naruto?" Kiba immediately got excited and said excitedly, "I feel like I have hope too!"
Before, it was all a theoretical possibility, but now there was a real example, which greatly encouraged him.
After all, none of them had expected Shikamaru to get the final first place.
"Kimimaro, congratulations." Jugo didn't participate in the discussion but looked at his good friend.
"Thank you," Kimimaro responded calmly.
But in reality, he was still very happy. Getting first place in the practical exam was a way of not letting Orochimaru down.
Tayuya felt depressed. When she was in Otogakure, she was an outstanding genius among the experimental subjects, but when she came to Konoha Village, she encountered setbacks everywhere.
"This really is an unexpected turn," Hiruzen said with a chuckle.
"Missions themselves always have unexpected elements." Kosuke said, "I think this is a good thing, lest Sasuke always gets first place and becomes arrogant."
"With Naruto and Yakumo around, Sasuke won't become arrogant." Kakashi thought for a moment and said.
Although Sasuke was from the Uchiha Clan, he hadn't picked up the bad habits of the Uchiha Clan.
In Kakashi's opinion, he and Uchiha Obito were both anomalies within the Uchiha Clan.
"Taking classes in the Genius Class is much more interesting than being at home." Chen now felt that agreeing to Kitazawa's offer earlier was a very correct choice.
"I will now announce the final rankings." Kitazawa finished reading the practical exam rankings and said with a smile, "First place, Shikamaru."
To be honest, he hadn't expected Shikamaru to get first place either. And this wasn't the result of his manipulation, because Shikamaru wasn't in his team.
But thinking about it carefully, it seemed reasonable.
After all, Shikamaru's current strength wasn't bad, and with his intelligence and changed personality, a perfect performance and a perfect score were quite normal.
"Shikamaru, you definitely have to treat us today!" Choji immediately said.
"That's right!" Kiba said fiercely, "You got first place!"
"I'm going too!" Naruto said excitedly.
"Everyone's going, Hinata too." Ino said with a smile, "Let Shikamaru feel a little pain in his wallet."
"Alright." Shikamaru agreed.
Treating them to a meal was nothing. But Choji plus Hinata would be a major test for his wallet.
But it didn't matter. Shikamaru decided to ask his parents for reimbursement.
He had gotten first place in the Genius Class, so his parents would definitely be very willing to pay for it.
Sasuke stood still, his face fallen, exuding an aura of 'do not approach'. The fun was theirs; I had nothing.
"That concludes the rankings for this Monthly Exam." Kitazawa finished reading and said, "Everyone, continue with your training."
The members of the Genius Class each went to find their respective instructors and began their training for the day.
Kitazawa glanced at Sasuke. His emotions came and went quickly.
Although losing first place made him very unhappy, it wasn't the first time he had lost first place, so he quickly adjusted.
[Current Mission: Help Kimimaro achieve first place in a practical exam.]
[Mission Reward: 20% of Shikotsumyaku.]
[Host has completed the mission, reward issued.]
[Shikotsumyaku has reached 70%, triggering the abilities of Bone Membrane Creation and Rapid Healing.]
Kitazawa couldn't help but be startled. He felt a slight change in his body.
[Bone Membrane Creation: Forms a layer of hard bone membrane beneath the skin to enhance the body's defense.]
[Rapid Healing: Can quickly recover from external injuries.]
Kitazawa looked at the two lines of text in front of him and recalled Kimimaro's performance in the original story.
He indeed possesses both of these abilities; the bone membrane he creates can even withstand Gaara's Sand Waterfall Imperial Funeral.
As for rapid healing, it primarily heals injuries caused by bone spurs piercing the skin, as well as those inflicted by enemies.
Overall, these are two excellent abilities. Coupled with his Seal-less Healing and Yin Seal, he felt he was becoming increasingly difficult to kill.
"Jugo, come with me." Kitazawa formed a hand seal, splitting off a Shadow Clone to instruct the students of the Genius Class.
Although Jugo was puzzled, he stopped his training and followed him out of the Ninja Academy... to the Hokage Building conference room.
Genma, with a senbon in his mouth, pushed open the door. He glanced inside and was momentarily stunned.
Because there were two unexpected acquaintances in the conference room: Iwashi Tatami and Raidō Namiashi.
The three of them had once served as guards for Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze, and they had all learned the Flying Thunder Formation Technique.
The Flying Thunder Formation Technique is a weaker version of the Flying Thunder God Technique; simply put, it is the Flying Thunder God Technique used by three people together.
Three people forming a circle can transfer people or objects within the formation. Compared to the Flying Thunder God Technique, it completely lacks flexibility and cannot be used in combat.
"Genma? You're here too?" Raido saw him, paused, and asked.
"Genma, do you know why the Anbu notified us to come here?" Iwashi asked curiously.
"I was just about to ask you two." Genma walked forward, shook his head, and said.
"Could it be that Hokage-sama wants to use the Flying Thunder Formation Technique?" Iwashi guessed.
"Possibly." Raido nodded and said.
"Then why didn't they just have us go directly to the Hokage Office? Coming to the conference room is redundant." Genma pondered, saying, "I don't think that's the purpose."
Just then, footsteps sounded. The three turned to look at the door, meeting the gazes of Izumo and Kotetsu.
"Why are you two here?" The five asked in unison.
"You two also received an Anbu notification?" Genma paused, then asked.
"Yes." Izumo scratched his head and said, "And we were also told that we no longer need to guard the gate."
"It seems like there's something special they want us to do," Raido said in a deep voice.
"It might take a long time." Kotetsu nodded, somewhat regretfully, saying, "I actually found the gate-guarding job quite interesting."
"What are you talking about?" Izumo elbowed him and said, "Since Hokage-sama has something for us to do, we must certainly go through fire and water for him!"
And how was guarding the gate interesting? If it were truly interesting, they wouldn't frequently go to the Chunin Exams to act as examiners.
"So lively?" Suddenly, a voice drifted over.
A female Ninja with a pineapple hairstyle and a smile on her face walked over.
"Anko, even you're here?" Genma asked in confusion, "What exactly does Hokage-sama want us for?"
"It doesn't feel like a small matter." Raido analyzed, "We already have four Special Jonin and two Chunin here."
Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane were still Chunin at this time. In the original work, they became Special Jonin when Kakashi became the Sixth Hokage.
"Don't overthink it, just wait." Anko waved her hand, saying indifferently, "Hokage-sama will come eventually."
"You're right." Kotetsu and the others nodded.
A moment later, everyone subconsciously looked towards the door. Kitazawa and Jugo walked in.
"Kitazawa?" Genma immediately showed a surprised expression.
"Lord Kitazawa." Raido, Izumo, and the others reacted, quickly greeting him.
They were actually all Ninja of the same generation, but now times had changed; Kitazawa had become an existence they could no longer hope to equal.
"Kitazawa, why did you call us here?" Anko asked bluntly.
She was Orochimaru's student, so theoretically, she was Kitazawa's peer. Coupled with her straightforward personality, she didn't care about formalities.
"It's Tsunade-sensei's order." Kitazawa said with a smile, "She wants you all to form a Cursed Seal Unit."
Shiranui Genma and the others exchanged glances, not knowing what a Cursed Seal was.
"Are you talking about the Cursed Seal of Heaven and the Cursed Seal of Earth?" Anko asked with a look of surprise.
"Precisely." Kitazawa nodded and said, "More accurately, it's a modified Cursed Seal of Earth."
"I see." Anko's face showed understanding.
She was about to say that the success rate of implanting the Cursed Seal of Heaven and the Cursed Seal of Earth was very low, making them unsuitable for establishing a Cursed Seal Unit.
"You two should also keep us in the loop." Genma couldn't help but complain.
They had no idea what the two of them were talking about.
"It's like this," Kitazawa explained the situation of the Cursed Seal of Earth and the Cursed Seal Unit in detail.
"You mean I'm going to be in charge?" Anko was stunned for a moment, then asked excitedly.
Ever since Orochimaru's defection, she, as his student, had never been given important roles by Konoha Village again.
Now that Tsunade was putting her in charge of the Cursed Seal Unit, her status would clearly change. Anko guessed that this was mostly related to Orochimaru's return to Konoha Village.
Genma and Raido were equally excited. Their situation was actually similar to Anko's.
After Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze's death, they lost their power and were relegated to normal Special Jonin.
"The Cursed Seal Unit is tentatively set for a sixty-two-person roster, with you and Genma as supervisors, managing fifteen Ninja squads." Kitazawa nodded, adding, "The Cursed Seal Unit will report directly to the Hokage."
Anko, Genma, and the others all smiled at the news.
Reporting directly to the Hokage, in a sense, meant the Cursed Seal Unit and the Anbu were agencies or departments of the same level.
As the two in charge, they had practically soared to the upper echelons of Konoha.
"The modification of the Cursed Seal of Earth is divided into two directions: first, increasing the success rate of implantation, which Lord Orochimaru is responsible for."
Kitazawa continued, "Second, limiting the side effects of the Cursed Seal of Earth, which I am responsible for, and it has already been successfully modified."
"I've long heard of your title as a creative Ninja; seeing it now, you truly are amazing," Anko said, genuinely impressed.
She understood the Cursed Seal of Heaven and the Cursed Seal of Earth better than Genma and the others, knowing the difficulty of modification.
"Let me demonstrate it for you first." Kitazawa looked at Jugo and said, "His name is Jugo, and he's equivalent to a Cursed Seal of Earth recipient."
Jugo looked at him with anticipation.
He had understood the conversation just now; Kitazawa had indeed found a way to help him limit the side effects of his Sage Transformation physique.
From now on, he wouldn't have to worry about turning into a mad killer due to uncontrolled natural energy.
"Jugo, take off your shirt," Kitazawa instructed.
Jugo immediately complied.
"The modified Cursed Seal of Earth I created is called the Eight Trigrams Cursed Seal of Earth," Kitazawa said while forming hand seals, carving the Sealing Technique formula onto Jugo's body.
Everyone watched his operation intently. But most of them only half-understood; only Anko understood quite a bit.
"Once Lord Orochimaru's Cursed Seal of Earth modification is successful, it will be implanted into you." Half an hour later, Kitazawa retracted his hand and said.
Jugo's upper body was already covered in formulas, but they were slowly fading. Normally, they would only appear when the Cursed Seal of Earth was used; there would be no difference otherwise.
"It's still not too late to withdraw now." Kitazawa looked at them and said with a smile.
"We definitely won't withdraw." Anko and the others said with firm expressions.
Not only would it enhance their strength, but it would also elevate their status; such a good opportunity was impossible to find.
"Your task for this period is to scout for members of the Cursed Seal Unit, then compile a list and hand it over to Tsunade-sensei." Kitazawa clapped his hands and said, "That's all for now; we'll see each other next time."
He swiftly left the conference room with Jugo.
Anko, Genma, and the others stood there, feeling that today's experience was truly surreal. Suddenly, they had joined the Cursed Seal Unit and gained immense benefits.
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