I stood among many children, preparing for the academy entrance exam. It was only a few days until my seventh birthday, and Itachi believed I was more than ready for the Academy Selection Exam.
Our sparring sessions had increasingly involved ninjutsu and genjutsu. Unfortunately, without a Sharingan, I faced a great disadvantage in the art of illusions. However, my training in Earth and Lightning techniques was progressing remarkably well.
Thanks to my immense talent in chakra control, I quickly completed my nature transformation training. Mastering the Shadow Clone Jutsu also helped significantly; even though I could only utilize two clones for extra practice, it was still three times what I could accomplish alone.
This examination would serve as a great opportunity to test myself against my peers. I glanced around, searching for anyone familiar.
Initially, I did not look too thoroughly, but I still spotted some interesting individuals. Two boys, sporting the Uchiha clan crest on their backs, might provide insight into what I could expect from the best of my age group aside from Neji.
Speaking of the Hyuuga clan, although I did not see Neji, I noticed several other clan members in the audience alongside other parents. I even spotted Hiashi, his twin and little Hinata, which suggested that Neji was likely somewhere in the courtyard with me.
When I locked eyes with Hinata, she blushed and waved at me.
"Great, she might have a crush on me after all... that's exactly not what I intended," I thought.
I smiled and winked at her, which made her hide behind her father. I could only hope this wouldn't become a problem.
I turned my attention to the children around me. There was a Hyuuga with nearly waist-length brown hair and a serious expression that could put a professional poker player to shame standing to my right, two rows behind me.
"I guess that's Neji; I have to keep an eye on him," I muttered to myself, attempting to gauge his power with my Haki.
"He seems weaker than I expected, or is my progress far greater than I expected?" My thoughts were interrupted by another familiar face. No one would forget such unrealistically bushy eyebrows!
Just a few people to my left stood a young Rock Lee, still sporting somewhat normal haircut and thank Marzanna, no spandex suit.
"I don't recognize anyone else. Let's see what this entrance exam is all about," I told myself, forcing my focus as the first child was called forward.
Disappointment was the first word that came to mind. Aside from the clan kids, nobody else managed to do anything notable; most of the civilian-born children couldn't perform ninjutsu at all. There was one girl who showed promise with weapons, but aside from that, the civilian kids were significantly behind their peers.
The Uchiha boys showcased Fire-style jutsu, which made sense since they were allowed to wear their clan insignia on their shirts.
Finally, it was my turn. I was called to the throwing range first. Ten targets stood before me, unmoving and easy to hit.
"Hit as many as you can; bullseyes count for bonus points," the Chuunin in charge announced, handing me ten kunai and ten shuriken. He looked bored out of his mind. I accepted them, putting them in my pouch and nodding at the instructor.
"Begin!"
Before his command even registered with people, all the shuriken were buried in the dead center of the targets. Before he could say anything else, the kunai followed suit, hitting the center as well.
I scored the first perfect score of the day without needing to show off too much. The instructor stared at the targets for a moment, then turned towards me.
"Perfect score, but next time, give me a little time to collect myself, kid." He even smiled a little, which was rather unsettling; I didn't think I'd ever seen a ninja smile before.
"Thank you, sensei," I responded with a small bow, thinking about what jutsu I would use for the next test. I still wanted to keep my Crystal Release hidden, so using Earth-style jutsu seemed the safest bet.
"Would you like to showcase any Ninjutsu?" the instructor asked, already expecting me to agree. I nodded again.
"Yes, sensei. I will perform an Earth-style jutsu."
I decided that it would be best to showcase a jutsu of my own creation, designed as a precursor to the Crystal Release jutsu I was currently developing.
I was led to a small area not far from the target range, surrounded by more target dummies. Seven targets stood about fifteen meters away, which was perfect. I quickly formed hand seals.
"Earth Style: Rock Spike Enclosure!" I exclaimed as spikes made of rock shot up around me, jutting out in every direction and making it impossible to approach me by conventional means.
The spikes were at least two meters tall and thicker than the thigh of an adult man. After forming one last hand seal, I shouted, "Flying Rock Needles!" The spikes were torn from the ground beneath me, flying in every direction and splitting into smaller needles.
A small explosion reverberated as the spikes, now divided into long needles, struck the wooden targets and the ground around them. Some targets were completely destroyed, while others were impaled by only a few smaller rock needles.
No target was spared; if any of those dummies had been human, they would have suffered at least punctured internal organs or destroyed limbs. It was debilitating, yet still an incomplete jutsu.
I glanced towards the crowd, which was disconcertingly quiet. Some onlookers, likely the civilian parents, appeared clueless, but a majority of the ninja in attendance looked stunned.
"Did I overdo it again, sensei?" I asked, turning back to the instructor, who was wide-eyed, staring at the obliterated targets.
"Th-That was a B-rank jutsu..." he stuttered, still shaken by the sight. After a few moments, he recovered.
"This has to be the best showcase we've had here in at least four years!" he exclaimed, his shock now replaced by excitement.
"Four years? Who was the last one to do something like this, sensei?" I asked, but I was already quite sure it had to have been Itachi.
"A young Uchiha boy. I didn't personally test him, but I believe his name was Itachi. He's already a Chuunin. Maybe you'll follow a similar path," he said, full of expectations.
"But just ninjutsu isn't enough. Let's see how you perform in taijutsu." He said as he gave me directions.
He sent me to a different training ground, where I met another instructor. He pointed me toward a small chalk circle and stretched his neck.
"On my mark," he said, slipping into a stance.
"Taijutsu only, in three, two, one. Now!"
The moment he finished the countdown, I reacted, deciding to close in as quickly as possible.
As a smaller combatant, I was at a huge disadvantage while in his striking range, but once I got close enough to wrestle him to the ground, the tables would be turned.
He aimed a left kick at my head, but I ducked just in time, pumping chakra into my legs. As I neared him, I sent out a kick aimed at his right outer thigh. He barely managed to pivot his standing leg, causing my kick to miss its intended target and strike the front part of his thigh instead. Not as effective, but I had closed the distance.
I got down below his still-raised left leg and grabbed it, pushing it upwards and towards his body. We both fell to the ground in a tangled mess, but this was part of my plan since I still held onto his leg.
I shifted onto my back, tucking his foot under my armpit and wrapping my legs around his upper leg. He struggled to free himself, but I held firm; the chakra sticking technique worked well for this purpose.
As he continued to resist, sitting up and swinging his left fist towards me, I pulled hard enough to make him feel it. He gasped, surprised by the sudden jolt of pain, but his eyes were now fixed on the knee bar he was trapped in.
I could dislocate his knee at any moment, and he knew it. I only needed to pull a bit harder.
"That's enough," he said through gritted teeth, still in pain.
I released my hold immediately, helping him to his feet. "I've never seen a ninja fight like this," he commented on my fighting style as he limped toward a nearby bench.
"I am much smaller than you, sensei. It would have been foolish to try and stay in a striking match with you," I explained, still bewildered that such a basic grappling maneuver was unfamiliar to these very real super-soldiers.
"You used chakra reinforcement to move and chakra sticking to maintain your grip on me," he analyzed my fight, looking thoughtful.
"I had to catch you by surprise. If ninjutsu were permitted, you could've easily substituted yourself with a clone," I admitted.
I had no reason to lie; Itachi had shown me multiple times how grappling was limited if used on a ninja in our sparring.
"Um, do I pass, sensei?" I asked, a bit embarrassed that I didn't fight as he had expected.
"Are you kidding, kid? Of course you pass!" he exclaimed, astonished that I even asked.
"You beat a Chuunin; how you did it doesn't really matter," he continued, still incredulous but now with a proud look in his eyes.
"We will monitor your career with great interest," he added after a brief pause. "I didn't personally test everyone today, but I'm sure you will be chosen."
"Thank you, sensei. I'll be heading home if that's all," I said, giving a small bow. He simply waved me away, still nursing his knee.
I walked away, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. However, the ninjutsu showcase was quite public, and many people were still standing around, watching other kids do their best. Fortunately, they only whispered among themselves and didn't approach me.
"I saw you showing off," a familiar voice said near me.
"Better safe than sorry. I'm glad you could make it, Itachi," I replied with a smile; finally, a friendly face. Thankfully, we were far enough from the crowd when we met up.
"Do you plan on finally training that Crystal Release of yours today?" he asked, clearly frustrated that I had neglected my unique ability.
"I finally figured out the base jutsu for it a few days ago, so there's no reason to delay it any further," I responded as we headed toward our training ground.
It only took a month for my academy application to be accepted, and it was delivered by none other than the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi himself.
I was called from my room by my dad, who looked pale, shock still etched on his face. After all, it wasn't every day occurrence for a military dictator to visit your home.
"Hokage-sama..." I bowed and blurted out the first thing that came to my mind.
"Why are you delivering my acceptance letter personally?" He looked at me almost like a grandfather rather than a military leader.
"Your performance piqued my interest, Ryuuzaki-kun. After all, it is not every day you meet a seven-year-old who created an original elemental jutsu," he continued, still smiling.
"Oh, that? I didn't think anyone noticed," I said.
"At least the instructor didn't say anything." I continued, burying my nervousness deep inside. He raised an eyebrow and chuckled.
"Well, that is because he did not notice, Ryuuzaki-kun. They described that jutsu to me, claiming it looked like a B-rank jutsu, and asked for clarification. However, I had never heard of such a jutsu before," he explained, a glint in his eyes.
"Would you mind demonstrating it for me? It is not often I get to see a newly developed jutsu." He asked, clearly curious about my jutsu and even more about my mind. I nodded; it's not like I had a choice anyway.
"Lead the way, Hokage-sama," I said, holding the door open for him.
It did not take long and we arrived at the Hokage's personal training ground.
"Nobody other than myself will see your jutsu here, Ryuuzaki-kun," he reassured me. I sighed and began my explanation.
"I wanted a jutsu that can double as a defensive measure while also serving as a foundation for an offensive jutsu," I began, forming hand seals slowly: Snake, Tiger, Bird, Rat, Tiger.
"Earth Style: Rock Spike Enclosure!" I finished the first part of my jutsu.
"This is the base jutsu, Hokage-sama. As you can see, the spikes are large and dense enough to function as a wall of sorts while discouraging others from getting too close to me." He looked at the jutsu approvingly.
"Do you mind a small test, Ryuuzaki-kun?" he asked.
"I don't see a problem, Hokage-sama." As soon as these words left my mouth, the rock formation was hit by a wave of fire that coiled around, trying to find a crack in my defense. Fortunately, it didn't last long, as the heat was becoming quite suffocating.
"It holds well against a Chuunin-level attack," Hiruzen remarked, sounding rather pleased.
"Chuunin-level my ass, this fire was at least twice as hot as Itachi's." I thought to myself.
"The last part of this jutsu is the offensive aspect," I continued before he could launch another jutsu at me.
"You should create a wall of your own, Hokage-sama," I warned him before performimg the last hand seal, Snake.
"Flying Rock Needles!" The front part of the spikes split into many needles and flew toward Hiruzen, who was now hidden behind a wall made of water and a second, thick wall of rock.
The needles sped to the obstacles, piercing through the water effortlessly, but getting stuck inside the rock wall far away from the other side.
The back part of my jutsu slowly moved to cover me again; however, this time there were visible gaps in my defense. The earth wall Hiruzen erected slid back underground as if it were never there.
"That is quite a jutsu; you can even fire a limited number of your spikes. It is very versatile. Good job, Ryuuzaki-kun. I will be keeping an eye on you from now on." He looked very pleased, his eyes almost glinting.
"I'm not sure I like that look in his eyes," I thought to myself.
"If that's the case, I will let you know if I develop another jutsu Hokage-sama," I said, trying to sound happy.
"Do not feel pressured to create more, Ryuuzaki-kun. You don't have to do it for the old man's sake," he said, trying to reassure me.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama. If that is all I will take my leave." He nodded at me, but I had a sinking feeling in my stomach that I would be standing in front of him again sooner than I wanted.
"At least I cemented myself as a young genius. That should take some suspicion off my back if I show knowledge a kid shouldn't possess," I mumbled under my breath as I walked toward my home. I just hope my parents weren't too worried about me.