"Are you certain?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked in a serious tone. His voice was no longer as warm and gentle as it had been earlier. Instead, it carried the weight and authority of a seasoned shinobi.
"Do you truly intend to give up your opportunity to become a Genin so that the others may pass?"
The sudden change in his demeanor caused the atmosphere to grow heavy.
Tsunade and Orochimaru immediately felt the oppressive pressure radiating from Hiruzen Sarutobi. Even though the pressure was not directed at them, the intensity of it made them instinctively tense. The air seemed to thicken, making it difficult to breathe.
Both of them understood that this was the aura of a powerful Jonin—a shinobi who had experienced countless battles and life-and-death situations.
Yet despite standing directly in front of Hiruzen Sarutobi and bearing the full force of that pressure, Uchiha Su remained calm.
His expression showed no fear.
Instead, he looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi steadily, his posture relaxed but confident.
"There is no one in this world who can take back words that have already been spoken," Uchiha Su replied calmly.
His voice was quiet, yet firm.
For a moment, the training ground fell silent.
Hiruzen Sarutobi studied the young boy carefully. His sharp eyes seemed to examine every detail of Uchiha Su's expression, as if trying to determine whether the boy was pretending or speaking from the heart.
After a brief pause, Hiruzen finally looked away.
Then, suddenly, his expression softened.
"Well then," he said, his tone returning to its previous warmth, "I will now announce the results of this test."
Tsunade and Orochimaru both held their breath.
"The three of you… have all passed."
Hiruzen smiled slightly.
"Congratulations. From this moment onward, you are officially registered Genin of Konoha Village."
For a second, Tsunade and Orochimaru stared at him in stunned silence.
Then the realization struck them.
"We passed?!"
Tsunade jumped excitedly.
Orochimaru also let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Both of them instinctively turned toward Uchiha Su.
If he had not chosen to share the bells earlier, the outcome of the test might have been completely different.
"Su, we did it!" Tsunade exclaimed happily.
Uchiha Su also smiled, placing a hand on the back of his head as if feeling slightly embarrassed.
"Yeah," he said lightly. "Looks like everything worked out."
Watching their reactions, Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded slightly.
That was more like it.
After all, they were still just children—six or seven years old at most. If they had truly been told that one of them needed to return to the Ninja Academy, it would have been impossible for them to remain calm.
Seeing them celebrate like this made their reactions feel more natural.
However, Hiruzen still had something on his mind.
"There is one thing I am curious about," he said.
His gaze settled on Uchiha Su.
"The plan you used during the battle… seemed slightly different from the one you discussed earlier."
His tone carried a hint of curiosity.
After all, he had personally overheard the strategy the three students had planned earlier. Yet the execution during the fight had clearly changed.
Uchiha Su shrugged casually.
"We guessed that Teacher Sarutobi might try to overhear our discussion," he said with a faint smile.
Hiruzen raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Even though we couldn't detect you directly," Uchiha Su continued, "we still thought it was safer to keep a backup plan."
He glanced briefly at Tsunade and Orochimaru.
"Fortunately, the three of us worked well together."
In truth, the plan had only been slightly altered.
Most of the strategy had remained the same.
But Uchiha Su had secretly kept an additional trick in reserve—a final contingency in case everything else failed.
And as it turned out, that extra precaution had been the key to their success.
"I see…" Hiruzen murmured thoughtfully.
He could not help but feel impressed.
This young Uchiha boy possessed far more composure and foresight than he had expected.
"Well then," Hiruzen said, clapping his hands lightly, "now that our team has officially been formed, it's time to discuss something more important."
The three students immediately looked at him.
"A mission," Hiruzen said with a faint smile.
"I already have one prepared for us."
Tsunade's eyes lit up instantly.
"Really?!" she asked eagerly. "What rank is the mission? Is it an A-rank mission?"
Her excitement was obvious.
However, she still maintained a small amount of self-awareness.
Even she knew that an S-rank mission was completely unrealistic for a newly formed team of Genin.
Hiruzen chuckled softly.
"Of course it isn't an A-rank mission."
"You three are still far from that level."
"This mission is a C-rank assignment."
Normally, newly graduated Genin teams would begin with D-rank missions—simple tasks meant to help them gain experience.
However, Hiruzen had his reasons.
"Under normal circumstances," he continued, "your team would first complete several D-rank missions."
"But considering that all three of you are exceptional students from the Ninja Academy…"
His gaze swept across the group.
Tsunade, the granddaughter of the First Hokage.
Orochimaru, a rare civilian prodigy.
And Uchiha Su—whose abilities had clearly been underestimated during his time at the academy.
Even the weakest among them was still far above the level of ordinary students.
"That's why I decided to assign a C-rank mission instead."
Orochimaru spoke calmly.
"What exactly will the mission involve?"
Hiruzen smiled mysteriously.
"I'll explain the details later."
"For now, return home and prepare everything you'll need."
He glanced up at the sky, estimating the time.
"Meet me at the Village Gate in half an hour."
With a simple wave of his hand, he dismissed the three students.
"Don't be late."
Uchiha Clan Compound
After leaving the training ground, Uchiha Su quickly returned to the Uchiha clan compound.
The large courtyard was quiet.
As he stepped toward the main hall, he happened to encounter Uchiha Setsuna walking out.
Normally, Setsuna's face carried a somewhat sinister and intimidating expression.
But today was different.
He appeared unusually cheerful, and even his walking pace seemed lighter than usual.
"Young Clan Head," Setsuna greeted respectfully with a bow.
"Jonin Setsuna," Uchiha Su replied with a small nod.
He then asked casually,
"How did your conversation with my uncle go?"
Setsuna's eyes lit up.
"Very well," he said enthusiastically.
"In fact… better than ever before!"
He even clenched his fist in excitement.
At the same time, he felt a deep sense of admiration for Uchiha Su.
From the clan leader, he had already learned that this young boy had been the first to learn about the Uchiha clan's secret plan to defect.
And yet…
Despite knowing such a dangerous secret, Uchiha Su had behaved completely normally today—attending training, participating in the bell test, and interacting with his teammates as if nothing unusual had happened.
At such a young age, his composure was remarkable.
Setsuna did not feel uneasy about this.
On the contrary, he felt delighted.
If the future leader of the Uchiha clan possessed such intelligence and emotional control, it would only strengthen the clan.
"Young Clan Head," Setsuna said respectfully, "I won't disturb you any longer."
"I still need to speak with several other people."
After bowing once more, he quickly left the courtyard.
Uchiha Su watched him disappear into the distance before entering the main hall.
Inside the Main Hall
Inside the hall, Uchiha Madara was sitting quietly in the main seat.
His dark red armor had already been removed and placed carefully on a display stand nearby.
When he saw Uchiha Su enter, Madara gave a faint smile.
"You're back."
"Yes, Uncle," Uchiha Su replied.
He stepped forward and continued,
"Our team is assembling at the village gate soon. We've been assigned a C-rank mission."
Madara raised an eyebrow slightly.
"A C-rank mission already?"
"That's not bad for someone who has just become a Genin."
He paused thoughtfully.
"I originally expected you to be doing D-rank missions for a while."
Then he crossed his arms and snorted lightly.
"Well… at least Hashirama still has some sense."
"He didn't assign you those meaningless chores that usually make up D-rank missions."
Although Madara spoke with a dismissive tone, Uchiha Su could not help but notice something interesting.
Whenever Madara mentioned Senju Hashirama, his attitude always seemed slightly complicated.
It almost resembled the behavior of a tsundere.
However, when Madara spoke about another person, his expression darkened.
"Senju Tobirama…"
Madara's voice grew cold.
"If it weren't for him, the Uchiha clan wouldn't even be considering defection."
His eyes flashed with anger.
It was not simply because Tobirama had killed his younger brother, Izuna.
After all, when Konoha Village was first founded, both clans had agreed to leave the past behind.
But Tobirama's actions afterward had continuously targeted the Uchiha.
Those actions had rarely been obvious.
On the surface, everything seemed fair.
Yet somehow, the Uchiha clan always ended up at a disadvantage.
Without anyone in power to defend them, they had been forced to endure the situation silently.
Madara finally exhaled slowly.
"C-rank missions usually involve escort duties or information gathering," he said.
"They rarely take long."
"Three days should be enough."
His tone softened again.
"Go prepare your equipment."
"And don't forget to say goodbye to your friends."
Uchiha Su nodded.
"Yes, Uncle."
Preparing for the Mission
Back in his room, Uchiha Su quickly began preparing his equipment.
"Military rations… explosive tags… shuriken…"
One by one, he carefully placed the tools into his ninja pouch.
Finally, he picked up his Kusanagi sword and attached it securely to his waist.
After adjusting the Genin headband on his forehead, he checked the time.
Then he left the compound and headed toward the village gate.
The Village Gate
When Uchiha Su arrived at the gate, he noticed that he had arrived slightly early.
The road outside the village stretched into the distance, disappearing beyond the forest.
A few minutes later, Tsunade and Orochimaru also arrived.
Both of them looked excited.
After all, this would be their first time leaving the village on an official mission.
For young shinobi who had spent their entire lives inside Konoha, the outside world was filled with mystery and adventure.
Even Uchiha Su felt a hint of curiosity.
In his previous life, he had only seen this world through anime.
But now…
This was reality.
And he was finally about to step into it.