The next day, at the Ninja Academy.
Iruka stood on the playground with a slightly serious expression, facing the students participating in the graduation exam.
Iruka slowly began to explain the rules: “Four years have passed, and today is your last day at the Ninja Academy.” “Today’s exam is divided into three parts.
I will grade you on each part in turn.
Those who pass will become official Genin.” After a pause, Iruka continued: “The first part is Shuriken throwing, the second is Nintaijutsu, and the third, which is also the most important, is the Three Basic Jutsus.” “I will grade you on these three parts, with ten being the maximum score and six being the passing grade.
Those who fail only get one chance to retake the exam.
If you fail the retake, you will have to repeat the grade.” Iruka explained the rules to the candidates one by one.
“Only 6 points to pass?
That’s too easy, sensei…” A familiar voice suddenly erupted from the crowd.
The blond-haired boy grinned, looking confident and chuunibyou.
“Is that so?
Then don’t let me down.” Iruka frowned as he looked at Naruto; this kid really didn’t know how to be humble.
He clearly hadn’t even mastered the Three Basic Jutsus yet, so he didn’t know where that confidence came from.
(PS: The Crown Prince’s abilities are sporadic.
The Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu he performed earlier was unleashed while his personality was spiraling out of control; before graduating from the Ninja Academy, he indeed had not stably mastered the Three Basic Jutsus.) “Next, I will call names to come forward for the exam.
We will start with the Shuriken throwing assessment.” The students called forward one by one.
Most were able to hit the target above the sixth ring, with only a few, who were too nervous, hitting the 5th or 4th ring.
Ino hit the 8th ring, Shikamaru the 7th, Choji the 6th, Inuzuka Kiba the 7th, Shino the 9th, and Hyuga Hinata the 7th.
Of course, Hyuga Hinata took this test without activating her Byakugan.
When it was Sasuke’s turn, the boy pushed off with his feet, rotating his entire body 360 degrees in the air.
At the moment his back was to the target, he exerted force from his fingertips, and the Shuriken sliced through the air, hitting the center of the target steadily.
“Ten rings!!!
Sasuke actually hit ten rings while facing away from the target!” In an instant, the candidates on the field were in an uproar, and the girls let out a series of screams.
“As expected of the genius boy of the Uchiha Clan; his strength is on a completely different level from the other students.” Iruka muttered as he watched Sasuke, who had returned to the line without a word.
At this moment, Sasuke glanced inadvertently at the pink-haired girl beside him, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.
Clearly, he had already marked Sakura as his invisible rival.
The girl smiled and waved her hand at Sasuke; she had no intention of arguing with a brat.
“Next, Sakura Haruno.” Iruka called Sakura’s name.
“Sakura-chan, do your best!” Ino cheered for Sakura like a cheerleader.
The pink-haired girl slowly stepped forward.
She didn’t try to show off like Sasuke, but with a casual toss, the Shuriken hit the center of the target.
“Yay!
I knew you were the best, Sakura!” Ino expressed her delight.
Iruka was also somewhat amazed.
Although he had witnessed Sakura’s learning talent before, he hadn’t expected this girl to hit the bullseye so casually.
If he wasn’t mistaken, Sakura hadn’t even looked at the target just now, and hadn’t even…
used much force.
She was even better than Sasuke.
“Sakura, 10 points.” Iruka sighed, thinking this year’s class was truly full of talent.
The last one: “Naruto Uzumaki!” Iruka couldn’t help but worry when he read Naruto’s name.
The blond-haired boy stepped forward confidently, standing straight as if he could explode with immense energy in the next second.
The boy took a deep breath, slowly raised his right arm, and threw it with all his might.
“Naruto, 6 rings.” Iruka read out the score.
A crow flew over the boy’s head: “Ahahaha—didn’t perform well, didn’t perform well.” …
The second part, Nintaijutsu assessment.
Everyone needed to spar with Iruka-sensei, and Iruka-sensei would grade the students based on their performance in the spar.
Because it was Nintaijutsu, using other Ninjutsu during the normal exam was not allowed; otherwise, it would count as a foul.
Sakura remembered that this assessment didn’t seem to exist in the original work; it might be because of the butterfly effect that caused the plot to change subtly.
Just like how Ino currently had no interest in Sasuke at all, so as long as it was an activity Sakura participated in, it would change along with Sakura’s abilities.
After all, a butterfly flapping its wings in the Pacific could trigger a tsunami in the Atlantic.
Let alone a living person like Sakura!
In this way, the future storyline would change accordingly, and might even be vastly different from what the girl had anticipated.
Exciting…
The Taijutsu assessment lasted for two whole hours.
Among these people, the ones who left the deepest impression on Iruka were Sakura and Sasuke.
The Taijutsu of both of them was almost on par with Iruka’s.
Especially Sakura; this girl seemed to be hiding even deeper strength.
As a mature Chunin, although Taijutsu was not his strong suit, in past exams, dealing with his own students was certainly more than enough.
But in the process of sparring with Sakura, he didn’t know where this girl got such power.
Despite her seemingly small frame, every punch and kick was heavy and powerful.
Compared to Sasuke’s agility and versatility, Sakura instead had a sense of leisurely strolling.
Besides these two, the next most talented one was Hyuga Hinata.
After all, she was the eldest daughter of the Hyuga Clan and had been training with Hiashi since she was young.
The Hyuga Clan specialized in Gentle Fist and Taijutsu, so naturally, she wouldn’t be bad.
Taijutsu assessment results: Sakura Haruno 10 points, Sasuke 10 points, Hyuga Hinata 9 points, Ino 8 points, Choji 8 points, Shikamaru 7 points, Naruto 7 points, Inuzuka Kiba 7 points, Shino 6 points, Student A 6 points, Student C 5 points, Student D 5 points…
Ino’s hard training these days was starting to show results, and Choji, who was already good at Taijutsu, performed quite well this time.
What surprised Sakura slightly was that Shino, who had never been defeated in the original work, had only just passed.
It seems that for Shino, who was good at controlling parasitic insects from a long distance, Taijutsu was his weakness.
So it goes to show that some people who look strong also have weaknesses.
Deidara, the S-rank missing-nin from the Hidden Stone Village, was also a Ninja who specialized in long-range combat, and his close-combat skills were somewhat useless.
In the anime, when facing the Taijutsu-focused Team 3 led by Might Guy, he had absolutely no power to fight back.
It shows that even for a Kage-level powerhouse, as long as you find their breakthrough point, you can defeat them in one fell swoop.