Konoha Village, Ninja Academy, rear training grounds.
At the entrance of a sturdy defensive fortification, Asuma’s expression was solemn as he concealed himself and slowly made his way inside, one step at a time.
His footsteps were light and nearly silent.
His eyes constantly darted from side to side, filled with vigilance.
Still as a maiden, swift as a rabbit, yet completely soundless.
His ninja uniform was covered in multicolored camouflage.
Unless someone deliberately paid attention, they would have difficulty noticing him at all.
Soon, he arrived at the entrance of the fortification.
Asuma cautiously surveyed his surroundings before gently opening the door and swiftly disappearing behind it.
At the same time, he made sure to pull the door back into its original position.
If no one had witnessed it with their own eyes, they probably would not have noticed that someone had just entered through the gate.
“Not bad.”
The Chunin instructor, who had been observing from the shadows, revealed a satisfied smile.
“As expected of the Third Hokage’s son.
Even an ordinary Chunin might not possess infiltration skills as good as his!”
This was an exercise!
A simulated mission to infiltrate an enemy camp and steal intelligence!
A ninja’s missions were not limited to fighting, nor were combat skills the only abilities a ninja needed.
Infiltration, poisoning, escorting, reconnaissance…
All kinds of abilities were indispensable!
Asuma had performed very well, just like a true ninja should: swift and concealed…
“Excellent!”
Without hesitation, the Chunin instructor wrote an excellent evaluation beside Asuma’s name on the score sheet.
“After this exercise, the graduation exam will be coming up soon.
Asuma should be able to get a pretty good result.” The Chunin instructor thought to himself, a smile appearing on his face.
When his students performed well, it reflected well on him as their teacher too!
Especially since Asuma was the Third Hokage’s son!
The exercise continued.
The second person to enter was Obito.
He looked somewhat foolish and a little reckless.
But there was a trace of sharpness in his eyes as he keenly looked around.
Although he had not activated his Sharingan, he seemed to possess an extraordinary understanding of people’s lines of sight.
Every step he took was carefully positioned so that his figure remained hidden in the most concealed locations, places that were least likely to attract anyone’s attention.
“As expected of the Uchiha clan!”
The Chunin instructor sighed inwardly as he made the same record on the score sheet.
Obito was indeed somewhat of a dead-last student, but he was the dead-last student among the elite class!
Everyone being assessed now was from the elite class.
Asuma, Obito, Kurenai…
Students from ordinary classes would often remain ordinary Genin for their entire lives after graduation.
If they were lucky enough to become Chunin, they could only end up like him, working as an academy instructor.
But students from the elite class, as long as they did not die, would at the very least become Chunin!
They could even reach the levels of Jonin, Elite Jonin, or Kage…
They might have areas they were weaker in, but they would never have any fatal shortcomings.
When it came to a ninja’s most fundamental skill, infiltration, there was simply no way they would make a mistake!
Sure enough.
Kurenai, Rin, Hyuga Himing, and the other students all passed the examination with ease.
The Chunin instructor wore a satisfied smile as he recorded one excellent result after another on the score sheet.
Until…
A figure suddenly appeared within the instructor’s field of vision.
He was tall and slender.
Although he was only eleven or twelve years old, he was nearly 1.7 meters tall, towering over all his peers.
He wore a rather mismatched Konoha ninja uniform.
Beneath his healthy wheat-colored skin was a set of well-trained muscles that gave him an unmistakable sense of strength.
Those muscles did not bulge like chunks of stone.
Instead, they formed smooth, streamlined lines, giving him a distinctive, well-built physique.
His face was still somewhat youthful, but he had black hair and bright, star-like eyes, with a hint of sharpness in his gaze.
Unlike the students who had quietly concealed themselves as they approached, he simply walked in openly, ignoring the objects around him that could have been used as cover and paying no attention to the dim lighting.
He strode straight down the path toward the gate.
From the way he walked, it was almost as if he were returning home…
“Chen Fan!
Can you at least look like a ninja?!” The Chunin instructor could not take it anymore and jumped out to scold him.
“This is a simulated exercise for stealing intelligence!
What you need are infiltration, concealment, and investigative skills!”
“You’re walking out here so openly.
Are you afraid I’ll discover you too late?!”
“How could that be?” Chen Fan laughed heartily, completely calm and carefree.
“I perfectly infiltrated my way here.
I’m just waiting to go get the intelligence scroll.”
“How is this perfect?!” the Chunin instructor shouted angrily.
He had not shown the slightest intention of hiding.
He was standing directly beneath the lights and walking over in the open.
He had not even used the ninja technique of ‘silent footsteps’ to reduce the sound of his steps…
Unless the guards were blind, how could they possibly fail to see him?!
Suddenly!
The corner of Chen Fan’s mouth curled upward.
The next second, he suddenly charged forward.
His well-trained muscles unleashed astonishing explosive power.
The Chunin instructor only felt his vision blur, and Chen Fan had already appeared right in front of him.
Then—
Bang!
Chen Fan slowly withdrew his fist.
The Chunin instructor’s eyes widened before rolling back, and he collapsed unconscious.
“As long as I take out everyone who sees me, isn’t that a perfect infiltration?”
Chen Fan laughed heartily and swaggered through the door.