The next morning, the Academy training grounds had been completely transformed.
The colorful training flags had all been taken down. In their place stood long rows of freshly graduated students, each dressed in their finest clothes. At the side of the field were several large wooden crates guarded by three logistics jōnin whose exhausted faces suggested they had gone several nights without knowing the meaning of sleep.
"Attention!"
Kishimoto-sensei’s voice echoed across the entire training ground.
"Today, before you are assigned to your respective teams, there is one thing each of you must receive."
Every student immediately straightened their posture.
The children from civilian families looked especially excited. Some were even secretly imagining a grand ceremony straight out of the heroic tales they had read. Meanwhile, the students from the great clans maintained calm expressions, though the anticipation shining in their eyes was impossible to hide.
Kishimoto raised a forehead protector.
"Starting today... you will officially receive Konoha’s forehead protector."
The wooden crates were opened.
Inside, dozens of forehead protectors were neatly arranged, each bearing a polished metal plate engraved with the unmistakable Leaf symbol at its center. The morning sunlight reflected brilliantly off the metal, making each one appear almost dazzling.
One of the exhausted logistics ninja watched the eager Academy graduates with lifeless eyes before muttering,
"...Ugh. I still have to count a thousand kunai this afternoon."
Several chūnin standing behind him immediately struggled to suppress their laughter.
One by one, the names began to be called.
"Shikubo Nara."
Shikubo casually walked forward, accepted his forehead protector, and tied it around his forehead.
"Finally... it’s over," he muttered lazily. "If this had taken any longer, I would’ve fallen asleep standing up."
"Chojiro Akimichi."
Chojiro stepped forward while still chewing on a piece of dried meat.
"Wow... it’s so shiny."
He looked at his own reflection in the polished metal.
"I can even use it as a mirror."
"Uchiha Tsuki."
Tsuki accepted the forehead protector with respectful composure.
Without saying a single word.
Without the slightest change in expression.
Just like a true Uchiha.
"Okugawa Shiranui."
Okugawa tied on his forehead protector almost instantly.
"Awesome!"
His eyes sparkled with excitement.
"I’m officially a ninja now!!"
Kishimoto gave him a flat stare.
"If your enthusiasm matched your intelligence, I wouldn’t have anything to worry about."
Soft laughter spread through the crowd once again.
"Aburame Ryoto."
Ryoto stepped forward.
He accepted his forehead protector with a brief nod.
The tiny insects hidden beneath his collar buzzed softly, as if they approved.
As always.
Efficient.
No drama.
Then...
"Yuji Uchiha."
Several pairs of eyes immediately turned toward the front.
Yuji walked forward calmly.
His expression remained as indifferent as ever.
He accepted the forehead protector from the logistics jōnin, brushed aside a few strands of his black hair, and tied the metal plate securely across his forehead.
The Leaf symbol now rested proudly above his eyes, perfectly complementing the Uchiha fan crest displayed on the back of his shirt.
For a brief moment...
The entire training ground fell silent.
Not because Yuji had done anything extraordinary.
But because seeing a seven-year-old Uchiha wearing Konoha’s forehead protector during wartime carried a meaning far greater than simply graduating from the Academy.
Several civilian girls whispered among themselves.
"It suits him perfectly..."
"He looks so cool..."
One of the logistics jōnin, who possessed exceptionally keen chakra perception, studied Yuji carefully.
"That child’s chakra..."
He lowered his voice.
"...It’s far too immense for someone his age."
Several nearby chūnin quietly turned their attention toward Yuji as well.
Kishimoto continued calling names.
"Hana Sato."
"Kobayashi."
"Ayaka Hyuga."
One student after another received their forehead protectors until it was finally Inori’s turn.
"Inori Yamanaka."
The blonde-haired girl stepped forward full of excitement.
The moment she fastened the forehead protector around her forehead, she immediately turned toward her teammates.
"From today onward, we’re officially one team! Let’s become the best team in our graduating class!"
Shikubo immediately rubbed his temples.
"...What a pain."
Chojiro smiled while continuing to chew.
"Big Sis Inori is always so cheerful."
Laughter echoed among the newly graduated genin once more.
After every student had been called, Kishimoto stepped forward.
His expression turned serious.
He no longer looked like an Academy instructor.
Instead, he resembled a commander sending his soldiers to the front lines.
"Listen carefully."
His voice became heavy.
"This forehead protector is not merely proof that you’ve graduated."
"It is your identity as shinobi of Konohagakure."
"From this day forward, your names represent the village itself."
"Do not disgrace that forehead protector through fear."
"And never allow an enemy to take it from you."
Silence blanketed the training ground.
Every joke and laugh from moments earlier vanished without a trace.
The children who had just graduated finally understood what it truly meant to become shinobi.
Kishimoto spoke once more.
"Now then... all genin are to gather in the Academy’s main classroom."
"There, you will wait for your respective jōnin instructors to arrive."
Several students’ eyes immediately lit up.
Receiving a jōnin instructor was the dream of nearly every Academy graduate.
Kishimoto continued,
"Who your instructor will be is entirely the Hokage’s decision. So stop hoping you’ll get to choose for yourselves."
The students who had begun daydreaming quickly settled down.
"With that..."
Kishimoto swept his gaze across the entire field.
"You are dismissed. Don’t be late."
"YES, SIR!"
Forty voices rang out in perfect unison.
Yuji stood together with the members of Team 7.
Hana Sato glanced at the forehead protector resting on Yuji’s forehead and smiled faintly, her cheeks tinged with pink.
"It really suits you."
Kobayashi simply gave a quiet nod.
As an older student from the same Academy, he had long heard of Yuji Uchiha’s remarkable reputation. Although he was older than Yuji and the others, he still respected both of them.
Yuji said nothing.
His hand slowly reached up and touched the forehead protector, its metal still cool against his fingers.
Only one thought occupied his mind.
This isn’t a symbol of graduation...
It’s a ticket to the battlefield.
He lifted his gaze toward the Academy gates.
Once he walked out of those gates alongside his team, he would never again return to the peaceful Academy he had once known.