Chapter 156: Hinata Hyuga's Astonishing Performance (4k)
Chapter 156: Hinata Hyuga's Astonishing Performance (4k)
On Monday, after Obito finished washing up, he quickly created a shadow clone and said, "You better hurry to school, or you'll be late."
"Hmph, trying to trick me into taking the exam while you slack off? Do you think I don't know it's the final exam today?" The shadow clone sneered.
Being the same person, the clone knew exactly what Obito was thinking.
"Fine, you usually go to school anyway. I'll leave the theoretical exam to you," Obito said, giving up on his scheme.
"I only go to school to give face to Teacher Mu Yue. Don't even think about the exam," the shadow clone asserted, making its stance clear. There was no way it was going to do the test.
"If I take the exam, both of us will suffer. But if you go, only one of us will," the shadow clone reasoned.
Obito was almost convinced; it did seem like that was the case.
Obito had no choice but to dispel the shadow clone, feeling annoyed. "Damn Tobirama Senju! This shadow clone is useless!"
With his plan foiled, Obito had no choice but to eat breakfast and head to school for the exam.
On his way, Obito ran into a few first-year juniors who were vaguely familiar. They were students from Mu Yue's class and had also participated in the summer special training, so Obito remembered them.
"Good morning, Senior Obito," Hagane Kotetsu, Kamizuki Izumo, and Beniyaku greeted Obito.
"Good morning to you all," Obito replied with a smile.
"You don't seem too happy, Senior Obito. Is something the matter?" Kamizuki Izumo asked.
"Is it because of today's exam?" Hagane Kotetsu guessed.
"Yeah, I'm not very good at theoretical exams," Obito nodded.
"Really? I'm not great at them either, Senior Obito. It's nice to know I'm not alone," Beniyaku said, relieved to have found a kindred spirit.
"We're actually..." Hagane Kotetsu and Kamizuki Izumo tried to join in.
"Don't listen to these two, Senior Obito. They're lying. They got a perfect score on the last exam and a ninety-eight and ninety-seven before that," Beniyaku ruthlessly exposed her classmates.
"A perfect score? Are you two geniuses or something?" Obito was shocked. He couldn't believe that someone could get a perfect score on that test. He always thought the human limit was sixty.
"No, no. We just reviewed a little more," Hagane Kotetsu admitted honestly. Only Kakashi was a true genius in his eyes.
"They're so mean to me. They always bully me because I get low scores on the theory exams," Beniyaku pouted, placing her hands on her hips.
"So, Senior Obito, what do you usually get? I bet it's over eighty," Beniyaku asked, certain that Obito couldn't be as bad as her. She guessed he got at least seventy-eight.
"Well, what do you usually get?" Obito sensed that something was off with this study buddy. The shadow of camaraderie vanished instantly.
"Please don't laugh, Senior Obito, but my scores are terrible, and they're getting worse. I got eighty on my first exam, and it dropped to seventy-eight on the last one," Beniyaku sighed.
There really weren't many students in Mu Yue's class who scored that low, so Beniyaku thought that even if she did terribly, she wouldn't go below seventy-eight.
"I think I see someone I know up ahead. Let's talk again some other time," Obito said, scanning the area before jogging ahead.
"Guy, wait for me," Obito called out, not wanting to spend another second with Beniyaku and her friends. He felt like he would be pierced by a kunai if he stayed any longer.
Hearing that an eighty was considered a bad score and that a perfect score was achievable with a little more review made Obito almost believe that the exam was easy. If he hadn't always scored below seventy, he might have fallen for it.
"I only got twenty on my first exam!" Obito thought about his first score and silently raged. If he ever scored an eighty, he'd wear the exam paper on his clothes and announce it to everyone.
"Yet another morning filled with youth," Might Guy enthusiastically gave Obito a thumbs up and a bright smile.
"So, Guy, are you feeling confident about this exam?" Obito asked, seeing Might Guy's energetic state.
"Oh, right! It's exam day today," Might Guy's thumb fell limp, and his smile froze on his face as he remembered.
Seeing Might Guy's reaction, Obito breathed a sigh of relief and smiled in relief. That was more like it. Those first-year juniors were not normal.
...
Although Mu Yue didn't proctor the theoretical exam on the first day, she did walk around the exam room a few times. On the second day of the theoretical exam, Mu Yue went to the exam room for the fourth-year, Class 2, where Obito and Hinata Hyuga were.
Mu Yue wanted to observe Hinata Hyuga's performance in the practical exam.
Among Mu Yue's disciples, Hinata Hyuga was the weakest. She lagged far behind Might Guy and Obito, and some of her classmates could even beat her.
Now that Mu Yue had taught Hinata Hyuga the Super Strength Technique and improved her taijutsu, he expected her to perform better. He believed she wouldn't lose to anyone except Might Guy and Obito.
Hinata Hyuga had become Mu Yue's disciple during the summer special training, so it had been about five months.
"Teacher Mu Yue," Ueda Sai greeted Mu Yue. She was responsible for proctoring the fourth-year, Class 2 exam.
"Director Mu Yue," the other proctor, who wasn't as familiar with Mu Yue, added Mu Yue's title.
Mu Yue smiled and nodded in response, "I came to check on the students I personally trained during the holidays."
"So, Mu Yue, you were also chosen as an intern teacher?" Ueda Sai asked curiously.
It wasn't a secret among the teachers, and most of them already knew.
"Yes," Mu Yue nodded.
"Which students are you in charge of? I assume it's Guy and Obito?" Ueda Sai guessed.
After all, Mu Yue was an excellent teacher, and Ueda Sai believed the school would assign the best students to her.
"In Class 2, it's those two," Mu Yue answered.
"Examinee number one, Hinata Hyuga, and examinee number two, Uchiha Tekka, prepare for the exam," the proctor announced.
As soon as the exam began, Ueda Sai picked up the scoring sheet and stopped chatting with Mu Yue, ready to score the exams seriously.
"Hinata Hyuga's unlucky today. If she hadn't met Uchiha Tekka, she might have made it to the top four," the students of Class 2 whispered among themselves.
After the special training ended, Hinata Hyuga had performed well in class. In the last exam, aside from Obito and Might Guy, who were firmly in the top two spots, only Uchiha Tekka could consistently beat Hinata Hyuga.
So they assumed the situation would be similar this time.
"After all, Uchiha Tekka was in Group A from the start of the special training, and Hinata Hyuga only made it to Group A towards the end, I think."
He didn't truly believe that Tekka stood a chance against Rin Nohara.
"It's not going to be as dramatic as you're making it out to be, Obito," Rin replied, sensing that Obito seemed to have a different impression of her.
"Hehe," Obito chuckled without elaborating further. He then pumped his fist in encouragement, cheering, "Go get 'em, Lin!"
Rin offered a gentle smile and made her way to the combat arena, forming the ram hand seal as she prepared for the battle.
Tekka soon entered the arena as well, striking a confident pose. However, his mind wasn't entirely focused on the upcoming fight. Instead, he was contemplating the gap between himself and Obito, as well as Might.
"I wonder how Uchiha Obito trains. No matter how hard I try, the gap between us only seems to widen," Tekka thought back to his previous exam, where he had faced off against Obito, feeling a sense of gloom.
"Begin!" The proctor announced as soon as both combatants were ready.
In the blink of an eye, Rin vanished from Tekka's field of vision, only to reappear at his side.
"So fast!" Tekka's pupils contracted as he was taken aback by Rin's speed.
But what truly astonished Tekka was yet to come—Rin's taijutsu.
Caught off guard, Tekka could only raise his arm to block Rin's seemingly delicate fist.
BOOM!!
A thunderous impact reverberated through the air as Tekka was sent flying by Rin's punch, crashing to the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust.
Tekka lay on the ground, dazed, his arm throbbing in pain as he stared at Rin's slender arm, utterly bewildered.
Had he been defeated by Might, Tekka wouldn't have been surprised. But the fact that he had lost to Rin, and so decisively, left him flabbergasted.
Tekka wanted to grit his teeth and form a hand seal to unleash a ninjutsu, but the pain in his arm slowed him down. Before he could act, Rin was upon him again, forcing him into close-quarters combat.
However, Tekka, already at a disadvantage, stood no chance against Rin. In mere moments, she had overwhelmed him once more, sending him flying to the ground, unable to get up.
The onlooking students fell silent, and even Obito, witnessing Tekka's repeated defeats, broke out in a cold sweat.
"Is Rin that strong in taijutsu?" The spectators were stunned. Their expectations had been completely upended. Not only had Tekka failed to win, but he had also been utterly dominated, losing in a most humiliating fashion.
"Rin Nohara wins!" The proctor announced the outcome after completing the scoring.
"Teacher, please send me to the infirmary," Tekka requested, lying on the ground and feeling like he was at death's door.
"You two continue with the exam. I'll take him to the infirmary," Mu Yue said, adjusting his glasses and offering a smile.
His primary purpose in coming here was to observe Rin's performance, and he would return for the second round of the practical exam.
Mu Yue carried Tekka on his back and brought him to the ninja school's infirmary for treatment.
"Thank you, Teacher Mu Yue," Tekka said, regaining his senses and expressing his gratitude.
"It's nothing. It's a teacher's duty to look after their students," Mu Yue replied gently.
"Teacher Mu Yue, am I... untalented?" Tekka suddenly asked, his voice tinged with self-doubt.
Being thoroughly defeated by Rin had dealt a blow to Tekka's confidence. While he acknowledged that he had been caught off guard at the start, he realized that even without that mistake, he would have still lost, albeit a little less decisively.
Losing to Obito was something he could accept. After all, they shared the Uchiha name, and Obito might have simply had a burst of potential.
Losing to Might was also understandable, given the other boy's relentless dedication to the point of obsession.
But losing to Rin? That was something Tekka never saw coming. While she excelled in theory, her practical skills had always been average, even forgettable, to the point where Tekka hadn't bothered to remember her name.
Falling from the top of the class to being decisively beaten by Rin had shattered Tekka's self-confidence.
"Not at all," Mu Yue reassured him. "The fact that you were placed in Group A during the special training right from the start already proves that you're ahead of many others."
"Don't let a single failure deny your self-worth. You've been defeated, but haven't you also defeated others? Believe in yourself," Mu Yue added, turning to offer words of comfort before leaving.
Mu Yue's words soothed Tekka's troubled heart. Indeed, Obito and Might were only two semesters ahead of him, while he had been consistently outperforming them for three years!
"Get some rest. I still have things to attend to," Mu Yue said with a smile as he turned to leave, heading toward the training field where the practical exam was taking place.
Mu Yue mused that if there were levels to dishing out motivational speeches, he would probably be close to mastery, as he had just instinctively delivered one.
The first round of the exam was the longest, and Mu Yue didn't rush to the exam room for the fourth-year, Class 2. Instead, he returned to his own class to observe for a while.
In Mu Yue's class, Shisui remained the undisputed strongest, with Konan typically securing second place unless she faced Shisui early on. Deidara and Itachi were firmly in the third-place bracket.
The remaining students weren't weak, but the top three had already surpassed their peers in the current grade.
"Director Mu Yue, the average level of your class is just too high. Picking a few students at random from your class and placing them in other first-year classes would still guarantee them a spot in the top four or two," the proctor marveled.
Every teacher who came to proctor the exam for Mu Yue's class would be astounded by the exceptionally high average level of the students. While it was normal to have a few geniuses, Konoha had never lacked talented ninja.
However, having an entire class comprised of outstanding individuals was simply extraordinary. It was as if the class was filled with prodigies.
Mu Yue humbly deflected the praise and then had an idea. What if he and the Third Hokage suggested modifying the rules for the grade-level practical exam? Instead of selecting two students from each class, what if they chose the top sixteen students from the entire grade?
In that case, out of the sixteen participants, twelve might be from Mu Yue's class. After the first round, the rest of the exam would essentially become an intra-class competition.
However, this idea didn't hold much appeal for Mu Yue, as it would only showcase the strength of his class and wouldn't result in any additional rewards from the system.
In fact, comparing the average practical exam scores of his class with those of other classes would already give a clear indication of their prowess. In the previous exam, Mu Yue's class had scored twice as high as the other classes.
As the first round of the exam in Mu Yue's class was about to conclude, he made his way to the exam room for the fourth-year, Class 2, where Hinata Hyuga was about to begin her second-round match.
(End of Chapter)
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