Chapter 263: Graduation Class Assignment
Chapter 263: Graduation Class Assignment
After graduation, the class assignment list was not immediately released. It would take four more days for the list to be announced, and there were a few minor tasks to be done during this period, such as taking graduation photos for the students.
These were not group photos but individual photos for their ninja profiles, similar to ID photos.
It was a rare occasion to take such photos, and Obito wanted to look cool, perhaps wearing a white robe and a conical straw hat. Unfortunately, the photographer mercilessly rejected his idea, and he had to settle for a more ordinary outfit.
In addition to this, there were also graduation photos taken by the students and their teachers, but these were not organized by the school. Instead, each class took their photos independently.
Mu Yue, being quite popular among the students, was included in most of the class photos. After all, he had been their instructor for the entire fourth grade during their special training sessions.
Since Obito had a camera, he took the opportunity to capture memorable moments with his friends from the Ninja School. He also took some photos with Yahiko, just the two of them without Kakashi.
After the photo session, there was not much left to do at the Ninja School. They only needed to return to check the class assignment list when it was released and collect their ninja profiles.
Thus, Obito and his friends resumed their regular training routine.
Knowing that they would not be able to train with Teacher Mu Yue from morning to afternoon as they had been doing, they cherished this time together.
However, Obito's mood underwent a subtle change when he discovered that the new training session would also involve answering questions.
"For the hitting training, each successful minute of evasion by the Shadow Clone will result in five questions. If you hit the target, the training ends immediately, with a time limit of ten minutes," Mu Yue explained the new punishment mechanism to Obito and Itachi.
"Huh? Why do we still have to answer questions? We didn't have to before," Obito said, confused.
He had just heard about the new training and was secretly happy that he wouldn't have to answer questions.
"Try to recall; I said there would be a temporary break from the questions," Mu Yue said with a smile.
"Previously, it was because you were about to graduate, and I wanted to give you a bit of a break. Now that you've completed your graduation exam, there's no need for such leniency."
"Or do you think, Obito, that life as a ninja will be easier than that of a student?" Mu Yue asked, looking directly into Obito's eyes.
Obito: ...
If he agreed, wouldn't he be admitting to being unambitious? Moreover, as Obito thought back carefully, Teacher Mu Yue had indeed said it would be temporary, but he had been so excited about not having to answer questions that he had selectively ignored the word "temporarily."
"Of course not," Obito scratched his head a little embarrassedly. "I only remembered half of what you said, Teacher Mu Yue."
"Five questions per minute, with a maximum of ten minutes. So, if it's the same as last time, we'll have to answer fifty questions," Itachi felt a slight pressure building.
Even after some time, Mu Yue's questions were still challenging, requiring a lot of thought and reference to various sources.
"Begin!" Mu Yue shouted after creating his shadow clone.
Swish! Swish!!
Itachi and Obito burst into chakra and rushed towards the shadow clone.
As they charged, Itachi activated his Sharingan to better analyze the situation. The battle would only last ten minutes, so he didn't need to conserve his chakra too carefully.
"Don't use ninjutsu blindly. Look for the right opportunity," Itachi reminded himself.
He guessed that if his ninjutsu forced the shadow clone to a point where it couldn't dodge, it would use ninjutsu to defend itself. As long as he refrained from using ninjutsu, the shadow clone wouldn't either.
"Total concentration, Breath of Fire!" Itachi quickly adjusted his breathing rhythm, intensely focusing his breath and the chakra flowing through his meridians and acupuncture points.
Itachi relentlessly attacked the shadow clone, but each time, Mu Yue barely dodged out of the way, appearing extremely close yet never even grazing the clone's clothing.
However, Itachi didn't lose heart. He had expected as much, just like how they had always fallen slightly short before. He knew that Mu Yue was deliberately adjusting the clone's movements, and if they didn't improve, they would forever remain just a step behind.
Five minutes passed, and Itachi still hadn't landed a single hit on Mu Yue. Instead, the trees around them had borne the brunt of their attacks.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Fireball Jutsu!"
Feeling that he had set up a good formation, Itachi performed the necessary hand seals and channeled his chakra, releasing a series of small fireballs from his mouth toward Mu Yue.
Since Itachi was releasing the fireballs one by one, the shadow clone calmly dodged each one without using ninjutsu to intercept them.
The fireballs didn't hit Mu Yue, but they did strike a tree that Itachi had previously sliced with his short blade. The explosion from the fireballs caused the already damaged tree to crack and fall.
Taking advantage of this unexpected offense, Obito finally erased that minuscule gap and touched Mu Yue with his hand.
Although his punch was caught by Mu Yue's hand, it still counted as contact.
"Excellent! Although you haven't broken through with your breathing technique, you skillfully utilized your surroundings to create favorable conditions for yourself." The shadow clone released Obito's arm and praised him.
Unlike the previous training session, this time, while Obito hadn't made a breakthrough with his breathing technique, his clever tactics had allowed him to complete the training ahead of time.
Of course, as the training primarily focused on the breathing technique, it was still the most crucial aspect. Tactics weren't infinite, and the shadow clone would be prepared next time. Only by improving raw strength could they fundamentally solve this problem.
When the ten-minute battle with Tobirama ended, Mu Yue announced the results.
"Tobirama, you were unable to hit me for the full ten minutes, so you need to answer fifty questions. Obito, you managed to do so in five minutes, so you only need to answer twenty-five."
Hearing that Obito had completed the training in just five minutes, Tobirama's expression turned to one of surprise. "Obito, you're amazing! You've improved so quickly this time."
"It's nothing," Obito shook his head. "I just used a trick."
"How did you do it? I want to learn, too," Tobirama said enviously. Twenty-five questions was a lot!
"Think more during battles and observe your surroundings to create favorable conditions for yourself," Obito replied after some thought.
He knew that the same method wouldn't work twice, so he only shared his general idea with Tobirama without going into the specifics of his actions.
"You should learn more from Obito, Kakashi, and the others in this regard," Mu Yue nodded and handed the tests to the two of them.
Tobirama glanced at his test and was about to put it aside when he suddenly noticed something. He quickly took it out again and examined it carefully.
Upon seeing a question about analyzing the founding principles of the Ninja School, Tobirama spoke up, "Teacher Mu Yue, I think you might have given me the wrong test. These questions don't seem right. Did you mix up my test with Obito's?"
Tobirama even went over to check Obito's test, but he found that Obito's questions were the same as before. A bad feeling arose in his heart.
"No, I didn't make a mistake," Mu Yue smiled and explained. "Now that you've graduated from the Ninja School, the questions naturally need to change as well."
The reason he had given Tobirama those simpler questions before was twofold: first, because Tobirama's foundation was lacking, and he needed to supplement his knowledge, and second, to help him improve his grades and exam rewards at the Ninja School.
Now that Tobirama had completed a year of remedial lessons and graduated, it was only natural to switch things up. The primary purpose of the new questions was to help Tobirama absorb knowledge from history, and there would also be specialized political lessons in the future.
While he couldn't change the entire ninja world at once, he could start by influencing his own disciples.
For the first time, Tobirama felt an unprecedented sense of dread. He actually started to miss the old tests and questions.
This would have been unthinkable in the past, but today, it was happening. Why? Because he now faced an even more terrifying existence than the Cloud Ninja.
Tobirama's gaze toward the two tests changed. This was a test more formidable than any Jonin-level ninja from the Village Hidden in the Clouds.
"You must take these tests seriously," Mu Yue said sternly. "Even if you really don't know the answer, you must still write down your thoughts. Come to me afterward, and I'll go through the questions with you."
The reason he assigned tests instead of giving lectures was to encourage his students to think independently first. This way, they would absorb the information better when he explained it later, and they would also subconsciously continue thinking about the topics afterward.
"I will," Tobirama promised weakly. He had a feeling that he wouldn't be sleeping well that night.
After the special training ended, it was time for their regular cultivation practice.
When Tobirama returned home, exhausted, and finished dinner, he went upstairs to his bedroom and took out the test to begin working on it.
Although he felt resistant, he knew he had to listen to Teacher Mu Yue. No matter how difficult it was, he had to take it seriously.
Looking at the rows of information on the test paper, Tobirama felt overwhelmed. After a moment's thought, he began to perform hand seals.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Smoke wafted, and two clones appeared.
"Ahem," Tobirama cleared his throat and pointed to the tests on the table. "You don't want to disappoint Teacher Mu Yue by not completing the tests, do you?"
"Don't bother," one of the clones said. "We know what you're thinking, and doing the tests is impossible."
Bang, bang!!
Kakashi sighed and dispelled the two shadow clones, realizing it was impossible for them to help. If they started fighting, he would be the one feeling the pain, as the sensations experienced by the shadow clones would eventually return to him.
"This jutsu really does have too many drawbacks," Kakashi remarked, his impression of the Shadow Clone Jutsu diminishing further. With a renewed sense of determination, he began to tackle the questions earnestly.
"Material One: After becoming the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju established numerous institutions, one of which was the Ninja Academy. Following its establishment, with the exception of a handful of ninja clans, those who wished to become ninjas had to enroll in the Ninja Academy and pass the graduation exam before they could become genin."
"Carefully read the above two materials and analyze Tobirama Senju's original intention and significance in establishing the Ninja Academy."
As Kakashi silently recited the question in his mind, he began to feel dizzy.
There were two materials to consider: a textual description and data showing the ratio of ninja clans to non-ninja clans in Konoha during three different periods.
Kakashi meticulously studied both materials but couldn't fathom the connection between them, especially the relevance of the data.
"Damn it, so the Ninja Academy was also created by Tobirama Senju," Kakashi realized, discovering that the inventor of the Shadow Clone Jutsu was also the founder of the Ninja Academy.
Unable to comprehend the deeper meaning, Kakashi decided to answer the question based on his own interpretation, figuring it was better than leaving it blank.
"His original intention was to cultivate stronger ninjas and enhance the village's overall prowess. As for its significance, it means that from now on, the children of Konoha will have a school to attend." Kakashi nodded slightly, satisfied with his answer.
He suddenly wondered what children did before the academy was established, curious about how they spent their time.
As his thoughts wandered, Kakashi glanced at the clock and was startled to see that twenty minutes had passed. Hurriedly, he resumed working on the questions, knowing that failing to finish them would result in an increased workload for the next session.
Kakashi spent the entire night answering questions. When he finally lay down to rest, his mind was filled with thoughts of Hashirama Senju, Madara Uchiha, and Tobirama Senju, replaying the various events they had been involved in and analyzing their significance.
This time, Kakashi experienced a slight bout of insomnia, lying awake in bed for a while, his thoughts fixated on trying to understand Tobirama's true motives and reasons for his actions.
Only when extreme exhaustion set in did Kakashi finally drift off to sleep, and he awoke the next day due to his biological clock.
For some reason, after tackling those questions, Kakashi felt like the daytime hours sped by more quickly, while the evenings seemed to stretch on forever. Even though he had only spent a few hours doing the questions, it felt much longer than the time spent training during the day.
With his days spent training and his nights devoted to answering questions, Kakashi's life was now incredibly fulfilling, to the extent that he almost forgot about their graduation. It was only thanks to Mu Yue's reminder that he remembered.
"Tomorrow is the day when the results and class assignments will be announced, so I'll give you the day off to rest and prepare for your new life as ninjas." Mu Yue announced with a gentle smile.
The following day, the Ninja Academy would release the exam results for all grades, including the graduation exam for the fourth-year students, along with the final class assignments.
"Hooray~" Kakashi's eyes sparkled with excitement. This meant he would have more time to tackle those pesky questions.
"Are you alright, Kakashi? You don't seem to be in your usual state," Rin asked with concern.
While Kakashi's voice still carried a hint of enthusiasm, it lacked his typical vigor.
"I'm fine," Kakashi assured her. "Just a bit tired lately."
He felt that the only upside to the upcoming class assignments might be a reduction in the number of questions, as he would have fewer opportunities to train with Mu Yue, which meant fewer training sessions and, consequently, fewer questions.
"Then remember to get a good rest tonight. Tomorrow, aside from checking the class assignments, you'll also be receiving your ninja profiles," Rin reminded him with a smile.
Kakashi nodded in agreement. After dinner, he hurried home and continued working on the questions.
"Ah, Tobirama Senju, what exactly are you thinking?" Kakashi discovered that Tobirama had been responsible for creating an extraordinary number of things.
That night, Kakashi slept even more fitfully, constantly hearing a voice in his ear asking about the significance of Tobirama's actions.
4k words for today. I'm not feeling well, so I might not be able to hit my daily target, but I'll post another chapter later. A quick reminder to everyone to dress appropriately for the changing weather. Sudden temperature drops can make you sick...
(End of Chapter)
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