At eleven o'clock, the bell rang.
"All examinees, please stop writing and remain in your seats,"
Kitazawa announced, rising from his desk.
Immediately, the classroom erupted into chaos.
Fortunately, over the past month, he had earned enough authority that even students who hadn't finished their papers obediently put down their pens.
"Tomorrow at nine a.m., gather on the school grounds. Anyone more than fifteen minutes late will have their practical exam scores invalidated," he reminded them, then left the classroom.
Tomorrow was the practical exam, and Kitazawa needed to finish grading the theoretical exams by the afternoon.
Since practical exam results could be given immediately, combining them with the theory scores would allow him to release the full rankings efficiently.
Once Kitazawa left, the classroom descended back into a noisy mess, filled with groans and complaints.
Naruto Uzumaki sat at his desk, gazing out the window at the clear blue sky.
Three words popped into his mind: I messed up!
The monthly exam had been far harder than he expected. Several questions left him unsure.
"Didn't do well?"
Shikamaru Nara noticed his expression and asked casually.
"Not that I did badly… I just… messed up my performance!"
Naruto's eyes brightened with a glimmer of hope. "Was it hard?"
"Pretty hard," Shikamaru sighed, dejected. "I think I just barely passed—maybe sixty points."
"Same here,"
Choji Akimichi chimed in.
Naruto felt a surge of relief. If everyone found it difficult, maybe he still had a shot at first place!
"How about you, Sasuke?"
Sakura Haruno approached Uchiha Sasuke, carrying her bag.
"So-so,"
Sasuke said casually, hands in his pockets. He had already secured his position for first in the practical exam. As long as he scored in the top three for theory, he would be safe.
"You're so humble, Sasuke-kun!"
Sakura's eyes sparkled with affection, turning her into a lovestruck fan. She didn't believe him—only first place matched Sasuke's cool demeanor.
"I have business to attend to. You don't need to follow,"
Sasuke said lazily, heading out of the classroom.
The recent Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu practice left him slightly irritable; he wasn't in the mood for chatter.
If it weren't for Kitazawa giving him hope, he wouldn't have even offered that polite reply.
"Sas…"
Sakura raised her hand, watching him disappear into the distance.
"Uchiha men, so heartless,"
Ino Yamanaka shook her head.
"You can't say that about Sasuke!"
Sakura immediately retorted. "It's not heartless—it's cool!"
"You're hopeless, Sakura,"
Ino said helplessly, shrugging.
"Wait!"
Sakura suddenly realized something. "Did you give up on Sasuke?"
Ino paused, reflecting. She hadn't felt infatuated with Sasuke like before. Was it the tree-climbing training? Or had prolonged exposure to Kitazawa built some resistance?
"Giving up is better!"
Sakura cheered. "Sasuke will be mine!"
"Y-yeah,"
Ino muttered, then noticed Hinata Hyuga still seated, having packed her supplies but not leaving yet.
"Hinata,"
Ino called gently. "Shall we go home together?"
Thanks to the tree-climbing training, she now considered Hinata a good friend.
"Eh?"
Hinata froze, flustered. "I… you go ahead."
Seeing this, Ino didn't insist. She left with Sakura.
Hinata breathed a sigh of relief.
Once the classroom emptied, she carried her bag and headed to Kitazawa's office.
A knock sounded.
"Come in,"
Kitazawa called, looking up from grading papers.
"Ki… Kitazawa-sensei,"
Hinata smiled softly upon seeing him.
"Why didn't you go home?"
Kitazawa set down his pen.
"I… um…"
Hinata nearly had a heart attack, a blush creeping across her cheeks. She had come out of habit for lunch, unaware that Kitazawa hadn't arranged anything today.
Embarrassed, she fidgeted.
"Since you're here, let's eat together,"
Kitazawa said with a knowing smile. He hadn't expected Hinata to come today, with the afternoon off and tomorrow's practical exam approaching.
"Um!"
Hinata's spirits lifted as she removed her shoes and entered.
Seeing Kitazawa grading, she sat on the sofa, her fair, delicate feet gently tapping the floor with her mood.
By noon, Kitazawa exhaled, setting down the papers and pen.
He glanced at Hinata, sitting neatly like a carefully crafted doll.
His gaze fell on her snow-white legs. If she wore white stockings… no, no, can't think that… too dangerous!
He pushed the thought away. He was just prone to exaggeration.
"Hinata, lunch is ready!"
Kitazawa teased with a light laugh.
Hinata immediately snapped out of it, hopping down and straightening up.
Catching Kitazawa's half-smile, she realized she had been tricked, her cheeks heating red.
"Let's go eat,"
Kitazawa beckoned.
Hinata suppressed her shyness and followed.
Kitazawa patted her head and led her to Ichiraku Ramen.
After lunch, Hinata returned to the Hyuga clan.
Kitazawa resumed grading papers.
By dusk, all exams had been graded and ranked.
Hinata Hyuga took first place. Kitazawa nodded with satisfaction—her training had paid off.
Second place, surprisingly, was Sakura Haruno, not Sasuke. Not unusual; in the original series, Sakura excelled in theory.
Her selection for Class 7 had heavily relied on her theoretical scores, and her bond with Naruto and Sasuke also factored in.
Kitazawa's eyes scanned down the list and stopped at Naruto Uzumaki.
Good news: he was no longer at the bottom.
Bad news: stuck in the middle, twenty-eighth place.
Still, room for improvement.
At that moment, three lines appeared in Kitazawa's mind:
[Current Task: Help your lifelong rival, Naruto Uzumaki, achieve a top ten rank in the next monthly exam.]
[Task Reward: Yin Attribute.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa was surprised, but not overly so. He had received similar tasks before.
However, this time, the goal was top ten, not second place.
Why does the system have so little faith in Naruto?
Kitazawa exclaimed internally.
From another perspective, though, Naruto was the first student already preparing for the next ranking task.
Ahem.
Kitazawa chose to accept. With the Yin attribute, mastering genjutsu would become even easier.