Naruto twirled around with his arms wide before returning to the lineup.
Kitazawa couldn't help but smile.
He recalled the old fisherman from his previous life—catching a giant fish only to flaunt it everywhere.
Kitazawa picked up his pen and marked eighty points on the roster.
For Naruto, this "extraordinary performance" was relative; objectively, it was only slightly above average and imperfect.
Yet it still surpassed most of the class.
It wasn't until Sasuke Uchiha stepped up that the first perfect score appeared.
"Excellent,"
Kitazawa nodded slightly.
Sasuke was momentarily lost in thought.
He remembered his previous Clone performance hadn't been this good.
Then he recalled the tree-climbing training Kitazawa had assigned.
Improved chakra control wasn't just for Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique—it helped all jutsu.
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei,"
Sasuke said sincerely.
"Next,"
Kitazawa glanced at the roster. "Shikamaru Nara."
The perpetually lazy Shikamaru strolled up, forming two passable clones before leisurely returning to the line.
How can someone so young restrain themselves? Young blood must be spirited, Kitazawa thought.
He could tell Shikamaru was merely going through the motions.
Yesterday's theory exam had been similar—just enough for a sixty-point pass.
It wasn't talent concealment; it was pure laziness.
In the original timeline, Shikamaru only changed after his teacher Asuma's death.
"Hinata Hyuga,"
Kitazawa called next.
Hinata took a deep breath and stepped to the center of the field.
The attention of her peers made her nervous.
Her gaze instinctively dropped.
But recalling Kitazawa's special training eased her anxiety.
Clone!
She formed two identical clones.
"Not worse than Sasuke?"
Ino Yamanaka gasped.
Sasuke's expression tightened.
Hinata's technique was flawless and posed a real threat.
He realized it was thanks to Kitazawa.
Like him, Hinata had completed the tree-climbing training.
Sasuke glanced at Ino.
Kurama Yakumo, due to physical limitations, wasn't participating.
Naruto was still behind on tree-climbing, leaving only Ino.
As expected, her Clone was nearly perfect, slightly inferior to his.
Fortunately, the next three events weren't related to chakra control.
Sasuke exhaled in relief.
I can't imagine the disappointment if I didn't take first.
"When did Ino get this strong?"
Choji Akimichi nudged Shikamaru.
Shikamaru, their external brain, just shrugged.
Sakura Haruno looked on, surprised.
As Ino's close friend, she knew her capabilities.
Her rapid improvement was astonishing.
"It's Kitazawa-sensei's special training,"
Sasuke interjected.
"Special training?"
Sakura recalled the free periods during practical lessons.
"Oh, right,"
Choji nodded in remembrance.
"Kitazawa-sensei truly is amazing,"
Shikamaru added.
Indeed, few civilian ninjas possessed such ability.
"Yes,"
Choji agreed.
The special training greatly enhanced Sasuke, Ino, Naruto, and Hinata.
"I want to join too!"
Sakura clenched her fists.
"You'll need to work harder," Ino smiled, returning to the line.
Though Sakura excelled in theory, her practical skills lagged.
Being a non-clan ninja, her first exposure meant slower progress.
"The Clone exam is complete; next is kunai throwing,"
Kitazawa announced after scoring.
Compared to the flashy clones, kunai throwing was straightforward.
The standout, unsurprisingly, was Sasuke.
He replicated Kitazawa's technique—without blind throwing.
Terrifyingly precise!
Kitazawa breathed a sigh of relief.
Sasuke hadn't activated the Sharingan; otherwise, the task might have failed.
After kunai, came shuriken throwing.
Both were common tools, and Sasuke again impressed the most.
By ten o'clock, only the physical test remained.
Sasuke and the others took to the track.
"The rules are simple,"
Kitazawa explained. "Run fifty laps. Rank by finishing time."
He waved to Iruka nearby.
"Kitazawa-senpai,"
Iruka approached.
"You'll score the physical test,"
Kitazawa handed him the roster and pen.
"Leaving?"
Iruka hesitated. "School rules require two teachers for the exam."
"I'm not leaving. I'll run with them,"
Kitazawa shook his head.
"Huh?"
Iruka was puzzled. The teacher is warming up?
"I guide them to reduce tension, making it feel like ordinary physical training,"
Kitazawa explained with a smile.
"This improves their performance."
"I see,"
Iruka realized, impressed. "Truly the finest teacher in the Ninja Academy!"
"Watch carefully and learn,"
Kitazawa patted his shoulder and led the students onto the track.
Under his guidance, Sasuke and the others began running.
Physical training was a weekly routine.
Everyone knew each other; results were predictable.
"Hahaha! I'm first again!"
Naruto bounced joyfully.
All you think about is being first, Kitazawa shook his head.
Sasuke collapsed in exhaustion.
How does he have so much stamina?
Fortunately, Naruto only took first in the physical test; Sasuke dominated the other three events.
Three first-place finishes—try beating that.
Sasuke calculated, fully reassured.
Glory belongs to the Uchiha.
[Current Task: Become first in class for the April exam.]
[Task Reward: Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere.]
[Task completed; reward issued.]
Kitazawa smiled at the sudden notification.
Reward secured. Every effort was worth it.