In the original storyline, during Naruto's era, one could graduate from the Ninja Academy by simply mastering the three basic ninja techniques and passing the assessment. However, they still needed to pass an assessment from their instructor to become a shinobi.
Currently, it is wartime, so things naturally wouldn't be so complicated, nor would there be so many chunin and jonin with time to mentor students.[1]
Therefore, now, one could become a genin simply by graduating from the Ninja Academy, but the difficulty of the assessment was much higher. It not only required passing a written exam but also undergoing a five-day wilderness survival exercise, though it was a survival exercise without direct combat.[3][1]
Finally, a practical combat assessment was required, and only after passing all three assessments could one be granted the title of genin and become a shinobi.
The mission the Third Hokage gave to Kyuushin was to act as an examiner for the third assessment, which was to test the candidates' practical combat skills.
Based on the candidates' performance, Kyuushin needed to give them scores. Below 60 points was a failure, 60 to 70 points was the level of an ordinary genin, 70 to 80 points was the level of an excellent genin, 80 to 90 points was beyond the genin level, and above 90 points was the chunin level.
Such a mission held no difficulty for Kyuushin, so its mission rank was only C-rank. He just didn't understand why the old man would give him such a mission.
Seemingly noticing Kyuushin's confusion, the Third Hokage said:
"After these students become genin, they will soon go to the battlefield to carry out missions. Although they are not direct combat missions, they must always remain vigilant and, ideally, possess a certain degree of self-preservation ability."
"However, currently, there are not many shinobi remaining in the village who are qualified and capable of assessing the students of the Ninja Academy. Most of them have already taken on other missions, and the teachers of the general academy have been away from the battlefield for too long, making them insufficient to judge."
"You have been on the battlefield before and have a better understanding of the situation there. You must also have your own considerations regarding what kind of students can survive after becoming shinobi."
"Moreover, although you may not know it, your name has already spread throughout the Ninja Academy. As your peers, these students should also be made aware that there are always others more capable. If they can all take you as their goal, that would be for the best."
"Yes, Hokage-sama, I understand." Kyuushin nodded, understanding the Third Hokage's intention.
However, the Third Hokage hadn't finished speaking. He continued:
"Furthermore, you are also about to be promoted to the rank of jonin, but apart from your two teammates, you have not yet led any other teams. Therefore, I intend to entrust this group of shinobi, who are about to go to the battlefield, to your leadership."
"However, you don't need to lead them directly into combat. You only need to lead them to the front-line camp. Even so, I believe this process will be of great help to your growth."
"Yes, I will treat this mission with utmost seriousness."
Kyuushin hadn't expected the Third Hokage to have this intention, but the old man was indeed making every effort to help him grow. He immediately accepted the mission with a solemn expression.
The Third Hokage nodded with satisfaction, then, as if remembering something else, asked Kyuushin:
"How is your Ice Release kekkei genkai developing now? It's a pity that our Konoha doesn't have relevant experience in this, but if you encounter difficulties, you can always come directly to me. I should be able to offer some advice."
"Thank you, Hokage-sama, but I don't think it will be necessary. Some time ago, Grandma Mito already gave me Lord Hashirama's Wood Release Secret Techniques scroll to study."
"Ice Release is quite similar to Wood Release in terms of form, so I have also created quite a few Ice Release ninjutsu based on the First Hokage-sama's Wood Release Secret Techniques."
"Good, good, good."
Hearing Kyuushin say this, the Third Hokage couldn't help but stroke his beard and smile. He had naturally witnessed Senju Hashirama's Wood Release. If the Ice Release Secret Techniques Kyuushin created had even half or three-tenths of the power of Wood Release, it would be an extraordinary feat.
The Third Hokage beamed with joy; nothing made him happier than the emergence of a gifted junior like Kyuushin in the village. He even couldn't help but say:
"If you have any problems with your training in the future, you can always come to me. I will issue an order shortly to the Anbu not to obstruct you, and you can tell me any requests you have."
"Yes, thank you, Hokage-sama." Kyuushin first expressed his gratitude to the Third Hokage, then somewhat sheepishly said:
"Hokage-sama, recently, besides practicing Ice Release, I have also been cultivating Fire Nature Transformation. However, I don't have many Fire Release ninjutsu on my side. What do you think..."
"That's easy to handle. I'll help you pick out a few right away."
Upon hearing Kyuushin's request, the Third Hokage, far from being displeased, immediately stood up, walked to a side of the office, formed a few hand signs, and a door instantly appeared on the side of the office.
The Third Hokage walked directly in, and then the door closed behind him.
Tsunade and the other two exchanged glances. Jiraiya couldn't help but say to Kyuushin:
"The old man is really too good to you, you little rascal."
Kyuushin chuckled. Tsunade then said, "Who told my disciple to have such great talent? Don't forget, you learned your Rasengan from him!"
At this, Jiraiya gave an awkward laugh and immediately fell silent, while Orochimaru said:
"It seems you, as a teacher, haven't taught him much. I knew I should have competed with you back then. I didn't expect you to get such a great advantage."
The Naruto world places a relatively high emphasis on master-disciple inheritance. The idea of master and disciple being one is not just talk; if Kyuushin becomes famous in the shinobi world in the future, Tsunade, as his teacher, will naturally also benefit from it.
Tsunade crossed her arms. Hearing Orochimaru's words, she was not ashamed but rather said:
"That just proves you have no affinity with Kyuushin, doesn't it, Kyuushin?"
"Yes, yes, everything you say, Sensei, is right." But his face showed a helpless expression, not expecting them three to drag him into their conversation.
Orochimaru was naturally not angry. He knew Tsunade's temperament was like that. He just shook his head and said no more.
After a while, the Third Hokage walked out again, holding several scrolls in his hand. He walked up to Kyuushin and handed them to him, saying:
"Our Sarutobi Clan is most proficient in Fire Release, even comparable to the Uchiha Clan. These are some of the more powerful Fire Release techniques from within my clan that I have carefully selected for you."
Kyuushin took them with both hands and said, "Yes, Hokage-sama, I will study them diligently!"
The Third Hokage nodded and said to him, "Alright, then go back and prepare well. Tomorrow, the final assessment for those students will begin, and you'll need to keep your eyes peeled."
Kyuushin nodded, then left the Hokage Office with Tsunade and the others.
Orochimaru was about to leave the village soon, so he naturally needed to prepare well. Jiraiya and Tsunade also had their own matters, so they also left.
Kyuushin thought he would be going home alone, but after walking a few steps, he realized that Nawaki and Minato were still waiting by the roadside, and Nawaki had already put on the uniform he had just received.
Upon seeing Kyuushin approach, Nawaki leaped in front of him and said, "How do I look? Am I handsome in this uniform?"
As he spoke, he confidently made a victory sign, revealing his white teeth.
Kyuushin could barely look, so he simply humored him, "Handsome, handsome."
Minato, on the other hand, appeared much more composed and asked, "Since the old man has promoted us to chunin, does that mean our team will be disbanded?"
This wasn't Minato guessing idly. Typically, Konoha teams usually consisted of one chunin leading several genin, or one jonin leading several chunin and genin.
If there were multiple chunin in a team, they would naturally each lead their own squad. Now that all three of them in their team were chunin, they would, in theory, be disbanded.[1]
Nawaki's spirits immediately dropped upon hearing Minato's question. He just looked at Kyuushin.
Kyuushin frowned. He hadn't considered this matter before, but he still reassured them:
"It shouldn't be. Hokage-sama didn't mention it to me just now. At least for this war, it should still be the three of us."
Nawaki and Minato nodded then, but Kyuushin continued:
"However, you are both chunin now, which means Hokage-sama also hopes that you will be able to stand on your own in the future. You must work hard for that."
He had been teamed with Nawaki and Minato for over a year, and their bond was strong. However, Kyuushin also knew that at a certain stage, the three-person team would inevitably separate.
Therefore, he naturally had to give them a heads-up. Nawaki and Minato's spirits also fell after hearing Kyuushin's words, but Kyuushin did not comfort them again.
The three walked home in silence. After a long while, Nawaki finally said loudly:
"No matter what, we'll always be friends, right?"
Kyuushin and Minato naturally nodded in unison, saying, "Of course!"
Thus, the cheerful atmosphere filled the air again.
The next morning, Kyuushin arrived at the assessment site described in the mission. He was very familiar with this place; it was the large training ground behind the academy. A group of students who hadn't graduated yet naturally wouldn't have much destructive power.[1]
When he arrived, many of the academy's teachers had already gathered there. Among them, some were today's examiners, and some were the homeroom teachers of those students.
Upon seeing Kyuushin arrive, many teachers who knew him greeted him, while some less familiar teachers directly addressed him as "Lord Kyuushin."
Although in terms of rank, these teachers were chunin, just like him, their status was clearly lower compared to a combat shinobi like Kyuushin.
However, Kyuushin did not appear arrogant; he still addressed them as "Sensei." After dealing with these teachers, Kyuushin stood with Yota, his former homeroom teacher.
Yota's class was in its fourth year this year, and many students wanted to graduate early, so he naturally came to observe.
As he chatted with Yota, time slowly passed, and many students gradually arrived at the training ground. At exactly nine o'clock in the morning, the assessment officially began.
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