Seijuro trained for the whole week, spent a very long time improving his skills. Today was the day of the exam. This was like the mid-term, but the physical version.
It was the same test they took to enter this school. People in lower classes who scored high had the chance to move up to a better class.
And if you were in a high class and did shitty, you had a chance to get downgraded, so heh.
The test should be simple enough.
His clan leader had called him. He had one simple order for this... beat everyone. Make sure to show that he wasn't ahead by a small margin.
So... Seijuro would show like Genin level, still holding back massively, but his strength should still be in the achievable ranges, even though most of his classmates wouldn't reach his current power until like a couple years later—like 4-ish years for some, 10 years for others, while some of them might never even make it there. Not because they lack talent, but because they would die in a war.
The first test was simple, and since the Hokage was here, the jog was removed.
So, basically, run at full speed and avoid the obstacles, parkour, and achieve first place.
It wasn't too hard, he could manage that.
He saw a blonde woman in the crowd. Her chakra amount was huge, yet similar to Nawaki's, so that was his sister.
So that was the Hokage. He saw a man sitting next to the Hokage. His chakra was sinister. Hm. Seijuro didn't like it.
The Uchiha clan patriarch was here, alongside the Hyuga and other big clans. Seijuro's brows would furrow—this was a simple midterm exam, why were there so many people around?
His mind raced until one possibility stood out... a war was brewing. They were here to see the new generation—or at least see if they had capable shinobi. And for the case of the evil chakra guy, to see if he could find any prodigy he could control. Yes, he got all that from the man's chakra.
It felt that evil, and he wished that man stayed 100 feet away from any school. Then, there was a guy with very long hair trying his hardest not to perv on Nawaki's sister. That must be Jiraiya. And next to him was a dude with the features of a snake.
This must be Orochimaru. Good to know.
So many important people. Nawaki was waving at his family, Minato seemed to look at his grandma—the works. Yui was there. Seijuro was happy.
Seijuro was ready for this.
Since it was a race, he would race.
"This is the mid-term. If you do horrible on this exam, you will be dropped from this class. Remember, the eyes of the village are on you. You are the hope of the village. The Hokage himself came here to witness you. Do not disappoint."
Seijuro wondered if he should use Shunshin. Hm. No, that wouldn't do it. He wanted to see how strong he was in terms of sheer speed.
"Get in line." Seijuro would stand at his spot, somewhere to the side. He could feel some eyes on him.
Hiruzen Sarutobi. The Professor, one might say—the God of Shinobi, which heh, second one was semi-truth. He was like the strongest Kage right now, followed by like the Third Raikage, A, then Onoki, and whatever the rest was.
In terms of physical strength, A does beat him, and Onoki can fly. Still doesn't mean the middle-aged man couldn't box with either of them.
He was here today to see how this young batch of shinobi was developing.
Mito sat there, all graceful. Matter of fact, she sat somewhere behind him, so above him, which to be fair considering her ranking—Princess of the Uzumaki clan, wife of Hashirama Senju, basically the clan head of the Senju right now.
And she was basically the balancer between the Leaf and Uzushiogakure.
The Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails, and the strongest person currently in Konoha... yes, she could beat Hiruzen's ass in her old age.
Worst-case scenario, the beast gets released, and Hiruzen, unlike the previous God of Shinobi, could not treat the Tailed Beasts as Pokémon nor pets.
His eyes landed on the boy—Kurama Seijuro. He had read the boy's files, and from what he had gathered, Seijuro Kurama was the top of his class, always placing first in practically everything.
He had read some of the boy's papers. His mind truly was sharp for a kid. Hm. Now it was time to see if the boy had reached Genin-level strength.
Meanwhile, somewhere else—
"Come on, Tsunade, it was just one time. Can you not just forgive me?" Jiraiya had a bump on his head. Yes, he got punched in that small amount of time. Do not judge him. He saw titties and he wanted to touch them, okay?
But hey, that didn't end well for him.
Orochimaru didn't say anything. His friend was being an aloof guy once more.
"You deserve it," she would say with what seemed to be a vein on her forehead.
He would scratch his head. That shit hurt. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ nοvelfire.net
"Who's that kid Nawaki's talking to?" Jiraiya was a bit in the dark. He never knew that kid. Seijuro's existence was foreign to him.
"A brat my brother wants to surpass. Even had me train him for it," Tsunade would say. Frankly, she didn't see why. The boy felt weak, his vibe didn't seem strong.
Jiraiya would look at the boy. Heh. Nawaki needed help beating that?
"He seems fragile, like a twig could blow him away."
"Appearance can be quite... deceptive," Orochimaru's voice could be heard saying.
The snake didn't know why, but he felt as if the boy was hiding something. Didn't know what yet.
Jiraiya didn't see it. Welp, he would watch. Maybe when he praised Nawaki for winning, he might win some points from Tsunade. Heheheheheh.
Somewhere else in the stands—
Mito looked at her grandson. He had gotten stronger. He now had more control over his Elite Jōnin-level chakra. Yes, he was like 10 years old with that much chakra. Genetics were heavy carrying. With Tsunade's training, the boy was way stronger than before.
Her gaze would land on the boy Nawaki was talking with. Her brow furrowed a bit.
Let's see... Chūnin-level chakra, he had his clan's Kekkei Genkai, so he was a master at making illusion. Hm. Odd, she didn't sense the id that most of them seem to have when they have the clan Kekkei Genkai.
Was the boy perhaps in full control of his power?
He seemed rather dangerous. Something she could make out of it was simple... the boy was stronger than he was letting on.