(AN: Hi, I'm back! Did you miss me? …Ok, I'll stop. Anyway, my phone still isn't fixed, but at least the screen still registers taps. It just hurts my fingers with the cracked glass 😭. I'll still try to write a chapter every day—or every three days at least. Please give this story a chance, I truly apologize for the inconvenience 🙏)
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"Alright, quiet down. We'll be testing each and every one of you to establish the order in the class—to see who needs to be focused on the most. Am I clear?" Iruka announced, intimidating most of the kids.
Except me, of course. Cuz I'm awesome.
"Yes, Sensei!" they all chorused, which honestly made my ears ring a little.
Iruka nodded and held up three fingers. "The test will be split into three parts: an obstacle course, accuracy, and finally… sparring."
I believe I'll win this.
I wonder though—what are Itachi and Minato's records? Might as well ask.
I raised my hand until Iruka finally called on me. "Sensei, were these tests around when the Fourth was still a student?"
He seemed to think for a second before nodding. "Yes, they were. They were introduced by Lord Second a few years after the academy's creation. Why?"
"No reason, Sensei. Just curious."
Iruka's eyes narrowed. "I don't believe that—especially considering your personality. You're going to try and break their records, aren't you? Naruto, those two are some of the best our village has ever produced. Don't think it'll be that simple."
I hummed. "Doesn't matter. I'll surpass them anyway. So… what were their record times and scores?"
Iruka flipped through his notebook before stepping forward.
"Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage, holds the record at 1 minute and 8 seconds for the obstacle course, with an 18 out of 20 score on the accuracy test. Itachi Uchiha has a time of 1 minute and 30 seconds, but a perfect 20 out of 20 for the kunai and shuriken throw."
Minato was faster, but Itachi had better accuracy. Makes sense, considering their styles and heritage.
Iruka gestured for us to follow him, and we eventually arrived at the obstacle course. It looked like a jungle gym on steroids—just way more complicated.
It started with a wall climb—but not just any wall climb. You had to scale it while carrying a sack filled with bricks… which you had to carry for the entire course. Next, a taller wall with a slide on top. After sliding down, you had to time your jump to grab some monkey bars. Miss the grab? Too bad. Climb back up the wall and try again.
Tedious, I know.
After the monkey bars, there was another wall—seriously, what is with these people and walls?! Finally, after scaling that wall, there was a four-meter rope climb. You had to ring the bell at the top to stop the timer.
Simple, right?
Anyway, here were the times for the important people:
Sakura – 4:27
Ino – 4:11
Hinata – 2:17
Shino – 2:42
Shikamaru – DNF (he was too lazy to participate)
Choji – 3:21 (Iruka lured him with food)
Kiba – 2:23
Sasuke – 2:11
"Naruto, you're up next."
I nodded and stepped in front of the first wall.
Iruka blew his whistle.
I dashed forward, snatched the sack, and climbed the wall easily.
Then came the taller wall—I scaled it and slid down. I grabbed the monkey bars mid-air and swung through them without missing a beat.
Next wall? Nothing. I scaled it clean.
Rope climb? Done. I rang the bell at the top with ease.
Barely out of breath. A few deep breaths and I was fine.
I slid down and landed on my feet, locking eyes with Iruka—who looked like a fish gasping for air.
Fishruka.
"F-Forty-seven seconds…" he breathed out.
Not bad—better than I expected.
"W-What just…?" I heard Sasuke mutter. Guess he still thought of his brother as some kind of untouchable god.
"E-Eh?"
"Who's he?"
"Hey, isn't he kinda cute?"
…Huh?
Is this what being popular feels like?
I don't like it. The attention seems troublesome.
"Alright, calm down," Iruka said. "Time to move on."
We headed to the back of the academy, where targets were set up against trees—20 in total. Iruka explained that we each got 10 kunai and 10 shuriken. Your score? The number of targets hit.
Let's just gloss over the NPCs and get to the cannon characters.
Sakura – 7/20
Ino – 11/20
Hinata – 15/20
Shino – 13/20
Shikamaru – 10/20
Choji – 10/20
Kiba – 11/20
Sasuke – 16/20
Then it was my turn. You can probably guess how that went.
Iruka handed me the kunai and shuriken. I threw them without any specific technique—targets were stationary, after all.
"I'm not even surprised. Naruto, 20 out of 20."
The others looked shocked again, but whatever.
Iruka led us to the sparring grounds out front, where he split everyone into pairs… except me.
"Wait, why am I not sparring?" I asked.
I could guess the reason, but I wanted to hear it from Iruka.
"Well, you're obviously superior to your classmates," he explained. "I planned to do a tournament-style gauntlet. You'll spar the other finalist—we just need to find who deserves to face you."
Fair enough. No idea who it'll be, though.
The others began their matches.
Eventually, it came down to Hinata and Sasuke.
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(Sasuke's POV)
I can't believe it.
That blond loser broke nii-san's record.
I felt… jealous. I could never beat nii-san at anything.
And then Iruka-sensei said Naruto was "superior" to the rest of us. Including me.
No.
I'll prove them wrong.
I'll prove everyone wrong.
Later, Iruka-sensei brought us to the sparring ground. One by one, we fought.
Now there are only two of us left: me and a girl from the Hyūga clan.
I can't lose.
Iruka-sensei signaled the start. My mind blanked as I charged, fist raised, already smirking at my incoming win—
Eh?
…She dodged?
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