If you don't give it your all, you'll never know if you're a good-for-nothing!
Although Hyuga Mirai wasn't a good-for-nothing, after passing the Ninja School entrance exam, he clearly realized that he wasn't a genius, especially with the ugly mark on his head.
The Caged Bird Curse Seal is a mark exclusive to the Hyuga Branch Family. When Hyuga Mirai first saw this curse mark in the mirror, he thought it looked quite good. However, when he recalled the pain his predecessor endured under the curse mark, that thought vanished from his mind.
That's right!
Hyuga Mirai is a transmigrator. He had only been in the Naruto world for less than half a year when he was forced to join the youth training base of the world's largest pyramid scheme.
It was July of Konoha Year 41.
Hyuga Mirai was five years old. His father, a Jonin guard of the Hyuga Branch Family, had died; as for his original mother, there was no memory of her, so she likely died in childbirth.
Coupled with being from the Hyuga Branch Family, having average talent, not being assigned to the elite class, and his golden finger temporarily unable to activate, Hyuga Mirai was quickly stacking up his cannon fodder buffs.
"The class assignments are out."
Everyone waiting at the Ninja School entrance rushed over to find their names after hearing the shout. Many adults helped, but orphans like Hyuga Mirai could only wait until the crowd dispersed to check.
However, from his observations just now, he definitely wouldn't make it into the elite class. He just didn't know which cannon fodder class he'd be assigned to.
Unless the Ninja School increased the number of elite class students to a hundred, then Hyuga Mirai would have a little hope.
"Hyuga-kun, aren't you going to check the class assignments?"
A soft voice sounded beside him. Hyuga Mirai quickly turned his head to see that it was a 'familiar face' he had spoken to not long ago.
Shizune Kato.
She was the same age and grade as Hyuga Mirai and had also just finished the Ninja School selection. During the physical fitness test, Hyuga Mirai saw Shizune Kato slow down, so he leaned over and quietly encouraged her, saying,
"Come on, Kato-kun."
After that, Shizune Kato turned her head, smiled at Hyuga Mirai, and immediately picked up her speed, finishing within the top thirty.
Leaving the exhausted Hyuga Mirai, who, even after trying his hardest, barely managed to rank around forty or fifty.
He was the clown after all!
It turned out Shizune Kato wasn't exhausted at all; he had simply overthought it.
Hyuga Mirai gestured with his hand to indicate his height and helplessly said to Shizune Kato, "I'm too small; I'll get hurt if I squeeze in with them."
"I really hope I can be in the same class as Hyuga-kun."
Hyuga Mirai nodded and earnestly but perfunctorily replied, "Me too, Kato-kun. Aren't you going to go check?"
Shizune Kato seemed a bit overly enthusiastic, but Hyuga Mirai secretly observed her for a few moments, then deduced that she probably just wanted to find a familiar classmate to be friends with before school started, so he no longer focused his attention on Shizune Kato.
The physical fitness test before enrollment was precisely to filter out a group of people for the elite class.
And Hyuga Mirai was among those who were filtered out. Enrollment wasn't an issue; it was just that the teaching resources would be different from the elite class.
The elite class might have three or four elite Chunin as teachers, while the regular class would only have one, or even several classes sharing one, providing a cramming-style education to quickly turn them into cannon fodder.
After the crowd dispersed, Hyuga Mirai went to the class assignment list to check his name.
First-year Class B, that's not bad.
It wasn't the elite class, but it was ranked first among the cannon fodder classes. He probably got into Class B because of his Hyuga Clan background.
After checking the class assignments, Hyuga Mirai turned to leave. He needed to prepare the items required for school. Those with parents would have them ready at home, but he, being an orphan, had to prepare them himself.
In the Hyuga Branch Family, although his father was a Jonin of the Branch Family, he was usually silent and had few friends he could talk to. So, after becoming an orphan, Hyuga Mirai had only met an elder of the Branch Family once.
That time, a guard captain from the Branch Family came to confirm whether Hyuga Mirai was capable of living independently. After confirmation, he reclaimed his father's independent courtyard and reallocated him a smaller, single-unit house.
This kind of operation is common in the Branch Family; those who are strong and valuable are given important positions. Hyuga Mirai was different from his father and wasn't qualified to occupy a house with a courtyard.
Did they really think everyone was the Branch Family Head's son, or that their uncle was the Main Family Head!?
With a monthly allowance and his father's savings, Hyuga Mirai had enough to grow up healthy until adulthood. Besides a change of residence, Hyuga Mirai suffered almost no loss, even receiving his father's cultivation notes.
However, after handing over his father's cultivation notes to Hyuga Mirai, the Branch Family guard captain specifically warned him not to rush into cultivation, and if he truly wanted to undergo ninja training, it would be best to do so with his peers in the clan.
Hyuga Mirai naturally agreed wholeheartedly. He also knew that fundamentals were most important in childhood, so Hyuga Mirai planned to eat plenty of meat, eggs, and dairy, diligently exercise, and accumulate knowledge related to medicine.
That's right, Hyuga Mirai planned to become a Medical Ninja. Of course, he also didn't plan to abandon the clan's Gentle Fist.
The Third Great Ninja War was going to break out in a few years, and that's when the cannon fodder classes would make their grand appearance. If Hyuga Mirai became a Medical Ninja, he would be in the rear on the battlefield, which would increase his survival rate.
After returning to his home, which was four times smaller than before, Hyuga Mirai took some money, went out to purchase some school supplies, and then bought enough meat, eggs, and dairy for a few days' consumption before returning home to start formulating a plan.
A survival plan!
Ninja training in Konoha Village is generally six years, but if a war breaks out, the time spent in school will be shortened. As for how much it will be shortened, it depends on the severity of the Third Great Ninja War.
Based on Hyuga Mirai's estimation, no matter how shameless Konoha was, they wouldn't send seven or eight-year-old children to the battlefield. Even if ninjas developed quickly, they wouldn't be harvested every three years.
This meant Hyuga Mirai had at least four to five years of safe time to work hard to become stronger and survive on the battlefield.
"Very good, the lazy habits of my previous life should be discarded. From now on, I must strictly follow the established plan."
Hyuga Mirai looked at the fully packed schedule in front of him and couldn't help but encourage himself, saying,
There was no other way; this world was too dangerous. A moment of slackness today could cost him his life in the future.
Speaking of which, if even the safety of children couldn't be guaranteed, what future did Konoha Village have?
No wonder it became increasingly weak, to the point where later on, just one Orochimaru caused Konoha to scramble.
"First, I'll prepare everything for school tomorrow, and then I'll train."
Hyuga Mirai liked to prepare everything in advance. He put his textbooks and other items into his backpack, then placed it on the cabinet by the door, and began his training for the day.
As he was still young, the training wouldn't be too excessive.
Two laps around the training ground, sit-ups, push-ups, frog jumps, and so on. Although there were many exercises, the repetitions were within Hyuga Mirai's tolerable range.
After half a day of training, Hyuga Mirai dragged his tired body back home.
Dinner consisted of boiled chicken, eggs, rice, and a glass of milk. The taste wasn't great, but with soy sauce, it was palatable.
After eating, Hyuga Mirai frowned slightly and thought, "I should treat myself every ten days from now on, otherwise my taste buds will degenerate in a few years."
After eating, Hyuga Mirai seemed to have recovered some energy. He then flipped through the cultivation notes left by his predecessor's father, from Chakra extraction to Gentle Fist training, until sleepiness overcame him. Only then did he set his alarm and drift off to sleep.
Tomorrow was the day of enrollment!