Upon hearing the rules for team assignments, students began whispering among themselves. Everyone was discussing who they might be grouped with. Some close friends even declared they would form a team together, while others looked ready to start a brawl to fight over teammates.
Teacher Miyamoto didn't interrupt them, silently watching the discussions until the noise in the classroom gradually died down.
"Quiet down, everyone. Team assignments aren't based on your whims; they take into account your usual performance and exam results."
Hearing this, everyone stopped arguing and stared nervously at Teacher Miyamoto, hoping to be assigned with their preferred teammates.
"Now, let's begin the assignments."
Miyamoto picked up the list beside him and began to read: "Team 1: Kunihiko Hori, Tetsuto Sakata, Iko Kishida. Team 2: Iori Yokokawa, Tatsuya Kawasaki, Sa Naito..."
As names were read out one by one, some were happy to be with friends they admired, while others were dismayed to be stuck with rivals they disliked. However, everyone restrained themselves and avoided making a scene.
Soon, Taiichi Matsushita heard his name and his teammates.
"Team 8: Taiichi Matsushita, Yohei Uchiha, Saori Furukawa..."
Hearing these two names, Taiichi quickly scanned the room and locked eyes with a boy and a girl in the back who were also looking his way. They exchanged glances and nodded to each other as a greeting, curiosity in their eyes as they wondered what kind of people their teammates were.
By then, Teacher Miyamoto had finished reading the list. "Alright, familiarize yourselves with each other for now, but remember not to leave the classroom. Your Jonin Sensei will arrive shortly. When they do, just follow them," Miyamoto instructed one last time.
With that, he turned and left the classroom.
The moment the teacher left, the classroom erupted into noise like a marketplace. Everyone left their seats to find their respective team members.
Taiichi also stood up and walked toward his two teammates in the back.
The three met in the aisle. Taiichi spoke first, "Hello, I'm Taiichi Matsushita."
"Yohei Uchiha." The male ninja looked quite boisterous.
"Saori Furukawa." The female ninja seemed shy, her voice soft and weak.
"Let's go sit over there and chat!" Yohei Uchiha waved his hand grandly, pointing to some empty seats nearby.
"Sure!" Taiichi glanced over and agreed.
"Mm." That sound came from Saori Furukawa, faint as a mosquito's buzz.
Yohei Uchiha led the way. As soon as the three sat down, Yohei asked, "You're the second-year student who graduated early, right? Why are you so strong? Do you have private tutors at home?" Saori listened with a curious expression as well.
Taiichi looked at the two curious babies and didn't hesitate. "I'm an orphan; my parents died in the war. I do have two teachers I can ask questions to, though." Taiichi didn't go into too much detail; after all, it was their first meeting.
"Sorry about that, Taiichi," Yohei apologized upon hearing Taiichi was an orphan.
"It's nothing. It happened a long time ago. Besides, I was too young to remember anything," Taiichi replied, pretending not to care.
...
The three chatted. From their conversation, Taiichi learned that Yohei Uchiha's parents worked in the Konoha Military Police Force, and he was the top student of this graduating class. Saori Furukawa's father was a Sealing Jutsu Jonin, and she ranked in the top five of her grade. Both were ninjas with family legacies, the kind of "children next door" parents always compared their kids to.
Sure enough, the village's arrangement was planned. It wasn't like the original story claimed, where they balanced team strength by putting the top student with the dead last. Taiichi's Team 8 was definitely built as an elite squad.
An hour and a half passed in the blink of an eye. During this time, Jonin arrived one after another to take their teams away. However, Taiichi noticed that rather than full "Jonin," most of them were actually Special Jonin.
It made sense. How many Jonin did Konoha have in total? At most, maybe less than 2,000, and that was with Konoha being the strongest village. The other four great ninja villages had far fewer Jonin. Otherwise, Konoha wouldn't be able to win wars fighting multiple fronts. And these Jonin were either holding important positions or busy with A-rank and S-rank missions; they didn't have that much free time to lead Genin teams.
A while later, a rugged-looking man walked into the classroom. With a thick beard covering his face, he looked resolute and reliable. He scanned the classroom, his gaze finally settling on Taiichi's group. A deep voice rang out: "Team 8, follow me." With that, he turned and left the room.
Taiichi and the others exchanged a glance and quickly got up to follow. Leaving the classroom, they saw the "Bearded" man already turning the corner. By the time they caught up, he had disappeared from sight, forcing them to speed up. Once they left the school grounds, the "Bearded" man accelerated again, leaping directly onto the rooftops and jumping across the rows of houses.
Taiichi and his team didn't hesitate; they jumped onto the roofs and chased after him. As the "Bearded" man got faster and faster, they realized this was a test. So, all three increased their speed. Gradually, a gap formed between them: Taiichi was in the lead, Yohei Uchiha was second, and Saori Furukawa lagged far behind.
Finally, after running for about 30 minutes, they arrived at Konoha Training Ground 10. The "Bearded" man stopped and turned to look at the trio arriving one by one. Taiichi looked the same as before; aside from slightly disheveled clothes, his breathing was steady.
The man nodded slightly in approval. To have such stamina at this age was truly impressive.
Yohei Uchiha arrived panting heavily, and when Saori Furukawa finally caught up, she was so exhausted she collapsed on the ground.
The man didn't rush them, giving the two time to rest. At the same time, he formed a rough evaluation of the three in his mind.
About 10 minutes later, after calming their breathing, the two looked at Taiichi with strange expressions. The gap is a bit big, they thought. As expected of someone who graduated early.
Seeing that everyone had rested, the man clapped his hands to attract their attention.
"Alright, you've rested enough." A smile appeared on his serious face for the first time.
"I am your Jonin Sensei. Let's start with self-introductions. I'll go first."
"My name is Masasuke Yamaguchi. You can call me Captain Yamaguchi. I am a Konoha Jonin specializing in Earth Style and Taijutsu. I like traveling, I hate people who are late, and my dream is peace in the ninja world. That is all." After speaking, Masasuke Yamaguchi signaled with his eyes for the three to begin.
Seeing Yohei and Saori looking at him, Taiichi didn't decline and spoke first. "My name is Taiichi Matsushita. I specialize in Kenjutsu and Medical Ninjutsu. I also know a bit of Fire, Wind, and Water Style ninjutsu. I like the feeling of getting stronger, I hate having nothing to do, and my dream is to protect my family. That is all."
Yohei and Saori looked at Taiichi in shock. You know way too much stuff!
Seeing Taiichi finish, Yohei Uchiha followed up. "My name is Yohei Uchiha. I specialize in Fire Style. I like three-colored dango, I hate food with cilantro, and my dream is to become Hokage."
Taiichi looked at Yohei in surprise. "Become Hokage"? That dream was a bit difficult for an Uchiha!
Finally, everyone turned their gaze to Saori.
"Hello everyone, my name is Saori Furukawa. I specialize in Lightning Style and know a little Sealing Jutsu. I like reading books. As for things I hate... um, nothing really. My dream is to become a powerful kunoichi like Lady Tsunade."
After all three finished, Masasuke Yamaguchi spoke up. "Alright, now that everyone has a basic understanding of each other, let's proceed to the next test."