On the playground of the Ninja School, the parents who had accompanied their children for the entrance assessment sat in the surrounding stands.
Over the past few years, the Ninja School had undergone multiple expansions, and the playground had been significantly enlarged. Stands had even been built around it to accommodate spectators.
As the children entered the field, the parents seated in the stands couldn't help but cheer for them.
"Naruto! You can do it!"
From the stands, Uzumaki Kushina completely disregarded any sense of restraint. The moment she spotted Naruto in the crowd, she abruptly stood up, waving her hands and shouting.
Beside her, Uchiha Mikoto reached out, attempting to pull Kushina back into her seat, but after several unsuccessful tries, she gave up.
The surrounding parents cast curious glances their way, causing Mikoto to blush slightly in embarrassment.
"This woman…" Fugaku sighed, covering half of his face with one hand, looking helpless.
"That's Lady Kushina Uzumaki, the wife of the Fifth Hokage! Then that child must be Lord Hokage's son!"
"I heard his name is Naruto?"
"The Hokage's son… We should definitely pay attention to him."
Many parents recognized Kushina and followed her gaze toward Naruto. His golden hair stood out vividly, gleaming under the sunlight.
Such a hair color was rare in Konoha. Aside from the Yamanaka Clan, no one naturally had blond hair. However, Naruto's hair was even darker than Minato's. The Yamanaka Clan had a much lighter shade of blond in comparison.
Most of the parents present were active ninjas, keen observers who quickly noticed other notable children, including Uchiha Sasuke and Nara Shikamaru.
Children from ninja clans were easy to identify. Despite their young age, the physical conditioning from their training was unmistakable.
"That boy… Is he really Minato and Kushina's son?"
"It looks like he's been trained well—probably even stronger than Hyuga."
In the stands, Hyuga Hiashi sat quietly in a simple kimono, observing Naruto among the crowd. The veins around his temples bulged as he activated his Byakugan to assess Naruto's condition.
Down on the field, Iruka directed the students into orderly lines. Once the children were in position, targets were set up for the test.
"Now, we will begin the test in the order of my roll call."
"Groups of five."
Iruka pointed to the targets and called out loudly. Then, he pulled out a scroll from his vest and began reading the names.
Most of the students taking the Ninja School entrance exam were around six years old. Even children from civilian backgrounds had some basic training with shuriken.
The first group of students quickly stepped forward, forming a line under Iruka's instructions. He then distributed the shuriken to them.
"Begin!"
The moment Iruka raised his hand and gave the command, the air filled with the sound of shuriken slicing through it.
Soon, all the shuriken had been thrown. As Iruka examined the targets, he recorded the results on his scroll.
"57 rings, 60 rings, 77 rings, 47 rings… 10 rings."
"The results are inconsistent. Someone even scored just ten rings out of ten throws… Have they never trained before?"
After recording the scores, Iruka signaled for the first group to step back.
Although these were still young children, the results were unimpressive for future ninjas. However, scoring close to 70 rings at this age wasn't too bad. The only glaring failure was the student who scored ten rings.
"Haha! Only ten rings? Someone actually scored that low?" Kiba laughed with a gloating expression.
"They probably never practiced. It's not too surprising," Shikamaru commented, shaking his head slightly as he glanced at the child who had scored ten rings.
"But they probably won't make it into the Ninja School."
The assessment continued smoothly, and soon, a student from Naruto's group was called. Kiba was the first to take the test, scoring an impressive 81 rings.
For a child his age, this was an excellent result. Before Kiba, the highest score had been 77 rings.
"Not bad! 81 rings—that's the best so far."
"Kiba, right? Good work."
Iruka praised him with a smile. Kiba, looking proud of himself, walked back to his team with his head held high.
"Nice job, Kiba! That was just like you!" Shikamaru grinned, patting Kiba on the shoulder.
"Not bad, huh? Now it's your turn."
Kiba rubbed his nose smugly.
"Hey, Naruto, why aren't you saying anything?" Choji asked, noticing how uncharacteristically silent Naruto had been. Since the start of the exam, Naruto had been unusually quiet.
"Uchiha Sasuke, Nara Shikamaru, Hyuga Hinata, Kuromura, Ryukawasuke—step forward for the assessment."
At that moment, Iruka called out.
The moment Naruto heard Sasuke's name, his eyes lit up with excitement.
"It's his turn!" Naruto fixated on Sasuke, his gaze burning with determination.
Sasuke, sensing Naruto's stare, let out a small hum and walked forward.
"Look, Mikoto! Your son is up!" Kushina excitedly grabbed Mikoto's sleeve and pointed at Sasuke.
"I see, I see! Stop pulling at me," Mikoto replied, exasperated but still smiling as she focused on Sasuke.
"Begin!"
Iruka quickly distributed the shuriken and stood by the targets.
The moment he gave the signal, the sharp sound of metal slicing through the air rang out. Sasuke launched his ten shuriken in an instant. Within just two seconds, all of them had struck the target.
Moreover, the placement of the shuriken was incredibly precise.
"Hmm? This kid…"
Hyuga Hiashi's eyes gleamed as he watched Sasuke. After observing multiple students, Sasuke's accuracy and efficiency stood out the most.
As an experienced ninja, Hiashi could tell the boy's results would be outstanding the moment he threw his first shuriken.
Soon after, the other students finished their throws. However, Iruka was no longer paying attention to their targets—his eyes remained locked on Sasuke's. His face was full of shock.
"96 rings?! This is the result of a six-year-old?!"
"Uchiha Sasuke… His talent is exceptional!"
Iruka was astonished. But when he turned to look at Sasuke, he noticed something even more surprising—Sasuke didn't seem happy with his score. In fact, his expression showed clear dissatisfaction.
In the stands, Kushina excitedly shook Mikoto's arm as she pointed at Sasuke's target.
"Mikoto! Mikoto! Your son is amazing!"
"96 rings! He's first place, and the gap between him and the others is huge!"
Kushina was clearly impressed. Although Mikoto smiled softly, she remained composed.
Meanwhile, Fugaku remained expressionless.
"Fugaku, what's with that look? Sasuke did great! Why don't you look happy at all?" Kushina asked, confused.
"Great? It's nothing special."
"When Itachi was his age, his shuriken skills were already on par with most Chunins."
"Being proud of such a minor accomplishment isn't good for him."
Kushina suddenly felt irritated. Was Fugaku just showing off his eldest son? Was this some kind of subtle bragging?
Her excitement instantly deflated.
"Oh, as expected from Lord Fugaku's son—the younger brother of the genius Uchiha Itachi. This boy is truly impressive!"
"Well, he is the younger brother of a genius. It's only natural for him to be talented as well. There's probably no one in this class stronger than him."
In the stands, the parents whispered among themselves.
Yet, despite Sasuke's excellent performance, their focus wasn't on him—it was on his prestigious father and his legendary older brother.
(End of this chapter)