One Hour Later, Training Ground Seven

  “I’m gd you two arrived on time.”

  Standing on a boulder, Link positioned himself to appear taller and more imposing. At nine years old, his short stature—barely 120 cm, even with shoes—was being a source of silent frustration. pared to many isekai protagonists who grew abnormally tall within mere years, his growth felt excruciatingly slow.

  120 cm!

  He cared. He cared a lot.

  Ami, eleven years old, stood with a face full of defiand anger. Despite her ninja training, her age and aturity made it impossible to hide her emotions effectively. However, after the earlier scuffle, she was careful not to openly provoke him again.

  Meanwhile, Iris broke the silence. “So, Link, why did you call us out here?”

  His initial excitement about being a genin had cooled signifitly after witnessing the earlier flict.

  Link waited until they were both focused, then calmly began, “Whether or not we bee friends doesn’t matter. But since we’ve been assigo the same team, we are now rades—partners who’ll be w together on missions.”

  “Trust is essential.”

  The two fell silent. They uood. They weren’t ignoraweeal ditioning and rigorous lessons at the Academy, they knew what was expected of them.

  The moment they graduated, they ceased to be students or children. They were shinobi now.

  “I want us to establish clear leadership withieam before our jonin sensei’s test tomorrow,” Link tinued. “Let’s settle this with strength. Whoever proves themselves stro will lead. No objes, right?”

  her objected. Among ninja, the stro always had the final say.

  “Are you both ready?” A rare smile crept onto Link’s face.

  “Whoosh!” x2

  Ami and Iris charged simultaneously, one from each side. They had traiogether, participated in mock battles, and shared a natural uanding of each other’s movements.

  "My journey as a ninja begins... by beating up children."

  With a faint smile, Link eled chakra into his feet. Shunshin no Jutsu—Body Flicker Teique.

  “Bam!” x2

  In a fsh, he reappeared behind them, pressing a hand on each of their heads and smming them into the ground.

  A tiger takes down two sheep.

  There was o use his Substitution Jutsu for this.

  From a distaheir sensei, Nara Ensui, observed the se with a faint smile. Having a naturally taleeam member with leadership potential was a great relief.

  Being a jonin wasn’t an idle role; only those without official positions or roles in specialized units like the Anbu could take on the responsibility of training genin. It wasn’t a particurly rewarding task, as it wasted time and slowed down their ability to earn mohrough missions.

  The vilge’s only requirement for jonin instructors was that they successfully mentor at least one in. Once a student graduated to in, the instructor was free from their duties.

  To achieve this, jonin instructors often devised strict tests to weed out students with no immediate potential, sending them back to the Academy for further training.

  The iic Bell Test, passed down from the Third Hokage, was a favorite among instructors for its prehensive evaluation of teamwork and skill. Few teams actually succeeded, as even experienced jonin doubted that three fresh genin could ever outsmart them.

  For teams with no ce of produg a in within a year, the result was iable: a return to the Academy. The high failure rate—nearly two-thirds of all graduates—was no joke.

  However, Ensui reized Link’s potential. Regardless of Iris’s impulsiveness or Ami’s arrogance, Link alone could carry the team’s prospects.

  Satisfied with what he had seen, Ensui vanished with a Body Flicker.

  …

  The Day, M, Training Ground Seven

  Good.

  When Nara Ensui arrived, he quietly observed his three students.

  Link stood at the forefront, calm and posed, with his forehead protector tied around his left arm.

  Iris sat on a wooden post to the right, his face marked with bandages and his expression eager.

  Ami, sitting on the left, had a bruised and swollen eye. Her face was tense, devoid of expression, but the hostility in her gaze toward Link was gone.

  “Good m,” Ensui greeted. His casual tone received three uneven replies.

  Wasting no time, he held up a pair of bells. “As is ary, your task is to take these bells from me.”

  He didn’t bother with threats about bei back to the Academy. The real evaluation had already beguerday. With Link’s clear potential to bee a in, Team Five had already passed in his eyes. Today’s test was simply to assess their abilities in more detail.

  As their superior, responsible for assigning missions and making life-or-death decisions for them, he o uand their strengths and weako provide pruidance.

  “Don’t think of me as your instructor. Treat this bell retrieval as a real mission—one where your lives are on the line.”

  He hooked the bells onto his belt and said, “Now—begin.”

  “Whoosh!”

  Link disappeared instantly, reappearing on a distant rock. Meanwhile, Iris and Ami retreated slightly, positioning themselves to shield him from view.

  “Already w on a coordinated formation?”

  Ensui didn’t immediately move. He articurly curious about Link’s rumored ice-release abilities. Like many jonin who had heard about him, his i iqued.

  "Show me…"

  "The power of Ice Release."

  Bleam