Starting with the Uchiha clan, they began cultivating demonic arts.

Chapter 199 The Graduation Exam of the Two Former Protagonists

The Konoha Ninja Academy is perhaps the most bustling place in Konoha Village these days.

Because of the Fourth Shinobi World War, the entire Hidden Leaf Village was much more desolate—about 70-80% of the ninjas were lost on the battlefield in the Land of Rain. With such a huge loss, the Hidden Leaf Village was no longer the bustling place it used to be.

However, because this Ninja World War was very short, lasting only two months in total, even though the losses were heavy, none of the ninja villages used their reserve young ninjas to provide support—or rather, the battle ended before they even had a chance to use them.

Therefore, although the adult ninjas suffered heavy losses and most of them died, none of the students at the ninja academy were injured, and none of them even made any move to graduate early.

Today is the graduation day for a new batch of junior ninjas at the Ninja Academy, and a group of young ninjas are standing on the training ground undergoing their graduation assessment.

Perhaps it was the stimulation of the Fourth Shinobi World War, or perhaps it was because the policies of the young Hokage Tsunade differed from those of the older Third Hokage, but in any case, this year's graduation exam at the Ninja Academy wasn't about the Three Body Techniques or anything like that, but rather a proper real-world combat test.

To graduate from ninja academy, students must spar with veteran genin who graduated a few years ago. Then, their chunin instructors determine if they are strong enough to graduate. They aren't required to win, but they must at least be able to put up a fight.

On the training ground at this moment, two young ninjas—one with a green bean-shaped haircut and the other with long hair and white eyes—along with a classic Chinese-style girl with a bun hairstyle, are the examiners for this genin exam.

Needless to say, these three were Hyuga Neji, Rock Lee, and Tenten. Because of their age, although they had graduated from the Ninja Academy and become genin, they did not rush to the battlefield immediately and thus did not become casualties on the battlefield.

Of course, the brutality of the battlefield and the heavy sacrifices also frightened the three little ones quite a bit. Fortunately, the two closest to them, whether it was Hyuga Hizashi or Might Guy, eventually returned safely.

Although no close relatives died in this great battle, the disappearance of many acquaintances and familiar ninjas has matured these three young ninjas considerably. Now, the three of them stand on the training ground, facing the challenge of their juniors who have just graduated.

The person standing aside watching and scoring was naturally the teacher of this elite ninja class, Umino Iruka. As a Chunin who mostly did clerical work, he did not participate in that fierce ninja war and thus also survived.

At this moment, the students of the elite ninja class stepped forward one by one to fight against Hyuga Neji and his two companions. The male students' opponents were Hyuga Neji and Rock Lee, while the female students' opponents were naturally Tenten.

The enormous mountain of flesh spun and crushed towards its opponent, but the calm Hyuga Neji casually deflected it, causing it to crash into a rock and become dizzy and disoriented, turning it back into a chubby little guy with rolling eyes.

"Akimichi Choji... Hmm, not bad, you passed!"

Iruka Umino nodded at Choji Akimichi's performance, then turned to look at the other side, where Shikamaru Nara's shadow extended from his feet, directly controlling Rock Lee and securing victory in the battle.

In terms of raw strength, Rock Lee could easily defeat ten Shikamaru Nara without breaking a sweat. However, when it comes to brains, the two are completely reversed. Rock Lee's brain is ranked last among the 12 Konoha 12, and he is probably even inferior to Naruto Uzumaki, who occasionally has a flash of inspiration.

Furthermore, since this was just an exam and sparring match, not a life-or-death duel, Nara Shikamaru first used rhetoric to guide the conversation, and then unexpectedly subdued Rock Lee, becoming the only example among all the ninja trainees to successfully turn the tables.

"Very good, Shikamaru, you've passed too!"

After writing down Nara Shikamaru's score in his notebook, Umino Iruka smiled and said something. Shikamaru nodded lazily and removed the shadow beneath his feet.

The next instant, Rock Lee, freed from the Shadow Imitation Technique, collapsed to his knees, his entire body turning ashen.

"I actually lost... I lost to a junior who hasn't even graduated yet. My youth was so wasted. I need to make up for it with 100 times the effort!"

Seeing his senior's excited reaction, Nara Shikamaru immediately broke out in a sweat.

"Um... senior, you don't need to be so discouraged. Actually, I just used a little trick. If this were really on the battlefield, I'd probably be beaten to a pulp by now!"

Nara Shikamaru had witnessed Lee's martial arts skills firsthand; most of the students who went up for the exam at the beginning were knocked down with just a few punches and kicks.

Nara Shikamaru estimated that, given his fragile physique and weak martial arts skills, he would probably be knocked down with a single punch. This was why Nara Shikamaru had to make a high-profile move and directly subdue Rock Lee.

If he didn't do that, the most likely outcome would be that he would be instantly killed, and he might not even have a chance to get the genin headband—and when he got home, he would probably get a mixed double beating from both men and women!

"Don't say anymore. It's my own fault for not trying hard enough; I've wasted my youth..."

"Hey, you over there with the watermelon rind and thick eyebrows, are you going to continue the test? I'm getting impatient!"

The blond-haired boy spoke casually, and although his words were quite impolite, none of the classmates around him said a word.

"Naruto, you should be more polite to your seniors!"

Iruka Umino, the teacher, angrily said to Naruto Uzumaki, but Naruto Uzumaki just picked his nose and said nonchalantly:

"Okay, okay, Iruka-sensei! You're so long-winded! This guy definitely has thick eyebrows and a watermelon-like face!"

The current Naruto Uzumaki is not the Nine-Tailed Fox. The original Nine-Tailed Fox was still sealed inside Kushina Uzumaki, and was later made into a pill, which killed it completely.

After losing his identity as the Nine-Tailed Fox, Naruto Uzumaki's other identity—the posthumous son of the Fourth Hokage—became apparent.

Because Naruto Uzumaki wasn't a Jinchūriki, no one hid the fact that he was the son of the Fourth Hokage. As a result, his childhood was completely different from what happened in the original story.

Everyone treated him with gratitude and flattery, which fostered Naruto's unruly personality. In addition, the Ashura chakra in his body had long been absorbed by Touya Uchiha. In the end, although Naruto did not become a scumbag, he was still a veritable devil.

"Golden hair...it's the Fourth Hokage's child! You're right, I can't be discouraged any longer. Come on! Let me be your opponent!"

Lee jumped up and looked at Naruto Uzumaki with a serious expression.

Naruto Uzumaki clenched his fists and stepped into the battle. The current Naruto Uzumaki is not the orphan from the original story. Even without the Nine-Tails and Ashura's chakra, his potential has been greatly reduced.

However, during his student years, he had a good mother to guide him, and without the interference of the Nine-Tails' chakra, he was also a genius student in his class, and his strength was not much worse than that of another genius, Uchiha Sasuke.

"Very well, it's my turn next... Sasuke, how about we have a contest to see who wins first?"

At this moment, Sasuke Uchiha also entered the arena. Standing opposite him was Neji Uzumaki, the champion of the previous competition. After hearing Naruto Uzumaki's words, he frowned slightly.

In his opinion, Hyuga Neji was much stronger than Rock Lee. Even though Uchiha Sasuke was stronger than himself at this stage in the original story because of his family's teachings, he didn't think he could definitely beat Hyuga Neji.

However, Sasuke Uchiha is a typical member of the Uchiha clan. Even if all his bones are broken, he still has a tough tongue, let alone when it is Naruto Uzumaki, whom he considers his rival, who initiated the challenge.

"Hmph, just don't cry after you lose!"

"Don't underestimate me, Sasuke! You bastard?!"

On the other side, aside from the hot-blooded and naive Rock Lee, the equally arrogant Neji Hyuga couldn't help but roll his eyes:

"Beat me?! Looks like we've been completely underestimated by our junior!"

"Little Li! Let's have a competition! Let's see who can take down these two brats first!"

"A match against Neji? Alright then! I won't lose!"

The four kids seemed to have inexplicably become enraged, and at that moment, in the Hokage's office in the distance, someone was watching their battle.

The new Hokage Building was designed from the outset to be the tallest building in the entire village. Furthermore, the Hokage's office at the very center was equipped with a surveillance system that combines sealing techniques and technology, allowing a view of the entire new Konoha Village.

At this moment, in the Hokage's office, besides Tsunade, there were two uninvited mothers: Kushina Uzumaki, who had red hair and looked quite fiery, and Mikoto Uchiha, who was sitting on a stool with a gentle expression.

Naturally, Uchiha Touyu, who had just emerged from seclusion, was also present in this place. He was quite interested in these two original protagonists who had been stripped of their protagonist aura.

Watching the battle about to begin on the large monitor screen in front of him, Uchiha Tou narrowed his eyes slightly, ignoring the two mothers of his children who were joking around next to him, and his eyes suddenly turned black and red.

Within the black depths of his eyes, three red tomoe rotate continuously, their colors completely opposite to those of a normal three-tomoe Sharingan. This represents the incredibly strange Rinnegan eye technique: Yoru no Kamihara!

Originally, it was a dreamlike ninjutsu that could observe the past and future and illuminate the entire world. However, after being combined with the Heavenly Demon Secret Technique practiced by Uchiha Tou, it underwent a peculiar transformation.

In an instant, Uchiha Touyu's thoughts transformed into a strange and unpredictable inner demon, which, through the observed images, infiltrated the minds of the two former protagonists.

In an instant, Uchiha Touyu sensed all the thoughts in their minds. As the thoughts in their minds rose and fell, Uchiha Touyu could even feel that he could completely control every thought in their minds, turning the two of them into puppets on strings, and the two of them would not notice anything wrong, but would only think that these thoughts were their own thoughts.

This feeling of lurking in other people's hearts was quite novel to Uchiha Touyu. With a change of heart, he began to manipulate the thoughts in Uchiha Sasuke's mind.

Joy, anger, sorrow, fear—any of Uchiha Sasuke's emotions could be easily stirred in his eyes, and now that the battle was about to begin, the emotion most easily aroused was excitement.

In an instant, Sasuke Uchiha felt his fighting spirit surge wildly, as if he were possessed by the Victorious Fighting Buddha. His invisible fighting will almost coalesced into flames.

Under this intense mental stimulation, Sasuke Uchiha's eyes turned blood red, and a black tomoe appeared in them in an instant.

"The Sharingan?! The Uchiha clan's bloodline limit—I can't believe you've already mastered it before even graduating!"

Hyuga Neji showed a hint of surprise on his face. The Sharingan is not as common as the Byakugan, which can be awakened by almost any member of the Hyuga clan.

On the contrary, even among the Uchiha clan ninjas, only a minority can awaken the Sharingan, and those who can awaken the Sharingan at the age of 13 are considered geniuses even among the elite Uchiha clan.

"Hmph! With my Sharingan, I can see right through your every move!"

Hearing Sasuke Uchiha's arrogant words, Neji Hyuga rolled his eyes in a very subtle way.

"Just a mere Sharingan with one tomoe? Who are you trying to fool!"

"The Sharingan is indeed more suitable for combat than the Byakugan, but that requires at least a three-tomoe Sharingan... A one-tomoe Sharingan is no match for the Byakugan!"

The Byakugan's observational ability surpasses that of the Sharingan, but it focuses more on X-ray vision and farsightedness. In terms of dynamic vision and hypnotic genjutsu, it is indeed inferior to the Sharingan, but that refers to the fully developed three-tomoe Sharingan. The one-tomoe Sharingan has very little enhancement to genjutsu, and its dynamic vision is completely inferior to that of the Byakugan.

However, Sasuke Uchiha, now full of fighting spirit, didn't care about any of that. Instead, he charged forward with great confidence, casually throwing out kunai that transformed into strange arcs.

Hyuga Neji gave a soft snort. The Uchiha style of kunai throwing techniques may seem exquisite, but in order to pursue unpredictable routes, speed is greatly reduced. To compensate for this, the Uchiha clan often hangs steel wire on these kunai to ambush their opponents.

However, the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan is no pushover when it comes to observation. He could see the wire behind Uchiha Sasuke's kunai clearly, and even the direction of the force and the flow of chakra could be roughly felt. How could it possibly pose a threat to him?

He casually reached out and gently flicked the two kunai that came first. A surge of condensed chakra passed through the steel wire and instantly seeped into Uchiha Sasuke's body, causing his eyes to widen and his body to go numb.

(End of this chapter)