Revitalizing the Uchiha clan starts with becoming a Kage.

"So, does this mean we've passed your test, General Sisang?"

Kurotsuchi stared wide-eyed at Shoji with an expectant expression.

It seems they really want to hear words of approval from Shoji.

Even Deidara, who was standing to the side, showed a slight change in expression, while Itachi remained calm and composed.

"Heh, I'm just saying your performance was passable, but you didn't pass the test. After all, it was agreed from the beginning that you had to touch the katana on my back for it to count. I can only acknowledge your status as Iwa ninja, but you failed the test itself! Kurotsuchi!"

Jiang Si bent down slightly, gently patted Hei Tu's little head, and said with a smile.

"Tch! You're being too stingy. Jiang Si-san, since you've already approved of us, then consider us as having passed the test. Anyway, it just means we'll have more autonomy in the future, but in the end, it's still up to you to decide!"

Perhaps it was because they gradually became more familiar with each other that Kurotsuchi realized that Shoji's personality wasn't as cold as it seemed before, but rather approachable. Kurotsuchi's courage grew slightly. After all, who was she? She was the granddaughter of the village's Tsuchikage!

This seems like an overly familiar gesture that quickly builds rapport.

'That girl!'

Jiang Si shook his head, amused deep down.

However, Jiang Si did not intend to deal with the three of them coldly. There are certain standards for how to treat different people. The attitude towards close people, strangers, and even enemies are completely different.

Itachi, Kurotsuchi, and Deidara.

Since they were all people that Jiang Si valued highly, Jiang Si naturally had to treat them with a relatively calm attitude.

"Jiang Sisang, did you see through our intentions immediately?"

Compared to Kurotsuchi's 'pitiful' attitude and Deidara's indifferent attitude, Itachi was seriously considering the action plan that the three of them had just made. He originally thought that there was at least a 20% or 30% chance of getting behind his 'clan brother', since without the Sharingan activated, as long as he could attract most of the attention from the front.

Even the strongest ninjas can have a momentary opening, let alone Kurotsuchi, who did not flank in the usual way, but used the Earth Dragon Concealment Technique from the Earth Release: Earth Release formula to infiltrate underground.

Unless you deliberately pay attention to what's below from the beginning, it's difficult to react in an instant. Their intention is simply to touch Shoji's katana. To put it bluntly, if you had just given one more second, Kurotsuchi could have touched Shoji's katana before Shoji grabbed her arm. Even just a slight touch would have been enough to complete the mission!

Itachi believed that since his 'clan brother' had set up such a test, he would definitely give them a chance to achieve the goal. If they failed, it must be because they did something wrong. After thinking it over, Itachi realized that there were almost no mistakes in the subsequent execution, so it could only be the beginning!

Itachi's performance.

This also drew an approving look from the general.

He truly deserves to be one of the few members of the Uchiha clan who can awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan and bring that power to its fullest potential.

To be honest, the original work contained too many self-imposed constraints and limitations.

If everything goes smoothly for Itachi and he can obtain the Eternal Eye, he might just become another Madara!

This is Itachi's talent and genius!

274. The Formation of the First Class

"You guessed right, Itachi. Your subsequent attacks were perfectly coordinated. Even by the standards of a Jonin, apart from the hard differences in technique casting and movement speed, there were no problems in the rest of the performance. But your biggest problem was in the initial attack. Deidara's explosion was too hasty, and your surprise attack was too direct!"

"Since it's a decoy attack, the decoy needs to perform even better. Kurotsuchi, who is the real trump card, acted a little too early. Didn't you notice? Before Deidara's explosion smoke had completely spread, Kurotsuchi, you used the Earth Dragon Concealment Technique to hide yourself. Don't underestimate the perception of a Jonin. Even without activating my Sharingan, I could still easily catch that momentary opening!"

"To put it bluntly, you were too hasty at the beginning, and your intentions were too obvious. Do you remember what I said before the graduation assessment started yesterday? Don't be deceived by the 'reality' before your eyes. Always be on high alert!"

With a faint smile, Shoji's gaze swept over Itachi, Kurotsuchi, and Deidara one by one. These three were undoubtedly the most outstanding members of the next generation in Iwagakure, and all of them had the potential to grow to the Kage level or even higher!

Shoji hopes that in the future, he can help the three of them avoid some detours and grow up as quickly as possible. He wants to ensure the core strength of the upper echelons as much as possible, not just the middle and lower levels. This is the key to a ninja village's dominance of the ninja world. Konoha used to be able to take on several ninja villages at once!

It's because they have a large number of high-ranking Kage-level personnel!

With Kage-level and near-Kage-level powerhouses like Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo Shimura, Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and Torifu Akimichi still in their prime, and with a new generation of Kage-level powerhouses rapidly rising below them, such as Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Sakumo Hatake, plus the continuous supply of elite Jonin-level powerhouses from clans like the Uchiha, Hyuga, Yamanaka, Akimichi, Nara, Kurama, and Gekko, Konoha was able to dominate the entire ninja world, even winning decisive victories against two or three opponents!

Konoha is now in a period of decline!

This is Iwagakure's best chance yet!

With the village already possessing four Kage-level figures (Onoki, Kurotsuchi, Han, and Roshi), plus the addition of Shoji, Shisui, and Fugaku, if Itachi, Deidara, and Kurotsuchi grow up quickly, within five or six years at the fastest, and no more than ten years at the slowest, Iwagakure could, like Konoha in the past, single-handedly challenge the entire ninja world during those three Shinobi World Wars!

Only then will Iwagakure reach a stage where they can be fearless of anyone and do whatever they want!

"Yes, I understand. Thank you for your guidance, Mr. Jiang Si!"

Intelligent people often don't need to say a second word. Itachi, who has been intelligent since childhood, was able to grasp the meaning of Shoji's words immediately. The failure of the previous tactics was really due to the lack of experience of the three. No matter how talented a person is, if they have no combat experience, the tactics they devise will inevitably have many flaws!

This is a problem that every ninja has to encounter during their growth process!

Itachi and his two companions were merely taking this lesson in advance.

Kurotsuchi and Deidara also realized the biggest problem in their tactical execution one after another. Kurotsuchi, in particular, although she seemed indifferent, was actually very competitive. In that instant before Shoji grabbed her hand, she really thought she could succeed and was very happy!

After their efforts failed, Kurotsuchi thought it was just bad luck. But Jiang Si was indeed a strongman who could defeat Feng Ying head-on. His reaction was so quick. It turned out that Jiang Si had already seen through their intentions and was waiting for them there!

This made Heitu feel discouraged, but it also prompted him to reflect deeply on his actions.

Shoji is right. They are now qualified genin and are currently receiving internal training. There is still a chance to salvage the situation. If they were on the battlefield, their mistake just now would have been enough to kill all three of them!

The enemy won't show mercy just because you're a child or a girl.

On the battlefield, there are only the dead and the living.

There is absolutely no other possibility!

Seeing Deidara and Kurotsuchi lost in thought, Shoji nodded to himself. Only those who know how to think and reflect will become stronger. In this life, Shoji not only wants to become stronger himself, but also hopes to guide these three to grow faster and become stronger than in the original work!

"Clap clap! Alright! Although you didn't pass the test, your performance was satisfactory. I hereby declare the first class officially formed! Let's celebrate today as the first day of our team's formation. What do you want to eat? Just say the word. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so from now on you'll have to rely on yourselves!"

Jiang Si clapped his hands lightly, waking the three of them, and then said with a smile.

"Really!? Then I want the most expensive one! Mr. Jiang Si!"

In this regard, Heitu is the most proactive, after all, a love of food is definitely one of the attributes of a lively girl!

Desserts and main courses are served in separate stomachs – that's a girl's privilege!

Itachi and Deidara both seemed quite casual.

After all, the battle and the subsequent reflections had given the two some insights. If possible, Itachi and Deidara would prefer to go home and study and train properly, but it seems that's not an option right now.

Putting aside the fact that she had to give some face to Shoji, the Jonin who was the instructor of her own team, Kurotsuchi could see through the two people's intentions 100% and simply put one arm around each of them.

"Let's go! Let's have a big meal today!"

He practically dragged and pulled the two of them back towards their village.

As he walked, Kurotsuchi shouted loudly to Shoji behind him, "Shoji-san, hurry up! Today I'm going to make sure your wallet is empty!"

"Yes, yes, yes, if you can."

Jiang Si smiled as he followed along.

The first class of this graduating class from the officially formed Iwagakure Village!

At this time, no one truly realized that this small team would gradually build its reputation over the next few years, climbing step by step towards the pinnacle of the ninja world, and at a certain point, becoming a team whose reputation was at least no less than that of the legendary Sannin of Konoha!

And all of this began on this day!

275. Choices and Tasks (Third Update)

P.S.: Considering how busy I am at work at the end of the year, yet I still manage to keep updating without fail, please give me some more votes and subscriptions. I've sacrificed all my rest and leisure time to write, so thank you all for your support!

Long before the graduation assessment, it was roughly decided which Chunin and Jonin would lead the teams. For many teams, unless there were any major accidents, their class assignments and captains were also decided in advance. Among this year's graduates, apart from the team of Itachi, Deidara, and Kurotsuchi, which was led by Shoji himself, there were also three or four other teams led by Jonin, although these Jonin were only considered to be relatively ordinary.

The fact that a newly graduated team is led by a Jonin is enough to show the special nature of these graduates. The graduates in these three or four teams are either exceptionally talented or come from various ninja clans!

Even the squad that Uchiha Izumi belonged to was led by a Jonin!

Of course, only a few teams of graduates are led by Jonin. The rest of the graduating teams are all led by ordinary Chunin. This is the standard configuration when major ninja villages carry out missions!

With one medium-level and three low-level units, the highest level of mission that can be performed is B!

Moreover, only experienced teams can carry out such missions, since B-rank missions already involve ninjas. However, even B-rank missions are quite challenging. After all, wandering ninjas are still considered ninjas, but it's clear that, not to mention wandering ninjas, even the official ninjas from other ninja villages are significantly inferior in overall quality compared to the five great ninja villages!

Therefore, there is no comparison between different B-level missions.

In many cases, a standard squad rarely takes on B-level missions; they usually stay at C or D level missions!

This is an essential process for accumulating experience and growing.

Almost 99% of the squads are assigned to the lowest-level missions, or D-level missions, for the first few months or even a year (unless in wartime, those are missions that send people straight to the battlefield and cause death!).

C-rank depends entirely on the attitude of the squad leader, because C-rank often involves bloodshed. Due to the special nature of this world and the strength of the ninja military, countries including the Five Great Nations are severely lacking in regular military forces. Even large countries like the Five Great Nations, with populations of tens of millions, have at most a few hundred thousand, or even tens of thousands, of troops, which are mostly concentrated in the capital and some important cities!

They play a crucial role in 'security patrols'!

In many parts of the country, there is a low level of security. In addition, there are methods for refining chakra and training for low-level ordinary samurai. These practices have spread throughout the ninja world. If you have the corresponding talent, you can either become a traditional samurai who has learned certain martial arts (but not the kind that has mastered chakra; the samurai of the Land of Iron are not considered traditional samurai).

Alternatively, one could directly extract chakra and become a ninja!

The former can already cause great harm to ordinary people, while the latter, even the lowest-level ninjas, as mentioned before, can only be trampled on by ordinary people. This is also the biggest reason for the extremely unstable security situation around the world.

Countries have considered taking a good look at their domestic environment, but in less than fifty years, three major wars have broken out that have swept the world. In addition, there have been frequent minor frictions and clashes among the five major powers, making it really difficult to have an opportunity to sort things out!

In addition, there are often fierce clashes between small countries, and some people even act as front men for the nobles of large countries, acting recklessly around the world.

Gangsters, thieves, robbers!

It's like weeds; no matter how you cut it, you can never get rid of it completely. This is due to both environmental factors and, more importantly, human intervention!

This is also a common type of C-rank mission among the five great ninja villages!

Directly eliminating bandits and mountain bandits entrenched in a certain area, or escorting certain caravans through some dangerous and chaotic areas, is slightly better within the five major countries. However, once you need to enter those unstable small countries, not to mention the safety of the journey, these small countries may even have different rulers today and tomorrow!

Rebellion is all too common in this world these days!

Moreover, due to the unique nature of the world, where chakra power is scattered throughout the world, there are occasional mutated creatures that appear. They are not particularly powerful, but they are not something that ordinary people can handle. These are all included in the scope of ninja missions!

Most of these missions are C-rank. Of course, missions involving wandering ninjas will most likely be classified as B-rank, since they are ninjas after all!

Since the formation of the first class.

After leading Itachi, Deidara, and Kurotsuchi to symbolically complete about ten D-rank missions in the previous few days, Shoji directly assigned the three members of Team 1 to C-rank missions. Ninjas are meant to shed blood, and even low-level battles can be used to hone the team's tactics, strategic planning, and execution, which is very suitable for Team 1 at the moment.

In these missions, Shoji is only responsible for providing backup; he doesn't participate in anything else, including deciding which missions to take, intelligence analysis, planning, and final implementation. All of these are left to Itachi, Deidara, and Kurotsuchi to handle!

Shoji has always believed that the strong are forged in battles of blood and fire. Itachi, Deidara, and Kurotsuchi have indeed lived up to Shoji's expectations. From the very first C-rank mission, the three of them have always approached the task with the utmost caution.

After being taught the most special first lesson by Shoji.

They knew very well that even the slightest mistake could lead to mission failure. Even though a mission of this caliber was unlikely to threaten their lives even without General Si, mission failure or imperfection was an unacceptable outcome for them!

For a mere C-level mission, the goal is a perfect completion rate!