The Land of Fire, Hidden Leaf Village.
At the northernmost end of the village stood a towering cliff. The First Shadow of Fire, Hashirama Senju, and Uchiha Madara once stood atop this cliff, gazing southward across the plains, envisioning a utopia free from slaughter and hatred, where children could shed their armor, discard their swords, and play freely with smiles on their faces.
The two abandoned their rivalry and joined forces to establish the greatest village in the ninja world, the Hidden Leaf Village. Later, the Second Shadow of Fire, upholding the will of the First, built a Ninja Academy at the base of the cliff.
The First, Second, Third, and Fourth Shadows of Fire were vividly depicted on the rock face, their expressions solemn. Villagers could occasionally look up and see the Shadow Rocks of the four leaders, their respect for them genuine and heartfelt.
With half a year left before the graduation exams, the teachers at the Ninja Academy were doing their utmost to impart as much knowledge as possible to their students.
To gauge the students' actual abilities, exams were naturally unavoidable.
"I'm doomed..."
"This is way too hard..."
"Haha, you think it's hard? I can't even understand the questions!"
The students were in despair, all agreeing that the questions were too difficult, with many handing in blank papers.
A few top students whispered among themselves, believing that at least three of the ten questions were at the level of Middle Ninja exams. In all honesty, they weren't even Low Ninjas yet.
Yamanaka Ino, with her golden hair and blue eyes, a strand of bangs covering her right eye, and wearing a white long-sleeved jacket with the character "Boar" on the blue and green stripes of her sleeves, seemed a bit odd to her classmates. She was somewhere between a top student and a struggling one.
After handing in her paper, her movements and expression seemed unusually heavy.
"Ino, did you not do well either?" a familiar female classmate asked in a low voice.
"It's just... sigh, it's hard to explain. I did so poorly this time, definitely failed. I made mistakes in several places, and my mind is a complete mess right now," Ino said, her face full of despair, as if she was about to burst into tears.
"It's okay, it's just a mock exam."
"Yeah, one mistake doesn't mean anything."
A few fair-weather friends held her hand, offering comfort.
Not long after, Iruka, a young teacher with a Middle Ninja Vest and a noticeable scar across the bridge of his nose, finished grading the papers and announced the results on the spot.
"Ino, 95 points, first place!"
"Haruno Sakura, 94 points, second place."
"..."
The struggling friends' necks stiffened, their gazes toward Ino changing. With that expression earlier, we were ready to offer superficial comfort while secretly mocking you, but now? First place? Are you kidding me?
Ino felt a secret thrill. You all play during class and at home, but I play during class and study hard at home. How could it be the same?
As someone who had worked hard for half a year, on the verge of moving into a new house after taking a sales job to buy it at an insider price, then interning at a renovation company, and finally jumping to a furniture store as a salesperson, only to suddenly find herself in the perilous world of the Shadow of Fire, her heart was utterly shattered.
She wondered who would end up getting that house at a bargain, and the thought made her feel like she had lost out big time.
Ino looked out the window, where several shadows flashed by at incredible speed, disappearing from view in less than two seconds. She knew well that they were the village's ninjas. Everyone was used to it.
In the village, "supermen" who could leap eight meters high or punch through a tree with a single strike were everywhere. Instead of walking on the main roads, many ninjas preferred to jump over rooftops, which was considered a basic skill. After overcoming her initial fear, suspicion, and caution, she gradually got used to it.
Since she couldn't change the world, she decided to change herself.
She studied diligently, regardless of whether the knowledge would be useful or not. She delved deeply into everything the school had to offer, even the "Will of Fire" series of books that transmigrators often criticized. She found the handwritten notes left by the Third Hokage in the school and read them thoroughly twice.
Unfortunately, these weren't like the Lankavatara Sutra, filled with hidden martial arts secrets.
To become stronger, she studied hard. To avoid being isolated by her classmates, she had to pretend to be a poor student. Ultimately, it all boiled down to a lack of security.
As everyone received their test papers, Teacher Iruka began to explain the questions.
"Question nine: Ether containing a certain aromatic hydrocarbon is first treated with dilute hydrochloric acid, then sodium hydroxide solution is added and stirred to separate the layers. What compound remains in the ether layer?"
"What is it?" He didn't expect an answer from the students and started writing on the blackboard.
"This is a problem ninjas often encounter during missions. Due to the lack of certain necessary conditions, we must make reasonable assumptions and analyses. Suppose the aromatic hydrocarbon contains an amino group, which would react with hydrochloric acid first. Then we need to analyze..."
He listed several possible scenarios, each followed by detailed analysis and results, filling the blackboard with dense writing. Only then was the problem fully solved.
"What is a ninja? A ninja is someone who maintains a cool head in battle and can analyze intelligence," Iruka said earnestly. He looked at his well-organized, clear explanations on the blackboard, and his tone was inspiring. But when he glanced around the classroom, his heart sank—hardly anyone was paying attention.
"Slap!" Teacher Iruka smacked the blackboard, raising his voice sharply. "You are the worst class I've ever taught! What are you daydreaming about? Write this down! This might be on the exam! All of you, write it down!"
"Okay..."
"Got it..."
"Sure."
Except for a few genuinely good students who were writing furiously, the remaining ninety percent responded with half-hearted murmurs. Their pencils moved lazily across the paper, barely making any effort to record the information. By all appearances, they were a bunch of slackers.
Ino maintained her facade of being a slacker while secretly excelling. Her left hand propped up her chin, and she occasionally glanced up, lazily jotting down key points from the blackboard.
On the podium, Teacher Iruka continued to roar at a room full of slackers. To be fair, he was a good teacher—dedicated, responsible, patient, and meticulous. The virtues of the teaching profession were all evident in this 22-year-old man.
But for many 12-year-olds, this material was genuinely difficult to grasp.
There were no specialized courses in mathematics, chemistry, or physics here. The Ninja Academy offered only five subjects: theory, physical training, insights, history, and practical application.
A vast amount of knowledge in mathematics, chemistry, physics, and geography was condensed into the single subject of theory, making it naturally challenging for students to grasp.
If it weren't for the foundation of higher education from his previous life, Ino wouldn't have found it so easy to learn.