"I haven't been to Grass Country much." Kurenai replied, "I heard there's a vast prairie in Grass Country. We can go see it sometime."
"I haven't been to a prairie either, so let's take this mission." Kitazawa nodded and said.
"Let's go find the staff." Kurenai pulled him and went to the window of the mission hall.
"What mission are the two of you taking?" The staff member asked with a smile.
"Grass Country, B-rank mission, apprehending the rogue Ninja Kenchiro." Kurenai briefly repeated the mission.
"The names and strengths of your team members." The staff member picked up a pen and asked.
"Special Jonin Kitazawa and Chunin Kurenai Yuhi." Kurenai paused and said, "It's just the two of us."
"Here is the mission scroll." After completing the registration, the staff member handed them a scroll and reminded them, "The time limit for this mission is one month."
"Okay, thank you." Kurenai took the scroll, looked at Kitazawa, and said, "I'll go back and wait for you."
Kitazawa was discussing school matters with the Third Hokage, and it was not appropriate for her to interfere.
After Kurenai left, Kitazawa went to the Hokage's office.
"When I heard the knock, I knew Tsunade wasn't here." Hiruzen joked.
"Lady Tsunade is quite straightforward." Kitazawa couldn't help but smile and said.
"What can I do for you?" Hiruzen Sarutobi took a puff from his pipe and asked, "Are you perhaps inviting me to watch your monthly exam?"
"If Hokage-sama could spare the time to attend, the students of First Year Class A would probably be too excited to sleep." Kitazawa followed his words and said.
"Unfortunately, I have something on Monday, so I can't attend." Hiruzen shook his head and said, "We'll talk about it when your final exams come around."
"Although it's regrettable, there's nothing that can be done, as you must prioritize Konoha." Kitazawa took out a scroll and said, "Hokage-sama, I recently had an idea about the Ninja Academy. Please take a look."
"Your idea must be very interesting." Hiruzen Sarutobi opened the scroll with a chuckle.
The content on the scroll was divided into two parts.
One part was the purpose of forming a student council and its framework. The other part was about piloting the student council and selecting its members.
"A student council?" Hiruzen's face showed surprise, and he said, "It seems very novel."
There was no student council in the Ninja World. Even the Ninja Academy was first established by the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama.
Only after other Ninja villages followed suit did the Ninja World have Ninja Academies.
"Hokage-sama, do you think it can be established?" Kitazawa observed his expression and asked.
Hiruzen fell into thought. His gaze quickly fell on the purpose of forming the student council: to enable outstanding students to further embody the Fire Will through practical action.
According to Kitazawa's method of member selection, those who could enter the student council would definitely be the cream of the crop among the students.
Gathering them together to further deepen the Fire Will would undoubtedly be beneficial to Konoha Village.
Hiruzen tapped his pipe and thought of another question.
Within this student council, there would be positions such as president, vice president, and departments like the General Affairs Department, Academic Department, and Publicity Department.
This was quite similar to the various organizations within Konoha Village. So, who would be the president was very important.
Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately thought of Uzumaki Naruto. If it were purely about management ability, he would choose Shikamaru.
But for a Ninja, strength was the most important; even the strongest management ability couldn't compare to absolute strength.
However, Naruto was only in his first year. Could he defeat students from the fifth or sixth year?
"We can try it out for a period first." Hiruzen came back to his senses and said, "But the time for member selection is to be determined."
"To be determined?" Kitazawa looked at him in confusion.
"Member selection will take place after the trial period ends." Hiruzen replied, "Moreover, your class has only been in school for less than two semesters, so participating in member selection won't give you an advantage."
Kitazawa understood immediately.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was currently like Schrödinger's cat. He thought the student council sounded good, but since there was no precedent, he had to see the results of the trial run first.
If it truly benefited the Will of Fire, then it would be formally established.
Besides that, his second sentence also indicated that he wanted Naruto and his peers to hold important positions in the student council.
"Yes, Hokage-sama." Kitazawa agreed without hesitation.
From the current situation, his mission had hope of being completed. During the trial period, he could remain president until the member selection was over and the student council was officially established.
However, there would be a gap before the new president took office. This period would undoubtedly be crucial for him to complete his mission.
But before that, his trial student council had to achieve something significant that would satisfy Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Many student council activities from his previous life immediately popped into Kitazawa's mind.
"I am very much looking forward to the role this student council can play." Hiruzen Sarutobi said with a smile.
He was currently the principal of the Ninja Academy. If the student council were truly very useful, it would also be a boost to his reputation.
If it wasn't useful, it would be canceled after the trial period, and there would be no impact.
After their discussion, Kitazawa left the Hokage Building.
---
Upon returning to Kurenai's home, he found that Tsunade, Shizune, and Yakumo Kurama had all arrived.
They were gathered together to research the Emotion-Displacement Ninjutsu.
Although Kitazawa did not participate, he knew the progress, estimating it would be fully completed in about half a month.
At that time, he planned to find a way to get Tsunade to accept treatment for her hemophobia.
"Lady Tsunade." Kitazawa stopped and asked, "Are you interested in observing the monthly exam of First Year Class A?"
"Why are you asking me?" Tsunade asked, somewhat surprised.
"Because you're famous. Many students in our class look up to you as an idol." Kitazawa smiled and said, "If you could go, it might even help them perform exceptionally well."
"When?" Tsunade pondered for a moment and asked.
She had originally intended to refuse, but during the two days she filled in for Kitazawa's class, she was deeply impressed by the students of First Year Class A.
Furthermore, since Naruto was the son of Uzumaki Kushina and Minato Namikaze, it was very necessary to pay attention.
"Next Monday is the written exam, and next Tuesday is the practical exam. Both start at nine in the morning." Kitazawa replied.
"If I'm free, I'll go to the academy next Tuesday morning." Tsunade thought for a moment and said.
"Okay." Kitazawa finished talking and went upstairs.
He hadn't told Tsunade about Karin's mother. After all, there was no way to explain the source.
His plan was to go on a mission with Kurenai, accidentally learn the location of Karin's mother, and then report back to Tsunade.
Kitazawa arrived at the rooftop.
He had already mastered two of his four Wind Release Ninjutsu: Wind Release: Rotating Shuriken and Wind Release: Vacuum Blade.
These two Wind Release Ninjutsu were essentially similar.
The former involved injecting Wind Release Chakra into shuriken, while the latter involved injecting Wind Release Chakra into Kunai.
Kitazawa was now learning his third Wind Release Ninjutsu, Wind Release: Vacuum Wave.
It was somewhat similar to Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere.
Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere involved exhaling bullet-like wind blasts, while Wind Release: Vacuum Wave involved exhaling linear wind blades.
Simply put, one demonstrated the speed characteristic of Wind Release Chakra, and the other demonstrated the cutting characteristic of Wind Release Chakra.
Kitazawa's speed in learning Wind Release was average. One reason was that he also had to attend classes and study Medical Ninjutsu.
Another reason was that he didn't have proficient or mastery-level Wind Release Chakra nature transformation.
Fortunately, this mission required him to learn four Wind Release Ninjutsu this semester, and he still had two months, which was more than enough time.
---
Time arrived on Monday.
It was a new week, and also the last day of September, the monthly exam for First Year Class A.
Kitazawa arrived punctually in the classroom of First Year Class A. Because it was the monthly exam, the students had all arrived very early and had already filled the classroom.
"Good morning, Kitazawa-sensei." Naruto, Shikamaru, and others greeted him.
"Before the exam, I have some good news to announce." Kitazawa walked to the podium and said with a smile.
"Is Hokage-sama coming?" Kiba raised his hand and asked. He asked this because Hiruzen had come for the final exam last semester.
The other students' faces immediately showed anticipation when they heard this. It had to be said that Sarutobi Hiruzen's popularity in Konoha Village was indeed high.
He hadn't been Hokage for so many years for nothing.
"Not Hokage-sama, but Lady Tsunade." Kitazawa shook his head and said.
"Lady Tsunade, one of the Konoha Sanin?"
"She's Hokage-sama's student! If I perform well, then maybe Hokage-sama will know too."
"And Lady Tsunade doesn't have any students yet!"
The students of First Year Class A began fantasizing.
"Lady Tsunade is actually coming?" Sakura asked excitedly, "Kitazawa-sensei, is Medical Ninjutsu going to be tested in the practical exam?"
She was still a child, and she greatly envied Ino and the others who were dominating the battlefield. But apart from Medical Ninjutsu, her combat ability hadn't improved at all.
"Sakura." Ino retorted, "How could Medical Ninjutsu be tested?"
"I know." Sakura also knew it was impossible. In fact, it was already a stroke of luck for her to be exposed to Medical Ninjutsu in her First Year.
Sakura had always wanted to repay Kitazawa, but her parents were civilian Ninja and couldn't offer any valuable Ninjutsu.
The only way was to see what Kitazawa needed, and then she could try her best to fulfill it.
"Time's up, prepare for the exam." Kitazawa clapped his hands and said, "Although Lady Tsunade isn't coming until tomorrow, the theoretical exam rankings will still be announced in front of her."
The students of First Year Class A immediately became serious.
"Shikamaru, what rank are you aiming for this time?" Ino asked curiously.
Sakura also looked at Shikamaru upon hearing this. In the last final exam, he made rapid progress, causing her to lose first place.
Undoubtedly, Shikamaru was her biggest opponent in the theoretical exam. Others like Hinata and Sasuke were a notch below her.
Unless it was a special circumstance, Sakura was confident she could win against them, but Shikamaru was hard to say.
"I'll aim for the top ten," Shikamaru said casually.
In the last final exam, he could be said to have gone all out, but it was really too tiring. For this monthly exam, Kitazawa had no requirements for himself; he just needed to satisfy his parents.
However, since he had already achieved first place before, scoring sixty points again would seem too fake, so a top ten rank was just right, and it would save him a lot of effort.
Sakura didn't know what to say for a moment.
She had thought she was a super academic genius in theory, but she didn't expect Shikamaru Nara to be even more outrageous than her, able to precisely control his score.
Forget it, she couldn't compare to a pervert; she'd just score as much as she could.
"Sasuke-kun, let's do our best together!" Sakura turned her head, clenched her fists, and said.
Sasuke glanced at her calmly.
Although first place in the theoretical exam was important, he could only try his best to see how much he could score. In his opinion, the focus was still on the practical exam.
The last final exam, where Naruto took first place, had always bothered him.
But for this monthly exam, he wouldn't repeat the same mistake, because he already possessed the Sharingan.
A small test run before had already defeated Neji, the strongest in Second Year, and Naruto would be no exception.
As long as he got first place in the practical exam and managed to get into the top three in the theoretical exam, first place in the overall ranking would be guaranteed.
"Start answering now," Kitazawa spoke after hearing the bell ring.
The students of First Year Class A picked up their pens upon hearing this.
After leaving a Shadow Clone, Kitazawa went to the Ninja Academy's Training Ground. For this monthly exam, he had no tasks and didn't need to take the test with them.
Since that was the case, there was no need to waste time as a proctor; focusing on learning Wind Release Ninjutsu was the priority.
At eleven in the morning, the theoretical exam ended, and the dismissal bell rang.
Kitazawa glanced at the teaching building, then continued practicing Wind Release. He formed hand signs and exhaled several linear wind blades.
The next second, the rock in front of him was cut into a dozen pieces, and the cuts were very smooth. This was Wind Release: Vacuum Wave.
But Kitazawa had a question: why 'Wave' and not 'Cut'?
"Kit... Kitazawa-sensei."
A timid voice sounded.
Kitazawa turned around and saw Hinata. She stood not far away, her hands clasped tightly in front of her chest, looking a little nervous.
"Come here." Kitazawa smiled and waved to her.
Hinata breathed a sigh of relief and quickly walked forward.
"Are you going back after lunch, or going back to eat lunch?" Kitazawa stroked her head and asked.
"Going back after lunch!" Hinata said without hesitation. But after saying it, a conflicted expression appeared on her face.
"What's wrong? Hinata." Kitazawa noticed her expression and asked with some confusion.
"Can... can I not go back?" Hinata lowered her head, gathered her courage, and said, "I want to continue training this afternoon."
"That's fine." Kitazawa thought of her mission and said, "This afternoon's training will be changed to practical special training, where I'll let you get familiar with Genjutsu."
"Mm!" Hinata couldn't help but smile upon hearing this.
"So cute." Kitazawa reached out, pinched her cheek, and said.
Hinata's small face flushed, but she didn't dodge.
The time came to five in the afternoon.
After sending Hinata home, Kitazawa dispelled his Shadow Clone.
The theoretical exam results for First Year Class A poured into his mind. Compared to the last final exam, the biggest change was Shikamaru.
He dropped from first to tenth place, and Sakura regained first place.
There was a new face in the top ten, and that was Yakumo Kurama; she was exactly in ninth place. Missing a semester and still ranking ninth was enough to show her intelligence and diligence.
Naruto was still in twelfth place, the same as last time. But this time, he wasn't behind Kiba.
Kiba Inuzuka's rank dropped to thirteenth place, probably because he was busy with Tree Climbing and Water Walking Training.
Kitazawa felt he could slightly limit his training time. Firstly, it indeed affected his grades. Secondly, he didn't have a mission.
---
The new day, Tuesday, was the practical exam.
All students of First Year Class A gathered punctually on the Ninja Academy's Training Ground.
Although Kitazawa also served as the homeroom teacher for Second Year Class A, his focus remained on First Year Class A. Second Year Class A could be left to Yamada.
"Lady Tsunade." Not long after Kitazawa arrived, he saw Tsunade and Shizune, and quickly went to greet them.
"You're not calling me Senior Sister anymore?" Shizune, holding Tonton, asked faintly.
"Senior Sister Shizune." Kitazawa blinked and said with a smile, "My Medical Ninjutsu is still slightly inferior to yours right now."
Shizune's mouth twitched involuntarily.
Saying 'slightly inferior' wasn't quite accurate, as the only difference between them was one Medical Ninjutsu: the Creation Rebirth Technique.
Once Kitazawa learned the Creation Rebirth Technique, they would be on par in terms of the number of Medical Ninjutsu mastered.
With his talent, learning the Creation Rebirth Technique was only a matter of time.
So what should she teach him next? The Strength of a Hundred Seal?
Shizune herself didn't know it; only Tsunade could teach it.
And once even the Strength of a Hundred Seal was taught, he and Tsunade would become teacher and student, even if they weren't before.
"Lady Tsunade!" The students of First Year Class A became excited.
Other students from nearby classes were all shocked and envious.
For the last final exam, the third Hokage came, and for this monthly exam, Tsunade came. The treatment of First Year Class A was simply unbelievably good to them.
"Can't compare." Yamada and other teachers couldn't help but sigh.
They all understood that First Year Class A received this treatment entirely because of Kitazawa.
"Iruka." Kitazawa called out, "You will be the referee for today's practical exam."
"Yes!" Iruka immediately responded.
"You don't need to deliberately stay with me; go do what you need to do." Tsunade waved her hand and said.
"I'm doing it to be lazy," Kitazawa said with a serious expression.
Tsunade couldn't help but glare at him upon hearing this.
Shizune, however, couldn't help but laugh. Outside of the casino, she rarely saw Tsunade get flustered.
"The practical exam begins now." Iruka announced loudly, "The rules are the same as the last final exam: it's divided into three rounds, and those with higher scores advance to the next round."
"Lady Tsunade, do you want to score?" Kitazawa handed her the roster and a pen and asked.
"No need." Tsunade shook her head and said, "I'm not a teacher."
"All students, please come up and draw lots; those with the same number will be opponents." Iruka brought out a large lottery box.
The students of First Year Class A came up in an orderly fashion.
"I'm number five!" Naruto quickly asked, "Does anyone else have the same as me?"
"Hahaha!" Kiba laughed happily, "I'm number one!"
In the last final exam, he was extremely unlucky, meeting Naruto in the first round.
"I'm also number one." A gentle female voice sounded.
It was unfamiliar.
"This time it's sta..." Kiba looked in the direction of the voice and saw Yakumo Kurama.
The smile on his face immediately froze.
--
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P@atreon/Arvinstorm (45+ Advanced Chapters)