Chapter 54 — The New Ninja Ranking System
Inside the main household of the Uchiha Clan, deep within the clan's residential district, the head of the family—Uchiha Fugaku—sat quietly at the table.
Meanwhile, his wife, Uchiha Mikoto, gently cradled little Sasuke in her arms as she watched her eldest son, Uchiha Itachi, putting on his sandals near the front door. With a soft voice, she called out to him:
"Itachi, you forgot your lunchbox."
Itachi straightened up and turned toward her with his usual polite demeanor. "Mom, there's no need to bring lunch to the Sacred Arts Academy. Headmaster Kyūjō personally said he'd be preparing the meals himself. They taste really good too."
He paused for a moment, then added, "Also, after eating, my whole body feels warm and energized. Sorry I didn't tell you last night… I didn't mean to make you prepare an extra portion."
Mikoto froze for a moment.
After all, the person her son just casually referred to—Headmaster Kyūjō—was practically a living god in today's shinobi world. The mere idea that such a divine figure would take the time to cook meals for a group of children… who wouldn't be stunned?
After snapping out of her daze, Mikoto smiled and replied gently, "That's okay, Itachi. Do your best today, alright?"
"I will!" the five-year-old Itachi replied with a strong nod, then turned to say goodbye to his father and head out to meet Shisui so they could walk to school together.
But just before he could step outside, Fugaku's voice rang out from behind him.
"Itachi," he said sternly. "At the Sacred Arts Academy, make sure to study diligently and respect your instructors. Never disgrace the Uchiha name. And one more thing… during school, don't eat at home. Eat as much as you can at the academy."
Itachi blinked, slightly confused by that last part, but nodded nonetheless.
Fugaku didn't bother explaining. He knew full well that even if he did, his son wouldn't understand.
But deep inside… Fugaku himself was itching to try Hatake Kyūjō's cooking. That opportunity, however, would never come.
As one of Konoha's most prominent figures, Fugaku understood exactly how much effort and resources had been poured into the Sacred Arts Academy.
Even just the food—comprised of rare herbs from every major village and high-grade nutritional ingredients—was worth thousands of ryō.
Not to mention the sacred animal meat and mystical herbs sourced directly from the Three Great Sage Lands. When used correctly, they acted as natural elixirs. With long-term consumption, even an ordinary person could build a strong body and extend their lifespan.
And to top it off, all of it was personally refined and cooked by Hatake Kyūjō himself.
For growing children, these meals—combined with a carefully tailored training regimen—could bring about miraculous transformations.
So of course… wasting even a single bite was out of the question.
Especially since the Uchiha Clan had already paid a hefty sum… donating several of their own rare herbs as part of the academy's support.
Fugaku's only hope now was for Itachi and Shisui to eat as much as they could—to "get their investment's worth," so to speak.
Yes, among the grand and mighty Uchiha Clan, only two children had passed the entrance exams for the very first year of the Sacred Arts Academy.
Shisui, who had already been on the verge of graduating from the standard Ninja Academy at age nine, had been pulled out by his parents to start over from scratch at the Sacred Academy.
And if the Uchiha's case was sad… then the Hyuga Clan's was downright pitiful.
They only managed to get one student accepted—and to make matters worse, that child wasn't even from the main family, but from the branch house.
But Hatake Kyūjō, the divine guardian of the shinobi world, couldn't care less about family status.
On the very first day, he casually removed the "Caged Bird Seal" from the child's forehead.
The elders of the Hyuga Clan had turned red with fury, but none dared protest. They had no choice but to bow their heads in silence.
Just thinking about that moment brought a quiet chuckle to Fugaku's lips.
— — —
In the first year, Kyūjō had personally selected fewer than thirty students.
And this wasn't just an academy for Konoha—it was a school meant for the entire shinobi world.
He had even visited all the major villages himself to explain his vision. Not a single village was foolish enough to hide their young prodigies.
The Five Great Nations—Wind, Fire, Water, Lightning, and Earth—each established testing hubs in their capitals and major cities. After passing the first round of exams, the children were escorted to Konoha to face the final selection.
This system opened the gates for commoners across the shinobi world, giving them a true chance to rise beyond their status.
But the number of children who actually passed the full selection… was minuscule.
Those who failed the final round but cleared the regional screening were instantly snatched up by local villages. After all, anyone who passed the preliminary test had the potential to become a Jōnin.
And Jōnin weren't exactly easy to come by.
In the end, Hatake Kyūjō only accepted about twenty children under the age of ten from the entire shinobi world.
With that kind of standard, every student in the Sacred Arts Academy was practically a chosen child of the heavens.
— — —
Over the next few years, the shinobi world underwent drastic changes as the academy's graduates began to spread out.
Overall power levels skyrocketed, and Hatake Kyūjō introduced a brand-new ranking system for shinobi above the Jōnin level.
It was divided into four tiers: Heaven, Earth, Mystic, and Yellow—just like the ranking systems in those xianxia cultivation stories.
Elite Jōnin from the various villages were now considered "Yellow-grade" shinobi.
Those with power equal to the old Kage level—such as the Legendary Three Sannin: Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru—were now classified as "Mystic-grade."
Anyone surpassing the strength of a Kage was recognized as "Earth-grade." This included individuals like Hatake Sakumo and the elusive Uchiha Madara.
And as for "Heaven-grade"… Kyūjō only announced one name to the world:
The Sage of Six Paths—founder of all ninjutsu.
As for himself?
Hatake Kyūjō stood above even that.
— — —
The purpose of this updated system wasn't to inflate egos.
It was to give every shinobi a new goal to strive for.
Just because someone had reached the level of Jōnin didn't mean their journey was over. There were still greater heights to climb.
And because this system came directly from the acknowledged "God" of the shinobi world, no one dared to question it.
Every village soon updated their own ranking structures accordingly. Though for now, only Yellow and Mystic grades were widely adopted. Earth-grade remained out of reach—only Hatake Sakumo was even close.
— — —
Five years after the founding of the Sacred Arts Academy…
The reincarnations of Indra and Ashura—Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto—finally enrolled.
At the time, Itachi had yet to graduate. Thus, the two brothers began their lives in this unique school system side by side.
To be clear—Itachi hadn't failed to graduate.
Quite the opposite.
He was so brilliant that the academy refused to let him go. And this tied directly to the Sacred Arts Academy's unique graduation policy.
Each student was given one year of study.
If they couldn't meet Kyūjō's expectations, they'd be forced to graduate.
But if a student demonstrated extraordinary potential—even reaching Earth-grade power levels—Hatake Kyūjō would personally mentor them for as many years as needed.
As for reaching Heaven-grade… that was a far more distant dream.
Without something like a Sage Body or Ōtsutsuki-level talent, it was practically impossible.
— — —
The academy also had one particularly… intense class.
The Taijutsu Class.
Every student in this course wore tight, bright green jumpsuits. Their class motto?
"The Power of Youth!"
Their teacher? None other than Might Duy himself.
It was his solemn duty to guide the world's most promising taijutsu users and teach them the ultimate forbidden technique: the Eight Inner Gates.
And the guiding principle of their class was simple:
Overcome all ninjutsu… with raw, unrelenting strength.
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