"Good morning, Izumi!"
On a bright morning, Steel greeted his classmate, Kamizuki Izumi, as they walked to the ninja academy.
"Good morning," Izumi replied with a hint of weariness.
Steel playfully put his arm around Izumi's neck, chuckling, "Why do you look so tired?"
With a sigh, Izumi responded, "You forgot, today is results day."
"Ah, right! Did you not perform well on the exam?" Steel recalled what Mugetsu had mentioned yesterday.
"Yeah, I'm worried my score will be really low," Izumi said, glancing skyward with a troubled expression.
"It's okay, I didn't do great either. I'll probably score around what you do," Steel reassured, patting Izumi on the shoulder.
As they continued toward the academy, they encountered Akane.
"Izumi, Steel! Good morning!" Akane chirped happily.
"Morning, Akane!" they both replied.
"What's up with you two? You look like you had a nightmare or something," Akane asked, curious.
"It's because today's results day," Steel sighed.
"We both feel like we didn't do well, so we're anxious about our scores," he explained.
"Hehe, is that so? I feel like I did great, maybe my score will be really high!" Akane beamed, already imagining the reward she could ask from Teacher Mugetsu.
Steel and Izumi exchanged glances, realizing Akane's confidence was based on their struggles.
"I really envy you, Akane. You were second in practicals and you're doing well in theory too," Izumi expressed, impressed.
Akane's ego swelled even more at the compliment, strutting like a proud leader.
As they approached the school, they bumped into Shisui and other students from their class.
"How did your exam go, Shisui?" Akane asked, her curiosity piqued.
"Just average," Shisui replied nonchalantly.
Akane's anticipation grew—if Shisui scored average, maybe she could snag the top spot.
"Maybe not first, but I should be in the top five?" Akane mused, keeping her excitement in check.
Reaching the bulletin board, they found a crowd gathered, all voices buzzing with discussions about the scores.
"That class's scores are insane! So many in the 70s and 80s!"
"Someone even got a perfect score! I think they were first in practicals; that's just terrifying!"
"Must be that Teacher Mugetsu's class…"
"Excuse me, coming through!" Akane pushed her way through the throng, determined to find her class's scores with Steel and Izumi in tow.
"Eighty! Yes!" Akane cheered upon spotting her name and score.
But then she realized something was off.
"Steel, Izumi, did you find your scores?" Akane asked urgently.
"Yeah, I got a ninety-two," Steel confirmed, nodding.
"What?! How much?" Akane couldn't believe her ears.
"Ninety-two," Steel repeated, smiling.
"Are you kidding me?" Akane slapped Steel's shoulder, her big brown eyes wide in disbelief.
"Didn't you say you didn't do well? And you scored ninety-two?"
"Just luck, I thought I did poorly, but it turned out alright," Steel laughed, brushing it off.
"Izumi, how about you?" Steel turned to ask.
"Ninety-seven," Izumi replied with a smile.
"How much…?" Steel felt he must've misheard.
"Ninety-seven," Izumi reiterated.
Steel's smile faded while Izumi's grew brighter.
"I even tried to comfort you this morning, and you end up with almost a perfect score," Steel groaned, playfully putting Izumi in a headlock and pulling him along.
Akane recognized the familiar scene and jumped into the fray, occasionally sneaking a punch at Steel.
These two were infuriating; how could they score so high and still tease her?
After a month of hard work, Uchiha Shisui received a perfect score on his academic evaluation and was rewarded with: Chakra +300, Ninjutsu Proficiency Scroll.
The Ninjutsu Proficiency Scroll: Boosts any mastered ninjutsu to proficiency level.
Uchiha Obito also scored well, receiving Chakra +150.
Might Guy scored well too, also receiving Chakra +150.
As Mugetsu had predicted, there were indeed rewards for the exams, and they were significantly richer than his usual teaching rewards. He could barely muster six hundred Chakra from three days of lectures, and a single B-grade assessment only yielded twenty Chakra.
If only Obito and Guy had done better in theory, their rewards could've been higher.
Mugetsu felt a sudden urge for more exams at the school. Typically, there were only two per semester.
If there were ten exams in a semester, he would soar through the ranks.
That thought quickly faded, however, as he recognized it might not yield the rewards he hoped for.
When he organized exams in class, the system never awarded him either.
And he doubted the school would accept such a proposal. Ten exams a semester would be a huge hassle for both students and teachers.
After some consideration, Mugetsu decided to use the Ninjutsu Proficiency Scroll. With three semesters a year and two exams each, that meant a minimum of six scrolls per year.
He might as well enhance his skills to guard against any unexpected events.
Mugetsu applied the scroll to the Water Severing Wave technique, instantly flooding his mind with memories and various techniques related to mastering it.
Despite his arsenal of jutsu, Mugetsu believed Water Severing Wave held the greatest potential.
In the afternoon, Mugetsu became the center of attention in the staff room.
"Teacher Mugetsu, how did you teach them? Their theory scores are off the charts, averaging dozens higher than other classes!" Kimura couldn't help but ask.
"Right? Do you have any secret tips? My two barely scraped by this time, but who knows about next time?" Chikugai added.
They were all astonished at how Guy and Obito had swept the practicals and even managed to pass in theory.
Just as Mugetsu was about to respond, another teacher entered the room.
"Teacher Mugetsu, the principal is looking for you."
(End of Chapter)