The third day of the exams proceeded much faster.
After all, each class only sent two students, and there were only eight classes per grade at the Ninja Academy.
Just like the previous day, students who weren't taking the exam could choose not to attend.
However, quite a few students still came to watch. Everyone wanted to see who would become the first overall champion of the fourth grade.
"Am I seeing things? Isn't that Uchiha Obito? Why is he standing with the contestants?" someone asked in confusion.
"You didn't hear what happened in Class 2 yesterday?" the person beside him replied.
"No. My luck was terrible—I faced the strongest guy in my class in the first round. After losing, I just went home."
"Then it makes sense. Uchiha Obito suddenly got really strong. He even defeated Uchiha Tekka from their class."
The watching students chatted enthusiastically about the competitors from each class.
Sometimes arguments even broke out about who was stronger.
At times like this, even those who had previously mocked Obito and Might Guy would try to defend them.
After all, they were the representatives of their class.
"Looks like Shisui is probably the only one who can take first place this time," Makoto thought after watching the first round.
It seemed unlikely that Obito or Guy could win.
That Hyūga Homon had mastered the Gentle Fist quite well. Combined with the advantages of the Byakugan, it would be difficult for Guy to defeat him—let alone Obito.
Makoto could only admit that Hyūga clan ninja had a significant advantage in the early stages.
Unlike the Sharingan, which was difficult to awaken, the Byakugan was naturally available to them. On top of that, the clan's Gentle Fist Taijutsu was an exceptionally powerful fighting style.
Obito and Guy simply hadn't trained with him long enough yet.
Their strengths weren't fully developed, and they still had many weaknesses.
As time passed, the tournament entered the final two matches.
Obito Uchiha vs. Hyūga Homon
Might Guy vs. a ninja from Class 4-3
Just as Makoto expected, Obito stood no chance against Hyūga Homon.
Before he could even use a single ninjutsu, he was struck repeatedly by the Gentle Fist and left completely disoriented.
In the final match, Guy performed far better than Obito.
However, every move he made was seen through by the Byakugan, and he still ultimately lost.
After losing the match, Obito looked dejected.
He had been aiming for first place, yet he hadn't even made the top two.
Just then, Makoto happened to walk past and said:
"Don't focus only on your failures. Think about how much you've improved compared to last time—and keep working toward the next step."
The moment Makoto said that, Obito's mood instantly improved.
During the third-year final exams, he had only ranked around twentieth in the class.
But this time, he had nearly reached the top two in the entire grade.
Looking at it that way, his improvement was enormous.
At this rate, first place was only a matter of time!
Makoto then walked over to Might Guy .
Surprisingly, Guy also looked a little depressed.
At first, Makoto thought that someone with Guy's spirit wouldn't care about a single loss.
But after thinking about it, he realized the reason.
It was probably because he had given Guy the Taijutsu training manual yesterday, making Guy feel he was carrying Makoto's expectations.
"Failure runs throughout life—that's what life is," Makoto said calmly. "Don't let a single defeat knock you down."
Guy's body trembled.
If there was anyone qualified to talk about failure—it was him.
When he first tried to enter the Ninja Academy, he had nearly failed the entrance exam.
Then he challenged Kakashi Hatake and was defeated in a single move.
In every class, he ranked dead last and was constantly mocked as the Dead Last.
Even though he was only eight years old, Guy had already experienced countless failures.
Suddenly, he felt like he understood what his father Might Duy meant when he said "youth never fades."
"I understand now, Teacher Makoto," Guy said.
His gaze became even more determined.
Instead of dwelling on defeat, he needed to train harder and win the next battle—again and again—until he became the strongest.
Makoto nodded with satisfaction and continued walking until he found Shisui.
When he arrived, Shisui was surrounded by a group of students asking him questions.
As soon as they saw Makoto, the students all greeted him.
"Teacher Hosokawa !" Mitarashi Anko said with a grin as she walked up to him. "I got second place in the grade! Do I get any reward?"
Makoto smiled and gently patted her head.
"Let me think… how about I treat you to some dango?"
"Yay! Teacher Hosokawa is the best!" Anko instantly became Makoto's biggest fan the moment she heard there would be dango.
"Shisui got first place and hasn't even asked for a reward yet. Anko, you're way too impatient," Hagane Kotetsu complained.
It wasn't that he actually thought she was impatient.
He was just a little jealous.
There's a saying:
You worry when your friend fails—but you worry even more when they succeed too much.
And right now, Anko had succeeded too much.
Makoto chuckled and dismissed the students before walking with Shisui toward the commercial street.
"How did the exam feel?" Makoto asked.
Shisui thought for a moment before answering honestly.
"It felt pretty ordinary. There wasn't even anyone who forced me to fight seriously."
"That's normal," Makoto replied without hesitation. "With your current strength, there aren't many opponents in the fourth grade who can challenge you—let alone the first grade."
Then Shisui looked into Makoto's eyes.
Makoto's eye color was unique—a sky-like blue.
"Teacher Makoto… do you think I should graduate early?"
"Graduate early?"
"I heard that some very talented seniors felt the Ninja Academy couldn't teach them much, so they graduated early," Shisui explained.
Makoto shook his head.
"I wouldn't recommend graduating in your first year. At the very least, wait until the second or third year."
"You may be outstanding among people your age, but once you leave the academy, your opponents won't just be children your age."
"Especially now, when another great war could break out at any time."
Then Makoto offered another idea.
"If you feel the academy classes aren't meaningful, you could use the Shadow Clone Technique to attend school in your place while your real body trains according to my guidance."
In the original story, Shisui Uchiha survived the Third Great Ninja War and even gained the title "Shisui of the Body Flicker."
But that was the original timeline.
Now there was Hosokawa Makoto involved. Who knew what kind of butterfly effect might occur?
Makoto would much rather have Shisui stay in the academy and grow steadily for a few more years.
After all, what was the point of graduating if you couldn't even defeat a Chūnin instantly?
If it were him, without Jōnin-level strength, he wouldn't even feel safe walking through the streets of Konohagakure.
When Shisui heard Makoto's suggestion, his eyes lit up.
He nodded immediately.
He felt Makoto's advice made perfect sense.
Afterward, Makoto bought a large amount of dango with Shisui and returned to the academy.
Before the afternoon class began, every student in Class 1-1 received a serving of dango.
Of course, Makoto wasn't really going to let only Anko eat.
But since he had promised her, he gave an extra portion to Anko.
"Teacher Hosokawa is the greatest in the world!" Anko declared happily.
If she got a few more servings of dango, the Church of Hosokawa might even appear in Konoha someday.
The other students also expressed their gratitude.
Their already high affection for Makoto increased even further.
The Ninja Academy worked very efficiently.
Only two days after the exam, all results were compiled and announced.
And it confirmed Makoto's guess.
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