Konoha Notes

Chapter 213 Fine-tuning
Hagi was a little late; Karin was already impatient to go to school.

"Mr. Shuji holds a high position in the village and is very busy." This is what the captain's mother often says when you go to the Hokage Building.

"That guy really doesn't have much time," the Hokage, who came occasionally, told her.

So, if you become a good ninja, you'll see them often, right?

With that thought in mind, she practically dragged her mother Hagi's arm and jogged all the way to the entrance of the ninja academy.

"so many people……"

Although I've been in Konoha for two years, this is the first time I've seen so many children gathered together.

She didn't particularly like these people her age, and some of them were especially annoying, always pointing fingers at her red hair.

"Just fight back, fight boldly, there won't be any problems," the Hokage said.

She was the most dazzling woman Karin had ever seen; if that's the case, then she must be right.

Her mother had a different opinion, but her mother's opinion was wrong. Karin, who had been brave enough to break free from her previous situation, thought so.

So she mustered her courage, raised her head, and unlike the cautious Hagi beside her, faced these future classmates in the crowd.

Immediately, they spotted a figure under the tree that was both somewhat unfamiliar and strangely familiar.

“Shu…Shuji…Captain…”

Karin tugged at Hagi's sleeve and pointed at the person under the tree.

"Mom, the captain is here too."

"He probably has a mission," Hagi said in a low voice. "Karin, you mustn't disturb Mr. Shuji's work."

"Uh-huh!"

Karin's face flushed with excitement as she nodded vigorously.

Great! As expected, as long as I embark on the path of the ninja, I'll see him again!
Even in the ninja world, red hair is a rare trait. Shuji noticed the undisguised gaze that had been following him, and nodded slightly in Karin's direction as a greeting.

He then whispered something to Itachi beside him before turning and walking into the Ninja Academy's teaching building.

Having seen the excitement I wanted, it's time to go in and get down to business.

The Ninja Academy has already been expanded once, and the original school building left by Tobirama Senju is no longer sufficient.

After all, during the Second Hokage's time, Tobirama Senju only trained a total of thirty-eight students. At that time, most ninjas were trained by their own clans, which was completely different from now.

Nowadays, even the major ninja clans tend to send their children to ninja academies rather than relying entirely on internal family education.

The teachers in charge of today's entrance exams were already in their positions.

He had no interest in the test itself. The eligible children who were notified to attend were virtually guaranteed to be eliminated; it was only when one unlucky child was kicked out that Shuuji would be interested in seeing it.

"Jonin Shuji." A young ninja wearing sunglasses and a ninja hat greeted Shuji from afar, saying, "I am Ebisu, a teacher at the Ninja Academy."

He stood still, his posture impeccable.

"By order of the Hokage, I will be responsible for showing you the basic situation and daily operation of the school today."

Ebisu was promoted to Chunin at the age of seventeen and is about twenty-two years old this year. He has excellent teaching performance and will have a great chance to apply for Special Jonin after accumulating two more years of experience.

"Currently, the school is divided into six basic grades based on the number of years of enrollment. Students who fail the graduation exam need to repeat the grade; even if they pass the graduation exam, students who do not receive the approval of the class teacher will need to continue their studies for another year in the sixth grade."

"Standard training classes typically have between eighteen and twenty-four students, with one homeroom teacher responsible for teaching most subjects. Lower grades focus on basic taijutsu, ninja tool throwing, and chakra extraction and control; higher grades begin to delve into ninjutsu theory, trap setting, and basic squad tactics..."

"Cultural courses are offered throughout all grades, including basic reading and writing, mathematics, history, geography..."

The Ninja Academy employs a typical small-class teaching method. From first to sixth grade, the core of teaching and assessment always revolves around cultivating combat abilities. The requirements for academic courses are relatively lenient; simply meeting the passing standard is sufficient.

The "Three Body Techniques," a mandatory requirement for graduation, is a key threshold that clearly distinguishes ordinary people from ninjas.

Samurai possessed chakra and were quite capable in combat. Their eventual exclusion from the mainstream of the ninja system was largely due to the Three Body Technique.

Transformation techniques can effectively infiltrate and disrupt military and administrative systems; clone techniques and substitution techniques are extremely valuable tactically. Mastering these three techniques means a ninja possesses the ability to effectively suppress non-ninja systems.

Shuji had nothing particularly noteworthy to say about the existing ninja academy student training system. If he had to point out one thing, it would be that the "homeroom teacher taking charge of all teaching" model might have room for improvement in terms of professionalism.

His focus was more on the growth path of students after graduation, when they were in the lower ninja stage.

The current system of having a squad leader and three genin is rather crude. In most cases, the squad leader can only provide mission experience or some advanced learning methods.

For example, chakra control techniques such as treading water or climbing trees.

These skills can be gradually introduced as advanced courses in the later years of ninja academy, without having to wait until graduation to begin teaching them.

In many cases, due to differences in personal combat style and subordinates, the team leader can often only provide growth ideas to one of them. How the remaining team members grow depends on the team leader's network.

If we were to establish genin training programs within the existing ninja academy system, it wouldn't be like providing free education to ninja academy students; rather, it would be a paid advanced service. The village would issue official missions based on the individual strengths and development needs of the genin, entrusting ninjas with the corresponding expertise to provide targeted guidance…

As Shuji listened to Ebisu's introduction and pondered, the two encountered a ninja carrying a large stack of new student registration forms at a corner of a corridor.

"Ebisu-sensei." Iruka Umino greeted Ebisu, his senior, first, then noticed the person next to him, a hint of surprise on his face, "Captain Shuji? What brings you here..."

"Shuji is currently conducting a systematic investigation of the school, having been assigned by the Hokage," Ebisu explained, before letting Iruka leave first.

“Teacher Iruka, you…”

Shuji raised his hand, interrupting Ebisu: "I have a pretty good understanding of the situation at the school. Ebisu-sensei, I'll take care of the rest myself."

"But... I understand."

The current situation was not in Ebisu's plan, but he still chose to comply and turned to leave.

"Is this the preliminary class assignment list?" Shuuji's gaze fell on the document in Iruka's hand.

"Yes, Captain Shuji," Iruka answered honestly, though he was a little nervous.

"Karin, is she in your class?"

“Karin…” Iruka looked down and flipped through the freshman roster in his hand. “No, she’s not there.”

"Transfer her to your class."

To be frank, Shuuji wanted to see what kind of trouble Karin would cause if she joined Naruto and Sasuke's class.

Well, if you have the opportunity and the power, you might as well use it.

"Eh? But..." Iruka looked troubled, "The class assignments have already been tentatively arranged. If we make changes at the last minute, wouldn't that..."

"Since it is only a preliminary arrangement and has not been officially announced, there is no such thing as 'already arranged'."

"Yes..." Iruka replied with a wry smile. After all, he was just an ordinary Chunin teacher and couldn't refuse this Jonin who had been promoted for many years and was an agent assigned by the Hokage.

After agreeing, Iruka hesitated for a moment, his lips trembled a few times, but he still mustered up his courage and said, "Captain Shuji, I... may I ask you a question?"

"explain."

"It's about Mizuki... He applied to be a teacher at the Ninja Academy at the same time as me, but he failed because his grades and mission record were better."

Iruka said in a low voice, "He has always taken good care of me and is an important friend of mine. That's why I took the liberty of asking you... You should be able to know some of the inside reasons, right? Is there... something wrong?"

(End of this chapter)