Naruto: My Unique System

Chapter 5: Sakumo's Challenge

"Lord Third, here is the list of this year's teams and the entrance exam papers for the new students. Please take a look."

Within the Hokage's office, a silhouette shrouded in ANBU attire materialized, gently laying a stack of exam papers and admission notices on the table. Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded thoughtfully, his gaze traversing the top of the list. A subtle crease formed on his forehead as he commented:

"So, that kid Itetsu didn't secure a spot in a team? Danzo will likely lodge another complaint, accusing me of favoritism towards the Shimura Clan."

The ANBU Ninja replied, "It appears that there are two exceptionally talented children who have surpassed Shimura Itetsu's ranking."

"Is that so?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen promptly perused the list. He recognized most of the names, given his duty as the Hokage of Konoha to be concerned about the younger generation of the village. Furthermore, these names bore the surnames of various ninja clans in Konoha or were the offspring of village Jonin. Hence, he swiftly pinpointed two distinctive names on the list.

"Sakamoto Tatsuma, Minato Namikaze. I recall them. Weren't they the two kids who have been jogging past the Hokage Tower recently?"

"Yes, Lord Third-sama."

The ANBU nodded, affirming Sarutobi Hiruzen's suspicion. These two children had been traversing the area around the Hokage Tower daily for the past month. As ANBU operatives, it was their responsibility to investigate, yet a thorough inquiry revealed the innocence of the children; they were merely passing by for exercise. Further investigation seemed unnecessary, especially considering the presence of more individuals with similar routines.

In Konoha, there was another Genin who, from pre-enrollment until now, had been jogging past the Hokage Tower daily for several years. ANBU recalled this spirited Genin who passionately shouted about youth. Meanwhile, Sarutobi Hiruzen had already begun reviewing the admission notices and exam papers for Tatsuma and Minato.

Observing that both of them had achieved the highest grades in the first two tests noted on their notices, Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't help but feel a twinge of surprise. As the head of the Sarutobi Clan, he was acutely aware of the significant impact that ninja clans had on a ninja's development.

Ninjas affiliated with ninja clans enjoyed early-age resources that eluded civilian ninjas. The wealth of materials and educational guidance from family elders enabled ninja clan members to outpace their civilian counterparts even before enrolling. Consequently, for civilian ninjas to distinguish themselves, their innate talent and effort must surpass those of ninja clan members by several folds-an even more formidable task for war orphans.

After all, a civilian family can scrape together enough funds for introductory ninja books and practice equipment, but for war orphans, it's a different challenge.

As the Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen is well aware of the financial aid provided to war orphans by the village, ensuring their basic survival needs. However, any additional expenses generally remain out of reach.

Within both civilian and war orphan populations, instances of exceptionally talented individuals have been rare, as evidenced by Sarutobi Hiruzen's two disciples, Orochimaru and Jiraiya. Over the years, the emergence of notable talents among civilians has been sparse, with only these two disciples standing out. Now, with the unexpected appearance of two more, Sarutobi Hiruzen finds it truly astonishing.

Instantly, Sarutobi Hiruzen meticulously reviewed the exam papers of the two individuals. Children like them were more susceptible to deviating from the right path compared to other ninjas, especially given the perceived "unfair" treatment the village had meted out to them.