As soon as they exited the Ninja Academy, they could quickly see a dense crowd of parents waiting outside, resembling the grand scene at the entrances of examination halls during the college entrance exams in his previous life. There were quite a few academy students, each graduating class had at least several hundred, and even more parents were waiting outside.
In the original timeline, Kakashi told Naruto that there were only twenty to thirty students in a graduating class, and two-thirds of them would be sent back. But in reality, if Konohagakure only had that many ninja each year, at most a thousand people, it would have long been destroyed by other ninja villages. Iwagakure alone could mobilize ten thousand ninja to kill the Sandaime Raikage. As the leader of the Five Great Ninja Villages, Konoha's ninja count couldn't be too far off from other villages, and would likely be even higher.
These twenty to thirty people were mostly members of the elite class, with some from other classes. Regardless, these individuals were either the cream of the crop or top-tier second-generation ninjas, and would be led by jōnin after graduation. Because of their innate talent or family background, their future prospects would certainly be greater than other ninjas. Each of them was a potential jōnin, and only such individuals would warrant Konoha assigning several jōnin to serve as instructors each year.
Jōnin are extremely valuable and powerful combatants. Even the election of the Hokage requires voting among jōnin, giving them high political status. Not every academy graduate is worthy of being led by a jōnin. If these instructing jōnin deem you capable, you follow them. If they deem you incapable, you are sent back, demoted, and assigned to other tokubetsu jōnin or chūnin.
The latter is the norm for most academy graduates. The better ones might be led by a tokubetsu jōnin, these individuals, to become tokubetsu jōnin, must at least have a unique skill, meeting jōnin standards in certain aspects. However, if the instructing ninja is only a chūnin, they are mostly treated as cannon fodder on the battlefield.
Uchiha Inabi and Uchiha Gen habitually walked towards the clan compound, when suddenly, a tall, slender middle-aged man with long hair appeared before them. His name was Uchiha Nobuyuki, a Konoha jōnin, the vice-captain of a Keigu squad, and Inabi's father.
"It seems your performance in this graduation assessment wasn't very good."
Inabi, who usually acted arrogantly at the academy, lowered his head.
"Who was first?"
Inabi looked at Gen beside him.
"Congratulations, Gen. If Taki knew how outstanding you are now, he would be very happy, wouldn't he?"
Nobuyuki's expression softened slightly towards Gen, though he still looked very serious. Uchiha Taki was the father of this body, who had died in a mission to apprehend an enemy village's spy before Gen transmigrated.
"Thank you for the compliment, Nobuyuki-ojisan. However, Inabi's performance was also excellent. He will surely become a powerful Uchiha like you in the future."
Uchiha Gen politely said to Nobuyuki.
"It's not enough. If he wants to become an Uchiha stronger than his father, he needs to do more."
Uchiha Nobuyuki shook his head and continued to ask Inabi, "So, were you second or third this time?"
Inabi, Sarutobi Enjun, and Gen had almost never dropped out of the top three in their grades during their years at the academy.
"Third. Sarutobi Enjun held oil in his mouth before the match to increase the power of his katon, so..."
"A loss is a loss, there's nothing more to say. However, losing to the Hokage's son and a more outstanding clan member is understandable and doesn't disgrace the clan's reputation. Come with me to the Clan Treasury this afternoon to choose ninjutsu."
The Uchiha clan, as a top noble family in the ninja world, has been prosperous for over a thousand years, and its members generally do not lack good ninjutsu to learn. As long as they reach a certain ninja rank, for example, advancing from genin to chūnin, or from a double tomoe Sharingan to a triple tomoe Sharingan, they are eligible to enter the Clan Treasury and select certain ninjutsu.
"Yes, Father!"
"Gen, I originally wanted to invite you to the Clan Treasury as well, to give you some advice on choosing ninjutsu. However, I just saw the granddaughter of the Great Elder arrive on the way, she's probably looking for you, so I won't overstep."
Uchiha Nobuyuki turned to look at the intersection. A charming black-haired girl was walking briskly from there, her eyes filled with a smile. A long, high ponytail tied with a bright red ribbon, a green hitai-ate over a light blue short-sleeved shirt emblazoned with the Uchiha clan crest, and a pair of fair, slender, yet healthy and strong legs wrapped in clean white gaiters. Her figure appeared even taller thanks to the blue combat boots.
This girl is... Uchiha Mikoto?
Uchiha Gen recognized the girl's identity at a glance. Being in the same clan, of course he knew Mikoto. Back then, Mikoto was his senior at the academy, three years ahead of him.
"Mikoto-nee-san," Gen and Inabi said in unison.
"Nobuyuki-ojisan, Inabi-kun, and Gen-kun, hello there."
The girl smiled gently at the three, bowing slightly. Uchiha Nobuyuki spoke:
"Mikoto, you must be here on behalf of Elder Geng, right?"
"Yes, Grandfather has long heard about the new genius in the clan. Today happens to be the Ninja Academy graduation day, so he specifically asked me to invite Gen-kun to our home for a chat."
Uchiha Geng is the current Great Elder of the Uchiha clan, second only in status to the Clan Head, Uchiha Tajima. He presides over the enforcement of clan rules and is responsible for the overall planning, distribution, and educational inheritance of public clan resources. In other words, the Clan Treasury and clan academy are all under his management. As a newly emerged genius of the Uchiha clan, Uchiha Gen naturally couldn't avoid the Great Elder.
"Then Inabi and I will take our leave first. Gen, if you need any help, you can tell me. There's no need to be formal with the Great Elder either."
Uchiha Nobuyuki waved to Mikoto and Gen, then led Inabi away.
"Gen-kun, shall we go?"
Uchiha Mikoto smiled, her clear gaze naturally falling upon the young man before her. His face was clean, his skin fair, with a hint of baby fat that hadn't quite faded. He was young, clearly having only recently begun puberty, but his features were handsome and proper, with a burgeoning heroic spirit. This was the look of someone with a positive mindset, full of confidence in their future.
With a cheat at his disposal, he naturally had an extra dose of confidence. At a glance, he exuded a youthful aura.
"Ah, alright, Mikoto-nee-san."
Uchiha Gen and Mikoto walked side by side on the streets of Konohagakure. A faint scent from the girl beside him reached his nose, and his eyes were somewhat vacant, as if he were spacing out. In reality, however, he had diverted some of his attention to the system. Originally, Gen had planned to go home, bathe, burn incense, and pray to the Rikudō Sennin before drawing a prize.