Chapter 31: Dumbledore of the ninja world

Chapter 31 - Dumbledore of the ninja world It was just another normal day in Ren's life as he returned to the academy after the break. As he walked through the hallway, he suddenly saw an unusual sight, Itachi being paraded through the corridor by three boys. The three kids had their heads held high, clearing the path ahead of them as if they were the guards of a royal procession. They loudly declared Itachi as their "boss," ensuring that no one stood in his way. The only one who didn't seem pleased with the situation was Itachi himself. With his head lowered slightly and a dark shadow lingering around him, he silently accepted his fate. When Itachi raised his head, his eyes locked onto Ren's, glimmering with an unspoken plea perhaps for help or understanding. But before any words could be exchanged, Ren simply turned around and walked in another direction. Itachi stared at Ren's retreating back for a moment before sighing and continuing his march with his new "followers." 'I guess this means his use of the Shadow Clone Jutsu is about to be discovered,' Ren thought as he left the scene. 'Figures. The first year is almost over, so it's about time they accept his level is way beyond others. Looks like he'll be graduating soon.' And, as expected, two days later, the news spread throughout the academy Itachi Uchiha had been promoted directly to the sixth-year class, set to graduate early. Itachi's sudden promotion to the graduation class was the main topic of discussion throughout the village. Everyone was talking about the Uchiha prodigy, praising his genius and potential. Even at the academy, the students couldn't stop discussing it. Ren, however, remained unaffected. He had briefly considered applying for graduation as well, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized it would do him no good. Graduating early would mean being assigned to a genin team, following mission schedules, and significantly reducing his available training time. Right now, his rapid growth was largely due to the flexibility of his routine. If he became a genin too early, that flexibility would disappear. Besides, his strength wasn't at a level where he would gain anything from leaving the academy just yet. 'If I can keep training freely, I'll be stronger than most chunin by the time I graduate normally. There's no reason to rush.' Still, seeing Itachi rise so quickly lit a fire inside Ren. He had no interest in competing with him, but it was still a reminder that time never stopped moving. If he wanted to be strong enough to survive the dangers of this world, he had to keep pushing forward. So while the rest of the academy was caught up in the buzz of Itachi's early graduation, Ren simply continued his usual training. The graduation exam was approaching, but Ren didn't let it disrupt his routine. Even if it were the actual graduation exam, he wouldn't have any trouble passing, so the first-year exams posed no real challenge to him. He continued his usual training, refining his techniques and strengthening his body without any concern for the upcoming tests. On the day of the exam, Utakata entered the classroom and announced, "Good morning. Today, everything you have learned over the past year will be tested. The first part will be the written exam, followed by the leaf-holding test, then the shurikenjutsu test, and lastly, the combat test. This time, you will draw lots to determine your opponent, making it a tournament-style competition. The winners will advance, and your final placement combined with the results of the other tests will determine your overall class ranking. The bottom five will be demoted from the elite class." With Itachi already moved to the sixth year, there was no one left in the class who could challenge Ren for the top spot. He easily secured first place in all the exams, dominating each test without much effort. The final match for first place was against Eiji, who had recently stepped into the chunin level at Level 21. Despite his growth, Eiji still wasn't a match for Ren, who overpowered him without much difficulty. With this, Ren stood as the undisputed top student of the first-year elite class. Since the exam was over and the first year of the academy had officially concluded, Ren decided to take the rest of the day off to relax. He dispelled the two shadow clones that had been working on jutsu training in the basement, freeing himself from any responsibilities for the day. With no particular destination in mind, he wandered around Konoha, letting his feet carry him wherever they pleased. Eventually, he found himself at the Hokage Monument, climbing up to sit atop the head of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju. Tobirama had always been Ren's favorite Hokage not just for his legendary power, but for his visionary leadership. He was the one who had pioneered Konoha's development, laying the foundation that allowed Hiruzen to make it the strongest village of its time. Without him, many of the systems that held the village together wouldn't even exist. As the sun began its descent, casting a warm orange-red glow over the entire village, Ren opened his system panel to check the rewards for securing first place in the academy exams. [SYSTEM REWARD: 5 CHUNIN LEVEL POINTS] Ren raised an eyebrow. The reward was less than he had expected, but in hindsight, it made sense. His strength had already surpassed many chunin-level shinobi, so excelling in a first-year academy exam wasn't exactly groundbreaking. Without hesitation, he allocated three points to Vitality and two to Chakra. Previously, every two points in Vitality had increased his Chakra by one, but now, it took three points. Eventually, when his physical energy fully caught up to his mental energy, he knew that this additional Chakra gain would stop entirely. Satisfied with his progress, he opened his full system panel to assess his growth: [NAME: REN TAKAHASHI] [LEVEL: 32] [ATTRIBUTES:] STR - 32 AGI - 36 INT - 34 VIT - 39 CHA - 37 [TALENTS:] - Improved Chakra Control - Enhanced Reflexes - Genjutsu Resistance (A-Rank) [MASTERY PANEL:] Chakra Control - 64% Fast Fist Taijutsu - 70% Shurikenjutsu - 81% Shadow Clone Mastery - 60% Wind Style Mastery - 63% Earth Style Mastery - 60% [AVAILABLE POINTS: 2 MASTERY POINTS] Ren carefully examined his stats. In just one year, he had come a long way. All his attributes were above 30, well into early chunin-level. With his increased observation ability, he could now see levels up to 52. From his analysis, he determined that Tokubetsu Jonin ranged from Level 40 to 50 and Jonin were above Level 50. He set a goal for himself before graduating from the academy next year, he wanted his agility to reach tokubetsu jonin levels. Speed was his greatest strength, and pushing it to its limits would solidify his advantage. As for mastery, chakra control remained the hardest to improve. Since he had two mastery points, he planned to use one on Chakra Control when it reached 64%, instantly boosting it to 74%. This would save him months of tedious training. The second point would be reserved for Shadow Clone Mastery, which was already progressing steadily at 60%. The elemental masteries, Wind and Earth were also increasing steadily. This was thanks to his dedicated clones working on them daily. One clone focused entirely on Wind techniques, while the other worked on Earth techniques. Without the system, absorbing memories from two clones every day would have overwhelmed his brain, but the system processed them seamlessly, converting them directly into mastery percentage. As Ren was closing his system panel, a sudden chill ran down his spine. His instincts screamed at him danger. He shot up to his feet in an instant, heart pounding, muscles tensed. He had unknowingly moved so close to the edge of the Second Hokage's head that one wrong step could send him plummeting down. Just as he was about to jump down and escape, a deep voice spoke behind him. "Ho ho... Calm down, my boy. Admiring the village, are you?" Ren whirled around, his body still on high alert. But the moment his eyes landed on the figure before him, his heartbeat slowed. Standing there, pipe in hand, clad in his ceremonial robes, was none other than the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi. Ren immediately straightened and bowed respectfully. "Lord Hokage." Hiruzen Sarutobi stood behind him, his posture relaxed yet commanding. The setting sun bathed the Hokage Monument in a warm glow, casting long shadows that danced over Konoha. Ren steadied his breath, forcing his heart rate to calm after the initial shock of sensing the Hokage's presence. It was the first time he had ever been caught so off guard, and it made him realize just how vast the gap was between him and true powerhouses like the Third. The old man chuckled lightly, his eyes kind but sharp, filled with decades of wisdom and experience. "No need to be so tense, Ren. I was simply taking a walk and happened to spot you here," Hiruzen said, stepping forward to stand beside him. "The view from here is something, isn't it?" Ren turned back toward the village, looking down at the streets bustling with life. "Yes, Lord Hokage," he replied, his tone respectful but steady. "It's a good place to think." Hiruzen hummed in agreement, gazing out over the village he had protected for so long. "The Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju... I always wondered what he would think if he could see the village today. He built the foundations of what we have now, but I believe even he wouldn't have predicted everything that has come to pass." He took a slow drag from his pipe, exhaling a thin stream of smoke that curled into the air. "Tell me, Ren, what do you see when you look at Konoha from up here?" Ren glanced at the Third, wondering why he was asking such a question. Was this a test? A casual conversation? Regardless, he answered truthfully. "I see the strongest village in the world, but one that's also recovering... rebuilding after everything that happened." Hiruzen's eyes flickered with something unreadable before he let out a soft chuckle. "Perceptive. Juichi has raised a smart one." Ren didn't respond, but he listened carefully. This was a rare opportunity to hear the thoughts of one of the most powerful figures in the village. After a moment, the Third Hokage turned to him. "You're talented, Ren. Stronger than most your age."His gaze sharpened, not unkind but definitely probing. "What do you plan to do with that strength?" Ren didn't hesitate. "To become stronger. And to protect what's mine." The Hokage smiled, though there was a weight behind it. "Good. But strength alone is never enough. Power without wisdom leads only to destruction. Keep that in mind as you grow." Ren nodded, taking the words to heart. Hiruzen finished his pipe, tapping out the ashes before placing it back into his robes. "Well, I won't keep you any longer. Enjoy your evening, Ren." With that, he flickered away, leaving Ren alone once more on the Hokage Monument. {A/N:- 1st year done, tell me what you think about Ren's latest status, I'll be wrapping up the 2nd year in just 1 Chapter because the academy arc had already stretched longer than what I had in mind. } {This week had been great in terms of everything, be it views, collections, power stones, review. Everything is increasing I hope this continues for the time to come} {The technique about which I asked in the previous Chapter has nothing to do with either mana skin or haki it would just look like that, like a layer of chakra all over the body. ONLY chakra not elements like raikage's lightning armor just pure elemental chakra. I would not be introducing any power up that does not belong to the naruto verse just in case you are wondering. }