Second Training Ground.
Shuriken proficiency test.
"Ugh, do we have to do this every week? Doesn't Iruka-sensei ever get tired?" Kiba grumbled.
"Woof!"
"He just doesn't want you to get rusty," Shin replied from the side. "Without these tests, everyone would start slacking off."
"Inuzuka Kiba," Iruka called, holding the attendance roster.
"Tch."
Kiba clicked his tongue and reluctantly handed Akamaru over to Shin before stepping out of the lineup.
He walked to the center of the field, drew two shuriken in each hand, and bent slightly at the waist, crossing his arms.
Whoosh!
Thud thud thud thud!
Four shuriken struck the wooden targets dead-on.
"Not bad. Full marks," Iruka nodded and checked his name off the list.
"Keep it up."
Kiba didn't look particularly pleased and trudged back to the group.
"What's wrong?" Shin asked, noting Kiba's lackluster expression. Akamaru climbed from Shin's arms up to his shoulder, then leapt onto Kiba's head and lay there lazily.
"It's boring. I already know how to throw shuriken. What's the point of practicing it over and over again?" Kiba said with a shrug, clearly irritated and disheartened.
"You're not on the same level as Sasuke or Shin yet, are you?" Shino spoke up. In his eyes, Shin's skills were nearly on par with Sasuke's. Almost everyone in class thought so.
"Tch. So what if they're good at throwing shuriken? I want to learn powerful ninjutsu, not waste time on these basic tricks," Kiba snapped, clearly annoyed.
"You're aiming too high, too fast," Shin said, shaking his head.
"Whatever. So annoying," Kiba muttered, turning away, unwilling to listen to Shin's lectures.
Shin and Shino exchanged glances, both looking helpless.
"Next, Yamanaka Ino," Iruka called.
Ino stepped forward with a bright smile.
She was always confident good grades, prestigious family background, and with her pretty looks and popularity, there were few who didn't like her.
She held three shuriken in each hand, crossed her arms, and with a sharp motion, flung them forward.
The six shuriken embedded themselves in the wooden targets in a neat, precise line.
Gasps echoed through the crowd, followed by cheers.
"Wow, Ino's amazing!"
"So cute!"
Ino smiled modestly, her gaze sweeping across the crowd pausing briefly before she returned to her spot in line with light steps.
"She must practice a lot in private," Shino said as he watched her walk back.
"Is she at your level yet?" he asked Shin.
Shin nodded then shook his head.
"What level are you at?" Shino pressed. Shin always trained on his own, and no one really knew the full extent of his ability.
Shin was quiet for a moment. His eyes drifted toward the other side of the field, where Sasuke stood among the crowd, also watching.
"Top of the class," Shin said simply.
"What?" Shino blinked, startled. Shin had never spoken so immodestly before.
From what Shino remembered, even when Shin outperformed others, he would never say it aloud.
Kiba turned to look as well, clearly having heard their conversation.
"Next, Takane Shin," Iruka announced.
Shin said nothing and silently walked out from the group.
Shino pursed his lips as he watched Shin's back. He wasn't sure what to think.
"Do you think he can beat Sasuke?" Kiba asked in a low voice.
"…Yeah," Shino replied.
He said it himself, after all.
Everyone's eyes turned to Shin.
Shin's gaze locked momentarily with Sasuke's, who was also watching him intently.
When Sasuke saw Shin looking back, he gave a sharp snort and turned away.
Shin didn't react.
He recalled the words of the person who had once taught him shurikenjutsu, right before they left.
Top of the class...
"This kind of test doesn't mean much to me anymore," Shin murmured as he looked at the wooden stakes ahead.
His level with shuriken had long surpassed that of the other students. The standards of the academy no longer applied to him.
He slowly drew four shuriken with his right hand and four more with his left.
"Let this be your final purpose," he whispered.
He crouched slightly, arms crossed, eight shuriken held between his fingers.
Whizz!
The shuriken whirled through the air like streaking meteors, weaving and crossing paths. The arcs they traced were dizzying.
Thud!
They struck nearly simultaneously, embedding into the target in the shape of a perfect circle.
Eight shuriken the maximum possible in this format. Shin exhaled slowly, his expression layered and unreadable.
Sorry, Sasuke...
This time, we'll share first place.
"Shin..." Shino stared, stunned.
"He really is... top of the class..."
"Top of the class, huh..." Kiba echoed, dazed.
But instead of admiration or shock, a tinge of discomfort crept into his chest.
Have I really... mastered it already...?
Kiba bit his lip. The gap between him and Shin was widening.
Shin glanced around the crowd and saw Sasuke staring at him in disbelief.
But Sasuke's shock wasn't at Shin's score he had achieved that long ago. His actual ability far exceeded what he had just demonstrated.
What shook him was Shin's technique. It was unmistakably that of the Uchiha.
There was no way any Uchiha would teach their family's secret techniques to an outsider. Teaching clan techniques to others was forbidden a rule held by all families.
But Sasuke wasn't mistaken. Shin's form, his throw, his precision it was Uchiha style, identical to his own.
Did he figure it out on his own?
Impossible. He's only eight years old. If he were an adult genius, maybe but not now.
Then the only explanation... was that Shin had been mimicking him.
That awkward, clumsy way he used to throw... he was trying to imitate me.
He was really copying me...
"I'm the genius... Am I...?"
Sasuke whispered, the thought feeling absurd and unreal.
"Next, Uchiha Sasuke," Iruka called.
Sasuke snapped out of his daze, pulled his expression back under control, and stepped forward under the weight of everyone's expectations.
A faint, bitter smile played on his lips.
Shin had already achieved perfection within the academy's standards. Even if Sasuke was better than Shin in some aspects, he had no way to prove it here. The others wouldn't understand. He could show more flair, more detail, but what would it matter? He had no desire to.
All he could do... was tie with Shin.
He, too, drew eight shuriken and calmly threw them.
The results were identical.
Some students looked a bit disappointed, while several girls cheered enthusiastically.
"Sasuke, you're the best!"
"Go, Sasuke!"
"Sasuke-kun, you're so cool!"
But to Sasuke, the cheers sounded hollow almost mocking.
"Ino, Sasuke-kun doesn't look happy," Sakura said, glancing at his somber expression.
"His score was great. Isn't he still number one?"
Ino stared at Sasuke's back as he returned to the group, eyes distant.
"Yeah... he's still number one..." she said slowly.
"But Shin... is the one who's top of the class now."