Chapter 443: Kakashi's Jonin Reward

"Senior, if I finish, can I hand in my paper early?" Kakashi asked the examiner after thoroughly checking his own test.

Even though leaving early meant he'd have to wait outside until Obito finished, it would still give him more freedom, so Kakashi decided to hand in early.

"So fast? Don't you need to double-check?" The examiner was somewhat surprised and walked over to Kakashi, looking at his test paper.

The examiner was even more astonished by what he saw—several questions he knew well were answered accurately and thoroughly by Kakashi.

As an experienced examiner, he knew well that for a prodigy like this, the biggest obstacle to becoming a jōnin was never combat ability but the written exam.

If it weren't for the fact that Konoha had other promotion mechanisms besides the jōnin test, he believed the current number of Konoha jōnin would be at least a third lower, possibly even more.

"Your jōnin test is over. You may leave directly or wait outside until the exam ends." The examiner put away Kakashi's paper and spoke.

Kakashi nodded and walked out of the exam hall to wait. Based on his understanding of Obito, he figured Obito would stay until the time was up.

Even though Obito didn't know much, he wouldn't give up; even if he couldn't solve the problems, he would keep trying until the very end.

The final result was as Kakashi had expected—he didn't see Obito come out of the exam hall until the time was up.

However, Hyuga Aoba and Sakata Genji also submitted their papers at the last minute, making Kakashi, who handed in early, the odd one out.

Obito walked out of the exam hall with his head drooping, looking like he was in a bad mood.

"Damn it, if I fail the test, then Rin's rank as a ninja will be higher than mine," Obito suddenly thought.

According to the notice, Nohara Rin didn't need to take the test and was directly promoted to Special Jōnin.

If Obito passed and became a full Jōnin, he would be one rank above Rin; if he failed, then from now on his ninja rank would be lower than hers.

Obito thought deeper and realized something even more terrifying: if Kakashi passed the test, then Squad Muyue—or rather, Squad Minato—would have only one chūnin left: him.

Obito could already imagine what kind of smug face Kakashi would make then.

"There's a useless guy in the team who didn't become a jōnin. I won't say who that useless guy is," Kakashi said with a sarcastic tone.

"That inherently evil Hatake brat… once I get stronger, I'll definitely…" Just imagining it made Obito's blood pressure rise, and his Sharingan felt like it was about to burst out.

Kakashi frowned slightly as he watched Obito walking over in a daze, his expression shifting between indignation and ecstasy. He had a vague feeling Obito was thinking about something bad.

"The exam is over. Are you still thinking about those questions?" Kakashi spoke, interrupting Obito's train of thought.

Obito showed a look of regret—in his imagination, he had already fast-forwarded to mastering Flame Breathing to its peak, surpassing Muyue, and was about to punch Kakashi when he was interrupted.

"How did you do? Do you think you'll pass?" Obito thought for a moment and asked.

Although Kakashi had never failed a written test in his memory, this time it was the jōnin exam, covering a wide range of knowledge with difficult questions. Maybe even Kakashi could mess up.

"Not bad. I should be able to pass." Kakashi nodded calmly in response.

During his time in the hospital, Kakashi had basically been reading all kinds of books. Combined with his already solid knowledge, handling the jōnin exam was more than enough.

"Haha, Kakashi, you really don't know how to be humble." Hearing Kakashi so confident made Obito a bit jealous.

"After all, the exam wasn't that hard. I don't think there's anyone who wouldn't be able to pass." Kakashi said with an implied meaning.

Tightening, tightening—Obito's fists were tightening.

Although Kakashi's words didn't contain a single character from Obito's name, Obito felt like Kakashi was practically calling him out by name.

"Since you're talking so big, tell me how you answered the test." Obito suppressed the urge to punch Kakashi's face sideways and asked.

He'd get mad later, but first he needed to compare answers.

Even though he thought Kakashi was being excessively cocky, Obito still acknowledged Kakashi's written test ability—he definitely got more right than Obito.

"First question goes like this, and then…" Kakashi didn't hide anything and revealed all his answers along with his reasoning.

Comparing answers was fine, but the more Obito compared, the worse he felt, because many of his answers differed from Kakashi's.

There were only three possibilities: first, Kakashi right and Obito wrong; second, Obito right and Kakashi wrong; third, both wrong.

Obito hoped for the second outcome, but the thinking part of his brain told him the first was more likely.

After the examinees left, the examiners immediately began grading the papers.

"You really can't underestimate today's prodigies—they excel in both martial and scholarly arts," the examiner overseeing Kakashi couldn't help but remark.

He found it hard to imagine how a ten-year-old child could balance training with theoretical study.

"Not entirely, Obito Uchiha probably won't be promoted. His answers in subjects other than history are a complete mess." The proctor examining Obito said with a smile.

The examiner who graded Kakashi curiously stretched his head to take a look. "If his written test is only at this level, I feel he might become a jōnin through combat merits before completing a retest."

During peacetime, it's difficult to become a jōnin without passing the jōnin examination, but wartime is different. In wartime, special circumstances allow for special handling; sufficient combat merits can lead to direct promotion to jōnin.

After the written exam papers were graded, the examiners sent all the materials to the Hokage's office in the Hokage Building, where Hiruzen Sarutobi would personally decide the results.

Seeing Kakashi's data, Hiruzen Sarutobi stroked his goatee and showed a gratified smile on his face.

Previously, he had already recognized Kakashi's potential, so when Kakashi was lost and indulging, he successively sought help from Muyue and Minato.

Now, Kakashi's achievements have also proven his insight. Although only ten years old, Kakashi has already surpassed many shinobi and is worthy of being called excellent.

Nodding in affirmation of his own judgment, Hiruzen Sarutobi signed and stamped Kakashi's promotion document.

"This kid Obito lacks too much in theoretical knowledge." Seeing Obito's test paper, Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head. This score definitely couldn't be passed.

"But his personality—as an Uchiha—is actually a good thing."

Hiruzen Sarutobi would rather have more innocent Uchiha like Obito, as that would reduce conflicts between the Uchiha and Konoha a lot.

After rejecting Obito, Hiruzen Sarutobi then looked at Hyuga Aoba and Sakata Genji.

After thinking it over, Hiruzen Sarutobi rejected Sakata Genji and signed on Hyuga Aoba's promotion list.

Actually, strictly speaking, Hyuga Aoba's strength is slightly lower than Sakata Genji's, but Hyuga Aoba's advantage lies in the strategic value of his Byakugan, so requirements can be lowered to some extent.

Having completed his work, Hiruzen Sarutobi did not immediately order a shinobi to notify the results. It was almost time to leave work; it would be better to notify them tomorrow morning.

Before leaving work, Hiruzen Sarutobi remembered something and pulled out Might Guy's records from the Ninja Academy.

"Guy's grades are also terrible." Looking at the overall grades of Might Guy's academy career, Hiruzen Sarutobi put down his pipe and exhaled a puff of white smoke.

Before the fourth grade, Might Guy couldn't even be described as terrible—he was completely at the idiot level. After the fourth grade, due to supplementary lessons from Muyue, his grades improved considerably, but only enough to pass without worry.

The written exam of the jōnin examination is not as lenient as that of the Ninja Academy. In the Ninja Academy, passing requires only half the average score, while for the jōnin exam, you must achieve at least eighty percent of the total score to pass.

"Should I lower the difficulty for Guy?" Hiruzen Sarutobi fell into thought.

If the difficulty remains unchanged, Might Guy cannot pass the jōnin examination because his theory is as bad as Obito's.

The reason Hiruzen Sarutobi is considering this issue is not because he favors Might Guy, but because Might Guy has greater achievements.

In the same mission, different shinobi have different contributions. Undoubtedly, the one with the greatest contribution in this encounter battle was Muyue, who killed Minazuki Kan and four of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen along with numerous Kirigakure shinobi.

The second was Might Guy. Without Guy's sudden burst of power, Kakashi and the others would not have been able to repel the Seven Ninja Swordsmen and hold out until Muyue arrived.

In fact, Hiruzen Sarutobi had already been lenient to some extent with Might Guy. If his contributions were not so great, with Guy's lopsided strengths, he wouldn't even be qualified to take the jōnin examination.

Might Guy's main disadvantage is his age. If Guy were fourteen or older, Hiruzen Sarutobi would directly promote him to jōnin. Ten years old is too young.

Unless his combat record is astonishing, like Muyue's, age will still have some influence.

In the end, Hiruzen Sarutobi decided to decide after seeing Might Guy's actual results. Jōnin are qualified to lead teams on important missions; lacking knowledge in some areas won't do.

The next morning, Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered shinobi to send out the notifications.

Those who successfully promoted needed to go to the Hokage's office to receive their new shinobi identification, while those who failed the exam only received a notification.

"Uchiha Obito, upon examination, we found that your combat ability is excellent but your theoretical knowledge is lacking. Currently, you are not sufficient to be promoted to jōnin." The notification shinobi said to Obito.

Although he had expected it, Obito still couldn't help feeling disappointed when he actually heard the failure.

Jōnin are what ordinary people consider excellent shinobi. He wanted his grandmother to be able to proudly tell other Uchiha that her grandson was already excellent at the age of ten.

"If you study hard from now on, you still have chances. In the next eight years, you can apply for a retest once each year. If you pass, you can become a full jōnin." The notification shinobi reminded.

The jōnin examination itself is a screening. Those who have no chance to become jōnin would not even get the opportunity to take the jōnin exam.

Konoha would not easily give up on shinobi produced through such strict screening. They give many retake opportunities; passing one still allows them to become full jōnin.

"Once a year?" Obito scratched his hair, feeling the interval was too long. He was only ten now; one year was already one-tenth of his current life.

"Before the next exam, I'll go find Muyue-sensei." Obito thought it better to trust the omnipotent Muyue-sensei than to believe in his own learning ability.

"Did Kakashi pass?" Obito couldn't help asking.

One's own failure is indeed regrettable, but a comrade's success is even more infuriating.

"I wouldn't know about that—I'm just here to notify you," the notification ninja replied, shaking his head.

Obito was a little disappointed. What he wanted most to hear was that Kakashi had also failed, just like him.

Just the thought that Kakashi might be the first to become a jonin made Obito uncomfortable. Knowing Kakashi as he did, Obito was sure Kakashi would use his higher rank as an excuse to order him around.

To get the latest news, Obito decided to rush over to Kakashi's house and find out for sure.

"Kakashi, are you home?" Obito shouted, using concentrated breathing to boost his speed as he sprinted to the front of Kakashi's house.

Obito knocked on the door a few more times, but again there was no response.

Obito's heart sank. "Damn, he didn't really pass, did he? Could he be at the Fire Shadow Building?"

As Obito suspected, at that very moment Kakashi was in the Fire Shadow's office at the Fire Shadow Building, completing his promotion procedures.

"From now on, you're officially a jonin of the Hidden Leaf." Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled as he handed Kakashi his brand-new ninja ID.

After Kakashi took the ID, Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression turned serious.

"A higher ninja rank represents not only greater authority, but also greater responsibility and duty!" Hiruzen Sarutobi said with a grave face.

"When necessary, a jonin must lead teams on more dangerous missions and face more dangerous enemies."

"No matter how dangerous the mission, I will protect my comrades and bring them back safely," Kakashi replied earnestly.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's face relaxed into a smile again. "Knowing you have that kind of resolve puts my mind at ease. If we had more juniors like you, Kakashi, I could retire and enjoy my old age without worry."

After finishing the necessary procedures, Kakashi walked out of the Fire Shadow's office. He looked at his new ninja ID with the words "Jonin" printed on it and shook his head.

Becoming a jonin didn't make Kakashi cocky, because he had seen too many powerful jonin—like Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Mu Yue, and Minato Namikaze.

On paper, they were the same rank, but in reality the gap between them was even larger than that between an ordinary jonin and a ninja academy student.

Not to mention others—even Kakashi's own father was a jonin, yet now Kakashi could only barely glimpse his father's shadow in terms of skill.

After walking out of the Fire Shadow Building, Kakashi saw Obito looking around like a thief.

A faint smile tugged at Kakashi's lips as he walked up to Obito. "How did you know I got promoted to jonin?"

Obito: ?

As the youngest jonin of the Hidden Leaf, Kakashi once again became the talk of the village.

When Nonō, who was conducting human experiments in secret, heard the news, he almost lost control and smashed the equipment in his lab.

A ten-year-old jonin—he had worked so hard for so long to become a jonin, and these geniuses effortlessly surpassed his efforts.

…

[Disciple Hatake Kakashi worked hard in training, achieved excellent results in the jonin examination, and was promoted to jonin. Reward: Chakra +2400, Weapon Extraction Scroll: Blades, Unknown Pokémon Egg (only Hatake Kakashi can hatch)]