Evaluation

Shikaku noticed the change in Shintaro's eyes and thought: "This child's eyes are strange. Does the Uchiha Clan have another type of eye besides the Sharingan?"

He was an intelligent person. He recalled that when the other party broke [Kagemane no Jutsu] earlier, the other party's eyes shone at that moment.

But Shintaro's eyes didn't usually shine that brightly. This subtle nuance was sharply captured by him.

However, Shikaku understood that everyone has their own secrets, so he did not intend to delve into it.

There were many shadows under the forest, which could be considered his domain. [Kuro Higanbana] continued to spread along those shadows.

The shadows moved very quickly and kept attacking. Shintaro had no choice but to dodge and jump around within the forest.

"You may not know that the Nara Clan has been breeding deer for generations."

"The movements of the deer are as sensitive as yours. We discovered the original [Kagemane no Jutsu] to gather antlers without harming the deer."

"In a shadow-filled forest, I can paralyze an entire herd of deer in one move, allowing anyone to collect their antlers."

"You are just one of the deer in my eyes, surrender the struggle."

Shikaku tried to use words to shake his opponent, but Shintaro was unmoved, instead talking about deer hunting with great interest.

What's the point of hunting without blood?

"If it were me, I would burn the whole herd. Not only could I get the antlers, but I could also eat barbecue."

Shintaro expressed his opinion while fleeing.

Shikaku pursed his lips and said: "You rascal, how can you treat them so harshly?"

"Besides, deer hide is also a valuable resource. Burning it like this is just wasting resources."

Rarely do two people seriously discuss how to deal with deer during a battle.

Although the two argued verbally, they both had very high regard for each other in their hearts.

Shintaro believed that the man in front of him was not only stronger than him but also had something he could learn from in terms of fighting methods and ninjutsu understanding.

Shikaku believed that the young man jumping around the forest was the epitome of a genius ninja.

With excellent shuriken skills, fire element, and taijutsu, he could be considered a perfect Uchiha Clan ninja. Coupled with intelligence far exceeding the average person, Shintaro fully possessed the strength of a Chunin or higher. In Shikaku's view, although Shintaro did not have the firepower compared to a Jonin, his strength had surpassed most of the Chunin in the village.

If using a professional title to gauge his strength, the most appropriate title would be Special Jonin.

Special Jonin is a professional title between Chunin and Jonin.

It is generally given to ninjas who are stronger than Chunin or have special talents, but their overall strength is not as good as Jonin.

Shintaro perfectly met these criteria.

This made Shikaku sigh: "He is only nine years old. His talent is truly astonishing. If he continues to train for a few more years, he might already have the strength of a Jonin."

"What a pity... He's an Uchiha..."

He had so many thoughts for a while that he got lost in them during the battle.

Shintaro noticed that the speed of the shadows controlled by the other party had slowed down. Although confused, he also knew that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

So he kept running around the forest, the blue light in his eyes flashing continuously, as if looking for something in the forest.

By the time Shikaku came to his senses, Shintaro had already run to the edge of the forest, and he unconsciously chose to pursue him.

Shintaro reached the edge of the forest and quickly formed seals with his hands, slapping the ground.

[Doton: Doryūkatsu]!

When Shikaku arrived at the scene, he saw a large, deep crack diagonally cutting across the open space outside the forest.

His intuition told him that this was clearly not happening randomly, and he felt a bit uneasy.

However, Shintaro was already running in the opposite direction. Shikaku had no time to think and had no choice but to chase him.

He sighed inwardly: "What is this kid going to do? And why did his speed suddenly increase?"

In fact, to avoid being caught, Shintaro used Cursed Energy, and the blessing of chakra made him even surpass Shikaku, a Jonin, for a short time.

Shikaku never doubted his life, feeling that he lacked training recently and could not win against a youngster who had just graduated.

Soon, Shintaro came to the other side of the forest and made the same move.

At this time, Shikaku already had his own speculation in mind, feeling something bad, and thought: "Is this kid going to...!"

This time, Shintaro came back and grabbed Kurenai to stop her from moving.

Then he slapped his hands on the ground with hand seals.

[Doton: Doryūheki]

Four earth walls emerged from the back, left, right, and top. In addition to the earth wall in front that was initially used to help Kurenai block the shuriken, five thick earth walls formed.

*Boom*

Two explosions sounded in the distance, and Shikaku had just arrived in front of the wall.

Shintaro watched him from outside and shouted loudly: "Enemies outside, listen up! Now the mountains on both sides have collapsed, and you are now dead!"

His voice became very muffled after passing through the earth wall. Only then did Shikaku fully understand what the other party had just done.

It turned out that while Shintaro was escaping, he took the opportunity to restore the explosive tag traps that Shikaku had placed throughout the forest, then made cracks on both sides of the mountain to plant the explosive tags inside, causing the mountains on both sides to collapse.

Shikaku was amazed by Shintaro's intelligence, but he didn't expect the background information he created to confine the three of them would ultimately lead to his "death in the canyon."

He raised his hands helplessly and said, "Ah, I'm dead."

Shintaro then used lightning element ninjutsu to blow up the walls, and together with Kurenai, he diligently led the client and Asuma through the forest and across the river, successfully completing the mission.

At this moment, Shikaku arrived, clapping his hands and saying, "Congratulations on successfully passing this actual combat training."

Kurenai cheered with joy on her face and took the initiative to high-five.

Shintaro responded with a smile, and at the same time looked at Shikaku, as if waiting for his praise.

Shikaku rolled his eyes and thought: "This kid, despite being so capable, is still just a child."

He said: "Although you all passed the test, my evaluation of each of you differs."

"The one with the lowest rating is Asuma. Your strength is up to standard, but you are too careless. You also paid the price for your impulsiveness. I hope you will remember this lesson in the future."

Asuma had just sat down. Although he was reluctant to hear this comment, he couldn't refute it and could only clench his fists silently.

"Second in line is Yuhi Kurenai. Although you didn't show your strength this time, it was because you stayed by the client's and injured Asuma's side that the mission didn't fail."

"This shows that you can remain calm, value your companions, and will not compete with them for credit. This is a very valuable quality in a mission."

Kurenai was naturally happy to be praised, and the corners of her mouth unconsciously lifted, but she still pretended to be humble and said: "I still have to keep learning."

Shikaku waved his hand and continued: "Finally, Uchiha Shintaro, rated highest in this evaluation."

"In terms of overall strength, it can be judged at the level of Special Jonin, even slightly higher."

"The most important thing is having a prime mind. You can rescue and guard your companions in battle, and at the same time, you can formulate the best battle plan based on existing conditions and intelligence. The success of this mission is largely due to Uchiha Shintaro."