"Alright, everyone, please sit down. The team assignments are about to begin."
The "Century Kiss" was just a brief interlude.
Soon, Iruka Umino appeared at the door of the classroom, putting an end to the chaos.
The girls, still seething after the beating, reluctantly returned to their seats.
Naruto Uzumaki, who had been pummeled into a pig's head, sat behind Izayoi.
Beside him was Haruno Sakura, who couldn't sit with Sasuke Uchiha, so she had claimed the seat behind him.
As Iruka Umino walked to the podium, the noisy classroom quieted down.
Everyone eagerly focused their eyes on Iruka.
Looking around the classroom, Iruka noticed that none of the students he had taught for six years had been eliminated. A smile of satisfaction appeared on his face.
He quickly composed himself and spoke with a smile: "Congratulations, you have successfully graduated. From now on, you are all real ninjas."
After saying that, Iruka raised the clipboard in his hand and continued, "However, you are still probationary ninjas. Before you can act independently, you will be assigned into teams of three and will train under the guidance of an experienced jonin."
"Now, we will begin the team assignments. The first team..."
Iruka Umino immediately began calling out names without further ado.
As one name after another was called out, the classroom was filled with sighs.
The sighs mostly came from the girls.
Though Izayoi had already been "claimed" by the top three, with Hinata, many girls still secretly had a crush on him and hoped to be assigned to the same team as him.
But now, they couldn't even be with Sasuke Uchiha, nor could they get on the same team as Izayoi. It was a real stroke of bad luck.
The remaining girls, however, became nervous and excited.
Each team consisted of two boys and one girl. There were only ten girls in total, so the fewer girls there were, the greater the chance they could be on the same team as Izayoi or Sasuke.
"Team 6..."
Soon, it was time for Team 6. Iruka Umino read out the names: "Minako, Zeo Genichi, and... Inuzuka Kiba."
Upon hearing this name, Izayoi's eyes immediately lit up, and a smile unconsciously appeared on his lips.
The result was in!
Sarutobi Hiruzen, in choosing between Inuzuka Kiba, Oil Woman Shino, and Izayoi, had decided to invest in Izayoi, letting go of Kiba.
Clearly, Izayoi's continued top performance and potential to become a pillar and ace of the team had caught Hiruzen's attention.
The Inuzuka Clan had strong connections, but their fighting ability relied heavily on their ninja beasts, which made it difficult for them to produce elite jonin.
Unlike the Oil Woman Clan, who had various powerful and deadly insects, similar to the Uchiha's Sharingan, they were nearly invincible in one-on-one battles.
Between these two clans, Sarutobi Hiruzen chose to invest in Izayoi, even at the cost of offending the Inuzuka Clan.
Only the Inuzuka Clan wouldn't be upset.
After all, Konoha wasn't short of sensory ninja clans. Besides the Hyuga Clan with their Byakugan, the Oil Woman Clan was also skilled in scent detection. They also had a nearly extinct, but potentially reactivated, breed of insect known as the "micro-scent insect," which could locate someone hundreds of miles away.
In terms of attack, there were also nano-level poison insects that could cultivate elite jonin, and even shadow-level ninjas feared them.
Though the Inuzuka Clan's status was lower, they were still a ninja clan.
Izayoi didn't expect Sarutobi Hiruzen to have the guts to choose him, thus offending the Inuzuka Clan.
What Izayoi didn't know was that it had a lot to do with Hyuga Hiashi.
Hyuga Hiashi had sacrificed himself for the village years ago, and Sarutobi Hiruzen had already felt guilty toward the Hyuga Clan.
Now, when Hyuga Hiashi visited and asked for his daughter to be on the same team as the top student, Sarutobi Hiruzen had no choice but to agree.
He had already planned to invest in Izayoi; it was just a matter of how to arrange it.
Hyuga Hiashi's visit simply made the decision easier.
"Team 7: Haruno Sakura, Naruto Uzumaki..."
"Yay!"
At that moment, Iruka Umino had reached Team 7.
When Naruto heard he was on the same team as Sakura, he immediately cheered, while Sakura looked on in despair, feeling her future was bleak.
However, the next name called out by Iruka Umino reversed the situation.
"Sasuke Uchiha."
"Yay!"
Sakura jumped up, raising her hands in triumph.
She then turned around and gave an expression of triumph to Yamanaka Ino.
Seeing this, Yamanaka Ino and the other girls ground their teeth in frustration.
"Team 8: Hinata Hyuga, Oil Woman Shino, and... Izayoi."
When Hinata heard she would be on the same team as Izayoi, she excitedly grabbed his arm, her voice trembling with emotion: "I'm so happy, Izayoi-kun, we're on the same team!"
"Yeah, looks like our luck is pretty good today."
Izayoi, who had already anticipated the result, smiled and nodded.
This team assignment indeed made him happy.
After six years, he had grown used to having Hinata by his side.
He didn't want to be separated from her.
"Team 10: Yamanaka Ino, Akimichi Choji, and... Nara Shikamaru."
After Iruka Umino finished calling out the last name, he set down his clipboard, and with a final glance at his students, he said, "Remember the names of your team members. A jonin will come to find you shortly. Do not leave the classroom until then."
With that, Iruka Umino left the classroom.
No students said goodbye as everyone was eagerly anticipating their future as ninjas.
Little did they know, another challenge awaited them ahead.
"Team 3, please step forward."
Just a few minutes after Iruka Umino left, a middle-aged man in a green vest appeared at the door, his stern and commanding presence causing the classroom to fall silent.
The students called for Team 3 nervously stood up and followed their jonin out of the classroom.
"Team 5, step forward. I'm your jonin."
"Team 1, step forward."
"Team 9, step forward."
"..."
One jonin after another appeared at the door, each leading three students out of the classroom.
Soon, a large portion of the classroom was empty.
Then, a woman in regular clothes, her figure stunning, with black curly hair and striking red eyes, appeared at the door.
She scanned the remaining students, her gaze finally landing on Izayoi and Hinata, and smiled: "Team 8, step forward. I'm your jonin."
After saying this, she turned and walked out.
"We'll go ahead, see you later," Izayoi said to Sasuke and Naruto before leaving the classroom with Hinata.
As for Oil Woman Shino, this quiet top student had already disappeared without a trace.
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