Chapter 7: Team Formation

The morning sun began to pour on the earth, everything revived, and the birds and flowers fragrant.

In the early morning of the fourth day, Aizen rushed to the ninja school early.

Today is a special day, students will be divided into groups.

In the Ninja Academy.

Iruka stood on the podium with a serious look, he glanced across the immature faces, and said loudly, "From now on, you are the ninjas who can stand alone. However, you may not be qualified yet, and the real test has yet to come. "

"From now on, the village will appoint a Jōnin as your instructor. You will also perform tasks under his leadership. Whether you can successfully become a Genin depends on your ability to pass the assessment of that instructor." Iruka gazed at the group of children with satisfaction, feeling quite unwilling to give up, but from now on, he will no longer serve as the tutor of this class of students.

"Next, you will be grouped based on your previous performance, here I have set a list of groups." Iruka picked up a roster from the podium and said loudly, "The tenth class is composed of Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Chōji, and Yamanaka Ino."

In a corner of the classroom, Shikamaru had a lazy expression and complained, "This is really troublesome, but we have to group."

"It's great, we can go to eat barbecue after dividing into groups." Chōji doesn't care about grouping, but is thinking of eating delicious grilled meat.

"I'm in a group with a slacker and a foodie, my goodness." Yamanaka Ino said with a look of helplessness.

Later, Iruka continued to pick up the list and read. "Class 7, Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura!"

"Huh, the so-called grouping is just two more cumbersome." Sasuke's face was plain, without any expression. For him, there is no difference between one more person or two people, he only believes in his own superior strength.

"Great, I got my wish to be with Sakura." Naruto leaped high, dancing and cheering.

"Okay, Naruto, be quiet." Iruka motioned to Naruto to calm down, picking up the roster and continuing to chant, "Next, Class 8."

"This class is quite special. There will be four members. They are Kiba Inuzuka, Aburame Shino, Hyūga Hinata, and Aizen Sōsuke!"

Following Iruka's loud announcement, whispers sounded from every corner of the classroom. 

Many colleges were puzzled, because the previous groups have only three members, so why in the eighth class, there will be four people.

"Mr. Iruka, why are there four people in their group? It's not fair!" As the most naughty student in the class, Naruto was the first to stand up and protest.

"Yes, it's not fair, it's not fair at all!"

With Naruto taking the lead, other students also stood up to protest, because once grouped, it means that tasks will be performed in groups in the future. One more person means more strength, and since they had to take a test to pass the exam it meant that with nor strength they had more chances of passing.

"Cough cough, all classmates stay calm and restless. Naturally, I divided the groups like this after careful consideration." Iruka seemed to have expected the students to respond like this a long time ago, and he waved his hand calmly to signal the students to calm down.

"My decision depends on two things. First, Kiba has a keen sense of smell, Aburame Shino can control insects, and Hyūga Hinata has Byakugan. The abilities of the three people are biased towards detection, in general their strength is moderate."

Iruka looked at the trainees with a smile, and patiently explained, "Since their ability is biased towards investigation, and their test results are average, the groups of the three is very plain."

Iruka's words hit the nail on the students head. Although the three of Hinata and the others are very good at investigating, their strengths is not outstanding, so it is natural to be separated.

"On the other hand, Aizen joined us only three days ago. He started slowly and without any foundation that the rest of you posses. So arranging him in the mediocre eighth class will not affect the average distribution of students' strength." 

Iruka glanced at Aizen, and a look of regret flashed in his eyes. If Aizen had practiced in the Ninja School from the beginning, his strength would have improved by leaps and bounds and would rank among the best.

Furthermore having an outstanding students like this being taught by him, would bring him fame and recognition.

Hearing Iruka's analysis, the trainees were thoughtful and their emotions returned to calm. Iruka was not wrong, Aizen only practiced ninjutsu three days ago, and there is still a gap between them.

Coupled with the fact that the other three are unremarkable, these four people form a group, which seems to be reluctantly acceptable.

"Interesting, I would be divided into a group with that kid." Aizen looked at Hinata from a distance.

On the other side of the classroom, Hinata seemed to feel the gaze from Aizen for a long time, she deliberately avoided looking at him, and she bowed her head shyly.

"Four people, great. I can't wait to see the strength of our Jōnin Teacher." Kiba was full of enthusiasm, and his fighting heart kept rising and falling.

"Four people? This is beyond my expectation." Aburame Shino leaned back on the chair. He was wearing sunglasses and one couldn't see the expression on his face. However, the calm in his tone could still be seen.

"If everyone has no objections, then the eighth class members have been decided." Iruka looked at the students with satisfaction, and a smile was raised on the vicissitudes of life.

Next, Iruka once again picked up the list of students to group, and after a period of time, the group was finally assigned.

Except for the eighth class, the rest of the groups are all three. 

"All the students have been assigned and disbanded. This afternoon, you will go to the place designated by your group and wait for your Jōnin instructor to come." Iruka sighed and relaxed, and he finally let go of the burden in his heart.

During this period, he has been teaching every student with great attention. However, from now on, he will no longer serve as a mentor to these children.

"Yes, Mr. Iruka." The students reluctantly said goodbye to Iruka and left the classroom one after another.

In the afternoon, the scorching sun shined on the earth, and there is a kind of dry heat in the blowing spring breeze. Each student arrived at the gathering place of their respective team, and waiting patiently.

The meeting place of the eighth class is by a small river south of Konoha. 

There, in a clearing were lots of bushes, and some trees with the shade of the sun being cast all over it. It is a relatively remote suburb.

Next to a towering tree, four young figures waited under the shade of the tree, in the silence and tranquility of peace.

Suddenly, a grumble of dissatisfaction broke the silence.

and Kiba grumbled with dissatisfaction, "What, why is our not here yet? We have been waiting for a long time." Next to him was a puppy with white hair and a cute fluffy look. 

"Don't worry, as long as we are not late." Aburame Shino leaned against the tree trunk and said calmly.

Hinata did not speak, but waited quietly. She has a relatively introverted personality and has never taken the initiative to speak up.

Aizen was not silent, he took the initiative to stir up the topic and talked with the three in a friendly manner, looking familiar.

In the end, Aizen's enthusiasm broke the divide between the four. Except for the shy Hinata, Kiba is in full swing, and Aburame Shino on the side inserted a few words from time to time, often hit the nail on the head, with unique opinions.

"Yo, kids. To my surprise, you guys arrived so soon." A sound like a silver bell rang, and the four of them looked around and saw a figure of women. She had smooth long hair, clear eyes, and suet-like skin, and her sigure seemed to exude endless charm.