In a tiered lecture hall, dozens of graduates, each wearing a ninja forehead protector, sat solemnly in their seats.

On the podium, most of the chunin teachers from the Ninja Academy were present.

On the blackboard were a few prominent characters spelling out, "Orientation for Qualified Graduates."

The principal stepped forward, his voice carrying across the room. "Congratulations to all of you on successfully graduating from the Ninja Academy and being promoted to genin."

"From today, you will begin taking on missions assigned by the village," he continued. "Going forward, you will form three-person teams, each led by a jonin teacher who will guide you through your missions."

"Now, we will announce the team assignments!"

As the principal read the names, one by one, the ambitious genin were assigned to their respective teams and teachers.

Among these higher-level graduates, two stood out: Itachi and Kagami, both small in stature but drawing significant attention.

Especially Itachi. Among the other graduates were three seniors who had previously attacked him and were now watching him closely, their eyes fixed on his composed face.

Itachi, however, ignored their stares, keeping his gaze straight ahead at the podium.

In contrast, Kagami, who was more curious about his surroundings, looked around at the other students. Since he had graduated early, he didn't know many of them.

Finally, a chance to leave the village and find a home for the spider.

Scanning the classroom, Kagami spotted a few familiar faces. One was Yugao, a childhood friend of his older brother and the only member of the Gekko dojo. She was reputed to be one of the top students in the upper grades, and it was she who had leaked the fact that Kagami could perform Earth Release ninjutsu.

The one who spilled about my jutsu. Ironically, that helped me graduate early.

However, this leak turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as it earned him a chance to explore the wider world.

There were two other vaguely familiar faces. One was a girl with grayish-white hair tied into two braided pigtails, wearing a hood-style forehead protector, which was rare among female ninjas since most preferred not to cover their hair. The other was a ninja with spiky gray-black hair, who looked a bit arrogant.

Their names were Shinko and Tenma, Itachi's future teammates. Hm... Those visions can be handy.

In one mission, both Tenma and Shinko met their end, which was the catalyst for Itachi unlocking his second tomoe in his Sharingan. Their sacrifice, it seems, was caused by none other than...

What was the name again... Obi-Wan? Sounds wrong... I need more visions. But the pain is getting worse.

Looking at them, Kagami shook his head in resignation.

Above Tenma and Shinko's heads, it was as if a sword of Damocles hung, and their fate was already sealed. That sword would fall sooner or later.

Blame it on the world. Or your weakness. What is going on with me...

It wasn't their fault—it was the fault of this cruel world!

Though Kagami knew a few things, he certainly couldn't do anything irrational, like prophesying the future to save them. Besides, the shinobi with one Sharingan was no longer a run-of-the-mill fighter; he was now terrifyingly strong, far beyond most ninjas' abilities.

To Kagami, those two were as good as dead.

"Next, the team composition for Team 8."

Kagami's heart stirred as the wheels of fate began to turn, unstoppable.

"Team members: Tenma."

"Shinko."

Here it comes.

"Okabe!"

Hmm?

"Huh?!"

Kagami, who had been nodding with his eyes closed just a moment ago, shot up in surprise upon hearing this unfamiliar name. What's going on? Are the visions wrong or...

The teachers at the front of the room looked at Kagami with puzzled expressions, unsure why he had suddenly stood up.

"Kagami, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Daiko asked.

"Uh..." Kagami forced a strange smile, then shook his head. "No, nothing."

He awkwardly sat back down, glancing at Itachi, who also gave him a brief look.

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By now, most of the teams had been formed, yet both Kagami and Itachi were still unassigned.

He had a bad feeling.

"Now, the team composition for Team 2."

"Team members: Uzuki Yugao."

"Gekko Kagami."

"Uchiha Itachi!"

What the...! At that moment, he felt as though his mind had been struck by lightning, leaving him frazzled.

Why am I on the same team as Itachi? What happened to Tenma and Shinko? Damn. Is fate playing a joke on me? Will I die?

Not far away, Shinko looked disappointed for not being teamed up with the cool Itachi, but she had no idea that Kagami's heart had turned to ice.

"It's a pleasure working with you," Itachi said, turning toward Kagami and extending his hand for a handshake.

Kagami reluctantly extended his hand, forcing a smile. "Yeah, pleasure... to work with you too."

Work with you? You're going to sacrifice me, and I'm supposed to work with you?

At that moment, Yugao walked over and sat next to Kagami.

"Kagami and Itachi, let's work well together from now on," she said with a pleasant smile.

To Kagami, it looked like the smile of someone about to die. The sword of Damocles, which had been hanging over Tenma and Shinko's heads, now hovers over Yugao and me.

To the one-eyed Uchiha, it doesn't matter who is sacrificed; as long as Itachi's Sharingan evolves, any teammate will do.

If Hayate knew that the two people most important to him had just been given a death sentence... How would he react?

With the teams formed, it was time for the assigned jonin teachers to come and take their teams away.

Despite the change, Kagami had hoped that their jonin teacher would be replaced by a strong ninja, someone who could protect him from the one-eyed Uchiha.

But no, it was still the same jonin.

After several jonins had appeared, just as expected, the weak jonin who couldn't even defeat a ninja cat, came to take team members.

"Well, look at this promising young team!" Yuki said, his voice brimming with enthusiasm. "I'm Yuki, and I'll be your jonin instructor."

Promising? More like doomed, his internal skepticism was at odds with the polite nod he gave his new teacher.

It seemed that he could rely on no one but himself if he wanted to defy fate.

Strictly speaking, he'd have to rely on his spider which he named Spidey.

---

"Congratulations! Kagami, Yugao, congratulations to both of you on becoming genin!"

As soon as they stepped out of the school gates, they saw Hayate standing at the entrance, waving.

Yugao smiled and ran up to Hayate, and the two happily started chatting. Only Kagami looked somewhat displeased.

Brother, if only you knew what this really means.

Noticing Kagami's odd expression, Hayate asked with concern, "Is something wrong? You seem... off."

"It's nothing," Kagami replied, forcing his features into a neutral expression.

Hayate studied his brother for a moment, then brightened. "Alright, to celebrate your promotion, I'll treat you both to dinner!"

Under his lead, the three of them headed to a barbecue restaurant.

Along the way, his brother never brought up anything about team assignments, as if he already knew the results.

After I decided to become a genin, he must have spoken to the school's teachers. Putting Yugao in my team was probably his request. He wants someone he trusts to protect me.

But Hayate never expected that their team would include Itachi—an absolute bane for teammates, a walking disaster.

This really is a case of losing both the bride and the brother.

On top of that, their assigned jonin was Yuki, which made Kagami feel his future prospects were bleak.

In truth, even if they had another jonin, Konoha currently didn't have anyone who could match the one-eyed Uchiha, so no matter who led the team, the result would be the same.

The only way to break out of this situation is to rely on myself, Kagami concluded grimly. Even if I can't defeat him, at least I have to survive.

If he could use Atlach-Nacha's power to launch a surprise attack on the one-eyed Uchiha, it would probably be seen as some sort of bizarre ninjutsu.

Each time Spidey had a major breakthrough, a new power could be unlocked. Currently, the spider was at Rank 0, just some souls away from reaching the next major rank.

As long as I gain more souls for Spidey, I can unlock some new power. It's my only hope for survival.

However, before that, he had to first solve the issue of housing for the spider.

---

For the next while, Yuki led Team 2 around the village on various missions, all of which were D-rank tasks like helping villagers with labor, finding lost items, and cleaning up.

"Alright, team! Let's make Konoha shine!" Yuki called out, his enthusiasm seemingly boundless as he dove into another menial task.

Normally, a jonin like Yuki, who had seen many big battles, would have no interest in such low-level tasks and would just have his genin handle them under the guise of training.

However, Kagami noticed that Yuki was actually the most enthusiastic participant, even volunteering for dirty jobs like cleaning river trash.

Perhaps this is Yuki's virtue—weak in strength but a kind, passionate uncle.

Meanwhile, Yugao fully embraced her 'big sister' role, treating Kagami and Itachi like they were still students fresh out of the Ninja Academy, occasionally giving them lectures.

"Remember, even small tasks build important skills!" she said, her voice filled with earnest enthusiasm. Kagami nodded, appreciating her care but chafing slightly at being treated like a child.

During training sessions, Yuki would ask each of them about their primary focus areas in training.

"Alright, team! Let's talk about your specialties and how we can improve them," he said, gathering them around.

Yugao stepped forward first. "I'm focusing on Konoha-style swordsmanship, genjutsu, and water release techniques," she said confidently.

Itachi spoke next, his voice calm and measured. "My primary areas are throwing techniques and fire release jutsu."

Kagami nodded, then added, "I'm working on taijutsu and earth release techniques."

Although Yuki seemed weak, he surprisingly possessed three chakra natures. Water release, wind release, and earth release were all part of his arsenal, and while he hadn't developed any unique nature transformations, his overall strength was quite decent.

"I studied under Kurenai, so I can help you with genjutsu, Yugao," he explained, demonstrating a simple illusion technique.

Overall, Kagami felt that Yuki was a well-rounded ninja, though not particularly exceptional in any area.

"Kagami, is there any particular jutsu you want to learn? I can teach you," Yuki said, turning his attention to the younger Gekko.

Knowing that Itachi, as the son of Fugaku, didn't need much guidance from outsiders, he focused on Kagami.

After thinking for a moment, Kagami replied, "I want to learn the Summoning Jutsu."

Hearing this, Yuki rubbed his stubbled chin and, after a moment's thought, said, "Summoning Jutsu is a good choice. Paired with your Earth Style Wall, it could make you a great support ninja."

"The common types of summoning are animal summoning, where you summon a creature you've made a contract with in the real world; ninja beast summoning, which is similar but involves specially trained ninja animals; and tool summoning, where you can summon non-living items like weapons or supplies in unlimited quantities."

"If you want to learn summoning, I'd recommend tool summoning. It's easier to master and practical when you don't have a powerful ninja beast to summon. For example, during missions, you wouldn't need to carry too much gear, lightening the team's load and improving task efficiency."

"Though it doesn't help directly in combat, supporting logistics is an essential part of being a ninja."

But just as Yuki was passionately explaining the benefits of tool summoning, Kagami suddenly shook his head.

"No, I want to learn animal summoning."