"Central Spirit Technique Academy."

"Registration desk," "turn left ahead."

A wooden sign stood in the middle of the road.

Uzumaki Naruto stared at the words and took a deep breath.

What lay ahead was not a mountain of blades or a sea of fire, but merely a school that cultivated "Death Gods." There would be no punishment for failing the assessment, and he could register again next year.

However, Naruto had no good impression of "schools."

His last encounter with a "school" was three years ago.

At that time, he was in another world, attending a "Ninja School" established in a village called "Konoha."

He was the universally disliked "bottom of the class." No one wanted to be his friend, and not a single teacher liked him.

Of course, it was not just in school; outside of school, he faced the same situation throughout Konoha village.

Even shops and convenience stores did not welcome him and refused to do business with him—except for "Ichiraku Ramen," the only place willing to serve him.

So, Naruto did not like school.

But he had a reason he had to register and attend.

This place, different from Konoha, was another world, a place called "Soul Society," where souls reside after death.

Although he had not experienced the "soul burial" described by other souls, he understood the reality: "Coming here means I am already dead."

Death terrifies the living.

But Naruto found it easy to accept this.

He quickly began to like it here—there would be no inexplicable scolding or malice directed solely at him; the shops welcomed his wealth, and many were eager to be his friends.

Most importantly,

after death, souls would return to the "Soul Society," which meant he could finally be in the same world as his parents.

The only downside was that the place where souls were born in Soul Society was not fixed.

There were three hundred sixty areas in Rukongai, and the probability of being born in the same area was only one in three hundred sixty.

Naruto had searched in his living area for three years but had not found his parents.

So... he had to become a Death God.

He wanted to become an impressive figure like a "captain," have a squad to help him search, or have his name resound throughout the Soul Society.

Then he would surely be able to find his parents.

Uzumaki Naruto walked through the school gate with the crowd and filled out the registration form.

Under the guidance of a senior wearing a blue and white uniform, he entered a gymnasium.

Waiting for the number to reach two hundred.

The gymnasium doors closed.

"Spiritual pressure is the essence of a Death God." A formal Death God in a black shihakusho, with a sword at his waist, stood out among the students and introduced this batch of examinees, "Only souls with the ability of spiritual pressure are qualified to study at the Central Spirit Technique Academy."

"According to the order, those whose names I call, please step forward."

"The rest, wait."

The test was straightforward.

Each person just needed to place their hand on a crystal ball, and based on the light it emitted, the Death God would announce different "ranks."

Most would receive the cold, hard "fail."

Those who passed were mostly at "rank seventeen" or "eighteen," which did not please the Death God.

Only a few would receive evaluations of "rank eleven" or "twelve," which would slightly ease the Death God's expression.

Clearly, the smaller the number, the better the rank.

Naruto arrived late and was at the end of the line.

He watched as one by one, people received "fail," with an occasional "pass."

He couldn't help but clench his fists, causing his fingertips to turn red and his knuckles to bulge.

He recognized many people in front of him.

Some were those he had "interacted with," with mutual victories and defeats; these people either failed the test or barely passed with ranks like "eighteen" or "nineteen."

There were others he had not interacted with but were well-known figures.

One woman, who could barely use spiritual power to change the basic structure of spiritual particles and achieve "turning soil into sand," only received a "rank twelve" evaluation.

It was all about talent.

But...

Naruto found it hard to believe he had any "talent."

If he had that, he wouldn't have been disliked at Ninja School; he would certainly have been liked by teachers and classmates like that Uchiha Sasuke guy, even if he wore a frown every day.

Rank twenty!

He at least needed to get a rank of twenty!

To be able to enroll smoothly.

Soon, the Death God called his name: "Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto took heavy steps forward.

Like everyone before him, he placed his hand on the crystal ball.

The Death God casually glanced over, and the senior prepared to record a score of "eighteen," "nineteen," or "fail."

But at that moment, something completely different from everyone else happened.

The crystal ball erupted with intense, brilliant light.

It was dazzling and scorching.

The senior responsible for recording stared wide-eyed, his brush falling to the ground, staining it without him noticing.

The lazy Death God sprang up, full of energy, exclaiming, "Five... rank five!"

The gymnasium erupted in an uproar.

The group of souls who had not yet become Death Gods or even students did not understand what "rank five" meant, but the fact that over a hundred people before had not achieved a rank higher than "ten" was enough to prove how remarkable this rank was.

The lofty Death God’s intense reaction further indicated its exceptional nature.

That inconspicuous blonde kid...

So outstanding?

"Assessment paused." The Death God quickly regained composure and instructed the nearby students, "I will take this one... Uzumaki Naruto outside."

"Maintain order."

The students straightened up and replied, "Yes."

The Death God grabbed Naruto's wrist and stepped outside the gymnasium in an instant.

"Rank five... is that talent?" The rush of wind whistled past his ears, the immense centrifugal force pulling at his body, prompting Naruto to ask.

The Death God chuckled, "Talent?

"It can’t be described so simply."

"Your abilities are unlike those unpolished gems that have yet to shine."

"We've arrived."

He stopped in front of a door and respectfully knocked.

Inside, a voice called, "Come in."

The Death God pushed the door open and, not fully entering, eagerly boasted, "Director Bogang, we have a genius in the new student assessment, rank five spiritual pressure!"

Inside, a middle-aged man with a sunny and kind demeanor stood up: "Rank five?"

"Uzumaki Naruto." The Death God gently pulled Naruto in from outside and emphasized the result again, "Rank five spiritual pressure, I saw it with my own eyes."

Then he turned to Naruto and grinned, "This is the director of the Central Spirit Technique Academy, Bogang Ichiki."

"Are you a bit confused about your talent ranking?"

Naruto nodded.

The Death God continued, "Rank five spiritual pressure means that with some simple training at the Central Spirit Technique Academy, you can easily reach the level of Director Bogang."

Naruto was astonished.

The director's level?

The director must be an impressive figure.

He thought of the only comparison he could make...

Who was the principal of Konoha Ninja School? It seemed to be the Third Hokage?

Could he become someone as remarkable as the Third Hokage?

The Death God chuckled, "To barely become a Death God, you need at least a rank twenty spiritual pressure."

"Rank ten, reaching rank ten spiritual pressure allows you to become a low-ranking officer, like me."

"Rank eight and above can become high-ranking officers, like Director Bogang."

"Before serving as the academy director, Director Bogang had a rank six spiritual pressure and served as the third seat of squad nine."

"And rank five spiritual pressure already meets the requirements for a vice captain."

At this point, the Death God paused, his gaze deep and filled with satisfaction as it fell on Naruto.

"But this still does not fully explain your talent."

"In nearly a hundred years, not to mention having rank five spiritual pressure upon entering, even having rank eight or above upon graduation is rare."

"Even the current captain of squad three, Fengqiao Lou Jirou, and the captain of squad nine, Liucheng Quanxi, only had rank six spiritual pressure upon graduation."

Naruto listened, lost in thought, condensing this long string of words into a simple rhetorical question: "So, I’m a genius?"

Bogang Ichiki laughed heartily, "Not only are you a genius, but you are also a once-in-a-century talent."

"You're still quite young."

"No wonder they brought you to me."

Naruto did not respond, only watching the two celebrating him.

Deep within his ears, a "crack" sound swept out.

Something inside him had been broken.

It felt like... something named "prejudice."