As expected, that afternoon, the other teams were quickly taken away by their assigned jōnin instructors.
Only Team 7 remained in the classroom, their instructor nowhere to be seen.
Knowing how the story unfolded, Naruto didn’t become impatient like his original counterpart.
Instead, he quietly sat in his seat and entered meditation.
Although Sasuke was growing slightly restless inside, none of it showed on his cold expression.
His usual aloof demeanor hid it completely.
As for Sakura, simply being able to admire Sasuke’s handsome face was enough to satisfy her.
She spent the entire time daydreaming about how she would win his heart.
In that state, she had absolutely nothing else on her mind.
Such a waste of a brilliant student’s intelligence.
________________
Two hours later…
A tuft of silver hair finally appeared at the classroom door.
“Sorry.
I got a little lost on the road of life.”
Even with half his face covered by a mask, everyone could tell Kakashi was smiling.
His exposed right eye had narrowed into a cheerful crescent.
Not the slightest hint of sincerity could be found in his apology.
Black lines immediately appeared on Sakura’s and Sasuke’s faces.
Naruto simply opened his eyes calmly before glancing out the window.
“So…
they’ve finally withdrawn the surveillance.”
The moment Kakashi arrived, the two ANBU who had been secretly watching Naruto disappeared.
Clearly, the Third Hokage believed that with Kakashi taking charge, constant ANBU surveillance was no longer necessary.
It was obvious how much Hiruzen trusted Kakashi.
For Kakashi, however…
That trust would eventually prove to be rather unfortunate.
“You’re obviously lying…”
Sakura muttered quietly.
To a jōnin, however, whispering and speaking normally were practically the same.
Kakashi heard every word.
Still, he simply waved it off.
“Anyway…
follow me.”
________________
The three students followed Kakashi onto the rooftop terrace.
“Let’s begin with introductions.”
Kakashi casually sat atop the railing.
Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura each found a place to sit on the steps below him.
“What exactly are we supposed to say?” Sakura asked.
“Hmm?
Didn’t you introduce yourselves when you first entered school?” Kakashi replied.
“Things like your likes, dislikes, dreams, hobbies…
that sort of thing.”
Sasuke looked at him coolly.
“Shouldn’t the teacher introduce himself before asking everyone else to?”
“Exactly.”
Sakura nodded immediately.
“You’re the suspicious one here.”
“Oh?
Me?”
Kakashi blinked in mock surprise before lazily replying.
“My name is Hatake Kakashi.”
“My likes and dislikes…
classified.”
“My dreams…
not really any.”
“My hobbies…”
“I have quite a few.”
“…”
After a brief silence…
“So all we learned was his name.”
Sakura couldn’t help complaining to Naruto and Sasuke.
________________
Kakashi ignored her.
“Alright.
Let’s start from the right.”
His gaze landed on Naruto.
Naruto answered calmly.
“My name is Uzumaki Naruto.”
“My dream…”
“Of course it’s to become Hokage.”
“I like delicious food.”
“I dislike bad food.”
“As for hobbies…”
“I’d say fishing.”
“Your dream is becoming Hokage, huh…”
Kakashi stared at Naruto.
For some reason…
The way Naruto said it lacked any passion whatsoever.
It sounded almost as though he were simply reciting a line.
“Is this kid putting on an act?” Kakashi wondered.
________________
“Next.”
He looked toward Sasuke.
“My name is Uchiha Sasuke.”
“I dislike many things.”
“I don’t particularly like anything.”
“As for dreams…”
“Dreams are just empty words.”
“I’m not interested in them.”
“I have an ambition.”
“I will restore the Uchiha Clan…”
“…and kill that man.”
When he uttered those last words…
A terrifying killing intent erupted from his body.
“Kill that man…”
“The one who destroyed the Uchiha Clan?”
Sakura knew about the massacre.
At the time, she had been genuinely worried about Sasuke.
However…
That was all she knew.
She had never investigated further.
She didn’t know that “that man” was also an Uchiha.
Nor did she know that he was Sasuke’s own older brother—
Itachi Uchiha.
Completely smitten with Sasuke, Sakura simply thought his desire for revenge looked incredibly cool.
She never stopped to consider just how tragic it really was.
“Just as expected…”
Kakashi thought quietly.
He soon returned to his usual lazy expression.
“Alright.”
“Now it’s the girl’s turn.”
________________
Sakura blushed.
“My name is Haruno Sakura.”
“What I like is…”
“Or rather…”
“The person I like is…”
“My dream is…”
“Should I even say it…?”
“Ahhh!”
She suddenly squealed in embarrassment, her eyes constantly drifting toward Sasuke.
Watching her introduction dissolve into romantic fantasies…
Kakashi could only sigh inwardly.
“At this age…”
“Girls care far more about romance than ninjutsu.”
________________
“That’s enough introductions.”
“Starting tomorrow, we’ll begin our missions.”
Naruto remained perfectly calm.
Sasuke rested his chin on his clasped hands, silently watching Kakashi.
Sakura looked at him expectantly.
Kakashi rolled his eye.
“These three…”
“Don’t they know they’re supposed to react when someone is talking?”
________________
“First…”
“The mission will involve only the four of us.”
“What mission?” Sakura asked curiously.
Kakashi gave her an approving look.
“Finally, someone is responding.”
His expression suddenly turned serious.
His visible eye sharpened.
“Field Survival Exercise.”
“Field survival?”
“Why would we do that?”
“We practiced survival exercises all the time at the Academy.”
“This isn’t an ordinary exercise.”
“Your opponent…”
“…will be me.”
His tone remained grave, making it sound like an extremely important test.
“There’s more than one kind of survival exercise?”
Sakura asked, puzzled.
“Heh…
heh…
heh…”
Kakashi let out an eerie laugh.
“Sensei…”
“Please don’t laugh like that.”
“You’re creeping me out.”
Goosebumps spread across Sakura’s arms.
“Oh, there are definitely different kinds.”
“If I told you everything now…”
“I’m certain all of you would quit.”
“Is it really that terrifying?”
Sakura swallowed nervously.
________________
“Among the thirty Academy graduates…”
“Only nine will actually become genin.”
“The rest…”
“…will be sent back to the Academy for further training.”
“This test has an elimination rate…”
“…of seventy percent.”
The numbers alone shocked both Sasuke and Sakura.
“Heh.”
“See?”
“You want to quit already, don’t you?”
Kakashi smirked.
After recovering from her shock, Sakura protested.
“Then doesn’t that make the graduation exam meaningless?”
“It was merely a preliminary screening.”
“Did you really think becoming a ninja would be as simple as passing such an easy test?”
“…Huh?”
Sakura was completely dumbfounded.
________________
“That’s all.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow at the training ground.”
“I’ll determine whether you pass or fail.”
“Don’t forget to bring your ninja equipment.”
“And skip breakfast.”
“Otherwise…”
“You’re going to throw it back up.”
This time…
Only Naruto remained completely unmoved by Kakashi’s warning.
Neither Sasuke nor Sakura dared underestimate him anymore.
“I’ve written the details here.”
Kakashi handed each of them a sheet of paper.
One for Naruto.
One for Sasuke.
One for Sakura.
“See you tomorrow.”
With those words, Kakashi smiled and vanished in a Body Flicker.
As soon as Kakashi disappeared, Naruto stood up as well.
“Well then.”
“See you tomorrow.”
He casually tossed the instruction sheet aside, stepped onto the railing, and jumped off the rooftop.
Sasuke watched him leave.
Without another glance, he crumpled his own paper into a ball and walked away as well.
“Sasuke-kun, wait for me!”
Sakura hurried after him.