This Meal Had to Be on Kakashi

Naruto had already woken up. Seeing Hinata and Sasuke running over, he immediately shouted, "Hinata, Sasuke, save me! That bastard Teacher Kakashi actually ambushed me!"

Kakashi crouched atop a log and ruffled Naruto's hair. His forehead protector had been pulled down, leaving only his right eye exposed, which gleamed with a roguish smile. He said to Hinata and Sasuke, "Well! Naruto's already tied up. That leaves only the two of you, and I just happen to have only two Bells."

"So... congratulations. You passed!"

Kakashi smiled happily, but only he knew what he was really thinking!

At the very least, he had gone to great lengths to preserve his dignity as a teacher.

Naruto, the softest persimmon, was currently being kneaded and tossed around by Kakashi, completely at his mercy.

Naruto's strength was not actually weak, but he was stupid!

Sasuke suppressed the stirring in his heart and turned to Hinata. "What do we do?"

When Hinata watched the Hokage, what she hated most was how both sides would always chatter endlessly while fighting.

Not only did it take forever, it dragged out the plot.

Why would Hinata waste time chattering with Kakashi? The moment Sasuke finished speaking, Chakra Fists condensed around both her hands as she shouted, "Don't be afraid, Naruto!"

Naruto had seen this move of Hinata's before. How could he not be afraid now?

Naruto struggled with all his strength and cried out, "Hinata, don't! Stop! You'll kill me!"

Let me show you this!

This time, it was a real four twos with two Royal Flushes.

Twenty Gods Vacuum Attack plus Eight Trigrams Mountain Breaker!

Hinata completely ignored Naruto's wails. Her fists shot out decisively, and the azure Chakra Fists vanished in an instant. Five Chakra Rays fired out at once. One targeted Kakashi, while the other four shot in four different directions, sealing off the space around Kakashi where he could dodge.

The moment Hinata revealed her Royal Flush, Kakashi had already lifted his forehead protector and exposed the Sharingan in his left eye. In an instant, he saw through the attack trajectories of all five Mountain Breakers.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The forest behind Kakashi exploded in an instant, with power like five missiles bombarding the ground.

When the smoke cleared, five huge craters had appeared in the ground. The surrounding trees had been destroyed by the blast waves; some had been uprooted, while others had been blown to pieces.

Kakashi glanced back, cold sweat dripping down his forehead. If he had been hit, he really would have died.

Sasuke took the chance to rescue Naruto, and the three of them stood together once more.

"Pant, pant, pant~"

After using two ultimate moves in succession and fighting for so long, Hinata was getting tired too.

Even so, Hinata still had more chakra than Kakashi at the moment.

This was the drawback of lacking combat experience. Hinata had consumed a huge amount of chakra, yet she had not even scratched Kakashi.

Though she had hurt a certain internal organ o(╯□╰)o

No matter how powerful an ultimate move was, it was useless if it could not hit the enemy.

Kakashi looked at the trio helplessly. Although Naruto and Sasuke were far weaker, Hinata was strong. If he could not kill them, there was a real chance that Hinata and the other two could drag things out until he ran out of chakra.

If that happened, it would be truly humiliating.

Hinata was deep in thought as well.

People could be helpless sometimes. For instance, we always ended up becoming the people we hated most without even realizing it.

When Hinata watched the Hokage, aside from Shimura Danzō, the people she hated most were Konoha's two Hokage Advisors.

Yet now, Hinata aspired to become a Hokage Advisor.

When Hinata watched the Hokage, she hated it when both sides chattered endlessly during fights. Yet sometimes, she had no choice but to say a few things.

Hinata looked at Kakashi with a serious expression and said solemnly, "Comrades must be saved."

Naruto chimed in, "Hinata's right!"

Sasuke did not say anything, but it was obvious that he supported Hinata too.

Kakashi seemed to think of something and stood there in a daze for a long time. Then he gave them a thumbs-up and smiled. "Congratulations. All three of you passed!"

"Team 7 will begin taking missions tomorrow!"

Naruto jumped up and shouted, "Awesome!"

Hinata plopped down on the ground. Fighting was seriously exhausting. She wanted to do missions.

She wanted to babysit, she wanted to catch little tigers, she wanted to help neighboring villages buy things. She did not want to fight!

Hinata raised her head toward Kakashi, stars sparkling in her eyes. Deliberately acting cute with a face full of expectation, she said, "Teacher Kakashi, um... to celebrate the founding of Team 7, shouldn't you treat us to a meal?"

"Sure!" Kakashi said with a smile. "Go eat barbecue! It's on me!"

The moment he finished speaking, Kakashi vanished in a puff of smoke with a bang. He had actually been a Shadow Clone!

Hinata, Sasuke, Naruto: "..."

Did you think that would get you out of it?

Hinata got up and called out, "Let's go! We're having barbecue!"

Naruto said weakly, "Teacher Kakashi already left. Who's paying?"

Naruto had no money anyway!

Hinata snorted. "Of course Teacher Kakashi is paying. We're Teacher Kakashi's subordinates, and he promised to treat us. He may not be here, but we can eat on credit, then have Teacher Kakashi settle the bill."

Sasuke frowned. "On credit?"

Would that work?

Hinata lifted her chin and patted her chest in assurance. "As the young lady of the Hyuga Clan, I have some standing and credibility at the BBQ Restaurant."

Of course Hinata had standing in Konoha. Using the name of the young lady of the Hyuga Clan to eat on credit and saying Teacher Kakashi would pay, the BBQ Restaurant owner believed her without a doubt.

Over the past few years, Hinata had spent quite a bit at the BBQ Restaurant.

I, Hinata, am loaded!

The BBQ Restaurant owner was extremely enthusiastic. Young Lady Hinata had just become a Genin and had brought her teammates to celebrate at the BBQ Restaurant, so the owner even gave them several extra plates of meat.

As for why the BBQ Restaurant owner had given them meat...

It was because he had originally wanted to treat them, but Hinata had righteously refused. How could the dignified young lady of the Hyuga Clan possibly eat and drink for free without paying?

This meal had to be on Kakashi.

With no other choice, the BBQ Restaurant owner could only give them a few extra plates of meat as a small gesture of goodwill.

Among the three, Sasuke had the smallest appetite, Naruto was next, and Hinata had the biggest appetite.

With someone else paying, there was nothing to worry about.

Hinata completely let loose and ate to her heart's content. Who knew how many months of Kakashi's salary she would eat up?

After eating and drinking her fill, Naruto leaned back in his chair, clutching his stomach with a satisfied expression.

Sasuke wanted to ask Hinata about training. Today's test had utterly shattered his confidence.

Kakashi being a Jonin was one thing, but Hinata's strength was not much weaker than Kakashi's. How could Sasuke possibly accept that?