Survival Exercise III

The dishes quickly filled the table. The three of them dug into the grilled meat, while Sakura focused mainly on the vegetables. After a thoroughly satisfying meal, they slowly sipped green tea.

"Sasuke, you still haven't explained what we're supposed to do tomorrow," Sakura said, still worried about what lay ahead.

"Tomorrow morning, make sure you eat breakfast. Then, once we get there, just lie down and sleep," Sasuke said casually.

"But didn't Kakashi-sensei say not to eat breakfast? He even said we'd throw up," Naruto said. He still remembered Kakashi's words—what a rare occasion.

"Heh. From the very beginning, he made it clear that we're opposed to Kakashi-sensei. He wants to stop us from graduating, while we have to graduate. And you actually believed his final hint? If a ninja fights on an empty stomach, their combat ability drops. Besides, what do you think he'll test us on tomorrow? The three major ninja disciplines: ninjutsu, Genjutsu, and Taijutsu. A fight is unavoidable tomorrow. We're three rookies who just graduated, facing a Jonin. Defeat is certain, so he won't be assessing our combat strength. At most, he'll observe our actual combat ability. As for what the real focus of the test is, we'll have to watch and find out tomorrow."

"Wow, Sasuke, you're amazing. You thought of all that," Naruto and Sakura exclaimed.

"Intelligence analysis is a basic requirement for ninja. Once you've done more missions, you'll gain experience too. Of course, don't compare yourselves to a genius like me. Hahaha..." Sasuke completely sank into self-admiration.

Nothing happened that night. The next morning, Sasuke arrived at the training ground after breakfast, and the other two showed up at the same time. Sasuke had never considered being late. After all, punctuality was one of the most basic requirements for a ninja. Kakashi was always late only when he was in the village; he would never make that mistake on a mission.

"Alright, let's go back to sleep. Who knows when sensei will show up?" As he spoke, he set his backpack on the grass, rested his head on it, and immediately started catching up on sleep. Naruto and Sakura looked at each other, then followed his example and lay down to sleep as well. The three of them slept from five until eight, then got up, stretched, and loosened their bodies.

"No way. We've been asleep for hours already. Why hasn't sensei come yet?" Sakura asked.

"We weren't sleeping. We were just lying on the ground conserving our strength. Ninja must always pay attention to preserving their stamina during missions," Sasuke said shamelessly. "Right, we were conserving our strength. But sensei's too late, isn't he?" Naruto first echoed Sasuke, then began complaining.

"Ninja need patience. Do some light warm-ups, then sit down and conserve your strength. The fight later will be tough. Naruto, attack from the front. I'll coordinate with you. Sakura, hold the rear. If sensei uses Genjutsu, make sure you dispel it immediately." Genjutsu was useless against Sasuke now, but he needed to restrain Kakashi, so Sakura would have to dispel it herself before helping Naruto.

"Haha, you finally know how awesome I am," Naruto said smugly.

"It's not because you're awesome. It's because you're too stupid. There's no way I can make you coordinate with my attacks, so I can only coordinate with you," Sasuke continued to tear Naruto down. Naruto kicked up another fuss, then the three of them sat down. After all, they still had a battle against a Jonin ahead of them. The sun was already high in the sky.

"Yo, morning." Kakashi finally arrived. "You're late!" Sakura and Naruto pointed at Kakashi and began accusing him.

"That's because a black cat crossed in front of me..." Kakashi's lousy lie was something no one would believe. Sasuke truly did not understand why he had to make up an excuse every time. The Memorial Stone? It really was a sad place.

"Ahem, anyway, the twelve o'clock rule is now set." With an extremely stiff transition, Kakashi took out an alarm clock and set it for noon. Then he pulled out two Bells and said, "Before noon, you must take these two Bells from me. Only those who get a Bell may eat lunch. Anyone without one will be tied to that post over there and forced to watch the others eat."

Naruto and Sakura thought, So that was why he told us not to eat breakfast. Good thing we listened to Sasuke. "Wait, why are there only two Bells?" Sakura suddenly thought of something and asked.

"Heh heh. Since there are only two Bells, at least one of you will be tied to the post. At the same time, that person will be considered to have failed the mission and be unqualified. Those who fail will be sent back to the academy. Maybe only one of you will fail, but it's also possible that all three of you will be unqualified. You may use Shuriken as well. Unless you come at me with the intent to kill, you won't be able to take the Bells."

"But that's too dangerous, sensei." Girls always worried about certain things, and Sakura felt this was far too dangerous. "Yeah, yeah. Sensei can't even dodge a chalkboard eraser," Naruto added. Sasuke looked at the two of them helplessly. Do you really think three rookies like us can defeat a Jonin?

"That's how people are. The weaker they are, the more they like to talk big. It's fine. Just ignore that dead last," Kakashi said, clearly provoking Naruto. Naruto immediately got angry after hearing that. That single-celled animal was truly a headache, but Sasuke did not stop him. Instead, he used his Sharingan to observe Kakashi's movements. He wanted to see whether he could follow them now that he had Three-Tomoe.

Naruto pulled out a Kunai and gripped it in reverse, charging straight at Kakashi. Kakashi kept watching him, then suddenly vanished. The next instant, he appeared behind Naruto, seized his hand, and turned the Kunai toward the back of Naruto's head. Sasuke's pupils contracted. He had seen Kakashi's movements, and seen them clearly—but whether he could evade them was another matter entirely. Kakashi had deliberately moved quickly to intimidate the three of them. Sasuke estimated that he could not dodge it; he could only change tactics and resist. Is this the strength of a Jonin?

"Don't be in such a hurry. I haven't said start yet," Kakashi said in that same listless tone. He then released Naruto. "Still, you were prepared to kill me. Heh heh, I'm finally starting to like you guys a little. We're starting now. Ready... begin." Yet none of the three moved. They all drew Kunai, with Naruto in front while Sasuke and Sakura approached Kakashi from either side.

Kakashi was somewhat puzzled. Based on what these children had learned at the academy, they should have hidden themselves first—especially Sasuke and Sakura, who scored best in the theory exams every time. So why were they standing in this formation now? Were they planning a joint attack? There were only two Bells. They should not have been cooperating.